Starting September 7th, Best Buy will become the first non Apple or AT&T store to carry the iPhone in the US. This deal will add nearly 1,000 additional purchase points for the iPhone 3G. You can read the full announcement here, though little additional information is contained in the rest of the article.
You’ll get the message in this post if you try to access the $10 iPhone App, NetShare (iTunes link) with a US based iTunes account. What exactly does NetShare do? Exactly what it sounds like, share your iPhone network connection.
Engadget has a nice review and video of NetShare. Based on the video, it looks like an amazing application for $10. Had I see the app, I probably would have bought it. Too late now it seems. The app has been on again off again with the App Store in the last week. From the message it looks like the app is back in the App Store, just not available for US customers. Tethering is the single reason I haven’t upgraded to the iPhone 3G. AT&T allows it with other devices (for a monthly fee of course), so I don’t understand why they don’t allow it on the iPhone.
If you’re in a country that allows iPhone 3G tethering, you should definitely check out NetShare!
If you’ve been having some problems with iPhone software 2.0, Apple hopefully has your fix. I just fired up iTunes tonight and much to my surprise, iPhone 2.0.1 software update was available. What’s included? Two words, “Bug fixes”. The update fills in at 242MB. I haven’t been having a lot of problems with my iPhone, but I have had a few crashes now and then. Hopefully 2.0.1 will treat my iPhone well.
If you’re a new iPhone user, you may have missed the flurry of iPhone tips that were released when the iPhone originally launched in 2007. Here are the top 10 most usefully tips for the iPhone (with software version 2) in no particular order.
1) Period: Tapping the space bar quickly twice will put a period (.) and the proper spacing for the end of a sentence. This is much quicker than going to the .?123 keyboard and tapping the period key.
2) Quick Numbers and Punctuation: Holding the .?123 key will bring up the number and punctuation keyboard (among other symbols). While still holding the .?123 key, slide your finger to the key you want and release your finger. This action will choose the key you want and return you back to the QWERTY keyboard. If you just need one key on the .?123 keyboard, this tip will save you time.
3) CAPS Lock: Need to type in CAPS for some reason? First, you need to enable this functionality. Go into Settings | General | Keyboard | and slide “Enable Caps Lock” to On. When you want to type in caps, quickly double tap the Up arrow on your keyboard and it will turn the key blue. You’re now in CAPS LOCK. To turn it off, just tap the arrow key again.
Were you holding out hope that T-Mobile would soon be able to offer the iPhone to its U.S. customers? I wouldn’t hold your breath for that wish. Nestled in a recent article by USA Today about AT&T was this little nugget of information:
“In exchange for its payout, AT&T got a year extension, into 2010, on its exclusive distribution deal with Apple, people familiar with the matter say.”
If you’re located in the United States, AT&T is your only choice for the iPhone until at least 2010. There is probably no contractual reason the exclusivity couldn’t be extended down the road either. If you’re AT&T and the revenue from iPhone customers is nearly double your average cell phone user, wouldn’t you want to protect those customers?
If you’re looking to upgrade your iPhone and are short on cash or don’t want to deal with the process of selling your 1st Gen iPhone, someone has come up with a solution. FreeiPhoneSwap.com will pay you via Paypal or check for your working iPhone. They are paying $150, $250, or $350 for your 4GB, 8GB, or 16GB iPhone respectively. Depending on your model, the iPhone 3G hardware would basically be free!
The NY Times recently published an article about FreeiPhoneSwap.com (FIS). FIS states on their website they “will re-cycle your old phone in a safe and environmentally friendly manner.” David Gallagher, the NY Times story author, rightly suspects they are not actually recycling your old iPhone. You can bet that “re-cycle your old phone” basically means they are selling them in China or another countries that do not have iPhone carriers. But if you get cash for your old iPhone and the phone doesn’t end up in a dump, it’s pretty much a win-win for everyone.
Disclaimer: I have not tried the FreeiPhoneSwap service so I cannot vouch for their credibility. The NY Times didn’t mention any scammy business practices however.
For everyone who has an iPhone and a WordPress based website, the team behind WordPress is releasing an iPhone app that you will want to download. WordPress for iPhone is currently “In Review” in the app store. The website linked above has a great screencast of the application. I’ll be downloading this the day it’s released. This app sure would be better with cut and paste though!
[Via Matt Mullenweg]