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In the past, if you wanted to access the Netflix streaming library, you had to use a Windows OS and Internet Explorer. With the newly released beta, Mac owners can now enjoy this feature.

You can opt into the beta here. And if you already haven’t done so, you’ll need to install Silverlight.

Video quality starts off a little rough at first. But after a minute or two, the video feed stabilizes and everything smooths out for the most part. Overall quality is decent to good, considering it’s streaming. This was all on a 1.5 megabit connection. In a regular browser window, it’s very watchable. Full screen is when things start looking blocky.

Selection is lacking when compared to the regular DVD collection. But there are some decent titles and the streaming collection is constantly growing. Setting up the beta was painless and straightforward. If you’re already a Netflix member, I highly recommend signing up with this service.

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Pukka (pronounced “Pucka”) is a clean and simple desktop client that allows posting to services like Delicious. It integrates smoothly into the workflow and makes accessing delicious even easier.

You can also access Pukka via an installed bookmarklet in your favorite browser. Once installed, adding pages to Delicious will only take a few keystrokes.

Pukka is a bit pricey at $16.95 but if you often access social bookmarking services, I think you’ll find it money well spent.

Pic from Code Sorcery Workshop

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Due to some kind of deal, you can now get your hands on a free copy of CrossOver. Simply put, CrossOver allows an Intel Mac to run many popular Windows applications.

The main advantage over something like Parallels or VMware Fusion is the fact that you don’t need to purchase a licensed copy of Windows. CrossOver typically goes for 40 bucks so get your free copy here before time runs out.

Pic from MacUpdate

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I use Japanese Flip everyday. In the past, I’ve experimented with various books, CDs, and online/PDA apps. This one tops them all.

Using this single app, you can learn Japanese vocabulary and kanji. These are the two hardest concepts in the Japanese language. Japanese grammar, in contrast is rather simple.

This is a well thought out Japanese flash card program. It keeps track of which flash cards give you the most problems and tailors sessions that focus on your weak points. 6,000 commonly used Japanese words are available in this app. And finally, it’s all wrapped up in an easy to use interface that focuses on optimizing the learning process.

Japanese Flip is a sister app of Kanji Flip, which I’ve also reviewed. Personally, I prefer to use Japanese Flip since you focus on a particular word and not on a kanji that has four different readings. But if you’re a kanji fanatic, you can certainly use Kanji Flip to supplement your Japanese training.

Japanese Flip is not the one app solution that some of you might be looking for. But it’s certainly a learning tool that can be a good foundation for the serious student of Japanese. The finer points of grammar and usage can be quickly picked up through tradition books and conversation.

Prerequisites for this app? Make sure you know all of your hiragana/katakana. Japanese Flip’s developer, Andre Khromov also offers Kana Flip for those who are just starting out.

Overall, this app is well implemented and is laser focused towards only vocabulary and kanji. This makes the learning process very manageable. I’m currently on the hard level and already notice my Japanese TV comprehension improving. You can purchase it at the iTunes App Store for $4.99.

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If you want to give Quicktime some much needed flexibility, I recommend checking out Perian. A new update was released yesterday.

Perian installs in your system preferences and gives Quicktime the ability to playback a wide range of audio and video formats. The software is free and installation is simple so why not check it out.

Download Perian here.

Pic from Perian.org

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After several weeks of daily use, I’ve come to realize that my iPhone is far from perfect. Compared to the Nokias and Sony Ericssons I’ve used in the past, the fit and finish of my iPhone 3G is substandard.

I mostly notice the slightly widening gap on the upper right hand side and the minor light leakage on the left seam between the bezel and the screen. I’m guessing the pressure to speed up production for the launch was the root factor.

Perhaps with the iPhone 4G, Apple will use some of those new Macbook manufacturing techniques?

Have you had any issues in terms of your iPhone’s build quality?

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OpenOffice 3 was released a few days ago. With this release we finally get a Mac native version. For those not familiar, OpenOffice is a free, open-source alternative to Microsoft Office.

With this office suite, you get a word processor, spreadsheet, presentation app, drawing app, and database. Unless you need a specific, unique feature from MS Office, I strongly recommend checking out OpenOffice first.

I’ve used the earlier beta builds of OpenOffice 3. So far, I’ve been satisfied with the overall stability and utility of this office suite.

Currently, this suite is intel Mac only. Work is being done on a PowerPC version but I’m not sure on the release schedule. You can download your free copy here.

Interested in more Mac related picks? Consider subscribing to Apple Otaku. You can also subscribe by email and have new posts sent directly to your inbox.

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Yesterday, I downloaded and installed iPhone app number 102. As you can see from my screenshot, I currently have nine screens worth of apps. According to the current iPhone OS, you don’t need more than nine screens. If Apple doesn’t come out with a software update soon, I’ll have to start deleting apps.

As you can tell, I’m pretty disappointed by the iPhone’s management of applications. At this point, a Windows 3.1 interface would be an upgrade.

Apple could easily solved this problem if they offered nested applications folders that could also be customized. But with such a hierarchy, wouldn’t it just bring further complexity to the user experience?

Yes, but here’s how we fix it. Apple just needs to add some Spotlight functionality to the iPhone. Just place that Spotlight icon to the very right of the battery indicator. Users can just tap on the Spotlight icon and a keyboard would pop up. They could then type the first few letters of the app they want to run. Spotlight launches the app and also remembers that typed command for future use.

Do you have your own ideas on how Apple should tackle this issue? Let me know in the comments.

Interested in more Mac related posts? Consider subscribing to Apple Otaku. You can also subscribe by email and have new posts sent directly to your inbox.

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Android is finally going to show up on T-Mobile next month. Compared to the iPhone, Android is a much more open platform and will eventually take form in a variety of smartphone designs. Is it enough to move people away from the iPhone?

The first smartphone to take advantage of Android will be G1 by HTC. This company has extensive experience in handset design and implementation so I don’t expect to see a lot of rough edges on this device. It has the standard slide out keyboard and also incorporates a touch screen and trackball. It’s a bit on the chubby side but that’s to be expected with the keyboard.

I already have an iPhone 3G but the idea of using the brand new Google mobile platform intrigues me. However, I just got out of a T-Mobile contract and don’t look forward to signing up to a second 2-year contract.

Are you going to pick up T-Mobile G1 next month? My preference is towards the iPhone, but I welcome the competition. With time, perhaps Google will force Apple to relax some of their draconian app store policies.

Interested in more iPhone related posts? Consider subscribing to Apple Otaku. You can also subscribe by email and have new posts sent directly to your inbox.

[pic via Engadget]

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We’re finally starting to see some decent Japanese training apps coming to the iPhone. Kanji Flip is one app in particular that I’d like to single out for it’s overall simplicity and effectiveness. If your mind works well with flash card training, you should put Kanji Flip at the top of your list.

It’s all very simple. The app presents you with a kanji. Tap the show answer button and you’re shown the reading and definition. You can then tap the right or wrong button. The app tracks which kanjis you have problems with and customizes training sessions based on this data.

Kanji Flip is a very complete package. 2230 kanji from the Japanese Language Proficiency Test are included as well as hiragana and katakana.

One thing I find lacking is the ability for the user to attach a mnemonic to each kanji. As students progress into the higher rank kanji, many of them start looking the same. A good mnemonic would further differentiate the kanji and help greatly with memory retention.

But overall, this is an excellent app for Japanese students of all levels. It focuses on the learning process without getting bogged down in application complexity. I give bonus points for its lack of romaji. And finally, the 3 dollar fee is miniscule especially when compared to the pricey Japanese learning materials from specialty bookstores.

You can check out the developer’s site here.

Interested in more kanji related posts? Consider subscribing to Apple Otaku. You can also subscribe by email and have new posts sent directly to your inbox.

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