It’s that time of year again, when Dell refreshes their server configurations with new components. This time around, the previous “Mainstream SSD” solid-state storage options have been replaced with new, vaguely-named “Value MLC” parts:

100GB Solid State Drive SATA Value MLC 3G 2.5in HotPlug Drive-Limited Warranty Only [$1,007.00]
200GB Solid State Drive SATA Value MLC 3G 2.5in HotPlug Drive-Limited Warranty Only [$1,870.00]

While there are few technical details to be found on Dell’s website, I was able to confirm the identity of the OEM drives: they are the new Samsung SM825 drives.

I haven’t had much time to test the new drives, but initial benchmarks using Oracle ORION are in line with the manufacturers’ specs:

For technical details and more than enough marketing double-speak, head to Samsung’s product page (warning: annoying auto-play video ahead).

Here’s my take on the changes:

Resist the knee-jerk reaction to be turned-off by the MLC designation: you’ll find the same eMLC NAND components in the class-leading Fusion-io ioDrives and IBM’s POWER7 servers. Samsung gives these drives the same MTBF rating as the previous-generation SS805 SLC drives — not that MTBF is terribly useful. Regardless, you’re still deploying these with some type of software or hardware redundancy, right?

This change beefs up the lowest of Dell’s three SSD tiers by doubling IOPS and capacity at the same price points:

• Light Speed: 100GB, 200GB Samsung SM825 2.5″ SATA SSDs
• Ridiculous Speed: 149GB Pliant Lightning LB 2.5″ SAS SSDs
• Ludicrous Speed: 320GB, 640GB and 1.28TB Fusion-io ioDrives

All three are excellent offerings, and I’ve seen many a customer nearly faint in disbelief at the real-world performance increases they’ve brought to their servers. They all have their own benefits and trade-offs (price, performance, manageability, etc.), and the best choice will be dictated by your specific workload — and wallet.

What would you say to an unlimited plan for $45 per month? With no contracts? Running on the same nationwide AT&T network? Do I have your attention yet? Introducing Straight Talk’s unlimited plan:

That’s a savings of over $70 per month from AT&T’s postpaid offerings, and you’ll be free of any contracts. There was little doubt that it was possible, but I can now confirm that there are no issues using the new iPhone 4S with the $45 unlimited everything (talk, text, data) Straight Talk prepaid plan. This doozie of a deal has been around for quite a while, but it’s worth a quick review for those who haven’t heard about it before.

Here’s what you’ll need:

• Any iPhone that works with AT&T. It doesn’t even have to be unlocked, because we’ll be using Straight Talk’s AT&T-powered MVNO.
• A Straight Talk smartphone. I recommend the Nokia E71, because it has been widely tested and confirmed to contain the correct TF64PSIMC4 SIM for use with the AT&T MVNO. Those in a rush can pay a premium for the smartphones available at your local Walmart, or you can order a refurbished E71 from their website for $99 $49 with free shipping.

The procedure is quite straightforward:

• Activate your Straight Talk smartphone from their website with the included SIM.
• Verify that your Straight Talk smartphone can make an outgoing call.
• If you’re using the iPhone 4 or 4S, take our that SIM and punch it down to size. (If you don’t already have one, I have had good luck with this inexpensive Noosy micro SIM cutter.)
• Pop that slimmed-down SIM into your iPhone. It will take a moment to acquire service, after which you should see “HOME” displayed in the carrier field.
• To enable Internet access, email yourself this configuration file and open it. (If you don’t trust me, go to unlockit.co.nz or help.benm.at and generate your own configuration file using att.mvno as the APN.)
• Done. Enjoy the same AT&T service for a new, low price.

Not too difficult, right? As always, there are a few other caveats worth mentioning:

• If you’re going to port your number from your current carrier, do so when you first activate the phone. You will not be able to do so after you’ve activated the SIM.
• If you want to use “classic” MMS with this plan, you’ll need to jailbreak your phone. I didn’t bother, because I only send pictures via iMessage or email.
• Don’t push it with the “unlimited” data consumption. I’m certain they monitor your bandwidth, and I guarantee there’s some fine print somewhere that says that unlimited is actually quasi-limited. Just use your phone as a smartphone, and don’t go nuts with tethering and BitTorrent, and you should be fine.
• I know you’re tempted to unload that unused Straight Talk smartphone on eBay or Craigslist. Resist the temptation. If you ever need to deal with Straight Talk support, they may require you to use their handset to duplicate the issue. The cost of the phone is a small price to pay, and it will pay for itself in just a few months of savings.

All things considered, it’s an excellent deal.

Is anyone else using Straight Talk with their iPhone? What are your thoughts?

TL;DR: I have a supposedly impossibly unlocked iPhone 4S in my hand. Two of them, in fact. Here’s how to get one:

• Go to your local Apple Store.
• Ask the sales associate for the iPhone 4S model of your choice for AT&T.
• Tell them you already have a line of service, and that you’d like to pay the full retail price.
• They will be happy to sell you an “off contract” phone at full retail price.
• Remove the pre-installed AT&T SIM, and install the SIM of your choice.
• Launch iTunes on your computer.
• Power up the phone and plug it into your computer via the USB cable.
• The phone will activate, and you will see a confirmation message:

That’s about all there is to it.

The longer version:

When the iPhone 4S was announced, one of the first questions I asked Apple’s online sales team was whether or not the phone would be available in unlocked, contract-free form. Yes, I’m aware that they cost much more money up front, but I prefer an unlocked iPhone for a number of reasons:

• My employer pays for my wireless service, but they will not pay for an early upgrade.
• I travel regularly to visit family and friends in Europe, and I always use a local or roaming SIM. (There’s no way I’d pay $4.99/min and $19.97/MB using AT&T’s roaming service. I can get 500 minutes and 1GB data for a whopping $6.45 using a local carrier.)
• I have a general preference against any long-term financial commitment. (Exception: my wife.)
• The factory unlocked models retain their resale value much, much better than their carrier-locked counterparts.

On pre-launch day, however, I was disappointed to see that Apple wasn’t allowing orders of these phones until November:

Sigh. This makes sense; after all, Apple’s carrier partners want to drive the supply of the new phones into the hands of long-term American subscribers instead of the ravenous exporters of unlocked iPhones.

I will be visiting family and friends in Europe at the end of October, and I really wanted to take advantage of the new phone’s better camera for pictures and video. Not a big deal, and certainly not a big enough deal to pay the premium prices being asked by the folks over the border in Canda. Nor did I feel like making the 12-hour round-trip drive to Montreal like last time.

Then, I stumbled across a couple reports from MacRumors and 9to5mac. Unlocked iPhones masquerading as AT&T phones? Could it be so?

Of course it’s possible! I am currently using an “AT&T model” (MC319LL/A) iPhone 4 that was factory unlocked by Apple when received as a replacement for an originally unlocked iPhone 4 I purchased up in Canada. Here’s a screenshot from said iPhone 4, showing T-Mobile service on iOS 5 here in the USA:

(By the way, I don’t use T-Mobile. I just keep a few T-Mobile and International SIMs around for ensuring that phones are unlocked prior to my travels.)

Yesterday afternoon, I packed up my MacBook Air, USB cable, a T-Mobile SIM, and headed out. The sales associate had no problems selling me exactly what I asked for: an AT&T iPhone 4S for use with an existing line of service at full retail price.

Yes, AT&T. Do not ask for an unlocked iPhone 4S, because they’re technically not allowed to sell you one until November. Yes, they’re all the same phone hardware underneath the covers, but the Apple Stores stock different models depending on which SIM is pre-installed (i.e. AT&T, Vodaphone for Verizon Wireless, etc.).

Once you’ve signed your hard-earned cash away to Apple, you’ll notice that the receipt will say, “AT&T Account Information No Wireless Service Activation during iPhone Sale”.

I unboxed the phones right there in the store, replaced the pre-installed SIM card with my own, plugged the phone into my laptop, launched iTunes, and got the familiar “Congratulations, your iPhone has been unlocked” message.

Depending on which carrier’s SIM card you use, you may also receive an Error 1630, which simply means that the phone was unable to automatically configure the APN information for data access. You’ll probably want to visit help.benm.at or unlockit.co.nz.

I tested both phones with both AT&T and T-Mobile SIM cards, and both worked as expected. (T-Mobile is still EDGE-only.)  Here’s a screenshot from the new iPhone 4S, also showing T-Mobile service on iOS 5 here in the USA:

For what it’s worth, I am not worried about Apple locking these phones at a later date. They have been selling unlocked AT&T iPhone 4 models for the last many months, and I’ve had no problems to date.

I hope this information is helpful to others.