Apple

Swatch changes tune, takes on Apple Watch with own smartwatch featuring mobile payments

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated October 14, 2018

Now that Apple CEO Tim Cook has at last confirmed that the Apple Watch goes on sale in April, traditional watch makers and companies like Pebble are starting to show their cards.

Pebble, for instance, recently confirmed plans for new wearable products in 2015. So did Tag Heuer, having confirmed building a smartwatch of its own.

And now Bloomberg is reporting that Swatch will start selling a smartwatch within two to three months. It'll integrate with Windows and Android, but not with iOS, support mobile payments and communicate via the Internet “without having to be charged.”

Paper by FiftyThree makes all tools free in iPad app

Christian Zibreg ∙ February 5, 2015

App and accessory maker FiftyThree on Thursday announced a big change in their business model. All the creative tools in Paper for iPad that used to be locked behind In-App Purchases are now available at no cost, including Sketch, Outline, Write, Color and Mixer.

These essential tools used to cost four bucks when purchased together, or $0.99 each when bought individually.

“By making Paper accessible to all, we hope to see more great ideas come to life – on Mix and everywhere,” developers said.

WhatsApp gains improved image chooser, new Call button and Dynamic Type support

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated May 31, 2023

WhatsApp for iPhone got updated Thursday with three noteworthy improvements. For starters, it now honors your preferred font size set in Settings > General > Accessibility > Larger Text so all text labels throughout the app get rendered in your chosen typeface size.

There's also a new call button in chats. Lastly, a built-in image chooser has been redesigned so you can now quickly add recent images from your Camera Roll right after tapping on the camera icon in chats.

More word Samsung will manufacture Apple’s next-gen A9 processor

Jake Smith ∙ Updated May 16, 2016

Apple is moving away from TSMC and back to Samsung to manufacture the chip that is the power house behind the iPhone, reports Recode.

The report notes that Apple had "hoped" to rely more heavily on TSMC for the next-generation A9 processor - probably, you know, because Samsung is a huge rival - but things didn't work out that way because of TSMC's limits in manufacturing.

Samsung will be building the A9 chip using the 14nm process, which allows the chip to run cooler and draw less power from the iPhone's battery. TSMC is unable to manufacture anything smaller than the 20nm process that is currently used in the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus.

Apple reportedly in talks with programmers over new web TV service

Cody Lee ∙ Updated May 17, 2018

Apple is in talks with TV programmers in search of a deal that would allow it to launch a new web-based TV service, reports Recode. Citing sources familiar with the project, the site says the Cupertino firm wants to put together standalone channel packages and offer them directly to customers—wrapped within its own interface and user experience.

Recode is hearing the talks are still in the very early stages, so things like pricing and launch dates aren't anywhere close to being settled, but Apple has shown a demo of the service to programmers. It's said to look similar to Dish Network's just-launched Sling service, which offers select channels instead of a broad lineup, and bypasses cable providers.

Under Armour acquires MyFitnessPal, Endomondo apps for a combined $560 million

Jake Smith ∙ Updated May 17, 2018

Sports apparel company Under Armour announced on Wednesday that it's adding two mobile fitness apps to its arsenal: MyFitnessPal for $475 million and Endomondo for $85 million. The two apps could be what the company needs to continue to go after the Nike+ app that's relatively popular on the App Store.

YouTube experimenting with multi-angle video feature, try it out yourself

Christian Zibreg ∙ February 4, 2015

YouTube has begun experimenting with a cool new feature that lets you switch between different camera angles while the video is playing, TechCrunch reported Wednesday.

It couldn't be easier: a multi-angle video presents you with a series of thumbnails, each representing a dedicated video stream from a particular angle. Clicking on any thumbnail switches you to that camera instantly, during playback.

Tweetbot 2 for Yosemite coming soon, will be free update

Jake Smith ∙ Updated May 17, 2018

Tapbots, the development firm behind popular Twitter application Tweetbot, announced on Wednesday the app will soon see an update for OS X Yosemite.

Along with a teaser image for the update, which shows a more transparent user interface to better gel with Yosemite, Tapbots said the update would be available to existing customers for free.

Microsoft snaps up cross-platform calendar app Sunrise

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated February 5, 2018

Microsoft has just acquired the popular calendar app Sunrise. TechCrunch, which first learned of the deal, has pegged the value of the transaction at a cool $100 million.

Sunrise has an awesome iPhone and iPad app in the App Store. It's also available for the Mac, across other mobile platforms and in the form of a responsive, lightweight application which runs smoothly in a web browser.

Another Steve Jobs film is in the works

Christian Zibreg ∙ February 4, 2015

As first noted by Variety, a new Steve Jobs film will be premiering soon. No, not Universal's ill-fated biopic that started filming last week, based on Walter Isaacson’s biography and starring Michael Fassbender as Apple's mercurial co-founder.

Titled “Steve Jobs: The Man in the Machine,” the new film is basically a 120-minute nonfictional documentary that explores the impact of Steve Jobs' work on the society and our embrace of computers and technology.

Latest Samsung Galaxy S6 leak looks close to iPhone 6

Jake Smith ∙ Updated May 17, 2018

The latest leak for Samsung's upcoming Galaxy S6 point to the flagship smartphone looking very close to the iPhone 6 that was released by Apple last fall. Nowhereelse.fr got its hands on alleged photos of the handset's parts, showing a metal cassis with rounded sides.

More suspect, the photos also show feature placement of the Galaxy S6 is the same on the iPhone 6 for the headphone jack, speaker, cable connector, and SIM card. There's also similar antenna breaks, however they're found on the bottom and top of the device instead of the left and right sides.

Apple could hold a special event late February [updated]

Sébastien Page ∙ Updated August 29, 2016

Apple could be holding a special event at the end of February, reports French Apple blog iGen. According to sources, Tuesday, February 24th could be the specific date Apple has chosen for this event, which would likely focus on an official Apple Watch launch, and possibly the the long-rumored 12-inch MacBook Air.