Hasta La Gadget!

Although there’s been no shortage of iPhone DJ apps in the past few years, they’ve remained fairly niche, since Apple didn’t allow devs official access to the iPod music library — mobile DJs needed to upload a second separate music library per app, and that’s no fun at all. Looks like that’s about to change, though: one of the 1500 new APIs in iOS 4 provides direct access to the iPod library, meaning music apps of all kinds can play your tracks in any wacky way they want — including, yes, scratching them. The first app to support the new API in the store is Flare Scratch, which is a relatively simple scratch app — we just gave it a shot and yes, it does indeed load tracks from the iPod library and let you scratch ’em. There’s a bit of a wait when loading up a new track, though, so it’s not totally fluid to use in anything but a hey-this-is-fun context, but we’re betting we’ll see more serious DJ apps hit with smoother transitions soon enough — and we can’t wait to see what devs do once iOS 4 hits the iPad and they’ve got more room to work with. Video after the break.

Continue reading iOS 4 adds direct access to iTunes library, iPhone DJ apps about to get crazy

iOS 4 adds direct access to iTunes library, iPhone DJ apps about to get crazy originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 08 Jul 2010 19:43:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Create Digital Music  |  Flare Scratch (iTunes), Flare Scratch site  | Email this | Comments

Next-gen iPod touch rumors heat up: front-facing camera, September release? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 08 Jul 2010 13:51:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Mac Rumors  |  Pocket-lint, 9 to 5 Mac  | Email this | Comments

A new Burger King eatery opening up in Japan isn’t usually something we concern ourselves too much with, but this one comes with an interesting new twist. Those umbrella-aping translucent cones hanging over the tables are known as “musical showers,” and their function is to deliver music in an isolated fashion to you and your significant — but not too significant, it’s still BK, after all — other. All you’ll need to do is plug your portable media player into the provided receptacle and the tunes you know and love will literally shower down upon you. To be honest, if the audio channeling is sufficiently precise not to disturb nearby punters, we’re loving this idea. Now just give it a name that won’t make teenagers giggle and bring it westwards.

Burger King uses ‘musical shower’ as latest trick to entice Japanese clientele originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 08 Jul 2010 07:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Japan Trends  |  Walkerplus  | Email this | Comments

There are iPhone cases, and then there’s Magellan‘s waterproof Toughcase. Priced at $199.99, it’s actually just as expensive as a new iPhone 4 on contract, and double the price of an iPhone 3GS (which it actually houses). So, what does two Benjamins get you? Most would argue “not nearly enough,” but argonauts may beg to differ. The case meets IPX-7 waterproof standards, enabling it to be submerged at a depth of one meter for up to 30 minutes, and there’s also an integrated 1,840mAh battery that’s able to “double the life” of your iPhone 3G, iPhone 3GS or second / third-generation iPod touch. Moreover, there’s a built-in high sensitivity SiRFstar III GPS chipset for superior GPS reception, and nothing here prevents consumers from accessing the touchscreen. ‘Course, the sex appeal of your iDevice goes right out of the window once you strap this monster on, and there’s no official support for Apple’s newest iPhone, but it’s hard to knock the approach here.

Continue reading Magellan’s waterproof Toughcase wraps GPS module, extended battery around your iPhone

Magellan’s waterproof Toughcase wraps GPS module, extended battery around your iPhone originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 30 Jun 2010 13:54:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Akihabara News  |  Magellan  | Email this | Comments

Mophie‘s juice pack air external case added some much-needed longevity to our iPhone when we tried it out last year, but most of us on staff aren’t particularly fond of making our gadgets even more chubby. If you are also not looking for a little more to love, mophie is introducing a line of external juice packs that pop into your device (courtesy of a retractable dock connector) to add a little extra life. Smallest will be the $40, 1,000mAh juice pack reserve, followed by the $60, 1,500mAh boost, both of which are compatible with the iPod and iPhone — and also offer “super-bright” LED flashlights. Last but not least is the juice pack power station, which hasn’t been given a price or specific mAh rating but is said to add in compatibility with the iPad. The first two are available now and, while it’s a shame these things don’t just offer a plain ‘ol USB port as well for charging other devices, we suppose you can’t have everything.

Update: If this is a little too rich for your blood, check out the comments for a few less expensive and more broadly compatible alternatives.

Continue reading Mophie introduces external juice pack batteries for iPhone, iPod, and iPad

Mophie introduces external juice pack batteries for iPhone, iPod, and iPad originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 24 Jun 2010 09:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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