First up we would to note that a lot of Product Reviews readers have been complaining of massive problems with the iTunes store and getting the iPhone v2.0 update.
As we were one of the first to download the official Apple iPhone 2.0 software, we had no problems updating at all, the only issue was how long it took to install.
This is not saying that there are not problems, because clearly there are listening to what users are reporting; one person has had an iPhone go dead on them. Half way through the updating process he lost connection to iTunes and now has a phone that’s not working, just a black screen.
After downloading iPhone v2.0 software we found that everything looks just the same as the last iPhone firmware apart from a new icon saying App Store.
First impressions of the App store – we are very impressed, just like YouTube, you have one click access to the App store and lots of applications to choose from. Some are free and others are to buy, and you will find some of the paid ones very impressive.
Our favorites are “Super Monkey Ball” and iLoveControl”, classic gaming and a way to make the iPhone control your entire home.
There are many other features, most of these have been reported before by us and other sites, although first impressions show some cool updates we will use often like saving image from web pages. We will update you when we have had more of a play.
We are hearing of massive problems in updating the iPhone firmware to iPhone 2.0, users are getting a message that tells them of an SSL error, no secure connection.
Our readers were reporting of connection errors to iTunes which would obviously be because of the overwhelming demand to get the software update, but following O2’s problems because of 13,000 orders a second, you would expect a computer company like Apple to be able to handle this load today.
Users trying to update to iPhone 2.0 are reporting “has been updating, seems to have gone through all the steps successfully, though in iTunes under devices, a window is displayed Accessing iTunes Store for last 10 minutes” and another user said “the iTunes store is timing out when it’s trying to activate the device”.
This is leaving some users in a position where their iPhone has been left like a brick, half installed. The latest problems many people are reporting is along the lines of a secure connection error.
Its unbelievable how you can be extremely prepared when looking towards July 11 and the new iPhone 3G-launch day, only to find out that what you get told is complete rubbish.
We phoned Carphone Warehouse and O2 customer services yesterday and posted information they told us, would you believe after asking if we can upgrade to the iPhone 3G as a Carphone Warehouse customer in store today and being told that its possible, we are now hearing that its not possible.
Although we decided to test out the iPhone 2.0 update on the first generation phone first before deciding to buy iPhone 3G, I did phone Carphone Warehouse and was told I can upgrade in store today.
We have heard from two different people that they have been turned away from Carphone Warehouse today when asking to upgrade and one of them was an existing customer of Carphone Warehouse.
How can Carphone Warehouse misinform people so easy about the iPhone 3G?
This is what one shopper reported to Product Reviews “I have just been to Carphone Warehouse store in Woking and they had some iphones (small number of 16G units and some 8G units). I purchased my original iphone from them but they could not upgrade it to the new 3G phone. I was told I would have to do it on line or at an o2 store (just came from the o2 shop and it had none left). I ended up having to purchase a new phone and intend to contact o2 about the possibility of sorting out the contracts later”.
Today has seen more angry phone customers than in a long time and it’s down to their need for an Apple iPhone 3G, we have heard many reports first hand of customers leaving Apple and O2 stores feeling disappointed.
We knew that the iPhone 3G launching in 22 countries today would leave each country with less stock than needed, this is to the massive demand for the iPhone 3G and surely this is a good thing for Apple.
Who are these disappointed shoppers blaming for their need for an iPhone 3G not being fulfilled?
Can you really blame the stores like Apple, O2 and Carphone Warehouse for not having enough phones as these stores requested iPhone 3G’s and never got the amount they wanted thanks to demand.
Also could it be Apple’s fault really, they have launched in 22 countries and no matter how many iPhone 3G’s they make I cannot see them making enough to meet today’s demand.
As we reported before, O2 had 13,000 orders a second at one point on their pre-order day earlier this week, who can meet that demand?
Just like the Nintendo Wii before it, I feel Apple had an impossible task at meeting the demand for iPhone 3G and it will take some time before everyone who wants one, can go out and get the next generation iPhone easily.
This is the XFX nForce 790i Ultra SLI motherboard and with XFX being one of NVIDIA’s biggest partners, expectations are high for this board.
It’s not necessarily a bad thing to be another NVIDIA reference clone; this makes the choice of which board to get an easier one. The features and extras bundled with the XFX offering also make it a prime mover.
Tweak Town have given this motherboard a full hands-on review and this is what they said in their final thoughts “One thing is for sure, NVIDIA has done a fantastic job on its reference design. Not only have they managed to fit just about every possible expansion option into their boards, but also 3-Way SLI is standard, it overclocks quite well and it supports the latest generation of CPUs.
Having said that, when companies just sell NVIDIA reference boards, this is where things get a bit boring. When two or more companies have identical looking and performing boards, it’s hard to recommend one over the other. In fact, there is no way to do it; this is where real motherboard makers like MSI, ASUS and GIGABYTE come in with their own styles and designs that do make a difference; in all, a better looking board.
XFX has simply slapped their sticker on the NVIDIA reference board, which is the same as what ZOTAC has done with theirs. So if you’re tossing up between these two, either will do as there are no differences to speak of”.
Read the 14 page review.
Its one thing waiting for the new Apple iPhone firmware 2.0 but what about those that have had the last version Jailbroken, well it looks like Zibri have solved that problem.
We are hearing that the famous Zibri and ZiPhone may already have an iPhone firmware 2.0 Jailbreak, the iPhone Dev Team claims to have cracked the update already.
This is even before it has been officially released to the world, while a working version of the ZiPhone for version for 2.0 is not available yet, it will be very soon.
Why do people want their iPhones Jailbroken and what’s up with these Jailbreakers?
There are many reasons for having your iPhone firmware changed so you can access more functions, change the sim card or other reasons. We will let you talk about these in the comments.
The Apple iPhone 2.0 software update will be with us all in the coming hours today, we checked in the last few minutes and its still not available but will be very soon.
This update will bring many new features that were talked about by Steve Jobs when he introduced the iPhone 3G, make sure you have the latest version of iTunes, this is now version 7.7.
The iPhone 2.0 Software Update includes a sophisticated scientific calculator, additional languages, a new Contacts search field, better email attachment support and mass email move and delete, support for a MobileMe subscription that keeps all your information up to date everywhere and support for Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync.
The iPhone has always shined in the application development area and this kind of expandability has meant many things to different users, with the iPhone 2.0 Software update you will be able to do even more with the iPhone thanks to the new App Store.
All these features and more will be free in the next iPhone software update, so if your not getting the iPhone 3G just yet then check them out today by getting the update via iTunes. It will be officially available today.
You may not have decided yet if your going to line-up for an Apple iPhone 3G in the morning, but some people on this planet have already bought their iPhone 2.0.
While that does not include people in the UK or US, the lucky people in New Zealand have been able to buy an iPhone 3G because it’s now Friday, June 11th over there.
This is because Vodafone have launched the iPhone 3G in Christchurch, Wellington and Auckland City before other retail outlets in the country. Most stores will be launching much later.
Parts of Australia will now be getting the iPhone 3G as they have a few hours difference to New Zealand, although Perth will have to wait a little longer (currently 9:44pm there).
While the first iPhone 3G has been sold, the rest of the 22 countries around the world will be getting it over the next 24 hours and one thing is sure, it will be in very short supply.
Today O2 have issued an official announcement on their website about the Apple iPhone 3G and in this statement they highlight some key points, most of these are obvious.
They have said that Carphone Warehouse and O2 stores will have limited numbers of iPhone 3G tomorrow, most people know this and we wrote an article yesterday about the demand for iPhone 3G and how launching in 22 countries on the same day will limit supply.
O2 confirmed that they will only have a few dozen iPhone 3G’s on average per store, we are also sure there will be many more than that figure wanting iPhones at each O2 or Carphone Warehouse shop.
After some O2 and Carphone Warehouse stores told customers yesterday (including myself) that they will not be upgrading existing iPhone owners, we were then able to confirm late in the day this was not the case and you WILL be able to upgrade to iPhone 3G in store.
Today this news gets more Official confirmation on O2’s website, they said, “O2 customers can only upgrade in an O2 or CPW store”.
Most of the news O2 announced confirms what we already know, but the key information you need to know is, get to a store REAL early if you want an iPhone 3G on Friday.
Via Phones Review
So just how good is the Super Talent Pico-C 8GB Flash Drive compared to the best of pre-gen leaders, this is just what Chris from Tweak Town aimed to find out in his six page review.
Chris put the Super Talent Pico-C head-to-head with other flash drives and found that the Pico-C is a thumb drive with great transfer speeds in a small package at a small price.
This is what he reported in the final thoughts “The Super Talent Pico-C is a great thumb drive that offers everything you could want in a portable storage device. With storage sizes up to 8 GB and a maximum cost of less than 30 U.S. Dollars, it is difficult to go wrong with this drive.
The size of the drive is its greatest strength. The term Pico describes the drive perfectly, coming in at about the size of your thumbnail. The included chain is perfect for attaching the drive to your keys or zipper on a jacket or backpack.
Transfer rates on the Pico-C show that it is faster than the previous generation thumb drives, even those that were considered the fastest around back in their day. In the coming weeks we will be taking several current thumb drives and testing them against each other in a massive roundup. At that time, we will see how well the Pico-C compares to other modern thumb drives”.
Read the six-page review.
