Review: Rafter for iPhone

Rafter by Emantras is a beautifully drawn physics-based puzzle game inspired by Da Vinci. The point of the game is to strike a red mine. To get there, you'll need to draw circular or rectangular shapes that bounce through the maze-like levels. Rafter may sound easy, but the increasingly difficult 31 levels are a constant trial of geometry, physics, and sketching ability.

Apple Banning Screen Protectors in Retail Stores?

iLounge and Macworld are reporting that Apple has banned the sale of film-based screen protectors for its iPhone, iPod, and Mac lines in its retail stores.

In communications with vendors that have been ongoing for "some time n...

Apple to No Longer Carry iPhone, iPod Screen Protectors?

iLounge is reporting that Apple Retail and Apple Online will no longer carry screen protectors for iPhone, iPod, or anything else, either sold separately or packaged with cases. That includes plain protectors, anti-glare, privacy, mirror, or any other kind of film meant to be placed over an iPhone or iPod screen. iLounge further speculates this is a move by Apple meant to emphasize the durability of their screens — you don’t need no stinkin’ protector, so to speak.

We have trouble believing any of this; it sounds unbelievable. If true, manufacturers will simply stop bundling screen protectors with their cases and customers will have to purchase them separately from a different, non-Apple channel [like the TiPb Store -- cheap plug!]

Hopefully there’s some misunderstanding here but we’ll keep an eye on the story and update as it develops. Meanwhile let us know your thoughts in the comments.

[iLounge via Gear Diary]

YouTube link

Apple to No Longer Carry iPhone, iPod Screen Protectors? is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

TiPb - The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch Blog

Apple Stores purging screen protection?

According to reports from vendors, Apple will no longer sell screen-protection accessories in its stores.

iBrr Bluetooth Receiver & Remote for iPhone - New P2P Remote

Announcing that Techno Gurus, the developers of iBrr Bluetooth Receiver and Remote 1.0, has launched a new application in a new niche. This is a brand new app that uses peer-to-peer networking via WiFi or Bluetooth technology to transform an iDevice into a remote control. iBrr also provides a secure ...

Apple Updates iWork.com with Better Interface for iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad

MacRumors reports on an email being sent to users of Apple’s iWork.com document sharing site that outlines a few updates to the service, including one for iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad:

Refined user interface. A redesigned Sign In and Shared Documents page for iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch makes it easy to access your documents while on the go. The new interface and improved scrolling help you find your shared documents faster. Visit www.iwork.com from your iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch to view your shared documents.

iWork.com has been in beta since it was introduced at Macworld 2009 and it’s still unclear exactly how much effort Apple is putting into it compared to say iWork touch recently unveiled for the iPad, and whether or not Apple will ever release full-on Web App versions of Pages, Numbers, and Keynote to compete with Google Docs and Microsoft’s new Office 2010 Online.

If you use iWork.com, let us know what you think of the changes.

Apple Updates iWork.com with Better Interface for iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

TiPb - The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch Blog

Apple Enhances iWork.com Beta With Sharing, Mobile Interface Features

Apple today sent an e-mail to users of its iWork.com beta announcing several enhancements involving document sharing and access to the service from the iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad.

- Share documents on websites and social net...

Apple Advertising Snafu in Australia and New Zealand Leads to Confusion Over Possible Price Increases, Updated Models

Engadget today pointed to a series of Apple ads appearing on Australian site PC Authority appearing to show significantly increased prices for Apple's MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, and Mac Pro lines, suggesting that new, more expensive models may...

Simplify Media yanks iPhone apps

Over the weekend, developer Simplify Media removed Simplify, Simplify Music, and Simplify Photo from the App Store, promising to take the technology that allows users to access media remotely in a "new direction."

Flash-Free Versions of NPR, Wall Street Journal Coming for iPad

All Things Digital is reporting that NPR along with The Wall Street Journal are just a few of the big-name media outlets preparing Flash-free versions of their respective sites specifically for Apple’s new iPad.

While National Public Radio is scrambling to have their iPad application available for the iPad release date, they are also putting the finishing touches on their app alternative solution for users to listen to their programming directly from the iPad on April 3rd.

“Use the iPad’s browser to visit NPR.org, which will detect that it’s being viewed with Apple’s device and serve up a custom-built site. This means no trace of Adobe’s (ADBE) Flash, which is used to power graphics and media on the site.”

The Wall Street Journal will also have their Flash-free, iPad specific, front page in a few short weeks. However, the deeper you click into their site you will find that Flash does still exist. That’s certainly understandable given how large the site is and how deeply Flash content, especially video and advertising, has been integrated. Detecting iPad Safari’s unique user agent string might be easy enough (that’s how so many sites detect and deliver iPhone optimized web sites already), but setting up complete mirrors absent Flash is by no means a simple task and may not be a viable solution for those sites out there that depend on Flash to display most of their content. (Though hopefully it will cause sites that use Flash for no reason — we’re looking at you restaurants! — to rethink the decision and switch to more basic, searchable, and friendly standards based technologies).

As the battle between Adobe and Apple over Flash continues to heat up, it’s interesting to see where the chips are falling. Is not having Flash on the iPad or iPhone still a concern to you? Let us (and them) know how you feel in the comments!

Flash-Free Versions of NPR, Wall Street Journal Coming for iPad is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

TiPb - The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch Blog

Pure Square Go releases Chromixa 1.1.1 and Lite

Building on the success of the critical hit puzzle game, Chromixa, for iPhone and iPod touch, Pure Square Go is delighted to announce that update 1.1 is now available. The full list of upgrades are; 22 new puzzles (70 total), new "Time Challenge" mini game (4 total), OpenFeint integration for ...

TweetyShow 1.0 for iPhone - Shows Photos Being Posted on Twitter, Live

Nicolas Seriot and Anton Anton today are pleased to announce the release of TweetyShow 1.0 for iPhone and iPod touch devices. TweetyShow shows photos posted on Twitter in real time. iPhone users can scroll through an endless grid of photos coming live from the Twitter-sphere. The result is a strange, ...

Run to WIN! Get the high score in Doodle Run and win an iPad!

Who needs a trophy when you can have a shinny new iPad? If you have what it takes to run through a dangerous doodle world and survive longer than your competitors then a new iPad is exactly what you’ll get.   In Doodle Run you run through multiple doodle themes, including Rain, ...

TiPb Apps 5.3: Gameloft (GDC 2010)

Live from GDC 2010, Rene talks to Baudoin Corman and Sanette Chao from Gameloft about Nova [$4.99 - iTunes link], Rayman 2 [$6.99 - iTunes link], GT Racing [$4.99 - iTunes link], Avatar [$6.99 - iTunes link] and many more [iTunes link] for iPhone and iPod touch… and for iPad!

Gameloft really wants to offer highly polished games and the highest quality gaming experience in every genre and to every type of gamer. for 2010 they’re, already showing off Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell: Conviction, Fisher Kings, Zombie Infection, and no doubt much more — including iPad specific versions of some of their titles that better make use of the bigger screen. (As seen during Apple’s iPad event).

For a large company, Gameloft has proven time and again they can react quickly to take advantage of new developments in the iPhone OS and whole new platforms like the iPad. It will be interesting to see what else they have planned for us in 2010. Fun too.

Watch along after the break!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1VGAtJ7V3Ic

TiPb Apps 5.3: Gameloft (GDC 2010) is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

TiPb - The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch Blog

Review: Billings Touch for iPhone

Whether on its own or in tandem with Marketcircle's desktop Billings app, this mobile time tracker and invoicing application has no parallel on the iPhone or iPod touch.