Despite some rumors to the contrary, according to our sources Apple still hasn't finalized the design of the next generation iPhone 5 (or whatever Apple ends up calling iPhone 5,1). No giant screen. No 16:9 aspect ratio. No metal back.

Apple typically makes extensive use of the prototyping process, which could well be the source of inconsistent rumors (perhaps best seen in the conflicting iPhone rumors last year). Sometimes there are more audacious and more conservative prototypes, with the final choice coming down to component costs and device tests.

Currently, the new, smaller dock connector is being implemented, but no changes to screen size or aspect ratio have been decided on. And yes, it still has a Home button.

Once again we're hearing that if the screen size does change, it won't be by a lot (no larger than 4-inches). We've heard nothing to indicate a planned change in the aspect ratio either way (and such a change still doesn't make much sense to us).

Keeping the Home button also necessitates certain design trade offs (everything has an opportunity cost) when it comes to overall device size and screen layout.

October is still the planned launch period, alongside the 7-inch iPad we reported on yesterday, and Apple is indeed planning to hurt Google with this release by removing their data pipe into (and out of) the Maps app. (Which we, like others, have heard is terrific looking.)

iMore previously heard the iPhone 5 was going to ship with an LTE radio as well.

Earlier today a beta version of iCloud.com accidentally leaked 2 new web apps, Notes and Reminders, presumably coming to iCloud web-portal. These apps make perfect sense to be on iCloud.com, as they already sync over iCloud across iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad devices, and Apple has added them as apps to the upcoming OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion.

The Reminders and Notes web apps weren't functional, nor was the login, and Apple quickly pulled the beta content offline. In other words, we weren't supposed to see this yet.

If we were to guess, WWDC 2012 would be the logical place for Apple to debut new iCloud features. That's where Steve Jobs debuted iCloud itself last year, and now more than ever the WWDC keynote is Apple's biggest software and services stage.

Unfortunately, there's no sign of Photo Stream yet, which would be nice given the impending loss of MobileMe galleries. Nor is there any sign of iTunes in the Cloud or iTunes Match online access yet.

That's when it will start to become really interesting.

Source: Steve Troughton-Smith

Foxconn chiarman Terry Gou was recently quoted as saying that the manufacturing giant is making preparations for an Apple "iTV" television set, which included buying a significant stake in Sharp for access to LCD displays.

Previous rumors suggested that an Apple-made television would include Siri-style voice recognition and Kinect-esque motion detection, but that's all unconfirmed for now, and I would just as soon chalk it up to wishful thinking.

Steve Jobs was quoted in his biography as having "cracked" the formula for a smart TV set, something beyond Apple's existing set-top box is likely on the way. But Jobs has also said how tough the go-to-market situation is for televisions and the living room, with the cable and satellite providers being far more numerous and enjoying far more monopoly control than even carriers do in the mobile phone space.

We have heard Apple has television concepts in the labs, but it would be more surprising at this point if they didn't. Whether they ever choose to ship an Apple branded television set remains the question. Gou may be in a position to know, given Foxxcon's relationship with Apple, but it's really difficult to see him knowingly leak that sort of information. He couldn't imagine Apple being happy about it, if true, could he?

As always, we'll believe it when we see it. TV is the third screen that Apple has yet to make an agressive play for. Apple TV, from launch until this day, remains a hobby; something for Apple enthusiasts more than the mainstream. If Apple does decide to launch a television, and they do it right, their sphere of influence stands to expand massively.

That being said, we still can't see people lining up to buy a new one every year, especially not at the price that size display, and that type of technology would necessitate.

What would an Apple television need to have for you to drop, say, a thousand bucks or more on one?

Source: China Daily via AppleInsider

Noir Photo is a fantastic iPhone and iPad app for converting your photos into monochromatic images. This includes black and white conversions with the ability to add sepia, silver, blue-gray, or chartreuse tints to further set the mood.

Noir Photo has a very simple and easy to use UI. At the top of the screen, you'll see your photo. On the iPhone, if the photo is portrait, it will rotate to landscape so that you can see the entire image. The bottom half of the screen is where you'll find all the editing tools. Along the top of this section is 6 preset buttons. After choosing the one you think best works for your photo, you can fine tune the inner exposure, outer exposure, and contrast with the dials. You can also use pinch to zoom on the photo to fine-tune the placement and size of the vignette and drag the points to adjust its shape. Lastly, you can choose from the four different tints: sepia (brown-ish), silver, blue-gray, or chartreuse (green-ish).

You can also view your photo in full screen by hiding the editing controls. In full screen mode, you can still adjust the vignetting and choose from the presets. You cannot fine-tune the exposures and contrast, though.

Personally, I would rather have access to the different tints than the presets when in full screen mode. After I've adjusted my photo, I like to switch into full screen mode to get a closer look and see if it looks right. Because the presets are also color coated, I tapped them thinking I could see what my photo looked like with a different tint. To my dismay, all my settings I just finished perfecting got undone in favor of the preset. Noir Photo does not have an undo button, so this is annoying, to say the least.

The good

• Fast
• Easy to use
• 4 different tints
• Adjust outer/inner exposures and contrast
• Adjust the vignetting
• Maximum 2592x2592 output resolution
• Universal for iPhone and iPad

The bad

• No undo button

The conclusion

Noir Photo does a great job at monochromatic and black and white conversions. If you're participating in this week's black and white photography contest, you may want to check this one out.

$2.99 - Download Now

A couple of years ago Steve Jobs called a Town Hall meeting at Apple and rallied the troops by saying the next iPhone, which was to be the iPhone 4, would be an A+ update and take it to the turncoat Google and their Android operating system. According to our sources, a similar sentiment is being expressed by Apple in Cupertino again this year, but with a decidedly different twist. Instead of just hitting Google and Android in the market place with better hardware and software, and in the courts with patent litigation, they're going to hit them where it really hurts.

While the exact numbers are hotly debated, it's long been said Google makes more money off iOS than they do off their own Android operating system. The reason for this is simple -- mainstream iOS users tend to use the web and apps more than mainstream Android users, and iOS is filled with Google services. The built-in Maps app is powered by Google and provides sponsored search results. The built-in Safari web browser defaults to Google Search and serves Google Search ads. When iOS users use those services, Google makes money. Regardless of whether or not iOS or Android is winning in the market place, Google is winning in the wallet.

And Apple wants to end that.

Removing Google from Maps is an easy step in that direction. As reported by 9to5Mac earlier today, and as we've confirmed from our own sources as well, iOS 6 will come with an updated Maps app that removes the Google backend and replaces it with an Apple backend.

This isn't without precedent. Both Apple and Google used to use Skyhook for Wi-Fi router location mapping, and both have now switched to in-house databases. Google used to license map tiles and has since re-drawn them themselves. Apple has bought 3 mapping data related companies, and could have either re-licensed or redrawn tiles by now as well.

For the end-user, the interface is the app, and switching out backend pipes is far more transparent than altering front ends. Mail is Mail regardless if it's being fed by iCloud or Gmail. The same holds true, in large part, for Maps.

So in this case, the goal is more interesting than the process -- to remove Google as much as possible from iOS.

Realistically, Google Search will be tougher to replace since Google enjoys an almost monopoly sized share of the search space. But it may not be impossible to displace. Apple is already intermediating Google Search with Siri and that will likely continue.

Google isn't in the search business, it's in the data collection/advertising business. It doesn't make money when you search its index, it makes money recording your information, aggregating it, and brokering deals for it. Search isn't the product it sells. We are. If Apple steps in and makes the queries on our behalf, and returns them on Google's behalf, Google is cut out of the important parts -- the money.

All of this is in stark contrast to January 2007, when then Google CEO Eric Schmidt took the Macworld stage with then Apple CEO Steve Jobs to celebrate the Apple/Google iPhone partnership. That was before Google pulled a 180 and turned Android from a low-end Windows Mobile and BlackBerry competitor to an iPhone competitor. That was before Apple started suing Android manufacturers and Steve Jobs threatened to go "thermonuclear".

And that's before Apple decided to stop helping Google's revenue stream, data stream, and perhaps bolstering their stock profile, by giving them built-in access to iOS users, and Apple branded data deals.

Now, Apple isn't just fighting back by making the best iOS software and iPhone hardware they can, and by trying to legally force Android manufacturers to stop copying Apple. With iOS 6 on the upcoming iPhone 5 and rumored 7-inch iPad, they're fighting back by removing as much of Google as they can as well. By denying Google access to iOS eyeballs and data.

If history is any indicator, both new devices will sell incredibly well, and tens of thousands of new customers, and hundreds of thousands of newly updated customers, will be funding and feeding Google less than ever before.

This time Apple's fighting back by hitting Google where it really hurts -- in the wallet.

Earlier this month, Apple filed a complaint with a California judge claiming that Samsung was intentionally destroying documents relevant to their ongoing legal spat. Apparently Samsung only handed over a small number of documents that they were ordered to provide, and Apple claims that deleting e-mails is standard practice for Samsung even when they're in the middle of a lawsuit.

Samsung's ad hoc, unmonitored email "preservation" methods have resulted in the irretrievable loss of unknown volumes of relevant emails. For example, Judge Grewal recently compelled the deposition of Won Pyo Hong, the head of Samsung's Product Strategy Team, in part due to an email in which Dr.Hong "directly orders side-by-side comparisons of Apple and Samsung products for design presentations." Apple and the Court cannot possibly know how many more emails Dr. Hong sent or received that would have supported Apple's claims that Samsung copied Apple products had they not been deleted. The same is true for the many other Samsung witnesses who produced only a handful of emails, or none at all.

Samsung is due to issue a response by May 15, while the complaint is due to be addressed in courts on June 7, though Samsung wants both of those dates pushed back. Apple has previously lodged similar complaints with the ITC, so really, Samsung should already be in a position to address these concerns, but Samsung claims that there's a completely different set of patents and policies in place for for the district of California.

At this point, the patience of judges may be wearing thin; not too long ago, courts asked Samsung and Apple to pare down the number of patent complaints they were leveling at one another. If Samsung is blatantly acting in bad faith, it could easily color the outcome of patent litigation to follow.

Source: Network World

iOS 6's built in Maps app will no longer call on Google Maps as its back end, but will instead host an Apple-made solution. Map's will retain a Street View-style option  and 3D building functionality thanks to their acquisition of C3 Technologies, with other mapping data coming from Placebase and Poly9. The design will be similar to the current Maps app, with a minor icon tweak, but will offer a "cleaner, faster, and more reliable experience". This according to 9to5Mac's Mark Gurman, and confirmed by our sources.

Apple has already started to ditch Google Map data in iPhoto, so this isn't exactly a huge surprise.

We're expecting to out first glimpse of iOS 6 and hopefully some confirmation of that Google Maps is gone at WWDC this summer.

Source: 9to5mac

The Brooklyn Tap House is now using a new point of sale system that incorporates both iPads and iPod touches. The Brooklyn Tap House has one of the most extensive ale choices of any establishment that I have seen and now they can all be accessed and ordered using an iPad or iPod touch.

The gastropub has installed a point-of-sale system from Albuquerque-based POSLavu that uses the Apple devices in place of a much more expensive traditional restaurant POS system. The main attraction for the POSLavu system, according to restauranteur and co-owner Hugo Salazar, was the price. Many restaurants use systems from Micros or Aloha that can sport price tags of US$20,000 or more; the bottom line for the devices and software at the Brooklyn Tap House was about $7,000.

With the new system in place, the order flow has become much smoother too. All orders are now taken wirelessly using the iPod touch and then printed automatically in the kitchen. Inventory can be easily monitored in real time and the owners can keep an eye on sales anywhere in the world. The Apple hardware is also a conversation starter at the bar and they also come in handy for settling arguments too.

Source: TUAW, Brooklyn Tap House

A new case has landed on Kickstarter that looks to take your iPad back in time and turn it into a fully functional Etch A Sketch. In case you have forgotten or are simply not old enough to remember, the Etch A Sketch was launched in the 1960's and was a small tablet like slab with two knobs; one on each side. One knob drew a vertical line and the other a horizontal line on the screen. Turning both knobs together created a diagonal line.

Everyone can relate to an Etch A Sketch. It's an enduring childhood memory. Now, you can re-experience Etch A Sketch on your iPad--and share the experience with your friends and family. Etcher adds functional knobs to the iPad. As a user turns these knobs, lines appear on the iPad screen, exactly like the original Etch a Sketch. Improving on the original, users can save their drawings in digital format and share with friends and family over email and social media sites like Facebook.

The Etch A Sketch iPad case has an official license from the Ohio Art Company which owns the trademark. The project needs $75,000 of pledges before it will be funded and become a reality. If you want to get involved, you can pledge as little as $45 and become an early adopter.

Source: Kickstarter

Svpply offers fun, beautiful, and social way to shop from a a curated collection of products and stores from around the world from your iPhone and iPad. Featuring over 70,000 stores and brands and 1.1 million products, a gorgeous UI, and a way to follow what your friends buy and want, Svpply is a shopper's dream come true.

Svpply is broken down into six categories: men's women's, tech, media, home, art, and other. Selecting one of these categories will break down into even more categories, making it easy to shop for a specific type of item. Selecting a most specific sub-category isn't a requirement, however, so if you just want to browse general categories, you can.

In addition to browsing by category, Svpply also lets you search. I found this to be the only way to could shop for children and baby products, as there is no category for kids.

When viewing an item, a larger version of the photo is displayed, as well as it's price range, name, and which store it's from. You can then choose to mark it as something you want, collect it into a personal collection, or buy. Tapping buy will send you to the vendor's website in the built-in browser. Unfortunately, this is the only way to actually view more photos of the item. I wish Svpply gathered all of the photos from the store's website, not just one.

If you keep scrolling down the items page, you can see which people want it and browse through similar items. If you added the item to a collection, you can also view that collection. Lastly, you can view any comments that have been made about the item and leave a comment of your own.

Once you've marked some items as "want" and created some collections, you can head over to the "You" tab to view these items. There is also a category of things you own, but I cannot figure how to actually add items to this category.

The feed is where you can see the activity of your friends (who have been added by connecting your account with Twitter or Facebook). You can filter your feed by category, gender, and price. As you scroll through your feed, you'll the products that your friends have recently said they want with options to want or collect them yourself.

The good

• Adds a social element to shopping
• Beautiful UI
• Create personal collections
• Lots of categories and sub-categories
• over 70,000 stores and brands
• Universal for iPhone and iPad

The bad

• No kids category
• Must tap buy and visit vendor's website to see more photos
• Can't figure out to mark that you own an item
• Can't connect to both Twitter and Facebook, only one

The conclusion

I really enjoy using Svpply to window shop for anything from clothing, shoes, decorations, and art. I haven't actually purchased anything yet, but Svpply is working as a bookmarking system for me to reference when I'm ready to buy. Creating personal collections reminds of Pinterest -- in a good way.

Free - Download Now

SGP Kuel H12 stylus for iPad is one of the best all-around stylus pens on the market

The SGP Kuel H12 takes all the elements of a classic capacitive stylus and knocks each and every one of them out of the park when it comes to build quality and usability. And it has a lower price than it's pro-level competition. So what's the catch?

A classic stylus in every sense of the word. the SGP Kuel H12 is made with a plated brass body and a silicon coated, high polymer tip designed to almost float across the surface of your iPad. From weight to curves, it feels like a high-quality pen, and even twists to retract and protect its capacitive tip.

Available in black, white, and sliver, the SGP Kuel H12 stylus doesn't have any special rubberized grip area, but the combination of its shape and its size make it comfortable to use, even for extended periods. While the tip is soft, it doesn't collapse in all the way like some other styli do, which makes it a little easier to use under pressure. It's also fairly sensitive, so touch input registers quickly and overall accuracy is good as well. While some users have complained the material of the tip wears out too quickly, we haven't had any problems with our review units.

When it comes to hand-written note-taking, the SGP Kuel H12 is Mobile Nations' favorite stylus. The folks back at headquarters have a special fondness for styli and have tested them extensively and when they want to write serious notes, for long periods of time, they reach for the H12.

When it comes to gaming, the smooth tip of the SGP Kuel H12 reduces tapping noise considerably, but the overall design can sometimes cover too much of the screen. For art, it's okay for line work but not as good as a hard-tipped stylus. However, it's much better for brush work and other, softer paint-like applications.

The good

• Excellent for long-form note-taking
• Feels like a premium pen
• Incredibly good value for the price

The bad

• Good but not great for gaming or art

The conclusion

The SGP Kuel H12 is one of the best stylus on the market for note-taking, and is an excellent all around stylus. It looks and feels like a high quality, premium pen. It's not as great for drawing as the Jot Pro, and not quite a sensitive as the Pogo Pro, but given it's low price point and exceptional quality, it's the best bang for your stylus buck.

$19.95 - Buy now

Georgia, Rene, and Seth talk iOS 5.1.1, the future of jailbreak, gesture keyboard shortcuts, multi-user support for iPad, Instacast, cloud storage apps, and Jot Pro vs. Wacom Bamboo stylus. This is iPhone & iPad Live!

• Subscribe via iTunes: Audio | Video
• Subscribe via RSS: Audio | Video
• Download directly: Audio | Video

Meta

• Want a chance to win 1 of 4 new iPads?
• Editor's desk: BlackBerry and Samsung events, rumor repeats, the Avengers, and more
• Does the Home screen need updating in iOS 6? [Poll]

iOS 5.1.1

• Apple releases iOS 5.1.1 for iPhone, iPod touch, iPad
• How is your iOS 5.1.1 battery life? [Poll]

Jailbreak

• Is there a future for jailbreak?
• On iOS text editing concepts and the keys to consistency

News

• Apple rumored to be investigating multi-user iPad support

Apps

• Best free iPad apps
• Instacast 2.0 and the concept of "added value"
• SkyDrive vs. Dropbox vs. Google Drive: best cloud storage option for iPhone and iPad users
• Draw Something is trying to get you to draw their ads for them

Accessories

• Adonit Jot Pro stylus for iPad review
• Wacom Bamboo Stylus review

Hosts

• Georgia (GeorgiaTiPb
• Seth Clifford (@sethclifford)
• Rene Ritchie (@reneritchie)

Credits

You can reach all of us on Twitter @iMore, or you can email us at podcast@imore.com

For all our podcasts -- audio and video -- including iPhone and iPad Live, ZEN and TECH, Iterate, and more, see MobileNations.com/shows

If you haven't already please subscribe to all our shows in iTunes and leave a rating. It helps people find the show and means a lot to us!

This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

If you're looking to bake some delicious cake, pastries, cookies, or breads, look no further than The Photo Cookbook - Baking for iPhone and iPad. It's packed with gorgeous photos of not only the final product, but also of what each stage of the process should look like.

The Photo Cookbook - Baking is a universal app for iPhone and iPad, but I'm going to be using screenshots from the iPad version. Both versional offer the exact same functionality and content.

On the home screen of The Photo Cookbook - Baking you'll see four different columns, each one representing a different category: cakes & traybakes, pastries, small cakes & cookies, and breads. Each entry is represent by a gorgeous photograph of the delicious product. You can also scroll each column independently. There are 15 recipes in each category, totaling 60 total recipes.

When viewing a recipe, you'll first see a list of all the ingredients followed by a photo of all these ingredients separated into their portions. Tapping on one of the ingredients in the photo will pop up more info about it, including another photo, description, preparation, and designations.

As you scroll down this page, you'll see all the steps in the recipe. With each step, there is a photograph of how your creation should look at this stage of the baking process. Some of the steps are shown side-by-side, while others are shown full-width. At the end of each recipe, a gorgeous photograph will demonstrate what your final baked good should look like. For example, check out these double ginger cupcakes.

Yum!

At the top right of the screen, there are three icons that let you mark the recipe as a favorite, take notes, or email the ingredients list. In a perfect world, The Photo Cookbook - Baking would be able to create a new Reminders list titled "double ginger cupcakes" and list out all the ingredients needed. But, alas, the iOS 5 SDK does not allow this. Maybe in iOS 6?

The good

• Gorgeous photography
• Easy read and follow steps
• Pictures of ingredients in their portions are helpful
• Pictures with each step is helpful
• 60 recipes in 4 categories

The bad

• Would like to see more categories and recipes. No pie?

The conclusion

I feel like The Photo cookbook was designed specifically for me. Although I don't like to cook, I love to bake, and I also refuse to use cookbooks without pictures. I want to know what the final product is supposed to look like, and The Photo Cookbook - Baking takes that idea way farther by showing photos of ingredients and how your creation should look at each stage - and these photos are gorgeous!

Now excuse me. I have some double ginger cupcakes to make.

$4.99 - Download Now

iMore's authoritative guide to the very best, absolutely free ebook, comic book, and article reading apps for iPad

Looking for great free reading apps for your iPad? The App Store is home to over half a million apps and games, and a surprising number of them are available for free. Some of the most popular free apps are free reading apps. We're talking ebooks, comic books, web articles, and more. So start reading, and then start downloading!

iBooks

iBooks is Apple's free ebook and PDF reading app for iPad. It's a stylish way to read not only books purchased from the iBookstore, but all the free books from the massive Project Gutenberg library as well as any of your own ePub or PDF files.

• Download Now

Readability

Readability offers a gorgeous way to read articles from your favorite website without the distraction of ads and other fluff -- for free! You simply set up your free account and add articles with a bookmarklet . A lot of other apps, like Twitter, offer Readability support so that you can add articles directly from those apps.

• Download Now

Kindle

The free Kindle App for iPad is Amazon's ebook reader. Unlike Apple's iBooks, Kindle is cross-platform. If you already have a large Kindle book collection, free or otherwise, or you just want to keep your options open for the future, Kindle is a great choice.

Comics

Comics isn't only the best way to buy new Marvel, DC, Image, and other comic books, but it also includes 500 free comics and one of the best reading interfaces in the App Store!

• Download now

Pocket

Pocket -- the new name for Read it Later -- is a free iPad app that lets you save optimized version of articles and photos and just about anything you encounter on the web and social networks for offline viewing at your leisure and convenience. (You can save videos too, but still need to be online to watch them later.)

• Download Now

More free iPad apps

For dozens of additional free iPad apps, including free instant messenger and communications apps, education apps, entertainment apps, finance apps, fun and games apps, health and fitness apps, kids apps, music apps, navigation and location apps, news apps, photography apps, productivity apps, reading apps, shopping apps, sports apps, travel apps, and general utility apps, see here:

• Best free iPad apps

Leanna Lofte contributed significant sections and photographs to this article.