Shocker! Someone At Apple Killed The Unofficial WikiLeaks App

Three days ago we covered the unofficial WikiLeaks app for iPhone and iPad, a $1.99 piece of software available in the App Store which let you access the latest diplomatic cables released by WikiLeaks and check on the organization’s Twitter account. It was also nicely designed and sold as a universal app.

Developer Igor Barinov, though, wasn’t planning on taking all the money from the sales of the app. Instead, he decided to donate half of the proceeds to WikiLeaks, a move that likely pissed off Steve Jobs, or someone else at the App Store team. In fact, for some obscure reason or App Store guideline we’re no aware of, the app is gone. Killed. Kaput. There’s no WikiLeaks app in the App Store anymore. Without an explanation, the developer got an email from Apple about the changed state of his app, which was “removed from sale”.

I’m not sure this app violated any of Apple’s guidelines. It was a wrapper for a website (the CableGate documents) and a Twitter account – both of them publicly available on the internet. We all know there’s worse in the App Store, and – to tell the truth – this was also a good app. Assange and WikiLeaks are controversial and one may or may not agree with his efforts to “reveal the truth”, but there’s no reason to remove an unofficial app.

Unless, well, you’re Apple and you don’t care about your own Guidelines.

Still Relevant? MySpace Updates Its iPhone App With New UI and Features

Just in case you were wondering, yes – MySpace appears to be alive. I know, you haven’t logged in the website in ages. But what was that? Two years ago? Man, that was fast. Facebook completely replaced MySpace in our daily digital sharing and wall-posting lives.

Still, MySpace has an updated iPhone app available. Version 2.0 adds a fresh new, darker and somehow sexier look (which reminds me an awful lot of the Facebook’s iPhone grid interface), possibility to browse without login, SuperPosts to share links at the same time on Facebook - MySpace - Twitter (why would I, I don’t really know) and instant notifications.

The update also comes with a bunch of additional features, which – if you really still care – you can check out in the full changelog below. The app is available for free here. Read more

Huffington Post Releases Completely Redesigned iPad App

If you’re loyal Huffington Post readers, happen to have an iPad and don’t mind downloading free apps from the App Store (why would you?), perhaps you’d like to take a look at the just released Huffington Post iPad app. The HuffPo’s iPad client has been around for a while, actually. Indeed, version 2.0 is a major redesign of the app aimed at taking it a step further, following the latest trends in iPad app development.

The app has this visually rich star page with a navigation sidebar on the left, main categories (Top Stories, News, Blogs, Slideshows, Popular) on the right. You can log in your account using a box in the upper left corner. You can browse the categories on the right by swiping your finger over the featured headlines.

As you tap on an article, a clean web view slides in allowing you to read without leaving the homepage. The design is nice and elegant. You can share a post, increase or decrease the font’s size, but you can go full-screen – unlike Twitter for iPad which features a similar concept but allows you to open web views in full-screen mode. Slideshows have a similar clean (although much darker) design, too.

Huffington Post for iPad is available for free in the App Store. More screenshots below. Read more

Apple Launches New iPhone 4 Ad “Under The Covers” To Promote FaceTime, Again

A few minutes ago Apple launched a new iPhone 4 commercial (available on Apple’s website and Youtube channel) to showcase, once again, the FaceTime capabilities of the device.

The commercial is called “Under The Covers” and features a kid who thinks he’s talking to Santa via FaceTime, while on the other device there’s his father dressed as Santa and calling him from their garage. It’s a pretty sweet commercial. In September, Apple launched a series of ads to showcase the iPhone’s FaceTime features in Europe; other FaceTime ads had appeared in the U.S. in July. Apple also targeted the iPhone 4’s battery life and Retina Display with commercials aired in the past months.

Check out the video below. Read more

Tap Tap Revenge 4? 25,000 Downloads Per Hour→

Tap Tap Revenge 4? 25,000 Downloads Per Hour

Decrem, who now serves as SVP and General Manager for Disney Mobile, says that the game is seeing around 25,000 downloads per hour right now, which is on par with what it saw on Christmas day last year (app downloads see a major spike on Christmas as people try out their new iPhones and iPod touches, so expect this number to surge even higher this year). Decrem says this is the fastest any of Tapulous’s games have ever hit #1, and it may be the fastest growing game ever (though he doesn’t know that definitively).

The app was released less than 24 hours ago. Apps like Flipboard, Twitter or Facebook didn’t see these numbers. But guess what? It’s a free game.

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Apple Shuts Down Mac OS X Downloads Page

Well, we all knew this was going to happen sooner or later. Apple is shutting down the OS X Downloads page, in lieu of the Mac App Store which is launching on January 6th. Here’s the email Apple just sent out to Mac developers:

Thank you for making the Mac OS X Download site a great destination with apps that offer users new ways to work, play, learn, and create on their Mac.

We recently announced that on January 6, 2011, the Mac App Store will open to users around the world, presenting you with an exciting, new opportunity to reach millions of customers. Since the introduction of the App Store in 2008, we’ve been thrilled with the incredible support from developers and the enthusiastic response from users. Now we’re bringing the revolutionary experience of the App Store to Mac OS X.

Because we believe the Mac App Store will be the best destination for users to discover, purchase, and download your apps, we will no longer offer apps on the Mac OS X Downloads site. Instead, beginning January 6, we will be directing users to explore the range of apps available on the Mac App Store.

We appreciate your support of the Mac platform and hope you’ll take advantage of this new opportunity to showcase your apps to even more users. To learn how you can offer your apps on the Mac App Store, visit the Apple Developer website at http://developer.apple.com/programs/mac.

The Mac OS X Downloads website provided for years a way for developers to showcase their Mac apps for free to the large audience of Apple’s website. It also served as a great way to get new Mac users started on third-part software for OS X. Clearly Apple thinks this is all going to change with the Mac App Store, which will be included in a Software Update for all Snow Leopard users.

No details have been provided about other categories of software currently promoted on the Downloads site, such as Automator workflows and Dashboard widgets.

Secret of Mana for iPhone Goes Live Internationally, Coming To The U.S. Tonight

Secret of Mana, also known to the Nintendo nerds among us as Seiken Densetsu 2, was an action RPG for the Super Nintendo release by Square in 1993. I remember playing this as a kid on my SNES, and I remember the pleasure of playing it again a decade later on a modded PSP through a SNES emulator. Secret of Mana is considered one of the best games ever released on Nintendo’s 16-bit consoles, or one of Square’s finest action RPGs, period.

The fact that Secret of Mana still holds up to most similar games 17 years after its original release says a lot about the current status of role-playing games and the excellence of Square’s team back in the golden days. Still, let’s focus on yet another comeback of SoM, this time on the iPhone. Which is the same Secret of Mana you know and love, only with a couple of virtual buttons on screen to move you character, attack and change weapon. Yes, the Ring Command menu system from the original game is still there. Nothing else seems to be different.

The game is now live in most international App Stores and will likely become available in the US in 3 hours.

Sorted, Simple To-Do App for iPad, Gets A Lot Better With Version 2.0

Sorted is a very simple (and beautiful) to-do / list app for the iPad we first reviewed in May. The iPad was “the new hot thing” back then, not so many productivity apps were available and Things was my GTD app of choice. Sorted managed to stand out because it was elegant and provided a new way to simple list creation and task management on the tablet. It wasn’t meant for the average GTD power user still it captured the hearts of many hardcore users by being the “alternative” to more popular software like the aforementioned Things or, months later, OmniFocus for iPad.

I liked Sorted because it was the app I used to create lists out of my daily GTD environment. In fact, I still have the app on my iPad. But it’s a lot better now, as version 2.0 was released in the App Store a couple of days ago and it’s really good. Read more

TomTom Updated To Include Map Share: Don’t Get Lost Again

You’re casually driving in your pink tank when your TomTom alerts you with a Map Share update. “Warning! Landmines ahead!” Thank god for your iPhone, because you’ve just potentially avoided both disaster and what would eventually end up being the day’s longest traffic jam. With TomTom’s latest update, you can avoid this and other manmade disasters thanks to other drives like you who just want to get to work without being bothered by road construction, falling bridges, or meteor showers. TomTom figures they can’t possibly update the entire landmass of the United States everyday, so you have the opportunity to trust your fellow drivers to update the map and point you in the right direction. If we’re cynical, we might just direct you into a gigantic lake for lols all around, but hopefully those that paid the premium for satellite driven directions won’t be spreading any sort of misinformation. With new roads being added each day, visiting that town in Pennsylvania won’t leave you dazed and confused.

On sale for $40.00, everything from traffic jams to instant route changes can be delivered to your iPhone for the comfort of knowing you can drive safely.