It's another Monday on BOL, which means breaking news interjections, stumbling analysis, and hilarious Brian Tong jokes that go RIGHT over Molly's head. Turns out you can not actually search for girlfriends on Facebook using the search term, "hot girls." Unless, of course, they self-identify. Plus, a pain ray update!
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Jeff looks a little different on this morning's episode of The 404 podcast, doesn't he? Initial reports tell us that the half-moon forming on Jeff's face is actually a smile, which probably has to do with Ilya Kovalchuk staying with the New Jersey Devils this season.
The LA Kings, New York Islanders, the NJ Devils, and a random team in Russia all grabbed for Kovalchuk when he became a free agent on July 1, but only the Devils were able to secure the hockey star for a reported 100 million bucks over the next 17 years, which … Read more
Apple announced Friday that it will give away free iPhone bumpers to all iPhone 4 owners to help prevent the signal issue plaguing some phones. However, the company doesn't make enough bumpers for everyone, so it's working with third-party vendors to give away free cases, as well. We've compiled a list of third-party iPhone 4 cases to check out if you want alternatives to the standard iPhone 4 bumper.
During Friday's iPhone 4 press conference, Apple CEO Steve Jobs offered a very brief glimpse inside immense padded rooms that make up the company's antenna testing and design labs. According to Jobs, and to statistics posted later on Apple's Web site, the labs consist of 17 antenna characterization, or "anecohoic," chambers that are used to measure overall antenna performance. Various equipment simulates cellular towers, Wi-Fi networks, Bluetooth device, and GPS satellites, and the phones are tested in a variety of positions including free space and next to human dummies and real people. The carbon foam … Read more
We'll do you a favor and give you the news in a nutshell: free bumpers (even non-Apple bumpers) and full refunds within 30 days of purchasing your phone if you're still not happy. There you go. Also, Droid X is sold out, the Facebook movie is going to be cool after all, if the new trailer is to be believed, and it turns out Palm was in fact the belle of the ball for a while there, but RIM and Nokia both blew it. Plus: Drunk HULC!
Subscribe: iTunes (MP3) | iTunes (320x180) | iTunes (640x360) | RSS (MP3) | RSS (320x180) | RSS (640x360)… Read moreUpdated at 12:08 p.m. with additional information.
Apple plans to give iPhone 4 users a free case in hopes of satisfying concerns about the design of its antenna and signal problems.
CEO Steve Jobs made the announcement (click here for the live blog) during a press conference at Apple's headquarters in Cupertino, Calif., Friday morning in response to a public-relations crisis over signal issues reported with the iPhone 4, which was unveiled in June. iPhone 4 owners will apply for the free bumper (a case that protects just the outer rim of the phone) online at Apple'… Read more
Links from Friday's episode of Loaded:
Apple releases an update to iPhone software in preparation for its press conference at 10 a.m. PDT Friday, which we will cover live here. Amazon is sued by Discovery Communications for alleged patent infringement on the Kindle. The latest Facebook scam claims to have horrific information about Coca-Cola. It doesn't. Don't click that. The upcoming version of Ford Sync can respond to over 10,000 commands. Mozilla releases Firefox Home on iPod Touch and iPhone to sync your desktop browsing with your mobile device. A new Google Earth layer may … Read more
Apple looks to have yet another problem on its hands.
iPhone owners attempting to install the latest software update from Apple Thursday afternoon say that the process repeatedly fails. The reports cropped up on Apple's own support forums.
A user with the handle evan127 wrote Thursday, "So, this is the seventh time I've tried to restore. I keep getting error 9. I've tried both usb ports and another cable. Now I am trying a new user account. What else can I do?...I get 3/4 of the way through the firmware update and it gives … Read more
That's according to a report in The Wall Street Journal on Thursday afternoon. Apple is holding a press conference on Friday morning to talk about the iPhone 4. There's been much speculation regarding what Apple has planned, but it's widely believed the company will address the growing outcry over the iPhone 4's reported antenna problems.
The Journal added that detail as an update to its previous story, which said that Apple engineers knew of the potential problems with the design of the iPhone 4. … Read more
Apple will hold a press conference Friday at 10 a.m. PDT at its headquarters in Cupertino, Calif. Although Apple has not said what it will discuss, it is expected that company execs will discuss the ongoing controversy with the iPhone 4's antenna. CNET will be at the press conference to bring you the full details, but in preparation we offer this FAQ on what we know so far.
Is Apple going to issue a full recall of the iPhone 4 on Friday? No. The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday that the company will not do an official recall. That would be expensive and unnecessary. When consumer product companies issue recalls it's generally for product safety issues--like those Sony notebook batteries that were catching on fire three years ago. The iPhone 4 problems have to do with the phone's antenna reception, and are inconsistent and only affecting some customers. However, the antenna issue is still a problem Apple will have to address directly.
How will Apple fix the antenna problem for people who already bought the phone and people who still want to buy it but have waited? There are a couple of possibilities. Apple might offer free bumper cases, since that has been shown to alleviate the iPhone 4's antenna issue. Or Apple could decide to make it up to customers through an Apple Store credit--the way it did after the iPhone price-drop fiasco in 2007--ostensibly to allow people to buy a case of their choice for free.
There have also been rumors that a hardware modification is in the works. It could be a redesigned iPhone 4 with the antenna located in a different place than the current design (which would be a stretch in such a short period of time), or a plastic coating or molding that will cover the spot where the phone's two antennas meet. Perhaps this is something that Apple Genius Bar employees could fix, or maybe Apple will give customers who already own an iPhone 4 a new device.
Has CNET experienced problems with the antenna? In our testing, and in a video that we posted last week, CNET has found that touching the antenna gap on the iPhone 4's lower left side causes call quality to degrade. We tested three different iPhone 4s in various locations in San Francisco and experienced problems using various hand positions, including one finger on the gap, cradling the handset gently, and holding it tighter with our left hand on either side. In all instances, we made sure not to cover the microphone with our hands.
Our exact experiences varied when touching the area. At times our voice cut out completely, whereas on other occasions the audio became garbled. We did not, however, suffer any dropped calls. We also found, though not as frequently, that data upload and download speeds dropped and the number of bars in the signal strength meter decreased from five to two. … Read more
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