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Apple News is a News and downloads site for the
Apple Iphone, iTouch and Ipod, We have all the latest emulators, homebrew and all the downloads on this site,
we also cover commercial gaming and console news. Part of the
DCEmu Homebrew & Gaming Network.
If you've been gaming as long as we have, you know that Columns is one of Sega's great puzzle games. Like most puzzle games, the object is simply to line up four same-colored gems -- horizontally, vertically or diagonally -- and watch them explode. Whether you're familiar with the game or not, we've got some good news: Sega is giving away the iPhone version of Columns for free in celebration of USA's Independence Day. The app will be free starting midnight, Friday, July 3, all the way through Monday, July 6. Sega didn't specify a timezone, so we suggest you avoid downloading it if the price reads anything other than free.
Granted, Columns Deluxe -- which includes ports of Columns and Puyo Pop -- is only $1.99 normally. It hasn't received terrific reviews either. But hey, it's hard to argue with free.
Seriously folks, what's up with these prototype iPhones falling out of nondescript white vans and ending up on eBay in the shadiest of manners? Just months after we saw an original iPhone prototype (ancient OS included) pop up on The 'Bay, now we've got one of the world's first iPhone 3GSs on there as well. According to the highly ranked eBay seller, the "guy" he "got it from" actually stumbled upon it at an airport, and rather than doing the nonsensical thing of hitting up lost and found, he decided to make the most of the sudden opportunity. According to the new owner, an Apple Genius has confirmed that it is an iPhone 3GS, but due to its prototype nature, they can't help him get past the "Connect to iTunes" screen. In other words, it's an incredibly rare brick. If that sounds like just the thing to complete your collection, you can visit the road to overpaying through the read link below.
Apple has pulled BeautyMeter—the iPhone/iPod touch app that allowed users to upload naked pictures of themselves for others to rate—after a 15-yo girl published this picture showing her bare breasts and pubic hair.
Charlie Sorrel at Wired argues correctly that Apple will be damned with 17+ apps no matter what:
The problems for Apple are clear. By setting itself up as a guardian of the store, Apple can't win. Any time a controversial application is approved, or non-allowed elements are snuck into an application post-approval, Apple is blamed. If these apps are pulled ahead of time, Apple is called out as an evil censor.
However, that doesn't mean Apple should ban the 17+ app sex-related category to avoid conflicts. There are plenty of adult-oriented applications that won't allow for this kind of dynamic content. But then again, the fact is that any application that allows you to upload pictures and share them could be used to do exactly the same. So where should Apple stop, then? Should they ban any app that can be used to publish pictures or videos? Shouldn't the developers—and the users—be responsible about this and not Apple.
The problem for Apple is probably not a legal one, but one of public perception, with people and mainstream assuming that—just because it runs on the iPhone—it is Apple's app. I'm afraid that, if they want to keep the market fully open, they would have to find the public image battle instead of just pulling the applications that allow for this kind of behavior.
Here's what Facebook for iPhone 3.0 looks like—pretty nice. Besides the new giant button home screen, you'll be able to actually RSVP to events and create new photo albums. No push yet
Apple's on-again, off-again deal with China Unicom to officially bring the iPhone to China may still be up in the air, but it looks like it could now also be facing some trademark issues that could potentially further hold up its release. Apparently, China's Hanwang Technology owns the trademark for "i-phone" in the country, which could force Apple to make a deal with 'em before it enters the market (sound familiar?). Interestingly, Apple does actually own an "iPhone" trademark in China, but it apparently only covers computer hardware and software, while Hanwang's trademark covers mobile phones. According to Hanwang, however, the two aren't actually in talks just yet, and it's not saying what it plans to do if Apple decides to go crazy and announce a move into China without its blessing.
Be warned, this is beta stuff and we haven't been able to test it ourselves. However, a number of breathless tipsers and commenters are reporting a successful jailbreak and unlock of their iPhone 3GS. The magic begins with a 3GS jailbreak released by GeoHot. See, George is fed up with the Dev-Team's insistence on waiting until Apple releases iPhone OS version 3.1. As he puts it:
Normally I don't make tools for the general public, and rather wait for the dev team to do it. But guys, whats up with waiting until 3.1? That isn't how the game is played. We release, Apple fixes, we find new holes. It isn't worth waiting because you might have the "last" hole in the iPhone. What last hole...this isn't golf. I'll find a new one next week.
Meeeeow. After performing the jailbreak, ultrasn0w should then take care of the unlock although we haven't seen official comment on this by GeoHot or the Dev-Team yet. Good luck, backup, and kiss the children goodbye -- it could be a long weekend if you brick your new iPhone. Now hit the read link if you must.
Electronics packaging has been growing steadily smaller and less annoying over recent times, but here comes Apple adding complexity where we didn't know it was needed. The bright sparks at Cupertino envision powered, data-transmitting boxes that will ensure the device within is fully juiced, packing the latest firmware, and capable of pumping out video demos so that the packaging needn't get in the way of wooing customers. Sure, up-to-date firmware and a full battery sound nice, but we can't help but wonder about the price premium we'd have to swallow to be able to see our new toy dancing before we've even set it free from its box.
As anyone who follows me on Twitter will know, Paper Toss has been a source of mixed emotions for me in recent days. It’s provided joy, in that I’ve discovered it, loved it and basked in its zero cost glory. But by the same token, the inability to put it down has been a genuine cause of domestic strife.
Paper Toss is nothing more than a basic velocity game, requiring players to ‘flick’ paper balls into a bin. The complicating factor comes from a desk fan, the position and strength of which varies from try to try.
Players must adjust the trajectory of their toss according to the side and strength of the fan each go. Its power is represented by a number between 0.01 and 6.49. This isn’t a problem when there’s little power, but as soon as the speed ramps up, predicting the correct arc of the flick becomes a very delicate affair.
Easy mode is fairly simply to master, but venture onto Medium or even, god forbid, Hard mode and the challenge increases considerably. On the toughest setting even the most subtle changes in wind power require incredibly precise adjustments to conquer.
Paper Toss is one of those games that really comes into its own when you’re in the zone. Some days it just doesn’t click, and you find yourself missing fairly simple throws. Get your brain into gear though and start chaining dozens of successful throws together, though, and the addiction factor cranks up considerably.
This is ‘one more go’ factor heaven, and the ability to upload high scores to leaderboards just adds an extra layer of crack-like addictiveness to an already awesome package.
But the thing that elevates Paper Toss into the realms of brilliance is the fact that’s absolutely free. The number of quality 59p, £1.19 and £1.99 titles available on the App Store already makes many £39.99 console titles hang their head in shame, but the fact that something as good as Paper Toss is available for nothing at all asks serious questions of current retail models.
And the reason it’s free? There’s a link to download £1.19 app Ragdoll Blaster (which is alright) on the game’s main scream.
Developer Backflip Studios has stated its intention to start charging for the game soon, and whilst it almost seems wrong to deprive it of some well-deserved revenue, you’d be foolish not to download this before it does.
Pwn2Own winner Charlie Miller has revealed an SMS vulnerability that could provide hackers with root access to the iPhone. Malicious code sent by SMS to run on the phone could include commands to monitor location using GPS, turn on the phone's microphone to eavesdrop on conversations, or make the phone join a DDoS attack or botnet, Miller said. Miller did not provide detailed description of the SMS vulnerability, citing an agreement with Apple, which is working to fix the vulnerability in advance of Black Hat, where Miller plans to discuss the attack in greater detail. 'SMS is a great vector to attack the iPhone,' Miller said, as SMS can send binary code that the iPhone processes without user interaction. Sequences can be sent to the phone as multiple messages that are automatically reassembled, thereby surpassing individual SMS message limits of 140 bytes.
Think about Wikipedia, what some consider the most complete general survey of human knowledge we have at the moment. Now imagine squeezing it down to fit comfortably on an 8GB iPhone. Sound daunting? Well, that's just what Patrick Collison's Encyclopedia iPhone application does. App Store purchasers of Collison's open source application can browse and search the full text of Wikipedia when stuck in a plane, or trapped in the middle of nowhere (or, as defined by AT&T coverage...)"
Vendor offers advice for keeping its latest devices cool
Since the release of the iPhone 3GS numerous reports of overheating have sprung up across the internet.
Although Apple is yet to acknowledge the reports as accurate, it has created a webpage that advises users on how to keep the device cool.
The site advises users to operate the iPhone in temperatures between zero and 35 degrees centigrade, while the device should be stored in temperatures ranging from -20 to 45 degrees.
It also points out the range of industry safety standards that the device meets.
A sequel to Rolando, one of the big software successes that helped establish the iPhone as a serious gaming platform, has finally arrived on Apple’s App Store digital distribution portal.
Rolando 2: Quest for the Golden Orchid boasts the same striking visuals as its predecessor (and Sony’s LocoRoco, for that matter) courtesy of pop illustrator Mikko Walamies and includes a score from break-beat artist Mr. Scruff. 46 levels are included, as is support for Ngmoco’s Plus+ network.
“Ngmoco is excited about this amazing sequel to Rolando,” Ngmoco’s founder and CEO Neil Young stated.
“It's bigger, bolder and more beautiful than ever with huge additions to Rolando’s signature gameplay that fans and newcomers alike are going to love.
“Developed exclusively for the iPhone and iPod touch, Rolando 2 is a classic example of just how deep, polished and meaningful pocket-sized games can be when they embrace the unique capabilities of these powerful devices.”
Earlier in the week Ngmoco bowed to fan pressure and reinstated the original Rolando to the App Store having previously withdrawn it to promote the then pending sequel.
The firm recently acquired the services of former Sega of America president Simon Jeffery to head up its new publishing arm. Rolando 2 is available to download right now for £5.99 (or $9.99 in the US).
Sakhr Software, a company known for it's expertise in English to Arabic (and vice-versa) speech translation is all set to release an iPhone app!
This upcoming application, developed by Sakhr Mobile and Dial Directions (a company acquired by Sakhr Mobile sometime back) offers really freaky neat speech translation from English to Arabic (and vice-versa), unlike many services which are a total mess even for the text translation - Google do you hear that? It scans the Arabic words and then simply translates them. Small phrases like "The prime minister will form a new government" (holy crap) can be pretty easily translated.
The app obviously has great use for the government but it can help the end consumer to a real great extent as well! In fact, Sakhr has already been providing this service to U.S. Department of Defense, U.S.
Zynga's online title Mafia Wars is being played by over four million users every day, claims the company.
The game is playable over Facebook, Tagged, Yahoo and Myspace, and has most recently been ported to the iPhone as a free App.
"Mafia Wars is on its way to becoming a cult classic," commented Bill Mooney, executive producer of MMO Studios at Zynga.
According to Zynga, use of the game has doubled in the past three months. Zynga has 12 million daily users across its games, which include Vampires Bloodlust, Pirates and FarmVille.
To celebrate the milestone and one year of live play, Zynga is now offering a new destination in-game to users, along with new items and upgrades.
"We have the most dedicated and loyal players who have made the game a hit and we want to thank them by extending the game in a dynamic destination that makes the game unique and challenging," added Mooney.
On many levels the recent iPhone 3GS was a modest upgrade from the existing 3G model, but a tech demo from Flight Control developer Firemint has proven just how much additional grunt is offered by the device’s beefed up innards.
A post on the Firemint blog explained: “Real Racing has up to six cars on the track at any one time. Since the game uses a high fidelity physics engine, adding cars is a good test for pushing the hardware.
“We started our tech demo with eight cars on the track, then 10, 12, 16 and 20, and the 3GS still didn't break a sweat. We finally stopped when we got to 40 cars on the track at the same time, still with no perceptible drop in frame rate.
“We think the results are mind blowing.”
There aren’t currently any plans to bring an enhanced 3GS version of the critically acclaimed 3D racing title to the 3GS, but with some developers hinting at such a move in the future, don’t rule it out.
Unwired View uncovered three new iPhone patents that promise to turn everything from calling grandma on her birthday to turning off your phone in a movie theater into gloriously mindless activities
Some people in the video game industry predict the mobile games business could eventually grow to topple the handheld gaming market, Wedbush Morgan disagrees. In its July industry report, analyst Michael Pachter estimates the mobile games industry is currently closer to $2 billion and, even with expected growth, the market may only expand to $4-6 billion in the next three to five years.
In a section titled "Mobile Phone Games are a Fad," Pachter explains that, while 1 billion iPhone applications have been downloaded across 31 million Apple products sold, "it is not evident that more than 20% of these downloads are games." Suggesting the iTunes App Store has generated "under $400 million in game downloads" in its first year. Pachter does predict the mobile game industry will grow at 25% per year for a few years, but will eventually fall as competing devices enter the market.
The report also calls Electronic Arts' emphasis on mobile games "misplaced." EA Mobile has grown steadily over the last few years, but the report estimates the mobile games division is -- along with that of competitors Gameloft and GLU Mobile -- "barely profitable."
According to the report, finger pointing in Apple's camp should directed toward the "open forum" structure of the store and Apple's business model. Apple runs the game download service for an estimated 30% fee, leaving 70% to the game's publisher, the report claims. The section on mobile games goes on to conclude that handheld systems, like the new PSP Go, will "maintain its niche, without significant cannibalization" from the mobile games industry.