iLounge | All Things iPod, iPhone, iPad and Beyond

First Looks: ZeroChroma VarioProtect for iPhone 4/4S

Nick Guy — 2012-05-24T19:56:48+00:00

Freshly delivered for testing is VarioProtect ($40), the newest iPhone 4/4S case from ZeroChroma -- and a really nice upgrade to the company's Teatro-S. It shares the same case-plus-rotating-stand concept, but the new felt-lined, plastic and rubber body is a clear improvement over the earlier shell-style design. We're huge fans of ZeroChroma's inline folding stand, which offers 11 different viewing angles in any orientation, complete with ratcheting…

Review: BodyGuardz UltraTough Clear Skins for iPad (3rd-Gen)

Nick Guy — 2012-05-24T19:48:28+00:00

UltraTough Clear Skins is a wet-application set; the film for both the front and back of the tablet adheres when combined with the contents of the two packets of application gel. Also included in the set are a pre-moistened cleaning cloth and a fabric cleaning cloth. Installation involves putting a dozen or so drops of the gel on the film, spreading it around with your fingers, and then putting the film in place. Because it takes a little while for…

Review: Wrapsol Original + Ultra Hybrid Protective Film for iPad 2/iPad (3rd-Gen)

Nick Guy — 2012-05-24T19:41:40+00:00

Ask iLounge: iTunes TV show size totals don’t match actual disk storage

Jesse Hollington — 2012-05-24T19:30:30+00:00

Q: I’m seeing a really confusing inconsistency in iTunes that I’m hoping you can help explain how to fix as I’ve been tearing my hair out trying to figure out what’s wrong. The problem is that the total storage space that iTunes says it’s using for my TV shows is way off when compared to the actual disk space being used, by dozens of gigabytes in fact. At first I thought maybe I had some extra files in my iTunes folders…

News: Booq rolls out new Folio for iPad

Charles Starrett — 2012-05-24T19:00:48+00:00

Booq has rolled out its new Folio case for the third-generation iPad and iPad 2. Available in handcrafted natural fiber fabric or Nappa leather, the Folio features a tri-fold cover that allows for multiple viewing and typing angles and also sports built-in magnets for compatibility with the iPad’s automatic sleep/wake functionality, and open access to all ports, controls, and cameras. Booq’s new Folio case for the third-generation…

News: Apple removes Airfoil Speakers Touch from the App Store

Jesse Hollington — 2012-05-24T18:53:09+00:00

Rogue Amoeba reports that Apple has removed its Airfoil Speakers Touch app from the App Store. In a post on the company’s blog, CEO Paul Kafasis states that the company was informed today that “Apple has removed Airfoil Speakers Touch from the iOS App Store” although he first heard about the decision from Apple two days ago and has been in ongoing discussions since then regarding the pending removal. Kafasis goes on to indicate that…

Tip of the Day: Introducing Siri to your family

Charles Starrett — 2012-05-24T18:50:06+00:00

Siri is certainly smart, but she’s not a mind reader—if you want to be able to tell her to call your mom, you have to tell Siri who she is first. Doing so is amazingly simple. Just call up Siri, and when you hear the familiar prompt, say “Jane Doe is my mother” or “John Doe is my father”—note that you should use your actual family member’s names, unless your name happens to be James Doe—and soon…

News: Tweetbot adds Nearby tweets, Keyword mute filters + more

Jesse Hollington — 2012-05-24T18:25:42+00:00

Tapbots has released an update to Tweetbot adding a cornucopia of new features including support for finding tweets by geo-location, improvements to offline reading, mute filters based on keywords and several other UI enhancements. With Tweetbot 2.4 users can now easily find tweets posted near their current location or specify an alternate location to search from there; location-based keyword searches are now also supported for finding tweets based…

News: Facebook releases Facebook Camera

Jesse Hollington — 2012-05-24T17:57:35+00:00

Facebook has released Facebook Camera, a new iPhone application designed specifically to focus on posting and viewing photos on the company’s social network. With Facebook Camera, users can take photos directly within the app and select multiple photos from the iOS camera roll for posting on their Facebook timeline. Users can also crop and apply any of 14 pre-defined filters to their photos and add the standard text, captions, location and friend…

News: Third-gen iPad shipping times drop to 1-3 days

Charles Starrett — 2012-05-24T17:50:28+00:00

Apple has dropped its estimated shipping wait time for new orders of the third-generation iPad. Apple’s online store shows that the estimated shipment wait for all models—including both black and white variants of either Wi-Fi or Wi-Fi + 4G models, across all capacities—is now 1-3 business days, down from 3-5 days. The changes appear to apply only to the U.S. and Canadian stores, as the company’s European online stores still show a…

News: Bump adds photo to computer transfers

Jesse Hollington — 2012-05-24T16:30:51+00:00

Bump Technologies has released an update to its popular inter-device sharing app for iOS adding the ability for users to transfer photos from an iPhone to a desktop computer. Primarily designed to allow users to share common information between mobile devices simply by bumping two devices together, this latest Bump update broadens the scope of the application by allowing photos to also be transferred to any computer that the user happens to be working…

Review: iBattz Mojo Removable Power Card Wallet

Nick Guy — 2012-05-24T16:00:17+00:00

The Mojo Removable Power Card Wallet is reminiscent of a third-generation iPod nano, specifically because of the housing’s reflective metal bottom. The top, as well as the edge with the USB ports, are covered in glossy white plastic, and the whole thing is about as small as it can be at only 3.5” long and 2.2” wide. A door on the top opens to reveal the battery inside: we’re pretty sure that it was supposed to stay attached…

News: Sharp to supply tech for Foxconn iPhone display plant

Charles Starrett — 2012-05-24T15:08:57+00:00

Sharp will supply technical know-how to Foxconn for a new plant in China that will produce display panels for the iPhone and other consumer electronics, according to a new report. Citing the Nikkei business daily, Reuters reports that the technology sharing agreement only further serves to tie the company to Foxconn, which in March agreed to buy a nearly 47 percent stake in a Sharp LCD manufacturing plant in Sakai, Japan. That plant is said in the…

News: Infinity Blade II: Vault of Tears update released

Jesse Hollington — 2012-05-24T13:58:25+00:00

Epic Games and Chair Entertainment have released Infinity Blade II: Vault of Tears, the latest major content update for the critically acclaimed iOS game. Available as a free update, Vault of Tears adds a large collection of new single player content as well new social features for the game’s ClashMob multiplayer update released last month. In Vault of Tears players delve further into Siris’ mysterious past with new areas available to…

News: Apple claims e-book lawsuit is ‘fundamentally flawed’

Charles Starrett — 2012-05-24T13:43:25+00:00

Apple is continuing to reject charges that it conspired with publishers to fix the price of electronic books. Reuters reports that Apple has made a filing in U.S. District Court in which it argues against the Justice Department’s lawsuit and claims that it did not conspire with anyone or fix prices in an effort to undermine Amazon.com’s lead in the marketplace. “Apple’s entry into e-book distribution is classic procompetitive…

News: Malkovich stars in new Siri-focused iPhone 4S ads

Charles Starrett — 2012-05-24T13:33:30+00:00

Noted actor John Malkovich is the star of two new official Apple ads for the iPhone 4S. As with the prior “Date Night” and “Rainy Day” ads—starring Samuel L. Jackson and Zooey Deschanel, respectively—the new ads, entitled “Joke” and “Life”, feature the star interacting with Siri to perform tasks such as checking the weather, calendar, and searching for food. Consistent with Malkovich’s…

News: Photosmith 2.0 adds two-way Lightroom sync, Eye-fi support + more

Jesse Hollington — 2012-05-23T20:30:04+00:00

C2 Enterprises has released Photosmith 2.0, a major update to its advanced photographic workflow app for iPad and Lightroom users. Redesigned from the ground up the new version boasts significant improvements in speed, flexibility and memory usage and adds a plethora of the most-requested features by users of the original version. Photosmith 2.0 now supports wireless two-way synchronization with Adobe Lightroom via a free Lightroom plugin and can…

Ask iLounge: Consolidating Multiple iTunes Libraries

Jesse Hollington — 2012-05-23T18:53:34+00:00

Q: I am completely overwhelmed by my music collection as it is stored in way too many places. I primarily had my music stored on my MacBook, but once that got too small I bought a 400 GB networked hard drive and started storing my music there. I also now have songs from several hundred CD’s on my new Mac Mini that aren’t on either my iPhone or my iPod. I would like to have everything in a central location be it the networked hard drive…

News: Seidio unveils Expert Portfolio Case for iPad

Charles Starrett — 2012-05-23T18:40:54+00:00

Seidio has unveiled its new Expert Portfolio Case for the third-generation iPad and iPad 2. The Expert is a folio-style case featuring a Clean-Grip interior panel that is used to secure the iPad in lieu of a traditional frame or straps, a foldable, bendable front cover that serves as a stand with two angles and includes magnets for compatibility with the iPad’s automatic sleep/wake functionality, open access to all ports, controls, and cameras,…

News: Google Search app for iPhone gets major redesign

Jesse Hollington — 2012-05-23T18:06:02+00:00

Google has updated its universal Google Search app for iOS devices introducing a complete redesign of the user interface for the iPhone and iPod touch. Designed with an emphasis on speed and simplicity, the new version dramatically improves performance with significantly faster autocompletion of search suggestions and faster loading of results. Users can also now easily see multiple pages with a slide-in panel, use swipe gestures to move back and…