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News Corp's 'The Daily' pub to hit iPad in January?
We heard News Corp's "iPad newspaper" The Daily was on track for release in early 2011, but AllThingsD is hearing something more specific -- week of January 17th, in fact, with the caveat that the launch plans have "moved around a couple of times in the past few months." From what we've gathered previously, The Daily will be published daily (surprise, surprise) and cost 99 cents per week (about $4.25 per month) and might leverage a new App Store subscription payment system that could be announced at an Apple event. So... nothing definitive, really. Got that? Good.
Word Lens augmented reality app instantly translates whatever you point it at
Augmented reality and optical character recognition have just come into their own, beautifully intertwined into an instant translation app for the iPhone. Download Word Lens, pay $4.99 for a language pack, then point it at a sign and watch as it replaces every word with one in your native tongue. It's a little bit like Pleco, but without the whole language learning stuff. We just gave it a spin, and while it's not quite as accurate as this video claims, it's still breathtaking to behold -- especially as it doesn't require an internet connection to do any lookup. Sadly, it only translates to and from English and Spanish for now. Still, Babelfish, eat your heart out. Update: Looks like it only works on iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4 and the latest iPod touch for now.
Bing 2.0 brings better Facebook integration and the impressive Streetside to iPhone (video)
Microsoft just released -- or should we say, Apple just approved -- version 2.0 of the Bing search app for iOS devices. In addition to several other new features including integrated Facebook Likes on search results (really!?) and in-app checkins to Facebook and Foursquare, Bing now comes packing Streetside, something that first blew us away as Street Slide when it was still in the labs at Microsoft Research. Unlike Google's Streetview that requires a lot of forward- and back-clicking and turning in order to get a feel for a location, Streetslide provides a more comprehensive view of the shops and businesses in an area by letting you strafe down the sidewalk while zooming in and out of the buildings located on each side of the street. We took it for a brief spin (literally) and came away impressed. You won't find Streetside implemented for all locations yet (for example, San Francisco's Make-out Room was found on Streetside but the Slanted Door restaurant wasn't) but they do seem to have large swaths of major cities covered based on our brief testing of Chicago, Seattle, New York, and San Francisco. Sorry, nothing yet in London and Amsterdam but maybe you'll have better success searching your own neighborhoods. See the full list of what's new after the break in addition to a Streetside demo from Bing's architect Blaise Aguera y Arcas -- unfortunately, we're not seeing the impressive Panaroma feature he mentions in this release. Update: We've been told that Facebook Likes, like Panaroma, like totally didn't make it into the app release. It's a web search results feature only for the time being.
Google Latitude lands in iTunes App Store, for good this time
After making a false start last week, the official Latitude app from Google seems to have stuck its landing in the iTunes App Store. Surprisingly for an initial release, Latitude is already showing a 2.0.0.346 version number demonstrating, perhaps, just how long this one's been waiting for Phil Schiller's sanction. Whatever the case, there's never been a better opportunity for iOS 4 users to track down their very own Ana Leftin.
Skyfire disappears from iTunes App Store due to technical difficulties (update: 'sold out')
Trying to get a copy of the Skyfire browser for your iOS device? You may not have much luck, as the pseudo-Flash-capable browser has just disappeared from iTunes App Stores around the globe, mere hours after its splashy debut. When we try to download it for ourselves in the United States we get the message immediately above, and RazorianFly readers are chiming in with reports that the app is no longer available in Greece, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Australia, Canada, Switzerland, Norway, Spain and the UK. We just pinged Skyfire for comment and they say it's not Apple's fault; demand for a Flash video workaround is apparently so high that the company's having server issues and decided to pull the app rather than introduce new users to a sub-par experience. Skyfire assures us that it's adding servers as quickly as it can, but didn't provide an ETA on when we might see the app once more. Update: While we're not sure how an digital app can be "sold out," that's exactly what the company says happened to its $2.99 browser today -- after quickly becoming the top grossing app in the iTunes App Store, Skyfire is "temporarily not accepting new purchases" and says it will issue Facebook and Twitter status updates when the next batch of licenses is available. In other words, Skyfire's throttling the flow of purchases from now on. PR after the break. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Garmin navigation to be an Android exclusive for ASUS, headed to Apple and RIM app stores
Details of the Garmin-ASUS breakup are slowly being revealed. We now know that ASUS has obtained exclusive rights to license Garmin navigation and location based services on its Android smartphones with a Garmin navigation trademark slapped on the back -- other Android handset makers need not apply. ASUS will go back to selling its own-brand handsets in January, including models equipped with 3D for gaming and connectivity with ASUS ebook readers and tablets, according to DigiTimes. For its part, Garmin's official blog says that it will be expanding its mobile application handset development by offering navigation and other applications through "certain consumer application stores." According to DigiTimes, that means Apple's iTunes App Store and RIM's App World. So, in other words, Garmin and ASUS are still friends but are now free to date anyone they want, you know, except for anyone in eachother's families. How mature.
Apple successfully trademarks 'There's an app for that'
From marketing buzzword to international joke, the catchy phrase has officially become one of Apple's legal tools. That's right -- there's a trademark for that now.
Google Voice apps returning to iPhone app store (update: they're here!)
(function() { var s = document.createElement('SCRIPT'), s1 = document.getElementsByTagName('SCRIPT')[0]; s.type = 'text/javascript'; s.async = true; s.src = 'http://widgets.digg.com/buttons.js'; s1.parentNode.insertBefore(s, s1); })(); Digg It's been a long time coming -- now native Google Voice apps have finally returned to the iTunes App Store. This, after a fourteen month hiatus in which we saw an FCC investigation into the matter that culminated in a loosening of App Store restrictions. So far, we're only seeing the $3 GV Connect app in the store with GV Mobile + coming sometime Saturday morning according to its developer, Sean Kovacs. No word on when the official Google Voice iPhone app will make its appearance, but surely it can't be long -- Phil must have had a chance to study the app he personally rejected didn't approve by now, right? Update: We'd been checking our iPhones all day long to no avail, but it's finally here. As of 1:30AM ET, GV Mobile + has been formally approved and is now available for $2.99 on the iTunes App Store.
Epic's spectacular Unreal Engine 3 tech demo free at iTunes App Store
Did you oooh and ahh at the fantastic gaming graphics that accompanied today's Apple keynote? You won't have to wait for next week's iOS 4.1 to get a taste of those textures for yourself. Though the full-on gladiator dueling of Epic's "Project Sword" may be a while off, you can get your hot little hands on "Epic Citadel" right now, a 82.2 megabyte download that explores a beautiful medieval castle town. Oh, and did we mention it's free? Even id Software's mindblowing 60FPS Rage demo must be quaking in its boots right about now.
iPhone's App Store 'Try Before You Buy' section isn't exactly what you're hoping for
We love Android's 24-hour app return policy, so when we heard about Apple opening a "Try Before You Buy" section in the App Store, we grabbed the closest iDevice in our proximity to see what exactly was up. Only, it isn't exactly what we expected given the name. Located under Features -> Free on the App Store, the new section serves only to highlight the free / "lite" edition of apps with premium older siblings. A smart and organized section, sure, but the for-pay programs without a demo will still be a risk your iTunes account will have to take. Them's the breaks; might as well add it to your personal iOS 5 wishlist alongside widgets and a new notification system.
iTunes fraud takes trip to travel section?
Here we go again, unfortunately. Both 9 to 5 Mac and Ars Technica are reporting a new spat of potentially-fraudulent apps climbed the iTunes charts today, now in the Travel section. This time, the culprit's purported to be Chinese-based WiiSHii and a series of "GYOYO" Chinese- and English-language maps. The two publications have a screenshot each showing the apps climbing the charts, as well as an apparent receipt from one customer who unwittingly found charges for the software on his or her bill -- and yeah, we see them, too, albeit not topping any charts as of this writing. So yet again, we advise caution and double-checking your payment history. Le sigh. %Gallery-97248%
Inexplicable rise in iPhone dev's App Store sales connected to iTunes account hacks? (update)
We've received a handful of tips this morning claiming something's rotten in the state of the iTunes App Store, namely via the Book category. As of this writing, 42 of the top 50 books by revenue are from the seller Thuat Nguyen, whose company website ("mycompany") leads to parked site www.home.com. A vast majority of these book apps were released in April, have little to no customer ratings or reviews, appear to be in Vietnamese (despite claims in the side bar that the supported languages are English and Japanese), and may or may not be infringing on copyrighted work -- we're noticing a lot of Dragon Ball art here. To give sales a sense of scope, Twilight series conclusion Breaking Dawn is hovering only at 34 right now. So, how did these books hit the top of the charts? The other half of this story has to do with a claimed rise in iTunes account hacking, with a number of people reporting up to hundreds of dollars being spent unwillingly from their account to these specific books. Coincidence? Let's not mince words here, something is definitely amiss, and it's not looking good. Just to be safe, might wanna check your purchase history under Apple Account information. We've reached out to Apple and will let you know as soon as we hear back. Update: We've yet to hear from Apple proper, but we do have an update of sorts -- 9 to 5 Mac reports all the "mycompany" titles have completely vanished from the App Store. We're not sure whether Apple decided to shut down the operation or the seller pulled them himself, so continue to keep an eye on your digital pocketbook until we know for sure. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Google Voice iPhone app rejected, current GV apps lose connection with iTunes
Perhaps the big G spoke too soon when it said its new Google Voice service was coming to iPhone. First, GV Mobile developer Sean Kovacs relays a phone call he had with Apple where he was notified of his app being removed from the iTunes store for duplicating built-in iPhone features -- an app that was originally and purportedly approved by Phil Schiller himself. Next out the door was GVdialer, and if you thought that was all bad, now comes word that Google's official Voice app was flat-out rejected by Cupertino. Now it's hard to say with certainty who's to blame for these app rejections, but a good many fingers are pointing to the cellular carriers -- and given AT&T's previous statements about the SlingPlayer app, it's hard to argue with that. For its part, the company hinted at finding a workaround via web apps, much like they did when Apple gave Latitude a cold shoulder -- but doesn't that feel just a little 2007? [Via AppleInsider] Read - Official Google Voice App Blocked from App Store Read - GV Mobile is getting pulled from App Store Read - Sean Kovac's Twitter status on Schiller
