by Joe Gillis, Jun 22 2009 // 9:30 AM
In case you’ve been away, unable to get on the Internet or watch tv, Apple released an update to its flagship smartphone on Friday and more people decided to get one than “those in the know” originally thought. According to our favorite Apple site TUAW, sales of the iPhone 3GS may exceed the 500 K units as predicted by tech pundit Gene Munster, senior analyst at Piper Jaffray.
His research firm had originally predicted the 500 K number of units sold this weekend but now believes that figure is “conservative” based on early results. Between AT&T’s citing of ‘hundreds of thousands’ of pre-orders for the device, and Britain’s O2 announcing that first-day sales for the 3GS went past the totals for the 3G last year, it’s possible that the 3G S could meet or exceed the magic million units sold mark.
Of course, as in years past, AT&T wasn’t able to handle the number of users trying to activate their new iPhones all at the same time, which triggered delays for many users. Many new buyers ended up waiting several hours for activations to complete or were forced to call AT&T customer service and have their activations pushed through by a rep.
In recognition of the aggravation and inconvenience, Apple has begun emailing affected users with the offer of a $30 iTunes credit to be delivered Monday morning. So, if you ended up having to wait several hours for your iPhone 3G S to be activated, you may be getting something from Apple in your email pretty soon.
Updated: Well, it turns out Munster was way off. How much? Well, according to a press release issued by Apple, sales of the new iPhone 3GS topped one million units over the weekend, double what Munster predicted.
As if that wasn’t impressive enough, downloads of Apple’s new 3.0 OS for the iPhone and iPod Touch exceeded six million and the press release even got a quote from Steve Jobs himself, further fueling speculation that Jobs is on the mend and returning to work later this year. Not bad for a weekend.
Posted in: Apple · Gear · Geek · News · Tech
Tagged: Activation Issues, AT&T, iPhone, iPhone 3G S, iPhone Sales
by Joe Gillis, Jun 19 2009 // 8:27 AM
We’ve brought you news of Apple’s brand new iPhone 3G S before, but that was just a preview. Having the real thing in hand to use and inspect will be so much better. But don’t worry, because that day has finally arrived. That’s right, today’s the day to go out and get your brand new iPhone 3G S. That is, if you can actually find one.

Some of The Flickcast team (and in particular Chris) are anxiously awaiting the delivery of their precious new toys professional productivity tools and will report back when they’ve got them in hand. Meantime, our friends over at The Unofficial Apple Weblog have all the scoop on where to get your iPhone 3G S, the lines, the chaos and all the fun. That is, if there are any lines at all — which CNN, for one, doesn’t expect.
If you don’t get an iPhone 3G S today because they sell out and you didn’t pre-order one in advance from Apple or AT&T, try not to get too upset. You can bet that Apple and AT&T want to put these devices into the hands of anyone who wants one. So, that means they will always make more and will keep shipping them out until every man woman and child has one. We know its tough but you’ll just have to be patient.
Posted in: Apple · Events · Gear · Geek · News · Tech
Tagged: iPhone, iPhone 3G S, Mac, OS X
by Chris Ullrich, Jun 17 2009 // 10:35 AM
Today, Apple released the latest version of the operating system for its flagship iPhone and iPod Touch devices. Dubbed “OS 3.0″, this update brings a host of new features to the iPhone in particular. Many of these features are ones users had been clamoring for and, in some cases, thought should have been included in the device from day one.

Some other features, in spite of being announced today, won’t be available to iPhone users until later this Summer, in the case of MMS messaging. Or, in the case of Internet Tethering, perhaps not at all in the U.S.
Still, even with its perceived shortcomings (at least by some users), this update represents a significant step in the evolution of the iPhone and its OS. It’s combination of features, enhancements and improvements helps make the iPhone even more the dominant “Smart” phone not only the U.S, but the entire world.
Some of the many features provided in this update include the following:
Continue Reading →
Posted in: Apple · Gear · Geek · News · Tech
Tagged: iPhone, iPhone 3G, iPhone 3G S, iPod Touch, OS 3.0, Software Update
by Joe Gillis, Jun 12 2009 // 8:30 AM
According to our pals over at TUAW, AT&T and Apple are trying desperately to avoid the problems they’ve had during the last two iPhone launches. From long lines to insufficient stock to activation issues, getting an iPhone on the previous two launch days was a bit of a pain for many potential users. So, this time around, how are AT&T and Apple trying to help everyone out and hopefully prevent, or at least minimize, these problems?
Well, according to TUAW, they’ve got a plan. To help, AT&T and Apple stores will open early on June 19th. Specifically, many Apple stores will open at 8AM and AT&T company-owned stores will open at 7AM. Not only that, both AT&T and Apple are offering the opportunity to pre-order the device so you don’t have to wait in line and instead, have your shiny new iPhone 3G S shipped to you.
For more on what to expect from AT&T on iPhone 3G S launch day, check out Seth’s video after the jump.
Continue Reading →
Posted in: Apple · Gear · Geek · News · Tech
Tagged: AT&T, iPhone, iPhone 3G S, Launch Day
by Joe Gillis, Jun 10 2009 // 6:00 AM
Last time on The Flickcast, your favorite trio discussed all kinds of interesting topics including the Twilight phenomenon, the MTV Movie Awards, the Megan Fox as Wonder Woman “controversy”, who we think should star in a Wonder Woman movie and that Matt, for some reason, doesn’t seem to like Jessica Biel or Hallle Berry.
This week the team discusses and debates a slew of new topics including Monday’s Apple announcements from the World Wide Developer Conference including cool, new iPhones and an update to OS X, what was cool and worth a look from the recent E3 gaming convention, the success and greatness that is The Hangover, Kirsten Dunst joining Spider-Man 4, the merits of movies in 3D and a whole lot more.
Chris, Matt and Christina also made some picks this week including one of Christina’s favorite reality shows Bridezillas, Matt’s pick of one of his favorite reality shows, Star-Ving featuring David Faustino of Married with Children, and Chris’ pick of Rob Zombie’s reboot of Halloween
— which, believe it or not, he really liked.
Its a big episode, but one you won’t want to miss.
As always, if you have comments, questions, critiques or offers of sponsorship, feel free to hit us up in the comments, on Twitter and at Facebook, MySpace or via email.
Posted in: Apple · Box Office · Comedy · Comics · Drama · Games · Gear · Geek · Movies · Podcasts · TV
Tagged: Episode 11, iPhone, iPhone 3G S, Snow Leopard, Spider-Man 4, the hangover