Apple News

WSJ: Apple still ‘racing’ to complete iPad content deals before launch

Donald Melanson — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 21:46:00 +0000

The iPad launch may finally be right around the corner, but it looks like Apple might still have some considerable work cut out for itself before the big day. According to The Wall Street Journal, Apple is still negotiating with various media companies in an effort to drop the price on TV shows offered on the device, and it's even reportedly put some potential deals with newspaper, magazine and textbook publishers on the backburner as it focuses on other content. That word comes from the usual, unnamed "people with the matter," who go on to say that it's proven to be difficult to convince potential content partners of the advantages of working with Apple on the iPad versus the possible threats to their current sources of revenue.

It's hardly all bad news for the magical device though, as some other people familiar with the matter say that Apple has already sold "hundreds of thousands" of iPads. For its part, Apple is naturally staying mum on both counts.

WSJ: Apple still 'racing' to complete iPad content deals before launch originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 18 Mar 2010 16:46:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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iGroups patent suggests Apple is looking at social networking

Mike Schramm — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 21:30:00 +0000

Filed under: Apple

A new Apple patent is going around that offers up something called "iGroups" functionality -- it seems to be a kind of location-based social networking, including an ad-hoc currency functionality between a crowd of Apple devices. It's pretty interesting, though it sounds more like an idea Apple is playing with than an actual service they're going to debut. They specifically mention rock concerts and tradeshows (including WWDC), with the plan that someone would start up a "group," and then individual group members in the same location (determined by GPS) would be able to hook into that group and/or exchange contact info or "tokens" with other members of the same group. Not quite a Foursquare or Facebook competitor (this definitely seems like a much more local service), but a new kind of ad-hoc network based on the idea that everyone in the area who is using an Apple device can connect up in new ways.

The "token" idea is interesting, too -- it adds a gaming element to the situation that seems very un-Apple. That, more than anything else, is what makes me think this is Apple just covering their bases rather than securing an idea that they plan to put into action. Still, a lot of Apple's services (MobileMe, iWork, and so on) tend to be more traditional rather than innovative -- they innovate on hardware and often play catch-up on software -- they do it well, of course, but their specialty is polish, not necessarily. Diving into a newer arena like social networking would be an interesting move for Apple.

TUAW iGroups patent suggests Apple is looking at social networking originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 18 Mar 2010 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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i-Got-Control IRB1 dongle gives your iPhone / iPod touch universal remote functionality

Darren Murph — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 21:21:00 +0000

No need to spot clean your spectacles, and no need to brush the cobwebs out of your dome -- you really are seeing yet another IR dongle for Apple's dear iLineup. Hot on the heels of New Potato's FLPR, ThinkFlood's RedEye mini and Power A's solution comes this: an all-too-similar way to convert your iPod touch, iPhone or forthcoming iPad into a universal remote. Functionality wise, there's really nothing here that the other guys don't provide, though the beefed-up database of over 40,000 IR codes should make setting up your system a breeze. Users simply plug this into their dock connector, download the free application from the App Store and then dial up whatever components they have; once loaded, the IR beamer should do the rest, nixing the need to keep those 40 remotes around. It's expected to start shipping any day now for $69.95.

i-Got-Control IRB1 dongle gives your iPhone / iPod touch universal remote functionality originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 18 Mar 2010 16:21:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Rupert Murdoch loves the iPad, sees everything in the world on it

Michael Grothaus — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 21:00:00 +0000

Filed under: iPad

News Corporation Chairman Rupert Murdoch was interviewed last week by Fox Business Channel. During the interview Murdoch blasts Google for stealing his content and talks about how tablet devices will reinvigorate the advertising industry for new media.

As for the iPad, Murdoch states, "...all media will be coming to the iPad whether it be music, or books, or newspapers or movies" and contrasts it with the "black and white" Kindle. He imagines reading a newspaper article with a photograph in it and just touching the photograph to watch it become a video.

He goes on to say that the iPad is physically "small to start with" but says "there'll be more iPads" implying that they'll eventually come in larger sizes. Even though he is one of the most important people in the media world, Murdoch's comments are most likely conjecture and not inside knowledge. Skip to 1:45 for the iPad mention.

[via 9to5Mac]

TUAW Rupert Murdoch loves the iPad, sees everything in the world on it originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 18 Mar 2010 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Turn yourself into an alien avatar with PhotoAvatar

David Winograd — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 20:00:00 +0000

Filed under: App Review

PhotoAvatar (US $.99) is a remarkable iPhone/iPod touch novelty app from the makers of HourFace, an app I liked quite a lot when I reviewed it a few months ago. PhotoAvatar turns a properly taken photo into any one of three alien avatars, each so realistic that it's eerie.

Using a carefully taken photo snapped by the camera or taken from a photo library, you decide on which alien you want to be and the app does the rest. The picture gets transformed into an amazingly realistic 3D moving image. The result can be emailed or saved to the camera roll. But the creepiest part is watching the image on the screen. It's constantly in motion, blinking, turning, glaring and growling at you. If you swipe your finger over the image, the avatar will follow your finger. If you tap the screen, the image will stretch and audibly growl at you. If you shake the device, you'll get another animation.

This app is very simple to use and limited in usefulness, but for once, I don't think that matters since the results are really something to behold. I watched an avatar without touching the screen for a few minutes and regardless of what I knew, I was just about convinced that the image was real. You really need to see this gem for yourself and a buck is a fair price to show you something that you haven't yet seen in such a realistic manner.

PhotoAvatar has the same limitations of HourFace when taking or using a picture. The photo needs to look directly ahead, not be wearing glasses, have a visible forehead, a closed mouth and not be too light or dark. I found about half of the photos I tried from my photo library worked and half didn't, bringing up a screen detailing the specs I just noted. But when it works, it's incredible.

The only thing I would like to see added to the app is the ability to output a properly sized avatar file to be used with Twitter, Facebook, etc. The marketing text makes it clear that this is one of the purposes of the app, so I can't see why PhotoAvatar can't output such an image.

Take a look at this gallery where you can see my source picture and what PhotoAvatar did with it. Then, click the 'read more' link to watch the video since you really need to see it in action.

I'd buy it right now as one of the best graphic implementations yet.

Gallery: PhotoAvatar Gallery

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TUAW Turn yourself into an alien avatar with PhotoAvatar originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 18 Mar 2010 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The tech sites Steve Jobs reads

Michael Grothaus — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 19:00:00 +0000

Filed under: Steve Jobs, iPad

Ever wonder what tech sites Steve Jobs reads? Well, according to Silicon Alley Insider some of those sites are our very own sister site Engadget, along with Gizmodo, The New York Times Tech section, and the Wall Street Journal.

SAI's source was in one of the meetings with Jobs when he visited Manhattan on his media tour with the iPad in February and he clearly saw those four sites bookmarked in Safari on Steve's iPad.

The source did say that Steve had other sites bookmarked, but the ones listed above were the only ones that stuck in the source's mind. Here's hoping that one of the other ones was The Unofficial Apple Weblog.

TUAW The tech sites Steve Jobs reads originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 18 Mar 2010 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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etc: Apple board member Jerry York died of a brain aneurism after collapsing at his Michigan home last night. York had served as a director at Apple since 1997.

Infinite Loop — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 18:10:23 +0000

Apple board member Jerry York died of a brain aneurism after collapsing at his Michigan home last night. York had served as a director at Apple since 1997.

Read More: Apple

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Apple board member Jerome York passes away

Megan Lavey — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 17:45:00 +0000

Filed under: Apple Corporate

[Apple has updated its home page with the tribute above.]

Apple board member Jerome York died today after reportedly suffering a brain aneurysm on Wednesday.

York, 71, has been on Apple's Board of Directors since 1997. His former positions include chief financial officer at IBM and Chrysler, chief executive officer of Micro Warehouse and a vice chairman of Tracinda. At the time of his death he was the chairman, president and CEO of Harwinton Capital. York was a graduate of West Point, MIT and the University of Michigan; he started his career at Chrysler as an engineer and worked his way up to the executive suite.

We offer our condolences to Mr. York's family and friends.

[Via MarketWatch]

TUAW Apple board member Jerome York passes away originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 18 Mar 2010 12:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Make a molehill out of a mountain with Tilt Shift Focus

Mel Martin — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 17:00:00 +0000

Filed under: Multimedia, Software, Odds and ends, Graphic Design

Got a desire to mess with some pictures you have by controlling blur or making full-sized objects look like miniatures? I've just played with some software called Tilt-Shift-Focus that mimics the way tilt shift lenses work. By artfully applying selective blur, you can make objects look they are part of a train set. There is another effect that duplicates the look of zoom movement in a still photo.

There are several modes that let you define where the blur and sharpness is positioned in your image. You can also use a paintbrush tool to draw sharpness onto an image that is pre-blurred.

To use the software, you manipulate control points. At first it seems very counter-intuitive, but with a little practice it starts to make sense. Of course, this software is not going to duplicate what an expensive lens can do, but I found it fun to manipulate some photos from my archives and 'miniaturize' parts of the photos.

One thing I noticed was that at times loading and saving JPEG images was very slow. I also wish there was some built-in help to get you started, but the developer does have some good tutorials and a helpful videos on his website.

If you are looking to do this on an iPhone check out our review here. You can also simulate this effect in Photoshop, and we have you covered there too.

The software sells for US$14.99 and requires OS X 10.5 or later. It's worth a spin if you are interested in doing these kinds of effects.

Here are some examples I created:

Gallery: Tilt Shift Focus

TUAW Make a molehill out of a mountain with Tilt Shift Focus originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 18 Mar 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Hands-on: Kindle books finally come to the Mac desktop

Jacqui Cheng — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 16:40:00 +0000

Amazon's Kindle software for Mac has finally arrived, a hair over six months after its Windows counterpart. The free application allows Mac users to read books from the Kindle Store on their desktops and sync their items across other devices, including actual Kindles, iPhones, BlackBerrys, or Windows machines using the Kindle software. Since we gave the PC version a (semi-successful) run through, we thought we would take a look at Kindle for Mac as well.

Once you download the software and log in with your Amazon account, the Kindle software presents you with an essentially blank "Home" screen and an "Archived Items" tab. If you have already downloaded books to read on other devices (I'm an active Kindle 2 user, for example, so I have plenty of books already), then the Archived Items tab should be filled with everything you have ever bought.

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