iPhone 2.0.2 Update Is Here, Fixes Bugs In iPhone 3G

The iPhone 2.0.2 update is here and is supposed to fix a bunch of bugs that users have been seeing since iPhone 2.0 hit. Like Boy Genius said before, it's going to be targeting iPhone 3G users, but the changelog of "bug fixes" is vague enough to imply that everyone will see some benefit. Grab it now from iTunes (unless of course you want to be careful and not update to new firmwares right away).

credit  - http://gizmodo.com/5038561/iphone-202-update-is-here-fixes-bugs-in-iphone-3g

iPhone 2.0 Firmware Now Available!

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iPhone 2.0 makes Mail weapon of mass deletion

Yesterday’s iPhone event may have seemed like it was all SDK all the time, but Apple’s press release on the forthcoming iPhone 2.0 firmware update points out that there are a couple other features that’ll be riding App Store’s coattails, particularly in the phone’s workhorse Mail application.

According to the press release, you’ll now be able to view PowerPoint presentations as attachments in Mail. Er…yay. No, really: good for business types, I suppose, but not really a barn-burner for me.

The second, though, is one of those features that we’ve been clamoring for pretty much since the first time we started swiping to delete mail messages. iPhone 2.0’s Mail will allow you to delete or move emails en masse. Hallelujah! Finally, a way to get rid of all those pesky Viagra and Cialis messages without the old swipe, tap, swipe, tap, swipe, tap—you see where I’m going with this.

June cannot come soon enough.

Category: Software

Posted by Dan Moren on Mar 7 2008, 10:52 AM ET

iPhone 1.1.3's Lesser-Known Features

You already know the main features of iPhone 1.1.3 from our hands-on and from the keynote, but there are a few interesting tweaks that got lost in all the other Apple coverage.

• The SMS storage has been upped from 1,000 to 75,000, which means you probably won't need to ever clear a conversation unless you really enjoy texting.
• The keyboard now allows two-finger typing, so holding shift + a key lets you type caps.
• Gmail on the phone automatically defaults to IMAP, which means deleting messages on your phone affects stuff server-side.
• Various bugs hit on Bluetooth and email checks, but workarounds have been found.

[iPhone Atlas]
[TUAW]

iPhone 1.1.3 and the update conundrum

iPhone Central’s Big Cheese, Dan Moren, recently reported on leaks of a purported 1.1.3 iPhone firmware update. These leaks are based on pictures and video showing off some alleged upcoming iPhone features. Personally, the evidence look kosher to me but if you want to doubt, be my guest.

I’m offering this lackadaisical invitation largely because I’d like to address this broader issue: Regardless of what the next iPhone update offers, is it worth your while to update? Let’s look at the pros and cons:

PROS:

• Without the update it’s possible that you won’t be able to use whatever Apple-authorized applications are made available as the result of Apple releasing an iPhone SDK in February.

• Some of the alleged features look very cool. Under the listing of “supposedly,” you’ll be able to move icons around on the Home screen, add Safari bookmarks as icons on the Home screen, have more than one page on the Home screen, send SMS messages to multiple recipients, drag a pin to any location you like in the Maps application, access a hybrid map and satellite view in Maps, and kinda/sorta pinpoint your iPhone’s location in the Maps application through cell tower triangulation.

CONS:

• If you’ve unlocked your iPhone to use with another carrier there’s the possibility that applying the update will kill your phone.

• If you’ve jailbroken your iPhone to use with third-party applications, there’s a very good chance that those third-party applications will disappear when you apply the update. Getting those third-party applications on your iPhone is possible thanks to a couple of security exploits that Apple is sure to close with the next update. A lot of very smart people will invest a lot of time trying to find a way to jailbreak an iPhone running the 1.1.3 firmware so that those third-party applications can be used, but no one knows how long it will take or, ultimately, if it will even be possible.

I’ve made no secret of my love for third-party applications running on my iPhone. And because I do love it to its jailbroken core (and find that I already have many of the alleged features mentioned as part of this similarly alleged update) I’m going to be in no rush to update my phone. You, of course, may feel differently.

Regardless of which side you come down on, history has taught us that it’s prudent to let others update their stuff before you do. Having a measure of patience allows you to learn from others’ mistakes and, if you choose to, avoid making them yourself.

Category: Musings

Posted by Christopher Breen on Jan 2 2008, 3:02 PM ET

It's Back: iPhone 1.1.3 Copy Paste Rumor

Full Video Demo of Apple iPhone Firmware 1.1.3 Features

How to Install Third-Party Apps on Your New iPhone or iPod Touch

If a new iPhone or iPod touch found its way under your tree and you just can't wait until Apple officially supports third-party application development to extend its functionality (who can wait until February?), it's time you jailbreak your favorite new portable device. We've covered two methods for doing so already, but that feisty Apple keeps on changing things up, and the latest firmware (which all of you new owners are likely running) requires a bit more finesse before you gain access to the throng of great apps that have already been developed for the iPhone. So today we're jailbreaking that iPhone or iTouch of yours to open it up to the wonderful world of third-party software.

NOTE: I've only tested these instructions on my iPhone using a Mac, so I can't absolutely guarantee the same level of success on the iPod touch or Windows computers. However, the software was made to jailbreak either the iPod touch or the iPhone on either Windows or Macs, so it should work fine on either. That said, I'll be referring to the iPhone through the rest of these instructions. If you're looking to install apps without activating your iPhone with AT&T, our pals over at Gizmodo have covered that.

UPDATE: It seems that there have been mixed results for some users attempting to downgrade from the 1.1.2 firmware. The downgrade appears to be working for some, not for others. If you have trouble downgrading to 1.1.1, you can simply restore the current 1.1.2 firmware and everything should be back to normal, but unfortunately you won't be able to install any third-party apps. I'm very curious to hear what kind of luck others are having with this, so if you give it a try, let's hear your experience in the comments.

Check Your Firmware Version

First thing's first: Dock your iPhone, open up iTunes, and find out what version of the iPhone firmware you're running by clicking on the Summary tab when your device is docked and seeing what it says after Software Version. If for some reason you're running one of the early 1.0 firmwares (1.0.0, 1.0.1, 1.0.2), we've already covered how to jailbreak those phones here. Instead, though, I'd recommend jailbreaking your phone using the following method, since you'll get new and improved features from the newer firmware. If you're currently running the 1.1.1 firmware, skip straight to the Jailbreak Your 1.1.1 iPhone or iPod touch section.

Downgrade or Upgrade to the 1.1.1 Firmware

Well, first you need to download the 1.1.1 firmware, which you can do here. Make sure that the file ends in _Restore.ipsw, which it should by default. While it's downloading, go ahead and reboot your iPhone by holding down the power and home buttons at the same time, then releasing the power button as soon as the screen goes black. Continue holding the home button until your device enters recovery mode (as indicated in the screenshot).

Since your firmware is probably still downloading, go ahead and download the 1.1.2 jailbreak files here and unzip the contents on your desktop.

When the firmware completes downloading (which—at a whopping 152 MB—can take a little time), make sure you know where you've saved it and fire up iTunes if it isn't already open. Again go to the same Summary tab where you found your current firmware version. This time, though, you're going to restore the firmware to the 1.1.1 version you just downloaded. To do this, Shift-Click the Restore button in Windows or Option-Click on a Mac and browse to where you saved the 1.1.1 firmware, select it, and restore. When the restore process completes, it will end with an error. Don't worry if this happens, as the jailbreak software is made to overcome the error.

Once you get to this point, run either the windows.bat file if you're a Windows user or the jailbreak.jar user if you're on a Mac to get your phone past this error and booting into the 1.1.1 firmware. If you're running jailbreak.jar, all you need to do is click the Boot from Recovery button.

Jailbreak Your 1.1.1 iPhone or iPod touch

Point mobile Safari to http://jailbreakme.com/ and tap the Install AppSnapp link. Safari will close after a bit and eventually your phone will return to the Slide to unlock screen. After your unlock the phone, you should see Installer.app on your home screen, meaning it worked. When I used this method my iPhone froze the first time I tried unlocking it, so I restarted my phone and sure enough, there was Installer.app. That's really all there is to it.

Jailbreak and Upgrade to 1.1.2

First, fire up Installer.app on your iPhone, find the Tweaks (1.1.1) section of the Install tab, and install an application called OktoPrep. Nothing special will show up on your phone after you install it, but it will have made a few tweaks on your device making it possible to jailbreak 1.1.2 after you upgrade.

Now you just upgrade your iPhone the normal way—by connecting your device to iTunes and selecting Update from the Summary tab. iTunes will go through the long download and upgrade process and when it's done, you'll be updated to 1.1.2 but not jailbroken. To complete the jailbreak, head back to the 1.1.2-jailbreak Folder you downloaded earlier and re-run either windows.bat (if you're a Windows user) or jailbreak.jar (if you're on a Mac).

Follow the instructions each app offers, and when they finish, you should see Installer.app on your home screen and be completely updated to the latest firmware and jailbroken. That means it's time to start installing those apps!

My current favorites—for those of you new to third-party iPhone or iPod touch apps—include:

• iFlix, and incredible Netflix account management tool
• iMapIdle, an app that works in conjunction with IMAP email (including Gmail) to enable real-time, push-like email notification
• iPhoneHome, an app that lets you change the default double-click behavior for the home button
• Navizon, a pseudo-GPS locator that determines your location in Google Maps using cell towers your phone communicates with (iPhone only, obviously)
• Apollo, the native IM app
• MobileScrobbler, which uploads everything you play on your iPod to your Last.fm account
• WebSearch, a web search tool for quickly performing a search on any web site without going through the rigmarole of loading a site, finding the search box, and then entering your search terms
• HuaRongDao and iSolitaire, a couple of really nice looking and addictive games for your device.

Now you're probably thinking, Great, my iPhone's all jailbroken, but I sure wish I knew all the ins and outs of this beast, including how I can squeeze the most productivity from this little gem of a device. Lucky for you, the best iPhone book I've ever written (with Jason Chen of Gizmodo) is both in stores and shipping right now!

Finally, if you're looking for more to do with your iPhone, here's how you can:

• Use Your iPhone's Internet Connection On Your Laptop
• Stream Music from Your iPod touch or iPhone to Any iTunes Library
• Set Up Gmail with IMAP
• Remote Control Your Computer with Your iPhone

Adam Pash is a senior editor for Lifehacker who hacks his iPhone for business and pleasure. His special feature Hack Attack appears every Tuesday on Lifehacker, and his book, How to Do Everything with Your iPhone, is in stores now. Subscribe to the Hack Attack RSS feed