Hasta La Gadget!

Consider the rumors quelled. Despite whispers that Apple would be starting up the Mac App Store in the final year of this decade (or the first of the next, depending on perspective), the Cupertino giant has just affirmed that it’ll be 2011 before the general populace gets to dig their hands into it. January 6th is the opening date for the Mac App Store, and unfortunately for those still humming along on OS X 10.5, it’ll be a Snow Leopard-only affair. Smack dab in the middle of CES, Apple plans to unleash the store in 90 countries, and it’ll feature “paid and free apps in categories like Education, Games, Graphics & Design, Lifestyle, Productivity and Utilities.” Naturally, it’ll be a free update, and it’ll work more or less exactly like the App Store does on your iPhone, iPod touch and iPad. As with those outlets, developers are able to set their own prices and then keep 70 percent of the revenue (provided it’s a paid app). So, who’s ready to blow a little Santa cash to ring in the new year?

Continue reading Apple Mac App Store: open for business starting January 6th

Apple Mac App Store: open for business starting January 6th originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 16 Dec 2010 08:42:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Want one of those fancy, prehensile Gorillapod tripods but don’t have the cash to buy them? Well, we have good news. Good news, that it, if you have a rather well equipped tool-kit, containing some specialist items that cost more than the Gorillapod itself.

The guide comes from the ever-useful Instructables and user Matth3w. The project uses Loc-Line modular hose sections, bolts and – in this case – a block of mahogany. Loc-Line hoses are designed to carry liquid, and to lock into place so you can, say, get water onto a drilling operation without holding a hose. They also work a lot like the sections of a Gorillapod leg.

The tripod is made by drilling three holes into the wooden block. These are then tapped to give them threads, and then some Loc-Line adapters are screwed in. The Loc-Line segments attach to these (using special pliers which themselves cost $10). A standard tripod-mount sized bolt is fixed to the top to attach the camera.

The home-made Gorillapod looks sturdy enough, but it is also rather ugly and, worse, bulky. One of the real Gorillapod’s attractions is its portability. Add in the cost of tools and parts and you may as well just head to Amazon and buy a proper Gorillapod.

Gorilla Pod [Instructables]

See Also:

• How-To: Gorillapod Doubles as Awesome iPad Stand
• Gorillapod Video Grows an Extra Ball
• Gorillapod-Inspired Tripod Looks Like Robot Skeleton

We told you that this would likely go on forever. Nokia just announced that the company has filed claims in the UK, Germany, and The Netherlands alleging that Apple’s iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad are infringing upon Nokia’s patents. This adds 13 more patents to the 24 already asserted in the ITC and US federal claims. Here’s a particularly snippy remark made Paul Melin, vice president, Intellectual Property at Nokia:

“The Nokia inventions protected by these patents include several which enable compelling user experiences. For example, using a wiping gesture on a touch screen to navigate content, or enabling access to constantly changing services with an on-device app store, both filed more than ten years before the launch of the iPhone.”

The new Nokia patent claims are wide ranging covering user interface, on-device app stores, antenna structures, signal noise suppression, messaging functionality, chipsets, caller ID, display illumination, integration of multiple radios, and data card functionality. Click through for the full press release.

Continue reading Nokia ups the ante on Apple, adds 13 more patents to the 24 already asserted

Nokia ups the ante on Apple, adds 13 more patents to the 24 already asserted originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 16 Dec 2010 08:12:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The definition of what is a computer is in flux thanks to lots of new devices that do a lot of the same things. But is now the time to add tablets to the PC time line? Not yet. Here’s why.

Originally posted at Circuit Breaker

Flipboard, the iPad app that turns Twitter and Facebook into a personalized magazine, has just gotten a huge update. Earlier today, our own Brian X Chen profiled the app and its creators, and briefly mentioned the main new additions: support for Google Reader and Flickr. These have turned an already compelling app into possibly the best way to browse all your online sources.

You add the new sections just like any other, only you need to log in to these accounts the first time. Google Reader’s content initially appears rather useless, a seemingly random pick of your unread RSS news items presented in no particular order.

But tap the title and you can browse by sections which correspond to the folders set in Reader. You can all drill down into starred items, and into individual feeds. Post you read are marked as read, and you can post articles to Twitter, Facebook and Google Reader itself. And of course, all this takes place in the lovely Flipboard interface.

Flickr is even better. Again you see a selection of the latest photos from your contacts, and you just tap and swipe to browse or view bigger. Once you’re browsing, you can favorite a picture, share it or tap on your contact’s avatar picture and choose to view more of their images. You can even choose to hide photos from a contact in case you have a few more risque subscriptions you don’t want to be seen.

The other sections have also been updated. Facebook and Twitter can now be further explored by narrowing down to your Facebook groups, your own Twitter feed, Tweets mentioning you, your favorites and more. You can also split any of these subsections off into a full section, available from Flipboard’s front page.

There are many other tweak which you’ll find as you play (and I guarantee you’ll waste a good half hour playing as soon as you you get the update). One, though, makes as big a difference as all the others put together. Flipboard finally supports fast-app-switching. Now, if you leave to, say, change a track in the iPod app, you will come back where you left off. Previously you had to start over, a huge pain.

Flipboard, as ever, is free. Go get it.

Flipboard [iTunes]

See Also:

• How Flipboard Turned Web Noise Into iPad Gold
• Hands-On: Flipboard Turns Your iPad into a Personalized Magazine …