See the rest of this week’s best iPhone apps

It’s pretty simple:

1. Jailbreak. If you haven’t upgraded to the latest, jailbreak-breaking iOS 4.0.2 on your iPhone, or 3.2.2 on your iPad, then jailbreaking with jailbreakme.com is still easy as pie. Just visit the site on your iPhone or iPad and follow the simple steps. There’s no jailbreak available for iPhone 4′s running 4.0.2 yet, but one’s bound to pop up sooner or later.

2. Buy multifl0w 2.0 from the Cydia App Store. Multifl0w, which costs $5, has long been a staple of pre-iOS4 (read: jailbroken) iPhone multitasking, but a recent update adds the super sexy Exposé-style management seen in the clip above. You can customize the trigger for activating the Exposé, and, crucially, you can customize just what type of multitasking you want it to trigger. From the Multifl0w FAQ:

How does Multifl0w incorporate with Apple’s multitasking on iOS4?

This was a difficult problem to solve, because there are so many different possible solutions. So what’s the answer? Provide as many different customization options as possible so that it’s easy for everyone to have the backgrounding style they want. Multifl0w used in conjunction with Backgrounder should be able to provide you with the options that suite your preferences. Using Multifl0w without Backgrounder on iOS4 will function like Apple’s switcher, apps stay “open” in memory (although not actually running). Using Multifl0w without Backgrounder on 3.1.x is not advised, because apps will be closed as soon as they are exited. However, Multifl0w does not force Backgrounder to be installed on any OS version for maximum flexibility.

Can I use both Multifl0w and Apple’s switcher together?

Yes, you can. Just set Multifl0w’s activation method to something other than Double-Press Home, and you will still be able to use both together.

The developers note that the Exposé-style multitasking will work on older iPhones and iPod Touches, though it really requires the speedy processors of the iPhone 4 and iPad for the full, smooth experience. [Multifl0w - Thanks Ryan94]

Send an email to Kyle VanHemert, the author of this post, at kvanhemert@gizmodo.com.

www.gizmodo.com

If you are considering upgrading your iPhone to a newer model, Mike Heller and Chris Pinnock made a video that will help you decide: A no-prisoners speed race between the original Jesusphone, iPhone 3G, iPhone 3GS, and iPhone 4.

If you are going to buy the obvious winner, you should also consider our review and remember to order the free bumper that will avoid the antenna problem. [TUAW]-www.gizmodo.com

Send an email to Jesus Diaz, the author of this post, at jesus@gizmodo.com.

Photo by jeanbaptiste maurice.

The Apple Blog points to AT&T’s GoPhone as the way to get into AT&T’s network without signing up for a full service plan. Better still, the tweak that makes the iPhone work with the GoPhone’s SIM card works on all versions of the iOS (2, 3, and 4), and doesn’t require actually messing with your phone’s firmware (“jailbreaking”) or other warranty-voiding tweaks. Instead, you point your phone to a New Zealand-based unlocking site that does the proper changing of your Access Point Names (APN), and approve the changes it wants to make.

Lifehacker East lacks for an older iPhone to test the method out on, but given the links and pointers to the write-up, it’s making us think about peeking around Craigslist and looking to see what older iPhone models are out there. Sometimes, all you need is a little data while you’re out and about, and this fits that bill pretty nicely.-Gizmodo

Send an email to Kevin Purdy, the author of this post, at kevin@lifehacker.com.

According to Cult of Mac’s source, it is “80 percent likely that the iPhone will be coming to T-Mobile in Q3.” The explanation as to why this timing fits is that this would correspond with the point when AT&T’s exclusivity agreement with Apple will reportedly end and that Apple “routinely added extra carriers when exclusivity deals in [overseas] markets expired.” The idea is that the company would follow that pattern in the US as well.

Of course, there is plenty of disagreement as to why Apple would even choose T-Mobile of all the possible carriers that could be added:

Most pundits expect Apple to add Verizon Wireless, the nation’s largest mobile phone provider with 92.8 million subscribers. AT&T is the second-largest US carrier with 87 million customers. The major problem is hardware: Verizon’s network is based on incompatible CDMA technology. However, Apple is already working with chipset-supplier Qualcomm on a CDMA chip for the iPhone, according to Wired.

But some analysts think it would be a lot simpler for Apple to go with T-Mobile, even though the carrier has a third of the customers of Verizon. AT&T and T-Mobile are the two primary GSM carriers in the US, and the iPhone wouldn’t require major hardware changes. Indeed, many T-Mobile customers already use unlocked iPhones on the company’s network.

Perhaps more importantly, a switch to Verizon would require a major realignment of corporate allegiances. Verizon is committed to Apple’s main wireless rival, Google, and has spent the last year heavily marketing the search giant’s Android phones. Verizon routinely runs ads directly attacking the iPhone. The most recent attack ad mocked the iPhone 4′s “death grip.”

As Cult of Mac mentions, there’s also a big issue potentially standing in the way of a simple move to T-Mobile though:

One important point, to which I don’t have the answer, is whether the iPhone 4 is compatible with T-Mobile’s 3G network. Customers with unlocked iPhone 3GS are able to use T-Mobile’s Edge data network, but not the faster 3G, which operates on the 1700/2100 MHz bands. According to Apple’s specs, the iPhone 4 adds the 2100 band, but not the 1700 band, which has led some to conclude that it is incompatible with T-Mobile’s 3G network.

There are a lot of questions about what the details of these talks could be—as well as if they’re really occurring—but unfortunately both Apple is refusing to comment and the only thing T-Mobile seems to be talking about lately is the fancy HSPA+ upgrades its network is getting. [Cult of Mac]

Disney will be updating the app continuously until the movie’s release this December, adding more games available for purchase in-app, but the tanks action alone, which can be played by yourself or online with others, and which incorporates some rad puzzle elements to the standard tank gameplay, is an excellent start.

As you can see in the shot above, everything’s saturated in beautiful Tron neon, and even the game’s menus and loading screens are more captivating than a lot of other iPhone games entirely. Tron: Legacy is still half a year away, but it seems like there will be plenty of pocketable Tron action to keep us busy in the meantime. [iTunes]

Photo by Gonzalo Baeza Hernández.

There’s nothing saying that you can’t continue using your old iPhone for years to come, but whether you ended up switching network carriers, switching operating systems (say, to Android), or upgrading to an iPhone 4 and its new features, there’s a good chance you’ve got an extra phone sitting around.

Straight off the bat, it’s important to realize that if you can no longer make calls on your old iPhone the way you’re used to, you’ve only lost one major feature. Luckily, it’s not really that big of a detriment. The functionality of the iPhone is still there, much in the form of an iPod touch. You can continue to use it as a dedicated audio and video player, run most of the apps you were already using, still use your Wi-Fi access (and even something like Skype if you want to make calls), or you can get creative with it. Rather than sell it or let it collect dust, here are a few of our favorite things to you can do with an extra or spare iPhone laying around the house.

Install Android on It

Adam’s been desperately eying this Android-on-iPhone project for months now, waiting for the day ready to install and use (dual-boot, mind you) on an iPhone that you still plan to use every day (and you can bet you’ll see a guide here when that day comes). Until then, your old, out-of-use iPhone is a perfect playground to try running Google’s Android operating system. The power management isn’t up to snuff yet, so don’t expect it to last too long, but the project’s wiki page offers a few guides to installing iDroid on your older iPhone.

Jailbreak and Unlock Your iPhone

Jailbreaking is a process that allows you to install third-party apps that aren’t available through the App Store and access the innermost software workings of your device. (It will also void your Apple warranty, but depending on what you plan to do with your iPhone, that warranty may be completely useless or expired anyways.) There are a couple of things available to your iPhone once you jailbreak it, including the power to unlock your phone. Unlocking your phone—not to be confused with jailbreaking—allows you to use the device on any GSM carrier in the world, provided the frequency bands are supported.

Photo by Gizmodo.

There are a couple of good things—and bad things—that come along with jailbreaking and unlocking an iPhone. If you unlock, you can keep on using your phone, even if you’ve switched carriers. You don’t have to ditch your iPhone just because you’re on T-Mobile, for example. Unfortunately, jailbreaking and unlocking is contingent on the iPhone’s firmware and baseband: there’s not always an available jailbreak or unlock for the latest software. This means you won’t have the latest and greatest features all the time, and some things like notifications might not work correctly. But you’re repurposing here, so it’s not all that bad, and an unlocked iPhone only increase its value if you plan to sell it.

While we aren’t going to cover how to jailbreak and unlock your phone, many guides are available across the internet.

Your iPhone As A Webcam: Stream Video

We’ve mentioned some benefits to jailbreaking your phone, but here’s another reason. If you need a webcam, it’s possible to turn your spare iPhone into one instead of resorting to purchase one at the nearest store. This procedure requires a jailbroken phone, and utilizes video-sharing service Qik.

Use Your iPhone as a Remote Control

The iPhone, as we mentioned earlier, is an extremely functional multi-purpose device. Among its greatest assets is its ability to remotely control a number of things. Apple already has a simple app called Remote that will enable you to control iTunes and Apple TV, and your iPhone armed with Remote makes for a great multi-room wireless music remote.

Photo by brennan.v.

Controlling iTunes is only really the tip of the iceberg. Your iPhone can be used as a remote control with media center software like Boxee with the Boxee remote, or XBMC with the XBMC Remote. It’s fantastic for easy home theater control access, when you’re sprawled out across the couch.

The iPhone can function as a remote for many types of software, including one of our favorite video players, VLC Media Player. There’s iPhone remote control app for the video player available. Also, for another little trick of iPhone magic, the DSLR Camera Remote Lite can review images and can fire the shutter on your Canon EOS or Nikon DSLR camera once it’s been hooked up to your computer. And for wide-ranging remote control, take a look at the very cool HippoRemote.

Turn Your iPhone Into a Dedicated Ebook Reader

It’s also possible to use the iPhone as an e-book reader, with its easy-to-use, big touchscreen. There are several jailbroken e-book apps available, along with i2Reader app found in the iTunes App Store. Still, by itself, the device lacks a tactile feel of a true e-book reader. Technology magazine Wired has a tutorial on how to encase your iPhone into a Moleskine notebook, making it easier to hold.

The Moleskine notebook, although you can really choose just about any notebook, adds a tactile element to your iPhone, while simultaneously disguising your device. The project requires a Moleskine notebook, an iPod Touch (or your extra iPhone), an X-Acto knife, and some PVA glue. The end result is that it becomes a lot easier to hold your iPhone, enhancing the overall e-book reading experience wherever you are.

Scan Documents With Your iPhone

Since the advent of cameraphones, taking quick snapshots of documents and other objects instead of writing them down have become a way of life. We’ve covered a DIY book scanning machine that utilizes an ordinary digital camera before, but you can also build your own scanning device for your iPhone.

Unfortunately, the specific instructions no longer seem to be free, but if you’re willing to put in a little time and effort, all it requires is that the device places places the iPhone on a stand at a specific distance from the bottom surface, where the papers are scanned. That way, it’s at the optimum distance, without relying on the steadiness of your hand for blur-free photos.

Use It as a Fancy Clock

Really don’t think you’re going to get much active use out of it? It may make a great nightstand clock. If you’ve still got some of your iPhone’s original packaging around, it’s pretty simple to turn it into a quick and effective night stand for your iPhone.

Photo by piPhotos.

As for the conference itself, Apple has announced that their engineers will be delivering over 100 technical sessions and labs in five key areas: Application Frameworks, Internet and Web, Graphics and Media, Developer Tools, and Core OS. Those interested in attending must be registered in Apple’s developer program and be willing to shell out $1,599-per-ticket.

The timeline of the night goes something like this: On March 18th, an Apple engineer with a top-secret, next-generation iPhone prototype went to a bar. It was his birthday. Some time later, he left the bar. His phone, left on a barstool, didn’t.

What followed was something of a juggling act: a drunk patron found the phone, and assumed it belonged to a member of another party at the bar, with whom he left the handset. A member of the party recognized, vaguely, that the phone was something out of the ordinary. According to what we’d assume to be standard Apple security protocol, the phone was bricked almost immediately. (In case people are concerned that Apple is only finding out now that a phone went missing, make no mistake, they knew the engineer lost it almost immediately.)

Some time later, it was passed to us. (We paid $5000 for it.) For nearly a week we investigated it thoroughly, ascertained its authenticity, then posted about it. But what about the three weeks before that? Three weeks during which Apple presumably tried—and obviously failed—to get their phone back. Was Apple looking for it? Early on, the discoverer actually tried to give the phone back. So what went wrong? And how did this happen in the first place?

A Failed Handoff

So you recognize this handset as an iPhone—it looks and works like an iPhone, and it’s even disguised as an iPhone 3GS. It’s not password protected (!), it’s running an OS that looks like the normal iPhone OS only a little different, and it has Facebook and other apps running. (Our source says he didn’t poke around too deeply.) Hours later—before the next morning, actually—it didn’t work.

The assumption is that it was wiped remotely as soon as either the engineer or Apple realized it was lost—probably later that night. An obvious course of action would be to call Apple. And as we reported before, that’s exactly what happened—our source started dialing Apple contact and support numbers. He was turned away, and given a support ticket number.

Here’s how it went down, allegedly, from the perspective of the Apple reps who got the call:

I work for AppleCare as a tier 2 agent and before the whole thing about a leak hit the Internet the guy working next to me got the call from the guy looking to return the phone. From our point of view it seemed as a hoax or that the guy had a knockoff, internally apple doesn’t tell us anything and we haven’t gotten any notices or anything about a lost phone, much less anything stating we are making a new one.  When the guy called us he gave us a vague description and couldn’t provide pics, so like I mentioned previously, we thought it was a china knockoff the guy found. We wouldn’t have any idea what to do with it and that’s what sucks about working for apple, we’re given just enough info to try and help people but not enough info to do anything if someone calls like this.

If the guy could have provided pictures it would have been sent to our engineers and then I’m sure we’d have gotten somewhere from there, but because we had so little to go on we pushed it off as bogus.

And seriously, what else could have happened? There is no way—not a chance—that a middle-level customer service rep would have known anything about the next iPhone. Put yourself in his theoretical shoes:

Hello, thanks for calling AppleCare

Hello. I think I have some kind of iPhone prototype, or something!

What?

Yeah, it’s kinda square, and it doesn’t work. I found it in a bar.

Ok! Thanks for calling.

I mean, right? And to address the obvious irony here, yes: Apple’s secrecy about new products is legendary. And perhaps if they weren’t so secretive, the caller’s message could have made it up to someone who might’ve known what to do with it. It also would have helped if the caller’s (true) story didn’t sound so utterly ridiculous.

Find My iPhone (Or Not)

So why couldn’t Apple track this thing down? Apple’s choices at this point were a lot like any other iPhone owner’s would have been:

• Call or text: Our sourced used the phone software for a very short time. He didn’t check the messages or call history, but said there was no notification box indicating a text or missed call. The phone was found dead in the morning, meaning that someone could have text or called during the night.

• Find My iPhone: But what about the phone’s GPS? Apple has a consumer product that lets you find lost phones, and shut them down remotely. It’s called MobileMe. It works pretty well! Except, it’s broken in the latest version of iPhone OS.

It’s basically a given that the phone was running a test version of Apple’s iPhone software, called OS 4. We’ve tested the software, which will presumably launch with the next version of the iPhone hardware, on current iPhone hardware. (For more on that, check here.) One thing we didn’t notice, though, is that MobileMe’s Find My iPhone feature, which lets you find your lost phone on an online map in a matter of seconds, doesn’t work in OS 4—yet. In other words, Apple likely couldn’t track this phone because of a beta software bug.

• Shut it down: Another MobileMe feature that doesn’t yet work with OS 4 is remote wipe, but the iPhone’s Exchange Server integration includes its own support for remote wipe, which means that Apple would have been more than able to nuke the iPhone from afar, anyway. Evidently, that’s exactly what they did.

And of course, Apple could have an entirely different tracking service, or even a different build of the OS in which Find My iPhone works fine. But assuming the phone was running something resembling the iPhone OS 4 beta many people have been using for the last few weeks, the pieces fit.

Question Zero

It’s easy to piece together how this whole fiasco played out after the phone was lost, but the biggest mystery is why this phone left the Cupertino campus in the first place. The rest of the story fits with Apple’s identity: regular employees weren’t privy to Apple’s secret products, so they dismissed them as a hoax; Apple’s beta software doesn’t support one of Apple’s services, so they couldn’t use the one feature that could have saved their asses.

The only uncharacteris

Money may make the world go ’round, but food is a close second. This week, we’re looking at food apps for the iPhone. We sought out apps that help you make great meals, from recipe lists to useful kitchen tools. But we also combed the App Store for apps that also help you make informed food choices when you are out and about.

20 Minutes Meals – Jamie Olvier
Publisher: Zolmo
Price (as of 4/15/10): $7.99
Download this app

Calling Jamie Oliver a celebrity chef is unfair. He’s a chef that uses his celebrity to promote better eating, especially with his crusade to improve the quality of food young people eat in hopes to combat malnutrition and obesity. But his iPhone app is not about that mission. It’s a collection of 55 recipes. Big deal, you think? Other recipe apps have thousands? Oliver’s 55 recipes, though, are accompanied by photographed step-by-step instructions, videos (which are not necessarily related to the recipes but are very, very well-made), measurement adjusters for making different servings, and a shopping list to help you get the right ingredients for these dishes. This app is not cheap, but it is expertly produced and a hint at what the cookbooks of tomorrow could – and should – look like.

Fast Food Calorie Counter
Publisher: Concrete Software
Price (as of 4/15/10): $0.99
Download this app

Fast food consumption around the world is at an all-time high thanks to its ubiquity and cheapness. This app is a smart way to know exactly what’s in the fast food you eat. It is not judgmental at all – it’s just a collection of menu items from over 70 popular fast food chains so you can make your own decisions about what you order and how often. (After seeing that there are 670 calories in a Double-Double at In-and-Out, I now only order the regular hamburger with just 390.) This app also includes a calorie counter so you can see how a fast food meal fits into your daily calorie and fat intake, allowing you to make necessary adjustments if you so wish. I must stress the lack of judgment in this app again. It is refreshing to get calorie information without editorial.

Epicurious
Publisher: CondeNast
Price (as of 4/15/10): Free
Download this app

Epicurious is an ongoing recipe collection that is nearing 30,000 dishes. The recipes come from food magazines like Bon Appetit and Gourmet (RIP), cookbooks, and popular chefs. It’s easy to sort through the recipes depending on meal types and what ingredients you already have in your pantry or fridge. And though users do not submit recipes, they can rate and review them, which is useful as an extra filter. The app includes an interactive shopping list so you can check off ingredients at the grocery store. Epicurious is a universal app, too, so it runs native on both your iPhone and iPad. The new iPad format looks like an actual cookbook, so if you have a standing dock, you may just find this to be your new best friend in the kitchen.

CookIt
Publisher: Matt Facer
Price (as of 4/15/10): $0.99
Download this app

If you have ever tried to make more than a one-dish dinner, you know how easy it is to get tripped up over timing. Chances are good no dish you are preparing has the same cooking time, but unless you get everything done close together, flavor and texture can suffer. This very simple, clean app is an excellent way to keep the cooking times of different dishes straight, such as when to start boiling the pasta, roasting potatoes, or taking bread out of the oven. Alerts for when you need to start cooking specific parts of a meal are useful. And the app is smart enough to hold on to all of the cooking timers – and keep them running – if you need to take a call or put the screen to sleep to conserve battery life.

VegOut
Publisher: Front-Ended
Price (as of 4/15/10): $2.99
Download this app

If you are a vegetarian, married to one, or just even friends with one, you know how it can complicate dining out. Sure, most restaurants have one or two vegetarian-friendly dishes, but think how it would make you feel to go to a joint and have just two carnivore-approved options. VegOut is designed to make the search for vegetarian food much easier for all parties involved. It pulls information from the Happy Cow database of eateries that are appropriate for vegetarians and vegans, but it’s not just limited to veggie-only places. VegOut works with Google Maps to show you where these restaurants are, too, making it a useful of for the vegetarian on-the-go. Like the great Fast Food Calorie App, VegOut offers no editorializing on personal eating decisions, making it approachable to eaters of all walks of life.