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It appears that carriers worldwide are all revising their iPad subsidy plans ahead of the holiday season that’s approaching really fast. A few minutes ago, as noted by Engadget, Softbank announced [Google Translation] that starting December 3rd you’ll be able to get an iPad for free if you subscribe to the carrier’s new two-year data plan, which will cost you ¥4,725 ($56) per month for 3G usage.
We already know that the iPhone is doing quite well in Japan. Is the iPad next?
Oh, those dear old pinball machines. I used to spend actual money on those things during summer at the beach – I remember there was a Spider Man one at the bar I somehow managed to break the record on. Anyway, the money-spending trend stopped when I found out that there were well-done pinball videogames (bear with me, I was 10) and, years later, iPhone apps for that.
For as much as they look “real”, apps and console games don’t give you that feeling of touching the whole structure, tilting and pressing buttons. No wonder building an actual pinball machine requires a lot of money: each machine is a work of art and state-of-the art engineering. If you’re feeling like you don’t want to go back to spending bucks on real machines and you want to keep playing pinball on your iOS devices, here comes a cabinet for iPhone and iPad that does just that: it turns the phone and tablet into pinball cabinets, with working flipper buttons and the possibility to tilt.
You just have to place the device inside the mini-machine and download the free app to play. That’s it. Sounds awesome! Too bad the iPad version isn’t available now and will cost you $79.95 once it’s out. The Pinball Magic for iPhone is in stock and available at $29.95. [Gizmodo via Brookstone]
Forbes reports:
This is the app. It even integrates with PayPal Mobile. [via Rosa]
We talked about Richard Branson’s upcoming “Project” magazine for iPad last week, and it looks like everything is ready to go for tomorrow’s launch. Project Mag’s blog is up and running and, as noticed by The Next Web, a sneak peek of the “front cover video” featuring actor Jeff Bridges has surfaced online.
The video shows an animated front cover, but it’s not clear whether the app will feature interactive, animated pages or not. We just know that the first issue of this magazine specifically built for the iPad will feature the Tron: Legacy movie, and that’s about it.
There’s a banner with a direct link to the app up on Project Mag’s blog, but iTunes returns an error when clicking on it as the app isn’t out yet. It should be tomorrow. We’ll keep you posted about it. Read more
Everyone goes shopping on Black Friday (well, unless you prefer to check out online deals), and Apple Stores are no exception to this trend. With some pretty decent discounts set up for the day after Thanksgiving, we knew Apple was going to sell a whole bunch of iPads and new MacBook Airs on that day – but we may have the actual numbers here.
Fortune is reporting that, according to a report from Gene Munster’s team at Piper Jaffray, Apple sold approximately 8.8 iPad units per hour on Black Friday and 8.2 Mac units per hour. A rough estimate of 8.8 iPads sold per hour across 236 US stores in a 12 hours timeframe leads us to 25.000 iPads sold on Black Friday.
Most notable in our observations,” he writes, “we noticed that the iPad is gaining traction (driven by lower price vs. the Mac) among demographics in which the Mac has historically not been successful. The bottom line is that Apple’s addressable market is expanding with the iPad.
Munster also states the iPad is “becoming the Mac of the masses”. An interesting statement looking forward.
Bonnier are the developers behind the Popular Science magazine for iPad, and with their latest News+ project they’re trying to reinvent the newspaper, which first appeared 150 years ago. They believe the iPad is the right and most obvious device to do so now, and they’re willing to try by basing the entire concept on fresh navigation methods (gestures), a richer layout (clearly inspired by magazines) and inline media.
News+ combines the depth and editorial choices of a daily newspaper with the web’s possibilities for interaction and quick updates.
Browsing News+ and absorbing the content comes naturally, making readers feel close to the articles and photos. You can follow the most important news as it develops in a special section that is continuously updated, so News+ keeps you on top of the news all day.
Paul Miller makes some good points, but I wonder how many of his complaints about the current generation iPad will be fixed in the second generation one. With a thinner and lighter form factor, a somehow higher resolution and a better behavior when outside, the “iPad 2” won’t surely be a 7-incher or become a dedicated ebook – but you can stay assured it’ll be better at things it already does, reading included.
You may have heard a few UK carriers have been thinking about the possibility to offer subsidized iPads in the WiFi + 3G flavor to combine them with a monthly data plan. A few minutes ago Orange UK announced its plans, with pre-orders starting later today.
As for the iPads, the prices are:
Which, approximately, are $310 for the 16GB model, $390 for the 32GB one, $620 for the 64GB model. You’ll have to subscribe to a 2-year contract, though, that, at £27 ($42) per month, gives you 1GB anytime data usage, 1GB quiet time data (midnight to 4PM according to Orange) and 3GB BT Openzone WiFi.
The plans are available here. Expect T-Mobile and Three to follow in the next weeks with their iPad offers.
I never had the chance to play the original ChuChu Rocket! 10 years ago on the SEGA Dreamcast. I didn’t have a Dreamcast back then. In fact, I think I was playing with the PSX back in 2000, and I’m sure I had a Game Boy Color. A few years later I bought the GBA, a Game Cube and a PS2 – but I never bothered grabbing a Dreamcast to check out the gems released by SEGA and other 3rd party developers. I regret that, mostly because I’m still lacking knowledge in true masterpieces such as Shenmue (although this one’s been re-released on the Xbox) or Jet Set Radio.
Luckily enough for me, looks like iOS devices are somehow here to save the day and allow us to re-enjoy games first appeared years ago and now ready to come to life again under the power of multi-touch. That’s exactly what’s happening with ChuChu Rocket! HD for iPad: released a decade ago and subsequently redesigned to appear on the Game Boy Advance, the game’s now running on the iPad taking advantage of its larger screen and touch controls.
So why is this a Weekly Game anyway? Because it’s as genius as it was 10 years ago, and it’s a truly addictive puzzle game. Read more
