iPhone--can u live without it???

Apple iPhone isn't exactly the best kept secret in the world. The odds are it's either on your Christmas wish list or you may as well already have it. Love it or hate it, the iPhone has set the bar pretty high in terms of interface and user-friendliness and, almost six months after its launch now, the competition has not yet managed to fight back with a product likely to generate the same buzz.

Apple iPhone official pictures

Now, don't get us wrong, the iPhone is not the perfect gadget. It has its flaws and most of them stem from the tendency of the people at Apple to oversimplify things. Plus, they have taken good care that the only way to upload or download content to and from your iPhone is via iTunes. It's an expression of their closed-ecosystem product portfolio - if you want their hardware, you must use their software. Our hopes for a 3G-enabled Euro-iPhone went down the drain; the 2-megapixel camera has not changed either; official third-party application support will not be available before February 2008 and, finally, on the Old Continent the device will cost 1.4 times more (with the current exchange rate) than back in US. Why all the fuss then, you might ask. Actually, to get a feel of that, you must have held the handset in your hand and tried it for real. It's nothing like anything you've seen. Touch sensitive screens are nothing new, but Apple have created a unique user interface that reacts to your touch in an almost physical way.

Now that the air is thick with jailbreaking and unlocking, seems like the right time to step back from what iPhone is and look at what it could be. We know there's enough of you who don't like spending hours reading stuff on the Internet just to enhance their phones. So we are looking at some applications that take the capabilities of the device to another level. A

Getting in

Looks like the red pill went down well, now back to our game. It seems jailbreaking the original firmware version of the iPhone (1.0.0, later updated to 1.0.2) was not that much of a problem. Jailbreaking is the action that gives you access to the iPhone file system. As you will see, having your iPhone jailbroken swings the door wide open to a world of options, even if you don't intend to unlock and prefer to stick with what AT&T has to offer (O2 and T-Mobile too, starting today). Getting in or jailbreaking serves the double purpose of allowing you to install third-party applications and getting your iPhone unlocked should you choose to do so. Once the original firmware was jailbroken native third-party applications started sprouting like mushrooms in rain.

However, with the major 1.1.1 firmware update all that went to the dogs. And, like in a game of cat and mouse, crackers and coders started searching again for the Holy Grail of Jailbreaking the "Jesus phone" (sorry for the Biblical approach). Apple added fuel to the fire by announcing that jailbroken iPhones are no longer subject to their limited warranty service.

However, it was only a matter of time for a new jailbreak to surface and allow firmware 1.1.1 iPhone owners to take a bite at the third-party application scene. Virginizing software was also made available, so firmware 1.0.2 users who have been tinkering with their iPhones could restore them to their original state and get the 1.1.1 update or keep their warranty if they please.

Things are now pretty much back to normal and the third-party application scene is again bristling with new ideas and solutions for making your iPhone a happier puppy. Today, November 9, the Euro iPhone will start selling and word is out that it would flaunt the spanking new 1.1.2 firmware version. It will supposedly be jailbreak resistant, so early buyers of the EuroPhone will probably have to wait a little before they unleash the true powers of their new mobiles. However word is out that some developers out there have already hacked the 1.1.2 firmware of the iPod Touch, so a jailbreaking solution for the EuroiPhones is probbaly just around the corner.

Getting back to the basics, three things need to be done before new software can be installed on the iPhone. First is the jailbreak (that's not unlocking) and installation of the AppTapp (Installer) software. It's a software manager that allows users to install or uninstall software. It contains a catalog of applications from a default source (website) and supports adding additional sources (websites) of even more available programs. So that's about it and it's really that simple. The last thing to do is install an application that patches the Home screen (better known as Springboard) of the iPhone, so it can accommodate more slots for icons - those are needed for the new applications.

A crew of developers has created the AppSnapp application (not to be confused with AppTapp Installer) that does all those three things en bloc. And right before you ask, no, it doesn't unlock your iPhone. For that purpose the AnySIM 1.1 software is used right afterwards, but that's out of the scope of this article.

You can read more information on the actual process of applying the AppSnapp magic with simple instructions over here. The process is more than simplified and it takes no more than 10 minutes before you are up and running. At the time of writing this article, news broke that more than 100 000 iPhones have been jailbroken using this routine. And it was made available only a couple of weeks ago. Bear in mind that all that applies to the 1.1.1 firmware.

Where to, now?

Probably the best place to start exploring a free iPhone is the AppTapp application with the available programs. It appears as a blue icon dubbed Installer on the Springboard. The default source of applications is limited however, so installing the Community sources available in the Installer is another option. There are several other sources available that can be added manually - just google around for ones that other people trust.

If you do have an unlimited data plan with your carrier, please skip the following paragraph. For the less lucky, probably the first application worth adding is Services. It allows you to switch off the EDGE functionality so you don't accidentally pay for some pricey megabytes - the iPhone has no habit of asking before downloading something.

Now, one thing the original iPhone won't do for you is change wallpapers under the springboard icons. Their background is always black. The Summerboard application sorts that out. Themes can even be applied to the springboard icons. How cool is that?

Changing the looks of the iPhone: from standard to really cool

What if more icons could be fitted in the springboard dock (the lowest row of icons)? Well, the xLaunch application does just that. The current example includes the icon of the Search application - a real goodie. It enables letter-by-letter searching in your contact list - a feature that misses in the iPhone phonebook, even though it's available when creating a new message and filling in your "To:" line.

Fitting a fifth icon on the dock • filtering contacts

Another thing that the iPhone can't do right-out-of-the-box is deleting individual Call records and individual SMS balloons. You only have the option of clearing all of your call logs and you can only delete an entire conversation with a certain person. The CallID application comes to the rescue with call records, while the SMSD application helps delete individual SMS balloons that are no longer needed.

Nokia's new slim 6300, one of its best

Nokia traditionally pays no attention to all latest-and-greatest trends in the mobile industry, specifically the hype around “slim-n-sleek” devices, when some are ready to throw functionalities and a part of the common sense away to get the casing thinner. But for Nokia it is experience what really does matter – therefore, they rely on ratio between various aspects, from design and hardware filling to software. Nokia 6300, just like any of its 6000-series monoblock-shaped siblings, should sport the optimal price/quality ratio; and don’t be deceived with the marketologists’ so-called truths that Nokia has engaged in the race for the slimmest-gadget-ever – this is definitely not the case. Nokia does foster plans to launch very portable solutions, yet reaching either extreme in terms of size is a non-value-added way and they do realize that.

However Nokia 6300 is rooted not in the modern age – as a matter of fact it’s a reincarnation of the top selling Nokia 6100 that arrived in the market early in 2003. There is a little to doubt about – these two models share almost the same strategies in marketing and positioning, but differ in the sense of casing’s thickness, which is highlighted more for the 6300. The target audiences for Nokia 6100 and Nokia 6300 are pretty much the same – men and women with more or less equal ratio for either model, who are want to acquire a fair feature-pack (they call it “modern” and by that mean player, radio and crisp display), eye-candy design and, more importantly, an eye-picking brand on the phone for reasonable money. Relying on this audience is not a miscalculation – the way Nokia 6300 is positioned has been proven by the experience of the prior offerings, thus give a warm welcome to a new Nokia’s bestseller.

However Nokia 6300 is rooted not in the modern age – as a matter of fact it’s a reincarnation of the top selling Nokia 6100 that arrived in the market early in 2003. There is a little to doubt about – these two models share almost the same strategies in marketing and positioning, but differ in the sense of casing’s thickness, which is highlighted more for the 6300. The target audiences for Nokia 6100 and Nokia 6300 are pretty much the same – men and women with more or less equal ratio for either model, who are want to acquire a fair feature-pack (they call it “modern” and by that mean player, radio and crisp display), eye-candy design and, more importantly, an eye-picking brand on the phone for reasonable money. Relying on this audience is not a miscalculation – the way Nokia 6300 is positioned has been proven by the experience of the prior offerings, thus give a warm welcome to a new Nokia’s bestseller.

Another thing that gives us the right to call the 6300 the successor to Nokia 6100, apart from positioning, is its size – previously we saw 102x44x13.5 mm on the 6100, and today a slightly bigger 106.4х43.6х13.1 mm is what you can experience with the 6300, which doesn’t really make any difference, but at the end of the day Nokia 6300 appears to be thinner due to being only 13 mm deep at the display area, whereas the keypad block is slimmer, measuring a hint less than 12 mm. Such uneven thickness distribution is nothing new, though – some other Nokia-branded solutions sport the same peculiarities, for example Nokia 3230. But getting back to the 6300, such approach to the design is not a coincidence, for the developers wanted to make it gain some resemblance with sliders that would boost the handset’s image and looks.

NEGATIVE POINTS

As for the negative experience of Nokia 6100 usage, there were some complaints about the plastic quality, the back cover reliability and the painting. Basically what they would have overlooked on less popular and demanded devices was the sticking point for the 6100 and created certain issues with post-sale service and built up a somewhat negative image of the product. Nevertheless such feedback didn’t affect the sales much, but even at this rate they were taken account of by Nokia. As a result, for the very first time in its class, Nokia 6300 retains metal details, specifically the battery cover, made of stainless steel, and the front-panel. And this is another indirect evidence that the handset will be produced in great amounts and eventually will top the charts. That is why more trims are probably to come – there is no way they will let only the black plastic and metal be on the market all alone. I think a bit later Nokia will release a device painted in black from head to toes and maybe a blue- or red-colored edition.

NEW LOOK

The glossy plastic used in the 6300 is good; in fact it is similar to that found in Sony Ericsson T610i. Even though it draws scratches and finger-prints, they are not too prominent, unless you start examining it, of course. The metal is exposed to wear and tear as well – first grazes appear in a week’s time, but you won’t stumble upon them at first. Overall, all surfaces of this kind suffer from the same “illness” – Nokia N91 is not an exception with is battery cover.

Weighting only 94 grams, the 6300 fits in hands pretty well and can be carried in any desired fashion. The handset is easy to use, yet retains a number of shortcomings in ergonomics. In light of the face it makes use of dual-interface layout, on Sony Ericsson’s “advice”, dedicated volume keys have been moved to the right side in most phones. This proves to be handy when this key doubles as zoom-button in camera mode. However since Nokia 6300 houses only a single side-mounted key, specifically the volume rocker key, why would they need to relocate it to the right? To blindly follow up the trend? But it is not convenient, and due to being hard-to-push and placed quite deep inside the casing, this key won’t make the user very happy.

The set of functional keys is one level above the numeric keypad – all buttons are handy, this goes especially for the navigation key and OK button. Owing to the glossy plastic used, this part of the keypad is really pleasant to manage

Following resolutions are supported:
1600x1200;
1280x960;
800x600;
640x480;
320x240;
160x120.
Two minimal resolutions were added for creating photos that would fit as wallpapers for display. Three JPEG compression types are supported: basic, normal, high. Considering the fact that photos do not blow your imagination away, it is better to set maximal quality, it won’t be worse than it is.
Shutter sound can be disabled, there is 8x digital zoom, but there is no reason to use it. You can save photos on both memory card and internal memory.
Some effects can be applied to already made photos, should they be used initially – it is up to you to decide. Such effects as False Colours, Greyscale, Sepia, Negative, Solarize are available.
Those who love to shoot a lot of photos at once, there is corresponding mode for you – camera makes up to 3 shots at a time, all settings remain similar to selected for single shot, including resolution. There is auto-timer for self-shots.

Video. Handset allows recording video in 3GP format, available resolution – 128x96 pixels, or 176x144 pixels. Recording quality is divided into three parameters. You can limit recording’s length, but it also can be limitless, until memory runs out (of memory card or internal memory). Effects can be applied for video just as they can be applied for photos, they are all the same.

Impressions
The volume of 64-tone polyphony is enough for almost any conditions. The receiving part also does fine, as it equals all other phones of the current generation. The silent alarm is average strength-wise, but can be still felt while the handset is in pocket.
This model by Nokia has turned out to be extremely fetching, and the most pleasing thing is to find it running on 3d Edition Feature Pack 2, which grants the 6300 acceptable music capabilities, radio, and well-implemented phonebook and organizer. A2DP did better than before as well – though it’s only my own opinion, don’t know whether it will be proven by facts or not. Refined materials used, marginal flaws in ergonomics – all this makes the handset looks like a kind of masterpiece. When it comes to the class it originates from, the 6300 comes out on top with its superb display, which is one of the market’s best screens as well. Like all other S40 cameras, the one found on the 6300 is beneath criticism and is seemingly embedded in the device just for sake of it. On-screen quality of snaps, owing the brilliant display, is pretty much fine, but viewing them on PC won’t make you happy. Video recording capabilities have been gotten down to the bottom level under the pressure of marketing strategy.
In the middle of February the 6300 will be retailed for 350-370 USD and will go down to 350 USD in no time. And there is a good probability that this model will be a long-liver among handsets – it might even exceed the lifecycle of 1,5-2 years and still look fetching, and there are many facts confirming this point of view, including the example of Nokia 6100. In fact the 6300 is not rivaled directly by any other model, however form-factor wise Samsung F300 could pose a threat to Nokia’s latest offspring, however its price tag is a bit hefty and specifications are quite different as well. But the Walkman-branded phone, scheduled for release pretty much on the same date and boasting smaller size and a whole lot of music features under its belt for a slightly higher price, is a totally different story. Music and fashion lovers will definitely go for Sony Ericsson’s offering in this case, but this target audience won’t be overlapping that of Nokia 6300 too much.
If a handset boasting golden price/quality ratio and equipped with a brilliant display, good specs, which is reliable wherever you go and is what you seek – Nokia 6300 should definitely be on your short-list. Nokia’s range delivers even more models of this kind - Nokia 6233 and Nokia 6131. But the toughest competition, as it seems, will take place between the 6233 and the 6300, since it’s quite easy to run around like a madman looking at their specs – Nokia 6233 gets ahead by offering stereo-speakers and better keyboard, but the screen is its drawback, as well as non-minimizable player and on top of that software has less to bring to the table. Quite challenging choice, isn’t it? So, everything I have left to do now is repeat my own words again – Nokia 6300 is undoubtedly one of Nokia’s best offerings to date.