Fourth-Generation iPod Touch Teardown Photos Posted by FCC

Engadget notes that Apple's new iPod touch introduced yesterday has appeared on the website of the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC). Along with other standard information on radiation emissions required by the FCC for approval, t...

CourseNotes for iPad gains sharing, premium content

A major upgrade to this note-taking, sketching, and to-do-tracking iPad app for students adds the ability to share notes on Facebook and directly with other CourseNotes users. A new in-app store with premium content also provides access to specialized note templates and study sheets.


Facebook - IPad - Notetaking - Social network - Online Communities

Official Twitter app updated for iPad

A few months ago, Twitter announced that they had acquired Tweetie and the web (I refuse to use the word "blogosphere" because it is a stupid word) exploded with predictions that they had effectively killed off the market for 3rd party Twitter applications by offering a free alternative.

With the release of Twitter as a universal app that now includes iPad support (read the official announcement here) I feel confident to say that the reports of the death of 3rd party Twitter applications has been greatly exaggerated.

The UI for Twitter for iPad is, without question, unlike any other Twitter application that we've seen. Opinions around the TUAW offices on whether this difference is "awesome" or "an abomination." I definitely range towards the latter end of the scale, and judging by most of the comments of people that I follow on Twitter, the initial reaction is definitely one of "too busy" and "over designed."

This is in sharp contrast to Twitterrific which just released a major update for the iPad and iPhone where they made dramatic simplifications to the app, while retaining the most important features for the most users. (Craig Hockenberry talked about those changes here.)

Continue reading Official Twitter app updated for iPad

Official Twitter app updated for iPad originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 02 Sep 2010 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Official Twitter app updated for iPad originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 02 Sep 2010 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Harman AKG teams up with Quincy Jones on Signature Line of headphones

Gone is the day when headphones could be respectable without some kind of corporate tie-in or Lady Gaga endorsement. Alas, even Harman's revered AKG division has roped in the venerable Quincy Jones for its new (wait for it) Quincy Jones Signature Line. We're talking three models here, ready for launch in October and ranging from the Q 701 "reference class" over-the-ear cans (pictured), the Q 460 lightweight headphones, and Q 350 buds. The Q 701 features ergonomically-shaped cushions of velvet, an "unbeatable" linear frequency response covering 10Hz to 39.8kHz, a 45-mm high excursion driver, and detachable 99-percent oxygen-free cables. The portable $229.99 Q 460 on-ear headphones feature a 3D-axis folding system and an iPhone compatible in-line remote with microphone and play, pause, and skip functions. The in-ear Q 350 also bring iPhone compatible and target the "audiophile on the go" with $149.99 to burn. Seems fitting for a man with 79 Grammy nominations (and 27 awards) to benefit from his name. And you can feel better about him selling out knowing that an undisclosed sum from every pair of headphones sold goes towards the Quincy Jones Musiq Consortium -- a foundation dediqated to eduqating Ameriqan kids about musiq. Ironic, because the Grammys might actually be relevant if American music corporations knew anything about good music.

Continue reading Harman AKG teams up with Quincy Jones on Signature Line of headphones

Harman AKG teams up with Quincy Jones on Signature Line of headphones originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 02 Sep 2010 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

OpenFeint PlayTime brings cross-platform multiplayer gaming to iOS, Android

OpenFeint PlayTime brings cross-platform multiplayer gaming to iOS, Android originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 02 Sep 2010 10:23:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Confusion Over Facebook’s Brief Appearance in Ping for iTunes

Screenshot from Follow Music and People with Ping video tutorial
With yesterday's release of iTunes 10, Apple also deployed a new music-focused social network feature known as Ping. When it initially launched yesterday, users creating...

Samsung launches Galaxy Tab

Samsung has finally revealed the Galaxy Tab, a tablet computer running Android 2.2 that will begin shipping in October in Europe. There's no date given for when the tablet hits the U.S. or how much it will cost.


Android - Samsung Group - Galaxy Tab - tablet - Galaxy Tab Samsung

Billboard nominates music app awards

Billboard has announced that it will be giving awards out for iOS music apps (of all things). At the Music App Summit on October 5th, Billboard will choose winning iOS apps in six different categories, from Best Artist App and Best Music Creation App to Best Branded Music App. You can find the full list of nominees after the break, and there are some recognizable names on there, including a Phish touring app, TUAW favorite I am T-Pain, and the now Disney-owned Tap Tap Revenge.

Winners will be announced at the summit, and they will be selected by a panel of judges that includes (not kidding about this) MC Hammer and a bunch of CEOs and marketing folks. It seems silly (and let's face it... it is), but Billboard is a big deal in the music industry, and this means that the dinosaur-like recording giants are at least starting to notice the effect that apps have on artist profiles. Plus, it's good to see LaDiDa get a little more attention -- I liked that one.

Continue reading Billboard nominates music app awards

Billboard nominates music app awards originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 02 Sep 2010 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Billboard nominates music app awards originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 02 Sep 2010 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Post Apple Music Event 2010 – From the Forums

The TiPb forums are naturally a great place to talk, commiserate, celebrate, get help, and offer advice to your fellow iPhone users. In order to create a new thread of your own or reply to any of the existing threads, you must be a registered member. Becoming a member is easy and free so if you haven’t already head on over and register now!

• Discuss your reactions to the official Apple 2010 Special Music event here. Was it what you expected? Disappointed? Let us know!

• iTunes 10 with Ping was released yesterday, give us your thoughts on this latest version!

• Want to discuss iOS 4.1? This is the thread to do so: iOS 4.1 update.

• Might as well chat up the iOS 4.2 as well, do so here: iOS 4.2.

See you in the forums!

Post Apple Music Event 2010 – From the Forums is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

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

Apple Special Music Event 2010 round-up

Once again Steve Jobs put sneaker to stage and at the Apple Special Music Event 2010 wowed the crowed with new gorgeous new hardware, stunning new software, and… services of a sort. The big stories were iOS 4.1 and iOS 4.2, the new iPod touch, iPod nano, and Apple TV, and iTunes 10 with its Ping music social network, and of course, what we didn’t get.

The full story… well, here it is in handy bullet-point form.

Event coverage

• Apple Special Music Event 2010 streaming video
• Apple Special Music Event — Watch along with TiPb! (Live blog)
• Poll: What did you like (or not like) about Apple’s 2010 iTunes/iPod event?
• Apple special music event – what we didn’t get

iOS 4.1 and iOS 4.2

• iOS 4.2 coming soon for iPad… and iPhone
• iOS 4.1 for iPhone, iPod touch next week, iOS 4.2 for iPad in November
• iOS 4.1 to fix proximity sensor, Bluetooth, and iPhone 3G performance bugs
• iOS 4.1 Gold Master now available to developers
• 120,000,000 iOS devices sold, 250,000 apps, 6.5 billion downloads – by the numbers
• Steve Jobs: 230,000 iOS activations a day, not counting upgrades like Google. Google responds.

New iPod touch, iPod nano, Apple TV

• Apple releases new iPod touch, iPod nano commercials
• Apple introduces iPod touch with Retina Display, FaceTime, HD Video
• Apple introduces tiny, iPhone-like multitouch iPod nano
• New Apple TV, 1/4 the size, streaming only, rental only, Netflix, $99
• Apple TV has A4 chip, iOS, so where are the apps, games, a web browser?

Epic gaming

• Epic Citadel for iPhone, iPad demo now in App Store
• Steve Jobs: iPod touch more popular than Nintendo DS and Sony PSP combined

iTunes 10 and Ping social music network

• Apple introduces iTunes 10 with new icon, streamlined UI, Ping social network
• iOS 4 Ping social music network gallery
• iTunes 10 Ping social music network gallery

Apple Special Music Event 2010 round-up is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

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

TUAW’s Daily App: Super Mega Worm

Sometimes you roll along, having a pretty good day... and sometimes, you just want a giant worm to rise up out of the ground and destroy everything. Super Mega Worm is for that second type of day. (You'll have to find something else for the first -- Doodle Jump, perhaps?) It's a game where you control a gigantic worm on a 2D field. You use a slider (or the accelerometer) to direct it through the soil and up onto the surface of the Earth, where puny little humans await their inevitable destruction. The game is funny in a morbid way; you end up cheering for the little worm as it grows (and learns new abilities) over time, and eventually, you'll find yourself reveling in the destruction of the human race.

Quality pixelated graphics and excellent sounds help immersion a lot, and the control scheme is surprisingly fitting for the kind of movement that the worm does. There's even a little mini-game in jumping off of various vehicles into the atmosphere and exploring the game field in both directions. Super Mega Worm isn't really a title for the faint of heart; even though the graphics are pretty retro, things get gory fast. But if you've ever found yourself laughing at or cheering for the monster in a horror movie, Super Mega Worm will probably dig its way into your free time. The game is US$2.99 on the App Store right now.

TUAW's Daily App: Super Mega Worm originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 02 Sep 2010 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

TUAW's Daily App: Super Mega Worm originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 02 Sep 2010 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Mercedes-Benz updates mbrace app with fancy pants ‘Concierge’ service

Continue reading Mercedes-Benz updates mbrace app with fancy pants 'Concierge' service

Mercedes-Benz updates mbrace app with fancy pants 'Concierge' service originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 02 Sep 2010 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Steve Jobs: iPod touch more popular than Nintendo DS and Sony PSP combined

Yesterday during Apple’s annual Special Music Event Steve Jobs announced that the iPod touch was more popular than both Nintendo’s DS and Sony’s PSP… combined. Jobs also said more than 1.5 games and entertainment apps have been downloaded by iPod touch devices to date.

However, as every gadget and gaming blog has since pointed out, while iPod touch has sold in the mid tens of millions of units (Apple doesn’t often break them out), Nintendo’s DS series has sold 132 million all on its lonesome, so take this with a “biggest mobile company” type grain of salt.

[Engadget, thanks also to Freaknasty]

Steve Jobs: iPod touch more popular than Nintendo DS and Sony PSP combined is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

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

iOS 4.2 coming soon for iPad… and iPhone

If Steve Jobs announced that iOS 4.2 would be coming to iPhone during his keynote a the special music event yesterday, I missed it, but that’s what Apple.com’s new preview page says:

Look for iOS 4.2 coming in November for iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch.1

(That footnote reads “not compatible with all models” so likely iPhone 2G and iPod touch G1 miss out again).

What will distinguish iOS 4.2 on iPhone from iOS 4.1? Only a few things leap out at me:

• Wireless printing, so we can shoot docs from our iOS device to a receptive paper printer. (Not word on compatibility requirements yet though).

• AirPlay, which takes AirTunes to another level with streaming video and pictures, and should let us beam content from iPhone or iPod touch to the new Apple TV. (Perfect to take a movie to friends or family).

• Find text on web page, finally. In Safari, easily search for and highlight specific words and phrases.

Most importantly, does this mean we’ll finally see Grand Unification of iOS in our lifetimes? Have the forces of fracture failed? Developers will hopefully find out soon. Consumers get it in November.

iOS 4.2 coming soon for iPad… and iPhone is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

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

Review: PongVaders: Episode 1 for iPhone

Aliens have taken over the center of your screen and are intent on destroying Earth. Using your square, tennis-like paddles, you and a partner (the game is multiplayer only) must work together to deflect any missiles the aliens throw at our homeworld.


Game - IPhone - Earth - Alien - Video game

Epic 4G and Galaxy Tab – Sammy’s double competitive whammy

Full Sprint Epic 4G review – Galaxy Tab preview

Phil and Dieter over at sibling site Android Central have gone a little Samsung Galaxy-class crazy, with a full review of the Sprint Epic 4G and an advanced look at the Galaxy Tab tablet (including hands-on video and spec shootout vs. our own iPad).

So is the Epic 4G… epic?

Compared to the other Samsung Galaxy S phones, the Sprint Epic 4G has a leg up in several departments. There’s the keyboard, of course, which is pretty darn good. Not perfect, but above average. The addition of a 4G radio is a big plus. But along with that comes a slightly higher phone bill, and battery usage. (Same is true with the Evo 4G, of course.)

And is the Galaxy Tab fit for launch?

As it is, we can’t say for sure just how the Galaxy Tab will fare – its fate is tied to the release date, carrier customization, and most-of-all app support from developers. It’s not enough that the Tab has access to the market, it needs Android apps that by hook-or-crook take advantage of this extra screen size and the powerful processor. Samsung’s fate isn’t entirely out of their hands, though, as we still have yet to hear the full Media Hub story for getting ahold of video content.

Based on our short time we think the Tab should be on your short list, but while Samsung has made a great device here, the devil will be in those carrier/pricing/app details.

Epic 4G seems like it will be another monster. Not as polished as iPhone 4 but more open and adaptable. Galaxy Tab is harder to predict given the “pad” market didn’t really exist before March. Are there enough people who want a “pad” just not an iPad to create a competitive market like we have for smartphones?

Epic 4G and Galaxy Tab – Sammy’s double competitive whammy is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

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

iOS 4 Ping social music network gallery

After a few hiccups, Ping, Apple’s new social music network, is up and running on iOS 4 devices. Yesterday we took a quick look at how Ping worked in iTunes 10 and while computers have some advantages, I think I’m preferring it on iPhone right now.

Putting it in the iOS iTunes app is strange of course, until you realize Ping exists primarily to encourage people to buy more iTunes music, so having all those shopping carts handy is in Apple’s best interests. I’m not convinced it’s in mine, especially since load times in iTunes have never been as snappy as they feel in the dedicated Twitter or Facebook apps. And since the outer chrome has to include ways of moving to different iTunes store content, they can’t be used to make navigating Ping any easier (not that there’s much to navigate yet).

Lastly, while it still doesn’t look like anyone but recording artists can share real status or post pics or video, we dull normals can share music, like activities, and comment on likes.

Gallery after the break.

iOS 4 Ping social music network gallery is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

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

Twitter for iPad is finally here

After months of speculation, Twitter on Wednesday released the first universal version of its iOS client, bringing a full iPad implementation into the mix.


Twitter - Online Communities - Social Networking - Trending and Popularity - Browser Plugins