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Today saw the worldwide release of Apple's new 3G iPhone. It didn't seem possible for a gadget to get as much hype as the iPhone did when it was released last year, but the madness has continued for this second generation. We've had a play, checked out the features, and guaged international reaction to the new version of the ultimate gadget of ultimate destiny.

But the launch hasn't gone smoothly. Any new iPhone needs to be activated using iTunes upon purchase, but the activation servers have been hammered and have actually been totally down for several hours now, resulting in customers being sent home with an non-activated iPhone, and unable to activate it when they get home. Some suppliers are also insisting hat iPhones are activated in-store (to prevent them being taken away and unlocked), but the activation failure means they won't be able to take their new iPhones home after purchase.

The main difference in this second iteration of Apple's flagship product is 3G communication, allowing significantly faster data transfer, enabling a decent web browsing experience anywhere with a 3G signal. The Americans haven't been too bothered about 3G, since it hasn't been fully rolled out across the pond; but here in the UK 3G is pretty much in every urban area. This has previously made the iPhone less attractive to UK customers than comparable 3G smartphones, but no longer.


So what else is new? The rear casing is now shiny black smudge-magnet plastic instead of aluminium, which is to prevent interference with the radio antennas inside. Maps now has GPS support, backed up with online data and geotagging for pictures you take. Microsoft Exchange is now supported, but not for tasks, and it seems to totally override any other form of contact list on the phone. There's also a new Apps Store, a centralised repository of iPhone applications. Other minor additions include a contacts search, view more attachments and a thrilling new scientific calculator!

Not everyone's wishlists for the new iPhone have been realised. Key features such as video recording, MMS capability, voice dialling, copy & paste and SMS forwarding are all missing. The inbuilt camera still tops out at 2MP, Flash isn't supported and predictive text can't be disabled properly. The inbuilt accelerometer can flip the screen horizontally, but this doesn't work for all applications, and the three most writing-intensive applications (notes, e-mail, and maps) won't let you type in landscape, meaning you still have to use frustrating single-finger prodding rather than thumb-typing.

Overall, the new iPhone 3G is a definite improvement, and is certainly the snazziest phone on the market with the best user interface I've seen - but it still has all the same types of flaws and left-out features of the previous iteration and other Apple products. With all the glamour and hype, it is very easy to overlook these. If you must have the latest and best gadget, there is absolutely no alternative - this is an awesome piece of kit - but the serious business users should probably look elsewhere... at least until the inevitable 3rd party software irons out the kinks.

See Also: 10 Things the 3G iPhone is Still Missing (Washington Post), Apple, O2 UK

Shock Gadgets will be attending Internet World 2008 in London next week. The show features over 200 hours of seminars from companies ranging from Microsoft to the BBC to Royal Mail, and exhibitions from over 300 companies. All discussing the latest Internet technologies. We'll be sure to keep you posted on everything interesting that pops up, so watch this space.

The Nokia E90 communicator is the eleventh-generation Communicator phone, which are all essentially large high-spec mobile phones with wide screens and qwerty keyboards inside. Unlike the previous generations however, the E90 is on a par with competitors in the field, rather than lagging a few years behind. Launched just over a year ago, the E90 features quad-band GSM, 2100 WCDMA, UMTS, WiFi b/g, 3.6Mbps HSDPA radios, Bluetooth 2.0, A2DP for bluetooth stereo audio, a 3.2 megapixel camera (with flash), a second VGA camera inside for video calling, GPS and Nokia Maps. Inside it has an ARM11-based TI OMAP2420 processor running at 330 MHz, 128 MB of RAM (80MB available), a 800×352 screen inside and 240×320 outside. It has a full-speed USB 2.0 connector for data transfer and an SD card slot, although it also came with a MicroSD adapter...

There is no denying that the iPod is the most successful consumer entertainment gadget of all time. Providing an insurmountable benchmark in terms of design and technological achievement, it is always amazing to see Apple continue to improve and upgrade their range.

Today, Apple have shown off their new full suite of iPods, including the Shuffle, Nano, Classic and new 'Touch' which will be available this weekend; and have decreased some prices to coincide with this.

The iPod Shuffle has been refreshed with new colours, including pastel blue, green, lavender and 1GB (PRODUCT) RED edition which raises money for charity, as with the nano last year. Price stays at $79 though.

The all-new iPod nano is the same as the 'fatty' spied by Engadget over the past few weeks. With a bigger, brighter 2-inch 320x240 (QVGA) screen at 204ppi, video capability, an 'enhanced' UI, its own take on Cover Flow and three games, its battery has 24 hours of audio playback and 5 hours of video. The silver 4gb model is going for $149, and the more colourful 8gb for $199.

The real/main/original series of iPods has been given a real name as the iPod Classic. This new sixth-generaton version is mostly an upgrade on the previous 5.5th generation units, with a new all-metal shell and (FMJ) and improved interface, coming in two higher-capacity versions. The 80gb iPod Classic has 30 hours of audio, 6 hours of video and will retail at $249. The new 160gb version has 40 hours audio, 7 hours video for $349.

The long-awaited iPod Touch is the phone-less iPhone. Coming in at 8mm deep, this is significantly thinner than the iPhone. The Touch packs a 3.5-inch widescreen display, 22 hours audio, 5 hours video and the same multi-touch inferface with Cover Flow as the iPhone. It also has web capability through WiFi, through which you can even buy music on iTunes. Available in a few weeks, the 8gb will go for $299 and the 16gb for $399.

Apple also announced a partnership and 'feature' to be able to purchase a song playing or recently played in a Starbucks through WiFi on the Touch, and free WiFi access to the iTunes Music Store (to buy the song currently playing). Doesn't hurt I suppose.

The still-new iPhone is having a massive $200 price drop to coincide with these releases, down to $299 for the 4gb and $399 for the 8gb.

Click on for images of the new range...

The Chromatone CT-312 is a Wholetone sythesiser with 312 keys, instead of the standard register of 88. These are not 312 separate pitches however, but uses the Uniform keyboard paradigm to replicate notes across the board. The advantage of this is not having to stretch awkwardly to reach a key, as it will be replicated in a slightly more convenient location. It was a layout developed by Paul von Janko in 1882, called the Janko Keyboard.

This helpful chart assists in the explanation of the layout, and I've included a decipher of it below.

The video after the break shows one gentleman showing his skills with 312 keys, performing the Super Mario Bros theme with bewildering ease. Last time I saw that being played was on an 11-string bass, so it evidently has some reputation amongst extreme musicians...

Acorn Studios have created the ultimate accessory range from old computer media and peripherals. Floppy disks, keyboard keys, circuit boards and scratched CDs have been transformed into clocks, notepads, jewellery and other gifts. Check out this pair of cufflinks available for $14.95.

Click on for some more pictures...

This is an actual working R2-D2 projector and DVD player made by the guys at Nikko. Setting you back ¥388,500 ($3,000) this little robot is a 1/2 scale DLP projector with a slot-loading DVD player, 1,800:1 contrast, 1,500 lumen brightness, and resolution of 1024x768 pixels... not that anybody buying this would particularly care about the specifications.

SOURCE: Impress

The Telexistence Wide-angle Immersive STEReoscope (TWISTER) is a goggle-free panoramic display aimed to 'immerse viewers in a 3D video environment.' Developed by a team at the University of Toyko, TWISTER is being hailed as the 'world's first full-color 360-degree 3D display that does not require viewers to wear special glasses,' and it's finally coming together after a decade of work. Within the cylindrical, rotating device, you'll find some 50,000 LEDs that give off the illusion of a three-dimensional object without any ocular aids. Moreover, the team is already looking into the possibility of adding 3D videophone technology to spruce up video telephony, but we'd be totally content with a couple rounds of Halo in this thing.

SOURCE: PinkTentacle

I thought I'd point out the new Power Plate my5 fitness machine which uses so-called 'Acceleration Training' to give a full body workout in a few minutes. 10 minutes on the Power Plate is seemingly equivalent to 60 minutes' conventional exercise. As well as reducing cellulite and accellerating metabolisms, there are a number of claimed health benefits.

It works through transferring vibrations to the muscles in the body causing them to contract in a reflex action – a method used to train astronauts by developing their muscles and helping them to get used to unusual stresses and strains their bodies would be exposed to in space. Different parts of the body are put in contact with the platform in various exercise positions ranging from squats, lunges and push-ups to abdominal crunches, tricep dips or bicep curls, and a pose is held for up to 60 seconds.

The my5 comes with a remote control, is available in a few colours, and retails for £3,500. The original Power Plate my3 machine has been reduced from £2000 to £1000. Both models are available from John Lewis, Selfridges, Harrods or PowerPlate.com

The adequately-long-awaited Apple iPhone has had its US release date confirmed at 29th June by a TV advert shown last night. The $600 multi-touch gesture-based PDA still requires a two-year contract from Cingular. The advert featured a map search for 'seafood', resulting in ringing the Pacific Catch restaurant. Their number shows up in the advert, and many nerds viewers bombarded the restaurant with calls after the commercial aired.