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- Adweek Media's Campaign of the Decade: Apple's Get a Mac ads
Filed under: iPod Family, Odds and ends, Apple
As Apple fans, we've loved Apple's "Get a Mac" ad campaign. With Justin Long as the cool, laid-back Mac and John Hodgman starring as the stodgy, uptight PC, the ads have managed to make us laugh since they first appeared in 2006. The campaign has spawned the "I'm a PC" response ads from Microsoft, which aren't nearly as fun or effective as the original (if we do say so ourselves).
The ads have been incredibly effective at getting Apple's message across -- Macs just work, with no bloatware, few viruses and little malware, and Mac users can do a lot with the provided iLife software.
AdweekMedia has paid tribute to the campaign in its Best of the 2000s awards, giving the Campaign of the Decade plaudits to Apple and TBWA / Media Arts Lab for the memorable ads.
That's not the only Apple campaign that received an award -- the iPod "Silhouettes" campaign won the Out of Home Ad of the Decade prize. Out of Home ads (AKA outdoor advertising) consist of those advertisements that are shown on billboards, buses, and kiosks rather than on television or in print. The awards were voted upon by the editors of AdweekMedia, and reader's choice awards were also listed. The "Get a Mac" campaign was third place in reader voting, while "Silhouettes" picked up the number one spot from readers in its category.TUAWAdweek Media's Campaign of the Decade: Apple's Get a Mac ads originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 14 Dec 2009 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Apple - Get a Mac - Microsoft - John Hodgman - Justin Long
Переслать - Let's talk AAPL and the future
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Apple Corporate, Apple Financial, Apple
It's been a roller coaster ride over the past two years for Apple (AAPL) stock. In December 2007 it hit a then-peak of $199.83 a share. Just two months later AAPL sunk to $125. Three months after that it had recovered to the $180s, but by November 2008, AAPL had plummeted to $82 a share. Since then, the stock has recovered and hit an all-time closing high of $207 on November 17, 2009. As of today it's sitting pretty in the $190s -- though some think the drop from the $200s to $190s is suspicious.
I argue with people all the time why Apple didn't deserve its dips and plummets over the last two years: The company is sitting flush with$23.5 billion$35 billion in the bank, in cash (about the same as the total market value of another major US computer maker, named for its CEO and founder, who 12 years ago famously suggested shutting down Apple and giving the money back to shareholders). It has zero debt. It is one of the most respected companies on the planet and has the world's greatest CEO. But more importantly than the cash and its status, I believe AAPL is a great buy because it has such small market share in all the categories it operates in save one...Continue reading Let's talk AAPL and the future
TUAWLet's talk AAPL and the future originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 14 Dec 2009 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Переслать - Add some color to somebody's holiday with a coloring book
Filed under: Software, Holidays
What better way to add some color to someone's holiday than with a coloring book? With Kalle Svenson's Colorize your photos, converting your existing photos into ones with a coloring book effect is a simple drag and drop away. After dragging in your photos, you can make granular adjustments to the levels (fewer or more) of detail, as well as black and gray levels. In the above photo, my man Tobias Funke, originally covered up in Blue Man Group blue, has been colorized so that I can color him into whatever hue of blue my heart desires.
One thing missing in the app that I'd like added is the ability to compile a coloring book. But this isn't that big an issue, as one can compile PDFs using Preview.app. Also, if you already own Adobe Photoshop, you may find that some of its built-in filters achieve a similar effect.
These things aside, Colorize your photos is a straightforward and easy-to-use app suitable for both kids and the kids within us. Colorize your photos is available for purchase for USD $24.95, and as a free download trial.
TUAW has 2 free licenses of Colorize your photos to give away to TUAW readers. To enter, leave a comment about the pictures you'd most want to turn into a coloring book.
The rules:
- Open to legal US residents of the 50 United States and the District of Columbia and Canada (excluding Quebec) who are 18 and older.
- To enter, leave a comment below.
- The comment must be left by Wednesday, December 16, 2009 at 11:59 PM Eastern Daylight Time.
- You may enter only once.
- Two winners will be selected in a random drawing.
- Prize: One free license of Colorize your photos (retail value USD $24.95).
- Click here for Official Rules
TUAWAdd some color to somebody's holiday with a coloring book originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 14 Dec 2009 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Переслать - Steve Jobs up for Time's 'Person of the Year'
Filed under: Other Events, Steve Jobs, Apple
Time magazine has revealed its final seven candidates for Person of the Year, and one Mr. Steven P. Jobs has made the list. Though the editors of Time have already chosen the winner (to be announced on The Today Show on Wednesday morning), MSNBC.com wants to know who us average folk would vote for.
At the risk of our audience being slightly biased, I'm going to release the same poll here. So vote below, and don't feel bad if you don't think Steve should get it. He's already won another little award this year.
TUAWSteve Jobs up for Time's 'Person of the Year' originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 14 Dec 2009 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Переслать - Kayak's business model upended by iPhone
Filed under: Enterprise, Developer, iPhone
Developers are learning that iPhone users want sophistication and features in their apps, not watered-down functionality. A report in GigaOM shows that not only are companies finding that slimmer isn't better when it comes to apps, but that one company is actually changing their business model based on what they found out about how iPhone users were using their app.
Travel search service Kayak based its first iPhone offering on the assumption that a mobile user would most likely use the app if her flight had been canceled and she needed a replacement reservation. As a result, the initial app didn't have features like flexible date search.
While the Kayak app [free, iTunes link] was very successful for the company, with over 600,000 downloads since February now accounting for 5% of Kayak's search volume, users demanded the full functionality that they found on the company's website.
Kayak went back to the drawing board and recently released version 2.0 of the app, with some major improvements. However, since Kayak is a search engine, iPhone users still end up being pushed to other travel websites, which means that they have to put up with tiny renditions of full pages and non-loading Flash sites. This "concierge" model obviously needed some work for the iPhone client.
The growing movement towards iPhones and other handheld devices becoming laptop replacements has forced a change in Kayak's business model. In 2010, Kayak will introduce an iPhone-friendly wallet system that will give users the chance to book travel from their devices. That wallet will save credit card, frequent flier, and flight preference information. Kayak will use the wallet to enter data into travel provider sites, and then send the users an alert when the booking has been completed. This change, forced by the growing use of iPhones, will most likely be reflected on the main Kayak website as well.
Do you know of any other companies that have had to change their business model because of the success of the iPhone? We'd like to know -- please leave a comment below.TUAWKayak's business model upended by iPhone originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 14 Dec 2009 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Переслать - Camcorder brings video recording to iPhone 3G and 1st gen
Filed under: Video, App Store, SDK, App Review
Want to record video on your iPhone 3G or 1st generation unit? No need to jailbreak anymore. A $0.99US app called "Camcorder (for iPhone 3G and 2G)" [iTunes link] promises real time video recording on your older equipment, similarly to the free Ustream app.
So how does it work? In our initial and very quick try, not so badly -- but at the same time, really not so great. Prepare for a slow frame rate (tested on 3G and on a 3GS) with just okay audio. For $0.99, there's not much value there, especially considering you can't do anything with the videos you capture except watch them on your phone until you delete them (although they are backed up with your sandbox data, they are inaccessible except to iPhone geeks).
The GUI is flimsy as well. For example, you actually have to reach under a toolbar to swipe-to-delete the most recent recording. While the entire application feels a bit like a rush job, you've got to admit that it's nice to have approved access to App Store video recording without jailbreak on older equipment -- but for now, you'd be better off with the Ustream app and the ability to save your videos to a destination.
For jailbroken phones, I personally love Cydia's Cycorder app -- it has recorded many school plays and concerts. Camcorder provides a bit of the same functionality (albeit at a slightly lower quality) without having to go the jailbreak route. That's a good thing... and it will be a better thing when/if the app adds some export functionality.
This app works by using the long-blacklisted UIGetScreenImage() function that I've written about in the past. (I discovered this use by scanning the application using my APIkit scanner.) Apple must have willingly given the go-ahead for its use, as their automated scanning must have picked the same function call. Good news on the "more flexible review" front. Since Apple recently gave the green light to the UStream video app, with Qik hot on its heels, it's likely we'll see more of these applications that provide iPhone video functionality for livecasting or recording from your device.
So how much is Apple loosening up? It's hard to tell, despite the buzz surrounding recent "non-rejection" letters, where developers are warned about API use at the same time their applications are given the go ahead for App Store. I may just go ahead and resubmit my AppFlow application launcher that Apple rejected ages ago, which is full of unauthorized APIs from one end to the other. Maybe its time has come.
Update: TUAW reader Josh points to the $0.99 iVideoCamera [iTunes link] also new on App Store (December 12), that does let you save to your camera roll.TUAWCamcorder brings video recording to iPhone 3G and 1st gen originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 14 Dec 2009 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Переслать - First look and reader giveaway: Lo-Mob, for that retro photo look
Filed under: App Store, First Look
In case you haven't noticed, I'm a huge fan of iPhone photography apps. I've written about Best Camera, played with ColorSplash, and taken panoramic photos with Pano. When I noticed the $1.99US Lo-Mob [iTunes Link] while doing my weekly pass through the photo apps, I decided to buy it and give it a try.
Part of my fascination with iPhone photo apps is that the flexibility of the software combines with the camera that is always at your fingertips, and you can do things with your photos with a few taps that would have taken hours in a darkroom. Lo-Mob provides 33 different effects that give your iPhone pics the look of taking photos with old film, instant film, 35 mm film in a medium-format camera, and more. With many of the effects, changes with saturation, focus, and tint are mixed with artifacts (dust on the frame, for example), vignetting, and frames.
As soon as you either take a new photo or select an existing one in Lo-Mob, the app takes about 10 - 12 seconds to pre-process all of the images. The result is that when you go to choose your effect, you see exactly how it's going to look in a small thumbnail image located next to information about the effect. After you've selected your effect, you see a full size image that can then be saved in the original photo resolution and then shared with others through email, Facebook, or Twitter.
Now for some fun! We have three Lo-Mob promo codes to give away to three lucky TUAW readers. Here's the scoop:
- Open to legal US residents of the 50 United States and the District of Columbia who are 18 and older.
- To enter leave a comment telling us what you would take a photo of and then "retro-ize" with Lo-Mob.
- The comment must be left before Wednesday, December 16, 2009, 11:59PM Eastern Standard Time.
- You may enter only once.
- Three winners will be selected in a random drawing.
- Prizes: Promo Code for one copy of Lo-Mob (Value: US$1.99)
- Click Here for complete Official Rules.
TUAWFirst look and reader giveaway: Lo-Mob, for that retro photo look originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 14 Dec 2009 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Переслать - Other shoe drops: TomTom cuts price of US and Canada GPS app by 30%
Filed under: Odds and ends, iPhone, iPod touch
It was just last week that TomTom offered a new version of its nav app for the US (minus Canadian data) for $49.99US [iTunes link]. That didn't make people who bought the full version for a hundred bucks and never needed the Canadian info anyway filled with joy. Now, TomTom has dropped the price of the version that does include both the U.S. and Canada to $69.99 [iTunes link] until December 28, making those earlier customers even more unhappy.
Price cuts, of course, are a way of life, and no one should be surprised that competition drives down prices. In my view, most of the iPhone GPS navigators are priced too high. I think somewhere between $35 and $50 is about right considering that you are providing all the hardware. Hardware solutions have really plummeted in price, with many selling for close to $100.00. The advantage of the iPhone solution is there is only one device to carry, but navigation stops when a call comes in.
I'll have a roundup of my favorite GPS apps in a couple of days, but if you are ready to go a 30% discount on the TomTom is a pretty good deal, especially if you need to navigate in both Canada and the U.S. The well regarded Navigon app [iTunes link] is selling for $89.99, but watch for sales on that product as well. I know a lot of people are holding out for the free Google Navigator for the iPhone, but there is no guarantee that it will ever hit the App Store.
Thanks to Steve for the tip!TUAWOther shoe drops: TomTom cuts price of US and Canada GPS app by 30% originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 14 Dec 2009 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Переслать - Espresso 1.1 arrives with 11-day giveaway
MacRabbit's Espresso has been updated to version 1.1, and along with it, the company is offering a contest where you can win a copy of the web development software for yourself and a friend. Version 1.0 was released back in March.
The contest takes on a nagging subject with a sense of humor. MacRabbit is challenging contestants to come up with witty "Buy Now" messages for the demo version of Espresso. Submissions can be sent via Twitter or e-mail.
Espresso 1.1 includes a revamped workspace, image preview, an improved projects organizer and other various improvements. You can find a complete list of changes here.
Espresso costs 59.95€ (nearly $88 USD) on its own, 49.95€ (a little more than $73 USD) for those who already own CSSEdit 2, and 79.90€ ($117 USD) if you want to purchase it with a copy of CSSEdit2. Espresso can be used in a full-featured trial mode for 15 days and requires OS X 10.5 or higher.TUAWEspresso 1.1 arrives with 11-day giveaway originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 14 Dec 2009 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Переслать - Beta Beat: Droplr adds to the quick-share repertoire
Filed under: Software, Beta Beat
One of my favorite features in OS X is the ability to drag pretty much anything, drop it on pretty much anything else, and have the item be contextually useful in some other application. So pervasive is this gesture that we even waxed romantically about it some time ago. An example of this would be dragging an image from Safari onto an iChat window, allowing you to share the image with one of your buddies.
Enter Droplr. This tiny application sits in your menu bar and allows you to drop all manner of files onto it and share them via a variety of venues such as Twitter or email. The tagline "drag, drop, share" is about as accurate as one can get when referring to Droplr's simplicity in file-sharing. If you're intrigued, head on over to the Droplr homepage and peep the screencast they have made available.
The Snow Leopard-only app and hosting service is available now for free (as in ad-supported) with 1GB storage. Don't be surprised to see a for-pay option with no ads and additional storage in the near future. Go check it out and let us know in the comments how it works out for you.TUAWBeta Beat: Droplr adds to the quick-share repertoire originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 14 Dec 2009 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Переслать - Apple has 12 gifts of Christmas for people who live in the UK
Filed under: iTunes, Holidays, App Store
For the second year in a row, Apple is running their 12 Days of Christmas promotion for UK residents. From December 26 to January 6 anyone with a UK iTunes account can download a free song, music video, app, television show, or film from 'some of the biggest star performers' on iTunes. Each free download is only available for 24 hours, so be sure to sign up for their email alerts to be notified of the new daily download.
As for our US readers: it's not exactly Bah, humbug! for you.
UPDATE: France, Germany, and Italy! Apple has love for you too!
UPDATEx2: Austria!
UPDATEx3: Netherlands, welcome to the party!TUAWApple has 12 gifts of Christmas for people who live in the UK originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 14 Dec 2009 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Переслать - Dozen Daily Deals for December 14, 2009
Filed under: Deals
'Tis the season shop until your brains melt (or skip it all entirely, depending on your interpretation of the term holiday). In that spirit, for the next few weeks we'll be rounding up a dozen daily deals courtesy our friends at DealNews.com. Each afternoon tune in to TUAW for this handy summary. Keep in mind that while our posts will live on, the deals won't. Each is lovingly generated by the deal-bot every day, so get 'em while they're hot. Enjoy!
- iTunes Music Store: [iPhone / iPod Apps] App Store Freebies: GravBall, iWore, Cyclic Dial, JingleToe, TanSafe, more
- InvisibleShield: [iPhone] ZAGG.com coupon: 50% off sitewide, no minimum
- Google: [Store Events] Google Holiday Deals: Up to $20 off $120 at select merchants
- OfficeMax: [Office Furniture] Office Chair Roundup: Sofronio Manager Mid-Back Chair for $130 + free shipping, more
- Walmart: [46" - 47" LCD TVs] Sony BRAVIA 46" 120Hz 1080p LCD HDTV w/ Sony PS3 120GB for $958 + $1 s&h
- JR: [Digital Cameras] Panasonic DMC-LX3K 10MP 2.5x Zoom Digital Camera for $399 + free shipping
- Skinit: [Notebook Accessories] Skinit.com coupon: 50% off sitewide
- Walmart: [Electronics] Westport Small Charging Station for $19 + $1 s&h
- Meritline: [iPod Accessories] Crystal Hard Case for Apple iPod Touch 2nd Generation for 39 cents + free shipping
- Staples: [Office Furniture] Z-Line Gemini L-Desk for $50 + free shipping, padding
- Buy.com: [Headphones] Ultimate Ears Metro.fi 200 Stereo Earphones from $20 + free shipping
- Target: [32" LCD TVs] Sylvania 32" 720p Widescreen LCD HDTV for $270 + $20 s&h
TUAWDozen Daily Deals for December 14, 2009 originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 14 Dec 2009 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Переслать - Send virtual 3D gifts with Little World Gifts
Filed under: iPhone, iPod touch
When Apple launched the App Store, there were no in-app purchases, but it quickly became apparent that some mechanism for buying stuff within an app itself would be needed. I remember thinking a store of virtual gifts seemed like a no-brainer, but the in-app purchase block was a show-stopper.
Kisky Netmedia isn't the first company to enable in-app purchases, of course, but Little World Gifts [iTunes Link] is precisely what you'd expect to evolve on the iPhone: a little store of 3D trinkets which you can purchase and share with friends. Little World Gifts (which we covered a few weeks ago) would be relegated to a "gee whiz" factor were it not for the Facebook component. My purchases appear in the Facebook LWG app (as seen in the gallery below) and from there I can share with my friends who also enable the Facebook app. No iPhone required. Uh oh.
The implementation is simple: you see a series of little shelves with little 3D items, and you can buy them. Some are simply 3D objects you can rotate and zoom in a little staging area, while some have associated animations (none that I tested had sound). You will need a network connection to browse this store, as new items may appear periodically. I found the store pretty easy to use, as most in-app purchases tend to be low friction. Viewing an item is a little tricky sometimes, and you have to intuit to double-tap to bring up a "close this view" button, but the models are quite wonderful to behold.
You can send gifts to people via the app or into Facebook, and there's even a tracker to see who has picked up their gift. As I said, this is the practical evolution of virtual gifting on the iPhone, and via Facebook, frankly. I can envision a raft of new, branded stores popping up, too. Perhaps someday your Sims could wear Abercrombie or your virtual villagers in Pocket God could get a dancing Elvis? I'd be happy to ship toxic waste to Farmville.
Currently the gifts on the store are rather limited and have a holiday theme. I'm sure there will be more items to buy as time goes on, but I'd love to see a "real" market a la Second Life, where users could build their own 3D trinkets and sell them on this store. Hey, maybe we could resurrect the 3DMF format? Who threw that virtual tomato?
The Little World Gifts app is free, of course. The gifts normally range from $.99 to $3.99 or more (or less), but for a short time all gifts are only $.99US to celebrate the app's debut.
TUAWSend virtual 3D gifts with Little World Gifts originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 14 Dec 2009 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Переслать - World's most geeky Christmas card includes an iPhoneThere's no more procrastinating: the holidays are officially here, and regardless of your celebratory affiliations, some sort of holiday card is going to end up in your mailbox. Typically, these little card stock/construction paper doo-dads end up on the mantle, refrigerator or, in the case of the card from my insurance agent, in the trash. However, this particular card (featured on Crave) is one that I wouldn't mind receiving and would most definitely be treasured long after the new year.
The card uses different colors of construction paper, card decorations, and an iPhone (!!!) to create the ultimate in holiday-mail technology. Combine the above with a scalpel or exacto knife, a little free time and elbow grease and what you get is a crafty and creative delivery medium for your loved one's gift that is sure to excite and delight. Of course, you have to start with an iPhone you're willing to give away...
Read on to see the video demonstration of how to construct the card.
[via Switched]
Continue reading World's most geeky Christmas card includes an iPhone
TUAWWorld's most geeky Christmas card includes an iPhone originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 14 Dec 2009 10:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Переслать - Give your Dashboard a kick in the pants
Filed under: Productivity, Freeware
After reading through the comments on my post about Dashboard Widgets, I noticed quite a few people lamented the fact that the widgets have to go through a 'start-up' process every time you turn on your Mac or log out and log back in. Well, not anymore.
We actually covered this four years ago, back when it was an application named Dashboard Starter. Today it's called Dashboard Kickstart and its taken the form of a System Preference pane by Alwin Troost that runs in the background and reacts to the starting or re-starting of the Dock. Every time you log in or out, you restart the dock. When that happens, Dashboard Kickstart initiates the starting sequence of the Dashboard Widgets. This prevents the delay you'll experience when launching Dashboard the first time you want to use it.
I've used Dashboard Kickstart, in its different iterations, for years and its always worked flawlessly. Once installed, open your System Preferences and simply set how long you want the delay to be between the time your computer starts, or wakes from sleep, and the time you want your widgets 'kicked'. I set the sliders to the lowest time possible.
Dashboard Kickstart is free and requires 10.4 or above. Let me know what you think of Dashboard Kickstart in the comments!TUAWGive your Dashboard a kick in the pants originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 14 Dec 2009 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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