Archive for October, 2009
It’s A Kind Of Magic
Oct 29th
The Apple Magic Mouse arrived at Fruit Bytes HQ late this afternoon, courtesy of UPS. Having ordered it direct from Apple Store online 9 days ago, I was very much looking forward to receiving it and having a bit of a play to see how it compared to it’s older sibling, the Mighty Mouse.
When I unpacked the mouse I was expecting it to come in the cardboard packaging like the Mighty Mouse, but instead it’s a plastic box much like the ones that the iPod range come in nowadays (below). The batteries were already inside of the mouse, so all I needed to do was flick the switch underneath, browse for a new Bluetooth device and within a few moments the Magic Mouse was ready for business.
The back of the box shows all the various actions such as the two-finger swipe and screen zoom. But, I know you’re keen to know how it feels compared to the bigger Mighty Mouse…
Because it’s so much thinner and flatter, you will notice the difference in your hand right away. A couple of my fingers felt like they didn’t quite know where to be, mostly my ring finger which ordinarily would be hugging the side of the Mighty Mouse. I sometimes found myself using my index finger to scroll rather than my middle finger. I didn’t expect anything other than an alien feeling to begin with and it would be silly to say otherwise. The more I’m using it, the more intuitive and natural it’s starting to become and I know for sure that the Mighty Mouse would feel big and chunky in my hand now.
I’ve had a play with just some of the functions of the Magic Mouse in the short time I’ve had it. Obviously vertical scroll is particularly enjoyable and the thought of no more scroll ball getting clogged up is a sweet one. I have scrolled through my iTunes music library (cover flow view) using one-finger horizontal scrolling. This was just to test this feature out but doubt it will be an action I use regularly as I never browse my library in Cover Flow view. Similarly, two-finger swiping for going back or forward in Safari may not be something I use much, but it works and works well.
These are my Magic Mouse preferences…
I increased the Scrolling up one notch from it’s default and it feels perfect for me. Aside from it’s functionality, it’s a beautifully designed piece of hardware as one comes to expect from Apple. Underneath the mouse is almost as gorgeous as the top of it. No doubt I will take further pictures to show off it’s slim profile soon and put them up on Flickr.
I know there have been quite a few questions on Twitter about the particular functioning of the Magic Mouse which I have been unable to answer due to being away from the device at the time. But, I’ll be more than happy to answer any questions you may have, in the comments. My Mighty Mouse is currently being packed up and will hopefully be off to a new home very soon. The Magic Mouse is here to stay.
(No Ratings Yet)
Loading ...WhatsApp Messenger for iPhone
Oct 25th
I’ve been trying to find the perfect push notification iPhone-2-iPhone messaging solution. An app that falls between instant messaging and SMS, without the cost of SMS. The two top ones on the App Store are Ping! and WhatsApp. I reviewed Ping! recently, but I just had to try out WhatsApp to see how it compared.
WhatsApp differs from Ping! in that it uses your phone number and your contact list rather than a PIN/username, so there’s no signing up or having to pass a username onto friends – and no need to add new contacts – your whole iPhone contact list is available within the app. If you have friends with an iPhone then all they need to do is download WhatsApp [iTunes link] which is currently absolutely free, then when you open the app you’ll see which of your contacts already have the app installed by looking through the Favourites list. You also have the option to send an invite to your other friends so they can download the app and interact with you.
The advantage WhatsApp has over Ping!, for me, is the timestamps are correct. You’d have to take a guess when a contact had sent you a Ping! message as the timestamps would read whatever they wanted at any given time. The UI in WhatsApp is also far more attractive than Ping! – and the icon is a lot prettier. That matters. On sending a message you get a little notification tone, much like in the default SMS app on the iPhone. You can also see when one of your contacts is online and composing a reply – ‘typing’ will be displayed under their name at the top of the messaging window.
In WhatsApp you can set a status from the ones given as default such as Available, Sleeping, Busy, In a Meeting and many more, or you can create your own such as ‘iPhone docked and charging’ – a status which indicates that I am unable to reply right away…and something I find myself using a lot! In the settings you can switch status notifications on so that you will get an instant push notification when one of your contacts changes their WhatsApp status.
I can see many people using Ping! alongside WhatsApp. Ping! is the better alternative for chatting to online friends who perhaps you don’t feel comfortable about giving your phone number to, but WhatsApp is probably more suited to those that you do know and trust enough to share your vCard with.
WhatsApp is currently free so there’s no excuse for you and your iPhone friends not to check this one out.
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(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...The Magic Mouse and The Mighty Macs
Oct 21st
If you’re quite fond of that rather large glowing fruit company in Cupertino, you will already know that yesterday Apple released a slew of updates to their hardware range, along with a brand new product, the Magic Mouse – the world’s first multi-touch mouse.
The Apple Store was offline from approximately 3pm until 5.30pm UK time while they updated it with the new shiny hardware including new 21″ and 27″ iMacs, white unibody MacBook, Magic Mouse, new Apple Remote and updates to the Mac Mini, AirPort Extreme and Time Capsule. Almost too much to take in! tomacintosh.com has written a little on the new iMacs and their specs, here.
Aside from the new 27in iMac being of particular interest to me, the more affordable option currently is the Magic Mouse and Apple Remote. I ordered both of these shortly after the store came back online and delivery date was 5th November. However, the Apple Remote today changed to 2-4 weeks availability so my order was pushed back another 30 days. I did the sensible thing and cancelled the order for the remote otherwise that would have held up my Magic Mouse, which is now due to ship in 3-5 days.
I’m very much looking forward to using the new Magic Mouse. I bought my wireless Mighty Mouse back in February and while it’s much better than the wired version I’d been using for over 12 months before it, I do find the scroll ball something of an annoyance. To not have that aspect to deal with will be very refreshing. The new Apple Remote looks nice and finally it looks like it belongs with the iMac and MacBook Pro’s. I will pick one of those up when they’re in stock for immediate shipping.
As with every new hardware update of particular significance, it’s time to show some restraint and not let that reality distortion field take control. I suspect and must remember that in a few months we’ll all be salivating over something new and even more shiny – hopefully possibly the Apple tablet. As much as the new more powerful iMac would be a wonderful addition to my workflow, I am holding out for a tablet device. If that looks unlikely for the first quarter of 2010 then an upgraded iMac could take it’s place.
Were you excited about the hardware upgrades yesterday? Have you ordered a new Mac already or are you considering a purchase in the not too distant future? If you are ordering direct from Apple Store UK, would you consider using this link which supports Fruit Bytes as you buy. Thank you!
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...Phoney Dock Icon for Tweetie Mac
Oct 13th
I just want to pass on this wonderful alternative dock icon for Tweetie Mac, created by Matthew Rex, which matches the new icon for Tweetie 2 iPhone.
Let’s hope this becomes the official icon for the next version of Tweetie for Mac. It looks so much more stylish in my dock than the default.
To change the dock icon, I recommend downloading the trial of CandyBar.
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...CameraBag Desktop
Oct 11th
A couple of months ago I wrote about how photos taken with the iPhone 3G can be much improved with camera applications such as CameraBag and ShakeItPhoto. These apps can add much character to an otherwise washed out and often bland offering.
Several weeks ago, the developer behind CameraBag for iPhone announced CameraBag Desktop, for Mac OS X. At the time of the release, there was no trial before buying which was a little disappointing, but because I had enjoyed the speedy way to enhance a photo on the iPhone I decided to jump right on in and plump up the $19 asking price. This was done mostly with the intention of checking it out so I could write an honest review here and let you, my dear readers, know whether it was worth parting with your money.
The application is extremely easy to use. Drag a photo onto the app window and you have all of your filters along the bottom as you can see. There’s plenty to choose from: Helga, Lolo, Mono, 1962, 1974, Instant, Magazine, Cinema and Colorcross – a filter that is not yet in the iPhone app. Aside from applying one filter, you also have a multi-filter option.
Let’s have a look at some before and after photos. First up is a photo I took today of my Nintendo DS…
And here is that same photo, with the Colorcross filter applied, along with a medium border…
In just one click, it has made a boring photo look really quite interesting. Here’s another of a sign post I took last year…
And here with the Colorcross filter, once again…
And finally this photo of the Millennium Bridge in Newcastle upon Tyne…
And now with the Instant filter applied…
CameraBag Desktop is a great way to make your photos look interesting in one click without spending time in your usual photo editor. I can’t say I will be using CameraBag Desktop as often as I will Pixelmator for photo editing, but when a photo calls for more than just a little contrast and vignette then it will be very useful.
I’m going to give CameraBag Desktop a rating of 3 stars. It would have received more had the 15-day trial been available when released, to avoid blindly buying.
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You can download a 15-day trial of CameraBag Desktop, here. Saving is disabled and images contain a watermark in the trial version.
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...The best just got better!
Oct 10th
Tweetie 2 (iTunes) was released to the App Store last night, shortly after developer Loren Brichter announced to the masses on Twitter that it had been approved. The buzz about it on Twitter felt very similar to that which accompanies the release of a brand new Apple product. It was THAT good.
After I wrote a little about Tweetie 2 a couple of weeks ago, I read some pre-release reviews which confirmed that there were no themes in Tweetie 2, just the one simple theme. I wasn’t entirely sure how I was going to feel about that as Chat Bubbles has been my theme of choice since day one. I didn’t like the thought of having that taken away from me. But, the list of features kept my interest fully there, so I wasn’t going to pass judgement until I had the app infront of me.
Let’s just say I’m now thinking “Chat Bubbles? What Chat Bubbles?”. The simple clean white theme is gorgeous. Simplicity and absolute elegance. The screengrabs of the theme don’t do it justice. See it on your iPhone and you’ll feel the love. I have barely put my iPhone down since I bought Tweetie 2 last night. There’s features I haven’t touched yet – still so much more to play with which is what I love in an iPhone app. Having everything there and fully functional, but still managing to find something even more cool on closer inspection.
My favourite bits of Tweetie 2 so far are the “pull down to refresh” feature which gives that satisfying little pop sound when it’s done, threaded conversations and the little blue neon markers underneath unread tweets, @’s and DM’s. The ‘nearby’ feature is also particularly beautiful. I’m also a huge fan of the new simple silver icon. I think, like the application behind it, it’s simple and elegent. It sits on the opposite side of the same row as my Camera app on my iPhone’s home screen – and looks right at home there.
Rather than do a full review of every feature, I am going to hand you over to the Cult Of Mac who have done a sterling job on that front. One more thing I will say, however, this is worth £1.79 ten times over. I seriously do mean that. I believe fully in supporting developers when they create beautiful applications like this which change the way I use my iPhone and Twitter on a daily basis. £1.79 just doesn’t even begin to cover my appreciation.
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Tweetie 2 – iTunes [£1.79/$2.99]
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...Cocoto Kart Online
Oct 4th
One of the first apps I bought in the App Store was Crash Bandicoot Nitro Kart 3D (iTunes link) and it provided hours of fun. I really enjoy driving games, but the fun karting ones not the serious souped-up sports car ones.
When I read a review of Cocoto Kart Online (iTunes/59p) at Touch Arcade yesterday, the words ‘online multi-player’ was the deal maker for me. At only 59p I felt I had nothing to lose. I played in single player mode and found it much more enjoyable than Krazy Kart Racing that I’d paid five times as much for recently.
Cocoto Kart Online really comes into it’s own in multi-player mode. To play against others, simply go to the games menu and select Play Multiplayer, then choose a character to represent you. Once you’re back in the menu, select Choose Table. This will show you various races, some in progress but some empty. You can join a race with others or create your own by pressing one of the empty available Race 0 Players cells as shown below…
And this is the message once you have entered yourself into a race…
I did this for the first time the evening and asked my good friend Tom to meet me in there. Less than a minute later Tom joined me and we were able to battle it out against eachother. This is the first time I have experienced online racing against a friend and it was terrific fun! I was delighted to be the victorious one in our first race against eachother, but of course I did let him win a couple after that 
For 59p, this game is an absolute bargain. What makes Cocoto Kart a winner for me is being able to race against people you know if you arrange a meet, rather than just random strangers you pick up in the race rooms! I hope Tom and I will be able to race against other friends if they decide to buy this game. If you have already bought Cocoto Kart then let me know your nickname and I’ll look out for you in the race table, or we can arrange a specific time to meet and do battle. I’ll be gentle, I promise.
My Cocoto Kart Online nickname is purplelime. See you there.
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(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...Video from the iPod nano 5G
Oct 1st
In my initial thoughts post on the iPod nano 5G, I promised some video soon so you could all see the quality as that’s been the most requested of me on Twitter. I took the nano out with me today and was approached by someone who thought my bright orange gadget looked rather tasty. Luckily I was able to capture his enthusiasm on video.
Like I mentioned in my last post about the nano, I am seriously impressed with the video quality but I’m also extremely pleased with that of the audio. Of the more expensive camcorders I have owned over the years, the audio quality was somewhat of a disappointment. Either quite muffled or an over-sensitive built-in mic, something that the Aiptek AHD200 suffered from which meant that a gentle breeze would quickly be translated as a force nine gale.
Here’s another video taken with the nano today…
My usual path when uploading video to the Mac from the nano is via iPhoto, then from within QuickTime I can quickly trim a clip and upload it to YouTube from within QT, or pop it onto Flickr. Both of the videos here are direct from the nano and uploaded to Flickr. If I want to do something special with it then I’ll import it into iMovie and do some editing in there. However, one of the things I bought the nano for was quick simple video I could upload to twitvid which will then be auto-posted to Twitter. That’s simply a case of syncing the nano, importing the video into iPhoto, again just trimming in QuickTime and then saving the video (.mov) and uploading to the twitvid site. They’re usually very speedy in processing the video to share instantly on twitter.
I know video quality of the iPod nano is something that many people out there are interested in knowing about, as was I before I decided to purchase. But I hope the above videos go some way to reassuring you that this is no fuzzy pixelated offering from Apple.
As mentioned in this post, if there’s anything specific you would like to know about the iPod nano from someone that is enjoying playing with it then do feel free to ask in the comments 
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