This is only slightly Mac-related but it is really cool. We've posted about two of Illusion Labs' popular iPhone games here on the site: Touchgrind is a 3D simulation of a touchboard, and Sway is a really fun little platformer-esque swingathon that has you swinging from side-to-side using the touchscreen. Both games are pretty original in how they use multitouch controls, and so when Illusion Labs got their hands on a big tabletop touchscreen, there was only one thing to do: blow the games up and play them in a big way.

You can see how it looks above -- seems like a lot of fun. And it makes you think, too -- multitouch seems to be where its at for the future of user interfaces, and the iPhone is really a breeding ground for testing out the technology and coming up with new ways to use it. It may be a long time before we all have huge multitouch screens like this in our kitches and living rooms, but considering how ubiquitous the iPhone already is (and the fact that almost anyone with some time, $100, and an idea can publish an app on the App Store), we can start seeing the kinds of applications that will live on those screens right now.

The rumor of an Apple-branded netbook just won't die, and Digitimes has reportedly found more evidence. This is a bit convoluted, so follow closely.

Taiwan-based manufacturer Wintek has supposedly been selected to produce touchscreens for the still-theoretical netbook, which Digitimes corroborates with the following quote from another publication called Commercial Times:

"Wintek revealed that it is currently working with Apple to develop some new products, but it said it does not know what applications the new products are for."

How we go from "...does not know what applications the new products are for" to an Apple-branded netbook is a mystery to us. Still, if you're the type who enjoys thin rumors, there's a nice one for your Monday morning. Enjoy.

[Via MacDailyNews]

This one's impressive -- Zen Bound originally started out as Zen Bondage, a physics game/sandbox where the goal was to wrap a rope around a 3D shape or object. The game has just recently been ported to the iPhone, and in the process has actually been improved -- the graphics look sharper and the iPhone's multitouch controls really add to the tactile experience.

As a "game," it might be questionable -- it looks like there's a lot of fudging in terms of whether or not the rope has "covered" the object, and the scoring system itself is more or less tossed in as just a reason to get you to interact with the objects. But as an app, and a demonstration of the kinds of interactivity that can be exclusive to a device like the iPhone, it comes highly recommended.

Zen Bound is available on the App Store now for $4.99.

Thanks, Nick!

TUAW reader Sandy Winkelman (AKA Winkstink) sent us a tip the other day about an amazing mod he's done. Sandy took a 1942 Philco radio, gutted it, added a Mac mini and 17" Sony monitor with touchscreen, and turned it into a classy networked digital media center.

The sound system consists of a Sony DVD/CD/receiver with a 2.1 speaker system. Watching the video, you can see how music can be played through iTunes and Front Row, all with the touch of a finger on the screen. Sandy also shows how Front Row is used as a front end for watching movies and video.

The Philco also has an EyeTV for viewing and recording live TV, and can be controlled from an iPod touch or iPhone using Remote and/or DVDremote. Sandy has also made a Picasa gallery with more pictures of the details and construction of this sweet mod.

Have you been working on a mod? Let us know about it.

Here we go. You guys sounded really jaded on the comments for the kart racing game, so here's an iPhone game that might actually break some new ground. It's called Rolando -- Simon Oliver is the developer, and he sent us a tip and the trailer above, and if you're looking for some fun and innovation in iPhone gaming, here you go. It looks kind of like a cocktail of LocoRoco, Lemmings, Kirby's Canvas and Katamari Damacy all mixed together with some iPhone originality for good measure. With a mix like that, you can't go wrong.

Simon tells us it's a "physics-based platform/puzzler.". He says that there will be four different worlds in the game, with ten levels each, including boss levels and bonus stages, and while it's not seen in the video, there might be a little accelerometer action as well. There are a few different versions of the little circular guys, called Rolandos (the King Rolando, with the crown in the video, has to be moved around by the others, for instance), as well as various implements throughout the levels that can be controlled directly. Simon's aiming to get it in the App Store by August, and while pricing hasn't been finalized, he's thinking $9.99 sounds good.

Don't like kart racing on the iPhone? As long as we can get a few good original games looking as good as this one does, you may not have to worry.

I occasionally work with clients who need to have Macs set up as kiosks. That means that anyone can walk up and use the Mac to watch a video or access information, but they usually can't update anything on the Mac. Kiosks are especially useful when the user interface consists of a finger touching the screen. In my experience, touch screens are generally expensive and require that you send a Mac off to a vendor for installation.

Troll Touch now has user-installable touch screens for the 20" and 24" aluminum iMacs called SlipCOVERs. Priced at $699 (20") and $899 (24"), the SlipCOVERs come with touch screen drivers and calibration software. The video above shows a touch-enabled iMac in action -- I especially liked watching the demo dude playing Bejeweled using his finger instead of a mouse. Pull off the aluminum stand, lay that SlipCOVER iMac down on its back, and you've got a 24" iPod touch!

Are we going to see new Cinema displays by the end of the month? If so, they might look like this-- it's a nice-looking mockup posted by Ben over on the redrant forums. It is interesting that Cinema displays are almost starting to match up to the Beatles as the one thing we hope to get from Apple but never do. For years now, people have been hoping for an update to these things-- an installed iSight (that one's actually been "a lock" for years) and even a touchscreen display. But Apple hasn't budged-- the last time they updated the Cinemas, it was to drop the prices two years ago.

Yup, it's been since then that a Cinema update has seemed to be just around the corner. You can only think of so many ways to update monitors, but it seems that Apple hasn't, so far, liked any of the ideas enough to put them on sale.

Thanks, Jacob!

After our little scare with the Mac Mini last week, the little boxen that could is quickly becoming my favorite computer (still can't wait to get one with Leopard on it). So seeing cool applications of it like this one thrills me to no end: Andrew sent us his writeup of putting a Mac Mini into a Corvette (complete with touchscreen monitor) as a music player.

The whole process looks pretty complicated to me-- the most I've done with my car stereo is install an old CD player, and by install I mean "watched my friend do it." But Andrew's writeup is really thorough, and he goes through everything from choosing components to creating a layout, to potential problems during installation, and what he plans to do next. Apparently the Mini is almost tailormade for car systems like this-- not only is there a special cable built to power it in the car, but there is even a special version of Front Row designed to be controlled from a touchscreen. Not everything worked well, however-- the Mini had a grounding problem, apparently, and Andrew had an issue with the Mini's volume setting reverting after a restart, but he was able to punch out an Applescript to fix it.

The end product looks great-- Andrew says he's still working on the mounts, but considering he's got a working touchscreen controlling a Mac Mini in his Corvette, that's good enough for me. Very nice.

The rumors are flying about gaming giant Nintendo licensing "a limited amount of content" for the iPhone, and the rumors all seem to point back to this post over on a site called No Heat. They name no sources (of course), but they say that these Nintendo games will show up on the iTunes store at $29, and say that the games will "cater to an older audience."

Now, if anyone is going to provide great gaming content on the iPhone, Nintendo would be a good fit-- with the touchscreen, they've already got some great properties set up on the DS (Brain Age would be a great fit, and of course all of their famous licenses). There are lots of great input methods that I'm sure Nintendo would love to take advantage of.

But $29.99 is a steep price for a mobile entertainment game, even if it's Mario. Super Nintendo games are running about $10 on the Wii's Virtual Console, so either a) Nintendo is going to make iPhone owners pay through the nose, b) the games will be DS quality-- because $29 is about what you'd find a new DS game for, or c) No Heat is making it all up, and this is just another product of the iPhone rumor mill.

You had to know this was coming. iContact is a freeware application for Windows Mobile devices that generates a simple contact list which you can "scroll" through with the flick of a finger (or stylus). At version 0.2 it's pretty basic, and only displays you contacts' names in a list. Tap and release a contact name to view that record's standard display.

If you've got iPhone envy, maybe this will ease your pain.

[Via Lifehacker]

Since the iPhone's introduction in January, the requests and baiting rumors for a touch-screen iPod that looks and acts like an iPhone - sans the actual phone - have sounded from every corner of the web. The world is inarguably intrigued by this new UI Apple developed for their highly anticipated gadget, and many are waiting with bated breath and credit card in hand, believing the iPod will naturally gain these touchy-feely features any day now. The only problem is: there's no way in Cupertino that's going to happen. At least, not anytime soon.

Put yourself in Apple's shoes: you've just smashed one out of the park with the iPod. You spent a few years working on it, polishing it, developing generation after generation of updates that instantly make the previous version look old 'n busted. After a slow start, you eventually take the DMP (Digital Media Player) market by storm, beating out a few major companies at their own game. Six years and a ton of 3rd party accessories later, you are the king of this particular domain, with what appears to be nary a formidable challenger in sight.

Next: imagine that, after introducing the iPod and giving it that nudge it needed to skyrocket in popularity, you embark on another project, spending at least four and a half years developing a killer mobile phone + DMP + internet device the likes the world has never seen. A gadget so cool and anticipated that it is not only shaking up the mobile phone market, but it single-handedly drowns out the entirety of CES during the week of its introduction. A key factor here, oh reader who is momentarily in Apple's shoes, is that the mobile phone market currently speaks in the mouth-watering language of 'billions,' while Apple's iPod sales - impressive as they may be - are playing in the kiddie pool at 'millions.' Whether you want a mobile phone packed into your iPod or not, you can't ignore the fact that the mobile phone market makes iPod sales look like the Zune's on a good day.

Arik Hesseldahl of BusinessWeek writes about the iPhone's new sophisticated multi-point touch screen. After reading through the 29-page Apple patent, he thinks out loud what the touch screen will bring to users. He doesn't think that the iPhone is the only application that will benefit from that screen. Laptops, remote controls, and other portable devices could use smart multi-touch technology. You could use the "pinch" (and anti-pinch) to zoom into and out of documents, control your music and other media, or even type onto a virtual keyboard without worrying about more than one finger touching the screen at the same time. Just think about a virtual piano and being able to play chords. You can't do that with single-touch technology.

Trusted Reviews - a name already filled to the brim with reliability - is claiming to have the inside scoop from an anonymous but "extremely well informed" 3rd party exec who revealed that Apple will drop the much-rumored wide/touchscreen 6G iPod in December - y'know, the month that virtually *no* new products are released because people are too busy trying to navigate the mall with their heads intact to notice any ads for spankin' new products. TR also continues with confirmation from Mr. Anonymous' crystal ball that the iPhone is landing in January, complete with a 'trial period' of the service and - drum roll please - a 3 megapixel camera. Man, I'm surprised they didn't have to pull Mr. A's fingernails to snag some of these juicy details.

When questioned regarding the crystal ball's credentials for telling the future, Mr. A replied that Apple works very hard to keep their 3rd parties informed because they "make more money from the affiliates programme than from selling iPods." I guess that sheds a little more light on yesterday's preliminary 4th quarter earnings report - too bad the affiliate program's mountain of revenue wasn't singled out so we could see just how overshadowed the iPod really is.

[via Gizmodo]

This is good news. We have several touchscreen-enabled Macs at my day job, all from Troll Touch. Earlier this week they announced that the 20" Intel iMac will be added to their lineup. Their system uses the Mac's existing screen, so there's nothing you need to attach to the front (that kids constantly pull off, prompting frequent recalibration). Like I said, I support several of these, and we've never had a problem. You can make use of the display with either a stylus or a finger.

You can order a touch-enabled 17- or 20-inch iMac Core Duo directly from Troll Touch for $2,275US or $2,675US respectively, or they'll convert the one you already own for $869US and $1045US (including round trip shipping).

[Via MacNN]