iOS and OS X Come Ever Closer As Apple Announces “Mountain Lion”

Just over 6 months after the current release of OS X was released, codenamed “Lion”, Apple is already teasing us about the next major update to its default operating system, Mountain Lion. The preview of OS X 10.8 was released today to registered developers with Apple, with summer touted as the general release date to the public.

The preview page for OS X Mountain Lion on Apple's website

It seems like this release of OS X is trying to bridge the gap between Apple’s Mac range of computers and their line of iOS devices, such as the iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch. New features for Mountain Lion include a Notification Centre, Reminders, full native Twitter integration and iMessage (all of which came along in the last overhaul of iOS).
Let’s have a quick peek at what we can expect come summer.

Notification Center

OS X Mountain Lion will feature a notification centre similar to the one currently found on devices running iOS 5, however instead of swiping to bring it down, it will appear on the right-hand side of your screen. You will be able to choose exactly which notifications you want and the Notifications Centre will be available from any app, including full-screen ones (you simply have to swipe to the right to reveal them).

The brand new Notifications Centre in OS X Mountain Lion

Although OS X has a pretty decent notifications system already in the form of Growl, it seems like native notifications will help you keep up to date with what’s happening across all your programs, ensuring you don’t miss out on anything.

Messages

iMessage is a free and easy way of keeping in touch with all your friends who have got an iOS device – and now it’s heading over to OS X. Touted as “Apple’s BBM”, it uses either your phone number (if you’ve got an iPhone) or your e-mail address (if you’ve got an iPad or iPod touch) to allow you to send chat messages and pictures.

iMessage is now coming to Mac OS X

As with iMessage on iOS devices, the program syncs all your chats, so you can leave a conversation on your Mac and carry it on on your iPhone, meaning that you don’t miss out on anything.
If you can’t wait for Mountain Lion to be released, then you can download Messages Beta from Apple’s website, which will replace iChat already installed on your Mac. Messages also works with AIM, Yahoo Messenger, Google Talk and Jabber accounts and also integrates FaceTime directly from the app.

Native Twitter Integration

Like iOS 5, Mountain Lion will feature native Twitter integration from apps such as Safari, and will allow you to tweet links, photos and comments directly from any supported app. You’ll also get instant push notifications if someone mentions you in a tweet or sends you a direct message, something which is missing from the default Twitter app for Mac.

Native Twitter integration in Mountain Lion

iCloud

The new release of OS X also integrates very tightly with iCloud, which was released along with iOS 5 last October. With native iCloud support, you can rest assured that your documents, photos, contacts and e-mails are synced across all your iOS devices. So, if you’re editing a document in Pages on your iPad on the way home from work then it will be ready and waiting for you on your Mac when you get back.

iCloud on Mountain Lion will ensure that all of your devices are in perfect sync at any time

Excited?

Although no concrete release date has been announced as of yet, we can expect Mountain Lion to be released sometime this summer (maybe to tie in with that MacBook overhaul and the iPhone 5 launch) as a paid update via the App Store. And with a whole new range of features expected in this release, along with the chatter of the iPad 3, iPhone 5 and iTV, it seems like 2012 is going to be Apple’s strongest year yet.
Please do let us know what you think about this announcement via the comments section below. Are you excited? Or do you think that Apple is just trying too hard to integrate iOS and OS X? Should they keep them two completely separate operating systems? Share your thoughts below!


(Via Mac.AppStorm.)

Fender Custom Shop Introduces 2012 Bass Models

Fender’s Custom Shop has announced two new bass models for 2012, including the 2012 Closet Classic Precision Bass Pro and the 1961 Closet Classic Jazz Bass. Both models are built in the U.S. by Fender’s master builders.

According to Fender, the Closet Classic Precision Bass Pro combines “the best of the Precision and Jazz Bass models,” which can be partly attributed to its inclusion of a P/J pickup system.

The J-bass bridge pickup is situated in the ’70s rear position. Sporting an Olympic White finish with their Closet Classic Wear treatment, the bass is built with a body of hand selected alder and a quartersawn maple neck featuring a 1960 “U” back shape. The fretboard is bound rosewood with block inlays. Hardware includes vintage reverse machine heads and a Badass bridge.

Fender Closet Classic Precision Bass Pro Specs:

• Body: Hand Selected Premium Alder
• Finish: Nitrocellulose Lacquer
• Neck: Quartersawn Maple with a 1960 “U” Back Shape
• Fretboard: Bound Rosewood (10” Radius) with Block Inlays
• Frets: Medium Jumbo
• Hardware: Vintage Reverse Machine Heads
• Bridge: Badass
• Pickups: P/J with Jazz Bass Pickup in the ’70s Rear Position
• Wiring: Vintage Jazz Bass
• Controls: Volume/Volume/Tone
• Accessories: Case, Certificate
• Color: Olympic White

Though the Jazz Bass was first introduced in 1960, the new Custom Shop Jazz pays tribute to its second year in existence.

Similar to the Closet Classic Precision Pro, the 1961 Closet Classic Jazz features an alder body and a quartersawn maple neck with the 1960 “U” back shape, but the fretboard is Dark Indian rosewood with a radius of 7.25”.

The vintage-styled Jazz Bass pickups are coupled with a pair of stacked concentric control knobs, wired volume/volume/tone/tone.

Fender 1961 Closet Classic Jazz Specs:

• Body: Hand Selected Premium Alder
• Finish: Nitrocellulose Lacquer
• Neck: Quartersawn Maple with a 1960 “U” Back Shape
• Fretboard: Dark Indian Rosewood (7.25” Radius)
• Frets: Vintage
• Hardware: Vintage Reverse Machine Heads
• Bridge: Vintage Jazz Bass
• Pickups: Vintage ’60s Jazz Bass
• Wiring: Vintage Jazz Bass with Stacked Pots
• Controls: Volume/Volume/Tone/Tone
• Accessories: Case, Certificate
• Color: Black, Arctic White

The Fender Custom Shop 2012 Closet Classic Precision Bass Pro and the 1961 Closet Classic Jazz Bass are listed with MSRPs of $4,450 and $4,200, respectively. For more info, visit theFender Custom Shop website.

via notreble

Create stop-motion, time-lapse movies for free with Stop Motion Cafe for iPhone

Stop Motion Cafe is a new FREE app that is described as a "simple, powerful STOP-MOTION and TIME-LAPSE application."

Stop Motion Cafe lets you capture sequences of images and create a movie, and features…

(Via The iPhoneography Blog.)

Applications Icon

Applications icon |512x512|

 

(Via Newest OS Icons.)

Creepy Steve Jobs Doll Nixed by Apple Lawyers

 

The many possibilities of In Icons' Steve Jobs action figure. Image: Jesus Diaz/Gizmodo

 

You just knew a boatload of bootleg Steve Jobs merch would start flooding in after his passing last year. Like street vendors outside of the World Series, online retailers started producing T-shirts, books and other various and sundry items. But after a Chinese manufacturer unveiled a miniature Steve Jobs prototype doll, Apple’s legal team pounced.

Apple’s lawyers sent a letter to the Chinese company stipulating that “any toy that resembles the technology company’s logo, person’s name, appearance or likeness of its products is a criminal offense,” according to a report from The Daily Telegraph.

In California, personality rights (California Civil Code Section 3344), which address the use of a person’s name, likeness, voice, or signature without their prior consent, last through the entirety of a person’s life, and for 70 years after their death.

The offending company in question, In Icons, quickly gained media attention earlier this week after debuting the 12-inch figurine on New Year’s Day. The doll comes clad in Jobs’ signature uniform and a few accessories: Two pairs of glasses, a black turtleneck and blue jeans, New Balance trainers and a pair of apples (one bitten, of course). Shamelessly, it even includes a “One More Thing” keynote backdrop.

Buzz about the incredibly detailed, borderline creepy $100 doll quickly spread, and caught the attention of Apple’s legal team.

This isn’t the first Jobsian Barbie to get slapped with a C&D. In November of 2010, Apple requested M.I.C. Gadgets cease marketing and selling an iPhone-wielding $80 Steve Jobs doll.

Let this be a lesson to future bootleggers: If you’re going to make any sort of unauthorized Apple paraphernalia, keep it on the down-low, or your venture may be incredibly short-lived.

via MacRumors

(Via Gadget Lab.)

iPhone 4S users consume nearly twice as much data as iPhone 4 - study

A wireless industry study has found that iPhone 4S owners on average use roughly twice as much data as iPhone 4 owners and three times as much as iPhone 3G users.

Telecom network technology firm Arieso cited the Siri virtual assistant feature as contributing to the increase, according to Reuters. The study used Apple's three-year-old iPhone 3G model as a benchmark.

The firm discovered that data usage of the iPhone 4 was 1.6 times higher than the iPhone 3G, while iPad 2 tablets consumed 2.5 times more data. The iPhone 4S was the heaviest on usage with three times the amount used by the iPhone 3G.

"I use the iPhone 4 myself and when I first heard of the iPhone 4S features I was not compelled to rush out and get one. However, the data usage numbers I am seeing make me wonder what I am missing," Arieso's chief technology officer, Michael Flanagan, said of the study.

Flanagan also noted that tablet usage closely resembled that of high-end smartphones. "A tablet still looks like a big smartphone," he said.

According to Bloomberg, Arieso's research found that one percent of the high-use subscribers consumed half of the data volumes. “The hungry are getting hungrier,” Flanagan said.

An earlier inquiry into Siri's data usage discovered that the service consumes about 63KB per query. As such, using the feature 10 to 15 times a day would take up 18.5 to 27.7MB per month.

Siri is still in beta mode, with limited functionality outside of the U.S. Apple is, however planning a rapid international expansion for Siri this year. The company is actively hiring iOS software engineers to help develop the Application Programming Interface for Siri and port the feature to other languages.

AppleInsider tested the iPhone 4S on the AT&T, Sprint and Verizon networks shortly after its release. Extended tests showed that AT&T was generally faster than its rivals, while Verizon had broader coverage. Meanwhile, Sprint struggled with often unusable data service.

The rise in iPhone data consumption comes as Sprint is the only U.S. network to offer an unlimited data plan. CEO Dan Hesse was thought to have made comments this week undermining the carrier's unlimited offer, but it later turned out that he was referring to abusive data practices when roaming.

The iPhone has actually brought about broad changes in the wireless industry. AT&T, Apple's original carrier partner in the U.S., was initially surprised by the amount of data users consumed. The carrier was left scrambling to keep up with demand from Apple's customers, with one report from 2009 comparing the iPhone to a Hummer.

Apple waited until the second-generation iPhone to add 3G data services, allowing AT&T time to steadily improve its 3G network. The iPhone maker has also opted to wait for 4G LTE to become more mature. CEO Tim Cook said the first generation of LTE chipsets required "design compromises" that Apple was unwilling to make. Reports have suggested that Apple may release LTE iPad and iPhone models starting this year.

Verizon got a head start on AT&T when it rolled out its LTE network in December 2010. But, AT&T has been steadily making progress, announcing on Thursday that it had expanded its LTE network to 11 new cities for a total of 26 markets.

(Via AppleInsider.)

iOS 5.1 hides references to quad-core chips

lA delve into the iOS 5.1 beta has supported beliefs that the A6 chip will have four cores. Its processor management software was seen by 9to5 as referencing "core.0" through "core.3," a giveaway that it has to control quad-core hardware. iOS 5.0 only stops at "core.1" and hints Apple is at least using iOS 5.1 as a testbed for quad-core devices, if not as the initially shipping version....

(Via MacNN | The Macintosh News Network.)

iPad survives fall from the edge of space thanks to its G-Form case

An iPad has survived a massive 100,000 foot fall in the latest publicity stunt for case manufacturer G-Form. The iPad was solely clad in a G-Form 6oz Extreme Edge case and taken into space on a weather balloon.

The company released a stunning hi-def video Thursday where the nearly naked iPad is shown hanging above the Earth in the blackness of space. In the video, the iPad is lifted to over 100,000 feet by a weather balloon which bursts at altitude, then releasing the iPad to free-fall to Earth where it crash lands on a rocky hillside in the Nevada countryside. Perhaps even more remarkable than the dramatic hi-def footage itself is the fact that the iPad survives the adventure, remaining fully functional.

The video is really impressive on its own, without taking into account the magnitude of the fall or the fact that it is an iPad. It’s not something I would be willing to try with my iPad 2 but it is definitely a great way to show some faith in your cases!

Source: YouTube

(Via TiPb - The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch blog.)

Price Drop: iPod Alternatives for iOS

 

Yes, yes, we know the latest iOS splits up the iPod into Music and Video apps, but it'll always be the iPod to us! Of course, even though we have a default app for it, a few developers stepped up to create some iPod alternative apps for taming that wild beast of a music collection of yours. Here's a handful we found that are going for a cut rate. Grab 'em all and see which suits your fancy as today's apps are going for free.

iMusic -- The Perfect Music Player

We can't vouch for the claims of the name, but developer Akhil Tolani must feel pretty confident he's got your go-to iPod replacement. Save yourself a buck with this currently free app that lets you SMS, tweet, or notify your Facebook friends what you're listening to, in-app song lyrics, fade in/fade out, and custom playlists. You can even use your music as your alarm clock.

Audium

Mic Pringle made a beautiful and simple music player with Audium which is also swinging down one whole buck to free. Scrobble with last.fm is just one of the killer features in this stripped down app. The biggie is, of course, that Audium is entirely gresture driven. So you'll swipe to scroll through your music, double tap for playback or pause, and swipe to navigate through tracks. You'll wonder why you didn't think of it yourself.

Lasy Player

Another freebie, the strangely spelled Lasy Player from Agility Concepts boasts skins and quick access to your music library. Also you'll find that they've also pursued the route of simplicity by putting big old controls right up front. A song list below lets you flip through your tracks. The one screen route makes jumping into music faster than you can say, uhhh, is this free?

 

(Via Mac|Life - All Articles.)

Blue launching a range of high quality digital iPhone and iPad microphones

Well respected microphone manufacturer Blue is launching a new range of microphones aimed squarely at users of the iPhone, iPad or iPod touch. Two new models will be on display at CES 2012 which starts next week.

• Spark Digital: The world’s first studio-grade condenser microphone to offer both USB and iPad connectivity, featuring Focus Control, adjustable desk stand, built-in shockmount, and y-cables with an attached, extended female headphone jack for each platform.
• Mikey Digital: The perfect tool for mobile recording with iOS devices features two custom-tuned Blue capsules for stereo recording, a line-input, USB pass through and a stylish 230-degree rotating design.

The idea of connecting a studio-grade microphone to your iPad will be highly appealing to podcasters or anyone involved in movie making or recording on their iOS devices. The Spark Digital will cost around $199 while the Mikey Digital will set you back $99. Both are slated for release soon.

 

Source: Blue

 

(Via TiPb - The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch blog.)