HOWTO – iChat Extended March 15, 2010
Posted by Chaim Gartenberg in : Apple, Computers, How-To , add a comment
Go Beyond AIM…
This one’s mainly for Mac users, but can be used for Windows as well. Last week, I wrote a review of Meebo, a multi-IM app for iPhone (also Beejive IM, a similar app). Meebo also has an online webapp component for PC use, but many (including myself), prefer full applications – such as iChat, Mac OS’s built in IM app.
Now, it’s easy to set up AIM with iChat – just type in screen name and password, and you’re good to go. But in recent years, new chat services have been cropping up – specifically, Google Talk and Facebook Chat – as part of accounts you already have. Now for me, I hate having multiple things open for what is essentially the same purpose. So, here’s a little help in setting up iChat with not only AIM, but Google Talk or Facebook Chat as well.
Google Talk (Snow Leopard 10.6) -
This one’s pretty easy – iChat 5 has the feature of adding a Google Account just as easily as an AIM account – just select the Google Account option when creating a new account in preferences.
Google Talk (10.4 Tiger/10.5 Leopard) –
A bit more difficult, but not by much. When creating a new account, select “Jabber Account” – as the ID, enter your Gmail account “______@gmail.com”, your password as the password. The server is talk.google.com, and the port is 5223 – and check the Use SSL box. All set.
Facebook Chat: (10.4-10.6) –
Similar to Google Talk – but a few differences. First, you need your Facebook username – “______@chat.facebook.com” – which you can find by going to the “Account Settings” – where it lists your username (right after your name, 2nd from the top). Going into iChat now – in Preferences, go to the “Add Account”, and again, select Jabber. Enter in the “______@chat.facebook.com”, the _____ being your Facebook username from earlier, and the password, your regularly Facebook password. Server options are: server is “chat.facebook.com”, Port is 5222. Uncheck SSL for this one. And you’re good to go.
Personal tip – in General Preferences in iChat, enable “Use the same status for all accounts” – allowing you to log in and out of all 3 at once. Enjoy!
Now, for everyone else – those not using iChat. While not personally familiar with these programs, Google lists here how to set up other clients, and Facebook is compatable with Pidgin, Adium, and anything else that can use Jabber using settings that they give here. Enjoy!
iPad Launching April 3rd, Pre-Orders Begin Next Week March 6, 2010
Posted by Eli Blumenthal in : Apple, tablets , add a comment
Are you ready for possibly one of the biggest (if not the biggest) tech launches of the year? Have you been desperately waiting to get your hands on an iPad ever since it was announced in January? My friends, that wait is almost over (at least for the WiFi-only version anyway) as Apple today announced that pre-orders on this exciting new tablet will begin next week on the 12th, with a full release of the WiFi version coming early next month, on Saturday April 3rd.
The WiFi+3G version of the iPad will launch later in April, while our international friends in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain, Switzerland and the UK can pick theirs up in late April as well.
For those who aren’t sure on pricing of the iPad line, here’s a quick reminder; and see here for all the details on what exactly is the iPad, as well as here for some personal thoughts.
Pricing:
- 16GB WiFi only — $499
- 32GB WiFi only — $599
- 64GB WiFi only — $699
- 16GB WiFi + 3G — $629
- 32GB WiFi + 3G — $729
- 64GB WiFi + 3G — $829
So, anyone getting ready to pre-order some iPad “magic”?
Doubletwist – iTunes for Your Phone February 24, 2010
Posted by Chaim Gartenberg in : Apple, Cell Phones, Computers, First Look/Reviews, Mp3 players and iPods, Music , add a comment
Doubletwist – like iTunes, for non-Apple stuff
The age-old issue: you, like nearly everyone else, uses an iPod for music – be it Touch, Nano, Shuffle, or Classic — and you are very happy with using iTunes for syncing and so on. But unfortunately, unless you have an iPhone, the iTunes program is quite unhelpful when it comes to your phone. Unlike your iPod, you can’t just plug in to your computer and sync your music, and while phones have separate applications for syncing media, lets face it – getting everything to work, getting your music from iTunes…its annoying– especially every time you get a new phone.
Enter Doubletwist. iTunes for everything else- literally. Able to recognize and import your iTunes library (even playlists), Doubletwist is compatible with a whole slew of companies and devices – PSP, Zune, Nokia’s, LG’s, Motorola’s, etc. True, it’s not compatible with everything – but it’s certainly more then an iPod and it does a great job syncing. The interface is simple, and familiar to iTunes’, and features the drag/drop method we all know and love. Videos – provided they aren’t purchased (and therefore, DRMed) from iTunes – are converted into a suitable format and synced. Photos – same deal. (Note: iTunes Plus songs, without DRM, are fine)
Best of all – it’s not only a Mac application – Doubletwist is for Windows as well. It also has features for sharing – or “twisting” as they call it – media with friends and family, as well as integration with the Amazon MP3 store.
If you’d like Doubletwist, check it out on the site here to see if they support your phone or device. Also, you might want to check that you have a USB cable to connect your phone to your PC. Finally, if you’re looking to keep a fair amount of songs, look into getting a MicroSD card, so you have memory to store ‘em.
And next time your iPhone toting friend is bragging about having his music on his phone – you’ll have the last laugh.
A Student’s Take on the iPad February 5, 2010
Posted by Eli Blumenthal in : Apple, Opinion, tablets , add a comment
Since Apple announced the iPad last week, opinions are abound, with many predicting failure for a device whose capability seems to lie somewhere between Apple’s MacBook and iPod Touch in the company’s attempt to replace or reinvent the traditional computer. In that regard the iPad isn’t well suited in its current stage: it lacks a video camera so you can’t iChat, there is no iLife for content creation, for some reason multi-tasking is still a no-show even with the iPad’s bumped-up specs, and in terms of using this for browsing the web, it’s good but not great, lacking the Flash support that is used on many web sites across the web, like ESPN and Hulu.
As a student, though, even with all these flaws I see a lot of potential for the iPad. I actually believe that this could be a great device, and am really eager to pick one up for this reason alone—this could finally be the perfect school computer.
iPad Accessories—The Break Down February 4, 2010
Posted by Eli Blumenthal in : Apple, tablets , add a comment
Last week we covered exactly what the iPad is, now let’s take a closer look at some of the accessories Apple plans on rolling out alongside the new device. Apple announced 5 main accessories along with the iPad; let’s take a close look at what exactly they are:
- Keyboard Dock– This is a must have add-on in my book—a dock that props up your iPad for ideal vertical view, as well as including a full-sized, physical QWERTY keyboard. The dock, which comes with a keyboard very similar to the Apple wireless Bluetooth keyboards for Macs, also gives you a iPod 30 pin connector for syncing with your computer, charging, or using other add-ons like the ones below, as well as an audio jack let’s you connect to better speakers if you want. If you plan to use the iPad as, say, your computer in school for taking notes or writing papers (for example, using the Pages app), this truly is a must-have, even at it’s price of $69.
- iPad Case– This is Apple’s case for the iPad, that not only protects the screen while keeping it usable for typing and, well just using the device, it also has a built-in stand that can be used in many different ways, such as setting on a table for viewing slide shows or videos. The iPad Case will be priced at $39, though we’re sure there will be many other cases coming out for much less than that.
- iPad Dock– Pretty much the Keyboard Dock, minus the keyboard. It’ll cost $29.
- iPad Camera Connection Kit– This takes the regular iPod dock connector on the iPad and turns it into either a USB port or SD card slot for importing pix from your digital camera right to your iPad. This is some of the most basic functions found on even the cheapest netbooks and we would’ve really liked Apple to have put both of these into the iPad from the outset, but I guess thinness has it’s price. The price for this add-on kit is also $29.
There also is an extra power adapter for charging off of a regular outlet (with a greater range, thanks to a 6-foot cable) and a VGA connector for hooking this up to a computer screen or TV with a VGA port available.
So there you have it—a round-up of all the iPad accessories Apple plans to sell alongside the new iPad. The big thing here of course is the new keyboard dock, which should definitely throw a whole new dimension on what this device can do (we all know how much people wanted a real keyboard on the iPhone).
Colorix—Review January 29, 2010
Posted by Eli Blumenthal in : Apple, First Look/Reviews , 2comments
There are a lot of great puzzle-like games available for the iPhone and iPod Touch. We recently had a chance to test out a new one called Colorix, a kind of Tetris-Bejeweled mix, and it actually plays pretty well, a great quick game for the bus or killing time.
Made by Mobo Studio, the goal of Colorix is simple— take the sets of 3 colored marbles falling down and try to get match 3 colors together in a row. You can make a row in any direction—horizontally, vertically, and diagonally– and can also get matches in different combos, like having one match lead directly to another. The more matches and combos you get, the more points you accumulate, with the goal to get as many points as you can while avoiding the marbles reaching the top of the screen. Simple, right?
As the marbles fall, you have the power to place the sets of 3 where you want (though they only fall vertically), and while it falls you can either speed up the fall by 2x tapping on the spot you want them to fall (getting you more points), or use swipes to change the order of the marbles. When we first started playing we thought this was way too easy (we picked up the controls pretty easily after playing it a little), but after playing for a little bit, we started to realize a whole bunch of different combinations to get even more points using special marbles (such as Rainbow ones that change after they’re placed—as seen above in the pic). As you get more points and move up to higher levels, the game does also get tougher, with more color combinations and black marbles that stay on the board for a certain amount of turns and block spaces and combinations (as seen in the number 4 marble above).
Gameplay in Colorix is also very smooth, with quick load times and no stuttering during gameplay. The graphics are also surprisingly good for a game like this, with everything looking slick and colorful.
While it isn’t as feature-packed as say a Bejewled or Tetris, Colorix is a solid game for those look for a cheap, fun puzzle game that while not intense, is still very addictive and we’re gonna give Colorix a very good 4 out 5.
Colorix is available now in the App Store for a not too bad price of $1.99 (with a free Colorix Lite version also available now). You can check it out in the App Store here (link opens iTunes)
The Apple Tablet is Real– Meet the iPad January 27, 2010
Posted by Eli Blumenthal in : Apple, Computers, tablets , 2comments
The Apple iPad
Well, it’s official. Apple has finally ended the months (and years) of speculation today, with the announcement of the iPad tablet. What is the iPad? Well for starters, think of it as an iPod Touch– just on so much steroids that it would make Jose Canseco jealous.
Apple Pre-Event Rumor Roundup January 26, 2010
Posted by Eli Blumenthal in : Apple, Rumors , add a comment
Seeing as that in under 24 hours Apple will finally announce it’s new “creation,” the rumor wire has been burning up on the internet. Seriously, there is every type of rumors here from an actual possibility, all the way to “some guy in his basement’s magic wish.” And while we tried our hardest to stay away from all these rampant rumors, here’s a few of the latest and coolest ones, with our thoughts on if we believe it will actually happen.