Skype deal with Verizon to make it available on the carrier's 3G network.

Back in February, Skype signed a deal with Verizon Wireless that will make the former VoIP telephone service available on the latter 3G network.
With Verizon Wireless, Skype mobile is now available in two carriers' networks in the U.S.
Until now, Skype was only available on Apple's iPhone over AT&T Wi-Fi service.
But the deal with Verizon comes with some strings attached: "Skype users will have to buy voice and data plans from Verizon Wireless and also one of nine smartphones sold by the operator. Also, any Skype calls placed to United States residents who do not have Skype accounts will be deducted from the caller’s package of Verizon voice minutes" said the New York Times.
Outside the U.S., Skype mobile is available in certain European countries.

For more, see the NYTimes.com

Apple announces Black Friday deals.

With less than a week until Black Friday which marks the unofficial lunch of the holiday shopping season and retailers big and small already engaged in a frantic race to lure uneasy customers, Apple is getting into the act too. The maker of some of the most popular electronic devices in the market right now, Apple is not known for giving them away, thanks to a very loyal core group of enthusiasts. Still, the company could not resist the powerful lure of the holidays to stir some buzz. Speaking of buzz, Apple's intention came in the form of a a brief one page teaser on its Web site, announcing the upcoming deals but without any details. Instead, the one page announcement invites users to browse the Apple store and make up their shopping lists and to come back on the 27th, the day after Thanksgiving when the the sale will go in effect. The only one hint that was given, is that shoppers will get to enjoy free shipping for their purchases but without any indication of which ones will qualify for it.
But if the past is any indication, Apple's announcement shouldn't make anyone jump from their seats as the maker of the iPod, iPhone and the likes, has only offered discounts in the 5 to 7 % range.

For more, see Apple.com

Sky Dock allows users to get Sirius XM Radio signal on their iPods or iPhones.

Ever wanted to listen to Sirius XM Satellite Radio in your car but was discouraged by the cost of paying for a new one? Now you have a more flexible option thanks to the iPhone. We know that the iPhone can do a lot of things by way of the multitude of Apps that are added every day, but in this case, some extra help is needed in the form of a separate device called Sky Dock. To get it to work, you place your iPhone or iPod onto the Sky Dock which in turn is plugged into the car's cigarette lighter power port.The built-in antenna pull in the satellite signal and a FM transmitter beams the music or whatever you are listening to, to your car stereo system allowing the signal to go through the speakers. The connection is straightforward, and once it is done, the next step is to download a free app from the iTunes store. The App will allow to control the XM turner using the iPod or iPhone screen interface while the Sky Dock keep them charged.
Beside just listening to their favorite programs, users can tag songs for later purchase at the iTunes store, play games, receive all sort of alerts or follow different tickers.
Access to XM Sirius Radio content is not free, with the subscription costing $13 a month. The device itself retails for $120, but some sites like Myradiostore.com and Amazon.com are offering it on sale for $96.99 and $101.45 respectively.

For more, see the NYTimes.com

Shoeboxed iPhone app offers an easy way to keep track of receipts.

For people with the need to keep track of everyone of their daily expenses, one of the major obstacles of achieving that may have been laying in the cumbersome nature saving the actual physical receipts. Indeed, it can be tedious, time consuming and require a lot of discipline. Now, thanks to the Apple iTunes store, help has arrived in the form of a free app called Shoeboxed offered by Shoeboxed.com.Shoeboxed is not the first digital receipts keeping solution in the market, Quicken Online Mobile has been offering a way for users to type in their receipts on the spot. What makes Shoeboxed different is the fact that there is no typing involved from the users. The way it works is very simple, according to the New York Times which has tested the app.First of all, you will need to download the free app either from the Apple store, or from Shoeboxed.com and after that, you can start taking pictures of your actual receipts using your iPhone camera;once in the system, the data will be extracted and organized into your private own account. Even if you do not own an iPhone, you still can use the service as long as you own a Web capable phone with a built-in camera. Just like with the iPhone, snap a picture of the receipt and email it to Shoeboxed.com; the service will extract the data and enter it into your safe private account for immediate access. People who lack both an iPhone and a Web accessible phone, can still use the service by mailing all their receipts and even business cards using some provided prepaid mailing envelopes to the company for it to do the scanning and the filing for them. As said earlier in this post, the app is free but the service is not, requiring a minimum $9.95 monthly membership for unlimited uploaded or emailed receipts and up to 50 receipts or business cards.

For more, see NYTimes.com

Free apps for direct printing from an iPhone or an iPod.

Owners of Apple's iPhone or iPod Touch who love to snap and save pictures with their devices, may been wishing that there were an equally easy way to print those pictures on the go. That wish is now reality with the introduction of some options in the form of apps available from various sources. Even thought there are quite a few stand alone apps that offer to do just that, most of them are not proven to be bug free, or they do not offer direct printing. Two of the most reliable ways to achieve direct printing from an iPhone or an iPod Touch, are offered by two big names printer makers, HP and Canon.
As it is no secret, these two printers makers realized that few people actually take the extra step to print the many pictures that they snap with their camera equipped devices. So, they have a legitimate interest in making printing from some of the most popular mobile devices as effortless as possible. And thanks to wireless printers and iPhone's apps, that feat is just a touch of a button away.
On the downsize, the apps offered by these two giants, only work with their own brands of printers, so to use them, you really have to own a printer made by them, and for Canon's app to work, it has to be in conjunction with some particular printers models, which limit your choices. Let's introduce the current offerings by those two companies and see how they compare.
The HP's iPhone app called the iPrintPhoto is free, simple, easy to use and delivers great results working with an inkjet printer.
To get it to work beside the obvious fact that you have to download it from the Apple store, is that the printer and the and the iPhone have to be on the same WI-FI network. The printer can be connected to its own network or a Mac with the Printer Sharing option turned on. The only downsize is that the app can only print 4x6 size photos.
The other direct printing option from Canon is called the Canon Easy-PhotoPrint for iPhone or Canon iEPP, for short. Like the HP iPrintPhoto, the Canon iEPP is a free application that allow you to print from an iPhone or iPod Touch on a compatible Canon PIXMA printer via a local network.
Contrary to the HP iPrintPhoto, the Canon iEPP gives you more options when it comes to paper types or sizes(from 2.2 inches to letter size.) It is different from the HP iPrintPhoto in the sense that it will give option between choosing borders or bordeless photos and the number of copies you can print( up to 20.)
It is also has more advanced features like automatically finding a printer on a wireless network.

For more, see pcmagazine.com