MarcForrest.com

Category: Apple

  • Dataman iPhone App

    The other day I did a quick review on the Consume iPhone app, which monitors your call balance and free minutes usage. The one major thing missing from the app was the fact that it didn’t show how much data you had used for the month. We all know what a mission that can be in SA, given the “higher” cost of data here.

    Enter the (iTunes Link $0.99). The guys from Dataman contacted me, and sent me a review copy of the app to check out. Basically, the app runs in the background on your iPhone, and monitors your 3G & Edge usage, as well as your WiFi usage. You can pull stats & reports on what you have used so far for the day, week & month. The app also allows you to set thresholds and will alert you once you hit a certain percentage.

    The other great thing about this app, is that also allows you to geotag & monitor where you used your data, and shows you a visual map of your usage. In the latest version, you can turn this option off so that it doesn’t drain your battery. The difference between the Dataman & Consume app is that you don’t need to log into anything specific for Dataman. It just works quietly in the background.There is also an iPad version coming in November, which I KNOW will be a hit !

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    DataMan monitors and manages your data usage in real time, keeping a log of your activities. To control your data consumption and stop additional charges to your bill, you can set your preferred usage thresholds and receive real time alerts when you exceed them. What’s more, it geotags your data activities. So you can browse your daily activities on a map. You can even zoom in on the map to see the time and usage amount for certain places.

    This app is a MUST MUST have, and at only $0.99 I would suggest you get it sooner than later, as I can only see this app getting better & better !!

  • MyBroadband Forum iPhone App

    The guys from the MyBroadband/MyADSL site, launched their new (iTunes link – FREE)  towards the end of last week. I have to admit that I am not the biggest fan of forums, as they seem to suck up too much time, but this could well be handy, as I do have an account on MyBB, and often comment on some of the iPhone topics.

    The app is essentially a platform to the very popular Forum board they run, and offers full forum functionality. You can subscribe to threads, as well ask keep up to date of the latest topics.

    The app is actually built on the very popular forum interface iPhone app, Tapatalk. The MyBB app looks like it is just a rebranded version, but judging from the comments on the forum, is a whole lot faster.

  • FaceTime for Mac

    Ever since I got my iPhone 4, I have been a huge fan of the FaceTime functionality. I think the product is revolutionary, and even though people still say we have had “video calling” for years, this is NOT video calling. This is something bigger. Check out what my mate Anice Hassim, from immedia, had to say about it a while ago.

    Before last night Apple had already integrated FaceTime into their latest iPod Touch models, and now it is available as a stand alone application on existing & new Macs it opens a whole new world. Now you can chat to someone who could be on the other side of the world, and they don’t necessarily need to have an iPhone. Now we can communicate, visually with each other.

    To get FaceTime working on the Mac, you need to download it from Apple FaceTime site, and install the app on your Mac. You then need to either register an Apple ID, or use an existing one. Once you are in, you can call an iPhone 4 using the person’s cell number, or iPod/FaceTime for Mac using their registered email address.

    A few people have asked my they haven’t been able to use it yet, so below are a couple of things to check:

    • Make sure FaceTime on the iPhone is turned on. To check this go to Settings -> Phone -> And make sure FaceTime is switched on
    • If you are trying to call a FaceTime number (iPhone 4) from your Mac, you need to ensure you have it in the international format. So +27xxxxx
    • Check to see that you can call your FaceTime Mac from your FaceTime phone.
    • Make sure that the WiFi(iPhone/iPod) or Internet(Mac), the following ports are open: 443 (TCP), 3478–3497 (UDP), 5223 (TCP) 16384–16387 (UDP), and 16393–16402 (UDP). (Apple Support Doc)

    If you come across any other issues with FaceTime, leave a comment below, and I will try and see what I can dig up :)

  • Monitor your Vodacom balances on your iPhone

    I came across a really really cool (Free) iPhone app the other day called Consume (iTunes Link). The app allows you to view your balances from cellphone & broadband providers around the world, but only Vodacom has been added so far in SA. The other cool thing is you can add other web service such as Dropbox, Evernote, Gmail & Google Docs.

    The app is really simple to setup, and once you have downloaded it you need to enter your Vodacom/Vodacom4Me login details, which the app then uses to check your balances for both PostPaid & Prepaid.

    This is a screenshot from the Vodacom Prepaid option that shows how many minutes you have left, as well as how many promotional minutes I have, as well as when the next rollover is. Currently it doesn’t show your data bundle usage, but I have sent them a mail (begging) them for this.

    I don’t have a prepaid sim, but I assume the screen shows you your current balance, as well as expiry ?

    All in all a very handy app to have to keep track of your spend etc, and it’s free :) Oh, and there is an iPad app in development as we speak…

  • MTN 280 meter scalectrix track WTF!!!

    Check out these 2 INSANE videos that got secretly sent to me this morning.

    The videos are to promo the new HIGH speed MTN data network. The ad will only be airing on Sunday evening, so you saw it here first ;) shhhh

    The video is a high speed Scaletrix car chase over 280m built in some guys lounge, with cars chasing through the “interwebs”. Seriously cool. Kinda reminds me of  my childhood days, to see who could make the longest Scaletrix track through the house.

    Check them out below. First one is the video that will be airing from Sunday, and the second is the sneaky sneaky behind the scenes video :)

    We used 280 meters of scalectrix track to demonstrate MTN’s new upgraded network. When MTN upgraded for the 2010 World Cup, they upgraded for all of us here in Mzansi. Ayoba!