Review: Griffin Technology Woogie 2 for iPod touch and iPhone

Does your child love his/her iPod Touch? Make them love it even more with a Woogie case! What’s a Woogie you may ask? It’s a soft and huggable case for your child’s iPod Touch. This squeezable and lovable toy not only protects the device, but also has a clear plastic window screen in front for full access to games and apps.

To use, simply slip the iPod Touch (or iPhone) into the front see-through pocket. On top are two strong Velcro clasps that the device securely in the front window. Touch the plastic screen to use your child’s favorite apps. No assembly required.

These adorable Woggies have five feet that can be use as a stand for your child’s iPod Touch. There’s a clear plastic window in front that both protects and allows your child to use the multi-touch display. Imagine them watching their favorite movies, playing games, or reading their educational books on it. It’s simply adorable, unique, and makes the perfect child present for this holiday season. As advertised, it’s 50% fuzzy friend, 50% protective case, and 100% fun.

The Woogie is “surface washable,” meaning it can’t be washed in the washing machine, but can get slightly damp. To clean, gently apply upholstery cleaner or detergent diluted in water to fabric with a sponge. Just make sure not to saturate the Woogie so the liquid doesn’t soak into the stuffing.

This fuzzy and huggable case is recommended for children 3 years and older and comes in two colors – bright pink with light pink highlights and blue with green highlights. It’s available exclusively online at GriffinTechnology.com for $19.99.

Note: The Original Woogie is also available for purchase, on sale now for $17.99. It only comes in green, and has 6 legs (tuck in the bottom legs to be used as a stand). The original version also comes with built-in speakers (requires 2 AAA batteries which are included), hidden under one of the legs, secured with strong Velcro. It’s also available exclusively online at GriffinTechnology.com.

Both Woogie versions are compatible with all current iPhone and iPod Touch devices.

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars · GriffinTechnology.com · $19.99

Navigon 2.0 Update for iPhone + iOS – Gone are the large map downloads

by Jason Tucker

Navigon recently released Navigon 2.0 which brings a new feature named “MyMaps”. This feature allows you to save precious space on your iOS device by letting you select only the maps that you need vs all of the maps for your specfic region. I live in North America and purchased the “Navigon North America” version which includes all of the US and Canada and back when this app first came out it was a hefty 2GB+ download. Now with MyMaps the select-able map files on average are less than 30MB excluding California at 100.1MB and Texas at 96MB.  The Virgin Islands comes in at 639KB and Puerto Rico at 7.7MB and Hawaii at 8.0MB just to name a few smaller ones.

Navigon also announced “Fresh Maps XL” their new service for supplying quarterly map updates at a cost. Customers of “Navigon North America” have been given their first set of downloads for free…

UI Improvements:

Gone are the clunky and obscure list of options in the main user interface menu in favor of a drawer like interface with previous list split up by function. From the main map interface you can select from the menu button on the left or the options button on the right. The Menu button shows Address, POI, My Destinations and Take Me Home.  The Address field still requires you to input the address somewhat backwards fashion asking for State, City, Street and Number. One thing to note is that State will only allow you to select states that you’ve downloaded a map for. This may make things tricky when going cross country, so plan ahead. Overall the UI update is quite welcomed and easy to use when navigating while driving.  I like the fact that Navigon has listened to its customers and has studied its competitors and has come up with an interface that more modern and understandable.

My Experience:

When I loaded the new version on my iPhone 4S I was presented with a list of maps to download for free, at completion I went into the “extras” (in app purchase) area and saw that I’d need to pay $14.99 in order to get the 3 years of map updates delivered quarterly. I was able to restore my previous purchases with no problems. Below are the prices as of 11/18/2011.

What’s New in Version 2.0

• Fully refined and even easier to use UI
• Fresh Maps XL: Guaranteed quarterly map data update (via In App Purchase)
• MyMaps: Install only the maps you need*
• Free map update for all

* PLEASE NOTE: After installing the app the maps need to be downloaded separately. This requires an internet connection.

Navigon Prices:

• NAVIGON for iPhone North America: $39.99 changed from $59.99
• NAVIGON for iPhone USA: $29.99 changed from $49.99
• NAVIGON for iPhone Canada: $29.99 changed from$49.99
• NAVIGON for iPhone West, Central or East: $19.99 changed from $29.99

Promo Video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T7kmwXDHSjQ

Gmail iPhone app lands today, also for iPad, pulled due to iOS bug

by Jason Tucker

We heard that Google recently submitted an official Gmail for iOS devices including the iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch last week and today Apple approved and made the application available. The app provides uses with many much anticipated features such as push notifications, search your entire inbox, uploading of attachments, auto complete from Gmail contacts or local iOS address book contacts. Threaded conversations, access to the priority inbox and the ability to assign various labels are also included in the app. On the iPad the app sports a split view akin to the built in Mail app. One thing that is lacking is the ability to support multiple inboxes which we’d imagine will be added in at a later date…

As it turns out, the Gmail iPhone app has gone poof from the App Store, at least for the moment. Notification Error – no valid ‘aps-enviroment’ entitlement string found for application’ was being displayed on some uses iOS devices and Google has pulled the app from the App Store and will be re-released once this bug is worked out. We’ve been told this is occuring on both jailbroken and non-jailbroken iOS devices…

So the wait continues, for least a few hours or days. The Gmail iPhone app has been a long time in coming, as Apple launched its App Store in mid 2008. Some have pointed to increasingly strained relations between Apple and Google as possible reason for the lack of an official Gmail app for the iPhone or iPad, with Google preferring the public buy an Android phone or tablet instead, and Apple preferring its users not use any Google services at all. However, Google did release an iPhone app for Google+ within weeks of the social network’s launch earlier this year (and Apple approved the app), so the late arrival of the Gmail iPhone app may have been due to other reasons instead. In any case, despite the temporary quandary, the day that iPhone users who use Gmail have long awaited has finally arrived. Gmail for iPhone

Losing touch: iOS 5 on iPhone, iPad signifies death of iPod branding

by Bill Palmer

I finally saw the sign I was looking for today, and it’s one I hadn’t spotted on my iPhone or iPad despite having been staring it in the face for a few days now: as of iOS 5, the iPod brand name is dead to Apple. Take a look at the icon in the lower corner of your iPhone’s dock. For the first four years of the iPhone era, it was called “iPod” and it housed your music, video, podcasts. Now Apple has segregated video out into a separate app, leaving the main one on the dock called “Music” instead. Sure, it’s the same way Apple has been handling things on the iPod touch from the start. But as of now, the iPod brand name has been banished from the iPhone. Whether it’s by intention or mere happenstance is unclear. But the fact that so few are talking about it, and the fact that it took me three days into the iOS 5 era so much as even spot it despite having noticed the orange new music notes icon and having tapped on it a dozen times, represents a remarkable revelation in terms of just how forgotten the iPod is. This despite the fact that Apple still has four different iPod lines and sells them by the millions. You have to wonder how much longer that lasts.

When the iPhone launched in mid 2007, I confidently predicted that the iPod had five years of life left in it. Nine months short of that mark on the calendar, it seems I’m only half right. I’ll leave the iPod touch out of this for the moment, for two reasons. One is that it’s more a part of the iOS/iPhone/iPad family than the iPod family. The other is that at the time I made my prediction, the iPod touch didn’t exist yet and I was specifically referring to the traditional iPod lineup: the nano, the shuffle, and what is now known as the classic. All three are still around, and at least two of them will be by the time the launch of the first iPhone reaches its fifth anniversary. So much for my prediction of the traditional iPod lineup being dead and gone.

Instead, “commoditized” might have been the more accurate prediction. The iPod nano and shuffle are barely more than trinkets, useful ones at that but thoroughly lacking in comparison to the kind of music and content playback offered by the iPhone (and iPod touch). The iPod classic with its hundred-something gigabyte hard drive capacity is still around for the singular reason that the iPod touch and iPhone are still topped out at sixty-four gigs of lightweight solid state storage; the classic will be discontinued the microsecond iOS devices are revved to 128 gigs. But still, I suspect that the enduring sales of the nano and shuffle are at least partially a result of one of the biggest mistakes in recent Apple history. The company gave the iPhone to AT&T (and generally one carrier per nation) exclusively for its first several years, getting god-only-knows-what in return. As a result plenty of would-be iPhone users ended up with either the Brand-B smartphone their preferred carrier was pushing, or no smartphone at all as they clung to a basic cellphone. In some instances their other pocket became occupied by an iPod touch, while in other instances a traditional iPod fit the bill.

My point is this: while there are some exceptions, most typical iPhone users don’t also own an iPod. Unless they want something small like the nano or shuffle to go jogging with, or a bulk-capacity device like the classic to store their full music library, owning an iPod on top of an iPhone just doesn’t make sense unless you’re an Apple enthusiast. The rate of adoption of the iPhone has been far, far, far slower than it should have been thanks to that idiotic AT&T deal which Apple is still working to dig out from under while attempting to do damage control in terms of reclaiming all those legions of would-be iPhone users who would rather have gone phone-less altogether than go with AT&T. And those would-have-been iPhone users are one of the remaining drivers of iPod sales. As a result, the iPod lineup still has more life left in it than it rightly should.

Now that the iPhone has recently expanded to most carriers in most nations, I’m left to wonder just what kind of increased negative impact this will have on traditional iPod sales. Last night I had dinner with a Sprint customer who had an iPod touch in one hand and a Brand-B Sprint phone in the other, and intends to trade them both in for an iPhone once upgrade eligibility arrives. This trend will impact sales both iOS-based and traditional iPods to some extent. How much? That remains to be seen in Apple’s upcoming quarterly reports. But in the mean time, the fact that Apple has banished the “iPod” name from the iPhone home screen in iOS 5 means that it’s now giving up on the once-everywhere brand name one symbolic step at a time. How quickly will users do the same? My arbitrarily defined five year deadline beckons in nine months. We’ll see. Here’s more on the iPhone 4S.

iOS 5 new features for iPhone + iPad: camera, Siri, iMessage in depth

by Jason Tucker

I’ve spent the past two days glued to my iPhone and iPad, parsing the various new features and niceties of iOS 5 on both. From taking pictures to web surfing to email to gaming and messaging and more, here’s a list of the best changes in iOS 5 that I’ve found so you can check them out as well. Found your own iOS 5 features and discoveries that aren’t on this list? Add them below in the comments section…

Siri

After the purchase of Siri back in April of 2010 we had a feeling our underused friend Voice Control was going to be replaced by something with a more robust feature set. Siri is currently beta and is only available on the iPhone 4S.
Click here to read about some of the funny things you can ask Siri and the response she gives you

Camera / Photos features:

• Double click the home button when device is asleep to bring up a camera shortcut on iPhone 4S, iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS and iPod touch (4th generation)
• Volume Up button to take a picture
• Optional grid lines to line up shots
• Pinch to zoom in the preview screen
• Swipe left to access the camera roll from preview screen
• Tap and hold to lock focus and exposure, iPad 2 and iPod touch (4th generation) only support exposure lock
• Tap Edit to access Rotate, Auto Enhance, Red Eye Reduction and Crop
• Organize Photos by tapping upper right arrow and selecting photos, below you can Share (Email, Tweet, Message, Print), Copy, Add To (an album) and Delete.

Found your own iOS 5 features and discoveries that aren’t on this list? Add them below in the comments section.

Bargain iPhone-iPad Apps: Angry Birds Rio, LEGO, Hop, Pacman, more

by Daynah

Looking for some new apps for your iPhone and/or iPad? Here are some of Beatweek Staff favorite bargain apps for this month, including some fun games, photography apps, and more!

100 Cameras in 1 – Take a lot of photos on your phone? Make them even more beautiful by adding some filters. Choose from one of 100 filters, tap, and add. It’s fast and simple to use, and has a lovely interface. iPhone version was $1.99, and iPad version just came out.
iPhone/iPod Version (99 cents) | iPad 2 Version ($2.99)

Angry Birds Rio – If you love Angry Birds, than you probably already have this version! The Angry Birds have been captured, but you know them — a little cage can’t handle them. They made their escape and are freeing the other birds with them! Slingshot and break the cages to help the birds escape in the first episode. In the second episode, you can to take flight in the jungle. Smash the monkeys that get in the way of your escape! 60 new levels altogether, and more coming in the next few months! iPhone/iPod Touch Version (99 cents) | iPhone/iPod Touch Lite Version (Free) | iPad Version ($2.99) | iPad Lite Version (Free)

Bird Zapper – Help Skippy the Squirrel get rid of the pesky birds on the wires! You have the power of electical shock, so tap, swipe, and zap those birds. It’s a fun match-3 game with plenty of moving parts to get your brain in a frenzy. Accumulate points by zapping birds with stars and special powers. Match, zap, and clear those power lines! Universal App (99 cents)

Bing – Experience searching the internet in new way! Type or speak to find what you’re looking for. Or swipe through popular searches for each day. Bing has a beautiful interface that’s filled with spectacular photos.
iPhone/iPod Touch Version (Free) | iPad Version (Free)

Bug Village – Think of this game as Smurf’s Village with A Bug’s Life theme! Beautiful graphics, where your favorite insects can roam around. Build homes for the ants and bees, and watch them harvest food. The game is free to play. To advance quickly in levels, you can purchase extra coins or download specific apps.
Universal App (Free)

Chimani National Parks – The five national park iPhone Apps from Chimani are free in celebration of National Park Week. This offer starts today through 4/24/2011. Apps are normally between $4.99-$9.99 each. They include detailed information about the park such as maps, photos, audio tour, sunrise and sunset data, and bus schedules. iPhone/iPod Touch Apps: Yosemite National Park (334 MB) · Grand Canyon National Park (132 MB) · Acadia National Park (167 MB) · Cape Cod National Seashore (115 MB) · Cuyahoga Valley National Park (152 MB)

CarZen – Shopping for a car but want to avoid the hassle? Do it right on your iPad! With CarZen, browse numerous makes and models and find exactly what you want. When you find something you like, send an request for a quote (right in the app). You’ll receive an email with the quote and continue your shopping from there.
iPad Version (Free)

Doodle Jump: HOP the Movie – E.B., the Easter Bunny’s son is about to take over the family business, so he needs to be super-efficient at jumping. And who should help him out than Doodle the Doodler himself? Help E.B. jump and hop on pedestals and make it up as far as he can. Gather Easter eggs on 25 unlockable levels. Universal (Free)

Eggs vs Chicken – So what came first — the chicken or the egg? I’m not sure what the answer to that is either, but you can find out who’s stronger! Assemble and align the eggs into rows of matching colors. Tap to release and have them roll over the attacking chickens! Fun game at an introductory price of 99 cents. iPhone/iPod Touch Version (99 cents)

Halftone – Add a beautiful vintage halftone-style printing effect to your photos. Choose from 21 paper styles, 9 layouts, and 6 talk bubble styles to decorate your photos. Take photos right from the app, or import from your photo roll. Fun app to create comic-like photos.
iPhone/iPod Touch Version (99 cents)

LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1-4 – Big Harry Potter fan? Than you got to get this! Visit the Lego version of Hogwarts as Harry Potter, Hagrid, and all the characters you can think of. The graphics are amazing, and the game play is even more fun! It feels like you’re watching a movie in between each level. Run around and collect Lego pellets while fulfilling the level’s quest. Currently on sale for just $2.99 and worth every penny. Universal App ($2.99)

LEGO Ninjago Spinjitzu Scavenger Hunt – Welcome to the land of Ninjago! Train with the Sensei and his ninjas to the protect the and of Ninjago from Garmadon and his evil skeleton army. Spin your way in the arena to defeat your opponents and win coins and unlock new gear for your ninja. Tap on the screen to spin, and tilt your device to move your ninja.
Universal App (Free)

Tiny Wings – Fly little birdie, fly. But your wings are too tiny! But lucky for your, your world is full of hills that you can slide down on and jump as high as your can. Flap as you’re in the air! Get as far as you can before nightfall. Game Center and OpenFeint enabled with 30 achievements. The game is filled with beautiful colors and graphics. iPhone/iPod Touch Version (99 cents)

Pac ‘N Jump – Think Doodle Jump meets Pacman! Bounce as high as you can without falling and avoid the ghosts and other enemies, unless you chomped a power pellet! Chomp on pellets and bonus items to bounce even higher. Complete each mission to unlock additional stages. Universal App (99 cents)

Postagram – Do you use Instagram, the mobile photo-sharing app? Now there’s Postagram, an app that easily turns your cool Instagram photos into a postcard! Login with your Instagram account, select your photo, add the appropriate addresses, and send. Each postcard is just 99 cents, and the first one is free! iPhone/iPod Version (Free)

Words with Friends – Play the most popular word game on the iPhone and iPad. Newly acquired by Zynga, this game now has many more social features built-in. Connect to Facebook to display your avatar and find even more friends to play with. The latest updates comes with better graphics and faster game play.
iPhone Version ($2.99) | iPad Version ($2.99) | iPad Lite Version (Free)

Review: IK Multimedia iRig Mic

By: Al Morita

Singers and songwriters looking for a quality iOS microphone at an affordable price now have an option with the new IK Multimedia iRig Mic. It is the first handheld condenser microphone for the iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad and is capable of making professional quality recordings. The iRig Mic incorporates a unidirectional condenser microphone capsule, three-level gain switch, a 6 foot cord, and a 1/8 inch input jack for real-time monitoring. A carrying case and microphone clip is also included. Combined with the new VocaLive app, this provides a mobile recording suite for singers and songwriters.

The first thing I noticed with the iRig Mic is how hefty the mic is. Those expecting the microphone to be made out of plastic will be disappointed. This microphone has a metal housing, making it very durable and rugged for mobile use. The three-level gain switch is useful for capturing loud performances, standard vocal volumes, and quieter acoustic sets without distorting the sound. It can handle up to 120 dB of sound pressure in the low gain mode, 90 dB in the mid setting, and 75 dB on the high gain setting. As for the sound quality, it is excellent for a mobile device. It is significantly clearer than the built-in iPhone or iPad microphone and the headset microphone included with the iPhone.

Included with the iRig Mic is a free version of the VocaLive app, which includes the reverb effect and a doubler effect after registration. The quality of the effects are very good, especially the reverb. One can upgrade the app with the popular auto-tune effect for a reasonable $4.99. Or add the entire suite of effects for $20. My favorite feature in the VocaLive app is the built-in vocal remover. It did a good job at removing most of the vocals from a number of songs in my iTunes library. The iRig Mic also works with any app that uses the device microphone to process or record audio on the iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch. The latency on the other apps isn’t as good as VocaLive, but is still very useable.

Overall, the combination of the iRig Mic and the VocaLive app is an unbeatable value for vocalists looking to record with their iOS device.

Rating: 4 ½ stars out of 5 · $59.99 · IKMultimedia.com · Amazon ($59.99)

app review: NBA JAM for iPhone

by Bagner Estrada

In today’s online world, very few games cause groups of people to get together and trash talk. Most do their trash talking anonymously over Xbox Live, Skype or the Playstation Network. Back in 1993, NBA JAM caused friends to physically get together and discover new forms of trash talking. “BoomShakaLaka” became a proclamation of victory. No one could have imagined a, nearly, perfect recreation of NBA JAM on a phone. It would have seemed incomprehensible, but 18 years later it has become reality.

The love for NBA JAM is established by the fact that with a simple button press, you can unleash hellacious dunks on your opponents. Once you were on a roll, your player would be “On Fire” and literally torch the basket. The simplicity of NBA JAM is what allows it to seamlessly transfer to the iPhone. You utilize the visual joystick on the left side, and use assigned button presses for shooting, pushing, and turbo. Gesture controls are also offered, as an alternative, that assign the abilities to their own areas that you swipe to. This resurrection, of sorts, for the franchise could have easily been botched, but luckily the love for the game shines.

I would love to state that NBA JAM is a perfect release, but unfortunately there are a few problems worth addressing. The first issue and the biggest of them all: not including any type of multiplayer mode. It is a tremendous mistake for a game whose popularity surged due to its multiplayer. There would have been nothing better, in 2011, to have the ability to unleash a flipping, monster dunk on a friend while waiting for class to start etc. There is also the issue of the controls being too slippery at times, and losing your character off-screen as you attempt to chase down a loose ball or get a block. The ball does not provide any favors, as it’s sometimes hard to see due to its small size. There is also the issue of your cpu-controlled partner who, usually, does not attempt to perform any type of defense.

NBA JAM has never been a dense experience but one that provides a quick distraction. Its simplicity combined with ridiculousness, is what makes it a title to always come back to. It is unfortunate that multiplayer was not added, but hopefully it is added with a future update. If you love basketball or want something lighthearted to play, NBA JAM is worthy of your purchase.

rating: 3.5 stars out of five • price: $4.99 • NBA Jam in the App Store

L5 remote: Beatweek Best of Show at Macworld 2011

The bad news: you can turn your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch into a TV remote without hardware assistance. The good news: the L5 adds infrared capability to your iDevice, which teams with an App Store app to give you a fully programmable, customizable universal remote. The cool part: you get to just drag the buttons around the screen to position them where you want them. The remote adapter costs $49, but the app is free.

XMG Studio Cows vs. Aliens: Beatweek Best of Show at Macworld 2011

XMG Studio just came out with an adorable and addictive game called “Cows vs. Aliens.” The object is to herd in as many cows into the barn as you can. Pesky aliens will try to fly into the bar and you need to push them out. Use all your fingers on the iPad to push the cows in and the aliens out! As the levels progress, more high-earning points cows are added to the game as well as more aliens.

The game is easy enough for a toddler to play, but addictive enough to capture an adult’s attention. The vibrant colors and animation makes it a fun game for anyone in the family.

The game will be released in the app store in a week or so for both the iPhone and iPad for just 99 cents! What a bargain!

99 cents · XMGstudio.com

House of Marley: Beatweek Breakthrough Product for 2011

Anyone can slap slap Bob Marley’s name onto a line of iPhone and iPod speakers and headphones for publicity purposes. Well, not anyone, as you’d have to clear the legal rights in order to do so. But the newly debuted “House of Marley” line of products scores on both fronts. For one thing, effort is spearheaded by the Marley family itself, so it’s a proper use of the name in that sense. And just as importantly, the products themselves live up their namesake in terms of their standout uniqueness.

Here’s an example which crystalizes what you need to know about the Marley line of products: the typical iPhone dockable stereo system is made of one-tone acrylic plastic and is a perfect rectangle. The stereo systems Marley had on display at CES featured odd angles, camouflage coloring, and would stand out in any context. Of course the lone vital component of any audio product is the audio itself, and we were only able to test that aspect of the Marley lineup in limited capacity. The good news is that the Marley headphones we tested sounded great. But some of the speaker systems appeared to be prototypes, and so while we got a positive vibe from the products, we couldn’t determine anything specific enough to consider the Marley products for our Best of Show awards. That said, we were impressed enough by the unique styling, the authenticity, and the limited exposure that we did have with the audio component of the products, that we feel compelled to name the entire Marley speaker, earbud, and headphone lineup as a Beatweek Breakthrough Product for CES 2011.

HouseOfMarley.com

iHome iW1 with AirPlay: Beatweek Best of Show 2011

iHome is attempting to make Apple’s AirPlay sound good with its new iW1 wireless stereo system. The $299 standalone speaker unit is designed to receive wireless streaming audio from iOS 4.2-enabled devices including the iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch. The iW1 is also wireless when it comes to power, as it contains a built-in rechargeable battery and a handle so that it can be picked up and carried around the house. Although iHome informed us that the iW1 is still in the testing stages and that the current audio quality of the CES prototype is not indicative of the quality of the finished product, we can confirm that it already sounds better than so many other wireless speaker systems we’ve tested in this price range in the past, many of which have the audio of a $50 stereo system. In contrast, the iW1 sounds like it’ll be worth its price when it ships later this year. And based on our hands-on experiences with the iW1, the AirPlay interaction is indeed drop-dead simple. iHome is also readying less expensive iW2 and iW3 models to go alongside the iW1 when the time comes.

We’re taking a slight leap of faith in that the finalized iW1 will sound like we expect it to, based both on where the product’s audio quality is already, and on iHome’s well earned reputation when it comes to audio quality. As such, the iHome iW1 (and its iW2 and iW3 counterparts) are Beatweek Best of Show winners at CES 2011.

JayBird BlueBuds wireless earbuds: Beatweek Best of Show 2011

When the JayBird BlueBuds debuted at CES 2010 a year ago, the $129 bluetooth wireless earbuds instantly became a category-killer product. Unfortunately, the product never actually arrived on the market. But the silver lining is that the extra year of gestation has allowed the BlueBuds to become a better product. Making their revised debut at CES 2011, the new iteration of the BlueBuds now come in two models, including one which connects the two buds behind the ears. There’s also the convenient fact that Apple has released iOS 4.x in the interim, giving the iPhone and iPod touch (and iPad, for that matter) greater bluetooth stereo control which the BlueBuds will be able to take advantage of. By virtue of having been a winner a year ago, and having gotten better on the second go-round (assuming it actually ships this time around), the JayBird BlueBuds (2011 iteration) are a Beatweek Best of Show winner at CES 2011.

CES 2011: iHome iW1 with iPad-iPhone AirPlay cuts power cord as well

iHome is attempting to make Apple’s AirPlay sound good with its new iW1 wireless stereo system. The $299 standalone speaker unit is designed to receive wireless streaming audio from iOS 4.2-enabled devices including the iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch. The iW1 is also wireless when it comes to power, as it contains a built-in rechargeable battery and a handle so that it can be picked up and carried around the house. Although iHome informed us that the iW1 is still in the testing stages and that the current audio quality of the CES prototype is not indicative of the quality of the finished product, we can confirm that it already sounds better than so many other wireless speaker systems we’ve tested in this price range in the past, many of which have the audio of a $50 stereo system. In contrast, the iW1 sounds like it’ll be worth its price when it ships later this year. And based on our hands-on experiences with the iW1, the AirPlay interaction is indeed drop-dead simple. iHome is also readying less expensive iW2 and iW3 models to go alongside the iW1 when the time comes.

CES 2011: Scosche myTREK offers iPhone app enhanced exercise

Scosche is aiming to make exercise less boring and more interactive with its myTREK heart rate monitor armband which communicates via Bluetooth to your iPhone or iPod touch via a free App Store app. Measure your short term progress while in action, and compare the results later. The Scosche myTREK is expected to sell for $149.

iLuv intros iMM514 iPad-iPhone app enhanced dock: CES 2011

iLuv is set to introduce an app enhanced docking station for iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch at CES 2011. Officially known as the Hi-Fidelity Multi-Media Docking Station (iMM514), the dock employs an adjustable bracket arm for viewing your iDevice at any angle. Also debuting from iLuv will be a pair of iPad-iPhone-iPod compatible earphone products known as the iEP525 and iEP526. Beatweek is on-site at CES 2011 in Las Vegas and will be providing hands-on reports on these and other products from iLuv along with various other vendors throughout the week.

iHome intros iA63, iA17, iA91 app enhanced iPhone alarm stereos: CES

iHome is set to debut three new app enhanced stereo systems for iPhone, and iPod touch at CES 2011 this week. The iA91 will take its place as the new $99 flagship iHome model, continuing a lineage which traces back to the original iH5 and offers a less expensive counterpart to the company’s existing $199 iA100 stereo alarm. The iA17 is also an app enhanced stereo alarm, but this one changes colors. And the iA63 includes a motorized rotating dock for allowing the iPhone or iPod touch to be viewed in either portrait or landscape mode.

Beatweek staff will be on-site at CES 2011 this week in order to offer hands-on reports on these and other consumer technology products, from this and other vendors.

iPhone New Years alarm bug: just another faux iPhone controversy?

by Bill Palmer

Did you fall for the New Years Day iPhone alarm clock hoax? I did, sad to admit. I’m alone in a hotel in the middle of nowhere right now (don’t ask), and I need to hit the road again today. So when I heard last night that a bug had been discovered in the iPhone’s “Clock” app in which any alarms set for New Years Day simply didn’t bother to go off, I was concerned enough to take the time to actually figure out how to set the old twentieth century style clock radio in the hotel room just in case. But as it turns out, and was the case for millions of other iPhone users, there was no issue. iPhone alarms went off as they were supposed to. Life went on. So where does this continual nonsense about the iPhone come from?

I don’t want to jump the gun here, as it’s entirely possible that some segment of iPhone users, somewhere, somehow, was indeed affected by this supposed alarm bug. But as it stands, I can’t find them. All I can find is a bunch of people who heard about the supposed iPhone alarm bug last night, opted for a different method of waking up today instead, have no idea that their iPhone would have dutifully woken them like usual if they had set it, and therefore falsely believe that this “iPhone New Years alarm bug” is real despite having seen no evidence of it themselves. Remind you of anything? Like, say, the last fifteen imaginary Apple-related controversies?

This one has “iPhone 4 antenna issue” written all over it. It doesn’t exist, never existed, was concocted by geek tech pundits with a vindictive agenda, and yet millions of people, in fact millions of iPhone 4 uses, believe it’s real. They all just think they’ve been lucky enough not to be affected by it. Damage done.

Hoaxes are a very real part of human nature, for whatever reason. But there’s been a massive spike the number of iPhone related hoaxes ever since the day the police busted down the door of a certain geek tech journalist who’d stolen an Apple prototype, and other geek tech journalists apparently felt they had to avenge the matter (and for the record, nearly all tech journalists are geek tech journalists). This latest iPhone hoax, if it is indeed another hoax and not just a random glitch which affected one user who then made the honest mistake of going overboard with assumptions, is a sad sign that the geeks haven’t yet gotten their thirst for iPhone blood out of their systems. Perhaps that can be their New Years resolution.

As evidence of how effective these hoaxes are, there are bound to be at least some folks who reply in the comments section with “But the iPhone 4 antenna issue was real! Consumer Reports proved it was! Apple admitted it was!” despite the fact that none of those things are true. Just as there are iPhone users who now believe the New Years alarm bug was real despite never having seen a shred of evidence. sHere’s more on the iPhone hoaxes in 2010.

iHome iA100: Beatweek 2010 App Enhanced Accessory of the Year

iHome finally combines its groundbreaking iHome+Sleep app with a piece of hardware worthy of it. The iA5 showed what was possible, but the iA100 is the payoff: innovative app integration with a premium dockable stereo system. This CES 2010 product took forever to ship, but the wait is worth it as it’s now compatible with the iPad along with the iPhone & iPod Touch.

Buy now: $197 at Amazon.com.

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Filed Under: iPod, iPhone, iPad, and iTunes, Reviews
Tagged: 2010, app enhanced accessory of the year, iA100, iA5, iHome, iHome+Sleep, iPad, iPhone, iPod touch

Altec Lansing MIX iMT800: Beatweek 2010 Portable Stereo of the Year

December 28, 2010 by Beatweek · Leave a Comment 

We waited years years for Altec Lansing (or anyone else) to offer a successor worthy to the company’s inMotion iM7, the classic boombox-style portable stereo system. And we finally got our wish with with the MIX (iMT800): it sounds fantastic even when loud, it’s easily carryable despite being quite large, displays track info on an LCD screen and cool stuff like dual aux ports for additional devices. It kicks the iM7’s butt – finally. The MIX officially lists for an eye popping $299 but is available for barely half that.

Buy now: $171 at Amazon.com.

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Filed Under: iPod, iPhone, iPad, and iTunes, Reviews
Tagged: Altec Lansing MIX, iMT800, iPhone, iPod, Portable Stereo of the Year

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