Imagine being able to play with LEGOs without actually buying the bricks? Or the added mess. This application concept for the Apple iPhone and iPod Touch allows users to build, play, and share all of their Lego creations. Developed by PlayNYC, Lego-touch features just about every possible Lego brick for you to use and it even has a “Brick-Bin”, which displays all of your available pieces in a ‘Cover Flow’ style. You simply select the bricks you want to use and use your finger (like any other ordinary iPhone/Touch app) to begin engineering your creation. It’s like virtual Lego. Once you are done building your masterpiece, you can send your project and receive your friends’ creations over the net via email or SMS. It even has a game mode allowing you to have a “build-off” competition with your buddies.
Be sure to check out PlayNYC’s website for their animation demonstration highlighting the application.
Starting up your own iPhone band, huh? You might want to take a look at the MixMeister Scratch for the iPhone and iPod Touch. If you can’t figure it out by now, it is essentially an application that allows you to scratch vinyl on your Apple device, sort of. The MixMester comes preloaded with sound samples to get your inner DJ going. If that isn’t good enough for you, you can also ’scratch’ any of your existing songs. Wikki wikki!
The MixMeister Scratch isn’t out yet, but you can sign up to the newsletter to be alerted when it is ready for download.
From pixel art guru, eBoy, comes “London” a pixel art skin for the iPod and iPhone. The artwork is printed on 3M’s Controltac film, which allows for fast and easy installation. The film also aid in preventing unwanted scratches. It also uses 3M’s Vikuiti film technology to protect the LCD. The “London” pixel art skin is available for 14.95 EUR or $22.75 USD via skiniZi. You can also get a “New York” version, but you better hurry, as they’re in limited quantities!
The Naja King is a media device holder that only supports two devices, both of which are from Apple: the iPhone and iPod Touch. Made from steel, the Naja King features a flexible arm that you can bend to the desired contortion. The head can also rotate 360-degrees so you can swivel the device while it is being held. The stand also sports a rubber grip so your precious ‘Apple toy’ doesn’t slip out of the holder.
You can pre-order the Naja King for $39.99 at Thought Out. It starts shipping on April 1.
So, Apple’s Time Capsule has finally hit the streets. It comes in two versions: 500GB version goes for $299, and the 1TB version for $499 USD. In case you aren’t familiar with what the Time Capsule is, it is essentially a wireless, external hard drive that is capable of backing up all of your files and data on your Mac or PC. Specs of the ‘back-up wonder’ are as follows:
* 500GB or 1TB 7200-rpm Serial ATA hard disk drive
* Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA/WPA2)
* Wireless security (WEP) configurable for 40-bit and 128-bit encryption
* NAT firewall
* Support for RADIUS authentication
* 802.1X, PEAP, LEAP, TTLS, TLS, FAST
* One Gigabit Ethernet WAN port
* Three Gigabit Ethernet LAN ports
* One USB port
* 802.11n wireless support
* Length: 7.7 inches
* Width: 7.7 inches
* Height: 1.4 inches
* Weight: 3.5 pounds
Good:
+ Easy to setup. Install software and plug Time Capsule into network
+ Can backup USB drives connected to Time Capsule
Bad:
- Single hard drive. No adding additional drives
- Can’t transfer existing Time Machine backups to Time Capsule
- Loud? Can hear the hard drive spinning
- Heating issues? Can get quite warm while backup is in progress
- Cannot prioritize network activity. May hog bandwidth during backups (especially on wireless mode)
- Can only backup one system at a time
The Apple Time Capsule seems to be quite expensive. In fact, I think it is expensive. Granted, the Time Capsule is wireless, but I don’t see why you would want to backup your files over the air. It’ll hog your bandwidth. You can of course connect the device via Ethernet, but at that point you might as well buy an external hard drive which would be alot cheaper. Unless you plan on doing your backups wirelessly during late nights (when network activity is low) or want the convenience of a ready-to-go package, then get the Apple Time Capsule. Otherwise, skip it.
Trism is a Bejeweled-like game for Apple’s iPhone that incorporates the iPhone’s accelerometers into the gameplay. Depending on how the iPhone is held (the angle) determines how the pieces fall after a 3-pair match is found. Just watch the video and you’ll understand. If you want to read the full interview, check it out here (GameSetWatch).
The Drummer allows you to play 15 different drum samples and can play up to 5 sounds at one time, thanks to its multi-touch support. It comes included with several pre-set drum kits: Jazz, Rock, Dance, and Electro. You can even play along with your MP3’s. The software is currently in beta and requires a jail-broken iPhone.
So what happens when the Apple iPhone hits 1,000 hours on the stopwatch? Does it recount from zero? Does it explode? Find out in the video below. You might want to fast forward the video to about 0:45 if you are a little impatient. For those wondering 1,000 hours is equivalent to 41.67 days.
