Techcrunch reports that during Google’s I/O developers conference they showed off the iPhone version of Latitude — which lets users stalk keep track of their friends via GPS and other location-based services — but not as part of some revamped Map or Google Mobile application as many suspected:
Google has been waiting for the [iPhone] 3.0 software is because it’s not actually creating a native iPhone app for Latitude — as all other location-based services on the iPhone are — instead it’s using the Safari web browser to run Latitude. Thanks to HTML 5, Safari will be able to access a user’s location information and Latitude will be able to access that as well (provided the user gives permission). This will put it on par with what Google is doing in its browser for Android.
Now, Google has made arguably the best and mostimpressivecatalog of WebApps seen on the iPhone to date, but why go that route with Latitude? And waiting for iPhone 3.0 to be released this summer, which also sounds strange given MobileSafari in 3.0 doesn’t look to answer any of the persistent-connection problems Latitude faces on the iPhone platform (i.e. lack of background multi-tasking).
“The SIRIUS XM app will deliver an expanded programming lineup that includes SIRIUS XM’s exclusive sports talk, news, comedy, and 100% commercial free music channel, as well as new talk, comedy, and music showcase channels.”
Turns out the application will be free but — and that’s a big but — there will be subscription fees. You can either have a stand alone streaming subscription which is $13.00 a month or have a normal subscription with an additional $3.00 a month fee tacked onto what you are already paying. There is still no word on when the application will be released but our guess is you will see it around the time iPhone OS 3.0 drops this summer.
So there you have it folks… Excited? Disappointed? Let us know what you are thinking in the comments!
TweetMic [$0.99 - iTunes link] puts a whole new spin on Tweeting. With TweetMic you are basically able to Twitter small podcasts via this application. What happens when you use TweetMic is you record a message via the iPhone’s built in Mic, you can play it back or post it with a short Twitter message.
Once you “Publish to Twitter” the application uploads the recording to its server and attaches a link to your post, so when your followers receive the tweet, they will see the link and the website it brings up will allow them to play the message via a computer or an iPhone.
Of course having WiFi of 3G will be better than using an EDGE connection when uploading you messages.
If you want to add audio recording to your Tweets, then this is definitely the best option out there. If you check it out, let us know what you think (or record a message for us on Twitter!)
iScape Games let us know that they have released their first iPhone game: Super Marble Roll [iTunes link]. I know… another marble game, but I think this one deserves your attention. I have spent a little time playing Super Marble Roll and find the controls and implementation of the accelerometer to be phenomenal. There is also a special easter egg “bonus mechanic” included that’ll help rack up those points!
iScape Games also shared with me that they already have updates planned for the future and are discussing more features such as unlocking levels and stage achievements.
Super Marble Roll is available in the App Store for $2.99. If you pick this one up, let us know what you think in the comments below!
Zen Jar looks like an interesting experiment in social networking. You write something, send it off into the iPhone inter-ether, and see what karma — good or bad — other users ascribe to it. Personally, I prefer the direct bludgeoning I take for ill-conceived comments on Twitter, but for those tiring of the same-old micro-blogging, status-updating experience, Zen Jar is certainly an alternative. It comes in Lite (Free - iTunes link) and Paid ($0.99 - iTunes link), and you can check out Bela’s review in our iPhone Apps & Games forum for more.
If you give it a whirl, let us know how your karma turns out — mellow harshened, or child-like sense of wonder restored?
This is going to be a fairly short review. 100 sounds is just what you would think it is: hundreds of various sounds effects to play on your iPhone (more than 100!). They are organized alphabetically by name, and to hear a sound, you simply tap the name of the sound.
Mac and iPhone icon designer Sebastiaan de With of Cocoia takes app designers to task for not making their icons better match the quality and look of Apple’s built-in apps. Says de With:
A lot of professional designers get it wrong as well, and I can understand; it’s truly very hard to make an icon that looks as great as one from Apple’s bunch and blends in with the rest. I don’t mean to be an icon snob; I like diversity in my icons, and especially creative freedom. It’s more than just annoying, however, when creative and diverse motifs look extremely alien to their environment.
Part of the blame is placed on Apple who’s iPhone HIG (human interface guidelines) provide a mere 378 words on icon design, with examples that are sub-par. But de With isn’t just complaining — he’s doing something about it. Enter: Composition:
Sean Patrick O‘Brien and I are working on the very first Mac application that will be released under the Cocoia ‘brand’: Composition. Composition allows you to take any image and get a pixel-perfect preview of iPhone’s default effects at regular home screen size and Settings/Spotlight small icon size. It also lets you look at your icon in a virtual home screen to achieve a native look (and yes, both iPhone and iPod touch home screens will be represented), and export it for further usage on websites and other materials.
This time, same as the last time, the initial, stupefying rejection of e-book reader Eucalyptus has been followed up by web outrage and now App Store acceptance. (Can we officially call these the 4 stages of App Store grief’ing now?) From developer Montgomerie’s blog (via Macworld):
Earlier today I received a phone call from an Apple representative. He was very complimentary about Eucalyptus. We talked about the confusion surrounding its App Store rejections, which I am happy to say is now fully resolved. He invited me to re-build and submit a version of Eucalyptus with no filters for immediate approval, and that full version is now available on the iPhone App Store. [$9.99 - iTunes link]
Eucalyptus provides a pretty amazing UI through which to access all the free content at Project Gutenberg. If you enjoy classic literature and drop-dead gorgeous iPhone interaction, check it out and let us know what you think!
If Tetris and Bejeweled were to have a child, they would give birth to FLIP. This is a puzzle game of flipping and tilting your iPhone around to manipulate gems. There are 3 very distinct game modes: standard, puzzle, and speed.
Okay, yeah, I rocked a Sega Genesis back in the day, which is perhaps not coincidentally the last platform where Sonic the Hedgehog was really done well. (Sorry, it needed to be said).
Can the iPhone version [$5.99 - iTunes link] make me eat those words, or at least spin me around on them faster than Yoda in a lightsaber duel? Let’s see, Sega does say it’ll make me relive my fondest memories from the Genesis era…
Blast through Seven Zones including classics as Green Hill Zone and Labyrinth Zone, as well as the Special Stages in an attempt to collect the Chaos Emeralds!
Classic 2-D Sonic experience on the go for the first time on the iPhone and iTouch!
Pick-up-and-play accessibility: Play in Full Screen or classic “Arcade” look and play with just the touch of a button.
The iPhone Blog merged with the Phone different site in May of 2008. Both sites were founded on a premise that comes one from one of Apple's old slogans: Think different. The iPhone Blog: for people who dare to phone different.
