Recent Comments:
If AT&T loses iPhone exclusivity, Apple will gain {The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)}
Oct 19th 2009 5:11PM This is not as easy as it sounds.
In other countries, every carrier operates the same GSM network on the same bands. (900/1800/2100) So they existing iphone hardware can be opened up to multiple carriers in a country no problem.
In the US, all 4 major carriers operate a different setup from each other. So the existing iphone is a GSM version running the world bands listed above with 850/1900 added for ATT.
Tmobile is the only other GSM carrier in the US, but they use the 1700 band for 3G, which the current iphone does not have. Verizon and Sprint are even bigger problems as they run CDMA networks.
So in order for Apple to get a iphone on other US carriers, it has to manufacture another set of hardware specs in the phone. A Tmobile version would be easiest since they could use the existing GSM iphone 3GS and just add a 1700 band to the setup. But Tmobile is also the smallest of the US carriers.
Verizon is not helping it's cause with the iphone bashing, and the Verizon CEO reportedly laughed at Steve Jobs when he approached them about possibly carrying the first iphone with the now defunct profit sharing plan. So there is some bad blood there.
But let's say Steve and Apple can look past Verizon's insults and are still willing to make a Verizon capable iphone. The problem is that Verizon has already announced they are moving to LTE (which ATT and the rest of the world will also run) for their 4G network, and that they'd be rolling it out starting in 2010. So why would Apple want to invest money in a CDMA version of their phone right now? A CDMA version would carry a lower profit margin since they couldn't buy as large of quantities of discount CDMA chips as they can GSM chips.
So why not wait until late 2010 and then come out with a iphone 4G that supports worldwide LTE networks? That way Apple still only has to manufacture one version of the iphone and it will run on 3 of the 4 US carriers, as well as the rest of the world's networks.
Sprint is pretty much out of luck since they chose to go with WiMax for 4G.
So yes, it's frustrating that other countries get multiple carrier choices now. But that's not necessarily Apple's fault. If the US standardized it's carriers the way Europe and Asia did, we wouldn't have this problem. The iphone will eventually be on other US carriers, but it will probably only happen once Apple comes out with a new hardware version of the iphone, and that's not likely until summer 2010 at the earliest.
Verizon confirms: Palm Pre hitting Big Red "early next year" {Engadget Mobile}
Oct 17th 2009 3:54PM Why would I want a CDMA phone that doesn't work anywhere else in the world?
Call me when the GSM Pre is available in America. I'll start caring about Verizon when they light up LTE and gets on a worldwide standard.
Say It & Mail It: iPhone voice memos on steroids {The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)}
Sep 17th 2009 2:43PM The Note2Self app does the voice & email & gps even easier.
News apps! Get your News apps! {The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)}
Jun 29th 2009 11:41AM I can't believe you skipped the Wall Street Journal News app!
I used to use teh USA Today app, but switched when WSJ's came out.
It's cleaner than USA Todays, and has more real news. 1/2 of what's in USA Today is sports and Hollywood 'news', and the News and Money tabs have only a few more categories.
WSJ has FAR more news from every possible category in Business, Politics, Economy, Technology, World news, and everything in between. they don't have the cool slider bar, but you can customize your favorite categopries as tabs at the bottom, so you can actually access them in 1 tap, not 2 like USA Today's. And if you want to jump to a section you do not have set up in your tabs, you just tap 'More' and then the category. Still only 2 taps, just like USA Today's.
USA Today has all the color coordinated sections just like their newspaper does, and the WSJ app is all black. So if you're more into looks than content, the USA Today app might be your thing. But if you want the best access to News, it's hard to beat the WSJ app.
Apple updates Time Capsule and AirPort Base Station firmware {The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)}
Jun 24th 2009 10:16AM Huh? MacBook works with my Maxtor external USB drive just fine.
Ultrasn0w for 3G, OS 3.0 is out -- 3GS not yet {The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)}
Jun 23rd 2009 12:41PM This is useless in the US, in my opinion.
For all the reasons you mention... it can't run on Verizon or Sprint anyway, so unlocking only gives you access to Tmobile here in the US. But the iphone has no 1700 mhz radio, which is what Tmobile uses in the US for 3G. So it will max out at Edge speeds on Tmobile. Who wants that?
Unfortunately, we are stuck with AT&T for any 3G use in the US unless Apple comes out with a iphone that has a 1700 mhz radio or an LTE iphone that will run on Verizon's 4G network. But neither will happen until 2010 at the earliest.
So unlocking your iphone is really only useful if you travel to Europe or Asia and want to use a pre-paid SIM instead of pay AT&T's international roaming rates.
However, the jailbreaking part is still very useful. I love my Itelliscreen app!
Notes in iPhone OS 3.0: getting rid of that syncing feeling {The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)}
Jun 22nd 2009 7:23PM Hmm, that's strange. I use a Windows PC and Outlook notes, and it syncs through iTunes to my iphone just fine.
All I did was click the checkbox and click Apply, and everything loaded. So if yours is greyed out, something is wrong. I'd call Apple support.
Notes in iPhone OS 3.0: getting rid of that syncing feeling {The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)}
Jun 22nd 2009 7:18PM You can do this directly in iTunes as well. You don't have to go to iSync.
So for Windows users without iSync, it can still be edited.
Shazam updated to 1.7, adds location awareness {The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)}
Jun 19th 2009 10:40AM I still prefer Midomi.
It's also been updated a bunch, and also includes GPS and Twitter features, as well as Facebook.
But even better, it also let's you search for songs in other ways than just listening to it.
Midomi amazingly let's you hum or sing a song yourself, and it will almost always still find it! It also let's you type in a keyword, artist, lyric, etc and will do a search. All of these are great when you are trying to think 'who sings that song that goes like this...' ?
Much more flexible that limiting you to only find the song while it's playing over some speakers.
Plus, Midomi has been doing a ton of search optimizations. So the app runs about 4 times faster than it use to in finding songs, and runs much faster than Shazam now. In fact, it's so much faster and offers so many features, I finally stopped using Shazam at all and deleted it from my iPhone.
If you haven't given Midomi a try, you should.
AT&T revises 3G S iPhone upgrade policy {The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)}
Jun 17th 2009 2:33PM This does not help 3G owners at all.
I bought my 3G the very first day it went on sale, and AT&T just told
me that I'm still not eligible until March 2010. So apparrently the
only people elibigle are ones that bought an original iphone before
spring 2008, and did not extend their contract to get a 3G.
Sounds nice for PR purposes, but a useless gesture for most of us.
