Hot Apps Debut After Apple Reduces AppStore Restrictions

It’s only been about week since Apple said they relaxed their AppStore policy on how an App need to be built, but already, the floodgates are opening and we’re getting some real winners. If you’re a fan of Google Voice, rejoice. If you’re tired of re-encoding videos for your iPad, rejoice some more. Here are some new apps that have now been approved on the AppStore.

GV Mobile + and GV Connect (but ironically, not Google’s official app) are now on the app store and offering native access to your Google Voice account, including dialing. In the past, the alleged claim was that Google’s own app was declined because “it duplicated features” on the iPhone, but Apple says they were still “looking” at the app. Either way, with these two apps now free to be on the store, it’s looking good for Google in general.

Both apps cost $2.99, but this blogger things that GV Mobile + is a better bet. It was traditionally the most popular jailbroken application on the Cydia jailbreak app store and has great support and development.

If you’re working in the channel and adopting Google Voice in any capacity, this is just all around good news.

But here’s some arguably ‘cooler’ news. VLC on the Mac and PC is renown for be able to play nearly any video format, no plug-in installing required. That technology has now made it onto the iPad. VLC for the iPad — which is 100% free — will play (almost) any video format you throw at it. And it works with iTunes, too, which means there’s direct USB transfers, no wonky WiFi transferring required.

Even you, dear Channel-related reader, can get excited about this, because it means the iPad just gets another check mark on the list of what it can do. There have been ports for VLC to the iPhone once upon in Jailbreak times, but it was wonky at best, and there have been some mildly successful Android attempts, but VLC for the iPad could very well be the new killer app, since it doesn’t matter if your video is in .mp4 format now.

This blogger just wishes he sprung for a larger iPad to load up with content. To quote what the VAR Guy once said to me… “DVD’s are dead, right?”

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