Apps

Adobe, which last week updated Photoshop to work with its freshly announced iPad apps, has finally released said programs for iOS devices. Adobe Eazel, Adobe Nav and Adobe Color Lava, iPad companion apps for Photoshop, are now available for download on the App Store. Adobe Eazel is a finger-paint program that sells for five bucks. The app lets you send your artwork directly to Photoshop CS5 from any location, provided you have a network connection between your iPad and a computer. The remaining two apps sport even tighter integration with the popular image editing software. More information and videos after the break…

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Microsoft has released a new toolkit to help iOS developers write applications for Apple’s mobile platform that also play nice with cloud Windows, also known as Windows Azure. The Windows maker says the toolkit is available for its own Windows Phone platform as well, adding that a version for Android is due next month. The iOS tookit facilitates the creation of both iPhone and iPad apps developed using Objective-C and XCode. Why bother? Microsoft explains they want to “make it easier to target Windows Azure by offering native libraries for non-Microsoft platforms”.

Using the toolkits, developers can use the cloud to accelerate the creation of applications on the major mobile platforms.

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DoubleTwist software advertised as “the iTunes for Android” in most recent update added support for Apple’s open AirPlay media streaming technology. This allows Android owners who use the free DoubleTwist smartphone app to wirelessly beam music, movies and photos to the Apple TV, in addition to compatible Sonos hardware. The life without wires, according to the developer, is a breeze with this app:

Wirelessly sync your iTunes playlists, photos and videos with your Android phone using your home WiFi network.

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If photography on the go is your thing, you can be picky with a myriad of photography-focused software vying for your attention on the App Store. FX Photo Studio from MacPhun, the creators of Silent Movie Director, a video editing app I recently reviewed, has caught my attention recently. Now, I mostly use awesome Camera+, Photo fx and Instagram to capture and edit images so I approached FX Photo Studio with a skeptical eye. I mean, who needs yet another photography app, right?

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If you recently upgraded to iOS 4.3.3 that fixed Locationgate woes, you’ll be delighted to know that untethered jailbreak and unlock for iOS 4.3.3 is now available. The iPhone Dev-team have updated their PwnageTool and redsn0w programs so it’s now possible to jailbreak iOS 4.3.3 using Mac and Windows in a way that doesn’t require connecting the device to a computer each time it’s rebooted.

The iOS 4.3.3 untethered jailbreak is based on the exploit created by @i0nic for iOS 4.3.1. The updated redsn0w tool also allows you to turn on multitasking gestures, the team noted in a blog post. If you wish to unlock your device for use with any carrier, there’s an app for that.

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Oh, another pretty news reader, that’s what you must be thinking, right? Pay attention for Hitpad is your personalized window to relevant content that helps put those trending topics on Twitter and Google Trends into perspective by combining tweets, videos, images, news articles and web links into a uniquely designed news flow.

“Five minutes with Hitpad is like spending an hour browsing around”, developers Jay Meydad and Nir Holtzman Ninio wrote in the app’s iTunes description. So how does Hitpad differ compared to dozens of regular feeds readers or visual news readers such as Flipboard?

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As of today, MobileMe stopped using Sync Services, Apple’s own platform for data synchronization between your programs and supported devices. As we pointed out, this has affected recently released Office for Mac 2011 Service Pack 1 which relied on the platform to sync Outlook calendar with your iPhone. As a result, Mac people must physically connect their device and sync via iTunes, which kills the purpose of push calendar in the first place.

Alternatively, you can change your email client and go through the email server supported by the Mail app. Sounds like too much hassle just to keep your Outlook calendar and iOS gadget in perfect sync.There’s a workaround that lets you wirelessly sync Outlook calendar with your iOS device via Windows – on  your Mac.

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Everybody knows that the iOS notification system is way overdue for a much-needed refresh. It needs to be rethought from the ground up, if fan-made concepts are an indication. In the meantime, you can customize the look and feel of of the boring blue iOS notification alert using AlertArtist, a tweak for jailbroken devices available on the Cydia store.

The program lets you customize a number of elements, such as typeface and the color of border, font and shadow. Or, you can quickly switch between one of the pre-installed templates. If you’ve been on the lookout for the ultimate multitasking tweak for your jailbroken device, look no further than Physwitch (video below)…

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Publisher Hearst has agreed to selling subscriptions to their iPad magazines through iTunes, after months of negotiations with Apple, reports The Wall Street Journal.

Starting with their July issues, iPad apps for Esquire, Popular Mechanics and O, The Oprah Magazine, will be available through a service from Apple that allows customers to sign up for subscriptions inside the apps and get billed automatically. Subscriptions to all three publications will be sold for $1.99 a month or $19.99 a year.

Hearst has also confirmed plans to eventually begin selling newspaper apps (perhaps The San Francisco Chronicle and Houston Chronicle?) and other content through in-app subscriptions. The news leaves Condé Nast as the only major magazine publisher out there not participating in Apple’s new iOS subscription service. However, it’s only a matter of time before Condé Nast joins other big publishers. Last week, Time Inc. reached a deal with Apple enabling them to offer print subscribers digital magazine subscriptions at no additional cost.

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The Daily, an iPad-exclusive digital magazine that launched February 2, has been a money-losing business for Rupert Murdoch-owned media empire so far. According to Peter Kafka of The Wall Street Journal’s MediaMemo blog who chatted with op-chief Chase Carey during an earnings call, the magazine lost ten million dollars last quarter. What’s surprising is the mention of just 800,000 downloads. Even though those downloads don’t equal paid subscriptions, it’s still a disappointing figure for such a high-profile digital publishing operation.

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Streaming music service Spotify has made an interesting move with a new version of their desktop application that can sync your playlists with iPods without having to go through iTunes. Just connect your iPod shuffle, iPod nano or iPod classic to a computer and watch it automagically appear in the Devices section in the Spotify sidebar to easily sync your iTunes music and playlists.

The Swedish startup wrote in a blog post that an updated version of their free app for iOS and Android devices provides the same functionality over your local WiFi network so you can wirelessly sync your MP3 playlists in Spotify from your computer to your phone. Plus, it’s now possible to wirelessly sync these playlists to an iPod touch.

Spotify also took the battle to Apple’s home turf with a new music download service that undercuts iTunes’ three-tier pricing model with 50p per track pricing in MP3 bundles. All the aforementioned goodies will be rolled out to all users, including those using an ad-supported free music streaming, as part of an automatic update. Check out iPod syncing in a video after the break.

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According to a yesterday survey of the app store economics by IHS iSuppli, Apple will grab more than two thirds of the overall market for mobile application stores this year. People will spend an astounding $3.9 billion this year alone on apps for their homescreens, a 78 percent year-on-year revenue increase. For comparison, when the App Store launched back in the summer of 2008, the market for mobile applications was worth just $206.1 million that year ($830.6 million in 2009). The App Store is projected to hit $2.91 billion in revenues this year, equaling to a 76 percent revenue share and a healthy 63.4 percent year-over-year growth. Total market for mobile apps will be worth an estimated $8.3 billion by 2014, iSuppli predicts.

In 2011 Android users are projected to spend a cool $425 million buying apps (why note more?) versus about $200-$300 million for the users of BlackBerry App World and Ovi Store. The App Store’s market share will shrink due to the growth of other mobile platforms, but Apple is still expected to command a 60 percent revenue share for mobile apps by 2014, running at an annual rate of five billion dollars.

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If you’re a Chrome fan and love experimenting with early releases, Google has you covered with Chrome Canary for Mac. Arriving nine full months following the Windows release in August of last year, the new Cannary for Mac channel is live with pre-developer builds of Chrome. You know what that means: Highly unstable code, features that come and go, potential security-related problems and headache in general.

On the upside, however, you’ll get access to experimental new capabilities as they’re being developed, not all of which end up in the developer version or trickle down to beta or stable builds. If you’re willing to take the plunge and peer around technological corners for a sneak peek of what’s next in web browsing, why not download Google Chrome Cannary for Mac and take it for a spin.

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Putting aside for a moment the iPhone location tracking issue, what was the last time you used the iOS Maps app? Apple’s built-in software does turn-by-turn navigation and lets you enjoy detailed satellite imagery and street-level photography, but it otherwise leaves a lot to be desired in the features department. For example, it won’t let you attach detailed information about saved location, the stuff like images, notes or voice memos.

GPS Bookmarker, a new mapping tool for iOS and Android devices, solves these shortcomings. The program lets you bookmark your current location and save it in a database on your phone. You can name the location and personalize it with custom categories, notes, pictures or voice memos so you can quickly pinpoint that fine restaurant or a bookstore later. It also does turn-by-turn directions. More info and screenies after the break.

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Jailbreakers, rejoice. Soon a sensible way of downloading unsanctioned apps will arrive, the one which won’t require a storefront app like the Cydia Store or Apple’s App Store. The iPhone Download blog points out that Infini Dev Team (no association with the iPhone Dev-team whatsoever) is working on an alternative store dubbed Lima.

It will be 100 percent browser-based so you will simply fire up Safari and head to a store URL to browse, download and install your favorite apps and themes. It’s gonna be just like Android Market or Amazon Appstore for Android, which both allow for browser-based software discovery and installation. Lima is still work in progress, but should be available “soon”, developers say. Check it out in a video after the break.

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Last week, Apple said it would be updating iOS software (“bugs”) to only store a week’s worth of location data as well as allowing users to turn off the storing of location data.  That update is coming in a few weeks according to BGR:

…we have been told it will address:

• The update will no longer back up the location database to iTunes.
• The size of the location database will be reduced.
• The location database will be deleted entirely when Location Services are turned off.
• Battery life improvements.
• iPod bug fixes.

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Driving-related apps are popular among smartphone users, especially programs that game DUI checkpoints. Driver Feedback is the name of the new trippy app that leverages the iPhone’s many sensors to gather driving data it then uses to score your skills and give you tips to improve your driving. More screenies, features and a video below the fold.

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If you’ve jailbroken your iOS device in order to enjoy wonderful apps Apple banned from the App Store, know you will lose them each time you upgrade to a newer firmware because iTunes doesn’t sync them by default. That’s why for many jailbreakers a firmware upgrade usually entails a tedious process of re-downloading and re-installing all their Cydia apps. Luckily, there’s an app for that. Called xBackup, it’s an effective way to backup and restore your jailbroken apps literally with a tap. As a result, firmware updates are a breeze with this nifty app…

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Remember Microsoft Courier? Admit it, the folded dual-screen design and the resulting user interface around it was an eye-opener in the pre-iPad era. Too bad it was just a concept, right? Well, two developers decided to pick up where Microsoft left off and bring this once hyped Courier functionality to Apple’s device. They explain:

The creativity, productivity and attractive user interface coalesce into one outstanding product. The ingenious split interface design allows users to interact with multiple apps simultaneously in the company of Taposé collections.

Taposé is still in its infancy and developers welcome your financial support as they take time off of work to finish the project (something’s gotta pay for the rent and food). Features description and developer videos right after the break…

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Isn’t it high time you upgraded your mobile browsing experience? Introducing Terra, an alternative web browser for your iPad from the creators of ReaddleDocs office suite. Think Safari with a few tweaks thrown in for a good measure. You can go full screen with a tap to make full use of iPad’s larger canvas and enjoy web content without any user interface elements getting in your way. Tap the icon in the uper right corner and boom – all your browsing controls re-appear.

Another cool feature is the offline browsing mode where Terra saves the page at hand – with all images preserved – for later viewing when there’s no Internet access available. Another useful enhancement is tabbed browsing mode that lets you quickly switch between open tabs using a three-finger swipe. The list of cool stuff doesn’t end here…

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As promised, HBO has released their HBO GO application, which provides iOS users with access to HBO’s array of original shows in addition to sports and full-length movies. The app includes free access on the iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch to over 1,400 shows for HBO subscribers.

Keep up with your favorites. Watch everything you love about HBO, including HBO original programming, hit movies, sports, comedy and every episode of the best HBO shows, including True Blood®, Game of Thrones, Boardwalk Empire®, Entourage®, The Sopranos®, Curb Your Enthusiasm®, Sex and the City®, The Wire® and more. Plus, get bonus features and special behind-the-scenes extras!

The application allows users to create a personal “watchlist” that puts all your favorite content in line for easy and quick viewing. HBO Go only works in the United States and recommeneded use comes over WiFi. The application will work on 3G networks as well, though. HBO Go is now free on the App Store. Thanks, Mike.

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