For all the Ahab-centric Apple enthusiasts that have been anxiously searching for their white whale (AKA the White iPhone 4) your search will come to an end on Wednesday. Hopefully the white iPhone 4 won’t kill you like Moby Dick killed Captain Ahab.
According to leaked documents from the Best Buy inventory system the phone is finally coming after months and months of delays. This is good news for Apple, as the release of the iPhone 5 has likely been pushed back to September rather than the usual June release date. This should give Apple a “new” product to lean on for a few extra months.
The delays have been attributed to manufacturing difficulties. Apple co-Founder Steve Wozniak shed a little more light on the subject, suggesting that the white paint allowed too much light in when taking a picture, creating poor photo quality.
That didn’t stop one industrious high school student in New York City from ordering white iPhone 4 parts from Foxconn in China and selling them as iPhone conversion kits. He made an insane amount of money before Apple’s lawyers threatened a lawsuit if he didn’t take down the site.
Given the recent supply shortages of Apple products, it would be surprising to see very many of these elusive white iPhones in stockrooms. Inevitably that means some lines will be forming in front of retail stores around the country. And as soon as folks pick up that white iPhone, the first thing they’ll do is slap an iPhone case on it, making it impossible for anyone other than them to tell that they have a white iPhone 4.
If you always feel like somebody’s watching you, then you have a lot in common with Rockwell, and with good reason if you own a smartphone. That someone watching you is named Steve Jobs and he is fascinated at how many trips to Starbucks you are taking each and every day.
It was recently revealed that devices equipped with iOS 4 have been using the GPS feature on your phone to keep a log of everywhere you’ve been. The data can go back months and months, and is stored in a “consolidated.db” file. The translation to that basically goes a little something like this. Every time you sync your phone with a computer, the stop by stop tracking your phone has been doing of your whereabouts is backed up on that computer.
The same group that figured out that Apple devices were tracking people’s movements have also found a similar feature in Android. They have determined that this data is being collected intentionally.
Why this data is being tracked is unclear, but has caught the interested of the Government. Sen. Al Franken (MN) has already sent a letter to Apple CEO, Steve Jobs, to inquire about the privacy breach.
Consumer privacy has been a hot button issue on Capitol Hill as both houses of congress are trying to pass consumer protection legislation that would give cell phone users the option to opt out of ad targeting campaigns. Ad targeting tracks a users web browsing habits as well as their age, race, sex and location. That information is then sent to advertising agencies who can then send advertisements specifically targeted to the user.
So yes, the next time you feel that big brother is watching you just watch Rockewell’s video and know that you aren’t alone. Somebody is tracking your every move.
My sister would love this if it managed to permeate to her local farmers market. And I’m sure there are plenty of people out there who would love to see the proliferation of Square’s cute little cell phone accessory that turns any iPhone into a credit card reader.
Square has been around for awhile. But now it has made its way into Apple stores across the country. And at just $9.95, it’s hard to imagine any small merchant not wanting to take advantage of the ability to take credit cards with a very portable device.
The device plugs into the 3.5 mm audio jack, just like a hands free headset would. And with a subscription to Square’s service, even the 7-year-old down the street with her own lemonade stand can take your credit card as payment.
Square also sells an Android compatible device. They charge a flat fee per transaction. There are literally hundreds, if not thousands of ways this will help small business and independent contractors.
Rumors are swirling that the iPhone 5 will come with an aluminum back – and the town’s people rejoiced. Perhaps Apple thinks that an aluminum back is more aesthetically pleasing than the glass backing on the iPhone 4. Or perhaps they are tired of hearing how the glass backing on the iPhone 4 holds up to a grain of sand about as well as I can hold up to a right cross from Mike Tyson.
It’s true, it was reported and confirmed that something as small as a grain of sand could crack the back of the iPhone 4 if it got trapped between the casing and certain slider cell phone cases. That crack eventually would cause the phone to shatter. Ironic that Apple accessories designed to protect the phone were contributing to its destruction.
Another major flaw in the iPhone 4 was the antenna, which when held a certain way caused calls to be dropped. This widely became known as the ‘death grip.’ This issue is rumored to have been resolved as well, as the iPhone 5 is expected to use an internal antenna.
Obviously these are all rumors, and the iPhone 5 isn’t expected to be released until June/July, so lots can change. But if the rumors are true, Apple might actually be listening to critics and making changes rather than just do whatever the heck they want to do.
Smartphones still make up the minority of cell phones in use in the United States. The fact that there are still so many cell phone users out there using feature phones demonstrates just how big of an untapped market there is for Google (Android), RIM (Blackberry), Apple and Microsoft (WP7).
As you can see by the graph above, Android is the most popular mobile operating system in the US, and has achieved that status despite being the youngest player in the game. Of the Android army, HTC phones are the most popular a surprising figure considering the popularity of the Motorola Droid line of phones on Verizon, the nation’s biggest carrier.
Apple is a close second, and should see a bit of a surge through the first half of the year as Verizon just launched the iPhone 4 and is expected to sell as many as 11 million iPhones this year.
Tied with Apple is RIM’s Blackberry OS. But Blackberry phones have seen a steady decline since the rise of Android and there really isn’t any indication that they can stop their fall from grace.
Microsoft comprises a surprising 10% of all smartphone users in the US. But that figure includes their Original Windows mobile platform in addition to the newly launched WP7. Bringing up the rear are HP/Palm’s Web OS and Nokia’s Symbian, who carry less than 10% of the market combined.
That low figure is exactly why Nokia recently announced that they are dumping Symbian in favor of Windows Phone 7. Whether that move results in a greater market share remains to be seen. For now, it really is a two horse race between Android and Apple with Blackberry fading fast.
The iPad 2 was officially unveiled today by King Jobs and that sound you heard was third party iPad accessories manufacturers jumping for joy and screaming like little girls. Third party manufacturers have made boatloads of money on the back of the original iPad, and there is no reason to believe that they won’t be raking in the moolah with the second generation device either.
Apple is looking to make a few bucks on accessories themselves, as they introduced a full line of iPad covers in every color of the rainbow, with a snazzy magnetic closure. The covers are only designed to protect the screen and flip around and serve as a kickstand for the iPad 2 when not covering the screen.
Apple also introduced a new HDMI data cable that will allow users to connect their iPad 2 to their televisions. The best part about the HDMI cable is that it is backwards compatible with the original iPad, the iPhone 4, and the latest generation iPod touches.
The iPad 2 goes on sale on March 11th and will be available in both black and white. It’s thinner than the iPhone 4 (not a typo) and features a front facing camera and a dual core processor. Oh, and it will cost exactly the same as the original iPad did when it first came out – $499.
One of the biggest knocks against Apple is that there products are so much more expensive than their competitors. Those complaints haven’t fallen on deaf ears. According to Apple’s COO, Tim Cook, the company wants to be ‘for everyone’ not ‘just for the rich’.
In a recent interview, Cook revealed that cheaper iPhones were on the way and that Apple may even come out with no contract phones available on a pre paid basis.
That would be great news for third party cell phone accessory makers who are already making millions off of the popularity of the iPhone. If pricing makes Apple phones available to more of a mass market, then there are several companies who could reap a windfall of cash, not just Apple.
Of course nothing concrete has been set, or a timeframe set for when we can expect to see these cheaper devices. But rumors have definitely been swirling the past month or so. It started with the rumor than an iPhone nano was on the way that was ½ the size of the current iPhone. Those rumors were quickly debunked, but clearly the electronics giant is looking towards more budget friendly phones in the future.
Why people get so geeked up about a White iPhone is still beyond the scope of my understanding, however they do – to extreme levels actually. Technically you can get a white iPhone 4 faceplate and accomplish the same visual effect. And while I realize that it’s not the same thing, the idea of waiting months upon months for a phone color variant that may or may not ever come to fruition seems nothing short of whacky.
The white iPhone 4 has been rumored for a long time. Each time those rumors proved to be cruel jokes. People got so impatient that a high school senior managed to buy a bunch of white iPhone 4 components direct from Foxconn in China and started selling conversion kits online. Amongst his customers was Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak. The Woz got in before Apple forced the kid to shut down his website, threatening to charge him with possession of stolen goods if he didn’t.
Well, the white iPhone 4 simply won’t die, and we finally may have reason to believe that it is officially coming next month. Rumors first started to abound when employees of Vodofone Germany leaked a screenshot of their inventory list featuring the white iPhone. Rogers Canada also has the white iPhone 4 in their inventory system. And within hours of those leaks, a similar screenshot was leaked by Best Buy employees here in the US, with a release date of February 27th. The sheer number of carriers/retailers that are adding the white iPhone to their inventory systems at the same time tends to lend some credence to the rumors.
Good news for you holdouts. You’ll probably be able to pick up the white iPhone 4 a mere 4 months before the iPhone 5 comes out. Yay.
If you happen to live anywhere in the US where winter is accompanied by below freezing temperatures, don’t use your iPhone 4 outside. Apparently a woman in Norway had her phone completely shatter when she pulled it out to make a phone call. When she took it into her local Apple store they told her tough noogies, the iPhone 4 wasn’t built to withstand sub freezing temperatures. They also claim that the phone isn’t designed to withstand temperatures above 95 degrees.
Pretty much, if you don’t live in San Diego, CA, your phone runs the risk of being destroyed by nature. We already have read how a single grain of sand caught between the glass backing of the iPhone 4 and certain slider iPhone cases can cause the device to shatter. But this is just plain ridiculous.
To be fair, there really is no indication of how long the woman had her phone exposed to extreme temperatures, but should that really matter? More than 90% of the US experiences sub freezing temperatures for several months out of the year. Are people who live in these places only supposed to use their phones inside lest the risk voiding their phone’s warranty?
Hopefully the iPhone 5 won’t be more fragile than the bubble boy. But knowing Apple’s obsession with aesthetics, we aren’t holding our breath.
Perhaps it was consumer demand that is driving Apple’s hardware manufacturers. Or perhaps it is the fact that a high school senior in New York bought a bunch of white iPhone 4 accessories, figured out how to assemble them, and has made a small fortune selling them that is driving Apple. Whatever the case may be, the white iPhone 4 is coming this Spring.
We’ve heard all of this before from Apple. Their excuses thus far as to what the white iPhone 4 hasn’t come out have been that manufacturing the devices has been a bit more difficult that they had anticipated. But then a 17-year-old kid managed to buy parts direct from Foxcon in China, and sold them online along with a kit on how to assemble the parts to make your own white iPhone. That didn’t last too long as Apple is threatening to charge him with selling stolen property if he keeps on doing business.
If you’re anything like us, you’re not quite sure why someone would go to such lengths to get a different color phone. And we’re not the only ones who feel that way.
But the fact remains that the white iPhone is one of the most talked about phones in the blogosphere. If I were you, I’d wait until this white beauty makes its way to Verizon. According to Consumer Reports, AT&T is the worst carrier in the US. Consumer Reports rated the 5 biggest carriers in 10 different categories, ranging from call quality to customer service product knowledge. AT&T finished dead last in all 10 categories. US Cellular, the smallest of the 5 carriers by a wide margin, scored the highest. Verizon, Sprint and T-Mobile finished 2nd, 3rd and 4th respectively with fairly even scores across the board.