As part of DC Comics new 52 initiative, Dan DiDio, Jim Lee, Grant Morrison and company announced that they would be releasing future issues on iPad day and date with the traditional print releases. That’s great news for comic book readers, and great first step. Now how about offering collected digital editions simultaneous to trade paperback releases. I’d love Absolute digital editions of Watchman, Dark Knight Returns, Planetary, All Star Superman, and the list goes on.

And hopefully Marvel is paying super attention to this as well.

Video after the break.

[BleedingCool.com via SuperManofSteel, 9to5Mac]

Today marks the first day of July, which means Independence Day is only a few days away. To celebrate, many developers have put their apps on sale and we’ve rounded up some of our favorites to tell you about!

1. EA Games: All games up to 90% off. [EA - iTunes link]

2. Gameloft Games: Select titles on sale for $0.99 for a ‘limited time’.

   • NOVA 2 [iTunes link]
   • NOVA 2 HD [iTunes link]
   • Asphalt 6: Adrenaline [iTunes link]
   • Asphalt 6: Adrenaline HD [iTunes link]
   • Dungeon Hunter 2: [iTunes link]
   • Dungeon Hunger 2 HD: [iTunes link]

3. Private Info: On sale until July 4. $1.99 for iPhone [iTunes link]. $5.99 for iPad [iTunes link].

4. Photopod: Free on July 2-3 [iTunes link]

5. QuickMark – QR Code Reader: Sale on July 4 [iTunes link]

6. Create a Monster HD: $0.99 until July 8 [iTunes link]

7. Boom Boat: Free until July 5 [iTunes link]

8. DataMan Pro for iPad with 3G: $1.99 until July 4 [iTunes (link].

9. Trucks and Skulls NITRO: Free today [iTunes link]

10. Zen Bound: $0.99 until July 11 [iTunes link]

These are only some of the sales, so make sure you check the App Store for more and share with us what you find! If you pick any of these up, let us know what you think!

Apple has just seeded the Gold Master (GM) candidate for OS X 10.7 Lion to developers. That’s the desktop jab, scheduled to land this month, that Apple is using to set up the overhand right of iOS 5, which will finish the combo this fall.

What’s interesting here is that Apple seems to be distributing Lion by Mac App Store redeem codes for the major milestones, and via Software Update for the smaller releases. By contrast, Apple has stuck with the tried, true, traditional direct download method for iOS 5 beta 1 and beta 2, though with the new over the air (OTA) features built into iOS, it’s possible they could try and test that system sometime in the next couple of months.

Lion, like iOS 5, will tie into the also-in-beta iCloud system so developers testing iCloud APIs for iOS will probably want to see how they work in Lion as well.

So, unless there are any showstoppers, we’re probably only a couple weeks away from Lion. We likely won’t see iOS 5 GM until September, however, but once and while, new iOS-centric features sneak into the OS X updates as well, so keep your eyes open.

[developer.apple.com]

The New York Times iPhone and iPad app has just received an update that allows users to subscribe via in-app purchase. Changes were made to many in-app subscription services after Apple changed the guidelines. The New York Times is one of many news publications that were affected by the changes. The update will now allow users to choose from three new in-app purchase schemes –

• $15 – iPhone + web content
• $20 – iPad + web content
• $35 – All access (iPhone, iPad, and web)

These fees will be on a monthly basis and will recur as long as you’re subscribed. This is similar to how other online publications have recently dealt with many of Apple’s subscription policy changes. Anyone planning on buying into the new subscription model NYT is offering?

[Mac Stories]

DataMan Pro for iPad with 3G is an app that allows you to track your data usage on your 3G iPad. Your usage is monitored in real time to ensure great accuracy and precision. DataMan can help you make smarter decisions to manage consumption, stop overage charges and save money.

• Track your daily, weekly and monthly cellular (3G/EDGE/GPRS) data usage. You can view your usage across different days in a chart and even zoom in to see the hourly details.
• Warn you the moment you exceed your usage thresholds, without having to open DataMan.
• Geotag your data activities and see them on a map. Very useful when you travel and roam.
• 4 levels of usage thresholds and 3 data allowances for you to customize to suit your data plan.
• Work with all carriers. No login is required to your carrier’s website.
• Always up-to-date usage statistics. No need to wait hours or days for your carrier to refresh and give you the latest statistics.
• Export your 3G usage statistics to iTunes File Sharing. Analyze your usage and location on your computer. The exported CSV file contains the timestamp, amount used in bytes and coordinates of all your data activities.
• Sound a persistent siren when your monthly allowance is exceeded.
• See your daily statistics in a chart on your iPad. Easily visualize your usage pattern.

The good folks at XVision have given us 10 promo codes to give away to you, our awesome readers! For chance to win, let us know about how much data you use on your 3G iPad each month.

DataMan Pro is on sale until July 4. If you pick this one up, let us know what you think! Check out the screenshots after the break.

[$1.99 on sale - iTunes link]

Have an app you’d love to see featured on TiPb? Email us at iosapps@tipb.com, tell us about your app (include an iTunes link), and we’ll take a look.

Every day, TiPb gets flooded with announcements for new and updated iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad apps and games. So every day we pick just a few of the most interesting, the most notable, and simply the most awesome to share with you!

• TiltShift Generator – Fake Miniature: Now with radial blur and auto color adjustment. [$0.99 for iPhone - iTunes link]

• 100 Rogues: A dungeon crawling adventure. Now with a new scoundrel skill and more! [Free for iPhone and iPad, with in-app purchases - iTunes link]

• Astroslugs for iPad: A colorful and soothing puzzle board game for your iPad. The game is set in a long forgotten age “when the universe still looked like an old parchment”. [$0.99 for Deluxe - iTunes link] [Free for Lite - iTunes link]

• TweetCompare: Compare all your important Twitter usage statistics against your friends and people that you follow. [$0.99 for iPhone - iTunes link]

• Carcassonne: Now compatible with iOS5. [$9.99 for iPhone and iPad - iTunes link]

Any other big apps or game releases or updates today? If you pick any of these up, let us know what you think!

Have an app you’d love to see featured on TiPb? Email us at iosapps@tipb.com, tell us about your app (include an iTunes link), and we’ll take a look.

Verbs, an instant messaging client for iPhone, has been updated and brings the availability of push notifications via an in-app purchase. You can also stay logged in for up to 7 days.

Verbs boasts of its beautiful UI and supports GTalk, AIM, and MobileMe. It has many neat features like the ability to view downloaded Text, PDF, Office and iWork documents and Instapaper, Droplr, and CloudApp support. Additionally, here’s all the new features included in the update:

• Enable Push Notifications and stay logged in for up to 7 days, available through simple in-app purchase (Verbs Pro).
• The text entry field in the chat grows with text.
• Send chat logs via email.
• Send links in received messages to Instapaper for reading later.
• Horizontal swipe action in the chat view to switch between chats.
• Tap and hold the unified accounts cell to sign in/out of all accounts.
• Pinch gesture to zoom out a conversation.
• Faster buddy list scrolling.
• Now displays AIM buddies “Mobile” status with blue icon.
• Shows buddy presence above the chat previews.
• Fixed the delay when the buddy list favorite header is tapped.
• Resets the keyboard to display alphabets after sending a message.
• Fixed issues with uploading pictures taken from camera.
• Bug fixes and better memory management.

If you pick this one up, let us know what you think! Check out the screenshots after the break.

[$2.99, with in-app purchases - iTunes link]

Have an app you’d love to see featured on TiPb? Email us at iosapps@tipb.com, tell us about your app (include an iTunes link), and we’ll take a look.

According to Reuters, a consortium of tech companies, including Apple, BlackBerry maker RIM, Microsoft, EMC, Sony, and Ericsson have won the auction to acquire Nortel’s mammoth $4.5 billion dollar mobile patent portfolio. How much of that will come from Apple is currently unknown, though RIM is on the line for $770 million and Ericsson, $340 million. The companies are expected to pool the patents and use them both to protect against patent lawsuits and, of course, launch lawsuits of their own.

The patents cover “wireless, wireless 4G, data networking, optical, voice, Internet and semiconductor technologies”, with the LTE 4G patents expected to become extremely valuable as networks and devices are upgraded to that standard.

If you noticed one major mobile company conspicuous by their absence, you’re not alone. Google appears not to have been part of the winning bid, which is perplexing since, as a new entrant in mobile, they have one of the weakest existing patent portfolios.

“Google lost an unprecedented opportunity to acquire a major bargaining chip that would strengthen it at the mobile industry’s intellectual property negotiating table.”

“I’m afraid it won’t get a similar opportunity in quantitative and qualitative terms any time soon.”

Android manufacturers are already paying Microsoft licensing fees for Android, and are being sued by Apple. Android developers are being sued by Lodsys and while Apple has filed to intervene in the iOS-related lawsuits, Google is still missing in action.

What that means going forward is hard to say, but manufacturer and developer confidence is part of the currency of any platform and it needs to be invested in and protected.

[Reuters]

Digitimes reports that component makers are preparing materials to begin production of the iPhone 5 for an October release, with signs pointing to the iPad 3 dropping before the end of the year as well.

Taiwan-based companies included in the supply chain for iPhone 5 and iPad 3 have begun to prepare materials for the production of the two devices

According to their sources, production of the iPhone 5 and iPad 3 should begin in August and ramp up in September with the iPhone 5 hitting sometime in October.

Most rumors have narrowed the iPhone 5 release to September. It’s unclear what the release window for the iPad 3 would be, and it’s important to keep in mind that Digitimes has been hit-or-miss with their predictions in the past. Earlier this month they reported iPad 3 component suppliers gained Apple certification for a 2012 release, which goes against these new reports. Both Daring Fireball and TechCrunch have pointed to a “fall surprise” related to a new iPad, possibly iPad 3 earlier this year.

TiPb has independently heard that October is likely for iPhone 5, and that there could quite possibly be a new iPad, perhaps a revised iPad 2 or iPad 3, this fall as well. Regardless of the rumors, however, Apple can and will move things around based on production and marketing needs, so no one knows for certain until Apple makes the official announcements.

[Digitimes]

A new jailbreak tweak may soon allow you to run multiple iPhone apps on screen at the same time — on your iPad. iOS hacker Aaron Ash has written a tweak that will allow you to do just that.

Yes, and it actually works! I've wasted plenty of time already playing 2 games of Angry Birds at the same time. (I actually was playing 3 for a while, but it crashed when I tried to add a 4th). There are a few bugs, such as audio not working, and accelerometer events not getting sent to applications; it may take a while to sort these out.

Aaron plans on visiting a Jailbreak meet-up in New York later this month and may demonstrate it there. This tweak is very interesting, you could be watching a video in one window, playing a game in another and updating your twitter stream in the third. We hope will be available soon. Of course we are still waiting for the iPad 2 jailbreak…

[AARON DOT MS, New York Jailbreak meet-up]