Is that an iPad 2 I see at the top of your Christmas list? Hold fire, eager tech fan! New rumours suggest that the next-gen Apple tablet is merely a few months away, meaning that your new favourite toy may be out of date before too long.

The latest whispers come from supply trackers DigiTimes, who've a decent track record for spotting Apple's gear on the production lines.

They reckon that Apple's parts manufacturers have began sending new components to the assembly plants at Foxconn, where the Cupertino team's gear is made.

iPad 2 production will begin to slow down over the next few weeks, with iPad 3 devices ready in time for the new year. This lines up nicely with a proposed March or April release come the Spring, which is in keeping with Apple's yearly product refresh cycle.

According to DigiTimes, Apple will have a whopping 10 million iPad 3 units ready to hit shelves by Q1 of 2012.

Via: DigiTimes

To mark the first anniversary of The Beatles back-catalogue being made available digitally for the first time through the iTunes store, Apple have teamed up with the Fab-Four's team to offer iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch users an exclusive free "Yellow Submarine" book, based on the 1968 Beatles movie of the same name.

A digital update of the 2004 "Yellow Submarine" book, it's packed with psychedelic interactive illustrations, video clips from the movie and song snippets, with a full "read aloud" voice over narration track from Dean Lennox Kelly.

Click here to grab the free book, or download it through Apple's iBooks application.

Since making their debut on the iTunes store, The Beatles have racked up ten million songs sales and over 1.8 million album downloads on the iTunes Store worldwide. Bet they wish they'd jumped onboard a bit sooner now!

The next gen iPhone and iPad devices from Apple will each be packing 4G super-fast mobile data connections.

That's the report coming from Nikkei Business, who state that Apple's smartphones and tablets will be making the jump to LTE speeds for the first time.

Nikkei Business believe that Apple CEO Tim Cool has already entered into talks with Japanese carrier NTT DoCoMo, with the two meeting in Apple's hometown of Cupertino.

It is thought that the two firms have come to an agreement to bring iPad 3 and iPhone 5 devices, each packing the aforementioned 4G connections, to Japan by next autumn. If that's the case, it's likely that a US 4G carrier such as AT&T, T-Mobile or Sprint will also offer the super-fast handsets, though with the UK's 4G infrastructure significantly lagging behind other international territories, it's unlikely Blighty will be able to folow suit.

Despite stellar sales in most every other territory, the iPhone 4S hasn't been quite as successful in South Korea and other Asian nations where 4G is beginning to hit its stride. While the likes of Motorola, Samsung and HTC all have 4G offerings already, it's important for Apple to also make the LTE jump are they to continue to remain competitive in these areas.

Via: Mac Rumours

There was once a time when little Jane and Jimmy Christmas wanted nothing more than a rocking horse, an Action Man and a giant Toblerone sitting wrapped beneath their Christmas trees. Now, for better or worse, they want videogames like Gears of War, Modern Warfare and The Legend of Zelda instead. Oh, and that giant Toberlone too.

So to save tears come Christmas morning, what games consoles are they going to need to play all this year's best titles on? And which ones go that extra mile to offer multimedia fun for all the family too? PS3 or Xbox 360? PlayStation Vita or Nintendo 3DS? Read on to find out!

When you're done here, be sure to check out the rest of Tech Digest's 2011 Christmas wishlists too.

Apple's developer beta build of iOS 5.1 has landed and with it, after some serious code trawling by Apple's hardcore fanboys, news of plenty of potential new devices headed our way next year.

All of Apple's major hardware areas apart from mp3 players seem to have big releases lined up, with reference made to Apple TV units, iPhones and iPads.

Looking at iPhones first, hidden in the code is reference to an iPhone 5,1 device. That number 5 doesn't nessecarily signify a whole new hardware jump to an iPhone 5 (the iPhone 4 for instance was spotted in code as 3,1, 3,2 and 3,3 before release), but the iPhone 4S was listed as 4,1 so there's nothing ot say an iPhone 5 isn't on the cards.

Next up iPads, with three different devices made reference to in the code. Firstly, the iPad 2,4 is expected to be a re-vamped iPad 2 headed to the US Sprint network, where it's likely to get WiMAX capabilities, or possibly even a TD-LTE version for Chinese markets.

There's also reference made to iPad 3,1 and iPad 3,2. This is most likely the iPad 3 device, in both its Wi-Fi only and Wi-Fi and 3G variants. It seems to be going under the codename J2.

Lastly, Apple TV. It's identified as Apple TV 3,1 with the codename J33, again suggesting a significant upgrade. Is the long-fabled Apple LCD TV with iOS built in finally ready to be revealed?

The next iteration of the OS is also rumoured to have a major overhaul for the Siri voice recognition software lined up too.

Currently in the hands of developers, expect to see the new iOS software in touching down for all users in the coming weeks.

Via: 9to5Mac

Apple have caught the Black Friday bug, which can only ever be a good thing for tech fans wanting to get their hands on some premium Cupertino gear on the cheap.

Top of the deal list is a 16GB WiFi iPad 2 for just £368, down from £399, followed by an iMac for £918. At brand new, never-removed-from-packaging prices, that's pretty darn good.

However, move down the Apple price chain and the value of the deals aren't quite as good. iPod prices in particular (the gadget most likely destined for stockings up and down the country) don't quite meet third party discounts from the likes of Amazon.

For instance, a 4th gen iPod Touch from the Apple store will cost you £154 today. Amazon, on a regular day, charge £143.95 for the same bit of kit. Likewise the Nano, selling for £104 through Apple, is undercut by Amazon at £102.81.

Splitting hairs perhaps, but it still shows that, even with the allure of Black Firday deals looming over shoppers, it's still worth having a good look around first before you commit your cash. Those iPad and iMac deals are a relative steal though.

Tech gifts don't have to be about screen sizes or processing capabilities these days. In fact, they don't have to be physical gifts at all. You can put a smile on a loved one's face just by setting them up with one of the many ace online digital services and subscription packages that are tied into apps, download and streaming sites too.

From music packages like Spotify to productivity programs like Dropbox, there's something here for everyone.

When you're done here, be sure to check out the rest of Tech Digest's 2011 Christmas wishlists too.

Thinking of popping an iPad 2 at the top of your Christmas wishlist? Perhaps hold fire just a for a little while longer. New rumours coming in from DigiTimes suggests that Apple's 2nd generation tablet may have a new sibling ready to wow tablet fans just around the corner.

According to the site (which has a good record for accurately tracking tech manufacturing cycles) the Cupertino team have put in an order of millions of brand new displays for an iPad 3 device, with an aim of going into production as early as January, with a potential retail launch by Spring 2012.

DigiTimes sources are said to be very close to suppliers Samsung, LG and Sharp, all of whom said to be making the iPad 3's screens.

Rumours continue to circulate around a 7.85-inch "iPad Mini" too, with sources suggesting Apple continue to test the waters with prototypes and displays in that size bracket too.

Whether such a device would ever make it to market reamins to be seen; the late Apple CEO Steve Jobs vehemently decried the need for pint-sized tablets, and it's unlikely his successor Tim Cook will go back on the word of his old mentor so soon after his passing.

Yesterday saw the release of the minecraft pocket edition for IOS devices. Android users have been busy building all sorts of blocky goodness for over a month now, so its the turn of IOS users to see if they can trump those creations.

The pocket edition of the hugely successful game comes with all the main features from the PC version with randomised worlds and the ability to play multiplayer over wireless networks, it is a great edition to anyones game collection on their mobile devices.

The port doesn't have a survival mode but there are plans to update the game with the mode, for now leaving you with creative mode to build in the peace and harmony of your virtual world.

No word if the multiplayer modes will be cross platform, uniting the two platforms for a change in peace negotiations on top a mountain where you have built a castle with the Eiffel Tower inside. Although the likelihood of a cross platform format is highly unlikely.

For any football fans out there you will know that Budweiser is the new sponsor for this year's FA Cup competition. As part of their co-operation with the tournament an app is being release for all fans called Budweiser Man of the Match.

This free app is the ultimate tool for any football fan planning to watch the FA Cup this season. The app includes a feature that allows the users to vote for their man of the match for any match in any round of the competition. For the first time in history the fans will have the decision to who will claim the award at the end of the match, along with a magnum of beer.

Other features include live up to the minute match facts, view upcoming fixtures in the competition and win tickets to upcoming matches.

Ian Newell, Western European Marketing Director for Budweiser comments: "We know how passionate football fans are about The FA Cup and we wanted to let their opinions be heard. By giving fans the change to choose the Man of the Match, Budweiser is bringing something new to the most iconic football competition in history."

The app will be available for download for free from the android market and app store for 11th November.

Today sees the launch of a free Sky Movies app on iTunes for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch. This App will allow existing Sky customers to quickly access and find movies from their portable devices.

The App follows in the footsteps of Sky Go and Sky+ Apps linked to the customer's Sky TV package providing up to date information on all Sky Movies and Box Offices releases, including future releases via thumbnails or full page views. Another extra feature will be the inclusion of providing information on movies currently being aired in cinemas.

All films featured in the Sky Movies packages include a review and the options to remote record the movies to your Sky+ HD box to watch at your convenience or watch it on demand with full Sky Go integration. Offering Top Picks of the day, movie trailers and reviews of the latest films on the services, Sky is hoping to give customers more value for their subscriptions.

Ian Lewis, Director of Sky Movies spoke about giving more to customers:

"We are really pleased to be able to add the Sky Movies app to our already strong offering of iPad and iPhone apps. Combined with the Sky+ and Sky Go apps customers now have even more ways to discover and enjoy the films they want to watch, either at home or on the move. We continually strive to give our customers the best possible movie service and this is just one additional feature out of many we have planned for Sky movies over the coming months."

With such a large client base it is only logical that Sky begin to reach out to their customers on-the-go, not just in their front rooms. The strongest feature in this app for me would be the ability to now watch films on the move with Sky Go with the App switching over to allow you to watch it straight from your mobile device.

Sky have also confirmed that an Android version will be available early next year but with no confirmed release date.

Microsoft have a lot riding on their late-to-the-party Windows 8 tablet offerings, but they've just got some high-profile backing from the outspoken boss of ASUS, Jerry Shen. Despite his own firm throwing a lot of money behind Android tablet development, he's stated that the real iPad rivals will be tablets sporting Microsoft's latest operating system.

Stating the operating system's "familiar user interface" as the key selling point, he told DigiTimes that Microsoft's tablets will be the ones he'll be betting on, suggesting ASUS will have a strong Windows tablet offering when the range finally touches down in late 2012.

Familiarity is a strange one to point out though by Shen. Other than the so-so sales of the similarly styled Windows Phone 7 smartphones, have that many people really become comfortable Microsoft's touch-screen offerings?

Shen also went on to reveal that his copany have shifted 1.2 million Android ASUS Eee Pads, with an Ice Cream Sandwich roll-out expected for the line by December.

Sounds like they should be sticking with Android, with figures like that.

Via: DigiTimes

Diamonds may be forver, but this iPad has been 65 million years in the making!

You're looking at the latest luxury gadget customisation from Stuart Hughes, who dishes out lush mobiles and tablets to those who have more money than sense.

Called the iPad 2 Gold History Edition, it goes one step further than the usual diamonds and gold plating by featuring a bezel that is crafted using Ammolite fossil rock and the thight bone from a Tyrannosaurus Rex.

This dino knows who to rock its bling too though, with the iPad 2 also encrusted with 65 flawless diamonds and a solid gold back cover.

However, at 8 million dollars, we'd rather invest in some Jurassic Park-style dino resurrection research. Or at least a fourth movie.

Via: Engadget

With the iPhone 4S out of the way, all eyes are now on what Apple may have planned for their tablet range. And if you're a fan of big pockets (or have dainty digits) you'll be pleased to hear that rumours of a smaller iPad have returned.

According to Unwired View, an iPad Mini may be the eventual result of Apple testing a slew of LG display and AU Optronics screens.

The screen size in question would be around 7.85 inches, while the source also claims that the resolution of the iPad 2 would be retained. They go so far as to claim that specs for the device have been locked-down and that Apple will ship the tablet next year.

Certainly Apple have been trying to drive the hardware price of tablets down, but an iPad Mini just doesn't rub with us. Steve Jobs vehemently denied the need for slates smaller than the original iPad.

Would Apple green-light a u-turn on the late co-founders wishes so soon after his death? Unlikely, and very un-Apple anyway. If Apple were looking to go down the budget route, we'd imagine a tablet of identical size to the iPad, but with perhaps a less powerful processor, less storage, and no "premium" features like 3G connectivity.

The iPad App Store has had a pretty glaring Facebook-shaped hole in its repertoire since being released in April 2010. After many months of waiting, Zuckerberg and his crew have finally got together a Facebook app that they're happy with. And it's yours to download now.

Designed to maximise the extra screen real-estate offered by the iPad, the Facebook for iPad app takes many of its cues from the Twitter iPad app, with sliding tabs for profiles and other menu options.

Other improvements include swipe-friendly photo albums, now taking up the full screen in higher resolutions and working with multi-touch gestures (with gesure controls working with maps too), a drop-down messaging suite and light gaming support.

"Many of you have been asking about Facebook for iPad," said Facebook engineer Leon Dubinsky.

"Today, it's finally here. With the iPad app, you get the full Facebook experience, right at your fingertips. It's a fun, colorful way to keep up with friends, share photos, chat and more."

"Facebook on the iPad feels fun. Photos really shine on the iPad. They're bigger and easy to flip through, like a real photo album. It's like having a slideshow with all your friends and memories, wherever you go."

Facebook have also made a few improvements to the iPhone app and m.facebook.com mobile-optimised website. Simplified navigation, faster search and access to more games and apps are all included, with opportunities for Facebok app developers to drive wider distribution of their wares and greater engagement with their users too.

Grab the app for free by clicking here, and scroll down for shots from the new-look Facebook.

Steve Jobs, the co-founder of Apple and long time leader of the company has passed away, aged 56.

Apple paid tribute to the visionary Jobs with a full letter now showing on the landing page of Apple.com:

"Apple has lost a visionary and creative genius, and the world has lost an amazing human being. Those of us who have been fortunate enough to know and work with Steve have lost a dear friend and an inspiring mentor. Steve leaves behind a company that only he could have built, and his spirit will forever be the foundation of Apple."

Apple have asked that those wishing to pass on their condolences do so at the email address remembersteve@apple.com.

Incredibly sad news to hear of the passing of man who touched so many lives in such a profound way with his work and innovations.

We'll have more news on this later on, but for now our sincere thoughts and condolences are with the Jobs family, his friends and his colleagues.

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Weary travellers looking for a good night's kip have another aid in their quest for the perfect hotel room. Online room booking experts eBookers have today announced the launch of the eBookers Hotels app for iPad.

Plenty of clever features built in here to make nabbing a quality room a breeze; GPS functionality locates nearby hotels automatically, while you can also search by postcode or specific address; thousands of hotels are listed, rated, and photographed with high quality pictures, while the grid-like interface is perfect for quick browsing on the iPad, retaining eBookers knack for tracking down the best value-for-money rooms in town.

"The launch of our Hotels iPad app is another exciting step as we look to strengthen our mobile offering, and continue to help travellers to 'book easier and travel happier' with us," said Tamer Tamar, President of ebookers.

"Designed from the ground up to take advantage of the iPad's format and interface, the ebookers Hotels app for iPad is fast, fun to use and streamlined, allowing customers to book a hotel in just three simple taps. With an extensive choice of hotels from around the world, travellers will always be able to find somewhere to stay with ebookers, wherever they are in the world."

Grab the free app by clicking here.

Ah; now this is pretty much everything I like to see from an iPad app! Educational, interactive, packed full of video and beautifully presented, Inside Nature's Giants has it all. Including the innards of a giant squid. Nice.

Not for the squeamish, this app is the official companion to the Channel 4 show of the same name, with evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins on hand to explain just what you can learn from examining the insides, last meals and organs of some of the planet's largest animals.

Featuring dissection videos, 12 360-degree 3D animal images (with the ability to strip away layers of flesh from each beast) as well as offering to-scale photos of individual parts of each animal, it's a great way to teach kids a bit of biology, and a good excuse for some gruesome fun.

Available now on the iPad, click here to grab it for £6.99.

It's not often you can indulge the two disparate interests of marine biology and martial arts at the same time, but the cartoon brawler Legend of the Fish of Fury for Apple's touchscreen devices lets you do just that.

A gesture and touch based fighting game that takes as many cues from Finding Nemo as it does Street Fighter, the app lets you go fin-to-fin with eight fishy foes in four different game modes.

Use double taps to punch and swipes to kick and block before hitting the lightning bolt icon to pull off a filleting finisher. Arcade mode gives you as many tries as you like to defeat the scaly scallywags, but Survival mode is where the real fun lies, pitting you against all 7 challengers and sending you back to the first battle if you fail to fell your foe.

It's not quite as deep as the Mariana Trench, but if you're looking for a game that swaps Hadoukens for haddock, this will be right up your stream.

Out now, grab Legend of the Fish of Fury for iPhone, iPod, and iPad for 69p from Apple's App Store.

What's that Skippy? Apple and Samsung are fighting it out in the courtrooms again? This time in Australia?? Crikey!

You don't need to be a hyper-intelligent kangaroo to keep track of the ongoing saga of lawsuit and countersuit currently being played out between electronics giants Apple and Samsung, but it'd probably help.

The latest turn is playing out in the land down under, where Samsung are hitting Apple with a countersuit claiming that both the iPhone and iPad 2 "violate a number of wireless technology patents held by Samsung."

"To defend our intellectual property, Samsung filed a cross claim for Apple's violation of Samsung's wireless technology patents," said Sammy's Nam Ki-yung.

Samsung's attack has arrived just before the expected decision date for whether or not the Galaxy Tab 10.1 can be legally sold in Australia. Apple recently succeeded in getting Samsung's flaghship tablet pulled from shelves (and the IFA 2011 show floor) in Germany.

Via: Wall Street Journal