A closer look at App Store in iOS 7

By Christian Zibreg on Jun 18, 2013

Like all stock apps, the App Store on iOS 7 has been graced with a sprinkle of Jony Ive’s magic. Not only does the storefront looks a lot nicer now – gone is the dark-themed look in favor for sleek appearance with lots of white space for easier reading – the app is way smoother and nimbler than on iOS 6.

It also features several enhancements that will appeal to pretty much everyone, from parents and their kids to power users to the likes of Senator John McCain who will love not having to manually update apps on his iPhone. Here’s a quick look at all the changes in App Store on iOS 7… Read More

 

App Store for iPad finally lets you sort Purchased apps alphabetically

By Christian Zibreg on Jun 12, 2013

Apple appears to have quietly made a subtle yet significant change to iTunes backend in an effort to make it easier to comb through your Purchased App Store items.

As observed by an iDB reader, the iPad storefront now includes a brand new lefthand bar which makes it easy to sort your Purchased apps alphabetically.

The tweak certainly helps find a needle in the haystack, especially when compared to having to scroll through a long list of Purchased items that used to be sorted chronologically. Coupled with the handy search field, this enhancement lets you zero in on a previously purchased item in no time… Read More

 

App Store gets auto updates and more in iOS 7

By Cody Lee on Jun 10, 2013

Folks hoping that Apple would make some changes to the dark-themed App Store in iOS 7 will be happy to hear their wish has come true. In line with the rest of the UI design changes in the new software, App Store is now flat, white and easier to read.

In addition to the makeover, the App Store also receives several enhancements in iOS 7. Perhaps the most compelling change is the fact that users can now opt to have their applications automatically updated. Keep reading for more on the update… Read More

 

Major ‘Dubai’ update released for Real Racing 3

By Cody Lee on May 29, 2013

Good news this afternoon for Real Racing fans. Electronic Arts has released the massive ‘Dubai’ update we told you about earlier this week, and it is now available in the App Store. The update features everything you’d expect from a franchise racer, including new car-makers, new car models, and new tracks… Read More

 

App Store randomly prompts user to update available apps

By Jim Gresham on May 28, 2013

This afternoon I turned on my iPad to see a surprising alert from the iOS App Store. The alert prompted me with a message stating that “5 app updates are available,” with options to either ignore or update all. In the screenshot, it is confirmed I have 5 updates available in the App Store.

This is the first time I have seen such an update and after a quick browse around the net, cannot confirm this has happened to other users recently or in the past… Read More

 

Mobile game downloads mostly made from word-of-mouth

By Ed Sutherland on May 24, 2013

Did you hear about this new iOS game? You’ve got to try it. Ca-ching. That, in a nutshell, is how most mobile games are downloaded. The majority of mobile users download games based on word-of-mouth from friends or family, a new survey indicates. What’s more, most folks download at most five titles per month, spending about three hours playing over the course of a week, according to Applifier… Read More

 

iOS and Android gamers spend 3X as much as handheld console owners

By Christian Zibreg on May 17, 2013

I still remember vividly how industry heavy-weights Sony, Nintendo and Microsoft initially laughed off gaming on the iPhone. It was right after Apple slashed the iPod touch to the sweet $199 price point that it became clear to me that gaming on high-end smartphones and tablets would eventually outgrow that on dedicated handheld consoles such as Sony’s PSP and Nintendo’s DS family.

Enter a new report by research firm IDC and analytics service App Annie which reveals just how far along mobile gaming has come. According to the study, users of smartphones and tablets spend nearly three times as much purchasing games on Apple’s App Store and Google’s Play Store as handheld device owners.

If these numbers are anything to go by, smart mobile devices will soon relegate dedicated handheld consoles to a niche market, if not eventually kill the category altogether… Read More

 

How Apple and Google tabulate app downloads

By Sebastien Page on May 16, 2013

Two big numbers were coincidentally dropped yesterday. First, Google announced 48 billion applications had been downloaded from the Google Play Store. Shortly after, Apple announced that its App Store had seen 50 billion downloads so far. Big numbers indeed, but how exactly do Apple and Google count app downloads? The Next Web Managing Editor Matthew Panzarino asked both companies and this is what he found:

Both Apple and Google tabulate unique downloads of apps per user account. This means that they count only one download of an app no matter how many devices that you install that app on after you purchase it. Neither company counts updates in its app download numbers. These are purely single downloads from their stores.

Read the full article at The Next Web.

 

Apple reveals 50 billionth app download winner

By Christian Zibreg on May 16, 2013

Apple crossed a major milestone yesterday afternoon, with the official App Store Twitter channel confirming the company hit 50 billion app downloads. As part of its countdown promotion, the iPhone maker today issued a press release revealing the lucky winner who won a $10,000 iTunes Gift card, good for apps, videos, books and music. Additionally, per Apple’s rules fifty additional lucky winners will take home $500 iTunes gift cards each… Read More

 

App Store hits 50 billion downloads

By Cody Lee on May 15, 2013

Apple’s App Store just crossed a major milestone this afternoon. Just a few moments ago, the digital storefront passed the 50 billion download mark, bringing the company’s “50 Billion App Countdown” to an end.

The winner of the countdown promotion, who has yet to be revealed, will be given a $10,000 iTunes gift card, good for apps, videos, books and music. And fifty additional lucky winners will receive $500 gift cards… Read More

 

App Store for Velox puts app searches a swipe away

By Cody Lee on May 13, 2013

Just as we had hoped, developers seem to be really taking their ideas for Velox add-ons and running with them. We’ve already seen a number of extensions for the popular Spring board jailbreak tweak, including Addial and Compass.

And today, we’ve got another one to show you called App Store for Velox. As the name implies, the add-on utilizes Velox’s enhanced folder feature to allow you to search the App Store for iOS applications from your Home screen… Read More

 

SEGA’s weekend App Store sale includes Crazy Taxi and more

By Oliver Haslam on May 12, 2013

SEGA has been known to put its iOS apps on sale every once in a while, and this weekend is one such occasion, with three of the Japanese company’s games having a couple of dollars slashed from their App Store price.

The three available games have been around for a while, but if you’ve not picked them up yet, or have perhaps been on the fence about picking them up at their normal price, then now’s the time to bite the bullet and get the credit card out.

So which games are included in the sale? Well, if you’re into some of SEGA’s classics, then you’re going to love the games Sega has included in its promotion… Read More

 

Apple orders messaging app ‘Line’ to remove paid virtual gifts

By Cody Lee on May 10, 2013

Apple’s app approval team has seemingly been on a warpath lately, pulling popular titles like AppGratis from the App Store without much warning or explanation. It’s clear that the company is in the process of revamping some of its policies.

Case in point, LINE, a popular free messaging app, was forced by Apple to remove one of its key features today. Per company orders, the developers had to eliminate the ability for its users to purchase and send sticker sets as gifts to friends… Read More

 

Apple starts countdown to 50B app downloads

By Christian Zibreg on May 2, 2013

Apple on Thursday started a countdown to fifty billion app downloads. The promotions is available via a dedicated iTunes page. Like the previous countdowns, Apple will award the lucky person who downloads the fifty billionth app with a $10,000 iTunes Gift Card. iTunes Gift Cards can be used against any content purchase, including mobile and desktop applications, music, television shows, movies, etc.

In an interesting tweak to this year’s countdown, the company will also give away a $500 App Store gift card to each of the next 50 people who download an app… Read More

 

Apple posts new App Store section about in-app purchases

By Christian Zibreg on Apr 26, 2013

In-app purchasing via mobile applications is receiving some unwanted attention, with disgruntled parents increasingly accusing the iPhone maker of doing too little to protect kids from falling prey of greedy developers who pressure them into buying items and in turn wracking up bills for unsuspecting parents.

The UK government, for example, is conducting a probe into iOS in-app game purchases and Apple previously settled a class action lawsuit over the controversial feature. Of course, iOS 6 has decent parental controls which let users disable in-app purchasing altogether.

While adding a warning for in-app purchases in freemium apps and moving age ratings atop App Store pages helped clear up any confusion as to the nature of in-app purchasing, Apple though it could do better and on Thursday launched a new App Store feature titled ‘Learn More About In-App Purchases’… Read More

 

Apple bans smileys and other special characters from app descriptions

By Christian Zibreg on Apr 23, 2013

From time to time, Apple updates its iTunes marketing requirements. The goal is to provide the most accurate and reliable descriptions for the mobile applications, movies, television shows, songs and other media content types customers download from iTunes.

In the most recent example, the iPhone maker has reportedly taken issue with app blurbs. Long story short, Apple is no longer willing to turn a blind eye on luring would-be buyers with “enhanced” app descriptions that contain exclamation marks, stars, smileys and other special characters.

The change was communicated via the iTunes Connect web portal, a venue registered iOS developers use exclusively to upload their submissions and iTunes marketing materials… Read More

 

App recommendation software AppShopper returns as social tool

By Ed Sutherland on Apr 23, 2013

When is it okay for an app to recommend other apps? Only when your friends recommend them via any third-party software designed to curate crowdsourced app recommendations, according to Apple. In other words, get social. That’s the word from AppShopper Social (formerly AppShopper), an app recommendation service which returns from banishment by Apple after allowing users to view lists of apps recommended by friends. Developers have discovered that by adding the slight wrinkle of social interactivity, they can avoid at least one Apple ban: being “similar to or confusing with the App Store”… Read More

 

How to open App Store links without closing out of the current app

By Jeff Benjamin on Apr 16, 2013

QuickStore is a jailbreak tweak that allows users to quickly open App Store links within apps. The tweak contains a simple kill switch located in the Settings app, but outside of that, it’s ready to go as soon as it’s installed.

When App Store links are tapped while within another app, i.e. from Safari, then a pop up window will load the App Store inside of the currently running app. Read More

 

Appolicious creates education software discovery tool for kids

By Ed Sutherland on Apr 15, 2013

In light of Apple’s recent ban on discovery apps, a new portal hopes to do an end-run around the whole controversy. Appolicious launched Monday appoLearning, a web site where educational experts recommend iOS apps for K-12. Although it touts use of educational experts to make recommendations on dozens of educational app categories, appoLearning offers a spot for paid endorsements. Still, the founder of Appolicious claims his app recommendation service will be a boon for Apple… Read More

 

UK probing iOS in-app game purchases

By Ed Sutherland on Apr 13, 2013

Are iOS games pressuring children into buying items, sometimes wracking up bills for unsuspecting parents? That’s the focus of a probe underway by the UK government, concerned that in-app purchases may unfairly target children. According to a BBC report, Office of Fair Trading (OFT) wants to hear from parents with the hope games developers will follow laws already on the books to protect children… Read More

 
Page 112345...