Apple Updates Apple Store App with Free iBookstore Offering
Apple has quietly launched an over-the-air update to its Apple Store app today, replacing its first free content offering, Color Zen, with the children’s book Away in My Airplane by Margaret Wise Brown.
The free iBook offering was detailed in a note to Apple’s retail employees this morning (via 9to5Mac), notifying them that the download is intended to give them a reason to discuss the iBooks app and the iBookstore when communicating with customers.
Earlier this month, Apple launched an "iBooks Discovery" initiative, providing its employees with free iBooks in order to prepare them for the launch of OS X Mavericks and iOS 7. Mavericks will include the first Mac iBooks app, allowing users to read ePub files on their desktop computers.
Apple has begun offering free content via its Apple Store app in order to entice customers to download and visit the app on a regular basis, increasing their exposure to Apple products. The effort is part of a push to boost in-store sales of the iPhone, as 80% of Apple’s iPhone customers purchase their phones at third party retail locations. In a July meeting, Tim Cook noted that he would like to increase the company's iPhone sales, as it is considered to be Apple's central "gateway product."
Apple has also initiated other programs to increase iPhone sales, including an upcoming trade-in program and a Back to School program that offers customers a $50 gift card with the purchase of a new iPhone.
Away in My Airplane will be available through August 28 in the United States, United Kingdom, Italy, France, and Sweden. Not all customers appear to have access to the new book at this time, which likely means Apple is delivering the update on a rolling basis.
Popular Stories
Apple seeded the second iOS 26.2 Release Candidate to developers earlier this week, meaning the update will be released to the general public very soon.
Apple confirmed iOS 26.2 would be released in December, but it did not provide a specific date. We expect the update to be released by early next week.
iOS 26.2 includes a handful of new features and changes on the iPhone, such as a new...
Apple today released new firmware designed for the AirPods Pro 3 and the prior-generation AirPods Pro 2. The AirPods Pro 3 firmware is 8B30, up from 8B25, while the AirPods Pro 2 firmware is 8B28, up from 8B21.
There's no word on what's include in the updated firmware, but the AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods Pro 3 are getting expanded support for Live Translation in the European Union in iOS...
Macworld's Filipe Espósito today revealed a handful of features that Apple is allegedly planning for iOS 26.4, iOS 27, and even iOS 28.
The report said the features are referenced within the code for a leaked internal build of iOS 26 that is not meant to be seen by the public. However, it appears that Espósito and/or his sources managed to gain access to it, providing us with a sneak peek...
Google Maps on iOS quietly gained a new feature recently that automatically recognizes where you've parked your vehicle and saves the location for you.
Announced on LinkedIn by Rio Akasaka, Google Maps' senior product manager, the new feature auto-detects your parked location even if you don't use the parking pin function, saves it for up to 48 hours, and then automatically removes it once...
Apple today released iOS 26.2, the second major update to the iOS 26 operating system that came out in September, iOS 26.2 comes a little over a month after iOS 26.1 launched. iOS 26.2 is compatible with the iPhone 11 series and later, as well as the second-generation iPhone SE.
The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones over-the-air by going to Settings >...
Apple has ordered 22 million OLED panels from Samsung Display for the first foldable iPhone, signaling a significantly larger production target than the display industry had previously anticipated, ET News reports.
In the now-seemingly deleted report, ET News claimed that Samsung plans to mass-produce 11 million inward-folding OLED displays for Apple next year, as well as 11 million...
The AirTag 2 will include a handful of new features that will improve tracking capabilities, according to a new report from Macworld. The site says that it was able to access an internal build of iOS 26, which includes references to multiple unreleased products.
Here's what's supposedly coming:
An improved pairing process, though no details were provided. AirTag pairing is already...
Apple is about to release iOS 26.2, the second major point update for iPhones since iOS 26 was rolled out in September, and there are at least 15 notable changes and improvements worth checking out. We've rounded them up below.
Apple is expected to roll out iOS 26.2 to compatible devices sometime between December 8 and December 16. When the update drops, you can check Apple's servers for the ...
Apple today released macOS Tahoe 26.2, the second major update to the macOS Tahoe operating system that came out in September. macOS Tahoe 26.2 comes five weeks after Apple released macOS Tahoe 26.1.
Mac users can download the macOS Tahoe update by using the Software Update section of System Settings.
macOS Tahoe 26.2 includes Edge Light, a feature that illuminates your face with soft...
