iPhone 3GS ranked #1 in cellphone sales in Japan… for now.

Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Hardware, Odds and ends, Apple Financial, iPhone

TG Daily (via Fortune) is reporting that Japanese market research company BCN's latest rankings of cellphone sales in Japan are showing that Apple's smartphone is the the current market leader in that country.

I did a quick check at BCN this afternoon while writing this post, and the iPhone 3GS 32GB is listed in first place in sales (see screenshot at right), with the iPhone 3GS 16GB in second place. The 3GS was just introduced in Japan on June 26th, and the sales figures are from the week of June 22 - 28. BCN's source of data includes point-of-sale information from many of Japan's largest electronics retailers, including Amazon Japan, Eiden, Bic Camera, K's Denki, and Best Denki.

Akky Akimoto at Asiajin is providing some perspective on the numbers. It's not unusual for a new phone to jump to the top of the list as it is released. As he notes, the Sony Network Walkman was #1 in the BCN ranking of music players at one time in 2005, but for the complete year, Apple iPod had a 60% share of the Japanese market.

Still, this is good news for Apple, and as Mr. Akimoto says, "Becoming No. 1 even for a week is better than never being No. 1..."

iPhone 3GS ranked #1 in cellphone sales in Japan... for now. originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Sun, 05 Jul 2009 21:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

iPhone 3GS ranked #1 in cellphone sales in Japan... for now. originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Sun, 05 Jul 2009 21:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Best of Smartphone Experts, 5 July 2009

Looking for what you may have missed in the smartphone world last week? Look no further, it’s the best of Smartphone Experts.

HTC Sense Not Coming to T-Mobile G1 or myTouch 3G Sprint Testing HTC Hero, Developing Android WiMax Phone? HTC Hero Passes FCC, Could Be Headed To AT&T or Rogers	Contest: Win a BlackBerry Tour Courtesy of CrackBerry.com! Verizon BlackBerry Tour Available for Pre Order Bolt Browser Beta 3 Released - Faster/Better Web Browsing on BlackBerry
Nokia N97 NAM Firmware Update Available First Impressions of the Nokia N86	Palm Closes Homebrew App Install by Email Loophole Palm Pre as Webserver is a Go Palm Pre Keyboard Tricks and Tips
Apple releases iPhone 3.1 Beta and SDK to developers Original hacker unveils iPhone 3GS purplera1n jailbreak iPhone App Store Just Says No to Nudity — For Now?	Malatesta reviews the HTC Snap on Sprint. Skype 3.0 out of beta. Skyfire updated, is still blocked by Hulu.

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

Best of Smartphone Experts, 5 July 2009

Purplera1n for Mac OS X Released

We’ve just gotten word from TiPb forums that George Hotz has released his much anticipated Mac OS X version of purplea1n.

So you say you have an iPhone 3GS along with that jailbreak itch? Hit the link and get your download on. As always proceed at your own risk. TiPb and all of it’s staff take zero responsibility to any wrong doings that may occur while using the software.

[Thanks for the tip Matt74!]

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

Purplera1n for Mac OS X Released

iPhones pass the fireworks test: best of the reader-submitted 4th photos

Filed under: Multimedia, Odds and ends, Flickr Find, iPhone, MobileMe

Shooting photographs of fireworks can be a real challenge. The good shots happen quickly, cameras don't always get the focus right, and there is a lot of movement that can make for blurry pictures. The iPhone is not the best camera in the world for demanding photo jobs -- that's true for all cell phone cams, with the possible exception of digital cameras that happen to include phones as a bonus feature.

Nevertheless, we asked our readers around the U.S. to send us their fireworks images, and that they did. Actually, the iPhone acquitted itself pretty well, both with still images and in movies done with the new 3G (plus one movie done with a jailbroken 2G and Cycorder).

Look below for a gallery of some of my favorite stills. Many were sent anonymously, so we can't always credit the photographer. Some were uploaded directly from their phones to MobileMe and YouTube.

Thanks to all who participated and made our 4th of July sparking and colorful. Visit this link to see the full collection of entries, check out comments in our request for pictures article yesterday for more YouTube links, and view the gallery below for our selection of some great images from around the country.

iPhones pass the fireworks test: best of the reader-submitted 4th photos originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Sun, 05 Jul 2009 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

iPhones pass the fireworks test: best of the reader-submitted 4th photos originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Sun, 05 Jul 2009 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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White iPhone 3GS Discoloration Due to Third-Party Cases, Not Overheating?

Reports of overheating and discoloration on the new white iPhone 3GS have been circulating over the past week or so, but a new report [Google translation] from frenchiPhone (via Hardmac) claims that the discoloration is due to contact with so...

iPhone 3GS Oleophobic Coating Wearing?

Engadget Mobile has posted a link to a forum in which an individual claims to have issues with the oleophobic coating on his iPhone 3GS wearing off.

Is it possible? Sure, anything is possible. Is it likely this will happen to you? Highly unlikely. There could be a few explanations here: could be a simple case of user abuse, perhaps it is a stroke of bad luck for the owner who happened to get a defective iPhone, or maybe the screen needs to be cleaned!

Whatever the case may be - do not panic! This is a single report - TiPb has found no other cases of users having this very issue, even within the 10 page thread linked above. Nobody really knows what really happened here so there’s no need to worry. Start to worry when flocks of people start having issues with it.

Until then, sit back, relax, and enjoy your iPhone 3GS.

[Via Engadget]

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

iPhone 3GS Oleophobic Coating Wearing?

Clever (and sweaty) app of the day: Seek ‘n Spell for the iPhone

iPhone games tend to be a lot like games for any other portable device, and rarely leverage some of the traditionally non-gaming capabilities of the handset. Part of this is because, until recently, the developer SDK was sort of limited. Most of it, I think, is because developers just haven’t been thinking hard enough. That [...]

It’s Official: iPhone #1 selling smartphone in Japan

Since the release of the original iPhone in 2007, Apple’s smartphone has been on a steady climb upwards, taking huge chunks of the U.S. mobile phone market and giving even the BlackBerry a run for its money. The arrival of the iPhone 3G S and the $99 iPhone only bring Apple one step closer to [...]

Mobile Maps America - North - Turn-by-Turn Voice Guided GPS Navigation iPhone App released

Following on from the release of Mobile Maps for Europe, Australia and New Zealand and South East Asia, Sygic has now released Mobile Maps America - North. Sygic GPS navigation software turns your iPhone into a real-time, turn-by-turn voice guided navigation system. Crystal-clear animated 3D maps, fast and intuitive address search, precise route calculation, lane assistant, signpost [...]

Regarding iPhone 3GS, Overheating, and “the Weather”

The UK’s Telegraph ran an article recently with a headline stating “Overheating iPhone 3GS: Apple blames the weather”… that could be a tad misleading. The Telegraph cites an Apple knowledge base article, last updated June 25, 2009, that warns about leaving the iPhone 3GS in hot places or using it under hot conditions, and shows a screenshot of the iPhone’s temperate warning screen,

The problem is, as longtime TiPb readers know, it’s the same knowledge base article that’s been up since the introduction of the iPhone 3G in 2008, the update merely adding in the newly launched iPhone 3GS.

So, while the iPhone 3GS may indeed have overheating problems — though we’re not experiencing any yet — saying Apple blames the issue on heating is, as mentioned, a tad misleading.

In any event, we’re more interested in whether or not our readers are experiencing iPhone 3GS overheating issues, and if so, what are you doing on the device when you experience them, and are you running a jailbroken device?

[via Engadget]

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

Regarding iPhone 3GS, Overheating, and “the Weather”