Apple - New Phone and Tablet

Winnow · Post by **Winnow** » March 23, 2011, 4:29 pm

Winnow wrote:
I'm getting one but want to purchase in store. Considering the big time demand and component delays due to the quake, it looks like it might not be until May or June that I get one unless I get lucky. First time I can drive to a store and buy one I will.

Scratch that! Best Buy had one 32 GB Wifi in stock so I drove over at lunch, picked it up along with one of those fancy, super expensive, cover thingies.

Can't play around with it atm. Mostly curious about the cover, hoping it works well.

Funkmasterr · Post by **Funkmasterr** » March 23, 2011, 7:20 pm

I have one of the covers too, it works great!

Fairweather Pure · Post by **Fairweather Pure** » March 23, 2011, 8:25 pm

They should include a cover with the initial purchase IMO. The thing is built for it with internal magnets. I'm really interested in the cover though. Other than the camera, it's really the only "new" feature. Display models do not have a cover on them, so I did a blind buy based on positive user reviews. I'll likely get a vinyl sticker of some sort to cover the back at some point too.

Winnow · Post by **Winnow** » March 24, 2011, 1:42 pm

Impressions of iPad 2 after a few hours of use, compared to original iPad:

- faster.

no doubt. The original iPad is no slouch but iPad 2 give you even more of a feel of "instant" access to your apps. browser, games, etc, all speedy. double memory, much improved gpu as well as dual core are big improvements.

- screen

Screen is better. side by side, the original iPad screen looks dull and blurred compared to the iPad2. Very sharp. Color is perhaps more blue tones, less on the warm side as well. Noticeably better.

-Cover.

This thing is pretty awesome. It works as advertised. The magnets align the cover making it super easy to take on and off. If you're anywhere remotely near the right placement, the magnets to the rest for you. Using it as a stand works great as well. It it's more vertical position, it's sturdy enough to handle your finger taps and doesn't slide around much. The screen on/off by simply closing the cover is cool as well. $40.00 is still a crazy price but it's not just a "cover". 31 magnets, 21 in cover and 10 in the iPad2, as well as a steel plate inside one of the sections of the cover. Give Apple credit for coming up with an impressive design.

-Speaker

I thought I might not like the new speaker placement because it was on the back of the device instead of the bottom. I always hated an old phone I had that had a back firing speaker. Kinda lame when you're watching a video on the front. Thankfully, the speaker sounds clearer, seems even slightly louder than the original iPad...and because the edge of the iPad2 is tapered, the speaker grill wraps around to the bottom so it does fire down as well as back. On the plus side, because of the tapered edge, it's harder to "muffle" the audio which you can easily do with the original if it was placed on a soft surface or you rested it up against you while sitting down, etc. So, another positive improvement with the speaker.

-Cameras

Nothing special here. They are definitely not meant for taking quality pictures. They work great for video, facetime, etc. I'm sure Apple will improve them with the next iPad but I really don't see myself walking around taking pics with my iPad. The bigger screen with facetime, photobooth, etc, is great and it is useful to have cameras in the iPad for UPC label reading, GPS crap , etc. Cameras weren't even a consideration in upgrading but they are nice to have. iPhone 4 camera rocks and that's where you'd be taking pics/vids from 99% of the time.

-Feel

again, no doubt, lighter and thinner design feels better in your hand than the original (which I was ok to begin with anyway)

-Battery

same, blow the fucking doors off the competition battery life as the original, in a thinner, lighter package. This is a big factor in mobile devices and iPad owns this category.

Engadget's tests:

Apple iPad 2 10:26
Apple iPad 9:33
Motorola Xoom 8:20
Dell Streak 7 3:26
Archos 101 7:20
Samsung Galaxy Tab 6:09

Overall:

iPads are amazing devices. Excellent mobile consumer device. The only people interested in a tablet/pad device that should even question not getting an iPad2 are those with the original iPads. For everyone else, iPad2 just makes this thing even more effortless to use. No need to sell anyone on these. Not like you can pick one up easy. The one single one in stock I got yesterday had been in stock for an hour. Seem to be selling like mad on their own.

Fairweather Pure · Post by **Fairweather Pure** » April 1, 2011, 12:12 pm

Looks like mine is supposed to arrive sometime today (6 days earlier than expected!). I hope I get it before I go to work, but I'm not holding my breath. Our Fed Ex lady is terribly inconsistent. She could be here from 9am-9pm. You just never know. Our UPS guy is here between 1-3 pretty much every time.

Fairweather Pure · Post by **Fairweather Pure** » April 1, 2011, 12:55 pm

No sooner than I posted the above, it arrived. It's already restored form my old backup and running great. My red leather cover is a little less vibrant than I expected, but other than that I couldn't be happier. I'll put it through the motions later tonight.

Fairweather Pure · Post by **Fairweather Pure** » April 1, 2011, 6:32 pm

As everyone has already read and is well aware, the iPad 2 is indeed faster and lighter. Games start up faster and web pages load quicker. Movies start faster too. I wasn't so sure about the new cover, but it has already grown on me with the short time I've spent with the device. It's definitely a lot less invasive or noticeable than my old cover, but I also don't think it protects as well either.

Fairweather Pure · Post by **Fairweather Pure** » April 10, 2011, 9:59 pm

So, what's on your ipad/iphone?

My normal ipad (64GB) loadout has about 300 books, 3,000 comics, every warhammer and 40k codex/rulebook/scenerio, 12ish movies, 10ish GB of music, and about 3GB of pictures on it. I still have a 5GB buffer too!

The majority of my day to day listening music is on my 32GB iphone 3GS, along with about a dozen movies, and all of my podcasts. I don't have books or comics on my iphone. I did just transfer over 1,000 photos off my phone, but I'm already starting to build up again.

Winnow · Post by **Winnow** » April 10, 2011, 10:38 pm

I don't use my Ipad for a lot of media storage. I'm able to stream my movies and tv shows.

I'll typically have 3-5 Audiobooks on there, a handful of eBooks and and maybe the particular comic book series I'm reading. I have 25 Richie Rich books on there right now and will swap them with the next 25 in the series when I'm done. I have a few PDF manuals on there as well. Movies, TV and music are all streamed with via net or from my server.

Podcasts go on my iPhone.

Apps will fill up my iPad eventually. I like to take advantage of all the streaming capabilities of the iPad so 32 GB is a good size for me.

====================

BTW, if you haven't, try out Zite. (free) It's another news aggregator but it looks great.

http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/zite/id419752338?mt=8

I tend to launch that app a lot when I sit down with my iPad. Don't use it to pull your own feeds. Use it like a newspaper with the topics it provides.

I use Gaming, Gadgets, Movies/TV, Science and Technology and a few others.

You'll get a few repeat topics because it pulls news from several sourced which will end up having some of the same headlines.

The interface is really sharp. It has the most professional look and feel to it from the newsreader apps.

Fairweather Pure · Post by **Fairweather Pure** » April 12, 2011, 7:34 pm

Want some 3D with your iPad 2? Check out this link. Pretty sweet!

http://www.macrumors.com/2011/04/11/hea ... d-on-ipad/

Winnow · Post by **Winnow** » April 12, 2011, 8:05 pm

Fairweather Pure wrote:Want some 3D with your iPad 2? Check out this link. Pretty sweet!

http://www.macrumors.com/2011/04/11/hea ... d-on-ipad/

I was going to post this last night. Very cool!

Fairweather Pure · Post by **Fairweather Pure** » April 21, 2011, 6:06 pm

I finally set up port forwarding on my PC and am able to stream all my movies to my ipads and iphones (3G!) using Air Video. I tested it at work today and I can stream all my movies at full quality almost instantly. Pretty goddamn amazing. There's another program out there called StreamToMe that streams music, pictures, and video that I'm anxious to try out since Air Video cannot stream audio or pics.

Funkmasterr · Post by **Funkmasterr** » April 21, 2011, 10:41 pm

You can just set up home sharing for that stuff, it's a feature in iTunes. I've used it extensively already and it works real well.

Winnow · Post by **Winnow** » April 22, 2011, 12:50 am

Funkmasterr wrote:You can just set up home sharing for that stuff, it's a feature in iTunes. I've used it extensively already and it works real well.

Hell no. Screw iTunes. I suppose it would be ok for music. I wouldn't let it get near my videos, images, etc.

Air Video is much better.

Funkmasterr · Post by **Funkmasterr** » April 22, 2011, 2:19 am

Yeah I guess I've only really used it for music, but it works great, loads my 30,000 song library in about ten seconds and plays/skips through songs just as quick as if I was doing it on iTunes on the computer the files are on.

Winnow · Post by **Winnow** » May 2, 2011, 9:34 pm

OMG Geohot is back at it!1!!1

An experienced player is onboard to figure out a way to jailbreak the iPad 2. According to news first reported by TiPb, Geohot has accepted the challenge from p0sixninja to see who can jailbreak the second-generation iDevice first.

GeoHot, who is actually George Hotz, was one of the first to jailbreak the iPhone. Meanwhile, p0sixninja is Joshua Hill, founder of the popular Green Pois0n jailbreak site.

According to Hill, posting on Twitter:

I challenged geohot to dump the iPad2 bootrom before me. Maybe having a worthy opponent will motivate me to work harder =P

He later said Hotz accepted the challenge, stating:

he accepted, he said he didn’t have an iPad yet but he’s getting one really soon

Because of Apple’s new A5 chipset, the iPad 2 has yet to be jailbroken. For those wishing to do so, perhaps p0sixninja and/or geohot will accomplish this goal.

Someone get Geohot an iPad 2.

<This is where something stupid like "It's on like Donkey Kong" should be placed>

Winnow · Post by **Winnow** » May 13, 2011, 2:28 pm

New Samsung 10.1" Display Has More Pixels Than 27" iMac

You read the headline right. Wipe the coffee off you just spit all over your monitor, and continue reading.

The new LCD technology, developed by Samsung's subsidiary Nouvoyance, packs a 2560-by-1600 pixel resolution into a 10.1" display. This doubles the count of full 1080p displays and achieves a pixel density of 300 dpi. Any display capable of packing a 300 dpi pixel count qualifies as a "Retina" display.

For those unfamiliar with the term "Retina" display, it is Apples term for a display that produces a pixel density so high the human retina can't discern between pixels from any viewing distance. This allows curves to appear smooth and eliminates jagged, pixelated edges. The iPhone 4 was the first mobile device to include this technology, and it has been widely rumored the next iPad will include the technology as well. Samsung, Apple's ever clever frenemy, will now likely provide Apple with the necessary retina displays for the next iPad.

The Samsung display will be demoed at this years SID Display Week and likely be in production by the end of the year. In addition to the amazing resolution, the device will use 40% less power than traditional LCD's in power saving mode, as well as sport an improved color gamut.

All of this sounds like gravy, and amazing, but even with a 40% reduction in power, it's going to take one hell of CPU and GPU to power a display pushing this many pixels. Imagine this kind of pixel density on a 27" iMac. I'd hate to do the math on what that resolution is.

I'm still in awe of my 27" 2560x1440 iMac screen. It's already pixel dense on that screen...seems almost unbelievable they can squeeze that many pixels into a 10.1 inch screen. Anyone who's seen an iPhone 4 screen knows there's no chance if seeing individual pixels and that the added pixel density makes for an amazing screen.

Now, Apple is suing Samsung and Samsung is suing Apple over other issues but I still bet we see this in next year's iPad. Sign me up! I make good use of both of my iPads. Not sure I'd use three but I could give my original away to a friend or something at that point.

Kwonryu DragonFist · Post by **Kwonryu DragonFist** » May 27, 2011, 6:13 am

Nice House/pad Pureweather!

Winnow · Post by **Winnow** » June 8, 2011, 3:06 am

In case peeps didnt watch the conference Monday, here's a video recapping the additions to iOS for the iPhone and iPad:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LLJIef-e-7g

iOS 5 presents nothing earth shattering but shores up a lot of the weak spots for the iOS devices. Some crap that Blackberry and Android had that iPhone didn't yet.

Some of the notable changes:

-much improved notification center

-camera functionality and editing improvements

-PC Free. You can own an iPhone/iPad and never touch/sync it to a PC.

-wireless syncing as well as delta iOS updates

-informative lockscreen (goes along with the nice new notification stuff)

-split keyboard for iPad, makes it much better for thumb typers.

-newstand, centralized place for magazine/newspaper subs...eh..kinda cool though with wireless on the fly syncing as your new mag/sub shows up in the morning with no need to sync...it already downloaded. Icon covers updated automatically to latest issue.

-new reminder app...one very cool thing is does is geo reminding...say for example...you want to call someone when you leave work...you set a grid around your work location and when you leave that location, it reminds you to call...now that's cool. I can see that kind of new type of reminder being very useful.

-improved web browser...needed but the "reader" part is the cool thing to note. It takes those multipage articles and combines them into one clean, readable page without clutter.

-airplay mirroring, allows you to mirror everything you do on your iPad/iPhone onto your big screen if you have apple TV, wireless.

-some gamecenter improvements

-iMessage thingy for free messaging between iDevices...nice if everyone has iDevices...can skip those lame SMS charges.

Here's 91 of the 200 changes in iOS 5:

Major Features

New Notification System (Notification Center) - drop-down menu
-- Improved in-app notifications at the top
-- Lock screen notifications
-- Choose what notification type you want for each app (banner notifications or the classic pop-up notifications)
-- Sort notifications in any order, or based by their time
iCloud support & integration
iMessage - send text messages to other iOS users via Wi-Fi or 3G
Newsstand - looks like iBooks, stores your App Store subscriptions
Reminders - Apple's official to-do app, includes calendars
Twitter Integration - i.e. in Safari, Photos, Maps, etc.
AirPlay Mirroring for iPad 2s (on HDTVs, etc.)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Camera

Shutter Button - volume up button can be used to take pictures
Lock Screen Button - double tap the home button & you can open the Camera from the lock screen
Camera Grids - For easier & more precise photography
Pinch-to-Zoom Gestures
AE & AF Lock
Single-tap Focus and Exposure
Swipe left to reveal your camera roll
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Photos

Crop photos
Enhance photos
Rotate photos
Remove red-eye in-app
Photo Stream - part of iCloud, this sends photos to all of your iOS devices automatically
Photos can be organized in Camera Roll
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Safari

iPad & iPad 2 Only: Tabbed Browsing
Safari Reader - read webpage or blog articles without ads, clutter
Safari Reading List - save webpages for later, offline reading
Improved Performance
Private Browsing - browser turns black
Individual Site Data can be deleted
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"PC Free" / Wireless Features / iCloud

Setup your iOS device on-screen, no Mac or PC required
Over-The-Air (OTA) iOS Software Updates
Delta Software Updates - installs only the updated portions of iOS, rather than a complete download
Wi-Fi Sync - wirelessly sync your iOS device with a Mac or PC
Restore from iCloud
Wirelessly sync Exchange tasks
Ability to see apps you've downloaded from the App Store, even if they're on another iOS device (downloads tab)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mail

Rich Text Formatting (Bold, Italics, Underline, etc.)
Improved Offline Support
Indentation Control
Address fields can be dragged and rearranged (To, CC, BCC)
Search Within an Email
Flag Emails
S/MIME Security
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Game Center

Add a profile picture
Friend recommendations
Game recommendations
View "friends of friends" lists
Find and purchase new apps - integrated App Store functionality
Achievement points
You can now play turn-based games with other iOS users
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
New Multitasking Gestures (iPad & iPad 2)

Each multitasking gestures requires using 4 or 5 fingers.
Swipe up to reveal the multitasking bar
Swipe left or right to switch between apps that are open
Pinch to return to the home screen
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
New Keyboard Features

New keyboard/typing shortcuts under Settings > General > Keyboard. For example, OMG can be setup to be replaced by OH MY GOSH)
Emoji Emoticons Keyboard (to be enabled via Keyboard in Settings?)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Accessibility & Usability

iPhone 4: LED Flash for Incoming Calls & Alerts
Custom Vibration for Incoming Calls
VoiceOver improvements, including custom element labeling
Set Custom Tones for Calendars, Mail, and Voicemail
Accessible Input for Mobility
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Calendar

iPad & iPad 2: Year View
iPhone & iPod touch: Week View (in landscape mode)
Switch to Japanese or Buddhist calendars
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Music & Videos

iPad & iPad 2: Redesigned music application
iPhone: The iPod application is separated into two apps for music & video
Left and right scrolling ability for longer song and album names
Tapping and holding on a song title gives you a description bubble
Sync Smart Playlists from iTunes
Swipe to Delete Songs & Playlists
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Weather, Maps, and Contacts

Hourly Weather Forecasts
Weather app automatically determines your location, custom locations can still be added
Alternate routes in Maps
Print out your current location or directions in Maps
Sync Twitter profile pic to Contacts
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Background Tasks

Newsstand: Download subscriptions in the background, or offline
Background Syncing - Use your device while it's syncing with a Mac or PC
Links can be opened in the background
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Settings

Under Settings -> General -> Usage, see exactly how much space each app is taking up.
Under Settings -> General, you can view your iCloud storage statistics.
Change the host name (device name) on your iOS device in Settings -> General
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Other Features

Some GUI Improvements (i.e. on/off toggle switches)
Personal Dictionary
Built-in Dictionary
iTunes Tone Store
Improved FaceTime video quality
VoiceOver Item Chooser
Ability to "speak" text you highlight
Delete Individual Calls in the Recent Calls List
App Data can be deleted - game saves, settings, etc.
Time mid-call invitation alerts

The one thing not here is improved app management. Otherwise, it's a solid update.

Fairweather Pure · Post by **Fairweather Pure** » June 8, 2011, 5:17 pm

As usual, it looks like an extremely solid update.

miir · Post by **miir** » June 9, 2011, 9:58 am

On another note, did anyone see the PSN store update this week?

N

orth American Update
E3 Content
Update
Battlefield Bad Company 2 Vietnam Pdlc – E3 – Sale
Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood – The Da Vinci Disappearance – E3 – Sale
Assassin’s Creed II – Sequence 13 – E3 – Sale
Assassin’s Creed II – Sequence 13 + Secret Locations – E3 -Sale
Assassin’s Creed II : Sequence 12: Battle Of Forli – E3 – Sale
Tetris – E3 – Sale
Assassin’s Creed – Digital – E3 – Sale
Assassin’s Creed II Deluxe Edition Digital – E3 – Sale
Assassin’s Creed: Bloodlines – Digital – E3 – Sale
Warhawk – E3 – Sale
Warhawk Booster Combo – E3 – Sale
Warhawk Broken Mirror Pack – E3 – Sale
Warhawk Fallen Star Pack – E3 – Sale
Warhawk Omega Dawn Pack – E3 – Sale
Add-on Game Content
Super Street Fighter IV: Arcade Edition (10 avatar GWP)
Super Street Fighter IV: Arcade Edition Update Kit
Game Videos (free)
PS Vita Demo Video
The Darkness 2 – Release Date Announcement – E3
Call Of Duty: Black Ops Call Of The Dead E3 Trailer
Call Of Duty: Black Ops Taste Of Escalation E3 Trailer
Street Fighter 3: Third Strike Online Edition Announce Trailer – E3
Street Fighter X Tekken – Cinematic Trailer – E3
Street Fighter X Tekken – Gameplay Trailer – E3
Final Fantasy XIII-2 – 2011 Trailer – E3
PS3 Wallpapers (free)
PS Vita Wallpaper
PlayStation Plus
Featured Games & DLC
Qore June Episode 37 – Single Episode (Free to PlayStation Plus subscribers, regular price $2 .99)
MotorStorm Apocalypse Prestige Vehicle Pack Bundle (PlayStation Plus price $1.99, regular price $2.49)
Lilo & Stitch PS one title (Free to PlayStation Plus subscribers, regular price $9.99)
Magic the Gathering: Duels of the Planeswalkers 2011 (Free to PlayStation Plus subscribers, regular price $9.99)
Discounted Games
Tumble (PlayStation Plus price $5.00, regular price $9.99)
Shank (PlayStation Plus price $5.00, regular price $9.99)
Deathspank (PlayStation Plus price $7.50, regular price $14.99)
Deathspank Thongs of Virtue (PlayStation Plus price $7.50, regular price $14.99)
Dead Space Ignition (PlayStation Plus price $2.50, regular price $5.00)
Featured Themes & Avatars
Flamingo Fun Static Theme (Free and exclusive to PlayStation Plus subscribers)
inFAMOUS 2 Dynamic Theme (Free and exclusive to PlayStation Plus subscribers)
Updates
Call Of Duty 4: Modern Warfare Variety Map Pack – Sale (PS3) (now $4.99, original price $9.99)
Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 French Resurgence Package – Sale (PS3) (now $7.49, original price $14.99)
Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 French Stimulus Package – Sale (PS3) (now $7.49, original price $14.99)
Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Resurgence Package – Sale (PS3) (now $7.49, original price $14.99)
Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Stimulus Package – Sale (PS3) (now $7.49, original price $14.99)
Tetris – Sale (PS3) (now $4.99, original price $9.99)
Super Street Fighter IV Super Complete Alternate Costume Pack – Sale (PS3) (now $8.99, original price $17.99)
Assassin’s Creed – Sale (PS3) (now $9.99, original price $19.99)
Assassin’s Creed II Deluxe Edition – Sale (PS3) (now $9.99, original price $19.99)
Assassin’s Creed: Bloodlines – Sale (PSP) (now $9.99, original price $19.99)
Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood The Da Vinci Disappearance – Sale (PS3) (now $4.99, original price $9.99)
Assassin’s Creed Sequence 12: Battle of Forli – Sale (PS3) (now $1.99, original price $3.99)
Assassin’s Creed Sequence 13: Bonfire of Vanities – Sale (PS3) (now $1.99, original price $3.99)
Assassin’s Creed Sequence 13: Bonfire of Vanities & Secret Locations – Sale (PS3) (now $3.49, original price $6.99)
Battlefield Bad Company 2 Vietnam – Sale (PS3) (now $7.49, original price $14.99)
Warhawk – Sale (PS3) (now $9.99, original price $29.99)
Warhawk Booster Combo – Sale (PS3) (now $4.99, original price $15.99)
Warhawk Broken Mirror Pack – Sale (PS3) (now $2.99, original price $7.99)
Warhawk Fallen Star Pack – Sale (PS3) (now $2.99, original price $7.99)
Warhawk Omega Dawn Pack – Sale (PS3) (now $2.99, original price $7.99)
Downloadable Games
New Adventure Island ($5.99)
Soldier Blade ($5.99)
Back To The Future: The Game – Episode 4 (Free)
Game Demos (free)
El Shaddai Ascension Of The Metatron Demo
Dungeon Siege III Demo
Add-on Game Content
Marvel Vs Capcom 3: Fate Of Two Worlds – Shadow Battle 08 ($0.99)
Super Street Fighter IV: Arcade Edition Update Kit (Free)
Super Street Fighter IV Arcade Edition ($14.99)
Dirt 3: Teams And Cars Unlock Pack ($2.99)
The Sims 3 – Ford Focus Neon Nights (Free)
LittleBigPlanet 2 – Costume ($0.99) (x11)
Hyperdimension Neptunia Add-ons ($1.99) (x6)
Yoostar 2: Various Scenes ($0.99 – $1.99) (x15)
Yoostar 2: Horror Scene Pack ($6.99)
ModNation Racers – MC Mod ($0.99)
ModNation Racers – MC Kart ($0.99)
ModNation Racers – MC Mod and Kart ($1.75)
MotorStorm Apocalypse – Prestige Rally Car Ink ($0.99)
MotorStorm Apocalypse – Prestige Supercar Hyper ($0.99)
MotorStorm Apocalypse – Prestige Supercar VIP ($0.99)
Rock Band 3
“Audience of One” – Rise Against ($1.99)
“The Good Left Undone” – Rise Against ($1.99)
“Help Is on the Way” – Rise Against ($1.99)
“Just the Way You Are” – Bruno Mars ($1.99)
“Marry You” – Bruno Mars ($1.99)
“Grenade” – Bruno Mars ($1.99)
Artist pack ($5.49) – Build your Rock Band library by purchasing this song game album: Rise Against Pack 02. This pack includes “Audience of One”, “The Good Left Undone” and “Help Is on the Way”. By Rise Against.
Artist pack ($5.49) – Build your Rock Band library by purchasing this song game album: BRUNO MARS PACK 01. This pack includes “Just the Way You Are”, “Marry You” and “Grenade”. By Bruno Mars.
Rock Band Network
“Dragonfly (Symbion Project Remix)” – Symbion Project ($0.99)
“Exploited & Exposed” – Symbion Project ($0.99)
“Fox Hunt” – Larkspur ($0.99)
“Midnight Ride” – Midnight Riders ($0.99)
“One Bad Man” – Midnight Riders ($0.99)
“Second Sight Blackout” – Children of Nova ($1.99)
“Synthesized” – Symbion Project ($0.99)
“The Fall of Aphonia” – Children of Nova ($1.99)
“The Order” – Children of Nova ($1.99)
“We Collide” – Children of Nova ($1.99)
Bundles
MotorStorm Apocalypse – Prestige Vehicle Pack ($2.49)
Mortal Kombat – Klassic Kostume Unlock – Bundle ($4.99)
Flower Bundle – Game + Soundtrack + Avatar ($9.99)
Game Videos (free)
The Darkness 2
Brink: A Matter Of Class Trailer
Lego Pirates Of The Caribbean – At World’s End Trailer
Lego Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest Trailer
Virtua Tennis 4 – PS3 Trailer (3D)
Storm Announcement Trailer
PS3 Themes
L.A. Noire Crime Scene Dynamic Theme ($2.99)
L.A. Noire Dark Alley Dynamic Theme ($2.99)
L.A. Noire Neon Sign Dynamic Theme ($2.99)
L.A. Noire Premium Theme ($1.99)
Premier Manager Soccer Babe Theme 4 ($1.49)
Across the Lake Dynamic Theme ($2.99)
Apocalypse Dynamic Theme ($2.99)
Armored Titans Dynamic Theme ($2.99)
Calming Gardens Dynamic Theme Bundle ($4.49)
Bridge To Tranquility Dynamic Theme ($2.99)
Echo Of Serenity Dynamic Theme ($2.99)
Garden Waterfall Dynamic Theme ($2.99)
PlayStation Store for PSP
Downloadable Games
New Adventure Island ($5.99)
Soldier Blade ($5.99)
Pool Hall Pro ($9.99)
PSP minis
Zombie Racers – Minis ($6.99)
Cohort Chess – Minis ($2.99)

Boogahz · Post by **Boogahz** » June 9, 2011, 10:41 am

lrn2quote noob

miir · Post by **miir** » June 9, 2011, 10:44 am

l

Boogahz wrote:rn2quote noob

No you!

Fairweather Pure · Post by **Fairweather Pure** » June 9, 2011, 10:50 am

Forget his inability to quote, how about posting in the correct thread? He just posted a bunch of PS3 info in the iPad thread, lol.

Boogahz · Post by **Boogahz** » June 9, 2011, 10:52 am

his bagina got sandy when winnow included Apple info in the E3 thread

Fairweather Pure · Post by **Fairweather Pure** » June 9, 2011, 11:29 am

I missed that part. In that case, it's even more stupid.

Way to faggot up the forum because you're having a spat with Winnow, Miir. Jesus Christ. I didn't know it was your time of the month.

Boogahz · Post by **Boogahz** » June 9, 2011, 11:48 am

miir is always on the bag...the colostomy(sp) bag!

That's why he also went through and posted images of turds in a ton of threads a while back, lol

miir · Post by **miir** » June 9, 2011, 12:23 pm

Fairweather Pure wrote:Way to faggot up the forum because you're having a spat with Winnow, Miir.

Wait.. I sense some Vita pics incoming!

Aslanna · Post by **Aslanna** » June 9, 2011, 12:26 pm

Does anyone even buy those PS3 themes? I can't see spending $2-$5 on something like that. But they keep making them so I imagine so.

miir · Post by **miir** » June 9, 2011, 12:28 pm

And here's a picture of one HUGE COCK!

[Show]

miir · Post by **miir** » June 9, 2011, 12:30 pm

Aslanna wrote:Does anyone even buy those PS3 themes? I can't see spending $2-$5 on something like that. But they keep making them so I imagine so.

I bought the Ratchet and Clank dynamic theme... think I paid a dollar for it.

miir · Post by **miir** » June 9, 2011, 12:31 pm

Fairweather Pure wrote:Forget his inability to quote, how about posting in the correct thread? He just posted a bunch of PS3 info in the iPad thread, lol.

And you posted a bunch of pictures of your house in this thread.
What's the difference?

And it wasn't just PS3 info.
It was the new PSN store content update!

Winnow · Post by **Winnow** » June 9, 2011, 4:48 pm

ha, miir's so easy to kick into tantrum mode.

In the same post I first commented on Sony's Vita, then mentioned the Apple campus with a genuinely interesting video link about the story, miir completely loses his grip. Glad I slept through it.

miir · Post by **miir** » June 9, 2011, 5:09 pm

I got some sweet shots of the Wii U!
Wanna see em?

Animalor · Post by **Animalor** » June 10, 2011, 11:02 am

I usually have to pay for this type of entertainment..

Winnow · Post by **Winnow** » December 31, 2011, 5:24 pm

AT&T Phone sales for December. 66% iPhone and 8.5% all bazillion Android devices combined.

Tim Cook mentioned last quarter he was confident Apple would set another iPhone sales record during the December quarter, no doubt fueled by the iPhone 4S and the holiday shopping season. Some analysts estimate Apples revenue at over $40 billion for the December quarter besting Apple’s own estimate of $37 billion.

-----

iPad and iPhone Accounted for 13.4% of All Online Purchases This Christmas

This Christmas alone, Apple's iPad tablet and iPhone smartphone were used for a total of about thirteen and a half percent of the world's online purchases this Christmas - meaning that numerous iPad and iPhone owners used their Apple devices to do Christmas shopping. The exact figure is 13.4%; it divides into 7% of which were iPad users and 6.4% of which were iPhone users. Taking into consideration of just how much that is, we will do some number crunching.

At first, thirteen percent doesn't seem like a whole lot. But, considering that almost every home in the United States has between one and three computers and one and three smartphones, the numbers really do add up. In just the United States alone, the 2010 census told us that the United States has 308,745,538 residents. According to a study by Seagate, about 76% of these people own a personal computer. That's about 235,000,000 people. If we take that number and use the 13.4% figure with it, that means that roughly around 31-32 million Americans used an Apple iPhone or Apple iPad to order Christmas presents online this year (numbers not exact).

If 31-32 million Americans used an Apple iPhone or Apple iPad to order Christmas presents this year, it makes you think what the global figure was - after all the United States is only a fraction of the world's population that buys Apple's iPads and iPhones. In case you were wondering, Android devices only accounted for about five percent of Christmas purchases which is surprising because of the variety of cheap Android devices on the market. CNET reports that online sales grew 16.4 percent over last year's figures. The figures come from a benchmark done by IBM.

hmmm 7 % of all online shopping purchases made via iPad....40 Billion more in sales for Apple in December, adding to the number of idevices, and already best in class iPad 2 being replaced by iPad 3 in a few months before the competition even gets close to the current Apple product...Not bad for a device out less than two years. It's looking like iPad will be a very long term fad for those still thinking it's a fad and have Wiis in your closet! Google devices = 5% (combined phone and any people stuck with google tablets)

Happy New Year!

Animalor · Post by **Animalor** » January 1, 2012, 12:50 pm

This is like saying that 13% of cars driven on the highways this year were honda's. It's really a meaningless statistic. I think the interesting thing here is how much business was done online this year compared to previous years.

We did some online shopping this year because it was a LOT easier to order it and have it shipped to where we were spending the holidays than buying it here and lugging across the country. I don't think any of the purchases were done on my Touchpad or my Windows Phone however. Mostly because I wasn't using those when I thought about doing the purchases. I can see a lot of this shopping happening in the evening on a couch however.

Winnow · Post by **Winnow** » January 1, 2012, 5:16 pm

Animalor wrote:This is like saying that 13% of cars driven on the highways this year were honda's. It's really a meaningless statistic.

It would be like saying that if a Hondas were introduced in 2010 and captured 7% of the market in a completely new area, like 3 wheeled vehicles or something. The assloads of iPads being sold where tablets had never been sold in any sort of quantity before, and the extensive use of them for commerce, not just as "toys", is impressive. Belittle it if you wish but your Honda comparison is ridiculous. That's less than 20 months from as close to zero as you can get to 7%, with one product in a new area, especially when people laughed at it as "just a big iTouch" and dismissed it.

Some analysts didn't think the iPad would sell 1 million its first year. Want to take a guess at how many iPads have sold to date? (Hint, 13.5 million estimated sales for Q4/11 alone as a low ballpark figure) iPad was introduced in April 2010 so there's still 4 months before it's 2 years old. With the record breaking sales of the iPhone 4s, which was just a minor upgrade to the 4, I'm thinking iPad 3 will blow out more records is it had a retina display as is rumored. ~45 million and counting.

Apple is set to release Q1 earnings on January 17, 2012. Here is a preview:

Apple guided for $37 billion in revenue and $9.30 in earnings. Of course Apple's guidance is always well below actual results so we can expect a significant beat of those numbers.

The consensus estimate among analysts is in the range of $39 billion in revenue and $9.80 in earnings. These estimates are also far too low.

My estimates are for revenue of $42.74 billion and earnings of $10.83 per share. If Apple is able to hit or beat these numbers the stock should move to new all time highs and it could be the beginning of a run to $500/share. My humble advice would be to get in while the getting is good.

New numbers from a survey conducted for Morgan Stanley says that Apple could sell as many as 36 million iPhones in Q4 of 2011 and possibly as many as 190 million iPhones in 2012. The survey was conducted by AlphaWise on behalf of Morgan Stanley, and the numbers gathered in the survey came out to be quite a bit higher than most estimates.

The survey from AlphaWise pegged Apple's 2012 iPhone sales at 190 million, which is 42% higher than Morgan Stanley's original estimates of 134 million iPhones, and almost 50% higher than the street estimate of 127 million (and, at the risk of having your brains explode with numbers, that would be a crazy 3.65 million iPhones sold per week in 2012.) Across the board the numbers from the new survey were much higher than original estimates. Morgan Stanley's chief Apple analyst, Katy Huberty, was even more surprised to find that the numbers suggest that iPhone sales will be even higher in Q1 of 2012, where the survey estimates sales could hit 41 million.

Even more amazing given the widely repeated calls for the end of the tablet boom (or the iPad boom, depending on who you ask), AlphaWise found that 27% of respondents still plan to buy a tablet. The last bit of info is where it drops too far into the hypothetical world, though. Huberty estimates that Apple could boost iPad sales about 10 million units above Apple's manufacturing order if the entry-level iPad 2 were dropped to $399 and the original iPad were dropped to $99. This part is certainly possible, although a price drop from Apple usually only happens with the release of new hardware, like the iPad 3 or iPad 2+ or whatever it may be, and new hardware throws off the estimates, because then the entry-level device is no longer the 16 GB WiFi iPad 2.

Just a fad? Sales will slow at some point. My guess is in 2013 after the world ends. Apple's streak will eventually end but it's 10+ year run will remain legendary.

miir · Post by **miir** » January 1, 2012, 9:49 pm

Other than to just troll you, when has anyone here ever called idevices a fad?

Winnow · Post by **Winnow** » January 1, 2012, 11:02 pm

Yes, also google "ipad fad" and read away.

miir · Post by **miir** » January 1, 2012, 11:33 pm

Winnow wrote:Yes, also google "ipad fad" and read away.

You know you can find whatever you want to find in a google search....

The Wii is just a fad too.

Winnow · Post by **Winnow** » January 2, 2012, 12:23 am

The Wii really is a fad.

Winnow · Post by **Winnow** » January 6, 2012, 1:34 am

iPad survives 100,000 foot fall still running after fall:

http://youtu.be/X4xNcF6T7Is

Winnow · Post by **Winnow** » January 13, 2012, 9:31 pm

Bloomberg reports via Twitter that production of the next generation tablet is supposed to have started this month according to three people familiar with the situation. Rumors indicate it will have a high-density retina display, 4G LTE data radio, and a quad-core A6 processor.

The iPad is allegedly being produced by Apple's Foxconn partner. Foxconn has been producing iPhones and iPads for Apple since the introduction of the first iPhone. Factories are running 24 hours a day to keep up with the tablet's production order. Production will only stop during the during China's Lunar New Year holiday.

According to the Bloomberg's sources, the iPads pixel density will be higher than that of high definition TVs with pixels small enough to make images look like printed material. The iPad's current display resolution is 1,024 x 768 at 132ppi. According to information found in the iOS 5 SDK, the Retina display could bump that up to 1,536 x 2,048. Also Ming-Chi Kuo of Concord Securities, said the display may get FFS (fringe-field switching) technology that would give the device a wider viewing angle and clearer visual quality in sunlight.

The thickness of the next-generation iPad could be determined by its display and whether or not Apple can secure the rights to Sharp's IGZO technology. There are conflicting reports concerning Apple's ability to secure the rights to the technology. If they were unsuccessful, the new iPad might have to be thicker than its predecessor to handle the dual light bar design of LG and Samsung's high-resolution IPS display.

The updated quad-core A6 processor, and possibly updated GPU, will launch videos almost instantaneously according to Bloomberg's source.

Previously, Apple has steered clear of 4G LTE technology in the iPhone and iPad citing battery drain. Recently, chips with advanced 40nm process technology have cut battery consumption and reduced the amount of space needed by an LTE chip. Apple shouldn't be concerned about coverage with most of the major carriers scheduled to have a larger 4G presence by the end of the year.

When this news breaks from a rumor site or a newspaper in Asia with a circulation of three, we usually ignore it. But we're wondering if Bloomberg might actually have something here.

1,024 x 768 increased to 2048 x 1,536

That comes close to my 27" iMac screen (2560-by-1440) as well as 30" screen resolutions. Sounds like if this is true, the screen will be beautiful, especially if they get the wide angle tech from Sharp mentioned in the article. LTE nice but don't think I'd use it. A6 quad core chip will make it scream.

There's another article talking about an upcoming chip from Apple that will increase graphics performance 20x over the iPad 2 which is already fast.

Imagine you were the company which invented the PC, revolutionized the smartphone and created the tablet industry. What would you do to hurt your imitative competitors? According to AppleInsider, Apple [AAPL] has a nuclear option: producing mobile devices 20 times more powerful than any it has made before.

It's a fact

For once, this news isn't driven by the usual bouncing rubber-clad but insubstantial Digitimes speculation: It comes directly from Imagination Technologies, who announced its next-gen PowerVR Series6 GPU core family earlier this week. These processors could wend their way inside Apple's devices, delivering performance up to 20 times more than the current generation.

This fits well with the trajectory of Apple's Post-PC plan -- the performance difference between a mobile device and a plain old PC will continue to evaporate.

Think about the money in mobile and then consider the opportunity this represents for chip architecture developers. There's more mobile devices sold than PCs now, so the money is in chips for these things. This means we can expect faster, better performing chips in future.

The PowerVR G6200 and G6400 GPU IP cores are the first in the Power VR Series6 GPU family from Imagination Technologies. Apple already uses graphics processors from that company inside its iPad, iPhone, iPod touch and Apple TV.

Apple's current A5 processor has an 800MHz GPU inside, 73 percent faster than the A4's GPU, AppleInsider informs. And while Imagination never names Apple among it's clients, various product tear-downs and Apple's ownership of a stake in the firm confirm the link.

Based on Imagination's new PowerVR Rogue architecture, we can expect a renaissance for app development on iOS. This is because we'll be looking at stunning graphics performance on very limited power draw.

Apple has a nuclear option.

Should it choose to combine Imagination's new processor with its self-created A6 chip, then it could deliver new classes of ultra-powerful products which will simply cream the competition

I also like talk of Apple using hydrogen fuel cell batteries that last for weeks in their future products. It looks like Apple will stay ahead of the pack for awhile.

According to a patent application from Apple published by the US Patent and Trademark Office recently, the next-generation iPads, iPhones and iPods could be powered by hydrogen fuel cells.

The Cupertino-based company is not only looking to boost performance significantly, but is also looking to use more environmentally friendly alternatives to the batteries found in current devices and reduce dependence on fossil fuels, Patently Apple reveals.

Apple accepts that the task of designing devices powered by other energy sources than the traditional ones is difficult. "It is extremely challenging to design hydrogen fuel cell systems which are sufficiently portable and cost-effective to be used with portable electronic devices," the patent document explains.

The use of hydrogen fuel cells could lead to smaller, lighter batteries which may even last for weeks without requiring refueling

Aabidano · Post by **Aabidano** » January 19, 2012, 2:57 pm

I did search on Winnow+Apple, was looking for an old post where he denied being a fanboi to be douchey with and wow. Comedy gold.

Only read part of page one and the last, lol-worthy in that brief review:

Macs suck. They're still around because Apple got their claws into the school system years ago filling our schools with Apple IIs and then Macs. It's ruined our kids. They go to school, see an Apple/Mac, and think it's a real computer.

A shift from disdain to complete and total butt-snorkeling

Canelek · Post by **Canelek** » January 19, 2012, 3:15 pm

It reminds me of an episode of The League where Andre "adapts" to a girlfriend by having a bedazzled bluetooth, phone and iPad...and writing a blog, etc. Quite funny.

Winnow · Post by **Winnow** » January 19, 2012, 7:13 pm

Aabidano wrote:I did search on Winnow+Apple, was looking for an old post where he denied being a fanboi to be douchey with and wow. Comedy gold.

Only read part of page one and the last, lol-worthy in that brief review:
Macs suck. They're still around because Apple got their claws into the school system years ago filling our schools with Apple IIs and then Macs. It's ruined our kids. They go to school, see an Apple/Mac, and think it's a real computer.
A shift from disdain to complete and total butt-snorkeling

Find a post where I say I actually like Mac PCs. You'll find mega threads of me bitching about OSX.

I like the iPhone and iPad. I bought my 27" iMac primarily for the 2560-by-1440 res monitor which rocks as a second screen for movies, etc.

Is this in response to todays announcements from Apple about text books?:

(CNN) -- Apple on Thursday lifted the veil on its plans to remake the educational landscape in a way that centers on its best-selling tablet computer, the iPad.

"Education is deep in Apple's DNA and iPad may be our most exciting education product yet," Philip Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of marketing, said in a statement.

At a press conference in New York, the company announced three products that aim to get students and teachers to use the iPad's touch-screen interface to read, write, plan classes and communicate with each other.

First, a free app called iBooks Author lets anyone create a digital, interactive textbook.

In a demo at the event, an Apple employee created an e-book with the app in about five minutes, according to live blogs.

Second, an update to a piece of software called iTunes U lets teachers plan their curriculum and communicate with their students over the iPad.

The new iTunes U, which also is free and available on Thursday, will "allow anyone, anywhere, at any time to take courses for free," Schiller said, according to Fortune.com's Philip Elmer-DeWitt, who was live blogging from the event. Fortune is a partner site of CNN.com.

"If you're an educator at a university, college, or K-12 school, now you have an easy way to design and distribute complete courses featuring audio, video, books, and other content," Apple's website said Thursday. "And students and lifelong learners can experience your courses for free through a powerful new app for iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch."

Finally, a new textbook store called iBooks 2, also a free app, will feature digital e-books for schools.

Apple said it is partnering with several major textbook companies -- including Pearson, McGraw-Hill and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, who will make e-books for the store, according to Fortune.

High school textbooks start at $14.99, the company said.

In another demo, Apple's Roger Rosner showed off textbooks for the iPad that allow students to zoom in on pictures of cells, dissect digital frogs and make notes and highlights on the e-book pages.

"I don't think there's ever been a textbook that made it this easy to be a good student," Rosner said, according to Fortune.

All of these moves are part of Apple's larger strategy to remake the textbook industry. The company reportedly has been courting schools to make use of its popular tablet computer.

Canelek · Post by **Canelek** » January 19, 2012, 7:22 pm

You said "Apple sucks" before.

Of course, there is nothing wrong with changing opinions...we all do it! Of course, you kinda went far left to far right within a couple years.

Winnow · Post by **Winnow** » January 19, 2012, 7:29 pm

If you're curious, here's the review of my own iMac on VV:

Got the iMac 27

so far:

mouse sucks

-unbelievably slow even at max tracking speed, and
-the touch functions screw up and go off during normal use
-ergonomic hell

I'll have to buy a Logitech high dpi mouse for this thing

OSX sucks

-same complaints as always
-can only drag windows from bottom right corner
-all the app menus are stuck way the fuck up in the upper left corner of the screen where the slow as fuck mouse has to get to them, causing me to pick up the POS mouse (instead of slightly twitch my wrist using the G7 to get across the screen)

2560x1440 Display is stupendous

-the saving grace for this purchase
-back LED lighting makes the brightness and colors jump out.
-high pixel dpi make everything razor sharp
-no really, it's amazing and your desktop monitor doesn't have back LED lighting so you should stop by an Apple store to check it out.

which leads to....

Processor/Graphics card sucks.

-I'm very concerned about even 720p movies stuttering while playing. They couldn't possibly have actually sold a PC that has a humongous, gorgeous screen and not be able to, at minimum, push 720p and 1080p could they? COULD THEY? So far, the 720p videos I've played have stuttered. Sweet jesus, let it be some kind of fluke. I don't care about gaming but for the love of god, don't let that awesome monitor go to waste because Apple designers are a bunch of idiots, only worried about the outward appearance of their products.

-still pictures are breathtaking on it. (but man, I need video yo!)

This machine has a core duo clocked at 3GHz and a Radeon 4670? Shouldn't that be enough for HD video? Does OSX suck that much worse than Windows based PCs in performance?

Note: The poor video playback seems to be a Quicktime thing when playing inside browser window. If I go to full screen it seems to play OK.

The little mini Bluetooth keyboard is nice although I would have preferred having the number pad like my other Apple keyboard. This one's wireless though so kinda nice.

I'll play around with this thing for a week or so and pray to god that HD video will run without stuttering, and see how much I can tweak the OS to be more like Windows 7 (which blows OSX Leopard away in usability) If I can't, I'll load Windows 7 on it which should run HD video, swap out the keyboard and mouse for useful keyboard and high DPI mouse, and at least have some sort of Multimedia PC.

Apple likes to use non standard shit so instead of a common HDMI port, they include a mini DVI port that nothing can use except Mac products. I'd like to be able to at least use this thing as a monitor for Xbox 360, PS3 and even for a real power Windows PC. Some third parties are working on DVI to HDMI adapter for this so hopefully that is successful.

Audio seems OK. Can get loud and remain clear.

To Recap:

Pros:
Amazing display

Cons:
See long list above

Are you feeling the Apple love from that post? : ) Like : iPhone and iPad (the most awe-inspiring computer I've used since my original C-64)

Animalor · Post by **Animalor** » February 23, 2012, 3:51 pm

Ya know, as critical as I am about Apple's policies, they do know how to treat a customer right.

My 32gb 4th gen iPod touch started developping some wierd behaviours. The home button routinely only registered every 2nd or 3rd click and the battery indicator was yoyo ing where it would be 50-60% full and I would launch some apps and it would almost immediately drop to 20% or less.

I had bought AppleCare with this thing and after a cursory examination of the device and making sure that the water sensors hadn't been tripped, the rep at the store just replaced my 14 month old device and I was on my way.

I guess those great margins on hardware goes a long way to provide excellent customer support.