AT&T has released a new iPhone commercial that jabs at the Verizon network. The commercial features a guy making last minute dinner reservations on his iPhone while chatting on the phone to his partner. The point of the commercial is to brag about AT&T’s ability to use voice and data concurrently, ending with “only AT&T’s network lets your iPhone talk and surf at the same time.”

It’s kind of funny watching the two major US iPhone carriers fight it out over commercials, and Apple is happily caught in the middle here since the product being sold is always the iPhone, the competition is between service.

Recently, Verizon’s “I can hear you now” iPhone commercial started airing, which pokes fun at AT&T’s voice and reception quality.

GreenPois0n RC5 2 has been released, the update to 1.0 RC5 aims to fix an initialization error that some users reported. The “initialized” error seemed to be somewhat random, but it prevented the GreenPois0n jailbreak from continuing on the effected devices.

Download GreenPois0n RC5 2

GreenPois0n RC5 is available for Mac and Windows:

• Download Now (Mac)
• Download Now (Mirror 2) (Windows)

GreenPois0n RC5 works to jailbreak iPhone, iPod touch, iPad, and Apple TV 2.

You can follow our how to jailbreak iOS 4.2.1 with GreenPois0n untethered guide if you aren not sure how to use the app. Remember that GreenPois0n is not an unlock, you can read the difference between a jailbreak and unlock.

If you click and hold on any open applications Dock icon, you will launch Expose for just that app and it’s corresponding windows.

You can also access this app-specific Expose with the F10 key (Function+F10 on newer Mac models and keyboards), I’ve used this trick for a long time to quickly switch between windows in a given app and once you get in the habit of doing so it’s hard to go back.

Expose is a great feature of Mac OS X, although I tend to use the Command+Tab application switcher for switching between apps.

There’s a new commercial for the Verizon iPhone that jabs indirectly at AT&T: “It’s beautiful, it’s intelligent, even genius. But does your network, work?” that question is of course answered by the ubiquitous Verizon Guy; “Yes, I can hear you now.”

The takeaway from all this Verizon vs AT&T stuff is this: you can make clearer phone calls with Verizon, but AT&T’s 3G speed is faster.

The GreenPois0n untethered jailbreak for iOS 4.2.1 has been released and it allows you to jailbreak any iOS 4.2.1 device completely untethered. This will work on the iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad.

How to Jailbreak iOS 4.2.1 Untethered with GreenPois0n 1.0 RC5

Backup your iPhone or iOS device before proceeding. Do not use this jailbreak if you rely on a carrier unlock!

• Download GreenPois0n untethered jailbreak
• Connect the iOS device to the computer with GreenPois0n 1.0 RC5
• Launch GreenPois0n and click on “Jailbreak”
• Follow the onscreen instructions and counter carefully, this lets you know how long to hold buttons
• Press and hold the sleep button for 2 seconds
• Continue holding sleep, press and hold home for 10 seconds
• Release sleep button, continue holding home button
• Your iOS device should now be in DFU mode and it is ready for the jailbreak
• Click on “Jailbreak” and let the exploit install
• After your device has been jailbroken, go to your iPhone and look for the green “Loader” icon and launch this to install Cydia

GreenPois0n 1.0 RC5 includes the ability to have custom animated boot logos. This version of GreenPois0n is superior to the latest Redsn0w release because it does not require developer saved SHSH blobs of 4.2b3.

Troubleshooting: If you are having problems getting Loader to download and install Cydia after using GreenPois0n RC5 jailbreak, the servers may be overloaded. In this case try again, or you can do the following:

• Turn off your device
• Download and open Redsn0w 0.9.7b6
• Make sure the only option checked is “Install Cydia”
• Follow the instructions in Redsn0w app and Cydia will install

Thank you to Rock_Bege and our other commenters for the solutions.

The latest version of Greenpois0n has been released for download, it offers an untethered jailbreak for iOS 4.2.1. The Mac and Windows release come as GreenPois0n 1.0 RC5, with a Linux version due out soon.

Download GreenPois0n Untethered Jailbreak for iOS 4.2.1

If the initial download link does not work, be sure to try one of the mirrors.

• Download for Mac (Download from Mirror 2) (Mirror 3) (Mirror 4)
• Download Now for Linux (Coming Soon)
• Download Now for Windows (Mirror 2)

We will update download links when they become available for all platforms.

Follow our how to jailbreak iOS 4.2.1 untethered with GreenPois0n 1.0 RC5 guide if you need assistance.

As usual, backup your iPhone before proceeding. If you are currently using a tethered jailbreak like redsn0w, you should restore before jailbreaking again with GreenPois0n 1.0 RC5.

Update: For those encountering a problem where the app stalls on “initialized”, you can download GreenPois0n RC5 2 to resolve this.

Update 2: The Windows version of GreenPois0n Untethered will be released tomorrow or the next day, according to p0sixninja. We will update download links for all versions of GreenPois0n as they are available.

Update 3: GreenPois0n RC5 for Windows has been released. It supports the untethered jailbreak for iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, and Apple TV2, running iOS 4.2.1.

Apple has released Xcode 4 GM for those who are enrolled in the Mac and iOS development programs. Xcode 4 is a significant update to the Xcode IDE and includes both iOS SDK 4.2 and Mac OS X SDK 10.6.

According to early reports, XCode 4 GM allows developers to submit iOS and Mac apps directly to their respective App Stores. Other improvements include:

Xcode 4 has a brand new, single window interface for all major workflows

Interface Builder is now integrated within the main Xcode IDE

Assistant shows a paired editor with complementary files (headers, UI controllers, etc.)

Fix-it highlights code where an error is detected, as you type, and can even fix it for you

Version editor shows a live comparison through SCM history, using Git or Subversion

LLVM compiler 2.0 includes full support for C, Objective-C, and now C++

LLDB debugger is faster, and uses less memory than the GDB debugging engine

– see notes below on how to enable the LLVM compiler or LLDB debugger

Instruments adds System Trace, and new iOS instruments including OpenGL ES

XCode 4 requires Mac OS X 10.6 to install, if you are a developer you can get the GM release from Apple’s Developer Center.

Update: That came and went quick, Xcode 4 GM build has now been pulled.

Update 2: Xcode 4 GM is back again for downloading from Apple’s Dev Center.

The more apps you install on your Mac, the more bloated your “Open With” menu gets. Some apps that are completely unrelated to the file type may show up in the “Open With” menu and just serve to clutter your choices. This is annoying, so lets restore the menu to what it should have.

How to clear the “Open With” menu in Mac OS X

You need to get to ~/Library/Preferences/, you can get there with the Go to Folder (Command+Shift+G) option, or by the instructions below:

• Open your Home directory
• Open the “Library” folder
• Find and open the “Preferences” folder

Once you are in the proper folder:

• Locate “com.apple.LaunchServices.plist”
• Rename “com.apple.LaunchServices.plist” to “com.apple.LaunchServices-backup.plist” or just relocate it elsewhere (you can delete it completely if you aren’t worried about backups)

Now the next time you use the “Open With” menu it will only include current applications in the list. You may need to log in and out of your user account for changes to take effect.

The Open With menu is fairly adjustable in its default behavior, you can also learn how to change a file types association across the board or on a per file basis for more specific files.

If you liked this tip, check out tons of other Mac tips and tricks.

What about clearing out only the repeat apps?

Another issue, though it’s completely separate than cleaning out the entire menu, is when repeat entries of apps are contained within the Open With submenu. If you want to ditch those duplicates, you’ll need to head to the Terminal and you can read how to go about removing duplicate entries from the Open With menu here.

Update: 1/22/2013

Wondering how fast data transfer is on the Verizon iPhone 4 versus the AT&T iPhone 4? If you’re concerned about maximum 3G transfer speeds, AT&T may be your network.
Read more »

Who needs rumors about the iPad 2 when the real thing is floating around in New York? Reuters is reporting that a prototype iPad with a front facing camera was spotted today at the News Corp launch of The Daily digital newspaper.

A Reuters eyewitness saw what appeared to be a working model of the next iPad with a front-facing camera at the top edge of the glass screen at a press conference to mark the debut of News Corp’s Daily online paper in New York on Wednesday.

A source with knowledge of the device confirmed its existence, adding that the final release model could have other features.

Unsurprisingly, neither News Corp or Apple commented on the device or its sighting. I wonder if anyone inadvertently got a picture of it? If prototypes are being openly used in public, a release date can’t be too far off…

If you’ve been waiting to get your hands on the Verizon iPhone 4, you’ll be able to pre-order the device from Apple’s Online Store starting on February 9. You can either reserve one online and pick it up at your Apple Store on the next day, or you can have it shipped to your house. If you wait until the release day on February 10th, Apple Stores will open at 7am and, judging by all the hype and pent-up demand, it’s quite possible they will sell out.

Here is Apple’s official announcement regarding pre-orders:

Apple today announced an exclusive opportunity for Verizon Wireless’ 94 million customers to pre-order iPhone 4 online beginning on Thursday, February 3 through the Apple Store (www.apple.com) and at www.verizonwireless.com/iphone. Due to high demand, customer orders will be fulfilled on a first come, first served basis.

Beginning on Wednesday, February 9, all qualified customers will be able to order an iPhone 4 on Verizon through the Apple Store (www.apple.com) for delivery or reserve for in-store pick up beginning February 10.

The price of the Verizon iPhone 4 starts at $199 with a two year contract, and the Verizon iPhone plan prices start at roughly $75/month for basic data, texting, and voice, before taxes and fees.

If you are using metered internet service either through an official Personal Wi-Fi Hotspot service, a jailbroken iPhone WiFi hotspot, or a local cable or telecom monopoly that’s imposing bandwidth caps and limits on your internet access, or any other bandwidth restricted service, you’ll probably want to keep an eye on your bandwidth consumption so that you know where you are and when you may hit your limit. We’re going to show you how you can watch your bandwidth in Mac OS X for free by using an app called SurplusMeter.

Read more »

Want to send that incoming phone call directly to voicemail? Can’t take a call at the moment and would rather deal with it later? Maybe it’s just a number you don’t recognize and you’d rather wait to see if someone leaves a message before determining if it’s worth dealing with.

Regardless, it’s really easy to send any call immediately to your voice mail box on iPhone, even though there’s no obvious option to do it directly on the screen when a call comes in.

Read more »

If you travel around North America or have any intention on doing so in the foreseeable future, fire up iTunes and download some free Lonely Planet guides to 13 American and Canadian cities while they last. Each city guide is an individual iPhone app that will work on the iPhone or iPod touch, no cellular access is required.

Why the free giveaway? Lonely Planet says it’s in honor of the snowpocalypse that is hitting half of the continent, which has canceled hundreds of flights and left many thousands of travelers stranded at various airports and cities around the country while they wait for the snow to clear and flights to resume.

Lonely Planet makes fantastic travel aids, and these city guides are usually $5.99 each, making free a pretty great deal. If you download all 13 of them, you’ll get $78 of guides for nothing. This is a limited time offer, they are only free from now until 6pm on February 4th, so download them while you can.

All links below are direct to the iTunes App Store:
Read more »

Apple has relaxed their water damage policy for the iPod, and this probably includes the iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch as well.

This is good news for users who have had experience with a device getting slightly moist from something like fog or rain, but there are certainly going to be limits to what Apple determines is acceptable liquid contact.

Specifically, the new policy states the following:
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Apple has released iOS 4.3 beta 3 to developers via the iOS Dev Center. The build number for the latest iOS beta release is 8F5166b and is available only for iPad, iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS, and iPod touch 3G and 4G.

Download iOS 4.3 Beta 3

You can download the latest beta IPSW files if you are a registered iOS developer from the IOS Dev Center.

Beta 3 is expected to include mostly bug fixes. Updates to Apple TV 2 and the iOS SDK have also been released.

The iPhone reached a 17.25% market share among smartphones by the fourth quarter of 2010, although this accounts for only 4.2% of overall cell phone market share.

Capturing 17% of the smart phone market is a pretty impressive feat, but even more so is the iPhones share of profits, which comes in at a staggering 51% despite only grabbing 22% share of overall revenues:
Read more »

Want to change what the default app is that launches when you double-click or otherwise open a file from the OS X Finder? It’s easy to do, and you can change any individual files default application by doing the following from the Mac Finder:

• Select the file (or file type) that you want to adjust
• Hit Command+i to “Get Info” on the file
• Click to expand the “Open with” section within that files info screen
• From the pull down menu, select the application you want to open this specific file with
• Close the Get Info window

This will only change the default behavior of that specific file.

Changing Default Apps for All Files of a Format

Going one step beyond a single file association, you can change the default app of all of the chosen files format by being at the same Get Info window, selecting then app, then click on the “Change All” button. This lets you assign something like Preview to always open all PNG files, for example.

Do note that if you click the “Change All” button you will change that file types association across Mac OS X, causing all instances of that file format to open in the application you chose. Even after that has been enacted however, you can still override it on a file-by-file basis by using the aforementioned Get Info trick to alter the relationship between that single file and a given application.