All indications are that we'll see the iPhone at Walmart next week,
although at only $2 less than Apple and AT&T charge for it.
Low End Mac will be closed for the holidays from Christmas through
New Year's Day. Site updates will resume on Friday, January 2,
2009.
Mac notebook and other portable computing is covered
in The 'Book Review, and general Mac
news is in Mac News Review.
All prices are in US dollars unless otherwise noted.
News, Reviews, & Opinion
Apps & Services
Protection
iPod and iPhone Deals
These price trackers are updated regularly.
News, Reviews, & Opinion
Walmart Posts iPhone Ads in Stores Ahead of
Launch
iPhone Alley's
Edward Kirk reports:
"Walmart has finally openly confirmed an eventual launch of the
iPhone 3G in their stores in the near future. Still not providing a
formal announcement of any kind, stores have began displaying
advertisements for the device in their stores that read 'iPhone 3G: Now
at Walmart' ahead of the scheduled roll-out.
Link:
Walmart Posts iPhone Advertisements in Stores Ahead of Schedule
Leaked Walmart Memo Spills iPhone Plans
IDG News
Service's Agam Shah reports:
"Speculation surrounding Wal-Mart carrying the iPhone reached fever
pitch on Wednesday, with a leaked memo saying the retailer would start
selling the smartphone on Dec. 28.
"The memo, which has been published on
Engadget, states that an 8 GB iPhone 3G will be priced at
$197, and a 16 GB iPhone at $297, with a two-year cell phone contract
with AT&T. Speculation last month suggested Wal-Mart would sell a
4 GB iPhone 3G for $99, so the higher prices could come as a
disappointment. Intial [sic] reports of an Apple-Wal-Mart allaince
[sic], however, centered around a $2 discount."
Link: Rumors
Build on Wal-Mart's iPhone Plans
ChangeWave Survey Shows BlackBerry, iPhone Battle
Raging On
PR:
Rockville, Maryland, December 23, 2008 - Research In Motion (RIMM) and
Apple (AAPL) continue to dominate the consumer smart phone market,
according to the latest ChangeWave survey. The survey shows Apple
enjoying another good quarter in the aftermath of its 3G iPhone
release.
But while RIM sales momentum has been sluggish in recent quarters,
its new BlackBerry product launches have unleashed a jump in consumer
planned buying that suggests a full-scale battle with Apple for market
supremacy in 2009.
But are the new BlackBerry products strong enough to capitalize on
the increased consumer interest?
The ChangeWave survey of 3,803 cell phone owners, has taken a close
look at smart phone market trends, including consumer reaction to RIM's
launch of the BlackBerry Storm and how it compares to the Apple iPhone.
The December 9-15, 2008 survey was conducted just weeks after the
Storm's initial release.
Smart Phone Market Demand
The overall growth rate for the smart phone market has contracted
since the previous survey, but it's still positive despite the
recessionary climate. A total of 12.2% of respondents plan on buying a
smart phone over the next 90 days, 0.3% more than previously.
Current Market Share: Apple vs. RIM vs. Palm. While
RIM (41%) is still the consumer market share leader, it has fallen 1-pt
since our previous survey in September to its lowest percentage of the
last 12 months.
At the same time, Apple (23%; up 6-pts) has witnessed explosive
growth - up 6-pts just since September. Importantly, its overall market
share has more than doubled in the past six months - a direct result of
the July release of the 3G iPhone.
Taken together, Apple and RIM now control two-thirds of the smart
phone market, as smaller/weaker players such as Palm (9%) have proven
unable to compete.
Next 90 Days - Winners and Losers. The picture going forward points
to changes in the smart phone market. RIM (39%; up 9-pts) shows real
momentum due to its slew of new product launches - e.g., the Storm,
Bold, Pearl Flip - and appears capable of giving Apple a real run for
its money in the first quarter of 2009.
Moreover, after the huge wave of enthusiasm
generated by the 3G iPhone launch, Apple consumer planned buying (30%;
down 4-pts) appears to have settled down somewhat.
In short, as the first quarter approaches, the ball has shifted back
into BlackBerry's court in the form of a big uptick in consumer
interest which they can potentially capitalize on. But is the new RIM
lineup of consumer products strong enough to take full advantage of
their increased demand?
BlackBerry Storm vs. The iPhone
The current survey took a close-up look at the reaction of 61 owners
of the new BlackBerry Storm, and compared the results to a similar
survey in July 2007 of new owners of the original iPhone.
Customer Satisfaction. The overall satisfaction rating given by new
owners of the Blackberry Storm can, at best, be characterized as
lukewarm. One in three Storm owners (33%) said they were Very Satisfied
with their new model, well below the 52% Very Satisfied rating given by
all current owners of BlackBerry smart phones.
Simply put, the Storm satisfaction rating is similar to that of
mid-tier smart phone manufacturers like Nokia (32%), Motorola (32%),
HTC (31%) and Samsung (30%). While far from bad, it's mediocre - which
means it's a potential concern regarding RIM's head-to-head battle with
Apple.
For comparative purposes, here's
how the BlackBerry Storm's favorability ratings stack up against those
of the original iPhone (taken in a survey of new iPhone owners in July
2007, less than a month after its initial release).
As the chart shows, the original iPhone's Very Satisfied rating
(77%) was more than double that of the new BlackBerry Storm (33%).
Importantly, the Storm's Unsatisfied rating (14%) is three times higher
than that of the original iPhone (5%).
Note that 4% of new buyers report they've already returned/exchanged
their Storm, or are Very Likely to return it. Another 7% say they're
Somewhat Likely to return or exchange it.
BlackBerry Storm: Key Likes and Dislikes
Respondents were asked what they liked best and disliked most about
the Storm. The results show that RIM made the right choice in producing
a touch screen phone, being that it's a highly popular option in the
smart phone market. One-in-two (49%) say Touch Screen Interface is what
they like best about their BlackBerry Storm. Other key likes include
Screen Size (46%) and Screen Resolution (43%).
At the same time, the touch screen interface represents one of the
BlackBerry Storm model's biggest Achilles heels. Regarding dislikes,
Lack of a QWERTY Keyboard (21%), Touch Screen Interface (20%) and
Difficult to Use (20%) were top issues, along with Short Battery Life
(21%).
Summary: The smart phone market is now dominated by two companies -
Apple and Research In Motion. According to our survey results, the
Apple iPhone trails the RIM BlackBerry in terms of current market share
- but the iPhone has experienced strong growth since its inception and
explosive growth since the release of the 3G model in July 2008.
Going forward, RIM is showing a surge in momentum due to its slew of
new product launches - and appears capable of giving Apple a strong
challenge in 2009. But the real test in a cutthroat market is how
satisfied consumers actually are with their new models.
In this survey, we found the BlackBerry Storm's satisfaction rating
to be middle-of-the-road - lagging behind the average rating for other
RIM BlackBerry models. It's not that the BlackBerry Storm is a bad
phone. It's just that the initial launch has glitches which have
resulted in a mediocre satisfaction rating.
Competitive pressures may have caused the Storm to be launched
before it was quite ready for primetime. But if RIM can rapidly fix its
initial glitches and bugs, the survey shows that this new offering -
along with RIM's other recently released models - will provide
accelerated momentum for RIM in 2009.
Link: ChangeWave
Survey Shows BlackBerry, iPhone Battle Raging On
The iPhone Is Apple's Netbook: Almost Half
of iPhone Traffic via WiFi
ReadWriteWeb's
Frederic Lardinois says:
"According to the latest report from AdMob, 42% of all requests from
iPhones to Admob's partners worldwide are coming in over WiFi instead
of through the networks of mobile operators. This puts the iPhone in a
league of its own, given that on average, AdMob is only seeing about
10-20% of all requests from WiFi capable phones actually coming in from
WiFi networks. From T-Mobile's Android phone, for example, only about
10% of all requests were made on WiFi.
"The iPod touch and the PlayStation Portable come in at number two
(28%) and three (13.1%) with respect to WiFi usage in the US....
"Steve Jobs once said that the iPhone is Apple's netbook, and this
usage data does lend some credence to this...."
Link:
The iPhone Is Apple's Netbook: Almost Half of All Traffic from WiFi
Networks
iPhone Users Lean Heavily on WiFi for Web
Access
Computerworld's Gregg Keizer reports:
"More than 40% of all US traffic last month between Apple Inc.'s
iPhone and the world's largest mobile ad network took place over WiFi
connections, not over AT&T's cellular data network, AdMob Inc. said
today.
"During November, 42% of the iPhone connections to AdMob's 6,000
advertising partners were over WiFi, said the company in its most
recent metrics report.
"iPhone users' heavy reliance on wireless is part of a growing
trend, according to the report...."
Link:
iPhone Users Lean Heavily on Wi-Fi for Web Access
iPhone 3G Third Most Important Business Technology
Products of 2008
Tech
Republic's Jason Hiner says:
"The unrelenting pace of innovation in the technology industry
continued its march in 2008. Here is a look at the 10 technology
products that had the most important impact for businesses....
"3. Apple iPhone 3G
"The iPhone is one of only three products that made this list for
the second straight year....
"However, BlackBerry Bold is rated #1 this year."
Link: The 10 Most Important
Business Technology Products of 2008
iPhone Named Top Web Platform of 2008
ReadWriteWeb's
Richard MacManus says:
2008 has seen a proliferation of new Web platforms, including a few
major ones built using open standards. In this final instalment of our
series of top products of 2008, we choose the top 10 Web platforms of
the year.
1. iPhone SDK
ReadWriteWeb named Apple as our Best BigCo of 2008, largely due to
the iPhone platform. ....
Link:
Top 10 Web Platforms of 2008
Holiday Smackdown: iPod touch vs. Zune
Forbes' Asher
Hawkins says:
"My name is Asher, and I'm a recovering iPod junkie. Last fall I
kicked my three-year habit when the earphone jack on my black,
30-gigabyte iPod Classic came loose, leaving me with fuzzy sound on the
right side. I didn't have time to get it fixed - and funny enough,
after a few days I didn't much miss it.
"Even so, when an editor asked me to compare Microsoft's Zune to
Apple's iPod touch, I was sure my affinity for any and all hardware
incubated in Cupertino, Calif., (I've been a Mac user since age 5)
would destroy my objectivity.
"Having given my disclosures, here's my verdict: The Zune is pretty
nifty. The Touch, however, is a superfluous addition to Apple's iPod
roster...."
Link:
Holiday Smackdown: iPod touch vs. Zune
More Evidence for 'iPhone nano'
Register Hardware's
Tony Smith reports:
"Another day, another tantalising implication Apple's about to
announced the iPhone nano.
"This time, it's from iPhone case maker XSKN. It doesn't have a
picture of the product, but it does have a section on its website with
exactly that name. It's present alongside 'iPhone 3G' and 'iPhone 1st
Gen', along with sections devoted to HTC phones, BlackBerries, all the
iPods and more."
Link: Evidence
for 'iPhone nano' Gathers Pace
Apps & Services
SimCity Comes to the iPhone
PR: EA Mobile, a division of Electronic Arts Inc. today
announced the availability of SimCity for the iPhone and iPod touch.
SimCity provides an addictive environment for players to construct,
manage and even destroy their own dream city, all in the palm of their
hand.
SimCity for the iPhone and iPod touch takes
mobile games to a whole new level, said Adam Sussman, VP Publishing
Americas and Asia for EA Mobile. Easy to learn, a lifetime to master,
its one of the largest mobile games ever produced, providing our
customers with hundreds of hours of great gameplay.
Build an entire metropolis on your iPhone, from budgets to
bulldozers, taxes to tornadoes, everything is in your control and the
skys the limit. With SimCity, you can make your city look stunning by
incorporating contemporary landmarks like the Golden Gate Bridge and
the Washington Monument. Strike the perfect balance between industrial
and residential zones to keep your city thriving, manage utilities like
water and garbage, and even control traffic to keep your citizens
happy. Ready for a change? Just tap the screen to call in a disaster
and watch UFOs rain destruction upon your citys foundation!
SimCity is available globally from the Apple App Store on iPhone and
iPod touch, or by simply visiting eamobile.com from an iPhone.
Editor's note: I don't even want to think about how many hours I've
spent playing SimCity, starting with the black-and-white version on my
Mac Plus. Every improvement in processing power and screen resolution
has only made it more fascinating. It will be interesting to see how
SimCity fares on the small screen - even lower resolution than the
original Macintosh. dk
Link: SimCity
for iPhone and iPod touch (available through the
Apple App Store)
Kraft Foods Launches iFood Assistant for iPhone
and iPod touch
PR: Kraft Foods has announced that iFood Assistant, a new
application for iPhone and iPod touch that offers users access to food
and meal planning ideas, is now available on the Apple App Store.
Unlike similar Web Apps that only link to external Web sites designed
to be viewed on an iPhone, iFood Assistant is a resident program that
can be downloaded from the Apple App Store and installed on any iPhone
and iPod touch. A first for any food or consumer packaged goods
company, the launch of iFood Assistant represents the latest in Kraft's
commitment to providing innovative solutions for consumers' busy and
increasingly wireless lifestyles.
"People's
lives are becoming increasingly complex and they're looking for
relevant content and solutions to make their lives easier," explains Ed
Kaczmarek, director of innovation, new services at Kraft. "We've worked
with top interactive agency Genex, a division of Meredith Corporation,
to create this dynamic iPhone application that answers the call with
not only recipes and food ideas, but meal planning and preparation
advice across many categories and consumer brands."
Fresh features of iFood Assistant include:
- Over 7,000 tested, searchable recipes with clear, step-by-step
instructions - also includes an alternate horizontal view to follow
along while cooking
- Users can review comments on recipes and share with others
- Shopping lists with nearby store recommendations and the ability to
add custom ingredients
- High quality video demonstrations with easy to follow
instructions
- Useful tips and shortcuts to aid on-the-go consumers like the
"Dinner Tonight" and "Recipe of the Day" sections that feature daily
recipes
iFood Assistant seeks to fill a consumer need for convenient mobile
solutions that extend beyond the store shelves. The application itself
has been designed as an agnostic platform with the flexibility to
evolve with partners joining to provide relevant content, solutions and
tools that can be integrated into the application. For more
information, guided tour videos and to inquire about partnership
opportunities, visit iFoodAssistant.com
iFood Assistant is available for $0.99 from Apple's App Store.
Link: iFood
Assistant (available through the
Apple App Store)
Choose Fresh Produce with In Season for iPhone and
iPod touch
PR: Ohio based Light
Year Software introduces "In Season", their new produce shopping guide
for the iPhone and iPod touch. Leveraging the iPhone's unique
interface, In Season features a database of common fruits and
vegetables with information about when they are in season.
Additionally, the guide includes great background information about the
food, how to pick the most exceptional selections at the market, as
well as how to best store them at home.
Light Year Software LLC introduces "In Season", their new produce
shopping guide for the iPhone and iPod touch. Leveraging the iPhone's
unique interface, In Season features a database of common fruits and
vegetables with information about when they are in season.
Most Americans have forgotten what good produce tastes like. Our
modern supermarkets sell fresh produce that is bred for heavy yields,
shipment and shelf life, but not necessarily taste. And, there is the
expectation that everything is available all year long.
In Season aims to help change that by showing when fresh fruit and
vegetables are at their peak. The guide includes great background
information about the food, how to pick the most exceptional selections
at the market, as well as how to best store them at home.
Feature highlights include:
- Features database of the most common fruits and vegetables that are
in season
- At-a-glance, displays when fresh fruit and vegetables are at their
peak
- Includes great background information about the selected food
Seasonal produce always tastes better and costs less because supply
is higher. Farmers and distributors alike spend less money and effort
getting the food to market. And locally grown produce is even better,
since it travels a shorter distance and farmers can offer heirloom
varieties that typically cannot survive a long trip to market.
By buying fruits and vegetables when they are in season, consumers
eat better tasting food, reduce their carbon footprint, and best of
all, save money at the same time.
Supported Languages: US English
System Requirements: iPhone or iPod touch 2.2
Pricing and Availability:
In Season 1.0 for iPhone is only $1.99 and available exclusively
through Apple's App Store.
Link: In Season
(available through the
Apple App Store)
HP Introduces Free Photo Printing App on App
Store
PR: HP has announced HP iPrint Photo, a free application
available on the Apple App store that gives iPhone and iPod touch
customers the ability to easily print photos anytime, anywhere.
HP iPrint Photo is the first photo printing application of its kind
and allows for quick and easy wireless printing of 4 x 6-inch photos
from an iPhone or iPod touch to most HP inkjet printers connected to a
local Wi-Fi network. The application is fully compatible with Apple's
Bonjour technology and uses the innovative Multitouch interface for the
easiest and fastest wireless iPhone or iPod touch print experience.
"Today's news demonstrates how HP is enabling customers to turn
special moments captured on the go into high-quality photos," said
Vyomesh Joshi, executive vice president, Imaging and Printing Group,
HP. "More than any other company in the world, HP has re-imagined,
reengineered and reinvented the power of printing with exciting new
technologies that address real customer needs."
The HP iPrint Photo application provides customers the freedom and
flexibility to wirelessly print the millions of photos that have been
captured on iPhone or iPod touch devices. It will be showcased for the
first time at the 2009 Macworld Conference & Expo and the 2009
Consumer Electronics Show (CES).
"There's a major shift happening in the mobile domain today," said
Rob Enderle, president and principal analyst, Enderle Group. "Annual
camera phone device shipments are exploding on a worldwide basis, and
mobile photo printing is quickly growing. Until now, customers had no
easy way to print the special moments captured on their iPhone or
stored on their iPod touch."
HP iPrint Photo is available at no charge from Apple's App
Store.
Link:
HP iPrint Photo (available through the
Apple App Store)
Watch 'Live TV' on Your iPhone with Free App
PR: equinux has announced the free iPhone app "Live TV", a
program designed to watch live TV on your iPhone. "Live TV" shows all
TV channels that the TV software, The Tube receives. "Live TV" gets
live TV signals via Placeshift in the same wireless local area network
(WLAN) as your Mac. The easily operable user interface allows users to
choose all channels directly on their iPhone.
"Live TV" shows the current TV channels that The Tube provides in
the same WLAN in an optimized resolution for your iPhone. As soon as
your iPhone is registered with The Tube, you'll be able to watch all
available channels on your iPhone with a simple click. And you can also
change channels in "Live TV" just that easily.
"With 'Live TV' we're opening up an entirely new media experience on
iPhone", said equinux CEO Till Schadde. "'Live TV' underlines our
technical innovation and our commitment to the field of media."
The perfect TV experience for the rest of us
To open up the mobile TV experience to a broader audience, equinux
now delivers its TV solution TubeStick hybrid together with its
ultimate media center software MediaCentral as a Special Edition and
lowers the regular price to only $99 starting immediately.
"Live TV" will soon be free to download from the iTunes App Store.
To be able to enjoy live television on your iPhone with "Live TV",
you'll need the TV software, The Tube 2.9.2. The Tube is delivered with
the TubeStick, the TV receiver from equinux and currently supports more
than 20 different TV receivers including those from Hauppauge.
The Tube is the most innovative and modern TV solution for Mac
users. The Tube brings digital and analog TV to your Mac. You can watch
live television, pause running shows (Timeshift), go through the TV
listings in the electronic program guide (EPG) and schedule recordings.
With Placeshift, you can stream live TV to friends via iChat and enjoy
Live TV on your iPhone. The Tube is the only TV application with
TubeTalk live-chat and a lot of other amazing community features. With
the web service, TubeToGo, you can watch and program recordings via the
internet on your iPhone or iPod touch online. The Tube supports more
than 20 TV devices and is localized in English, French, German, Italian
and Spanish.
Link: equinux
(available soon from the
Apple App Store)
Smartsheet Announces iPhone Support
PR: Smartsheet.com, a collaborative work management company,
launched support for the leading smart phone platforms, including
iPhone, BlackBerry, Android, and Windows Mobile. The new offering makes
it possible for Smartsheet subscribers to securely access their
information from the convenience of their mobile device.
Smartsheet Mobile provides users with the means of accessing any
Smartsheet or Smartsheet Report in real time via their mobile browser.
No installation is required; customers simply click on the Customer
Login button on at smartsheet.com
Smartsheet Mobile allows knowledge workers to view the current state
of personal and shared work items and to retrieve frequently accessed
information such as status, customer information, or reference
materials. A 30-day free trial of Smartsheet Mobile is available with
new accounts.
"Today's mobile worker needs convenient access to information
regardless of location," said Mark Mader, CEO of Smartsheet.com.
"Smartsheet Mobile is designed to provide those users with an
experience tailored for the compact screen of the iPhone and
BlackBerry."
Smartsheet's own research, based on surveys of its customer base,
indicated that users have a preference for mobile tools. For Smartsheet
users, the ability to view the current state of personal and shared
information led the next closest action by a factor of 4:1. In order of
what functions Smartsheet users stated they would most frequently use
from their mobile device:
- View sheet or report (64%)
- Edit existing information (15%)
- Send information or request an update on existing information
(14%)
- Add new information (7%)
"I'm feeling less and less compelled to bring my laptop everywhere,"
said Brad Jefferson, CEO of Animoto.com. "Today's mobile devices are as
robust as PCs and mission-critical work applications - like Smartsheet
- are now accessible from virtually anywhere."
Link: Smartsheet
Take a Note Overcomes iPhone Notes
Limitations
PR: Readdle announces the release of its brand new Take a
Note iPhone application. Take a Note overcomes two major limitations of
the built in iPhone Notes by providing access to notes from any
Macintosh or Windows computer. Take a Note supports voice, drawing and
photo memos in addition to text notes. Users can copy whole folders
with text, sound or image files to their devices and they will be
instantly transformed into new notes.
Readdle announces the release of their brand new Take a
Note iPhone application, that overcomes two major limitations of the
built in iPhone Notes by providing the access to individuals notes from
any Macintosh or Windows computer and supporting voice, drawing and
photo memos in addition to text notes.
Take a Note has everything that an iPhone or iPod touch user needs
for his note taking on the go: four types of notes, custom categories,
search, send by email functions and a user friendly interface.
What makes Take a Note unique is the ability to connect to the
iPhone as shared network drive and browse the notes as text, sound and
image files, copy these files to the computer and even add existing
text documents as new notes. Moreover, users can copy whole folders
with text, sound or image files to their devices and they will be
instantly transformed into new notes.
"The major limitation of the iPhone Notes is that all notes are
locked to the iPhone. With our new Take a Note application, users have
access to all their notes as files that they can freely backup, delete
and edit," explains Alexander Tyagulsky, Readdle CMO. "Have a note on
your computer that you want to get on your iPhone? Just create new text
file on your device running Take a Note and copy&paste note text
there."
Take a Note is available for $4.99 exclusively at the App Store.
Link: Take a Note (available
through the
Apple App Store)
David Pogue's iPhone: The Missing Manual App
PR: Missing Manuals, a publishing division of O'Reilly Media,
dedicated to producing beautifully written, easy-to-use manuals for
popular consumer software and hardware products, has announced the
release of its first iPhone App, iPhone: The Missing Manual.
This new App makes it possible to read and intelligently
browse New York Times columnist David Pogue's best-selling book -
iPhone: The Missing Manual, Second Edition (O'Reilly, $24.99) -
anytime, day or night, on your iPhone. Indeed, for everyone getting or
giving an iPhone over the holidays, learning how to use your new iPhone
has never been easier with this handy new App.
Full of humor, tips, tricks, and surprises, iPhone: The Missing
Manual App, just like Pogue's book, covers iPhone 3G and teaches you
how to extend iPhone's usefulness by utilizing its links to the Web as
well as its connection to Macs or PCs; how to save money using
Internet-based messages instead of phone calls; and how to fill the
iPhone with TV shows and DVDs for free. Instead of fumbling around with
your new iPhone, take advantage of iPhone: The Missing Manual App.
Best of all, the new App is available now for a limited time at an
introductory price of $4.99 (which will increase to $9.99). The iPhone:
The Missing Manual App was built by Lexcycle, creators of the popular
Stanza App, so you get the same rich reading experience (including live
linking and cross references) as when you read our other books on
Stanza.
In total, more than 700 of O'Reilly Media titles are currently
available for sale as DRM-free PDFs and Ebook bundles. In addition, all
18 of our Head First books will be available in PDF form within the
next 24 hours.
David Pogue, Yale '85, is the weekly personal-technology columnist
for the New York Times and an Emmy award-winning tech correspondent for
CBS News. With 3 million books in print, he is also one of the world's
best-selling how-to authors. He wrote or co-wrote seven books in the
"for Dummies" series (including Macs, Magic, Opera, and Classical
Music); in 1999, he launched his own series of complete, funny computerbooks called Missing Manuals, which now includes 30 titles.
Link: iPhone: The Missing Manual
App (available through the
Apple App Store)
Mint.com Introduces Free iPhone Personal Finance
Application
PR: Mint.com, a leading personal finance service, has
announced the release of a free application for Apple iPhone users
available on the iPhone App Store.
This application gives Mint.com's 650,000 users mobile access to the
award-winning website's services, including on-the-go access to bank
account balances, credit and debit card charges, status versus their
monthly budgets and performance of their investment accounts. "We're
excited to be bringing easy and effective money and budgeting
management to the iPhone platform," said Aaron Patzer, founder and CEO.
"We're totally committed to giving our users access to their financial
information anytime, anywhere."
This iPhone app is the latest in a series of mobile features
introduced by Mint.com. The service was the first to provide free SMS
text message alerts of upcoming bills, low balances and bank fees on
accounts at over 7,500 US financial institutions.
Incoming SMS text services were added last month, allowing users to
check account balances in any of their bank, credit card or investment
accounts by texting BAL to MyMint (696468). Recent Mint.com research
indicated that its users had not found a mobile personal finance
application that met their needs.
Over 70% of active Mint.com users said they used "no mobile money
management service" as of September, 2008. At the same time, over 90%
of users believed that they would use a mobile Mint.com application -
with 30% saying they'd use it daily or several times per day. This
level of activity would represent another breakthrough by Mint.com in
bringing easy-to-understand and readily accessible personal finance
information to more Americans. The application released today gives
users the ability to stay on top of their total financial situation,
whenever and where ever they are. Once the user has created their free
Mint.com account at http://www.mint.com , they simply download the free
iPhone app from iTunes to get access to:
Up-to-the-minute account balances for all their bank, credit card
and investment accounts. All recent transactions across all of those
accounts, automatically categorized. Status on spending versus
personalized budgets, and cash flow. Investment performance.
Alerts on bills due, unusually large expenses and deposits.
The application also provides exceptional data security. Not only is
the application password protected, but users can disable iPhone access
at any time from the Mint.com website should their phone get lost or
stolen.
Link: Mint.com for iPhone
(available through the
Apple App Store)
Dialectic Telephony Software for iPhone
PR: JNSoftware LLC announces the immediate availability of
Dialectic v1.3, a significant update to the popular telephony tool for
Mac OS X. Dialectic v1.3 brings many new features and enhancements
including support for Google's GrandCentral service, Yahoo! Messenger
voice out calls, and the magicJack device.
Dialectic provides systemwide dialing of phone numbers to dozens of
devices & services such as Bluetooth mobile phones - including the
iPhone, landlines, several IP phones, many VoIP services, advanced
telephony hardware such as Ovolab Phlink, Parliant PhoneValet,
FRITZ!Box, and more. With advanced features including a robust
AppleScript dictionary, a built-in web server, and Bonjour support,
Dialectic can be extended to support virtually any device or
service.
Integration with leading contact management applications including
Marketcircle Daylite, Microsoft Entourage, Now Contact, Palm Desktop,
FileMaker Pro, ProVUE Development's Panorama and other databases as
well as Apple's iCal and Address Book make Dialectic an invaluable tool
for casual users as well as business professionals.
In addition to dialing, Dialectic provides many other key features
including incoming call detection, call timers, innovative while you
were out notes, and a global Address Book menu for quickly accessing -
and acting on - all your contact data including email, instant
messaging, postal addresses, URLs, notes, & phone numbers.
Intuitively create new email messages, look up addresses on a map, copy
data to the clipboard or insert it into your current document. It's
fast & useful as well as fun & easy.
Dialectic Key features:
- Mac OS 10.4 & 10.5 Leopard Compatibility
- Universal Binary
- AppleScript Automation & Extensibility
- Quick & Easy Integration With:
- Address Book
- Marketcircle Daylite
- Microsoft Entourage
- Now Contact
- Palm Desktop
- FileMaker Pro, ProVUE Development's Panorama & Other
Databases
- Launchers such as Butler, LaunchBar, & Quicksilver
- Systemwide Dialing via Contextual Menu or Services Menu * Voice
Activated Dialing
- Incoming Call Detection & Auto Redial on Busy
- Call Timer, Log, Notepad, & While You Were Out Notes
- Systemwide Quick Dial Numbers (Speed Dial)
- Supports Dialing With:
- Bluetooth Mobile Phones - Including the iPhone
- Landlines
- IP Phones from Cisco, Snom, & Others
- Advanced Telephony Products Including Asterisk, FRITZ!Box,
magicJack, Ovolab Phlink, & Parliant PhoneValet
- VoIP Services Such as BroadVoice, CallVantage, Speakeasy.net,
ViaTalk, Vonage, & Many More!
- VoIP Softphones Including CounterPath Softphones, Gizmo,
iSoftPhone, JackenIAX, LoudHush, ohphoneX, QuteCom, Skype, WengoPhone,
Yahoo! Messenger & More!
What's New in Dialectic v1.3:
- Added GrandCentral as a native Dial Method allowing multiple
configurations
- Added Yahoo! Messenger & QuteCom to the supported softphones
available in the Softphone Dial Method
- Added magicJack dialing support using the AppleScript Dial Method *
Added incoming call monitors for acting on incoming calls to FRITZ!Box
devices, Skype, & SIP-based softphones
- Added option to close the main window after dialing
- Added option to float the main window over all other windows
- Added option to open a new While You Were Out note on incoming call
detection
- Added option to copy the found contact results of a lookup to the
clipboard
- Added location parameters to both the Dialectic remote HTTP server
dial command and to the dialectic URI scheme's dial command to specify
the Location to use for the number specified in the command
- Added a confirmation when changing the number of call log entries
to remember if the new number would cause the log to be truncated (also
increased the maximum call log length to 10,000 entries)
- Improved compatibility with Mac OS X 10.5.6
- Improved responsiveness to dial commands from outside sources
(e.g., when dialing from the AB Plugin, if Dialectic is not already
launched, the number will be dialed properly once Dialectic fully
loads)
- Improved dialing long numbers when using the Modem Dial Method
(e.g., numbers that include calling card, PIN, and other numbers)
- Improved international number formatting in the Address Book
menu
- Improved creation of Daylite tasks on incoming calls when Daylite
is set as the caller ID lookup source
- Fixed an issue that could cause the application to crash when using
the modem to dial
- Fixed an issue that could cause the application to crash on launch
on systems with French as the primary language
- Made many minor code optimizations and improvements.
- Added more commands to the AppleScript dictionary
- Updated & augmented the documentation
- Posted more resources on the resources page including a plugin for
NetworkLocation by Centrix and more
Minimum System Requirements:
- Mac OS X 10.4.9 (Tiger) or higher including Mac OS X 10.5
(Leopard)
- Universal Binary for PowerPC and Intel-based Macs
Link: Dialectic (available through the
Apple App Store)
PSYCLOPS to Unveil Interactive iPod nano 4G
Accessories at Macworld 2009
PR: PSYCLOPS, developer of kid-friendly iPod accessories with
access to an online interactive music and dance community, will debut
its new iPod nano 4G silicone sleeves at Macworld 2009 in San Francisco
from Jan. 5-9, 2009.
PSYCLOPS silicone sleeves fit perfectly around the iPod nano 4G and
offer stylish protection while providing a colorful eye-catching
appearance. In addition, each sleeve unlocks access to PSYCLOPS
HeadQuarters a fully interactive age appropriate multiplatform online
music and dance experience. Visitors that stop by PSYCLOPS booth #4204
in the North Hall will be able to view the new sleeves, as well as
experience the online music and dance virtual community at PSYCLOPS
HeadQuarters.
PSYCLOPS HeadQuarters is a kid-friendly virtual community where
visitors create their own original customized PSYCLOPS avatars and
place them into a video complete with hot music beats and spectacular
dance moves. With each iPod silicone sleeve, users can create and share
unlimited music and dance videos. The website provides a truly
multiplatform experience where kids can share their killer music video
creations by uploading them to their iPods, sharing them via their
social networking page or emailing the videos to friends and family.
This is the first time an iPod-centric product has offered such
capabilities.
PSYCLOPS executives will be on hand for meetings from Jan. 5-9 at
the company's booth #4204 in the North Hall of the Moscone Center, near
the Mac Music Studio. PSYCLOPS invites press and prospective business
partners to schedule meetings prior to the show or visit the booth.
PSYCLOPS is a fresh and exciting character-based multiplatform
product and online experience for kids 8-14 years old. The first hip
PSYCLOPS characters to hit the dance battle scene are Ike and Syndi,
who find their likeness in vibrant and distinctive PSYCLOPS protective
cases for the iPod nano 3G. Together with a complimentary interactive
web-based music and dance community site, PSYCLOPS HeadQuarters,
PSYCLOPS is an exciting iPod product and truly customizable online
experience like nothing else available today. At PSYCLOPS HeadQuarters,
users can join an interactive community, create their own avatars,
dance moves and music, and share their unique dance videos with family
and friends via email or by downloading to their iPod.
Launched by Los Angeles-based PSYCLOPS LLC, PSYCLOPS cases and
online site are kid-safe with age appropriate content.
Link: PSYCLOPS
HeadQuarters
Protection
Homade ChocoCase for iPhone Looks Like a
Chocolate Bar
PR: Want to have a special iPhone case?
Like chocolate very much?
Love your iPhone so much?
If yes, you can combine them together!
Features:
- As a chocolate bar
- Soft and comfortable
- Packed as a chocolate on the shelf in the supermarket
- Perfect as a gift!
This accessory is compatible with the iPhone 3G
$24.99
Link: Homade
ChocoCase for iPhone
The Sharper Image Debuts New Stylish iPod and
iPhone Cases
PR: The EnE Group LLC, under license by The Sharper Image,
has unveiled the next-generation of cases and accessories for the Apple
iPod and iPhone. The new Sharper Image suite of cases will breathe new
life into iPods and iPhones with aesthetic and technology enhancements.
Users will soon have a first glance at the dazzling cases featuring
built-in speakers, extended play with chargers, duo-colored flaps with
swivel covers and new rugged silicone and plastic cases at Macworld in
San Francisco, January 5-9, 2009.
"What distinguishes The Sharper Image iPod and iPhone cases is the
fact that they are not your typical protective pouches, but rather
uniquely designed cases meant to maximize the digital listening and
viewing experience," said Federico de Bellegarde, vice president of
Licensing at The Sharper Image. "We're very excited to bring a variety
of innovative, patented durable cases to give music lovers a much wider
selection than what they are used to seeing in the market."
Turn up your music with The Sharper Image Speaker Case
The Sharper Image Speaker Case for all iPod models combines the
lightweight functionality of a protective case with two built-in
speakers for rich sound quality. The sleek and durable design will be
available in black, white and pink, making it accessible to a wide
audience in virtually any home, office, commuter or travel setting. The
detachable rubberized viewing stand allows users to share their
favorite tunes and videos with others. An added earphone jack on the
case allows for private listening as well.
The Sharper Image Speaker Case will retail at $39.95.
Additional power hours with The Sharper Image Charger Case
The Sharper Image Charger Case for the iPhone looks like a standard
leather case - but in fact contains a fully rechargeable lithium
battery in this compact design. Ideal for the iPhone road warrior, this
case provides six to eight hours of additional iPhone power for
extended use. The on/off switch turns on the charger only when
necessary and it comes with a USB cord to charge the battery with any
USB-compatible device, including computers and USB car and wall
chargers.
The Sharper Image Charger Case will come in black leather and will
retail at $79.95.
Change your iPod flavor with The Sharper Image Duo Flap Case
The latest fashion design for iPhone and iPod users is The Sharper
Image Duo Flap Case that provides two looks in one case. Featuring
durable nylon material in stylish shades of gray, orange and blue, the
Duo Flap Case includes a swivel cover mechanism to switch the front
cover of the case. The case also includes a wrist strap and carabiner
belt loop/belt clip.
The Sharper Image Duo Flap Case will retail at $29.95.
Stylize your grip with The Sharper Image ABS Plastic Case and
Silicon Case
For the more active lifestyle, The Sharper Image ABS Plastic Case
and Rugged Silicon Case offer high fashion with ultimate functionality
and protection. The ABS Plastic Case is made from heavy duty ABS
plastic material that provides the highest level of protection from
damage and scratches. The Rugged Silicon Case features a unique
box-patterned design for the ultimate grip factor.
Both cases come with a holster clip for active use. In addition, the
patented rotating belt clip can be attached either to the case itself
or on the holster - allowing for two different uses for each case.
The ABS Plastic Case and the Rugged Silicon Case both retail at
$29.95 and are offered in black, clear and pink.
The Sharper Image Sport Kit is for the ultimate iPod techie!
The Sharper Image will also offer a unique 10-piece multipurpose
sport and travel kit that will include: Three rugged silicon cases and
one clear plastic case, a holster, a rotating belt clip and armband
attachment, a neckband lanyard, a bicycle adaptor and a car air vent
clip.
This Sport Kit is ideal for die-hard iPod users, and will retail at
$49.95.
The Sharper Image suite of iPod and iPhone cases will be available
for all iPod models (Classic, Nano and Touch). Consumers will be able
to purchase the cases at major retailers in the second quarter of
2009.
Link: EnE Group
LLC
