Jeff Karim's Blog - JAS.MY

The iPhone 4G Apple's iPhone has been the subject of much annoyance for many already in 2011 -- and it's only Jan. 3. A 'Year 2000"-esque bug suppressed the alarm function of the iPhone on January 1 and 2 for iPhone owners who set single day alarms on those dates. Apple spokeswoman Natalie Harrison told Reuters in an e-mail, "We're aware of an issue related to non-repeating alarms set for January 1 or 2. Customers can set recurring alarms for those dates and all alarms will work properly beginning January 3." However, many overslept on Jan. 3 after the 'self fix' appears to have failed once again. (See the iPhone 4 in TIME's Top 10 of Everything 2010.)

Speculation surrounding the Apple iPad 2 has been rife over the last couple of weeks, Apple has been filing all sorts of patents. First there was the carbon fibre back, then the slide out keyboard, various indicators of dual cameras and a spate of silicone cases to support speculation of new USB and SD ports.

By Michael Heller As I wrote before, I find it hard to believe that Google ever expected or planned for the Nexus One to be a commercial success. The Nexus One was the pinnacle of a phone designed and distributed for the tech elite, early adopters and other geeks. No one else would be willing to brave buying a phone sight unseen from a web store. No one else would be likely to do the research needed to understand the benefits of the stock Android experience. No one else would be likely to look past the fairly utilitarian UI after seeing the far prettier options like the Sense UI from HTC. Now, Google is distributing the Nexus S to the masses via Best Buy and Carphone Warehouse, but, as far as I see, it’s still a geek-only device.

In the world of Android, things can move pretty fast. Case in point: Just weeks ago, Google took the wraps off of Android Gingerbread, the latest and greatest version of its mobile operating system. Aside from the newly launched Samsung Nexus S device, no phone even has the software yet -- heck, plenty of users are still waiting for the Android 2.2 upgrade -- but that's not stopping people from looking even further ahead.

Tens of thousands of early Windows Phone 7 adopters are enjoying connectivity with their Xbox Live account, but that's going to seem like small potatoes when Sony delivers PlayStation integration to millions of existing smartphone owners. The PlayStation app is going to revolutionize the mobile game space. At least, that's what Sony hopes. In this world of iPhone and Android gaming, it only makes sense for the juggernauts of console gaming to start making a presence.

As a Samsung Galaxy S smartphone owner (specifically, the T-Mobile Vibrant S), I was eager to get my hands on a Galaxy Tab from Verizon Wireless and smudge up the 7-inch touchscreen a bit. To be fair, I had reservations about the Tab from the first time I heard it was coming. My Galaxy S phone, although a nice piece of hardware, has lacked in the software department. Nearly five months later, I'm (and the rest of the United States) is still awaiting an Android 2.2 update promised numerous times, and the Samsung TouchWiz UI its a bit cumbersome and prone to lag.

Good news for you folks with the non-U.S. version of the HTC Wildfire: Your Froyo update is on the way. OK, so's Christmas. But, really, it's coming. HTC said so on its Facebook page this morning: "We know many of you have been asking for information about an update for your Wildfire. Well, we have good news! Android 2.2 (aka Froyo) on Wildfire is scheduled to begin rolling out this week in Europe, reaching all areas of the world by February. Thanks for your patience as these updates roll out; we think you’ll enjoy the final product."

Developers supporting the various mobile operating systems on the market are crucial to their success. For instance, without developers, Apple’s App Store would never have gotten as popular as it is today as there would be no Doodle Jump and certainly no Angry Birds. Luckily, there are a whole slew of dedicated developers producing software for iOS and Google’s Android is no different.

It’s long been believed that the next iteration of Android – after the newly-launched Gingerbread 2.3 - would be Android 3.0. Honeycomb is to change the way people see and use Android, if not period then for a better tablet experience. From what we’ve seen so far in leaks and cameo appearances, Honeycomb definitely looks like enough of a jump to consider it more than just another incremental release.

If you live in Canada and happen to own the Samsung Galaxy S Vibrant smartphone, hopefully you didn?t already update it to Android 2.2 because many people are reporting issues with upgrading. In fact, the issues are so prevalent that Samsung has temporarily pulled all future Android 2.2 updates to the Canadian Vibrant until the issue can be further examined.

Android 2.3 source code goes up for developers As promised with the launch of the Nexus S, Google's Open Source Project on Friday posted the source code for Android 2.3. The move both lets developers modify the base OS but also gives the go-ahead to companies making devices without the Google blessing needed for Android Market or certain official apps.

E Fun just announced the addition of a new tablet under its Nextbook brand, the Next3. It uses an 8.4-inch touchscreen and runs on Android 2.1. The tablet can access YouTube, browse the web and the Borders eBook store through Wi-Fi. Users can also download third-party apps, although it's not explicit whether or not it supports Android Market. E Fun builds in 2GB of memory with an SD card slot. Speakers are built-in, and the company preloads 25 e-books to get users started. The Nextbook Next3 ships this week, priced at $230, and includes a protective pouch with a magnetic flap.

Developers on XDA have apparently managed to get Android 2.3 Gingerbread booting on an HTC HD2, just a day after the OS was launched and the SDK released. Several members had independently been working on a port since user spbeeking uploaded a copy of the Gingerbread system.img file extracted from the SDK, but it was DarkStone1337 who provided the final piece of the puzzle in the form of a modified inti.rc file. However, since DarkStone is unable to release any actual builds due to time constraints, he is leaving further development up to the rest of the community --meaning that no simplified package yet exists for end users to... Gingerbread Ported to HTC HD2 Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.5