Async Corp. is about as charming as a puzzle game gets

Apple's education-focused media event isn't until Thursday, but Japanese blog Macotakara reports that Apple is already making plans for an early February event to introduce the iPad 3 ahead of an early March launch. The event is said to potentially also feature iOS 5.1, which is currently in developer testing. According to asian supplier and a source in United States, Apple seems to prepare to hold Special Event in early February

As we noted last September, Fortune 's Adam Lashinsky has written a new book entitled Inside Apple: How America's Most Admired -- and Secretive -- Company Really Works , an unauthorized look at the inner workings of Apple. The book is due for release on January 25. Fortune offers one tidbit from the book today, profiling Senior Vice President for iOS Software Scott Forstall as Apple's current "CEO-in-waiting"

Super Crate Box appeared on iOS today (even though it's already packed with players ), and I'm willing to say that it's the first great game of 2012. Especially on the iPad, where the virtual controls are a little bigger and the graphics are a little easier to see, this is a really slick and well-done arcade platformer. Sure, has its moments of frustration, but stays addictive throughout.

The legal battle between Samsung and Apple has going on around the world with Apple claiming that Samsung had "slavishly" copied the iPad design. Apple and Samsung have traded lawsuits in a number of countries trying to get each other's products banned from sale.

WowWee is beginning to see the value in connected toys that work with the iPhone and iPad. The toy maker is working on a line of toys that include an iOS app and a collectable that interacts the phone or tablet

Atari's been on a remixing jag lately, and I was really impressed by the recent iOS take on Asteroids .

Microsoft is really getting busy on iOS today -- first we saw Kinectimals released for the platform, then it was the new SkyDrive app, but last week we missed seeing a brand new Halo app built for the iPhone (and presumably Windows phone devices as well). This one is a little more useful than the Bungie Mobile app from a while back; Halo Waypoint will not only show you your stats out of game, but help you out while you play

Yes, we know the year isn't over. But have you seen all the awesomely geeky marriage proposals this year already? They're all so great, we feel comfortable putting out a list like this early

I got to meet up with Mortal Kombat creator Ed Boon on the red carpet at last weekend's VGAs, and rather than talking about the popular console fighting series, we instead talked about an iOS title: Batman: Arkham City Lockdown , which Boon's Netherrealm Studios developed in conjunction with Warner Brothers and the developer behind the console Batman: Arkham City, Rocksteady Studios. Boon says the game's release snuck up on him just as much as it did iOS customers. "It's one of our first iOS games," he says, "so we were doing it, and the whole process of iOS games, they don't promote them leading up to the launch, it's just boom, and you hear about it going out