FreshPhoneNews.com

More good news for iPhone 3GS owners and prospective owners, not only is the iPhone 3GS available in an 8GB version, but now USAA bank has allowed you to fill up your piggy bank through the touchscreen. No kidding, USSA, which is a privately-held bank and insurance provider, is updating its iPhone app to allow you to deposit checks. As the image shows, account holders will be allowed to make deposits by taking pictures of the check and deliver them to the bank’s server (all secure). The bank will then process the check and you get a credit in your account. No branch follow-up or bank verification needed. The new feature will only be available to certain customers; those “who are eligible for credit and have some type of insurance through USAA.” According to the bank’s EVP however, about 60 percent of the bank’s customers will meet these requirements and therefore be able to use this great new feature when it becomes available. Now cross your fingers that Apple approves the app.

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In a fresh bowl of baloney from Apple about its incredulous app approval policy. According to Cupertino, it hasn’t really rejected the Google Voice app, it is merely ‘reviewing’ it. Apple needs to review the app because it has a few ‘issues’ that need resolving, such as;

1. 1. “[Google Voice] appears to alter the iPhone’s distinctive user experience by replacing the iPhone’s core mobile telephone functionality and Apple user interface with its own user interface for telephone calls, text messaging and voicemail.”
2. 2. The iPhone user’s entire Contacts database is transferred to Google’s servers, and we have yet to obtain any assurances from Google that this data will only be used in appropriate ways. These factors present several new issues and questions to us that we are still pondering at this time.”

Ahaan. And I’m the queen of America. On AT&T’s side there’s a simple leave-me-alone kind of stance, according to Big Blue, they had “no role in any decision by Apple to not accept the Google Voice application”. Lame.

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Good news for Google Voice users with friends or family in Canada. Google has decided to spare you the hassle of paying those very cheap call rates for your calls to Canada, just like the GrandCentral days, and now you can call you best friend to discuss the latest horror flick you saw for FREE. What are we left wishing? That this could all be done from our beloved iPhone without having to jailbreak it…hear that Apple?

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Those who have tried Layar, swear by it, those who haven’t, well get with the times already. Layar works by using the camera on your Android handset to show the world to you with an extra layer of location-based content. If you’re using Google search or Yelping for a restaurant, the Layar browser will plot results in a 3D layer above the live video displayed on your screen from your camera. But the fun doesn’t stop here, Layar is actually a platform, an OS if you please. And many developers have seized the opportunity to make the OS more functional, Currently available content includes Flickr, Wikipedia, Yelp, Google local search, Qype, Britekite, Twitter and more. The augmented reality browser in now globally available on the Android OS, it even comes pre-installed on the Samsung Galaxy. AND, there are talks that the makers of Layar are eyeing the iPhone 3GS with intentions of launching a browser for the iPhone by next year. In the words of Homer Simpson; Woohooooo!

Demo video

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More on iTunes 9; an anonymous tipster just dropped word and screenshots of what is claimed to be iTunes 9 and features Facebook social playlist integration and support for third-party devices. According to the screen shots, iTunes 9 will let you create a new playlist and share it with your friends on Facebook. The Facebook entry that subsequently appears on the user’s FB wall will include an iTunes link, presumably pointing to the shared playlist found on an iTunes page. Nice. As for the third-party device support…err…a very long shot there, Cupertino does not do third-party anything. Ah well, time will reveal all. Enjoy the screenshots and pray they are legit.

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All right Facebook junkies, it is now time to stack up on your good deeds and pray with all your might because the Facebook team has submitted version 3.0 of their legendary social networking app to the Apple App Store. The next few months will be filled with excruciating pain none have seen the likes of, at least not the Facebook crowd. The new Facebook 3.0 app brings 15 new mouth watering features including;

• The “new” News Feed
• Like
• Events (including the ability to RSVP)
• Notes
• Pages
• Create new photo albums
• Upload photos to any album
• Zoom into photos
• Easier photo tagging
• Profile Pictures albums
• A new home screen for easy access to all your stuff, search, and notifications
• Add your favorite profiles and pages to the home screen
• Better Notifications (they link to the comments so you can reply)
• Quickly call or text people right from the Friends page
• Messages you are typing will be restored if you quit or are interrupted by a phone call

Pretty cool right? So let’s not grumble about the absence of Push Notifications (Facebook 3.1 has got to have something right?) And of course the usual waiting for Apple to prove that it doesn’t hate everybody and will approve a Facebook app…

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Ok so it’s pretty cool news that that Apple and Unicom China have struck a deal that lands 5 million iPhone 3GS in China, but now it seems like the officials on both side of the table are party poopers. China Unicom spokesperson Yi Difei was quoted saying that China Unicom and Apple are still in negotiations and the International Business Times’ report about a $1.5 billion order is not true. Tiffany Yang, an Apple spokesperson in Beijing, also put in that there is no new information about an iPhone agreement with China Unicom. Of course it’s highly possible that both sides want to keep the details hush hush to build some launch hype, but we do need official word after all.  We choose to hope, despite the pessimism. Keep faith Chinese Apple fans.

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Just when you’d almost forgotten (or given up hope on) the 3^rd generation iPod Touch, in comes a rumor to remind you of your former dreams. According to the blog of a popular radio show, the Covino & Rich Show blog, the images you see here are totally legit shots of the 3^rd generation iPod. The show hosts claim they were sent in by a loyal listener and this is not a publicity stunt. The images are not the final production unit, but early prototypes the tipster got their hands on since they deal with used electronics. Right. The disassembled iPod Touch you see here does have the red circuit board that is a generally used for prototyoes. So as usual we are slightly skeptical since there no real way to confirm this and radio show hosts have been prone in the past to do a fair share of marketing for their shows…you get the idea. Enjoy the prototypes though.

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After what took a good part of a century, Apple and Unicom China have managed to strike a deal. Unicom China has finally gotten Apple to send them a tweaked version of the iPhone sans Wi-Fi. And what made Apple agree to this act of great generosity…making a special iPhone especially for China; three words people…barrels of cash. According to the International Business Times, China Unicom has ordered 5 million iPhone 3GS units from Apple as the preliminary order which will back the country-wide launch of the handset in September. The order, totaling ¥10 billion ($1.46 billion USD), will put China Unicom’s launch inventory at nearly the same number of handsets Apple sold worldwide last quarter. This means the carrier is expecting heavy sales of the coveted touchscreen device. According to China Unicom’s GM of Customer Development Yu Zaonan, Apple’s handset will be priced at ¥2,400 ($352 USD) for the 16GB model and ¥4,800 ($704 USD) for the 32GB model.

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Among the latest software to become the victims of Apple’s relentless stance on annoying the world is mobile video streaming service Qik. The Qik app for the iPhone 3GS is ready to go…with two modifications; a. Wi-Fi only and b. no live streaming. Right. That definitely serves our purpose. Not. Another app build of Qik which makes for live video streaming over 3G has been sent to the App Store for approval, but lately, Apple’s been on a roll with apps. Downhill, but a roll nonetheless. Qik without the ability to stream live videos…does the extent of the insanity even dawn on Apple?

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