Category: I-phone

With all of the great games that have come out this week, you probably have enough to play already, so let’s spotlight an app that can actually help you get some work done. inClass is just such an app. Now’s probably not the best time to talk about it, as we spin down towards finals and holiday break in school. However, if you make a note of this one, maybe install it on that new iPad you get over the holidays, then bring it back to class with you in January, it might help your grades jump up a bit. inClass is a free app that lets you deal with all kinds of schoolwork, from taking notes in class and sharing files around to tracking class schedules and test taking.

inClass was just updated to add some features for high resolution photos and notifications, and the authors of the app are listening closely to feedback and adjusting it as needed. inClass is free with ads for both iPhone and iPad, and getting rid of the ads costs just US$2.99. Again, taking and tracking notes is probably the last thing you want to think about right now as most students head into finals, but don’t forget, even as all of these games come out, just how useful an iOS device can be in the classroom, too.

TUAW’s Daily App: inClass originally appeared on TUAW on Fri, 10 Dec 2010 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Another great day for the patent trolls: Apple has decided to stop throwing good money after bad in its case against OPTi, which has been awarded a US$21.7 million settlement, according to AppleInsider.

AppleInsider explains that the patent was for “predictive snooping” of “memory caches that speed the flow of data between a system’s memory and processor.” I have only a vague idea of what that even means, but apparently OPTi has decided that suing people is better than actually working for a living. AppleInsider says OPTi stopped being a manufacturing business and became a “full time patent-suing operation in 2003.” OPTi’s found a court that is happy to award patent trolls; Apple seems to have decided that enough is enough, and it will be cheaper to just pay OPTi rather than risk additional financial penalties.

It seems like each week we hear of another company that has decided to roll the dice in court to try to make a profit off of an idea, regardless of how obvious an idea it might be, because “they had it first.” I’m no lawyer, and I don’t even play one on TV, but it seems like this sort of thing was almost unheard of even a few years ago. Now it’s commonplace. AppleInsider also noted “Apple has been the most-sued technology company since 2008.” A decade ago you couldn’t read an article about Apple without the word “beleaguered,” but since they’ve turned things around and started to make significant profits, I guess they have a target on their backs.

Apple drops appeal of $21.7 million patent suit against OPTi originally appeared on TUAW on Fri, 10 Dec 2010 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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From time to time, I’m asked to name my favorite Mac app — as if such a designation was even possible (I love you all equally, kids, don’t worry). If you pushed me and narrowed the question a bit to, “Is there a Mac app that you keep coming back to when you have to create something cool in a very short period of time?” the answer is easy. Plasq’s Comic Life is my favorite quick turnaround tool, smile inducer and fun photo mauler.

The $30 app, from the incubator firm of Skitch, is a delightful (if at times a bit busy) way to take your favorite pictures, add quick captions and layouts, and immediately print or share them with a click. I’ve used it for refrigerator magnets, party invites, birth announcements, process documentation and more over the years.

Yesterday Plasq released version 2.0 of Comic Life, which adds template support, Facebook integration, advanced word-balloon controls and more. It’s a $9.95 upgrade for existing users and $19.95 to move to a five-machine family pack. (Note that Comic Life Magiq is $20 more costly; it adds image edit/warp controls and other high-end features, but it isn’t file-compatible with CL2 yet.)

This is the biggest revamp for the core Comic Life product in its five-year history, and it’s fantastic to see one of our favorite indie studios putting out refreshed products right before the Mac App Store hits. There’s a free 30-day trial, so check it out!

Continue reading Comic Life 2 for Mac delivers more thought-balloon fun

Comic Life 2 for Mac delivers more thought-balloon fun originally appeared on TUAW on Fri, 10 Dec 2010 02:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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As we reported earlier, Apple has highlighted the best of iTunes from 2010. Their showcase reveals their picks for the best movies, music, podcasts, audio books and apps for the last 12 months.

For those of you who don’t want to scroll through iTunes’ rather cumbersome app navigation system, BoyGeniusReports has compiled easy to read lists of the top ten iPhone/iPod touch apps in the “free,” “paid” and “grossing” categories, as well as the top ten iPad apps in the same categories. Unsurprisingly, some version of Angry Birds showed up in all but one of the six categories.

Catch the full lists after the break and, once you’ve seen them, tell us in the comments how you think they match your top apps. Did Apple leave any stellar apps out?

Continue reading Apple lists top iPhone, iPad apps of 2010

Apple lists top iPhone, iPad apps of 2010 originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 09 Dec 2010 23:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Worried about losing your iPhone? You aren’t alone. While many people lose their phones, there are a few precautions you can take in advance before it happens to you. Luckily for us, Jason D. O’Grady over at ZDNet recently lost (and found) his iPhone after it went missing for a few days, and he decided to share some of his tips on how to protect your iPhone from loss — and how to get it back if you ever lose yours.

Some of O’Grady’s suggestions are obvious, like enabling Find My iPhone (which we have talked about here before), but there are a few more ideas on his list that may surprise you which you should check out. In addition, our very own TJ Luoma has a few more suggestions to maximize your chances of recovering your iPhone, and Steve Sande learned a few things after losing his iPhone a while back. The important thing is to take these steps before you lose your phone so that in the event of loss you are already prepared to try to get it back.

While I don’t do a ton to protect my own iPhone, I do use passcode lock, and I do a backup of it each and every day, just in case. Losing my phone would be bad, but losing the data on it would be even worse.

Tips for protecting your iPhone from loss originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 09 Dec 2010 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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A patent application filed by Apple in 2009 but just released to the public last week shows that they want to improve on the voice command abilities of the iPhone. As reported by AppleInsider, the patent looks as though it would make voice commands available in individual applications rather than system-wide, narrowing down the possibilities to a chosen few commands and drastically reducing the chances of the iPhone making a mistake.

The patent also mentions allowing third-party apps to make use of voice commands, and that users could be audibly notified of what app they had selected along with a list of corresponding voice commands. This could come in really handy when driving the car or riding a bicycle, when one’s eyes should be on the road and not staring at an iPhone screen.

Now I don’t know about you, but I have never been able to reliably use the voice command feature on my iPhone. The few times I’ve tried to use it, I ended up calling an ex-girlfriend when I meant to call the current one, or I called my grandmother instead of my brother. So any improvements Apple could make to voice command would be more than welcome. I have used other voice command apps like Dragon Dictation and Apple’s recent acquisition Siri, but a context-based voice command system would be a great addition to the iPhone’s abilities.

Patent application suggests contextual voice commands for iPhone originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 09 Dec 2010 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We’ve received a blitz of emails from TUAW readers who have been pulling their hair out about an issue that appeared after they upgraded their iPads to iOS 4.2.1.

As described by lots of users in the Apple support forums, Wi-Fi connectivity slowed dramatically after the upgrade. There seems to be no rhyme or reason to the slowdown, as it is affecting new and older iPads, people using Apple or third-party Wi-Fi routers, and a number of other variables.

Apple doesn’t appear to be acknowledging the problem, much to the extreme frustration of iPad users who are having the problem. On the other hand, it may not necessarily be a widespread problem. A quick survey of TUAW bloggers showed that none of them are seeing the issue, and none of my iPad-toting clients are having the problem (trust me, I’d hear from them).

We’re curious to see what percentage of our readers have seen this problem with their iPads after the late November OS upgrade. Please take our (unscientific) poll and let us know.

View Poll

iPad Wi-Fi issue with iOS 4.2.1 frustrating some, nonexistent for many originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 09 Dec 2010 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Billed as the world’s #1 puzzle game, PopCap’s Bejeweled 3 for Mac is out and ready for download. This new version has 8 different game modes, including Classic Bejeweled, non-stop Lightning, and Zen mode, and it also allows players to collect up to 65 achievement badges and unlock 4 new games as they play. Available for Mac OS X 10.5-10.6.x and later, Bejeweled 3 is priced at US$19.99. A free 60-minute trial of the game is also available for those looking to check it out before buying.

After Angry Birds, Bejeweled 2 is my second favorite time waster game on my iPhone. While the release of Bejeweled 3 for Mac is notable, I myself will be waiting for the iOS release as that’s where I do most of my gaming.

Click Read More to check out a video of Bejeweled 3.

[via Steam]

Continue reading Bejeweled 3 out now for Mac

Bejeweled 3 out now for Mac originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 09 Dec 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple has released an update to Aperture, its popular photo management and editing software. The 3.1.1 update addresses overall stability and performance issues and includes fixes for over 20 bugs, including the following:

• Addresses compatibility with the iLife Media Browser
• Improves reliability when upgrading existing Aperture libraries
• Addresses issues with publishing photos to MobileMe, Facebook and Flickr

Aperture 3.1.1 is 358MB in size and can be downloaded through Software Update or from the web here. Aperture 3.1.1 requires Mac OS X 10.5.8 or 10.6.2 or later. Full release notes can be found in this Apple knowledge base article.

Apple releases Aperture 3.1.1 update originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 09 Dec 2010 17:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Hot on the heels of today’s first leaked iPad 2 case comes the second leaked iPad 2 case (which I’m sure will be followed by a number of “leaked iPad 2 cases” over the next few months). Like the earlier case, this second case features a hole in the upper-left (when viewed from the back) corner. Presumably this hole is where the rear-facing camera will be located.

This second case also features a much larger speaker slot. Of course, that larger speaker slot could turn out to be a combined SD card/speaker slot, or some other type of interface. Chinese manufacturers have a pretty good track record for building cases early, so while, of course, this should all be taken with a grain of salt, it’s just more evidence that we’ll see another iPad soon.

Yet another “iPad 2” case surfaces originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 09 Dec 2010 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Remember that cool little avatar (picture at right) that I had made by Sculpteo? It’s a great example of the work that the 3D printing service provider is doing for people around the world. Sculpteo is using the avatars as a unique way to get the word out about 3D printing, and they’d like one lucky TUAW reader to get the chance to make an avatar of his- or herself, or to give the Christmas gift of an avatar to a friend.

Mac users can create 3D creations either using standard CAD software such as AutoCAD for Mac or free solutions like Google Sketchup, and then upload the files to Sculpteo for printing. Whether you’re planning on creating art, a mockup of a new product, or just fascinated with the concept of 3D printing, the service is worth looking into.

To enter the giveaway, just leave a comment telling us who you’d like to make an avatar of — yourself, a relative, or friend. If you’re the winner, we’ll get you in touch with the right people so you can send the necessary photos for that extra touch of realism. Here are the rules:

• Open to legal US residents of the 50 United States, the District of Columbia and Canada (excluding Quebec) who are 18 and older.
• To enter, leave a comment telling us who you’d like to ‘avatarize.’
• The comment must be left before midnight on Sunday, December 12, 2010, 11:59PM Eastern Standard Time.
• You may enter only once.
• One winner will be selected at random from the entries and will receive a customized avatar from Sculpteo valued at US$74.90.
• Click Here for complete Official Rules.

3D printing provider Sculpteo and TUAW want to give you… yourself originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 09 Dec 2010 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Popular ice cream chain Ben & Jerry’s is giving away a set of pretty awesome iPhone cases — but only in Singapore. Customers in that country will be able to trade in four carton tops to stores there and pick up one of 5,000 completely free iPhone covers. You can see what the covers look like above — there are twelve shops involved in the promotion, and each one of those shops also has one limited edition cover each to give away to an extra lucky customer.

As for why this is only available in Singapore, you can probably guess — Ben & Jerry’s could probably use the exposure there, and of course, the iPhone is hotter than ever in Asian markets at the moment. A similar promotion here in the US would cost a lot more and be a lot more trouble to carry out. But that is a nice-looking case. Hopefully we’ll see someone give away some nice cases here in the West as well.

Ben & Jerry’s stores in Singapore giving away free iPhone cases originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 09 Dec 2010 16:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Pay attention, nostalgia fans. iAmiga is a soon-to-be-released Amiga 500 emulator for the iPhone. It’s from Manomio, the same group that released the C64 emulator that was pulled from the App Store, only to return minus a pesky BASIC interpreter.

Way back in April, we saw a tech demo of the iOS Amiga emulator, and now Touch Arcade has a first look at the real deal. From what they’ve seen (you can watch a demo video after the break), it looks great. They report dead-on graphics and sound, smooth gameplay and faithful interpretation of several titles.

Manomio has pulled it off by using tuned ARM assembly language. Note that the app will only support the iPhone 3GS and iPhone 4, or the iPod touch 3rd generation and up, so those with older devices are out of luck.

The folks at Manomio say that they’re working with several developers to secure licenses for their emulator. In the demo video, you’ll see Defender of the Crown, Battle Squadron, International Karate +, R-Type, R-Type II, Speedball, Stunt Car Racer, Shadow of the Beast, Virus and Xenon 2: Megablast. Of course, there’s no assurance that any of those titles will make it into the final product.

Right now there’s no solid release date or similar information, so we’ll keep you posted. This one looks like a lot of fun.

Continue reading iAmiga Amiga 500 emulation system coming to iPhone

iAmiga Amiga 500 emulation system coming to iPhone originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 09 Dec 2010 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Dealmac pointed out yesterday that Apple has cut the prices on several refurbished models of the iPad. The Apple Store warns in red print that this is a Special Limited Time Price, which means now is the time to spread the news among your friends. There’s no catch in this bargain; the shipping on these refurbished iPads is free, so you won’t find yourself losing out on delivery cost.

The new prices are available for the Wi-Fi only version of the iPad; the price cuts don’t extend to refurbished iPad 3Gs. The 16GB version is now $429, down $20 from the original $449. The 32GB and 64GB versions each have a $50 dollar additional discount, however, going from $549 and $649 down to $499 and $599 respectively.

These prices make the refurbished iPad an even better deal for people who haven’t been sure whether to commit to the device. If you’ve been waiting for a sign to buy-in and go iPad, this is probably the best cue you can find.

iPad deals: Apple Store refurbs drop prices originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 09 Dec 2010 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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