iPhone - page 459

Apple may begin offering a CDMA version of the iPhone branded to Verizon sometime in 2010, according to a report at USA Today.

Citing apocryphal “people familiar with the situation,” the report claims Verizon began talks with Apple prior to Steve Jobs’ health sabbatical and says conversations have continued in the ensuing months. The report comes in the wake of news reported earlier in the month regarding AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson’s efforts to extend his company’s exclusive US iPhone distribution deal through 2011.

Sunday’s USA Today story also flies in the face of recent comments made by Tim Cook, Apple’s Chief Operating Officer, who has been in charge of the company’s day-to-day operations in Jobs’ absence.

Speaking last week during Apple’s quarterly earnings call, Cook dismissed the idea of producing a CDMA version of the iPhone, asserting that it has no future, because many CDMA carriers plan to adopt the same 4G standard that will soon be used on GSM networks.

Whether Verizon is successful in closing a deal with Apple for 2010 or not, it only stands to reason, especially in the light of how the iPhone saved AT&T’s financial bacon in 2008, that iPhone’s luster continues to grow.

Every rumor like the one trumpeted Sunday by USA Today serves to increase anticipation for a certain (thus far unannounced) Tuesday event in June or July at Apple’s Cupertino headquarters.

What it is: Think social media is a kick in the pants? Big twitter and Facebook fan, are you? Well, you may want to consider upping your game with Foursquare, a newish social media app/game for iPhone and iPod Touch.

Foursquare feeds the social, yet competitive spirit in users, who leverage the location-aware functionality of Apple’s mobile devices to let friends and others on the network know where they go, what they do and what they dig in 12 major US metropolitan areas (so far).

Why it’s good: The built-in gaming aspect of Foursquare lets users earn points for checking in at different places around the city and giving tips on what makes those places so cool (get the curry duck at Thep Phanom, for example). By hitting different spots and making combinations of recommendations, players can unlock “badges” and become a “Mayor” of their city.

By keeping up with and adding friends, users get to leverage the collective knowledge about a city into lists of cool things they have done and cool things they want to do.

Users can check in by logging on to accounts through a mobile browser, directly from within the app itself or by texting their location from a mobile phone.

Whare to get it: Foursquare is free and available for download now at the App Store.

What it is: A real-time Risk, set in space. You conquer planets by sending a percentage of your ships (from one or multiple planets) to attack, and each planet under your control builds more ships to replenish your forces. Strategy lies in securing larger planets, which have faster production, and also determining where to station your forces for protection or counter-attacks in multi-player games.

Why it’s good: Although having similarities with Risk and even games like Civilisation, Galcon is fast. Games can be over in a matter of seconds, thereby making it a perfect pick-up-and-play title. Visually and aurally, it’s great, and a number of single-player modes and levels enable you to ‘train’ yourself in the Galcon ways.

Galcon also has an online mode, enabling you to play ‘live’ against up to three opponents. The gameplay varies slightly from easier single-player games, since you don’t see how many ships are guarding each planet. Therefore, gameplay becomes a combination of Risk, bluff elements of poker (in luring opponents into a false sense of security, or leaving large planets almost bereft of forces, to put more into attack) and a Mexican stand-off, with matches often ending in a frantic arcade-like orgy of destruction.

If being brutally honest, there does appear to be a certain technique to winning multiplayer matches, and a lot of success is down to whether you get a good starting position in the randomly defined maps. However, given the cost of the application, and the sheer fun to be had (in both multiplayer and single-player modes), it’s a definite favorite, and we urge you to check it out.

Where to get it: Galcon’s available on the App Store, and is at the time of writing on sale for $2.99. There’s also a free lite version with the ‘Classic’ mission. More information about the game, along with forums and sign-up for the online mode, can be found on the Galcon website.

If you’ve ever wondered why some developers can’t stand Apple, perhaps Marco Arment can help.

Arment makes useful websites in New York, according to his bio. He’s the lead developer of Tumblr, the Web 2.0 sharing sensation, and creator of the very popular iPhone application Instapaper, which allows users to save web pages on their devices for reading later.

Arment penned a revealing blog post Monday that serves to highlight the frustration even established developers must endure in navigating the uncharted, fickle waters of Apple’s approval process for third-party iPhone and iPod Touch applications.

After submitting an update to Instapaper that included the mobile phone icon shown in the screen capture above, Arment was informed his update could not be accepted because it ran afoul of SDK guidelines that prevent “use [of] the Apple Logo or any other Apple-owned graphic symbol, logo, or icon … except pursuant to an express written trademark license from Apple.”

A friend of Arment’s had designed the icon and offered it to him for use with Instapaper.

Arment concedes the App Store is “an amazing deal for independent developers” but laments the fact that “problems seem so arbitrary, avoidable, and developer-hostile.”

In the end, the frustrated developer must resolve to “make a different icon from scratch that doesn’t contain any depictions of any Apple products,” with Arment asking, “can I use arrows, or does that violate the arrow key on Apple’s keyboards?”

And the bottom line, something with which even Apple is undoubtedly familiar, is that a developer in Arment’s position is forced to resubmit, wait another 7 -14 days, hope to be accepted, and lose a few weeks of the increased sales that the new version will generate, all the while chalking it up to “another annoying cost of doing business on the App Store that [you] can’t do a thing about.”

iPhone 3.0 firmware, expected to be released in June, may provide native voice activation and voice-enabled services previously available only with third-party applications, according to emerging reports.

Code-named Jibbler, according to sources cited by Ars Technica Monday, the new services appear to be an enhancement to the iPhone’s SpringBoard application, a Finder-esque app that acts as a launcher and will support the newly announced 3.0 Spotlight search.

While there is thus far no indication whether any of these voice features would be tied to new hardware, also expected this summer, or if new features will be compatible with existing iPhone hardware, the implications for voice-controlled dialing, which other popular mobile phones have had for some time, and additional hands-free functionality position the iPhone to remain atop its class of touch screen smartphones for some time to come.

Image via iLounge

Apple’s iPod Touch and, to a lesser extent, the iPhone are increasingly the U.S. military’s handheld device of choice for deployment on the battlefield, according to a recent report in Newsweek.

Traditionally, the military might issue electronic handheld devices, made at great expense specially for the battlefield, with the latest software. But today’s “networked warfare” requires each soldier to be linked electronically to other troops as well as to weapons systems and intelligence sources, says the report.

Making sense of the reams of data from satellites, drones and ground sensors cries out for a handheld device that is both versatile and easy to use – a requirement Apple’s mobile devices fulfill handily.

Such acceptance of a commercial product for use by the military is nearly unprecedented. Many soldiers, however, own iPods and iPhones for personal use and it’s logical their versatility might come to the attention of military strategists seeking methods for fighting the new kinds of counterinsurgency warfare the US has confronted in the post-9/11 era.

Apple’s gadgets have proved surprisingly fit for the task, according to the report.

Software developers and the U.S. Department of Defense are now developing military software for iPods that enable soldiers to display aerial video from drones and have teleconferences with intelligence agents halfway across the globe. Snipers in Iraq and Afghanistan now use a “ballistics calculator” called BulletFlight, made by the Florida firm Knight’s Armament for the iPod Touch and iPhone. Army researchers are developing applications to turn an iPod into a remote control for a bomb-disposal robot (tilting the iPod steers the robot). In Sudan, American military observers are using iPods to learn the appropriate etiquette for interacting with tribal leaders.

As Lt. Col. Jim Ross, director of the Army’s intelligence, electronic warfare and sensors operations in Fort Monmouth, New Jersey says, when it comes to soldiers’ battlefield communications, an iPod “may be all that they need.”

[Thanks to Jonathan Taylor for the tip]

Here’s an update on the iPhone meltdown we wrote about awhile back. Tim Colbourne in Rome plugged in his iPhone 3G to his computer’s USB port and left it to charge. Three hours later, it caught fire. The above is an aftermath pic.

About two and a half weeks after his post, a replacement iPhone arrived. Holburne returned the flambe phone so that Apple’s engineers could pick it apart to figure out what happened.

On his blog, Colbourne notes:

“I won’t say it was the easiest process. Apple’s European headquarters in Ireland explained that ordinarily this would be classed as ‘accidental damage,’ and would not be under warranty. Apparently, iPhone fires are so rare that the company assumes that faulty parts are not to blame and that it must be in some way connected to user error…In my case I was lucky that the Apple engineers had seen the story, checked out the photo, and wanted to get their hands on the phone in return for a new one.

The takeaway here seems to be, yes, iPhone fires are perhaps a fluke but if anything happens to your iPhone or Apple product, blogging about it helps get some satisfaction —  though Colbourne says his first post was just to see whether anyone else had encountered the same problem.

Via A Roman Thought

What it was: Zenji was released by Activision in 1984, tasking you, as a rolling face, with turning each level’s maze green. This was done by rotating maze sections and avoiding the patrolling flames. The simple gameplay was engrossing, and, like many puzzle games, it’s stood the test of time.

What we’d like to see: Retro games are steadily making their way on to iPhone, and it’s a perfect platform for classic ‘pick up and play’ titles. Zenji’s simplicity and immediacy could make it a hit on the platform, and the simple controls could easily be replicated on iPhone via various means (swipe or tilt to move, twist or virtual button presses to rotate).

Though we’re still about two months from the WWDC keynote and new iPhone hardware, that hasn’t stopped the most audacious maker of iPhone knock-offs, HiPhone, from creating a rip-off of the still unannounced iPhone nano. Yes, meet the HiPhone nano. On the outside, it looks like an ancient iPod mini, if only Apple had no taste in colors. And then it flips open and has both a touchscreen and a keypad — an ungainly keypad with tiny buttons, at that.

I don’t know what the iPhone nano will look like, when and if it ever arrives. I don know that Apple would never in a million years ship anything like this. Thank goodness.

Ubergizmo via Digg

What it is: A fast-paced arcade puzzler based around the concept of ‘blendable’ planets. Planets of different colors appear, and multi-touch controls enable you to pull them apart or merge them, in order to match their sizes with ‘squeesars’, which cause an inserted planet to vanish in a puff of stardust. Further complication is added by infrequent visits from vortexes and various bonus items.

Why it’s good: With more match-three games and word-based puzzle clones on the App Store than you can shake a stick at, Eliss comes as a breath of fresh air. The concept hasn’t been smashed into iPhone with a hammer—instead, the game is clearly designed for Apple’s device. The multi-touch controls are a revelation—probably the best example we’ve seen (hint: play with your device flat on a table, and be prepared to use ‘spare’ fingers to hold planets in place while manipulating others)—and the delicate audio and vibrant retro graphics add to the mix.

Some critics claim Eliss is too tough, but perseverance is key. Eliss pays tribute to arcade games of old not just in its visuals, but also in offering a genuine challenge and varying approaches to completing its 20 levels.

Where to get it: Eliss is available on the App Store, and is at the time of writing $3.99. More information, along with a gameplay video, can be found on the Eliss website.

Randall Stephenson, AT&T’s CEO, has been calling on Apple to see about extending the carrier’s deal as the exclusive US service provider for the iPhone, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal. Having already received a one-year extension of its original two year deal, with its current exclusivity protection set to expire sometime in 2010, AT&T is reportedly seeking to sweeten the pot somehow to keep Apple’s revolutionary mobile device out of competitors’ hands for another year.

Well, of course. AT&T added 4.3 million iPhone subscribers in the second half of 2008 alone — about 40% of whom were new customers, according to the company. In an era when landline customers are dwindling rapidly, anything that brings in new wireless subscribers is a good thing for the phone company.

But is the AT&T exclusivity deal good for anyone other than AT&T?

From Apple’s perspective it’s likely good insofar as it keeps things simple, having only one behemoth service provider to potentially screw up the tightly controlled customer experience around which much of Apple’s mystique has been been built. And to be fair, AT&T appears to have done a reasonably good job of deploying iPhones in the field. As the Apple spokeswoman in the WSJ article was quoted, “We have a great relationship with AT&T.”

But how about the consumer? Even if technical issues cannot be overcome that prevent iPhones, as they are currently manufactured, from working with Sprint and Verizon’s CDMA-based services — and surely they could be overcome in this day and age — having a choice between AT&T and T-Mobile is better than having a choice between AT&T and not using an iPhone at all.

Many people howled furiously about AT&T being the exclusive US provider when the iPhone was introduced in the summer of 2007. Looking back, it’s now easy to see how revolutionary and wildly transformative the device was; it was likely a good strategy for Apple to reduce its integration bandwidth to a single carrier in each market where it deployed the phone because it could have turned out to be more problematic a transformation than it actually was.

But now Apple has many millions of happy iPhone users the world over and it knows how its device performs in the field. It’s time for Apple to reclaim dominion over the user experience with its mobile communication device. And the single biggest change that would add to customer happiness (other than video recording capability and Flash functionality) would be to open it up up and let customers choose whatever service provider they can stand.

Apple has released new lists of the “all time” Top 20 paid and free iPhone and iPod Touch applications, as the iTunes AppStore plows on toward 1 billion total downloads.

The “all-time” designation is kind of interesting, given the AppStore has only been open less than a year, but some of the numbers coming out make an impressive case for yet another ding in the universe attributable to Steve Jobs and his little niche computer company.

The number two paid app, the lovely, meditative Koi Pond has been downloaded 900,000 times at 99¢ apiece, according to one report, certainly a nice year’s work for its developers, The Blimp Pilots.

But how about the number one paid app, the game Crash Bandicoot? Its total downloads are unreported, but one could assume a figure somewhat north of Koi Pond’s 900K — at $5.99 per copy, Crash Bandicoot must have Vivendi Games Mobile wondering how much richer they might have become had the world economy not suffered a total melt-down in the past year.

On the free side of the ledger Facebook and Google Earth run one-two, which is no surprise at all, given the worldwide popularity of those two web properties.

Apple has a giveaway contest going in conjunction with the countdown to one billion downloads, with winners slated to get a fully loaded MacBook Pro, a 32GB iPod Touch, a $10,000 iTunes Gift Card and a Time Capsule wireless hard drive.

Here’s just one of a number of interesting handmade iPhone and iPod cozys and cases from Vintage Coquette, a woman named Elizabeth, who describes herself as “a lover of all things cute and/or vintage.”

Check out her shop on Etsy – she is definitely channeling that special brand of cute with its roots in Hello Kitty and Japanese gadget-fu.

Getting physical with your iPhone may cause a short circuit from sweat. At least that’s what a couple of iPhone users in Houston complained about to “Ask Amy,” a consumer advocate segment of local news station KPRC Channel 2. (Story here.)

“I never would’ve bought a phone if I knew it would ruin the first time I got it out at the gym,” Stacie Keneker complained.

“They sell all these accessories that you are supposed to be able to use at the gym to make it convenient,” Lee Pittman, described as “peeved at Apple” said.

The news story goes on to say that  Keneker and Pittman use their iPhones at the gym to listen to music or use the calorie-counting fitness applications that come with the phone. They said Apple employees told them their sweaty palms are the likely culprit here. So far none of these consumers has gotten any relief from Apple — moisture is considered an accident, so not covered by warranty.

CNET looked further into the perspiration problem:

“On most cell phones, the sensors are located underneath a removable battery and enclosed by the cover that usually locked the battery into place. In comparison, Apple’s sensor (at the bottom of the iPhone) could easily be set off by sweat from your hands. You can see the sensor locations for a iPhone 3G in the photo above and a Nokia cell phone below for comparison.”

The easiest way to avoid the problem may be using a case that covers both the headphone jack and the docking/sync connector.

Anyone provoked a sweat-related short circuit?

Via Cnet

What they are: Utilities for iPhone. Weightbot is a weight tracker that enables you to input your weight (in US, UK or SI units), whereupon it reveals your BMI and also tracks your weight over time, automatically graphing it. Convertbot is a conversion tool for things like speed, currency and length.

Why they’re good: Neither of these apps is unique in its field, but what Tapbots have done is create utilities that make the mundane a little bit fun. Suitably mechanical sound effects pepper the apps as tasks are done, and the interfaces are beautiful and tactile. Also, in taking a unique path regarding UI, these apps are more usable than most. Weightbot is a shining example of an interface suited to iPhone—it’s perfectly intuitive, making fine use of the touchscreen and accelerometer (for example, turn your iPhone sideways to see graphs). Both apps are also stable and affordable.

Where to get them: Both apps are available from the App Store (Weightbot, Convertbot). At the time of writing, Weightbot is priced at $1.99 and Convertbot is $0.99.

U2’s lead singer Bono recently revealed in an interview with a DJ in Toronto that his ego knows no bounds. The band’s quiet break-up with Apple in favor of first Palm and now RIM? Well, it’s all because Steve Jobs wouldn’t let him help out with the hardware and software design of the U2-branded iPod.

“[RIM] is going to give us what Apple wouldn’t — access to their labs and their people so we can do something really spectacular,” Bono told Alan Cross.

Hmm. While I’ve always been impressed with U2’s ability to design an experience, ala ZooTV and the PopMart Tour, I can’t say that I have any confidence that U2’s input could have in any way, shape, or form improved the iPod. I’ll trust Apple’s creatives more than U2’s…singer.

This collaboration has fail written all over it.

Globe and Mail via Electronista via Digg

Sean Kovacs brings word of GV Mobile, his new iPhone and iPod Touch client for the Google Mobile service, which should be available early next week. Google Voice is a remarkable service built on an old start-up called GrandCentral that Le Goog acquired a few years back. Basically, it allows you to consolidate all of your phone numbers to a single number, control who can call you, screen calls, listen in to voice mail as it records, send free text messages, and transcribe your voicemail. It can even allow people to dial your phone by clicking on a link on a web page. And since it initiates calls, not just placing them, iPod touch users can create a phone call to a different device!
And GV Mobile packs most of that into a handy-dandy iPhone OS app. The video’s pretty slick, and it seems to carry over most of what makes Google Voice so much fun. For now, it’s available only to those who had GrandCentral accounts and those who know folks at Google, but this should be a great companionreplacement to the main iPhone dialer once the service goes more mainstream. Now, if only the free SMS was two-way… no one would ever pay for AT&T’s overpriced SMS plans again…
9to5Mac via Gizmodo

Well, who doesn’t like a little Michael Jackson, dancing babies and quick, snappy edits in a smartphone commercial?

But does anyone think Apple’s legal department won’t soon notice the uncanny similarities between the UI for LG’s Arena and Apple’s own iPhone?

It’s no secret that Apple loves LG displays, but whether that love extends to a willingness to overlook LG’s ripping-off the iPhone’s UI remains to be seen. On the other hand, it’s possible LG licensed the UI. Neither Apple nor LG representatives were available for comment at press time.

Text strings in the latest beta release of iPhone 3.0 software indicate support for the 802.11n wireless standard, according to several reports over the weekend.

In addition to representing an upgrade to the WiFi capabilities of yet-to-be released versions of iPhone and iPod Touch, support for Broadcom BCM4329 chips — through which 802.11n would be accessed — could improve battery life on Apple’s mobile devices. iThe iPhone and iPod Touch currently only support slower 802.11b/g networks.

Perhaps the more interesting implication of details emerging in the 3.0 beta is the promise of video recording and upload capability, a feature some have derided the iPhone for lacking in its initial releases. A recently discovered video upload screen indicates a new version of the iPhone is meant to be able to upload video to MobileMe accounts, which would no doubt come as a welcome feature upgrade for users of Apple’s web services product.

It’s possible video uploading would be supported to any server, and that Apple will also be releasing iPhone software to edit video on the fly, but even if official support for video is limited, whole new avenues for 3rd party development will open up as a result of video on the iPhone.

As others in the smartphone market struggle to catch up to Apple’s product and services offerings, it appears Steve Jobs may have been right when he said his company is already years ahead of the competition.

Sony has added what the company calls “USB 1-wire” connectivity to select models of its 2009 car audio line up, enabling direct digital connectivity for USB powered audio devices such as iPods and iPhones, as well as other MP3 players and even USB thumb drives.

If you’ve ever been frustrated by the sketchy signal provided by radio frequency car adapters such as iTrip, or been dissatisfied by the sound quality of AUX in connectivity trying to get your iPod playing in the car, Sony’s Xplod line of head units is well worth a look and listen.

“We’ve needed to do this as an industry for some time,” explained Mike Kahn, Sony director of marketing for mobile electronics at a media meet and greet in San Francisco Wednesday night. Direct digital connection of the external device to the auto sound system is quickly becoming a standard feature for manufacturers such as Sony, Alpine and Pioneer, which is no surprise given the boost in sound quality over cobbled together analog connectivity solutions of the recent past.

Sony’s gear is very price competitive with its major rivals and its USB 1-wire technology doesn’t require any special cabling – you can use your standard iPod USB cable to plug right into the head unit, browse the device’s library and select songs right from the auto unit’s controls.

USA Today ran an article Wednesday saying the Skype for iPhone app is “raising concern among public-policymakers and consumer advocates,” who are irked that Skype calls are limited to WiFi and not permitted to access cellular or 3G networks.

I’m reminded of nothing so much as Lewis CK’s appearance on Conan O’Brien’s show, in which he pointed out how amazing things are in today’s world, and yet no one is happy.

Are Apple and AT&T actually “trying to handicap” Skype, as implied by Chris Murray, senior counsel to Consumers Union? Is there an “urgent need” for Congress and the Federal Communications Commission to revisit the rules and regulations for wireless voice services?

I’m no fan of Apple’s “walled garden” approach to the AppStore, nor do I love the fact that AT&T is my only service provider option for using iPhone in the US.

But in just over 24 hours of playing with Skype on my iPhone, I feel confident in saying Skype doesn’t need congress’ help in its competition with AT&T. If people will have a little bit of patience, Skype and other VoIP service providers will soon be providing them with communications services and calling options they couldn’t have imagined just months ago.

The cat is really out of the bag now, so just find a good WiFi connection and enjoy your free Skype calling. It’s only going to get better from here on out.

It might have helped a few folks if Debt Snowball Pro, a new app coming to the iTunes app store, had been released sooner, but who can really argue with the timeliness of a tool to help eliminate debt using the “debt snowball” method endorsed by finance guru Dave Ramsey and other professionals?

You can choose to pay off debts with higher interest rates first (to save money), or those with the lowest balances (for small, motivating successes along the way). Debt Snowball Pro shows you just how much money you’ll save by choosing these methods over making minimum payments. And it keeps you up do date on how much interest you’ve saved, when your payoff dates are, and when you’ll be debt-free.

Due to be priced at $2.99, Debt Snowball Pro is similar to the Parallel Focus app Pay Off Debt (opens iTunes), which it follows into the AppStore by just two weeks.

What it is: A simplified air-traffic control game. You drag paths for aircraft to direct them to designated landing zones. The number of aircraft on-screen rapidly increases, making it harder to avoid a collision. One collision and the game ends.

Why it’s good: It’s an original concept, perfectly suited to the iPhone touchscreen, and utterly compelling. At first, it seems like the game will be a breeze, but the difficulty curve is steep, and after only 20 or so landings, you’ll find the screen full of aircraft to deal with. The game also has a great sense of humor in its presentation (including twee aircraft ‘muzak’), and, for those moments where it all gets a bit much, a handy pause button. Like Tetris, it’s a simple game that you’ll return to regularly.

Where to get it: Flight Control’s available on the App Store, and is at the time of writing on sale for $0.99. More information about the game can be found on the Flight Control website.

Here’s another next-gen iPhone concept worth pondering: Can Apple pull off adding features and functionality to the iPhone while making it even slimmer and sexier than it is today?

We’ll know soon enough, as anticipation for a June or July release event continues to build. More concepts ought to be popping up like spring flowers, too and the big design question seems to be whether any changes will be subtle, or will they push the device in an entirely new direction?

Let us know where you think Apple’s headed in comments.

[SlipperyBrick]

If you travel frequently in the US and need to book a cab, an iPhone app may be a piece of wizardry worth downloading.

Called “Taxi Magic” the app from RideCharge Inc. allows travelers to book and pay for cabs via the iPhone.

The “magic?” While a number of apps will help you find a cab telephone numbers, this one connects to taxi computer dispatch systems directly, without making a phone call, and gives you live updates on the arrival of your cab. Plus you can pay with a credit card input on the system.

The hat trick is probably most impressive for business travelers, though. While the app is free on iTunes, the service charge by operating company RideCharge is $1.50 per booking if  you pay via credit card.

Currently available for: Atlanta, Austin, Baltimore, Boston, Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, Nashville, Orange Co., Phoenix, Portland, Sacramento, San Antonio, San Francisco, San Jose/Silicon Valley, Seattle, St. Louis, Washington DC Area.

Via Chicago Sun-Times