The latest Apple news from the experts in Mac, iPhone, iPod, and iPad Repair. This blog covers everything from new repair guide releases to tips and tricks to the latest take aparts on the newest gadgets.
Since the Macbook Air was introduced, one of the most common requests we have received is for a Macbook Air solid state drive replacement or upgrade. Until now these solid state drives have been virtually impossible to source. As of today however, we are now carrying both 128GB and 64GB solid state drives for the Macbook Air Revision A models (PATA models). We hope to start carrying Macbook Air SATA SSD drives in the near future, however at this time they are not available.
If you currently don’t have a solid state drive, you can upgrade to one. You can also use the drive to replace a defective stock drive.
We’ve added several new iPad accessories which we’ll be posting more info on in the next few days. One of these new products is a leather case for the iPad which also doubles as a stand. The cases are gorgeous and also extremely functional.
These cases are $19.95 and available from the link below:
Let me preface this by saying that I love Apple. Never have I ever had so much as a thought about returning an Apple product… that is until I bought an iPhone 4.
Yes, the reception sucks…especially for someone who is left handed. Being that I love Apple, I got a bumper and decided to live with it. Writing that just now sounds stupid though. Why should we have to buy a product to make another new product work? Reception issues aside, the problems with my iPhone 4 run deeper.
This weekend, like many of my fellow Americans on a 4th of July weekend, I went outside. However, when I ventured outside, I noticed a little issue with my iPhone. After just a few minutes in the sun, the digitzer on my iPhone 4 stopped working on the right hand side. This basically makes the phone useless until you step back inside and the phone cools off. Whenever you go back into the sun, the problem repeats itself.
Just a few notes about this situation.
1.) This is my personal phone…the one I waited in line for. I have taken exceptional care of it.
2.) We are in Alabama and the temperature over the last few days has been around 90 degrees. My iPhone 3G had no issues in the sun.
3.) It takes 2-3 minutes for the problem to appear. If I hop into my car, the problem pops up almost instantly.
4.) We have been unable to recreate this issue on 3 other iPhones 4s, so there is a strong possibility this is an isolated incident.
So now I must go back to the store and do something which makes me a little sad in all honesty. I must return my iPhone 4.
Are you one of the many iPhone 4 owners who are eagerly awaiting the promised iPhone 4 “software based” reception fix? We’ve got a solution that provides the same results and is available today. By releasing this today rather than in a “few weeks” we are allowing you to solve the problem while still well within your 30 day refund period.
We too were “stunned” that the solution really was this simple!
Step 1
Print off the antenna reception image below. You may notice that we’ve increased the size of the bars so they are easier to see.
Step 2
Gently coat the back of the image using a glue stick.
Step 3
Place the image on your iPhone 4 above the current reception graphic and wait 2-3 minutes for the glue to dry.
Results
I think you’ll all agree that the results speak for themselves. If you notice that you still drop calls or that the internet drops on you, then we recommend you follow Apple’s suggestion and return your iPhone 4 for a refund and buy a new one after all these “software” kinks are worked out.
* Yes, this post is sarcasm. Please do not really attempt to glue anything to your screen.
iPhone 4 Parts for self repair are now available for ordering from our online store. Click this link to go to our iPhone 4 Parts category.
A few notes about some of the parts.
1.) The iPhone 4 Display and Digitizer are very difficult to install as separate components. Though difficult, they can still be installed individually which is why we are offering them separately. We’ll be carrying complete assemblies (with the Digitizer and Display bonded together) shortly to aid in easier repairs.
2.) The proximity sensor is located on the induction flex cable. We’ve head scattered reports about possible over sensitivity on the sensor, so this could be a future replacement issue.
The selection of parts will be growing over the next few weeks, so keep checking back for updates. Here’s what’s available so far:
Within hours of customers receiving their initial pre-release iPhone 4 shipments, we began to receive reports of reception problems.
The problem occurs when users squeeze at the antenna locations on the iPhone 4, on either side of the casing. Squeezing, effectively shorts out the cell phone antenna and causes the signal to drop off. The issue appears to be a hardware defect, and in our opinion is unlikely to be fixed by any software update released down the road.
This may cause huge problems for Apple in terms of product recalls. One possible solution for Apple would be to give away the iPhone 4 bumper cases. Those cases would likely decrease the pressure on the casing and provide at least a short term solution.
The video below confirms this issue.
In addition to the reception issue, we’ve heard our customers complaining about sound quality issues and screen blemishes. We’ve also had one report of the iPhone 4 getting very hot to the touch.
When you think of modern day cell phones, one in particular always comes to mind. The iPhone changed how people think about mobile devices and has set the bar quite high for its competitors. It has become an icon for modern day smart phone technology and design. With the recent release of the newest edition to the iPhone family, the iPhone 4G, the progress Apple iPhones have made in just a few short years is very apparent.
It all started with the original iPhone, which came out in mid 2007. Other cellphone manufacturers were still far behind Apple, making it stand out amongst the other consumer smart phones. The first thing that seemed to attract attention was the simplistic design. It was everything you’d find in a Mac computer, but in the form of a mobile phone. Apple made the bold choice of forgoing the keyboard altogether and relying on a touchscreen for all of the phone’s functions. Luckily, the Apple touchscreen is still one of the best on the market today, unlike others before it which were frustrating to use. The iPhone made it easy for most people to go without a physical keyboard. The new user interface introduced refreshing minimalist style to the world of mobile devices, presenting everything the user needs to access with chiclet-shaped icons on pages that could be flipped through with ease by swiping over the screen. The features on the original iPhone met most expectations and the attractive Apple design added to its appeal. Six million of these iPhones models ended up being sold within the first year.
As other mobile devices began to mimic the first iPhone, Apple came out with the next generation iPhone in July 2008, the 3G. This model’s release caused the iPhone to rise significantly in popularity. After the first week, one million units were already sold. Many improvements were made with the 3G, including a faster network speed, increased audio quality, GPS, and MobileMe support. The most exciting improvement Apple made however, was the addition of a downloadable application store. With this feature, users could access a marketplace which allowed them to download a wide variety of games and programs to their device. This feature is currently one of the major selling points of the iPhone and iPod touch and has caught on with other high end smart phones. All of this was offered at half the price of the original iPhone, making it more accessible to the public and therefore more popular. In June of 2009, Apple upped its ante once again with the iPhone 3GS. While the design remained the same, a hearty list of improvements were made with this model’s hardware and software. The 2.0 megapixel camera on the 3G was replaced with a 3.0 megapixel with added features like autofocus, macro, and automatic white balance. The processor was upgraded from 412 megahertz to 600. Voice commands and audio recording capabilities were added to the phone as well. The iPhone 3GS quickly became Apple’s best selling phone, with one million sold in just the first few days on the market.
The newly released iPhone 4G has to be one of Apple’s most anticipated products. Though it was supposedly unveiled earlier than intended thanks to a forgetful product tester, the public’s reaction to the phone’s release was far from disappointing, and for good reason. The all new iPhone seems to have had some serious work done. No longer donning a rounded-off look, the 4G is completely flat in the back and has thinned out quite a bit. Its plastic trim and buttons have been replaced with a sophisticated stainless steel finish. Though it’s quite attractive, The 4G’s most impressive improvements have been made internally. Antennas integrated to the stainless steel trim serve to clean up the design of the phone as well as adding stability and strength. The display has been improved significantly, with an astounding resolution of over 300 pixels per inch. A built in gyroscope allows for unbelievably interactive applications which can read the gravitational position of the phone. A much higher quality 5 megapixel camera along with the much anticipated front-facing camera for video chatting have been added. The list of features goes on for miles, making this iPhone model one of the most advanced and desirable releases by Apple to date. Surely, many more innovative ideas by Apple, Inc. will continue to provide the mobile device market with highly sophisticated smart phones.
The cost of most data recovery solutions is so expensive that some would say it borders on extortion. The cost to recover your lost data from most data recovery centers ranges from $400- $2700 with a median price of $1900. The costs are not entirely unjustifiable however. These facilities run clean room environments with highly specialized teams and equipment.
However, in our experience, we’ve found that about 85% of Mac drives don’t need to go to clean room facilities to recover data, and therefore the costs are unjustifiable for a large majority of customers. A drive should only go to a clean room facility as a last resort…usually if the drive is physically damaged or will no longer spin.
With that in mind, today we’re unveiling a new affordable hard drive recovery service to recover data off of your Mac, iPod, or iPhone. The new service has been designed not to extort, but rather to recover lost or deleted files.
We’ll ship you a box with a label and free return shipping
Free 8GB Thumb Drive Included for Recovered Files
7- 10 Business Day Turnaround
No Charge if we can’t get the files you want
Data Recovery Pricing
If we can recover the files you specify you are looking for, the cost for up to 8GB of file recovery is a flat $99. (This pricing includes the service, free 3 way Ground shipping, and an 8GB thumb drive.) If we can not recover the specific files you are looking for then we can either return the drive with no files for no charge, or you can have us recover the files we are able to (up to 8GB) for a reduced fee of $74. If you need greater than 8GB of data recovered, the fee is $1 per GB. (This fee is only to cover the cost of the storage device to put the recovered files on. If you have a 2nd drive, you can send that with the hard drive and this $1 per GB fee would be waived.)
