Party Apps!

I was going to write about some Apple’s quarterly numbers and some statistics for you guys, but then I realized it’s Saturday. Saturday evening.

If people are at a computer screen, they’re more likely to want to read cool things that they can do later at a party right?

At some parties showing off your knowledge of quarterly numbers might cut it, but lets try for something a little cooler huh?

Try these apps out:

Mixology– This app never gets old. Thousands of drink and cocktail recipes right in the palm of your hand including heaps of solid usability options like searching using certain ingredients and finding the nearest liquor store. If you’ve never heard of it, well…uh, now you have. You can be the star of the party! Now go make me a drink.

Karaoke Anywhere- Now that everyone’s had a few superbly mixed drinks, it’s time for KARAOKE! Everyone loves singing in front of people whilst tipsy right? RIGHT! Plug your iPhone into the TV, and start singing along with about 200 popular songs. The lyrics appear on the screen along with the melody, just like real karaoke and you even have the ability to record the performances. eep.

If you’ve had enough of Karaoke, use Piki. Piki is a new app that is similar to Pandora, but it’s user based. You join, start by picking a song, and then you can follow other users who have similar songs in their radio streams. You can connect to friends using twitter, Facebook or Turntable and listen to all of their picks wherever you are. You can ‘re-pick’ songs from friends or others that you want on your own station. And no ads! So, start using Piki, add your friends, then by the time a party hits, you are only listening to music all of you have picked! Sweet! ( As long as your friends have good taste in music…if not, just make them listen to stations of  strangers that do)

Face Swap! Is basically exactly what it says. It takes a photo, from your photo library, Facebook or from a photo you take at that moment, and it swaps the faces of the people in the photo. Sounds so simple and yet is so hilarious.

Lastly, to take a photo of all the fun you’re having, whilst still being in the photo, you can either download TimerCam to make your iPhone camera have an auto timer on it, or download Cycloramic, which lets you take a panoramic photo with you in it. WHAT? Well, you stand your iPhone on a level surface and tell it to take a panoramic photo. And it does. WHAT? Well, so far it’s only for iPhone 5’s. You can still get the app V2.0 for iPhone 4 and 4s but you still have to hold it whilst it takes the panoramic photo.

All of these are FREE from the app store except for Cycloramic which is $1.00 You’re welcome.

Oh and btw, Happy Cinco De Mayo! Don’t do anything the iPhone Antidote wouldn’t do!

Photo courtesy of Wired

iOS 7 is coming!

Apple are looking to introduce and preview their new iOS Software update- iOS 7 at WWDC 2013 ( Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference, June 10-14), with a view of releasing it in September this year.

The tech world is abuzz with rumours that this iOS update ( code named Innsbruck) will be significantly different- and improved – under the direction of new Human Interface Software team director Jonathon Ive.

Ive is also the Senior Vice President of Industrial Design for Apple and has been primarily responsible for Hardware Design since 1997, but since Scott Forstall, the previous Software interface Director for Apple, was fired in October last year Jony Ive is in charge of both Hardware and Software design. Interesting.

Scott Forstall was a lover of what is called Skeuomorphic Design- basically icons and apps that replicate the look of real life items.

In relation to Apple, that means examples like the faux leather stitching on the Notepad App, grainy wood in the Newstand App, and the Casino resemblance of the Games App. Steve Jobs was said to be similarly smitten by this design choice.

Jony Ive is not.

See? So not smitten.

Sources are coming out of the woodwork almost every day now with leaked information on exactly what Jony Ive has planned, and here’s the gist of what we’ll most likely be looking at :

*Very flat, sleek design, with completely new look icons, tabs and toolbars, whilst still retaining the intuitiveness Apple is acclaimed for.

*More ‘at glance’ information with possible pull across screens similar to the pull down notification center.

*Apple Maps and Siri car integration, where you can use Apple Maps and Siri through your vehicles built in display.

*The high possibility of gesture control

Ive has been encouraging collaboration between the hardware and software teams, where previously the two worked independently, and, after last years Maps PR debacle, he is making sure that each and every change is reviewed extensively.

This means, according to most sources, (and the folks over at d’uh town), that everyone over there at Apple are working overtime to get the software ready for previewing at WWDC June 10-14. These sources have also claimed that engineers for OS X 10.9 have been pulled to help in preparation for iOS 7.

This all sounds pretty impressive and exciting- changes that will improve the way we use and interact with our iPhones forever- but there is bound to be more updates and improvements that have been so far kept under wraps.

There have been claims that the iOS 7 testers are using their devices with films over the screens that prevent anyone else around them from seeing the screen.

So, we’re expecting big things Mr Ive! ( No Pressure. … Well, a little bit of pressure… 😉 )

It’s Super Bowl Time!

Alright kids, it’s SUPERBOWL TIME!

This Sunday, the Superbowl XLVii pregame starts at 11am ET with kick-off scheduled for 6:30pm ET.

The most anticipated game of the year will pit the Baltimore Ravens against the San Francisco 49ers in the New Orleans Superdome.

Over 100 million people are set to be watching the game in various settings and using different methods, from big Super Bowl parties, to streaming though the internet all over the world, to sitting in bars, to sneakily watching it at work ( poor suckers).

Whatever way you’ll be watching the game this Sunday, we have the technology that will make the experience all the more exciting!

Live Streaming:- FREE!

NFL.com will live-stream the entire Super Bowl game for free.

CBSSports.com will also broadcast the entire game. Viewers will be able to choose from different camera angles, as well as connect to social-media sites like Twitter and Facebook.

http://superbowl.livefyre.com/– A live feed that collates live chat, photos from fans at the game and all over the world, the Super Bowl commercials, and an instant game tracker.

Apps:

NFL Mobile. Only for Verizon subscribers, who can watch the game live on their iPhone.- Free

The official Superbowl XLVii guide – free
A good app for it’s intended use, but it’s only intended to be used by those lucky bastards who happen to be either at the game, or in New Orleans. Includes locations of Super Bowl events, fan stores, parking and media centers.

Foodie Recipes- Game Day Guide – Free
40 Recipes to please everyone at the party! (Cos food’s pretty important )

The Football Party Game – $5.49 ( Note, only one person in your group needs to buy the app)
Before the Super Bowl starts, your friends ( with you at the party or not) will answer 20 questions to do with the upcoming game- from What color the Gatorade is, how long the national Anthem will last, who will score a penalty first etc. Those who choose the correct answers will gain points automatically through the app and whoever wins the most points wins the game. We are definitely not suggesting that this could be used as a drinking game.

49ers Gameday Live ( iPhone App only) – Free
For dedicated Niners fans, with all the stats, team member info, photos, videos, and interviews, you could want, with live updates and information as the game is won by the Niners. GO NINERS!

Baltimore Ravens Mobile App – Free
Similar to the 49ers app, with stats and vital information with live updates during the game.

Skype, Facetime, TOK Football Apps.

If you are unable to be in the same room with all of your football lovin’ friends, Skype and Facetime can be a useful tool to celebrate touchdowns, argue over calls or gloat over opposite team goals. Another App to add to this list is The TOK Football App. After registering an account, this app gives you the chance to invite and speak (Live and continuously) with up to 4 friends while watching the game on TV. The app also includes real time stats and info about the game.

So, hopefully now you have all you need to watch the Super Bowl this Sunday and make it the best game-day experience possible!

… GO NINERS!

iPhone Apps to help you celebrate New Years Eve!

Oh, Hi New Years Eve!

In case you weren’t aware, the biggest party of the year is just around the corner! Here at iPhone Antidote we are always wanting the best for our valued customers, and right now that means preparing you to party! We’ve got everything covered in apps to help make your New Years Eve a memorable one.

Countdown– The most important part of the party- the countdown of the last moments of 2012, and with everyone looking forward to 2013 ( and the kiss at midnight!) with hope and joy.

We suggest you check out Countdown Timer Pro– A simple countdown app that also includes an animated NYE time-zone map that lets you see when midnight is rung in all over the world.

The first ever Times Square New Years Ball Drop App looks great. You can customize your own countdown with your time-zone and a selected photo, take part in the official Times Square countdown and even have your face projected onto the Toshiba Vision Sign and send NYE themed e-card to friends and family.

Fashion– You have to look good for NYE, I think we can all agree to that, and here are the apps to help you look your most attractive, sparkliest self.

Trendabl is like social networking for your clothes- you can upload photos of yourself in your outfit options and get expert and random objective advice. ‘Go try it on’ is good for this as well. ASOS and Shopstyle are the go to shopping apps if you think you have time!

Fireworks– If you aren’t in a position to be outside enjoying fireworks, or don’t enjoy crowds, this app if for you. Flashmob New Year’s Fireworks lets you enjoy New Years Eve firework celebrations from all over the world including major landmarks including Sydney Harbour Big Ben, and the Eiffel Tower.

Transport- Make sure you guys are safe this NYE and have your transport options sorted out for getting home on New Years Day! Download the transport app for your town’s network to make sure you can work out what’s going on with going home- no matter how many drink’s you’ve had! If you optimistically drove somewhere and then realized you forgot you were going to drink on NYE, try StearClear. They’ll send a team of two to wherever you are, one to drive you home, the other to drive your car home.

Alcohol – If you’re out and looking for a good bar, Scenetap say that they can tell you how crowded a bar is- what the gender ratio is and the average age of the clientele- mainly focused on Chicago, SF and college towns. If you’re at home, try Mixology– an excellent assistant to cocktail making, even making suggestions based solely on what you have in the cabinet. Drunkguard is a quality app for keeping you safe and out of trouble- it helps you estimate your blood alcohol level (only estimate though- don’t drive if you’re even close to the illegal level), keeps your from drunk-dialing, drunk texting and drunk tweeting.

Resolutions – Now, the serious part of New Years Eve. Everyone likes to dabble or fully immerse themselves in the idea of Resolutions. Most of these will have to do with fitness, money, career or Love. To help you keep these wonderful promises to yourself, we suggest the following apps.

For health– My Fitness Pal, or, for the smokers, Livestrong Myquit Coach.

For money– Mint to keep a track of money going in and out and helping you to save.

For career- Business Building Secrets, Evernote for organization, and CareerBuilder for those looking to switch careers.

Lastly but by no means least, Love. Here are some apps to help you step out and find that special someone in 2013! Give these a try- OkCupid, How about We, or Are you Interested?

Wishing you all a safe and Happy New Year From all of us at iPhone Antidote!

iPhone Antidote 2012 Holiday Gift Guide

Here’s a list of awesome gift ideas for your loved ones just in time for Christmas! From the cheap and cheerful to the truly luxurious, for kids all the way to grandparents, we think we’ve got everything covered for gifts in the iPhone world! Merry Christmas!

1. The good ol’ fall back stocking stuffer- the iPhone case. For this year’s version, we suggest going to zazzle.com or vistaprint.com and ordering a custom iPhone case, perhaps with a picture of your smiling face on the back… or for something more ingenious, try for a picture of the side of your loved one’s face, so when using it, their phone will look see through…

Alternatively, you can go for something a little bit more… flashy, perhaps something you wouldn’t stuff into a stocking. Introducing the worlds most expensive iPhone case- designed by UK brand Uunique, who claim that it’s London Lotus iPhone 5 Case is the most expensive on the market. At $302,985, I bet they’re right.

2. Another stocking stuffer, but more of the necessary ‘school shoe’ type. If you don’t know what to get someone, and you don’t really like them that much- get them some iPhone lightening to USB cables. $19. Super… useful.

3. For the reader in the family, sign them up for some audio books. Go to audibleshopnow.com to sign them up, and they get two free audio books of their own picking, plus whatever book you want to pony up the cash for. If they can’t handle people speaking books at them, buy them some books on iBook for their idevice.

4. The gift of music. Music is the soundtrack of our lives. It creates moods, aids memory, allieviates boredom and enhances life events. It can also be a whole lot of fun. For the gift of music, buy them a Pandora gift card, or an iTunes gift card.

Pandora Internet Radio is a service that recommends and plays music based on the user’s selected preferences through any computer or idevice. A one year subscription for Pandora is $36 www.pandora.com/one/gift

Giving an iTunes gift card means your loved one can buy the tracks and albums they really want. You can buy these online over here or at many major shopping outlets- you may want to look around too, as you can often get great deals on these if you buy multiple.

5. Headphone splitter. A very small gift, capable of bringing so much joy. Have you ever needed to share something with a loved one, friend or work colleague in a public space? Ever wanted to watch a TV show in an airport? At school/work? Ever need only the two/three/four of you to hear? The headphone splitter is tiny little gadget gold. Buy one for your girlfriend with a DVD copy of that show you don’t want people to know you watch together. Less than $5 at Radioshack.

6. Speaking of headphones– another excellent Christmas Present. The two top picks from us are; Skull Candy Heavy Metal and BeatsByDre.

For Skull Candy , not only are the Heavy Metal earbuds a very decent, sexy product, all Skull Candy earphones and headphones come with a lifetime warranty, so you’re effectively buying your loved one headphones for life. Right now you can get 50% MSRP by entering the coupon code REDBULL50 at checkout. www.skullcandy.com

If you want to go for a more professional sound quality and have a little more cash up your sleeve, we recommend BeatsByDre headphones. With a range from Wireless to Studio, the listening pleasure is guaranteed with these bad boys. www.beatsbydre.com

7. For the times when headphones aren’t needed, you can give the gift of music OUT LOUD! Good speakers are invaluable and make for a great Christmas present. Our recommendations are on the cute, cheaper side and the slightly more expensive, quality side. How much do you really like them??
For cutesy, go for the Deadmau5 MP3 Speaker from Urban Outfitters. Damn Cute. $35.
For quality, sophistication, and ease of use, try Jambox- either the original or the big Jambox. Also not bad looking, this speaker is wireless, can be used with any of your devices capable of Bluetooth and produces amazingly pure sound quality. They come in multiple colors and you can buy them from multiple retail stores such as Costco, Fry’s, Best Buy, Staples or Radioshack. You’re looking at about $150 for the original, smaller Jambox.

8. If a friend or family member is obsessed with Draw Something or similar game on iPad or iPhone, or simply prefers the antique skill of handwriting, a shiny new Stylus is a perfect present for them. The best one in our opinion for design, precision and overall quality is the Hand Stylus, available as of Sept this year. Go to www.handstylus.com. $29.95

9. Christmas time means snow! Snow means everyone having one freezing cold hand whilst they use their iPhone for updating that all important Facebook status right? No! Staaahp! Get a friend some Touchscreen Gloves and they’ll have two cosy hands all winter long! Best to get are Mujjo Leather touchscreen gloves, $168, second best are Mujjo Knitted touchscreen gloves for the more acceptable price of $32, orrrr, go to the national deals section of livingsocial.com and get some very respectable ( but perhaps not as warm) Sol and Oscar touchscreen gloves for $21.00.

10. For the friend that loves to use the Camera on their iPhone or iPad, the Griptight Gorillapod tripod for iPhone is a perfect present. Making their iPhone completely stable for that crucial photo taking moment, giving them the ability to set the tripod up on any surface, and giving them the opportunity to be all that much closer to taking the perfect iPhone picture. Or selfie. $30 from www.joby.com ( Currently Free US Shipping).

11. So you got your brother/sister the Tripod, and they’re happy as Larry taking photos. How about you ingeniously join presents together by theme, and get Mom and Dad a photo printer or Digital photo frame, so they can enjoy their progeny’s genius photography? Hammacher Schlemmer sell the The iPhone Photo Printer and the Wireless Smartphone Photo Printer, both of which print out extraordinary quality 300 dpi resolution photos (without ink cartridges), the second with the added bonus of not having to plug your iPhone in to the printer. The first is $159, the Wireless version $219. Take a look. http://www.hammacher.com/product/79938

12. Something for the Chef’s in the house. The iGrill oven Bluetooth thermometer is a digital thermometer that can be connected to any Bluetooth-enabled device, and enables the user to set a timer, view the current temperature in the oven, and look up recipes online. Sweet. $80. http://store.igrillinc.com/

13. If you’re someone who has to make sure the four legged members of your family get presents under the tree, this might be something less tasty but more useful than the usual bones and cat treats. The Tagg GPS Pet Tracker is a waterproof GPS-powered collar so that if they ever go missing, you, or someone in your family can check the Web-based map and know exactly where Scruffy got off to. $99 for peace of mind.

14. This one… Well, this gift idea might just have to be for yourselves, kids. Or me. It’s pretty damn awesome. The Logicom SPY-C Tank.

A futuristic tank. Tick. Moveable camera. Tick. Controllable from any iOS or Andriod device. Tick. It’s own wifi hotspot allowing you to control it both indoors and out. Tick. Night vision mode. Tick. Walkie Talkie Capability. Tick. The Spy-C tank will even let you record videos and upload photos via email or various social networks once they have been saved to your device. Santa… Hey Santa…you there Dude? I… I have a question…
$210.00

15. And last but not by any means least, Apple. D’uh. If you have the cash, spread the Apple joy this Christmas! Of all the products, we think that the iPad Mini or Macbook Air would be most welcome under the Christmas Tree. Both are long serving gifts and both have the ability to help the new owner improve their lives through the magic of technology. iPad Mini starts at $329 and Macbook Air 11 inch starting at $999.

Merry gift giving and the happiest of Holidays Kids!

Apple Maps for iOS 6 review

So, Apple Maps. Garnering a lot of press and a lot of anti-apple ammo, maps was the rather large hiccup of the iPhone 5 release. The premise made sense- take the advantage of owning one of the biggest and most useful apps away from one of their biggest competitors- Google. If they had the brainpower, they could build their own version. And they did, built using Dutch navigation equipment and Tom Tom’s Data.

And it works. Just not… perfectly. Yet. Soon after the release the internet was flooded with screenshots showing the inaccuracy of the application, from wrong destination information to odd looking buildings, roadways etc. Stating that your destination was in the ocean 10 miles out is not very good for a maps application. Unfortunatley the more humerous the inaccuracy, the worse it was for Apple- and anyone relying on the app to get them somewhere…

So. The app itself is not quite fully formed. It does, however, work very well for a lot of people. Here at iPhone Antidote we have used it extensively- across two countries, in the city and in the middle of nowhere, and have only come across one inaccuracy. Don’t get us wrong- there are  apparently lots out there, we just haven’t happened across a lot of them.

Disregarding the flaws for a moment-  the features of Maps are great- turn by turn directions, voice intergration, flyover and vector based maps. The 3D looks brilliant, vibrant and lifelike, and it’s really fun to play with- the pivoting action of being able to rotate the point of view and zoom out so you can play with the whole globe is stupidly fun. A lot of people find the interface a lot simpler to use and more pleasing to the eye.

It’s definitely something that holds promise, which, yeah, is not really what you want with a cornerstone feature of a new operating system. You want that shit dialed in.
So, Good Guy Apple organizes a press release where they tell their own customers that they made a mistake in releasing their maps too early, that they were sorry, and advised them to go to their competitors- please. They showed remarkable customer service by admitting their mistake and doing the right thing for their customers.

Apple have told their customers that they are improving maps and that the problems like buildings or roadways looking a bit funny will be fixed by user feedback, so an increasingly perfected system. Until that point is reached, we suggest using Apple maps until you run into a problem, then using Google maps as a backup. To do this- go to google maps in safari, and you will be prompted to ‘save as an app for your mobile’ by touching the arrow on the bottom and choosing the option to add to homescreen.

Happy travelling.

iOS 6 Review

The iPhone 5 of course comes with the new operating system iOS 6, however you can and should upgrade your current model for free– and it’s been available since Sept 19 ( 100 million devices have so far been updated!).

Keep in mind that even though it’s available on all Apple models after and including the 3GS, only the iPhone 5 and iPhone 4S can utilize all the features. And there’s 200 of them!

It will take time to find them all and Apple hasn’t even named them all, here are the best and most noticeable new features of iOS 6.

#Email has been upgraded in a few noticeably better and more efficient ways, incorporating a new VIP email inbox so that you don’t have to sift through crap that’s only kind of important to get to the juicy most important emails.

There is now the ability to insert numerous photos & videos in the body of an email instead of attaching them one at a time, and you can now have more than one signature, depending on if you’re sending an email to your boss or your crush ( *special signature for your crush actually not recommended).
To select or delete draft emails, just hold down the compose button.
The smallest but somehow best new feature with email is that instead of pressing the refresh email button to get new emails, you can now simply swipe down, you get a spinny wheel and voila new emails. It looks much better.

#Handling incoming calls has been improved ( although this feature has been around on driods for a while, it’s nice that Apple has caught up, and it’s a very useful feature). When someone calls, you now have the option to answer the call, put the call through to voicemail, or reject the call and reply to that person with an automated text message. There is also the option to reject and get the phone to remind you later that the person called.
Another call handling feature is Do Not Disturb– this feature, when turned on, prevents notifications, texts and calls from everyone except a select few that the user chooses. An unknown number calling more than once in a three minute period with be let through as well, allowing for possible legitimate emergencies.

# Shared photostreams, allows users to share photos with friends in realtime without messy attachments. The selected photos are uploaded to iCloud, available to friends and family right in their own photo app on their mac ( running mountain lion ) or their iphone ( if it’s running iOS 6) and if the friends aren’t on an apple device, the photos are available on their very own unique URL.

#If you’re worried about privacy, the new Advertising tracking feature is for you. The ability to turn off and stop marketers from targeting you with ads. Small but pretty powerful.

# iOS 6 comes with deeper facebook integration – you can now post photos straight from the camera, ask Siri to make a post for you, post location from maps, post scores from the game centre, and tap to post to twitter and fb from the notification centre. Facebook THIS!

# The much discussed Passbook app is a virtual wallet for keeping and more importantly easily accessing your boarding passes, coupons, loyalty cards, movie tickets and more, with tickets/boarding passes appearing on the lock screen when the event time approaches or you enter into the right location ( E.g. airport).
With NFC ( Near Field Communication ) rumored to be released for Apple devices after Christmas, this will mean that in the not too distant future payment processing applications will be available for this passbook as well.

#Siri is improved with this new operating system, with 7 new languages added to her repertoire, the ability to ask Siri to launch apps and to interact with maps and new knowledge for Siri with movie screening times and sports scores.

#You can now Facetime over any 3G or 4G cellular network as well as over wifi.

#Safari is a lot faster and now includes iCloud tabs which have the ability to sync open tabs between iOS6 and OS x Devices. Through the reworked sharing options menu you can also send an interesting article/picture etc via email, message, and facebook, as well as being able to print, copy, or add to bookmarks. A super nice new feature is the ability to add a website to an offline reading list for later perusal.
When viewing safari in landscape, there is now a ‘view in full screen’ button, on the bottom right.

#Updating apps no longer requires a password, and downloading a new app doesn’t close the app store. Newly downloaded but unopened apps get a fancy bright blue ‘new’ banner.

#The Find My Friends App has been updated, so that you can be notified once friends or family have left or arrived at a certain location.

#There is a bunch more emjoi icons.

#For the alarm you can now escape the godawful noise you’ve been putting up with and pick any song from your music to gently raise you from your sleep.

#Late night listening– A new EQ setting that lowers the jarring bass making the music less intrusive, allowing falling to sleep easier.

#8 more default wallpapers

#Bluetooth settings appear right at the front of the settings page.

So there you go, the best improvements that come with upgrading to the iOS 6 operating system.

There are a few features that you will lose when upgrading to iOS 6 – youtube for example, is absent from the update, but you can just go to the app store and download it for free.

The new operating system is definitely stacked full of small but ultimately more efficient improvements, making the user experience that much more fast, fun, and valuable.
Then there’s maps. Which… we’ll discuss… next time…

iPhone 5 review pt 2

Now that we’ve looked at the physical features of the iPhone 5, lets have a look at the real magic, the stuff that actually takes you where you want to be.

We’ll start with what is specific to the iPhone 5, then we’ll look at the what comes with the new operating system update- iOS 6.

Along with being larger, the iPhone 5 screen has the ability to be 18% brighter than the 4S.

It has built in wireless LTE technology that connects to faster networks so that you get much faster browsing, access to emails, etc. It also includes Wi-Fi N support which allows incredibly fast wireless connection to 5GHz networks, which means faster downloads, streaming and browsing when connected wirelessly AND gives you a better range for connecting to more wireless access points from greater distances.

This technology combined with the new processer in the 5 makes the device noticeably faster and more efficient, and according to Apple, twice as fast as the 4S. Snazzy.

The camera on the iPhone 5 is much improved, with better HDR, faster picture taking speeds and the ability to take panoramic photos of up to  240 degrees. You just watch, the next trip you go on- all your photos will end up panoramic. It’s kind of addictive.

The audio quality is significantly improved on the 5, with higher fidelity speakers that are not only louder but carry a much better sound quality. There are also three microphones on the 5, which help with noise cancellation and improve video sound quality.

Overall the iPhone 5 proves to be simply a better, faster, and more efficient user experience. Seemingly small changes have noticeably improved the phone greatly from previous models- and that’s before we even look at the improvements that come with the new iOS 6 operating system- over 200 new features– stay tuned!

iPhone: FaceTime Tricks and tips

Facetime is a nice feature of the iPhone 4 and perhaps all of us are quite fond of it. Well, here are some little tricks for you to get the most out of Facetime chat.

Facetime: Video Calls now with more fun

FaceTime has been quite popular among iPhone users for its free and high-quality iPhone –to-iPhone video calls. Though there’s the catch that you need to have good signal strength in a Wi-Fi zone to prevent call dropping, Facetime had been quite popular.

So, we thought of sharing some tricks with you that can spice it up further.

The default mode of FaceTime screen in portrait, now just try by rotating the phone by 90 degrees—you can have your image turned into landscape mode. The one you are calling will see your image turning suddenly. Nice, isn’t it? J Well, by rotating the receiver set in the same way, he or she can get it back right obviously.

Here’s another funny aspect for you. You can even show your family or friends on FaceTime what you are actually seeing at that time. Got confused? Well, we are talking about the camera-switch option from your FaceTime. While on FaceTime chat you can tap on the Camera-Rotation icon from your screen, switching from the default front to the rear camera. With the rear camera in action, even the person you are calling can see what you are seeing in front of you.

You can also do a quick bit of stuff just by changing to another program or even simply tapping the Home button. Well, while the audio contact remains on, the video screen goes black and you can do a bit of work before going back to the call. In the meantime a Green banner would pop-up and stay on the top of the Home Screen to remind you of the ongoing Call.

iPhone with Facebook: Maybe in iOS 6

iPhone already has Twitter; wouldn’t you be delighted to have Facebook integration into iOS?  Well, as per reports Apple is also considering the same to get on-board with the most popular Social Networking platform.

Apple joining hands with Facebook?

Reportedly Apple Inc. is in official talks with Facebook to work on a piece of code to integrate the Facebook app into the iOS. Possibly named Sundance, this integrated app would grant Apple users to interact with other iOS apps directly avoiding the sign-in on each occasion.  It’s not only Apple who gets the benefits—at a time when share prices are dropping horrendously and facing tough competition from twitter and others, this would be a golden opportunity for Facebook to get into the iOS devices.  Twitter, integrated more than a year ago in iOS 5 is receiving quite a good response and surely Apple Inc. at this critical point of would keep no stone unturned.

It has been two years since we started hearing buzz about Facebook-Apple co-operation. But there are issues—low similar sort of services can run parallel like Apple’s music network or Ping. But in recent times Apple’s stance has been softened to a great extent, even at last D10 conference Apple CEO Tim Cook hinted at future co-operation between the two Giants.

At a time where Facebook is having their own share of problems with the pricing issue at stock markets and on the back foot, Apple perhaps thinks it’s the best to push forward with the integration. Well, whatever it is—iOS users are the one who would be getting the benefits.