You better not install the latest Apple update on your unlocked iPhone!

Although Apple claims that after the update the hacked iPhone might not work anymore, you can almost be sure that it will turn into a nice looking brick.

The “iPhone Dev Team” is working hard on a software release that can take updates on the iPhone while using it as an unlocked device.

Why is Apple trying to punish their customers? In my eyes this is definetly an iPhone complaint worth worrying about!

If you are fed up with all your complaints about the iPhone, check out the SGH-P520 from Samsung:

Just like the iPhone it has a 2.6 inch touchscreen display that can display 262.144 colors. It can vibrate to indicate user feedback when you touch the display. It as EDGE powered data transmission, internet bowser, music player, bluetooth 2.0 and a regular USB port so you can basically plug it into any computer available. The internal memory of this device can be expanded by a regular Micro-SD card.

Watch out iPhone, this is only the start of some very serious competition!

Just like in the regular iTunes store you can use your iPhone to buy music. Do do this you will have to setup your existing iTunes music store account on the iPhone. After that you can browse through albums and songs. Like other music store purchases each songs costs 99 cents. Before you buy Apple allows you to listen to 30 seconds of the song to make sure it is the song you want to pay for.

After you have bought the music on the iPhone itself you can synch the music files back to your computer and they are available in iTunes.

The only big complaint I have is that I cannot imagine downloading music over a crappy and slow 2G Internet connection on a phone. This will take forever, I’m telling you!

Apart from the network speed connection the build in speakers sound rather rickety and loud, so it is no fun sharing your music with your friends through the iPhone.

It seems that Apple is going to actively move against software tools to unlock their iPhone so you can use the device with other networks than AT&T in the US. I really wonder how they will accomplishe this. either they fight the companies that offer the unlokcing services or they provice frequent update on the iPhone’s software so the unlocking will not work anymore. We will see.

The downside of unlocking the iPhone though might be that you cannot use the visual voice mail feature that AT&T offers or that you have to pay extra to use cetrain functions that come with one of the three plans from the network operators.

Be sure to check some software to unlock the iPhone as long as they are available.

This has been around the block since the first introduction of the iPhone. It does not offer UMTS support. Although users are encouraged to use applications like Google Maps that are based on network connection there is not the latest standard in data connection implemented in the phone! iPhone users have to stick with the slower rather old GPRS connection that is really outdated since years.

Rumors say that UMTS will be available on the iPhone that is introduced in Europe later on this year. This might be true as the network coverage for UMTS connection is better than in the US.

We had the discussion regarding the use of the iPhone as as smart-phone. One of the major features of a full fledged smart-phone is document editing. You can receive emails from you corporate network that contain documents like .doc word files or .pdf files that you are supposed to check out. Through integrated software like Pocket Office from Microsoft or Quick Office for Symbian OS you can even create new Word files, Excel sheets or Power Point presentation when you are on the go.

Unfortunately Apple has not implemented their Office Suite that is available for Mac OSX in the iPhone. You can’t deal with all your favorite file types and really do something useful work related on the go.
This can really be a killer application on a device with the many connectivity options like the iPhone. With the nice virtual keyboard you could easily process Word files, Spreadsheets and other work related files.

Do you think the iPhone is an alternative to the Blackberry/Crackberry or other smart-phones?

As the iPhone will be available in Europe from November 9th on and T-mobile and O² have been announced as the “official” partners for Germany and Great Britain I looked into the prices a little deeper and created a comparison page for different European countries.

It is based on US-Dollar as the iPhone’s and Apple’s “home market” is the US, I converted the other currencies to US-Dollar so it will be easier to compare.

The most obvious difference that spots the readers eye will be the initial price for the iPhone, in Great Britain people have to pay 34% more than in the US! In Germany it is even 38%!!

I will keep updating this page as soon as there are other prices throughout Europe available.

Here are some rumors about the exclusive iPhone/Apple/T-mobile partnership in Europe:

• T-Mobile will sell the iPhone exclusively in those countries were they are acitve. That is Germany, Austria, Hungary, The Netherlands and Croatia
• The iPhone will cost €399 throughout Europe
• There will be no UMTS (3G) iPhone

I just read an article that says that the iPhone will not have an unlimited data plan in France with the network operator Orange and that it will be available at November 29, 2007. There will not be a 3G version of the iPhone.

I really wonder if this will be the case in all European nations where the iPhone is sold. It does not make so much sense to offer the iPhone without an unilimited data plan as most of the applications rely on data from external server. This will probably rise a lot of complaints. On the other hand it always depends on the usage of the services, but then the iPhone could be offered with no ongoing plan at all.

They have also posted an image of the iPhone with a french menu interface:

Although the picture looks a bit blurry you can read “Mode Avion” at the top which in French for flight mode.

I spotted this image on vowe.net today, supposed to be real and working on the Vodafone network:

If this is true I hope it’s only a matter of time until the locking to AT&T is taken completely off the iPhone.

Here is another unlock software for the iPhone.