How to stop Twitter from tracking you across the Internet

This week Twitter announced a new version of its "Who to Follow" feature, making it a far more personal recommendation engine. The way it works, however, is that if you're logged into Twitter in the web browser, any site that calls Twitter code -- like a Tweet or Follow button -- can report your presence on that site back to Twitter. Gadget sites. Car sites. Movie sites. Porn sites. Gaming sites. Any. Site.

We determine the people you might enjoy following based on your recent visits to websites in the Twitter ecosystem (sites that have integrated Twitter buttons or widgets). Specifically, our feature works by suggesting people who are frequently followed by other Twitter users that visit the same websites.

The cause for concern here is that it looks like it's opt-out, and not opt-in for existing Twitter users. New Twitter users will be asked on signup, but existing users have to a) know about it, and b) find it and shut it off if they don't like it.

Giving existing users a popup or overlay advising them of it would even that out. (Twitter is sending emails that include some of this and other information, but that's not as effective as a specific modal request, with the default state being off and not on.)

If you trust Twitter and would value more personalized "Who to Follow" recommendations, then you may not care. If you don't trust any big internet company, aren't interested in social recommendations, and basically think your personal information is too high a price to pay for any free internet service, then you have some options.

Log out of Twitter.com

If you rarely if ever use Twitter via the website, one way to prevent Twitter from collecting your data is to simply make sure you're logged out of Twitter.com.

1. Go to Twitter.com in your browser.
2. Tap on the Me tab.
3. Scroll down to the bottom and tap on Log Out.

(As pointed out by @marcedwards, using a good password manager like 1Password, DataVault, RoboForm, etc. makes frequent logins and logouts for privacy reasons far less onerous.)

Opt out of Twitter's personalized recommendations

Sadly, this method can't seem to be done via the iPhone-optimized mobile Twitter webapp,so you'll have to break out the full, desktop browser version of Twitter.com.

1. Go to Twitter.com in your desktop browser.
2. Click on the Account button to open the drop-down menu
3. Click on Settings
4. Scroll down and uncheck the Tailor Twitter based on my recent website visits
5. Re-Enter your password to confirm

Tell your browser not to let web services track you

Twitter supports "Do Not Track", a system that users can opt into that prevents web services from following their browsing habits. Again, it would be better to have users opt into "Allow Track" than making them figure out how to opt out via "Do Not Track" but this is currently the hand privacy is dealt.

Unfortunately, not all browsers support "Do Not Track" directly yet, including Mobile Safari on iOS. For desktop Safari 5.1 or later:

1. Click on the **Safari* menu
2. Choose Preferences...
3. Check Show Develop menu in menu bar*
4. Click on the Develop menu
5. Choose Send Do Not Track HTTP Header

For information on how to enable "Do Not Track" in other browsers, when and if possible, check out Twitter's knowledge base article.

• Twitter Supports "Do Not Track"

Here's the gist:

The United States Federal Trade Commission has endorsed DNT as a simple way for users to inform integrated web services which offer content across the Internet (such as buttons, widgets, and other embedded features) that they do not want certain information about their webpage visits collected across websites when they have not interacted with that service's content on the page.

The DNT browser setting is now supported by recent versions of major browsers, including Firefox 5+, Internet Explorer 9+, and Safari 5.1+. If you are using Chrome 17.0 or higher, there is a third-party extension that enables DNT.

Conclusion

iPhone users are massive Twitter users and vice versa. If any social network was made for mobile, it was and is Twitter. Because Twitter is so mobile, and because it defaults to making most things public (unless you deliberately make your account private or send a DM), Twitter has managed to avoid a lot of the privacy blunders Facebook and Google had experienced. Until this week.

Security and privacy are always going to be at odds with convenience. It's faster and easier for social networks to simply turn things on, and it's more powerful and feature-fancy for users to let them.

The price is our personal information.

There are arguments on more than two sides about the importance of this, but at the end of he day there are millions if not billions of dollars at stake for the networks and the details of personal and private lives at stake for users. So it's worth arguing about. A lot.

In this specific case, if you're okay with Twitter offering you recommendations based on your browsing habits, leave it on and enjoy. If not, turn it off and rest easy.

Source: iMore - The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch blog | 20 May 2012 | 2:43 pm UTC

iMore picks of the week: Flipboard, N.O.V.A. 3, olloclip

Every week iMore's editors carefully cull through hundreds of thousands of iPhone and iPad apps and games, and countless accessories, and pick only one of each -- one app, one game, and one accessory. Innovative, interesting, or just plain exciting, they might might be the latest and greatest or the most newly updated, or they might be classics or hidden gems. The only constants are, they'll always be among our very favorites, and they'll worthy to join the exclusive ranks of iMore's new picks of the week.

This week we have an old social favorite with new social hook, the sequel to the sequel of one of the best shooters ever, and way to give your iPhone an incredible new set of eyes...

App of the Week: Flipboard with SoundCloud

Flipboard is a dynamic, up-to-date, but highly personalized magazine created from everything being shared to you from Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Google Reeder, LinkedIn, Flickr and most recently added, SoundCloud.

That's right, now you can enjoy amazing sounds created and shared by your friends and people you follow on SoundCloud as well as explore dozens of recommended audio feeds in new Audio category in the Content Guide.

Using Flipboard is joyous. You simply flip through the different stories in your feeds that are displayed with big images and an expert of text. When reading an article, advancing through pages also requires the act of "flipping". It's actually pretty fun.

Flipboard is one of our favorite personal magazine apps, and it also supports our favorite read later services: Instapaper, Pocket, and Readability.

Free - Download Now

Game of the week: N.O.V.A. 3

This week, there was really only iOS game worth talking about: Gameloft's N.O.V.A. 3. The franchise has long been meeting the needs of hardcore Halo fans looking for something similar on their iPhone, and over time, N.O.V.A. has very much come into its own.

You play the role of Kal Wardin, a reluctant (and supposedly retired) military man who's the only one with the skills to fend off the usual intergalactic threats. Your standard assortment of shotguns, assault rifles, sniper rifles, grenades, and missile launchers are supplemented by superhuman abilities like slowing time, telekentic force pushes, and freezing enemies. Though there's a 10-level single player campaign, the real game takes place online, where you fight 6 v 6 across a variety of classic game modes, like team deathmatch, free for all, and capture the flag. As you play, win or lose, you gain experience points and level up, which unlocks new weapons, equipment, and add-ons to spawn with. One of the most exciting elements of multiplayer is the ability to hop into a variety of awesome high-tech vehicles, like walker mechs and jeeps.

This sci-fi first-person shooter boasts Retina-optimized graphics for both iPhone and iPad, but be warned new iPad owners - the price for razor-sharp textures is steep. In order to keep the framerate up, you'll be sacrificing lots of cool effects like depth of field and motion blur. Gameloft is also trying to push in-app purchases for guns, which is a trapping generally left to free games, but luckily you can earn all the in-game currency you need through regular gameplay.

N.O.V.A. 3 provides top-notch action, great multiplayer, and graphics that you will have a hard time finding anywhere else on iOS. Although many scoff at dual-stick shooters on mobile, I find Gameloft has done a great job at integrating gyroscope control since Modern Combat 3, particularly for fine aim adjustments. I also take zero issue with the "inspiration" they pull from sci-fi games on other platforms; if Halo isn't ever going to find its way to the iPhone and iPad, then more power to Gameloft for bringing it here. For action game fans, N.O.V.A. 3 is a no-brainer.

$6.99 - Download now

Accessory of the week: olloclip lens system

The olloclip is a compact, convenient lens system that easily slides over your iPhone 4 or iPhone 4S camera and turns it into a fun, flexible, photography powerhouse. The olloclip contains both a fisheye and wide-angle lens, and you can unscrew the wide-angle to reveal a macro lens as well. That's 3 extra options in one small package.

We used the olloclip extensively at both CES 2012 and Macworld|iWorld Expo 2012 and it worked fantastically well. The fisheye let us fit multiple people into frame for video interviews, and the macro let us get in really close for details. We even used the macro to capture the Retina display comparison shots for our new iPad review.

Combine it with the killer tips in our iPhone photography column and you're on your way to one fairly incredible ultra-mobile photo kit.

$69.99 - Buy now

Curated by Leanna Lofte, Simon Sage, Georgia, and Rene Ritchie

Source: iMore - The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch blog | 19 May 2012 | 9:12 pm UTC

jOBS, the unofficial Steve Jobs biopic, gets a website, will film in original Apple garage

The unofficial, independent Steve Jobs biopic starring Ashton Kutcher, has gotten an official name -- jOBS -- a website, and has released some new details about the production.

The film chronicling the life of Steve Jobs, the Apple Inc. co-founder and charismatic master of innovation, begins principal photography in June and in keeping with the project's commitment to accuracy and authenticity, will film early scenes in the actual Los Altos home where Jobs grew up and in the historic garage where he and Steve Wozniak founded Apple.

jOBS is produced by Mark Hulme and Five Star Pictures and directed by Joshua Michael Stern of Swing Vote and Neverwas.

jOBS chronicles the 30 most defining years of Steve Jobs' life, as seen through his, colleagues', and friends' eyes. Dark, honest, and uncompromising, jOBS plunges into the depths of his character, creating an intense dialogue-driven story that is as much a sweeping epic as it is an immensely personal portrait of Steve Jobs' life.

On the film's website, thejobsmovie.com, Hulme elaborates on his motivations for making jOBS.

One of the great innovators and futurist patriarchs of our time, Steve Jobs was somehow simultaneously a prophet and a pariah for millions of consumers. His is a truly fascinating story that cannot properly be told in such a short space, and that is why we are determined to bring his tale –both the good and the bad, the regrettable and unforgettable, the villainous and heroic– to the big screen.

Just recently Ashton Kutcher was seen out and about in his Steve Jobs wardrobe.

jOBS current has the tagline "Get inspired" and is scheduled for a late fall, 2012 release. That should be well ahead of the official biopic produced by Sony and based on the Steve Jobs biography by Walter Isaacson, which just hired Aaron Sorkin of The Social Network and The West Wing to pen their script.

Source: thejobsmovie.com

Source: iMore - The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch blog | 19 May 2012 | 1:42 pm UTC

Apple sends out Apple Campus 2 brochure to new neighbors

Apple has reportedly sent out a shiny brochure to their new neighbors, detailing aspects of the futuristic campus they're planning to build on the old HP lot. 9to5Mac got their hands on a copy, and shared some of the details, the most interesting of which is:

Campus 2, as it is currently called, won’t replace the 1 Infinite Loop campus. Instead, it will just provide ‘research facility’ office space for an additional 13,000 employees, more than 3,000 more than 1 Infinite Loop. There is 300,000 feet of expansion space for future growth.

And yes, that seems to mean no museum, no new Company Store, and potentially no next-generation offices for Apple's executives.

Steve Jobs originally introduced Apple's new "mothership" the day after WWDC 2011 with a visit to Cupertino City Council captured in the YouTube video below.

The images Apple introduced, and were posted by Cupertino and later updated, were stunning -- an enormous circle of curved glass amid an orchard.

Steve Jobs said at the time of the introduction:

There is not a straight piece of glass in this building, it’s all curved. We used our experience making retail buildings all over the world now, and we know how to make the biggest pieces of glass in the world for architectural use. And, we want to make the glass specifically for this building here. We can make it curve all the way around the building… It’s pretty cool.

Some Cupertino residents have been concerned about what the influx of tens of thousands of new workers will do to traffic. Others simply see more tax dollars.

Apple is scheduled to begin work on the impressive new structure this year with a projected end date of 2015. Still no word on whether or not, due to its spaceship design, it will literally be able to abandon Earth and take to the stars, Wall-E style, should Google ever win the technology wars...

Check out the rest of the flyer pics and salient points via the link below.

Source: 9to5Mac

Source: iMore - The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch blog | 19 May 2012 | 1:24 pm UTC

Apple announces its iTunes Festival line up, watch live performances on your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch

Apple has just announced its line up for the annual iTunes Festival. The event which first started in 2007 has been hugely popular as all of the tickets are given away free of charge. The live concerts all take place at London’s The Roundhouse and it all kicks off on September 1^st and goes on until September 30^th.

Every year since 2007, the iTunes Festival has been bringing you a full month of spectacular live music. Many of the world’s biggest stars and the brightest newcomers have graced the festival stage, and this year’s brilliant line-up includes jack White, One Direction, Norah Jones and more. It will all take place in September 2012 at one of the UK’s best live music venues-the Roundhouse in London.

So far Apple has confirmed performances by Usher, Emeli Sandé, Jack White, Norah Jones and every teenage girls dream, One Direction. There will be many more artists to come over the next couple of months so this is certain to be a popular event. Even better the tickets are always free. If you want them just simply apply for them through the app or online. Apple is also running a competition to win a Festival Pass which gives you access to every concert during the festival.

If you can't make the live shows, you can enjoy all the action live on your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch via the iTunes Festival app, as well as on your Mac or PC. The iOS app even supports AirPlay; enabling you to stream the action straight to your Apple TV. Unfortunately, it looks like being exclusively for UK based users as the app is only available in the UK App Store.

Free - Download Now

Source: iTunes Festival

Source: iMore - The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch blog | 19 May 2012 | 8:45 am UTC

Cuboid for iPhone review

Cuboid is a fun 3D puzzle game for the iPhone and iPad of flipping and rolling a cuboid through a maze-like puzzle placed in the setting of mystic, ancient ruins.

Cuboid is available on the iPhone and iPad as a universal app, but the screenshots in this review will be from an iPhone, only.

For those who may not know, a cuboid a rectangular solid that is in the shape of a box. In this game, if you were to cut the cuboid in half (longways), the result would be two cubes.

The goal of the game is simple, roll the cuboid through the puzzle so that you get it to fall through the square hole. It's possible to roll the cuboid off the board, so be careful!

As you progress through the game, new elements such as buttons and teleports will be introduced to the game. When this happens, Cuboid has you play a simple tutorial level so that you understand how the new addition to the game works.

Once you succeed, you will receive 1-3 stars based on how many moves it took you to reach the goal. If you complete the level in the least number of moves possible, the level will also be marked as "etalon". (An etalon is actually a physics device used to measure wavelengths, so I'm not really sure why this word is used.)

If you're stuck and can't figure out how to beat a level, Cuboid includes a hint button that will quickly show you how to beat the level from the cuboid's current position. You are only given a few hints for free, though. If you want more, you must purchase them from the Cuboid Store.

Which brings me to the parts of Cuboid I do not understand. As you play the game, you earn coins. If you tap the button that says how many coins you have, or you tap the hint icon when you don't have any left, you are taken to the Cuboid Store. I was expecting to be able to purchase hints with the coins I've earned. Nope. My choices are to buy hints or to buy coins… but I can't figure out what I can do with my coins! Why do I want to buy 1500 coins for $4.99? As far as I can tell, these coins don't actually have a purpose.

The other horrible thing about Cuboid is ads. Not so much the ads themselves (all ads are always horrible), but the fact that it's not clear how to get rid of them. I've searched through every menu and there is no obvious method of purchasing an upgrade to remove the ads. However, through some trial and error, I discovered that if you tap the X on an ad, you'll get the offer to remove ads for $0.99. It's well worth the $0.99, in my opinion, but I can't believe how difficult it was to find this in-app purchase.

In general, everything except the actual gameplay is very poorly done. There's no written directions to be found (and that's a shame, because I'd really like to know why HeroCraft is using the word "etalon" when perfectly beating a level). I would also like to know what all the icons mean in Settings. Music, sound, and hints was easy enough to figure out, but I'm not really sure what the movie icon is for. Despite the ample space on the Settings screen, there is no written description for what settings are actually being changed.

When tapping the ribbon on the main menu, you are taken to the ranking section in Game Center for Cuboid, but there doesn't appear to be any way to exit this screen. It turns out that the "Done" button is just invisible. If you tap in the upper righthand corner, it briefly appears and activates.

The good

• Awesome graphics
• Addicting
• Challenging
• Universal for iPhone and iPad

The bad

• No clear, written out directions
• To purchase the upgrade for no ads, you must tap the X when an ad pops up
• Not sure what the movie icon in settings represents. Again, no words to describe what it is
• Game Center ranking page has an invisible Done button. You can't see it, but if you tap in the upper righthand corner, it briefly appears and activates.

The conclusion

Luckily, none of the bugs I experience affect the actual gameplay of Cuboid. Cuboid is a very fun game and I really like how they've added a star value to each level. This allows the game to be played leisurely with the goal of just passing each level, or competitively with the goal of reaching "etalon" status for each level. With that said, HeroCraft does have some serious issues they need to address, mainly the horrible discovery of upgrading to no ads and giving an actual purpose to coins.

Free - Download Now

Source: iMore - The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch blog | 19 May 2012 | 6:57 am UTC

How to have a video chat with your Android and BlackBerry friends and family

You’ve got the new iPad, you have tried out your front facing camera with FaceTime, but now you realize that many of your friends don’t live in the iOS world. So, how can you video chat with your BlackBerry, Android, and Windows Phone friends?

The good news is that there really are a bunch of options for video chatting with Android, Windows Phone and Windows and Mac PC users.  The bad news is that there aren’t, as of yet, a bunch of great options.   We will take a look at a good cross sampling to help give you some choices in the realm of video chat. The only caveat here is that you will need to pick an app tied to a service that your friends actually use or are willing to use.

Using Skype on the iPad

Skype is arguably the most popular video chat service in the world. Chances are that some, if not most of your friends are already using Skype on their PC’s or Macs.

Finding and Adding Skype Contacts

Once you have logged into the Skype app, you will want to start communicating with people. To do so, you will have to find them and add them to your Skype contacts list:

1.  If you are not already in Skype, tap the Skype icon from your Home screen and log in, if asked.
2. Tap the Lists key along the left hand margin.
3. Tap one of the Contacts lists displayed, then touch the the “+” icon  at the top
4. Next, touch the Search Skype Directory and type someone’s name, email address or Skype Name. Tap Search to locate that person.
5. Once you see the person you want to add, touch his/her name.
6. Check the picture to make sure you have the right individual.
7. Tap Add Contact at the top.
8. Adjust the invitation message appropriately.
9. Tap the Send button to send this person an invitation to become one of your Skype contacts.
10. Repeat the procedure to add more contacts.
11.  When you are done, touch the Back key at the top or the Skype directory key if you are not already in your Skype group.
12. Tap the Contacts group you just added top from the Lists screen to see all new contacts you have added.
13. Once this person accepts you as a contact, you will see him listed as a contact in the group from which he/she was invited.

Making Calls with Skype on Your iPad

So far you have created your account and added your contacts. Now you are ready to finally make that first call with Skype on your iPad:

1. If you are not already in Skype, tap the Skype icon from your Home screen and log in, if asked.
2. Tap the Lists button.
3. Tap a Contact Group to see your contacts.
4. Tap the contact name you wish to call
5. Tap the Video Call or Voice Call button. Sometimes, you don’t want to “show yourself” so a voice only call can be helpful.
6. You may see a Mobile or other phone button. Making any other kind of call requires that you pay for it with Skype Credits.

Switching Cameras with Skype

You can show the individual with whom you are talking on Skype your surroundings by “switching” to the back camera of the iPad. Just touch the Swith Camera icon to do this.All in all, the Skype options on the iPad are just as plentiful as those on your computer.

Free - Download now

Fring for iPad

Fring is a popular Android video chat app that has been around for a while for iOS users.

The killer feature of Fring is that it supports group video chat for up to four users simultaneously.

Like Skype, you can call landlines and other phone numbers for discounted rates – but our interest today is in video chat. Fring also works over 3G and 4G networks as well as over WiFi.

Adding friends in Fring

You add friends in Fring by looking for their User-ID. You can also add your networks, which will bring in your contacts. You can add your Address Book, your MSN Live account, ICQ, Google Talk, Yahoo or AIM.

Placing a video call

Simply touch the Video Call button in the middle of the screen to chat with the highlighted contact.

Options on a call

Once a Fring call in initiated, you can: switch cameras, Mute the call, display the call in Full Screen or End the call.

Tap the Group video button and select participants. You can touch the + button to add friends to the call.

Get Fring here:

Free - Download now

ooVoo Video Chat for iPad

ooVoo is a newer service which tried to one up Fring by enabling group video chat for up to 6 people at a time. ooVoo has apps available for smartphones and tablets (iOS and Android) and Macs and PC’s. On Macs and PC’s, you can have up to 12 people on a video chat.

ooVoo also work over 3G and 4G networks as well as WiFi.

Adding friends to ooVoo

When you first start up ooVoo you are asked to upload your address book to their servers to look for friends. You can always Deny this request and input your contacts manually – or Allow it and ooVoo will search for your friends.

Once ooVoo finds your contacts, you can choose which ones to add to your address book.

Placing a Video call

Just select someone from your Contact list and select Start a Video Call. Once they answer, the call is in session.

Options on the call

Very similar to Fring (and the other services) you can Add Friends to the call, Swap Cameras to show what is going on around you, Mute the call or End the call.

Using the Group Call option

There are two ways to do this on ooVoo: you can tap the Multiple Select option from your Contacts screen and just select friends or you can touch the Conference icon when on a call to add more people.

Get ooVoo here:

Free - Download now

Yahoo! Messsenger for iPad

People still use Yahoo! People even still use Yahoo! Messsenger, so having the option of video chatting with Yahoo! Messsenger friends is a great option for your iPad.

With Yahoo! Messenger, video calls and chats are free to your Yahoo! Messenger contacts. Yahoo! also gives you the option of low cost calls to  landlines and mobile phones as well as free international texting to a few places.

Adding friends to Yahoo! Messenger

When you sign into the Yahoo! Messenger app, all of your Yahoo contacts will show up. You can also add contacts individually by touching the + icon at the top right of the app.

Placing a video call

Highlight one of your contacts and simply touch the icon of the video camera to initiate a video call.

Options on the call

You can make the call full screen (or reduce it if it is already full screen,) Swap cameras, Mute or Pause or End the call.

Yahoo Messenger is available here:

Free - Download now

Vtok – Google talk video calls on iPad

If you are a Google voice user, you might want to check out Vtok as an option for video calling using your Google Voice account.

As long as your friends are Google contacts using Google Video and voice chat- you can talk to them – and see them – for as long as you’d like.

Adding Contacts to Vtok

Simply sign in using your Google sign in information and all your Google contacts will show up.

Tap the + button at the top right to add contacts individually.

Placing a video call

If your friends are online, the video camera icon turns green. Simply touch the icon to start the video call.

Options on the call

Very much like the other apps, you can Switch the camera, Mute or end the call.

Vtok is available here:

Free - Download now

Tango Video Calls on iPad

Tango is yet another variation on a theme of apps that can be used cross platform for making Video calls. Tango adds some new features, such as the ability to send free video messages as well.

Tango works over WiFi as well as over 3G and 4G networks. Tango is an iPhone app that you need to run in 2x mode to fill up the iPad screen.

Adding contacts to Tango

When you first set up Tango you will be asked to let Tango match up your address book with emails and phone numbers of registered Tango users. If you allow Tango to do this, you will see all of your contacts who also have Tango accounts when you login.

You can also touch the + (invite) icon to send an email invite to friends to join you on Tango.

Placing a video call

Simply touch the Video icon next to the contact you wish to call and the video call will initiate.

Options on the call

Tango options are pretty limited. You can Switch the camera view, Mute or End the call.  The one thing that Tango adds is sort of a gimmick, but it can be fun; that is called Tango surprises. Tap the icon with the stars and you can choose animated surprises -  like balloons  - to come down during the call. You can purchase more surprises in the Tango store.

Tango is available here:

Free - Download now

Conclusions:

After looking at all these apps, there are certainly options for iPad and iPhone users if they want to video chat with non-iOS friends and family.

The simple reality is this; if your friends and family have an iOS device, you are hard pressed to beat FaceTime for ease of use and call quality. The one downside to FaceTime is that it can only be used over WiFi.

If your friends or family members are  non-iOS users, Skype may very well be the best alternative of the bunch.  It is popular, easy to set up and use and the picture and audio quality was generally pretty good – both over WiFI and over cellular networks.

Among the other Video chat services, the bottom line come down to where your friends, colleagues and families are.  If everyone is on Yahoo!, then maybe Yahoo! Messenger makes sense.  If everyone is on Google, then Vtok might work.

If group video chat is important to you on your iPad or iPhone, both ooVoo and Fring offer easy group video chat.  The challenge is that you need to get your friends and family to join the service and learn a new app.

Tango, Fring, Google (Vtok) and Skype are available as mobile apps for most, but not all platforms. Skype is not on BlackBerry and while it is on Windows Phone, it still can’t run in the background, which limits its usability on that platform.

Since each of the apps is free, try them out, see where your friends are and then enjoy yet another feature that helps make the iPad and iPhone so incredibly versatile.

Are you currently using a Video chat app regularly on your iPad or iPhone? Have you tried any of these out and can share your experiences? Let us know in the forums.

Source: iMore - The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch blog | 19 May 2012 | 3:53 am UTC

Can you jailbreak your iPhone, iPad, or AppleTV on iOS 5.1.1?

If you've been waiting on a jailbreak for iOS 5.1.1, an untethered version should be coming soon. That's according to pod2g. But is it coming to iPhone, iPod touch, iPad, and Apple TV, and which versions of each?

Here's the deal.

The new iPad

There is currently no jailbreak tool available that supports the new iPad under iOS 5.1.1 or iOS 5.1. Even though jailbreak developers showed off an iOS 5.1.1 jailbreak almost immediately after the software update was released, no tool has been made available and no timeline has been talked about. So if you're using a 3rd generation iPad, you'll have to be patient.

Apple TV

If you've got a 3rd generation Apple TV (1080p) you may have a little wait as pod2g is claiming his tool currently does not support it. Seas0nPass has been updated to support the 2nd generation Apple TV (720p) under iOS 5.1.1 and they're currently working on making it compatible with the new Apple TV.

So if you've got a 2010 Apple TV you can go ahead and update and re-jailbreak under iOS 5.1.1. If you've got a 2012 Apple TV, sit tight for now.

iPhone 4S and iPad 2

If you've got an iPhone 4S or an iPad 2, you're in luck. pod2g has successfully achieved an untethered jailbreak for both Apple A5-chipset powered devices under iOS 5.1.1. The Wi-Fi versions of the iPad 2 have already been tested and are confirmed to be working. The GSM and CDMA versions haven't been tested but should also be compatible.

I'd still recommend holding off on updating until an official tool is released with an official support list. If you've currently got a jailbreak you'd like to keep, stay away from iOS 5.1.1 for a little while longer.

Phone 4, iPhone 3GS, and original iPad

The iPhone 4 and first generation iPad, Apple A4 powered devices both, are also confirmed under pod2g's untethered jailbreak. The iPhone 3GS has not yet been tested but they believe it will also be supported as an untethered jailbreak under iOS 5.1.1.

You can currently tethered jailbreak the iPhone 4, original iPad, and iPhone 3GS via redsn0w but if you're on an earlier untethered version, I'd hold off over taking a tethered version and just wait to update to iOS 5.1.1 until an untethered tool is available.

Unlocking

As always, if you depend on a software unlock for your iPhone 4S, iPhone 4, or iPhone 3GS, it's probably smart to stay away from iOS 5.1.1 until an unlocking tool has been updated. If you've already updated your iPhone 4 or iPhone 3GS but saved your blobs, it may be possible to downgrade but if your baseband has been updated through a stock update, you probably won't be able to achieve your unlock again (for now at least).

So if you're unlocked, don't update your iPhone until a software unlock tool has been updated or a new one has been released.

Conclusion

Even though we have a working untethered jailbreak for iOS 5.1.1 confirmed, it's probably several weeks away and with WWDC 2012 right around the corner, iOS 6 could put a hold on whatever tools the dev teams may be working on.

If you're currently jailbroken and just can't live without it, stay where you're at. In the mean time, I'd save your SHSH blobs in case you need them in the near future.

Additional resources:

• Can you jailbreak the new iPad, AppleTV, and iOS 5.1?
• Jailbreak terms A - Z
• Jailbreak help & discussion forums
• iMore downloads section

Source: iMore - The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch blog | 19 May 2012 | 3:32 am UTC

Forums: AppleCare+ vs Squaretrade, Do you want the next iPhone to be thinner?

Found an interesting article you want to share with iMore? Have a burning question about that feature you just can't figure out? There is ALWAYS more happening just a click away in the forums. You can always head over and join in the conversation, search for answers, or lend your expertise to other members of our community. You check out some of the threads below:

• Weekly Photo Contest: Water!
• Do those red badges annoy you?
• Overnight 4s idle: 20% drop in battery life. Why?
• AppleCare+ vs Squaretrade
• Do you want the iPhone 5 to be thinner?
• What's your favorite iPad Case Style?

If you're not already a member of the iMore Forums, register now!

Source: iMore - The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch blog | 19 May 2012 | 1:30 am UTC

Tom Bihn new Ristretto messenger bag review

I've been using Tom Bihn Ristretto messenger bags for a few years now. When my original was stolen, I promptly bought another. I've used them for everything from going to the local coffee shop to going to Macworld and WWDC. 99% of the time, my Tom Bihn Ristretto goes where I go, because it carries most of the stuff I need to do my job.

The only problem I've had with the Tom Bihn Ristretto is the front organizer. The models I owned all left it open, barely covered by the flap that secured the two main and single zippered top pockets. That meant, while the pen holders and iPhone compartments were convenient, I couldn't store anything in them for fear it would fall out.

Now, based on similar feedback, Tom Bihn has redesigned the Ristretto and attempted to make a great messenger bag even better. Did they succeed?

The Tom Bihn Ristretto comes in 3 sizes, one optimized for the 9.75-inch iPad, one for the 11-inch MacBook Air, and one for the 13-inch MacBook air or 13-inch MacBook Pro. If you only ever want to carry around your iPad, or similar sized tablet device, the smallest of the Ristrettos is a slick, sophisticated option. I need both my iPad and my MacBook with me, so I've always gone with the 13-inch Ristretto. That they have options is the important part. You get only exactly the amount of messenger bag you need. (I've even used the 13-inch Ristretto to cart around my 15-inch MacBook Pro in a pinch, though it's not ideal and I wouldn't recommend anyone trying to get regular use out of that scenario.)

The Ristretto is a vertical messenger, which I far prefer. The outside is made of U.S. 1050 denier ballistic nylon, which Tom Bihn claims has "twice the abrasion resistance of 1680 denier fabric". After two years of heavy use, my original Tom Bihn looked as good as when I'd bought it.

There's a pocket on the back of the Ristretto, suitable for some papers or analog reading material -- they type you're forced to endure doing takeoff and landing. It's open, so don't put any valuables in there.

A flap folds over the top and buckles to keep the Ristretto closed. It's a good, strong plastic buckle that holds securely. I did once have one break but after contacting Tom Bihn they sent me an immediate replacement.

The main, laptop pocket is padded, according to their website, with 6mm of open-cell foam laminated with 4 Ply Taslan on the outside, with super-soft brushed tricot inside, and 6mm of closed cell foam on the back. An extra, internal flap folds over to hold everything snug as a bug in a rug. If you buy the proper Ristretto size for your iPad or MacBook Air, the fit is excellent.

The secondary pocket, the one I use for the iPad, doesn't have the same padding and soft interior, and it's far roomier than an iPad requires, but it's the most secure, most convenient place to put it. I've occasionally snuck a friend's Air in their when we travelled together, but I wouldn't recommend doubling up regularly.

The third, zippered pocket on the Tom Bihn used to have the organizer open in front of it, leading to the problems I mentioned above. Now the organizer is back inside the zipper where it belongs, and instead of being a single linear zipper, it's now a bigger, rounded compartment with a pair of zippers. That's right -- it's all grown up. It even uses a #8 YKK Uretek splash-proof zipper.

This is where I keep all my secure-ables: MagSafe power adapter, iPad charger (which I use for both iPad and iPhone), USB ethernet adapter, headphones, etc. While my main iPhone 4S is always in my pants or jacket pocket, I do sometimes have my old iPhone 4 in the Ristretto iPhone pocket, if I need it with me for some tests or reviews I'm working on. I also keep extra business cards and Mobile Nations and iMore stickers for serendipitous giveaways. A regular pen (to fill out analog forms like customs declarations) and a stylus (currently the Jot Pro) fill out the compartments.

There's an O-Ring in the zipper pocket as well, for which Tom Bihn offers a couple of optional extras, including a variety of wallets, pouches, and key holders. I've gotten one of the pouches and tried it, but stopped. It didn't fit my use case.

Regardless of the pocket, the new Tom Bihn Ristretto holds everything securely yet still keeps it readily available. The included waist strap can be used to keep the Ristretto secured for long term walking or riding, and can be positioned high or low on either side. There's also a strong handle at the top to make it easy to pick up or hold when you have to.

For the shoulder strap, you can choose between the standard and the absolute. The standard is 1.5" wide and nylon. The absolute is a bigger, thicker, better padded version. I prefer the absolute, especially when I'm spending 12 hours walking during a trade show. It's an additional charge ($20) but well, well worth it. (Just make sure you change shoulders regularly so you stay Superfunctional.)

For colors, you get your choice of black/steel, forest/steel, olive/cayenne, steel/iberian (gray). Green and blue options are also shown on the website but don't seem to be available to order (yet?). This review unit is black/steel. The ones I've bought myself were olive/cayenne. They all look great,

The good

• Excellent design and craftsmanship
• Organizer secured inside zippered pocket
• Extremely comfortable, even for prolonged use

The bad

• Nothing left for me to complain about

The conclusion

The Ristretto doesn't fit everything I need -- it's way too small to hold my DSLR and lenses, for example. But that's the point. Hiking packs are hiking packs for a reason. The Ristretto is what you use when you want something light and essential -- something to carry only what you need, that doesn't make you regret buying an Air or an iPad because of the bulk and weight the bag adds right back to it. It's zen.

If you're looking for something in old worn leather, or something with loud patterns, look somewhere that is else. If you want a comfortable, stylish, svelte way to carry around your iPad, iPhone, and optionally, your MacBook Air, get the Tom Bihn Ristretto.

$125 - Ristretto for iPad - Buy now

$125 - Ristretto for 11-inch MacBook - Buy now

$135 - Ristretto for 13-inch MacBook - Buy now

Source: iMore - The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch blog | 18 May 2012 | 7:56 pm UTC

The Weather Channel for iPhone review

The Weather Channel for iPhone is the most popular alternative to Apple's built-in Weather app and it recently received a complete makeover. It still has all the great features of the previous design, but the new UI is much more beautiful and user friendly.

The main screen of the Weather Channel displays the location (with zip code) and the temperature in a nice big font. In smaller letters underneath the temperature, you'll find what the temperature "feels like" and the high and lows for the day. If you tap the + sign, you'll find more detailed information for wind, humidity, UV index, dew point, visibility, pressure, and sunrise and sunset times.

The background of the home screen will change depending on the time of day and current weather conditions. You can also customize it with your own photo.

In addition to the current conditions, The Weather Channel also has tabs for the hourly, 36 hour, and 10 day forecasts.

The other sections in The Weather Channel are Map, Video, Social and In Season.

The Map tab lets you layer radar, clouds, radar/clouds, temperature, feels like, 24-hr rainfall, 24-hour snowfall, and UV index over the map. There is a key at the top so you know what the colors on the map represent.

The Video section is filled with must-see, local, and world videos as well as videos that are on TV.

The Social tab lets you read tweets about the weather both nearby and regionally. You can also check out photos taken by other Weather Channel users in the iWitness section.

From the In Season tab, you can check pollen, hurricane, and tide forecasts. The pollen and hurricane forecasts include maps and diagrams and are very informative. The marine section breaks the down sea, waves, wind, and high tide information into a nice, easy-to-read 2-day forecast broken down into separate morning, afternoon, even, and night sections.

The good

• Much better design than before
• Current, hourly, 36-hour, and 10-day forecasts
• View maps of clouds, radar, and more
• Videos
• Read tweets about the weather
• View photos taken of the weather
• Check pollen, hurricane, and tide forecasts

The bad

• Ads are annoying. I would gladly purchase an upgrade that removed them.

The conclusion

The Weather Channel for iPhone was always a good weather app, but now it's a great alternative to Apple's built-in Weather app. The new UI is much better -- both on the eyes and to use.

Free - Download Now

Source: iMore - The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch blog | 18 May 2012 | 7:38 pm UTC

Enter now to win 1 of 8 FREE stylus pens from the iMore Store!

Over the last week, iMore has put four of the best pro stylus pens in the world head to head to head to head: the Wacom Bamboo, the Adonit Jot Pro, the SGP Kuel H12, and the Ten One Design Pogo Sketch Pro. We've picked our winner.

Now it's time for you to win!

The always awesome iMore Accessory Store is giving away two (2) of each stylus pens to our equally awesome readers! That's eight (8) stylus pens total! Yeah. How can you win one of your very own?

1. Subscribe to iMore's YouTube channel
2. Leave a comment on the video for the stylus pen (or pens) you want most. (Enter for all four if you like!)
   • Adonit Jot Pro stylus review video
   • Wacom Bamboo Stylus review video
   • SGP Kuel H12 stylus review video
   • Ten One Design Pogo Sketch Pro stylus video
3. And that's it!

We'll pick a couple commenters for each stylus pen video -- check to make sure they've subscribed! -- and then send the winners their prize.

Contest starts now and ends Sunday, May 20, 2012 at 11:59pm PST. Now why are you still reading? Enter already!

Source: iMore - The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch blog | 18 May 2012 | 3:58 pm UTC

BlackBerry maker RIM meets Apple half-way on nano-SIM design

Blackberry maker RIM recently proposed a new nano-SIM card design to counter one proposal made by Apple to the the European Telecommunications Standards Instititute. One of the major points of contention surrounds the use of a SIM tray; Apple wanted to use one, which effectively would impose their SIM tray design on other manufacturers, but it would be interoperable with existing SIM formats since the pin footprint in Apple's layout is exactly the same as the old generation SIM cards. Meanwhile Motorola, RIM, and (until recently) Nokia were pushing a tray-less design with a fingernail catch, not unlike what we see on microSD memory cards. Apple's original nano-SIM design was as long as the old mini SIM was wide, which could easily confuse consumers, lead to jamming, and consequently more repairs and returns. RIM and Motorola's countered that adapters are unreliable and can't hold a card securely against the contacts, but still offered the compromise that you see above.

Despite the compromise offered here by RIM, nobody could agree after an informal vote, which isn't much of a surprise given Apple herded in sympathetic partners to the association. Ultimately, if these guys can't find common ground, it's entirely possible that we'll see two nano SIM standards floating around: one made by Apple, and one used by everybody else. You can imagine what a headache that could be for all parties involved, particularly carriers. It seems like most parties adopted micro SIM without too much of a fight, and that was also a charge led by Apple with the iPhone 4; could the same bullheadedness get other manufacturers to just go along with Apple again? Why is Apple so hell-bent on their particular design anyway? How would carriers side in all of this?

If you're interested in poking around the ETSI documentation, it's all somewhere in here; the particulars of RIM's latest proposal are available here.

Source: The Verge

Source: iMore - The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch blog | 18 May 2012 | 3:49 pm UTC

Instacast vs. Downcast vs. Pocket Casts: iPhone podcast app shootout!

Instacast, Downcast, and Pocket Casts all bring podcasts directly to your iPhone and iPod touch, which is one of the best ways to enjoy them when you're in the car, working out, sitting in the office, or simply lounging around the house. While all three allow you to browse and search for podcasts, which one has the best features geared towards the most users?

Let's listen and find out!

Instacast vs. Downcast vs. Pocket Casts: Navigation and interface

When it comes to podcasting apps, it's important to have an app that not only lets you listen to the podcasts you already know and love, but search for and discover new ones as well. Of course, it also has to be visually pleasing and easy to navigate. Sometimes too many features and too many options are a hindrance and not a help.

Instacast has an easy to navigate interface that's streamlined and simple. Upon launching the app you'll be presented with a list of your current subscriptions. You can tap through the top tabs to view playlists and bookmarks as well. If you'd like to create playlists, you can do so easily but you'll need to purchase the premium in-app upgrade.

Tapping the "+" button in the bottom left of the main page let's you add new content. You can search through popular audio and video podcasts as well as sort by genre or search if you already know what you're looking for.

Downcast also has a super simple layout. The tabs along the bottom are pretty much self explanatory and even those new to podcasts should have no trouble finding their way around the main portions of the app. Tapping into a podcast and tapping on an episode will cause the episode to play. This is a bit odd to me as I'd expect tapping into an episode to bring me to a detailed information list and show notes followed by an option to play.

You can tap the info button to view info but this feels like a more awkward layout. Once you've selected a podcast or viewed info, show notes and information are then presented.

As you start to get into other tabs, it can get a bit more confusing. While you don't have to pay an additional fee to create playlists, the amount of options presented is overwhelming and is probably unnecessary for most users. Those could be buried deeper for power users so the higher level remains cleaner for general users.

The settings sections of the app allows you to fine tune many things including refresh frequency, how you want the app to handle new episodes, and specific player controls such as skip intervals.

Pocket Casts is by far the most visually appealing of the podcast apps. When you first launch Pocket Casts you'll be presented with your list of podcast subscriptions. Tapping on the tiled button again will switch from titles and descriptions to a list view of episodes. (You can toggle these views from the top as well.) Selecting a podcast will give you a list view of all the episodes in that group.

The top of the screen also gives you a quick view of how many podcasts you have total, how many are physically downloaded, and how many you haven't finished listening to. Tap on any of the numbers at the top to view only those episodes. The second tab shows you what is playing, allows you to skip and stop, and gives you access to show notes.

Finding podcasts to listen to is easy with Pocket Casts. Either search for what you're looking for at the top or browse categories. When you find one you want to subscribe to, just tap add.

Settings is also easy to navigate and doesn't present overwhelming options. This may feel limiting to power users who want to tweak every last option, but its the better choice for most users who just want to play their shows.

When it comes to navigation and which app is more visually pleasing, Pocket Casts nails it on both counts.

Instacast vs. Downcast vs. Pocket Casts: Listening to shows and viewing show notes

No matter how slick the interface or granular the settings, a podcast app has to be judged on how easily it lets you play shows, control the playback of shows, and access additional information like show notes.

Instacast has a great player that's easy to use and nice to look at. It hides unnecessary controls out of view until you need them. Along the bottom you'll only see the play, skip, and back buttons. Slide them up and you'll see other controls you can use to fine tune scrub or jump back. While Instacast still seems to be struggling to nail proper touch targets for some of their controls, they're intuitive and when they work, they work well.

Accessing show notes in Instacast is simple. Tap the top left arrow on the play screen and you'll be brought back to the info screen, or choose the list icon in the upper right and view all links and bookmarks from the show notes. If you want to view a link within the show notes, clicking on it will bring up a built-in browser. You never have to leave the app while listening and following along but if you choose to close the app, Instacast will continue to play on in the background.

Downcast's player has a pretty straight forward player but it tries to pack too much onto one screen. You'll find the skip controls towards the top and some other controls towards the bottom. Show notes are located in the middle of the screen (when available). Downcast also has a built-in browser so clicking any links will take you to them within the app.

If you like having all your information on one screen at the same time, Downcast will give that to you, but at the cost of looking overly cluttered.

If you decide to exit Downcast, audio will also continue playing in the background until you choose to stop it.

Pocket Casts is less cluttered than Downcast but still squeezes a lot of information into a small amount of space. However, some of the controls feel hidden.

Tapping the left or right of the screen while playing a podcast brings up skip controls -- skip back 10 seconds or forward 45 seconds. Swiping to the left will bring up show notes. However, the show notes feel a bit cramped as they only populate the center of the screen.

Tapping any type of link will pull you out of the app and into Safari, while Pocket Casts will continue to stream in the background.

So this round goes to Instacast. It has the nicest experience when it comes to actually listening to podcasts and reading show notes.

Instacast vs. Downcast vs. Pocket Casts: Streaming and downloading

Most podcasts in most podcast apps can be streamed or downloaded. Both serve a useful purpose. Streaming can save you local storage space on your iPhone, which can be particularly important if you have 16GB but still want to watch a lot of video shows. It can also give you access to the show you want, when you want, even if you're on 3G. Downloading means you have the show on your iPhone whether you're online or offline, and can be done ahead of time over Wi-Fi so you don't use up your 3G data.

Instacast allows you to easily choose whether or not you'd like to be able to stream or download when on a cellular (3G) network. If you don't want either of these options enabled, just tick them off and your podcasts will only download or stream when Wi-Fi is available.

If you don't want podcasts to physically download to your iPhone and prefer to stream, you can disable that within settings as well or tell Instacast to only download the most recent episodes.

Downcast also lets you choose how you want it to handle podcasts when Wi-Fi is not available. If you don't want episodes to automatically download you can set it to never, or you can set it to only download when Wi-Fi is available. Otherwise you can stream when you'd like or decide to download at a later time.

Pocket Casts won't automatically download episodes to your iPhone. It will add them to your subscriptions and you can stream them any time, or you can manually choose to download episodes when you like. You can also view how much available storage you have, and what episodes you are currently downloaded and stored locally on your device. If you're concerned about storage, you can also set cleanup to remove older episodes to conserve space.

While Instacast, Downcast, and Pocket Casts all allow you to adjust settings, Downcast continues to be the most confusing of the three. Instacast and Pocket Casts offer the easiest ways to manage download vs streaming when it comes to handling your content. Tie.

Instacast vs. Downcast vs. Pocket Casts: Syncing between iOS devices

If you listen to a lot of podcasts and have both an iPhone and an iPad or iPod touch, you'll probably want the ability to pick up where you left off no matter which device you're on. That's where syncing comes in.

Instacast and Downcast both support iCloud syncing and have iPad apps. While the Downcast app is a universal binary for both iPhone and iPad, the Instacast HD app is a separate purchase.

However, iCloud data syncing is still problematic and it doesn't work all the time. Apple needs to fix this.

Instacast also allows you to sync podcasts from iTunes that may not be available as a standalone podcast feed. The Music App tab will show any podcasts that you've imported from iTunes. The first time you open the app it will ask you if you'd like to import any existing podcasts from iTunes into Instacast. Currently it only supports audio and not video. If you've got audio podcasts you listen to that may not have a direct podcast feed and are only available in iTunes, you can use this section to import your podcasts so you don't have to use two apps to listen to podcasts. You can also search for that podcast within Instacast's catalog and if it finds it, you can subscribe via the app and not have to use iTunes.

Pocket Casts currently doesn't offer sync, or an iPad app, but they do have an Android app.

When it comes to syncing, Instacast offers the best support. (When iCloud works.)

Instacast vs. Downcast vs. Pocket Casts: Playlists

If you subscribe to tons of podcasts, playlists become increasingly important. Instead of scrolling through endless lists of shows, you can set them up to give you what you want, when you want it, in a nice and orderly manner. And that makes how playlists are managed an important consideration as well.

Instacast offers complete playlist support only if you're a premium subscriber. To create a playlist just tap the Playilst tab from your main screen. You can also tap the "+" button in the bottom corner to create a playlist. Name it and then check off the subscriptions you'd like to be a part of that playlist.

Smart Playlists are also supported by Instacast. Just choose to create a smart playlist instead of a regular one and you can automatically tell Instacast which types of podcasts to group in that playlist. For example, I've got one set to filter partially played podcasts by oldest first. It's a good way to remind me that I've got podcasts I haven't finished listening to yet.

Playlists within Downcast are a more customizable and allow you to group podcasts in several different ways. You can choose which podcasts you'd like included and then narrow that by which individual episodes you'd like to include by status. If you don't want played podcasts showing up, you can tick it off. If you don't want streamed podcasts showing up in a certain list, turn that off as well.

Most users probably won't use the extensive features that Downcast offers and, not surprisingly, they may appear confusing to those who are new to podcasts. Advanced users will appreciate the flexibility.

Pocket Casts doesn't support playlists as far as I can see. So if playlists are a feature you need to stay more organized, I'd rule out Pocket Casts as an option. Update: Pocket Casts does have playlists, they were just well hidden. I would, however, argue that the Pocket Casts interface is so simple and clean and easy to navigate that you may find yourself not even needing playlists.

When it comes to playlists, even though they cost extra, Instacasts has the best, simplest support.

Instacast vs. Downcast vs. Pocket Casts: New episode notifications

If you look forward to your favorite podcast becoming available each week, it's always good to have push notifications to remind you when it's ready for you to listen to.

Luckily, Instacast, Downcast, and Pocket Casts all provide push notifications and provide them well. Pocket Casts takes it a step further and handles them server-side.

Tie with a slight edge to Pocket Casts.

Instacast vs. Downcast vs. Pocket Casts: Cost

Good apps should obviously cost more than bad apps, but all other factors being equal, what each podcasting app costs should factor into your consideration.

Instacast is $0.99 for the basic app, and an additional $1.99 for full playlist support (dubbed Instacast Pro). If you want iPad support, that'll cost you another $4.99 for Instacast HD. So, depending on your needs, you're looking at anywhere from $0.99 for he basic iPhone and iPod touch app, to almost $8 for the full Instacast "suite".

Downcast is $1.99 and is a universal app for both iPhone and iPad.

Pocket Casts is also $1.99 but is iPhone and iPod touch only.(There's also a free version, Pocket Casts Lite, that you can try before you buy.)

Instacast vs. Downcast vs. Pocket Casts: Conclusion

Instacast, Downcast, and Pocket Casts all provide a better and more powerful podcast experience than Apple's built-in iTunes and Music apps.

Pocket Casts has the best, most disciplined interface and is the simplest and easiest to use overall. If you're brand new to podcasts and just want something that works elegantly and well, check out Pocket Casts.

Downcast is the opposite -- complex to the point of being cluttered. That makes it best suited for power users who want to control and tweak as much as possible, and value accessibility over elegance.

Instacast is expensive if you want the full package, but it's also the best overall podcast app for iPhone right now. It strikes the best balance between simplicity and features, making it easy to use but still powerful. For most users, most of the time, Instacast is podcast app to get.

Instacast - $0.99 - Download Now

Downcast - $1.99 - Download Now

Pocket Casts - $1.99 - Download Now

Additional resources:

• Pandora vs. Slacker vs. Spotify: iPhone streaming music app showdown!
• Dropbox vs. SkyDrive vs. Google Drive: iPhone cloud storage app showdown!
• Instapaper vs. Pocket vs. Readability: iPhone read later app showdown!
• Even more app reviews

Source: iMore - The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch blog | 18 May 2012 | 3:36 pm UTC

iSkin Aura for iPhone 4S and iPhone 4 only $23.95 [Deal of the day]

For today only, the iMore Store has the iSkin Aura for iPhone 4S, iPhone 4 on sale for only $23.95! That's a whopping 40% off! Get yours before they're gone!

The Aura for iPhone 4S, AT&T iPhone 4, or Verizon iPhone 4 features a discreet polycarbonate design that's finished with a luxurious brushed aircraft-grade aluminum for a refined and amazingly thin design.

The iSkin Aura case sports a firm snap-on design that resiliently clings to your device. A modern, lightweight, and slim-fitting take on quick, stylish protection.

When it comes to accessibility, the Aura is a clear winner. It allows you to dock, charge and use just about any iPhone 4S, AT&T iPhone 4, or Verizon iPhone 4 accessory with it.

Features:

• Slim, lightweight design
• Custom fit for iPhone 4S, AT&T iPhone 4, or Verizon iPhone 4
• Snap-on design
• Polycarbonate, brushed aluminum
• Cut outs for all device features

Get the iSkin Aura for iPhone 4S, iPhone 4 now!

Source: iMore - The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch blog | 18 May 2012 | 1:54 pm UTC

Sony hires Steve Wozniak to consult on Steve Jobs biopic

Sony has hired Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak to advise on its upcoming film based on the book  Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacsson. Woz will be there to consult on Jobs and on technical aspects of computers. Sony has already hired Aaron Sorkin to write the film and he was also responsible for the recent film based on Facebook, The Social Network as well as television's The West Wing. Unfortunately this project does not seem that straight forward for Sorkin.

"I know so little about what I am going to write. I know what I am not going to write. It can't be a straight ahead biography because it's very difficult to shake the cradle-to-grave structure of a biography, " Sorkin told reporters at a news conference for his upcoming  HBO drama "The Newsroom." Sorkin noted that "The Social Network" saw the Facebook story through the lens of an acrimonious lawsuit that pitted CEO Mark Zuckerberg against his Harvard friends over the creation of the social media network. "Drama is tension versus obstacle. Someone wants something, something is standing in their way of getting it. They want the money, they want the girl, they want to get to Philadelphia - doesn't matter ... And I need to find that event and I will. I just don't know what it is," Sorkin said.

Sorkin is set to focus his full attention on the Steve Jobs film later this month; once the finishing touches are applied to the launch of his new HBO show, The Newsroom. Sony still doesn't have anyone cast for the leading roles in the film so we would expect to start to hear much more very soon.

Source: Chicago Tribune Image: Bloomberg

Source: iMore - The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch blog | 18 May 2012 | 12:49 pm UTC

iPhone & iPad Live 294: 7-inch iPad, 4-inch iPhone, iOS 6 Maps

Georgia, Seth, and Rene discuss all the latest Apple rumors, including the 7-inch iPad, 4-inch iPhone, iOS 6 Maps, and Apple wanting to hurt Google in the wallet. Also, free iPad games, Sparrow push, Chrome for iOS, and the pro stylus shootout!

Brought to you by Audible. Please visit http://www.audiblepodcast.com/imore for your free audiobook download! And thank you for supporting our sponsors!

• Subscribe via iTunes: Audio | Video
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Meta

• Want a chance to win 1 of 4 new iPads?

Rumorpalooza

• 7-inch iPad on track for October 2012 release, $200 to $250 price
• iPhone 5 to be another Google killer -- but with a twist
• iPhone 5 design still not finalized, still no big screen, still no metal back, still on track for October release
• Apple rumored to increase iPhone screen size to 4-inches
• The 4 inch iPhone
• iOS 6 reportedly code named Sundance, more rumors about Siri API, Siri for iPad, iTunes 11
• Apple rumored to be adding photo and video sharing, commenting features to iCloud

News

• Have you updated to iOS 5.1.1? [Poll]
• Aaron Sorkin to write Steve Jobs biopic for Sony

Apps

• Best free iPad games
• Did you hear the one about Chrome for iOS?
• Sparrow for iPhone updated: push coming soon as yearly subscription

Accessories

• Pogo Sketch Pro vs. Kuel H12 vs. Jot Pro vs. Bamboo: iPad stylus shootout

How to

• How to integrate all your social networks into your iPhone and iPad Contacts

Hosts

• Georgia (GeorgiaTiPb
• Seth Clifford (@sethclifford)
• Rene Ritchie (@reneritchie)

Credits

You can reach all of us on Twitter @iMore, or you can email us at podcast@imore.com, or leave a comment on the website when the show goes live.

We're live every Wednesday night at 6pm Pacific, 9pm Eastern, 2am GMT at www.imore.com/live

For all our podcasts -- audio and video -- including iPhone and iPad Live, ZEN and TECH, Iterate, and more, see MobileNations.com/shows

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Source: iMore - The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch blog | 18 May 2012 | 12:28 pm UTC

ScreenDIY for iPhone review

ScreenDIY is an iPhone app that lets you create unique Lock screens and Home screens from a wide variety of designer wallpapers, shelves, frames, icon skins and more.

The home screen gives you 5 different options: App Shelves, Icon Skins, Background, Lock DIY, and Home DIY.

The App Shelves, Icon Skins, and Background sections are simply backgrounds and cannot be customized. ScreenDIY has a good variety of backgrounds including many girly ones.

When viewing a background, you can view it with sample icons to get an idea of what it'll really look like on your Home screen.

In addition to the basic backgrounds, you can also make your own Home and Lock screens from the DIY sections of ScreenDIY.

In the Lock DIY section, you can mix and match backgrounds (excluding ones with skins and shelves) and calendars and frames. You can also choose one of your own photos from your Photo Library to use as the background. When creating your Lock screen, you can preview what it will look like with the time, date, and slide to unlock UI of the iPhone's Lock screen.

Customizing your Home screen is very similar, only instead of calendars and frames, you have icon skins and shelves.

The only real disappointment with the DIY sections is that you have to scroll through the all the choices. There's no option to browse through a gallery of choices like there is in the other sections.

The good

• Lots of backgrounds
• DIY sections allow for my customization
• A good selection of girly choices
• New backgrounds added weekly

The bad

• No iPad support

The conclusion

ScreensDIY is a great app for creating custom Home screens and Lock screens. I like to regularly change my backgrounds and really like the choices that ScreensDIY has to offer. It's also great that the devs are keeping the content fresh by regularly adding new backdrops.

$0.99 - Download Now

Source: iMore - The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch blog | 18 May 2012 | 10:00 am UTC

Steve Jobs wanted to create an iCar according to current Apple board member

According to J. Crew CEO and current Apple board member, Mickey Drexler, Steve Jobs didn’t just want to re-invent the personal computer, mobile phone, and music industry -- he also wanted to take a stab at the car industry too. In an interview at Fast Company’s Innovation Uncensored conference earlier this week, Drexler said that Steve Jobs wanted to build... an iCar.

"Look at the car industry, it's a tragedy in America. Who's designing the cars?" Drexler said. "Steve's dream before he died was to design an iCar and I think it would've been probably 50% of the market. He never did design it."

You can imagine how great that iCar would have been had it come to fruition and you wouldn’t bet against it becoming the leader in the car world either. There would have been no ugly buttons inside, everything would have been simple to operate and elegant. Of course the integration with other Apple devices would have been a thing to behold; sadly it wasn't to be.

Drexler also claimed that Apple would be dealing with the living room in the "near future"; which could be taken as a hint about the often rumored Apple HDTV.

However, neither Drexler no any Apple board member would likely leak real information about unannounced Apple products, so we'll take this as what it is -- a vague, confidence boosting comment with context informed solely based on existing rumor and speculation.

He also went on to say that he wouldn't like to be in Tim Cooks shoes as taking over a successful company is more difficult than taking over one that is failing. (Though Tim Cook certainly seems to have done well enough for Apple so far...)

You can see the full interview in the video below, unfortunatley the video is flash only.

Source: Busines Insider, Apple Insider, Image: Mercedes

 

Source: iMore - The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch blog | 18 May 2012 | 6:44 am UTC

Steve Jobs rumored to have worked closely on iPhone 5 redesign

According to the latest rumor, Apple's co-founder, Steve Jobs, worked one the next generation iPhone 5 design prior to his passing last October. Bloomberg claims 3 sources familiar with the matter say there will be a redesign, 1 claims the redesign will involve a bigger screen, and 1 claims the redesign involved Steve Jobs.

Apple, based in Cupertino, California, has placed orders from suppliers in Asia for screens that are bigger than the 3.5- inch size now on the smartphone, said one of the people, who asked not to be identified because the plans aren’t public. Apple co-founder Steve Jobs had worked closely on the redesigned phone before his death in October, one person said.

iMore previously heard that Apple had implemented a smaller micro-dock for the next generation iPhone but hadn't yet decided on a new screen size or aspect ratio. Yesterday the Wall Street Journal and Reuters claimed Apple had settled on a 4 inch screen size.

We went through a wide range of possible 4-inch iPhone variations, how Apple could implement each of them, what advantages each would bring, and what problems each would bring with them.

Given Steve Jobs' passion for Apple and involvement with the product roadmap, it's not hard to believe he would have kept himself involved in future projects even years out. Depending on the manufacturing and performance realities at the time of production, we could be seeing bits and pieces of Jobs ideas for a good long while still.

Whether or not it's ultimately true, it's reassuring to people who place stock in the "Steve Jobs was Apple" story. Regardless, Jobs created the best team in the business and with Scott Forstall running software, Bob Mansfield running hardware, and Jony Ive running design, it's more than likely we have nothing to worry about.

Given the spate of iPhone 5 rumors recently, however, one thing is clear -- Apple is starting to get things in place for the product ramp up. As we get closer to the expected fall release, more and more decisions will get made, parts will be ordered, factories will be set up, and units will begin to be produced.

Until then, all we can do is enjoy the pre-game show.

Source: iMore - The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch blog | 18 May 2012 | 2:59 am UTC

Get your iPhone and iPad DJ on with iRig MIX

Billed as "the first mobile mixer for iPad, iPhone, iPod touch, for DJ-ing anytime, everywhere" the iRig MIX is fixing to make music mixing more mobile than ever.

If you're a pro DJ, the iRig MIX claims to have everything you need. That includes a full on EQ adjuster, a crossfader, a headphone cue and a mic input. It works with either one or two iOS devices, and with popular DJ apps so you can record your performances, share them with friends and family, or distribute them to the world.

It's also got an X-Sync feature that lets you mix any form of audio, everything from traditional audio gear to MP3, CD, and more. All with auto tempo matching and beat syncing.

Powerful enough for the pro, accessible enough the for enthusiast, if you're into iPhone, iPod touch and iPad, and you want to get your mixing on, check out the iRig MIX. Complete press release and video below.

Source: iRigMix.com

IK Multimedia iRig MIX Now Shipping

The first mobile mixer for iPad, iPhone, iPod touch, for DJ-ing anytime, everywhere

May 2012 – IK Multimedia is proud to announce that iRig™ MIX, the first ultra-compact DJ and audio mixer for the iPad, iPhone, and the iPod touch is now shipping. When used with an iPad, iPhone or iPod touch, IK’s included* DJ Rig FREE app and other DJ apps, it is a complete, highly portable DJ system for practicing, rehearsing, performing and recording.

With its unique miniaturized form factor and exclusive features, designed to be used with the entire range of portable iOS devices, iRig MIX brings a new meaning to the concept of mobile DJ-ing.

A DJ Mixer

iRig MIX has everything a pro DJ needs, including full EQ adjustment, crossfader, headphone cue and a mic input. Using DJ Rig or other popular DJ apps, users can record their performance and share with friends, publish or distribute at the event. DJs can choose either a traditional setup with two devices (one plugged into each of the independent channels) OR a single iOS device.

This flexibility, combined with iRig MIX’s portability gives aspiring and pro DJs a compact system that can be used everywhere… anytime. House parties or in the yard, after-parties, and impromptu dances are perfect environments for the iRig MIX. Planes, trains and automobiles used to mean that your DJ gear was inaccessible and unusable. Now, no matter where you are or where you are going, you can mix and rehearse sets.

Plus - for the first time on any mixer - iRig MIX can be used for mixing any type of audio source (coming from mp3 players, CD players, etc.) with an iOS device using automatic tempo matching and beat syncing. This is accomplished with X-Sync, a feature that works in combination with the DJ Rig FREE app from IK Multimedia that is included* with iRig MIX.

Maximum Portability

With its slim, lightweight form factor iRig MIX is considerably smaller than traditional DJ mixers and can be carried anywhere you take your iPhone or iPad, is easy to stow and perfect for performers on the go. The iRig MIX also has minimal power requirements allowing it to be powered not only by the included power supply but also by a suitable USB battery pack or a laptop USB port for maximum mobility to mix anywhere.

Not just for DJs

iRig MIX is also versatile enough to provide the perfect mixing solution for solo musicians or small ensembles that use one or more iOS devices to play live. It features an extra guitar/microphone input that can be processed with other IK popular apps like AmpliTube® and VocaLive™ or any other app that offers real-time audio processing. Its standard RCA output connectors provide easy, direct connection to PA systems or powered speakers.

4 included apps

iRig MIX includes* 4 free apps: DJ Rig™, the new professional DJ mixing app from IK, AmpliTube, the most popular iOS guitar amp and effects app, VocaLive the processing app for singers and vocalists, and GrooveMaker®, the loop-based beat and groove making app.

iRig MIX features

• 2 stereo inputs with gain, bass, treble and volume controls, independent cue on each channel with LED indication and channel crossfader
• Instrument/microphone extra input, with volume control, can be processed by iOS real-time effects apps (such as AmpliTube, VocaLive)
• Stereo output with RCA connectors, master level and LED meters
• High quality, pristine sound
• Quality headphone output for master or cue monitoring with independent volume control
• Input switch splits Input 1 into dual-mono for use with DJ mixing apps on a single iOS device
• “X-Sync” mode allows auto-sync with any audio source using the included DJ Rig free app
• Can be powered with the included AC adapter, battery pack and laptop USB ports
• Includes 4 free apps: DJ Rig, AmpliTube, VocaLive, GrooveMaker

Pricing and availability

iRig MIX costs $99.99/€74.99 (excluding taxes) and is available from electronic and music retailers around the world.

Source: iMore - The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch blog | 17 May 2012 | 11:53 pm UTC

Court asks Apple and HTC to negotiate patent dispute settlement

Delaware courts have have called for delegates from HTC and Apple to meet on August 28 to talk about settling the patent dispute that has blocked the U.S. import of some HTC handsets. This is all fallout from a pending case Apple against HTC through the International Trade Commission over a "data tapping" patent, whatever that is. Not too long ago, Apple was ordered into similar settlement talks with Samsung, though neither side has managed to secure a U.S. import ban on the other's products just yet. There's no saying how these mediated talks will pan out, if they do at all, but simply showing up and negotiating in good faith in something of a requirement for both parties if when the case continues in court.

Despite the fact that HTC isn't a particularly huge threat among all of the Android manufacturers Apple has faced off against, they've hit up HTC in patent disputes in Germany, the UK, and Florida too. It's likely enough that how this case in Delaware concludes would set a precedent for ongoing and future patent lawsuits between HTC and Apple, and potentially other manufacturers depending on the patents involved.

It would be pretty crazy if Apple managed to at least slow down (if not altogether stop) the import of any of the other major Android manufacturers in the U.S. on top of HTC, but it's hard to imagine a stoppage on anyone as big as, say, Samsung. How would you guys like to see these negotiations pan out -- everyone gets on with it, settles out of court, and continues competing happily in the open market, or everything drags out into a protracted legal battle that potentially reveals some interesting tidbits of info about the manufacturers?

Source: FOSS Patents

Source: iMore - The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch blog | 17 May 2012 | 11:36 pm UTC

Facebook announces IPO, what does it mean for Apple?

Facebook has officially announced their initial public offering on the stock market with ticker symbol FB on the NASDAQ. The starting price will be $38 each of the 421,233,615 common shares, which makes their initial valuation $104 billion -- an awful lot considering they had $3.7 billion in revenue last year. This is the largest internet IPO ever, and the seventh biggest in the world, but what does it mean for Apple?

The first thing that that struck me when I heard about the Facebook IPO was, "Damn, I would really hate to miss the boat on that one and be like one of those guys kicking themselves later for not buying into Apple way back in the early days." Of course, there's plenty of conflict of interest in our spheres when it comes to stuff like that, so I steer clear, but it's something of a moot point considering major investment banks will have first crack at the stock and likely inflate the price well beyond $38 before individuals have a chance to snag some stock. There's also bound to be an inordinate amount of hype that is likely to level off in the first couple of weeks, but you never know -- it could just keep climbing and climbing.

The late Steve Jobs said he admired Mark Zuckerberg for not selling out, and that he thought Facebook was really the only social network worth talking about. Besides that, it's easy to see a lot of similarities between the two -- both experienced a huge amount of success in the technology industry at an early age, both practiced peculiar eating habits, and both dropped out of college (though retained a love of the arts). Zuckerberg's net worth blew past Steve Jobs' long ago; as of March last year, Jobs was worth $8.3 billion, while Zuckerberg was worth $13.5 billion.

Despite the similarities of their CEOs, Apple and Facebook aren't likely to be butting heads any time soon; despite persistent rumors to the contrary the closest thing Facebook has ever been to making a phone was having a branded hardware button on the HTC ChaCha. iTunes has Ping, which is a social network for sharing what music you're listening to, but that hasn't been particularly active in the year and a half since its inception. Interestingly enough, Facebook and Apple had a falling out over Ping integration awhile back, but that seems to be the most volatility we've seen between the companies to date.

That said, while it's unlikely that Facebook's IPO will directly be affecting Apple, the revenue Facebook generates could make the social networking giant even harder to ignore. The last version of iOS included fairly deep Twitter integration, and it would be hard to imagine iOS 6 being announced at WWDC without some significant and similar integration with Facebook. (Something that was rumored to have been attempted, then scrapped as far back as iOS 4.)

How do you guys see the trajectories of these tech giants crossing? Will they keep existing relatively peaceably in their own respective spheres? For a long time, Google and Apple got along well enough in their separate industries, but it didn't take long for them to start bumping into one another; how long until Facebook and Apple start doing the same?

Source: Facebook

Source: iMore - The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch blog | 17 May 2012 | 11:21 pm UTC

How do you access Gmail on your iPhone or iPad?

So how do you access your Gmail on your iPhone, iPod touch or iPad? Do you use the built-in iOS Mail app? Using Apple's Mail app has several advantages. It's the (unchangeable) default mail client on iOS, and it has full background multitasking permissions, so unless you've turned everything to manual, your messages are usually ready and waiting for you the moment you launch the app. No App Store app is allowed any of that. However, it doesn't support Gmail's Stars or Labels, and Flags and Folders aren't the same.

If you use Apple's Mail app, do you set up Gmail as Gmail, which is the obvious way to do it, given the giant logo label? It uses IMAP so it isn't push, but does that really matter to you? Or do you set up Gmail as Exchange ActiveSync (Google Sync) in Apple Mail instead? Does the combination of push as well as Contacts sync win you over?

What about those of you for whom Apple Mail just isn't the right solution? Do you use the Gmail.com website? It has the advantage of fast access to your mail and local storage, but because it's locked in Safari you don't get to do attachments or access your iOS Contacts, and you don't get push notifications. Do you use the Gmail app, so you can add attachments and access your Contacts? Or is the lack of background email processing just too annoying for you?

If neither Apple nor Google's apps are good enough for you, is Sparrow your go to Gmail app? It has a great interface, but like any App Store app it can't keep an internet connection open in the background, so you can't download email as it comes in -- you have to wait until you launch the app. It doesn't have push notifications yet either, and when they come, they'll require a subscription. Is it worth it?

Or do you not use Gmail at all? And if not, why not?

Give me your vote in the poll up top and your reasons why in the comments below. Here's the question again: How do you use Gmail on your iPhone, iPod touch or iPad?

Source: iMore - The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch blog | 17 May 2012 | 9:26 pm UTC

What Samsung's rise and Nokia's fall means for Apple and the iPhone

Industry research firm Gartner just released its latest data on mobile phone sales for the first quarter of 2012. There are some interesting points to be pulled out of this report that I wanted to address.

Samsung dominates Android. Gartner’s data says that Korea-based Samsung shipped over 40% of all Android handsets last quarter. So that still leaves 60% of the market to other vendors, right? Yes, but according to Gartner none of these other vendors make up more than 10% of Android volume. None.

In terms of handset brands, Samsung is also now the #1 phone maker in the world, ahead of Nokia.

Nokia may have the #2 position in the market, but we need to remember that most of Nokia’s volume is based on the dying Symbian OS. Very little is based on its Windows-powered future at this point. So, considering that we’re looking at the death of the dumphone over the next few years, let’s look at smartphone vendors and volumes.

Samsung is the #1 player, having shipped 38 million smartphones. Most of these are Android powered, with a smaller number of Bada OS phones.

Here’s how smartphone market share looks, by vendor, based on the Gartner data:

1. Samsung with 26% market share
2. Apple with 23%
3. RIM with 7%

These are essentially the top 3 smartphone players right now. I realize that ZTE, LG and Huawei have a larger portion of the mobile market than RIM, but RIM is a pure play on smartphones whereas these three are not. Remember that other Android vendors have less than one quarter of Samsung’s volume.

What does this data mean to Apple?

Android is clearly taking a huge chunk of the market here, and that’s fine. The movement from the PC market to the mobile computing market has been a beautiful thing for Apple. They’ve gone from being a 6% market share player to something very significantly higher, depending on how you measure it. They don’t need to completely dominate the mobile phone market. Android will succeed, and so will Apple.

First and foremost, Apple just needs to keep delivering a beautiful user experience that makes people love their products. At the high end, it’s Samsung and Apple fighting it out, with Nokia and RIM trying to re-enter the race.

I’m more interested in what happens towards the middle and low end of the markets, in the fullness of time. This is not necessarily a 2012 or even 2013 strategy, but I’d like to see how Apple can profit from the continuing demise of Nokia.

Nokia still has almost 20% share of the mobile market. Granted, a LOT of that is at the uber-low end, and Apple isn’t going there anytime soon. But Nokia still has a very meaningful chunk of the mid and high end feature phone market. This is a dying market, and Symbian is a dying OS. Apple should be able to swoop in here and soak up a lot of the customers who move away form Nokia. After all, a Nokia customer may love the Nokia brand (maybe) but doesn’t necessarily feel the same way about Microsoft and Windows Phone.

With respect to pricing, if Apple can do something closer to what it did in the iPod space versus what it’s done in the Mac space, it can own a larger chunk of the lower end market. But I expect this to take a while. Tim Cook has made it abundantly clear that he won’t go to a lower price point if the product stinks as a result.

Either way, I love Apple’s positioning. They own a real platfrom, they’re already the #3 manufacturer of mobile phones in the world, and the #2 player is bleeding out.

Source: Gartner

Source: iMore - The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch blog | 17 May 2012 | 8:51 pm UTC

FutureGov Forum Queensland

FutureGov Forum Queensland Australia bringS together Queensland Government change leaders and the private sector to engage and collaborate on the future of citizen service delivery.

FutureGov Forum Queensland focuses on the biggest challenges facing
government:

• Big Data: Strategies to improve the collection, storage, distribution and analysis of ever increasing data volumes.
• Information Security: Successful e-government depends on citizen trust in online services.
• Information Handling: How do successful government departments manage evolving internal and external information security risks?
• G-Cloud: opportunities in improved performance for government agencies and citizen services.

Date: 4th December 2012
Location: The Hilton Brisbane, 190 Elizabeth Street, Brisbane

For more information visit: http://www.futuregov.asia/events/futuregov-forum-queensland-2012/

Source: TechEvents.com.au | 29 Apr 2012 | 7:31 am UTC

FutureGov Forum Victoria 2012

FutureGov Forum Victoria is a premiere forum and will bring together Victorian Government change leaders and the private sector to engage and collaborate on the future of citizen service delivery.

Victoria top level public servants will meet with their national and international counterparts to find answers to common challenges, such as:

Which government departments have most successfully leveraged the

• Cloud and why?
• Is the government data that is most useful also the most important?
• Are governments using social media effectively to engage citizens?
• Will greater transaction security boost e-services adoption?
• How has the whole-of-government approach to ICT evolved in Victoria?

More than 100 senior public administrators and industry experts will attend FutureGov Forum Victoria. Make sure you book your place now to be at the heart of the big conversations about the future of government in 2012.

Date: 19th June 2012
Location: The Langham Melbourne, 1 Southgate Avenue, Southbank, Melbourne

For more information visit: http://www.futuregov.asia/events/futuregov-forum-victoria-2012/

Source: TechEvents.com.au | 29 Apr 2012 | 7:27 am UTC

FutureGov Forum NSW 2012

FutureGov Forum NSW is a premiere forum and will bring together NSW Government change leaders and the private sector to engage and collaborate on the future of citizen service delivery.

NSW Government top level public servants will meet with their national and international counterparts to find answers to common challenges, such as:

• How is the whole-of-government approach to ICT evolving in NSW?
• Is the government data that is most useful also the most important?
• Are government agencies using social media effectively to engage citizens and improve policy development and services?
• Will greater transaction security boost e-services adoption?
• How agencies are benefiting from shared services and the opportunities in working together?
• Which government departments are most successfully leveraging the Cloud and and why?

Date: 21st June 2012
Location: Sydney (venue TBC)

For more information visit: http://www.futuregov.asia/events/futuregov-forum-nsw-2012/venue/

Source: TechEvents.com.au | 29 Apr 2012 | 7:23 am UTC

IBM Pulse 2012

Don’t miss this opportunity to see the latest IBM solutions for storage, security, asset management and service delivery, and gain insights into how to optimise your infrastructure in order to drive flexibility, growth and innovation.

You”l hear from technical and business leaders as they share best practices for designing and delivering services. See the benefit from first hand case studies of compelling accomplishments in service management. You also network with over 600 attendees, industry
representatives and solution service partners.

Attendance is free so register now to meet the people who can optimise your infrastructure.

Date:31st May 2012 - 1st June 2012
Location:Sheraton on the Park Hotel, Sydney

For more information visit: http://www.ibm.com/events/au/pulse/

Source: TechEvents.com.au | 29 Apr 2012 | 7:16 am UTC

Using Pure FP in Commercial Practice - YOW! Night Brisbane

Tony Morris will be sharing his experience using functional programming in commercial development.

Tony is an expert in Haskell and Scala and founder of the Brisbane FP user group, which now has over 200 members. Many YOW! attendees enjoyed Tony’s FP workshop in December. This is an opportunity to see practical FP in the wilds of enterprise web development.

Date: 14th May 2012
Location: Suncorp Office - Brisbane Square, 266 George St , Level 28, Brisbane

For more information visit: http://ynbrismaymorris.eventbrite.com/

Source: TechEvents.com.au | 29 Apr 2012 | 6:36 am UTC

Using Pure FP in Commercial Practice - YOW! Night Melbourne

Tony Morris will be sharing his experience using functional programming in commercial development.

Tony is an expert in Haskell and Scala and founder of the Brisbane FP user group, which now has over 200 members. Many YOW! attendees enjoyed Tony’s FP workshop in December. This is an opportunity to see practical FP in the wilds of enterprise web development.

Date: 16th May 2012
Location: Jasper Hotel, 489 Elizabeth St , Melbourne

For more information visit: http://ynmelmaymorris.eventbrite.com/

Source: TechEvents.com.au | 29 Apr 2012 | 6:30 am UTC

Using Pure FP in Commercial Practice - YOW! Night Sydney

Tony Morris will be sharing his experience using functional programming in commercial development.

Tony is an expert in Haskell and Scala and founder of the Brisbane FP user group, which now has over 200 members. Many YOW! attendees enjoyed Tony’s FP workshop in December. This is an opportunity to see practical FP in the wilds of enterprise web development.

Date: 21st May 2012
Location: Shelbourne Hotel, 200 Sussex St, Sydney

For more information visit: http://ynsydmaymorris.eventbrite.com/

Source: TechEvents.com.au | 29 Apr 2012 | 6:23 am UTC

Encrypting with LUKS and IPv6 - MLUG

At this meetup Tim and Darren will be talking about encrypting your hard drive with LUKS and IPv6.

Date: 2nd May 2012
Location: 118 Elgin st, Carlton, Melbourne

For more information visit: http://www.mlug.org.au/doku.php

Source: TechEvents.com.au | 28 Apr 2012 | 1:41 pm UTC

Popular iPhone and iOS Forensic Tools

With the ever increasing popularity of the Apple iPhone and iOS devices, there are a growing number of tools that specifically address the needs of security professionals.

Even free tools now allow an end user to explore data, perform data recovery and run security tests and audit reports.

It’s important that as a security or IT professional that you understand how these tools work so you can better safeguard business data and educate your users if you’re responsible for managing a large number of iPhones (or other iOS devices).

Below are a few of the more popular iPhone and iOS forensic tools. Most of these tools are very easy to use and even end users can analyze collected data and generate detailed audit reports that can be used for either data recovery, security auditing or for legal purposes.

Oxygen-forensic suite

This is one of the most popular mobile forensic suite and is widely used because of its rich feature set. Some of the features of Oxygen-forensic are: recovering phone basic info, multimedia messages, contact lists, call logs, web browser cache, email recovery and geographical coordinates. Besides iPhone and iOS devices, it supports other mobile platforms such Symbian OS, Android, Windows Mobile and RIM BlackBerry devices.

More information: http://www.oxygen-forensic.com/en/

iXAM

iXAM (ig’zam) deals with non-invasive data recovery from various iPhone models as types like 2G, 3G, 3GS and 4 plus iPod Touch. It creates a full image of the iPhone that needs to be analyzed, this created image can then be stored for future references. An audit report is created by iXAM that outlines the whole recovery process as well as documenting audits of various iPhone system components.

More information: http://www.ixam-forensics.com

Lantern

Lantern is a newer iPhone forensics solution developed by Katana Forensics. It creates a physical RAW dd and .dmg image files of all iOS Devices (iPhones as well as iPads and iPods). It is possible to start inspecting data while Lantern is processing any iOS device which makes it very useful to process large number of devices. Mapping of geographical co-ordinates as well as timeline analysis make this tool very powerful and comprehensive. It also has additional support for third party installed applications.

More information: http://katanaforensics.com/forensics/lantern-v2-0/

iPhone Analyzer

This is a handy iPhone forensics tool that can do most of the basic tasks like backing up files, examining different files types as well as the internal structure of iPhone. It is free to download and use and it’s also open source which gets a thumbs up from us!

More information: http://sourceforge.net/projects/iphoneanalyzer/

Summary

There are many more iPhone and iOS tools on the market since we first created this site and we’re sure there will be many more new tools appearing in the future. These tools are only a sample of what’s out there, but it’s more than enough to get you started with exploring your iPhone and iOS devices.

Source: iPhoneSecurity.org | 7 May 2011 | 7:02 am UTC

Top 5 iPhone Apps Used Daily

Niiiiiiiiiik.com has posted his top 5 apps he uses daily.

• Facebook
• Twittelator
• TWiT
• foursquare
• Sygic GPS

I use Facebook and foursquare, will be taking a look at Twittelator.

You can read the full post here:

http://niiiiiiiiiik.com/2011/02/20/top-5-iphone-apps-i-use-daily/

Source: iPhoneMad.com | 20 Feb 2011 | 5:53 am UTC

Blogging with your iPhone

Darren Rowse from ProBlogger posted what is perhaps the most thorough review of blogging using your iPhone I’ve come across. As with all good blog posts, the comments in this particular post have great value.

I’ve been Tweeting a little about my initial experience of the iPhone and quite a few of my Twitter buddies have asked me to write a review of the iPhone as a blogging tool. I am not writing a general review here of the iPhone as a phone - but want to focus this upon it as a tool for bloggers.

http://www.problogger.net/archives/2008/08/05/the-iphone-3g-as-a-blogging-tool-my-review/

Source: iPhoneMad.com | 11 Aug 2008 | 2:27 pm UTC

CAPS Lock on the iPhone Keyboard

Did you know that the iPhone keyboard does have a CAPS Lock function? Just go into Settings > General > Keyboard and you will see the option there hiding, switched off by default. Just switch it on and enjoy having the ability to type in capitals buy double tapping the Shift key.

Source: iPhoneMad.com | 2 Aug 2008 | 5:05 am UTC

British Airways iPhone App

Yet another iPhone application has been released that seems to be getting quite a bit of attention. It’s interesting to see how many people pay attention to a mobile application released by someone other than Google, MySpace or YouTube - that is someone whose core business isn’t technology.

The app provides real-time information on all of the British Airways flights’ arrivals and departure times, and a full interface to current timetables.

You can download the British Airways app for free from the App Store. You can also check out the official British Airways site for more information.

Those watching the iPhone app space have seen lots of these sorts of applications popping up over the past few weeks, and as many predicted, it’s evidence of the start of a true mobile wave.

Source: iPhoneMad.com | 27 Jul 2008 | 4:55 pm UTC

How Tough is an iPhone? iPhone Stress Test Video

It’s a question I’ve been asked quite a few times, usually related to questions about what sort of iPhone case or iPhone protector screen is the best. If you’d like to see what happens to an iPhone after it’s been thoroughly abused (dropped and scratched), check out the original iPhone Stress Test at PCWorld.com.

This video is a classic and should give all new iPhone owners a little more confidence handling their new gadget.

Source: iPhoneMad.com | 27 Jul 2008 | 4:24 pm UTC

Review - QuickSend App

QuickSend is a simple app that lets you send quick email messages from your iPhone. It’s interface is extremely simple, and for what it does, that’s all it needs to be. You simply select the recipient and a predefined message, such as “I love you” or “I’m running late”.

For a mobile application, it’s simplicity nails it, however it would be good if you could add to these messages. Another useful feature would be the ability to select “favorite” recipients. I’d also like to see this have “Email it!” as well as “SMS it!”, that would really rock.

All in all, worth installing if you use your iPhone for sending email and frequently find yourself sending simple messages to people.

Source: iPhoneMad.com | 27 Jul 2008 | 4:12 pm UTC

iPhone Wallpaper Collection

Following on from the post on creating your own iPhone wallpaper, if you’d prefer to check out a gallery of iPhone wallpaper that others have already created, check out the massive collection at the Flickr iPhone Wallpapers pool. Get yourself a cup of coffee, it’s real big. Actually, 6,437 items at the time of writing to be exact.

NOTE: Remember, once you have an image in your photo collection on your iPhone, you can click the icon with the arrow (bottom right hand corner) and select the option “Use As Wallpaper”.

Source: iPhoneMad.com | 27 Jul 2008 | 4:43 am UTC

Creating Your Own iPhone Wallpaper

Here’s everything you need to know if you want to make your own iPhone Wallpaper. There are hundreds of tutorials on creating iPhone Wallpaper with gradients or reflective text, but if you already have a grip on creating custom images and know what you want to do, all you really need are the dimensions.

• Dimensions: 320 px Width x 480 px Height
• Resolution: 72 dpi (although you can increase this)

Save your image as a JPG and transfer it to your iPhone using iTunes (add it to your Photos). Once it’s transferred, you will be able to view it as a regular photo and set is as your Wallpaper (by hitting the bottom right hand icon and selecting “Use As Wallpaper”).

As you’d expect this also works for the iPod Touch as well.

Source: iPhoneMad.com | 27 Jul 2008 | 4:40 am UTC

Taking Screenshots with your iPhone

If you want to capture an error message or just a plain screenshot, iPhoneMad.com has a tip that tells you how to capture a screenshot using a built-in iPhone feature.

You can read the article here:

http://iphonemad.com/taking-a-screenshot-with-your-iphone/

Source: iPhoneSecurity.org | 25 Jul 2008 | 12:22 pm UTC

4 Ways to Extend Your iPhone Battery Life

Want to squeeze a little extra juice out of your iPhone battery? Follow this simple points taken from intomobile.com and tuaw.com.

1) Turn off “Ask to Join Networks” in Settings > Wi-Fi. Unless you really need this feature, it’s going to be prompting you to join networks as you move from place to place.

2) Set “Fetch New Data” to Manual. Of course you will have to manually request a refresh, but it will cut down on automated fetching.

3) Kill all applications by holding down the Home button. You will notice s light fade effect when it’s complete.

4) Turn off “Location Services” under General > Location Services. This is used in “Locate Me” type of applications (i.e. Maps), however it depends who you ask if this is actually a battery drain. Some say it is, so I’m listing it here.

This list is a work-in-progress so I will add to this and adjust it if necessary!

Source: iPhoneMad.com | 25 Jul 2008 | 12:13 pm UTC

iPhone Forensics Book Rough Cut

O’Reilly’s have just released a “Rough Cut” version on their upcoming “iPhone Forensics” book. Looking at the TOC, it looks very cool. I’ve only just started reading it myself, but already I can clearly tell that if you have an interest in security, you will love this.

iPhone Forensics gives IT professionals, security personnel, and law enforcement the knowledge needed to conduct forensic analysis of an iPhone. This book shows the reader how to recover sensitive information from the device and perform disaster recovery, and walks the reader through various scenarios for recovering different types of information. With this guide, the reader will be able to effectively recover live, lost, or deleted email, photos, voicemail, Google Maps searches, typing cache, and other sensitive data retained by the iPhone. The reader will learn advanced techniques including data recovery, properly preserving and preparing evidence, and technical techniques such as bypassing basic passcode security or recovering data even after a full restore (by say, a disgruntled employee). Finally, the reader will learn how to properly wipe an iPhone clean of all data for resale or reissue - something Apple’s own restore process fails to do.

You can order the book yourself online here.

Source: iPhoneSecurity.org | 25 Jul 2008 | 11:47 am UTC

iPhone Style Graphics for Photoshop

Kudos to BittBox.com for creating some nice iPhone style graphics and making the Photoshop files available to all. These will definitely save time if you’re working on a project and need this sort of thing.

They are available for Photoshop CS1, CS3 and PNG here. If you end up using them, give the folks at BittBox.com a yell, I’m sure they’ll appreciate it.

Source: iPhoneMad.com | 25 Jul 2008 | 10:38 am UTC

First Anti Virus Application for iPhone

A recent article from Hack In The Box talks about the first anti virus application for the iPhone, although technically it resides on an OS X desktop.

The application, called Virus Barrier has been developed by a French company called Intego.

Source: iPhoneSecurity.org | 21 Jul 2008 | 4:14 pm UTC

Useful iPhone Security Settings and Information

Xeno Kovah has published a little gem of a collection of iPhone security tidbits.

For example, one of the questions is “what is the NMAP output?”.

Nmap output?:
Nothing. The iPhone is not running any services listening on any TCP ports, and silently drops all unrequested packets.

Other questions include Bluetooth capability, Safari options, network fingerprint and other goodies.

Props go out to Xeno!

Read the full thing here: http://www.contrib.andrew.cmu.edu/~xsk/iPhoneSecuritySettings.html.

Source: iPhoneSecurity.org | 4 Jul 2008 | 1:36 pm UTC

iPhone in the Corporate Environment

Builder AU have posted an interesting article titled “The boss’s iPhone: Your worst security nightmare” which talks about the popularity of the iPhone making it a juicy target, and the implications of iPhone’s being used in a corporate environment.

As employee-owned portable devices become more sophisticated they become less secure, according to one analyst — and the more senior an employee, the less compliant they are when it comes to protecting the information on those devices.

You can read the article here: http://www.builderau.com.au/news/soa/The-boss-s-iPhone-Your-worst-security-nightmare/0,339028227,339284001,00.htm.

Source: iPhoneSecurity.org | 4 Jul 2008 | 1:24 pm UTC

Robert Vamosi on iPhone Security

Robert Vamosi has written a piece on the pros and cons of iPhone security.

The iPhone is likely to be one of the most complex smart phones that we’ve seen to date. As such, it will be challenging to have to a completely secure code base.

You can read the article here.

It was written a while back now, but interesting reading withstanding.

Source: iPhoneSecurity.org | 22 Jun 2008 | 9:39 am UTC

Thoughts on iPhone Security from TUAW

The Unofficial Apple Weblog has a post on iPhone security that has some interesting comments. To summarise the article, with great power comes great responsibility.

http://www.tuaw.com/2008/02/11/thoughts-on-iphone-security/

It’s well worth reading the comments.

Source: iPhoneSecurity.org | 22 Jun 2008 | 8:48 am UTC