MacRumors

Photography app VSCO has announced a handful of new features for its users, centering around the addition of its separate GIF creating DSCO app [Direct Link] directly into the main VSCO app. Thanks to the inclusion, users can now create looping images and post them to their VSCO feeds.

Similar to the camera wheel options on Instagram and in the iOS Camera, users can tap DSCO at the bottom of the camera in VSCO to switch over to the video format, record a moment, and upload it to VSCO. The company has shared a collection of DSCO examples on its website for users to check out.

In addition to DSCO, a few new community-side features have been added into the VSCO iOS app, including the ability to block unwanted users from interacting with your content. VSCO images are public so blocked users can still view any image they want, but they can no longer follow users who have blocked them, repost, or favorite their images or DSCO videos.

To further facilitate an environment of positive feedback, VSCO has added the ability to favorite posts between users without the public at large being able to see favorites. VSCO said that this makes favorites "a private acknowledgement between two people," and lets its users take bolder creative risks without the worry of like counts that other platforms have.

VSCO is a place to take creative risks and share what you love, not what you think others will love. This is why VSCO does not publicly show your follower count or how many people reposted your image — it’s where you can be you.

The company said that the newly announced features will be rolling out over the next couple of weeks. In December, VSCO added RAW image capturing and editing on iOS 10 devices.

VSCO is available to download for free on the iOS App Store. [Direct Link]

Uncertainties over Foxconn's manufacturing expansion into the United States have been raised once again, this time following comments made by company chairman Terry Gou, who spoke to reporters at an event celebrating the start of construction on a $8.87 billion display plant in Guangzhou, China (via Nikkei). At the ceremony, Gou told reporters he had just returned from a trip to Washington without confirming if he met with the Trump administration while he was there.

Since the November election, and even before it, the Trump administration has advocated for Apple specifically to make some of its products in the U.S. and not at foreign facilities, leading to multiple reports that Apple suppliers are looking into building large plants stateside. Now, Gou has raised concerns over any of the company's previous U.S. manufacturing plans because he's not sure if the U.S. government can work fast enough to stay ahead of all of the work needed to be done before any company like Foxconn can build a successful, large-scale facility in the states.

"I am concerned as to whether the U.S. can resolve all the investment issues in only a few months' time," Gou said, adding America also lacks the skilled labor and comprehensive supply chain the display industry requires.

"Does the U.S. offer incentive programs for foreign investors? They'll need to pass bills first, and we'll need to wait for American authorities to make a decision first," Gou said.

Ultimately, Gou tried to avoid strictly siding with one country or the other, saying that the best course of action would be to support both once the option became available. "I am not willing to choose between [the U.S. and China]. Why should I give up on any market?" Gou ended the line of questioning from reporters with a pledge for the governments of both countries to avoid a trade war and "get along peacefully."

"It is in the interest of the entire humanity that China and the U.S., the top two economies in the world, can get along peacefully," Gou said. "They are in the process of gambling with each other, and I can foresee that the two will eventually work together to grow [their] economies and deliver beneficial outcome for many. If they don't, then everyone will be losers."

In a separate report from Reuters, Foxconn is now said to have lost ground in its bidding for Toshiba's memory chip business "due to its close ties with China." The Japanese government is worried about "the transference of key technology" if a winning bidder has a close relationship with China, and Toshiba executives are reportedly aware of the government's wishes and "will take into account how close bidders are to China in the selection."

Apple accounts for over 50 percent of Foxconn's total revenue, and because of lukewarm demand for the iPhone 7 in 2016, Foxconn saw its first ever profit decline since the company went public 1991. Optimism has now surrounded the company's 2017 outlook, however, due mostly to excitement for the debut of the "iPhone 8," perhaps called the "iPhone Edition."

Note: Due to the political nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Politics, Religion, Social Issues forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

Didi Chuxing, the Chinese-hailing company that Apple invested $1 billion in, is opening an artificial intelligence lab in Mountain View, California, reports Recode. The lab will focus on intelligent driving systems and AI-based security for transportation, confirming Didi Chuxing's interest in self-driving vehicles.

The facility, located less than 10 miles from Apple's two Cupertino campuses, is one of Didi Chuxing's first locations outside of China. Its location in Mountain View gives Didi Chuxing a better opportunity to recruit key autonomous driving talent, most of which is concentrated in the Bay Area. Google, Uber, Apple, and hundreds of other startups are nearby.

Didi Chuxing has already poached two high-level employees from Uber and Google. Charlie Miller, the engineer who hacked and stopped a jeep remotely is joining Didi from Uber, while Jia Zhaoyin, a senior software engineer at Waymo, comes from Google.

Apple invested $1 billion in Didi Chuxing back in May 2016, and there has been speculation that the investment could lead to a deeper partnership between Didi Chuxing and Apple in the future as Apple is also working on self-driving technology.

Didi Chuxing is the largest ride-hailing company in China, having purchased Uber's Chinese operations in July 2016.

Rumors originally suggested Apple would develop its own autonomous electric vehicle, but Apple shifted focus last summer and is now said to be aiming to create an autonomous driving system that would perhaps allow it to partner with car manufacturers or ride-hailing companies like Didi Chuxing in the future.

In honor of International Women's Day, Apple today updated its iTunes stores to highlight movies and TV shows created by, starring, and featuring women.

The iTunes store for movies, for example, has a main section highlighting 10 actresses and filmmakers, including Amma Asante, Laia Costa, Tae Ri Kim, Meera Menon, Ruth Negga, and more. There's a separate section focusing on women directors, and multiple movies starring women are highlighted in the app carousel, including Jackie, Arrival, Moana, Fences, and Edge of Seventeen.

Separately, there are also several "Like a Girl" movie categories: Act "Like a Girl," Fight "Like a Girl," Direct "Like a Girl," and Write "Like a Girl," along with categories for specific actors and directors that showcase entire catalogs of work.

Apple's TV section includes a "Bold Women" section, and highlights TV shows with prominent female actresses and creators like Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, Insecure, Westworld, Steven Universe, and more. Categories like Women of Comedy, Bold Dramas Created by Women, Bold Girls, and Women of Reality TV are also available.

There's a small section on the iBooks Store featuring "More Hidden Figures," but other than that, the promotion is limited to the TV and Movie stores, with no changes to Apple Music or the App Store.

Update: Apple has added several Apple Music playlists celebrating International Women's Day.

Note: Due to the political nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Politics, Religion, Social Issues forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

The Twitter app for iOS devices was today updated to version 6.73.1, adding a small but important feature that allows users to have more control over the amount of storage space Twitter uses on an iPhone or iPad.

A new storage setting lets users see how much storage space Twitter is using for cached images and web content, and it offers an option for clearing stored data. Users can choose to clear Media storage or Web storage independently. Some Twitter users appear to have a dedicated "Storage" section, while others are seeing the information listed under "Data usage," so it's not clear what the final storage UI will look like.

Twitter's new cache clearing option will be a welcome addition for users who frequently use the default app. Prior to the introduction of the storage setting, the only way to clear a large Twitter cache that was taking up a lot of space was to delete and reinstall the Twitter app.

The new option brings the official Twitter app in line with third-party Twitter apps like Tweetbot that already offer a cache clearing option.

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

Qardio, known for its line of connected health products, today announced that it is expanding its partnership with Apple, a move that will see Apple Stores around the world offering the QardioArm smart blood pressure monitor.

The QardioArm, which is priced at $99, is an FDA approved blood pressure monitor that's able to interface with an iPhone, iPad, or Apple Watch to help users keep an eye on their blood pressure. It was the first medical device available via Apple Health, and it's designed to make it simple for users to share data with health professionals.

"We're thrilled to expand our global retail presence in collaboration with such a visionary retailer," says Alexis Zervoglos, Chief Business Officer at Qardio. "We share with Apple an absolute belief that purity of design coupled with technological innovation drives change, as we focus on creating beautiful, accessible products that lead to a healthier world without compromising lifestyle."

QardioArm is available from Apple's online store and from Apple retail locations starting today. It's priced at $99 in the U.S., £99 in the UK, and €129 in other European countries.

Apple today seeded the fifth beta of an upcoming tvOS 10.2 update to developers for testing purposes, just over one week after seeding the fourth tvOS 10.2 update and more than a month after releasing tvOS 10.1.1, the current release version of tvOS.

Designed for the fourth-generation Apple TV, the fifth tvOS 10.2 beta can be obtained by connecting the Apple TV to a computer with a USB-C to USB-A cable, downloading and installing the software from a registered developer account via iTunes or Apple Configurator. Once a profile is installed, subsequent betas can be downloaded over the air.

Given the tricky installation requirements, tvOS betas are limited to developers and will not be provided to the public.

According to Apple's release notes, tvOS 10.2 introduces improved scrolling behavior, allowing tvOS users to scroll through large lists of information more quickly. A large swipe on the Siri remote automatically activates the new scrolling mode, and a swipe on the far right side of the remote allows users to navigate specific indexes.

It's likely there are other small feature tweaks and bug fixes included in tvOS 10.2, even though additional changes have not been specifically outlined by Apple. We'll update this post should any new content be found in the fifth tvOS 10.2 beta.

Apple today seeded the fifth beta of an upcoming watchOS 3.2 update to developers for testing purposes, just over one week after seeding the fourth watchOS 3.2 beta and more than a month after the release of watchOS 3.1.3, the current public version of the operating system.

The watchOS 3.2 beta can be downloaded through the dedicated Apple Watch app on the iPhone by going to General --> Software Update after installing the proper configuration profile on the iPhone. To install the update, the Apple Watch must have 50 percent battery, it must be placed on the charger, and it must be in range of the iPhone.

watchOS 3.2 requires an iPhone running iOS 10 to install and will only be available to developers. Apple does not make watchOS betas available to the public as there is no way to downgrade the software on an Apple Watch.

watchOS 3.2 includes a "Theater Mode" designed to let customers quickly mute the sound on the Apple Watch and disable Raise to Wake, preventing the screen from lighting up with arm movement.

Customers are still able to receive haptic feedback-based notifications, and information can be viewed by either tapping the screen or pressing down on the Digital Crown.

watchOS 3.2 also brings SiriKit to the Apple Watch, allowing customers to ask Siri to do things like send messages, send payments, book a ride, log a workout, make a call, or search through photos. SiriKit has been available on iOS devices since the release of iOS 10, but is new to the Apple Watch.

Vimeo today announced that 360-degree video support has arrived for the service's web and mobile app platforms. The update will provide a place for creators to learn and upload videos in the popular format, as well as a community hub of 360-degree video content for viewers to browse and watch flat, or using compatible VR headsets.

Vimeo's 360-degree videos will support 8K content in both monoscopic and stereoscopic formats, offline viewing in HD, and include a virtual compass in the video to orient viewers "and encourage interaction." These settings will be available to all of Vimeo's creators, who will also gain access to a "360 Video School" to learn the ins and outs of shooting and editing on 360-degree cameras.

The new videos will be available to watch on the Vimeo iOS [Direct Link] and Android apps, as well as VR headsets including Zeiss VR One, Samsung Gear VR and Google Daydream. Oculus Rift and HTC Vive support is said to be coming soon. The debut also includes a 360-degree video marketplace where viewers can browse videos published by Vimeo creators, through Vimeo On Demand, and purchase or rent the videos.

Some of the first 360-degree video content will be coverage of South by Southwest, which is kicking off in Austin, Texas this weekend. 360-degree video has become a popular addition to existing platforms, with Facebook, Periscope, and YouTube all recently adding support for the format.

Just one day after Apple Pay launched in Ireland, there is now evidence to suggest the service could launch in Belgium soon too.

Belgian bank CBC Banque & Assurance on Tuesday tweeted that Apple Pay will be available in May, as spotted by French blog iGeneration. Meanwhile, another Belgian bank Belfius Bank said it will begin accepting contactless payments on May 2, although it did not mention Apple Pay specifically.

Apple Pay is currently available in the United States, Australia, Canada, China, France, Hong Kong, Ireland, Japan, New Zealand, Russia, Singapore, Spain, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. Taiwan and likely Italy will follow.

Apple Pay vice president Jennifer Bailey has said Apple is "working rapidly" to expand the service to additional countries in Asia and Europe.

Streaming movie and TV service VUDU has confirmed that it is currently in the development stages for an upcoming fourth-generation Apple TV app, although the official launch timeline is unclear at this point. A Redditor spotted the confirmation from a VUDU engineer named Jake, who posted on the company's forums in response to a user's inquiry about the long-requested debut of a VUDU app for Apple TV.

In a separate thread dating back about a year ago, the same engineer explained the reasoning behind VUDU not prioritizing an Apple TV app. He mentioned that due to Apple's strict policies preventing third-parties from selling movies in their apps, VUDU has instead focused on adding HD AirPlay streaming into its iOS app so users can use the company's mobile app to stream all of their content to Apple TV. It's believed that the same restriction has prevented Amazon from debuting Amazon Prime Video on Apple TV.

Forum member: Any chance of an AppleTV app being planned?
VUDU engineer: Yes, it's in development. No, please don't ask me for a date, I don't know

With VUDU's Apple TV app confirmed to be in development, it's likely that the company will use the same tactic that it took with the VUDU iOS app [Direct Link] in finding a way to abide by Apple's policy while still offering the crux of its services. On mobile, users can watch and download all of the movies and TV shows they want, as long as they complete the transactions on VUDU's website first.

While that's a hindrance for VUDU iOS users, it could work the same way for Apple TV watchers. Besides purchasing and renting movies and TV shows, VUDU acts as a storage vault for digital copies of films purchased in retail locations, if users choose VUDU as a storage space over other options such as iTunes.

For the Apple TV itself, Apple is rumored to be working on an updated 4K version of the device for potential release before the end of 2017.

Yesterday, a handful of blogs ran with a rumor speculating that Apple could host an event on April 4 given that was the date Apple's online store listed for in-store availability of 12.9-inch iPad Pro models in the United States at the time. The rumor is likely false, however, and here's why.

The problem is that Apple's in-store Personal Pickup tool is generally not a reliable indicator of a specific launch date or Apple event. The in-store pickup date for 12.9-inch iPad Pro models is a rolling target, as evidenced by the April 5 date now shown just one day later. Tomorrow, it will likely show April 6.

The date shown is most likely just a rough approximation of the 12.9-inch iPad Pro's current 2-3 week shipping estimate, plus a few extra days to reach the store. On February 9, for example, we reported that most 12.9-inch iPad Pro models were available for in-store pickup on March 3 at the time.

Apple could still hold an event on April 4, especially considering many of its past events have been on a Tuesday, but it would be purely coincidental.

Personal Pickup does confirm the 12.9-inch iPad Pro remains in tight supply, which can sometimes foreshadow an upcoming product launch. In January, however, Apple said it had an issue with one of its iPad suppliers that was not expected to be fully resolved this quarter, which could reasonably explain the shortage.

Apple is expected to launch at least a trio of new iPad Pro models in the near future, though, so an event might be announced soon enough. Japanese website Mac Otakara said Apple is planning a March event where it will unveil those new iPads alongside a 128GB iPhone SE, red iPhone 7, and new Apple Watch bands.

An all-new 10.5-inch iPad Pro with an edge-to-edge display and updates to the current 9.7-inch and 12.9-inch models are rumored. A new 7.9-inch model is a wildcard, as reports are conflicting about whether the iPad mini 4 will live on or be replaced by a lower-cost 9.7-inch model as predicted by KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.