iOS 5 Beta 4 Brings Wi-Fi Sync to Windows

Apple has brought Wi-Fi Sync functionality in iOS 5 Beta 4 to Windows users. iOS 5 Beta 2 turned Wi-Fi sync on for Mac users, and we posted a video walkthrough of how it worked.

In the newly-released Beta 4 version of iOS 5, Windows users can enjoy the same Wi-Fi Sync feature on their iDevices.
Wi-Fi Sync for Windows documentation in iOS 5 Beta 4,
Wi-Fi Sync in iOS 5 lets you sync content to and from iTunes and your iDevice wirelessly over your local network.

If you’ve got Beta 4 already and you’re on Windows, give this Wi-Fi Sync feature a try and let us know how it works.

iTunes 10.5 Beta 4 for Mac and Windows Released for Developers

As you all know just a few hours ago, Apple just released the fourth pre-release version of iOS 5. As with all beta builds, iOS 5 beta 4 is only seeded for those who have enrolled an account in Apple's iOS Dev Center. The smaller release timeframe between beta 3 and beta 4 indicates that this pre-release version offers performance and stability enhancements as well as numerous bug fixes. Although, iOS 5 beta 4 does come with a new feature, it is the first ever iOS that supports Over-The-Air (OTA) updates. Alongside the release of iOS 5 beta 4, Apple also pushed out iTunes 10.5 Beta 4.

If you are planning to upgrade to iOS 5 Beta 4, then it is strongly suggested that you download iTunes 10.5 Beta 4 since it is a major requirement. Most especially if you are upgrading to beta 4 without the aid of OTA updates.

You have to keep in mind that in this iTunes update will only work with iOS 5 beta 4, so if you are in iOS 5 beta 3 and below, do not install iTunes 10.5 beta 4. If you do, you may find that iTunes may return an error that your current firmware is not compatible. Anyway here's the full release notes of iTunes 10.5 beta 4 for your convenience:
If you are still under iOS 5 beta 3 and below, then it is highly recommended that you upgrade to beta 4 right away. There is simply no point in staying with an older firmware especially when there's already an improved version of it. Unless of course you have jailbroken your device to iOS 5 beta 3 and below or you've installed iOS 5 without a developer's account, then we don't suggest you upgrade to beta 4 because Apple will have no doubt patched all the vulnerabilities with this update.

If you have a developer's account, just head over to Apple's Developer Center and download iOS 5 beta 4 together with iTunes 10.5 beta 4.

1 Billion Smartphone Sales a Year Expected by 2016

Smartphones are already growing to be more and more popular by the year, with marquee devices like Apple’s iPhone and Samsung’s Galaxy S proving popular with buyers across the globe.

With smartphone sales between the 298 million and 321 million marks, depending on who you listen to, it’s fair to say that the industry is on the up already. But, according to new research, it is believed that smartphones could hit the magic 1 billion sales mark as soon as 2016.

That’s a lot of phones….
The mind blowing number comes courtesy of Juniper Research, who believes that the key to selling more smartphones is to get existing feature phone users to upgrade. While we’re not ones to knock research, we’re not sure that stating the blindingly obvious is really research, but moving on…

Juniper’s Daniel Ashdown goes on to explain that the real target is the developing countries around the world, where so called ‘dumb phones’ are the norm. Low income coupled with carriers reluctant to subsidise handsets means any potential smartphone sales will come from handsets that keep below a certain price scale. That’s not the iPhone, then.

This is no doubt where Android really comes into its own.

We’ve already seen some fairly low budget handsets come out of the likes of ZTE and Motorola in Europe, and the hardware will only get cheaper as time moves on
Here’s hoping someone comes up with the magic recipe for bringing low-cost, yet capable smartphones to the people that need them.

Facebook App Gets an Update

The Facebook app for iOS just got an update. We usually don’t post about app updates, but as the most popular iPhone app, I felt like we had to let you guys know.

As usual, this update contains a bunch of bug fixes that caused the app to crash. Additionally, this update restored the Send button for comments, chat, and messages. It also restored the friend lists to the News Feed filter…
If you want to get this update, fire up the App Store app on your iPhone and check for updates.

Oh, and by the way, where is my Facebook app for iPad? I can’t be the only one wondering where this app is.

New Voice Command Assistant Feature Uncovered in iOS 5 Beta 4

In what is probably the biggest find since Apple unveiled iOS 5 to the world last month, 9to5Mac unveiled a major hidden feature in the new firmware last night. Remember when Apple purchased that little voice recognition app named “Siri” last year?

Well, it looks like their work is finally going to start showing up in iOS, as an OS-level feature called Assistant now exists in Beta 4. If you’ve been wondering what happened to all of that talk about Apple implementing a native voice-command system in iOS 5, you’re going to love this…
9to5Mac received a screenshot of an Apple internal Settings pane depicting a new iOS feature called Assistant. 9to5Mac says the screenshot matches information they received from a separate source regarding Apple’s secret project.

So, what is Assistant? Apple acquired Siri for its voice recognition technology found in its iOS application. Siri Assistant is a free app that completes tasks based on voice commands such as “Get me a taxi,” or “Book a table at a good steak house.”

Apple’s implementation is believed to be far more advanced. Users will be able to ask Assistant anything from “What’s the temperature outside?” to “What time does Harry Potter start at the Cineplex?”

Theoretically, since the feature appears to be system-level, users would also be able to incorporate data like contact information, too. For instance, the command “I need 2 tickets to the 9:00PM show for me and Tom,” would result in 2 ticket purchases and a text to Tom confirming the outing.
Assistant uses your voice input and other information like your contact names, song names, and location to better understand your requests (talk about personal). The service will also be crowd-sourced, so Apple can improve it over time (think iTunes Genius).

What’s really interesting about Assistant is that it hasn’t shown up in public developer betas, leaving everyone to speculate on its omission. 9to5Mac suggests that Apple could be planning on making it exclusive to the iPhone 5, to help entice users to upgrade.

It’s also very possible that Assistant is still in very early stages of development. In fact, the sources who sent in the screenshots claim the feature just went into testing. They also speculate that Apple could still scrap the feature from this Fall’s release, a la 4.3 multi-touch gestures.

But if it does make the cut, then Apple could quite possibly change the way we use our phones, again. Couple this new Assistant feature with earlier findings of Nuance voice dictation software in iOS 5, and we could be one step closer to operating our cell phones completely hands-free.

What do you think about this uncovered “Assistant” feature in iOS 5 Beta 4? Do you think Apple will introduce it with the iPhone 5 this Fall?

iOS 5 Beta 4 Brings Documents to the iCloud

Apple has released iOS 5 Beta 4, and people are starting to find interesting additions and changes made in Apple’s latest beta build.

Apparently, Apple has finally turned on document syncing with iCloud, so apps can now start syncing iWork documents between all of your iDevices. This is great news for developers to start field testing document syncing in their own apps, and a nice preview of what’s to come for us all this Fall…
As iCloud’s public launch draws near, document syncing is one more piece of the puzzle that Apple has introduced in Beta 4. Once you turn on “Documents & Data” syncing in your iCloud settings, you’ll be able to sync your iWork documents from one iDevice to another.

Simply begin a document one on device, leave it, and then open it up on another device and your work will be saved and synced automatically. You can also set these iCloud syncs to happen on 3G or Wi-Fi only.

Hopefully Apple will make this syncing feature ubiquitous on all iWork apps for the Mac and iOS. Third party apps should also start adding support.

Jailbreak iOS 5 Beta 4 With RedSn0w

Apple released iOS 5 Beta 4 yesterday to developers, and the Dev-Team has already released an update to the jailbreak tool RedSn0w for a tethered jailbreak on iOS 5 Beta 4.

This jailbreak is not recommended for non-developers, and RedSn0w will need to be used each time you reboot to re-jailbreak your iDevice.

Apple finally introduced OTA firmware updates for those on Beta 3 that wished to upgrade to Beta 4, and you can see how that works here. Luckily, OTA updates don’t automatically get pushed to jailbroken iDevices, but you’ll need to stay away from Beta 4′s OTA feature to keep your jailbreak. Just download iOS 5 Beta 4 like normal to your computer and apply the update manually in iTunes.

Jailbreaking with RedSn0w is still the same process, so refer to our ultimate RedSn0w tutorial. To jailbreak iOS 5 Beta 4, you’ll need to point the latest version of RedSn0w to your Beta 4 IPSW file.

To download RedSn0w 0.9.8b4 for the Mac or Windows, visit our downloads page.

Be warned that jailbroken beta firmware can tend to be very buggy, as iOS 5 Beta 3 proved to temporarily disable the use of App Store apps once jailbroken. It’s recommended that you only download and jailbreak an iOS 5 beta if you are a developer.

With that said, let us know how jailbreaking iOS 5 Beta 4 with RedSn0w works for you. If you come across any issues or interesting findings in Beta 4, send us a tip from our contact page.

Google+ App for the iPhone Now Available in the App Store, Download Now!

Several weeks after it was introduced, it seems that Google's new social networking effort, Google+ have gained quite a foothold in the world of social media. Just last week we have reported that Google+ have more than 10 million registered users already, a number which is far more impressive than it looks considering that it is still currently under beta. Several days after it was released, the Google+ iPhone app was submitted to the App Store for approval. After weeks of waiting for Apple's approval, it seems that the official app of Google+ is now officially available in the App Store.

Apple Once Again Reports Record Quarter, 20 Million+ iPhones Sold

Apple just announced its earnings for its 3rd fiscal quarter this year, and, as expected, they exceeded projections. Both the iPhone and iPad set sales records for the month of June, making them major factors in this quarter’s success.

Don’t worry, we won’t bore you with all of the little details from the earnings call, but there are some important figures we wanted to share. How important? Enough to make Apple’s stock briefly touch $400 per share during after hours trading…
On top of major product announcements, like the fact that OS X Lion is coming out tomorrow, Apple posted some staggering sales data. For starters, the Cupertino company announced it brought in a total of $28.57 Billion this quarter.

A big reason for that was the success of their popular iDevice products. Apple shipped 20.34 million iPhones, which is nearly 4 million more units than what analysts projected.

Apple’s tablet sales also managed to slide past Wall Street’s predictions. Steve Jobs and company sold 9.25 Million iPads this quarter and exceeded expectations, despite obvious component supply problems.

Altogether, Apple’s profits are up 125%. Combine this with the fact that Apple is expected to launch multiple new devices in the next few months, and I’d say it’s a great day to be an investor.

What do you think? How long can they keep up this momentum?

Gruber Confirms iPad 3 in Blog Rant?

It’s no secret that I’m a bit skeptical about Apple releasing another tablet this year. Heck, the iPad 2 just came out 4 months ago and is still selling rather well. Why bring another slate into the mix so soon?

Regardless of my opinion, the entire tech world seems to believe that a new iPad will be unveiled this Fall. We’ve heard multiple media outlets confirm the tablet talk in the last few weeks, and now DaringFireball‘s John Gruber chimes in…
For those unfamiliar with Mr. Gruber, the programmer-turned-writer is considered a credible source for Apple information. Yesterday, the author mentioned Apple’s upcoming tablet in a rant on the quality of digital magazines:

“These magazines and newspapers that render each “page” as a static 1024 x 768 image are going to look like utter ass on the iPad 3′s 2048 x 1536 retina display.”

As BusinessInsider notes, to most folks this may seem like a minor detail. But Gruber is a well known, plugged-in, and widely read columnist. If it were a mistake, it would have been fixed. And if it weren’t true, he never would have said it.

The question now seems to be when. Most rumors point to a Fall release of the new tablet, even though the iPad 2 just came out in March. I suppose a pre-holiday-season launch isn’t the worst idea ever.

What do you think?

‪Sony Tablet - Two will (3rd episode)‬‏



AT&T Offers iPhone 3GS Refurb for $9

A recent rumor is that Apple will start offering the iPhone 3GS as its “low-end” consumer device this Fall with a $350 off-contract price tag. Previously, it was speculated that Apple would introduce a second iPhone ‘Nano’ model in the coming months for the prepaid and cheaper phone markets.

AT&T has started offering the 8GB iPhone 3GS as a refurb for only $9. Usually, these types of price drops mean that a carrier is trying to get remaining units off the shelves, so we find it unlikely that the 3GS will be of any interest to Apple come this Fall.

You can visit AT&T’s online store to see the iPhone 3GS refurb priced at an astoundingly low price of $9. This is the lowest price we’ve ever seen for an iPhone. The purchase still requires the renewal of a two-year contract with AT&T. A 90-day warranty and 30-day trial period is offered for refurbished devices.

Apple has never been a company that holds on to old hardware for very long. The idea of the iPhone 3GS being Apple’s low-end device for the coming year just doesn’t make sense. As of this year, the 3GS is two year old mobile hardware.

It makes more sense that Apple is starting to phase out the 3GS, as is evidenced by this AT&T price drop. Most likely, the iPhone 4 will see a price drop to $99 next month. And there’s always the wildcard that Apple will introduce a 3G iPod touch. We’ll just have to wait and see.

In the meantime, let us know if you decide to pick on of these refurb 3GS devices up from AT&T. Or are you holding off for the iPhone 5?

Apple Stops Signing 4.3.3 Firmware, You Can’t Update or Downgrade to iOS 4.3.3 Anymore

A couple of days ago, Apple just rolled out its latest update for iOS 4 which is the iOS 4.3.4. The main reason for this update was to patch the same security hole that Comex's JailbreakMe 3.0 tool have utilized in order to easily jailbreak various iOS device which includes the never before jailbroken, iPad 2. So the iOS 4.3.4 is highly recommended for those who haven't jailbroken their device and wants to protect it from security threats. But if you are someone who has upgraded to iOS 4.3.4 or iOS 5 Beta 3 and wanting to downgrade to iOS 4.3.3, then we have a bit of a bad news, you can't anymore.

This is because Apple have closed the signing window for iOS 4.3.3. So this means that you can no longer update or downgrade to 4.3.3 through iTunes. The only way you can do upgrade or downgrade to 4.3.3 is if you have saved the SHSH blogs for that particular firmware.

The news actually came from a tweet of iPhone Dev Team member MuscleNerd. He also pointed out that he hopes people who have iPad 2s were not stuck with iOS 5 beta:

This particular news is important for those who are planning to restore to 4.3.3 in order to use Jailbreak 3.0 and for iDevice owners who have upgraded to iOS 5 beta without having their SHSH blobs saved. Take note that with the latest update of iOS 4 which is 4.3.4, untethered jailbreaks are now killed permanently. Which means that if you want the latest untethered jailbreak possible, then you will have to settle with iOS 4.3.3 and below. Because beyond that, untethered jailbreaks are now officially non-existent.

So if you are currently in iOS 4.3.3 and want to the latest untethered jailbreak, then DO NOT upgrade to iOS 4.3.4, especially if you haven't saved the firmware's SHSH blobs. If you haven't saved it yet, then refer to this guide on how to grab the SHSH blobs of 4.3.3 using iFaith even if Apple has stopped signing it. If you have saved the SHSH blobs for 4.3.3 in the past and want to restore to it, then you should have no problem. Just download iOS 4.3.3 IPSW and you should be able to restore to this firmware with no hitch.

As you can see, Apple has been stepping up their game with each iOS update and they certainly make it more difficult for jailbreak developers. Beyond 4.3.3, if you really want to jailbreak your device, then you should settle with tethered solutions. Untethered jailbreaks are slowly going the way of the dodo as evident with iOS 4.3.4 and pretty all the betas for iOS 5. So will we ever reach a point that untethered jailbreaks will become a thing of the past?