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SimCity 2.0 update on April 22, mayors getting mansions
EA will issue a patch for SimCity on Monday, April 22 at 4pm ET. SimCity v2.0 will be the game's first substantial update, adding mansions for mayors, fixing issues with Colorblind mode and squashing some of the bugs scurrying around in the game code. EA Maxis says players should expect server outages "for a few hours" while the update rolls out.Some of the issues surrounding city processing will be resolved, as will problems with spontaneous fluctuations of tourists, school buses getting stuck, sudden air pollution creeping in, and more. The full list of changes is published on the EA Maxis forums.Meanwhile, SimCity for Mac is still set to arrive in June.
CES 2013: Nest updates to version 2, fights for more compatibility
We're big fans of the Nest custom controlled thermostat here at TUAW -- it's a great product that got better last year with an update to version 2. Along with a thinner, updated design and brand-new firmware, the version 2 update also jumped up to be compatible with 95 percent of home HVAC systems, up from around 70 percent for the previous model. Nest was at the CES Digital Experience last night, and talked with us briefly about the new model and how it's coming along. The version 2 model just became available to the public late last year, and "we're selling lots," the Nest rep said, while declining to provide any more concrete sales numbers. The holiday was apparently a big sales boost for them, and Nest is obviously hoping to see more sales going forward. There are no new versions of the thermostat planned, so 2013 will see Nest just focusing on the current product, with possibly a few firmware updates and bugfixes coming down the line as the year goes on. Nest is continuing to improve and grow over the next year, and we'll look forward to seeing just what the company is working on next.
Daily iPhone App: Coffee Cellar helps you track coffee tastes
Coffee Cellar is a great little app put together by developer Christopher Waite, with a very singular goal: To track and chart the various coffees you try from day to day. Yes, if you don't usually partake in java, you probably don't need this app. But if you do like to try various roasts and blends and would like to keep a running record of what you've tried, Coffee Cellar is a great way to do it. The app has been available for a while, but it's been completely revamped for this version 2.0, with smoother graphics and more options for various coffee stats. Not only can you track the name of each blend and where it's from, but you can snap a picture for your records, and even use a much improved flavor interface to remember just what each coffee taste like. You can also share various coffees with friends, via email, Twitter, or Facebook, and then search your saved blends as well. There's more that could be done here -- it would be nice to maybe get local recommendations, or see what the most popular coffees in the system might be. But the app's well done as it is, and it's currently half off for a version 2.0 launch sale. You can pick up Coffee Cellar for just 99 cents -- about 1/4 the price of a big cup these days.
Romo the iPhone robot is back, Kickstarting version 2
Romo is a little iPhone-powered robot that showed up on Kickstarter around this time last year. It was successfully funded and distributed out into the world, making everyone happy by cycling itself around with the buzz and whirr of tiny mechanics. But as is usual with these things, the team behind Romo had even more ideas and other thoughts about how to make Romo work even better, and do even more things. So they did what worked before: They're back on Kickstarter, this time trying to put together $100,000 to remake a next-generation Romo. In addition to a redesigned circuit board and a friendlier base, this robot will have advanced functionality in terms of moving around and navigating the world. Plus, the team wants to work on some really advanced procedures, doing things like facial recognition, two-way telepresence (so you could see what the robot sees and show up on the screen yourself), and other features. The production line for this robot is already set up, says the team -- it's the software that they are Kickstarting for, as well as the actual product costs, obviously. There is one big drawback, and it's that this new Romo won't work with an iPhone 5 -- the production line that's set up currently works with the old dock connector, not the new Lightning connector. That could be an issue, since lots of early adopters will probably already have moved on to the new dock format. But the Romo team says the next robot is set to work with the iPhone 5 (and be female, by the way), so the hookup is coming, at least. At any rate, if you like the project and want to support this once-successful team yet again, the Kickstarter page is open right now. [via Engadget]
TUAW's Daily App: Fare City: Taxi Mania
Fare City: Taxi Mania is an excellent little line drawing game that has you directing taxis around a city, picking up fares and dropping them off as quickly as you can, all while trying to keep cabs from hitting each other. The game's just as addictive as Flight Control, but instead of just guiding planes into home base, you're constantly juggling cabs and fares for as long as you can. And the game has just been updated to version 2.0, adding a new game mode called Crazy Cabs and new in-game tutorial to the already very polished, full-featured title. There's also a free version out to try now, but honestly, with the paid version currently 50% off at just 99 cents, there's really no reason to avoid it. Fare City is a great first title from developer Mike Woods over at Finkly Interactive. We'll have to keep an eye out for what he's up to next.
Sketches 2 available now for creating even better art on your iPhone
Our friends at LateNiteSoft sent word that they've updated Sketches, one of the first iPhone apps I ever picked up, to version 2.0. The app has been released [iTunes link] as an entirely new download, so even upgraders from version 1 will have to pay the current price of $1.99. LateNiteSoft tells us that upgrade price is temporary -- they plan to keep the original app on the store as "Sketches Classic" for 99 cents, and eventually the price of the new version will go up a few more bucks. If you want to upgrade, go grab Sketches 2 as soon as you can. Tthe new app offers a number of improvements, including a completely revamped UI designed to quickly run through large collections. The new UI also keeps tools handy, but out of the way, as you use them. As you can see in the screen shots above, all the tools are stashed at the bottom of the screen instead of covering up your picture while you're working on it. Sketches 2 now lets you paint using brushes, which makes for some nice choices in terms of marking pictures, canvas, maps, or whatever else you choose as a background in the app. The zoom functionality has been updated, with new gestures and a smoother shape adjustment interface. As with the original Sketches app, you can share and export your work however you like. You can use the app to create a masterpiece and then tweet about it, or just mark some notes on a map and send it off to a friend. Sketches 1 was a bargain back when I picked it up for $7 in the earliest days of the App Store, and this new version adds even more features at less than half the price. If you have any inkling about making some art on your iPhone, it's a solid buy.
Snaptell for iPhone goes 2.0
One of my favorite apps in the early days of the App Store, SnapTell Explorer, has recently updated to version 2.0, and while they've dropped the "Explorer" part and were purchased by Amazon earlier this year, the app still offers the same impressive functionality: take a shot of a book, DVD, or album with the iPhone, and have it pull up ratings, information, and prices on the item in question. Despite the Amazon buyout, it still offers prices from elsewhere, though the Amazon mobile store in the app is the best-looking choice. The app now also lets you share "snaps" (you can email a found item to a friend for, say, a holiday wishlist), and it has a few reporting options for incorrect matches, to make their system even better. I'm still amazed by this app and how it can pull up an object from almost any picture -- more than a few times I've been in a bookstore or music store, and pulled up the app to snap an item, only to find it cheaper somewhere online. The app is a free download, too -- I can't think of a more must-have app for serious comparison shoppers.
Sketches updated to 1.5
One of the first applications I used and enjoyed on my iPhone, Sketches, has updated to version 1.5. New in this version is the ability to change the alpha settings for colors (so you can change the opacity of the drawings you make on photos you take), and an edit mode for the corkboard view, to rearrange your drawings with. Additionally, they've moved uploaded photos off of a third-party server and onto their own page, so (for right now, anyway) no ads to get in the way. Not new in this app: a quality, fun, and surprisingly robust photo and image editor designed for the iPhone.We've heard from the devs that there is a version 2 on the way as well, and both this version and that one are free to anyone who's purchased the app. But if you haven't picked it up yet, it is available for $4.99 over on the App Store, well worth it if you often take and share pictures with your iPhone.
Perrin Kaplan mentions Nintendo Wii 2.0 ... already?
Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes, turn and face the strain, ch-ch-ch-ch-changes. When asked if the Wii will have a hardware revision in an interview with GameDaily, Nintendo's Perrin Kaplan, vice president of marketing and corporate affairs, said, "Sure, absolutely. You'll see the ways in which we do that."Although Nintendo has consistently updated their portable units with revisions, console hardware revisions, like those in the NES and SNES, were held off until the end of the console's life cycle. This Wii revision, apparently in the cards for as early as this year in Japan, is probably not welcome news to those who just purchased the $250 console at launch. Hopefully the DVD upgrade, and whatever other goodies Nintendo has in store (other than new Wii colors), will be a simple software upgrade and not make early adopters feel like they've been gypped.
Found Footage: CNBC says iPhone 2.0 to be released
CNBC reports that Apple is hard at work at the 2nd generation iPhone before the first one is even announced. Says CNBC, if Apple puts out "a new and improved anything, there are people who will rush to get it." This interview features Engadget's Peter Rojas.
