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Siri gets lost internationally, promises to do better next year
The iPhone 4S' Siri integration may be a potential game changer, but she's not quite the world traveler some of us would like her to be. In fact, it seems she's as lost outside of US borders as any unprepared tourist. Looking for a pub in London? Better find a traditional map. Need to know the time of day in Canada? Siri admits she has no idea, go buy a watch. Business search (via Yelp), directions, and traffic data search all appear to be US-only features for now, and Wolfram Alpha only works in English-speaking countries. The automated assistant's international failings aren't too big of a surprise, however -- Apple's own Siri page outs the service as a beta, noting that some features may vary by area. Stuck with sub-par international support? Sit tight, it's coming: Apple's Siri FAQ states that additional language support (including Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Italian and Spanish), maps and local search content are set to go international in 2012. Update: Wolfram Alpha works outside the US in English speaking countries, thanks to everyone in the comments for the clarification.
iPad apps: for your reference
Sure, you've got an iPad, fancypants -- but do you know the boiling point of cobalt? No? Then what good are you, really? Fortunately, we're here to offer you an exciting opportunity to combine your love of 9.7-inch tablets with your thirst for knowledge by hooking you up with a list of some the best, brightest, and coolest reference apps available for the iPad today. You'll spend a few bucks to file most of these away in your 64GB (or 32GB, or 16GB) of memory, but you never know when you're going to be unexpectedly called upon to recite eight widely-spoken languages in South Africa, now, do you? Follow the break for the rundown!
iPad apps: defining experiences from the first wave
There are now over 1,348 approved apps for the iPad. That's on top of the 150,000 iPad-compatible iPhone programs already available in the App Store. When Apple's tablet PC launches, just hours from now, it will have a software library greater than that of any handheld in history -- not counting the occasional UMPC. That said, the vast majority of even those 1,348 iPad apps are not original. They were designed for the iPhone, a device with a comparatively pokey processor and a tiny screen, and most have just been tweaked slightly, upped in price and given an "HD" suffix -- as if that somehow justified the increased cost. Besides, we've seen the amazing potential programs have on iPhone, Android, Blackberry, Windows Mobile and webOS when given access to a touchscreen, always-on data connection, GPS, cloud storage and WiFi -- but where are the apps that truly define iPad? What will take advantage of its extra headroom, new UI paradigms and multitouch real estate? Caught between netbook and smartphone, what does the iPad do that the iPhone cannot? After spending hours digging through the web and new iPad section of the App Store, we believe we have a number of reasonably compelling answers. Update: Now includes Wormhole Remote, TweetDeck, SkyGrid, Touchgrind HD, GoToMeeting, SplitBrowser, iDisplay, Geometry Wars and Drawing Pad.
Wolfram Alpha lowers iPhone app price, will give refunds
Well here's an interesting twist on the Wolfram Alpha saga -- after initially releasing their "knowledge system" on the iPhone and then pulling it and trying to go premium with a $50 iPhone app, they've now reversed their position once again. The iPhone app will drop back down to $1.99 on Sunday, and there will again be a free mobile site accessible from the iPhone (and presumably the iPad as well). Wolfram Alpha seems to be cognizant of their mistaken decision to try and go premium on the app, and they're even offering refunds for those who purchased the app before this announcement. It's great that everyone will have access to the app again (and we're sure they'll see a lot more usage as a result), but it does say something about the App Store when an app with as much function as Wolfram Alpha can't find a premium selling point. Hopefully they'll find some other way to monetize and keep the service up and running. Assuming this isn't actually a bad April Fool's story (the mobile site is back up and running now, even though the app price isn't scheduled to change until Sunday), we'll see how Wolfram Alpha does with this new philosophy. Update: Apparently the price has just been dropped. The app is now $1.99 in the App Store.
WolframAlpha iPhone-formatted web page no longer available
Wolfram|Alpha has discontinued their iPhone-friendly formatted webpage. The page, which was available at http://wolframalpha.com/iphone, now redirects visitors to http://products.wolframalpha.com/iphone/, which is an information page related to their $50 iPhone app [iTunes Link]. Another page, http://www.wolframalpha.com/addtoyouriphone.html, shows iPhone users how to add the website to their iPhone (hint: just like any other page). Visiting the website in Mobile Safari brings up the image shown here, also suggesting that you buy the iPhone app. The app gained wide attention when it was first announced due to its price tag, which critics said was far too high. Others rebuffed the criticism by saying that if you didn't want to use the app you could use the iPhone-friendly webpage. Perhaps too many people did just that. Thanks to TUAW reader Anil Doshi for the tip. Update: Since there seems to be some confusion: yes, the regular website can be used once you dismiss the pop-up ad by tapping the "X" shown on the top-right corner of the ad. That seemed obvious to me, but obviously I should not make such assumptions.
Wolfram|Alpha now has an iPhone portal
The knowledge engine at the heart of the recently launched Wolfram|Alpha site can answer queries that would baffle traditional search engines. It can make amazing comparisons, perform linguistic searches, and provides a way to do calculations that are impossible elsewhere other than in a copy of Mathematica.Now there's a mobile Web portal for Wolfram|Alpha that is designed for viewing on either an iPhone or iPod touch. Point Safari on your mobile device to http://www.wolframalpha.com/iphone, and you can compute queries as well as test most of the functionality of the Wolfram|Alpha engine. You'll need to set a bookmark icon on your home screen to go back to the page (just press the + icon at the bottom of the Safari screen). Wolfram is also asking for input on what people would like to see in future versions of mobile websites or apps. You can join the conversation here. Are any TUAW readers eagerly waiting for Mathematica Mobile to be released for the iPhone platform?
