| iOS 4.2 Release Date – Update: Available Now  Update: The iOS 4.2 update just went live for iPad, iPhone and iPod touch.This is a day you've been waiting for all month. Apple [AAPL] has announced that the iOS 4.2 release date is actually today. As well as being compatible with the Apple iPad, iOS 4.2 is also available for the iPhone 3G, 3GS and 4 as well as the later generations of the iPod touch. New features included in the iOS 4.2 update include AirPrint, Multitasking (for iPad), AirPlay, Game Center, Unified Inbox and folders. It does appear that AirPrint over to a Mac and connected shared printer has actually been removed as the press release only makes mention of AirPrint working with AirPrint compatible printers such as the HP models. The iOS 4.2 download will be ready today for download.  | | iOS 4.2 Release Time is 10am PST Today  If you are eagerly awaiting the update of iOS 4.2 for iPad, iPhone and iPod touch then you'll need to wait about another hour and a half or so. It is widely believed that the release time will be 10am PST. Earlier today, Apple released a press release about iOS 4.2 being made available today. Also, the Apple website was updated to indicate iOS 4.2 was available to download now... but you are probably still clicking the "Check for Update" button in iTunes. Well, according to Macworld the time will be 10am PST (6pm UK time).  | | Dell Streak Android 2.2 Update Demoed  Dell Streak users are currently getting the Android 2.2 update finally. While this rolls out, Pocket Lint managed to get hold of a Streak running the latest Android 2.2 update to check out if it brings anything good to the 5 inch tablet. There are some changes such as Dell Stage that is the main user interface on the device. Eight stages are included with the update that bring email, apps, songs, web pages as well as a few other items that you can access. Under the user interface, there's the traditional Android user interface that lets you move icons to where you want. Other features include support for Flash 10.1, support for apps such as the Native Twitter app, Skype, Firefox Beta browser and live wallpapers to name a few. It does look like a long awaited update. If you have a Dell Streak and haven't got the update yet, it should be with you any day now.  | | Verizon 4G LTE Network to Launch in December  Verizon [VZ] is launching a new 4G LTE network next month. Launching the new 4G network in December fulfills a promise that the company had made earler this year. In the beginning, there will be no compatible cell phones that can use the service, but the company will be launching 4G data cards that are compatible with the service and will then follow up early in 2011 with 4G LTE compatible handsets. According to Verizon, the new 4G LTE network is the most advanced in the world. An alternative pricing system has also been hinted at where users could pay for speed as well as data consumed. ie, the more data you download and the faster you want it, you can expect to pay more for the privilege. This might work well for some though as not everyone needs to top end of the spectrum in terms of speed.  | | Custom Built Marble Run With Instructions  Check out the Perimeter Marble Run. The marble run set was custom built and runs around the top of a kids bedroom. It starts off with a big wheel that constantly turns and lifts marbles up. These then join other marbles which then enter a track going around the walls of a bedroom. The process sees the marbles end up at step one where they join the big turning wheel again. The video is embedded below. For those that actually want to make one of these in their bedroom, the instructions have actually been put online and are available over here.  | | Samsung Galaxy Tab – 600,000 Sold Worldwide  We are hearing today that Samsung has sold 600,000 Samsung Galaxy Tab tablets within the first month of it being on sale. These numbers, although I haven't personally confirmed it, would probably make the Galaxy Tab the most popular Android based tablet in the world. I can believe that as well as I don't recall other tablets selling this well (the ones with Android on them). Samsung has also said that they are pleased with the results in the first month of the tablet being on sale and have also indicated that in most markets, the demand has outpaced supply. Over in Korea, the iPad is about to launch and already has 40,000 pre-orders with in the first week of pre-orders opening up. The Galaxy Tab sold 30,000 times in the first week of launch, so it appears that the iPad still is a little more popular than the Tab in Korea.  | | iOS Find My iPhone Now Free for iPhone 4, iPad and 4th Gen touch  Apple [AAPL] just announced that the iOS 4.2 update was being launched today. Mixed within that press release were details showing that Find My iPhone was now being made a free feature and that a MobileMe subscription would no longer be required for you to track your missing iOS 4.2 device. The Find My iPhone feature is available on the iPad, iPhone 4 and 4th Gen iPod touch only and requires you are running iOS 4.2 to activate it. The Find My iPhone (or iPad or iPod touch) feature is now free to use without a MobileMe? subscription and helps you locate your missing device.* The Find My iPhone app is a free download on the App Store? and lets users easily locate a missing device on a map and have it display a message or play a sound. Users can even remotely lock or wipe data from a lost device to protect privacy. Although iOS 4.2 is being released today, it still hasn't quite landed yet although it is expected at any moment now. Once installed, grab the free app for your iPad and iPhone and start tracking your devices.  | | webOS 2.0 will be Released to all Devices Soon  At the moment, webOS 2.0 is only available to those running the Palm Pre 2 smartphone that is right in the middle of a launch period. However, good news has been revealed that indicates webOS 2.0 will now be pushed out to all webOS devices in the coming months. Although no specifics have been given, such as launch dates, we do hear that every single device that currently runs webOS will get the update sometime soon. Although this is of course good news, the main worry is actually what the carriers will do about it. We expect that there will be issues in the future with some carriers taking longer than others to get the updates pushed out, so HP/Palm releasing webOS 2.0 might not actually mean you can actually get it right away. The video below shows the announcement being made...  | | Gmail Call Recording Rolls Out  Google [GOOG] looks to be rolling out the ability to record calls within Google Voice directly within the Gmail integration. The new feature was first heard of earlier this month and from what TechCrunch reports, the feature is now becoming widely available. Interestingly enough, the ability to record inbound calls has been around a while. To get to it in the past, you needed to dial number 4 mid call. At this point, a voice warning says to both parties on the phone that voice recording has started. The new way of recording is just a little more convenient in that you now have a record button as pictured above. Right now, it's inbound calls only and also doesn't record calls that have been transferred (for privacy reasons we assume).  | | Integrated SIM Card for iPhone Scrapped – Could Still Happen in iPad  Just a few weeks ago, we reported that Apple [AAPL] was working on an integrated SIM card that could potentially cut the carriers out of the buying loop. What an integrated SIM card would do is come "blank" and when the phone is first used, you get to chose from a list of carriers which one you want to join and what price plan on. This in turn would prevent the need for Orange, O2 and others from selling the phone as essentially, they wouldn't be needed as such (other than providing a price plan of course). It seems that Apple will not actually be going down this route any more now due to backlash from carriers. One particular carrier is believe to have said... "Apple has long been trying to build closer and closer relationships and cut out the operators. But this time they have been sent back to the drawing board with their tails between their legs." It's unclear at the moment if the carriers caused this, or if the GSMA decided this as they are also looking at a standard to come in to play in 2012 which would essentially have done the same thing that Apple is trying to achieve. On another note, it appears that the iPad could still get an integrated SIM as this particular device is not sold subsidised here in the UK. It comes unlocked and SIM free for you to plug in any microSIM and work away  | | Everything Everywhere (Orange&T-Mob) Subsidizing iPad  Orange and T-Mobile (AKA Everything Everywhere) is expected to announce today a subsidized iPad. Rumors are hinting that the iPad could launch with a long term (18 to 24 month) contract with a price of about £200. Unfortunately we have not had any hints as to what the monthly contract price will be. Expect it to be up near, or above the £30/month price point though. If Everything Everywhere do announce a subsidised iPad later today, we'll let you know all the details.  | | Kinect Doesn't Require You Actually Play – In One Case  The Kinect controller for Xbox has certainly done very well. It uses an array of cameras to track where you are and track your movements. This data is then used to make you as the controller in various games. The video clip below shows what happens when you decide not to do anything at all other than sit there... Of course this wont work for all games, but just for fun we thought we'd show it anyway to reveal what games with auto steering (or bouncing off walls) can achieve. Remember that this post isn't exactly serious and just for fun...  | | AutoBot Car Connection Kit  The AutoBot is a car connection kit that connects up to the OBD-II port on your car. This particular port has been available on all cars built for about the last 10 years as standard. When connected up, the AutoBot allows you to diagnose and track problems with your car as well as control various functions (if available) such as locking and unlocking doors, opening windoes as well as track with GPS where abouts your car is parked (or traveling when stolen). The AutoBot will launch sometime in 2012 and when it does, it will come with an iPhone app as well as a web browser app which allows you to access the details via the internet. The application also provides you with the ability to track historical data such as driving habits as well as the health of your car. Although its not a new product (as in the first of a kind), other options we have seen in the past have tended to be custom built with them using cell phones to provide the communications whilst the phone is hardwired to a CPU to get the data. This options looks like a far cleaner method. We'll look out for it in 14 months time or so when it is expected to launch so we can take a look at what exactly it can do.  | | Playstation Phone Could Launch in February  We are no closer to knowing if the Playstation Phone from Sony Ericsson is actually real or not, but more hints that it could be made available have arrived. This time the information comes from the Sony Ericsson CEO who suggests that a new device will be launching in February of 2011. The CEO basically said that with all the smoke around, there must be a fire in there somewhere. He then dropped a hint that a new device will be launching at Mobile World Congress this coming February. The Playstation phone is expected to run the latest version of Google Android. It is expected to have a large screen and rather than having a slide out QWERTY keyboard, some familiar PS controller buttons are expected. We expect to hear a lot more rumours over the coming months, hopefully all pointing towards a device for playing Playstation games on and making phone calls. Perhaps though, the two shouldn't be mixed. What are your thoughts?  | | Free MobileMe Access Hinted at in iOS 4.2 GM  Some interesting information has been found in the iOS 4.2 GM updates that have been available for the last few weeks to iOS developers. The new hints in the beta code hint that Apple [AAPL] could be moving towards a free version of MobileMe. In the original iOS 4.2 GM launched early November the MobileMe login was switched from a MobileMe username to an Apple ID username and password. The latest GM build (numbered iOS 4.2.1) also now has hints in the form of some error messages that have been added as follows... "The maximum number of free accounts have been activated on this iPhone" and "This iPad is not qualified for free MobileMe service." Although we have seen hints over the last few months, the MobileMe service has actually never switched to a free service. The above messages could also indicate the 60 day free trial of the software is still being run. However, the switch around of error messages and the switching of Apple ID usernames from MobileMe usernames is also a curious one. We should find out later this week when iOS 4.2 gets full released to the public.  | |
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