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The iTunes Radio effect: Pandora will no longer cap free mobile listening

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated October 27, 2016

Pandora's 40-hour limit on mobile listening went into effect in February, quickly becoming the most hated "feature" of the otherwise stellar streaming music service. The firm argued it felt compelled to introduce the capping due to rising royalty costs, even if the 40-hour limit affected only four percent of its avid listeners. Backflipping now, Pandora said Thursday it will be removing the 40-hour free listening on mobile devices real soon.

The good news conveniently coincides with Apple's impending launch of its ad-free iTunes Radio, a streaming music service set to arrive next month as part of the iOS 7 release...

Sky Gamblers: Storm Raiders is Apple’s new Free App of the Week

Christian Zibreg ∙ August 22, 2013

Boy, I've spent countless hours and had tons of fun playing the Sky Gamblers games by Atypical Games. It's one of those system sellers that every avid gamer should have on their device to show off to friends, it's that good.

In terms of graphics, these games literally have it all: lots of detail, interactive cockpits, special effects galore, specular masks, bump mapping, atmospheric scattering, volumetric clouds with realistic lighting and sun glare.

There are also beautiful day and night transitions, God rays, high definition textures, 4x anisotropic filtering, high dynamic range rendering, radial blur, heat haze, refractive raindrops and lots more. The care and thought that had gone into designing Sky Gamblers: Storm Raiders, the most recent installment, has clearly caught Apple's attention.

Previously, the iPhone maker featured Sky Gamblers: Storm Raiders as one of its 2013 Design Award winners and now the company has decided to feature the game as its Free App of the Week. Trust me, Storm Raiders is the ultimate World War II air combat game and you'd be foolish to pass on it..

Facebook changes third-party app login rules to stop unwanted posts

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 14, 2018

Facebook has rolled out some nice little changes to the way third-party apps request permissions from users when. The move, it says, is part of an effort to get users to post more to its social network from other apps.

The changes will require third-party applications that connect with Facebook to request separate permissions to 'read' information from your FB account, and to write, or publish any app activity on your Timeline...

Apple buys Embark, maker of free transit apps

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated May 16, 2016

The former Wall Street Journal reporter Jessica Lessin has some high-quality sources at Apple and has enjoyed the kind of unprecedented access to company executives that only News Corp. could bring to the table. In between forming a team of star bloggers for her upcoming news venture and tweeting, she finds time to post an exclusive every once in a while. Back in July, for instance, Jessica scooped a story about Apple's rumored ad-skipping feature for an upcoming television service.

And during her WSJ tenure, she revealed that Apple had snapped up indoor GPS company WiFiSLAM for $20 million, confirmed a chip deal with TSMC and scooped many, many other exclusives. Today she broke on her blog that Apple has acquired another transit app startup, a small Silicon Valley upstart called Embark, for un undisclosed sum...

Apple and Google push Nintendo and Sony into No. 3 spot in mobile gaming

Ed Sutherland ∙ August 22, 2013

We've seen how mobile killed traditional music, draining sales from retail CD stores. Console games appear headed for the same fate. Worldwide revenue for handheld console makers fell during the second quarter of this year, pushing companies like Nintendo and Sony into third place behind the first-place Apple App Store and No. 2 Android-based Google Play.

According to a joint report by research firm IDC and app analytics company App Annie, consumers spending on mobile games in the Google Play store rose during the quarter as Android games picked up 1.6 percent of the market between the first and second quarter of 2013. The Google Play store has taken steps to attract more gaming dollars by tailoring its service for developers...

Upcoming Mac utility lets you bypass the passcode on jailbroken devices

Jeff Benjamin ∙ Updated April 14, 2018

An upcoming Mac utility by jailbreak developer, Majd Alfhaily, (better known by his Twitter handle, @freemanrepo) allows users to outright bypass passcode lock protection on jailbroken iOS device.

Alfhaily sent us a beta version of the tool, which we were able to run successfully and unlock our passcode protected iPod touch. Take a look at our preview video walkthrough for more details.

Apple updates Find My Friends and Find My iPhone ahead of iOS 7 release

Christian Zibreg ∙ August 22, 2013

With less than three weeks left until Apple's big Fall reveal, the company has started updating some of its own apps on the App Store to bring them more in line with the all-new iOS 7 look.

Find My iPhone and Find My Friends apps have both been updated with bug fixes and stability improvements, but no new features have been added and the design remained unchanged.

Find My iPhone is particularly interesting. Not only has the update broken the app for non-developers, but the software now comes with a brand new flattened icon which essentially mimics its counterpart on the recently revamped iCloud Beta website. More findings right below...

BlackBerry Messenger for iOS user guide posts ahead of launch

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 14, 2018

While people may not be interested in BlackBerry handsets, there is one product release a lot of folks seem to be looking forward to: BlackBerry Messenger for iOS and Android. The company confirmed earlier this year that the apps are in the works.

CEO Thorsten Heins has since said that the cross-platform Messenger software will be out before the end of the summer, which is rapidly approaching. But we must be getting close to launch, because BlackBerry just posted user guides for the two apps...

iTV said to come with pay-TV service

Christian Zibreg ∙ August 22, 2013

The Apple television saga continues with a new report by Quartz today offering a fresh insight behind the curtain of Apple's ongoing negotiations with content owners. The crux: while the talks have stalled as Apple's faced significant hurdles, the company is cunningly hoping to get at least a few content providers on board for a rumored iTV launch.

Afterwards, Apple is hoping to get cable companies to play along, the report notes. Apple's ultimate goal is to have the rumored standalone television set launch with a pay TV service that would see Apple “essentially becoming a cable company itself”...

Reuters profiles Apple’s Cook as ‘methodical’ and unafraid of tough decisions

Ed Sutherland ∙ August 22, 2013

Apple CEO Tim Cook, often compared to the iPhone maker's mercurial co-founder Steve Jobs, is pictured in a new profile as a nuts-and-bolts technocrat able to balance a softer corporate image with the ability to make hard choices. After two years at the helm of the consumer electronics giant that is Apple, Cook is being described as a "methodical" and "no-nonsense" guy not afraid to make tough decisions.

Ahead of launching a new version of the flagship iPhone, Reuters speaks with Cook's co-workers and colleagues, showing the Apple CEO is "as different as could be from that of his predecessor"...

Former Hulu exec Pete Distad is now Apple’s VP of Product Marketing

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 26, 2016

Bloomberg last mont asserted Apple had poached Hulu executive Pete Distad to help push forward its stalling negotiations with media moguls and cable companies. According to a new report out today, the executive has now started work at Apple in marketing capacity: Hulu has killed Distad's bio page and the executive's LinkedIn profile now lists him as Apple's Vice President of Product Marketing.

Distad was Hulu's Senior Vice President in charge of marketing and distribution so he clearly knows a thing or two about the complex web of licensing deals, though it remains unclear if his product marketing role entails dealing with content owners at all...

Star Wars: Force Collection hitting App Store on September 4

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated May 16, 2018

Konami yesterday announced it will be releasing Star Wars: Force Collection on iOS and Android on September 4.

It's going to be the first Star Wars digital card battle game, Konami said. Star Wars: Force Collection will challenge players to collect over over 230 character cards and discover special vehicle blueprints to create the ultimate Battle Formation comprised of the famous aircrafts like X-Wings, AT-ATs and Tie Fighters.

Once your deck is fully built, you'll be set to challenge rivals in strategic battles, solve quests, participate in massive in-game events, level up among the Jedi or Sith Orders and more. Go past the fold for the full reveal...