Developers Continue To Fight Piracy

As the iPhone user-base increases, so does the piracy user-base of iDevices. Many developers have been or are now implementing features to stop piracy of their apps. You will have read how BeejiveIM stopped working for pirated copies, now Spokko, the makers of Light Wars have also implemented a feature that stops pirated copies from working.

Spokko Pirate Version

This has only been implemented into the new update but from what I know the original 1.0 release will not stop pirates using it, it’s interesting to see how developers are taking different methods to stop piracy.

Stack v3 Alpha Review Coming Soon

If your an iPhone owner you will of most likely have heard of, or used one of Steve Troughton-Smith’s app’s at some point or at least heard of them. He was the one who worked out how to tether the iPhone months ago.

He currently has 6 projects listed on his official website some of which are App Store approved, others are available via Cydia, however a project he’s been working on a lot recently is the Stack app, which gives the iPhone and dock like Stack feature. The new v3 has a lot of things to look forward to and the early alphas are promising, I’ve got hold of the alpha earlier and will be writing up a full review over the weekend.

Stack v3 Alpha

iPhone 3GS Jailbreak & Unlock Coming Soon

The Dev-Team announced today that the 24Kpwn exploit that the hybrid team used on the iPod Touch 2G, is still Jailbrake applicable to the bootrom of the iPhone 3GS, therefore meaning the same sort of technique can be used as current jailbraking tools such as redsn0w.

The good news is also ultrasn0w can used used on the iPhone 3GS, without any modifications.

Apple are still continuing there effort to fix these flaws in the iPhone which allow for jailbraking and it will take a while for the Dev-Team to safely work out the new efforts made by Apple, ready for the new tools.

Jailbrakers Should Wait To Install iPhone OS 3.0

As a jailbraker myself, although upgrading to iPhone OS 3.0 on Wenesday might seem like a great thing to do just wait until the Dev-Team have sorted out a jailbrake even though I doubt it will be long as they have a jailbrake for the Beta firmware.

Best idea is wait till the Dev-Team have released the jailbrake and then update to the new iTunes and install the new firmware.

iPhone 3G S Firmware is Already Available

iPhone OS 3.0 Software Update

The new 3.0 firmware for the new iPhone 3G S, due for release on the 19th June, has already been put up on the Apple servers for download.

The download is avliable at: iPhone2, 1_3.0_7A341_Restore.ipsw but for now it’s useless as it can only be installed on the iPhone 3G S.

However if we look at the name iPhone2,1 it leads me to believe maybe a new iPhone is being planned. As some hackers have found references to iPhone3,1 in the firmware so whats being planned Apple?

iPhone Idea: Plasma Pong iPhone

This game is for Mac and Windows however due to Atari’s copyright of the pong game the game is now taken offline but you can find it if you search around, with the new iPhone 3GS’s graphics power this game would look great on the iPhone.

Plasma Pong iPhone

You would control your side using the touchscreen and to shoot the plasma you would slide your finger forward, it would be multiplayer as each user can use one side of the screen or even over WiFi or Bluetooth.

I did email the developer about it a while back but never recieved a reply so I might try again.

Palm Pre, iPhone Killer? Not Quite. Part 2

So you may have read the earlier post which compared the iPhone and the Palm Pre, but since so many of you commented I’ve decided to make a follow up to that article, however now the iPhone 3GS has been announced it will take the 3G’s place in the comparison.

Some of you thought my points didn’t make much sense or didn’t agree with them so here’s a second go round with easier explanation.

Camera
iPhone 3GS – 3 Megapixel Camera with 30fps VGA Video w/ Auto-Focus & Auto-Macro.
Palm Pre – 3 Megapixel Camera with LED Flash and no video as of yet.

From a camera stand point the iPhone, is now ahead of the Pre, with the ability to record 30fps VGA Video. Also the iPhone 3GS comes with Auto-Focus & Auto-Macro.

Storage Capacity
iPhone 3GS – 16GB / 32GB non-expandable
Palm Pre – 8GB non-expandable

The iPhone now has more storage than the Pre and the current 3G has the same storage capacity.

Keyboard
iPhone 3GS – On-Screen
Palm Pre – QWERTY Slide Out

Although some find it hard to type on the iPhone’s virtual keyboard, many reviewers who have used a Palm Pre have said the keys are too small and hard for even small fingers and because there is no option for an on-screen keyboard it could be a problem.

Battery Life
iPhone 3GS – Up to 9 hours internet surfing, 10 hours of video, 30 hours of audio, 12 hours of 2G talk-time and 5 hours of 3G talk-time.
Palm Pre – Many report that the battery can wear down within a few hours so not good for business use.

Although the Pre’s battery issue’s could be changed currently at the length it lasts it’s not a contender for business users who need the battery to last all day.

App’s
iPhone 3GS – 500,000
Palm Pre – 12

As of current, also pointed out at WWDC yesterday, the Palm Pre only has 12 apps for the device, however an app store is in beta at this time so this might change. It’s not fair to compare the phones on app store at this time as the iPhone didn’t have one for a while and the Palm Pre’s just come out.

Screen
iPhone 3GS – 3.5-inch (diagonal) widescreen Multi-Touch display, 480-by-320-pixel resolution at 163 ppi.
Palm Pre – 3.1-inch touch screen with a vibrant 24-bit color 320×480 resolution HVGA display.

The iPhone screen is in fact larger than the Pre, but many say the Pre looks more vibrant.

Others
iPhone 3GS

Show off factor, Yes I know in the comments you’ve said how people shouldn’t be impressed by phones but in a lot of cases if you pull out an iPhone people around you want to play on it, not making it any better of a phone but just one of the things that come with the iPhone.
iTunes, Yes both devices can sync with iTunes, however the Pre needs a bit of hacking to get it to work, but it provides an instant place for iPhone users to rent and download movies and TV shows along with buying music wherever they go.

I’m not saying the Palm Pre isn’t going to challenge the iPhone, of that I’m sure it will but I think that until they sort out the problems at launch, video recording and the app store and it’s battery life, it can’t become a true iPhone competitor.

iPhone 3G S Announced

iPhone 3GS Spread

3 Megapixel Auto-Focus Camera
30FPS VGA Video & Audio
Auto Macro
Supports OpenGL|ES 2.0
Faster Processor
Digital Compass
Voice Control
Improved Battery Life (Up to 9 hours internet surfing, 10 hours of video, 30 hours of audio, 12 hours of 2G talk-time and 5 hours of 3G talk-time.)
$199 for 16GB, $299 for 32GB.
The iPhone 3GS will be available on June 19th.

WWDC Coverage

12:01 PM: The iPhone 3GS will be available on June 19th.

12:00 PM: iPhone 3G 8 GB remains at $99.

Apple iPhone 3G WWDC 2009

11:59 AM: $199 for 16GB, $299 for 32GB. (AT&T New Customers)

11:58 AM: Improved Battery Life (Up to 9 hours internet surfing, 10 hours of video, 30 hours of audio, 12 hours of 2G talk-time and 5 hours of 3G talk-time.)

11:57 AM: Encrypted iTunes Backups, iPhone 3GS supports encryption, Supports Nike+.

iPhone 3GS Spread

11:55 AM: Supports OpenGL|ES 2.0 great for games, Supports 7.2Mbps HSPDA, 3 Megapixel Auto-Focus Camera, Auto Macro, 3o FPS VGA Video, Voice Control, Digital Compass.

11:47 AM: Phone 3GS. S stands for speed.

11:43 AM: iPhone OS 3.0 is free for iPhone users, $9.95 for touch users. And it will be available June 17th.

11:12 AM: Maps, Accessories, Push Notifications and Peer to Peer talked about again, nothing different from the iPhone OS 3.0 event.

11:08 AM: If your phone is now lost you can send a message to the iPhone that will sound a special tone which will sound even if the phones on silent. You can also remotely wipe all the data on the device.

11:01 AM: Internet tethering, you can use your phone’s internet connection on your computer (Mac or PC) using USB or Bluetooth.

10:59 AM: Enhancements to iTunes you can now rent and purchase movies right from your phone. Also purchase TV shows, music, and audiobooks.

10:56 AM: iPhone OS 3.0. has 100 new features.

iphone_os_3

10:49 AM: It has been an incredible year for the iPhone – 1,000,000 SDK downloads, 50,000 Apps on the App Store, 40M iPhones/iPod Touches sold, 1 Billion+ Apps downloaded.

10:47 AM: Snow Leopard update charged at $29.

10:40 AM: Snow Leopard is making everything faster on the Mac platform: Mail, Safari, Spotlight etc.

10:15 AM: Also upgrading the Air today. Prices changing to $1,499 to $1,799 – up to 2.13GHz CPU.

10:14 AM: The 13″ MacBook is now called a MacBook Pro. Starts at $1,199. Price ranges from $1,199 to $1,499 in standard configurations, available today.

10:13 AM: The backlit keyboard is now standard in it as well. Also, FireWire 800.

10:12 AM: Updating the 13″ MacBook as well. Gets the new display, SD card slot and better battery life.

10:11 AM: The 17″ MacBook Pro has also been updated: 2.8GHz CPU, 500GB HD, retains ExpressCard Slot. All shipping today.

WWDC 2009 MacBook Family

10:10 AM: Starts at a lower price of $1,699; Standard configurations range from $1,699 to $2,229.

10:09 AM: It’s also the fastest notebook they have ever made. Up to 3.06GHz Dual Core CPU. Up to 8GB of RAM. Up to 500GB 7200RPM HD. Or, 256GB SSD.

10:08 AM: The new 15″ MacBook Pro has a brand new display; nicest in any of their laptops. 60% color gamut increase. Now has a SD card slot.

10:06 AM: New 15″ Mac Book Pro, new battery, lasts up to 7 hours. More eco-friendly – gets up to 1,000 charges.

10:04 AM: 25M active OS X users in first 5 years, up until 2007. In the last two years, however, it has grown to 75M.

9:59 AM: The Keynote is about to begin.