Everyone knows that Apple’s maps suck, right? After all, they were pretty poor at launch, and anything to do with Apple never changes: Apple gear is overpriced ($330 for an iPad!), Apple should license its OS (Android is open! And winning!). Etc.
Except that maps have gotten a lot better in the intervening months. The app mightn’t have gotten an update, but arguably its the same old app that used to use Google maps anyway. But the software and map tiles behind the scenes? Oh boy.
Google Now, the intelligent personal assistant that was introduced to Android 4.1 Jelly Bean last June, appears to be gearing up to make its debut on iOS. The feature will be integrated into the Google Search app for iPhone and iPad, according to a promotional video that was allegedly posted to Google’s official YouTube channel prematurely — before quickly being pulled again.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?&v=BcsXkj88-KQ#!
The Homeworld series, launched in 1999 by Relic Entertainment and Sierra Entertainment, is considered by many to be the birth of the modern 3D real time strategy game. Homeworld: Cataclysm was released the following year, with Homeworld 2 following in 2003.
Today, development house teamPixel wants to license the Homeworld franchise, liberating it from the THQ bankruptcy, and create two new games: Homeworld Touch, a remake of the Homeworld game with a new, modern, touchscreen interface for iOS and Andriod, and Homeworld 3 for Mac and PC, to extend the game to new frontiers and new audiences. They’d also like to bring the older, legacy Homeworld games to Steam and Good Old Games. All they need is your support with their Kickstarter project.
The Blockheads is a fantastic iOS game that captures so much of the Minecraft experience, it’s a must play for any but the most jaded of iOS gamers.
It updated today, with all sorts of great stuff. You can now warp in up to four players, twice the two previously available. My kids and I are gonna have a ton of fun with this one. You can find fish in the sea, craft a fishing rod to catch them, and hopefully not get eaten by sharks there, either. Also, there’s a way to make tin foil, which lets you roast those fish on a campfire, canceling out the most hunger possible in game. Or, you know, make a tin foil hat.
Yes, it’s a frisbee that doubles as an iPhone speaker. When you’ve finished flinging the Fli Tunes around, pop the center out and stick your iPhone in it. Be sure to pick up your iPhone before flinging it around again.
One type of bag was conspicuously missing from the lineup when Pelican released its ProGear line a few months back. There was a smorgasbord-like selection of tablet- and laptop-toting bags — but nothing for camera gear. Now Pelican has filled that space, integrating their vault-like case technology in the new S130 ProGear laptop/camera backpack.
Ok, so it’s not a life-changer, but the Apple Store app has just been updated to version 2.5. There are now new delivery options available in the app, and you can choose different shipping options for each different item in an order. Want your iPad smart case shipped to your office, your iPhone charger to your home, and pick up your iPad mini at the local Apple Store? You can arrange for that now in the app itself.
There’s a new section in the Express Checkout screen, too, which lets you know whether a purchase will be available for pickup at the nearest Apple Store, at least for US customers.
Every time I’ve used the Apple Store App, whether to purchase an item in store or order it ahead of time, I’ve been impressed by the seamlessness of the transaction. It’s like having a better, more portable Apple Store website on my phone, and it makes it easy to make Genius Bar or workshop reservations at my local store. The app allows you to purchase and pick up products from the store, personalize iPads and iPods with engraving, choose gift-wrapping options, configure new Mac purchases, and track your stuff once you’ve bought it.
And? It’s really a ton of fun to walk into the store, scan an item, type in my iTunes password, and walk out with that item. Feels all sneaky. I also like that just showing up with my iPhone and a reservation for a Specialist notifies them and me. It’s just plain cool.
What’s New in Version 2.5
– New delivery options make it even more convenient to get your Apple products. Choose different shipping options for different items in an order.
– An even easier way to see if the product you want is available for pickup at your favorite Apple Retail Store (U.S. only).
Source: App Store
What can Apple bring to the table, er, wrist, that Timex and any one of hundreds of cheap watches don’t already provide consumers?
That’s the question Harvard Business Review’s H. James Wilson asks today, and he comes up with a fascinating answer.
The iWatch, he says, won’t actually be a watch at all.
With Apple stock seemingly in free fall, a new report suggests that Apple is going to announce a plan to return additional value to shareholders as soon as this spring, either by increasing the existing dividend or by buying back stock from investors.
After giving its mobile app a lot of love, Dropbox is focusing its attention on its desktop client.
Dropbox announced today that it’s got a couple new upgrades for the Mac and Windows app that will help you share files quicker, and improve updates to help you keep up with the service.
Fact: wearing accessories and gadgets on your belt makes you look super cool – just like Batman. So if you buy a few Spider Monkeys, then your utility-belt cool-factor will shoot through the roof so fast that you’ll be sweeping up broken shingles for weeks.
The Spider Monkey comes from the folks who make the camera-holding Spider Holster, and it works with pretty much anything that isn’t a camera.
We’ve seen some really neat car hacks that use the iPhone and iPad to do some crazy stuff, but this one might take the cake.
A group of Russians decided to take their Opel Vectra car and turn it into the “James Bond car” that could be driven with a cellphone in Tomorrow Never Dies. The result, is a beat up beauty that can be driven with an iPad. Check it out:
Imagine if games like Guitar Hero weren’t just a stupid waste of drunken time but actually taught you to play the guitar instead. That way, you could actually get some benefit from the hours you pour into practicing the game.
Tabrider is that game. It’s an interactive training app which you play with your real guitar. It looks pretty neat.
With features like Bluetooth 4 connectivity, hundreds of levels of pressure sensitivity, and a built-in undo button, the Pogo Connect Pen (currently about $79 $62 on Amazon) sounds like an amazing drawing and painting tool for your iPad or iPhone.
Question is, how’s it perform in real life? I took it for a test drive to find out.
Sometimes, the smallest jailbreak tweaks are the ones that make the biggest impression.
For me, that tweak is DirectionBar, the teensiest of jailbreak tweaks that does just one thing: puts a tiny arrow in your iPhone’s statusbar, which always, always, always points true north.
A group of U.S. Senators have introduced a new bill that will allow cellphone owners to legally unlock their devices again after their contract has expired.
Called the Unlocking Consumer Choice and Wireless Competition Act, and backed by Al Franken and members of the Senate Judiciary Committee, the bill would reverse a Library of Congress ruling from October 2012 that deemed cellphone unlocking illegal unless the process was performed by a carrier.
If you’re a designer looking to add more resources to your arsenal, then this Cult of Mac Deals offer is going to be right up your alley.
This bundle contains thousands of premium design resources such as Photoshop gradients, stock photos, textures, and vectors that will give you that competitive edge you need in today’s ambitious world. And you can get it for only $49 for a limited time.
Apple is taking its sweet time with OS X 10.8.3. We’ve already had more beta builds than we care to remember, but Apple’s still trying to get the software right.
Apple seeded another OS X 10.8.3 beta(12D78) to developers today, making it the 14th beta build of OS X 10.8.3. The first beta seed of 10.8.3 was released way back in November. There’s still no official word on when OS X 10.8.3 will be released to the public, but at this rate, we’re more likely to see OS X 10.9 Lion-O before it comes out.
Source: Apple
Via: MacTrast
SlickWraps really needs to get on the ball and make one of these ultrasuede wraps for the iPad mini. As it is, the regular iPad sized version looks great, but this non-slip, soft-touch rear cover has baby tablet written all over it.
There’s good news and bad news for both iOS and Android fans in the latest report from research firm IDC.
The good news (for Android) is that by the end of this year, Android will account for most of the tablets in the world, with a 48.8% marketshare to Apple’s 46 percent.
Pulse has been one of our favorite newsreader apps for the iPad since it was released in 2010, but it’s looking for a new home.
According to a new report, LinkedIn wants to buy the maker of the iOS app Pulse, and they’re not afraid to spend big.
Before I had an iPhone, I used to game everywhere with the dual-threat of my Nintendo DS and my trusty Sony PSP. The DS I’ll still occasionally break out, but the bulky PSP has been in a drawer for years, a victim of its bulk.
A new jailbreak project might mean that I finally get to play some of my favorite PSP games once again. PPSSPP is a new PSP emulator for iOS developed by the guy behind the incredible N64 emulator, Dolphin, and while it’s in very alpha state yet — just look at that frame rate on Wipeout Pure! — this is clearly a project with a lot of possibility.
Quirky’s Pickup Power wants the be the last power-strip you’ll ever need. It houses AC outlets, USB chargers and – the best part – a detachable battery pack that’s always charged and ready to go.
Derek Sivers recently wrote a piece about how he believes everyone should learn basic programming, but where do you start? What school should you go to? What book is the best? What website will offer the best resources? Cult of Mac Deals is here to help – no matter whether it’s a course for you or for a child out there that you know would eat up a coding course.
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Even though Apple had a head start on tablets with the iPad, the number of Android tablets in use is expected to pass the iPad later this year.
According to a new report from IDC, the iPad’s marketshare will decrease in 2013 from 51%, down to 46%, while Android grows its marketshare to 49%.