Apps

Apple may have a plan to insert iAds within books purchased via the iBookstore, a report explains.

Publishers are resistant to the plan as they feel the move would come at the expense of content, but as they watch profits dwindle and the decline of eReaders in the face of solutions such as the iPad, the scene seems set for ads in books.
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Everyone’s favorite (okay my favorite) iOS game finally got the much needed iPhone 4 Retina Display treatment. The developers, Lima Sky, apparently couldn’t wait to get this update out the door, so only the three most popular (arguably) levels got Retina-ready graphics. The update is a free standard update, and hey, Lima Sky, where’s the iPad version?!

Yahoo has introduced an all-new and improved HTML5-optimized version of Yahoo Mail for the iPad, delivering a faster and easier to organise solution when it did.

“If you’ve used our recently launched HTML5 mobile Web mail for iPhone you’ll feel right at home,” writes Lee Parry, product manager for Yahoo Mail. “We’ve kept all the things users love about our new mobile Web mail experience, while also optimizing for the gorgeous large screen of the iPad.”

If you

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This is the strangest idea, Apple has filed a patent which would turn your video game play time into a comic or eBook you could edit, read and share (presumably via your iPad).

As Mr Purcher at Patently Apple puts it “At the end of the day, I see a new iLife app in the making which will associate itself with a new online Apple comic book print service.”

Maybe, the patent explains that gamers are asked to make lots of choices using customizable characters in many video games. Apple’s patent means data can be gathered while you play. This might include character information, dialogue from the videogame, and results and metrics reflecting the performance of the user in the videogame. It adds pre-made text and “boom”, you have a game as a comic.

The patent also seems capable of recording activities via a third party console or DVD player, though bear in mind — this is just a patent, not a product — yet…

For more depth on how it works, take a look here…

Apple’s facing criticism again this morning on reports it has been filing patents including artwork that appears identical to existing apps from third party developers.

Sure, as Wil Shipley of Delicious Monster software can attest, that Apple sometimes eats its young is no great surprise, but with the firm facing opposition at all sides as the smartphone wars intensify, surely annoying its precious developer community lacks foresight?  

Not really…

As the image above, Apple’s patent includes artwork describing a ‘Where to?’ app — the image on the left is Apple’s, the one on the right is the app which is already available via the App Store. And not made by Apple. Tsk-tsk.

Apple

This is one of those apps that might not be in the App Store tomorrow.  MiTube lets you download MP4s(iTunes link) of YouTube videos to save on your iOS device. 

MxTube has been a Cydia app for awhile but for whatever reason Apple approved it.  Get it while you can.

via Mobiture

Update: Apple called the developer, the app will be down momentarily so get it while you can (No excuses)!

Update 2x: The app has been completely pulled from the App Store. Sorry to those who missed it as the app’s awesome. 

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You spend endless hours on Facebook using the crappy app that hasn’t even been updated for the iPad yet, but you still spend time there, if only you could just call your friends now and then — good news — you can! Vonage today introduced the Vonage Mobile application for Facebook.

Vonage Mobile allows users to make free mobile calls to all of their Facebook friends who have the app, anywhere in the world, directly from their friends list, with a single touch.

Available for iPhone, iPod touch and Android devices, the service works over WIFi and 3G/4G networks in most countries.

The app works with a user’s existing community of Facebook friends, you just click on a friend to dial them up. You need to install the app and enter your Facebook log in to get it moving.

Overall, this seems an impressive move on the part of Vonage, marshalling the power of social networks with systems as in vogue as iPhone and Android to boost take-up of its calling services.

“The Vonage Mobile app for Facebook is a tangible example of our commitment to deliver extraordinary value and a better communications experience for individuals and their social networks, across broadband-enabled devices, around the world,” said Marc Lefar, Chief Executive Officer of Vonage Holdings Corp.

“This is just the start. In the future we will expand on this service to include a wide range of integrated voice and messaging services that change the way people communicate.”

The application can be downloaded from the Android Market in 48 countries and from the iTunes Store in 87 countries. Friends need to have the app in order that you can call them.

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Work continues on a rather handy app which helps you find your local mobile phone/cell phone masts and check their power and coverage, though you’ll need to unlock your iPhone to use the tower power app.

In development via the iPhone Dev team, the app will let you unravel which towers you are connecting to and at what power they operate. This could for instance be useful if you are trying to find the best available signal in a poor signal area.

Technical users will probably get a kick out of the breadth of technical data they’ll get from Signal. Lots of numbers and a nice chance to see where on the map the towers are, you may even find some disguised towers.

The app’s called Signal and it costs $5, sold in the Cydia store. It is currently being tweaked to version 1.1, and will include what the iPhone Dev Team describe as “an awesome Easter Egg”.

Signal’ works in any country, impress your friends on any continent, show your inner geek in any language. Are you receiving??

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This is a most mesmerizing and addictive game on the iPad and now it is on its way to the iPhone, too. Osmos has been critically acclaimed, sits consistently in the top sales charts for the iPad and will be out on August 5 for just $2.99. (Mac, Linux and PC versions also available).

We wondered what would happen when Apple added video and audio support to its iBooks app, now we’re beginning to see first fruits of the future of publishing, as it melds with other media to create all-new experiences — Scribner and Simon & Schuster Digital have released their first ever enhanced eBook, Rick Perlstein

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Like music? Like Gorillaz? Has iPad or iPhone? Then three cheers you, becuse Gorillaz: Escape to Plastic Beach the game hit the iTunes Store today!

In the game your job is to get the album of the same name recorded. To achieve this you are band leader, Murdoc, and your job is to fly around on the ‘Doom Glider’ shooting things and avoiding stuff. You get all the music from the album and rather spiffing Jamie Hewlett graphics.

Go get it.

Via: Recombu

BBC News will launch an iPhone and iPad app in the UK from late this afternoon, the broadcaster has announced, following the BBC Trust’s approval of the Corporation’s release of apps for the platforms.

The free-to-download apps for Apple products were originally due to be made available in April 2010. They are already available outside of the UK, though launch here was delayed while the BBC Trust explored the commercial significance of the deal.

BBC will introduce other apps later this year, including apps for iPlayer and BBC Sport. In future, we can expect apps for Android and other smartphone platforms to appear.

BBC Trustee Diane Coyle, who led the review, said:

“The Apps market is rapidly taking off as more people choose to get their news, sport and other online content while they’re on the move. The Trust has a duty to represent the interests of licence fee payers, who will increasingly expect to access BBC content in this way, but also to listen to concerns raised by industry. In this case we have concluded that while the Apps market is developing quickly and we will monitor the launch of BBC Apps, a PVT is not required.”

According to the report commissioned by the Trust.