Google Goggles is now available in the Apple iTunes Store.

Earlier last week, Google made the announcement that Goggles, its popular Android app, is now available for iPhones and iPod Touch in the iTunes App Store. The app which allows users to do searches by taking pictures of objects with their phone's camera. The result of those searches may varies depending on the object photographed; for instance, the pictures of a street sign or a landmark will reveal things such as a Google map of the area along with articles or Wikepedia entries related to the area.
To app can be had by downloading the Google Mobile app for iPhone which will give users much more features such as voice search, location recognition, contact search and others Google services.
Here a video to see how the feature works:



For more, see AppScout.com

Apple adds "like" feature to Ping music service.

Responding to critics who were lamenting about the lack of "social" aspect in its new Ping music social media service, Apple has added a new feature that let users both post the music they are actually listening to and to "like" other music that friends, colleagues or random strangers are listening to. The new feature is accessible via a sidebar that pops up within iTunes anytime one starts playing a song.
The way the service works is very simple: Whenever you are listening to a song, Ping will recognize it and automatically ask you if you want to put it in the "like" category and if you answer yes, will instantaneously, post it to your feed without any additional input. The add-on service also give users the option to leave comments alongside the song.
The tweak to Ping service, is a step in the right direction but doesn't satisfy the strongest critics.
To these critics, the limited nature of Ping to iTunes, makes it useless for songs who are not in the iTunes store. Unfortunately, Apple is not giving any indication that it is planning to move Ping into a browser-accessible service.

For more, see pcmag.com

Solutions for printing and browsing files on iPad.

Despite all the hype surrounding the conception and launch of the iPad, there are still a few things Apple's newly released gadget cannot do; among them are the lack of a centralized files browser in the device and direct printing.
All the files created or stored in the iPad are accessible only from wherever particular app they were created from like mail app, pictures files, texts app etc; but there are different ways to get around this issue. One would be to use Pages Export to export or import files from another computer to the iPad via iTunes.
Another solution would be to use iWork which is Apple service for sharing documents Online.It is currently in beta form and allow users who sign for it, to share any document saved in the iPad using that format
Another work around to the lack of a centralized browser for file sharing in the iPad, is the use of apps. For that, a number of third-party apps for iPad will let you share files between your computer and your iPad. These generally work over the air, syncing files via an outside Website or over your Wi-Fi network.
One of those apps is one called Print n Share which as its name indicates, will let you print and share documents. Created by a company called EuroSmartz, it costs $7 on iTunes.


For more, see pcworld.com

Apple's iPad set to go on sale Saturday April 3 rd.

On Wednesday, Apple confirmed to its customers by e-mail, the commercial debut of the iPad tablet as being Saturday April 3rd at 9 AM.
To better showcase all the possibilities touted about the new device, Apple is positioning its Apple stores as the place to experience it. It is planning to have its specialists available to demonstrate all the bells and whistles of the iPad and even help potential buyers with the set-up of their devices for free. But the device can also be purchased at Apple's Web site.
The iPad that will go on sale this Saturday will be available in the Wi-Fi format only with prices ranging from $499 to $699 for the 16 GB and the 64 GB while the 32 GB will cost $599.
Apple is planning to release Wi-Fi+3G versions in later April with prices ranging from $629 to $829.

Foe more, see Informationweek.com

Apple announces March 12 launch date for iPad tablet.

This past Friday, Apple announced April 3 as the launch date for its much talked about iPad tablet.
At first, Apple will be selling a version that access the Internet through Wi-Fi while another version capable of faster Internet connection through 3G networks, will go on sale later that same month. Talking about networks, AT&T is the selected carrier to support the iPad in the U.S., the Wall Street Journal reports.
Apple said that it will begin taking orders for the iPad starting March 12 and the device will be sold through its Web site with AT&T saying it will not sell the device at its stores.
The Wi-Fi version of the device will retail for about $500 while the 3G one will go for about $800 and the device will be available in others countries in late April according to the Wall Street Journal.

For more, see WSJ.com

Newly released Apple's iTunes ninth version, is a major improvement.

Earlier last month, Apple released the ninth version of its popular iTunes software with a major overhaul of the familiar components of the program: the media jukebox, the built-in store and the synchronization feature that moves media and applications to and from iPods and iPhones.

For more, see WSJ.com

How to restart an Apple laptop with a sealed battery?

As a last resort, people wanting to restart a frozen laptop usually need to remove the battery for a while and then put it back in place. But that solution may not work with the new Apple's models whose batteries come sealed and therefore can't be removed. In such situations, there is two ways to go about the problem.
One consist of holding the power button continuously for 5 to 10 seconds, wait a few seconds and then press the power button again; doing so, should restart the laptop.
The second way to restart a frozen Mac laptop with a sealed battery, is to press Control and Command keys simultaneously with the power Button.

Virgin and Universal offer unlimited music downloads.

To help with struggling sales and illegal music download, two major players in the industry, Virgin Media and Universal Music Group have teamed up to offer a new music download subscription service. The service is described by the companies as a first and will allow Virgin Media's broadband customers in Britain to stream and download as many songs and as they like from Universal's catalog for a fee.
Talks are ongoing with other music labels to include their catalogs into the new service due to start later this year.
The music will be available to download in an MP3 format which will give users the ability to listen their selections on a range of devices including iPods, cell phones, PCs and other MP3 players.

For more, see news.yahoo.com

With the competition heating up in the smart-phone sector, Apple, the maker of iPhone, the market leader, is trying to keep its contenders at bay by offering frequent upgrades of its upstart product. So, just a year after the latest version, Apple is at it again with its new offering of the iPhone called iPhone 3G S.

According to a review in the Wall Street Journal, "it looks the same, but offers more speed, more memory, more battery life and a few new features, including video recording and a better camera for still photos."
The new phone comes with a new operating system called OS 3.0, the third version of the iPhone's operating system, and is standard on the 3G S.It can also can be downloaded free on all prior iPhones and Touches models.

Still according to the Wall Street Journal, the new phone " includes a much longer list of added features, some innovative and some long overdue catch-ups to other phones. These include such widely requested capabilities as cut, copy and paste; system wide searching; a wider virtual keyboard; and a feature called MMS that allows users to send photos and videos directly to other phones without using email."
To maintain its market share if not increase it, Apple made the decision to sell the new phone at last year model's price -$199- , and cut that model's price by half. The new phone is slated to go on sale June 19 starting at $199 for a version with 16 gigabytes of memory, and $299 for 32 gigabytes.

A two year contract with AT&T is still required and current iPhone 3G owners eligible for upgrade can do so at the current new price up until September 30.

For more, see WSJ.com