Apple is really trying its best to make it as easy as possible for developers to get into the iOS development game – until now their developer resources needed the user to access the developer portal. Now anyone can get an idea of what is involved in iOS development by just accessing “Start Developing iOS Apps Today”, without signing up for anything. Google also recently improved their Android design guidelines that is available online, through their Android Design page, so it is good to see Apple also doing the same.

The guide is particularly great for anyone who has no idea of what goes into developing a mobile app, including the programming languages used, tools that need to be downloaded, and of course the dreaded vetting process by Apple to decide whether your app is up to standard for the iPhone, iPad or iPod.

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About a week ago a big storm erupted because it was discovered that certain apps (like Path)  could access the iPhone address book, and then also send that address book details to a server to be stored. While everyone was focussing on the offending companies like Path and Twitter, the real culprits were Apple, because they did not have anything in place that informs the user that a app is accessing his or her contact details.

Finally Apple has replied to these concerns, and have decided to bring out a software update that will force the user to give permission to an app before it can access the Address Book. No word yet about when this software update will arrive, but it is safe to assume it would land with iOS 5.1 which should arrive by mid March 2012.

Here is Apple’s official statement regarding the issue:

“Apps that collect or transmit a user’s contact data without their prior permission are in violation of our guidelines*,” Apple spokesman Tom Neumayr told AllThingsD. “We’re working to make this even better for our customers, and as we have done with location services, any app wishing to access contact data will require explicit user approval in a future software release.”

So the apps did not comply with Apple’s guidelines. But for a company that has such stringent vetting standards when it comes to Apps, it does seem like a massive oversight on their behalf. But al least they will now do something about it.

OK – lets start off with a tip. If you are planning to buy an iPad, you might want to wait a few weeks.

According to AllThingsD, Apple is planning to announce the iPad 3 in the first week of March 2012. In the past this meant that the device will land in US stores about a week after that, and other territories about 2 months later. In 2011 South Africa didn’t have to wait too long to get the iPad 2, so hopefully it will be the same with the iPad 3. Apple does not typically deviate from their release cycle when it comes to iOS devices (except with the iPhone 4S), so this is one rumour that will probably turn out to be true.

So what will be new in the iPad 3? Is it worth waiting for? Seeing as the iPad 2 was not a massive update from the iPad 1 (slightly faster, thinner and cameras added, see our review here), the iPad 3 might be a bigger update than expected. Also, Apple does not seem to increase prices with new models, so it might be well worth your while. Here are some of the changes you can expect: (more…)

Apple’s stock price jumped up quite a bit in the last few days (up to $493), which now makes it worth $456 billion, which is worth more than the two other computer superpowers, Microsoft and Google, combined.

Google’s shareprice is currently trading at 189.9 billion, after it took a 9 percent knock on recent missed expectations for earnings and revenue. Microsoft’s Windows division took a 6 percent revenue drop to $4.7 billion, but the rest of the company did very well. This is also thanks to the Xbox division which has finally turned profitable for Microsoft.

Now Apple’s market cap has grown tremendously, part in thanks to the iPhone business, which is alone worth $222 billion. Think about that for a second – the iPhone business revenue is now worth more than Microsoft. And this from a product that did not exist 5 years ago. This makes this interview with Steve Ballmer even funnier – watch his reaction after he gets asked what he thinks of the iPhone:

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We non-US Apple fans have a bad of a hard deal – all of the best media and many of the top apps just do not show up in the SA iTunes store. So if you are really desperate to get Angry Birds, the only way to get hold of an iTunes voucher is to make Apple believe you live in the US. Luckily that is not too hard, and I will explain to you how to do that here.

Before you get started, you have to know that in order to buy content from the US iTunes store, you will need to buy iTunes vouchers. Your non-US credit card will not work with the US store, but luckily it is easy enough to buy vouchers through sites like WildTwig. But first you need a US iTunes store account:

How to Open Your US iTunes Account:

1) First off, you obviously need iTunes, and an internet connection.

2) Open iTunes, then go to iTunes Store on the left.

3) Make sure you are signed out of any iTunes account. Make sure the top right of the iTunes store states “Sign In”. If it is signed into another account, click on the account name, and click Sign Out.

4) Scroll to the bottom of the iTunes Store page, and click on the country icon. This can be any country’s flag.

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On Thursday Apple will hold a small event to show off its latest efforts in the education market. Most sources seem to agree that the event will focus on ways in which textbooks can be brought into the digital age of tablets – but Apple might have a few other tricks up its sleeve. The event might also focus on the announcement of new tools that can be used to create these digital textbooks.

The case for digital textbook has been around for a while. Textbooks are expensive to buy, expensive to print and also heavy to carry around. Imagine a student a few years from now just carrying around a tablet, which has his/her textbooks stored. But the aim is not purely to replace existing textbooks – the value will lie in what type of interactivity can be built into a digital textbook. Instead of static images you find in normal textbooks, textbook publishers can now build in interactive features that enable the reader to better understand a particular issue – think videos, 3D models, sound clips etc.

Traditional textbook publishers will probably show off what textbook experiences they are planning for the iPad, while Apple might show some new content creation tools that will make it easier than ever to publish for the iPad. Right now the digital publishing market is also ripe for revolution with publishers being forced to code apps from scratch, or to use tools like Adobe’s Folio Builder. If Apple can build an easy to use, but powerful tool to build interactive textbooks, it will create another market in which Apple can dominate. The iPad is already doing very well, but if Apple can convince publishers to publish exclusively to the iPad, we can expect to see many students to switch to iPads.

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Yesterday the Apple iPhone 4S was supposed to launch in China, after it was finally approved by the Chinese government. But the number of people who showed up at the Apple retail stores proved to much to handle. Customers was waiting outside in -9 degrees celsius temperatures, and the stores did not open at the normal 7:00 AM time. At 7:15 AM people started chanting “Open the Door!” after an Apple representative announced to the crowd that the phone would not go on sale. The delay sales was not in all stores however, with Shangai getting their allotment on time.

Soon afterward the police had to be called in to calm down the crowd, who started pelting the stores with eggs. Customers were instead told to order their iPhones online, and Apple has decided to not continue sales of the iPhone in stores, in order to prevent unruly crowds forming again.

“The demand for iPhone 4S has been incredible, and our stores in China have already sold out,” an Apple spokesperson told AllThingsD. “Unfortunately we were unable to open our store at Sanlitun due to the large crowd, and to ensure the safety of our customers and employees, iPhone will not available in our retail stores in Beijing and Shanghai for the time being. Customers can still order iPhone through the Apple Online Store, or buy at China Unicom and other authorized resellers.”

See our review of the iPhone 4S here.

Source: AllThingsD

I decided against doing a full iPhone 4S review – the simple fact is that the iPhone 4S is not a massive jump from the iPhone 4, and you will be quite familiar with the 4S if you have ever used an iPhone 4. But the thing about Apple fans is that they always want the latest and greatest. Luckily I was up for an upgrade from Vodacom, so here we are.

I am doing this review from the viewpoint of a long time iPhone user – I am comparing it to previous iPhones, of which I have owned every version since launch. While I use different phones with different operating systems almost every week, my primary phone is still an iPhone. I am not comparing it to the latest Galaxy Optimus Black Nexus LTE Droid RAZR Defy Plus. I have great respect for some of the latest Android superphones, but right now I am simply going to address the iPhone 4S from the viewpoint of an iPhone user. So here goes.

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