According to an article by Nick Bilton on The New York Times, Apple is indeed working on a television product that could be publicly announced in late 2012, and released in early 2013. Rumors of an Apple-made television, not just a TV set like the Apple TV, go back to the original announcement of the iTV, a set-top box that would later become the Apple TV, which made many wonder whether Apple could ever disrupt the television market by offering content deals and a new way to access and interact with television programming. A statement by Steve Jobs in the recently released biography by Walter Isaacson gave new credence to such rumors — Jobs said “he finally cracked it”, leading many to believe Apple had been working on a hardware product set to revolutionize the television market.

According to Bilton however, the revolution isn’t strictly about the hardware design or physical remote controller — rather, the Apple television will heavily rely on Siri — Apple’s voice-based assistant for the iPhone 4S — to let users easily execute tasks such as searching for online content, switch channels, get the news and weather information, or the latest episode of a TV show.

Alternative remote ideas floated by Apple included a wireless keyboard and mouse, or using an iPod, iPhone or iPad as a remote. None of these concepts worked. But there was one “I finally cracked it” moment, when Apple realized you could just talk to your television.

Enter Siri.

It’s the stuff of science fiction. You sit on your couch and rather than fumble with several remotes or use hand gestures, you simply talk: “Put on the last episode of Gossip Girl.” “Play the local news headlines.” “Play some Coldplay music videos.” Siri does the rest.

Bilton claims several people within Apple have confirmed the existence of prototypes and parts floating around, with a source even saying the television is “a guaranteed product” from Apple, with the only question being when the company will decide to unveil it and release it. Bilton says getting components for large displays to drop under a certain price target could be an issue for Apple, and he notes that the user-friendliness of Siri applied to a television could be also hinted by Jobs saying ”it will have the simplest user interface you could imagine” when referring to such a device in his authorized biography. Siri was acquired by Apple last year, and it’s currently exclusive to the new iPhone 4S.

In the past year, Apple released the second-generation Apple TV and updated its software multiple times to include a selection of new channels, content deals, iCloud-based functionalities and deeper iTunes integration with streaming and previous purchases. A recent rumor also claimed Jeff Robin, co-creator of iTunes, has been put in charge of the Apple Television project.

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When I first reviewed Screens, a universal VNC client for iOS by Edovia, I was impressed by the speed and elegance of the app, which made it super-simple to connect to Windows PCs or Macs on a local network, as well as remote computers powered by a global dynamic hostname. Together with that, Edovia’s Screens proved that a VNC client for iPhone or iPad didn’t need to completely mimic the functionality of a desktop computer: rather than putting a mouse cursor on screen, the app allowed you to turn a computer’s screen into a multi-touch based experience as if it was built for iOS in the first place. With Screens, you don’t move a cursor like in most VNC clients: you touch the computer’s windows and apps. With gorgeous animations, responsive loading times and a free service called Screens Connect to automatically and easily log into a remote machine without having to fiddle with IP addresses and router ports, Screens managed to become the most popular VNC app for iOS, and one of my favorites overall.

Months after the original release, Screens receives today a major update to version 1.5, which I had the pleasure to beta test and play with for the last couple of weeks. Screens 1.5 introduces a lot of optimizations to the underlying VNC engine to make connections faster, more stable and, based on my tests, more responsive with both PCs and Macs. Minor bug fixes and improvements aside, Screens 1.5 fixes an issue that caused a crash when disconnecting from a computer, and enhances responsiveness with several Windows VNC servers. As far as connecting to a remote computer goes, Screens now displays the Screens Connect status in the Settings, so you can instantly know whether your computer is remotely accessible or not. However, connecting to a machine on your local network is as easy as before — Screens automatically recognizes computers with screen sharing enabled, and all you’ll have to do is enter a password and choose a nickname.

Screens 1.5 also brings a new icon, a revamped UI and a new Grid View on the iPad that will come in handy for those who manage a lot of different computers; if you’re concerned about privacy, Screens now enables you to choose whether or not you want the app to grab a screenshot of your desktop upon disconnecting. If you don’t want to have “real” previews in Screens’ dashboard, a default image will be used. In the Settings, you can also set a computer to open in fullscreen mode, and you can toggle modes (full, partial, off) with a three-finger tap. It works really well.

Screens 1.5 is an important update to a great VNC client for iOS that keeps getting better with lots of options, and a fast engine. The developers didn’t sacrifice usability for options, though, as the app is still very easy to use and provides a simple way to add, modify and delete computers. The update is propagating now in iTunes, and you get the app here at $19.99. Highly recommended. (more…)

Some things never die. Other things, the ones we don’t really care about or feel affection towards, are easily dismissible after a few years. Like gadgets, video game consoles, or clothes. But what about cars? Many say you are the car you drive. While we’d prefer to pass on discussing this very specific philosophy, there’s no doubt a car is something people usually keep for several years, as it ends up holding memories of friends, family, loved ones.

So here’s what German automaker Volkswagen is doing: they’re bringing back the memories of the mythical Microbus with their latest Bulli concept, a modern re-imagination of the legendary car that made history in Volkswagen’s portfolio. The best part, design aside? It’s got built-in support for the iPad as a control station for music and other information:

Of course, the full slate of new-age technology is on hand, including an Apple iPad that controls all infotainment functions, mated to a Fender USA-designed premium audio system. The Bulli uses a lithium-ion battery pack to drive a 113-horsepower electric motor and interestingly enough, Volkswagen says that the van can be fully charged in less than one hour. Good stuff.

Now: is it too much to hope Volkswagen doesn’t leave this a concept? [via Autoblog]

Rowmote is an excellent virtual trackpad for iPhone and iPad we reviewed a while ago that lets you control the mouse cursor and media playback on your Mac. In my review I wrote:

Rowmote is one of the most solid virtual touchpad apps I’ve tested recently: the touchpad is large, buttons for media control have been placed at both sides of the iPad so you can quickly tap on them with your thumbs. That’s a great idea. A smaller surface in the Trackpad tab also allows you to adjust the Mac’s volume by sliding your fingers. A series of modifier keys placed in the same toolbar let you easily perform keyboard shortcuts assigned to certain OS X applications.

With a blog post published last night, the developers of Rowmote have confirmed that the app now works with an Apple TV — as long as you’re willing to jailbreak it, which shouldn’t be a problem using the latest Seas0nPass. Rowmote’s compatibility with the Apple TV software doesn’t just stop at menus and tabs, it also lets you easily control applications like XBMC installed on the Apple TV. That’s pretty cool.

Rowmote is the only app which will control both the standard Apple menus as well as third party applications such as XBMC on your Apple TV. Rowmote Pro’s keyboard is fully supported.  Please look at the instructions below before purchasing to ensure you’re comfortable with the requirements!

Installation requires jailbreaking your Apple TV.  This process is not supported by Apple.   While these instructions have worked well for me and for many others, I can not guarantee they will work for you.  If for some reason the installation fails, you can always ‘factory restore’ your Apple TV.

Instructions are available here. Go download Rowmote from the App Store at $4.99.

This app has been around for months, yet I’ve come to use it only a few weeks ago when several readers pointed out on Twitter that it was a better alternative to Remote Conductor. Rowmote Pro, which is a universal app for iPhone and iPad that requires a server component to be running on your Mac, is an elegant multitouch trackpad that comes with other functionalities such as quick volume / pause / next shortcuts, an app launcher and a virtual keyboard. Rowmote Pro won’t display the screen of your Mac computer on your iPhones and iPads, but it provides access to a plethora of commands that can come quite in handy if you’re controlling your Mac from the couch, watching a movie or listening to some music. (more…)

Voice Control on the iPhone and iPod touch, in spite of the number of commands it supports, is far from “full-featured”. Sure you can ask the iPhone to play and pause music, even call people — but you can’t do more. A new tweak by developer chpwn, soon to be released in Cydia, will give more power to Voice Control by letting it open apps, launch URLs and perform any Activator action, like take a screenshot.

VoiceActivator will have a dedicated settings panel where you’ll be able to create the voice shortcuts you want, and have them recognized by iOS’ built-in support for voice command. So say you want to open MacStories in a new Safari page, assign “macstories” to a new action in VoiceActivator, speak it and Safari will launch. Just like that. Kind of fancy to show off to your friends, although I’m not really huge on the whole VoiceControl UI. Still, the possibilities VoiceActivator will open seem pretty neat.

The tweak will be released soon in Cydia. Demo video below. (more…)

If you’re that kind of user who has set up a home entertainment system based on a machine running OS X, then probably you’re always looking for the next big thing in remote control. Several users, instead of buying a dedicated set-top box like an Apple TV or a Roku Player, prefer to get a relatively entry-level machine like a Mac Mini and route all their music, movies and photos through it. Because entertainment aside, the thing also happens to be a computer that can backup itself on a daily basis and serve content to other computers or iOS devices in the house. Just think of all the iTunes libraries or Plex installations shared through Mac Minis or, at best, Mac Pros that are powerful enough to be both desktop machines and entertainment systems for when the work is done and all you need is a good movie. A Mac computer set for such tasks, however, needs a good remote control system because, frankly, you just can’t use a mouse and keyboard on your couch.

Sure, you could use an Apple Remote and get most of your things done without having to lift a finger, but what about all those times when you want to use the stuff a computer also comes with — you know, like a web browser and high-def Youtube videos scaled to take all your TV screen? After all, even if geared towards home entertainment purposes, it’s a computer. And it needs to be remotely controlled. You could buy a VNC app like Screens for your iPhone and iPad, and control the computer that’s running on the TV in front of you with the comfort of also having it in your hands, in a portable app. Perhaps, though, you don’t need to have its screen mirrored on an iOS device and you just want a remote app that acts like a touchpad and lets you quickly launch and quit apps, and check on running ones.

Remote Conductor, a new iPad app by m3me, aims at reinventing the “remote controlling” app genre by combining in a single package features like a touchpad, multi-touch gestures support and some sort of application launcher and OS X-like Exposè to let you easily and effortlessly control your Mac’s screen from anywhere in your room using an iPad. (more…)

Whaaaa? That’s right kids (of legal drinking age), ‘personalbeerrobot‘ has created what every man only dreams about – a mini fridge that can be remotely controlled to adjust temperature, pivots and uses compressed air to fire beer cans into your thirsty grip for a shot of hoppy refreshment. It’s controlled using an iPhone web app; select what kind of beer you’re thirsty for, use the built-in cannon cam to aim, and fire away! The iPhone web app can also control and monitor the mini fridge’s temperature as well. There’s even a twitter account set up for the beer robot: @MyBeerRobot

Features:

• Vends 4 types of beer
• Broadcasts temperature
• Adjust temperature via iPhone
• Aim via webcam
• Auto tweet video per shot
• Fire beer with 50psi of deliciousness

Video after the break…

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The Solemates superyacht lets you control stuff on board with an iPad. This $600,000 yacht, in fact, comes with built-in technologies that allow passengers, staff and the captain to control the entertainment and climate systems, adjust lights and close the blindings in their cabins — or just call a crewmember to get a cocktail. Yes, this whole thing is for rich people who happen to have an iPad and are willing to step aboard a superyacht with people who bring you cocktails.

Or, if you have the money but haven’t thought about getting an iPad, the captain will give you one as you enter the Solemates.

The interior, designed by Glade Johnson, blends elegant, rich woods and textures with contemporary sleek lines in a soothing palette of earth tones. The main and upper deck salons are awash with natural light and offer impressive spaces for formal dining or casual dining and entertaining. The sun deck features a dining area and a sun lounge wrapped around the Jacuzzi forward. A disco sound and lighting system turns it into an al fresco nightclub at nightfall.

I don’t want to think about the functionalities the iPad can gain at night on the Solemates. Maybe it’s got nightclub integration, who knows. [9to5mac via JamesList]