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2009-02-01T19:52:00.000-08:00

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Apple iPhone Application Enables Digital Photo Sharing

2009-02-01T12:54:00.000-08:00

Apple iPhone users can now use a new digital photo application called the Eye-Fi. The new mobile application lets users send digital photos from their mobile device to any computer connected to the Internet.

Apple Inc iPhone users can now use a new digital photo application from Eye-Fi Inc. The new mobile application lets users send digital photos from their mobile device to any computer connected to the Internet.

"Whether you're snapping pictures on-the-go with an iPhone or capturing life's important moments with a digital camera, Eye-Fi will offer one easy way to manage and share all your photos -- without docking a gadget or fussing with software," Eye-Fi CEO Jef Holove said in a statement.

One of the nice things about this free iPhone app is the ability to aggregate digital photos from the mobile device and a digital camera. Photos can be organized into folders on a computer as well as online video sharing Web sites.

"We are solving another real-world frustration for anyone who takes photos with both devices," Holove said.

The iPhone application was first unveiled at Macworld on January 6. The only requirement needed is an Eye-Fi card and the free application from Apple's App Store.

There are a variety of Eye-Fi cards available which are reasonably priced. The technology company sells the Eye-Fi Home, Share, Anniversary Edition and Explore cards with prices ranging from $79-$128. You can also purchase the Eye-Fi cards at Apple Retail Stores, Best Buy, Amazon, Ritz Camera Center and Walmart's online Web site.

Source... www.newsoxy.com

Konami Launches Top Franchise Titles for the Apple iPhone and iPod Touch

2009-02-01T12:46:00.000-08:00

Konami Digital Entertainment announced the release of Silent Hill: The Escape and DanceDanceRevolution S Lite, now available in North America for the iPhone and iPod Touch. These titles have been re-designed to take full advantage of the iPhone's capabilities, including the innovative Multi-Touch Interface and accelerometer.

Silent Hill: The Escape features original gameplay, detailed graphics and spine-chilling sound effects created specifically for the iPhone. In this first-person, 3D shooter survival horror game, players navigate through various levels from an abandoned hospital to a cold subway with a dull flashlight while fighting off monsters and faceless nurses. The battery of the flashlight slowly dies throughout the game, limiting the player's vision as they search for a key to escape the monster-infested labyrinth. Players also carry a gun for protection to ward off the trail of chasing monsters. Taking full advantage of the iPhone's capabilities, players must employ the tilt sensor and skillfully tap the bullets to reload the revolver.

The worldwide sensation that started the dance game craze doesn't miss a beat on the iPhone. DanceDanceRevolution S Lite is the first installment in the popular videogame franchise designed exclusively for the iPhone and iPod Touch. In this addictive music rhythm game, players tap the arrows on the control pad as they appear on the screen. Featuring 3D characters and simple controls, DanceDanceRevolution S Lite provides an on-the-go DDR experience for iPhone gamers of all ages. DanceDanceRevolution S Lite is available for free download from the Apple App Store.

Source... www.gamingexcellence.com

Adobe CEO: Flash on iPhone not so easy

2009-02-01T12:34:00.000-08:00

The work at Adobe Systems toward getting its nearly ubiquitous Flash technology onto the Apple iPhone goes on...and on, and on.

Speaking with the Bloomberg news service on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Adobe CEO Shantanu Narayen acknowledged that even after months of striving, a workable version of Flash for the iPhone remains a tough nut to crack.

No Flash for you - not yet, anyway.

(Credit: CNET Networks)

"It's a hard technical challenge, and that's part of the reason Apple and Adobe are collaborating," Narayen told Bloomberg Television. "The ball is in our court. The onus is on us to deliver."

How much exactly are the two companies collaborating? Some reaction to the Bloomberg report has taken Narayen's words to suggest that Apple is pitching in like never before. But we've seen that kind of generality before in regard to Flash for the iPhone, dating back to March 2008, when Adobe first confirmed that it was working to bring Flash apps to the iPhone. And even then, it was apparent that this would not be a simple chore. As Adobe said at the time: "To bring the full capabilities of Flash to the iPhone Web-browsing experience we do need to work with Apple beyond and above what is available through the SDK (the iPhone software development kit) and the current license around it."

Two weeks before that, in early March, Apple CEO Steve Jobs had thrown cold water on hopes for a happy Flash-iPhone coexistence. The PC version of Flash, he said, "performs too slow to be useful" on the iPhone, while the Flash Lite version for mobile phones "is not capable of being used with the Web."

However far along Adobe actually is with reconfiguring Flash for the iPhone, it will need a definitive thumbs-up from Apple to bring the technology to the public.

So perhaps we should be paying more attention to this part of Narayen's statement to Bloomberg: "The onus is on us to deliver."

In November, Adobe talked up a new push to broaden the use of Flash on mobile phones. "We are midst of evolving Flash Player 10 for mobile," Chief Technology Officer Kevin Lynch said at the time. "We're taking the full Flash Player and making that run on the higher end of the mobile market." Conspicuously absent from the presentation was the iPhone.

Lynch said in the November presentation that the company was confident enough to move up its goals for making phones Flash-enabled. "We're actually going to get 1 billion Flash-enabled phones by 2009," he said.

Source... http://news.cnet.com

Ladbrokes Launches Mobile Casino Games for iPhone

2009-01-30T13:40:00.000-08:00

Ladbrokescasino.com has this week launched four of its popular casino games on the iPhone and the 'Googlephone’, including the Roulette, Tomb Raider, Blackjack and Major Millions games.

Harnessing the power of the iPhone handset the company claims that its new casino games will offer amazing accessibility and game-play, whilst enabling players to enjoy the truest gaming experience available on a mobile.

Ladbrokes customers will not have to download or install any software either. They simply need to use the device’s web browser and enter i.ladbrokes.com or visit Ladbrokescasino.com and begin to play immediately.

The large touch screen, much improved user experience and greater memory capacity mean the iPhone is capable of delivering Ladbrokes casino's selection of graphic rich games for maximum gaming pleasure.

Charlie Goodenough, Head of Marketing at Ladbrokescasino.com said: "We're thrilled to be able to deliver Ladbrokes Casino on the iPhone. We pride ourselves on being a leader within the online casino industry delivering the latest technologies to enhance the casino gaming experience.

"We know that everyone will enjoy our range of games on the iPhone! It really does lend itself to the best casino experience imaginable on the move," he said.

Source... http://gamingintelligence.com

LivingSocial Facebook app lets users recommend iPhone games

2009-01-30T13:37:00.000-08:00

LivingSocial has launched an innovative Facebook application that lets people show off the iPhone apps that they own to friends.

Called LivingSocial: iPhone Apps, it's a spin-off from the main LivingSocial site, which lets users list their favourite books, movies, music, games and other categories.

It's brand new (132 active users at the time of writing), and works really well. After installing it to your profile, you use its search tool to find the apps and games that you use on your iPhone, and can then assign them ratings and write reviews.

Whenever you add something new, it appears in your Facebook news feed, so friends can see what you're playing or using. There's also a widget showing your current apps that sits on your profile page (right)

If an app isn't in the LivingSocial catalogue, you can add it yourself (a good reason for iPhone game developers to install the app and add their own titles, if they're not on there).

Other Facebook users can click through to buy the apps from the App Store, making LivingSocial a potentially powerful discovery and recommendation tool for iPhone games.

Source... www.pocketgamer.biz

Apple's IPhone Dominates Mobile-phone Gaming Downloads

2009-01-30T13:32:00.000-08:00

The iPhone is, by far, the most popular mobile-phone gaming platform in the U.S. Out of the top 10 models of phones used for downloading games, four are iPhones, which hold the top three spots as well, according to market research company comScore.

The 8GB, 3G version of the iPhone tops the list. It is followed by the original 8GB version and the 16GB, 3G version. The old 16GB iPhone trails the others, but it is still number seven on the list.

Also, the iPhone and iPod dominated the list of finalists recently named in a competition sponsored by the Independent Games Festival Mobile. A total of about 1.1 million U.S. owners of the four iPhone models have used the device for downloading games, according to comScore.

There are a number of explanations for Apple's dominance, according to Alistair Hill, analyst at comScore. "The App Store is incredibly easy to use. It's marketed very well, so everybody knows about it, and also it allows game developers to develop for it in a very easy and transparent way," said Hill.

In addition, consumers are buying the iPhone as a data-centric device, so people who are getting the iPhone are also the most likely to buy games in the first place, Hill said. Overall, smartphones are taking over as the platform of choice for people who play games on phones, according to comScore.

In the pre-iPhone days, mobile-phone gaming was marred by operators who wanted a larger revenue cut than the game developers, the need for developers to port games for hundreds of versions of phones and strict rules for getting games listed on operator portals, according to Hill. The iPhone has started to change that.

The other phones on the U.S. list are, in order: the BlackBerry Curve 8330, BlackBerry Curve 8310 Red, RAZR V3m Silver, LG Rumor, Samsung Instinct M800 and the LG VX10000 Voyager.

In Europe Apple isn't as dominant. The 16GB iPhone 3G still tops the list, but versions of the Nokia N95 comes in second and third place. Gaming is one of the content areas that Nokia is pushing, and it has a much larger presence in Europe.

Owners of the iPhone 3G in the U.K., France, Germany, Spain and Italy, however, are much more likely to purchase games, compared to users of the 8GB Nokia N95. Almost 14 percent of iPhone owners bought games compared to about 6 percent of the 8GB N95 owners. Both figure are higher than the market average for all owners of phones, which is 1.6 percent.

ComScore has based its data on a three month average ending in November last year.

Source... www.pcworld.com

Is Apple about to release a new iPhone?

2009-01-30T13:30:00.000-08:00

The world of Apple is awash with rumours that the Californian computer maker may be close to releasing the third version of its highly successful iPhone and that a number of handsets are already being used.

Several sites have already reported that the latest firmware update for the phone - version 2,1 - contains references to a new hardware version - also 2,1.

Earlier this week, Macrumors reported that the reference to the new model could be found in the upgrade’s USB configuration section. “These numbers do not change for simple storage increases and instead represent functionally different devices,” the site said.

Now software developers claim to have found evidence in site traffic analytics that at least two dozen new iPhone handsets are being trialled by Apple in the San Francisco area and that they may have been in use since last October.

No details of the new device’s capabilities are known and Apple has refused to comment although Macrumours reported that it could have a new architecture based upon multiple core processors instead of the single chip in the current iPhone.

Source... www.telegraph.co.uk

Copy and paste on (some) iPhones

2009-01-29T14:05:00.000-08:00

Invariably, when Apple releases a new version of the iPhone’s software, users ask this question: “Is copy and paste finally implemented?” And, just as invariably, the answer is “No.”

As far as Apple is concerned, the answer remains no. But those who’ve jailbroken their iPhones can now reply, “Yes, sort of.”

Specifically, if you’ve used a utility such as PwnageTool or QuickPwn to jailbreak your phone and, in that process, install Cydia (a utility for installing third-party applications and tools), you have the option to install a couple of utilities that add some copy and paste functionality to your iPhone.

One is Ryan Petrich’s Clippy. Once installed it adds Copy, Paste, Stack, and Close entries to the iPhone keyboard’s .?123 keyboard. To copy text in an editable text field (in Notes or Mail, for example), bring up the keyboard, tap the .?123 key, tap Copy, and the text is copied to the clipboard. To paste, just move to that .?123 keyboard and tap Paste.

Clippy's buttons invoked from the .?123 keyboard.

You can copy just a selection of text by double-tapping at the beginning of the text you wish to copy and dragging your finger across the text to select it. Then tap Copy.

Clippy’s implementation in Text (SMS) is different. To copy a portion of an SMS chat, just double-tap on a text balloon. The tapped text will be copied to the clipboard, ready to paste into another application.

Clippy can maintain multiple clipboard entries. To choose one, bring up the keyboard, tap the .?123 key, and tap the Stack button. In the window that appears you’ll see all copied chunks of text. To choose one, drag it to the top of the list, close the window, and tap Paste.

Another copy and paste option for jailbroken iPhones is KennyTM’s hClipboard. Installing hClipboard adds an hClipboard keyboard to the iPhone’s International keyboards. Once installed you must enable the iClipboard keyboard in the International Keyboard setting (Settings/General/Keyboard/International Keyboards). To use it, produce the keyboard in an application such as Mail or Notes, tap the International Keyboard button on the keyboard (the globe icon that appears next to the Space Bar), and then tap the Copy button. The text in the editable field will be added to the clipboard.

Clippy's stack holds multiple clipboard entries.

If you want to select just a portion of the text, use your finger to insert the cursor at the beginning of the text you’d like to copy and tap the Select From Here icon. Then place the cursor at the end of the text you want to copy and tap Select to Here and Copy. The text is copied to the clipboard.

To paste text, invoke this keyboard and tap any item in the clipboard list to paste. The clipboard can hold up to 10 items. If you find that too limited, you can tap the Switch to Templates button at the bottom-left corner of the screen and copy text into the Templates area. You can store an unlimited-except-by-storage number of template entries.

hClipboard offers another way to copy and paste text on an iPhone.

hClipboard doesn’t work with Text (SMS). For this reason, if you want more complete copy and paste, it’s worthwhile to install both Clippy and hClipboard.

Note that neither utility works reliably with third-party applications nor are they capable of copying text from Safari.

The usual jailbreak caveats apply. Jailbreaking an iPhone or iPod touch is not supported by Apple and will void your warranty. And while current jailbreaks can not permanently damage your iPhone (you can restore the iPhone with iTunes to bring its software back to its original condition), that doesn’t mean a jailbroken iPhone or iPod touch will work with future updates of the iPhone/iPod touch software. In short: Use at your own risk.

Source... www.macworld.com

iTunes App Store to get premium games section?

2009-01-29T13:56:00.000-08:00

Apple honing in on handheld consoles

Apple is getting ready to launch a premium games section of the iTunes App store, say inside sources. A range of new $19.99 titles will be sold for iPhone and iPod Touch – a move which may bring Apple’s handheld devices into closer competition with the Sony PSP and Nintendo DS.

Current games available from iTunes App Store range from free up to £4.99, so this plan would be a major step up for the service. However, it is believed that the premium priced section will only be open to large mobile games publishers, likely including EA and Gameloft. Sorry, indie devs.

This would in turn help lure those big publishers into putting more budget into their iPhone games ventures and (hopefully) improve their quality. With an ever increasing number of iPhones and iPod Touches around, it would also be edging further into traditional handheld gaming territory and the company has already talked about the iPhone as a potential DS and PSP killer.

Apple has yet to make an official announcement and is keeping its lips sealed, but there seems to be little reason not to give the idea a shot. Convergence between mobile phones and handheld consoles seems certain, sooner or later. It will be down to consumers to determine whether they’re happy to cough up more than a fiver for bigger budget iPhone gaming.

Source... www.t3.com

Apples iPhone sales increase as Nokia's profits fall

2009-01-28T12:53:00.000-08:00

....while LG takes third place over Sony Ericsson and Motorola

TURBULENCE in the manufacturing sector continued this week with more evidence that the established players will be challenged by the likes of Apple.

Apple reported that iPhone sales were up 88% in Q4 2008, compared with the same period in 2007. It also saw a record net profit of $1.61bn (£1.15bn) and record revenue of $10.7bn (£7.8bn) for the quarter ending in December.

However, Nokia saw its profits tumble to £542m in Q4 last year – a 69% fall  on the £1.73bn it made in profits for the final quarter of 2007. Sales also fell 19% to £11.9bn, from £14.8bn in Q4 2007.

The manufacturer issued further gloom with expectations that its global handset volumes will drop by 10% in 2009 compared with 2008.

The contrasting fortunes of Apple and Nokia mark a trend for many observers, with a new clutch of manufacturers (Apple, RIM and HTC) giving the ‘old order’ of Nokia, Sony Ericsson and Motorola a fright.

Earlier this month, Sony Ericsson reported a fall in handset shipments to 24.2 million in Q4 2008. Meanwhile, Motorola – which will report its results at the start of February – is set to cut 4,000 jobs on top of the 3,000 it announced in 2008, in a desperate attempt to cut costs.

In comparison, LG has overtaken Sony Ericsson and Motorola following an 8% increase in handset shipments to 25.7 million in the fourth quarter of 2008, and is now the world’s third top handset manufacturer. It also sold a record number of units in 2008 – 100.7 million, compared with 80.5 million units one year earlier.

Analysts said LG could gain from the turmoil hitting rivals, such as Nokia and Sony Ericsson, as it starts to produce more mid to low mass-volume devices alongside feature-packed models and smartphones.

Source... www.mobiletoday.co.uk

Apple massages iPhone code

2009-01-28T12:49:00.000-08:00

Apple today released iPhone Software version 2.2.1, promising improvements in Safari and Mail.

As is usual with Apple updates, fine-grained detail isn't provided, but Apple does say that the update improves the "general stability of Safari" and fixes an issue in which "some images saved from Mail do not display correctly in the Camera Roll," which is Apple's name for the iPhone's main image depository.

To access the update, connect your iPhone to your computer (Mac or PC), launch iTunes 8, then select your iPhone in the Devices list. You can, by the way, update your iPhone's software from any computer running iTunes 8 - it need not be the one with which your iPhone is synced.

In the pane that appears to the right of the list, click Check for Update. A dialog will pop up, informing you that an update is available, and asking you if you want to install it.

Click Download and Install, then wait while the 246.4MB update downloads - which, in our case, took over 20 minutes.

After the download is complete, the update will begin automatically. You'll be presented with a series of progress dialogs.

When the update is complete - which takes 15 minutes or more - you'll be rewarded with a dialog telling you that your iPhone is restarting. Wait until it's finished - a couple of minutes - and you're good to go.

Finished at last!

If you have any problems with the update, Apple offers some suggested fixes on its support site.

During our update, for example, an error message popped up early in the update sequence after the download telling us that our iPhone was "disconnected" and that the update couldn't continue.

It wasn't disconnected, though, so we merely clicked the Update button again (which had changed from the Check for Update button, since the download had been completed), and all proceeded swimmingly.

Source... www.theregister.co.uk

Apple iPhone 2.2.1 update released

2009-01-27T14:16:00.000-08:00

Apple has once again decided not to offer a Cut and Paste functionality with the latest iPhone/iPod touch update.

The new 2.2.1 update instead promises the usual array of bug fixes rather than any new ground breaking software.

You can get the update via Apple's iTunes software.

In related Apple iPhone news, the company has announced that Mark Papermaster, the company's high-profile signing from IBM last year has finally been cleared to work for the company.

Papermaster will be coming to Apple as senior vice president of Devices Hardware Engineering. He will lead Apple’s iPod and iPhone hardware engineering teams.

Apple say the litigation between IBM and Mark Papermaster has been resolved.

Source... www.pocket-lint.co.uk

3G iPhone could be key mobile TV device

2009-01-25T07:24:00.000-08:00

With the launch of Apple’s 35 iPhone imminent, a report from Analysis Mason highlights the potential for Apple to make a mark on the mobile TV market.

The report suggests that the iPhone could become the key device for viewing mobile video, for many consumers. Market research has found that iPhone owners access TV and video content more often than users of other handsets.

With its 3G capability, the iPhone is video-friendly, providing a high-quality widescreen display, good internal memory capacity and low battery consumption. Users have access to Apple’s growing library of TV and video content, which is optimised for the iPhone. The device can also support multiple methods of delivering TV and video content, including sideloading, indoor WLAN and high-speed 3G cellular data access.

With Apple moving away from exclusive distribution deals for the device, Anaysis believes that the 3G iPhone could have a significant impact on the way mobile subscribers purchase and watch mobile TV and video content.

All of which is good news for Apple, as it is likely to boost the iPhone’s sales.

Source... www.mobilewire.co.uk

First Apple iPhone games summit takes place in March

2009-01-25T07:19:00.000-08:00

Not too long ago I remember someone having a gripe that there weren’t enough mobile games at Macworld, or was that CES, anyway the reason I’m bringing this up is because maybe there was a reason for the lack of mobile games, a reason like mobile games getting their own event.

Well an even for Apple iPhone games anyway; it’s a half day even called iGames Summit which is scheduled for the 19th of March in San Francisco, and apparently several iPhone developers will be attending.

Although it’s not clear as to what all the talk will be about at the show, it I fairly obvious it will be in relation to Apple iPhone games.

Source – cnet

Vudu, video on demand set top box maker, releases app for iPhone

2009-01-25T07:16:00.000-08:00

Fans of Vudu can now download a free app for their iPhone or iPod Touch that allows you to browse their catalog and download titles directly to your box at home. It’s a bold move in a series of bold moves lately where they have slashed prices quite a bit, and released more and more movies in HD.

Remote access to their catalog is nice, but I don’t see anything about a wish list or rating system in here —so let’s hope

Source... www.iphonestalk.com

what makes Apple's iPhones and iPod Touches so desirable

2009-01-25T07:12:00.000-08:00

It’s not just the design that makes Apple’s iPhones and iPod Touches so desirable – it’s the addictive applications (or Apps) that turn them into games consoles, synthesisers, guitars and, er, a fishing rod.

With 15,000 directly on sale from iTunes, we reviews our favourites.

Google Earth

Zoom in and out of a 3D world with a tap of the screen – or search by place name and go straight to a location. As with all these applications, you can download it from the iTunes Store.

Last.fm

Superb free music service that lets you stream music instantly anywhere within a 3G zone. Just search by artist, then Last.fm improvises a series of other ones you might like.

Bloom

Egghead music-producer Brian Eno made this odd synthesiser programme that improvises tunes from you tapping the screen. Clever stuff, but murder on your battery. It’s just £2.39.

Puzzle Quest

Silly Lord Of The Rings fantasy meets block puzzling head-on – like Tetris in tights. Possibly the best handheld game ever made, now just £5.99.

Midomi

We’re pretty sure this is witchcraft. Play a song to the free-to-download Midomi and it identifies what it is – even if it’s you humming it.

Spore Origins

Sadly you don’t get to build a spacefaring civilisation in the £3.99 iPhone version of this evolution sim – you’re a piece of plankton instead. Still, adding tentacles and eyes as you swim around is relaxing and fun.

iFish

Cast your iPhone like a fishing rod and reel in fish from photographs of beautiful lakes. Fun – and cheap at 59p – but not one you can really play on public transport.

Vicinity

One of the best apps on iPhone, Vicinity (£1.79) is like a real version of Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy. It uses the iPhone’s GPS, and one touch finds your nearest pubs, bars and restaurants.

MazeFinger

Flashy visual effects and extremely loud noises work quite well to disguise the fact you’re just drawing squiggly lines on screen with your finger here. MazeFinger swiftly becomes addictive – especially because it’s free.

Pianist

Virtual 88-key piano (£2.39) for practising your chords or tinkling along with any of the songs in your iPhone’s music library.

Wikipanion

Wikipanion gives you a Wikipedia search box instantly – a great time-saver when you’re using your iPhone to settle pub arguments. Free to download.

Pocket Guitar

A virtual guitar for 59p. You ‘pluck’ strings on screen, with a choice of guitar sounds. You can play along to the songs on your iPhone. Warning: may cause public headbanging.

Stanza

Recharge the little grey cells by downloading copyright-free (ie, classic) books for free; iPhone’s screen is good for reading on, too.

Air Mouse Pro

Turns your iPhone into a Wi-Fi ‘air mouse’ for your PC or Mac. It’s not as good as, you know, an actual mouse, but for £3.49 it’s not bad.

Shozu

If Facebook, Twitter, Flickr and other social-networking sites are destroying your life, the free Shozu will deliver the coup de grâce, allowing you to interact with lots of them from one application.

Labyrinth

There are plenty of games where you use iPhone’s tilt to move a steel ball across a wooden labyrinth – but this one puts other blocks in the way, making you even more likely to tear out clumps of hair in frustration. It’s just £3.99.

Source... www.dailymail.co.uk

App Store replica site cashing in on iPhone

2009-01-25T07:08:00.000-08:00

Simpler web-based alternative to Apple's iTunes

Anyone who's into customising their iPhone or iPod touch but thoroughly sick of jumping through hoops at the clunky iTunes App Store now has an alternative way to find software, after the appearance of a third-party web alternative.

The Texas-based AppBeacon site seem to have been created to take advantage of Apple's affiliate programme that shares five per cent of the revenue from certain iTunes sales with referring parties.

Better interface

Users who don't want to browse in iTunes or who have Linux computers, for which the Apple software is unavailable, can now browse the software through AppBeacon's site instead.

The interface is fast and certainly better than iTunes, but the fact remains that purchases and installing the software on an iPhone still require iTunes at some point.

Still, the ability to bookmark applications, permanently ignore others (fart jokes, anyone?) and avoid Apple's heavy-handed marketing is likely to appeal to frequent App Store users.

Source... www.techradar.com

The 20 Best iPhone Games (according to the critics)

2008-10-06T10:19:00.000-07:00

What's the best iPhone game so far? We bet you didn't just shout out "Dizzy Bee" – for all its charms, the motion-puzzler isn't one of the most high-profile iPhone titles on the App Store.

However, PocketGamer.biz has just published its first iPhone Game Quality Index, tracking reviews on six websites (including this one) to find out what the critics thought was the best iphone game in the third quarter of this year.

And yes, Dizzy Bee from Igloo Games comes top, with an average rating of 8.67, narrowly beating out Gameloft's Asphalt 4: Elite Racing and Apple's own Texas Hold'em.

The full Top 20 chart runs thus (the game titles link back to reviews on PG):

Pos.	Game	Publisher	Revs	Avg. Score
1	Dizzy Bee	Igloo Games	3	8.67
2	Asphalt 4 Elite Racing	Gameloft	6	8.58
3	Texas Hold'em	Apple	4	8.5
4	Crash Bandicoot Nitro Kart 3D	Vivendi	3	8.27
5	Trism	Demiforce	4	8.25
6	Real Football 2009	Gameloft	4	8.13
7	Mondo Solitaire	Ambrosia Software	3	8.00
8	Toy Bot Diaries	IUGO	5	7.98
9	Brain Challenge	Gameloft	3	7.97
10	Critter Crunch	Publisher X	3	7.83
11	Space Monkey	Glu Mobile	4	7.75
12	Zen Pinball: Rollercoaster	Publisher X	3	7.67
13	Diner Dash	PlayFirst	3	7.33
14	Super Monkey Ball	Sega	5	7.30
15	Spore Origins	EA Mobile	4	7.25
16=	Diamond Twister	Gameloft	3	7.17
16=	SolarQuest	Neon Surge	3	7.17
18=	Cro-Mag Rally	Pangea Software	4	7.00
18=	De Blob	THQ Wireless	4	7.00
18=	EA Sudoku	EA Mobile	3	7.00

What came bottom of the list? Poor old Cybersaurus 3D, with a stinking average score of 3.17. Although Pac-Man and GTS World Racing were the next ones up, with 5.5 and 5.98, respectively.

Source... www.pocketgamer.co.uk

New worry for mobile phones: Malware

2008-10-05T12:10:00.000-07:00

You've been battling malware - viruses, worms, spyware and the like - on your PC for years. Is your phone the next battleground?

Security experts think it could be, particularly if it's a smartphone, a handset that has a full operating system and can run applications much like a desktop computer. The more that phones can perform the same functions as PCs, the greater the chance they will have similar vulnerabilities, experts say. "I'd put it in the looming threat category," said Natalie Lambert, a senior analyst who covers mobile security issues for Forrester, a technology research firm. "There's huge potential."

But experts caution that consumers should put that potential threat in perspective. Other security issues - such as simply losing a phone - are arguably of more concern to mobile phone users today. "It's still very early in the game," said Chris Hazelton, director of mobile and wireless research at the 451 Group, a technology research firm.

Still, phones are indeed vulnerable to the same types of security threats that face PCs. Security experts have so far identified about 500 viruses or other types of malware or security vulnerabilities that target mobile phones. Perhaps the best known handset virus is Commwarrior-A, a piece of malware identified in 2005 that spread to phones using the then-current version of the Symbian operating system via text messages. But the number of pieces of mobile malware detected since then has grown steadily.

Analysts say there all kinds of ways that mobile malware could make mischief. Hackers have already induced phones to exchange text messages with rogue operators that charge a high per-message fee. Security experts worry hackers could soon use the GPS feature built into many phones to track the location of their owners.

And experts are alarmed that a new generation of spyware dubbed "snoopware" could eventually be used to turn on the microphone or camera on a phone, allowing a hacker to listen in on phone owners' conversations or see their surroundings. The overall threat of mobile malware is growing in part because smartphones are becoming more widespread. The devices comprise one of the fastest-growing segments of the mobile phone market and now account for about 12 percent of all phones sold each year.

The threat is also increasing as the devices have become more powerful and users take advantage of their new capabilities. For example, owners of the iphone, one of the first phones to have a full-fledged Web browser, are much more likely to surf the Web on the device than other smartphone users, according to data from comScore M:Metrics, a market research firm.

That capability could make users of the iphone and other phones with advanced browsers susceptible to the same attacks that plague consumers who access the Internet from their PCs, analysts say. Other analysts see the threat growing because of the increased ease with which mobile users can download and install applications to their phones. Apple's iTunes App Store paved the way in that regard, but Google promises to place even fewer controls on the applications for its new Android platform.

"Whenever you create openness, that's good for innovation," said Jan Volzke, head of global marketing and mobile security for security software maker McAfee. "But people need to understand that (malicious) hacks are also innovations." To be sure, malware is nowhere near as big a problem on mobile phones as it is on PCs. Compared with the 500 viruses and the like for mobile phones, there are some 1 million pieces of malware that have been identified on the PC.

And the PC will probably continue to be a bigger target for ne'er-do-wells, analysts say. There are far fewer smartphones in use today than PCs. And no mobile operating system has the same dominant share as Microsoft's Windows does on PCs. That makes it harder for a virus to spread, because different operating systems have different vulnerabilities.

There's also the financial issue. "It's not that (hackers) can't break" into mobile phones, Volzke said. It's that for hackers looking to use malware to profit from unwitting consumers, "It's so much easier to make money on the PC side than on mobile side." For mobile phone users, "That's the No. 1 protection that we have today," he added.

But mobile phone software and hardware makers have also become sensitive to security concerns. After the Commwarrior virus, for example, Symbian beefed up the protections in its operating system through the use of so-called digital signatures for authorized software. Such signatures can limit the access of applications to particular phone functions and greatly confine the access of unsigned programs to any phone features.

Similarly, security providers such as McAfee have been working with mobile carriers to filter potentially malicious data passing through their networks and with device makers to build security features into mobile phones. However, much of the job of protecting phones from malware will fall on their actual users, analysts say. But some smartphone owners say they are unaware of or untroubled by the problem.

Before Susie Wyshak founded San Francisco-based SuperViva.com, which helps users create lists of life goals, she worked for security software maker Zone Labs. Despite that experience - and the worries she has about the sensitive data on her BlackBerry Curve phone - she's done nothing to make it more secure.

"I have not given enough thought to the implications of what I do on my mobile phone," Wyshak said. "I'm in 'ignorance is bliss' mode." "Consumers and businesses need to realize that smartphones are essentially mini-computers and should be protected like one," said Khoi Nguyen, group product manager at Symantec's mobile security division.

How to protect yourself

Experts' tips on keeping your phone safe from mobile malware:

• Turn off Bluetooth when you're not using a wireless headset because the same technology can be used to transfer data from one device to another.

• Similarly, be wary of the applications you install on your phone, making sure they come from trusted sources and, if applicable, with digital signatures certifying their authenticity.

• As PC users have learned the hard way, beware of opening attachments whether sent through e-mail or via text messages.

• Finally, look into anti-virus software, which is typically available for Symbian and Windows Mobile phones.

Source... www.sunjournal.com

First Look: Grocery IQ for iPhone

2008-10-05T12:06:00.000-07:00

Since most people travel everywhere with their iphones, it is only fitting that an application would come along that would allow you to create a grocery list. Now if you want, you can shop in the store while listening to tunes and looking at your shopping list -- Grocery iQ allows you to do this and more.

To add an item to your list, just tap the "+" button in the top right corner. When you start entering the name of an item, Grocery iQ will start searching its database of more than 130,000 items. This is amazing, because everything that I threw at it, it recognized! The database even has brand-name items, if you prefer to search that way. You can enter the quantity of the items needed (from 1-100) and some notes about the item. Something that sets this application apart from others is the ability to sort items by aisles -- and the app automatically tries to match your item to an aisle (however, you will probably have to re-arrange this to match the layout of your preferred grocery store).

Another nice feature added by the developer is the ability to email the list to yourself or someone else! It doesn't just email a plain 'ole list either, it formats it to look just like it does in the application (with sections and everything). The application also keeps a running history of the items you purchase -- from this list, you can easily re-add items to your shopping list.

This application should be on any iphone/ipod touch owner's to-buy list if you forget items at the store, or just want to track your shopping list a little better. It would be nice to see a simple calculator in the application, so you could add up your list as you go through the store (or perhaps cache the recent price of the item). This application costs $4.99 at the iTunes App Store and weighs in at 7.2 MBs. Be sure to check out our gallery of screenshots to see the application yourself. An application update is expected soon that will add support for multiple lists/stores, and add even more information to the item database.

Source... www.tuaw.com

Docs use iPhone to access patient data

2008-10-05T12:02:00.000-07:00

Rural doctors and paramedics outside Calgary are using the apple iphone to help save lives.

The small electronic devices -- which include a revolutionary phone, a widescreen iPod, and a breakthrough Internet device with e-mail and a desktop-class web browser -- are bringing patients' medical records into the hands of paramedics.

Physicians in Black Diamond launched the pilot project in April and two local paramedics have been testing out the technology. The iphones are linked with a software program that allows paramedics to pull information from the local electronic medical records in the Foothills Family Medical Centre in Black Diamond to the point of care.

Theresia Berry, a paramedic with Foothills Regional Emergency Services in the community south of Calgary, said the iphone has become an invaluable tool for accessing necessary patient data.

"Often our calls have patients that are unable to give us the information that we request and that we require for further treatment," Berry said about trauma victims, unconscious patients, and those suffering dementia or mental illness. "By being able to access their records at the clinic (using iphone), we can get information like medication allergies, medications that they're on, past medical history."

Prior to the new technology, Berry said administering medication to a patient could be "hit and miss." "It's always a good thing to know what they're allergic to as far as medication so that we're not administering something life-threatening to them without knowing," she said. Berry said the medical record of a resident in the small town can be found using their first or last name, Alberta health care number, or address.

Dr. Tim Dowdall at the Foothills Family Medical Centre in Black Diamond spearheaded the initiative to improve communication between doctors, paramedics and nurses. The pilot project is expected to continue as long as funding is available from the Calgary Rural Primary Care Network, said Dowdall.

"The best thing would be to make the information two-way, so the messages can go back and forth or alerts can go onto a patient's chart," he said. The iphones have been modified to increase security of patient data with protocols that exceed those of banking machines and other secure networks, he said.

Source... http://calsun.canoe.ca

iPhone security flaws disclosed

2008-10-05T11:58:00.000-07:00

Security researcher Aviv Raff disclosed two iphone security flaws Thursday that could allow attackers to trick wibblers into unknowingly surfing to malicious destinations.

He had brought both vulnerabilities to Apple's attention way back in July but the company failed to address them with patches, so he had no choice but to publicly disclose the flaws.

The first flaw exists in iphone Mail application and its Safari web browser, which tend to truncate parts of long URLs when they're displayed. That can allow evil-doers to disguise malicious URLs without the user having a chance to view them.

"In most mail clients... you can just hover [over] the link and get a tooltip [showing] you the actual URL that you are about to click," explained Raff. "In iphone it's a bit different. You need to click the link for a few seconds in order to get the tooltip. Now, because the iphone screen is small, long URLs are automatically cut off in the middle."

He explained that it's possible for a blackhat to devise a long URL beginning with a trusted domain name but which actually point to an entirely different location. The iphone user would only see the familiar-looking part of the domain name and therefore might easily be tricked into clicking on a malicious link.

Raff said iphone Mail is also vulnerable because it automatically downloads images linked in HTML-formatted emails.

Most email client software allows users to make downloading of images require approval in each instance. Setting that option helps email users protect themselves against spammers, because spammers can learn when they've reached an active email account if the recipient opens a spam email and downloads images.

"This one is not just a trivial bug," Raff said. "It's actually a pretty dumb design flaw, which was already fixed by all other mail clients ages ago."

Source... www.itnews.com.au

Barack Obama Goes High-Tech With iPhone App

2008-10-05T11:56:00.000-07:00

Washington (ChattahBox) - Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama has gone high-tech with the launch of his very own Apple iPhone app.

The Obama campaign has launched the new application as a free release for iphone and ipod touch users.

This new app, called Obama ‘08, educated users about the views of Barack Obama, and his plans for the country.

Users have the ability to call people and tell them about Obama right from inside the application.

On top of that, you can also stay up to date on the latest local and national events, among other things.

Source... http://chattahbox.com

Audi Releases “A4 Driving Challenge” Version 2.0 for iPhone

2008-10-01T11:22:00.000-07:00

Part of Audi’s new advertising campaign for the 2009 A4 is developing a video game for the Apple Iphone and iPod Touch. What resulted was the Audi A4 Driving Experience, a racing game featuring the A4 and using the iphone’s built-in accelerometer to steer (turn it like a steering wheel, see below.)

Despite it being a free download, the game gathered quite a few negative reviews from users. This was mostly due to the game being a blatant advertisement, having very limited gameplay value, and terrible controls. I played the game myself, and the users were right. After about 5 minutes of play, I deleted the game from my iphone and never looked back.

Fortunately, Audi realized that they’ll have to make a game worth downloading to gather the attention they seek, and just released a second version with better graphics, significantly improved handling (although very unrealistic,) more tracks to race, and the ability to unlock additional cars such as the A4 3.2L V6 and Audi R8.

Source... www.automoblog.net