Twelve South, one of Cult of Mac’s favorite accessory makers, has a new stand out called the HiRise. Announced today, the elegant, metallic device is designed for holding the iPhone 5 and iPad mini. Like most of Twelve South’s products, the HiRise looks right at home amongst your other Apple products.
iOS 7 beta 4 was just released last week, but that hasn’t kept Apple from pumping out another beta to developers faster than you can say “Oppenheimer.” Beta 5 was released today, and like always, there are some subtle and not-so-subtle changes worth noting.
Here are eight changes in iOS 7 beta 5:
You should be careful when using third-party chargers for Apple devices. Multiple reports have surfaced recently of iPhone owners being electrocuted by malfunctioning chargers in China.
Apple has announced a new USB Power Adapter Takeback Program for those who wish to swap out their third-party chargers for official ones. The program begins August 16.
Mobile payment startup Square has updated its Register app with several new features. Both the iPhone and iPad versions of the app can now record and track payments, including checks and gift cards. On the iPad, merchants can reconcile their cash drawers using the app’s clean interface. The portable SM-S220i printer can now be used to wirelessly print receipts from the app via Bluetooth.
The Apple Store and Best Buy recently started carrying Square’s iPad stand that helps turn the device into a point-of-sale machine.
Square Register is available for free in the App Store.
Source: App Store
The Obama administration has vetoed a product ban on older Apple devices that was proposed by the U.S. International Trade Commission in June. Apple was found guilty of infringing a Samsung wireless patent, and the ITC declared a sales ban on iOS devices older than the iPhone 4S and third-gen iPad.
Trade Representative Michael Froman issued the veto for the executive branch today, marking the first time a presidential administration has vetoed a product ban by the ITC since 1987.
We’re getting to the stage in the Apple rumor mill when next-gen parts start leaking left and right out of the supply chain overseas. Multiple parts for the iPhone 5S, low-cost iPhone 5C, and upcoming iPads have already surfaced. Now alleged parts for the upcoming iPhone 5C and iPad 5 have been partially assembled and shown off on video.
While the authenticity of these kinds of leaks should always be questioned, today’s leaks are corroborated by previously reported parts for Apple’s unreleased products.
We shed a tear when Infinity Blade Dungeons was canned after mouthwatering footage was shown at an Apple event, but there may still be hope. One of the most popular iOS games in history isn’t over yet, if a LinkedIn profile is to be believed.
A Senior Q&A Tester for ChAIR Entertainment, the iOS development arm for Epic Games, has “Infinity Blade 3 for the iPhone” listed as one of the games he’s testing. While that’s by no means a confirmation, it isn’t surprising. ChAIR teased us with “just wait till you see what we’ve got in store for the Infinity Blade universe” earlier this month.
Infinity Blade II received a big upgrade last summer, but development has been quiet since then.
Maybe we’ll see Infinity Blade III at an Apple event this fall? Now that iOS 7 opens up the possibility for hardware controllers, things could very interesting.
Via: Kotaku
For the first time, Apple is allowing children under the age of 13 to have an iTunes account with the approval of an educational institution. Back to school season is nearly here, and Apple is preparing for the increased number of iPads that will be distributed by educators to young students.
Apple’s updated terms and conditions don’t mean that any pre-teen can create an iTunes account at will. Only approved institutions can add IDs after having obtained “verifiable parental consent.”
Cocktail is a popular OS X utility that has been around for years. It’s a simplistic app that lets you clean up and optimize your Mac’s system. The developer behind Cocktail, Maintain, has finally released a version that is fully compatible with Mountain Lion. A Mavericks edition is also in the works.
Earlier today, the U.S. Department of Justice proposed serious remedies for Apple to abide by now that the company has been found guilty of conspiring to fix e-book prices. When the ruling was issued last month that Apple was guilty, the outcome of the suit was unknown. How would the government punish Apple (for something that Apple has always adamantly denied)? Now we know.
Not only does the DoJ want Apple to stop selling e-books through the iBookstore entirely, but allow rivals like Amazon and Barnes & Noble to sell e-books in their iOS apps. In a scathing response to the DoJ’s proposal, Apple has called the proposed remedies “draconian” and “punitive.”
Remember MobileMe? When Apple transitioned to iCloud, MobileMe users with paid plans were coaxed over with 20GB of complimentary storage. Apple had originally planned to take the free gigabytes away on September 30th, 2012, but the deadline got pushed back another year.
In an email to affected customers today, Apple reminds everyone that the free storage promotion comes to an actual end this year on September 30th.
“When it expires, your iCloud storage will be automatically adjusted to the free 5 GB plan,” explains Apple. “If you exceed your storage plan on September 30, 2013, iCloud Backup, Documents in the Cloud, and iCloud Mail will temporarily stop working.”
If you need more storage than 5GB, you can upgrade your iCloud plan now.
Source: Apple
Apple has been without a head of retail for nearly a year. Since John Browett was hired and quickly fired last year, Tim Cook has been in charge of the company’s retail operations. Apple has made it clear that it’s on the hunt for a new executive to fill the role, but there hasn’t been any candidates to fit the bill.
While Apple does occasionally make high-profile hires from other companies, promotions often happen from the inside. Tim Cook himself is an example. He was Chief Operations Officer before Steve Jobs died and made him CEO.
As Apple continues to seek a new retail leader, don’t expect the position to be filled by someone currently on Apple’s roster. But that doesn’t necessarily rule out former employees.
Apple has bought a company which specializes in low-energy chips that are ideally suited for devices like fitness trackers. The rumor mill is saying that Apple is working on an iWatch to release by the end of 2014, and this small acquisition is likely another way to bring in more expertise for the project.
Today the GoPro iOS app hit version 2.0, and the update includes several additions that make it easier to interface with the GoPro camera from an iPhone or iPad. The app is way more than a remote control now.
The biggest feature is the ability to wirelessly transfer photo and video from the camera to a dedicated album in an iOS device’s camera roll. Once the you download version 2.0 of the iOS app and the most recent software update for the camera itself, you can browse, view, and delete media right from the camera’s memory card. Photos and videos that have been wirelessly synced over to your iOS device from the camera can be shared through email, text, or other apps like Instagram and Facebook.
GoPro users are going to love today’s update, so grab it now.
Source: App Store
Afterlight is one of the most popular photography apps in the App Store, but until now it’s only been optimized for the iPhone. Today’s update brings full support for the iPad, meaning you can edit in a native interface for the iPad’s larger display.
If you’ve seen pics in your Instagram feed that are framed creatively or look like they aren’t filtered in Instagram itself, chances are they were probably edited in Afterlight. It’s nice that the app officially supports the iPad now, but the interface is basically just a blown up version of the iPhone app. Some iPad-only UI tweaks or features would be nice for future updates.
Afterlight costs $1 as a universal download in the App Store.
Source: App Store
Apple released the fourth beta for iOS 7 to developers today, and there are quite a few UI tweaks and additions that have been made under the hood. We’ll probably see a couple more beta releases before Apple ships the final version of iOS 7 in September, so the OS is starting to mature quite a bit at this point.
This list doesn’t include everything that’s new, but we’ve collected 11 notable changes Apple made in iOS 7 beta 4:
Veteran Apple executive Bob Mansfield is no longer a member of the company’s executive team. But that doesn’t mean he has left altogether. Mansfield is still working in an unknown capacity on “special projects” for Tim Cook. He was previously responsible for leading the new Technologies group that was formed during the big executive shakeup last year.
The above photo shows what is allegedly Apple packaging for an unreleased “iPhone 5C.” The packaging comes from the supply chain overseas and was first posted on the Chinese forum WeiPhone. It’s important to note up front that there is no way of confirming the packaging’s authenticity, but if it’s real, it has most likely revealed the name for the rumored budget iPhone.
After being offline since last Thursday, Apple’s Developer Center is back and operational. Certain parts of the portal are still coming back online, but Apple’s system status page reveals that several services are accessible again, including the centers where developers can download iOS and OS X betas.
Supermechanical, the startup behind Twine, has a new Kickstarter campaign for a smart kitchen thermometer called Range. The device plugs into the iPhone’s headphone jack and helps you cook by telling the temperature and creating recipe graphs. It looks like a cool product, and it has 34 more days to reach its $90,000 goal.
If you run a small business, then you know how cumbersome it can be to keep track of tasks, invoices, sales, and estimates. A new iPad app called Exigo is here to help you out, and it promises to keep you organized.
Since the beginning of this year, reports have been saying that Apple is working on a cheaper, ‘budget’ iPhone. In the last several months, we’ve seen part leaks and more info point towards Apple releasing the plastic-enclosed device this fall alongside the flagship iPhone 5S.
Apple has always dropped the price on the previous iPhone model by $100 when a new one comes out, but that business model hasn’t been able to help the company grow in emerging markets around the world. The budget iPhone is expected to cost around $300 unsubsidized, which would unlock a whole new market of potential customers.
There has never been two independent iPhone lineups at once, so introducing a totally separate model would be a big move for Apple. But what if the multi-colored, plastic iPhone everyone expects is just a retooled version of the current iPhone 5?
DJing used to be something only the pros did. Hardware was (and still can be) incredibly expensive, and the barrier to entry was set high. Only in the last four to five years has a new generation of untrained DJers emerged, and you can trace the movement’s genesis back to a single app.
Algoriddim’s djay is the leading consumer/prosumer app of its kind on the Mac, iPad and iPhone. With millions upon millions of downloads, djay has received a ton of love from its users, the press, and Apple itself. You may have seen it on an Apple commercial once or twice. Steve Jobs highlighted it during the iPad 2 event in 2011.
Today djay 2 has arrived for the iPad and iPhone. Algoriddim has rebuilt the app to include powerful, truly one-of-a-kind features for amateurs and professionals, while maintaining the same fist-pumping, enjoyable experience from the original version.
Today Google unveiled its second-gen Nexus 7 tablet. The 7-inch, ASUS-made device packs a stunning 1,920 x 1,200 display. That translates to 323 pixels per inch, which is up considerably from the first Nexus 7’s 216 ppi. It’s also a higher resolution display than what Apple offers with the iPad mini, the company’s only flagship product that hasn’t been Retina-fied yet.
Google is right when it says that it has the “world’s highest-resolution 7-inch tablet.” The first Nexus 7 beat the iPad mini’s display quality too. So will Apple finally answer with a Retina iPad mini this fall?
Apple’s third quarter earnings call didn’t produce many interesting comments from the company’s executives, but CFO Peter Oppenheimer and CEO Tim Cook did mention new products coming in the fall. But then again, Apple has been beating the same “stuff is coming” drum all year.
When asked a philosophical question about how Apple operates, Cook reiterated the company’s mantra on manufacturing quality gear.