Iphone Updates

Filed under: iPhone

I don’t know exactly how useful this site is, but I’ll let you check it out and decide for yourself. Worst Phone Ever is a site that purports to try and track all of the dropped calls being racked up on Apple’s devices and AT&T’s service. The idea is that you upload your dropped call log file, then they’ll flip through it, and add it to the data they’ve already compiled.

As of this writing, the site has already parsed over 1.5 million calls, and claim that 5.52 percent of them were dropped, costing users over $154,448 (you can see more about how that’s all calculated on their FAQ page).

Now, the paranoid in me has to warn you against actually sending them any logfiles — while the FAQ claims that no “personal or uniquely identifying information” is in the files, they do say they’re tying them to your email address, and I find it hard to believe that there aren’t at least area codes in there for Apple’s information. Their FAQ, again, admits that they’re “going to do everything we can” with the data, and I can’t really recommend you give them something from your computer under that agreement.

But if nothing else, the site might turn out to be a nice compendium of information on just how many calls AT&T is dropping. If these averages from earlier this year are any indication, it might be just as high as frustrated customers think it is.

TUAWWorst Phone Ever chronicles dropped iPhone calls originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Sat, 26 Jun 2010 22:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple – Unofficial Apple Weblog – IPhone – AT&T – iPhone 3G

Filed under: iPhone

This will come as no surprise to anyone who saw all of those lines yesterday: Analysts are saying that Apple probably sold over 1.5 million iPhones yesterday, with 600,000 preorders, 100,000 in-store sales, and 50,000 sales from other places like Best Buy, with the rest coming from overseas. If that number is true (it’s still just an estimate at this point), then Apple soundly broke early sales of the iPhone 3GS, which took a whole weekend to break one million sales. Still, as I said, record numbers wouldn’t be surprising at all, given the turnouts at Apple Stores.

Oppenheimer analyst Yar Reiner also says that about 76 percent of the buyers yesterday were actually upgrading their iPhones, with only about 21 percent switching to AT&T. Of the customers getting an iPhone for the first time, 41 percent were originally T-Mobile, with only 28 percent coming from Verizon (who is rumored to be getting its own iPhone soon).

No matter what the final numbers turn out to be, yesterday was a heck of a day for Apple — anecdotally, it was the biggest launch many of us have ever seen. It’s only a day after release, and already the iPhone 4 is a huge success.

TUAWApple may have sold 1.5 million iPhone 4s already originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 25 Jun 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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IPhone – Apple – Best Buy – Unofficial Apple Weblog – Smartphone

Apple today announced that it has sold more than 1.7 million iPhone 4 devices through Saturday, June 26, just three days after the phone’s launch on June 24. “This is the most successful product launch in Apple’s history,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “Even so, we apologize to those customers who were turned away because we did not have enough supply.”

Filed under: iPhone

The crowd was calm, but anxious. As I talked to people waiting, I was surprised by how many people were not current iPhone users. There were many BlackBerry owners, and a sprinkling of Motorola and Verizon labeled phones. Some said their contracts had just expired, and it was time to get on the iPhone bandwagon.

TUAWiPhone 4 launch: The view from Southern Arizona originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 24 Jun 2010 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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iPhone – Apple – Unofficial Apple Weblog – Motorola – IPad

Filed under: Gaming, iPhone

I met up with Chillingo at last week’s E3 event here in Los Angeles, and got to see a few of their upcoming titles in action. Here’s a few games they were showing off, and some early impressions of each.

Zombie Escape

This was probably my favorite game of the show — it’s a line-drawing game where you’re tasked with drawing routes for survivors of a zombie apocalypse to rescue choppers. As they appear on sides of the touchscreen, it’s your job to draw a path through the walking undead, and as the 28 days in the game go by, the difficulty ramps up with more undead and more survivors. Additionally, there are powerups and other items to collect, which give the game some tower defense-style elements, enabling you to defeat the undead from offscreen. But sending your survivors to get the powerups means they’ll have to take separate routes and risk more danger.

Zombie Escape was about three weeks out from release when I saw it last week, so it should be on the App Store by the end of this month. It’s definitely worth a look, especially if you’re a fan of the line-drawing genre.

TUAWChillingo shows off its current crop at E3 2010 originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 24 Jun 2010 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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IPhone – AppStore – Unofficial Apple Weblog – Los Angeles – Apple

Filed under: iPhone

I wound up taking two FaceTime calls today, but a third failed. First up was our old friend Nik Fletcher from way across the ocean in the UK. I was shocked at the excellent quality of the call and the video. It was definitely nicer than a standard webcam.

To be clear, I’m not a huge fan of this concept. By that I mean that I still see social hurdles to this technology being widely adapted. If you’ve ever made faces while talking to someone on the phone, you’ll know what I mean. Plus, having to hold the phone out in the air was a little tiring, but I’m sure the accessory market will create scads of “solutions” to this problem.

Drew Olanoff and I chatted next, and I did seem to notice a slight lag in the call. I noticed my Wi-Fi dip a bit as I moved about, but honestly I don’t know what caused that. Still, the conversation flowed and was mostly natural, as though we really were face-to-face. My brother and I tried to connect, but he was supposedly logged in to a secure network and couldn’t engage the FaceTime button, nor could he take my request. [Commenters suggest he may not have enabled FaceTime on his phone.]

As you can see from the pics, FaceTime is a clean and simple interface. There’s a button to change cameras (now also in the Camera app), allowing you to give a virtual tour, or a peek at someone’s crotch. (Thanks, Drew.) There’s also a mute button for the speaker on your end. To begin a FaceTime call, you just click on the button that says “FaceTime” and wait for the other person to accept the request. Like Skype, you have to accept the request to video chat. Oh, and don’t forget this is Wi-Fi-only for now, but we’re told that will probably change someday. The future is … soon!

TUAWFaceTime is a tiny bit awkward, but a whole lot of fun originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 24 Jun 2010 14:11:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple – Skype – IPhone – Unofficial Apple Weblog – Nik Fletcher

Filed under: iPhone

Customers are lined up across the country and sending reports and photos to our @ask_tuaw Twitter stream. Here are a few of the more interesting tidbits we’ve received.

Standing in line

As we predicted, the iPhone 4 lines are typically much longer than the iPad lineups were. The Garden State Plaza Apple Store in Paramus, New Jersey closed the non-reservation line (What Chris Breen is calling the “Pray for a Miracle Line“) around 9:20 AM. The Biltmore Apple Store‘s line in balmy Phoenix, Arizona had wrapped around the store by 6:30 AM local time.

Meanwhile, in Oklahoma City, the reservation line was longer than non-res. Twice as long, in fact.

Keeping them happy

Several readers are reporting that Apple Store employees are providing food and drinks to patient customers. In Reno, Nevada, workers are distributing coffee and donuts. Apple Store Crossgates in Albany, NY is also providing breakfast.

Photos

We’re getting a lot of snapshots from Twitter. In Lancaster, PA, you can’t even see the store from the back of the line. The same is true in Louisville, Kentucky, New York’s Soho, and Austin, Texas. Finally, I must give a shout-out to my fellow New Englanders in Salem, New Hampshire.

What’s your experience been today? Let us know at @ask_tuaw. Have fun and good luck!

TUAWiPhone 4 launch: Updates from iPhone 4 lineups originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 24 Jun 2010 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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IPhone – Unofficial Apple Weblog – Apple – New Jersey – New Hampshire

Filed under: Cult of Mac, iPhone

It goes without saying, but I’ll say it anyway: You gotta love Woz.

Apple’s co-founder Steve Wozniak is well known for making himself extremely accessible to his fans and admirers. We’re sure he can get his hands on any gizmo he wants. Despite this, he waits in lines and hangs out with fellow Apple fans.

When the iPad launched, Steve lined up for his tablet and in the process got to know Parth Dhebar, creator of Simple Reviews. Parth is a high school student and when he needed a ride to the iPhone 4 line, Woz picked him up. The pair joined the rest of the customers who were camping out, where Woz signed autographs, talked with fans and drove his Segway around the empty mall (does he go anywhere without that thing?).

Sounds like fun! Do you have an interesting line story or set of photos? Send them to our @ask_tuaw twitter stream. Thanks!

TUAWWoz gives kid a ride to overnight iPhone line originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 24 Jun 2010 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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SteveWozniak – IPhone – Apple – Unofficial Apple Weblog – IPad

Filed under: iPhone

The cheering, the clapping, the credit checks and the service provisioning: it’s iPhone 4 day in NYC, with the promise of sweltering temperatures encouraging those in line to get in and get finished as quick as they can. Video of the first customers above, gallery of the scene below.

TUAWiPhone 4 Launch: First customers entering 5th Ave Store originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 24 Jun 2010 07:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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IPhone – Unofficial Apple Weblog – Fifth Avenue – New York City – Apple

Filed under: iPhone

Well, that’s interesting — Apple has just posted an official statement on its site that says the white iPhone 4s have been “more challenging to manufacture than expected,” and therefore won’t be available until late July. No further statement is given, but it looks like if you were waiting until you get a white version of the new iPhone, you’ll have to wait a little longer. That also explains why you couldn’t preorder that color — they weren’t actually made yet.

As for what the challenge may be, we have no idea. Is it tough to make perfectly white material for that back panel? It could just be, of course, that Apple had some unforeseeable problem on a certain production line, leaving the white models in the lurch.

At any rate, Apple says that the “more popular” black models are good to go, so those will be ready in the stores tomorrow. But of course if Apple has only half of the models in stock, that too could affect availability. We’ll have to see how things go tomorrow morning.

[hat tip to MacRumors]

TUAWWhite iPhones “more challenging” says Apple, unavailable until mid-July originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 23 Jun 2010 15:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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iPhone – Apple – Unofficial Apple Weblog – MacRumors – Smartphones

Filed under: iPhone

Not long ago I talked about Starting from zero on the iPhone home screen, where I took everything off the first page of my iPhone screen (except for the camera).

With the release of iOS 4, I’ve been able to do something I like even better: one page for everything… well, almost everything. Let me first explain what isn’t on the home screen, and why.

There are some apps that I can’t delete but never use; I put them into a folder called “Never” on the second page. There is also a folder called “Seldom” for apps that I want to have on the iPhone but almost never use. Examples: apps that are there only to deliver push notifications such as myPhoneDesktop, or some type of functionality like TextExpander touch (I don’t use TE directly, but I use some apps which have integrated TextExpander’s SDK). All of that is tucked neatly away where I don’t ever really have to see it except for when I install a new application.

Read on for more…

TUAWFolders in iOS 4 bring harmony to my app organization originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 23 Jun 2010 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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iPhone – Unofficial Apple Weblog – TextExpander – IphoneOs – Handhelds

Filed under: iPad

Now that the iPad has been on the market for three months, many vendors are coming to market with protection for the device. We’ve seen everything from hard shell cases to expensive leather sleeves, and even cases that kill germs (link to last post about iSkin case).

When many people think about Apple accessories, they think of Targus, a company that has been in the business of making cases, keyboards, mice, and other accessory products for many years. Now Targus has come to market with four new cases for iPad that offer functionality, style, and color. The Z-Case, Truss, Targus Leather and Wallet Style cases are all available now at Targus dealers.

The Z-case (US$54.99, see photo at right) comes in black, orange, and mustard and features a hard-shell body with a leather exterior. The soft interior liner contrasts with the exterior for an attractive look. For those of you who may still be waiting for an Apple iPad case, the Truss ($49.99, see photo below), is similar in functionality to the Apple case, but has a leather exterior in brown or black with a soft liner.

Two more cases, the Targus Leather Sleeve ($49.99) and the Wallet Style Case ($54.99), also bring the class of leather to the lineup. The Sleeve comes only in black top-grain leather with a soft twill interior, while the Wallet Style Case comes in black and stylish red leather, and has a number of interior pockets for photos, cards, and notes.

Targus was a bit late to the iPad case and sleeve party with these new models, but they’ll certainly bring the typical Targus quality and functionality to the iPad accessory market.

TUAWMore great iPad cases from Targus originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 22 Jun 2010 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Unofficial Apple Weblog – Leather – IPad – Business – Apple

Filed under: iPhone, App Store

I finally got to meet up with the guys from Illusion Labs at WWDC last week. I’ve been writing about their apps for a little while (their most popular title is Touchgrind, but I really enjoyed Sway as well), so it was great to meet them in person and talk about what they’ve been up to on the App Store.

Their latest app is Foosball HD, a very well-polished and intuitive foosball table for the iPad. It’s their first original iPad venture (they brought Labyrinth and Touchgrind over right at launch), and they said that foosball was an idea that vibed well with their theme of making metaphorical games — “we make more simulators than games,” they told me. The app is clean and easy to play, and there are even little touches like projected shadows below the figures and some physics on the ball that Illusion was very proud to implement. The app’s available now for US$2.99 as an introductory price.

We also talked about social gaming networks, both third-party networks and Apple’s Game Center. The developers said that they’d never been interested in adding third-party code to their apps, just because it usually required that they split branding, and that they couldn’t integrate the UI in a way that appealed to them. They did admit that they were “more likely to use Apple’s Game Center,” but even so, their ideal solution is probably just to build something in-house rather than rely on anyone else.

Finally, we chatted about handset compatibility, and how they’ll react to yesterday’s iOS 4.0 release. At the time we talked, they hadn’t determined what to do yet, but they said that yes, they would probably end up dropping support for the first generation iPhone and iPod touch, just because it wasn’t worth the trouble. Especially with the free updates, Illusion says it’s a reasonable expectation for users to be upgraded from the original version. Again, very good to speak with them — we’ll look for more from this standout iOS developer in the future.

TUAWWWDC 2010: Illusion Labs’ Foosball HD originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 22 Jun 2010 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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iPhone – AppStore – Unofficial Apple Weblog – Apple – IPad

Filed under: iPhone

We’ve received a flood of overnight tips from excited readers today telling them that that their iPhone 4 orders will be arriving early. Apple is apparently sending out confirmation emails to customers who placed their orders on the 15th, stating that their phones are scheduled to arrive on June 23rd, not the 24th as originally promised (see above).

Apple notes that while FedEx may still list the 24th as your delivery date, customers should check the FedEx site on the morning of the 23rd to see if their iPhone 4 is out for delivery.

If your new iPhone does indeed arrive on the 23rd, please let us know.

[There is an odd grammatical error in the email, "you can check the FedEx website the morning of the June 23rd" -- we have no reason to believe this is anything but a legit Apple Store email at this point, but if you have any worries that this may be a phishing attempt, you can simply skip the link in the email and go to http://store.apple.com/ in a browser to check your order status.]

TUAWiPhone 4 arriving early for some originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 22 Jun 2010 08:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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IPhone – FedEx – Apple – Website – Unofficial Apple Weblog

Filed under: iPad

It’s the first official day of summer, so you know that it won’t be long before people retreat to cool rec rooms and air-conditioned basements instead of venturing out into the oppressive heat. TUAW wants to help keep you entertained while you dodge the big glowing ball in the sky, so here’s the first of our summer app giveaways.

Today’s bonus moment comes courtesy of the Ping Pong Battle developers; we’ve got 10 promo codes for the iPad app to give away. As you can see in the exclusive video above, you can link multiple iPhones in via Bluetooth to act as paddles (using the free Ping Pong Paddle app) and start the fun. Of course, you can also play in ‘finger mode’ without other devices.

To enter the giveaway, just leave a comment below letting us know your favorite summer pastime. Good luck!

Official rules:

• Open to legal US residents of the 50 United States and the District of Columbia who are 18 and older.
• To enter leave a comment on this post.
• The comment must be left before Wednesday, June 23 at 11:59PM Eastern Daylight Time.
• You may enter only once.
• Ten winners will be selected in a random drawing.
• Prize: One promo code for Ping Pong Battle for iPad (Value: US$4.99)
• Click Here for complete Official Rules.

TUAWApp giveaway: Ping Pong Battle for iPad originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 21 Jun 2010 00:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Unofficial Apple Weblog – IPad – IPhone – Apple – Washington DC

Orange and O2 today announced their pricing plans for the new iPhone 4. The cheapest deal on Orange is £30 a month for two years plus a £169 down payment. That gets you 300 minutes of talk time and…

MobileMe — the easy way to keep your iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Mac, and PC in sync — now includes an all-new Me.com webmail application with faster performance and great new features and a free Find My iPhone app for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.

Apple today announced that it sold its three-millionth iPad yesterday, just 80 days after the device’s U.S. introduction. “People are loving iPad as it becomes a part of their daily lives,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “We’re working hard to get this magical product into the hands of even more people around the world, including those in nine more countries next month.”

Engadget reviews the new Mac mini and credits the “striking unibody makeover,” NVIDIA GeForce 320M graphics, and new HDMI port with making it “even more attractive as a home theater PC.” Noting the compact desktop’s exceptional energy efficiency, built-in power supply, and quiet operation, the reviewer calls Mac mini “one of the most perfectly executed small PCs we’ve ever encountered.”

We glimpsed a prototype of Nokia’s N8 today. The flagship smartphone takes over from the n900 as the latest in the N-series range and will hit the UK in September. We take a look at the hardware in the…

Filed under: iPod Family

Way back two or three years ago, we first heard about some HD radios coming out that would allow for iTunes tagging of songs for later purchase. I guess Apple thought that was a mighty nifty idea, as they later gave similar capability to the latest iPod nano, and the company has recently filed for a patent that integrates HD radio right into future iPhones and iPods.

Unlike with traditional FM radio, HD radio transmits with it information on the song, artist and album you’re listening to. The most recent iPod nano has a song tagging feature for its built-in, traditional FM receiver, though it relies on later syncing the device with iTunes to make sense of what song you tagged.

With HD radio capabilities built into an iPhone or iPod, theoretically you could set your device to search for a particular song title via HD radio information. You’d also be able to quickly tag the song for purchase and be brought immediately to the iTunes app.

With iOS 4′s multi-tasking capabilities, most likely one would be able to listen to HD radio stations while performing other tasks, much like you can do now while listening to iTunes. While streaming apps like Pandora are popular and will have backgrounding capability, HD radio does one thing Pandora doesn’t: it won’t use up your data plan.

Of course, as with any number of the slew of patents Apple files for, there’s no telling whether we’ll actually see HD radio built into future devices.

[via AppleInsider]

TUAWRumor: Apple considering HD radio in future devices originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 17 Jun 2010 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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iPhone – Apple – Unofficial Apple Weblog – iTunes – IPod

Unlike many Brits Shiny Shiny’s Anna has been playing with an iPad for a few weeks now. Here are her top five free iPad apps designed to appeal to Brits including London HD traffic, All Saints shopping and Twitterific….

Anna rocked along to the All England Club in Wimbledon to get a look at the IBM sponsored app of the tournament. Providing info on everything from current matches, cafe opening times, and how busy the taxi ranks are…..

The first Nokia phone to pack the Symbian ^3 software, the N8 is a beautiful camera and video device. But what’s the user interface like. It has some slick features like the album scrolling and they’ve made it a…

Mobile-based augmented reality will get more social and gaming features and cute little bouncing Floaticons it was announced today. At a conference a few hours ago marking its first birthday, Layar the augmented reality app platform announced some interesting changes…

Filed under: iPhone

Hipstamatic isn’t a new app, but it is worth a look if you’ve never seen it before. It replicates the look and feel (and functionality) of those old point-and-click and even toy cameras that you might have carried around as a kid (depending on your current age of course). Nowadays, we can capture the world in digital, and soon HD, clarity, but Hipstamatic creates images the old fashioned way: with plenty of misbalanced levels, weird film coloring, and lots of dust and grit. You probably won’t see the picture better, but especially if you’ve got a nostalgic bent, it’ll probably make you feel it a lot more.

The app is currently US$1.99, and developers Synthetic Corp have added a few different “hipstapaks” for in-app purchase, which will update the various options available for cameras, flashes, and lenses. Give it a shot if you do lots of photography with your iPhone, and appreciate the retro.

TUAWTUAW’s Daily App: Hipstamatic originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 17 Jun 2010 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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iPhone – Unofficial Apple Weblog – Photography – Handhelds – Smartphones

Filed under: App Store

Apple has reversed a ban on the app version of Robert Berry’s comic book edition of James Joyce’s “Ulysses,” which has nudity. Apple has also lifted a ban on a graphic that shows 2 men kissing in Tom Bouden’s graphic novel of Oscar Wilde’s “The Importance of Being Earnest.”

The Associated Press quotes Trudy Miller of Apple saying the developers had been “allowed to resubmit their original drawings” and use the original artwork.

It was about 75 years ago that the U.S. Federal Courts ruled that “Ulysses” was not pornographic or obscene. The case did not go to the Supreme Court. The novel had also been banned in Britain, but was legalized in 1936.

TUAWApple admits mistake over pulling of graphic novel originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 16 Jun 2010 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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James Joyce – Importance of Being Earnest – Ulysses – Apple – Oscar Wilde

Anna takes a look at the next gen LG Viewty. Is the GT405 a worthy successor of what was one of the most popular mobiles ever? It is available exclusively on 3 going for £13 a month inc 300…

Filed under: iPhone

It’s a little bit odd that there’s no official iPhone app for Yahoo’s Upcoming service. With community-contributed event listings sorted and searchable by location, there’s a natural fit between Upcoming and the iPhone — yet there’s nothing from the big Y! in the App Store for this service. (Not to say they’re asleep at the wheel — the Yahoo! Entertainment app for iPad is a delight.)

Good thing, then, that there’s Nik Fletcher. The UK-based developer (and former TUAW blogger) has released the US$1.99 Happening app, which delivers all of the Upcoming events for your locale in an easy and manageable app. You can search for events by name or by venue, and if you sign in to your Upcoming account, you can RSVP for events or keep track of which friends are attending the same shindig. Venues are displayed with in-app map support, and you can jump out to the full Maps app for directions.

Obviously, if Upcoming doesn’t have much goin’ on in your vicinity, the app won’t do you much good; you can add your own events at upcoming.yahoo.com, though, and populate the party.

Earlier this week, Happening was cited as one of 10 “beautiful and usable” iPhone/iPad apps by Mashable, and it’s true; the app has a lovely look to it. Nik promises improvements in upcoming builds, including event sharing via Twitter. If you’re looking for something fun to do near you, check it out.

TUAWHappening leverages Yahoo events search for your iPhone originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 16 Jun 2010 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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AppStore – iPhone – Yahoo – Unofficial Apple Weblog – IPad

Filed under: iPhone

Update: The post has been edited to clarify that it’s AT&T that’s blown through its preorder allocation, not the entire universe of iPhone-selling outlets… but that’s changing, see below.

The white model never appeared, AT&T’s backend systems folded like Superman on laundry day and even new data limits (to be fair you can get your old unlimited data grandfathered in) and higher ETF fees couldn’t keep the customers away. Yes, the mighty iPhone 4 (and Apple’s marketing) have won the day and are, at this moment, currently sold out at AT&T’s stores for launch day delivery (you can still preorder from Apple, however). In AT&T’s words (via Engadget and Boy Genius Report):

“Because of the incredible interest in iPhone 4, today was the busiest online sales day in AT&T history. As of Tuesday afternoon, customers who preorder iPhone 4 moving forward will receive their device on June 25 or later, depending on when the order is placed. We’ll email customers with confirmation once their order is placed, and again when it ships. In addition, we will have devices available on a first-come, first-serve basis in our stores beginning on June 24.”

Update 2: The UK Apple Store is also showing first-day allocations are all gone; the website shows July 2 as the next delivery date for new pre-orders.

Update 3: As of 10:45pm ET, we’re getting reports that the US Apple Store has changed the availability date for new pre-orders to July 2. When we checked, it’s still set to June 24… we’ll keep an eye on it.

Original photo by marfis75

TUAWiPhone 4 sold out from AT&T, UK Apple Store originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 15 Jun 2010 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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IPhone – Apple – Unofficial Apple Weblog – AT&T – Smartphone

Filed under: OS, Software Update, Snow Leopard

Head on over to Software Update to find the latest OS X dot release.10.6.4 is now available — and in addition to the usual split between delta and combo updates, and regular/server versions, there’s another wrinkle here: the Mac mini released today gets its very own flavor of the 10.6.4 update, presumably because of late changes that couldn’t be tracked back into the trunk version of the OS.

The size of the update may vary if you pick it up via Software Update — we saw 315 MB on a MacBook Pro running 10.6.3. The combo update for all 10.6 systems weighs in at a bandwidth-hogging 887.4 MB.

Here’s Apple’s write-up on the matter:

The 10.6.4 Update is recommended for all users running Mac OS X Snow Leopard. It includes Safari 5 and general operating system fixes that enhance the stability, compatibility, and security of your Mac, including fixes that:

• resolve an issue that causes the keyboard or trackpad to become unresponsive
• resolve an issue that may prevent some Adobe Creative Suite 3 applications from opening
• address issues copying, renaming, or deleting files on SMB file servers
• improve reliability of VPN connections
• resolve a playback issue in DVD Player when using Good Quality deinterlacing
• resolve an issue editing photos with iPhoto or Aperture in full screen view
• improve compatibility with some braille displays

For overall details look here, or find security information here.

TUAWMac OS X 10.6.4 is in Software Update originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 15 Jun 2010 17:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Unofficial Apple Weblog – Mac OS X Snow Leopard – Mac OS X – Apple – Apple Software Update

Filed under: App Store, iPad

It was December of 2008 when the app store boasted carrying over 10,000 apps, back when something called an iPad was just a sparkle in our eyes (and probably called something much different). That feat took six months to accomplish. The 20,000 app mark took another three months.

Today — only three months since the iPad’s release — the app store is listing the current iPad-native app count at over 10,000. To see this, you can visit the “Featured” section of the app store on an iPad, then select the “Release Date” tab. It’s likely that, by the time you do this, your number will be a hundred or more higher than ours (pictured at right).

At first notice of this, I was pretty impressed. I mean, the iPad halved the time it took for the iPhone to reach the same app count. But really, this isn’t all that surprising or remarkable when you consider the number of pre-existing iPhone apps that needed very little tweaking to become iPad native, plus the success of iPad sales.

Now, when is TapTapTap going to make an iPad app mosaic to celebrate this feat?

[via TechCrunch]

TUAWApp store pushes past 10,000 iPad apps originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 15 Jun 2010 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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AppStore – iPhone – Unofficial Apple Weblog – IPad – Apple

PC Magazine makes the new Mac mini an Editors’ Choice (4.5/5 stars), writing that it now “defines its category.” Citing the new aluminum unibody construction, HDMI port, SD card slot, and improved energy efficiency — and noting that Mac mini “blew away” the competition in 3D performance testing — the reviewer calls it “the compact PC you’ve been searching for.”

Download the new Apple Store app free and you can do all things Apple from your iPhone or iPod touch. Buy Apple products and accessories, read customer reviews, find an Apple Retail Store, stay up to date with in-store events, and make Personal Shopping, Genius Bar, or One to One appointments.

Filed under: iPad

Your wife loves chocolate, and you know she’s been eying that 1.5+ lb. bar at the local Trader Joe’s like a lion does a gazelle. She’s also a massive Apple fan who’s been dying for a shiny new iPad for months. Birthday time: the bar, or the iPad? If you’re a cheap SOB, you get the bar and call it a day. If you’re looking for an excuse to have an iPad in the house, you get the iPad. Or, you can do what this chap did and not only give her both, but fuse them together.

Not only did this guy encase the iPad gift in chocolate (after having carefully wrapped it in plastic first, thankfully), he had to have it shipped from London, England because they’re not sold yet in South Africa, where she lives. I don’t know about you, but I was cringing as I watched her slice away the chocolate with a knife from the precious prize within.

The sad part of this story, for me, is that my wife would be severely disappointed that she was shorted 1.5+ lbs. of chocolate for a piece of gadgetry goodness.

[via Engadget]

TUAWChocolate covered iPad looks tasty originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 14 Jun 2010 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Chocolate – Unofficial Apple Weblog – South Africa – London – IPad

If, just for a chance, you decide not to follow every single game of the World Cup, I think I have just found the perfect place for you…..on your Iphone!

Last night, I spent hours on a new poker application on the Iphone and it is great!

I was always a bit cautious about playing poker in casinos or even with friends because I never really knew if I was good at it. I always wondered where all these people were training to become so good. Well, now I found the perfect tool for that my Iphone…

There are several applications worth the try, such as Poker Texas Hold’em, Absolute Poker or Zinga Poker live is excellent. You can play without spending a fortune and you can train as much as you like to become a real pro.

The best thing is that you get lots of advice and tricks and you really can improve very quickly. I did! You can also choose who to play against, real people, your friends or very realistic players.

Check out this website PokerListings, and especially their quick guide to poker on iPhone to get all the info you need and see you soon on the green carpet…

Tags:application iphone pokerapplication, iphone, poker

Filed under: iPad

It’s been a busy few weeks for iPad RSS clients. The Early Edition saw an update, Pulse got keynote love followed by a quick yank from/return to the App Store… it’s almost as if the whole Newspad idea is starting to catch on.

Judging by our inbox volume, a lot of you are very excited about the latest entrant in the iPad reader race: Reeder, a strong favorite on the iPhone, is now shipping in an upsized version for the bigger device. The US$4.99 client syncs with Google Reader, and provides a clean and clutter-free interface to your chosen feeds or foldersful of feeds. You can easily share selected stories on Twitter or via email, save items to Instapaper or ReadItLater, mark items as unread or bookmark them on Delicious.

The app is carrying a solid five-star rating on iTunes right now, and we’re looking forward to doing a fuller review soon. In the meantime, if you’re looking for another strong option for feed reading, check it out.

TUAWReeder client for Google Reader now available for iPad originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Sat, 12 Jun 2010 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Google Reader – App Store – iPhone – RSS – IPad

The completely redesigned Mac mini features up to twice the graphics performance, a new HDMI port, a new SD card slot, and industry-leading energy efficiency — all in an amazingly compact aluminum enclosure. Starting at $699, Mac mini is the most affordable way to enjoy Mac OS X, iLife, or Mac OS X Snow Leopard Server.

Engadget reports that ESPN on-air analysts are using iPad as a telestrator to control graphics, overlays, doodle input, and shading on live telecasts. Writes Engadget: “…a broadcasting company that is oft hailed for having some of the best graphics and on-screen technology in the universe is using the same tablet that you gave your mom for Mother’s Day to do it.”

Filed under: iPad, iAds

We’re meeting all kinds of developers at WWDC in San Francisco this week; some from big companies with big resources (and stay tuned — we’re talking to a few of this week’s Apple Design Award winners later on), and some hard-working, smaller groups.

Matt Martel’s Mundue is the second kind of developer. He makes the reMovem app; it’s a simple little game that has you removing colored balls from the screen (in order) and trying to completely clear the board. The idea is simple and fun, but the app has grown extremely complex; it has been downloaded over 6 million times, and is now available in thirteen languages across several versions.

Martel sat down this week to show off reMovem2, which is the iPad version of his app. The main difference, he told us, between the iPhone and iPad versions of the game is the screen size, but the fact that you’ve got more room to play with really opens up the gameplay. More balls to match can mean greater difficulty, but it also means larger scores. And though Martel started out with a single game mode, the iPad version incorporates four different modes, the option to add extra themes, a chance at in-app purchases, and, as he told me, lots of different opportunities with iOS 4 and Apple’s upcoming Game Center.

TUAWWWDC 2010: Matt Martel’s reMovem 2 originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 11 Jun 2010 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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iPhone – Unofficial Apple Weblog – Apple – WWDC – San Francisco

Filed under: Apple

Over at Newsweek, Dan Lyons, formerly famous as Fake Steve Jobs, asks the question: Does Apple’s iPhone 4 signal the death of the Macintosh? He goes on to answer this question in his article with lots of attention-grabbing phrases like, “RIP, Macintosh,” and “You’ve been dropped. Dumped. It’s over.”

Of course, later on in the article, sandwiched in between several paragraphs of hyperbole, Lyons also says, “To be sure, Apple won’t kill off the Mac.” Well, okay. What exactly are you trying to say then, Fake Steve?

Reports of the Mac’s death may be exaggerated, but it’s not hard to see why some might think it’s on its last legs. As Lyons points out, Jobs didn’t discuss the Mac at all during the recent WWDC 2010 keynote, instead spending all of his time discussing iPhone 4 and iOS 4. Apple also dropped its Apple Design Awards for the Mac, which meant others had to step in and take up the slack. Apple’s party line on the iPad is that it’s the future of computing, and eventually the only people who’ll need to use a traditional computer are users doing highly specialized tasks that the iPad doesn’t and might never be able to handle.
But even with all that, the Mac is far from dead. Read on to find out why the Mac isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.

TUAWThe Mac is far from dead originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 09 Jun 2010 23:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple – Steve Jobs – Macintosh – IPhone – Unofficial Apple Weblog

Filed under: iPhone

With the FIFA World Cup 2010 commencing on June 11th, TUAW has been receiving a lot of info about iPhone apps for the event, including the indie effort Total Football 2010 which we’ll be checking out soon. One of the most intriguing tips came from veteran mobile developer Handmark, which has teamed with huge soccer site Goal.com on a new app.

The Goal.com Mobile app (World Cup 2010 edition) displays a special World Cup tab for news coverage from a team of 550 reporters, 10 of whom are based in South Africa for the finals. Features of the app include:

• Up to the minute top news & photos
• Live scores with play-by-play details
• Player ratings
• Teams with schedule and lineup details
• Fixtures and Results by day
• Group State with team standing
• Knockout Stage with the final tournament schedule

Any of the articles can be emailed to friends or shared through Twitter or Facebook. If you’re only interested in seeing how your team is doing, you can customize the app to focus on specific news feeds. You don’t need to have a full-time Internet connection either; there’s an offline reading mode so you can catch up on info while you’re taking that long airplane flight to South Africa to cheer on your team.

The Goal.com Mobile app is available in 9 languages — English, Spanish, French, Italian, German, Dutch, Japanese, Turkish, and Indonesian. Time for football!

TUAWHandmark and Goal.com team up for free FIFA World Cup 2010 app originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 09 Jun 2010 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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FIFA World Cup 2010 – World Cup – Sport – Facebook – Soccer

Filed under: iPhone

As we noted on last night’s special Talkcast, it seems inevitable that a desktop video-chat service will announce compatibility with Apple’s iPhone 4 FaceTime feature sooner rather than later. Since Apple has its own chat tool that includes video, one imagines that iChat will be FaceTime friendly before too long. From the feedback we saw during our chat yesterday, however, that’s not what the people want or hope for; overwhelmingly they said “give us Skype.”

Based on a report from pocket-lint.com, that seemed like it might actually happen. The site quoted a source within Skype who said the VoIP company would “welcome the chance to work with Apple” on bringing mobile video calling to the hordes of Skypers around the world.

Hope may have sprung prematurely in this case, though. Electronista checked with a Skype spokesperson who walked the dog back a bit, saying that the company doesn’t have any short-term plans for implementing Apple’s standards-based video calling protocol, and that the prior comments simply referred to getting the “best possible experience” for video calls.

It’s a bit of a chicken-and-egg problem here; do developers invest in desktop compatibility for a protocol that hasn’t been proven in the field yet, or do they read the writing on the wall for the iPhone 4′s likely market impact and get out ahead of the wave? Either way, mobile video chat is coming — which means, once again, that we are actually livin’ in the future.

TUAWSkype hedges on FaceTime compatibility originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 09 Jun 2010 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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IPhone – Apple – Unofficial Apple Weblog – Skype – Videoconferencing

Filed under: iPad

The iPad app that Steve Jobs supposedly dislikes, New York Times Editor’s Choice, was updated today. The update partially addresses Steve’s primary concern: the app omits a lot of the paper’s daily content.

Specifically, the new build adds an Arts section and some videos. The Arts section has two “pages” worth of articles, so it’s on par with the others. There are also five videos. Navigation is clear and easy and they look great on the iPad’s screen. But it’s still a small amount of content. We assume they’ve got a subscription model in the works and we’re eager to see what it is.

Other changes include re-sizable text and an option to share stories on Facebook, Twitter and email. Photos now indicate if they contain a slideshow with a “more photos” icon, and all photos can be resized with a pinch.

It’s a decent enough update that adds some content. Not a lot, but some. Hopefully Steve Jobs will be mollified.

TUAWNew York Times for iPad update adds content originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 09 Jun 2010 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Steve Job – Apple – New York Times – IPad – Unofficial Apple Weblog

Watch the new series of iPhone Quick Tips to see how iPhone and some of the best business apps are changing the way people work. The tips, also available as podcasts, cover useful workday tasks like converting text to speech, creating and editing common office files, and storing and sharing files on iPhone.

MacBook earns an Editors’ Rating of Excellent (4/5) stars from CNET reviewer Dan Ackerman, who likes the notebook’s faster processor, improved graphics, and better battery life. Ackerman writes that the “$999 MacBook hits the sweet spot between price and performance,” making it “tough to beat as a back-to-school laptop.”

Filed under: WWDC

We’ve received quite a few emails from developers who are providing you with special app pricing during WWDC 2010. Here’s a roundup of some of the info we’ve received:

• Ubermind is selling Masque for US$1.99 until June 12. The app is an amazing photography tool for iPad.
• iOS4 devs should look into purchasing iMockups for iPad during WWDC. It’s available for 30% off today (June 7), which is $6.99 instead of the usual $8.99. It’s a nice mockup tool for apps.
• UK developer Michael Kaye couldn’t make it to WWDC 2010, but he’s celebrating by putting BabyBubbles on sale for $0.99, a huge discount from the usual $5.99 price. BabyBubbles is an innovative “baby logger” for new parents, and currently runs on iPhone and iPod touch. Michael says he’ll keep the price at $0.99 until BabyBubbles HD appears.
• Developer Craig Caruso is selling his iLineup for iPad app at the special price of $0.99 this week only. The baseball / softball lineup card package usually sells for $1.99.
• Cameron Banga at 9Magnets let us know that their iOS device battery management tool Battery Go! will be free until Friday. The regular price is $2.99, so pick it up while you can.

Click the Read More link below for more hot WWDC app deals.

TUAWWWDC 2010: App deal roundup originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 08 Jun 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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iPhone – Apple – WWDC – Unofficial Apple Weblog – IPad

Filed under: WWDC

TUAWFaceTime video conferencing coming to the iPhone originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 07 Jun 2010 20:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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iPhone – Apple – Videoconferencing – Unofficial Apple Weblog – IChat

Filed under: WWDC, iPhone

Today at WWDC, during the keynote address, one of the things Steve dropped upon us is the new camera in iPhone 4: Yeah, the 3G S did video, but the new camera does “full HD,” at a sparkly 720p and 30fps. This means that little handheld video camera that’s been on my Christmas list the last three years is now gone. Why get one when my new iPhone will do it?

So you fill your phone full of video. What to do with it? If it was your Mac, you’d be flexing your iMovie muscles, wouldn’t you? Now you can do the same on your iPhone: Steve showed some demos of iMovie for iPhone today, including one-click sharing, and the tap to focus that works in photos. Even the new LED flash gets in on it: You can leave it on the whole time you’re shooting. Export options are 360p, 540p, and the original 720p resolution.

And of course, the app also lets you run transitions, titles, and anything else the full version of iMovie will let you do. There are even themes and theme music to choose from — Apple’s video engineer says it’s the best way to edit video on a mobile device he’s ever seen.

So now you can record beautiful video, edit down to the good bits, and email that video off to any of the tubes. As long as it goes through the app review process, that is — according to Steve, “You’ll be able to buy this for $4.99 … if we approve it.” Funny. When it appears on the App Store, we’ll let you know.

TUAWWWDC 2010: Apple announces iMovie for iPhone 4 originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 07 Jun 2010 14:16:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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iPhone – Apple – Unofficial Apple Weblog – WWDC – App Store

Filed under: App Store

Highborn is an interesting little App Store title. It won’t be for everyone — it’s a turn-based strategy game that has a pretty steep learning curve, and while the actual game itself is pretty casual as games like this go, players unfamiliar with of moving troops around could find it confusing. But those interested in the genre (the gameplay actually reminded me a lot of Nintendo’s Advance Wars series) will find it a fun distraction.

You control troops and heroes on a tesselated board, and can pit various units against each other in battle. The story is silly and fun, and the emphasis is on simple advantages and odds rather than hardcore troop placement and balance.

It’s not the only game of its kind on the App Store (Battle for Wesnoth is another example for a bit more money), but Highborn is a fun and original title that combines the basics of turn-based tactical strategy with a fun fantasy story and a portable package. It’s on an introductory sale right now for US$2.99.

TUAWTUAW’s Daily App: Highborn originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 07 Jun 2010 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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AppStore – Unofficial Apple Weblog – Game – Nintendo – Video Games