Creative video app CHOMP goes free as Apple’s App of the Week

Apple on Thursday updated its App of the Week promotion with CHOMP, by Christoph Niemann. This means that from now through next Thursday, you can pick up the popular interactive storybook app for free for both iPhone and iPad—a solid $3 savings.

CHOMP combines playful, humorous, hand-drawn animations with live video, enabling children and adults alike to slip into a variety of comical roles. From a virtuous pianist, to a spaghetti-slurping dog, or a living cuckoo-clock, almost anything is possible!

Ottm Apple Watch bands are made of 100% hardwood

When it comes to wearable technology, such as the Apple Watch and many other competing smartwatches on the market, fashion plays a big role. This isn't just something you take in and out of your pocket all day long; it's something you wear.

For that reason, a startup is launching an Indiegogo campaign for a new Apple Watch band made completely of wood, and it's being called Ottm.

Ottm will come in different kinds of wood colors and fit both 38mm and 42mm Apple Watches, as well as other smartwatches, and they're hand-crafted to ensure they're of the highest quality possible.

Quick thoughts on the new Woven Nylon bands for Apple Watch: cheaply made, but good looking

I might be a little late to the party, but after spending a week out of the country, I finally returned home last night and got to have a look at three Woven Nylon bands I had ordered for my Stainless Steel Apple Watch: I have the Black, Royal Blue, and Gold/Royal Blue, all in the 42mm version.

In this post, I'll share some of my first impressions about these new bands. This is not a review per say, more like some quick thoughts.

Apple releases iOS 9.3.1 to fix web links crashing bug

Ten days after releasing iOS 9.3 to the public, Apple has released iOS 9.3.1 today to fix an issue where some devices would crash or become unresponsive after tapping on some web links. Holding build number 13E238, iOS 9.3.1 is available now via an over-the-air update or via iTunes to all devices capable of running iOS 9. It is also available for download now from our Downloads section. 

Disney Infinity drops support for the new Apple TV

Less than five months after Apple started selling Disney's Infinity 3.0 starter kit, the interactive division of the Mickey Mouse house has decided to stop supporting the Apple TV edition of Infinity.

According to a message posted on the official Disney Infinity boards by its moderator, “the team is currently focusing on the traditional gaming platforms” and there are “no plans for further updates to the Apple TV version of the game”.

Teardown of iPhone SE finds hardware is a collage of 5s, 6, and 6s parts

The first legitimate hardware teardown of Apple's new 4-inch smartphone, the iPhone SE, has been conducted by Chipworks. Apple just unveiled this new handset at its recent 'Let us loop you in' event alongside the new 9.7-inch iPad Pro.

The teardown finds that the iPhone SE is more than just a new generation of smaller iPhone from Apple, but that it's actually a very clever device that takes the best from the performance world and combines it with the economics of older devices. This allows Apple to provide a product at a cheaper cost, but with similar performance.

As the teardown reveals, the iPhone SE is actually a Frankenstein of iPhone 5s, 6, and 6s parts that all work together to create a powerful 6s-like performance experience in a smaller 4-inch package.

Facebook Messenger gains its first airline bot

Facebook on Thursday announced it is launching its first airline information bot within the Messenger app.

The social network has been enhancing Messenger's functionality on a regular basis with new features beyond chatting and has recently added a Transportation tab that lets users in the United States request a ride from Uber.

Messenger's airline bot lets KLM Royal Dutch Airlines customers manage their flights and browse their flight information within the app, without ever leaving their chats.

Mittomo, Nintendo’s first app designed for iOS devices, hits US App Store

As promised, Japanese gaming giant Nintendo today released its first app designed for iOS devices, Miitomo, in the App Store in the United States and elsewhere following a recent soft-launch in the Japanese App Store.

The free-to-play title lets you customize your Mii avatars by mixing and matching from various costumes and styles. You can share your Miis with friends on social media and discover things that you share in common by engaging in conversations.