The New Windows 8 Logo

This is the new Windows 8 logo. Plain and simple.

And downright boring!

On the other hand, here is Apple's new OSX Mountain Lion logo:

 

 Heck! He looks bored too! LOL!

Windows On Your iPad App

Want to run Windows including your favorite MS Office applications like Word and Excel on your iPad? How about running PC Games like Minecraft and Call of Duty? There's an app for that and it's free--you don't even have to own Windows or buy one.

The new OnLive app, which will be in the iTunes store on January 12, 2012,  turns your iPad into a powerful cloud PC which streams a Windows desktop onto the the iPad along with MS Office applications.

iPad users will now be able to securely view and edit cloud-hosted documents with full-featured Windows desktop applications like Microsoft Office, just as if they were using a local high-performance PC.

Multi-touch gestures respond instantly and smoothly, while HD videos, animations and PC video games—-never before usable on a remote desktop—-play seamlessly.

The app offers multi-touch gesture control that responds instantly, but there's also a full on-screen Windows keyboard and handwriting recognition.

--Steve Perlman, OnLive's CEO

The free verison of the OnLive Desktop app comes with 2 GB of secure cloud storage and access to a cloud-based Windows 7 desktop pre-populated with Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint, plus several utilities and touch games.

A 'Pro' version will offer 50GB of Cloud storage, web browsing and more PC applications such as games.

Untethered iOS 5.0.1 Jailbreak Now Available

iOS fans rejoice!!! @pod2g has created an untethered 5.0.1 jailbreak for non-A5 devices! @pod2g recently decided to push the button on a release for all devices except the new iPhone4S and iPad2. @pod2g’s untether jailbreak for iOS 5.1 involves two separate exploits and a few other “tricks."

A few days ago, @pod2g gave the untether jailbreak for iOS 5.0.1 to both the iPhone devteam and the chronic devteam. They’ve put it into redsn0w 0.9.10 and PwnageTool, and the chronic devteam put it into a Cydia package (the same set of exploits is in all three).

CLICK HERE ON TO GET THE UNTETHERED JAILBREAK AND  HOW TO JAILBREAK YOUR iDEVICE.

The untethered jailbreak for iOS 5.0.1 works only on iPhone3GS, iPhone4, iPhone4-CDMA, iPad1, iPod touch 3G, iPod touch 4G while @pod2g looks for a way to extend this to A5 devices because those devices cannot use geohot’s limera1n exploit to inject the untether, they require exploits above and beyond those used for this release. Keep following pod2g on twitter or his blog for any progress reports!

CLICK HERE ON TO GET THE UNTETHERED JAILBREAK AND  HOW TO JAILBREAK YOUR iDEVICE.

40 Most Downloaded iPhone Apps (They Work On iPad & iPod Too!)

Do you have or plan to buy an iPhone, iPad or iPod but don't have any idea what apps you want to download? Here's 40 of the world's most downloaded apps for starters:

ANGRY BIRDS
FACEBOOK
iBOOKS

SKYPE
TALKING TOM CAT
TWITTER

SHAZAM
GOOGLE MAPS
GOOGLE SEARCH

EBUDDY
YOUTUBE
GOOGLE EARTH

BUMP
TAP ZOO
WHATS APP

WORDS WITH FRIENDS
SMURFS VILLAGE
VIBER

TAP TAP REVENGE

PANDORA

THE WEATHER CHANNEL

PAPER TOSS
PLANTS VS ZOMBIES
CUT THE ROPE

FRUIT NINJA
NINJUMP
ZOMBIE FARM

GROUPON
MEGA JUMP
DOODLE JUMP

SOLITAIRE
GOOGLE TRANSLATE
NETFLIX

WINDOWS LIVE MESSENGER
INSTAGRAM
TRAFFIC RUSH

GOOGLE VOICE SEARCH
TINY WINGS
EMOJI

 

iHANDY FLASHLIGHT

There you go! Enjoy! Oh, by the way, sometimes iApp Developers have promos for paid apps and give discounts or give them away for free but for a limited time. I use AppShopper for these kind of promotions and to discover new handy apps.

How about you? What's you favorite iOS app? Share it with us!

IPhone 4S Arrives In Saudi Arabia (Prices Available)

Despite setbacks to its battery life and issues with their Siri technology, and also despite the influx of Android smartphones, the iPhone 4S is still one of the most coveted smartphones in the Middle East. Well the wait in Saudi Arabia is almost over as Mobily, one of the leading telecommunications companies, has just announced that it will start officially distributing the most anticipated phone of 2011, the iPhone 4S on December 16, 2011. Start forming lines!!! Prices Below.

iPhone Mini Coming Soon!

Phone users on tighter budgets have been shunning the iPhones in favor of less expensive models which run on Google's Android software and could face a lot more competition what with Nokia teaming up with Microsoft.

So, in a bid to further strengthen its hold on the smartphone market and also slow down Google's progress as the biggest software provider with its Android platform, Apple is working on a new version of the iPhone which will be smaller and cheaper than the current iterations of the iPhone.

According to sources at Apple, the company already has a prototype which is projected to cost as little as $200 without a contract, compared with the latest iPhone at $625.

It is not the first time that Apple has offered customers cheaper alternatives of their products.

In 2004, when sales of the original iPod music player were at $299 and more, the company introduced the $249 iPod Mini, which became a bestseller.

Apple is hoping for the same success for the, dare I say, iPhone Mini. Would you buy one?

How To Jailbreak iOS 4.2.1 On iPhone, iPad, Or iPod Touch

Jailbreak iOS 4.2.1 on iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch at your own risk:

1. Download the redsn0w software: Mac or Windows version (more mirrors are listed on the Dev Team blog)

2. Upgrade to iTunes 10.1 if you haven't already.

3. Install the iOS 4.2.1 firmware via iTunes as usual.

4. Run the redsn0w software executable.

5. Redsn0w will ask you to select your IPSW file for your current firmware. Point it to one of the following, depending on your OS:

• Mac OS X: /~/Library/iTunes/iPad Software Updates (or iPhone/iPod Software Updates, as the case may be)
• Windows 7 or Vista: C:\[username]\AppData\Roaming\Apple Computer\iTunes\iPad Software Updates (or iPhone/iPod Software Updates)
• Windows XP: C:\Documents and Settings\[username]\Application Data\Apple Computer\iTunes\iPad Software Updates (or iPhone/iPod Software Updates)

6. Redsn0w should now say that the IPSW file was successfully identified. On the following screen, check "Install Cydia" then click "Next."

7. With the iOS device powered off and plugged into the computer, click "Next" again.

8. Redsn0w will now provide instructions on how to put your device into DFU mode. This is a combination of key presses, that are as follows: Hold the Power button for 1 second, then without releasing it, hold the Home button for 10 seconds. Finally, release Power but keep holding Home for 15 seconds.

9. One in DFU mode, the jailbreak will proceed automatically.

The iPhone Dev Team's redsn0w jailbreak tool is what's known as a "tethered" jailbreak, at least on newer Apple devices. This means is that if your phone ever loses power or you need to reboot your device, you have to connect it to your computer (i.e. "tether" it) in order to keep the device jailbroken. Failure to do so will result in the device resetting to an un-jailbroken state. If, for some reason, you aren't able to reboot the device while tethered, you can still recover your jailbreak by connecting it again to your computer and then booting it using redsn0w.

Redsn0w jailbreak works on the iPhone 4, iPod Touch 3 and 4, iPad and iPod Touch 2 (MC model) it will be tethered. On iPhone 3G, iPhone 3GS (older bootroom), and iPod Touch 2 (older model) it's not tethered.

[Source: readwriteweb.com]

Apple iOS 4.2 Available Today

Apple has announced that iOS 4.2 for the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch will be available today.

Steve Jobs was quoted as saying “iOS 4.2 makes the iPad a completely new product, just in time for the holiday season. Once again, the iPad with iOS 4.2 will define the target that other tablets will aspire to, but very few, if any, will ever be able to hit.”

What's new in IOS 4.2:

• Brings over 100 new features from iOS 4.0, 4.1 and 4.2 to iPad including Multitasking, Folders, Unified Inbox, Game Center, AirPlay and AirPrint
• The Find My iPhone (or iPad or iPod touch) feature is now free to use without a MobileMe subscription
• The ability to rent TV episodes directly to iPad
• AirPlay is a new feature for streaming music, video and photos wirelessly from iPad, iPhone and iPod touch to Apple TV
• Mail now features a Unified Inbox, fast inbox switching and a threaded message view

Continue Reading “Apple iOS 4.2 Available Today”  »»

My Encounter With The iPad

Just 'received' an iPad--specifically the 32Gb with 3G version--for review. If you're reading this, then you're probably still wondering whether you should dole out $499 or more for this piece of Apple ingenuity.

In my brief encounter with the iPad, I hope to tell you my impressions on the iPad. After reading this, I hope you'll have a better idea of what the iPad brings to the table and if you should make the decision to purchase one. Comments for this article are most welcome!

I. First-hand Impressions.

The iPad is sleek and beautiful to look at and touch. The interface was fast and responsive as usual with no lag and applications opened seamlessly.

The display is something to behold. With a resolution of 1024X768, the interface, pictures, videos, everything looks sharp and colorful. Even in direct sunlight and a good amount of shadows and reflections, the iPad's display did quite OK especially when viewing an image or video with bright colors.

In the 7 days that I messed around with the iPad, playing games and videos, reading some Hardy Boys e-books, so far the 7-inch display hasn't strained my eyes, but my hands have been from all the zooming in and out.

The audio quality on the iPad though was kinda, how should I say it... no oomph! It's loud enough to hear in a quiet environment, but, even in maximum speaker volume, the sound begins to lose steam in a semi-noisy environment. The sound was awesome on my Nokia Bluetooth headset though! Of course, the iPad also has a 3.5" audio connector for use with wired headphones. If you begin to experience ear strain, use a speaker dock or amplified speakers for maximum sound output.

The iPad is light at 1.5lbs to 1.6lbs (3G) or more than half of a kilogram. It get's heavier after about 15 minutes of firmly holding it... or was that my hand just tiring out? ^^,

With the iPad, nothing feels cheap. Of course, it doesn't come cheap either.

II. What I Disliked about the iPad

What's not to like about the Apple iPad? For first impressions, it's almost perfect. But up close and personal? No, not really.

For starters, Apple boasts 250,000 apps on its app store. I found out though that only .04 percent of that is actually compatible with the 7-inch screen. Don't get me wrong, all of those free and paid 250,000 apps work on the iPad--it's just that they were either made for the iPhone or iPod so the screen size for most of the apps are the same as the iPhone and iPod. The iPad does provide a zoom feature but by the time the app fills the screen, the app gets so pixelized, you'll feel like you traveled in time to the days of  playing Super Mario on the NES. I didn't enjoy playing Angry Birds on the iPad.

Another thing which I found lacking--and I think most people would agree with me on this--is the lack of a front facing camera. For all the vanity that goes with the iPad, a camera should have been included to flaunt it even more! Rumor is though, that Apple is going to include a camera in it's next iteration of the iPad.

No Adobe Flash. Having Adobe Flash on the iPad or on all Apple products is very important because much of the Internet's rich media like online streaming, graphics, and even whole websites, is encoded in Adobe Flash. When I switched to the PC to watch my favorite TV shows on OnlineReplays, I totally forgot about the iPad until the following day. For such a media-centric device, not supporting Adobe Flash was pure disappointment.

I also still can't connect to my company email too. It's weird that I can configure Outlook Web Access on an iPhone yet fail on the iPad. If you have a solution on how to configure Outlook Web Access on the iPad, I would appreciate it very much.

III. What I Liked about the iPad.

I was totally impressed with the long battery life of the iPad. Even with WiFi continuously on, audio blaring on the built-in speakers, chatting, browsing, and gaming, the battery lasted for days . The Mobily micro-SIM was not yet activated prior to this writing so I didn't have the chance to test out the 3G but I guess with the Wifi continuously on, it was enough to gauge battery life.

As much as I disliked that only .04% of apps at the Apple store were for the iPhone or iPod and of which half were probably junk, there were some jewels among the rubbish--and I was just skimming the surface of apps. Apps will make or break the iPad. Here are my top five.

1. VLC Player
It's the saving grace of watching videos on the iPad. I'm pretty sure you know what I mean. You've got all of these movies and TV shows saved on your hard drive but find out you have to convert them to the .mov format first before you can watch them on your iPad. Not anymore with the VLC Player. Just copy the file into your iPad and watch away.

2. RSS Readers and Newspaper Feeds
For bloggers who need to stay updated on current events, RSS Readers and Newspaper feeds are a must. That is why a lot of app developers have taken advantage of the capabilities of the iPad and have created a lot of them. They all work the same, while others have some special features.

3. Team Viewer
With more than a 100 million users, TeamViewer connects to any PC or server around the world within a few seconds. I can remote control my PC at home or provide technical support using the Team Viewer app.

4. iBooks
All my life, I've loved reading books. There's a different sensation when your brain translates words and stories into images and scenes in your mind. The iPad fits the bill, and like I said earlier, the iPad is easy on the eyes so reading is a blast on the iPad. The Kindle (If you can't beat 'em, join 'em) app works similarly to iBooks, but has a direct access to Amazon, wherein thousands of books can be bought and downloaded for reading on the iPad.

5. Dropbox
Do you constantly forget your USB at home. I sure do and it gets frustrating. Fortunately there's Dropbox, a service that uses the cloud to enable its users to store and share files and folders across the Internet using file synchronization. And it works like a normal folder. Just copy the file into the Dropbox folder and that file becomes accessible to you or to others you share it with anywhere with an Internet connection.

Of course, the apps are what defines the iPad so it is up to you which apps you want installed. If you want more reviews on iPad apps, TechRadar provided their top 130 HERE.

IV. Conclusion:

The hardware, as is with most Apple devices, is manufactured to perfection. Albeit with the iPad, I think Steve Jobs and the Apple team could have done more with the operating system like support Adobe Flash.

So, do I like the iPad? Yes. Do I want an iPad? Yes. Will I buy an iPad? No. Do I have the money to buy an iPad? Yes. And still I won't buy it. Why? iPad 2.