Rumor: Apple testing new iPhones with 3.95-inch, 1136 x 640 displays

Reports that Apple will be finally increasing the screen size of its next-generation iPhone have certainly been piling up over the past few weeks. And today, the credible 9to5Mac is throwing its proverbial hat into the ring.

The site has just published a report that, if true, confirms a number of existing theories regarding Apple’s next handset including display size and resolution, and the oft-rumored smaller charging port. Read on for details…

According to the report, Apple is currently testing multiple new iPhone prototypes. This echoes a previous story from iMore that claimed that the company has yet to decide on a finalized design for its next smartphone.

“Right now we know of a few next-generation iPhone candidates in testing. These prototype phones are floating around Apple HQ in thick, locked shells in order to disguise the exterior design to “undisclosed” employees. We know of two next-generation iPhones in testing with a larger display: the iPhone 5,1 and iPhone 5,2.”

The site isn’t quite sure which model will make it to retail shelves, but it says that both of the devices include new displays that measure 3.95-inches diagonally with resolutions of 1136 x 640. This matches up with the recurring 4-inch iPhone theory, which says that the display will get a bit taller but stay the same width, that has been floating around for the past month.

The report also mentions that both of the prototypes feature all-new, smaller dock connectors — another concept we have heard before.

“Apple will be bringing these dock connectors to all of their iOS devices over time, and it is note exactly a “pill-shape” as rumored. It’s basically a much narrower version of the current squared off (on the corners) dock connector. It is between the size of a Micro-USB and Mini-USB connector.”

Even with 9to5Mac’s accurate track record on the iPhone rumor front, it’s worth noting that these devices are still in the prototype phase and may never see the light of day. Not to mention that Apple has been known to float around  ”fake” prototype models to discourage leaks.

That being said, the report does line up rather nicely with several previous dispatches. And from where we’re sitting, it definitely looks like Apple will be releasing a redesigned iPhone this fall with a larger display and a new dock connector.

What do you think? 








[Via: idownloadblog]

The case for a four-inch iPhone with 16:9 display

There’s no shortage of iPhone mockups these days, a tell-tale indication of the launch date drawing near (we’re looking towards a Fall launch). We already told you about one possible iPhone mockup and shared an interesting theory regarding the argument for a four-inch iPhone.

The problem is, the vast majority of artists’ renditions depict an iPhone with a blown up display that, however, features the same 4:3 aspect ratio as all prior models.

So, how about a four-incher with a 16:9 aspect ratio display?

The above mockup, credited to Dan Provost (via MacStories), depicts a 16:9 iPhone with a four-inch display.

The image above shows the current iPhone, a mockup of the alleged 16:9 phone, and a mockup with a bigger 3:2 screen at 300dpi, which measures 3.84” diagonally. I estimated that the physical size of the phone would need to increase slightly, getting taller in the 16:9 version and wider in the 3:2 version. I don’t think either of these size increases are deal breakers. The 3:2 version is actually still narrower than the iPhone 3GS.

The big issue with changing the aspect ratio: apps.

Because Apple definitely would not reduce the iPhone 4/4S’s 326 pixel-per-inch count on a larger canvas, elongating the 4:3 inch to a 16:9 aspect ratio would increase the number of pixels, meaning all existing apps would not scale up properly to fill up the entire screen.

The easiest and the least user-friendly solution would entail letterboxing the app’s user interface.

Provost has an interesting take on the dilemma: 

I think Apple should keep the 3:2 aspect ratio and increase the physical size until it reaches the 300dpi retina boiling point, maintaining the 960×640 pixel count.

Doing this would let Apple brand a four-inch iPhone with a 16:9 display under the Retina moniker whilst keeping the existing 960-by-640 pixel resolution for app compatibility.

Bumping up the screen to a 16:9 aspect ratio and retaining a 326 pixels-per-inch density would increase total number of pixels available. Apple could use those extra pixels for additional user interface elements.

Think widgets, a souped up multitasking bar, bigger Dock icons and even – why not – touch controls like the navigation buttons found on the Samsung Galaxy Nexus.

Another good example are banner notifications which normally appear subtly at the top of the display, overlaid on top of the running app. The additional pixels would let Apple render banner notifications unobtrusively, right above the running app.

Those are all valid points and if Apple chooses to take the 16:9 route, they’re definitely not going to make everyone’s life harder by requiring that developers update their apps just to cater for an extra few hundred pixels.

Apple is all about simplicity. I’m convinced they’d rather keep apps running at the 960-by-480 pixel resolution and use the extra pixels to tweak the iPhone’s user interface and provide some unique software features not found on 3:2 iPhones – just like Siri has remained an iPhone 4S exclusive, even though it’s just software that we know runs well on non-A5 devices.

There seems to be a consensus out there that Apple should increase the screen size of a next-generation iPhone to a four-inch(ish) canvas.

I’m not a proponent of blowing up the iPhone’s display just because the Android camp has been doing it in the absence of any meaningful and major differentiator.

But I sure would prefer my iPhone with a 16:9 aspect ratio display.

How about you? 








[Via: idownloadblog]

i4Siri: a promising 3rd party Siri server

Ever since the possibility of a Siri Proxy server was first unveiled, it’s been all the rage. The promise of being able to run Siri on older devices? Count me and about a million other people in.

Now you can hardly look around without seeing some blurb about a 3rd party Siri server, and although security (or lack thereof) is still a big concern, it’s apparently not concerning enough to keep the masses of pre-iPhone 4S owners away.

Andrew Sheridan, one of the primary folks behind the i4Siri project reached out to me about a month ago asking me to try his Siri server. Here are some of the results of that trial…

To accomplish this feat, i4Siri uses Spire — chpwn’s Siri jailbreak tweak that we covered in-depth a while back.

Once installed, and a special certificate is installed, you can begin using the i4Siri server. The folks behind the project have implemented Cleverbot into i4Siri, which generates a response to every inquiry, regardless if Siri would have normally responded to it or not.

One thing to keep in mind about i4Siri is that it’s not your traditional iPhone 4S stock Siri implementation. For example, you can’t ask it where the nearest Italian restaurant is, and expect a relevant response. The same goes with setting alarm clocks and the like.

You can, however, use Siri jailbreak tweaks like MyAssistant, AssistantExtensions, and various others. That alone makes using i4Siri worth it, and adds much “replayability” to this sort of Siri implementation.

Since the server is still in beta, I found that 1 out of every 3 requests resulted in a failure message from Siri. That’s a little worrisome to be honest, because what happens when it goes out of beta and many more people are using the service? Siri’s popularity can not be underestimated, and even the greatest of planning can fall well short of expectations.

If the team behind i4Siri can pull off a miracle and make their server stable for the masses, then i4Siri is definitely worth checking out when it exists beta. Whether or not they can accomplish this is yet to be seen. Keep your eyes peeled for more info. Again, the server is not yet available publicly, but more info should be divulged soon.

What do you think?

[Via: idownloadblog]

Corona Updated to Bring Support for iPhone 4S on iOS 5.0

Jay Freeman (saurik)@saurik

Corona 1.0-8: @sbingner noticed that 1.0-6/7 failed on iPhone 4S 5.0 (the only supported 5.0 build; absinthe's Corona had worked): fixed. :(

1 Feb 12

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It’s a big day for Corona. After being updated days ago to fix the DRM issues in iBooks, Saurik just tweeted that the untether has been updated yet again, this time to resolve problems with the iPhone 4S running iOS 5.

If you’re having problems with iBooks on your jailbroken device, you can install Corona directly from Cydia. If you’ve already installed Corona, you can simply update it via Cydia and you should be good to go.






[Via: idownloadblog]