Everyone seemed to be pretty excited about the Clamcase for the iPad, from Clamcase LLC. I was a bit puzzled by that after all the iPad is a tablet and a real laptop, like my MacBook Air, would be a better replacement for an iPad stuffed into a keyboard case.
Yet people wanted to be able to covert their iPad into a laptop and if you build it they will come right? Well build it they did and now you can have a Clamcase of your very own to turn your iPad into a clunky laptop wannabe.
It’s almost too easy to make a parody video of Apple and its products these days. The company follows an easily discernible regularity in its product launches and despite growing popularity and marketshare for all of its products over the last decade, Apple’s “image” is tagged with the weight of a certain “hipster cred” that tends to make for easy pickings when it comes to ridicule.
Director Dan Dobi and writer Steve Rogowski skate pretty close to several uncomfortable lines in this one, however, which, presumably is intentional.
After all, parody and sarcasm are about getting people talking, right?
Conan O’Brien thinks Apple is getting a bit cocky. Never one to pass up the opportunity for a good parody, Team Coco takes on Apple’s slick interview-laden style in this funny spoof of the iPad 2 launch video.
Think Steve Jobs is the only employee at Apple capable of harnessing the Reality Distortion Field? And ever wonder about those team fashion choices? (Promo spot plays before actual video.)
[via Gizmodo]
For those who like to add sparkle to their bling – and can afford to spend as much on their iPad case as on the iDevice itself – CrystalRoc has announced their Swarovski iPad 2 case. Featuring over 4,000 Xilion cut crystals this ultra-chic piece of loungeware will set you back $700, and is shipping immediately.
Why wait for ostrich leather? Not recommended for use on subways or in urban areas at night.
[via BornRich]
When the Apple Store came back online yesterday after the announcement of the iPad 2, customers were a bit shocked to find out that Apple is not taking any pre-orders for the device until March 11th, the same day the product hits store shelves. Apple has always had a great track record of taking pre-orders on products after they’ve been announced, so we’ve been wondering just why they’ve changed policy this time. Could it be that they’re afraid they’re not going to have enough initial stock to satisfy store orders as well as online orders?
Rumors were flying around the web days before the event that Apple has been facing supply constraints for the iPad 2 and that the product was facing the serious possibility of being delayed until April or May. When Steve Jobs took the stage yesterday, he went out of his way to adamantly state that the iPad 2 would be launching worldwide in March, and not April or May. Is the move to eliminate pre-orders an effort to increase the lines at stores and build even more hype around the excitement of the launch? That could possibly be the answer but I think it’s a bit unlikely.
With the slimmer, lighter iPad 2 you may be wondering whether special clothing is still needed to haul it around.
After all, the latest version of the magical device is even more cargo-pants friendly than the previous one.
Mohan’s Custom Tailors is betting that men will prefer a way to carry it in your suit jackets – rather than going all “murse.”
Apple announced the new iPad will come equipped with front and rear-facing cameras as well as FaceTime video chat capability.
That got us thinking about live porn chat service iP4Play, which has been serving up porn via FaceTime since August 2010.
While interactive video sex chats are nothing new, FaceTime brings portability and convenience — or, as the Apple site touts it: “Now your smile goes even further” — and the porn company claims it has tens of thousands users, with a 30% growth surge each month. The service costs $4 a minute for a live chat with a video vixen.
Apple just posted the full length video from this morning’s keynote. Users wanting to view the event can now stream the entire 72 minute video of Steve Jobs unveiling the iPad 2 by going to Apple’s website (click here for video). Also, if you’d like to download the video it’s been made available on iTunes (click here for iTunes download).
A new Apple HDMI adapter announced at the iPad 2 keynote earlier today was accompanied by a slide of the accessory hooked up to the second-generation device, however, Steve forgot to mention that it would also be compatible with the iPhone 4, the fourth-generation iPod touch, and the original iPad.
Unfortunately, movies and slideshows will be capped at 720p on these devices as opposed to the 1080p output that the iPad 2 can throw out. We’re assuming this is the difference between Apple’s A4 and A5 chips.
The ‘Apple Digital AV Adapter‘ is priced at $39 and is expected to ship later this month. If you head on over to the Apple Store you’ll notice the full list of supported devices within the product’s description.
httpvhd://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z_I9OEV6_Ak
Here’s the latest video that Apple has released on the iPad 2. Six minutes in length, it features Johnny Ive, Scott Fortsall, and few other Apple employees talking about the design and user experience of the new iPad 2.
update: here’s the video for the new Smart Cover in action
httpvhd://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sCb4BOd8iXQ
Did you guys hear that the iPad 2 was announced today? Steve Jobs, in living legended status, even did the unveiling. Here’s everything that you need to know about what went down today at the Apple Keynote.
True to the rumors, Apple found quite a bit of things to update and tweak on the iPad:
They boosted up the processor considerably, switching from a 1GHz A4 processor to a 1GHz dual-core A5 processor. Along with the faster processor, Apple claims they’ve cranked up the graphics and are pumping out 9x the graphics performance, although there was no specification given on what they did to improve on the PowerVR SGX 535 graphics processor of the first unit.
Don’t be fooled by the photo above — it was drizzling and bleary Wednesday as the Apple universe converged on San Francisco’s Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, where Steve Jobs announced the imminent arrival of iPad2.
Based on the design enhancements and new specs of the latest magical device out of Cupertino, Apple, Inc. ought to enjoy sunny days and clear skies as far as the eye can see.
In a move to clear existing inventory of original iPad units, Apple has slashed prices on the iPad. You can purchase a refurbished 16GB Wifi iPad for only $349. Pretty stellar deal considering that the original iPad still matches up extremely well in comparison to the competition and should be a viable machine for another year. If you’re leery about getting a refurbished unit but still want a cheaper magical experience, Apple has knocked $50 off the original price for brand new units.
The iPad 2 is here. It costs the same, but the latest version is thinner, comes in black or white and now rocks FaceTime, rear and front facing webcams plus a gyroscope for your gaming pleasure.
The hotter sibling of the original iPad starts shipping March 11th.
The Apple Store is back online and updated with the new iPad 2. Apple won’t start selling the iPad in stores until 5pm on March 11th. Tragically, as our colleague John Brownlee noticed, there isn’t an ability to pre-order the iPad 2, as orders aren’t going to be taken until March 11th. Guess if you want an iPad on March 11th you’ll have to wait in line at the store with all the other crazy and deranged fans.
With the announcement of the iPad 2, Apple has refreshed the iPad 2 page on their website to reflect the new product, complete with videos and lots of information on the new iPad 2. Click over on the link for all the action. More
You’re sitting there waiting for the iPad 2 to be announced. After waiting for months you’re chomping at the bit and know that you’re going to buy one even if you’re not totally sure what all of it’s features are gonna be. One thing to consider is how you’re going to pay for the upgrade. While you can certainly deal with the hassle of selling your old iPad on Craigslist or Ebay, you might want to consider using NextWorth.com to trade in your iPad for cash.
NextWorth, is offering high trade-in values for the first generation iPad to help subsidize the cost of an upgrade. Apple products tend to retain value more than other brands, and the iPad is no exception. Current trade-in values on NextWorth for iPads with Light Wear (as of 2/23/11) are:
iPad 16G Wifi: $255
iPad 32GB Wifi: $285
iPad 64GB Wifi: $310
iPad 16G Wifi + 3G: $298
iPad 32G wifi + 3G: $350
iPad 64GB Wifi + 3G: $390
One of the nice things about NextWorth is that they’re partnered with Target to offer an in-store trade-in option. With over 900 participating Target stores (and 500 being added in the next three months), consumers receive either credit toward a purchase, or a prepaid Target card for the value of the trade-in that can be used for any item sold at Target. Via the NextWorth.com website customers are given the options of cash or a giftcard when they trade-in. NextWorth also provides free, fully-insured UPS shipping service to all online customers.
If you’re looking for a quick way to come up with the cash for an iPad 2 their service is definitely worth a look. It’s a lot quicker than coordinating a sell yourself online, and in some cases they’re offering about 65% of the original value for the iPad during trade-in.
This chunky silvery thing is an iKn2, a sturdy and secure case for iPad, built for those times when you might want to use one as a public kiosk device.
As the fervor surrounding tomorrow’s big announcement builds, fanboys and fangirls are eagerly sitting around their computers gulping down all the latest iPad 2 rumors that the Internet has to offer. One of the popular rumors out there is that tomorrows iPad 2 unveiling will be a disappointing spec bump and that the real grand daddy of tablet computers, the iPad 3, will be unveiled later in the year (possibly in September if Gruber and others are correct).
Cult of Mac has published a number of articles supporting the idea that Apple will be releasing two iPads in 2011. While there have been a significant amount of doubters to this theory of two iPads being launched, one must take into account that such a move wouldn’t be completely unprecedented. I’m referring to the iPod Mini 2G vs. the iPod Nano in 2005.
AirMusic – ($0.99) iPhone – Utilities
AirMusic is a superb application for streaming your music over Wi-Fi to your PS3, Xbox 360, or PC, and allows you to wirelessly listen to your tunes through your TV without using an AppleTV. Its incredibly easy setup means your music is there the moment you want it – just ensure all of your devices are on the same Wi-Fi network, start AirMusic, then navigate to your music library on your console or PC and your tunes will be there – it couldn’t be easier.
Although I use an AppleTV in our living room, I downloaded this application for use with a PS3 in another room and so far I can’t fault it. The only downside to AirMusic is that it won’t play older iTunes purchases that are protected by DRM, but I’m yet to find a way of playing DRM-protected tunes on my PS3 without putting them onto a CD first. AirMusic setup takes literally a few minutes, streaming is effortless, and the quality is great. If you’re looking for a way to share your iPod library with your Xbox, PS3, or PC, I recommend you give AirMusic a go!
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Despite Apple’s struggle with the white iPhone 4, a new iPad digitizer discovered by the iFixYouri iPhone repair shop suggests the company’s second-generation tablet may also be available in white. The part comes from Shenzhen City in China, where many of Apple’s products are assembled.
Closer inspection of the white digitizer above shows a small circular cutout along the top bezel, for what we expect to be the iPad 2’s front-facing camera, and it’s a perfect match for 9to5 Mac’s recently discovered iPad 2 screen protectors from Asia.
Just like all of Apple’s unreleased products, details and specifications regarding the second-generation iPad are under lock and key at Apple HQ until the device is announced on March 2nd, however, reports have suggested the upcoming device will be thinner, lighter, and faster.
Not many DJ applications for iOS devices quite deliver the experience you get from using this week’s first must-have app – Tap DJ. Its bucket-load of features, together with its brilliantly designed and incredibly intuitive user interface, make it the ultimate pocket DJ application.
Another of our favorites is Wunderlist – a beautifully elegant task manager that’s been around for a short while on the iPhone, and now it’s available in all its HD glory on the iPad
Writing on your iOS device can sometimes be a painful experience, especially if you don’t have a good text editor. Fortunately, our third must-have application is just that. Text Editor is a wonderfully effortless, yet incredibly useful text editor that will go a long way to ensuring that writing on your iOS device isn’t so bad.
Find out more about the applications above and our forth must-have – Oscar Backstage Pass – after the break!
This week’s roundup of must-have iOS games features what I think could be the next iPhone craze; Tiny Wings is a simple one-button arcade game based on a dream of flying, and another huge App Store success that will be sure to hang around for a while at the top of the paid charts, just like Angry Birds or Doodle Jump.
Volcano Escape is another of our favorites – a terrific platformer that provides level after level of action-packed entertainment, which, together with its crazy characters and explosive weaponry, makes it one of the greatest games of its genre.
Zombies are quite the stars within the App Store – some of the most popular iOS games feature the living dead. Our third must-have game this week, and another to add to the list of zombie successes, is Zombie Runaway – a brilliant run-as-far-as-you-can game that’s a little different to the rest.
Find out more about the games above after the break!
Text Writer – ($0.99) Universal – Productivity
Writing on your iOS device can sometimes be a painful experience, especially if you don’t have a good text editor. Fortunately, Text Editor is just that – a wonderfully effortless, yet incredibly useful text editor that will go a long way to ensuring that writing on your iOS device isn’t so bad. My favorite feature is a very simple one, yet you’ll be surprised how much you use it: there’s an additional line of keys across the top of your keyboard that features the copy, paste, select, home, and end functions, as well as all four arrow keys for when you can’t quite drag your cursor where you want it. It makes performing different tasks that little bit easier, and you’ll soon miss it within other applications.
While you’re writing your document Text Writer will automatically save it, so you don’t need to worry about losing your work if you take a call, jump out of the app to reply to a text, or if your battery dies half way through your document. And once you’ve finished, you can send the finished article via email. This app is universal, so one download will work on all of your iOS devices, and it’s great value for money at just a dollar. I love this application for its pure simplicity and ease of use, and for anyone looking for a basic text editor without all the fancy functions, you won’t go wrong with Text Writer.
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Runaway Zombie – ($0.99) Universal – Games
Zombies are quite the stars within the App Store – some of the most popular iOS games feature the living dead. The latest must-have game to add to that list is Zombie Runaway, a brilliant run-as-far-as-you-can game that’s a little different to the rest. Instead of fighting off the undead to save yourself, in this game you are one of them, and your aim is to escape the humans. As opposed to traditional 2D running games, this one’s in 3D, and uses a simple 3-button control system to dodge and jump objects that get in your way on your runaway chase.
This game’s a must-have thanks to its multiple game modes that provide you with countless hours of exciting gameplay, and two completely different ways to play, unlike most other running games. When you’re confident the humans will never catch you, try out your skills in ‘Blitz mode’ in which you run through a dark graveyard crushing as many tombstones as you can within a certain time. Once you start playing, the excitement never dies and ensures Zombie Runaway isn’t just another zombie flop.
[xrr rating = 85%]