iPhone Sheep

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The world of corporate cheap shots has today been enriched in its number with one supersized ad for one supersized phone. BGR reports that Motorola took out a full-page spread in the New York Times on this final day of June, which was ostensibly dedicated to promoting the positives of its mighty Droid X. But Moto has also followed in the footsteps of Nokia in making a not so subtle jab at the latest king of the smartphone kingdom. “Most importantly,” the ad advises, the Droid X “comes with a double antenna design,” which will let you make “crystal clear calls” while holding the device “any way you like.” Glad we got that established — next Moto will be telling us the alarm clock on its phones works just fine too. Skip past the break for the untrimmed ad.

Continue reading Droid X ad pokes fun at iPhone 4 antenna troubles

Droid X ad pokes fun at iPhone 4 antenna troubles originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 30 Jun 2010 17:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Tech blog Anandtech goes hands-on with the iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS, and Nexus One to find out if the antenna issue is unique to the iPhone 4′s hardware or software.

Originally posted at Circuit Breaker

Folks at AnandTech have done a detailed analysis of iPhone 4’s new antenna system to investigate the reason for the reception issues reported by many users when they touch iPhone 4’s side antenna bands on the lower left corner. Before starting the tests, AnandTech had to hack their iPhone 4…

Apple faces supply issues surrounding the iPhone 4, which could prompt would-be buyers to consider rival smartphones, says iSuppli.

Originally posted at News – Apple

Ricoh continues to make its way into the cloud with consumer solutions from Quanp. Now offering storage and large-file transfer, Quanp is introducing an iPhone app in the U.S.

Originally posted at Software, Interrupted

The iPhone 4‘s antenna issues have sparked off a firestorm of debate as to the root cause — Apple says holding the phone differently or buying a case are the best answers, while other are going down a more voodoo path — but our friends at AnandTech have done some more scientific testing of the problem and come up with a few interesting results. Turns out the iPhone 4 actually performs slightly better inside a case than a phone like the Nexus One, which has had similar issues crop up, but it’s slightly worse when held in the hand, reporting an average signal drop of 20dB. Here’s where it gets a little wacky, though: the signal meter in iOS 4 is logarithmic, so that 20dB drop can either leave you looking steady at five bars or drop you all the way to zero, depending on what the actual signal level in the area is like. Take a look at the chart above and you’ll get it: the range of values between one bar and four spans just 23dB, while the range for five bars is 40dB. That means holding the phone in an area with a strong five-bar signal will have no apparent effect — you can lose 20dB at full signal and still see five bars — but holding the phone in an area with weaker coverage will easily drop the meter to one bar, since the 20dB signal drop covers almost the entirety of the remaining 23dB scale. Oops.

Of course, that’s just the on-screen display, which Apple can and likely will tweak in a future iOS update. The real question is whether the reported signal has anything to do with performance, and Anandtech agrees with our general experience, saying that the iPhone 4′s improved signal to noise ratio means it actually does a better job of hanging onto calls and using data when there’s low signal than the iPhone 3GS. In their words, “this iPhone gets the best cellular reception yet, even though measured signal is lower than the 3GS.” However, there’s no getting around the fact that we’ve definitely dropped a couple calls with the iPhone 4 by holding it the wrong way, and Anandtech says the only real solution to the antenna issue will be for Apple to either subsidize free bumpers or add an insulative coating to the antenna band. We’ll see what happens — we’ve got a feeling an iOS update is on the way, but we’d definitely love to see Apple pursue a more aggressive solution to this problem.

iPhone 4′s antenna problem looks worse than it is, but it’s still bad originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 30 Jun 2010 14:26:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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There are iPhone cases, and then there’s Magellan‘s waterproof Toughcase. Priced at $199.99, it’s actually just as expensive as a new iPhone 4 on contract, and double the price of an iPhone 3GS (which it actually houses). So, what does two Benjamins get you? Most would argue “not nearly enough,” but argonauts may beg to differ. The case meets IPX-7 waterproof standards, enabling it to be submerged at a depth of one meter for up to 30 minutes, and there’s also an integrated 1,840mAh battery that’s able to “double the life” of your iPhone 3G, iPhone 3GS or second / third-generation iPod touch. Moreover, there’s a built-in high sensitivity SiRFstar III GPS chipset for superior GPS reception, and nothing here prevents consumers from accessing the touchscreen. ‘Course, the sex appeal of your iDevice goes right out of the window once you strap this monster on, and there’s no official support for Apple’s newest iPhone, but it’s hard to knock the approach here.

Continue reading Magellan’s waterproof Toughcase wraps GPS module, extended battery around your iPhone

Magellan’s waterproof Toughcase wraps GPS module, extended battery around your iPhone originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 30 Jun 2010 13:54:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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