martes, 27 de noviembre de 2012

iPad By Davis: “Where are the international iPad minis with LTE?” plus 14 more

iPad By Davis: “Where are the international iPad minis with LTE?” plus 14 more

Where are the international iPad minis with LTE?

Posted: 26 Nov 2012 09:08 PM PST

Where are the international iPad minis with LTE?

Literally seconds after Apple opened pre-orders for the iPad mini I bought a 32GB model in white. That was on October 26. A month ago. Not only hasn't it arrived yet, it hasn't even shipped yet. U.S. iPad minis + LTE began arriving weeks ago but international iPad minis + LTE aren't being treated equally. That's nothing new. Apple famously (or infamously) delayed the release of the original iPad and iPad 2 almost a month outside the U.S. But with the iPad mini, the international Wi-Fi only versions were available for delivery and purchase day and date with U.S. versions. It's only the LTE (or cellular, if your carrier doesn't support LTE) versions that seem to be MIA.

The iPad Mini Wi-Fi + cellular was advertised as available to ship in late November. That now leaves 4 days, and and means time from pre-order to fulfillment will be over a month. Even at US$459, the not-cheap starting price for a 16GB iPad mini, Apple might be having trouble keeping up with demand. (Which should neatly explain why there's no "cheap" iPad mini -- Apple's not targeting price-concious customers, and doing so would only make a bad problem worse anyway.)

It took Apple an embarrassingly, outrageously, incomprehensibly long time to get Lightning cables and adapters into stores. During that painful period, early device adopters were left without connectivity, sometimes without even charging solutions for their brand new iPhone 5 handsets (especially those who lost or damaged the original, lone Lightning cable that came in the box). It was a rare and disappointing gaff by a company that's usually the best in the business when it comes to getting product onto shelves.

The lack of international iPad mini + LTE shipments is nowhere near as bad as that. Apple still has a few more days left in November to at least ship the devices. And to get iTunes 11 done, and a few more weeks to get the new, wafer-thin iMacs out the door.

But that's a lot of product to leave to the last Holiday minute.

Anyone else outside the U.S. order an iPad mini + LTE? If so, what's your shipment status?

How to call, message, and email your contacts using Siri

Posted: 26 Nov 2012 07:29 PM PST

Complete guide to Siri commands for Phone, Messages, Email, Contacts, and more

Siri isn't just another voice control system, it remembers context and it can understand relationships. That means, for example, you can tell Siri to call your wife's iPhone, and Siri will know who that is and which phone number to dial. Not only that, Siri can send iMessages or SMS, and even email any of your friends, family, or co-workers. No matter how you like to communicate, Siri makes it incredibly easy to stay in touch.

How to establish contact relationships with Siri

Siri will need to either learn who your wife, best friend, boss, or other relationships are before it can associate them with the proper contact. You can edit the Contact to enter that information, but what fun is that? The easier, faster way is simply to tell Siri what your relationships are.

  1. Press and hold down the Home button to activate Siri.
  2. Tell Siri what the relationship is. For example: "Matthew Kazmucha is my brother". (Make sure you say the name exactly as it appears in your contacts.)
  3. Say Yes or tap the Yes button when Siri asks you to confirm.
  4. Siri will confirm that the relationship has been added.

This works great for unique relationships but for relatives that have simliar titles, it can be a problem. If you have two daughters for instance, you'll need to assign them a differently for Siri to differentiate between them. You can, of course, use things like "oldest daughter" or "youngest daughter".

How to manually add relationship data to Contacts

When Siri does get confused by multiple relationships, it is possible to manually add in the proper data in your Contact card so that Siri can make use of it.

  1. Launch the Contacts app (located in the Utilities folder by default) or launch the Phone app and tap on the Contacts tab.
  2. Tap on the name of the contact you want to edit.
  3. Tap the Edit button in the top right-hand corner.
  4. Tap on theRelationship Field near the bottom.
  5. Tap on the relationship type in the list.
  6. Tap the Blue arrow and choose the contact you'd like to add to that relationship.
  7. Tap the Done button in the upper right hand corner.

Siri will now remember that relationship and saying things like "Call my brother" will now cause Siri to call the contact connected tp that relationship.

Privacy warning

Any relationships you add to your Contact card are now part of that card which means that if you email or message someone your contact card, all of your relationships will be part of that information. You may want to create a second, relationship-free Contact card to share with others.

How to get contact information with Siri

Siri can quickly find you the Contact information for anyone on your iPhone -- far more quickly than tapping, scrolling, and visually picking them out typically allows.

  1. Press and hold down the Home button to activate Siri.
  2. Tell Siri who's contact information you want to see. For example: "Leanna Lofte" or "Show me Leanna Lofte's information" or "When is Leanna Lofte's birthday?"
  3. Siri will present you with the information you've requested. If you have more than one contact with the same name, Siri will just ask you to clarify which one you need information for before displaying it.

How to call a contact with Siri

Siri can place calls to someone by name, or simply by relationship, and to any phone number you have. It works especially well when driving.

  1. Press and hold the Home button to activate Siri.
  2. Tell Siri who you want to call. For example: "Call mom".
  3. If the contact has more than one phone number, Siri will ask you which number you want to call. If you know you want to call to someone's work or mobile phone, you can make it faster by saying "Call mom at work" or "Call mom's iPhone".
  4. Siri will then place the call

How to send an SMS or iMessage with Siri

Siri can quickly and conveniently compose SMS and iMessages either to a single or multiple recipients. Just like calls, it's especially useful when driving.

  1. Press and hold the Home button to activate Siri.
  2. Tell Siri you want to send a text message, and to make it even faster, to whom. For example: "Text Heather I'll be late for dinner" or "text mom and dad that I'm home safe".
  3. If you don't say the contact or relationship immediately, Siri will ask you for a phone number, contact name, or iMessage-associated email address.
  4. Wait for Siri to confirm the content of your text.
  5. Tell Siri to "Send" your text, or tap Yes or Send.

If you're not happy with the message, instead of confirming it, say "change it" to re-dictate it, or say "cancel" to abandon it.

How to send an email using Siri

Messaging with Siri is not limited to just sending text messages; Siri can also send emails, both to individuals and to multiple recipients.

  1. Press and hold the Home button to activate Siri.
  2. Tell Siri you want to send an email and, to save time, to whom. For example: "Send an email to Leanna" or "Email Chris and Bobby".
  3. If the contact has more than one email address, Siri will ask you which address. If you know you are sending an email to someone's work address, you can make it faster by saying "Send an email to Leanna at work."
  4. Tell Siri the subject of the email. For example: "Apps" or "Vacation plans"
  6. Tell Siri the contents of the email.
  7. Wait for Siri to confirm the content of your text.
  8. Tell Siri to "Send" your email, or tap Yes or Send.

If you're not happy with the email, instead of confirming it, say "change subject", "add", or "change message". You can also tell Siri to "cancel" to abandon the email completely.

How to get more help with Siri

If you still need help with setting up or using Siri with your iPhone Contacts, or any other Siri feature, head on over to our Siri Forum and ask away!

Forums: Do not disturb disabling itself, What password apps do you prefer?

Posted: 26 Nov 2012 07:14 PM PST

From the iMore Forums

Found an interesting article you want to share with iMore? Have a burning question about that feature you just can't figure out? There is ALWAYS more happening just a click away in the forums. You can always head over and join in the conversation, search for answers, or lend your expertise to other members of our community. You check out some of the threads below:

If you're not already a member of the iMore Forums, register now!

DreamWorks Dash n Drop for iPhone and iPad review

Posted: 26 Nov 2012 04:06 PM PST

DreamWorks Dash n Drop for iPhone and iPad review

The Holidays are in full swing which means its time to start adding some of that Holiday cheer to your iPhone and iPad in the form of fun Christmas games and apps! DreamWorks Dash n Drop one great such game. Dash n Drop is a "one tap" arcade game (similar to Tiny Wings) based off the new DreamWorks animation Rise of the Guardians where you must help Santa deliver gifts while collecting elves and coins and avoiding evil Nightmare creatures.

The controls for Dash n Drop are super easy: tap the screen to make Santa's sleigh go down and let go to make it go up -- and that's it! There are no other control associated with Dash n Drop. But don't let the easy controls fool you -- Dash n Drop is actually very challenging!

The goal of the game is to collect and deliver as many gifts as possible to the big cities in USA, Europe, and Asia in the allotted amount of time. The more presents you deliver, the more points you earn and the more Belief is spread. The progress bar at the top of the screen represents Belief so you can see how you're during while you play. In addition to points, you will earn more stars as you build Belief. In order to advance to the next city, you must reach at least 1 star.

As you fly around gathering and delivering gifts, you will also encounter coins, helpful power-ups, and evil Nightmare enemies. The Nightmare enemies will steal your presents and slow you down, so you should do everything in your power to avoid them at all costs! This is easier said than done, though, and I will admit to getting very angry on multiple occasions because it was seemingly impossible to avoid some of them (I still believe some cases are impossible). Of course, this just draws me into the game more by suckering me into trying over and over because my competitive nature must get it right.

In addition to power-ups that immediately help you during gameplay, you will also collect coins while playing Dash n Drop. These can be used to purchase more powers and abilities that will help you progress through the game. As with many games with in-game currency, you can also purchase coins with real money as an in-app purchase ranging from $0.99 to $19.99.

One of the fun things about Dash n Drop is that there are Daily Goals to try to achieve each day. If you complete all three goals, you get a reward. For example, today I was awarded 3 elves which contributed to unlocking new items in the Workshop like powers, boosts, and guardians that can be purchased with coins.

The only real complaint I have with Dash n Drop is that its UI forces you to visit certain sections like the Workshop even if you don't want to. The above screenshot comes up quite often and what irritates me the most about it as that It is asking me if I want to go the Workshop, yet the only answer I'm allowed to give is "ok". I may not be ass annoyed if I wasn't tricked into believing I had a choice in the matter.

The good

  • Collect & Deliver presents with the Guardians' magical sleigh
  • Watch out for Pitch's powerful Nightmare enemies
  • Use awesome power-ups!: Jack Frost's enemy freeze, Tooth Fairy's coin catch, Bunnymund's boomerang & more
  • Gather coins to upgrade your powers & abilities
  • Collect elves to unlock powerful boosts in the Workshop
  • Advance to special coin filled bonus rounds
  • Dash to locations around the globe
  • iCloud Support
  • Universal for iPhone and iPad

The bad

  • Occasionally you are presented with a popup that asks you if you'd like to visit the Workshop without the ability to say "no"

The conclusion

DreamWorks Dash n Drop is an extremely fun game and the fact that it's Christmas themed makes it even better for this time of year. What I love most about Dash n Drop is that although the controls are extremely basic, the gameplay can be very challenging. There were several cities that required multiple attempts on my part to even get 1 star to progress to the next city. If you're a fan of little time-killing arcade games, definitely pick this one up!

$0.99 - Download Now

Debug 2: Paul Haddad of Tapbots

Posted: 26 Nov 2012 03:22 PM PST

Guy and Rene talk to Paul Haddad of Tapbots about coding on NeXT, deploying Tweetbot and Netbot on multiple platforms, for multiple services, pricing for scarcity, in-app purchases, push notifications, iCloud sync, and his beef with AppKit. This is Debug.

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Google Voice updated for iPhone 5, iOS 6. Still ugly.

Posted: 26 Nov 2012 01:32 PM PST

Google Voice updated for iPhone 5, iOS 6. Still ugly.

Google Voice has just been updated to support iOS 6 and the iPhone 5's 16:9 screen -- which, hey, is faster than Apple's Keynote remote app, right? -- and to fix some bugs.

Not fixed is the interface, which is still in Google's horrific, old-school design style. Which actually goes to show how much work and how greatly improved apps like Google+ and Gmail have received. Google is pushing their new "beautiful" design aesthetic on the web, in Android, and in iOS. Google Voice has to get some love at some point.

Then again, we don't hear much about Google Voice on iOS anymore... anyone still using it?

Apple's outsourcing of social continues: iTunes gifts now available in Facebook

Posted: 26 Nov 2012 11:53 AM PST

Apple's outsourcing of social continues: iTunes gifts now available in Facebook

You can now buy iTunes gifts from within Facebook's gift system. iTunes gifts in Facebook are available for $10, $15, $25, or $50, and can be used to buy videos, music, apps, and more. Facebook says:

Starting today with Facebook Gifts, you can instantly gift your friends iTunes digital gifts and recommend albums, movies, games, apps, and more available on the iTunes Store.

Search for a specific song or album to recommend, or let your friend decide. iTunes digital gifts are available for $10, $15, $25, or $50.

This follows Apple making iBooks discoverable in Flipboard, and it's quite a strategic change for Apple. Previously, if you wanted Apple's digital content, you went to Apple. Even their grand, and ultimately ill-fated social experiment, Ping, lived in iTunes. Now, post-Ping, Apple continues to outsource social, and Apple starting to come to you.

Sure, if you're already in iOS or OS X, you can use Twitter and Facebook integration to share, but if you're not, if you're in Flipboard and Facebook (and presumably other places, eventually), Apple's content will be there for you to "discover".

Amazon gets a cut of iTunes revenue, Apple gets a much larger visible footprint.

Smart.

Source: Facebook.

Review: Breathe for iPad, Weather App

Posted: 26 Nov 2012 10:54 AM PST

Breathe for iPad

I like minimalist, good looking weather apps for the iPad. That's why Weather HD has been a favorite of mine for a long time. Breathe for iPad is touted as just the sort of sleek little weather app I tend to like – the App Store page for it calls it cool, intuitive, and awesome.

I've been giving it a spin over the last week or so, mainly on my iPad mini. Like Weather HD, and many imitators, the app lets you use 'dynamic' backgrounds. You can choose to use these or just a plain, fixed background. The backgrounds are attractive enough, but the word dynamic is a bit of a stretch to apply to them – as they're still static images that are rotated once in a while if conditions change, not video images as in Weather HD. So you get a sunny sky image for sunny days and appropriate stormy images when there's inclement weather.

You can toggle on or off some ambient sounds to accompany your weather browsing. I turned these off pretty quickly.

(...)
Read the rest of Review: Breathe for iPad, Weather App (336 words)

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iMore show 327: Guessing games

Posted: 26 Nov 2012 10:21 AM PST

Rene Ritchie and Jim Dalrymple talk about the differences in approach between Microsoft's Surface and Apple's iPad, Android marketshare vs. iOS usage metrics, and the future of Apple's services. This is the iMore show.

Guests

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You can reach all of us on Twitter @iMore, or you can email us at podcast@imore.com or just leave us a comment below.

For all our podcasts -- audio and video -- including the iMore show, ZEN and TECH, Iterate, and more, see MobileNations.com/shows




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Sprint expands LTE coverage to 11 more cites

Posted: 26 Nov 2012 09:30 AM PST

Sprint expands LTE coverage to 11 more cites

Sprint has expanded its LTE network to 11 more cities today. The third-place US carrier will be expanding into smaller cities in seven states, including Virginia, Indiana, and Massachusetts. This is part of a larger rollout by Sprint to increase LTE coverage as well as improve the quality of their 3G network. The following areas gained LTE today, with Sprint planning to expand their coverage in the following months:

  • Anderson, Ind.
  • Clarke County, Va./Jefferson County, W.Va.
  • Harrisburg/Carlisle/Hershey, Pa.
  • Hagerstown, Md./Martinsburg, W.Va.
  • Harrisonburg, Va.
  • Muncie, Ind.
  • Peabody, Mass.
  • Salina, Kan.
  • Shenandoah County, Va.
  • South Bend/Mishawaka, Ind.
  • Winchester, Va.

So far, Sprint has been behind AT&T and Verizon in rolling out LTE. Japanese carrier Softbank's purchase of a large stake in Sprint may allow them some breathing room as they attempt to remain competitive. The rollout of LTE is now critical for any carrier, and the expansion of high-speed networks outside of larger metropolitan areas is important. Sprint needs to expand their LTE coverage as quickly as possible, especially now that most new smartphones, including the iPhone 5, have LTE. Customers being unable to access one of their device's main features tends to be the sort of thing that turns them into former customers, so Sprint needs to act as fast as they can to keep their users happy. Sprint plans for their LTE expansion to be complete by the end of 2013.

Price Drops: Templates for Keynote Pro for iPad on Sale at 50% Off

Posted: 26 Nov 2012 08:50 AM PST

Templates for Keynote Pro

Templates for Keynote Pro for the iPad and iPhone is on sale today at 50% off. It's available for $4.99, down from its standard $9.99.

This is the best 3rd party templates app that I've seen for Keynote on the iPad, especially for business users. It has a good range of templates and many of them are more business oriented, as opposed to the very personal, consumer style that of most of the templates that Keynote itself offers.

Here's a little more detail on the app, via its App Store page:

Templates for Keynote Pro is the ultimate Add-On for Apple's famous Keynote application on the iPad and iPhone. With over 30 carefully designed Keynote Templates, including more than 650 slides, you are definitely ready for your next presentation. Export every template quick and easy to your Keynote app and start working on your presentations in just a few seconds.
SLIDE POOL
Get the largest collection of professional, polished Keynote slides available on the App Store! Every template contains customizable slides for tables, pictures, charts, diagrams, quotes and many more.

I've used this app for a number of training presentations. I like the design quality of the templates and the app's ease of use. It couldn't be easier to work with these templates in Keynote on the iPad.

Here's an App Store link for Templates for Keynote Pro; it's a universal app designed for both iPad and iPhone.

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Iterate 34: Bischoff and Capps of Lickability

Posted: 26 Nov 2012 04:43 AM PST

Iterate 34: Bischoff and Capps of Lickability

Marc, Seth, and Rene talk sub-pixel anti-aliasing, return to 1080p displays, and interview Matt Bischoff and Brian Capps of the New York Times and Lickability.

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Monday Brief: Droid DNA review, RIM's media blitz, a WP8 showdown, and more!

Posted: 26 Nov 2012 06:56 AM PST

Mobile Nations




    The BIGGEST online shopping day of the year is here. Enjoy Cyber Monday Savings on ALL iPhone, iPad accessories

    Posted: 26 Nov 2012 06:43 AM PST

    REMINDER: Last Chance to Save 15% on ALL iPhone and iPad Accessories in the iMore Store. Sale ends tonight at midnight PST.

    Best Buy airs its own ad ‘Finding Santa’, solely for Apple products

    Posted: 26 Nov 2012 01:41 AM PST

    Best Buy has put together its own ad for the holiday season, this latest one concentrates solely on Apple products. The ad features a young boy trying to track down Santa. Unfortunately he has little success until the last minute when he manages to get a FaceTime call with the white bearded man in the red suit.

    You can do anything with your gifts - including track down Santa Claus with all of your Apple products. All things Apple. All at your local Best Buy.

    Apple will probably release its own ads for the holiday season very soon. Last year's Apple ad saw Santa using Siri to help him get around homes delivering presents as he wwnt. Not sure if Apple will use a similar theme this year especially after the criticism it has received over its own Maps app.

    Source: YouTube
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