Category: I-phone

Apple’s announced the upcoming event at which we all hope to hear about a new iPhone or two, and I’m as giddy as a schoolgirl with anticipation. Well, as giddy as a 54 year-old guy can get, y’know? Today on TUAW TV Live, I want to share some thoughts and hopes for the new device(s) with you, and get your ideas about what we’re going to see next Tuesday.

Since it’s going to be “your show,” joining the chat is a must. The chat tool can be accessed via the TUAW page you’ll at 5 PM Eastern, through the Ustream page, or through IRC using server chat1.ustream.tv and room #tuaw-tv.

As usual, I’ll be starting the show at 5 PM EDT (2 PM PDT / 10 PM BST) sharp, and we’ll take a few minutes to chat before the discussion starts. To join in on the chat and watch the live streaming video, drop by TUAW about five minutes before the start time to get your instructions on how to participate. If you’re unable to join us for the show, remember that you can always subscribe to the video podcast and watch the show at your leisure in iTunes or any other favorite podcatching app. The past shows are also available on the TUAW YouTube channel.

TUAW TV Live at 5 PM EDT: iPhone anticipation episode originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Wed, 28 Sep 2011 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The launch of iOS 5 is right around the corner and Twitter is gearing up for an onslaught now that the social network will be integrated into iOS. So how is Twitter preparing to avoid a day-long fail whale when iOS launches?

According to Twitter’s engineering VP Michael Abbott, the social network is not panicking about the upcoming increase in traffic. It’s been slowly beefing up its servers and infrastructure over the past year. “During the last nine months, there’s been more infrastructure changes at Twitter than there had been in the previous five years at the company,” says Abbott in an interview with GigaOM.

And Twitter seems confident that iOS 5 owners will not significantly increase the number of tweets flowing through the network. Even if it does, Twitter can handle the load as it is already processing over 230 million tweets per day, up from 60 million last year.

Abbott also confirms that, even with mounting pressure from Facebook and Google +, it’s not going to change the premise of its network anytime soon. Twitter will remain focused on the “simplified experience” we all know and love.

Twitter prepares for iOS 5 launch originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Wed, 28 Sep 2011 12:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Cool Bananas SmartShell Case for the iPad 2 is a TPU Smart Cover-compatible back cover for the iPad 2 that’s available in five different colors.

Coverage

The SmartShell provides good all-round coverage including complete bottom, top and side edge protection. There are, of course, the usual cut outs to allow for access to the power button, microphone, headphones port, camera, volume buttons and switch as well as the speaker and dock connecter port on the bottom edge. The SmartShell covers over the bezel on the front of the iPad 2 with a small lip that extends onto the glass boarder of the screen by about 1mm meaning you can lay it flat on the deck without touching the glass.

Thickness and material

Cool Bananas have chosen to use TPU for the SmartShell, which is just over 1mm thick and has a textured feel to the back that reminds us of new car seat leather — a not unpleasant feel to the back of your iPad. The TPU is well manufactured with smooth edges and feels tough and durable. While it’s not going to absorb much impact energy, it will certainly keep scratches at bay and provide you with a decent non-slippery feel.

Verdict

The Cool Bananas SmartShell Case is a simple TPU skin that covers all the right areas, feels great in the hand and comes in enough colors, including transparent, to complement your Smart Cover. If you’re looking for a TPU skin as a companion to your Smart Cover, the SmartShell deserves to be up near the top of your list and will set you back approximately US$26 plus shipping and handling.

Cool Bananas SmartShell complements your Smart Cover in TPU originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Wed, 28 Sep 2011 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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A new survey from CoolBrands finds that Aston Martin is the “coolest” brand in the UK, with Apple in second place. You can’t really compete with James Bonds’s car, can you?

How does one define “cool,” especially in a survey? The BBC explains the researchers’ definition: “Stephen Cheliotis, chairman of the CoolBrands Expert Council, said: ‘Cool is subjective and personal. But being identified as a Cool Brand by the British public and a panel of influential opinion formers implies it is a brand that most Brits wish to own.

‘Votes are based on a wide criteria of factors but these brands are clearly delivering cool in the eyes of consumers and influencers alike,’ he said.”

Other tech brands in the top ten were Bang & Olufsen, BlackBerry, Google and YouTube. Harley-Davidson was in the third spot, just behind Apple.

Apple is second “coolest brand” in UK survey originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Wed, 28 Sep 2011 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Late last week, Verizon Wireless stepped into the heated battle between Apple and Samsung. The wireless carrier asked the federal court if it could file a brief in support of Samsung. In its brief. Verizon said an injection against Samsung would be harmful to US wireless customers and could stunt the growth of Verizon’s 4G network. Apple responded to this filing on Tuesday and asked the court to either throw out the brief or allow Apple until October 6 to respond.

In its response, Apple does not address the validity of Verizon’s claims. It’s primary concern is the timing of the filing. Apple claims Verizon incorrectly filed the brief with the federal court instead of the appellate court and it filed it too late. According to the Apple, Verizon should have filed the brief by the end of August.

[Via AppleInsider]

Apple opposes Verizon’s timing in Samsung case originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Wed, 28 Sep 2011 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Emissary of War is a new title from Cedar Hill Games, a studio run by a former Bioware developer who’s gotten into mobile development. The game is an action RPG title, and while it is a little short, there’s quite a bit of polish here, some fun humor, and a good chunk of intriguing gameplay. You can point and click your hero around the game while hacking and slashing through various enemies, and he has a potion-throwing buddy that will help out both in battle and by healing at the correct times. There’s a Rage mechanic for extra attacks, and lots of upgrades and collectibles to find as well. There’s Game Center integration for achievements, too, which adds a little extra replayability to the affair.

It’s a solid title, and the fact that it’s available as a universal app for free means you should probably just go ahead and pick Emissary of War up right away. The free game only includes the first episode, but the second is just 99 cents anyway, which is more than worth it if you get to that point. Emissary of War is an excellent addition to iOS (and Android, incidentally), and we’re glad to have Cedar Hill’s developer here on the platform.

Daily iPhone App: Emissary of War originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Wed, 28 Sep 2011 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Here at TUAW central, we’re all getting excited about the upcoming new iPhone — and by the size of our inbox, so are you. You wouldn’t believe how many iFauxn submissions we’ve gotten since the invites went out.

So we decided to share the joy. If you have a fake iPhone 5 (or 4S, we don’t discriminate) in your soul, begging to get out, draw it, digitize it, annotate it, and send it in to:

We’ll share the best in a gallery. Feel free to let your imagination run wild. But send ’em in soon. Time grows short.

You design the iPhone … in crayon originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 27 Sep 2011 23:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sprinkle is a physics-based puzzle game that’s centered around water. You control a spigot that’s mounted on a crane, and then you blast water to interact with various items in the environment, such as boulders (that actually light on fire, sometimes trouble) and blocks. The overall goal is to keep the ingame characters from lighting on fire, and you can do that by flooding their general area. As with most games of this ilk, things start off simply, but ramp up to get pretty complicated, and the fire itself (along with a limited supply of water) means time is of the essence in most of the levels. Burn a house down, and you’re done.

The game’s got plenty of content, with 48 levels and more on the way. I found it to be a little persnickety in terms of controls: the water is executed brilliantly with really amazing physics, graphics, and even sounds, but the items will sometimes flood around the way you want them to, and sometimes not. Still, the spigot itself controls very well, and restarting a level is easy if things don’t quite go your way.

Sprinkle is definitely one to see, especially if you’re up for taking on some more physics puzzles with a fairly new medium to play with. The universal app is available for the iPhone and iPad for 99 cents.

Daily iPhone App: Sprinkle originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Mon, 26 Sep 2011 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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CNET is reporting that the San Francisco Police Department is poking around local bar Cava 22, the same establishment where a prototype iPhone was supposed to have been lost a little while ago. The owner of the bar says that the SFPD came by asking for surveillance videotape of July 21 and 22 (the days the phone was supposedly lost in the bar), and while he’s got it and is willing to share, he hasn’t heard back from the officers.

But there may be more going on here than just a lost iPhone; this is of course the same case where SFPD officers “assisted” Apple in an investigation, going so far as to wait while Apple detectives entered a citizen’s home, apparently searching for information related to the lost iPhone. The SFPD is investigating that situation (though the department does admit that the “assistance” took place), and it’s possible that this surveillance footage is for that research.

At any rate, the case isn’t exactly closed. Unfortunately, it’s unlikely that we’ll ever hear anything else about this one, unless the cops did violate the law in some way by helping Apple’s investigation. Even if a lost iPhone was found, Apple wouldn’t exactly go yelling it from the rooftops, and the SFPD probably won’t be happy to publicize any of their officers’ behavior, either. The investigation may still be ongoing, but we’ll have to wait and see if and when the public is let in on any of its findings.

[via 9to5Mac]

San Fran PD looking for security footage at lost iPhone bar originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Mon, 26 Sep 2011 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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