Continue reading Nielsen: Android still top dog, but Q4 buyers preferred iPhone 4S

Nielsen: Android still top dog, but Q4 buyers preferred iPhone 4S originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 Jan 2012 07:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Continue reading Nielsen: Android still top dog, but Q4 buyers preferred iPhone 4S

Nielsen: Android still top dog, but Q4 buyers preferred iPhone 4S originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 Jan 2012 07:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Leaked Sony 2012 smartphone roadmap reveals potentially birdy, minty flagships originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 Jan 2012 06:55:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Leaked Sony 2012 smartphone roadmap reveals potentially birdy, minty flagships originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 Jan 2012 06:55:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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You might have thought being the first Honeycomb tablet, and offering a completely stock Android experience, would give the Motorola Xoom some sort of priority when it comes to updates to Android 4.0. Sadly and surprisingly for tablet early-adopters that was not the case, with the Transformer Prime first to hop the update train to Ice Cream Sandwich Town. A week later the Xoom is now catching up, with an OTA update percolating down from the cloud to users, but for the moment it appears only American Wi-Fi versions of the slate are receiving. International and LTE-equipped ones are going to have to wait at least a little longer.

US Wi-Fi Xooms now getting Ice Cream Sandwich OTA originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 Jan 2012 06:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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You might have thought being the first Honeycomb tablet, and offering a completely stock Android experience, would give the Motorola Xoom some sort of priority when it comes to updates to Android 4.0. Sadly and surprisingly for tablet early-adopters that was not the case, with the Transformer Prime first to hop the update train to Ice Cream Sandwich Town. A week later the Xoom is now catching up, with an OTA update percolating down from the cloud to users, but for the moment it appears only American Wi-Fi versions of the slate are receiving. International and LTE-equipped ones are going to have to wait at least a little longer.

US Wi-Fi Xooms now getting Ice Cream Sandwich OTA originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 Jan 2012 06:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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So, you’ve always wanted to build a dollhouse out of ABS plastic? Well here’s your chance. MakerBot has announced the release of its “MakerBot Playsets,” a collection of free-to-download schematics used to create objects such as dolls, dollhouses and furnishings with the company’s 3D printer. The files are available in .stl and .dxf formats for use with CAD programs, and take away the guesswork involved in coming up with a uniform design for larger projects. Take a look at the current collection — including such objects as a Telescope, Moon Rover, Captain Kirk Chair, Treasure Chest and Suit of Armor — and see what you think. You’ll find the entire collection at the Thingverse link just below.

MakerBot releases free-to-download Playsets, will have you printing a Captain Kirk Chair in no time originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 Jan 2012 05:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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So, you’ve always wanted to build a dollhouse out of ABS plastic? Well here’s your chance. MakerBot has announced the release of its “MakerBot Playsets,” a collection of free-to-download schematics used to create objects such as dolls, dollhouses and furnishings with the company’s 3D printer. The files are available in .stl and .dxf formats for use with CAD programs, and take away the guesswork involved in coming up with a uniform design for larger projects. Take a look at the current collection — including such objects as a Telescope, Moon Rover, Captain Kirk Chair, Treasure Chest and Suit of Armor — and see what you think. You’ll find the entire collection at the Thingverse link just below.

MakerBot releases free-to-download Playsets, will have you printing a Captain Kirk Chair in no time originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 Jan 2012 05:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Canon EOS 300 cinema cam gets pre-order status, ships at month’s end for $16,000 originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 Jan 2012 04:24:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Continue reading pureSilicon announces Kage K1 SATA and USB SSDs, up for pre-order now

pureSilicon announces Kage K1 SATA and USB SSDs, up for pre-order now originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 Jan 2012 03:05:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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If you’d like to run Android 4.0 on your HP TouchPad in stead of watching videos of someone else doing it, your time is now, as an early Alpha 0 build of CyanogenMod 9 has just rolled out. Now, living on the bleeding edge will cause some discomfort when it comes to Market access, hardware accelerated video and using the slate’s camera, but fixes are expected as the project continues on. Also fresh for this release is the full source code, if you’d like to truly roll your own edition of Ice Cream Sandwich — if you’re wondering, a triple boot webOS / CM7 / CM9 configuration is reportedly possible, but not recommended. Hit the source link and head over to the RootzWiki forum thread for all the information and software necessary to make it happen, or check out another video preview embedded after the break.

[Thanks, Brandon]

Continue reading CyanogenMod 9 Alpha 0 brings Ice Cream Sandwich to HP TouchPads

CyanogenMod 9 Alpha 0 brings Ice Cream Sandwich to HP TouchPads originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 Jan 2012 02:19:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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At this point, SOPA needs no introduction. But if you’ve been diligently ignoring it up until this point, good luck getting through January 18th as an uninformed citizen. Google, Wikipedia and a host of other websites are either going dark or making huge, unmistakable statements on their homepages in protest. Google’s tagline? “End Piracy, Not Liberty.” Pretty much says it all, really. If you’ve spotted another site rebelling today, shout it out in comments below — and while you’re in the shouting mood, give your local officials a holler and let ‘em know just how much you disapprove.

P.S. – An amazing breakdown of this whole thing can be found here at reddit.

Google, Wikipedia and others protest SOPA / PIPA originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 Jan 2012 01:10:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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First, the most straightforward solution involves using an alternate launcher, such as ADW, Go or LauncherPro. If you want to keep Sense and its goodies, you can try to keep widget use to a minimum, but if you’re willing to gain root access, the command “echo ro.HOME_APP_ADJ=1 >/data/local.prop” has also proven successful at holding Sense in memory. Of course, dropping Sense entirely and replacing it with an AOSP ROM is another solution. Regardless of which route you choose, we hope you’ll sound off in the comments and join us in the call for an update.

Months after Gingerbread’s arrival, HTC Sense remains fussy, users can’t get no satisfaction originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 Jan 2012 00:52:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It’s always helpful when tech start-ups scheme new ways for you to burn through that bank account. Like YBUY, the membership-only site that charges a monthly fee in exchange for trying out the latest and greatest in gadgetry, like an iPad 2 or Xbox 360, sans shipping fees. The fresh-out-of-beta portal offers approved users the ability to return or purchase the pre-selected goods after a 30 day trial period, with that recurring charge going towards the full retail price if you choose to opt-in. Its co-founders claim to curate the ever-changing roster of high-end kit, taking into account the best product reviews (ahem) and even featuring certified refurbs. So, what’s the catch? Well, there doesn’t really appear to be any. It’s simply up to you to curb that tech enthusiasm and keep your credit card balance resting peacefully at zero.

YBUY allows impulse tech buyers to wonder, ‘Why not?’ originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 17 Jan 2012 23:35:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We got to sit down for a quick chat with Smule’s own Dr. Ge Wang at CES in Las Vegas last week, and the result is the video below. Not only is the co-founder overseeing Smule’s musical experiences for mobile devices (and its recent merger with Khush, another musical developer), but he’s also an assistant professor at Stanford’s Center for Computer Research in Music and Acoustics.

And, as you can see, he’s a mean Magic Guitar player as well. Those gloves he’s wearing are Altec Lansing speakers sewn onto some gloves (with the fingertips cut off) for the Stanford Mobile Phone Orchestra. Wang was actually in Vegas to accept the Kids at Play Interactive’s Emerging Pioneer award, which is an impressive achievement as well.

Always good to see Smule’s co-founder out and about. He says Magic Guitar is selling well, the merger is moving along smoothly, and Smule continues to aim towards expanding its social connection features across apps in the new year. He couldn’t share specific plans, but we’ll wait and see. When he’s kind enough to strum a few virtual bars for us like this, who are we to argue?

Smule’s Ge Wang plays Magic Guitar for us at CES originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 17 Jan 2012 21:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Everyone loves a winner, and when it comes to the top 12 finalists in the Original iPhone Film Festival (OIFF), the decision about who should get the golden trophy comes down to all of you. This year’s 12 finalists in the competition (co-hosted by video site Dailymotion) are facing off across four categories to see who’s got the best clip.

All of these entries are built from footage captured exclusively on iOS devices, and they’re a lovely showcase for what’s possible with the iPhone 4S’s new camera. The voting for winners continues through next Wednesday, and the final tally will be announced live at Macworld | iWorld on Thursday the 26th of January.

Best of luck to the finalists — now get out there and vote!

Last week of voting for Dailymotion/Original iPhone Film Festival finalists originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 17 Jan 2012 20:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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According to a Bloomberg report, Apple filed a new lawsuit in Germany that targets ten of Samsung’s Android handsets. This new suit gives Apple a fresh start to argue for its EU design rights, which were recently called into question by Germany’s Dusseldorf Court. It also gives the company an opportunity to win an injunction halting the sales of popular handsets like the Galaxy SII and the Galaxy S Plus.

Apple also filed another German lawsuit that cites five Samsung tablet models. This suit supposedly relates to a German lawsuit Apple filed earlier this year against Samsung and its Galaxy Tab 10.1. This older suit led to the ban of Galaxy 10.1 tablet sales in the European country and the subsequent development of the Galaxy 10.1N tablet. This redesigned tablet meets the court’s criteria and will not be banned from retail shelves.

A Samsung spokesperson confirmed the company received the new phone and tablet lawsuits, but did not comment on them.

[Via AppleInsider]

Apple targets Galaxy S II, other Samsung phones in new German suit originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 17 Jan 2012 20:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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One of our final meetings at CES last week was with Slacker Radio’s VP of Marketing, Jonathan Sasse, who sat down in a Las Vegas lobby restaurant to tell us what his company has been up to lately. Slacker Radio is one of the many streaming radio offerings that have apps available on the App Store (Pandora, Rdio, and Spotify are a few other examples), and Sasse says that after a few years of building up the service with content and technology and making sure it can be accessed almost anywhere, his main goal these days is just telling people why they should choose this service over all the others.

His first reason: Content. Sasse says Slacker Radio has more than ten times more music to play than Pandora does, which is a pretty impressive figure. Slacker’s been working hard to make content deals with record labels for quite a while, which means there’s a large library of different tunes to choose from. And in addition to all that music content, Sasse said Slacker has been making a big push for non-music to listen to as well. The service has already added in ESPN Radio and ABC News to listen to, and there’s streaming comedy stations to tune in on as well.

Additionally, while Pandora and other services also have their usual music selection systems for computer-generated radio stations, Slacker’s genre stations are actually curated by real DJs, which is a fact that Sasse said is often hard to get across to the public. Slacker’s hired former radio personalities, including Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Marco Collins, to actually choose, curate, and even narrate the music on its genre stations, which means that “he curates that station by hand,” Sasse said.

The company is also working on deals with partners to make sure that users can find and access it anywhere. Slacker already has a deal with Ford to show up in the company’s cars, and there are also deals being worked out with phone carriers for special data access, as well as other possible partnerships. Slacker’s plan, Sasse said, was to learn to monetize first and then grow, and it’s time for the company to really make a marketing push and grow that audience. “We’re kind of ready to step on the gas,” he said.

One of the biggest obstacles, so far, has been a boogeyman that we’ve heard a lot about during this year’s CES: Apple’s subscription rules. Slacker Radio also was originally bound by Apple’s rule that you can’t sell subscriptions on the App Store without paying a 30% cut — Slacker at first decided to not sell subscriptions through the app at all, which led to just a login screen being shown when users opened up the app. But the call of Apple’s audience was too much for the company, and Slacker is now able to sell its Radio Plus subscription (the cheaper of two offerings) via an in-app purchase. Users still can’t subscribe to the Premium Radio service through just the app, however. “That margin is still too high,” Sasse said.

In addition to a big marketing push later this year, Sasse said Slacker is still beefing up its library and trying to figure out ways to differentiate its offerings even further. One goal is to work with users to tag and respond to content while they’re listening to it, so the company can provide an even better experience. Already, users can customize ESPN Radio content with their favorite teams and shows, and Sasse wants to bring that kind of customization to other content as well, so listeners can hear exactly what they’re looking for. Slacker is also working on more original content, like band-curated radio stations, and maybe even podcasts, Sasse said.

Finally, Sasse said the last goal is to create a “unified, clean experience” across the entire platform, so that users see the same setup on the website as on the company’s various mobile apps and platforms. Slacker Radio has already done a lot of work on its service, and while the streaming radio market is already full (and growing even more crowded almost by the day), time will tell if the company can push itself in front of the other choices out there and really find a majority audience.

Slacker Radio tries to break through a flooded streaming music market originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 17 Jan 2012 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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5th Cell is the developer behind the very popular Scribblenauts (which was released on iOS to great acclaim last year, and just had a new level pack update), and it recently brought a new title to the App Store called Run Roo Run. 2D platforming is a genre that’s almost as old as videogames themselves (Mario, who you may know, is the grandfather of jumping around on 2D platforms), and as far as I’m concerned, Run Roo Run is a master class in 2D platforming design.

It also has the added benefit of being a running title of sorts, and a puzzle game as well. The idea is that you, as Roo, a very cute Australian kangaroo, have lost a little blue buddy, and it’s your job to jump across the Aussie landscape, over and around various obstacles, to save your friend. But your run is broken up into a series of stages that consist of one screen each, and so the goal is to keep the constantly running Roo jumping at just the right times to make it to the end of the screen and onto the next one.

The action starts simple, but soon double jumps are added, and then the ability to slow Roo down or speed him up, and then you can swing on things, and just like Cut the Rope, a series of relatively simple elements can be combined into some very ingenious puzzles. Also like Cut the Rope, all of the action is crystal clear to see and understand, and the colorful graphics (especially on the iPad’s HD version) and very chill Aussie soundtrack make this one a pleasure to play through. It’s well polished, excellently designed, and for a 2D platforming fan like myself, every new stage is like another dish at an all-you-can-eat jumping buffet. And every level is timed and rewarded with gold, silver, or bronze medals, so there’s lots of drive, even once you’ve conquered a simple one, to go back and do it perfectly the first time around.

Run Roo Run is a great title, and shows that 5th Cell has really fallen in love with Apple’s platform (of course, the big sales from Scribblenauts probably didn’t hurt that emotion, either). It’s available for 99 cents on iPhone, or for $1.99 on the iPad, with over 420 levels included, more showing up every week, and the option to buy some extra power-ups or convenience items via in-app purchase. Don’t pass this one up, whatever you do.

Daily iPad App: Run Roo Run HD originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 17 Jan 2012 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Electronista noticed this morning that shipping estimates for the iPhone 4S have dropped to three to five business days for all capacities.

This shows that the despite the ongoing rollout of the iPhone 4S in other countries, production has caught up to meet demand.

If you’ve been waiting to upgrade because of thin supplies since its release and the holiday season, now is a good time to consider ordering one.

iPhone 4S ship times drop to 3-5 days originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 17 Jan 2012 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We often hear about iPhone sales during Apple’s quarterly earnings report, but we don’t talk about secondary sales very much. This is the market where used iPhones in various conditions are bought and sold. I’ve been an active participant in this exchange, often selling my old iPhone or iPad to get the current year’s model.

AllThingsD details a recent Consumer Intelligence Research Partners (CIRP) report which reveals that 53 percent of iPhone 4S owners got rid their old handset to buy the new one. These re-purposed handsets were predominantly iPhones (49 percent), followed by BlackBerry (21 percent) and Android (15 percent) phones. Interestingly enough, a lot of the iPhones (31 percent) were gifted, and a smaller percentage (18 percent) were sold.

It’s not only advantageous for customers who can get an iPhone for less than retail (I sold my 16 GB iPhone 4 for $275), but carriers benefit, too. Over 89 percent of these gifted iPhones will likely be activated on a wireless carrier. Since the launch of the iPhone 4S, CIRP believes almost 11 percent of iPhone activations are second-hand phones.

CIRP co-founder Mike Levin says secondary sales of the iPhone is a mixed blessing for Apple. The company loses sales because people buy used instead of new phones. Apple, however, gets fresh new customers who will purchase content from the iTunes and the App Store. They may also stay iPhone customers and buy the next model when it’s released.

Secondary iPhone market is thriving originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 17 Jan 2012 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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While iMovie for iOS is a technological tour-de-force that somehow crams a complete video editor into the limited real estate of an iOS app, it does have its Achilles Heel — a less-than-stellar ability to work with audio. Macworld author, TidBits Editor, and all-around nice guy Jeff Carlson, who also just happens to have written The iMovie ’11 Project Book for Peachpit Press, has written a nice roundup of audio workarounds to help you with iMovie for iOS.

While I won’t spoil the three well-written tips by repeating them here, I will give you an idea of Jeff’s hints for getting the most out of audio in iMovie. The first addresses the fact that navigating the song list in iMovie’s Audio pane is incredibly tedious. To fix this, Carlson suggests creating Smart Playlists in iTunes that ignore those songs with DRM that can’t be used in iMovie videos.

Carlson also notes that iMovie for iOS has a limited number of sound effects. This can be remedied by finding audio files on your Mac that you wish to use in your movie (from iMovie sound effects or GarageBand), opening them in QuickTime Player, exporting them to your hard drive, and then adding the file to your iTunes library before syncing to your iPhone, iPod touch or iPad.

Jeff’s final tip deals with the iMovie for iOS problem of not being able to use a song track shorter than 60 seconds in length as a background song. If you’ve needed a workaround for this, check out the post on Macworld or consider buying his book.

Audio workarounds in iMovie for iOS originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 17 Jan 2012 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Here’s a basic Apple geek test. Spudger. If the word means nothing to you, move on to the next post.

Okay, just us now?

If the term spudger means something to you — and you know in your inner geek heart that it does because you’re still here reading — just wait ’til you hear what we have for you.

TidBITS reports that the folks at Newer Technologies have re-invented the spudger! The soft, thin, pliable manipulation tool has been reimagined as an ultra thin, stainless steel weapon of Mac destruction. It’s handmade in Italy of the finest rare Tuscan steel, so you can be assured of years of quality spudging (OK, I made up the “rare Tuscan steel” bit. So sue me.)

Retailing for US$9.99 (slighly less street price), the iSesamo (great name, yes?) is reportedly “ideal for pros and DIYers.” I haven’t had an opportunity to try one out, but the TidBITs write-up suggests that it easily surpasses the standard nylon units I have in my toolbox.

As a final note, a TUAW investigative team has discovered that CultOfSpudger.com, TUSpudgerW.com, 9to5Spudger.com, and SpudgerRumors.com are all available for anyone who wishes to create a dedicated spudger blog.

Reinventing the Spudger originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 17 Jan 2012 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It’s the TUAW Daily Update, your source for Apple news in a convenient audio format. You’ll get all the top Apple stories of the day in three to five minutes for a quick review of what’s happening in the Apple world.

You can listen to today’s Apple stories by clicking the inline player (requires Flash) or the non-Flash link below. To subscribe to the podcast for daily listening through iTunes, click here.

No Flash? Click here to listen.

Daily Update for January 17, 2012 originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 17 Jan 2012 14:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Western Digital is making sure its hardware can keep pace in the media streamer arms race, matching recent additions by Microsoft and Roku by issuing updates of its own. New services added to the WD TV Live and WD TV Live Hub boxes are Vudu (with HDX 1080p support, unlike the Xbox 360), SnagFilms, XOS College Sports, SEC Digital, Comedy Time and Watch Mojo. To help users navigate through all the extra content, it also recently rolled out its own official iOS remote app, although like Roku, there have already been a few unofficial options available as well. The WD TV remote is a free app and offers direct access to any of the services on your WD TV box and even multiplayer gaming provided all devices are on the same network. An Android version is said to be in the works, for now owners can check out all the details in the press release after the break or hit iTunes to download the app.

Continue reading WD TV Live, Live Hub get an official iOS remote app, Vudu streaming and more

WD TV Live, Live Hub get an official iOS remote app, Vudu streaming and more originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 21 Dec 2011 05:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

PSA: Verizon users reporting data outages across the US originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 21 Dec 2011 05:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Home automation provider Control4 has finally seen fit to open up its systems to Android users, releasing a version of its MyHome software for phones and tablets. Already available on iOS and PCs, it lets homeowners with Control4 setups manage their video, music, lighting and more on their own devices with taps and gestures. The apps themselves are free, but naturally one will need a MyHome license to use them, which runs $499 for multiple devices at one location or $199 for a single device. Of course, if you’ve had one of these installed scraping together the cash probably won’t be too difficult, while you’re checking the couch for loose change we’ll sit back and wonder whatever happened to that Android@Home project we (haven’t) heard so much about.

Continue reading Control4 MyHome app takes up residence on Android while Android@Home is out of town

Control4 MyHome app takes up residence on Android while Android@Home is out of town originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 21 Dec 2011 04:12:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Continue reading Procter & Gamble partners with Mobeam to deliver coupons to your phone

Procter & Gamble partners with Mobeam to deliver coupons to your phone originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 21 Dec 2011 03:24:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sprint sues Time Warner, Comcast, Cable One and Cox for infringing twelve digital phone patents originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 21 Dec 2011 02:38:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Continue reading LightSquared not looking so good sans FCC approval, files petition to confirm its spectrum rights

LightSquared not looking so good sans FCC approval, files petition to confirm its spectrum rights originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 21 Dec 2011 01:28:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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MyRobots.com: for all of your robot’s social needs originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 21 Dec 2011 00:12:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Looking for growth? You’ve found it. If you’ll recall, Google’s own Senior Vice President of Mobile Andy Rubin confirmed that over 500,000 Android devices were being activated back in June, and during last month’s Galaxy Nexus reveal, we learned that said figure had increased to 550,000 per day. In just over a month, the tally has now climbed to 700,000 per 24 hour period. That’s according to a post by Andy himself on Google+, which he followed with this:

“For those wondering, we count each device only once (i.e., we don’t count re-sold devices), and “activations” means you go into a store, buy a device [and] put it on the network by subscribing to a wireless service.”

In other words, there are many, many more Android devices being ushered into use every single day that don’t connect to any monitored wireless service, but naturally, keeping track of those is something even Google isn’t about to attempt. Any guesses as to what this figure jumps to after the holiday season concludes?

Google’s Andy Rubin defines ‘Android activation,’ trumpets 700,000 per day clip originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 20 Dec 2011 23:37:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Logitech Harmony Link app gets customization-focused iPhone, Android update originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 20 Dec 2011 23:24:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple reportedly swapping recalled iPod nanos for 6G counterparts; you have yours? originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 20 Dec 2011 22:50:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nuance, the company behind the Dragon apps and a whole slew of other popular software suites, has decided to acquire its rival Vlingo, another voice-to-text software developer. VentureBeat says it’s for an undisclosed sum, but even though the two companies have sued and counter-sued over a series of patent applications, they’re apparently putting those quibbles to rest, and instead will combine forces to beef up their voice-to-text solutions.

Siri has apparently lit a fire under the voice control market lately, and of course voice recognition is a big part of that. Siri was very impressive as just an iPhone app, but with the full weight of Apple’s hardware support (not to mention marketing budget) behind it, voice control is inspiring a lot of R&D and funding, both in Cupertino and elsewhere in the tech industry. Nuance has fought to be the de facto standard for a lot of voice recognition software in the past with its Dragon Naturally Speaking apps, and that kind of thing is likely to become even more popular going forward.

Or as Nuance’s own senior VP Mike Thompson puts it in a press release, “Inspired by the introduction of services such as Apple’s Siri and our own Dragon Go!, virtually every mobile and consumer electronics company on the planet is looking for ways to integrate natural, conversational voice interactions into their mobile products, applications and services. By acquiring Vlingo, we are able to accelerate the pace of innovation to meet this demand.”

Nuance to acquire rival Vlingo originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Wed, 21 Dec 2011 03:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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And so it begins — the App Store has its busiest time of the year over the Christmas holiday, when iPhones and iPads and iTunes gift cards are unwrapped under the Christmas tree, and millions of people take to the App Store to pick up some great apps. There are lots of sales coming out this week. We’ll have more posts each day, and stay tuned to our Twitter account for even more.

• Velocispider is free right now.
• ComicBook! is down to just 99 cents.
• Sesame Street’s Monster at the End of this Book (starring Grover, of course) is only 99 cents right now as well.
• 1Password for iPad is on sale for $5.99, well worth it according to fans of the app.
• The micro version of Sword and Sworcery is just 99 cents, while the universal version is $1.99.
• EA’s mobile sale continues — Trenches 2 is currently on sale for just a buck, along with more than a hundred other EA titles. Odds are that if EA makes it, you can get it for cheap this week.
• Sega also has a big 99 cent sale going on, with Golden Axe, Streets of Rage, Gunstar Heroes, and many other titles available for just a buck.
• Gameloft’s also got a nice library of titles on sale, including the Gameloft Action Pack of games.
• And so does Square Enix, but those games have only dropped a few bucks to around $4.99 to $11.99, rather than down to 99 cents. Still, Final Fantasy Tactics for $11.99 is not a bad deal if you’ve been waiting for it to drop.
• Firemint (through EA) has Spy Mouse on sale for a buck. You’ve bought that one already, right?
• Readdle’s got a sale going on its apps, including ReaddleDocs for iPad on sale tomorrow for $2.99.
• Happy Hills has gone free for a limited time.
• Big Fish Games is having a huge sale on most of its titles starting tomorrow — there’s a lot of good stuff in there, including Drawn: The Painted Tower for cheap, and Azada HD as well.
• In Case of Fire is free through the holidays.

That’s just the beginning — stay tuned all through the week for more deals on lots of different apps and games around the App Store. Everything will likely be sorted by Thursday (as that’s when developers become unable to make any more price or app changes), but before then, we’ll see lots and lots of apps on sale, no doubt.

iOS deals begin — App Store freeze coming Thursday originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Wed, 21 Dec 2011 01:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Firefox 9 is out now (the public page hasn’t been updated yet as of this writing, but the build is available from official links already), and while that in itself isn’t really big news (the uberpopular browser updates all the time, and plenty of people have already chosen to use Chrome or another browser anyway), there is one big note in this update worth mentioning: The app will now natively support two-finger swiping gestures on your MacBook (or Magic Mouse or trackpad, if you have one of those running). That means that without extra add-ons, you can now swipe two fingers forward or back to browse through your history, in addition to the other usual gestures available to most apps, like using two fingers to scroll and so on.

The update to version 9 also adds improved theme navigation for OS X Lion as well, so that’s a nice bonus. One thing that’s not in the app yet is an actual Lion-style full-screen mode. Firefox has its own fullscreen mode, but it’s not exactly the one-app view that Apple expects. And while Firefox is easy enough to install and update on its own, there’s no Mac App Store version yet. Mozilla may not be interested in running updates through Apple’s App Store, but it might be easier for users to do so.

At any rate, if you’re running Firefox on your Mac, you should grab the update now. I personally like Firefox, but for some reason it’s never run well on my MacBook, and I switched over to Chrome full time a few months ago. But it’s a solid browser (aside from some issues with memory leaks, mostly having to do with Flash, in my experience), and this update adds a little more Mac-specific functionality as well.

Firefox 9.0 offers Mac OS X Lion gesture support originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Wed, 21 Dec 2011 00:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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I’m not quite willing to call Grand Theft Auto 3 old school — I spent so much time on the original top-down versions of the series that those are still more retro to me than the fully 3D graphics and living, open-world city that GTA3 made famous on the consoles (a tradition that continues right up into Saints Row: The Third, which I recently played on my Xbox, and next year’s Grand Theft Auto 5). But it’s been ten years since we first saw the streets of Liberty City from the ground up, and Rockstar Games has now brought this classic to iOS as a universal version.

And especially on my iPad 2, I’m willing to call it the best console port I’ve ever seen. The graphics look and run terrific, and the virtual controls, while still a little creaky, actually work really great despite all of the various things you can do. Newcomers to this one used to modern console games will probably notice all of the polygons, but as a reproduction of the original game, it really does look and play very well. And though it’s only been ten years, it’s really awesome to drive around the streets of Liberty City once again, and listen in to Lazlo’s Chatterbox and all of the other great radio stations, checking out all of the open world city conventions (from grabbing any car to escaping the cops) that originated right here.

If you’ve never played this game, you might find it a little aged. The missions are a little unclear compared to today’s more simplistic fare, and there’s no line to follow on your minimap: All you get is a little dot to go after. But for those of us who really enjoyed the heck out of this one all those years ago, this is great to see, and it’s clear that Rockstar has brought it over to this platform with great care. This is an excellent version of this great game, and playing it on my iPad 2 took my right back to those days in my parent’s basement when my friends and I would just drive around trying to get four stars and try to escape the cops.

One note of warning: The game says it’s built for all current iOS devices, including the iPad 1, but a lot of the iTunes reviews say it doesn’t run great on those older machines. If you have an iPad 2 or an iPhone 4S, however, it should run quite well. I had one audio glitch while playing, but it definitely wasn’t gamebreaking. Grand Theft Auto 3′s anniversary iOS edition is available for $4.99 right now.

Daily iPad App: Grand Theft Auto 3 originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 20 Dec 2011 23:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Welcome to TUAW’s 2011 Holiday Gift Guide! We’re here to help you choose the best gifts this holiday season, and once you’ve received your gifts we’ll tell you what apps and accessories we think are best for your new Apple gear. Stay tuned every weekday from now until the end of the year for our picks and helpful guides and check our Gift Guide hub to see our guides as they become available. For even more holiday fun, check out sister site Engadget’s gift guide.

Lat week, we looked at iPad apps for students and now it’s time to look at their iPhone companions. We have a mixture of apps that’ll help you play hard and work hard during your days as a co-ed. Those following the Holiday Gift Guide may recognize a few titles from the iPad list as I purposely chose a few universal apps that’ll let you share your data across devices. If there are any must-have student apps not on the list, feel free to add them in the comments.

Schedule Planner Pro ($5.99)

Between classes, recreation and social events, students have a busy lifestyle and need an app like Schedule Planner Pro to help them manage their many appointments. The app has all the basic features you want in a calendar app including categories, recurring tasks, and support for notifications. It links to Google calendar, iOS calendar and Dropbox, so you always have a copy of your schedule backed up somewhere. Like many iOS apps, Schedule Planner Pro also has a gorgeous interface that makes using the app a pleasure.

Jetpack Joyride ($0.99)

School isn’t all work, you need to make time for play and a good way to put some fun in your life is with Jetpack Joyride. Made by the folks who created Fruit Ninja, Jetpack Joyride lets you strap on a jetpack, fly around obstacles and collect coins as you go. It’s one of those games you can pick up and play when you have a few free minutes.

Pocket Money ($4.99)

Pocket Money is an excellent banking that’ll help you keep track of your often limited finances. You can setup all your accounts, track expenses by category and generate reports that’ll let you see where your money has gone. You can also setup a budget and watch your monthly spending. If you have more than one iOS device, you can easily sync your registers between both devices.

University Apps (Free)

Most colleges now have their own iPhone app filled with information for incoming students. You can get campus maps, cafeteria hours and even the phone number for the library on your phone. Don’t hesitate to search for your school as big schools and even small schools like my alma mater have embraced the iPhone.

Fring (Free)

Fring is a video chat app for iPhone, Android and Symbian. It supports video chat (up to 4 people), voice calls and text chat. It also works over 3G, 4G and WiFi connections. It’s a lot like Skype, but is a bit less serious business-like.

Find My Friends (Free)

Find My Friends is an Apple-branded app that uses the iPhone GPS to locate your friends and family on a map. You can turn the location tracking on and off, so your parents will see you when you’re studying at the library and not at the local pub. It’s a simple app, but sometimes those just work the best.

Grades 2 (Free; $0.99 to remove ads)

Grades 2 is a grade tracking app that’ll help you calculate the scores you need to pass a class. The app lets you enter in all of your assignments, your current grades and your target GPA. The app will work its math magic and tell you what you need to score on your remaining assignments if you want to reach that goal.

Flashcards* (Free; $2.99 to remove ads)

Flashcards* is a flashcard app with sets for almost every subject. The app ties into the Quizlet service which lets you create flashcard sets on the desktop and share them with other devices. You can also send your sets to Dropbox and share them others. It’s available on the iPad, so you can share your quizzes between your iOS devices.

iThoughts HD ($7.99)

iThoughtsHD is a mind mapping application to help you organize your thoughts. It’s great for planning large written essays and designing scientific experiments. You can import mind maps from a variety of desktop applications and export your mind map to PDF and PNG files. You can also store your creations in the cloud using Dropbox, Box.net, MobileMe or WebDAV-based services. iThoughts HD is available on the iPad, so you can potentially share your mind maps between your iOS devices.

iHomework ($1.99)

iHomework is an app to help you manage your course workload. It will keep track of your assignments and set reminders for when they are due. You can also log all your grades, so you can calculate how well you are doing in a class. There’s even a section for course information that lets you store the course location, the time and the professor’s contact information.

iStudiez Pro ($2.99)

iStudiez Pro is an all-in-one app that’ll help you schedule your courses, keep track of your assignments, and calculate your GPA. It’s very similar to iHomework, but has a different look that some might prefer. It also has a slightly higher price tag.

TED (Free)

The TED app is filled with over 900 TEDTalks from the top minds in technology, education medicine, business and music. If you want to be challenged by the best of the best, then you should download this app and spend some quality time watching the videos or listening to the TEDRadio stream. It supports AirPlay so you can stream the audio or video to your HDTV if you have an Apple TV.

Sleep Cycle Alarm Clock ($0.99)

Getting a good night’s sleep is critical to students who are often sleep-deprived from alternating nights of studying and socializing. Sleep Cycle Alarm Clock is a unique app that’ll help keep your sleep cycle in check. You place the iPhone under you pillow, turn on the app and let it monitor your sleep. When it detects that you are out of deep sleep, it will look at your alarm and pick the best time to wake you up.

Amazon Student (Free)

The Amazon Student app is Amazon Price Checker for students. The app uses the scan feature of the camera to pull up Amazon prices on textbooks, games, movies, and more. If you have a book you no longer use, you can use the app to get its estimated value and decide if its worth trading it in for an Amazon gift card. You also get six months of free two-day shipping when you start using the app.

Movies by Flixster (Free)

Movies by Flixster is your connection to the best that Hollywood has to offer. You can watch trailers, find local showtimes, and browse movie reviews from Rotten Tomatoes. You can even purchase tickets from your phone and find local restaurants (with Yelp reviews), which is especially helpful if you decide at the last minute to turn a quick movie into a night on the town.

Holiday Gift Guide- iPhone apps for students originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 20 Dec 2011 23:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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I’m excited about this one, both for what it is, and for the potential of what it could be. The NFL has decided, in a (rare?) move of generosity, to stream the Super Bowl broadcast out to its mobile device apps, including the official NFL app on the iPhone and iPad. The stream on the app will actually have more information, including more camera angles and live stats on it, than the official television broadcast, and of course it’ll be available in places that people without a normal television setup might not reach. The NFL has already provided some games for streaming, but this February’s Super Bowl (and also the Pro Bowl) will likely be one of the largest potential audiences the apps could yet reach.

I think this is awesome — I don’t have an HD cable set up any more (instead, I use Netflix and Hulu for my television content), and so, at the bare minimum, this gives me a way to watch the game officially. But even more than that, I’ll probably be at a friend’s house to watch the proceedings anyway, and this means that we’ll have second screen access through my iPad to more information, stats, and live updates as the game goes on. That means more engagement for the NFL, not to mention more places to sell more ads, and create more revenue on what’s already one of the most profitable broadcasts around.

In short, this is a great move, not only for us the NFL’s consumers, but for the network itself. I’ll bet that we’ll see some very surprising stats after the game in February on just how many people tuned in this way. Given how popular “second screen” content is getting, I think this will do very well.

NFL to stream the Super Bowl to iPhone, iPad apps originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 20 Dec 2011 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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On this day, December 20, just fifteen years ago, Apple paid $400 million to purchase NeXT. That’s the move that brought Steve Jobs back to the company he helped to found, and it was the beginning of the incredible run of success that continues to this day.

According to CNET’s coverage on that day, the company was shopping for an operating system to replace the aging Mac OS. It had recently abandoned the Copland system project and was negotiating with Be and other companies. With the purchase of NeXT, Apple bought the core of what is now Mac OS X. It also gained WebObjects, the powerful Web app development tool that had been licensed to 275 corporate customers by the time of the sale to Apple.

In addition to WebObjects, Apple also gained the powerful programming environment known as OpenStep. That was the core of the NeXTSTEP operating system, and is the heart of what became Cocoa for Mac OS applications. In fact, Cocoa classes start with the acronym NS, which stands for either the NeXT-Sun creation of OpenStep or for NeXTSTEP.

In retrospect, it’s humorous to look at then-chairman and CEO Gil Amelio’s comment that “Apple expects to ship products with the NeXT operating system in 1997.” Mac OS X didn’t actually ship in a non-beta version until 10.0 “Cheetah” hit the market on March 24, 2001.

That $400 million dollar investment paid off in spades for Apple, both in the technology that it acquired and in bringing back Steve Jobs to save the company. It’s hard to believe that everything that’s happened in Apple’s modern era started just 15 years ago, but it’s true: OS X, and eventually the iPod, the iPhone, and the iPad were all made possible by Apple’s purchase of NeXT, and Steve Jobs’ return to his company.

On this day in 1996, Apple acquired NeXT originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 20 Dec 2011 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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During December and January, The Unofficial Apple Weblog is soliciting your nominations and votes for the best products for Mac, iPhone/iPod touch, and iPad. We’ll start with nominations in a category, and then tally your votes for the top-nominated products a few days later. The winner in each category receives the highly-coveted title of TUAW Best of 2011.

Today’s category for nominations in the TUAW Best of 2011 awards is iPhone navigation apps. These are the apps that give you turn-by-turn directions as you make your way around town, and they’ve been getting better as time goes by.

Perhaps you are a fan of the free crowdsourced nab app Waze, which has a 4 out of 5 star rating on the App Store with over 29,000 user reviews. Or maybe you love the TomTom U.S.A. app ($39.99) with its ability to guide you with celebrity voices (Homer Simpson, anyone?).

GPS by TeleNav is another popular and free navigation app, and there’s always the MotionX GPS Drive app ($0.99, with one year of Voice Guidance for $9.99). Maybe you’re a geocacher who doesn’t care about getting from point A to point B, but you do want to find all of the caches in your area with the official Geocaching app ($9.99). And then there’s always Navigon, with a host of features like in-app purchases of Zagat information.

TUAW wants to hear from you — what’s your favorite iPhone navigation app? Leave your nomination in the comments below. Voting will start soon!

Nominations close at 11:59 PM ET on December 22, 2011.

Nominate your favorite iPhone navigation app for TUAW’s Best of 2011 originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 20 Dec 2011 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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A troubling issue with iMessages being sent to stolen iPhones has been reported by Ars Technica. According to the article, the issue was brought up by Ars reader David Hovis whose wife’s iPhone was recently stolen. She replaced her phone, changed her Apple ID password and moved on. While she was enjoying her new iPhone, the stolen handset was sold to an unsuspecting third-party who was using the phone on their wireless account. Incredibly, the stolen phone, which she deactivated with her carrier and remote wiped, was still sending and receiving iMessages on her behalf. She is only one example. If you search MacRumors or Apple’s support forum, you will find several more examples.

Part of the problem may reside with Apple’s authentication system for iMessage. According to a thread at Ask Different, Apple stores the device ID (UDID) and the Apple ID or mobile number for each device that uses iMessage. An iMessage is apparently sent to Apple’s servers, which look at the destination email address or phone number of an incoming message. The server looks in its database for the UDID that’s associated with the recipient’s phone number or Apple ID. The server then uses this information to redirect the message to the correct phone.

It’s possible, in the case above, that the UDID of a stolen phone remains in Apple’s database and is not replaced by the UDID of the new phone. A message sent to the phone number of the person whose phone was stolen would go to the UDID of the stolen phone and not the new phone. The owner of the stolen phone can then respond back.

I’ve experienced a similar issue with FaceTime on the iPhone 4. I activated my phone and setup FaceTime on one phone number and then switched it to another phone number about a month later. The UDID remained attached to the original phone number and was not automatically updated by Apple. When I tried to make a FaceTime call, the recipient would see my old number. If they tried to FaceTime me with my new number, it wouldn’t work. People could only contact me by FaceTime calling my old number. I was able to force Apple to update my UDID in its system by resetting my phone using iTunes according to Apple’s instructions.

The iMessage issue appears to be similar to the FaceTime issue noted above, but it’s not identical. While FaceTime can be corrected by erasing your phone, the iMessages issue is not corrected by a similar remote wipe procedure. I’m not sure why a remote wipe wouldn’t fix the iMessage issue; maybe there’s a difference between a remote wipe and an iTunes reset or Apple’s servers are configured slightly different for the two services. Regardless, the iMessage issue is a serious one that Apple hopefully will address.

iMessages reportedly still sent to stolen iPhones originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 20 Dec 2011 17:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It’s the TUAW Daily Update, your source for Apple news in a convenient audio format. You’ll get all the top Apple stories of the day in three to five minutes for a quick review of what’s happening in the Apple world.

You can listen to today’s Apple stories by clicking the inline player (requires Flash) or the non-Flash link below. To subscribe to the podcast for daily listening through iTunes, click here.

No Flash? Click here to listen.

Daily Update for December 20, 2011 originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 20 Dec 2011 16:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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