MarcForrest.com

Category: Apple

  • Flipboard – WOW !!!

    I got asked the other day, why I haven’t blogged more about my iPad since I got it almost a month ago. Well, the dead honest truth, is that I haven’t been wowed by any apps. There have been a few ( a whole separate blog post) and  News24 & Mix Mobile apps, def did catch my eye, and every morning I read the news on the News24 app.

    Well, that was until this morning. Enter Flipboard (iTunes Link). A free app for your iPad from the iTunes app store. Flipboard will revolutionise the way we will use the iPad. It puts the news you WANT to read and is relevent to you, in an awesome looking magazine format.


    Here is a video on how the app works:

    You simply “swipe” through to the next page, pinch & zoom into an article, and read your news. But for me, the big seller in Flipboard is the fact that it integrates with your social networks. So, it links into Twitter & Facebook and shows you content that has been retweeted or shared by your friends. So for example if someone shares a link on Twitter from any website, it will present it on your Flipboard.

    Here is an example. Here is a page from my Flipboard which shows images & stories shared by friends on Facebook.

    You can also add specific catgories, like tech & photos etc, which will show you the best of the web. I also love the way page turns and the “animation” it uses.

    This is by far one of the best mobile or desktop applications I have used in a long long time. If you have an iPad I highly recommend you download Flipboard, and if you don’t have an iPad, I suggest you download the app, and go and buy one :)

  • SA Lotto iPhone app reaches number 2 in the SA iTunes Store

    After just 16 days of our SA Lotto iPhone app going live, we are pleased to announce that we hit number the number 2 position on the South African iTunes store.

    The response to the app has been phenomenal and really exceeded all our expectations. In fact, almost every single comment or feedback we received about the app, has been positive. To give you some idea of how many downloads we have had, we have had close on 1,000 downloads of the app already, with about 80% of these coming from the SA iTunes store. What it also means though, and proves my previous point, is that the iPhone market in South Africa is still pretty uneducated about downloading and using iPhone apps.

    Thanks to everyone who has downloaded the app and the positive feedback. We working busy working on ver 2.0, which will be filled with loads of new and exciting features. Also, once again, I just want to say a big big thanks to Juliaan who put so much time into this app, without him, none of this would have been possible :)

  • Win a prize valued at $10,000 with FNB & PayPal X

    The guys from FNB & PayPal X have put up a prize valued at about $10,000 for a South African developer who create innovative an application using PayPal’s payment platform. This is any type of app, not iPhone, but can also be web etc.

    The competition forms part of the PayPal X Innovate Conference which is in taking place in October in San Fransisco. The winner of the local leg of the competition will get to travel to the conference courtesy of FNB & PayPal X, and all expenses will be covered. The conference will feature presentations from industry experts, new product announcements and sessions that will give developers the tools and support they need to create the future of payments.

    PayPal X is the PayPal developer network which has loads and loads of resources and forums for creating your own PayPal application. I was looking around on the site earlier, and there are some really cool things to play around with. Being the non developer that I am, even I understood it :) I also came across a very very cool iPhone Library, which allows you integrate PayPal into your iPhone app, and allows you to accept mobile payments.

    How to enter
    To submit for the FNB and PayPal X Award, log on to x.com and click to register for the PayPal X Developer Challenge. Select the box for the FNB and PayPal X Award. Developers who register by 4 August, 2010 at 11:59 p.m. PDT will be entered to win one of 10 iPads. The use of some of PayPal’s products requires approval by 1 September, 2010; please check x.com for detailed contest timelines and deadlines. The winner of the FNB/PayPal X Award will be notified on 29 September, 2010.

    Good Luck :)

  • MiX Mobile iPad app

    Earlier today I wrote about the News24 iPad app being the first iPad app in South Africa, until I was alerted earlier today  to the fact that it indeed wasn’t the first. The free Mix Mobile for iPad app (iTunes Link) from the guys and girls at Mix Telematics, was actually the first SA iPad app, which was published on the 30th June.

    You may recall a couple of months ago, I received a XDrive unit from the chaps at Mix. The XDrive unit is a device you install in your car, which then allows you to track it on the either the web site, an iPhone app, and now, and iPad app. The app is very cool, and is perfect for the iPad. The large screen now lets you get a much “wider” view of what is happening with your vehicle. You can view movement history of the car, which will show you stats such as distance traveled, top speed and time etc.

    Here are some of the features of the Mix Mobile for iPad app:
    • Track your vehicles in real-time on a map
    • Quick view of all your vehicles and their status
    • Latest speed and event information
    • Choice of maps include street, satellite and hybrid
    • SMS tracking (including multiple positions)
    • System test from MiX Mobile
    • Lock onto a vehicle in Follow Mode
    • Trip reports
    • Plot a route on a map
    • See start and end points of trips
    • Your position relative to your vehicle
    • Longitude and Latitude positions as well as street locations

    I have had my XDrive unit for  almost 8 months now, and the credits I got from the team when they sent it to me, are STILL available (413 left). Granted, I don’t do thousands of KM a week, but it sure has lasted long. What I do like is the ability to pull reports from the website, and I really hope to be able to see this type of functionality in both the iPad & iPhone app. It would also be great if one could see your balance & purchase more credits directly through the app.

    The one thing thing I have to commend the guys (well actually mostly girls that I follow on Twitter) is the superb support & passion for their products. I had an issue a while back, and mailed @Cath_Lewis, who responded almost immediately and sorted my issue out. Even the CEO of the company is on Twitter and interacts with their users. Another #brandplus to them :)

    As my time draws to a close with the XDrive, I am most definitely going to be topping up the credit, now that the iPad version is out. I am looking forward to using it more and more in the coming months.

  • South Africa’s first iPad app – News24

    The team from News24, have just published their latest offering to the already impressive lineup of iPhone apps. The News24 iPad app (iTunes link) is South Africa’s very first iPad developed app. Oops, looks like I was wrong here. The first iPad app in South Africa was the Mix Mobile app from the guys and girls at Mix Telematics

    The app encompasses much of the News24 site, with a couple of extra’s thrown in. There is a section for Top stories, as well as the ability to view news in the various categories. The iPad app is also designed to work with the portrait and landscape options offered by the iPad. Also included is a section for the News24, “News in Pictures” section which takes advantage of the large screen

    Jannie Momberg, the editor of News24, had this to say about the new app:

    As South Africa’s largest digital news brand it is important for us to make our content available on all platforms. Apart from our website and interactive DSTV channel, News24 already has a number of applications for the various mobile platforms. These include apps for the iPhone, Blackberry, Android and Java phones.

    The iPad is an important part of the Apple “eco-system” it’s launch has possibly created another publishing platform – the mobile tablet device.

    On the usability side we’ve concentrated on developing an app that tries to take advantage of the iPad attributes. Other functionality elements like share options and comments will be included in the near future.


    First impressions of the app are pretty slick, and I’m looking forward to seeing a couple more ports of the other Media24 apps to the iPad in the near future