Love them or loath them, the community of Apple users are passionate about upgrading their hardware on a regular basis. Although, it is often beyond reason and common sense. It is a sickness that borders on obsessive compulsive behaviors.
Every few months Apple will hold a press conference to announce the next big thing. For weeks before, and in some cases months, the rumor mill will work overtime in an attempt to pre announce the latest product. The aim is to win the blogger wars and maintain bragging rights.
Between the misinformation and the downright ludicrous stories, legions of people cling to every word. In essence it is propaganda and driven purely by advertising revenue. Break a few stories and your site can be self supportive. But of course, don’t worry about your integrity. That no longer exists in the realm of the bedroom blogger.
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olloclip Quick Connecting Lens Solution for iPhone
(4S/4 and iPod touch 4th generation)
Company: olloclip
Price: $69.99
I was lucky enough to receive the olloclip 3-IN-ONE PHOTO LENS for the iPhone 4, 4S or 4th generation iPod touch to review. This is a product that changes your device’s camera lens into a Fish Eye, Macro or Wide Angle capable device.
I opened the packaging and was a little distraught at first as I thought I was going to have to cut open one of those sealed plastic blister packs. I’m sure you have come across those hard to open plastic packs. Well, no, not in this instance, because it was clipped together and opened easily. That was a relief.
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Musubo Cases for iPhone 4/4S
Musubo
Price:$34.99
Musubo’s cases for iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S are stylish and provide a double layer of protection. The Retro has an exterior hard shell and interior silicon case The Sneaker case provides protection via silicon bumper and a rigid back panel (sole) made of thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) designed to look like the tread of a sneaker. The Retro and Sneaker cases are both priced at $34.99.
Mobius Rechargeable Battery Case with Solar Panel for iPhone 4 and 4S
Company: Eton
Price: $80
The Eton Mobius is a charger for the iPhone 4 and 4S that offers two methods for extending the life of your phone’s battery. Slip your phone into the Mobius case and use the provided device connector to charge the Mobius’ lithium battery and your phone off a USB port. Or, flip the case over and let the sun recharge the battery using the Mobius’ solar panel.
Let’s talk Mobile Navigators. Those wonderful little programs you pop on your mobile phone, and they tell you how to get from where you are to where you want to go. I love them. No longer do I have to think about how I get to where I am going, I just ask my iPhone to get me there, and I am off. It is just that easy, right?
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PowerSkin for Apple iPhone 4 (AT&T and Verizon)
$79.95 US
PowerSkin
Apple’s iPhone 4 has more battery life than its predecessors, but for many people, more is never enough. PowerSkin for iPhone 4 is a case-cum-battery that will provide lots more juice, as well as protect your precious iPhone. The Weeks Division of MyMac Labs took one out for several days of test-driving. Here’s what we found.
PowerSkin’s statistics are impressive. For your $79.95, you get an external battery with 2100 mAH (milli amp-hours) of capacity. So what’s 2100 mAH going to do for you? The iPhone 4 internal is 1400 mAH. The PowerSkin’s 2100 give you 50% more power IN ADDITION to the internal battery! The unit has an On/Off button on the bottom of the case, giving you the option to use the PowerSkin to recharge a depleted internal battery, or to leave it on, and have it keep internal battery charged until the PowerSkin is depleted.
BodyGuardz Clear Skins & Carbon Fiber Armor
Company: BodyGuardz
Price:
iPad 2 Clear Skin full body protector – $29.95 USD
iPhone 4 Clear Skin – $24.95 USD
I have to admit that I’m a minimalist at heart when it comes to the appearances of my electronic devices. Apple’s designs are simply elegant and I like to show them off. Bulkier cases can sometimes detract from the inherent good looks of these devices, so I’m constantly on the lookout for cases that provide decent protection while staying as thin as possible. Possible solutions I’ve seen include the polymer skins for iPhones that involve a liquid application, but I’ve always been a bit intimidated to apply one to my iPhone. I finally worked up my nerve and gave BodyGuardz a try and I’m glad I did.
Otterbox Reflex iPhone 4 Case
Company: Otterbox
Price: $44.95 USD
I’ve never been disappointed with any of Otterbox’s products. It’s well-known among fans of Apple’s iOS platform that the cases Otterbox makes are some of the toughest you can buy. Whenever my iPad, iPod Touch, or iPhone is protected in an Otterbox case, I feel much more secure in using my expensive toys. Once again, Otterbox doesn’t fail to impress with the Reflex, the latest addition to its growing line of iPhone cases.
iPhone 4: The Missing Manual, Fourth Edition — Covers iPhone 4 & All Other Models with iOS 4 Software
By David Pogue
Publisher: O’Reilly Media / Pogue Press
US$ 24.99
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With the recent release of the iPhone 4 for Verizon, it’s appropriate to alert Verizon iPhone newbies that one of the best all-round iPhone books was, is, and probably will always be, David Pogue’s iPhone The Missing Manual. Oddly, the front cover has “missing manual” in lower case letters, but the frontispiece says “Missing Manual.” In any event, this stylistic glitch did not prevent me from enjoying this book.
Two Unusual iPad Case/Stands Reviewed by Jackie Richards, Guest Writer
PowerBack Battery Case with Kickstand and Dock
Kensington
$90 to $130 online
PowerBack is a combo iPad case, stand, and battery pack. A metal kick stand supports PowerBack in four different easel positions: two each portrait and landscape. The hard plastic shell case of robust construction has precise grid edges for aligning and sliding your iPad in and out.
A Micro-USB port on the bottom rear connects PowerBack to a computer or other USB charging source via an included cable. You may need an inexpensive Kensington or third party USB wall or car charger if you discharge all iPad and PowerBack juice while away from a computer. Blue lights flash to indicate incremental charging capacity: 20 – 40 – 60 – 80 battery fuel gauge, as Kensington calls it. The company claims up to five extra hours of power and our tests confirm that approximate range, depending on iPad activity.
On the 27th of October the network carriers Vodafone and O2 celebrated their adoption of the iPhone 4. Already having had the iPhone on its network for some months now, eplus didn’t have as much to celebrate, other than being able to sell the iPhone unlocked and free to use with all carriers now. I went to the O2 flagship store in Cologne, Germany with a friend to get her new iPhone 4 with a contract adaptation of her previous mobile contract.
O2 greeted us on that morning with free drinks, food, a DJ and gorgeous O2 hostesses. Waiting in line with my friend to get her iPhone 4, we noticed that it was taking a very long time for the five people in front of us to complete their purchases. The O2 employees informed us that their servers were not responding and that only one of their computer terminals had access to the system.
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Adobe Photoshop CS5 Learn by Video
Presented by Kelly McCathran, Scott Citron, and Ted LoCascio
Produced by video2brain
Peachpit Press
ISBN: 9780321719805
$59.99 US, $71.99 CN
Like many Photoshop users I upgrade to the current version when the need for the newest features becomes too tempting to ignore. The latest version of Adobe Photoshop is CS5. A bevy of extraordinary new improvements such as Content-Aware Fill, Camera Raw 6, Brushes, Puppet Warp, Refine Edge Dialog, amongst others, make this application a creative and more efficient way to process workflow.
Guest writer Roman Woznik’s first report from Europe
I work for eco, The Association of the German Internet Industry, during my college years. Following the call of eco, I attended the United Nations Internet Governance Forum in Lithuania. It’s a Multi-Stakeholder conference on Internet Governance where participants from the governmental, private and civil society sectors meet and discuss the future of the Internet and its policies.
While sitting at the huge round conference tables I was greeted by lots of glowing Apples. I was amazed to see rows upon rows of MacBooks and MacBook Pros being used by civil rights activists and government officials alike. Looks like that’s one thing they could agree upon was using great computers. I would say the ratio of PC notebooks to Macs was at least 50/50. Having switched my whole digital life to Macs and an iPhone about half a year ago I guess I didn’t realize how common they have become, and the prejudice of Macs being solely for designers and video editors was soon forgotten.
Guest report from occasional contributor Susan
A month or so ago, I noticed that my iPhone 3G was not updating when I made changes to either my Address Book or iCal on my one year old MacBook, so I made an appointment at my local Tucson Apple Store. Things have changed at the perpetually busy Genius Bar; iPhone techs now meet their clients at the front of the store, which is always very crowded with customers. These days, there are often more people in the Apple Store than in the rest of the stores combined in the upscale shopping plaza where Apple is located. Sad for those others, but I wish Apple would move into larger premises.
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Over the years, Otter Box has produced some quality cases for iPhones and other devices. Recently, I had the opportunity to test out both the Defender and Commuter Series of cases for the iPhone 4. Did these new product lines developed for the newest addition to the Apple orchard deliver the goods? Read on to discover if you should wrap your precious in one of these protective blankets.
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Elan Form Graphite iPhone 4 Case
Company: Griffin Technology
Price: $34.99
We’re all aware of the infamous “Antennagate” media circus surrounding the debut of the iPhone 4. Hold it this way, don’t hold it that way, give me a bumper; it just goes on. iPhone 4 users clamored for cases to prevent the problem from occurring and Griffin Technology and others stepped up to the plate, providing an assortment of cases for iPhone 4 users. Among the cases offered by Griffin Technology is the Elan Form Graphite case.
Speck Cases for iPhone 4
Company: Speck
Price: $24.95 – $29.95
http://www.speck.com
No surprise to anyone by now, your iPhone 4 probably needs a case, if not only to keep it from suffering connection and reception errors, but to protect the finish as well. And you might just want to protect that glass from drops and bumps too. Yes, I know, you can get one for free from Apple (for a short time), but personally, I did not see one in their free collection that I actually liked.
So I went looking for other cases, and the first place I went was Speck! I have one of their cases on my MacBook Pro, and another on my iPod touch, and really like them both, so what better place to start. Speck has a few new designs out for the iPhone 4, and I looked at three different cases.
Otterbox Defender Case for iPhone 4
Company: Otterbox
Price: $49.95
http://www.otterbox.com
Until now, cases for the iPhone 4 have been scarce. With both the front and back of the phone being made of glass, most of us worry about breakage for good reason. I was fortunate enough to find an Apple bumper for my new iPhone while visiting an Apple Store in Charleston, SC. I’ve been using this bumper as my primary case, but while proudly showing off the beauty of the hardware, the bumper doesn’t offer much protection for the iPhone’s back glass.
In true form, Otterbox has has solved this dilemma by delivering what amounts to armor for your iPhone with its new Defender series cases. As someone who spends a lot of time outdoors with my phone, I really appreciate the thought Otterbox has put into the Defender. Don’t let the higher price-point scare you, the Defender’s built quality and functionality fit the price.
Review: You Gotta See This
Company: Boinx Software
Price: $1.99
You Gotta See This. That is not only the name of the product, but what I said to others when I saw this. If you have an iPhone 4 (it does not run on anything but the iPhone 4), for only $1.99 you can get one of the coolest photo products I have seen in a long time, especially on a cell phone.
Gaz and Guy talk about all the hype with Apple’s little problem child, the iPhone 4, AND it’s the part two of the Stephen Tobolowsky interview!
Download MyMac Podcast 303 here in MP3 format
iPhone 4 Band-Aid Gag Picture
Stephen Tobolowsky’s Birthday Party Direct
Stephen Tobolowsky’s Birthday Party at Amazon
The Tobolowsky Files Podcast
Contact info: Gazmaz and Guy on Twitter, guy@mymac.com and gaz@mymac.com, feedback@mymac.com, or our Skype direct number 703-436-9501
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