Apple have for a long time now been boasted as the pioneers of the superphone. Since 2007 we've watched as company after company have tried to recreate the big A's success with ever-so-slightly different variants of what's essentially just an iPhone. Along the way, Apple have taken various legal shots at the intellectual freeloaders, the most recent of which being Samsung for their "infringing [Galaxy] product line".

Well in an unexpected and quite frankly hilarious twist of events, it appears the two companies may have more plagiaristic history between them than we first expected. And no, Apple aren't going after Samsung's Series 9 for taking on the MacBook air, rather the following image surfaces online of a handset Samsung produced back in 2006 which challenges the iPhone's own originality all together.

In December, Google introduced Goggles on the Android, allowing users to search the web using the phone's built-in camera. Well today the big G rolled out the same functionality for their Google Mobile iPhone app. To search with Goggles, simply tap the camera icon and take a picture of the item you wish to look up. The app will then scan the photo using it's image recogniton software and return what it thinks are the most accurate results.

I think most people are over the fact that the iPhone is never going to have a hardware keyboard. Although most users are more than happy with Apple's softkeys, there's always going to be those far-and-few crazycats who just can't get over tactile buttons! Well here's a solution courtesy of Nuu. Mini Key is an iPhone 4 case with a built-in slide-out pysical keyboard.

The Android-esque solution does add a mighty load of bulk, but let's face it, if you really want to fashion your brushed-metal and glossy-glassed iPhone in a plastic keyboard, your probably a bigger fan of function than form.

The Mini Key is expected to go on sale before the end of the year for around €60 / $60. Read on for more pics...

Okay so we ought to know better than to get exited by Apple's vapourous blueprints, but Patently Apple's latest findings have been provoking some serious buzz. The premise is a proximity based social network that takes location aware web 2.0 to the next level via the iPhone.

The self proclaimed 'iPhone Dev Team' are well and truly back in the game with the release of RedSn0w 0.9 Beta for OSX and Windows. The latest version allows nearly all generations of Apple iPhone/iPod Touch to Jailbreak, Unlock and customize the most recent 3.0/3.1.2 firmware.

The 'nearly' is due to the 'Beta', which is currently unable to support third generation iPod Touches, a niggle that is said to be fixed with the full RedSn0w release. 

Lately Mophie have been making some killings in the iCase market, and with news of a partnership with FLO TV it was only a matter of time before the rumours became realities. Well in a recent press release from the kings of mobile television, FLO have announced development of a new iPhone/iPod Touch product that promises to pack their terribly clunky reciever into one of Mophie's ground-breaking Juice Packs.

If (like us) this is the Apple accessory you've been dreaming of, you'll be pleased to hear this case should be rolling out in the first half of 2010, which is plenty of time for some healthy competition to brew! This is one of those products that we really hope will be done right first time. Luckily Mophie's reputation for ergonomic quality is somewhat of a reassurance, and to date, we can't think of a better manufacturer to follow through the tech in question.

We've always been exited by the concept of using a Bluetooth keyboard with the iPhone, and in recent weeks the Cydia application 'BTstack' has allowed jailbroken 3G/3GS users to do just this.

Now, the same guys that build the latter have developed the driver code to allow Apple's new Magic Mouse to interact with the iPhone. After pairing the mouse to your device via Bluetooth you can seamlessly navigate through the iPhone's UI the same way you would with your finger, but with a responsive Apple cursor instead.

The iPhone is undoubtedly one of the most exiting yet unexpected gaming platforms of the last few years, thus we're always exited to see new accessories promising to push the budding 'Apple gameboy' to it's limits.

Enter the Helix Gaming Grip from PosiMotion! Set to launch at CES 2010, this snazzy bit of gear holds your iPhone or iPod touch firmly in the middle of two ergonomically designed handles for maximum comfort and precision when rolling, drifting or pwning along to your favourite apps. We love how this grip turns the device into a chunkier 'arcade rally-esque' style steering wheel which makes this the perfect companion for accelerometer based racing games such as Driver & Real Racing. On second glance it's not obvious how one is supposed to use on-screen controls without going one-handed, but perhaps we're missing the point here.

No news on price yet, but we expect to find out more early January at CES.

If you are thorough enough to check your site's server logs and you know a little bit about Smartphone software, you might just be lucky enough to come across next generation Apple firmware! At least that's what one budding Boy Genius did yesterday. On closer inspection of the server lines above, you can find entries for both iPhone 3.1.3 software as well as the mystical 4.0!

iPhone 3.1.3 would denote a minor bug fix (up from current version 3.1.2), an update much needed to clean up the current niggles reported by the tech community. But most interestingly is evidence of Apple's next big upgrade, which in the past has given us features such as the App Store and is the software that will be pre-loaded on iPhone G4.

Apple iPhone and iPod Touch users have been complaining of a bug in the App Store which causes application updates to download over and over and over again! The problem in question seems to act randomly unrelated to any specific apps or firmware version and although Apple haven't rolled out any bug fixes as of yet, there are a couple of things you can do to give this irritating app store niggle the slip!...

Since the news broke that O2's exclusivity contract with Apple was up, it's been a matter of time before the iPhone becomes affordable in the UK. That day is officially December 14!

That's right folks, the iPhone 3GS is coming to Tesco mobile! Although not the most 'hip' or 'with-it' carrier, Tesco is by far the cheapest with plans starting from just £20 a month for a one year contract. Other offers include an unlimited calls and texts plan for £60 p/m and free unlimited 3G web and BT Openzone Wifi for a year on Pay As You Go.

 

As the holidays commence iPhone gadgets are splattered throughout the blogosphere and let's be honest, they are all pretty much the same! Enter DLO Walldock for the iPhone!

This cute and simple plug-and-charge wall mount for the iPhone charges your favourite smartphone at a 'higher power' whilst seamlessly hovering in front of your mains power outlet. Okay so a clutter-free way to charge your phone for sure but perhaps not the most practical of phone mounts? Unless you like pinching and scrolling with your feet of course?

Nevertheless, we love it!

Last.fm killers Spotify have submitted their iPhone version of their revolutionary application to the App Store. Spotify is 'a new way to enjoy music' which similarly to Last.fm streams tunes to users for free, but instead you get to select exactly what you want to listen to as opposed to songs you might like.

The Last.fm iPhone application has had a huge reception, so you can only imagine how big this app is going to be. Features include unlimited access to Spotify's entire library and the ability to cache songs on the phone to listen to whilst offline for nothing! If this gets past the app store approval process, it'll be available free to UK iPhoners who are signed up to Spotify's premium service, so there's your catch.. But for unlimited music, an incredible deal.

A report from the L.A. times claims that Apple will finally allow the tools that developers need to produce Augmented Reality applications in the iPhone 3.1 software. Currently developers working on these apps have not been able to publish them to the app store, due to restrictions from Apple. According to the L.A. times, this will change with iPhone 3.1.

"Apple told Acrossair, developer of the Nearest Tube train finder, that the app will be approved for distribution after Apple releases version 3.1 of the iPhone software, which the developer expects will land in early September"