Apple launches downloadable iMessage sticker packs for iOS 10

Apple on Friday released four sets of sticker packs for iOS 10 that can be downloaded from the App Store and used in the new Messages app that Apple demonstrated at the WWDC 2016 keynote.

Each of the packs are free to download and include animated stickers that behave much like those in Facebook Messenger do when they're sent to the recipient.

NYT music reporter claims Apple won’t be acquiring Tidal after all

The Wall Street Journal ran a story yesterday claiming that Apple was in “exploratory talks” to acquire music service Tidal, which rap mogul Jay-Z bought in March 2015 for a reported $56 million.

Ostensibly, Apple's interest in Tidal revolves around its strong ties to artists: since the Jay-Z deal, Tidal has given 19 famous artists small stakes in the firm.

The Journal article cautioned that the current discussions might not result in a deal and now Ben Sisario, a music reporter at The New York Times, cited “two highly placed sources” as saying that Apple won't be buying Tidal anytime soon.

Feast your eyes on nearly-complete iSpaceship in jaw-dropping drone footage

YouTubers Duncan Sinfield and Matthew Roberts have both posted their respective 4K aerial shots of the construction progress being made at Apple's Campus 2 site. The main building, also known as iSpaceship due to its seamless circular appearance, looks near-complete.

Featuring jaw-dropping 4K footage captured via a drone, we can clearly see that work on the upcoming stunning headquarters has progressed rapidly in the past few weeks.

Apple responds to Spotify’s “anti-competitive” accusation, talks app rejection

Spotify's letter sent earlier this week to Apple’s legal counsel Bruce Sewell and some Congressional staff in Washington, D.C. didn't sit well with Apple's legal team and its top lawyer.

Today, the Cupertino firm issued a response to address claims that it's been using the power of its ecosystem and the app review process as a “weapon” to stifle competition by rejecting the latest Spotify for iOS update, which “caused grave harm to Spotify and its customers”.

Firing back at Spotify in a three-page letter obtained by BuzzFeed News, Apple accused the Swedish streaming-music startup of “resorting to rumors and half-truths”, slammed it for asking for “preferential treatment” and set the record straight on the app rejection.

watchOS 3 tidbit: adjusting how long apps stay active on wrist raise

Before watchOS 3, Apple Watch owners had two options at their disposal when it came to waking the device and using apps. In watchOS 2 and earlier, you could adjust how long the Apple Watch display stayed awake when you tap to wake it (15 or 70 seconds) and what you wanted your device to be awoken to.

Prior watchOS versions defaulted to waking up to the current watch face but could optionally be told to return to where you were before the watch went to sleep. In watchOS 3, options for apps have been expanded.

You can now select how long third-party apps show on the Apple Watch screen when you raise your wrist with three additional options at your disposal.

iOS 10 tidbit: managing read receipts on a per-conversation basis

iOS 10 has a new hidden switch, called Emergency Bypass, which permits you to override your global Do Not Disturb setting on a per-contact basis. It's especially handy for those times when you wanna enable Messages notifications for a contact that isn't in your Favorites, even if Do Not Disturb is on.

A similar new feature in iOS 10's Messages app makes it easy to enable or disable read receipts, which tell the other person when you've read an incoming text, on a per-conversation basis.

Pangu demos iOS 10 jailbreak + rumors of an iOS 9.3.2 jailbreak

Members of the Pangu Team have reportedly demonstrated a working iOS 10 jailbreak during the MOSEC 2016 conference that was being held in China on July 1, according to Stephen Chan.

In a series of photos, published on the conference's Weibo account, a screencast of an iPhone shows Cydia as a Siri app suggestion on iOS 10's new widget screen, as well as Cydia running on the same device.

Say hello to Android Nougat

When Google officially announced Android N at its annual Google I/O developers conference in May, they ran a contest asking fans to submit their suggestions for the official name of the next major revision to the world's most-used mobile operating system. Yesterday, Google announced they've chosen “Nougat” as the official code-name of Android 7.0.

Check out this beautiful Space Black iPhone 7 concept

Prolific designer Martin Hajek was back again on Thursday with a new set of mockup photos for the iPhone 7 in the rumored Space Black colorway. As usual, Hajek’s renderings are gorgeous and the details of the handset match up closely with recent reports.

Following up on its own claim that Apple is looking to add a deep blue color variant to this year's iPhone, Japanese publication Mac Otakara said earlier this week that the hue is going to be closer to a "Dark Space Black," similar to that used for the Apple Watch.