iPhone

Just yesterday we posted a video showing what can occasionally happen when a lithium ion battery receives impact damage, and today the Sydney Morning Herald has a report showing that the same thing can happen with no sledgehammers involved.

A Sydney bicycle rider […] was severely burnt when his Apple iPhone exploded after a minor fall […] Bondi management consultant Gareth Clear, 36, said his iPhone was in his back pocket and ignited after he had a fall from his bike while riding on Sunday afternoon. 

“I just saw smoke coming out of my back pocket…and then all of a sudden I felt this surging pain,” he said, adding that he felt a “searing heat” as the phone burnt through his riding shorts in a matter of seconds.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission said that it was investigating, but that the slimness of modern devices like the iPhone increased the risk of such incidents …

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Update: Apple confirms:

With iPhone sales reported for Apple’s fiscal Q3 yesterday, the company is now at around 988.15 million iPhones sold, meaning it’s about to pass the 1 billion units sold milestone and will likely do so any day now.

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Apple Maps is getting enhanced data for parking spots as Parkopedia today announces a deal to provide Apple with its database of parking services worldwide. That means that Apple Maps is now gaining enhanced data for the 40 million parking spots currently tracked by Parkopedia across 75 countries in North America, Asia, Europe and Latin America.

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Touch ID brought major changes to how people unlock their iPhones, but it doesn’t appear as if Apple is stopping there. We initially reported that Apple was developing an eye scanning technology back in 2014, but a new report today says the capability could be launching to the public as soon as 2018.

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Two dates surfaced over the weekend regarding when the so-called iPhone 7 could be introduced and available to purchase. Evan Blass, better known as @evleaks, tweeted Friday night that the next iPhone would be released during the week of September 12th, then added on Saturday that he indeed meant the actual retail release and that “it should happen on Friday, Sept. 16th.”

We noted in our coverage this morning that a two-week period typically occurs the time between the iPhone announcement and release date, which suggests a late August to early September Apple event assuming the September 16th date is accurate. So how does that date compare to past iPhone releases? Below we’ve compared every iPhone announcement, pre-order, and release date so far…

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Battery cases are bulky. The new MagicMount PowerBank from Scosche gives you all of the same benefits— a portable battery pack attached to your iPhone for extra battery life— but does so in a form factor that aims to be more convenient than a battery case. With the MagicMount, the battery magnetically attaches to your device using a very slim MagicPlate, so you can quickly remove it when no longer needed. And you can continue to use your device with a case of your choice or no case at all, so you don’t have to put up with that bulky battery case all day.

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We know Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg relies on good old-fashioned tape to disable his MacBook’s mic and camera, and NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden is working on something a little more sophisticated to stop your iPhone from snooping. It’s a protective case not aimed at preventing damage from drops and tumbles but instead spying and snooping…

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When covering Apple patents, we do so with the disclaimer that the company patents a huge number of ideas that never make it into products, but one group is taking no chances. A Care2 petition has launched a petition asking Apple not to implement a recently-granted patent that would allow iPhone cameras to be disabled remotely.

While the patent has in mind situations like concerts, where the audience can have their view blocked by a sea of cameraphones, the petition is concerned about the potential for more sinister uses of the technology …

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Corning, the company behind the popular Gorilla Glass brand, today announced the next iteration of its cover glass for mobile displays, a likely candidate for future Apple devices including the iPhone 7. Corning says that Gorilla Glass 5 survives drops onto rough surfaces four times better than other solutions, noting that clarity of the display and touch sensitivity are not affected.

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Government officials in Iran have threatened to ban iPhones from the country, and ‘collect’ existing ones, unless Apple appoints an official representative in the country.

“If Apple will not register an official representative in Iran within the next few days, all iPhones will be collected from the market,” Tasnim News Agency quoted the director of Iran’s anti-smuggling office as having said on Sunday.

The move is said to be aimed at countering the smuggling of smartphones into the country …

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Apple is continuing to emphasise its ‘Shot on iPhone’ campaign, where it features photos and videos taken by ordinary iPhone users, with two new video commercials. One of the ads features a macro close-up clip of an ant carrying a leaf by Tim W. The other is another close-up of a squirrel eating a nut, credited to Linda H.

Watch the two fifteen-second commercials below …

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In this week’s top stories: iPhone 7 leaks, Pokémon GO mania continues, Apple recruits developers for its ‘Planet of the Apps’ reality TV show, and much more.

iPhone 7 |

We kick things off with the latest iPhone 7 reports, including one alleged leak of the device on video, and yet more leaks claiming to show Lightning EarPods as Apple’s ‘AirPods’ trademark surfaces once again.

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Reports from local French newspaper Le Dauphiné Libéré (via iPhone.fr) claim Apple has signed contracts to open a new R&D lab in Grenoble, France focusing on imaging technologies.

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The iDevices Socket is an adapter that goes between your lighting fixture and a standard bulb to add Wi-Fi and iPhone app control to any lightbulb. It also adds support for control via Siri voice commands and the iOS 10 Home app through Apple’s HomeKit platform.

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The annual iPhone Photography Awards have recognized the top images taken with an iPhone as well as the top iPhone photographers for the last 9 years, and now this year’s winners have been unveiled. This year, “thousands” of images were submitted from photographers across 139 countries, but the grand price went to Chinese photographer Siyuan Niu for an image he called “Man and the Eagle.”

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SanDisk’s latest iXpand product is a Lightning flash drive in the form of an iPhone case, allowing you to easily have extra storage for your iPhone at all times. And the  iXpand Memory Case has an optional battery pack that attaches magnetically, turning the case into a single solution for both extra storage and battery life.
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While I upgrade my iPhone every year, I’ve found that I stick to the same basic set of accessories thanks to their reliability, style or functionality. What to buy in terms of cables and docks is a common question for iPhone users, new and old. Here are my picks for essential iPhone accessories: lightning cables, dock, case and headphones.

These are my recommendations based on what I have bought, used and kept over the years. Are these the only good choices? Of course not. They do have the potential for universal appeal, however. In general, the things I use are relatively inexpensive and focus on practicality, not style, so keep that in mind. Read on for my recommendations for essential must-buy iPhone accessories.

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