A few minutes ago, Lorand Minyo uploaded Steve Jobs’ keynote from MacWorld 2008.

I can’t write more right about now as I am extremely anxious to watch it myself, so for all of you who did not see it yet, you can do it here: Macworld 2008 Keynote Address (high quality)

(outside link)

Just the other day I was flipping the manner switch on the iPhone to kill time only to notice this weird landscape-like-rotation of the ringer icon.
Of course this could mean anything from an all-landscape GUI gone wild from it’s factory OS lock, to whatever conspiracy you might want to go blurbing about. Comments section open for your ranting pleasure.

It’s true! Done! Basta! I did it! It took me less than half an hour! My iPhone is unlocked!

It’s maybe the first trully unlocked iPhones in Romania and among the few in the World by this method! But I can attest it works! Brilliantly!

Kudos to the dev team and the guys at Engadget who pointed this out. To have yours unlocked, go over to http://iphone.unlock.no/ and follow the exact steps. It’s the method I used and the one that now gives me full use on Vodafone RO and Orange. Simple!

Here’s a screenshot I took of the unlocking process:

Don’t come here! Go to Engadget! They cover this Apple event aplenty! :P
I love you, my dear readers, but I’m there as well! Or go to Apple.com and start spending.

But do come back for sugga-lovin-thrills about what the above all means! I’ll make sure you’ll find that unique insight here!

To tip you off, focus not so much on the new hardware, but drool on the new iTunes WiFi Music Store! That’s where history is now being written! ;)

I recall a few years back, when computer experts experimenting with the original xBox discovered a method by which they could replace a piece of hardware within the unit and transform it from mere gaming machine to a full-featured computer. Folks began to manufacture and distribute the replacement chip, and laypeople could modify their xBoxes to create a powerful computer for a fraction of the cost of building such a machine from component parts. Microsoft’s strategy included taking a hit in profit on the hardware of the console, betting that they would more than recover the loss in the form of licensing software games, and they were not pleased about the popularity of this modification. Microsoft got litigious, claiming that the modifications were illegal manipulation of their intellectual property (i.e. the insides of that xBox); defendants claimed that since they had paid to acquire the unit, the hardware was completely their property to modify however they pleased. It was awkward for a while, as Microsoft sought to protect their empire while alienating their supporters.

I thought of this story not in relationship to any current weirdness with Microsoft, but rather with my currently uneasy relationship with Apple Inc. You see, I want an iPhone, but I frankly don’t give a damn about the phone function itself. While I am willing to pay the hefty price tag for what is allegedly the world’s greatest iPod/mobile internet/email/PDA device (with functionality over WiFi), I am not willing to pay a dime to AT&T for service (let alone the $59 x 24 months = $1,416 for the most meager minute allotments).
Read the rest of this entry »

Yes! Finally I have my geeky hands on the all-mighty Apple iPhone! Remember the already famous “iPhone release date“? I lived to see it available then in my pocket!
I’m sorry I won’t be writing more on it but this thing is too darn addictive to ‘waste’ time blogging. Going back to playing on it! :)

Pics were uploaded via computer, but this text is *proudly typed on an iPhone*! Enjoy!

Yeah, I saw them. Also saw iWork ‘08, iLife ‘08 and the new .Mac! And you know what? I don’t wanna comment, write or review on them. Go see the special event vid here!

And.. one more thing..

the hardware era is over. enter the applications era! Mark my words!

ps: not pissed at my mac anymore. the love is back! :)

After using a new Macbook for about four months I can definitely say it’s sub-par to a December 2005 iBook I owned and exploited (this is nice talkin!) for a year and a couple of months.

I switched for all the good reasons, ranging from wider and better screen to faster system and iSight. Now all these are cool but I could not go over the fact that the overall performance somewhat degrades over time, a lot faster than in a G4-based system. I did not run benchmarks, nor will I do. But I can tell when my system is not as responsive as it used to be. And no, I don’t have a fetish installing various software, but instead I like to use a panel of tested apps from IM clients to productivity tools - all clean!

Aside the shitty slowdown that brings a dual core to its knees, comparable to an old G4, the Macbook lacks case endurance. Bye bye really space-age durable polycarbonate the iBooks had. This shit is sub-par by factor ten! The case is all scratched, has discoloration and spots all over. The iBook had not. Not even after a full year of taking it in hundreds coffee shops where smoking was allowed. The Macbook was lucky to live a near-desk life. At home -> a protective bag -> the office. Seldom WiFi’ed coffee shops and business trips. All controlled environments.

The crappy trackpad displays tracks of wear. Key caps as well. Sure, the iBook had the same problem, but not after 4 months - more like 8 months later.

Should there be a Macbook Pro with the same screen size I’d buy it today! Yeap! If you want a notebook to last and survive harsh environments, get a freakin iBook or a Macbook Pro. Sadly even 13.3″ felt big when 12″ was what I was craving for. I carry this damn machine all day long in a backpack that hangs heavy. I want a slender, lightweight road buddy. The Macbook Pro it’s definitely not that. The Macbook is somewhat there.
Would I tell you guys to stop considering a Macbook? Not really! But I sure don’t recommend it as warm as I recomended my dear Carolina, the Dec 2005 iBook 12″!

Be wise, gents! Be wise!

a picture is worth more than 1mil iPhones!
I hate you, AT&T! Apple basher!

Tonight was one of the rare occasions to play with all these beauties at once. Will spare you of too much introductory stuff and jump right into the testing results.

[+] click picture to enlarge

Toys in test:
1. Reference RDS/RCS 1Mbit cable connection via 54Mb WiFi - http://www.rdsnet.ro/
2. Vodafone 3G/HSDPA 3.6Mbs Huawei USB ‘SmartModem’ - http://www.vodafone.ro/ [product page link]
3. Orange 3G/HSDPA 3.6Mbs Option ICON II USB Modem - http://www.orange.ro/ [product page link]
4. Zapp Mobile 2.4Mbs Z010 CDMA 1xEV-DO wireless modem http://www.zapp.ro/ [product page link]

Testing machine and area:
1.83Ghz Core 2 Duo 2GB RAM Apple Macbook with a/b/g/n - enabled Airport WiFi card.
All tests were performed in a residential area in Bucharest, RO. Time 11:00ish PM. Moderate network loads.
Additional testing was performed on a WinXP Dell 1.6Ghz Core2Duo machine. Performance obtained was about 30% lower!!

Testing on:
- Local (short path) download - Zapp data driver library
Test file - Software image WL-500gx - Deluxe (v 2.1) - 1x/EV-DO [3.20MB]

- External (overseas) download - Revision3 / Diggnation
Test file - diggnation–0108–2007-07-26multipass–large.h264.mov [108MB]

- Ping to google.com

Without further ado, the results:

============================================

The control RDS cable connection needs no introduction or explanations. It performed as expected, capping out at the 1Mbs mark. Response times were great -inline with expectations- but maybe reported a tad lower as the WiFi router adds its own slowdown. This said, here are the screenshots.
Short path:

Overseas:

— google.com ping statistics —
12 packets transmitted, 12 packets received, 0% packet loss
round-trip min/avg/max/stddev = 67.475/68.679/71.692/1.056 ms

============================================

The Vodafone HSDPA SmartModem. I had a really good experience using this modem with speeds in excess of 300KBs (3-4Mbs). Unfortunately I was unable to replicate the performance tonight. Granted, and this goes for the other two players, the quality of the link, signal strength, network load and cell performance affect the max speeds attainable. Vodafone RO provides 3G+ (HSDPA) 3.6Mbs service in major cities and a guaranteed minimum of 1.4Mbs. What I managed to get was a not-so-flashy minimum with an excellent signal strength.
The proof-
Short path:

External:

— google.com ping statistics —
12 packets transmitted, 11 packets received, 8% packet loss
round-trip min/avg/max/stddev = 278.274/313.286/609.070/93.856 ms

Notes: The application (Vodafone Mobile Connect for Mac) needs to be downloaded from the VF website. It weights around 15MB and it’s fairly easy to install and use. The drawback is that an additional “Activate” click has to be performed in order to enable the connection in the pref pane. The link is pushed through a VF APN proxy that strongly compresses the traffic (esp JPG images). That adds a certain lag and forbids use of some web bandwidth testing apps.
VMC:

[+] click to enlarge

============================================

Orange touts a fresh 3.6Mbs capability in its network. Although generally slower compared to Vodafone, with a poorer link quality, the very ugly Option modem has performed on par (if not a tad better) with its competitor. Here is the proof:
Short path:

And overseas:

— google.com ping statistics —
12 packets transmitted, 12 packets received, 0% packet loss
round-trip min/avg/max/stddev = 267.750/283.606/298.381/8.540 ms

Notes: Orange has performed notably better than VF in the response time test, with almost half the average round-trip time. Great news for VoIP applications. Its Mac application I had to request at Orange Customer Service and was later forwarded in an email. The whole process took around 10 minutes. GlobeTrotter Connect weighs around 2MB and is spartan. It required a restart (not typical for OSX) to work without asking for one. The traffic is also routed through a proxy but optimization is only provided through separate APN.
Orange took no pride in customizing the packaging of their modem, sign of eagerness to take it to the market. More so, the documentation has Mac screenshots of an app you expect to find in the package but can only get separately, on request.
Not so cool!
The app:

[+] click to enlarge

============================================

Zapp…oh Zapp…used to rock when its antenna was in good shape. Anything between 1.4Mbs and 2.0Mbs was possible. It’s generally a connection that can handle many streams at a time without degrading the ongoing transfers. It scales in an intelligent way. Plus, unlike Vodafone and Orange, the connection is direct without a pass trough a proxy for compression.
On the short path the Z010 would usually do 150KBs and on the diggnation file it would normally fly at a sustainable 180KBs!
I’ll add the screenshots though, but with a big fat disclaimer: this is not how a *healthy* Zapp modem performs!
Local (their own freakin servers):

A la longue:

— google.com ping statistics —
12 packets transmitted, 12 packets received, 0% packet loss
round-trip min/avg/max/stddev = 254.470/386.584/1362.356/296.632 ms

Notes: It breaks my heart to bash Zapp so badly after serving me 140ishKbs downloads for years in times when Orange/Vodafone only had shitty EDGE (150ishMbs) with this poor performance due to the faulty modem. Yet I think the ping results are relevant, the Z010 still doing good at 254.470 minimum round-trip time! Mkay… we have some spoilers here as I knew what to expect of some modems in test. Also sadly reporting that the CDMA modem was only here for a broader image of the competing technologies, less for actual results. It’s had a long service life feeding my mobile lifestyle and unfortunately it has the antenna bruised, which translates in very poor reception - read performance!
The Z010 needs no drivers for Mac running OSX, a compatible driver already rests in the OS’s library. With the connection set up in the pref pane, call is initiated in 2 clicks and established in less than 3 seconds! No other apps involved! Sweet!
Unfortunately the Z010 is no longer offered by Zapp but can be purchased by special request. It features a battery of its own that improves overall performance and lowers the drain on the notebook battery. It also has a b/w LCD screen that displays data such as signal strength, time/date and battery level. SMS can also be received on the device.

============================================

The conclusion is optional for a buying decision. Both Orange and Vodafone do well in normal-real life tests! Both offers are compelling, reasonably and approachable priced for near-unlimited traffic (8GB/month). Both modems come free with subscription and are both Mac and PC compatible. If on the PC counterpart the modems have PnP installation - the drivers are stored on the modems themselves - you’ll have a little more trouble getting them for your Mac. Be advised! Request those drivers before you are on the road and need further internet access! :)

Not surprisingly, both modems do shitty jobs on Bill Gates-flavoured machines. With Orange capping downloads at around 85KBs I went no further testing and lit up the Mac. And there numbers started looking like the ones on the marketing fliers. ;)

Overall brief: sexiness/performance/ergonomic; grades from 1-5

Vodafone 3G/HSDPA SmartModem: 5 / 3 / 4
Orange 3G/HSDPA Option ICON II USB Modem: 1 / 3 / 3
Zapp Z010 CDMA 1xEV-DO: 3 / 4 / 3

===== 5 cigarettes were smoked during the making of this review. please do not try this at home. smoking is bad for your health!! =====

What happens if you jump from entrepreneurship to full time corporate dude? First, you cease good ol’ habits such as doing email where rubber meets the road in the wireless industry - the WiFi’ed caffe!
Luckily sometimes big guys that work in tall buildings come back to the streets to smell that roasted coffee flavor and sniff those 802.11 airwaves, hopefully one of them free. Had my chance for a couple of days to bring the love back so here I am, feeding heavily on all that online stuff that makes me smarter and more competitive, at Bourbon Cocktails&Coffee in the lovely harbor city of Constantza.
Usually people would be sunbathing and stuff here but instead I’m wirelessbathing in all free nets I can find and hop on.
During my two day stay I ran across plentiful networks to do my job on, all ranging from 1Mbits to 6Mbits, all in key locations such as rep building, hotel, cafe and… parking lot!

Of couse both my N70 and my HSDPA SmartModem from Vodafone could have taken over in case there was no WiFi to grab. But for some reason I love WiFi and simply like to enable the Airport on my Mac and enjoy it from there.

Now missing a more portable device to play with nets for when taking the Macbook out feels cumbersome. I’m considering one of those new HTC touch smartphones. Anyone tried one?

The Safari browser from Apple is now also available for Windows Users.

For those unfamiliar with Macs, Safari promises to be the fastest browser on any platform, a clean interface so you can focus on browsing, uncompromising security and of course the usual browsing standards like pop-up blocking and tabbed browsing. You will also familiarize with nice Aqua elements like the nice blue scrollbar.

Keep in mind it is still in Public Beta.

Grab a bite of Apple! Safari for Windows is available for download here.

The Apple Store now offers three slightly more powerful versions for their almost a year old line of portables, the Macbook.

The new models include 2Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo 4MB CL2 processors (no more 1.83Ghz with 2MB CL2), 1GB RAM standard and 80GB HDD for the same $1099.

Of course, all that RAM/HDD upgrade is nothing major and, since retail prices are forever dropping, they feel natural. The only non-replaceable component is the Core 2 Duo processor, which boosts the overall performance of the Macbook by a few procents due to its larger level two cache.

This intermediate upgrade is a silent “keep your interest” move on Apple and probably outlines the fact that there will not be any new ultra-portable in Apple’s offer soon. Or quite the opposite. We’re anyway talking about Cupertino.

Almost everyone who got a second generation iPod Shuffle complained they had to carry the bulky dock with them to be able to transfer files or charge the minute mp3 player. Apple decided to drop the big USB jack the previous version had and go for a weird 3.5 audio jack port that transfers data to USB.

If Apple would have listened to his users nobody would have liked to get a simple USB to 3.5 cable in the box instead of the shiny dock. “Oh, Apple drops costs by shipping the thing with this cheap cable”. Some, though, did consider that a small cable was a more convenient to carry around. Myself included. But instead of buying a Proporta $20 cable or alike I decided to take the time and make one myself.

Searched the net for diagrams and pin-outs and found a couple of good articles on such fabrications. Since no store had the much needed 4-pin 3.5 jack for sale I went for one of those A/V cables ($2ish) and cut the jack off. A USB cable extender one can find bundled in just about any USB WiFi adapter for example, which I have in abundance laying around, made for the actual USB link.

Past the careful soldering time and my clownish wire switch that almost fried my Macbook’s ports, the project took no longer than an hour to complete. The cable is about 2 inches long and is really convenient to carry in a pocket. It even looks good! (see the picture with the ‘baby iPod’ connected through it). And it was so much fun and relaxing. Yeah, you there! Pick up that soldering iron once in a while and mod smth! :)

Apple released a new 700KB patch regarding the functionality of Macbook and Macbook Pro batteries. It’s not a usual type of update and that makes is worth mentioning. According to Apple:

Battery Update 1.2 updates battery firmware and improves battery functionality.

After Battery Update has been installed, each battery you insert into your MacBook or MacBook Pro will be updated automatically. Your computer’s power cord must be connected and plugged into a working power source.

For further information on this Update, please visit this website: http://www.info.apple.com/kbnum/n305256.

The Fon Spot for Mac and what’s inside it

There hasn’t been much Fon news or related lately but we couldn’t miss the fact that
- Time Warner opened their doors to broadband sharing in the US and
- The programmers in Spain finally came up with a beta version of the FON Spot Mac / Linux

What this software does is that it turns your Intel-based Mac into a FON hotspot. If you use a 3G or EvDo modem this software will turn your Airport into a Access Point-like WiFi adapter and start sharing your connection around.
It’s not a new concept for Mac users as by default Macs let you share your modem connection in three clicks anyway. But FON saw this was an opportunity that could not be missed to expand their service and brand where conventional hotspots do not protrude. Shrewd!

Screenshot of Mac’s WiFi sharing enabler

Let’s analyze if this would really work in real life past the obvious geeky sexieness.
Having a Fon hotspot ‘built in’ your Mac is neat if you’re a big fan of the service and really want to take it everywhere with you. Maybe you have a flat mobile broadband connection anyway and you don’t mind sharing but you’re missing the credentials for your signal. Or maybe you just don’t mind doing it. Any case you chose it’s fine!
But in all other cases you’d be simply sharing your connection as is or no sharing it at all. Eventually it all comes down to FON’s business model. Share WiFi and get WiFi for free elsewhere in FON hotspots, as a Linus. Or share your WiFi for some money. These cases are based on a permanent presence in a determined location. Usually one would use a fast connection they don’t really mind sharing.
What happens when you share your crawling 3G/EvDO? Those pipes are not that large, your connection is not in a specific connection and does not provide service 24/7. That does not make for a compatible service with FON’s, which anyway is catchy because it brings advantages both ways.
Based on how FON Spot for Mac works the only winner here is.. FON! You would likely not share that limited bandwidth (I’ve done it oh so many times with my EvDo) and not agree FON is using your expensive connection for self-promo and Alien (non-member user that pays premium for access) money milking.

Running c*free, a free hotspot operator, I’ve often used Mac’s WiFi sharing to promote the brand at different events or ingenuous places. Hell, I’ve shared that signal a couple of years ago when I was still using Windows through an Ad-Hoc profile and later using a USB kit called c*free mini.
Yet, I still don’t know how this would go beyond such use!
Most folks who have/use a mobile broadband connection pay a shit load of money on it every month. They are usually business/entrepreneur/SOHO types that
- care for their data and its security
- pay for the 3G / EvDo for a precise purpose
- are time critical
- don’t have time or interest in playing with gizmos and hacks such as FON Spot
- are energy-conscious, meaning they would power their WiFi only when in the range of a signal they would use.

It’s unclear to me how this hack will make it in the real world. It might! But as it stands, incentives - even ones like the principle of sharing i