Applelinks.com The iPhone Buzz - Monday, August 6, 2007

The iPhone Buzz - Monday, August 6, 2007

By Charles W. Moore Monday, August 06, 2007.
Filed under: News � iPhone � iPhone News �

2666

Secret New iPhone Features
How to verify iPhone Hardware Is Working Correctly
Engineer Demonstrates iPhone Hack After Acknowledging Apple's Patch
Will the iPhone be iPwned?
Is Google Really Planning an iPhone Killer?
Why My iPhone Has Replaced My iPod
Mundu Has A Great iPhone Chat Application. Why Will They Charge For It?
Better Headphone Adapter For The iPhone
iPhone: Ringtones
Email Settings To Use For Your Apple iPhone For Common Internet Service Providers (ISPs)
iPhone: About Gmail and Recent Mode

___

Secret New iPhone Features

Walt Mossberg says:

One of the nice things about the iPhone is that, like the iPod, it can be easily updated by Apple with new features and bug fixes. When such new software is available, you are notified the next time you plug your iPhone into your computer and the new stuff is downloaded into the phone automatically.

Apple issued its first iPhone update this week. And, while the company billed it as merely a bug-fix and security-improvement patch, in fact it has several small feature improvements that Apple hasn't announced or documented. These aren't the big items, like an instant-messaging program, which may come later. But they make the phone nicer to use. Here are a few of these hidden new features I discovered after performing the update.....

You can check it out at:
http://mossblog.allthingsd.com/20070803/secret-new-iphone-features/

How to verify iPhone Hardware Is Working Correctly

A new Apple Knowledge Base article says:

If you have issues with your iPhone, Apple has posted troubleshooting tips covering:

Will not power on
Unable to make or receive calls
Display image issues
Display does not go into wide-screen mode
Touchscreen not working
Camera is not functioning
iPhone will not lock when answering calls
iPhone will not lock or unlock
Will not go into airplane mode
No cell signal strength anywhere
Battery does not charge from the iPhone charger
Battery life seems short
Third-party accessory not working
SIM card not detected by iPhone
Low microphone volume
Sound from receiver is muffled or too low
No sound through stereo headset
No sound from the speaker phone1
My issues is still not resolved. What do I do next?

For full details, visit:
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=305689

For information on service, go to:
apple.com/support/iphone/service/faq/ for information on service

Engineer Demonstrates iPhone Hack After Acknowledging Apple's Patch

BetaNews's Scott M. Fulton, III says:

Though security consultant Charlie Miller went through with a scheduled demonstration late yesterday afternoon of how he and his colleagues discovered how to hack the Apple iPhone to obtain personally identifiable information from it, he and his company's Web site both acknowledged that Apple had patched the vulnerability.

The demonstration took place at the BlackHat convention in Las Vegas, where apparently Miller used an unpatched iPhone. Though the specific hole Miller discovered was apparently sealed over, the techniques he demonstrated for uncovering those techniques, and the information he learned along the way, indicate that this may not be the only hole to emerge from what could be characterized as a design flaw.

For the full report click here.

Will the iPhone be iPwned?

The Register's Robert Lemos reports:

LAS VEGAS - The Apple Store at the Fashion Show Mall has a solid crowd for a Monday afternoon and it's easy to pinpoint the favourite.

A dozen iPhone stations collect at the front of the store, and they are rarely lonely. A stylish 20-something couple laughs as the man snaps a picture of the woman and shows her the screen. A brown-haired woman wearing a UNLV t-shirt moves her fingers over the display and smiles as the device responds. The ready touches and kid-in-the-candy-store smiles are likely just the reaction that Apple CEO Steve Jobs hoped to elicit with the device.

However, the iPhone has gotten a lot rougher treatment from the hackers and security researchers that will converge on Las Vegas for the Black Hat Security Briefings and the DEFCON hacking conference this week.

A month after its release, the iPhone has been poked, prodded, torn apart and made to reveal a number of its secrets. Hackers have already learned how to build and install programs on the device, a considerable feat as Apple has not published any application interfaces or development kits for the iPhone. And bug hunters have had wins of their own: On Thursday, Charles Miller, a security researcher at Independent Security Evaluators, will reveal the details of a significant flaw found in the device's stripped-down web browser - a flaw that Apple patched on Tuesday

.

For the full report visit here:
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/08/03/iphone_pwnage/

Is Google Really Planning an iPhone Killer?

NewsFactor's Jennifer LeClaire says:

With the Wall Street Journal reporting that Google is showing a prototype mobile phone to cell phone manufacturers and cellular service providers, speculation about Google's wireless ambitions is running rampant, with many wondering whether the Google phone would be designed as a direct competitor to Apple's latest hit, the iPhone.

Google has developed a prototype cell phone that could be in the hands of consumers within a year, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal. The Journal indicated that Google plans to offer free mobile subscriptions, subsidized by ads in search results and software applications.

As the Journal story goes, Google is shopping the prototype with cell phone manufacturers and network operators while it fine-tunes the technical specs to offer a mobile Web browsing experience that outdoes current software.

The Google phone story sounds like the iPhone rumors all over again.....

For the full commentary visit here:
http://www.newsfactor.com/news/Is-Google-Planning-an-iPhone-Killer-/story.xhtml?story_id=003000AMBS9C

Why My iPhone Has Replaced My iPod

iphonematters.com's Tanner Godarzi says:

I didn't intend to use the iPod features of the iPhone when I first considered purchasing the device. I already had an 80 GB iPod Video and it sufficed for my needs. However I was lured in by one thing: convergence.

The idea of having a multi function device that could fit in my pocket eventually became very appealing to me. The iPhone Was slimmer than the iPod yet boasted a massive screen compared to that tiny 2.5 inch LCD.

For the full commentary visit here:
http://www.iphonematters.com/article/why_my_iphone_has_replaced_my_ipod_891/

Mundu Has A Great iPhone Chat Application. Why Will They Charge For It?

techcrunch.com's Nick Gonzalez reports:

One of the bigger letdowns of the iPhone is a lack of instant messaging support. Last month we took a look at FlickIM one of the first iPhone-specific chat applications (but only for AIM). Older web chat startups Meebo and eBuddy also have their own applications. eBuddy's is iPhone customized. Meebo doesn't hide the fact that they will launch one soon.

Today, Mundu, an Indian web chat provider threw their hat into the ring with Mundu for the iPhone. Like other web chat clients, it connects the big guys: ICQ, AIM, MSN, Yahoo, and Google.....

So why in the world will they eventually charge $11 for it?

For the full commentary visit here:
http://www.techcrunch.com/2007/08/03/mundu-has-a-great-iphone-chat-application-why-are-they-charging/

Better Headphone Adapter For The iPhone

Penmachine's Derek K. Miller says:

One of the complaints that many people have made about the Apple iPhone is that the headphone jack, while a standard size, is so deeply recessed into the case that nothing but the extra-thin Apple headphone cable will actually fit.

That was also true of the weather-resistant Sport Case for the original, stick-of-gum iPod Shuffle, but that case came with a nice little adapter cable, of which we have a couple kicking around the house. I use them for the extra-chunky end of my big Sennheiser HD280 Pro headphones.

So, rather than shelling out a lot of money for third-party headphone adapters, I'd recommend that you hunt around for a discounted Sport Case, whose adapter looks more elegant and might end up being quite a bit cheaper.

You can check it out at:
http://www.penmachine.com/2007/07/this-adapter-from-sport-case-for

iPhone: Ringtones

A new Apple Knowledge Base article says:

iPhone comes with a number of ringtones that you can use for incoming calls. A dedicated switch on the side of iPhone lets you quickly turn ringing on or off, and you can set iPhone to vibrate or not.

Topics covered:

Setting Ringtones
Set the default ringtone
Assign a ringtone to a contact
Setting the Ring Mode
Setting iPhone to Vibrate
Set whether iPhone vibrates

For full details, click this link:
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=305881

Email Settings To Use For Your Apple iPhone For Common Internet Service Providers (ISPs)

A new Apple Knowledge Base article says:

As Apple receives email configurations from the more common ISPs for North America, the table below will be updated. If your ISP is not listed, please contact them for their email server settings.

Important: You will need to create your email account(s) on the iPhone with these settings. Do not sync over your mail settings to the iPhone if you are using your computer send and receive emails since those settings may be slightly different from what's listed.

You can check it out at:
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=306074

iPhone: About Gmail and Recent Mode

A new Apple Knowledge Base article says:

Gmail is one of the email services that work with iPhone.

When sending Gmail from iPhone, the sent message will show up as a new message in your iPhone Inbox as if you have cc'd yourself. If you don't want this behavior, try turning "Use Recent Mode" off.

Also note that only the last 30 days worth of Gmail will be viewable on iPhone. If you have an unread message older than 30 days that you want to read, try turning "Use Recent Mode" off.

To turn Recent Mode off, tap Settings > Mail > Your Gmail account name > Advanced, and turn off "Use Recent Mode."