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Did you give or, better yet, have the pleasure of receiving an Apple iPhone this holiday season? If so, you're likely already wondering how to keep your favorite, new, constantly handled device safe from harm. Unfortunately, the reality of the situation is that statistics indicate that 80% of all iPhone failures are the result of accidents and not factory related defects or other unexplained failures with the devices themselves (kudos to Apple). Since the standard iPhone warranty and extended AppleCare coverage do NOT cover accidents, many customers are left having to pay unsubsidized prices as high as $699 to replace broken iPhones.

As the first in a series of iPhoneFAQ post-holiday contests and giveaways, we're launching the Squaretrade iPhone Warranty Contest today. Squaretrade is the leading third party insurance provider for the Apple iPhone and many other digital devices. Squaretrade offers 2-year iPhone insurance warranties as an alternative to AppleCare coverage for the iPhone. Unlike AppleCare, Squaretrade warranties cover accidents such as spills (and other water damage), drops, and other breakages. Squaretrade warranty coverage has received 5-star and 4.5 star ratings from customers on NexTag.com and Epinions.com, respectively.

The contests begins today (Decemeber 27th) and ends on

For a limited time TomTom has released a US-only version of its GPS navigation iPhone application for $49.99. Normally the application includes US and Canadian maps for double the price ($99.99).

The separate car kit accessory dock is available for $119.95 and includes an external speaker and built-in GPS. The car kit also charges the iPhone when docked using the car 12 VDC cigarette lighter adaptor.

Users with jailbroken iPhones are not the only ones that need to worry about security threats. According to iPhone developer Nicolas Seriot personal data on all iPhones is easily accessible with standard Application Programming Interfaces (APIs).

Malicious code could easily be sneaked into the AppStore past Apple's reviewers. SpyPhone, a proof-of-concept application, shows that personal data such as Contacts can be easily compromised.

Apple has responded to Nokia's patent infringement lawsuit as any self-respecting major corporation would - with a countersuit! We previously reported that Nokia was attempting to recover up to $12 per iPhone sold by Apple for patent licensing royalties.

The patents in question include GSM and UMTS communications standards as well as security and encryption standards. Apple says Nokia has illegally copied 13 of its own patents and named the Nokia E71 as a device that completely bites off the iPhone.

Forget the iPhone virtual keyboard. Thanks to the Dragon Dictation iPhone application from Nuance you have a personal assistant to transcribe your emails and texts. The app records your voice and sends the information to Nuance's servers.

What comes back is text that can be pasted directly into an email, SMS or sent to the clipboard for use in other applications. According to the developers, transcription is five times faster than typing. The app uses a single button to start recording.