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It’s iPhone time!

July 11th, 2008, 8:07 am by

iGirl’s coverage of iPhone 2.0Sonya ‘iGirl’ Smith is at it again. She arrived at the Irvine Spectrum’s Apple store around 9ish p.m. Thursday night to camp out until 8 a.m. Friday morning NOW when the new 3G iPhone goes on sale. She’s offering updates via Twitter. Catch her live posts all night at ocregister.com/money or twitter.com/sonyanews. Here are her recent tweets:

8:03 a.m. A few people will be let in at a time. The first batch is the first 10 people.

8:02 a.m I’ll be in the second group let in the store.

8:00 a.m. Everyone is cheering.

7:59 a.m. Employees are opening the doors.

7:58 a.m. The black paper had been rolled back and the store is filled with clapping and cheering Apple employees.

7:57 a.m. 3 minutes. Much better than last year when everyone was shoving and worried about getting cut in front of.

Read the rest at ocregister.com/money

Posted in: Apple mania • Cell phones • iPhone • • • • • • • | 1 Comment »

Meet the iCrowd at the Irvine Spectrum Apple store

July 10th, 2008, 11:04 pm by

iGirl’s coverage of iPhone 2.0Here I am, No. 15. I’ve been in line at the Irvine Spectrum Apple store since just after 9 p.m.

Be sure to follow my minute-by-minute updates (well, that’ll depend on how bored I am)  on the Register’s Money page – I’ll be updating constantly about my iPhone wait on that page.

Now, let me introduce you to some of my line friends:

No. 1:

He’s been here since 1 p.m. and I remember him from last year. Cole Chleboun, a 22-year-old from Rancho Santa Margarita, works for a shipping supply warehouse company. And, just like last year, he’s waiting in line for his boss. And, just like last year, he’s getting full days of pay for his time plus perhaps a little extra money for his effort. “Hey, it’s good money” he said.

Cole Chleboun, 22, of Rancho Santa Margarita(That’s Cole in the photo on the right. See this image and more in tonight’s photo slide show by Register photographer Kevin Sullivan.)

Craigslist afficianado:

David Giordano from Mission Viejo is in line at about, oh spot No. 9. He’s here to buy a 16GB iPhone and he was smart about raising money for buying a new phone. His dad mentioned a news report that the first-generation iPhones were selling pretty well on Craigslist. Three days after Giordano listed his 16GB he sold it to someone from Santa Ana for $600 cash. The reason people are paying such good money for the old phones? The 3G iPhones require buyers activate them immediately in store and the phones are not being sold online. That means people with other cell carriers can buy those first-gen unattached iPhones, hack the phones and then use them with their cell carriers.

Line waiter extraordinaire:

That would be No. 11 in line (who is sitting in the same spot I did last year). Chris Cammack from Irvine is waiting to buy an 8GB iPhone. Last time I met him was not in iPhone line, but when I covered tech and wrote about people waiting for Black Friday deals. At that time, he was No. 1 in line at the Westminster Best Buy.

Soon-to-be-ex-Nokia-brick-owner:

Rounding out the iCrowd introductions for the night is Breanne Nagy. She’s from Anaheim Hills and can’t wait to get a new phone. A week and a half ago she bought a Palm Centro phone/PDA and she said it just will not hold a charge. So, she’s borrowing her dad’s old Nokia phone (as she describes it, “the one with Snake on it.”). Once she buys an iPhone tomorrow she’ll return the Centro and go home to play with her new Apple phone.

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The iPhone 2.0 tweeting has begun!

July 10th, 2008, 9:43 pm by

iGirl’s coverage of iPhone 2.0Sonya ‘iGirl’ Smith is at it again. She arrived at the Irvine Spectrum’s Apple store around 9ish p.m. to camp out until 8 a.m. Friday morning when the new 3G iPhone goes on sale. She’s offering updates via Twitter. Catch her live posts all night at ocregister.com/money or twitter.com/sonyanews. Here are her recent tweets:

9:30 p.m. Apple store closed at 9 pm. Employees are now gathering supplies, cleaning windows and displays and bringing out black sheets to cover t …

9:05 p.m. Just got here to the spectrum apple store and I’m about 20th in line.

8:30 p.m. Just found out an update on the Irvine Spectrum Apple store which has a line of about 20 people. I’m on my way now to get in line.

5:38 p.m. to @jakemarsh Is there a line? I’m trying to decide when I should line up tonight for the iPhone. Any ideas, Twitterverse? 10 pm or 4 am?

Earlier:

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OC’s iNerds start lining up for 3G iPhones

July 10th, 2008, 5:21 pm by

A few people desperate to get their hands on Apple’s next iPhone have lined up around the county.

Only one person has lined up so far at an Apple store for the shiny 3G-toting-phone and that’s at my destination, the Irvine Spectrum store. An Irvine Spectrum spokesperson said that one person got in line by 11 a.m. today.

3gunboxingTips on lining up in OC

If you plan on making your iPhone quest an all-nighter I’d suggest the Irvine Spectrum store where it’s been OKd for people to stay overnight. The Fashion Island store will not allow a line until 5 a.m. and the South Coast Plaza store will let people stay outside the mall overnight – but a wait inside the mall cannot start until 6 a.m. The only update I have for the Brea and Mission Viejo stores is that there are no lines yet and no word  on whether sleeping overnight is OK.

But, a few people have started out on the iPhone wait at AT&T stores, according to an e-mail from an AT&T spokesperson. It said lines have started at the Seal Beach, Santa Barbara and Lake Forest locations. Still, the e-mail does not state how many people are waiting yet — and that still leaves quite a few line-less stores around the county and the Southland.

AT&T did, though, attach a link to some photos of the new boxes arriving at retail stores. (The image at left is one of those AT&T-provided photos). Still, I would like to see a photo of the white iPhone boxes – yep, the white iPhones even come in matching white iBoxes.

As for me, I’m playing it by iEar as to when I head out to the Spectrum store. It’s a tough decision. I lined up last year because the first iPhone was an event to me and this year’s model is just another iPhone. Still, if I line up too late chances are against me getting the 16GB white model.

I’ll be documenting the rest of the night via Twitter. You can find my Tweets on the Register Money page by clicking HERE. Stay tuned!

Related:

Posted in: iPhone • • • • • • | 2 Comments »

iPhone not 3G for some of O.C.

July 10th, 2008, 1:05 pm by

**UPDATE on EDGE service below**

If you poo-poohed the original iPhone because it lacked 3G cellular Internet service, now’s your chance. The new iPhone goes on sale tomorrow at 8 a.m. Read iGirl’s tips on what it takes to buy the new phone.

3G is lovely, though not as fast as your broadband connection at home. AT&T, in fact, reminded media this morning that it has invested $20 billion to create “the nation’s fastest 3G network.”

But before you wait in line all night like our intrepid iGirl, AT&T’s service is not available everywhere. It’s in 300 major U.S. metropolitan areas, which AT&T plans to expand to 350 by year’s end.

Take a look at where you can and can’t get AT&T’s 3G service in Orange County. In Laguna Beach, for example, 3G coverage is spotty and in many areas, non-existant (the dark blue splotches are 3G areas while the lighter blue are not and offer the slower EDGE service). But your iPhone will still work, according to AT&T. It just switches to the slower EDGE Internet service.

AT&T’s 3G coverage in Laguna Beach

But Laguna Beach has it better than residents to the east of San Clemente and San Juan Capistrano (the white areas). Those folks don’t get AT&T cellular service of any kind!

AT&T’s 3G coverage in South County

Check out AT&T’s 3G coverage in your neighborhood HERE.

What if you’re really out of luck and don’t have 3G coverage at home, work or anywhere you roam? I’m checking with AT&T to see if you can purchase just the EDGE Internet service for $10 less per month. I will update as soon as I find out.

THE UPDATE: Nope, new iPhones require new 3G service contracts from AT&T. If you do live in the boonies and can’t get AT&T’s 3G service, the company tells me you could always buy an old iPhone, which does rely on EDGE service.

More iPhone 2.0 coverage:

Posted in: Cell phones • iPhone • • • • • • • | 3 Comments »

2 iPods? JVC offers convenient charger

June 23rd, 2008, 7:53 am by

JVC may be one of the first companies to act on Apple’s insatiable thirst to frequently update the iPod and iPhone, causing consumers everywhere to rush out and buy the latest model. JVC’s new dual-iPod charger makes it more convenient to listen to two iPods or iPhones and charge them simultaneously.

JVC’s JVC NX-PN7 dual iPod charger

The new JVC NX-PN7  also plays the two iPods through the docking station’s speaker. JVC adds an AM/FM tuner and clock to the dock. There’s also a video output so it can be connected to a TV. But if you don’t have a second iPod, there is an analog audio input to connect other portable  music devices.

Time saver? Yes. It’ll keep two pods charged and ready to go. But at $149.95, it’s overpriced for the budget-minded gadget lover. Ah well. There’s also this home-made dual iPod charger.

JVC’s JVC NX-PN7 dual iPod charger

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Sonnet cuts price of iPhone battery charger

June 10th, 2008, 5:07 pm by

Sonnet Technologies’ Volta rechargeable iPod battery kitSo… the new iPhone is cheaper than the old one but the monthly fees are higher. You’ve got to save money somewhere.

Sonnet Technologies, an Irvine company that makes upgrade kits for Macs, just cut 25 percent off the price of its Volta rechargeable battery pack for the iPod. It’s now $29.95 (used to be $39.95). I haven’t tried it but Sonnet claims it “extends playback times by up to 300%.”

Plus, Sonnet expects it to be compatible with the new iPhone. It already works with many iPod models and the original iPhone. An interesting note: when the Volta is fully charged, it has enough juice to charge an iPod battery three times. More details at Sonnet’s site.

Posted in: iPhone • iPods • • • • • • • • | Comments Off

iGirl’s iPhone 2.0 wrap-up: Cheaper, faster, better!

June 9th, 2008, 12:43 pm by

**Update: What to do if you already own an iPhone **
**Update: AT&T’s monthly fees for new iPhone 3G plans**

***Update: 6:18 p.m.; The Apple iPhone is not available for pre-order, meaning more customers waiting in long lines for the mobile phones. An AT&T spokeswoman said today that details will come out closer to the July 11 release, such as what time the phones will go on sale.***
iGirl’s iPhone 2.0 wrap-up: Cheaper, faster, better!

Apple’s new iPhone 2.0As just about everyone predicted the announcement of a 3G iPhone today, Apple’s CEO Steve Jobs did just that today.

Nerds, like myself, might be interested in the play-by-play liveblogging we had this morning. But, for the rest of the world, here’s a simple snapshot of what Jobs announced:

A new iPhone:

  • The second-ever generation iPhone goes on sale July 11 in 22 countries.
  • The phone looks much like the current iPhone, but the buttons are all metal, its a little bit thinner and the back is all black or white plastic rather than brushed metal.
  • The phone’s new features: GPS (that pinpoints the phone’s exact location) and 3G (a new way of connecting to cellular networks that offers faster speeds for loading web pages, sending photos and downloading e-mails).

iPhone uses 3G wireless speeds

  • New iPhone comes in black and whiteTwo versions of the iPhone will be sold: an 8GB version in black for $199 and a 16GB version in white or black for $299.
  • Buying the new iPhone requires a new two year AT&T rate plan, sold separately.
  • The phone also has improved audio (some people complained the phone’s speakers were not loud enough) and the spot for plugging in headphones is flush (the old phone’s plug-in was different than iPods and such — requiring an adapter to use most headphones).
  • ADDED 2:10 p.m. — AT&T says pricing on the new phone will be $30 a month for 3G data plans plus voice plans starting at $39.99 a month. Unlimited 3G data plans for business users will be $45 a month, plus a voice plan.
  • ADDED 4:58 p.m. – No discounts for current owners. But if you purchased an iPhone on or after May 27, you’ll be able to exchange it for the new iPhone “without incurring an additional handset charge,” says AT&T. For owners of iPhone prior to May 27, you’ll have to fork over the $199 or more for the new phone and extend your contract for 2 more years.

A new Web site for syncing personal information:

  • Apple’s new Web site (called www.me.com — it’s not live yet) replaces the current site called dot Mac at www.mac.com.
  • The Web site stores a person’s: contacts, calendars, e-mail and photos. Users change or add information to the Web site and that information is then automatically synced via wireless to the person’s Apple or PC computers, iPhone or iPod Touch and programs (Microsoft Outlook for PC users and iCal, Apple Mail and Address Book for Apple users).
  • iPhone’s MobileMeMobileMe will open in July (likely on July 11) and costs $99 a year. There is a 60-day free trial. The service includes available 20GBs of available space. People who use .Mac right now can upgrade to MobileMe whenever they want.

Third-party applications for the iPhone and iPod Touch:

  • Starting in early July iPhone and iPod Touch users will be able to download applications for the devices made by third-party developers (not made by Apple).
  • Check eBay on the new iPhoneDevelopers set their own prices for the applications; some will be available for free.
  • Some applications were demonstrated during today’s Apple presentation. Those include: Super Monkey Ball – a game by SEGA, an eBay application called “Auctions,” Modality that offers information and images for medical students, a Major League Baseball application that shows game and player information and a racing game called “Cromag Ralley” in which the iPhone or iPod Touch is used as the steering wheel.

An updated operating system for the iPhone and iPod Touch:

  • The next operating system for the iPhone and iPod Touch will be version 2.0.
  • The system will be a free upgrade for iPhone users and will cost $9.99 for iPod Touch owners.
  • The system will be available in early July.
  • The system’s new features include: ways to delete or move groups of information — not just one item at a time, ways to save images from an e-mail, a scientific calculator, Asian language support and parental controls.

Earlier:

Posted in: iPhone • • • • | 15 Comments »

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