Apple

iOS 9 brings productivity improvements to QuickType typing on iPads

Apple has said that people using iOS 9 on their iPads will be more productive thanks to an improved QuickType virtual keyboard. The suggestion bar introduced in iOS 8 now has all-new handy shortcuts to format your content, move between apps quickly, position the cursor and even multitask like a pro with an OS X-style task switcher translucent UI with active app icons.

Apple Maps gaining public transit directions

It's transit time! Apple just announced at its Worldwide Developers Conference in San Francisco's Moscone West that its mapping and navigation service will soon provide transit lines, bus stations, ferry lines and more.

Available across Mac, iPhone, iPad and iPod devices, the improved Apple Maps app will sport departure times, multi-modal routing with step-by-step directions, estimated times for walking directions and much more.

Apple Pay coming to UK in July, loyalty and rewards program in tow

Apple Pay, Apple's wireless payment system, will be coming to the United Kingdom next mont with 250,000 UK merchant locations. Commuters using London transportation system will be able to use Apple Pay, too.

Furthermore, the system will be available to Discover's 50 million card members this fall, said Apple during the WWDC keynote today.

Trader Joe's, J.C. Penneys and many other retailers will be joining Apple Pay soon. Small businesses will be supported on Apple Pay through Square via a brand new reader compatible with Apple Pay that will be available in Apple Stores soon.

OS X El Capitan available to developers today, public beta in July, rolling out to everyone this fall

Apple has taken the stage this morning inside San Francisco's Moscone West to deliver the latest advancements to its three crucial platforms: iOS, OS X and watchOS.

According to Apple, registered Mac developers will have their chance to download the first beta of OS X 10.11 El Capitan later today, which just got officially announced, after the event has wrapped up (currently, Apple's portal for developers is down).

Apple announces OS X El Capitan

Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference has kicked off in San Francisco this morning with a keynote talk at 10am PST. Surprisingly, Apple has skipped the usual round of business updates and went right for the big news.

Following months of speculation and rumor mongering, the California firm has formally unveiled the next major version of the Mac operating system. It's called OS X 10.11 El Capitan.

Yup, you read that right.

Philips to add HomeKit support to existing and new Hue lights this fall

Philips Hue, a personal wireless lighting system that we reviewed thoroughly, will get updated with support for Apple's home automation platform called HomeKit, the company confirmed Monday in a post on Facebook.

Upcoming Hue lights released this September and onwards will have built-in HomeKit support. Existing Hue lights will be upgraded with HomeKit compatibility through a free software update that will unlock new features for your existing Hue hardware, said the firm.

Apple beefing up iCloud infrastructure ahead of rumored TV push and streaming-music launch

As it gears up to launch its subscription music-streaming service today and a rumored television service later in the year, Apple's reportedly been building out a high-speed network to ensure glitch-free delivery of content, Bloomberg reported Monday. But the firm isn't just building a more efficient iCloud.

In a typical Apple fashion, it's been pouring billions of dollars into upgrading how it builds data centers in order to speed up content delivery, and optimize services such as iCloud, iTunes and Siri.

Additionally, the initiative should help with iCloud outages that have become the norm lately as web services have traditionally been Apple's weak spot.

Apple Music has an ambitious goal to sign up 100 million subscribers, Beats Music to close down

Apple is aiming for a cool hundred million subscribers for its forthcoming streaming-music service, as reported Monday by both The New York Times and The Associated Press, potentially giving Apple Music an annualized revenue in the ballpark of $12 billion.

How does this figure compare to Spotify, the world's top streaming-music service hailing from Sweden? Well, Spotify has sixty million active listeners but only fifteen million paid subscribers worldwide, 4.7 million of which were in the U.S. as of last December.

In fact, Apple Music looks to dwarf all streaming-music services combined.

How to watch WWDC keynote live on Mac, iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, Windows, Linux and Android

As you know, Apple's annual Worldwide Developers Conference kicks off tomorrow with a State of the Union-like keynote address. WWDC is the most important event for the Apple community as it gives a sneak peak at how the firm plans to woo app developers in the year.

The 26th summer event runs from June 8 through June 12 at San Francisco’s Moscone West, where CEO Tim Cook will share the stage Monday morning along with other company executives to deliver latest advances concerning iOS, OS X and Watch OS platforms.

iDownloadBlog, the biggest name in jailbreaking, doesn't get invited to Apple events. Not to worry: we'll be providing a remote live coverage of the two-hour long presentation and following up with related tidbits throughout the day so you don't miss a thing.

Apple will be providing a live stream through the Apple Events webpage on its website, using the new familiar weblog-like layout.

Although the official live stream is limited to Mac, iPhone, iPod touch, iPad and Apple TV devices, you can enjoy it on other platforms, too. Without further ado, here's a quick tutorial on what you'll need to watch the keynote live on both Apple devices and non-Apple platforms like Windows, Linux and Android.

New ‘Apple Music’ streaming service to feature three-month free trial

Apple's upcoming streaming music service will offer a lengthy free trial period to new users, according to the Financial Times. Citing sources familiar with the company's plans, the outlet says that 'Apple Music' will be free for the first 3 months.

Apple hopes the extended trial period will give users plenty of time to immerse themselves in the service, making it harder to cancel. For comparison, Spotify currently offers a 30-day free trial, and Rdio's Unlimited trial period lasts just 2 days.