Posts tagged with "iPad"

iPad Users Have Downloaded 3 Billion Apps in One Year

Thanks to a rich marketplace, consistently good apps that are featured in the App Store, and the constant attention blogs like ours bring to developers and consumers, the iPad has had its fair share of owners downloading tons of applications. Not only did iPad users download more than 3 billion apps from the App Store since the iPad’s launch in 2010, developers published 120,000 apps specifically for the iPad in the third quarter of 2011. ABI Research notes that iPad downloads are only 19% of all the cumulative downloads by Apple users. With lots of choice and a device that just works, users are eager to try out the latest innovations in touch-based software.

In comparison, Android users have only downloaded 440 million applications. It could be that there simply aren’t as many Android tablets in consumers’ hands as there are iPads, or it could because that developers simply aren’t making apps formatted for the tablet experience like they are on the iPad.

According to Lim Shiyang:

Discounting all those apps that were originally developed for Android smartphones, Android still trails greatly behind the iPad in terms of its tablet app offerings. Many Android tablets in the market are still using older versions of Android, which disadvantages users from enjoying the better effects of apps produced from more advanced software development kits.

As for Android’s phone ecosystem, ABI Research expects Android users to rack up 58 billion app downloads by 2016, compared to only 27 billion by iPhone users.

I wonder how many of these downloads will be because of Angry Birds?

[ABI Research via GigaOM]

Google Translate for iOS Updated with iPad Support

Previously available exclusively for iPhone and iPod touch owners, earlier today Google updated its official Google Translate iOS app to include a native interface for the iPad. The updated Google Translate, available here, heavily resembles its iPhone counterpart with larger interface elements ported to the iPad’s screen – there are three tabs at the bottom to switch between translations, favorite items and Settings, a microphone icon to speak directly into the device’s mic, and you can choose between multiple languages from a popover menu.

Unlike the surprisingly refreshing (for Google’s iOS standards) Google Search app, it appears Google Translate didn’t receive any particular iPad treatment in the conversion process.

Among the lesser known features of the app, you can specify input for English, Chinese and Spanish languages, display translations in full-screen mode, and tap on results for text-to-speech.

Google Translate 1.3 (changelog simply reads “Added support for iPad”) is available for free on the App Store.

Mage Gauntlet Now Universal iOS App

Rocketcat Game’s excellent RPG, Mage Gauntlet, has released a major update, one important feature being that it is now Universal. There are also some tweaks as well. Some spells have been changed, reviving after being beaten now grants a free spell, some levels were shortened, and save files can now be exported or imported through iTunes – allowing you to copy your unlocked items and experience points to your other devices.

As with most updates, the new update also has bug fixes as well. Here’s the full release breakdown:

What’s new

*** Hotfix approved, grab this update, especially if you’re on iPad
*** iPad display bugs fixed
- Universal support for iPad and all iOS devices!
- Flip Screen option in the Settings menu!
- The View Map panel in the pause menu how has indicators showing how many notes/books you’ve found in the current level, and whether all monsters have been cleared!
- Spell changes! Silence has been merged into Time Circle to create a single all-powerful buffing spell, Sword Fury and the elemental summon spells have been improved, and the less useful Lucky and Shield spells have been removed from the random spell drops, though you can still obtain a Shield by collecting hearts or overflowing spells!
- Several weapons have been given new, upgraded effects and updated description text. Make sure to check them out, some were completely changed.
- Rabbit’s Foot now increases the hat drop rate by five times.
- Ring of the Zealot now resurrects you, once, at half health with a Sword Fury buff applied to you.
- Reviving after being defeated now grants a free spell.
- Save file! You can export or import your save data (in save.dat) via iTunes File Sharing to copy your unlocked items and experience points to your other devices! This also allows backing up saves to your PC.
- Many level tweaks! Additional urns added to most levels. Backtrack-blocking doors removed for most levels. Many overly long levels were shortened a bit and/or had more urns added. This should improve the pacing of Story Mode.
- Various bugfixes, including some achievement bugs and dialog typos.

Mage Gauntlet is a great RPG (888 5-Star ratings in iTunes) with a classic NES feel and excellent game play. If you haven’t yet played it, maybe Universal support will magically draw you in. The app is $2.99.

[via TouchArcade]

Microsoft Continues iOS App Rollout with OneNote for iPad and SkyDrive for iPhone

Microsoft has been rolling out quite a few apps lately, now introducing Microsoft OneNote for the iPad and SkyDrive for the iPhone (and Windows Phone). It looks like Microsoft really is bringing Microsoft Office to the iPad with these notable releases, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves. OneNote is a mobile companion for the desktop app (not an addition to), and SkyDrive is Dropbox-esque in its execution. Handy to have with you? You bet. Alternative replacements for the real things? Probably not so much.

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Global BBC iPlayer App Coming To The iPhone & iPod Touch This Thursday

Update: The iPhone version of the BBC iPlayer (Global) app is now available for free on the App Store - it comes as a universal app that runs on both the iPad and iPhone.

The global version of BBC iPlayer first began rolling out internationally five months ago and is now available in sixteen countries around the world. So far the video-on-demand service, offering BBC content to an international audience, has only been available on the iPad. That will change this Thursday when the BBC iPlayer app will become available for the iPhone and iPod touch.

The announcement was made by Jana Bennett, President of Worldwide Networks and Global BBC iPlayer who noted that “moving to iPhone and iPod Touch allows us to take the service to a significant new potential audience and deliver fantastic programme content from the BBC and the UK’s creative industry”.

This platform extension shows how Global iPlayer isn’t just about moving TV to tablet devices, it’s also about a mobile strategy – about truly getting TV everywhere in a way that it hasn’t been before.

Bennett also announced that programs from DRG will also begin to appear on the BBC iPlayer service in early 2012. DRG is a program distributor that owns programs such as Peep Show, Father Ted, Black Books and Shameless.

[Via The Next Web]

How the iPad 2 Became My Favorite Computer→

How the iPad 2 Became My Favorite Computer

This hasn’t been one of those experiments-for-the-sake-of-experimentation in which someone temporarily forsakes a PC for another device in order to write about the experience (like, say, this). No, I’ve been using the iPad for my daily activities–running Technologizer, writing for TIME, CNET, and AllBusiness.com, and more–because I find it to be the preferable tool in multiple respects. I’ve been using it about 80 percent of the time, and using my MacBook Air about 20 percent of the time. I have no desire to go back.

I think Harry McCracken is an excellent example of how and where the iPad can be used to replace a laptop computer in a professional industry (i.e. journalism). McCracken’s setup relies on three main benefits of the iPad: its ten hour battery life, 3G integration (AT&T), and its unique app ecosystem. To bolster the lack of a keyboard, a combination case+keyboard is used. While I don’t agree with McCracken’s desktop-OS comments, and while I personally couldn’t use the iPad as a replacement for a MacBook, I do agree with his conclusion. And yes Harry, I do think you’re ahead of the times.

Personally, I don’t see how McCracken’s setup is vastly different from the Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime. Samsung’s Windows 8 Developer PC is another example of this, where you can dock the Metro-based tablet for use with a keyboard. What you want is a tablet to futz around with on the couch and in bed, but a working, cool, and quiet laptop with long battery life when you want to be productive. What tablet makers are starting to present is the coveted all-in-one solution. While there’s accessories (like an external keyboard) to manage, these qualities have even replaced the MacBook Air (which is surprising to me) for McCracken. As CES 2012 rolls around, I’m willing to bet you’re going to see a lot more of this. But for now, the iPad’s glowing qualities in all the categories mentioned have it coming out on top for the tech-savvy individuals bold enough to try going iPad-only.

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Rumor: Microsoft Working On Office Apps For The iPad

Microsoft may be working on creating iPad versions of its popular Office Suite apps according to The Daily. The Daily’s sources say that the apps would likely work with Microsoft’s new online service, Office 365, and be price-competitive with Apple’s Pages, Numbers and Keynote iOS apps which are sold around the $10 price point. The move wouldn’t be completely surprising given the fact that Microsoft has already developed a number of iOS apps, including the impressive Bing iPad app.

No detail is provided in the report about how powerful the iPad versions of Office will be — nor about what kind of interface would be used. A release date is not known either, but they could potentially launch in the first half of 2012.

The report also notes that a new version of Office is also in development for OS X Lion, with a release date of next year sometime. However typically the OS X releases of Office have experienced a one year delay after the Windows version is released. Consequently, with the next version of Office for Windows not expected until sometime next year, a 2012 release for the OS X version as well would buck the recent trend of Office releases. It should also be noted that Microsoft has already signalled that an update is coming for Office for Mac 2011 that will bring support for a number of Lion features.

[The Daily via The Verge]

Tell Me Again How iPad Demand Is Waning→

Tell Me Again How iPad Demand Is Waning

Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster surveyed a few Apple stores on Black Friday and found that iPad sales per hour were 68 percent higher than they were a year ago. On average, the stores Munster visited sold about 14.8 iPads per hour, up from 8.8 iPads per hour last year, more than enough to support the analyst’s projection of 13.5 million iPads sold in the December quarter.

If you’re still not convinced that Apple sales are stronger than ever based on Gene Munster’s findings, you only have to look as far as Chris Whitmore from Deutsche Bank whom checked in with over 200 stores on Black Friday. Of around the one hundred Apple Stores he got in touch with, 75% of the stores were sold out of the iPhone 4S by the end of Black Friday. In AT&T and Verizon stores? 50% sold out (Sprint apparently had adequate stock).

According to AppleInsider:

Whitmore also found strong iPad and Mac sales in his own surveys, and in particular noted that consumers showed strong support for Apple’s thin-and-light MacBook Air. He said the entry-level 11.6-inch MacBook Air, aided by a 10 percent discount on Black Friday, was the most popular option in the MacBook Air lineup lineup.

The 11.6-inch MacBook Air, on sale for $898 on Black Friday, is a comfortable size and a great all-around laptop. If you were in the market for a new laptop, the $101 discount on MacBooks was nice to take advantage of. Similarly, iPads starting at $458 (a $41 discount) pushed many of the right buttons for savvy shoppers.

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The iPad’s Next LCD Panels could be Supplied from Sharp

Between quality control issues at LG Display that were finally reported as resolved in September, and the ongoing patent litigations between Apple and Samsung, Sharp could become the next display vendor for Apple’s iPads.

When the iPad 2 launched in March, Apple quickly turned to Samsung and Chimei Innnolux as customers complained of light leakage around the bezel of LG-based displays. For much of the year, a combination of quality control issues and late shipments had Apple turning to these other manufacturers to pick up the slack. At the end of August, LG Display finally shipped its due quota of four million panels. The iPad 2 didn’t begin shipping on time until after July. While LG Display expects supply shipments to return to normal, the failures of LG Display to correct its manufacturing issues on time and the untrustworthiness of Samsung would have Apple looking for alternatives. Sharp could be the premium candidate for future iPad displays, such as next year’s rumored Retina Display for the iPad 3.

According the Wall Street Journal, Sharp has reported they’ll begin mass-producing smaller displays at the Kameyama No. 2 plant in Mie Prefecture by the end of the year, a plant previously used solely for the production of TV panels. WSJ reports that Sharp already supplies displays for Apple’s iPhones, and that they could become the premier supplier next year with the introduction of newer models. Apple’s alleged investments in Sharp’s panel manufacturing facilities in Japan lend some additional credence to this claim.

Samsung Chief Operating Officer and President Lee Jae-yong said in October he had discussions with Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook about extending Samsung’s deal to supply parts to Apple through 2013-2014.

Component deals in a competitive market, however, may keep Samsung in the loop. With proof of manufacturing capability and the technology already in place, Samsung is still a critical component of Apple’s supply chain. At the end of the fourth fiscal quarter in September, Apple reported 11.1 million iPads sold compared to 4.2 million iPads sold just a year ago.

[via WSJ]