I guess that makes the record Emperor Palpatine?

The Empire Strikes Back is a post from: The Inquisitr

I know it’s common to marvel and wax about “how far games have come,” but dudes: Grand Theft Auto III can now be played on an iPhone. AN IPHONE. Jesus Christ, when I first sat down with Rockstar’s classic sandbox game in 2001, playing this on a damn phone felt centuries away. Never mind an upgraded version.

Yet, that’s what you can do. Grand Theft Auto III hit the Android Market and iOS App Store for smartphones and tablets today, priced at $4.99 in the US, and £3.21 for British gamers. Not only that, but this edition now offers HD graphics, added for the 10 Year Anniversary release. Yeesh. This bad boy appears on:

• Apple iOS Devices: iPad 1 & 2, iPhone 4 & 4S, iPod touch 4th Generation
• Android Phones: HTC Rezound, LG Optimus 2x, Motorola Atrix 4G, Motorola Droid X2, Motorola Photon 4G, Samsung Galaxy R, T-Mobile G2x
• Android Tablets: Acer Iconia, Asus Eee Pad Transformer, Dell Streak 7, LG Optimus Pad, Motorola Xoom, Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 and 10.1, Sony Tablet S, Toshiba Thrive

You can even plug in a USB controller, if you’re still not down with the touchscreen controls of tablets (I’m not a convert, personally – prefer the tactile feel of a stick and buttons, grandpa that I am).

Even Galaxy Nexus owners will be getting a version of this in the near future, heh. It’ll eat up your precious storage space, however – it’s 18MB on Android and a ridic-u-larse 462MB on iOS. Here’s a video:

Grand Theft Auto III Drops on iOS and Android [Video] is a post from: The Inquisitr

I felt bad for them at first too, but then they all started leaving app holes, so screw them!

Apps Shaking on iPhone is a post from: The Inquisitr

Audio specialist Behringer has revealed an upcoming 10,000-watt iOS dock known as the iNuke Boom. The system features both iPhone and iPod docking and weigns in at 700 pounds with a footprint of eight feet wide and four feet high.

The 10,000-watt system, part of Behringer’s Eurosound product line aims to bring “professional audio engineering origins” to the consumer market.

Along with the iNuke Boom the company also plans to launch four branches under the Eurosound brand including the home line which promises to bring concert sound to a listener’s home.

The iNuke Boom is priced at a not so consumer friendly price of $30,000 and will be shown off for the first time at CES 2012 in Las Vegas.

Would you be willing to pay $30,000 for a gigantic iOS dock?

Behringer Debuts Massive 10,000-Watt iOS Dock is a post from: The Inquisitr

Apple has posted a link on its website to a video of the company’s memorial services for its employees to celebrate the life of its founder Steve Jobs.

The event, held last Wednesday in an outdoor amphitheater at Apple campus, was closed to the public. Reporters were even asked to stay away from the Apple premises during that time. The company also closed all its retail stores so that employees could view the memorial service via webcast.

The video which runs 81 minutes is Apple’s way of sharing to the public the company as they mourn the death of Jobs at the age of 56 on October 5 due to a long battle with pancreatic cancer.

Apple CEO Tim Cook said the past two weeks had been the saddest of his life:

“But I know Steve. Steve would have wanted this cloud to lift for Apple and our focus to return to the work that he loved so much.”

Cook also revealed that the last piece of advice that Jobs gave him was “to never ask what he would do, just do what’s right.”

Jobs’ wife Laurene Powell and former Vice President and Apple board member Al Gore were also present during the event.

Despite not being involved with Apple, how do you celebrate Steve’s life? Or is this just another passing of a great mind?

Apple Posts A Celebration of Steve’s Life Online is a post from: The Inquisitr

No matter how unknotted iPod or iPhone headphones are when you stick them in your bag or pocket, fifteen minutes later, this.

Every. Single. Time. is a post from: The Inquisitr

If you have an iPod, iPhone or iPad that’s just collecting dust, you can take it to GameStop for credit toward video games, gaming systems and downloadable content (DLC).

GameStop president Tony Bartel, in introducing the new program, said:

“By trading in iOS devices, GameStop customers have yet another source of funds to put forward the purchase of new and pre-owned games, DLC, digital PC games and more.”

Most iPod, iPhone and iPad should trade higher than a typical game price, allowing people to build their credit more quickly. GameStop, however, cautioned that items should be in working condition and free from cosmetic defects. For more details about the trade-in program, visit GameStop.com/iTrades.

Let me add by saying that the iPod, iPhone and iPad should not be stolen as well.

GameStop Wants Your iPod, iPhone and iPad is a post from: The Inquisitr

If you were planning on doing away with your old iOS device, you may want to hold on to it for a bit – at least if you do any shopping at GameStop. According to a report from 9to5mac, GameStop is set to start selling and trading iOS devices such as iPods, iPads and iPhones.

The announcement came from an annual trade show held in Las Vegas this past week. Consumers will be able to go to their local GameStop and trade in any of their iOS devices, new or old, for in-store credit.

According to a report by Joystiq, GameStop plans on reselling the devices, but it isn’t known at what price point the used iOS devices would sell for. Additionally, GameStop employees told Joystiq that the retailer should start accepting trade-ins for iOS devices within a week or two.

Over the past year, GameStop has been making a rather aggressive push to cover all gaming markets. They purchased Impulse and intend to make a direct competitor with Steam, and this new move suggests they’re planning on stepping into the ever-so-popular casual gaming market that’s such a big hit on iOS devices.

GameStop haven’t announced any plans for anything just yet, but it will be interesting to see how all of this unfolds.

Source: 9to5mac (via Joystiq)

GameStop to start selling, trading iOS devices is a post from: The Inquisitr

Hands up if as soon as you got your first Game Boy, you were a lifelong earbuds convert.

Perhaps I’m dating myself. [/foreveralone] But earbuds have always offered a more desirable personal listening experience, unless you’re a DJ and you need those giant, hearing-test-at-school issue headphones. (Which, by the way, make you look like a total toolbox on the subway.) However, it seems earbuds aren’t totally ambient-noise free or without-cons either. The fiddly little things don’t fit perfectly in every ear, and some days just will not stay put.

While you may be irritated you didn’t think of it first, someone has invented inflatable earbuds that fit your individual ear better than stock-standard, hard plastic buds. According to DVICE, the design is not only less of a pain in the ass to use, it’s also easier on your hearing:

Your ears have a natural acoustic defense mechanism that activates whenever they encounter intense sound pressures, like those that you get when you seal off your ear canal with conventional earbuds. This defense mechanism essentially tenses up your inner ear, which has the effect of cranking down the volume of sound that you hear by up to 50 dB in an effort to protect all your delicate hearing bits. Not only does this “hearing fatigue” force most people to turn the volume of their music way up to compensate, which is bad for your ears, but it can also cause discomfort and pain.

Alas, the innovation is just in prototype stage, and not yet close to the consumer market. Would you be interested in trying balloon earbuds?

[Cool] ‘Balloon’ earbuds fit your ear, don’t fall out every three seconds is a post from: The Inquisitr

In a move that is sure to bring many an Apple fan to their knees in convulsions and reaching for box after box of Kleenex artist Paul Fairchild has taken some of the most iconic Apple gadgets and photographed them after they have been violently violated.

On the other hand they are also the perfect images for you to show that obnoxious friend who claims that Apple gadgets are perfect in every way and then watch them start trembling.

via CrunchGear

That weeping sound you hear is from Apple fanbois around the world is a post from: The Inquisitr

It turns out that reports of the Sony Walkman’s demise have been greatly exaggerated.

There was much gnashing of teeth and wailing earlier this month when reports circulated that the first portable music player many of us owned, the Sony Walkman, was nearing the end of its life as an available consumer product. While they would live forever in our teenage memories, the idea that portable cassette players were no longer going to be sold saddened many, even if most people probably can’t recall the last time they’d spotted one in the wild.

It seems, however, that the Walkman will live to consume more copies of Jane’s Addiction’s Ritual de lo Habitual. (A title I lost three of to my dodgy Walkman’s voracious appetite in junior high.) Initial reports that the venerable Walkman had been retired were partly true- the device will be no longer sold… in Japan. The rest of the world, whoever might still be buying them, can still purchase Walkman cassette players wherever they might still be available for purchase.

A spokesman for Sony who refused to be identified as he is not authorized to speak on the matter said that there is a “small but consistent” demand for the device. One model is currently available in the US, and in addition to playing your “old cassette collection,” it can also pick up broadcasts from the National Weather Service for those who may not have yet discovered the internet.

Zombie Sony Walkman returns from dead, mostly is a post from: The Inquisitr

After being rumored for so long, it’s finally confirmed: a premium Hulu service for iPad, iPod, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 3, not to mention connected TVs and Blu-ray players from Samsung, Vizio and Sony.

As previously speculated, it shall be known as Hulu Plus, and will cost $9.99 a month. Whole seasons of shows that are available in limited quantities on the free service will be accessible for Hulu Plus subscribers.

Contrary to earlier suggestions, Microsoft won’t be getting first dibs. Hulu for Sony’s PlayStation 3 will be available from July, while Xbox 360 owners will have to wait for “early 2011″. The latter will feature a “custom Hulu experience” for Xbox Live Gold members, featuring controller-free navigation (thanks to Kinect) and the ability to watch in Xbox Live parties. That said, it’s still a coup for the PS3 to beat its rival to launch by more than six months.

Hulu Plus will boast full seasons of current ABC, NBC, and Fox television shows, and in glorious HD at that. S’later, cable TV!

[Via press release]

Hulu Plus announced, coming to iPad, Xbox 360, PS3, others is a post from: The Inquisitr

To speed up the process you can also disable the inital backup that occurs, when you connect your iPhone/iPod/iPad with iTunes. That is pretty clever!

The app is now submitted for Apple’s approval, so hopefully wel’ll know more in a few weeks.

WiFi Sync For iPhone – Speed Demo is a post from: The Inquisitr

Developer Greg Hughes from Great Britain will submit it to Apple for approval later this week. If Apple doesn’t approve it, the app will hopefully be available on Cydia.

I like the idea, but I’m not sure how often I’ll use it. I usually charge my iPhone while I’m syncing, but if the app is free I’ll definitely get it.

You can get a few more details about iPhone, iPod or iPad WiFi sync here.

Source: Engagdet

WiFi iTunes Sync Coming Soon! But Will Apple Approve It? is a post from: The Inquisitr

First my usual disclaimer when it comes to writing about Apple: I do not own any Apple products or stocks. I do not always agree with the company’s business practices. I do however think that they create and market some of the finest gadgets the world has ever laid fingers on.

Now that is out of  the way I just wanted to say a few words about all this gnashing of teeth and self-righteous moaning that is going on over the fact that Apple has tightened up the developer SDK licensing restrictions. Oh and also about how they seem to be giving any apps with the word Pad in them the boot from the App Store.

Let’s be clear on one thing though before we go any further because there is one very simple thing about Apple and their current consumer gadget platform that needs to be understood as it impacts everything the company does.

It is simply this – Apple doesn’t give one crap about geeks, especially the really hardcore blogging type geeks. Apple is all about getting their products in the hands of the millions (and millions) of people who don’t know and thing about technology and if the truth be known don’t want to know a thing about technology.

The problem is that we are self-assuming bunch and believe that everyone in the world needs to get technology. I hate to be the one to break it to you but the number of people who couldn’t give a rat’s ass about technology far outnumber those of us that do. That is Apple’s target. Not you. Not me and not your grandma who can run circles around you in Linux.

They are going after the kids who hate computers. They are going after the kids who live in a world of texting. They are going after regular people like pilots, doctors, teachers. Hell they might even be going after politicians because we all know they hate technology.

This is the Apple vision and it is one that they will adhere to come hell or high water. They will set the bar and woe to those that don’t want to meet it.

It is Apple’s game. They have set the rules and if you want to play in their ever expanding world then you put up with the narrow confines of the company’s vision. They don’t care if if developers like Dan Grigsby decide that it’s time to leave Apple behind because for every Grigsby that leaves there will be a hundred more developers willing to toe the Apple line.

Apple has set the developer guidelines in a way that benefits them and doesn’t care whether Novell is worried about the standing of MonoTouch or not. You either believe, or even just agree to the terms of the Apple vision or you don’t Apple and Jobs couldn’t careless even if that means that like Adobe and possibly Novell your company has to take a big hit.

The thing about the Apple Vision is that contrary to what people like Tyler Romeo might think in the Apple World there is a God and his name is Steve Jobs. The reason for this is very simple. It was, and still is Jobs’ vision that literally saved the company from oblivion and you can be sure that this point is put front and center anytime anyone questions how the company is being run.

In the end it all boils down to one incredibly simple fact. Steve Jobs’ vision is Apple Law. It has made the company incredibly wealthy, restored the company to a level of prominence it has never had before and no amount of whining or bitching is going to change the company.

Like it or lump it. It doesn’t get any simpler.

Whining to Apple – an exercise in futility is a post from: The Inquisitr

Ah the iPad love. Can’t you just smell it in the air?

That sweet aroma of money flowing into the coffers of Apple. It’s enough to make one all warm and mushy not to mention; if you are John Gruber, writing a tome about the incredible world changing device.

I’ve got to admit though that from all the loving words being thrown around the Web this sure does seem to be a pretty sweet blown up iPod Touch err iPhone on steroids err all-in-one laptop computer .. oh hell sweet something.

One of the most highly sung praises of the iPad has been the fact that this sucker will keep running on battery power for 10 hours. Wow. That is great especially considering most laptops are lucky to keep going for more than a couple of hours.

But then if your laptop had two great big honking batteries slapped on it it would probably run for 10 hours as well. Just look at the size of those things

Thanks to the various hardware sites that love nothing better than tearing apart stuff we find that maybe that suggestion that the iPad really is nothing more than a blown up iPod Touch might be closer to the truth than Apple might want to admit.

You’d last 10 hours to if you had a pair of honking huge batteries strapped to you is a post from: The Inquisitr

In a last ditch attempt to arrest the terminal decline in CD sales, Universal Music has decided to make CD’s cheaper than digital downloads.

According to AllThingsD

The world’s biggest music label is pushing a plan to sell all its CDs at a retail price of $10 or less, Billboard reports. Given that all the big labels are currently selling discs at wholesale prices of $10 to $12, that’s a big price chop

An update notes that Universal hasn’t confirmed the strategy yet, only that the company will begin “looking at such variables as greater selection at sharper pricing on front-line releases. We expect to begin the test in Q2.”

There is some evidence that price cuts do work, but isn’t this a case of too little, too late?

The shift away from physical media to digital distribution hasn’t been about price exclusively, although that’s obviously a factor for some. The main driver is a shift in consumption of music to players that support digital music only. While most people may still be able to play a CD via their computer, fewer and fewer would actually own a dedicated CD player (indeed, do they still make them?) Convenience is the key: a download works straight away vs the need to rip a CD. They’re also more convenient, being available 24/7 on demand, and come at a lower marginal cost to the consumer: you have to travel to a music store to acquire a CD, an exercise that costs money. You might be able to order a CD online, but then you add shipping. A digital music download: press a button, do not pass go.

If the move does see an increase in CD sales, it can only be a short term blip because despite the best efforts of the industry, physical media will soon be dead.

Too Little, Too Late: Universal To Make CD’s Cheaper Than Digital Music is a post from: The Inquisitr

I don’t want to pay $100 for an iPod, let alone $95,000, but that’s the price being asked for the iPod Rose by Stuart Hughes.

The unit is covered in gold, 263 grams of 18k rose gold to be exact and features a platinum Apple logo on the back of the unit, 53 diamonds and platinum navigation buttons, while 4.5ct of diamonds surround the device.

The price may be high, but hurry up and get yours now and you’ll be only one of 10 people in the world to own one. Then again you could also buy a small house or several cars and not look like such a douche bag. [SlipperyBrick]

iPod Supreme Rose, Now Available For The Low Price Of $95,000 is a post from: The Inquisitr

When Apple first released the iPod it wasn’t targeting the tech oriented early adopters. It was targeting the kid next door that wanted to look cool at school while being able to enjoy listening to their MP3 collection. It wasn’t designed to go after the people who knew how to rip; or download, their own MP3s and using confusing pain in the ass software copy those songs onto some generic player. The iPod was meant for those mom’s and non technical people who could easily use iTunes to sync their music.

The same could be said for the iPhone as well. It wasn’t designed with the likes of Robert Scoble or other big name tech bloggers and early adopters. It was designed and marketed to the cool people outside of the whole tech bubble. It was for people that had become totally dissatisfied with their current cell phone. The early adopter buzz was just an added bonus that Steve Jobs couldn’t have cared less about.

Sure the Mac faithful are important but then they will buy anything that Cupertino gets the Jobs stamp of approval on. But the technology sector has never been their principal market. Even their desktops and laptops weren’t designed for computer geeks or tech know-it-alls. They were designed for designers, for people who placed ascetics above processing power and spreadsheet magic.

There’s a lot of noise in the tech blogosphere about how Jobs has let down the faithful because the iPad doesn’t have things like a camera, USB ports or a bunch other geek hot button “needs”.

Well you bunch of tech-heads and early adopter dweebs need to get over your ego puffery and delusions of self-importance. Just as with the iPod and the iPhone before it the iPad wasn’t created to give you all a great big woodie.

The iPad was created for the cool kids. It was created for the mother living next door. It was created for the student going to college. It was designed for the people in the world who couldn’t give a shit if they can program the next great million dollar app or not. It was created to give people a way to be entertained without having to book a chiropractor appointment from having to lug their laptop around on their travels.

It other words it was designed for real people living real lives.

And you know what? I bet it’s going to be a roaring success.

Get over yourselves tech geeks, the iPad wasn’t meant for you is a post from: The Inquisitr

Don’t get me wrong – I’m not going to suggest that there is now magical Apple tablet going to be announce on the 27th. Neither am I saying that Apple is barking up the wrong tree by even thinking about bringing one to market.

What I am saying is that given Apple’s past the idea of them bringing a tablet to market doesn’t jive with their DNA.

In a post here earlier today Dennis Bjørn Petersen asked a simple question

So what will the Apple Tablet do to help resurrect a business that has been sleeping for the last decade?

That got me thinking about Apple and its past moves with the iPod and the iPhone.

When Steve Jobs presented the iPod, and iTunes, to the world and forever changed the whole music industry he did it at a time when MP3 players pretty well sucked. They were expensive and for the most part pieces of crap.

Steve Jobs saw a market that already had established players in it but didn’t have a good enough product. So he gave us the iPod. Something new that shook the established MP3 marketplace to its knees.

Once the iPod had solidified its place as the market leader Jobs turned his attention to the other area where the market had definite leaders making a lot of money but whose products sucked. So once more he and Apple worked their magic and gave us the iPhone which has forever changed the way we look at smartphones.

In both cases Jobs saw an already existing marketplace that admittedly were full of competitors. In both cases he thought that Apple could do a better job than the existing players.

The problem is that when it comes to the tablet there is no existing market. Oh sure there’s a few niche markets but nothing that would even come close to the way the MP3 player and smartphone market was. There’s literally no market to shake up.

Unlike both the iPod and iPhone, Jobs and Apple are trying to create a market for their new product. They are approaching newspapers, book publishers, television networks and game developers.

In effect Jobs has created a product that he thinks is cool but there are no marketable goods for and this is totally unlike previous Apple created game changing moments.

So sure Jobs might be announcing a new creation on January 27 but it still doesn’t make sense as to why.

The whole Apple tablet thing makes no sense is a post from: The Inquisitr