9to5 Staff

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3n95J8bZcdQ&w=700&h=415]

The iPhone 4 is becoming Apple

Apple is enduring a fierce blaze of negative publicity as US TV networks question the iPhone 4 ‘death grip’ issue. It has to be time the company offered more clarity about what’s going on – is this one or two issues and will there be a product recall?

read more

We

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_TFHqIHBqM&w=700&h=415]

This is interesting: the video shows musician, Victor Tsaran, using a Braille display/controller to command his way through the iPhone 4. What makes this most interesting is that the musician is blind, and that the clip comprehensively underlines the built-in accessibility of the Apple mobile. This is powerful stuff.

Via: Wired

AT&T is promising to make its network, erm, better, with CTO, John Donovan promising the company will

Apple appears to be panicking in its reaction to the widely-reported antenna issue plaguing most iPhone 4s — in its latest maneuver to attempt to

http://online.wsj.com/media/swf/VideoMicroPlayer.swf

All the big news networks are picking up today’s ‘do not recommend’ rating on the iPhone 4 from Consumer Reports.   Here’s the thing: If Apple came out and said three weeks ago that there was an antenna problem and it could be fixed with a free bumper or a piece of uber-cool Apple tape, we wouldn’t be talking about it right now.  Instead, the antenna issue is now snowballing and getting bigger by the week.

In fact, my dad who shares a flip feature phone (something not as good as a RAZR) with my mom, asked me what the deal was with the “new iPhone and the broken antenna” today.   Anyone who is considering getting an iPhone in the US now hears more about this antenna issue than the merits of this particular phone, which happens to be pretty stellar.

Yet, Apple keeps telling us that our eyes are deceiving us.  We don’t see that when you hit the spot, the signal drops.  Everything is fine.  

At what point does Apple come clean?  They have dug themselves in a hole so deep that they can’t tell the truth and save face. But can they continue lying?  Is there some way that after they say there is n’t a hardware problem, that they’ve tested it in their labs, it now does?

This feels almost like a giant horrible combover you see on “that guy”.  You wonder how he made it out of his house without one of his friends or family telling him how ridiculous he looks.    Everyone who looks at him for two seconds knows he’s is bald but he keeps insisting that pulling the hair from the very edges of his scalp makes everything fine.  Apple’s PR, to this point, has been the combover.

The issue now isn’t that people think Apple make faulty products.  They let one or two things slip on this one, but 98% of the iPhone 4 is top notch, best money can buy.  No one is perfect.  If Apple could tell the truth, people would be singing the praises of the iPhone 4.  Instead, people like my dad only hear that it has a broken antenna.

The issue is much bigger for us.  

People who’ve been following this and have reached out to Apple for comment now know Apple has ‘issues with the truth’.  

I’d much rather think that Apple had an antenna design issue than be embarrassed for the spectacle they are becoming.    

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32545640

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Incipio was kind enough to send us along three of their iPhone 4 cases. When Apple releases new products, case manufactures scramble to make the best protection devices, and Incipio is a company we consider to be a “pro” at this. Their cases range from mild protection, to medium protection, to almost Tank/OtterBox Defender like protection.

In this article we review the Incipio Feather, Incio NGP, and Incipio Silicrylic cases.

Click here to read our entire review coupled with video.

Incipio Feather – $24.99:

The Incipio feather is a great case for those who really do not require or want much protection. It’s sleek, thin, and it’s a case you really won’t feel you are sporting. It’s tough design protects against scratches and minor/medium drops on the back, and that’s about it. You don’t really get any protection on the side and back, but hey… if you’re buying the feather you should have realized that already. Also, the name, feather. They aren’t joking, this thing is the lightest case we’ve tested.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9SmZOpuTLmE&w=640&h=385]

Incipio Silicrylic – $29.99:

The Silicrylic can be compared to a lighter version of the Otterbox Defender. It’s tough with two layers of protection. You get an inner soft layer, and an outer tough layer. The outer layer is the first line of protection defending drops on the back, sides, and a bit on the front. The second layer, protects the phone from major drops, and is essentially a backup to the first layer. You cannot wear the thin inner layer by itself as that won’t look good and you wont get much protection.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0AiiHBDc6m0&w=640&h=385]

Incipio NGP – $24.99

The Incipio NGP is a tough case. It has one silicon layer that offers a great deal of protection. It can be compared to the tougher layer of the dual-layer case above. It’s tough against back and side drops. The case is also thin and stylish enough to fit in your pockets. For the average user, this is Incipio’s best iPhone 4 case.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LYDimTnjSp4&w=640&h=385]

Vanity Kit: All Incipio cases come with a free vanity kit. This kit comes with two screen shields, a squeegee, and a cloth. The kit is great to take around with you, and really completes the iPhone protection package.

Conclusion:

All of Incipio’s cases iPhone 4 cases are great in their own respects. The feather is a case for those who don’t like cases. It adds a touch of style, a matte finish, and some protection for the phone’s glass back. The dual-layer case offers great protection for those who work dirty jobs. It’s something construction workers should use, or people in similar industries.

The NGP case is a combination of the two. It offers a slick and light design, with some protection for the entire phone. Let us know in the comments which case you think is the best and which one you’re going to get!

Grab one at Amazon.

He

Apple patent shows it is developing technologies that could revolutionize established ideas for user interfaces, where the user interface becomes the object, and the object changes for what you want it to do.

read more

Here we go again… Microsoft has made another promise. This time, Ballmer promises a bunch of Windows 7 tablets coming by the end of this year. Microsoft plans to partner up with Dell, Asus, Sony, and Toshiba, as well as others. There last few takes at a tablet surely worked out *well* with the successful launch of their baby below (due this summer – tick tock, tick tock), and the “never even existed” Courier. 

The boys up in Redmond plan to take Apple head on with a strategy that lures in IT departments. We personally don’t think they’ll have much success with them iPads in the game along with Google’s plans for Android tablets. 

Ballmer’s statements occurred today at Microsoft’s Partner Conference, and we’ll probably see some MSFT tablet action at the upcoming WPC. 

via Gizmodo.

http://c.brightcove.com/services/viewer/federated_f9/21495733001?isVid=1

This one isn’t going to go over very well, we feel.  Consumer Reports is, for the first time, pulling its ‘Recommend rating’ on the iPhone due completely to the antenna non-issue that Apple plans to fix with a software update in coming weeks (or two weeks ago if you believed one report).  Somehow, even though they can’t recommend it, the iPhone 4 topped their Smartphone list again.  I guess they can’t recommend buying a smartphone of any sort?!

It’s official. Consumer Reports’ engineers have just completed testing the iPhone 4, and have confirmed that there is a problem with its reception. When your finger or hand touches a spot on the phone’s lower left side