Apple Macbook

Not content to sit back and enjoy the many feature upgrades of iPhone 3.0’s official release, iPhone users worldwide exchanged various methods for enabling tethering on their phones Thursday, pulling an end-around on carriers who failed to have tethering plans in place for Wednesday’s release of the new firmware.

Even prior to the official release of the new operating software for Apple’s popular mobile devices Wednesday, 9 to 5 Mac had published detailed instructions for enabling tethering, which AT&T - iPhone’s exclusive carrier in the US - does not at present officially support.

In response to questions about tethering with iPhone 3.0, Mark Siegel, AT&T’s Executive Director of Media Relations told Cult of Mac Thursday “anything to do with the software and what it can or can’t do is an area that Apple needs to comment on.” He had no further comment from AT&T regarding tethering on the iPhone, other than to reiterate that “We will offer a tethering plan in the future but have not set a date at this time.”

Tethering is a process that allows two devices to share an internet connection over a carrier’s data network, seen in many cases as preferable to using insecure public WiFi connections. Carriers typically offer tethering plans that increase a customer’s monthly spend from between $15 and $30 per month for the access to extra data, which can be limited to 500MB on the low end of the price range, up to unlimited extra data at the high end.

AT&T at present already charges iPhone customers $30 per month over and above the cost of a calling plan for “unlimited data,” which many believe is exorbitant in the light of how much data a user typically accesses with normal browsing and emailing on the phone.

Be sure to let us know in comments below if you’ve downloaded the config files necessary to enable tethering on your phone, whether tethering is an important option for you to have, and what you’d be willing to pay to have it legitimately.

This article is copyright Cultomedia Corp.

Art students at Catholic Memorial High School in Waukesha, Wisconsin have hung out their works as iPhone wallpaper to help fund arts education.

The student art gallery, at the moment a little sparse with just 10 works, is available as wallpaper for $0.99 on iTunes. The CMHS app was created by Start Mobile, the folks behind many wallpaper apps from Shepard Fairey to Drop Dead Sexy Devils, who agreed to donate the proceeds.

“Raising the money to fully fund our school’s budgets is increasingly difficult in this challenging economy,” said Kathleen Hanlon Sampon, an art teacher at CMHS. “The added income from this innovative opportunity will help to ensure the ongoing strength of our department.”

The school’s 770 students are currently able to choose from 15 art courses per year ranging from studio arts to digital imagery.

This article is copyright Cultomedia Corp.

Apple finally made the iPhone 3.0 firmware update available to US customers Wednesday afternoon and anecdotal reports indicate the company’s servers are working hard to meet the demand.

A few readers indicated problems with their downloads timing-out in the comment thread on our review of the software, other readers in a thread at MacRumors indicated painfully slow download speeds for the 230MB file — though some also indicated lightning quick experiences as fast as one minute to download.

I happened to be caught out and about this afternoon and found even getting to the iTunes app store was problematic over a public WiFi connection. Before attempting to fetch iPhone 3.0 I tried downloading a free iTunes U Summer Mix of music, which I gave up on after 3 ‘network connection re-set’ error messages and figured trying to update my iPhone would be fruitless.

How about you? Are you running the software now? Any problems with the download? Let us know in comments below.

This article is copyright Cultomedia Corp.

AT&T announced limited changes to its general upgrade policy Wednesday, extending ‘eligibility’ for subsidized pricing on the new iPhone 3G S to some current customers who signed service contracts on the 3G model less than one year ago.

The changes come in response to the great number of complaints that arose after the company announced subsidized pricing on the new iPhone ($199 for 16GB, $299 for 32GB) would only be extended to new customers signing a two year service commitment and to current customers who are ‘eligible’ for a hardware upgrade when they want to purchase a new 3G S model.

The standard upgrade policy has always been vague, with AT&T allowing only that “In general, the more a customer spends with us, the quicker they become eligible for a price break on a new device.”

The announcement released Wednesday stated “iPhone customers who spend more than $99 a month per line with us generally are eligible for an upgrade between 12 and 18 months into their contract,” which is vague enough, but the company will offer, beginning Thursday June 18, subsidized pricing on new iPhone 3G S phones to “customers who are upgrade eligible in July, August or September 2009.”

Further confusing the issue, AT&T offers “early” upgrade pricing of $299 (16GB) and $399 (32GB) for the 3G S model to customers who qualify. The company has an upgrade eligibility wizard on its site that tells current customers when they are eligible to different hardware options based on its secret algorithm weighing length of AT&T contract, how much money a customer spends per month, possibly one’s credit score, etc.

[Silicon Alley Insider]

This article is copyright Cultomedia Corp.

It may take Microsoft three tries to get things right, but the same is also sometimes true of Apple.

The iPhone 3.0 OS — a free update available on Wednesday for all iPhone owners — is a good example. Finally the iPhone has several must-have features it previously lacked, especially tethering, making the 3.0 software an essential upgrade.

But the real pleasure is in the details. The 3.0 software includes a bunch of tweaks and small improvements that makes the iPhone experience extremely slick and polished. It seems silly, but I got as big a kick out of UI tweaks in the iPod interface as show-stoppers like cut-and-paste.

Still, overall, the iPhone 3.0 OS turns the iPhone from a nifty gadget into a real computing device. The iPhone is now truly a pocket Mac for the twenty-first century.

I’ve been playing with a pre-release version of the iPhone OS for a few days, though the build is exactly the same as the one available Wednesday.

We tested a bunch of features, including tethering — a really killer feature that AT&T won’t officially support until later this summer — but can be enabled now via a hack. (Likewise MMS. It can be enabled, but we didn’t have a chance to test it.)

Tethering

Tethering was dead easy to set up. Simply turn it on in Settings>General>Network>Internet Tethering.

Then as soon as you plug the iPhone into your computer, the machine detects a new network interface, which you enable in System Preferences. Hit “Apply,”  and the computer can now use the iPhone’s data connection.

In my tests, the connection speed wobbled from passable to painfully slow, but that has more to do with AT&T’s piss-poor network in my part of town. Others report surprisingly fast tethering speeds.

Still, it was fast enough to work with, and I’m very grateful for the freedom. No more overpriced hotel Internet charges for me, although I will be paying AT&T overpriced fees for the feature.

Cut, Copy and Paste

Cut, copy and paste is surprisingly very easy to use. I did zero research how to use it before just jabbing my finger at some words on the screen. Low and behold, up came the cut/paste dialog when I held on a word, allowing me to select a block of text by sliding a pair of markers to the beginning and end of the text I wanted. Switch applications, and the paste dialog comes up when you double tap in an empty space. Cutting and pasting pictures is just as easy.

Apple was right to delay cut/paste until it got it right, I guess. And it did get it right. It couldn’t be easier, especially “select all.”

The best thing? Shake to undo — a small and insignificant thing, but one those little touches that make 3.0 a real joy to use.

Landscape Keyboard

I’ve been waiting two years for the landscape keyboard in email, and now thank Zarg it’s finally here. Writing is so much easier with the wider keyboard. And it now works across all writing apps — notes, SMS and Safari.

Universal Search and Voice Memos

Features like Universal Search and the new Voice Memo app work as advertised. On the Home Screen, slide the screen all the way to the right and universal search pops up, allowing you to search across apps, email, notes, songs, videos, and so on. I’ve yet to find a real use for this — quickly finding email, I suppose — but it works fast and appears to find everything appropriate to the search.

The Voice Memo App is also nicely implemented and works well.  Hit the Record button and yack away. But like search, I’ve not yet discovered a good use for it. Maybe email myself a little reminder when driving the car and can’t tap out an email.

The Little Touches

Here’s that little UI tweak I mentioned earlier — a little glowing spot when you scrub through a long track on the iPod. It’s so much more polished than the plain dot and bar.

Likewise, I really enjoy the shake to shuffle. Don’t like what’s playing? Just shake the iPhone to shuffle another random track.

Autofill for usernames and passwords in Safari is another small but useful and time saving feature. Filling out forms on the iPhone is a royal pain, now made a little less painful.

Why You Should Upgrade

The iPhone 3.0 OS is an incremental but important update. Many of the iPhone’s previous pain points have been eliminated, and the many small tweaks make the familiar iPhone experience just that bit more pleasurable.

It all adds up to a full-featured operating system that makes the iPhone a truly capable computing device. I wrote half of this review on it (and would have posted the entire review if I could have easily uploaded the screenshots). Just wait until developers start to roll out their new software apps.

Score: Nine out of ten black turtlenecks.

This article is copyright Cultomedia Corp.

Are you ready to see this on your iPhone?

The Apple blogosphere percolated with spitting and popping yesterday after Daring Fireball reported that iPhone and iPod Touch users might find reasons to be excited about the impending release of QuickTime X in Snow Leopard.

The possibility of native .flv file support in QuickTime X meant that support for Flash video - probably the biggest item remaining on many people’s wish-list for iPhone - could soon be a reality for Apple’s mobile device users. The story was picked up by TechCrunch and we were off to the races.

Turns out to have been a false alarm, triggered by an over-eager post at Cateto blog, occasioned by a bit of software confusion, but still…

The point here is that with Perian, a free open source plug-in for QuickTime, Flash on the iPhone and iPod Touch would be conceivable, no matter the difficulty of Apple and Adobe executives and legal departments finding a way to get on the same page about it all.

Just one more reason why we lurve open source.

This article is copyright Cultomedia Corp.

Artist David Scott Leibowitz — whose impressionistic works for the iPhone were recently featured on CoM — teamed up with developer Andrew C. Stone for an app billed as the first mobile iPhone art gallery.

Called iCreated, the app ($.99 for the first week, $1.99 after that) comes preloaded with 18 works by Leibowitz. Other artists, like Russ Croop, who like to use the iPhone are also featured — and all of the works tell you what was used to make them, should you want to try your hand. Users can upload their own doodles to the public gallery and save or email them.

While the iCreated selection can’t trump sites like Poolga, which offers hundreds of slick wallpapers from designers and illustrators gratis, compared to some paid iPhone wallpaper apps it offers a little push to try some art of your own and share it.

So if you’ve downloaded Brushes, were inspired by the New Yorker cover, now’s the time to get busy.

This article is copyright Cultomedia Corp.

Always on the lookout for cheap, do-it-yourself iPhone crafts, this combo stand/charger dock from a stack of old CDs is one more way to prop up your device without depleting your wallet.

Jules made it from CDs (you’ll need about 15 total), he notes that you can use DVDs, too and that the dock will work for iPods as well.

The iPhone stands tall over the shiny stack of CDs while plugged into the charging cord.
The CD stand is bit more challenging to make than the rubber band and pencil version we wrote about awhile back — you’ll need a small rotary tool to cut the CDs so you can anchor the charging cord properly — but a nice way to do something with those old CDs.

Full how-to at Geeky Gadgets

This article is copyright Cultomedia Corp.

Queensland Univ. of Technology, Brisbane, Australia

Queensland University of Technology, one of the largest universities in Australia, has published health and safety concerns about Apple Macintosh glass or high gloss monitor screens, and recommends students and school employees “consider the purchase of other types of monitors which are not high gloss.”

Because reflections on the screens “could cause the operator to adopt awkward postures when viewing the monitor screen and using related equipment,” which awkward poatures “may in turn lead to an injury,” health and safety officials at the university have come out against the controversial Apple products and published detailed computer safety guidelines for members of the university community.

Howls of protest among many users accompanied Apple’s decision to discontinue matte screen options for its monitor products in 2007, largely from professional photographers and other users who process graphic images in their work, despite some who believe the glossy surface produces more saturated colours, deeper contrast, and sharper images than traditional matte displays.

Asked what might have spurred the university to publish an official position in the matter, Cult of Mac contacts in Australia pointed out that Australian employers must provide workers’ compensation for injuries sustained in the workplace under strict government regulations, and speculated that “the university is playing it safe, so that it can never be said that it did not advise against the use of gloss screens.”

Gives a whole new meaning to “protect and defend,” doesn’t it?

[MacMatte]

This article is copyright Cultomedia Corp.

Before you rush out and buy that brand new iPhone 3G S, consider the suggestions here. For some iPhone 3G owners, the 3G S may be unnecessary. For those who simply cannot wait read on, because there are ways to minimize the overall cost of the upgrade. In fact, you may even turn a profit.

The iPhone 3G S will be subsidized by AT&T for qualified customers ($199 for the 16 GB model and $299 for the 32 GB model). Unfortunately, if you currently own an iPhone 3G you are not a qualified customer because you entered into a two-year contract with AT&T last year. Unsubsidized, the iPhone 3G S is priced at an exorbitant $599 and $699 (plus the $18 setup fee).

AT&T is probably not going to alter its stance on the matter because, like it or not, offering subsidized phones only to new customers is standard industry practice. If you are an existing iPhone 3G owner, and do not have money to burn, consider all your options after the jump.

Early Termination

You can cancel your AT&T account and immediately open a new one, qualifying for the subsidized iPhone 3G S prices.

AT&T permits its customers to terminate their contracts early for a fee of $175. This fee is pro-rated: Under your AT&T contract the termination fee is reduced by $5 per month of the contract completed. For example, for those of you who bought your iPhone and renewed your plan in July 2008 your termination is approximately $120 ($175-$55 = $120) since you probably have completed approximately eleven months of your contract.

Aside from the pro-rated fee, AT&T imposes no other penalties for cancellation. Current iPhone 3G owners may cancel their contract and immediately re-enter into a new two-year contract with AT&T. According to a June 10, 2009 phone conversation with an AT&T representative, rumors that AT&T requires a sixty day period to reopen an account after early termination are not true. Moreover, the AT&T representative further explained that you can even keep your old phone number so long as you create your new account within sixty days of canceling your original account. Note — when asked for a source to reference the AT&T representative admitted that this information is not available online.

After a direct inquiry, an official AT&T spokesman stated that early cancellation is inconvenient and may be subject to extra fees and a new number — but confirmed that accounts are not frozen for sixty days. The only other caveat is that AT&T store representatives are not always up to speed with their own policies and procedures and are notoriously incompetent. As of the date of this article, AT&T representatives have confirmed that this is their policy regarding early contractual termination, therefore, be prepared to confirm with your AT&T representative that he/she knows how to ensure that you will keep your old number upon entering into a new contract. If they do not — find a representative who does.

If you choose this option you are looking at adding approximately $120 to AT&T’s subsidized prices as well as the $18 account setup fee that AT&T charges. Your overall cost for the 16GB iPhone 3G S should be approximately $337 and the 32 GB $437 — a saving of $262 in both cases.

Once you get your new account and iPhone 3G S you should consider further subsidizing your purchase by selling your old iPhone 3G.

Subsidize Your 3G S with Your 3G

You can further subsidize your iPhone 3G S by selling your old iPhone 3G on the open market. If you’re lucky, you’ll get up to $400 — making a $60 PROFIT on upgrading to the iPhone 3G S. Even if you do not go through the hassle of termination, you should probably still sell your old iPhone. Each strategy has its benefits. Terminating your contract and subsidizing your iPhone 3G S saves you the most money, but you will be stuck in another two-year contract. Paying full price and subsidizing your iPhone 3G S does not require that you incur any new contractual obligations, but it is more expensive.

At the moment, there are hundreds of people looking to buy and sell iPhones on Craigslist. Even after Apple’s most recent price cut, the unsubsidized iPhone 3G is priced at $499. Depending on size, condition, and location, you can expect to get anywhere between $200 and $400 for your iPhone 3G.

If you plan on subsidizing your iPhone 3G S, consider the following:

Use Your Warranty. First, read this article about getting the most out of your one-year warranty. Although you may not know it, your iPhone 3G may be defective. If you are able to identify a defect, you should take your iPhone 3G into the Apple Store to get it replaced. If you get it replaced, you are going to be selling a shiny new iPhone 3G, not one that has a year’s worth of wear and tear. You will undoubtedly have an easier time finding a buyer and that buyer will probably pay a higher price.

Add AppleCare. Second, if you have AppleCare, great. Be sure to mention it in your advertisement. If you do not have AppleCare, you should consider asking your buyer if they are interested in AppleCare. Remember, you can add AppleCare onto any Apple product at any point during the first year of its life. Since July 11, 2009 has not yet come around you can extend the warranty by another two years through AppleCare. It costs $69 and is fully transferrable to future owners. The only catch is that you will need to notify Apple of the transfer. Notification is very simple and instructions for the transfer can be found in Section 6 of the AppleCare Plan for the iPhone. With AppleCare protection, whoever buys your iPhone 3G can rest assured that it is completely protected.

Find a Buyer. Third, find a buyer. Ideally, a friend is your best candidate. Otherwise, be patient and use Craigslist if possible. If you can conduct the transaction locally you will save money on shipping and avoid other expenses or complications. If you still have them, get all of your original boxing and documentation together. Clean up your iPhone 3G and photograph it for the Craigslist posting. If you just got the iPhone 3G replaced due to a defect; be sure to mention that fact. If you currently have AppleCare, be sure to advertise that. If you do not have AppleCare, be sure to mention the option (reference the fact that Apple permits transfer). Create your Craigslist advertisement and wait. Hopefully you will find a buyer.

Be Smart. Fourth, be honest to the buyer and be safe. You do not want to get into legal trouble for fraudulent misrepresentations regarding the condition of your iPhone 3G. If you are open and candid with potential buyers they will be more likely to feel comfortable and follow through with the transaction. For your own safety, make sure that you choose a public location because you will most likely conduct the transaction face-to-face. Arrange to meet in front of your local Apple Store during daylight hours. This would be ideal because 1) it is a public place; 2) the buyer can verify the existence of the AppleCare Plan; 3) the two of you could probably even use the Apple Store’s computers (the ones on display) to effectuate the transfer of the AppleCare Plan via email (
with subject heading: ATTN: Agreement Administration).

Cash Only. Finally, cash is king. Be careful when accepting checks and money orders. Make it clear to your buyer how you expect to receive payment. If your buyer shows up with a payment method other than what you had agreed upon, beware.

If you take the time to sell your iPhone 3G you can hope to recoup up to $400. If you successfully terminate your account and get a great price by selling a recently replaced iPhone 3G, with a little luck, you may even make some money.

Skip the Hardware — Upgrade Your Software

You will save the most money by simply waiting until your contract has been in effect for eighteen months. Remember, the iPhone 3G S is not a huge upgrade from the iPhone 3G and, therefore, you may simply want to wait until Apple releases the next line of iPhones (probably in about a year).

There are relatively few differences between the iPhone 3G and the iPhone 3G S. Most of the new improvements will be coming from the iPhone 3.0 software, not the iPhone 3G S. In fact, it is somewhat misleading that Apple advertises some of the features that will be available to all iPhones through the 3.0 software as being features of the iPhone 3G S. Many of the improvements listed on Apple’s iPhone 3G S website are actually features of the iPhone 3.0 software, not the iPhone 3G S.

Some of the most talked about features such as landscape keyboard, cut, copy, and paste, MMS (not even available until the end of the summer for AT&T users), voice memos, and many other improvements will be fully available to your regular iPhone 3G or 2G on June 17, 2009. All you need to do is download and install the free 3.0 update through iTunes.

The only new features of the 3G S are: improved battery, improved processor (note that the 3.0 software should improve your iPhone 3G’s performance such that you may not find upgrading to the 3G S necessary), a new 3-megapixel camera (one more megapixel than before), video recording, voice control, and a compass.

For those of you that are strapped for time and cash, the wait-and-see approach is ideal as you may find that the features of the new iPhone 3G S are simply not worth the expense or effort. You may find yourself perfectly happy with the 3.0 software upgrade. The software upgrade is free for all iPhones. There is a nominal fee for iPod Touch users.

If you are looking to buy an iPhone 3G S because you have been experiencing problems with your current model, you may find that a warranty replacement coupled with the new 3.0 software does the trick.

This article is copyright Cultomedia Corp.