OmniFocus for iPhone and iPad (Macworld 2010) — TiPb Apps #1.3

William Van Hecke, User Experience Lead at The Omni Group, talks to TiPb’s Rene and Leanna about OmniFocus [$19.99 - iTunes link] for the iPhone, and their future plans for iPad. Recorded live at Macworld 2010.

Watch along after the break…

OmniFocus for iPhone and iPad (Macworld 2010) — TiPb Apps #1.3 is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

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Subscriber Information and Revenue Sharing Seen as Hurdles to iPad Newspaper and Magazine Deals

Financial Times reports that talks between Apple and a number of newspaper and magazine publishers have encountered several hurdles that have slowed the deal-making process as the periodicals publishing industry attempts to understand how the move to...

Steve Jobs to Participate in Authorized Biography

The New York Times reveals that Apple co-founder and CEO Steve Jobs is about to participate in an authorized biography of his life. The biography will be written by former managing editor of Time magazine Walter Isaacson.

Jobs' partic...

Speck - Get 25% off with code SPEXY! Limited Quantities!

Valentine’s Day is right around the corner and Speck wants to help you find the perfect gift for your significant other and loved ones. That’s why from now until Valentine’s Day, Speck is offering 25% off all pink, purple, and red cases. The sale is good for ALL pink, purple, ...

Macworld 2010: MyFrogz cases, designed by an iPhone app

Filed under: Macworld, Accessories, iPhone, iPod touch

There were a lot of case vendors and manufacturers at Macworld, and we didn't have time to run around and talk to all of them (not to mention that most of them aren't all that interesting anyway). But we did make a stop by the iFrogz booth, because we'd heard about something interesting they're doing with their customizable MyFrogz iPhone cases. Theirs is the first case that you can completely customize with an actual iPhone app. To start, you go into an AT&T store (the deal is an exclusive there, but only for a little while longer), and buy a card with a code on it for US$39.99, which comes with just a plain clear case. With that code, you can then go onto the MyFrogz iPhone app, and design your own case in terms of top and bottom colors out of 100,000 combinations. Finally, you enter your information into the app, along with the code from the store, and iFrogz will send you your customized case.

Obviously, the process isn't exactly instant (and to be honest, the case isn't anything special). But the idea is very interesting -- they're using an iPhone app to conduct business that might be done more traditionally elsewhere. When the iPhone was first introduced, we heard all about Starbucks using it to order coffee, or Barnes and Noble using software to let you order books in-store. But we haven't seen much of that innovation at all, so it was surprising to find it (even in an imperfect form) in the iFrogz booth.

Macworld 2010: MyFrogz cases, designed by an iPhone app originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 15 Feb 2010 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Macworld 2010: MyFrogz cases, designed by an iPhone app originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 15 Feb 2010 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Regarding iBooks as App Store App, Books Using FairPlay DRM

It’s interesting that, since Steve Jobs announced during his iPad keynote that iBooks would be available for download from the App Store, recently there’s been some coverage of this as news — including that the iBooks books will be using Apple’s FairPlay DRM.

That iBooks won’t be built in like iPod, Music, or Movies apps, and that it includes the iBooks Store inside it instead of in a separate — also built-in — app like iTunes Store or App Store, is what made TiPb assume Apple was intending to compete on equal terms with existing App Store apps like Kindle. Making iBooks built in, and making the store part of the iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad would clearly be a sign that Kindle’s days in the App Store might be numbered. This way, however, we took it as just the opposite, especially since Jobs went to the trouble of mentioning it.

In terms of FairPlay DRM, while recent media coverage implies that it hasn’t been seen since iTunes music went DRM-free in April of last year, iTunes Movies and TV Shows certainly haven’t (a point 9to5Mac makes as well), and App Store apps are protected as well. TiPb has always assumed they’ve been using FairPlay this whole time, since Apple prefers technology they control, especially when they’re contractual bound to maintain things like copy protection. (This is why they historically refused to license it to third parties — it would make it easier to break and harder to re-secure).

So, again, when Jobs announced iBooks Store, we just took it for granted it would be using Apple’s DRM system, FairPlay. It nicely sets the stage for a big DRM-free books movement in a few years, doesn’t it?

Regarding iBooks as App Store App, Books Using FairPlay DRM is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

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Macworld 2010: Armpocket cases are a family affair

Filed under: Macworld, Accessories, Odds and ends, iPhone

We stopped by the Armpocket booth at Macworld last week, and while we expected to find just another accessory sales pitch, we found something surprising: a family. The product was actually designed by a couple named Jyette Nielsen and Mark Morgan, and as Mark explained the cases to us (which are made from high-quality, renewable materials like recycled bottle plastic and natural bamboo), we could see that this was a product with real people behind it. He's a retired military guy, and he and his "significant other" ("She's too smart to marry me," he joked) simply had a problem and came up with a solution: they're both runners, and they needed a sweat-proof, secure case to keep their iPods and cell phones in. Armpocket was the case they came up with.

Morgan told me he didn't have any significant manufacturing experience -- the couple just went around to various trade shows and chose materials and designs based on what worked for them, and now they go around and sell their cases in retail and at the trade shows (their son was in attendance at Macworld also, selling and demoing the cases). And the Armpockets are impressive -- while they're a little bigger than the standard case, the material is all moisture resistant, the padding grips your arm well while holding your phone securely in place, and there's even something called a "flexi-lock" audio port for holding the headphone cord. The cases are US$22.95 for the regular iPod versions, up to $32.95 for more extensive models.

Obviously, we didn't get to go running around the Macworld floor, so in terms of testing, I can't recommend this case over any other sturdy iPhone armbands out there. Still, it was nice to find some real people behind these often faceless accessory vendors.

Macworld 2010: Armpocket cases are a family affair originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 15 Feb 2010 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Macworld 2010: Armpocket cases are a family affair originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 15 Feb 2010 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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First Impressions of Opera Mini For iPhone: It’s Fast

Apple secures iPhone trademark

Filed under: Apple Corporate, Hardware, Apple Financial, Apple, iPhone

Apple has expanded its trademark on "iPhone" with the inclusion of the US Patent and Trade Office's (USPTO) "category 28," which reads as "handheld unit for playing electronic games." Other USPTO categories included in the trademark are number 9 (mobile phone and digital audio player) and number 38 (electronic data-transmitting device). Note that Apple filed to include category 28 way back in December of 2007, so don't take it as a sign that the next gen iPhone will be a gaming monster.

This news is no great shakes, but an example of Apple covering its bases. For example, back in 2002, Apple applied to register the iPhone trademark in China, but that application was limited to computer hardware and software, not mobile phones. Earlier this year, Apple took control of the "i-phone" trademark in China (yes, "i-phone") from manufacturer Hanwang Technology, who briefly sold a device with that name in 2003 (three years before the iPhone's introduction).

[Via Engadget]

Apple secures iPhone trademark originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 15 Feb 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Apple secures iPhone trademark originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 15 Feb 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Microsoft Unveils Windows Phone 7 Series; Should Apple Be Worried?

Review: Zooloretto game app turns your iPhone into a cute little zoo, with brains

Filed under: iPhone, iPod touch, App Review

When Zooloretto hit the board game scene in 2007, it pretty much became an immediate hit. It won the Spiel des Jahres (German Game of the Year) that year, after all. Sure, there was a lot of love for the basic game mechanics thanks to the elegant and popular card game Coloretto that came out in 2003, but gamers enjoyed the colorful animal graphics, the new decisions that needed to be made and, as time went on, plenty of expansions (14 small and large ones, plus the standalone game Aquaretto that can also be combined with Zooloretto.

The Zooloretto iPhone and iPod touch app (US $4.99) includes just one of those expansions - the polar bear - but it's a great introduction to the series. Serious board gamers who think that Zooloretto is a too-fancy version of Coloretto might find the app winning them over, because the play time is much shorter than the tabletop version (around 10-15 minutes, which is just a little bit longer than Coloretto takes, instead of 45). Gamers new to the 'retto series will find lots to like in this strategy game. The app is not a perfect representation of the board game, but it is a heck of a lot of fun. Read on to learn more about Zooloretto.

Continue reading Review: Zooloretto game app turns your iPhone into a cute little zoo, with brains

Review: Zooloretto game app turns your iPhone into a cute little zoo, with brains originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 15 Feb 2010 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Review: Zooloretto game app turns your iPhone into a cute little zoo, with brains originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 15 Feb 2010 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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SpinArt for iPhone

SpinArt offers all the fun of the original childhood art project, but none of the messy paint or frustration of cutting the perfectly sized paper squares to fit on the spinner.

AT&T to Carry 3G-Capable iPad in Stores?

Boy Genius Report claims to have received information from a source at AT&T claiming that the company will be offering the Wi-Fi+3G models of Apple's iPad for sale in its stores. According to the report, AT&T will be dedicating substantial display s...

First look at Final Fantasy on the iPhone

Filed under: Gaming, iTS, iPhone, App Store

Now that Plants vs. Zombies is out on the App Store, the new hotness to wait for is going to be Square's Final Fantasy. Courtesy of the guys over at Touch Arcade (who I'm disappointed I didn't get to meet at Macworld), here's the first trailer and screenshots of the retro RPG running on the iPhone. The games are definitely updated (the original game ran on the NES, and clearly the graphics above look better than that), but as for exactly what the differences are, or how they'll be released (will we get both in the same purchase?), we'll have to wait and see.

No date yet either -- all Square-Enix says right now is "soon." Still, if you're a Final Fantasy fan and the video above doesn't get your blood pumping, time to check your pulse. Can't wait to replay these old favorites on Apple's much newer handheld devices.

First look at Final Fantasy on the iPhone originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 15 Feb 2010 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

First look at Final Fantasy on the iPhone originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 15 Feb 2010 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Carriers Forge Alliance To Counter Apple’s App Store Dominance

Expo Notes: Life list add-on in the works for iBird Explorer

Mitch Waite Group is working on a separate bolt-on application for its iBird Explorer app that will let users keep "life lists" of all the species of birds they've spotted over the years.

Is Adobe Trying To Sabotage HTML5 Open Specification? [Updated]

OverMyMinutes.com Announces First iPhone Application for Mobile Monitoring of Cell Phone Minutes and Text Messages Overages

OverMyMinutes.com today announced the release of the first iPhone application that offers users the ability to keep a constant watch on their iPhone minute and texting usage. The newly-developed application is a mobile compliment to the San Francisco company's existing free tracking service website, OverMyMinutes.com. The Overmyminutes.com Alerter is available ...

Chip vendors hope to turn phones into HD media players

Both Qualcomm and ST-Ericsson are demonstrating concept smartphones that can connect to and play HD content on TVs in Barcelona.

Apple Set to Deploy FairPlay Digital Rights Management on iPad eBooks?

The Los Angeles Times reports that Apple is planning to bring back its FairPlay digital rights management (DRM) technology for use on eBooks made available through its iBookstore for the iPad.

Veteran iTunes customers will recognize t...