Apple has acquired SnappyLabs, the small startup behind the SnappyCam iPhone app, according to a report from TechCrunch. SnappyCam gave the user the ability to shoot 20 full-res photos per second with the iPhone’s camera. By comparison, Apple’s new Burst Mode on the iPhone 5s can only capture 10 photos per second.
The price Apple paid and exact date of the acquisition remain unknown, but the SnappyCam app was recently pulled from the App Store.
“Sources have since affirmed that the company was acquired by Apple, and that there was also acquisition interest “from most of the usual players”, meaning other tech giants,” reports TechCrunch. “I don’t have details on the terms of the deal, and I’m awaiting a response from Apple, which has not confirmed the acquisition.”
SnappyLabs is likely one of the last remaining 15 companies Apple bought in 2013 that hadn’t been made public, until now. The app worked very similarly to Burst Mode in the iOS 7 Camera app. The user could shoot a collection of photos and choose ones to keep from a slideshow.
Update: Apple has confirmed the acquisition to Re/code. SnappyLabs was likely purchase for its creator, John Papandriopoulos, and his research. Papandriopoulos had created a faster way to process and compress JPEGs.
Source: TechCrunch
