Is Apple’s Lion a Lion?

Yesterday Apple gave us a sneak peek at some features coming in the next major iteration of OS X, Lion. For those who missed it, Lion will be available starting next summer, and more previews will likely be shown in January (when the Mac App Store will open), at the WWDC ‘11 or, perhaps, at another Lion-focused event. We don’t know yet.

Yesterday’s preview, however, was built around a simple concept: Apple brought OS X to the iPhone and iPad and created a new mobile operating system called iOS from it; now the best features experimented on those devices are coming back to where it all started, the Mac. Read more

An iOS-Powered Massage Chair

Who wants to use a wired analog remote when you can use a sleek, retina-displayed iDevice to do it? The Acutouch HT-9500 massage chair is being sold for only $4,999 (iPhone not included). After you drop $5K on the chair, head on over to the App Store and download the FREE (it better be) HT-Connect™ app to start making your iDevice your personal masseuse. It uses Bluetooth to send the controls/settings to the chair and grants you “instant access to a world of resources, massage programs and expertise designed to improve your wellness and life.”

Wow, my back feels better already, it’s my wallet that’s hurting now. Read more

Super Twario Turns Twitter Into A Platform Game for iPhone

Of all the great things you can do with Twitter (such as following Forstall or Conan O’ Brien), can you imagine turning it into a platform game for iPhone where you literally jump on tweets and earn Game Center achievements by replying to mentions or faving tweets?

Super Twario, a $2 game available here, does just that. You simply move around after the app has fetched tweets form your timeline and start walking and jumping and running. With Game Center integration, you can unlock achievements by doing things you would regularly do in any other Twitter client, without getting rewarded.

This opens the road to non-games achievements I think, like “read 150 articles in Instapaper” or “write 15 articles in Simplenote”. We’ll see. Check out the demo video of Super Twario below. [via Engadget] Read more

Tip: How To Sort Contacts by First / Last Name in FaceTime for Mac Beta

A surprising high numbers of readers asked me last night if it’s possible to change the way FaceTime for Mac (the current beta version) sorts contacts by first or last name. Basing on readers’ emails, it seemed like sorting was random: some of them were reporting contacts sorted by last name, some by first name, Apple’s website shows contacts sorted, indeed, by last name.

It’s really very simple. Like I wrote last night, FaceTime for Mac depends on your existing Address Book and doesn’t let you create additional buddy lists, or FaceTime-specific ones. Hopefully Apple will bring this feature in a future version. So to change how contacts are sorted in FaceTime.app, you actually have to change how your contacts are sorted in the Address Book. Is that simple.

Fire up the Address Book app, open the preferences, see the screenshot below.

An Open App Store On The Mac→

An Open App Store On The Mac

A number of prominent app developers would have to commit to supporting an open Mac app store, by making their apps available on that store. These announcements would pretty much have to happen this week in order to have enough impact to sway the course of discussion. There’s no reason these would have to be exclusive, or say anything negative about Apple’s app store, but could just be expressions of these developers pursuing every distribution option available.

Interesting ideas based on Sparkle and Growl, but not going to happen. The Mac App Store will likely become most people’s way to discover and install Mac apps; developers’ websites will be there for demos and trials. And for apps that can’t go through Apple’s approval process.

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The Air’s Place In An iPad World→

The Air’s Place In An iPad World

In fact, the MacBook Air’s biggest competition is the iPad. Both can be used as a standalone product, but really shine when used as a secondary device. Both have great battery life and are thin and light. The smaller Air is even close to the size of the iPad.

The difference of course is all about software. For some people, iOS just doesn’t meet their needs. The new 11.6″ MacBook Air offers all of the features of Mac OS X in the smallest package ever. For people who need a full-blown computer that can go just about anywhere, the Air is an obvious choice. For everyone else, though, the iPad is really, really hard to ignore.

The iPad is similar in size to the new Air, and it’s cheaper. But don’t forget and don’t underestimate the importance of a small device running OS X at an acceptable form factor. For some people working in certain conditions with very few space available and frequent travelers, the 11.6-inch Air is a God-send.

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