Apple

Mark Crump at GigaOm has an interesting piece on how the iPad is becoming an important tool for music bands. Crump is an amateur musician whose band is rehearsing for a gig. What's interesting is Crump's realization that the iPad is almost all his band needs at rehearsal. Crump explains how his iPad fits into band rehearses. First, he chooses the songs in the Music player app and sends his friends links to the songs on YouTube. Next he'll use the AmpliTube app (free) to load up his selected song from the iPad's music app and play along with it via a Fender Squire USB guitar. To chart the songs during rehearsal, Crump uses Apple's Pages app (US$9.99). He supports the iPad in front of him by using the iKlip 2 ($39.99) from IK Multimedia. The iKlip 2 is a universal microphone stand that allows you to attach an iPad to almost any mic boom. If you're a musician, Crump's piece is well worth a read. It's another example of how Apple's iDevices are changing almost everything we do.How iPads, YouTube help bands practice originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 21 May 2013 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments

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iBooks is not only a fantastic e-reading app on your iPhone or iPad, but it’s also a fantastic study tool. If you need to read books for class or your own learning objectives, you can use iBooks to highlight words or passages, search the text for specific words or phrases, and make notes that appear [...]Related StoriesFix The Multiple Purchased Books Bug In iBooks On Your iPad [iOS Tips]TextExpander Touch 2.0 Adds A Ton Of Features From OS XDogfight From Your Mac To iPhone With Sky Gamblers: Air Supremacy [OS X Tips]Third-Party App Brings Google’s All Access Music Streaming Service To iPhoneLearn How To Master Your iPhone Camera With The iPhone Photography Video Course [Deals]

I just got back from a week-long vacation. We were staying in Tel Aviv, Israel, which meant lots of walking and cycling (I took my Brompton), plus day trips. Which in turn meant traveling light. The iPad is perfect traveling companion, and the iPad mini is even better. But if you want to take lots [...]Related StoriesAT&T Says It Will Wave Overage Charges For Victims Of The Oklahoma TornadoTim Cook: Apple Will Never Move Our Headquarters Out Of AmericaApple: The U.S. Tax Code Is So Broken, We’re At A Competitive Disadvantage Against SamsungLearn How To Master Your iPhone Camera With The iPhone Photography Video Course [Deals]Microsoft Unveils New Xbox One Console

This morning Microsoft unveiled  its newest console, the Xbox One. Unlike previous Xbox models though, Xbox One isn’t just about games, it’s about becoming the one system your living room needs, and it probably means trouble for the Apple TV. Not only can Microsoft’s latest box play video games with the best of them, but [...]Related StoriesAT&T Says It Will Wave Overage Charges For Victims Of The Oklahoma TornadoTim Cook: Apple Will Never Move Our Headquarters Out Of AmericaApple: The U.S. Tax Code Is So Broken, We’re At A Competitive Disadvantage Against SamsungHere’s What A Waterproof iPhone 6 With Wireless Charging Could Look Like [Video]Traveling With An iPad And A Camera: Batteries, Backups And Bags [Feature]

Once I started my review of the ScanSnap iX500 document scanner, the new model in Fujitsu’s hugely popular line of top-tier ScanSnap scanners, it didn’t take long to see this machine was going to earn its pedigree. Fujitsu ScanSnap iX500 Document Scanner by Fujitsu Category: Document Scanners Works With: Mac, iPhone, iPad Price: About $430 [...]Related StoriesThe iOStand Is A Cool, Elegant iPad Stand With Magnets [Review]The Lenmar Helix Battery Pack: Powerful, But Not Powerful Enough [Review]

Microsoft today released details on its next generation console at an event hosted at its Redmond campus in Washington. Called the Xbox One, the new console is designed to be the ultimate all-in-one home entertainment system with a heavy focus on both gaming and interactive television watching. The Xbox One recognizes individual users and presents a customized home screen filled with content like TV and movies, games, and music, along with a new Trending section that displays friend activity and a live TV system. Xbox One utilizes voice commands, motion control via the Kinect, and a new feature called Instant Switching to allow Xbox users to switch from gaming to TV to other types of entertainment with quick commands that work as fast as swapping channels on the TV. Home screen sharing, called Snap Mode, allows users to display multiple items on the television screen. The Xbox One's comprehensive voice commands, such as "Watch CBS" or "Play Game" are what many imagined Siri integration with the Apple TV might look like. The new Xbox sports 8GB of RAM, an 8-core CPU, a 500GB hard drive, USB 3.0 ports, and a slot-loading Blu-ray drive. It also comes equipped with a newly redesigned Kinect sensor that is far more robust for better motion sensing and an updated controller that has an updated d-pad, impulse triggers and a more ergonomic design, in addition to several other improvements. Xbox's second-screen companion app SmartGlass, which was originally introduced last year, has been improved to allow smartphones and tablets like Apple's iPad and iPhone to connect seamlessly to the Xbox one. According to Marc Whitten, SmartGlass is "fully integrated" into the new console. SmartGlass in its current form is designed to allow users to interact with the Xbox 360 in a number of ways, namely navigating through menus, controlling video, browsing the internet, and using the keyboard to type on the console. A number of games were also revealed at the Xbox One event including Madden NFL 25, NBA Live 14, EA Sports UFC, FIFA 12, Forza Motorsport 5, Call of Duty: Ghosts, and Quantum Break, a new game from Remedy that aims to blend television and gaming. 15 new games will be released during the first year that Xbox One is available, with eight of those being new franchises. Though no exact release date was given, the Xbox One will launch around the world "later this year." More information about the console and its upcoming games will be available at E3 in June. Recent Mac and iOS Blog Stories • Vudu Player for iOS Gets Updated With Ability to Download Movies • Apple to Open New Adelaide Retail Store in Australia on May 25 • Burj Al Arab in Dubai Introduces Gold-Plated iPads for Guest Use • Tumblr Acquired by Yahoo, iOS App Gets Redesigned User Interface • Turkish Prime Minister Visits Apple Ahead of Major Tablet Purchase • Gameloft's 'N.O.V.A. 3' and 'Gangstar Rio: City of Saints' Are Free for the Weekend • 'Haunting Melissa' App Brings Episodic Movie Exclusively to iPhone and iPad • FTC Begins Sending COPPA Letters to App Developers Ahead of July Rule Change

Blendoku is based on a crazy idea, made even crazier by the fact that it works. I am just plain terrible at colors. When I was working retail, I spent an entire day learning to lay out merchandise according to color. I was so bad at it, the trainer sent me right back to customer service. That's the very skill set that Blendoku tests, yet I still enjoy playing it. You're presented with several different colors which must be sorted by shade, lightness, or various other qualities. Some levels are simple, with just a strip of various colors going back and forth, but some are very complicated, with multiple colors mixing up in different ways. The game works well. Moving the colors around is intuitive, and the fun, simple aesthetic allows you to focus on the puzzle. Blendoku was a surprise. If someone asked me if I'd like a game about lining up color combinations, I don't think I would have said yes. But this is a fun one, and it might give you a new look on how various visual colors go together (needless to say, you probably can't be color blind and play this). The game is free, with a few in-app purchases to help you solve puzzles or get rid of the ads.Daily iPhone App: Blendoku has you lining up colors to match originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 21 May 2013 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Tim Cook on Tuesday morning appeared before Congress to talk about Apple's tax practices, with a specific focus on Apple's foreign stash of cash. As it stands now, the bulk of Apple's revenue is derived from overseas sales. Consequently, Apple has chosen to keep that cash abroad where it's subject to much lower tax rates than the corporate income tax rate of 35% it would be subject to if it brought that cash back. During his opening remarks, Cook highlighted all Apple has done for the U.S. economy, emphasizing how much the company already pays in domestic taxes and how it's been responsible for the creation of hundreds of thousands of new jobs in the U.S. Further, Cook noted that Apple was investing $100 million to begin manufacturing Macs in the US. While we had previously heard of Apple's plans to do so, Cook for the first time fleshed out some more details, in a geographic sense, surrounding Apple's plans. Specifically, Cook noted that Apple's upcoming "made in the USA" line of Macs will be assembled in Texas and will use components sourced from Texas, Illinois, Florida and Kentucky. As for what type of Mac will be assembled in the US, Cook in an interview last week indicated that it would be a new model of an already-existing family.Tim Cook: US-made Macs will be assembled in Texas originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 21 May 2013 13:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Microsoft has revealed its latest iteration of its Xbox game console at a media event. The Xbox One, codenamed Durango during its development, is billed as an all-in-one system for the living room, with a greater focus on allowing users to watch live television and other media, along with heavier Kinect integration, Skype calling, and gaming improvements....