Mac|Life - All Articles

Microsoft Pits $199 Surface RT Against $399 iPad for Students

Leif Johnson — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 00:36:13 +0000

Deep educational discounts have been Apple's thing for ages, but now Microsoft's looking to cut into the Cupertino giant's market by temporarily offering its beleaguered Surface RT for students and staff at universities and schools for $199. As ZDNet reports, the price only accounts for the tablet without a keyboard, although tossing in either of the two keyboard options still falls well short of Apple's asking price of $399 for students.

According to Microsoft's original announcement (which has since been taken down, although ZDNet learned that the offer's still valid), the limited-time offer is available in many countries between June 17 and August 31. With the special offer, students can pick up the device for less than half of its normal retail price of $599. It gets better when you toss in the keyboards. Buy one with the touch keyboard, and the whole package is available for $249, down from the normal retail price of $599; buy the better type keyboard, and it's $289, down from $629. That's a full computer containing Microsoft Office selling for less than the price of Office itself. At that price, it almost seems as though Microsoft just wants to give them away.

Perhaps they do. Earlier Microsoft announced that they'd be giving away 10,000 tablets to teachers at a conference in San Antonio later this month, and rumors are already flying about that Microsoft's looking to release a better version of the device. These actions provide an easy way to clear out inventory, but part of the problem for Microsoft, though, is that there's a lot of inventory. Back in March, Bloomberg reported via Twitter that Microsoft had only sold around 1 million Surface RTs since its release last October, despite having produced more than 3 million units of the iPad alternative.

On the plus side (for Microsoft), educational discounts have always helped to introduce people to Apple products, but if Microsoft can't entice consumers with cuts this deep, the outlook for its success in the tablet arena won't look good at all.

Follow this article's writer, Leif Johnson, on Twitter.

The iPhone 5S: The "S" Really Stands for Seven

Michael Simon — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 23:33:04 +0000

So, it seems as though Tim Cook was serious when he declared Apple was doubling down on secrecy. For the first time in years, we were actually surprised by the bulk of a WWDC keynote, from the audacious Mac Pro to the transcendent iOS 7.

Surprising to approximately no one, however, was the lack of new hardware to run the shiny new operating system. Any iOS release — particularly one with so many radical changes — is going to need a fair amount of beta time before it's unleashed on the public, and there was absolutely no way Apple was going to announce a new iPhone for an old operating system.

So, autumn it is. But if you're hoping for a redesigned iPhone 6, I have some bad news for you: This year's iPhone won't look any different than last year's.

Not too long ago, some very astute writers were wondering whether Apple could get away with another "S" release. For the past two generations of iPhone, Apple has used the year following a redesign as something of a refresh, bumping the specs and adding a feature or two to the existing form factor. It's certainly been a winning formula — the designs have been more than capable of standing the test of time — but Apple's been hit with a rash of negative press lately, and there are those who think nothing less than a jaw-dropping new handset will be a disappointment.

That's where iOS 7 comes in. From the keynote's opening video to its closing commercial, Apple hammered home the point that good design is based on how a product makes you feel, not what it looks like. No matter what iPhone you're using, Apple wants iOS 7 to make you fall in love with it all over again.

Make no mistake: Apple's taking a major risk here. Jony Ive has taken the most familiar and established part of the iPhone experience and turned it on its head. In many ways, it's more daring than a plastic enclosure or a bigger screen. Redesigned iPhones are an easy sell for Apple. With smartphones, everyone wants to be seen with the latest and greatest handset, even if it means breaking their contract or paying full price for an unlocked one, and when Apple releases one, it's practically pandemonium.

But this year is different. No matter what it looks like, the new iPhone will ultimately be judged on the strength of iOS 7, and that's the way Apple wants it. Its subtle animations and depth are designed to complement the sleek precision of the iPhone; much in the way the interface melts away in Safari, iOS 7 is meant to be an immersive experience, to draw you into the screen. (It's no coincidence that all of Apple's screenshots are shot using the white iPhone to match the lighter theme.)

Simply put, iOS 7 is the new iPhone.

There's an inclination to compare it to OS X — and there certainly are similarities, which I'll explore in a future column — but the iOS 7 redesign is a far different thing. For one, the OS X transition was incredibly gradual. Before Apple deemed it worthy to preinstall on a single new Mac, it went through several notable steps: a series of developer previews, a couple keynote demos, a public beta and the first semi-stable release, which didn't even ship with a DVD player. And that's not to mention the years it booted alongside OS 9/Classic.

And then there's this: During the year of its launch, Apple unveiled a string of seductive designs: Titanium PowerBook, iBook G4, PowerMac G4 "Quicksilver" and the iPod. It's almost as if Steve Jobs was trying to overshadow the release of OS X, and in a way he was. Jobs knew it would be at least another year until it was truly ready for mass adoption, which is why even new Macs that had OS X installed still booted into OS 9 by default.

There's no such roadmap for iOS 7. This is an all-or-nothing release, and Apple needs it to be the star of the show. Like OS X, iOS 7 will make our iPhones feel brand new again, whether they have an "S" in their name or not.

The new iPhone will surely have a few exclusive features that people will need to have. There will be a better camera, and who knows, maybe that fingerprinting-unlock mechanism we keep hearing about will find its way in as well.

But as far as looks go, there won't be anything new. And something tells me that won't matter one bit.

Find Michael Simon on Twitter or App.net @morlium.

Disney's Where's My Mickey? to Hit App Store Thursday

Leif Johnson — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 23:12:52 +0000

It was only a matter of time. Today Disney announced that Where's My Mickey? will debut on the App Store on Thursday, June 20, introducing the world's favorite 85-year-old rodent to its popular mobile gaming series that kicked off in 2011 with Where's My Water? You'll be able to pick it up for both iPhones and iPads, in addition (if you swing that way) to Android and PC.

Apparently the concept's not limited to a simple case of switching out Swampy the alligator or Perry (as seen in last year's Where's My Perry?) for Mickey Mouse. The art draws its inspiration from the retro stylings of Disney's new animated shorts scheduled for release on The Disney Channel later this month, and short cartoons in the game itself will sandwich the three major sections of the game's 60 unique levels. Goofy will have some time in the spotlight, too, but only if you purchase his collection of 40 puzzles on the App Store.

Disney also changed some aspects of the gameplay. Mickey now has to work with wind in order to get his water, and he spends much of his time filling up clouds with water in order to transport it to the necessary spots. If you happen to play on a tablet, you'll even get some bonus content using the new concepts that's been modified for use with the big screen.

That could be enough to allow Where's My Mickey? to share some of the explosive success of Where's My Water?, which has been downloaded over 200 million times to date and still retains active player base of around 85 million a month, according to Disney. Keeping checking back at Mac|Life--we'll have a review posted not long after Thursday's launch.

Follow this article's writer, Leif Johnson, on Twitter.

Intro to Colors Review

Michael Simon — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 21:49:54 +0000

Our kids may have been able to unlock our iPhones since before they could walk, but that doesn't mean they're actually gaining anything by using them. There are countless cartoon and character apps to keep them occupied, but sometimes we want them to learn and create while they're having fun. Montessorium's "Intro" apps have always struck a keen balance between education and entertainment, but its latest entry, Intro to Colors, might be the best to date. With a vivid, interactive interface inspired by the Montessori color tablets, Intro to Colors just might turn your child into the next Picasso.

The app teaches your child the basics of colors through a series of matching and ordering games, starting with the primary group of red, blue, and yellow. Simple sounds offer feedback while a recorded voice plainly enunciates each color, reinforcing correct answers after a match. Once the primary and secondary levels are mastered, your child can head over to the gradient wheel, which takes that newfound knowledge a step further. A series of nine spinnable swatch palettes need to be properly organized by brightness, demonstrating the subtle nuances within each color they've been introduced to.

Lessons are fairly elementary and will likely be completed very quickly, so Montessorium has two extra sections in the app to keep your kids occupied long after the learning is over. The first is a remarkably simple painting app that uses primary colors to let your child explore the rainbow of possibilities available in mixing. The other is a sort of "search" game that adds color to portions of an outlined picture and challenges your kid to identify them.

As enjoyable as Intro to Colors is, for $3.99 we wish there were a few more games included. While the drawing app is fun, we think our kids would have far more control over their masterpieces if the mixing were done on an easel rather than directly on the canvas. Also, we also encountered a minor bug in the form of a stubborn info box that wouldn't disappear.

The bottom line. Intro to Colors will brighten your kids' smiles – and their minds.

Review Synopsis

Product:

Intro to Colors by Montessorium 1.0

Company:

Montessorium

Contact:

http://www.montessorium.com

Price:

$3.99

Requirements:

iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch running iOS 5.0 or later

Positives:

Slick interface. Excellent teaching tool. Fun games.

Negatives:

Not very challenging, even for a two-year-old. Limited lessons.

Score:

4 Great

Deals: Get Nine Great Programs for One Low Price

MacLife Staff — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 19:38:59 +0000

[This is an advertorial. Maclife gets a portion of each unit sold.]

Mac users love the simple, intuitive user interface of their computers along with the powerful programs that come with it. But someones there's some tasks you'd like to take care of that you just don't have the right tools for. The iStack Mac Bundle 3.0 is packed with nine great apps that can do a little bit of everything. They are all must-have programs and are all available for one low price in our Deals tab.

Take advantage of the iStack Mac Bundle 3.0 and get all these great programs:

Painter Lite - Learn your way around the digital canvas with the help of this program for aspiring artists.
TuneUp - Get your iTunes in order, delete duplicates, and get album art for all your music with just a few clicks.
Disk Drill Pro - Protecting your data has never been more important and never been easier than with Disk Drill Pro.
MoneyWiz - Keeping track of your finances can be a pain but not with MoneyWiz, the one app to manage your cash.
Voila - Capture anything on your screen, edit it, and share it with ease with this powerful screen capture tool.
DVDRemaster 8 - Take your DVDs and re-encode them using this simple and powerful tool.
Desktop Shelves - Eliminate all the on-screen clutter and get your computer totally organized with this amazing app.
MacScan - Macs aren't totally immune to the threat of a virus, but Macs with MacScan on them are.
NetSpot Pro - Get wireless site surveying, wi-fi analysis, and troubleshooting solutions all from this app. (Free to the first 5,000 people to claim this Deal)

All nine of these Mac programs would cost you $517 if you were to buy them all individually. But if you get them as a part of the iStack Mac Bundle 3.0, you can save 94% off that price. That makes your total just $29.99 for nine must-have apps. Take advantage of this offer today!

Pagico Review

Steve Paris — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 15:00:36 +0000

Check the Dashboard to see what deadlines are coming up.

Compared to more basic to-do apps that focus on simplicity by limiting your options, Pagico goes in the other direction. But don’t let that put you off, because this is its greatest strength. You can dump nearly anything into it: ideas, files, contacts, PDFs, images, notes, to-dos, whatever, and organize anything in your life and work.

The inbox collects everything, and you can file items into the database individually or organized into defined projects. Keyword tagging makes it easy to create Smart Collections—isolating any tasks tagged “errand” in any of your projects, for example. If you’re not a stickler for filing, the search field finds anything in seconds, no matter where it’s stored in Pagico’s database.

The Dashboard presents a neat graph of your appointments and due dates, and Pagico’s Contacts feature lets you link tasks, notes, emails, and files to contacts, for a souped-up address book. But both of these features would benefit from integration with Apple’s Calendars and Contacts apps. Keeping track of two databases, especially with your contacts, can be frustrating. Luckily, adding contacts to Pagico in the first place is a simple matter of drag and drop.

Despite Pagico’s complexity and flexibility—this is professional software, and it shows—it didn’t take us too long to get used to the interface and really start organizing our life. We found a few small annoyances, like not being able to select all the text in a comment with the Command-A shortcut, for example, but nothing major.

And unfortunately, syncing costs extra. Syncing with an iOS device requires the Pagico Plus 2 app ($14.99, universal), which includes one year of Personal Workspace, aka 100MB of cloud storage and sync. Subsequent years are $15 annually. Personal Workspace is sized for individuals, families, or small teams—up to four computers and iOS devices can use one account. For larger groups, Pagico offers Team Workspaces with a six-month free trial and flexible billing options. The syncing worked great, but we wish the cost was built in to the price of the software, as with Things and OmniFocus, although those two really aren’t built for teams.

The bottom line. Pagico makes keeping track of complex projects a simpler task, so you can focus on the work.

Review Synopsis

Product:

Pagico 6.2

Company:

Pagico Software

Contact:

www.pagico.com

Price:

$50

Requirements:

Intel Mac, OS X 10.5 or later

Positives:

Keeps track of everything related to a project. Flexible workflows.

Negatives:

No automatic save. No sync with Apple’s Contacts app. Not for casual use: this is professional software and the options and complexity reflex that.

Score:

4 Great

NB-250 vs. Rocksteady XS Review

Cody Cardarelli — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 15:00:07 +0000

The NB-250 does sound better.

As consumers we face the lifelong dichotomy of wanting to know our good money is well spent, and we also want to get the most bang for our buck. With speakers, this is rarely different. Nyne’s NB-250 sounds lush, there’s no denying it, but Killer Concepts’ Rocksteady XS is making waves at half of the price. Does a Benjamin honestly represent the gap between these two products?

Taking a look under the hood, we can see that part of Nyne’s higher price tag comes from its double 7W output, already at twice the oomph of the Rocksteady XS. Both speakers carry a respectable passive subwoofer, but even at higher volumes the NB-250 keeps the party going without wavering, while the Rocksteady can start to lose its midrange at about peak volume. Still, when subjected to meticulous tests across most genres of music, neither speaker ever sounds cluttered—each hit of a snare drum sounds warm thanks to the solid construction.

But the Rocksteady XS gives it a run for its money at a lower price point.

While the NB-250 maintains the standard of Bluetooth 2.1, the Rocksteady XS supports Bluetooth 3.0. Both rechargeable devices kept the music flowing for just under 10 hours, and both can also charge your phone thanks to onboard USB ports. Impressively, Killer Concepts bucks the tech industry’s status quo by allowing you to easily replace the Rocksteady’s battery, making its lifecycle potentially infinite.

While the NB-250 is an incredible-sounding speaker, we’re not sure it’s worth the extra money. It comes with its own (admittedly pretty cool) tote bag for lugging it around, which is nice, but the Rocksteady XS is half the size so it doesn’t really need one. The NB-250’s water resistance is a plus, but would you feel comfortable taking a $200 piece of equipment to the pool? While slimmer than most speakers in its budget class, the NB-250 doesn’t do much to differentiate itself from competitors like Soundfreq’s $149 Sound Step Recharge.

The bottom line. We love the NB-250’s beautiful sound, but at half the price, the Rocksteady XS sounds fantastic and doesn’t need a carrying case to be one of the most portable Bluetooth speakers out there.

NB-250 Portable Bluetooth Speaker

NYNE
www.nyne.com

Price: $199.99

Requirements: Audio source with Bluetooth or headphone jack

Pros: Crystal-clear audio. Water resistant. USB port for device charging.

Cons: A little pricey, although it can be found for $30 less at Amazon.

Rocksteady XS

Killer Concepts
www.killerc.com

Price: $99.99

Requirements: Audio source with Bluetooth or headphone jack

Pros: Small. Replaceable battery. Surprising bass. USB port for charging.

Cons: Slight loss of midrange at high volumes.

First Look at iPhone-Powered Logitech Harmony Smart Control

J.R. Bookwalter — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 14:04:23 +0000

We're big fans of Logitech's Harmony remote controls, and even though the company may soon divest itself of the division, they're moving forward with a new Smart Control edition that puts mobile devices in control of the living room.

iLounge managed to post a first look at the new Logitech Harmony Smart Control hardware on Tuesday, which bundles a mobile app with a Bluetooth and Wi-Fi-enabed IR blaster and tops it all off with a physical remote control for only $129.99.

Unlike Logitech's more expensive iOS-only Harmony Ultimate, Smart Control gives users the option of using a hardware remote control when an iPhone isn't available.

"The major difference here is Smart Control's emphasis on the iOS device and free app as a primary control interface," iLounge notes. "Unlike Ultimate, which ships with a sophisticated touchscreen remote, the remote control in this package is screenless with fewer customization/programming options.

"It's also a lot lighter, shipping with an integrated battery but no recharging station," the report notes. "Logitech expects that you'll use the iOS app to control your device most of the time, falling back to the bundled remote only when necessary."

Judging from Logitech's website, the Harmony Smart Control is now in stock and ready to ship, with the companion Harmony Control now available free from the App Store.

Follow this article’s author, J.R. Bookwalter on Twitter

(Image courtesy of iLounge)

New Yorkers Get a Quick Solar Charge While On the Go, Thanks to AT&T

J.R. Bookwalter — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 13:24:57 +0000

Nothing ruins summer fun like your favorite gadget running out of battery juice, but if you happen to wander into a New York City park, AT&T wants to hook you up with some free, sun-powered energy.

CNET reported Tuesday that AT&T is now installing solar-powered charging stations in 25 different locations across the five boroughs of New York City, and plans even more locations to come throughout the summer.

Each location features both 30-pin and Lightning dock connector cables as well as micro and standard USB for charging pretty much every gadget you can think of. Known as "Street Charge," the AT&T initiative is currently in a trial phase after the company set up mobile charging stations in the wake of Superstorm Sandy.

Street Charge stations are powered exclusively by solar panels, which helped get them installed and running faster, given that no external power source, wires or other infrastructure charges were required.

A single Street Charge station includes enough batteries to offer three to four days of continuous charging when full, and in direct sunlight can get a full charge in as little as four hours. During cloudy or rain-soaked days, Street Charge will even continue to absorb ultraviolet rays for energy.

The first 25 stations have been paid for by AT&T, who plans to move them around in the coming months, even as new ones are added, as the company works with the city of New York to find the best location for each.

Follow this article’s author, J.R. Bookwalter on Twitter

(Image courtesy of CNET)

Adobe Creative Cloud Update Now Available, Minus Trio of Key New Features

J.R. Bookwalter — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 12:45:45 +0000

First announced at the MAX 2013 conference last month, Adobe's first major update to Creative Cloud is finally here -- but a few of the cool new features they've worked so hard to promote remain conspicuously absent.

Adobe announced the release of its all-new Creative Cloud on Monday night, pushing out new CC updates to its former Creative Suite products just before the stroke of midnight, with only moments to spare before the promised June 17 release faded away.

“We’ve added a ton of new innovation to all our CC desktop apps like Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign," said David Wadhwani, Adobe's senior vice president and general manager of Digital Media. "These apps include new features that increase productivity, streamline the effort to build mobile content and showcase some stunning new imaging and video science."

The new Creative Cloud is centered around a revamped Desktop application which lives in the Mac menu bar, providing software updates and activity feeds from Behance, the creative social network Adobe acquired back in December which is now integrated into many of the desktop solutions.

According to the Creative Cloud Team Blog, the update isn't quite complete, however. Despite actively marketing file syncing to the free 20GB of cloud storage included with each subscription, Typekit font access and a new Creative Cloud app for iOS, these features are a no-show at launch, suggesting that Adobe might have had its hands full just pushing out the CC updates to begin with.

But all hope is not lost: The missing features are promised "as soon as they're ready," and will include a new Photoshop feature previewed at MAX to automatically size, crop and create image assets for the web, all from document layers.

Adobe Creative Cloud is available as a free 30-day trial for new members, and the complete individual plan is $49.99 per month, with discounts available to owners of the company's previous CS3 and up products.

Follow this article’s author, J.R. Bookwalter on Twitter