Today marks the second launch of the iPhone 4 around the world, where 17 new countries join the original five of the USA, UK, France, Germany and Japan.  If you live in one of the following countries, you should be able to pop out and pick up an iPhone 4 from your friendly, local network

Here is the original: 
iPhone 4 Launches in 17 More Countries, Almost Misses New Zealand, Does Miss South Korea.

When I was at school one of my best friends was a bit of a chess whizz.  He lived and breathed the game, referencing the Grand Masters and their intricate strategic moves, eventually becoming something of a friend/nemesis to the Headmaster, who ran the school’s Chess Club.  I was never good enough to beat him

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Chess Crusades iPad App Review – Fair Fight?

AT&T released location based services app, AT&T Navigator for iPhone 3G and iPhone 3GS, with full audible and visual turn-by-turn navigation service. iPhone customers will enjoy map updates, speech recognition, ETA updates, business listings, real-time traffic alerts, one-touch rerouting and daily gas prices.

According to Mark Collins, vice president of voice and data products for AT&T Mobility and Consumer Markets,  with the new iPhone OS 3.0 software, they are expanding the advantages of true turn-by-turn navigation to millions more customers through this app.

Apple senior vice president of iPhone software Scott Forstall used Monday’s WWDC keynote with the news that iPhone users have waited months to hear: The new iPhone 3.0 OS will be released on June 17, 2009.

iPhone 3.0 will be a free release for all iPhone customers — both original iPhone users and iPhone 3G users will be able to download it at no charge once it’s released. iPod touch customers can download the new release for $10, and it will work on first- and second-generation iPod touch models.

Many of the new features in iPhone 3.0 have been talked about before — Cut, Copy, and Paste, for example. Landscape mode in all key applications, including Mail, Notes and Messages. Spotlight support across the entire device, and ubiquitous searching. Peer-to-peer Bluetooth-based multiplayer gaming, push notification, in-app store support and other capabilities factored into demonstrations showing off iPhone 3.0’s new features, as well.

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NEW YORK (AP) — AT&T Inc. said Thursday it will start selling iPhones without requiring a two-year contract, but they will cost $400 more.

Spokesman Michael Coe said AT&T will sell the phones starting next Thursday for $599 or $699, depending on the storage capacity. The two models cost $199 or $299 under contract.

The phone company had said in July, when the latest version of the iPhone was launched, that it would sell contract-free phones in the United States. Such phones are sold in some other countries.

The new phones will still be “locked” to AT&T and won’t work with any other cellular carrier unless they’re modified. AT&T will only activate them on the regular iPhone plans, which include a $30 monthly charge for data access. Prepaid service will not be available.

Apple Inc., the maker of the iPhone, has been selling the device from its stores and Web site, but would not say if it would sell the contract-free version.

Apple is widely expected to release a new version of the phone this summer.

Copyright © 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

AT&T has finally rolled out free WiFi for iPhone users at its WiFi Hotspots

Hotspots at airports, hotels, universities, convention centers, sports centers, Starbucks locations, restaurants, bookstores, and supermarkets are all now available for any iPhone & AT&T customer.   Here are the steps to get online:

• Activate Wi-Fi from the settings icon on your iPhone
• Select “attwifi” from the list of available networks
• Enter your 10-digit mobile number and check the box to agree to the Acceptable Use Policy. Tap ‘continue’
• You will receive a text message from AT&T with a secure link to the AT&T Wi-Fi hotspot. You will not be charged for the text message.
• The SMS link will only be valid for 24 hours at the location it was requested. Another request must be submitted when using another hotspot location.
• Open the text message and tap on the link for 24-hour access to the AT&T Wi-Fi hotspot

The full details are available at http://www.wireless.att.com/learn/internet/wifi.jsp.

New customers and those eligible for an upgrade will be able to purchase the phone for $199 (8GB) or $299 (16GB), while “early upgraders” will have to shell out $399 or $499, all with a two year contract and $18 upgrade fee. They also mention a “no commitment” deal later on in the year of $599 and $699 respectively.

iPhone 3G, Exclusively from AT&T and Apple – | Wireless from AT&T, formerly Cingular

AT&T today confirmed that the iPhone 3G will go on sale at 8 a.m. local time on Friday, July 11th. AT&T has also outlined pricing and upgrade eligibility.

iPhone 3G will be available for $199 for the 8GB model and $299 for the 16GB model. These prices require two-year contracts and are available to the following customers:

• iPhone customers who purchased before July 11
• Customers activating a new line with AT&T
• Current AT&T customers who are eligible, at the time of purchase, for an upgrade discount

Existing AT&T customers who are not currently eligible for an upgrade discount can purchase iPhone 3G for $399 for the 8GB model or $499 for the 16GB model. Both options require a new two-year service agreement. In the future, AT&T will offer a no-contract-required option for $599 (8GB) or $699 (16GB).

Current customers may also choose to wait until they become eligible for an upgrade discount. Eligibility is generally determined by amount of time remaining on a current contract and payment history.

Current AT&T customers who are upgrading to iPhone 3G will pay an $18 upgrade fee and new AT&T customers will pay the standard $36 activation fee.

Voice, Data and Text Messaging Plans

AT&T brings iPhone 3G customers the best coverage on the globe and the largest mobile-to-mobile calling community with unlimited calling to AT&T’s 71.4 million wireless customers. iPhone 3G customers can choose from four individual AT&T Nation plans, which bundle voice and unlimited data (e-mail and Web browsing).

• AT&T NationSM Unlimited: Includes unlimited Anytime Minutes for $129.99 a month.
• AT&T Nation 1350: Includes 1350 Anytime Minutes and unlimited Night & Weekend Minutes for $109.99 a month.
• AT&T Nation 900: Includes 900 Anytime Minutes and unlimited Night & Weekend Minutes for $89.99 a month.
• AT&T Nation 450: Includes 450 Anytime Minutes and 5,000 Night & Weekend Minutes for $69.99 a month.

All AT&T Nation and AT&T FamilyTalk® plans for iPhone 3G include nationwide long distance and roaming, Visual Voicemail, Rollover®, unlimited Mobile to Mobile calling, Call Forwarding, Call Waiting, Three-Way Calling and Caller ID.

AT&T will offer FamilyTalk plans, with bundled voice and unlimited data, starting as low as $129.99 a month for two iPhone 3G lines. Up to three additional iPhone lines can be added for $39.99 each.

Unlimited text messaging can be added for an additional $20 ($30 for FamilyTalk plans of up to five lines); $15 (1,500 messages), or $5 (200 messages).

iPhone for Business

Business customers interested in iPhone 3G should contact an AT&T business sales representative or review their account information online to determine their eligibility for upgrade pricing. Corporate e-mail and other business applications require the Enterprise Data Plan for iPhone, which is $45 a month and bundled with an eligible voice plan. Small business customers may qualify for AT&T BusinessTalk, the industry’s only shared plan specifically for small businesses. Additional details on iPhone business offerings are available at www.att.com/iphoneforbusiness.

iPhone 2.0 Software

All iPhone customers will benefit from the iPhone 2.0 software, which will be pre-loaded on all iPhone 3Gs and available as a free download for current iPhone customers. The new software will include numerous enhancements, such as business-class e-mail access via Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync; the iPhone Software Development Kit (SDK), which allows a business to easily create applications customized to its needs; and the App Store, which offers a wide-range of applications — from games to business, education to entertainment and productivity to social networking. For example, AT&T has developed YELLOWPAGES.COM Mobile for iPhone, which takes local mobile search to a new level by allowing users to discover businesses and local events based on their popularity among other iPhone users, get directions and access business reviews.

Apparently you can now find out whether you’re eligible for upgrade pricing on the new iPhone 3G, via AT&T’s site and your account details page.  I say apparently because I’m a Pay-As-You-Go plan customer, and my details pages are not helpful in this respect – more on that just a little later on.

For those who have ’standard’ iPhone contracts though, you should be able to go to http://www.attwireless.com, login to your account, go to the ‘Phone/Device’ section and hit the ‘Upgrade Phone’ link.  This should give some insight on whether you’re able to get the new iPhone at the advertised $199 (8GB) and $299 (16GB) prices.

So, what’s with the new iPhone 3G?

Well, it’s pretty much the same iPhone as before — except now it’s down to $200, and has way faster 3G data, A-GPS (which is even better than regular GPS), as well as a flush headphone jack (which is great for anyone who doesn’t want to use Apple’s bundled headphones). Oh, and it’s also a little thinner around the edges, and a little thicker at the center. If you want to know what it was like to try out, check out our iPhone 3G hands-on.

How’d they get the price so low? The iPhone used to be crazy expensive.

Actually, depending on how you do the math it’s not actually cheaper. Now, in some countries the iPhone is free when you sign up for service, and in the US you’ll pay $200 for the 8GB model — half what it was a month ago — so you’re definitely paying less up front. But the data plans cost more now, so you might wind up spending more money over the long run.

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