The first Apple iPad commercial aired during the Oscars tonight. I can’t wait for the iPad to come out.

This also does explain why Steve Jobs was spotted by a spectator at the Oscars in the picture below. The iPad is getting closer, are you ready?

Source: http://waynesutton.net/

Technorati Tags: Apple, ipad, ipad commercial, oscars, steve jobs, Tech News

The Apple iPad has been announced for release on April 3rd by Apple. But if you visit the iPad page on Apple.com you notice at the bottom of the page it says “This device has not yet been authorized as required by the rules of the Federal Communications Commission. This device is not, and may not be, offered for sale or lease, or sold or leased, until authorization is obtained.” I can only assume that is why the iPad release date is set behind the announcement date.

None the less, the iPad release date, the date it will be in stores for purchasing is April 3rd and preorders start March 12th.

Technorati Tags: Apple, ipad, itablet, Tech News

Sky Master, created by iCoder is an iPhone application dedicated to providing its users incredible views of the sky based on their location. You can view the sky based on your location, you can see stars and planets as well as zoom in on them. You can select specific stars or search for specific stars or constellations and see their exact locations on the screen and more detailed pictures. This app will tell you what is out there.

Sky Master is a very interesting and innovative application with lots of potential. The only flaw that I have seen with their current release 2.0 is that it tends to crash sporadically. I will keep my eye on this app, because once the stability is fixed, the app will be even more valuable.

TekGoblin Reviews rating:

Official Feature list:

• View the entire night and day sky as viewed from anywhere on Earth with detailed information about planets, stars, constellations and galaxies.
• Use the time feature to fast-forward and or rewind time to see what sky would look like at any date and time. Watch animations of the stars and planets in motion with time exaggerated time feature which allows you to speed up movements millions of times for practical viewing. Lock-on to an object by tapping it and follow it through time.
• Uses GPS to determine your location or you can enter other coordinates manually.
• Use the solar system simulator to view planet’s positions relative to each other at any point in the past or future.
• Pan 360 degrees and zoom in on an area of interest as viewed from any point on earth. Sky Master also allows you to pan below the horizon to see objects out of your line of sight.
• Search for celestial objects by name.
• Setting panel gives you the ability to adjustable star luminosity, add/remove labels for planets and constellations, activate the star target feature (requires you to be fully zoomed in) which gives the azimuth and angular altitude of any point in the sky and allows you to activate observer mode which tints the entire screen in a shade of red as to preserve your night vision for real-time star viewing (without this mode your eyes would have to constantly adjust from the bright iPhone screen to the dark night sky).
• Includes additional imagery and information on well over 100 popular astronomy targets including clusters, galaxies, and other celestial formations. Just touch the marked points in the sky and press the info button for more details on the object.
• At only $2.99, Sky Master offers incredible value and puts millennia worth of collective data about the heavens at your fingertips.

Technorati Tags: Apple, astonomy, Education, icoder, iPhone, review, stars

I have written a lot of reviews for various iPhone apps so I thought I would put together some of my favorite ones in a list of Top 5.

1. SoundHound

First on my list is an app by Melodis called SoundHound. With the Soundhound app you are able to identify any song that may be playing around you easily. SoundHound is not just limited to listening to a song already playing, SoundHound can also identify a song that you are humming or singing as well. SoundHound also features, speak a title or artist as well as search for a specific title or artist. Some new features to SoundHound include Pandora stations based on what kind of music you like.
Official Features:

• Just hold your iPhone up to a speaker, and SoundHound names the tune in as little as five seconds!
• It even works if you sing or hum the melody, or if you do it while an iPod song plays – no more title or artist confusion for your iPod songs.
• Instant lyrics and lyrics text search for most songs – whether you find the song with SoundHound or have it in your iPod.
• The world’s first ever combined “My Music” and online search: when your SoundHound search results match a song in your iPod library, you’ll see an iPod icon right there to play your own version.
• Charts of the hottest songs, just grabbed songs, and SoundHound’s much-anticipated “Underplayed” list.
• Groundbreaking new design with instant access to previews, bios, top songs and YouTube videos.
• Sharing on email, Facebook and Twitter.

• See lyrics for most songs
• Play the song right from your iPod if you already have it
• See lyrics, bios and more for any iPod song
• See top songs for the artist, and which ones you already own on your iPod
• Buy the song in iTunes
• Share it over email, Facebook, or Twitter
• Check out the whole album, or the artist – including a bio, photos, similar artists, and top songs
• Play a free preview or youTube videos without leaving SoundHound
• Instantly launch a Pandora station based on any song or artist. (US only)
• Tour Dates – See when and where your new favorite band is playing.

View original review here: http://www.tekgoblin.com/1241/apps/apple-apps/soundhound/

2. AirYell

My second most favorite and most used app would be the AirYell app by Avantar. The AirYell app for the iPhone allows you to search Yellowpages.com for the phone numbers and locations of businesses around your or what you are searching for. AirYell is a very handy app, I use it all the time to find the phone number to somewhere I am going or want to go.

Official Feature List:

• Auto-detects your current location
• Finds local businesses and services, giving you a distance reading from where you stand
• A robust national business directory search
• Single tap to driving directions
• Single tap to call option

Original Review: http://www.tekgoblin.com/490/apps/apple-apps/airyell-yellowpages-app/

3. RedLaser

My third most favorite app is RedLaser by Occipital. The RedLaser app for the iPhone allows you to scan barcodes where ever you are! Say if you are in the supermarket and want to see if you can get the same thing somewhere else cheaper, just scan it with RedLaser. RedLaser will then compare the prices to competitors online. This app comes in very handy when you are trying to save money.

RedLaser Official Feature list:

• Scans UPC, EAN, UPC-E, EAN-8
• US and UK Searches for prices with TheFind Product Search as well as Google Product Search
• Local search powered by TheFind (US Only)
• Email a list of products
• Send barcodes as email attachment
• Search ANY website using a custom URL
• Automatic search localization for USD, EUR, and GDP
• Multiple scan mode for quicker entry
• Search local libraries for books (US)
• Exclusively scans new Repo Men movie posters

Original Review: http://www.tekgoblin.com/1162/apps/apple-apps/redlaser/

4. Personal Assistant by Pageonce

My fourth app for the iPhone will be the Personal Assistant app by Pageonce. With the Personal Assistant app, you can virtually do anything! The Personal Assistant app allows you to access all of your bank accounts, shopping accounts like Costco, Netflix, etc, and more… The Personal Assistant app is just a really good choice if you want an app that makes everything easy.

Official Feature List:

• Monitor banking, credit card transactions and investment accounts
• Keep track of frequent flyer miles, travel itineraries and flight information in real-time
• Track cell phone minutes and get reminders when your bills are due
• Stay on top of bill due dates and expiration dates
• Guard against fraudulent activity
• View your Netflix queue, eBay bids, and view feeds from your social networking sites

Original Review: http://www.tekgoblin.com/2018/apps/apple-apps/personal-assistant-by-pageonce/

5. Eliminate

The Eliminate app from Ngmoco, is my final app for this list. Eliminate is what I believe to be the best FREE first person shooter on the iPhone to date. Eliminate has stunning graphics and awesome game play. Eliminate features global multiplayer competition over 3G or Wifi. Eliminate is relatively easy to use on your iPhone or iPod Touch, it may take some practice but soon you will be fragging with the best of them.

Original Review: http://www.tekgoblin.com/596/apps/apple-apps/eliminate/

I hoped you liked our first Top 5 list, please let us know what you think by posting a comment below or sharing this post with friends, Thanks from TekGoblin Reviews!

Technorati Tags: Apple, favorite, favorite apps, iPhone, iphone app, ipod, tech, Tech News, tekgoblin, top 5

Today, Apple announced that the iTunes store has hit 10 Billion Songs Sold. The 10 billionth song that was downloaded was “Guess Things Happen That Way” by Johnny Cash. The person that downloaded the 10 billionth song was awarded a $10,000 iTunes gift card for being soo darn lucky. The person that got the card was Louie Sulcer of Woodstock, Georgia. According to WikipediaWikipedia Louie got a call from Steve Jobs himself and got the surprise.

Eddie Crue, Apples vice president of internet affairs said:

“We’re grateful to all of our customers for helping us reach this amazing milestone,”

“We’re proud that iTunes has become the number one music retailer in the world, and selling 10 billion songs is truly staggering.”

The Apple iTunes music store opened on April 28, 2003.

History of the iTunes Music store (Source: Wikipedia)

• 100 million songs sold: Summer, 2004

(Kevin Britten of Hays, Kansas, bought the 100 millionth song, and the twenty-year-old was given a call from Steve Jobs congratulating him.)^[32]

• 125 million songs sold: September 1, 2004^[33]
• 150 million songs sold: October 14, 2004^[34]
• 200 million songs sold: December 16, 2004

(Ryan Alekman of Belchertown, Massachusetts, USA, bought the 200 millionth song, which was one of the tracks on U2’s digital box set The Complete U2.)^[35]

• 250 million songs sold: January 24, 2005^[36]
• 300 million songs sold: March 2, 2005^[37]
• 400 million songs sold: May 10, 2005^[38]

On July 5, 2005 Apple announced a promotion counting down to half a billion songs sold.^[39]

• 500 million songs sold: July 18, 2005

(Amy Greer of Lafayette, IndianaIndiana Jones reviews, USA, bought the 500 millionth song, “Mississippi Girl” by Faith Hill.)^[40]

• 850 million songs sold: January 10, 2006^[41]
• 1 billion songs sold: February 23, 2006

(Alex Ostrovsky of West Bloomfield, Michigan, bought the billionth song, “Speed of Sound” by Coldplay.^[42] He later got a call from Steve Jobs with the good news that the sixteen-year-old was getting ten iPods, an iMac, a $10,000 music gift certificate, and a scholarship established in his name at the Juilliard School.)^[32]

• 1.5 billion songs sold: September 12, 2006^[43]
• 2 billion songs sold: January 10, 2007^[43]
• 2.5 billion songs sold: April 9, 2007^[44]
• 3 billion songs sold: July 31, 2007^[45]
• 4 billion songs sold: January 15, 2008
• 5 billion songs sold: June 19, 2008^[46]
• 6 billion songs sold: January 6, 2009^[47]
• 8 billion songs sold: July 21, 2009
• 8.6 billion songs sold: September 9, 2009
• 10 billion songs sold: February 24, 2010^[48]

Technorati Tags: 10 billion, Apple, itunes, music, Tech News

Who would have thought that jumping would be soo much fun? Doodle Jump is a game for the iPhone that will keep you glued to your iPhone till your battery dies. Doodle Jump is a relatively simple game, all you have to do is jump from platform to platform avoiding monsters and obstacles to reach the highest height and score. A unique and awesome feature to Doodle Jump is that while you are jumping you will see marks on the side of the screen that show other users highest scores. By seeing other users high scores it gives you something to strive for. Oh, did I mention that the game gets harder and more challenging the higher that you get? I do recommend you download Doodle Jump if you are looking for a fun and addictive game, its only &0.99 so download it already!

TekGoblin Reviews rating:

About Lima Sky (Creators):
Lima Sky is a New York based studio dedicated to creating entertaining and educational, well designed iPhone apps, with a special focus on fun apps for kids. We have been present on the iTunes App Store since July 2008. Eight of our apps have been featured by Apple on the App Store and many are constantly in the top 25 of their categories. Doodle Jump has reached the #1 Top Paid Games spot in the US and the #1 Top Paid App spot in the UK, Australia, Germany, Holland, Sweden, and Austria; and AniMatch made it to the #1 spot in kids games category in the US, Germany and France.

Technorati Tags: Apple, doodlejump, featured, Games, iPhone, lima sky

Apple is going to release its next maintenance patch to Snow Leopard being 10.6.3 very soon. From my sources I have heard that 10.6.3 fixed the 802.1x authentication issue with WPA enterprise. The new update did not just cover the airport, but covered many other things as well. The airport actually was not mentioned in the notes, but developers were asked to test the airport. This will be a welcome fix if it does actually fix the airport issue discussed above we have been having this kind of trouble here at Purdue University since 10.5.8.

10.6.3 Feature List:

Features

• Performance improvements for 64-bit Logic
• Addresses compatibility issues with OpenGL-based applications
• Includes changes to QuickTime X that increase reliability, improve compatibility and enhance security.
• Improves printing reliability and compatibility with 3rd party printers
• Respects the DNS server ordering as specified in Network Preferences
• Addresses an issue that causes background message colors to display incorrectly in Mail when scrolling
• Resolves an issue that prevented files with the # or & in their names from opening in Rosetta
• Resolves an issue that prevented files from copying to Windows shares
• Resolves an issue that caused machines using BTMM and the Bonjour Sleep Proxy to wake unexpectedly

Technorati Tags: 802.1x, airport, Apple, macintosh, snow leopard, Tech News

TekGoblin Reviews rating:

iNet for the iPhone or iPod touch will allow you to see what hosts and services are available and running on your network. iNet allows you to scan the network that you are connected to for anything that is connected to it. When you find a particular host, you can run a port scan on it to see what ports are open, iNet will also display what Bonjour services are running and able to connect to. Bonjour services are zero configuration networking  services for connecting to devices such as printers.

The iNet app is really easy to use and I think it is very hand to see what is available on your network. iNet allows you to see what network vulnerabilities are visible on your own network from your mobile device.

The following features are available with iNet:

• Scan Network
• Ping
• Bonjour Browser
• Wake on LAN
• Portscan
• Device Info

Below is the official description of services from the iNet official site:

Scan network

iNet shows the devices connected to your local network, e. g. computer or router, along with their name, IP and vendor. You can find out the name, vendor and IP of the connected devices as well as the kind and number of running Bonjour services on that particular device. You can also perform a classic portscan on the choosen device.

The technology used in iNet scans on a very low level, therefore you even find machines that don`t want to be found, e. g. a computer running in stealth mode.

Most items are displayed by their real name so that you can easily identify what is going on in the network you are scanning, which computers are connected or which services are running. For most Apple Macintosh Computers you even see the particular computer model.

The last 10 scan results are saved automatically. In addition you can save your scan results and name them. A send scan per mail is available too.

Ping

Ping is a computer network tool used to test whether a particular host is reachable across an IP network. The ping section in iNet enables you to find out wether an IP exists (if its ping service is enabled; otherwise you will get no response ). For your convenience we added a bookmark function to store often needed addresses.

Bonjour-Browser

Bonjour or “zero configuration networking” is a widely used industry standard for connecting computer and computer devices ,e.g. printers. The Bonjour-Browser in iNet scans the connected local network for Bonjour services, detecting any hardware that ist connected via the Bonjour protocol (e. g. computer, router, printer, …) and any software running Bonjour services, e. g. iTunes® or Filemaker®.

Wake on lan

WOL is a wakeup tool for computer connected by an ethernet cable to a local network or to the internet. The outstanding feature of our implementation is its easiness of usage and the simple setup process. A bookmark function for often used hosts is integrated also. For more information see iNet WOL, the stand-alone tool for WOL.

Portscan

Applications on devices communicate with the outside world through so called TCP-Ports. iNet detects whether ports are open or closed.

A quick portscan is available after performing a network scan. Here iNet checks TCP ports in the range of 1 to 1000 plus a number of standard ports that are often used.

A sophisticated portscan is available via the main menu of iNet. You can select from predefined portlists, enter port ranges and single ports. The ports to scan can be saved per device. For all found open ports the service using this port is displayed by its real name if available.

Device info

The device info in iNet shows some information related to your iPhone or iPod touch, e. g. its name or its IP.

Technorati Tags: Apple, inet, inet pro, iPhone, ipod, network security, network vulnerabilities, security, technology

Now that the iPad has been announced, here are the Tech Specs from Apple. I will list their specs and then tell you my thoughts.

Display

• 9.7-inch (diagonal) LED-backlit glossy widescreen Multi-Touch display with IPS technology
• 1024-by-768-pixel resolution at 132 pixels per inch (ppi)
• Fingerprint-resistant oleophobic coating

Size and weight

Technorati Tags: Apple, ipad, ipad tech specs, iPhone, ipod, itablet, itunes

TekGoblin Reviews rating:

iFaceLaugh is one of those apps that you can just have fun with, and have fun using it with friends. The iFaceLaugh app allows you to record your best laughs and then compete with your friends for the best laugh. You can compete with your friends online with the app or send your laughs to family and friends.

The bonus game which allows you to compete to best mimic the current laugh selected is pretty fun and can be addicting.

Now iFaceLaugh may not have a practical use, but if you and your friends are bored and want to have some fun, try iFaceLaugh.

Official Feature List:

• Embed recorded laughs or other sounds into photos
• Collect and send “facelaughs” to family and friends
• Play all facelaughs at once
• Includes a great laugh imitation game called laugh a laugh

Technorati Tags: app store, Apple, gadgets, iPhone, ipod touch, itouch, itunes, review, Social Networkng, technology

Apple released the VOIP restriction on iPhones recently, this is proven also by the creation of a new iPhone app called iCall on the iTunes store. What will this bring? Googletalk anyone?

Source: -Engadget

Apple lifts VoIP over cellular restrictions in new iPhone SDK

Technorati Tags: 3g voip, Apple, iPhone, itunes, voip

Now that we have all seen the iPad, what are your thoughts? Did Apple nail it, or is it a flop? I personally believe they made a great product but failed to understand what we really wanted from it. I wanted to see some sort of multitasking, a way to connect to a projector, or even have the OSX o/s on it.

iPad at Tekgoblin.com

What are your thoughts?

Technorati Tags: Apple, apple tablet, ipad