Tag: iWorld

MacWorld iWorld: Best Of Show Winners Announced

The editors of Macworld have released their list of winners of Best Of Show at this year’s Macworld | iWorld conference. The list is a diverse collection of apps and accessories, ranging in price from free all the way up to $200.

– Adonit Jot Touch. This innovative stylus blends an internal spring, bluetooth in the stylus, and iPad software to create the first pressure sensitive stylus for the iPad.

– Spark Digital Microphone from Blue Microphones. This professional-grade condenser mic is compatible with both the Mac and the iPad. It uses the same studio-grade technology as Blue Microphones’s previous microphones. It sells for $200.

– iStopMotion for iPad. Available in the App Store at an introductory price of $4.99 (regularly $9.99), this app allows users to take several pictures in succession and stitch them together into a stop-motion video that can then be exported to YouTube or the iPad’s camera roll.

– Dev Audio Microcone. Designed for group conversations, Dev Audio’s mutlidirectional Microcone can record in six directions, on six different audio channels. Included software allows users to edit the audio of the six channels individually.

– FileThis Fetch. Fetch automatically collects your statements from a variety of financial institutions – banks, credit card companies, etc. – and presents them to you in an easy-to-navigate format. The service, which costs $2 per month unless you purchase a pre-paid plan, gathers all your financial information into one place, allowing you to review and search your informaiton without having to sign into multiple accounts.

– Game Your Video. This iPhone app allows you to add a variety of special effect to your videos in an interface designed to feel more like playing a game than editing a video. The app sells for $1.99 in the App Store.

– i4software’s Video Camera. Video Camera is another video editing app, albeit more powerful than Game Your Video. It’s designed to be both easy to use and feature-rich. Remarkably, it includes a feature that allows recording from as many as 8 remote cameras simultaneously. The app sells for $7.99 in the app store.

– xPrintServer. This small device connects to your wireless router and automatically discovers any printers on your network. It allows iOS users to print directly to any printer on the network from their devices.

– blinQ. This device turns the iPhone into a universal remote. The remote itself plugs into the iPhone’s headphone jack. The blinQ iPhone app provides the control interface and social networking features, allowing you to post what you’re watching on Twitter or Facebook.

– PDFpen for iPad. The iPad version of Smile’s PDF editing software (originally for Mac) offers an array of powerful tools for editing and annotating PDF files on the iPad. In addition to the editing features, the app also allows for storing documents in various cloud services including iCloud, Dropbox, Evernote, and Google Docs, which means that you can edit the same file from either your iPad or your Mac. The app sells for $9.99 in the App Store.

– TourWrist. There are dozens of apps in the App Store that take panoramic photos, and most of them work equally well. TourWrist does something unique, though. It blurs the line between panoramic photo and augmented reality: when you look at a TourWrist image, it moves as you move your iPhone or iPad, making a full 360-degree tour of any environment. Tours created in the app can be uploaded to TourWrist’s website or shared in a variety of other locations. TourWrist is a free universal app available in the App Store.

January 27, 2012
MacWorld iWorld: Jetpack Joyride Wins Best App Ever

Halfbrick Studios, maker of the ridiculously addictive Fruit Ninja, have another hit on their hands, it seems. Their Jetpack Joyride game has just been announced as the winner of the MacWorld | iWorld Best App Ever award. Second place went to Temple Run, while Tiny Wings took third.

Jetpack Joyride beat 19 other competitors to take the top prize. While most of the other apps in the category are games, many are not. This year also marks the first time that Android apps have been included in the competition. Of the 20 apps in the category, 10 are Android apps – including Angry Birds, Evernote, and Google Maps. All three of the top apps are iOS apps, however.

Jetpack Joyride is a universal iOS app available for free from the App Store, as is Temple Run. Tiny Wings sells for $0.99. While Jetpack Joyride took the top award overall, there were over 100 categories in which apps could compete. There were several overall categories including Most Innovative App, Most Useful App, and Best Time Killer. There were also more specialized categories, including Best Social Networking App, Best E-Reader App, Best Mobile Office App, and many more. You can check out the full list of categories and winners on the Best App Ever site.

January 27, 2012
MacWorld iWorld: Intoxicase Puts A Bottle Opener On Your iPhone

Spicebox has been showing off their new Intoxicase iPhone cases at MacWorld | iWorld this week. The two cases – Intoxicase and Intoxicase Plus – have built-in bottle openers. There is also an app that allows users to track how much they drink, share their drinking habits on social media (if they want), and even call a taxi cab when they’ve had too much.

The opener on the Intoxicase Plus, pictured above, has a slim profile, but unfolds into a sturdy stainless steel bottle opener. The opener on the Intoxicase looks more like a traditional bottle opener, but protrudes further from the back of the case.

The cases are available for pre-order in the Intoxicase store. The Intoxicase is $25, and the Intoxicase Plus is $35. The Intoxicase app is available now as a free download.

The makers of the Intoxicase made a video detailing the cases’ design, and describing both the inspiration for the case and the testing that they put it through. Check it out below, then let us know what you think in the comments.

January 27, 2012
MacWorld iWorld: Creston Lets You Control Your House From Your iPhone

Creston has been showing off their new home/business automation system at MacWorld | iWorld. Creston’s system allows users to control lights, entertainment systems, electronic window blinds, and more, all from their iOS (or Android) devices.

Of course, the system doesn’t come cheap. The full home or business automation hardware setup runs in the neighborhood of $2,000. On top of that, the control app for the iPhone is another $99. At that price tag, the system is going to be of more interest to business customers than to most homeowners. Homeowners with Creston’s system installed can use their iPhones to perform all sorts of home-related functions, though. In addition to turning lights on and off, they can also use the system to check the status of their home alarms remotely, as well as a host of other options. The interface is also customizable, allowing users – whether enterprise or home users – to perform a series of complex actions with just a tap on their screen.

January 27, 2012
Macworld iWorld: Video Camera App Lets You Record, Edit And Share

You could create a movie on the iPhone before, but you could never really make a movie. i4software wants to remedy that.

At Macworld iWorld today, the company announced their new cleverly titled Video Camera app. It aims to simplify the process of shooting, editing and sharing video by combining all three processes into a single application.

But wait, there’s more! Video Camera’s built-in networking capabilities, so graciously provided by the iPod that it’s running off of, let groups of people share the video recording experience together in real time.

“I always enjoyed making movies, but while shooting was quick, editing became time consuming,” software architect Michael Zaletel, i4software’s CEO, and Video Camera’s creator, said. “The concept of combining acquisition and editing is revolutionary.”

The app sells itself on being easy and powerful. It works with the front and back cameras of recent iPhones, but it reportedly works on the 3GS model as well! The app’s live editing tool allows users to add, rearrange, trim and delete clips as they see fit. As you choose and trim clips, the app creates a timeline where you can refine, reorder and add transitions to your creation. You’ll be the next Steven Spielberg in no time!

The app works with the iPhone 4 and 4S, fourth generation iPod touch and iPad 2. It lets you shoot video in 1080p, 720p and standard definition, or as my friends like to call it, 360p.

Triple tapping the the screen offers more experienced users the ability to control exposure, focus and white balance. The app also has full zoom control.

The app also includes the convenient features found in every other video editing program such as intros, background music and transition choices. You can now shoot a skateboarding video set to Drowning Pool’s classic rock hit “Bodies” on your iPhone.

With Video Camera, you can also use a range of actual cameras using the iPad Camera Connection Kit. The list of supported cameras include GoPro Hero, Panasonic GH1 or GH2 and more.

When you’re done filming your masterpiece worthy of an oscar, you can upload it to Facebook, YouTube, and Vimeo in two resolutions.

Video Camera remote camera feature takes the concept of movie-making as a social experience and turns it into reality. Groups of up to eight shooters can simultaneously record an event from different angles and combine the scenes into a single masterpiece worthy of Tommy Wiseau.

The current group shooting functionality requires all the phone to be on the same Wi-Fi network, but soon the developer will tap into 3G networks via a secure server to deliver worldwide simultaneous shooting. Finally, my dream of shooting a 1930s crime mystery thriller that suddenly cuts to live footage of a giraffe grazing on the savanna will become a reality.

Video Camera is now available on the iTunes store for the low price of $8.

All the World’s a Stage from i4Software on Vimeo.

January 26, 2012