As part of announcing the 2Gb iPod Shuffle, Apple have now reduced the price of the 1Gb version down to £32, although the 2Gb model (which should sell around the £49 the 1Gb model was priced at) is still not available, although it has been announced.
Although not yet listed in the UK Apple Store, Apple have released a larger capacity iPod Shuffle in the US, with 2Gb of storage, and have reduced the price of the 1Gb model. We expect similar changes in the UK to come at some point in the near future. The new 2Gb model will go on sale later this month in the US.
This little device allows you to use your iPod Dock (not included), not for playing music from your iPod, but from your Bluetooth A2DP mobile phone. Plugging into the standard iPod dock connector, it transforms that dock into a Bluetooth compatible dock.
This is available now for £33 from Amazon, either direct, or through our Amazon Store.
Although it’s not yet made it to the UK Apple Store, the US Apple Store is now listing a 16Gb iPhone for sale. We expect this will be available in the UK too in the very near future.
Also, just announced, a 32Gb iPod Touch is available now too.
The IBM Lotus Notes support for the iPhone we mentioned here has been delayed by IBM (ie it wasn’t launched at LotusSphere). It’s not clear if the decision was from IBM, or forced on them by Apple, but we expect it should be announced in the next month or two alongside the Apple iPhone SDK.
IBM are apparently soon to launch a Lotus Notes solution for the iPhone (and iPod Touch). Many large corporates are Notes users, and this will allow greater business usage of these devices throughout these companies. Apple and IBM have been working together on this solution, and there are rumours that IBM have had earlier access to the SDK due for release next month. More details are not likely before IBM’s LotusSphere, which starts over the weekend, although it is likely the software will be free.
As we mentioned earlier today, Steve Jobs has announced the ultra-thin MacBook Air just now. The device features an 80Gb 1.8″ hard disk (or an optional 64Gb SSD), 2Gb RAM, a trackpad with multi-gesture support, a 13.3″ widescreen LED backlit screen, 802.11n WiFi, Bluetooth 2.1, and a full sized backlit keyboard.
The laptop thickness (or should we say thinness?) varies from 0.76″ down to 0.16″.
However, the $1799 turns into £1199, which is a premium compared to the US/UK Dollar exchange rate.
In other points, the MacWorld keynote speech also announced iTunes Movies Rentals ($2.99 to $3.99 for a movie, add an extra dollar for HD versions), a major software update (and price drop) for the Apple TV, new applications for the iPhone and iPod Touch (Mail, Maps, Stocks, Notes and Weather) although this will be a chargeable upgrade on the iPod Touch, the iPhone 1.1.3 firmware update that we’ve already mentioned, and native Office Mac 2008.
partfoundry have developed a GPS solution for the iPhone and iPod Touch, the locoGPS, and are hoping to release it in February this year. This will allow jailbroken devices to have GPS functionality and a GPS application. Along with the Google Maps Cell-Based Location Services due for the iPhone, it seems these Apple products are adding one of the few features that the top of the range Symbian devices had to differentiate them. With the SDK due to ship in February, we can safely predict this year there will be a lot of new applications and hardware accessories for these devices.
Revo have already a couple of models in the Blik range; the Blik DAB (£49.95) and the Blik Wi-Fi (£99.95). These provide a DAB/FM radio or an Internet/FM radio. Now, Revo have added the Blik Radiostation to the range. This combines the two together, creating a DAB / Internet / FM radio in one. On top of that, it’s an Alarm Clock, and can act as an iPod / mp3 player speaker system too. The Blik Radiostation sells for a few pennies shy of £150, and should be available from next week.
Google announced yesterday that they have updated their Picasa Web Albums (mobile version) to better support the iPhone / iPod Touch, with a completely redesigned and optimized the interface specifically for these devices. They have also added an iPhone-only slideshow feature.
Orb will, on the next few days, announce that it now has support for iPhones / iPod Touchs. Orb allows you to access your songs and playlists on your home PC wherever you are. Orb have managed to achieve this without needing any applications on the iPhone / iPod Touch itself, using the built in browser to access the functionality.
As well as publishing our first review (3 SkypePhone review), we’ve also added a new feature to the website. If you access the site via an iPhone or an iPod Touch, you will get a dedicated website theme designed exclusively for these devices, as seen above.
TUAW (The Unofficial Apple Weblog) has information on the first SIP VOIP phone call for the iPod Touch. Although it’s still early days in the application, it’s looking interesting.
One of our readers spotted an offer in his local O2 store this morning. Buy an iPhone, and get a set of JBL speakers half price. We’re currently awaiting more details on exactly what’s involved in the offer, and confirmation as to whether this is a local initiative, or countrywide, but in the meantime it certainly indicates that discounts and/or deals on iPhones are starting to appear, even if, at the moment, they don’t involve reducing the purchase price.
Update: Although O2 have confirmed this is now a nationwide offer, it’s a deal for half price JBL On-Tour speakers when you buy an iPod Touch.
This page links to any major review we have written. We will try to keep this page up to date, but we will always announce any new reviews on the homepage.
Reviews
Apple iPod Touch (hopefully coming soon)
Apple iPhone (hopefully coming soon)
Nokia N810 (coming soon)
Nokia N95 8Gb (hopefully coming soon)
Venturi Mini is another feature rich Bluetooth Handsfree kit recently launched. As well as including support for A2DP to allow you to stream your music from your Bluetooth Mobile Phone to it, it also has an FM transmitter for easy connection to your car stereo. It also has a USB socket to allow you to charge your phone / mp3 player, and like the Gear4 BluFM we covered before, you can connect your iPod / mp3 player via a cable to play music too. As with many of these devices, it also supports a wired connection to your car stereo if you don’t want to use the FM transmitter.
However, the Venturi Mini also uses some of the advanced features of the RDS data specification to display information on the car stereo (where supported) - eg the Caller ID is displayed when an incoming call occurs. Menu items and the phonebook can also be displayed. If your car doesn’t support this (although most do), the Venturi Mini has a OLED display on the device itself too. This RDS feature sets it apart from other FM transmitter-based devices we’ve seen, although the price seems to reflect that too.
It should be pointed out that the device itself has no speaker.
Available now from Venturi’s website for £79.99.
As a bit of light hearted relief for a Friday afternoon, we’re going to try a special article each week on a Friday, and highlight some gadget not available in the UK which we think should be!
This week, the Chumby…
If the Intempo iDAB didn’t quite suit you, or you want to save a couple of pounds, how about the Roberts Robi, which is an iPod remote (allowing you to control the iPod) that also incorporates a DAB radio. Compatible with the iPod and iPod Nano, it is shipping this month at £49.99.
Intempo has just launched the Intempo iDAB, a DAB radio player that connects via your iPod. It has it’s own screen, and buttons to control the unit, but it has its own docking connector, so can also be docked into your iPod dock to play the music through your dock’s speakers. It is compatible with the whole range of iPods, except the Shuffle. It will be available in a range of colours, and cost around £59.99.
