There are several desktop cradles and docks available for the iPhone, but there’s another often overlooked category of useful iPhone holders – stands. 

iPhone stands (like the Satechi iClooly shown left) allow you to watch movies, browse the web, etc., with a natural monitor-type setup perfect for desks and table tops.  Most also make it very easy to use a sync cable with your iPhone while it’s hanging out.

We’ve put together a page with our favorite iPhone 3G & 3GS Stands, so if you’re interested, have a look.

The iPhone Edition Hands-On ArtWizz MirrorFilm Review has been posted in the Review Center.

When the iPhone 3GS was announced, iPhone 3G users where told they’d have to pay $399 or $499 to upgrade.  The 3G came out in July of 2008, and since AT&T requires users to be at least a year into their contract to qualify for upgrade pricing, if you owned a 3G, you had to pay full price or wait.  But on June 17, AT&T changed its iPhone 3GS upgrade policy for iPhone 3G early adopters (those who bought a 3G in July, August or September of 2008) reducing the price by 50% and making the upgrade much more enticing. 

Upgraders who ordered the 3GS through AT&T before the change were issues a credit for the difference at the AT&T store, but those who pre-ordered through the Apple Store were told they’d have to wait for Apple to go through the orders, sort out who was eligible for the reduced pricing, and issue a credit for the difference (about $200). 

Today I spoke with an Apple Store rep who told me Apple is still sorting through pre-orders to determine eligibility.  She said the process will take several more days and that Apple hopes to have credits issued soon.  Those eligible for the revised upgrade pricing will receive an email from Apple as soon as eligibility has been established.

So, if you ordered a 3GS from Apple at the $399 or $499 price and fall into the iPhone 3G early-adopter range and meet the requirements for the credit, you should be hearing from them via email soon.  If you don’t receive an email by next week, you should contact Apple Customer Support at 1-800-676-2775.

If you have received, or do receive, your Apple credit, please let us know by posting in the comments.  We want to stay on top of this.

Whether it’s the faster CPU, the new PowerVR SGX graphics processor, the doubling of RAM or (most likely) the combination of the three, the new iPhone 3G S rips through the one app that killed my 3G: Google Earth.

The iPhone version of Google Earth [iTunes Link] was choppy and frustrating on the iPhone 3G.  The 3G S, on the other hand, handles the app quite well, beautifully rendering, resizing and rotating the satellite images with hardly a lag.

Now, many users may not care about graphics processing power (I am not much of a gamer, myself), but it’s clear that the new GPU is a marked improvement over the last model.  If you’re a gamer, the 3G S is calling your name.

The iPhone Edition Hands-On iPhone 3GS Review has been posted in the Review Center.

When you were a kid, you probably took things apart to see how they worked.  Some of us grow out of this phase, but luckily not all.

The folks at RapidRepair have gotten their hands on one of the first iPhone 3G S units to go on sale, and they’ve done what any self-respecting techie would do –  rip it apart. And, by “rip,” we of course mean methodically and carefully disassembled it. 

Their work has yielded not only some interesting photographs, but definitive information on the components used to build Apple’s newest smartphone.  The site was able to confirm the unit’s SoC, the Samsung S5PC100 (PDF), its memory chips, etc., and have created a handy comparison chart that displays component details for the original iPhone, iPhone 3G, iPhone 3G S and Palm Pre. 

via EngadgetMobile

Well, this is certainly rare and welcome news.  AT&T has decided to allow iPhone 3G early adopters (those who purchased a 3G in July, August or September 2008 with a contract) to upgrade to the iPhone 3GS at the same price new customers will pay.  In other words, instead of paying $399 (16GB) or $499 (32GB) for a new 3GS – which was the original upgrade policy – these customers will pay $199 or $299 if they qualify. 

If you’ve already placed an order for the new iPhone through AT&T or Apple, and you qualify, you’ll still get the deal.  Those who will pick-up their preorders at  an AT&T retail store will have the price adjusted then.  Qualifying online AT&T preorder customers will get an email with the details and a credit.  If you preordered from Apple’s online store “your upgrade eligibility will be reassessed based on AT&T’s new upgrade policy … if you are eligible for the lower price, Apple will issue you a credit for the difference as applicable.”

It’s not every day that a company makes a 180-degree turn around like this, so it’s welcome news.  If it proves to work as advertised (i.e. they don’t play games with upgrade qualifications), they deserve a big thanks.

AT&T Press Release

iPhones ship with a USB Power Adapter that transforms the included sync cable into a wall charger.  And, if you want to keep more than one power adapter around (one for the bedroom, another for the office, etc.), Apple will happily sell you additional adapters at $29 a pop. 

But dropping $30 on a charger is highway robbery; we have a much better solution.

eBay is filled with auctions – and BuyItNow sales – for iPhone Wall Chargers for much, much less: $2 -$4.  True, they’re not as cute and cuddly as the tiny Apple USB Power Adapter, but if you’re willing to spend a bit more, say $4-$6, you can nab an OEM version of the USB Power Adapter and never know the difference.  It might not hurt to pick up some additional cables as well.

As always, we recommend looking for new, unopened products on eBay.  And check out seller ratings to be sure you’re buying from someone with a great track record.

iPhone and iPhone 3G users have been waiting months for what will be made available today – the free upgrade to the iPhone 3.0 OS. 

Apple will reportedly deploy the update around 12:00PM CDT.  You will be able to upgrade your iPhone via iTunes once the software is made available (you will need iTunes 8.2 or above in order to install the update).

iPod touch users will also be able to update to 3.0, but the upgrade will cost “only” $9.95 plus tax. 

iPhone 3.0 Update

iPod touch 3.0 Update

Anyone who’s used a Windows Mobile or Palm OS smartphone has probably at least heard of Documents To Go.  The software from DataViz has been a staple of mobile document creation and editing for years – and now it’s available for the iPhone.

Version 1 of the iPhone Edition of Documents to Go comes in two flavors: the first, which sells for $4.99, allows you create and edit Word documents on the iPhone, iPhone 3G or iPod touch, syncs docs over Wi-Fi with automatic file change merging on PC or Mac, and view Excel, PowerPoint, iWork, PDF and other supported document files.  The second sells for $9.99 and adds Exchange support for viewing and editing Word email attachments.

These prices are currently marked as “promotional” and are scheduled to end at the end of the month.  Those who purchase either Documents To Go software package will, for a limited time, get a free upgrade adding support for Excel document editing when this ability is added to the software in the coming weeks.

View Documents To Go in the App Store

View Documents To Go with Exchange in the App Store