Apple is working on a Tile-like Bluetooth tracking device that's designed to be attached to items like keys and wallets for tracking purposes, letting you find them right in the Find My app.
After showing off the main features for iOS 8 at its Worldwide Developers Conference today, Apple announced improvements for the App Store starting with iOS 8, including app bundles, integrated beta testing, improved search and more.
In order to improve discoverability, the App Store will soon add an "Explore" tab, allowing users to explore through categories and sub-categories easily. Search has also been improved, with the ability to see the top trending searches in the App Store and related searches.
Developers will also be able to bundle together apps, allowing users to buy multiple apps for a single discounted price. Also available to developers are previews, which allows developers to include short videos to tell users what their apps are all about.
Finally, developers can also invite users to beta test their apps in a new service called TestFlight, which allows developers to see information about their apps from right within the service. The service is free for developers, and stems from Apple's acquisition of Burstly, which offered its own TestFlight beta management service, back in February.
Apple also announced that there are now 1.2 million apps in the App Store and nearly 300 million visitors to the App Store per week who are downloading apps. The App Store has also reached another significant milestone, passing 75 billion apps been downloaded since its 2008 debut.
Apple came so close to doing the right thing. App previews and beta testing are nice... but I really think they need to implement a hybrid of the 2 and give us app demos.
Apple came so close to doing the right thing. App previews and beta testing are nice... but I really think they need to implement a hybrid of the 2 and give us app demos.
Demos don't always work. Imagine making a demo for Threes, which has the same gameplay every time. You can't time limit it because sometimes it takes 30 minutes to play one round of it. Limiting it to one round will just let people play the demo over and over again. And if you limit it to just one or two rounds, it might mean that a user only gets 30 seconds to try it, which is pointless because you can't decide whether you like an app after 30 seconds.
The Windows Phone marketplace lets you check out demos, but it has lead to most reviews being about how people LIKE the game, but they aren't going to pay the money to continue playing them.
Too many people would just download them, just to check them out, and that's it.
Finally, developers can also invite users to beta test their apps in a new service called TestFlight, which allows developers to see information about their app from right within the service. The service is free for developers. Apple acquired iOS beta testing program TestFlight in February.
This will be great in particular for OS X (when/if it is implementedI'm not sure if it will be) where developers need to release betas outside of the App Store using workarounds (particularly with paid apps) and they don't always play nicely.
Wednesday April 8, 2020 9:23 am PDT by Juli Clover
Customers who require a replacement AirPod from Apple have in some cases been receiving an AirPod running 2D3 firmware, which is not a version of the AirPods firmware that's been publicly released.
As described on the MacRumors forum and Reddit (via iMore), customers who get an AirPod with the 2D3 firmware are unable to pair it with the existing unreplaced AirPod, leaving the AirPods unable...
Wednesday April 8, 2020 4:50 am PDT by Tim Hardwick
Facebook has quietly released Tuned, a new messaging app designed to provide a "private space" for couples to connect, reports The Information.
Designed by NPE, an experimental group within the company that was established last year, the app encourages couples to share messages, notes, cards, voice memos, photos and Spotify songs with each other, thereby creating a "digital scrapbook" of...
Two images shared on social media this morning are currently stoking speculation about possible hardware redesigns coming to the iPhone 12 and the potential introduction of Home screen widgets in iOS 14.
Shared by Twitter user Fudge (choco_bit), the images depict a front and rear graphical representation of a smartphone with interface elements on the screen, suggesting it came out of a...
LG today announced pricing and availability for its 2020 NanoCell TVs with AirPlay 2 and HomeKit support in the United States.
The first 4K models are rolling out now, with pricing starting at $599 for a 55-inch model. The entire 4K lineup will be released by September, including up to an 86-inch model for $3,299. 8K models will also be rolling out in May and June, including 65-inch and...
Apple today released iOS and iPadOS 13.4.1, minor updates that come two weeks after the release of iOS and iPadOS 13.4, major updates that introduced iCloud Folder Sharing, a new Mail toolbar, trackpad support for the iPad, and more.
The iOS and iPadOS 13.4.1 updates are available on all eligible devices over-the-air in the Settings app. To access the updates, go to Settings > General...
Apple will announce a new 13-inch MacBook Pro in May with the codename J223, according to a rumor shared by YouTuber and leaker Jon Prosser. Note: it’s a refresh to the current 13” So the bigger 14” display upgrade is a big possibility— Jon Prosser (@jon_prosser) April 4, 2020 Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has said Apple plans to release new MacBook Pro and MacBook Air models with scissor keyboards ...
Rumors of Apple-branded over-ear headphones have been circulating for quite some time, while more recent rumors have mentioned an "AirPods Pro Lite" that could also be in the works, and Twitter leaker Jon Prosser's recent foray into Apple rumors provides a bit more detail on what we might able to expect for these products.
Current Beats Studio3 Wireless and BeatsX On the over-ear side,...
Last week, we laid out evidence suggesting that the just-released iPad Pro models do not contain a U1 Ultra Wideband chip, including the lack of any mention of the chip in tech specs or Apple's press materials, the absence of software support for U1 features, and more. Most tellingly, iFixit was unable to find the chip or related antennas in the device.
Daring Fireball's John Gruber has follo...
Following this weekend's news from Tim Cook that Apple is working with its supply chain to produce a million face shields per week for medical workers, the company has shared a support document outlining how to assemble and adjust the shields.
The document includes a series of images and animations showing how the simple three-piece product can be assembled for either a regular fit or with...
Wednesday April 8, 2020 7:05 am PDT by Joe Rossignol
HBO today announced that its HBO GO and HBO NOW streaming services will no longer be available on second-generation and third-generation Apple TV models starting April 30, 2020.
In a support document on its website, HBO says this change is being made "in order to provide the best streaming experience":In order to provide the best streaming experience, we need to make some changes to our...
Top Rated Comments
(View all)Why do you assume that developers would not be able to decide whether their apps can be demoed?
I'm not. They have that option in the Windows Phone marketplace too.
Apple came so close to doing the right thing. App previews and beta testing are nice... but I really think they need to implement a hybrid of the 2 and give us app demos.
Demos don't always work. Imagine making a demo for Threes, which has the same gameplay every time. You can't time limit it because sometimes it takes 30 minutes to play one round of it. Limiting it to one round will just let people play the demo over and over again. And if you limit it to just one or two rounds, it might mean that a user only gets 30 seconds to try it, which is pointless because you can't decide whether you like an app after 30 seconds.
The Windows Phone marketplace lets you check out demos, but it has lead to most reviews being about how people LIKE the game, but they aren't going to pay the money to continue playing them.
Too many people would just download them, just to check them out, and that's it.
Finally, developers can also invite users to beta test their apps in a new service called TestFlight, which allows developers to see information about their app from right within the service. The service is free for developers. Apple acquired iOS beta testing program TestFlight in February.
This will be great in particular for OS X (when/if it is implementedI'm not sure if it will be) where developers need to release betas outside of the App Store using workarounds (particularly with paid apps) and they don't always play nicely.