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Google’s new Maps SDK brings Street View and Indoor Maps to iOS apps

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 31, 2023

Google yesterday pushed a major 2.0 update to its native Maps iOS app.

The software has brought native iPad support, offline maps, a much cleaner interface, improved navigation, indoor maps of building floors and other enhancements.

By the way, today's Chrome iOS update lets you open map links in the Google Maps app instead of the browser.

To go along with the new Maps app, Google yesterday issued a version 1.4 of its Google Maps SDK for iOS. The new frameworks make it easy for Apple's registered iOS developers to write apps that incorporate such new features as Street View, Indoor Maps, and a new look and feel...

12 words your iPhone won’t auto-correct

Cody Lee ∙ Updated February 2, 2023

Apple's implementation of auto-correct in iOS has long been the subject of criticism. When it works, it works, but it has the reputation of being inconsistent. Sometimes it won't notice slight misspellings of a word, and other times, it'll offer wrong suggestions. And apparently, there's a handful of words that auto-correct won't touch at all.

The Daily Beast ran a few low-grade, in-house tests on the feature, and it found that, on top of the obvious curse words, there are at least 12 often-used, 'hot button' terms it seems to purposely ignore.

Could Apple Stores sell more iPhones?

Ed Sutherland ∙ July 17, 2013

Can Apple more than triple the percent of iPhones sold at its retail stores, pumping up sales of its flagship smartphone?

While CEO Tim Cook is pushing the idea, some observers question whether the goal of selling half of all iPhones in Apple Stores is in fact attainable.

The Apple CEO says he'd like in-store sales of iPhones - now at fifteen percent - to match the fifty percent of handsets serviced by Apple Store Geniuses. Currently, around 90 percent of iPhones are purchased either through U.S. carriers or third-party resellers...

Chrome gains full-screen on iPad, opens links in native apps, saves bandwidth and more

Christian Zibreg ∙ July 17, 2013

The Internet giant Google has just pushed a major update to its Chrome browser for the iPhone and iPad, sporting better voice capabilities and containing a whole bunch of new features that make the browser fully interoperable with major Google apps available on the iOS platform.

In addition to advanced voice control achieved through additional enhancements to voice search and improved text-to-speech, this edition of the Chrome 28 build boasts tight interoperability with Google's other native apps on iOS.

For starters, there's a handy option to open links for YouTube, Maps, Google+ and Drive in Google's native iOS apps instead of the browser. On the iPad side, there's a new full-screen browsing mode (finally) along with other tidbits, mentioned after the break...

Apple patents advanced Liquidmetal processing techniques as new gadgets loom

Christian Zibreg ∙ July 17, 2013

We've been waiting and waiting (and waiting) for a Liquidmetal Apple gadget ever since that 2010 deal saw Apple acquire worldwide exclusive rights to use the amorphous alloy (also known as metallic glass) in consumer electronics applications. 2012 went and gone without a Liquidmetal iPhone, or iPad or MacBook for that matter.

At the end of 2012 Apple extended the deal with Liquidmetal Technologies (a Caltech spinoff) or another two years, through 2014. Still, the iPhone maker has yet to use the alloy in gadgets, even though it's owned the rights to it since 2010. This could change soon, if a new patent gain unearthed Wednesday is an indication.

That the United States Patent & Trademark Office awarded Apple's patent on a process for mass production of amorphous metals is a sign of Apple potentially moving to commercialize Terminator-like alloy. Liquidmetal iWatch, anyone?

Apple-Samsung smartphone duopoly to continue into 2014

Ed Sutherland ∙ July 17, 2013

The smart device duopoly of Apple and Samsung is set to continue into 2014, new research finds. Although growth is slowing amid lack of 'wow' factor, smartphones will account for three-quarters of the 2.5 billion devices expected to sell next year.

In other words, smartphones will comprise an astounding 1.9 billion handsets sold next year.

Google's Android mobile software will have 42 percent of the market with Apple's iOS garnering fourteen percent in 2014. Microsoft is predicted to become the #2 platform with a fifteen percent share of next year's market, according to Gartner...

Deus Ex update issued, removes weapon-firing restriction on jailbroken devices

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated October 12, 2018

Square Enix drew lots of heat for itself after it was discovered that its new premium iOS game, Deus Ex: The Fall, contains a restriction preventing weapon firing on jailbroken devices, making it impossible to progress past the tutorial without applying the xCon tweak from the ModMyI repo in Cydia.

Square was quick to apologize and attribute the risky decision to a bug, promising to remove the odd limitation in a future update. Making good on its promise, the company has just released an update to The Fall which does away with the anti-jailbreak measure...

The problem with smartphones: they’re losing their cool and wow factor

Ed Sutherland ∙ July 17, 2013

It has been six years since Apple introduced the original iPhone. The event was likened to a seismic shift that ignited the push to adopt smartphones in the United States. Now with up to 70 percent of subscribers owning smartphones, the big three carriers are searching for ways to encourage upgrades.

However, the push comes as consumers complain the 'wow' factor is missing from the industry. The slowdown in smartphone upgrades - evident in Samsung and Apple's sales - fell nine percent in 2012 with 68 million U.S. subscribers upgrading their devices, according to a Wednesday Wall Street Journal report...

Photos picture plastic iPhone shell next to iPhone 5

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 26, 2016

With both big media, Chinese blogs and everyone and their mother in between seemingly betting on the arrival of Apple's polycarbonate-made mid-range handset later this year, small wonder purported spyshots of the device's casing have been leaking out from Far East.

iOS developer Sonny Dickson, who has previously proven himself a reliable source of information about unreleased Apple products, has been on a roll these days tweeting out a number of purported plastic iPhone images. The newest series of authentic-looking images depict several colorized plastic iPhone shells, including one comparing the current iPhone 5 to the purported less-pricey model...

As iWatch anticipation builds up, smartwatch market to grow tenfold in 2014

Ed Sutherland ∙ Updated April 14, 2018

The smartwatch market is about to explode - never mind not a single device from Apple or Samsung has shipped. Despite all those troublesome facts, one analyst firm is out with a prediction that five million "smartwatches" will ship in 2014, ten times the current number. How can this be? Welcome to defining tech 2.0. The research firm Canalys defines smartwatches as "smart wearable bands" that are worn on the body and run third-party apps...

iPhone 5S to have 4.3-inch screen? Probably not

Christian Zibreg ∙ July 17, 2013

With last month's trial production and this month's ramp-up underway, all checks now point to Apple having finalized the next iPhone and now mass producing the device, in time for a presumed Fall launch.

A Chinese website behind alleged iPhone 5S production shots is adamant the iPhone 5S has the same four-inch display as its predecessor.

That may not be the case: if a Taiwanese newspaper is to be trusted, Apple has increased the iPhone 5S's screen to measure 4.3 inches diagonally. Worse, the move, the story goes, may delay the handset's introduction until the end of the year...

Genuine-looking iPhone 5S production images and specs leak

Christian Zibreg ∙ July 17, 2013

Just a day after AllThingsD confirmed analyst Piter Misek's claim of the iPhone 5S production ramp-up in July, a Chinese website leaks a few images that appear to depict a bunch of production iPhone 5S units.

There's no way of determining authenticity of the photos because the iPhone 5S is widely expected to re-use the two-tone design of the current-generation iPhone 5.

The Chinese source also spelled out technical specifications that match up with past rumors.

Go past the fold for the full breakdown...