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iphone applications posts

Filed under: Social Software, AOL, iPhone

iPhone App Review: iPhone port of AIM is close, but not quite there

One of the most striking things about the first crop of iPhone apps is the divide between those that work with the phone's user interface, and those that either don't take advantage of the phone or ignore the design specs altogether. The AOL Instant Messenger app for iPhone scores points in some UI areas, but could be more intuitive and feel more like an iPhone app in others.

We've got no complaints about the look of AIM, but there are some places where it doesn't feel right. For example, we were really hoping for a horizontal mode in this app, to take advantage of the wider keyboard. Groups are supported, but you can only view them one at a time, which makes them much less useful than on desktop versions of AIM. While a mobile AIM app like this is a dream we've had since high school, we favor the more intuitive Meebo mobile web app. It supports mutliple chat clients, too ... can we get an app store version of that?

Oh, and here's a tip, because we've seen a lot of people confused by this: to change your screenname, you have to go to your iPhone Settings. It's not in the AIM app itself.

Filed under: Social Software, iPhone

iPhone App Review: Twitterrific is even better than the desktop version

Sometimes Download Squad has to agree to disagree about a new app, and this is one of those times. Although some on the team have knocked the iPhone version of Twitterrific, I actually like it better than its big brother on the desktop. What can the iPhone version do that the desktop version can't? Well, for one, it can pop Twitter open within the app - sometimes you want to scope someone's page (to see what a friend was replying to, for example). I haven't seen another iPhone app that uses the same trick to browse web pages without quitting and switching to Safari.

Just like the browser trick, the rest of the UI is elegant. Tweets look great and are easy to read - the premium version lets you switch to a lighter theme that also looks good, if that's up your alley. @reply links are clickable, and short profiles are viewable without opening a webpage at all. I'll grant that there seem to be some issues with icon caching - when a tweet goes off-screen, the icon has to be reloaded when you scroll back to it -- but I'm not sure if that's an iPhone issue or a Twitterrific one. Throw in the ability to update your location with the iPhone's built in location services, and this is an app that uses the platform to its fullest.

Filed under: Audio, Fun, Utilities, Apple, Freeware, iPhone

iPhone App Review: Apple's Remote works, and it's free

If you've been looking for a reliable way to make your iPod or iPhone work as a remote for iTunes, look no further than Apple's Remote application. Just when you thought there was no way to tie the iPod and iTunes closer together, Apple's found another way for them to intereract. And It's free!

Just pop open remote, click to add a new library, and then enter the resulting 4 digit code in iTunes to give your iPhone access to your library. Now you've got an interface that looks just like the one you use to play music on your iPod. This'll work with any iTunes equipped computer on your network, and once you've set them up, you can switch between them easily. We even set up a little ad-hoc network with just a Mac and an iPod Touch, and Remote's performance was excellent. Did we mention it's free?

Filed under: News, Apple, iPhone

iPhone Addict for September 28th 2007

  • iPhone firmware 1.1.1 update released
  • TruPhone demonstrates VoIP-over-WiFi on iPhone
  • Google launched GMail Mobile
  • Free iTunes downloads at Starbucks announced
  • Apple warns against unlocking your iPhone

Read more →

Filed under: Business, Fun, iPhone

iPhone Addict for September 21st 2007

  • Navizon "virtual GPS" comes to iPhone
  • Run OSX widgets on your iPhone
  • iPhone Dev team releases an easy-to-use GUI tool to unlock the iPhone
  • O2 iPhone hands-on shows possible updates for iPhone 1.1.1
  • iTunes 7.4.2 disables ringtone hack

Read more →

Filed under: Fun, Apple, iPhone

iPhone Addict for September 14th 2007

This week in iPhone news:

  • Apple sells the one millionth iPhone
  • iFlickr allows users to upload pics from their iPhone to Flickr
  • iUnlock, a a free software SIM unlock was released
  • Apple says updates will most likely break 3rd party apps
  • Free iPhone ringtone makers start to appear

Apple sells the one millionth iPhone
On Monday Apple sold the one millionth iPhone. It only took 74 days for Apple to reach the one million mark, a feat that took the iPod 2 years.

iFlickr allows users to upload pics from their iPhone to Flickr
iFlickr is a 3rd party iPhone app that allows users to upload photos taken with the built-in camera in their iPhone directly to Flickr at full resolution. You can also upload your iPhone photos by email by getting a special email address from Flickr.

iUnlock, a a free software SIM unlock was released
A software SIM unlock was released to the public. iUnlock (which has ties to our sister blog TUAW) has been used to unlock iPhones in over 90 countries.

Apple says updates will most likely break 3rd party apps
After word got out that Apple was taking a neutral stance on 3rd party native iPhone applications, in an interview with Gearlog Apple said future "software updates will most likely break" 3rd party apps.

Free iPhone ringtone makers start to appear
After Apple starting selling ringtones through iTunes several free iPhone ringtone makers have started to pop up. MakeiPhoneRingtone allows you to drag and drop ringtons onto your iPhone, and this simple hack within iTunes allows you to turn any existing mp3 into a ringtone.

Have you found something cool for the iPhone? Let us know about it by sending up a tip.

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The World's Hardest Game 2.0 - Time Waster

So, just how good at time waster games are you? Think you've got the stuff? Well, The World's Hardest Game 2.0 doesn't think you do. Yes, amazingly, it's possible to have a sequel to a game called "The World's Hardest Game". It doesn't seem logically possible, since if the first one was actually the world's hardest, how could another one come along and share the moniker? It made me doubt the name in the first place. That is, until I tried the game. The mechanics of the game are very simple. You are a small red square, ...

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