The AR.Drone feels like the future of video games. A combination of a flying, hovering, and downright smart helicopter with four rotors and lots of sensors, and an iPhone augmented reality app, the Drone allows gamers to see the world through cameras on the chopper, to augmentedly dogfight with friends, and even to attack robots that only they can see. Basically, it was the hit of CES, and it shows an entire class of games that the iPhone makes possible.

On Friday, the AR.Drone from Parrot took the stage at the venerable TED Conference in Long Beach alongside everyone from Bill Gates and complexity theory genius Benoit Mandelbrot to Andrew Bird and Sarah Silverman. But before then, the little helicopter from the future hit northern California, making a cameo at MacWorld and, in a stroke of luck, briefly landing in my control on Thursday. And I came away more impressed by the actual device than I had been by video and demos of it.

Steve Jobs is finally cooperating with an official biography, the New York Times reports.

Jobs will collaborate with Walter Isaacson, author of two well-regarded biographies of Albert Einstein, Benjamin Franklin and Henry Kissinger.

The book, which is in the early planning stages, would cover the entire life of Mr. Jobs, from his youth in the area now known as Silicon Valley through his years at Apple, these people said.

Mr. Jobs, who will turn 55 on Feb. 24, has invited Mr. Isaacson to tour his childhood home, one person with knowledge of the discussion said.

… Cooperation with Mr. Isaacson could be a sign that Mr. Jobs has emerged from his recent health battles with more of an interest in shaping his legacy.

httpvhd://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3RNpMAtqIZ8&feature=player_embedded

In the wake of last week’s report that sausage-mania was gripping South Korea when Maxbong brand sausages were found to be usable as capacitive styluses, there were some small few who doubted the report.

Our retort? This video, showing a South Korean playing Taiko Drummaster with a pair of Maxbong Sausages. As you can see, it works well, but those Maxbongs look a little too thick to be truly decent styluses. I still think a Slim Jim would work better.

Well, that certainly took long enough: Apple has finally allowed a version of SlingPlayer Mobile app to creep through the App Store with 3G support.

And it’s about time. SlingPlayer Mobile is a great little app that allows you to stream video from your television, cable, satellite or DVR to your iPhone. The previous version was WiFi only, due to pressure from AT&T, but Ma Bell claims that they worked with SlingPlayer to optimize their 3G compression scheme, and they are now happy that the app won’t be too much of a bandwidth hog.

That’s good news for home theater enthusiasts: it means you never really need to load your iPhone up with movies at all, but can just stream your library from home. Of course, that functionality has a price premium: it costs $30.

Children — those sticky, mucous-leaking, disaster-prone calamity goblins! — tend to have an unhealthy fixation with their parents’ gadgets. By ‘unhealthy,’ I mean for us, and not for them: no matter how many times your pudge-kneed toddler drops your iPhone into the toilet, common decency prevents us from clobbering the little monster for the affront. The only thing to do is buy yourself a new iPhone, then try to distract your feral, post-fetal doppelganger from indulging his or her innate impetus to destroy it with a plastic toy simulacrum.

Toy makers have been banking on just this for years. Consider all of the plastic laptops and cell phones and MP3 players on the shelves of your local Toys ‘R’ Us. Every gadget under the sun has a bright plastic analogue, ready to be sacrificed to your child’s agency of destruction and save your most cherished gadgets.

Apple’s new iPad, when it is released, is going to be a particulaly tempting object for the average kid to mindlessly throw, smash, bend, smear bodily fluids upon, or all of the above. But Fisher-Price — old saws at this game — have you covered. They’ve just announced their own iPad-inspired device for children, called the iXL.

It looks pretty good. It allows kids to look at photos, read e-books, play music and games, and even dink around with remedial art and note taking programs. Of course, since your kid’s probably just going to smash the dog in the head with it, then use it to blow up the microwave when you’re not looking, the $79.99 price tag might seem a bit much… but it’s better to be out $80 than $499, don’t you think?

We start the week off with a passel of puzzles for your iPhone, plus a speaker for your iPod from Logitech. Alchemize is a puzzle game for your iPhone or iPod touch being offered free for a limited time. Next up is a number of App Store titles marked down to the low, low price of free. Lastly, Logitech has their rechargeable speaker system for the iPod or iPhone. The $60 system gives you 20 hours of tune between charges.

As always, details on these and many other items (such as the Western Digital 1TB USB 2.0 external hard drive) are available after the jump.

A report by a UK insurance company says phony claims for iPhones soar every time a new model launches.

Since the November 2007 launch of the first gen iPhone in the UK to the iPhone 3gs, claims on iPhones increase by 50% during the month after a new model is launched, Supercover Insurance director Carmi Korine said in a statement. Her company estimates that four out of 10 of those increased claims are abruptly-mangled iPhones that owners hope to have replaced with the latest model.

“While most customers take out insurance because they value their iPhone, we started to notice increases in claims as new and upgraded iPhones were launched.

“For short periods around new model or upgrade launches, claims for lost, stolen or damaged iPhones go through the roof.

“The issue appears to be that most iPhone owners can only go for so long realising that they’re a generation behind the latest must-have spec before they resort to extreme measures.”

It might be worth faking the break: Korine notes that although 40% of the claims received after a new iPhone model launch were suspicious the company  rejected about 25%.

Just don’t be too obvious: the insurer requires that you send in the phone. One over-zealous early adopter claimed the phone had been “dropped” when he or she had evidently driven a car over it.

Via Press Association

Don’t search for Horticulture vs. Necromancy or Vegetables vs. Decomposition, but if you go to the App Store now, Plants vs. Zombies is now available for the iPhone and iPod Touch for only $2.99.

Trust me, that’s an absolute steal. Pop Cap Games’ wonderfully goofy tower-defense game — in which rows of flowers and funguses must cheerily hold off wave after wave — was the most addictive game of last year, and not only does Plants vs. Zombies feel more intuitive to play on a touchscreen, but the iPhone app costs 85% less than the desktop port.

For iPhone gamers, this is news that should be met with nothing less than hysterical shrieking and full-on bladder evacuation. Buy Plants vs. Zombies here, then join me in the comments where I’ll explain my patented, never-fail Gloomshroom defense.

Chip-making giant Intel and mobile phone giant Nokia Monday announced a partnership of sorts, melding their two mobile operating systems into one platform: MeeGo. “Simply put, MeeGo heralds a new era of mobile computing,” claimed Nokia CEO Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo.

The Linux-based Meego targets a range of mobile companies, including Apple’s iPhone, Google’s Android handsets and even Microsoft. In a slam against Android, Intel vice president Renee James told the New York Times the Google-made platform is too “specific” to be used on a wide range of devices.

Ever since carriers became just a pipe for Apple’s iPhone, they’ve attempted to regain some of their lost control over customers. Now comes word that two-dozen major carriers – including AT&T, Verizon and Sprint – want to build an App Store rival, enticing developers with an unspecified “open technology platform.”

Analysts are already sounding warnings, cautioning with so many sharks swimming so close together, there’s bound to be trouble. “I do question whether such a large group of mobile operators will be able to achieve the level of cooperation and integration required to make this initiative a success,” said Informa Telecoms analyst Mark Newman.

It appears Apple has stepped-up its battle with hackers, reportedly banning at least two App Store accounts for “security reasons.” The action comes after a long-running tug-of-war between the Cupertino, Calif. company and hackers releasing ways to avoid iPhone security.

Monday, a hacker known as “Sherif” told his Twitter followers Apple had banned his ID. “They must be really angry, he wrote, following the comment by a smiley face emoticon. Another hacker, known as “iH8sn0w,” and the person behind the XEMN tool said to unlock iPhone 3.1.3 baseband for the 3G and 3GS, also reported being banned from the App Store.

Mango Tango’s Flavour laptop bag helps you to throw the smart, hot and professional look together in seconds. The bag is perfect for looking serious while also looking hot. With its generous dimensions of 15-1/4″ Wide, 11-1/4″ tall and 3″ deep, you will find almost any sized laptop will fit inside here but its lightweight construction won’t weigh you down.

Note: It’s Bag Week on CultofMac.com. We’re checking out some of the latest and greatest bags on the market. Read all the bag reviews here.

I must admit I love the BBP Hybrid Hampton bag, possibly my favorite of the year, in terms of style at least.

BBP’S Hybrid Hampton is the company’s flagship laptop bag featuring the Bak2Pak system that converts from a backback to a messenger bag in no time at all.

I’ve been on the lookout for a bag that is cool enough to be hip ‘with the kids’ while grown-up enough to take to business meetings without feeling like mutton dressed as lamb. And this bag is what I’ve been waiting for.

Note: It’s Bag Week on CultofMac.com. We’re checking out some of the latest and greatest bags on the market. Read all the bag reviews here.

The great people at TechSmith want you to stop using wanna-be screencasting applications and start using proper software to make your presentations much more professional. So the company is giving away four copies of its Camtasia screencasting software (worth $99) and five copies of its quick-video recording and sharing app, Jing Pro.

“Toy Story 3” director Lee Unkrich gave something for his seat mate to gawk at as he sat at 36,000 feet editing the latest animated tale of plaything adventures.

With not a second to waste — the release date is June 18, 2010 —  Unkrich worked on a MacBook Pro, with what looks like shortcut color codes for Avid Media Composer.  (Crane as I might, all I ever see are Excel spreadsheets. Need to get upgraded from Economy more often, perhaps.)

Apple products often feature in Pixar movies (perhaps in a nod to history?), the trailer for Toy Story 3 already has a nice bit of iProduct placement.

Valentine’s Day is almost over but maybe you have someone on your list who might appreciate your going uber-digital in your expression of affection, even if it’s a tad belated.

Then you might want to check out QR loveCode, a quirky little free app for iPhone and iPod Touch that gives you a choice of several love messages you can embed into QR coded thought bubbles on a series of stylistic digital art pieces you can share via email.

QR codes are big in Japan, where many cell phones come equipped with QR decoding software that works through the phones’ camera.

Here in the US, the recipient of your QR loveCode message will need to download QR scanning software in order to read your message. But guess what?

There’s an app for that.

The digital version of Wired Magazine for the iPad and other devices will be a “game changer,” Editor-in-Chief Chris Anderson said Friday.

Showing off a demo of the digital magazine at the TED conference on Friday, Anderson said the interactive magazine brought print’s high-production values to digital for the first time.

“We think this is a game changer,” he told the audience.

Anderson said the digital magazine is on track for a summer release. The iPad is expected to be on sale by the end of March.

Via Wired’s Epicenter.

SAN FRANCISCO, MACWORLD 2010 — Saturday is the last day of Macworld 2010 and you can bring a friend for only $15 when you use priority code SHARE. The Expo Hall hours are from 10:00am to 6:00pm.

If you want to show the kids a good time do the following:

SAN FRANCISCO, MACWORLD 2010 — Steven Chan and his wife gave their three kids the same initials: M – A – C.

There’s Maxwell Alexander Chan, his brother Matthew and sister Megan.

“We’re in the printing and graphics business and we just loved the Mac from the very beginning,” said Chan. “Its the tool of our trade, so…”

In a dozen years reporting on Apple, the Chans are the first people I’ve met who named their kids after their favorite computer company. Although there have been rumors of kids named after Apple or the Mac — Gwyneth Paltrow’s daughter Apple, for example — it has become an urban myth, often rumored but never verified (if ever). I don’t know of another documented case.

I met the Chans on the Macworld show floor. They’d driven up from Southern California for the Expo. The Chan’s printing business is in Riverside County.

“We’re both fanatics,” Chan added, laughing. “There’s five of us but we have eight Macs in the house. There’s more Macs than people.”

SAN FRANCISCO, MACWORLD 2010 — Here’s some of the sights and er, more sights, of the Macworld 2010 show floor.

SAN FRANCISCO, MACWORLD 2010 — The guys at Topaz Labs thought business would be slow at the first Macworld without Apple, so they packed only 250 CDs of their software.

They sold out in the first few hours of the first day.

Worried it was just an opening-day rush, and that day two would be dead, they had just 250 more overnighted to their hotel. But those too quickly sold.

“It’s been awesome. I’m exhausted,” laughed Ivan Randall of Topaz Labs. “It’s been a great show.”

Almost all the vendors we talked to told the same story: Macworld 2010 has definitely been worth the money. Many had low expectations, but turnout has been great and business is brisk.

SAN FRANCISCO, MACWORLD 2010 — The second day of Macworld 2010 was another big day with throngs of showgoers crowding the show floor.

Some vendors had worried that the big crowds on day one would thin significantly on the second day. But there was steady stream of attendees and brisk business for vendors.

SAN FRANCISCO, MACWORLD 2010 — You’ve probably seen the late pitchman Billy Mays on late-night TV smashing his hand with hammer while it’s wrapped in Impact Gel — a super cushioning material used for insoles.

In fact, Impact Gel was featured in the first episode of PitchMen, the Discovery Channel show featuring Mays and his partner Anthony Sullivan.

Now, Impact Gel is being used to make a laptop sleeve that can be hit with a hammer and dropped without damaging the contents.

SAN FRANCISCO, MACWORLD 2010 — One of the most welcome aspects of the post-Apple Macworld is the absence of the giant booths devoted to iPhone accessories.

In recent years, Macworld was in danger of becoming the iPhone case show. Many of the biggest and most prominent booths on the show floor were devoted to cases and screen covers.

This year, they’re mostly absent. While there were about 100 case and accessory makers at CES in January (in the iLounge pavilion), the 150 iPhone developers at Macworld are mostly software publishers. It’s a welcome change.

SAN FRANCISCO, MACWORLD 2010 — Macworld 2010 is in full swing. Even without Apple, the show is packed and there’s a great vibe. The best thing is the people. Check out some of the many friendly faces on the show floor.

Above: These two Macnewbies are enjoying Macworld for the very first time. They’re impressed.