Of all the product tie-ins Apple never approved, getting an iPod for predicting a death has got to be the worst.
Cynical journos have long had newsroom betting pools on when public figures would meet their makers but website whenwillamywinehousedie.com brought that gallows recreation to the Internet public back in 2007.
Vitamin Water may be the 2011 equivalent of snake oil, but now those bus shelter ads have got some actual juice: you can hook up your iPhone or iPod to charge on the go.
Apple contacted developers today to let them know that they will soon have the option to sell apps to businesses in volume at discounted rates. The new pricing structure will be available to developers that accept the new Paid Applications Agreement through the developer portal.
Finally, after years of waiting, Americans will be treated to one of the best music services on the planet. Spotify is set to launch in the US tomorrow. The initial launch will be by “invitation and subscription.” Not sure if that means there won’t be a free US service like there is in Europe or not. Either way, Spotify is the best alternative to iTunes available and the US launch has been highly anticipated for about two years now. Spotify’s service allows users to discover and stream new music anywhere.
You’re always strumming out guitar chords while prancing around your living room listening to Yanni right? Well, here’s your chance for a more interactive experience for your air guitar greatness. Air Guitar Move is a connector for your iPhone/iPod Touch that combines a guitar pick with motion sensor technology to turn your wild flailing into sweet sweet music.
For this week’s giveaway we’ve partnered up with the friendly folks at Appular to bring fans a great package of iOS gaming apps, for free. We’ve got codes for five of the hottest games in the iPhone App Store right now and we’re ready to dish em out to our awesome fans to liven up your iPhone gaming lives. Today’s package of apps includes Cars 2,Tiny Wings, Hanging With Friends, The Game of Life, and Sea Battles. If you want a chance to win all five games then hurry up and enter the contest.
The first travel guide apps for Cuba are arriving in iTunes as a record number of Americans visit the country.
iCuba is billing itself as the first travel app for the island nation. In truth, it arrived in iTunes about a month after the Cuban Beaches in HD app, which offers hotel as well as beach info, and the Havana Travel Guide which promises an augmented reality feature. There are also a number of map apps for Cuba.
iCuba is offered in English, Spanish and Italian for $5.99. There are a few hiccups — notably, the English translation offers a category of “luxory” hotels — and other tourism info looks scarce. Still, the maps are available offline which makes consulting them easier when traveling and you can make hotel reservations via the iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch versions.
The Havana Travel guide for $4.99 offers up to five days of itineraries, hotels and restaurants by budget range, nightlife info, public transport and safety tips.
Havana Good Time, by resident expat author Conner Gorry, promises to “open doors to the forbidden city” with 160+ entries that will have you living like a local. If you want to check out the $2.99 app, though, you’ll download it in the U.S. iTunes store before you go — since restrictions will keep you from getting it when you are actually local.
If you’re in New York City June 21 and want to make sweet music with a bunch of strangers, take your iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch and head for the New York Stock Exchange.