Hints And Tips For iPhone 4 Video Calling With Facetime

When the iPhone 4 was first released, one of the many features many users were intrigued about was FaceTime, Apple's Wi-Fi video calling application. The feature wasn't the first in the market, for example the HTC Evo 4G had a similar feature with it's front-facing camera capabilities as well but it was still something that many people didn't have experience with. After playing around with the feature ourselves we found some tips and tricks that people can use to enhance their video calling experience.

One of the many interesting things many people might not know about is the fact that FaceTime calls over Wi-Fi work with Airplane Mode enabled. You need to have the phone number of the recieving iPhone 4 and connect at least once via voice call in order to establish that devices on both ends are indeed iPhone 4s. After the connection is estabished, you can hit Airplane mode and turn on Wi-Fi only and still make FaceTime calls. Have any of you had the opportunity to make FaceTime calls from an airplane with Wi-Fi service? (Virgin America comes to mind here)

Users can FaceTIme over 3G using a MyFi and Overdrive. If you are one of the lucky people to have a Verizon or Sprint MyFi or Overdrive mobile broadband router than you can FaceTime using the device as your Wi-Fi hotspot. Depending on the strength of your wireless connection, your FaceTime call should work appropriately. One thing we did notice was that the call was dropped when there was lots of motion on one end or the other. This could be due to quick use of a large amount of bandwidth due to changing all of the pixels on the screen.

Hold the phone up to avoid bad picture angles. Many people hold the phone lower than their face and that results in weird angled video and a perfect angle at looking inside someone's nose. Unless that is the purpose of your video call, you might want to hold your phone up or look down appropriately to make sure you are seeing each other face to face instead of showing someone the insides of your nose.

Are you addicted to video calling already? If so, you might find yourself talking for long periods of time. After some time of talking though, you might notice your arm getting tired for holding up the iPhone 4 for suc a long time. One of the things you can consider is geting a stand to put your iphone on top of so that you don't have to hold it. You don't have to go out of your way to get a special case with a kick-stand or anything, in many cases 99 cent Rubbermaid business card holders can often do the same trick and it can be picked up at most office supply stores. Once you pop the iPhone onto it you should be good to go for a while or at least until your battery runs out.

You can also use the back-facing camera that many people seem to forget about. The front-facing camera is definitely a novelty on the iPhone 4, because of it many users forget that you can show the person you are calling what's on the other side of the phone as well. One the FaceTime screen you'll see a little icon that lets you switch between the two cameras. Don't forget that you can use it to keep each other entertained or show someone more than just yourself without tilting the iphone 4 around.

Keep an eye out for bright light in the background that can cause horrible video quality. Although the iPhone 4 is probably the best camera Apple has ever delivered it still has its downsides, bright light being one of them. If there is bright light in the background, it underexposes the foreground object, most often your face. If you just move the position of your device, you can omit the background brightness and make the main object much more visible.

The above mentioned points were just a few things that we experienced during our video calling sessions. There are a couple of things to also keep in mind, if you are one of the people who haven't had an opportunity to try out FaceTime with your iPhone 4, you can call 1-888-FACETIME from your iPhone to have an instructive session with an Apple employee.

More recently, we also posted about a video calling alternative as well, Fring. The company used the software necsesary to update their application allowing two-way video calling utilizing the front-facing camera as well. The difference? Fring allows you to make calls not only on Wi-Fi but also over the 3G network AND you can make video-calls with users who own other devices with video calling capabilities, such as the HTC Evo 4G. If you are interested in checking out Fring for your iPhone 4 or iPhone 3GS, check it out at iTunes by clicking here.

If you have an interesting experience with video calling, share them by posting a comment below!

Fring Now Has Two Way Video Calling Over Multiple Mobile Platforms

Apple has introduced incredible new features with the iPhone 4 and FaceTime that developers can now tap into in regards to Two Way Video Calling and Fring has jumped to tackle the opportunity right away. Back in December Fring added video calling support but the lack of a camera on the front limited video calls to one-way calls only. This was the case until the iPhone 4 came along and brought us a front-facing camera. Now Fring has updated their application to work both ways (works similar to FaceTime). Yep, that's right, video calling without FaceTime and with multiple devices. You can't expect everything to run extremely smooth with video streaming, but the fact it can be done over 3G and Wi-Fi and that ir brings iPhone 4 and 3GS users together without FaceTime makes it pretty impressive. Furthermore, you can also have these video calls with users on other devices including Android based phones and Nokia phones. Here is what Fring had to say:

With the new fring for iPhone you get lots of fring goodies including 2 way video-calling where you want and with whom you want!

- Face-to-face video calls with friends on their Droids, Nokia (Symbian S60) and other iPhones
- Video calls over 3G or Wi-Fi (Performance over 3G is subject to mobile operators' 3G coverage & quality)

The newest update makes the application available for iOS 4 multitasking and includes a new social stream as well as a new address book update. The iTunes link can be found here.

Next Gen iPod Touch Coming This September; Brings 5MP Camera + Facetime

Earlier today, a leading UK retailer slipped some details on what it expects from the next-gen iPod Touch and the iPhone 4 holds many of the clues. According to John Lewis who says "noises we're hearing from suppliers," the next-gen device will come equipped with a 5-megapixel camera, a front-facing camera, an LED flash, and the capacity to capture video in HD (720p probably), as well as including FaceTime Wi-FI video chat. With support for iOS 4 (which should also be hitting the iPad relatively soon), the next gen iPod Touch will offer the same movement sensors as the iPhone 4. Everything seems pretty reasonable and pretty accurate as games and other titles designed to take advantage of the iPhone's new accelerometer and gyroscope will be hitting the App Store, requiring the hardware to be able to support the features to be a contender.

This whole rumor suggests that the device will probably be powered by the A4 processor that Apple utilizes in it's iPad and iPhone 4 as well. With the iTunes cloud rumor in the air, the possibility of the iPod Touch supporting 3G is still there but highly doubtful at the same time as it would imply support for VoIP and we aren't sure Apple wants to hurt their iPhone sales. That being said, this suggests that some elements of portability will exist in the iTunes cloud service, so that users can carry some tracks with them when their devices are offline (a common feature found in Spotify, MOG, and others). Apple's next music event is probably going to be held in time for the holiday shopping season, most likely early September. Will iOS-enabled Apple TV also make an appearance? Only time will tell.

Stay tuned for more info on the topic by following us on Twitter and/or subscribing to our RSS feeds.

Best Buy Connect - Mobile Broadband To Launch July 11

Word has been out for a while of a new mobile broadband service being released next month from Best Buy and yesterday the company went ahead and spilled the info on its own Sunday flyer. There isn't any word of the hardware but rumor has it that Sprint will be providing it and that this new service will work with 4G. The service is said to launch on July 11 in all but 75 Best Buy stores throughout the country so make sure if you plan on heading to your local one, you check that it sells it before doing so. As most data plans, the Best Buy Connect service offers a variety of tiers ranging from a 250MB per month for $30 to 5GB monthly for $60 (with a contract). It is a bit strange that the 5GB monthly contract-free costs the same $60 and you don't ave to pay a $35 activation fee (it's waived instead). Check out more of the tiered pricing in the chart below:

[How To] Tether Your Evo 4G

Evo 4G users can already rejoice as more features start to come in for them. Evo users can enjoy unlimited free WiFi and Bluetooth tethering using the Wireless Tether for Root users (or simply Android-WiFi-Tether) app. The app’s main committer Harald Mue worked with a community contributor Andrew Robinson to get the app up and running. The community dedication was just simply amazing as the Evo was released just this past Friday.

Requirements

The only requirement is that your Evo is rooted. You can read about what root means and how to get your Evo rooted by following the instructions in our previous post. It is really simple and you’ll be done fairly quick.

Download

wireless_tether_2_0_1.apk (Stable)

wireless_tether_2_0_2-pre14.apk (Experimental)

After you have rooted, download and install the .apk file.

Update: android-wifi-tether does not work in infrastructure mode. Your devices have to be capable of joining an ad-hoc network. Android devices cannot as of right now, so your other mobile device may not be able to do so.

Sprint’s WiFi Hotspot

Sprint offers its own version of the WiFi app, which supports a stronger encryption (WPA/WPA2), while android-wifi-tether only supports a weak WEP. The company’s hotspot app also costs $30 a month while android-wifi-tether is free. You are already paying Sprint $10 extra for “premium data” per month already, why not really take advantage of it? This is one of the most useful apps to date for Android phones. For those of you who are concerned about WEP, you can use a whitelist capability of android-wifi-teter, which only lets through pre-approved WiFi MAC addresses. As of right now, there still may be bugs, but the new pre14 release seems to be working well from what we gathered. Download yours, test it out, and report back to us by dropping a comment below!

AT&T Announces Tethering Support For iPhone 4G / HD; Updates Data Plans

AT&T is Finally enabling iPhone data tethering for the US customers, with the launch of iPhone OS 4. The same day, iPhone users will also be greeted with new data plans including tethering option for $20 per month. AT&T internet tethering support has also been found in iPhone OS 4.0 beta 4.

Any Current iPhone customer will qualify for the $20/month Tethering option by switching to a new $25/month 2GB plan from the current $30/month unlimited data plan. So if you don’t want tethering, you can keep $30/month for unlimited data but in order to get tethering your data plan rate will increase to $45/month ($25 + $20) with a 2GB data cap.

Each plan includes unlimited access to AT&T Wi-Fi Hotspots. These are the new iPhone data plans that AT&T is going to introduce on 7th of June:

• Data Plus – 200 MB of data for $15/month. Additional 200MB for another $15.
• DataPro – 2GB of data for $25/month. Additional 1 GB of data for $10.
• Tethering – Additional $20/month for DataPro customers.

Here is AT&T's press release:

The new AT&T plans provide large amounts of data to enable people to enjoy their favorite online activities:

• DataPlus. Provides 200 megabytes (MB) of data – for example, enough to send/receive 1,000 emails (no attachments), plus send/receive 150 emails with attachments, plus view 400 Web pages, plus post 50 photos on social media sites, plus watch 20 minutes of streaming video – for just $15 per month.** This plan, which can save customers up to 50 percent off their wireless data charges, is designed for people who primarily like to surf the web, send email and use social networking apps. If customers exceed 200 MB in a monthly billing cycle, they will receive an additional 200 MB of data usage for $15 for use in the cycle. Currently, 65 percent of AT&T smartphone customers use less than 200 MB of data per month on average.
• DataPro. Provides 2 gigabytes (GB) of data – for example, enough to send/receive 10,000 emails (no attachments), plus send/receive 1,500 emails with attachments, plus view 4,000 Web pages, plus post 500 photos to social media sites, plus watch 200 minutes of streaming video – for $25 per month.** Should a customer exceed 2 GB during a billing cycle, they will receive an additional 1 GB of data for $10 for use in the cycle. Currently, 98 percent of AT&T smartphone customers use less than 2 GB of data a month on average.
• Tethering. Smartphone customers – including iPhone customers – who choose the DataPro plan have the option to add tethering for an additional $20 per month. Tethering lets customers use their smartphones as a modem to provide a broadband connection for laptop computers, netbooks or other computing devices. Tethering for iPhones will be available when Apple releases iPhone OS 4 this summer.

With the new wireless data plans, pricing for a smartphone voice and data bundle now starts at just $54.99 per month for an individual plan, or $24.99 per month for an additional line on a FamilyTalk plan, $15 per month less than the price of the previous entry level bundle.

For new iPad customers, the $25 per month 2 GB plan will replace the existing $29.99 unlimited plan. iPad customers will continue to pre-pay for their wireless data plan and no contract is required. Existing iPad customers who have the $29.99 per month unlimited plan can keep that plan or switch to the new $25 per month plan with 2 GB of data.

Wi-Fi at 20,000 AT&T Hot Spots

The vast majority of smartphones that AT&T offers have built-in Wi-Fi, which lets the devices automatically switch from the wireless network to a Wi-Fi hotspot without prompting, making Wi-Fi even more convenient and easy to use. This enables customers to use Wi-Fi in the home, office and at public locations where available. Wi-Fi will generally provide consistently fast speeds and does not count against a customer’s monthly data plan usage total. In addition, virtually all AT&T smartphone customers have access at no additional charge to more than 20,000 AT&T Wi-Fi Hot Spots in the U.S. Customers can get more information on how to use Wi-Fi and find the location of AT&T Wi-Fi Hot Spots at www.att.com/wifiaccess.

AT&T To Offer Free Wi-Fi To Ease Network Congestion

It’s no secret that AT&T’s coverage in NYC has been called out as being unreliable in the past. Now the company is apparently doing something about it with the launch of a pilot program that will bring free Wi-Fi to AT&T wireless and broadband customers. According to AT&T, users of smartphones, laptops, iPad's and other Wi-Fi enabled devices will enjoy free Wi-Fi access via the company’s “hotzone” on the north side of Times Square on 7th Avenue between 45th and 47th streets.

Anyone with an AT&T 3G smartphone with Wi-Fi enabled with have their device automatically connect to the giant hotspot. AT&T says that it’s offering the “hotzone” to test new ways of combining its Wi-Fi and 3G networks to ensure that its customers have a fast mobile broadband connection. Although it’s simply a pilot project, AT&T has said it will consider deploying free Wi-Fi to other busy locations across the US if all goes well in Times Square, NYC.

AT&T says that it’s offering the “hotzone” to test new ways of combining its Wi-Fi and 3G networks to ensure that its customers have a fast mobile broadband connection. AT&T says that if it’s successful, you may see more “hotzones” in Manhattan and other parts of the country.

This is a great new strategy by AT&T, though we are not sure what it costs the company to put together a “hotzone”, but surely it’s a lot cheaper for AT&T to route data requests over Wi-Fi instead of its 3G network. Considering it is a seamless experience for the users, be mindful that you will be connected to a "public Wi-Fi network" without any prompts.

Speaking of connecting without logging in, you can bet that a number of individuals will setup free wireless access points around the area in hopes of luring some unsuspecting users into connecting up to their free wireless access. At that point the key logging begins and the rest is identity theft history.

Aside from the possible scam scenarios, let's see how this strategy pans out for AT&T.

Stay tuned for more info by following us on Twitter and/or subscribing to our RSS feeds.

iPad Available in Supreme Gold Edition; Will Set You Back $190k

If you are still debating on purchasing the iPad, you feel that you don't want to be seen with the same device each time you turn your neck, and you feel that your regular iPad won’t set you aside from the 1 Million others who picked up Apple’s tablet, then how about stunning passers-by into dropped-jaw incontinence with the Stuart and Katherine Hughes iPad Supreme Edition. The UK company took a regular 64GB iPad WiFi + 3G and replaced the back panel and surround it with a single piece of solid 22ct gold, weighing in at 2,100 grams. Then, because lashings of gold simply aren’t enough, they throw 53 diamonds totalling 25.5 cts at it too which are mostly used to recreate the Apple logo on the back.

Only ten of the extravagant tablets will be made, each one priced at a not-inconsiderable £129,995 ($189,999) ONLY.

iPad Available In Nine More Countries; iPad Prices Revealed For UK

Apple has announced that they intend to make the iPad available in nine more countries by May 28. Pre-orders have been available since May 10.

Press release follows:

CUPERTINO, California—May 7, 2010—Apple® today announced that iPad™ will be available in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain, Switzerland and the UK on Friday, May 28. Customers can pre-order all iPad models from Apple’s online store in all nine countries beginning on Monday, May 10. In the US, Apple has already sold over one million iPads and customers have downloaded over 12 million apps from the App Store, as well as over 1.5 million ebooks from the new iBookstore.

iPad allows users to connect with their apps and content in a more intimate, intuitive and fun way than ever before. Users can browse the web, read and send email, enjoy and share photos, watch HD videos, listen to music, play games, read ebooks and much more, all using iPad’s revolutionary Multi-Touch™ user interface. iPad is 0.5 inches thin and weighs just 1.5 pounds—thinner and lighter than any laptop or netbook—and delivers up to 10 hours of battery life.*

The App Store on iPad lets you wirelessly browse, buy and download new apps from the world’s largest app store. iPad includes 12 new innovative apps designed especially for iPad and will run almost all of the more than 200,000 apps on the App Store, including apps already purchased for your iPhone® or iPod touch®. Developers have created more than 5,000 exciting new apps designed for iPad that take advantage of its Multi-Touch interface, large screen and high-quality graphics.

iPad Pricing & Availability:

Apple plans to release iPad in Austria, Belgium, Hong Kong, Ireland, Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand and Singapore in July. Apple will announce availability, local pricing and pre-order plans for these nine additional countries at a later date.

A second report informs us of the likely prices, citing good sources MacStories claims:

• iPad 16GB Wifi: 499€
• iPad 32GB Wifi: 599€
• iPad 64GB Wifi: 699€
• 3G version: +100 Euros

As per the report - 'These prices still have to be confirmed by Apple, but we’ve managed to get them from a very reliable source. The wait is almost over folks,'

UK prices have now been set, as Apple explains:

'iPad will be available in the UK for a suggested retail price of £429 (inc. VAT) for 16GB, £499 (inc. VAT) for 32GB, £599 (inc. VAT) for 64GB for Wi-Fi models and £529 (inc. VAT) for 16GB, £599 (inc. VAT) for 32GB and £699 (inc. VAT) for 64GB for Wi-Fi + 3G models. '

Apple also indicated that the iBookstore app will be made available in most of the nine countries on the same day the iPad ships (May, 28th).

For those who can't wait there is always eBay.

ABC Player for iPad Updated; Now Allows 3G Streaming

If you are one of the people who got their hands on a new iPad 3G and have already downloaded the ABC Player for iPad app, you may be pleasantly surprised to learn that the app has been updated to support video streaming over 3G. The improvements represents a substantial update that survived Apple's difficult-to-predict process.With ABC moving to the forefront of 3G video streaming so quickly, its a safe bet that this move will prompt others to do the same rather quickly.

If you still haven't experienced the ABC Player app, it is a free download that enables iPad owners to check out a variety of ABC television programming directly from their tablet. You can searc for particular episodes (and watch in an on-demand fashion), log a viewing history, and even come back to a show and pick up everything right where you stopped.

Of course, the update brings a smile to the faces of many iPad fanatics today, as ABC and a forthcoming slate of other multimedia powerhouses dabble with video streaming over 3G, more and more providers of digital content will help ensure that the iPad lives up to its potential and bestow upon users the variety of entertainment choices they expect to find on an iPad.

New Version of Spirit Jailbreak Released for iPad, iPhone, and iPod Touch

Comex released the long awaited Spirit jailbreak to jailbreak iPhone OS 3.1.3, iPhone OS 3.1.2 for all iPhones (including iPhone 3GS with updated Boot ROM) and iPod Touches and iPhone OS 3.2 for iPad recently. Many users have been able to successfully jailbreak their iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch devices and have reported that it is one of the easiest jailbreaking tool they’ve ever used. However, some users have reported issues with the initial version of Spirit.

Commonly reported issues:

• Users observed that their photos were deleted after using the jailbreaking tool. (Hopefully, you had followed our advice of taking a backup of your iPhone before using the tool)
• Many users were reporting error code c0000005.

Comex has released a new version of Spirit, which should resolve these issues. Comex writes on his website:

I've updated the jailbreak tool. It no longer deletes photos (sorry!) and should resolve the issue with error code c0000005. (If you still get that error with the new version, try setting compatibility mode toWindows 95.)

To resolve the c0000005 issue Change the “Compatibility mode” to “Windows 98 / Windows Me” by right clicking on “Spirit.exe”, and then click on “Properties”. This can be seen in the screenshot below.

Also check: “Run this program as an administrator” option on the same window.

So if you've hit any of these issues mentioned above then you can try again using the latest version of Spirit jailbreak.

Requirements:

• iPhone, or iPod touch on iPhone OS 3.1.2, 3.1.3 (if you are an older version then you’ll need to update your iPhone to iPhone OS 3.1.3) or iPad on iPhone OS 3.2. It works on all iPhones currently including the new iPhone 3GS models with updated Boot ROM.
• An activated device: one not stuck on the Connect to iTunes or Emergency Call screen.
• iTunes 9 or above (including iTunes 9.1.1 that was released last week)

Important:

• Jailbreaking your iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch could void its warranty so please proceed with caution and don’t forget to take a backup of your iPhone before you hack it (refer to this post for more details).
• We would also strongly recommend you to change the root password of your jailbroken iPhone (using this step-by-step guide) for security reasons.
• If you’re having any issue with Wi-Fi or network connectivity on your iPhone after jailbreaking it then try to reset network settings (Settings -> General ->Reset and “Reset Network Settings”) to resolve the issue.
• If you're an iPad user then it is important to note that some packages in Cydia (the App Store for jailbreak apps) are not designed for it so they could end up causing problems, which might require you to restore your iPad so please be very careful.
• Due to very high traffic, Saurik, developer of Cydia has disabled the feature to take SHSH blobs when you connect to Cydia, so it is advisable to take a manual backup using firmware umbrella.
• Spirit jailbreak does not unlock your iPhone and Comex hasn't provided any information on when it will be available.

Download Spirit for Mac and Windows here.

Stay tuned for all jailbreak news and info you might need by following us on Twitter and/or subscribing to our RSS feeds.

[How To] Enable Voice Control On The iPad

The following instructions will help you enable “Voice Control” feature which is found in iPhone 3GS and the 3rd-gen iPod touch 3G. You will need a jailbroken iPad prior to following this guide. If you haven't jailbroken your iPad yet, you can follow the guide found here.

Method 1:

Make sure you have afc2add installed from cydia or rock. SSH into your device or use your favorite USB browser.

1. Navigate to /System/Library/CoreServices/SpringBoard.app
2. Open K48AP.plist in a text editor or a plist editor
3. Under the capabilities area add the following key:
   
   

   <key>voice-control</key>
   <true/>

4. Reboot your iPad and enjoy Voice Control!

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Method 2:

1. For Windows users, you’ll need a software like WINSCP and for Mac you can use Cyberduck.
2. Install OpenSSH on your iPad using Cydia. Open up Cydia and search for it. You’ll have to restart your iPad after that.
3. Now use the following settings to log into your iPad: IP address of your iPad and user name: root and password: alpine and protocol: SCP
4. Navigate to /System/Library/CoreServices/SpringBoard.app
5. Open K48AP.plist in a text editor or a plist editor
6. Under the capabilities area add the following key:
   
   

   <key>voice-control</key>
   <true/>

7. Reboot your iPad and enjoy Voice Control!

Bonus Feature:

1. Navigate to /System/Library/VoiceServices/PlugIns/Base.vsplugin/English.Iproj
2. Open Help.strings
3. Change anything that says iPod into iPad
4. Voice Control will now say iPad instead of iPod

Stay tuned for all jailbreak news and info you might need by following us on Twitter and/or subscribing to our RSS feeds.

[How To] Jailbreak iPad 3.2 with Spirit

 Spirit – the untethered userland jailbreak for iPhone 3.1.3 and iPad 3.2 is finally here and is available for both Windows and Mac OS X.

IMPORTANT: Make sure that you have your SHSH files saved, follow the instructions posted here to save your SHSH blobs.

Step 1: Download and install the latest version of iTunes
Step 2: You will need to be on the official iPad OS 3.2 (or iPhone 3.2) for iPad.
Step 3: Download Spirit for Windows or Mac
Step4: Connect iPad with your computer, Run “Spirit” and then Click on “Jailbreak”:

Note for Windows 7/Vista Users (OS X users should skip to Step 5): Change the “Compatibility mode” to “Windows 98 / Windows Me” by right clicking on “Spirit.exe”, and then click on “Properties”. This can be seen in the screenshot below.

Also check: “Run this program as an administrator” option on the same window.

Step 5: Let the app do its thing and wait for the app to show “Jailbreak Complete!” message. At this point, wait for the iPad to automatically reboot.

Step 6: You should now have a fully jailbroken iPad on iPad OS 3.2. “Cydia” should be there in the list of applications on your iPad.

To Jailbreak your iPhone 3GS or 3G on OS 3.1.3 Untethered follow the step by step guide posted here.

Disclaimer: This guide is for testing & educational purposes only. We are not responsible for any loss of important data or malfunctioning of your iDevice.

Stay tuned for all jailbreak news and info you might need by following us on Twitter and/or subscribing to our RSS feeds.

[How To] Jailbreak iPhone 3G/3GS on OS 3.1.3 with Spirit

 Spirit – the untethered userland jailbreak for iPhone 3.1.3 and iPad 3.2 is finally here and is available for both Windows and Mac OS X.

IMPORTANT: Make sure that you have your SHSH files saved, follow the instructions posted here to save your SHSH blobs.

Step 1: Download and install the latest version of iTunes
Step 2: You will need to be on the official iPhone 3.1.2, or iPhone 3.1.3 firmware on your iPhone.
Step 3: Download Spirit for Windows or Mac
Step4: Connect iPhone with your computer, Run “Spirit” and then Click on “Jailbreak”:

Note for Windows 7/Vista Users (OS X users should skip to Step 5): Change the “Compatibility mode” to “Windows 98 / Windows Me” by right clicking on “Spirit.exe”, and then click on “Properties”. This can be seen in the screenshot below.

Also check: “Run this program as an administrator” option on the same window.

Step 5: Let the app do its thing and wait for the app to show “Jailbreak Complete!” message. At this point, wait for the iPhone to automatically reboot.

Step 6: You should now have a fully jailbroken iPhone.

To Jailbreak your iPad untethered follow the step by step guide posted here.

Disclaimer: This guide is for testing & educational purposes only. We are not responsible for any loss of important data or malfunctioning of your iDevice.

Stay tuned for all jailbreak news and info you might need by following us on Twitter and/or subscribing to our RSS feeds.

http://mygadgetnews.com/2010/05/03/how-to-jailbreak-ipad-3-2-with-spirit/

ABC Amongst Many Sites Where Video Doesn't Stream On iPad 3G

 

ABC's iPad app is one of the many apps that currently won't work over 3G because it doesn't use the HTTP Live Streaming protocol. According to App Advice, video producers who don't use this specific format aren't allowed by Apple to stream the video over 3G.

Here is some of the info from Apple's HTTP Live Streaming Overview:

iPhone and iPad apps that send large amounts of audio or video data over cellular networks are required to use HTTP Live Streaming. [...]

You must include a low quality stream of no more than 64 Kbps for your app to resort to when network conditions demand it, along with the higher quality streams you want to deliver to your customers when the network can support it.

This could also account for the poor quality seen in many movie trailers (64Kbps is half of ISDN speed) and other video content that was streamed over 3G. AT&T could be throttling bandwidth on http streams to make sure the video traffic doesn't bog down it's system.

The iPad 3G Is Here [Images + Details]

The iPad 3Gs are not in stores til this evening, but those who pre-ordered and had them shipped are already receiving the devices.

iPad 3G model is pretty much identical to the iPad WiFi, with a few marked difference both in software and hardware.

The top has a black plastic area instead of metal to allow for better 3G reception. It wraps around from the back of the iPad 3G to flush with the bezel on the front - so you've got both a bit of black in the silver frame of your iPad, and the black on the back.

There is also a SIM slot, which is essentially the same design as the iPhone SIM slots - although on the left side of the device. Same story - popping a paper clip in the SIM slot opening pushes the tray out to show the SIM. There is no unlock for the iPad yet, but once there is you should be able to also get 3G data through any other provider that offers it on the iPad 3G's supported spectrums (UMTS/HSPDA 850/1900/2100MHz, GSM 850/900/1800/1900MHz, and EDGE).

Once initially connected to iTunes (required before the thing will even turn on, same as the iPad Wi-Fi), it will ask you to set it up as a backup of a previous iPad or a new device. Then your iPad 3G will let you know it's awaiting activation, which takes a few minutes.

There is a new option in the Settings app for Cellular Data. You can choose to turn it on or off, as well as with roaming. You can also view your data account (which needs to be set up, more on that in a sec), and edit APN and SIM PIN settings. AT&T settings for APN came preset working with APN set to broadband, and both Username and Password are blank.

The first time you attempt to access anything which calls to the web, a pop-up appears asking you if you'd like to set up a Cellular Data Account, or skip it and access it via Settings at any time.

Press Now, and a window pop-over opens asking for your name, telephone, password for the account, and email. It also asks which of the two data plans you'd like to choose. There is a $14.99 for 250MB/month, or $29.99 for unlimited usage. You are also asked for your payment information, via Visa/MasterCard/AMEX/Discover. Sorry, folks without credit cards, those are the methods.

Assuming everything goes through correctly (my card didn't go through twice, with no specific errors, and the bank saying all should be fine, and I had to use a separate card - seems the validator may be off), you'll get another pop-up alert letting you know your account has been activated.

You should be able to immediately use 3G at the speeds you're familiar with from your iPhone 3G/3G[S]. Some reports of people having to restart their devices before getting 3G data (even though the 3G bar at the top says its connected with good reception) have been heard, although mine worked fine immediately.

You can view your account info and change it via the Settings app at any time. You'll be asked for the name and password you set up initially.

3G so far is working well, and other than those software and hardware differences, this is pretty much an iPad WiFi - which you're familiar with by now. Netflix streaming over 3G works great -though, the ABC app won't play anything, and requires you to be on WiFi.

And now we wait for the Spirit jailbreak from comex, which should work fine on the iPad 3G, and is scheduled to be released today as well.

We will bring you the latest information on the Jailbreak as soon as it it released, you can keep up to date by following us on Twitter or by subscribing to our RSS Feeds.

Sprint’s iPad “4G Case”

We all got the picture when Sprint first released the virtues of WiMAX in an ad featuring the iPhone on Sprint's 4G network, and now Sprint is giving away a special "4G" iPad case for free with the purchase of an Overdrive from BestBuy. To be sure, the tote features a special pouch for your new mobile hotspot as well. No word yet on if placing a 3G iPad in the case creates from singularity from which no nearby object can escape (or get reception, for that matter). I think we all got the picture of Sprint wanting the US drooling over an iDevice hitting the internet at 4G speeds.

How To: Tether iPhone To Connect To The iPad

Apple announced two models of iPad’s WiFi only and WiFi + 3G. The WiFi model is available for purchase now and the WiFi + 3G is yet to get a release date. Since the day of the release of the iPad WiFi model, many have asked - Is it possible to use iPhone tethering hack to connect to the iPad?

As per an email response from Steve Jobs himself, the short answer was “No, iPhone won’t tether with iPad”. There are still rumors that AT&T might announce a tethering plan as well, but we haven't heard any news yet.

Of course the jailbreak community says otherwise, and has made a tool available that will let you tether iPhone to iPad. For those who don’t know, tethering is the use of a mobile device such as a mobile phone to supply Internet access for another device which is otherwise unconnected, using the mobile device as a modem. This can be done through Bluetooth wireless technology or via USB cable.

In order to tether iPhone to connect to the iPad, your iPhone must be jailbroken. If you have not yet jailbroken your device, you can refer to our guides here. Once you’ve jailbroken your iPhone, you are all set.

“Don’t want to spend an extra $130 on the iPad 3G? Then use MyWi to tether your iPhone’s 3G Internet Connection to your iPad. This will also save you an additional $30 per month. This video will show you how to tether your iPhone’s 3G or EDGE Data Connection to your iPad. This works on all iPhones-iPhone 2G, iPhone 3G, iPhone 3GS. Data tethering using MyWi works on any WiFi enabled device. MyWi creates a WiFi network out of your cellular data connection. You can also set up a WEP key so that the network will have a password.”

You can purchase MyWi from Cydia for $9.99. However, there’s cracked version available in Cydia via beyouriphone and sinfuliphone repos.

Watch the video below to tether iPhone to your iPad -

Stay tuned for iPad jailbreak info which it yet to be announced by following us on Twitter, and subscribing to our RSS feed.

Apple Delays International iPad Until The End of May

Anyone outside the U.S that was hoping for an iPad to call their own before the month's end will be sorely disappointed. Apple (NSDQ:AAPL) just announced that all international sales will be delayed until the end of May due to strong demand in the U.S.

Here's Apple's statement -

Although we have delivered more than 500,000 iPads during its first week, demand is far higher than we predicted and will likely continue to exceed our supply over the next several weeks as more people see and touch an iPad™. We have also taken a large number of pre-orders for iPad 3G models for delivery by the end of April.

Faced with this surprisingly strong US demand, we have made the difficult decision to postpone the international launch of iPad by one month, until the end of May. We will announce international pricing and begin taking online pre-orders on Monday, May 10. We know that many international customers waiting to buy an iPad will be disappointed by this news, but we hope they will be pleased to learn the reason—the iPad is a runaway success in the US thus far.

Seems like international buyers don't have a chance unless they wait or come to the U.S. to get an iPad of their own. Even that will have it's own flaws though as 3G will not be available most likely until carriers in the region open up 3G access for it.

Microsoft’s Kin One and Two Announced: Social Media Friendly Phones

Earlier today, Microsoft Pink, the product of Redmond’s acquisition of Danger, has just unveiled as a pair of handsets sourced from Sharp (which made most of Danger’s Sidekicks) known as the Kin One and Kin Two. Both devices are being marketed as Windows Phones, and while they’re ultimately based on most of the same underpinnings as Windows Phone 7, it’s a completely different experience since the entire user interface is custom to Kin with a heavy social media slant, a custom browser (supposedly based on the Zune browser), and surprisingly no support for third-party apps. The displays do have multitouch (pinching and zooming) but there’s no support for in-browser Flash or Silverlight.

The Kin One is a phone rumored as “Turtle”, basically a curved square slider with a QVGA display, 4GB of internal storage, a 5 megapixel camera with LED flash, and a full QWERTY keyboard. The Kin Two, meanwhile is the phone leaked as the “Pure,” upping the ante with a HVGA display and a more traditional landscape QWERTY slide form factor. It also has an 8 megapixel cam and 8GB of internal storage, but other than that the experience is roughly the same compared to what you get on the One; both phones have WiFi and Bluetooth in addition to 3G cellular radios. For what it’s worth, Microsoft is emphasizing that internal storage really isn’t a big deal with the Kin phones, because your entire photo and video collection that you capture using the onboard camera is synced with online storage, and you can access the entire collection from your phone at any time by browsing thumbnails, and if you want the full content, you can download it. The Kin comes bundled with a desktop web experience that’s entirely based on Silverlight for viewing and sorting just about all the major stuff you can see on your phone such as contacts, social network status updates, images, and so on.

The big focus for Microsoft with Kin is the totally new, different, crazy UI, which is based on blocky, simple text, monochromatic elements, and zoomed-in stylized pictures. The big two features unique to Kin are being called “Sport” and “Loop.” Loop is sort of the of the Kin’s home screen, aggregating social content from your friends from sites such as Facebook and Twitter roughly based on order of priority by how you sort your contents, so you don’t see as many updates from people you don’t follow too closely. Spot, is an ever-present green dot at the bottom of the screen where you can drag content, just about anything like maps, images, status updates, videos, and share it with contacts. It’s similar to an “attach” button for your messaging client.

Both phones will have full support for the Zune music and video experience (not Zune gaming though) and it looks like the Zune HD UI we’re accustomed to, just as it does on Windows Phone 7. To loop into the Mac community, Microsoft will offer a Mac-compatible music side-loader, it won’t be a native client so you won’t be able to shop for music, but it’ll happily connect to iTunes and sync your non-DRM collection. Both phones also have support for over-the-air firmware updates, so you don’t need to tether for that. Data tethering on the other hand is NOT supported.

Verizon was chosen to be the carrier of the Kin One and Kin Two and will be releasing the phones in May, while Vodafone has signed on as the European partner for a Fall launch.

Stay tuned for more info on Microsoft's Kin. You can follow us by staying tuned to MyGadgetNews, following us on Twitter, and subscribing to our RSS feed.