If you have a shiny new iPhone 4S as some of us do here at The Flickcast and you’ve experienced less-than-stellar battery life, this will be of interest to you. There’s been a few reports around the Internets, and elsewhere, that the iPhone 4S’s battery life leaves something to be desired.

Sure, it could have to do with the fact that it features a faster processor or that Siri is a bit power hungry. Or, as was postulated by the folks at iDownloadBlog, it could be the iPhone 4S’s Time Zone service that’s causing the problem.

Reportedly, a bug in iOS 5 (which ships on all iPhone 4S units) forces its location tracking feature to remain active much more than necessary which drains the phone’s battery far more quickly. Users can manually turn off the automatic time zone setting by going to Settings > General > Date & Time. Once there, toggling “Set Automatically” to “Off.”

We’ve tried this “fix” on a couple of our own devices and so far it doesn’t seem to make much of a difference. That said, and this is in no way scientific, we tend to get pretty much the advertised battery life on our iPhone 4S units. So, maybe it’s actually a hardware problem on some units and not software after all? Or, perhaps it’s a carrier issue as our iPhone 4S units are all using Verizon and not AT&T?

Whatever the issue, Apple is usually pretty fast to issue a fix for these problems so expect to see one sooner rather than later. In the meantime, let us know if you try this “fix” and what your results are, if any.

Now that we know Apple will be announcing something next week on October 4th, the speculation can continue as to what that will be. And here’s one for today.

Mac Rumors reports that a China Unicom executive apparently confirmed during a presentation at this week’s Macworld Asia that the “iPhone 5″ set to be announced next week will support HSPA+, which is sometimes called “4G.” This technology  offers a maximum theoretical data speed of 21 Mbps.

They’ve even got a photo of a slide presented during the talk that seems to support the assertion. According to the report, research vice president of China Unicom, Huan Wenliang, said the iPhone 5 “will support W-CDMA based high-speed data transfer standard HSPA Evolution” (aka HSPA+) during a keynote speech at the event.

T-Mobile and AT&T both offer 21Mbps HSPA+ in the United States and market the networks as “4G,” although it really should be thought of as more “3.5G” if anything, based on the speed. Apple is reportedly testing a true 4G LTE iPhone but we probably won’t see that being announced next week.

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To be honest, I’m surprised it took this long. But now it seems our government here in the U.S. has finally decided to take action and attempt to stop a merger that should not take place anyway.

That’s right, the government has filed a lawsuit in an attempt to block AT&T’s proposed $39 Billion acquisition of T-Mobile USA. According to the complaint, such a deal would “substantially lessen competition” in the U.S. wireless market. Bloomberg reports that the complaint was filed with the U.S. Justice Department on Wednesday, and the government is asking for a declaration that the proposed merger would violate U.S. antitrust laws.

“AT&T’s elimination of T-Mobile as an independent, low- priced rival would remove a significant competitive force from the market,” the U.S. said in its filing. AT&T has argued that it needs T-Mobile’s spectrum in order to improve service quality and cover the majority of the U.S. population with 4G LTE service.

Well, I can understand them wanting to improve service quality. However, competition is good and as long as T-Mobile is around, AT&T will have to work that much harder. That won’t hurt them one bit. In fact, it might just help them.

As of today Apple began selling unlocked iPhone 4 handsets in the U.S. only. The smartphone is now available in 16GB for $649 or 32GB for $749, and both models come in black or white.

This marks a change in Apple policy dating back to the first iPhone where the device was only available for AT&T GSM users. Now, it can be used with pretty much any GSM carrier, as long as modifications can be made for those who don’t yet use the micro-SIM card.

Personally, even though the price of the iPhone is high in its unlocked state, I would probably go this way to avoid a long-term contract with any one carrier. Also, this allows people to get their hands on the iPhone 4 now and then use the subsidy pricing to pick up an iPhone 5 once they launch later this year.

Sure, the price is probably too high for many buyers but to some this represents the best scenario when it comes to dealing with carrier monopolies. I, for one, think Apple should have done this a long time ago.

I’m just going to chalk this news up to the fact that AT&T is tired of all the bad press and bad rap it gets for its subpar network and service. Even if it really is just a way to help its tarnished image, that doesn’t mean it’s a bad thing.

To what am I referring? Well, according to New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg (via The New York Times), the city will soon be offering free Wi-Fi in 20 of its parks.

AT&T will power the service, which will be available later this Summer in various spots including Prospect Park, Battery Park, and Central Park. That’s a great development and a progressive idea which will no doubt be welcome by residents and visitors alike.

The public will have ad-free access to the free networks for at least the next five years. What happens in five years is anyone’s guess. Perhaps the Wi-Fi explodes at that time? No, probably not.

Also, no word on if this new initiative will improve phone reception in New York for anyone dumb enough to still be on AT&T. My guess is no, it won’t.

In a world where branding is extremely important, one company has risen to the top — at least according to a recent study. What is this top company? Why, it’s Apple of course.

According to a study conducted by advertising firm WPP and published in their “BrandZ Top 100 Most Valuable Global Brands,” Apple’s brand value has increased 859% since 2006, and jumped 84% to $153.3 billion this year. Yes, that’s a lot.

Apple isn’t alone, however, as tech companies are predominate on the list with AT&T, China Mobile, IBM, and Microsoft all having spots in the top-10 most valuable brands list. McDonald’s is the only non-tech brand in the top-5. Google had reigned supreme for the past four years before being displaced by Apple, and Amazon surpassed Walmart to become the No. 1 retailer.

Not bad for a company that was thought to be dead not that long ago. Click through to read the full press release from WPP.

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With all the hubbub about Apple and Android tracking your location via iOS 4 iPhones and 3G iPads and Android powered devices, it was just a matter of time before somebody released an official statement about it. Somewhat surprisingly, that someone first out of the gate with a statement is Apple, who released said statement today.

In its statement Apple says that it never has, and never plans to, track users’ devices and that the purpose of the database file in question — consolidated.db — is to “help your iPhone rapidly and accurately calculate its location when requested.”

Apple also said that a software update will limit the size of the location file and be available in the next few weeks. In addition, the next major IOS release will also encrypt the file as well.

Click through for the full statement from Apple which, contrary to most info from Apple, is pretty comprehensive and actually answers most of the questions people were having. Now can we move on from this?

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In case you haven’t been keeping up with current iPhone location tracking events, it was recently revealed that cellular iOS devices such as the iPhone and 3G enabled iPad collect location data from where you are and store it in an unencrypted file on the device.

However, according to an email purported to be from Apple CEO Steve Jobs, Apple does not track anyone. Android, however, does. Here’s the exchange, according to a MacRumors reader:

Q: Steve,

Could you please explain the necessity of the passive location-tracking tool embedded in my iPhone? It’s kind of unnerving knowing that my exact location is being recorded at all times. Maybe you could shed some light on this for me before I switch to a Droid. They don’t track me.

A: Oh yes they do. We don’t track anyone. The info circulating around is false.

Sent from my iPhone

So, if this is really from Steve Jobs and you have a cellular iOS device, I guess you don’t need to worry about Apple tracking your every move. If you’ve got an Android-powered device, I guess you’re not out of the woods yet.

Of course, the question is if this email is really from Steve Jobs and if so, do we believe him? More on this as it develops. Meanwhile, I would bet we’ll see a software update sooner or later that addresses this “issue” which will either eliminate it all together or do a better job of hiding it.

Either way, the other big question is does anyone but a vocal minority actually care if their location data is being tracked? If you have an opinion one way or the other, be sure to sound off in the comments!

As was expected (and we reported earlier), Apple released a brand new iOS update for all its shiny devices. This update, dubbed iOS 4.3.2, is for all you iPad, iPod Touch and AT&T iPhone users out there.

The only changes noted by Apple are bug fixes and security updates, which is what you kind of expect Apple to say. They are not exactly forthcoming with the info. However, Apple does specifically note that the update fixes a crash related to FaceTime and it also fixes some iPad 3G + Wi-Fi connectivity issues.

In addition, the company also released an update for the Verizon iPhone users in the crowd. Dubbed iOS 4.2.7, this update also includes those awesome “bug fixes and security updates.” We’re going to update the bosses Verizon iPhone tonight and will let you know if it breaks anything — or improves anything for that matter.

Both updates are available immediately via iTunes.

This report probably won’t come as a surprise to anyone who uses a Verizon iPhone and also has friends using the AT&T version, but for the sake of confirming what we already know, here’s some interesting info about Verizon versus AT&T. Market research firm ChangeWave today released findings of a recent study analyzing iPhone 4 owner experiences and satisfaction.

The study compared consumer experiences with Verizon Wireless’ iPhone 4 against the same model from AT&T. Following years of complaints of poor service and dropped calls with AT&T, the question to ask with the iPhone’s launch on Verizon Wireless was whether or not service quality would improve. According to ChangeWave’s findings, the answer is yes.

In a survey of 4,068 customers, ChangeWave found that over the past 90 days, Verizon Wireless iPhone 4 users have dropped approximately 1.8% of calls while AT&T iPhone 4 owners dropped 4.8%. In addition, ChangeWave found that Verizon iPhone 4 owners are slightly more satisfied than AT&T iPhone 4 owners, with 82% saying they were very satisfied compared to 80% for AT&T.

With the Verizon iPhone only being out for a short time this report is not exactly definitive proof of anything. There’s just not been enough time and user experiences to make that claim. However, it does go a long way to reinforce what many iPhone 4 users on Verizon wireless have experienced (at least the ones we know) when compared to their friends using AT&T: Verizon’s network is better for calls.

If you’re a Verizon iPhone 4 user have you experienced the same thing when compared to your AT&T using friends? Or, is this study bogus? Let us know your thought is the comments.

In what may not be completely surprising news but, at least to some, may be disappointing, your choices of wireless carrier in the U.S. look to be dropping by one. Why? AT&T, the nation’s second largest wireless provider, announced late yesterday that they will acquire T-Mobile USA from parent company Deutsche Telekom in a cash and stock deal worth approximately $39 Billion.

What does that mean for you and me? Well, for me at least, it means nothing. I’m a Verizon Wireless customer. For those of you who are not or who enjoy having as many wireless choices as possible, it means you will now have to pick between AT&T, Verizon or Sprint if you want to go with a national wireless company.

Choice and, more to the point, competition, is one of the best things about pretty much any kind of business. Competition forces companies to constantly innovate and hopefully strive to be better and treat customers well so they will stay. Having fewer choices and thus less competition can allow companies to become complacent and not try their best.

With the lackluster reputation AT&T already has with many customers, I can’t see that the company having fewer competitors is a good thing. What’s their motivation to change and be better if the customer has nowhere else to go? The answer is they won’t have any. And that, friends, is not good.

Click through to check out the full press release from AT&T about this announcement.

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If you’ve been anxiously awaiting the chance to get your first experience with Apple’s latest slab of goodness or if you’re just tired of your iPad version 1.0, this announcement is for you. Apple, AT&T, and Verizon Wireless have all confirmed, via press releases, that tomorrow is the big day and the iPad 2 will be on sale.

Starting at 5PM local time, those of you with cash or credit card in hand can head on over to your nearest Apple, AT&T, or Verizon Wireless retail store and purchase the 16GB, 32GB, or 64GB iPad 2 in white or black.

If you go the AT&T route, here’s your data plan options:

• Monthly statements: $14.99 for 250 MB or $25 for 2GB. If you exceed your monthly data allotment you will be billed $14.99 for another 250MB on the $14.99 plan or $10 per 1 GB of overage on the 2 GB plan. You also get a free month of service with this plan.

• Credit card billing: $14.99 for 250 MB or $25 for 2 GB. If you exceed your monthly data allotment you may choose to purchase another 250 MB on the $14.99 plan or an additional 2 GB for $25 on the 2 GB plan.

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