TTL – The Tech Link Blog

P!nk: Funhouse

P!nk, along with LaFace/Zomba Label Group and Sony BMG, has entered yet another new kind of marketing with a free application available on the iPhone and iPod Touch.

The application is available on the Apple App Store. Once installed, users will be able to listen to 30-second samples of all tracks available on P!nk’s newest album, Funhouse, which is available today. The application also allows access to restricted fan material such as pictures, videos, biography, etc.

It will only be a matter of time before we see all kinds of applications like this for other artists and let’s bet that the future only holds even more original marketing ideas for the public.

PR-CANADA.net

Truphone

Truphone is a VoIP application that you install on your cell phone and allows you to make cheap (very cheap) international and overseas calls, and it is now available for BlackBerry devices.

Truphone will also be available for other devices (LG, Samsung, HTC, etc.) in the future.

If you own a compatible phone, you can download the software for free on the Truphone website (link bellow), and start saving money now!

Truphone
GigaOM

Deezer

Music site Deezer has now released the first official version of their iPhone and iPod Touch player, and it’s available for download directly on the Apple App Store.

For those of you not familiar with Deezer, it is very similar to iMeem. You can search for songs, artists, albums and stream them directly on your computer without the need to download the song.

Deezer also offers web radios and something they call “SmartRadio” where the service lets you discover new music based on your listening taste. These two features will be the only ones available on the iPhone and iPod Touch at first but Deezer plans on releasing a full featured application that will allow the user to enjoy 100% of the features available in the future.

clubic.com (French)

Apple & Yahoo! Financial Results

This week saw 3rd quarter results announcements from many companies including Apple and Yahoo!.

While Yahoo! were announcing a 10% workforce reduction, a 64% drop in profits, and an overall goal to cut expenses, Apple were showing optimistic results for the 3rd quarter that ended in September 2008.

Apple, along with its iPhone, is now considered to the be 3rd largest phone distributor behind Nokia and Samsung. Additionnally, iPod and Mac sales were still going strong, and as a result, Apple posted net quarterly profit of $1.14 billion, or $1.26 per diluted share.

washingtonpost.com

Google Android

The Android platform is following in Apple’s footsteps as Google has specified in their terms and conditions that it could remotely “remove those applications from your device at its sole discretion”.

This means that they control what you can and cannot use on your own device.

Of course, Google will probably only use this in case certain applications are messing up with the internal components of the software to a point were it could make the device operate outside of their established norms.

Only time will tell.

Neowin

iTunes

Marketing, ads, publicity, call it whatever you like, these are around to stay.

As focus drives away from standard media (TV, newspaper, magazines, radio) and converges towards the Internet, streaming content, online magazines, video games, movies, etc., ad agencies and marketing firms are looking for ways to integrate the new media age.

The Apple App Store is a real gold mine for ad agencies. Don’t be surprised to see more and more free “sponsored” games and applications available for download very shortly.

What’s next? Free songs including a 10-second ad break at the beginning? Why not?

MacDailyNews

Apple iPhone

One thing that the G1 and Android community could say they had that the iPhone didn’t was Google StreetView.

Bad news for them, Apple will be releasing a new update for the iPhone (2.2) and it should feature Google StreetView within the maps application. This update will also fix a few bugs, add an option to disable auto-correction in SMS messages, and support for emoji icons (email smilies and such).

No release date has been set for this update.

TG Daily

Apple iPhone

Apple is doing really well with it’s iPhone 3G product in the U.S. market, selling more than 10 million units in 2008.

Since its launch, the smartphone has become the #2 best selling overall mobile handset just after Motorola’s RAZR.

The iPhone 3G has also surpassed sales of all Blackberry and Palm products to become the best selling smartphone in the U.S.

IntoMobile

Apple

The non disclosure agreement that Apple enforced on their developers prevented them from ever talking about the reasons why their software was being refused by Apple. This in turn frustrated many programmers as they felt helpless spending so much time and energy on something that would be turned down by the very organization in which they believed in.

Apple announced today that it will send iPhone developers a new agreement without the controversial Non Disclosure Agreement (NDA) that has fueled anger amongst them.

From TechCrunch: “According to Apple, it “put the NDA in place because the iPhone OS includes many Apple inventions and innovations that we would like to protect, so that others don’t steal our work.” But after dealing with public outcry, Apple believed it wasn’t worth it.”

TechCrunch

Nokia

Nokia’s long overdue touch screen cell phone is due to launch at a London press event on October 2nd.

The symbian OS driven touch screen phone (code name “Tube”) will be Nokia’s first touch screen cell phone device to hit the market. Knowing Nokia, this phone will be great and will probably be flawless like most of their products.

Early bellow were released a few months ago so they might have changed since:

• GSM QuadBand (850/900/1800/1900 Mhz)
• 16M colors, 3.2″ Touch screen with 640 x 360 resolution
• 3.2 Megapixel camera, autofocus
• EDGE / UMTS / HSDPA
• Bluetooth 2.0
• Built in WiFi , GPS
• TV-Out
• 140 MB built in memory
• 111 x 52 x 14.5 mm
• Weight: 104 grams

Reuters

Apple

An online iPhone App Store Petition has made it’s way on the PetitionOnline website asking for Apple’s intervention over the “unfair” use of their Non Disclosure Agreements (NDA).

The problem here is that Apple reserves the right to refuse any iPhone/iPod Touch application that has been submitted to the App Store. OK. Sure. That’s fine, but at least tell the programmer why and let them share the reasons to the rest of the community so that others don’t spend countless hours working on a project that will be rejected anyways!

PetitionOnline.com

Apple iPhone

In an effort to reduce lineups and wait time for customers that would like to buy an iPhone in store, Apple released an online tool that will enable a user to pre-purchase his or her iPhone, choose an AT&T plan to go with it, go through the pre-approval process, and take an appointment to pick it up.

Once all this is done online, the user can then go straight to the counter and get his or her iPhone without having to go through the lineups anymore.

iLounge
Apple

Google

In a move that could be seen as ”aggressive” by some, Google has refused to provide an iPhone compatible version of their StreetView service. Keep in mind that StreetView will be available on all Android-compatible phones. Is this the start of exclusive content on cell phones?

We are more than used to this in the gaming industry, where we see exclusive titles reserved for only a specific gaming console like the war between Sony’s PS3, Microsoft’s XBox and Nintendo’s Wii. So why not for cell phones?

Electricpig

iYo

What if you could play the yo-yo and use all the energy that you put into playing straight in your iPhone or iPod? Swedish designer Peter Thuvander created a yo-yo just like that.

The yo-yo is in fact an induction charger that has an onboard battery that gets charged while playing. Once the battery is charged with the motion from playing the yo-yo, you plug the device to your iPhone or iPod and it will charge it. Very clever!

treehugger
iYo by Peter Thuvander

Since I speak both English and French, I prepared the following translation of some of the highlights in the video that the guys at Génération Phone House did of the HTC Touch HD cell phone.

They start by saying that the version they have on hand is not the definitive and final version but that it is almost production.

Video from Génération Phone-House

Read it all..