I’ve finally found a reliable case for my iPod Touch. That was a happy result of my recent two-week trip to Orlando, where I put Otterbox’s Defender to the test.

Previous cases from other makers were a disappointment — too flimsy, not protective enough or a poor fit for my second-generation 32GB Touch. (Many retailers sell cases designed to fit only 8GB and 16GB models as being fine for the 32GB, which isn’t always true.) (See comments below.) The Defender offers three layers of protection: (1) a thin membrane to protect the touch screen, (2) a hard plastic shell, including protective bumpers on all sides, that completely encases the Touch and (3) a soft silcone skin that feels comfortable to hold but also helps absorb shocks if dropped. All buttons are fully accessible through the case, and there are tight-fitting silcone plugs that offer easy access to the headphone and sync jacks. 

Really, the only problem I had was that the protective layer over the touch pad adhered unevenly to the screen, creating random dark splotches that were visible even when the screen was lit. I kept trying to wipe the screen and case clean using the iPod wipe cloth, but it didn’t help. So I contacted Otterbox. “This sounds funny, but before you put your device in the case, rub your palm across the screen,” suggested company exec Kristin Golliher. That not only sounded funny, but completely counter-intuitive. Here I was trying to keep everything as clean and meticulous as possible before putting the Touch inside the protective case, and she was telling me to just smear my greasy hand across its face. It worked.

“It’s the natural oils of the skin that keep the plastic from sticking to the screen,” she explained. “Your hands should be clean but you don’t want to wash your hands just before doing it. You can also try wiping it along your cheek to pick up the oils from your face.”

Well, there you go.

The Defender for 2G iPod Touch retails for $30, but a Google search quickly turns up online retailers selling it for well below $20 — putting it in line with (and making it even cheaper) than the many poor alternatives I’ve tried. The Defender series also is available for other models. Otterbox also sells the vitamin-fortified, higher-priced Armor series — apparently for abusive travelers, construction workers and maybe even demolitions experts. But the Defender met my needs and exceeded my expectations. 

The latest cleverly named iPhone app, iMated, lets you quickly combine photos of two people to see what their love child would look like. It was created by three Minneapolis developers.

Just take a photo of two subject or browse for stored images. Center the images, following guides. And then mate ‘em up. The results will vary widely, as the app takes the two images and blends them in different ways. It can sometimes look really rough, like overlaying two images in Photoshop and spot-erasing one layer. You can keep reloading the image to get different looks. The best results come if you take the time to select images that have matching skin tones and the same background. For instance, imagine if George Clooney and Bea Arthur had gotten together, as I’ve done. (You never know — it could have been her dying wish.) You can save the combined image to your iPhone or iPod Touch, or e-mail it.

iMated goes for $1.99 through the iTunes App Store, a little high for what it does. It would totally be worth it if the program automatically adjusted the images to match the skin tones for a more seamless composite. But maybe that will be offered later. Nevertheless, it could be a lot of fun at a party in the right devilish hands.

iMated was created by Sevnthsin, PopLife and &Yustin.

It turns out you were getting a deal when the PlayStation 3 sold for $599. It actually cost $840 to make, according to Business Week (via ZiggyTek, via friend Steve Hopstaken). That was for the 60GB model. The $499 20GB version? It cost Sony $805 to make. Similarly, the originally $399 Xbox 360 really cost $470 for Microsoft to make. 

Why? The companies were hoping for long-term sales to make up for the initial loss. Since both companies also develop games for their systems and, more importantly, earn money from licensing, accessories and related services, such as Xbox Live, it’s a bold business model that’s not uncommon in the industry. With estimated worldwide console sales of close to 31 million for the 360 and 23 million for the PS3, it seems to have worked. And as the systems have become more popular, they’ve also become cheaper to produce from the early days, when these figures are for. “Falling prices on components turned [Microsoft’s] $71 per-unit loss of 2005 into a $76 per-unit profit by the end of 2006,” Business Week says.

Here, according to Business Week, are other popular gadgets and what they cost when they were introduced vs. the actual cost of their components:

iPhone 3G S
MSRP: $199 (starting)
Actual cost:  $179.16

Palm Pre
MSRP:  $200 (after rebate)
Actual cost:  $137.83

Amazon Kindle 2
MSRP:  $359
Actual cost: $185.49

BlackBerry Storm
MSRP: $249
Actual cost: $202.89

iPod Touch (1G)
MSRP: $299 (8GB), $399 (16GB) 
Actual cost: $147, $179

iMac
MSRP: $1,299 
Actual cost: $898

Finally, the first HD DVD player cost Toshiba $700 in components. It sold the model, the HD-A1, for $499. Talk about an uphill battle. Toshiba didn’t even stand to profit from selling discs. Sure, it would have benefitted in other ways and manufacturing costs would have declined, but it sure put a lot of money on the line in backing the high-def disc format. And now you can find the HD-A1 — with 10 movies on HD DVD! — for less than $35 shipped on eBay.

TAKE THE TECHNOBABBLE MP3 CHALLENGE!
Can you tell the difference between MP3s and the original CD?

Besides today’s news of the iPhone 3G S’ debut, don’t forget that Apple also has released its 3.0 software update for iPhone and iPod Touch. The update was originally scheduled for today but was actually released Wednesday instead. The update adds features such as a landscape keyboard and the ability to quickly cut, copy and paste. Apple has a rundown of what’s been added. PC World has gone even further with a write-up of 10 hidden features of the 3.0 update, including the abilities to force-quit unresponsive apps and to install an unlimited number of apps.

One thing that hasn’t been widely publicized is that the update is free for the iPhone but costs $9.95 on the iPod Touch. You’ll also need to connect your iPhone or iPod Touch to the computer you use to sync the device.

The Salas clan will be heading to Walt Disney World this summer, as will many Minnesota families, so I was pleasantly surprised to see that there are several worthwhile iPhone/iPod Touch apps for the top Florida attraction. The essential website MouseSavers has put together a list of the best apps for WDW (where I briefly worked while growing up in Orlando). They offer updates on ride waiting times, park hours, restaurant menus and tour guides of the Magic Kingdom — all but one for 99 cents.

Also, be sure to check out my mega-posting from last week that lists readers’ favorite apps for 99 cents or free. I’ll keep updating it as more picks come in — I’ve already added a few — so feel free to bookmark it.

TAKE  THE  TECHNOBABBLE  MP3  CHALLENGE!
Can you tell the difference between MP3s and the original CD?

I’ve received lots of great suggestions about worthwhile apps for the iPhone and iPod Touch after this week’s column on the topic. In keeping with the focus of my original write-up, these are all free or just 99 cents. Clicking on the linked names of each app will take you directly to its listing in the iTunes App Store. Got others? Add them in the comments, and I’ll incorporate them into the list – but let’s keep them to 99 cents or free.

UTILITY
AroundMe (free) “helps you find all sorts of things wherever you are,” says my friend Melissa Prusi. “I’ve used it to find gas stations, parking, etc.” Reader Susan Austin calls it her most used app and says it’s “awesome!” Marty Andreasen also likes the way it “uses GPS to tell you what things are near you like banks, bars, coffee, gas stations, hospitals, hotels, pharmacies, supermarkets, etc.”
Epicurious (free) “is a fun recipe app linked to the website of the same name,” Melissa says.
Evernote (free) is “the one app that sees more action on my Touch (after Mail),” says online commenter RVM4.  ”Install it on your desktop, too, and your notes are always sync’d. … This app has made me at last (almost) paperless.”
Google Mobile (free) might seem like an obvious choice, but Marty and fellow reader Kimon Swarts point out that it has voice recognition. It’s “quite accurate,” Marty adds.
iHandy Level (free) is one of those off-the-wall apps, turning your device into an electronic carpenter’s level. Susan recommends it. Reader Adgrady “helped a friend hang pictures in her office, and they were perfect with the iPhone level keeping them straight.”
Lose It (free) was recommended by Susan, co-worker Shari Gross and online commenter PatGLex. Shari said, “I just downloaded it this week after hearing two friends had used it and lost 15 and 10 pounds. It’s not much more than a calorie tracker, but it succeeds in increasing your awareness of how many calories we consume each day. It’s guilted me into losing 1 pound in a week.  Not sure if that’s considered successful or not.” PatGLex says, “I’ve already lost 7 pounds, as I learn to make good choices.”
MapsBuddy (99 cents), suggested by Kimon, helps you find places on a map with just one click.
Multicam Minneapolis (99 cents; other cities available) is especially useful to reader Jay Pfaender when he’s trying to get out of town to head up to his cabin. It “views live all traffic cams in the Twin Cities area,” he says. “Normal Friday night backup areas can be bookmarked for enroute viewing for avoidance.”
Skype (free) has made reader Roger Jones so happy that he called to tell me about it. “It’s very nice to have it on the iPod Touch, because it turns it into a telephone,” he says. Marty uses it, too. Note, though, that you need a headset with a built-in microphone to talk on the iPod Touch.
Textfree Lite (free) appeals to reader Jonah Edelman, who calls it ”an amazing texting app.” The free version allows a maximum of fifteen messages a day. The full version ($5.99) offers unlimited messages and a landscape keyboard. “This app is totally worth buying and great for text messaging!” Jonah says.
TwitterFon (free) is the “best free Twitter app by far,” my colleague Colleen Kelly says. “One-touch favorites. Color-coded replies etc. Worth money even.” I use Twitterific, the one mentioned in my column, but I’ll have to compare this.
Vlingo (free) offers hands-free, voice-activated dialing. Susan says it “saves me everytime!”
WhitePages (free) gets the nod from Susan and Jay, who says it “provides normal residence and business look-up, but the real value is the reverse look-up capability to help decide whether to answer incoming phone calls.” 
Yelp (free), recommended by reader Krgromer, works much like AroundMe. 
Zillow (free) is the GPS-enabled mobile version of the popular website that shows the value of homes in a particular area, along with other data. “Fun on Lake Minnetonka,” Marty says.

NEWS
NetNewsWire (free) gets my friend Kathy Snell’s pick as a good reader for RSS feeds from websites.
NYTimes (free) — the New York Times — is a favorite of Krgromer, who says, “The best part is under ‘more,’ when you tap ‘photos,’ then pick stories to read by their picture.”
USA Today (free) is recommended by Colleen because it has “one-touch sharing to Twitter and Facebook.”
WCCO (free) “has, by far, the best local app in town,” online commenter Thislilguy says. “Pulls in up-to-the-minute news and even video. Although the best part of the app is the radar. I am a biker and the radar on the app has been more useful then even my GPS.”
WSJ (free) — the Wall Street Journal — is a top pick by Marty, who notes that he is a financial adviser and that some of his picks are industry-driven.

WEATHER
I like Apple’s preinstalled weather app to get my forecast, as does Kathy, but others use a variety of options.
Accuweather (free) is “a good weather app,” Melissa says.
Radar in Motion (99 cents) is used by Jay “for the trip up north.” He says it “views the Twin Cities and Duluth radars effortlessly; for seeing what weather is coming, views the Fargo and Sioux Falls radar effortlessly.”
Weather Bug (free; also Weather Bug Elite, 99 cents) gets Krgromer’s vote: “Even the free version shows radar maps, webcams, and forecasts — cool — for up to four locations.”
The Weather Channel (free), the official app of the popular cable network and website, gets Susan’s vote. Jay also likes it “for final destination precise forecasts.”

ENTERTAINMENT
Ambiance Lite (free) gets Shari’s pick for providing ambient sounds. “It’s soothing to listen to a soundtrack of frogs while sitting on the deck (especially since there are no frogs where I live),” she says. “I also like the ocean sounds.”
Drum Kit Lite (free) is “a little drum set for your fingertips,” Shari says. “My nieces and nephew had fun with this in the car to Milwaukee, trying to keep up with the stereo.”
Flixster (free) was recommended by Susan, Melissa and Adgrady for finding movie listings, showtimes, reviews and trailers. I had originally planned to include it in my original write-up, but I cut it and featured Now Playing instead. The reason is that it didn’t include AMC Theatres in its listings when I looked. A follow-up check, though, shows that it does include AMC now. I actually prefer the Flixster interface, but both programs are super-swell.

TIME WASTERS
I purposely didn’t include games in my write-up, but people offered their favorites:
Ancient Frog LE (free), a puzzler in which you move a frog, ”is addictive and pretty, a fun game,” according to Krgromer.
Animatch (99 cents) is a top-selling matching game for kids. ”This is fabulous fun!” reader  K. Cormier says. “My kids love it when they introduce a new animal.  Cute graphics and sounds. Even adults find themselves playing more than one round.” She adds that there is a fun related app, Anisays (99 cents), which offers a “neat way to remember patterns – sound and pictures.”
Bubbles (99 cents) is a great kids app, Colleen says: “Move, make and pop bubbles. Yep. That’s it.”
BubbleWrap (free) is a self-explanatory pick from Susan.
Cube Runner (free) turns you into a virtual pilot as you maneuver a plane around blocks by tilting your device, another fave of Susan.
GemLogic Lite (free) is a Bejeweled-like puzzler. Commenting on her list filled with great practical apps, Kathy says, “Whoops, how did a game get on here?”
iMafia (free) is a popular multiplayer online role-playing game for mature players that Jonah loves. “There are many more games like this, but none of them can beat iMafia!” he says.
iSynth (free), says Krgromer, ”creates amazing pictures of places like the Taj Mahal that you can view in panaramic fashion — beautiful.”
RemoveEm (free) is a puzzle game that Colleen says is “hard to explain.” But, she adds, “The free one was so good, I actually bought the paid version. … This game has stopped more than one pouty tantrum.”
Touch Hockey FS5 (free) is air hockey. “No more needs be said,” Shari insists.
Word Scramble (free), another pick by Susan, is a fun word-search game.

Finally, just a follow-up, courtesy of Dan Grigsby of the Minneapolis-based Mobile Orchard app-news site, about two indispensible entertainment apps mentioned in my original column: Pandora Radio was written by Neil Mix, a Minnesota native who lives in Wisconsin. And the Public Radio Tuner was created by Bill Heyman and Damon Allison of Minneapolis-based CodeMorphic.

TAKE THE MP3 CHALLENGE!
Can you tell the difference between MP3s and the original CD?