Apple's CEO Tim Cook was presented a lifetime achievement award from Auburn University at an event last week in New York. Cook graduated from the Alabama-based university in 1982 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Engineering.
The CEO was of course on hand to accept the award, and as usual, gave quite the speech. We've got the video of the speech after the fold, where you can watch Cook talk about Apple, the progression of human equality in the United States, and more...
We receive about 3.5 tons of emails every given day here at iDB, and I have to admit that I don't get past the second sentence of 95% of them before trashing them. Then there is an actual 4.9999% that I actually read and reply to or forward to one of our editors. Finally, there is this 0.0001% of emails that really stand out. They stand out because they are intriguing, well written, funny, or even bizarre, and in some cases, they're all of the above.
This week, we received what I believe to be the best email that ever graced my inbox. It was so entertaining that instead of reading it while standing at my desk, I went downstairs, picked up my iPad mini and read the email from the comfort of my couch. I would lie if I said the idea of pouring myself a glass of Crown Royal didn't cross my mind.
It was so entertaining to me that I wanted to share it with you.
There's no shortage of podcasting apps on the App Store. The growing popularity of podcasting directly correlates to the large amount of podcasting apps we see surfacing. Already, we have apps like Apple's official Podcasts app, Instacast, Downcast, Pocket Casts, and that's just naming a few. Even Podcasting networks like Mule Radio Syndicate—home of popular podcasts like John Gruber's The Talk Show, and 5by5, the fruitage of podcasting pioneer, Dan Benjamin—have created their own dedicated podcasting apps.
So when a new app enters this arena it better be good. No, scratch that; it better be outstanding. That's the only way that newcomers will be able to gain traction in this ever-growing and uber-competitive market.
It helps to start with a catchy name. Castro—the creation of Supertop's Padraig Kennedy and Oisin Prendville—starts out on the right foot in this regard. Its name is the type of play on words that makes itself instantly recognizable, even amongst the podcasting app mainstays listed above. But Castro is more than just a good name; it's a good app, too.
The Wall Street Journal is reporting this afternoon that Sprint is working on a potential T-Mobile USA purchase. The carrier is said to be looking into regulatory concerns right now, and a bid in upwards of $20 billion could come in early 2014.
A merger of these two wireless providers would be significant for a few reasons. For one, it would leave just 3 major competing carriers in the US. And two, Sprint and T-Mobile have a combined subscriber base close to that of AT&T and Verizon...
One of the big iOS 7 features Apple showed off during its WWDC event in June was called iOS in the Car. The feature allows for deeper integration between iOS devices and vehicles, enabling users to view iOS apps on factory in-dash displays.
Until now, the feature has not been available, but it looks like the upcoming iOS 7.1 update will change that. Earlier today, Apple seeded the second beta of the firmware to developers, and it includes a new Settings on/off toggle for a Car Display...
Yelp has posted a nice little update for its iOS client today. The update, which brings the app to version 7.4, sports a number of new features including movie listings and in-app movie ticket purchasing courtesy of Fandango.
Also new in the app is in-line review business photos. Yelp now shows business photos taken by Yelp users next to their review, so you can get a better idea of how popular a club is, or how delicious a particular entree was...
Earlier this month, reports surfaced that China Mobile and Apple finally inked a deal for the carrier to begin offering iPhones to its some 700 million+ subscribers. Yesterday, China Mobile confirmed the news, taking pre-orders for the iPhone 5s and 5c.
And it looks like the world's largest carrier is enthusiastic about its new partnership with Apple, as it has gone all out on marketing materials for the launch. Many China Mobile retail stores have dedicated much of their ad and display space to iOS devices...
Apple has released the second beta of iOS 7.1 to registered developers this afternoon. The update, which carries the build number 11D5115D, can be downloaded via Apple’s developer center.
Today’s release comes nearly a month after the first beta, which brought about only a handful of changes including a new ' dark keyboard' feature, and other small tweaks and improvements...
Apple's rumored smartwatch, affectionately dubbed by the media iWatch, is scheduled for launch late next year and will include a wireless charging feature, according to a new rumor by a reliable Chinese blog.
Apple has already tested two prototypes, the story goes, and is shooting to release the health/fitness iOS accessory in October of 2014.
That would put the iWatch debut close to the upcoming iPhone 6. More on that right after the break...
The American singer, songwriter and actress, Beyoncé, has made an unusual move of releasing her fifth self-titled studio album exclusively on Apple's iTunes. Available today from the iTunes Store, the release is dubbed a 'visual album' and arrives with a heavy marketing push from Apple - the iTunes Store is currently featuring Beyoncé's album on all rotating carousel at the top, with links to her previous albums.
You didn't even know she was working on a new alubm? You're not the only one! Visual album? That's because each song comes with an accompanying music video (plus a digital booklet), a great treat given music videos are normally sold separately of songs...
Chair Entertainment's Infinity Blade is an elegiac masterpiece, an iOS exclusive and a system seller that showcases what's possible on Apple's iOS platform better than any other game. Unbelievable console-quality graphics, great soundtrack and atmosphere, complex weapons and upgrade system with RPG elements to keep you coming back for more all contribute to it being one of the best iPhone and iPad games money can buy.
The original game recently went free, as did the second installment which normally costs $6.99 and was yesterday named IGN's Free Game of the Month. As for Infinity Blade III (a $6.99 download for the iPhone and iPad), the substantial Soul Hunter update from a month and a half ago brought us a bunch of new items and goals and an all-new quest that includes a new location and a new enemy, the Deathless Bloodmage.
But that was just warming up as Chair has announced that the upcoming Ausar Rising update will be even bigger. Due next week, the update will let you revisit the original Infinity Blade castle and explore the origins of the Infinity Blade protagonist.
More on that, plus a teaser video, right after the break...
Ebook and mobile app publisher Random House Digital has released an interesting iPad education app in the App Store. Stephen Hawking’s Snapshots of the Universe, suitable for children aged 9+, uses the work and writings of Stephen Hawking, the famous English theoretical physicist, cosmologist, author and Director of Research at the Centre for Theoretical Cosmology within the University of Cambridge, to teach students the basic theories of the movement of the stars and planets.
The astrophysicist apparently had a say in the app's design as he envisioned an app that would help explain the fundamentals of space to both adults and children through fun mini-games. The interactive experience is optimized for iOS 7 with clean and streamlined graphic elements.
Available sections cover the basics of our solar system and let you spin planets in orbit, drop objects with Galileo to learn about gravity, search for black holes in the constellation of Leo, discover Einstein’s warped worldview and G-force in outer space and lots more...