Latest Chrome Stable Gets Native Lion Scrollbars and Full-Screen

By Federico Viticci

Back in early August we reported the bleeding-edge version of Google Chrome, Chrome Canary, had been updated to include native full-screen mode and scrollbars on OS X Lion, which was released on July 20th on the Mac App Store. The Chrome team rushed to have a version of Canary fully compatible with the new OS, and we noted their implementation of full-screen was different from the average OS X app: Chrome allowed for two different toolbar / no toolbar modes triggered by a “curtain” icon at the top. With such implementation, the Chrome team made sure developers could test “real” full-screen mode with only the actual content of a webpage displayed, and a second option to see content + toolbars (tabs, bookmarks, etc).

The latest stable version of Chrome, released today, brings these Lion changes (and other bug fixes) to regular users, alongside other new features detailed on Google’s official blog. Most notably, Chrome stable has now access to the Native Client, a way for Chrome to execute C and C++ code inside the browser. The Native Client only supports applications from the Chrome Web Store for now, but Google is looking into supporting more platforms. Another technical change in this new stable release is the Web Audio API, which “enables developers to add fancy audio effects such as room simulation and spatialization”.

You can get the latest Chrome stable release here, and check out a brief explanation of the Native Client after the break. Read more

Apple Details Thunderbolt Display Connection Options

By Federico Viticci

With a new support document [via] posted earlier this afternoon, Apple details some of the connection options for the 27-inch Thunderbolt Display, now shipping to customers who bought it after it was announced, and close to retail availability. The document in particular outlines some daisy-chaining options for the display and different Mac models, specifying which ones can connect to multiple monitors at once. For those users who want to daisy-chain Thunderbolt devices and a display, Apple recommends to connect the Thunderbolt Display to a Thunderbolt port on a Mac, and start daisy-chaining off that for “best performances”.

A note of interest from this document is that Mini DisplayPort displays won’t work if connected to the Thunderbolt Display, thus removing any possibility of daisy-chaining with old Mini DisplayPort interfaces and the newest Thunderbolt.

Mini DisplayPort displays will not light up if connected to the Thunderbolt port on an Apple Thunderbolt Display (27-inch).

MacBook Air (Mid 2011): Supports one Thunderbolt display.

MacBook Pro (Early 2011): Supports two Thunderbolt displays. The 13” MacBook Pro has a different “expected behavior” in that the screen will turn black if a second Thunderbolt Display is connected.

iMac (Mid 2011 and Late 2011): Supports two Thunderbolt displays. iMac (27-inch, Mid 2011) with two Thunderbolt ports supports a total of two Thunderbolt displays “regardless of which Thunderbolt port each display is connected to”.

Mac mini (Mid 2011): Supports two Thunderbolt displays. Mac mini with AMD graphics can support a HDMI compatible device on its HDMI port when using two Thunderbolt displays.

The support document is available here. The 27-inch Thunderbolt Display still reports shipping times of 2-3 weeks on Apple’s online store. Read more

Mac App Store Gets “Re-Buy Warning” For Apps Already Installed →

Linked By Federico Viticci

Mac App Store Gets “Re-Buy Warning” For Apps Already Installed

While many are still waiting for Apple to implement a basic wish list functionality in the Mac App Store (eight months after its public debut, there’s now a pretty good selection of high-quality software in Apple’s desktop storefront to choose from), Macworld has noticed the Mac App Store will now give you a heads-up before buying apps you already have installed on your computer. This can be particularly useful as a warning if you’re about to purchase an app you had previously downloaded from a developer’s website, out of the Mac App Store.

Though this doesn’t really reduce the pain of having to pay a second time for the same app, it does at least give less savvy users a heads-up before they accidentally buy a program all over again.

You can try this now with an app like OmniFocus, which is available with the same version (1.9.3) both on The Omni Group’s website and the Mac App Store. When the Mac App Store launched in January, the fact that it reported as “Installed” apps downloaded from a web browser caused some confusion among users.

It’s still unclear whether this dialog box requires the same version of an app to be already installed on a Mac (example: 1Password 3.9 is available on the Mac App Store, whereas AgileBits’ website give you access to an older version), but I assume this new “warning” does indeed require the exact same version to be installed, otherwise the Mac App Store version of an app will install alongside apps purchased elsewhere (this already happens if you head over the Purchased tab, and re-download a newer version of an app you already have on your Mac).

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App Journal, Episode 3: Dolphin Browser HD, Showreel, Faveous, ifttt

By Federico Viticci

App Journal is a weekly series aimed at showcasing apps we have enjoyed using on our iPhones, iPads, and Macs, but decided not to feature in a standalone, lengthy review here on MacStories. App Journal is a mix of classic reviews, weekly app recommendations, and a diary of our experiences with apps that still deserve a proper mention.

As developers put the finishing touches to their iOS 5 and iCloud-based new apps and updates, this past week has been relatively slow in noteworthy App Store releases and features. Fortunately, I’ve dug up some gems worth mentioning, and I’ve been playing with the amazing If This Then That, now out of beta and open to the public.

Stay tuned for more App Journal episodes in the next weeks.

Dolphin Browser HD

I was a little skeptical when I first heard about Dolphin Browser for iPad, a port of what appears to be a fairly popular browser for Android devices. Furthermore, the app is free, and I always wonder how it’s going to play out in the long term without a business plan. Still, I have to say Dolphin Browser is pretty good. Mind you, it’s no Grazing, but I was surprised to see two features cleverly implemented: gestures, and the “webzine”. With gesture support, you can assign any URL to a custom gesture you have to “draw” so you’ll be able to launch your favorite websites by simply performing the gesture on screen. There’s a set of built-in gestures for Facebook, Twitter, and other websites, but you can create as many as you want by opening a new URL, and choose “gesture for this page”. A new window will open, asking you to draw the shape with a single stroke – after that, the gesture will be assigned to the URL and saved in the Gestures area of the app. Gesture recognition is pretty good, and you don’t have to be an artist or get really precise down to the pixel for the app to see what you want to launch. Overall, it’s a quite clever idea that, however, might use a more universal access without having to open a dedicated Gestures overlay (I’d like to draw directly on the webpage, if that makes sense).

Second is the webzine, basically a Flipboard-like magazine interface that, however, resides right within the browser and not in a standalone app. Dolphin’s main page, in fact, lists a series of speed dials on the left (think frequently accessed websites) and the “webzine” on the right, pre-populated with blogs you might want to read in a more uncluttered fashion. The thing with the webzine in Dolphin is that you’re not really forced to open this “start page” every time – once you visit a blog, say MacStories, Dolphin will ask you if you want to read it through the webzine UI. When a website gets passed through the webzine, a nice and fluid animation brings text in the foreground with articles and images as big squares – again, it resembles Flipboard.

The big difference is that Dolphin’s webzine doesn’t fetch entire articles and images – the actual webpage is loaded behind the webzine page, and you can jump to it (to see the rest of a story, images, or videos) with a single tap. It’s still unclear to me whether Dolphin’s webzine fetches articles via RSS (I assume it does), but I find it surprising the developers didn’t implement a refresh button (just last night I was reading MacStories through the webzine, and two articles I had just posted weren’t showing up).

Dolphin is a decent browser for the iPad with two really neat functionalities. You won’t find the “power user” aspect of Grazing and iCab in here (Dolphin doesn’t even have contextual menus for links), but overall, it’s a good free browser. Get it here. Read more

“Fairly Different” iPhone 5 with 8 MP Camera, A5 Processor “Just Weeks Away”

By Federico Viticci

In reporting about today’s allegedly “leaked” iPhone 5 design per Case-Mate’s product pages (later pulled), The New York Times’ Nick Bilton says an announcement of Apple’s next iPhone is “just weeks away”.

We’re just weeks away from the announcement of the new Apple iPhone 5, according to an Apple employee who asked not to be named because he was not allowed to speak publicly for the company.

Bilton then reports that according to descriptions he’s heard from Apple employees, the images posted today by Case-Mate looked “potentially authentic”. The cases indeed seemed to show an iPhone 5 in line with recent speculation surrounding the new device such as tapered edges, and thinner form factor. In the same article, Bilton mentions “an engineer familiar with the new iPhone” said the iPhone 5 would look “fairly different” from the previous-gen model. According to the engineer the iPhone 5 will feature an 8-megapixel camera as previously rumored, the faster A5 processor also seen on the iPad 2, and possibly NFC functionalities for mobile payments. NFC on the iPhone 5 was rumored before, too, but most recent speculation indicated Apple might save the feature for a future “iPhone 6” next year.

As I’ve written in the past, two people with knowledge of the inner workings of Apple’s next-generation iPhones say either the iPhone 5 or iPhone 6 will include a new chip that is made by Qualcomm.

Plenty of rumors posted in the past months failed to indicate whether Apple will soon announce a completely redesigned iPhone 5, and iPhone 4-like device with slightly improved specs, or both to address different market segments. You can read more on this in our iPhone 5/4S rumor roundup and retrospective. [image via]

Smartphone Games “Front and Center” at Tokyo Game Show 2011 →

Linked By Federico Viticci

Smartphone Games “Front and Center” at Tokyo Game Show 2011

Wired has an overview of what’s going at Tokyo Game Show – annual exposition of Japanese videogames – this year: smartphone and tablet games are “dominating” the show floor, whilst long-time publishers of regular console games decided not to have a booth.

In their place, dominating a massive section in the center aisle of the show floor, are smartphones and tablets: iPhones, Android phones, PlayStation phones and all manner of Japan-only devices with keys that easily let the country’s millions of texters type out entire novels’ worth of kanji messages. Cellphone games have been part of Tokyo Game Show for more than a decade, but until this year, the casual time-killers lurked on the periphery of the show, in the backs of the booths, attracting few onlookers.

The impressive growth of the mobile gaming industry is no secret to those who have been keeping an eye on the explosion of “app stores” through 2010 and 2011. But Wired makes a good point in its TGS coverage: there’s one niche of gamers mobile games have failed to attract, and that’s hardcore gamers. The “regular console games” that have dominated the Tokyo Games Show in the past years, and which are struggling to impress on iPhones, iPads, and Android handsets.

One challenge for Gree and other mobile gamemakers: Creating mobile games that appeal to hard-core gamers as well as casual players. Gree President and CEO Yoshikazu Tanaka noted the dilemma.

“I was just walking around the show floor,” he said at a press briefing Thursday, “and what I thought while I was looking around was, ‘Console games seem much more interesting than social games. They’re more cool.’”

Gree, for instance, is the company that bought OpenFeint and announced a CEO replacement this week. The issue is a complex one: Angry Birds is selling millions of copies (350 million to date), yet hardcore gamers still can’t find proper mobile counterparts for their favorite PS3, Xbox 360 and Wii games. Big companies like EA are reinventing themselves with strong mobile offerings, and revenue speaks clearly.

I believe the scarcity of “hardcore games” or lack thereof is more related to the youth of these mobile platforms, as well as ongoing technological advancements. Lets’s see what the A6 will bring.

[image via]

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Kensington’s BungeeAir Helps You Find Your iPhone

By Federico Viticci

Accessory maker Kensington announced earlier this week the BungeeAir, a hybrid case/iPhone tracker/backup battery solution to protect an iPhone 4, increase its battery life, and, more importantly, find a paired device nearby. The BungeeAir, in fact, works in combination with a compact key fob, which through a 2.4 GHz wireless connection (the one supported by the iPhone 4) will alert users when they’re separated from their device – Kensington is touting this as a convenient way to never leave an iPhone behind in public places, or simply find it again in your house. The BungeeAir comes bundled with a free app on the App Store, which besides support for alarms and vibration when the “wireless tether” is broken, adds a number of security features such as passcode protection for a lost iPhone, or a two-way “find” functionality to locate either the case (and thus, the iPhone) or the fob by pressing “Find” button.

BungeeAir is perfect for the professional on-the-go who relies on their iPhone to be productive throughout the day. Simply place the iPhone in the protective case and attach the BungeeAir fob to your keys, purse or badge and it will remind you if ever leave your phone behind, before it can get out of your sight. A convenient companion app lets you customize the security settings, and with the added feature that it can help you find your fob and attached misplaced keys.

Kensington’s BungeeAir might sound similar to Apple’s free Find My iPhone service, but it’s quite different in the way it’s meant for a much more “local” use – BungeeAir doesn’t have an online counterpart to track and geo-locate a lost or stolen iPhone, and the app allows you to customize the distance between the fob and the case after which you’d like to be alerted.

Kensington is offering two different versions of the BungeeAir. The BungeeAir Power Wireless Security Tether for iPhone acts as tether, battery, and case and is available for pre-order at $99 or on Amazon. The BungeeAir Protect Wireless Security Tether doesn’t have a battery, and can be yours for $20 less at $79.99. Check out Kensington’s three promo videos for the BungeeAir’s Remind, Find, and Secure features below. [via Macworld] Read more

Twitterrific 4.4 Improves Tweet Marker Support, Adds Fixes

By Federico Viticci

The Iconfactory’s Twitterrific, a Twitter client for iOS and OS X, was updated earlier today to version 4.4, adding better integration with Tweet Marker, and a number of bug fixes and improvements. Following Twitter’s recent changes to how links are wrapped inside its own t.co shortening system and displayed in third-party clients, The Iconfactory tuned Twitterrific to display unwrapped t.co links whenever possible, as the API currently allows. This means Twitterrific shouldn’t show anonymous t.co links in the timeline anymore, fetching the original shortened link or domain (example: mcstr.net or apple.com) instead. You can see a comparison between Twitterrific 4.3 Vs. 4.4 in the screenshots below.

Twitterrific 4.4 with an unwrapped t.co link on the right

Twitterrific 4.4 improves and unifies support for Tweet Marker across its Mac and iOS versions, as well as other third-party iOS apps that have implemented the service. Notably, Twitterrific 4.4 can sync Twitter lists with Tweetbot, which recently introduced such functionality through Tweet Marker. This update also brings Tweet Marker sync to saved searches (both lists and saved searches will have a separate “saved status”, outside the main timeline) and it greatly improves how the OS X version handles sync when a computer goes to sleep, or a link is clicked. For instance, Twitterrific 4.4 will sync back to Tweet Marker (if enabled in the Preferences) when a Mac goes into sleep mode, wakes up, or goes into power saver mode. Marked tweets are synced when the app is quit or links are clicked – the latter is true when links aren’t set to open in the background.

Twitter lists have seen some enhancements in Twitterrific 4.4 as well. For one, they now have a Load More button to fetch missing tweets. They are now sorted by type and then alphabetically, they show retweets alongside regular tweets, and a bug that would make a list “un-selected” in the Finder has been fixed. The same Load More button has been improved throughout the entire app, as it now loads missing tweets in timeline gaps, and generally keeps Twitterrific scrolled to bottom while loading more tweets. These are minor changes, but important ones if you, like me, wake up every morning willing to “catch up” on Twitter, and see what people have posted overnight. The improved Load More behavior certainly helps in making timeline gaps more reliable.

Other features include improved handling of non-image Camera+ URL’s (such as user profiles), and a new Shift-spacebar shortcut to manually navigate to a previous tweet, as opposed to spacebar for “next tweet”.

Both on the Mac and iOS, Twitterrific keeps unifying the Twitter experience and its own app ecosystem on each update. You can download Twitterrific 4.4 on the App Store now at $4.99 for the Mac version, or upgrade the free iOS app for $4.99 through in-app purchase.

Skype for Mac Beta Gets Facebook Integration

By Federico Viticci

With a blog post published a few minutes ago, Skype has announced a new beta version of its desktop client for OS X, which adds Facebook integration for chat, news feed, and friends’ posts. The new Skype for Mac 5.4, available for download here, allows users to connect with Facebook directly within the app – without having to open Facebook’s website – to start chatting with Facebook friends, like their posts, or read and update the News Feed.

Once authenticated with Facebook in-app, Skype 5.4 will display an additional Facebook tab in the Contacts view, enabling you to filter the buddy list down to only people who are available for IM through Facebook. The cross-platform IM solution seems pretty reliable in this regard, in that I was able to easily find a Facebook friend, and start chatting with her while I was using Skype 5.4 for Mac. She received my messages correctly on Facebook’s website. When another friend tried to contact me on Facebook via chat, a new message showed up in Skype’s sidebar next to his name (the Mac version of Skype also supports Growl notifications).

Similarly, I was able to read posts from my news feed, like them, and even post a status update using Skype 5.4.

Skype has also confirmed this release brings a new advertising platform to the app, although I haven’t been able to personally verify this yet:

We are also introducing an advertising platform in this new release, but if you are a paying Skype consumer or have Skype Credit, you won’t see any display ads; similar to the model that is currently being used in our Skype for Windows client.

Skype 5.4 beta for Mac can be downloaded here. After Microsoft’s acquisition, the company recently brought HD video calling to the Mac with version 5.3, and released a native client for the iPad.