We should have a clear answer to this today, but the NYTimes seems to think that there might be a software fix for the antenna problem. 

One person with direct knowledge of the phone’s design said Thursday that the iPhone 4 exposed a longstanding weakness in the basic communications software inside Apple’s phones and that the reception problems were not caused by an isolated hardware flaw. Instead, the problems emerged in the complex interaction between specialized communications software and the antenna, said the person, who agreed to speak on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the matter. The person said the problems were longstanding but had been exposed by the design of the iPhone 4. All cellphones can be affected by the way a hand grips the phone, but well-designed communications software compensates for a variety of external factors and prevents calls from dropping…and Steve Jobs didn’t learn of the problem until last month.

It seems then that an update could possibly fix the problem.  If that was really possible though, why hasn’t Apple put that into the OS 4.1 release?  I guess we will find out today.

Users who have updated their iOS devices to the newest iOS 4.1 have found that AVRCP compatibility has been added.  AVRCP lets cars control the iPod app through their paired Bluetooth connection.

Users can now skip forward, back, and control volume according to the reports (Apple hasn’t released the full list of 4.1 features as of yet).  Of course if you’ve paid for one of those expensive iPhone adapters for your car, you’ve been able to do all of this for a while, but having it available without spending an extra $ is pretty nice, and also much safer than trying to fiddle with the phone to make changes while your driving.

Looks like Apple is caving in, and they have announced today that they will be holding a media and press conference on Friday from CA.  It usually take a lot of public pressure to get Apple to change their ways (last time was the $100 credit they gave out to users who bought the iPhone at $600).

Speculation has been high that this event will address the recent media coverage given to the antenna issue, especially since Consumer Reports recently did not give Apple their recommended rating like they have for the prior iPhone models.

Is Apple going to spend the estimated 160 million to give out free Bumper cases?  Are they doing a Toyota type recall and spending 1.5 Billion to swap out phones?   Or are they simply going to come up with another ‘software’ fix for a hardware problem?

Only time will tell, but we’ll be here to let you know what happens as soon as it does!

We just got word that iSkysoft Studio has made one of its 3 video conversion tools free for the next 2 weeks.  So if you’ve got an iPhone 4 and want to take advantage of this free offer, you can grab a copy here. 

Even though the free version won’t convert DVD’s or make iPad video, paid versions are available if you want to dish out the $.  Grab a copy and let us know what you think.

Well that was short lived.  Just a week ago, Fring users could easily connect to Skype and anyone with the new iPhone 4 could happily video chat with other users on Android, Symbian, or other iPhone users over WiFi or 3G.

Those days are over.  Didn’t take long either, first Fring had to limit the use of Skype due to network constraints on their end, and now it seems that Skype is stopping Fring users from access to their network.  It also seems that Skype is threatening to take Fring to court!

Fring seems to have touched a nerve over there at Skype HQ.  Too bad, since this really just hurts all the users in the end.

What happened to everyone supporting open standards and just getting along?!

Not that this should come as a surprise to anyone, but it seems 3 drops and your out with that bumper case! Go for the full wrap ones from 3rd parties instead.

No its not FaceTime, that only lets you video chat over Wi-Fi.  Its the latest version of Fring!

Fring just updated their app to allow cross-platform video chatting with 2 mobile devices that have video cameras.  That means that you can have a video call from your iPhone to your friends Android device which has a front facing video camera (EVO 4G).

The new update also provides 2 iPhone users to video chat with each other over 3G.  Its not as easy to use as FaceTime, but the ability to do this from truly anywhere is a huge advantage in our opinion.  

The quality of the image over 3G is definitely not as nice as the one over FaceTime (which uses WiFi).  The picture is more pixelated and the sound quality is not as good.  The other trouble we found is that the option for video calling doesn’t always appear even though both parties might have it available on their devices.

Still, this is a big deal because it means that mobile face to face video is able to communicate now between platforms and hopefully in time, Fring will only get better with more updates.

Google launched their new version of YouTube for mobile devices yesterday at m.YouTube.com.  The new site is more touch-friendly, faster than the old site, ads search query suggestions, and your ability to like and unlike videos and add favorites.

HTML5 is being used and it seems like its working well on all the iOS devices, including the iPad.  Wonder what else google has up their sleeve, since this new mobile version basically replaces the need for Apple to package up that iPhone App with devices.

A software update is in the works regarding the display of bars for the new iPhone4. But will it address the issue of covering the antenna with your hand?  Gizmodo sent email to AppleCare three different times and finally got a response confirming its not a software glitch.

AppleCare reps confirmed the antenna interference happens when the phone is held in the lower left hand corner and said that the software update would only make the signal meter more accurate, but wouldn’t fix the hardware problem. Basically, the meter will now tell you more accurately how much reception your loosing when you connect the two antennas with your hand.

I think Apple is getting closer to the point where they are really going to need to seriously consider giving the bumper cases away with iPhones.  We can’t imagine that they are going to re-design the outer casing for the phone at this point and there doesn’t really seem to be another solution that would be less expensive than the few cents it must cost to produce those rubber band wraps for the phone.  Frankly, I don’t know whats holding them up from having already given those away for free?  Maybe they can’t produce them fast enough?

I guess the real fix is going to come with iPhone 5!