mobile devices have changed the day-to-day workplace routine for many people. However, that doesn’t mean we’ve completely removed paper from the equation. This is where the clipboard+ accessory comes in, a new Kickstarter project whose creators are now looking for funding.

Created by a team of Penn State students, Clipboard+ came about because of the frustrations associated with using smartphone technology to aid in doing work on paper. The result is an all-in-one solution that works simultaneously with mobile technology and the traditional pen, paper, and clipboard.

Clipboard+ is available in two varieties: iPad and Smartphone.

The first, which works with both the iPad 2 and new iPad, is made of lightweight anodized aluminum and includes a cushioning foam liner.

Clipboard+ iPad

Clipboard+ iPad features include:

• With a simple flip, Clipboard+ iPad allows for an effortless transition between working with paper on the clipboard side to working with your iPad on the backside.
• Paper and iPad together in one package means that you never have to carry both again.
• Sleek design encourages easy storage and transportation
• Holes at the top of the clipboard allow for attachment of a shoulder strap for maximum portability and use of both hands.

The Clipboard+ Smartphone, meanwhile, fits any smartphone or case with a flat, non-porous rear surface. It includes an industrial strength suction cup that maintains a firm grip on the device. Additionally, the phone can be oriented both horizontally and vertically.

Clipboard+ Smartphone

According to Clipboard+ founder, Kevin Merlini:

After a lot of hard work, mistakes, and learning experiences along the way we were able to nail down the design and manufacturing processes for Clipboard+.

You can get your hands on a Clipboard+ Smartphone accessory with a pledge of $20. For $40, you’ll receive a Clipboard + iPad. Additional levels of support are also available.

The Clipboard+ team hopes to raise $10,000 by July 18 in order to get the project into production.

Take a look:

Popout

The Clipboard+ looks like a functional, yet inexpensive solution for anyone that needs an iDevice and a clipboard to get their job done.

For more information on Clipboard+ be sure to visit their Kickstarter page or their official site.

The Clipboard+ Accessory Launches On Kickstarter is a story by AppAdvice.com

AppAdvice – iPhone, iPad, iPod, App Reviews + News

[LINK]

Goodbye, massive document scanners.

(Credit: Limemouse)Scanbox, created by Australian design company Limemouse, works as a miniature studio in a box perfect for scanning documents (up to A4 size), receipts, 3D objects, or even a page from a book.

At first glance, the $15 Scanbox may appear like some sort of strange geometric shape, but the peculiar design optimizes lighting conditions for the perfect shot. It only takes a few moments to set up the device, as the user simply aligns a few high-strength magnets built into the box.

A stencil of a smartphone with a square hole sits on top so that the user knows exactly where to place the camera lens every time. When the photo shoot ends, the Scanbox folds back up into a flat shape for easy transportation.

If you seek to shed a little more light on the situation, the $25 Scanbox Plus includes a set of LED lights built into the box to ensure perfect lighting, regardless of the situation.

Related stories

• Amtrak to use Apple’s iPhone as ticket scanner

With the increasing clarity of smartphone cameras, it seems strange to admit that future generations may never use a scanner to digitize documents.

Those thinking that Sc… [Read more]

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[LINK]

AppAdvice has teamed up with AITA Limited, our latest AppAdvice Dailypodcast sponsor, in order to offer you a chance to win one of three $10 iTunes Gift cards. the credit can be used towards App in the air in-app purchases and anything else your little heart desires.

Whether a frequent flyer or occasional vacationer, App in the Air helps you stay up-to-date on flight details and everything that’s going on in and near the airport with a combination of technical information and social network integration.

Quick and easy access to everything App in the Air has to offer, including notifications.

Start by entering your name and flight information to create a virtual boarding pass, which you can share with friends via Twitter or Facebook. Flight tracking details include a map, plus check-in, boarding, taxi, take-off, and landing times. In addition, you can receive instant alerts for any gate changes or delays by adding the Notifications package via a $0.99 in-app purchase.

Beyond flight data, App in the Air offers great resources while at home, plus in and around the airport terminals. For each airport, separated into Departure and Arrival, you have access to overall flight delay status, weather, currency converter, chat, and a crowd-sourced tips area.

The tips area contains several sections for general activity, food establishments, transportation, rules, and much more. Each section consists of user submitted recommendations and reports. Tips can be what coffee shop is best to visit for morning travelers, which public transportation is cheaper or easiest, where the free Wi-Fi hotspots are, and so on.

Get recommendations and reports from other travelers just like you via tips and IM.

Along with tips, App in the Air also provides a chat system. You can strike up a conversation for a time distraction, ask where the quickest security lines are at the moment, or anything else you would like immediate feedback on.

That’s it! Now, get your own copy and enter to win a little extra money. App in the Airis designed for iPhone and iPod touch running iOS 4.3 or later, and available in the App Store as a free download.

To have a chance at winning one of the three $10 iTunes Gift Card codes, just leave a relevant comment below before June 22 at 11:59 p.m. PDT. Gift cards are only valid for United States iTunes Store accounts. Only one entry per person is allowed. Please be sure to also check your junk email boxes so that you won’t miss out if you win. {Link}

New York city drivers (and visitors to the Big Apple) flustered with the elaborate maze of parking regulations, shifting street-sweeping schedules, and frivolous no-parking hours can rejoice. A new app for iPhone and iPad untangles Gotham’s parking knot by illuminating the city’s rules and regulations with a tap of a finger. Building on previous parking apps, ParkPal ($FREE, Apple) delivers an easy-to-operate and accurate—the information comes from the New York City Department of Transportation database—interface with parking ordinances from all five boroughs. But they also have a website www.parkpalnyc.com

Presented on a Google map, streets are painted red, green, or yellow to signify parking availability in real time. When users tap on a street, a complete day-by-day, hour-by-hour breakdown pops onto the screen. The app even details regulations that change within the same block and drops a pin on the map to mark the parking location.

Drivers in other major American metropolises can look forward to forthcoming additions as ParkPal’s reach grows. Because as anyone who’s spent time driving endlessly around the convoluted streets of the West Village or strained their eyes squinting at signs in Midtown will tell you, a good spot is hard to find.

Nate Storey is a research assistant at Travel + Leisure.

This is the ultimate in personal travel. at the European Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition in Geneva last year, Eurocopter and mercedes-Benz jointly presented the EC145 Helicopter, the first product in the new Mercedes-Benz Style range. At this year’s EBACE on May 17, the Mercedes-Benz Style EC145 helicopter made its world debut. Tailor-made for luxury-class business and private travel, the luxury helicopter has its interior done by Mercedes-Benz designers, so we can imagine the luxury and comfort it’s going to offer.

The interior of the EC145 Mercedes-Benz Style draws inspiration from automaker’s range of high-end luxury vehicles. They have used quality materials, elegant woods, ambient cabin lighting and multi-function boxes. Prof. h.c. Dr. Gorden Wagener, head of design at Mercedes-Benz, said…

The interior design of the EC145 ‘Mercedes-Benz Style’ helicopter represents the classic passion of the Mercedes-Benz design language and fulfils the very highest expectations in terms of elegance, luxury and comfort.

Great for executive transportation, family trips, and leisure and sport trips, the EC145 Mercedes-Benz Style helicopter seats from four to eight passengers. The seats can be adjusted or removed for different seating arrangements or luggage space. There is no word on pricing for now, but we know it will be out of the budget for many of us.

Lovers of all things architecture and Apple will appreciate this latest bit of news.  Word has it that acclaimed British architect Norman Foster has been tapped to design Apple’s new campus in the Cupertino area.  The new land had been scooped up from HP last month for $300 million.

Foster has some really neat ideas in mind for the campus, such as an underground tunnel system that would link the two campuses.  With that, the whole road transportation system would operate via a network of tunnels or tubes that would clear the surface areas for green.  “The buildings which will house the engineers and R&d will also be multifunctional and will incorporate cutting-edge technology in materials and equipment as well as renewable energy resources,” says the report.

Apple continually says that it’s stretching its current campus to capacity.

The new campus would be modeled after Masdar, Abu Dhabi, which is considered the first city in the world without cars or carbon emissions (capacity 50,000).

The report also makes many mentions of the term ‘Apple City.’  Whether or not that is the official name remains to be soon, but we should find out soon enough!

Check out some of the Masdar photos courtesy of 9to5Mac:

Follow this article’s author, Matthew Tilmann on Twitter

Looking to power up your iPhone with the best free and cheap Apps out there? Our first edition of the Lifehacker Pack for iPhone rounds up our favorite must-have iPhone applications.

Whether you just bought a new iPhone or you’re simply looking for some of the best basic apps for your device, the list below should be plenty to get you started. The majority of the apps are free unless otherwise noted, and where they’re not free, we aimed for cheap. And when a default application is incredibly useful and blows all its competition out of the water—we included it, too. It’s a big list, so here’s an index if you want to quickly jump to a section:

• Productivity
• Internet/Communication
• Location-Aware
• Utilities
• Media
• food and Entertainment
• Art and Photography

Productivity

Evernote:
Where most mobile companion apps tend to offer a lot less than their desktop counterparts, ubiquitous capture tool Evernote takes full advantage of the iPhone to make the mobile app worthy of standing on its own. In addition to capturing regular text, you can grab voice notes and photos as well. Since Evernote performs OCR (optical character recognition) on all your images, any text in the pictures you add to Evernote will be searchable. For example, you could take a snapshot of a Menu in a restaurant and later search it just like it was a text document.
[download]
Simplenote:
Simplenote is a key component in the holy grail of ubiquitous text capture, and rightfully so. Simplenote allows for speedy note entry on your iPhone, plus it syncs with the likewise free Simplenote service so your notes are always available wherever you want them.
[Download]

TripIt:
If you haven’t used TripIt to manage your travel itineraries, you’ve been missing out. We’ve already discussed its merits, but the free iPhone app makes it even easier to manage your trip. It’s a natural extensions of the service, since if you’re traveling it’s more than likely that you’re not at your computer.
[Download]

Instapaper / ReadItLater:
Instapaper and ReadItLater both serve the purpose of saving web content for later reading, and both offer free and paid versions, but they’re still notably different. Instapaper offers you a straightforward and simple way of reading saved content. ReadItLater is a little more feature-rich. Both are great options and you can try them for free to see which you prefer.
[Download Instapaper Free / Instapaper (Paid) or ReadItLater Free / ReadItLater pro]

Dragon Dictation:
Apple’s voice recognition handles a few tasks but misses some key features that Dragon Dictation helps to fill in. If typing is not an option, or you’re just feeling lazy, Dragon Dictation will type it up for you. You can send a text message or an email directly from the app, and it also integrates with Facebook and Twitter. Although not perfect, Dragon Dictation is surprisingly accurate and will let you correct any mistakes it makes.
[Download]

Mint: If you’re not using Mint to keep track of you finances, you should be. It’ll keep track of all your accounts and provide you with useful statistics and budgeting information to help you manage your money better. If you’re looking for something a little more hands-on, however, Jumsoft Money is a great free app as well—you just input everything yourself.
[Download]

Internet/Communication

Atomic Browser:
If you’ve found Mobile Safari to be a bit lacking, you’re not alone. Atomic Browser can help, providing true tabbed browsing, private browsing mode, user-agent spoofing (handy for watching Netflix on your iPhone), and a ton of features you’ve come to expect as part of your web-browsing experience.
[Download Full Version or Lite]
Skype:
Imagine being able to use your iPhone to make phone calls! (Har har.) Now that Skype works over 3G and can take advantage of iOS 4′s multitasking capabilities, it’s actually a viable alternative to using your mobile minutes. Even if you don’t want to go so far as to replace your regular phone, it’s still a great tool for making international calls on the cheap and chatting with your Skype contacts on the go.
[Download]

Textfree Unlimited:
If you don’t like paying a ridiculous amount of money for small amounts of data, Textfree Unlimited lets you send and receive text messages at no costs. You can even set up a phone number specifically for the app. While Textfree used to only provide free text messages, now the app is free as well. The trade-off is that you get ads, but you have the option to pay to remove them.
[Download]

LucyPhone:
Another great minute-saver is LucyPhone (check out our quick review), the app that waits on hold so you don’t have to. If you’re calling a popular business, LucyPhone’s directory may even save you the step of going through the phone tree to get to the right department. While you might confuse the customer service representative on the other end, LucyPhone takes all the pain of waiting on hold—including the loss of your mobile minutes.
[Download]

Meebo:
With a couple of $10 multi-service IM clients available, Meebo stands out especially because it’s free. Being free doesn’t make it bad, however. It’s an attractive app with the ability to integrate tons of IM services, making it our IM app of choice.
[Download]

Twitter:
You could drown in Twitter apps on the iPhone, but the official option is free and one of the best. In addition to tweeting and direct-messaging, you can also share photos and videos. Thanks to the iPhone’s GPS, Twitter is location-aware and can provide you with nearby tweets so you can figure out what people are talking about in your area in real time.
[Download]

Facebook:
The official Facebook app on the iPhone is great for general updates and messages, but it becomes especially useful when all your contacts flood in. If your address book is missing a number, just find your friend in the Facebook app and click the call button. You can also keep track of events, check your news feed, and edit your profile.
[Download]

Location-Aware

Maps (Default App):
While Android’s version of Google Maps blows it out of the water, the built-in Maps application on the iPhone is still pretty great. Drivers can check real-time traffic and get simple directions to just about anywhere. Even if you don’t drive, walking and public transportation directions are available. With street view integration and a few other neat features, Maps is easily one of the most useful apps on the iPhone.

MapQuest4Mobile (GPS):
While the iPhone has a few free turn-by-turn navigation apps (and none of them are even encroaching on the territory of perfect), MapQuest4Mobile feels more like the real deal than any of the others. In my personal experience I found it gave directions too late in quite a few cases, but it’s hard to argue with free. If you want a commanding, computerized female voice barking directions at you (occasionally after you’ve missed your exit), and you don’t want to pay a lot for the privilege, you’ve found your match.
[Download]

GasBuddy:
Although not free (weighing in on the more expensive side at $2.99), GasBuddy is the sort of app that can pay for itself after one use. If you’re always on the lookout for cheap gas, GasBuddy will give you options by proximity and price. You can filter by fuel grade, and it can even help you find a diesel gas station.
[Download]

Movies Now:
If you’ve ever wanted to see a movie on a whim, Movies Now scratches that itch. While it handles regular movie showtimes, too, it’s main function uses your location and the current time to find upcoming showtimes near you. If you find a movie you like, you can buy tickets through movietickets.com directly from the app. The catch: It’s $2. While there are certainly free options in the movie showtimes arena (like the IMDb app below), Movies Now has a great location-based twist.
[Download]

RunKeeper Free:
You have quite a few fitness apps to choose from on the iPhone. One of those happens to be RunKeeper, and lucky us, it has a great free version. RunKeeper uses your iPhone’s GPS to track your run and provide you with statistics, giving you the statistical benefits of a treadmill when you’re outside the gym. It integrates with your music library and lets you share your activities. While the built-in Nike+ app is also pretty nice, RunKeeper doesn’t require the purchase of any additional hardware and lets you choose your brand of shoes.
[Download Free or Pro]

Find My iPhone:
Even if you’re not a MobileMe subscriber, you’ve probably heard a bit about Find My iPhone in the news. It’s already tracked down a few iPhone thieves, but is probably more commonly used when you’ve just misplaced your phone. While you have to shell out $99 a year for a MobileMe account to get any use out of the app, it’s a must if you’re already a MobileMe subscriber.
[Download]

Utilities

Dropbox:
Would it truly be a Lifehacker Pack without file-syncing app extraordinaire Dropbox? While the iPhone version of Dropbox isn’t quite as useful as Dropbox on your computer, it makes for a nice companion. If you’re using Dropbox for all sorts of clever things, it’s always nice having access to your sync’d files from your phone. While the Dropbox app can download anything the iPhone (or a third-party app) can display, you can also save key files on your phone as well.
[Download]
Boxcar:
If you like frequent push notifications, you’ll probably like Boxcar. Boxcar integrates with Twitter, Facebook, email, RSS, and Growl to grab updates of nearly anything you want and push them to your phone. If you want to be alerted the moment something changes, Boxcar will get the job done.
[Download]

PasteFire / MyPhoneDesktop:
PasteFire and MyPhoneDesktop do the same thing—they aim to make getting text from your desktop to your iPhone a bit easier. Both use push and both integrate with your machine to send content. The biggest difference is price: PasteFire is free and MyPhoneDesktop costs a whopping $5. So why mention MyPhoneDesktop? I think it works better. Still, no penalty for trying PasteFire. MyPhoneDesktop is really only worth a look if the free option doesn’t cut it for you.
[Download PasteFire or MyPhoneDesktop]

Logitech TouchMouse:
If you want to use your iPhone as a wireless trackpad for your Mac or Windows PC, that’s precisely what Touch mouse can help you accomplish. It also includes keyboard functionality so you can make use of your iPhone’s keyboard to input text. While this is not terribly practical or speedy for use with just any machine, if you have a computer hooked up to your television it’s a convenient way to navigate without the clutter of a keyboard and mouse on your couch.
[Download]

Media

Pandora:
Pandora’s always been a favorite on the iPhone, but with multitasking support in iOS 4 it becomes so much more useful. Now that you can listen to your personalized Pandora radio stations in the background, you’ll be hard-pressed to find a better, free way to discover new music.
[Download]
remote:
Although it’s nearing a year without an update, Apple’s Remote app is still pretty incredible. If you want to control your iTunes library remotely, or turn your iPhone into a multi-room wireless remote (in the event your have an Airport Express or AppleTV), there’s really no better option—especially for free.
[Download]

air video / StreamToMe:
Air Video and StreamToMe are both apps that help you stream video from your computer to your iPhone, no matter where you are. They’re especially compelling when you want to watch something at, say, the gym and you didn’t have time to transcode and sync it to your device first. Whether you’re connected to Wi-Fi or 3G, you can stream video directly to your phone from anywhere you are (the quality of your connection permitting, of course). Both apps have some subtle differences, such as StreamToMe’s ability to stream more than just video and Air Video’s option to pre-encode content for easier streaming, and either are worth the price of admission: $2.99.
[Download Air Video or StreamToMe]

iBooks / Kindle / Stanza:
It’s hard to consider any of the iPhone ebook readers the best choice because they’re pretty similar. They all let you read on your phone, they all let you purchase books, and they’re all free to download. While I’m partial to the Kindle app, it’s mainly because I started with ebooks via the Kindle. Pick the ebook app that works the best for you—or don’t, since they’re all free downloads.
[Download iBooks, Kindle, or Stanza]

Food and Entertainment

Yelp:
Yelp has yet to fail me when I’m on a search for some good, nearby eats. It also comes with some semi-secret, fully-nifty augmented reality. If you’re looking for nearby food (or anything, really), Yelp is a great (free) way to find your best options.
[Download]
MenuPages:
The one thing Yelp won’t do is hand you a menu for the restaurants it suggests, and that’s where MenuPages comes in. While it can feel a little clunky at times, it’s indispensable when you’re in need of a menu on the go.
[Download]

IMDb:
IMDb is a great resources for movie information, and the app does a good job of focusing a lot of information onto your iPhone’s small screen. What’s also great about the IMDb app is that it also serves as an excellent free option for finding movie showtimes.
[Download]

TV Forecast:
TV Forecast performs the simple function of keeping track of when the next episode of any show is going to air. Enter in just about any show that’s currently running and TV Forecast will provide you with an attractive schedule tailored just for you. While you can grab the free version of TV Listings instead and save yourself $1.99, TV Forecast is a better option.
[Download]

PhoneFlicks:
While you can always watch Netflix on your jailbroken iPhone with a little work, if you’re looking for a way to manage your old-fashioned Netflix queue you can do that nicely with PhoneFlicks. The functionality here is pretty basic, letting you edit your queue and find new titles through search or browsing, but it gets the job done and doesn’t cost you a penny.
[Download]

Art and Photography

Gorillacam:
If you’re looking for a free, full-featured iPhone camera upgrade you should check out Joby’s Gorillacam. It provides a huge set of features, including a self-timer, time-lapse photography, anti-shake, three-shot burst, and more. Update: We’re hearing that Gorillacam may have a potential spyware issue. While we can’t tell for certain, you may want to proceed with caution.
[Download]
Snapture:
If you really want to make the most of your iPhone’s camera, check out Snapture. It might set you back $1.99, but it’s a popular alternative to the iPhone’s built-in camera app. In addition to helping you take better photos, you’ll also find some basic image editing tools. Snapture’s main draw, however, is how easy it makes it to quickly pull out your iPhone and take a picture. Simply open the app, tap the screen, and you’ve got a photo.
[Download]

HipstaMatic:
HipstaMatic aims to emulate old cameras and film stocks, providing some pretty compelling results. But be warned: it’s one of those apps that can get pretty addictive, and you can shell out $1 each time you want to try out a new lens or flash.
[Download]

Pano:
Pano’s one of the more expensive apps in the list, at $3, but it can create some enormous, impressive panoramas right on your iPhone. It works by taking multiple shots and stitching them together. While the results aren’t always perfect, they’re often stunning.
[Download]

SketchBook:
While SketchBook is the sort of app that excels on a big screen, like the iPad’s, it’s nonetheless a great drawing app on the iPhone. With several brushes and pencils, you’ll be surprised what you can actually draw with this app. When you’re done, you can even export a PSD (Photoshop Document) or the flattened image. $3, but if you’re really into sketching, you’ll likely consider it worth the price..
[Download]

These streets will make you feel brand new
Big lights will inspire you
Let’s hear it for New York

When you can’t get to the Big Apple to feel renewed  by the vibe of the city (or find someone to shove you while taking public transportation), keep this New York City Snowglobe ($40) nearby. It might not play Jay-Z’s hit, but it does play the song by Sinatra that has come to symbolize the city (I guess you can download the tune from itunes for $.99).

Getty Imagesthe Times Square pedestrian plaza deserves better than beach chairs and epoxy gravel.

new York

Following an eight-month experiment, the pedestrian islands created on Broadway by barring traffic from 47th to 42nd streets and 35th to 33rd streets have been declared permanent, with Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg proclaiming last month “the new Broadway is here to stay.” Yesterday, Janette Sadik-Khan, commissioner of the Department of transportation, announced a Design competition “to refresh the temporary plazas” at Times Square and added that a capital reconstruction project to revamp this space was on.

The mayor’s announcement referred to the transformation of the famous byway where sidewalks and traffic lanes once overflowed with tourists, office workers, theatergoers, illegal vendors, opportunistic performers, subway seekers, taxis, cars, buses, bikes and the occasional police-mounted horse. Now, along with pedestrians, the two Midtown stretches are populated with groupings of chairs, tables and some planters.

There was general rejoicing, but especially in the office of Ms. Sadik-Khan, who initiated the Broadway closings in February 2009. (While she announced back then that the move would speed traffic in the area by as much as 37%, the department’s evaluation report completed in January found that the high was closer to 17%.) The trial period began in May with little advance notice. Overnight, the busy street became an extended public patio with paving made of epoxy gravel glued in place, planters arrayed along the edges and flimsy aluminum lawn chairs set out for the grabbing. The sudden makeover triggered a summer-long photo opportunity of sprawled crowds basking happily where taxi drivers once laid into their horns.

While the mayor called the closings “Janette’s innovation,” the Regional Plan Association—an 80-year-old nonprofit group dedicated to smarter community and transportation design in the Tri-State area—has since at least 1974 advocated banning cars from Times Square and the infamous “Bowtie,” the chokepoint where Seventh Avenue and Broadway cross.

In 2003, the nonprofit Design Trust for Public Space and the local business improvement group, Times Square Alliance, developed a Streetscape Improvement Plan on the premise that the crossroad was “gorgeous from the neck up, [but] it needs a makeover from the neck down.” They gave the DOT their proposal for untying the Bowtie, allowing for sidewalk augmentation, syncing green lights to streamline traffic, and introducing more attractive street furniture. In 2006, Iris Weinshall, who was then the transportation commissioner, hit the streets with her own ambitious plan—including colored bus lanes, 200 miles of new bike lanes, and widened sidewalks specifically in Times Square where Broadway and Seventh Avenue traffic would no longer be allowed to cross. The plan was hailed as “The Iris Weinshall Renaissance,” and it was followed by another initiative, the Street Reconstruction Project, in 2007. In spite of some improvements, neither plan managed to get through the red tape to completion as envisioned. Ms. Sadik-Khan herself framed the Broadway closings as a “pilot project” to leapfrog the city’s lengthy approval processes.

Now that the plazas at Times and Herald squares are permanent, the next step is making them look worthy of the part, a process that began somewhat haltingly yesterday. With businesses, urban planners and the mayor’s office solidly behind the idea that proponents said would not only speed traffic but also seduce more tourists, cheer up lunchtime office workers and attract more customers to local stores, why isn’t the DOT taking more assertive steps in making the plazas attractive? Epoxy gravel is hardly the stuff of inspiring design. And while the announcement last month made much of the Times Square Alliance’s findings that 74% of visitors consider their Times Square experience much improved, nothing was said about the 72% who agreed the space would be “more appealing if designed better, especially the furniture.” (They’d also like some live music, please.)

On a recent weekend visit, chairs and tables at the southern end of the Times Square plaza were largely empty, mismatched and scattered far apart. Different styles of metal chairs—some gray, some red and, in one case, slatted-wood—jostled with powder-blue and silver steel benches. The tall espresso bar tables seemed more forlorn than cosmopolitan without anyone leaning there sipping coffee. The glued-in-place gravel was uneven, missing, and painted in some places with red dots for no obvious reason. Further north, at the foot of the TKTS booth—where the ruby-glass staircase that rises up behind the Father Duffy statue has become a choice perch and vantage point for viewing the flashy cyclorama of digital and neon advertisements in Times Square—the street-level seating was better integrated: Chairs, tables and umbrellas were all red, as if in spontaneous response to the more coherent design of the booth’s stadium staircase.

The dead of winter is no time to judge an outdoor plaza, of course, but it was easy to see why some critics are drawing unfavorable comparisons between the Times Square pedestrian plaza and the High Line, which also opened last spring. Intensive design and almost obsessive care went into making that elevated railroad track turned garden path an instant success on the far West Side of Manhattan. It also cost some $152 million in public and private funds ($44 million raised by Friends of the High Line), while the Broadway plan had to wing it with less than $2 million in public funding.

Ms. Sadik-Khan, who in October boasted of getting the Broadway beach chairs from a discount hardware store, said yesterday that the new design competition was to elicit ideas for “economical, temporary surface treatments” from any design professional or artist living in New York. The winner will receive a $15,000 fee from the mayor’s fund and the design is to be in place by mid-July. While that suggests a rather piecemeal and hasty approach to any serious design project, the mayor speaks more inspirationally of “an enduring, world-class street.” A request for proposals to provide an overall plaza design was also made public yesterday. The Design Trust for Public Space has expressed an interest in running its own competition for the plaza’s design, but yesterday’s press release said that only the eight large firms already qualified to work with the New York City Department of Design and Construction are eligible. Luckily many are blue-chip operations, including Selldorf Architects, Snøhetta, Rogers Marvel Architects and Thomas Phifer and Partners. None are landscape or urban planning firms. Hopes remain high, however, that having finally grabbed the space away from cars, the powers that be will make every effort to create something truly transformative for people. No one’s expecting Rome’s Piazza Navona, but someplace comfortable from which to watch the Naked Cowboy would be nice.

Ms. Iovine is executive editor of the Architect’s Newspaper.