iDownloadBlog.com

Kabam teases upcoming RPG ‘Star Wars Uprising’ for mobile

Cody Lee ∙ June 5, 2015

Star Wars fans have a lot to be excited about this year. There's, of course, the new movie 'The Force Awakens' that's coming out in December, and a handful of new console games are on the way. There's also apparently a new RPG coming to mobile devices.

Publisher Kablam has begun teasing its upcoming role-playing game, Star Wars Uprising, which will debut on various mobile platforms later this year. It will serve as a bridge, connecting the events of Return of the Jedi and this year's new Star Wars film.

Mobile Monet turns your iPhone photos into art

Lory Gil ∙ June 5, 2015

Since the dawn of photography, people have been finding ways to alter images and add effects. Since mobile photography rose to the top, companies have come up with numerous types of effects apps that do all manner of interesting things to your basic snapshot.

East Coast Pixels is one of those companies and their art rendering photo app MobileMonet just received a major overhaul with new processes that provide a more painterly effect. We've got a hands-on app review of MobileMonet for you today.

Apple looking to change 70/30 iTunes revenue split for media services

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 18, 2018

Apple is planning a departure from the long-standing 70/30 iTunes pricing arrangement it has with digital media companies, reports the Financial Times. According to sources familiar with the matter, Apple is discussing new commercial terms with a number of players in the video, music and news subscription space.

The split, which doles out 70% of app and media sales to content owners/creators and 30% to Apple for hosting and distribution, has been around since the iTunes Store first launched in 2003. Apple hopes the change can improve its relationships with media firms, and reassure regulators that it's not abusing its power.

Apple Watch battery life and how Apple successfully set low expectations

Sébastien Page ∙ Updated August 8, 2024

Ask anyone who owns an Apple Watch what they think of the device’s battery life, and they will likely tell you it’s great. I think it’s great too, but I also think we’ve been conditioned into thinking that.

SoundHound has created a voice search app that will knock your socks off

Christian Zibreg ∙ June 5, 2015

Apple's introduction of Siri back in 2011 was a watershed moment for voice-activated personal digital assistants. Today, a myriad of Siri-like services exist such as Google Now on Android devices and Microsoft's cross-platform Cortana, which will be hitting iOS soon following Windows 10 debut on July 29.

But many if not all of the existing services, Siri included, could be put to shame by Hound.

Hound is a forthcoming digital assistant which promises a groundbreaking smartphone experience, created by SoundHound, the maker of namesake mobile music and audio recognition service.

Ringke Fusion is a minimalist case with drop protection for iPhone 6

Lory Gil ∙ Updated February 3, 2017

Whenever a minimalist case is mentioned on iDB, someone always asks whether it has protection from drops. For the most part, minimalist cases don't really protect from anything significant, other than scratches on the backside. They offer protection in the most minimal of ways.

The Ringke Fusion is slightly less minimalist, but slightly more protective. Not only does it have dust caps to keep ports from getting dirty, but it also has added layers on the corners for a bit of drop protection.

Apple says half of top 100 U.S. merchants will accept Apple Pay this year

Christian Zibreg ∙ June 5, 2015

By the end of this year, about half of the top 100 merchants in the United States should roll out Apple Pay to their stores, Apple hopes.

A spokesperson told Reuters today that the firm is constantly in contact with these merchants, half of whom have expressed their intent to support Apple Pay for their customers, with “many more” merchants expected to adopt the wireless payment service the following year.

Apple now inviting customers to “just walk in to try Apple Watch on”

Christian Zibreg ∙ June 5, 2015

Since its April debut, the Apple Watch has been exclusively available through the convoluted process where you favorited your preferred model on the webstore or in the Apple Store app before visiting an Apple Store for your try-on appointment.

But as availability of both the device itself and the bands has been improving lately, the company is now inviting prospective buyers for walk-in try-ons at their local Apple Store, as indicated by MacRumors.

Apple stops selling iPhones on 2-year AT&T contract, moves exclusively to Next financing plans

Christian Zibreg ∙ June 5, 2015

As reported earlier this week, Apple has stopped selling new iPhones to customers on a two-year contract with AT&T as of today.

As first noted by MacRumors, subsidized $199/$299 prices for new iPhones on a two-year AT&T contract have been removed overnight and replaced with the carrier's financing program called AT&T Next.

Apple still negotiating terms with record labels for music streaming service

Christian Zibreg ∙ June 5, 2015

Apple is reportedly still negotiating terms with record labels for its rumored music-streaming service, just days before its annual Worldwide Developers Conference kicks off with a keynote next Monday, Bloomberg said today.

People familiar with the negotiations told the news organization that the labels are pushing to get a larger chunk of revenue than they receive under their current deals with Spotify.

Hands-on with HomeKit: the Caséta Wireless Smart Lighting Dimmer Kit from Lutron

Jeff Benjamin ∙ Updated April 18, 2018

A couple of hours ago, I got my first real hands-on experience with HomeKit—the connected smart home framework that Apple announced at WWDC 2014. A year later, and some of the very first HomeKit enabled products are now landing on store shelves.

The folks over at Lutron were nice enough to send us the Caséta Wireless Smart Lighting Dimmer Kit ($229.95 on Amazon). This kit comes with a Smart Bridge, two remote controls and two plug-in lamp dimmers. Although the kit in and of itself is interesting, our main interest at iDownloadBlog is with its HomeKit support. With that in mind, this post consists of an unboxing and overview of Lutron's kit and a walkthrough of the HomeKit configuration, including Siri control.

Want to see how HomeKit works in the real world? Then watch our full video walkthrough for more details.

Many Apple Watch bands now shipping in 24 hours, Apple clarifies Space Black watch availability

Christian Zibreg ∙ June 4, 2015

Apple said today its watch will be hitting seven new markets later this month, with the sole exception of the 42mm Space Black Stainless Steel model with Space Black Link Bracelet.

In an email sent to customers who ordered that device, a copy of which was obtained by 9to5Mac, Apple has clarified that the 42mm Space Black Stainless Steel model with Space Black Link Bracelet won't be arriving in retail stores until all online orders have been fulfilled.

Additionally, availability of many Apple Watch bands has improved substantially as many are now shipping in one business day, WatchAware noted Thursday.