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iMessage: Is it BlackBerry Messenger for iOS?

Posted by Ed Oswald on June 6, 2011 at 11:21 am

While iPhone users already are familiar with the messaging app for SMS, up until now only third party apps could give similar functionality to other iOS devices. Apple answered that at WWDC today with the debut of iMessage.

iMessage seems to essentially be like a BlackBerry Messenger for the iOS platform. You can send text messages, photos, and videos. Like desktop IM clients, you will be able to see when somebody is typing. Also, your conversations would be pushed to all your iOS devices, and you can choose to enable delivery and read receipts.

My question is now, what about interoperability? Will iMessage languish as an iOS only application with no way to contact the outside world? How about support for other platforms — say AIM — which its desktop counterpart iChat has supported for awhile.

We’ll let you know as we get more details…

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Here Comes iOS 5

Posted by Ed Oswald on June 6, 2011 at 11:11 am

While iOS 5 is slated to have “200+ new features,” at WWDC we only got to see ten of them. The first is something that probably would remind you of Android: the notifications list. Instead of the old way of notifications being displayed as they arrive, they’d now be in list form accessible by swiping down from the top of the device.

Another new feature is the “Newsstand,” essentially a formal launch of Apple’s subscription option for iOS content. A dedicated section would now be included in the iTunes Store, with a companion app created to read this content exclusively.

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Mac OS X Lion: All About The Gestures

Posted by Ed Oswald on June 6, 2011 at 10:36 am

First up on the WWDC plate was the debut of Mac OS X Lion. It really does seem like this version of Apple’s OS is indeed the melding of its iOS and Mac OS platforms. Gestures will play a big part here in navigation, and Apple has made the decision to move to the full screen app model.

Both we are used to in the mobile (iOS) world, so it only makes sense. So does the new Mission Control feature, which pops up apps much like iOS. In our liveblog, Doug Aamoth of Techland made an interesting comment: “Sounds like Apple *might* be planning a slow, methodical phase-out of the common mouse.” I can’t say I disagree with that.

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Now Nintendo Admits It Was Hacked, Says No Customer Data Stolen

Posted by Matt Peckham on June 6, 2011 at 7:25 am

As this week’s E3 games conference and debut of Nintendo’s Wii successor looms, Nintendo’s admitting that Sony’s not the only victim of hacktivist ne’er-do-wells—yep, Nintendo was hacked, too.

Nintendo acknowledged a security breach in a statement yesterday, explaining that its U.S. servers came under cyber-fire a few weeks ago, but stressed that no personal user data was in breach. By comparison, Sony’s seen troves of sensitive personal data repeatedly stolen (and reportedly distributed) as hackers took turns assaulting the electronics conglomerate’s many corporate facets.

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Live WWDC Coverage This Morning

Posted by Harry McCracken on June 6, 2011 at 1:54 am

Our liveblog coverage of Apple’s WWDC keynote begins at 10am PT at technologizer.com/wwdc11. Come join me, Ed Oswald, and Techland’s Doug Aamoth as we get the skinny on OS X 10.7 Lion, the next version of iOS, and iCloud from Steve Jobs and company.


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Sony Ericsson Xperia Play Review: Like Being a Kid Again

Posted by Jared Newman on June 6, 2011 at 12:04 am

Let’s get something out of the way: I cannot justify buying Sony Ericsson’s Xperia Play. For as much as I love video games, I’m 28. And that seems a bit old to be carrying around a smartphone with its own set of game controls.

But that didn’t stop me from cracking a huge grin when I slid out the Xperia Play’s set of buttons and touch pads for the first time. This Android handset is the mythical “Playstation Phone.” If only it existed 10 or 15 years ago.

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Hours Before Our WWDC Live Coverage…Your Predictions!

Posted by Harry McCracken on June 5, 2011 at 11:42 pm

First a promotional message: I’ll be  at Moscone West in San Francisco on Monday morning at 10am PT for Apple’s WWDC keynote. I’ll be joined in our CoverItLive room by Ed Oswald, Techland’s Doug Aamoth, and, I hope, you. We’ll be at technologizer.com/wwdc11.

In the meantime, let’s review your answers to the predictions I asked you to make about the next version of iOS 5 which Apple will announce tomorrow. (It’ll also finish up launching OS X 10.7 Lion and announce iCloud.)

Without any further ado…

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Now Here, the Biggest Movie Breakthrough in Decades: 2D!

Posted by Harry McCracken on June 4, 2011 at 8:08 pm

I enjoyed attending Qualcomm’s Uplinq conference on mobile technology this week. Even the two presentations that involved having to wear funny glasses as stuff in 3D was projected for us–mostly because in both cases the source for the 3D video was a smartphone, which was kind of cool.

As usual, though, my instinctive response was to bristle at the 3D for being blurry and gimmicky. I had a random thought, which I tweeted:

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The Next Version of iOS: Predictions, Please!

Posted by Harry McCracken on June 4, 2011 at 10:41 am


[UPDATE: I’m closing the survey and compiling the results. Thanks, folks!]

At 10am PT on Monday, June 6th, Apple will hold its WWDC 2011 keynote, with news about OS X 10.7 Lion, the next version of iOS, and something called iCloud. I’ll be there in person at San Francisco’s Moscone West  for Technologizer’s live coverage, joined by Ed Oswald and Techland’s Doug Aamoth for color commentary.

You can join us on Monday at technologizer.com/wwdc11, and I hope you will. (You can also head there now to sign up for an e-mail reminder.)

With less than 48 hours to go, time is running out to make predictions about what we’ll learn. We already know most of the details about Lion, and iCloud remains fairly enigmatic. So let’s focus in on iOS 5, or whatever the next version of the iPhone/iPod Touch/iPad operating system turns out to be called.

I’ve put together a survey that’ll let you make predictions about iOS 5 features and enhancements, (It’ll take you a minute or two to complete.) I’ll report on our aggregate predictions as a group before the keynote–and after Steve Jobs and company have spoken, we can see how accurate we were.

Click here to take the survey.  Thanks for participating, and see you on Monday.

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Konami Has Its Own Plan for PSP-to-PS3 Gaming, And It’s Called “Transfarring”

Posted by Jared Newman on June 3, 2011 at 3:39 pm

At a pre-E3 press event Thursday night, Konami announced a couple of game compilations that will be playable on both the Sony PSP and the Playstation 3, with the ability to transfer your progress between both systems. And unfortunately, Konami is calling this gimmick “Transfarring.”

Strange name aside, Transfarring is a neat idea. You connect the PSP to the PS3, and your saved game transfers from one to the other. The first games to include this capability will be Metal Gear Solid HD Collection and Zone of Enders HD Collection. Eventually, Konami wants to expand Transfarring to Sony’s next-generation portable.

If this all sounds kind of familiar, it’s because Sony announced a similar PSP-to-PS3 feature a couple of weeks ago. Konami stressed that Transfarring is a separate creation, although it’s not clear why the publisher has decided to go it alone. I suppose it doesn’t make a difference as long as both systems work well.

For now, I’m wondering whether people will have to buy two versions of each game to use Transfarring or otherwise pay extra for the privilege. I’m also curious how Konami will deal with the control differences on Sony’s large and small devices. The PSP, after all, lacks a second analog stick and has only one pair of trigger buttons. (Sony has said it will rework the controls for its own PSP-to-PS3 remakes.) As with most video game news that’s trickling out ahead of next week’s E3 expo, I’m hoping to get some answers soon.

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