We Got Updates… July 7, 2009 Edition

Posted on 07 July 2009 by


wegotupdates

Every day there are dozens and dozens of app updates released to the iTunes App Store. Larry tweeted that after just a week away he had over 30 waiting! There are so many, in fact, that it is all but impossible to keep up with them. We won’t try. :-)

What we will do, however, is let you know when one of the apps WE ALREADY use gets a significant update that adds functionality, changes usability or anything else that makes a good app even better.

So let’s begin with the first installment of… We Got Updates…

LogMeIn Ignition

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LogMeIn Ignition is a great way to access and control your home computer form anywhere in the world. At $29.99 is isn’t cheap but of all the remote apps I have tried it is the one I continue to use. It is fast, stable and makes using your iPhone with a desktop a breeze. I have it set up to control my home iMac, my assistant’s computer and, for tech-support purposes, even my mother-in-law’s PC.

This update not only makes it compatible with OS 3.0 but updates the UI in some significant ways.

Get it HERE for $29.99.

reQall
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I have moved back and forth between reQall and Jott for the past year. Both support voice to text transcription but each uses a style all its own. In the case of reQall the app strives to be a “memory jotter”. In that capacity it excels.

Among other things, this update brings eyes-free voice notes that starts recording when the device is brought to your ear (think Google app search by voice) and push notifications.

Unlike Jott, reQall continues to offer a free version.

Get it HERE for free.

A standard account is free and Pro is just $24.99 per year. More information HERE.

Read It Later

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Read It Later is a direct competitor of Instapaper. Both make it simple to save articles and web pages you come across for later access. Both offer ways to read your saved articles. Read It Later, however, has a Firefox plugin that makes using it during browsing session as easy as can be.

This update adds an “auto-sync on start”, the ability to email an article and the ability to easily lock the device orientation. Read It Later offers both a free and a paid version.

Get the free version HERE and the Pro version HERE for $2.99.

Last.fm

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There are a host of good internet radio apps available. Last.fm is one I keep coming back to because it is free, easy to use and works great.

This update gives you more control over tags, reduces buffering time, and lets the app work better than ever when a slow or weak data connection is all that is available.

Get it HERE for free.

MapQuest 4 Mobile

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I’m still not totally sure why I have the MapQuest 4 Mobile app when the Google Maps app works great but there it is. On the upside, the MapQuest app is getting updated rather quickly. This update adds a number of businesses that can easily be located, support for the address book and a UI that is easier to use.

Get it HERE for free.

Hey Where Are You

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I’ve tried this app out with Larry and found it to work quite well. It makes it simple to let a select group of friends now where you are within seconds. Version 1 of the app worked well. This update refines the app adds some nice features that increase its usability.

Get it HERE for free.

Documents To Go

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The long-awaited Documents To Go app didn’t fail to impress. It brought real word processing power to the iPhone and iPod Touch. This update integrates OS 3.0′s cut and paste, makes sending documents via email easier than ever, adds multi-touch zoom in Word, and adds full screen support.

Get the basic version HERE for  $4.99 and the version with Exchange support HERE for $9.99.

Finally, we finish this first “We Got Updates…” post with word from a number of our readers that a recent update to Beejive IM ($9.99) fixed much of the instability and push notification issue that plagued the initial release. Personally I continue to be a fan of IM+ (on sale currently for $4.99) but it is great to know there is a choice in IM apps that push.

This post was written by:

- who has written 2793 posts on Gear Diary.

Having a father who was heavily involved in early laser and fiber-optical research, Dan grew up surrounded by technology and gadgets. Dan’s father brought home one of the very first video games when he was young and Dan remembers seeing a “pre-release” touchtone phone. (When he asked his father what the “#” and “*” buttons were his dad said, “Some day, far in the future, we’ll have some use for them.”) Technology seemed to be in Dan’s blood but at some point he took a different path and ended up in the clergy. His passion for technology and gadgets never left him. +Dan Cohen

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  • http://www.geardiary.com Michael Anderson

    I didn’t add mine to the list, but a new Myst update trims it from ~750MB to ~525MB! That 30% shrink is sweet!

  • alex_kac

    And don’t forget – Pocket Informant 1.04 was updated today as well.

  • Dan Cohen

    PI Update… Indeed it was and it is a big update!

    At the time of posting the Pocket Informant update had not yet gone live and, knowing Apple, it was anyone’s bet when it would. :)

    It isn’t only the app’s icon that was updated. Among the updates- faster start, faster ui, direct editing of Start in Task Display, Event and Task display now show the calendar the item is in and more. It is a nice update with, I am to understand, much more to come!