RedLaser is a cool little barcode scanning app that may change the way you shop. The way it works couldn't be easier. Simply hit the "scan" button and point your iPhone's camera at a barcode (no autofocus camera required). RedLaser then looks up that barcode using Amazon and Google Product Search to show online listings for that exact product complete with prices. Awesome, right?

Late Monday, Apple announced that it would be touring assorted technology evangelists via its iPhone Tech Talk World Tour to a city near you with expert advice on how you can maximize your iPhone OS apps. The events are presently free although space is limited:

On Monday, Wolfram Alpha, the online computational knowledge engine that launched in May, saw its application become available in the App Store. Per MacRumors, the app "plugs directly into Wolfram|Alpha's supercomputing cloud to deliver the unrivaled power of the Wolfram|Alpha knowledge engine to the mobile environment."
While the app still requires an internet connection to work, it includes a special keyboard to make the entry of special characters for mathematical and other functions easy.

Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Gaming, Software, iPhone, App Store, iPod touch, Music

The good news is that EA has released Rock Band for the iPhone and iPod touch, and you can pick it up from the App Store right now. The bad news is that it seems like a pretty tough sell -- despite the relatively high price tag (Tap Tap Revenge 3, a similar music game, is currently 99 cents and headed for free), there's not much new here.

Sure, there is four-device Bluetooth multiplayer, and that's something that Tapulous' game has never had. But other than that, it seems like this is basically EA's cash in on the tapping concept -- the draw of Rock Band has been getting together with your friends and jamming out the hits on those fake instruments, and touching a button-less screen by yourself doesn't have the same effect. Singing is included, but you're still just tapping out notes for that -- it seems like they missed a lot of potential fun there. And even some of the fun things from the console version like the drum fills for overdrive and the character avatars are missing here.

If you don't like the 20 songs included with the game, you can download others at 50 cents (in two-song packs for a buck each), but most people probably shouldn't even bother at that price -- just stick with Tapulous' game unless you really love Rock Band and its aesthetics (even then, I haven't seen my much-beloved Harmonix mentioned anywhere with this port, so I doubt they're even involved. Update: They are listed on the game's splash screen, however, according to our readers).

Even if you want to try this one, wait for the inevitable price drop -- if the game really lived up to its name as the premiere music experience you'll find on the consoles, it might be worth it, but all indications are, unfortunately, that it doesn't.

Rock Band out for $9.99 on the iPhone... but fails to thrill originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 19 Oct 2009 21:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Rock Band out for $9.99 on the iPhone... but fails to thrill originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 19 Oct 2009 21:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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During Apple’s Q4 2009 financial results conference call today, when asked about competitive smartphone platforms and devices, Apple Chief Operating Officer Tim Cook responded:

Frankly, they are really just trying to catch up with the 1st iPhone that was announced 2 years ago

While many will no doubt argue — perhaps laugh outright — at that, it’s harder to laugh at Apple’s results to date: 7.2 million more iPhones sold in the last 3 months, and half-a-billion more App Store downloads during the same period.

So was Cook just showing his swagger, setting himself up for a big takedown, or comfortably settling into a combined iPhone/iTunes/App Store offering his thinks will be tough to beat in the consumer market?

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

COOh-Snap: Apple Competitors Still Trying to Catchup to Original 2007 iPhone 2G

According to Daring Fireball, Apple is set to introduce new products tomorrow morning, including:

Redesigned Plastic MacBooks, Redesigned (‘Impressive’) iMacs, Updated Minis (Including One That Ships With Mac OS X Server), the Multi-Touch Magic Mouse, and, as the Wildcard I’m-Not-Sure-I-Really-Believe-It-Myself Out-There Rumor, Maybe Even Some Sort of Mentioned-Nowhere-Else-But-in-This-Very-Headline Multi-Touch Trackpad Gadget for Desktop Macs

Last year, Apple held a special event, Spotlight Turns to Notebooks, to debut their last before-the-holidays offerings. Would they just dump so much new, and frankly interesting, products tomorrow morning without benefit of stage or keynote? Sure, but we’d be lying if we said we wouldn’t prefer the song and dance to go with them.

TiPb will cover whatever does get released, however it gets released, mainly as it pertains to anything that looks to have cross-over with iPhone technology like the “multi-touch trackpad” (why not just make an official Apple Mac trackpad app for the iPhone and iPod touch?)

Keep your eyes peeled for the Apple Online Store going down…

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

New Apple Products, Including Magic Mice and Desktop Multi-touch Tomorrow?

In App Purchasing for free apps, AT&T says no tethering this year, and jailbreak resistant iPhones! All this and more on this week's iPhone Alley Podcast. Show notes can be found at iPhoneAlley.com/podcast. If you have any questions, comments, or feedback, email us at Podcast[at]iPhoneAlley.com.

Word is spreading about a client for Google Wave for the Mac called Waveboard, and rumor has it that the client is also being made for the iPhone and is currently awaiting approval. Google Wave currently works on Mobile Safari by navigating to wave.google.com/wave on your device, but the dedicated client is expected to make it operate smoother.

Mozilla CEO John Lilly announced at the Play conference today at Berkeley University that his company was planning to launch a new applicaiton for the iPhone. He didn't say anything about what it would be, offering only a broad statement: “Mozilla will release an app to the iPhone App Store in the next few weeks,” Lilly said. “It’ll surprise people.”

According to developer Joe Hewitt, the next major version of the Facebook app for the iPhone and iPod touch, v3.1, will add push notifications. Currently, the official Facebook app allows users to do things like check and update news feeds, manage their media and other content.