Traveling internationally is enough of a hassle on its own. Dealing with the different standards and formats involved in powering our gear makes it even more of a headache. So instead of carrying around a bag full of converters and adapters, just get this adaptable powerstrip.
iOS 11.3 makes updating foreign apps easier than ever
Apple has made it easier to update apps and games purchased from foreign App Stores in iOS 11.3. Users no longer have to switch to the App Store they originally downloaded the title from, making the update process a whole lot quicker.
Apple Stops 24-Hour Dispatch For Some International Online Stores
Apple has stopped advertising 24-hour dispatch for products sold through some international online stores. Many of the Cupertino company’s popular products offered 24-hour dispatch providing they were in stock, but in some markets that’s now been increased to 1-2 business days.
iPhone 5 Quietly Goes On Sale Worldwide
Quietly, and with not so much as a dedicated press release to mark the occasion, Apple has started selling the iPhone 5 in new markets. As midnight rolled around last night (or this morning, depending on your point of view) online Apple Stores opened up for business.
And boy is this thing expensive.
Which Features Does iOS 6 Support In Your Country?
Apple’s hardware product lines might be clean and sparse to the point of obsession, but behind the scenes it’s another story. Take iOS 6, for example. While yesterday’s Apple keynote showed off plenty of new features, many of them are location dependent. And I’m not talking about maps here – many features are switched off outside of the U.S, and just which one’s you can use depends on the country you’re in.
OpenSignalMaps, An Amazingly Slick Way To View International Cellphone Coverage
Did you ever check to see which carrier offers the best coverage in your town? Or – worse – did you ever wonder which carrier’s pre-pay SIM you should buy when you go on vacation? It’s hell, right? Those maps are so deeply hidden in the carriers' sites that it’s almost like they didn’t want you to find them.
Enter OpenSignalMaps, which is not only an independent map showing you the 2G, 3G and 4G coverage in much of the world, but is also just about the sleekest and slickest map/info site we’ve ever seen. And it works just great on iOS devices.
Apple Stops Censoring The Word ‘Jailbreak’ In iTunes Podcasts
Remember when someone in the Apple camp let their censoring powers go to their head back in May, and they began censoring the word “jailbreak” across music, movies, apps, and podcasts? It didn’t take the Cupertino company too long to backtrack, and it removed the censor almost entirely just hours later.
I say almost before for podcasts, the word was still considered an expletive — until this morning, when Apple removed the censor completely. Finally.
New In iOS 6: Siri Supports Location Services Internationally
Being a Brit, one of the most disappointing things about Siri is that it doesn’t support location services in the United Kingdom. Unlike iPhone 4S users in the United States, I can’t ask Siri to find me a nice restaurant nearby, or for the nearest gas station. However, that’s no longer the case in iOS 6, because Siri now supports location services internationally.
Carry Your Camera Gear Across The World With The Think Tank International [Review]
The International ($350), from Think Tank Photo, is similar to every other piece of rolling luggage you’ve probably used, with a retractable handle and rolling wheels, but on the inside, instead of keeping your dirty drawers stowed, it secures treasures of a different kind: your plethora of expensive camera gear. And it does so admirably.
London Apple Stores Begin Stocking International Parts For This Summer’s Olympic Games
Apple retail stores in London have begun stocking international parts ahead of this summer’s Olympic Games as the company prepares for an “onslaught” of international journalists seeking repairs. Many of the journalists covering the event, which kicks off on July 27, are expected to be carrying Apple notebooks, so international keyboards are expected to be high in demand.
The Many Voices Of Siri [Video]
While you may be used to Siri’s familiar female voice, people around the world hear something different on a daily basis. Siri has many voices in different countries, ranging from foreign accents to even male voices. Here’s a compilation we put together of Siri’s many voices all across the globe.
AT&T Will Unlock Off-Contract iPhones Starting Sunday
Those of you who have purchased your iPhone off-contract, aka for the full price, will be happy to hear that AT&T will begin unlocking iPhones at customers’ request this Sunday. Carrier unlocking will allow customers “in good standing” to switch out the AT&T SIM for a SIM on another network, as long as the bands are supported. This is great for customers who want to travel with their AT&T iPhone internationally.
UnoDNS: Watch NetFlix In Europe, BBC In The U.S
UnoDNS is a service that will let people outside the U.S stream services like Hulu and Netflix, and let users inside the U.S get in on things like BBC iPlayer. There are other services which do this, but UnoDNS is the easiest I have tried, although I do have a few worries. In short, it’s cheap, it works, and it can be free.
The New iPad Launches With Plentiful Supplies In 26 More Countries
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Today is new iPad day in the rest of the world. At 8AM local time in additional countries across Europe, Mexico, New Zealand and even Macau. As in the US and the other countries in the first wave of launches,. there appear to be plenty of iPads to go around.
Vocre Opens Up A World Of Languages For Free [Review]
There’s so much that’s impressive about the technology we all carry in our pockets that it’s easy to take it for granted. But one of the things that constantly amazes me when I see it in action is instant language translation.
Vocre (pronounced voh-creee) is a translation app that’s not new on the App Store, but has one important new feature: it’s free.
Apple Woos Chinese Speakers With New Mac Features [OS X Mountain Lion]
Hey China! Apple loves you. To prove it, there are a whole bunch of China-specific features built into OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion.
VoxOx iPhone App Adds Outbound Faxing, Realtime SMS Translator
VoxOx’s free telephony app was already heavy on features when it launched earlier this year. Now it adds two more big features: outbound faxing capability (previously the app only had the ability to receive faxes) and two-way, realtime SMS translations.
Apple Temporarily Halts International New iTunes Match Sign Ups
Yesterday, Apple began rolling out iTunes Match to over a dozen new countries, but as with the U.S. rollout, demand has temporarily exceeded capacity, and so Apple has halted new subscriber sign-up for iTunes Match until some of the initial crush peters out.
Not a big deal, honestly. This happened a couple times with the U.S. rollout, and frankly, iTunes Match can take an awfully long time even in the best of times to match a large collection, let alone when the servers are being hammered. You’re probably better off waiting a few days to sign up, anyway.
[via MacRumors]
Quickly Access Your International Keyboards With One Tap [iOS Tips]
I use multiple keyboards on my iOS devices English (US), Emoji, and Deutsch (German). It used to be a drag to have to click the globe icon on the keyboard multiple times to get to the keyboard you needed, but not any more. You can reach all your keyboards with just one finger!
Emoticons Are Finally Easy To Access In IOS 5 [iOS Tips]
It’s about time! Apple finally made accessing emoticons via the Emoji keyboard a part of iOS. Prior to iOS 5 you had to jump through all kinds of hoops to get them. They’ve been a part of iOS for longer than I can remember, but initially they were only accessible by jailbreak and later by applications that were able to activate them. You used the app, discarded it and were on your way to emoticon heaven.
Now Apple has included an easy way to activate them and use them as much as you want.
International iPhone 4S Pre-Orders Slip to 1-2 Weeks Shipping
Haven’t gotten around to pre-ordering your iPhone 4S yet? Well if you’re in Australia, Canada, France, Germany or the U.K., then you’re no longer going to get it on launch day.
Apple Working on International iCloud Music Rights for Tuesday Event [Report]
Apple is working to secure iCloud music rights for international customers, according to CNET. The iTunes legal team is trying to get international cloud-music rights for October 4th’s iPhone event, due to the fact that Apple is expected to launch iCloud to the public at that time.
Procuring these rights would assumedly give international iCloud customers the ability to re-download music and stream tracks through iTunes Match.
iPhone 5 Headed to Russia This November? [Rumor]
According to the RBC Daily, Apple could start selling the iPhone 5 in Russia this November, with that date being “almost immediately” after the US release.
The Russian newspaper’s sources are unnamed smartphone retailers, and this report seems to echo another rumor that Apple won’t unveil the iPhone 5 until October of this year.
iPhone 5 Coming September 5 for US, October 5 Internationally [Rumor]
According to a “very reliable source,” iPhone Italia has reported that one of Switzerland’s carriers, Swisscom, will start offering the rumored iPhone 5 on October 5. Also, the Italian site’s source is “100% sure” that the iPhone 5 will also be available in the US on September 5, as Apple would already have to be talking with carriers about distribution for a new device this Fall.
Patent Fear Mongering Pushes App Developers Outside of the US [Report]
The state of software patents in the US is very reminiscent of the feudal system during the medieval ages. In terms of the US app development scene, you have large companies, like Apple and Google, that provide the platforms for developers to create and innovate on.
Innovation on these platforms (platforms like iOS and Android) is regulated by communication and frequent lawsuits between patent holders. As of late, attacks by large patent companies on mobile indie developers have caused devs to flee the US to escape otherwise-unnecessary legal fees and infringement ramifications.