The response to our iPhone 3G givaway has been tremendous. We love all the new action in our forums and we fully expect it to continue after this week — which is to say that The iPhone Blog adores you and will continue to treat you right, stay tuned for future contests in the coming weeks.
Meanwhile, the time has come to announce the winner of our contest as chosen randomly via random.org. It’s iLoveiPhones! Check your inbox for an email from me and we’ll set you up with the $400 Gift Card we promised so you can be all set for Friday. Happy? Happy! Joy? Joy!
The air of contest finality is thick and we’re going to make it thicker still: this is our final Wait-a-Thon post: comment here for your last chance to win a $100 iTunes gift card. We’ll be sending out the final gift cards tonight (yes, it’s still tough what with Apple’s limit to the # we can buy in a month, but we figured out a workaround).
So congratulate iLoveiPhones (a username so good it’s gotta be kismet) and let us know: once the iPhone 3G is really and truly out, what sort of stuff do you want TiPb to cover in the coming weeks and months? Are apps king? Shall we pit the iPhone 3G against every other darn smartphone out there, one by one? Should we continue to bring you tips and tricks? What’ll it be?
Update: Looks like we made somebody’s day. 
I’m never gonna forget this day. Thanks so much to everyone here at the iPhone forum and the staff at the iPhone Blog. Couldn’t have done it without you guys. Being someone who’s never won anything, this is quite a day!
In our forums, dhp1080 asked an important question: since the iPhone 3G comes out on the 11th and whoever wins is surely going to be the sort to go out and buy one that day, doesn’t it make more sense to hold the drawing for the winner of our iPhone 3G giveaway a bit earlier?
Yes, yes it does.
So we’ll be holding our drawing for the iPhone 3G givewaway the morning of Wednesday, July 9th. Since Apple capitulated to the standard operating procedure for activating phones, we can’t just pick one up and send it to ya. So instead we’re going to do the following: overnight a gift card to an Apple Store (or AT&T store, if necessary) for 400 smackers. That will cover most of the necessary bases: people eligible for upgrade that want the 16gig device, people ineligible for upgrades, etc.
All of which means you have six days left to get yourself up to 20 (non-garbage) posts in our forums in order to qualify for the drawing. Get your full contest details here. Meanwhile, this also means that this week and the next are the last weeks for the iPhone 2.0 Wait-a-Thon giveaways as well.
We will wait-a-thon this post too. We already asked you what your plans were for July 11th. Now we want to know: Are you Exchanged-up at work? If so, will your IT Overlords put your iPhone on the network? If you’re not, will you be going push with Mobile Me? Will you forego push altogether?
If you haven’t heard, we’re planning on giving away an iPhone 3G as soon as it’s available. You can find the full details of the contest here, but the short version is this: if you made more than 20 posts1 in our iPhone Forums before July 22nd, we’ll enter you in the random drawing. Of course, Apple decided to throw us a curveball by requiring in-store activation — so we’ll either try to buy it the old fashioned way for ya or if push comes to shove we’ll get a way for you to get it on your own on our dime. Shame on your Apple.
The other thing that didn’t get released yesterday? The iPhone 2.0 software update. That means that the iPhone App Wait-a-Thon continues! Anytime you see a post tagged “Wait-a-Thon,” comment on it for that week’s drawing for a $100 iTunes gift card. Full deets on that contest are here. Plus we have new winners2:
You may have noticed this is a Wait-a-Thon post. So it is and here’s what we need to know: The new activation requirement isn’t all that great? What else isn’t all that great? Curved back got ya down? Does the lack of Cut and Paste cut you to the bone? Let us know to enter for the $100 gift card and go register and start chatting in the forums for a chance at the iPhone 3G!
1 Posts most not be spammy and worthless — at our discretion. This isn’t a democracy!
2 For those of you still waiting on your cards, we’ll get them out today (we hope). Turns out iTunes limits the number of Gift Cards you can buy in a day month!. Who Knew? Time to open up another account, we suppose.
You’ll probably hear from a lot of people who attended WWDC that the app demo section of the keynote was much too long and even :gasp: boring. But the games showcased at WWDC continue to prove that the iPhone is going to be a force in mobile gaming.
- Super Monkey Ball - First shown in the March Event, Sega has expanded on Super Monkey Ball including over a 100 levels and four classic Monkeys. The graphics in Super Monkey Ball for iPhone is on par with anything from the DS.
- Enigmo - A physics based game using reflectors to put water in a bucket. Ported in three days, looks like frustratingly mindless fun.
- Cro-Mag Rally - A racing game using the iPhone’s accelerometer as a steering wheel. Nine different tracks, 10 unique cars and looks really fun. That too was ported over in three days.
- Digital Legends Entertainment – They demoed a 3D fantasy game that displayed the graphical prowess of the iPhone. It probably didn’t reach the high end level of PSP but it only took two weeks to develop. Available sometime in September.
The games are priced at $9.99 and available through the AppStore. After paying similar prices for Texas Hold ‘Em on my old cell phones, I think these would be easy purchases. What do you think?
iPhone firmware 2.0 was detailed in WWDC with some rumored features finally seeing the day of light. Features include:
- iWork and Office document viewing
- Save images from E-Mail directly to photo library
- Contact Search
- E-Mail/SMS Bulk Delete & Move
- Scientific Calculator when switched to Landscape Mode in Calculator
- Support for a TON of languages including Chinese, Japanese
On top of those features, Jobs detailed enterprise support for mass distribution of apps (up to 100 authorized iPhones) and also unveiled a new push notification system for apps that would use it (such as IM clients).
Firmware 2.0 will be available for iPhone users come ‘Early July’ for free and for iPod Touch users at a reduced fee (compared to the last update) of $9.95.
image credit: iPhoneBuzz
Headline says it all, don’t it? The iPhone 3G is going to be released on July 11th, 2008. It will be $199 for the 8 gig version, $299 for the 16gig version. It will come in black and white (in the 16 gig anyway). It has 3G speeds for data, 2.8 times faster than EDGE. It has GPS. It will have 3rd party software.
Mark your calendars!
Looks like we’re having load issues from all the traffic. We’re working it, bear with us! A reminder – no need to refresh this page, the widget updates automatically.
As promised, we’ll be starting up our MetaLiveBlog in just over an hour. We’ll be tracking all them other live blogs and posting updates and our thoughts and commentary real time. A few seconds behind, but way ahead in pithy commentary, eh? We should have one or two quick posts up before the excitement begins, but we’ll move this post back up to the top when it all gets going. Keep an eye out (like you needed us to tell you that).
We’re using the fancy widget above, so no need to refresh the page to get the updates. You can also submit your own comments and thoughts with the widget above and we can publish them as things get going.
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WWDC hasn’t even started yet and the news is already getting crazy. Sling Media, the creator of the Slingbox, is developing an iPhone version of SlingPlayer Mobile that’ll allow your iPhone to stream media via your Slingbox.
For those who don’t know, Slingbox is a TV streaming device that allows users full control of your TV set at home through the internet. It’s basically a combination of technological prowess and fairy dust that enables this VERY sweet product to “just work”. Meaning if you’re a Dodgers Fan on a business trip in the East Coast, you can watch their games as if you were in your own living room. If you saved the season finale of Lost to your PVR, you can watch that too.
Now that convenience is coming to your iPhone. Which is fitting since SlingPlayer Mobile has been available for WinMob, Palm, and Symbian for some time now and we all know none of those platforms offer a screen quite like the iPhone. Though it’s still very, very early in development, Sling has a proof-of-concept version of SlingPlayer Mobile running on jailbroken iPhones.
SlingMedia will also be holding live demonstrations of SlingPlayer Mobile on the iPhone and iPod Touch for those attending WWDC. Their Product Manager Vicky Shum will be at the Starbucks at 120 4th Street, San Francisco (across from the Metreon) between 10am and 4pm Pacific Time on Monday, June 9th. The demo is open to everybody, so if you’re in the bay area for WWDC feel free to check it out!
Thanks MegaZone for the tip and Rob for the heads up!
Our iPhone App Wait-a-Thon has been a smashing success (once we get around to announcing the winners, that is. See the latest batch below). What’s that, you ask? Any time you see a post tagged “Wait-a-Thon,” any comment (with a legit email) is entered into that week’s drawing for a $100 iTunes Gift Certificate. We’re doing it to ease the pain of having to wait for Native Apps on the iPhone 2.0 software update. Go check out the full rules of the App Wait-a-Thon here, and you can always find the latest Wait-a-Thon opportunity here.
Of course, at the time we were expecting that the iPhone 3G would come much later. However, as recent rumors seem to show, it’s likely going to be coming much sooner than we expected. So here’s the deal: in addition to the weekly iTunes giveaway, we are going to give away an iPhone 3G once it’s available!
After the break – the details on how to enter to win the iPhone 3G and winners of a bunch of App Wait-a-Thon contests. Read on!
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The Phone different iPhone Accessories Store is running a special to congratulate us on the big ol merger between the old PD blog and the iPhone Blog. They are marking down 5 different types of cases to 99 cents apiece! Here’s what’s on sale while supplies last:
Marware Sidewinder Holster for iPhone
The sleek Sidewinder Holster from Marware securely holds your iPhone, and also features an innovate sidearm that holds ear buds (with cord management) and optionally Apple’s Bluetooth headset.
Smartphone Experts Holster for iPhone
Smartphone Experts’ engineers have designed the best iPhone holster yet! The iPhone securely snaps into this holster’s rubber interior (the rubber reduces the chances of scratching your device during daily wear), and a large ratcheting swivel clip ensures a snug fit to your belt or purse strap.
Marware SportGrip Backwinder for iPhone
Sport Grip Backwinder for iPhone is the perfect innovative blend of cord management, comfort, and carrying convenience.The sides, top, and bottom of the iPhone are protected by slip-free silicone, while the smooth rubberized backing is rigid and offers a unique backwinding cord management system.
Smartphone Experts Leather Hardcase for iPhone
The Smartphone Experts leather hard case will keep your iPhone protected with its strong impact resistant molded shell wrapped with soft, sleek leather.
Smartphone Experts Metal Cover for iPhone
Unique and colorful, this metal cover will keep your iPhone’s screen protected and scratch free. The iPhone can be placed into the metal cover either face-in or out. If you want to keep your screen protected while it’s in your pocket or purse, just place your phone face-in and the soft velvet cushioned interior will keep the screen scratch free.
…Each case is only 99 Cents! Go find them and more at the iPhone Accessory Store by Phone different.
