... assuming Apple lets it into the App Store of course.

Via TechCrunch

Meet interesting people nearby and throughout the world. Collage is the coolest new application to hit the AppStore.

We think it is one of the most beautiful apps that we have done and we look forward to sharing it with you.

Nearby Mode

This unique feature uses the power of geolocation to show you interesting photos from your neighborhood. This is a photo experience you can’t miss!

http://tapulous.com/collage/ via Twitter

Say hello to Gmail voice and video chat: “Posted by Justin Uberti, Software Engineer


I’m a big user of Gmail chat. Being able to switch from email to chat as needed, all within the same app, is really great for productivity. But people can only type so fast, and even with our new emoticons, there are still some things that just can’t be expressed in a chat message.

That’s why today we’re launching voice and video chat—right inside Gmail. We’ve tried to make this an easy-to-use, seamless experience, with high-quality audio and video—all for free. All you have to do is download and install the voice and video plugin and we take care of the rest. And in the spirit of open communications, we designed this feature using Internet standards such as XMPP, RTP, and H.264, which means that third-party applications and networks can choose to interoperate with Gmail voice and video chat.

Once you install the plugin, to start a video chat, just click on the ‘Video & more’ menu at the bottom of your Gmail chat window, and choose ‘Start video chat.’ You’ll have a few seconds to make sure you look presentable while it’s ringing, and then you’ll see and hear your friend live, right from within Gmail. You can click the ‘pop-out’ iconto make the video larger, or click the fullscreen iconin the upper left-hand corner for a fully immersive experience. See this all in action in the video below:

Via Gmail Blog

During the briefing, Greg “Joz” Jozwiak , the marketing head for the iPhone and iPod, slid a small plastic and metal object over to me without comment. I put the thing in my hand and thought, “Huh. Metal prongs on one end – clearly power. A slot on the other side. Looks like a USB port. Plug, port. Plug, port.” My brain took a moment and then told me, “It’s a power adapter, dummy, just one smaller than you’ve ever seen before.”

And so it is. Exceedingly tiny, the adapter seems like it can barely contain the metal necessary to provide conductivity. It’s another aspect of Apple’s overall design philosophy. Even if another maker could design the iPhone’s industrial look and feel, they would still send you an ugly black brick to go with it.

Via TidBITS

The idea that you do not have to be a professional to create a good commercial is becoming widespread, in a trend known as consumer-generated content. Leave it to Apple to paraphrasing the company’s old slogan a bit think differently.

A television commercial for the new iPod Touch from Apple, scheduled to begin running on Sunday, 10-28 is being created by the longtime Apple agency, TBWA/Chiat/Day. It is based on a commercial that an 18-year-old English student and Apple devotee named Nick Haley, who says he got his first Macintosh when he was 3 created on his own one day last month.

His spot offers a fast-paced tour of the abilities of the iPod Touch, set to a song titled ‘Music Is My Hot, Hot Sex’ by a Brazilian band, CSS.

Mr. Haley said he was inspired to make the commercial by a lyric in the song, ‘My music is where I’d like you to touch.’

He based the visual elements on video clips about the iPod Touch and other new products, which can be watched on the Apple Web site (apple.com). He uploaded his commercial to YouTube, where it received four stars out of a possible five and comments that ranged from ‘That’s awesome,’ followed by 16 exclamation points, to ‘Makes me want to buy one and hack it.’

Via fscklog

Communications chipmaker Broadcom today revealed that it had developed the BCM21551, the first major cellphone processor to include both 3G cellular data access as well as other technologies in a single chip. The chip is ready for current and near-future mobile Internet access with connections to HSDPA networks (such as AT&T, Rogers, and some European networks) peaking at 7.2Mbps in ideal downloads, and the fast-upload HSUPA at up to 5.8Mbps; new, however, are the inclusion of a radio receiver for picking up calls as well as an FM radio tuner and an integrated Bluetooth module. These give any future phone using the chip true high-speed Internet connections without requiring a separate processor and the increased size or reduced battery life that often comes with the extra hardware, Broadcom says. Legacy access to GPRS, EDGE, and other legacy connections are also built in.

The Broadcom development may address a key complaint of Apple chief executive Steve Jobs, who in a European press conference said that 3G iPhones were held back primarily because of the poor battery life of current chipsets. Most 3G phones top at three hours of battery life when using the technology for enhanced calls or data versus the eight hours of calls for slower, EDGE-only hardware. However, Apple currently uses Infineon hardware and would likely have to switch suppliers entirely to use the Broadcom development in the iPhone.

Via Electronista

1) It doesn’t sync over the air with anything – neither .Mac nor your Mac.
2) You can’t use it as a data modem.
3) No A2DP Support.
4) The camera is pedestrian.
5) Apple’s own notion of standard connectors.

As of the first two ones, it’s true that I’m so used to sync my Phone via Bluetooth and from time to time using it as a data modem with my MacBook that I can hardly imagine living without it.

I often sync my Nokia N70 and my Mac via Bluetooth not really knowing if my Phone is in my bag or in the living room lying around. It’s also true that I don’t use the Nokia that much as a data modem, but when I need to there’s often no other solution (e.g. no Wi-Fi hotspot).

I really don’t care about the cameras quality, but at least it should be able to record video.

And regarding connectors, neither my 3G iPod nor my Nokias have had standard connectors (like mini USB), forcing me to carry around cables for syncing or charging. A standard USB for syncing (as you can’t sync via Bluetooth) and charging would be a great improvement.

My question would be if the issues regarding Bluetooth (syncing, A2DP support, usage as a data modem) could be ironed out updating the iPhones OS X or with a new firmware.

Have to ask Rui Carmo!

As John Gruber puts it, the big question is whether …

The biggest question, as I see it, is whether Apple plans to introduce iPods that are more or less just the iPod app from the iPhone (i.e. just music and video players), or iPods that are everything but phones, with Wi-Fi networking for email, web, and more.

I would love to see an iPod with Wi-Fi networking being able to do email and web as on the iPhone. Better yet, an iPhone that shipped officially in Europe.

What will come first? My bet: new iPods.

Apple recently convinced Google to start offering its YouTube videos in an H.264 format that can be accessed by both the iPhone and Apple TV. The obvious reason for moving to H.264 video rather than using Flash is that Flash requires decoding the video on a general purpose CPU using the Flash/On2 software codec.

Excluding Flash is a huge slap in the face of Adobe, which is pushing Flash as the basis of its AIR and Flex web application strategies. Adobe likes to advertise that nearly every PC has a Flash plugin installed. Suddenly, nearly every mobile that has access to the real Internet won’t have Flash, making it far less attractive across the board

Via Roughly Drafted

(Via fscklog)