If you’re heading to China, or happen to live there and read this blog, then you’ll pleased to hear that China’s Unicom will start selling the iPhone on October 1st.  Price you ask?  Just a nauseating 5,000 yuan or $732.50.  A total of 8 plans (126 yuan to 886 yuan per month) will be available to Unicom iPhone customers and with them will come a wide range of kickbacks or subsidies that start at 893 yaun and go up to 4,253 yaun.

Sure, most people in China can’t afford these prices, but even a small fraction of China’s 1 billion citizens could be significant revenue for Apple and Unicom.  Furthermore, China is currently experience massive growth - they’re in a sort of industrial age - so more and more people will be able to afford luxuries in the coming years.

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Today Apple announced the availability of their iPhone OS 3.1 update. The update is free to all OS 3.0-enabled iPhones/iPods and includes the following highlight features:

• Genius recommendations for Apps - Get recommendations for apps you might like based on apps you’ve already downloaded
• Genius Mixes - Have iTunes create up to 12 playlists based on what’s already in your library. You don’t even have to choose a sample song
• Download ringtones wirelessly - Choose from thousands of iPhone ringtones on the iTunes Store and buy them with a tap
• Organize Apps in iTunes - Use iTunes on your computer to drag apps onto virtual Home screens, then sync them to your iPhone

But that’s not all, folks. The update also includes the following features/updates:

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Hold the freaking iPhone! Wasn’t it just yesterday that Apple announced that their app store had reached the 1 billion app download mark?  Today they issued a press release stating that they’ve already achieved 1.5 billion.  I guess the iPhone 3GS really escalated the handset to that next level of popularity or perhaps the free apps are just getting that much more popular.  At this rate they’ll be at 2 billion before the end of October and probably sooner considering their growth rate.  Can someone chart this please?

Currently, the app store offers over 65,000 apps in 77 countries and has 100,000 developers in the iPhone Developer program.  That’s means we should expect many more apps very soon, right?

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Yep, it’s finally here, folks, the Apple 3G S, in all its updated glory, is available in retail stores across the globe. If long lines are any prediction, expect strong sales over the weekend. In fact, AT&T is stating demand is exceeding expectations with “hundreds of thousands of customers” who have already pre-ordered the new device.

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The iPhone OS 3.0 update is available now for your downloading pleasure. The update servers are sure to be crammed so be prepared for a few traffic jams. Apple, my ‘F5′ key is much obliged.

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The iPhone OS 3.0 Gold (shipping build) is now available to developers in preparation for the June 17th release date. I’m sure they’ll be using this time to tweak their apps to take full advantage of the OS’s new features: push notifications, in-app payments, copy/paste, landscape mode, etc. The gold build contains a few small but notable changes:

• iTunes now offers movie, TV, and music downloads from the phone itself
• App Store nav bar re-arranged to include a ‘More’ button on the Top 25 and Redeem links
• Store screen in Settings now shows an account information screen

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After many months of waiting, speculating, obsessing, etc, Apple released the goods on the new iPhone 3G S. It’s looks more or less the same as the older 3G model but under the hood, well, that’s a different story. Check it out:

• 7.2Mbps HSDPA data speeds
• $199 for 16GB model, $299 for 32GB model (with contract)
• Faster processor with updated 3D graphics (processor speed unknown beyond Apple’s claim of being 2x faster)
• High quality video capture - shoot video, edit, then share with others
• 3 megapixel camera with autofocus and ‘tap to focus’ feature
• Voice Control which lets you dial a contact or play a song by simply speaking
• Built-in digital Compass which re-orients the map to match the direction you’re facing
• Cut, copy, and paste text or pictures in or between applications
• Landscape Keyboard - rotate the iPhone to type in landscape mode
• Improved messaging, search, and accessibility
• Internet tethering (AT&T plans to support this)
• Nike+ support

Available in the States on June 18th. Users in 80 other countries will have to wait until August.

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While I’m not one to make a stink about typos, this one certainly warrants some attention. It would appear that T-Mobile’s Austria website posted a placeholder for a 32GB iPhone. Since Austria isn’t probably at the top of Apple’s list for distribution of the soon to arrive generation 3 iPhone I’m not sure how much weight the slip up should hold, but it most certainly brings creedence to many of the rumors regarding a 32GB iPhone that we’ve been hearing about.

[via Engadget]

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I think I speak for every iPhone user when I say ‘we’ve been eagerly anticipating the arrival of push notification’ for iPhone apps.  Today, word has come through that ‘push’ will in fact be rolled out in iPhone Software 3.0 and here are some screen shots to prove it.  To kick things off, Apple has chosen the Associated Press’ iPhone app to test the feature since the app calls for a heavy load of notifications.  Apple has asked developers to let them know if they don’t receive notification for 48 hours, as this probably means there is something wrong.  I gotta admit, though, testing the feature with less than 30 days until its official unveiling does seem a bit precarious on Apple’s part.

[via Engadget]

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Rumors have been swirling around lately that Verizon is in talks with Apple to bring iPhone-like devices to their network. Some insiders report they’ve seen a more basic version of the iPhone best described as “iPhone-lite”. Another device that may be in the works is a larger tablet-like device that focuses more on multimedia playback. And, of course, neither company wants to confirm anything so take it as you will.

Some analysts are saying, and I tend to agree, that it’s just a move by Apple to get a better deal with AT&T.

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