Modern Combat 4: Zero Hour, the latest addition to Gameloft’s awesome first-person shooter series, has arrived on iOS in a bid to push the boundaries of mobile gaming even further. It promises to be “the most memorable action thriller ever,” boasting an intense solo campaign and a completely redesigned multiplayer mode. What’s more, its console-quality graphics look incredible on Retina display devices.
Tim Cook sat down with Bloomberg Businessweek for a massive 11-page interview. It’s incredible reading, well worth going through in total, but here are the best bits and quotes, ranging everywhere from Apple’s patriotism, to why Scott Forstall was fired, the future of the Mac, how Apple plans on fixing iOS 6 Maps, and much, much, much more.
Look, iTunes 11, I love you and all, but where’s all my stuff? First I needed to figure out the Up Next thing, retool my Search habits, figure out how to make a Genius playlist again, and now I can’t even find the Downloads window. What gives?
If you’re in the same boat, we’re here to help. If you have re-enabled the Sidebar, you’ll notice that there’s no way to click on Downloads any more. Even when there’s a download happening. Here’s the thing: the Downloads window will never be there. iTunes 11 has moved it. Here’s how to find it again.
Apple CEO Tim Cook has announced that the company will invest over $100 million to bring some of its Mac production back to the United States in 2013. At least one model will be made exclusively in the U.S., Cook revealed during an interview on NBC’s Rock Center, though he wouldn’t reveal which model that would be.
Snapseed, the best damn photo editor on all of iOS, has gotten an update. V1.5 adds Google+ sharing, a whole new Retrolux filter, better frames, and a new icon. Oh, and it’s now free, so if you were too cheap to download it before, go grab it now.
Which? –the UK consumer site/organization/magazine — has put tablet battery life to the test. Tablets were split into two size groups, has their screens set to the exact same brightness (using an external calibration tool) and were used to browse the web until they died.
And surprise! The iPad not only won in each category, but won by a landslide.
Evernote has updated its Android and iOS apps today — just under a month after introducing a brand new redesign — to add support for Evernote Business, meaning those who subscribe to the service can now access it on their smartphones and tablets. The update also brings a new Business Notebook design and other improvements.
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City is finally available to download on Android (nearly!) and iOS, priced at $4.99. Rockstar Games has brought the hugely popular title to mobile to celebrate its 10th anniversary — as it did with Grand Theft Auto 3 last year — and it has made a number of improvements that will ensure you enjoy the game even more this time around.
Apple has reduced the shipping delay for the iPad mini to just one week in the United States, ensuring orders placed before midnight on December 12 will be delivered in time for Christmas. The new delay applies to both Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi + cellular models in all capacities — but it still hasn’t made its way to international online stores.
We’re at the time of year where we’re shooting tons of photos. Whether it’s at a family gathering, capturing wintry landscapes, or admiring decorations adorning houses in your neighbourhood, taking photos is definitely on the agenda. But taking photos isn’t enough – you want to make them look as appealing as possible, and Cult of Mac Deals has assembled The Mac Photo Bundle to help you get more out of every photo you take.
And it can be yours for a limited time – all 5 apps – for just $25!
Many don’t know that Twitter didn’t actually invent the word “tweet.” It was a small group of developers at The Iconfactory who thought up the clever moniker when they made Twitterrific, the first real Twitter client. Twitterrific started way back in 2007 as the first Twitter app on the Mac, and the first iPhone version went live when Apple launched the App Store in 2008. Since then, the app has continued to evolve on both iOS and OS X. Twitterrific was the first app to use a bird icon, show a character counter as you tweet, and show replies and conversation threads in-app.
Twitterrific was instrumental in laying the groundwork for the likes of Tweetie and Tweetbot, and the The Iconfactory’s work is a shining example of how third-party devs can enhance a service like Twitter and make the experience better for the user. Without Twitterrific, the Twitter app landscape would probably look very different.
Last week, The Iconfactory announced the upcoming release of Twitterrific 5, a totally new redesign on the iPhone and iPad. I’ve been playing with the new app for the past week, and it has now gone live for everyone in the App Store. After taking it for a test run and speaking with The Iconfactory, I can easily call Twitterrific 5 the best version of the first Twitter app.
We’re continually seeing examples of how the iPhone has exploded its horizons to become much, much more than just a phone. Case (ha) in point: Why shell out $300 for an action cam when you already own a video cam with stellar optics and image-stabilizing, a big, beautiful screen and the ability to upload your exploits whenever you damn well please? All you need to turn your iPhone from video cam to action cam is a rugged, weatherproof case with a wide-angle lens, and the ability to stick the whole thing onto a helmet or such. And that pretty much describes the $150 Mophie OutRide system.
In one of the more visually hilarious moments in the current legal wrangling between Samsung and Apple, Samsung has submitted parts of Apple’s deal with HTC to the judge involved in the Samsung v Apple case.
Notice anything weird about it? The document is seriously worked over by some paralegal’s Sharpie.
Apple shares took a tumble today, with a over six percent loss, making this the largest stock drop in a single day, making it the biggest one in four years. Analysts and other investors are blaming the sell-off and resulting stock price drop on many factors, including a recent forecast by an influential firm that Google’s Android operating system continues to gain ground, as well as unconfirmed reports that at least one stock-clearing house has been raising margin requirements on trades in Apple stock.
The Larklife fitness gadget doesn’t just lifelessly track all the mundane details of your life, like calories burned, miles trudged and hours snoozed away. No, this little thing actually learns your habits and tells you, in realtime, exactly what you should do to make yourself healthier.
Location-based dating. Spooky, right? It’s a lot like leaving personal information on little sticky notes attached to your coat; any random scary internet guy or gal can pick one off you at any moment and get in your face. Yikes!
SinglesAroundMe aims to solve that problem with a new app, available for free on both the Google Play and the iTunes App Store.
SinglesAroundMe uses geographical mapping to plot your location as well as that of other users in your area, anywhere in the world. The killer feature here is “Approximate Location,” a way in which the app will allow singles to flirt and flag their availability in-app, without revealing their specific location. In fact, you get to choose to keep your location hidden, exact, or approximate, which displaces your actual location by about one to two miles.
Philips has joined the likes of JBL by selling Lightning-compatible speaker docks for Apple’s latest iOS devices. Today Philips announced not one, but four new speaker docks with Lightning connectors. Each speaker set serves a different purpose, ranging from a nightstand dock with alarm to a portable speaker.
These speakers should start hitting retail channels this month, but Philips hasn’t given any pricing info yet.
Believe it or not, Black Friday has already come and gone. Pretty soon the Christmas season will begin, and we’ll mark this midwinter festival by getting together with friends and family and continuing to drink and eat far too much.
Meanwhile, we also buy gifts for those same friends and family members, whether they want them or not. Luckily, we’re here to help, and if you follow our festive advice, your gifts just might make it into the “wanted” category.
From now until Christmas, Cult of Mac will be putting together holiday gift guys full of ideas for the special ones in your life, no matter what their interests or your budget. Today, we’re looking at gifts for the lovely laydee in your life.
I can’t believe it’s been two years since Verizon rolled out its 4G LTE network. That’s insane considering carriers such as T-Mobile have yet to even launch a 4G LTE network. To celebrate two years of providing consumers with the fastest, most reliable 4G LTE available, Verizon has a few amazing statistics to remind some of us why we continue to put up with their ridiculous prices and constant BS.
Got an Android phone with NFC and ticked off you can’t use it anywhere for mobile payments? Blame Apple. According to one industry watcher, the Cupertino-based tech company is responsible for setting back the emerging NFC market by two years in the United States.
One of the better Yuletide traditions is the venerable holiday Advent Calendar, in which each day of December leading up to Christmas is marked off on a special calendar by opening its corresponding door to find a small gift, toy or chocolate squirreled away inside.
This year, we here at Cult of Mac decided we wanted to give our readers their very own Apple-themed advent calendar, filled with the year’s best apps, gadgets, stories and other curios. So each day in December, we’re going to lovingly peel back the door on the Cult of Mac 2012 Advent Calendar to reveal another delicious morsel, something really special that came out this year that we think every one of you should enjoy.
What’s hiding behind the door for Day 5? It’s a handy service called Pocket, formerly known as Read It Later.
If you’ve spent some time with last week’s app tip, Glympse, you’ll know it’s pretty handy to send your location info along to friends, family, or co-workers. One feature that is missing from Glympse, however, is an automatic message about when you’ll be there.
Twist, another iOS app that helps you keep folks you’re meeting up with aware of where you are, has just that — an automatic ETA message.
Apple is racing to hire former Texas Instruments employees in Israel in an effort to staff a planned R&D center. Not wanting to be outdone, Intel has decided to ramp up their efforts to hire the same former Texas Instruments employees before Apple can grab them first.
A new report claims that Intel is offering the employees “healthy compensation packages” above the standard salary rates in an effort to keep the employees from slipping into Apple’s hands.
Microsoft’s new tablet, the Surface, is supposed to make the iPad and MacBook Air irrelevant. It’s supposed to be the best of both worlds by being a tablet/laptop hybrid. Reviews of the Surface have been mixed, and initial sales reports are indicating that Surface RT might be in trouble, because no one is buying it.
According to new research by the Boston-based brokerage firm Detwiler Fenton, Microsoft is likely to sell fewer than 1 million Surface RT units in the December quarter. To put that number in perspective, Apple sold 300,000 original iPad units on its first day of availability.
Apple released iTunes 11 last week, and it’s a step in the right direction. Its interface is cleaner and easier to use than previous versions, but what Apple fans have really been wanting for the past couple years is an unlimited music streaming service akin to Rdio, Spotify, or Pandora.
Rumors surfaced earlier this year that Apple is working on a Pandora-like radio service backed by iTunes’ huge music catalog. Some hoped Apple would introduce the service before the end of the year, but a new report claims that the new streaming service is nowhere near to being complete.