Isaiah's Tech

In the Mac Rumors forum there's, obviously, a new rumour that has been passing around. Apparently, in the Toronto event today, RIM's co-CEO, Jim Balsillie, mentioned that BBM "and 'services'" would be available on the iPhone App Store on April 26th. Of course, there's no way to confirm this but I hope it hits Android on the same day - which isn't looking too likely right now. Of course, the BBM for other platforms will just be a stripped down version so it might be a legitimate threat to other messaging services.

Update: BGR has contacted RIM and they mentioned that the rumour is false. RIM reportedly didn't even hold a conference in Toronto so it's absolutely made up.

[Mobile Syrup]

We know nothing about the situation right now, but it looks like Firefox is looking to push out an iPhone app. There are rumours going around that it could have something to do with their bookmark syncing service, Weave, but it's confirmed right now. Of course, it could always be Firefox Mobile... or Fennec. We'll see.

[9 to 5 Mac]

Apple started it all with their App Store and I give a lot of credit to them for doing that. It looks like even Intel is going to start their own app store in the future. They are kicking off their "Intel Atom Developer Program" which will "unlock a netbook's potential while opening a new sales and distribution channel." Those are just fancy words for an incoming app store.

[jkk Mobile]

At their event earlier today, Apple released iTunes 9. Besides having no support for the Palm Pre, the new iTunes has Twitter and Facebook integration. They also cleaned up the App Store, so that things are easier to look at. There's also a new iTunes LP format, "which provides an interactive presentation with photos, liner notes, animated lyrics and performance videos." More changes are below. By the way, you can download it here.

iTunes 9 introduces Home Sharing, allowing transfer of music, movies and TV shows amongst up to five authorized computers in a home network. Family members can view up to five iTunes libraries, view only the portion of these libraries they do not have, import content directly to their own machines, and automatically add new purchases from other systems. New too are changes to Genius technology, such as Genius Mixes, which automatically generate endless playlists based on library analysis.

Apple has just released iPhone OS 3.1. Thanks to Mobile Syrup, here's what's included in the new OS - more or less.

- Genius recommendations for Applications
- iTunes 9 support includes Genius Mixes, Organize your apps directly in iTunes, Improved syncing options for music, movies, TV shows, podcasts and photos and iTunes U content organization
- Ability to redeem iTunes Gift cards, codes and certificates in the App Store
- Display available iTunes account credits in the App Store and iTunes Store
- Browse and download ringtones wirelessly from the iTunes Store
- Save video from Mail and MMS into Camera Roll
- Option to “Save as new clip” when trimming a video on iPhone 3GS
- Better iPhone 3G Wi-Fi performance when Bluetooth is turned on
- Remotely lock iPhone with a passcode via MobileMe
- Use Voice Control on iPhone 3GS with Bluetooth headsets
- Paste phone numbers into the Keypad
- Option to use Home button to turn on Accessibility features on iPhone 3GS
- Warn when visiting fraudulent websites in Safari (anti-phishing)
- Improved Exchange calendar syncing and invitation handling
- Fixes issue that caused some app icons to display incorrectly

iTunes 9: Mac NN, TUAW
iPhone OS 3.1: Engadget Mobile, Mobile Syrup

After about 5 months, the Skype app for the iPhone is now available in Canada! There's not much left to say here, but have fun with it.

[CNet]

Remember the revamped / white Android App Market that we saw a couple of days ago? Well, below is a video of it in action. There's not much left to say here, but you can check out the video below and the link below for a bit more information. This new Android App Market definitely looks better than the current one.

Update: According to Engadget Mobile, this new Market will be included in Android 1.6.



[Tech Crunch]

According to Reuters, LG is going to launch an app store in the next 24 hours. This app store will launch with 1,400 applications and 100 free programs. This Application Store from LG is going to be available in 15 different languages, but sadly, the initial release is only going to be for the Asian market. LG has mentioned that their app store will be available in Europe and South America by the end of the year. However, North America is going to be left out of this app store equation - for now - since the iPhone's app store is just going to swallow them up.

[Electronic Pulp]

Apple has spotted the person who downloaded the 1 billionth app off of the App Store and it was Connor Mulcahey of Connecticut. He took home a $10,000 USD iTunes gift certificate (that I would sell on eBay because I don't get anything off of the iTunes Store), a MacBook Pro and a Time Capsule. He's only 13-years old, so I'm pretty sure this is something that he'll remember for the rest of his life. Congratulations to him! I hope he spends that $10,000 iTunes gift certificate wisely.

[Apple Blog]

Earlier today, Apple announced that the 1 billionth app had just been downloaded from their App Store. An incredible feat, and I'm proud of them - even though I'm not exactly a huge fan of Apple. Apple has offered up a prize valued at over $13,000 USD for the person who bought the 1 billionth app. That person's name will be publicly displayed when they pinpoint exactly who it was. Congratulations to Apple and the winner of that prize.

[Mac Rumors]

Yes, it does scrap the iPod Touch on paper for most of the users out there. It has a larger 4.3-inch TFT full touchscreen display (I thought it was 7-inches when I first looked at the picture) with a "widget-like" UI. It also supports a wide range of formats, has FM radio / recording, 50 hours of audio / 7 hours of video playback, voice recording, and USB 2.0 connectivity. Another advantage it has over the iPod Touch is that it has its own converter built-in so that it converts your video automatically for you instead of you having to manually convert your videos with a 3rd-party program with an iPod. The last advantage it has over the iPod Touch is the price which is $179 USD for 8GB and also $209 USD for the 16GB model. 

The only downside to this PMP is that it doesn't have WiFi capabilities or an App Store. That is why it is not an iPod Touch killer - that and it's also not made by Apple.

[Crunch Gear]

The Nintendo DSi launched in Europe today and is hitting North American shores in just 2 days. The new DSi is a bit lighter, weighing in at just 7.5 ounces, and is also slimmer than the previous DS. It's around $40 USD more expensive than the current DS, but that shouldn't be a problem because of its new features. It has two 0.3MP cameras, an ARM 133MHz processor, 16MB of RAM, WiFi, a larger 3.25-inch screen, and an SD card slot. Unfortunately, the DSi drops the old Game Boy Advance card slot to make room for these new features. The new DSi will compete directly with the PSP and indirectly with the gaming aspect of the iPod Touch / iPhone. Like Apple, the DSi will have its own App Store called DSi Shop where you can purchase DSiWare - basically, downloadable games. To top it off, the DSi also doubles as a music player. Americans look out for this new toy for your kids in just 2 days.

[Tech Tree]

The title speaks for itself. The free Skype App that came out earlier this week was downloaded over one million times in the first two days of its release. If that's not impressive enough, that comes out to 6 downloads per second. Incredible. I really think that they should have charged at least the minimum fee for the Skype App because it would've made a load of cash. This is one of the fastest-downloaded iPhone apps ever, which is an incredible feat. I'm sure those phone carriers are getting screwed now.

[Tech Crunch]

BalckBerry officially launched their app store yesterday and now here's something something that I'll be able to use. Nokia's App Store, dubbed Ovi Store, will be available next month so it's on track to be released in May just like we heard last month. I'll be able to use Ovi Store when it is released and I'm certainly excited. I've always wanted an app store, but I'm probably only going to get free apps because I'm cheap like that. Maybe Skype will be released for Nokia phones too, kind of like how it'll be on the BlackBerry in May. It'd be interesting if that were possible. So look out for Nokia's Ovi Store next month, their very own app store.

[Crunch Gear]

Yes, it is finally now available on the U.S. Apple App Store. The free Skype client for the iPhone is now up on the App Store and people are already using it. So, go ahead and download it! Tell me how it works out.

[Boy Genius]

It's official! Skype is coming to the iPhone, via App Store tomorrow (Tuesday)! In addition to this news, the BlackBerry will also be getting Skype, but they're going to have to wait a couple of months, more specifically May. Obviously, for Skype to work you're going to have to be connected to the Internet via WiFi. Skype will also be usable with the iPod Touch 2G, if you have an external mic, again with the help of WiFi. So, Skype will be available tomorrow, thanks to the App Store. I don't know how much it will be sold for though, so I'll inform you about that tomorrow.

[Gizmodo]

To rival Apple and the iPhone even more, BlackBerry will be releasing their App World on April 1. The pricing of the apps are a bit more expensive than the iPhone's, so that's already a negative. Hopefully, the apps themselves will be a little bit better than the iPhone's apps, so we'll just have to see how this works out.

In other news today, BlackBerry continues to try to trump the iPhone by possibly releasing unlimited TV downloads. RIM is expected to launch unlimited TV downloads on a subscription-based plan. "Most long-form videos still have to be transferred from a host computer, and most streaming services, such as YouTube or TV.com, typically only offer short clips." It's not confirmed yet, but it could be true. We'll see in the near future.

[Boy Genius, Boy Genius (pricing chart), Electronista]

Nintendo might be following the mobile handset trend in the near future. A new rumour has it that Nintendo is planning to launch their very own app store for the Nintendo DSi. This will put it in clear competition for the likes of the iPhone and iPod Touch. Since Apple wants to add gaming to their checklist, Nintendo wants to chew away at one of Apple's important features. "The DSi - at least the Japanese version - currently connects to the DS Shop and DSi Ware, Nintendo's bite-sized gaming store." It'll be interesting to see if this really happens and we'll find out in less than a week. GDC (Game Developers Conference) is almost here people!

[Gizmodo]

After Apple's constant bragging about selling 13.7 million iPhone's last year, 17 million iPhone's to-date, and 30 million iPhones and iPod Touch's altogether, they mentioned that Gameloft loves their App Store. They also mentioned that 96% of apps submitted for submission get accepted and that 62% of the developers are new. This may or may not be a good thing, since only 16% of said developers have 5 or more years of experience. There have been 800 million apps downloaded off of the App Store, which is a whole lot. That's an average of 27 downloads for each user of either the iPod Touch or the iPhone (according to my calculations), Wow! They chose using "Push" notifications over running background apps because it saves battery life. You don't want the iPhone's battery life to get worse now do you? I wonder what problems the Palm Pre's battery will have running background apps. Apple mentioned that Meebo is going "native" on the iPhone. They demonstrated Meebo on the iPhone and had a couple of typing errors (Sire instead of Sure). See Apple, that's what happens when you don't have a physical QWERTY keyboard!

EA began to show off a game, The Sims, and as of right now there has still been no mention of the rumoured cut and paste. They show the ability to stream ESPN. Anyways, after a bunch of uninteresting information they continued it by announcing a new game called "Touch Pets." I LOL'd. They also mentioned a new FPS game for the iPhone called LiveFire. Apparently, Touch Pets looks like Nintendogs with the addition of multiplayer and "content expandibility." Afterwards, they show a live demo of LiveFire and the person showcasing the game actually got owned. It just looks, to me, like a bunch of apps meaning to suck all of the money out of your wallet. Thankfully, the demonstrator got a kill right before they ended the demo. They show a hilarious app called Leaf Trombone: World Stage, talk about an attractive name. If you couldn't guess what it is, it's a music app and they went right on ahead and played "Phantom of the Opera." So far this press conference has been pretty uninteresting, but I'm sure the intensity will pick up sooner or later.

I was right! They've finally mentioned the use of Cut, Copy and Paste, and after a big applause they demonstrated it. It works across all apps!

Keep your heads high iPhone users, with the new iPhone 3.0 OS you also get MMS support. The iPhone Calendar is getting CalDAV which is the "sharing protocol used by Google Calendar and a number of other online calendar services." The iPhone is also getting a Homepage facelift, called "Spotlight" which is a place to search anything you want on your iPhone.

Apple recaps the new iPhone 3.0 OS mentioning: Cut, Copy and Paste, MMS support, stereo Bluetooth, Calendars getting CalDAV, Voice Memos, and Spotlight. The new 3.0 OS will be available starting today as a developer beta. The iPhone is available in 80 countries, but only 62 of those countries are App Store compatible. Starting today they have added 15 countries to that list, so make it 77 countries that are App Store compatible. I feel sorry for those 3 left out countries. The new iPhone 3.0 OS will be shipping as a free update to all iPhone owners and will be available for $9.95 for iPod Touch users this Summer (June). All features will work on the original iPhone except for MMS and stereo Bluetooth, sucks for those users. After the actual press conference there is a Question & Answer slot. They confirm that there is still no Flash support! Too bad iPhone users. Last, but not least, they also mentioned that they are still working on tethering for the iPhone.

[Engadget, TechCrunch]

The Nextar has a decent looking PMP here, but I think I'd rather stick with the iPod Touch, that is if I had money to get it. Anyways, the 0.25-inch thick Nextar MA809 PMP has a 2.8-inch display with a 400 x 240 resolution, a voice recorder, an FM tuner / recorder, a built-in speaker (of course) and a stopwatch. The lithium-ion's battery life is said to last 8 hours for your music and 3 hours for your video needs. The 3 models: 2GB, 4GB, and 8GB will be retailing at Sears (Yes!) for (USD) $99.99, $119.99, and $149.99 respectively. Although there are only these 3 different models, there is also a microSD slot for more expansion. It's clearly missing WiFi and also Apple's App Store of course.

[Engadget]

There is a new rumour that Apple's App Store will be receiving a new edition called "Premium" Apps. As of right now, there are a ton of apps to go through, so the App Store is a mess to go through. Maybe Apple should clean that up. Anyways, these "Premium" apps will be selling for $20+ USD to give those greedy developers more money in their wallet. That is, if these rumours are true.

In Osaka, Japan, it is going to be a requirement to have a Nintendo DS as part of your studies. 10 elementary and middle schools have been given the green light to purchase and also distribute the DS's by next January. It will be bundled with some bloatware aka "educational software." I still call those students lucky even with the added software, especially if they're free-of-charge.

If we head over to Japan again (or just stay there), we can possibly spot these 2 new desktop PCs from the Japanese brand, Mouse Computer. The NextGear L720 and the Masterpiece V1200 are both packed with Intel's Core i7 processors. Both models can also pack in 3GB - 12GB of DDR3 RAM, SATA HDDs, NVIDIA GeForce graphics cards and even a Blu-ray optical drive for your entertainment. These desktops will start at a base price of ¥110,000 ($1,121 USD) so make sure you're willing to dish out that much cash.

This looks like it is yet another step into the future 3D-world. In a confusing way, they have made their GamerXtreme 3D 1000 more powerful than their GamerXtreme 3D 2000. Anyways, the 2000 model will have a Phemon II X3 720 triple-core processor; meanwhile, the 1000 model will have a 2.66GHz Core i7-920 processor. They will both feature the NVIDIA GeForce GTS 250 graphics card, a 22-inch Samsung SyncMaster 2233RZ 120Hz LCD monitor, a bunch of other high-end specs and it also comes with the infamous 3D glasses. The GamerXtreme 2000 model is retailing for $1,299 USD and the 1000 model will retail for $1,839 USD.

iPhone Premium App Store (and picture): http://i.gizmodo.com/5169968/rumor-a-premium-app-store-for-even-pricier-iphone-apps
Nintendo DS's In Schools (and picture): http://g4tv.com/thefeed/blog/post/693985/Japanese-School-Requires-Students-To-Have-a-Nintendo-DS.html?utm_source=g4tv&utm_medium=rssfeeds&utm_campaign=TheFeed
Mouse Computer NextGear and Masterpiece (and picture): http://www.engadget.com/2009/03/14/mouse-computer-doles-out-dueling-core-i7-powered-desktops/
CyberPower Gamer Xtreme 3D Desktop PCs (and picture): http://www.engadget.com/2009/03/13/cyberpower-rolls-out-gamer-xtreme-3d-desktops/