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Apple Releases Xcode 4 - Coming To Mac App Store Too

First came iOS 4.3, then Safari 5.0.4 and now Apple just pulled the trigger on Xcode 4. The final release of the new development suite is available for download here.

Xcode 4 is the new version of Apple’s powerful integrated development environment for creating great apps for Mac, iPhone, and iPad. Xcode 4 includes the Xcode IDE, Instruments, iOS Simulator, and the latest Mac OS X and iOS SDKs.

Xcode 4 is a major new version of Apple’s development suite which sports lots of new features and a new single-windowed UI. The first version of Xcode 4 preview was released during the WWDC in June 2010. It appears that Xcode 4 will also be released for $4.99 in the Mac App Store, according to Apple’s Support Center:

Mac and iOS Developer Program members have access to the latest Xcode developer tools, SDKs, and pre-release software. Program members can download Xcode 4 from http://developer.apple.com/xcode.

If you are not a member of either the Mac or iOS Developer Program, you may purchase Xcode 4 from the Mac App Store for $4.99. If you are registered as an Apple Developer, you can download Xcode 3 for free at http://developer.apple.com/xcode.

This should be the link for Xcode once it goes live in the Mac App Store (it isn’t available yet). This is an interesting move for Apple, as it’s clearly aimed at people willing to try Xcode 4 without an Apple Developer account. It also marks (once again) Apple’s transition to the Mac App Store as a unified distribution method for software updates. Here’s a great video overview of the Xcode 4 interface.

Update: As for the $4.99 price of Xcode 4 in the Mac App Store, that might be for the same reason why FaceTime wasn’t released for free: the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Technically, it would be illegal for Apple to distribute this new free software on Snow Leopard. Same happened years ago with the 802.11n unlocking fee, and recently FaceTime sold at $0.99 in the Mac App Store. Read more

Browse Dribbble in Style with Courtside for iPad

Dribbble is a playground for seemingly endless pixel shenanigans, including first looks at new iPhone apps, sneak peeks at soon to launch web services, and beautiful icons that evolve into final products. A website that exemplifies an artist’s best work needs an app that’s as gorgeous and classy as the gems you might come across, in which case you’ll want Courtside for the iPad.

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Apple Releases Safari 5.0.4

Alongside iOS 4.3, Apple also released Safari 5.0.4. The update contains stability and security fixes, as well as improved performances with image reflections and transitions.

This update contains improvements to stability, compatibility, accessibility and security, including the following:

Improved stability for webpages with multiple instances of plug-in content

Improved compatibility with webpages with image reflections and transition effects

A fix for an issue that could cause some webpages to print with incorrect layouts

A fix for an issue that could cause content to display incorrectly on webpages with plug-ins

A fix for an issue that could cause a Screen Saver to appear while video is playing in Safari

Improved compatibility with VoiceOver on webpages with text input areas and lists with selectable items

Improved stability when using VoiceOver

For detailed information on the security content of this update, please visit this site: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1222

Safari 5.0.4 is available now in Software Update or on Apple’s website.

Apple Releases iOS 4.3 - Direct Links

Apple just released iOS 4.3, available for iPhone (3GS, 4), iPod touch (3rd and 4th gen), iPad, iPad 2 and Apple TV. The new firmware is available for download in iTunes (check for updates) or through Apple’s website.

iOS 4.3 adds a number of new features such as Personal Hotspot for the iPhone, which allows users to share their 3G connection with other devices via WiFi, USB and Bluetooth; AirPlay support for Mobile Safari and third-party applications; improved Safari performances with the new Nitro engine and iTunes library streaming on a local network with Home Sharing.

On the iPad users now have the possibility to choose whether the side switch must act as a rotation lock or mute button, whilst iPhone owners can use Personal Hotspot’s tethering with up to three devices over WiFi, three devices over Bluetooth and one over USB connection.

Direct links below. Our full iOS 4.3 coverage here.

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White iPhone 4 Coming Next Month?

According to a note by analyst Ming-Chi Kuo reported by AppleInsider, Apple may be ready to start shipping the long-awaited white version of the iPhone 4 next month after multiple delays in 2010. The last delay announced by Apple in October pushed back the release of the white unit, initially expected to launch in June 2010 alongside the black iPhone 4, to Spring 2011. An April launch sounds right on schedule with the previous announcement and recent speculation pointed to Apple using a new Japanese paint to fix the manufacturing problems with the white iPhone.

Manufacturers will initiate production of the GSM-based iPhone 4 version in white enclosures and begin dispatching them to Apple ahead of general availability planned for next month, Concord Securities Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo told AppleInsider. Apple has made changes the “film material to solve the full-lamination problem that [was] the reason why white iPhones [were] delayed,” he added. The handset was first scheduled to debut last June. Kuo did not provide a timeframe for a white CDMA-based iPhone.

Indication of solved manufacturing issues is also provided by the iPad 2, which is going to launch later this week in two different models: black and white. Steve Jobs stressed on stage last week that the white iPad 2 will be available on day-one. The iPhone 4, however, has a white painted color both on the front and back glass enclosure, whilst the iPad 2 has a flat aluminum back.

Apple is also rumored to be considering a white version of the iPhone 5 for a summer 2011 launch. The white iPhone 4 recently showed up on various international carrier websites and Best Buy internal inventory system, leading to speculation that Apple has finalized the launch details and is preparing for a worldwide rollout in the coming weeks.

iOS Game Developers Excited About the iPad 2 Graphics

After the announcement of the iPad 2 last week, we reported developer Firemint, well known for its award-winning Real Racing series, announced they were seriously interested in updating their iPad game for the new device, and had actually been considering its tech specs for a while, even before the official announcement from Steve Jobs. Firemint sort of knew the iPad 2 would be thinner and lighter for a better handling, have a faster processor for improved graphics, and so forth. The iPad 2 has an Apple A5 CPU with graphic performances up to 9 times faster than the iPad 1 – a feature Apple is promoting and Steve Jobs mentioned multiple times on stage. With the iPad 2 available later this week, Firemint will be able to test its updated version of Real Racing HD with gyroscope support, better graphics and perhaps a new control system built around the new tablet form factor.

Firemint, however, isn’t the first game developer that’s excited about the possibilities offered by the iPad 2. MacNN reports industry-leading company Unity has announced that, in spite of their framework already working with dual-core processors like the A5, they’re going to “really fine tune and really optimize it to run fantastic on the iPad.” We guess iOS developers relying on Unity will take advantage of the new features available once the engine is updated with full iPad 2 support.

What about the popular Unreal Engine 3? Epic VP Mark Rein (Epic Games is the company behind the Unreal Engine, or games like Infinity Blade for iOS – based on Unreal) says the iPad 2 is already capable of taking advantage of the iPad 2’s improved performance:

You can see Unreal Engine 3, what happens as we get more power, you can take a PC and put a much more powerful graphics card in, and turn all the dials up in your game to get more detail, more textures, more shaders – things like that. Clearly those are the kinds of opportunities here. More CPU means potentially more physics and more enemies on the screen, a wider view of an environment. It’s just really fantastic.

These are interesting days to see how game developers are quickly announcing support for the iPad 2, unveiled last week and available “on short notice” this Friday. I wonder how many games with “iPad 2 support” in the changelog will be released next week, and how many will need additional weeks to pop up in the App Store. In the coming months, it would be nice to see Apple update its App Store interface to specify features only available for certain devices – it didn’t happen with the powerful iPhone 4, but we’re betting on the iPad 2 to bring an easy-to-read tech specs page to the App Store this time. [via TUAW]

TiVo Testing Live iPad Streaming & Hulu Plus

Engadget tipsters are receiving some interesting surveys directly from TiVo concerning how consumers would feel about the option to “stream live TV, DVR recordings and TV shows from a cable company’s On Demand library to one’s iPad.” This would include in-home and remote streaming; the ability to stream to your iPad could really help TiVo sell more units and service. TiVo already has an iPad app that acts like an advanced remote but doesn’t include this type of proposed streaming service to the device.

Back in September of 2010, TiVo announced that Hulu Plus access would soon be coming to its DVRs. Well, it’s now March and there’s finally some news. Engadget received a tip from someone that owns a TiVo Premiere and was invited to join a Field Trial to “test Hulu Plus on TiVo.” The tipster is also receiving codes to get his free month of service. Now that there is some field testing going on (per the tipster), it’s safe to say that Hulu Plus could be coming to a TiVo DVR near you.

Last year TiVo lost $84.5 million and also ran up a deficit of $779.2 million, so the company is trying everything they can to stay afloat. It may be too late to reach to Hulu users and the tablet market but time and money can only tell.

[via Engadget]