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iPhone 5 To Feature 3.7-inch Screen, Larger Home Button, Thinner Design?

A new report posted by Joshua Topolsky at This Is My Next seems to contradict the rumors we’ve been hearing in the past weeks in describing the next-generation iPhone – so far dubbed iPhone 5 – as a complete redesign of the existing iPhone 4 hardware. The report comes with a mockup based on sketches and descriptions the website received by multiple sources over the past weeks, and shows a dramatically thinner device with a “thick to thin” design from top to bottom similar to MacBook Air’s main body, and a larger multitouch display set at approximately 3.7 inches. The change in size would allow Apple to keep the existing Retina Display branding with a drop to 312ppi (iPhone 4 features 326ppi, and Apple claims a “Retina Display” can be called so starting at 300ppi on an iPhone), and it’s something that’s been rumored before and even spotted in allegedly leaked Apple design documents.

Our sources say the new model (or at least one of the new designs in testing) looks “more like the iPod touch than the iPhone 4.” The phone will be thinner than the iPhone 4, and may have a “teardrop” shape which goes from thick to thin (something along the lines of the MacBook Air profile).

This Is My Next also claims the Home button will become larger, doubling as a “gesture area” for a series of multitouch commands likely inspired by the ones introduced in the iOS 4.3 developer betas. Apple was rumored to be considering an early departure for the Home button, but the website claims the company has been playing around with various prototypes and design iterations, and one of them indeed sports a larger, redesigned version of the Home button. With a larger, almost edge-to-edge screen, Apple is apparently also experimenting with the idea of earpieces and sensors hidden directly behind the display’s glass:

Furthermore, we’re hearing that the screen on the device will occupy the entire (or near to it) front of the phone, meaning almost no bezel. Our source says the company is doing very “interesting things” with bonded glass technology, and has been exploring designs where the earpiece and sensors are somehow behind the screen itself, making for a device where the display is actually edge-to-edge.

Other details reported by This Is My Next include a “swipe area” for NFC capabilities, inductive charging and world-phone functionality with a global CDMA-GSM chipset. Again, these features have been in the rumor mill before, but This Is My Next’s report is mostly interesting because of the design speculation included in the article that contradicts several rumors we’ve recently heard. And even if the design may never make it to the final version of the iPhone 5, TIMN says it’s being tested by Apple:

The versions of devices our sources are seeing could be design prototypes and not production-ready phones. Still, there are strong indications that Apple will surprise a public that’s expecting a bump more along the lines of the 3G to 3GS — and this is some insight into where those designs might be headed.

iTunes In The Cloud: Apple Signs Deal with Warner Music

Following last night’s report on Apple readying the launch of the rumored cloud-based music service based on iTunes after having recently “completed work” on it, Cnet weighs in today claiming the company has signed a deal with Warner Music to offer streaming of the labels’ artist catalogue and songs on the new iTunes cloud service. Cnet notes how Warner Music is only one of the four big players in the music industry, with EMI, Sony and Universal still out of the picture:

Apple has an agreement with Warner Music Group to offer the record label’s tracks on iTunes’ upcoming cloud-music service, music industry sources said. It is unclear whether Warner was one of those two that had previously licensed Apple or whether the label inked a new agreement on Friday.

Indeed, Peter Kafka at MediaMemo posted a follow-up to Reuters’ original report on the finalized cloud service yesterday, claiming that Apple had actually already signed deals with two of the major music labels, and Apple’s Eddy Cue was set to fly to New York City today to arrange the remaining deals. It’s not clear now whether Warner Music was part of the rumored labels that had signed in the past months, or one of the two that needed to be convinced today. Cnet’s report doesn’t provide additional details on the deal.

Speculation surrounding this new cloud-based service from Apple indicates the company has both considered an option to let users back up an existing music collection to the cloud and stream it anywhere, as well as a second iTunes Store-like functionality offering the possibility to stream songs you don’t own through a monthly or annual subscription.

White iPhone 4 Finally Launching On April 27?

According to a number of reports appeared this week on a couple of European blogs, Apple will launch the much-anticipated white version of the iPhone 4 on Wednesday, April 27th. Last week, a contradicting report by Italian website iPhoneItalia claimed that Apple would introduce the white iPhone 4 on Tuesday, April 26th. The April 27th release date, however, has been reported by two different websites this week – Norwegian blog Mobili.no [Google translation] and Dutch site iPhoneclub.nl [Google Translation], both claiming they have received tips from sources within carriers and phone retailers about the white iPhone 4 release.

Several reliable sources who wish to remain anonymous, says now Mobili.no that the white version goes on sale in the Norwegian mobile shops this coming Wednesday, 27 April.

It will be distributed in both Telenor’s and NetCom’s stores.

We received this information through an anonymous tip from someone who works BelCompany. Then we started looking for other people who BelCompany works that could confirm the information. That was the case: they indicate that an internal memo was circulated, indicating the date of April 27 for the white iphone called April. We assume the assumption that BelCompany not the only point of sale, but several other telecom stores (like The Phone House) and T-Mobile itself also start selling the white iPhone.

Speculation in the past weeks suggested Apple was on track to release the white iPhone 4 by the end of April. While the company itself confirmed multiple times in the past that the device would launch in Spring 2011 after mysterious delays (allegedly due to production and manufacturing issues), publications like Bloomberg recently indicated Apple was aiming for a late-April release. Last month, Apple’s Phil Schiller confirmed with a tweet to a customer that the white iPhone 4 would be available in Spring and that it was a “beauty.” [via MacRumors] Read more

iPhone-based iDrive With BMW Apps Demoed On Video

Back in July 2010 we reported German-based car manufacturer BMW was looking forward to integrating Apple’s iPhone into their automotive experience with a system called iDrive that, featuring a “plugin” option co-developed with Apple, would allow users to connect their iPhones to the car’s dashboard to access a variety of information and media like music from Pandora and the iPod app, as well as status updates coming from Twitter and Facebook.

Autoblog got the chance to try the new iDrive system built into all BMW models from Series 1 to 7 that will begin shipping next month, and reports the integration is really smooth and impressive on a technical side as all rendering is done on the iPhone, with the car’s dashboard only functioning as a screen. A you can see here and in the video embedded below, the iPhone fits in a cradle in the car’s console and is directly connected to the iDrive; with an active 3G connection on the iPhone and the BMW app installed, users will be able to stream music off Pandora’s radio stations with their own accounts, mark songs as favorite and even create new stations using the car’s iDrive knob. The integration goes as far as enabling users to access their Facebook and Twitter streams, with the possibility to generate automated status updates with your location and estimated time of arrival to a specific POI (based on the car’s navigation system) so you don’t have to type the whole message using the knob. BMW also decided to restrict some sections of Twitter and Facebook while a car is in motion, so drivers won’t be distracted by the streams.

BMW calls its Facebook and Twitter integration “Automotive Grade,” which is a nice way of saying “minimalist.” And as it should be. The primary function is less about reading status messages and updates, and more about sending a quick, pre-programmed post on the go. The system can pull in hundreds of data points from the vehicle and navigation system, allowing you to update your status with location information, weather and a host of other data. Want to let your friends know when you’ll be at the restaurant? The app can pull in your location and destination from the sat-nav and post an update saying you’ll be there in 15 minutes. And if the pre-packaged responses aren’t up to snuff, once you unhook the phone from the cradle, you can create your own canned responses and updates directly in the app, which also keeps track of vehicle mileage, service data and a handful of other useful bits of information.

Last, there’s the plugin functionality based on Apple’s iPod Out feature that’s been designed by Apple engineers, and as the name suggests plugs directly into an iPhone’s iPod.app music library to display artist’s information, album artwork and everything you would expect from iOS on a BMW car’s dashboard. It looks really neat and I wish I had the chance to try it out, too.

Videos of BMW iDrive and the background story embedded below. Read more

QR Code Reader Scan for iOS is Fast

Scan for iPhone & iPad

Scan for iPhone & iPad

If I have to pull out my mobile device to read QR codes, I want an app that’s fast, locks on, and scans codes quickly without any fuss. While there’s a plethora of QR code scanners on the App Store, one in particular I’ve fallen in love with is Scan. Maybe it’s because Barcode Scanner on the Android Marketplace is so damn slow (I’m tired of how long it takes the camera to focus), and I was blown away by how fast Scan was… on an iPod touch (which comparatively has a pretty crappy camera). As soon as I opened the app, I simply placed the QR code inside of the sights and just as instantly it opened a web page in its own browser. If it can’t scan a QR code (which is rare), Scan won’t complain. Just relocate your device or find a higher quality image: how painless Scan is to use is fantastic. Plus, it saves a history of everything you scanned in a simple list that’s perfect for how often I use it. Sure there are other apps that let you generate QR codes or offer a lot more features, but for sheer simplicity and fast scanning, Scan has become the mainstay reader on my device. You can download it for free on the App Store.

Production Of New MacBook Airs Starting Next Month? Thunderbolt and Sandy Bridge CPUs?

According to a report by AppleInsider based on research from Concord Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, Apple is getting ready to start mass production of new MacBook Air models featuring updated Intel graphics, Core i5 and Core i7 Intel “Sandy Bridge” processors and Thunderbolt technology. According to Ming-Chi Kuo, production could start as early as next month in “late May”, with the new machines set to be released in June. The report seems to corroborate a previous rumor that suggested Apple was considering an “early refresh” of the MacBook Air line (which was unveiled by Steve Jobs in October 2010 at the “Back to the Mac” event) to implement the Sandy Bridge architecture. The current generation of MacBook Airs feature Intel’s Core 2 Duo processors – an outdated technology that can still be found in the original MacBooks, and was replaced in the early-2011 MacBook Pros by Sandy Bridge-based Corei3, Corei5 and Corei7 CPUs. Since the Cnet’s report that pointed to new MacBook Airs with Sandy Bridge coming out in June, however, speculation has arisen suggesting Apple also wants to integrate Thunderbolt in the machines’ thin design.

Kuo tells AppleInsider that his latest round of checks with suppliers and system builders in the region reveals that MacBook Air shipments are set to rebound during the current calendar quarter, fueled by an upgrade to Intel’s latest Sandy Bridge microprocessors, integrated Intel graphics, and the expected adoption of the new Thunderbolt high-speed I/O technology that made its debut on MacBook Pros earlier this year.

Should Apple follow its current trend of using ultra-low-variants for the 11.6-inch MacBook Air and low-voltage ones for the 13.3-inch models, consumers can expect to see new 11.6-inch MacBook Airs sporting 1.4GHz to 1.6GHz Core i5 and Core i7 chips and 13.3-inch MacBook Airs with 2.10 and 2.30GHz Core i7 processors.

With several Thunderbolt-enabled products coming out in the next months and the WWDC scheduled for June, it would make sense for Apple to refresh the popular MacBook Air family to include more powerful CPUs and a Thunderbolt port. The iMac line is also expected to go under a refresh soon – again, allegedly sporting Sandy Bridge processors and Thunderbolt. The WWDC ‘11 kicks off in San Francisco on June 6, but it’s been rumored to be a software-focused event, rather than the stage for major hardware announcements. A speed-bump update for the MacBook Air, though, could fit well in Apple’s WWDC timeframe.

Watch Youtube Live Streams On iOS Devices

Youtube has been experimenting with live streams for concerts and other events for a few years now, but it was only earlier this month when the service officially unveiled Youtube Live, a new section of the website that integrates live streaming capabilities into Youtube’s standard interface to allow broadcasters to share their live video content similarly to how other platforms like Ustream and Justin.tv enable users to start a live video recording, and share it with the rest of the world.

Youtube Live, however, has one major limitation: the stream is entirely Flash-based and Live videos don’t work on mobile devices like iPhones and iPads. YTLive, a new web app launched this week, aims at fixing this problem by providing live conversion of the Flash stream to generate an embedded live video that’s playable on iOS devices. To use the web app, you only have to paste the URL of a Youtube Live video here, and wait for the YTLive to process it. Once the service has generated an embedded video like the one in the screenshot above, you can tap Play and start streaming. The live feed is the same, but from what I understand the Flash stream is being converter through YTLive’s servers before it’s delivered to an iPhone or iPad. I don’t know how the service will hold up in the coming weeks as more and more iOS users start using it (the Royal Wedding is going to be an interesting first test), but it works fairly well right now.

Head over Youtube Live, pick a channel, and try it with YTLive on your iOS device now. [via TUAW]

Robick: Visual Audio iPhone App for Learning Music By Ear

Previously, we’ve covered the Capo range of apps for the iPhone, iPad, and desktop that help students learn music by ear via setting repeating segments, altering the tempo & pitch, and giving students the ability to adjust an equalizer. When we previously covered these apps, the Capo mobile applications were more limited in some respects compared to it’s older desktop sibling - not a bad thing, but it would be nice to bring over the ability to adjust highs and lows for example instead of just only pitch and tempo. Robick is an alternative take on plugging in tracks from your iPod’s library, and altering them in such a way that helps you learn parts of a song. The developer noted to me it was primarily designed for learning Jazz (I’m assuming for Japanese students), and the interface reflects a modern edge and a shifting paradigm that’s quite neat.

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