iPod

Apple has updated its Apple Store app with two handy new options for buyers.

Released yesterday, version 2.5 of the app now lets you see whether an item that you order online can be delivered to your local Apple store.

Simply tap on the Check Availability link after you choose an item. Enter your city or ZIP code. The app shows you a list of the closest Apple Stores. Tap on one of the listed stores, and the app tells you if the item can be shipped there.

The app also offers more flexibility in where and how you … Read more

Apple's built-in browser, Safari, is not very friendly to outside plug-ins or services. For them to work, often a proxy or invasive app is needed that can access your data. It's not an ideal solution. So, AdBlock for iPhone, iPad, and iTouch, produced as a hobby by developer Benjamin Loewe, is a fantastic solution. Designed and implemented as a standalone Web browser, AdBlock promises to stop pop-ups, layer ads, blinking banner ads, and subscription traps from appearing on screen -- an increasingly common problem in the age of smartphone Web browsing. The browser starts up immediately, much like … Read more

I've lived with a smartwatch, in one form or another, for several periods over the past few years. Recently, with the Martian Passport. Further back, with the iPod Nano and a Hex wristband. Before that, a SPOT watch.

I love the idea of a smartwatch. Certainly, so does the media as of late. Bloomberg reports and iWatch rumors galore, plus various wearable watch-type items at January's CES, have started to give this territory the sense of a category.

Between the Martian and the Nano watch, I loved aspects of each -- and also found them both lacking. There'… Read more

Barcelona is the place to be, and not just for the cafe con leche, the jamon iberico, or the incredible melted-stone facades of such Gaudi creations as the Sagrada Familia or the Casa Mila. Forget all that nonsense. It's all about the phones.

Mobile World Congress just wrapped in Barcelona, and with it came a bevy of new product announcements, ranging from Ubuntu and Firefox operating systems to new Samsung tablets, new phablets from LG and ZTE, a new Wi-Fi coffee-maker from Qualcomm, and...well, no, no Samsung Galaxy S4. That's next week. But this week's episode … Read more

Selling or trading in your older used electronics for some fast cash is quick and convenient. You don't have to deal with pesky eBay fees, or haggle over the final sales price with a stranger on Craiglist. Sites like Amazon Trade-In, eBay Instant Sale, and Gazelle all make it easy to send in a used item. You mark the condition of your item, ship it off, let the company inspect it, and wait for the cash to show up in your PayPal or Amazon account. I rounded up five trade-in sites here if you're interested in reading more … Read more

Launching iTunes, the App Store app, or the Mac App Store just to find an app, copy its direct link, and then send it to someone is a process we all accept. Sure, it doesn't take up too much time, but if you're sharing apps on a regular basis, the entire process adds up. But there's a quicker, easier way to share an App Store link with your fellow iOS and Mac users.

During the Super Bowl, the AppStore.com URL shortener made its official debut when the "Star Trek: Into Darkness" commercial used AppStore.com/StarTrekApp … Read more

Apple has released a new beta of iOS 6.1.3 for developers.

Dubbed iOS 6.1.3 beta 2, the update is supposed to fix a hole that can let someone gain access to your iPhone by sneaking past the lock screen. Through a small series of steps, including making an emergency call, a person could bypass the passcode in order to make phone calls, listen to voice mail, and check contact photos.

Apple acknowledged the bug last week. promised to squash it in a future iOS release. iOS 6.1.3 will fix that problem, the company said, … Read more

Air bags, antilock brakes, and stability control. CD players, power locks and windows, and air conditioning. These are all features that at some point were optional (and sometimes costly) in vehicles, but over time we've come to expect them in every new car on the road -- whether that's due to legislation or changing buyer tastes. As cars continue to evolve, so grow our expectations of what should be included in the sticker price. I've rounded up a few optional car tech features that I'd like to see make the jump to being standard equipment.

Bluetooth … Read more

Kickstarter has birthed some pretty cool accessories for iPhones, iPods, and iPads. The ChargeCard, for example, which I recently saw and loved at CES. And the Woxom SlingShot video stabilizer/tripod.

If you sometimes feel like you might be missing out on the good stuff, or perhaps you just don't have time to troll Kickstarters listings in search of iDevice-related items, there's a site you may want to visit: BiteMyApple.co.

BiteMyApple offers a simple, stylish catalog where you can browse and, if you wish, buy various "Kickstarter success stories." You'll find items like the … Read more