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The Loop Magazine 2.0 improves on the original ... big time
Former Apple employee, guitarist, publisher of The Loop and minion-of-The-Beard Jim Dalrymple has been doing something fun for the past six months -- publishing an electronic magazine known as The Loop Magazine (US$1.99 per issue subscription). It's an eclectic magazine, with article topics running the gamut from dog rescues to the latest iPhones. In the past, The Loop Magazine was published in a quite traditional and staid "pictures and text" format, but with the latest issue, Dalrymple has brought electronic publishing kicking and screaming into the future. Meet The Loop Magazine 2.0. Once you've downloaded the updated app to Newsstand on your iOS 7 device, the differences are immediately recognizable. Starting with the list of issues, which features a 3D carousel-like presentation of the issues in front of an animated backdrop, you know The Loop Magazine 2.0 is going to be different. The animation continues in the magazine itself, but never overwhelms the content. Individual articles are once again placed on a swipe-able carousel in front of an animated backdrop, and with a tap, the articles open. Inside the articles, you're greeted with text and images, but as you scroll down a page to an image, it expands to fill your screen -- a nice way to actually look at the pictures instead of having to tap them to expand to full-screen. Scrolling down, the images shrink into the text and you're back to reading. Links to websites expanding on the article magically appear and face as you scroll through articles. Scroll all the way to the bottom of one of the eminently readable articles, and you may see links to the author's website or Twitter account. Scroll past the bottom of an article, and the next article slides into place from the right side of the screen -- once again, that subtle animation is at work. In case you're wondering about the tool The Loop Magazine 2.0 is published with, it's called Glide. Dalrymple says that it's the easiest tool he's ever used for app creation, saying that it "can create and update Apps simply by putting files in a DropBox folder. It's the easiest system I've ever seen to build a magazine." I won't spoil the fun; go get a copy of The Loop Magazine 2.0, which is free this issue to celebrate the launch of the new platform. You'll enjoy the articles as well as the design of the app -- this issue starts with a piece by actor Matthew Modine talking about his experiences during the filming of Stanley Kubrick's Full Metal Jacket.
Apple goes after app news release for being 'at odds' with 'entire reason Apple exists'
Apple took a dislike recently to a press release announcing the availability of a new app. After Tim Cook passed this week on a question about sharing solutions across iCloud, the CEO of a company making an app named Glide, Donald Leka, sent out a press release for his app stating that "consumers really don't care that much what platform they are on, where their files are stored, or what the file types and file formats are." That apparently earned Leka the ire of Apple Worldwide Developer Relations, who sent him a memo suggesting he see things as a bit more Apple-centric. Customers do care about what platform they're on, said Apple's rep, adding that "the tone of your release and your product positioning is at odds with not just our primary marketing messaging, but the entire reason Apple exists." Apple suggested that Leka reword his messaging, to target specifically customers' feelings around the iPhone and the version of Glide for that platform, and not to talk about other platforms or apps connected to it. It is a bit strange to hear about Apple getting so involved in a single app's marketing, and I'm not sure I agree entirely with Apple's customers only wanting to hear about one option on one platform. But then again, Apple is going to be biased about what platforms customers should use -- the company wouldn't want its customers even considering any other platforms than iOS or Mac. The dev relations rep seems overeager, but at least he's pushing the company line, right? [via Forbes]
AT&T starts CTIA off right by introducing five new smartphones to its Android lineup
At CTIA last March, AT&T stole the show by announcing its intent to purchase T-Mobile US. This time around the news is a bit more modest, but the company is still hoping to give us a bit of a shock by introducing a litany of new handsets right on time for the holiday season. The carrier promised the release of 12 Android devices throughout the course of the year, and this week's announcement pushes the 2011 running count to 19. Not too shabby. Naturally, we're looking for quality more than quantity, so we couldn't wait to dig into the devices that are coming out. Check out all five after the break, along with a quick video teaser. %Gallery-136207%
ASUS P565 apparently available, unboxed
Lazarus be praised! The last time we heard about ASUS' P565 was back in February, when we mourned its sad and supposed demise. Turns out that's not the case, as we've now got a hands-on with the GPS / PDA phone from Polish site ASUSPDA, who claims (at least via machine translation) that it's been on sale for several months. The plethora of product / unboxing / interface pics look mighty legit, and as for the impressions, the reviewer seems very quite fond of it. Compliments are given for its general performance and design, though he does note the Glide interface isn't as seamless as you'd expect with a 816MHz processor inside. If you're interested in finding out for yourself, it looks like you can order the GSM / WCDMA-enabled device from Qbit for around $566.[Thanks, Jackob]Read - UnboxingRead - Product page
ASUS Galaxy 7 touchphone gets manhandled
Photos of the ASUS Galaxy 7 touchscreen phone have been popping up for months now, and due to a resemblance a certain Samsung device, it's been referred to more than once as an "Omnia-killer" (of course, we understand the urge, but we have to ask if it's even worth the effort). Now it looks like the folks over at Mobile Review have their hands on the thing, and they've been kind enough to share their thoughts. Right off the bat, they were disappointed to learn that plans for a 800 MHz processor had been scrapped in lieu of the far less exciting 528 MHz Qualcom MS7200A, but they then go on to give props to the phone's Glide interface (on par with TouchFlo3D, it seems) and its build quality -- the handset itself seems sturdy, well considered, and it even integrates some leather for that touch of "class" that only a dead animal can bring. Other than that, it's pretty much what you were expecting: a WinMob phone with a 5 megapixel camera, a 3.5-inch (800 x 480) display, 512MB memory, 4GB storage and a microSD slot. The phone should be available early next year.[Via Wmpoweruser]
800MHz CPU-packing P565 handset appears on ASUS site
ASUS' P565 has been pretty much unofficial until now, though we did see some alleged photos and specs of the device not terribly long ago. The phone has just been officially listed on the ASUS site, however, and we've got a quick rundown of its stats (which are pretty much exactly what we'd seen before). The Glide UI-sporting, HSDPA smartphone -- which ASUS claims is the "fastest business PDA phone" in the world -- runs Windows Mobile 6.1, has an 800MHz Marvell CPU, a 2.8-inch VGA touchscreen, 256MB flash memory and 128MB of DDR SDRAM, 802.11b/g, Bluetooth 2.0, and a microSD slot with SDHC support. Like we said, none of this is a big surprise, but it's the first official look we've had at the handset, though we're still waiting on word about pricing and availability. [Via wmpoweruser]
ASUS intros the P552w touchscreen phone
On Friday, ASUS announced its latest entry into the highly competitive and exciting world of tweaked Windows Mobile phones, with the introduction of the P552w. The full-touchscreen device boasts a speedy 624MHz CPU, a 240 x 320 QVGA display, HSDPA / UMTS radios, 802.11b/g WiFi, GPS, Bluetooth 2.0 (with A2DP), 256MB of flash memory, 128MB of DDR, plus support for microSD / SDHC cards. What's really of note, however, is the inclusion of a skinned UI utilizing a technology called "Gester," which is controlled via slides of the finger, pinching, and flicks (think HTC's TouchFlo). The company is tacking on a few pieces of proprietary software as well, such as "EziPhoto" and "EziMusic," and claims that the device has "seamless Google integration." Clearly ASUS has backed away from that 3D interface we saw at Mobile World Congress this year, though we suspect the new UI -- dubbed "Glide" -- bears more than a passing resemblance to it. No word yet on release dates or prices, but you'll know when we do.[Via Electronista]
ASUS showcases "Glide" UI for Windows Mobile
Tough time to try to hype a new skin for Windows Mobile, we'd say, what with juggernauts HTC and Sony Ericsson both trying to knock balls out of the park with TouchFLO 3D and the XPERIA's shell, respectively; that's not stopping ASUS from giving it a go, though. The Taiwanese manufacturer has chosen Computex as the stage to officially take the wraps off its "Glide" UI concept, the first shot of which we saw in the leaked shots of the P560 a few weeks back. Features of the shell include ASUS Today, a home screen replacement; Anytime Launcher, a straight-up app launcher; EziPhoto for photo management and EziMusic for a glorified media player. Nothing too groundbreaking here, but hey, can't blame 'em for trying to keep up with the Joneses.
Glide's Twist-Together decorative LED light cubes
We've seen instances of in-house LED lighting and decorative blocks before, but Glide Inc. is melding both worlds into a single glowing building block project with its Twist-Together devices. The blocks are LED-based to keep energy costs at a minimum, but the real fun begins when adults realize that they're really buying a set of useful LEGOs on steroids. Glide insinuates that these fixtures can be arranged in just about any combination that your brain can fathom, and can even be used as props in furniture if your mischievous kids have taken a toll on bar stool legs and bookshelf dividers. The modular lighting solution was showcased this past weekend at BKLYN Designs' annual show in New York, and while we're not sure how much these things will end up running you when they hit niche shops in the future, returning to a state of childhood innocence is simply priceless.
BT launches Glide bluetooth home phone
Not surprising that along with BT's Fusion wireless / landline service, they're launching the BT Glide, another foray shoehorning cellphone tech into the landline handset (this time Bluetooth). Doesn't seem like it does all the interesting things we'd hope it would, like pair with our computers or have built-in VoIP (then again, why would it?), but it does use Bluetooth to communicate to the base and can sync contacts, sends texts, and basically generally pretend to be smart enough to make it seem appealing to use when even your lower end cellphones nowadays have features never even considered for most landline handsets. That £179.99 ($336 US) sale price though, ouch; somehow even a heavy carrier subsidy (which you're not gonna get) makes it a tough sell.[Via TechDigest]
