TeamViewer has been steadily updating its free remote-desktop app for the iPhone and iPad with big features ever since it first hit the App Store over a year ago. This big new update adds another meaty treat: the ability to transfer files back and forth between your iDevice and a Mac (or PC).
No, that’s not an electronic Tootsie Roll — It’s Logitech’s brand-new $50 iPad Speaker (actually, they’re calling it the “Tablet Speaker”; because, apparently, there are other tablets out there. Who knew.)
Yesterday, we reviewed Canopy’s Kapok camera system for iPhone 4; the free, feature-packed Canopy Camera Tools app is an excellent camera app and an integral part of that system — but it also works just fine by itself, without any extra hardware.
When I initially stumbled across Canopy’s Kapok ($70), it seemed like a groovy idea: A case that had dedicated buttons for shooting photos and video is exactly what the iPhone needs, I thought. Plus, other app developers would be able to use Canopy’s API to add functionality to their apps through the buttons. Brilliant.
But then came the iOS 5 unveiling, with the revelation the camera app would gain its own hard button (in the form of the iPhone’s volume up button), and no other app developers have taken advantage of the kapok’s hard buttons. So is it still as shiny a toy as I’d orginally thought? Here’s what some hands-on time revealed…
Remember Panasonic’s 3DO game system back in the mid ’90s? Not surprised if you don’t; it failed miserably and was discontinued after three years, despite being packed with promise and cutting-edge technology. But the three-year sales record of this flop have thus far still managed to handily beat that of Android tablets — all of them. Combined.
My first reaction to the new iPad-stand-pillow ePillow was a hearty guffaw — followed almost immediately by a “hmmmm”; it’s one of those wacky-looking ideas that just might be brilliant.
A few weeks ago we reviewed the Samson Meteor Mic, an ideal piece of hardware for podcasting. Spiffy hardware, though, is only half of a podcaster’s toolkit — the other half, of course, is capable software.
Ambrosia’s WireTap Studio ($70) fits that bill pretty well. It does almost everything one asks voice-recording software to do, and then some — it even has some nifty tricks up it’s sleeve that make it surprisingly useful for a wide variety of situations.
Why bizarrely cool? Forget that it’s an app-enhanced fitness gadget that sands data to your iPhone; sure, that’s neat, but there are a stack of devices out there doing the same thing.
No, Scosche’s little myTREK fitness gadget is that nifty because it tracks bio data using a method straight out of the future — it uses light beams.
Tony Bongiovi (yes, if the name sounds oddly familiar, it’s because you’re probably thinking of his cousin, Jon Bon Jovi) should know a thing or two about sound, hopefully; he’s had a hand in producing albums from the likes of Jimi Hendrix, Aerosmith, and of course, his famous cousin.
AirBeam is a clever little app that lets you output realtime video from one iDevice (camera-equipped, obviously) to another iDevice on the same local network. The app usually sells for $4, but it’s free today through Saturday.
Belkin today released its Keyboard Folio for iPad 2, a $100 Bluetooth keyboard case. Like Adonit’s Writer 2 (review coming soon), Belkin’s take on the iPad keyboard/case is a faux suede folio with attached BT keyboard and placeholder to carry the iPad 2 around in.
Lets’ face it — cycling is geeky enough with Lycra, weird cycling shoes and helmets so dorky they look like they were designed by population-control advocates — it doesn’t need the added panache of a Bluetooth speaker bungied to the handlebars.
Kanex just unveiled its SnapX today, a $69 switch that connects a single 24- or 27-inch Apple Cinema Display to a pair of Macs and allows toggling between the two.
Smart Cover? IntelliCase? Yeah, there’s no product-naming rivalry going on there. And just like its name, Griffin’s IntelliCase, is a cooler version of Apple’s ubiquitous iPad 2 Smart Cover, because it adds something sorely missing from Apple’s version: a back.
I have a friend I once queried about the contents of his PC gaming library. He looked at me a little quizzically, then replied that he had the only game one ever need play: Civilization. In that instance, it happened to be Civilization 4, Civ 5’s immediate PC predecessor, arguably considered the finest version of the series since Sid Meier’s original 1991 masterpiece.
He’s not alone. Press any gamer for a name that defines the category of turn-based strategy, and the answer will almost invariably be “Civilization.” Intelligent, beautifully crafted, incredibly detailed with finely honed gaming mechanics, the games are as much a beauty to behold as they are immensely satisfying to play.
The latest installment, Civ 5 ($40), released for the Mac late last year and recently added to the Mac App Store, is the biggest departure from the series since the original.
That’s right — the next time you watch a pirated feed bringing you announcement of the next iPhone (like, say, next month), you could be kicking back and watching it on the iPad, thanks to Ustream’s new iPad app.
There’s nothing quite like the bliss of simply plugging a gadget into a slot and being rewarded with superb performance; and if the gadget happens to exude raw sex appeal, even better. Sounds familiar, right? Because that pretty much describes Apple’s entire lineup. It’s also a perfect description for the dynamic Samson Meteor Mic ($99).
Judging by the name “VooMote One” — the name German-based Zero1.tv came up with for its just-launched VooMote One app-enhanced universal remote for iPhone — German words sometimes don’t translate too well into English. Hopefully its super-customizable app will do all the talking.
There’s no shortage of covers for the iPad out there — but there aren’t many that many with Booq’s new Viper Slider’s executive panache at this price point.
Ever since we drooled over Griffin’s StompBox at CES, the more musically intrigued members of our gang have been eagerly waiting for the jazzed-up, four-switch pedal box to actually arrive (I’m pretty sure our Lonnie Lazar has been sitting there, forlorn and imploring, like some lost, guitar-wielding puppy). Wait’s over, Lonnie — it’s here.
As if there weren’t enough capacitive styli out there for the iPad, here’s another one from Kickstarter success Adonit (who make the Adonit Writer we previewed here in a Kickstarter Macworld story — review coming soon) called the Jot. Ah, but this one’s different.
So you’re finally leaving us, white MacBook. I guess this day was inevitable; can’t say I’m all that broken up about it. Heck, the sooner you move out, the better.
The popularity of Babak Pahlavan‘s new predictive, artificial intelligence app seems to have caught him completely by surprise; so much so that he had to change its (or maybe in this case, his) name from Seymour to Alfred.
The Grey Leather Sleeve for iPad ($33) from newcomer Case Factori is likely the most precisely average case we’ve ever reviewed. It does the job politely, and without fanfare. Or much personality.
Plantronics is without a doubt one of the biggest names associated with Bluetooth headsets, and quite possibly has one of the — if not the — largest catalog of headsets of any manufacturer. The Plantronics Savor M1100 ($80) is positioned at the high-end of their consumer line, with an emphasis on high-tech features, including a voice-controlled commands, and a nod toward aesthetics. Considering Plantronics stellar reputation for consistently producing solid performers, expectations for the Savor M1100 were high as the plastic came off the box…
