Iphone Updates

When Apple teased “Tomorrow is just another day. That you’ll never forget” on their home page yesterday I hoped it was going to be something really cool — like cloud-based iTunes or a subscription iTunes service. When the news began to leak out that the event was the Beatles coming to iTunes finally it was cool, but a day I’ll never forget? Nope.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s great to finally have the Beatles on iTunes, but Apple, lets keep this in check. For $149 and the click of a button it’s nice to get all of the Beatles tracks from iTunes if I want them, but most Beatles fans had the band’s entire discography ripped when MP3s started going mainstream back in 2001. Heck, hardcore fans probably had their tracks encoded at such high levels in Ogg Vorbis or FLAC that they needed a separate hard drive just to contain their Beatles tunes (and if they don’t yet, Amazon will help them out — today they lowered their Beatles Stereo Box Set to only $129).

Seven years ago a Beatles/iTunes announcement might have earned the “never forget” slogan, but not today in 2010. And while it’s only been three hours since the release, the iTunes Store music charts confirms that this isn’t the earth-shattering news it was made out to be. Not one Beatles song has cracked the Top 10 list yet, while a new song from Katy Perry or the Black Eyed Peas usually shoots up the charts within minutes of being released — and without taking up 40% of the real estate on the iTunes Music Store homepage or the front page of Apple.com like the Fab Four has.

I also want to point out that for all the hoopla over today’s “event” one thing that could have made it somewhat memorable is a Beatles-branded iPod touch. If a band-branded iPod is good enough for some guys from Dublin, surely a group of four lads from Liverpool deserve one too.

Beatles: glad to have you on iTunes. Apple: I’ve already forgotten something you said I wouldn’t. Wish I could remember what it was…

Today is just another day I will forget originally appeared on TUAW on Tue, 16 Nov 2010 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Turns out, when Apple announced it was a day you’d never forget, maybe it wasn’t talking about The Beatles. Last we heard, Google Voice was expected on the App Store “soon” … and now here it is. Apple has relented in the battle to allow Google Voice functionality on the iPhone, leaving Google open to release its own official app for the service.

It looks just as good as you’d expect — you can sign into the service from anywhere, access your voicemail or even send text messages or Google Voice calls, and get push notifications when you’ve got a new message incoming.

Obviously, you’ll need a Google Voice account to use the app, but those are free and easy enough to set up. The app is only available in the United States, according to its description, so those of you outside the country are out of luck (for now). It’s also probably not compatible with the iPad — the listing only says it’s available for the iPhone so far.

Our own Mike Rose & TJ Luoma [TJ comments below that he objects to the iPhone-only restriction on the app, as he would like to use it to send and receive SMS on the iPad or iPod touch] are jumping for joy on this one — we’ve got a lot of TUAW Google Voice fans, and having this functionality available on the iPhone is a very nice bonus even with the third-party apps already on the market. What are you waiting for? It’s here — go download!

Google Voice for iPhone is finally out on the App Store originally appeared on TUAW on Tue, 16 Nov 2010 14:17:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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As you probably know, Apple has secured exclusive digital rights to The Beatles’ catalog. But for how long? According to All Things Digital, the deal extends into 2011.

EMI Music spokesman Dylan Jones told All Things D that Apple’s deal reaches into 2011 and beyond January 1st. He did confirm that the exclusivity will eventually end, but he didn’t say when. For the time being, distributors like Amazon, Spotify, Rhapsody and the Zune will just have to wait.

Writing for All Things D, Peter Kafka wonders if the band will renew the exclusivity deal or even walk away from digital entirely when it expires. The latter seems crazy to us. Paul, Ringo et al apparently got serious about digital when Rock Band: The Beatles came out. We’re betting the group has joined the digital revolution for good.

Apple’s exclusive digital rights to The Beatles extend into 2011 originally appeared on TUAW on Tue, 16 Nov 2010 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Business Insider recently surveyed 500 iPad users about their habits with some interesting results. Among the most interesting is that nearly 80 percent of respondents (77.6) said they use their iPads more often now than they did when they first got them, suggesting that, after the novelty had worn off, customers continued to use their iPads. Even more so, in fact.

The study also found that 71 percent of participants use their iPads between one and five hours per day. Additionally, 28.9 percent said that their iPad has become their primary computer. Personally, I use mine as a supplement, but my wife hasn’t touched our MacBook Pro since the iPad came home.

Most participants reported spending the bulk of their iPad time browsing the Web (37.7 percent) while 39.4 percent claim to have downloaded between 20 and 50 apps (most people paid for about 10 apps).

There’s more, of course, which you can read here. It’s an interesting study with a decent-sized sample.

iPad owners’ usage increasing over time originally appeared on TUAW on Mon, 15 Nov 2010 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple Corps, EMI, and Apple today announced that the Beatles, the most influential and beloved rock band in history, is now available for the first time on the iTunes Store. Starting today, the group’s 13 legendary remastered studio albums are available for purchase and download on iTunes worldwide, either as albums or as individual songs. Said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO, “We love the Beatles and are honored and thrilled to welcome them to iTunes.” He added, “we are now realizing a dream we’ve had since we launched iTunes ten years ago.”

Popular Science reviews both the 11- and 13-inch MacBook Air models, noting that “after using one of the new MacBook Airs for an extended period of time, you go back to your old laptop. And it feels like it has suddenly contracted elephantiasis.” Reviewer John Mahoney also mentions that the MacBook Air handles most everyday tasks with “effortless speed,” and says that it’s “the perfect size.” Of the 13-inch model, Reviewer Mike Haney writes that “once you use it — on your lap, in your bag — it just feels like the way a computer should be.”

Reiner Knizia’s classic Egyptian-themed auction and tile-collecting game Ra is not an easy one to figure out. When playing around a table, you need to collect the right tiles, look over to see what other people are collecting, keep an eye on the status of the sun/bid tiles and, in general, process a lot of changing information. If you enjoy this gameplay but don’t like setting up the game or dealing with scorekeeping, the new universal Ra app is sure to please, especially at US$4.99 (it debuted at $6.99, but quickly came down).

Ra for iOS was designed by Sage Board Games, the same people who brought us the excellent Medici and have a lot of wonderful board games in their “convert to app” sights. Because it’s such a popular game in the Eurogame community, a lot of people have been waiting for Ra, and it kind of feels like this is an important app for the developers. If it’s a success, then we expect more board game apps to come. If not, then what happens? We have no inside information on the company’s finances or strategic plan, but it’s probably not cheap to produce an app like this, and no one wants to lose money — even if they’re making things they love.

Does Ra make the grade? We think so, but read on to see what its like to get a bit of desert auction sand in your iPad or iPhone.

Continue reading App Review: Reiner Knizia’s Ra

App Review: Reiner Knizia’s Ra originally appeared on TUAW on Sat, 13 Nov 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Wall Street Journal is reporting on an interesting effect of Apple’s iAd platform — it seems to be helping the competition.

Just a few months after being announced, iAds began appearing in the U.S., and a global launch began earlier this month. Meanwhile, Apple and the Denstu Group signed a deal to bring iAds to Japan. All of this activity has garnered a lot of attention for the mobile advertising space in general, and several providers are seeing greater sales.

“…ad executives say Apple’s entry into the market is giving them a boost,” the Journal reports. “That’s because iAds has gotten big marketers to pay attention to mobile advertising in the first place.”

Of course, the only evidence of a correlation is anecdotal. It’s quite likely that Apple’s high-profile entry into the space has generated interest, but we haven’t seen empirical data to support that theory. Still, Apple does bring a bit of cachet and sexy to mobile marketing. The true test will be to see who’s still standing in 5 years.

[Via AppleInsider]

iAds helping all mobile advertising take off? originally appeared on TUAW on Fri, 12 Nov 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Following today’s Ping Twitter integration, many on Twitter started blasting the overly long Ping URLs. Now, MacRumors points out that one of their readers speculates that Apple could use its own iTun.es link shortener to help fit Ping links into Twitter’s character limitation.

The www.itun.es web domain currently forwards to Apple.com. MacRumors did some digging and found out that Apple has been the owner of itun.es since December 2006 when it was registered by MarkMonitor, the brand management firm Apple uses to register all of its domains. MacRumors notes that since Apple has owned the domain for almost four years it is unlikly they bought it specifically for a link shortener purpose, but with today’s Ping Twitter integration it would allow the company to put the domain to good use.

Apple could use ‘iTun.es’ domain as link shortener originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 11 Nov 2010 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apparently there is a market for Flash on the iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch, judging by the success that the third party browser Skyfire (US$2.99) had in its first weekend in the App Store. The Skyfire browser enables Flash video playback by converting Flash content to HTML5, which is playable on the iPhone. Using adaptive streaming technology, users can view full Flash pages on their phones, and have up to eight different browser windows open at the same time. While it sold so quickly at first that they couldn’t keep their servers running smoothly, Skyfire ended up selling more than 300,000 copies of the browser in the first weekend alone, grossing over a million dollars. After Apple takes their cut of the sales, that leaves them with somewhere in the neighborhood of $630,000, quickly quieting those who asked how they would make any money with the new browser.

With HTML5 here to stay (for a while, at least) and Flash currently a non-player in the iPhone market, it looks like the Skyfire browser found a rather large piece of its target market during the first weekend alone. After all the animosity between Adobe and Apple, though, it’s hard to think that even a number like this will help them find common ground. You can watch a video of Skyfire in action after the break.

Continue reading Skyfire browser earns $1 million in first weekend

Skyfire browser earns $1 million in first weekend originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 11 Nov 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The iPad is rapidly moving beyond its role as consumer device and infiltrating the enterprise. A new survey conducted by BoxTone Mobile Service Management indicates that three-quarters of corporations will deploy the Apple tablet in the next year. Twenty-five percent are deploying the slates already.

IT professionals and executives at 800 companies were interviewed for the survey. The combination of the iPad’s hardware execution with its highly readable capacitive touchscreen, which doesn’t require a stylus, enables a more natural and intuitive user interface than previous attempts at tablet computers. Just as it did with the original iPod, Apple has kept the system deliberately limited and focused rather than trying to stuff every possible piece of functionality into it. While this frustrates some of the geekier folks among us, it helps to ensure that the parts that are included work better.

On top of this portable, wireless platform, Apple has created a highly touch optimized interface that allows software developers to produce applications that enable smoother interactivity and collaboration.

Survey respondents also cited the new management features in the imminent iOS 4.2 release that allow for improved enterprise security. All of this allows staff to work amongst themselves and with customers to see new possibilities in the information. Of course, all of this depends on developers coming up with excellent software. By all accounts, Apple has provided an excellent development platform and tools for doing this even if its approval policies for distribution have been a bit wonky. The end result seems to be that IT departments are more willing to allow this new device into their ecosystems than any previous consumer oriented platform.

iPad adoption increasing among corporations originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 11 Nov 2010 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Cloud memory service Evernote has reached 5 million users and continues to grow, according to an official statement on the company’s blog. The service is gaining tens of thousands of new users per day and has recently seen its highest daily revenue from premium users, plus big jumps off of Apple platforms, on Windows, Android, and BlackBerry. The five millionth user also marks the fastest million users the company has earned, as you can see from the blocked-off sections in the chart above. That’s pretty phenomenal growth; it’s on an exponential scale, too, so there’s probably more where that came from.

Meanwhile, Evernote also promises updates are coming on the Mac, iPhone, and iPad side of things. Just a few weeks ago, the company raised a round of US$20 million from some venture funding. 2010 has been a good year for Evernote — we’ll have to see what happens in 2011.

[via TechCrunch]

Evernote hits 5 million users originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 11 Nov 2010 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Bento 3 Event Planner — now available for download — is a fast, free, and easy way to plan your events on Mac, iPhone, and iPad. Perfect for planning meetings, conferences, weddings, and parties, the Bento 3 Event Planner lets you track contacts, vendors, tasks, expenses, locations, and more — and link them to any event. This download includes a free trial of Bento 3 for Mac. Bento for iPhone and Bento for iPad are both sold separately.

I’ve been using the Washington Post for iPad app since it was released earlier this week. It’s nice to see the Post jump into the dedicated iPad app competition, but while there are some things to like about the app, there is also a lot I find extremely disappointing.

The good first. Most, but not all of the Post is here. The reporters, bloggers, and columnists are in full force. The app content updates frequently, and there is an excellent multimedia section with both images and video. The Post has embraced social media, and you can see what people on Twitter and Facebook are saying about the big stories. When you bring up a story, you can also see stories from other media, like NPR and the Christian Science Monitor. That’s a good idea, and lets you see a range of coverage on a subject. The Post calls this Live Topic and it’s a clever innovation.

Now, ahem, on to the bad. This app has the ugliest, most confusing layout I have ever seen. The screens are very busy. Nothing is intuitive, and there is no help or video explaining how to navigate. The designers of this app appear to have decided to invent their own GUI, throwing away just about every convention ever invented to make navigation easy. It’s impossible to read a story full screen without other elements intruding, either ads or Twitter feeds or who knows what. Comments about this design on the app store are overwhelmingly negative.

Continue reading Washington Post for iPad is a bit hard on the eyes

Washington Post for iPad is a bit hard on the eyes originally appeared on TUAW on Wed, 10 Nov 2010 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple has inked a deal with the Dentsu Group that will bring iAd to Japan. Dentsu subsidiary cyber communications, inc. (cci) will take over the selling and “creative execution” of iAds in Japan, with a premiere date set for “early 2011.” Under this arrangement, Apple will be limited to hosting and delivery. That’s a huge change, as Apple has maintained tight control on U.S. iAd spots, occasionally to the peril of some huge deals.

It was only recently that iAds began to roll out globally. Meahwhile, Apple has begun building a new office space for iAd team members in New York City.

Congratulations and good luck to both Apple and Dentsu Group.

Dentsu Group and Apple bring iAd to Japan originally appeared on TUAW on Wed, 10 Nov 2010 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Today on TUAW TV Live, I’ll be talking about one topic that should be very timely — iOS 4.2. Many of us in the Apple blogging biz are hearing that 4.2 might be released on Friday morning, bringing such features as multitasking, GameCenter, AirPrint wireless printing (see post about the crippling of that feature), and AirPlay to the iPad, and a ton of changes to the iPhone and iPod touch.

You can join in on the discussion of the newest update to iOS (and the first major software update for iPad since its introduction) today on TUAW TV Live. Just come back to TUAW.com at about 5 PM ET (2 PM PT) for complete instructions on how to join the chat and livestream.

TUAW TV Live at 5 PM ET: The iOS 4.2 preview show originally appeared on TUAW on Wed, 10 Nov 2010 13:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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For corporations who want to make sure that employees are following Acceptable Use Policies or parents who want to make sure that their kids aren’t texting while driving, there’s now a solution. Florida-based Retina-X Studios has announced Mobile Spy for iPhone 4, a combination of an iPhone app and a service that allow anxious parents and business owners to track usage of the phone without the user’s knowledge.

According to Retina-X, you install the Mobile Spy app onto the phone you wish to track. It reloads at every restart, and has no icon or screen — it’s running completely in background. While it’s running, Mobile Spy captures call activity, SMS text messages, the location of the user (updated every 30 minutes), contacts stored and added to the phone, all inbound and outbound email activity, all websites visited, and all photos and videos taken by the phone. All of that information is then uploaded stealthily to the Mobile Spy servers. The customer can log in and view the activities in almost real time.

Continue reading iPhone 4 Mobile Spy lets you keep an eye on employee iPhone usage

iPhone 4 Mobile Spy lets you keep an eye on employee iPhone usage originally appeared on TUAW on Tue, 09 Nov 2010 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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One of the more widely-used members of the iLife suite, iMovie, has been around for quite a while, although the original iMovie hit a dead end with iMovie HD 6 and was reborn as a completely new app as iMovie ’08. It’s now in version 9.0 as part of iLife ’11, and this edition has both new features and a bit of added polish across the entire product. In this hands-on review of iMovie ’11, I won’t be pointing out every menu item or movie-making feature; instead I’ll focus on the new capabilities.

I’ve been dabbling with video production since I was in high school (yes, television did exist back then). The tools available for editing video have come a long way in that time, but for the most part they’ve still been rather difficult to master. iMovie ’11 introduces some new tools that make it easy for just about anyone to take advantage of expert-level effects that would have been difficult or impossible for novices to achieve before. Read on to hear about some of those tools and how they work.

Continue reading iMovie ’11: The TUAW review

iMovie ’11: The TUAW review originally appeared on TUAW on Mon, 08 Nov 2010 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Arguably, one of the easiest ways to publish online is with Posterous. Creating and updating a weblog with Posterous is as simple as sending an email. Now, the gang has created another tool for users to play with: Posterous for iPhone (free). I’ve been using the app for a couple of weeks now. I also had a chat with Posterous CEO and co-founder Sachin Agarwal. Here’s our review of the app and highlights of my discussion with Sachin.

On Posterous

First, a bit about the service itself. To create a Posterous blog, all you need to do is send an email message to post@posterous.com. That’s it. A site will be created for you with your email’s subject as the first post’s title and the body as the post itself. There’s nothing to configure, install or set up. Likewise, creating a photo gallery is just as easy. Send your pictures to the same address (using the email address you initially chose) and Posterous does the rest, creating a gallery, thumbnails and so on.

Continue reading Posterous for iPhone puts microblogging power at your fingers

Posterous for iPhone puts microblogging power at your fingers originally appeared on TUAW on Sat, 06 Nov 2010 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Shortly after announcing the end of the Xserve, Apple has added Mac Pro server configuration in its place. The new machine features a single 2.8GHz quad-core Intel Xeon ‘Nehalem’ processor, 8GB (4 x 2GB) of DDR3 ECC SDRAM, a pair of 1TB (7200RPM) hard drives, one 18x SuperDrive and ATI’s Radeon HD 5770 with 1GB of GDDR5 video memory. The whole kit-and-kaboodle is served up with an unlimited-client license of Mac OS X Server. Pricing starts at US$2,999 and ships in a few weeks.

Despite EOL’ing the Xserve, Apple still has two server machines available; the new Mac Pro and the mini server. Check your wallet and make your choice. Just remember, changing hard drives in the Mac Pro is a heck of a lot easier, if you’ve got the room to stash it.

[via Engadget]

Mac Pro server config added to product lineup originally appeared on TUAW on Fri, 05 Nov 2010 11:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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ABCi, the interactive media arm of the Audit Bureau of Circulations, has issued a new report showing that American and Canadian publishers feel that mobile technology is very important to their futures. As a result, many of these publishers are working on making content available on mobile phones, tablets, and e-reader devices. The report, covered in Poynter Online, shows that a full 60% of respondents feel that making a mixture of ad-supported free content and premium paid content available to consumers is the best way to succeed in the mobile market.

With publishers finally waking up to the fact that the world has gone electronic, ABCi reports that Apple is expected to be the mobile device manufacturer with the most impact on the publishing industry in the next year. But the picture isn’t all that rosy.

Most of ABCi’s respondents felt that Apple’s iTunes business model and the lack of solid analytics available from Apple were a bad way to do business. Only 19% of those surveyed said that they were satisfied with the iTunes app business model, and a paltry 11% were satisfied with the analytics and customer data that Apple shares with publishers.

The report points out that the big prize is Apple’s to win, but that the company also needs to consider drastically changing its publishing business model before publishers will be happy. What do you think? Should Apple cater to the whims of traditional publishers in order to snap up the mobile publishing market, or is it the stodgy publishers that should change to fit the Apple model? Leave a comment below.

[Thanks to @steverubel for the Twitter tip]

Publishers leery of doing business with Apple originally appeared on TUAW on Fri, 05 Nov 2010 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Following an update last week to fix data loss and corruption, this latest bug fix adds some additional print product options and fixes what Apple calls “overall stability and addresses a number of other minor issues.”

The 9.1 update gives users photo calendars back, and adds some holiday card options. The first release of iPhoto ’11 about 2 weeks ago caused some users to lose their photo libraries. That issue seems to have quieted down, but many users are very upset about how this new iLife app works. It’s good to see Apple jumping on these issues quickly, although this latest iPhoto has been a rough ride for many users.

The update is about 65 MB, and can be downloaded from the Software Update option under the Apple Menu. After you upgrade the app will rescan and update your photo library, so take a deep breath.

Apple pushes out yet another iPhoto ’11 update originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 04 Nov 2010 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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In a private report to clients, the Gartner research firm is urging CEOs to clear any obstacles preventing IT departments from taking advantage of the iPad.

Stephen Prentice, a VP and Gartner fellow, said in the report: “It is not usually the role of the CEO to get directly involved in specific technology device decisions, but Apple’s iPad is an exception. It is more than just the latest consumer gadget. CEOs and business leaders should initiate a dialog with their CIOs about if they have not already done so.”

That’s quite a turnaround for Apple in big business. Often IT departments shun Apple products. However, when the iPhone launched, CEOs around the world told their technical staffs that they wanted their corporate infrastructure to work with the iPhone. The same thing appears to be happening with the iPad.

Gartner is urging companies to work out a plan for widespread iPad support by mid-2011. Prentice added: “While there are no certainties, the iPad looks set to become a market-disrupting device, like the iPod before it. Even if you think it is just a passing fad, the cost of early action is low, while the price of delay may well be extremely high.” Quite a vote of confidence, eh? Is the iPad sneaking into your company, or has it been invited? Share your thoughts and stories below.

[Via MacNN]

Gartner report tells corporations to get moving on the iPad originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 04 Nov 2010 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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What goes up must keep going up apparently: Apple’s stock hit an new, intraday high today of US$320.18 and is trading up $6.24, or 1.99%, as of this writing. These numbers knock out Apple’s previous intraday record of $319.00, set just a little while back on October 18, 2010.

Apple’s survival of the USA’s economic downturn has been almost supernatural. In the past few months, we’ve seen Apple grab nearly 50 percent of handset industry profits, post its first $20 billion quarter, break $300 in the stock market, surpass Microsoft’s market cap and set record after record after record.

And it all started with two geeks in a garage.

An all-time intraday high for Apple stock originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 04 Nov 2010 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Business Insider is reporting that Apple has begun construction on a New York City-based office for members of the iAd team. Referring to information attained from “multiple sources,” Dan Frommer says that the building will be in Manhattan near Union Square.

The new digs will be a step up from the team’s current location in SoHo, where they’re using a former Quattro Wireless building that was never meant to hold “more than 30 people.”

Since Apple is building this space, we can only assume it will be one darn good-looking office.

[Via MacDailyNews]

Apple is building a NYC office for the iAd team originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 04 Nov 2010 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The app was a standalone Webkit browser. When used to visit a site with Flash video, the app presents a thumbnail. When tapped, the video is transcoded on Skyfire’s servers to HTML5 and streamed to the device. Note that Flash games won’t work and Hulu has blocked Skyfire, as it wants people to sign up for the $10/mo. Hulu Plus.

During its short stint of availability, Skyfire became the third most-downloaded paid app. Good luck getting the server demand worked out. You can watch a video of the app after the break.

Ed. note: Download Squad got a hands-on with the app before the servers turned to molten slag and the app was pulled.

Continue reading Skyfire pulls iPhone app from App Store due to overloaded servers

Skyfire pulls iPhone app from App Store due to overloaded servers originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 04 Nov 2010 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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There’s good news for owners of the new MacBook Air. Boy Genius Report has reportedly obtained a memo stating that a fix is coming for that machine’s display issues.

Several users report that colors are fading light to dark repeatedly after the machine wakes from sleep. Apple has not acknowledged the issue formally, but the memo obtained by BGR suggests that its engineers are aware of it and working on a fix. Expect to see it in a forthcoming software update.

If this issue has been driving you batty, hold tight. We’ll let you know when a software update is available. Speaking of the MacBook Air’s display, it’s quite a piece of work, as TechRestore recently discovered.

[Via AppleInsider]

Report: Fix for MacBook Air displays coming originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 04 Nov 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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That didn’t take long. Shortly after the Apple TV was successfully jailbroken, someone has gotten Plex up and running. For now, it’s quite buggy (see a video after the break) and limited to video, which means no photos or music. But hey, it’s running!

Plex is a media center for the Mac, and pulls content from several online sources, like Netflix, Hulu and Major League Baseball as well as local iTunes and iPhoto libraries.

About a week ago, we saw a 3rd party app for the jailbroken Apple TV that displayed the weather. Let us say good work to the industrious folks who are getting this done.

[Via 9to5 Mac]

Continue reading Plex running on a jailbroken Apple TV

Plex running on a jailbroken Apple TV originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 04 Nov 2010 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Just over six months have passed since the launch of the iPad, and today, the iBookstore has now officially opened in Australia.

Quoting an Apple spokesperson, The Age reports that the good folks down under now have access to “thousands” of new titles from a wide array of publishers including Macmillan, Hachette, HarperCollins, Hardie Grant, Murdoch Publishers and Wiley.

Previously, Australians using an iPad, iPhone or iPod touch were only able to view out-of-copyright books on the Australian iBookstore or use US-based apps like the Amazon Kindle and Kobo app. However, these apps have a meager offering of Australian books, reported The Age.

Managing director of Hachette, Malcolm Edwards, said that Australian readers “…now have a store perfectly tailored for their needs.” And HarperCollins announced that its “…full e-book catalogue of local and international titles would be available through the iBookstore.”

If you’re in Australia and have access to the new iBooksotre, let us know how it’s going in the comments below.

[via Macsimum News]

Apple iBookstore has opened in Australia originally appeared on TUAW on Wed, 03 Nov 2010 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The new board game app that’s based on the 2006 tabletop game Neuroshima Hex is a lot of things. For a cardboard hex-based game that’s reproduced in your pocket, Neuroshima Hex is gorgeous. The artwork is wonderfully clear on a Retina Display, and the part-apocalyptic, part-1950s sci-fi style graphics are very fitting. The gameplay combines tricks from a miniatures-based war game with abstract strategy titles. The music and sound effects are also well done, adding to the tension and mood of the battles. Given that the tabletop version of the game runs about US$30, and the app sells for $2.99 [this review is for Version 1.01], there’s very little reason to not check out this app if you’re at all interested in the theme or board gaming on your iPhone. Need another reason? The developers say that a universal version of the app with a higher price tag ($4.99) will be coming soon. Want to know more? Read on for what you seek.

Continue reading App Review: Neuroshima Hex is good, about to get a lot better

App Review: Neuroshima Hex is good, about to get a lot better originally appeared on TUAW on Wed, 03 Nov 2010 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Continue reading Base One Labs introduces ImpactBand, a beefier alternative to iPhone bumper

Base One Labs introduces ImpactBand, a beefier alternative to iPhone bumper originally appeared on TUAW on Tue, 02 Nov 2010 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Tech analyst group Canalys has released a new report this week, showing that the iPhone is the most popular smartphone in the U.S., while Android remains the top OS.

The group found that Apple’s iPhone U.S. market share has jumped 26.2 percent since last quarter, making it the most popular smartphone (as far as hardware) in the U.S. In fact, it’s a complete turnaround, as BlackBerries beat iPhones 32 to 21.7percent last quarter.

Globally it’s another story as Android is firmly at the top of the heap, experiencing an incredible 1.309 percent increase from this time last year. It held 43.6 percent of the U.S. smartphone market in the third quarter. Microsoft is on the outside looking in with just 3 percent of the global smartphone OS market. However, Redmond is hoping that Windows Phone 7 (and the massive advertising blitz behind it) will change that.

Canalys: iPhone most popular smartphone in the US, Android top OS originally appeared on TUAW on Mon, 01 Nov 2010 10:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Continue reading Found Footage: The geekiest marriage proposal ever

Found Footage: The geekiest marriage proposal ever originally appeared on TUAW on Sat, 30 Oct 2010 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The New York Times reports that iPad is helping people like 7-year-old Owen Cain, who has a debilitating motor-neuron disease, to communicate with friends, parents, and caregivers. That’s thanks in part to the iPad’s built-in accessibility features, as well as its intuitive Multi-Touch interface. An advocate for providing mobile devices to people with disabilities, Massachusetts Representative Edward J. Markey says “Apple is an outlier when it comes to devices that are accessible right out of the box.”

Sega’s classic ChuChu Rocket! puzzle title is on the App Store for both iPhone and iPad right now. I’ve been waiting for this one for a while. I loved the old Dreamcast version, and the remake for the iPhone not only recreates the mouse-redirecting gameplay (you place arrows on a board to guide mice around cats and into their mouseholes), but it adds a few iOS-specific features as well. There are 145 puzzles to play through, and as a special treat, Sega has added a one to four player multiplayer capability via Apple’s Game Center; there are achievements to score as well.

The iPhone version is US$4.99, which is less than you’d pay if you found the used Dreamcast version in a store somewhere. The iPad version is $6.99, but it includes a multiplayer mode where up to four players can play on one screen — it sounds pretty crazy. This one is a classic puzzler that you should definitely check out even if you never played the old game. We’re lucky to have it up and running on iOS.

TUAW’s Daily App: ChuChu Rocket! originally appeared on TUAW on Fri, 29 Oct 2010 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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