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Intuit now offering GoPayment service without fees through February, also throws in a free card reader
Perhaps just to show that it is not hip to be a Square, Intuit has rolled out a serious incentive for businesses to jump on the GoPayment bandwagon. Since we last saw the mobile payment service, the company has decided to offer customers a free card reader (while supplies last) and no monthly service fees in an effort to expand its user base. Primarily aimed at those processing low sales volume, the deal includes $0.15 per-transaction fee. That's half the $0.30 fee for high-volume users, who still get the complimentary reader for signing up, but have to pay $12.95 monthly for the privilege. The offer is exclusively available to new customers, and the gratis reader only works with some phones (far fewer than the number of phones that work with the app itself), but hey, free is free. Let's just hope Intuit's system doesn't suffer from the security problems of its rival.
Michael's Best of Tech 2010 list
It's time for that honored tradition that's inescapable at the end of every year: the annual best/worst lists. But I'm generally a positive kind of guy, so I'm just going to share my "best of" part of the list. Below you'll find my selections for the best of tech that I used in 2010. Some of the items on the list may have originated before 2010, but this is the year I really put the tech to use. So, without further ado, here is the Best of Tech 2010 as I see it. Best Mac App: 2010 wasn't kind to the Mac app platform. The wild success of iOS and mobile apps in general seems to have taken a toll on innovative desktop apps. Hopefully the Mac App Store will reverse the trend. Until then, if you are looking for a cool new Mac app, try OmmWriter Dāna. It's a word processor designed from the ground up to lend itself to the user's creative flow. You can read my review of it here. Try it out (there are both free and paid versions), and you'll find out just how much a little thing like a horizontal cursor can increase your creativity. You can download OmmWriter here.
Mophie Juice Packs for iPhone 4, iPad en route to Apple Store
We have some details for you on Mophie's upcoming Juice Pack Universal line. Ready? Okay: available at the Apple Store sometime this month (and at Mophie's website now), all the new models, including Boost ($60), Reserve ($40) and Powerstation ($100), are compatible with all iPhone and iPod touch form factors, while the latter also throws iPad compatibility into the mix. Additionally, Reserve and Boost both feature one amp current (which, as the company points out, means they'll charge your device twice as fast as your standard 500 mAh charger), while Power Station boasts 2.1 amps. Not bad, eh? PR after the break.
Apple, Adobe, Google, Intel Intuit and Pixar: now free to cold call each other's employees
Attaboy, DoJ! Out of (almost) nowhere, the United States Department of Justice announced today that it was requiring six well-known technology outfits to stop entering into "anticompetitive employee solicitation agreements," and we're guessing you will have heard just a few of these names: Adobe, Apple, Google, Intel, Intuit and Pixar. As the story goes, these six companies were all mixed up (but not all together, mind you) in agreements that forbid each other from cold calling employees from a rival firm in order to offer them a different job. According to the DoJ, those arrangements acted as a "significant form of competition to attract highly skilled employees," and it has now filed a civil antitrust complaint today along with a proposed settlement that, "if approved by the court, would resolve the lawsuit." We're also told that some of the agreements were put into place as early as 2005, and they were "formed and actively managed by senior executives of these companies." Yikes. Hit the source link for the full report, and feel free to call back that "Unknown" caller that keeps hitting you up on your Adobe line -- it's probably Pixar with a seven-figure offer.
Mophie Juice Pack family portrait: Powerstation, Reserve, Boost, and Air for iPhone 4
Mophie's had quite a few product announcements recently, from an iPhone 4 case / battery pack to a credit card solution with intuit. Hot on the heels of this week's Juice Pack Powerstation unveil, the company stopped by to give us a glimpse of their revised lineup. In addition to all the aforementioned, we also got to check out the Reserve and Boost that formally debuted back in June. We didn't get enough time to really put 'em through their battery charging paces, but we did get pictures -- hey, you're welcome. %Gallery-102596%
QuickBooks 2011 to add multi-user support, more
Intuit is preparing to release QuickBooks 2011 for the Mac on September 27th with some great new features like multi-user support (finally!), mileage tracking, and more. We had a chance to explore this new version with William Lynes, QuickBooks product manager. It's quite Mac-like, and I suspect it will be a welcome update for QuickBooks users. The marquee feature of this update is multi-user support. "It was our number one request," Lynes told us. Many customers have experienced the frustration of wanting to work in QuickBooks, only to be denied because another user has a certain file open. Stop us if you've heard this one before. Fortunately, QuickBooks 2011 fixes all of that.
Mophie and Intuit release Complete Card Solution payment system for iPhone
Square has made quite a few headlines with its in-progress payment system for the iPhone, but here's that reader developed by Mophie (known for their battery pack add-ons) and serviced by Intuit. It's called the Complete Card Solution for iPhone, and it's costlier than Square's extremely low cost of entry where all you need to start taking payments is a free account, free app and free card reader. This one runs $179 from the get-go; there's also a $12.95 charge per month, on top of the per-payment fees that Intuit will take out. But Intuit's reader is a little more friendly for big sales teams (allowing for 50 users on one account), and the transaction charge runs only about 1.7 percent as compared to Square's 2.75 percent. So if Intuit has a target, it's probably larger businesses -- Square's reader is much more ad-hoc and easier for the smaller companies and individuals to use. There is one other issue, however -- while Square's reader just plugs into the headphone jack (meaning it can be used by any iPhone, and even some other smartphones), Mophie's clearly fits all the way around the phone, which means it's currently available only for iPhone 3G and 3GS. Still, if you don't need one set up for the iPhone 4 right away, the Mophie reader is reportedly on Apple store shelves now.
Mophie and Intuit partner to create Complete Card Solution for iPhone, try to make Square look square
Who knew that credit card processing would be the new hotness for smartphones? The Square mobile payment system has been making waves by letting small businesses receive credit card payment directly on their smartphones. Now, mophie and Intuit are looking to get in on the same action with their Complete Card Solution for iPhone. It's a $179 package that includes both mophie's card-swiping phone case and the 3.0 version of Intuit's GoPayment app. After a quick application users are said to be approved (or, erm, declined) within 15 minutes and can immediately start accepting payments. Full details, including just how much users will be forking over in fees, after the break.
Jumsoft offering 50% off Money for Cha-Ching customers
Yesterday, we posted that Intuit was basically discontinuing Cha-Ching after hiring the developers and purchasing the app, and it was a little disappointing that they weren't offering any upgrade plan. While Mint.com is free (and some of the Cha-Ching know-how was going to go into the Mint.com iPhone app), it'd be nice to at least get a discount on Quicken or something like that for current users. Fortunately, competitor Jumsoft is stepping up into the void -- they're offering 50% off of their Money app for OS X to current Cha-Ching customers. Usually, the app is $40, but if you submit proof of a Cha-Ching purchase (as I said yesterday, Cha-Ching was included in a MacHeist bundle a while back), they'll give you half off until September 30th. Jumsoft also has a free iPhone or iPad app of their own to sync with. So if you need a new financial app because Intuit has left you high and dry, this sounds like a great deal. Of course, Cha-Ching isn't going to stop working just because it's not for sale, but going forward, it will eventually need to be updated along with OS X, so if you depend on it as a financial app, you might have to look at switching over. Good on Jumsoft for picking up Intuit's slack.
Intuit buys Cha-Ching after hiring developers
We've been pretty big fans of Cha-Ching, both the OS X app and the iOS version, over the years. Turns out Intuit liked the app a lot, too -- the financial juggernaut has acquired Cha-Ching and its code after hiring the app's developers a little while back. The website currently points to both Quicken for Mac and Mint.com, so presumably this is the end of the app -- its functionality will be brought into Intuit's other properties, used to smooth out Quicken for Windows, while Cha-Ching Touch's functionality will eventually show up in the Mint.com iPhone app. Too bad for users of the app currently -- I know the app was sold in at least one MacHeist sale, so it's definitely out there and fairly popular. There's no word on any upgrades at all. The Mint.com app is great (and free), but of course Quicken is $50 just to get started. Looks like if you depend on Cha-Ching for your financial planning but want upgrades in the future, you'll have to look elsewhere.
Intuitfocus HF-IF1 enables 'handsfree' follow-focus on DSLRs
Given that even the professionals are swapping in DSLRs for those bulky, pricey camcorders, it's about time Intuitfocus solved a century-old problem: touching the focus ring to focus. In an effort to eliminate the focus puller from your payroll while also placing more control of a shot in the hands of a single filmmaker, the HF-IF1 handsfree, electro-mechanical follow-focus system enables DSLR focus to be altered by simply thumbing through a wheel. The rig can be used to dictate focus, zoom or aperture on all DSLRs with lenses from 14mm to 600mm, though the company does mention that not every single lens will play nice. As you'd expect, this essentially eliminates shake introduced by having to touch the focus ring, and it ships with a foursome of various rubber belt sizes for various lens diameters. It's scheduled to ship next month at an undisclosed amount, and we're desperately hoping that the company chooses Dancing Pigeons to showcase its magic. A boy can dream, right? Promo clip follows the break, should you find yourself interested.
Chronicle: An elegant way of tracking your bills
Let's face it: paying bills is not fun. There's the $75-plus monthly AT&T bill (assuming $40 voice + $30 data + $5 text messages) for your iPhone, the $25-plus broadband bill that your iPhone, iPad, and Mac use, as well as a host of other recurring bills that make life that much more fun and, well, livable: gas, electricity, water, car payments, etc. While paying your bills and watching your bank account decrease at the same time may not necessarily be fun, LittleFin Software's Chronicle makes it a bit more enjoyable.
Quicken Essentials adds features, drops price
Intuit has added new features to Quicken Essentials for the Mac, dropped its price by twenty dollars, and is offering the difference as a refund to those who bought it at the original price of US$69.99. Two major new features will be added to the software by the end of April; users will be able to protect imported files and export data to the spreadsheet software of their choice. In addition, Intuit has listed several features it plans to add throughout 2010, including options to export tax-deductible items to software like TurboTax, to track budgets across several months, and accept investment holdings data from brokerages that do not provide downloadable data for Quicken. The new, lower price is live on the site right now. Customers who purchased Quicken Essentials before April 19th, 2010 are eligible for a $20 refund for a limited time. You'll find full details here. We took at good look at Quicken Essentials for the Mac and spoke with Aaron Patzer, the VP/GM of Intuit's Personal Finance Group, back in February.
Quicken Essentials for Mac now available
After a four year absence, the next version of Quicken for the Mac is here. It's called Quicken Essentials for Mac and is a ground up Cocoa rewrite. I've been using the program for a few weeks now. Is it worth the wait? Well that depends what you need in your financial software. When I interviewed Aaron Patzer, VP/GM of Intuit's Personal Finance Group, he was quick to point out that it's called Quicken Essentials for a reason: "It's called Essentials because it's what we consider to be essential for most users - about 80% of users. We went to people's homes and watched them use it. The majority of them just want to know: How much do I have? How much do I owe? How much do I spend on gas and food? How many times do I go to this restaurant? How many times do I go to Starbucks? What investments do I have? Let me set a budget to control my spending." If an easy overview of your financial life is the goal Intuit had in mind, they've outdone themselves. The first thing you'll notice is the completely redesigned interface. Gone is the horrible toolbar navigation with multiple windows. Quicken Essentials has got that familiar streamlined iTunes/iLife look and feel with all your accounts, reports, budgets, and tools nicely displayed in a source list. Its single window interface makes it easy for the user to get a complete snapshot of all their finances. The interactive pie charts are snappy and responsive, and the built-in reports make it easy to view your checking, savings, and investing accounts.
TUAW Exclusive: Aaron Patzer on the future of mobile finance, Mint.com, and Quicken on the Mac
To the dismay of many, Mint sold to Intuit in September 2009 for $170 million. I say dismay because many users of Quicken products had been less than thrilled with Intuit's offerings for some time, and some people were concerned what a twenty-year-old company that seemed stuck in its ways would do with a popular user-friendly Web 2.0 startup. Out of all the negative press, perhaps Mac users could be forgiven for having the most anxiety over the acquisition. Many had abandoned Quicken Mac 2007 in favor of Mint.com. Mac users wanted to move on from the stale Quicken ecosystem and go with something simple and easy. Now, that simple and easy solution had moved to where the users had escaped from. Luckily, Intuit wasn't like other companies who buy smaller start-ups just to eliminate a competitor. Intuit recognized that Patzer and his team possessed the much-needed original financial software ideas and UI design mojo to put a spark in their aging products. In November 2009, Intuit made Aaron Patzer VP/GM of Intuit's Personal Finance Group -- which left him in charge of Intuit's personal finance offerings, including Quicken for Mac.
Quicken Essentials for Mac available for pre-order
Quicken Essentials for Mac is finally available for pre-order. Too little, too late if you ask me. Its taken three years to get this next version of Quicken for Mac out the door. In that time, worthy alternatives have risen, like iBank and Mint.com. While I won't give it a review until I've tried it, it seems that Intuit should just give up until they want to make a financial software package that the Mac deserves. Here are just a few of my peeves from the Quicken Essentials for Mac FAQ (bold added): 1. Can I track my investments? Yes, Quicken Essentials for Mac allows you to track the overall value of your investment accounts and the value of your specific holdings. It will not, however, track investment buys and sells, nor will it provide some advanced investment performance reports. If you need more more advanced investment features, try Quicken Mac 2007. 2. Can I export my data to TurboTax? Quicken Essentials for Mac does not support that capability. If you'd like that functionality, we recommend trying Quicken Mac 2007. 3. Can I pay my bills within Quicken? While you cannot pay bills within the product itself ("direct bill pay"), you can track your bills and make sure you have enough cash to pay them when they're due. A few alternatives available include using Quicken Mac 2007 or using the bill pay functionality on Quicken Bill Pay. Did you see that? If you want to do anything useful, you have to buy their three year-old product. I ditched Quicken for Mac years ago, moved to iBank, then eventually quit that and moved entirely to Mint which has a great iPhone app [iTunes link]. How good is Mint? Good enough that Intuit has since purchased it. I can only hope they plan to leave it good enough alone. Thanks Gilbert
Linden Lab hires Michon from Intuit
Earlier today, Linden Lab announced the hiring of Brian Michon as Vice President of Core Development. Michon comes from Intuit, where he led software development of Web-service and platforms powering both hosted and desktop software including Quickbooks, TurboTax and Quicken as Vice President of Engineering. Michon is supposed to tackle "scaling Second Life to provide a high-quality user experience, supporting the growth in virtual worlds and evolving the platform to ignite a new wave of product innovation." Which appears to make the role indistinguishable from that of the Senior Vice President of Customer Applications, the new Chief Product Officer and the new Creative Director, all of whom are described as having broadly identical jobs. At least, Linden Lab has not thus-far been able to explain to us what distinguishes any of these positions from any of the others, so at the end of the day, it isn't clear what any of these positions might actually contribute to the Second Life platform or services and whether we or you should feel excited about them. Are you a part of the most widely-known collaborative virtual environment or keeping a close eye on it? Massively's Second Life coverage keeps you in the loop.
New QuickBooks for Mac coming in 2008
QuickBooks 2008 apparently was released this week by Inuit-- unfortunately, this makes the release of the Windows client only. Macworld, however, is reporting that if QuickBooks is your thing, you've only got a few more months to wait. Intuit is still planning to release a version of QB 2008 for Mac... in 2008 itself.The quote comes from the Intuit FAQ for Mac, which says basically that they're waiting for Leopard to reveal itself before they release their own software. Not a bad reason for delay, I guess, but I really wonder what extra features Inuit might include in their software that would require Leopard to work. Will QuickBooks really be using any of the Core Image stuff to beef up their presentations and spreadsheets? Doubtful, but it would be awesome if they did.At any rate, Intuit says that if you need QuickBooks right now, there's always the 2007 version, and to stay tuned for everything else, including a release date for 2008.
Quickbooks 2007 v9.0, now with native Intel support
Well Adobe may not care enough to release Universal Binary updates, but Intuit seems to care, at least a little. Today they released Quickbook 2007 v9.0. Quickbooks, as you probably already know is a popular accounting app aimed at small businesses. Things of note in this upgrade include: Track payments, sales tax and inventory IMPROVED Create and print deposit slips NEW Customize forms using the Layout Designer NEW Customize toolbar IMPROVED Universal binary version for Intel- and PowerPC-based Macs NEW Share data between Mac and Windows IMPROVED Comprehensive in-product help IMPROVED Interactive Tutorial Center NEW Although Quickbooks users themselves don't seem all that impressed with the program, every step toward native Intel support for Macs for all is a good thing.Despite being a small business owner, I've never had any use for Quickbooks. Always seemed like overkill for my needs. But if it suits you and you've been wondering whether or not to upgrade, you might wait until the dust settles as there are already several nasty bug reports showing up on sites like MacFixit.
Macworld on TurboTax Deluxe 2005
Two things are certain in life: death and taxes, however, if you are going to be doing your taxes on your Mac it is almost certain that you will be using TurboTax Deluxe 2005. It is the only game in town (well, the only Mac desktop application) but luckily Macworld says it is a great product. It includes a question and answer section that it uses to fill out some of your tax information, based on your answers, and it can retrieve electronic copies of your W2's (if you have access to them).Check out the review and marvel at all the tax prep prowess you get for $35.
