MobileSyrup.com » Apple (iPhone)

Update: Apple employees accused of impersonating San Francisco police officers to retrieve lost iPhone 5 prototype

Daniel Bader — Fri, 02 Sep 2011 22:04:00 +0000

Apple’s PR patrol is going to be working overtime this weekend as reports leak out about a breach of the law by some of its security officials.

Earlier this week, word got out that in July an Apple employee had misplaced (read: lost) an iPhone 5 prototype at a San Francisco restaurant and bar, Cava 22. According to the story, which was first filed by CNET, Apple representatives called the San Francisco police department claiming that a “priceless” device had gone missing, and that it was imperative they find it. Using built-in GPS technology, they tracked the device to a house lived in by a man in his mid-twenties. He let them search the residence and found nothing, but the story raised a lot of questions, since it was unknown whether the missing phone, which is purportedly an iPhone 5 prototype, was ever found.

Today, new information is coming out revealing that in fact the San Francisco Police Department was never contacted, and a report never filed at all. Indeed, the “police” that arrived at the young man’s house, whose name is Sergio Calderon, were allowed to search the premises including his car and his computer. Unfortunately these individuals were outed as Apple security personnel. Because the six employees who entered the house did not divulge that they were not in fact policemen (though it is presumed they were not wearing police uniforms) they are being accused of impersonation, which is a criminal offense in California.

One of the employees, Anthony Colon, offered Calderon $300 to return the device, but he denies having any involvement in the theft. As the investigation is ongoing, answers may not be revealed for some time, but if the allegations are true this may be a dark cloud over a very bright year for Apple.

Update: This saga is getting out of hand now. Apparently now the San Francisco Police were part of the investigation. SW Weekly is now reporting that “The bizarre saga involving a lost prototype of the iPhone 5 has taken another interesting turn. Contradicting past statements that no records exist of police involvement in the search for the lost prototype, San Francisco Police Department spokesman Lt. Troy Dangerfield now tells SF Weekly that “three or four” SFPD officers accompanied two Apple security officials in an unusual search of a Bernal Heights man’s home.”

Source: SFWeekly
Via: Gizmodo

RBC: Apple has “Cascades of Cool” and expects a Q4 record 13.5 million iPhones shipped

Kate O'Brien — Fri, 15 Oct 2010 19:34:16 +0000

Even with all the hoopla about “Antennagate” and the recent (and very quiet) “Glassgate”, RBC analyst Mike Abramsky sent a note to investors that he believes Apple Q4 sales will top $20 billion. “Big Q4 beat expected as Apple surpasses $300/share…with innovation, future opportunities as strong as ever… we foresee further upside for the shares, as Apple remains well positioned against three large, growing, under-penetrated market opportunities (iPhone, iPad and Mac) and has “Cascades of Cool”, i.e., subsequent product generations and accessory cycles”.

For specific numbers, Abramsky said he expects Apple to announce Q4 shipments of 5 million iPads and a whopping record 13.5 million iPhones.

Source: AppleInsider

The iPhone 4 Unlocked is available at PureMobile.

Are you experiencing “Glassgate” with your iPhone 4?

Ian Hardy — Fri, 08 Oct 2010 12:07:31 +0000

It finally seems the reception issues with the iPhone 4 have settled down, this was commonly known as “Antennagate”. To help calm the situation Apple gave anyone who purchased the new iPhone 4 a free Bumper or 3rd party case. The free case program just ended on September 30th but there is now apparently another issue that’s causing the back of the iPhone to scratch, fracture and crack. The issue is only caused by 3rd party slide-on cases and has creatively been called “Glassgate”.

According to the article in gdgt it states that Apple is in “quiet lockdown” and that the engineering team is “very concerned” about the slide-on cases. “Apple has apparently found that non-bumper style cases — specifically those that slide onto the iPhone 4, which are occasionally prone to particulate matter getting caught between the rear of the phone and the case — can cause unexpected scratching that could quickly develop into full-on cracking or even much larger fracturing of the entire rear pane of glass. To put it another way: Apple is afraid you might buy a standard slide-on iPhone case, put it on your phone, and then discover the next time you take it off that the entire back of your device has been s hattered by no fault of your own.”

I can understand if the slide-on case scratches your iPhone 4… but for those with both the iPhone 4 and a slide-on case have you noticed it crack or fracture?

Source: gdgt

The iPhone 4 Unlocked is available at PureMobile.

WSJ: CDMA and 5th generation iPhone currently in development

Ian Hardy — Wed, 06 Oct 2010 19:11:32 +0000

There has been talk about Apple developing a CDMA based iPhone (specifically for Verizon in the United States) for the past several months. News today from the Wall Street Journal that “Apple Inc. plans to begin mass producing a new (CDMA) iPhone by the end of 2010″. In addition, the same article also states that Apple is already developing the 5th generation of the iPhone:

“Apple is also developing a new iPhone model, said people briefed on the matter. One person familiar with the new iPhone plan said the fifth-generation iPhone will be a different form factor from those that are currently available.”

Very interesting about the new form factor, perhaps a bigger screen, slimmer and lighter… and at the very least the location of the antenna needs to be moved. What do you think this new iPhone will look like?

Source: WSJ
Via: Engadget
Image Source: Google

Apple announces iOS 4.1, available next week

Kate O'Brien — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 17:30:19 +0000

Today at the Apple “Music Event” Steve Jobs took some time to announce that they are releasing iOS 4.1 (available sometime next week). With this update they are fixing some proximity and Bluetooth bugs and also fixing up the lag time for 3G users. In addition, Apple is also introducing a new feature called High Dynamic Range photos (HDR). This is usually found in semi-pro camera and takes three simultaneous photos and combines them all for a higher contrasted image. Other features of 4.1 will include the ability to upload HD videos uploads over WiFi and rent TV shows (not just purchase) and the anticipated Game Center.

More here over at Apple

Video: White iPhone 4 gets unboxed

Ian Hardy — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 13:57:34 +0000

About a month ago Apple stated the white version of the iPhone 4 will be delayed until sometime “later this year” because it’s been “more challenging to manufacture than we originally expected”. There’s still no official word on when this will be available, rumours are sometime in September.

However, that hasn’t stopped videos of the production models to surface. The latest is from 9to5mac with a 4-minute unboxing and a demo of it working. They state that “Here’s what appears to be a production white iPhone. On this model, the LED flash doesn’t have the tell-tale design issue as the white iPhone kits that have been populating the Internet… This may be an international model scrapped by Apple at the last minute after defects in the white color clarity were found.”

Check out the video after the break

Source: 9to5mac
Via: IntoMobile

Apple starts shipping iPhone 4 orders to Canada

Kate O'Brien — Wed, 18 Aug 2010 19:09:23 +0000

Good news for those people who opted to order online and not to wait in line to get the new iPhone 4. The launch date was on July 30th and if you bought online Apple stated the iPhone 4 had a ship date of 3 week. However, some lucky Canadians have started to receive e-mails with confirmations that their device has been shipped and en route by FedEx.

Hopefully the iPhone 4 in white will be available soon too.

Via: iPhoneInCanada

Video: Display comparison between the iPhone 4, Desire and Vibrant

Ian Hardy — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 12:00:14 +0000

There are so many devices out in the market that have great specs and can do many things all at once. Over the past several years one major shift has happened and it’s the attention to the display. This area has grown from what used to be 2-inches to what seems to be the minimum standard of 3.5-inches. The display is the center of your device, the area you look the most and brings the mobile experience home. Remember when people used to say “Why would you watch videos/movies on your phone”… now it’s becoming why would you not. The picture quality is so incredibly impressive.

I grabbed hold of the Apple iPhone 4, HTC Desire and the Samsung Galaxy S Vibrant. All these touchscreen devices have a stellar list of specs that range from a 5 megapixel camera, flash, Android 2.1, 1GHz Snapdragon processor etc… but what I really wanted to test out what the display in each. The iPhone 4 comes with a 3.5-inch Retina Display with a resolution of 960×640. The HTC Desire has a 3.7 inch Sony Super LCD with a resolution of 480×800. And finally the Samsung Galaxy S Vibrant has a massive 4-inch Super AMOLED display with resolution of 480×800.

You can check out the video yourself of the comparison and let us know which is best – They quality is high on all. The video was shot in HD and the video I picked to stream was from YouTube in HD.

Here is the video from YouTube:

Apple SVP who was “the guy responsible for the antenna” suddenly departs

Ian Hardy — Sun, 08 Aug 2010 14:31:44 +0000

The Apple iPhone 4 launched. It has antenna issues and Apple gave free cases to all and said they are working on a solution. More news as Apple’s SVP of iPhone and iPod hardware engineering, Mark Papermaster, has left the company.

There’s no confirmation from Apple if he was decided to leave or if he was fired but according to John Gruber of Daring Fireball: “From what I’ve heard, it’s clear he was sacked. Papermaster was a conspicuous absence at the Antennagate press conference. Inside Apple, he’s “the guy responsible for the antenna” — that’s a quote from a source back on July 23. (Another quote from the same source: “Apparently the antenna guys used to have a big chip on their shoulder. No more.”)

Taking over for Papermaster will be Apple SVP Bob Mansfield who’s been in charge of Macintosh hardware engineering.

Via: Engadget

How to get your free iPhone 4 case from Apple

Ian Hardy — Sun, 01 Aug 2010 13:44:31 +0000

Apple iPhone 4 “Antennagate” is actually not as big an issue as it was blown up to be. I’m not sure what you are finding but I find that you have to really cover the bottom left corner and press really hard for a couple minutes to experience the bars to go down. With that said the design problem still exists and that needs to be fixed by Apple. One way for a quick fix is to get yourself a free case. Steve Jobs announced that those who purchase the new iPhone 4 will get a free Bumper or a 3rd party approved case. To get yours you’ll have to go into the App Store and find the iPhone 4 Case Program App and install it. You can check out this link here and the official description in the App Store is as follows:

“If you are experiencing reception issues with your iPhone4, you are eligible to receive an iPhone 4 Bumper or other select third-party case from Apple at no charge. Download this free app onto your iPhone 4 and apply for your free Bumper or case.

Only iPhone 4 owners are eligible for this program. The app will check the IMEI and serial number to verify that you have an iPhone 4. Once eligibility is confirmed, you will be able to choose an iPhone 4 Bumper or other case. The Bumper or case will be shipped to you at no charge

All iPhone 4 purchases must be made by September 30, 2010, to qualify for this program. For iPhone 4 purchases made before July 23, 2010, you must apply no later than August 22, 2010; otherwise, you must apply within 30 days of your iPhone 4 purchase.”

Also, I grabbed some screenshots (they are also available in the app store). You can only get one case, but here’s a list: Apple Bumper, Belkin Shield Micra, Griffin Motif Diamond, Griffin Reveal Etch Black, Incase Snap Case Black, Incase Snap Case Clear, Speck Fitted Case Black, Speck PixelSkin HD Black. They will ship anywhere between 3-5 weeks.