Jay “saurik” Freeman, the creator of Cydia and Winterboard, gave a talk at an independent TED event in California on the fundamental philosophy behind jailbreaking. Given on Binary Day 10/10/10 at the inaugural TEDxAmericanRiviera in Santa Barbara, his talk compared jailbreakers with people who like to tinker with their cars.

In a riff on the old open-source “hood welded shut” analogy, Jay noted how people like to customize their cars, adding things from air-fresheners and radar detectors to custom rims. He also referenced the Magnusson-Moss Warranty Act that states that car manufacturers can’t void car owners’ warranties just by adding third-party accessories. And he explained how phone owners – like car owners – “bond” with their devices, allowing it to “become an external representation of self.” However, as we all know, Apple’s OS “jails” your experience inside apps. As Apple famously says, “there’s an app for that:” their belief is that anything you could want to do with a mobile device can and should be done with an app. Jay explained to his audience why this is not so.

Some of the most useful added functionality that is available to rooted Android devices and jailbroken iPhones, Jay observed, does not come from apps but from tweaks: extensions like custom launchers, dialers, and widgets. In a post on Hacker News, Jay aired his frustration with the argument that Apple should just open up the App Store. “In a future where Apple did exactly what you are asking them to do,” Jay wrote, “almost nothing will have changed: people will still need to jailbreak their phones and developers will still be writing and distributing all of this cool software using Cydia.”

According to saurik, rather than pushing Apple to open up the Store, we should be pushing to get them to open up their device, and to keep Macs open. “Until users are able to install whatever software they wish on the hardware that they own,” he writes, “we will not truly have won back any of our freedom.”

The rest is here:
"Software Should Have Screws:" saurik’s TED Talk

Apple iPad’s battery life is nothing short of amazing. But, the time it takes to charge it seems to be another story.

You can charge your iPad with the standard 10W iPad Apple charger or hook it up to your MacBook Pro or use a 3rd party power charger. But, which battery charging is going to make your Apple iPad the happiest?

Gizmodo has taken this upon themselves to compare the battery chargin time with Apple standard iPad charger, Griffin PowerBlock, standard iPhone charger and MacBook Pro’s USB charger.

The results are interesting for the time it takes to get upto 80% charge.  The reason for it is the first 80% is a quick charge and the last 20% goes very slowly to preserve battery life. Hence the 80% baseline.

While the standard iPad charger fared well in the test compared to others, Griffin’s PowerBlock (the newer iPad friendly 2.1 amps) seems to perform better than the standard iPad charger.

So, if you are looking for a spare charger PowerBlock could be a better option.

While charging with MacBook Pro’s USB or standard iPhone charger will do the job overnight, the straight power options win it for being quick.

Verdict

Fastest: Griffin PowerBlock (new)

Slowest: MacBook Pro USB

[via Gizmodo]

This mini iMac stand comes in two pieces: the actual stand and the holder for the iPhone 3G/3GS. With a quick turn of a small knob, you can connect the two pieces. Simple. From there, I was able to fit my iPhone in – case and all – into the holster where it sat comfortably in place. In the pictures below you can get an idea of the different angles that can be achieved.

The all aluminum stand rotates 360 for optimum viewing, and the minimalistic design leaves openings for the 12-pin data connector, volume controls, standby, home-key and auxiliary output. If you flip the stand upside down, there is rubber, non-slip coating which is perfect for all surfaces.

The Xstand retails for $39.99, and can be found on amazon.com for $34.99, a steal considering the quality parts, unique aesthetic and minimalistic design.

Photographs brought to you by: Christopher Tooley -http://WWW.TOPHERPHOTOGRAPHY.COM

Newegg has a small rechargeable power supply that works with all versions of iPhone and all iPods with the 30-pin dock connectors.

The Miccus ChargeBlock CBFI-01 has an 800 mAh rechargeable lithium ion battery that lasts 500+ charges. It charges with the included mini-USB cord, and outputs 5V/+/-0.25V.

It has automatic on/off charging that prevents overcharging your device battery. The Miccus ChargeBlock has LEDs that indicate charging status and shows the amount of power it has remaining. The Miccus ChargeBlock CBFI-01 is $19.99, with free shipping in the continental US.