Category: I-phone

If there’s anything I love to read, it’s analysis of the commonplace items in our lives by physicists, engineers, and mathematicians. That’s why I was attracted to a recent Wired Dot Physics post by physicist Rhett Allain in which he did a Tracker video analysis of the most important characters in Angry Birds — the birds.

By using the official Angry Birds walkthrough videos on YouTube with Tracker, Allain was able to determine several important factors — that the birds exist in a drag-free world (no air resistance), that the sling shot is huge (5 meters — 16 feet) tall, and the birds are good-sized as well. Y’know that little red bird? He’s about 70 cm (27.6 inches) tall. That’s a big bird!

To see how Allain used Tracker to plot the horizontal and vertical motion of the birds in flight, follow his analysis, and review his assumptions, be sure check out the original post.

TUAWMore info about the physics of Angry Birds than you need to know originally appeared on TUAW on Tue, 12 Oct 2010 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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A few weeks ago on TUAW TV Live, my guest Sam Levin of AppMinute podcast fame showed off an iPad stand that he was excited about — the PropUp (US$24.95). At first I thought he was waving some sort of Nerf flying toy around, but then he showed me how it worked and I was impressed.

As you can see in the video after the break, the PropUp is made of a black flexible open cell foam material and has little “bumpers” in the corners that hold the iPad in place. What’s great about the material that is used in the PropUp is that you can take an iPad dressed in many of the sleeves and cases that are available on the market, and the PropUp flexes just enough that you can use it without removing the iPad case. I was able to take my wife’s iPad, which lives in the standard Apple case, and use it with the PropUp.

Where the PropUp really excels is in holding the screen up while you’re sitting in a chair. You can put the PropUp and iPad into your lap, and it’s just at the right angle for viewing. Due to the size of the iPad, the PropUp won’t stand up unassisted when the iPad is in portrait orientation, but it works amazingly well in landscape mode. It can also serve as good screen protection in transit — simply turn the iPad around and face it towards the center of the PropUp, and you now have almost two inches of foam and an inch of air protecting the screen.

We’re giving away one PropUp iPad stand, so click the Read More link to find out how to enter our giveaway.

TUAWRockin’ and rollin’ with the PropUp iPad stand originally appeared on TUAW on Tue, 12 Oct 2010 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Earlier today, Keith reported that Delicious Library developer Wil Shipley had barcode scanning on his radar as a future iteration for the late, lamented iPhone version of the popular catalog app. Lo and behold, within a few hours the newest update to the Amazon Mobile app hit the store — featuring, you guessed it, barcode scanning.

With the new 1.2.8 version of the free app, and an iPhone 4 or 3GS running iOS 4.x, you can quickly scan a product barcode to search Amazon’s catalog for matching items. The scanning screen offers a handy bracketing guide to show you where to position your product, and once you get the hang of it the scanning is very quick.

I tested the barcode scan on three products I had lying about — a Griffin Motif case for the iPhone 4, a Flip Mino box, and a James Patterson novel — and the app identified the product each time without trouble. You could use the Amazon Remembers feature of the app to snap a picture of the cover instead, or use Google Goggles / Noogle Noggles to search by the barcode, but if you’re used to working in the Amazon app for product searches this feature is a win.

Amazon barcode scanning is a trifle faster than either of the Goggles apps, and more streamlined from a user interaction perspective as well. Since Amazon’s tool is only looking for an in-focus barcode it doesn’t need the camera button; that saves a tap and an awkward product-hand-iPhone alignment dance. (Only Noogle Noggles, from Delicious Monster, supports the camera-equipped iPod touch at this time.)

Search on!

Thanks Jacob for the heads up!

TUAWAmazon’s iPhone app gets barcode scanning update originally appeared on TUAW on Tue, 12 Oct 2010 20:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It’s been interesting watching the evolution of electronic magazines as they adapt to a changing world where digital delivery slowly replaces more traditional methods of distribution. Clearly all the kinks aren’t worked out yet (witness the Adobe security issue that’s led to free magazines and newspapers for some iPad users) but change is on the march.

Esquire has released a US $4.99 issue that is fun to read and great to look at. Esquire first appeared way back in 1932 when the US was in a depression. People were searching for something diverting, and the glossy magazine pointed to a lifestyle many could only dream about.

I’ve been reading and examining this new issue for a couple of days and I pretty much like what I see. There is an innovative ‘moving cover’ including a welcome to the issue with actor Javier Bardem. There are articles about fashion with 360 degree views of clothing, and there are videos, charts and the kinds of illustrations that have made the Esquire print edition famous for years.

TUAWEsquire Magazine comes to the iPad in style originally appeared on TUAW on Tue, 12 Oct 2010 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We’ve posted about GameSalad here before — the company offers up a third-party development and publishing solution that allows anyone, even non-coders, to jump into the GS SDK, make a game, and then quickly publish it out to the web or platforms like Apple’s App Store. The company has been narrowing its focus recently after a round of funding — last week at GDC, it announced that the Gendai Games brand was no more, and instead it would be consolidating everything under the name “GameSalad.”

This week GameSalad continued in that focus with a service called GameSalad Direct. Previously, developers could pay a fee to simply remove GameSalad’s branding from apps created with the software, and sell those apps on the App Store under their own Apple developer accounts. That will still work for GameSalad developers for now, but when those accounts expire, everything will move to GameSalad Direct, which instead will either be free for devs publishing free games, or part of a revenue share for publishers wanting to sell paid apps.

That means GameSalad game devs won’t use their own Apple accounts any more — presumably, everything created by GameSalad in the store will need to be published under the GameSalad banner. That has raised some hackles on GameSalad’s forums, and Apple might not be too happy with it either (since if developers do sign with GameSalad, that’s potentially a lost developer connection). We’ve contacted GameSalad to get some more information on the change and an official perspective on the reaction to the news.

TUAWGameSalad announces GameSalad Direct, publishing model outside of Apple’s dev program originally appeared on TUAW on Tue, 12 Oct 2010 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Motorola is the latest company to file a patent lawsuit against Apple, suggesting in court that Apple has infringed on proprietary Motorola technologies in its mobile devices. Motorola itself filed papers about 18 different infringements. Its subsidiary Motorola Mobility Inc filed three more, as well as a trade complaint regarding technologies including a system to distribute message traffic and various systems like that.

Truth be told, this is all pretty esoteric — Microsoft just recently sued Motorola for the same type of thing, and technology patents are often so vague and far-reaching that I suspect none of this is ever meant to actually reach court. Apple’s lawyers will determine what the settlement should be (and Apple will probably pay it), and Motorola might even use that money to pay off Microsoft. It’s possible that this could blow up into a bigger argument (depending on what Motorola wants to get out of this), but at this point, it all just seems more like corporate posturing than anything else.

So instead, let’s all take this time to remember Motorola and Apple’s disastrous collaboration, the Rokr, and what a mess all of that was. Man, it’s hard to believe just how terrible cell phones were before the iPhone came along.

[via Slashdot]

TUAWMotorola sues Apple for 18 alleged patent infringements originally appeared on TUAW on Tue, 12 Oct 2010 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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I’m always on the lookout for solid family-friendly applications. I particularly appreciate titles that aren’t specifically made for children but that nonetheless engage and entertain. The following list is made up of kid-tested & approved iOS applications.

None of these apps are child-specific; in fact, many of them are marketed towards adults. And yet, all of these applications deliver long-term entertainment value for what will likely be an appreciative audience. So don’t let your purchases be hobbled by a lack of kid-friendly marketing. These apps provide great family fun.

TUAW5 more great family-friendly iOS apps originally appeared on TUAW on Tue, 12 Oct 2010 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The brand-new documentary series Bloomberg Game Changers will air its second episode on Thursday, October 14th at 9:00 PM ET with Steve Jobs as the subject. It will feature interviews with a who’s who from Apple’s history, including Steve Wozniak, John Scully, Robert X. Cringley and Guy Kawasaki. Additionally, Dreamworks CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg and Michael Moritz will appear.

The hour-long special will follow Steve’s career from the infamous garage to the release of the iPad and everything in between.

The first episode in the series featured Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg and was very well done. Be sure to check it out episode two on Thursday, even if you think you know the story.

You can watch a teaser video after the break.

TUAWBloomberg Game Changers to feature segment on Steve Jobs originally appeared on TUAW on Tue, 12 Oct 2010 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Once upon a time, Delicious Library was available for the iPhone, and it was quickly yanked from the App Store due to infringing upon Amazon’s API TOS. I learned all of this after recently purchasing the fantastic OS X application, and then wondering why it didn’t have an accompanying iPhone app. So, over a year since the app was pulled, I had to ask the folks at Delicious Monster what was up — would it be coming back, somehow?

The answer I got back wasn’t all that promising. Since Delicious Library still makes use of the Amazon API, it’s still infringing upon Amazon’s API rules if it goes on a mobile device. However, there’s nothing stopping the OS X application from doing what it does. So, I asked, why not marry the two together?

Delicious Library has the ability to make use of Bluetooth-enabled scanners to read barcodes, and since the iPhone’s camera is perfectly capable of reading the same barcodes, couldn’t it be used as a scanner interface to Delicious Library? Heck, Apple seems to be loosening their restrictions regarding Bluetooth.

“That’s an idea we’re actively exploring, as it wouldn’t upset Amazon’s terms of service, and it’d be cool,” Chief Delicious Monster Wil Shipley told me last month. “But we have nothing to announce at this time, except our next product is not going to be this.”

The next product he was talking about was most likely the recently announced Google Googles client, Noogle Noggles. So, could a scanner-centric Delicious Library iPhone app be next? It certainly seems plausible.

TUAWDelicious Library may regain iPhone support… sort of originally appeared on TUAW on Tue, 12 Oct 2010 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Fortune is suggesting that Apple could have sold as many as four million Macs this quarter, which would be pretty astounding. PC sales in general have been down lately, but the Mac seems to be immune, still selling like hotcakes. Hitting the four million mark in the last quarter of 2010 would be a record for Mac sales, and that’s huge, especially when most of the focus on Apple (even from the company) has been on “mobile devices.”

In fact, Fortune suggests that those devices may have had an effect on the numbers — customers coming in to the stores to look at or buy iPhones and iPads may have walked out with either new Macs, or just a better impression of the computers. Back-to-school sales were also very important for the company, and that late July refresh didn’t hurt either.

Even if Apple didn’t break the 4m mark, it’s very likely that this will be an outstanding year for Apple’s desktop and laptop sales anyway. We’ll know more next week — Apple’s 4th quarter earnings call takes place on the 18th, and we’ll be listening live to see what they say.

Edit: A previous version of this post cited 4m as the total for 2010. It’s only the total for the 4th quarter of this financial year.

TUAWApple may have sold 4 million Macs in Q4 2010 originally appeared on TUAW on Tue, 12 Oct 2010 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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In a recent interview with Drowned in Sound, former Nine Inch Nails front man Trent Reznor discussed the Social Network soundtrack and exactly why Mark Zuckerberg is no Steve Jobs.

Reznor is currently promoting the soundtrack he recorded for The Social Network, otherwise known as “the Facebook movie.” In the interview, Trent describes why he’s not a fan of Facebook; specifically, the license that it and similar services seem to give users to exaggerate themselves, saying, “I’ve seen that with people I know in real life, and I check them out online, it’s not always the same person.”

He also goes on to describe the media’s current fascination with Zuckerberg and compares it to another famous tech company CEO: “When I see the media heralding Zuckerberg, putting him up on a pedestal of genius and mentioned in the same breathe as Steve Jobs, I’m highly degree [sic] with that. He was in the right place, at the right time, with a functional tool.”

Reznor has long been an Apple fan. Five years ago, he released the Nine Inch Nails songs The Hand That Feeds and Only as GarageBand files, and he’s used Apple software to record both music and recent tours. However, he went on a tirade when the Nine Inch Nails app was ejected from the App Store in 2009.

TUAWTrent Reznor: Mark Zuckerberg is no Steve Jobs originally appeared on TUAW on Tue, 12 Oct 2010 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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In the battle for viewer eyes, Apple appears to be making some huge strides. How huge? Well, ad group Flurry says that socially aware iOS apps now have a larger audience share than some of the top TV shows.

Flurry estimated that 19 million iOS device owners are connecting for more than 22 minutes — the length of an average prime-time TV show, minus ads. That puts iOS viewing on a par with such popular shows as ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars” and NBC’s Sunday Night Football.

Researchers at Flurry say that their study is simply an extrapolation, since only about 50,000 of the total 250,000+ apps in the App Store contain Flurry components. There are other ad platforms used in some wildly popular iOS apps, so the total number of viewers / users could top even the highest-rated TV shows such as American Idol.

The point of the Flurry research seems to be that advertisers should take heed of mobile apps and spend more of their advertising budgets in that market, since that is where the eyes are moving. When you consider that the App Store has only been around for a little over two years and iOS apps are already competing with the decades-old entrenched television ad market, it’s a sign that some very big changes are in store for the advertising industry.

TUAWiOS social apps attracting more eyes than top TV shows originally appeared on TUAW on Tue, 12 Oct 2010 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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For those of us who are Apple fanatics, we’ve had a feeling that the iPad was popular. Whether it’s seeing the devices pop out all over the plane on an airline flight, or having to give hundreds of demos of the iPad on a cruise ship, it’s apparent that Apple’s tablet is still a hot item.

Now it’s officially the fastest-selling tech device in history. According to Bernstein Research financial analyst Colin McGranahan, the iPad has now sold an estimate 8.5 million units and is a “runaway success of unprecedented proportion.” In an article in Information Week, writer Paul McDougall also notes that the iPad is starting to have a measurable effect on PC sales. A recent research study by NPD found that 13% of iPad users would have purchased a PC if they hadn’t been able to buy an iPad.

Coupled with the recent start of iPad sales at U.S. mega-retailers Target and Walmart, the device is sure to break many more records over the holiday buying season.

TUAWIt’s official: iPad now the all-time fastest-selling gadget originally appeared on TUAW on Tue, 12 Oct 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple has published official Ping usage guidelines for artists which describe exactly how to create an artist profile and begin posting content.

According to the guidelines [PDF], artists are encouraged to hold off on creating a profile until they have several posts ready to go, because “Fans will be far more likely to follow you if they can tell that your profile is active.” I agree with Apple there. Additionally, artists are encouraged to submit videos (2GB max), as long as they’re in .mov, .m4v or .mp4 formats. Apple also suggests that artists create videos with iPhones whenever possible.

Apple also lists what’s not allowed on an artist profile, including “…pornography, hate speech, racism, nudity or drug use.”

Most of the artists I follow are relatively quiet, with notable exceptions like Jack Johnson. Some users have panned Ping, but I’ve found the 10.0.1 iTunes update to make it much more enjoyable.

TUAWApple publishes Ping guidelines for artists originally appeared on TUAW on Tue, 12 Oct 2010 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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