Apps

We’ve gotten word that inside Apple there are Apple TVs running the Hulu Plus app natively. The app is feature complete and ready to roll out to Apple TV users on current builds. In fact, it has been ready for at least a month and development is now on hold.

While there are no technical issues standing in the way of the Hulu Plus release on Apple TV, there appear to be some political ones. At some level at Apple, there appears to be some consideration that the Hulu Plus app could eat into iTunes TV sales on the Apple TV. Where Netflix tends to run older programming, iTunes is the Apple TV’s only outlet for current TV programming.

Hulu Plus is available on the iPad and other iOS devices but unlike many other content apps, you can’t AirPlay them to an Apple TV like Apple’s own iTunes videos. Additionally, you can use an HDMI cable to watch the iOS Hulu Plus through an iPad on your HDTV, but mysteriously only in Standard definition, not the native HD Hulu or iTunes quality. Plus, who needs an HDMI-tethered solution?

Adding to the political troubles, Hulu was recently trying to sell itself to players including Apple competitor Google (and Apple itself) but no bidders were willing to bid high enough. Perhaps Apple wanted to make sure that Hulu Plus didn’t turn into a Trojan Horse for one of its competitors?

Hulu Plus was originally barred from all TV platforms, but giving hope to Apple TV users, it recently appeared in HD on the $59 Roku (above) and even a few smaller platforms like the very capable Western Digital’s TV Live (pictured below).

Expand
Expanding
Close

AirPlay Mirroring shown with an iPad 2 and an Apple TV

Sources familiar with the future of Mac OS X say that AirPlay Mirroring and an iMessage application are currently in development. Although neither project may see the light of day, they are definitely on the table for release in future versions of OS X Lion. AirPlay Mirroring for the Mac will allow a user to wirelessly mirror exactly what is shown on their Mac’s display to an Apple TV connected to a projector, television, or external monitor. AirPlay video streaming is also being integrated into QuickTime X.

This would be a fantastic addition to the conference room for corporate presentations and would sell a few more Apple TVs we would imagine.

iMessage for Mac info after the break:

Expand
Expanding
Close

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=86LxStLXrf4]

iPhone 4S iCloud TV advertisment

Following up on the first iPhone 4S Siri TV advertisement from last week, Apple has just released three new advertisements surrounding the iPhone 4S. The iCloud iPhone 4S advertisement shown above shows the out of the box iCloud integration for the iPhone 4S. Examples include downloading a song on the iPhone 4S and having it instantly appear on the user’s Mac, bookmark syncing between an iPhone 4S and an iPad 2, iWork document syncing, and Photo Stream.

New Siri and Camera ads are after the break:

Expand
Expanding
Close

A 3D model of Las Vegas Strip created by Apple purchased C3

Since the original iPhone’s debut in 2007, Apple’s iOS devices have made use of an Apple-built Google Maps application to provide users with a quick glance at driving directions, traffic, route guidance, current location information, and details about destinations. Like with most sections of Apple’s business, the company is continually innovating, looking to take products to the next level.

A few years ago, Apple set out to seemingly reinvent this iOS mapping experience. As 9to5Mac reported in 2009, Apple scooped up their own mapping software development company called Placebase. In the summer of last year, Apple went one step further in their obvious pursuit of a completely in-house mapping solution and acquired a 3D mapping firm called Poly9.

A third mapping company for Apple…

Expand
Expanding
Close

In a move differing from many of their competitors, Bloomberg TV has decided to provide their 24-hour live broadcast in a new Bloomberg TV+ app. The company, which is supported by the world’s largest international news bureau network with 146 bureaus in 72 countries, announced Thursday that the live stream would be made available subscription-free to all iPad owners. This varies from other content providers on the iPad such as CNN who reserve their live stream for specific subscription holders. The app will support streaming in both landscape and portrait view and also include featured videos for the day’s biggest stories, exclusive interviews, and a selection of Bloomberg programming on demand. You will also have access to all content from the last 24 hours and content produced specifically for mobile.

This will definitely be a welcome addition to Bloomberg TV content on the iPad, as up until now pulling up flash-based video content on the Bloomberg site obviously provides you with the typical “This video is not encoded to playback on this device.” as seen in the image below.

Other added features include the ability to download videos for offline viewing, search the content library, schedule reminders for upcoming shows, and share via the usual social networks. You can even customize Bloomberg’s familiar scrolling ticker. Grab the free Bloomberg TV+ app from the App Store now, full release notes from iTunes below.

Expand
Expanding
Close

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=jaIhEXZ7WW4]

Another nail in the PC coffin? So this year Adobe CS apps are starting to make their way to the iPad, Office docs are headed toward the Cloud and now Visual Programming tools are becoming a real possibility with the release today of ‘Codify’:

Codify for iPad lets you create games and simulations — or just about any visual idea you have. Turn your thoughts into interactive creations that make use of iPad features like Multi-Touch and the accelerometer.

We think Codify is the most beautiful code editor you’ll use, and it’s easy. Codify is designed to let you touch your code. Want to change a number? Just tap and drag it. How about a color, or an image? Tapping will bring up visual editors that let you choose exactly what you want.

Codify is built on the Lua programming language. A simple, elegant language that doesn’t rely too much on symbols — a perfect match for iPad.

You can’t export your creations to the App Store or even share them as executables yet (though they are making attempts to enable sharing if Apple lets them). But it looks like a lot of fun for now and maybe it nudges Apple to build a touch version of XCode down the road. 8 Bucks.

Two Lives Left via Daring Fireball.

Expand
Expanding
Close

DirectTV users can now do what Comcast, Time Warner and Optimum users can do – stream video in their homes to their iPads. The new 1.3.1 app (Free, iTunes) allows users to stream 40 channels of content…

Turn your iPad into a portable TV and watch your favorite shows in any room of your home.
– Quickly scroll through a list of channels available to watch on your iPad with a dedicated “Live TV Streaming” Module.
– Get tips in the help section to guide you through features in the app.
– Set parental controls to block live TV channels viewed on the iPad.
– Change start and end times to add padding to a program when setting a recording.

There is one caveat however. The new DirectTV doesn’t appreciate Jailbreakers and shuts down if it detects that it is being used on a Jailbroken device (below). Fix is here.

Thanks reader Ladis

Channels that work with iPad below:

Expand
Expanding
Close

Apple accessory maker Twelve South has just launched their new BassJump 2 USB subwoofer for Apple’s MacBook lineup. If you’re not familiar, same as the original BassJump, the new model aims to blend the sound output between the subwoofer and your MacBook’s built-in speakers using Twelve South’s proprietary software. In other words, the BassJump 2 sub adds the mid- and low-frequencies, your MacBook speakers act as stereo tweeters, and the software attempts to create an ideal mix between the two.

According to the company’s press release, the proprietary software used in the new model includes rewritten code that provides “greater compatibility and eight more decibels” for “dramatically enhanced sound”. The software’s UI (below), which includes a retro VU meter and other basic preset controls, has been redesigned and now allows you to save your customized settings.

When it comes to the greater compatibility, the BassJump 2 includes support for iMac and Apple Thunderbolt display speakers, as well as other non-Apple headphone-connected and USB-powered speakers.

Expand
Expanding
Close

In anticipation of Citrix Synergy 2011 in Barcelona, VMware has just pushed out a huge update to all of their mobile View clients, which are used to access a Windows virtual machine from your iPad and other mobile devices.

Other than a refined and slightly resdesinged UI, the name of the game for the iPad client update (version 1.2) is definitely iOS 5 support. That means you will now be able to use multitasking without losing your current session. Before today’s update, lack of the feature really took away from the experience of being able to use native iPad features/apps and your virtual machine’s apps simultaneously. Parallels ($79) has had much of this functionality for awhile now.

Also included as part of the iOS 5 support is AirPlay. While the previous client allowed you to hook up to a larger display via HDMI or VGA adapter, the updated View client has full AirPlay support allowing you to use the $99 Apple TV as a wireless go between. Another really nice addition that goes great with AirPlay support is a new full-screen keyboard and trackpad combo (image above). This will of course only be enabled when using an external display.

Expand
Expanding
Close

When iOS 5 came out, Google got caught with its pants down because for most users Google Voice wouldn’t even start up without crashing.  We’re not certain what the Voice team was doing during that beta testing window (maybe the last minute Siri inclusion threw things off?)

All of that is water under the bridge right now because Google Voice is back in the App Store and works great on iOS 5.

What’s New in Version 1.3.1.1891

Fix for sign in crash introduced in v1.3.0.1771.

Next step iPad version?
Expand
Expanding
Close

If you are the type that likes a 10″ display for driving navigation, TomTom just updated its $59.99 iOS turn-by-turn navigation app to be universal and optimized for the iPad. You’ll of course want to have a 3G version of the iPad/iPad 2 or be tethered through an iPhone that can share GPS.

TomTom also hints that a new version with some interesting features is on the way:

iPHONE 3G USERS: THIS IS THE LAST VERSION OF THE TOMTOM APP FOR iPHONE THAT WILL FULLY SUPPORT YOUR DEVICE. You will be able to download and use the next version of the TomTom App but new features will not be available to you.

More screenshots and full description below (thanks Caleb!):

Expand
Expanding
Close

[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ionF6Z_QihY]

We mentioned the iHelicopter back in August and it looked like one of the better iOS controlled flying devices out there.  Today, it got a significant update.

The $69.99 Cobra iHelicopters now get to go on the offensive.  The Cobra is armed with two missiles that can take out targets over 6 feet away.

The older version (without missiles)  can be found as low as $50

Press release and more info follows…

Expand
Expanding
Close

In past years, Apple has held “Tech Talk World Tours” for developers, covering their latest version of iOS. Now that iOS 5 has been released into the wild, Apple has announced that the iOS 5 Tech Talk World Tour will kick off on November 2nd in Germany and end in Austin, Texas on January 23rd. The conference described by Apple:

We want to help iOS developers take their apps to the next level using the exciting new technologies in iOS 5. Our team of experts will visit nine cities around the world, covering advanced coding and design techniques that you can take advantage of in your apps. Since Tech Talks are highly technical, it’s important that you have experience programming with the iOS SDK and have an app actively in development or on the App Store.

This year’s tour will take place in Seattle, New York, Austin, Texas, Berlin, London, Rome, Beijing, Seoul, and São Paulo. The tech talks are free to attend and the full schedule and agenda are after the break:

Expand
Expanding
Close

I’ve been using a new iPhone application called Reprise as my main iPhone music player for the past few weeks, and it makes a fantastic replacement for certain iPhone music listeners. In 2005, Apple took the concept of song shuffling to their biggest extreme yet with the iPod shuffle. An iPod dedicating to shuffling your music. That music player still exists, but the iPod line in general has been caniblized by the iPhone and iPod touch and their iOS operating system. With the iPod shuffle even existing, there is a clear market for music shuffling. Read on for the full review…

Expand
Expanding
Close

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cjFmLROLrXU]

You know you want it.
Expand
Expanding
Close

Adobe just took the wraps off the iOS version of Adobe Reader, which admittedly doesn’t bring much functionality we don’t already have with third-party apps. Either way it’s a welcome addition to their iOS app lineup and could possibly have the potential to be more than just a reader down the road.

The app allows you to read and share PDFs from your email, the web, or any other third-party app that supports “Open In”– pretty straight forward. Everything seems to work as advertised, although for some reason it just doesn’t feel as smooth as iBooks when zooming in and out.

It does however build in all the features you’d hope for including the ability to open encrypted PDFs, (supports up to AES256 encryption and LiveCycle Rights Management), the ability to search text, place bookmarks, and print using AirPrint. A nice addition is the single page mode allows you to tap the edge of a page to switch to the next, but the good old continuous scrolling will probably feel more at home on the iPad.

The iPad version looks a little more fine-tuned than the UI on the iPhone. Perhaps even fine-tuned enough to give iBooks a run for its money as your PDF viewer of choice.

Expand
Expanding
Close

Developer Steven Troughton-Smith has been working with 9to5Mac exclusively to port the iPhone 4S Siri voice command system to the iPhone 4. Troughton-Smith was able to get the beginning steps of a full port rolling after installing the iPhone 4S Siri and Springboard files onto an iPhone 4. As you can see in the video, Siri’s interface loads up with all the features from the iPhone 4S implementation.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pue5Yl3WrZA

Siri running on an iPhone 4 (video). Update: Faster version below fold.

Siri on the iPhone 4 can recognize spoken commands in both the standard Siri view and the keyboard Dictation view. The only issue at this point is that Apple is not authenticating (obviously) commands to its servers from iPhone 4 hardware. The Siri port to the iPhone 4, at this point, also has the ability to speak back to the user. You may notice Siri and the iPhone 4 acting very sluggish in the above video. The issue here is not Siri, but is that a special GPU driver for iPhone 4 is needed; and it is obviously not included in the iPhone 4S binary cache – where the Siri files are located.

Perhaps the biggest news here is that we’ve determined that there is no technical reason for Apple not to allow Siri to run on the iPhone 4. The iPhone 4 hardware can support the Siri artificial intelligence system, as the A4 processor is said to be powerful enough. We are not entirely sure why Apple is making Siri an iPhone 4S exclusive but it could be due to special microphone support, or because the A5 may allow it to run slightly quicker. After all, Apple is the company who blocked custom wallpapers on the iPhone 3G because the animation is slightly slower than the animation on newer iOS devices.

We are, of course, working with Troughton-Smith to improve the Siri iPhone 4 port. Stay tuned.

Expand
Expanding
Close

Swipe over an item to reveal the Hide button.

With iCloud, Apple has enabled people to re-download their iTunes purchases such as apps, e-books, movies and television shows, free of charge and as many times as needed. The relaxed policy brought the new Purchased tab in both desktop iTunes, Mac App Store and iOS storefronts, such as iTunes Store, App Store, iBook Store, iTunes Tone Store and Newsstand Store.

If you’re like me, you download too many apps each and every day, basically to try out and ultimately remove the vast majority of items after a couple runs. Unfortunately, each download is automatically added to your Purchased list, no exception – even if you never run the program. Wouldn’t it be nice if you could hide individual purchased items from view? Well, now you can and it’s real simple…

Reveal your hidden item in the iTunes in the Cloud section of your account settings.

Expand
Expanding
Close

Following in the footsteps of Dropbox, which is treating buyers of HTC’s high-end smartphones to five additional gigabytes of online storage, cloud storage provider Box.net announced today an offering Apple fans will find hard to resist. Think 50 gigabytes of free online storage for anyone with a free Box Personal account on an iOS device, ten times the amount you get with iCloud, at no cost. This cloud storage space will be yours forever and always completely free, no strings attached.

You can use your Box.net storage to keep your photos, documents, music, videos and other personal assets safe in the cloud, for easy access anywhere there’s network connection, saving local storage space on your device. The Box.net for iOS client can be downloaded for free here (iPad screenies below). To claim your free storage beginning tomorrow at noon, just use the client to log in to your account or register for a new one directly from the app. Don’t underestimate the power of marketing: Box.net did the same 50GB thing with Hewlett-Packard and folks were buying TouchPads to claim their free Box.net account – at least until HP shuttered webOS. More info below the fold.

Expand
Expanding
Close

With just about every other app getting the iOS 5 treatment, it isn’t that surprising that Apple just dropped the updated Xcode 4.2 in the Mac App Store with SDKs for iOS 5 and Mac OS X 10.7. You can also grab it from the Apple Developer site, if you prefer.  Full release notes after the break.

Earlier today Apple updated their iMovie, Remote, and Find My iPhone apps, and released updated versions of Pages, Numbers, Keynote. They also released a new iTunes Movie Trailers app and made their new Cards app available for download.

Expand
Expanding
Close

Apple has also released, as promised, its brand new iOS app for mailing gorgeous cards, right from the palm of your hand. The Cards app, according to Apple:

The new Cards app from Apple lets you create and mail beautifully crafted cards personalized with your own text and photos — right from your iPhone or iPod touch. Take a quick snapshot and with a few taps and swipes, an elegant letterpress card is on its way to any address in the world. Each card is just $2.99 when sent within the U.S. and $4.99 when sent to or from anywhere else. And that includes postage.

The killer feature? If you mail your card within the United States, Apple will slap their own custom-designed stamp and use the United States Postal Service Intelligent Mail barcode to send you a notification the day the card is due to arrive – so you know when you’re about to make someone’s day. The Cards app is available free of charge from the App Store here. Our international readers may want to wait a bit until the program propagates throughout all regional iTunes Stores. Release notes after the break.

Expand
Expanding
Close