From Google, Mobile Web Calendar with Event Management

The ability to edit Google Calendar on iPhones is now possible. The new version is best used through a shortcut on the homepage. The new Google Calendar for mobile supports iPhone OS 2.2.1 and up and all Android-powered phones. It's available in English only for now, but more languages will be ...

Voice Control, Video, Compass and Auto Focus Camera

Through the release of Apple's iPhone 3.0 beta firmware, a fine tooth comb has been going over the configuration files looking for evidence of future capabilities. Main thing being the option to be able to do more with video. The image (above) demonstrates the main screen for 'video recording' in future ...

Sales figures released for Australia

With the iPhone covering more ground around the world, results of the sales are starting to come in. During 2008 alone, the iPhone brought a $300 million revenue boom to Apple from Australian sales. Financial documents recently submitted to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, detail the rapid growth of the ...

Dictionary.com introduces free iPhone App

Dictionary.com has launched a free iPhone app that lets users look up more than 275,000 definitions and 80,000 synonyms from Dictionary.com and Thesaurus.com. According to Compete, Dictionary.com --part of the Ask.com network-- drew nearly 3.2 million unique visits in March. The app's features include: Access spelled words. Alphabetical indexing. Synonyms example sentences. Non-standard uses. Word origin ...

Gmail improved for iPhone

Google has introduced a new version of Gmail for the iPhone, allowing users to enjoy faster email service and better support for offline viewing. Well, it's not a native app --but to start using it, just go to gmail.com on the web browser of an iPhone or iPod touch. The new ...

Yahoo! Messenger for iPhone released

Yahoo has released an official Yahoo! Messenger client for the iPhone, allowing iPhone users to use not only unofficial clients like Meebo or Fring to chat with their YM buddies. Compatible with iPhone (v2.0 or later) and iPod Touch. Its features include: IM with your YM friends. Share photos, emoticons and links. Show yourself ...

Next-gen iPhone parts already shipping?

Okay, so it's another June launch tipped: Taiwan-based handset component suppliers have begun shipping parts for the next-gen iPhone that Apple is likely to launch in June. Our sister site, SlashGear, reported: According to the latest leaks from Taiwanese component suppliers, Apple have already started clawing in the parts required for ...

Who’s Using Their iPhone 3G over EDGE/2G?

Right after the iPhone 3G came out, we posted a tip on how to turn off 3G and run on the older, slower EDGE standard to save battery life. Some people, who live in areas still lacking 3G coverage have no choice but to run on EDGE. Still others suffer so many dropped calls and other network problems they’ve downgraded to EDGE out of sheer frustration.

Based on the comments we received on the rumors of Apple re-releasing a new, low-end, iPhone 2G, there may be more iPhone 3G owners running on EDGE than we imagined.

So we’re asking you. Who here is running his or her iPhone 3G on EDGE and why?

Let us know in the comments below or head on over to our forum poll and make it all scientific-ish.

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

Who’s Using Their iPhone 3G over EDGE/2G?

Quick App: Birdhouse Twitter Notepad for iPhone

Birdhouse is a hybrid app of sorts. It lets you take offline notes, store them as draft, and email those drafts individual or en masse for “backup”. The differentiator here is that it’s also a multi-user Twitter client that lets you publish said drafts to the internet’s favorite 140 character micro-blogging platform. It also lets you visit your Twitter history to un-publish (i.e. trash) tweets if you later regret posting them. (Or if you just want to correct and error and repost, like I just did.)

It may replace Apple’s built-in Notes app for hardcore Twitter users, but since it’s exclusively a drafting and publishing app, it isn’t intended to replace more full featured Twitter-clients like Twitterrific and Tweetie.

A clean, considered, dare I say crisp little application, it will no doubt elicit all manner of oohs and ahs from the Twitteratti, while those not familiar with Twitter or uncomfortable being overly artsy about their tweets would do well to shake their heads and move on.

Personally, I’m enjoying it thus far. And more than I suspected I would.

$3.99 via the iTunes App Store.

Gallery after the break…

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

Quick App: Birdhouse Twitter Notepad for iPhone

Verdict on Consumer Reports iPhone app: Helpful but incomplete

Filed under: iPhone, App Store, iPod touch, App Review

I enjoy Consumer Reports magazine, even though sometimes the camera and electronics reviews drive me crazy. The ratings seem sometimes arbitrary, and don't always take what I think are the 'right' features into account and don't weigh those features the same way I would. Nevertheless, I find their reviews useful and another data point to throw in when I'm about to make a purchase.

Some months, ago, Consumer Reports launched an iPhone/ iPod touch app, and updated it again recently. The app, appropriately called Consumer Reports, [App Store link] is free, and has a lot of interesting info, but you don't really get links to the wealth of data back at the magazine. Even if you are a subscriber, you can't log in from the app and see magazine content.

You do get a lot of worthwhile news about consumer products, leaning heavily toward Electronics, Cars and products or services for the Home. You also get videos that are sometimes interesting, sometimes bizarre. I didn't make it all the way through the toilet paper tests.

There is some up to date reporting on topics of interest to consumers, like retailer bankruptcies, and what I would call 'tip' articles, like how to shoot a panoramic photo or tips on buying a Netbook.

There is a bit of Mac coverage, most recently a test to see if the MacBook Pro really lasted for 8 hours running on batteries. It didn't in the CR test.

Strangely, the app doesn't have any kind of search function, so if you are looking for just news about Mac laptops, for example, you're out of luck.

I still find the app full of beneficial news, and I give it a browse a couple of times a week. I wonder how Consumer Reports would rate this app? 'Recommended', 'predicted reliability good', but 'could be much better with a few changes'. On the app store users gave it an average rating of 2 stars out of 5. A bit harsh, perhaps. It's generally downgraded because there is no access to the magazine content.

Also interesting is that CR has not been a great fan of the iPhone, complaining, for example, about call quality when it first came out, but they did feel compelled to do this iPhone app. Funny old world.

Here are some screen captures:

Verdict on Consumer Reports iPhone app: Helpful but incomplete originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 13 Apr 2009 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Verdict on Consumer Reports iPhone app: Helpful but incomplete originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 13 Apr 2009 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

iPhone finds a home in the enterprise market

The iPhone is gaining momentum in the enterprise market, according to a new research report from Forrester.

Let your tweets incubate with Birdhouse for iPhone

Filed under: Software, Internet Tools, iPhone

Twitter is many things to many people. Some folks use it to keep up with friends or the latest news; others make it their primary tool for online coversation. There exists, however, within the throng of Twitter users, a group of people who use Twitter as the stage from which they deliver their own special brand of humor.

For these types, a tweet isn't something that's typed and quickly posted a few seconds later -- it's a chance to make his/her followers chuckle. To that end, they take great care to ensure that each tweet is finely honed and worded to deliver the maximum amount of gag within the 140-character limit. Birdhouse is an application for these people.

Dubbed by its creators as "A Notepad for Twitter," Birdhouse isn't your typical Twitter client. Instead of reading, replying to and favoriting your buddies' tweets, it focuses on composition. Got an idea for a really hilarious joke? Plug the idea into Birdhouse, then come back to it when you have time. Tweak and refine it until you've got just what you want, and hit publish.

There's no hard limit to the number of drafts you can keep at once, and it maintains a timestamped history of all of the tweets you've published. You can rate each message using a 5-star system, and it also allows you to email yourself a complete list of all pending and published tweets in case you're staring at the business end of an iPhone restore and you don't want to lose that truly golden mom joke you've been working on.

Birdhouse [App Store] is available now for $3.99US.

Let your tweets incubate with Birdhouse for iPhone originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 13 Apr 2009 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Let your tweets incubate with Birdhouse for iPhone originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 13 Apr 2009 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Review: Darkness for iPhone

Bjango’s world clock app tells you what time it is around the world, but with features not available in the iPhone’s default clock offering.

Flight Control for iPhone: Simply Addictive [iPhone Game Review] 

HP MediaSmart Server gets an iPhone companion

Filed under: Hardware, Peripherals, iPhone, App Store, iPod touch

HP is reporting that they've updated the software for the HP MediaSmart Server to provide video streaming to remote devices.

We covered the introduction of the MediaSmart Server at Macworld Expo 2009. The device is a Windows-based media server that also works with Macs. Now the system can convert videos, including unprotected DVDs, to both a high-resolution version that streams to Macs and PCs on a network and a lower-resolution version that can be played on iPhone and iPod touch.

To view the video streams, access your pictures, and listen to the music collection stored on the MediaSmart Server, you'll be able to download an iPhone / iPod touch app called iStream for free from the App Store. At publication time, the app was still pending approval by Apple.

HP announced that the updated software also provides an improved Time Machine configuration, a better HP Media Collector, and the ability to have both public and private albums in the Photo Viewer. The MediaSmart Server ex485 (750 GB of storage) retails for US$599, and the 1.5 TB ex487 sells for US$749. The device can be expanded to a maximum of 9 TB of storage.

HP MediaSmart Server gets an iPhone companion originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 13 Apr 2009 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

HP MediaSmart Server gets an iPhone companion originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 13 Apr 2009 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Pre-Review: Motorola S9 Stereo Bluetooth Headset for iPhone 3.0

Come this “summer”, iPhone 3.0 — see our walkthrough — will allow iPhone 3G (and perhaps next-generation iPhone users) to enjoy new Bluetooth functionality including stereo headsets, both the A2DP audio and ARCP control protocols. For consumers, the Motorola S9 Stereo Bluetooth headset (available from our sibling store, WMExperts) may be an option you want to consider come release day. For developers testing using the A2DP/ARCP profiles on the iPhone 3.0 Beta, they might even be something you want to consider now.

Note: This pre-review will not be focusing on iPhone 3.0 functionality, which is currently in closed beta. It will concentrate only on the headset itself. However, for those developers needing an A2DP headset for testing 3.0, it’s our understanding this one works well on multiple units, over multiple carriers.

Form Factor

The Motorola S9 is a fixed form, if flexible plastic horse-shoe shaped, behind-the-head fitting audio solution that combines stereo music with phone functionality. The advantage of being a singular unit is that it’s solid, unlikely to become loose or break off at some weak join point. The disadvantage is that if your head is too thin or too wide, the headset will be either uncomfortable or unusable. Likewise, the behind-the-head layout will appeal to those who like wearing hats or otherwise don’t want the bar crossing over their head. However, it may be a non-starter for people who want to use them while reclining or lying down.

Controls

A status light in the middle of the bulge along the back of the headset separates the standards-friendly mini-USB charging port on one side from the power button on the other. Both are covered by soft touch red plastic. The right-side earpiece has controls for play/pause, forward, and back. The left side earpiece has controls for answering the phone as well as volume up and down. These controls are under harder black plastic, with the play/pause and answer buttons providing a tactile, click feedback, and the volume and track buttons on either side lying flat and flush.

Functionality

The S9s are rated for 6 hours talk and 7 hours music, but like any re-chargeable product, battery life can and will vary based on usage and cycle. Sound volume is good, as is music quality, though the compression required for AD2P stereo Bluetooth transfer might not be to the liking of audiophiles. If you’re happy enough with traditional MP3 sound reproduction, however, you’ll likely have no problem with this device.

Conclusion

The freedom provided by wireless Bluetooth stereo headsets like the Motorola S9 will be a boon to iPhone users, the convenience easily outweighing concerns of audiophile-level sound reproduction (at least for most). They won’t fit everyone on either end of the physical or usage pattern scale, but as with the quality, they’re well suited for a large enough swathe down the middle.

Bottom line, if you want something solid, affordable, portable, and functional for your iPhone 3.0 developer unit, or upcoming iPhone 3.0 release unit, you’d do well to consider the Motorola S9s.

Pros

• Good sound
• Good battery life
• Good price-point
• Light and comfortable
• Well suited for on-the-go use.

Cons

• May not fit all head sizes
• Not well-suited for lying down

TiPb Accessory Pre-Review Rating

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

Pre-Review: Motorola S9 Stereo Bluetooth Headset for iPhone 3.0

iPhone developers will need servers to push

Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, iPhone, App Store, iPod touch

Former TUAW blogger Erica Sadun has a cautionary post for developers regarding the pending push notifications coming to iPhone OS 3.0: better get yourself some reliable servers. The implication, delivered via headline, is that smaller developers won't be able to afford push notification. Indeed, as Erica says, coding for an app that can run in the background is one thing -- you may need to scale things down a bit for resource management -- but deploying a reliable push notification system is a tall order by comparison.

Instead of coding once and deploying, developers will now have to manage servers to handle the load of users who will be receiving push notifications. This ongoing server maintenance issue is the sort of thing we used to laugh about when digg first started, or Twitter, or MySpace, or any number of services that grew a little ahead of server capacity. After speaking to one of the network engineers at Twitter during SxSW this year, I don't envy the task of staying ahead of these curves. But push, in my opinion, isn't as onerous as that.

Push notifications aren't serving entire pages. The difference in data throughput overall is much slimmer than even the light pages Twitter serves. Erica correctly points out that in aggregate, the push server might be hit pretty frequently; however, and there's more of a concern with reliability for a finance or medical app than something like Twitter or digg. But even when you throw in the added hurdle of security I'm guessing the resources for this are available at a reasonable cost.

I get that this is more work for developers, but Erica makes it sound a little threatening, like developers' only resolution will be to cobble together a mighty datacenter from spare computer parts. My assertion is that developers who wish to play the push game will simply need to look for outside resources and factor that into their price. Maybe fewer $.99 apps is a good thing? You certainly don't need 30 apps trying to alert you during the day -- how would you get anything done?

In the end, push notifications are welcome, and I'd rather have that than a one-hour battery life for the day. Plus, I would agree that some smaller developers will have to forget push because the potential costs are too high. Guess what? That's as it should be. If your product requires it, your cost should reflect it. There's no shortage of service providers out there, and as we've seen in the past (look at the podcast services that popped up when that blew up a few years ago) the market will fill the needs of the developers if they aren't in the business of making their own server farms. It's certainly a new twist to the iPhone dev game, and it's an opportunity for someone who can deliver a reliable push framework at a reasonable price -- perhaps one running atop Amazon's EC2, Google's App Engine or even Microsoft's Azure cloud service.

iPhone developers will need servers to push originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 13 Apr 2009 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

iPhone developers will need servers to push originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 13 Apr 2009 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Engadget’s recession antidote: win Radius earphones for iPhone 3G!

This whole global economic crisis, and its resulting massive loss of jobs got us thinking. We here at Engadget didn't want to stand helplessly by, announcing every new round of misery without giving anything back -- so we decided to take the opportunity to spread a little positivity. We'll be handing out a new gadget every day (except for weekends) to lucky readers until we run out of stuff / companies stop sending things. Today we've got a set of Radius Atomic Bass Black Aluminum Earphones for iPhone W/ Built-in Mic ready to rock your skull and let you chat it up. Read the rules below (no skimming -- we're omniscient and can tell when you've skimmed) and get commenting! Hooray for free stuff!

Huge thanks to Radius for providing the gear!


The rules:

• Leave a comment below. Any comment will do, but if you want to share your proposal for "fixing" the world economy, that'd be sweet too.
  
• You may only enter this specific giveaway once. If you enter this giveaway more than once you'll be automatically disqualified, etc. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.)
• If you enter more than once, only activate one comment. This is pretty self explanatory. Just be careful and you'll be fine.
  
• Contest is open to anyone in the 50 States, 18 or older! Sorry, we don't make this rule (we hate excluding anyone), so be mad at our lawyers and contest laws if you have to be mad.
  
• Winner will be chosen randomly. The winner will receive one (1) set of Radius Atomic Bass Black Aluminum Earphones for iPhone W/ Built-in Mic. Approximate retail value is $49.99.
  
• If you are chosen, you will be notified by email. Winners must respond within three days of the end of the contest. If you do not respond within that period, another winner will be chosen.
• Entries can be submitted until Monday, April 13th, at 11:59PM ET. Good luck!
• Full rules can be found here.

Filed under: Announcements, Portable Audio

Engadget's recession antidote: win Radius earphones for iPhone 3G! originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 13 Apr 2009 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Apple prepping component suppliers to ship 4m new iPhones?

The shady iPhone component news chatter is starting to heat up as WWDC inches closer -- today we've got China Times saying that Apple's already placed an order for four million new iPhones to be delivered by the end of Q2. That's a whisper that lines up nicely with those earlier reports suggesting Cupertino's trying to lock down 100 million 8Gb flash chips from Samsung and placing orders for other components in preparation for a June launch, but we're a little skeptical of this one, since it claims that a new EDGE model is in the works along with a 3G version and a China-only variant potentially running on TD-SCDMA. Not moves we'd ordinarily expect Apple to make, but anything's possible -- we'll be keeping our eyes peeled.

[Via Slashphone]

Filed under: Cellphones

Apple prepping component suppliers to ship 4m new iPhones? originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 13 Apr 2009 11:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Push Notifications seen as a huge burden by smaller developers?

Apple has gone out of their way to point out the cons of multi-tasking background applications — a claimed 80% reduction in battery life while on standby with a single 3rd party IM client enabled. Push Notification, likewise, has been promoted by Apple as providing a single point of coordination for 3rd party alerts routed [...]