Apple iTunes 9.1 Jailbreak iPhone Syncing Problems

March 31, 2010 by 2 Comments

If you have a Jailbreak’d Apple iPhone and are thinking about downloading iTunes 9.1 which was launched yesterday then take a quick read of this first. Rather than saying there is definitely a problem, we have just heard that some users are having problems with syncing their iPhone to iTunes 9.1.

First impressions on this seemed to indicate Apple [AAPL] had made changes to iTunes 9.1 where they could detect an iPhone that had been jailbreaked, however, it seems like a simple solution to the problem is to just reboot.

Although we can’t be sure yet if Apple are trying to block phones that have been tampered with it might be worth leaving the update for now unless you are planning on getting an Apple iPad this weekend where the new update will be needed [Read more…]

Filed Under: Cell Phones

Self Published Authors can now get Books in to iBook Store

March 31, 2010 by 1 Comment

With the launch of the Apple iPad being just a few days away, we now hear of some information that will allow authors to get their work in to the iBook store. The normal process for a book writer would be to get their book accepted in to one of the six or so publishers who Apple [AAPL] is working which can take time and cost a bit of money too.

A couple of new services have launched that aim to take that hassle away from the publisher whereby they publish the book for you and act as a middle man in the process. The two companies offering this service are Smashwords and Lulu who appear to have both signed deals with Apple to provide books for it’s store.

Smashwords is a simple system whereby you upload your eBook in Word format along with a cover image. Smashwords then do what they need to do with an automated system to make it compatible and send the book to be included in the store. In terms of payment, they take a percentage of each sale as their commission. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Tech News

HTC Desire to land on Vodafone UK April 8

March 31, 2010 by Leave a Comment

The HTC Desire will be shipping from Vodafone ready for launch on April 8. We first mentioned an April shipping date of the HTC Desire a few weeks back, but now confirmation of the exact date is here.

The HTC Desire runs the Android operating system, has a 5 megapixel camera and a 3.7 inch AMOLED touchscreen. All the usual features can be found inside such as a GPS, Wireless connectivity, Bluetooth and other features.

Price wise, the handset is free on the Vodafone network although to get the handset for free you’ll need to sign up for either an 18 or 24 month contract. If opting for the lower 18 month contract the cost is £35/month and you get 600 minutes and unlimited text messages. If opting for a longer 24 month contract the cost is £30/month with the same amount of minutes and texts as you get on the shorter contract. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Cell Phones

Apple iPhone OS 3.1.3 gets new Jailbreak – Spirit on it’s Way

March 31, 2010 by Leave a Comment

Just a few days ago Geohot showed a video of an iPod Touch running OS 3.1.3 being jailbreaked. Not only was the jailbreak successful, it also didn’t come with the requirement that the iPhone, iPod (or even iPad) be tethered to a computer to run.

We have just found out about a new jailbreak this time from hacker Comex who has created a jailbreak that works OTA. When launched it will require you visit a website where you can then apply the jailbreak on to your 3.1.3 OS iPhone or other Apple device that runs the OS.

Although neither Geohot or Comex have released their jailbreak software yet, it is expected that now two potential unlock systems are being worked on that each will probably/hopefully rush to getting theirs launched. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Cell Phones

Google Chrome and Chrome OS to Integrate Adobe Flash

March 31, 2010 by Leave a Comment

Google [GOOG] have announced that they will soon be integrating Adobe Flash in to the Chrome web browser and eventually in to Google Chrome OS when it lands.

By integrating Adobe Flash in to Chrome and Chrome OS, they actually mean integrate and not just support. Out of the box you’ll be able to play flash content without installing a specific plugin from Adobe.

Adobe could hit troubling times with it’s flash software in the next few years for a number of reasons. One reason is that Apple [AAPL] do not support flash on their Apple iPhone or Apple iPad. In reference to the latter (the iPad), big media publications are already transitioning data over to HTML5 to allow their flash content to play natively on the Apple iPad. This could lead eventually to flash becoming old and not required any more. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Tech News

PQI unveil Worlds First USB 3.0 2.5 inch Portable Hard Drive

March 31, 2010 by Leave a Comment

PQI have released the first ever 2.5 inch portable harddrive that works over USB 3.0. The drive is called the PQI H566 and theoretically can reach speeds of up to 5Gbps making it ten times faster than a USB 2.0 hard drive.

The drive it’s self is backwards compatible with USB 2.0 connections allowing you to use it now on a regular USB 2.0 computer, but should you upgrade your PC in the future to one with USB 3.0 support you’ll then get the full benefit.

For design, the casing comes in metallic silver. The drive it’s self comes in three capacities of 320GB, 500GB or 640GB depending on what model you choose. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Computer Gadgets

ASUS building Chrome OS Tablet and Windows Tablet

March 31, 2010 by Leave a Comment

ASUS are well known for making a strong line up of Eee PC netbooks. Various models are available and all come at a very good price. We are now hearing that they might be venturing in to the tablet arena (as in a screened device with no keyboard unlike the ASUS T101MT) with a device similar to the HP Slate or Apple iPad.

They are basically preparing their own iPad rivals that are to launch from what we hear, this year. We also hear that the ASUS Tablet devices will run either Google Chrome OS, or Windows as the operating system and aim to bring rich content to users.

Another possibility is for them to use the Google [GOOG] Android operating system depending on when the official Chrome OS is launched (we believe late this year). [Read more…]

Filed Under: Laptops

Facebook mess up Revealed Private Email Addresses Last Night

March 31, 2010 by Leave a Comment

Facebook had a bit of an error last night in that those who have their email addresses set to NOT show, actually found that Facebook had changed the privacy settings and was showing private email addresses.

It isn’t clear at the moment how it happened although a number of people spotted the problems and attempted to rehide their addresses themselves with no luck. The problem lasted around 30 minutes and then returned to normal from what we have heard.

Some believe that this could be related to some new privacy changes that are coming soon which will see your data shared with companies to better target ads. More details on TechCrunch about that. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Tech News

AT&T Increasing Network Reliability – iPhone maybe going to Verizon

March 31, 2010 by Leave a Comment

With the WSJ mention yesterday of Verizon [VZ] potentially picking up the Apple iPhone this year when a CDMA variant of the smartphone is built, this seems to have got AT&T [T] listening as they are now to be in the process of expanding their network capacity.

AT&T has received criticism over the last few years due to various network issues and it seems like the potential opening up of the phone to another network (ie, AT&T loosing exclusivity in the US) is pushing them to give the customer the best experience in terms of network coverage.

The fixes and extra capacity should enable iPhones to drop less calls and have faster browsing speeds if successful.

A 100 day plan has been created to built up the network in densely populated cities with work already being performed to increase the performance of what is already there. The main problems in building the network is getting all the towers built and having to discuss with landlords of buildings to get permission to fix them to roofs etc… [Read more…]

Filed Under: Cell Phones

ASUS Eee 1005PE 11 to 14 Hour Netbook On Sale

March 30, 2010 by Leave a Comment

Amazon have a few ASUS Eee 1005PE netbooks on sale with some small savings of what looks to be around $20/unit in some cases. Although not the best of discounts we normally see at Amazon, it’s still a deal to get you one of them a little cheaper.

Depending on which model you choose you get either an 11 hour battery or a 14 hour battery to allow longer usage between charges.

Each ASUS 1005PE netbook has a 10.1 inch screen. The processor running the netbook is an Intel Atom N450 clocked at 1.66GHz. This newer CPU allows for better performance than it’s previous versions and also gives slightly better battery life due to the efficiency of it. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Laptops

Apple iTunes 9.1 Lands with iPad and iBooks Support

March 30, 2010 by Leave a Comment

Apple [AAPL] have released their latest version of iTunes numbered 9.1. The new update brings several features which includes support for iPad syncing as well as the ability to sync books that you have downloaded for the iBooks application.

Other features in the update include the ability to rename Genius music lists as well as a few changes to the naming of certain places such as Applications changing to just Apps.

The new download is 97.3MB and is available and appears to be downloadable from out of the US too (tested and working in the UK). [Read more…]

Filed Under: Tech News

Apple iPhone 4G Fan Made Rendering – or maybe Apple iPhone HD

March 30, 2010 by Leave a Comment

The Apple iPhone HD (or iPhone 4G) will more than likely be announced later this year. As usual when the June event happens we start to see some renderings of what people believe the next iteration of the iPhone will look like.

Some people call it the iPhone 4G although some are saying it will more than likely be the iPhone HD due to a higher res screen and not to confuse the 4G, as in forth generation, with 4G mobile phone networks.

The image above (and larger below) was created by Graham Bower of MacPredictions who appears to have been inspired by the black 3G bar found on the back of an Apple iPad. The mockup shows a large touchscreen with front facing camera and appears to have more defined edges than the iPhone 3G S and other models. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Cell Phones