Gadgets
Nokia n97: iPhone Inspired, quite nifty and… silver [Video]
Dec 2nd
The new N97 will cost about 700 USD. It’ll boast a full QWERTY-keyboard, a resistive touchscreen (3.5”, 640×360), 32GB of built-in memory and a 5 megapixel camera probably capable of recording video too.
Natively Sync Google Calendar with iPhone/iPod Touch [Yay]
Aug 5th
Update: Google’s OTA Syncing
Google has released its own Over-The-Air syncing method for the iPhone/iPod Touch by licensing Microsoft’s ActiveSync technology. Reportedly, it works like NuevaSync but restricts you to 5 dedicated calendars. NuevaSync doesn’t do this, as far as I know. I will have a write-up on this pretty soon.
Continued…
NuevaSync (free) utilizes the built-in Microsoft Exchange support in the iPhone to make native synchronization of Google Calendar possible. Most importantly, the service actually uses PUSH (really this time) to propagate changes issued to the calendar immediately. Finally this has been made possible at no cost, without extra software.
Support for anything other than Outlook on the iPhone has been a long standing issue ever since the marveled mobile device was released. As I described earlier on the subject, one had to go through an irritable/expensive rigamarole to get Google Calendar events synchronized with the iPhone or iPod touch. And if you got it working in the end, you either had to make due with some missing data or pay good money for a third-party application to get the job done.
Review: Wordpress [iPhone App]
Jul 23rd
Wordpress finally puts out its native app for the iPhone. While at first the promising UI aspects look exciting, the application turns out to be a bit of disappointment. It’s definitely a 1.0-application. A short review. [rating:2.5]
A bit late in the game, Wordpress finally decided to come out with its application for the iPhone/iPod Touch. The promise is that you’ll be able to blog from anywhere in an easy and robust fashion. I’ve spent some time with this application and ended up with a mixed experience. Robust, yes. Easy, not quite.
Version: 1.0
Price: Free
Wordpress App for iPhone
Jul 22nd
Automattic released their first Wordpress application for the Apple iPhone and iPod Touch today, shortly after the 2.6 update to their blogging software. This simple app interfaces with any self-hosted or Wordpress.com-hosted weblog and allows you to edit and post entries on the go.
I’ve downloaded the app to my trusty iPod Touch and will be reviewing it extensively once I’ve had the chance to play with it. From now on, not having a computer around will undoubtedly no longer be an excuse to lag on blogging.
Stop the Apple iCraze
Jul 13th
The Apple craze was ignited once more since the launch of the iPhone 3G. People waiting in line to spend money, while signing ludicrously expensive carrier contracts, makes me wonder if all this folly is justifiable, sometimes. While 3G and GPS may be interesting enough, the revelation of the iPhone as a platform turns out to be the true point of excitement.
As expected, the usual craze started after the latest installment of the Apple iPhone was officially launched. Immense queues started lining up in front of Apple Stores while people went berserk to get their hands on this piece of gadgetry. One may wonder: “Is it all worth it?”. Since I don’t own an iPhone 3G, I’ll leave the review up to the pros, whom are spread thickly over the net. This Google search should get you going in case you’re the type to research a big investment as such before you buy.
Become a Magician with iPhone
May 30th
Impress your friends and family with some cool tricks you can do with an iPhone or iPod Touch:
More info at HotTrix.
iBeer
iMilk
iBug
iMunchies
iPod Touch: 'January Software Upgrade' after 1.1.4
Mar 15th
When the 1.1.3 firmware upgrade came along for the iPod Touch, I decided to hold off a little. The additions to the OS were Mail, Maps, Stocks, Notes and the customizable Home Screen. The upgrade cost 20 USD or 17.99 EUR. Short thereafter 1.1.4 was released, which caused the notification for the ‘January Software Upgrade’ to disappear.
Afterwards I decided to purchase the upgrade anyway, but couldn’t find a trace of it anymore. The link on Apple’s website points to a page in iTunes, but clicking on the ‘OK’-button resulted into a blank page. Over and over again.
After some Google-foo I found the following link: http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewSoftware?id=271872604&s=143441. From here, I was perfectly able to purchase the update after all.
I wonder why Apple doesn’t make it easier for them to haul in even more money.
Ah well.
(Source: http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1418496&tstart=0)
Sync iPhone/iPod Touch with Google Calendar
Mar 13th
Update: Over-the-air synchronization available
You can seamlessly synchronize your Google Calendar and Contacts with a free service called NuevaSync, as discussed by me in this article. Google has also recently implemented its own version of OTA sync by licensing Microsoft ActiveSync technology. I’ll have a writeup on this soon. OggSync is still a viable alternative though, if you already incorporate MS Outlook in your workflow and don’t mind the limitations this application causes.
- Native syncing with NuevaSync << Ace on Tech.com
Continued…
Synchronize multiple (primary and secondary) Google Calendars to Outlook and your iPhone/iPod Touch for free with OggSync.
- Download OggSync 3.22 for Outlook (direct link)
- www.oggsync.com
The iPhone and iPod Touch don’t support calendaring very well out of the box. Apple provides some rudimentary implementation for Microsoft Outlook on the Windows side (the majority of the user base is Windows-users – after all). And that’s pretty much where it stops. Most likely, when the iPhone SDK makes its debut the tables will turn once the third-party developers get their foot behind the door, but for now we’re stuck with Outlook.
The only way to get your Google Calendar(s) onto the iPhone* (i.e. without hacking) is to go through Microsoft Outlook. This means you’ll have to subsequently synchronize your calendars with Outlook and then with the iPhone. Furthermore, the latest version of the ‘Home & Student’ edition of Office [2007] doesn’t come equipped with Outlook anymore, like previous iterations used to. If you’re a Windows user and want calendaring on the iPhone, you’ll have to acquire Outlook first.
Lame, I know.
The secondary calendars dilemma
The problem with Google’s own syncing app for Outlook is that it only supports 1 calendar, the primary calendar. If you like a certain structure in your events, like I do, this will rapidly become a problem. If you want, it is possible to merge all your calendars into one. In that case, you can go ahead and sync to Outlook with Google’s own app.
In order to accomplish a merged primary calendar, you can:
- Move the events to your primary calendar, or
- Export your entire secondary calendar and import them into your primary calendar
(Google promises to make the multi-calendar feature available in the future, but doesn’t specify a date)
OggSync (Google-Outlook Sync) to the rescue
For those who refuse to make such a sacrifice (hell, I do) there’s a free app out there called OggSync. It’s an Outlook Add-In that supports primary and secondary calendars seamlessly and best of all, it’s free. It docks right into the standard Calendar view as a toolbar and provides you with a few options. Once you’re set, all you need to do is hit the ‘Sync’-button. Magically, GCal events will start to trickle into your Outlook Calendar…
After that, plug in your iPhone and sync away.
Pros:
- Full support for all your calendars
- Support for both Outlook 2003 AND 2007
- Pro version available, but optional
- Free!
Cons:
- A bit of a hassle, but heck, it’s better than nothing, no?
- No calendar coloring support [yet] in Outlook 2007
- An occasional freeze, but they don’t usually linger for long
Download OggSync 3.22 for Outlook (direct link)
Notes
*: You can also access your Google Calendars via the Safari browser on the iPhone. However, this is a static view and means you cannot add or edit events. Furthermore, you will need WiFi availability in order for this work. Experience has shown you don’t usually have wireless around when you need that desperate peek at your calendar.
iPhone 2.0
Mar 10th
Over the weekend popular tech sites got themselves engulfed in iPhone 2.0-related stores. Numerous live reporters/bloggers were present, yet they all had a different take on Apple’s presentation related to the soon-to-come 2.0 Software Update and SDK. In search of a neutral stance on things, I found Paul Thurrott’s rather lengthy write-up on the matter.
In case you’ve got an hour and a half to spare and are in for some Apple-bragging, the whole event is up on Apple’s website in both Standard and High Def (QuickTime) video. I wonder why anyone would like to see Jobs’ face up close in HD, though.
A concise version of the event
As always, Jobs starts his presentation with the regular bragging about how fantastic things are going. The iPhone is now n°2 (right after RIM>BlackBerry) in the US smartphone market with a 28% share and accounts for 71 percent of mobile browsing.
Enterprise support
The iPhone is finally going to natively accomodate corporate functionality, in hopes of winning over businesses to acknowledge the iPhone as a true smartphone. When Apple ships the 2.0 software update, the iPhone and iPod Touch will support the following enterprise technologies.
- Full support for Microsoft Exchange
- Push e-mail/calendaring/contacts
- Global address list support
- Cisco IPSec VPN
- Two-factor authentication by means of certificates and identities
- WPA 2 Enterprise, 802.1x
- Remote wipe (over the air)
- Mandatory usage of a PIN
To make this all happen, Apple licensed the ActiveSync protocol from Microsoft.
The software update will be offered to iPhone users for free. iPod Touch users will need to pay a nominal fee, probably (hopefully) similar to the $20 fee for the 1.1.3 update.
Software Development Kit
The SDK is out already and can be downloaded for free*. Apps will be distributed through iTunes via a developer program. Developers can join this program for $99 a year. Companies will pay more ($299, also yearly). Though this looks like a great deal, you must note that the SDK will only work on Macs. Developing for the iPhone/Touch will require more funds than you thought, since you’ll need to purchase a whole new computer, too.
As an introductory to the SDK, Scott Forstall (vice president of iPhone software) outlined the iPhone’s architecture, which borrows heavily from Mac OS X. In fact, it’s comprised of 4 main layers:
- Core OS
- Core Services
- Media
- Cocoa Touch
The most impressive thing about this all is that Apple ported the first three layers from OS X without a lot of modification. The media layer provides several interesting API’s including an embedded version of OpenGL. Electronic Arts has developed a demo version of Spore, which uses the accelerometer for navigation.
Developing for the iPhone will give you all the tools Apple uses for OS X and the native iPhone apps:
- XCode + iPhone emulator: Apple’s Mac OS X-based development environment
- Remote debugger: hook up an iPhone/Touch and debug live
- Interface Builder: toolset for creating the GUI for the app (by dragging around controls, like Visual .NET)
- Instruments: statistics on the debugging app (CPU, File System, Memory Usage)
All APIs are written in Objective-C, a language that resembles C++, C# and Java to a certain degree, but is substantially different from what most programmers are used to.
App Store & iTunes
Every iPhone and iPod Touch that applies the 2.0 update will get a new icon on the home screen. This will initiate the App Store, the portable version of the iTunes Application Store. A user would be able to view the inventory and download/install the desired application without ado. It looks and acts much like the iTunes WiFi Store, but will also work over EDGE. Every application you install will also be automatically updated, too.
Rev Split
Developers get 70 percent of the revenues. The other 30 for Apple will render the hosting and distribution. If a developer decides to provide its application for free, there won’t be any hosting costs either. Credit card fees and marketing costs will also be taken care of by Apple.
The iPhone 2.0 update will become available in late June this year.
*: The SDK has indeed already been finalized. I initially stated that it was still in beta, like the 2.0 software update. Thanks for the feedback, Clak.
Zune outselling iPod this Christmas?
Dec 2nd
Yes, it is possible! For the holiday season the Zune has been heavily discounted. Right now, it’s Amazon’s top selling music device. How is this possible? As I’ve just stated, price.
- 4 Gig iPod Nano: $135
- 30 Gig Brown Zune: $134 (!!!)
- 30 Gig Black Zune: $140 (!!!)
- 30 Gig Pink & Red Zune: $150
What’s more, the new Zune 80’s are marked at 17th place at Amazon and are sold out everywhere. Finally some real competition for Apple, huh?
The Zune 30 was the first music player Microsoft came out with and has been recently upgraded with the new firmware, which originates from the new generation of Zunes.
(Yes! It now supports podcasts!)