Intel to Unleash 32-nm Arrandale Processors on January 7th

Intel held a brief press conference today previewing some of the chips that they will be release at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in January. Intel will release the first 32-nm chips across the Core i3, i5 and i7 brands.

The “...

Boxcar 2.2 Push Notifications for iPhone Hits App Store

Boxcar just let us know Boxcar 2.2 [Free/in-app purchases - iTunes link] has been served up piping hot to the iPhone (and iPod touch) App Store. Here are some highlights:

• Push for RSS feeds (powered by Superfeedr)
• Push for Growl notifications
• Now supports TweetDeck and Natsulion
• Toggle off hidden Facebook and Twitter re-tweet API notifications
• All new inbox that brings the pretty and the function

Boxcar remains one of the most popular options for enabling push notifications when and where they’re not natively supported in other apps. Once again, the first push service is free, and additional ones cost $0.99 via in-app purchase, so you can pay for just exactly what you want.

If you’ve been waiting to get your RSS or Growl on, or your Facebook or re-tweets off, and you give Boxcar 2.2 a try, let us know how it works for you.

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

Boxcar 2.2 Push Notifications for iPhone Hits App Store

The Competition: Palm Launches Ares Beta, Browser-based webOS Development Environment

Our friends over at PreCentral.net bring word that Palm has launched a beta version of their browser-based IDE (integrated development environment) for webOS called Project Ares (sounds Manga, harkens to the Hellenic god of war — nice!). Supports Safari, Chrome, and Firefox (no mention of Internet Explorer?).

You can simply fire up your browser and go to http://ares.palm.com/, sign in with your developer account, and get coding.

Apple’s iPhone SDK and IDE, evolved from the very mature Mac Xcode and Interface Builder, and the Cocoa Touch frameworks are often cited as reasons for the App Store’s success and the quality and consistency of some of the very best apps. So, providing Palm webOS developers with similar tools (and frameworks?) is smart. And how utterly appropriate for a platform ballsy enough to be webOS, programmed in HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, to be ballsy enough to move their IDE to the cloud. How Palm keeps out-Googling Google in the mobile space is amazing.

We throw the horns up in your general direction, sirs.

(We’ll also reference back to Apple’s PastryKit JavaScript frameworks, and wonder aloud again whether Apple will make it public, along with a Dashcode-style IDE for iPhone WebApps to go along with it? And would they — or should they — ever make it similarly cloud-basd?)

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

The Competition: Palm Launches Ares Beta, Browser-based webOS Development Environment

First look: New iPhone games from Electronic Arts

EA Mobile unveiled three new games that are coming soon to an iPhone or iPod touch near you: Spore Creatures, The Simpsons Arcade, and Need for Speed Shift.

Dragon Search hits the app store for free

Filed under: Audio, iPhone, App Review

It looks like Nuance will have two iPhone hits in one month. Dragon Search [iTunes link] has just gone live on the App Store for the iPhone and iPod touch.

Using the same technology that's in Dragon Dictation for the iPhone, Dragon Search allows you to speak your search terms into the iPhone and get hits from the web including iTunes, Twitter, Wikipedia, YouTube, and Google. You can also add Yahoo and Bing to the searchable universe.

I've tried it and it works well. You want to be in a fairly quiet place for the best results, but it worked fine in a noisy car and in a moderately loud restaurant.

As with Dragon Dictation, your query goes to a Nuance server and comes back to the app in a couple of seconds. If you want to search beyond Google, this is a great way to do it. Speed is very good on a 3G connection, and of course it works over Wi-Fi and the EDGE network.

The iTunes integration is quite nice. Say 'Harold Budd', for example, and click the iTunes icon and you'll see what the iTunes store has to sell. Or you can search Wikipedia or Google and learn all about him.

The app is free for now, but not free forever, so if you want it, get it ASAP. It's yet another reason to love your iPhone.

The app requires an iPhone and OS version 3.1 or better.

Dragon Search hits the app store for free originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 17 Dec 2009 18:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Dragon Search hits the app store for free originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 17 Dec 2009 18:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Google dashboard shows Android fragmentation

Google released a snapshot that shows the percentages of phones running the different versions of Android software.

Review: The Planets for iPhone

You get a lot of information in this planetary reference guide, but not much in the way of usability.

iPhone takes No. 2 user base slot in U.S.

Apple's iPhone user base is now the second-largest in the U.S. smartphone market, passing Windows Mobile-based models, according to research firm comScore.

Tracking and killing insurgents? There’s an app for that.

Filed under: iPhone

The Guardian has a story on US military contractor Raytheon who's begun building a series of applications for the iPhone for use in the battlefield. Their first military app is called One Force Tracker and uses satellite positioning and mobile networks to turn soldiers into master tacticians, giving them constantly updating field maps that track the position of friendly troops and enemy fighters in real time.

Jay Smart, chief technology officer of Raytheon's intelligence and information systems business, said, "Raytheon's experience with mobile communications in the tactical environment and the government customers' need for low-power, simple plug-and-play applications led to the development of a real-time situational awareness application using Apple's touch technologies," and that the decision to use the iPhone was "because building software for the gadget was cheaper and simpler than some of the expensive options specifically designed for military use."

While it's probably a safe bet that One Force Tracker won't be appearing in the App Store anytime soon, another military application by Knight's Armament Company, an American weapons maker that supplies rifles to the Pentagon, has an app called BulletFlight [iTunes link] which helps snipers and sharpshooters to hit their intended target.

Yo Joe!

Thanks Charlie

Tracking and killing insurgents? There's an app for that. originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 17 Dec 2009 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Tracking and killing insurgents? There's an app for that. originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 17 Dec 2009 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Raytheon demonstrates iPhone app for military use

Defense contractor Raytheon has shown off an iPhone app that merges GPS with social-networking features for the military, but it remains to be seen if Apple will accommodate its particular needs.

Navigon drops price but fumbles Google integration

Filed under: Odds and ends, iPhone, App Review

The Navigon Mobile Navigator [iTunes link] has become my favorite GPS app for the car. Great graphics, text-to-speech, auto night mode, and traffic integration.

Today, Navigon dropped the price 30 dollars to U.S. $59.99 and added Google search. That's a great idea, because the self contained GPS apps have static databases that tend to age quickly. Navigon solved that problem by integrating a Google search to their app, which gives you the advantages of on-board maps coupled with the most up to date POI information.

That's the good news. The bad news is this first integration of Google into the app is an utter bomb. I selected POI from the menu, then Google. I then typed in 'pizza' and hit search. The query returned a 'no POI in your area' message, yet I was about 200 yards from a Pizza Hut. I tried some other categories. Nothing. Zip. There is another field to fill in with my location, so I typed the default 'current location' as prompted by the software. Still nothing. I typed in a city name and found all kinds of Google hits, but why should I have to type in my location when this is a GPS app? I tried this at several places, and with several categories. Nothing worked unless I typed in a city name, and of course cities are big places so I wasn't getting the closest hits.

Navigating from the built in POI database worked fine, but the whole point of Google integration was more data, and more up to date information. On more than one try I saw a server error, and it had to be a problem with the app because Google Maps returned good info with no problems. I'm not the only one seeing this issue, so it's not a local error. Other users of the app are reporting the same thing.

This issue may be a temporary one, or a bad bug, but either way it is a bad start for a new feature. I'm confident Navigon will fix the problem.

Competition has forced Navigon to lower the price (until January 11th) and the app is a good buy at that price. I know a lot of people were anxious to have that Google integration, but at least for me and some others, it simply doesn't work. I've contacted the Navigon folks, but haven't heard back yet about what might be going on.

One more small issue. In the past, even though the app has iTunes integration that works well, it can't seem to find any podcasts. That's still a problem with this latest version. If you select the podcast genre, it just comes up empty handed.

We'll let you know when it these issues get fixed, but if you were waiting to buy for the Google feature you might want to wait a bit longer. If you're having problems, or if it works great for you, let us know.

Navigon drops price but fumbles Google integration originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 17 Dec 2009 15:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Navigon drops price but fumbles Google integration originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 17 Dec 2009 15:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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iPhone to Windows Mobile: Eat my dust

Filed under: iPhone

ComScore has released a list of the top smartphone operating systems by market share in the United States in October. Who's on top? Research in Motion (but for how much longer?), followed by Apple, then Microsoft, Palm, Symbian, and finally Google.

The guys at FierceDeveloper have put together this nifty chart showing the top smartphone operating systems by number of active users in the United States in October, based on comScore's data.

What's interesting about comScore's latest number is it's the first time iPhone OS market share has surpassed Windows Mobile. According to the data, approximately 36 million Americans are smartphone owners, with 40% of those owning Blackberries and 25% owning iPhones. Windows Mobile share has shrunk to 20% and with the increasing popularity of the iPhone and Google's Android OS, it's not looking too hot for WinMo.

Below: the chart of comScore's data. The yellow bars are the most recent statistics.

iPhone to Windows Mobile: Eat my dust originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 17 Dec 2009 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

iPhone to Windows Mobile: Eat my dust originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 17 Dec 2009 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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“AT&T is firing us as iPhone users”

Apple posts new holiday iPhone ad

Filed under: Apple, iPhone, Holidays

Apple has begun brodcasting a new holiday ad: 12 Apps of Xmas. Though it's not nearly as cool as past Christmas ads, it does spotlight some interesting apps, including one app (Schlage LiNK) that can light up a Christmas tree, at least when it's paired with the appropriate Z-Wave home automation module and the $12.99 monthly service plan [iTunes link].

Here's the lyrics to the new ad, so you can all sing along to the video below.

On the twelfth day of Christmas my iPhone gave to me:
12 cookies cooking
11 cards a sending
10 gifts for giving
9 songs for singing
8 bells for ringing
7 slopes for skiing
6 games for playing
5 gold rings
4 hot lattes
3 flights home
2 feet of snow
And an app that can light up the tree

Apple has thoughtfully compiled an App Store page where you can see all the apps in the TV ads, although it may not be completely up to date. If you've identified one of your favorite apps in this ad, tell us about it in the comments below.

Apple posts new holiday iPhone ad originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 17 Dec 2009 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Apple posts new holiday iPhone ad originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 17 Dec 2009 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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AT&T Downplays Talk of Tiered Pricing for iPhone Data Plans

AT&T Mobility CEO Ralph de la Vega, who received significant attention for his comments last week suggesting that the company is looking at tiered pricing for data plans to rein in high-use customers, appears to now be downplaying that suggestion, ac...

Review: Ghosts n’ Goblins: Gold Knights for iPhone

Ghosts n' Goblins: Gold Knights is the first in the iconic platformer series to grace the iPhone platform. Depending upon how you rate yourself on the gamer scale will gauge how much you'll like GnG: Gold Knights.

WordPress and Tumblr show iPhone Tweetie and Twitterrific Not Just for Twitter Anymore

Tweetie 2 and Twitterrific 2 aren’t just two of the best Twitter clients for the iPhone, they’re two of the best mobile micro-blogging interfaces on the planet and now both WordPress and Tumblr are taking advantage of them — which is ridiculously awesome for iPhone users.

WordPress now lets you “Post and Read via Twitter API”, and they have a complete walkthrough posted on how to set it up.

We’ve enabled posting to and reading of WordPress.com blogs via the Twitter API. Any app that allows you to set a custom API URL will work. This project came out of our Quebec meetup and was developed by Team 55 (Andy, Terry, and Raphael).

Inspired by WordPress, Tumblr has also jumped on board:

The really cool thing – because our following models follow a lot of the same principles, we’ve been able to take advantage of a ton of native features:

• Retweeting = Reblogging
• Replying = Reblogging w/ commentary
• Favoriting = Liking
• “@david” = ”http://david.tumblr.com/”
• Conversations = Reblogs

So if you use Tweetie or Twitterrific, and WordPress or Tumblr, the API elves have given you an early present. Let us know how well it works for you.

[via @roustem]

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

WordPress and Tumblr show iPhone Tweetie and Twitterrific Not Just for Twitter Anymore

Motorola Backflip: AT&T’s first Android phone?

An unusual-looking Google Android phone could be headed to AT&T, according to a blogger.

Are AT&T’s Problems Getting Lost in the Fake Steve Backtracks, Backtalks, and Crazy Backflips?

Fake Steve Jobs, the nom de guerre of Newsweek’s Dan Lyons, got a ton of attention for his Operation Chokehold campaign to effectively DDoS the AT&T data network, including from AT&T itself and the FCC, not to mention pretty much every commenter on the interwebs who, while they might have applauded the cause, didn’t much appreciate the method.

Along with a quick follow up conversation with Fake AT&T CEO Randall Stevenson, where Fake Steve again absolutely excoriates the iPhone’s lone US carrier for making billions in profit on iPhone data plans while apparently cutting investments in the very network infrastructure on which the iPhone is supposed to use that data, he first tried to back track a tad, and then just went… a little nuts.

As has happened in the past, Fake Steve is taking the criticisms and spinning it into a farce including hooks into the Tiger woods scandal, historic figures of social conscious, terrorists, former and current heads of state, and now pretty much everything short of a kitchen sink app for iPhone.

In the end, we can’t help but think his original point — that AT&T isn’t investing in a network to support the iPhone and future mobile computing platforms even though they have the resources to do so, and are maximizing short-term shareholder profits over long-term share-holder and customer value — has gotten lost in the gimmick.

And that’s a shame, because AT&T really needs to invest in their network and give iPhone users the infrastructure they’re paying for.

[Thanks to everyone who sent in many and wonderful variants of all this!]

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

Are AT&T’s Problems Getting Lost in the Fake Steve Backtracks, Backtalks, and Crazy Backflips?

TiPb Top 5 iPhone Bluetooth Headsets

The following Top 5 iPhone Bluetooth Headsets guide is sponsored by the TiPb iPhone Accessory Store

The holidays are fast approaching and what a better last minute gift to give than a fancy new Bluetooth headset! With so many choices out there we figured many of you could use some help choosing the right headset. Today we’d like to give you our top five headsets available within TiPb’s iPhone Accessory store! Our picks are as follows:

• BlueAnt Q1
• Plantronics Discovery 975
• Jawbone Prime
• Motorola H17
• Motorola MOTOROKR S305

For the full rundown follow us after the break!

BlueAnt Q1

We are going to start off with my current personal favorite headset, the BluAnt Q1 voice controlled stereo Bluetooth headset. [$99.95 - TiPb Store Link]

Out of all of the headsets I’ve tested, the Q1 is by far the only one I could leave on a full work day and not even realize I’d be wearing it. It is also one of the very few headsets that gets updates via firmware with the latest update enabling stereo Bluetooth along with some other small features. And top it off with top of the line audio quality and you have yourself an excellent choice of stereo Bluetooth headset.

Be sure to check out our full review of the Q1.

Plantronics Discovery 975

I will admit that I am currently testing this headset and will be posting a full review in the coming weeks and without giving you my full impressions I will say the Plantronics Discovery 975 [$119.95 - TiPb Store Link] is indeed a quality headset.

Not only do you get the simplicity of one-touch controls, dual-mic AudioIQ² and WindSmart technologies to keep your conversations crisp and clear you also get a portable carrying case that doubles as a wireless charger on the go which is really a nice touch. Again, a full review is coming but definitely a headset worth picking up!

Jawbone Prime

Next up we have a headset that Rene put in such high regard with his full review a few months back, the Jawbone Prime. [$109.95 - TiPb Store Link]

The main selling point of the Jawbone is it’s top of the line noise cancellation, aka “NoiseAssasin”. No other headset on the market gives you better noise cancellation. And to top it off you get a plethora of colors to choose from – black, platinum, green, brown, yellow, purple, and red. To top it off they are all in stock in our store. Double bonus.

Motorola H17

The Moto H17 [$89.95 - TiPb Store Link] is Dieter’s choice of Bluetooth headset and for a few good unique reasons.

There are those times where you need to run out of the house along with your headset but you forgot to plug it into the charger the night before, good thing the H17 has a rapid charge feature. 15 minutes of charging gets you a bit over 2 hours of talk time. Now throw in Moto’s “Crystal Talk” technology for incoming sound quality and you have one heck of good headset. This is a headset you can not go wrong with.

Motorola MOTOROKR S305

Now the Motorola MOTOROKR S305 [$49.95 - TiPb Store Link] is not your typical Bluetooth headset, for the money they are the best wireless stereo headphones currently available for purchase.

Sporting great sound they are extremely lightweight and fit comfortably with the out of ear 1.2-inch ear pods. The S305 is perfect for those looking for a wireless headphone solution to bring to the gym or even if you want to enjoy your music lounging around your home. Get an incoming call while listening to your music, not a problem

For more information be sure to check out our full review.

If we happened to miss your favorite Bluetooth headset and you feel it deserves a nod, feel free to share it in the comments for others!

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

TiPb Top 5 iPhone Bluetooth Headsets