I’m sure by now everyone who has an iPhone 3G or 3GS will be on iOS4 (I hope the 2G and 3G folks don’t feel left behind). OS4 is really cool for users in many ways. Multitasking, home screen customization, camera zoom, new mail handling capabilities etc etc. So that’s for the users. What about developers? How is iOS4 going to help developers? As Steve Jobs had announced back in April, iAd is going to “revolutionize” the way that application developers will be making money from Apple. I will be first introducing my readers to what iAd is all about and then will follow up with a post on how to integrate iAd into your applications.

Looks like the big A is getting sued again by unscrupulous lawyers again. I mean c’mon give them a break guys. What’s with going around scouting for big companies who might have incorporated a small portion of a design which was patented before and using the opportunity to make some big bucks? These are nothing but the “patent trolls” of the legal world. I have the least respect for them as they are just slimy opportunists waiting to take advantage of bigger firms. They either arm twist these companies to pay them out or get them to pay some kind of royalty or licensing fees.

Yep that’s right – 1 day, 60,000 iPhones in Korea. That’s considered really good compared to sales of about only 5000 in China during the first week! Anyone has the numbers for *ehem* Malaysia?

Here’s an extract from the report from International Business Times:

KT priced the 32-gigabyte iPhone 3GS at 369,000 won ($317) for customers subscribing to monthly plans based on the basic rate of 45,000 won ($38). Subscribers paying 65,000 won ($56) in basic rates can have the iPhone for 264,000 won ($227), while premium users signing up for monthly plans based on a 132,000 won ($113) basic rate could have the phones for free.

The 8-gigabtye iPhones were priced at 132,000 won ($113) for subscribers signed on the 45,000 won ($38) monthly plans.

As iPhone made its formal debut in China on October 30 through China Unicom, South Korea is one of the last major countries in Asia to get the iPhone which is also on sale in Japan, India and Australia.

Way to go Apple!

Well today’s been a busy day for all Apple geeks. The WWDC was a hit and although Steve Jobs was not present at the event, it still packed a punch as usual. A new iPhone, a new OS and even a new lineup of Macbooks were revealed. But what was interesting for me as an iPhone developer was that a new paid applications agreement went into effect today. I promptly accepted the agreement and then noticed there is a new option available on iTunes Connect – namely “In App Purchases“.

According to Apple,

Some developers have come to us and talked about other models they’d like to use. Like subscriptions. A place where you could renew that sub in the app. Some game devs have wanted to be able to sell new levels from within an app. There are many examples of that, like e-books. Like a bookstore built into an app. We supporting these new models in what we call In-App Purchase,

I hope you had some time to read why it might not be the right time to buy the iPhone 3G from Maxis just yet! The short answer is that there is a very high possibility that a new iPhone is on the way. The announcement might just happen on June 8th which is less than a week away. Based on all the rumors circulating on the internet, The Green Room has put together this amazing graphical representation of the next-gen iPhone. Certainly looks mouth-watering to me!

P.S. I just stepped into the Maxis store with a friend who was looking at the iPhone 3G promotions catalog. It says “valid until June 14th” in fine print. Wonder what’s going to happen after June 14th then!

Finally some good news to all of DiGi’s loyal fans – DiGi broadband has finally been rolled out. Their tagline has been “better speed for less”. Well that’s what everyone claims but I’m yet to see anyone prove it to me yet. I think a lot has been said and complained about how unreliable is Maxis’ mobile broadband (I own one but I have hardly used it). DiGi claims that their broadband plans are flexible and you could choose one according to your needs for as low as RM 2 per day. Lets look at their plans in detail.

As you might have known, Hypp.TV was relaunched in KL on the on February 21st at Laundry Bar in The Curve. Initially Hypp.TV was launched sometime back in November 2007 but was mostly covering BPL (or EPL). With the latest relaunch it looks like Hypp.TV is more serious with a whole lot of new channels to offer. Currently the service is only for Streamyx users and the the package is priced at RM 9.90 per month.

It was certainly heartening to hear that the mini budget announced by our DPM will also allocate RM 5.4B for improving the broadband infrastructure in Malaysia. The country’s broadband infrastructure is definitely in need of improvement to match other developing countries in this region. Not only is the service below par but the monthly charges are absurd as well. The stimulus in the budget can certainly be seen as a boost for broadband in Malaysia.

Shortly after writing the post on whether the iPhone 3G will legally be available in Malaysia, it looks like Maxis has unveiled the iPhone 3G after all. Currently the phone is available for booking through Maxis website. The actual launch in Malaysia will be on the 20th – 22nd March 2009 at the KL convention center.

Kudos to Panasonic to come out all guns blazing! Panasonic has recently announced a new range of models for their LUMIX and AVCHD Lite camcorders. A staggering 10 models in each category was introduced in the Nanyang Siang Pau. Obviously Panasonic has some pretty aggressive plans to beat this recession. According to the company’s statement these models are suitable for both beginners and professionals as there is a wide range of models available.