There are a few Essential Apps that handle themselves so well on the iPhone they quickly eclipse the website they evolved from; apps that, once installed on the iPhone, completely replace their browser-based ancestors.
Essentials Yelp, The Weather Channel and Twitter clearly fall into this category. But Facebook’s app is different. It doesn’t just replace — it hooks.
We haven’t…uh…tried this yet (primarily because Cult editor Leander Kahney refuses to get back into his fencing Mexican-wrestler costume after last year’s Halloween fiasco) but it looks pretty damn cool, or something.
Sonic Speed Ball sets up a Bluetooth connection between two iPhones (or BT-equipped iPods), then simulates a virtual ball that can be smacked around using an iDevice as a paddle. Different gestures affect the virtual ball in different ways, à la the Nintendi Wii controller.
Sonic Speed Ball is $1; leash not included.
httpvhd://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoX1Q8ym2J8&feature=player_embedded
If you’ve just picked up a brand new iPod Touch or you bought an iPhone 4 after the update to iOS 4.1 and are eager to jailbreak, you’re probably looking forward to the SHAtter exploit, which — once rolled out — will not only allow any current iOS device to be hacked, but which can’t be patched by Apple through software.
We’re still waiting for an end-user jailbreak using SHAtter to release us from the shackles of iOS 4.0.2 and above, but the Dev Team just released the above proof of concept video, showing how the SHAtter explot baked into a beta version of PwnageTool was enough to allow them to load their custom IPSW onto a fourth-generation iPod Touch.
This week’s Apple patent news comes out of China, where a couple of new iPad designs have been discovered in line drawing, describing an iPad with dual dock connectors and an iPad with a smart bezel button.
About a month ahead of America and Europe, New Zealand clocks fall an hour back when they switch to Daylight Savings Time on the last Sunday of September. Apparently, though, New Zealand iPads and iPhones are proving a tad overzealous when it comes to falling back this year: numerous iOS users are reporting that since yesterday’s switch, their alarms are going off an hour early. Given that Kiwis were already having to wake up an hour earlier than they were used to, that’s quite a rude awakening.
FileMaker recently released FileMaker Go for the iPad and iPhone. I’ll be taking a look at the iPad version only today, because based on my experience with technology in the Enterprise the larger format screen that the iPad provides is the way to go. I think that version will be better received by business users since the iPhone screen is much to small to use on a regular basis or at least it is for me. It’s good in a pinch, but for real work I prefer the iPad as primary and the iPhone as backup.
FileMaker Go will not work by itself since you need to have FileMaker Pro, which is now at version 11, to create databases that you will use with the iOS app. FileMaker Go will allow you access and edit the information in the database you created with FileMaker Pro on your Mac or PC.
If you’ve updated iTunes to 10.0.1 in the last day or so, you might have noticed that Ping is pushing itself in your face rather more forcefully than before.
One thing: there’s the Ping sidebar on the right. Another: there’s a new Ping drop-down menu that appears in your music library, alongside any song you have selected.
They’re fine if you use Ping, but if you don’t, you might want to get rid of them. The sidebar is easy to deal with, you can hide it with a click. But the drop-down menu requires a little more tinkering to get rid of.
This week’s must-have iOS games include the awesome new Real Soccer from Gameloft, which features gorgeous high-definition graphics optimized for the retina display. We also have their long-awaited Gangstar sequel, Miami Vindication, and some seriously addictive gameplay in ngmoco’s We City.
Check out a few of our favorite games from the past week after the break!
This week’s must-have iOS apps include Napster’s new music streaming application that provides access to over 10 million of songs on your iOS device, Google Voice calling with GV Mobile+, and a media player that supports pretty much every codec out there!
Check out a few of our favorite apps from the past week after the break!
The Wallee is both a hard case for iPad as well as a simple and efficient wall mounting solution. It allows you to use your iPad throughout your home. It’s one of the best solutions out there, and delivers both on style and functionality. The Wallee is a gadget that is so well-engineered that I often forget about it. It has just blended its way into my everyday life – just like the iPad itself.