The iPad may have grabbed all the headlines last week, but journalists who were willing to dig a little deeper at the Apple launch event were rewarded with a glimpse of this little gem, awkwardly displayed in a dark corner of the show floor. You're seeing exclusive pics of the iStrap, Apple's revolutionary Blackberry adapter device. This high-strength yet endlessly flexible device, finally allows iPhone users to seamlessly integrate their Blackberry with their iPhone, something Apple's enterprise customers have been crying out for since the iPhone's initial launch.

© www.achievement-unlocked.com

© www.achievement-unlocked.com

Anyone who has had to carry around both devices, one for personal use, and the other for business, knows how awkward it can be. With the iStrap, you can be being closing an important business deal with Taipei on one side, and ordering a Kentucky fried chicken dinner for kids on the other. "We think the iStrap will reclaim that old adage, business in the front...party in the back," an Apple spokesman said. "It's not just for mullets anymore!"

Don't expect a heated advertising exchange between Apple and Blackberry, ala the Apple versus Microsoft, "I'm a Mac and you're a PC" ads, either. The iStrap represents an important strategic collaboration between the two companies. Apple revealed plans for an ad campaign that were visually reminiscent of the boldly colored iPod ads we know and love, but with the new slogan "Get Your iStrap On!" which Apple feels will effectively target the young urban professional market they so covet.

The critics were quick to pounce, however, claiming that the iStrap would make it difficult to access controls on both phones. In response, Apple pointed out that the user has complete control over both the position, and tension of the device. As for further customization, the spokesman hinted that alternative colors may be available in the future for a premium price, but was tight-lipped beyond that, in the customary Apple style.

In an ironic twist to the story of the Northwest Airlines pilots who overshot their destination by 150 miles, unreliable sources have confirmed that the pilots were actually distracted by the popular game, Flight Control, on their iPhones.

Flight attendants have finally stepped forward to admit that they had seen the pilots playing the game for extended periods during certain legs of the flight. One attendant even recalled a time when the pilot got confused and thought they had taken off from Omaha, when in fact, the plane was still wheels down, on the ground. The launch had only taken place in the fantasy world of Flight Control, which the pilot had been playing at the time.

"That's when I got really worried," the whistle blower attendant said, "and then later, also, when the captain locked himself up in the lavatory for a good 40 minutes so he could get to the next level. He said he was doing his business, but it didn't smell like that to me. Trust me, usually we know." Clearly fighting back against her fear and a wave of emotion, she went on. "One time, when I bumped into him while I was working in the galley and messed up his game, he yelled at me so loudly some passengers thought we were in some kind of terrorist situation and rushed forward to help."

I bet this takes them right back to flight school with Maverick and Iceman.

To be fair, the game has earned high praise from critics and the Apple App Store community. One reviewer who goes by the name of 'Duck_Butter' gave it 5 stars (the max) and called it "An absolute must!". User 'Cyong' called it "Love at first flight". It's easy to see how a flying enthusiast might be sucked into this game and lose track of an hour. Who among us doesn't sometimes suspect that our flights are taking waaaaay too long? Perhaps this sort of snafu is more common than we think, and it just so happens these poor fellas got caught with their hand in the cookie jar. In any case, if there is a silver lining to all this for them- the FAA can take away their real pilot's licenses, but they can't take away their Flight Control.

I really hate to be the one to break the news to you, especially since I just got mine a couple weeks ago, but the iPhone may not be all it's cracked up to be. Check out this picture I snapped today of the one of the Blue Angels Navy fighter jets over the Presidio in San Francisco today.

Ignore that giant hole in the ozone layer- I was taking a picture of that tiny speck of a jet. WTF iPhone?!?!?

Detail from above photo. See, I wasn't lying. It's a jet.Pretty crappy picture, huh? Well, I think you see the problem. The iPhone is completely and utterly useless for taking pictures of military jets moving even close to the speed of sound. If you plan on attending the Fleet Week festivites in San Francsico this weekend, think twice about your choice of camera. Better yet, just count the iPhone out. Let's face it- Steve Jobs oversold the thing. It can't take these sorts of pictures effectively, and there is no app for that.

Yes, I already logged the issue with Apple for everyone. Hopefully there will be a hardware update we can all purchase soon that will address this issue.

President Obama has appointed Apple CEO Steve Jobs as the new US Car Czar, in an attempt to boost sales for the flagging US auto industry. The president remarked that the 'Cash For Clunkers' program, while successful in bringing Americans back to US dealerships, is not the long-term solution he is after. For that, he is turning to the man who's leadership shook up the status quo in the computer industry, the music industry, and most recently, the mobile phone industry: Steve Jobs.

Jobs wasted no time in getting to work in his new position, announcing in typical Apple fashion that the autoTunes store would be launching immediately. The autoTunes store, which runs within the framework of the iTunes music store, brings the convenient, safe and secure online shopping that buyers have grown accustomed to for music, to auto sales.

Photos in this image 2009 © Milan Kopcok, Luke Bosworth, and Jill Bristow from BigStockPhoto.com
Perhaps even more controversial than Jobs' decision to fold auto sales into an Apple product, is his requirement that car dealers in the US lower all prices to $999.00 or less. The manufacturers have already cried foul, declaring that there is no way they can afford to stay in business at that price point. Jobs bristled at the notion, explaining that lowering the price would drive an enormous volume of sales, boosting jobs in the auto industry as a whole. If you don't bring the prices down, Jobs insisted, people are just going to steal the cars they want anyway.