Japanese iPhone carrier Softbank Mobile will introduce a new program giving customers free 8GB iPhones under a two year contract. Disappointment looms for those who just handed over $235 (or about 22,782 Yen) with the plan starting on Friday.

Although not clear, Softbank may be employing the philosophy that every time the price of the iPhone has dropped, demand has increased. This possibility was noted during last months earning conference call by Apple COO Tim Cook. Sales of the iPhone in Japan have been slower than expected where this plan by Softbank may potentially create the perfect springboard for iPhones into the market. Softbank are starting the “iPhone for everybody Campaign“, with the Mobile Corporation offering price cuts across the board by reducing the maximum monthly data plan rates (from $62 to $45.60) with free texts and voice calls to other Softbank Customers on the 3G Network.

It is interesting that sales have been apathetic with Japanese mobile phone users who have been playing around with advanced devices for years. Compared to data-capable touch-screen phones in the US which are, in the grand scheme of things, a newer idea, iPhones have been selling like hotcakes. The success or failure of the program will be one to watch both from the initial uptake from Japanese Mobile Users as well as long term carrier revenue. If employment of such a campaign can create market turnaround and maintain customer loyalty, I can only hope other carriers jump on the bandwagon of offering free phones under long-term contracts. I’ll be honest – I’ll take a free iPhone. That price is right!

[via CNET]

It’s a nice local directory app for iPhone. 360Wichita launched iPhone version of its visual directory, allowing iPhone users to access to Wichita businesses and information including coupons, maps, pictures, and more from around Wichita.

Our community directory, 360Wichita.com, is the premier online directory of Wichita business, real estate and area attractions, designed to provide valuable information and unique visual content to online consumers. The directory is a lead generator for our clients and offers a visual representation of Wichita for visitors around the world.

iPhone users can get the application for free from the iTunes AppStore (or by searching “Wichita” or “360Directories”). The application is currently used in Kansas City, Charlotte, N.C., Dallas/Ft. Worth and Tampa, Fla.

[via Wichita Business Journal]

Kyte offers a turnkey framework that streamlines the creation of custom music applications for the iPhone, allowing artist and labels optimize the apps as both a promotional tool and an extension of the traditional album release.

The solution’s benefits include:

• Distributed through iTunes App Store.
• Instantly updates with latest content including shows, twitter, and news,
• Eliminates the need for costly iPhone app development.
• Interactive engagement features.
• Enables you to converge online and mobile audiences into a single community.

Universal’s customized apps for The Pussycat Dolls, Lady Gaga, Soulja Boy, The All American Rejects, and Keri Hilson, which are released recently, created by Kyte platform. Check-out here to get more info on this solution.

[via hypebot]

EA Mobile just introduced the first screens of its Tiger Woods 09 game for the iPhone via Facebook, according to Pocket Gamer. So far, there are no solid details on this golfing game.

These are pegged as pre-release shots, suggesting improvements will likely be made before we actually see the finished product, but we’ve got to say it’s already looking pretty splendid.

Tiger’s recognisable, and the fully 3D fairways do justice to the iPhone’s graphical abilities. There even appears to be a reasonable amount of customisation of your golfer, and the selection screen suggests you can choose between CPU or human players, so this is likely to be a multiplayer affair.

We will keep you updated on this game’s details. Stay tuned.

[Pocket Gamer via IntoMobile]

Related Product:

IPhone Life, Special 2008 Issue

USBfever just launched a Mini Microphone for iPhone 3G, enabling users to get better sound recording quality on their iPhone. Journalists, students, teachers or researchers probably need this tiny gadget.

Features:

• Plug and Play.
• High Quality Microphone, fine sensibility.
• Small and portable.
• No need battery.
• So conveninent, you can wear it as a necklace.
• As a capsule, so compact and lightweight.

As the site’s company noticed, for iPhone 3G, you need to download and install software (like iTalk Recorder or Easy Recorder)  to your iPhone first.

It can be bought for USD $14.99 (plus international shipping cost USD $2.99 per order) from their website.

[via iPhone 3G India]

Are you using Twitter frequently? Great. Try this new app: Summizer will help you tracking the most popular micro blogging service, following friends and trends you care about. Another Twitter app on the iPhone is Twittie.

Just in case you missed about this service, it’s taken from Twitter’s site:

Twitter is a service for friends, family, and co–workers to communicate and stay connected through the exchange of quick, frequent messages.  People write short updates, often called “tweets”  of 140 characters or fewer.  These messages are posted to your profile or your blog, sent to your followers, and are searchable on Twitter search.

Summizer’s features include:

• Search Twitter.
• View popular topics on Twitter.
• Save your searches.
• Check for updates.
• View links inside Summizer.
• View more tweets.
• Reply to users.
• Retweet tweets.
• Refresh saved trends from tweet view.
• New tweets highlighted.
• Safari button in web view.

Have Twitter account? Please leave it on the comment box below, I will follow you. And here is my Twitter account: http://twitter.com/budip.

Yes, you can try Summizer before you buy.

[via Steve Rubel]

Related Product:

CaseCrown Premium Double Memory Foam GPS Cases - CheckThis is a perfect storing case for your GPS system. Premium Quality Shock Absorbing Memory Foam provides a complete protection for your GPS and its ac... Read More >

A turn-by-Turn GPS application for the iPhone, the G-Map application, already exists in the App Store. There is no monthly fee required and no internet or wi-fi connection needed. Each application (XRoad Co.’s G-Map U.S. West and G-Map U.S. East) will cost you $19.99.

MacRumors shared its review:

We briefly tested the app, and it does indeed provide turn-by-turn directions (distance countdown to each turn) by way of GPS. Local points of interest (Food, Fuel, etc.) can be found, addresses can be searched, routes can be edited, detours added, and types of roads can be avoided (highways, toll roads, etc.). If a turn is missed, the route is recalculated. The app even is said to have 3D Images of major intersections (we were unable to verify). Notably absent, however, are voice prompts to let you know when the next turn is.

However, this app looks awesome.

Click here to view the embedded video.

[via MacRumors]

Mozilla and Skype also joined in to endorse a request by the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) for an exemption to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act related to iPhone jailbreaking –which is a practice that Apple Inc. considers against the law.

Mozilla, the maker of Firefox,

insists that Apple would probably not allow it to offer a mobile version of Firefox for the iPhone, based on its reading of the iPhone SDK, which forbids the installation of alternative runtimes.

While Skype, a prominent early adopter in iPhone software development,

stating “copyright law should not interfere with a user using his or her phone to run Skype and enjoy the benefits of low- or no-cost long-distance and international calling.”

[via Apple Insider]

Are you addicted to YouTube? Definetly you need this app. TubeJunkies is an app made just for YouTube addicts. You can subscribe to video channels and never miss any new videos uploaded.

Its features include:

• Subscribe to video channels based on search texts, youtube users, or video tags.
• Watch subscribed videos from within TubeJunkies.
• Delete/Sort video channels.
• Refresh individual video channels.
• Refresh all video channels.
• Mark all video channels as viewed or not viewed.
• Mark all videos in a channel as viewed or not viewed.
• Mark individual videos in a channel as view or not viewed.
• Hide viewed videos, or simply make the row more translucent.
• Viewed videos will be remembered across channels so that duplicate videos in a different channel will also be marked viewed.
• Show a badge number in Springboard to indicate the number of new videos.

You can download it from iPhone AppStore for $5.99 (too expensive, right?)

[via Irdian Studio]

If you have a bunch of favorite social networking accounts and you want to access them easily on your iPhone, this new app called Xumii will help you do that. This free app will hit the iTunes store tomorrow.

According to iPhoneFootprint, this app offers following benefits:

• See all your friends from Facebook, MySpace, imeem, AIM, Yahoo! Messenger, Google Talk, MSN and Flickr in one place.
• See who’s online and available to chat.
• Update your status at one go for all your networks (just like we’re using Ping.fm service).
• See the status of everyone in the same place.
• Let you select a photo from your iPhone  and share it with a friend on IM.

Sounds interesting.

Click here to view the embedded video.

[via GeekSugar]

Related Product:

CaseCrown Premium Double Memory Foam GPS Cases - NewsThis is a perfect storing case for your GPS system. Premium Quality Shock Absorbing Memory Foam provides a complete protection for your GPS and its ac... Read More >

Mophie will launch its Juice Pack Air, a rechargeable external battery (as well as a case), for the iPhone 3G. Compared to the current model (called 3G Juice Pack), the new model offers better and full protection, integrated power switch, thinner and light-weight.

China’s mobile users have to wait a quite while to get their own iPhone. Apple’s latest attempt to bring iPhone to China broke down for the third times –this time over App Store mechanism. From Japan, FreeBit offers a new iPhone application called “ServersMan@iPhone”, allowing your iPhone to be  any other web server on the Internet. The app is only available in the Japanese App Store.

Thanks to Google, iPhone users now can sync their Gmail Contacts and Google Calendar events to their lovely device. Just visit m.google.com/sync to get started. British news agency ITN has launched a video-focused news iPhone application, allowing users to watch video news reports on their iPhone, even if they have no Wi-Fi connectivity or 3G reception.

Seems Google doesn’t want to fight against Apple’s iPhone multi-touch patent (as Palm will do it to keep its Pre’s multi-touch technology), they already dropped multitouch support from their Android platform.

Apple may be planning a cheaper USD 99 iPhone sometime this summer, according to RBC analyst Mark Abramsky. It is told that the $99 iPhone will not run on AT&T’s faster 3G. The report also says Apple will start selling updated iPhone 3G.

Images of the back cover of next generation iPhone has started circulating on the Internet, according to MacRumors. Looks pretty, right? I hope it’s the real deal…

The bad news: Apple has publicly saying that “jailbreaking” (and seems it’s involving “unlocking” as well) an iPhone is breaking the law and voiding the warranty.  But the good news is:  AdMob says that Apple’s iPhones now dominate the U.S. mobile Web traffic, gives the iPhone a majority 51 percent share of smartphone market in the country.

Related Product:

CaseCrown Premium Double Memory Foam Hard Drive Cases - NewsThis is a perfect storing case for your Hard Drive system. Premium Quality Shock Absorbing Memory Foam provides a complete protection for your Hard Dr... Read More >