MacRumors

Overcast version 5.0.2 was released today, bringing additional Siri Shortcuts in iOS 12 and new Apple Watch complications to the popular third-party podcast player.

The new Apple Watch complications can be located on the central or corner positions of the Infograph watch face that features on Series 4 models, offering users another way to quickly launch the app from their wrist.

For fans of Siri Shortcuts, Overcast now supports three additional options. One lets you quickly enable or cancel the sleep timer, while the other two allow you to generate either standard or timestamped links for the podcast episode you're currently listening to, making for easier sharing.

Elsewhere in this update, the Nitpicky Details menu includes an option to reduce the haptic level related to certain functions, and users now have more control over the Auto-Sync to Watch feature, with toggles available for playlists as well as individual episodes.

Lastly, this point update fixes a handful of bugs and crashes, and adds a one-tap preset for the previous interval to the sleep timer. Overcast 5.0.2 is available as a free ad-supported app for iPhone and iPad from the App Store. [Direct Link]

Apple Watch app Cardiogram, which is designed to provide you with more information on the heart rate readings obtained from the Apple Watch, is teaming up with Greenhouse Life Insurance Company and Amica Life to offer up to $1,000 worth of accidental death insurance to Apple Watch owners.

Cardiogram users can get the deal starting today through the Cardiogram app for iOS. The offer is available in Wisconsin, Arizona, Indiana, and Georgia, and will be expanding to other states in the future.

Greenhouse Life Insurance Company, launched from RGA, and Amica Life are the latest insurance companies to embrace the Apple Watch. Health and life insurance providers have been increasingly incorporating data from wearable devices into their plans to encourage preventative care.

Companies like John Hancock and Aetna, for example, provide discounted Apple Watch devices to their customers, encouraging them to be more active to improve health.

"Ultimately, life insurers save dollars by saving lives," said Brandon Ballinger, co-founder of Cardiogram. In multiple clinical studies, Cardiogram has validated the accuracy of its artificial intelligence-based algorithm, DeepHeart, to detect multiple chronic conditions - including hypertension, sleep apnea, diabetes and atrial fibrillation - using the heart rate sensor on consumer wearables. "This launch is a step toward using wearables to improve health. One of the first challenges we faced was to distill the complex world of life insurance into a simple set of screens that ordinary people can understand on their phones."

The Cardiogram accidental death insurance plan provides coverage in the case of a fatal accident. It is not as comprehensive as full coverage life insurance, but it does not require a medical examination. Customers who opt into a free $1,000 plan have the option to upgrade to $100,000 to $500,000 worth of coverage for $9 to $41 per month.

In addition to the Apple Watch, the program is also available for all devices that support Cardiogram, which includes accessories from Garmin and those that run WearOS from Google.

Cardiogram can be downloaded from the App Store for free. [Direct Link]

eBay this morning has debuted a new 15 percent off sitewide coupon for its shoppers, which will last until 6:00 p.m. PT tonight. This means that for the next ten hours you can save 15 percent off a minimum purchase of $25 across eBay, although there are the usual exclusions of warranties and protection plans, coins and paper money, gift cards and coupons, and real estate.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with eBay. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

You'll have to use the coupon within a single transaction, and it will be capped at a maximum value of $100. To use the discount, head to eBay and browse, add items that total over $25 to your cart, and enter the coupon code PICKSOON in the checkout screen. eBay shoppers with an address located in the United States, Canada, Latin America, or the Caribbean are eligible for the coupon.

eBay's sitewide coupons are a great chance to save on a huge variety of products, which can include Apple MacBooks, iPads, iPhone cases, Apple TV 4K, and more. Another good idea for the sitewide coupon is looking for discounts on HomeKit items, including the Nanoleaf Aurora Rhythm Smarter Kit, the iDevices Switch and Outdoor Switch, Philips Hue's range of products, and more.

As with any eBay shopping, unless the item is being sold by an official retailer's eBay store -- like Best Buy's Nanoleaf Aurora kit -- it's important to remember that buying off of eBay does come with some risk. To be safe, remember to check the seller's item sold count and positive feedback rating. It's also typically useful to see if the images provided appear to be taken by the seller and not used from stock imagery of the product.

Head to eBay and eBay's Daily Deals pages to start shopping, and remember that the PICKSOON coupon code will expire tonight at 6:00 p.m. PT. You can also find more information on other sales happening throughout the week in our Deals Roundup.

The monogram complication on Apple Watch is designed to let you choose up to four letters to appear on your watch's display. Previously it was only available on the Color watch face, but if you're a Series 4 owner, you can also use it on the new Infograph watch face.

The idea behind the monogram is to let you add your initials to your watch display, but there's nothing stopping you from adding other characters. Emoji aren't supported, but most unicode characters are, including of course the Apple  symbol.

You can find all manner of unicode characters on the web – try searching for "unicode faces" for some fun combinations. You could also download a unicode iPhone app like UniChar for a more complete selection. Just remember that you can only combine up to four characters in your monogram.

How to Add a Monogram to Your Apple Watch

1. Copy the unicode character(s) you want to use in your monogram to your iPhone's clipboard. To copy from a web page, highlight the symbol(s) with a long press and then tap Copy from the popup menu.
2. Next, launch the stock Watch app on your iPhone.
   
   

3. Tap the My Watch tab if it's not already selected.
4. Tap Clock.
5. Tap Monogram.
6. Paste the character(s) into the Monogram field.
   
   

7. Now, return to the main menu in the My Watch tab, and a select a Color or Infograph watch face from My Faces. (If you're not yet using one, you can choose one from the Face Gallery.)
8. If you're using an Infograph face, tap Sub-dial Top and choose Monogram. If you're using a Color face, make sure the Monograph toggle is on.

Once that's done, your monogram should show up the next time you switch to the Color or Infograph watch face on your Apple Watch.

Nintendo's newest mobile game, Dragalia Lost, is now available on both Android and iOS devices in the United States, Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Macau.

Dragalia Lost is an original action RPG that was developed by Nintendo and Japanese mobile game developer Cygames. In the swipe-based game, players are tasked with conquering their enemies using powerful attacks and special skills.

Limited time multiplayer raid battles are available for up to three players online, and an internet connection is required to play.

Nintendo has successfully launched several iOS games, including Fire Emblem Heroes, Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp, and Super Mario Run.

Like Nintendo's most successful titles, Dragalia Lost is free to play and it is supported through in-app purchases.

Dragalia Lost can be downloaded from the App Store for free. [Direct Link]

Apple Design Chief Jony Ive has been awarded the 2018 Stephen Hawking Fellowship, the Cambridge Union announced on Tuesday.

Charles Connor, Cambridge Union Society President, said Ive was one of the "most influential individuals in modern technology" when announcing the award.

Ive will speak during the Michaelmas term (the first academic term) at Cambridge University's Debating Chamber, where he is expected to offer "reflection on his career, split with a more general reflection on technology and design as a whole."

The fellowship, which is an honorary scholarship to recognize the recipients' contributions to STEM fields and social discourse, was created by the Cambridge Union Society in partnership with professor Stephen Hawking in 2017.

Stephen Hawking delivered the Inaugural Fellowship Lecture in November of 2017 after the Union Society approached him about the creation of a fellowship in his name. It was one of his last public appearances before his death in 2018.

Apple is introducing a new TestFlight feature that is designed to allow developers to create public links to invite new beta testers to try out their apps.

According to Apple, developers can enable a public a public link that can be shared with multiple users at one time, alleviating the need to send out individual invites. Potential beta testers can click the public link to install the app through TestFlight.

Now it's even easier to get valuable feedback on your app before releasing it on the App Store for iPhone, iPad, and Apple TV. Simply enable a public link for your app in App Store Connect that leads to an invitation to test in TestFlight. Share the link to let anyone discover the beta version of your app.

Apple first announced public links as an upcoming feature in June, but the Apple didn't make it available for developers until today.

Developers have the option to create a public link that allows for a limited number of testers. TestFlight supports up to 10,000 testers for each app that's being beta tested.

YouTube this week introduced an update to its iOS app, quietly adding HDR support on the new iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max models, as pointed out on Reddit.

Both the iPhone XS and XS Max, like the iPhone X, feature "Super Retina" HDR displays that support HDR videos. HDR videos offer up a broader range of colors and luminance compared to non-HDR content.

When watching HDR videos on YouTube, to ensure you're watching at the highest possible quality, you can tap on the three dots in the top right hand corner and then select the "Quality" option. HDR listings will only be available on devices that support HDR, and the highest available quality on the iPhone XS and XS Max is 1080p60 HDR.

Apple added HDR support for the iPhone X back in May, but the feature was not originally working with the iPhone XS and XS Max until the latest update.

As more and more smartphones ditch the 3.5mm headphone jack, the market for true wireless Bluetooth earphones has become increasingly flooded with numerous options for customers to buy. Apple has its own first-party earphones with the AirPods, which fit conveniently in the Apple ecosystem thanks to the W2 chip's simple device pairing and a straightforward charging solution with the included carrying case.

Sony, Jabra, Bang & Olufsen, Anker, and more all provide similar true wireless earphones (a term that means there is no wire at all between each earbud), usually priced anywhere between $80 to $200. Now, wireless accessory company Crazybaby — which first made a splash with the introduction of a "levitating" Mars Bluetooth home speaker — has introduced a few AirPods-like products of its own with the Air Nano ($79 for MacRumors readers using code RUMORSNANO, $99 normally) and Air 1S ($129 for MacRumors readers using code RUMORS1S, $159 normally).

Air Nano

Starting with the cheaper Air Nano model, Crazybaby sells this pair of earphones in 10 bright colors and the company sent me the Volt Green option. While I typically enjoy having an array of colors to choose from for most products, I personally prefer something a bit more subdued for headphones. Air Nano definitely stands out when in your ear, and they pulse with a white glow in a breathing rhythm (red when charging in the case), drawing more attention to them.

Overall, the Air Nano earphones lack a feel of quality in day-to-day use. While the pill-shaped charging case is svelte, when it’s fully open the caps dangle off the sides. There is a helpful magnetic click once the case is closed, but it doesn't seem like the case will stay completely closed in a purse or backpack since it doesn't take much force to open it. On the outside of the charging case, you'll find a very minuscule charging status light and a USB-C port, which I definitely appreciated since I charge my MacBook nearby and could easily swap out the cable for the Air Nano without digging for another cord.

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