It’s that time of the week again when we kick back with (or without) a cold one and reflect on the days past. The internet managed to score a victory this week by smacking down the SOPA/PIPA bills and iPhone 4S/iPad 2 users also have reason to cheer as they use a new untethered jailbreak to free their devices from some of Apple’s draconian restrictions. So hey, pretty good week, right? Let’s read on and find out what else is happening for this fabulous Friday, January 20, 2012.
MacRumors is reporting that the jailbreak “dream team” has managed to deliver as promised, with a new enhancement to the popular Greenpois0n tool now available for jailbreaking devices with A5 processors -- those being the iPhone 4S and the iPad 2 for now. “Absinthe A5” is capable of freeing any iPhone 4S or iPad 2 running any version of iOS 5 (including either flavor of iOS 5.0.1), although its authors warn that iPhone 4S users looking for a software-based SIM unlock should remain on iOS 5.0 for now, which has the best chance of being cracked in the near future. You’ll also need some patience, as the Greenpois0n website has been available on and off today, no doubt from a surge of A5 device owners looking to have their shackles broken.
AppleInsider is reporting that the government of India now allows “full ownership of single-brand retail stores by foreign companies,” a crucial first step toward Apple opening its first brick-and-mortar location in the world’s second most populous country. According to LiveMint.com, Apple “has been in discussions with the [Indian] government for some time to bring its retail stores” to the country’s more than 1.2 billion people. Cupertino currently works with reseller chains like Imagine and iStore to offer the company’s products, and was even thwarted in its 2006 plans to open their own tech support center in India for the same reason. According to an unnamed official, “the doors are now open” for Apple to establish retail locations in India, where the iPhone 4S was successfully launched back in November.
There’s no love lost between Apple and Samsung in the smartphone and tablet wars, and the South Korean manufacturer is stepping up their public relations battle with a new commercial for the Galaxy S II which introduces the term “Samsung’ed” into our lexicon. The spot shows a bunch of scruffy would-be iPhone buyers camped out in line for what’s presumably the iPhone 4S (judging from the comment, “It looks just like last year’s model!”) until a passerby happens along with his Samsung Galaxy S II using Google’s built-in turn-by-turn directions. “What app is that?” one of the iPhone lovers asks, to which the passerby explains it’s software that came with the handset. “Oh, we just got Samsung’ed again!” the iPhone user laments. A clever spot to be sure, but we’re guessing this is one advantage we’ll see stomped out soon enough.
Score one for the internet! According to the Electronic Frontier Foundation, Senator Harry Reid has announced a postponement of “a cloture vote on PIPA scheduled for next Tuesday, which means, as a practical matter, that the bill is dead for now.” Likewise, Representative Lamar Smith issued a statement “conceding PIPA's evil House stepsister, the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA), also wasn't ready for prime time.” The move comes only two days after the internet blackout in protest of the government’s attempts to strong-arm its citizens in an effort to stamp out online piracy. The EFF notes that more than a million emails were sent to Congress, with more than eight million taking to the phone numbers of their representatives to communicate their displeasure with the proposed bills.
AllThingsD is reporting that Apple made a little headway today in its patent war with Samsung. A German court has rejected one of seven patent infringement claims filed against Cupertino, specifically one relating to the 3G/UMTS wireless standard. Apparently, the move has Apple in an offensive mood, because they’ve used their “slide-to-unlock” patent to bring down the thunder on the Samsung Galaxy Nexus, which is Google’s third flagship device, used to introduce the world to Android 4.0, better known as “Ice Cream Sandwich.” The move is noteworthy since it’s also the only smartphone currently on the market with ICS, although Apple has thus far chosen to only file the claim in Germany.
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(Image courtesy of AppleInsider)
matthew12
January 21, 2012 at 1:52am
Get the A5 jailbreak here if greenpois0n's website is failing: box.com/s/jmy0a0tyfcahqc6bdx93.
