A leak in iTunes may have settled the rumors and debates about the design and name of the next iPhone. iTunes 10.5 beta 9 includes image files for the new iPhone – and they look exactly like the CDMA iPhone 4. Additionally, the files reference the new handset as ‘iPhone 4S‘. Both of these findings are exactly what TiPb has been hearing all along.

Also notable is that the files reference only two new iPhone 4S models: black and white, whereas the iPhone 4 references 4 models: black/GSM, black/CDMA, white/GSM, and white/CDMA. This is a strong indicator that the iPhone 4S will be a dual-mode, GSM+CDMA handset.

We are now only 3 days away from putting all the rumors to rest, because on Tuesday, Apple will reveal the truth.

Continue speculating in the meantime!

Source: 9TO5 Mac, AppleInsider

Every week a few of us from team TiPb will bring you our current favorite, most fun and 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, iPad, or iPod touch related, they're fair game.

To see what we picked, and to tell us your pick, follow on after the break!

Easy Calendar – @sethclifford

I’ve often felt that the native iOS calendar (particularly on the iPhone) isn’t really very good, and I’ve longed for a good update to it with every new release of iOS. As such, I’ve tried many calendar replacement apps over the years, and while some are fantastic, I always find myself gravitating back to the simple look of the native calendar. Lately I’ve been using a new app though, and I’m feeling pretty good about it because of its exceedingly simple setup and use. It’s called Easy Calendar.

Easy Calendar uses the default calendars you’ve set up already on your iPhone, so there’s nothing to enter when you launch it; it just pulls all your data using the API introduced in iOS 4, which many apps use now. There’s only one view (by week) so if you don’t like it, well, tough tacos. I happen to love week views, because one day seems too limiting, and the month view in my opinion just doesn’t work well in many of these apps on the smaller screen. To add an event, you just tap on the day you want and enter it in quickly. To move an existing event, tap and hold, and then select a new date when prompted. You can swipe left and right to move a week ahead or behind, and tap the title bar to jump by month. If you’ve got more events on a day than can display, tap the day title and a popup shows you everything, and you can quickly add a new event from here as well.

Aaaaaaannd… that’s pretty much it. And I’m just fine with that. I’ve tried more complicated apps, and I end up not using the features. I’ve tried even more stripped down apps, and I find them just slightly lacking. I thought about the ways I use a calendar on my phone (quick entry and quick viewing), and it seems to be the right mix of function and simplicity. For now, this one fits my Goldilocks needs just right.

For now…

[$1.99 - App Store link]

FIFA 12 – @chrisoldroyd

FIFA 12 has just been released on most consoles and now it is also available on the iPhone and iPod touch as one app and unfortunately a separate “HD” version for the iPad. Right, now that moan is out of the way, let’s get to the good stuff! FIFA 12 is an awesome game on the iPad, graphics are crisp, the AI is excellent, the game play is superb and you can even use your iPod touch or iPhone as a wireless controller.

It is an officially licensed game featuring over 22 leagues, 15,000 players and over 32 authentically recreated stadiums. There is even a management game thrown in for good measure; if you can’t be bothered to run around the virtual pitch.

The game is a whopping 1GB plus download so you may have to dump your Take That music collection to shoe horn it onto your iPad. Don’t worry though, it will definitely be worth it!

[$0.99 for iPad - App Store link] [$4.99 for iPhone - App Store link]

ALmu Gold – @Alli_Flowers

One of the things Apple left out of iOS was the ability to use your iPod music as an alarm. It’s limiting, and frustrating. But there is finally an app that handles this brilliantly, and consistently – and you don’t have to worry about leaving it as the active window before going to sleep at night. You can truly “set it and forget it.” And if you’re the kind who falls asleep on the couch and drags yourself to bed at 2 a.m. (don’t deny it – you know who you are!), this is perfect.

ALmu Gold has all the options you want in a good alarm clock: - Set and save an alarm with a name - Set a repeat (weekdays, weekends, alternate days, etc.) - Set your snooze time - Choose from pre-set alarms like “Ships bell,” “Frogs,” “Sheep bell,” “Car,” and more; music from your collection on your iPod, or a personal voice recording

It even accounts for major US holidays! This will be great, because I frequently forget to turn my alarm OFF on holidays, and then get grumpy cause I didn’t have to wake up.

ALmu Gold also has a sleep timer, so you can go to bed to your favorite music, and have it turn off after you nod off. This is a must have app, and the price is right!

[Free - App Store link]

Where’s My Water – @skeetobite

My pick of the week is Where’s My Water, by Walt Disney. In this game, you have to get Swampy, the sewer alligator, enough water to be able to take a shower. Working with gravity (along with various “tools” found in some levels) you need to dig a path through the dirt to eventually start the shower on Swampy. Along the way you can get bonus points by getting little rubber duckies, but you also need to look out for various obstacles – green sewer ooze, purple sewer toxic waste, bombs, and more. This is a great puzzle game that is well designed, and if both fun and easy to play. It looks great on both the iPhone and iPad, and easy for kids as well (my daughter loves it).

[$0.99 - App Store link]

Global Video, CTV, Citytv Video – @reneritchie

I recently cut the cable cord. That’s right — blacked out the box. And as a result I’ve been looking at alternate ways to watch some of the new US fall programming, such as it is. Since I live in Canada, it’s not as easy as just downloading what US network apps there are, and setting up VPNs and such to spoof US IP addresses is tedious, so I went looking for Canadian alternatives.

I’ve been using the Global TV app for iPhone and iPad for a while and it’s okay. For some reason ads seem even more annoying on iPad than they do on television, probably because holding an iPad demands more attention than sitting across the room while a TV takes care of itself. Global currently offers A Gifted Man, American Dad, Big Brother, Cleveland Show, Combat Hospital, Days of our Lives, Family Guy, Glee, The Good Wife, Happily Divorced, Hawaii Five-0, House, How to be a Gentleman, Kitchen Nightmares, NCIS, NCIS: Los Angeles, The Office, Parenthood, Prime Suspect, Ringer, Rookie Blue, Saturday Night Live, Survivor, Wipeout, and the Young and the Restless.

That’s a great selection but it isn’t everything and up until recently, the other large Canadian TV network, CTV, hadn’t deigned to grace iPad with its presence.

We’ll now it’s recently. And… the CTV app fills the gap a tiny, little bit. The app itself is fine, though iPad only (and for some reason it insists on labeling itself CTV VOD on the home screen). Unfortunately, there wasn’t a lot of selection. Currently, CTV offers The Bold and the Beautiful, Charlie’s Angels, the Colbert Report, the Daily Show, Flashpoint, Free Agents, Law and Order: SVU, Pan Am, Unforgettable, Up all Night, and Whitney.

Luckily, while looking for the CTV app, iTunes also offered me the Citytv app. Citytv is also iPad only and doesn’t have any stations in my home province of Quebec, but one tap on Toronto as my faux residence and I was good to go. Citytv currently offers 30 Rock, America’s Got Talent, Bachelor Pad, Body of Proof, Canada’s Got Talent, Community, Conviction Kitchen, Extreme Makeover Home Edition, Fringe, Glenn Martin DDS, Happy Endings, Hell’s Kitchen, How I Met Your Mother, Modern Family, Murdoch Mysteries, Private Practice, Raising Hope, Revenge, Reviews on the Run, Suburgatory, Terra Nova, The Biggest Loser, The Middle, The Playboy Club, and 2 Broke Girls.

Unfortunately, of course, AirPlay is only offered for audio so I can’t beam the shows to my Apple TV. I haven’t tried video out over cable yet, but I won’t get my hopes up. At any rate, I was pleasantly surprised at the number of shows available and outside a great digital antenna setup, which my current location precludes, it makes cutting the cable cord and blacking out the box more palatable than ever.

• Free – Global Video – App Store link
• Free – CTV – App Store link
• Free – Citytv Video – App Store link

If you live in the US, just go straight to the networks

• Free – ABC Player – App Store link
• Free – NBC – App Store link
• (I couldn’t find a CBS app in the App Store… Seriously?!)
• (I could only find show-based apps for FOX, like Bones… Seriously?!)

SignMyPad – @llofte

My family is planning a big move from Colorado to California in December which means my husband and I are swimming in job applications, resumes, and cover letters. Even though we are submitting them all electronically, we still think it’s important to have an original signature on our documents – and that’s where SignMyPad has become a major asset.

After exporting my applications and cover letters as PDFs, I email them to myself as an easy way of getting them on my iPad. Then I open the attachments in SignMyPad directly from the email on my iPad. From there, I insert my signature by signing my iPad with a Ten One Pogo Sketch stylus and place and size my signature just perfectly, save as a new PDF, and email it back to myself.

Even though jumping through emails is a bit annoying, this worked perfectly and I was able to submit application materials with original signatures to potential employers.

[$3.99 - App Store link]

Your pick?

You're part of the team as well, so we will be choosing one reader to make a submission each week! Just look for the announcement on twitter or our Facebook page each weekend for a chance to be picked! In the meantime, jump into the comments and let us know your pick of the week!

To make a long story short, it sounds like iOS 4 was supposed to include the type of Facebook integration that iOS 5 will enjoy with Twitter but Apple and Facebook couldn’t get the deal done. Subsequent squabbles over Ping, and a tempestuous visit by Steve Jobs to Mark Zuckerberg — including a blow up over HP and their TouchPad — only fanned the flames of discontent. According to Jennifer Van Grove at Mashable:

When Jobs learned of the webOS Facebook app during his summer visit to Facebook, he was livid. Zuckerberg vowed to get the app pulled. But Jon Rubinstein, the former CEO of Palm and then the GM of HP's webOS division, refused to halt the release of the app. Facebook responded by restricting HP's access to its APIs — just as it had done with Apple's Ping, a year earlier.

Apple wanted Facebook on iPad first, HP wanted Facebook on TouchPad first, and Facebook played both sides to the apparent benefit of… nobody. Well done.

For the whole, long, sordid version of the tale, hit the source link below. Meanwhile let’s hope Apple and Facebook really have unburned their bridges and we get Facebook for iPad on or around this Tuesday as rumored.

Source: Mashable

Untappd, the “Foursquare for beer” social check-in service, has released their official iPhone app. You can now check-in to what beer you’re drinking with the option of adding location information for sharing with friends on the network.

Previously limited to a webapp, the native app offers a number of welcomed features including Notifications and the ability to upload photos with your check-in. Get ready to drink socially…

Untappd is a new way to socially track, rate, & share with your friends what beers you’re enjoying, as well as where you’re enjoying them. You can see what beers are trending nearby and where you can find them. Untappd will also share recommendations based on your drinking preferences. Curious about a specific beer? See what other users are saying about it and add it to your wish list to make sure you remember to find it! As you explore more brews and locations, you will uncover a variety of badges.

• Track & rate what beers you have and share them with your friends
• Upload a photo of the beer your having and sharing it with your friends.
• Notifications of your friends comments and toasts
• Geolocation enabled so you can tag your location & see what's trending nearby
• Twitter, Facebook, Foursquare & Gowalla integration for social sharing
• Toast and comment on your friends beers
• Earn a wide variety of badges
• See what beers are trending nearby and where to find them

Untappd is available for the iPhone and iPod touch for free.

App Store Link

Cnet is reporting that Apple is very close to securing the rights to offer iCloud music storage and iTunes Match in more countries than the U.S. at launch. When the service was first announced at WWDC, Apple only had the iCloud music storage and iTunes match agreements in place with the U.S. record labels.

According to Cnet's sources familiar with the discussions, Apple is seeking international music licenses for at least the United Kingdom, Germany and France. The deals with the various rights holders is close to agreement but has not been signed as of yet. Apple hopes to get this wrapped up in time for the "Let's Talk iPhone" event next week; but it may be too late!

Without these licenses in place, iCloud and more importantly iTunes Match is a rather weak offering for those outside the U.S. iCloud of course will still function with your apps and other data but the music features are some of its best features. Let us hope that the record labels don't live up to their usual reputation and help Apple get this one ironed out in time for Tuesday!

Source: cnet

It appears that Apple has prematurely sent out some emails welcoming users to iCloud.

Welcome to iCloud. The Apple ID for your iCloud account is ____ and it’s what you’ll use to get your iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Mac, and PC set up. Just follow these instructions and you’ll be up and running in no time.

Once iCloud is set up, it stores your content and wirelessly pushes it to all your devices. For example, buy a song with iTunes on your computer, and it will appear on your iPod touch and iPad. When you snap a photo on your iPhone it will automatically be sent to your iPad. You can start creating a Pages document on your iPhone, and put the finishing touches on it from your iPad. There’s no need to dock or sync to your computer. With iCloud, it just works.

We hope you enjoy using iCloud.

Unfortunately, the link to set up iCloud that Apple included in the email is not actually live, yet, which indicates that the email was sent prematurely.

iCloud is set to be released with iOS 5, the date of which is unknown. It is expected that Apple will announce an official release date during Tuesday’s Let’s talk iPhone event.

Source: AppleInsider