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Kickstarter: Taposé - Bringing Microsoft Courier to the iPad

Remember Microsoft’s Courier booklet PC? It was an interactive tablet with dual-touchscreens and folded like a booklet that Microsoft abandoned about a year and a half ago. Well, Benjamin Monnig and Ricky Drake are taking the idea of the Courier to an iPad app simply called Taposé and have launched a Kickstarter project to help with funding.

Taposé brings Courier functionality to the iPad. The creativity, productivity, and attractive user interface merged into one outstanding product. The split interface design (similar to the Courier idea) allows users to interact with multiple apps simultaneously in one app - Taposé.

Kickstarter video and a “How It Evolved” video after the break.

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Apple Is Now More Profitable Than Microsoft (“Bill, Thank You. The World’s a Better Place”)→

Apple Is Now More Profitable Than Microsoft (“Bill, Thank You. The World’s a Better Place”)

Another remarkable–and remarkably ironic–milestone for Apple, which surpassed Microsoft in market cap last May. It was Microsoft, after all, that breathed new life into a struggling Apple back in 1997 with a $150 million investment in the company (see video below). What was it Bill Gates said at the time? “We think Apple makes a huge contribution in the computer industry. And we think it’s going to be a lot of fun helping out.”

A lot of fun indeed. Paczkowski reports that Microsoft reported a net income of $5.23 billion on Thursday, whereas Apple’s net income was $5.99 billion for the second quarter. Bill Gates was the best thing that could have happened to Microsoft, and I don’t see where Steve Ballmer is bringing fresh blood into the company. The focus has been on “Windows,” and not refactoring to make really great products. Arguably Windows Phone 7 isn’t bad, but is the future of Microsoft to re-skin everything to look Metro? (It feels the hip Zune style is playing a big role in where Microsoft wants to go interface wise - it’s at least fresh and exciting.) Microsoft can’t survive on Microsoft Office, and they need to work hard to remove the “Windows” stigma. Heck, I think Joe Belfiore (who is an excellent image for the company) has a better vision to take Microsoft places out of any of the execs currently running the corporate giant. Just look at where the corporate culture is taking RIM.

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E-Books Fail To Save Publishers From Revenue Decline

Research published yesterday by IHS iSuppli reveals that the US book publishing industry has reached a “major inflection point” in which there will be a long-term decline in revenue, as e-book sales fail to reach the levels required to compensate the fall in physical book sales.

Over the period of 2010-2014, the book publishing industry will face a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) decline of 3% for both e-books and paper books. This reflects a fall in revenue from $25 billion between 2005 and 2010 to $22.7 billion between 2010 and 2014. Driving the decline is a 5% fall in the CAGR of physical book revenue, which far outweighs the 40% CAGR in e-books. This is mostly due to the fact that the selling prices of e-books are on average 40% lower than those of paper copies.

Dedicated e-readers, however, are forecast to triple in sales from 2010’s 9.7 million sales to over 30 million units in 2014. Previous figures did forecast over 40 million sales, but IHS iSuppli believes devices such as the iPad and other tablets will limit the market for such dedicated e-reading devices. IHS iSuppli also reveals in its analysis that since the introduction of the iPad, e-reader manufacturers have been forced to shrink margins from 35% to far lower levels.

[Via IHS iSuppli]

 

Terra Is A Powerful, Free Alternative To iPad’s Safari

Currently the #1 free app in the iPad App Store, Terra Web Browser is one of those apps I didn’t know if I should take for a spin at first. There’s no shortage of alternative browsers for iPad: from the excellent iCab Mobile (which I use on a daily basis) to more innovative solutions like Sleipnir, it’s very easy to achieve the perfect browsing experience on the tablet if you think Safari is too limited and you’re willing to spend a few extra bucks. It needs to be mentioned, however, that unofficial browsers don’t get access to the latest Nitro Javascript engine goodness, and there’s no way on iOS to set a default browser other than Safari. Still, many users like me feel like having a (perhaps slower as far as webpage rendering goes) browser companion to Safari is necessary for more complex tasks like saving files locally, or displaying open pages as tabs under the main app’s toolbar. Again, iCab is quite possibly the perfect app if you’re looking for desktop-like interactions on the iPad.

Back to Terra, it comes from the guys behind ReaddleDocs and Calendars, and it’s free. I was a little skeptical at first because I really don’t need another browser on my iPad, but for what it does and for its current price, I have to say Terra is a really good app. All those positive ratings in the App Store can’t be completely wrong, after all. The app’s got a minimal interface with tabs, and you can go fullscreen with the tap of a button. Unlike many, many other apps that try to replicate fullscreen mode with semi-transparent icons on top of a webpage, Terra places a single button in the upper right corner. If you want to focus on something you want to read, hit fullscreen and forget about it. Thanks to the implementation of multitouch gestures, you can switch between open tabs with a three-finger swipe. The top toolbar gives you access to the usual functionalities of an iOS browser, such as address bar, refresh button, Google search, settings, bookmarks and action button. In the settings you can set a passcode for the app, choose to navigate in incognito mode (your cookies and history won’t be saved), change the user agent and modify the selected search engine. You can also import bookmarks from your computers, but you’ll have to use iTunes File Sharing for that. Bookmarks, history and “saved files” are located in a bookmarks popover on the left, but I couldn’t figure out how to export my Chrome’s bookmarks bar to Terra. I guess I’ll have to properly edit my exported .html file to make it work. The action button has got some interesting features as well: you can create a new bookmark, AirPrint a page, save a page locally for offline access, mail a link or forward to Safari.

What most impressed me about Terra, though, is how it handles tabs. Not only the app is stable and can handle dozens of open pages just fine (tested last night, 13 open tabs and none of them reloaded after several minutes of navigation), it’s also got a nice popup menu that will show a webpage’s full title as you tap & hold a tab. If you have a lot of open tabs and you can only see the favicons, that’s quite handy. Switching between tabs is not as fast as iCab, but it’s more than acceptable. The animations are smooth and, overall, the system works well.

Terra for iPad was a surprise. The app is free, but it does a lot of things better than many apps priced at $2.99 and above, without sacrificing its minimal approach to UI and responsiveness. Get it here.

Square Set To Add Encryption To Next Generation Of Card Readers

Yesterday Square revealed that it had received from financial services superpower, Visa, strategic investment of an unspecified size. However in a lower key announcement it also revealed that this summer they will be releasing a new card reader that uses encryption on the read head.

You may recall the little squabble a few months back where VeriFone and Square traded blows over whether the Square card reader was secure enough. VeriFone claimed it wasn’t and that Square should recall all their readers because thieves could easily skim credit card information using the device. Jack Dorsey, CEO of Square, hit back at VeriFone saying it was “not a fair or accurate claim and [that] it overlooks all of the protections already built into your credit card.”

Yet despite all that, Square will soon be addressing those “concerns” that VeriFone had, and release a card reader that employs encryption. The Square COO, Keith Rabois, notes that they are adopting Visa’s newly released (yesterday) mobile application best practices. He says that the “adoption of best practices will help increase trust in innovative payment solutions” although equally stresses that Square currently complies with all industry standards. TechCrunch rightly highlights that it is clearly no coincidence that Square’s endorsement of Visa’s best practices came on the same day as their funding announcement.

TechCrunch inquired as to whether users would have to replace their current readers but Rabois declined to comment specifically but he did continue to affirm Square’s previous rejection of VeriFone’s demand to recall the Square readers. Rabois also noted that encryption will not be the only new feature of the third iteration of readers coming this summer.

[Via TechCrunch]

Epic Games’ Mike Capps: “Dollar Apps Are Killing Us”→

Epic Games’ Mike Capps: “Dollar Apps Are Killing Us”

If there’s anything that’s killing us [in the traditional games business] it’s dollar apps,” he lamented. “How do you sell someone a $60 game that’s really worth it … They’re used to 99 cents. As I said, it’s an uncertain time in the industry. But it’s an exciting time for whoever picks the right path and wins.

I think that there’s a fundamental difference between gamers who want to spend $60 on the next Mass Effect or Gear of War, and casual users who are looking forward to the next Angry Birds update. I used to play a lot of console games, but now I’m one of those addicted to the .99 cent apps. On the other hand, a friend of mine who didn’t abandon console gaming bought an iPad last year and now he plays both the latest Xbox hits and Angry Birds.

I think Capps he’s right when he says apps have changed the market, but I disagree with him as far as “killing” games goes. It’s all about value: those who care about high-profile console games will keep buying them. Let’s face it: there’s no Mass Effect or Halo on iOS devices. Those people who don’t recognize the value of console – or simply don’t have the time and resources for another device in their lives – will be just fine with Angry Birds and Cut the Rope.

I think the real problem for game developers like Capps is that the number of these users who prefer quick, mobile gaming has turned out to be larger than expected. For the same reason why I disagree with Nintendo about the culture of disposability, I believe the issue is not the association of portable games with low prices: it’s about the time users are ready to invest on a platform.

I’m one of those who think console games won’t go away anytime soon. But at the same time, I wonder: what’s going to happen when the iPad will be capable of running Metal Gear Solid 4?

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Apple Plans Largest Australian Store In Brisbane CBD

Apple is reportedly planning to open its eleventh Australian retail store in the CBD of Brisbane that would become the country’s largest Apple Store. The reports come after plans were last night lodged at the Brisbane City Council over a $10.5 million renovation of the historic MacArthur Chambers (pictured above).

The plans for the renovation, which were lodged on behalf of the MacArthur Central Shopping Centre, do not mention Apple. However the interior plans include all the hallmark features of an Apple retail store with; twin glass doors, illuminated interior signs, stone floor, “feature stairs” and a “new colour scheme of shades of white.” The plans (below the break) seem to also feature a Genius bar and there is even space set aside in the plans for the “location of internally illuminated store signage”, or in other words Apple logo on the front of the building above the main doors.

The MacArthur building, built in 1934, is an English Renaissance-style building that is entrenched in Australian World War II history. It was commandeered in 1942 by US General Douglas MacArthur and was used as the Allied Forces’ South-West Area Headquarters and remained as such until November 1944. It was, until recently occupied by book chain Dymocks but is currently occupied by a discount book seller.

If the plans go ahead, the new Brisbane Apple store would become the largest in Australia at 1900sqm, which would be even larger than the flagship Apple store in Sydney and one of the most architecturally interesting of all the Australian, if not all, Apple stores. Apple has some past experience renovating cultural, and architecturally, significant buildings including the Regent Street store in London and last years Parisian Apple Store.

Also discovered in the planning application was a $3.84 million plan to remove “current modern additions” such as escalators, lifts and its tiled ceiling and returning the building to its “original form” including restoring the buildings original bronze style doors and missing stone wall panels. The glass staircase featured in the plans are speculated to be something similar to those already featured in the Sydney George Street store and the Fifth Avenue store in New York – a hallmark feature of both those stores.

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White iPhone 4 Sells Out In Hong Kong And Beijing

It was delayed and delayed for 10 months but yesterday the white iPhone 4 went on sale…and promptly sold out in Hong Kong and Beijing where there were long lines around Apple stores and resellers. Some shoppers in Hong Kong began queuing up at midnight the day before, and they are probably glad they did, in some stores in China the device was gone within an hour.

It was a different and much more subdued affair in the US where few, if any lines were reported at Apple Stores, and as far as we are aware most stores should still have stock. Although on the online Apple Store there is a 3-5 day wait before shipping for the white model, with the black model shipping in the standard 24 hours.

No one is really sure why the white iPhone 4 sold out in China and not in the US but one could guess at a few factors from the white being more preferred, less stock given to Chinese stores or perhaps an increasing appeal of Apple in China. In any case its an early sign of the expected rapid retail sales growth of Apple products in China which Forbes predicts will propel Apple shares upwards.

[Via Cult of Mac]