Apple CEO Tim Cook and Samsung's Vice Chairman Choi Gee-sung and mobile chief Shin Jong-Kyun have once again reportedly failed to come to an agreement on their now long-standing patent dispute during a second round of court-mandated settlement talks. Citing several sources familiar with the talks, Dan Levine and Poornima Gupta, writing for Reuters said:

Apple believes [FRAND] patents should be valued lower due to those dynamics, one of the sources said. Additionally, Samsung believes it has a stronger patent portfolio than Apple when it comes to next-generation technology like 4G, the source said.

FRAND patents are supposed to be licensed under "fair, reasonable, and non-discriminate" terms in exchange for their being adopted as essential standards in a technology. Apple chooses to keep their patents proprietary and not license them, rather than to have them become part of a standard. Some courts and government regulators have taken issue with FRAND patents being used to sue or counter-sue against non-FRAND patents and, in the EU, ant-trust investigations have begun looking into them.

This was at least the second court-mediated settlement talk to fail. While Apple and Samsung continue to sue each other over patents, and whether or not Samsung copied the iPhone and iPad, or Apple violated core Samsung technologies, Apple remains Samsung's largest customer, sourcing numerous components from Samsung's manufacturing division.

If Apple and Samsung can't reach an agreement, the case will go to court and then it'll be out of their hands. Since courts have varied widely in patent decisions of late, from tosses cases out of court to issuing injunctions, what happens next will be hard to predict. Except for the amount of time and money spent by all parties involved.

I'm still calling for Judge Judy to step in and settle everything in 30 min of snark.

Source: Reuters

Tweetings for iPhone has received an update that allows you to receive notifications anytime specifically chosen users send a tweet, so you can make sure you never miss a tweet from @iMore, for example. Twitter for iPhone also recently added this per-user notification feature, so it's great to see other Twitter apps follow suit.

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While this seems like this should go without saying, because of all the questions we've been getting, and posts we've been seeing, iMore reached out to the original sources that gave us the new Dock connector story way back in February just to make doubly sure -- and yes, there will be an adapter for the iPhone 5's smaller Dock connector that will let it work with many of the accessories designed for the old 30-pin Dock connector.

We haven't heard if one will be included in the box along with the iPhone 5, or will only be sold separately, but either way, come October, you'll be able to get a new-to-old Dock adapter from Apple.

Apple has done this recently with the MagSafe to MagSafe 2 adapter, and in past years with a variety of and other display adapters. Of course, there will likely be some accessories that, due to the physical size or shape, are awkward or impossible to use with the Dock connector adapter, but anything that doesn't require tight, flush contact should be okay

The reasons for the new, smaller Dock connector remain the same as what we outlined back in February -- Apple needs additional space inside the iPhone 5 casing to fit an LTE chipset and the battery to go with it. It's the same reason they're rumored to be going with the nano SIM, and perhaps an in-cell display as well. Every millimeter and milliamp matters.

Also, thanks to features like iCloud and PC-Free, as well as Wi-Fi sync and AirPlay, the Dock connector doesn't need to do everything the way it used it. A lot of the connectivity can be offset to wireless.

Apple is still on track for a fall release for the iPhone 5, and last we heard that was October. The new, smaller Dock connector will debut at the iPhone 5 event and be used in all iOS devices from then on out. (Including the rumored 7-inch iPad.)

But rest easy, and certainly don't throw anything away -- it'll have an adapter.

Everything you need to know about setting up Siri securely, and all the Siri commands for phone, email, messaging, alarms, timers, reminders, calendars, weather, music, maps, and more!

Siri is the name of Apple's virtual assistant with a personality straight out of Pixar. You ask Siri questions or ask Siri do to thing for you using your voice, just like you would ask a real assistant, and Siri will get to working helping you stay in touch, on time, and informed. There's even a related service called Dictation that lets you enter text almost everywhere with just your voice. Siri and Dictation are online services, so you need to be connected to the internet to use it.

Siri is still in beta, and is limited in the number of devices languages and locations it supports. Also, Siri is currently limited to the iPhone 4S, though Dictation also works on the new iPad and soon, the Mac with OS X Mountain Lion. Apple has announced, however, that Siri will be coming to the new iPad, along with several more languages, locations, and features with iOS 6.

We'll expand this guide to include all of that, and more, when it becomes available this fall. But here's what you can do right now:

• How to set up, configure, secure, and start using Siri
• How to call, message, and email your contacts using Siri
• How to set alarms and timers using Siri
• How to set reminders and update task and to-do lists using Siri
• How to create, view, update, and cancel calendar events using Siri
• How to create and update notes using Siri
• How to check the weather and view forecasts using Siri
• How to play and control music using Siri
• How to find Map locations and get directions using Siri
• How to search the web, get answers, and find restaurants using Siri
• Siri help forum

How to set up, configure, secure, and start using Siri

While in most cases you can start using Siri right out of the box, in some cases you may have to enable it first. There are also some settings you can configure, including ways to make Siri more secure. Since Siri can, if you choose, bypass your PIN lock and get to your contacts and other data, you should check out all your options and make sure you pick whatever blend of convenience and security makes the most sense to you.

• How to use Siri
• How to enable Siri in the Settings
• How to configure Siri
• How to secure Siri with a Passcode Lock

How to call, message, and email your contacts using Siri

Siri isn't a simple voice control system -- it remembers context and it can understand relationships. That means, for example, you can tell Siri to call your wife's iPhone, and Siri will know who that is and which phone number to dial.

Not only that, Siri can send SMS or iMessages and even email any of your friends, family, or co-workers simply by speaking their name -- or their relationship to you -- before the command.

• How to establish contact relationships with Siri
• How to add phonetic spelling to a contact's name for Siri
• How to manually add relationship data to Contacts
• How to get Contact information with Siri
• How to get a contact's birthday information with Siri
• How to phone call a contact with Siri
• How to send an SMS or iMessage with Siri
• How to send an group SMS or iMessage with Siri
• How to send an email using Siri
• How to send an email to multiple recipients using Siri
• How to find a friend with Siri

How to set alarms and timers using Siri

Siri ties right into the Clock app on your iPhone, which means if you want to be woken up at 7am, have a timer set for 10 minutes so the cookies don't burn, or find out what the hour is in Australia before you call, Siri can help.

• How to set an alarm with Siri
• How to set a repeating alarm with Siri
• How to show current alarms with Siri
• How to change alarms with Siri
• How to turn off alarms with Siri
• How to delete alarms with Siri
• How to set a timer with Siri
• How to show, stop, or re-start a timer with Siri
• How to change a timer with Siri
• How to find out the time, anywhere in the world, with Siri

How to set reminders and update task and to-do lists using Siri

Siri was designed to help you get things done, and part of that job description is creating and updating your to-dos and lists of to-dos in the Reminders app. If you need to be prodded to pick up milk on the way home, order that present in time for the big party, or set up that lunch meeting before the end of the day, Siri's there to help.

• How to create a time-based reminder with Siri
• How to create a location-based reminder with Siri
• How to create a Reminder in a specific List with Siri
• How to maintain a shopping list with Siri

How to create, view, update, and cancel calendar events using Siri

Since Siri is meant to be your personal assistant, it only makes sense to have it schedule and manage your meetings and events. Asking Siri to create a Calendar event only takes a few seconds and is much faster than creating them manually and entering all the data yourself. Whether you need Siri to schedule a meeting, tell you what's on the agenda for the, or move an existing meeting to another time to make room for a conference call or a power nap, Siri will help make sure your schedule is set.

• How to create a calendar event with Siri
• How to update a calendar event with Siri
• How to cancel a calendar event with Siri
• How to view and check your Calendar with Siri

How to create and update notes using Siri

Being a virtual personal assistant, of course Siri can take a note! In fact, Siri can not only take a note, but update them as well. If you need something that's more permanent than a reminder, something more like an idea you don't want to forget, or a draft you want to get down while you're driving, Siri and the Notes app are the perfect combination.

• How to take a note with Siri
• How to update a note with Siri

How to check the weather and view forecasts using Siri

Siri not only makes for a great digital assistant but a great weather forecaster as well. With a little help from Siri, you can make sure you're never caught without your umbrella, raincoat, or snow shovel again.

• How to check current weather conditions with Siri
• How to view a weekly weather forecast with Siri
• How to check the weather in a different location with Siri
• How to check sunrise and sunset times with Siri
• How to ask Siri other weather related questions

How to play and control music using Siri

Siri can help you access your music more easily than ever. With Siri you can play tracks, albums, and entires genres without ever having to open your Music app. If you're in the car, Siri also makes for a safe way to keep your tunes going while keeping your hands on the wheel.

• How to play a specific song with Siri
• How play a specific artist or album with Siri
• How to play a specific playlist with Siri
• How to play a specific genre with Siri
• How to shuffle music with Siri
• How to pause, play, and skip tracks with Siri

How to find Map locations and get directions using Siri

Siri isn't only your digital assistant, it can be your digital co-pilot as well, helping you find where to go, how to get there, and what else you can do along the way.

Right now, Siri location services are only available in the U.S., but come iOS 6 this fall, Apple will be expanding it to many more countries, and integrating Siri with new features, like iOS 6 Maps' turn-by-turn navigation.

• How to find places with Siri
• How to find local restaurants and businesses with Siri
• How to get directions with Siri
• How to find your way home with Siri

How to search the web, get answers, and find restaurants using Siri

If you need information, chances are Siri can help you find it. Apple currently enables Siri to search Yelp for restaurant info, Google (or Yahoo! or Bing) for general information, and Wolfram|Alpha for computational knowledge. You can use Siri to find anything you would normally type into a web search box, only there's no typing needed. Just ask, and you'll get back everything from the latest celebrity gossip to the answers to that nagging math questions to a listing of the best free apps for your iPhone.

• How to search the web with Siri
• How to get information with Wolfram|Alpha and Siri
• How to find restaurants with Yelp and Siri

How to check stock and exchange positions with Siri

If you have the need to check stocks or find out what the different exchanges are trading at Siri can help you do so and give you lots of up to the minute information about all your investments. Whether you want to find out if APPL is up, or the DOW is down, and by how much, Siri has you covered. (In terms of information, not money!)

• How to check individual stocks with Siri
• How to get information about a stock exchange with Siri

How to get more help with Siri

If you still need help with setting up or using any of the features associated with Siri, head on over to our Siri Forum and ask away!

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Like any new iPhone, demand for the next generation iPhone 5 will likely be high. How high exactly? According to a survey conduced by ChangeWave, it could well be unprecedented, even by Apple's usual, ridiculous, levels.

With 14% of consumers saying they're Very Likely and 17% Somewhat Likely to buy the "iPhone 5" in the future, advance demand for the next generation iPhone is strikingly higher than for any previous iPhone model.

For example: a similar question on future demand for the iPhone 4S, taken at the time of its October 2011 launch, showed 10% Very Likely and 11.5% Somewhat Likely to purchase the device. Moreover, the iPhone 4S is currently considered the most successful smart phone release in history.

This makes sense, given that the current iPhone 4S was released back in October of 2011 with the same design as the iPhone 4 released in June of 2010. That'll make 27 months between hardware refreshes, which is the longest period in iPhone history. (Original iPhone to iPhone 3G was only 12 months, iPhone 3G to iPhone 4 was 24 months.)

If rumors prove true, and the iPhone 5 has a longer, 4-inch, 16:9 display, it will also mark the first time ever that an iPhone changed screen sizes. Combine that with rumors of LTE 4G networking, the first radio change since the iPhone 3G was released in some 51 months previously in June of 2008, and there's a lot of new technology to demand.

Although Apple does not pre-announce new devices, it's widely expected that the iPhone 5 will be introduced at a special even this fall, alongside the final version of iOS 6, and released shortly thereafter, perhaps in early-mid October like last year.

All last week the editors here at iMore, everyone's favorite iPhone and iPad site, took turns tweeting out awesome accessory treasures from the iMore Store on Twitter. Each day, every day, a new #TwitterTreasureHunt prize was revealed. And more than that -- a fabulous grand prize!

WELL THIS IS YOUR LAST CHANCE TO WIN! We're picking the winners tonight at 11:59pm PDT, so right now, right this very second, hurry up and enter:

1. Follow @imore, @reneritchie, @GeorgiaTiPb, @llofte, @iMuggle, @chrisoldroyd, @bla1ze, @simonsage
2. Look back through our Twitter feeds.
3. Find the #TwitterTreasureHunt tweets and retweet all of them!

And to enter to WIN THE GRAND PRIZE don't forget to tweet this as well:

• $500+ in prizes! RT+follow to enter! @imore @reneritchie @GeorgiaTiPb @llofte @imuggle @chrisoldroyd @bla1ze @simonsage http://t.co/HIPuGEOT

Here are the treasures. They're awesome prizes. You'll love them. SO ENTER NOW!

1. Win a $200 Jawbone JAMBOX in the iMore Twitter Treasure Hunt Enter now!
2. Win a FREE Lifeproof case for iPhone in the iMore Twitter Treasure Hunt! Enter Now!
3. Win a FREE olloclip lens system for iPhone in the iMore Twitter Treasure Hunt! Enter Now!
4. Win a FREE Aduro Keyboard Folio Case for iPad in the iMore Twitter Treasure Hunt! Enter Now!
5. Win a FREE Otterbox Defender case for iPad in the iMore Twitter Treasure Hunt! Enter Now!
6. Win a FREE Plantronics Discovery 975 Bluetooth Headset in the iMore Twitter Treasure Hunt! Enter Now!
7. Win a FREE iSuper Helicopter in the iMore Twitter Treasure Hunt! Enter Now!

As first reported by iMore back in February in the next generation iPhone 5, yet more rumors have surfaced concerning Apple ditching the traditional 30-pin Dock connector and replacing it with a new, smaller, micro-sized Dock. Reuters now says:

The iPhone 5, Apple's next generation iPhone expected to go on sale around October, will come with a 19-pin connector port at the bottom instead of the proprietary 30-pin port "to make room for the earphone moving to the bottom", two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.

That would mean the new phone would not connect with the myriad of accessories such as speakers and power chargers that form part of the ecosystem around iPods, iPads and iPhones, without an adaptor.

Apple recently switched to a smaller MagSafe power connector for the new Retina MacBook Pro and provided an adaptor for older cables.

With LTE rumored to be coming in the next iPhone, and the battery needed to drive it, space will be at a premium. Apple is already rumored to be switching to a nano-SIM and to thinner in-cell screen technology, so a smaller Dock connector makes sense. Since iOS has also cut the cord and gone PC-free, and includes technology like Wi-Fi Sync and AirPlay, physical cables and all the pins required for different functions are likely required by fewer and fewer people.

The change away from the traditional 30 pin dock connector is also well overdue, it is a very bulky connector compared to other manufacturers cables. It was widely hoped by some that Apple would adopt the micro-USB standard that was being heavily pushed in Europe. Unfortunately, Apple will probably keep more pins for more functions than micro-USB allows, and continue to provide an adapter for Europe.

Of course there is always an upside when Apple changes a major part of a product. Accessory makers will be able to sell a whole host of new accessories including docks, cables, chargers etc. This revenue is probably very welcome; as the last two iPhones have shared the same design and the dock connector has been the same since the original iPhone was launched.

iMore has heard the next generation iPhone will be launching in October alongside iOS 6, and perhaps a new iPad mini device.

How do you feel about Apple changing the dock connector? Are you happy to buy new accessories as long as you get better battery life and other improvements?

Source: Reuters

In case you missed the big news, you can now order from iMore store in more countries, at better shipping rates, than ever before -- and free to AFP/FPO destinations around the globe!

If you live outside the U.S. and want great shipping prices on great iPhone and iPad gear, here's how it works:

More global shipping options

The iMore store is going truly global and now supports 30 countries world wide!

Cheaper shipping options

Previously, the only way the iMore store could ship internationally was with UPS Express, which was fast but hella expensive, especially if you were only ordering one, inexpensive accessory. Nw the iMore store offers three levels of USPS shipping and two levels of UPS shipping, which provide more options, and cheaper options!

International shipping starts with USPS Internal First Class mail, which takes 1 - 2 weeks (note, no package tracking is currently available on orders less than $100). The second USPS option is Priority Mail, which takes 6 - 10 days. The fastest USPS option is Express Mail, which will get you your order in 3 - 5 days.

UPS shipping is also available. UPS Worldwide Expediated has a 3 - 5 day shipping tme, while Worldwide Express/Saver is at 3 days.

A Note on Shipping Lithium Ion Batteries using USPS for shipping: Here's the bad news. Due to current Postal Regulations the iMore store is unable to ship items overseas via USPS containing Lithium Batteries at this time. It sounds like this rule may change in the not so distant future to allow for smaller items that contain lithium, but in the meantime these products are off the table unless you go of UPS shipping.

Example Rates

Here's a few examples to put the savings and options into perspective:

• Australia / Japan: First Class $11.95, Priority $32.95, Express $38.95
• UK: First Class $11.95, Priority $36.95, Express $40.95
• France / Germany: First Class $11.95, Priority $30.95, Express $38.95
• Mexico: First Class $9.95, Priority $27.95, Express $36.95
• US Territories, including Puerto Rico and Guam: Just $5.95 Priority Mail or free shipping if your order is greater than $50 !

United States APO/FPO FREE SHIPPING!

The iMore store now offers FREE Priority Mail shipping to all US Army Post Office and Fleet Post Office destinations around the globe!

New for US Customers - $3.95 Budget Saver

Along with all the new shipping options for international customers the iMore store also recently introduced a new $3.95 Budget Saver shipping option, available on most orders, for those in the continental US. This is shipped via First Class Mail with a tracking code. This a great option for those looking to buy just one or two items. Remember - there's still free shipping within the continental US on orders over $50.

##Let the International Shipping Begin!

There you have it. FINALLY better international shipping options from the iMore store. Spread the word! Give us your feedback. The Mobile Nations e-commerce teams are always working to get better and better, and that's what they'll continue to do.

Your iPhone or iPad accessories purchases, now or in the future, help ensure we can bring you the very best coverage in mobile, and we and the iMore store really appreciate your support. And we really appreciate your helping us spread the word, and letting your friends and family in the U.S. and around the world know that the iMore store is now offering affordable shipping to more places than any before!

• Take me to the iMore store and let the International Shipping Begin

Complete guide to Siri commands for notes and memo taking

Being a virtual personal assistant, of course Siri can take a note! In fact, Siri can not only take a note, but update them as well. If you need something that's more permanent than a reminder, something more like an idea you don't want to forget, or a draft you want to get down while you're driving, Siri and the Notes app are the perfect combination.

• How to take a note with Siri
• How to update a note with Siri

How to take a note with Siri

If all you want to do is quickly jot down an idea, memo, draft, or just a long string of text, Siri can do that for you.

• Hold down the Home button to activate Siri
• Tell Siri to take a note, and then dictate the text you want Siri to take note of. For example, "Take a note, I'm staying in room 101 at the Plaza hotel".
• Wait for Siri to show you the draft note, and confirm it.

How to update a note with Siri

While Siri can't update older notes yet (there's no way to identify specific notes in iOS yet), Siri can update the last note you dictated.

• Hold down the Home button to activate Siri
• Tell Siri to update your note, and then dictate the additional text you want Siri to add to the note. For example, "Add to note, I'm now staying in room 201 at the Plaza hotel".
• Wait for Siri to show you the updated note, and confirm it.

How to get more help with Siri

If you still need help with setting up or using Siri with your iPhone Calendar, or any other Siri feature, head on over to our Siri Forum and ask away!

• How to set up, configure, secure, and start using Siri
• How to call, message, and email your contacts using Siri
• How to set alarms and timers using Siri
• How to set reminders and update task and to-do lists using Siri
• How to find places and businesses on the map, and get directions using Siri