Category: I-phone

As if Safari and iOS updates weren’t enough for one day: Do you use a Canon printer (including all-in-one printer/scanners) with your Mac running Snow Leopard? If so, you have an exciting new update waiting for you. There’s no indication of what the new Canon Printer Drivers 2.5 version actually changes, so fire up Software Update, cross your fingers and hope your printing experience magically improves.

If Software Update doesn’t show you have an update available you can download the driver manually from the the relevant Apple support page.

[via The Mac Observer]

Canon printer drivers hitting Software Update originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 14 Apr 2011 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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RIM is aiming to launch its PlayBook tablet on April 19, but reviews of this QNX-powered tablet started to hit the wire last night. The consensus among reviewers suggests the PlayBook will not threaten Apple’s dominance in the tablet market.

Most reviews point to the lack of available applications for the tablet as one major detriment. The PlayBook will launch with a catalog of 3,000 applications, a figure derived from the number of developers that have submitted applications to the BlackBerry App World. This number was bolstered by RIM’s promise to give a free PlayBook to each developer whose application is approved before the launch of the tablet device. RIM expects to expand this catalog with Android and BlackBerry OS emulators that let users run applications from the Android Market and the BlackBerry World. This feature will land later this year.

A small application catalog is one drawback to the BlackBerry, but there are more. Read on to find out what other issues reviewers encountered when using RIM’s tablet device.

Continue reading BlackBerry PlayBook reviews say that it’s not an iPad killer

BlackBerry PlayBook reviews say that it’s not an iPad killer originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 14 Apr 2011 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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For the first time in six quarters, worldwide shipments of personal computers declined during the first three months of 2011, according to reports from Gartner Inc. and International Data Corp. (IDC) released this week. Despite faltering demand for PCs, Apple enjoyed increased sales and market share compared to the year-ago quarter.

IDC’s report indicated 80.6 million PCs shipped worldwide during the quarter — a 3.2% decline from the same time last year. Gartner’s figures showed sales dipped by 1.1% to 84.3 million units. In the United States, both firms agreed PC sales dropped from about 17 million units in the first quarter of 2010 to about 16.1 million PCs this year. Meanwhile, Apple watched its figures grow in the US, netting either 8.5% or 9.3% of the market — a healthy jump from the 7% share the Cupertino-based company saw at the start of 2010.

Apple’s iPad may have also taken a significant bite out of PC sales. IDC said tablets like the iPad, which weren’t included in either reporting firm’s PC shipment calculations, contributed to shrinking demand for more powerful — and more expensive — notebooks and desktops.

Continue reading Apple takes a bite out of PC market

Apple takes a bite out of PC market originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 14 Apr 2011 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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“Intel is going to support USB 3.0 in the 2012 client platform. We’re going to support Thunderbolt capability. We believe that they’re complementary.” CNET reported this remark from Kirk Sakaugen, a VP of the Intel Architecture group, in a presentation streamed from the Intel Developer Conference in Beijing. This dual-I/O support will arrive in the first half of 2012 with the rollout of the “Ivy Bridge” processor, which will be the next generation after the “Sandy Bridge” technology currently built into the the newest MacBook Pros.

This is the first time in ten years that Intel has built the most current USB technology into its processors. Currently Intel uses USB 3.0 in a small number of high-end motherboards, sourcing a component from NEC to make it work. USB 3.0 is ten times quicker than USB 2.0, topping out at a theoretical speed of 4.8 Gbps. Thunderbolt, in turn, beats out USB 3.0 easily; it allows transfers of data and DisplayPort video simultaneously at speeds of up to 10 Gbps on one cable.

Although nothing specific has been said about when Intel will integrate Thunderbolt technology, The Inquirer notes that the January launch of “Sandy Bridge” would have been the perfect time for Intel to build USB 3.0 into its silicon. By dragging its heels, the company may be promoting the integration of Thunderbolt. Currently Apple is the only computer maker using Thunderbolt, but AMD as well as Intel have said they will eventually include Thunderbolt support.

Intel announces USB 3.0 in “Ivy Bridge” and will support Thunderbolt originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 14 Apr 2011 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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I’m in the midst of reading Steven Levy’s book about Google, “In the Plex,” and I was fascinated with the account of Steve Jobs hiding the iPad’s development from Google CEO Eric Schmidt while Schmidt was sitting on the Apple board. We noted this striking example of corporate confidentiality last week.

Jobs was reportedly angry with Google for allegedly ripping off iPhone features like pinch to zoom that eventually wound up in the Android phone.

Eventually Schmidt stepped down from his position on the Apple board, and the rest is history. Or maybe not. Our former colleague Nilay Patel, ex of Engadget, says in his personal blog that the story can’t be that simple. First, he says Apple didn’t have a patent on pinch to zoom until October of 2010. The Android G1 shipped in October 2008, and didn’t have pinch to zoom, but it finally made it to the Google Nexus One in February 2010. Now all Android phones have the feature.

Continue reading The unanswered questions about Jobs, Schmidt and iOS features

The unanswered questions about Jobs, Schmidt and iOS features originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 14 Apr 2011 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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One of the more surprising features of Mac OS X 10.7 Lion has been the change to reverse scrolling. With reverse scrolling, your hand actually moves up to scroll down a page. This is contrary to the common method of scrolling that is used in most major operating systems, where the hand moves down to scroll down. Reverse scrolling is used on iOS devices, where it feels very natural — it’s like you’re moving a piece of paper up and down in a frame to reveal the content on it.

While reverse scrolling can be turned off in Lion through System Preferences, many developers who are beginning to work with the Lion developer preview find that they prefer this very iOS-like way of interfacing with their Macs. Those developers are at a disadvantage when they switch back to earlier versions of Mac OS X — they basically have to remember what OS they’re working with and make a mental switch to the proper scrolling direction. Now, developer Nick Moore has created a small utility to reverse the scrolling on Mac OS X 10.5 and 10.6.

Scroll Reverser (free) adds a menu bar item allowing the direction of scrolling to be toggled. That’s perfect for developers who want to keep their Macs as Lion-like as possible, but would like the ability to go back to the tried-and-true direct scroll when necessary.

If you aren’t a developer and would like to get a taste of what reverse scrolling feels like, download the utility and give it a try.

[via Mac OS X Daily]

Scroll Reverser brings Lion, iOS reverse scrolling to Snow Leopard originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 14 Apr 2011 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple is a defendant in an unusual lawsuit that accuses the company of “outrageous and reckless and extreme acts against the plaintiff, with the massive theft of the plaintiff’s copyrighted works, grossing millions if not billions of dollars.”

The plaintiff, David Louis Whitehead, filed his claim in U.S. District Court in the Western District of Arkansas and is asking for US$75 billion in relief and another $5 billion in damages. Whitehead has a long list of earlier lawsuits and cites many of these cases in this current filing.

The suit takes turn for the weird when you look at the eclectic group of defendants cited by Whitehead. The list contains businesses, celebrities, banks and Hollywood studios. Even the current President and former Presidents of the United States were cited because they supposedly appointed judges to thwart Whitehead’s legal actions.

Besides Apple, Whitehead also lists Oprah Winfrey, Mike Meyers, Mel Gibson, Viacom, Disney, Bank of America, Comcast, Microsoft and more in this frivolous lawsuit. The reasons for Apple’s inclusion in this lawsuit were not mentioned and Apple has not commented on this lawsuit.

[Via MacObserver]

Apple a part of $75B civil rights, fraud lawsuit originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 14 Apr 2011 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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How doth Apple’s Xcode 4
Improve each shining Hour,
And offer enhancements every day
For every Developer!

How skilfully Apple builds its tools!
How neat it I.D.E’s
And labours hard to make it well
With the sweet SDKs she releases.

In Works of Labour or of Skill
I would be busy too:
For Developers find some Mischief still
For idle Hands to do.

In Books, or Work, or healthful Apps
Let my first Years be past,
That I may give for every Day
Some released code at last.

— Isaac “now an Apple Developer” Watts, 1715

Apple releases Xcode 4.0.2 (4A2002a) to developers originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 14 Apr 2011 13:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Seems like the update fairy has been very busy today. In addition to the iOS 4.3.2/4.2.7 updates that appeared moments ago, Mac OS X users can now download Safari 5.0.5 and Security Update 2011-002.

Details on these updates are not yet on Apple’s security page, but they should be showing up shortly. Please note that both the security update and Safari update require a reboot.

Safari 5.0.5 and Security Update 2011-002 now in Software Update originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 14 Apr 2011 13:37:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Owners of the iPad/iPad 2, the 3GS & later iPhones (except the Verizon/CDMA iPhone 4), and the 3rd/4th gen iPod touch: fire up iTunes, there’s a Thursday surprise for you. iOS 4.3.2 is now available and adds these features and fixes:

• Fixes an issue that may have caused blank or frozen video during FaceTime calls
• Resolved the problem preventing some international users from connecting to 3G on their iPads
• Includes all the latest and greatest security fixes

If you’re updating today, take a moment to pop into our comments and let us know how it goes for you. The update should fix the roaming issue seen on some VZW iPads.

Update: Looks like Verizon iPhone customers are getting 4.2.7 updates.

iOS 4.3.2 now available for iPhone and iPad, Verizon updated to 4.2.7 originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 14 Apr 2011 13:17:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Each month, Millenial Media issues its Mobile Mix report. It’s full of stats on market share and advertising impressions by mobile device platform. The March report had some upbeat news for Apple in that mobile ad impressions on iOS devices jumped a surprising 11% over the previous month. What was the source of the big increase in impressions? It appeared to be the debut of the iPhone on Verizon’s network.

Android smartphones still lead iOS devices in terms of market share, with the bad robot now accounting for 48% of the market and Apple devices picking up 31%. Advertisers seem to be happier with iOS devices, since Apple’s ad impressions are now growing at 29% month-to-month compared with 23% for Android.

Apple’s iOS platform generated 47% of total revenues from application sales, with Android falling behind at 36%. RIM’s BlackBerry trailed well behind the pack at a paltry 7% of total revenues. Gaming apps led the way for all platforms with 37% of total app sales. The report also shows that touchscreen devices have definitely picked up the love of smartphone buyers, with touchscreen-only devices such as the iPhone making up 59% of the total. By comparison, devices with a full QWERTY keyboard (like the traditional RIM BlackBerry) now account for only 13% of the device mix.

All of these numbers, which are based on Millenial Media’s analysis of mobile advertising by device, point to thriving support for Apple’s iOS platform. Next Wednesday’s Apple Q2 2011 financial call should show similarly positive results. Be sure to join the TUAW staff next Wednesday at 5 PM EDT for live coverage of the quarterly call with financial analysts.

[via Electronista]

iOS gains ad share from Android in March, remains hottest app platform originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 14 Apr 2011 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The PadTab is an iPad mounting system that takes your iPad and lets you mount it to a flat surface without the use of any power tool, screws or hammers. The PadTab is a two-piece solution that uses a high strength adhesive wall mount and a plastic mounting plate for your iPad. For the low cost of $19.95, you get a mounting plate for the iPad and two wall mounts. Additional wall mounts are available for $9.99 each. It is compatible with the iPad, the iPad 2 and select cases such as the Marware Hard Case.

We have not tested this system ourselves, but the idea is interesting. It would be an easy mounting solution to use in the kitchen for recipes and entertainment while you cook or in your workshop so you can follow This Old House while you build your brand new deck. Without using a stand or a stand case, you can keep your valuable counter or workbench space and still have your iPad close by. A win-win situation, no?

[Via ZDNet]

PadTab: inexpensive iPad wall mount originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 14 Apr 2011 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Considering how eerily the 2001: A Space Odyssey version of a tablet newsreader matches the 2011 reality of the iPad, it’s no surprise that the App Store landscape is getting crowded with newsreader options.

Beyond the standalone startups and the gray standards, a whole bunch of RSS-centric tools have made the scene: Flipboard, Early Edition, Pulse and more. Now we can add another reader to the master list: Taptu, a company with a heritage in search technology, has built out the free iPad version of its app to accompany the existing iPhone and Android versions. The app launches today in the App Store.

Taptu’s CEO Mitch Lazar, a veteran of CNN and Yahoo!’s mobile efforts, told me that the experience of building the company’s consumer search product (now discontinued) has informed and supported the newsreader platform that Taptu is aiming to create.

Given a serious search infrastructure, it’s much easier to tackle the problems of story duplication and “what should I read now?” than it would be without that underlying intelligence. Taptu’s recommendation engine will recommend related stories as you read, and it will find feeds and collections that match your interests over time.

Continue reading Taptu for iPad brings blended feeds to newsreader app lineup

Taptu for iPad brings blended feeds to newsreader app lineup originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 14 Apr 2011 11:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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An unusual text string began appearing in the iOS App Store today in the description section of the application. Specifically, the text string ix.Mac.MarketingName appears under the Requirements section and is listed as a supported device. This unusual string appeared shortly after Tweetbot went live and has appeared on different apps throughout the App Store.

Speculation is running rampant as people try to decipher the meaning behind this text string. Is it a placeholder for a new another device or just a glitch in the App Store introduced by some backend update? Some folks think it could be an indication the Apple TV will receive an update to support applications. The Apple TV theory is possible as the streaming media device has 8 GB of on-board storage; some of which may be used for buffering and some for temporary application storage.

The wildest theory reads closely into the syntax and suggests the ix is derived from iOS and OS X and could be an indication Apple is merging features of iOS into Mac OS X. Anyone care to comment on these above theories or offer one of your own?

Update: According to MacStories, the ix.Mac.MarketingName string has been removed from the listings on the App Store.

Odd text string appears in App Store originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 14 Apr 2011 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Formula 1 has always been the pinnacle of the FIA‘s motor racing roster. It’s the most technologically advanced motor racing championship on Earth, with the teams and drivers pushing their cars to the absolute limit every time they hit the track.

Everything on the cars is monitored remotely via a wireless data link; Formula 1 isn’t a solo effort by the racing driver by any stretch of the imagination, it’s most certainly a team game. From sector split times to track position, the amount of G experienced in the corners to the tire pressure and brake temperature, the team monitors it all from the pit lane wall and in the garage.

But what about the fans? How can they get a bigger slice of the data-pie when it comes to the race? That’s where the officially licensed, universal Formula 1 Timing App 2011 for iOS comes in.

Continue reading Official F1 Timing App 2011 for iPhone and iPad, is it worth $33?

Official F1 Timing App 2011 for iPhone and iPad, is it worth $33? originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 14 Apr 2011 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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