Just a day after the Palm Treo Pro was officially announced, fellow bloggers at Gizmodo have already received theirs for abit of hands on play. Though no review is yet available, the pics below are probably the closest thing you will see before the phone officially goes on sale. The phone looks attractive and doesn’t look like something that will put non-business men/users off and I’m not even a Palm user myself! Here is what Gizmodo have said about the phone so far…
The flush touchscreen is about as responsive as previous offerings and the 320×320 resolution looks bright and crisp. The 3G internet operates at full speed and call quality is nice and clear. Other features like GPS seem on par with that on the 800w, though Palm’s own chat-style SMS interface is missing this time around. Palm is selling the phone without a carrier, opting for the unlocked route (win!). And like the Palm 800w, the hardware seems more than adequate to run WIndows Mobile 6.1.
We’ve talked lots about a possible Palm Treo Pro in the last few days as more images emerge, now it’s finally official, Palm has unveiled the Treo Pro with two official pictures, a video has also been found. The smartphone will feature a one-touch WiFi button, GPS, runs the Windows Mobile 6.1 OS and has a high resolution flush-fitting color touchscreen. No info on pricing and date availability yet announced.
In the video from YouTube below, you will see the phone in action running the touch screen version of Windows Mobile and really it looks no different from the photos we have seen which have been emerging all over the internet.
This is a follow-up round up of our previous post: Roundup of jailbreaking, unlocking the iPhone 2.0 2G and 3G so far…
As most will know the latest firmware for the iPhone 2G and the 3G is currently 2.0.1 and no longer 2.0. However the latest version of the Pwnage Tool 2.0.1 isn’t a version match which means it has nothing to do with jailbreaking the firmware 2.0.1 iPhone 2G or 3G. However it is effective for jailbreaking firmware 2.0, click here to see more on this.
At the moment, whether your iPhone is 2G or 3G and is working fine, jailbroken on firmware 2.0 then it is suggested that you leave it alone and not update via iTunes. There isn’t much that can be done once you have updated to 2.0.1, it will almost inevitably render you losing all your favorite unofficial native iPhone apps. If you were using an unlocked iPhone then it means that your iPhone will be locked. So if you were using an iPhone with a SIM from some other carrier then it would make your iPhone unusable, also termed as “iBrick” in the iPhone hacking terms.
However if you’ve got a contract and don’t plan on switching to any other carrier or network in the near future, plus you’re not bothered about unofficial native iPhone apps, here is what some users have noticed about the latest firmware 2.0.1 upgrade:
- SMS typing faster
- Faster backup process
- Some users are reporting that the iPhone seems a lot snappier after the update
- Contacts app loads faster
- Safari seems to be significantly more responsive after the update
Here is also what the iPhone Dev Team have noticed about the latest firmware 2.0.1:
The iPhone Dev Team have noticed that iPhone firmware 2.0.1 also updates iPhone 3G baseband. This means that even if the iPhone Dev Team release an updated version of their Pwnage Tool to unlock iPhone 3G running iPhone firmware 2.0, it will not be able to unlock iPhone 3G running iPhone firmware 2.0.1 as the baseband has also been updated. So you run the risk of your iPhone 3G being rendered un-lockable until the iPhone Dev Team get around to unlocking the iPhone 3G baseband bundled iPhone firmware 2.0.1.
Meanwhile here is what the iPhone Dev Team have said on their blog, a quick summary on a few situations and what you should do at this moment:
- If you own a first generation (2G iPhone), no matter what you do now, you don’t have to worry, the next PwnageTool will get you where you want even if it you prematurely updated. 2G is completely pwned at every conceivable level and you’ll always be OK. But if you own a 3G iPhone and are looking for unlock in the near future, don’t use Apple’s update yet!
- If your 3G iPhone is on a regular contract and you always plan to be with the carrier then you can update but you will lose the jailbreak and access to third party (non AppStore) applications.
- If your 3G iPhone is not on a regular contract and you plan to use it on an alternative network to the carrier that supplied it then do not update unless you do it with the impending PwnageTool update.
Update (09/08/2008): Pwnage Tool 2.0.2 just released, it can be used to jailbreak first generation iPhones running 1.1.x versions and 2.0.1 of the iPhone firmware as well as the iPhone 3G running the latest firmware 2.0.1.
Click here for the download links…
Remember like the previous version of the Pwnage Tool, it will be able to jailbreak and unlock the iPhone 2G (first generation) running the versions mentioned above but only jailbreak and not unlock the iPhone 3G.
One important point to note is that the Pwnage Tool at the moment is only suitable for Mac users, however for iPhone 3G users, the iPhone Dev Team still recommends that you stay with firmware 2.0.1 and not upgrade if you’re expecting to unlock your iPhone in the future.
For Windows users, because the Pwnage Tool 2.0.2 just released by the iPhone Dev Team doesn’t work for Windows, we suggest that you don’t upgrade to the latest 2.0.1 firmware while you wait for an update of the ‘WinPwn’ Tool to be released.
We recommend iPhone users to have a look at our previous jailbreak and unlock roundup for firmware 2.0 if you’ve not upgraded to the latest 2.0.1 yet…
Update (12/08/2008): The latest version of WinPwn is out, Windows users can now use it to jailbreak and unlock their iPhone first gen and jailbreak iPhone 3G. This means that still it is not possible to unlock the iPhone 3G and using the i-Smartphone unlock chip seems to remain as the only method. Click on the screenshot below to be transferred to WinPwn’s blog for instructions and download links for the latest WinPwn 2.0.0.4…
Update (18/08/2008): New tool from the iPhone Dev Team released to complement the already available Pwnage Tool 2.0.2, it’s called QuickPwn and it’s for Windows!
Quickpwn has been released as a beta, intended to complement the main PwnageTool. It works with iPhones and iPod’s running 2.0.1 firmware, and operates very quickly without needing iTunes to rebuild/restore your device afterwards. This beta version is basically feature-complete, but lacks a “funky UI” (they’re adding that soon) and is currently windows only (other OS’s are “coming soon”).
The good thing about QuickPwn, though it’s just in beta and still under development, is that it’s impossible for it to permanently damage your device. Currently QuickPwn requires your device to be running version 2.0.1 of the iPhone/iPod firmware. This requirement will change in a subsequent release. Click here for the download…
[via iPhone Dev Team Blog]
Colorware is at it again, this time the iPhone 3G. Colorware are the people who originally brought us the first revolution against Steve Jobs’ boring iPhone colour, these guys wanted to show us that we could too have some fun and bring on our iPhones customisable colours. As well as iPhones, Colorware have expanded their quality service and expertise towards other gadgets and smartphones like the Blackberrys, Sidekick and also game consoles like the Wii, PSP, PS3 and XBox 360. They have been known to help users create colours that are unique to their taste, to me I think the best part of it all is the design process using their online studio that they offer on their site, its quite fun!
However, all the fun does come at a hefty price. For the iPhone 3G in question for example, you’re looking at $150 USD for the back, $20 for the frame, another $20 for the button, $10 for the SIM card tray and $10 for the earbuds. If you really want your whole set of iPhone to be special, you can also customise your iPhone dock at a cost of $20. So in total the maximum you’re looking at is about $230 USD!
More after the jump…
As you will know, the iPhone Dev Team have yet to produce a Pwnage tool that will be able to unlock the latest iPhone 3G, though you can jailbreak, you can’t unlock.
The latest unlock clip from Brando is probably the closest thing you can do at the moment to unlock your iPhone.
I’m not entirely sure how it works, but its been designed to says specifically on Brando’s site that it has been designed to unlock operator / SIM card locked Apple iPhone 3G phones. Its really easy to use, all you need to do is slide the attachment under your “normal” SIM card (the one that you wish to use).
Just released the i-Smartphone unlock clip costs $20.50 USD and has been claimed by Brando to also unlock various brands of GSM smartphones. Click here for more details…
Here’s another set of pics between rivalry smartphones: the latest Samsung i900 (SGH-i900) and of course for a type of phone like this with a nice large touch screen that runs on Windows Mobile 6.1 what else is there better to do than to compare it with the iPhone!
The i900 has some interesting specs, though I still think Samsung smartphones tend to target the business trade rather than the vast general public, but maybe its just me. There are some features I find merits some mention though and this was mentioned over at Crave’s…
For the uninitiated, haptic feedback in a mobile phone is designed to make the feeling of pressing an onscreen virtual button more realistic. If you use your finger on the i900, it buzzes slightly to let you know it has registered that touch. This was very useful when we tried out the custom Samsung text input applications–making it almost like typing on a real keypad.
Ok, you might say some phones on the market now already have a similar feature and it may actually get to be quite annoying, all the buzzing once you’ve used it for long enough but what I like is that the i900 also has an optical sensor which acts as a mouse pointer, now that’s really cool…
…the i900 also has an optical sensor for a directional pad. This can be used in two modes–as a regular four-way directional pad or as an onscreen mouse pointer. Pressing on this optical sensor selects.
Before you look into the gallery below here are the specs in a quick summary as it is still fairly new…
Some developers have managed to get Google Android Beta running on the Windows Mobile based HTC TyTN II smartphone (also known to many as the AT&T Tilt) and I have to say I’m quite looking forward to having something like it on my phone in the future!
Here’s a quick video…
