iPad (2021)

Skype just updated their Skype application for iOS to include video chat functionality. It works both over WiFi and 3G networks and two-way video calling is supported by the iPhone 4, iPod touch 4, and iPhone 3GS. The iPad and third generation iPod touch support one-way video calling. Just like on Apple’s FaceTime application Skype for iPhone will video conference in both portrait and landscape orientations.

Seth and I just tested out the application and it looks very smooth on both ends. It even works in the background but your face gets frozen for the person on the other end (audio still works). Just like with FaceTime there is an option for the iPhone user to display either the front camera’s view, back camera’s or no camera. We have more screenshots of Skype video chat after the break.

We also ran some tests over 3G and it looked very smooth. I was on 3G and Seth was on WiFi and he saw me as crisp as I looked over my WiFi network. My view of him was also smooth and when he pointing his camera at a moving fan that looked smooth as well. Also, we tested it on an iPad (which still is blown up, not a universal binary) and it looked as expected without the camera. When used with an iPhone 3GS you should get the option to see the user’s back camera. Release notes, official promo video, and more screenshots are after the break.

Update: Skype video calls over 3G will use around 3.4 MB of data per minute. We calculated this by looking at our usage info on our iPhone 4 before and after a one minute (timed of course) call. Below are our screenshots:

Expand
Expanding
Close

Update, we’ve been told (not so nicely) to remove those mold drawings because they are the property of someone else.  We’ve complied.

Some purported iPad 2 cases hit the web over the last few weeks as well as some unconfirmed reports claiming the iPad 2 will gain an iPod-touch inspired design with tapered edges. These cases appear to show a new slot on the bottom for an enhanced speaker system as well as a hole for a back camera. These case designs are still of course unconfirmed to be legitimate but 9to5mac has managed to get a hold of some iPad 2 case mold drawings from an Asian case supplier.

As you can see in these drawings (above, below, and after the break) the edges are clearly tapered  and the iPad 2’s back is slightly contoured like the current iPad and past iPod touch models. These drawings also add confirmation to the back camera reports and our sources say the camera hole size is close to the size of the iPhone 4’s (which may or may not indicate a similar shooter).

Some new information we have discovered through these drawings is a brand new port opening on the left side of the device. We’re not sure what this opening is for but it is there on these latest iPad 2 design schematics. On the drawings there appears to be an SD card going into the port but that could just be a piece of the case mold machine. The latest rumors point to either a mini USB or a full USB port being present on the iPad 2 so it very well could be one or a combination of the three ports.

Expand
Expanding
Close

Perhaps you’ve been wondering if Apple will feel much impact once those Android and Chrome-powered tablets ship in 2011 — now a pair of reports suggest the magical iPad is set to maintain dominance for some time yet.

Report one tells us LG Display shipped 1.5 million iPad panels in November, while Samsung delivered 1.2 million units, suggesting Apple might have sold nearly three million iPads this month.
Expand
Expanding
Close

iPad 2.0 activity continues to heat up with the latest report claiming Apple will offer multiple configurations of the new product, with an accent on provision of pervasive Internet access.

Apple is expected to ship over half a million iPad 2.0 units in January with mass production set to begin then, the report claims. It seems Apple will offer Wi-Fi-equipped units alongside UMTS and CDMA-savvy iPads, maximizing the always connected Internet device proposition.
Expand
Expanding
Close

Facebook welcomed an additional million iPhone owners on Christmas (Facebook for iPhone includes all iOS devices?).  In fact Apple had a pretty impressive December all together. via DF.

According to Setteb.it, Apple will have its Q1 2011 conference call on January 18th.  Tune in here to find out how many Macs and  iOS devices Apple sold during the holiday and perhaps we’ll get another cameo by CEO Steve Jobs.
Expand
Expanding
Close

Apple CEO Steve Jobs has been named 2010’s ‘Person of the Year’ even while US President, Barack Obama, speaks up for the wealth of the Apple co-founder.

The Financial Times named Jobs its person of the year, saying the introduction of the iPad marked the moment when the ‘rebound’ in Apple’s fortunes “was complete”.

The iPad is the culmination of an approach that he has seemingly been perfecting for his entire career,” stated the newspaper’s opinion writers.
Expand
Expanding
Close

From the “I can’t believe this ain’t viral advertising” dept comes the heart-warming tale of Taiwanese pop star, Jimmy Lin, who has posted a pic of himself holding a proper iPad along with a device he claims is the first prototype of an  iPad mini.  (It’s not).  Never mind Steve Jobs recently said that seven inch tablets are “dead on arrival” and that you’d need to sandpaper your fingers down to use them…
Expand
Expanding
Close

Bloomberg today reports what would have seemed unthinkable a year ago.  Microsoft is building a version of its Windows OS (not Phone 7) for the ARM processor design, the very same that powers Apple’s lineup of iOS devices.

The operating system would give Microsoft another way to attack the market for tablets and phones, where it’s lost ground to Apple Inc. and Google Inc. ARM chips — made by Qualcomm Inc., Texas Instruments Inc. and Samsung Electronics Co. — are used in most smartphones, as well as Apple’s best-selling iPad. A full-featured version of Windows for ARM chips is the best way for Microsoft to make a dent in the iPad’s lead, said Robert Breza, a Minneapolis-based analyst for RBC Capital Markets. While Windows is dominant in the personal-computer market, it hasn’t parlayed that into tablet success yet. “They’ve got to come back with a product that’s better than ‘me too’ and is equal if not better in features,” Breza said. He has an “outperform” rating on Microsoft’s stock, which he doesn’t own. “A lot of tablets today are inferior to PCs.”

Microsoft became a licensee of the ARM architecture earlier this year but at the time it seemed to be for embedded devices such as the Zune.  Apple is also an ARM licensee and builds its A4 lineup of chips using ARM designs.

Is this really a good move for Microsoft?  The problem with Windows 7 on tablets hasn’t really been an Intel problem necessarily.  Whatever the case, this has to be bad news for Intel/AMD who now may see competition from ARM processors like the Nvidia Tegra 2 in netbooks running Windows.

Another Question: Will Apple port Mac OS to ARM?
Expand
Expanding
Close

Well, they have to be doing something over at HP with that $1B acquisition.  According to FoxNews, they are going to announce a (gasp) tablet…

HP will introduce three models of the PalmPad at CES, with minor hardware differences distinguishing them. All three will run a new iteration of the WebOS operating system, version 2.5.1; they’re collectively a spin-off of the never-released HP Slate. A fourth version won’t be shown off at CES, I’m told, but it will be custom made for university students to prove how versatile the machines can be.The consumer version of the PalmPad will run on Sprint’s fast 4G network, but otherwise it has hardware specs nearly identical to Apple’s iPad. There are minor differences, of course: It has a mini HDMI port, for example, while the iPad requires a special dongle for video output. And there are front- and rear-facing cameras (1.3 megapixel and 3 megapixel, respectively), both with LED flashes.The PalmPad is slightly thinner than the iPad with rounded edges closer to the Amazon Kindle. At 1.25 lbs, the PalmPad also sports a USB 3.0 port and a “multi-switch” just like the one on the Palm Pre.

I can’t wait to take advantage of the front facing flash camera.
Expand
Expanding
Close

So much for Thinking Different™: Looks like Apple may have joined Amazon, Banc of America, Paypal and other corporations which have evicted Wikileaks from their servers — the briefly-available Wikileaks app for iPhone and iPad has been kicked out of the App Store.

The Time person of the year public vote-winning Julian Assange-founded Wikileaks has attracted controversy with the leak of a series of US diplomatic cables which illustrate the seamier side of international diplomacy.
Expand
Expanding
Close

We all know this is set to be an iOS Christmas — now it is interesting to discover that Apple’s iPad is so popular there’s an increasing wave of two or more iPad households, according to reputable research from YouGov.

Researchers found nearly a fifth (17%) of Apple iPad owners state that there is more than one tablet in their household, either owned by themselves or another family member.
Expand
Expanding
Close

“Turn your iPad into a laptop”

Remember back in May when Clamcase said they’d ship their (awesome-looking) product in the Fall? Guess what tomorrow is? Winter.  That means today they are finally releasing their Clamcase iPad case/keyboard.  It works via Bluetooth and is available for $120.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H4IbgCLzazw&w=640&h=390]

Expand
Expanding
Close

This is the world’s biggest iPhone and it is situated in the world famous St. pancras International station. It isn’t actually an iPhone, however, it is in fact a bank of 56 iPads all set up to work together in an iOS nod to signify the release of Lara Croft Guardian of Light (below) on the App Store.
Expand
Expanding
Close

Electronic Arts set off an iApp price war last week when it discounted many of its games to just $0.99, sparking the release of Tap Tap Revenge 4 for free and a big games sale from other iOS heavyweight, Namco.

All the app makers are engaged in a stiff fight to populate the iTunes App Store top ten lists in time for Christmas — after all, Apple’s lists won’t be updated from December 23, so grabbing a good slot on those lists now is likely to translate into great sales opportunities as all those new iPads hit the store.
Expand
Expanding
Close

Facebook, who count 55,060,129 monthly active iOS app users, today updated their iPhone/iPod touch app with a few new features but mostly bug fixes, listed below:

– Improved reliability in chat and messages
– Improved notifications UI
– Fixed memory usage
– Fixed some crashes
– Walls you cannot post on no longer show the text field at the top
– Restore ability to post as a page that you admin
– Fixed group photos
– Various Places improvements

Is it silly to expect a iPad app at this point?

All 55 million of you, hit the App Store updates or head over here.

Screenies below…
Expand
Expanding
Close

We might be due for an iWork refresh pretty soon.  We’re hearing from a few Apple Store employees that “there is no iWork on the shelves, no iWork in stock and none on the way”.  A quick check to Amazon shows none in stock there (but family packs are available).

Ingram Micro shows a few hundred retail boxes available and Amazon’s secondary sellers have some in stock.  The online Apple store has them in stock but there is a fresh “new” label on the product (see above).

We’re not sure if this is a inventory blip or a sign that new products might be coming but we do know that iWork is coming as apps in the Mac App Store and we know that is coming January 6th.  Anyone else heard anything?

Update: Also, the Apple Search page also autocompletes “iWork ’11” (thanks Pete!):

Update 2: TUAW points out that iWork ’09, the latest version of the software suite, was released on January 6, 2009. Coincidence?

Update 3: Video below of Apple store Employee saying wait for iWork ’11 soon:
Expand
Expanding
Close

We have been told that TJ Maxx in the UK, TK Maxx, has started selling iPads at a discounted price. The discount appears to be £100 on all models making the entry level 16 GB WiFi iPad £329.00 instead of £429.00. We’re not exactly sure which models are in store but readers have spotted both the 16 GB and 32 GB WiFi models. These discounted iPads at TK Maxx are of course not authorized by Apple and are in extremely limited quantities. Let us know if you spot them in your local UK store.

Expand
Expanding
Close

These iPad adapters are starting to look like mini docking stations.  Earlier this week, we showed you a simple $25 3-in-1 adapter that simply pales next to this latest adapter which has USB, mini USB, SD, MicroSD, and a AV-Out port with an included RCA-jack adapter (below).  You simply need to buy at least 50 of them an arrange for shipping from China.  Again via MICGadget.
Expand
Expanding
Close

News Corp sources tell News Corp reporters that News Corp’s iPad app, the Daily will drop on January 17th.

Given that News Corp. has hired dozens of blabby journalists for the Daily, and interviewed many more, lots of other details about the app/service have leaked out already: It will come out daily, it will sell for 99 cents a week, it will use lots of video and it will have cool multimedia bells and whistles, including some kind of 3-D effect that lots of people are very excited about. And Apple CEO Steve Jobs may or may not participate in a launch event.

The date has moved around a lot but it appears that it will be coming at some point in the future and carry a $.99/week price.  Other billionaires launching iPad publications recently include Richard Branson.
Expand
Expanding
Close

Research In Motion’s in the news today: not only is its iPad-killing PlayBook delayed until around the time iPad 2.0 is expected to ship, but Mac users with a BlackBerry can now download the latest desktop connection kit. Meanwhile the company’s financial results were alright but nothing supercalifragilistic.

By the numbers then:
Expand
Expanding
Close