Cult of Mac

The new “Apple Store 2.0” concept improves retail stores to make life better for customers. Apple bolted customized iPads to the tables next to products so you can get information, comparison shop, and even get help from a live human. Hmmm. Using iPads to improve stores. Great idea!

Now how about fixing the iPad App Store!

Don’t get me wrong. The current App Store is better than others in the industry. But so were Apple’s retail stores. Apple still improved those.

The biggest iPad App Store flaws fall into three categories. First, apps are not as “discoverable” as they should be. Second, the App Store seems overly optimized for bringing in revenue for Apple at the expense of user convenience. And third, arbitrary annoyances around downloading apps make the experience less appealing than it should be.

A native Google Maps application comes built-in to our iOS devices, and while it’s great for accessing maps and getting directions while we’re on the go, it is lacking a few important features. Thankfully, however, Google has just launched an updated Google Maps web app which offers a little extra.

The idea that Apple would launch a 64GB iPhone 4 months before the release of a fifth-generation iPhone seems ludicrous to me, but memos recently published by a Verizon retailer mention a “White iPhone 4 (32 and 64gb)” in the small print, and have sparked speculation that the device is on its way.

The latest Apple patent to surface from the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office details another of company’s ingenious little inventions, and suggests future devices could boast privacy screens that prevent curious eyes from gazing upon your tawdry activities while you ride the bus.

Just as you thought you’d heard all of the rumors surrounding the fifth-generation iPhone, we have a brand new one for you that claims the device could feature a “curved cover glass.”

In addition to the launch of ‘Apple Store 2.0’ on Sunday, the Apple Store application for iOS devices also got a much-needed revamp. The latest version of the application is now available to download from the App Store with some useful new features.

A couple of YouTube videos have surfaced demonstrating the new interactive iPad software located next to all Apple products in the Apple Store 2.0 retail layout.  Each iPad acts as a kiosk that customers can use to explore product features, perform product comparisons, and summon help from a sales associate.

Apple Store 2.0 has launched in Australia and it looks like some of the rumors are true. The new version of the store features interactive product displays using iPads.

As you can see from the image above, I’m just 338.3MB shy from using 20GB of cellular data for this past billing period. Fortunately for me, I have an unlimited data plan, so I use the crap out of my phone for things like watching YouTube videos and downloading files overnight. So, how much data do you use? Please take part in the poll below, and feel free to leave your comments.

[polldaddy poll=5071895]

Jack Dorsey, the head of Square and co-founder of Twitter, dropped a hint on Saturday via a cryptic Tweet about a possible deal with Apple. The Tweet simply said, “Apple @Square” along with a link to an Instagram photo of a plate of sliced Apples shaped like the Square logo.

This week’s roundup of must-have iOS applications begins with the second edition of PhotoForge – the popular photo manipulation tool for iOS. Completely rebuilt from the ground up, PhotoForge2 promises to be a breakthrough for image editing on the go, with unparalleled tools and amazing effects to transform your photos into masterpieces.

Foodish is a new application that claims to make dining and drinking twice as much fun (is that even possible?), by providing a quick and easy way for you to keep a record of your diet, but in a way that’s fun and enjoyable rather that dull and tedious like traditional diet tracking applications. It makes it simple for you to see how healthy or how dreadfully unhealthy (like mine) your diet is.

Zootool is a great little tool that makes bookmarking, organizing and sharing your favorite images, videos, documents and links from all over the web incredibly effortless.

Find out more about the application above and check out the rest of this week’s must-haves – including Audibly and eBay Motors – below!

Rumors have been circulating for the last week or so about changes to Apple’s online and retail stores. Now a new one has cropped up about the Apple Store iOS app.

Digital Audio Workstations (DAW) have existed for quite some time on desktop machines. Logic Pro, Digital Performer and Pro Tools are just a few DAWs that are used in the daily workflow of audio professionals.

But now, thanks to the iPad, the digital audio workstation has officially become mobile. Say hello to creating pro-level music with the iPad.

Apple’s order status web page is down this week-end for maintenance. If you attempt to check the status of an existing order you’ll see the above message displayed for all online stores across the globe.

Intel’s family of Sandy Bridge processors is about to get a whole lot bigger as the chip manufacturing company ramps up production of new ultra-low voltage (ULV) processors that would be a perfect fit for my favorite portable computer — the MacBook Air.

The folks at All Things Digital have obtained a statement from Apple in regards to the explosion that occurred at Foxconn’s facilities in Chengdu China where the iPad 2 is manufactured.

Are you annoyed by the lack of a timer feature for the Camera in iOS? How about for the lack of a rapid shooting feature? Fortunately for jailbroken iDevices, PictureMe lets you do just that. It’s available for $1.99 in Cydia (a price of $0.99 would’ve been better), and integrates right into the stock Camera application.

After an unexplained absence, Apple products have officially returned to NBC’s The Office, which wrapped up its seventh season last night.

Apple gear was prominently seen and mentioned during the show’s earlier seasons. In 2005, for example, former boss Michael Scott (played by Steve Carell) gifted a then-cutting-edge 5th generation iPod Classic (“video iPod”).

But as of late, HP replaced Apple for “promotional consideration”, as evidenced by the closing credits. Apple products continued to appear on occasion, but only discretely, the logo always obscured.

When the brimstone rains down and hell freezes over (or whatever the heck is supposed to happen) on Judgement Day, making sure my iPhone stays safe in Griffin’s damn near impervious-to-everything, military-spec Survivor case ($50) means I’ll be able to tweet the whole thing. Assuming there’s still Internet and power and stuff.

Hate patent trolls who try to extort money from small indie devs on the iOS Store? Wish Apple would clobber them? The Electronic Frontier Foundation does too, and they’re loudly and publicly hoping that Apple smashes Lodsys into a fine, gelatin paste.

Cupertino now has three out of the four big music labels signed, but even so, could Apple’s iCloud music locker and streaming service be delayed even later than its rumored WWDC launch? The music business is a tricky one, and although Apple’s got most of the labels signed, the negotiations with publishers are still in their early stages.

We close out another week of deals with a mix of hardware, discounts and accessories. First up is a 67 percent discount on select Apple items from MacMall. Some of the “best bets” include a deal on a Mac Pro 8-Core Xeon Workstation for $3,239.94. Next is a group of Mac mini desktop machines from the Apple Store. The items start at $599 for a 2.4GHz Core 2 Duo computer. Finally, for all the iPad 2 owners, there is a deal on a Faux Leather Case for just $14.99.

Along the way, we’ll also take a peek at some iPhone cases, as well as more iPad 2 accessories and software for your Mac. As usual, details on these and many other items can be found at CoM’s “Daily Deals” page right after the jump.

You can now touch the Holy Land with your iPad and send prayers there with a new app called Terra Sancta. It’s the latest offering from the most wired priest in the world, Father Paolo Padrini.

Forget Kitten vs. Powerbook. Now it’s Kitten vs. iPad, thanks to a new collection of iPad games ames by Friskies.

In a recent motion to dismiss a lawsuit filed by Apple to stop Amazon from using its “App Store” trademark, Amazon argued that the term “App Store” was as generic as “book store” or “music store”…. and quoted several remarks by Steve Jobs referring to his competitors’ offerings as “app stores” as proof.

Now Apple’s filed a rebuttal: NUH UH! App Store isn’t generic at all.