Hasta La Gadget!

Think you’ll be heading to the Android Market to get your next fix of Rovio Mobile’s insanely popular Angry Birds? Think again. The next installment in the aviary vengeance saga, Angry Birds Rio, will launch exclusively on Amazon’s upcoming Appstore for Android. That does sound like it will eventually achieve universal distribution via the Market, but in the interim Amazon has scored a pretty big scoop in its efforts to attract users to its own app repository. We’re also promised the Appstore is launching “very soon” and Amazon has just inaugurated an @amazonappstore account on Twitter to keep us abreast of when precisely that will happen.

Continue reading Angry Birds Rio will be exclusive to Amazon Appstore on Android launch

Angry Birds Rio will be exclusive to Amazon Appstore on Android launch originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 14 Mar 2011 11:19:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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When you think about it, an iPhone-based rig that lets anyone carry a decent vocal effects rig around in their pocket sounds like a recipe for disaster. Just look at that gentleman in the promotional image above, for example: for all we know, he sounds like one of the week one American Idol rejects — but thanks to the miracles of modern technology and around $80 in spending cash, he fancies himself the next Clay Aiken. Ah, well, no use trying to stop this train. A new $20 app called VocaLive (there’s also a free version available) from IK Multimedia includes 12 real-time effects that can be chained up to three at a time, along with a recorder that can run up to four tracks for an extra fee. You can use the iPhone’s built-in mic or a handsfree if you like — but for “best” results, you can pre-order the company’s $59.99 iRig Mic that was announced back in January, which plugs into the phone’s headset jack and features a second connector for real-time monitoring. Either way, your friends and family are sure to quickly regret it.

VocaLive, iRig Mic, iPhone conspire to create vocal talent where none exists originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 11 Mar 2011 13:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Back in 2009, we wrote a story on crack mobile developer Larva Labs lamenting its inability to make a living off top-rated games in the Android Market. Well, to put it lightly, it ain’t 2009 anymore: the Android ecosystem has expanded exponentially in every conceivable direction, the Market has taken on tens of thousands of additional apps, and — according to one research firm, anyway — Android has now overtaken BlackBerry to become the most prolific smartphone platform in the US.

To that end, Spacetime Studios — the company behind mobile MMORPG Pocket Legends, which brings in revenue through in-app purchases — was shocked to discover that it’s making some 30 to 50 percent more from its Android users than its iOS ones. Furthermore, they’re spending more time playing and downloading the app with far greater frequency, which might be a testament to the fact that really great apps still stand out in the Market better than they do in the more mature (and more populated) App Store. The in-app purchase disparity is a little more difficult to explain, though — especially since iOS has a slick, integrated purchase mechanism that Google won’t be rolling out in Android for a little while yet. At any rate, the online mobile economy — regardless of platform — clearly still has some growing, maturing, and stabilizing to do.

[Thanks, Michael]

Profit shocker! Android brings home more bacon than iOS for Pocket Legends developer originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 09 Mar 2011 03:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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All together now: “flippin’ finally!” For anyone in the business world who has been blocked from receiving information due to the inability to locate a printer, ink pen, scanner, publicly available PC, a working printer driver and a fifth of Jack, say hello to your savior. EasySign is a delightfully simple new iOS app (yeah, we’re already begging for an Android port) that solves a painful problem, and it should make signing documents on the go a whole heck of a lot easier for those who tote iPhones. The concept is simple: you download the document you’re supposed to sign right onto your iPhone, and then you use your finger to enter your John Hancock. It’ll stamp whatever date you want onto the form, and with a simple button press, it’s converted to a PDF and shot back to the sender. We’d probably recommend using the stock black ink, but it seems that a few color options are available for those who prefer to roll a bit more casually. Head on past the break for a demo, and then hit that iTunes link for a free trial. Once you send three documents, you’ll need to pony up $4.99 for another 20 docs (a $9.99 unlimited version is coming soon). But hey, given that petrol looks like a steal compared to your average inkjet cartridge, you’ll probably still come out ahead.

Continue reading EasySign iPhone app halts the print / sign / email cycle, trees everywhere celebrate

EasySign iPhone app halts the print / sign / email cycle, trees everywhere celebrate originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 04 Mar 2011 13:19:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We’ve already had some indication that Amazon’s own app store for Android devices would be launching fairly shortly, and it now looks like it could be coming as soon as this month. That word comes from the seemingly in-the-know ad network Millennial Media, which tweeted earlier today that the Amazon Appstore for Android is “launching this month,” and linked to a blog post that details what’s in store for developers. Unfortunately, that post doesn’t actually contain a ton of specific details, but the ad network apparently sees the store as a “great opportunity,” particularly when it comes to the additional exposure apps would get through Amazon.com. In case you weren’t aware, Amazon’s also been maintaining an official developer blog for the Appstore (yeah, it’s all one word), which does provide quite a few technical details for those interested — check it out at the link below.

Amazon Appstore for Android launching this month? originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 01 Mar 2011 14:08:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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