There’s a nice refinement to the iOS lock screen in the 5.1 update released today: now, your iPhone’s camera lurks just beneath the lock screen, and you can jump straight into it with an upward swipe.

Previously, it was possible to toggle a button that appeared in the same position, and took you to the camera when tapped. In iOS 5.1, that button becomes a handle for swiping, and seems to be permanently in place.

(Via Cult of Mac.)

If you’re looking for the cheapest prices in the U.S. or Canada, this free app can help you out. The app rewards users who report gas prices with a weekly giveaway of a $250 gift card.

Also available for iOS.

Price: FREE

Apple has created quite the following over the years worldwide, specifically after the launch of the iPhone. Look at how quickly the news of Steve Jobs’ death spread over social media and to mainstream media outlets — it was a matter of minutes. Everyone loves Apple.

Today, Fortune has posted its list of the world’s most admired companies. And not to anyone’s surprise, Apple has topped the list as the world’s most admired company. Search engine Google and online retailer Amazon follow behind Apple…

(Via iDownloadBlog.com.)

With all the craze over Apple’s latest merchandises, fans still haven’t had enough of coming up with the new i-This and i-That. True, some of them have really conceived of wonderful and innovative ideas, but there are still some wacky and impractical ones which are, well, so ‘creative’ that we should give them credits. They probably meant it as a joke, but who knows if their idea might actually takes flight one day and generate revenues in the millions? After all, men went against the common logic of gravity before inventing the first airplane a century ago.

We’ve scouted for numerous ‘potential’ Apple products created by fans and anti-fans and picked out some of the most unthinkable concepts that perhaps don’t make sense in the present day. Whether they truly have the potential to be developed or not, it’s up to you to judge. In the meantime, be prepared to be amazed and intrigued by the list!

iFridge

What if you have a fridge that looks like your iPod? You have a simple black-and-white menu on the door that allows you to adjust the fridge’s thermostat and other settings to keep your food fresh and cold. Not forgetting that you can play your favourite tunes in your playlist, probably using the giant fridge as your speakers cum sub-woofer. Hey, maybe this isn’t a bad idea after all. (via Macmagazine)

iToilet

This is a good example of how unnecessary complexity can be added into an easy-to-use product like your toilet. Like using an apple computer, the user has to drag items which he wants to delete into the waste disposal area, and confirms the deletion. Similarly, the unclogging procedure is series of steps made complicated using Apple computers’ troubleshooting solutions. Of course, this anti-fan spoof was simply made to mock at Apple’s fanatics who buy anything Apple sells. (via Electric-Chicken)

iProtection

You can put your mind at ease with this device when you’re walking alone through dark alleys. This is a 800,000-volt stun gun that includes a built-in GPS tracker that informs the local law enforcement of your wherabouts should you be in danger. It is even ergonomically designed to include a single flat face, such that the baton will not roll away should you dropped it accidentally in the midst of an assault. Trust me, no one will mess with you if you’re holding this beast.

iEye

iEye is the implantation of a digital camera into your eye socket. Your eyesight get augmented with 20 times higher resolution than the average human eye, and you to get to magnify your vision up to 12 times. On top of that, you get to record visual data into a built-in hard drive, which can be shared with others and playback at your own request. Cool if you don’t mind being a cyborg. (via Uncyclopedia)

MegaBar

Want to show off the good connectivity of your iPhone? Plug in MegaBar, the super-sized signal bars for iPhone. No, it doesn’t improve your connectivity at all. It’s only meant to be seen, by you and your friends. That’s it. (via Scoopertino)

iWater

You’ll love this if you are a hardcore superfan of Apple. Even everyday necessities like water can be marketed effectively to the millions of Apple fans out there. Drink up!

Magic Footpad

A sequel to the Magic Trackpad, Magic Footpad literally takes a step into the future. Now you can use your toes to execute those commands while your fingers handle the rest of your tasks. Better still, you can combine using both the trackpad and footpad to maximize the number of commands you can make with all your toes and fingers. But the fact is your feets and toes aren’t able to move as delicately and precisely as your fingers, so this probably won’t work out.

iDish

Having reception problems for your iPhone? It’s all going to be history with this mini satellite dish attached to your iPhone. It’s a definite five-bar reception everywhere you go. I certainly hope iPhone’s reception isn’t this bad to resort to such extreme measure though.

iHand

Remember the reception woes iPhone 4 faced when it was first launched? Apparently, there is a right way to hold your iPhone. So, instead of having to learn how to hold it properly all the time, users can purchase iHand and be assured that the phone is held in a manner that will receive the best reception. Of course, with everyone’s obsession to personalize every of their Apple products, iHand comes in different skin colors as well.

Mactini

Apple has made another revolution in computer technology with its release of the world’s smallest computer, the Mactini. One-inch long and with only a single key, users have to learn the sequencing of tapping the key to type the exact letter they want. The spoof is made to poke fun at the industry’s preoccupation to make every technology small, and perhaps, ineffective as a result. (via Funny or Die)

iRacquet

Do you love Apple products so much that you’ll get this Apple-logo tennis racket? God knows where the ball will fly. (via Worth1000)

iWatch

This analog pocket watch seems like a walk in the memory lane where technology wasn’t as advanced as it is today. If you look carefully though, this watch, or iWatch, has all kinds of hi-tech functions like a 160GB Harddrive, bluetooth, video and audio playback. While its capabilities are over-the-top, one wonders how one is able to tap into these functions on such a small piece of ‘antique’ you carry around in your pocket.

iPottie

Like iToilet, this device deals with your waste. Designed like an iPod, the iPottie probably allows you to play your favourite music while you do your business. Oh, it can even read the papers for you so you’ll keep up with the current affairs while you i(poop).

iArm

Although this exists only as a fake gift box as a prank, curiosity will make you imagine how it’d be like if only it’s real. Attaching iArm to your arms enable you to hold all sorts of things ranging from your tablet PCs to your dinner plates. You can even mount three things at one go! How convenient. Your arms will probably get its much needed workout too. Just try not to swing your arms and hit your iPad against the wall. (via Prank Pack)

iCarta (iPod stero dock and bath tissue holder)

This item on the list is actually available on sale. Don’t believe it? Check out the link. Once you purchase this, you can dock your iPod or iPhone into this bath tissue holder, play your music in high quality sound while you defecate. I’m sure you’ll love this if you can’t take one minute without your favourite tunes playing by your side. (via Atech Flash Technology)

White Apple Tablets

One wonders what these tablets will do for you. Well, knowing Apple’s tagline of ‘think differently’, I suppose these will boost your creativity or something. Warning: An overdose might cause some form of paranoia due to ‘over-thinking’. (via Obama Pacman)

(Via hongkiat.com.)

Facebook has yet again released an update for their iPhone and iPod touch application, this time with some long overdue UI improvements as well as bug fixes.

• Improved reliability in chat and messages
• Improved notifications UI
• Fixed memory usage
• Fixed some crashes
• Walls you cannot post on no longer show the text field at the top
• Restore ability to post as a page that you admin
• Fixed group photos
• Various Places improvements

Having just downloaded this update and played around with it for a few minutes I will say the new notifications UI is long overdue and provides a much cleaner and easier to use interface. Hopefully this update will also fix many of the issues users have been hoping to see fixed for a while now.

So go ahead and grab your updated Facebook app and let us know what you think of the improvements and as always if you have any issues we want to hear about those as well.

Facebook for iPhone updated with new notification UI, bug fixes is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

TiPb – The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch Blog

(Via The iPhone Blog.)

Makers of the coolest guitar and bass tuner on the planet TC Electronic have just updated their equally awesome iPhone app to version 1.1.0 making the app fully compatible with iPhone 4 as well as iOS4. It features full Retina display support for ultimate viewing experience when tuning.

A brand new Color Blind feature has been included, allowing users to switch out the green/red colors with yellow/blue. Finally, the overall graphics has been improved, and the app now has a new, very appealing icon that will stand out on any iPhone home screen.

Obviously, v. 1.1.0 is a free update for existing PolyTune app users, but to celebrate this new version, TC Electronic will be lowering the price for new users to just $0.99 for 3 days, from December 16, 2010, to midnight December 19, 2010. Normally, the PolyTune app is priced at $9.99, but after the three-day special offer, the regular price will be dropped by 50% to $4.99.

To download the app click on this link or search for PolyTune in the app store.

(Via Guitar Noize.)

The heavens parted and the gods smiled upon tech fans this Tuesday, November 16. No, we’re not talking about The Beatles finally landing on iTunes (although that was also pretty cool) — Apple has finally blessed the official Google Voice app for the iPhone, and you can download it for free right now.

It’s a big year for Google Voice — the service finally went out of invitation-only beta and opened its doors to the public at large, followed by two third-party apps that take advantage of the service (GV Mobile+ and GV Connect) being blessed with admission to the App Store yet again. The only thing that remained was an official app from Google themselves, and now that wait is over.

Google Voice: Why You Want It
First things first, let’s explain why this is such a big deal. Google Voice is a web-based telephone service that offers you a free phone number capable of ringing you anywhere. It’s not a replacement for your existing service, but rather an enhancement to it.

Let’s say you have a home phone and an iPhone — sign up for Google Voice and you’ll get a new phone number that, when called, can ring both of your actual numbers, allowing you to pick up from either place, transfer calls between handsets or screen incoming callers and voicemail (as it’s being recorded, and you can even join the call at any time).

But Google Voice doesn’t stop there: You’ll also get free SMS text messages to U.S. numbers (sorry, no MMS), online voicemail with transcription (and archiving) and free calls to anywhere in the U.S. and Canada, not to mention ‘super low rates everywhere else.’

iPhone users could always access this goodness from the Google Voice website, including a mobile version of the site written in HTML5. But it was never quite the same as having a fast, dedicated app to get the job done.

Google Voice on the iPhone

Fire up the official Google Voice app for the iPhone and you’ll be prompted to sign in with your Google address (the full e-mail, not just the username) and password. If you’ve already used Google Voice on the web or with a third-party app, you’ve likely got an existing number stored and you’ll want to select that on the next screen.

You can also enter additional custom numbers that you want calls to be routed to by entering a name and number. This will allow you to dial a call from the GV app on your iPhone, but actually use another line to connect the call. Note that the app doesn’t permit you to delete custom numbers from the app itself and you’ll have to visit your Voice settings online to verify these numbers before you can forward calls to them. It’s not an ideal solution, but thankfully you won’t have to bother with this too often.

Once inside the app, you’ll be greeted by your Inbox, which includes both incoming voicemails as well as SMS messages. If you want to see a specific folder, tap the Menu button and you’ll also have easy access to your Starred and History folders, as well as separate categories for Voicemail, Text, Placed, Received or Missed Calls and even your Spam folder (yes, Google Voice works hard to filter out junk calls!).

Text messages can be easily read and replied to right away; voicemails can be played right from inside the app, with the option to turn the speaker on or off. If you have voicemail transcripts active on your GV account, you’ll see them from the same screen, and as the voicemail plays back, the app will also follow along — a nifty touch, although in general Google’s transcripts tend to leave a lot to be desired.

From any of these folders, you can easily remove (or in this case, move to an archive) unwanted messages by swiping right and tapping Archive on individual messages. You can also accomplish the same task by tapping the Edit button in the upper right corner which will bring up the familiar red ‘delete’ symbol for each message; tap that and you’ll have the option to Archive, but there’s currently no way to do this with more than one message at a time either way.

Dialer and Contacts

To place a call through Google Voice, tap the Dialer tab at the bottom of the screen and you’ll be presented with a dial pad similar to the one built into the iPhone. Once a number is dialed in, you have the option to save it as a favorite by tapping the + symbol in the lower left corner (more on that in a moment), or tapping the Text or Call button. Third-party apps such as GV Mobile+ also include a quick Contacts button in the dialer — it’s strange that Google didn’t do the same here, but Contacts have a dedicated tab all their own for easy access.

With a number entered, tapping on Text brings up a large text field ready to accept an SMS message. Tap Send and your message is on its way, or tap Cancel to return to the dialer. Thankfully, iPhone autocorrection is in full force here, which was missing from recent updates to the GV Mobile+ app, making typing more of a chore than was necessary.

Tap Call and the Google Voice app closes, then the iPhone’s call window opens — you’ll see a random strange phone number appear here that’s not your own, since Google is using its server-side voodoo (known as known as Direct Access Numbers) to connect your call. The search giant claims this is much faster than the dialback option used by third-party apps, allowing GV calls to be placed as quickly as real calls. Fear not, the caller on the other end will still see your Google Voice phone number on their Caller ID, and you can use the Calls tab setting on the GV website to make sure the same number is displayed for outgoing SMS messages as well.

One caveat: Google Voice still uses your cell phone minutes to make calls. It’s not a VoIP service like Skype, where you can use 3G data to save on your contract minutes. That said, if you have access to a phone with unlimited minutes (at home, for instance), you can easily route your iPhone outgoing calls to there and save a bundle.

If you want to access your iPhone contacts, simply tap on the Contacts tab, which is split into two categories: Quick Dial and All Contacts. The latter button does exactly what you’d expect, and if you have your contacts sorted into groups, you can tap the Groups button to access just the ones you’re looking for.

To add numbers to your Quick Dial list, you can either open a contact and tap their number (which will give you the option to Call, Text or Add/Remove from Quick Dial) or tap the + button from the Quick Dial pane, which oddly switches you back to All Contacts anyway. Removing a Quick Dial contact is as simple as swiping to delete, and you can tap Edit to change the order of your Quick Dial contacts or also remove them entirely.

By the way, the Contacts tab isn’t completely bug-free: We discovered that after accessing it a few times, the app mixed up our contact photos at random. It cleared up after a device reboot, but we’re guessing this should be an easy thing for Google to fix with a future update.

Settings

Compared to third-party apps using the same service, the official Google Voice app is quite spartan when it comes to the Settings tab. At the top of the screen you’ll see your GV number and account, with the option to sign out if necessary.

>Below that is your GV call balance — new accounts are given $1.00 calling credit to try out, but if you’ve added more, it will be shown here so you can keep tabs on when it’s time to refill. Since calls within the U.S. and Canada are free, you’ll only need to top this up if you’re keeping touch with friends or family overseas, and Google’s rates are quite competitive.

Last but not least, the Settings tab allows you to change the actual phone you wanted GV calls routed to (usually your iPhone) as well as an About screen to get help, send feedback and see the usual legal mumbo-jumbo related to the service.

Ahhh, Push It

Because there is no official API for third-party developers to tap into, the unofficial apps, while getting the job done, always left room for improvement. In one particular area — push notifications for incoming SMS messages or voicemails — they fell down completely.

You probably noticed when you first signed into the Google Voice app that it asked you to confirm receiving push notifications. That’s because the official app is capable of notifying you immediately of missed calls, voicemails or SMS messages, which third-party apps were unable to do without using a separate app like PushMail or Boxcar (neither of which were a very elegant solution in this case).

The Google Voice app works as expected with push — as messages pop up, you have the option to dismiss them or open the GV to read or respond to them, and the app supports iOS 4 multitasking and fast app switching to make things lightning fast. It’s not an intuitive as Google Voice on Android, but given that iOS lacks a polished notification system, it does a great job.

Google also hasn’t missed out on the little things — if you receive a push notification on your iPhone but choose to ignore it, then later read it on the GV website (or even from another device), the badge disappears almost immediately on your handset, exactly as it should be. We were probably more impressed by this one tiny feat than anything else in the app, and that’s saying something.

More Than a Year Late and Worth the Wait

If you’re already using the Google Voice service, the official iPhone app will make great use of an already convenient service. After just a short time of using it, we’ve almost forgotten the length of time it’s taken to get to this point — as you’ll recall, the official app was banned in the summer of 2009, and there was almost a year between Google Voice being completely MIA from the App Store and third-party apps making a triumphant return.

(Via Mac|Life all.)

AmpliTube 2 arrives today with new effects, recording, bounce to audio, export/import, practice tools, and in-app purchase of extra stomp modules. I’ve been playing with a pre-release version for the last few days. Combined with an audio interface like IK Multimedia’s own iRig, AmpliTube 2 turns your iPhone or iPod touch into a handheld, pocket-able workstation.

But let’s step back for a moment and consider what that means. What would you want a device to do for your music if that device fit in the palm of your hand?

Last week, I raised the question of physical size, inspired by a great quote by Sasha Frere-Jones – there regarding listening, not creation, but just as apt. The message was, in short, size matters. An iPhone is not an amp. But an amp – a big box designed for the purpose of making lots of sound – is not an ideal practice tool. So, one of the clear advantages of something like AmpliTube is the ability to plug in a personal listening device and just practice, complete with effects and amp sounds, without disturbing others. AmpliTube 2 accordingly adds news practice tools, by importing sounds and allowing you to adjust speed of playback, ideal for learning tracks.

But AmpliTube isn’t just for guitarists wanting a pocket-sized practice amp. With AmpliTube’s beefed-up recording capabilities and effects, it becomes a handheld recording sketchpad, not only for guitarists but anyone wanting to record, well, anything. That has two advantages. It’s mobile, so you can record in a practice studio without opening up a whole laptop. But more subtly, it can be a tool better-suited to sketching ideas and building the raw materials of a track than a full-blown DAW is.

Think of it this way: you’re fiddling with a synth, or playing a quick guitar line, or making sounds with a toy you got off of eBay. Sure, you could immediately open your DAW, but then you’re in the mindset of a tool designed to build finished tracks. For play and exploration, staying away from the computer, and using something scaled to your hand that you can carry anywhere, can be a big boon to performance. As we saw with Moog’s Filtatron earlier this month, having a tool that not only records audio but adds some creative effects enroute can be a whole lot of fun. Now, you can add AmpliTube to the same category.

Producers long ago discovered the advantage of the bounce: it commits you to making a sound that you can’t touch. With all that audio apps can do, that can be critical.

Many readers have complained that iPhone apps and the like win big on novelty, but don’t fit into their workflow. That means subtle additions – easy bouncing of tracks, easy syncing of files to and from a computer – are absolutely essential.

I also think feel like MusicRadar is asking the wrong questions:

Can you record a full song with AmpliTube 2 for iPhone? [MusicRadar]

My answer: who cares? If we constantly compare iOS apps to their desktop counterparts, we can easily miss the point of both. To me, it’s more fair to ask, how is recording a song on an iPhone different than doing it on a computer? I hope to have some quick videos of AmpliTube and Filtatron in the next couple of weeks, but I find them terrific tools for capturing ingredients for later productions, and as companions to other mobile devices. Kudos to the blog Palm Sounds. Before the iPhone was even announced, that author appreciated the advantage of making things smaller, for creativity and practicality, appreciated that they’re not a different animal, not simply a replacement for existing tools.

AmpliTube is just one of many tools competing in this space, but with some of the potential of handhelds in mind, here’s a tour of what’s new in AmpliTube 2.

Record: A free, included one-track recorder tracks input, with or without effects, to audio. You can also add effects afterward. A paid-add-on (US$9.99/EUR7.99) will boost the recorder to multi-track functionality, as pictured here, and adds a master effects section with reverb, EQ, and compression. But there’s something nice about the simplicity of the one-track version, too.

‘Re-amping’ also means you could bring some raw field recordings or audio snippets and experiment with adding effects while on the go. (Better get some closed earphones if you’re doing this on your morning commute, huh?)

Bounce audio: Export recordings and mixes as WAV files or (for emailing) MP3s. That should resolve complaints about the fidelity of the output on Apple’s mobiles.

File sharing, import/export: You can import songs directly from your iTunes library, or use file sharing or wifi, making it easy to grab a song for practice later – or, for producers, perhaps as a way to sketch new ideas atop existing tracks.

…and practice features: Once you’ve imported, as you can see in the controls behind the dialog above, you can practice with the track. ‘SpeedTrainer’ slows or speeds playback without impacting pitch.

New effects, stomps: Compressor, Reverb, Parametric EQ, Graphic EQ and Limiter are all available as in-app purchases. With all the versions, including the free ones, IK say they’ve improved the sound quality of the gear and ported DSP code from their Mac and Windows software, AmpliTube 3 and T-RackS 3. You certainly get top-grade effects, I’ll say that.

Presets/snapshots: You can now name presets. That means calling up favorite combinations is easy, particularly with AmpliTube’s grid-style preset layout, pictured here.

In-app add-ons, purchases: Taking advantage of a feature afforded them by Apple, IK now sell additional add-ons. Before that turns you off, the stock versions do include plenty of effects. What’s nice here is, you can pick out what you need. We could be looking at the future of audio software in general, though this does illustrate an ongoing complaint I hear from some users about iOS: they want to be able to mix and match effects from different vendors, just as they can on PCs with technologies like VST and ReWire. So far, that isn’t possible on iOS, though developers are investigating the issue. I have to wonder, at the same time, though, whether some of those restrictions aren’t creatively useful.

And the rest… This version also features 50 song slots for import and a setup panel with input and output controls. That adds to the existing features of AmpliTube for iOS:

• Tuner, metronome.
• 3 simultaneous stomp slots, plus an amp with effects, cabinet, and mic settings.
• Low-latency playback.

There are three versions; even the free version is fairly capable. (The free version also includes add-on support, so if you just want the four-track recorder, you can even add it to the free release.)

AmpliTube: 11 stompboxes, 5 amps + cabinets, 2 microphones $19.99/€15.99.

AmpliTube LE: 5 stompboxes, 1 amp + cabinet, 2 microphones $2.99/€2.39.

AmpliTube FREE: 3 stompboxes, 1 amp + cabinet, 2 microphones, free

Additional stomps are US$2.99/EUR2.39 each.

Stay tuned for some video; let us know your impressions if this is something you use.

AmpliTube 2 for iPhone

AmpliTube iRig (which, incidentally, attaches to the audio jack, not the Dock Connector – meaning you could use this and a MIDI adapter at the same time)

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(Via Create Digital Music.)

NOOSY China, an unauthorized third-party Apple accessory manufacturer has come up with a HDMI adapter for the iPad, iPhone and iPod touch (4G). The product claims to allow you to output the display of your device to your HD display, though it wasn’t clear if the adapter will support audio over HDMI. It also wasn’t mentioned if it would support DRM protected content over HDMI though the site does feature images of Star Trek being played on the iPad and on a connected TV. Pricing wasn’t mentioned, though hopefully it won’t cost too much.

(Via Ubergizmo.)

FingerPiano is a fun little app that can transform you into a pianist with no formal training. All you need are your fingertips and eyes to follow the convenient, guiding lights that tell you the next key to hit. With this, you’ll be able to perform the great classics as if you were a pro. (more…)

(Via ZiggyTek Blog.)