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iPad 2 Coming on April 2nd or 9th?

As reported by MacRumors, according to German website MacNotes the next-generation iPad may launch in the first week of April, on the 2nd or 9th. The website reports that the iPad 2 will launch in the first “two Saturdays” of April. The first-generation iPad came out on April 3, 2010 – a Saturday.

Reliable sources told us about the upcoming launch of the Apple iPad 2: the first or second Saturday in April will see the first sales of Apples new tablet. The iPad 2 will sell US-only for three months, and Apple Store-only for up to half a year. In July, more countries will follow. Walmart, Best Buy and Co. maybe have to wait until October until they are allowed to sell Apples new tablets.

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Translator Free Translates Webpages & Text On The Fly

When you run across a piece of text that you can’t translate, do you find yourself in Google Translate, copying & pasting the text, before trying to determine what was exactly said? Why not cut out the middle-man and download Translator Free for OS X? Available on the Mac App Store, Translator Free is a menubar application that allows you to drag and drop websites and text for immediately translation. If you’re visiting our friends at iSpazio for example, you can simply drag the favicon from Google Chrome into the menubar icon, and a new tab will open with the translated page. It’s very cool.

If you’re throwing Chinese insults at me, watch out! Never before have friends on Facebook Chat been caught off guard so quickly now that I suddenly have language-esque superpowers. You can highlight a piece of text, hold your mouse button down, and simply drag it to Translator Free for instant translation. A window will pop-up allowing you to compare the original and translated texts.

Free in the Mac App Store, students, researchers, and anyone coming across foreign text they’re not familiar with can find Translator Free useful without having to go through the web browser. You can catch some great tutorials on Translator Free’s homepage, and download it here on the Mac App Store.

Outside for iPhone Comeback: Retina Graphics, Free Notifications

The last time I reviewed Outside for iPhone, a beautiful weather app by Robocat, I focused on the interface design that went into the app and the fact that, unlike other weather apps for iPhone, it allowed users to set up push notifications for certain weather conditions. Stuff like, “hey, perhaps you’d like to wear a t-shirt today” or “make sure to grab your gloves”. It was a clever system, easy to understand and packed inside fancy graphics that made Outside truly stand out in the crowded App Store market.

Months passed, the iPad and iPhone 4 came out and Outside basically disappeared. No word from the developers for months, then a “we’re working on it”. See, I really wanted to use Outside on my iPhone 4 but I couldn’t stand the fuzzy graphics. With version 1.2, released last night and available at a discounted price of $0.99, Outside makes a comeback with totally redesigned graphics updated for the Retina Display. Read more

With Version 1.1, Verbs Becomes A Great AIM Client for iPhone

When I reviewed Verbs for iPhone a few weeks ago, I was disappointed by the lack of AIM support and the overall feeling that the app was rushed to the App Store. Verbs came with a delicious interface design and cool ideas such as a Messages-like approach to IM chats, but the fact that I couldn’t plug into my AIM account and I was forced to use Google Talk was a major downside for me. Also, there was no support for local notifications: once you were out of the app, you wouldn’t know if someone was writing to you on Google Talk. The app was beautiful and elegant, but I couldn’t use it at all.

The latest 1.1 version released in the App Store fixes all these issues, and has become the best AIM client for iPhone for me. Verbs is the same elegant and refined app I tested weeks ago, only I can actually use it now. Read more

T-Mobile’s New Commercial Pokes Fun at iPhone, Verizon

T-Mobile may hide its frustration for not having the iPhone with clever commercials, but it’s pretty clear that they would love to have the device on their portfolio. In their latest commercial, the carrier’s lady says that even on Verizon, the iPhone can’t compete with the 4G network offered by T-Mobile. Either Verizon or AT&T, 3G is slow.

“How do you tell them apart? Does one of them have nation-wide 4G like me?”, T-Mobile girl asks. Verizon guy replies: “No choice is still a choice”. I guess no iPhone choice is still a choice for T-Mobile, too. [Youtube via 9to5mac]

The CDMA iPhone’s Next Stop: Asia

According to “sources from upstream component makers” close to Digitimes, the CDMA iPhone won’t be an exclusive to Verizon in the US (as also confirmed by Apple’s Tim Cook at the Verizon event) but it’s headed to China, Japan and South Korea. Digitimes reports the CDMA iPhone is manufactured both by Pegatron and Foxconn; Foxconn’s model (whose shipment started in December 2010) will be exclusive to the United States, while Pegatron’s version will ship to China and “other countries”.

Pegatron started shipping its CDMA iPhone 4 in January 2011 and Foxconn started in December 2010. Foxconn’s model will be solely supplied to the US, while Pegatron’s model will be supplied to China and other countries. Since US-based telecom carrier Verizon currently has over 93 million users in the US, the launch of CDMA iPhone is expected to double the number of the current iPhone users in the market.

Since Apple is also set to start supplying its CDMA iPhone to Japan and South Korea, the company’s iPhone shipments in 2011 are expected to reach a new record.

Reports surfaced in the past suggested the CDMA iPhone would be available in India, China (via China Telecom) and other CDMA European carriers. This latest Digitimes report also points to Apple adopting new technologies like “halogen-free connectors, carbon fiber internals, solar glass charger plates and double-webcams”.

Also in iOS 4.3: “Find My Friends”, iPad 2 Camera Files

iOS 4.3 looks like the beta OS that keeps on giving. We’ve already seen how the new OS contains gestures that hint at deeper multi-touch capabilities for iOS devices, and new camera effects that suggest software like Photo Booth may come to the iPhone or iPad. References of new iPhone and iPad models were also found in iOS 4.3.

A new feature called “Find My Friends”, discovered by MacRumors, points to a new social networking system based on geo-location and tied to MobileMe. Such a service – again, basing only on the name – may allow users to check on friends’ location like Google Latitude or Loopt. We have seen Apple experimenting with location and social patents before; a new functionality in iOS 4.3 like “Find My Friends” would be great to let nearby iPhone users communicate with each other while using the MobileMe infrastructure. Read more

References of New iPhones and iPads Spotted in iOS 4.3

A new OS comes along, and with a bit of digging into its code it reveals the secret of the next devices to come out from Cupertino. Engadget took a look inside the latest iOS 4.3 SDK and discovered mentions of new iPhones and iPads:

  • iPhone3,3
  • iPhone4,1
  • iPhone4,2
  • iPad2,1
  • iPad2,2
  • iPad2,3

To recap, iPhone3,1 and iPhone3,2 are the current models on AT&T and Verizon, respectively. While iPhone4,1 and iPhone4,2 point to the next-generation device known as “iPhone 5”, the 3,3 code reference suggests a new iteration of the iPhone 4. Perhaps the white one?

Oh, and about the iPads? We’re pretty sure those 3 models are for the iPad 2 in its GSM, CDMA and Wi-Fi only versions.

Next iPhones and iPads To Lose Home Button? Not So Fast

Jonathan S. Geller over at BGR reports that, according to his sources, we may see Apple removing the Home button from the next-generation iPhones and iPads, to be released this year:

We have exclusively been told that the reason Apple just added multitouch gestures for the iPad in the latest iOS 4.3 beta is because the iPad will be losing the home button.

In addition to the home button disappearing from the iPad, we’re told that this change will make its way over to the iPhone as well. Our source said Apple employees are already testing iPads and iPhones with no home buttons on the Apple campus, and it’s possible we will see this new change materialize with the next-generation iPad and iPhone devices set to launch this year.

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