iLounge

Google launched its new AdSense for Mobile Applications beta, allowing iPhone and Android developers to add Google-sourced contextual ads to their products. According to a post on the company’s official mobile blog, Google has already has a successful trial run of the service with a small number of partners, including Sega, Shazam, and Urbanspoon, and are now offering the advertising solution to a larger group. Interested developers can visit this site to learn more about the program and to apply for the beta service.

iPhone developer Tapbots has posted internal numbers showing the adoption rate of iPhone OS 3.0 for users of its Convertbot application. The results include device and OS version for each day in June, and count only users using the latest version of the application—1.3. For iPhone Convertbot users, who outnumber iPod touch users nearly 6-to-1, the percentage running OS 3.0 jumped from around 8% on June 9-16 to 79% as of June 22%, an impressive number considering the upgrade had only been available for five days at that point. iPod touch users appear to upgrading at a slower pace, with just over half of users having upgraded to 3.0 as of the 22nd. When taking into account the discrepancy between iPhone and iPod touch users, the overall 3.0 adoption rate sits at 75%.

The iPhone 3GS sports a faster version of the PowerVR SGX graphics chip than previously believed, according to a group of iPhone developers. Mac Rumors reports that the developers have found extension files on the 3GS named “IMGSGX535GLDriver,” suggesting that the new handset uses a version of the chip—the SGX535—designed for “high end mobile, portable, MID, UMPC, consumer, and automotive devices,” as opposed to the lower-end 520 that was previously suspected to be in the device, or the SGX530 chip found in the Palm Pre.

Google has announced that uploads from mobile phones to YouTube have jumped 400% since Friday’s launch of the iPhone 3GS. One of the most-publicized new features of the 3GS is the ability to shoot and edit video directly on the device, then upload it to YouTube or MobileMe, or share it via email or MMS. It is unclear, however, exactly how much of the jump is attributable to the iPhone 3GS given the continued influx of video uploads from Iran.

Two iPhone developers are touting a million downloads of their respective apps, with one becoming the first paid iPhone application to reach a million downloads. Freeverse has announced that its Flick Fishing game has become the first paid application to reach the million download milestone, with the one millionth copy being sold over the weekend. In addition, nearly 10% of users have made in-app purchases of a new fishing location and new fish since the feature came online last week. Online movie ticketing service Fandango has also announced that its application for the iPhone and iPod touch has been downloaded one million times since its launch on March 13.

A pair of TV reporters—Kris Reyes from Citytv in Toronto and Gio Benitez from CBS 4 in Miami—both shot reports of the iPhone 3GS launch using an iPhone 3GS. Reyes’ piece can be seen here, while Benitez’ segment is available from CBS 4’s video library.

XtremeMac has announced several new cases for the iPhone 3G and 3GS. The company’s Tuffwrap line of silicone cases is being expanded to include the two-tone Tuffwrap Accent and laser-etched Tuffwrap Tatu, while the Microshield line of low-profile plastic cases gains an Accent model with an ergonomic rubber border, and a Tatu model with textured sides and custom-designed artwork. All four new cases will include a screen protector and viewing stand, and will begin arriving in mid-July for prices ranging from $20-$30.

Apple has published a new support document warning users of the Palm Pre that their ability to sync with iTunes may be removed at any time. Titled “iTunes: About unsupported third-party digital media players,” the article explains that Apple designs its hardware and software to provide seamless integration between its media devices, iTunes, the iTunes Store, and the App Store, and that it is aware that some third-party companies claim their products are able to sync with iTunes. It notes, however, that “Apple does not provide support for, or test for compatibility with, non-Apple digital media players and, because software changes over time, newer versions of Apple’s iTunes software may no longer provide syncing functionality with non-Apple digital media players.”

Following the receipt of shipment notifications for their iPhone 3GS units, a number of pre-order customers are reporting that their shipments are being intentionally delayed by Apple to prevent early deliveries. Mac Rumors has posted a tracking information screenshot from one such user, noting that “The receiver requested a hold for a future delivery date. UPS will attempt delivery on the date requested.” According to the report, Apple has used previous tactics in the past to time shipments up with product release dates.

A group of four United States senators has sent a letter to Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Commissioner Michael Copps, requesting the body to review exclusivity arrangements between wireless carriers and cell phone manufacturers, such as the one between Apple and AT&T for the iPhone. The move was spurred by a May, 2008 petition from the Rural Cellular Association, a group of small carriers generally servicing parts of the country where the larger carriers don’t offer service. These carriers claim that their inability to offer customers the handsets of their choice makes it difficult for them to compete with the larger carriers in areas where their service overlaps. Notably, the letter raises specific concerns on whether the agreements “place limitations on a consumer’s ability to take full advantage of handset technologies, such as the ability to send multimedia messages or the ability to ‘tether’ a device to a computer for internet use.” [via BBG]

According to a network-wide SMS sent to Hong Kong-based 3 customers notifying users of a June 18, 01:00 local time release for iPhone OS 3.0, Engadget estimates that the anticipated upgrade will see a release at around 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time today.

Best Buy will begin selling the iPhone 3GS at its retail locations beginning at 10:00 a.m. Friday morning, and will also offer an accident insurance plan for the handset, AppleInsider reports. Customers will be able to purchase the retailer’s Geek Squad Black Tie Protection for the iPhone 3G S, albeit at a rate of $15 per month, or $180 a year, substantially higher than the normal $7-$10/month for other mobile phones. According to the report, the Black Tie service covers both traditional technical problems and problems resulting from physical damage such as drops, spills, or other accidents. Apple’s AppleCare for iPhone specifically denies service for devices that have been damaged in such a manner, and since AT&T has chosen not to offer its traditional insurance to iPhone owners, users with accidental damage have in the past had to either pay for repairs or purchase all new devices.

iPhone developers running the final release of iPhone OS 3.0 have noticed that Apple’s Push Notification system appears to have gone live, just days before its scheduled official launch alongside iPhone OS 3.0. A number of Mac Rumors forum members report that the Notifications menu has appeared within the Settings application; notably, only a single Push-ready application—Tap Tap Revenge 2—appears to have made its way through Apple’s approval process at this point, with challenges from friends triggering the alerts. iPhone OS 3.0 is slated for a Wednesday release.

AOL has released its MapQuest 4 Mobile application for the iPhone and iPod touch. Billed as an alternative to the built-in Maps application, MapQuest 4 Mobile features the ability to save maps and routes on mapquest.com for retrieval through the application, an oversized display and landscape mode orientation for driving directions, a “place carousel” that allows users to easily display points of interest such as hotels, movie theaters, and gas stations, location awareness, and more. MapQuest 4 Mobile is available now as a free download from the App Store.

DataViz has introduced its Documents To Go productivity application for the iPhone and iPod touch. Documents To Go allows users to view, edit, and save Microsoft Word documents directly from their device, as well as view and synchronize Excel, PowerPoint, PDF, Apple iWork, and other documents. Two-way synchronization is handled via a desktop application that syncs the documents over Wi-Fi; DataViz promises a free upgrade with support for editing and creating Microsoft Excel documents, as well. Documents To Go is available now for $5; an enhanced version with support for editing and sending Microsoft Exchange attachments is also available and sells for $10.

Design Commission is now offering an iPhone Stencil Kit (pictured) for developers to quickly mock-up application interfaces. The kit includes a precision cut stainless steel stencil featuring commonly-used UI elements, a Zebra mechanical pencil, and a downloadable PDF-format, letter-sized paper template for use with the stencil. The iPhone Stencil Kit is available now and sells for $17.

During an interview at the D7 conference, AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson made several comments related to the iPhone, wireless networks, and future plans. Stephenson said that the move to 7.2mbps HSPA would not have a negative impact on its network as data demands grow, saying, “it’s all network management….We’ll have a whole new capacity.” He also said that when both AT&T and Verizon are operating LTE networks, consumers should be able to take their handsets with them from one carrier to the other, and that the company remains happy with its iPhone arrangement with Apple, saying the company has “no complaints.” A full video of the interview is available online.

Apple had an interesting art-like installation called the “Hyperwall” on display at its 2009 WWDC conference. Built using 20 Mac Pro towers running Snow Leopard, programmed in Quartz Composer using new OpenCL APIs and shown on 20 synchronized 30-inch Apple Cinema Displays, the wall showed the activity of the 20,000 most popular apps on the App Store, arranged by color, animating each app’s icon every time the app was downloaded from the store. Click the link above to see it in action.

GPS maker Navigon has announced that it will be bringing its turn-by-turn GPS app MobileNavigator to the iPhone, placing it in direct competition with TomTom, which demonstrated its application during Monday’s Keynote. The new software will feature Reality View Pro, Real Roadsign Pro, Lane Assistant Pro, Speed Assistant, Day & Night Mode, and the ability to display points of interest along the route, as well automatic display adjustment, and intelligent address entry, and the ability to navigate directly to a contact’s address. The company will also offer a free Lite version that lacks active route guidance, but can display maps and nearby points of interest. Navigon’s MobileNavigator will be available later this month; pricing has yet to be announced.

SanDisk CEO Eli Harari has admitted that his company is unlikely to ever surpass Apple in MP3 player market share. In an interview with Fortune, Harari said, “You can’t out-iPod the iPod.” Despite the admission, SanDisk remains the number two MP3 manufacturer, with its Sansa players outselling other well-known rivals such as the Microsoft Zune. Perhaps more importantly, the report notes, the Sansa helped legitimize flash memory as a storage technology for mobile devices, which in turn sparked licensing demand for SanDisk’s patents. Apple’s iPod shuffle, iPod nano, iPod touch, and iPhone all use flash-based storage.

Speck has announced that its CandyShell case for the second-generation iPod touch is now available. The hybrid case features a one-piece design with a soft rubber interior and hard outer shell in contrasting colors, protection for the sleep/wake and volume buttons, and open access to all other ports and controls. Available in two colors, Speck’s CandyShell for iPod touch 2G sells for $35; for more information, see our full review.

ESPN has released its new ESPN ScoreCenter application for the iPhone and iPod touch. ScoreCenter offers users up-to-date scoring for more than 500 sports leagues around the world, including MLB, NFL, NBA, Premier League, NASCAR, Golf, Tennis, and more, as well as game details such as stats, leaderboards, box scores, and scoring summaries. ESPN ScoreCenter is available now as a free download from the App Store.

The iPhone is the fifth most popular mobile phone brand globally among teens, the first time Apple’s phone has appeared in the top ten, according to a new survey. The Global Habbo Youth Survey 2009, conducted in April for the online virtual world Habbo Hotel, queried 112,000 teenagers in 30 countries and found that Nokia leads the market, but was down to 21% of responses compared to 29% a year ago, followed by Sony Ericsson, which also slipped, from 21% to 18%. Motorola dropped from third last year to sixth in this year’s rankings; RIM’s BlackBerry also made the top ten for the first time ever.

WhereCloud has announced its new application, Reportage described as a “radically different” Twitter client for the iPhone. Instead of the traditional timeline view, Reportage lays out a Twitter feed using a radio paradigm, with friends appearing as “radio stations” that you can “tune in to.” Reportage is $3 and is available from the App Store.

The nonprofit Center for Internet Security yesterday released a consensus security benchmark for the iPhone aimed at helping IT managers and users reduce the risk of stored data being compromised. This free benchmark takes users through more a series of more than 20 simple recommendations for iPhone settings and iPhone Configuration Utility policies that can help to improve security and reduce the chances of a remote attack. The iPhone benchmark applies to iPhone OS v2.2.1 and the iPhone Configuration Utility v1.1.043. [via Computerworld]

A new application, WiFi Cafe Spots provides a database of over 14,000 cafes and restaurants with free Wi-Fi access. The database includes locations in the United States, Canada, Europe and Australia, and is stored directly on the iPhone or iPod touch so that it can be used without requiring Internet access. The app supports location-based services to find a Wi-Fi hotspot near the present location or users can search by city or postal code. WiFi Cafe Spots is $3 and is available from the App Store.

Apple has won another iPhone-related patent, this time for the original iPhone’s casing design, highlighting elements such as a divided construction and the top and bottom ports. Assorted speakers, buttons, and the position of the camera can also be seen in the patent diagrams. Several individuals are credited for the work, including Apple’s lead designer Jonathan Ive and CEO Steve Jobs. [via MacNN]

During its keynote address at the Google I/O conference, Google demonstrated its Latitude personal location mapping and sharing service running on the iPhone. The Google Latitude service was launched earlier this year for the Android, Blackberry, Symbian S60 and Windows Mobile platforms, with an iPhone version conspicuously absent by its omission. Google reportedly is waiting for the iPhone 3.0 software release as it is using a browser-based application to provide location-based services. Versions of the iPhone OS prior to 3.0 do not provide access to the iPhone’s GPS or location services from the Safari browser. The Latitude web application for the iPhone will run directly in the Safari browser, using similar HTML 5 capabilities to those used by Google’s recently upgraded GMail web application. [via TechCrunch]

The New Yorker Cover painted using an iPhone app has resulted in a surge in popularity for the Brushes app which was used to create the cover. Steve Sprang, the software developer who created Brushes has reported a significant boost in sales after the news of his app being used to create the popular magazine cover. Sprang noted that this week his application had its highest selling day since it was first released last August, with 2,700 copies sold in a single day, exceeding sales generated even by Apple’s own promotions. [via The New York Times]

Unisys Corporation, a developer of high-end enterprise mainframe solutions announced that it is adding a range of enhancements to its ClearPath family of mainframe servers to help to provide support for specialized applications and “integration of devices such as iPhones and iPods,” tacitly acknowledging that the iPhone is spreading more widely into the corporate and enterprise space. [via MacDailyNews]

Some developers have reported that the international distribution of iPhone applications is not being handled efficiently by Apple, with many apps appearing for sale on only some international App Stores, or taking an unreasonable amount of time to appear in other countries. [via MacNN]

According to a recent report, Yahoo is scaling down its smartphone application development to focus more on applications for the iPhone. Beta testers of Yahoo’s Java-based mobile app reportedly received an e-mail this week stating that Yahoo has “ceased development” of that application and that the company will “focus efforts on the newly launched Yahoo Mobile experience for browsers and for the iPhone.”

AppleInsider reports that the iPhone has been a significant factor in encouraging many new customers to sign up for AT&T, now believed to be attracting a “full third of those switching providers towards AT&T.” Of the 13 percent of those surveyed who indicated that they were looking to leave their existing cellular providers, 33% indicated that they would move to AT&T when the time comes, versus 24 percent toward Verizon.

Microsoft has officially announced the Zune HD for a Fall release. The new device is positioned as a competitor to the iPod touch, and will include a 3.3-inch 480 x 272 OLED capacitive touchscreen display, built-in HD radio receiver, and HD video output via a dock. The device is reported to use a full multi-touch interface similar to that found on the iPod touch. Other details such as pricing and storage capacities have not yet been announced. [via Engadget]

Ex-hacker “DVD Jon” Johansen, best known for breaking the copy-protection on DVDs recently stated that his new firm DoubleTwist will be working to provide wireless synchronization for the iPod as well as developing a way to sell applications without going through Apple. It is unclear which particular models of iPod he is referring to and seems likely that these solutions would be implemented outside of Apple’s normal channels, without Apple’s blessing.

The June 1, 2009 issue of The New Yorker includes a cover that was composed entirely on an iPhone. Jorge Columbo, a well-known New York artist composed the cover using the Brushes iPhone app in about an hour while discretely standing on 42nd Street with his iPhone. [via Engadget]

A report from Bloomberg indicates that Apple may begin selling digital music from iTunes throughout the 27 European Union nations, provided that the company can obtain licensing rights from the music industry. Currently, consumers in countries such as Poland, Bulgaria and Slovenia are unable to purchase digital music from any iTunes Store in Europe due to territorial restrictions on music licensing. “iTunes would agree to consider making its content available to all European consumers, including those from the Eastern European countries where iTunes is currently not available” if Apple is “able to license rights on a multi- territorial basis from the publishers and collecting Societies,” Apple said in a report posted on the commission’s Web site today.

Reports are indicating that Apple may be launching its annual Back to School promotion as early as this week. In past years, Apple has offered a Back to School promotion throughout the summer, providing free or discounted iPods with the purchase of a new Mac. According to unconfirmed reports, Apple will again be offering the 8GB iPod nano and 8GB iPod touch as part of this promotion, however Apple is also rumored to be extending the offer to the 8GB iPhone as well. iPhone customers would still be obligated to sign up for an iPhone contract, and it is unclear as to whether this offer would extend outside of the U.S. [via MacRumors].

The reports of a banner ad in a recent version of the Twitterfon application points to the possibility of Movie and TV Show downloads soon being available on the iPhone and iPod touch application. The ad in question allegedly linked to a page under construction on the iPhone’s iTunes Store app, providing a listing of movie and TV show content, none of which was yet actually available for download. The ad itself has since disappeared.

As it is Memorial Day in the United States, iLounge will be on a limited publishing schedule today, May 25, 2009. Our Discussion Forums are hopping right now with iPod and iPhone Q&As and much more, so if you haven’t visited before, today would be a great chance to do so.

After initially rejecting the Eucalyptus e-book reader application last week, Apple contacted the developer on Sunday asking to have the app resubmitted for approval. Following its resubmission, Eucalytpus was quickly approved and is available for sale in the App Store for $10.

On Friday, Cartier International filed a lawsuit against Apple claiming that two applications available on the App Store infringed on the trademark for their Tank watches. The lawsuit was withdrawn a few hours later after the applications in question had been removed from the App Store and Cartier acknowledged that its concerns had been addressed. [via Reuters]

Another example of intellectual property infringement has appeared on the App Store recently, however, in the form of a game titled Luigi vs. Pac (iTunes Link), a pong-style game that pits Pac-Man against Mario, borrowing themes and graphics generously from both the Pac-Man and Mario Bros series of games. It remains unclear how or why Apple continues to approve titles that obviously infringe on well-known brands, including ones from its partner developers such as Namco; a lack of proper app reviewer training or clear infringement standards appear to be to blame. [via Cult of Mac]

According to several reports, three of Russia’s mobile operators could be looking at significant contract penalties for failing to sell through their iPhone allotments. Three Russian carriers have committed to sell over one million iPhones a piece, while currently only 900,000 iPhones in total have been imported into the country. [via Engadget]

Apple Switzerland has threatened legal action against a Swiss Insurance company which gave 1,200 cheap Chinese knockoff 2G iPod shuffles to executives attending the Swiss Economic Forum. Among those in attendance who received the fake iPods was Adrian Schmucki, General Manager of Apple Switzerland AG. [via Cult of Mac]

AppleInsider reports that AT&T is also running short on new iPhone 3G units and has begun to offer refurbished units for sale instead.

onOne software has announced the submission of their DSLR Remote to the iTunes App Store. The DSLR remote provides control of certain tethered Canon EOS DSLRs from an iPhone or iPod touch device. The DSLR Remote app will be available in two versions: the $20 “Professional” version will initially be offered for $10 and will provide full control of your camera settings from your iPhone or iPod touch, as well as providing a live stream of a Live View-compatible camera’s viewfinder. A $2 “Lite” version will also be available, and useful only to fire the shutter.

Following in the steps of Google’s Mobile app, Yahoo! has now also added its own voice-enabled search program to its iPhone app. Yahoo’s “oneSearch” voice navigation has already been available on Blackberry, Nokia and Windows Mobile phones for some time now. The new Yahoo! app with voice search is available now as a free download from the iTunes App Store.
[via The New York Times]

MacNN reports that Apple may be looking to add voice command technology into a future-generation Apple TV based on a recent patent application titled context-aware unit selection which describes a pointing device associated with a computer dubbed a “Web TV” system. The remote would contain an embedded microphone capable of accepting voice commands.

According to a post from Seth Weintraub at Computerworld, Apple may be making preparations to include a camera in the next-generation iPod touch or similar device.  Digitimes reports that OmniVision has received orders from Apple for both 3.2 and 5 megapixel image sensors. While the 3.2MP sensors are commonly believed to be for the next-generation iPhone, the higher-resolution 5MP sensors are reportedly to be used for “another Apple product expected to be launched later in the year.”  It is unclear whether this future Apple product would be the next-generation iPod touch or some other type of device, such as the oft-rumored “iTablet.”  [via MacDailyNews]

MacTalk Australia reports that Vodafone Australia has apparently sent out an e-mail to its retail staff notifying them that the 16GB iPhone has been marked as “End of Life” by their iPhone supplier, Brightpoint. They go on to note that this announcement applies only to the 16GB model, and not the 8GB model, suggesting that there either may be a surplus stock of 8GB models or that Apple may retain an 8GB model as a “value option.”

Skyhook Wireless, provider of the iPhone and iPod touch’s Wi-Fi-based location services, has released a report in which it claims that location-aware apps on BlackBerry’s App World service cost roughly four times as much, on average, as those offered on the App Store or Android Marketplace. The study found that the average price of a location-aware app in BlackBerry App World is $13.60, compared with $3.60 in the App Store and $0.84 in the Android Marketplace. In addition, the App Store had the highest number of location-aware apps—over 2,300—and the highest percentage of paid for location-aware apps, at over 75%. By comparison, 67% of BlackBerry location-aware apps are paid, while 80% of location-aware apps on the Android Marketplace are free. More information is available in the full report (PDF Link).

Stanford University’s iPhone Application Programming CS193P class has become the fastest iTunes U class to hit one million downloads, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. “I had a feeling this class would be popular but the level of popularity is surprising,” said Troy Brant, one of the graduate student instructors for the course. The course has been offered on iTunes U since April 1, and is only one of roughly 100 courses offered by the university through iTunes U. “This one by far grew more rapidly in public response and interest” than other classes, said Brent Izutsu, manager of Stanford’s iTunes U offerings. “I know (Stanford physicist) Leonard Susskind has several hundred thousand downloads but that was over 12 quarters.”

A pair of men have been arrested in connection with a recent robbery of an AT&T store in Lake Forest, CA. At 9:30 a.m. on Thursday, May 14, two armed men robbed the AT&T store on El Toro Road, forcing employees to lock the doors and hand over several packages of cellphones and cash, including roughly 70 iPhones. The men were arrested between Saturday evening and Monday morning on suspicion of robbery and kidnapping; Orange County Sheriff’s spokesman Jim Amormino said none of the iPhones have been recovered, and were likely sent to other countries.

Amazon has released version 1.1 of its Kindle book reading application for iPhone and iPod touch. New in version 1.1 is the ability to read in portrait or landscape mode, to pinch to zoom in on images in books, to select alternate background and text colors to improve low-light readability, and the ability to tap the sides of the screen or flick to turn pages. Amazon’s Kindle for iPhone application is available now as a free download from the App Store.

Canadian illustrator Neal Bridgens has created a steampunk case for his iPod mini. The unique case was made by hand from copper and brass, and features a hinged top for taking the iPod in and out of the case, oak front and back panels, and openings for the Click Wheel, screen, headphone jack, and Dock Connector. [via Cult of Mac]

A Japanese robotics enthusiast has created a humanoid robot with an iPod touch that acts as the robot’s face, brain, interface, and sensors. The iPod touch is connected to “Robochan” via the 30-pin connector, and is controlled using a custom application. [via TUAW]

Palm is expected to start selling its new Palm Pre smartphone the first week in June, placing the device’s launch extremely close to the beginning of Apple’s WWDC conference. Announced in January, the Pre offers many iPhone OS-like features, a 3.1-inch 480x320 touchscreen with dedicated gesture area below, a slide-out QWERTY keyboard, and will be exclusive to Sprint at launch. Palm hired former Apple senior vice president Jon Rubenstein to develop its next-generation software and hardware in October 2007, with the Pre likely representing the first evidence of these efforts. Update: Palm has announced that the Pre will go on sale June 6 and will sell for $200 with a two-year contract after mail-in rebate.

Glu Mobile has released its Deer Hunter 3D game for the iPhone and iPod touch. Based on Atari’s Deer Hunter franchise, the hunting simulation game features two play modes, unlockable weapons, accessories, and skills, seven types of realistic animals, a virtual trophy room, and 27 different locations with changing seasons and weather conditions. Deer Hunter 3D is available now from the App Store and sells for $6.

The San Francisco Giants have launched Giants Digital Dugout, a system that provides iPhone and iPod touch users with a special interface when connected to AT&T Park’s Wi-Fi network. Digital Dugout lets users see current score and stat details, find the closest concession location with the exact type of food they want, and watch a collection of video highlights that includes replays of any controversial call within three minutes of it happening. The service is free to all guests of the park.

Social music service imeem has released its imeem Mobile application for the iPhone and iPod touch. The application allows imeem users to search for bands and create custom artist stations that play music from those artists and others like them, stream their music library, which has been uploaded to imeem.com, to their iPhone or iPod touch, purchase songs through iTunes with one click, and browse music recommendations based on listening habits of both the user and community as a whole. Imeem Mobile is available now as a free download from the App Store.

Aritificial Life has released iDroids, its latest game for the iPhone and iPod touch. The side-scrolling game features 11 missions set in multiple locales, various weapons including a blaster, shield, stealth suit, and more, multiple control schemes, and social networking connectivity. iDroids is available now for $2; a free Lite version is also available.

Karma World has released Touch Karma, its new application for the iPhone and iPod touch. Touch Karma offers users three mini applications, one for tracking kids’ good and bad deeds, one for tracking positive and negative actions of friends and co-workers, and a virtual piggy bank to encourage saving habits. Touch Karma is available now from the App Store and sells for $3.

Ebay CEO John Donahoe, speaking at a retail conference in Barcelona, has revealed that roughly ten percent of all iPhone and iPod touch users have downloaded the Skype application. According to the Wall Street Journal, Donahoe said that within 24 hours of its launch, Skype was the top application on the iPhone in 40 countries. Ebay purchased Skype in September 2005, and plans to spin the VoIP service off as a separate company with an IPO announced for 2010.

The University of Missouri School of Journalism has added the iPhone or iPod touch as a requirement for incoming freshman, reports the Missourian. Brian Brooks, associate dean of the school, hopes to turn the devices into learning tools. “Lectures are the worst possible learning format,” Brooks said. “There’s been some research done that shows if a student can hear that lecture a second time, they retain three times as much of that lecture.” Brooks went on to explain that while the devices are listed as a requirement, the rule will not be enforced, and students will have the option of listening to lectures on their laptops instead. “The reason we put required on it is to help the students on financial need,” Brooks said. “If it’s required, it can be included in your financial need estimate. If we had not required it, they wouldn’t be able to do that.”

A new Apple patent filing suggests the company is working to develop an iTunes kiosk which would allow users to wirelessly purchase and download media to their device. According to the application, the system would establish a virtual physical connection between the kiosk and the device to reduce wear and tear on the device, and avoid the possible calamities—eavesdropping, hacking, and overloading—to which a standard Wi-Fi connection would be susceptible. The filing indicates that the kiosks could be placed anywhere the user might not have wireless service, including airports, hotels, stadiums, train stations, shopping malls, ships, stores, planes, and more. As with all Apple patents, this filing does not necessarily represent any future product release from Apple, but offers evidence of the company’s research in this area. [via AppleInsider]

Audrey Charm has introduced its line of decor frames for the iPhone 3G, iPod touch 2G, and iPod nano 4G. Made from silver, gold, or chromium plated metal, each frame features protective neoprene inner lining, cutouts for access to all ports and controls, as well as holes for attaching a lanyard or decorative charm, and either pink, clear, or black Swarovski crystals on the front. Audrey Charm’s Swarovski decorative frames for the iPhone 3G, iPod touch 2G, and iPod nano 4G are available now and are priced at $66, $56, and $46, respectively.

PopCap has revealed that its long-awaited iPhone version of Peggle will be released on May 12. Joystiq reports that the game has yet to be priced, but suggests the game may come in at $5-$6.

An iPod discovered in a block of ice has apparently survived its time in the cold. Blogger Andrew Robulack of Whitehorse, Yukon, Canada recently found an iPod classic emerging from some freshly melting ice, and estimates the hard disk-based device had been in the ice since early winter. He claims it booted up right away, and apart from a few scratches, nicks, and condensation underneath the screen cover, is in perfect working order. Robulack is giving the iPod’s owner a week to contact him, after which he plans to keep the device for himself.

A former employee of the now-defunct GPS company Nemerix has posted details on how a first-generation iPod nano could be rigged to display information from one of the company’s low-power GPS chips. The mod consists of a reference design board containing a Nemerix GPS with an Atmel ATMEGA324 micro-controller, and uses the iPod’s AiR mode, which allowed developers to send a 4-color picture to the iPod and display it on the screen. The end result was able to display both latitude and longitude coordinates, along with satellite signal strength indicators. Notably, however, Apple shut off accessory access to the screens of later iPod nano and classic models, making an accessory like this all but impossible. [via Engadget]

British singer-songwriter Gary Go has announced that he will be perform upcoming events at Wembley Stadium using nothing but his iPhone. Go, who will be supporting Take That at the events scheduled for July 1, 4, and 5, also used a four-track recording studio app to create all the demos for his album. “At this point it’s quite hard to think of something I don’t use the phone for,” said Go. “For songwriters it’s an amazing tool as I always have it with me. I used to phone myself and leave messages to remember ideas. Now I can record real tracks in the park - it’s great… I think it’s pretty amazing that I’m going to be using a mobile phone on stage at Wembley Stadium in front of so many people. I grew up behind the stadium, and used to listen to concerts in my back garden,” he added. “My biggest worry is that my phone will ring mid-song.”

Cramzy has released Chippy, its new game for the iPhone and iPod touch. Based on the Capcom arcade game Pang, Chippy puts players in control of a squirrel, who must shoot down floating balls while collecting bonuses before the timer runs out. The game offers on-screen controls, 18 levels, each with different bonuses and obstacles, in-game music, and a pause/resume feature. Chippy sells for $1 and is available now from the App Store.

Cracked Eggs Productions has released Find The Nuts, a poker training application for the iPhone and iPod touch. Find The Nuts aims to help Texas Hold’em players identify the best hand, or “the nuts” by reading the community cards. The game lets players practice with three, four, or five community cards, using a side-scrolling row of remaining cards at the bottom to build either the best hand, or, for more advanced users, the second- or third-best hand. Find The Nuts: Texas Holdem Trainer is available now from the App Store and sells for $1.

SplashData has announced the release of both SplashPhoto and SplashNotes for the iPhone and iPod touch. SplashPhoto offers users a Photos app alternative, with two-way sync to a free PC or Mac OS X desktop version. It allows users to group photos by album, add titles and notes, move photos between albums directly from the device, upload to/download from both Flickr and Picasa, geotag photos taken from the iPhone, and set a password to prevent unwanted access to the photos. SplashNotes is a notetaking and outlining application that also syncs directly with companion Mac or Windows software. It offers users the ability to create outlines of any size and complexity, attach notes and photos for quick recall, and display lists with checkboxes to turn outlines into task lists. SplashPhoto and SplashNotes are available now and sell for $5 each.

Speaking in an interview with Telephony Online, AT&T Mobility vice president of technology realization Scott McElroy said that the company is currently doubling download speeds on its existing HSPA network from 3.6 megabits per second to 7.2 Mb/s, then plans a subsequent jump to 21 MB/s by adopting the more advanced HSPA+ standard. McElroy added that the company is also adding HSPA carriers at many cellsites, “on a market-by-market basis.” “We’re adding second and even third carriers according to demand. We’re also in the early phases of an 850-MHz overlay,” he said. [via Engadget]

A former Sony Computer Entertainment Europe Technology Group employee Sebastien Rubens has spoken out against the company’s handling of PSP development, saying the iPhone is currently a better system for developers. After stating that Sony needs to work on third-party developer relations, Rubens said, “[t]he second step is to have a better SDK – iPhone’s is better. You could make things a lot easier to use, and I come from the software engineering side.” Reubens left SCEE to start Anozor, which recently published PSP game No Gravity, a PlayStation Store-only downloadable title. “After that it’s a problem of the market and deciding what it wants, including prices for downloadable games,” he said, “so people know what kind of games to make – in other words, not a GTA [Grand Theft Auto], even if PSP is technically capable of running it, because the economics don’t make it worth it. And in the submission process, [Sony’s] a bit too slow to move.”

Jason Jacobs, developer of the iPhone application RunKeeper, recently ran the Boston Marathon dressed as an iPhone with his application on the screen. RunKeeper lets runners track distances and speeds, and according to the New York Times, it has been downloaded more than 300,000 times from the App Store. A picture of Jacobs wearing his iPhone running suit is available at the above link, while video of Jacobs participating in the event is available on the app’s website. Jacobs finished the race with a time of 4:01:20.

Marco Arment, lead developer of Tumblr and also of Instapaper, has revealed that the latest version of Instapaper has been rejected by Apple over an iPhone-like image in the app. At issue is an icon appearing the in the middle of the app’s lower tool bar, which depicts an iPhone-like device with an up arrow next to it. Arment said Apple’s response cited the following text: “You may not use the Apple Logo or any other Apple-owned graphic symbol, logo, or icon on or in connection with web sites, products, packaging, manuals, promotional/advertising materials, or for any other purpose except pursuant to an express written trademark license from Apple, such as a reseller agreement.” Arment notes that it “seems like a stretch to say that an abstractly drawn icon depicting a device (which resembles many other phones as much as it resembles the iPhone) is trademark infringement,” and says he plans to make a different icon and resubmit the updated application.