Killian Bell - page 338

Featured in our favorite iOS applications this week is the free content sharing app from Posterous that lets you post any mix of text, photos, and videos instantly to the web, directly from your iPhone.

Phoster is also featured in our must-have application list this week: it’s a universal app for both iPhone and iPad that lets your create stunning posters and invitations. With loads of templates to get you started and various effects and decorations, you’ll be able to produce stylish results in no time at all on your iOS device.

We also have the new T3 magazine app that delivers the world’s greatest gadget magazine to your iPad. Buy and download the T3: iPad Edition every month and access content exclusive to the touchscreen device.

Among our favorites game this week is a great new simulator from Kairosoft Co. called Game Dev Story that puts you in charge of your own game company, with the aim of creating a multi-million dollar hit!

We’ve also featured the brand new Dexter game for iPad – an awesome adventure game with stunning HD graphics that fans of the show will love!

We also have the latest game in the Scene It? series, Clickgamer’s new addictive bow & arrow game, and one of the most enjoyable golf games in the App Store yet! Check out the rest of our favorites after the break…

What Is It? The Air Mouse Elite from Gyration is a wireless mouse that provides intuitive in-air motion controls that allow you to control you computer’s cursor with natural hand movements from up to 30m away. It’s ideal for anyone who regularly delivers presentations or uses a computer hooked up to their television as part of a home theatre.

At a press conference today, Microsoft’s CEO Steve Balmer officially unveiled its new Windows Phone 7 operating system for mobile devices, along with nine smartphones by various manufacturers that will carry the software upon its release.

Together with Android devices, smartphones running Windows Phone 7 will be one of the biggest competitors to the iPhone 4 running iOS, so how do the new devices compare to Apple’s already massively popular iPhone?

One of our favorite iOS apps this week is Gordon Ramsay’s Cook With Me, which features 52 mouth-watering recipes, with simple to follow steps for cooking up gorgeous dishes.

Esquire‘s new magazine app for the iPad is another featured this week: see the World Trade Centre being built, complete with information on how it all will happen.

We also have an amazing new painting application for the iPad!

This week’s must-have iOS games features Sega’s latest Sonic the Hedgehog 4 that many of us have been eagerly awaiting. It’s been described as the best Sonic for iOS yet, with improved controls, smoother gameplay and a genuine Sonic feel.

Another of our favorites is Chillingo’s Cut the Rope – the addictive puzzle game that knocked Angry Birds off the top of the paid charts this week. It combines realistic physics with simple, precise touch controls to create a wonderfully challenging puzzler.

Black Pegasus is the latest Modern Combat 2 game from Gameloft, and also features in our favorites this week. Its console quality graphics together and excellent production make it one of the most impressive first-person shooters to arrive on the iPhone.

We also have some classic ZX Spectrum gaming!

Plans have emerged today from people briefed by Apple that the company is to begin mass producing a new iPhone by the end of 2010 that will allow Verizon Wireless to sell its popular smartphone early next year.

The new iPhone will be no different externally to the iPhone 4 in shops today, however, internally it will feature an alternative wireless technology called CDMA used by Verizon. According to the same people, the key chip will be provided by Qualcomm, and the device is expected to be released in the first quarter of next year.

A CDMA iPhone would spell the end of Apple’s exclusive arrangement with AT&T in the U.S., a deal that has been in place since the iPhone made its debut in 2007.

The same people have also spilled some beans on the fifth-generation iPhone, which they claim is currently being developed by the Cupertino computer giant. One person familiar with the plan claims that the next model will feature a different form factor from the iPhones currently available, however, it was unclear how soon this version will be available to Verizon.

Spokeswomen for both Apple and Qualcomm have unsurprisingly declined to comment on the matter, and so has a spokesman for Verizon Wireless.

[via WSJ]

Little more than a week after Apple started shipping their all-new AppleTV, Google announced that they too would join the home entertainment party and offer a TV service of their own. It’s iOS vs. Android all over again, but this time the battle’s in your living room, not in your pocket.

The first product to offer Google’s new TV service is the Logitech Revue. It’s a black set-top box, just like you’d get for AppleTV, but it’s not as pretty, obviously. So, let’s take a look at how the two devices compare.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JOnUmO7oLgA

ZX Spectrum: Elite Collection is a new ZX Spectrum gamer for the iPhone that’s made its way in to the App Store today. The application features 6 full games, each with game-specific controls, and it’s only $0.99!

The six games included in the first release are:

• Turbo Esprit #3 on top 100 best games, voted for by visitors to World of Spectrum
• Saboteur #10 on top 100 best games
• Chuckie Egg the classic, developed by Nigel Alderton
• Harrier Attack inspired by the conflict in the South Atlantic
• Frank Bruno’s Boxing the UK #1 Best-Seller
• Buggy Boy the arcade original driving game

Each game is 100% original, and is accompanied by authentic Spectrum sounds. There are extensive playing instructions for each game built-in, and you can play in both portrait and landscape modes.

Elite Systems, the developer of ZX Spectrum: Elite Collection, has explained in the description of its app that volume one is still a little rough around the edges, and that any issues you may experienced will be ironed out in future updates. Some of its plans for future updates include a further six games with volume 2, which will be released within a month, and then an in-app shop to purchase more games with volume 3. And Elite’s plans don’t stop there:

Commercial agreements have already been reached with two more publishers (including one of the 80s biggest) taking to more than 200 the number of games available for inclusion in the forthcoming updates or volumes of ZX Spectrum: Elite Collection. (This will keep us busy through to Vol. #6 and beyond). Also, we’re in discussion with the owners of 100s more, including some of the most well known, with the aim of bringing them to you too.

Check out the video at the top of this post to see ZX Spectrum: Elite Collection in action.

IS Drive is an application that allows you to manage downloads on your ImageShack Drive account from your iPhone. It was recently approved for sale in the App Store, but did the application slip through Apple’s tight approval process?

If you’re not familiar with ImageShack Drive, it’s a paid service that allows you to download files using a torrent. So, with the IS Drive application on your iPhone, what you have is essentially a BitTorrent application for iOS, something Apple would normally frown upon.

According to TorrentFreak, they have spoken to the developer of IS Drive who has confirmed that the application is clearly intended to help users manage their torrents through their ImageShack Drive account, as well as managing torrents from sites like ISOHunt or Mininova. The developer also mentions that he intentionally chose not to use the word ‘torrent’ in his app’s description. Could this be why it slipped through Apple’s net?

Some users may familiar with IS Drive from Cydia, where it was previously available under the name ‘Jack Torrents.’

Is this another application that has slipped through Apple’s strict approval process that’s soon to be removed when its full functions come to light? Or has it been accepted as a result of a change in Apple’s guidelines that’s seen third-party Google Voice applications reappear in the App Store again recently?

IS Drive is currently still available in the App Store at the time of writing this, with a price tag of $4.99. But don’t forget, you’ll also need a paid account from ImageShack to use the application.

This week’s top iOS games features EA Sports’ latest addition to the Fifa series in Fifa 11, which delivers console quality gaming to your iPhone. Offering an outstanding visual experience on the Retina display, and improved controls that make for fluid gameplay, Fifa 11 gives other soccer games in the App Store some great competition for 2011.

BIT.TRIP BEAT HD is an arcade game from Namco that fuses Pong with interactive beats in a colorful, pixelated environment. Listen to the different beat progressions and try to survive the onslaught of spectacular retro visuals as you bounce back beats from where they came. BIT.TRIP BEAT also features an intense multiplayer mode that allows you team up with your friends.

The incredibly addictive 0.03 Seconds Pro tests your reaction time using various different puzzles over 24 challenging stages, and then rates your score out of 5 stars. The puzzles seem simple, but you’ll be tearing your hair out as you try to beat the reaction time for each level and grab a 5-star score.

We also have an awesome augmented reality game that’s probably the best yet for iOS, and a chance to win one of the games featured in this week’s post.

This week’s must-have iOS apps features a new application that allows you to have free, high quality video calls over both Wi-Fi and 3G. Tango Video Calls is free a application to download, and works on other smartphones as well as the iPhone.

PDF Expert for iPad is Readdle’s latest application that delivers the ultimate solution for all your PDF needs on your iPad. It lets you read and annotate PDF documents, highlight text and make notes. You can also edit the documents you have stored on your Dropbox, iDisk, and Google Docs accounts.

PlainText is a free text editor compatible with all of your iOS devices that uses your Dropbox account to save your work. It has a paper-like interface that provides a nice, simple feel, and it’s a great substitute to iOS’s built-in Notes app.

Finding Game Centre compatible games in the App Store can certainly be a pain. Fortunately, new badges are coming to the App Store in iOS 4.2 – like the one in the picture above – that will instantly make it clear while you’re browsing for a new game which ones support Apple’s social gaming network and feature Game Centre achievements.

Even though we now have a dedicated Game Centre section, I’ve found that this isn’t updated often enough, and that it can sometimes take several days for games to appear within this category. Badges that highlight these games will certainly save you some time if you’re an avid iOS gamer.

[via MacLife]

An iFixit teardown of Apple’s brand new AppleTV has revealed some interesting details about the new device’s insides, most notably the inclusion of onboard storage and its internal similarities to the iPad.

Despite a focus on streaming content, rather than storing it, the tiny new device includes a Samsung 8GB NAND flash chip, something Apple has chosen not to publicly disclose. Interestingly, right along side this NAND chip is an empty slot that could possibly accommodate another chip if more storage was necessary.

The new AppleTV also features 256MB RAM, which is the same as the iPad and the iPod Touch, but less than the iPhone 4 which packs 512MB. Another similarity to the iPad is that AppleTV runs the new A4 chip and Broadcom Wi-Fi chip.

The discovery of this onboard storage in the new AppleTV gives more hope to users wishing to jailbreak their device to run apps, games, and other content. It also means that we’d have somewhere to store our downloads from that AppleTV App Store that MacRumors recently reported about.

Sega have been working hard throughout 2010 to bring Sonic 4 to the iPhone, which they confirmed back in May would be coming to the iOS. Today they have announced an official release date of October 7th!

Sega have ported two of their Sonic the Hedgehog games to iOS to date, and these have received mixed reviews. Some people love them for bringing their favorite childhood hedgehog to their palms, while others are disappointed with them for providing slow, jumpy gameplay, and a poor control system.

I’m very much looking forward to Sonic 4, and I’m hoping these issues will be ironed out in Sega’s latest port. Touch Arcade have been lucky enough to get their hands on a nearly complete build of the game at E3 in June, and they were blown away by it.

Interestingly, the release date of Sonic 4 for iOS means that the game will be available in the App Store before it arrives on any console; it won’t arrive on the Wii until October 11th, the PlayStation 3 until October 12th, and the Xbox a day later on the 13th.

This week’s must-have iOS games include the awesome new Real Soccer from Gameloft, which features gorgeous high-definition graphics optimized for the retina display. We also have their long-awaited Gangstar sequel, Miami Vindication, and some seriously addictive gameplay in ngmoco’s We City.

Check out a few of our favorite games from the past week after the break!

This week’s must-have iOS apps include Napster’s new music streaming application that provides access to over 10 million of songs on your iOS device, Google Voice calling with GV Mobile+, and a media player that supports pretty much every codec out there!

Check out a few of our favorite apps from the past week after the break!

Apple has issued an update to iTunes today which brings with it several bug fixes, and adds some small features for its social music network, Ping. Version 1.0.1 weighs in at 86.4 MB, and it fixes the following bugs:

• Addresses an issue where the picture quality of a video changes depending on whether the on-screen controls are visible.
• Resolves an issue where iTunes may unexpectedly quit while interacting with album artwork viewed in a separate window.
• Fixes a problem that affects the performance of some third-party visualizers.
• Addresses an issue where the iTunes library and playlists appear empty.
• Resolves an issue that created an incompatibility with some third-party shared libraries.

As well as these bug fixes, new features for Ping now make it even easier to share your favorite music with your friends – instead of having to ‘like’ or post about music from the iTunes Store, you can now do it straight from your library. There’s also a new Ping sidebar:

iTunes 10.0.1 makes it easier to share your favorite music with your friends on Ping. You can now Like or Post about music right from your iTunes library. You can also easily see the recent activity of a selected artist in your library, or of all artists and friends you follow on Ping using the new Ping Sidebar.

Grab the update now via Software Update on your Mac, or from the Apple website here.

The popular question-answering search engine Ask is due to submit their official iPhone application to Apple, which is designed to answer your questions on the go.

The app will let you ask questions either by typing them in, or by speaking them, and then offers up the most likely answer based on its index of more than 500 million question and answer ‘pairs,’ from hundreds of thousands of web sources.

On downloading the application, users will automatically be enrolled in Ask’s social Q&A private beta, which allows you to approach the Ask.com community for answers to more complex questions.

One of its most interesting features, however, won’t be introduced until version 2. It’s called ‘Nearby Answers,’ and uses your location to allow you to ask questions about places nearby. For example, you can ask a question about your local theater or restaurant, and your question will be routed to people nearby, or people have answered similar questions about those places in the past.

Also planned to feature before the end of the year is the ability to ask questions of your friends on social networks like Facebook and Twitter.

It certainly sounds like a fantastic application, and I can’t wait to see how it works. We’ll be sure to let you know when it’s available for download.

[via TechCrunch]

There are currently hundreds of cases available for the iPad, in all sorts of shapes, colors, and sizes, but is the official Etch A Sketch case from Headcase not the coolest you’ve ever seen?

Based on the world’s favorite drawing toy from Ohio Art, the Etch A Sketch iPad case is made from impact resistant plastic that will help shield accidental drops, and features a felt backing to protect your device from scratches while it’s inside. It also boasts rubber feet, a retractable kickstand, and strategically placed windows that allow access to all of the iPad’s buttons and ports, including the ambient light sensor.

It’s impressively realistic, right down to the gold paint on the Etch A Sketch writing, and it should be for an officially licensed product. Although incredibly cool, it will set you back a nice $39 – slightly more than a real Etch A Sketch.

[via TUAW]

This week’s must-have iOS games include the newest addition to the The Sims series with some fantastic new features, guns galore in the latest Time Crisis arcade shooter, and Gameloft’s impressive Prince of Persia game in HD on the iPad.

Check out a few of our favorite games from the past week after the break!

Turn your videos in to cartoons, share you favorite books, movies & TV shows with friends, and make notes with the best interactive notepad in the world; all with apps featured in this week’s must-have iOS apps.

Check out a few of our favorites from the past week after the break!

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rZt0kDgNUQI

Why anyone would feel compelled to do this, I don’t know, but TUAW have found some footage on YouTube of an iPad user who has created a tutorial on how to get Windows 3.11 and Windows 95 running on your iPad.

If you really want to give it a go, you’ll need a jailbroken iPad and the open-source Bochs emulator. Check out the video above from MSComputerVideos for the step-by-step guide.

[via TUAW]

Apple has today released the first beta of iOS 4.2 for the iPad, iPhone, and iPod Touch, which is now available to download for developers.

4.2 comes just a week after the public release of 4.1, and was first previewed by Steve Jobs at Apple’s media event on September 1st. The update introduces some much-anticipated new features to the iPad in particular, including; folder organization, Game Centre, and long-awaited multi-tasking. AirPlay, a new feature for streaming music to your device, is also introduced to iOS in this update, along with the wireless printing feature, AirPrint.

Devices supported in beta 1 include the iPad, the iPhone (3G and above), and the iPod Touch (2nd-gen and above).

The iOS 4.2 download weighs in at 514MB and is currently only available to registered developers through Apple’s Dev Centre. The update is scheduled for public release in November.

[via TUAW]

For this week’s iPhone 4 case review, we have chosen Marware’s Glide: a stylish leather sleeve that offers maximum protection whilst carrying your phone, but the pleasure of your device unprotected while you’re using it.

What Is It?: The Glide is a genuine leather sleeve that’s designed to offer maximum coverage and protection to your iPhone 4 while you’re carrying it, and protection from dust and scratches while it’s in your pocket or bag. A dual-purpose pull-tab allows you to pull your device from the sleeve quickly and easy, while its velcro fastener will keep it from slipping out while it’s in there. There’s also a handy credit card holder on the back! It’s available in either black or brown and for as little as $10.88 on Amazon!