Google’s Eric Schmidt: We Just Renewed Maps Partnership With Apple

Today during a keynote interview at AllThingsD’s D9, Google Executive Chairman (and former longtime CEO) made a key announcement: Google has recently renewed its partnership with Apple over mapping and search. In other words, don’t look for a new version of Maps on iOS at next month’s WWDC.
So, why is this important? Apple has long shipped every iPod Touch, iPhone, and iPad with a Maps application powered by Google. It’s great (though arguably not as good as its Android

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Apple Brings iWork Suite To The iPhone, iPod Touch

When I got an iPad 2 test unit in the mail a few weeks back, one of the first things I noticed when browsing through apps was that the iWork suite of apps, Numbers, Pages, and Keynote, were all present in the App Store for the iPad. Immediately, I was overcome with jealousy. Of course, typing in Pages on the iPad isn’t the smoothest experience, but having access to these core apps is better than not, right? In any case, it looks like the iWork suite of apps has been doing pretty well on the

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iWork now available for iPhone, iPod Touch

In addition to the iCloud reveal, Apple announced today that iWork is now available for the iPhone and iPod touch. The cost remains the same -- US$ 9.99 per app -- and are a free update for anyone who already owns the iPad version of Keynote, Pages and Numbers.

We will be doing full reviews on how these apps work on the smaller iPhone format later this week.




Show full PR text

CUPERTINO, California-May 31, 2011-Apple(R) today announced that its groundbreaking iWork(R)

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Apple’s Cloud Product Officially Official And It’s Called iCloud

Pop over to iCloud.com today and you’ll see a doomed web page. The domain, which redirects to Xcerion’s CloudMe software, is sitting on some prime real estate, namely Apple’s new iCloud service.
In a short release, Apple confirmed the existence and name:
Apple® CEO Steve Jobs and a team of Apple executives will kick off the company’s annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) with a keynote address on Monday, June 6 at 10:00 a.m. At the keynote, Apple will unveil its

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Steve Jobs will introduce iCloud, Lion, iOS5 at WWDC Keynote June 6

It's official -- Steve Jobs will introduce iCloud, "Apple's upcoming cloud services offering," iOS 5 and Mac OS X 10.7 Lion during the WWDC keynote on June 6. Note that iCloud is named specifically and reffered to as "cloud services," suggesting that it's more than music.

There has been much speculation about iCloud as a music locker, streaming service and MobileMe successor. Also, developers and customers alike have been eager to see iOS 5 and we were recently led to believe that Mac OS

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Disrupt Backstage Pass: Google’s Marissa Mayer Talks Serendipity (And Dodges The Apple Question)

Hey, this is Jason K. with TechCrunch TV.
And I am here with Marissa Mayer.
Again, I actually just got a chance to interview her earlier this month.
But now I have another chance
to ask more questions about all
the cool local and other
products that you guys are working on.
And once again, thank you for coming here to TechCrunch Disrupt.
No problem.
I love TechCrunch

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MobileMe subscription about to expire? Don't renew it just yet

If you've already paid the US$ 99 for Apple's MobileMe service, but your account is due for renewal within the next ten days or so, it might be a good idea to hold off on renewing it for now. Apple's rumored to be heavily revamping its MobileMe service this year, and we expect to hear announcements about the service upgrades at WWDC on June 6. Some rumors even suggest that parts of MobileMe may be available at no charge after the update.

It's been a perennial rumor that Apple will stop

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Quick and clean Funnel news app is free today

Funnel is a quick way to scan the Google News headlines. It has a simple interface. Sections are color coded, and the size of the headlines gives you a quick visual idea of the importance of the story based on the number of related articles.

The app supports news from the US, Australia, Canada, Germany, France, Italy, the Netherlands and the U.K. You can set the app to display in the appropriate language for the country selected.

If you touch an item, you get the first paragraph. Tap

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Gillmor Gang 5.28.11 (TCTV)

This week’s Gillmor Gang comes at the end of travel — to New York for TechCrunch Disrupt and Las Vegas for the Forrester Analyst Forum. Disrupt continues to gather a head of steam, with the social effects of an emerging app ecosystem now being built out across the media and the enterprise. Although it seems still to be at the early stages with Twitter heading off a second front from Bill Gross, outbidding UberWhatever to buy Tweetdeck serves mostly to define the shape of the

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ooVoo releases long awaited video chat client for iPhone

The new ooVoo app offers free video calling to PCs, Macs, Android phones and of course other iPhones. There's also text messaging, and up to 3 people on audio or video calls. PC or Mac users can receive the chats in a browser, and the app supports 3G and Wi-Fi.

It's a boatload of features. The app came out earlier this month but released a version with bug fixes today. User reviews have been positive. ooVoo also offers some enhanced paid plans that include calls to landlines up to 500

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Apple education deal rumored for WWDC

BGR broke out a rumor today suggesting Apple may unveil a new Back-To-School promotion at WWDC. As part of this sale, everyone who buys a new Mac with their educational discount would receive a free iPod touch or $ 200 off the cost of an iPad.

For the past several years, Apple has kicked off a back-to-school promotion in late May or early June. It would not be surprising to see this discount extended to the iPad this year.

The WWDC part of this rumor, though, has us scratching our heads.

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Sentinel 3 on sale for $.99, $1.99 DLC update adds large number of features

The popular sci-fi tower defense game Sentinel 3 is on sale for only US$ 0.99 for a limited time. Normally $ 2.99, the sale price is in celebration of the release of a massive new downloadable campaign that is available as an in-app purchase for $ 1.99. The new 15 map campaign features 15 endless maps and 6 new classic maps as well as a new commander unit, new weapons, new turrets, and new enemies.

In addition to the new in-game features Sentinel 3, which is a universal game for the

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Apple eyeing Samsung AMOLED display for the iPad 3

A report from the Korean Times suggests Apple is negotiating with Samsung about its AMOLED display technology. Apple reportedly wants to drop LCDs and use an AMOLED display in its next version of the iPad. Samsung is the primary manufacturer of AMOLED displays and uses this technology in its popular Galaxy S line of handsets. In the past, Samsung supplied these displays to HTC for use in the Nexus One, the DROID Incredible and the Desire.

Though they are now battling in court, Samsung and

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Omnio's WOWKeys keyboard now shipping, ready to dock your iPhone for $100 (video)

Remember that Omnio WOWKeys keyboard we mentioned back in November -- the one that brings full-sized QWERTY functionality to your iPhone or iPod Touch? Well, it's now available for your consumption. Once you lock your iDevice into the port on the right, it will automatically begin charging and syncing with iTunes. From there, you can start typing text directly into your handheld, or use the keyboard's twelve hotkeys to control music playback functions, turn off the display, or switch between

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No more iSync in Lion

Hey, you remember iSync, right? You there, with the RAZR, you remember iSync? I remember using iSync to somewhat handily sync my contacts and calendars way back in the dark ages when phones had monochrome screens and most iPods had spinning plates inside them. Then, one day, it quit working and it joined the long list of "applications time and Victor forgot."

Well, goodbye, iSync, we barely used ye. Lion users are telling us that iSync is nowhere to be found in Apple's next OS, along with

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Pioneer announces iOS-integrated AppRadio receiver

Last month we told you about a Pioneer filing with the FCC that revealed something called the AppRadio. Today, Pioneer has officially showed off just what the AppRadio is -- an iOS-integrated car receiver that hooks up to your iPhone or iPod touch. AppRadio features a 800 x 400 6.1-inch multitouch capacitive display that allows the user to easily navigate and interact with not only the media on your iOS device, but your apps as well.

The receiver features built-in Bluetooth and GPS, an

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iPhone: What is DFU mode, and what's the difference from recovery mode?

In the past couple of days, we've seen reports here and there of iPhones getting stuck in a restart loop. The black screen with the Apple logo shows up, holds for a while, and then disappears again; repeat ad infinitum. While it's not clear yet exactly what's triggering the issue (the complainants suspect that it may be a recent application update to blame), there is a tried and true way to get your iPhone, iPod touch, iPad or older iPod back to square one: either use recovery mode or do a

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Pioneer unveils its AppRadio, integrates iOS into your automobile

Rumors regarding Pioneer's AppRadio hit the web last month, promising unparalleled iDevice integration for our automobiles. Pioneer has finally unleashed the double-DIN device, and it's everything we thought it would be. There's an 800 x 400 6.1-inch multitouch capacitive display, Bluetooth connectivity, and it teams up with your iPhone or iPod touch (running iOS 4.2) via a 30-pin connector and Pioneer's AppRadio app. There's full iPod music control and Google Maps integration, and specially

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TUAW TV Live at 5 PM EDT: Audience participation day

Today on TUAW TV Live, I'm going to do something a little different. While I'll still have some demos and new products to go over at the beginning of the show, I'm going to open TUAW TV Live up for some of our viewers to join in and talk about anything Apple.

All you need is Skype on a Mac or PC, or FaceTime on a Mac, iPad, iPod touch or iPhone. Why? You're going to be onscreen during the show (makeup is not required).
If you're interested in joining in on the show, send an email to

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Altec Lansing Mix iMT810 is big, loud, desperately seeking Ione Skye's affection

Altec Lansing popped by our offices earlier today to show off the successor to its oversized Mix iMT800 iPhone / iPod dock. There's not a heck of a lot to talk about in terms of changes with the iM810 -- the dock is now iPhone 4 certified, the gold trim has been changed to silver, and the amber LED has been swapped for blue. The company does get some bonus points for reenacting the one scene from Say Anything that anyone remembers with the winner of its in-office John Cusack look-alike

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Alarm Dock gives your iPhone retro cred

There are plenty of alarm clock apps and plenty of docking stations available for iPhones, but the Alarm Dock from Jonas Damon is a cut above the rest -- it looks, quite simply, gorgeously retro.

Reminiscent of those GE alarm clocks your parents had on their bedside table, your iPhone slides into a cutout in the front of the beechwood dock. Together with the (included) flip-clock app, it gives a great old-school look to your bedroom.

It fits the iPhone 3G, 3GS and 4 and iPod touches, but

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Write, Photograph And Film Local News As It Breaks With Meporter

Meporter is a location-based news app that enables you to write, photograph, and record video of your local news as it breaks, and then to share those stories with anyone who owns a mobile phone or has an Internet connection. Using the Meporter app on your iPhone or iPod Touch, you can take a picture, make, a video, or write your own story, and post it for the world to see — all in a matter of minutes.
You can post about items for sale, new styles and trends, local politics, area

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How Apple iBooks could compete with Amazon's Kindle in the ebook space

Apple's iBooks app and the iBookstore have been available since March of last year, but don't appear to have made as much of an impact as the much older Kindle platform from Amazon. Just last week, Amazon chief Jeff Bezos announced that the company is now selling slightly more electronic books than the dead-tree versions. Last October, one of our bloggers noted that the iBookstore was "one big failure," citing the lack of titles as his main concern.

I feel the same way. Although it seems

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Apple asks Samsung for prototype devices

San Jose Judge Lucy Koh is forcing Samsung to hand over new and unreleased mobile devices to its rival Apple. Apple's lawyers will get a chance to look at these devices as part of its infringement case against Samsung. In this complaint, Apple is accusing Samsung of violating a variety of utility patents, design patents, and trade dress registrations for its suite of iOS devices.

The phones and tablets requested by Apple include the Samsung Galaxy S2, Galaxy Tab 8.9, Galaxy Tab 10.1,

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80% of mobile videos watched happen on iOS devices

The New York Times is reporting on a FreeWheel study [PDF] that says the majority of video views that happen on a mobile device occur on an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch. The iPhone and iPod touch account for a 30% share each, while the iPad accounts for a 20% share. About 19% of video views happen on an Android device with the remaining 1% happening on all other mobile devices.

Ever since Apple unveiled the original iPhone without Adobe Flash support Apple's competitors have been shouting

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i3D app brings glasses-free 3D to iOS, tracks your gaze like a creepy portrait tracks Scooby Doo (video)

i3D is a new app that can create a glasses-free 3D display on iDevices, using a technology known as Head-Coupled Perspective (HCP). Developed by the folks from the Engineering Human-Computer Interaction (EHCI) Research Group, HCP uses a front facing camera to track the movements of a user's head, allowing the app to adjust the display accordingly. The result is a monocular 3D screen that creates the illusion of looking into a box. If the concept sounds a little familiar, it could be because

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Apple responds to Lodsys patent claims, backs up developers (Updated)

Update 2: Macworld just posted the complete text of the letter sent by Apple's legal department to Lodsys, as has CNET. You can view the text of the letter below, or see the full-color version on Scribd.

The letter asserts definitively that Apple's license for the Lodsys patents covers the developers who are using App Store upgrade technologies.

"[The] technology that is targeted in your notice letters is technology that Apple is expressly licensed under the Lodsys patents to offer to

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Apple patents privacy displays

Electronista has discovered an Apple patent that would allow users to set privacy viewing parameters on their device's displays in order to keep unwanted eyes from seeing what they are doing. The patent, titled Systems and Methods for Electronically Controlling the Viewing Angle of a Display, describes a way that LCDs could use embedded "scattering modules" to "selectively steer a device generated light beam to one of two or more scattering regions of its associated scattering module." In

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iPhone 5 may feature curved glass screen, continue iPod nano legacy

DigiTimes has been canvassing its manufacturing industry sources again, and today it's managed to extract some intel regarding Apple's typically secretive supply chain. Steve Jobs' team are said to have purchased between 200 and 300 glass-cutting machines, specifically in order to use them to slice up curved glass display covers for the iPhone 5. This move has apparently been in an effort to accelerate production, with glass makers reportedly showing a reluctance to buy the machinery

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Apple takes the wraps off new retail efforts

by Serenity Caldwell, Macworld.com
If I asked most of my friends what they were up to early on a Sunday morning, I imagine answers would range from “having brunch” to “going to church” or “I was asleep—why on Earth are you calling me before 1PM?” Admittedly, I usually practice similar habits, but on this particular Sunday morning. This Sunday saw the launch of what bloggers have taken to calling “Apple Store 2.0,” Apple’s revamped retail experience.

Senior associate

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Switched On: Adding to Android's army

Android, as Andy Rubin (no relation) has pointed out on multiple occasions, plays a game of numbers. And at Google I/O, the company carrying on its development shared some large ones: 100 million activated devices with 400,000 being added each day. However, like in many games, different players can catch up or overtake each other at different points. Just ask Nokia and RIM. To stay on top, operating system vendors implement strategies that lock consumers in. The more money consumers sink

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Two die In Foxconn assembly plant explosion

by Jeff Bertolucci, PCWorld
Editor’s Note: The following article is reprinted from PCWorld.com.


Foxconn Technology Group, manufacturer of popular consumer tech products such as the Apple iPhone, iPod, and iPad, as well as Dell computers, had a large explosion and fire at one of its manufacturing plants in southwestern China Friday night.
At least two people died and 16 were injured, The New Zealand Herald reports. Three of the injured are being treated for serious injuries. The

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Apple patent application reveals an LCD with switchable, privacy-protecting viewing angles

Don't you hate it when the guy next to you on the subway is looking over your shoulder, watching you screw up in Fruit Ninja? Well, Apple could have predicted your discomfort -- back in November 2009, before the iPad was anything more than a unicorn, the company applied for a patent on an LCD display with adjustable viewing angles, explicitly designed to "shield the display away from unintended viewers." According to the filing, the display would include steering modules made of liquid

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Steve Jobs in video tour of the first Apple Store

If you're looking for a way to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Apple Store, look no further than this YouTube video. In it, a much younger-looking Steve Jobs gives a video tour of the first store in Tyson's Corner, VA six days before the grand opening. The video was presented to an enthusiastic crowd, apparently at WWDC 2001 (since Jobs makes reference to "we'll provide shelves for as much as you can write", and Macworld NY didn't happen until July) which was held at about the same

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Amazon adds electronics, including iOS devices, to trade-in program

Amazon has added a host of electronic devices -- including iOS devices -- to its trade-in program. The Electronics Trade-In program is currently in beta and allows users to mail in their old, unwanted devices in exchange for Amazon gift card credits. Devices must be in working order and good cosmetic condition. A third-party merchant, not Amazon, is actually the one buying the used devices.

The prices are actually more generous than I thought they'd be. I sold an original 4 GB iPhone on

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Sony joins EMI and Warner in Apple cloud music service

Three down, one to go. Just a day after CNET suggested that EMI joined Warner Music Group in allowing Apple to distribute their music over a cloud-based service, now Bloomberg is claiming that Apple has also officially inked a deal with Sony Music. That leaves just one of the big four music labels -- Universal Music Group -- left to sign on with Apple. And as Bloomberg states, Universal is supposedly close to signing with the iPod maker soon.

As I mentioned yesterday, getting all four

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Apple Zeros In On Deals For Its Cloud Music Service

Apple is furiously negotiating with the record labels to finalize deals which will allow it to stream music from the Internet to mobile devices (iPhones, iPads, iPods) and computers. It just came to terms with Sony Music, according to a Bloomberg report, which means that of the four major labels it’s got three down (EMI, Warner, and Sony), and one to go (Universal Music).
Streaming rights are different than digital download rights so Apple had to renegotiate all of its music deals. A

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Amazon adds electronics to trade-in program

by Brennon Slattery, PCWorld
Editor’s Note: The following article is reprinted from the Today @ PC World blog at PCWorld.com.

Amazon has expanded its product trade-in program to include electronics, so if you’re saddled with obsolete or unwanted gadgets — including tablets, smartphones, MP3 players, digital cameras, GPS units, and more — you can unload them for Amazon.com gift certificates.

Trading in your electronics works the same way as unloading your other items:
Search for

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XtremeMac InCharge Auto & Home BT chargers stream music, phone calls over bluetooth

There are many ways to get your phone's tunes to your system's speakers, and now thanks to XtremeMac, you have two more. At $ 80, the InCharge Home BT is just $ 20 cheaper than an Apple TV, and it only lets you stream audio over bluetooth (vs. video, and WiFi for the Apple TV). Its on-the-go counterpart, however -- the InCharge Auto BT (also $ 80) -- is a much easier sell, beaming music and phone calls to a car stereo without a need to tether your handset to your receiver. Despite the

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Xfinity TV on your iPod, iPhone but Wi-Fi only

Version 1.5 of Comcast's Xfinity TV app for iPhone and iPod touch arrived on the App Store yesterday. The updated software allows Comcast customers to watch movies and TV shows on their iPhones or iPod touches while connected to any Wi-Fi network.

Comcast added on-demand video streaming functionality to the Xfinity TV app for iPad in February. Since then, Comcast's library of streaming content has grown to include over 6,000 hours of video from 25 networks. The app, which also allows

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Nostalgia: Steve Jobs tours the first Apple Store at Macworld 2001 (video)

Since we'd rather not attempt to pick out a birthday present for the retail store that has everything, we're breaking out the home movies to see just how far it's come in the past decade. Here's some footage from Macworld 2001, in which a chipper Jobs takes us behind the wood barricade for a "little private tour" of the first ever Apple Store in Tysons Corner, VA, showing off a rear-projection screen for playing commercials and debuting the hyperbolically-named Genius Bar. All said, not that

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Comcast brings Xfinity TV VOD to iPhone, iPod Touch, but only on WiFi

Comcast rolled out a v1.5 update today for the iPhone / iPod Touch versions of its Xfinity TV app which allows them to access the video on-demand streaming that has been available on the iPad since February. Just like the iPad however, they'll only work over WiFi -- no streaming over 3G or downloading for offline viewing here, although unlike Cablevision and Time Warner's iPad apps, you don't have to be on your own WiFi for it to work. The slate of content has expanded to include 25 networks

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OmniVision's new 5 megapixel CMOS sensor shoots 1080p video, is built for 'slimmer' devices

Apple might be poised to ditch OmniVision for its next round of iPhone / iPod Touch cameras, but that hasn't stopped the company from trotting out a fresh crop of sensors. Weeks after unveiling a beastly 12 megapixel number, it's announced the OV5690, a 5 megapixel chip, and the first to use the company's second-generation OmniBSI-2 pixel architecture. In addition to shooting 5 megapixel stills, it records 1080p video at 30 frames per second and 720p movies at 60fps. And, most notably,

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"Apple Store 2.0" event said to be international, include a complete store makeover

The big Apple store event rumored for this weekend may be happening in stores around the world. A tipster to 9to5 mac claims Australian stores will under go a complete overhaul of their visual merchandising. Similar to earlier reports, a black sheet will cover the store windows the night before and retail employees will attend an all-staff meeting the following morning. This new store experience is reportedly being called "Apple 2.0" in internal communications and is timed to coincide with

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Apple to launch Back to School promo next week

AppleInsider is reporting that Apple will begin its annual back-to-school promotions next week. The promotions typically run from late May/early June to the first week in September. Shoppers can probably expect a free or discounted iPod touch when a Mac is purchased, as that is usually what Apple has offered in years past.

AppleInsider didn't list a specific date for this year's launch, but past year's back-to-school promotions have launched as early as May 25, and as late as June 5. The

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iPads were everywhere at Musikmesse 2011

If there's any one area of life that the iPad has had a huge impact on, it's the creation of music. Writing for The Mac Observer, blogger Jochen Wolters noted that iPads were everywhere at the world's largest trade show for musical instruments and audio recording technology -- Musikmesse 2011.

This year's show was held April 6 - 9 in Frankfurt, Germany. Wolters noted that almost every developer of audio software and manufacturer of keyboards and mixers was demonstrating some way of using

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iDVM Digital Multimeter collects voltage readings on your iDevice, shares them with whoever cares

This, dear reader, is the iDVM Digital Multimeter -- the world's very first iDevice-enabled voltmeter, from Redfish Instruments. Designed with auto technicians, electricians and engineers in mind, the iDVM uses an ad hoc wireless network to connect to any iPad, iPhone or iPod Touch, allowing users to record voltage, resistance and current directly from their palms. Once you've purchased the multimeter and downloaded the accompanying iDVM app, you'll be able to gather electrical measurements

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Maintain app organization when restoring iOS devices

iPhone or iPad folders gone after a restore? Try restoring twice
Posted on by Dan Frakes, Macworld.com


If you’ve ever had to restore an iOS device from its iTunes backup—for example, if you’ve upgraded to a new phone, or if Apple has replaced an iPhone that was having problems—there’s a good chance you’ve come across one of the most frustrating bugs in the iTunes/iOS 4 system: Much of your painstakingly created Home-screen organization is wiped out. Specifically, most of your

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Slacker intros Premium Radio subscription service, makes Radio Plus look like Basic Radio

Internet radio provider Slacker is bulldozing the thin line dividing itself from subscription-based music services today, with the launch of Premium Radio. The new pricing tier joins the existing gratis Basic Radio and ad-free Radio Plus plans, adding an all-you-can-eat music model akin to services like Rhapsody and Rdio. Subscribers who shell out $ 9.99 a month receive all of the features of the $ 3.99 Radio Plus users, plus unlimited access to eight million songs, letting them listen to

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Slacker intros Radio Plus subscription service, makes Premium Radio look like Basic Radio

Internet radio provider Slacker is bulldozing the thin line dividing itself from subscription-based music services today, with the launch of Radio Plus. The new pricing tier joins the existing gratis Basic Radio and ad-free Premium Radio plans, adding an all-you-can-eat music model akin to services like Rhapsody and Rdio. Subscribers who shell out $ 9.99 a month receive all of the features of the $ 4.99 Premium Radio users, plus unlimited access to eight million songs, letting them listen

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Remains of the Day: Flip out

Posted on by Dan Moren, Macworld.com


China’s extended the Great Firewall around Flipboard, more iPad publications sign up for Apple’s subscription plan, and many smartphone users are apparently taking their apps lying down. The remainders for Monday, May 16, 2011 are open to all.

Access To iPad App Flipboard Compromised In China (TechCrunch)
Chinese users of the social-networking iPad app Flipboard are out of luck, since the governemnt has blocked access to the company’s own

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Munster: Mac sales off to 'slow' start in April, but Q3 looks good

Piper Jaffray's Gene Munster issued a report on Apple's Mac sales so far this quarter. According to U.S. sales data compiled by NPD, Apple was off to a "slow" start in April, with only 9% year over year growth from April 2010 sales. However, Munster points out that by the same timeframe in 2010 Apple had updated their MacBook and MacBook Pro lines, which spiked sales. This year so far only the MacBook Pros have been updated.

Wall Street is expecting Apple to post 22% sales growth for Q3,

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Mac 911: Playing podcasts in chronological order

by Christopher Breen, Macworld.com
Reader John Keith would like to hear podcast episodes in their order of creation. He writes:


I wear my iPod classic in my hatband on my hikes and it’s a hassle to have to remove and reset it for each podcast. iTunes includes no preference setting to play a folder of them in chronological order. It’s by default “Last In, First Out”, which is not helpful for any educational series which typically builds on past episodes. Is there a way to force

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Canadian copyright group pushes for levy on memory cards

As even non-Canadians may recall, there was a big issue in the country a few years back over a so-called "iPod tax" (something that cropped up again in the recent election) and, while it still hasn't come to pass, the Canadian Private Copying Collective is now pushing for a music tax of another sort. While there's no iPods in danger of being taxed this time, the CPCC is asking for a new levy to be placed on memory cards (presumably all types, although that hasn't been specified). That levy

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GoFlex Satellite is your iPad's portable, wireless hard drive

Seagate introduced the GoFlex Satellite, a portable, battery-powered hard drive targeted for iOS devices. The external hard drive includes an iOS app for the iPad, iPhone or iPod touch that lets you browse and view multimedia files stored on the drive. Different than most external drives, the GoFlex uses Wi-Fi to share its data with up to three Wi-Fi enabled devices at the same time. If you need faster transfers, an included cable lets you connect the drive to any USB 3.0 port. The

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Apple offers free repairs for iPhones, other products damaged in Japan quake

Apple customers with Macs, displays, and iOS devices that were directly damaged in the Japan earthquake and tsunami may be eligible for free repairs. The offer, posted on the company's Japanese website, excludes iPod classic, nano, and shuffle, and only applies to customers living in areas covered by the Ministry of Health's Disaster Relief Act. Originally posted in March, Apple's announcement joins Softbank's offer to replace lost iPhones registered to its network, and free calls to Japan

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Seagate's GoFlex Satellite portable hard drive streams content over WiFi (review)

Seagate just took the wraps off what's likely the niftiest portable HDD to cross our path in a long, long while. The GoFlex Satellite is part storage device, part wireless media streamer, and it manages to wear both hats with little compromise on either end. For all intents and purposes, this is a standard 500GB GoFlex HDD with a bit of extra girth, an AC input, an 802.11b/g/n WiFi module and a built-in web server. The reason for those extras? A simple depression of the on / off button

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More evidence of camera flash changes in next iPhone

Earlier we reported on a rumored "iPhone 5" case which suggested that Apple has decided to move the iPhone's camera flash farther away from the camera lens. Now Asian Apple site Apple.pro has posted images comparing the iPhone 4's camera components with purported iPhone 5 (or iPhone 4S) camera components.

The alleged iPhone 5 camera components show that the rear camera does not come with a flash attached as it does in the iPhone 4. These images in addition to the earlier iPhone 5 case

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A clock of all trades for your iPad

There's no shortage of clocks and timers for the iPad. One of the most complete is Clock Pro for the iPad, which is on sale this weekend for US$ 1.99.

Clock Pro is an alarm clock and uses notifications so you can get that important wake-up alert without leaving the app running. There is both an analog and digital clock design, a chess clock, a world clock, sunrise, sunset and tide clocks, a sleep timer, an egg timer and a countdown clock. Most clocks can run full screen and are

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Dear Aunt TUAW: Help me move my iOS devices to a new computer

Dear Aunt TUAW,

I just bought a brand spanking new iMac. Since I want a clean slate, I am moving everything over manually from my old MacBook. So far so good, except for my iPhone, iPod touch, iPad etc. How do I switch my iOS devices over without the loss of my apps and their saved data. (I have put many many hours into Infinity Blade on long flights.) Thanks!

Your loving nephew,

HenryContinue reading Dear Aunt TUAW: Help me move my iOS devices to a new computerDear Aunt TUAW: Help

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Apple offering free repairs for iPod touches, iPhones, and Macs damaged in the Japan quake and tsunami

Apple is offering free service and repair to those Mac users who were affected by the Japan tsunami and earthquake in March. As stated in a Support & Information Services note [Japanese version/ Google-translated English version] on Apple's Japanese website, the company is offering free repairs to any Macs, Cinema Displays, iPhones, iPads or iPod touches damaged in the disaster. Apple's offer applies to those directly affected by the earthquake who primarily live in municipalities

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Engadget Podcast 239 - 05.13.2011

Do y'all like Google stuff? If you don't, do you really hate Google stuff? Either way, good. We've got you covered. We'll give you more reasons to gLove them or gHate them, because we've got almost a full hour of chatter about all the stuff they did this week: apps, upgrades, hardware, and a good old-fashioned smear campaign directed against them. There's also some good news in the virtual hugging and kissing space, which we think you'll find hard to hate. It's your time to shine: click on

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Engadget app for iPhone and iPod touch updated to 2.2.0, get it now!

Hey there fellow iOS users, just thought we'd let you know that the Engadget app for iPhone and iPod touch has now been updated to version 2.2. What's new, you ask? Well, on top of a stash of performance tweaks, there's now a handy landscape viewing mode along with much improved sharing features; or if you prefer saving the goodies for yourself, then you'll also like our new "save for later" options for Evernote, Instapaper, and Read It Later. Head over to the App Store to nab the fresh

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TechCrunch Giveaway: Last Free Ticket To Disrupt NYC, Plus Free iPod Touch #TechCrunch

This is your last chance to win a free ticket to this year’s Disrupt in New York City! The conference is from May 23rd to May 25th, a little over a week away, and has an incredible lineup of guest speakers and judges. You can read all about our speakers here, and you can take a peek at our three day agenda, as of now, here.
We still have a couple other little surprises that we will be announcing. Some very special guests have confirmed and we will be revealing them shortly. Since this is

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Netflix releases Android app for select HTC phones, Samsung Nexus S

Well, it looks like the LG Revolution won't be the first Android phone to get Netflix after all. The app has just hit the Android Market and is currently available for the HTC Incredible, Nexus One, Evo 4G, and G2, plus the Samsung Nexus S. As you might expect, there's not a lot of surprises in terms of functionality -- you can resume watching where you left off on your TV or computer, and you can browse movies and manage your instant queue on your phone. On its official blog, Netflix

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Remains of the Day: This is the war room!

Posted on by Dan Moren, Macworld.com


The Beijing Apple Store settles up with a injured customer, a rumored next-generation iPod nano makes an appearance, and there’s yet another supposed use for Apple’s massive data center. The remainders for Tuesday, May 10, 2011 are just blowing in the wind.

Apple pays compensation over Beijing brawl (AFP)
After this past weekend’s skirmish at a Beijing Apple Store, one customer has apparently reached a 20,000-yuan settlement with the store for

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Purported seventh-gen iPod nano spotted, complete with 1.3 megapixel camera

Is this Apple's next iPod nano? It is if you believe the folks from Taiwan's Apple.pro website who, as you may recall, also recently got their hands on a purported next-gen iPod nano chassis that seems to match the complete device pictured above. As you can see, the big change here is the addition of a built-in camera that's said to be 1.3 megapixels, which appears to have also shoved the clip out of the way, although there does seem to be a faint outline where one could be. Of course, the

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Google announces Android Open Accessory standard, Arduino-based ADK

Google's really not leaving any stone unturned at IO today -- it's now also announced a brand new Android Open Accessory standard, which promises to effectively be its own version of "Made for iPod." That means that any accessory designed using the API (which could even be something like an exercise bike) will be compatible with any Android phone or tablet -- running at least Android 2.3.4 or 3.1, that is. What's more, Google is also making a reference hardware design dubbed an "ADK"

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Bababoo Raises $1.5M To Let You Make Calls Over Mobile, WiFi, 3G, AND Keep Your Number

Cell phone bills are expensive, and carrier contracts are binding. We need our cellphones, but that doesn’t mean that we’re not always looking for cheaper ways to make calls. Voice-over-IP services have come a long way in the last few years; Skype has perfected desktop-to-desktop calling, and Google has given us free VoIP domestic calling on Gmail — talk over WiFi on email from the comfort of your couch. But, the next new frontier has become WiFi and VoIP calling on mobile.

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doubleTwist adds AirPlay hooks to Android

I remember doubleTwist as an iTunes alternative from back in the day, but it's apparently morphed into an Android application and promises to bring many of the standard iTunes and iPod music features to the Android platform. Now the app has added yet another trick to its arsenal: doubleTwist now features support for AirPlay so that users can stream music, videos or photos from an Android phone to an Apple TV or any other AirPlay compatible devices. The app itself is free on the Android

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Google's cloud music service to launch without iOS support

According to CNET, Google will unveil its cloud music service, Music Beta, at the I/O Developer Conference. The free service will be invitation-only (and US-only) at launch, and it will allow users to upload up to 20,000 songs onto Google's servers and stream that music to many web-connected devices.

If all that sounds good to you, here's the monkey wrench: the service won't work on iOS devices, because Google has (perhaps deliberately) hobbled it by requiring support for Flash Player.

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Report: Apple topples Google as most valuable brand

by John Ribeiro, IDG News Service


Apple has topped Google as the most valuable brand in the world, according to a study released over the weekend by brand consultancy Millward Brown.
The maker of high-profile products like the iPad and iPhone moved up from third place in 2010 to to the number one position in 2011 as its brand value grew from $ 83 billion to $ 153 billion, according to the study.
Google saw its brand value drop in 2011 by 2 percent to $ 111.5 billion. It had held the

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Survey: Tablets replacing laptops, e-readers

by Tony Bradley, PCWorld
Editor’s Note: The following article is reprinted from the Net Work blog at PCWorld.com.

New survey results from Nielsen show that users are ditching their laptops, abandoning their ereaders, and leaving their MP3 players behind. For a large, and growing segment of the population, the tablet is the new primary computing and entertainment device.
According to the Nielsen data, about one third of the tablet owners who were surveyed indicated that they use their

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Zynga Acqhires Contributors To iPhone Games Framework Cocos2D

Zynga has made yet another ‘acqhire’ today. The company is announcing that Ricardo Quesada and Rolando Abarca, key contributors to the cocos2d for iPhone open source project, are joining the gaming giant. This is Zynga’s 13th announced acquisition in 12 months
The cocos2d for iPhone open source project is widely used by developers globally, including large players like Atari, ngmoco, Gamevil and Zynga, in the development of leading mobile games for iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad and

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Amazon Cloud Player now streams music on the iPhone and iPad

We're not sure how long this has been possible, but at launch, Amazon's Cloud Player refused to stream songs from your Cloud Drive in Mobile Safari, with the only alternative being selecting 'Download' instead of play. Now Amazon has quietly flicked the switch that allows Cloud Player to work properly in Mobile Safari, once you get past the "Your browser isn't supported screen," complete with background playback and control, meaning that you can pause the music and skip tracks right from

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Apple is #4 in Barron's 500 for 2011

Earlier we told you that Apple claimed the #35 spot on the 2011 Fortune 500 list. That's pretty impressive in and of itself, but what's even more impressive is that Apple sits at #4 on the Barron's 500 list of America's top companies that was released last week. The rise to the fourth spot means Apple shot up 55 places over last year's position.

Unlike Fortune, which ranks companies solely by revenues, Barron's assembles its list based on factors such as revenues, cash returns, management

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Getting GPS on a WiFi iPad with New Sky

Last week I reported on a Bluetooth GPS solution that will give you full navigation features on both the WiFi-only iPad and on the iPod touch. Today I was able to test the device and see if was a useful solution to navigating on iDevices that don't have GPS built-in.

The quick answer is that it does work, and it works very well. The GPS receiver, provided to us by New Sky Products, is about the size of a thin tape measure. You turn it on, pair it with an iPad or iPad touch, and you are

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Eton's Soulra XL solar-powered iPod boombox will cost $300, now ready for your pre-orders

Summer's nearly here, the sun shining bright -- wouldn't you like to share your tunes with friends with friends while basking in the light? That's what Eton's counting on as it prepares to ship the Soulra XL, the solar-powered iPod boombox formerly known as the Soulra 2. As we discovered at CES in January, its set of eight speakers get pretty loud, and Eton claims it charges twice as fast as its predecessor (five hours) thanks to a sizable monocrystal solar panel, and lasts five hours on a

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Namco Bandai sale this weekend on the App Store

If you want to score a deal on some classic games for your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch, Namco Bandai is celebrating spring (and coincidentally Mother's Day) with a sale on some of its best-selling titles this weekend.

From now through May 9, you can grab games like Star Trigon for US$ 0.99, Tamagotchi: Round the World for $ 0.99, Lost in Time: The Clockwork Tower for $ 2.99, and PAC-MAN for $ 1.99. According to 148Apps.com, which offers a complete list of all the discounted games, the

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Wrap your iPad in Ferrari leather

You may not be able to afford that Ferarri that's ready to wrap around your iPod, but how about just a Ferrari case? RazorianFly points us to these Ferrari-branded iDevice cases which allow you to put your iPad or iPhone 4 in the same rich, supple leather that goes into the legendary supercars. You can pick them up in either black or red, and each case is decorated with a metal cutout of the Ferrari Prancing Horse logo.

The prices aren't too bad as luxury cases go. The iPhone 4 case will

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Frisbee Forever app hits your iPhone screen, doesn't crack it

You can toss it on a plane. You can toss it on a train. You can toss it in a car. You can toss it near and far.

Kiloo's new Frisbee(R) app for iOS gives geeks a safe environment to toss the disc (so no more broken windows or dents in the lawn). We managed to keep that little blue saucer parallel to the ground for several seconds during our hands-on. It even flew through one or two of those enormous black and white hoops (enormous relative to the finger-nail-size frisbee). Many of the

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Remains of the Day: Dance like nobody’s watching

Posted on by Dan Moren, Macworld.com


Apple sends one of its top men to speak before Congress, jumps almost twenty spots on the Fortune 500, and strikes a deal with another major publisher—all before noon. Guess someone ate their Wheaties. The remainders for Friday, May 6, 2011 are part of this complete breakfast.

Apple’s Bud Tribble to testify before Judiciary Subcommittee on Mobile Privacy (The Loop)
The office of Senator Al Franken (D-MN) has released the list of folks giving

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Watchdop group cites continued Foxconn abuses

by Agam Shah, IDG News Service
A group based in Hong Kong this week issued a report alleging continued Foxconn worker abuse, and questioned some of the promises made by the contract manufacturer to live up to its code of conduct.

Watchdog group Students & Scholars Against Corporate Misbehaviour (SACOM) said despite promises to improve, Taiwan-based Foxconn continues to expose workers to health and safety risks on the assembly line and shop floor. SACOM also alleged that Foxconn is

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Review: iHome iA100 iPad/iPhone alarm clock

4.0 out of 5 Mice, May 6, 2011




Pros
Bluetooth speakerphone and music-streaming support
Flexible alarm options
iHome+Sleep app adds functionality
Dock accommodates iPad, iPhone, or iPod
Cons
No AM-radio support
Buttons difficult to distinguish from each other




iHome iA100
By Dan Moren, Macworld.com - May 6, 2011

Waking up is an intensely personal experience: Some prefer to be awakened gently by the sound of music; others opt for the morning news; and still others want their iPad or

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Untethered jailbreak for iOS 4.3.3 now available from iPhone dev team

Jailbreakers hesitant to update to iOS 4.3.3 can now do so without losing their ability to jailbreak. The iPhone dev team confirmed iOS 4.3.3 is still vulnerable to the untethered jailbreak exploit that @i0n1c created for 4.3.1. Released earlier this week, this version of iOS fixes the location bug that made headlines a few weeks ago.

Both the PwnageTool and redsn0w have been updated and will jailbreak iOS 4.3.3 devices including the iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4 (GSM), iPod touch 3G, iPod touch

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Video Review: The Hasbro My3D

Can a $ 35 piece of plastic offer a compelling and immersive 3D experience? Well, yes and no. The Hasbro My3D is a fun idea – it’s basically a stereoscopic viewer that splits images on the iPhone or iPod Touch into two discrete sides. It really works and is quite cool when you initially try it.
When you look through the lenses you see a half-resolution 3D image that reacts to the motion of the iPhone in three dimensions, allowing you to move around and rotate in the 3D world.

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Bowers & Wilkins Zeppelin Air review

What's that, an alien egg? Nope. Memory foam iPillow? No, silly, it's a Zeppelin, a Zeppelin Air more specifically. Bowers & Wilkins brought us the first iPod-centric Zeppelin in the middle of the great iPod dock flood of '07. A few years later they downsized and brought us a mini version. The logical extension after the advent of AirPlay is here: a Zeppelin that does its thang without wires. We've been beaming music to it for a few weeks now -- wanna find out how our relationship has

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TUAW's Daily iOS App: Magic Piano

Smule has brought its popular iPad app, Magic Piano, over to the iPhone and iPod touch this week, and one of the best things about it is that it's completely free. It still features all of the various music modes that the original app offers, including that one cats like so much, and the mode that allows you to play any number of famous songs just by tapping the screen on your own rhythm and time. This is a great app, which isn't a surprise from the fine folks at Smule, and it's good to

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iOS 4.3.3 available, contains changes to location database

As it said it would do, Apple has made some changes to how it stores and manages the "iOS crowd-sourced location database cache." In particular, it reduces the size of the cache, doesn't back it up to iTunes and deletes the cache when you disable Location Services. Apple came under fire for storing all of your location data and this addresses the bug.

This update is for iPhone 4 (GSM model), 3GS, the iPad 2 and 1st-gen iPad, iPod touch (4th and 3rd generation). Go get it by connecting

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iOS 4.3.3 is out, location tracking 'fix' in tow

Apple's promised update to iOS to rectify what it perceived as a set of bugs in the system -- namely, an excessively large cache of location information that was backed up to iTunes and hung around even after you switched Location Services off -- is now being distributed to iPhones, iPads and iPod touches out in the wild. To exterminate those problematic aspects of your OS, you know what to do -- hook up to iTunes and get downloading. And yes, it's the full 666.2MB file as usual.

P.S. - iOS

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Spotify adds iPod sync and MP3 downloads to its music streaming service

Spotify expanded its online music streaming service to include MP3 downloads, iPod playlist sync and more. The music service will now let free and premium users sync their iPod classic, nano or shuffle with the service. Simply connect your iPod and Spotify will add the portable media player to your list of available devices. In a matter of minutes, all the paid MP3 files in your Spotify playlist will automatically sync to your iPod.

Spotify also added a new download service that lets

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Spotify launches music download service with iPod sync, puts iTunes on notice

Look out iTunes, Spotify has just launched its new music download service. What's more, the company that had been synonymous with music streaming will let you sync your downloaded MP3 playlist bundles to your USB-connected iPod classic, nano, or shuffle via a new "Devices" section of the Spotify app running on your computer. And listen up freeloaders, Spotify Mobile iOS and Android app users can now sync playlists wirelessly without requiring a premium subscription. Here's a quote from Daniel

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iPod, Meet Spotify; iTunes, Say Hello To Your Future Rival

Spotify, the music service Americans don’t get to enjoy, announced several very cool new features today. The European music service is rolling out new versions of its desktop and mobile apps today, which will allow all users (even those pesky ad-supported freeloaders) to sync Spotify desktop tracks with mobile devices, be they iPods, iPhones or Androids.
And just in case it wasn’t clear whether or not Spotify intends to compete directly with iTunes, Spotify is also introducing its

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New Sky Products Bluetooth receiver brings GPS navigation to Wi-Fi iPad and iPod touch

The iPad and iPad 2 don't come with a GPS receiver if you have the Wi-Fi versions. I have a Wi-Fi iPad 2 and have longed for the ability to use the larger format maps on apps like Navigon while traveling. There have been some solutions if you jailbreak, but that's not something I want to do.

Now there's a solution from New Sky Products, which is offering a small (2.25" x 2.25" x 0.75") unit that will pair with your iPad or iPod touch and give you the navigation functionality you crave. The

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HBO GO for iOS lets you play over 1400 programs from just about anywhere

HBO GO allows an HBO subscriber to stream over 1400 programs on a computer with a Flash-enabled browser, but just last week, a few days ahead of the scheduled May 2nd release, HBO released the HBO GO iOS app. This free universal app is pretty amazing.

If you are an HBO subscriber and your provider is among the favored ones (AT&T U-verse, Xfinity, DIRECTV, DISH Network, Suddenlink, Verizon FIOS or some flavors of Comcast), you now have the ability to stream a world of HBO content to

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iOS 4.3.3 to fix location tracking issue, due soon

A rumor out of BGR suggests iOS 4.3.3 will land in the upcoming weeks. As expected, the update will fix the location tracking issue that blew up last week. In this public debacle, Apple confirmed cell tower and WiFi hotspot information was being stored on the iPhone and 3G iPad to improve location fix acquisition.

Apple promised to address these issues and, according to BGR, the changelog for 4.3.3 will include the following improvements:


iTunes will no longer backup the location

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Blurb app creates multimedia stories on iPhone

Blurb is best known for self-publishing books, but a new iPhone app expands the company's scope to mobile storytelling. Blurb Mobile for iPhone and iPod touch allows you to take photos, video and audio from the iPhone, including from apps such as Instagram, Hipstamatic and Photoshop Express, and turn them into a visual book that can be shared via email, Twitter or Facebook.

Blurb is a free download and allows you to have up to eight images, a 30-second audio clip per image and a

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