Posts in news

Pulp for Mac 2.1: Instant Resume, Push Sync, and Ready for Lion

Among all of the changes for the latest version of Pulp for Mac (it hit 2.1 today), we’re really excited about Instant Resume and Push Sync. If you use Pulp across multiple Macs (or between your desktop and the iPad), Push Sync will instantly update your newspaper whenever you make a change on another device. On top of always being right where you left off with Push Sync, Instant Resume will let you return to the exact point you were reading when you leave Pulp and return to the app at a later time. So with reading taken care of, what else do we have in store?

Pulp for Mac 2.1 is a big Lion update that integrates Lion gestures with the newspaper itself — as you move your fingers, the pages will curl (just like directly manipulating the interface on the iPad). Pulp for Mac 2.1 also brings full-screen mode — it’s realistic interface is a great fit for 11- and 13-inch MacBook Airs.

Pulp for Mac is ready for OS X Lion, and available in the Mac App Store for $9.99. See the Acrylic Software blog for more information.

Sparrow 1.3.2: Drag & Drop to Labels, Conversation & Reply Redesigns, and Gradients!

Sparrow has a really sweet Mac update available this afternoon from the Mac App Store, bringing lots of new features and tons of bug fixes to improve its game and interface on Lion. The last update brought full-screen support and a redesigned sidebar that’s significantly improved my workflow, and now that sidebar is getting some additional use thanks to drag & drop. Whether you’re on an IMAP account or using Gmail, you can drag and drop emails into a folder or label to quickly move and archive messages. That alone makes us really happy, but check out what else Sparrow has added past the break.

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Skype for Mac Gets HD Video Calling with 5.3 Update

Have a Mac with a FaceTime camera or own an external HD video cam? Following Skype’s iPad launch, the latest update for Skype for OS X brings it up to speed with OS X Lion (don’t worry — Skype is still compatible with Leopard and Snow Leopard) while giving you HD camera support for those who have 1.5 Mbps of bandwidth available on the upstream. The latest Skype update can be downloaded here — you can expect to find subtle interface improvements and a boost in stability according to The Big Blog announcement at Skype.

[The Big Blog via The Loop]

Google+ for iOS: Now Available For iPad and iPod touch

Looking to use the official Google+ app on your iPad or iPod touch? There’s a Google+ update in the App Store waiting for your geeky fingers to download the app on your tablet or smart-mp3 player. While Google+ doesn’t have an iPad specific version (you’re looking forward to 2x mode), you can now use it on devices outside of the iPhone (or your Android smartphone).

Google is also giving you additional control for their huddle feature via the app, as well as aggregated circle add notifications, stability improvements, and bug fixes.

You can download the latest Google+ update here.

[via The Next Web]

Chinese Customs Crack Down on Smugglers Moving iPads By Crossbow and Pulleys

Yes, you did read that headline correctly. Smugglers moving Apple products from Hong Kong to mainland China were caught doing so via a clever pulley system that had iPhones and iPads being hoisted over the border with a large tote bag, hook, and a crossbow that was used to initially get the 300 meter cable over the Sha Tau Kok river. In an operation consisting of six smugglers, iPads and iPhones could be transferred across the river in about 2 minutes under the cover of darkness, where products were lifted up to the 21st floor of a residential block in Shenzhen. After a surveillance operation, Chinese customs moved in arrested the six smugglers, recovering 50 iPhones and 50 iPad 2s in the process worth 300,000 yuan (around $47,000).

Smugglers attempting to smuggle electronics into China hope to rake in profits — devices sold in China are much more expensive than devices sold in Hong Kong. Smugglers can purchase electronics in Hong Kong (whom have some of the cheapest prices in the world) and resell devices in the mainland, where they can profit off of the higher prices. Smugglers simply can’t move electronics across the border since as China requires a 20% property tax for all electronic devices brought into the country. Thus, we end up with a situation like this — smugglers get creative in an attempt to make a quick buck selling devices back home.

As for the high-wire act, there’s a video report to go with it, showing off the equipment the smugglers used to move items between the border which we’ve posted after the break.

[via WSJ, (image via) M.I.C. Gadget]

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Jailbroken Apple TV Sees Its First HTML5 Web Game

There’s quite a few of you who would love to load up your Apple TV with iOS apps and games (effectively turning the Apple TV into a mini-console), but we’ve settled for jailbreaks in the meantime in order to get the most out of the pocketable media-center. The latest in jailbreaking news comes from appletvblack, whom demonstrate that a simple game of blackjack can be played on the Apple TV through Couch Surfer (a web browser for the big screen). The game is simple, but demonstrates that the Apple TV can access and play media that Apple doesn’t otherwise allow. The Apple TV, currently a “hobby” to be used in conjunction with your existing home television equipment, has the potential to be as functional as an iPhone if Apple opens the platform up to apps. In the meantime, we’ve posted a video after the break that shows off the game of blackjack and just how functional HTML5 based apps for the Apple TV can be.

[appletvblack via Redmond Pie, TechCrunch]

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Apple Introduces $999 iMac For Educational Institutions

We reported a few hours ago on reports that Apple was set to launch a new iMac model for educational institutions later this month for a sub-$1000 price. Surprisingly we only needed to wait a few more hours for this new model as it turns out that Apple has decided to launch this new educational iMac today — meaning that for educational institutions they can purchase this new iMac model now.

This new iMac model is available for $999 and is directly targeted at educational institutions — individuals are not able to purchase this model. The specifications of this new iMac model are in line with what was stated in the 9to5 Mac report this morning with a 3.1GHz Core i3 processor, 2 GB RAM, 250 GB of hard drive storage and an AMD HD 6750 with 512 MB. This knowledge base article contains all the specifications of this new iMac but interestingly this model (which is dubbed a ‘Late 2011’ iMac) does not have Thunderbolt, that makes this iMac the first new Mac from Apple in 2011 that doesn’t support Thunderbolt.

  • 3.1GHz Intel Core i3 Dual-Core
  • 21.5-inch LCD
  • AMD Radeon HD 6750 with 256 MB
  • 2GB RAM
  • 250GB Hard Drive
  • SuperDrive
  • OS X Lion

Updated to include link to specifications page.

[Via MacRumors]

UK Carrier Orange Teams Up With Apple, Offers Customers 1 Free Movie Rental Per Week

European mobile carrier Orange today launched a new “Film To Go” service in the UK which now allows its customers to rent one free movie per week from the iTunes Movie store. Each week a new movie will be available for Orange customers and will be downloadable on the Thursday - this week the movie is ‘My Blueberry Nights’ and in the following weeks ‘The Wrestler’, ‘The Ghost’ and ‘Che: Part One’ will be offered.

To get the free movie rental, Orange customers in the UK will need to send a text message with “FILMTOGO” (no quotes) to 85060 and they will receive a redemption code — beware however that whilst renting the movie is free, this text message will cost 35 pence. The received code is a standard redemption code for iTunes and once entered will allow Orange customers to download the movie (although this can only occur on the Thursday), once downloaded the rental abides by the standard restrictions where it is available for 30 days but once started must be completed within 48 hours before it expires.

[Via The Next Web]

Apple Set To Introduce Education-Focused iMac Model For Less Than $1000?

Apple may be preparing to launch an education-focused iMac later this month according to a report in 9to5 Mac today. The “new” iMac would be less powerful than the current generation of iMacs available to consumers but would be priced at a lower level that is geared towards volume and educational customers.

9to5 Mac claims that this ‘education’ iMac will include a previous generation 3.1GHz dual core processor, 2 GB of RAM, 250 GB of hard drive storage and an AMD Radeon HD 6750M graphics processor with 256 MB dedicated memory — the article doesn’t rule in or rule out the inclusion of a Thunderbolt port. No price is attributed to this machine in the article but they suspect it would be sub-$1000 and cite the example of a previous education-focused iMac being sold for $899 and a similar refurbished model selling for $929 now.

This ‘education’ iMac is expected to silently launch on August 16th, but there is potential for that date to change if Apple wishes — there isn’t any real rush to get this product out as soon as possible. Whilst this rumoured new iMac model is a bit odd and out of the blue, the specificity that 9to5 Mac has in terms of specifications (despite the lack of a concrete price) suggests that it is likely that this is indeed a product about to launch.

[Via 9to5 Mac]