Apple’s Black Friday Sales Begin Around the World

Apple's Black Friday sales have begun around the world in their New Zealand store and Australia stores. The sales show modest discounts similar to previous years.

The only Macs that are on sale include the iMac and the MacBoo...

UK Government Pulls Another iPhone 3G Ad

We already told you about the UK banning Apple’s “just the internet” ad, and why they were wrong. Well, the BBC is reporting yet another Apple iPhone 3G television ad has just been yanked off the UK airwaves by the British government’s advertising standards watchdog group. Why? For exaggerating the iPhone 3G’s speed.

The advert boasted the new 3G model was “really fast” and showed it loading internet pages in under a second. The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) upheld complaints by 17 people who said the TV advert had misled them as to its speed.

Seriously? I would love to meet the 17 people who complained that the speed of the iPhone 3G did not match the above commercial. [Ed- ladies and gentlemen, Paul Thurrott!] I understand that the phone is nowhere near being that fast but do they not realize that is a 30 second advertisement displaying the top features of the iPhone 3G. Maybe I am crazy but I like to think I have the common sense to know the difference between a 30 advertisement and reality.

Well if you are like me, you’d want to get some insight from at least one of the 17 people who complained, then let me introduce you to a man named Roger Browning. It seems he did not have anything better to do with his time but to get “revenge” for having his own iPhone 3G stolen. Yes, you heard me correctly, “revenge”. Be sure to check out the link to read his story.

Sound off in the comments, we are curious to see what our readers have to say about this!

[Via BBC News]

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

UK Government Pulls Another iPhone 3G Ad

Keepin’ it real fake, part CLXIX: the iPhone gets flipped

What would you get if you combined an iPhone, a unibody Macbook, a strobe light out of a smoky, drugged-out disco, and a shelter from pesky copyright infringement? We guess you'd get something like this, the creatively-named "iPhone V126" that you'll find floating around the streets of Shenzen these days. The QVGA display shows off a reasonably faithful reproduction of the iPhone's UI (for a non-touch device, anyway), but the similarities end there considering that you're going all the way down to a useless VGA cam paired with an Apple logo on the front cover that emanates entrancing pulses of searing white light every time you get a call. We'll take two in gold, please.

[Via PHONE Magazine]

Filed under: Cellphones

Keepin' it real fake, part CLXIX: the iPhone gets flipped originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 27 Nov 2008 09:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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1Password Gives Awesomest Thanks Yet!

I know Dieter hearts 1Password and it’s probably the first thing I load up any time I install — or re-install — a Mac. They’ve got a great FREE iPhone app, but you really need the big desktop brother to get the full functionality, which includes Keychain password filling integrated right into any Mac browser, as well as wallet storage, and a personal favorite — super-strong pseudo-random password generation.

They had a great special on Halloween, but Thanksgiving? Frankly, they’re blowing us away. Anyone who currently has a 1Password license can GIVE away up to 3 FREE licenses to their friends! Those who haven’t got 1Password, or friends with 1Password to give them this awesome gift, can buy a license for 15% off, and still get in on the FREE give away!

Offer’s good until Sunday, November 30th, so if you want it, go grab it.

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

1Password Gives Awesomest Thanks Yet!

Turn you iPhone into a 10-key number pad

Most of us MacBook or MacBook Pro owners are so in love with Apple’s products that we simply cannot resist getting the iPhone. With the love that we have for our MacBooks, we would gladly overlook the small inconveniences such as a 10-key pad. No longer do we have to ...

Incase Power Slider battery doubles as a case

If iPhone users who need an extra boost of power through out the day would like something less clumsy, you can go ahead and pick up the Incase Power Slider battery case for iPhone 3G. This battery not only gives you a much needed power boost, but it also protects ...

Mobispine intends to deliver MMS to iPhone users

With the new iPhone firmware 2.2 release we expect a lot of changes to be made, one thing Apple will not be giving us is the ability to send MMS. Mobispine has set out to give the iPhone the “world’s first true Multimedia Messaging for iPhone.” We already know there are ...

Can’t Find Street-View in Google Maps for iPhone 2.2?

Street-View is probably the single most visually impressive feature in iPhone OS 2.2 — you can almost hear the next iPhone TV ad being revved up with it already! Problem is, it’s almost hidden away like an easter egg. If you’re still having trouble finding it, The iPhone Lens wants you to know you’re not alone. More than that, they’ve set up a handy how-to to get you up and viewing streets asap.

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

Can’t Find Street-View in Google Maps for iPhone 2.2?

Apple Introduces iPhone Gift Certificates!

Since you can’t buy an iPhone 3G without signing up for an AT&T (or insert international carrier) contract, it kind of destroys the potential of giving an iPhone as a gift (cramming a whole kiosk into gift box would be killer!). So, what to do, what to do? TUAW says, Apple to the rescue!

Give someone an iPhone 3G Gift Card and when the lucky recipient comes in to redeem it, an Apple Retail Store Specialist will take care of every detail. The Specialist will get your recipient’s iPhone 3G up and calling, set up email, and help customize the Home screen, choose some great iPhone applications, personalize ringtones, and find favorite songs.

Does this make the iPhone 3G a more appealing gift possibility to anyone? Would opening an envelope and finding a shiny new iPhone 3G gift certificate, rather than an iPhone itself, be as glee worthy?

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

Apple Introduces iPhone Gift Certificates!

Apple introduces iPhone3G Gift Card

Filed under: Retail, iPhone

With a little more than 24 hours before the official start of the 2008 holiday shopping season, Apple has made a new offer to shoppers. The iPhone 3G Gift Card provides its lucky recipient with an activated iPhone that has been tricked out with email and personalized ring tones. Plus, an Apple Store Specialist will help the new owner customize his or her home screen, pick some great apps and find their favorite songs.

You can purchase the card in any amount starting at $25US toward the cost of a new iPhone. They may be redeemed at any Apple Store in the US. Apple also notes that the iPhone 3G Gift Card can also be used for all things Mac and iPod at the Apple Online Store or any Apple Retail Store. Sweet!

[Via Steve Rubel]

Apple introduces iPhone3G Gift Card originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 26 Nov 2008 20:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Apple introduces iPhone3G Gift Card originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 26 Nov 2008 20:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Woz Talks about iPhone, iPhone Hacks & Apple’s Cat and Mouse Game with Hackers

First 24″ LED Cinema Displays Arrive

Image from Arstechnica
Arstechnica provides some first impressions on their newly delivered 24" LED Apple Cinema display. While Apple introduced the new display back in October, actual delivery of the new monitors have only just begun...

Woz Speaks About Apple, Steve Jobs, Hackers, and the iPhone

It’s not very often that you get to see Steve Wozniak in a interview. Well the iPhone Dev Team found this gem of an interview and posted it for all to see. Woz speaks up on Steve Jobs, Apple, hackers, and most importantly the iPhone! I’ll stop talking… watch the video if you have not done so already!

[Via blog.iphone-dev.org]

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

Woz Speaks About Apple, Steve Jobs, Hackers, and the iPhone

UK’s Advertising Watchdog Bans Another iPhone 3G Ad

UK watchdog bans ‘really fast’ iPhone TV ads

Filed under: Bad Apple, iPhone

The BBC reported today that a TV ad for the iPhone has been banned in the UK by the government's advertising standards watchdog group for being misleading.

The Advertising Standards Authority received 17 complaints about the ad above, which showed web pages, the Maps application, and mail attachments loading in fractions of a second. The group said that the ad "led viewers to believe that the device actually operated at or near the speeds shown," the BBC story read.

The ASA said after reviewing the complaints, "Because we understood that it did not, we concluded the ad was likely to mislead."

Apple argued that the claims in the spot were "relative rather than absolute in nature," comparing the 3G speeds to the speeds of the first-generation iPhone. Nevertheless, the ad cannot be run on UK airwaves again in its current form.

One of the complainants was a man named Roger Browning, who said in a post at The Guardian that he complained about the advertisement as retribution for a bad customer support experience he had with O2.

Apple has run afoul of the ASA before, with a claim in August that the iPhone could view "the whole Internet." Since the iPhone doesn't support Flash and Java, the agency decided the ads were misleading, and yanked them off-air.

[Via MacDailyNews.]

UK watchdog bans 'really fast' iPhone TV ads originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 26 Nov 2008 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

UK watchdog bans 'really fast' iPhone TV ads originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 26 Nov 2008 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Google: Yeah, we did use an undocumented API. So what?

Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Freeware, Apple, Developer, iPhone, iPod touch

On last Sunday's talkcast, we all speculated on the situation behind Google's voice app using undocumented API calls on the iPhone. Either Google just went and did it themselves, or they got special permission from Apple to dive into places that most developers aren't really supposed to go. And it turns out that the former is true: Google says to CNET that, yeah, they used undocumented APIs. What are you going to do about it?

They're not using private frameworks at all, and apparently Apple isn't even part of the situation -- Google's engineers just jumped on some extra, undocumented features in the API. The danger here for most devs, apparently, is that if Apple changes something in the undocumented stuff, it'll break the app. But Google seems unconcerned -- they have the resources, apparently, to change things if needed.

As for Apple themselves, my guess is they'll do what they've been doing: stay hands-off until a smaller developer breaks something really important. If anyone is going to get special permission to bend the rules, it'll be Google, and given that Apple's API agreements are something they can choose to enforce (or not) as they see fit, Google likely has nothing to worry about.

Google: Yeah, we did use an undocumented API. So what? originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 26 Nov 2008 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Google: Yeah, we did use an undocumented API. So what? originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 26 Nov 2008 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Google admits to violating iPhone development terms

Google has admitted to using undocumented APIs in its Google Mobile app for the iPhone, a violation of the iPhone developers agreement.

Confirmed: Google was naughty, broke App Store rules with iPhone app

Okay, any talk that consistency in Apple's approval process for the App Store has improved definitely has to be put on hold at this point; first we had that BdEmailer situation that duplicates functionality (albeit shoddily) of the iPhone's own email capabilities, and now we have official confirmation that Google did a no-no when it slipped its voice-powered search through the checkpoint. The problem is that enabling the automatic voice detection requires use of an undocumented API call for the proximity sensor that Apple neither guarantees nor approves use of, meaning firmware updates can break it at will. In and of itself, that's not a huge indiscretion on Google's part since they're probably committed to keeping it up-to-date, but the real issue is that this violates an explicit rule of the App Store that bans the use of undocumented calls. Apple, guys, seriously: if you want to be jerks about what gets through and what doesn't, fine -- but at least do it consistently so it doesn't look like you're favoring companies run by members of your own executive board (or in the case of BdEmailer, companies that are doing a bang-up job of making your own products look better).

[Via mocoNews]

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

Confirmed: Google was naughty, broke App Store rules with iPhone app originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 26 Nov 2008 13:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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iHangman gives you instant, classic entertainment on the go

Filed under: iPhone, App Store, iPod touch

If you're looking for a quick "pick up and play game," give iHangman a try? iHangman [iTunes link] allows you to play the timeless game of hangman right on your iPhone.

In iHangman, you pick letters from the side to make a word. If you don't get the word after a couple tries, then you complete the hangman and loose the game. However, if you guess the word, then you win. iHangman gives you plenty of options in the Settings tab -- you can change the timer, have single or multiple players, see the leader board for your iPhone, turn sounds on/off, and choose the word list categories. You have the option to choose from a myriad of word lists including: Animals, countries, sports, SAT, GRE, Science, and more.

This game includes over 36,000 words and their definitions. That's right ... definitions! When you loose or win a game, you are presented with the full word; when you shake your iPhone side-to-side, you will see the definition of the word. This is a very nice feature. Overall, iHangman is a fun game to play, and at $0.99US, it's not very expensive. You can download this game from the iTunes App Store.

iHangman gives you instant, classic entertainment on the go originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 26 Nov 2008 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

iHangman gives you instant, classic entertainment on the go originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 26 Nov 2008 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Review: rRootage for iPhone

rRootage takes the shoot ’em up game and distills it down to its essence, replacing the usual eye candy with abstract geometric shapes and objects. The end result is a fun shooter and a feast for the eyes.