Speaking at a J.P. Morgan Conference, Verizon Wireless CFO Fran Shammo revealed that the carrier plans to transition its grandfathered customers off their unlimited data plans, says a report in Fierce Wireless. Shammo confirmed that, starting this summer, customers moving from a 3G phone with an unlimited plan to a 4G handset will be required to drop the unlimited plan and sign up for a shared family data plan.

According to the report, Verizon will only offer a shared family data plan for its 4G customers. These plans include one bucket of data which is shared among multiple devices. This change will affect customers upgrading phones, but the report did not say what would happen to current 4G customers on an unlimited plan or unlimited 3G customers who don't want to upgrade.

[Via GigaOM]

Verizon Wireless to transition grandfathered customers from unlimited data plans originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 17 May 2012 08:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Republique is an upcoming iOS title that's made a lot of noise by getting funded on Kickstarter recently, to the tune of half a million dollars, but I've had one nagging question about it: How exactly are they going to distribute the app to all of their backers? The most obvious solution would be to put a password gate inside of an app, but Apple doesn't allow that. If you have to lock content in your app, then you're clearly selling it outside of the App Store, which means you're dodging Apple's 30% cut. So what's their plan? Republique hasn't yet said, only that it's still being decided.

Fortunately, however, here's the answer. The folks behind Zombies, Run! say that all they had to do to distribute an app for Kickstarter backers was ... ask. Apple agreed to let them have two versions of the app on the store -- one just for sale, and another that was free with a password gate in it. There were two limits, however: There had to be at least some content in the password-closed app, so people who just randomly came across it weren't confused. And Apple made the app developers take down any preorders once the app went live, so that Apple didn't lose any sales of its own.

Good to hear that distribution this way is possible -- there are a few other Kickstarter projects that will need to make use of a plan like this when they are released. The key, according to Six to Start, is to get in touch with Apple early, and keep that communication flowing.

How to distribute Kickstarter apps: Ask Apple originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Wed, 16 May 2012 14:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Reuters reports that China Mobile is talking with Apple about selling the iPhone. China Mobile is the world's largest telecom carrier by subscribers. It claimed over 600 million users at the end of September, 2011 and, interestingly, 10 million iPhone users. Those customers either converted from China Telecom (which does sell iPhones), or bought an iPhone from an Apple Store or the black market.

China Mobile Chairman Xi Guohua recently told shareholders, "We've been actively talking to Apple on how we can cooperate," further saying that "both sides" hope for increased cooperation.

Recent speculation has suggested that the next iPhone will use a Qualcomm Inc. chip, which would be compatible with China Mobile's own 3G network.

China Mobile reportedly in talks to carry iPhone officially originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Wed, 16 May 2012 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Wall Street Journal claims that Apple is ordering screens from Asian suppliers that are bigger than the 3.5 inch screen that has become the one and only standard for the iPhone.

The Journal says iPhone production will begin next month, with new screens that measure at least 4 inches diagonally -- something we've heard before. This could be a response to rival Samsung, who has been featuring larger screens in comparison ads to the iPhone. Samsung offers a 4.3 inch and a 4.8 inch screen on some model phones.

Will an enlarged iPhone screen meet the rumored shrunken iPad? No one knows for sure, but Apple is very good at competing. Some have even shown how a larger screen could work. We know from experience that when Apple says it isn't going to do something that's not always the case. I vividly remember Steve Jobs telling us no apps for the iPhone, that web apps were all we needed. Then there was a quick reversal, and apps are now a multimillion dollar business. Apple has not commented on the report.

iPhone could have a four-inch screen, says Wall Street Journal originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Wed, 16 May 2012 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Love them or hate them, those new Siri ads starring Zooey Deschanel and Samuel L. Jackson are apparently effective, says a YouGov BrandIndex report. As noted by Fortune's Apple 2.0 blog, the celebrity Siri ads are creating buzz among 18-34 year old questioned in the survey.

In just a few weeks, the buzz score for the iPhone went from 16 on April 19 to 51 on May 4, surpassing Android on its way up. The buzz score is based on a survey of consumers who were asked whether they've heard anything about the brand in the last two weeks, either through advertising, news or word of mouth, and whether it was it positive or negative.

[Via Fortune's Apple 2.0]

iPhone "buzz" gets a boost following celebrity ads originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Wed, 16 May 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HTC confirmed to The Verge that its One X phone for AT&T and EVO 4G LTE handset for Sprint are being held at the border by customs officials. The shipments are being delayed while the government agency reviews the packages in accordance with an ITC ruling that banned the import of HTC's Android smartphones.

In December 2011, the ITC ruled that HTC violated Apple patents, one of which describe a UI feature that lets you tap on an address or phone number as a link and pull down a menu of appropriate actions. HTC said in a statement to the Wall Street Journal that its products are no longer infringing, "We believe we have worked around our design and are now in compliance with the ITC ruling. We are cooperating with the U.S. Customs to speed up the review process."

Depending on how long it takes for the review, HTC could face shortages of its One X, which went on sale last month with AT&T. It may also have to delay its May 18 launch of the EVO 4G LTE with Sprint.

HTC handsets delayed at US customs due to ITC injunction over Apple patent originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Wed, 16 May 2012 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ozgood is an interesting little iPhone game from a few developers who've worked for bigger game companies, and have recently gone independent. Most iPhone games deal with the platform's hardware by either just going with 2D graphics or trying relatively simple 3D -- it's usually only bigger developers like Epic Games that can really use an engine like Unreal to wring really colorful graphics out of the iPhone. But RunWilder, the developers of Ozgood, took an entirely different tack: They took video of a real life puppet, and then put it together with 2D backgrounds and 3D items to make this virtual pet game.

The result is a very unique kind of wonderful. Ozgood is a crazy little guy full of personality, and the app (which is free right now) is full of content. There's a "story" you can play through by feeding Ozgood certain things and interacting with him in certain ways, there's a "studio mode" where you can use him to make messages to send along to friends, and there's an ongoing metagame as well, where you can feed Ozgood a fake soda called Chugg and even share six packs of it with your friends online.

The app is silly -- it's very kid friendly, and Ozgood can sometimes be crass with his burps and various bodily functions. But even for adults, it's wild to see how these developers used a puppet to make this app, and there's clearly a lot of skill in how it's all put together. Ozgood is a free universal download that's definitely worth checking out.

Daily iPhone App: Ozgood is a lovable piece of puppet tech originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 15 May 2012 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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There are more than half a million apps in Apple's App Store. Some are stunning achievements. Others are not.

Below is a video demonstration of the app Airplane. Touch the "Take Off" button to hear the sound of an airplane engine. Shake the phone to hear a flight attended tell you to put your seatbelt on. That's it.

We leave you with this free app from the "Entertainment" category (that's a stretch) and a hearty "no comment."

No comment: Unimpressive iPhone app, Airplane originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 15 May 2012 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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