All you have to do is do the following -

1. Download the iPhone 4 Case Program app from the App Store.
2. Launch the app on your iPhone 4 and sign in using your iTunes Store account or Apple ID.
3. Select your Bumper or case.

Note: For iPhone 4 purchases made before July 23, 2010, you must apply no later than August 22, 2010; otherwise, you must apply within 30 days of your iPhone 4 purchase. To qualify for this program, you must purchase your iPhone 4 by September 30, 2010.

You can apply for a bumper (the only available color is black) or any other qualified case, all of which are free if you’re eligible. It’s a 3-5 week wait for delivery, because nothing in life is quite as easy as it should be.

On some devices the battery isn’t removable so just carrying a spare isn’t an option; it’s not always the best solution anyway as it doesn’t offer any flexibility if you’ve got several power hungry devices. So what else is out there?

A whole new market has sprung up from nowhere to deal with this issue, every few days over the past couple of weeks I’ve seen a new solution to solve my power problems.

One of the most popular solutions available seems to be a small portable lithium battery which you can charge using a USB socket or a normal plug socket. Most come with a few adaptors so you can charge various devices whilst some have only one phone in mind.

Mophie have just released some mobile batteries with a built in iPhone dock connector, some of them even double as a case! The ‘primocube’ by Primo has just been announced and this will charge anything that has a Micro-USB or Mini-USB connection (Android, BlackBerry etc.). JustMobile have a solution which will allow you to charge any phone which can be connected via USB (pretty much every smartphone, GPS or MP3 player).

There are plenty of other mobile batteries out there; personally I plumped for the JustMobile battery which will charge my iPhone 3 times over. When choosing the right battery for you it’s worth taking note of the mAh rating, the higher the better as this means you’ll get more power from your battery.

Free mobile power?

If your life is so hectic that you won’t even have the chance to charge your spare battery you could try a solar powered charger, there are plenty of options out there which will draw power from the sun. They do have the downside of being slow to charge and you need the sun (not always a common sight in the UK!)

There are some other innovative and enviormentally friendly solutions you could try like the ‘HYmini Personal Wind Turbine’, the ‘Wind-up multi charger’ or Nokia’s bicycle dynamo charger!

Whatever solution to your power problems you choose you can be sure your battery will still die on you at the most inconvenient of times!

Android was first introduced in late October 2008 with T-Mobile’s G1 which came pre-installed with Version 1.0 and soon Google will release their latest version; 2.3.

Speaking for myself, I didn’t really give Android a chance and wouldn’t have swapped my iPhone for the ‘newbie’ on the block. However over the past years, HTC has grown phenomenally and is now waiting to release their sophisticated iPhone killer platform called “Gingerbread” which has certainly made the new smartphone platform look mature. The names Android use for their firmware are controversial as most of their platforms have rather scrumptious names such as Cookie and Éclair.

Android has some features which will startle a lot of people, even the non-techie people. If we take browsing on Android 2.3, it supports flash and it is flexible; this is defiantly something excelling against their competitors which means lots of boredom cured.

Android supports push notifications which mean that your Twitter, Facebook and Emails are pushed automatically to your phone without the hassle of having to re-sync your inbox every quarter of an hour. In addition to this nifty feature, Android also have their ever growing Market which is now catering over 30,000 apps readily available for downloading.

Android have also added over-the-air installation for apps and integration of iTunes streaming. Google have named their music streaming app ‘Simplify Media’ which creates a desktop software that can stream all your music directly from iTunes to your Android phone. Simply all you have to do is point the software at your music and it will push it up into the air accessible anywhere.

Like all smartphones, the new version of Gingerbread is now compatible with all Microsoft platforms including Exchange 2010. Android have also introduced Bluetooth voice commands allowing users with Bluetooth headsets or parrot in-car systems to say a name or number to activate an out-going call.

Overall in conclusion to the new version of Android, it will hopefully be showcased in Q4 2010. There are numerous updates Android has made and all of them are justifiable but the sheer amount of platforms can defiantly perplex even the most technical people. With technology being so subliminal and everyone used to technology being at our fingertips, expectations from manufactures are extremely high hence the upcoming release of Gingerbread. It’s defiantly something I am excited about and it has a lot of new features no other versions of Android has incorporated but remember, your phone must have the minimum specification to run it.

The new phone itself isn’t much different from the older 3G version, boasting a very similar look and feel, but packing a few extras under the hood:

• Quicker processor
• Double the memory (256MB)
• Updated camera that can do video recording
• Electronic compass
• Nike+

It is quite good that Apple haven’t updated the fundamental design as it means all the accessories and add-ons that were available for the earlier version work with the new one.

The interesting thing about this phone is that most people with the iPhone 3G will not be able to upgrade immediately, tied in as they are to an 18 month contract with O2. That said, sales of the new 3G S seem to have been pretty strong with many original version iPhone users upgrading (my wife upgraded on the day it was released) and a whole bunch of new customers drawn in by Apple’s impeccable marketing.

Of interest to all iPhone users is the update to version 3.0 of the iPhone software which brings with it a whole host of useful additions.

A few highlights are:

• Ability to use rotated keyboard in any app (that supports it) particularly useful in email app.
• MMS
• Copy and Paste
• Enhancements to activesync (main one is to allow push to other folders than the inbox)
• Global Search
• Enhanced bluetooth
• Tethering (ability to use your phone like a USB 3G dongle)
• Push notifications

There are a lot more, I have only highlighted the particularly newsworthy ones and the ones that I personally have found benefit from. The keyboard update and the general user interface enhancement have made the whole experience more aesthetically pleasing and more practical. This is quite impressive considering the quality of the previous version, but Apple have done a good job with the incremental improvements.

Of all the updates I would expect the push notifications to have the biggest long term impact as it will allow developers to build applications that appear to stay open on the device when they have actually closed, this is going to be extremely important for instant messaging and social networking type apps.

Overall the latest updates are a good addition to the iPhone series; I wonder what they have up their sleeves for next year….

I have been looking forward to owning an iPhone since it was first unveiled in January 2007 but refused to buy one until it supported 3G. Luckily a year later my wish came true and in general Iʼm very happy with it. I have always liked Apple for their simplicity of design and the attention to detail that goes into user interfaces, the iPhone is no exception, however Iʼm afraid to say that cracks are starting to appear in their reputation for quality.

If you donʼt know much about the iPhone then I would suggest going to http://www.apple.com/iphone, this will give you an overview of the features that are part of the device.

So I have to start of by saying the phone looks damn good The iPhone has sparked much discussion but I donʼt think you can say much against itʼs looks, in typical Apple style itʼs got an amazing form factor and itʼs no wonder that Jonathan Ive keeps winning awards. One of the reasons the iPhone looks so good is its screen. The widescreen is 3.5” in size and makes photos, films etc. look great but it also allows for very good control of the device via its touch interface. I find this was of controlling the phone very easy to use and the interface standards for the applications ensure that buttons are large enough so that you click the right button. I am also a great fan of the keyboard a function which has caused much argument in online forums. My suggestion to people who shy away from such things and demand a keyboard with some form of tactile response is this: try it. You could be right and it may not be for you but I would get hold of a iPhone and play with it for a couple of hours, as a tip donʼt worry if you see that you have typed an incorrect letter 9 times out of 10 the software will work it out for you. Once you are used to it (and it does take some getting used to) youʼll be typing those emails two handed in no time.

Along with the keyboard two major talking points are the phoneʼs 3G reception and the battery life. This is where things start to fall down slightly, it is very true that if you have 3G turned on and WIFI turned on and you start doing a lot of web browsing then the battery does die down quickly. This certainly isnʼt a problem specific to Apple, most smart phones drain their batteries very quickly, just because of the sheer amount of work they have to do and these donʼt have a 3.5” colour display! Never the less this doesnʼt change the fact itʼs going to be a pain if you run out of battery half way through the day, so my (and everyone elseʼs) tip is to turn both WIFI and 3G off and just use it when you need it. EDGE or GPRS (the standard signal the iPhone uses) is fine for receiving email and light web pages and if I know I need to do any heavy browsing then I can just switch on which ever service I need. Actually itʼs ironic that I waited over a year to get the 3G version and I hardly ever use it, I always seem to be able to get by on EDGE or I’m in an area with 3G. So for arguments sake letʼs say I have 3G switched on, do I get reception? Well generally, yes. In most places around Bristol I get 3 out of the 5 bars, however for the people that are affected Apple is supposedly bringing out software updates that help reduce this problem. It seems to me that the phone is fine in areas of strong signal yet when it gets to a weaker signal strength it tends to revert back to EDGe to early whereas other phones would stay connected to 3G.

The last general comment I would like to make before going into specific functionality of the iPhone is that of stability. When I first got my phone it was not stable, at all. The applications often crashed and even reset itself a few times. I can live with the former but not the later, restarts are unacceptable. Luckily (deservedly may be more appropriate) Apple have released two updates (2.01 and 2.02) which seem to have calmed the phone down and with 2.1 currently in beta testing I have high hopes that I will have the stable phone that I should have received to start off with. So those are my generally views of the phone, as you can see itʼs not all good but there is still a lot to the phone to discuss. I wonʼt be reviewing all the functionality the iPhone has to offer because to be honest I donʼt use all the functions. I will however talk about what I have used on a day to day basis and Iʼm going to group those into the following sections:

• Phone
• Web
• Productivity
• 3rd party applications

You might be surprised to find that I havenʼt included the iPod functions in the list, well itʼs only because I donʼt really use them. I have watched the occasional video and I do have a couple of albums included in case of music emergencies. I donʼt really have much to say about it really, it works as you would expect it and watching videos is a lot better than previous iPods because of the enlarged screen.

The Phone

With regards contacts on your phone and the ability to ring them I donʼt really have much to say, other than contacts used to be very slow to open but has now speeded up. What requires more discussion is that of MMS and SMS. Well MMS is easy, you donʼt have it. If you want to send picture messages then you had better send an email. If you receive one you can still retrieve it albeit in a rather contrived way. If someone sends you an MMS you receive a standard text message which contains a link to a website, from here you need to
enter your phone number and a PIN that is also included in the text. From here you can see the picture realise that it wasnʼt really worth the effort and curse your friend for wasting your time. Personally I donʼt really using picture messages but if you do, youʼre going to find this annoying.

When it comes to standard texts however I find the iPhoneʼs way of storing texts per contact very useful. All texts you receive are stored by contact in a thread. Meaning that if I look at a text message from James Cook I can see all the texts that I have received since I last cleared the conversation. Since can be very useful in making sense of replies you get a few hours after you sent the original.

The Web

Browsing the web is where the iPhone comes into its own, I have tried a variety of smart phones and nothing comes close. Mobile safari comes pre-installed on the phone and allows you to view most websites on the internet as if you were using your desktop. Rendering is very fast and good support for javascript is provided. Just double tap on an area of text and it will fit o the screen, rotate the screen into the horizontal position and you can fit even more on the screen. Unfortunately flash isnʼt support but I have yet to miss it,
most sites that Iʼm going to visit while on the move just donʼt have it.

Itʼs worth mentioning that when I talk about viewing websites Iʼm talking about the full version that you would get on your desktop or laptop. The iPhone browser represents itself as a client browser rather than a mobile one. Obviously if you find yourself running on edge you can still view the mobile versions. There is also a host of website that are specifically designed for the iPhone, or at least have an iPhone version. Google for instance has a great interface for a lot of its services that are scaled to fit the iPhoneʼs screen and eliminates the need for scrolling. The buttons are of a good size and in general is much nicer to use than their standard mobile version. In short the web browsing on the phone is a huge selling point and in my opinion makes up for a lot of other mistakes that Apple are still trying to correct.

Productivity

When it comes to productivity people immediately think of email and calendar and Iʼm no different I have used both Exchange and MobileMe (which definitely needs its own article) and Iʼm quite happy with the applications. Along with all the other apps that are included with the iPhone they are simple to use and are well layed out, they donʼt have tons of functionality but they do what they have well. Reading files and keeping notes and tasks on the phone is where you get into trouble. Yes there is a notes application but it doesnʼt sync with anything, personally I find this a huge problem. I was also surprised to learn that you canʼt just transfer a file over to it either. I didnʼt even research this I just assumed it would! Now there is a reasonable work around just email the document to yourself, you can read iWork, Office and PDF files that are attached to an email. Still, not ideal and neither is the complete lack of a todo list from iCal, Exchange or even a standalone application!

Luckily you can get 3rd party applications that fill the void and keep the iPhone as the hub of my productivity. Iʼm going to talk more about these later but I currently use: Evernote (a notes application), Things (a GTD task list) and Files (letʼs you transfer files directly to your phone from a machine running Windows or Mac OSX.

Now Iʼm already working on a more in-depth article on productivity so I wonʼt say much more. It is worth keeping in mind that if you keep a lot of notes and todos that you will probably need 3rd party applications.

3rd Party Applications

Now the application store is just great, basically its a shop in iTunes where you can buy 3rd party applications for your phone. It should definitely be a consideration when you are deciding which smart phone to buy. There are some amazing applications out there which are up to the quality you would expect from a desktop application and they really add something to the phone.

Now when I was talking about productivity I was mentioned that you really need 3rd party applications if you want files, todos and notes and your first impression may have been of disappointment. I really donʼt see it as a bad thing (although Apple should really sync notes and todos anyway). All the applications are downloaded through iTunes so you know where you need to look, they are of a high standard, reasonably prices if not free and in a lot of cases provide functionality that you know Apple or any other phone manufacturer are simply not going to include with the standard phone software.

Final Thoughts

There are definitely flaws with the phone and depending on how you are going to use will play a large part in which smart you end up buying. From my personal experience even with the problems that I have to put up with I really donʼt regret buying it. It has an amazing interface, the web browsing is excellent and it is all topped of with some amazing applications. I am confident that future updates will resolve the problems Iʼve been experiencing but only time will tell if Iʼm being optimistic.

Dan,

If you have any questions about Apple related products or if you just want to disagree with what I have said then feel free to email me on dan.rowlands@spidergroup.co.uk Ideas for future articles are also welcome