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SaleLocator Replaces Retail Flyers With iPhone App
Like the SaleLocator.com website, the new SaleLocator iPhone app launched Tuesday is a local retail sales search engine that helps users find deals at brick-and-mortar stores. SaleLocator makes deal discovery quick and painless, and it’s a recipe that has big retail chains interested.

The idea behind SaleLocator is that finding local deals should be fast, easy and require as few barriers to entry as possible. The app definitely makes good on that promise. It auto-detects your location upon launch (after you provide permission, of course) and immediately loads up sales at local retail outlets within range. You can sign up with a SaleLocator.com account, but you don’t have to, unless you want to be able to bookmark relevant sales for later use. SaleLocator isn’t just for big-city dwellers, either: The app provides useful info regarding sales in any U.S. market.

In an email interview, SaleLocator co-founder and CEO Michael Falkson explained the app can do this because it sources the data to find sales using a multi-pronged approach. There’s a dedicated research team of employees who check out deals, and a “proprietary retail sourcing process that utilizes a variety of online and offline data sources.” SaleLocator has also managed to secure relationships with 25 national retail partners so far, including H&M and Barnes & Noble, and Falkson noted that “more are joining the program each day.”

The privately funded app right now offers all of its functionality completely free of charge, but Falkson explained that after an initial period during which the company plans to focus on “getting feedback, improving the app’s functionality and growing the overall platform’s user-base of consumers/shoppers and retailers,” the company plans to create an ad-supported version of the app, in addition to a paid version that will be ad-free. Ads seem like an easy sell, given that users of the app are already looking to make purchases in the first place.

Revenue-gathering attempts won’t come without additional features aimed at winning over and keeping users, however. Falkson says international support is on the way, and possibly even “loyalty credits,” which might resemble the sort of reward systems we’ve seen in other apps aimed at mobile shoppers like Foursquare.

Group buying apps like Groupon may be the stars of location-based mobile shopping for those of us who are keen on social networking and live on the web, but for average users, an app that just opens and tells you which stores nearby are having sales, and on what, is a lot less easier to accept when making the move from traditional paper flyers.
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2011: Year of Two iPad 2s?
Back in February, a number of high-profile bloggers suggested Apple might actually launch more than one iPad in 2011. John Gruber speculated that it made more sense to move the iPad launch from spring to fall, adding new iPads with the widely-expected Apple event for iPods. Jim Dalrymple agreed, thinking Apple might “enhance” the iPad line. MG Siegler was less circumspect, citing a “very good source” for “a big fall surprise” related to a “would-be iPad 3,” but later backed off from that actually being an iPad 3. Finally, Leander Kahney, citing an Apple staffer, said the iPad 3 is the “one to make a song and dance about,” and that it was “on track” for this year.

In contrast, TheAppleBlog’s Darrell Etherington urged caution in predictions of an iPad 3, though he suggested there might be room for a complementary model. Arguably, his caution was prudent. During the iPad 2 launch event in March, a Keynote slide declared 2011 to be the year of the iPad 2. Singular.

Even so, Apple leadership has a habit of altering the company’s course, often very suddenly, as with the transition from Mac OS to OS X or from PPC CPU architecture to x86. More recently, after years of asserting a 13-inch display was the minimum size for a laptop, the company launched the 11-inch MacBook Air. Perhaps similarly, after asserting a 9.7-inch display was the minimum for a tablet, Apple might yet launch a 7-inch iPad 2.

The problem with a 7-inch iPad is that there doesn’t seem to be a lot of interest, or rather, there’s a huge amount of interest in the 9.7-inch iPad 2, which suggests consumers aren’t sweating the lack of a smaller version. From AppleInsider, Ticonderoga Securities analyst Brian White’s “barometer” of Apple component suppliers suggests their triple-digit growth “was driven largely by the ramp of iPad 2.” Fortune reports on a “small but growing group” of analysts predicting 7 million iPads sold this quarter. That would come after Apple sold a record 7.3 million iPads during the holiday quarter last year, and would be a strong indicator of iPad sales in excess of 30 million this year, double last year’s total. Finally, DigiTimes is citing supply-chain sources that “have not yet received any notice for next generation iPad products and do not believe iPad 2 is a transitional product.”

The circumstantial evidence so far is against another iPad this year, including a 7-inch model. Setting aside the repeated denunciations of the smaller display by Apple executives, the real question would be, why introduce a new model when the current one is so successful? There is no reason, but that doesn’t mean it won’t happen. Take the example of the iPod Mini. In 2005, the multi-colored iPod Mini with its hard-drive storage was hugely successful, and yet in the fall of that year, it was promptly replaced by the smaller iPod nano.

There’s something about the “year of the iPad 2″ assertion that seems too certain, too definitive for a company as unpredictable as Apple. Since when does Apple provide any information about its product release plans more than a few weeks in advance? Despite indications that Apple is sticking to one iPad model release per year, there’s just no such thing as a safe bet when it comes to this company.

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Report: Apple Looking to Carbon Fiber for iPod Wi-Fi Syncing
Apple is looking to outfit future iPods with carbon fiber housing in order to make Wi-Fi content syncing a reality, according to a new report from Cult of Mac. The blog reports that a source close to the company revealed Steve Jobs sees Wi-Fi syncing as the key to continued relevance for the iPod line, but also says Apple hasn’t been able to make it work well enough to introduce the feature in production models.

Monday saw confirmation that Kevin Kelley, former CEO of Kestral Bicycles, where he oversaw the building of carbon fiber bikes, is now Senior Composites Engineer at Apple Inc. Kelley is also listed as the author on a patent filed by Apple in 2009 for “Reinforced Device Housing,” which described an outer casing for electronic devices made from carbon fiber. The hire definitely adds weight to the anonymous tipster’s assertions.

Carbon fiber housing would reportedly allow for much better Wi-Fi signals between iPod devices and computers where media libraries are stored. The source claims, however, that the new housing design (which is said to have been prototyped for the iPod classic and the previous generation iPod nano) isn’t yet meeting to Apple engineer standards. It’s worth noting that the current iPhone and iPad can handle streaming of music and video just fine, and have even been able to sync over Wi-Fi when jailbroken. Android devices can also sync and stream over Wi-Fi using doubleTwist, but in my usage of those syncing features with the Galaxy Tab, the experience wasn’t anywhere near the level I’ve come to expect from Apple products. The high standards for wireless syncing that Apple has no doubt set for itself are probably the main reason we haven’t yet seen an official solution come from the company. It’s possible a different casing material could help Apple get closer to its goals in terms of transfer speeds, connection dependability and device heat during the process.

Carbon fiber casing has been a theme in recent Apple rumors, with reports indicating that the material might be used for an iPad redesign, or even in a future MacBook Air. Logically, the idea of carbon fiber makes sense, since it’s strong, flexible, lightweight and doesn’t pose the same kind of problems regarding wireless signals as does metal. Yet Apple has yet to use carbon fiber in any shipping devices. Still, confirmation that the company now has a carbon fiber expert with at least 14 years experience working with the composite in a senior, full-time, engineering staff position indicates it may be getting more serious about the material’s usage.

I’d look twice at an iPod if it could handle Wi-Fi content syncing in a way that was efficient, fast and easy. It could indeed provide some wind in the sales of sluggish iPod sales, if only until such syncing features become commonplace among smartphones. Anyone else think an iPod with some Wi-Fi mojo might breathe new life into the increasingly outdated concept of a dedicated media player?

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If the iPhone 5 Doesn't Arrive in June, Will You Switch?
According to a recent smattering of analyst reports, including one just released Tuesday from Susquehanna International Group, the iPhone 5 might not arrive until Fall 2011, when new iPhones have traditionally been released yearly in June or July. Whether or not predictions of a delay are accurate, would delayed Apple hardware affect your choice of smartphone?

Besides analysts, there’s also John Paczkowski of Digital Daily, who reported Tuesday that he’s hearing more and more buzz about the iPhone launching in September at Apple’s annual fall media event, which is normally reserved for new iPod announcements. Paczkowski’s parent blog, All Things Digital, is known to have good ties to Apple sources.

A yearly update cycle means that every two years, iPhone customers who bought their first device new when it originally came out are eligible for the hefty subsidy that comes with a new contract. In at least some cases, those customers are eagerly awaiting a new phone (a lot can change in two years in the mobile tech realm) and might not be inclined to wait around with aging devices until the new iPhone comes to market. It is worth noting, however, that iOS users appear to be among the most loyal.

Even if Apple doesn’t introduce a refreshed iPhone at WWDC in June, I plan on sticking it out until the next iteration does arrive, since in my experience with competing mobile operating systems I’ve been left wanting the simplicity and stability of iOS, but I wonder if others feel the same. Will you wait, or will you start to shop around?

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Will Apple Build Cloud-Based TV?
Apple could be ready to upend the living room entertainment market in a way none of its previous products have managed to do, if a new report (via International Business Times) by research firm Jefferies & Co. is accurate. Jefferies analyst Peter Misek thinks Apple is about ready to launch a brand new cloud-based video service that could go well beyond what the current Apple TV already offers.

Misek’s prediction is based on checks with developer and content providers over the past couple of weeks, and also the impending launch of the massive new North Carolina Apple data center, which is set to become operational this spring, according to Apple COO Tim Cook. Misek also believes Apple could be involved with additional planned data center builds in other parts of the U.S., though ownership of these facilities can’t yet be definitely linked to Apple. Apple does appear to be doubling the originally intended size of the North Carolina center, according to earlier reports.

One last indicator that Apple has big plans for cloud TV, according to Misek, is that some major content providers are eager to have their material removed from potentially competing services:

We find it notable that the content companies, citing a lack of domain license, asked Cablevision sto remove channels from its iPad app. We believe these same companies are negotiating some sort of deal with Apple.

The picture Misek paints of a potential cloud-based TV service from Apple is certainly an appealing one. It would offer Apple TV-like features, but also the ability to easily move content between Apple devices, including the iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch. And if content companies really are balking at the efforts of others to bring their shows to Apple products, it could mean that the Mac-maker has possibly negotiated a far-reaching content license across its platforms with some.

Misek also thinks a new piece of hardware will accompany the introduction of the new cloud-based video service, but he makes no firm predictions about what such a device might look like. Regardless of whether Apple introduces new hardware, or just updates the existing Apple TV (which should be up to the task, especially given Apple’s introduction of live streaming video offerings on the set-top device), a new streaming TV service could be the game-changer the video market’s been waiting for.

All Apple has to do with such a service is provide exactly what cable and satellite don’t: a highly customizable, on-demand and live streaming hybrid with a total focus on consumer choice. In short, Apple just needs to give TV the App Store treatment. Of course, that’s much easier said than done, as licensing deals would make such an offering a nightmare from a negotiations standpoint.

Difficulty in negotiating content rights might be why Misek predicts we won’t see the introduction of such a service from Apple until 2012 or 2013, with an initial domestic launch followed later by an international rollout. Apple is lucky that Google TV didn’t end up living up to customer expectations, but if it does intend to go this route, it will face increasing competition from Netflix, and from cable TV providers which appear to be getting over their fear of TV not restricted to the physical television itself. The window during which a cloud-based, cross-device TV service offering will be disruptive is closing fast.

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5 Great iPad Tools for Designing Apps
The best app ideas don’t necessarily come from the ranks of iOS developers. Anyone can have a good idea for a new app. The challenge is in getting that new idea down in a way that makes it easy to share and visualize. For both developers and non-developers alike, the App Store has a selection of design tools for the iPad that each play a unique role in the process of evolving a good idea into a great one.

UI Sketcher ($3.99) — In the “better than a bar napkin but still sort of a bar napkin” category, there’s UI Sketcher. In this app, all you get is virtual graph paper and a selection of five different pens. If you want to pass around an iPad for a rapid session of brainstorming, then a free form based designer like UI Sketcher is the best choice. I would recommend investing in a stylus like the Pogo Sketch or the upcoming Cosmonaut to help your inner artist become more of a professional draftsman than a kindergarden finger painter.

Mocking Pad ($9.99) — Mocking Pad represents a step up from free form design. There is a lot to be said about keeping the initial design as loose as possible, meaning you probably don’t want to spend a lot of time on color choices, pixel perfect button placement, or even the exact implementation of which widget to use. This designer is that you have a pallet of roughed out widgets to choose from. You drag and drop each widget onto a sketched outline of an iPhone or iPad screen. The number of controls at you disposal is not limitless, but more than adequate to get the idea across. This is a very good design tool to use early in the design process to work out user interaction scenarios and screen level functionality without getting too caught up in the overall look and feel of the final product.

Blueprint ($14.99) — This is the Rolls-Royce of designers. As with Mocking Pad, you’re presented with a pallet based drag and drop design interaction. Where this differs from Mocking Pad is that the controls are almost an exact replica of the final product. It can therefore provide pixel-perfect alignment of each element in your application. This tool is most useful in the development of a high-level storyboard of the app. You can see the entire navigation of the app you’re creating from one comprehensive view. If you are not a developer, and you what a way to quickly piece together a story board of exactly how you want the application to work, then this is the choice for you. If you are a developer, you may find that time is better spent on creating a series of well drafted XIB files in Xcode. Then take some screen shots of the XIBs in Xcode’s designer to piece together in some sort of page layout tool, so you aren’t duplicating effort.

Runners Up — Draft from 37signals is a good alternative to UI Sketcher as a free hand designer. It’s worth considering if you’re already a Campfire (web-based chat client) user, as the designs can be shared with your fellow campers from within the app. iMockUps were both good alternatives for Mocking Pad, and are worth a second look if you decide that Mocking Pad is not right for you in this space. I have found no replacement or competition for Blueprint. For what it has to offer, there is simply nowhere else to look.

Each design tool has its niche. I would recommend UI Sketcher to get that initial idea down before you forget it. Once you have a good idea and are ready to think through some basic user interaction scenarios, then Mocking Pad will prove to be the tool you need. I would avoid using a tool like Blueprint at first, as it has the potential to consume a lot of time and could limit your implementation choices when handing your design over to the development team. On the other hand, if you are not at all technically-oriented and really want to get as close to a final design as possible before you hand it over, then Blueprint is a great tool to work with and has no match.

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Why Apple's Pushy Publishing Plan is Paying Off

Apple is catching a few flies with vinegar, if the slow but steady stream of magazine publishers who’ve opted to accept the company’s new in-app subscription rules is any indication. On Monday, Bloomberg’s Businessweek joined the iPad coalition of the willing, adding its name to a roster that includes the likes of Maxim, Elle and Popular Science.

Why are publishers signing on? One big four-letter word followed by a number comes to mind: The iPad 2 has been, by all accounts, a massive early sales success, and Apple still seems to be having trouble meeting demand. It’s no coincidence that Apple scheduled the mandatory change to its own in-app purchasing system for subscriptions to come into effect June 30. Between the time the new policy was announced and when it goes into effect, we’ll have seen the launch of the iPad (a hit at home and abroad), Apple’s quarterly results (sure to impress and likely show strong tablet numbers), WWDC sold out in no time at all, iOS 5 likely unveiled at WWDC, and even more details about the iPad’s selling success at the WWDC keynote.

Still, the move to accept Apple’s terms — which include a 30-percent share of all subscription revenues gathered through apps sold in the iPhone-maker’s App Store — hardly represents a universal groundswell of support from the magazine industry. In fact, many major publishers are clearly still holding out, possibly in the hope that they can convince Apple to relax or modify its App Store policies regarding in-app subscriptions and the sharing of customer information. But despite noteworthy holdouts like Conde Nast, Time Inc. and Hearst Corp., big fish like the New York Times and now Bloomberg (which says it is actually “very pleased” with Apple’s terms) are a good indicator that in this battle, Apple has the upper hand.

And it doesn’t have to do any talking to bring that point home to publishers. iPad sales, and forecasts like the one issued by Gartner Monday morning, which sees Apple staying on top of the tablet heap until 2015 (though problematic), are argument enough. The iPad provides publishers with access to at least the existing crop of more than 15 million iPad owners, but that number has probably grown already by quite a bit, and shows no signs of slowing. Isn’t that worth a 30 percent cut?

Not to mention the fact that Apple has all the power in these negotiations. While magazines are a nice-to-have feature on the iPad, they’re far from the only draw of the device for consumers. In fact, as Mathew Ingram has repeatedly pointed out on this blog, magazines in general aren’t doing a good job of providing appealing content on the iPad. In short, magazine publishers need Apple more than Apple needs magazine publishers, so if this is a game of chicken, it’s not one which Conde Nast et al. are well positioned to win.

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Apple Acknowledges Verizon iPad Issues, Fix Reportedly Coming
Apple is aware of the Verizon iPad 2′s roaming issues, which saw the device displaying a permanent “Roaming…” network status. The company is “investigating” the issue, according to an official statement received by Mobilized. BGR reports that it may be doing more than just investigating, since a leaked version of iOS 4.3.2 claims to offer a fix for the problem.

User reports of the Verizon iPad problem were accumulating quickly in the official Apple tech support forums when we reported on the issue last Thursday. Apple made its official statement regarding the problem on Friday afternoon, though it didn’t claim any responsibility for the problems in the statement, nor did it promise a fix. Verizon did not issue a statement, but as Charles suggested in our article last week, the problem appears to reside with Apple, since the company is providing exchanges for affected units in at least some cases.

Monday, BGR reported that one of its Apple sources let it know that iOS 4.3.2, which should arrive within the next week or two, will fix the Verizon iPad 2 issues. The update is also said to include a fix for FaceTime problems (which could include the app’s tendency to freeze and redisplay pictures temporarily), as well as security patches. BGR has a fairly good track record when it comes to this kind of information, and it makes sense that Apple would move quickly to address an issue that’s been getting a fair amount of attention in the press.

We’ll be sure to keep you up-to-date regarding the status of this problem, and provide any updates regarding how to fix it. If you’re an affected Verizon iPad 2 owner, please share your experience in the comments.

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Adobe Shows That It Gets the Tablet/Computer Connection
Adobe Monday unveiled a new SDK for Photoshop that re-imagines how tablets and desktop computers interact. Photoshop Touch will allow Adobe and third-party mobile apps to supplement and interact with the desktop version of Photoshop CS5 in real time.

Tablets and other mobile devices acting as unique, flexible control surfaces that can act with or without direct connection to their parent programs is an area that so far has only been lightly explored. Perhaps that’s because much of the focus so far has been on whether or not post-PC devices can truly operate independently of traditional computers. In our haste to prove they can, we may have overlooked the fact that sometimes, hardware codependence is a beautiful thing. Other software companies should take a close at what Adobe is doing here and see if something similar wouldn’t benefit their own products. Even Apple’s Final Cut video editing software cut definitely benefit from something similar.

Photoshop Touch will first be implemented in three official Adobe apps scheduled for May release, called Eazel, Color Lava and Nav. Each app essentially transforms your iPad into an additional control device or surface for your desktop-based installation of Adobe Photoshop. Adobe certainly isn’t the first to attempt this (there are apps that act as control surfaces for video and audio editing software, too, and even apps that work as game controllers), but it is probably the largest and most influential company to do so, and it has also gone a step further and made these tools available to third-party developers for use with its software.

The apps Adobe showed off work in a couple different ways. Nav allows you to create a custom tool palette, and also use a color picker and zoom controls. You can flip through open Photoshop files, and open files directly from your iPad in your desktop Photoshop installation. Nav is pure companion app, and doesn’t exist independently of Photoshop on the desktop.

Eazel and Color Lava, on the other hand, can work both with or without Photoshop itself being open. Eazel is an independent iPad painting app that very accurately simulates physical paint media (if the demos are any indication). It works independently, but allows you to transfer your paintings to Photoshop at any resolution, which means you can resize for print without any loss of quality. Color Lava, as its name suggests, is all about creating color palettes and swatches. These can later be synchronized with your desktop Photoshop, or it can be used in real-time with Photoshop open.

There’s also a video demo (see below) of one third-party Photoshop Touch app by Shawn Welch making the rounds (via MacRumors). It looks to act as a high-level management tool for all Photoshop installations on a given network. For example, you can open images simultaneously on all connected computers, and you also have very granular control over every individual running instance of Photoshop. Looks like a very handy tool for design studio art directors.

The apps previewed by Adobe show the company has been thinking carefully about how to extend interfaces to mobile devices in a way that makes sense. Each of the apps seems to work particularly well with a touch interface, and they do much more than treat the iPad as just another keyboard or mouse. These apps may leave some design professionals wishing the iPad had pressure-sensitive input (I know I was thinking wistfully of the Wacom-penabled Axiotron Modbook), but to dismiss them because of those kinds of hardware limitations is a mistake.

Adobe announced the Photoshop Touch apps and SDK alongside its CS5.5 paid mid-cycle upgrade, but according to the company’s official press materials, Touch apps will work with existing installations of Adobe Photoshop CS5 thanks to a free patch available May 3, 2011. I’m happy Adobe isn’t limiting the availability of these new features to CS5.5 customers, and I can’t wait to see how they work in an actual photo-editing workflow. Does anyone else think Adobe’s on the right track here?

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AirPlay Gets Unlocked — and Apple Should Leave It That Way
UPDATED. AirPlay’s wireless music streaming just became much more useful, thanks to developer James Laird. Laird reverse-engineered the private key Apple uses with its AirPort Express wireless router in order to let that device stream iTunes music to connected speakers, and used it to create an open-source emulator which accomplishes the same feat, called Shairport.

Until Laird’s release, the private key for iTunes music streaming was unknown to all but Apple and its official third-party partners, so only a select group of devices could stream music. AirPlay video, on the other hand, can be streamed to unofficial software for the Mac, and to third-party apps available in the App Store. Other software could stream to AirPlay-enabled devices, but not from them.

Shairport means that software solutions that can stream music from iTunes or iOS devices will be fairly easy to create, and should likely be made available for Macs, PCs, and possibly consoles and other mobile devices. Apple recently introduced Home Sharing to iOS devices, which allows you to do pretty much what Shairport allows, but only between iTunes and an iDevice capable of running the latest software. The company seems to acknowledge that its users are eager to unlock the potential of its streaming service, but is unwilling to deliver a truly open solution that would make sharing media with any device quick and painless.

Apple doesn’t want AirPlay to be open because in limiting its availability, it encourages sales of its own devices (many people I know have their homes set up for wireless sound throughout using multiple Apple TVs and AirPort Expresses), and because if it loses control over licensing, it also loses the ability to properly vet hardware partners and their products. Sub-standard experiences with AirPlay will affect Apple’s reputation, even if third-party hardware or software is actually to blame. Apple may also encounter resistance from record labels regarding the acceptable licensed use of music sold through the iTunes store when it comes to AirPlay music streaming.

But Apple would be better off leaving this gate alone, now that it’s been opened. In fact, it should go one further and make AirPlay itself freely available to all. AirPlay is a unique advantage for iOS devices, but like MobileMe, it’s one that only a small percentage of iDevice users can currently take full advantage of, so it probably doesn’t factor that strongly in a potential customer’s buying decision. If, however, a user knew that AirPlay would probably work with their TV, stereo, and any and all home computers, it might become much more important to them. Quality control will of course be an issue, but if AirPlay becomes omnipresent on third-party consumer devices, the quality of the experience using it on specific hardware will gradually become attributable to the device maker, and not to Apple.

At the very least, Apple should take a hands-off approach to dealing with this latest attempt to open up software it intends to be closed. iOS and iTunes users want AirPlay to be more useful in more places, and Shairport makes that a reality, without any major work or renegotiation of licensing terms on Apple’s part.

The original version of this article incorrectly identified the software as Shareport.

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Fresh Apple

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

GigaOMApple (10 сообщений)

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