MacRumors

Just like in the United States, additional bits of information on UK availability for iPhone are beginning to trickle out. Earlier today, a test page on Vodafone's site, which now loads only occasionally in a partially completed state, appeared showing the company's rate plans for the new iPhone. Fortunately, Engadget grabbed some screenshots while it was active, revealing that the carrier will be offering a basic 1 GB cap for data access across all monthly plans, double that of O2's lower-end plans.

Like O2, Vodafone will be offering 18-month and 24-month contracts, with monthly prices checking in at a 5 premium for the shorter contract. All plans also include up to 1 GB of Wi-Fi data access on BT OpenZone networks. Phone costs begin at 189 (16 GB) and 280 (32 GB) on low-end plans, before dropping all the way down to free for 45/50 plans (16 GB) and 60/65 plans (32 GB).

In other UK news, Virgin Mobile has indicated that it is working to bring iPhone 4 to its network.

A Virgin Mobile spokesperson said: "We are in ongoing talks with Apple. There are no further developments at this point."

Virgin would join existing major UK networks O2, Orange and Vodafone, as well as T-Mobile and Three, which are coming on board with the iPhone 4 launch.

With Apple set to begin taking pre-orders for the iPhone 4 in a handful of countries tomorrow, including the United States, the company's retail partners are also beginning to firm up their plans. Last Friday, we noted that Wal-Mart was gearing up to offer the new iPhone at launch, following news earlier in the week that RadioShack would begin taking pre-orders on the 15th for a June 24th launch as well.

Electronics chain Best Buy had been rumored to be preparing its plans for launch, and today confirmed that it too will be taking pre-orders beginning tomorrow.

Beginning June 15, Best Buy Mobile, the mobile specialty retail unit of Best Buy Co. Inc (NYSE: BBY), launches its pre-sale of iPhone 4 from Apple. Pre-sale orders can be placed at any Best Buy or Best Buy Mobile standalone store nationwide. The iPhone 4 will land in Best Buy and Best Buy Mobile stores June 24.

Apple's U.S. carrier partner, AT&T, has also been working to get ready for launch day, with employees set to debut new company T-shirts for the event and the company has also put together a video providing information on upgrade pricing policies and data plans for the new iPhone.

The company is also planning to open its retail stores at 7:00 AM on the launch day of June 24th and is offering rebate credits or handset upgrades for those customers who purchased an iPhone 3GS in the month before iPhone 4's announcement.

MacRumors has heard from several sources that Apple is planning to launch a new iOS application tomorrow that will offer customers access to the company's online store and iPhone pre-ordering, as well as the ability to book Genius Bar appointments at brick-and-mortar retail stores.

As long ago as last November, we began hearing rumors of a "Concierge" iPhone application that would offer brick-and-mortar retail store scheduling services.

In addition, early last month we received word from a customer who had emailed Steve Jobs to ask about the possibility of an iPhone-friendly online Apple Store, to which the Apple CEO responded "Coming soon."

Consequently, it appears that Apple may be set to deliver an all-in-one application for the iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch that will integrate retail store services with broader online shopping capabilities through the company's online store.

AT&T has sent emails to customers of its iPad 3G data service apologizing for and providing additional information on the exposure of their email addresses and SIM card identifiers last week.

The letter outlines in brief detail how the information was accessed and the company's response once it was notified of the breach. AT&T also reassures its customers that their password and other account information, as well as any data on their devices, are unaffected. It also suggests that the primary risk of the information leak is increased spam and the possible use of such information in targeted phishing tactics attempting to gain additional personal information about customers.

The security breach is currently under investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, which is examining the circumstances surrounding the information exposure and what may have been done with the data obtained.

Apple's Worldwide Developer's Conference wrapped up at the end of last week. The conference kicked off with a flurry of announcements surrounding Apple's new iPhone 4. The response to those who had actual hands-on time with the upcoming iPhone has been overwhelmingly positive with a particular focus on the high quality of the display. Several people we spoke to echoed Steve Jobs' comments that it will be hard to go back once you start using the 326 dpi display.

This weekend Robert Scoble posted high resolution photos comparing the new display to the existing one (iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS). The images clearly show the increased readability of web pages while fully "zoomed out". Macworld's hands on also echos the sentiment::

We placed an iPhone 3GS and an iPhone 4 side by side. The results were readily apparent. Text on the iPhone 3GS, while quite readable, showed noticeable pixelation. We couldnt pick out any pixels on the iPhone 4s text; as Apple claims, this screen really makes text look like something youd find in a book or a magazine, with none of the artifacts that weve come to expect from a LCD display.

Apple has claimed that the new display exceeds the limits of the human retina. While there has been some debate about the accuracy of these claims, at least one expert considers the claims close enough to reality.

For another point of reference, Apple provides this actual screenshot of an iPhone 4 screenshot. Click to see it at full resolution:

Of course, this same image when viewed on an iPhone 4 shows the same number of pixels but within the space of a 3.5" display.

HSUPA Support

Meanwhile, iLounge has noted that the iPhone 4 supports 3G HSUPA (High-Speed Uplink Packet Access) for its uplink. iLounge cites a theoretical maximum of 5.76 Mbits/second. Meanwhile, the iPhone 3GS is limited to only 384kbps. Any faster uplink speeds will obviously help out in emailing high definition video clips over 3G networks.

Apple Outsider's Matt Drance reports on another change made to Apple's iPhone developer terms earlier this week that should please certain developers, a change which allows game developers in particular to continue to use interpreted languages such as Lua in their App Store applications.

The change eases up on restrictions implemented along with Apple's more highly-publicized prohibition against Adobe's Flash-to-iPhone compiler as part of Apple's broader effort to keep third-party meta-platforms from eroding the user experience and stifling innovation as developers become reliant upon them to roll out support for new features introduced by Apple. Drance notes:

I've said before that Apple's aversion to interpreted code and external runtimes is the potential for someone else to take the platform over. That's not the whole story, though. Games in particular tend to use engines and libraries that leverage interpreted languages such as Lua. Many of these applications pose no threat, neither implicitly nor explicitly.

While explicit approval from Apple is still required, these new terms seem to acknowledge that there's a difference between an app that happens to have non-compiled code, and a meta-platform.

The change comes alongside Apple's further modifications of its iOS developer terms that again allow for limited analytics data collection to aid advertisers and developers, but appear to shut out non-independent companies such as Google's AdMob from receiving the data.

CNET reports that Wal-Mart has confirmed that it will carry iPhone 4 in its stores as of its June 24th launch, adding another major outlet to the growing list of retailers that appear poised to be U.S. launch partners for the new device.

Walmart said Friday that it will be one of several retail outlets who will have the iPhone 4 on June 24, its first day of availability anywhere. While Walmart has carried previous versions of the iPhone, this is a first that it will be for sale in its stores on the device's official launch day.

Electronics chain RadioShack announced earlier this week that it will be carrying iPhone 4 at launch, with pre-orders set to begin on June 15th, the same day Apple begins the pre-ordering process. Best Buy has also been claimed to be carrying iPhone 4 as of the 24th, although the company has yet to officially confirm availability and its pre-ordering policies are unknown.

Wal-Mart gained considerable attention in the weeks leading up to Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference and the iPhone 4 introduction by slashing the price of the 16 GB iPhone 3GS in half to $97 with a two-year contract. With iPhone 4, however, Wal-Mart is expected to only slightly undercut Apple's own pricing by offering the 16 GB and 32 GB versions at $197 and $297 respectively. The company did not carry the low-end 8 GB iPhone 3G during the previous product cycle, and so it is unclear if it will be offering the 8 GB iPhone 3GS during this cycle.

Wal-Mart has also been reported to be expecting to carry the iPad beginning later this year.

Hardmac reports that it has received information from one of it most reliable sources at Apple indicating that the company could offer two Worldwide Developers Conferences per year, separating Mac OS X and iOS content into individual events.

One of our most reliable sources at Apple told us that the company could decide to organize two different WWDC every year, one dedicated to the iOS, iPhone, iPad, iPod, etc... and the other one to Mac OS X and the Mac.

The report's choice of words to say that Apple "could" offer two WWDCs makes it unclear whether there are actual thoughts of Apple making this happen or if it is simply an idea that has been tossed out.

This year's WWDC has been notable for its focus on iOS, as evidenced by the keynote's focus, mix of developers sessions, and the axing of Apple Design Awards for Mac OS X applications. Apple has indicated that the shift focus is simply a timing issue, with the new iPhone and iPad fresh in people's minds and rolling out new features while the Mac platform remains in the middle of a cycle with Mac OS X Snow Leopard well established and Mac OS X 10.7 not yet ready to show.

Even with the scaling back of Mac OS X this year, the conference sold out in only eight days with over 5,000 registrants packing the Moscone West convention center in San Francisco for the event this week.

The Wall Street Journal reports that the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation has begun an investigation into the AT&T security breach that resulted in the exposure of emails addresses and SIM identifiers for over 100,000 iPad users signed up for 3G access on its network.

"The FBI is aware of these possible computer intrusions and has opened an investigation," said Katherine Schweit, an FBI spokeswoman. Ms. Schweit said the FBI began the investigation Thursday but wouldn't comment on what the bureau is looking at. "It's very early in the investigation," she added.

Any investigation into the incident is likely to look at two factors: how the information was obtained and what was done with it. Escher Auernheimer, a member of the group that exploited the hole in AT&T's website to obtain the information, claims that nothing illegal was done in collecting the information, as access was obtained simply by entering information into a public website.

As for what the group did with the information between the time of its collection and its sharing of the details with Gawker for publication, the group claims that Gawker was the only outside party to receive the information and that the information was only disclosed once the hole had been closed. While the group has taken some criticism for not directly contacting AT&T about the situation, it claims that it "made sure that someone else tipped them off" and waited for AT&T to fix the issue before going public.

Apple has started accepting iOS 4 applications ahead of the June 21st release of iOS 4. Formerly called iPhone OS, iOS 4 is the rebranding of the operating system that runs on the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad. Version 4 introduces many new features for developers and users that may require modifications to existing apps for full compatibility. Some of the features include:

- Multitasking
- Folders
- Improved Mail App
- Enhanced Enterprise support
- iAds
- iBooks

Apple claims there are over 1,500 new Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) available for developers. iOS 4 will be available to iPhone and iPod Touch owners for free on June 21st. iOS will not run on the original iPhone or 1st generation iPod Touch and will only run with limited features (no multitasking) on the iPhone 3G and 2nd generation iPod Touch.

Apple today released a new App Store application called iTunes Connect Mobile [App Store link], designed to help developers access sales data for their applications distributed through the App Store.

The iTunes Connect Mobile application allows developers to access their sales and trend data from iTunes Connect. You can now view your daily and weekly sales data related to updates, paid and free apps as well as In-App purchases. Whether at the office, at home or on the go, iTunes Connect Mobile keeps you informed about your sales numbers right on your iPhone or iPod touch.

The application is compatible with the iPhone and iPod touch on iPhone OS 3.0 or higher and will also run on the iPad, although not it is not a universal application and thus lacks an iPad-specific interface.

iTunes Connect Mobile marks Apple's sixth official iPhone application, joining Texas Hold'em, Remote, Keynote Remote, MobileMe iDisk, and MobileMe Gallery. The company has also released iBooks and its iWork suite for the iPad.

Adobe today released Flash Player 10.1, the public version of its browser plug-in that has been available for testing in prerelease form since mid-November. The release, however, does not yet include hardware-accelerated decoding on Mac OS X.

Apple altered its policies in late March to allow third parties such as Adobe to tap into the hardware-accelerated decoding of H.264 video on machines with compatible video cards. Adobe did just that a month later, introducing its "Gala" prerelease version of Flash Player 10.1 for Macs running Mac OS X 10.6.3 and using NVIDIA GeForce 9400M, GeForce 320M or GeForce GT 330M video cards. The Gala functionality, highly anticipated by many users for its ability to free system resources and reduce loads, will be included in a future update to Flash Player 10.1.

Will Gala be generally available with the general availability of Flash Player 10.1 in the first half of this year?
It is expected that the Gala functionality - H.264 hardware decoding on Mac OS X 10.6.3 - will be available in an update following the release of Flash Player 10.1.

A second preview version of Gala remains available through Adobe Labs for those looking to test out the hardware acceleration.

Flash Player 10.1 is intended to integrate the Flash experience across a broad variety of platforms, including smartphones, with support for multi-touch and accelerometer controls. The so-called "Open Screen Project" is consortium of nearly 50 companies looking to bring a consistent Flash experience across all platforms, but Apple is notably absent from the group.

ModMyi has a pair of reports today revealing some purported AT&T documents offering information on the carrier's plans with regard to iPhone 4 sales.

According to the first report, AT&T will be offering bill credit rebates for users who purchased an iPhone 3GS between May 7th and June 7th, with customers set to receive $50 (16 GB) or $100 (32 GB) if they file a request with the company. The offer is good for 30 days from the date of purchase, with those in the early portion of the purchase window (May 7th through May 14th) having until June 14th to file their requests.

Alternatively, AT&T will offer those iPhone 3GS customers who purchases handsets between May 7th and June 7th the option to upgrade to iPhone 4, only paying applicable price differences. Customers who purchased a "closeout" iPhone 3GS after June 7th are not eligible for these offers.

In its second report, ModMyi's tipster shares a flyer showing that AT&T is planning to open its retail stores at 7:00 AM on the launch day of June 24th. According to the flyer, new customers will only be permitted to activate one new line on iPhone 4, while existing customers will be limited to one iPhone 4 per active mobile number.

Several bits of news regarding carriers for iPhone 4 in the UK have been surfacing recently, with the most notable one possibly being O2's announcement of new tariffs that no longer include unlimited data. Instead of offering unlimited data and texts across all monthly plans with call minutes being the primary differentiator, O2 is now tiering both call minutes and data across its plans.

Monthly plans begin at 100 minutes and 500 MB of data priced at 25 for a 24-month contract and 30 for an 18-month contract and ramp up to unlimited calling and 1 GB of data priced at 60/65. A footnote to O2's pricing matrix indicates, however, that the carrier will continue running a "promotion" offering unlimited data for all smartphones until October, at which time the company will offer additional data in 500 MB (5) and 1 GB (10) buckets.

O2 has also announced its early upgrade policy for iPhone 4, allowing customers currently on a contract with the carrier to buy out their remaining terms at a rate of 20 per month left on their contracts, at which point customers will be eligible for new contracts at the lowest iPhone 4 prices. The early upgrade offer comes instead of the carrier's usual policy of requiring customers to pay off their contracts in full.

In other UK iPhone 4 news, both T-Mobile UK and Three UK will be offering the new iPhone, joining existing carriers O2, Orange, Vodafone, and Tesco, which operates on O2's network.

The Financial Times reports that the U.S. government is continuing to take a look at Apple's forthcoming iAd mobile advertising system in order to decide whether to pursue a full antitrust investigation of the service. The possible investigation comes just after the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) concluded an exhaustive inquiry that ultimately resulted in the approval of Google's acquisition of AdMob, with the FTC pointing to Apple's iAd as a competitive factor contributing heavily to its decision in that case.

According to two people close to the situation, US regulators have already taken an interest in Apple's actions, though it is not yet clear whether it will be left to the Federal Trade Commission, which carried out the recent Google investigation, or the Department of Justice to take an investigation forward.

Apple's latest rules for developers who create apps for its devices limit the situations in which they can send approved information about their apps' audiences to advertising services. The information cannot be sent to advertising networks that are affiliated with companies developing or distributing mobile devices or operating systems - a definition that effectively excludes Apple rivals like Google and Microsoft.

Word of iAd interest on the part of federal regulators first surfaced early last month after the company altered its developer terms to exclude analytics companies from collecting data on users, although details of the FTC's interest at the time were not revealed.

Earlier this week, Apple again tweaked its developer terms to permit some analytics data collection, but a requirement that such companies be "independent" from mobile device or platform developers appears to shut out Google and AdMob from the platform, a move which unsurprisingly drew heavy criticism from AdMob's founder.

Apple has become embroiled in a number of potential antitrust cases in just the last month or so, with federal regulators taking a look at Apple's Flash-to-iPhone compiler at the behest of Adobe, as well as the company's tactics in the digital music market.

Valve Software today posted a teaser on its official blog for Team Fortress 2 hinting at a release for the game on Mac OS X tomorrow. Team Fortress 2 would mark the third major Valve series to hit Mac OS X, following Portal and Half-Life 2 (plus two Half-Life 2 sequels) released since Valve announced that it would be making its game library as well as its Steam game distribution platform offering a host of third-party games available on Mac OS X beginning last month.

Big things are happening RIGHT NOW at Valve. Things involving cultivated tree-fruit. BIG things. Things that rhyme with "grapple." Things that rhyme with "Speem Gortress zmavailable on the Babac."

Not today. But tomorrow. BIG THINGS. Stay tuned...

The news comes just after Valve announced that it will be delaying the release of its much-anticipated Portal 2 until 2011, citing the fact that "making games is hard". Portal 2 had been expected to see a release before the end of this year.