App Store Apps

Niantic hosts another double XP event for Pokémon GO during Thanksgiving week

Pokémon GO players had a chance to participate in the Halloween event last month, in which ghost Pokémon spawns were increased, distances to hatch eggs were decreased, and double candies was rewarded for the entire week the event ran for.

Now, Niantic has announced a second event coming to the game in celebration of the Thanksgiving holiday this week, but this time the rewards are a little different.

Listen, Later, Firefox Focus, and other apps to check out this weekend

Looking for ways to pass the time before next week's holiday mayhem? You've come to the right place. We've put together a great list of apps for you to check out this weekend including a service for anonymous communication, a quick and easy reminders app, and a new private web browser. And as always, we've also picked out some awesome games for you to try.

Twitter for iPhone and iPad gains support for rich notifications on iOS 10

Twitter for iPhone and iPad, a free download from the App Store, now supports rich notifications on iOS 10 that come complete with embedded images and the usual options for interacting with tweets without having to open the app.

Pressing a rich Twitter notification on the Lock screen or in the Notification Center with 3D Touch pulls up an expanded view of the tweet with an enlarged image thumbnail, along with the usual options such as Like and Retweet.

Google revamps Play Newsstand, adds For You recommendations, rich media, web app & more

Google earlier this week announced a major overhaul of the its magazine and news reader, Play Newsstand. The new version of the iPhone and iPad app sports a new app icon and provides a refreshed user interface alongside a few new “smart” features.

These include a personalized news briefing, a “For You” stream of personalized stories, support for rich media in articles, tab-based navigation and other perks.

Apple’s free app of the week: Tayasui Sketches Pro

Apple on Thursday updated its App of the Week promotion with the app Tayasui Sketches Pro. This means that for the next 7 days, you’ll be able to download the popular drawing app for free—a significant savings of $5.

Sketches is described as the most realistic, versatile and user-friendly sketching app designed for mobile. This artist's toolbox helps users create dazzling sketches, cheerful paintings and smashing illustrations on the go.

Workflow updated with redesigned UI, search, profiles, and more

Popular iOS automation app Workflow received an update on Thursday that introduced a redesign across the app with a number of improvements. A redesigned onboarding system greets new users with a friendly introduction to the app, while the Gallery has received a number of additions for helping both Workflow newbies and veterans discover new flows.

Apple removed nearly 50,000 apps from App Store in October

The Great App Store Purge, announced in September, has resulted in the removal of nearly 47,300 outdated, abandoned or non-functioning iPhone, iPad and iPod touch apps from the App Store in October.

That's a 238 percent increase versus the previous month and about 3.4 times more than the average month for the App Store prior to the Great Purge, according to data from research firm Sensor Tower shared by TechCrunch.

Super Mario Run is coming to iPhone and iPad on December 15

Apple dropped quite a bombshell at its iPhone 7 event two months ago when it announced Super Mario would be coming to the iPhone in the form of a brand new endless platformer specifically designed for one-handed gaming, called Super Mario Run.

Nintendo later promised launch in time for holidays and today the Japanese gaming giant officially confirmed the game's price point and release date.

Super Mario Run is scheduled to hit the App Store on December 15 as a free download for the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch with an optional $9.99 upgrade to give you unrestricted access to the game's three modes.

WhatsApp rolls out end-to-end encrypted video calling

Facebook-owned WhatsApp announced yesterday that it had begun rolling out video calling to the more than one billion users it claims across iOS, Android and Windows Phone platforms around the world.

According to TechCrunch, video calls on WhatsApp are end-to-end encrypted just like with FaceTime in order to prevent rogue parties from eavesdropping on your communications.

WhatsApp previously rolled out end-to-end encryption for chats. “We obviously try to be in tune with what our users want,” WhatsApp co-founder Jan Koum told Reuters. “We're obsessed with making sure that voice and video work well even on low-end phones.”

For those who serve: Veterans Day specials crop up on App Store & Apple Music

Today is Veterans Day, a public holiday observed annually on November 11 that honors men and women who served in the U.S. Armed Forces. In honor of 2016 Veterans Day, Tim Cook tweeted out a photo of some of the veterans who work at Apple.

The App Store's “For Those Who Serve” section provided resources on “military news, essential health and wellness info and valuable tools for everyday life” and Apple Music promoted playlists curated by former service members. 

Instagram confirms live video streaming is coming to its mobile app

According to Instagram co-founder and CEO Kevin Systrom in the Financial Times newspaper this morning, the popular photo-sharing service will be gaining the ability to stream live video. “Live is really exciting for us,” Systrom said without detailing when it'll launch in the mobile app. Russian news outlet Tjournal.ru was first to report that Instagram appears to have been testing the upcoming feature with a subset of its Russian users.