Year: 2012

Users around the globe reporting App Store outage

If you've been experiencing problems with the iOS App Store this evening, you're not alone. Users from around the world are reporting that they are having issues with downloading applications.

At the moment, we're having trouble getting the App Store to even load on our devices. And even when we are able to get apps to populate, trying to download them results in the above error...

Sun is an awesome new weather web app for iOS

Developers are doing some downright amazing things with HTML5 as a late, and Sun is just the latest example of the ongoing trend.

First noted by 9to5 Mac, Sun is an HTML5 based web app for weather forecasts. It can handle up to 4 different cities at once, including a city based on your current location.

For fans of Clear — the popular task app for the iPhone, you'll feel immediately at home with Sun, because it too relies on simple gestures for navigation.

Needless to say, I came away mighty impressed with Sun. I've always said that one way to tell a good web app is if you can't tell it's a web app. With Sun, you'd be hard pressed to do so...

Google re-invents patent system, says iPhone inventions belong to everyone

Google is feeling lots of heat lately as Apple, Microsoft and Oracle show some notable progress with Android lawsuits. Apple in particular holds a number of patents that cover trademark features the iPhone popularized, like slide to unlock and other multitouch gestures.

The Internet giant should also beware of the latest Apple patent grant which covers virtually all of the iPhone's user interface innovations. Perhaps in realization of its defensiveness, Google has changed tactics.

The company is now arguing that because the iPhone has become so popular, Apple's proprietary and patented inventions should really become industry essential patents. Seriously?

Homescreen.me lets you share your iOS device setup with the world

The stock Home screen in iOS looks pretty boring. Luckily, jailbreaking can change that. It opens the door to a whole world of customization, including tweaks, icon packages and tons of other theming possibilities.

And if you like customizing your device, and want to share your iPad or iPhone setup with the world, there's a new service that lets you do that. Homescreen.me finally came out of private beta this week...

Foxconn wants a seat on Sharp’s board

The world's largest contract manufacturer Foxconn is allegedly aiming to acquire board seat at Sharp, a report out from Asia claims.

Foxconn in May acquired an eleven percent ownership stake in Sharp in exchange for $844 million. It also bought a 46.48 percent stake in Sharp's sister company Sharp Display which makes display panels for iPad 3 and is thought to be readying big-ass IGZO panels for a rumored full-blown television set from Apple...

Reuters takes an inside look at iPad smuggling in China

After nearly five months of cutting through red tap, Apple finally launched its third-generation iPad in mainland China today. To much surprise, the tablet made a quiet landing, with only a handful of shoppers in lines spotted around the country's signature Apple Stores.

The lack of noise can probably be attributed to Apple's pre-registration system. In an effort to avoid the chaotic scenes of previous product launches, the company restricted new iPad purchases to pre-order only. But it could also be because many fans already have the tablet...

Apple targets Android cheapos, re-prices iPhone 3GS below $200 unsubsidized

In case you've been wondering, the three-year old iPhone 3GS still has life left in it and should live on through the release of the next iPhone. Matter of fact, the handset has just been slashed on India’s seventh-largest Aircel network to just Rs 9,999, which works out to approximately $180 with an advanced commitment of ~$55 for a year, for a total upfront cost of $235 for an unsubsidized device.

Apple of course recently began offering the iPhone 4/4S through a bunch of regional U.S. carriers, most notably Cricket and Virgin Mobile, on a pre-paid basis with month-to-month plans. But with iOS 6 coming this fall to the iPhone 3GS, Apple's entry-level iPhone is now working its way down to the low-end of the market dominated by Android cheapos...

Apple says in-app purchasing exploit will be fixed in iOS 6

Apple has started emailing developers today, with more information regarding the recently-discovered in-app purchasing exploit. Earlier this month, news broke of a hack that allowed users to acquire paid in-app content, for free.

The email contains a link to a new support page, posted on Apple's developer website, that provides devs with information on the issue, and offers up a temporary fix. It also states that a permanent patch is coming in iOS 6...

Hands on with Firefox OS

As you may have heard, Mozilla has released a test version of Firefox OS that anyone can test out on their local Mac or PC.

I decided to go ahead and take it for a test drive, and although I probably definitely didn't have everything properly configured and optimized, I came away with a decent impression of how the upcoming mobile OS is designed.

Check inside for our brief video hands-on with the Firefox OS test software...

Samsung to unveil new Galaxy device on August 15th

All eyes are on Apple this fall, as rumors of a revamped iPhone and an all-new iPad persist. If the speculation materializes, this October could bring one of the company's biggest media events in recent memory.

And between now and then, don't be surprised if the competition manages to steal the spotlight away with new produce releases and announcements. Samsung, in fact, is already making a move in that direction...

Tricky content deals may push Apple television back to 2014

Bad news for folks who were holding out on buying a new TV in anticipation for Apple's set. A new report is out today that claims it could be 2014 before we see a full-blown television from the Cupertino company.

Chatter regarding Apple building its own HDTV has been around for years now. But talk of the set has significantly tapered off over the past couple of months amidst rumors of other upcoming Apple products...

NotiPad makes its way to Cydia

[tube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QT4wWMu-2cM[/tube]

NotiPad — the Growl inspired tweak for the iPad — has just appeared on Cydia's BigBoss repo for $1.00. The iPad exclusive tweak replaces the standard banner notifications in favor of Growl styled pop up notifications.

There are a variety of different options built in with NotiPad, including the ability to alter the animations, and switch the side of the iPad's screen that the notifications appear on.

If you decide to check it out, be sure to drop us a line in the comments section.