Unless you’ve been living under a rock the past couple of weeks, you’ve probably heard that Apple has released a new iPhone and that this new iPhone has been having some problems with keeping a signal when you hold it in your left hand. Of course, any new iPhone– and particularly any new iPhone problems– brings out the rumors of Apple finally adding another carrier to their cell phone world, with most of the rumors focusing on a particular carrier that’s red and rhymes with Shmerizon.

Yes, the Verizon iPhone rumors are alive and hotter than ever; with many top, well-respected publications (like the Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg) chiming in by saying that a Verizon iPhone is on the way– and really soon.

So what are these rumors and what do we think of them? Read on for the full scoop.

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It’s here! After a seemingly endless wait, we finally have gotten our hands on the new iPhone 4! To sum it up in one word– incredible (though I’m still not sold on it being worth waiting in line for hours for…). After using it for the past few hours, here are some of my initial thoughts, which I’ll follow up on early next week with a full review. So what you waiting for, read on!

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Wow. Seriously wow. This is the line my local Apple store at around 9 am. Now don’t think I’m that crazy that I’ve been up since 4 AM camping out, I’ve actually only been here since about 8:30, but here’s a shot of people out since before 6:30 AM:

Yeah this is nuts. We’ll be updating this periodically, and of course we’ll have our thoughts later today once we’ve gotten some time with it.

For the full live blog check us out here: http://teenstalktech.com/2010/06/24/the-craziness-of-an-iphone-launch/

Ever since the iPad was announced back in January, I wondered if it and other tablets could replace the laptop as the computers in our daily lives, and in particular if they were in fact the perfect school computers. So I decided to put it to the test, and for the past few weeks I’ve been carrying around the tablet of the moment– an iPad WiFi+3G– to school in place of my laptop to see if it could live up to the challenge (I know, probably not the smartest thing to do with finals only a few weeks away….). What I’ve found out may surprise you.

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Looking for a new computer, but not necessarily sure you want a laptop? Want a Mac but don’t want to pay $1000 for one? If your interested in either of those two questions then your gonna wanna check this out– Apple’s latest updates to their Mac Mini line, and boy do they look nice.

As you can see in the pic above, Apple is finally bringing the aluminum design found on the iPad, iMac and MacBook Pro lines to the Mac Mini– and it looks like a match made in heaven. Seriously, look at the pic above. Thinner, sleeker– heck it looks like something you’d wanna put in a living room like a media center, this looks nothing like a small desktop computer at all. And maybe that was the point. Apple not only gave the new Mini a better look, but some media friendly (and frankly long awaited) features like an HDMI port (for hooking up to screens like say an HDTV) and an SD card slot. Yeah, way more media friendly and it looks to me like an Apple TV on some crazy awesome steroids.

The new Mini also got some nice spec updates like the ones the MacBook received recently, with the base $699.99 model offering a 2.4 GHZ Intel Core 2 Duo processor (able to be bumped up to 2.66 GHZ), 2 GB of RAM (customizable to 8 GB), 320 GB hard drive (can be customized to 500 GB), and much improved graphics thanks to the NVIDIA 320M graphics card. Oh, and unlike older Mac Minis, Apple somehow was able to get the power supply built into the casing, something that not only adds to the sleekness but also makes it even more energy efficient (which is remarkable considering that they made it so much smaller). In other words– there is no longer a giant power brick needed (another seemingly underrated but still huge improvement).

The new Mac Minis are available now from Apple’s site starting at $699.

If you’ve been anywhere on the internet the past couple of days you’ve probably by now heard the big news– Apple’s new iPhone 4 is officially upon us, and in a huge way.

When they say that it’s the biggest iPhone change since the original, they really aren’t kidding. What Apple has shown off in the new iPhone 4 is absolutely incredible– and I’ll be the first to tell you, last year’s major additions of speed, a slightly better camera, and a compass were really underwhelming (if it wasn’t for the fact my 3G broke and Apple Care offered to replace it with a 3GS– something they’ll do after multiple iPhone breaks– the $200+ and another 2 year contract was not worth the upgrade). But this…. this is amazing.

Here are some of my thoughts on the new iPhone.

The display looks remarkable, and if the demos and firsthand accounts of how it looks are anywhere near accurate (which I’m sure they are), then this will truly be a joy to look at and view EVERYTHING on. I like the current iPhone’s screen, and this one promises to be 4x better. “Wow,” is all I can say.

And the design! I liked it even in the leaked pix a couple months back… but it still looks incredible. Thinner, sleeker glass and even using the steel casing to boost reception (something good for those with AT&T problems)?!?!! Again, just wow. This is truly a major step up over all prior iPhone models and is really showing the greatness of Apple’s design teams.

The new A4 processor (as seen on the iPad) also looks to offer some real speed bumps over the current, not that the 3GS is slow (I mean, even playing 3D games and switching between apps, I’ve never found the 3GS to be slow), but this should definitely help once multitasking and all the other new iOS 4 features drop in a couple of weeks.

And on the topic of games, that new gyroscope motion control, combined with the better screen and processor, should take iPhone gaming to another level– something that is always appreciated.

And then, of course, there are the cameras, or should I really say the front-facing camera (I like the update to 5 megapixel with a flash, but that alone wouldn’t make me want to spring for the new device; but the front…. this is big). It’s not that I think FaceTime will initially be a run away hit– it’s currently WiFi only and works solely between iPhone 4s (not with a Mac, PC or even an EVO 4G), which means you better hope all your friends shell out for iPhones too.

But what I do really like is the fact that Apple is making it “open,” allowing other devices to have the same type of standard so they can share in it too (and you can bet that we will now see a WHOLE LOT of new phones with front-facing cameras soon on Verizon and T-Mobile to keep up with what Sprint and AT&T now have, as what happened when Apple began the multitouch screen craze).

This also allows for programs like ooVoo, AIM and Skype to throw in the feature to their apps, allowing you to literally see your friends no matter what device and service they are using or where they are. This, in my opinion, is a big game changer here in the US (though to be fair, pretty much every other country in the world with a 3G network has had video calling– over 3G– for years now), and should really bring the competition between carriers and between phone makers to a new level (something that’s good for all us users, and should hopefully mean better prices and quick improvements on features).

So when I see the new iPhone 4, even a day later, I’m pretty impressed with everything that Apple’s done. It is no doubt a huge update (though come on, why couldn’t they bump it up to 64 GB and make the screen bigger like those on the Droid and EVO 4G?), and one that looks to make the iPhone even better, easier and more fun to use.

Will I be getting it? Seeing as I my family and I are comfortable with AT&T (I live in the NY area with solid 3G reception and I mostly text and use data anyway), I do plan to get one on June 24th when it comes out, which, of course, means for you readers a full review and comparison to the 3GS.

Those are my thoughts. Yours? If you’re not stuck to AT&T, are you going to go with this over the Sprint HTC EVO 4G, Verizon Droid Incredible, or T-Mobile myTouch Slide? Verizon users, you guys plan to switch or maybe keep the hope strong that the Wall Street Journal is right and you’ll get an iPhone in the fall? And fellow AT&T users, anyone else have plans to go get one of these? Let us know in the comments.

News from Apple – WWDC 2010 Steve Job’s Keynote

Apple, as well, pretty much everyone expected, made a few new product announcements today. So let’s jump right in.

First off is an iBooks update, for those of you with iPads. Basically, added highlighting, notes, and bookmarking. Also can do PDFs, not just ePub formatted books. Nice.

Also announced was a Netflix app for the iPhone (summer), Farmville (end of June), and Guitar Hero (now).

Next, as was previously exploded over the internet a while back, iPhone news. Specifically, a new iPhone – the iPhone 4. It has a new design, being made out of steel and glass, and is a quarter thinner then the 3GS. Looking very slick.

What’s new? Hardware-wise, there’s a front-facing camera, and a second mike for better sound. The screen has been totally redone, using some new tech, for 4x resolution. Supposed to be much, much sharper. Furthermore, the Apple A4 chip of the iPad has been added to the iPhone as well, which helps battery life and speed. Battery life now supposed to be at 7 hours 3G talk, 6 hours 3G browsing, 10 hours WiFi browsing, 10 hours music, 40 hours of music, and 300 hours of standby. Motion sensing has a new gyroscope, for full 6-axis motion control. New camera, 5MP, but has a new light sensor (supposed to make pictures better). HD video recording, at 72op. (Niiice!), with flash and sharing built in.

Another note – you will need to get a new SIM card, as the iPhone 4, like the iPad, uses MicroSIM cards.

Software: iMovie for iPhone – to go along with the new HD video camera. Looks insane – transition, effects, text, themes. On an iPhone. Can add in audio tracks from iTunes, photos. Built in geolocation for map effects.  Again – this is on a PHONE. Will cost $5. Bing Search added along Google and Yahoo!.

On the iPhone OS 4.0 – it’s been renamed. Now called iOS 4. Some further showing off of the multitasking, Folders, iBooks for iPhone, and other updates.

And the last thing – that front facing camera? It’s for video calling! Called FaceTime, works over WiFi (no 3G, although they’re working on getting it soon.) iPhone 4 to iPhone 4 only, obviously. Works with both cameras, in both portrait and landscape.

iOS 4 will be out June 21st, and FINALLY for free for iPod Touches all well. (Seriously, this was needed). Full upgrade for 3GS and 3rd-gen iTouches, iPhone 3G and 2nd-gen Touch get limited. (But it’s FREE!)

So! Pricing is $199 for 16GB, $299 for 32GB. Colors will be black and white, launching on June 24th. 3GS still available in 8GB for $99

So, that’s it. I’ll be posting a review of the iPhone 4 as soon as I can get my hands on one. Check back here soon!

[Thanks to Engadget, gdgt, Slashgear, and @Gartenberg for live info.]

[Pix from Apple.com]

Well this was a very nice surprise…. apparently AT&T is bumping up iPhone users upgrade dates a few months, possibly in anticipation of a new iPhone announcement?

I can confirm first hand AT&T bumped up dates, because when I checked today I noticed my upgrade was bumped up for a new iPhone from October to now (as you can see in the screenshot above. You can check yourself by calling *639# from your phone, which will get a text sent to you with your upgrade status a min later).

Now why AT&T is doing this I’m not sure. It could be a preemptive move to avoid the same problems the last few times there were new iPhones and is even more proof we’ll see a new iPhone today (if you remember, the last two iPhone upgrades, first for the 3G and then for the 3GS, were met with a lot of angry people who were only one year into contract, forcing Apple and AT&T to allow those users to upgrade for the cheaper price). It could be a move to keep iPhone users from jumping to another carrier (if another carrier is in fact getting the iPhone), or it could be because AT&T is just feeling really generous to iPhone users this morning. Whatever it is, I’m sure we’ll know soon enough.

So anyone else noticing an earlier iPhone (or just general AT&T) upgrade date?

Is that new iPhone that we’ve seen so many pix of over the last few weeks finally going to become official tomorrow? Are we finally going to learn when iPhone OS 4 going to drop? Will MobileMe become free for all? Are there going to be the long awaited updated Mac Minis and MacBook Airs? Will Verizon, T-Mobile and/or Sprint be announced as new iPhone and/or iPad carriers, officially ending AT&T’s exclusivity?  The answers to those pressing questions (which are some of the hottest rumors flying around– though again, before we get some hopes up, these are just rumors) and more should all be revealed in a few hours when Apple CEO Steve Jobs takes the stage for Apple’s annual WWDC conference at around 1 PM Eastern time tomorrow (June 7th).

It will no doubt be a big day no matter what Apple announces, so remember to check back here tomorrow where we’ll have all of Apple’s announcements broken down with everything you need to know. In the meantime, what are you thinking/hoping/wishing to see Apple announce tomorrow?

(And in case you were wondering, now would probably be the worst time to go and buy an iPhone 3GS).

Just as a heads up, Apple’s annual developer’s conference, WWDC, begins on June 7th – with the usual keynote by Steve Jobs. A new iPhone is expected to be announced, as well as more information on OS 4.0 and hopefully a launch date, but with Apple, you never know for sure.

We’ll keep you posted as to what’s announced as soon as the news breaks next week.