Apple names Steve Dowling interim PR chief

Cody Lee ∙ October 2, 2014

Apple has named Steve Dowling as its new head of public relations, reports Recode. Citing sources close to the company, the outlet says that after 6 months of searching for a replacement for Katie Cotton, Tim Cook offered Dowling the position last week and he accepted.

Dowling’s appointment is temporary as of right now, and Apple will continue to evaluate high profile candidates as they come up. But Recode points out that since Cook selected the long-term veteran himself to lead Apple's PR team, there's a good chance he could stay put.

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iOS 8 Translator Keyboard lets you translate text from one language to another

Christian Zibreg ∙ October 2, 2014

You can now put Translator Keyboard by developer Steven Barnegren on your list of system wide third-party keyboards available in the App Store for the iPhone, iPod touch and iPad devices running iOS 8 or later.

First spotted by MacRumors, the $1.99 iPhone and iPad software makes it easy to translate any text to 44 different languages (and translate from 30 languages) by choosing your source and target language straight from the keyboard.

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Twitter for Mac gains photos in DMs, picks up supports for multiple images per tweet

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated February 28, 2018

After refreshing its iPhone and iPad app with support for Interactive Notifications on iOS 8 and revamped profile pages, the micro-blogging platform Twitter on Thursday issued an update to its Mac client implementing a pair of new photo features.

The first allows you to add an image to your direct messages and the other introduces support for attaching up to four images to a single tweet.

Twitter for Mac 3.1 is available free in the Mac App Store.

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Samsung exploits Bendgate controversy with own Galaxy Note 4 stress-test video

Christian Zibreg ∙ October 2, 2014

Samsung may have won a contract to build Apple's next-generation mobile processor for 2015 iPhones and iPads, but that's not stopping the firm from milking the Bendgate meme for all it's worth.

Having poked fun of Apple in a series of tweets after the controversial YouTube video suggested malleability of the iPhone 6 Plus, the South Korean firm on Thursday posted a two-minute video on its blog showing off the three-point bend test process behind its latest Galaxy Note 4 phablet.

The rigorous testing procedures have been designed “to give you, and your back pocket, peace of mind” because “leaving things in your back pocket can lead to, well, bent things,” remarked Samsung alluding to Bendgate.

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Samsung confirms building 14nm A9 processors for 2015 iPhones and iPads

Christian Zibreg ∙ October 2, 2014

Echoing previous rumors, Samsung of South Korea confirmed to reporters Thursday that it will start churning out mobile processors for Apple before end of the year, ZDNet reported. The chips, likely to be branded under the “A9” moniker, will be manufactured on Samsung's cutting-edge 14-nanometer process technology.

The confirmation came through the mouth of Kim Ki-nam, president of Samsung's semiconductor-making arm and head of System LSI business.

Speaking to reporters at company headquarters in Seoul, Ki-nam quipped that his company's fortunes “will improve positively” once sales are boosted thanks to the lucrative Apple chip deal. The new mobile processor should make their way into 2015 iPhone and iPad devices.

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Pioneer releases aftermarket CarPlay systems, Spotify updated with CarPlay support

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated February 3, 2017

A pair of CarPlay-related news reports is making the rounds this morning, one confirming the official release of the first aftermarket CarPlay systems from Pioneer and the other announcing an updated Spotify application for the iPhone and iPad with built-in support for Apple's in-car platform.

As announced back in April, CarPlay is now available as a software update for Pioneer's existing 2014 in-dash multimedia systems, the $1400 AVIC-8000NEX, $1200 AVIC-7000NEX, $900 AVIC-6000NEX, $750 AVIC-5000NEX and the $700 AVH-4000NEX systems.

The company also announced a new $600 smartphone receiver, AppRadio 4, with CarPlay compatibility.

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Chinese carriers booked more than 2 million iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus reservations in just 6 hours

Christian Zibreg ∙ October 2, 2014

Though Apple's iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus won't officially launch in the Chinese market until later this month, the nation's three mobile carriers have already managed to book more than two million reservations just six hours after opening their queues, according to ITHome and Sina reports [Google Translate] cited by AppleInsider.

What's even more interesting, the vast majority of initial reservations have been 64GB iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus models in gold.

Given both models cost nearly $1,000, early demand proves again that colorful jumbo-sized handsets are all the rage in the 1.33 billion people market.

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Apple releases tool to check the Activation Lock status of iOS devices

Sébastien Page ∙ Updated May 26, 2023

Apple recently released a tool that lets anyone check the Activation Lock status of iOS devices. Introduced along iOS 7, Activation Lock is a security feature that prevents anyone from erasing or activating your iOS device without entering your Apple ID and password first. The feature must be disabled before a device is passed or sold to another person. Failure to do so renders the device unusable for the new owner.

With the release of this new tool, Apple wants to make the process of checking for Activation Lock easier, and prevent people from buying a device that might have been locked because it was lost, stolen, or simply because the previous owner forgot remove the device from his account.

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iOS 8 causing Bluetooth issues for some users

Cody Lee ∙ October 1, 2014

If you're having problems with Bluetooth in iOS 8, you're not alone. A number of users are reporting Bluetooth connection bugs after updating to the firmware, or purchasing a new iPhone 6 or 6 Plus—particularly when trying to pair their handsets to their vehicles.

Looking at this lengthy thread on Apple.com, and this one in the MacRumors forums, the issues appear to be fairly widespread. Within the last two weeks, users have complained of hitches including not being able to pair their devices at all, and random disconnects.

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Bleacher Buddy helps you find what channel the game is on

Cody Lee ∙ Updated January 30, 2018

Bleacher Buddy is an iPhone app built to answer the age-old question: "what channel is the game on?" It's not a new app by any means, but I came across it for the first time today, and with the fall sports season now in full swing, I figured it'd be pertinent to mention it.

Using Bleacher Buddy is as easy as you'd expect it to be. You start off by giving it your zip code, and then selecting your satellite or cable TV provider. Once that's done, tell the app what sport, or specific game, you want to watch, and it will tell you which channel to turn to.

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A first look at Brightkey for iOS 8

Lory Gil ∙ October 1, 2014

I’m of the philosophy that if you are going to add a third-party keyboard to your iPhone, there is no reason to waste time with boring designs. The brighter, the better. My fascination with third-party keyboards starts with how different they look than Apple’s standard one.

Brightkey for iOS 8 is just about as different as they come. It features eight different skins, including five candy-colored keyboards. I just want to eat my iPhone it’s so cute. Plus, this keyboard has one standout feature that you'll love.

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