MacRumors iPhone and iPad Blog: Apps, News, and Rumors

Apple's iOS devices have rapidly become popular giveaway items for businesses seeking to boost user interest and participation, encouraging customers to sign up or interact with the businesses in some way for chances to win an iPad, iPhone or iPod touch. But as noted by Fortune, the vast majority of these promotions run afoul of Apple's published guidelines (PDF) on third-party promotions....

In addition to today's update to GarageBand for iPad, Apple has also pushed out an update to iMovie for iOS devices [App Store], bringing several improvements and enhancements.What's New in Version 1.2.1 - Audio plays from your HDTV when using the Apple Digital AV Adapter. - Video plays full screen from Marquee to your HDTV when using the Apple Digital AV Adapter. - Resolves some cases of...

Apple today pushed out an update to GarageBand [App Store] for iPad, adding a number of new features including audio output via AirPlay, Bluetooth, and HDMI, import of various audio file types including Apple Loops, and the ability to copy and paste audio files from compatible applications.What's New in Version 1.0.1 - Support for audio output over AirPlay, Bluetooth devices and HDMI with...

Back in April, Apple began cracking down on so-called "offer wall" services for iOS applications that incentivize users with virtual currency or other compensation for downloading and installing other applications. The services have been cited as a mechanism for unfairly boosting app download numbers and thus chart performance. GigaOM follows up with Mihir Shah of Tapjoy, one of the major...

TechCrunch notes that Apple has finally gotten around to trying to acquire the ipods.com domain name, fully nine years after the domain was registered by another entity. The move comes in the form of a complaint filed under the Uniform Domain-Name Dispute-Resolution Policy yesterday.It apparently took the Cupertino company a little over 9 full years to decide that, instead, it should be the...

tap tap tap and MacHeist report that they have reached over 500,000 paid downloads of their new iOS game, The Heist, released just one week ago.In just a little over 6.5 days, The Heist has racked up a staggering 501,813 sales at 99¢, totaling well over $300,000 in revenue. To put that in perspective, our last chart-topping app, Voices, managed to clear 300,000 sales... in its first month,...

The Washington Post reports on the ongoing diversification of information technology platforms within the United States government, a trend that has seen a shift away from traditional large-scale technology contracts unable to respond to rapidly-changing markets to a more flexible approach that has seen many agencies and employees embracing Apple's iOS platform.This is not a movie. This is not...

Earlier today, a casting call posting briefly appeared on Craigslist seeking actors for an iPhone 5 Commercial. The ad seemed to have been only up for a couple of hours, but long enough to get indexed by Google and screenshot'd by one of our readers. The ad was looking for both Male and Female commercial actors. The role was described as "Happy, Smiling" and they were looking to cast 5...

Electricpig.co.uk reports that Apple's UK iPhone PR team is approaching journalists from major publications to fly out to the event in San Francisco next month. Apple's WWDC is kicking off on June 6th which typically opens with a keynote address. Apple has yet to officially...

As noted by The Wall Street Journal, the iPhone 4 is finally launching in India, with the device making its debut on carriers Bhati Airtel and Aircel this Friday.In a news release, Aircel said it will offer the new model of iPhone--which is popular for its high-speed Internet and mobile software capabilities--under both post-paid and pre-paid subscription plans. It will charge 34,500 rupees...

What started as a ThinkGeek April Fools joke has now become reality. The $99 iCade iPad arcade cabinet is now shipping to early customers. The iCade offers iPad users an arcade cabinet shell to slide your iPad in and use the physical joystick and buttons to play games. Our sister site TouchArcade has already received theirs and has been putting it through the paces: The iCade comes...

  MacHeist has just released their first foray into the world of iOS games with the release of The Heist [App Store]. This $0.99 game comes with 60 different puzzles to solve amongst four different types of puzzles. These puzzles all involve familiar mechanics, with three hinging on sliding blocks around in different ways and a fourth that's a strangely abstract version of sudoku. Solving the...

Last week, we noted that Conde Nast had rolled out digital subscriptions for four more of its iPad magazine, joining the earlier debut of The New Yorker. And with today's launch of subscriptions for Wired and GQ alongside last week's debut of Self, Conde Nast has now completed the rollout across its iPad offerings."WIRED thrives on progress across platforms, whether it's in the magazine, on...

Bright Side of News reports that Russian forensics firm Elcomsoft has discovered a method of cracking Apple's hardware encryption built into iOS 4, providing law enforcement and other parties with a way to access the protected data provided they have physical access to the device. According to Vladimir Katalov from Elcomsoft, you have to have physical access to the device that is being cracked...

Opera Software today announced the launch of a redesigned version of its Opera Mini browser for iOS devices, bringing a fresh new look with an iPad-specific interface, enhanced performance, and new tools to improve the user experience on one of the most popular alternatives to Apple's built-in Safari browser.Have an iPhone 4? Our browser adapts to the high resolution and changes the user...

Apple and Nike have a long history, dating back to the 2006 introduction of the Nike+iPod Sport Kit that combined a sensor embedded in special Nike running shoes wirelessly linked to a dongle interfacing with iPod nano hardware to communicate a number of different metrics about the user's workout and to integrate audio feedback. That relationship has continued to blossom, with Nike+ software...

So, the new interactive iPads found in Apple's retail stores are more-or-less regular iPads and do have a regular home screen. One reader stumbled upon one sitting on the home screen and took these photos: I noticed one of the iPad displays was on the homesceen. Which I read, would be impossible since the home button doesn't work. So I further investigated. ... The interesting...

According to Reuters, China Telecom Chairman Wang Xiaochu has essentially confirmed that the carrier is in talks with Apple to offer the CDMA iPhone in that country. A deal could potentially be struck that would allow China Telecom to launch the iPhone after an exclusivity agreement between Apple and China Unicom runs out later this year."We're not denying that we're in touch with iPhone...