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.

For those of your doubting the demand for the new iPhone 4S and decrying it’s inevitable failure, we say it’s now time for you to stop hating Apple and realize that they know precisely what they’re doing. How can we be sure?

Apple has just announced that the company sold over 4 Million iPhone 4S handsets during the first weekend they were on sale. You can count some of us here at The Flickcast in that number too — especially Mr. Ullrich, who seems to get all the cool toys.

That’s more than double the amount when the iPhone 4 was lunched last year. Additionally, Apple says that over 25 million customers are already using iOS 5, and over 20 million have signed up for iCloud.

Apple is planning on launching the iPhone 4S in more than 90 countries by the end of the year, and has launched the device in 7 countries so far. So, you can imagine what its eventual sales figures will be.

Can you say astronomical? We can. And so can Apple.

Click through for the full press release from Apple. Have you picked up your iPhone 4S yet? If so, what’s you favorite feature so far?

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At an event held this morning at Apple’s Cupertino campus, newly minted Apple CEO Tim Cook unveiled what many were expecting: a brand new iPhone. Dubbed the iPhone 4S, the device is cosmetically very similar to the current iPhone 4 but features a host of internal improvements which may appease fans eagerly awaiting an iPhone refresh.

In addition, Cook announced the release data for iOS 5, the software that powers Apple’s lineup of devices including the iPhone and iPad, as well as updated iPods with price cuts and an intelligent assistant, dubbed Siri, which enables user to verbally interact with their iOS devices.

Here’s the highlights of today’s event:

• Apple made the iPhone 4S official. It features the same Retina Display but features Apple’s dual-core A5 processor and a dual-core graphics chip.

• The iPhone 4S battery can provide 8 hours of 3G talk time, 6 hours of browsing time on 3G and 9 on Wi-Fi, 10 hours of video playback or 40 hours of music playback.

• Apple has redesigned the iPhone 4S antenna to switch between two antenna to send and receive. Hopefully how you hold the device won’t matter now.

• The iPhone 4S features HSPA+ 14.4 support, though Apple isn’t branding it as “4G.” It’s also a world phone, so one device will support CDMA and GSM/WCDMA networks around the globe. That means it will work on AT&T, Verizon and Sprint networks in the U.S.

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The time we all knew was coming has arrived. Today, in an open letter to the Apple board, CEO Steve Jobs officially announced his resignation from Apple, effective immedietly.

Here’s the text of the letter:

To the Apple Board of Directors and the Apple Community:

Steve

In addition, Tim Cook has been promoted to CEO to replace Jobs and Jobs will assume the role of Chairman of the Board.

I wonder what this will do to the price of Apple’s stock tomorrow morning. As for what the future holds for the company, I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.

It seems Apple has realized people may actually want to purchase content and watch it on their Apple TV devices instead of just stream content from a very limited set of suppliers. To facilitate this, the company issued an update to the Apple TV late yesterday that will allow users to stream purchased high-definition TV shows directly from iTunes.

Specifically, the update makes the following changes:

• iTunes TV Shows: Purchase your favorite TV shows directly from the iTunes Store and watch the shows you already own, commercial-free, in HD.

• Vimeo: Browse and play videos from Vimeo, access your video inbox, and mark videos you want to watch later.

You may recall that when the second generation Apple TV first launched it only allowed users to rent movies and shows and there was not an option to purchase titles for permanent ownership. Now, that’s changed — at least for TV programs.

For users in the U.S., Apple has also rolled out preliminary iCloud support with this update, allowing users to re-download some purchased television shows, though movie support is not yet available. We expect full iCloud support sometime in the next few months.

According to Bloomberg, struggling Internet-based film and TV streaming service Hulu is looking for a buyer. One of the companies supposedly in the running for the service and considering a purchase is Apple.

In case you’re not up on the current Hulu situation, in July the company announced that it had hired Morgan Stanley and Guggenheim Partners to assist with a the sale and rumor was that Yahoo! and, possibly Microsoft and Amazon, were interested.

However, it seems Apple may be the frontrunner now. Although, at this time, no company has made an actual bid for Hulu.

A Hulu purchase may seem like a good thing for Apple. They’ve already got iTunes but Hulu would allow them a better way to compete with streaming services like Netflix since, at the moment, you can only purchase or rent videos from within iTunes.

Something to keep in mind, though, is that Apple isn’t really know for acquiring companies. They are just as likely to take an idea and spin it and launch a new service of their own as an addition or enhancement of their existing service. Plus, Hulu only has about 1 million subscribers at the moment and that’s not really all that many.

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Even though some people are already testing out iOS 5 (a bit jealous of our bosses Chris and Matt) others are still using a version of iOS 4 on their iPhone and iPad. To help those people out, Apple has just released iOS 4.3.4 for its iOS devices.

This update will work for the iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS, iPad 2, iPad and third and fourth-generation iPod touch devices. Not forgetting its Verizon customers, Apple has also released a comparable update for the CDMA iPhone 4 known as iOS 4.2.9.

These updates address the usual bunch of “fixes and improvements” but also features a security update that addresses a vulnerability with PDF files. It also patches the extremely popular jailbreak.me jailbreak solution, so it will no longer function on devices that update. Sorry hackers. You can read more about the update on Apple’s site.

iOS 4.3.4 and iOS 4.2.9 are available immediately via iTunes. Let us know if you have any problems with the update.

As it’s been quite some time since the iPhone 4 made its debut, naturally speculation on the next version of Apple’s flagship device is running rampant. Even the venerable Wall Street Journal, it seems, wants to get into the act.

The paper is reporting that Apple is preparing to release a redesigned iPhone 5 later this year. Citing anonymous sources in Apple’s supply chain, the Journal says Apple has placed component orders with key suppliers for fifth-generation iPhone parts.

In addition, the device is reported to feature an 8-megapixel camera and Qualcomm radios. Also, and this goes against earlier reports that the device will retain the same form factor as the iPhone 4, the new iPhone 5 will be thinner and lighter than the current model.

While a new case and being thinner and lighter are nice additions, I’m personally looking forward to an iPhone that works on Verizon’s 4G network. That would be pretty cool indeed.

The next iPhone is expected to begin shipping in September. So, you gonna upgrade when it does?

That’s right folks. If you don’t currently own a Blu-ray player but have an iTunes account, an XBox Live account or have a PS3 but don’t want to buy physical media, you can still own The Lord of the Rings Extended Edition Trilogy in HD.

Starting today, all three films are available via iTunes, XBox Live and on the Playstation Network. These are not the original versions of the films, however, these are the extended editions which contain lots more footage for you to enjoy.

As a huge fan of these films I was pretty impressed with the extended editions. Of course, I don’t mind having the Blu-ray versions because I like the way that 1080p picture looks plus all the extras are pretty cool too. However, if you just want the movies, a download may be the perfect way to go.

As an added bonus, we’ve got a scene from the extended edition of the trilogy never seen in theaters. Check it out after the jump.

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If you’re one of the people who like to make sure you’re friends know where you are and what you’re doing as much as possible, you’re probably already using Foursquare. If you’re also n iOS user, then today is your lucky day. Well, actually yesterday. Why?

Foursquare released a new version of its iOS client on Tuesday with a number of changes and enhancements. Among the changes are a new Check In button that will allow users to check into locations faster, a new Explore tab that will help users find local specials easier, and a faster check-in process.

Of course, being the early adopters we are around here, we installed the new app immediately. It definitely seemed improved and only took a few minutes to get used to the new layout and features. The user interface also feels noticeably quicker.

Also, in related news, Foursquare announced it has surpassed 10,000,000 users. That’s “M” as in Million. Nice work Foursquare team.

To get Foursquare 3.2, hit up the iTunes App Store.

You may have missed it in theaters, but you’re getting the second chance to catch Catherine Hardwicke’s Red Riding Hood in the comfort of your own home with a FREE iTunes download of the film.

Here’s the synopsis of the film, for those who missed it.

Catherine Hardwicke (Twilight) directs a fantasy thriller that puts a haunting twist on the classic fairy tale. For years the villagers of Daggerhorn have maintained an uneasy truce with a werewolf – but the beast changes the stakes by killing the older sister of beautiful young Valerie (Amanda Seyfried). Promised in marriage to one man but in love with another, Valerie has her life dramatically affected yet again by the creature’s bloody actions.

When a werewolf hunter warns that the beast takes human form by day and walks among them, panic sets in as the death toll rises. And Valerie learns she has a unique connection to the wolf that inexorably draws them together, making her both suspect…and bait. Gary Oldman, Billie Burke, Shiloh Fernandez, Max Irons, Virginia Madsen, Lukas Haas and Julie Christie also star.

Watch it your way, On Demand, For Download and on Blu-ray combo pack. http://bit.ly/j61o6l

How do you win? It’s simple! Just keep an eye on our Twitter feed later today. There, we’ll post a related trivia question. Reply back to us with the right answer and you’ll be entered to win this awesome giveaway! Be sure to stick around, because we’ve got another awesome giveaway coming up later this week!

It was just a matter of time but according to reports, Apple has completed negotiations with all four of the major record labels including Warner Music Group, EMI Music Group, Universal Music Group and Sony Music Entertainment and signed contracts to enable their upcoming cloud music service to go forward. Contracts with the music publishers is reportedly set to follow on Friday.

The new service, which will be called iCloud, will be offered for a free period initially to people who buy music from Apple’s iTunes digital download store. This will allow users to upload and store their music and then be able to play it from a Web browser or Internet-connected Apple device such as an iPhone or iPad.

Even though the service will start out free, the company plans to eventually charge a subscription fee, about $25 a year, for it. Apple would also sell advertising around its iCloud service. So, $25 bucks and advertising? Kinda lame Apple.

Of course, the service is initially to store uses music on the cloud but you can clearly see Apple’s intent here is to eventually offer storage of TV, Movie and other digital content as well. After all, why stop at music when the real money to be made is with other tyopes of content?

With the service set to debut soon some questions have to be asked including how much storage will be included and how easy will it be to upload your iTunes library should you choose to do it. I don’t know about you but my iTunes is very large and it would take a long time to upload. With a large library like that I can’t quite see the utility of this service, especially when I can already sync my music and more to my iPhone and iPad.

I guess we’ll see how well it works, or doesn’t, soon enough.