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Apple starts shipping Lightning to 30-pin adapters
According to a report in MacRumors, Apple is starting to ship pre-orders of its Lightning to 30-pin adapter. Apple is supposedly sending out shipping notifications with October 9th delivery dates to Australian customers who pre-ordered the adapter. The adapter will arrive two weeks after the iPhone 5 went on sale and almost four weeks after pre-orders started. Apple's iPhone 5 and new iPod touch ship with a new 8-pin Lightning port that is not compatible with the 30-pin connector used by all iPhone, iPod touch and iPad accessories to date. This adapter will make it easy for iPhone 5 and new iPod touch owners to use these older accessories while they wait for new 8-pin compatible products to hit the market. The Lightning to 30-pin adapter is available from Apple for US$29. Apple is also offering a $39 Lightning to 30-pin adapter that has a short cable.
Parrot Zikmu Solo reaches US in November, makes a tower of wireless sound yours for $999
Parrot has taken some time trotting out the Zikmu Solo speaker since we first saw it at CES, but those enamored with very vertical audio can rest easy now that the unit has a North American release schedule. Both Canada and the US can buy the Philippe Starck-crafted speaker in November, when it will cost $999 for Americans in its black and white guises (sorry, no red for now). While that's a lot to pay for a 100W speaker, Parrot is counting on the unique acoustic design, a conventional iOS dock and a mix of Bluetooth, NFC and WiFi to tempt people away from the land of horizontal sound. It's undoubtedly one of the easiest ways to make a speaker dock the focus of a room -- and that's part of the point, isn't it?
Edifier releases the Esiena and Bric Bluetooth speakers for iOS devices
With the arrival of the iPhone 5 and its legacy-wrecking Lightning port, this holiday season is likely to be the last that heavily features the now-obsolete dock connector. Two products caught in the wrong turn of history are Edifier's new pair of iOS device docks for home and on the go. If you need a "big" sound in a modest package, then the Esiena Bluetooth offers 3-inch full-range drivers and a class D digital amplifier -- and it's also packing Auxiliary, USB, SD card inputs and a digital FM radio. If you're more the adventuring type, then the portable Bric Bluetooth offers 2.75-inch full range drivers and the same class D amplifier in addition to a traveling pouch to keep the hardware safe on your travels. The Esiena will set you back $300 and the Bric a slender $100, with both arriving in the US and Canada from today.
Behringer iNuke Boom Junior shrinks a giant iOS dock, won't trigger as many earthquake warnings
As enraptured as we might be with Behringer's monolithic iNuke Boom, the 8-foot-long frame and 10,000W output don't really lend themselves to a home installation. Not unless we want to produce false positives on the USGS' earthquake meters, anyway. We're happy to say the company has addressed that domestic oversight with the iNuke Boom Junior. The iOS- and iPod-capable speaker dock won't launch nearly as large-scale an audio assault at 50W, but it's also less than a twentieth of the size of its parent; no one will need a forklift to get Junior into the living room. In spite of the less than ego-inflating dimensions, the smaller system appears balanced with discrete woofer, tweeter and mid-range components as well as separate bass control. We just wish it was slightly more futureproof. As glad as we are that the iNuke Boom Junior's $180 price at Costco spares us from raiding our retirement funds, the speaker is still using a pre-Lightning dock connector and lacks any wireless audio -- iPhone 5 owners will have to turn to an adapter or the aux-in jack. At least we won't be violating any local noise laws in the process.
AOL brings its On network to the iPhone and iPad
AOL launched its On network earlier this year, and today, it released a universal iOS app that'll let users watch On video content using their iPhone, iPad and iPod touch. The AOL On app lets users browse content from AOL as well as its partners Martha Stewart Living, Omnimedia, E! and Travel Channel. There are about 420,000 clips in the video library that span a variety of topics like technology, food, health, home and more. The iOS app also supports AirPlay, so you can stream a video from your iPhone to your HDTV. The AOL On app is available from the iOS App Store for free. No subscription is required to watch the content, but there are short pre-roll ads. Note: On publisher AOL Mobile and TUAW have the same corporate parent, AOL.
Early iOS 6 adopters report problems getting Exchange push email: are you affected?
We all know about the central issue surrounding iOS 6. For the suits and ties among us, however, there's a potentially more glaring problem with Exchange support. Some users quick to upgrade to Apple's latest mobile OS report losing automatic push delivery of their email, requiring that they check for themselves to get any fresh messages. The issue isn't carrier- or device-specific, and attempts to reboot, reconfigure or restore devices are at best temporary fixes: what flows smoothly at first runs dry several hours later. Apple technicians are aware that the flaw exists, but it's tough to know if and when engineers will have a fix -- the company typically waits until it has a solution in hand before it goes on the record. We've reached out to Apple for a possible comment all the same. In the meantime, let us know if your Exchange access (or push data as a whole) is going awry. [Thanks, Daniel] %Poll-78044%
Zeebox second screen TV companion app crosses over to the US, with a boost from Comcast and HBO
While it seems like every network is rolling out its own personal second screen app for tablets and / or phones, over in the UK Zeebox has been trying to corner the experience across channels and providers with its app. Available as an app for iOS and Android and also on the web, it brings a customized TV guide, live chat, social network sharing and remote control features to the TV experience, and now it's come to the US. Other than the typical second screen experience, its main hook is an "OpenBox" API and tags that allow content providers to customize the experience for their viewers... and then sell them stuff like video on-demand or related merchandise. On this side of the Atlantic Zeebox has secured backing from Comcast / NBC Universal, giving it financial and promotional support as well as covering more than 30 networks right away. It also means it can eventually act as a remote control for Comcast users, which may be an advantage over competition like Miso, GetGlue and IntoNow, and can flex its muscles paired with hundreds of shows like The Voice, Notre Dame football and HBO content like True Blood. Out of the box, the app's social ties and careful metering may be a programmer's dream as it monitors who is watching what live, but we'll have to see more of the second screen content come to life if it's going to catch on socially. A customizable guide (yes, you can hide or reorder channels at will) is a nice touch and so is being able to see what your friends are viewing with Facebook Open Graph and Twitter hooks -- but only if they're actually using it. If you want to check it out, the free apps are linked below and the full press release follows after the break.
How-to posted for jailbreaking iOS 6 on A4-powered iPhones, iPods
Once the gold master version of iOS 6 landed in the hands of developers, the iPhone Dev Team was quick to release an iOS 6-compatible version of its Redsn0w jailbreak tool. Now that iOS 6 is available to the public, select iPhone and iPod touch owners can download the tool and jailbreak their device. This latest version of Redsn0w includes support for iOS 6 devices with an A4 processor, which limits the jailbreak to the iPhone 4, the iPhone 3GS and the fourth generation iPod touch. You should also note that this is a tethered jailbreak, so you will have to connect your iOS device to your Mac every time you reboot your phone. If you don't mind the tethered part of the jailbreak, Redmond Pie has an excellent set of directions that'll step you through the process. iPhone 5, iPhone 4S or iPad 2/3 owners running iOS 6 will have to wait for the Dev Team to successfully jailbreak those devices and package the hack into a public-friendly format. There's no ETA on when the Dev Team will release the jailbreak for these newer devices, so owners will have to practice patience while the Dev Team works out all the details. [Via Engadget]
PSA: Passbook supported apps now listed in iOS 6 App Store
Now that iOS 6 has officially landed, Apple has pulled back the veil revealing the first wave of apps to support its new Passbook feature. The initial group of companies to jump on the bandwagon include: Ticketmaster, Live Nation, Lufthansa, MLB.com At Bat, Sephora to Go, Walgreens and Fandango Movies. While this list is a tad bit shorter than we hoped for, it's safe to say that more apps will follow in the not-so-distant future. Want to be the first to know when they arrive? Be sure to keep an eye on the Passbook section of the App Store for the latest updates.
Apple updates nearly every app for iOS 6, sneaks in key GarageBand, iPhoto and Podcasts updates
If you didn't already know that iOS 6 was out in the wild, Apple just delivered a torrent of mobile app updates to make it perfectly clear. Virtually every app that isn't preloaded now has explicit iOS 6 support to keep it running smoothly, and some of the upgrades are thankfully more than just skin-deep compatibility tweaks. Among the highlights are Podcasts' new subscription list syncing through iCloud, ringtone creation with GarageBand and iPhoto support for 36.5-megapixel image editing on the latest devices -- you know, for that moment you need to tweak Nikon D800 photos on an iPhone 5. We're including direct links to a few of the juicier updates, but we'd recommend checking AppleInsider's comprehensive list to see everything that you're missing.
iOS 6 now available to download for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch (update: full changelog)
Cupertino's newest hardware may have us purring, but Apple hasn't left those of us with existing hardware out in the cold. iOS 6 should be appearing as an available update right now, or at least very shortly -- depending on how taxed those servers get. It'll be compatible with every iPhone since the 3GS, iPod touch 4G / 5G and this-and-last-year's vintage of the iPad. Given the inexorable march of technology, some of the newer features won't work on the older devices, but you can use our compatibility checker to determine what new things you'll be able to do in the next few hours. We've had notes from our tipsters that the update is arriving a few minutes early (with photographic proof above), but so far we've had nothing here. [Thanks, Jim]
PSA: iOS 6 expected to arrive at 1PM Eastern, get your downloads ready
Apple tends to release new iOS upgrades like clockwork, which gives us a good indicator of when it should push iOS 6 to early adopters: 1PM Eastern, or 10AM Pacific and 5PM GMT. At that point, you can likely get your turn-by-turn and Passbook fixes through at least iTunes. The real question is whether the upgrade will be available directly from an iPad, iPhone or iPod touch -- we've seen delta updates arrive over the air for iOS 5, after all, but not major OS revisions. There's only a few hours before we find out. September 19, 2012 1:00 PM EDT
Apple's EarPods get the iFixit teardown treatment, found to basically be earbuds
As we briefly mentioned in our EarPods review, iFixit was able to teardown Apple's latest generation of earbuds, which are currently shipping with the iPhone 5. While we weren't quite sure what was going on with their insides, the site has confirmed some of our suspicions and detailed a few other fun facts. As it turns out, the internal layout of each earpiece is essentially that of an average 'bud with a forward-facing driver. The new top section, with its side-facing audio port, is apparently a good chunk of what affects the sound in unison with those strategically placed vents. The improved bass and low-mid response we noted in our review falls in line with iFixit's confirmation that the new driver in each Pod is made with a paper speaker cone -- in contrast to the plastic used on the older model. As the site notes, those driver diaphragms should be less likely to blow-out, and the basket behind 'em have also been updated with a cleaner fit and finish. Aside from that, you'll be pleased to know that the inline remote appears to have an improved seal for protection from the elements, and it'll hold up better to cable snags. As you might imagine, the $29 headphones have been deemed as disposable rather than repairable. Don't take our word for it however -- you can read the teardown for yourself at the source link below.
Apple EarPods review: A $29 revolution in earbuds or another set for the recycling bin?
Whether you think they're infamous or merely a signature piece of Apple design, there's no doubt most of us have been exposed the company's iconic white earbuds. Along with the latest batch of iPods and the iPhone 5, Apple announced the replacement for those dreaded earphones, a pair of 'buds called the EarPods. Given that these are bundled with new iDevices (also sold as a standalone for $29), it's hard not to think that the folks at Cupertino are drinking some sort of spiked Kool-Aid, claiming these rival headphones that cost hundreds more. While reviewing the likes of the iPhone 5, we also gave the EarPods a listen to find out whether or not they're just an over-engineered set of 'buds. You'll find our detailed verdict after the break.
iOS 6 review
More Info iOS 5 review Apple unveils iOS 6 at WWDC, launch apps with Siri, Facebook integration, Maps iOS 6 coming to iPhone 4S, 4, 3GS, new iPad, iPad 2 and iPod Touch on September 19th Starting tomorrow, iOS users will be prompted to update their devices to the newest iteration of Apple's mobile operating system. As difficult as it is to believe, we're already onto the sixth version of the OS, which continues to be updated with new features on a yearly basis. After pushing out so many upgrades critical to plugging a few major feature holes, the vast majority of its 200 advertised enhancements are strictly granular, as Apple continues to polish its popular OS. That doesn't mean, though, that this build is coming to the masses without any jarring UI changes: Apple has declared independence from Google by adopting its own Maps, added a few nice features to Mail and iCloud, thrown Facebook integration into the mix and introduced the Passbook for paperless tickets. The question is, how does it stack up against previous refreshes? Read on to find out.
Apple's new iPods available for pre-order from Amazon
If you're wanting to get your new iPod through Amazon, the online seller has the full slate of new iPod nanos, iPod shuffles and iPod touches. You won't be getting a discount by buying through Amazon, but if you prefer not to wade through the Apple Store on release day, here's another option for you. [via Engadget]
Apple's new iPod touch, nano and shuffle now up for pre-order on Amazon
Sure, all the talk of late is about Apple's shiny new iPhone 5, but let's not forget the company also unveiled a slew of fresh iPods back at the Yerba Buena Center this past week. And while the Cupertino outfit's had the music-friendly lineup for pre-order on its website from day one, folks can now start placing orders through Amazon as well. The only bad news is the revamped iPod touch shows an estimated shipping time of 3-5 weeks, while the "renanoed" nano and the tiny, colorful shuffle are both expected to be shipped in 2-5 weeks. As far as pricing goes, the MSRP tags are the same as Apple's -- though there is a better chance you could get them a bit quicker thanks to one of Amazon's renowned shipping options. Either way, you'll find 'em all at the source link below.
You're the Pundit: Is the iPhone 5 a must buy for you?
When it comes to evaluating the next big thing, we turn to our secret weapon: the TUAW braintrust. We put the question to you and let you have your go at it. Today's topic is new devices and purchasing plans. On Wednesday, Tim Cook and friends introduced the new and delicious iPhone 5. With a speedy new processor and a camera system to die for -- to say nothing of that expanded screen and gloriously fast LTE wireless -- is this the gadget that makes you open your wallet? Or will you choose the new iPod touch instead? Same great screen, same great Siri, but no cellular contract (saving you money in the long run). Or how about those sweet new iPod nanos? Did they catch your heart? Which new Apple gadget (if any) did you decide to order? You tell us. Place your vote in this poll and then join in the comments with all your thoughts about this launch. %Poll-77701%
Lightning 30-pin adapter works with analog audio, "iPod Out" doesn't mean what you think it means (Updated)
A certain degree of confusion around not-yet-shipping products is inevitable, as hands-on information is limited and manufacturers' descriptions may be cryptic. In the case of the iPhone 5, Apple's not helping matters with its spec page for the Lightning to 30-pin dock adapters, specifically the mention of "iPod Out" not being supported. [Updated: As one of our commenters noticed, Apple has now removed the confusing reference to the "iPod Out" feature. The store page now says "This adapter lets you connect devices with a Lightning connector to many of your 30-pin accessories. Support for analog audio output, USB audio, as well as syncing and charging. Video output not supported." It's not clear if this actually means that the adapter does support iPod Out for car stereos, but it is clear that analog audio is included.] The $29/$39 Lightning adapter certainly sounds pricey (and is generating some high-profile complaints for its cost and for the retrofit challenges), but one reason for that is the amount of work it has to do. As with Thunderbolt, these are "cables with a chip"; they handle digital to analog conversion, USB audio, all the signaling for track changes, etc. that were part of the original 30-pin connector standard. There are two things these adapters won't do to emulate the 30-pin dock link. They can't send analog video out, and they don't support "iPod Out" mode. As soon as people began reading that the adapters didn't support "iPod Out" they immediately assumed (in the absence of helpful information, like a link on the spec page or something of that sort) that meant the adapters wouldn't handle analog audio, and that the iPhone 5 would completely obsolete millions of dockable devices at a stroke. Cue mass panic. Here's the thing, though: "iPod Out" doesn't actually mean "audio output from an iPod." It's the branding for a very specific feature for cars and remote-screen tools that was included in iOS 4, which delivered a customized iOS graphic display via the in-dash screens when the device was docked. BMW made a big deal of including this feature as early as 2010, but few other manufacturers have jumped on board. [Reader Abraham V. points out that the 2012 Honda Civic supports iPod Out; if you know of other cars that do, chime in via the comments. –MR] For my money (and possibly for plenty of other people's money), Apple ought to clarify the "iPod Out" notation ASAP on the adapter page, and it might need to do a little bit of consumer education about the capabilities of the adapter. Folks are definitely confused out there. Unfortunately, this consumer confusion isn't helped by coverage like this post at Cult of Mac or this CNN Money story, which erroneously conflate the "iPod Out" feature support with the fact that the Lightning interface is "all digital" and leap promptly to the conclusion that you can't get any analog audio out of the 30-pin adapter. That's incorrect. Macworld sought and received direct confirmation from Apple that the adapter does supply analog audio, and the company told The Verge that future adapters will support VGA and HDMI video out, just like the current 30-pin accessories. What does this mean for you? If you don't have a car that supports iPod Out, and you don't plan to buy one, go ahead and get that iPhone 5 or new iPod touch you're craving. The Lightning to 30-pin adapter may be clumsy and certainly isn't cheap, but it definitely will let you connect to your music.
Daily Update for September 12, 2012
It's the TUAW Daily Update, your source for Apple news in a convenient audio format. You'll get all the top Apple stories of the day in three to five minutes for a quick review of what's happening in the Apple world. You can listen to today's Apple stories by clicking the inline player (requires Flash) or the non-Flash link below. To subscribe to the podcast for daily listening through iTunes, click here. No Flash? Click here to listen. Subscribe via RSS
