Archives for July 2010

iOS 4 Exchange Issue Patched

Some users reported to Apple [AAPL] that their iPhone running iOS 4 was struggling to connect to Exchange servers. This isn’t something we have noticed ourselves here and we use Exchange server for email, contacts, calendar and tasks (separate app). However, Apple has provided a quick update that essentially just changes the idle timeout. Users are reporting that this does indeed fix the problem.

Immediately after updating to iOS 4, some users may notice that Exchange ActiveSync Mail, Contacts, or Calendars do not sync, or sync very slowly. In addition, some Exchange Server administrators may notice their servers running slowly.

Products Affected

iPod touch, iPhone 3G, iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS

Resolution

To work around this issue, users should install a configuration profile from Apple that increases the amount of time the iOS 4 device will wait for the Exchange Server to respond to its sync requests. For best results, the profile should be installed on as many iOS 4 devices at your company as possible.

The update is simple to install and can be found here. Download it or view this page on your iPhone and click the link within the article. Alternatively you can just email the file to yourself and install from the mail app.

You then need to install it and ignore the “profile is not signed” message. Once installed which takes less than a second, just restart your iPhone and you should be good to go.

Firefox Home Waiting for Approval from Apple

Back in May, Mozilla previewed the Firefox Home app saying it was soon going to be sent to Apple [AAPL] for approval to hit the app store. The application has now been submitted and the company is just waiting for Apple to give the go ahead.

Firefox Home is an application that lets you sync your bookmarks and open tabs up from your desktop or laptop computer with your iPhone so that when you are on the move you can easily pick up from where you left off at home. The data about tabs and bookmarks on your computer is automatically synced to the cloud which allows the iPhone to then grab that data when the free application is loaded up. [Read more…]

Facebook for iOS 4 Now Includes Fast App Switching

Facebook has finally updated their iPhone app to be iOS 4 compatible as well as iPhone 4 compatible. By iOS 4 compatible we mean that Fast App Switching is now available which works on the iPhone 3GS and iPhone 4. By iPhone 4 compatible we mean that the icons have received an update and have been made higher resolution to look better on the retina display.

Other features include Russian and Korean localizations as well as a few minor bug fixes for the app. [Read more…]

iPhone 3G Runs Android 2.2

Sergio Mcfly has managed to get Android 2.2 Froyo, the Google [GOOG] operating system, to run on his iPhone 3G. The version installed is unlocked and allows Sergio to make calls over the T-Mobile network as well as use 3G data services.

The iPhone 3G runs ultrasn0w that allows Android Froyo to be installed as detailed below…

‘Wohooooo!! For the first time I’ve got my 3G ultrasn0w running Android Froyo UNLOCKED!. Many thanks to bluerise to make this possible. He just ported the ultasn0w into the new OpeniBoot. It took a long time to me to figure out and embed into the IPHODROID. Now, its time to make labs with 2G phone but Im in a rush to put this new release in the air and feel the people so happy to making calls everywhere

[Read more…]

YouTube Ad Skipping Coming by the End of 2010

Google [GOOG] later on this year will be giving users the option of skipping over pre-roll ads on their videos. Pre-roll ads are the ones that play for 10 – 15 seconds before you watch the actual video. These in effect, will not be optional to view.

Ad selection is also to be implemented that will give users the option of choosing an ad to watch on the longer videos. Google will only pay out for those ads watched which puts emphasis on the advertiser to get some good ads on line.

Google has been testing ad skipping for about 9 months now and have seen results that indicate that better quality ads get viewed a lot more and the bad ones get skipped. [Read more…]

Microsoft Kin is Killed Off

Microsoft [MSFT] has killed off the Microsoft Kin just a few weeks after it’s launch. From what Engadget reports, it appears that Microsoft is rolling the Kin in to the Windows Phone 7 team. Product launches for Europe are not going ahead now although Microsoft will support Verizon [VZ] with the device in the US.

“We have made the decision to focus exclusively on Windows Phone 7 and we will not ship KIN in Europe this fall as planned. Additionally, we are integrating our KIN team with the Windows Phone 7 team, incorporating valuable ideas and technologies from KIN into future Windows Phone releases. We will continue to work with Verizon in the U.S. to sell current KIN phones.”

[Read more…]

Graphite Kindle DX Launching July 7

Amazon [AMZN] is launching a new Kindle DX next week on July 7. The new model has a higher contrast e-ink screen that allows for clearer text and sharper images. Amazon reports that the display contrast is increased by 50 percent.

The new Kindle DX will be priced at $379 making it $110 lower than the previous version. It has a 9.7 inch screen and is enclosed in a Graphite cover.

“There’s no turning back once you read on our beautiful new Kindle DX screen,” said Steve Kessel, senior vice president, Amazon Kindle. “With 50 percent better contrast and darker fonts, you’ll find it easier than ever to read wherever you happen to be, whether it’s outside in bright sunlight or under the low light of your living room. We’re excited to offer the new Kindle DX with free 3G wireless at the lower price of $379.”

[Read more…]

FaceTime over 3G Tested thanks to HTC EVO 4G Hotspot

When Apple [AAPL] announced FaceTime early last month it was hit with a snag for this year that it can only be used over Wi-Fi. When trying to make a FaceTime call over 3G it simply won’t let you do it.

Wi-Fi to Wi-Fi works well from what we have seen but it does restrict you to a single location while making a FaceTime call. Laptop Mag decided to test FaceTime using 3G. To achieve this the guys used a HTC EVO 4G with 4G switched off. They then used the smartphones wireless hot spot function to create a mobile 3G network, connected with the iPhone 4 to the wireless network which the signal was then sent over 3G to another iPhone 4. The second iPhone 4 was still connected to Wi-Fi hotspot on the other side (but not a smartphone over a 3G connection). [Read more…]

Microsoft Courier Still a Possibility

When the Microsoft Courier was first introduced last year, the idea behind it looked fantastic. The Courier is a dual-screen device that allows you to colaborate projects with others as well as organise your life. The UI that was demonstrated on video looked easy to use and appeared to be very intuitive. Microsoft [MSFT] never officially announced the Courier although they did announce it’s death.

When I say it was never officially announced, it was but in the same paragraph it was also killed as follows…

At any given time, we’re looking at new ideas, investigating, testing, incubating them. It’s in our DNA to develop new form factors and natural user interfaces to foster productivity and creativity. The Courier project is an example of this type of effort. It will be evaluated for use in future offerings, but we have no plans to build such a device at this time.

[Read more…]

Cisco to make Wi-Fi Flip, FaceTime Video Client and More

Cisco [CSCO] is looking forwards to video over the next few years. Over at Cisco Live! a few new details were announced which show where the company wants to go. First up is mention of the next generation Flip camera. The new camera will have Wi-Fi built in allowing you to more easily transfer files between devices or upload to Youtube direct without having to connect the Flip physically to a computer. We could expect to see wireless added to the Flip in time for Christmas although no specific announcement was made.

Another product mentioned is called the Media Experience Engine that allows Adobe Flash to work on the iPhone.

“We have a solution for Steve’s problem,” De Beer said, referring to Apple CEO Steve Jobs, who has defended Apple’s much-criticized rejection of the Flash media player operating on its mobile devices, and favors using HTML5 instead.

Timing for this service is also unavailable although we could expect it this year. [Read more…]

HTC HD2 gets Android 2.1

Last week a big milestone was reached in terms of getting Android from Google [GOOG] to run on the HTC HD2. Prior to last week the team working on getting Android on to the HD2 couldn’t get HaRET to function without crashing which meant that Android couldn’t be loaded up. By making some patches the team successfully loaded up HaRET on the HD2.

Moving on a few days and the team now have managed to get Android 2.1 and Windows Mobile 6.5 booting side-by-side on the device. The Android build runs on Ubuntu Linux.

The release is far from being ready at the moment as it has a few bugs that make it unstable. However a few things do work quite well including a responsive touchscreen. As with all ports on to another device, it takes a bit of time to work out the bugs and get it ready to use fully, so we estimate another month or so before it will become usable. [Read more…]