MacRumors iPhone and iPad Blog: Apps, News, and Rumors

In a newly published Apple patent application credited to Dale Setlak, co-founder of AuthenTec, the company reveals its interest in enhanced security capabilities for the iPhone home button and Touch ID. The patent application describes how the Touch ID sensor could be paired with an on-screen combination lock or other secondary security feature, requiring the user to move his or her finger in...

Audience members at the taping of Wednesday night's The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon episode were treated to an early Christmas present in the form of a free iPad Air 2 for each person. "I'm in the spirit of giving," Fallon remarked before revealing the giveaway in last night's version of the "Tonight Show Stocking Stuffers" segment Fallon has been running all week. On Monday, Fallon...

Apple today began sending out emails to developers, reminding them that as of February 1, 2015, all apps submitted to the App Store need to be built with the iOS 8 software development kit and include 64-bit support. Developers were first informed of the upcoming rules back in October, after the release of iOS 8 and the iPhone 6/6 Plus. The email also states that as of June 1, 2015, all app...

Netflix customers hoping for offline viewing on their iPad or iPhone may have to wait indefinitely for the feature to be supported by the streaming service. Speaking to TechRadar, Netflix director of corporate communications and technology Cliff Edwards said offline viewing is "never going to happen." Edwards asserts that offline viewing is a "short term fix" that doesn't address the bigger ...

Apple has temporarily halted online sales in Russia due to fluctuations in the value of the ruble, reports Bloomberg. The online store will be down until Apple is able to revise its prices in the country."Our online store in Russia is currently unavailable while we review pricing," Alan Hely, a spokesman for the Cupertino, California-based company, said today in an e-mailed statement. "We...

For the first time in two years, the Instagram app for iOS has been updated with all new filters. Added today, Slumber, Crema, Ludwig, Perpetua, and Aden are subtle filters that are designed to slightly enhance photos without overwhelming effects. According to Instagram, early filters were designed to compensate for lower image quality, while the filters released today take into account higher ...

Launch Center Pro developer Contrast today launched Group Text+ and Email+, two apps for quickly creating messages and emails by using shortcuts for adding contacts, groups, images, and more. Both apps work similarly to Launch Center Pro, with Contrast touting a "simplified" and "refined" interface for easily composing messages with shortcuts. For example, a Group Text+ user can quickly send ...

As they have done in years past, a group of more than 35 high-profile developers have banded together this holiday season to offer a slew of iOS and Mac apps at deep discounts of up to 60 percent off. Last year, App Santa focused only on iOS apps, but this year, both iOS and Mac apps are being offered at lower prices. Organized by Realmac, the creators of Clear, App Santa includes apps from...

The Opera Coast webkit-based browser for iOS was today updated to version 4.0, adding Opera Software's Turbo data compression technology to make browsing websites on the iPhone and iPad much faster on congested networks. With Opera Turbo data compression, each website a user visits is compressed down to a fraction of its original size, which both speeds up loading times and uses less data....

Electronic Arts today launched SimCity BuildIt for iOS devices, which is a new mobile iteration of its popular city-building franchise. The game features a variety of fully-detailed buildings found in the PC iterations of SimCity with touch-optimized controls for pinching, zooming, and rotating, as the game works online and offline. Like the PC version, gameplay is centered around keeping...

Last year, Apple lost a monumental e-book antitrust case that alleged the company had colluded with publishers to raise the price of e-books. As a result, Apple was forced to submit to a cumbersome external antitrust monitor and the company agreed to pay out $450 million as part of a settlement with several class action lawyers and state district attorneys. Throughout the lawsuit, Apple maintai...

Following last week's major redesign, the Google app for iOS has seen yet another update today that adds Nest integration. With the over-the-air update, Nest owners can now use the Google app to control their Nest thermostat systems, in addition to the standard Nest app. As detailed by VentureBeat, along with in-app controls, Nest owners can also use the built-in Google Now voice commands to...

T-Mobile today announced that it will be broadcasting a "fireside chat" with CEO John Legere and Yahoo Tech's David Pogue tomorrow. During the live webcast, Legere will announce the terms of "Un-carrier 8.0" and answer questions about the latest chapter in the company's ongoing Un-carrier initiative to differentiate itself from the other major U.S. providers. Details on the changes T-Mobile ...

Point-of-sale manufacturer ShopKeep today updated its official iPad app with support for Apple Pay, now allowing customers to pay with their iPhone 6 or iPhone 6 Plus. Merchants can accept Apple Pay payments if they have a ShopKeep terminal and an Ingenico iCMP Bluetooth Credit Card reader, which sells for $249 and also supports mangetic swipe and contactless payments. The reader will also be...

Canada's Competition Bureau confirmed on Thursday that it is investigating Apple's contracts with wireless carriers to determine whether they violate the country's anti-trust laws, reports CNET. The investigation is in the early stages, with the Bureau filing a court order to compel Apple to supply documents that will assist with its investigation. Apple is being accused of including...

Described as a 'retro-futuristic 3D' shoot-em-up, Space Qube has been designated by Apple as this week's App of the Week. The game, created by Qubit Entertainment and launched in early 2013, will be free on the App Store for the next week. Normally priced at $2.99, the game tasks players with building their own personal spaceships and running through "endless levels of Alien mayhem," besting...

Twelve South has launched its popular BookBook iPhone wallet case for the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus. Because the new iPhones are larger than Apple's older smartphones, the company has added several new features to the case, in addition to the credit card and ID slots in the older versions.Now, the iPhone snaps into a soft-touch shell inside the case. The shell can be quickly removed from the...

While customers are looking forward to the launch of the Apple Watch early next year, there have been several other Apple-branded watches over the years typically offered as promotional items, and one of those items from nearly 20 years ago is making a comeback. A limited number of these Apple watches from 1995 were kept by a distributor and have now been made available for sale, priced from...