iLounge

By Charles Starrett

Senior Editor, iLounge
Published: Tuesday, July 7, 2009
News Category: Mix

Apple is having trouble keeping the white 16GB iPhone 3GS in stock at its company-owned retail stores, reports Fortune. Based on checks of Apple’s online availability listings, the entry-level white model is sold out in 30 of the 41 states in which Apple has stores, and in areas with large numbers of Apple Stores, such as California, Massachusetts, and New York City, it is available in only one store. It is unclear whether demand for the model is that much greater than the other three, or if Apple simply underestimated demand. The report goes on to note that as of today, every state has at least one model that is completely out of stock.

Apple, along with Sony and Nintendo, has been sued by Shared Memory Graphics (SMG) over alleged patent infringement. The Wall Street Journal reports that SMG claims Apple’s iPods, Nintendo’s Wii, and Sony’s PSP and PS2 systems use two graphic accelerator systems patented by the company. The patents describe ways in which processors fine-tune graphics by balancing the flow of data from various sources; they were originally owned by Alliance Semiconductor, but were sold to SMG after the former transitioned to a holding company. Filed in U.S. District Court in Arkansas, the suit demands unspecified monetary damages.

Australian graphic designer and iLounge forum member Josh Darrah, creator of the wooden iPod mini we reported on in June, is considering the possibility of profiting from his creation. According to the Sydney Morning Herald, response to the project has been so positive that Darrah is now looking into how he could mass produce the wooden casings and sell them online as part of a do-it-yourself kit. He is working to master the craft by continuing to build cases for the iPod range. “I’m working out how to streamline the process of making it using routers and a bit of program machinery to carve the wood, so I don’t have to do them by hand,” Darrah said.

Brooklyn-based artist Reyna Perez has had her new video for the song “Love Love Love” shot entirely on an iPhone 3GS. Boing Boing reports that the final mixes of the song arrived on Friday, June 17th, the same day the iPhone 3GS was released. “Video producer Ari Kuschnir, Reyna’s fiancee, purchased the iPhone after a two hour wait, made shorter by listening to the tracks. Hearing the new music and playing with 3GS, he had an idea. Why not debut Reyna with the first iPhone music video? ‘It became clear that the phone’s camera quality was good enough to shoot a music video. It seemed fitting for the project.’ Continue reading to see the embedded version of the video, or follow the above link to watch it on YouTube.