If you haven’t already installed Apple’s latest EFI firmware for your 15-inch Retina MacBook Pro, you may want to avoid it for a little while. Users on the Apple Support Communities forum are reporting that the update causes reduced frame rates and processor slowdowns when using graphically-intensive applications.
The Jawbone UP wristband first launched back in 2011, and it became quite a popular product. Everyone wanted to get their hands on the fitness- and sleep-tracking iPhone accessory, which came with plenty of promise. Unfortunately, it launched with all kinds of problems, too — including water leaks and inflexible components that broke too easily — and Jawbone was forced to pull it.
The company’s now giving the device a second shot. Today it announced the second-generation Jawbone UP, which is now shipping for $129.99.
Call of Duty: Black Ops II launched today, and with it comes a new update to the Call of Duty Elite app for iOS. In addition to support for the latest game, the app brings an “all-new iPad experience,” which includes a new feature called Elite TV that allows you to live-stream Black Ops II gameplay and multiplayer guides.
Citizen has announced the latest edition to its Eco-Drive watch lineup, and it’s the perfect partner to your iPhone 4S or iPhone 5. Called the Eco-Drive Proximity Watch, it has Bluetooth 4.0 built-in, and vibrates when you receive calls, text messages, emails, and more on your iPhone. It also synchronizes its time and date with your iPhone to ensure it’s always spot-on.
The Eco-Drive Proximity Watch has been available in the U.S. for a couple of months, but it’s just landed in the U.K.
It’s been almost a month since Apple began shipping the iPhone 5, and we’re still waiting for some of the biggest apps to be updated for its larger 4-inch display. Fortunately, as of today, eBay and Skype are not longer on that list.
Spotlight is, in my opinion, one of the most underrated features of iOS. I know so many people who don’t use it, yet I find it indispensable when it comes to searching for emails, notes, contacts, and apps I’ve hidden in a folder somewhere. And with SLightEnhancerSearch, a new tweak for jailbroken iOS devices, it’s even better.
SLightEnhancerSearch enhances Spotlight by introducing the ability to search YouTube, Twitter, Amazon, the App Store, and lots more — right from your home screen.
Shortly before Microsoft began shipping the Surface RT tablet, the company claimed its ClearType display was superior to the third-generation iPad’s Retina display. We had our doubts, and now Dr. Raymond Soneira of DisplayMate Technologies has confirmed we were right to dismiss Microsoft’s claims.
In a display comparison between the third-generation iPad, the Surface RT, and Samsung’s Galaxy Tab 10.1, Soneira found that Apple’s device offers significantly better color saturation and color accuracy, and sharper text.
After being stripped of his position as senior vice president of iOS software, Scott Forstall will now server as an advisor to Tim Cook until he leaves Apple in 2013. While we can’t be certain why he’s really leaving the Cupertino company, rumor has it he’s been axed for refusing to apologize for the half-baked Maps app in iOS 6, and his fiery personality that often upsets others in the Apple camp.
However, Michael Lopp, a director at Palantir and a former senior engineer at Apple, believes firing Forstall was a big mistake. Lopp believes that Forstall “was the best approximation of Steve Jobs that Apple had left.”
Every so often, an iOS developer attempts to make a quick buck by creating a simple app, naming it after a hugely popular jailbreak tweak, then releasing it in the App Store with the same logo and screenshots. That’s exactly what JB Solutions has done with IntelliScreenX, a $0.99 app that promises to be the ultimate notification center for your lock screen. In reality, it’s nothing more than a nasty alarm clock.
When Hurricane Sandy left millions of people across the East Coast of the United States without electricity, portable, battery-powered devices like smartphones and tablets were all they had to rely on. Not only did they provide a means of entertainment, but they also allowed those affected by the storm to follow the latest news and weather information.
With that being the case, Sandy had some interesting effects on app statistics. Compared with the preceding week in New York City, use of navigation apps more than doubled, while those in the finance category saw a 74% boost. Photography and news apps also became more popular, while, surprisingly, weather apps remained closed.
Following the supply problems Apple has faced with the iPhone 5, the Cupertino company is reportedly woking to ensure that it is better prepared for the iPhone 5S by trialling production way ahead of the handset’s public release. According to one Chinese newspaper, it will begin production of up to 100,000 iPhone 5S units this December.
Microsoft’s awesome Xbox app for iOS got a major update this week, and it’s kicking off this week’s must-have apps roundup. It’s accompanied by another great update to Clear, a terrific list-management tool; plus a nifty counting app for iPhone, and a new photography app that lets you apply awesome effects to your photos.
As you might have guessed, Rovio’s latest App Store release, Angry Birds Star Wars, kicks off this week’s must-have games roundup. It’s accompanied by a gorgeous action RPG called Wraithborne, a new word game from EA, and a great side-scrolling platformer called Storm the Train.
Apple’s new 4-inch iOS devices — namely the iPhone 5 and the fifth-generation iPod touch — appear to be suffering from a strange glitch that means they struggle to keep up with rapid touch inputs, particularly when scrolling at a 45-degree angle. The problem, which isn’t present on older iOS device like the iPhone 4S, is demonstrated in the two-minute clip below.
Judge Lucy Koh has agreed to re-examine the role of jury foreman Velvin Hogan, who found Samsung guilty of patent infringement and awarded Apple more than $1 billion in damages earlier this year. Samsung requested a retrial back in October after it became apparent that Hogan failed to disclose details of a lawsuit against Seagate that he was involved in 20 years ago.
Apple’s Find My iPhone service is often used to locate thieves who have stolen iOS devices, but it can also be a life saver. A 17-year-old was air lifted to hospital on Friday, November 2, following a car accident in Santa Barbara, California. But if it wasn’t for Find My iPhone, paramedics would have struggled to find him.
Have you ever purchased an iPad from Walmart, then got it home and found its box was battered, or worse, the device itself was smashed? It probably happens a lot in Pikeville, Kentucky, where employees at one Walmart store have fun with Apple’s latest tablet by throwing new units around the stock room.
And if that wasn’t stupid enough, they also recorded themselves doing it for a video that explains “why you don’t buy an iPad from Walmart.”
Apple has released a software update that’s recommended for all MacBook Airs and MacBook Pros released in June 2012 — including the 15-inch Retina MacBook Pro. In addition to graphics performance and reliability enhancements, the update promises to improve compatibility with some USB devices.
Despite launching the fastest-selling iPhone to date just over a month ago, in addition to a new iPad mini that’s sure to be a big hit this Christmas, Apple is suffering from a surprising yet swift decline in stock value. Just weeks after reaching a $705 high, it now sits at its lowest price in over five months.
Many will dismiss the decline as a rare dip, confident that Apple will bounce back bigger and stronger than before. But others are questioning its ability to do so with ever increasing competition from its rivals. ABC Nightline asks whether Apple has “lost its shine.”
Apple may have just launched the EarPods, undoubtedly the Cupertino company’s best earphones yet, but it’s already hard at working on something better. In a new patent filing, Apple demonstrates its work towards a new set of headphones that would have built-in loudspeakers. The design allows you to quickly switch between headphones for personal use, and a set of speakers for sharing your favorite tracks with your friends.
The Samsung Galaxy S III, this year’s hottest Android handset, has overtaken the iPhone 4S to become the world’s best-selling smartphone. One in every nine smartphones sold during the third-quarter of 2012 were Galaxy S IIIs, helping Samsung ship an estimated 18 million units during the three-month period.
Fantastical is an awesome little calendar app originally developed for OS X by Flexibits. It sits in your Mac’s menu bar and provides you with quick and easy access to your appointments and reminders. You’re probably already familiar with it; we’ve covered it a number of times here on Cult of Mac, and we’re big fans.
Which is why we’re pleased to tell you that Fantastical is coming to your iPhone.
The wait is finally over. Your favorite game and your favorite movie have joined forces to become one in what looks like the most exciting addition to the series yet. I’m talking, of course, about Rovio’s Angry Birds Star Wars, which is now available to download on your Android and iOS devices.
The FlexiShield Skin from MobileFun is a translucent silicone case for iPad mini that’s designed to offer long-lasting protection, extra grip, and a slender profile that “highlights the form of your iPad mini” rather than spoiling it.
It provides impact and scratch protection to the back of your device, while still allowing you to access all of its buttons, ports, and switches. It costs $16.49, and it’s available in white, purple, and black.
If you’ve found Siri to be completely useless, and you’ve decided it’s easier to avoid it than to shout at it, then why not replace it with Google Voice Search? If you’ve got a jailbroken iOS device, it’s as easy as installing a new tweak called NowNow.