iPhone apps, forums, news, reviews and tips

It’s official. Palm announced this morning that it will be releasing its new touch screen phone, the Palm Pre, two days before Apple’s Steve-less Steve-note address at the WWDC on June 8th. Will Palm’s preemptive strike be enough to steal the thunder from the iPhone? Is this a serious threat to the iPhone? We got our hands on the Palm Pre and here’s what we think.

First off, the Palm Pre is a very mature, well-designed device. The ergonomics are nice, the slightly rounded back feels great in your hand. The screen is sharp and seems smaller than the iPhone’s screen, but then maybe that’s because there’s a black border around the screen which makes it appear smaller than it needs to be. The touchscreen interface is very intuitive, borrowing familiar gestures from the iPhone, Apple patents be damned. The slide-out qwerty keyboard is a great feature that will instantly appeal to BlackBerry users, although the buttons are very small and take some time to get used to.
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Touchtip’s Friday Roundup returns this week with the very best iPhone tips from our readers!

This round includes some secret tips that even expert iPhone users may not know about. Wanna learn the best way to force your iPhone to learn new words so that typing is even easier? How about a handy tip for disabling your network connection, or how to quit a frozen app without having to restart? Keep reading to learn all of these handy iPhone tips and more.
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Finally, the king of VoIP applications has arrived in the App Store allowing iPhones and yes, even iPod touches, to enjoy free phone calls and instant messaging.

The free Skype app isn’t the first VoIP iPhone app to offer this functionality, but it is without a doubt the very best of breed. The interface is responsive and intuitive. The icons are sharp. The audio quality is superb.

Best of all, everything just plain works as expected. No bugs, no frustration, just pure simplicity. Skype works on all iPhones and even second generation iPod touches using the earbud accessory with the built-in microphone.
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We’ve finally consummated our relationship with Tripit, thanks to today’s release of the first official native iPhone app from the creators of the Tripit web site. And best of all, it’s free.

You may have already read our coverage of Tripit here on Touchtip, but in case you haven’t here’s a quick summary of this fantastic service. In a nutshell, Tripit is a travel planning app that builds interactive itineraries for you that go way beyond the simple chronological action lists provided by similar services. Tripit’s itineraries are filled with extra goodies like integrated maps and driving directions, weather, local sightseeing spots, recommended restaurants, and so on. All of this is contained into a single master itinerary that can be easily accessed from web or mobile, and shared with your network of friends.
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If you haven’t paid a visit to the App Store lately, now is the time. Apple is running a contest with some very cool prizes like a fully loaded MacBook Pro, a 32GB iPod touch, a $10,000 iTunes card, and more. For a chance to win, all you need to do is head over to the App Store and download an app, free or paid, it doesn’t matter. Each app you download is a ticket in the hat, the more tickets you have, the better your chances of winning. You can get up to 25 entries per day, no purchase necessary. The contest ends after the one billionth download. As of this writing, the download count is just north of 950 million, so don’t wait. Go get some apps and get your chance to win a killer prize from Apple. Good luck!

• App Store Countdown Contest

Earlier this month, iPhone app developer Firemint released their newest game for iPhone and iPod touch, Flight Control. We almost wished we hadn’t tried this game; it’s crazy fun but frighteningly addictive. You could burn a lot of hours on this game without even realizing it. With simple gameplay, intuitive touch controls, and boiling frog difficulty as you advance, Flight Control manages to find that perfect blend of qualities that make for a great casual game.
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No matter how advanced AT&T and Apple try to claim the 3G network is for the iPhone, there really is no way around the fact that using a Wi-Fi connection is the best way to go. It continues to be faster, more reliable, and ultimately the best solution. However, this feature is just as prone to problems as any other part of the iPhone technology, and sometimes even worse because you are relying on more than just your mobile device. When you experience Wi-Fi problems try these troubleshooting tips and seeing if you can figure out what the problem is.
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