Macgasm

2010 was a crazy year for Apple nerds, wasn’t it? Let’s take a look at what happened.

The Hits

iPad — I mean, this is so obvious it hurts. In a single product release, Apple moved the tablet computer from a clunky, pen-based Windows experience into a graceful, fast, easy-to-use glimpse into the future of computing.

iPhone 4 — Each model of the iPhone has sold better than the previous one. The iPhone 4 is no exception, as Apple sold 1.7 million handsets in three days. Beyond simple sales numbers, iPhone 4 brought FaceTime, the Retina Display, the A4 and more to an already mature handset. Even with antenna issues, the iPhone 4 continues to rocket upward.

MacBook Air — While the previous versions of the MacBook Air were underpowered and under-featured, the crop of Airs are serious machines. With an all-new design that Steve Jobs called “the future of notebooks,” the Air is set to change the tone of Apple’s mobile computers in the future. The new 11.6-inch model brings a Mac compact notebook back to the market after missing for years. It’s a welcome addition to the Mac line.

iOS 4 — Multi-tasking. Multi-tasking. Glorious multi-tasking. While Apple added tons of new APIs, features like folders and orientation lock, multi-tasking on iOS is the news of the year for Apple’s mobile operating system. Powering the Apple TV, iPhone, iPod touch and iPad, iOS 4 is the operating system to beat for companies like Google, Microsoft and Palm/HP.

… and The Misses

iPad — I know this is on both lists. While the iPad is great — errr, magical — it can be frustrating to use. Not all users enjoy touch-screen typing, and the lack of a centralized file management service like the Finder makes it annoying to move documents on and off the iPad easily. I am hoping iOS 5 adds Finder-like functionality to the iPad, but I am not holding my breath.

Lion Announcement — While Apple is already boasting about Mac OS X Lion, the demo given to the public a few months ago left me … underwhelmed. Things like Mission Control, Launchpad and full-screen apps are just extensions of existing window UIs in OS X. While I am hoping Lion will have some cool under-the-hood improvements. If it does, Steve didn’t show it off this year. So I’m calling the Lion Announcement a miss. Will Lion be a hit for Apple in 2011? Time will tell, but I think it will take more than new window UIs to impress users. The Mac App Store is coming to Snow Leopard in just a few days, taking a little ammunition away from Lion.

Ping — I mean, really? The world doesn’t need another social media network. Especially one so limited in focus as Ping. Coupled with a lack of Facebook integration and third-party app access, Ping just doesn’t make much sense to me. I’ve got it disabled on my machines, and that isn’t going to change.

iPod nano — Talking about things that don’t make sense … the iPod nano blows my mind. And not in a good way. The new device has less features than previous models, and lacks the critical physical controls that make using such a device while running easier. I just don’t get how this one made it out the door.

Xserve — Finally, the Xserve. RIP, my rack-mountable friend. While I won’t rehash the whole thing here, I suggest you go check out my editorial from back in November.

Looking Ahead

2011 is already looking exciting. OS X 10.7, new hardware, new mobile carriers and new iOS features are all expected.

So, dear readers, what did you like most about Apple in 2010? See anything missing from the list of misses? Fire off in the comments below!

You’re probably familiar with games like Sam & Max: The Devil’s Play House and Tales of Monkey Island, but only the old and nerdy among us remember the days of playing Sam & Max: Hit the Road and The Secret of Monkey Island with boot disks. (That’s right. We had to boot our computers from floppy disks to play a video game. I can’t wait to tell my grandkids about that nonsense.) For those of us with access to the original game files for these classic LucasArts adventure games, we’re in nostalgia heaven with ScummVM.

Instead of trying to trick your shiny new computer to run code written in the 80s and 90s, this is a little virtual machine app that makes the games think you’re running hardware from the 80s and 90s. You can now run these games seamlessly on pretty much any platform you can name. Don’t get too excited, though. If you want to run ScummVM on your iOS device, you’re going to need a *gasp* jailbreak. Playing it on your Mac or PC works wonderfully, though.

If you’re too young to have the original games, and you’re too moral to download them illegally, the ScummVM team has a handful of free supported games available right on their download page.

So, this is all really cool, right? Well, maybe you could look into donating to the ScummVM project over at SourceForge so that they can continue to update the app with more features and game support.

I am not a programmer, and I don’t have a computer science background beyond taking a Programming 101 class years ago. I understand that making quality applications takes a lot of time, effort, and caffeine, so don’t for one second think that this article is dismissing the hard work of programmers. With that out of the way, I have a serious question about iOS development. If you’re already making an app for the iPhone or iPad, why not do both?

Here is my assumption: The hard part of making an application is getting your concept to work properly on the device. After you’ve figured out the implementation, isn’t optimizing the user interface for most applications fairly simple? To be fair, some applications just wouldn’t work on a different form factor, but why doesn’t Facebook have an iPad-optimized app yet? Haven’t they nailed down the infrastructure with the iPhone app and the UI in the Touch-version of the website? I am completely missing the reason why some large companies with apps for the iPhone haven’t bothered making iPad optimized versions.

Now I want to hear from you folks — the iOS app developers. Tell me why doing optimized versions of your apps is harder than I think it is. If you’re not a developer, I’d like to know what app you’re dying to see iPad optimized. Please drop me a message in the comment section of this post.

Photo Credit: aless&ro

It’s hard to believe it, but Apple’s Q1 is already almost winding down. The company announced today the quarterly call will take place on Jan 18. During these calls, Apple announces how many devices were sold and how much money was made. Last time around, Steve Jobs went off about Android tablets. Good time.

My prediction? Apple will continue to make cash hand-over-fist.

Article Via iPodNN

It’s common sense to carry a credit card during trips abroad. Cash can be easily stolen, while canceling a credit card only requires a simple phone call.

But when you whip out that black AmEx, how do you know how many American dollars will be charged to your card? After all, €100 does not equal $100.

In comes Wallet Dilemma ($2.99), the latest offering from developer Taplicious.

The app’s premise is simple. Pick your country of origin (in my case, the U.S.) Pick your bank (Chase, Bank of America, etc) and pick the type of card (Visa, MasterCard, etc):

Next, pick the currency you’re converting to. Wallet Dilemma has every currency, from Argentine pesos to Vietnam dongs. The large interface and scrolling options make it easy to find the currency you’re looking for:

Additionally, you can tap the Withdrawal icon on the bottom of the screen to calculate how much it will cost in your native currency to take out cash in your current location. Fast, easy, and simple!

Below is my list of pros and cons for this app:

Pros:

• The app can function offline, which is perfect for iPod touch users, or iPhone users looking to avoid being hit with international data roaming fees in areas without Wi-Fi.
• Its simple design. Even the technology-adverse can use it!
• There is no display of your current balance on any credit cards you add to the app. Security is not an issue.

Cons:

• The price point is a bit high for an app which essentially performs one function.
• I wouldn’t spend more than a couple days with this app offline, as it may miss exchange rate updates.

That’s it! Happy currency converting!

Did you purchase this app? Let us know your thoughts, as always, in the comments. Feel free to share other currency conversion recommendations too!

Article Via Taplicious

Photo Credit: Taplicious

Now that I am part of the so-called iPad Cult, I am starting to look for just the right case. Of course, our writers have written *extensively* about iPad cases, but everyone’s needs are a little bit different. As luck would have it, there are more cases available than I could ever dream of shaking a stick at. Now I just have to decide what it is I want.

I have a long history of using cases on my iPods, and I’ve really been a huge fan of silicone slip-covers. They feel nice in my hand, provide plenty of traction, and they have protected my iPods extremely well. In fact, I dropped my iPod touch onto concrete from about three feet last month, and it is good as new. Without a doubt, I know that silicone cases are what I like for handheld devices. Does that apply to my iPad as well?

I have to admit, the Apple-branded case is looking pretty good right now. Maybe silicone isn’t right for this form factor, and I should take my lead from what Apple is putting its name on. I do like that the case acts as a stand, but I am still not sold on having a fold-away screen cover. Doesn’t it make holding the device something of a pain? Maybe I can convince my local Apple store to let me fiddle with one.

I’ve done my own searching. I’ve read the bile-filled user reviews of every case on the block. Now I want to know what you guys use for your iPads. What have you found works the best for you? Let me know by leaving a comment on this post.

Photo Credit: Apple.com

We’re always looking for places to charge our iPhones around the office. Usually an iPhone finds its way to the Bose SoundDock, and then the familial iPod touch is left struggling to find a power outlet. The more charging stations throughout the house the better. We jumped at the opportunity to take the Powermat charging system for a spin, because we thought it would be the prime device to solve our problems.

The Powermat isn’t iPhone-specific. You can get a multitude of cases, and connectors so that your devices can make use of the charging power of the Powermat. We took the iPhone 3G model for a spin.

What’s Macgasmic

Being able to drop your iPhone on a charge station and “wirelessly” charge your device not only adds a little bit of cool factor to your life, but it’s also more functional than one would suspect.

I’d suspect that the bigger Powermats would be more useful than the miniature ones that ship with the iPhone cases. Being able to drop your phone on a mat when you enter a room is super handy. If you don’t have a dedicated charging station already, the Powermat eliminates the need to fiddle around for power cords and dongles.

If you don’t have a charging station or dock, need a case, and like to look hip-to-the-jive with your technology, the Powermat provides and delivers on all of those things.

What’s Not

There’s nothing overly flawed about the Powermat, but there are some things we’d like to see in future models. First, the wireless charging device requires the use of an iPhone case, which isn’t that big of a deal, except when it comes to using the iPhone with a sound dock. There’s no way to connect the iPhone to a dock, without having to take the case off first. I know, it’s a first world problem, but if we’re going to be using this setup on a day-to-day basis, being able to pop our device into the SoundDock in the office is a must.

The second thing that could use some work is the location of the “charge-point” on the device. As it is, the case and the dock need to be lined up exactly to charge the device. I shouldn’t have to worry if I’ve lined up the case and the dock properly to get a charge. The device is far from “wireless.” Instead of being tethered to a wire, your phone has to make magnetic contact with the receiver before the charging begins.

Ridiculous Request

The charging station is pretty cool, and where the magic happens. It’s well built, and does what it says on the box. But, how cool would it be if you could get a system made to custom fit a coffee table surface? I’d spend money on that, and I’m sure a lot of other geeks would as well. It’s a ridiculous request, but it could be the future.

Final Thoughts

It’s hard not to walk away from this product feeling like you’ve played with a proof of concept. That classification is unfair. The product is well designed like we’d expect it to be, but we have a hard time figuring out how this fits into our current setup.  Like we mentioned off the top, if you’re looking for an iPhone case and charging station, this case would meet your needs. But, if you use your phone on a music dock at all, it becomes pretty annoying having to take the case off every time you want to plug it in.  There are a few docks on the market that solve this problem through bluetooth streaming, and AirPlay might also eliminate this problem, but as it stands, I have neither of those things on my iPhone 3G.

Yesterday, the Telegraph reported that Apple was recently granted a patent for a holographic display, one that produces the desired three-dimensional effect without the use of 3D glasses.

The desired effect of the holographic display would be realism, spawning a new generation of televisions, computer monitors and cinema displays.

The technology operates with a new kind of screen, created from pixel-sized domes. These domes deflect images at different angles, which will in turn appear different to the left eye and right eye. This presentation of images at different angles generates a stereoscopic image, which the human brain will decipher as three-dimensional.

Below is a schematic filed by Apple in 2008 regarding three-dimensional displays. As you can see, it makes use of stereoscopic images (click to enlarge):

Another proposal in this patent suggests the use of 3D imaging to track multiple viewers and the positions of their eyes in relation to the holographic display. The display can then adjust itself accordingly, to keep the picture sharp for all viewers.

Do you think the holographic display will be the new standard for all displays? Let us know in the comments!

Do you have more information about this patent? Email me.

Article Via the Telegraph

Photo Credit: Inition, CMPNet