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Facebook has updated its popular iOS app today. The 3.4 version of the app adds several new features, the foremost of which lets you unfriend people right from your iPhone. Besides making it easier to get rid of those annoying “friends,” the updated app also features a new map view for places, the ability to check in to Events that you’re attending, an improved News Feed, and an improved notifications UI.

I was also going to include a screen shot of the new map view in Places, but at of the time of this writing the Facebook app keeps crashing when I try to view the map.

For those of you holding out hope that each new Facebook app updated might bring universal compatibility to the app, you’re going to have to hope a little longer as Facebook shows no signs of bringing an iPad app to market in the near future.

[via MacStories]

Facebook app is updated; now you can unfriend while mobile originally appeared on TUAW on Mon, 04 Apr 2011 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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AViiQ is an accessories manufacturer that loves to do things with aluminum. TUAW reviewed the AViiQ Portable Laptop Stand last October, which is a slender folding wedge of thin aluminum that props up your laptop and takes up little or no space in your bag. Now the company is putting some of that design and manufacturing expertise to use with a new iPad 2 product.

The AViiQ Smart Case for iPad 2 (US$49.99) is now available for pre-order and looks like a winner. Unlike the Yoobao Products Executive Leather folio case reviewed by TUAW’s Mel Martin yesterday, the AViiQ Smart Case is meant to complement the iPad 2 and Smart Cover, not hide it.

The case is made of 1.5 mm thick anodized aluminum in all the right spots to provide the ultimate in strong protection, while using other materials where necessary to keep the Smart Case transparent for wireless access. It comes in colors that precisely match Apple’s Smart Covers, or you could mix up the colors for an extra impact.

AViiQ offers a 30-day money back guarantee on their products, so if you don’t like the case you can get a full refund. Knowing the quality build on their other products, I don’t think you’ll be returning the Smart Case. We’ll have a full hands-on review later this month.

AViiQ Smart Case for iPad 2 works with your Smart Cover originally appeared on TUAW on Mon, 04 Apr 2011 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Despite a few objections after Apple announced its subscription setup for iOS apps, the service is underway — developers and publishers can sell content subscriptions through the App Store, and of course Apple gets a 30% cut. One publisher is still holding out: the UK’s Financial Times still hopes to sell its own subscriptions on the iPad, without giving Apple its due. The publisher already has 590k subscribers on its website, and is reportedly in negotiations with Apple right now to keep all of those for itself rather than sharing any part of them with Apple.

We’ll have to wish them good luck with that as it seems unlikely that Apple would allow separate solutions into the App Store for different publications, not to mention any solutions that don’t include Apple getting its cut. Plus, the more publications that do agree to Apple’s terms just creates a stronger “negotiating” position for sites like Financial Times to contend with. FT may come up with some sort of deal on their own, but as far as I can tell, Apple has no reason to back down from its subscription plans.

[via electronista]

Financial Times hopes to avoid iTunes subscription rules originally appeared on TUAW on Mon, 04 Apr 2011 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We all know that Apple’s GarageBand for iPad 2 makes it incredibly easy for anyone to make and record music. Now The Ultramods have gone and created an entire album using the 8-track recording capability of GarageBand.

Most of the songs on the album Underwear Party (iTunes Store link) are NSFW, including one appropriately titled “NSFW.” According to the band’s website, they specialize in “pervy pop punk and technologically obsessed new wave.” The group, made up of musicians Bunny and Coco Ultramod, used only the instruments included in the iPad app to record the dozen tunes on the album.

The Ultramod’s manifesto is “fast, cheap, and out-of-control” and you’ve got to love their thinking even if you hate their music: “Here’s an iPad, here’s an Internet connection. Now make an album.”

Note to readers: I’ll be off the site for the next few days, recording my first album.

Just kidding.

[via The Loop]

The Ultramods record entire album in GarageBand for iPad originally appeared on TUAW on Mon, 04 Apr 2011 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Two filings published by the European Trademark Office last week suggest the battle for the term “App Store” will expand to new product categories and new turf. Patently Apple reports that the first request from Apple, filed on March 30, expands the use of the term “App Store” from four international classes to ten. The second application, filed on March 31, covers the App Store graphic much like the image pictured here.

Apple submitted its trademark applications in Europe as Microsoft filed its second objection to Apple’s registration for the term “App Store” with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Apple also recently filed a lawsuit against retail giant Amazon for naming its new mobile software marketplace “Appstore.” Microsoft, Amazon, and other software makers may now face similar challenges using the words “App Store” in European markets.

Aside from renewing its duels with Microsoft and Amazon on a new continent, Apple’s latest filings in Europe expand the “App Store” trademark into six new product categories like games, electronic publications, educational products, and hardware. Notably, one of the new product classes — International Class 36 for those keeping score — refers to financial affairs, credit card services, debit card services, home banking and various methods for conducting electronic transactions. Patently Apple observes this class of products goes beyond typical online transactions for buying apps and music. Could Apple’s attempt to expand its “App Store” trademark into financial products hint at new electronic wallet services tied to its mobile devices?

Both of Apple’s new trademark applications for the term “App Store” and the associated graphic are currently marked as “under examination” by the European Trademark Office.

Apple expands App Store trademark in Europe originally appeared on TUAW on Mon, 04 Apr 2011 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Welcome to Ask TUAW, your favorite weekly question-and-answer column. Now, we can never have too many questions, so please, go to the comments of this post and ask away. To get fabulous answers, we need your fabulous questions. You can also email your questions directly to ask [at] tuaw.com, or ping us on Twitter.

Now, off to the questions!

David asks:

Why doesn’t Apple let me replace the battery myself in any of its current products?

Continue reading Ask TUAW: Apple pricing, which cat is which, and laptop batteries you can’t replace

Ask TUAW: Apple pricing, which cat is which, and laptop batteries you can’t replace originally appeared on TUAW on Mon, 04 Apr 2011 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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NBC’s San Diego affiliate is reporting that an early-morning attempted theft at the Apple Store at Otay Ranch Town Center turned deadly when one of the alleged participants in the smash-and-grab attempt was shot and killed by a security guard.

Police told the TV station that the incident occurred right before 7 am Pacific Time this morning, before the store was open. The store manager was already working inside the store when three suspects smashed the glass doors at the front of the store; they were confronted by the guard. The guard told police that the exchange of fire began when one of the suspects produced a handgun.

The three would-be robbers crashed their car nearby in an attempt to escape. One male suspect was shot and killed by the guard; the other two suspects, a man and a woman, were arrested shortly afterward in a nearby residential area. Store employees identified the surviving suspects as the same people who had attempted to break into the store.

Apple stores that maintain storefronts on public-access streets, unlike those within enclosed malls, are frequently subject to glass-break theft. In 2009, an employee at the Clarendon store in the Washington, DC suburbs was shot and injured during a robbery attempt.

Attempts to reach the Otay Ranch store by telephone were unsuccessful.

Thanks to Lee for the heads-up.

Shooting at Apple Store in San Diego leaves one robbery suspect dead originally appeared on TUAW on Mon, 04 Apr 2011 13:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Analyst Mark Moskowitz with J.P. Morgan predicts the MacBook Air will be a $2.2 billion cash cow for Apple in 2011. The MacBook Air exploded onto the scene in late 2010 with a smaller form factor and a reasonable base price. Moskowitz notes that Apple sold 420,000 units in the last few months of 2010, a 333 percent year-over-year increase. The diminutive MacBook Air accounted for ten percent of total Mac units sold and 15 percent of its notebook sales.

Supply chain estimates suggest the MacBook Air continues to be a strong performer for Apple in 2011. Sources suggest Apple has doubled its February orders for the MacBook Air in response to unexpectedly strong demand. If Apple is able to maintain this level of demand and keep its base price at $1000, Apple can easily beat analysts early sales estimates and accrue $2.2 billion in revenue from this small but sweet notebook.

MacBook Air projected to earn $2.2 billion per year originally appeared on TUAW on Mon, 04 Apr 2011 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mobile phone carriers have always had early upgrade pricing. In other words, if you purchase a phone with a two-year contract but want to get a newer model after a year, you generally pay a surcharge to do so.

Over the weekend, AT&T quietly raised its early upgrade pricing by US$50 across the board. In a memo to store employees outed on Android Central, iPhone early upgrade pricing jumped from $249 to $299 for an 8 GB iPhone 3GS, from $399 to $449 for a 16 GB iPhone 4, and from $499 to $549 for a 32 GB iPhone 4.

AT&T isn’t just picking on iPhones, though — the increase is for all smartphones. For no commitment and one year commitment pricing, iPhones are exempt from AT&T’s pricing gun. No commitment pricing for other smartphones will go up $50, while making a one year commitment to another smartphone will cost a whopping $150 more. iPhone prices for no commitment or one year commitments remain the same, giving Apple’s device a bit of a price advantage over competing (i.e., Android) smartphones on short commitment deals.

[via Electronista]

AT&T hikes early upgrade prices originally appeared on TUAW on Mon, 04 Apr 2011 12:07:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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iPad 2 owners have one cool feature that can’t be replicated on the original iPad — the ability to mirror everything that’s on the screen onto another display. Or should I say “had one cool feature,” since 18 year-old Belgian student Ian Bauters has figured out a hack that enables video mirroring on a jailbroken original iPad.

As with the video mirroring on the iPad 2, this works with both the Apple VGA Adapter and the Digital AV (HDMI) Adapter. Bauters notes that despite the original iPad having less RAM and a less-capable CPU, he hasn’t seen any issues with the mirroring hack he developed.

There’s a video that shows the mirroring in action on the next page, and you can get full step-by-step instructions on how to enable this feature from the Nature’s Eye Studio website. Remember kids, jailbreaking is legal and awesome — but it is done at your own risk.

[via MacStories]

Continue reading Video mirroring on the original iPad

Video mirroring on the original iPad originally appeared on TUAW on Mon, 04 Apr 2011 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The iPhone dev team released the latest version of its PwnageTool for iOS 4.3.1. Thanks to the work of Stefan Esser, both the PwnageTool and redsn0w now provide an untethered jailbreak for this latest version of iOS. This untethered jailbreak is compatible with all 4.3.1 devices except for the iPad 2 which is not susceptible to either the limera1n or SHAtter bootrom exploits.

If you own an iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4 (GSM), iPod touch 3G, iPod touch 4G, iPad 1G, or AppleTV 2G (PwnageTool only), then head over to the dev team’s blog and download the tools to jailbreak your iOS device.

As always follow the directions carefully and heed their warning about unlocking. If you use ultrasn0w for unlocking, you may have to pass on this jailbreak until the team updates the unlock tool to support 4.3.1.

[Via BGR]

iOS 4.3.1 jailbreak available, but not for iPad 2 originally appeared on TUAW on Mon, 04 Apr 2011 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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A friend was looking to replace her wireless router, and I suggested a refurbished AirPort Extreme. New units sell for around US$180, but refurbished models from Apple are $130. Still, that’s significantly more expensive than the average Linksys router you’ll find at Walmart or Best Buy. Is it worth it?

There’s no scientific answer to that question, and reasonable people can disagree, but I will share my experiences and my decisions. First, I don’t claim that my knowledge is exhaustive of all makes and models. I have used several Linksys models (including some with DD-WRT), a few Netgear models, and a few Belkin ones. I have also used AirPort Extreme units since the days when they looked like spaceships. In every case, the non-Apple hardware ended up being replaced with Apple hardware. The only thing that ever replaced Apple hardware was newer Apple hardware, not because the older model had worn out or stopped working, but because newer models came with new features.

I have found two main differences between Apple and non-Apple hardware: stability and features. Stability means I don’t worry about it locking up, becoming unresponsive, or simply ceasing to work until I unplug it. While I routinely had to make sure to keep a paperclip next to the other routers, the only time I do a full reset on my AirPort equipment is when I move it to a new location and want to start with a clean slate. It’s hard to overemphasize this point, especially if you’re putting this somewhere difficult to access. So far my favorite installation place for a more reliable AirPort Extreme has been at my mom’s house, which has eliminated phone calls from her telling me that she can’t get online because “the Internet is down.”

After stability comes several important features, each of which are important to me and add to the AirPort Extreme’s value.

Continue reading Is the AirPort Extreme worth the price?

Is the AirPort Extreme worth the price? originally appeared on TUAW on Mon, 04 Apr 2011 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Henry Blodget at Business Insider has posted about Comscore’s latest smartphone market share survey: “Apple’s share increased slightly, but is dead in the water and has now fallen way behind Android. Android now has a third of the US market (33%). RIM’s share has plummeted to 29%. Apple is holding at 25%.” The Android market share figure for the quarter before, Sep-Nov 2010, was just 25%, so it certainly shows a sharp increase.

Blodget’s article is incredibly linkbaity from start to end, but the underlying Comscore data is interesting nevertheless. Should “Apple fans should be scared to death” as Blodget surmises, though? His contention is that, with a higher (and growing) market share, app developers will soon come to prefer Android as their main platform and iOS will gradually whither away as it becomes more and more of an afterthought. Although not impossible, I’d suggest this is quite unlikely and (even if Blodget is correct and the mobile market will converge onto a single OS) it is far, far too soon to say which OS that will be.

Firstly, consider that despite Android’s rising market share Apple owned 83% of all mobile transactions in 2010. This has led many to suggest that Android users simply don’t like paying for apps, which might be true; there are many mid-range Android handsets marketed at cost-conscious consumers, whereas the iPhone is a resolutely expensive device. Google, as an advertising-driven firm, would also perhaps prefer to have an app store full of free apps that show their adverts than one full of premium apps.

Continue reading “iPhone dead in water”, claims Business Insider

“iPhone dead in water”, claims Business Insider originally appeared on TUAW on Mon, 04 Apr 2011 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Forget-Me-Not is an impressive retro game. It’s like Pac-Man, but that’s just a way of characterizing the mechanics rather than the actual gameplay. Essentially, you run a little guy around a random Pac-Man style map, but instead of just eating pellets, you’re also shooting and trying to collect a key that will eventually lead you out of each level. There are “ghosts” chasing you, but you can shoot them down or “grind” on the walls to build up some power and take them out. Charged up “ghosts” can also explode, which can actually change the shape and layout of the little map.

The little retro bleeps and bloops and simple graphics make the experience enjoyable and simple, at least until you get to the really big maps and things get chaotic. There are three different modes, Game Center integration and a “multiplayer” mode where two people can play the same game on the same screen. Forget-Me-Not is currently US$1.99 for a universal version. It’s definitely a must-see title, especially for fans of retro-styled games.

TUAW’s Daily App: Forget-Me-Not originally appeared on TUAW on Mon, 04 Apr 2011 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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With all the rumors that iOS 5 is going to be a major revamp, including features like digital lockers, cloud storage and AI voice control, the next version of Apple’s iPhone and iPad operating system is sure to knock our socks off. It may even include things we never knew we always needed. However, here are five of my humble wishes for iOS 5:

1. Notifications: Everyone knows notifications need a major overhaul in the next iOS. They really haven’t been tweaked since iOS launched in 2007. While the iPhone is arguably the best smartphone on the market, its notification system is perhaps the worst of all. There are plenty of ways Apple could go with a notification redesign, but I’m hoping at the very least it includes a new lock screen featuring notifications (with the ability to disable them on the lock screen for privacy purposes), then use the very valuable screen real estate, which is currently entirely dedicated to Spotlight searching. There is so much space on that screen, Apple can easily divide it up between a notifications center and Spotlight search.

2. Weather app: This is probably not on anyone’s list but mine, but I want to see a feature-added Weather app. I’m not even talking about any advanced stuff; all I really want is to be able to rotate the iPhone into landscape mode while in the Weather app and see an hourly forecast. Like notifications, the Weather app hasn’t changed since the first version of iOS, and I don’t think asking for an hourly breakdown is beyond Apple’s technological skills. It would also be nice for the Weather app to be location aware, with one default weather screen always showing your current location’s weather.

Continue reading 5 things I want to see in iOS 5

5 things I want to see in iOS 5 originally appeared on TUAW on Mon, 04 Apr 2011 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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