Pad Gossip

padgossip.com – Everyone survive Cyber Monday? It looks like retailers sure have a lot to be happy about, and hopefully you’ll be able to do the same as those boxes of goodies start arriving later in the week. Now that you’ve blown your holiday budget and have no more money to spend, why not catch up on what’s going on around the rest of the internet? You know, the free stuff you might have overlooked? Here’s the latest for Tuesday, November 29, 2011.

iTether Arrives In App Store, Promptly Given the Boot

Ah, the strange and wonderful App Store drama once again rears its ugly head. Late Monday night, an app called iTether arrived for the iPhone, offering USB-based internet tethering for the one-time fee of $14.99. According to MacRumors, the developers worked closely with Apple to get it approved — but that wasn’t enough to prevent the app from being pulled around noon EST today, with Cupertino claiming “the app itself burdens the carrier network” and giving the developer “no way to remedy the situation.” The only good news to come out of this mess is that the app will continue to work for those lucky enough to download it — the rest of us will have to be content with our carrier’s official offering until the next time somebody’s lucky enough to slip one past the goalie (so to speak).

iOS 5.1 Beta References Sprint iPad 2, New Apple TV, iPhone 5

Apple started seeding the first iOS 5.1 beta to developers on Monday night, and in keeping with tradition, some new discoveries have been made from the software, as noted by 9to5Mac. Among the new products seemingly “outed” by the iOS 5.1 firmware are the still-gestating iPhone 5(referenced as “iPhone5,1” in code strings), an iPad 2 with Sprint 3G data on board (referenced as “iPad2,4”) and most intriguing, a new Apple TV with the codename “J33,” which appears likely to come packing an A5 dual-core processor with 1080p video playback capability. We like the sound of all that!

Apple Releases Safari 5.1.2

Quick! To the Software Update cave! As noted by MacRumors, Safari 5.1.2 is out of beta and available to the masses, bringing a laundry list of bug fixes and performance enhancements. PDF files can now be displayed within web content, and Apple has addressed issues “that could cause webpages to flash white” as well as occasions where Safari would “cause hangs and excessive memory usage.” If you’re a Safari user, it probably all sounds good, so get downloading while the gettin’s good.

Rolling Stone Beatles App Coming Thursday

Publisher Wenner Media has some good news for iPad fans, with plans to introduce tablet versions of both Rolling Stone and US Weekly by “early 2012,” according to 9to5Mac. In the meantime, fans of The Beatles can tide themselves over with a new iPad book app entitled The Beatles: The Ultimate Album-by-Album Guide, which will arrive in the App Store on Thursday, December 1. The 122 page book includes more than 60 photos along with interviews and 30-second previews of each song. You’ll want to set aside $9.99 to buy your copy and Android fans will have to sit this launch out for the time being. Sorry, dudes…

Report: Kindle Fire Outsells iPad at Best Buy?

We’re fans of Amazon’s new Kindle Fire tablet, especially for the wallet-friendly $199 price. According to TechCrunch, we may not be alone — the website is reporting that retailer Best Buy has sold more Kindle Fires than the base model 16GB iPad. The news comes on the heels of Amazon’s chest-thumping on Monday about the Kindle Fire being the single best-selling item on their website over Black Friday. Does this spell gloom and doom for Cupertino’s wide lead in the tablet market? Not necessarily, but we’ll be watching this battle quite closely — especially with an iPad 3 likely right around the corner in early 2012.