I-phone – Page 3649 – Blancer.com Tutorials and projects

Talkcast tonight, 4 PM HI/7 PM PT/10 PM ET: Mother’s Day Edition

Here we go again, kids! Not only do we have Mother’s Day to talk about, but we also have the shiny new iMacs and a shiny new piece of malware to discuss as well.

As always when I’m hosting, if there’s show, there’s an aftershow. Join us for TUAW and stay for TUAWTF. It’s like two shows in one!

Your calls and questions help us make the show the best it can be, otherwise I’m just talking to myself! To participate on TalkShoe, you can use the browser-only client, the embedded Facebook app, or download the classic TalkShoe Pro Java client; however, for maximum fun, you should call in. For the web UI, just click the Talkshoe Web button on our profile page at 4 HI/7 PDT/10 PM EDT Sunday. To call in on regular phone or VoIP lines (yay for free cell phone weekend minutes!): dial (724) 444-7444 and enter our talkcast ID, 45077 — during the call, you can request to talk by keying in *8.

If you’ve got a headset or microphone handy on your Mac, you can connect via the free Gizmo, X-Lite or Blink SIP clients; basic instructions are here. Talk to you tonight!

Talkcast tonight, 4 PM HI/7 PM PT/10 PM ET: Mother’s Day Edition originally appeared on TUAW on Sun, 08 May 2011 20:12:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple continues to gain on Nokia in smartphone wars

IDC has released a report that the smartphone market has grown 79.7% in the first quarter of 2011 over the same time last year, mostly because of the release of highly anticipated smartphone models and availability. Apple had a record breaking shipment volume for a single quarter which is helping them catch Nokia as the top smartphone vendor.

Here is what IDC had to say about Apple:

Apple reached a new record shipment volume in a single quarter, and inched closer to market leader Nokia with fewer than six million units separating the two companies. The company posted market-beating year-over-year growth and recorded triple-digit growth in two key markets: the United States, with the release of its CDMA-enabled iPhone, and Greater China. Additionally, the company enlisted South Korean Telecom and Saudi Telecom as carrier providers of the iPhone.

Check out the rest of the report to see what IDC has to say about other top vendors.

Microsoft Releases iOS Library For Bing Maps

Microsoft has released the Microsoft Bing Maps SDK, enabling usage of Bing Maps in your native iOS applications.

The library provides all the essential features that you’d expect in a maps library, with pushpins, road and aerial maps, geocoding and more.

The library is free to use within your apps, and the Bing Maps Team states that the SDK terms of use “are less restrictive than what you find with the Apple Map Kit”.

You can find The Bing Maps Team’s announcement about the SDK here:
New Bing Maps iOS SDK

You can find the download page here:
Bing Maps iOS SDK Zip File

Could be useful for those looking for a Map Kit alternative.

Tutorial: Bouncing Ball Physics Game With Cocos2D And Space Manager

Some time ago I first mentioned the Objective-C Chipmunk physics engine wrapper known as space manager, and a tutorial based on using Cocos2D with SpaceManager to create an Angry Birds like game.

Azam Sharp has created in-depth tutorials covering using SpaceManager with a little more detail through the creation of a simple game with a bouncing ball, and the environment.

In the first 2 parts of the tutorial the basics of Space Manager are covered, and it makes for a great intro.

You can find the tutorials here:
Cocos2D and SpaceManager Tutorial 1
Cocos2D and SpaceManager Tutorial 2

Good info for those looking for an easy way to implement physics in a Cocos2D game.

How to select component from UIPickerView and display the next screen

This is the UIPickerView example. In this example we will see how to select any name from singlecomponentpicker and display the next screen. So let see how it will work.

Step 1: Open a Xcode, Create a View base application. Give the application name ”SingleComponentPicker”.

Step 2: Xcode automatically creates the directory structure and adds essential frameworks to it. You can explore the directory structure to check out the content of the directory.

Step 3: We need to add one UIViewController class in the project. So select the project -> New File -> Cocoa Touch -> ViewController subclass and give the class name “AnotherView”.

Step 4: Open the SingleComponentPickerViewController.h file and add UIPickerViewDataSouce and UIPickerViewDelegate protocal, import AnotherView class, UIPickerView and NSArray class and one buttonPressed method:. So make the following changes in the file:

#import <UIKit/UIKit.h>

@class AnotherView;

@interface SingleComponentPickerViewController : UIViewController
<UIPickerViewDataSource , UIPickerViewDelegate>
{

AnotherView *anotherView;
IBOutlet UIPickerView *singlePicker;
NSArray *pickerData;
}

@property(nonatomic , retain) UIPickerView *singlePicker;
@property(nonatomic , retain) NSArray *pickerData;

–(IBAction)buttonPressed;

@end

Step 5: Double click .xib file and open it to interface Builder. Add a picker and a button to te View,and then make the necessary connections. Control drag File’s Owner to the picker view,and select singlePicker outlet. Then single click the picker, bring up connection inspector, you’ll see that the first two items are DataSource and Delegate. Drag from the circle next to DataSource to the File’s Owner icon. Do it once again, and connect Delegate to File’s Owner icon. Next drag a Round Rect Button to the view, double-click it, give it a title of Select. Connect to Touch Up Inside to File’s Owner and select buttonPressed action. Save the nib, and go back to Xcode.

Step 6: Now open the SingleComponentPickerViewController.m file and make the following changes in the file:

#import "SingleComponentPickerViewController.h"
#import "AnotherView.h"

@implementation SingleComponentPickerViewController
@synthesize singlePicker;
@synthesize pickerData;

// The designated initializer. Override to perform setup that is required before the view is loaded.
– (id)initWithNibName:(NSString *)nibNameOrNil bundle:(NSBundle *)nibBundleOrNil {
if (self = [super initWithNibName:nibNameOrNil bundle:nibBundleOrNil]) {
// Custom initialization
}
return self;
}

–(IBAction)buttonPressed
{

anotherView = [[AnotherView alloc]
initWithNibName:@"AnotherView"
bundle:nil];
[self.view addSubview:anotherView.view];

}

// Implement viewDidLoad to do additional setup after loading the view, typically from a nib.
– (void)viewDidLoad {
NSArray *array = [[NSArray alloc] initWithObjects:@"Luke",@"Leia",@"Han",@"Chewbacca",@"Artoo",
@"Threepio",@"lando",nil];
self.pickerData = array;
[array release];
[super viewDidLoad];
}

// Override to allow orientations other than the default portrait orientation.
– (BOOL)shouldAutorotateToInterfaceOrientation:(UIInterfaceOrientation)interfaceOrientation {
// Return YES for supported orientations
return (interfaceOrientation == UIInterfaceOrientationPortrait);
}

– (void)didReceiveMemoryWarning {
// Releases the view if it doesn’t have a superview.
[super didReceiveMemoryWarning];

// Release any cached data, images, etc that aren’t in use.
}

– (void)viewDidUnload {
// Release any retained subviews of the main view.
// e.g. self.myOutlet = nil;
}

– (void)dealloc {
[singlePicker release];
[pickerData release];
[super dealloc];
}

#pragma mark Picker data source methods
–(NSInteger)numberOfComponentsInPickerView:(UIPickerView *)pickerView
{
return 1;
}

–(NSInteger)pickerView:(UIPickerView *)pickerView
numberOfRowsInComponent:(NSInteger)component
{
return [pickerData count];
}

#pragma mark Picker delegate method
–(NSString *)pickerView:(UIPickerView *)pickerView
titleForRow:(NSInteger)row
forComponent:(NSInteger)component
{
return[pickerData objectAtIndex:row];
}
@end

Step 7: Open the AnotherView.h file and added UIButton class and BackButton method and import SingleComponentViewController class now make the following changes in the file.

#import <UIKit/UIKit.h>

@class SingleComponentPickerViewController;

@interface AnotherView : UIViewController {

SingleComponentPickerViewController *singleComponentView;

UIButton *backButton;

}

@property (nonatomic, retain) UIButton *backButton;

–(IBAction)backButton :(id)sender;

@end

Step 8: Double click the AnotherView.xib file and open it to the Interface Builder. First drag the label and Button from the library and place it to the View window. Select the label and bring up attribute inspector and change the label name “Another View”, select the button and bring up connection inspector and drag Touch Up Inside to the File’s Owner icon and select BackButton: method. Now save it close it and go back to the Xcode.

Step 9: Open the AnotherView.m file and make the following changes:

#import "AnotherView.h"
#import "SingleComponentPickerViewController.h"

@implementation AnotherView

@synthesize backButton;

– (id)initWithNibName:(NSString *)nibNameOrNil bundle:(NSBundle *)nibBundleOrNil
{
self = [super initWithNibName:nibNameOrNil bundle:nibBundleOrNil];
if (self) {
// Custom initialization
}
return self;
}

– (void)dealloc
{
[super dealloc];
}

– (void)didReceiveMemoryWarning
{
// Releases the view if it doesn’t have a superview.
[super didReceiveMemoryWarning];

// Release any cached data, images, etc that aren’t in use.
}

–(IBAction)backButton :(id)sender

{
singleComponentView = [[SingleComponentPickerViewController alloc]
initWithNibName:@"SingleComponentPickerViewController"bundle:nil];

[self.view addSubview:singleComponentView.view];
[singleComponentView.view release];}

#pragma mark – View lifecycle

– (void)viewDidLoad
{
[super viewDidLoad];
// Do any additional setup after loading the view from its nib.
}

– (void)viewDidUnload
{
[super viewDidUnload];
// Release any retained subviews of the main view.
// e.g. self.myOutlet = nil;
}

– (BOOL)shouldAutorotateToInterfaceOrientation:(UIInterfaceOrientation)interfaceOrientation
{
// Return YES for supported orientations
return (interfaceOrientation == UIInterfaceOrientationPortrait);
}

@end

Step 10: Now compile and run the application in the Simulator.

You can Download SourceCode from here SingleComponentPicker

Viddy: Shoot, Beautify and Share Your Videos

Creating video high quality video is getting easier and easier all the time. Especially with that fancy new iPhone you’ve got. You’re taking video snippets all the time, but what do you do with them? It’d be great if you could add a little “cool” to them and share with your friends wouldn’t it?

Enter Viddy, the Instagram for video.

Design and Interface

The interface of Viddy is dark with grey, white and blue tones. It really feels like a video application to me. The core features are accessed via buttons on the bottom with the primary feature of creating and sharing video (Share) a little larger and centered on the menu. Other functionality appears as needed, such as back and next buttons, as we’ve grown to expect from iPhone applications.

Viddy design and function

Navigating around the application felt natural. It felt like things were where they needed to be. With the exception of a random bug here and there I thought the overall experience of using the application was excellent. Simple, functional and attractive.

Functionality

The basic function of Viddy is to share fifteen second videos. That sounds pretty basic, and it is, but what is different about Viddy than other video sharing applications is that you’re able to quickly add some style to each video before you share. Creating the videos is simple and browsing the work of others is pretty straight forward as well. It’s reminiscent of a photo sharing application such as Instagram. You’ll see a stream of the what is currently being shared. We’ll take a closer look at each portin of the application.

Feed

The Feed is the video discovery portion of the application. You’ll see videos listed with a large preview of the video along with other info such as the creator, location, title and the time that it was uploaded. You’ll also see some options to interact with it such as liking the video, commenting on it, tagging it, or marking it as inappropriate.

It can be filtered into three categories. The Following filter will display only videos from those individuals you are following. It isn’t necessary to follow others, but can be a nice way to segment out a group of friends to pay closer attention to. The other two filters are Popular and Trending. I don’t see a ton of difference between these two right now. To be honest, it’s not totally evident what would qualify a video to be on this list, but I’m guessing they are essentially the most watched videos. Viddy is a fairly new application, so suspect that is why you don’t find much different between the Popular and Trending categories at this time.

Views from the feed

Casually browsing videos is very easy. Searching for and finding anything specific is not, but I doubt that this would be the platform for anything where that would be needed anyway. That said, being able to segment out your friends or those that you’re following is good enough to create a little separation for those that you’re likely to be more interested in.

Tapping on the video preview will play the video. They are a maximum of fifteen seconds long and you’ll be taken back to the video list upon completion. As is common with watching videos on an iPhone the controls will be hidden after a few seconds and the video will extend to full screen and orientate depending on how you’re holding the phone. With the videos being so short the process of browsing, loading, watching, and repeating is quite quick. Viddy handles the casual browser very well.

Faves

This is the section where all of your favorite videos, as established by you marking them as liked while browsing, are stored. There’s a little lapse in terminology there, but that is how it works. All of your favorites will display as thumbnails in a grid format. Tapping on one will open it up and you’ll be able to watch the video again, comment on it, tag it or even unlike it if you so choose.

Favorites

Getting around the Faves is very simple. Tap on a thumbnail, watch the video and go back to the thumbnails. Not a whole lot to this area, but it is a useful feature nonetheless. Being able to make videos that you want to remember is nice. With an application like this, where searching is difficult, if not impossible, a feature like this is a must.

Activity

The Activity section will show you a feed of your recent activity. The functionality is pretty basic here as the only activity that is actually recorded is when you like a video or upload one of your own. I personally didn’t find this section all that useful. It could be nice to refer to in some situations I’m sure, but I just never found myself using it.

Activity feed view

Profile

As I’m sure you’ve already guessed, the Profle area of the site houses all of the information about you. You’ll see the image you’ve picked for yourself along with the number of followers you have and the number of those you are following. Each of those is tappable and will take you to a list of those particular Viddy users. You’ll also see the videos you’ve uploaded listed. The application settings are also accessed via this section as well.

Activity feed view

Create and Share

Browsing and viewing other’s video is reasonably enjoyable, but the real fun of this application comes with creating your own video. The Share button is prominent amongst the other buttons. After pressing the button you’ll be presented with two options. You can either go and grab some video from your video library or you can go to the camera to create the video right in app.

Shoot

Selecting the camera option will being up the familiar video camera interface. It functions just like you would expect with the exception that you’ll only be able to record fifteen seconds of video as that is the limit for uploading.

After the recording completes you’ll be able to preview it and trim if you’d like. Then either chose to retake or use that video and move forward to do some customizations. The process of recording and trimming the video is very simple and quick to do. There are no frills at all, but with what this application is designed to do that is just fine and actually welcomed.

Shoot and edit video

Effects

Once you’ve decided upon your video, you can move on to do a little customization before sharing with the world. You’ll see a preview of your video with a handful of different effects that you’re able to add to your video. Tapping on one will show a still shot preview on your video. Pressing the play button will actually generate the video with your chosen effect.

Video effects

With the visual effect also comes some audio. The audio you generated with your video and the effect video volume can be adjusted by sliders at the bottom of this screen. The audio is set with the particular effect, which can be a bit frustrating at times, but the the idea of being able to quickly add a cool effect and some decent music to your video is what is really great so it is an understandable restriction.

It does take about thirty seconds or so for a full fifteen second video to render with your chosen effect and that will take a little getting used to. It certainly isn’t slow, but it isn’t the blazing fast preview we’re used to with similar applications that work with photos instead of video.

After you’ve decided on the effect (if any) you want to add you can move on and share your artistic creation. You can add some meta data to the video and then chose to share with Facebook, Twitter, or YouTube (Foursquare and Tumblr coming soon evidently). If you want to do this you will need to configure the necessary services. After you’ve input the necessary info you’re able to upload the video. Sharing is a huge part of Viddy and the process to do so on not only Viddy but several other platforms is very quick and easy to do.

Conclusion

Sharing video via a mobile device can be a bit challenging. It’s something that a lot of us would like to do, but we don’t because it can be kind of time consuming and a bit of a pain overall. Viddy has made the process of sharing video you’ve taken on you iPhone about as fun as I think is possible at this time.

Viddy, you could say, is really like the Instagram for video and I think that is a fair comparison and probably one that the developers certainly had in mind. Dealing with video is going to be more time consuming, there is no way around that, but Viddy does a nice job of placing restrictions and functionality int he right places to create a nice balance. While it’s not quite as quick as sharing a funky photo on Instagram it gets pretty darn close.

Viddy is new and there are some bugs in this version, but I didn’t have much trouble at all. It’s a free app and will only improve as more people use it and as new versions are released. If you enjoy shooting and sharing video I’d say it is definitely worth a try.

5 Cool Apps for Getting the Most Out of Instagram

Instagram is hands down one of may favorite iPhone apps. It’s a simple, quirky, fun and social way to enjoy photography.

Today we’re going to look at a few apps that take the Instagram experience even further, from creating cool galleries to sending post cards.

What Is Instagram?

On the off chance that you haven’t already heard of, or are already completely addicted to Instagram, it’s basically just one of many apps that makes it easy to apply retro effects to your iPhone photos. What makes Instagram stand out is the awesome and active social network behind it. You can easily find all your Twitter and Facebook friends to see what they’re sharing.

The Instagram API makes it possible for developers to use these social data streams to make some really cool apps, five of which we’ll take a look at next.

Instagram

Postagram

“Postagram makes it easy to send a printed Instagram photo in the mail to yourself, friends or family anywhere in the world.”

Postagram is a really cool service that lets you send real, printed postcards made from an Instagram image for only $0.99. All Postagrams are printed on thick, high quality photo postcards at 300dpi and the photo pops out into a 2.5″ by 2.5″ print. Mother’s Day is coming up and I’m thinking that this is way cooler than a greeting card.

Price: Free

Postagram

Instagallery

“View a gallery of Instagram photos in comfort on your iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch. See some popular photos or sign in to to see photos from the people you follow, view your own photos, “like” photos, read and add comments, see what users your friends follow, etc.”

Sometimes you just want to sit back and browse photos without all the distractions inherent in the official Instagram app. With Instagallery, you can enjoy a pleasantly minimal and customizable slideshow of your photos, your friend feed or popular instagram images. This app is especially nice if you have an iPad.

Price: $1.99

Instagallery

InstARgram

“InstARgram shows Instagram photos taken near you with AR. Why not take a peek at your surroundings from a different point of view? There might be some beautiful sights nearby just waiting for you to find them.”

Augmented reality apps are always a fun way to explore the world. This app allows you to hold up your iPhone and see an overlay of geo-tagged Instagram photos that have been taken near where you are currently standing.

Price: Free

InstARgram

InstaRadar

“Search & Explore Instagram in a geo way! InstaRadar let you search and explore Instagram geographically.”

If you like the idea of seeing Instagram images that were taken around you but aren’t a fan of augmented reality, check out InstaRadar. With it you can view a stream of images that have been taken up to five miles from where you are standing.

Price: $0.99

InstaRadar

Instaqlock

“Instaqlock is a desktop clock app using those beautiful photos from Instagram as random background images.”

The description above says it all, this app gives you a nice little desktop clock that utilizes Instagram photos. It doesn’t have a ton of functionality but it’s pretty neat and is currently on sale.

Price: $0.99

Instaqlock

How Do You Enjoy Instagram?

The Instagram API is still fairly new so hopefully we’ll continue to see this niche of apps grow with offerings from talented and innovative developers. In the mean time, leave a comment below and let us know what cool Instagram-related products and services you’ve discovered.

If you have an iPad, check out Flipboard, which recently some really slick Instagram integration. It may just be the best way yet to view your Instagram feed!

Talkcast tonight, 4pm HI/7pm PT/10pm ET: Mother’s Day Edition

Here we go again, kids! Not only do we have Mother’s Day to talk about, but we also have the shiny new iMacs and a shiny new piece of malware to discuss as well.

As always when I’m hosting, if there’s show, there’s aftershow. Join us for TUAW and stay for TUAWTF. It’s like two shows in one!

Your calls and questions help us make the show the best it can be, otherwise I’m just talking to myself! To participate on TalkShoe, you can use the browser-only client, the embedded Facebook app, or download the classic TalkShoe Pro Java client; however, for maximum fun, you should call in. For the web UI, just click the Talkshoe Web button on our profile page at 4 HI/7 PDT/10 pm EDT Sunday. To call in on regular phone or VoIP lines (yay for free cellphone weekend minutes!): dial (724) 444-7444 and enter our talkcast ID, 45077 — during the call, you can request to talk by keying in *8.

If you’ve got a headset or microphone handy on your Mac, you can connect via the free Gizmo, X-Lite, or Blink SIP clients; basic instructions are here. Talk to you tonight!

Talkcast tonight, 4pm HI/7pm PT/10pm ET: Mother’s Day Edition originally appeared on TUAW on Sun, 08 May 2011 20:12:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple is #4 in Barron’s 500 for 2011

Earlier we told you that Apple claimed the #35 spot on the 2011 Fortune 500 list. That’s pretty impressive in and of itself, but what’s even more impressive is that Apple sits at #4 on the Barron’s 500 list of America’s top companies that was released last week. The rise to the fourth spot means Apple shot up 55 places over last year’s position.

Unlike Fortune, which ranks companies solely by revenues, Barron’s assembles its list based on factors such as revenues, cash returns, management strategies, and operating successes.

Barron’s Jacqueline Doherty writes of Apple’s 4th placement: “Apple, ranked No. 4 this year…has generated stellar sales growth and handsome profits from the iPod, iPhone and related products, and its shares have rallied 321%, to 347, since the stock market bottomed in March 2009. Yet the stock, which trades for only 12.2 times next year’s expected earnings, still isn’t richly valued.”

The three companies that came in before Apple were Fidelity National Information Services, a payments processor, at #3; jelly maker J.M. Smucker at No. 2; and Oshkosh, a truck maker, at #1.

[via Apple 2.0]

Apple is #4 in Barron’s 500 for 2011 originally appeared on TUAW on Sun, 08 May 2011 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Getting GPS on a WiFi iPad with New Sky

Last week I reported on a Bluetooth GPS solution that will give you full navigation features on both the WiFi-only iPad and on the iPod touch. Today I was able to test the device and see if was a useful solution to navigating on iDevices that don’t have GPS built-in.

The quick answer is that it does work, and it works very well. The GPS receiver, provided to us by New Sky Products, is about the size of a thin tape measure. You turn it on, pair it with an iPad or iPod touch, and you are good to go.

There is a small slide switch on the unit to tell it you are connecting to either an Apple iOS product, or anything else, like a laptop or Android phone. Using the GPS requires that you download a free app that will tell you there is a successful connection and show you visually what satellites you are using for your GPS fix. You do not have to access the app while navigating, but it must be installed.

Once you pair the GPS with your iPad, you can run any navigation program with built-in maps. With Google Maps, you get a nice little blue dot showing your location, but without 3G connectivity, there is no map display.

Continue reading Getting GPS on a WiFi iPad with New Sky

Getting GPS on a WiFi iPad with New Sky originally appeared on TUAW on Sun, 08 May 2011 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Publishers’ choice: Will the iPad be the hero or villain of the comic book industry?

Music piracy rose to epidemic levels at the beginning of the 2000s (although, according to Wired, those days are now over). There were many causes of this growth in piracy — high speed internet access, easy-to-use P2P software — but perhaps the biggest accelerator of music piracy was two-fold: the emergence of devices that allowed us to easily copy and then consume music (namely CD-burners, and then MP3 players) away from the computers we downloaded them on, and the reluctance of the record industry to embrace new technology.

In other words, once people had the hardware for consuming digital music, the record industry failed to give listeners the digital music they wanted at a reasonable price and in an easy-to-access centralized location. The same factors that lead to mass music piracy are now in place to disrupt another flavor of media — comic books. The excitement and media attention around Free Comic Book Day yesterday shouldn’t deceive anybody about the fact that there’s trouble around the corner.

Why is the comic book industry set for a piracy tipping point? After all, people have been able to illegally download comic books on the web for years. Why should it suddenly accelerate? One factor: The iPad.

Before the launch of the iPad, people who illegally download comic books read them on their computers — compared to a printed comic book, a decidedly inferior experience. However, with the advent of the iPad and the tablet form factor that closely mimics a comic book, Apple’s tablet is liberating illegal comic book downloads from the computer monitor and allowing them to be consumed in a much more appealing and natural way.

I first noticed this last year when I was talking to a friend who was complaining that his local comic shop was out of a specific issue of a comic book he wanted. I suggested to him that he buy it through Marvel’s iPad app. However, Marvel’s app didn’t offer the issue in question. That’s when another friend asked what issue the first friend wanted. The next day, friend #2 emailed him a CBR (Comic Book Archive) file containing a pirated copy of not only that issue, but every Marvel comic that shipped that week.

Continue reading Publishers’ choice: Will the iPad be the hero or villain of the comic book industry?

Publishers’ choice: Will the iPad be the hero or villain of the comic book industry? originally appeared on TUAW on Sun, 08 May 2011 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Dear Aunt TUAW: Help me find a projector for my iPhone

Dear Aunt TUAW,

I sometimes watch TV in my bedroom on my iPhone (3GS) via EyeTV before I go to sleep. The screen is, of course, a bit small and not ideally positioned for a relaxed posture in bed. What’s your idea on pico projectors in combination with an iPhone (3GS)?

Many thanks and best regards

Your loving nephew,

Bob

Continue reading Dear Aunt TUAW: Help me find a projector for my iPhone

Dear Aunt TUAW: Help me find a projector for my iPhone originally appeared on TUAW on Sun, 08 May 2011 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The machine apocalypse can wait; robot busy playing Angry Birds

I’ve got to admit, I’ve never seen the appeal of Angry Birds. The game just isn’t that fun to me. I know a lot of readers disagree with that, and now I know of one robot that would disagree as well. Yes, Finnish company OptoFidelity has created a robot with the sole purpose of playing Angry Birds.

Impressive? Yes. Kinda stupid? Yes. But then again, it’s better than them creating robots that can kill you, which other companies are doing right at this moment. Speaking of which, OptoFidelity has created a video, appropriately titled “Mac vs. Machine,” which shows the robot getting its game on. Check it out below.

[via TechCrunch]

The machine apocalypse can wait; robot busy playing Angry Birds originally appeared on TUAW on Sun, 08 May 2011 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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iMuscle is a must for exercise aficionados

I’ve raved about 3D 4 Medical’s apps in the past. They are so well designed, I can’t think of better apps to show off the power of the iPad. Apple even used one of 3D4’s apps in an iPad commercial. The company’s latest app, the awkwardly titled iMuscle – (NOVA Series) – iPad edition lives up to the reputation established by previous apps.

With iMuscle, users can select virtually any muscle in the human body and see a list of exercises and stretches for that muscle. That feature in itself is nothing new or groundbreaking however, as many apps do the same thing. What is unique about this app is that it uses the 3D Nova engine to show users animations of the exercises using a model with exposed musculature. Think Body Worlds brought to life.

In addition to more than 450 high-quality 3D animated exercises and stretches, you can create custom workouts and the app even supports multiple users. Anyone into sports training or rehabilitation science will immediately see the usefulness of this app. After all, instead of telling a client they need to work on their butt muscles, it’s a lot more helpful to tell them that they specifically need to work their glute med and be able to show them a 3D model of its anatomical location and what it looks like in action.

iMuscle is a steal at US$4.99.

iMuscle is a must for exercise aficionados originally appeared on TUAW on Sun, 08 May 2011 05:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Namco Bandai sale this weekend on the App Store

PAC-MAN on iPhone If you want to score a deal on some classic games for your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch, Namco Bandai is celebrating spring (and coincidentally Mother’s Day) with a sale on some of its best-selling titles this weekend.

From now through May 9, you can grab games like Star Trigon for US$0.99, Tamagotchi: Round the World for $0.99, Lost in Time: The Clockwork Tower for $2.99, and PAC-MAN for $1.99. According to 148Apps.com, which offers a complete list of all the discounted games, the sale may be limited to the U.S. store only.

Namco Bandai sale this weekend on the App Store originally appeared on TUAW on Sun, 08 May 2011 00:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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