What is bigger than an iPod Touch and smaller than the Mac?

An Apple Tablet perhaps!

Rumors are rife that Apple may be on the verge of releasing an Apple Tablet soon, and it all started with a report by the Financial Times claiming that it has inside news that the Apple tablet is ready to be launched.

One set of rumors say that it will be released as early as September and the others say in early 2010.

It is speculated to be 3G enabled, have a 10-inch touch screen and high computing power, providing users the ability to even watch movies. It is said to be more like a large iPod rather than an iPhone, complete with the ability to download media through iTunes. It may also give users the ability to read books, rivaling the Amazon Kindle. Financial Times quoted as revealing that, “It’s a portable entertainment device. It’s going to be fabulous for watching movies.” It sounds like this device is going to be an iPod Touch with the processing power and memory of a netbook. Steve Jobs is said to be the brain behind this. If this is so, then the product is certainly going to be solid.

There have been no rumors on the carrier this 3G device will be on. Amidst all the assumptions, we can also assume that it would be AT&T. But Apple may also deal with someone else, as there had been problems with AT&T and Apple has been communicating with Verizon too. (more…)

The iPhone applications are nothing short of amazing, because they leverage the groundbreaking technology in iPhone – like the GPA, 3D positional audio, real-time 3D graphics, the accelerometer and the Multi-Touch interface. You just have to tap into the App Store, choose and download from thousands of applications available.

Apple recently listed its top 20 free apps and top 20 paid apps for the iPhone, based solely on the popularity, which means the number of downloads from their App Store.

Take a look at the top 20 free apps in the exact order as ranked by Apple:

Facebook

This one is for social networking fans and is #1 in free apps. Facebook app can be downloaded at the iTunes app store for free. You have the chat facility, friend requests, check your friends photos, upload photos, full news feeds, notifications, news feed commends, your entire inbox etc.

Google Earth

Compatible with iPhone (2.0 software update) and iPod Touch, this app enables users to view the exact aerial imagery similar to the one available for the desktop version. You can view photos from around the world, search for businesses, cities and places, view mountainous terrain with just a tilt of the phone, geo-located Wikipedia articles and many more.

Pandora Radio

Stream music on your iPhone using this app! You can just use the name of the artist or the song and Pandora will instantly create a station to play that music. You can create stations based on the genre, read artist bios, store recently played songs and play song samples. (more…)

The little Twitter bird is singing the beautiful song of success! Nobody can deny Twitter is hot. The micro-messaging network is so hot right now that it is the topic of discussion wherever you turn. With their user base growing more than 1000% in just one year, it has registered the fastest growth when compared to other social networking sites, what else can you expect? Not one to be left behind, Oprah got in, opened a Twitter account and got 900,000 followers within a month. Everyone wants a piece of Twitter; including Jay Leno and Ellen DeGeneres and others.

It’s no surprise that all the big cats are now vying with each other to get their hands on this golden bird. Rumor goes that Google wanted it but was turned down. Facebook offered cash and stock worth $500 million, but it is believed Twitter investors were not quite sure that Facebook’s stock was worth as much as they claimed. The price has been going up as fast and furious as the Twitter users themselves.

Now, fresh rumors that have been circulating talk about Apply eying this social networking giant. According to sources, the purchase price it offered is $700 million – in cash and negotiations are on full swing. Oh yes! Apple has plenty of that (27 billion) and can pay cash. Gossip mongers even go to the extent of saying that the acquisition will be announced in June at the World Wide Developer’s Conference (WWDC) in San Jose.

Twitter is receiving “tweet” nothings from everyone that matters – Google, Microsoft, News Corp., and now Apple too; although this is being discarded by many as yet another rumor. Putting two and two together, observers remark that it was only a couple of weeks ago that Apple profiled the site. (more…)

Imagine the feeling when the application you installed in your mobile phone has completely vanished! There is a high possibility of this happening, courtesy the “kill switch.”

This killer is being used in many areas in various forms:

A “dad man’s switch” stops vehicles and machines, in case the operator has problems and loses control. A kill switch at pumping stations is used for gasoline pumps and other devices that pump flammable or explosive chemicals. Even treadmills have a “safety key” that comes into action when a person trips or falls.

In IT language, a kill switch is a security measure used to shut off a device or a program. Where software is concerned, the software is rendered useless to users if it is pirated and not obtained in the right way.

Kill Switch in Apple and Google

Coming to the mobile phone segment, kill switch has been incorporated by Apple in the iPhone. Through these switches, the company has the capability of uninstalling or deleting any application that they think should not be on your phone.

This was not something Apple made a whole lot of noise about and preferred to let silence rule – until people discovered it for themselves and the world was up in arms.

The iPhone quietly connects to Apple’s servers to check an application blacklist, and disable any apps that should not be there. (more…)

Recent sales numbers of the iPhone and the BlackBerry have surprised people in the know. The reason for the surprise is that BlackBerry has always been considered to be synonymous with a business phone, but now the iPhone sold more.

Earlier, Steve Jobs announced that the iPhone would support Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync, which will enable users to synchronize their calendar and contacts along with receiving push mail on their iPhones. This announcement had many critics remarking that Apple is attempting to just grab a small slice of one of the most lucrative markets – the enterprise phone segment and nothing more will come out of it. Of course, diehard Apple fans are never deterred by these comments and have always counted on the iPhone to make a difference in this market, where enterprise phone segment is the arena of players such as the BlackBerry and the Nokia E-series.

The sales reports of smartphones reveal that Nokia still ruled, followed by Apple and then BlackBerry. This is a great achievement for Apple, considering that the iPhone does not have as many models as the other two. Another fact is that the competition has released high-profile devices recently too, such as Nokia’s E71 and RIM’s Bold. However, a device that has not been considered to be a suitable choice for enterprise use until now has won hands down. (more…)

Apple has created quite a stir with the multinational launch of iPhone 3G, which is now in the process of resolving the teething problems and slipping quietly into the hands of keen buyers, who throng the markets to get their share of the “Apple Pie.”

There is not a free moment at the Apple headquarters and they know how to keep the “rumors alive,” to satisfy the insatiable appetite of the technology freaks.

Apple is planning on closing the year with a few new product introductions.

iPhone Nano

This time, it is the “Nano fairy” all ready to sprinkle its dust on the Apple product line.

According to a source quoted in a British newspaper, the iPhone Nano is expected to be unveiled soon – perhaps a Christmas gift?

The reason for this is believed to be the fact that the EDGE and 3G iPhone models are expensive and it would be easier on the light-pocketed customer to have a smaller sized phone that is similar to iPod Nano.

The iPhone Nano could be a “iPhone Lite” device without full internet access, with a rear-facing iPod style touch wheel for inputting the numbers and a display screen that is front facing.

Meanwhile, the iPhone is expanding its wings into new territories. (more…)

The much awaited iPhone 3G has arrived and is considered a huge hit, going by the 1 million handsets sold in the first three days.

According to Apple’s chief executive, Steve Jobs, the new iPhone 3G is off to a great start all around the world, when compared to their original iPhone that had taken 74 days to sell the first 1 million handsets.

However, the huge demand caused unexpected technical difficulties across the U.S. and Europe. Some of the buyers in the U.S. were unable to use their new handsets for many hours after purchasing them, due to the iTunes store grinding to a halt under the burden of the huge number of requests.

These problems are attributed to the unprecedented demand that was not anticipated.

Analysts at RBC Capital Markets are of the opinion that the low price and the demand, along with the distribution across 22 countries and 28 mobile operators may be the cause of issues that caused frustration to buyers, due to limited stock.

They also feel that the target of selling 5.1 million iPhone 3Gs throughout the world, during the third quarter of 2008 will be met by Apple. They are confident that Apple is highly likely to meet its long-term target of launching the 3G handsets in 70 countries and selling about 14 million iPhones in the next year.

As has been mentioned in our previous pre-release article, the iPhone 3G comes in two forms, 8GB and 16GB, with either white or black back. The front is black for both. The 16GB model is available in both these colors, while the 8GB is available only in black and it appears as if most people appear to like the black much more.

The iPhone 3G, bearing a slightly tweaked design, is almost identical to the old iPhone, except may be for a slight difference in the thickness. The old one was 0.46 inches thick, while the new 3G is 0.48 inches; however this is not a visible difference because Apple has slightly refined the shape at the back. The backside seems thinner than the old iPhone when held in hand, in spite of being slightly thicker. The metal back is now in plastic making it look better, less slippery, provides better signal strength and reduces the weight of the iPhone by 2g too without making it feel cheap or shallow. The Wi-Fi reception also seems to be a bit better. (more…)

When Apple released iPhone, it was exciting and only the start of the touchpad revolution. Of course, it was not the first touchpad, but it was certainly the most commercially available and marketed. Apple and the rest of the world knew it was only a matter of time before the competition revealed their own take on the iPhone technology, and now that time has come.

The iPhone may have been the first mainstream phone on the market with the high end combination of touchpad and media capabilities, but it will most certainly not be the last. Already concept phones from major manufacturers are making waves, and some are arriving on the market. With the holiday season fast approaching manufacturers are starting to push to get their newest concepts out for retail as quickly as possible.

Samsung F700
Samsung recently announced the F700 which puts the competition game into overdrive. This is Samsung’s first touch pad phone, and they have done an outstanding job. The phone features a 5 megapixel camera, download speeds up to 7.2 Mbps, the essential touch pad and a full slide out QWERTY keypad.

This keypad is the prime feature of competition as the iPhone does not have one and many iPhone users are annoyed with trying to use the touchpad keyboard. The QWERTY keyboard may be a welcome relief for those that like a little give when they type. (more…)

The Apple iPhone has been all the rage on national and world-wide markets. The iPhone is the coolest, newest way to keep connected with others via not only a telephone, but the internet as well. The Apple iPhone has received rants and raves from consumers and critics alike, but the overall conception of the Apple iPhone has won the hearts of many people who have craved the latest of technology.

The Components of the iPhone

From the inception of the iPhone, the market has been all a buzz awaiting its arrival. The Apple iPhone has many features that people have been longing for aside from just a normal cell phone. The iPhone has a touch screen key pad, which makes for easier calling and dialing. Its sleek and mainstream design creates a sense of great style. It is also internet compatible, so the users can check their e-mails. This makes for a much greater ease of use, especially for those on the go, and who need to constantly check up on their e-mails. The iPhone can also download iTunes songs, as well as play podcasts, which can eliminate the need for a PDA, in addition to an iPod. The convenience of having everything rolled into one is why many people seek the iPhone for their cell phone services. (more…)