Angry Birds Stars Wars is free from Starbucks app
The Angry Birds Star Wars game for iPhone is free for a limited time if you use the Starbucks iOS app. Check your messages in the app for the free download link.
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iPhone
FCC iOS/Android speed test app turned off
The recent update for the FCC’s speed test apps for both Android and iPhone turned off the ability to run a test. And, the new app is not available yet.
Fender USB Stratocaster Guitar: Broken oddball cable connector
The Squier by Fender USB Stratocaster Guitar is unique among Fender’s legendary guitar series for a couple of reasons:
1. It has a USB interface that lets it work with the iPad and iPhone.
2. It is only available through the Apple Store.
3. It has an oddball Apple 30-pin connector to mini-USB connector cable.
This last item has caused a bit of grief for a good friend of mine who is notorious for taking meticulous good care of his gear. This is the only 30-pin to mini-USB cable I’ve ever seen. So, if it breaks, it is difficult to replace (aside from using a Rube Goldberg collection of adapter cables). And, break is exactly what it did for my friend. You can see his photo below. The mini-USB connector completely disengaged from the cable.
Fender no longer even features a product page for the guitar. So, one has to wonder what is going on there. However, it is still listed as available through the Apple Store. So, my friend’s next step is to contact Apple and Fender to see if:
(a) This cable breakage is covered by some kind of warranty since the guitar was only introduced in November 2012 and my friend bought his a few months after that.
(b) If a replacement cable can be found anywhere.
Microsoft HelpBridge for Android, iOS, Windows Phone: Connect quickly after a disaster
Microsoft released free apps for Android, iOS, and Windows Phone to request help or offer help (in a variety of ways).
Download a Lifeline: New Disaster Response App Launches
The HelpBridge mobile application simplifies the process of notifying loved ones by simultaneously sending an e-mail and SMS to the communities you select & posting a message to your Facebook wall. You can even include your GPS coordinates so that message recipients will know where you are and the circumstances surrounding you.
The apps are named HelpBridge.
MobileViews Podcast 60: Waze, Motion X Drive, Flipboard, comiXology, Angry Birds Star Wars
Todd Ogasawara and Jay Stone discuss Waze and MotionX Drive navigation apps for the iPhone and iPad, Flipboard, comiXology, and Angry Birds Star Wars (which we learned is a recent favorite for both of us).
$15 Incipio Dual Pro iPhone 5 case looking good so far
I just received a Incipio Dual Pro for iPhone 5 case. I’ve holding out hoping to find a decent affordable case with a belt clip for the iPhone 5. But, with no prospects available, I decided to spend $15 on this case which has a 4.5 star average customer rating on Amazon (80 reviews).
The case comes in three parts:
1. Film screen protector
2. Rubbery inner case that covers buttons (on/off, volume) but not ports or the cameras.
3. Outer hard shell to project the back and sides
The film screen protector was reasonably easy to apply. You can see there there are cutouts to expose the front facing camera and select button. The soft inner case was easy to pull onto the iPhone 5. It does not stress the phone at all. The outer hard shell case holds everything in place and provides a bit of added protection.
It looks and feels pretty good so far. And, at $15, it is very affordable.
Faulty iPhone 5 Lightning USB cable drawing too much power when not attached to anything?
I have not had a lot of luck with cabled accessories that shipped with my iPhone 5. The Earpod that came with my iPhone 5 was replaced last week because the volume control and pause/play button did not work. The Lightning USB cable apparently went bad in the last day or so because it now causes my iMac to issue multiple error messages about a USB device drawing too much power. The interesting thing is that this happens even if nothing is attached to the other end of the Lightning cable. Just plugging the cable itself into the iMac causes this error message to appear. I verified that it is the cable that shipped with the iPhone by trying a spare Lightning cable I bought from the Apple Store. This second cable does not cause any issues. It looks like the "smarts" that Apple added to the Lightning cable is more trouble than anything else.
MobileViews Podcast 59: What’s with all the iPhone 5 rants?
Todd Ogasawara, Emil Reyes, and Jay Stone try to make sense of the rants about the iPhone 5 after its announcement and pre-order availability in MobileViews Podcast 59 (just under one hour long).
You can see a full-size model of the as-yet unavailable iPhone 5 that Emil created with a 3D printer in white in the photo to the left. An actual iPhone 4 is in front of it to provide a size comparison. You can learn more about Emil’s company’s 3D modeling and printing services on their website linked below.
You can find and subscribe to the MobileViews Podcast on iTunes or listen to it right now using the embedded player below.
App updates for my iPhone or iPad in the past week: 48
Forty-eight (48) apps were updated for my iPhone or iPad in the past week. Here’s a summary of the updates I found interesting.
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Apps update for my iPhone or iPad in the past week: 55
Fifty-five apps for my iPhone and iPad were updated in the past week. Here’s a summary of the updates I found interesting.
Apps updated for my iPhone or iPad in the past week: 34
Thirty-four (34) apps for my iPhone and iPad were updated in the past week. Here’s a summary of the updates that I found interesting.
Podcast 58: Sencha Touch 2
In MobileViews podcast 58 Todd Ogasawara speaks with the Senior Director of Product Management at Sencha, Aditya Bansod, about Sencha Touch 2 which launched on March 6, 2012.
From March 2012