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iPhone 3.0 Firmware Listings Show Four New iPhone and iPod touch Models

March 19, 2009 By Alex Jordan Leave a Comment

After digging around in the device strings (whatever that means) of the new iPhone 3.0 beta software, some people far smarter than me have stumbled upon listings of at least four new iPhone/iPod touch models.

The first iPhone showed it’s listing as iPhone 1,1, while the iPhone 3G is listed as iPhone 1,2 which means it’s a minor upgrade to an existing design. The first, and second-generation iPod touch show up as 1,1 and 2,1 respectively.

The new hardware strings show up as iPhone 2,1 and iPhone 3,1 as well as iPod 2,2 and iPod 3,1. That means iPhone 2,1 and , iPhone/iPod 3,1 would be major updates, while iPod 2,2 would only be a minor update.

There were also some odd strings found in the listings, one being an “iProd 0,1″, which name suggests is currently an early prototype, or something all together different.

The only thing this proves to me, is Apple has multiple interations of current products in their pipline. This doesn’t mean the rumored iPhone nano is coming. Besides, Apple has denied it’s exsistance.

Filed Under All News, Rumors Tagged With Firmware, iPhone, listings, string

Apple Announces iPhone 3.0 Firmware

March 12, 2009 By Carlos Yanez Leave a Comment

Mark your calendars on March 17th, Apple is going to announce the version 3.0 of the iPhone firmware, the event will take place at 10am PST in San Francisco city.

This will be an advance preview of what the OS will be, reports Engadget, so probably the full update will come in June where we expect an Apple event, and maybe the release of a new iPhone.

Snow Leopard, Steve Jobs return, new iPhone and new firmware? This seems like a very good year to Apple.

Filed Under All News, iPhone Tagged With 3.0, Event, Firmware, iPhone

Apple Releases Firmware Updates for Portables

December 10, 2008 By Alex Jordan Leave a Comment

Apple released a series of firmware updates for all “Late 2008″ portable computers today. Each line of computers require two separate firmware updates.

First up are the EFI (Extensible Firmware Interface) updates. These control the interface between the computer’s firmware and operating system. All of the EFI updates improve system wide stability. 

The EFI Firmware updates can be found here: MacBook, MacBook Pro, and MacBook Air.  Installation instructions of the EFI updates can be found here.

Next up are the SMC Firmware Updates. The SMC (System Management Controller) updates address the “sensing and accuracy of the MagSafe Power Adapter indicator light, and the battery charge indicator lights.”

The SMC Firmware updates can be found here: MacBook, MacBook Pro, and MacBook Air. Installation instructions of the SMC updates can be found here.

Filed Under Hardware, Software Tagged With efi, Firmware, late 2008, MacBook, MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, smc, Update

Jailbreaking the iPhone 3G with Firmware 2.2

December 7, 2008 By Killian Bell 4 Comments

The wonderful world of all things Mac has been fairly quiet this weekend — there hasn’t been much news to post on. So in my spare time, rather than search for funny videos on YouTube or keep changing the wallpaper on my Mac, I decided to jailbreak my iPhone so I could let you all know how it went.

I haven’t been too bothered about jailbreaking my iPhone. I’ve never really been interested in anything a jailbreak can offer. Everything I’ve wanted has been available either from the App Store or has already been built-in to the iPhone by Apple. At least that’s what I thought, until I started playing around once the process was complete. Another thing that put me off jailbreaking was it seemed there was always a chance that something wouldn’t be quite right. Last time I looked in to jailbreaking, on firmware 2.0, I had read many comments from people who had experienced problems with WiFi, received no signal and many other issues following a jailbreak that, to me, just didn’t seem worth it. However with this version of QuickPwn from the iPhone-Dev Team, there were very, very few comments from users experiencing problems. So I decided to give it a try. After all, if I didn’t like it, I only had to restore my iPhone and send it back to basics.

To start, I downloaded QuickPwn for Mac. Now I must point out, there are various warnings on the iPhone-Dev Team’s website about using QuicPwn if you wish to benefit from a soft-unlock in the future. It is advised that you use the more advanced, PwnageTool if you want the chance to soft-unlock later. However PwnageTool is currently only available on Mac, whereas QuickPwn is available for both Mac and Windows.

I am using an iPhone 3G, firmware 2.2 on O2. I am in the UK on an O2 contract so I have no need for a soft-unlock and therefore was happy just to use QuickPwn. I must also point out there is another warning with regards to QuickPwn on the new, late-2008 MacBooks/Pros — there seems to be a problem with the iPhone entering DFU mode on these systems. However I gave QuickPwn a try on my new MacBook just to see how it went. I should have trusted the warning — my iPhone failed to enter DFU mode and would not turn on. I was just stuck with the Apple logo. One restore later and one lesson learned, I decided to boot up Windows XP in Boot Camp and see if QuickPwn in Windows would be successful.

The process was surprisingly simple, and successful on XP. I plugged in my iPhone, waited for QuickPwn to recognize it, then switched it off whilst still connected to USB. I then started my iPhone back up holding down the home & power buttons, then releasing the power button, keeping the home button depressed for a short period to enter DFU mode. It worked fine in Windows and started to build a custom IPSW file from my iPhone 2.2 firmware bundle. Once this process was complete, the custom firmware was installed on my device and once the iPhone started up, Cydia and Installer were present on my home screen.

Cydia and Installer are two applications that allow you to download and install other third-party applications from various sources. Most of the applications available aren’t allowed in the App Store for various reasons, however most are really quite useful.

So far, the applications I’ve found to be most fun and useful are:

  • Cycorder — records video, and the quality is pretty good.
  • Make It Mine (MIM) — changes your carrier/operator name to anything you want.
  • WinterBoard — applies themes and various other tweaks to your iPhone’s appareance and operation.
  • MxTube — search and download videos from YouTube directly to the iPhone.
  • NES — a Nintendo “NES” emulator that allows you to play ROMS.

And those are just a few. As I previously said, I couldn’t really see a whole lot of point in jailbreaking before, however until completed the jailbreak and started playing with my iPhone, I didn’t realize what I was missing out on. Also, since jailbreaking my iPhone, I have experience no issues whatsoever. Everything works just as it did before the jailbreak only my iPhone is a bit more fun! If ever I need to reverse the jailbreak process, all I need to do is restore my iPhone through iTunes and it will be back to normal.

Unfortunately I didn’t take any screenshots of the QuickPwn process, however here are three screenshots of the iPhone after the jailbreak; one of the NES emulator, one that gives an example of how you can change the “theme” of your iPhone and it’s carrier name, and one that shows a Family Guy modified SMS theme:

I’ve had a great experience with the iPhone 3G jailbreak and the iPhone-Dev Team really have done a fantastic job. However I’m sure there are people out there who haven’t had such a great experience and may have caused serious damage to their iPhones, not to mention the fact that if you had any problems and took the iPhone back to the Apple/O2 store without restoring it first, your warranty would be void. So please, if you try this, be careful and read all instructions and warnings over and over and over again! Mactropolis does not recommend jailbreaking and is not responsible if anything goes wrong.

Filed Under Fun Stuff, iPhone Tagged With 2.2, cydia, Dev Team, Firmware, hack, installer, iPhone, Jailbreak, Pwnage Tool, QuickPWN, WinterBoard

Linux Comes to the iPhone

November 29, 2008 By Killian Bell 1 Comment

The incredibly talented iPhone-Dev Team have successfully got Linux running on the iPhone. They have used reverse engineering on the iPhone drivers to provide the option of two operating systems when booting the device — using “OpeniBoot” gives users the option of booting to Mac or Linux when they start their iPhones, much like Boot Camp on the Mac.

At present, there is still a lot of work to be done. The Dev Team have managed to get a command line running with input sent to the device over USB, however there is no support for the accelerometer, camera, audio, networking or even the touchscreen just yet.

The iPhone-Dev Team seem to have made the most progress on hacking the iPhone. They have produced excellent jailbreak & unlock software for many firmware versions of both the iPhone and the iPod Touch. With the progress made running Linux, the Dev Team aim to provide the ability of running Google’s Android OS on the iPhone, and they are currently looking for programmers to help with the project.

[ Source ]

Filed Under Fun Stuff, More..., iPhone Tagged With Android, Dev Team, Firmware, iPhone, iPod Touch, Jailbreak, Linux, OS

Apple Releases New SDK for iPhone Firmware 2.2

November 21, 2008 By Killian Bell 1 Comment

Following the release of the new 2.2 iPhone/iPod Touch firmware earlier today, Apple have now released an updated Software Developmemt Kit — build 9M2621.

The new SDK download is larger than the previous release at 1.56GB. It is said that the new SDK offers overall system stability and performance improvement, although, Apple are yet to release any details publicly.

If you’re a registered iPhone developer, you can download the new SDK from the iPhone Dev Center. You will need OS X 10.5.5.

[ Source ]

Filed Under Developers, Software, iPhone Tagged With 2.2, 9M2621, Firmware, iPhone, iPhone Dev Centre, iPod Touch, SDK

Apple Releases iPhone 2.2 Firmware

November 21, 2008 By Killian Bell Leave a Comment

Today the long-awaited iPhone/iPod Touch 2.2 firmware became available through iTunes, just as previous rumors had suggested. The new update includes everything we expected plus a little more.

Street View is now a feature of the Maps application and this is something I was looking forward to. I had chance to play around with it for a bit earlier today and it’s certainly quite impressive. It’s cool to take a walk around New York when you’re thousands of miles away. As well as routes for driving, Maps now also offers public transport and walking routes.

Podcast downloading is another feature included in the update. You can now download podcasts directly from iTunes on your device. The Safari bar has changed and now displays both the address and search bars side by side, just like the Safari browser for Windows & Mac. Other features in the update include improved sound quality for visual voicemail, fewer call drops and decreased call set-up failures, the option to turn off auto-correction when typing, plus lots more.

One thing that was rumored that hasn’t materialized was the ability to tether the iPhone and use it’s connection to access the internet on a computer. Some believed this would be another feature we would see in 2.2 however its absence is a disappointment.

The download weighs in at around 250MB but is certainly worth the wait. For more info, visit Apple’s software update page for the iPhone.

Filed Under Software, iPhone Tagged With 2.2, download, Firmware, iPhone, iPod Touch, iTunes, Maps, Podcast, Safari, street view

Details Emerge of Possible AT&T iPhone Tethering Plan

November 13, 2008 By Killian Bell 2 Comments

We recently reported on the possibility of AT&T to allow tethering of the iPhone. This is where you can connect your iPhone to your computer and use the device as a modem to access the internet. Since then, rumors have emerged that provide possible details on the plan AT&T will offer customers that wish to use tethering. As Boy Genius Report state, although these are only rumors, the details certainly look feasible.

It has been rumored that the ability to tether the iPhone will come as soon as the next iPhone firmware update (2.2), which has also been rumored to make an appearance next Friday on November 21st. Here is what the tethering plan from AT&T may look like:

  • An additional monthly fee of $30
  • A data limit of 5GB
  • Initial connection to be made through iTunes
  • Expected speeds: GPRS: ~30k / EDGE: ~110k / 3G: ~1000k

This plan is very much similar to the current tethering plans that AT&T offer customers on their other smartphones, especially the 5GB data limit which is also what’s offered with the BlackBerry, and the extra $30 a month which seems to be the norm for all tethering plans.

For those of us in other countries, let’s hope that our network providers take note and get a move on!

Filed Under Rumors, iPhone Tagged With AT&T, Boy Genius Report, Firmware, Internet, iPhone, modem, network, plan, tethering, Update

DevTeam Jailbreak/Unlock iPhone 2.2

November 3, 2008 By Killian Bell 2 Comments

The new iPhone firmware 2.2 is still only in its 2nd Beta and already the iPhone ‘DevTeam’ have successfully performed a jailbreak and unlock. According to DevTeam Apple are still yet to fix the unreleased firmware that is prone to the ‘pwnage’ jailbreak and unlock. I find it unlikely however that Apple will make the 2.2 update available without fixing this little glitch first.

The news was posted on the DevTeam’s website just four days ago and it has already received over 200 comments. An unlock for the 2.2 firmware seems to be what everyone is waiting for and many people are eager to know how the DevTeam are progressing with this.

There is currently already a jailbreak for the 2.1 iPhone/iPod Touch firmware which will allow users to install third party applications not available in the App Store. Please note: we do not recommend jailbreaking your iPhone/iPod Touch.

[ Source ]

Filed Under More..., iPhone Tagged With 2.2, beta, DevTeam, Firmware, iPhone, iPod Touch, Jailbreak, unlock

AT&T Begins Surveying iPhone 3G Customers

October 26, 2008 By Killian Bell Leave a Comment

AT&T has recently begun surveying iPhone 3G customers on what features they would like to see introduced to the handset. The survey also aims to discover post-purchase customer satisfaction on both Apple and AT&T, as described by AppleInsider readers, as well as asking whether or not firmware update 2.1 made any improvements.

Customers are asked to pick their top five hardware or software additions they’d like to see introduced to the iPhone, including MMS messaging, cut & paste, built-in instant messaging and Flash/Java support.

AppleInsider insists customers should not look upon this as a sign of Apple’s future direction with the 3G handset, they say “companies regularly poll their customers to determine the level of demand for particular features”. Although Apple has previously stated that they are continually looking to add new features to the iPhone’s software — when questioned on the iPhone’s lack of cut & paste, Apple stated it was a question of priority and that such features have been put on the ‘back-burner’ whilst they address other issues and features.

As we reported earlier this week it seems the next iPhone software update will include Google Street View, however it is yet to be reported we will see any of the above features many customers are requesting. We are also yet to hear of any customers outside of the US that have received a similar survey.

One particular feature I would like to see added to the iPhone would be the ability to ‘tether’ it to my MacBook and use the phone as a 3G modem to connect to the internet in places that don’t posses a WiFi hotspot.

[ Source ]

Filed Under Software, iPhone Tagged With 3G, AppleInsider, AT&T, Firmware, iPhone, Software Update, survey
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