For those of you who were waiting to buy a Data Robotics Drobo, wait no longer!
Data Robotics announced the release of the second iteration of their 4-bay expandable storage solution, Drobo. Many potential buyers were aghast at the original version's lack of FireWire, so the company added FireWire 400 and 800 ports to the original USB 2.0 connection. Transfer speeds with FireWire 800 are expected to be about double those of the USB connection.
The new Drobo also has improved software. The old model would see a drop in performance after the array reached about 50% of capacity. With the new software, performance remains steady regardless of how much data you've packed into your Drobo. Data Robotics says Mac users can expect a performance increase of 10 - 200%.
When new, higher-capacity drives become available, you'll be able to expand the capacity of your Drobo to up to 16 TB. That should be enough to handle all of my TUAW comment email! The second-generation Drobo becomes available in about three weeks, and the original $499 price tag is still in effect for an unpopulated box (no drives included).
I know it's practically heresy to say so, but I don't have an iPhone, as much as I'd like one. Verizon service is just a better option for me right now. Synchronizing data between my Samsung SCH-u740 and my computer, though, is right up there with "getting a root canal" in terms of painlessness.
I was eager, thus, to try FoneLink from Nova Media, which promised a much more Mac-like user experience than the venerable (but ugly) BitPim.
FoneLink allows you to synchronize saved data between your phone and your Mac, including photos, video, music, contacts, and SMS messages. You can also create ringtones from unprotected audio files, and (with this new version) dial a number or send a text message from the Mac.
My hopes were dashed, sadly, as it doesn't support my phone. It does support many others, however, from Nokia, Samsung, Motorola, and SonyEricsson.
FoneLink 2.1.1 is available in English, French and German, is universal binary, and works with Mac OS X 10.4.9 or higher. It's $33.57 for a single license, and multiple license discounts are available. Finally, you can download a free demo and give it a try.
I know we just mentioned the upcoming iPhone version of 1Passwordyesterday, so I'll make this quick. Version 2.7 (of the desktop variety) was just released and it adds a brand new feature: a fully keyboard-accessible HUD window which allows you to instantly navigate to a website and log in.
According to the developers, this feature has been In the works for over a year. It integrates all of your "Go & Fill" 1Click bookmarks directly into your web browser. The HUD window (yes, I have a weak spot for those sexy, transparent black HUDs) has a search feature at the top of it which allows for speedy location of the bookmark you're looking for.
So, please excuse the extra mention; I think this new feature is useful enough to warrant a quick note. Current users just need to check the auto-updates within the application. Curious parties can visit the 1Password page.
A while back the team behind the Xbox Media Center on OS X (which we covered a while back) announced that they were forking the Mac version from the main trunk. Now they've decided that the Mac version will be getting a new name: Plex (as in 'cineplex' or 'googleplex'). For those of you haven't tried it yet, basically Plex is a Front Row replacement media center application that has grew out of the long developed XBMC (originally developed for the first Xbox).
The lastest available version is 0.5.0b10 (which still hasn't been rebranded) and is a free download. In addition there is a great new skin for XBMC called Aeon, which works with Plex and frankly looks amazingly slick.
Google's Mac group has released Precipitate, a plugin which allows you to search Google Docs and Google Bookmarks from the same interface that you search you Mac. It works with both Spotlight and Google Desktop for Mac. Basically the developer's idea is to have a one stop search interface for information on your Mac and information in the Google cloud so you don't have to remember where you saved something. Sounds like a good idea to me.
Google's Precipitate is a free download from Google Code.
If you're going to be a new iPhone 3G owner this week, you might want to make a note of this site to help you get acquainted with your new mobile device.
Sunday night on the TUAW Talkcast, we were discussing how much fun this week was going to be from the iPhone software perspective. This announcement from Fonix Speech is exactly what we were talking about.
Fonix iSpeak is a voice activation application for the iPhone 3G. There are a couple of operations that you'll be able to accomplish just by speaking a command. You can dial someone by saying a phone number or the name of a person in your Contacts list. You'll also be to whiz through your music library, play a song, or start up a playlist by saying the name of an artist, song, or playlist.
According to Fonix Speech, Fonix iSpeak "includes a run-time engine that sits on the phone allowing users to interact with the personal contents of their Apple iPhone™. Unlike other voice applets that enable voice search of the Internet by sending commands over the airwaves, this client-side application gives users the power of voice interaction with their personal content and eliminates network latency."
There's no word on when the app will actually be available nor is there a price on the website, and the company didn't respond to a phone call. Fonix Speech says that they'll be selling it "directly" and through "traditional Apple distribution channels" -- the App Store, perhaps?
While most people are waiting in line for their soon-to-be new friend, pal and everyday communications device, the world's toptechreviewers have already been playing with the long awaited device. Below is a summary of their findings along with links to their full reviews of the iPhone 3G.
Bottom Line: If you don't already have an iPhone and can live with the weaker battery life, then you should go ahead and buy; otherwise wait out for the 2.0 firmware update (hmm... I think I've heard this advice somewhere else)
Pros: Faster data network, cheaper, GPS, Visual Voicemail
Cons: Slow EDGE speeds when not in 3G area, no video, no memory expansion
Bottom Line: "The Sequel, is worth the wait," he also shows a side-by-side comparison between EDGE and 3G speeds
As an interesting note: David Pogue says that the iPhone's GPS antenna is too small to provide you with turn-by-turn directions in Google Maps -- this is something that Apple has failed to note until now.
Worried that you might be spending a lot of time waiting for that shiny new iPhone 3G to be activated? Well, never fear because the nice people at the Apple Store are there to help you. Bloomberg.com interviewed Apple's retail chief, Ron Johnson, about the iPhone retail activation process.
"Apple stores will handle about 30 customers at a time. While the company will make sure the activation process is quick," said Johnson about the activation time.
Johnson then went on to say that Apple will spend as much time as needed to make sure that the customer is happy with their purchase. You can read the full interview on the Bloomberg website.
BoyGeniusReport (BGR) somehow managed to get their hands on the new iPhone 3G a little earlier than anyone else. They have uploaded several high-quality pictures to show the comparisons between the 1st generation iPhone and the iPhone 3G.
In addition, Paul Thurrott posted some iPhone 2.0 firmware upgrade screenshots to show the upgrade process and some of the new iTunes 7.7 and iPhone 2.0 features.
Damn. iPhone developers have been clamming up over the last few weeks, so we haven't had much to post in the App News Roundup. Now that it's getting closer to i-Day Friday, the tips are starting to pour in.
Deepak Mantena of Tapeshow told us about Chores, his GTD app for iPhone (see screenshots above). It will be in the App Store, with a Mac companion app coming in August. He'll also have Wordy (for helping you improve your vocabulary), Gratuity (easy tip calculator), and Fright (a good way to scare your friends) in the App Store Friday.
Another ebook reader app for iPhone has been announced; Lexcycle Stanza will be in the App Store on Friday for free. Stanza uses Project Gutenberg eTexts so you can have a library of classics at your fingertips.
Developer Pascal Bourque let us know that he's submitted DutchTab to the App Store. You can use this app to split restaurant bills fairly between a group of co-workers or friends. His site isn't up yet, but will be soon at http://www.dutchtab.com.
3Monk3ys has three iPhone apps that available on Friday. DoubleDrop (a puzzle game) will be available for $2.99. Attitude is an simulation of an airplane's Attitude Indicator (ADI), and is priced at $2.99 as well. Finally, iSoroban is a Japanese abacus simulator priced at $1.99
Noah WItherspoon mentioned that his game Tris will be available soon after the App Store launch. Details are on his dev blog at http://twofingerplay.blogspot.com/.
Are you a pilot? Felix Khazin is releasing AirWX, an iPhone app for grabbing METARs, maps, and more. AirWX uses CoreLocation and pulls up nav charts from skyvector.com.
Kayakers are going to need a waterproof case for their iPhones! Wayne David Daley has RiverGuide coming out soon. Can you say real-time river flow info?
Thomas Aylesworth of Bayou Games let us know about Morocco, his Othello game for iPhone.
Edovia will be selling Steps, pedometer software for iPhone, starting Friday for $1.99. Their Linguo translator software will retail for $2.99 and features 17 languages.
If you need to lose a few pounds, All of Zero has iScale coming out soon. You can keep track of what you eat, find the nutrional value of various foods, and more.
Be sure to send us your app news via the Tips page.
With all the current hype surrounding the imminent release of both the upgrade to Apple's .Mac service, now to be forever known as MobileMe, and Friday's launch of the new, improved iPhone version 2.0, let's not forget that Apple also makes other types of hardware that seems to be selling pretty well these days. In fact, according to a recent article up over at AppleInsider, Apple is apparently poised to ship 2.5 Million Macs in the Spring -- thanks, in some measure, to the poor reception of Microsoft's Windows Vista.
According to BMO Capital Markets analyst Keith Bachman, Apple's potentially strong quarter, which ends in June, can be attributed to several factors. Among them, user dissatisfaction with Vista. "Thus far, user satisfaction ratings for Vista have been weak, and startup times for Vista have been known to be much slower than the Mac OS X," Bachman said in the article. "Thus, more than 50% of recent customers buying Macs in Apple retail stores are first-time buyers."
In addition, the analyst added that this problem could help Apple's bottom line well into 2009 and could potentially improve the company's current world market share, raising it to 3.9% or higher. This is good news for those of us who remember the time, not so long ago, when most in the press and analysts like Bachman predicted Apple's certain demise. Still, even with this good news, we still need to hope Apple doesn't do something to hurt itself -- like bungle the .Mac to MobileMe transition or run out of shiny new iPhones at 8:30AM on Friday. That would not be a good thing.
Until Apple introduces ad-hoc distribution, should you want to have TUAW test your software, start by contacting us at our tips line with general information about your software.
One of us will write back to you with a test unit device identifier. You will need to provision that device for Development and then send us a copy of the mobile provision and a zipped Release version of your iPhone application (not a Distribution version).
Rise and shine, shoppers. According to AppleInsider, Apple retail stores will open at 8:00 AM this Friday, July 11th to begin selling the iPhone 3G. AT&T stores will also open at 8:00AM.
The longer work day will create time for the in-store activations, credit checks, etc. that the new iPhone will require. For me, this is a real bummer. Activating my original iPhone via iTunes in the quiet comfort of my own home was a pleasure; a typically "Apple" experience. Now, I've got to stand around like every other shmoe and wait for the workers to click this, type that, sign here and blah, blah. Oh, well.
How did we ever get buy without tabbed browsing? Think back to the days of OS 9 and IE 4. Ugh.
JimD at creativebits has shared a cool trick (Firefox and Safari) for quickly returning to a previously visited website in a new tab, thus preserving the site you're currently browsing.
This got us thinking of some of our favorite browser tricks, like this one. If you've got several tabs open, you can move from one to the other with keyboard shortcuts. In Firefox, it's Command-Option plus the arrow keys. In Safari, it's Command-Shift plus the arrow keys.
Quickly jump to the address field with Command-L (both Firefox and Safari). It selects the full text, so you can either just start typing or hit Command-C to copy the url. Of course, Safari 3 lets you grab Web Clips and turn them into Dashboard widgets.
Have you got a favorite browser trick to share with newcomers to the Mac?
For those of you who were waiting to buy a Data Robotics Drobo, wait no longer!
I know it's practically heresy to say so, but I don't have an iPhone, as much as I'd like one. 
I know we just mentioned the upcoming iPhone version of 
A while back the team behind the Xbox Media Center on OS X (which we 
Google's Mac group has released 
If you're going to be a new iPhone 3G owner this week, you might want to make a note of this site to help you get acquainted with your new mobile device.
Sunday night on the 
While most people are waiting in line for their soon-to-be new friend, pal and everyday communications device, the world's 
Worried that you might be spending 
With all the current 
Rise and shine, shoppers. 
How did we ever get buy without tabbed browsing? Think back to the days of OS 9 and IE 4. Ugh.
