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- American Airlines to Offer In-Flight Video Streaming Service
- Arthur Turns Green by Marc Brown – Available for iPad & iPhone
- PadGadget Daily App Deal – 13 iPad Apps on Sale
- Apple Releases New iPad 2 Commercial
- The Dragon and the Ladybird — iPad App Review
- PicPocket Books – Creating Digital Media for Children
- TouchUp – iPad App Review
- TripIt Takes Your Travel Plans to the iPad
- EA Gobbles up Popular iOS Game Developer Firemint
- Planetary for iPad – Re-Discover your Music Library
- Adobe Photoshop Updated, Works with iPad apps Nav, Color Lava and Eazel
| American Airlines to Offer In-Flight Video Streaming Service Posted: 04 May 2011 12:38 AM PDT
We’ve talked about how the love affair between airlines and the iPad has gained a lot of ground in 2011. Earlier this year, Delta Airlines and Alaska Airlines announced they were already testing the iPad for in-flight use by their pilots. In addition, Australian airline Jetstar gave the "green light" to the iPad as a in-flight entertainment device for A320 flights in Australia and Asia. Enter American Airlines, which has announced its testing of “in-flight” streaming video for its WiFi service. This new service should allow you to purchase and stream movies and TV shows to your favorite WiFi-enabled devices during flight. The new campaign is designed to make sure you stay productive during your flight, and also gives you the option to entertain yourself with a collection of movies and TV shows. In case you’re not familiar with American Airlines’ WiFi service, the company partners with Aircell, which is a private company that develops broadband for both private and commercial aviation. Today, the WiFi service on several American Airlines flights uses Aircell’s air-to-ground technology to transmit data. However, given the amount of video content that many of us would like to stream, the new video streaming service will probably be supported by a server located on each plane to ensure a fast connection for all passengers. “If all you’re interested in is watching a movie, this is a better choice,” said Doug Backelin, American Airlines’ manager of in-flight communications and technology. The new service plans to introduce a selection of movies already released on the DVD market, and recently aired TV shows. Of course, Aircell needs to negotiate all this content with studios, but we expect the company to reach some deals rather quickly since you will be paying to consume this content. According to USA Today, American thinks the streaming service will carry a price somewhat similar to what you already pay for “pay-per-view” movies at home. The prices could range anywhere from $3 to $5 for a movie, and $1 to $3 for a recently aired TV episode. American Airlines is certainly trying to stay on the leading edge of technology. We expect other airlines to follow suit. After all, there are many iPad and iPhone users flying the friendly skies, as well as Android and notebook users out there. » Related posts:
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| Arthur Turns Green by Marc Brown – Available for iPad & iPhone Posted: 03 May 2011 09:54 PM PDT
Arthur Turns Green is the first of nine apps based on the popular children’s book titles written by Brown. In it, Mr. Ratburn challenges his class to “find ways to make our planet a better place to live.” When Arthur arrives home talking about “The Big Green Machine,” D.W. claims he is acting weirder than usual and becomes extremely concerned when her father, Arthur and Buster appear to be turning green. Discover what Arthur does around his house to go green and save energy in this New York Times bestseller. Kids have several ways to experience Arthur’s new story. Words highlight as they are read, helping kids with word association and improving their reading skills. Click on the open book in the bottom right corner of the screen and move quickly to another page in the book with a tap of a finger. Kids have the option to customize their reading experience by turning autoplay mode, narration and/or text display on or off at any time. Look for Arthur’s head peaking out of the circle in the top left corner and tap for a number of app options. In addition to reading, kids also get to enjoy a selection of five coloring pages and 17 puzzles. Parents can record a personalized narration of the story for kids to listen to anytime, making Arthur Turns Green an extra special reading experience. This new app features a great story that’s lots of fun for parents and kids. I loved having Marc Brown himself as the narrator of all the wonderful characters he’s brought to life in the minds of children over the past 35 years. It’s easy to use and offers readers a fun selection of extras for hours of entertainment at home or on the road. "Arthur lives wherever kids live. Children understand touchscreen devices intuitively. I see the future of books as a complementary relationship between digital and paper," said Marc Brown. "ScrollMotion Kids has brought new levels of learning and engagement to Arthur's world while retaining the stories and reading experiences central to Arthur for thirty-five years." Eight more Arthur Reads book apps are coming to the App Store soon:
If your kids love Arthur and his friends, download Arthur Turns Green from the App Store soon. It’s available for a limited time only for $0.99.
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| PadGadget Daily App Deal – 13 iPad Apps on Sale Posted: 03 May 2011 09:14 PM PDT
For today’s Daily Deal we’ve found 13 great apps to add to your iPad collection. We have two productivity apps, three entertainment apps, three kids apps and five game apps in today’s bundle. We used our PadGadget Apps Tracker to find these great deals and we’ll continue to look for the best app deals as they pop-up. Some of these apps are up to 80% off, some are even free, so be sure to check them out because they are on sale for a limited time.
We use our PadGadget Apps Tracker to constantly monitor the App Store to find the biggest price changes on iPad apps. Our editorial team goes through the data, picks the best deals on the most interesting apps and then brings them to you on a regular basis. All app prices are checked at the time of posting but prices are subject to change without notice. When developers put their games on sale it’s usually for a very limited time, often 24 hours or less, so be sure to check pricing on iTunes before making a purchase. » Related posts:
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| Apple Releases New iPad 2 Commercial Posted: 03 May 2011 09:02 PM PDT
Apple introduced its latest iPad 2 commercial during primetime TV this evening. Continuing with a similar theme seen in the iPad 2 “We Believe” commercial, this TV ad describes ways in which individuals might refer to their iPad 2 and features a number of apps like Keynote, GarageBand, Alice for the iPad and FaceTime. How do you describe the iPad 2? ”If you ask…” a parent, musician, doctor, CEO, teacher or child, everyone has their own descriptive answer. What’s yours?
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| The Dragon and the Ladybird — iPad App Review Posted: 03 May 2011 06:21 PM PDT
Two things are immediately obvious when one begins to read The Dragon and the Ladybird. First, as my seven year old helpfully pointed out, “you have to read it yourself!” There is no narration in the app. This isn’t necessarily bad, however, because it forces developing readers to practice their skills. The second, and slightly stranger, detail about the story is that each line is repeated twice. It soon becomes clear that the text is a call and response between the dragon and the ladybird. It would have been been very entertaining to listen to two different voices narrate the story, but the story as it is presented gives parents and their children a natural opportunity to each take a part and read the book aloud together. The story’s illustrations are distinctive and whimsical, and should appeal to a variety of children. At its core the story is a distillation of Beauty and the Beast, as it draws on classic themes such as “opposites attract” and “beauty is only skin deep,” as well as the less familiar tenet, “the way to a ladybird’s heart is through her funnybone.”
The drawing section of the app is very simple, but it works well. There are certainly better drawing apps available, but it is fun to create pictures using characters from the story which can be saved to the iPad camera roll. The puzzle section of the app is a solid addition, but can be tricky because it will not consider the puzzle solved unless the user gets the squares in exactly the order it expects. This can mean switching seemingly identical white squares until the app is satisfied, and might frustrate younger children. The memory game is a better choice for kids under 4 because there are only 16 cards to work with and the matches tend to be found in close proximity to each other. The Dragon and the Ladybird is available in the App Store for $2.99. What I liked: The story illustrations were playful and engaging. The “draw,” “puzzle,” and “memory” capabilities worked well. The developer deserves praise for donating 50% of the profits from the Dragon and the Ladybird to a children’s charity. What I didn't like: The story of The Dragon and the Ladybird won’t stand up well to being read and re-read, particularly because each line is written twice. There is no read aloud option and the app won’t work in landscape mode, but these are rather small limitations. To buy or not to buy: The Dragon and the Ladybird app does several things well rather than trying to do one thing perfectly. It isn’t the best storybook app, nor is it the best drawing app available. However, all of its components work. The app should please users who are looking for a children’s story, but don’t expect bells and whistles on every page. The drawing, puzzle, and memory sections of the app do a good job of extending the book’s illustrations, but would not be strong enough to stand on their own.
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| PicPocket Books – Creating Digital Media for Children Posted: 03 May 2011 03:21 PM PDT
Each book features an animated story, complete with music, whimsical sounds, and an option for automated narration. PicPocket books are excellent for new readers. Words are highlighted as the story is read and are able to be replayed from a simple touch. Children can follow along and read the words as they're spoken, connecting sound with visual words. Thanks to the automatic narration, children can enjoy these books with or without adult interaction, making them great for car trips and grocery lines when parents may be unavailable. PicPocket's books on the iPad offer a way to keep your children entertained and stimulated without resorting to mindless gaming. Instead of slicing up fruit or launching birds, kids can do something that's both fun and educational. With a wide selection of subject matter and reading levels, there's something for everyone, from very young children on up. The creators of PicPocket books remain true to the original books, adding only a small amount of animation and interactivity – just enough to provide a digital experience without overshadowing the process and simple joy of reading. Here's an inside look at five of the books offered by PicPocket:
Snuggle Mountain Three Blind Mice on Vacation in Africa Tractor Mac, You're a Winner Cinderella Sleeping Beauty Purchasing books on the iPad is economical and practical – they're often cheaper than paper books, and even if you just use them to supplement, you can always have an entire library of books on hand for your children. They'll never be bored, and you'll never struggle to remember where you left that well-worn copy of Cinderella at bed time. PicPocket books offers an amazing library of books at a reasonable price, so if you've been thinking of making the switch to digital, or if you're looking to expand your collection, check them out on iTunes for $2.99 each. » Related posts:
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| Posted: 03 May 2011 01:37 PM PDT
Every effect in the app can be applied by drawing it on or erasing it off with just your finger, and it's surprisingly fun to be able to edit photos with just a touch. There are all kinds of features and effects which allow you to create beautiful photo masterpieces with just a little time and patience. When you open TouchUp, the first thing you see is your photo gallery, with some sample pictures showing the kinds of things that can be done. Touch the question mark in the top right corner first, to learn the basics – how to import a photo (you can use the Camera Connection Kit, the included Photos app, or Flickr), how to use the menus, and how to draw and erase with the brushes. There aren't detailed tutorials, but the controls are easy to pick up. I successfully edited my first photo in less than five minutes after I opened the app. Granted, everything is familiar to me because I use Photoshop and similar programs, but with a little experimentation you'll learn what each effect does in no time.
All of the effects can be accessed from the circle in the middle, and adding an effect is as simple as tapping the new button. You can also change the density and blur of the brushes in this menu, but not the size. Instead, brush size is controlled by zooming in and out with pinch controls. From the upper left, you're able to access your gallery or share your work via email, Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, and a shared folder. You can also air print your photos. Here's a list of effects and a short explanation of each one:
Each of these effects can be applied to the whole photo, and then removed from portions to create a variety of looks, such as adding one colored element on a black and white photo, or changing the colors of certain items in the photo. In addition to the effects, there are also some painting effects which allow you to paint color on to only a portion of the image, or lighten/darken specific parts of the photo (this is where you will find the burn and dodge tools).
By the way, in the app, there's also a description given of each effect so you always know what a particular effect will do. To delete an effect, it's simple – just click on the effect in the menu and tap the information button, where you'll have a variety of options from clearing and deleting to copying the effect. Also of note, as of the last update, you can keep the mask you have created (for instance, if you turned the photo black and white and then colored in a flower) and then change the applied effect. Masks are also able to be duplicated, and once you've learned all the features, this allows for some amazing combinations. This app can't take the place of something more powerful, such as Photoshop. I could have replicated the effects that I created in TouchUp within a much smaller timeframe, but for someone who isn't familiar with Photoshop, or someone who wants to be able to make photo modifications right on the iPad, this is a very fun tool that can really do a lot. There's tactile input that you don't get with Photoshop or other desktop photo editing software, and it can be a nice change to work that way. What I liked: When I first opened this app, I thought it would just be a standard apply a filter type of thing. I was very pleasantly surprised at how many different things I could do with it, and super impressed with the copy and change effect masking tools. What I didn't like: The undo key. It only goes back one action, which was frustrating. I would have liked for it to be more functional. I could not revert the crop of a photo, the undo button did not work for that. This is a feature that is essential, and I was surprised not to see it. To buy or not to buy: This app is a solid photo editing tool, but it's expensive. It would be much more appropriately priced at $4.99. However, it has a lot of functionality, and if you're looking for a great editing app, this is it.
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| TripIt Takes Your Travel Plans to the iPad Posted: 03 May 2011 10:50 AM PDT
However, even during vacation travel can turn out to be a nightmare and quite the stressful situation. To help organize your travel and bring additional flexibility to your upcoming schedule, TripIt has released its much awaited iPad application. For folks like me, who are on the road quite often, the TripIt iPad app will be quite convenient. The new app allows travelers to access all their trip reservations in one place – including air, hotel, entertainment and much more. The application also gives you access to mapping features along with GPS-enabled driving directions, airport information, and even seat assignments. If you’ve been using the TripIt iPhone version, the application will be quite familiar to you. However, exclusive to the iPad app is a master map that captures your entire trip and individual maps are provided on each page of your itinerary. TripIt is taking advantage of the larger resolution display.
Some of our readers have asked us when would TripIt release a native iPad application. TripIt certainly answered this question quite well.
Though it is quite difficult to eliminate the stress of traveling, TripIt is certainly an effective tool that can help you organize your travel information effectively on your iPad. TripIt offers two versions of the iPad app – a free, but ad-supported version; and a paid version without advertising that will set you back $3.99. » Related posts:
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| EA Gobbles up Popular iOS Game Developer Firemint Posted: 03 May 2011 09:39 AM PDT
Electronic gaming giant Electronic Arts announced today that they will acquire popular iOS game house Firemint. Melbourne, Australia based Firemint was one of the early adopters of Apple’s iPhone app eco-system and cranked out popular hits like Flight Control and Real Racing. Following the success of their iPhone and iPod Touch games, Firemint was among the first developers to release an iPad app when the device launched last year. The company recently updated its hit Real Racing app with an all-new Real Racing 2 which takes full advantage of the iPad 2′s new 1080p video out capabilities. "The Firemint team is remarkable for its critical and commercial success," said Barry Cottle, Executive Vice President and General Manger of EA Interactive. "Having them as part of EAi will accelerate our position as worldwide leader in game development for mobile devices and online gaming platforms." Flight Control and Real Racing have long been staff favorites here at PadGadget HQ and have been featured in several of our Top game lists over the past year. According to EA, Firemint has an “attractive future slate of games” already in the works. The deal is expected to close within four weeks. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed but will not have a material impact on EA’s balance sheet. » Related posts:
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| Planetary for iPad – Re-Discover your Music Library Posted: 03 May 2011 08:29 AM PDT
The app does not offer a list of songs like the vast majority of music players out there: instead, Planetary will show you a galaxy, built using the information gathered from your music library. Stars represent artists, planets represents albums, and moons represent songs. To switch from one artist to the other, simply switch between stars. Once you pick your artist, select a planet (album), and all the songs within the album will show up as moons. Moons have different sizes, and the more you listen to specific tunes, the more they will grow. In other words, large moons represent your favorite tunes, while small ones represent songs you seldom listen to – a great way to re-discover tunes you forgot about, or find your top songs quickly.
While technically, Planetary is nothing more than a music player, the app truly shines thanks an incredible user interface, that has nothing in common with what other music players currently offer. The app makes navigating through your music library fun, and visually appealing. Best of all, the app is free.
Planetary was released on the App Store yesterday, and is available here. » Related posts:
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| Adobe Photoshop Updated, Works with iPad apps Nav, Color Lava and Eazel Posted: 03 May 2011 07:58 AM PDT
The announced update is now available and it includes three iPad apps that allow you to communicate with and control interaction with Photoshop CS5. According to John Nack’s blog, Principal Product Manager at Adobe, the new Photoshop update (version 12.0.4) “enables remote connections between Photoshop CS5 and other apps, including the new Adobe Nav, Eazel, and Color Lava for iPad.” Adobe’s release notes also provide additional details on the steps to follow in order to allow Photoshop to communicate and interact with the three new iPad apps.
In case you haven’t heard about the upcoming Adobe iPad apps, Adobe Nav allows you to customize the Photoshop CS5 toolbar on the iPad to easily access the tools you use most. The Color Lava app allows you to use your fingertips to mix colors on your iPad and create custom swatches and five-swatch themes. Finally, the Adobe Eazel app allows you to use your iPad and your fingertips to paint beautiful works of art. The new three iPad apps should be available on the App Store any day now. [Thanks Stefan for the tip!] » Related posts:
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We’ve watched countless episodes of Arthur and his gang of friends on PBS over the years, so I was excited to hear ScrollMotion Kids and Marc Brown Studios have joined forces to bring everyone’s favorite aardvark to your iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch. Each book app will be narrated by author Marc Brown and includes characters your kids know and love.
PicPocket books is an iPad publisher that brings a wide variety of new and classic children's books to the iPad in a gorgeous digital format. PicPocket's books combine the charm of a well-illustrated picture book with high-quality audio and interactive text to provide children with entertainment that is engrossing and informative.
TouchUp by Roguesheep is a creative photo editor specially designed for the iPad. It enables anyone, of any skill level, to quickly learn to create adjustments and fun effects for photos. With over a dozen effects and an unlimited number of layers, the possibilities are endless.
The summer season in the northern hemisphere is just a month away. Soon, families will be traveling to destinations looking for that special vacation that will bring a stress-free environment and allow everyone to enjoy some time off.
Bloom Studio just released Planetary for iPad, an app designed to help you re-discover your music collection via an amazing – and entirely different – interface.
In early April, Adobe released Creative Suite 5.5., which came with a new software development kit (SDK) that makes it easy to create applications for smartphones and tablets. That same update | You are subscribed to email updates from PadGadget To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
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