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MLB.tv finishes the preseason with a free preview weekend, perfect for iPad launch testing
We're less than a day away from another MLB season starting and the league is celebrating by throwing up another free preview of its online streaming platform. Viewable through a variety of mediums (including iPad, Boxee and Roku of course) there's even more HD streams promised, with VOD access to archived baseball games, a new pitch-by-pitch display and the requisite DVR and multigame viewing features. Unfortunately blackout rules can still put a crimp in the player's style, even with prices rising once again to their $119 (Premium with DVR, home or away broadcast and Multi-Game View) or $99.95 (standard) levels, keeping an eye on the TV schedule will be as important as checking out the bandwidth meter on the Flash-powered player before deciding to pay up for continued access.
iPad roundup: iDisplay extended desktop, plus Kindle and Time reader apps
Say what you will, the past couple of days have been littered with signs of a rapidly expanding set of functions that the iPad can perform. Latest on the block is the iDisplay desktop extender, which will turn any of your iPhone OS devices into a WiFi-connected second monitor, allowing you to finally unchain your Mac OS (Windows version forthcoming) desktop and take it on the move. Introductory price is $4.99 and you'll find an early hands-on experience at the TUAW link. Next up we have the Kindle for iPhone app contracting its name to just Kindle and making the expected jump to iPad compatibility with version 2.0, which comes with iBookstore-like page turning and, best of all, won't cost you a thing. We've also got word of Time Magazine pricing what's free on the iPhone at $4.99 per issue on the iPad, with the excuse being that you can "experience Time in a revolutionary new way." Good luck with that, we say.
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.
iBooks app meets App Store, produces US-only iBookstore offspring
Get ready to welcome some amazing wood grain effects into your lives, future iPad owners, for the iBooks app has just landed at the App Store. Proudly proclaimed as being "designed exclusively for the iPad," this app gives you direct access to the iBookstore, which will offer free samples of books ahead of purchase and a brand new way for you to channel money into Cupertino pockets. Built-in search, highlighting and bookmarking features are augmented by text-to-speech functionality and ePub format support. Funnily enough, iBooks will only support DRM-free ePub files sourced from outside the iBookstore, but no mention is made as to whether its own wares will be similarly unimpeded. Speaking of restrictions, the whole operation is still limited to the United States, leaving the Stephen Frys of this world sighing wistfully from across the pond. [Thanks, Brian]
Netflix iPad app now available in the App Store (update: ABC Player, too)
We'd gotten wind of the Netflix iPad app earlier this morning, but when it wasn't included in the first batch of apps to hit the App Store we just assumed it was coming on Saturday -- or possibly even later. But fear not, movie fans: it's just gone live, complete with screenshot confirmation that it'll do streaming video. That's a huge win for Apple and the iPad, given the restrictions on mobile devices Netflix has traditionally operated under -- remember, Microsoft was only allowed to say the Windows Phone 7 Series Netflix app was a "prototype" when it was demoed at MIX. We're guessing the blurry line between the iPad and regular laptops / netbooks worked in Netflix's favor here, but that's just a semantic debate -- we're much more amused by the fact that the app itself is rated 12+ in the App Store for "Simulated Gambling," "Fantasy Violence," and "Suggestive Themes," simply because it plays back movies from your queue that might have such scandalous content. Oh, App Store -- you truly are a paradise of misapplied bureaucratic intent unequaled in the tragic history of our civilization. Update: Looks like the ABC Player (opens iTunes) is now also available in the app store for the low, low price of nada.
WSJ: CBS bringing free HTML5-encoded TV shows to the iPad, ABC plans detailed
The Wall Street Journal is reporting that ABC and CBS are hard at work adapting episodes of their TV shows for the iPad, with both set to offer streamable programming to new slate owners immediately upon launch. Their delivery strategies diverge slightly -- ABC will use the app that was unearthed (and confirmed by us) this morning whereas CBS will stream through the browser (hello, HTML5!) -- but the eventual user experience will be a commercial-supported affair that should be familiar to those who've used their respective online streaming services already. All that remains now is for NBC and Hulu to fall in line, as expected, and your portable media consumption menu will be complete. It'll also be interesting to see what happens to iTunes Store pricing for episodic TV programming, which will soon be up against free (or in Hulu's case, potentially subscription-based) alternatives. Update: And here comes the official presser for ABC's plans, alongside ESPN SportsCenter XL and a handful of Disney apps.
NYT: Hulu planning iPad app, might be subscription based
We've been hearing whispers about a Hulu app for the iPad since the day Apple's tablet was announced, and things are starting to pick up steam: the New York Times says four different people familiar with Hulu's plans have said the app is coming, and that it will potentially require a subscription fee. That either makes a lot of sense (if you're a TV network exec looking to keep the Aston padding on your paycheck) or absolutely none at all (if you're everyone else), but it certainly seems like it's happening -- especially since Hulu CEO Jason Kilar told the Times that he's "open to subscriptions as a complement to the ad-supported model." That's as close to a confirmation as we've ever heard, but we've got a feeling Apple's putting the full-court press on Hulu and other networks like CBS -- we'd expect to see this go from rumor to reality relatively soon.
Kleiner Perkins iFund doubles to $200m, investing in iPad apps from Shazam, ngmoco and more
Apple said it expects the iPad to be a "second gold rush" of app development as consumers rush to add content to their new devices, and it looks like Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers agrees: the venture capital firm just announced that it's expanding the iFund to $200 million to invest in iPad app development. If you'll recall, the iFund was originally announced alongside the iPhone OS 2.0 SDK, and provided $100 million in total investments to 14 iPhone app developers like Shazam, ngmoco, and Shopkick -- companies responsible for 18 apps that have hit the App Store Top 10. Keep in mind that this money was promised before the iPhone App Store was even launched -- so given how that bet paid off, it's not surprising that KPCB's decided to double down on the iPad, which looks like it'll have even higher app prices. Along with the announcement, some iFund devs announced the following iPad apps: Pinger: Doodle Buddy and Starsmash Booyah: MyTown, a popular location-based game Shazam: Shazam, optimized for the new screen size, ngmoco: Flick Fishing, a new MMO called CastleCraft, Charadium (described as "massively multiplayer Pictionary"), God Finger, We Rule, WarpGate, and one more we missed -- anyone catch it? GOGII: TextPlus Nothing too surprising here, but it looks like the heavy hitters are going to be on the iPad bandwagon from day one -- and pushing hard for this thing to be a success.
iPad's trailing costs: like the iPod touch, only bigger (updated)
Whether or not you think the iPad is in and of itself a worthy purchase, let's not forget the investment doesn't end at the retail counter or online shopping cart. Two little newsbits have popped up to serve as a helpful reminder to just that effect. The first comes way of verbiage from the iPad end-user licensing agreement dug up by MacRumors; in a nutshell, it suggests that while iPad OS 4.x updates will be provided gratis, subsequent releases (5.x, 6.x, and so on) could be offered at a premium, à la how iPod touch handles firmware. This is far from a confirmation, but it's well within Apple's right to do so. The second bit is derived by The Consumerist by way a supposed leaked app store video. Comparing the prices of iPad-optimized software with the iPhone equivalents showed quite a hefty uptick in consumer cost -- e.g., $4.99 Flight Control HD vs. $0.99 Flight Control. The pool of eight apps seen in the video would cost $53 in all to purchase, while the same set for the iPhone is $27. That screen real estate don't come cheap, y'know -- that is, should the prices seen prove legit. At this point we can't confirm, and more than likely, we won't know for sure until the eleventh hour. Update: The BBC has word direct from developers that iPad apps will indeed be costlier than their iPhone / iPod touch brethren. Multiple devs are cited in the Beeb's article saying that their 99 cent apps will grow in price to $1.99 and $2.99 price points for the slate device [thanks, Ben].
Barnes & Noble promises B&N eReader app for iPad near launch
Need a bit more evidence that the e-book download business is a whole lot different than the music download business? Then look no further than Barnes & Noble, which has just announced that it plans to make its B&N eReader app available for the Apple iPad "around the time" of the device's launch. Details are otherwise a bit light, but the app will be free, and is apparently "designed specifically" for the iPad, giving you access to all of the books, magazines and newspapers available in Barnes & Noble's eBookstore. Could a Kindle app be far behind?
Murdoch confirms WSJ coming to iPad, device kept 'under padlock and key'
It only came at the tail end of an announcement of a new New York metro section for The Wall Street Journal, but Rupert Murdoch has finally confirmed that the paper will indeed be heading to the iPad. The really interesting bit, however, is that not only is the company now being allowed to work on an iPad, but that Murdoch says it's kept "under padlock and key," and that "the key is turned by Apple every night" -- a bit of hyperbole, maybe, but then again, maybe not. In other newspapers-going-digital news, Murdoch also said that the WSJ would be heading to half a dozen or more other devices within a year, although he didn't name any specific devices.
Apple announces iWork for iPad
Well, it looks like it's not all just fun and games for Apple's new iPad -- the company has also just announced an edition of its iWork software suite for the device. That, of course, includes versions of Pages, Numbers and Keynote that have been "completely reimagined for iPad," which will be available individually for $9.99 apiece, and are each basically what you'd expect from iPad versions of the desktop applications. It's iWork you can touch, if you will. Don't miss our hands-on coverage! %Gallery-84037%
