Android has been dominating the iPhone in terms of market share, but if consumers decide to buy what they really want right now the two platforms’ roles might be reversed. In a new survey, Apple analyst Gene Munster found that 53% of smartphone buyers plan to buy an iPhone 5.
Whether those prospective iPhone 5 owners actually go out and buy the iPhone 5 is a whole other story, but Munster says that interest in the iPhone 5 is growing despite the Maps app fiasco.
It’s that time of year again, time to look back at a year of new apps and highlight the ones we liked the most.
So we’d like some help from you, gorgeous Cult of Mac readers – who are all looking particularly good today, might I add? We need to draw up a shortlist of candidates, apps that made a splash on your home screens during the last 12 months.
Which ones delighted you? Which ones entertained you? Which ones left you giggling like a little kid? What about the free apps you wished you could pay for? Or the paid-for apps that you thought were ridiculously cheap? Which were the apps you rushed to tell your friends about, because you were so excited?
Help us out – post your thoughts and suggestions in the comments. Next week we’ll round up your suggestions, mix in a few of our own, and run a poll in which you can vote and decide the winner.
Thanks folks! We’re looking forward to seeing your recommendations.
Are you a big Angry Birds fan? Rovio’s media onslaught is set to hit the big screen, with a 3D CGI feature film produced by Despicable Me and Ice Age alum John Cohen helming. Yay?
Readdle has today updated its popular PDF Expert app for iPad to introduce a number of new features that include Google Drive syncing, integration with the PDF Converter app, faster PDF rendering, and more. It also promises “dozens” of other improvements, and it’s available to download from the App Store now.
A U.S. court has today ruled that Apple’s iPhone infringes three patents owned by MobileMedia Ideas, a so-called “patent troll” jointly owned by Nokia, Sony, and Denver-based MPEG LA.
Xiaojie Li, a 44-year-old woman living in Newton, Massachusetts, was pinned to the ground and tasered by police on Tuesday when she attempted to buy a few too many iPhones from her local Apple store. Li says she was buying the devices on behalf of relatives in China, and she was carrying $16,000 in cash when police arrested her.
As is typical of Verizon every holiday season, they have gone ahead and updated their return policy to reflect an extended period for holiday purchases. Any new device purchased from Verizon between November 22 and December 25, 2012 may be returned or exchanged through January 15, 2013.
Hey, thanks Apple! Order online right now from the U.S. official Apple Storeand you get free 2-3 day shipping. Usually, Apple only offers free shipping if you spend more $50. That will make it a little easier to get a last minute stocking stuffer for your loved ones, don’t you think? Source: Apple Store
Every now and then – less often these days – you hear about an app that’s really new, genuinely new. It does something you’ve not seen done before. It’s a whole new idea. Foldify is one those apps: it’s fun for kids and grown-ups alike, it’s reasonably-priced, and above all it smacks of genius.
If you need something with more oomph for managing your photos than iPhoto but don’t really care for Aperture, good news: Adobe has updated Photoshop Lightroom to version 4.3, not just fixing a ton of bugs, but adding Retina support for MacBook Pros and adding support for twenty new digital cameras.
Amazon has updated its Instant Video app for iOS today, introducing support for the iPhone and iPod touch. The service has been available on iPad since August, but this is the first time it has come to smaller iOS devices, giving Amazon Prime subscribers more than 30,000 free videos in their pockets.
Apple could be looking to switch its graphics cards supplier from NVIDIA back to AMD for the iMac. The Cupertino company began using NVIDIA solutions for its latest all-in-one, which started shipping late last month, but a job listing on its website suggests it could already be preparing to switch back. Apple is looking for a Hardware Systems Electrical Engineer with experience in AMD graphics processing units (GPU).
I’m sure you’re like me and get tons of email from people you don’t necessarily want email from. While OS X Mail has the new VIP feature to group important contacts into one mailbox, what about all those emails from contacts you feel are less than important, but might want to keep around, just in case.
There is a way to sort all those emails from non-important contacts, using Smart Groups in the Contacts App as well as a Smart Mailbox in Mail app. Here’s how.
Google released an official Google Maps app for the iPhone on Wednesday evening — I’m sure you’ve already downloaded it to your device — and as you might expect, it’s already incredibly popular. Users have since been rushing to reclaim the mapping service that Apple booted out of iOS with its latest iOS 6 update, helping Google Maps rocket to the top of the App Store’s free chart in just seven hours. It has knocked Apple’s own 12 Days of Christmas app down to second place.
Three months after the release of iOS 6 and the subsequent PR disaster that was Apple’s renewed (and Google-less) Maps app, Google has got a replacement back into the App Store. It’s slick, speedy and, most importantly, a good deal more accurate than Apple’s data. Thank goodness for that.
Samsung might be Apple’s biggest rival, but it’s clear to see the Korean company loves its work. It’s been trying to make its Android smartphones more like the iPhone for many years — that’s hard to deny, no matter whose side you’re on — and it’s spawned retail stores, tablets, and even charging adapters that are remarkably similar to those form the Cupertino company.
Even Samsung’s executives can’t fight their love of Mac and iOS devices. One, Young Sohn, a chief strategy officer, admits to using a Mac, iPhone, and iPad at home, and praises Apple’s unique ecosystem.
In case you hadn’t already heard, Google finally released an official Google Maps app for iPhone on Wednesday night, and I must say, I think it’s terrific. It’s super quick, it looks fantastic, and it brings back all the mapping features you had on your iPhone before Apple gave Google Maps the boot — including Street View and transit directions. Google has also thrown its own turn-by-turn navigation into the mix for good measure.
In fact, the new Google Maps app for iPhone is so good that Google admits it’s better than the Android version. It also promises an iPad version is coming soon.
The United Kingdom is a little late to 4G — just a few months ago, 4G networks didn’t exist. Now it has one, EE, which is quickly trying to expand its 4G coverage across the country. It began its rollout in 11 major cities, and the company has announced today that it will be reaching an additional 17 by March 2013.
We’re all busy people, but around this time of year that level of “busy-ness” seems to increase exponentially. We seem to have less hours in the day, and that means we need to make the most out of each and every minute. And your Mac can help you do that – with the right apps in place, that is.
There’s no better opportunity than now to start building your software stack than with today’s Cult of Mac Deals offer. The Mac Variety Bundle 2.0 from Macbundler includes 9 top Mac apps valued at $527 for the amazingly low price of just $45! That’s a savings of 91%!
Scheduled as a December 13th launch, 1Password, version 4.0.2, is available now on the iTunes App Store.
The updated app brings a host of new features, and is available for $7.99, which is 50 percent off the typical price of the security app from atebits software.
After months of anticipation, Google just unleashed Google Maps for iPhone in Apple’s App Store. It was reported earlier tonight that the app was set to go live, and it’s now available.
After Apple abandoned Google Maps for its own mapping technology in iOS 6, Google has been working on a new, standalone app to submit. It’s finally here.
A new report from Reuters takes to the streets (or, malls, rather) of the globe to find out what folks are actually purchasing from retail shops around the world, including Apple, Microsoft, and Samsung retail spaces in cities like Sydney, Seattle, Palo Alto, Shanghai, Bangalore, Singaporte, Paris, London, Mexico City, and Boston. They spoke to store employees and retail shoppers to find out, really, what’s selling and what’s not.
Guess what they found out? While Apple may be the darling of naysayers who like to crow about the stock slippage or the competition from Android and (sometimes) Windows Phones, Reuters found that the people they talked to and the stores they visited were far from anti-Apple, and, in fact, positively glowing about the Cupertino-based tech company’s products.
Good news for those of you that have been led astray by Apple’s iOS 6 Maps: Google is set to release its iOS app for Google Maps in the App Store tonight. The reliable AllThingsD is reporting that the app is set to go live after internal worry at Google that Apple would reject the app.
If you use the official Time Warner TV iPad app, then you’re in luck. A big update has brought the ability to view On Demand content, including 4,000 TV and movie titles from 91 different providers.
Content is available in HD and standard def depending on the provider, and you have full power to search and browse the catalog right from the comfort of your iPad.
When you think of Redbox, you probably don’t think of streaming movies to your TV or smartphone. Redbox has represented the last remnants of paying to rent physical media, but that’s about to change. Today Redbox announced its plans to take on Netflix with its own movie streaming service. Accompanying apps for Android and iOS will come out when the service begins its invite-only rollout later this month.
For $8 per month, Redbox will give you unlimited streaming and four nights of physical DVD rentals from any Redbox kiosk. Pay $1 more and you’ll get four Blu-ray rentals as an upgrade. Netflix customers can either have unlimited streaming or only unlimited DVD rentals for $8 per month.