Apple May Finally Approve Google Voice Apps To The App Store

New iPad 2 with FaceTime coming Q1, 2011?

iPad 2 with FaceTime video calling is coming ahead of schedule in Q1 2011 according to Apple Insider who cite “a person with proven knowledge of Apple’s future product plans”.

They say Q1 2011 is earlier than Apple’s usual 12 month product cycle, but iPad was introduced in the beginning of Q1 2010 and barely missed shipping by end of Q1, so that seems pretty much within the usual range. Interestingly:

It’s also believed that Apple may striving to embed FaceTime within its entire mobile arsenal before making good on a promissory to open up the standard to the rest of the world, thereby mitigating the market opportunity for rival tablet devices that could incorporate the technology.

As reader Dev keeps telling us:

FaceTime had been submitted to a standards body as an informational draft, but it is still 100% under Apple’s control, and, as Apple has never announced any plans to share control with that standards body, FaceTime is not open in the sense of, say, HTML, but more along the lines of the Flash runtime, in that others can implement, but not contribute. (I am not saying Flash is open, just that it is a mistake to refer to FaceTime as open when the protocol is solely under the control of one company.)

Pushing FaceTime throughout iOS would be great. Pushing it to Windows and Mac would be fantastic. Pushing it out as a completed open standard that anyone else, from Google to Palm to Microsoft to Nokia to BlackBerry and back are implementing would dent at least our small corner of the universe.

At least until multi-person FacesTime calls come next year…

But yes, iPads with FaceTime — meaning iPads with cameras — in early 2011 are the safe bet, right?

[AppleInsider]

New iPad 2 with FaceTime coming Q1, 2011? is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

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

Sega bringing Chu Chu Rocket, others to iPhone soon

Sega America hosted an iPhone gaming event earlier this week, and the lineup of titles they've got coming to the App Store this fall is a gamer's dream: Chu Chu Rocket (my favorite Dreamcast game!) is coming to iOS, along with classic side scrollers Gunstar Heroes and Altered Beast, Sonic the Hedgehog Episode 1 (the brand new 2D version of Sonic), and a free-to-play strategy/RPG MMO called Kingdom Conquest. TouchArcade was there at the event, and they say that Chu Chu Rocket is all you hope it will be, the new Sonic looks excellent, and Kingdom Conquest sounds like an intriguing mix of genres. Card battling, empire building, and RPG questing all built into one Sega-published free-to-play title? Chu Chu and Sonic already have their pedigrees, but it doesn't sound like you can go wrong with that last one.

What a lineup from Sega for this year -- I'm actually more excited about their iPhone releases than I am about anything they're bringing out on consoles or any other platform. Unfortunately, there's no mention of Game Center in any of these previews, but all of the games seem to have multiplayer of some sort, from 1-4 players over both Bluetooth and wifi. So it's probably a pretty good presumption that they'll be Game Center-enabled in some way.

So lots to look forward to in the next few months. Should be fun.

Sega bringing Chu Chu Rocket, others to iPhone soon originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 10 Sep 2010 20:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Sega bringing Chu Chu Rocket, others to iPhone soon originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 10 Sep 2010 20:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple Readying New FaceTime Equipped iPads?

The current iPad model.
Appleinsider claims that Apple may already be in "advanced testing stages" of a new FaceTime capable iPads.

A version of the tablet device with a built-in video camera and support for the new Fa...

TomTom offers free car kit adapter for iPhone 4

Attention, folks who purchased the TomTom car kit for their iPhone 3G or 3GS, only to upgrade to a won't-fit-quite-right iPhone 4: you're in luck. TomTom is now providing a free adapter for the aforementioned car kit that allows an iPhone 4 to fit properly.

Apparently the adapter is simply a piece of plastic that one sticks into place over a spot at the bottom of the dock. It's included in the kit packaging from September 1, though if you bought a car kit before then, you can claim your adapter from TomTom for free.

The TomTom car kit retails for about $120. Obviously, to make full use of the TomTom car kit at all, you'll want to have the $40 iPhone app to go along with it.

[via Electronista]

TomTom offers free car kit adapter for iPhone 4 originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 10 Sep 2010 19:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

TomTom offers free car kit adapter for iPhone 4 originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 10 Sep 2010 19:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Windows Phone 7 team hold mock funeral for iPhone

Microsoft held a mock funeral today for the iPhone as part of their Windows Phone 7 release to master (RTM) celebration.

It would have been more accurate had they been carrying a Kin.

[Trioculus via WMExperts, Engadget]

Windows Phone 7 team hold mock funeral for iPhone is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

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

Apple to change free iPhone 4 case program on September 30

Apple is going to change their free iPhone 4 case program on September 30, the date originally given for the initial term of the program by Steve Jobs during the iPhone 4 press conference.

We now know that the iPhone 4 antenna attenuation issue is even smaller than we originally thought. A small percentage of iPhone 4 users need a case, and we want to continue providing them a Bumper case for free. For everyone else, we are discontinuing the free case program on all iPhone 4s sold after September 30, 2010. We are also returning to our normal returns policy for all iPhone 4s sold after September 30. Users experiencing antenna issues should call AppleCare to request a free Bumper case.

So if you bought or buy your iPhone 4 on or before September 30, and you just want a free case, download the Apple case program app and order it asap.

If you get your iPhone 4 on or after October 1 and have a real death grip or death touch problem, you’ll have to talk to Apple Care for your free case.

Make sense?

[Apple.com, thanks to everyone who sent this in.]

Apple to change free iPhone 4 case program on September 30 is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

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

TUAW iPhone Tips: Typing the Apple symbol, iOS 4 folders in the dock

As you go into this weekend looking for things to do, you might be thinking about how to organize your iOS 4.x iPhone and use the Apple symbol in the process.

The first tip, courtesy of Macenstein, deals with labeling of apps and folders. Back in the iPhone OS 2.x days, you could use the Japanese keyboard to type the Apple symbol. That feature disappeared, but now there's a way to bring back that Apple symbol.

The solution is to create a folder in iOS 4, which is done by dragging one app onto another. Give the folder a name, like "Rename me," then sync with your computer. With your iPhone selected in iTunes 10, click on the Apps tab. There you'll see all of your apps and folders, and you can double-click on the folder you just created to rename it. Use the Mac keyboard shortcut Option-Shift-K to type in the Apple symbol () and whatever else you want in the folder title, press Return to enter the change, and then click the Apply button to rename the folder on your iPhone. If you ever need to type an Apple symbol into another app, you can simply copy and paste it from the folder name.

Our second tip, from TUAW reader Adam, uses the obvious (but little-used) fact that you can put folders into the "dock" row of icons on your iPhone home screen. Why is that important? With one touch, you can have access to up to 12 of your favorite apps in the always-available dock row. Join the two tips together, and you can have an  Apps folder in your iPhone dock containing all of those Apple apps that you can't get rid of.

TUAW iPhone Tips: Typing the Apple symbol, iOS 4 folders in the dock originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 10 Sep 2010 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

TUAW iPhone Tips: Typing the Apple symbol, iOS 4 folders in the dock originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 10 Sep 2010 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple’s new developer terms: What’s in, what’s out

PCWorld's Ian Paul considers what kind of apps might win approval and which ones are still out in the cold under Apple's revised guidelines for iPhone app makers.


Apple - IPhone - AppStore - Smartphones - Handhelds

TUAW preview: Billabong Surf Trip

Chillingo invited us out to the headquarters of surfwear manufacturer Billabong yesterday for a look at a new iPhone and iPad game called Billabong Surf Trip. The game is designed by a Portugese developer named Biodroid Entertainment (who told me that they've done some work on other consoles, but this is their first title for Apple's iOS). As you may have guessed from the name, the title is sponsored by Billabong, and features the ability to create a surfer and then send him or her around the world to take on the waves.

Before I sat down to play the game, I asked Billabong's PR Director Jim Kempton about why they'd gotten involved in an iPhone game, and he said the goal of the game was to "introduce people to what surfing is about, on the level that we're hoping to cast an interest anyway." You don't have to be a surfer to enjoy the game, but enjoying the game might get you interested in surfing, and thus the Billabong brand. "Just like the professional football or professional golf circuit, most people," said Kempton," are never going to be playing any more than messing around at the local golf club, but they can understand how it works, or what it means to go to Augusta, or Scotland, or these places."

Continue reading TUAW preview: Billabong Surf Trip

TUAW preview: Billabong Surf Trip originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 10 Sep 2010 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

TUAW preview: Billabong Surf Trip originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 10 Sep 2010 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Microsoft celebrates Windows Phone 7 RTM with funeral parade for BlackBerry and iPhone (update: Thriller video!)

The iPhone's dead, long live the Windows Phone. That must be the genius proclamation that incited Microsoft to celebrate Windows Phone 7 reaching RTM status with the incomprehensible procession you see above. An elaborate parade, replete with hearses and black capes, was organized last week to denote the passing of the BlackBerry and iPhone into the land of unwanted gadgets. We'd say this is done in poor taste, but we don't enjoy stating the obvious. We will, however, enjoy the fallout from this poorly judged stunt. See our favorite image after the break and lots more at the source.

Update: Apparently the team also engaged in a Thriller dance. Words are failing us, so just hop on past the break and mash play.

Continue reading Microsoft celebrates Windows Phone 7 RTM with funeral parade for BlackBerry and iPhone (update: Thriller video!)

Microsoft celebrates Windows Phone 7 RTM with funeral parade for BlackBerry and iPhone (update: Thriller video!) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 10 Sep 2010 17:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Profile of Foxconn’s Founder Addresses Relationship With Apple

Bloomberg Businessweek publishes a lengthy profile of Foxconn founder Terry Gou, who has built his Taiwan-based manufacturing company into a major player in the computing and consumer electronics industries and become Apple's primary manufact...

Review: Pigeon Squadron for iPhone

Pigeon Squadron is amusing for a few minutes due to its unique concept and crass humor, but when you get down to it there isn't much depth here.


IPhone - Government - Defence - Cadets - Air Training Corps

iPhone 4 free case program to end September 30th, get one while you still can

Back when Apple initially said it'd offer free iPhone 4 cases to assuage reception concerns, there was a September 30th deadline given for the program. After which, according to Steve and company during the post-press conference Q&A, Apple would "evaluate" the prolonged need for such an offer. Well, looks like the decision has been made. In a statement on its website, Apple has confirmed the free case program will be discontinued for all iPhone 4s sold after September 30th, and the return policy for the smartphone will return to normal, pre-antennagate rules. Evidently, said the statement, "we now know the iPhone 4 antenna attenuation issue is even smaller than we originally thought." It had to end sometime, folks.

iPhone 4 free case program to end September 30th, get one while you still can originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 10 Sep 2010 15:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Addictive arcade puzzle game Shibuya released for iOS

Nevercenter is releasing its PAX '10 award-winning arcade puzzle game, Shibuya, for iOS.


Game - Puzzle video game - Video Games - Arcade game - Puzzle

DataViz releases Documents To Go Premium 4.0

DataViz, recently purchased by BlackBerry maker Research in Motion, has released Documents To Go Premium 4.0, a major update to its suite of mobile apps for viewing and editing Microsoft Office documents.


Research in Motion - Microsoft Office - DataViz - BlackBerry - Documents To Go

iPhone 4 Case Program to end September 30

Apple updated the page on its iPhone 4 Case Program to say that the free case offer will only extend through the end of the month.


IPhone - Apple - Handhelds - Smartphones - iPhone 4 Case Program

Over-the-air notes syncing option disappears from iPhone 3G in iOS 4.1

For the iPhone 3G, the biggest new feature for many users under iOS 4.1 is the phone now actually works. Making the iPhone 3G usable under iOS 4 came with some trade-offs before the new OS was even released -- app multitasking and wallpapers didn't make the cut on the older iPhone -- but it looks like a couple more features have been pruned from the iPhone 3G after iOS 4.1.

One missing feature we noticed right away: Spotlight no longer searches through MMS messages on the iPhone 3G after the iOS 4.1 update. Given that disabling Spotlight searching was the most common suggested remedy for poor iPhone 3G performance on earlier builds of iOS 4, this omission is somewhat understandable.

More puzzling, however, is another omission the folks at geek.com noticed: over-the-air Notes syncing is now missing in action on the iPhone 3G, too. Up until now, the iPhone 3G, like its newer siblings, has been able to sync Notes between the iPhone and a Mac/PC via Gmail or MobileMe rather than through iTunes, allowing for near-instant Notes updates between devices. According to Apple's support document on Notes syncing, both the iPhone 3G and second-generation iPod touch have lost this feature. You can still sync Notes with the iPhone 3G via iTunes, but you'll no longer enjoy device-to-device updates without syncing your iPhone first.

Given the plethora of alternate apps on the App Store that offer far more flexibility and features than Apple's built-in Notes app, though, this omission is something we might never have noticed if one of our readers hadn't brought it up. We're not sure why Apple removed this feature in 4.1; it's possible that, like Spotlight searching of MMS, it was one of the things dragging down performance on the older devices. Either way, losing over-the-air Notes syncing in IOS 4.1 is a small price to pay for an iPhone 3G that actually functions properly in iOS 4.
Thanks to Jeff for bringing this to our attention.

Over-the-air notes syncing option disappears from iPhone 3G in iOS 4.1 originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 10 Sep 2010 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Over-the-air notes syncing option disappears from iPhone 3G in iOS 4.1 originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 10 Sep 2010 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple To Discontinue Free Case Program On All iPhone 4s Sold After September 30

Android leaps to No. 2 mobile OS in 2010

Market research firm Gartner says Android will edge out Research In Motion's BlackBerry and Apple's iOS for all of 2010 to become the second best-selling mobile operating system globally behind Nokia's Symbian.


Apple - Nokia - Research In Motion - Mobile operating system - Gartner