Rivals: T-Mobile G1 versus iPhone 3G

Google and T-Mobile have finally taken the wraps off the first Android-based mobile phone. The T-Mobile G1 could well have the best of it all in terms of hardware, software, applications, and network deals, but let’s take a closer look and see if it’s a worthy opponent for the iPhone 3G. Please bear in mind that this has been written just a couple of hours after the official announcement, hence not all of the G1’s specifications are yet known. I’ll update when the specs become available…

Six things that are wrong with the iPhone App Store

The App Store is a great concept, and I’ve downloaded some classy applications for the iPhone already, but there are some fundamental flaws which stop it from being brilliant. Here’s my take on the six things that are wrong about the App Store in its present form. Whether they’ll ever be “fixed” is another matter.

1. No trial / preview versions

There’s no official way to trial a piece of software before paying for it This isn’t a problem for free applications, because all you lose by downloading something you don’t like is a little time and bandwidth, but for paid-for applications it’s an issue, and the more expensive something is, the bigger the monetary risk. Of course, you take the same kind of risk if you buy a physical off-the-shelf copy of software for your PC, but the fact that the entry-level criteria for iPhone apps — price for developers to participate in Apple’s programme, and quality of applications developed — is much lower means you’re more likely to download a dud. Some developers try to get around this “problem” by releasing a free “lite” version of their software, and a more feature-rich standard version that they charge for. However, not only does this rile a number of users (as can be seen from the reviews) but it still doesn’t offer a direct trial of the software. The only way to legitimately run applications from the App Store is via iTunes, so I don’t believe it would be technically difficult to allow software to be downloaded for a trial period, then either wiped, disabled, or charged for. Each iPhone has a unique ID and each user has a unique iTunes account log in. Why not? Perhaps both Apple and developers are worried that, by giving users free trials of software, it will become apparent that a lot of the software just isn’t up to scratch. There’s an easy solution to that… Developers should write better software, and Apple should raise the entry bar. More of that later…

iPhone News: Game development course, charger recall, 8GB iPhone going?, AT&T targets users on wrong plans, home activations coming?

Latest iPhone News: Monday 22nd September 2008

Game Development Course coming to London

The digital media college Qantm is to offer an iPhone games development course starting next February. According to the college, this is in response to employment demands. In time, the course will be rolled out to its colleges in Brisbane, Melbourne, Sydney, Amsterdam, Berlin and Munich. It costs a cool £3,950. (Via Develop Mag)…

And the winner is…

After he learned how to use Final Cut Pro during his weekly One to One training sessions, Larry Newman created his very first movie. The other day, Newman picked up his first Emmy Award. His film, “Children’s Music Workshop: 2007 All Schools Honor Orchestra,” reports Filip Truta (softpedia.com) took the Emmy “in the category of Outstanding Achievement in Children/Youth and Music Programming.”

New iPod nano on Vanity Fair’s Hot List

“Apple refreshed its iPod nano line last week,” report Jessica Flint and Hamish Robertson (vanityfair.com), “introducing nine new colors in the thinnest casing to date. Somehow they’ve also squeezed in an accelerometer, allowing you to literally shake the iPod to shuffle your songs.” Try an iPod nano and “you’ll once again be telling yourself you actually do need this new iPod.”

App Store Deals

Filed under: Deals, App Store

Looking for some last second App Store deals? Here are some bargains that have been sent in by their developers.

SuperPong
Strictly speaking, SuperPong isn’t a “deal” so much as a “get it while you can”. The developer, Jazon Burnell has been C&D’d by Atari so if you want to buy SuperPong, you need to act quickly. SuperPong costs $2.99 until it is pulled from AppStore.

Fairway
Fairway, which normally retails for $10, will be selling for $4.99 for this weekend only. Check the price before you add it to the cart because it’s still showing up as $9.99 for me. Fairway is a golf management system. I suspect you’d have to know and love golf in order to appreciate this app. I am not a golfer.

Laser Battle
Laser Battle is on sale for $0.99 until Monday. It offers a light-saber battle game for one or two players.

Dictaphone and Note Pad
Dictaphone is a voice recording application from Polar Bear Farms. Note Pad provides a Notes replacement app. Both are on sale until September 26. Dictaphone will cost $0.99 (normally $1.99) and Note Pad $1.99 (normally $2.99) until that time.

Earthscape
Normally $4.99, Earthscape is free for a limited time. It provides a virtual globe application that allows you to “explore the Earth in 3D.”

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Speed Racer DVD Digital Copy not iTunes-friendly

Filed under: Odds and ends, iTunes

Sam, an avid TUAW reader, emailed us about a recent DVD purchase he made. You may ask, “what’s so special about that?” Well, he bought a copy of Speed Racer that was supposed to contain an iTunes Digital Copy.

As you can see in the pictures he emailed us, the outside of the DVD box says it is PC/Mac compatible and works with iTunes. When he got home and opened it up, however, inside the box it says that it is “Not compatible with Apple Macintosh or iPod devices.” He even tried it to see if it would work, but alas it didn’t. Be sure to take a look at the pictures in the second half of the post, and you can get an eyeful of this strange decision that Warner Bros. made.

Do you think Sam should be able to get a refund for this mistake? We certainly do! Has this happened to you? Be sure to sound off in the comments!

Thanks for the tip and pictures, Sam!

Continue reading Speed Racer DVD Digital Copy not iTunes-friendly

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Jabra BT2070 Bluetooth Headset for iPhone 3G, iPhone

The Jabra BT2070 offers edgy hands-free design for people whowant something out-of-the ordinary. This unique headset has anintriguing design that centers around an illuminating yellow circlethat lights up for incoming calls.

“Apple’s App Store is a Winner”

Though he admits to once being “an App Store skeptic,” Cliff Edwards (businessweek.com) now heaps praise on the App Store, awarding it 4.5 stars (out of five). “After trying out Apple’s App Store for the past few weeks, I can say categorically that Apple has hit another home run. The App Store has truly unshackled the high-end cell phone.”

iPhone Application Watch: Pocket Pirate, Mobile BC, Bugdom 2, Line Rider, Beavers!, Cybersaurus 3D, EveryTrail, Revolver, Private-I

Pocket Pirate

Launched to promote Cravendale Milk, and coinciding with Talk Like A Pirate Day today, Pocket Pirate puts eight buttons on your iPhone’s screen, which when pressed speak a different pirate-y phrase. It’s free, and there’s a web application too.

Mobile BC

BlogCatalog has launched Mobile BC, a web-based application designed specifically for the iPhone. It allows access to the BlogCatalog social network, plus the likes of Delicious, Digg, Facebook, Flickr, Last.fm, Multiply, MySpace, Sphinn, StumbleUpon, Twitter, and YouTube. “Any network we add to the dashboard can be added to the mobile application so bloggers can keep up with discussions, groups, communities, and other social networks on their iPod Touch or iPhone,” says Antony Berkman, president of BlogCatalog.com. “So rather than signing onto several networks, bloggers can leverage Mobile BC as their primary source, scan multiple networks, and then easily connect to other networks as needed.”…

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