Apple made it clear last year that Google Voice is not welcome on the App Store or your iPhone. “Fine,” said Google. “We’ll go through the browser!” Today the search engine revealed a new mobile web interface that uses some fancy HTML5 magic to provide voicemail, calling, and text message functionality. If you don’t already know, you can turn any page in Mobile Safari into an App icon on your home screen (click the “+” icon in Safari), meaning now you can have a legitimate Google Voice “app.” Below is a video tour. Update: There’s a down side to this: Cy writes in to let us know that this fancy new version actually breaks functionality for iPod Touch owners–the old web-based version let Touch owners make calls, but this one doesn’t. [More]
app store
NES Emulator Available On iPhone App Store For Brief, Shining Moment
By 12.22.09
MacWorld reports that Nescaline, an NES emulator, received Apple’s blessing and was briefly available for download from the App Store, but quickly disappeared. iPhone users craving marathon mobile sessions of Paperboy were bereft. [More]
Apple, Google, And AT&T Respond To FCC's Google Voice Questions
By 8.22.09
Apparently, Apple didn’t reject the Google Voice application for iPhone. They “[continue] to study it.” Yesterday, Apple, AT&T, and Google all turned in their responses to the FCC’s questions as part of the investigation into the bannination of Google Voice from the iPhone App Store.
Who Killed The Google Voice iPhone Application?
By 7.28.09
You can download a mobile Google Voice application for Blackberry or Android, but not for the iPhone. Apple rejected Google’s official application, and has been removing other apps using Google Voice functionality from the App Store. Now, why would they do such a thing? You know the answer. AT&T told them to.
"Baby Shaker" IPhone App Keeps Getting Pulled From App Store, We Can't Imagine Why
By 4.22.09
We know there have been complaints from developers that it takes too long to get iPhone apps approved, or that Apple is behind on payments, or that it’s hard to know what they’ll reject and what they’ll accept. Well, apparently they’ll accept an application that “challenges users to see how long they can withstand the cries of a baby before they shake it to death.” Oh wait, they won’t, they pulled it after complaints yesterday. No, wait, they put it back up for sale today! Oh no now it’s gone again. Maybe they’re just making room for a Pistol Whip Your Spouse app.
By 4.16.09
../../../..//2009/04/16/all-the-outrage-over-sling/
All the outrage over Sling Media’s iPhone app—which would have only worked with the latest Slingbox models—may have been moot. Boy Genius Report says they’ve received a tip that AT&T asked Apple to kill the app due to concerns about potential bandwidth drain. Update: JosephFinn points out that the tip is likely fake, as the IP address came from a prison. [IntoMobile]
Jobs Confirms iPhone 'Kill Switch'
By 8.11.08
Last week, a developer discovered that the iPhone has the capability to quietly connect to Apple’s servers to check an application blacklist, and then disable any installed apps that are on the list. The story was quickly defused by blogs, but today the Wall Street Journal says Steve Jobs has confirmed that there really is an application “kill switch.”
By 8.8.08
../../../..//2008/08/08/eight-people-bought-the-99999/
Eight people bought the $999.99 “I Am Rich” iPhone app before Apple pulled it from their store this week, reports the Los Angeles Times. “Six people from the U.S., one from Germany and one from France dropped a grand for the gem in the first 24 hours it was available.” The developer, Armin Heinrich, made $5,600 from those sales, while Apple made $2,400. I am currently developing an “I Am Now Richer” app to try to sell to Heinrich, since he’s got some extra spending money. [Los Angeles Times]
By 8.7.08
../../../..//2008/08/07/does-your-iphone-for-the-masses-make-you/
Does your iPhone-for-the-masses make you feel poor and ordinary? You need the I Am Rich app, which was available for sale on Apple’s app store for about a day (they removed it late yesterday afternoon, unfortunately). Priced at $999.99, it will place a big red jewel on your screen. Imagine how awesome you’ll look if you put this on a Swarovski-encrusted 3G model—$$$!!! [Technologizer via AppScout]
