Privacy Policy
This site is owned and operated by http://radioshock.in/, is absolutely legal.All material provided in this site are for the purpose of information only. While all efforts have been taken to ensure accuracy of the information, anyone who acts on the basis of information provided will have to exercise caution and judgment when acting on the basis of information provided.Radio Shock and its associates cannot be held responsible for inaccuracies, if any, in the information provided. The company shall not be liable for loss or damage or other inconvenience suffered by any one as a result of viewing this site or using any information provided in this site.
This site should be viewed purely as a source of information and should not be taken to guarantee or warranty for performance of any activity. Radio Shock makes every effort to exclude malicious software from this site and cannot accept responsibility for any loss or damage which may occur from any use of information on this site. You are strongly recommended to regularly check your computer for malicious software with appropriate and up to date anti virus software products.
Radio Shock is not responsible for any aspect of any web site it does not control, nor does it accept any responsibility for sites linked from this one. Creating a link does not imply that we endorse the views expressed on that linked website.
All material provided in this site are subject to Indian laws prevailing from time to time and shall not be applicable to any countries/regions where any of the material provided herein is prohibited or ineffective. While all procedures and tips provided are expected to convey general information, they may not be exhaustive or complete in all respects. The actual procedures/documents to be submitted may vary.
Radio Shock does not guarantee its accuracy, timeliness or completeness. This website, Its webmasters or Its ISP cannot be held responsible for any copy-right issues.
If you have any concerns contact us through contact us form.By accessing and browsing the Site, you accept, without limitation or qualification, these Terms and Conditions. If you do not agree to these Terms and Conditions, please do not use the Site.
This site should be viewed purely as a source of information and should not be taken to guarantee or warranty for performance of any activity. Radio Shock makes every effort to exclude malicious software from this site and cannot accept responsibility for any loss or damage which may occur from any use of information on this site. You are strongly recommended to regularly check your computer for malicious software with appropriate and up to date anti virus software products.
Radio Shock is not responsible for any aspect of any web site it does not control, nor does it accept any responsibility for sites linked from this one. Creating a link does not imply that we endorse the views expressed on that linked website.
All material provided in this site are subject to Indian laws prevailing from time to time and shall not be applicable to any countries/regions where any of the material provided herein is prohibited or ineffective. While all procedures and tips provided are expected to convey general information, they may not be exhaustive or complete in all respects. The actual procedures/documents to be submitted may vary.
Radio Shock does not guarantee its accuracy, timeliness or completeness. This website, Its webmasters or Its ISP cannot be held responsible for any copy-right issues.
If you have any concerns contact us through contact us form.By accessing and browsing the Site, you accept, without limitation or qualification, these Terms and Conditions. If you do not agree to these Terms and Conditions, please do not use the Site.
Contact Us
If you have any concerns , please feel free to e-mail us at mekala193@gmail.com
or you can send a mail us at
Mekala Prashanth
20-457/4 Hanuman Nagar
Devarakonda
Andhra Pradesh - 508248
INDIA
or you can send a mail us at
Mekala Prashanth
20-457/4 Hanuman Nagar
Devarakonda
Andhra Pradesh - 508248
INDIA
Send Photos in Full Resolution from Your iPhone
Even though your iPhone snaps pictures at pretty decent resolutions (2048x1536 from the 3GS, 1600x1200 on previous iPhone versions), your device automatically resizes photos to a measly 800x600 when you go to email them. Here's how to fix that.
The resized pictures may be enough under certain circumstances, but if you want your pics to make it through your email in their full glory, it's a simple matter of copy and paste.
As weblog Geek stuff points out, the resizing only happens when you share photos from your photo library via your iPhone's traditional Share button—which imports the resized pictures into an empty email. Instead of taking that route, either tap and hold on a single picture and then tap copy or select multiple pictures in album view and tap the Copy button at the bottom of your screen.
Then head back to the home screen, fire up Mail, compose a new email, and paste the photos into the new message. Rather than the smaller, resized pictures, you'll get the full resolution versions. Good to know!
51 Amazing & useful Tricks n Tips for Blogger
Have you ever wondered how those bloggers remove the Blogger Navbar? Or how they add a Read More link in their posts?
Well in this article, I’ve post an amazing collection of 50 Amazing Blogger Tricks Hacks which are useful to bloggers using the Blogger platform. I am just giving you the links here. There are very useful tricks . You can make your blog as professional website.
Always its better practice to keep Privacy Policy , Contact Us & About Us Pages for your blog. It give more elobarated idea of our blog to the readers.
1. Expandable Posts or Read More Hack
2. Recent Posts Widget
3. Recent Comment Widget
4. Top Commentators Widget
5. Remove Label Post Count
6. Add Page Element to Header and Blog Posts
7. Sticky Posts in Blogger
8. Add Images or Icons to Sidebar Links9. Remove NavBar in Blogger
10. Add Scrollbars to Blog Widgets
11. Add Favicon to Blogger URL
12. Simple Search Widget
13. Wrap Adsense Ads in Post Body14. Special Effects for Peekaboo Posts
15. Page Navigation Hack for Blogger
16. Uploading Animated .gif Image to Blogger
17. Making Pull Down Menu
18. Add “Print this” Option in your Blog
19. Speed up your Blogger Page Load Time
20. Random Background Image
21. Ratings for Posts
22. TabView Widget
23. Adding a Front Page to your Blog
24. Creating Thumbnail Pictures
25. Adding a BreadCrumb Trail to your Blog Post
26. Showing your Blogger Labels as Vertical Tabs
27. Navigation Bar28. Add Digg Button to Blogger Post
29. Social Bookmarking Widget30. Add Signature to your Posts
31. Add Background Music32. Embed Comment Box Below Blogger Post
33. Remove Word Verification from Blogger Comments
34. Show Blog Post Headers In Archive35. Disable Right Click on Blog
36. Label Cloud in your Blog
37. E-mail Icon Generator
38. Podcast in Blogger39. Transparent Background
40. Rounded Corner Headers
41. Insert Powerpoint and PDF Files
42. Flash for Blogger
43. Author Comment Highlighting44. Control Number of Posts in Label Pages45. Sidebar Comments Display
46. Show Recent Referrers
47. Language Translation Widget
48. Postpone or Delay your Blog Posts Via E-mail
49. Add Clickable Pictures to your Blog
50. “Email Me” Link
51. Make your Blog DoFollow (Thanks to DoFollow Fan for the tip!)
Secure your Wireless network
Today I will show you the tricks and techniques to protect your Wireless LAN connection. In this article i will show you how to secure your Wireless LAN. As in the previous article LAN security was sub divided into two parts, similarly Wireless LAN security is also divided into two parts. The difference is in the security issues.With Wireless Networking, no cables or wires are needed to network your computers and share your Internet connection. Wi-Fi connects computers, printers, video camera’s and game consoles into a fast Ethernet network via microwaves.
Following actions should be taken.
- The most important thing is to change the default password of your access point.
- Firmware and the drivers of your wireless access point and wireless adapters should be up to date. They should be updates whenever necessary.
- There should be a combination of high level encryption and decent keys (WPA2/802.11i ) recommended.
- Wireless users should be authenticated with different protocols like 802.1X, RADIUS, EAP (including EAP-PAX, EAP-PSK, EAP-TLS, EAP-TTLS, EAP-FAST, EAP-POTP, EAP-IKEv2, EAP-GPSK, PEAP, and EAP-SIM.
Track Stolen Laptop And Notebook With Windows WebCam Software
How to recover, track and trace stolen laptop? Prevention is better than cure, why do you want to trouble yourself tracking a stolen laptop when preventing it from being stolen in the first place is possible? With the popularity and portability of netbook and notebook, laptop thief is on the rise.
Laptop Alarm used to be free, now it is a shareware. Why pay for something when there is a free alternative known as LAlarm, it is a free laptop alarm security software, which sounds an alarm when a laptop is in danger of being stolen or losing data, and it destroys data if the laptop is stolen.
Laptop theft is common and a constant threat to laptop security. LAlarm emits a loud siren sound when a thief tries to steal a laptop. For example, removing the AC power cord from a locked laptop will trigger the alarm. Download LAlarm version 2 now (free for personal use)
Track Stolen Laptop Using Windows WebCam:
Yes, finally a laptop recovery software that has a webcam tracking abaility, albeit it is only available in the paid version which cost only US$25.00. Which is a small amount of money consider the fact that your laptop can cost somewhere between a few hundred to a few thousand dollars.
- Protect data against theft. LAlarm protects sensitive data in a laptop by permanently destroying the data if the laptop is stolen. The US Department of Defense clearing and sanitizing standard (DOD 5220.22-M) is used to ensure that data is securely destroyed. LAlarm can also be used in wiping out all data at the end of laptop lifecycle.
- Enhance laptop security. LAlarm can help retrieve data and identify a thief by running online backup software and webcam application software in case of laptop theft.
How To Make A Bootable Windows USB Flash Disk
1.Does your computer support booting from USB?
Usually, if its an option in your BIOS boot sequence menu, the answer to this is yes. If its not there, look for BIOS updates. If you are not sure, proceed and see what happens
2. Sorting out the "Bootability" of your USB-Drive
Connect your USB drive to your computer, directly, without a Hub. Then, shut down your computer, disconnect any other hard disk drives from it, and insert your original Windows XP CD into the drive. Start the installation, and proceed to the section where you are allowed to pick a hard drive. If it goes beyond the partition selection, your drive is already fine for booting Windows XP. If not (seems to be the cases with many of the Freecom USB HDDs for example), you will get an error like "Windows is unable to find your drive, partition, data etc bla". This is usually not a big problem.
All you need to do is "properly" format the drive. Reboot into your normal Windows, and get this HP tool , and use it to format your HDD completely. I chose NTFS format, worked fine everytime i tried. After this, my drives are recognized as valid installation devices by the Windows XP installer.
(In fact, i did not manage to create a USB primary partition with FAT32 that was recognized as being installable)
3. Dumping the original Windows CD into an ISO File
Pretty easy one. Simply open WinISO, and select Actions -> Make ISO from CDROM, and save your CD image.
4. Extracting the files we need to work on
After the CD dump is done, close and reopen WinISO. Then, open the ISO file you just created using File -> Open.
Now, click the I386 folder, and select the following files (Ctrl key to multi-select)
TXTSETUP.SIF
DOSNET.INF
USB.IN_
USBPORT.IN_
USBSTOR.IN_
Select Actions -> Extract and put the resulting files into some folder to work on them.
5. Unpacking IN_ files
Use the Cab SDK (from the command line) for extracting the contents of the .IN_ files. Each of them contains exactly one .inf file. If you are unsure how to use the Cab SDK, here is an example command line:
cabarc x USBSTOR.IN_
You should end up with three new files in the folder, called:
usb.inf
usbport.inf
usbstor.inf
You can now delete the .IN_ files.
6. Editing the files
This is the main job. i ll also try to explain a bit whats happening. Use a simple Texteditor like Notepad.
TXTSETUP.SIF
This file is loaded on the initial install step by the Windows XP CD installer. In this file, we will change the way Windows treats USB devices during system setup -- the default is to only treat them as input devices during installation -- we will change this to include mass storage driver support (which needs to be loaded into the installer much earlier in order to work).
First, move the following entries from [InputDevicesSupport.Load] to the [BootBusExtenders.Load] section , as shown here
[BootBusExtenders.Load]
pci = pci.sys
acpi = acpi.sys
isapnp = isapnp.sys
acpiec = acpiec.sys
ohci1394 = ohci1394.sys
usbehci = usbehci.sys
usbohci = usbohci.sys
usbuhci = usbuhci.sys
usbhub = usbhub.sys
usbstor = usbstor.sys
[InputDevicesSupport.Load]
usbehci = usbehci.sys
usbohci = usbohci.sys
usbuhci = usbuhci.sys
usbhub = usbhub.sys
usbccgp = usbccgp.sys
hidusb = hidusb.sys
serial = serial.sys
serenum = serenum.sys
usbstor = usbstor.sys
... now the same for [BootBusExtenders] and [InputDevicesSupport]
[BootBusExtenders]
pci = "PCI-Bustreiber",files.pci,pci
acpi = "ACPI Plug & Play-Bustreiber",files.acpi,acpi
isapnp = "ISA Plug & Play-Bustreiber",files.isapnp,isapnp
acpiec = "Integrierter ACPI-Controllertreiber",files.none,acpiec
ohci1394 = "IEEE-1394-Bus-OHCI-konformer Anschlusstreiber",files.ohci1394,ohci1394
usbehci = "Erweiterter Hostcontroller",files.usbehci,usbehci
usbohci = "Open Hostcontroller",files.usbohci,usbohci
usbuhci = "Universeller Hostcontroller",files.usbuhci,usbuhci
usbhub = "Standard-USB-Hubtreiber",files.usbhub,usbhub
usbstor = "USB-Speicherklassentreiber",files.usbstor,usbstor
[InputDevicesSupport]
usbehci = "Erweiterter Hostcontroller",files.usbehci,usbehci
usbohci = "Open Hostcontroller",files.usbohci,usbohci
usbuhci = "Universeller Hostcontroller",files.usbuhci,usbuhci
usbhub = "Standard-USB-Hubtreiber",files.usbhub,usbhub
hidusb = "HID-Parser",files.hidusb,hidusb
serial = "Treiber fur seriellen Anschluss",files.none,serial
serenum = "Enumerator fur seriellen Anschluss",files.none,serenum
usbstor = "USB-Speicherklassentreiber",files.usbstor,usbstor
usbccgp = "USB Generic Parent Driver",files.usbccgp,usbccgp
Next, we also have to write several keys into the registry. Convieniently, the txtsetup.sif allows you to specify files that are parsed and instered into the registry at install time. Insert the following in the [HiveInfs.Fresh] section:
[HiveInfs.Fresh]
AddReg = hivedef.inf,AddReg
AddReg = hivesys.inf,AddReg
AddReg = hivesft.inf,AddReg
AddReg = hivecls.inf,AddReg
AddReg = hiveusd.inf,AddReg
AddReg = dmreg.inf,DM.AddReg
AddReg = usbboot.inf,usbservices
and also in [SourceDisksFiles]
[SourceDisksFiles]
usbboot.inf = 1,,,,,,_x,3,,3
bootvid.dll = 1,,,,,,3_,2,0,0,,1,2
kdcom.dll = 1,,,,,,3_,2,0,0,,1,2
Finally, save and close TXTSETUP.SIF. We are done with it.
DOSNET.INF
Now, open DOSNET.INF , and change the second [Files] section to look like this:
[Files]
d1,usbboot.inf
d1,_default.pif
d1,12520437.cpx
d1,12520850.cpx
usb.inf
Change the bolded lines in the [StandardHub.AddService] and [CommonClassParent.AddService] sections:
[StandardHub.AddService]
DisplayName = %StandardHub.SvcDesc%
ServiceType = 1 ; SERVICE_KERNEL_DRIVER
StartType = 0 ; SERVICE_DEMAND_START
ErrorControl = 1 ; SERVICE_ERROR_NORMAL
ServiceBinary = %12%\usbhub.sys
LoadOrderGroup = Boot Bus Extender
[CommonClassParent.AddService]
DisplayName = %GenericParent.SvcDesc%
ServiceType = 1 ; SERVICE_KERNEL_DRIVER
StartType = 0 ; SERVICE_DEMAND_START
ErrorControl = 1 ; SERVICE_ERROR_NORMAL
ServiceBinary = %12%\usbccgp.sys
LoadOrderGroup = Boot Bus Extende
usbport.inf
Change the bolded lines in the [EHCI.AddService], [OHCI.AddService] , [UHCI.AddService] and [ROOTHUB.AddService] sections:
[EHCI.AddService]
DisplayName = %EHCIMP.SvcDesc%
ServiceType = 1 ; SERVICE_KERNEL_DRIVER
StartType = 0 ; SERVICE_DEMAND_START
ErrorControl = 1 ; SERVICE_ERROR_NORMAL
ServiceBinary = %12%\usbehci.sys
LoadOrderGroup = Boot Bus Extender
[OHCI.AddService]
DisplayName = %OHCIMP.SvcDesc%
ServiceType = 1 ; SERVICE_KERNEL_DRIVER
StartType = 0 ; SERVICE_DEMAND_START
ErrorControl = 1 ; SERVICE_ERROR_NORMAL
ServiceBinary = %12%\usbohci.sys
LoadOrderGroup = Boot Bus Extender
[UHCI.AddService]
DisplayName = %UHCIMP.SvcDesc%
ServiceType = 1 ; SERVICE_KERNEL_DRIVER
StartType = 0 ; SERVICE_DEMAND_START
ErrorControl = 1 ; SERVICE_ERROR_NORMAL
ServiceBinary = %12%\usbuhci.sys
LoadOrderGroup = Boot Bus Extender
[ROOTHUB.AddService]
DisplayName = %ROOTHUB.SvcDesc%
ServiceType = 1 ; SERVICE_KERNEL_DRIVER
StartType = 0 ; SERVICE_DEMAND_START
ErrorControl = 1 ; SERVICE_ERROR_NORMAL
ServiceBinary = %12%\usbhub.sys
LoadOrderGroup = Boot Bus Extender
usbstor.inf
Change / Add [USBSTOR.AddService] section to this:
[USBSTOR.AddService]
DisplayName = %USBSTOR.SvcDesc%
ServiceType = 1
StartType = 0
Tag = 3
ErrorControl = 1
ServiceBinary = %12%\USBSTOR.SYS
LoadOrderGroup = Boot Bus Extender
new file: USBBOOT.INF
Create a new file called USBBOOT.INF in the same directory as your other changed files, and put the following content into it:
[usbservices]
HKLM,"SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\USBSTOR","DisplayName",0x00000000,"USB Mass Storage Driver"
HKLM,"SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\USBSTOR","ErrorControl",0x00010001,1
HKLM,"SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\USBSTOR","Group",0x00000000,"System Reserved"
HKLM,"SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\USBSTOR","ImagePath",0x00020000,"system32\DRIVERS\USBSTOR.SYS"
HKLM,"SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\USBSTOR","Start",0x00010001,0
HKLM,"SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\USBSTOR","Type",0x00010001,1
HKLM,"SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\usbehci","DisplayName",0x00000000,"USB 2.0 Enhanced Host Controller Miniport Driver"
HKLM,"SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\usbehci","ErrorControl",0x00010001,1
HKLM,"SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\usbehci","Group",0x00000000,"System Reserved"
HKLM,"SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\usbehci","ImagePath",0x00020000,"system32\DRIVERS\usbehci.sys"
HKLM,"SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\usbehci","Start",0x00010001,0
HKLM,"SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\usbehci","Type",0x00010001,1
HKLM,"SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\usbhub","DisplayName",0x00000000,"USB2 Enabled Hub"
HKLM,"SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\usbhub","ErrorControl",0x00010001,1
HKLM,"SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\usbhub","Group",0x00000000,"System Reserved"
HKLM,"SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\usbhub","ImagePath",0x00020000,"system32\DRIVERS\usbhub.sys"
HKLM,"SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\usbhub","Start",0x00010001,0
HKLM,"SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\usbhub","Type",0x00010001,1
HKLM,"SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\usbuhci","DisplayName",0x00000000,"Microsoft USB Universal Host Controller Miniport Driver"
HKLM,"SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\usbuhci","ErrorControl",0x00010001,1
HKLM,"SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\usbuhci","Group",0x00000000,"System Reserved"
HKLM,"SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\usbuhci","ImagePath",0x00020000,"system32\DRIVERS\usbuhci.sys"
HKLM,"SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\usbuhci","Start",0x00010001,0
HKLM,"SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\usbuhci","Type",0x00010001,1
HKLM,"SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\usbohci","DisplayName",0x00000000,"Microsoft USB Open Host Controller Miniport Driver"
HKLM,"SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\usbohci","ErrorControl",0x00010001,1
HKLM,"SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\usbohci","Group",0x00000000,"System Reserved"
HKLM,"SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\usbohci","ImagePath",0x00020000,"system32\DRIVERS\usbohci.sys"
HKLM,"SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\usbohci","Start",0x00010001,0
HKLM,"SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\usbohci","Type",0x00010001,1
7. Repack the inf files into their original IN_ format
If you have not already deleted your extracted .IN_ files, do so now. They need to be replaced. Open a DOS shell again, and navigate to the folder with your changed files. Then exceute the following commands:
cabarc n USB.IN_ usb.inf
cabarc n USBPORT.IN_ usbport.inf
cabarc n USBSTOR.IN_ usbstor.inf
The three IN_ files should now exist again.
Congratulations. All out modifications are done.
8. Inject the changed files into the ISO
Open your Windows CD image again with WinISO. Navigate to the I386 folder, and delete the following files from the ISO, saving the changes to the ISO afterwards:
DOSNET.INF
TXTSETUP.SIF
USB.IN_
USBPORT.IN_
USBSTOR.IN_
Just to be sure all is updated in the ISO, cloase and repoen the ISO in WinISO. Now, again go to the I386 folder and select "Add Files". Now add your changed files, in detail:
USBBOOT.INF
DOSNET.INF
TXTSETUP.SIF
USB.IN_
USBPORT.IN_
USBSTOR.IN_
Save the ISO. You are done.
9. Burn the ISO back to CD
Feel free to use any burning package you want. I used the free and simple Burnatonce
10. Install Windows XP from the CD
Shut down your computer. Disconnect ANY internal and external hard drives (so Windows cannot find them during installation and mess up their Master Boot Records hehe). Some computers will have trouble to boot without an internal HDD attached, check in your BIOS and, if possible, remove the HDD from the boot sequence and set the USB Harddisk as the first boot device, and the CDROM as second.
Also, now connect your USB Harddrive directly to the computer, without any Hubs in between.
Windows should install just fine, with the exceptions noted below.
Issues you will encounter during installation:
During driver installation, the USB drivers will prompt you, as they are "not certified" - This is normal. Our changes invalidated the checksum, and therefore the driver is no longer signed. Just press "yes" a couple of times.
Upon completion of the install, the system will complain once on the first bootup that the pagefile does not exist. You can ignore this for now, as Windows will work fine without it. People are looking at fixing this issue, but its not critical for now.
Once everything is up and running , shut down and reconnect all your drives.
Apple iPhone 3GS Review
It would be easy to dismiss the Apple iPhone 3GS as an inconsequential hardware upgrade. But to do so would underestimate how much, collectively, the phone's new features augment the iPhone experience. With the iPhone 3GS, Apple solidifies its leadership position in a crowded smartphone landscape.
But inside, the iPhone 3GS has been fully redesigned, with new core components (CPU, memory, integrated compass, video recorder) in different locations, no less. And together with the iPhone OS 3.0 upgrade (which makes many compelling features available to existing iPhone customers), the iPhone 3GS stands tall. After pounding on it, I can say that at the full-subsidy prices, the 3GS is a surprisingly worthy upgrade for heavy users of the phone's Web and gaming capabilities, and for general-use apps--even if you're only jumping from the iPhone 3G. Read on to learn why.
Performance:
Apple has played down the upgraded component specs on the iPhone 3GS; instead, the company simply promised noticeably faster performance. And the 3GS, with its CPU boosted (to 600MHz, from the iPhone 3G's 412MHz CPU) and its memory doubled (to 256MB), indeed delivers a noticeably zippier user experience compared with the original iPhone and the iPhone 3G.
Not only do apps open faster, they respond faster, too. These differences were evident in my use over both 3G and Wi-Fi. The annoying lags for accessing data or redrawing a screen are gone; moving around from one complicated Web page to the next feels downright breezy, not onerous.
Call quality and reception remained the usual mixed bag we've come to expect from AT&T. Calls sounded adequate, but sometimes lacked the crisp clarity I've experienced with other handsets, including the T-Mobile G1 and the T-Mobile MyTouch 3G. How much of this is attributable to the AT&T network versus the handset itself is unclear, but moot anyway, given that the phone remains locked to AT&T, and its network is the one iPhone users must contend with.
Apple's claims of longer battery life from the previous generation are true, though not by much. According to the PC World Test Center's battery life tests, the iPhone 3GS had an average talk time 6 hours and 12 minutes--only 34 minutes longer than the iPhone 3G. Still, I couldn't get through a full day of real-world usage without needing a charge (I engaged in talk and data activities, plus checking my location on a map, and shooting off some photos and videos, all with the Wi-Fi connectivity enabled). For data, the company rates the battery at up to 9 hours time over Wi-Fi, and 5 hours over 3G.
Imaging:
Beyond the performance boost, the iPhone 3GS features a notably improved imaging experience that ranks high among the hardware upgrades built into the iPhone 3GS handset. The camera jumps from 2 to 3 megapixels, a welcome if moderate increase that makes the phone's camera somewhat more viable for on-the-go snaps. And the camera now includes a video mode--finally.
In some shots, the focus select had minimal impact on what area of the image appeared sharp. But other shots seemed to benefit greatly, even though when the feature brightened the dark areas, it completely blew out the light areas. The macro mode works invisibly and without intervention. Still, I was annoyed that the autofocus box didn't confirm sharpness for me by turning green, as happens on many point-and-shoot cameras; sharpness was often impossible to tell on the iPhone's screen.
Though Apple boasts of improved low-light handling with the iPhone 3GS camera, I had mixed results with indoor andlow-light shots. A low-light dusk shot ended up being very grainy, with degenerating building details when viewed at full resolution. Some indoor shots looked decent, but others were barely passable and would have clearly benefitted from a flash, had Apple included one. Maybe we'll see Apple catch up to its competition by adding a flash in its next version of the iPhone handset.
The bigger news is the inclusion of video capture and editing. The iPhone 3GS camera app has a slider switch to activate the video camera, which records 30 frames per second video at 640-by-480 resolution. In video mode, the camera shutter turns into a red record button you press once to start recording, and again to end recording.
Sending video is very easy: The phone has integrated hooks into YouTube, MobileMe (Apple's $99-a-year service), and e-mail. Just select the service, and proceed from there; for YouTube, the iPhone 3GS will automatically compress the file in preparation for upload to your YouTube account. Want to trim your video before sending? No problem: The in-player iMovie-like frame editor makes snipping the beginning or end of a clip a breeze.
The video feature has a few other rough spots. You can't easily find the videos you capture: They're lumped in with the rest of the images in your Camera Roll, with the video camera icon and length running along the bottom of the thumbnail. You also can't access your videos from within the iPod music and video player. And, unfortunately, the much-ballyhooed editing feature is rather limited: Once you make an edit, it's done. You can't undo them, and you can't save a copy of the original video--annoying if you want to keep the longer video for yourself and send an excerpt to a friend, for example.
Voice Control:
Voice dialing is fairly common, and has been for years. This is a seemingly basic feature on which the iPhone 3GS is playing catch-up. But, at least it goes further by providing a range of voice controls for both dialing and music playback. When it works, I found it a wonderfully handy feature when driving, or even when walking down a street.
Hold the Home button for a count of three (a count of two invariably took me one page to the left), and the Voice Control screen pops up. Your command options scroll across in a rush, prompting your memory of the available commands (some imprecise mutations of the "accepted" options appeared to work): Play album, previous track, play songs by, dial, call, play, what song is playing, yes, no, cancel, shuffle, play more songs like this.
One detail worth noting: Apple makes the iPhone 3GS more accessible to vision-impaired users through its new Voice Over feature. Once enabled, the phone can talk at you as you navigate among the touchscreen icons.
Display:
The iPhone 3GS has the same 3.5-inch capacitive touchscreen display as its predecessor. The display still looks beautiful, displaying images at 320-by-480-pixel resolution. But these images are a bit "warmer"--they don't have quite the vividness that they do on the iPhone 3G.
As shown by a side-by-side comparison in an earlier article, the iPhone 3G's colors pop more; it has deeper browns at the top of the notepad, and deeper grays in the keyboard. The same screen on an iPhone 3GS has a dullish gray on the keys. In both instances, the auto-brightness setting was off, and the brightness level was identical.
In some images, we detected a slightly greenish cast on the iPhone 3GS. We found the color distinction quite noticeable on screens with white backgrounds, such as the search tab, the calendar, and the photo library. While some of these differences may not have stood out when we looked at the iPhone 3GS on its own, they did when we put the new handset next to the 3G.
Everything Else--Including OS 3.0
A couple of stray features have been crammed into the iPhone 3GS, and while they may seem minor, they're sure to find their fans.
The newly integrated compass is handy for location-based and mapping applications (and if you're communing with Mother Nature). The compass has distinctive, easy-to-read graphics, and it allows applications to orient to your current position. For example, the Maps app will reorient based on your directional heading.
Certainly, the OS 3.0 software update, which makes many cool features available to all iPhone users, could persuade some people to decide they don't need a new handset. Among OS 3.0's features: a landscape keyboard for all core apps; an innovative and useful implementation of cut, copy, and paste, the long-elusive iPhone feature; A2DP stereo Bluetooth; push notifications, an improved call log that shows details like the time and length of a call; spotlight search for searching apps, e-mail (subjects and to/from lines), music, and more; shake to shuffle; voice memos; and support for MMS and tethering, common features bizarrely not available to AT&T until later this summer.
Although the iPhone 3GS offers some compelling improvements for heavy users, I'm disappointed that Apple didn't build more innovations into the handset, to differentiate itself from the pack. Some areas are still lacking, and there's still no true multitasking (you can't log into instant messaging while surfing the Web, for example).
But the performance enhancements do distinguish this otherwise evolutionary step-up phone from its previous iterations. The new features of the 3GS are few but choice. With 32GB of storage and its data and multimedia strengths, Apple's iPhone 3GS is, despite the reservations noted, one of the best smartphones you can buy for the money.