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MacBook Air powers four screens simultaneously
We're going to be agreeable and assume this picture of a MacBook Air powering 4 displays isn't a Photoshop job (It's Friday and we're in a good mood). From right to left, we've got: An old-school, 20" Apple Cinema Display A 7-inch Mimo 720-S USB display The MacBook Air itself An honest-to-goodness Apple //c running a terminal session through a serial cable Add a Kinect and Minecraft and you've got a portable holodeck. Not bad for an "underpowered laptop," eh? [Hat tips to Gizmodo and MacStories]
Police hunt down stolen iPhone in chopper
Police in Australia take iPhone theft seriously; so seriously, they will not hesitate to employ the use of a helicopter to nab a thief who has made off with one of Apple's prized mobile devices. The story begins in a hospital in Heidelberg, Australia where an iPhone was stolen from an unsuspecting woman. The woman's iPhone presumably had the now well-known Find My iPhone app setup installed, and the police used the app on another device or MobileMe to track and locate the iPhone in the neighboring suburb of Greensborough. Lucky for the lady and her missing iPhone, a police helicopter was already in the area and was dispatched to the iPhone's GPS coordinates. The tracking was so accurate that the helicopter was able to spot the thief riding a stolen bike down a city street. The 16-year old suspect ditched the bike as soon as the helicopter was hovering above him (who wouldn't?) and ran towards the Tram to make a hasty escape. The suspect was apprehended by police on the ground in Bundoora, and the unfortunate lad was caught with the stolen iPhone and some marijuana. He is now being charged with burglary, theft and the possession of cannabis. Mark that down as another win for the now free Find My iPhone service and another loss for iPhone thieves. Thanks to Gavin B for sending this in!
iPad portrait light array for photographers
Here's an interesting way to use 9 iPads. Photographer Jesse Rosten mounted the set on several pieces of plywood, maxed out the brightness on each and had assistants move then around while he shot his model. In fact, the iPad arrays were the only light sources for this particular shoot. Was it a publicity stunt? Of course (and well done). But watch the video after the break. The photos came out well! We hope Jesse borrowed the iPads because 9 x $499 is $4,491. Still, it was a fun idea with nice results. Good work, everyone. If the name Jesse Rosten sounds familiar it's because we recently featured his awesome "iPad + Velcro" film. Now we're eager to see what's next.
The first Presidential iPad autograph?
At a recent rally at the University of Washington in Seattle, President Obama signed a well-wisher's iPad. As far as we know, this is the first presidential autograph captured with an iPad. Sylvester Cann attended the rally with Adobe Ideas running on his iPad. He tells TechCrunch that at first the Secret Service were hesitant, but eventually relented, while the President thought the idea was "cool." He proceeded to "draw" his signature with is finger. Autograph collection is a fun pastime for many, and Mr. Cann certainly has a unique one.
Found Footage: TWEET IT a video parody of Beat it
We're a few days late on this one, but I thought that it was quite well done and rather clever in a Weird Al Yankovich sort of way. In this spoof of Michael Jackson's Beat It, Pantless Knights, a group that has made some pretty good musical spoofs, presents TWEET IT. In this video the hipsters, sporting iPhones, and the suits, all with iPads, take it to the streets in a battle of the tweets. At the quarterly Apple earnings call this past Monday, it was mentioned that Apple hasn't marketed the iPad to the enterprise market though iPads have gotten on the approved acquisition list of many Fortune 500 companies. However, it was also noted that 85% of Fortune 500 firms are currently deploying iPhones. So wouldn't it make sense for the hipsters to brandish iPads while the suits threatened them with iPhones? Click on the Read More link to take a gander.
Luxo iMac makes killer iPad stand
Among the iPad's superpowers is inspiring its owners to new heights of creativity. So far it has delighted a 100-year-old user, been wrapped in chocolate and spawned all sorts of DIY cases and stands. The latest effort we've seen is this G4 iMac-mounted beauty. Flickr user Rusty saw his busted G4 iMac, his iPad and had a chocolate-and-peanut butter moment. He removed the iMac's innards and display. Next he cut and molded some acrylic to accommodate the iPad and attached it to the arm. Finally, a speaker pair was placed inside the iMac case with a cable running to the iPad's headphone jack. From there, all that was left was to pair a Bluetooth keyboard and plug the iPad into a wall! Now he's got a retro-cool, swivel-arm iPad stand that's perfectly at eye level. Actually, the iMac looks a lot like it did with the original 15" display. We love it. Thanks to Rusty for the tip.
99 year-old loves her first computer -- an iPad
Virginia Campbell, a 99-year-old woman from Lake Oswego, has finally bought her first computer -- an Apple iPad. "It's changed her life," one of her daughters told OregonLive.com. Virginia has been an avid reader most of her life, but she suffers from glaucoma, making reading increasingly difficult. Because of the iPad's ability to adjust the brightness of the page and to increase the font by simply tapping, Virginia has been able to take up her beloved past-time again. Not only is she reading again, she's writing again too. So far she has composed twelve limericks on her iPad, including this little ditty: To this technical-ninny it's clear In my compromised 100th year, That to read and to write Are again within sight Of this Apple iPad pioneer. Here's to you and your technological wonder, Virginia! We hope to read many more of your limericks well into the future. Thanks to Ian for sending this in.
Today's two-second laugh: iPad printing, solved
Take one iPad with any application running (and a clear-as-day multitouch screen), add one multi-function printer with an optical scanner, and boom, you've solved the problem of printing from iPad. Who needs a firmware update when you've got a little ingenuity? Points to the clever folk at Form for coming up with this. [via Engadget]
Retro handset for the iPad is fashion-forward, techno-backward
Here's something very high on the cool scale. The retro-cool Moshi Moshi 01 handset (MM01) can be used with mobile phones, VoIP via USB and yes, iPhones and iPads. Old-timers like me remember back when talking on the phone meant standing next to the wall, tethered (physically, not Bluetooth) to a hunk of plastic and metal, speaking into a bulky handset that hung from a 2- or 3-foot length of cord. The folks at Native Union have brought the sexy back with the MM01. When fitted with the proper adapter, the MM01 can connect to most mobile phones including the iPhone. Additionally, you can connect it to an iPad (again, with the proper adapter) to use with VoIP apps like Skype. It's like having a telephone at the end of a cookie sheet! Who wouldn't want that? Seriously, we think this thing is great. For $US29.99, you get the handset and 3.5mm connector jack. Other adapters are sold separately. [Via BoingBoing]
Found Footage: iPad intro video as captioned by Google
Update: Some folks aren't seeing the captions. To ensure that you do, click the right disclosure arrow then make sure "CC" is selected. Next to "CC," select "Transcribe audio." It should be on by default, but if not, that's how to fix it. Auto-captioning, introduced last year by YouTube in a pilot test, uses voice recognition to create text captions for uploaded videos (via the same massively distributed approach that Google uses for machine translation, and with the same underlying engine that Google Voice uses to transcribe voicemail). Just last week the feature was opened up to all YouTube uploaders -- but apparently it still struggled with the iPad introduction video, with unintentionally hilarious results. I now want "and it helps so many basic technology of the applications the baltic countries are going" on a t-shirt. Yes, you've might have already seen this video, but you owe it to yourself to sit down for a few minutes and watch again. Just don't drink while watching, as a spit take is imminent. [Via Engadget]
Life of Steve Jobs to be a play
The Berkeley Repertory Theater is producing a play titled The Agony and the Ecstasy of Steve Jobs. The play will be a monologue monologuist piece that "dives into the epic story of a real-life Willy Wonka whose personal obsessions profoundly affect our everyday lives" The play isn't all roses in it's portrayal of Jobs, though. It follows the trail to China where millions toil in factories to create iPhones and iPods – something Apple has been under pressure for lately. The play's monologue is written by and staring Mike Daisey. Daisey is best known for leaving Amazon to become an actor. In 2001 his book 21 Dog Years, an account of his time working for Amazon.com during the dotcom boom years, thrust him into the limelight The play will run from January 14 to February 27, 2011 and is directed by Jean-Michele Gregory. UPDATE: I have corrected the piece after speaking with Mike Daisey. He is a monologuist, so he doesn't play people - he does a monologue about them. "The monologue is about Steve Jobs, industrial design, Apple, and is woven against where our tecnology is made, and at what cost," Mike told me.
Found Footage: SNL parodies Steve Jobs again
Saturday Night Live (SNL) has done a great job of satirizing Steve Jobs and Apple over the years, and the tradition continued last week. "Undercover Boss" is a TV show in the states that has big business CEOs perform their company's entry-level jobs. SNL expanded the idea to Undercover Celebrity Boss, and featured Steve Jobs as the first target. In the clip after the break, watch "Steve" explain to an employee that the trash can he's filling, which he calls the iTrash, "...holds over 35 gallons of trash, and plays music." There are other "celebrity bosses" in the clip (Martha Stewart is especially funny), but it's Steve that got our attention. Good job, SNL! You can watch the video after the break. [Via iPhone Savior]
Frozen sausage as iPhone stylus
Using an iPhone in the cold presents a quandry. You don't want to freeze your fingers, but gloves make the touchscreen difficult to use. Unless you've got Dots Gloves. Or sausages. In South Korea, CJ Corporation noticed a sharp increase in sales of their frozen sausages. Not because they're especially tasty, because cold commuters have discovered that they make an effective iPod stylus. It seems that they're electrostatically compatible with the iPod's touch screen, and nearly as effective as using a human finger. Here's a Google-translated story on the phenomenon from a Korean newspaper (the translation into English is quite poor, but you'll get the idea). I don't know about you, but i'll be buying a box of Jimmy Deans this weekend. [Via Daring Fireball]
Earthquake survivor says iPhone helped save his life
Here's a remarkable story coming out of the horrendous tragedy in Haiti. Colorado Springs resident Dan Woolley was at a Port-au-Prince hotel when that tremendous earthquake struck, trapping him with a compound fracture in his leg and a laceration on his head. Fortunately for Dan, he had his iPhone and a medical app with him (plus a lot of luck), which he used to successfully diagnose and treat his injuries. Using the light from his iPhone's screen, Dan examined his wounds and identified the extent of the damage using the unnamed app. From there, he looked up the appropriate first aid techniques and applied them with pieces of his own clothing. Later, as he waited to be rescued, he diagnosed shock, again using that medical app. Update: A commenter over at Wired's Gadget Lab site tracked down Dan's review for Pocket First Aid & CPR [$3.99, iTunes link], so now we know which app was the lifesaver. First aid apps are well represented on the App Store, and might prove crucial in an emergency. The US Army First Aid Manual [$1.99, iTunes link] and Survival Guide [$1.99, iTunes link] may be suitable for you; if you want more clinical information and CPR help, the free WebMD Mobile [iTunes link] or CPR Hero [iTunes link] may deserve a spot on your phone. There's also a podcast to help you learn the techniques of CPR for child and adult rescue. It's an amazing story of survival, and we wish Dan and everyone affected the best. If you're looking for a way to support the relief efforts, you can do your part -- and get some great software to boot -- today at Indie Relief or Mac Bundle Box. [Via MacDailyNews]
Found footage: 6 iPhones almost make a full keyboard
A piano has 88 keys, and this arrangement of iPhones comes pretty close (we counted 84). The pianist has six iPhones laid out in a row starting from a low C and progressing through 5 octaves. As a result, he can play a nice piece of music on very tiny, touch-sensitive keys. That takes a good bit of dexterity. He has obviously been doing his Hanon exercises. There are a number of piano apps in the App Store, including Pocket Piano [iTunes link], Virtuoso Piano [iTunes link] and Mini Piano [iTunes link]. We can't tell which app is being used here, but the UI closely resembles that of Mini Piano. Budding artists may wish to practice piano with GarageBand '09 or work on sight reading with Key Wiz [iTunes link]. [Via Swiss Miss]
iPhone is first smartphone to visit alien mothership, gets reception
Good news folks. When the aliens arrive our iPhones will work on their ships, at least according to the new V television series [iTunes link]. The iPhone has been seen twice on the show so far, both times being toted by the human traitor Tyler Evans, the second time when Tyler flies on up to the mothership floating over NYC. Admittedly, he is using the iPhone to take pictures of the alien lizard hottie Lisa, so his treason might be forgivable under the circumstances. But come on Ty, you've got video recording on that 3GS. Next time she does this, how about a little filming?
Man threatens to shoot iPhone at Genius bar
Even morons buy Apple products. There's a story on ifoAppleStore today about one Mr. Donald Goodrich, who was having trouble with his iPhone. As many customers have done, Mr. Goodrich brought his iPhone to his local Genius Bar in Cincinnati, OH. While talking with an Apple Store employee, he allegedly said, "I'm so mad, I could pop a 9mm at it," meaning the iPhone. According to police, he then said, "I'll do it right now! Look!" and pulled his shirt aside to show the employee the handgun he was carrying. While that employee escorted him to the Genius Bar (clearly not the right place for Mr. Goodrich), another called police who quickly arrived and arrested him. We should note that Mr. Goodrich did have a permit to carry a concealed weapon and was cooperative with his arresting officer. We should also note that flashing it to a young person in a crowded mall while visibly upset and threatening to use it was a very dumb idea. Also, as Brandon points out in the comments below, the mall housing the Apple Store is private property and has posted "no weapons" signs.
Don't try this at home
Or at the pool, or at the beach. It seems a French fellow was proud of his new iPhone 3GS and was taking pictures around the pool when the sort of inevitable happened. Yup, in the drink. Amazingly, the iPhone survived the underwater ordeal, and even recorded [YouTube link] the trip. Allegedly. I wouldn't recommend this as summer entertainment. The iPhone in question had a tight rubber case, and my guess is while the video did record OK, the moisture in the phone will eventually take a toll. There are a few water-tight cases for the iPhone, and we road tested an Otterbox Defender case back in April. Perhaps this fellow will invest in such a case should he go iPhone diving in the future.Now of course the video might be a fake (I would have expected to see water on the lens for example), but at least it's an entertaining weekend diversion. Click through to the second half of the post to see the video.Via Cult of Mac.
Your iPhone dislikes "Flickr"
Some have said that the iPhone 2.0 software is buggy. We say, "Bugs? What bugs?"Today, reader Alfred has identified one that you can try for yourself. Open up Notes and attempt to type "Flickr." You'll find that you can't. The 2.0 software replaces "Flickr" with "flicke" or "flickt". Here's the weird part: you can't even select the "r" button. Sliding a finger from "e" to "t" skips "r" entirely.Here's the obvious, inelegant workaround: delete the "e" or "t" and type again. For more odd (and useful) iPhone tips, check out our iPhone 101 series.Thanks, Alfred!
