Hasta La Gadget!

Enrolled in the iOS developer program and interested in iTunes Match? Better point that browser towards Apple’s dev portal, as Cupertino’s just flipped the switch for its upcoming music laundering service. There you’ll find iTunes 10.5 beta 6.1 with iTunes Match which’ll let you sign up for a yearly $24.99 fee. Hopping on the bandwagon early has extra rewards too — early birds get three months (on top of their yearly sub) for free. A tipster also provided us with a screencap (after the break) of his iPod touch running the current iOS beta, which now magically has a toggle for the service under the Music section of the Settings app. Taking the plunge? Let us know how you fare in the comments.

[Thanks, Matt]

Update: Looks like the initial signups have stopped, but Apple plans to expand the number of testers “over the next days.” So, keep compulsively checking iTunes if you want in on the next round.

Continue reading iTunes Match goes live for iOS developers (updated)

iTunes Match goes live for iOS developers (updated) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 29 Aug 2011 21:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Welcome to Engadget’s Back to School guide! We know that this time of year can be pretty annoying and stressful for everyone, so we’re here to help out with the heartbreaking process of gadget buying for the school-aged crowd. Today, we’ve got a slew of accessories — and you can head to the Back to School hub to see the rest of the product guides as they’re added throughout the month. Be sure to keep checking back — at the end of the month we’ll be giving away a ton of the gear featured in our guides — and hit up the hub page right here!

Fall’s slowly, but surely creeping back in, and we bet you’ve already started to gather up the necessary gear for your return to the residence hall. Sure, you’ve got the basics covered, with a computer, smartphone, MP3 player and even a tablet at the ready. But wouldn’t it be nice to start the school year off in style with some handy accoutrements to trick out those digital crutches? Let’s face it, you’re going to need a lapdesk buffer zone between you and your laptop’s scorching heat for those countless hours spent churning out term papers. Or, an external hard drive, so you can store those full seasons of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia and bring the late night funny to your stressed-out friends. However you manage to make it through the year and snag that 4.0 GPA, we’ve got a selection of accessorized aids to match your collegiate budget. Oh, and don’t forget, we’re giving away $3,000 worth of essential back to school gear to 15 readers, and you can be among the chosen few simply by dropping a comment below! Click on past the break to start browsing.

Continue reading Engadget’s back to school guide 2011: accessories

Engadget’s back to school guide 2011: accessories originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 29 Aug 2011 12:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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You write on paper, and the Apen A3 sends your doodles and writing to your smartphone

Apen is a neat and simple take on getting paper notes into your computer, phone or tablet. It comes in four somewhat confusing models, named A1 to A4, but it’s the last two that we’re interested in, as they work with the iPhone and iPad (A4) and Blackberry/Android devices (A3).

The kit consists of an electronic pen that contains real ink, and a receiver. You place the receiver up at the top of the paper and write or draw. The receiver records your scribblings and either beams them direct to your computer, phone or tablet, or you can hook the receiver up later via USB to copy everything across. The unit can remember the content of up to around 100 pages, so you can write most of a (short) book before needing to dump the data.

When hooked directly up to a computer, the pen can act as a mouse (there’s a button on the side for clicking), and using companion software you can scribble and draw on photos, too. But the point here is that you can write and draw on paper and later everything is available in software.

The main difference between the A3 and A4 (apart from their device compatibly) is that the A3 includes Bluetooth for sending your notes direct to your Android or Blackberry in real time. I have settled on writing directly onto my iPad using a stylus, and snapping photos of anything I write on paper and sending it to Evernote for handwriting recognition. For people who still use a lot of paper, though, the Apen looks to be worth a try. $130 (and cheaper for the computer-only versions).

Apen product page [Apen USA. Thanks, Susan!]

See Also:

• Pen Draws Working Circuits With Silver Ink
• Virtual Pen and Ink Lets Kids Scrawl on Walls
• Spiral-Shaped Ballpen Refill Packs Double the Ink
• Twist&Brush, A Kind of Reverse, Toothpaste-Filled Fountain Pen for …

Apple patent application imagines iPhones that learn the sweet sound of your voice originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 26 Aug 2011 18:38:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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With the NFL season just a few days away, players and coaches have been busy lifting weights, doing interviews and counting their money. Sometimes, they even get the chance to study their playbooks — or, in the case of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, their iPads. This year, the franchise has distributed a fresh batch of iPad 2‘s to all of its 90 players, as part of a new initiative from coach Raheem Morris. With the tablets, the Bucs can spend their free time reviewing their downloaded plays, while analyzing video footage from practices, games and opposing teams. In related tech news, the Detroit Lions just discovered fire.

Tampa Bay Buccanneers to use iPads as playbooks, not PlayBooks originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 26 Aug 2011 09:12:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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