Have you been waiting for one of these? You could purchase your very own C-3PO Star Wars backpack for your iPad. (Chewbacca suit not included) If you’ve always loved Star Wars and have an iPad, it was meant to be. Not only do you have to carry his pleather limbs around in some flimsy mesh bag but he, himself opens up in the back into one holding compartment with just enough room to hold your iPad safely inside. When your not taking your rusted tin-can of a friend out on your adventures, you can reassemble him into a three foot plush toy. Why reassemble, you ask? Only to take him apart and shove him back into…

With it’s hot shot iPhone developer Joe Hewitt gone, Facebook has gone some time without an update for iPhone, and there is still no native iPad client. Indie developer Sobees has changed all that. Their Facebook for iPad client is actually a breath of fresh air, with a new interface that breaks down your Facebook information into a palatable, newspaper-style look and feel. Facebook is generally not too happy about applications taking all your information, or as they see it, once you’ve uploaded it to Facebook, their information and displaying it outside their web application, so we’ll see how…

Apple has a host of patents to its name, and rifling through them can offer some fascinating insights into the potential future of technology and the possibilities that are open to the company as it executes its vision for the future convergence culture. We’ve taken a look at some of the most recently published Apple patents and chosen six of the most exciting to tell you all about. 1. iSpecs: an advanced head-mounted display system for the iPhone or iPod This system (above) may even host its own video camera or be able to communicate with the camera that’s already inside the iPod touch or iPhone….

Fresh in from the historical inevitability department comes news of a failed Adobe Flash demo — and an all-new video clip showing what the proprietary multimedia standard can do on an Android phone. Last week’s FlashCamp Seattle saw Flash Platform evangelist Ryan Stewart demo Flash Player 10.1 on a Nexus One phone during his opening keynote. It didn’t go well, wrote blogger, Jeff Croft. Here’s what happened: On his Mac, Ryan pulled up a site called Eco Zoo. It is, seemingly, a pretty intense example of Flash development — full of 3D rendering, rich interactions, and cute little characters….

Next time you sit down for a slap-up meal out keep an eye on the waiter – he (or she) may well take your order with an iPad. This replaces older PDA-based ordering systems, and could mean diners can even take a look at luch full-colour pictures of what they are ordering. It may even help restaurants keep an eye on the stock they have in hand. System developed by 4asoft.com. Perhaps you’ll be paying for your meal using an iPad, too. Square today introduced an iPhone credit card payment system, following last month’s introduction of a similar system for the iPhone. Via: PocketLint. Thumbnail image…

Cool UK gadget retailer, Firebox, has begun selling the SmartSwipe, a handy USB device which reads, encrypts and transmits your personal credit card data directly to the online payment page. Now, there’s a lot of insecurity about these days. We’re told hackers and crackers and spammers and other enemies of the people are all working hard to undermine our security and get their hands on our credit card details. SmartSwipe should help beat them at their game. Shoppers just need to swipe their card and click ‘confirm’ usung the onscreen purchase wizard. Your banking details are then encrypted,…

The tragic Kurt Cobain might have left us but this doesn’t mean Nirvana’s record label don’t continue to seek out new opportunities to make money from the artist’s legacy — now it seems Tapulous has inked a deal to bring a dedicated Nirvana game to the iPhone. Nirvana Revenge will feature 13 of the band’s songs in a new variant of the well-recognised Tap Tap Revenge game. Songs will include Smells Like Teen Spirit, Come As You Are and Heart Shaped Box plus some live numbers from a UK rock festival. The app should be available later this week for $4.99 via the App Store. There’s a Bluetooth…

Anyone who’s familiar with my posts by now is probably aware I’m not a fan of the iPad. Now, let’s not get our lines crossed; Apple is The New Hotness – not to mention The Old Hotness – and Jobs is a wonderful man whom I’d gladly have a beer with. Hell, I’m even typing this post on a Mac Pro! I just haven’t really cared for the iPad up to now. At any rate, this video was a welcome surprise this morning. Seems there’s an app for jailbroken iPads now tailor-made for people like me – that is, people who wonder why Apple’s flagship device is a giant iPhone, and not more like a netbook. Well, now it’s both! BTstack Mouse…

For those of you not in the United States, Apple has announced pricing and availability dates for international models. The iPad itself is available in nine countries on May 28, with pre-orders beginning May 10. The lucky recipients of the wonder device are: Australia Canada France Germany Italy Spain Switzerland United Kingdom Canadian Pricing iPad is available in Canada for a suggested retail price of $549 (CAN) for 16GB, $649 (CAN) for 32GB, $749 (CAN) for 64GB for Wi-Fi models and $679 (CAN) for 16GB, $779 (CAN) for 32GB and $879 (CAN) for 64GB for Wi-Fi + 3G models. iBooks will also be available…

It was only a matter of time before the iPad started seeing spyware surface. But I, for one, sure couldn’t have guessed it’d be like this. Mobile Spy is an app (I use the term loosely – I’ll explain in a moment) that allows an individual to collect the usage data of the target device, be it an iPad, Android phone, Blackberry, or Windows Mobile device, and view it via an online account. Said James John, CEO of Retina-X, the company behind the software: “Any device that can browse the Internet or send email can lead to unauthorized activities. Before now there was no method to monitor activities of children…