iPhone News

Apple’s CarPlay is powered by BlackBerry’s QNX

Christian Zibreg ∙ March 4, 2014

Monday, at the Geneva Motor Show, Apple's in-car system previously known under the 'iOS in the Car' moniker got formally announced and rebranded as CarPlay. Launch partners Volvo, Ferrari, and Mercedez-Benz backed the feature as dozens of vendors pledged to support CarPlay in their upcoming vehicles later this year.

Volvo confirmed that CarPlay's connection and video mirroring functionality is based on a streaming H.264 video feed, prompting watchers to speculate that the feature is based on AirPlay, an Apple-designed media streaming technology.

In a rather surprising find earlier today, N4BB was able to confirm that CarPlay runs on QNX, an operating system the embattled Canadian smartphone maker BlackBerry acquired Harman International Industries back in 2010...

Logitech launches Harmony Smart Keyboard for Apple TV

Christian Zibreg ∙ March 4, 2014

Navigating the Apple TV interface using the included Apple Remote rather quickly becomes a cumbersome affair. Fortunately, you could always hook up an external keyboard to the device (here's how) because the Apple TV supports Bluetooth keyboards.

Realizing that owners of streaming-media devices need a better control system, accessory maker Logitech on Tuesday revealed its new full-fledged Harmony keyboard remote for the living room. It was specially designed for controlling devices such as the Apple TV, Roku and Xbox One and includes dedicated hardware keys and functions allowing you to search for shows, navigate menus and browse the web from your couch...

Apple announces finance chief Peter Oppenheimer to retire at the end of September

Christian Zibreg ∙ March 4, 2014

Apple has just announced via a media release that its longtime finance chief Peter Oppenheimer will be retiring at the end of September, ending a roughly 18-year career at the technology giant. The company called it a planned transition so he could take time for himself and his family.

In naming his successor, Apple said Luca Maestri, 50, will gradually take over as CFO in June to allow for a smooth transition. As per the release, during Oppenheimer's CFO time, Apple's revenue "grew from $8 to $171 billion".

It's interesting that Maestri left Nokia in February 2011, the same month the struggling Finnish cellphone giant announced they were adopting Microsoft's Windows Phone. He joined Apple in March of last year..

Brace yourselves for stunning on-rails shooter Star Horizon, arriving March 20

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 26, 2018

Fans of such shooters as the excellent Arc Squadron (a free download in the App Store), are going to fall in love with Star Horizon after it hits iOS later in March.

Powered by the Unity game engine (which now supports iOS 7 controllers) and created by developer Tabasco Interactive, Star Horizon shows what a long way we've come in terms of GPU performance on mobile devices.

Console-like graphics, stunning lighting effects, detailed 3D models of starships and fighters and just all-around fancy visuals are bound to knock your socks off. Jump past the fold for a trailer, screenshots and additional highlights...

iSpaceship designer talks Steve Jobs involvement, project’s scale and smart planning

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 26, 2016

Apple has just finished demolishing the Campus 2 site after receiving an unanimous approval for the project from the Cupertino City Council last November. When construction completes in 2016, a whopping 12,000 Apple employees will move into their new 2.8 million square foot, ring-shaped home.

But how exactly was the massive glass and metal structure conceived, what was Steve Jobs involvement in the planning process and what influenced the four-story building's unique design which earned it the nickname of 'iSpaceship'?

Renowned architect Norman Foster, the chairman of Foster + Partners, led the project and talked all of the above, and then some more, in an interesting interview with Architectural Record, here are the highlights...

Apple’s new CarPlay feature will not support Pandora at launch

Cody Lee ∙ March 4, 2014

When Apple officially announced CarPlay, its highly anticipated vehicle integration project, yesterday, it noted the feature would support third-party music apps. The list it provided, however, was rather short including just iTunes Radio, Beats, Spotify, Stitcher Radio and iHeartRadio.

So what about all of the others? It's not looking good. Pandora confirmed with MacRumors last night that CarPlay will not include integration with its popular streaming music service, at least at launch. Despite this, the company says that Apple "continues to be a valued partner."

Facebook updates Paper with new sharing options, sound settings and more

Cody Lee ∙ Updated January 24, 2018

Facebook has posted an update for its just-released Paper app this morning, bringing the app to version 1.0.2. The update adds a handful of new features, as well as several improvements including those in the form of reliability and performance.

On the new feature front, Facebook has added the ability to share articles via Facebook Messages, text message, or email. And you can also now turn off the app's sound effects so you can browse through the posts of your friends and family in peace...

Intel reportedly buys smartwatch maker Basis for $100+ million

Cody Lee ∙ March 4, 2014

TechCrunch is reporting that Intel has acquired smartwatch maker Basis for between $100 and $150 million. The buyout follows a scoop from February that the startup was shopping itself around to a number of high-profile tech firms including Google, Microsoft and yes, Apple.

For those unfamiliar with the brand, Basis makes a smartwatch-like device called the Basis Health Fitness Tracker, which it calls the “world’s most advanced health tracker.” The wearable is capable of capturing heart rate patterns, tracking multiple sleep stages and much more...

Twitter ‘system error’ causes mass reset of user passwords

Cody Lee ∙ Updated May 16, 2016

Folks who received an email from Twitter tonight letting them know that their password has been reset are not alone. Thousands of users have come forward over the last 6 hours claiming that Twitter has force-reset their passwords, and requested that they create new ones.

The good news is that it doesn't sound like the social network was hacked, or overrun with nefarious bots. A spokesperson for the company has confirmed to tech site Recode that a 'system error' caused the mass reset of user passwords, and the problem should be fixed now...

Let’s Talk iOS 018: The worst transitions

Jeff Benjamin ∙ Updated March 20, 2018

Episode 18: We talk about Apple's recent launch of CarPlay, share our thoughts on Samsung's just unveiled Galaxy S5, discuss Apple TV as a business, and debate about the idea of Apple releasing multiple iPhones per calendar year.

Subscribe on iTunes

Marvel announces ‘Uncanny X-Men: Days of Future Past’ coming to iOS in May

Cody Lee ∙ Updated January 26, 2016

X-Men fans will be happy to hear that Marvel has announced that a mobile tie-in game for its upcoming X-Men: Days of Future Past film is in the works. The publisher announced today that it has teamed up with studio Glitchsoft to create 'Uncanny X-Men: Days of Future Past.'

In a blog post this afternoon, Glitchsoft wrote that the game will give X-Men enthusiasts the chance to engage Marvel’s 1981 landmark Days of Future Past comic book story arc in an immersive and story-driven game 'unlike anything available on mobile.' Read on for more details...

How CarPlay predicts where you may be heading

Christian Zibreg ∙ March 3, 2014

Apple's press release and the CarPlay preview page state that the newly rebranded feature lets drivers access some iPhone functionality through their vehicle's in-car infotainment system.

Specifically, Apple mentions getting directions, making calls, sending and receiving messages and listening to music.

This is all pretty basic stuff, unless you take a closer look at how Apple brought context awareness and tapped artificial intelligence to predict where you may be heading, so you don't even need to enter in an address for a final destination...