GadgetNewsBlog

CCTV footage of Sun Danyong the day before he died

A Chinese man suspected of stealing a prototype for the fourth generation iPhone has committed suicide.

Before his death, Sun Danyong told friends he had been beaten up by security staff from his firm, Foxconn, one of Apple’s largest manufacturers.
Foxconn, a large Taiwanese company which employed Sun in its huge Shenzhen factory, has launched an investigation.
Apple says it is saddened by the death and is waiting for the results of the investigation. Sun Danyong was 25 when he threw himself off a 12-storey building last week.As part of his job, he was responsible for shipping iPhone prototypes to Apple.

Such prototypes are a closely guarded secret, as Apple likes to keep its new products and upgrades under wraps until their launch date, to heighten customer anticipation.On 13 July, Sun reported that he was missing one of the 16 units in his possession.

The company immediately launched an investigation into the disappearance; three days later he had jumped to his death. Read the rest of this entry »

For a game with such simple instructions, Letrix is surprisingly difficult. Letrix is a word puzzle where you build words similar to Boggle or Scrabble using letters that drop down the screen like in Tetris. Once you’ve created a word, the tiles disappear. If your stack of letters gets too tall, then it’s game over.

Sounds easy, right? I’ve played a game or two of Scrabble in my day so I felt ready to take on the Letrix challenge.

You can move tiles left or right as they slide down the screen. Once a tile lands in a stack, you can still move it up, down or side to side as long as it stays within it’s row. However, with a steady stream on falling tiles, I found it difficult to concentrate on creating words.

There are just a few options for Letrix. Sound effects, basically the staccato clip of tiles falling into place, can be on or off. Disappointingly, you can’t listen to your own tunes while playing. There’s also a high score leaderboard, but I was never asked to enter my name. It seems to track scores only by date and level, not by name so you can’t compare your score to another player.

If you enjoy word games, then Letrix has the potential to be fun. (Heck for folks with a quicker response time it might already be fun!) But I would appreciate an update that makes it easier for new users to get started. I’d like a “cheat” — maybe shake to clear all the tiles or an unlimited play option that dissolves stacks instead of ending the game. I say this because I genuinely like playing Letrix, but getting up to speed is frustrating.

If you’re not sure if you’re ready for the Letrix challenge, you can start off with the free version. If you’re ready to man up, then get Letrix Classic and you’ll get two play modes.

• price: $1.99
• rating: 6/10
• app_name: Letrix Classic

The makers of the Wise Guide Fan Navigator series and the companion site WiseGuidesOnline.com, are expanding the fandemonium by bringing more fan trivia and “locals only” tidbits to MLB stadiums nationwide. … starting with Wrigley Field.

Wise Guide Wrigley Field is a take-along app for any one visiting the Cubs home stadium in Chicago, which isn’t to say that home-viewers won’t enjoy it as well. The guide includes three sections — tips, trivia, eat & drink — and is great for pre-game entertainment or keeping antsy kids occupied if the games goes into extra innings.

The tips section is a general guide to Wrigley Field where users will find information about Harry Carey (and his statue), the source of the curse of the cubs (and what they’ve tried doing to end the curse), bathroom tips, where to wait for autographs and more. There are more than 40 tidbits in all.

The WG Wrigley Field trivia section is actually more of a quiz game with multiple choice answers. You can keep guessing until you get the answer right, which is a nice touch as are the cheering fans. However, there’s no way to turn down the fans without turning down your device, so don’t plan on sneaking in a quick Wrigley Field trivia quiz during Monday morning’s boring meeting.

The last section of the Wrigley Field iPhone app is Eat & Drink and it goes beyond The Friendly Confines. This section includes cafes, diners and bars in and around Wrigley Field. So you’re covered regardless of whether you want to eat before the game, after the game or throughout the game.

The nice thing about Wise Guide Wrigley Field, besides the graphics and general ease-of-use, is that it’s not just a quick repackage of old material. The app is truly a companion to the wise guides website. And, if you like the guide and visit Wrigley Field use the tab on the app to “share a tip” so that future visitors can benefit from your experience and wisdom.

• app_name: Wise Guide Wrigley Field
• rating: 9/10
• price: $0.99

Enhance your photos with ColorSplash by choosing which parts are colored and which are gray. Watch on to see just what you can do with ColorSplash!

This article was published by iphoneapplicationlist.com

(Updates posted in reverse chronological order from latest or oldest)

• Asking about iPhone activations. US represents 40% of activations. Shouldn’t international side pick up, grow faster? Tim Cook: don’t release sales by geography.
• Follow up on netbook. Think an emerging market for a truly mobile device, larger screen, do more than with iPhone? Tim Cook: Never discount anything, won’t answer about new products. Customers want full featured notebooks. Apple delivers those, delivers value. Customers very happy. Current netbooks are very slow, software is old, don’t have robust computing experience, lack horsepower, small screens, cramped keyboards. People not happy. Apple will only play where they can deliver products that are innovative, proud of. Read the rest of this entry »

TiPb just got word from Azuki Systems, the folks behind Sports Illustrated’s SI Swimsuit 2009 [$2.99 - iTunes link] that it’s hit the App Store a tad before schedule.

it’s the first mobile application in the lifestyle category to deliver video of SI’s Swimsuit models, hundreds of SI Swimsuit photos as well as scores, schedules and team information.

The app is rated 17+ since swimsuits and body paint may not be appropriate for every age in every geography, so proceed with all due advanced notice. Additional screenshots, after the break…

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

SplashID [$4.99 - iTunes link] is an app for the iPhone and iPod touch that provides a great place to store your data securely with a password. Just how secure is it? Super secure. 256bit Blowfish secure.

I have used SplashID for years on the Palm OS. I was so excited to see that SplashData brought SplashID to the iPhone last year as I was easily able to port my old files over to the iPhone using their desktop companion app.

So what does SplashID do for you? A lot, let’s take a look after the break! Read the rest of this entry »

Crunchgear is reporting that Till Schadde of Equinux has been noticing some weirdness with his AIM app and push notifications. Namely, Schadde has been seeing his AIM messages go to random recipients. He discovered this by being notified that a message he had sent to his iPhone version of AIM was redirected to a random stranger. That stranger then contacted Schaddle to let him know and to supply him with a screen shot of his message. Read the rest of this entry »

Popular developer, Clickgamer, just released their latest collaboration with Studio Radiolaris, Zombies vs Sheep. This game, set in a Mexican shooting gallery (complete with a Mariachi soundtrack), has a simple goal: protect the sheep from zombies and other predators. The game is simple (tap-to-shoot the enemies), the graphics are unique (a cardboard cutout style), and the underlying theme is just plain funny (because obviously we need to worry about protecting our sheep from the living dead).  There are many features that make this game worthwhile, entertaining, and sure to be another App Store hit.

When people think about the action of waving, it is pretty universally accepted as a greeting. However, waving can beckon someone over, can be out of pure politeness, can be a mean of dismissal, or can imply a host of other things. How are we to know exactly what someone intends by this simply gesture? Hey U, a brand new app released today for the iPhone and iPod Touch, attempts to bring some clarity (and fun!) to the act of waving. (more…)