David Commented “With the release of iPhone 4 mobile camera technology has come on leaps and bounds. I have always wanted to embark on a Photo 365 and experimenting with the iPhone and a range of different Apps seems like the logical challenge”.

The iphonific website is broken down into categories and every photo will arrive on site directly from the handset. There won’t be any Lightroom, Aperture or Photoshop enhancements instead David is relying on the latest mobile software to tweak the images directly on the phone.

Welcoming Comments

David commented “iPhonific isn’t a self indulgent journey, it is simply a way of taking post production and advance DSLR settings out of the equation allowing there to be focus on composition. I would appreciate as much feedback as photographers can offer on the photos, feedback is how we learn”.

You can follow the site via the RSS feed and each photo will be posted via the @flixelpix twitter account.

Links:

iPhonific
FlixelPix
Flickr
Twitter

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Designed especially for the tilt controls of the iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch, and featuring eight exciting levels of gun-toting, gliding actions in full 3D, designs from Jamie Hewlett, and music and voice-overs from the band themselves, “Escape to Plastic Beach” is a must-have game app for any Gorillaz fan.

“Escape to Plastic” Beach Features:

• Eight Exciting Levels – Fight, fly and fire your way through eight levels of Gorillaz action with varied goals and missions and a whole bundle of hazards and enemies to deal with
• Amazing 3D graphics – Plastic Beach is recreated in full 3D, with designs from Jamie Hewlett
• Awesome Sounds – Soundtrack from the Plastic Beach album and voiceovers from the band themselves!
• Global Scoreboard – Compete against your friends or even total strangers by posting your score to the official Gorillaz scoreboard

Links:

iPhone & iPad
http://bit.ly/gorillaz-game-iphone

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A quick video tutorial on how to take screen grabs using the OS Shortcuts. The three shortcuts covered :

?? 3 for a screen shot of the entire desktop.

?? 4 for a set of crosshairs that allow you to select the area of the screen you want to grab.

?? 4 (Space) grabs only the window the user clicks.

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My desk actually reads ?Apple? – from my Magic Mouse, to my 23 inch monitor and a 1.86GHz 120 GB HDD Macbook Air that I transport in between my house and the office, an 16 GB iPhone 3 Gs, and lately, an 16Gig iPad 3G.
My Macbook Air simply defines my personality with its thin, sleek look.

I like the fact that it is small enough to allow me to slide it into my handbag. How else is a lady supposed to handle heels and weighty matters at the same time?! The point of the matter is – Mac offers me everything I need, and a lot more!

Developing conversation scripts with Illustrator for Mac, listening to customers’ call recordings, designing IVR messages or fixing them to TOLL FREE numbers for our clients’ applications support – this is just a part of what I do on my Mac every day. I use the usual Pages and Numbers for filing reports and for other usual desk duties.

I need to be in touch with my team literary 24/7, and as such, I use my 16Gig iPhone 3GS not only to quickly and easily access my office email database, but also to manage and update the schedule and inform my experts quickly.
I love the extremely long battery life of my iPad 16Gig 3G, small but powerful, it helps me to control difficult users’ requests being resolved anytime, anywhere. How does iPad factually help me do this?

I discovered split-screen function to be just perfect when dealing with difficult tickets: i can simultaneously study mailing history and expert’s comments on the case – thus it shortens request resolution time almost twice! Which could never be performed using touchpad or mouse. Eventually I make customers happier with one only finger using iPad, literary:) And, of course, iPad is irreplaceable when looking through the latest Louis Vuitton’s bag collection (what? seriously, I’m still a lady!)

I head a technical support team of customer service experts, and to provide professional support for numerous Mac applications, Yellow Media Group became the first fully Mac-equipped professional contact center.  We are all passionate about Macs, and that’s the spirit that I impart in every heart around.

Links:

www.Be-Yellow.com

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This is obviously down to content protection but having the load the full website page in your iPhone or iPad news reader can be a slow and painful experience.

Today sees the end of the pain with the release of the BBC News application. The interface is stunning and easy to use allowing you to prioritise the news sections as you desire.

The Application is quick and as well as featuring video content also offers the ability to share the article by email, Facebook and Twitter.

If you don’t like the look of the new BBC website then this free App (if you have an iPad or iPhone) is a must have.

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“As good as iBank already was,” says IGG Chief Architect James Gillespie, “we knew there was room for improvement. So we took a year of development and two years of customer feedback to deliver an app that would set the new standard for managing your money on a Mac.”

Among dozens of new features and improvements in iBank 4 are a seamless set-up assistant for migrating data from Mac and PC versions of Quicken, MS Money or other finance programs;

a streamlined set-up process for importing transactions from online bank accounts; a cleaner, more intuitive user interface for faster transaction entry and easy monitoring of account balances, net worth, or summaries of assets and liabilities; vastly upgraded investment tracking capabilities; more powerful support for multiple currencies; a more liberal 30-day unlimited trial for new users; and significant speed enhancements throughout.

Features that have been entirely revamped for iBank 4 include:

an all-new reporting engine that, for example, lets users examine income and expenses by category, monitor net worth over time, check the performance of investments, analyze spending by payee, compile tax-related information or keep track of debt. Users can customize report data, drill down into that data with a click, save to PDF and print reports as they appear in iBank.

a whole new approach to budgeting with envelopes. Users can drag and drop cash from income categories into envelopes representing different types of expenses; see at a glance how much money is available for a particular purchase; move cash between envelopes to balance out surpluses and shortfalls in different categories; carry over extra cash from month to month; and incorporate one-time expenses or bonuses into a budget.

a new template system that merges the functionality of memorized transactions, scheduled transactions and smart import rules into one feature. iBank 4 records payees as they are typed in, autofills the same transaction details (including splits) later on, and records changes users make when they download data.

iBank 4 learns how users clean up and categorize their imported transactions, and applies those changes to future downloads automatically. Schedules can also be added to templates so that transactions can be posted to users’ accounts on a repeating basis.

The iBank 4 public beta can be downloaded from http://www.iggsoftware.com/ibank/beta.php by anyone interested in testing the software. Feedback may be submitted to the IGG iBank 4 Beta Test forum per the instructions outlined on the website.

As with all beta software, IGG warns prospective testers that the available build may be unstable and that normal precautions should be taken to safeguard critical data. Nonetheless, iBank 4 can be run alongside iBank 3 without affecting the pre-existing version or its files. The beta is fully functional through September 30. iBank 4 will ship in September 2010, with an exact date to be announced.

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With TabToolkit, you can take your music tablature files with you. For the iPhone and iPod touch, TabToolkit allows you to view Power Tab, Guitar Pro, text and PDF files. Tablature files (or tabs) are a very popular format for composing and transcribing music, especially for guitar players. Tab files are a great way to learn new music or practice a song.

Tablature & Standard Notation

With “rich” tab file formats (Power Tab and Guitar Pro), you can view both standard musical notation and tablature notation.

Have your iPhone Play it for you
That’s right, TabToolkit has a built-in synthesis engine to let you hear the music for your score. The ability to hear an instrument play notes is a huge help in learning new music. If things are moving a little too fast, you can slow the tempo down to a crawl and learn tricky parts one note at a time.

If you have ever tried to learn a song from complicated tab you will know what a life saver this feature will be. There are aspects of music tab just can’t communicate including phrasing and to a degree timing. Now your mobile device will teach you everything !

Instrument Guides
In addition to tab and standard notation, for Power Tab and Guitar Pro files, you can show either a guitar fretboard or keyboard to see finger placements in real time. This serves as a tremendous aid in learning new songs.

Upload & Download
If you’ve got tab files on your computer that you’d like to move into TabToolkit, no problem. Using your home wireless network, you can upload files directly to your iPhone or iPod touch. Need to get a tab file from somewhere online? There’s a built-in web browser with tab download capabilities.

Multi-Track Support
Power Tab and Guitar Pro files allow you to specify different tracks for different instruments. TabToolkit has full support for this feature, allowing you to learn the lead guitar, rhythm guitar, bass guitar and keyboad if you’d like.

It never ceases to amaze me what the iPhone is capable of processing and if you had of asked me two weeks ago if I ever thought such a multi-featured application would run on an iPhone or even be possible I thought I would have had serious doubts. Yet, here it is.

If you own a guitar and an iPhone then the TabToolkit and Guitar Toolkit are two essential applications you really must own.

Click here for more information (Apps Store Link).

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I use a 15” 2.8 GHz MacBook Pro with 8GB RAM. My company is very much a virtual team (we all work from home) and largely communicate via email (using Apple Mail) and Skype (using the built-in mic and iSight camera). However, there are times when face to face collaboration is more effective. My laptop therefore gives me the perfect balance between mobility and performance.

At my office, I connect my laptop to an Apple 24″ LED Cinema Display, Wireless Keyboard and Magic Mouse. This turns it into a true desktop replacement, which is far more comfortable for long sessions. I also place my laptop on the Rain Design mStand, which raises it to eye level and enables it to be used as a secondary monitor. The extra screen space is really useful when coding or doing graphics work.

Most of my working day is spent using Coda. A great piece of (Mac only) web development software and a big reason for my move from PCs. Having used bloated Dreamweaver for years, I love how lightweight yet feature full it is, with built-in CSS editor, preview and FTP client. Fireworks is probably my second most used app. I’ve been a long-term fan and think it’s a far better web graphics tool than Photoshop, which I save for just editing photos.

To actually store my files, I use Dropbox, as it automatically backs up my work offsite and keeps a version history (goodbye annoying external hard drives). I can also easily share files with colleagues or clients.

My most recent addition has been an iPad (yes, I was one of those sad people that queued up on the day of its release). I bought it primarily for consuming media, but have since realised it is a fantastic tool for web development. Previously, I used pen and paper for wireframing and flow charts (sitemaps, processes etc.) but now, using the iMockups and Instaviz apps, I do these on my iPad.

Having said this, I primarily use it for keeping on top of my RSS feeds (using Reeder) and reading/posting tweets (using Osfoora HD) from the comfort of my sofa. The only problem is, I now keep tapping my fingers on my laptop screen thinking it has a touch screen – now that would be cool.

You can follow me on Twitter @robert_chambers and check out my portfolio and blog at robert-chambers.com.

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Turbo.264 HD gives users the ability to instantly edit HD camcorder clips without converting them first, and supports nearly any kind of video source format. It uses advanced encoding technology to convert any video file to a very high-quality iPhone- and iPad-compatible format.

The interface is extremely easy-to-use and offers pre-installed output formats for iPad, iPhone, YouTube and many others. We have released an extensive video tutorial here.

The software edition of Turbo.264 HD is available for download immediately in the Elgato Online Store (www.elgato.com) at a price of £39.95 GBP/$49.95/49.95 Euro. A hardware-accelerated version of Turbo.264 HD is also available.

Get instant access to HD camcorder video
Sharing HD camcorder clips with friends on a Mac, iPad, or YouTube account is easier and faster with Turbo.264 HD. The software automatically detects USB camcorders and enables users to preview and edit video clips before importing them. Unlike other applications, Turbo.264 HD Software Edition does not require a lengthy conversion into an intermediate format.

Superior-quality video for iPad from nearly any format
Turbo.264 HD can handle nearly any kind of video file, including formats that are non-native on the Mac such as MKV or wmv. Turbo.264 automatically adds converted videos into iTunes to sync with connected Apple devices. Video collectors can add details before converting, such as a description and episode numbers, to keep their iTunes library organized.

Convert video to the universal H.264 format – fast
Using advanced encoding technology, Turbo.264 HD converts standard- and high-definition files faster than other H.264 video encoders. There is no compromise on quality since Turbo.264 HD follows Apple’s specifications for H.264 videos and uses Elgato’s unique Progressive Scan method for video deinterlacing.

Hardware-accelerated version of Turbo.264 HD
Turbo.264 HD is available in a software edition, and a hardware-accelerated version is also available. The hardware-accelerated version of Turbo.264 HD boosts the speed of video conversion from two to four times, even on the fastest Mac. The hardware accelerator connects via USB to act as a “co-processor” and comes complete with the software. A full review of the hardware version can be found here.

Availability
Turbo.264 HD Software Edition is available for download at a price of £39.95 GBP/$49.95/49.95 Euro in the Elgato Online Store (www.elgato.com). A free trial is available here: http://www.elgato.com/elgato/int/mainmenu/support/Update-Start/Update-Turbo-HD. The Turbo.264 HD (with hardware accelerator) is available in the Elgato Online Store at a price of £89.95 GBP/$99.95/99.95 Euro.

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Also this year both Vimeo and YouTube rolled out their High Definition services and the affordability of HD cameras is meaning SD is becoming seconds class to its High Definition rival.

We recently reviewed the brilliant Panasonic HDC-SD100 offering at the higher end of the domestic market but HD doesn’t have to be expensive with a FlipVideo HD camera expected in the UK next month at just over £100.

High Definition video puts higher demand on our hardware and brings with it a different way to import and manage footage. Regular DigMo! readers will already know we love the standard Elgato Turbo.264 (Review Link) USB hardware encoder and we are excited to get our hands on the newly upgraded Elgato Turbo.264 HD.

If you have the Turbo.264 you will be pretty familiar with the software that comes with it. On the surface little has changed but behind the scenes the software offers a mass of hidden new and upgraded features.

I will start by looking at the software thats ships with the device and then test the performance of the hardware towards the end of the article..

Elgato Turbo.264 HD Software:

The main software interface hasn’t changed with the HD release. The dial on the top right of the software displays red on startup and turns to black (with the max dial) with the Turbo.264 is connected to a USB port on your Mac.

To convert a video, simply drag it into the ‘Drag video files here.’, select the format you want the video to use (see later) and click the start button.

If you connect an AVCHD camcorder to your Mac an additional button appears on the main window entitled ‘Add Camcorder’ (see the screenshot above). This is the point when updated software really offers a massive advantage. Importing AVCHD footage using iMovie and Final Cut although faster than traditional firewire video importing still takes a fair bit of time. The Turbo.264 software quickly lists and indexes the AVCHD footage with a first frame thumbnail :

As you will see in the screenshot above you have the option of either importing (and converting) the footage as a single movie or, if you pull the slider to the left as individual movies. In this example I have 33 clips on my SD card but this will obviously change as the amount of video on the card changes.

The ability to import multiple clips is very useful if you need to quickly turn around a video and only need a section of the footage recorded or alternatively, if you are like me and forget to delete previously imported footage from the camera before starting the next shoot.

Double click on a video clip to watch a preview,

Like Elgato’s EyeTv software the Turbo.264 software allows you to trim and edit footage before it is imported. Click the middle button to display in and out tabs on the video line.

In the reality of most domestic setups this level of editing is all most users need to remove ‘dud’ footage from clips. It is easy to quickly trim a video to the essential clip and click done to go back to the export options. In this case I have opted for exporting the 30 second clip at 1080p. This took around 1 min.

In this case I exported at 1080p but the software offers a great range of presets and also hosts the ability to customise these to your own particular requirements. The user has full control over the video and audio and there are even options for Dolby sound.

As well as local file formats the software also offers support for both the YouTube and YouTube HD video sharing services. I’d love to see support on application for the upcoming sharing site Vimeo but no doubt as more of use the service these will come in time.

Anyone who is thinking of buying the Elgato Turbo.264 HD is going to be primarily interested in performance. The great plus of this hardware is that it offers acceleration to not only the application that it ships with but other applications such as iMovie, Final Cut and Elgato’s own EyeTV software.

The Test:
I opted to export a 3 minute and 28 second clip from a TV programme I recorded on EyeTV recently. The first stage of the test was to export the clip in AppleTV format without the Turbo.264HD connected. I am using a standard 2.8GHZ 24?iMac.

The final time for export to AppleTV : 3 mins and 8 seconds. I then connected the Turbo.264 and re-ran the export. I felt if the Turbo.264 HD was able to convert the video in under 2 minutes it was a definite winner, the results were spectacular  :

The Turbo.264 converted the same clip in well under my predicted two minutes and actually converted it in less of a third the time : 1 minute in total. I repeated both conversions twice with similar results.

I think this is particularly impressive. As most of my daily conversion isn’t actually HD and involves the EyeTV software the Turbo.264 accelerator offers a massive advantage to this particular work flow.

I really can’t be more positive about this device. Computing has become more and more media centric and the ability to quickly edit and convert video is now almost essential. If you own a TV device with the EyeTv 3 software then this device is verging on essential.

Buy Online

If you convert on a regular basis whether for video podcasts, family video or even professionally I would highly recommend the hardware acceleration this device offers. The fact I was able to export the same click in less than one third the time with the Turbo.264 makes it a complete no brainer for my set up.

The only negative is that the increased resolution of HD seems to have brought with it an increase in price. The Turbo.264 costs £139.95 but it offers considerable advantage especially if you are an AVCHD camcorder owner !

Related posts:

1. Turbo.264 HD Video Tutorial
2. Elgato Video Capture Review
3. EyeTV Sat Review