Asymco is reporting that it costs Apple nearly a billion dollars annually to keep iTunes going.

Apple has made a point of saying that both [the app store] and [iTunes music store] are run at “break even” implying that the gross margin is used up in operating costs . To be sure, the cost of bandwidth and the data center(s) needed must be considerable.

But the operating budget for the store is beginning to reach a level that may be beyond what can be spent reasonably. The amount left over for operations has increased from ~$30 million a month in 2009 to $75 million/month today.

In fact, if this burn rate is maintained (even though it’s increasing) the operating budget for iTunes is nearing $1 billion/yr.

Yup, that’s a lot of money, but keep in mind that Apple’s still turning a mighty big profit anyway. So, while it takes $75 million per month to keep the service going, they’re certainly not hurting for cash.

[via Fast Company]

Go to Source

Another nifty new tweak in iOS 4.1: you can control VoiceOver using a paired Bluetooth keyboard.  This isn’t the first time we’ve seen Apple do something pretty cool for the blind community, but this gives you complete control over the OS from a keyboard. Here’s a list of commands from the Maccessibility Network:

• Arrow keys MOve Voiceover cursor to navigate the iPhone / iPod Touch screens
• VO-spacebar activates the current item
• VO-a reads page from current location/starting at current item
• VO-b reads page starting at the top
• VO-h activates home button
• VO-m goes to the status bar
• VO– (dash/hyphen) stops the current action such as stopping / starting media playback or hanging up a call.
• VO-s toggles speech on/off
• VO-shift-s toggles screen curtain on/off
• Left/right arrow at the same time activates/deactivates the QuickNav feature
• left-up arrow and right-up arrow cycle through the rotor settings
• Up and down arrows together activates the item like VO-spacebar
• VO-Command-left and right arrows cycle through Voiceover settings (Use VO-Command-up and down arrows to change settings)
Settings are: Use Phonetics, Use Pitch, Volume, Rate and Typing Echo
• VO-Space Bar on the Page label of a home screen advances the page. I.E. Pressing VO-Space on the ‘Page 1′ label will move to page 2

[via DaringFireball]

Go to Source

This morning, Apple retooled the developer agreement, opening the possibility of using outside compilers and dev tools. So what has actually changed? The ever informed John Gruber has picked apart the new changes, and put his interpretation alongside.

There’s no longer any mention of specific programming languages, nor any prohibition against “intermediary translation or compatibility layers”. This means, I believe, that tools such as Adobe’s Flash cross-compiler are no longer banned from use. If you can produce a binary that complies with the guidelines, how you produced it doesn’t matter.

He has looked at all the changes, so it’s an interesting read if you want to know what’s going on in the App Store, and how it’s going to change what apps are available.

Go to Source

AT&T sent out an email to customers talking about the work Ma Bell has done on their network, inviting them to comment on the official Facebook page. Lets just say that the responses are amazing. Filled with vitriol and hatred so thick as to be palatable, the amount of rage spewed forth at AT&T for their shoddy service is absolutely amazing.

Go, have a read, and enjoy the reactions. It’s wonderfully cleansing, like a shower of acid. It also makes you realize that there are a lot of people out there who really, really don’t like AT&T.

Man, they better hang on to iPhone exclusivity, or they’re going to lose a lot of customers.

[via TechCrunch]

Go to Source

First debuting on Android, the PicPlz app is touted as being the simplest photo-sharing app on the iPhone, updating your Twitter, Facebook, and FourSquare profiles all in one fell swoop—with location and place information, on top of that. So how does it really hold up?

OK, yes, it’s pretty darn impressive.

Read the full review after the jump

Billed as the simplest photo-sharing app on the iPhone, PicPlz instantly shares photos from your library or taken in the app on through your Facebook, Twitter and FourSquare feeds, with location and place tags. With slow load times on Facebook, third-party apps for uploading photos to Twitter, and FourSquare’s lack of photo uploads with updates (coming soon, though, we hear), an app like PicPlz does pretty well to satisfy all photo-sharing needs.

After signing up for a PicPlz account (free) upon opening the app for the first time, the app goes directly to your iPhone camera so you can start snapping away at an opportune moment. You can also choose a photo from your library or your PicPlz account here, if you’d rather share a photo you already have saved. From there, a screen for entering your location information and caption. If you have location detection turned on, the app is fairly accurate at already providing it, but the search function works just as well if you’re looking to post a specific place or venue.

If you gave permission for the app to access all of your accounts (Facebook, Twitter, FourSquare), you’ll also be able to choose which profiles the photo will be uploaded to, with a simple flip-switch button. After tapping “Post”…that’s pretty much it.

The app’s settings can be modified for notifications–an e-mail when your photo has posted, saving any photos taken in the app in your library, other options with your PicPlz account–but all in all, PicPlz keeps it simple. Load times are speedy, location detection is accurate, and the PicPlz online service itself is easy to use and incredibly clean of any junk or complicated design. Think: an even easier to use Flickr or TwitPic service.

Recap & Conclusion

PicPlz
Price: FREE
Released: Aug. 23, 2010
Our Grade: A+

I can safely say I won’t be using my Facebook or Twitter apps to upload photos from here on out. PicPlz makes it as easy as possible to update my social profiles all at once with locations and photos, even a profile that isn’t equipped to upload photos yet (FourSquare). Great interface, quick loading times, and definitely as simplistic as it claims to be.

Go ahead, download it!

Go to Source

Apple promised to publish the guidelines for the App Store review process, and lo and behold, they’re up. You would need a developer account to get them, but Engadget is hosting them for everyone, so you can have an oggle at it.

What’s interesting is just how candid it is. At a mere seven pages long, it’s conversational, blunt, and a very interesting read. Here are some gems:

• We have lots of kids downloading lots of apps, and parental controls don’t work unless the parents set them up (many don’t). So know that we’re keeping an eye out for the kids.
• We view Apps different than books or songs, which we do not curate. If you want to criticize a religion, write a book. If you want to describe sex, write a book or a song, or create a medical app.
• We don’t need any more Fart apps
• We will reject Apps for any content or behavior that we believe is over the line. What line, you ask? Well, as a Supreme Court Justice once said, “I’ll know it when I see it”. And we think that you will also know it when you cross it.
• Apps with metadata that mentions the name of any other mobile platform will be rejected
• Audio streaming content over a cellular network may not use more than 5MB over 5 minutes
• Video streaming content over a cellular network longer than 10 minutes must use HTTP Live Streaming and include a baseline 64 kbps audio-only HTTP Live stream
• Apps that look similar to apps bundled on the iPhone, including the App Store, iTunes Store, and iBookstore, will be rejected (interesting because iBooks’ look is pretty much stolen)
• Apps that encourage users to use an Apple Device in a way that may cause damage to the device will be rejected

• “Enemies” within the context of a game cannot solely target a specific race, culture, a real government or corporation, or any other real entity
• Apps that include games of Russian roulette will be rejected
• Apps that contain user generated content that is frequently pornographic (ex “Chat Roulette” apps) will be rejected

Go to Source

New iPad ad, courtesy of Apple. Today, the iPad is…musical!

Go to Source

The desktop version of VLC is the go-to app for decoding just about every video type on the planet. It’s free, amazing, and a day one download on every new computer I get. And it looks like it might be coming to the iPad. VLC has submitted their app to the App Store, and they hope it’ll land in the next week.

Seeing as VLC is notorious for being able to handle just about everything thrown at it, RWW asked about Flash video, to which the response was “This unfortunately I cannot answer right now (you guess why ).”

Here’s hoping we actually see this in the App Store, and that it also comes to the iPhone soon.

Go to Source

Game Center is perhaps the biggest new feature for iOS 4.1, but it’s hard to know what will actually work with it. Apple has added a section to iTunes displaying apps that take advantage of the service, but right now the offerings are pretty small. There are only 18 apps, and while some are definite classics (Zen Bound 2, Flight Control), others are less so.

I’m curious as to what’s going to happen with apps that are already on gaming networks. Will they abandon OpenFeint or PlusPlus for Apple’s offering? Or will they integrate across multiple services? Will the services figure out a way of sharing friends and achievements between them?

[via 9 to 5 Mac]

Go to Source

iFixIt have taken apart a brand spanking new iPod Touch, and there are some very interesting things to note. It only has 256MB of RAM, half that of the iPhone 4, which its meant to be comparable to.

What’s also missing is the vibration motor that was rumored to show up in the new model. It really does appear that this was killed at the last moment, as Apple’s description of Facetime for the Touch used to read:

If somebody wants to start a video call with you, you’ll receive an invitation — along with a vibrating alert — on your iPod touch asking you to join. Simply tap Accept, and the video call begins.

Emphasis added. Now it says:

If somebody wants to start a video call with you, you’ll receive an invitation on your iPod touch asking you to join. Simply tap Accept, and the video call begins.

Supply shortages? Not enough space? Who knows.

[via MacRumors]

Go to Source