AirPlay currently requires and existing Wi-Fi network in order to stream media or mirror content from an iPhone, iPod touch, iPad, or Mac to an Apple TV or speaker system. This makes it more cumbersome for non-technical users, and less convenient for temporary situations like guests or traveling. Something like Wi-Fi direct, which would allow device-to-device connections would be a simpler solution. According to Matt Warman of The Telegraph, exactly that kind of "Airplay Direct" feature is in the works for iOS 6 and the iPhone 5:

Sources familiar with the iPhone-maker's plans said that Apple wants to improve the AirPlay wireless music streaming technology, which currently requires Airplay speakers and a WiFi network. The new version will require just speakers or a hifi and an iDevice; the iPhone, iPod or iPad would form its own network to allow a direct connection and music playback.

If Apple does indeed go ahead with an "AirPlay Direct" feature, it seems likely it could use Wi-Fi Direct as its foundation. A Wi-Fi Direct enabled Apple product line raises a lot of interesting prospects beyond AirPlay. AirDrop, or wireless file transfer, will not doubt leap to mind. But direct Wi-Fi sync and many other types of point-to-point data transfers could be possible.

NFC may be off the table for the next iPhone, but with Bluetooth 4.0 already on board, and the possibility of Wi-Fi Direct, both of which might well be more secure than NFC anyway, Apple might not be missing out on much, feature-wise.

The Telegraph

If you've ever been curious about what it takes to be an Apple Store Genius, a leaked internal training manual may provide some answers for you. Gizmodo got ahold of one of Apple's more recent training manuals, and it explains what Geniuses are taught during their training. It includes everything from how to be empathetic to words you should never say to customers.

Did your computer crash? No, it "stops responding." Never say crash.

What if some Apple software has a bug? Wrong: there's an "issue," "condition," or simply "situation."

You don't "eliminate" a problem—you "reduce" it.

No Apple products are hot—at most they're "warm."

If you've ever worked in retail, none of it will be a big surprise to you. Dealing with customers is dealing with customers, whether they're upset about their Mac, the pants they just bought, or the auto part they want to return. This manual just puts it all in an Apple Genius context. Some of it is no doubt useful in calming panicked customers, considering it's not very often that you see someone freaking out and sobbing hysterically in front of the Genius Bar. Then again, Apple prides themselves on providing over-the-top customer service and perhaps using toned down and understandable terminology creates a better experience.

Hit the link below to check out even more pages and context on what it takes to be an Apple Genius.

Source: Gizmodo

If the battery life in your iPhone 4S is getting worse and worse, or it just won't hold a charge, you can easily perform a DIY replacement. This can help you get lots more life out of your device and prevent having to buy a new iPhone before you absolutely have to. If you're soon to be out of warranty or otherwise not covered for exchange or replacement, or if you're just a DIY type who wants to learn more about the inner workings of your iPhone, we've got you covered.

Disclaimer: As with any repair, neither iMore nor PXLFIX can be held responsible for any damage you may do to your device. It's also worth considering that opening up your device to perform any repair or modification can and will void your Apple warranty. If you don't feel comfortable opening your device, don't. Use extreme care and caution when performing a repair on any device.

What you'll need to DIY replace an iPhone 4S battery

PXLFIX recommends using only quality and genuine parts from a reputable supplier like eTech Parts. They have quality parts, tools, and much more for all your repair needs. You will find links to the specific parts you'll need for this repair in the list below.

• iPhone 4S (any variant)
• Replacement Battery - Link to part
• #00 Phillips screwdriver - Link to part
• Security screwdriver - Link to part
• Spudger tool - Link to part

Power off your iPhone 4S

Before performing any repair you should always power off your device before opening it up.

Remove the back plate

1. Using your security screwdriver, remove the 2 screws on either side of the dock connector port.

2. Set them aside. They are both the exact same size and length so it does not matter if you mix them up. They are interchangeable.
3. Gently slide up the back plate by applying a bit of pressure along the bottom with your thumbs and sliding upwards.

4. Now lift off the back plate and set it aside.

Remove the battery and grounding clip

1. Using your #00 Phillips screwdriver, remove the two screws holding the battery in place.

2. These screws are different lengths so make sure you remember which one goes where. The one that is slightly larger is the bottom screw.
3. There is a tiny grounding clip underneath the battery clip where the first screw is located. Use your spudger tool or finger to remove it before prying the clip up. Many times it can go flying if you don't remove it first and then you'll have difficulty locating it so it's best to remove it first.

4. Now use your spudger tool and at the bottom of the battery clip, gently pry upwards so the clip pops up.

5. Move to the edge of the iPhone where the volume buttons are located and use your spudger tool to carefully pry up the battery. It is stuck down with a good amount of adhesive so be careful when prying upwards that you don't bend the battery. This is why I do not use the plastic tab that is provided. It typically rips or bends the battery. If one part is resistant move your pry tool a little further down and gently start prying it up in different places taking care not to come too close to the volume button cables towards the top.

6. Once you've gotten the battery pulled out of the iPhone 4S we can move on to inserting the replacement battery.

Replace the battery and grounding clip

1. Pay attention to how the cable is bent on your old battery and if the new one is not crimped in the same fashion put the folds in it before inserting it into the iPhone 4S.

2. Line up the grounding clip you removed previously over the screw hole before snapping down the battery.

3. Snap down the battery in place to the logic board and then position the battery and press down firmly to make sure the adhesive sticks.
4. Replace the two screws you removed in a prior step starting with the top one using your #00 Phillips screwdriver. Make sure the grounding clip stays positioned. Use your other hand to hold it straight while you replace the top screw if you need to.

5. Now replace the bottom screw.

Replace the back plate

1. To replace the back plate line up the hinges around the edges. It should fall right into place. There will be a gap at the bottom.

2. Using slight pressure slide the cover down into place with your thumbs. If there is resistance make sure the hinges are lined up correctly and don't force it down and you can easily snap the hinge if it's caught up on something.
3. Once the back cover is securely in place and flush with the antenna band, replace the two screws on either side of the dock connector using your security screwdriver.

And ...done!

Now that your iPhone 4S is completely put back together you can turn it back on. If the phone doesn't come on, try plugging it into a wall charger and see if the charging icon comes up. It's quite possible the battery may be dead and needs to be charged before use.

It's a good idea to run the battery completely down before plugging it into a charger if it wasn't run down already. After it dies, charge it completely before pulling it off the charger again. You can do this a few times to condition the battery. While many say this may not be needed with batteries anymore, I have found it to make the battery meter read more accurately over time. You can actually do this at any time if you feel your battery is not displaying a charge accurately.

Want to know how to perform another type of iPhone repair or modification? Send me suggestions to ally@imore.com.

For questions or to inquire about mail-in repairs through PXLFIX, you can follow us on Twitter, like us on Facebook or e-mail us directly!

Additional resources:

• AT&T/GSM iPhone 4: The ultimate repair guide
• Verizon & Sprint iPhone 4: The ultimate repair guide
• Even more DIY guides & repairs

Cerulean Studios has just released version 2.0 of their popular instant messaging app Trillian. The biggest addition is native iPad support. Trillian has been re-written to take advantage of the iPad's screen real estate by not only making things bigger but by making the app more functional and tailored for use on an iPad.

Even though iMessage has gained some traction and become a fast replacement for some people in regards to instant messaging, IM still has its place due to cross-platform collaboration. Trillian has long been a large contender considering it combines all your instant messaging networks into one easy to use streamline client.

Cerulean Studios could have easily added iPad support by scaling everything up but they chose not to in favor of creating a better experience for iPad users:

Trillian 2.0 features a beautiful new interface designed exclusively for your iPad. Because Trillian's primary element is a collection of small chat bubbles, simply "making things bigger" felt awkward to us; worse, large windows with small text snippets sometimes required a slight turn of the head while reading. Our solution keeps chat windows sanely sized and uses the rest of the screen for tabs, swiping, and in-app notifications!

The overall user interface has also been updated as well as other security enhancements. You can head on over to the App Store now to check it out.

Free - Download Now

It's time to announce the winner of last week's silhouettes photography contest. Before we do, we want to congratulate everyone on their awesome entries. We've got some talented iPhoneographer readers here at iMore and it wasn't an easy decision!

We actually have two winners this week. The photo above is by Tatum22, and is our grand prize winner!

"Sculpture in NYC's Riverside Park at Sunset" was submitted by chris1982 and wins Honorable Mention.

Congratulations to both of you! You'll be contacted during the week with information on claiming your prize. You can check out all of the entries in the forums at the link below. Thanks for entering everyone, and be on the lookout for this week's contest!

Weekly Photo Contest: Silhouettes!

And if you want to enter and win one of our awesome iPhone photography contest, keep your eyes peeled,  your fingers on the shutter, and your browsers locked to iMore, because this week's contest will be announced soon!

While near-field communications (NFC), a type of radio typically used to provide near-instant mobile transaction processing, has been rumored for the iPhone for years now, most recently the upcoming iPhone 5, those rumors may once again fail to pan out come the expected September 12 Apple event. Brian Klug and Anand Lal Shimpi of AnandTech point at parts leaks to date, namely the new metal back plate, as an obvious piece of evidence against NFC:

Given the primarily metal backside of the new iPhone, it's highly unlikely that NFC is in the cards for this generation. In fact, given the very little space at top and bottom dedicated to those glass RF windows, you can almost entirely rule it out.

And Jim Dalymple of The Loop adds in his trademark, consistently reliable:

Yep.

Apple has already begun to experiment with mobile payments in the Apple Retail Store without NFC, and other uses for NFC, like direct data transfer, could still be handled over Bluetooth if that's something Apple's truly interested in exploring at this point.

Passbook, while an obvious front-end to an Apple wallet proper, is being introduced as a voucher and ticket repository in iOS 6, and nothing more.

Apple is a feature, not technology, driven company. If they decide to roll out mobile payments, they may or may not need NFC, and if they do, they'll include it under the covers and all we'll see is an ad showing Santa shopping at JC Penny just before the holidays.

Either way, if you were waiting on an NFC chip for the iPhone, it looks like you'll have to keep waiting.

Source: AnandTech, The Loop

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T-Mobile may not be getting the iPhone 5 this year, making them once again the only major US carrier bereft of Apple's multi-million selling mobile device, and if they can't have it, dammit, they're going to make sure you don't have one either. This according to David Beren at TmoNews, who received a couple of images in his inbox hinting at what the future just might hold, or rather not hold, for T-Mobile USA.

Based on both pieces of information that just came into our inbox, we're trying to draw two conclusions, one that T-Mobile isn't getting the iPhone 5, which shouldn't surprise anyone. The second is that with the receipt of new Monthly4G microSIM kits supporting the iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S, T-Mobile is close to announcing some news about their network refarm.

The second of the two images details September Training Priorities (Retail, Branded, RPS) and includes a section on Selling Against the iPhone.

September 21 is, of course, the day iMore learned Apple will be launching the iPhone 5 in the US. If T-Mo wants their reps selling against it, odds are it's because they won't be selling it.

T-Mobile has historically been incompatible with the iPhone due to their use of the less common AWS frequencies for 3G. The lack of an official iPhone on their network has led to severe competitive problems for T-Mobile in the past. Since the iPhone 5 may support LTE, which T-Mobile won't start supporting until 2013, that mat not be likely to change any time soon.

Previously, the 3G incompatibility meant anyone running an unlocked iPhone on T-Mobile's network was limited to 2G EDGE speeds. Still, over a million T-Mobile customers chose to do just that. In recent months, T-Mobile has been offering cheap family plans and reassigning compatible bands to 3G to help give those unofficial iPhone customers a better value and experience. T-Mobile even placed a bubble around Apple's WWDC 2012 event back in June as a symbolic gesture.

While nothing is official until Apple makes a proper announcement, if they're once again frozen out of the iPhone party this year, September 21 isn't going to be a happy day at T-Mobile USA regardless of their training plans.

Source: TmoNews

Vel Hogan, the jury foreman in the U.S. Apple vs Samsung patent case, spoke to Emily Chang on Bloomberg Television following the $1 billion dollar verdict in Apple's favor.

Hogan says that while for some on the jury it was boring, for him it was exciting, He admits to some confusing on the part of some jurors, but said they came up with a process that resolved what they agreed on quickly, then came back to disputed areas later. Interestingly, Hogan also says he was initially leaning towards Samsung before an "aha!" moment changed everything and removed concerns about prior art. A patent holder himself, he decided he could defend it if it was his patent, and then managed to explain it, and convince his fellow jurors.

Contrary to reports saying the jury didn't read all the jury instructions, Hogan said the judge read every one of them to the jury before closing arguments. Hogan also said the jury kept them open and consulted them continuously while weighing each patent. According to Hogan, the form the judge provided broke things down in such a way that it facilitated a relatively fast deliberation process.

As to a previous statement from Hogan that the jury had tried, inappropriately, to be punitive, Hogan tried to re-contextualize that somewhat as making a point about protecting intellectual property rights in the U.S. A meeting where Google demanded that Samsung make their devices less like Apple-like was compelling to Hogan, as were internal memos where Samsung compared themselves to Apple, and said they needed to move closer to Apple. Hogan said they unnecessarily crossed the line. Nokia, RIM, and Motorola, he said, were examples of phones that might seem Apple-like but aren't.

Hogan said he doesn't own an iPhone and deliberately doesn't own any Apple products as he's "a PC". His wife does have a Samsung feature phone. He also denied Apple had any home-field advantage, and said that the Android operating system itself didn't infringe (which contrasts the jury verdict for the Nexus S phone, which was pure Android, and found to infringe...) Hogan said he wasn't originally sure design patents were reasonable, but that this case helped sway him.

Also, neither he nor the jury, he said, knew the judge could still impose triple damages for areas where Samsung willfully infringed.

So, does listening to Hogan make you think the jury reached a deliberate, proper verdict, or does it raise any red flags?

Source: Bloomberg Television

Apple has pushed out an update for the Apple TV that brings an iTunes Festival app to the main screen. The iTunes Festival, much like the Hulu Plus app that appeared earlier this month, doesn't require a software update it just appears on your home screen over the air. The iTunes Festival is a UK based music festival put on by Apple and all of the tickets are given away free of charge. If you can't get to the Roundhouse in London, Apple offers various ways to watch the artists live; including apps for your iPhone; iPad and iPod touch as well as on the Apple TV.

The iTunes Festival is coming back in September 2012. We're inviting more than 60 artists to perform 30 consecutive nights of brilliant live music at the Roundhouse in London. Every ticket to the iTunes Festival is free—you can apply to win tickets to any performance.

If you can't make the gig, watch the shows live or view them afterwards for a limited time on your computer with iTunes, or on your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch with the iTunes Festival app. To watch on your big screen, use Apple TV and click iTunes Festival from the main menu, or use Airplay to stream gigs wirelessly via the app.

Apple has lined up a highly impressive concert list for the event which starts on September 1. Some of the high profile acts include, One Direction, JLS, Jessie J, Usher, Emeli Sandé, Norah Jones, David Guetta, Alicia Keys and many more. It was originally thought that the iTunes Festival footage would only be available to UK residents however the app is appearing on Apple TV's in the US. The app for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch is also now available in the US App Store too.

Free - Download Now

It looks like Apple will make the live performances available in a lot more countries this year. If you see the app appear on your Apple TV or in the App Store in your country, let us know.

On this Day... - The stylish Event Calendar is an iPhone app by Sophiestication Software, the makers of the award winning Wikipedia reading app, Articles, that shares past events, births and deaths that have happened on any given day. You can browse through hundreds of daily entries and read related Wikipedia articles that are formatted nicely for On this Day.

Events are shown in reverse chronological order so that you can quickly see the most recent events associated with the date. Some users actually hate this and would rather see older historical events first, but the good news is that there is a an option to choose which sorting method you prefer -- in the Settings app. Although Apple used to recommend all settings get hidden away in the unified Settings app, it's simply more discoverable to have them in-app. Hopefully Sophiestication Software changes this in the future, but for now, at least, the setting exists somewhere!

When you open On this Day, you will be taken to Today's date with the first three dates, first three births, and first three deaths listed with related links to Wikipedia articles. For example, here's the entry for August 26, 2011:

The Boeing 787 Dreamliner, Boeing's all-new composite airliner, receives certification from the EASA and the FAA.

The links I included are the same links in the entry in On this Day, only the links are opened directly inside the app. If you have Articles installed, you can also choose to open the link in the Articles app instead.

Other features of On this Day include the ability to tap and hold an entry to share it on Twitter or copy to the Pasteboard, quickly select a specific calendar date, and shake to reload the current day.

The good

• Display Events, Birth and Death dates
• Tap and hold an entry to share it on Twitter or copy it to the Pasteboard
• Quickly select a specific calendar date
• Shake your device to reload the current day
• Sort entries from latest to oldest or oldest to latest
• Open entries in the Articles Wikipedia App or Safari

The bad

• Options and settings for On this Day must be changed from the Settings app instead of within On this Day

The conclusion

On this Day is a great way to discover and enjoy historical events on your iPhone. The links to Wikipedia are the cherry on top, making it's easier than ever to learn even more about past events and discover things you never knew about before. The interface for On this Day has a beautiful, historical feel to it, and makes it easy to use.

If you're a history buff, On this Day is sure to become one of your favorite apps and I highly recommend you check it out.

$0.99 - Download Now

While new Apple Retail head John Browett reportedly apologized and reversed recent staffing decisions that threatened the phenomenal experience of Apple Stores, it's now being rumored that the apologies weren't exactly sincere, weren't actually given to the staff, and may reflect a new, more profit-oriented, less customer-centric, direction instigated by Apple CEO Tim Cook and CFO Peter Oppenheimer.InfoAppleStore rounds up what they've heard:

After Browett's reversal, insiders say that everyone who had been dismissed was indeed rehired, and inter-store transfers were again approved. However, the number of in-store workshops at some stores has been reduced, sources say, overtime is still limited, demotions were not reversed, and managers are assigning only minimum contracted hours to part-timers. One tipster even claimed Apple has stopped printing the monthly workshop schedules that have been available at high-profile stores for many years.

And as to why it's happening:

But in 2009, Jobs took six months of medical leave and put Tim Cook in charge of the company, including the retail stores. Cook is primarily an "operations guy," sources explain, and his natural focus is revenues and profits, not customers. While Jobs was away, Cook and chief financial officer Peter Oppenheimer began to confront Johnson on his customer-centric retail philosophy—both felt the stores didn't generate enough revenues to justify operating expenses.

Which seems counter to everything Apple, including everything Apple under Tim Cook, stands for. Hopefully it's not the case. Hopefully Cook, Oppenheimer, and Browett ascribe to the same principles for Apple Retail that Steve Jobs and former retail head Ron Johnson did, that Apple does for everything from iOS and Mac hardware to the most minute of icon details.

Apple's primary weapon against competitors has been experience. I walk into an Apple Store and, even though it's packed, there's a ton of staff and my needs get seen to quickly and expertly. I walk into a Best Buy and it's a wasteland, with entire sections devoid of any staff to the degree that I've often walked out without getting any service.

Apple Retail is one of Apple's crown jewels and one of the most important elements in their resurgence and success. I can't imagine any Apple executive would risk messing with it for any reason.

Take care of the top line and the bottom line will take care of itself was an oft-repeated statement from Steve Jobs. Take care of Apple Retail, and it'll take care of Apple.

Source: InfoAppleStore

Found an interesting article you want to share with iMore? Have a burning question about that feature you just can't figure out? There is ALWAYS more happening just a click away in the forums. You can always head over and join in the conversation, search for answers, or lend your expertise to other members of our community. You check out some of the threads below:

If you're not already a member of the iMore Forums, register now!

If you've got an iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad running iOS 5 or higher you've got iMessage, Apple's free MMS-like service that works with any other iOS device, and Mac running OS X Mountain Lion, to let you easily send videos without paying your carrier for a special messaging plan (data rates will still apply if you aren't on Wi-Fi). iMessage is built right into the same Messages app and Share Sheet that sends SMS and MMS to your non-iPhone using friends, so you don't have to do anything extra to use it. Just pick your video and send!

How to send an iMessage video using the Messages app

1. Launch the Messages app from the Home screen.
2. Tap the New Message button in the upper right hand corner

3. Choose the contact you'd like to send a video to.
4. Tap the Camera button next to the message entry area.
5. Select whether you'd like to take a video now or choose an existing one.

6. If you chose to send an existing video, you'll be shown all the pictures and videos in your Photos app. Scroll through and find the video you'd like to send. Tap on it to select it.

7. Review the video. If it's the one you want tap the blue Choose button in the lower right hand corner and it will be inserted into the message.

8. Tap the Send button and you're done!

If you're using an iPhone but the person you're sending to doesn't have an Apple device or isn't using iMessage, your video will be sent as a regular MMS message. If that happens, it will appear in a green bubble instead of a blue one. This also means you'll be charged any applicable text message or multimedia message fees.

If you're sending a video from your iPad or iPod touch, you won't be able to send an iMessage to anyone not using the service.

How to send an iMessage video from using the Photos app

1. Launch the Photos app from your Home screen

2. Find the video you'd like to send and tap on it to select it.
3. Tap on the Share button in the lower left hand corner.
4. Select Message.

5. The video will be automatically inserted into a new message
6. .Type the contact name or search for the contact you want to send to by tapping the blue + button.
7. Tap the Send button and you're done!

Again, the person or people on the other end have to be using iMessage as well for the video to send. Otherwise they'll get an SMS if you're using an iPhone, or the iMessage will fail if you're using an iPod touch or iPad.