Under European patent regulations, because the 3G and wireless patents Samsung is claiming Apple has infringed upon are considered essential, Samsung must give competitors a chance to come up with licensing terms that satisfy the FRAND requirements. Samsung can only pursue legal action against infringing parties only if it absolutely can’t reach an agreement with the other party.

Samsung’s suit, filed last week, was premature, according to Apple’s lawyers. Dutch publication Webwereld editor Andreas Udo de Haes live-tweeted the events from the Netherlands courtroom as they unfolded, where Apple reportedly claimed to “basically have an agreement” with Samsung regarding licensing for the four patents in question, “according to French law,” with the only outstanding issue being price. Apple claims Samsung is asking for an unreasonable percentage of device profits in exchange for the tech licenses.

Apple claimed there was no urgency in this case, and Samsung is only pushing for an injunction against any iPhones and 3G-capable iPads in order to derail the upcoming launch of the next iPhone. The iPhone maker even brought up the idea that Samsung’s actions in pursuing suits related to these patents in the face of any FRAND negotiations that are ongoing could amount to an antitrust issue. FOSS Patents’ Florian Mueller chimed in to wonder whether or not those accusations could presage an antitrust complaint from Apple with the European commission at a later date.

Samsung claimed Apple’s portrayal of its patents was false, and downplayed their importance. The Korean company also claims Apple has undermined the validity of any FRAND negotiations by breaking non-disclosure rules regarding the process. Samsung further addressed claims made by Apple that it is playing patent ambush by arguing that Apple had full knowledge of the existence of Samsung’s patents when it brought its products to market and wilfully ignored them. Apple says the chips in its products are supplied by companies that have already paid royalties themselves, so licensees are covered.

We should hear more in the next day as the hearing continues. The court will issue a ruling about whether or not Samsung’s cases against Apple will be allowed to continue on Oct. 14.

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There is still no deal for the carrier to offer the iPhone, Wang Jianzhou told the Wall Street Journal. But the two are talking about 4G.

Bloomberg reports:

“China Mobile and Apple hope to find a solution for close collaboration” on the TD-LTE network and compatible products, Wang said in an interview in Dalian today. “We discussed this issue with Apple. We hope Apple will produce a new iPhone with TD-LTE. We have already got a positive answer from Apple.”

To be clear, TD-LTE is not the same LTE (subscription required) that AT&T and Verizon are deploying here in the U.S. The technology is slightly different, and it will require a device maker to put a separate radio inside the phone to work on the TD-LTE network deployed by China Mobile and a few other carriers, including Clearwire in the U.S. If Sprint were to go along with Clearwire’s TD-LTE plans, then the deal with China Mobile might lead to a 4G iPhone for Sprint too.

China Mobile wants the iPhone to add more subscribers and keep pace with competitor China Unicom, which does offer Apple’s smartphone.

Apple has been focusing its efforts on the Chinese market — with success so far. In its most recent quarter, Apple said it racked up more sales in the country than hometown favorite Lenovo had during the same time period.

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Apple unveiled Final Cut Pro X

The new  2 TB Time Capsule will now retail for $299, and the new 3 TB option will take its place in the $499 range. Since the Time Capsule’s introduction in 2008, Apple has offered a lower-tier offering with less storage for $299, and one with more space for $499.

While Apple may be focusing on the cloud with its recent product announcements, its nice to see that it’s still thinking about those who prefer a more local networked storage option. Bandwidth limits may preclude some users from ever being able to fully embrace a cloud storage and streaming computing model, but local streaming is a good alternative for those who still want to feel untethered.

Apple has been rumored to be working on updates to its line of wireless devices since low stock of AirPort devices was reported earlier this month. Just this week, the FCC posted a test report describing new Apple wireless hardware, which was likely describing the new Time Capsules unveiled today.

It’s not yet clear whether the Time Capsule update brings new features beyond expanded storage options, or whether Apple other AirPort devices will also receive updates. We’ll keep you informed as developments arise.

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Headed for a Format War?

It won’t be long before pundits are talking about a “format war” between USB 3.0 and Light Peak. I don’t think there will be a format war, and I certainly don’t believe it’s an issue that will even cross the radar of the average consumer. Rather, I think we’ve reached a point in personal computing where blistering speed and capacious storage have become less important (to most users) than ease-of-use and simplicity.

Take a look at USB 2.0. It’s dominant today for several reasons, but mostly because it’s adequate. Widespread adoption of USB was something of a struggle in the early days, and we can thank Apple for having the courage (and stubborn streak) to “aggressively encourage” customers to adopt it. But Apple seems willing to go in the other direction, too, withholding technologies in favor of something simpler – or more popular.

Simple Trumps Flexible

Consider the ExpressCard. Until last year, it was supported in all MacBook Pros. Today, the only model in production sporting an ExpressCard slot is the high-end 17-inch version. Most people buying that model are atypical consumers, and instead tend to be media professionals or power users, for whom ExpressCard is actually useful. For the vast majority of consumers snapping up MacBooks and iMacs, that slot was an idle curiosity. So Apple opted to replace it with an SD card slot. The technology is slower and less flexible so, from a certain point of view, this represented a step back. But for the average buyer, it was a great leap forward.

A process as seemingly straightforward as connecting a digital camera to a computer becomes an exercise in frustration and anxiety for a surprising many: old cables are piled in tangled heaps from the depths of drawers, USB cables are jammed into Ethernet ports, 54-in-One memory card adapters are manhandled and USB keys wrenched unceremoniously from machines.

The experience of the average, everyday computer user varies wildly from that of the tech-savvy individual, as anyone who’s worked at a technical support hotline can attest.

Whose Definition of “Better?”

In light of this, Apple’s decision to incorporate the SD interface into their best-selling computers makes perfect sense. There are no cables involved. There are no similarly sized ports to confuse or confound the uncertain user. SD cards might not represent the cutting edge of technology, but they are the right technology for most people.

But surely people want better? The definition of “better” isn’t static, though. To some, like me, “better” is all about power consumption, bandwidth, pipes, protocols and things like “API’s” and “Controllers”. My mom’s idea of “better,” on the other hand, means “easier,” and though she might not be able to tell you what would be easier, she can certainly tell you what’s not, and ExpressCard is one of those things.

This is representative of the typical user, and Apple not only knows this, but is dedicated to realizing a computing future in which, if anyone is going to be left wanting, it won’t be my mom.

No Wires, Nor Ports

Light Peak, if it is going to be adopted anywhere, will see use as part of the guts of a machine, providing incredibly wide bandwidth between internal components. You’ll never see a Light Peak port anywhere, if Apple’s vision of the future of computing comes to pass.

You won’t, in fact, see any ports. Already SD cards can wirelessly broadcast data to a waiting computer, and it’s only a matter of time before this technology makes its way into most of our portable devices. Apple is bound to lead the way. Let’s face it; the stage is set. Apple has a plethora of portable devices packed with flash-based storage and radio assemblies. The advent of technologies like Wi-Fi Direct make a future without hardware ports even more likely. Wires definitely don’t figure heavily in the streaming future I alluded to earlier this week.

Finally, don’t forget aesthetics; I imagine Steve Jobs pretty much hates those ugly ports breaking the otherwise flawless, minimal lines of his beautiful MacBooks. As notebook internals get ever smaller, the ports themselves will begin to dictate the minimum thickness of future MacBooks. How long do you think Mr. Jobs will tolerate that barrier to better design?

So as the Light Peak story begins to do the rounds once more, ask yourself what Apple is more likely to do: adopt a new standard for which speed is the primary “benefit,” or aggressively pursue a vision of “better” that geeks might lament, but most embrace? I guess it comes down to this: Between moms and geeks, which is Apple’s biggest market these days?

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The last major update to the iPhone’s operating system arrived last June, bringing with it many desired features. Highlights from the 3.0 update included the long awaited copy and paste, in addition to features such as spotlight search and voice control. But what can we expect from tomorrow’s 4.0 unveiling?

Custom Message Alert Tones

A small request and one that has bugged me ever since I bought my iPhone. I simply want the ability to customize my ringtone for when I receive an SMS. If it can be done for calls, why not for texts? But why stop there? When in a room full of iPhone owning friends, it can often prove annoying to hear the email notification noise every few minutes, let users customize that too. Choice is a beautiful thing.

App Navigation

iPhone users tend to have a lot of applications installed, so it comes as no surprise that these app-addicts want a better way to organize their growing collection of mobile software. Thankfully Apple is aware of the problem and introduced a visual way to organize apps in iTunes 9. However, beyond the occasional iTunes reshuffle, the daily on-device swiping to find that specific app is way past tedious.

Many alternatives have been presented as a solution, including stacking, page overviews, category views, and more. A personal preference would be the introduction of folders. A folder could be presented just like any other application icon, which when pressed dug down into a page of specific apps. For example, a folder containing news applications, with another housing all of a user’s games. This would not only make it easier to find a specific app, it would also offer more breathing space to those more commonly used.

Improve The Lock Screen

A locked iPhone currently provides very little information at-a-glance. Adding information such as today’s calendar events, local weather and any missed calls or messages would offer up a much more useful hub for quick scanning. Of course if Apple were to add all this data to the lock screen it could turn off users who prefer the current minimalist version. A simple section in the device’s settings app could make it easy for users to pick and choose what information is displayed.

Wireless Sync

Picture this: You get home and your iPhone instantly connects to your home networks Wi-Fi, within seconds your iPhone realizes that your MacBook Pro is also connected to the same network. Once a connection is made your device begins to sync all your photos, notes, messages and anything else you choose, straight to your laptop, creating a seamless backup, all of which happens in the background, over the air. Sounds great right? Hope it sounds great to Apple, too.

What do you want to see?

The dream-features detailed above are just a representative selection. Plenty of other requests for the future of the iPhone’s OS have been suggested, some great, others not so much. I’d love to hear about your own feature requests in the comments.

Well, last night, Apple released version 1.1 of the Aluminum Keyboard Firmware via Software Update. And as a man almost ready to buy Energizer shares (anything to try to win back the cost of paying for high-performance batteries every week) its description sounded very promising.

“This firmware update improves battery performance of the 2007 aluminum Apple Wireless Keyboard when used in combination with other bluetooth devices (eg. Magic Mouse, some bluetooth headsets) and addresses an issue with the 2007 aluminum Apple Keyboard and the 2007 aluminum Apple Wireless Keyboard where a key may repeat unexpectedly while typing. The update also addresses other issues.”

Promises Promises; the Aluminum Keyboard Firmware Update

I can’t say I’ve ever experienced the “key repeat” problem but I most certainly have watched in dismay as my keyboard greedily depleted — in record time — every expensive battery I put in the thing. (Remember that scene in My Stepmother is an Alien when Celeste sucks the flashlight batteries dry? Exactly the same.)

Coincidence?

Not unexpectedly, the update required a restart — but that was a trifling inconvenience in return for longer battery life! In fact, it was only a few days ago I put in a fresh set of expensive Lithium batteries and I wasn’t eager to have to buy more any day soon. Imagine my surprise when the following message popped-up.

Shocking! Annoying, too. Prior to the update I could coax 9-14 days out of my batteries. The current batteries have been in for only three days and I’m being told they’re on the way out? Surely that’s no coincidence.

So what’s happening here? Bad batteries? Or could it be that Apple’s update has made things worse?

Mixed Results

I headed back to the Apple Support pages to see what was being said. The experience of other Magic Mouse / Wireless Keyboard owners is so far somewhat mixed. Here’s what Creator2456 reports:

Did the firmware update […] The keyboard also REFUSES to stay powered on after the update. Already tried several batteries so it is not a power problem. The LED will light when I press the power button and then turn off within 5 seconds without pairing or anything.

Conversely, here’s a more ebullient comment from Xorgoo:

It works ! My alu keyboard (3 batteries) is reborn! 1% lost during the night, compare to 10% before.

And then there’s this warning from Freekarrot:

This update won’t work on recent 2-cell AWKs, which are heavily affected by the bug as well. Letting out an update just for one of the affected devices is ridiculous. It means they know what the problem is and how it is solved, but they either don’t know or refuse to acknowledge that ALL AWKs are affected!

Conspiracy theories aside, I really don’t know what to make of this sort of incompatibility. (I’m not sure what else to call it — ‘Not Playing Nicely Together-ness” doesn’t sound very smart; perhaps “malfunction” is better?)  I understand Apple doesn’t develop its own Bluetooth drivers (that responsibility is left to Broadcomm, the manufacturers of all Bluetooth radios in Apple’s machines) but even so, for their own equipment to behave in such a flaky, unreliable manner really isn’t the ‘Apple Way’ to which I have become accustomed. It’s all supposed to ‘Just Work’, right?

Think about it; if Microsoft were to build a bluetooth keyboard and mouse that, individually, worked just fine but, together, played very silly games with battery-life, we would be so quick to tut-tut and shake our heads. We would chuckle, too, adding ever-so-smugly (in the manner many Mac-heads are wont to do when commenting on Windows-PC-based problems) “Well, what do you expect from Microsoft?”

Just prior to the Firmware update, the now-very-happy Xorgoo complained;

More Than 100 days, more than 300 posts, and… nothing.
Apple, you have to do something.
And you should at least give us some news.
Do you think time will cure the trouble ? It won’t…

Well, Apple has done something. We now we have an update, but judging from my own initial experience and fresh comments on the Apple support pages, problems remain. Of course, one is a poor sample — my batteries may have already been too far-gone to benefit from the updated firmware. Maybe.

So now it’s over to you. Have you tried updating your firmware? Has it made any sort of difference? Share your findings with me in the comments below. And please… no comments about how we should ditch our Apple keyboards. I don’t care how shiny your Logitech is.

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So the holidays are over. The food portions are returning to healthy sizes but the damage is done. New Year resolutions you’ve been ruminating on for weeks must now be taken seriously. It’s time to get in shape. No more excuses! No more distractions. You have that nice new Mac so you think, “Hey, I’ll type ‘em up and print ‘em out! If they’re pinned up on the wall I can’t possibly fail!”

Only, you might have a problem doing any typing if recent reports prove accurate. It seems the combination of Magic Mouse and Apple Wireless Keyboard are a toxic mix. Over on the Apple Support Discussions forum users are reporting that, since installing their Magic Mouse, their Apple Wireless Keyboards have been guzzling power like there’s no tomorrow.

Brand new, planet-killing alkaline batteries don’t make it through a full week. Tree-hugging rechargeables manage less. Users have been forced to revert to backup mice (mouses?) or switch-out their keyboards for a more traditional, wired variety.

User cbcirrus writes;

Apple Tech Support furnished three replacement aluminum keyboards (unfortunately one DOA and all three were three battery version). All replacement keyboards suffer from the low battery life issue.

They now claim it is a bluetooth driver issue and the engineers are working on a solution, presumably a new driver or patch. One tech said engineering believes the magic mouse bluetooth is interfering with keyboard bluetooth communication and/or sleep mode. No estimate as to time frame for solution just a suggestion to use rechargeable batteries until issue is resolved.

I haven’t been hit by the battery bug described here, but I’ve certainly had my own issues with the Magic Mouse / Wireless Keyboard combo which I suspect may be related. I’ve found that my Apple Wireless Keyboard interferes with my Magic Mouse. I simply can’t have both devices working at the same time in the same room without my Mouse pointer losing the will to live and being reduced to a stuttering, crawling, sorry excuse for a pointer.

Changing wireless channels on my router and Time Capsules made no difference. In the end I had no choice; if I wanted to continue using the Magic Mouse, sans judder, I had to switch keyboards to the wired variety that originally came with the Mac Pro.

About a month ago I found a thread on Apple’s discussion site explaining that — for 2009 Mac Pros — the problem doesn’t lie with the Broadcom bluetooth radio but with its drivers. Unfortunately, Apple isn’t privy to Broadcom’s firmware roadmap and can’t say when an update will arrive.

Oddly, I cannot find that thread now. I suspect that at some point in the intervening weeks it has been edited/removed. If you can find it, please share in the comments below. I mention it here because it sounds awfully similar to the explanation above… perhaps the two issues are connected?

Have you experienced issues with using the Magic Mouse and Apple Wireless Keyboard together?

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The idea is that you could watch a show you downloaded via iTunes on your iPhone during your commute, and then pick up at home right where you stopped on your Apple TV or Mac computer. No searching for the spot where you left off, just a seamless transition from on-the-go to at-home media playback.

This suggests a move towards a more holistic view of data synched via MobileMe. iTunes Home Sharing is a step in the right direction, but imagine if you could play your entire library no matter where you were, and have playlist and playback position information synced across all your devices via MobileMe? Tell me I’m not the only one whose dream it’s been to someday listen to all of my music, from start to finish.

Not only does the patent allow for media syncing across devices, it also includes distance tracking, which would allow it to measure the proximity of devices to each other and sync your media information when two or more gadgets come within a certain range. Hopefully you won’t be near the end of the latest episode of “Dexter” on your iPhone when you walk through the door to find your wife just starting it on the Apple TV. Think of the spoiler potential.

What isn’t made clear in the patent is how media would be synced across devices. One would assume that some kind of network connection would be involved, but if proximity is playing a role, then Bluetooth is another potential prospect that doesn’t require an intermediary connection. Otherwise, Wi-Fi discovery over a shared network would be the best bet for communication between devices.

Yet another possibility is Wi-Fi Direct, the technology Apple recently threw its weight behind along with other industry heavyweights like Microsoft and Intel. In fact, I might even go so far as to say that this just-published patent application fits so perfectly with that emerging tech that the timing of both announcements seems like more than just a coincidence. Hopefully that means I’ll be syncing my Apple-based media wirelessly without even the requirement of network accessibility by mid-2010.

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With legacy device support, improved speed, and easier connectivity than Bluetooth but with a lot of the same functions and usages, Wi-Fi Direct is expected to be in ‘direct’ competition with the older device-t0-device tech when it does eventually see the light of day. With those companies backing it, Bluetooth may be looking at a competition it can’t hope to win.

The only downside of the new standard, when compared to Bluetooth, is that power consumption would be considerably higher using it. According to sources familiar with the technology, Wi-Fi Direct power demands would be “on par” with the requirements of current Wi-Fi tech. It’s hard to find solid numbers quantifying the difference between the two, but sources agree that Bluetooth’s power requirements are best described as “low,” while Wi-Fi is in the “high” range.

But what exactly does Wi-Fi Direct do, and how? Perhaps Wi-Fi Alliance Executive Director Edgar Figueroa, as quoted by AppleInsider, can help clarify things:

Wi-Fi Direct represents a leap forward for our industry. Wi-Fi users worldwide will benefit from a single-technology solution to transfer content and share applications quickly and easily among devices, even when a Wi-Fi access point isn’t available. The impact is that Wi-Fi will become even more pervasive and useful for consumers and across the enterprise.

Essentially then, it sounds like a Wi-Fi connection between two devices without the need for an intermediary router or bridge. If so, my only concern would be frequency chatter. If your mouse, keyboard, iPhone, and network are all working on Wi-Fi connections, won’t the interference cause lag time, slowdowns, etc.? Without more detail or a practical demonstration of the tech in action, it’s impossible to tell at this point.

The idea that your iPhone could theoretically connect with your Mac for the purposes of using apps like Remote, or for transferring files, without having to be on the same network controlled by a router is very interesting. At home, this kind of thing is never an issue, since all my devices, both portable and otherwise, are plugged into the Wi-Fi network at all times. But when I’m working from the road, it can be annoying to accomplish, and often involves elaborate network connection sharing over Wi-Fi from my Macbook to accomplish.

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The official line is that AT&T is responding to customer expectation and demand considering the introduction of VOIP-capable devices like the iPhone, but in reality, with the FCC investigation into wireless industry competition hanging over its head, AT&T is probably trying to fend off government-mandated penalties in advance.

According to the Associated Press;

FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski, one of three Democrats on the commission, wants to impose net neutrality rules to ensure that broadband providers don’t abuse their power over Internet access to favor their own services or harm competitors. His plan has alarmed wireless carriers because it would apply these rules across different types of broadband networks, including wireless networks.

AT&T’s move is a calculated one, designed to show that the industry can successfully self-regulate without government interference. It’s kind of equivalent to the kid who wouldn’t share at recess readily giving up a toy once another kid actually leaves to tell the teacher.

Whatever the reason behind the decision to relax its rules for network use, the real winners here are iPhone users. If Skype, Google Voice, and other internet telephony apps make their way into the App Store, iPhone users will be able to avoid artificially high rates for long distance and contract minute overages by taking advantage of their existing data plans. It’s one more step towards flat data rates for all cell features, which is what should be in place anyway.

Of course, it’s still up to Apple to approve any VOIP apps before iPhone users can take advantage of the new rules. I’m willing to bet that Cupertino had a significant hand in convincing AT&T that this was a wise move, considering the negative press the computer company was receiving over the Google Voice debacle. Apple spokeswoman Natalie Kerris had this to say about the announcement:

“We are very happy that AT&T is now supporting VOIP applications. We will be amending our developer agreements to get VOIP apps on the App Store and in customers’ hands as soon as possible.”

The introduction of 3G VOIP will no doubt have an impact on AT&T’s network, which has seen numerous problems in the past due to the increased demand placed upon it by iPhone users. The wireless provider seems to have made improvements, as evidenced by the relatively smooth introduction of MMS earlier this month, but it remains to be seen if they can also cope with this new load.

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With over 26 million iPhone’s sold in the past 2 years, and sales of the iPhone 3GS booming, Apple is clearly playing a major role in the growth of wireless broadband tech.

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Though everyone is excited about the launch of the new iPhone, I wanted to take a practical look at what features are still missing from this device, compared to others on the market. If Apple really wants to knock the next iPhone out of the park, hopefully some of these ideas will show up next time.

HD Video Support

With more content on the iTunes Store available in HD, I would like the ability to store this HD content on my iPhone and play it when I plug my iPhone into my HDTV. As more consumer products are recording in HD, it would be nice if I could store one copy of my vacation videos, instead of one optimized for the iPhone and another optimized for the Apple TV. A simple software update could fix this (to allow larger content to sync to the device) and the signal could be output via the dock connector. The Zune HD will support HD video output when it launches later this year, so perhaps this feature will make it into an upcoming iPod touch refresh before the year is out.

Wireless Syncing

MobileMe brought about push email, calendars, and contacts, allowing users to go more often without syncing their device. However, I would truly like to see complete wireless syncing either over Wi-Fi, or via Bluetooth 3.0, which should start to become more common in the wake of its release in April of this year. If the phones can tether a wireless connection over Bluetooth (unless you’re in the States, like me), then why can’t they sync via this method?

802.11n

The crowd remains divided over whether having slower devices on your network brings down the general speed of the network, but I’d much prefer to have an iPhone that supported 802.11n so that I could maintain an n-only network. I’m really surprised we haven’t seen this yet, but I’m assuming it’s because of battery concerns.

Flash Support

When Flash is discussed in relation to the iPhone, it seems to be a mixed bag. Regular clunky Flash is too burdensome for the iPhone (though has anybody compared this to the new 3G S specs?) and the mobile version of Flash isn’t a good experience on the device. I’m not begging for Flash simply because I want more games on the phone, but primarily for many web sites that encode video content in Flash format (like Hulu) or with Silverlight (like Netflix’s Watch Instantly).

Of course, these feature requests are merely the tip of the iceberg compared to some of the features others would like to see. If you have any thoughts for specific features you’d love to see in the next iPhone, please leave a comment below and let me know!

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News of the new direction for Mac hardware comes from job postings, which have been garnering quite a bit of attention for Apple lately, considering the recent buzz about chip-making related positions. Now Cupertino seems to be looking for a few good 3G QA, design, and testing engineers to join their camp. The job descriptions, listed on their Hardware Engineering jobs site, list a variety of wireless specifications, with 3G among them, and the jobs in question talk about Mac applications specifically, so this isn’t just an iPhone-oriented position, as I initially suspected.

There’s already been all kinds of buzz about AT&T or other telcos offering bundles, including both 3G wireless plans and subsidized MacBooks, but so far nothing’s come of it. It’s very possible that either AT&T or Apple floated the rumor in order to try to gauge customer interest in such a package, and are only now moving to build the tech into their hardware because the response they received indicated that it would be worth their while. Question is, how much of a premium will Apple be charging for the new hardware addition, if any, and what kind of plans will the cell phone companies be able to offer?

Even if Apple is going forward with this, and the deal is good, there’s also the fact that tethering is apparently included in iPhone OS 3.0 to consider. Why would they shoot themselves in the foot, so to speak, by offering iPhone users a way to use 3G mobile broadband with their MacBooks without taking advantage of a built-in in antenna? There’d be no incentive for owners of those devices to sign up for an additional plan to take advantage of built-in MacBook 3G access.

It’s possible that the price of purchasing 3G antennas has become so affordable that Apple is willing to put them in as just one more incentive for prospective buyers, rather than as a significant selling point. Personally, I know I’d rather have it than not, even if my iPhone is able to tether on my existing wireless plan. We’ll just have to wait and see what develops, which will likely take at least a year, considering the types of positions Apple is hiring for.

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Like the X-Fi (xtreme fidelity, in case you were wondering) external audio card whose technology it uses, the Sound Blaster for iTunes is an external, USB peripheral. It’s main purpose is to enhance the quality of your iTunes music library, and anything else you may use iTunes for, including internet radio streams and movie audio. Curiously, it also claims to improve the quality of things like Pandora, and basically any sound your computer makes, so I’m not entirely sure what the difference is between this and, say, the X-Fi Go.

Upon closer inspection, the Sound Blaster for iTunes does boast the somewhat ambiguous quality of “enabl[ing] you to use the iTunes interface.” Also, it works as a transmitter for Sound Blaster’s wireless stereo system components, including regular speakers connected to their Creative Wireless Receivers, and directly to the Creative T20W Series II speakers, which have a receiver built in. I actually have a pair of the Creative T20 Series II speakers (the non-wireless ones), and I’m more than happy with them, so the prospect of wireless ones is intriguing.

When it’s released later this year (target is Spring 2008), Sound Blaster for iTunes will retail for $99.99. Considering the Sound Blaster X-Fi Notebook is the only current option for laptops that comes with the wireless transmitter built in, and requires an ExpressCard slot, all for $89.99, it’s not too bad a price.

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Wi-Gear recently announced a new revision of their iMuffs Wireless Headphones, with full support for the the iPhone. The new iMuffs support iPhones, iPod nanos, iPod touch, and all iPods with a dock connector, have improved Bluetooth range and improved radio interference rejection. This helps to remove interruptions from microwaves, Wi-Fi, and other stray radio sources (giving an overall clearer sound).

The headphones function up to 40 feet away from your iPhone (in a obstacle free environment), and allow you to keep your music player anywhere within Bluetooth range of your ears.

One major downside is the fact that the in-built Bluetooth capabilities of the iPhone are not accessible to developers. This means that the iMuffs require an additional dock adaptor to send the audio signal. It would have been far more aesthetically pleasing if Wi-Gear were able to utilize the on-board Bluetooth.

The headphones are very light (at 2.2 ounces), sport a behind-the-neck design, and contain integrated buttons which allow you to pause, rewind, adjust volume and change tracks right from the headset without touching the iPhone. You can also answer incoming calls directly from the headphone using the integrated microphone, with the same automatic music suspension that you get on your iPhone when a call comes in.

Powered by a rechargeable lithium battery, they provide 20 hours of playback on a single charge. It’s possible to recharge them through the USB port of your computer, or via the included travel charger.

Previous reviews have noted that audio quality from older iMuffs models was average to good, as would be expected from any Bluetooth headphones. However, if you’re looking for a wireless set of headphones along with a microphone for your iPhone, these would seem to be your best bet for now.

iMuffs are available directly from Wi-Gear for $149.99.

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Wayport, Inc., an Austin, Texas-based company, opened its doors in 1996. They initially focused on bringing Wi-Fi access to business travelers, and their early clientele included hotels and airports. In 2004, they became a provider of choice for McDonald’s, which resulted in the creation of 10,000 hotspots at the chain’s fast food restaurants in the U.S. A recent deal saw Wayport extending access at all their locations to Nintendo DS users, and it’ll be interesting to see if AT&T maintains this relationship.

The acquisition is great news for iPhone subscribers, since AT&T recently announced that all their Wi-Fi hotspots would be accessible to iPhone users free of charge. AT&T subscribers now have access to more than 80,000 access points.

It’s also an indication that the telecom giant is serious about building out their wireless infrastructure. The demand placed on their existing network by the influx of iPhone 3G users has provided headaches for AT&T in the past, and their are a couple fixes available to them. First, they can spend on new build. More 3G towers in more places, providing wider and deeper coverage. Second, they can alleviate the burden to their existing hi-speed network. Encouraging iPhone users to switch off 3G and switch on Wi-Fi eases their overall bandwidth load. And acquisitions like Wayport are a smart move in tough economic times, when companies with cash on hand can pick up smaller firms at deep discounts. If AT&T is serious about providing true blanket Wi-Fi coverage, look for them to make a move on bigger players like Boingo as the slump continues.

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