The TechNow

That other list is nice and all, but screw public opinion and the dark days of the early App Store. Here is a rudimentary list of the Top 10 BEST iPhone games, in order.

Touch Pets Dogs
Eliminate
Rolando 2
Canabalt
Real Racing
Minigore
Harbor Master
Bejeweled
Sway
Doodle Jump

Not the greatest list ever, but sure beats the heck out of the most popular. Public opinion from people in the early days doesn’t matter, the amazing options today make the App Store a viable place to find games, and these are 10 that you can’t miss.

This post was written by brewstermax, and he/she may not represent the opinions of this website or it's owner.

From iPhoneInCanada:

Bell Individual Plans [Updated]

$55/month

• 36 month contract/renewal
• 300 Minutes
• Unlimited Evenings/Weekends @ 9PM
• Local Fab 5
• 1GB Data + Tethering
• SAF, 911 Fee

$75/month

• 36 month contract/renewal
• 400 Minutes
• Unlimited Evenings/Weekends @ 9PM
• Nation-wide Fab 5
• Caller Display
• Visual Voicemail
• 2GB Data + Tethering
• SAF, 911 Fee

$95/month

• 36 month contract/renewal
• 500 Minutes
• Unlimited Evenings/Weekends @ 9PM
• Nation-wide Fab 5
• Caller Display
• Visual Voicemail
• 3GB Data + Tethering
• SAF, 911 Fee

Telus Individual Plans

$35/month

• 36 month contract/renewal
• 200 + 50 Minutes
• Unlimited Evenings/Weekends @ 9PM
• Visual Voicemail
• 500 MB Data
• No GRR Fee, No SAF, No 911 Fee
• Then Choose From: Unlimited Messages or My5 Local or Double Daytime (400+50)

$50/month

• 36 month contract/renewal
• 300 + 50 Minutes
• Unlimited Evenings/Weekends @ 9PM
• Visual Voicemail
• 1GB Data + Tethering
• No GRR Fee, No SAF, No 911 Fee
• Then Choose From: Unlimited Messages or My5 Long Distance or Double Daytime (600+50)

$70/month

• 36 month contract/renewal
• 350 + 50 Minutes
• Unlimited Evenings/Weekends @ 9PM
• Visual Voicemail
• 2GB Data + Tethering
• No GRR Fee, No SAF, No 911 Fee
• Then Choose From: Unlimited Messages or My5 Long Distance or Double Daytime (700+50)

$100/month

• 36 month contract/renewal
• 450 + 50 Minutes
• Unlimited Evenings/Weekends @ 9PM
• Visual Voicemail
• 3GB Data + Tethering
• No GRR Fee, No SAF, No 911 Fee
• Then Choose From: Unlimited Messages or My5 Long Distance or Double Daytime (900+50)

This post was written by j.dhanani, and he/she may not represent the opinions of this website or it's owner.

This was compiled by me, and I am admittedly an Apple fanboy. However, I did this to the best of my neutrality, and even though iPhone won in most criteria, I did not post a final verdict - I will leave that up to the reader to make that decision. In my opinion, iPhone reigns supreme due mainly to the user interface, and the fact that the Motorola Droid did nothing but rip off the iPhone’s UI, design, and concept.

If you thought this was biased, or did not agree with my conclusions in the ‘winner’ section, just leave a comment below, and I’ll make the appropriate amendments or changes to the chart.

The full chart, with the ‘winners’ section, is located here: http://img249.imageshack.us/img249/740/droidvsiphone.png , the last column was intentionally cut off.

This post was written by j.dhanani, and he/she may not represent the opinions of this website or it's owner.

A lot of people have been speculating  (and hoping) that iPhone will come to Verizon. However, will this result in a positive change to consumers? Or will it just be the same thing, or worse? Let’s take a look at two major factors that will influence this:

Plans

Everybody knows pricing and what you get for your money is one of the most important things when buying a phone. So how does everything stack up?

Verizon ($79.99)

• 450 Nationwide Minutes
• Unlimited Verizon-to-Verizon
• Unlimited Data
• Unlimited Nights/Weekends
• Caller ID/Call Blocking
• Call Forwarding
• Call Waiting
• $175 Early Termination Fee
• Nationwide 3G

AT&T ($69.99)

• 450 Nationwide Minutes
• Unlimited Mobile AT&T-AT&T Minutes
• Unlimited Data
• 5000 Nights/Weekends
• Caller ID/Call Blocking
• Call Forwarding
• Internet Tethering
• $175 Early Termination Fee
• Limited 3G, Nationwide EDGE

So what exactly are the differences? From what I can see (since 5000 Nights/Weekends is almost the same as Unlimited), the only differences are Internet tethering and 3G Coverage, as well as the price. Basically, with the $10 extra you pay for Verizon, you’re getting Nationwide 3G, and that’s about it.

This post was written by j.dhanani, and he/she may not represent the opinions of this website or it's owner.

iPhone and iPod touch are both revolutionary devices, and if you have one, you’ve probably heard of PwnageTool. Whether you know what it is, or just want to know more about it, this article is for you. PwnageTool, in essence, creates a modified version of iPhone’s operating system, so that you can edit and modify it to your needs. This allows you to run [otherwise] unauthorized code on your device, and applications that you wouldn’t be able to get on the App Store are instantly available. Things like Google Voice and VoIP over 3G are all available on the jailbroken iPhone. This can open up a whole new array of possibilities for both the average user and the expert.

What does PwnageTool do to my iDevice?
PwnageTool takes the original iPhone or iPod touch OS, opens it up, then changes things inside of it to modify how the phone or iPod works. For example, it can change it so that it will accept T-Mobile SIM cards as opposed to AT&T, through the process of unlocking. It can enable installation of third-party applications, as well as creating read-write access to the entire file system.

Is it safe?
This is probably the most common question asked, and the answer is yes. It is a little known fact that the iPhone and iPod touch cannot be truly broken via software. It may be extremely difficult to repair, but it never costs a penny to fix it. There’s no opening up the device involved, and it’s so easy, a child could do it - quite literally.

What are some reasons not to ‘pwn’ my iPhone?
The premier reason not to do this is it voids your warranty. Sure, you can always erase all trace of it, but there is a slight chance that somebody at Apple will see your jailbroken iPhone and cancel your warranty.

How would I go about downloading these ‘other’ applications you talked about?
The 3G Unrestrictor application, which allows VoIP over 3G, among others, are available with Cydia, Icy, or Rock, which are all alternatives to the App Store. Most applications (~90%) are free, while the others range from $0.99-$9.99.

So… how do I do it?
The process is quite simple. Upgrade your iPhone or iPod touch to 3.1.2 (or the newest firmware), and simply read this article (http://blog.iphone-dev.org/post/211802082/pwnage-pie). It’s really simple and fast.

This post was written by j.dhanani, and he/she may not represent the opinions of this website or it's owner.

iPhone is one of the most widely used cellular devices, surpassing the 5% market share Steve Jobs was aiming at. It also holds full web browser capabilities (save Flash and Java, of course), and an App Store with 65,000 apps. So why, a technology as simple as Multimedia Messaging, take so long?

Imagine this phone, with over 10 million USA customers, [almost] all on AT&T, all with an unlimited data plan. Can you imagine the load on the cellular towers? 10MB or less applications can be downloaded over 3G or EDGE, and this causes immense pressure on the cellular networks. This causes the towers to possibly achieve capacity and no longer serve customers.

It’s hard to run a company, and AT&T has done a good job holding up their company, providing fast 3G speeds, and not charging for Caller ID (*ahem* Rogers, you don’t need to charge $7 for a basic service).

So don’t be mad at AT&T for not providing MMS earlier. They’ve done the best they can.

This post was written by j.dhanani, and he/she may not represent the opinions of this website or it's owner.

Gizmodo recently posted an article bashing AT&T’s MicroCell service. And even though Verizon, Sprint, and T-Mobile charge for similar services, they choose to single out AT&T in this case. Now, I hate to be Devil’s advocate, but seriously, at least make sure AT&T’s largest competitor isn’t sponsoring your website first!

So, Gizmodo, sponsored by Sprint, writes that “AT&T’s network is basically a huge failure.” Well, let’s take a look at some coverage maps to see if that claim is really justified:

It comes close, but AT&T’s tower density is definately higher. Sprint has nowhere near the same number and spread of towers as AT&T has. Plus, several testimonials about switching from AT&T to Sprint have been very positive.

I frankly wasn’t expecting much in the way of 3G coverage where I live – in the backwoods of Charleston, WV. I figured I’d be able to utilize 3G only in my business travels – after all, Sprint has never provided EV-DO in this area. I was wrong! AT&T has superb 3G coverage throughout the Charleston metropolitan area. I even get 5 bars of 3G service in my home! During my recent drive to family in VA I ran into Edge-only areas of coverage, but nevertheless I was able to make cell phone calls while driving and without any dropped or poor quality calls. Once arriving in the Manassas and Fredericksburg areas where my family lives, I again encountered very strong 3G signal strength. As I’ve already mentioned a couple of times I didn’t even bother utilizing free WiFi at my hotel in Woodbridge, VA because the 3G service was so fast there. –http://mconnick.wordpress.com/2008/08/06/att-vs-sprint/

I’m not for AT&T, personally I have T-Mobile, but I have to say that Gizmodo was being quite unfair to AT&T and their MicroCell service. After all, Sprint does charge $20 for their service as well; AT&T’s just matching the competition. It’s better to have  a MicroCell than nothing, right?

I admit that AT&T does not have the best coverage in the world, but when I was driving from my home city of Toronto - I have both Canadian and US cellular phones - to Washington DC, I noticed that my iPhone would keep on consistently picking up AT&T signal where T-Mobile failed to do so. And when T-Mobile handed off service to AT&T, I always got full signal strength.

So, why is everybody hating on AT&T, well, it’s beyond me. Their plans all include Caller ID, a feature that Rogers in Canada feels compelled to charge almost $10 extra for, and their $30 Unlimited Data is nothing compared to the 500MB we get here for the same price.

To all of you who have AT&T, stop whining, and if you think you like another carrier better, switch. That’s all I have to say.

This post was written by j.dhanani, and he/she may not represent the opinions of this website or it's owner.

Cracked applications, the term used by hackers to refer to pirated or illegal applications, have now been prevented by Apple in the newest beta firmware release. This is the first time in about a year that Apple has taken any preventative measure to protect developers against the largening community of crackers and pirates.

The newest firmware release, iPhone OS 3.1 beta 3, also sports copy-and-paste with video, as well as minor bug fixes and features, although this strengthening of verification processes, so to speak, is possibly the most significant upgrade with this update. It was available yesterday to select developers who are members of the iPhone Developer Program ($99 at Apple Developer Connection)

Among developers, this news has been received well, and long-awaited. However, among the ‘jailbreak’ (iPhone hacking) community, response is varied. Some believe that this will prevent their ‘try before you buy’ practices, but others believe that it is a godsend blessing.

What are your opinions? Good or Bad?

This post was written by j.dhanani, and he/she may not represent the opinions of this website or it's owner.

If you’re an iPhone 3G or 3GS owner, you may have noticed that with the 3.0 iPhone software, the battery life has significantly decreased or is extremely short. Many owners of these phones have reported the lifetime of the Lithium batteries to last as low as two hours under normal usage conditions; which is about 10% of what Apple claims it to be.

Developers have reported that the new 3.1 software update may bring temporary ‘band-aid’ solutions to the problem, although it still is nowhere near what is expected of this device. Apple advertises five hours talk time on a 3G network, as well as up to 9 hours of WiFi browsing and 10 hours of video playback for the 3GS, which is definately not possible from my experiance.

The battery on the iPhone 3GS is 15% smaller than the 3G; however, it is advertised to have up to two hours more talk time on the 2G network.

All we can do is hope that the next iPhone software update can fix this problem to the fullest extent, however, it still may be weeks until we can expect a software fix.

This post was written by j.dhanani, and he/she may not represent the opinions of this website or it's owner.

Custom Firmware
iPhone 3G: http://d01.megashares.com/dl/e4fad90/iPhone1,2_3.0_7A341_Custom_Restore.ipsw

Default Firwmare
iPhone 3G S: http://appldnld.apple.com.edgesuite.net/content.info.apple.com/iPhone/061-6582.20090617.LlI87/iPhone2,1_3.0_7A341_Restore.ipsw
iPhone 3G: http://appldnld.apple.com.edgesuite.net/content.info.apple.com/iPhone/061-6578.20090617.VfgtU/iPhone1,2_3.0_7A341_Restore.ipsw
iPhone 2G: http://appldnld.apple.com.edgesuite.net/content.info.apple.com/iPhone/061-6580.20090617.XsP76/iPhone1,1_3.0_7A341_Restore.ipsw

iPod touch links not provided due to illegality of content. Special thanks to B3tan for the iPhone 3G Custom Firmware.

This post was written by j.dhanani, and he/she may not represent the opinions of this website or it's owner.