Posted by: Marianne Schultz
on Jan 14, 2009
A handful of web browsers are now available in the App Store. While none of them offer the full feature set that Safari on the iPhone already does, each offers something different to streamline or focus the browsing experience. For example, QuickSurf specifically avoids downloading images on web pages to speed up browsing and/or decrease the amount of data used, and WebMate is a tabbed browser that queues up clicked links so you can view them later without leaving the current web page.
Posted by: Marianne Schultz
on Sep 26, 2008
If you read the reviews for an app on the App Store before you buy it, you’ve probably been frustrated by the reviews posted by people who don’t even own the app. iPhone developers have also expressed frustration with this process, since poor reviews can lead to lower sales for their app. Well, no more! Apple has finally set up requirements to review apps - if you try to review an app that you have not purchased, you’ll see this message pop up in iTunes:
It’s unknown whether Apple will go back and remove the existing reviews from those who did not purchase or download the app in question (which could be quite a daunting task), but at least we now know that reviews from this point on will most likely be based on actual experience with the app.
Via Macrumors forums...
Posted by: Marianne Schultz
on Sep 8, 2008
Tagged in:
steve jobs ,
special event ,
Kevin Rose ,
iTunes ,
ipodtouch ,
iPhone software update 2.1 ,
iphone software ,
iphone accessories ,
iphone 3g ,
games ,
firmware ,
EA ,
apple event ,
app store
First and foremost, iPhone 2.1 firmware will be out on Friday, September 12. Steve said it's a big update that includes many bug fixes, addressing dropping calls, crashing apps, long-backups, and battery life. And it's free to all owners! I am quite excited for this update, and have my fingers crossed that it will work as promised and that the issues many users, including me, have been experiencing are addressed.
Kevin Rose was spot on with iTunes 8, including the new grid-like view and Genius functionality. HD TV shows has also come to the iTunes store, though they are only viewable on your computer or through your Apple TV - there goes putting HD shows on my iPhone to output to our home entertainment center! Shoot!
iPods continue to kick ass in marketshare with 73.4%, with "Other" players a distant second at 15.4%. The iPod Classic is now offered in one size only - 120GB at the same price as the previous 80GB model, $249. The new iPod Nano is indeed like the leaked pictures that have been circulating on the internet - tall and skinny with a curved front and back. It features a new UI and has an accelerometer like the iPod Touch and iPhone, allowing you to turn it sideways to switch automatically to cover mode view. And the new Genius functionality works right on the Nano without needing to be connected to iTunes, and shaking the Nano puts it in Shuffle mode.
A nice accessory upgrade is a pair of headphones that have functionality similar to that of the iPhone's - a control button that allows you to double-click to get to the next song, and a microphone that will work with the built-in voice recording function. And it has volume controls! I sure hope those will work on the iPhone too.
Posted by: Christopher Meinck
on Aug 29, 2008
Pangea Software is offering a limited time back to school offer on the best-selling iPhone game Enigmo . Enigmo was voted "Best iPhone Game" at Apple's WWDC 08' and has also drawn rave reviews from our readers. Enigmo is billed as a 3D puzzle game where you direct animated streams of flowing liquid so that the droplets get to their destination.
Posted by: Christopher Meinck
on Aug 27, 2008
Apple confirmed today that a security flaw in the current iPhone software will be fixed in an upcoming software update scheduled to be released in September.
“
The minor iPhone security issue which surfaced this week is fixed in a software update which will be released in September,” Apple representative, Jennifer Bowcock, said in an email to
Macworld .
&
Posted by: Christopher Meinck
on Aug 26, 2008
It's hard to believe, but we are just over a week away from the start of the NFL season. For some, it marks the start of fantasy football, where armchair quarterbacks flex their statistical muscle via virtual football teams. My draft happens to be on Tuesday where I'll match wits with 11 other football junkies. Most fantasy GM's will scour the Internet looking for an edge and most will enter their draft rooms with the vaulted cheat sheet. Can the iPhone help you win your league? There are two apps which are available in the App Store that aim to help you win your draft.
Draft Central allows to to sort through available players by name or by UltimateFFB's ranking system. You can even set up teams and monitor your competition's draft strategy. All of these are great tools, but one has to wonder if you can manage all of this during draft day on nothing more than the iPhone. Having set up a custom FileMaker database for drafting purposes, I can tell you from experience that it's difficult enough using a desktop application. This might also be the occasion where good ole pen and paper trumps the iPhone
Posted by: Marianne Schultz
on Aug 23, 2008
While I love the iPhone’s accelerometer and how current apps and games take advantage of it, Super Monkey Ball is just plain hard. Hand me a controller with a D-pad or joystick and I could make short work of it, but tilting the iPhone like a madwoman isn’t working all that well for me. Enter iControlPad - they’ve been working on a gamepad for the iPhone for a little while now, but it looks like they are closer to a working model that would be sold for around $30. Sound good? Yeah, I thought so.
TouchArcade has anonymously received pictures of another iPhone gamepad that could also be in the works and they’ve posted these images. There’s no other information on this second possible gamepad, so its validity is uncertain, to say the least. It’s reasonable to think that there’s more than one company out there looking to capitalize on the iPhone as a gaming device, so the idea isn’t that far-fetched.
While we’re on this topic of gaming on the iPhone, I have to admit that I don’t play games all that often on my iPhone. As I did before the advent of the 2.0 firmware and the App Store, my iPhone is primarily my phone, personal information manager, portable email and web-surfing device, and iPod, and games are something I do only when I need to kill time while waiting in line or when I’m too antsy to focus on anything else. So, if any gamepads are released in the $30 range, that might be too steep for a casual iPhone gamer like me. But what about you? How much would you be willing to pay for a gamepad for your iPhone? Tell us in the Comments section!
Via [TouchArcade ]
