It's all iPad 2 all the time in the press these days, which will last, oh until the rumors about the iPhone 5 grow too big and take over the press cycle. Apple has a sweet release schedule that keeps their latest and greatest right there at the top of every news queue, so just in case you missed some of our killer coverage, it's this week's round up of all our latest and greatest.
Features:
- The iPad 2's "Optimized" Apps Go Head-to-Head with the Original iPad - The iPad 2 has barely been out of its box for a week and already we're getting all kinds of remarkable claims about games being redesigned and tweaked to take maximum advantage of the new superior processor and even better graphics. We took those boasts head on in a face to face battle between the original iPad and the new guy on the block. Our results? A lot of talk without much to back it up. Let's see who's walking the walk and who's just talking the talk.
- 7 Gyroscope Games for Your iPad 2 - Okay, so where did game developers kick some serious butt in designing for the iPad 2? How about we see what's cooking with the gang prepared to take into consideration the new gyroscope action inside Apple's latest tablet?
Reviews:
- The iPad 2 Review - You didn't think we were going to let this go by did you? Haha, you are hilarious, oh reader. Sure, we spent a lot of time covering it, we did a hands on, we live tweeted/blogged the heck out of the release, and you can bet we weren't just going to let the new iPad get out there without chiming in our two cents. And what is our two cents? Great, in a word.
- Best Case Scenario -- iPad 2 Cases - And what's a new iPad 2 without a brand new iPad 2 case to go with it? Unprotected, exposed to the elements, naked as a baby, and you wouldn't throw a new baby into your messenger bag without something to keep it safe would you? Of course you wouldn't. Sheesh. Case makers were ready almost from day one and we took a gander.
How-Tos:
- How To Encode Like a Pro With Handbrake - Sure, you're allowed to make a copy of DVDs you own so you can watch them on other devices. That's your legal right. But that doesn't mean that to discourage pirates, studios won't go out of their way to make it difficult for you to do it. Sure, this might be a lot of work on your part, but it's better than not being able to lie in bed watching movies on your new iPad 2.
- How to Drop MobileMe for GoogleMe - Whether the rumors are true or not about MobileMe going free this April, maybe you don't want to wait and find out, but you also don't want to shell out the big bucks for a MobileMe subscription. If that's the case, what about Google? Can Apple's biggest competitor handle the task? Oh, yeah, not even a problem.
News:
I guess the first thing we're going to have to start off with here is pouring some out on the curb for unlimited data plans. Not only is AT&T spiking it for mobile, but they're moving to cap your DSL and U-verse activity too, and you know that just means others will follow...in the same bad news business, Apple appears to be handicapping web apps in the latest iOS, cutting them out of Safari's new Nitro engine...and if you're a Zune buyer (really?), then you can pretty much drop that as a habit, as Microsoft finally lets the brick die...chalk that up to just one more victim in the murderous rampage that is the life of Steve Jobs as he plows along his killing spree, leaving Bon Jovi and the Zune both in his wake...dead Safari extension buttons? Well, that ain't nothing to cry about....or maybe you just want to kill your iPhone's jailbrokeness; that, too, is easy to do, just don't follow the first steps -- DON'T DO IT...and the bad news train was hot hot HOT this week, with even Foxconn taking one on the chin and possibly pulling Apple a wee bit down with it...had enough? Because there's more! AT&T may have figured out you -- yes, you! -- are using MyWi on your jailbroken iPhone to do a little out-of-contract tethering, naughty naughty; did you get an email and/or text shaming you? there may be worse to come....and if you're a regular reader of the New York Times, prepare for some bad news, as the Gray Lady opts for Paywall, round two.
There has to be some good news out there. How about we start with game makers PopCap donating their proceeds to Japan in the wake of their unfolding tragedies?...this follows in the wake of Capcom and SEGA making the exact same price cut and charitable pledge....while Apple's CEO, Mr. Steve Jobs, offers his support to Japanese employees.
And finally, for the week, we took a look at Google big time lately and have much to share, much to report, and much to recommend. For starters, a huge update was pushed out to the Google app, including a rebranding as Google Search, but with a raft of new features, including some pretty pimp camera functionality...speaking of features, we walked you through Google's biggies and gave you the tips, such as how to customize and improve your time in Gmail...then Mountain View brought us some slick printing options from the cloud with Google Cloud Print...which would be a great big help if you decided you were gong to totally swing with Google Docs as opposed to iWorks or Microsoft Office...and since you're totally about the sharing and the collaboration, Google Docs has added discussions to their documents, just for you, so if you need to leave a little note for your partners, there you go...finally, we looked at Google's photo service, Picasa, to see just how well it manages an online photo album. Answer? Not too shabby.
