Yo, rockers. I bet this is one of the apps for the iPad you were looking forward to: the first version of AmpliTube for iPad was released in the App Store earlier today, and it comes with a free version [iTunes link] and a paid one sold at $19.99 [iTunes link].
Using the Amplitube iRig interface adapter you’ll be able to connect your guitar to your iPhone at anytime, anywhere. The UI design looks very cool, and of course it resembles the looks of real amps.
Richard S. Levick, reporting for Forbes:
“In any event, we don’t often see a corporate kingpin deliver such a multifaceted message about a product, his company and himself. Even without the triumphant earnings report, two fundamental truths came through, and they both ultimately bode well for Apple and its stakeholders.
The first is that when you’ve used your peacetime effectively, by building support among vital stakeholders and fanning the warm fires of their impassioned loyalty, you can survive big mistakes. The failed leadership decried in the Washington Post and other venues might have been fatal for most leaders other than Steve Jobs. We saw another example of the salutary effect of longtime trust and brand equity with consumers who might otherwise have deserted in droves when Toyota faced all its product quality woes in the past year.
The second lesson is that the right fix in a crisis can seem almost miraculous. Assuming the iPhone 4 case giveaway works and customers are kept satisfied, Apple will reinforce its brand more emphatically than if the crisis had never happened. Apple will have delighted the crowd, all the more so because the crowd held its breath to see if Houdini would escape the trap. If the fix works, Jobs’ demeanor at the press conference only reinforces the zeal of his loyalists, and it likely wins new adherents to the cult, too.”
Now go ahead, and start saying that this was all planned.
P.S.
If so, what a plan.
Like I said in my first coverage of Flipboard, I didn’t have enough time to test the application and come up with an opinion about the innovations of this new way to consume and, to a degree, produce news content on the iPad. When Flipboard launched two days ago, the servers were immediately hammered down by Robert Scoble’s highly hyped preview, people tried to add their own Twitter / Facebook feeds and the application servers crashed. I guess McCue wasn’t expecting such a huge and positive response, probably because he didn’t know that iPad users were looking for something like this.
A new, fresh, revolutionary app that could prove that the iPad is indeed magical. We’ve seen some great apps on the iPad, but as Scoble puts it: “you’ve never seen one like this”. Is Flipboard revolutionary? It’s the first seed for a revolution in how people find interesting content on the crowded web, and this revolution is happening now. The problem with this revolution is that many people don’t think it’s a revolution at all. Strange, isn’t it? A company comes out with a greatly innovative product and many people don’t see that product as great or innovative.
They’re not looking at the big picture. They don’t get the concept, they don’t see the potential because they’re too busy criticizing some developers that made the wrong choice of not choosing the right amount of servers for day-one.
I’ve been testing the app with full Twitter and Facebook support since yesterday. Indeed, I was able to add my Twitter and Facebook accounts, other people’s profiles and Twitter lists, both the ones curated by me and others. So, I’m enjoying the complete Filpboard experience right now. Here are my thoughts about it.
The Twelvesouth guys are well-known for making awesome Apple-dedicated accessories.We reviewed the Bookarc for iPad months ago, and it’s still one of the best products available. A few days ago they launched a new stand for iPad, called “Compass Mobile Stand.” You can find all the details here.
“Compass is a stylish compact folding stand that lets you use your iPad in two different modes. First, as an easel, Compass displays iPad in both portrait and landscape modes. Second, flip open the secondary leg and Compass now holds your iPad at the perfect angle to let your fingers fly across iPad’s onscreen keyboard.
Forged from heavy gauge steel, this slim, travel friendly stand lets you enjoy both hands-free and hands-on use of your iPad anywhere your iPad goes. iPhoto slideshows to Keynote presentations, Compass lets you see and do more with iPad. Compass folds up to the size of candy bar, requiring very little space in your backpack, computer bag or purse. Store it in it soft travel sleeve, which matches the Apple iPad case, and you’re ready to go.”
In my opinion, it’s great, and looks very useful. Check out the images below.
We often come across cool implementations of Apple’s technology, great looking hacks and awesome mods - this one is no exception. A wall made of 20 iPod Touches running a custom app based on the GameKit framework, all hooked up to a Django / Python web app server.
“Our current iPhone Application allows for 4 different modes, a screen saver mode, a full image split mode (the controlling iPod looks for an image and then the server executes a script to split that image among all 20 iPods), a single image grid mode (the controlling iPod tells the server to give a random image to each iPhone), and a hybrid mode which displays all three. In addition, the server is always checking to ensure that each iPod is synched.”
[via FunkySpaceMonkey]
When we say “one hell of an update”, this is what we mean: we reviewed Camera+ for iPhone a few days ago, and now it feels like a brand new app. The new 1.2 update, which has just been released in the App Store, brings support for touch exposure, touch focus and Photo Flashlight.
It’s available here.
The iPad lacks a built-in calculator but there’s no shortage of 3rd party ones in the App Store. I’ve already reviewed Calcbot for iPhone and iPad and I’m loving it, but this one’s good, too.
Digits Calculator by Shift looks like a simple calculator app for iPad, with very large numbers and a surprising attention to typographic details. There’s a tape on the left side to retrieve all your past calculations, numbers and some buttons are at the center of the screen. Don’t be fooled by the looks of it: Digits Calculator is powerful. It’s a scientific calculator, with a wide array of options to customize the way it works for you located in the settings.
You can change the colors of the app, enable the currency and scientific formats, show labels and color total values. The app rearranges items on screen with a nice animation when you change orientation.
I’m no math expert, but I can spot a good calculator when I see one. If you already own Calcbot, you may want to give this a try anyway, especially considering that it’s just $0.99 in the App Store and will be available soon as Universal for free to previous customers.
Go download it.
Finally! The official Skype client for iPhone has just been updated to include support for iOS 4 multitasking. You can now receive Skype calls and IM in the background while running other apps, and even when you’re in the lockscreen.
Of course, you’re also able to continue your calls after switching to another application, say to check for an email you’ve got while talking.
The app is available for free here.
N.O.V.A. is a first-person shooter for iPhone developed by Gameloft, available both for iPhone and iPad, which has become quite popular over the year in the App Store.
Unlike many other popular games though, this one has just been update to include support for iOS 4 and the iPhone 4. First, you can now control your character using brand new gyroscopic controls, which will make the game feel more natural and intuitive. Then, there are Retina Display-ready high resolution graphics and support for iOS multitasking.
The app is available here at $4.99. Check out a video of the new version after the break.
