Ten... iPhone 4 accessories The fuss over ‘antennagate’ seems to have died down without damaging the reputation of the iPhone 4 too much - thanks, of course, to Apple’s decision to give away a few million free cases and bumpers. However, the new iPhone’s sleek design has inspired a wide range of other eye-catching and ingenious accessories as well, so here …
10/10 for me meant that I was really tempted to buy a pair whilst waiting for a plane in Gatwick. Realising I couldn't turn the Dr Who Cyber Headset light off meant I didn't buy them. I'm sure there's plenty of kids that may like that sort of bling, but once out of school we soon grow out of that phase.
Odd really as it's adults that have the money to splash out on this kind of gadget.
Ended up going for the au naturelle B&W P5's instead. And I is really chuffed with them too.
I live in the hills of Lazio, Italy, where mobile phone reception is a running joke.
I get three bars on my new iPhone 4 where my old Nokia got... *nothing*. Nada. Zip. Bugger all.
And that's *without* any case, "bumpers" or even a rubber band.
As Apple are currently just giving cases away, I do have one on order. (Coincidentally enough, it's the same one reviewed in this article.) But it definitely isn't for the signal strength "problem", 'cos there doesn't seem to be one. The iPhone 4 pisses on the Nokia's reception from geostationary orbit.
(This is with WIND. TIM, 3 and Vodafone didn't even bother with a 2G mast in this area.)
that was my pick from the free case party.
the plastic back feels cheap, the rubber is nice in feel, but its not sturdy enough
especially (and here's where every single rubber case iv'e seen fails so far with the exception of the Speck HD), at the bottom of the phone just above the dock connector, the rubber there is too thin and it catches on everything and breaks too easily. having said that the button substitutes on the Etch are easy to press and use.
back to the Speck HD, the rubber around the case is much stiffer, with a good feel and because of the stiffness, the case is very hard to get on and off for this reason. The case feels very sturdy around the phone, and very solid when held but this is the Speck's downfall, the button substitutes are ridiculously hard to press, most especially the lock button on top.
I have to physically hold the case in one hand and press hard with the other hand to activate the button. considering the button can be pressed easily with one finger using one hand out of the case, its a major fault for me.
Actually, no. I bought 6 of the cheap ones for project. Quality is very good. On external 5V (PSU or car socket adaptor). Slightly iffy on internal 1.5V AA cell.
There were non-Belkin cheaper iThing specific models. About €30
Virtually every place had the really expensive Belkin model.
These were real shops, Currys. Maplin, HMV.
Turns out there are are about 4 ICs currently used. Costs under $1.50 All require minimum of 2.5V to 2.7V for operation. Hence "iffyness" on internal single AA.
The fanciest ones add a $1 radio receiver IC to search for empty channel, 20c LCD and $1 CPU to control it. Add couple of crystals, varicap and box.
... try buying anything from Sony, Vertu (from Nokia, natch), B&O, or the wildly overrated Bose.
Seriously, check this out from Nokia's "luxury" brand, Vertu:
https://store.vertu.com/en/product/88/194/V+Bluetooth+Headset+in+black+resin+and+stainless+steel
No, your eyes are not deceiving you: Nokia really are selling a Bluetooth headset for—wait for it—£510! Still think Apple kit is overpriced?
Only 40% of the items (The first 4) are iPhone specific. Getting sick of most of the roundups being Apple-centric, and this one isn't even mainly iPhone-only items, yet it deserves an iPhone title?
Sort it the hell out. Don't you get it? Many of your readers HATE Apple products and to see such an amount of articles specifically aimed at them (Like the rest of the press seem to do) is annoying. I used to read El Reg specifically because it didn't fawn over anything Apple, but now if anything it seems worse than other sites / rags.
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