iOS devices refer to any of Apple’s hardware that runs the iOS mobile operating system which include iPhones, iPads, and iPods. Historically, Apple releases a new iOS version once a year, the current version is iOS 10. Here is the complete list of iOS 10 compatible devices.
We know our readers have a love/hate relationship with mockups, but we think these are worth sharing due to all the rumors of a 4-inch iPhone coming this October, It does not seem like a ton of math went into these mockups to ensure an easy transition of existing iOS apps to a larger screen iPhone, but they certainly help us picture what a 4-inch iPhone could look like.
The first three images above come from 9to5Mac reader and design student Daniel Bautista. Like our own 4-inch iPhone mockup, these were inspired by Photo Stream leaks from last summer. The image on the far-right above (and the image below) is another mockup from apfelpage.de that shows a slimmed down next-gen iPhone with a touch-sensitive home button running a widget-enabled iOS 6.
While the Phoenix Suns decided earlier this month to purchase Samsung’s Galaxy Tab for interactive playbooks, a report from Denver Post this morning detailed the Denver Bronco’s decision to switch its 500-page playbooks to iPad versions.
This season, the team will hand out iPads that feature the week’s game plan, scouting reports, video clips and other relevant data… A key component to the software is that it runs in the background even when a player is not reviewing the playbook, enabling the app to determine when a coach has an update to push to players, such as a new short-yardage and goal-line package… When a player isn’t connected to Wi-Fi, the app will update using the iPad’s high-speed connection on Verizon’s LTE network.
How long until the quarterback’s wrist playbook is an iPhone?
Cargo-Bot is a puzzle game where you teach a robot how to move crates. Sounds simple, right? It features 36 fiendishly clever puzzles, haunting music and stunning retina graphics. You can even record your solutions and share them on YouTube to show your friends.
The app itself looks good but where it gets interesting is that it was made entirely on an iPad using Codea ($9.99 App Store). Codea uses the Lua programming language and has called the GarageBand of iPad coding for its visual ease of use. Until now, apps built using Codea were only able to play inside the app. Using a preview of a new Open Source exporter tool, Codea exported the Cargo-bot app and submitted it to the App Store where it was recently approved.
It’s the first game of its kind, prototyped, programmed and polished on iPad. Cargo-Bot was created by Rui Viana, a Codea user who developed his initial prototype and shared it with the Codea community. Two Lives Left reached out to Rui in order to turn his prototype into a published App Store game. They also enlisted the aid of Fred Bogg, a composer who developed a music library for Codea, to create the music for Cargo-Bot.
Coinciding with the release of Cargo-Bot, Two Lives Left is releasing the Codea Runtime Library source code under the Apache License Version 2.0. Registered Apple iOS Developers will be able to export their Codea projects into the Codea Runtime Library in order to release them as standalone apps, just like Cargo-Bot.
How long until iPad game creation is mainstream? Xcode for iPad certainly couldn’t be too far off?
Update: As expected, this is not what it seems. It looks like the developer switched all of the advertised premium content over to an ad for Futobox. Premium content vendors take note: People are willing to pay for good streaming content.
Update 2: TV Premium removed from the Apple Store over 24 hours later. We’re hearing from multiple sources that Apple issuing refunds.
A new iOS app released in the App Store this weekend called “TV English Premium” that allows users to watch premium TV stations without a subscription. Most of the channels on the app are English-centric and include BBC Two, Three, Four, BBC HD, and Eurosport channels, but there are some native USA channels, such as: History HD, National Geographic HD, ESPN HD.
We downloaded and tested the app, and it seems to work as advertised. We only paid the one-time app fee of 99 cents, and then we were free to browse all the channels the app has to offer. A couple of times the app stopped to buffer, but we did not experience any other real pain-points. Needless to say, we do not expect this app to last too long in the app store, so you may want to act fast if you are interested. It is a universal download for iPad, iPod, and iPhone, and it is available here (iPad screenshot and video below). Buyer (obviously) beware.
Here is an update Apple’s Senior Vice President of Marketing Phil Schiller will not have to worry about: “Instagram” for iOS was updated to version 2.4.0 this weekend. It features speed improvements, minor user-interface tweaks, bug fixes, and improved accessibility support. Visit the App Store to grab the update. Expand Expanding Close
As we mentioned earlier this month, the iPhone launches on five additional regional carriers today: ALASKA COMMUNICATIONS, CELLCOM, MTA SOLUTIONS, GCI, and APPALACHIAN WIRELESS. Regional carriers allow residents in more rural areas to use the iPhone without any service disruption and actually pay a little less for the device. The carriers will offer the iPhone 4s for $50 less than the big boys will, and they will offer the iPhone 4 for $99. You can grab the iPhone over at these carriers at their retail stores later this morning or on their respective websites starting shortly. Check out a few of the plans after the break.
Furthermore, the third-generation iPad is also currently launching in South Korea, Croatia, Brunei, Cyprus, El Salvador, Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Panama, St Maarten, Venezuela, and Uruguay today. Is anyone lining up?
According to a report fromReuters, Apple’s LTE chip supplier Qualcomm is having “trouble meeting demand” for smartphone chips and will continue experiencing manufacturing constraints throughout the rest of the year. Qualcomm Chief Executive Paul Jacobs told analysts on a conference call yesterday, “At this stage we cannot secure enough supply to meet the increasing demand we are experiencing.”
With Apple’s next-generation iPhone expected to include LTE capabilities like the recently launched third-gen iPad, many are speculating Qualcomm’s supply issues could lead to delays. It would also make the rumored September or October unveiling and holiday launch all the more likely opposed to June. Is it possible Qualcomm’s supply constraints have anything to do with Apple buying up its capacity?
Apple recently began internally seeding prototype N96— a faster iPhone with 1GB of RAM and an A5X variant to test the performance of the new chip on iPhones.
Qualcomm’s Chief Financial Officer Bill Keitel told Reuters the constraints have lead to increased operating expenses: Expand Expanding Close
According to sources, Apple is planning a major new addition to their Apple Store Genius Bars; an addition that will change the way the company handles Genius Bar support. When an iOS device user comes to the Genius Bar with advanced hardware issues that are deemed unrepairable via software, these users commonly find Apple willing to replace their device with a working unit.
With users typically keeping so much important content on their devices like contacts, calendars, text message conversations, media data, apps, application content, and more; the need for device backups is critical. So critical that Apple warns users that they should backup their iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch prior to the aforementioned iOS device Genius Bar exchange process. However, many users find themselves in situations where they are unable to backup their device prior to their Genius Bar appointment. Whether the reason be time, location, or something else, Apple is planning a solution for this issue.
Currently being prototyped inside of Apple’s top-secret “future” Apple Store labs near the company’s headquarters, a place where peaks into Apple’s retail future have leaked from in the past, is a wireless server system for Genius Bars that will automatically, securely, and temporarily store user content.
A new report from Korean publication ETNews.comclaimed industry sources confirmed Apple will use “liquid metal” technology to make a thinner and lighter next-generation iPhone. Apple acquired rights to the patented amorphous metal alloys from Liquidmetal Technologies’ in August 2010.
According to industry sources, the next flagship phones of the companies are expected to adopt unprecedented materials for their main bodies, that is, ceramic for the Galaxy S3 and liquid metal for iPhone5, both being thin, light and highly resistant to external impacts. The new phase of the rivalry is because neither one of them can get a decisive edge over the other solely with its OS and AP specifications, features or design.
Apple has been rumored in the past to be using Liquidmetal in batteries and SIM card tools, but no solid evidence has backed these claims. Today’s report continued to assert that the iPhone 5, as ETNews.com referred to the device, is expected to launch at WWDC in San Francisco this June. However, the publication does not cite a source for the location and timeframe, so it is possible it is just basing this expectation on a rumor. As MacRumors pointed out, the website has a less than perfect track record. Many industry analysts expect Apple to move its iPhone release window to September or October due to the launch date of the iPhone 4S in 2011.
Following the launch of its new Alter Ego ad campaign yesterday, T-Mobile just made its new “Test Drive” tool available for comparing the speed of “American’s Largest 4G Network” to other guys— Sprint, AT&T, and Verizon. Unfortunately, as pointed out by TMONews, the carrier is comparing 4G LTE Android handsets, such as the Galaxy S II, to the 3G speeds of the iPhone 4S. This is obviously not a fair comparison of LTE network speeds…
T-Mobile’s TestDrive website is now live and I will say at first glance, I’m disappointed. I’ll just get right to it — T-Mobile, I’m really puzzled by this. The idea that you claim “America’s largest 4G network” and design a new commercial campaign around speed and then compare your “4G” network against “3G” smartphones is a questionable act. Speed should no longer be the focus of T-Mobile’s marketing campaign, Value and Technology should. Speed should be a secondary thought. If you can’t win on speed, highlight where you can, Value, Value, Value.
The Padcaster case was just announced this week at the National Association of Broadcasters conference as an awesome way to turn an iPad into the ultimate on-the-go filming and editing machine. Available soon for $199, the case allows you to attach an iPad to a tri-pod, and then attach multiple lenses and an external mic to get even higher quality video. To attach a lens, you will also need to purchase the $79.99 mount. From there, you can use iMovie, YouTube, Camera.app and more from the App Store to edit videos right as they are shot.
As you can see in The Verge’shands-on with the case shown above, it looks very useful. Of course, it is not something that you would want to keep on all the time, but rather for situations when you need to record, edit, and upload video quickly. Nonetheless, the iPad looks to make an awesome 10.1-inch view-finder. Check out this sample video from the rig below: Expand Expanding Close
All4Cellular is offering the famous Apple earphones that feature a remote and microphone for only $6.95. If you use the website’s coupon code “POTW,” it cuts the price down to $6.25, with $2 for shipping. These earphones feature a 3.5mm connector, in-line microphone, and a 3-button remote. It ships in bulk packaging, so make sure to grab a couple before this deal ends April 17.
In February, the story broke that Google and other advertising companies were bypassing iOS Safari’s privacy settings and continuing to track users without their consent. Google quickly disabled its code responsible for the tracking after a story from The Wall Street Journal published, and Apple then claimed it was “working to put a stop” to the issue.
Now, a new report fromMercury News claimed the U.S. Federal Trade Commission is considering whether to fine Google over the incident. The decision is expected in the next 30 days:
The Federal Trade Commission is deep into an investigation of Google’s actions in bypassing the default privacy settings of Apple’s (AAPL) Safari browser for Google users, according to sources familiar with ongoing negotiations between the company and the government… Within the next 30 days, the FTC could order the Mountain View search giant to pay an even larger fine in the Safari case than the penalty the Federal Communications Commission hit Google with Friday, say the sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
The report is referring to Google being recently fined $25,000 by the FCC after it allegedly “deliberately impeded and delayed” an investigation related to Street View cars. The heart of the Safari bypassing investigation is whether the company is violating a previous privacy agreement made with the FTC following controversy over the failed “Buzz” service. The report claimed Google could face up to $16,000 per violation per day for violating the agreement. Google said to Mercury News today it would “cooperate with any officials who have questions” and explained making its +1 compatible on mobile Safari created the issue:
Apple’s popular iTunes Store has been around since 2003 as a premier way to purchase media. Today, Patently Applereported that the company was granted a “major patent” for the iTunes Store that relates to its user interface for reviewing, browsing, previewing, purchasing, or distributing media items in a client-server environment. Apple was issued a similar patent in August 2010 that involves media presentation in a client-server environment.
Could this arm Apple in its fight against App Stores on other platforms like Amazon’s App Store and Google’s Android Market? Expand Expanding Close
Apple filed many patents for 3D technology over the years—from advanced 3D cameras to the ability to create 3D avatars inside of iOS. Recently, Apple posted a new “Computer Vision specialist to strengthen its multi-view stereo research group” job opening on its careers website that suggests the Cupertino-based company has continued pursuit to integrate 3D technology, which has not been done.
The job opening calls for a person with a “Ph.D. degree in a Computer Vision related field such as Mathematics, Physics or Computer Science. You should be a confident and experienced C programmer.” The listing also clarifies that the job title is an “iOS Software Engineer.” Other requirements include:
Multi-view stereo and 3D reconstruction
Inpainting of occluded geometry and texture data
SLAM
Mesh texturing techniques
Large scale bundle adjustment
Cameras and surfaces in a 3D environment
Apple has yet to include 3D technology into its products. On the other hand, over on Android, both HTC and LG included 3D cameras and passive 3D displays in some of their handsets. There are a few 3D savvy folks in Cupertino, however. One employee on job ranking website Glassdoor called Apple the “best job I’ve had in my 36 year career of 2D/3D imaging.” What is interesting is that Apple is continuing to hire someone with serious credentials to work on 3D technology.
It will be interesting to see what 3D technology Apple includes in the upcoming versions of iOS and perhaps even the rumored iTV, which is perfect for an iOS software engineer with a Ph. D degree.
I really do not think we will see a 3D display or 3D camera on an iPhone anytime soon, because Apple would most likely rather stick with its stunning Retina display. However, I think such an engineer would work on products like a panorama mode for the camera.
Due to atypical inventory shortages of white 16GB iPhone 4 replacement units, 16GB white iPhone 4 customers seeking hardware replacements at Apple Store Genius Bars may get a free upgrade to the newer iPhone 4S. According to multiple sources, Apple has notified Apple Store Genius Bars that inventory of white iPhone 4 16GB replacements units is heavily constrained, and until further notice, stores lacking white iPhone 4 16GB replacements units should upgrade customers seeking a replacement phone to an iPhone 4S.
This iPhone 4S would be a refurbished white iPhone 4S 16GB. This situation will not affect all customers and Apple Stores, but it seems like many white iPhone 4 16GB owners seeking hardware replacements may get Siri, an A5 chip, and an eight megapixel camera out of their next Genius Bar appointment. Sources specifically said that the issue pertains to Apple Stores in the United States and Canada, but the sources did not mention other countries or regions.
According to sources, Apple has recently begun internally seeding the next major release of the iTunes application for computers, iTunes 11. Work on iTunes 11 began prior to the release of iTunes 10.6, and the development of the new software product – that we are familiar with – is currently focused on under-the-hood changes, rather than cosmetic changes. However, Apple develops different portions of products in separate groups or at separate times, so the final product will likely include some new user-interface elements and more visible features.
Apple is working on iTunes 11 as a version of iTunes that supports their upcoming iOS 6 release and future devices. Apple typically releases new versions of iTunes alongside major new OS’s and mobile devices. While iTunes 11 is built as an iOS 6 compatible-release, according to sources, iTunes 11 could very well be a release coming farther down the road, and Apple could very well release another iTunes 10.x point update as a simple iOS-6-compatiblity release. One source calls that the more likely situation.
On the subject of iTunes, we’re still hearing that a full iTunes Store and App Store revamp is underway for a launch between this summer and the fall. Earlier this year, Apple purchased a company called Chomp to help with that refresh. Since then, we’ve heard multiple independent whispers that the Chomp team has been fully integrated into a team that specifically exists in order to improve content discovery within the iTunes application and the online store.
The above image is an actual screenshot from an internal iTunes 11.0 build, but we have seen more than that. iTunes 11 includes an increased presence of iCloud integration. Perhaps the biggest testament to this is a dedicated iCloud settings panel within iTunes. This panel is a centralized, always accessible spot for users to control iCloud related features while in iTunes. These features include iTunes Match, iTunes in the Cloud, iCloud iOS device backups and more. We’ll have more on this soon.
Following the mockups of the 4-inch iPhone 5 this morning, one of our awesome readers, Spencer Caldwell, made this beautiful mockup (above). Spencer took this morning’s idea and added more pixels vertically, while keeping the pixels the same horizontally as the iPhone 4S (640-by-1152 pixels). As for the home button on the device, Spencer took the Photo Stream leak from last summer (below) and implemented it on the device. On a larger iPhone like this, it definitely looks better over the circular version.
The mockup fits the sixth-row of apps nicely. So the question comes 9to5mac readers: What do you think of a larger 4-inch iPhone (keeping in mind most reports point to a redesign)?
Popular jailbreak tweak and App Store developer Adam Bell released a new and unique tweak for jailbroken iPhones. It is called “Stride” and replaces your iPhone or iPod touch’s slide-to-unlock and passcode input screen with a fully customizable gesture unlock system.
As you can see in the promotional video above, you are not limited by a 9-point field like Android phones or by having to draw a specified pattern on top of an image. You can practically draw any shape, letter, or gesture that you want. You can even use a signature.
The gesture entry into your iPhone and iPod touch is built to act as a replacement for your PIN code, which appears after you “slide to unlock,” but the tweak was developed with two layers of security in mind.
The PIN unlock will appear after you draw your gesture, but it is completely optional for those who just want to rely on the gesture unlock. Skipping PIN entry is an easy-to-access option in Stride’s preferences. Additionally, there is a button to skip the gesture unlock and enter your PIN code when you suddenly find yourself unable to remember your gesture.
Developer Steven Troughton-Smith has re-written his acclaimed Speed for iPhone application for the iPad. The new iPad application takes full advantage of the iPad’s larger display, Retina graphics support, and the device’s GPS. The concept of Speed is simple: it uses the iPad’s sensors, including the GPS, to be able to process and inform users how fast their car is moving. The application has a beautifully embedded Google Map interface to show your car (as a blue dot) in motion, and also uses the device’s compass to which direction you are headed. The application also features a center dial (analog or digital) that allows users to setup a maximum speed. If a user goes above the set speed limit, the iPad will notify them that they are passing this limit. This is perfect for speed-limited driving environments, and pushes the iPad as a fully digital car dashboard replacement or complement.
The application will also tell you how long (in terms of distance) you have travelled, much like a car will tell you in the dashboard, when the application is running and even in the background. If you flick up on the Speed dashboard interface, you are presented with options such as true north and magnetic north for the compass feature, analog or digital presentation for the speed limiter, trip total resetting, and background tracking. The interface of the application is beautifully crafted and appears like a real car dashboard complete with a leather background and chromed-out toggles.
In our real life tests, the application is very accurate against our actual real-life car speeds measured by our actual car dashboards. For anyone living in this digital world, Speed for iPad is the future – we believe of car dashboards. On an iPad, it’s portable, can be held by anyone in the car, and can be your media center with the device’s built-in music player. iPad car dashboard mounts are even already appearing. Something important to note about Speed for iPad is the development process that went into the application. Speed started as one of the initial App Store applications, grew very popular (the app even was promoted by Apple), and has now been completely redesigned and re-written for the iPad with a host of new features. This circle will continue when Speed 2 launches later this year for the iPhone, complete with all the new innovations in this new iPad app.
We already know Apple has confirmed Italian, Chinese, Korean, and Spanish as new languages to be supported by Siri in 2012, and the company rolled out Japanese support in iOS 5.1 earlier this year. We have not heard much on any additional languages other than rumors of Russian, but today we get a look at Siri speaking Hindi through a proxy server via @kunalkaul123. He explained it connects to “my Google API Server,” presumably for the translation, but there is “still lots of work to be done.”
With 1080P hitting the new iPad and Apple TV last month, some of you are perhaps now looking to send your Blu-ray collection over to iOS devices.
Here is the easy part: Buy a Toshiba Lightscribe Blu-ray Player for just$42 with free shipping (via 9to5Toys). It also burns DVDs, and Lightscribe media will even do some art on the cover. Oh, and it is USB bus-powered, so it is nice and portable.
A user over on The Verge forums did an interesting mock-up of the 4-inch iPhone. The shorter side’s size remains the same, while the longer side is increased (640-by-1152 pixels). Go over to The Verge for a few more screenshots.
What do you think? I especially like that extra row of apps on the home screen and the ability to better play widescreen videos. Current apps would need a re-write to take advantage of the extra pixels or else letterboxing would occur, so it is a bit far-fetched.
It would also allow current docking stations to work; although, the 30-pin connector is rumored to be a goner.
We reported this morning that Apple has now begun internally seeding a prototype next-gen iPhone with the A5X chip that debuted in the new iPad and 1GB of RAM. Based on his recent trips to China and Taiwan, Topeka Capital Market analyst Brian White, who has Apple’s price target at $1,001 as of this morning, shared some new details of what he described as “the buzz around the new iPhone 5.” According to White (via Barron’s), he expects a “sleek” new iPhone to launch in the December quarter. He also expects the device to sport a new 4-inch display and include 4G LTE capabilities.
White set his price target based on an expected August or September unveiling of the product. He also claimed the launch “could be extraordinary” by dwarfing previous launches and driving the stock closer to our $1,001 price target.” According to the report, Apple is expected to start component production for the “iPhone 5” in June.
White also claimed sales of the new iPad could have been higher if not for a production issue with panel makers related to the new Retina display. Last month, Apple announced its “strongest iPad launch yet” with sales of three million new iPads on its debut weekend… Expand Expanding Close
