iPhone Atlas

The iPad is great for many things, but one of the best uses for me is relaxing on a Saturday and flipping through the latest news. There are plenty of basic news apps that grab all the latest headlines for you, but some offer a sleek layout that lets you browse the news using an elegant interface.

I recently reviewed Trapit for iPad, a fairly new newsreader you can train to give you the latest stories about any subject. You simply search for a keyword and Trapit makes a "Trap" of the latest news stories on that subject … Read more

Google yesterday announced the first update to its Chrome iOS app. Now available in the App Store, the 21.0.1180.77 update brings a few tweaks for iPhone and iPad users.

The biggest change is the ability to share directly from Chrome through e-mail or on Facebook, Google+, and Twitter (see our How To for more information). That follows a Google+ update last week, which allowed users to open shared Web links directly in Chrome.

Also new are improved sign-in error messages, better language detection for the welcome tour, and fixes for Web pages that load blank in Incognito … Read more

Skype users can now send and receive photos via the latest update to the Internet communication service's iOS app.

Available in Apple's App Store as of today, Skype version 4.1 kicks in a few enhancements. But the most notable one is Photo Share.

You can grab an existing photo from your iPhone or iPad gallery -- or snap a new one -- and then IM that photo to friends and family via Skype. The company says there's no size limit on the photo. So this is one way to bypass the file attachment limitations often imposed … Read more

Android and Apple dominate the smartphone market in Japan just as they do elsewhere in the world.

Looking at Japanese smartphone ownership in the three months ending June, ComScore found that Android took home the lion's share with a 64 percent share, up almost two points from the prior three months. Apple's iOS grabbed a 32 percent share.

That left Microsoft's Windows Phone in third place with 3 percent of the Japanese market. RIM's BlackBerry OS and Nokia's Symbian combined eked out less than half a percentage point.

More than 25 million Japanese consumers owned … Read more

iPhone users now have yet another choice for a mobile browser.

Maxthon has finally made its debut for Apple's iPhone. As of today, the new version of the mobile browser is compatible with the iPhone 3GS, 4, and 4S, and with the iPod Touch 3G and 4G.

A dedicated iPad app has been around for a while. Maxthon also provides desktop clients for Windows and the Mac, as well as mobile versions for Android phones and tablets.

Like its big brother iPad edition, the iPhone flavor offers several features not found in Mobile Safari.

Maxthon starts off with a … Read more

Looking for a gift for your favorite iTunes user, even if that's you? Here's a good deal from Wal-Mart.

The retail giant has shaved $20 off a $100 iTunes electronic gift card. For your $80 purchase, Wal-Mart sends you a PIN, which you can use on an iTunes spending spree or e-mail to someone else as a gift.

The PIN is usually delivered within a few minutes, according to the company, but could take as long as 48 hours, so be patient if you don't receive it right away.

The gift cards are not returnable or refundable, … Read more

Yesterday, I posted a review of Mad Skills BMX, an excellent sequel to the popular Mad Skills Motocross game that uses a completely new control system. If you haven't checked it out, I highly recommend Turborilla's latest game.

There are a ton of side-scrolling racing games in the App Store that I've played and reviewed over the years, but only a few can match the level of polish and challenging gameplay found in the Mad Skills games. I've added a couple more to the list here, but if you have a good one you're playing, let me know in the comments.

This week's collection of iOS apps consists of two excellent side-scrolling racers that I recommend wholeheartedly. The first offers a Trials-like experience that has you restarting tracks over and over to get the best time. The second is a recent release with (mostly) lifelike physics as you race giant four- and six-wheel drive vehicles.… Read more

Apple is again facing controversy over an item being sold through iTunes.

The Conference of European Rabbis wants Apple to remove a book known as "The Protocols of the Elders of Zion," which is being sold as a 99-cent e-book through iTunes.

The Protocols, which surfaced early in the 20th century, purports to reveal a Jewish conspiracy to take over the world. The book has since been discredited as a fake but was used by Nazis and is still used by some hate groups to justify their anti-Semitism.

The rabbis are concerned that the book's availability in … Read more

Users of the iPhone could eventually see thinner and lighter displays, if Apple follows through on a patent it just received.

Awarded to Apple today, the newly patented LCD screen technology integrates the touch sensors with the actual display circuits, reducing the space taken up by the screen. The new technology is an improvement over the current technique, which places the touch sensors on top of the screen and naturally leads to a thicker display.

Dubbed simply "Touch screen liquid crystal display," the patent suggests a variety of ways to integrate the various components. In one scenario, the … Read more