The world of technology is in a state of shock with the impromptu release of several significant apps that claim to be from Apple on the Android Play Store. Without any prior warning, it would seem as though Apple had finally decided to drop the likes of GarageBand, iPhoto and Keynote for Android, but our better judgment leads us to suspect they are big, fat clones.
In the ongoing patent war between Apple and Samsung, it seems one cannot sneeze without the other taking a strong interest, and with Apple having reached a settlement with Taiwanese rival HTC earlier this week, Samsung is seeking a copy of it.
Turning digital pages? There's a patent for that! And guess what - Apple has it. While all tech companies must keep the patents rolling through in order to protect intellectual properties, it's fair to say the Cupertino company has a bit of a reputation for being a tad over-zealous when it comes to sending sketches over to the USPTO. The latest, a design patent, concerns the turning over of fake pages.
As is often the case with technology nowadays, those of you happily sitting on an older software version will soon be coerced into upgrading. The app updates cease supporting you, new software releases aren't compatible with you, or in the case of Apple's Messages beta, they stop working altogether. Prior to Mountain Lion, the Cupertino released a beta version of Messages for Lion, and since that has now evolved into Messages for the latest iteration for OS X, Apple has set a deadline on the demise of that preview.
The Windows Phone 8 market presents Taiwanese outfit HTC with a fantastic opportunity to establish its new product line. Microsoft has just dropped WP8, and with only really the Nokia Lumia 920 and Samsung ATIV S for competition, rather beautiful 8X and 8S handsets could feasibly wind up being the go-to smartphones on the fledgling platform.
Towards the end of last month, we introduced Letterpress - a fun and addictive puzzler invented by the same development team behind popular Twitter app Tweetie. Since then, we've become completely engrossed, and every single member of the Redmond Pie team has joined in. Now, Letterpress has been updated to version 1.1, and as well as a bunch of bug fixes, there's also a new rematch feature.
Access to sites like Kickstarter has meant more and more creative individuals taking it upon themselves to bring exciting and innovative products to market. With an interesting idea and a tidy introductory video, it's easy for the very best concepts to gain the exposure they need to reach fruition, and on an almost daily basis, a handful of campaigns catch the watchful eye of the blogosphere. Today's feature arrives in the form of Phorce, and as well as serving as a very fashionable travel bag, it can charge your MacBook, smartphone or other USB device as you travel around.
The popularity of its product range, coupled with the colossal amounts of money exchanged in the purchase of said products, has made Apple a pretty strong target for fakery. China is one of the main sources of these bootleg products, and even though we're used to seeing copies of some of the higher-end Apple devices - iPads, iPhones and such, the latest product to be ripped from Apple's extensive roster is the Apple TV.
Last month, we told you of the grand return of the famed BookBook case. Looking like a book, but functioning as a wallet accommodating credit cards as well as your iPhone, creators Twelve South delighted long-time users by taking the wraps off the iPhone 5 version. As well as having been adjusted to snugly embed the longer, slenderer Apple smartphone, the new BookBook finally offers a hole for the camera, so your device no longer needs to be slid upward in order for the pointing-and-shooting to commence.
The Wall Street Journal seems to have the scoop on all the upcoming tech products and services recently, and in the latest, the world-renowned publication has revealed search giant Google could be planning to build its own wireless network akin to the likes of AT&T. Considering the dogmatic manner in which Google has set goals and swiftly taken over in areas like mobile with Android and browsing Chrome, the news should come as no surprise, and if the report has any substance to it, would anybody bet against Google once again bullying its way to the top of the pile?
