App Store

Apple Patent Indicates Plans For A Social Network iPhone App, With A Focus On Shopping

Alex Heath ∙ January 3, 2011

More and more shopping is happening online these days, but plenty of people still prefer brick and mortar stores to buy their jeggings in. On December 30th, 2010, Apple's latest patent was published. This patent hints at a native social networking app that Apple may implement in a future version of iOS. Such an app would merge social networking into a shopping experience.

This Ping-like, social-shopping network would allow users to have an enhanced shopping experience with participating merchants. Apple's patent is titled "Social Networking in Shopping Environments."

How Much Have You Spent On iPhone Apps?

Alex Heath ∙ Updated January 28, 2019

There are plenty of industry reports and infographics that give us an idea about the state of Apple's App Store. Apps are being sold at an average price of less than $2.50 each, and there is speculation that app sales could be a $34 billion dollar industry by 2014. In 2010, iOS users spent an average of only $4 each month on apps.

I have a feeling that the user statistic of $4 a month is a product of the way that averaging statistics bend numbers. There is still a huge divide between what most would call "power users," and the "average users" of technologies like the smartphone. (If you read iDB, most likely you're a power user.)

There are people that are really into buying and trying different apps, and those people purchase a lot of apps. Then there is the vast sea of average, mom-and-dad iOS users who may download a free app every now and then, but don't make money purchases in the App Store too often. The good news is, you can easily see how much you're spent in the App Store with a nifty utility for Mac OS X...

The 10 Best App Store Apps of 2010

Alex Heath ∙ Updated February 21, 2018

The App Store has never been a very quiet place. 2010 was no exception; thousands upon thousands of new apps were submitted to the App Store. Most of them aren't worth mentioning, but there have been some exceptional apps that have risen to the forefront of what the App Store has had to offer throughout the year 2010.

We've covered a lot of App Store apps this year on iDB, with the goal of keeping our readers in the know.

Now, we’d like to take some time to reflect on our favorite App Store apps of 2010. Being included on this list doesn’t necessarily mean the app was released in 2010, it just means that it was amongst our most utilized of this year. Drumroll, please…

There Were Huge Spikes in App Store Downloads Over the Holidays

Alex Heath ∙ Updated February 16, 2018

I'm sure it comes as no surprise that there were plenty of iOS devices under the tree this Christmas season. Most of you either gave, or saw a loved one receive a new iPod Touch, iPad or iPhone. Two very prominent applications in the App Store, Facebook and Tap Tap Revenge, have shared their download numbers from the holidays. The results are very impressive.

Both Facebook and Tap Tap Revenge 4 have sat comfortably near the top of the App Store charts for quite some time, and TTR4 has been the number one app for several days. Both of the apps had huge download spikes this past weekend, giving us a good idea of how many iOS devices were opened for Christmas...

Apple Sued Amidst Privacy Concerns Regarding App Tracking

Jeff Benjamin ∙ Updated January 24, 2016

A little over a week ago, we reported on a Wall Street Journal article that revealed an eye-opening investigation into how apps share your personal data; without your consent.

Needless to say it was bit shocking to us, our readers, and apparently a lot of other people concerned over their personal privacy, or lack thereof.

Now the fallout from the privacy scandal is beginning to rear its head, and it ain't pretty...

How to Give An iPhone App This Holiday Season

Alex Heath ∙ Updated February 6, 2016

It's that time of year. Christmas music, staff parties, plenty of egg nog, and gifts. As fellow iPhone users, what better gift is there to give each other than what we crave: more apps.

We could all probably name at least a few apps that we would like to have, but haven't bought yet. How nice would it be to wake up on Christmas day and have that new app you've been wanting?

Luckily, Apple allows you to "gift" an app to a friend. If you didn't know about gifting apps, I'm going to walk you through how to gift an app, along with some gift-giving tips...

Apple Is Denying In-App Donations To Developers

Alex Heath ∙ Updated October 10, 2018

Apple has never been known as an easy company to get along with. While it has always made some of the greatest products on the market, it is also notorious for being overly censored and stubborn with its decisions.

We recently reported that an unofficial WikiLeaks app had been pulled from the App Store. It was thought that Apple could have justified the pull based on their charitable donation policy. As it turns out, that policy has been plaguing app developers for some time, and they're starting to get frustrated.

The Huffington Post recently published an article on Apple's denial of in-app donations for charity. Many developers run non-profit, or support non-profit, organizations and would like to allow their app's users to make philanthropic donations in the same way that other in-app purchases function. For some reason, Apple has been denying these requests from developers, and it's making Apple look like the bad guy...

Browse Mobile Safari Using the iPhone 4’s Gyroscope

Jeff Benjamin ∙ Updated November 12, 2018

The iPhone 4's gyroscope is one of the more underused features of Apple's flagship iOS device, so it's nice to see developers like Occipital -- creator of the iPhone app 360 Panorama -- put the technology to good use.

During the development of 360 Panorama, the crew uncovered the ability to control Mobile Safari using nothing more than the iPhone's gyroscope. Want to give it a test spin? Check out the link inside...

Camera+ is Back in The App Store

Alex Heath ∙ Updated February 16, 2018

The Camera+ fiasco has been an interesting one to follow. The popular photography app was a sensation when it was first released in the App Store. Then, it was pulled. Just like that. The app was updated with a backdoor to allow a volume button camera shutter, which apparently Apple didn't like.

At the time of it being pulled, Camera+ was considered the crème de la crème of photography apps. Most felt as though Apple should have lightened up on Camera+ by not pulling the app for simply adding a cool and innovative feature. The problem was that Camera+ violated Apple's guidelines on how an app can interface with the iPhone's controls.

We recently reported that Camera+ had announced that its return to the App Store would be very soon. After many months of silence, Camera+ is back and better than ever...

Ninja Steve: Steve Jobs Satire At Its Finest

Alex Heath ∙ Updated January 27, 2019

Apparently, Steve Jobs really is a ninja. "Ninja Steve" isn't your typical iPhone game. In it, you are the man himself - Steve Jobs.

You aren't the calm, keynote-giving Jobs that we all know and love. You are Ninja Steve. As Ninja Steve, you must fight through waves of green robots (that bear a striking resemblance to the Google Android bot) by throwing your trusty shurikens.

I have no clue how this app got approved for the App Store, but I would think it definitely wins the "Most Assured App to Piss Steve Jobs Off" award...

WikiLeaks App Has Been Pulled From the App Store

Alex Heath ∙ December 21, 2010

It seems that we spoke too soon. A couple days ago, we reported that there was an unofficial WikiLeaks app in the App Store. The app allowed you to view Twitter updates and leaked documents from WikiLeaks.

Igor Barinov, the app's developer, recently tweeted that Apple had his app "removed from sale." At the time of the app being pulled, downloads of the app had nearly approached 4,500 with almost $6,000 in profit.

There is no clear reason why Apple would have pulled such an app, but it's not a shocker that a sensitive app about WikiLeaks was pulled...

How An iPhone App Can See Your Location Without Asking

Alex Heath ∙ Updated February 16, 2018

Lately, there have been some serious privacy concerns about how apps are tracking user's location and personal information. The Wall Street Journal performed a survey of multiple, various applications on both Android and iOS and discovered that many apps are sending information (like the device's location) without explicit permission from the user.

In particular, an app called "Pumpkin Maker" traced the general location of a device without requesting any type of permission from its user. The Journal contacted the app's develepor and gained some valuable knowledge on how, and why, the stealthy tracking of app users is taking place...