Todays & Tomorrows Technology

The iPhone Dev Team have updated their redsn0w jailbreak and ultrasn0w carrier unlock tools to work with the iPhone 3GS, citing the release of rival app purplera1n as forcing their hand. The Team had originally intended to wait until iPhone 3GS adoption was more widespread before distributing their tools, in the hope that it would give Apple less time to close the security hole on which the unlock depends.

“We realize we upset some folks (e.g. existing 3GS owners) with our earlier announcement that we wanted to hold onto the 3GS iBoot-family hole until 3.1 was out. Our aim there was to get as many people as possible onboard (within reason of course) before revealing the hole, since Apple will fix it immediately. But all of that became moot when the purplera1n release was made, since it uses the same hole” iPhone Dev Team

Those wishing to unlock their iPhone – and keep it unlocked – are still being warned to avoid Apple’s official baseband updates. The Cupertino company has apparently stepped up its efforts to remove loopholes such as the one which enables this latest version of ultrasn0w.

Going by the comments over at the Dev Team blog, however, Apple retaliation is not the only problem some users are facing. Some iPhone 3GS owners are experiencing poor signal reception after unlocking, or an inability to connect to WiFi networks, while others claim their handsets have been left bricked or show significant battery drain. Now seems as good a time as any to warn that Apple are unlikely to perform warranty repairs on any iPhone they believe has been tampered with, so you attempt a jailbreak or carrier unlock at your own risk.

The iPhone Dev Team have announced that they are delaying the release of the updated ultrasn0w iPhone 3GS jailbreaking and unlocking tool. In a post on the Team’s blog, they detail the nature of the exploit used to jailbreak (and then unlock) the 3GS, a loophole which Apple could readily close once it was made public.
“Here’s the critical point, the reason why we’re delaying our version of the jailbreak: Once the jailbreak is out, Apple will fix the iBoot-family bug we use to accomplish it. They will simply stop signing the old iBoots and only sign the fixed ones. If you bought your phone after Apple has done this, there’s nothing you can do…the jailbreak isn’t going to work for you.” iPhone Dev Team blog

According to the Team, the exploit depends on an iBoot-family bug, which can only be addressed if users have a signed iBoot-family img3 from their own device. This contains their ECID, a unique chip identifier different on each iPhone 3GS. If Apple discover the loophole, they could update the smartphone and refuse to sign any old iBoots; then those users would not be able to jailbreak or unlock their handsets.

The Dev Team are counting on an imminent iPhone OS 3.01 update which addresses some of the platforms more buggier aspects, and are waiting until then to see the state of play. They’ve given no indication of when the iPhone 3GS jailbreak and unlock option might be released, a situation that’s prompting no small amount of revolt in their comments.

The recently-released MacBook Pro firmware that promises to enable 3.0Gbps SATA connectivity has ironically been causing problems in third-party drives. Apple released the upgrade earlier this week, after users of the new 13- and 15-inch MacBook Pro models reported that the notebooks were limited to 1.5Gbps SATA; this did not affect the speed of standard-fit hard-drives, but may have limited future performance should the user upgrade to a faster HDD or SSD. Now, some users with third-party drives already installed are reporting frequent pauses, usage spikes and data errors with the new firmware.

Both traditional hard-drives and solid-state storage are presenting problems. One user found his Western Digital Scorpio Blue HDD now suffers intermittent data errors and that the whole machine freezes randomly. Meanwhile another user who has upgraded to an Intel X25-M SSD found his drive no longer works at all following the firmware update. Some have found that re-installing the original SATA 1.5Gbps drive supplied by Apple restores the machine to working order, while others have had no luck.

Apple distanced themselves from aftermarket upgrades when they first released the firmware, warning users that they had “not qualified or offered these drives for Mac notebooks” and that “their use is unsupported.” That seems to mean they won’t fix the issue under warranty: many who have contacted Apple Stores or technical support regarding the firmware issues have been told that “Apple is not responsible for maintaining compatibility with third-party aftermarket hardware with their firmware updates.” However there is also talk that Apple Store “Geniuses” can roll back the firmware if there was a problem during the upgrade itself, though not otherwise.

I’ve no doubt this video will be all over the place before long (if it isn’t already) but we’re suckers for transforming tech here at SlashGear. Apparently created for the French postal service, to publicize their new home printing service for shipping labels, it shows a MacBook option that, while cool, could get expensive after a while.

In the video, the user’s MacBook transforms into a Star Wars-esque spacecraft after he attempts to organize a shipment, complete with Transformers-style robotic noises. It’s not the first time we’ve seen such adverts – Citroen’s C4 commercials are a good prior example – but we still love them.

Perhaps even funnier are the discussions the video prompted in the 9to5Mac comments, about how this isn’t actually a real MacBook (pre-transformation, of course). It has the screen bezel of a pre-unibody model, but the keyboard of a newer machine.

Owners of the new iPhone 3GS will soon be able to jailbreak and unlock their smartphone, thanks to a five-month-old security flaw in the handset’s baseband. The iPhone Dev Team have verified that Apple have not addressed an exploit known as 24Kpwn that was originally identified in the iPod touch 2G; with it, they will be able to upgrade their ultrasn0w tool to work on the iPhone 3GS.
The loophole arose, the Team believe, because Apple finalized the iPhone 3GS’ bootrom in around August 2008, months before the exploit was identified for the iPod touch 2G. 24Kpwn went on to be exploited in the redsn0w tool, and similar techniques can now be implemented in ultrasn0w.

It will take some time to update ultrasn0w with the new system, but once completed it will mean the iPhone 3GS can not only be loaded with unofficial apps but used with any SIM card. Apple are likely to release a firmware update to try to prevent any damage, so the Dev Team are advising that people avoid baseband updates.

We’ve already seen what’s going on inside the iPhone 3GS, now courtesy of iSuppli we know roughly how much it all costs. The analysts have been picking through the iPhone 3GS’ components and have deemed that Apple’s handset costs $178.96 to produce in its 16GB form.

That’s made up of $172.46 in hardware costs, and a further $6.50 in manufacturing expense. Significant components include the flash memory, produced by Toshiba and priced at $24 for 16GB, and the display, with the 3.5-inch LCD estimated at $19.25. The ARM SoC application processor is pegged at $14.46.

The similarity between the iPhone 3GS and its predecessor, the iPhone 3G, suggests – iSuppli posit – that Apple have been able to counter the more expensive components new to the smartphone by taking advantage of lower general prices on legacy parts and buying in bulk. They’ve also taken advantage of combined hardware, such as the Broadcom Bluetooth/FM/WLAN chip which replaces two separate components in the iPhone 3G.

It’s unlikely to be taxing their production line all that much, but notorious ink-lovers ColorWare have announced they’ll be offering custom versions of the iPhone 3GS. As with other ColorWare creations, the end result can be as tasteful or as lurid as your mora

The usual range of solid and metallic colors are available, and you can have your earphones dyed to match too. The basic process changes just the back-plate of the phone, but you can also customize the normally-chrome bezel, the home button and the SIM holder.

Pricing starts at $150 for the back, then add $20 each for the bezel frame and button, or $15 each for the SIM holder and earbuds. Currently there’s only the option to send in your own iPhone 3GS (in the US); ColorWare aren’t offering the smartphone themselves at this stage.

Apple have announced sales figures for the iPhone 3G S, and while there was talk of fewer buyers turning out for their latest-gen smartphone the numbers are still undeniably healthy. The company sold over one million iPhone 3G S handsets through Sunday, June 21st; meanwhile six million users have downloaded iPhone OS 3.0 in the five days since it was released on Wednesday last week.

Apple haven’t revealed how many people picked up the iPhone 3G 8GB in the past couple of weeks. Their previous-generation smartphone was reduced to $99 with a new contract after the iPhone 3G S was announced, offering a new point-of-entry to iPhone ownership though lacking the newer handset’s autofocus camera, extra megapixels, digital compass and other functionality.

For our hands-on first impressions of the iPhone 3G S, check out this post. We’ll have our full review up later this week!

We may not be seeing the same huge queues as we did for the original iPhone and iPhone 3G, but things are still busy this morning at Apple’s 5th Avenue store in New York City. SlashGear headed down to meet with the crowd and soak up some of the iPhone 3G S excitement.

Unlike the sidewalk-spanning lines in 2007 and 2008, this time Apple only needed to cordon off their immediate area. We’re putting all this down to a glut of online orders with people expecting a visit from their friendly UPS person sometime today; allowing iTunes activations at home might not lead to camera-friendly swathes of people outside your store, but it does make life a whole lot smoother for those working inside it!

Later on this morning we’ll be sitting down with Apple’s VP for a chance to ask some questions about the new smartphone and what they think about rival devices from Palm, Microsoft and others. Of course, we’ll also have our own first-impressions of the iPhone 3G S itself, so keep reading SlashGear!

It’s Friday June 19th, and that can only mean one thing: Apple iPhone 3G S day. Sales of the new Apple smartphone have been taking place across the world for several hours now, and we’ve already seen the first handset teardown; doors of Apple and AT&T stores in the US open in around fifteen minutes, at 7am.

Unlike the iPhone 3G launch last July, reports suggest that there hasn’t been the same frantic queuing outside stores for this new device. That’s partly because Apple have loosened up their activation procedure this time around; while the iPhone 3G had to be activated in-store (and in fact still does: if you give your old handset to someone new, they’ll need to take it into an AT&T store to activate it to their account), the iPhone 3G S is offered with home-delivery and can be activated via iTunes.

However many would-be iPhone 3G S buyers are still caught up in lengthy contracts, and don’t qualify for subsidized pricing on the new smartphone. That, plus a feature-set that’s being seen as incremental rather than revolutionary, has led some analysts to predict that sales figures may not match those in the iPhone 3G rush last year. We’re headed to pick up our own iPhone 3G S from Apple’s New York flagship store, and several other members of the team are expecting visits from UPS today; keep reading SlashGear for live photos and video!

You might not have heard, but the Apple iPhone 3G S goes on sale tomorrow, and AT&T thought you might want to know exactly how things are being arranged come the morning. The iPhone 3G S will be available from all 211 AT&T stores across the US, just in case you decided not to do the sensible thing and pre-order for home delivery. Stores are set to open at 7am local time, exclusively for those customers who have pre-ordered for in-store pickup.
If you’ve left things to chance, or find that the urge to pick up an iPhone 3G S sneaks up on you unexpectedly, remaining handsets in-stock will be available first-come, first-serve from the start of normal business hours; that’s likely to be 9am, but it’s worth checking with your local store to be sure.

Only one iPhone 3G S will be available per new subscriber, priced at $199 for the 16GB model and $299 for the 32GB model. If you’re a current subscriber, it’s worth checking AT&T’s new subsidy scheme to see if you quality; otherwise you’re looking at $399 and $499 to upgrade for the 16GB and 32GB models respectively. Existing customers can buy one iPhone 3G S per eligible phone number, while online shoppers can buy one per household.

With all that in mind, who is planning on picking up an Apple iPhone 3G S tomorrow? Let us know in the comments.

As we know, iPhone OS 3.0 brings with it the potential for tethering on your Apple smartphone, using the handset’s 3G connection to get your laptop, netbook or other mobile device online while on the move. Apple have done all they can to make it straightforward – you can tether over USB or Bluetooth, with minimal setup - but the carriers seem less enthused. Some, like AT&T, don’t officially support it yet, while others, such as O2 in the UK, will allow you to tether but have an expensive extra data plan you need to add.

One thing we know about iPhone users, though, is that if you show them a sign saying “no entry” they’ll work out a hack to enable it, and sure enough there’s now a simple way to turn on iPhone tethering no matter your carrier or tether-plan status. All you need do, in fact, is visit help.BenM.at on your iPhone and install a new local carrier profile configuration file.

There are files for tethering on multiple carriers – not just the official Apple partner in each company, but rivals for those using their iPhone unlocked – and more apparently being added all the time. Plus, there are install files for MMS support, including AT&T who have previously said that they won’t be officially enabling it on the iPhone until late summer.

This is one of those cases where “because you can” might not mean “you should”; carriers have been very clear now and previously as to the fact that tethering data is not considered part of an “unlimited” on-device data package. If you do attempt it – and obviously there’s also risk in installing any software from an unknown site – then bear in mind your carrier will likely be monitoring data traffic to identify any unofficial tethering or MMS use.

So, the iPhone 3GS will be coming out Friday and sure, it looks just like the iPhone 3G, but it does sport some serious differences, and some serious plusses you should know about. And while this model isn’t perfect, we think it’s a step in the right direction for Apple.


Let’s start out with the good stuff. The iPhone 3GS is fast. The simple most important upgrade to this iPhone model is the speed. And while it might sport similar feature set to the 3G, the 3GS’ speed boost makes it worth it. The screen has an oleophobic coating, that’s meant to repel grease and fingerprints. And while it might not look much different in the grease department than the 3G, it really does work better, even if totally coated.

Everything loads much faster now. That includes turning on the phone and loading up apps. This also means there are more opportunities for apps and games now, with a 600MHz processor and 256 RAM.

Other new features that are pros in our opinion includes the updated 3-megapixel camera, which sports auto focus and video recording capability. Of course, the lack of flash is still disheartening, but the video is pretty impressive. It’s capable of 30fps and really smooth in motion. There’s even limited clip cropping abilities on the phone.

The Compass is simple and easy to use. It detects North easily, no matter how you hold the phone and syncs up nicely with Google Maps, showing you precisely where you are at any given time. More good news is that Voice Control works pretty well. It recognizes what you’re saying fairly well, though background sound tends to cause issues.

Battery life has improved a bit, though calls still drain it quite heavily. The only real negative we’ve noticed so far on the iPhone 3GS is the price it’ll cost you to upgrade if you’re still on an AT&T plan and the AT&T network in general. With numerous problems with the network, it’s kind of a shame such a high-featured phone is limited to a feature-lacking network. Also, if you already have the iPhone 3G, this model might not feel like a big enough upgrade to you to justify buying a whole new phone.

While you’re waiting for iPhone OS 3.0 to download, sit back and watch AT&T backpedal. The carrier has announced new upgrade pricing for the iPhone 3G S, in response to complaints from iPhone 3G users. Now, iPhone 3G users who would be eligible to upgrade in July, August or September this year may now have access to AT&T’s “best upgrade pricing” from Thursday June 18th. They’ve also confirmed that the iPhone’s MMS functionality will arrive in late Summer, and they’ll be charging exactly the same per MMS message as they currently do for SMS text messages.

That basically means that, if you’re a high-spending customer (e.g. you give AT&T more than $99 per month) and would generally be allowed to upgrade 12 or 18 months into a contract, you may be allowed to buy the iPhone 3G S 16GB for $199 or the 32GB version for $299. That’s as opposed to paying $399 and $499 respectively, as is the “normal” early upgrade price.

If you’ve already pre-ordered the iPhone 3G S then AT&T will either reduce the price when you pick the handset up in store, or – if it’s shipped direct to you – they’ll email you with a credit code. You’ll be able to find out if you’re eligible for the new pricing from tomorrow, either by logging in to AT&T’s site or calling them up.

You wanted cut & paste, you wanted better search and you wanted landscape-mode QWERTY: Apple have delivered it all. iPhone OS 3.0 has been released, and you’re a 230MB download away from it.
The upgrade is free for iPhone and iPhone 3G users, and will come as standard on the new iPhone 3G S when that launches this Friday. It’s also available for iPod touch owners, but they’ll be charged $9.95 for the privilege.

As you might expect, Apple’s servers are currently under huge strain, and speeds are right down. To update, hook up your iPhone or iPod touch to iTunes and hit the update button; we’re doing the same, so let us know how you get on in the comments.

Say what you like about the Pre, Palm aren’t holding back when it comes to positioning their new smartphone in the best possible way. After Apple released a support note warning non-iPod users (e.g. Palm Pre owners) that their ability to sync with iTunes could be broken with future software updates, Palm have described such an action as “a direct blow to their users who will be deprived of a seamless synchronization experience.”
“Apple is aware that some third-parties claim that their digital media players are able to sync with Apple software. However, Apple does not provide support for, or test for compatibility with, non-Apple digital media players and, because software changes over time, newer versions of Apple’s iTunes software may no longer provide syncing functionality with non-Apple digital media players.” Apple

Indeed, Palm are of the opinion that locking the Pre out of iTunes would only damage Apple’s reputation. Their argument is the same as was suggested when the iTunes announcement was first made: that Apple will appear petty if they move to limit access to the software.

“Palm’s media sync works with the current version of iTunes. If Apple chooses to disable media sync in a future version of iTunes, it will be a direct blow to their users who will be deprived of a seamless synchronization experience. However, people will have options. They can stay with the iTunes version that works to sync their music on their Pre, they can transfer the music via USB, and there are other third-party applications we could consider.” Lynn Fox, spokesperson, Palm

The Pre presents itself to iTunes as a basic iPod, not as some sort of third-party device; to prevent that, Apple would have to specifically identify the smartphone during the connection process and single it out. Whether they’re willing to do that to protect their software remains to be seen: while it would stop Palm from piggybacking on iTunes, it would also likely push users away from the iTunes Store altogether. Any third-party application Palm decided to implement would probably use Amazon’s MP3 download service, a client for which is already loaded on the Pre.

The iPhone Dev Team have released a video demo of their latest unlocking tools, including yellowsn0w, doing its magic on an iPhone 3G running OS 3.0 which is set to be released sometime in the next 24 hours. They’ve also revealed the development of a new tool, ultrasn0w, which they claim should be able to unlock any iPhone to-date, running any OS version.


yellowsn0w will get its release shortly after Apple push out iPhone OS 3.0 – the Dev Team are being cautious, so as not to give Cupertino’s engineers any time to scupper the jailbreak/unlock setup – but ultrasn0w won’t see daylight until Friday at the earliest. There’s no telling right now as to whether the iPhone 3G S can be jailbroken and then unlocked.

As ever, the tools to do all this will be free – if someone is trying to charge you, they’re not legit. In the video below, skip to around the two-minute mark to see the actual unlock demo.

MacBook Pro confusion this weekend, as some owners of the new unibody 13- and 15-inch notebooks are reporting that their machines are apparently limited to 1.5Gb/s SATA connections rather than the faster 3.0Gb/s SATA-II. Full details are unclear, but it seems that Apple have either switched to SATA hardware or used firmware for the newest MacBook Pros that limits hard-drive connections to the slower speed.

The move has the most impact on those who upgraded to the SSD option in their new MacBook Pro. Regular hard-drives, which the notebooks are both fitted with as standard, will prove unaffected, as the read/write speeds of the drive are slower than SATA. However SSDs, which can manage higher sustained read rates, are clocking in with lower speeds compared to previous-generation MacBooks and MacBook Pros.

Any impact on real-world performance, however, is unknown. Transferring files to external drives would be limited by the USB/Firewire connection rather than the choice of SATA or SATA-II. It’s possible that a new firmware update could “unlock” the faster connectivity, but so far Apple have not publicly commented.

Come along with us and peer into the guts of the new MacBook Pro 13" as only the boys at ifixit can do.
Apple recently introduced a 13" variation into its MacBook Pro line and from the outside, it looks much like its 15 and 17 inch cousins. But how about from the inside? Not trusting ourselves with a warranty-voiding screwdriver, we decided to leave things to the ifixit crew to do our investigating for us.

If you're not much for reading - first of all, they have lots of pictures. But if that still can't convince you to click the link, we'll just tell you things are pretty much the same. You have FireWire now and an SD slot, and the battery is just as not-officially-but-it's-really-just-a-few-screws replaceable.

We've only just started playing with our new 13-inch MacBook Pro, but the cats at iFixit have different ideas -- they've already torn one open for your morbid viewing pleasure. Interestingly, battery replacement involves only the removal of a couple tri-wing screws and a sticker, so the situation isn't totally dire, although we'd obviously prefer if Apple had left well enough alone. Other than that and the addition of FireWire and the SD slot, things seem to be about the same as the original unibody MacBook, but don't take our word for it -- hit the read link and feast your eyes.