The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)

Apple's one-day sale hits the US store

Joachim Bean — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 07:15:00 EST

Filed under: Apple, Deals

After seeing that yellow sticky for just a little while, Apple has posted the Black Friday specials in the US store. The products on sale include:

iMacs (21.5 and 27 inch) and MacBook Pros (13, 15 and 17 inch) are discounted $101, and start from $1098.
You can save $11 on an iPod nano, which are starting at $138 today.
You can also save $21 on a 8GB iPod touch, $31 on an 32GB iPod touch and $41 on a 32GB iPod touch.
You can get an Apple TV for $208, a savings of $21.

There's also discounted prices on software, Mac accessories, iPhone and iPod accessories, so there's something hopefully for everyone.

Apple's one-day sale hits the US store originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 27 Nov 2009 07:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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A Dozen Daily Deals, Day 2

Jason Clarke — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 12:30:00 EST

Filed under: Deals

As Victor mentioned yesterday, for the next few days we'll be featuring daily deals from our friends at DealNews.com. Lots of good stuff today, so why not get started browsing for Christmas gifts on stuffing day? Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

Walmart: [Black Friday] Walmart Thanksgiving Day Sale live now
Best Buy: [Black Friday] Best Buy Thanksgiving Weekend Sale: Netbooks from $180, more
MacMall: [Black Friday] MacMall 72 Hour Apple Black Friday Sale: Up to 25% off Apple systems after rebate
RadioShack: [Black Friday] Radio Shack Shack Friday Sale live now
Sam's Club: [Black Friday] Sam's Club Black Friday Sale live now
JR: [Black Friday] JR.com posts Black Friday Sale
6ave: [Black Friday] 6th Avenue Electronics Thanksgiving Day Sale live now
DicksSportingGoods: [Black Friday] Dick's Sporting Goods Black Friday Doorbuster deals now live
iTunes Music Store: [iPhone / iPod Apps] Gameloft iPhone / iPod touch Apps: Real Tennis 2009, Blades of Fury, more for 99 cents each
Lowe's: [Black Friday] Lowe's Super Friday Sneak Peek Sale live now
GoGamer: [Black Friday] GoGamer Black Friday Madness: Deals from 1 cent + $3 s&h
iTunes Music Store: [iPhone / iPod Apps] CoPilot Live North America for iPhone downloads for $20

A Dozen Daily Deals, Day 2 originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 26 Nov 2009 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple Black Friday deals hit the Australian store

Michael Rose — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 09:30:00 EST

Filed under: Deals

Put aside, for the moment, the incongruity of non-US stores featuring discounts for the day after a US-only holiday... just roll with it, OK? Apple's online store for Australia -- where, of course, it's already Black Friday -- has got the one-day discount page posted and ready to go.

The pricing drops are in the vicinity of 8-10% on the listed gear, which is certainly nice, and consistent with the second take on the leaked Apple ad posted by Boy Genius Report (the first one posted by the site featured delightful discounts that were much higher -- and unfortunately quite bogus). Look for similar discounts on the US store starting tonight.

Thanks to Victor Cajiao!

Apple Black Friday deals hit the Australian store originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 26 Nov 2009 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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A Dozen Daily Deals

Victor Agreda, Jr. — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 14:00:00 EST

Filed under: Deals

'Tis the season to start shopping until your brains melt (or skip it all entirely, depending on your interpretation of the term holiday). In that spirit, for the next few days we'll be rounding up a dozen daily deals courtesy our friends at DealNews.com. Each afternoon tune in to TUAW for this handy summary. Keep in mind that while our posts will live on, the deals won't. Each is lovingly generated by the deal-bot every day, so get 'em while they're hot. Enjoy!

iTunes Music Store: [iPhone / iPod Apps] App Store Freebies: World Surfer, HandWriting Mail, Sign Here, Writie Talkie, more
Home Depot: [Black Friday] Home Depot Black Friday Preview Savings Sale now live + extra 10% off
iTunes Music Store: [iPhone / iPod Apps] 1Password Pro for iPhone downloads for free
MacUpdate Promo: [Office Software Suites] Pages Templates 5 for Mac downloads for $20
iTunes Music Store: [iPhone / iPod Apps] Electronic Arts iPhone / iPod touch Apps: Tetris, SimCity for $3, Madden 10 for $5, more
[MP3 Downloads] The 99 Most Essential Tchaikovsky Masterpieces MP3 Album download for $5 ... or $2
InvisibleShield: [Notebook Accessories] 50% off ZAGGskins Protectors at ZAGG.com
Sony Style: [46" - 47" LCD TVs] Free PS3 or Blu-ray Player w/ Sony HDTVs: 46" 120Hz 1080p for $1,000 + free shipping, more
Staples: [Media Receivers] Seagate FreeAgent Theater HD 500GB Media Player for $100 + free shipping
Western Digital Store: [Media Receivers] Refurbished Western Digital WD TV HD Media Player for $70 + free shipping
Meritline: [iPod Accessories] USB Data Cable for iPhone / iPod touch for $2 + free shipping
Seehere: [Photo Services] FujiFilm SeeHere: 50 free holiday cards + $3 s&h

A Dozen Daily Deals originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 25 Nov 2009 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple's Black Friday ad possibly leaked?

Chris Rawson — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 15:30:00 EST

Filed under: Retail, Rumors, Deals

Boy Genius Report claims to have gotten its hands on Apple's Black Friday brochure. Although they had posted another brochure earlier that made less than credible claims of 30% iPod discounts and 25% Mac discounts, BGR claims this newest ad comes from "a pretty credible connect of ours." The new ad's discounts are also more in line with Apple's previous Black Friday deals, which tend to be fairly modest compared to other retailers.

Below are a few of the discounts on the "leaked" ad:
iMac: $101 off
MacBook Pro: $51-$101 off
iPod nano: $11 off
iPod touch: $21-$41 off

Boy Genius Report notes that these deals apply only on the online store, not at Apple's retail stores.

Though this ad seems legitimate on the face of it, it's worth noting that pretty much everyone here at TUAW agreed Boy Genius Report's last "leaked" ad was a fake. So take this latest "leak" with a grain of salt. However, after taking into account Apple's Black Friday deals in earlier years, whatever discounts it offers this year are at least likely to be similar to this latest ad leak whether it's the real deal or not.

[Via Mac Rumors]

Apple's Black Friday ad possibly leaked? originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 23 Nov 2009 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple announces one-day shopping event on November 27th

Joachim Bean — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 10:30:00 EST

Filed under: Retail, Apple, Deals

As usual for this time of year, Apple has announced a special one-day sale on November 27th, which is Black Friday (the day after Thanksgiving). The page on Apple's online store reads:

"Come back to the Apple Online Store the day after Thanksgiving for a special one-day-only holiday shopping event. You'll find dozens of great iPod, iPhone, and Mac gift ideas - all with free shipping.

Mark your calendar now. And until then, start your research by browsing the Apple Online Store to find iPod, iPhone, and Mac gifts for everyone on your list."

There's no details on what's exactly going to be on sale, and this doesn't look like the questionable leaked email we saw last week stating Apple's Black Friday discounts. Apple has in the past not posted the actual sale prices until early Friday. We'll let you know when we find out what's on sale and what those discounts are.

What are your purchase plans? Let us know by leaving a comment!
[via Mashable]

Apple announces one-day shopping event on November 27th originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 23 Nov 2009 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mobile shopping's first Christmas

Mike Schramm — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 07:00:00 EST

Filed under: Software, Odds and ends, Freeware, Deals, iPhone, App Store

I don't know that I completely agree with this article over at Business Week (technically, last year was our first Christmas with the App Store), but I think the concept is fascinating. Lauren Sherman and her interviewee Retails Systems Research managing partner Paula Rosenblum reason that this coming Christmas season -- surprise, we're only five days away from Black Friday 2009 -- will be the first where mobile shopping apps (and the smartphones that can run them) will be generally ubiquitous.

Not only will people have access to apps on their iPhone that help them find deals, stores, and prices, but they'll all have 'net-connected phones as well, which many of them actually got last Christmas. You'll see people sending texts to each other, playing games while in line, and even scanning coupons in at the register -- all with their phones.

As I said, this was all possible last Christmas, but since then, we've seen non-iPhones like the Pre and the Droid drop, and the iPhone itself has claimed a lot more customers than Black Friday 2008. These people won't be out buying smartphones, obviously, but they will be using them, and it'll be interesting to see how much this changes the experience. When I was a kid, you planned out your route ahead of time and hit what few stores you could, but between Twitter, apps, and all the other information available on a phone, shopping during the holiday season might be very different this year.

Although you can be sure there will still be lines, parking frustrations, and lots and lots of people buying junk just because it's cheap. Then again, maybe it's better to use that slightly older piece of technology, the desktop browser, and just do the shopping from home.

[via MacBytes]

Mobile shopping's first Christmas originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 23 Nov 2009 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Mac Sale ends tomorrow, get it quick

Josh Carr — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 16:30:00 EST

Filed under: Deals

Wanted to mention this one before the deal ends: Right now, you can get 10 applications for $49.99 from The Mac Sale. Most notably, this bundle includes CrossOver Games from CodeWeavers which allows you to play many popular games from the Windows platform on your Mac or Linux computer. The bundle also includes Picturesque, a great application that enhances your pictures: also a winner of an Apple Design Award.

One last mention for MacJournal; it's a journal application that integrates with Wordpress, Blogger, LiveJournal, MobileMe and more, all the while keeping your information encrypted and password-protected on your Mac so snooping eyes can't find your secrets. Here's a full list of the applications available:

CrossOver Games
Picturesque
HoudahGeo
MacJournal
Morph Age Regular
Opacity Express
Searchlight
Vinoteka
Stone Imaginator
Stor

The Mac Sale ends tomorrow, get it quick originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 12 Nov 2009 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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For sale on eBay: One iPhone development business, batteries not included

Mike Schramm — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 08:00:00 EST

Filed under: Software, Odds and ends, Developer, Deals, iPhone

Want an iPhone app business without all the boring hassle of actually programming and releasing iPhone apps? Boy, does Brice Milliorn have a deal for you! He's auctioning off his iPhone app business, which he says has 87 different apps for sale, over on eBay.

Milliorn says he started out developing apps on his own, but the business is just too big for him to keep up so he's selling all of the apps and their rights, all of the source code, and technical support for two months to transition everything over to the new owner. He doesn't specifically say that he'll transfer the developer account on Apple's App Store to your name (he says he'll send over a DVD with the source code and transfer "the whole kit and caboodle" to you), but we presume that's what will happen -- of course if you go for it, you're doing this at your own risk.

What will a burgeoning App Store business, complete with apps like iSexyRef and Swine Flu cost you? Just a cool $100 grand. That's the starting bid in the eBay auction, which has just over a week left and no bids as of this writing. There are certainly less expensive ways to get started selling apps on the store. It only costs $100 to register in Apple's Developer Program for a year, and then you just need to find a developer you can pay -- or even do it yourself with a helper service).

If you'd rather start off with a bunch of marginal to silly 99-cent apps and happen to have an extra $100,000 lying around to spend (maybe for a nice holiday gift?), here's your opportunity.

For sale on eBay: One iPhone development business, batteries not included originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Sat, 07 Nov 2009 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Tons of software on sale thanks to One Finger Discount

Victor Agreda, Jr. — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Software, Deals

How does a 20% discount sound? How about 20% off software from over 30 developers? This list has been growing since One Finger Discount started this week and continues to grow as developers jump on board with a pretty darn good deal if you're in the market for any one of these awesome applications. They run the gamut from productivity to games to blogging software.

Kudos to Daniel Jalkut of Red Sweater Software for putting these deals together on one page, somewhat cheekily as a response to MacHeist, it would seem. The One Finger? Well, that comes from 1/5, 20% discount as opposed to a five-finger discount (free). 20% is still a steal, right? Very clever, Mr. Jalkut -- we'll leave the readers to consider which finger they should order with.

[via Macworld]

Tons of software on sale thanks to One Finger Discount originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 06 Nov 2009 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The loot from the recent MacHeist

Josh Carr — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 09:30:00 EST

Filed under: Software, Freeware, Deals

As Kevin pointed out on Wednesday, MacHeist has a new bundle for us at the moment -- but this one is what they consider a "nanoBundle" and it's free. I can't speak for everyone here at TUAW, but when I see the word "free" next to software, I horde it.

They've decided to just give away this bundle of apps in what appears to be a move to encourage their users to come back for more. 6 great mac apps for zero dollars. That's my kind of deal. There are only 6 more days to download this bundle, so go grab it after checking out the loot:

Shove Box -- An awesome reminder, organization, gotta-get-it-done application that sits in your menu bar. You can then drag things like text, URLs, images... possibly anything to the menu bar app and it'll save it for later. When you get some free time, you can go back through and see what you have. There's an iPhone companion app as well.
WriteRoom -- A simple writing application that removes all of the typical distractions from your writing sessions. It makes the text window full screen, completely cutting off the rest of the world from your mind -- if you so choose. It still has simple tools like word count, background/text color adjustments... but definitely keeps you focused. We've covered it quite a bit.
Twitterrific -- One of my favorite apps on my iPhone as of late. The desktop version is similarly simple. Set up your Twitter account and tweet away with the easiest solution imaginable.
TinyGrab -- Is a screen capture maniac's dream. It allows you to use the standard command-shift-4 and select part of your screen or hit spacebar to capture a specific window. The kicker: it uploads it directly to your own FTP server and puts the URL in your clipboard so you can paste it in Facebook, Twitter, email, IM... whatever your pleasure.
Hordes of Orcs -- I'll admit, this is the real reason I'm downloading the bundle. I've heard nothing but great reviews about this game even from our own Mike Schramm. It's one of the most innovative desktop tower defense games I've seen. Everything is in 3D, there are 6 different game variations and let's not forget tower defense.
Mariner Write -- This is a word processor with features you need but none of the "bloat" found in other applications *cough* Microsoft *cough.* Of course, it will open and save Word documents, as well as other formats.

While I was writing this, the download total went up 5,000 downloads but it'll take 500,000 for all of us to get the full benefit. MacHeist says that Mariner Write is the unlockable application, so I'm hoping to get a serial and really try it out. Head over to Macheist, and download your nanoBundle. For the first time, I'll be using all of the apps in it -- and it's free!

The loot from the recent MacHeist originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 06 Nov 2009 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Get your thinking caps on, MacHeist is back

Kevin Harter — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 07:45:00 EST

Filed under: Software, Deals

Software bundles seem to be all the rage nowadays, but in my humble opinion, MacHeist is still the best. It doesn't just lump a bunch of apps together for special price, but instead, it turns getting a discount into a game.

As a recent Mac switcher, I was utterly confused by MacHeist 3, the first edition in which I participated. Someone told me to check out the MacHeist bundle, so I went to the web site to see what applications it contained. But the site didn't tell me. It soon became clear that I was going to have to work for my software!

The whole idea, if you're not familiar with MacHeist, is that you need to complete a series of challenges, labeled "heists," in order to get free software. Yes, free. As in what lunches aren't. And the software isn't anything to sneeze at (neither are lunches, by the way), as there are always some real gems to be found.

UPDATE: We took the 4 from the title as it is currently unknown whether this is actually MacHeist 4 or an early bundle offer.

Continue reading Get your thinking caps on, MacHeist is back

Get your thinking caps on, MacHeist is back originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 04 Nov 2009 07:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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T-3 days, and another NaNoWriMo deal

Steven Sande — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 13:00:00 EST

Filed under: Software, Odds and ends, Deals

There are three more full days until the start of National Novel Writing Month, and that means that yet another software developer has checked in with a deal on a Mac writing application.

This time, it's Mariner Software, and the application is StoryMill. Mariner's deal is this -- if you purchase StoryMill before the start of NaNoWriMo on November 1st, you'll get a 35% discount off of the normal price of US$49.95. That brings the price down to a very nice US$34.95.

StoryMill is unique in that it has a timeline function that gives authors a way to arrange the scenes in their opus on a graphical timeline. For continuity of the story line, that's a great tool, and it's something that seems to be available only with StoryMill. The package also has a distraction-free writing mode for churning out your average of 1,667 words per day, as well as a Progress Meter for counting down those 50,000 words in your NaNoWriMo novel.

If you're not sure that StoryMill will work for you, there's also a 30-launch free trial that may see you through NaNoWriMo. I'm hoping that all of you TUAW readers who are thinking of writing during NaNoWriMo have signed up by now and have decided what your story is all about. Good luck, and happy writing!

T-3 days, and another NaNoWriMo deal originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 29 Oct 2009 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple will spend $4 million to renovate Chicago's North/Halsted triangle

Mike Schramm — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 10:30:00 EST

Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Retail, Odds and ends, Deals

Technically, I've now moved away from Chicago and am living in Los Angeles, but that doesn't mean I'm not still following the brand new Apple store being built at the intersection of North and Halsted in Chicago -- not only is that my old stomping grounds (I used to be a manager at that Borders), but hearing about and seeing the old place makes me a little nostalgic for that toddlin' town I left only a month and a half or so ago. And there's good news for Chicagoans just south of that Clybourne Corridor neighborhood. Apple will be spending a cool $4 million to redevelop the entire triangle, including that dirty old Red Line station sitting there as well (you can't tell, but the pic above is the old gas station that used to be there, with the train station in the background.

In exchange (c'mon, this is Chicago, you didn't think they'd be doing it for free, did you?), Apple gets first naming rights for the station ("iStop" jumps to mind), as well as the chance at advertising in there for 10 years to come, with four more five-year options. But even with those conditions, this is actually great news for that whole area -- it's been on the cusp of getting really busy (it's just a city block north of the old derelict Cabrini Green neighborhood) for a while now, and an Apple store with a brand new El stop certainly won't hurt. I'll have to make sure and take a trip back -- they're saying the triangular store could be open as soon as Fall 2010. There's an excellent Italian place just under the Brown line track across from the Steppenwolf just north on Halsted, too. Ah, memories.

Apple will spend $4 million to renovate Chicago's North/Halsted triangle originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 27 Oct 2009 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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NaNoWriMo writers: Storyist has some hot deals for you, too

Steven Sande — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Software, Odds and ends, Deals

In my continuing campaign to get as many Apple fans out there as possible to take part in National Novel Writing Month, I'm always looking for deals on writing software. Earlier in the week, I reported on a deal that Scrivener is providing for NaNoWriMo participants. Well, not to be left out of the fun, Storyist Software also has some deals set up for would-be novelists.

If you're in the Bay Area, you might want to take part in NaNoWriMo's Night of Writing Dangerously on Sunday, November 22, 2009 from 5 to 11 PM in the Julia Morgan Ballroom at the Merchant's Exchange Building in San Francisco. Every writer who participates in this fundraising event gets a free copy of Storyist 2 from Storyist Software, and two top fundraisers for the event will each receive an Amazon Kindle and a $50 gift card from Storyist.

Storyist always provides a 30-day free trial version of their namesake software, but this time they'll give you a temporary license that lasts through the first week of December if you contact the company from their NaNoWriMo page. In addition, if you decide to purchase the software at any point during NaNoWriMo, just use the coupon code NANOWRIMO at checkout and you'll receive 25% off of the download-only version (US$59.00) or the boxed edition (US$79.00).

Now you have your choice of two great writing tools to use during NaNoWriMo, so you have no excuse not to sign up for the creative writing event of the year and churn out that novel you've always been meaning to write. Get signed up today!

NaNoWriMo writers: Storyist has some hot deals for you, too originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 23 Oct 2009 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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NaNoWriMo participants: Scrivener has some deals for you

Steven Sande — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 09:30:00 EST

Filed under: Odds and ends, Deals

After my post about NaNoWriMo preparation the other day, a couple of TUAW readers pointed out that Literature and Latte, the folks behind Scrivener 1.52, have a special deal going on for NaNoWriMo 2009 participants.

Are you considering giving Scrivener a try while you're writing your entry for NaNoWriMo 2009? You're in luck! Normally, the application comes with a 30-day free trial. While that's long enough to last through the 30 days of writing ecstasy that it NaNoWriMo, you should get to know the tools of your trade before you start writing. Downloading the trial version of Scrivener between now and the start of NaNoWriMo on November 1st gives you a trial version that lasts until December 7th, long enough for you to not only finish your tome, but also make your first editing pass before sending it to your publisher.

Now here comes the really fun part -- if you are successful in writing your 50,000 words by November 30th, you can buy Scrivener starting on December 2nd at a 50% discount off the normal license price of US$39.95. Those who run out of luck or time and aren't NaNoWriMo finishers can still get 20% off by using the promo code NANOWRIMO.

If you'd like to be able to take notes in between writing sessions, you'll be happy to know that WriteRoom notes can be synced to SimpleText.ws, and then imported directly into Scrivener.

Thanks to Cthulu Saves and sophielynette for the tip!

NaNoWriMo participants: Scrivener has some deals for you originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 19 Oct 2009 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Dev raises price of $3 app to $40 just to spite customers

Mike Schramm — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 14:00:00 EST

Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Humor, Software, Odds and ends, Developer, Deals, iPhone, App Store, iPod touch

I like the way Schiau Studios thinks -- when customers complained about the price of their $2.99US App Store game Alchemize, they raised the price up to $39.99. Over on the TouchArcade forums, they make their case: most devs, they say, when faced with complaints about price, will just lower their price even though their software is already cheap. So they wanted to buck the trend, and instead raised it up to almost $40 (which, incidentally, is slightly more than what you might pay for a handheld console game).

Lest you simply complain that they were greedy, they say they were only out to make a point: everyone who purchased the game at the higher price point will have all of their money go to charity, and now that the game's back at the $2.99 price point, 33% of all the profits to be gained will go to the same charity. Regardless of whether the game's any good or not, we like their thinking.

Can we all agree to stop griping about price points? I've actually heard this come up lately on a comedy podcast of all places -- when Chicago broadcasting legend Steve Dahl (and one of my favorites) started up a podcast about a month ago, and introduced an app to go along with it. Steve was inundated with comments complaining about the $2.99 price, which he responded to with a great argument on the show: he's put a lot of money into the app and the show behind it, and if you're already a fan of his, paying less than the cost of a cup of Starbucks should not even be an issue.

Sure, when the App Store first started up, it was the Wild West -- both prices and quality were all over the place. But at this point, Apple's review system has more or less settled down, and blogs like ours are full of recommendations, with enough free apps to last any rabid app user most of their iPhone time. If you have any interest in an app at all, a couple of bucks shouldn't be enough to give you pause -- either pick it up and make sure the dev gets their due (small as that may be), or move on to find an app you'd rather buy.

Dev raises price of $3 app to $40 just to spite customers originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 13 Oct 2009 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Chilli X has birthday - everyone gets presents, but no cake

Brett Terpstra — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 14:30:00 EST

Filed under: Deals, iPhone

If you look under your seats, you'll find a bevy of free iPhone apps. That's right ... you get an app, you get an app, everybody gets an app (or 16)!

We've mentioned Chilli X a few times, and I've developed a fondness for their collection of sleek, simple iPhone apps with great-looking interfaces. And now it's their first birthday, and they're giving out presents: this weekend only (starting right now), you can grab any (or all) of Chilli X's iPhone apps for FREE.

There are plenty to choose from; 16 apps in the App Store and one just submitted for approval today. We've mentioned Done [iTunes link], MyCal [iTunes link] and Playlist Alarm Clock [iTunes link], but much has happened since then. What follows is a roundup of some of the latest apps, but you can find them all by searching for "Chilli X" in the App Store.

Continue reading Chilli X has birthday - everyone gets presents, but no cake

Chilli X has birthday - everyone gets presents, but no cake originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 09 Oct 2009 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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FarFinder remote access tool: on sale and iPhone savvy

Steven Sande — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 08:00:00 EST

Filed under: Software, Odds and ends, Internet Tools, Deals

I'm a sucker for anything that allows me to get secure remote access to my home machine, so when I saw that FarFinder, the remote access tool from FlyingMac, was on sale for US$20, I jumped on the chance to buy it. It'll be on sale until October 22nd, so if you want to get the application for US$15 less than the normal price, you'll want to head over to the FlyingMac site right now. The family license is US$20 off during the sale, and is available for US$45.

The last time someone at TUAW wrote about FarFinder was back in 2008, when blogger Mat Lu referred to it as "your Finder on the web." That's a perfect way to describe FarFinder, since it makes your Mac's files and folders (plus any network-attached or external drives that are mounted) available to you from most web browsers and your iPhone (see screenshot at right).

FlyingMac offers a 20-day free trial of the application. One thing I really like about FarFinder is that once you've purchased it, there are no extra subscription fees. That means that US$20 price will give you service forever...or at least until there's a major upgrade you need to purchase.

Continue reading FarFinder remote access tool: on sale and iPhone savvy

FarFinder remote access tool: on sale and iPhone savvy originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 09 Oct 2009 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Doubletwist introduces in-app music store powered by Amazon

Mike Schramm — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 10:30:00 EST

Filed under: iTS, Software, Freeware, iTunes, Deals, Music

We posted about Doubletwist earlier this year -- it's a pretty innovative music app (developed in part by Jon Lech Johansen, otherwise known as DVD Jon) that not only plays you play whatever you like, obviously, but even lets you share and send music off to anyone, even other people who don't have the app itself. Now Doubletwist is stepping up even more closely to becoming an iTunes competitor: they've announced a partnership with the Amazon music store to sell music directly from within the app. No TVs or movies -- just music, purchased directly within the app, and then able to be sent out to any devices or social networks as usual.

TechCrunch says the store's simplicity is actually a selling point -- iTunes has ballooned up to do way more than just sell music, and in Doubletwist it's much more straightforward. Here's the other bonus for Mac users: while we originally had to wait for an app release, the music store is currently only available on the Mac version of the software. A PC version is coming soon.

It's doubtful Doubletwist will replace iTunes for many people, given all of the various things iTunes does for a Mac user. But then again, if you are using the Amazon MP3 store with any frequency, Doubletwist is probably worth a look: it's a free download on the website.

Doubletwist introduces in-app music store powered by Amazon originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 08 Oct 2009 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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