Big Stone Phone’s Twittlelator Pro ver. 1.6.2

In my opinion, one of the premier Twitter applications for the iPhone is an application developed by Stone Designs called Twittlelator Pro   . Twittlelator Pro, developed by Andrew Stone is a full-featured twitter client that brings desktop quality features to a mobile application.I posted a vid review on YouTube on the ...

Evangelion Vol. 2 Clock & Vol. 3 Stamp Review

Fans of the hit Japanese anime series Evangelion can now enjoy the world of Evangelion on their iPhones with these two applications from Appliya.The first application that I'm reviewing is the Evangelion Vol. 2 Clock app . Now you can pull out your iPhone and impress your friends with this Evangelion-inspired ...

Review: Motorola MOTOPURE H15 Bluetooth Headset

The Motorola MOTOPURE H15 Bluetooth headset is available and can be purchased in The iPhone Blog Store for $109.95. If you are looking for an absolutely smokin’ Bluetooth headset, checkout this review! Let’s see how it measures up after the break!

In the Box

The Motorola H15 box contains with the headset, two additional ear cushions for comfort, cradle and charge cable (it is not a USB cable, but it plugs into the headset and cradle only, not the computer).

Design

The Motorola H15 is one sweet looking headset! It is not only lightweight, but has a transparent earloop and a couple or selectable ear pieces with a flip microphone. The best way to describe the H15 is that is an evolution of the 700. There is also and accompanying charge cradle which makes for an excellent accessory addition. The noise cancellation feature is one of the main selling points of this device and Motorola states that it is best noise-cancellation headset currently available.

Daily Use

I found the noise-cancellation to work really well. I could not find any supportive documentation in Motorola’s claims that it is the best (the Jawbone headsets are spectacular) however, I can honestly say that none of my call recipients ever complained of any poor call quality due to background noise from driving, shopping, etc. The flip microphone is one of my favorite features. It seems simple enough, but not all headsets implement it; the microphone flips to open and doubles as an on/off switch for the headset. The transparent earloop is quite handy and is somewhat invisible. It keeps the headset in place in conjunction with the ear piece.

Speaking of the ear piece, I swear I have malformed ear canals. Every headset I have used with an ear piece never seems to fit properly. However, this is the closest I have come across (yes, even better than the Jawbone). There are three included ear piece sizes to choose from, however, only one seems to work best for me with extended use; but one is all you need, right?

One of the really nice benefits to this headset is the cradle. I don’t know about you, but I loathe having to plug my headsets into random wall sockets only to have my headset fall on the floor because it is not stationary. So the cradle Motorola provides is a great help to me; I have it sitting next to my iPhone on my desk and it’s safe and stationary. There is also a light on the front indicating charge status, so you know when you are good to go.

The other convenient feature about this headset is that it is tested with over 200 existing phones. This is great because sometimes you might want to use the headset with an additional phone, or let your significant other or friend borrow your headset, and it may not work. This device is thoroughly tested to work with a wide variety of models.

Conclusion

It seems that lately I am on a stellar track of reviewing awesome accessories for the iPhone and the Motorola H15 does not disappoint. I love the look and feel, the call quality, comfort and cradle. All of these variables combine into a great, well-rounded Bluetooth headset. If you are looking for a headset in this price range, you cannot go wrong with the H15!

Pros:

• One of the hottest looking headsets (IMO)
• Very lightweight
• Love the collapsible flip boom for power on/off
• Comfortable transparent earloop to help keep the headset in place

Cons:

• No glaring negative issues!
• More ear cushion sizes would be nice
• True USB cable to plug directly into your computer for charging

TiPb’s Rating:

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

Review: Motorola MOTOPURE H15 Bluetooth Headset

iPhone Dev 101: Useful Cocoa Development Resources

Filed under: Features, How-tos, Developer, iPhone, iPod touch

It has been a while since the last iPhone Dev 101 post (and I must apologize for that -- sometime life can get in the way of different things, and this was one of those times). In this Dev 101 post, I want to take you through a few of my favorite resources for Cocoa/iPhone development. Some of these resources are books, while others are sites, but all of the resources are valuable to up and coming developers (and experiences developers) alike.

Books
Some books are just invaluable and couldn't be replaced with another. Aaron Hillegass' Cocoa Programming for Mac is just that book. Currently in it's 3rd edition, the book gives you much of the Cocoa programming information that you need to program for both the Mac and iPhone. There are only a few subtle differences in programming for these platforms, namely the use of the Cocoa Touch. If you ever have the chance, going to one of the Big Nerd Ranch Cocoa programming classes gives you the ability to learn Cocoa hands-on.

Another title that is useful to beginning iPhone developers is the Beginning iPhone Development book. This book has a useful approach to stepping into the world that is programming on iPhone. It talks about numerous topics including UI design, Quartz, and OpenGL. Also covered in the book are APIs like CoreLocation and interfacing with the camera.

If you already know Cocoa and a little about iPhone development, Erica Sadun's iPhone Developer Cookbook is a great jumping off point to start development. She assumes, however, that you already understand Cocoa.

Continue reading to learn about more valuable books, websites, and resources for iPhone/Mac developers.

Continue reading iPhone Dev 101: Useful Cocoa Development Resources

iPhone Dev 101: Useful Cocoa Development Resources originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 25 Mar 2009 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

iPhone Dev 101: Useful Cocoa Development Resources originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 25 Mar 2009 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Review: Fast Food Calorie Counter for iPhone

Need help sticking to that diet? Fast Food Calorie Counter provides the sobering details of what you’re about to eat when you’re dining out.

Blockbuster Seeking to Bring Movie Downloads to Apple Devices?

Reuters reports today on a deal between TiVo and Blockbuster that will allow TiVo subscribers to download to their set-top boxes films offered through Blockbuster's OnDemand service. Looking beyond the TiVo agreement, a senior executive at Blockbust...

iPhone Pwns at iGames Summit and Game Developers Conference

There’s so much going on in iPhone gaming right now, it’s almost as hard to keep up with that as with iPhone 3.0. Two large industry shows bookend much of the current news, iGames Summit and Game Developers Conference (GDC). With multiple awards, great discussions on the future, and a slew of upcoming product announcements, we figured we’d take a moment and round things up…

Apple Insider took a look at iGames, focusing on:

• “Lessons Learned: Why iPhone Games Work,” [a panel] with Neil Young of ngmoco, Andrew Lacy of Tapulous, Steve Demeter of Demiforce LLC (the developer of Trism featured in the iPhone 3.0 presentation held by Apple two days ago), and Keith Lee of Booyah

• “Where Do We Go From Here?” [panel with] Rebecca Lynn of Morgenthaler Ventures moderated a discussion about the future of iPhone gaming, involving Brett Seyler of Garage Games, Michael Chang of Greystripe, David Helgason of Unity Technologies, and Greg Yardley of Pinch Media.

• ["Building Gesture-Driven Games for the iPhone" where] Shervin Pishevar of the Social Gaming Network demonstrated the use of the iPhone or iPod touch as “virtual Wii Remotes” for interacting with PC games.

Macworld, meanwhile, tells us the iPhone dominated the Independent Game Festival (IGF) awards at GDC, taking back all but one of the trophies:

• Audio achievement: Zen Bound
• Technical achievement: Firemint Real Racing
• Art: Fieldrunners
• Innovation in mobile game design: Galcon
• Best iPhone game: Zen Bound
• Best mobile game: Fieldrunners

TUAW caught up with ngmoco’s Neil Young for his keynote where he declared the iPhone platform:

“better than the DS, better than the PSP,” he said, referring to Nintendo and Sony’s handheld gaming devices, because not only is tops in terms of usability (it’s “always on, always with you”), and not only is it easier than any other platform to develop for, but the market is gigantic and growing

We mentioned Facebook Connect with iPhone Scrabble, and id Software’s Wolfenstein (already out!) and Doom talk, but EA also made with the upcoming release announcements. According to Edible Apple, these included:

• SIMS 3
• Spore Creatures
• Command & Conquer
• Connect Four
• Clue
• RISK
• Mystery Mania
• Wolfenstein RPG
• American Idol
• Battleship
• Need for Speed
• Monopoly

Maybe Jeremy was right and there’s a future in all this iPhone gaming? What are you looking forward to most?

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

iPhone Pwns at iGames Summit and Game Developers Conference

Unicom confirmed as Chinese iPhone / G1 provider?

It's been a long, arduous road to Shanghai for the iPhone, but its trip may finally be at an end. Sure, there are already thousands of the things in the pockets and purses of trendy Chinese right now, but an official launch there has taken ages. Last summer it was looking like China Mobile had scored the deal with Apple, but word is now that China Unicom may have completed the upset, posting up a page on its site detailing the iPhone's specs and including the phone in its list of supported headsets. The company hasn't officially confirmed the phone's availability or anything else, but word on the streets of Shanghai is that the phone will be launched there on May 17th.

Update: Looks like it has posted specs for the G1 as well, albeit complete with T-Mobile branding. Hmm. [Thanks, Sze!]

[Via JLM Pacific Epoch; thanks, Scott]

Filed under: Cellphones

Unicom confirmed as Chinese iPhone / G1 provider? originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 25 Mar 2009 08:12:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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iPhone OS 3.0: What it Means for Business

Last year, during the iPhone 2.0 SDK Event, Apple unleashed a slew of enterprise-aimed initiatives. Phil Schiller took the stage to showcase Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync licensing, as well as 802.1x, Cisco VPN, certificates, remote wipe, configuration tools, and more.

Schiller didn’t show up at the iPhone 3.0 Sneak Peek event (not until the apres-Q&A at least), and Apple didn’t announce something as spectacular as Exchange support this year. But was there anything compelling for businesses this time around?

First, it’s important to dispel a common internet smartphone fallacy — not all businesses are the same. Not every business, not even every megacorp, is staffed entirely with suits devoted exclusively to messaging 24×7. Many may be, but not all. Business comes in wondrous diversity, and iPhone 3.0 might have a few things that appeal to these diverse businesses.

• Anti-Phishing. Added to the iPhone Safari browser, this technology hopes to protect users from malicious websites that try to steal login, credit card, or other serious data. As more and more attacks target enterprise users (especially executives via “spear phishing”), more security is better will be a theme we’ll be returning to often.
• Call log: For those who need to document their time and activities on the phone, the greater detail provided in iPhone 3.0 will be welcomed.
• Create meeting invitations: Okay, so iPhone 2.0’s ActiveSync implementation wasn’t exactly full featured, with one of the most often-talked about omissions being the lack of any meeting invitation creation functionality. Check that box off with 3.0.
• Encrypted profiles. We’re not sure what this means for the iPhone yet, but encryption in general — providing it’s strong encryption — is typically of value to businesses that need to protect both their own data, and the data of customers. We do know that iTunes 8.1, in conjunction with iPhone 3.0, allows for password protected encrypted backups. This is a great addition for the very same reason.
• Languages: Business is increasingly international. Thanks to its virtual-keyboard, the iPhone can seamlessly transition from one language to another without requiring a different model or the physical transplantation of keys. Adding in Arabic, Hebrew, Greek, Thai, and other new languages to 3.0, to go with Japanese, Chinese, and all the languages added to 2.0, makes the iPhone of even greater value to frequent, multi-national business travelers.
• LDAP: The lightweight directory access protocol is now supported for Contacts, which will allow an iPhone to hook into the enterprise directory store. Apple has it’s own, open-source CardDAV protocol as well, but the focus on LDAP this time around is likely to mean much more to far more businesses right now.
• Notes sync. It was a long time coming, but with 3.0 users will be able to sync notes back and forth between the iPhone and the Mac’s Mail client. Yeah… that’s it so far, but Apple will need to provide a Windows alternative at some point, and we’re hoping for full-on Exchange and MobileMe support as well.
• OTA Profiles: Over the air profiles… yeah, we’re stumped to. Profiles typically imply greater and more specific control, so this could be a benefit, but we’ll need to wait for more information.
• Proxy support. Another expansion to the iPhone’s internet prowess, the ability to use proxy servers will make life easier for businesses that make use of, or require, various types of proxy connections. (And yes, insert Hulu for international users comment here…)
• Revoke certs. Again, details are sketchy, but with 2.0 giving us certificates for 2 factor authentication, we’re guessing 3.0 lets us take those certificates away when and as needed. Again, more options and more security is better for business.
• VPN on demand: Another feature we don’t have details on yet, but with 2.0 Apple provided the ability to connect via secure virtual private network protocols. However, the feature had to be manually enabled and disabled. We’re hoping this makes it a more seamless experience.

Again, there are different types of business. Other new features may be of value to creative professionals, for example, such as YouTube accounts, Audio/Video tags, and live streaming. What’s likely to be of more value to everyone, however, are those 1000 new APIs Apple also announced at the event. These will let businesses themselves create customized, highly functional apps for their specific user needs.

Apple focused on these too, such as the new accessory access for the SDK, which lets peripherals talk to the iPhone via Bluetooth or 30-pin dock port. We saw demos of this being used in the medical field for blood pressure and diabetes instruments. It’s not hard to imagine the iPhone serving as a control, data visualizer, and ubiquitously connected communicator for all manner of special tools.

Hook it up to a scanner, a camera, a car… The possibilities are endless.

In-app email, embed-able Google maps, peer-to-peer (P2P) Bluetooth connectivity, custom data types, and other hooks into the system will no doubt prove invaluable to some businesses as well. Not as sexy as last year maybe, but we’re thinking it could prove to be far more powerful in the long run.

The BlackBerry will probably remain the king of corporate email messaging for now, but Apple’s play for the enterprise market continues to get more compelling, and more importantly, more creative. By providing features and functionality at a pace no other company is matching, and focusing on the many different types of businesses and business needs, their presence and preference in the enterprise will only grow.

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

iPhone OS 3.0: What it Means for Business

External iPhone Keyboard Hack Now 100% Jailbreak Free

Turns out all you need is an old PDA keyboard, the iPhone 2.0 SDK, and a dream. Okay, that, plus tons of smarts and hackery. Hey, at least this one isn’t as hard as the previous workaround we saw. Says Ars Technica:

The work is built on a 1200 baud modem that connects to the iPhone via the headphone port. This allows two-way transmission of data using frequency shift keying, the same method used in early modems. This modem was modified to accept input from infrared and USB connected devices, allowing the use of a keyboard. Further, a 2.0 SDK-compliant terminal app enables text input.

Will Apple ever open up the iPhone to real Bluetooth keyboard support? They did just announce A2DP Stereo, P2P, and SDK access for peripherals at the iPhone 3.0 Sneak Peek event, but not keyboards… Are we waiting on a special Apple designed iPhone keyboard to make an appearance at WWDC perhaps? Or will hacking continue to be the only game in town?

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

External iPhone Keyboard Hack Now 100% Jailbreak Free

Review: iMob Online for iPhone

If the developers of iMob Online can stamp out cheating and fix lingering bugs, this mobile version of the popular Facebook game could be entertaining fun. But there’s a lot of work ahead of them.