iPhone
iPhone Firmware Updates and Error 1600
17/04/11 18:24
Last week the iPhone Jailbreaking community received the updated Pwnage 4.3 tool for upgrading iOS devices from previous firmware versions to 4.3.1. For may users this surely started the Pwning process of downloading a patched firmware load (IPSW) from iClarified or a similar source and following the instructions to upgrade while maintaining access to the Cydia store and the UltraSnow carrier unlock. The iPhone Dev Team always lays out the risks and warns users about what devices may and may not be updated and which tools to use unless they accidentally upgrade with stock firmware; potentially losing the ability to possibly Jailbreak forever.
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Apple iPhone 2.0 Push Services
11/06/08 04:21
The most intriguing and perhaps least mentioned portion of the Apple WWDC 2008 keynote was Apple's introduction of the iPhone Push Services engine. Little time was spent on Push Services and it appeared to be a simple way to deal with common background processes that Apple had banned from third party developers. Push Services solves issues for third party multi protocol instant messaging applications, email applications and as well as corporate applications dealing with mission critical time sensitive information. What the Push Services engine also may do is open a security can of worms depending on how it is designed. Over the next several months as it is seeded to developers the architecture will surely be scrutinized.
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Read More...3G iPhone and a unique way to increase the battery life
14/05/08 15:52
I was having a conversation with a coworker of mine, Hjalmar Gislason, the other day about power management on the 3G iPhone and ways to minimize the increased drain of the UMTS/HSPA chipset that will surely be in the upcoming version. I had intended to write this earlier and have many excuses on why he got around to it first.
The basis of our conversation was on how to minimize the well documented drain caused by UMTS chipsets in comparison to GSM/GPRS/EDGE. I won't repeat the entire article here as you can follow the link above. However, I would like to add a number of clarifying points.
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The basis of our conversation was on how to minimize the well documented drain caused by UMTS chipsets in comparison to GSM/GPRS/EDGE. I won't repeat the entire article here as you can follow the link above. However, I would like to add a number of clarifying points.
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A paper napkin analysis of the missing iPhones.....sort of
05/02/08 15:06
The case of the missing iPhones is a popular one on the blogs and news web sites ever since Toni Sacconaghi, of Bernstein Research, did his own math from Apple and AT&T January announcements. If you haven't noticed the deluge of opinions on the subject just go to Google News and search for "missing iPhones".
Some say they are in Honk Kong, Spain, Russia and every other place under the sun. I have no doubt they are in every corner of the world. I commented earlier about some of the methods for unlocking the iPhone including the Bladox TurboSIM, all of which can be found on eBay or by Googling the topic. The tools exist to unlock the iPhone easily so one question is how many people did just that? Read More...
iPhone and Microsoft Exchange email
31/01/08 15:11
A serious omission to the iPhone has been the ability to access corporate email without using the browser. Throughout 2007 rumors abounded that Exchange compatibility was coming from one source or another to the iPhone. With 2007 at an end and January 2008 winding down all that has materialized is SyncYourMail, which utilizes the Synchronica MobileGateway. After a month of using Synchronica's MobileGateway demo perhaps the built in IMAP access is the way to go for now if you administrator allows it.
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Bladox TurboSIM and iPhone
17/01/08 15:57
Yes I know that firmware 1.1.3 is now available. That said I have some historical notes to point out. Historical as of Macworld 2008 that is.
Ever since the iPhone was released in the end of June the hacking community has been hard at work to unlock and open the iPhone. I mostly watched this activity from the sidelines until recently. The first methods were complex and relied on software based methods. For profit unlocking groups appeared and were critically ridiculed for their motives when the same software was available free from the iPhone Web Dev team and others that had contributed in an open source collaborative method . The JailBreakMe AppSnap project from Conceited Software greatly simplified the task and made it fairly straight forward. Glitches appeared when iPhones started appearing outside of the United States and the development community quickly responded with iWorld which rectified those.
Even this seemingly simple process for firmware 1.1.1 and 1.1.2, pre boot loader 4.6, didn't stop people from charging $99 or more to unlock your iPhone. For many people paying someone to do even the basic steps of the iPhoneSIMfree process would be a good deal. During this period a number of hardware SIM unlock methods appeared in the market. Usually a quick search of eBay will show products such as SuperSIM, TurboSIM and Next SIM. The theory goes that these hardware SIM inserts work with your existing carrier SIM to fool the iPhone into thinking that it still has an AT&T SIM in it. The process involves downgrading the firmware, Jail Breaking the phone, installing some software on the phone with a SSH terminal program, making command line modifications to the phone and physically cutting your old SIM.
I had the opportunity to see first hand whether this process was simple as many individuals hawking these products on eBay said they were. For the exercise a TurboSIM from Bladox was used. These instructions were followed from a site in Australia. Indeed the instructions were not as simple as they looked nor did they actually look that simple. It is debatably whether the YouTube video actually helped or if typed instructions would have been better. Interestingly enough the phone behavior rarely matched that of the YouTube video yet the net result was still the same. The iPhone SIM and SIM from the carrier of your choice also have to be cut down incredibly close to the SIM chip itself so a very sharp razor blade or box cutter is required
Apple, AT&T, O2 UK, T-Mobile Germany and Orange France have little to fear from this method gaining more than a very small minority of ardent fans. It is cumbersome and several steps could leave you potentially stuck with a dead phone. The total leakage of revenue from hacked phones, I would maintain is minimal, if this is the process.
Yet the Bladox TurboSIM did successfully unlock the iPhone with firmware 1.1.2 and base band 4.6. This of course is no surprise if you scour the internet there are many forums saying this is true if you read through threads that can be 50 pages or more long and full of complaints, errors and unrelated tangents. In the end it is an impressive combination of talent and resources from many groups and Apple should be proud that so much effort has gone in to obtaining their product from such loyal fans who just happen to not be on one of the four carriers in four countries where the iPhone is sold.
Like I said in the beginning firmware 1.1.3 is out sending everyone back to the drawing board. I'm still curious though if one were to upgrade a iPhone with boot loader 4.6 and a Bladox TurboSIM to firmware version 1.1.3 what would happen. Time will tell. Perhaps I will get around to writing about that when firmware 1.1.4 or the HSPA iPhone appears.
Ever since the iPhone was released in the end of June the hacking community has been hard at work to unlock and open the iPhone. I mostly watched this activity from the sidelines until recently. The first methods were complex and relied on software based methods. For profit unlocking groups appeared and were critically ridiculed for their motives when the same software was available free from the iPhone Web Dev team and others that had contributed in an open source collaborative method . The JailBreakMe AppSnap project from Conceited Software greatly simplified the task and made it fairly straight forward. Glitches appeared when iPhones started appearing outside of the United States and the development community quickly responded with iWorld which rectified those.
Even this seemingly simple process for firmware 1.1.1 and 1.1.2, pre boot loader 4.6, didn't stop people from charging $99 or more to unlock your iPhone. For many people paying someone to do even the basic steps of the iPhoneSIMfree process would be a good deal. During this period a number of hardware SIM unlock methods appeared in the market. Usually a quick search of eBay will show products such as SuperSIM, TurboSIM and Next SIM. The theory goes that these hardware SIM inserts work with your existing carrier SIM to fool the iPhone into thinking that it still has an AT&T SIM in it. The process involves downgrading the firmware, Jail Breaking the phone, installing some software on the phone with a SSH terminal program, making command line modifications to the phone and physically cutting your old SIM.
I had the opportunity to see first hand whether this process was simple as many individuals hawking these products on eBay said they were. For the exercise a TurboSIM from Bladox was used. These instructions were followed from a site in Australia. Indeed the instructions were not as simple as they looked nor did they actually look that simple. It is debatably whether the YouTube video actually helped or if typed instructions would have been better. Interestingly enough the phone behavior rarely matched that of the YouTube video yet the net result was still the same. The iPhone SIM and SIM from the carrier of your choice also have to be cut down incredibly close to the SIM chip itself so a very sharp razor blade or box cutter is required
Apple, AT&T, O2 UK, T-Mobile Germany and Orange France have little to fear from this method gaining more than a very small minority of ardent fans. It is cumbersome and several steps could leave you potentially stuck with a dead phone. The total leakage of revenue from hacked phones, I would maintain is minimal, if this is the process.
Yet the Bladox TurboSIM did successfully unlock the iPhone with firmware 1.1.2 and base band 4.6. This of course is no surprise if you scour the internet there are many forums saying this is true if you read through threads that can be 50 pages or more long and full of complaints, errors and unrelated tangents. In the end it is an impressive combination of talent and resources from many groups and Apple should be proud that so much effort has gone in to obtaining their product from such loyal fans who just happen to not be on one of the four carriers in four countries where the iPhone is sold.
Like I said in the beginning firmware 1.1.3 is out sending everyone back to the drawing board. I'm still curious though if one were to upgrade a iPhone with boot loader 4.6 and a Bladox TurboSIM to firmware version 1.1.3 what would happen. Time will tell. Perhaps I will get around to writing about that when firmware 1.1.4 or the HSPA iPhone appears.
iPhone.......
08/01/08 16:19
There seems to be two camps of iPhone people. Those that believe it is the best piece of technology in 2007, if not ever, and those that think the hype is overblown and clutch their n95/Blackberry/Treo/Windows Mobile devices in a slightly defensive stance. It may be possible that there is nothing left to write about concerning the iPhone yet I am compelled to start this new iPhone section.
The day the iPhone was released in the United States I seriously thought of purchasing it on three different trips to an Apple store. The pesky SIM lock was a serious obstacle since I am overseas 95% of the time. The tepid Exchange support, lack of applications and no wireless .MAC synching made my decision. Back to Iceland I went with no iPhone.
In November I wandered into an Apple store again. A talented group of individuals had found a way to unlock the iPhone, applications were coming out yet the pesky need for Exchange connectivity held me back.
In December I was on a quest for a new toy and thought the n810 from Nokia would be it. While at Mall of America I stopped by Apple again. Maybe it was the eggnog latte from Starbucks, the jet lag or the annoying buzz of holiday shoppers but the glimmer of the iPhone caught my eye. On a whim I grabbed one, tried to haggle on the price, asked for a Apple t-shirt and only succeeded in leaving the Apple store paying full price and with a device that I wasn't sure what I use.
I had one 8GB iPhone, no AT&T service and no way to software unlock a brand new device with the latest baseband software.
Fast forward to January 8th. I have been using the iPhone for two weeks now, logged over 140 MB of EDGE data, suffered through all the limitations of the device that have been identified by countless people before me and can't imagine giving it up. I may also have to use a Blackberry or Windows Mobile device professionally yet that can't begin to compare to the iPhones overall design, interface and brilliance that Cupertino put into this product. *(see below) I sound like a true iPhone zealot yet I agree the device has it's short comings. This new forum will focus on living with the iphone both personally and professionally. Looking at the products and applications that are being realized daily to overcome Apple's oversights and intentional limitations on the first hardware release of the iPhone.
More to come.
* - It was around 2001, give or take, that Samsung released a color Palm OS based CDMA PDA/phone for Sprint called the i300. It had no keyboard/keypad and a lousy battery. I had just come from using a Kyocera 6035 and in less than a day almost chucked the i300 out of the window of my car at the 394/Lousianna intersection in Minneapolis. From there I forced myself to use the device for three more days and came to enjoy it very much. Ever since I try to only use devices with my primary number in them and for a minimum of week to ensure that the device has a chance to show it's true capabilities and flaws and not have my opinion jaded by user adjustment pains. The iPhone has been no exception in either the first frustration or benefits gained after the user acclimated to something new.
The day the iPhone was released in the United States I seriously thought of purchasing it on three different trips to an Apple store. The pesky SIM lock was a serious obstacle since I am overseas 95% of the time. The tepid Exchange support, lack of applications and no wireless .MAC synching made my decision. Back to Iceland I went with no iPhone.
In November I wandered into an Apple store again. A talented group of individuals had found a way to unlock the iPhone, applications were coming out yet the pesky need for Exchange connectivity held me back.
In December I was on a quest for a new toy and thought the n810 from Nokia would be it. While at Mall of America I stopped by Apple again. Maybe it was the eggnog latte from Starbucks, the jet lag or the annoying buzz of holiday shoppers but the glimmer of the iPhone caught my eye. On a whim I grabbed one, tried to haggle on the price, asked for a Apple t-shirt and only succeeded in leaving the Apple store paying full price and with a device that I wasn't sure what I use.
I had one 8GB iPhone, no AT&T service and no way to software unlock a brand new device with the latest baseband software.
Fast forward to January 8th. I have been using the iPhone for two weeks now, logged over 140 MB of EDGE data, suffered through all the limitations of the device that have been identified by countless people before me and can't imagine giving it up. I may also have to use a Blackberry or Windows Mobile device professionally yet that can't begin to compare to the iPhones overall design, interface and brilliance that Cupertino put into this product. *(see below) I sound like a true iPhone zealot yet I agree the device has it's short comings. This new forum will focus on living with the iphone both personally and professionally. Looking at the products and applications that are being realized daily to overcome Apple's oversights and intentional limitations on the first hardware release of the iPhone.
More to come.
* - It was around 2001, give or take, that Samsung released a color Palm OS based CDMA PDA/phone for Sprint called the i300. It had no keyboard/keypad and a lousy battery. I had just come from using a Kyocera 6035 and in less than a day almost chucked the i300 out of the window of my car at the 394/Lousianna intersection in Minneapolis. From there I forced myself to use the device for three more days and came to enjoy it very much. Ever since I try to only use devices with my primary number in them and for a minimum of week to ensure that the device has a chance to show it's true capabilities and flaws and not have my opinion jaded by user adjustment pains. The iPhone has been no exception in either the first frustration or benefits gained after the user acclimated to something new.