Apple has announced some details on the 2012 iTunes Festival in London. This 30-day music event will take place at The Roundhouse and feature free performances by Usher, Emeli Sandé, Jack White, Norah Jones and One Direction among others.

Tickets will be distributed via lottery, and fans in the UK, Ireland, France, Germany and the Netherlands can vie for a seat. Apple will stream performances to computers running iTunes and iPhones, iPod touches and iPads with the iTunes Festival app installed. The fun starts on September 1 and runs for the whole month.

Apple's iTunes Festival scheduled for September originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Fri, 18 May 2012 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Flipboard is the "social magazine" for iPad and iPhone that lets users browse their favorite social network sites, feeds and more in a beautiful, magazine-like interface. Version 1.9 was released this week and adds audio to the mix.

A new audio tab offers several options, like SoundCloud and shows from National Public Radio (like Fresh Air) and Public Radio International. You'll also find podcasts and indue music from the likes of Sub Pop Records and Epitaph Records.

What's really nice is that you can begin an audio stream and navigate away to another section of Flipboard (or even another app) while the stream continues. Version 1.9 is a free update.

Flipboard 1.9 puts emphasis on audio originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Wed, 16 May 2012 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Reuters reports that China Mobile is talking with Apple about selling the iPhone. China Mobile is the world's largest telecom carrier by subscribers. It claimed over 600 million users at the end of September, 2011 and, interestingly, 10 million iPhone users. Those customers either converted from China Telecom (which does sell iPhones), or bought an iPhone from an Apple Store or the black market.

China Mobile Chairman Xi Guohua recently told shareholders, "We've been actively talking to Apple on how we can cooperate," further saying that "both sides" hope for increased cooperation.

Recent speculation has suggested that the next iPhone will use a Qualcomm Inc. chip, which would be compatible with China Mobile's own 3G network.

China Mobile reportedly in talks to carry iPhone officially originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Wed, 16 May 2012 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

There are more than half a million apps in Apple's App Store. Some are stunning achievements. Others are not.

Below is a video demonstration of the app Airplane. Touch the "Take Off" button to hear the sound of an airplane engine. Shake the phone to hear a flight attended tell you to put your seatbelt on. That's it.

We leave you with this free app from the "Entertainment" category (that's a stretch) and a hearty "no comment."

No comment: Unimpressive iPhone app, Airplane originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 15 May 2012 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

We've been using Due for iOS for quite a while now (our review) It's exciting that there's finally a Mac version of Due available. It's just as useful as its mobile counterpart an offers wireless sync, rapid reminder creation and great looks. Plus, it's still a nag, which is exactly what I need. Here's a look at Due for Mac.

UI

Due for Mac is quite good-looking, as you'd expect. The main window is small and unobtrusive by default, though you can resize it. Four icons line the top of the main window: view reminders, view timers, view logged reminders and create a new reminder. The pinstriped window is tidy and resembles Due for iPhone. When you create a new reminder or edit a timer, a pop-up window appears which also looks very nice.

Use

Creating a reminder is simple. Click the new reminder button (or hit Command-N) to open the creation window. You can use natural language here, which is great. "April 10" works as well as "tomorrow" or "in four days." Also, "10:00 AM" works as well as "10am."

Also, you needn't tab into each field. You can simply type "Pick up mail at 2pm tomorrow" and everything will be filled in properly. The reminder is set as soon as you finish typing, so there's no "confirm" button to click.

Keyboard support is extensive. You can create reminders, hide the app, pull it up front again, reschedule things, mark them as done and so on without touching a mouse.

The snooze feature that I like on my iPhone has made it to Due for Mac. When a reminder's due date passes without being marked as done, the app will repeatedly remind you that it's still outstanding.

Of course, the cool new feature is cloud sync between Due for Mac and iOS. All of your reminders and timers can be synchronized via iCloud or Dropbox. In my testing, this works flawlessly. Reminders created on either device showed up on the other almost instantly. Also, marking a reminder as completed did the same thing. It's really nice to create errand-based tasks on my Mac and have them ready to go on my iPhone when I leave the house.

Finally, the customizable alert sounds are pretty cool. You can assign a longer or louder alert to an especially important task. That's also useful if you know you're going to be in a noisy setting when the reminder will sound.

Conclusion

At US$9.99 it's not a throw-away app. I think it's worth it for the cloud sync alone. Due for iOS has kept me on track many times, and now I'm glad to have my Mac in on the fun. I recommend checking it out.

Due for Mac now available with cloud sync, much more originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 15 May 2012 12:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Apple has released a security update for Leopard, the first in quite a while, as well as a Flashback removal tool for that version of the OS.

According to Apple, Leopard Security Update 2012-003 "disables versions of Adobe Flash Player that do not include the latest security updates and provides the option to get the current version from Adobe's website."

Also, the Flashback Removal Security Update "removes the most common variants of the Flashback malware. If the Flashback malware is found, a dialog will notify you that malware was removed. In some cases, the update may need to restart your computer in order to completely remove the Flashback malware."

Grab them both to secure your Leopard machine.

Apple releases Leopard update, Flashback removal tool originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 15 May 2012 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Foxconn chief Terry Gou said that his company and Apple will share the costs of improving labor conditions at the Chinese factory that assembles many of Apple's products. Gou did not reveal the amount to be spent or how it would be divided between Apple and Foxconn.

Last February, Foxconn agreed to raise wages for some of its factory workers. In March, the company began recruiting for positions created to oversee safety and lifestyle issues at its facilities. Gou did not say if the cost of these initiatives would be shared with Apple.

Apple, Foxconn to share cost of factory improvement originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 10 May 2012 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

iPhones and iPads are rapidly becoming a primary computing device for many users. As such, they're increasingly subject to search and seizure by legal authorities, according to GigaOM.

The first time a search warrant was issued for an iPhone was shortly after the device debuted in 2007. Since then the numbers have increased steadily. According to the US Public Access to Court Electronic Records (or PACER), there have been 50 cases in which "iPhone" was listed. Additionally, this year's warrants have already outnumbered those issued in 2009.

Authorities seized an iPad for the first time last year.

This trend illustrates how nabbing a thief's mobile device can be just as helpful to investigators as acquiring a hard drive, if not more so. As I've said before, the iPhone is a computer in my pocket that just happens to make phone calls.

iPhones, iPads increasingly subject to search warrants originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 03 May 2012 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Steve Jobs fans in the Washington, DC area will want to check out an exhibit of his patents. Jobs had more than three hundred patents to his name, and 312 of them will be on display at the S. Dillon Ripley Center, which is part of the Smithsonian Institute.

The exhibit contains physical examples of the patented items, like an Apple II, a Lisa, a NeXT computer and an iPod, as well as a facsimile of the accompanying patent.

The exhibit was created by the nonprofit Invent Now, Inc, which works to highlight creativity and invention. It will run from May 11 to July 8. Tickets will be made available through the Smithsonain Associates website.

Traveling exhibit to display Steve Jobs patents originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 03 May 2012 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Alfred for Mac (our review from last year) has been updated to version 1.2. Alfred is a utility that's part app launcher, part navigation tool and part web service. This updated adds two new themes: Dark and Smooth & Pistachio (I prefer the original). There's also support for large type which my aging eyes appreciate as well as an option to drag results out of Alfred an onto the desktop, into an email message and so on. That's pretty handy.

There are also lots of improvements and you'll find the full list here. Alfred for Mac is free but the optional Powerpack (£15) adds a lot of additional functionality.

Alfred updated with new themes, drag-and-drop support originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 01 May 2012 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Skype has released version 4.0 of its app for iPad and iPhone (both free). There are a few nice changes this time around. The app now lets you pre-position your video preview as you like. It also restarts automatically after an "unexpected shutdown." That's "crash" to you and me.

Skype also states that accessibility and overall stability have been improved, along with some minor UI improvements and bug fixes. The change log is the same for both apps.

Go get it and start chatting.

Skype for iPad 4.0 offers new video preview option, crash recovery originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Mon, 30 Apr 2012 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Apple's retail stores have featured a "kids table" since the first one opened in 2001. It's low to the ground with soft seats and Apple hardware running kid-friendly software. Up until now, the hardware for the kids tables has been the iMac -- but it seems Apple is switching to iPads.

Rene Ritchie at iMore noticed that the iMacs had been replaced with iPads at his local Apple Store, and a few readers reported the same thing at the stores they visit. Mike Rose reports that the Grand Central Terminal NYC store opened with iPads in the kid section.

Almost one year ago, Apple replaced the in-store product information cards with iPads. "Post-PC" indeed.

Apple lets kids play with iPads rather than iMacs originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Fri, 27 Apr 2012 10:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Twitter for iPhone and iPad (free, universal) has been updated to version 4.2. This update introduces a number of changes, including an improved discover feature. Now, the app shows an activity feed displaying which of your tweets have been favorited or re-tweeted by other users. You'll find activity listed below the other discover features.

Search has been improved too, with auto spell correction in the search field and search history. New push notification options let you know when one of your tweets has been re-tweeted or favorited; an additional alert announces a new follower.

Finally, Twitter for iOS 4.2 offers support for Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish and Polish. You'll find it in the App Store now.

Twitter iOS update adds improved discover, search, notifications originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Fri, 27 Apr 2012 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Last year we reviewed the Padprop iPad stand. It's a super-handy device that lets you choose multiple viewing angles, rest an iPad between your knees for easy typing and even stores a set of Apple earbuds neatly and securely. I found it durable (it's made of EVA foam) and lightweight at just 50 grams.

There are two models available: the Padprop 1 for the original iPad, and the Padprop 2, which accommodates the iPad 2 and the new iPad. Today we're happy to have four Padprop 2s to give away. Here are the specifics:

• Open to legal US residents of the 50 United States and the District of Columbia and Canada (excluding Quebec) who are 18 and older.
• To enter leave a comment .
• The comment must be left before TUESDAY, MAY 1ST BY, 11:59PM Eastern Daylight Time.
• You may enter only once.
• One winner will be selected in a random drawing.
• Prize: Padprop 2 (Value: £14.99 )
• Click Here for complete Official Rules.

Good luck!

Padprop iPad stand giveaway originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 26 Apr 2012 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Apple is looking to reward outstanding student developers with a trip to WWDC 2012. Full- or part-time students over the age of 13 may apply. Apple's decision will be based on the following:

1. Technical ability
2. Creativity of ideas expressed in products or projects
3. Prior WWDC attendance
4. Technical and work experience

Participating students must also be a member of either the iOS Developer Program, iOS Developer University Program or Mac Developer Program, and provide proof of his/her enrollment in school. You'll find all the details here. Good luck!

Apple to issue 150 student scholarships to attend WWDC 2012 originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Wed, 25 Apr 2012 09:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Apple has officially announced dates for its Worldwide Developers Conference 2012. It will take place June 11-15 in San Francisco, California. Tickets are on sale now, selling at $1599 for attendees.

Apple will put on over 100 sessions for developers, and there will be more than 1,000 Apple personnel available for hands-on labs. Also, Apple Design Awards will recognize innovative iPhone, iPad and Mac apps for technical achievement and outstanding design.

Get your tickets now, and enjoy WWDC 2012.

WWDC 2012 announced, tickets on sale originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Wed, 25 Apr 2012 08:42:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Ashton Kutcher photo from Helga Esteb / Shutterstock.com

iPad publication The Daily reports that Ashton Kutcher is whole-heartedly preparing to play former Apple CEO Steve Jobs. Producer Mark Hulme of Five Star Feature Films:

"He is already meeting with folks that knew Steve Jobs. He's working with professionals to get inside the voice. He's letting his hair grow out. I understand he's canceled all meetings and actually canceled all other projects."

News of Kutcher's new gig was first announced by Variety on April 1st, prompting many to question if the notorious prankster had pulled a fast one. But it is a real project. The Daily reports that the indie film, which is not based on Isaacson's bio, will simply be called "Jobs."

Ashton Kutcher prepares to play Steve Jobs originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Wed, 04 Apr 2012 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

I started using FileMaker Pro way back with version 6, when I was developing solutions for a residential school. I grew to love the pro database software, and since then it's gotten better and better.

The new version 12 of FileMaker Pro, announced today, continues the trend of improvement with fantastic new features like enhanced charting, strong iOS support, vastly improved design capabilities and a lot more -- including free iOS versions of the database app, which previously were paid apps. Here's our first look at FileMaker Pro 12.

Design

FileMaker Pro 12 features a new theme architecture and 40 total themes to choose from. Several of the new themes have companion "touch" themes, which have been optimized to run on the iPhone and iPad. FileMaker followed Apple's Human Interface Guidelines while developing the touch themes, so every field, button and element is legible and usable and Apple's mobile devices. Also, new guides and rulers (or "stencils," as they're called) make it easy to create a layout that fits your target device's screen. There's no guesswork; just tell FileMaker which device you're designing for and the layout guides jump into place.

Version 12 also features improved layout object formatting, including object states. Anyone who's made a button in FileMaker Pro will appreciate this. Instead of a static image, FileMaker Pro 12 lets you assign three states to your buttons: normal, hover and pressed. Use the inspector to customize the button's appearance in each state, even with gradients. Now buttons behave much the same as they do on websites, making them eminently clickable.

New Starter Solutions

FileMaker Pro 12 comes with 16 new starter solutions. The folks at FileMaker told me that one half of its customers use a starter solution as a launchpad for their database projects. When I was learning years ago, these templates provided a great start for me, and poking around to see how things worked was very educational.

All About iOS

What's most impressive to me about FileMaker Pro 12 is the amount of attention the team has clearly paid to iOS. When you consider the touch layouts, web support and FileMaker Go for iPad and iPhone (now free apps!) you realize that small business owners or even individuals who lack the time or resources to create a custom iOS app have a solution in FileMaker Pro.

During the demo that I saw, an iPad running FileMaker Go was able to view an iOS-optimized layout, stored remotely. What's more, when changes were made to that layout, they showed up automatically on the iPad. Also, new ways container fields handle images (automatically creating thumbnails) and video (streaming from FileMaker Server), not to mention gesture support, further enhance the iOS story.

It's important to note that both flavors of FileMaker Go -- v11 and v12 -- remain on the App Store at this time, and each comes in a separate iPhone and iPad package. Version 11 is still a paid app, and will open databases created with the older versions of FileMaker Pro. Version 12, while free, will only work with databases created in the new desktop v12; you can't use the older files with it.

Enhanced Container Fields

A container field is a special type of field that can store images, QuickTime files, audio, and several other types of files. Container fields are greatly improved in version 12. First, you can add items with a drag-and-drop. You'll also notice that FileMaker Pro automatically manages and encrypts remotely stored files.

Now the app automatically generates photo thumbnails, and FileMaker Server lets you stream videos, music and PDFs. Scroll through multi-page PDFs right within a container field.

Improved Charting

All those years ago, when I was rocking FileMaker 6, there was no charting. We had to rely on 3rd-party solutions and, more often, scripting acrobatics. Today, FileMaker's chart support is extensive. It now supports ten chart types, five of which are new, including Bubble, Scatter and Pos/Neg charts.

FileMaker Pro 12 is a 64-bit application. It also features progressive backups that won't bog performance down for connected users and a nice web-based group start page (Server Advanced only), so users can find just the database they want easily.

Compatibility and Pricing

One drawback for longtime users: FileMaker 12 features a file format change, so you won't be able to mix and match older clients with new files. FMP12 can upgrade old databases to the new format.

Here's the pricing breakdown (all prices are USD).

• FileMaker Pro 12: $299 ($179 upgrade)
• FileMaker Pro 12 Advanced: $499 ($299 upgrade)
• FileMaker Server 12: $999 (599 upgrade)
• FileMaker Server 12 Advanced: $2999 ($1799 upgrade)
• FileMaker Go for iPad: Free
• FileMaker Go for iPhone: Free

FileMaker Pro 12 offers new design features, improved iOS compatibility originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Wed, 04 Apr 2012 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Apple's OS X Lion introduced Auto Save, and eliminated the Save As feature from several apps as a result. Not everyone is happy about the switch, including Pierre at Betalogue:

I have already talked about the totally unnecessary (in my view) elimination of the 'Save As...' command in Apple applications, including the iWork suite. The 'Duplicate' command that replaces it is simply not a good enough replacement, and the change irremediably breaks well-established workflows that cannot be adapted to the new command."

Amen, Pierre. He goes on to illustrate the various stumbling blocks that Auto Save and its Duplicate feature introduced. It's worth a read.

[Via Daring Fireball]

Lion's Auto Save vs. Save As originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 29 Mar 2012 13:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Many customers bought a new iPad last weekend, and some found that Apple's Smart Cover doesn't work with certain previously Smart Cover-compatible cases. Mark of Mark's Hangout has discovered why, and he's posted a detailed explanation.

It appears that Apple added a polarity-sensitive sensor to the new iPad, and that the original Smart Covers were made with magnets facing in either direction. Later model Smart Covers don't exhibit this behavior. We can only assume Apple made an adjustment when it refreshed the line in October.

Mark had help from an independent case manufacturer in sussing out the problem. You'll find all of the details here. He also pointed out that if you have an incompatible Smart Cover you can get it swapped out at the Apple Store.

[Via The Verge]

iPad Smart Cover issue apparently due to magnet polarity originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 22 Mar 2012 12:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Apple and China-based Proview have been battling over the use of the term "iPad." Apple claims it bought the rights years ago, Proview disagrees.

This week, Apple spokeswoman Carolyn Wu claims the Cupertino company was "tricked" into signing an agreement that creates questions about the term's ownership. Specifically, Apple claims Proview maneuvered the 2009 arrangement through its Taiwan arm while the trademarks in dispute belonged to its Shenzhen subsidiary. Apple further claims this move was an attempt to avoid mainland creditors, as the company is in debt by hundreds of millions of dollars.

Apple says Proview is misleading courts, its customers originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 22 Mar 2012 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Fantastical by Flexibits has been updated to version 1.2.2 to address, among other things, Gatekeeper support in Apple's forthcoming Mountain Lion.

Fantastical is a fantastic tool for the Mac that I've been using for quite a while (here's our comparison of Fantastical and Today). It lives unobtrusively in your Menu Bar and offers fast, natural language creation of calendar events. You can also use it to edit existing appointments, browse what you've got scheduled and sync with iCal, BusyCal, Entourage, or Outlook.

Version 1.2.2 prepares the app for Gatekeeper, allows for vertical resizing of the event list (Lion only) and adds notes to search results, which I appreciate. There's more, of course, and you'll find the full release notes here.

Fantastical requires Mac OS X 10.6+ and is available for $19.99. This is a free update for existing users.

Fantastical 1.2.2 available, prepares for Mountain Lion's Gatekeeper originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 20 Mar 2012 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Apple has issued updates to the Mac versions of iPhoto, iTunes, GarageBand and Xcode. iPhoto is now up to version 9.2.2, which lets users delete images from Photo Stream. Hooray!

iTunes 10.6, as we mentioned earlier, adds the ability to play 1080p HD movies and TV shows from the iTunes Store.

According to Apple, the new version of GarageBand, 6.0.5, "...supports general compatibility and addresses overall stability and performance, including the following:

• Updates compatibility with GarageBand for iOS projects
• Fixes a playback issue with the GarageBand Lesson preview videos
• Corrects issues with some software instruments triggering incorrect or stuck notes"

Finally, Xcode 4.3.1 "...is now distributed as an application," Apple says, "rather than as an installer. This change enables Xcode to be updated directly from the Mac App Store." Other changes include a new code signing workflow which supports signing OS X apps with Developer ID and the addition of command-line tools to the Downloads preference pane.

They're all available now, so have at it.

Apple releases Mac updates for iPhoto, iTunes, GarageBand and Xcode originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Wed, 07 Mar 2012 17:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The updates keep coming. Apple has issued version 2.3 of its Remote app (free, universal) for iPad, iPhone and iPod touch. This update provides support for the new iPad's Retina display and iTunes Match on the Apple TV. Go get it, folks!

Apple Remote version 2.3 supports iTunes Match, iPad Retina display originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Wed, 07 Mar 2012 16:53:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Earlier today at the iPad media event, Phil Schiller announced that the new iPad will feature voice dictation. Users will find a new microphone button on the keyboard. Give it a tap and start speaking, much like you do with the iPhone 4S. As of the announcement, voice dictation on the new iPad supports US English, British, Australian, French, German and Japanese.

Next generation iPad adds voice dictation originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Wed, 07 Mar 2012 13:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Apple CEO Tim Cook revealed some Apple sales figures during today's iPad media event, and they're nothing short of impressive. Cook noted that the company's post-PC devices, meaning the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch, accounted for 76% of its revenue last year. In fact, Apple has sold an incredible 315 million iOS devices in total through last year, 62 million in Q4 2011."

Apple's retail stores are posting gangbuster numbers, too. A new store in Amsterdam recently opened for business, bringing the total number of Apple Stores to 362. They received 110 million visitors in Q4 2011 alone.

As for the App Store, a customer in China download the 25 billionth app last week, and the store currently has 585,000 apps available. Wow.

iPad numbers are also compelling. Cook revealed that, "[Apple] sold more iPads in the last quarter of last year, than any PC maker sold of their PCs." 15.4 million were sold in 2011 Q4 alone.

Stay tuned to TUAW today for complete coverage and reaction to all of the news coming from San Francisco.

Apple reveals product, retail sales numbers at iPad event originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Wed, 07 Mar 2012 13:14:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Withings Baby Monitor is finally available in the US, and it's one expensive iPhone accessory. First teased in January, the gadget is on sale for US$299. The corresponding iPhone app is free.

What does it do for three hundred bucks? It monitors the humidity in Junior's room, lets you know when he's awake and even has night-vision mode. Plus, this goes without saying, it's a huge leap beyond the audio-only set I used when my kids were little.

Withings makes other cool goodies, such as an Internet-connected scale and an iPhone-connected blood pressure cuff.

Your little princess is worth a $300 baby monitor, right?

Withings Baby Monitor works with iPhone, isn't cheap originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 01 Mar 2012 09:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Apple has aired a new iCloud commercial, Harmony. It demonstrates how photos, iTunes and iBooks purchases and contact information is automatically shared across compatible devices. You even get a glimpse at my favorite feature: fiddle with an iCal event in one location and it's changed everywhere else.

It ends with the tagline "Automatic. Everywhere. iCloud." The spot is cute and effective, demonstrating iCloud features without being a pest about it. Plus the music is so darn catchy.

Apple airs "iCloud harmony" ad originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Mon, 27 Feb 2012 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Earlier this week, ABC News aired a Nightline report that explored the Shenzhen Foxconn factory where Apple products are assembled. Now, Apple, Foxconn, and the Fair Labor Association (FLA) have all issued statements in response to the report.

At one point, Nightline reporter Bill Weir asked Foxconn line worker Zhou Xiao Ying about her job at the plant. She reported (via translation) that she carves the aluminum shavings from 6000 iPad logos per day, which Apple corrected.

"In manufacturing parlance this is called deburring," Apple said. "Her line processes 3,000 units per shift, with two shifts per day for a total of 6,000. A single operator at Ms. Zhou's station would deburr 3,000 iPads in a shift."

Foxconn and the FLA also offered corrections to the report. The former addressed the question of pay, noting that, "We have over 75 percent of the employees in the category of earning at least 2,200 RMB ($349/month) basic compensation standard. That means they are earning 13.75 RMB ($2.18) per hour. If they work overtime on the weekend, they will earn 27 RMB ($4.28) per hour. In order to reach 3500 to be taxable, they will have to work 47 OT hours to reach 3,500."

The FLA noted that discussions with Apple actually started back in 2007, not when it recently joined.

Apple responds to ABC News' Foxconn report originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 23 Feb 2012 09:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Buzz Contacts from Savvy Apps (US$0.99) is a fast way to reach contacts from your iPhone. Organize them into groups for one-tap access to phone calls, text messages, email or FaceTime sessions. The UI is about as clean and tidy as one can get and conveniences like pre-written text messages are quite helpful. Here's my look at Buzz Contacts for iPhone.

UI

The no-frills, utilitarian look of Buzz Contacts is appropriate for a handy utility. Once you've set up some groups (more on that later), they're laid out on a 4 x 4 grid. Each contact is listed by name and an icon depicts the action associated with each button (phone, text, email or FaceTime). If a group contains more than four members, a swipe to the right reveals the next grid of four while a swipe to the left produces a list view.

A toolbar pops up from the bottom of the screen allowing for group actions, so you can send an email or a text, for example, to everyone at once. The large buttons are hard to miss, so the risk of unintended taps is nominal.

Use

It's easy to create a group. I made one called "Family" which includes my wife, mother, father and two sisters. To begin, swipe to the right and tap "New Group." Next, tap the title to customize it and then tap the icon in the upper right.

A list of your contacts appears. Tap the one you'd like to add and chose the method of contact. Keep adding contacts in this fashion until "Page One" is filled, meaning you've added four contacts. You can re-arrage the order in this screen as well.

Make as many groups as you like, swiping to the right to toggle between groups. From there, you simply launch the app and tap the appropriate block to initiate just the type of communication you want: FaceTime with your sister, iPhone call to your co-worker, text message to your son or daughter. It's speedy and a time-saver.

Buzz Contacts also lets you call those not in a group from the dialer. To use the dialer, swipe to the right again and tap Dialer. A keypad appears. Start tapping a number and Buzz guesses which one you're after. Give it a tap and you're off.

There are a few thoughtful niceties in the app. Tapping a contact set up as an email or FaceTime session asks you to confirm your intention before placing the call, so you won't place accidental phone calls. Also, there's a list of pre-written text messages to choose from, like "Running Late. See you soon." and "On my way." Combine that with a group text message to send a lengthy message to the whole gang with little effort.

I love useful utilities and Buzz Contacts is one. Since I pretty much only call the people in my family group, I've replaced the phone app in my iPhone's Dock with Buzz Contacts. It's definitely worth a try at $0.99.

Buzz Contacts for iPhone offers fast access to contacts originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Wed, 22 Feb 2012 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Apple will open an Apple Store in Amsterdam on March 3, bringing the number of countries with an Apple Store up to 12. It will occupy two levels of the historic and beautiful Hirsch Building in Amsterdam city center. Rumors of the store's construction started in November of 2010.

The store's windows have been covered with orange (orange is the national Dutch color) barricades for the past few weeks, with three stacked apples inspired by the Amsterdam coat of arms.

If you attend the opening, please send us your photos and stories, we'd love to check them out.

Amsterdam Apple Store to open March 3 originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Wed, 22 Feb 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MobileMe is scheduled to be shut down in June 2012, and Apple has begun encouraging users to transition to iCloud. Email messages are going out this week that promote iCloud's services and provide a big 'ol blue button for customers to click and begin the migration process.

iCloud offers most of the services MobileMe customers are used to (keychain sync and iDisk are absent, for example) and, according to CEO Tim Cook, is the foundation for the company's future.

It's only February, so stragglers have some time, but not much. It's definitely time to start thinking about making the move.

Apple encourages MobileMe customers to transition to iCloud originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Wed, 22 Feb 2012 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

ABC New's Nightline will air what they're calling an "unprecedented" look inside Foxconn's Chinese factories that manufacture several Apple products. The report will air next Next Tuesday, February 21, but a brief glimpse is available now.

A promotional piece shows ABC reporter Bill Weir entering the factory and having a look around. We also see the nearly countless people lined up outside in hopes of getting a job assembling devices. Again, he says that his visit marks the first time a reporter has been granted such access to the facility.

It's compelling to say the least, and we'll definitely be watching on Tuesday night.

Video from ABC's Nightline report inside Foxconn originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Mon, 20 Feb 2012 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Eating at a restaurant is fun but getting a consensus from a group of diners can be a hassle. Offload the responsibly to your iPhone with Dine-O-Matic from the Iconfactory (currently on sale for US$0.99), which is more than happy to choose a restaurant for the whole gang.

The app combines retro graphics (think of the corner diner), a game-like "spinner" and handy maps integration to make the experience fun. To get started, enter your favorite restaurants. There are two ways to do this. The first is to flip the main screen over and enter the restaurant list. Tap the "+" button in the upper right-hand corner to create a new entry. Type in info like name, category, price range, address and more.

The easier way is the built-in Maps integration. From the main screen, tap the location button to open the map. Dine-O-Matic notices your location and highlights local restaurants. Tap anyone to add it to your list (you still must enter the category and price range manually). You can also enter a name or type, like "pizza," in the search field.

Once you're set up, make a choice! Each category is represented by a "neon sign" icon. Give it a tap and watch it spin through the options, landing on a random place in your list. A slip appears with the restaurant's name, phone number (tap to call) and address (tap to view on a map). You can even sort by price range.

My kids enjoyed flipping the spinner ("I'll stop when it says 'Chinese food') and my wife and I did, in fact, base last night's dinner on its decision. Dine-O-Matic looks great, with black-and-white check "tile" and buzzing neon and works as advertised. Plus, you can declare "The phone has spoken!" and silence an indecisive crowd. Dine-O-Matic is available from The App Store now.

Daily iPhone App: Dine-O-Matic chooses a restaurant for you originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 16 Feb 2012 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Apple on Thursday released a public beta of Messages, its next-generation messaging app for the Mac that will be a part of Mac OS X Mountain Lion. It lets you send and receive iMessages, just like iOS devices running iOS 5. Now you can "text" chat via iMessage with the iPhones, iPads and iPod touches in your life.

Note that when installed, Messages replaces iChat, but not its functionality. You'll still have chat support for your AIM, Yahoo!, Google Talk, and Jabber accounts. As with iOS, Messages lets you see when your partner is typing via an ellipsis animation. Messages also supports drag-and-drop support for sharing photos and videos.

This is a beta build, so expect changes before the final version is released. Lion users can try it out. Note that it requires Mac OS 10.7.3. Have fun!

Update: The beta release seems to be temporarily unavailable. Apple notes: "Our apologies but there was an unexpected error with the application. This problem has been noted, and an email has been sent to the administrators. Please check back in a few hours to try the download again."

Update 2: It's back. You will have to reboot after installing.

Messages to replace iChat in OS X Mountain Lion, public beta available today (Updated) originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 16 Feb 2012 09:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Apple has announced that the Fair Labor Association will conduct voluntary audits of Foxconn factories in Shenzhen and Chengdu, China, at Apple's request. Inspections began Monday in Shenzhen.

In a press release issued this morning, Apple CEO Tim Cook said, "The inspections now underway are unprecedented in the electronics industry, both in scale and scope, and we appreciate the FLA agreeing to take the unusual step of identifying the factories in their reports."

The FLA's inspection procedure will consist of three main parts. Interviews with employees regarding living conditions, work place safety, compensation and hours; physical inspections of dormitories and work areas; and review of documents "...related to procedures at all stages of employment."

Apple recently came under fire for working conditions at some of its assembly partners' plants, prompting some concerned customers to deliver petitions to Apple Stores.

Fair Labor Association begins Foxconn inspections at Apple's request originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Mon, 13 Feb 2012 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Back in August of 2010, UK commercial television network ITV balked at rumors that Apple would rebrand the Apple TV as iTV, threatening legal action. Years later, the network is at it again, this time addressing rumors that Apple's "hobby" is due for a refresh and potential re-branding.

Apple has never confirmed plans for a revised Apple TV, but ITV is still prepared to protect its trademark. The Telegraph reports that the company recently wrote to Apple, warning it not to use the name for either an updated Apple TV or the much-rumored "smart television" that's supposedly in development.

It makes sense for ITV to protect itself but so far it's addressing rumors. Besides, Apple and Cisco were able to work things out when Apple re-branded the iPhone operating system "iOS."

Update: The Verge is reporting that ITV has not issued a new warning to Apple regarding the use of "ITV." The network told The Verge, "The Telegraph's piece is entirely speculative, and there has been no communication between ITV and Apple. ITV has no further comment on the matter."

Britain's ITV warns Apple again not to use "iTV" (Updated) originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Mon, 13 Feb 2012 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Donkey, or more properly DONKEY.BAS, was computer game co-written by Bill Gates in 1981. It was included in early versions of the PC-DOS operating system and had players drive a car down a street while avoiding donkeys. Why there were so many donkeys on the road is a mystery.

Today, Donkey is available for the iPhone. It's a fun example of an 8-bit game with chunky graphics and super simple action. Tap to change lanes.

Take it from an old fogie: Donkey is fun and worth US$0.99. You wouldn't have your precious Zelda without it.

[Via Gizmodo]

Bill Gates's original PC game now on iPhone originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Fri, 10 Feb 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

John Paczkowski of AllThingsD is claiming that Apple will hold a press event in the beginning of March to announce the new iPad, which he calls "iPad 3" (noting that might not be its official name). Paczkowski expects the announcement to take place in San Francisco's Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, where Apple has held several other similar events.

The iPad 2 was announced on March 2, 2011 and was released on March 11 on the US. If the rumor is true, the so-called iPad 3 would be in line with a similar schedule. Paczkowski's sources say it should be available for purchase "...a week or so after the event."

AllThingsD: Apple to announce iPad 3 in March originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 09 Feb 2012 08:54:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Glooko makes it easy for customers with diabetes to monitor their blood sugar on the go. The company's MeterSync Cable lets users share data between self-monitoring blood glucose meters and an iOS app, Glooko Logbook (free). Glooko recently raised US$3.5 million in funding, ensuring that development will continue on new versions of its products.

Glooko Logbook, which debuted in November, 2011, lets patients create a logbook of readings, monitor and annotate daily blood sugar levels and finally share the lot with a doctor. The app and cable solution supports several meters, and Bayer's Breeze 2 meter was recently added to the list.

We've seen other iOS solutions for diabetes patients over the years, including the iBGStar. Researchers at Northeastern University have even been testing an iPhone-readable nanosensor tattoo, but at far as we know, that's still an experimental device.

Glooko raises $3.5M for glucose meter iPhone app project originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Mon, 30 Jan 2012 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.