While it is not anything new to see Apple job postings, TechCrunch spotted a listing for iWork that stood out from the crowd. It was a year ago that Apple opened up iWork.com to beta testing. It allows the sharing of iWork documents, spreadsheets and presentations with anyone with access to a modern web browser, on a Mac or PC. On December 22nd Apple posted that they are seeking an Applications Engineer for the iWork team and they hint that more than just online sharing might be in store for iWork:

The Productivity team (i.e. iWork) is seeking an energetic, highly motivated software engineer in building a scalable rich internet application. The person will be part of the core development team and engage in an area from design to development of the software system.

Besides exceptional programming skills and devotion to creating great software, we look for one or more of the following kinds of expertise or experience:

• JavaScript language and browser technology – understanding from inside-out, or
• Computer graphics – the mathematics, algorithms and programming, or
• Experience developing scalable rich internet application, or
• Experience developing presentation/collaboration or word processing projects

Reading this job listing one would get the impression Apple is looking to start a venture outside of the current iWork team, perhaps iWork in the cloud.

We haven’t gotten a native iWork app for the iPhone or iPod touch yet. Would an HTML5, CSS, and JavaScript WebApp be a workable alternative? Would you want?

[Via TechCrunch]

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

Apple Seeking Applications Engineer for Cloud-Bound iWork?

No sooner did iSlate.com surface than 9to5mac has noted that http://apple.com/ichatmobile doesn’t return a “page not found” error, but rather redirects to Apple’s iChat for Mac OS X.

Could be nothing, of course. (But if I didn’t post this next part, Chad would never forgive me). Or, in the best-case scenario, Apple is finally (finally) putting the pieces in place to launch an actual, mobile iChat application for the iPhone (and perhaps just-as-mytical at this point, iTablet).

Now whether it will be text-only IM, or use video, or indicates the 4th generation iPhone and rumored iSlate will have a front-facing camera is a box of crazy even we’re not opening this holiday season!

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

What’s Apple.com/iChatMobile for? iPhone? iTablet? More iUnicorns?

Week 3 the 2009 Smartphone Round Robin serves me up on a princess-splattered platter for Google’s Android platform with the equally pretty HTC Hero and the red-eyed macho-mech, Motorola’s DROID.

Our ace Android Central expert, the generally non-grievous Casey Chan is helping me out in the video below the fold, and I’ve also headed over to AC’s cantina to mind-trick me some answers.

Remember, every day you post on my Android Central Forums thread, you’re entered for a chance to win the Android of your choice. (And there’s a total of 6 smartphones up for grabs — one per SPE site — so check them all out!)

And since turn-about is fair play, the aforementioned Casey has returned from the Dark Droid Side to once again wield the iPhone, and you can now be his Yodas in the TiPb Forums! (And win an iPhone 3GS!)

Now brace yourselves for the jump to lightspeed (and a week of poor Star Wars puns!) because Casey’s about to show me everything new and hopeful about Hero’s Sense UI and Droid’s Android 2.0!

[YouTube Video link]

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

Google Android HTC Hero, Motorola Droid Hands-on Video — Smartphone Round Robin

Every week a few of us from team TiPb — bloggers, forum crew, and occasional friends alike — bring you our current favorite, funnest, most useful App Store apps, WebApps, jailbreak apps, even the occasional accessory, web site, or desktop app if the mood strikes us. As long as they’re iPhone (or iPod touch) related, they’re fair game. Well, as 2009 winds to a close, we figured it’s time for the staff to bring you not just picks of the week but — PICKS OF THE YEAR!

So who’s on deck for the very best iPhone apps of 2009? What are our picks? Find out after the break!

Chad’s Pick: N.O.V.A. — Near Orbit Vanguard Alliance

This game demonstrates what is possible on the iPhone from a 3D shooter. This game has set the bar. [$6.99 - iTunes link]

Chris’ Pick: Navigon MobileNavigator

Pick of the year, pick of the year…how do I choose a single app as my pick of the year? A game with which I have had lots of fun? A utility that I simply use all the time? A twitter app? After much debate and flip-flopping, I decided to go with Navigon as my pick of the year. Navigon (with the recent updates and improvements) is as close as I have seen to a turn by turn app done right. It has a plethora of features, has clear voice guided turn by turn directions, and really is one of the two or three utility apps that I use on a regular basis and gives the iPhone a feature that almost everyone was clamoring for from the beginning. [$59.99 until Jan. 11 - iTunes link]

Derrick’s Pick: Simplytweet

Simplytweet is not only my Favorite app but its my app of the year also,. It’s a great twitter app that has many features, including Multiple Accounts, Push Notifications, Photo Search, My favorite features are Landscape, retweet or quote tweets (via @theiphoneblog instead of RT @theiphoneblog), and Themes. [$4.99 - iTunes link]

Dieter, SPE Editor-in-Chief’s Pick:

Since the iPhone has become my secondary device, I’m finding that my go-to apps on it have changed a bit. The one I use the most: the Kindle app. I love that I have my books with me all the time now and that I can read it in bed without a light. Amazon really nailed the ‘just works’ aspect with the way they have sync set up – just a few seconds of data access is enough to get myself synced up to the last page I was reading on my actual Kindle. [Free - iTunes link]

Georgia’s Pick: Skype

Skype gives you the ability to call anyone else who uses Skype, anywhere in the world, for free. You can also call landline or cell phones for a small fee, and send out IMs. Anything that combines “call anyone” and “free” definitely gets my vote for app of the year. (And if the 4th generation iPhone gets a front-facing camera, maybe we will even be able to have two-way video calls next year). [Free - iTunes link]

Jeremy’s Pick: Twitbit

Twitbit has been my Twitter app of choice for some time now. Is it perfect? No, but then again the perfect app does not exist. What really makes Twitbit stand out as my favorite app of 2009 is the hard work that goes into it and the frequent updates to the app (and the updates are free unlike some other over rated Twitter app who’s name I won’t mention because it would hurt Rene’s feelings). The developer, High Order Bit, constantly is striving to improve this app and it has evolved very well. I highly recommend you check it out. [$2.99 - iTunes link]

Leanna’s Pick: 1Password Pro

iPhone + Mac + 1Password for iPhone and Mac = best combination ever. Before my discovery of 1Password, I used the same 3 boring passwords for everything. Now I have a different randomly generated password for each login and 1Password makes this simple and hassle-free. When I first started using 1Password for iPhone, I was nervous that it was going to be a pain to have to launch 1Password to copy a password each time I needed it but the process is actually rather quick and worth it knowing that I have secure passwords. This combination is a serious must-have for iPhone and Mac users. [$7.99 - iTunes link]

Matt’s Pick: Appigo Todo

Deciding which app I feel is my Pick of the Year was immensely hard. I immediately thought to myself “well it’s my most used application…”but then I realized, that wouldn’t be it. It had to be something that filled in the gap where the iPhone OS left out, revolutionize the way I worked on the iPhone. Was it easy to use? Could I customize it to fit my work? Finally I came upon the conclusion of – Appigo’s Todo application. One of main things I missed coming from the Palm to the iPhone was a todo application. Appigo’s Todo, goes above & beyond what the normal todo application should go. With several options to sync & push notification reminders, this is a killer app & an app worthy as a pick of the year [$9.99 - iTunes link]

Mickey, the Cell Phone Junkie’s Pick: All-in-One WiFiRemote

WiFi Remote is one of the coolest apps I have. For $5, it allows me to control my Windows 7 media center that I have connected to my living room TV over my WiFi network without having to deal with a keyboard and mouse. It is like having a pocket control for the computer with me all the time. I can sit on the couch and either surf, or simply control the media I want to watch. The best part is that both my wife and I have it installed on our iPhones, so either of us can control it. [$4.99 - iTunes link]

Rene’s Pick: Boxcar

And here’s why — iPhone 3.0 introduced a couple innovations to the iPhone app space, namely (and finally!) push-notifications and in-app purchases. Sure, augmented reality like Gunman is coming on strong, we’re all looking forward to Unreal Engine 3 powered games, and one day we may see the fruits of app accessory access, but for today, for 2009, Boxcar is delivering. Not only is it an innovative example of push-notifcation and in-app purchase, it uses both fill gaps both in other apps (like the PNS-challenged Tweetie, Twitterrific, and yeah, Facebook), for Apple and Google who still haven’t delivered push Gmail without taking up the lone ActiveSync slot on the iPhone (which GoogleSync requires), and in the latest version, for Growl and RSS notifications as well. Bottom line, Boxcar has leveraged iPhone 3.0 to make great apps and services better, and that makes it my pick of the year. [Free + in-app purchase - iTunes link]

Your Pick?

You’re part of team TiPb too, so what’s your pick of the year? In 2009, what was your most used, most eye-popping, most “this changes everything” iPhone app?

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

TiPb Picks of the Year — Nova, Navigon, SimplyTweet, Kindle, Skype, Twitbit, 1Password, Appigo Todo, WiFiRemote, Boxcar

According to the mobile App analytics firm, Flurry, not only has the App Store seen a record-breaking month, December nearly doubling sales from November, this holiday season has seen iPod touch sales skyrocket as well.

Since November iPhone users have downloaded the most apps from the App Store, that is until Christmas day as iPod touch app downloads eclipsed those of the iPhone by 172%. And if you think that sounds impressive, downloads from Apple’s third-generation iPod touch jumped up nearly 900% on Christmas Day alone.

All of this data would indicate that the iPod touch was quite a hot seller this holiday season. How many of our readers gifted or received their own iPod touch this Christmas?

[Via 9to5Mac]

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

iPod touch Sales Soar this Holiday Season

Some interesting rumor updates on the iTablet, or iSlate if Apple goes that way, including the status of its panel and production, and some nostalgia for another unreleased bit of Apple kit — the Newton-era MessageSlate.

Last things first — a while back on iPhone Live! Chad and were chatting tablets and he wondered if Apple would go with iBook. To me, 1) that sounds more like a device that folds open and closed like a laptop or dual-screen tablet and 2) Apple is historically the very opposite of nostalgic and ruthlessly disposes of the past in a relentless drive for the future.

But now MacRumors reminds us about the old Newton-based MessageSlate, and we’re left to wonder — does this make the rumored tablet name of iSlate more likely, or less likely?

Now to the meat of it, MacRumors is also quoting Economic Daily and Digitimes on stories involving orders for supposedly tablet-bound “connectors” and Foxconn’s subsidiary Innolux for 10″ touch panels.

The panels, they say, are what’s been holding the tablet up:

Apple has been seeking solutions to strengthen the glass of the 10-inch panel for the device and was forced to delay the launch until first-quarter 2010, the sources noted.

To go along with these rumored details about rumored products, we still have a rumored January 26th, 2010 for the rumored announcement, so stay tuned!

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

iTablet Rumor Updates — Hardened 10″ Panels, and iSlate Nostalgia for MessageSlate

As Rene mentioned earlier today, AT&T online is not selling iPhones to people in the New York City areas, but physical stores and Apple are selling them. AT&T’s latest explanation for this is fraud.

I mentioned this story to the folks that run The TiPb Accessory Store and they said that they have experienced ‘waves’ of fraud from the NYC area over the years, necessitating increased scrutiny on every order destined for the Big Apple. Much of their anti-fraud system was developed, in fact, in order to deal with fraudulent NYC area orders. AT&T Online refusing to sell anything to New Yorkers is an extreme and extremely bad solution, but it’s not crazy to think that it’s a bad solution to a real problem.

So either AT&T is lying about their incompetence in running a network or AT&T is telling the truth about their incompetence in running an online store. Or it’s a third issue we haven’t heard yet, one which we would like to think doesn’t involve incompetence.

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

AT&T, iPhone, and New York City: Fraud? Really?

For those of us looking for an iDisk alternative, Zester has come out with the ZumoDrive. The ZumoDrive is a free service (up to 2GB, you can purchase more) that allows you to store and sync files to the cloud just like Apple’s iDisk. The app has three main sections: Files, Music and Photos.

This is how it works: You install the Zumo client on your PC or Mac. Once installed it can automatically look for your music and photo libraries. You can also add your own files and folders to sync too.

Once your data has synced to the cloud, it is accessible on your iPhone over EDGE, 3G or Wi-Fi. One nice feature I particularly like is when playing music, it displays the album art of your song; this is really a nice touch. Your data is also accessible via a web browser too when the iPhone isn’t enough. To learn more about ZumoDrive, click here. [Free- iTunes link]

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

Quick App: ZumoDrive Cloud Storage for iPhone

In the wake of the latest act of terrorism attempted on a US airplane, the TSA has enacted what appear to be deliberately unpredictable new security measures that seem to include a complete ban on the use of electronics like the iPhone or iPod touch, and even the use of the bathroom for the last hour of any plane trip in-bound to the US.

“Seem” is the operative word, as there looks to still be a lot of confusion as to how, when, and where the new policies are being implemented. We could joke about the come back of non-tablet paper books, or the train and automobile industries in the face of skies being so friendly, but missed flights and connections, mass confusion and sustained minor panic aren’t too terribly funny. Likewise we’ll side step the whole “eternal vigilance” vs. “deserve neither” debate.

The current policies seem to be effective until Jan. 1, 2010, and then we’ll see what happens next. With gadget-lovers coming into the US for CES in just over a week, and with no doubt plenty of Americans with return flights planned from the Vancouver Olympics (and countless other places) thereafter, let’s hope everything stays safe and and secure while returning as quickly as possible to functionality.

Meanwhile, Gizmodo has the TSA memo which basically lays out that if you don’t run your own country, get in line way early and be prepared for anything. You’ll likely get patted down once or twice. Your carry-on baggage may be restricted to one item and will be visually inspected. You’ll likely not be able to use any electronics or go to the bathroom for the last hour of the flight. The in-flight entertainment system may be completely shut down, or may just not show live location information or news. Everyone is going to be tired, frustrated, and on edge.

[Much of this via PCMag's @saschasegan who's doing a great job passing along information via Twitter]

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

Want to Take an iPhone, iPod touch, or Any Gadget on a Flight Into the US? Here’s What You Need to Know!

So the internets are exploding thanks to a Consumerist article that involved not being able to order an iPhone in New York City via AT&T’s website.

AT&T has apparently found a workable solution to the reported data congestion in New York City. They’ve quietly stopped selling the iPhone to customers in the New York metropolitan area, at least from their web site.

TechCrunch doesn’t seem to be having too much trouble finding them and simply suggests AT&T’s online system pulls from a different warehouse and seems to be out of stock in the area:

So if you really want to buy an iPhone in New York City, go to an AT&T store, or an Apple Store. Or try Apple's website. That seems to be taking orders for New York City residents just fine ( I got up to the checkout).

TiPb contacted AT&T PR and got the following, which we’re grateful for given the holidays, the weekend, and the late hour, though it is a tad on the cryptic side:

“We periodically modify our promotions and distribution channels.”

Hopefully the dust will settle and either the NYC iPhone ordering system will get replenished, or something more concrete will come from AT&T.

UPDATE: MediaMemo is saying AT&T has halted online purchases of new iPhones in order to prevent fraud. So, if you want a new iPhone in NYC, you have to walk into an AT&T or Apple store and get one. However they don’t believe that makes a whole lot of sense either.

Still feel free to sound off in the comments!

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

Regarding the iPhone in NYC — AT&T “Periodically Modifies Promotions and Distribution Channels”.