The iPhone Blog


Steve Jobs: High order bits

Posted: 08 Oct 2011 01:16 PM PDT

Almost all of Steve Jobs‘ appearances, talks, and keynotes are memorable in one way or another. Below are some of those that resonated with us the most over the years, the ones we’ve watched again and again, and the ones we’ve gleaned the most insight from, such as we can, into the mind of the man behind Apple.

Memory & Imagination: New Pathways to the Library of Congress: Computers are the bicycles of the mind.

1997 WWDC Q&A

1997 Think different spot, “Here’s to the crazy ones”, narrated by Steve Jobs

2005 Stanford Commencement Address.

2010 Special Event, Steve Jobs introduces the iPad

2010 WWDC Keynote, Steve Jobs introduces the iPhone 4

2011 Special Event, Steve Jobs introduces the iPad 2

2011 WWDC Keynote, Steve Jobs’ last.

2003-2010 D: All Things Digital, full videos of Steve Jobs interviews (They don’t allow embeds so click/tap the link and go watch them. They’re extraordinary.)


TiPb Picks of the Week for October 8, 2011

Posted: 08 Oct 2011 11:09 AM PDT

TiPb.com Picks of the Week

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!

iPhone – @sethclifford

I thought about what I wanted to talk about for this week’s pick, and I decided to take a step back and look more at the bigger picture than a single application. I thought about how profoundly my day-to-day life has changed and about influences in the past few years at Nickelfish, and no week seemed more appropriate than this one to recognize the massive change the iPhone brought to users.

I’ve been a fan of mobile devices for a long, long time. I’ve forgotten more about the inner workings of Windows Mobile (PPC) and the BlackBerry OS than most people will likely know. Through the time I spent hacking and playing with all my devices, one thought kept running through my head: “this is really cool, but it just doesn’t work the way I want it to”. I had to do far too much to get the devices to meet my lofty expectations as a power user. Until the iPhone came along.

Admittedly, I skipped the first one, preferring to keep my Treo 700wx on Sprint. No apps? Pssh. Right there I shut down and talked trash about it. I’m a lifelong Apple fan, but I was not about to give up the “flexibility” my hacks and apps afforded me. But that was because I was unwilling to even try to understand where we were all headed. There was a plan, and I wasn’t a part of it yet. It wasn’t until later when I had both a BlackBerry Curve and a first-gen iPod touch that it started to come into focus.

And once it did, it became clear. Using a device shouldn’t be a struggle. I shouldn’t have to pull my battery multiple times a day when my phone locked up, because it shouldn’t be locking up at all. These devices should be a pleasure to use, with great design, great build quality, and should do what I want, when I want, without having to hack it to make it barely usable. That was the promise of the iPhone, and that was what Steve and all the talented people at Apple delivered on. Since that time, I’ve purchased and played with other phones, but never have I fully given up my iPhone for any length of time. Its simple premise and elegant functionality has shown me that there is a better way, and that way is for everyone, not just people with the time to tweak.

I still remember the day I gave up my BlackBerry for the iPhone 3G vividly. I’ll always remember that day, because that was the day that the first inklings of the promises we’d been made our whole lives started to come to pass. Our world will never be the same, and that is just the way Steve would have wanted it.

[price varies - Apple]

Tweet Speaker – @reneritchie

Tweet Speaker for iPhone is an ingenious gem of an app from App Cubby that does nothing more or less than the name implies — it speaks your tweets. And it does it brilliantly. Now I’m a sucker for highly focused, special purpose Twitter apps. I loved BirdHouse. I loved Reportage. And I love Tweet Speaker.

I had a chance to try out Tweet Speaker for a couple weeks before release, and during that time I was routinely commuting to work through one to one-and-a-half hours of traffic each way. With iOS 5 Notification Center, I could see new tweets coming in during that time, but I couldn’t really take my eyes off the vicious, predatory Montreal motorists to read them. So Tweet Speaker read them for me.

Rewind. There are certain developers that when you hear they’re working on a new app you know they’re going to put the passion and polish into it to make it truly spectacular. It’s not always an app you might use, maybe not even the type of app you really like, but the care and quality transcend personal taste and need and you can appreciate them for the sheer skill and effort they signify. App Cubby is one of those developers, and everything from the user interface and experience to the icon to the voice to the way it parses out and speaks tweets just exudes that level of craftsmanship and commitment. And this is just exactly the type of app I use and like. Lucky me.

What’s truly remarkable is that iOS platform enables and empowers these kinds of apps, and iOS developers encourage and extol this type of precision and polish. There’s pride of platform.

Back again. If you’re a big Twitter user and you like to walk or jog, if you drive or bike, if you work out or work outside, if you do anything where your life would be made easier by having your tweets spoken to you, and richer by having an amazing app do the speaking, then check out Tweet Speaker.

Then tell me what you think of it @reneritchie. I look forward to hearing it.

]$2.99 – App Store link]

DataVault – @Alli_Flowers

Quick disclaimer. I’m biased. But you have to understand the timeline – I liked the product so much, I went to work for the company. I love DataVault. I love having all my passwords right on my iPhone. I can search for anything: Labels, Values, Memos – it doesn’t matter how much or how little I remember about what I’m looking for. (And in my crazy world, I don’t always remember the easy part, so I search a lot.)

I use DataVault constantly throughout the day as I go to work on someone else’s computer and need to look up their passwords. I no longer worry about my colleagues forgetting their passwords – I just save them in DataVault so that I can remind them when they forget.

Did you ever get to the bank to deposit a check, only to discover you don’t have any deposit slips and without that you have no clue what your account number is? Not a problem if you have that information stored. Of course, being able to sync with the desktop (separate purchase) is great, especially if you do any online shopping. I can just copy/paste my credit card number.

DataVault is also really handy for those times you go to the doctor’s office and they inform you that since it’s been a year, you need to update all your insurance information (even though it hasn’t changed in 10 years!). So instead of fumbling through your wallet for all your health insurance cards, you just copy the numbers out of your iPhone…which was probably in your hand anyway.

So yes, I’m biased, but I came by it honestly, and I love this app!

[$9.99 - App Store link]

Apple Store app – @chrisoldroyd

Well what else could I choose after iPhone 4S pre-order day. Let’s set the scene, I get up early on Friday morning, alright, I am in the UK so it was actually 8am when pre-orders were supposed to start; so not that early. Nothing happens for 30 minutes, Apple Store down and everyone is complaining on twitter. Eventually it comes online but errors out all the time.

I had a moment of inspiration, pulled out my iPad, fired up the Apple Store app, chose my iPhone 4S spec and color then boom, done! It took like 45 seconds from start to finish, no hanging around on the web. Delivery to my home on the 14th October; gotta love the Apple Store app.

[Free - App Store link]

Weather HD – @iMuggle

I live in Northwest Indiana and the weather here can vary greatly from day to day. They say the Midwest is the only place you could use your heat and air conditioning in the same day. And let me tell you, it’s true.

I always make a habit of checking the weather each morning to see what to prepare for. A lot of weather apps I’ve come across are just ugly in general. This isn’t the case with Weather HD. It provides the basic information I need to prepare for the day in a unique and rather beautiful way. The images change given the weather conditions and all of them are stunning. It may not provide warnings and statements but I can always toggle between Accuweather and others for that information. On a regular day to day basis, I’ve found Weather HD to be the app I use. If you’re looking for a new and interesting way to check the weather, Weather HD is definitely it. And it’s available as a universal binary for both iPhone and iPad.

[$0.99 - App Store Link]

Hanging with Friends – @llofte

Once again, I am late to the game when it comes to a popular app. This time it’s with Hanging with Friends. What a fun little game! It’s very similar to Hangman. You take turns creating words for your opponent to guess. If you guess wrong, you lose a balloon, and whoever looses all their balloons first, looses the game. I’m not very good at word games, so if anyone is looking for an easy opponent, look me up!

[$1.99 - App Store link]

Spy Mouse – @applecpugeek (Reader’s Choice)

Spy Mouse is a wonderful game with many challenges. I just love all of the characters in the game. My favorite part of the game is trying to get the cheese before the cats even know it! Most of the world in this game are very hard to beat!

[$0.99 - 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!


Next generation Apple TV 3 spotted in iOS 5 code?

Posted: 08 Oct 2011 08:18 AM PDT

Next generation Apple TV 3 spotted in iOS 5 code?

Mark Gurman from 9to5Mac has spotted something interesting deep inside the iOS 5 file system — code references to a next generation Apple TV 3,1. Given Apple’s internal naming conventions, a move the current Apple TV 2,1 to an Apple TV 3,1 should signify a major upgrade, which could lend credence to rumors of a Apple A5 on the horizon, and perhaps even the 1080p video muscle that comes with it.

Another A5-powered, iPhone 4S feature that would be great to see? Siri, Apple’s artificially intelligent voice control system.

Source: 9to5Mac


iDoodle: Daily Affirmation with iPhone 4S

Posted: 08 Oct 2011 07:46 AM PDT

iDoodle: It's what's on the inside that counts!

“I’m good enough, I’m smart enough, and doggone it, people like me!”


Apple launching an AirPort Utility app for iPhone, iPad?

Posted: 08 Oct 2011 07:41 AM PDT

Apple launching an AirPort Utility app for iPhone, iPad?

Looks like Apple may be set to release an AirPort Utility app for iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad in the App Store. The app would let you manage Apple’s AirPort Express and AirPort Extreme Wi-Fi routers without having to use a PC.

Rumors of AirPort Utility functionality in iOS 5 have been around for a while, but when nothing appeared in the release candidate, it looked like Apple might be waiting on iOS 5.1 or later to surface it. Releasing in the App Store, however, means Apple will be able to iterate independently from the main iOS firmware, and users who don’t have AirPorts and don’t need the feature don’t have to have it on their device.

Whether or not Apple chooses to release an AirPort Utility app alongside iOS 5 on Oct 12 is uncertain, but would be most welcome.

Image source: @SonnyDickson


iPhone and iPad cameras capture guitar oscillations

Posted: 08 Oct 2011 07:04 AM PDT

One of our readers, Mike, sent in this video he filmed of oscillations on a 12-string guitar. He used an iPad 2 and iPhone 4 to record it, and it’s definitely worth a watch.

His trick to capturing the oscillations was simple – playing his guitar outside and in direct sunlight. The reason this works is because the camera must adjust to the extreme light by filming with fast shutter speeds the iPhone and iPad use a rolling shutter that scans the frame vertically. It follows that the camera must be used vertically in order for the effect to be seen.

I keep coming back to this video and find it so intriguing. It helps that Mike is an excellent guitar player! I teach a College Trigonometry class, and I’ll likely show this video to them as an example of sine waves in action!

Thanks, Mike!


Sony Pictures close to deal for film rights to Steve Jobs biography

Posted: 08 Oct 2011 12:32 AM PDT

Steve Jobs biography arriving Oct. 24

Sony Pictures is reportedly very close to securing a deal for the film rights to the Steve Jobs biography. The deal Sony is tabling is said to be $1 million against $3 million and that Mark Gordon will be in line to produce the film.

The book which will be called simply Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacsson was initially due for release in November. That date has now been pulled forward and it is set to hit shelves real and virtual on Oct. 24.

Sony Pictures has already made successful films from business related books so should be a good fit for the project. It has already had success with Moneyball and of course, Oscar nominated The Social Network.

Source: Deadline


Apple sells out of iPhone 4S pre-orders in less than 24 hours

Posted: 07 Oct 2011 10:47 PM PDT

iPhone 4S pre-orders went live less than 24 hrs ago in the US and Apple’s online store is already showing it as sold out, with delivery times now estimated at 1-2 weeks.

To those who haven’t ordered yet, you can still try to grab one when they go on sale at Apple Retail and other brick-and-mortar stores on Friday, October 14 at 8am local time. To pundits who thought iPhone 4S was a major misstep, you’re probably too late to backpedal.

Source: store.apple.com


Sprint starting LTE 4G rollout in 2012

Posted: 07 Oct 2011 07:34 PM PDT

Sprint starting LTE 4G rollout in 2012

With Verizon leading the charge, and AT&T following on, Sprint has just elaborated on their own plans to launch an LTE (Long Term Evolution) 4G network beginning next year.

Sprint plans to launch 4G LTE on its 1900 MHz spectrum by midyear 2012 and complete the network build-out by the end of 2013. By the end of 2013, Sprint's 4G coverage footprint is expected to cover more than 250 million people.

LTE is often considered true 4G (or at least truer until we get full voice-over-LTE), with theoretical downloads speeds of 50 Mbps or more. Given the availability of proper chipsets that allow for both thin devices and long battery life, Apple is rumored to be considering an LTE iPhone for 2012 as well.

Source: Sprint


AT&T pre-sells 200,000 iPhone 4S’ in 12 hours

Posted: 07 Oct 2011 07:18 PM PDT

AT&T sells 200,000 iPhone 4S' in 12 hours

Reuters is reporting that AT&T pre-sold 200,000 iPhone 4S‘ in the first 12 hours of it being available on pre-order. They said it was in “extraordinary demand”.

In the next paragraph they report fans were “underwhelmed” by it. Obviously not enough to hurt sales.

No word yet on Verizon or Sprint, or Apple’s own numbers.

Source: Reuters


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