“We are blown away with the incredible customer response to iPhone 4S,” said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. “The first day pre-orders for iPhone 4S have been the most for any new product that Apple has ever launched and we are thrilled that customers love iPhone 4S as much as we do.”

iPhone 4S will be available at all 245 Apple retail stores in the US beginning at 8 a.m. local time on Friday, October 14. Every customer who buys an iPhone 4S at an Apple retail store will be offered free Personal Setup service, helping them customize their iPhone 4S by setting up email, showing them new apps from the App Store™ and more, so they’ll be up and running with their new iPhone before they leave the store.

iPhone 4S includes iOS 5, the world’s most advanced mobile operating system with over 200 new features, and iCloud®, a breakthrough set of free cloud services that work seamlessly with your iPhone, iPad®, iPod touch®, Mac® or PC to automatically and wirelessly store your content in iCloud and push it to all your devices.

Pricing & Availability
iPhone 4S comes in either black or white and will be available in the US for a suggested retail price of $199 (US) for the 16GB model and $299 (US) for the 32GB model and $399 (US) for the new 64GB model.* iPhone 4S will be available from the Apple Online Store, Apple’s retail stores and through AT&T, Sprint, Verizon Wireless, and select Best Buy, Target and Walmart stores and select Apple Authorized Resellers. iPhone 4 is available for just $99 (US) and iPhone 3GS is available for free with a two year contract.

iPhone 4S will roll out worldwide to 22 more countries by the end of October including Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.

iPhone 4S comes with iOS 5, the world’s most advanced mobile operating system, which includes over 200 new features including Notification Center, an innovative way to easily view and manage notifications in one place without interruption and iMessage™, a new messaging service that lets you easily send text messages, photos and videos between all iOS 5 users. iOS 5 will also be available as a free software update for iPhone 4 and iPhone 3GS customers allowing them to experience these amazing new features.

iPhone 4S also introduces Siri, an intelligent assistant that helps you get things done just by asking. Siri understands context allowing you to speak naturally when you ask it questions, for example, if you ask “Will I need an umbrella this weekend?” it understands you are looking for a weather forecast. Siri is also smart about using the personal information you allow it to access, for example, if you tell Siri “Remind me to call Mom when I get home” it can find “Mom” in your address book, or ask Siri “What’s the traffic like around here?” and it can figure out where “here” is based on your current location. Siri helps you make calls, send text messages or email, schedule meetings and reminders, make notes, search the Internet, find local businesses, get directions and more. You can also get answers, find facts and even perform complex calculations just by asking.

iCloud is a breakthrough set of free cloud services, including iTunes® in the Cloud, Photo Stream and Documents in the Cloud, that work seamlessly with your iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Mac or PC to automatically and wirelessly store your content in iCloud and push it to all your devices. When content changes on one device, all your other devices are updated automatically and wirelessly.

iPhone 4S includes an all new camera with the most advanced optics of any phone. The 8 megapixel sensor has 60 percent more pixels so you can take amazing high quality photos with more detail than ever. iPhone 4S includes a new custom lens, a larger f/2.4 aperture and an advanced hybrid IR filter that produce sharper, brighter and more accurate images. The Apple-designed image signal processor in the A5 dual-core chip is built for performance, and coupled with the features built into iOS 5, makes the camera one of the fastest on any phone. With iPhone 4S, the Camera app launches much faster and the shot to shot capability is twice as fast, so you’ll never miss another shot.

New features in the Camera and Photos apps give you instant access to the camera right from the lock screen, and you can also use the volume-up button to quickly snap a photo. Optional grid lines help line up your shot and a simple tap locks focus and exposure on one subject; and the new Photos app lets you crop, rotate, enhance and remove red-eye, and organize your photos into albums right on your device to share them on the go. New iOS 5 features include built-in Twitter integration and iMessage, so you can instantly share your photos via Twitter directly from the Photos app and send photos via iMessage to individuals or groups. And with iCloud’s innovative new Photo Stream service, a photo you take on your iPhone is sent to iCloud and automatically pushed to your iPad, iPod touch, Mac or PC. You can even view your Photo Stream album on your Apple TV®.

iPhone 4S can also now record video in full 1080p HD resolution and with the new video image stabilization feature, you can take richer, smoother videos. Other iPhone 4S video camera improvements include increased sensitivity, sharpness and an increased ability to capture video in low light conditions. With the new iMessage service in iOS 5, you can now instantly share videos with family and friends.

iPhone 4S has the same beautifully thin glass and stainless steel design that millions of customers around the world love, while being completely redesigned on the inside. Apple’s dual-core A5 chip delivers up to twice the processing power and up to seven times faster graphics than iPhone 4, all while maintaining incredible battery life—now up to 8 hours of 3G talk time.

Improving on the innovative stainless steel external, dual-antenna design of iPhone 4, iPhone 4S is the first phone to intelligently switch between two antennas to send and receive. iPhone 4S now supports twice the download speed with HSDPA of up to 14.4 Mbps and iPhone 4S is a world phone, so both CDMA and GSM customers can now roam internationally on GSM networks.**

Pricing & Availability
iPhone 4S comes in either black or white and will be available in the US for a suggested retail price of $199 (US) for the 16GB model and $299 (US) for the 32GB model and $399 (US) for the new 64GB model.*** iPhone 4S will be available from the Apple Online Store, Apple’s retail stores and through AT&T, Sprint, Verizon Wireless and select Apple Authorized Resellers. iPhone 4S will be available in the US, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Japan and the UK on Friday, October 14 and customers can pre-order their iPhone 4S beginning Friday, October 7. iPhone 4 will also be available for just $99 (US) and iPhone 3GS will be available for free with a two year contract. Siri will be available in beta on iPhone 4S in English (localized for US, UK and Australia), French and German. iOS 5 software will be available on October 12 as a free software update via iTunes 10.5 for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch customers.

iPhone 4S will roll out worldwide to 22 more countries by the end of October including Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.

The TomTom Places iPhone application combines TomTom’s enhanced POI database with the TomTom premium quality map. It allows iPhone users to search for relevant businesses or locations, for example; hotels, restaurants, supermarkets, cash machines or tourist attractions. Detailed information is provided to help users refine their results and decide what their next destination will be.

Company details provided by; Gelbeseiten, De Telefoongids & Gouden Gids, De Gule Sider, Páginas Amarelas and goudengids.be, are included together with other sources resulting in a high quality local search experience. Favourite searches can be stored, to make them conveniently accessible with one push of the button.

Lucien Groenhuijzen, Managing Director TomTom Places says: “With TomTom Places people can easily find and get all relevant information about the places they want to visit. We offer a high quality database in an easy to use application and as a result, we are enjoying high numbers of downloads in the countries we made it available. We will continue to expand geographically in the quarters to come, to allow more people to enjoy our free local search app.”

Search has finally been made easy abroad, thanks to the unique ability to search in your own language. Dutch, French, German, Portuguese and Danish are currently supported.

Next to the ability to immediately call, e-mail or visit the destination’s website from the application, it provides the route to your chosen target and the current traffic situation based on HD Traffic. The application does not provide turn-by- turn navigation functionality.

The application can be downloaded free of charge.

TomTom Places is also available online.

The App Store offers more than 425,000 apps and developers have created an incredible array of over 100,000 native iPad apps.

“In just three years, the revolutionary App Store has grown to become the most exciting and successful software marketplace the world has ever seen,” said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. “Thank you to all of our amazing developers who have filled it with over 425,000 of the coolest apps and to our over 200 million iOS users for surpassing 15 billion downloads.”

“We sparked musical magic when iPhone users experienced Ocarina three years ago,” said Dr. Ge Wang, a Smule co-founder and assistant professor at Stanford’s Center for Computer Research in Music and Acoustics. “And now with iPad, we’ve created the Magic Piano and Magic Fiddle apps. Who could’ve dreamt an iPad would make its way into the San Francisco Symphony?”

“iPad provides us with an unparalleled mobile device for creating gorgeous, immersive games,” said Mark Rein, vice president and co-founder of Epic Games. “Infinity Blade has been a runaway hit with customers around the world and we couldn’t be more excited about our success on iOS devices.”

“We’re bringing Martha Stewart, Angelina Ballerina, Sesame Street and many more of the world’s most popular books and magazines to iPad,” said Nicholas Callaway, CEO of Callaway Digital Arts. “We knew the iPad was going to be a revolutionary storytelling device, but never could have anticipated it would become so popular, so quickly.”

More than 15 billion apps have been downloaded from the revolutionary App Store and more than 425,000 apps are available, including more than 100,000 native iPad apps, to consumers in 90 countries. Users of the more than 200 million iOS devices around the world can choose from an incredible range of apps in 20 categories, including games, business, news, education, sports, health, reference and travel. Apple has paid developers over $2.5 billion to date.

Source: Apple

This weekend almost 200 developers will get together in Amsterdam to launch Appsterdam, says Mike Lee, founder of Appsterdam.

Currently, Amsterdam is a sizzling hotspot of creative companies in design and development of applications for Android and iPhone devices. Companies with familiar applications such as Layar and Mobypicture have established themselves in the capital.

Appsterdam is open to anyone. American developers who would like to escape the current political climate in the States. European programmers who would love to apply their talents across the Atlantic, but can’t because of immigration policies in the US. Creative professionals who want to contribute.

With the launch weekend coming up, Mikes confidence in Appsterdam is growing every day. “The developer culture here is picking up really fast and people are already starting to come over to join us from abroad. Ideas start blossoming at every meet-up. It’s amazing how many people are investing time, energy and love into Appsterdam. Together we are making it happen.

Yankee Group today announced the 2011 European Mobile User Study, which is designed to help both European and global firms make better product, pricing and segmentation decisions. The new study polls 5,000 consumers and 2,250 employees and IT decision-makers across five European countries: France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the U.K.

Available in July, this new survey offering provides key insights into European mobile user behavior, attitudes and purchase plans. For example, it finds 40 percent of consumers who intend to buy a smartphone as their next mobile device will choose an iPhone. Android-based devices come in second (19 percent), followed by BlackBerry (17 percent) and Nokia (15 percent).

“These findings highlight the continued strength of Apple in the European smartphone market and, in particular, its phenomenal brand appeal,” said Declan Lonergan, research VP at Yankee Group. “The data also highlights the enormous challenges faced by Nokia and RIM to retain mind share and market share in this increasingly dynamic and competitive marketplace.”

Consumerization is taking over the enterprise. Four times more employees use consumer tools for work purposes with IT’s explicit approval. New devices spur productivity. Employees say they are 58 percent more productive during long-distance travel when they have a tablet. Mobile users are multi-device-savvy. Most users have more than one device and they access the same services and content via the screen best suited for the time and place.

In addition to the new study, Yankee Group also announced that Simon Rodd is joining the firm as portfolio manager within the company’s European sales team (see accompanying release). To learn about additional open Yankee Group positions in Boston, London and other locations, visit http://www.yankeegroup.com/careers.do.

The application offers future news headlines from Zapaday.com, which is still in alpha and can only be accessed on request. The application, Tomorrow, by Zapaday, is freely available in the Apple App Store.

Headlines in the application include future news on international affairs, politics, economics, awards, product launches and festivals. The headlines will soon include arts, sports and entertainment.

Stefan Hoevenaar, founder of Zapaday: “Tomorrow is the ultimate remedy for Update Sickness. Or, perhaps, its ultimate cause. If you often feel an urge to check the latest news on your phone, you can now see tomorrow’s news. And next week’s news.”

Coinciding with the release of the app, Zapaday today released a video about its ambition to create a global public news calendar. The video highlights how Zapaday.com can help journalists, bloggers, political analysts, marketers, event organizers and PR professionals to get insights, plan ahead and save time.

Tomorrow is the ultimate remedy for Update Sickness. Or, perhaps, its ultimate cause. If you often feel an urge to check the latest news on your phone, you can now see tomorrow’s news. And next week’s news.

Who borrows what and when is easy to keep track of. You can also keep track of stuff you’ve borrowed. In addition users can synchronise items between each other.

Some of the functions include: Synchronisation with other users. Both manually and automatically. Receive push-messages when some one lends you stuff. A quick overview of all your lent/borrowed stuff. A quick overview of stuff that is returned too late and stuff that is to be returned today.

Easy search on Internet with the barcode scanner and contact the lender/borrower via email, text message or a telephone call. Standard templates for text messages and emails. Automatic agenda points in your phone’s agenda. Use existing contacts and add new ones. Back-up on the StuffLost server.

The StuffLost application is an idea of and developed by AppStudio.nl. This is a division of Boulogne Jonkers Design Studio from Zoetermeer, The Netherlands. AppStudio thinks up, develops and designs applications for the iPhone and iPad. Boulogne Jonkers Design Studio is based in Zoetermeer, The Netherlands. Other initiatives are CardLost, Boulogne Images, Boulogne Papers and Qstock.eu.

Snipper users can share their special moments via their own channels – Private only for specifically invited viewers, or Public to share with anyone. The user decides who gets to see what.

Snipper’s CEO, Sander Andreae explains, “We all use social networks but don’t always want to share everything with everybody. You don’t necessarily want your parents to see what you get up to with your football mates! Our app makes it really easy for a user to create numerous broadcast channels, each for a separate audience. The user is in control.” This applies equally well to the content received because a Snipper user deliberately chooses the specific channels that he or she wants to follow. In addition, Snipper of course offers full integration with Facebook and Twitter allowing wall postings and likes.

The technology behind Snipper is also refreshingly different from current video sharing apps. Instead of sharing links to online platforms, films are ‘pushed’ directly from filmer to viewer so avoiding network connectivity failures during viewing. In fact it means that received films can be viewed without an active connection.

Another remarkable feature of the app is that it is available on all the main smartphone platforms right from launch – iOS, BlackBerry, Android and within days, Symbian. “Most apps tend to focus on 1 or 2 platforms. But Snipper is about sharing films with as many people as possible. We knew that, difficult as it would be, we had to be on all the major platforms. And with the same look and feel. I’m proud to say we’ve managed to do just that!”, says Andreae.

Apart from the mobile app Snipper offers users a full on-line ‘mirror’ of the mobile experience at www.getsnipper.com Users can access extra functionality on-line such as more of their history and enhancing their profile. Extra functionality will be rolled out over the coming weeks.

The company is currently based in The Netherlands but has global ambitions. With its combination of direct mobile-to-mobile sharing, multi-platform reach, ease of use and audience flexibility Snipper really does have something new to offer the social networking world.

“Dreams of Burma” is a visual journey packed with more than 1,000 stunning photographs, virtual excursions, trip-building capabilities, social tools for sharing photos, beautiful slideshows and wallpapers.

Stretching from the Himalayas to the Bay of Bengal, Burma, the second-largest country in Southeast Asia, offers an endless collection of visual marvels: giant Buddha statues, archaeological treasures, pagodas, temples, stupas, lakes, tropical forests and luminous people.

“When I visited Burma 14 years ago, the power of its beauty and joy of its people so impressed me—and now we have these photographs to share with the world. They evoke all the qualities that drew me there in the first place,” said Keith Bellows, Editor-in-Chief of National Geographic Traveler.

“With this new app, the iPad and iPhone become a great window into one of the most beautiful parts of the world. We are thrilled to collaborate with National Geographic Traveler to make these visual treasures accessible to everyone,” said Jean Marie Hullot, CEO of Fotopedia. “If you have been to Burma, this app will transport you back there in an instant. And if you haven’t seen it yet, you may fall in love.”

About “Dreams of Burma”

The app is ideal for dreamers, explorers and travelers, photography enthusiasts, families, educators and anyone who needs a vacation, a little break from the daily routine or just beautiful wallpaper for their iPhone or iPad.

Discover the Beauty of Burma without leaving your home with:

This app requires an Internet connection, WiFi recommended.

Pricing & Availability

“Dreams of Burma” is available for the iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch, for download in Apple’s App Store.

The app is free. You can download it here.