Unlocked and jailbroken iPhones

Q: I want to know how to upgrade a jailbroken iPhone's firmware to 2.0 or 3.0 from version 1.0. Presently, all I can do is listen to music, text, and make calls--I can't install applications. Meanwhile, my others friends have it all because they are on AT&T. I am begging for a way to upgrade to 2.0 or 3.0.
--Ishan

A: First off, the iPhone OS 3.0 is available only to developers at the moment. It won't be released to the general public until this summer (Apple hasn't revealed an exact date). Unless you're really, really desperate for it, I would hold off installing it officially launches. In its beta form, 3.0 is a bit buggy, and it slows down the iPhone by quite a bit. But to give you a taste of how it looks, check out our iPhone 3.0 screenshots.

Since you have a jailbroken iPhone, I'm sure that you're aware that if you attempt a software update through iTunes your phone will be jailbroken no longer. Unfortunately, iTunes is the best way to get any updates for their full functionality. I don't know of any way to upgrade your phone while skipping iTunes, but if anyone know of a way around it, please comment below.

You could perform upgrade to the latest available update (2.2.1) and then jailbreak your phone again. It may sound risky, but jailbreak methods go live almost immediately after every software update comes out. It would be a time-consuming, multistep process, but it's pretty much your best option. Again, if you know another way, please share it below.
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Sanwa Throat Microphone: Speak to the neck?

First, there were bone conduction earpieces. Now, microphones are going the way of the *cough cough* throat. Apparently, no part of the human body is inviolable when it comes to tech accessorizing. Inspired by the military, Japanese company Sanwa's Throat Microphone design is fortunately styled to appear more like a slim necklace than a neck brace. Though whether this odd gadget will actually improve call clarity using neck vibrations rather than the spoken word has yet to be put to the test, since this is still vaporware for now awaiting commercial takeoff.

Via Akihabara News

Apple discontinues its iPhone Bluetooth headset

Another day, another tidbit of news about a minor Apple product that most people don't care about.

In this case, it's the company's US$100 iPhone Bluetooth headset; a MacRumors forum commenter noticed that Apple's Web site had a "discontinued" notice on the product.

When the headset came out in late 2007, we gave it a fairly positive review (it got 3.5 stars). However, readers weren't as keen on it, rating it at 2.5 stars. Buyers seemed to like the design and build quality but weren't as impressed with performance (sound quality, battery life).

Does this mean that Apple is out of the Bluetooth accessory game? Probably not, because the accessory game is such a good game to be in (as far as margins go). But the big question is whether Apple is getting ready to launch stereo Bluetooth headphones, now that the iPhone and iPod touch will offer stereo Bluetooth support.

Good stereo Bluetooth headphones are hard to come by, so we'd like to see what Apple can deliver. Anybody else interested? Or are all Apple accessories (with the Apple name on them) overpriced for what you get?

Via CNET via Gizmodo via MacRumors

ColorSplash makes iPhone photos pop

There's undoubtedly something striking about the style of photography that draws attention to a focal object by making the rest of the scene black and white (here's a good example). This kind of selected colorization is within reach on your iPhone if you use ColorSplash for iPhone, a relatively new image-editing app from the developer of Juxtaposer and Juxtaposer Lite, two other image editors for iPhone photos.

After you load an image, ColorSplash will turn it into a black-and-white photo--but not permanently. Your full-color image will remain in your iPhone's camera roll. You use your finger as a paintbrush in ColorSplash, and with every swipe, more of the photo's original color is revealed. Keeping control over the brush strokes was our biggest challenge. While pinching and pulling the screen to zoom in is the recommended way to paint the object you want to emphasize, this was in many cases laborious, certainly more so than it would be to choose a smaller brush size.
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The real razor phone

Motorola has made and sold millions of Razr phones over the past few years. While we cannot deny the success of that handset, it's got nothing on the Cool758 from China. This dual-SIM mobile phone has a real razor on its base--yes, the kind you shave with.

Once you pop the bottom off this candybar phone, an electric shaver is revealed, an unusual combination, to say the least. Other features include a 2.6-inch QVGA touchscreen display, Bluetooth, FM tuner and dual-band GSM connectivity. The Cool758 will be perfect for those days when you wake up late and need to trim that stubble on-the-go--as long as you haven't forgotten to charge your phone.

Via Engadget

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