Mong Kok, Hong Kong: Democracy Protests and iPhone 6

Our correspondent has been spending the last two weeks in Hong Kong covering the Democracy Protests.

Democracy Protests in Mong Kok, Hong Kong

Protestors camping at the street of Mong Kok, Hong Kong.
(photo credit: Yogi)

While covering the protests, Yogi stumbled upon iPhone 6 and 6 Plus sold on the sidewalk Causeway Bay. An iPhone 6, presumably a 16GB model was sold for 6,500 HKD, roughly 830 USD.

iPhone 6 sold on sidewalk in Hong Kong

Consumer Reports: “iPhone 6 and 6 Plus not as bendy as believed”

Bender performing Bending Test on iPhone 6

Consumer Reports:

All the phones we tested showed themselves to be pretty tough. The iPhone 6 Plus, the more robust of the new iPhones in our testing, started to deform when we reached 90 pounds of force, and came apart with 110 pounds of force. With those numbers, it slightly outperformed the HTC One (which is largely regarded as a sturdy, solid phone), as well as the smaller iPhone 6, yet underperformed some other smart phones.

iPhone 6 starts to deform at 70 pounds and the case separates at 100 pounds. Even after the deformation and case-separations, the iPhone 6 still functions.

CRO_Electronics_Split_iPhone_09-14

Photo credit: Consumer Reports.

To no surprise Apple showed off its own testing facility, firing back at the assumptions that Apple did not properly test iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus design.

My view of this so called “bendgate” was blown out of proportion from the start, and that can be attributed to:

  • Lack of understanding of Physics
    Also lack of common sense.
  • Competition
    Blackberry, HTC, LG and Samsung were quick to make fun of the situation.
  • Sensationalism
    Many news media love the page hit.
  • Fanaticism and Antagonism

In the end, people still love their iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus.

iOS 8.0.1 Over The Air Update Breaks Wireless Service and Touch ID

From AppleInsider:

Initial reports suggest that the over-the-air update install causes issues for the newest iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. Carrier connectivity issues are occurring across the board, affecting AppleInsider readers who use Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile and Sprint.

After updating their system to iOS 8.0.1, users have also found that the Touch ID fingerprint unlock for their handset no longer works. Attempts to add a new fingerprint to the system return the error message shown above.

This is a self inflicted slap in the face for Apple. Based on chatters within Apple, some members of AppleCare back-end team were reassigned prior to iPhone 6 launch. It might have been a bad move on Apple part. Blame it on a certain team leader within Apple.

Apple has posted a support page addressing this issue.

Loss of cellular service or ability to use Touch ID after updating to iOS 8.0.1 on iPhone 6 or iPhone 6 Plus

We have a workaround for you if you have an iPhone 6 or iPhone 6 Plus and you lost cellular service and Touch ID functionality today after updating to iOS 8.0.1. You can reinstall iOS 8 through iTunes by following the instructions below. We are also preparing iOS 8.0.2 with a fix for the issue, and will release it as soon as it’s ready in the next few days.

Follow these steps to reinstall iOS 8.0.

  1. Make sure that you’re using the latest version of iTunes.
  2. Connect your iPhone to iTunes.
  3. Back up your iPhone in iTunes on your Mac or PC. iCloud backups won’t restore to earlier versions, including iOS 8.0.
  4. Download the file below that corresponds to your device:
  5. Select the file you just downloaded by doing one of these in iTunes:
    • Mac: Press the Option key and click Check for Update.
    • Windows: Press the Shift key and click Check for Update.
  6. Press Update to install iOS 8 on your iPhone.

The Health app won’t work in iOS 8 after these steps. It will be fixed in our upcoming iOS 8.0.2 software update.

Based on postings at Apple Developer Forums, the issue affects primarily those who installed iOS 8.0.1 build 12A402 through over the air (OTA) update. It is possible that the differential update contains the bad codes that cause the issues.

Generally, I prefer installing the full update through iTunes rather than over the air.

You can also restore your iPhone back to iOS 8.0.0 by following the instructions provided by Rene Ritchie of iMore.com.

iOS 8.0 Software Update