AhTim.com

After waiting for so long since I reviewed my iPod Touch on December 2007, Apple has released its iPhone SDK for download finally.

According to Apple, Apple’s iPhone SDK has been downloaded 100,000 times just in four days! What a hot reaction from developers worldwide.

The Free iPhone SDK

The free iPhone SDK includes the Xcode IDE, Instruments, iPhone simulator, frameworks and samples, compilers, Shark analysis tool, and more. If you are a developer, you might want to download the free iPhone SDK and have a look. Of course, you need an Intel processor-based Mac running Mac OS X Leopard.

With this SDK, you could develop software for iPhone and iPod Touch. You even can sell your iPhone / iPod Touch apps in Apple App Store with the price:

Standard Program $99 – The Standard Program is for developers to create free and commercial applications for iPhone and iPod touch.

Enterprise Program $299 – The Enterprise Program is for developers to create proprietary, in-house applications for iPhone and iPod touch.

If your app sold successfully, Apple will impose a fee of 30% of your price.

If you are developer, why not develop some creative game for iPhone and sell at Apple App Store? Your app might reach all iPhone and iPod Touch user, and earn some good money!

Finally, after 3 weeks of hard waiting time since I won an Apple Ipod Touch, my Free Ipod Touch 16GB is on my hand! This is really a big present for me since I blog for 3 months here. But I would say, to receive a Ipod Touch is my bad and good experience.

Bad and Good experience

Actually I’ve received the shipment letter from POS KLIA since last week. The letter mentioned my Ipod Touch has been blocked at custom KLIA and need to assign someone to do the clearance, such as POS Malaysia with reasonable service fees of RM49.50. But do you know that our custom annouced Ipod as taxable item up to 35% of the device.

After my reply to POS Malaysia, they get back to me that I need to pay off RM540+ tax plus some hand carry fees to do the clearance from custom! Wow, that is ridiculous. How can I pay off RM540+ for a free prize? I negotiate with the incharge person and let her know my situation, because the tax price is not reasonable at all! I told her this is a my free prize, but seems like she not believe with my answer. Finally, she told me I need an invoice from the sender to prove that I got it free.

With help from MixedDrinkWorld, I manage to get an customized invoice and let my Ipod Touch get through custom. I really appreciate their help and fast respond After all, I went to redeem my free Ipod Touch at POS Malaysia nearest to my town. The young officer was so excited when I redeem my Ipod Touch. When I told him I got my Ipod Touch free, seems like he was curious and unbelievable on my answer.

My two cents

This is my first experience to receive my personal gadget directly from oversea. I was so happy when receive my first Apple’s high end gadget.

Throughout this experience, I learned the process of oversea shipment, the procedures to do custom clearance and redeem. It was value added knowledge in my life.

I also learned that Do Not direct order taxable gadgets from oversea unless you are rich! It was total up of USD$100 plus RM49.50 to ship an USD$399 Ipod Touch 16GB from US to me.