Section: Software + Apps, Games, Mac + Computers, Software

ByDesign Games has launched a new game apparently designed to make the casual crowd blush: Make Bouncy Boncy. In the game, players bounce their way through puzzling mazes of challenge and reward. Earn and collect Bouncy Bouncys through fun and layered gameplay, where each bounce can lead to an explosive bonus.

Sounds like my college years.

Players can indulge in over 35 spaces designed to stimulate their mood while engaging their minds. Each space will challenge, amuse, and inspire with its unique configuration and variety of “pads” to bounce on. Open up the level exit by earning Bouncy Bouncys, then make your way to the next challenge to complete the mood.

As with all ByDesign games, players do not need to quit their day job to enjoy playing. Jump in and out of the game with ease; after opening a level, pick any level to play, anytime. Players post their top scores online to see if they’re amongst those who Make the most Bouncy Bouncy! Players can get in a quick Bouncy Bouncy session in-between their work tasks or on their coffee break.

Make Bouncy Bouncy at a glance:

• Spatial Puzzles in 3D - easy to pick up, difficult to master
• Fun For the Whole Family - for all skill levels
• 1-Handed Control - easy to start and enjoy
• Variety of Challenges - over 35 levels in all
• Online scoring - players can show off their skills to the world
• Multi-language - English, French, German, Italian and Spanish
• Plays great on both newer and older Macs
• Free Updates - new features, new levels
• Available Now for both Mac and Windows! - Leopard and Vista ready

Mac System Requirements:

• Mac OS X 10.2.8 or newer
• Min. Processor: Intel, PowerPC G5, or PowerPC G4 (867MHz or faster)
• 512 MB RAM
• 150 MB available disk space

A demo (browser, dashboard, and standalone versions), screenshots, trailer video, top scores leaderboard, and more info can be found at the game’s official website.

Product [Make Bouncy Bouncy]

Full Story » | Written by Kirk Hiner for Appletell. | Comment on this Article »

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Section: iPhone + Communications, iPhone, iPhone SDK & Apps

You know FriendFeed? That cool microblogging service that has been threatening the popular Twitter with its existence? Well, it has become friendly with the iPhone with the launch of a new iPhone-FriendFeed interface.

If you’re a FriendFeed user, you’d notice that its new iPhone interface is just the same as the FriendFeed interface adapted to fit the small screen of the iPhone. If you’re an iPhone user who’s not yet into FriendFeed, now is the time to give it a try, as you sure are missing a lot. FriendFeed is a great lifestreaming service. It’s almost like Twitter except for the lesser downtime.

If you don’t yet have an iPhone or are waiting for the iPhone 3G, you can see how FriendFeed will look in the iPhone by visiting friendfeed.com.

Via [FriendFeed Blog]

Full Story » | Written by Arnold Zafra for Appletell. | Comment on this Article »

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Filed under: Desktops

AMD just pranced out its latest trio of desktop processors including its new 2.6GHz quad-core Phenom X4 9950 Black Edition ($235) -- AMD's top o' the line desktop proc. The Black Edition branding makes this processor ideal for tweakers and overclockers. HotHardware's already done the job of putting the procs through their respective paces. As you'd hope from AMD's flagship desktop CPU, the X4 9950 is faster across the board than the previous AMD title holder, the X4 9850, albeit, just 5%. That puts it about level with Intel's Quad Q6600 processor but no match for Intel's Core 2 Extreme QX9650. AMD continues to lag Intel in terms of performance per watt as well. Hit up the read link when you're ready to sprinkle a little silicon speak onto your morning ritual.

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It’s about that time to fire up Software Update again for those of you running Leopard, as Mac OS X 10.5.4 has just been unleashed. Our first thought was that it must be time for MobileMe, but reading the change log, we don’t see it mentioned. However, there are a bunch of iCal fixes, among a few more generic updates, which you can check out after the break.

Continue reading Mac OS X 10.5.4 released Tags:

Section: iPhone + Communications, Carriers, Email/IM, iPhone, iPhone SDK & Apps

The new iPhone 3G hasn’t even been released yet, but seven problems with the new iPhone have already been pointed out by many, all of which have been based on demos and published specs of what the iPhone 3G will offer. We may get 3G and GPS, a way to connect to Microsoft Exchange, and the new App Store, but what about all of the other features that are missing from Apple’s device? Outlined below are the seven most prominent issues with the upcoming iPhone 3G, as defined by Forbes.com and Yahoo Tech:

1. The cost - The price of the actual iPhone 3G itself seems to be a lot more affordable than that of the first generation, but sure enough it’ll cost you an extra $160 or so over the next two years versus the original iPhone, and even more for people outside of the U.S. (such as for customers on Rogers).
2. The camera - Unfortunately, there’s still no flash or video recording features on the device, and the iPhone is still stuck with a 2 megapixel camera, while other smartphones will be gaining up to 8 megapixels with their built-in cameras this year.
3. The battery - Non-replaceable, yet again, which shouldn’t be a surprise, since Apple is starting to do the same thing with its notebooks as well.
4. No MMS - Apple is basically right that you don’t need MMS to send pictures on a device that has a full e-mail client, which the iPhone 3G does, but the real problem comes when users of other phones send you a photo via MMS: you simply can’t view it on the iPhone.
5. No Cut-And-Paste - Copy and paste is an essential feature for the iPhone, which has been requested by users since the first generation iPhone was released. Copy and paste is a simple tool that would make blogging and other tasks on the iPhone a whole lot easier.
6. No live TV - The YouTube implementation was seen as a great feature when the first iPhone was released, but it has grown tiresome and old. Live TV is a feature that has been implemented into many other smartphones as part of the standard data plan, but one gets the impression that Apple keeps it off the iPhone just so that they can sell you TV episodes at $1.99 each instead.
7. No 32GB option - 8GB feels like a pathetically small storage capacity, and now 16GB still doesn’t seem like enough. 32GB USB thumbdrives have been on the market since 2006, as cheaply as $140. Apple is likely to launch a 32 GB model in the near future, but it should have came with the launch of the iPhone 3G.

Although the iPhone 3G is undoubtably one of the greatest smartphones on the market, these crucial missing features show that it does have its weaknesses as well. We can only hope that Apple will implement these features into the iPhone in the near future.

Via [Forbes] and [Yahoo! Tech]

Full Story » | Written by Patrick Lutz for Appletell. | Comment on this Article »

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Filed under: Digital Cameras

Well, we can finally put the D700 rumors to bed. The beast that houses Nikon's newest monster (near) full-frame FX format 12.1 megapixel CMOS (not dissimilar from that found in the D3) is officially announced tonight, and it takes UDMA CompactFlash, and comes packing with a live view 3-inch display, 51 point autofocus (with 3D tracking), scene recognition, four-speed active dust reduction, ISO up to 6400, 5 or 8 fps full-res shooting, HDMI out, and a whole lot more. Expect it in July for $3,000 US (for the body).

Also being released are the SB-900 speedlight (August, $500), and the PC-E Micro NIKKOR 45mm f/2.8D ED and PC-E Micro NIKKOR 85mm f/2.8D lenses (August, $1,800 and $1,740, respectively).

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Filed under: Transportation

Man, Tesla's been busy today -- in addition to the announcement of the Model S and Elon Musk's promise of a sub-$30K electric car in four years, word on the street is that the company's inked a deal with Daimler AG to supply it with lithium-ion batteries for upcoming electric cars. Daimler's CEO has said the company was open to leasing battery tech to get out an electric Smart by 2010 and it's rumored that the German marque is looking to ditch gas entirely by 2015, so going to Tesla, which has been working on battery tech for some time, isn't a totally out there proposition. Just a rumor for now -- given Tesla's generally-prickly relationships with others, we'd wait for an official announcement before getting too excited about a Roadster-powered SLR, but it's certainly intriguing.

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Filed under: OS, Software Update, Apple, Security

Along with the 10.5.4 update, Apple has just released Security Update 2008-004 for users of Mac OS X Tiger (10.4). According to Apple, the update "is recommended for all [Mac OS X Tiger (10.4)] users and improves the security of Mac OS X." You can download this update for the following systems:

• Security Update 2008-004 (PPC)
• Security Update 2008-004 (Intel)
• Security Update 2008-004 Server (PPC)
• Security Update 2008-004 Server (Intel)

The update is available through Software Update (Apple menu > Software Update) or by downloading the installer packages by clicking the links above for your system. Apple has provided a support article for more details on this update.

Thanks to everyone who sent this in!

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Section: Apple, Apple News, Updates, Mac + Computers, Software, Operating Systems, Leopard, OS-X

Apple earlier this afternoon made the Mac OS X v10.5.4 update available through the System Preferences Software Update. The update is recommended for Mac OS X 10.5, 10.5.1, 10.5.2, and 10.5.3 Leopard. It includes general operating system improvements that enhance the stability, compatibility, and security of your Mac. A standalone installer is available.

Skipping past the general disclaimers (back up, don’t shut off, unexpected results...you know the routine), we find the update includes the following general fixes:

• Recent Apple security updates.
• Resolves an issue with saving and reopening Adobe Creative Suite 3 files on a remote server.
• Includes additional RAW image support for several cameras.
• Addresses an issue that may result in a partially installed X11 application.
• Improves L2TP VPN client reliability.

App specific, the update address various issues with:

• AirPort
• iCal
• Safari
• Spaces and Expose

Full details can be found at Apple’s support site. Specific details on the security update are available, as well.

The download size will vary from computer to computer. Mine for 24” iMac running Mac OS X v10.5.3 weighed in at 59MB. The standalone installers run from 80MB to 677MB.

Product [Mac OS X]

Full Story » | Written by Kirk Hiner for Appletell. | Comment on this Article »

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Filed under: Wireless, Airport, Software Update

Along with the Mac OS X 10.5.4 update tonight, Apple also released firmware 7.3.2 for Time Capsules and AirPort Base Stations. Apple states that it "includes general fixes and compatibility updates" for both Time Capsule and AirPorts with 802.11n.

Most likely your AirPort (or Time Capsule) will find and download the update automatically; however, you can also visit the Apple Support Downloads page to download the installer package for Leopard, Tiger, or Windows.

Thanks to everyone who sent this in!

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