Apple

Apple’s Lucky Bags promotion goes live in Japan

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 2, 2014

As announced a week ago, Apple today kicked off its Lucky Bags promotion in Japan. The 36,000 yen (approximately $345 USD) mystery bags filled with randomly picked Apple products and third-party accessories are being offered today only to customers in select Apple retail stores across the 128 million people country.

Also known as Fukubukuro, or Mystery Bags, Japan’s annual New Year’s Day tradition entices shopper with grab bags containing unknown contents. Although buyers can't tell what they’re actually getting until they look inside, these mystery bags contain a selection of products worth more than the value of the Lucky Bag.

Here's what fans in Japan are finding in their Lucky Bags from Apple...

Day 8 of Apple’s 12 Days of Gifts: ‘Diary of a Wimpy Kid’ iBook

Cody Lee ∙ Updated March 20, 2018

We are now on day 8 of the big 12 Days of Gifts event, meaning Apple has removed Rayman Jungle Run and has posted a new free item for download. Today’s gift is the iBook: Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney.

For those unfamiliar with Diary of a Wimpy Kid, it started out as a web comic in the early 2000's and has since branched out into a wildly popular franchise with books, movies and more. This is book #1 in the series...

Export your data: Google-owned Bump and Flock are shutting down effective January 31

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated November 19, 2018

Back in September 2013, Google announced it was buying the popular mobile file-sharing apps Bump and Flock for an undisclosed sum. It was a typical acqui-hire (a talent-focused acquisition) so we were expecting the Internet giant would phase out these apps from the App Store and fold their functionality into Android.

Sure enough, the Bump team last night issued a notice informing users that the service will shut down effective January 31, 2014.

Customers are given a chance to export all their data ahead of the shutdown, including photos, video, contacts from both Bump and Flock and more...

Hackers leak 4.6M Snapchat usernames and phone numbers, see if you’ve been affected

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 26, 2016

Bad news, Snapchat fans: a group of anonymous hackers have successfully exploited a nasty security hole in the popular IM application to hijack a whopping 4.6 million usernames and phone numbers, publishing this private data on a website called SnapchatDB.info.

The circa 40MB SQL database dump (also available as a CSV file) includes phone numbers and usernames, along with the affected users' geographical region information.

Why did they do it? The leaked private information “is being shared with the public to raise awareness” of a Snapchat API exploit they'd used for the hack.

Snapchat has been aware of the security loophole in its application since August, but did literally nothing to patch it. Is there a way to see if you've been affected? Yes, there is. Read on for the full reveal...

Apple denies knowledge of NSA’s iPhone program

Cody Lee ∙ December 31, 2013

Yesterday, a trove of secret documents was released regarding the NSA and its ongoing spying on citizens both abroad and here in the US. One of the programs mentioned, called DROPOUTJEEP, is particularly scary as it can give the Agency complete control of any iPhone.

These are some pretty serious allegations made against the NSA and maybe more-so Apple, who either has several unknown security holes in its mobile OS or is consciously giving the NSA access. Well the company just responded to these claims, and it appears to be the former...

Apple’s App Store data shows iOS 7 adoption is now at 78%

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 17, 2018

Apple has updated its App Store support page for developers this week to reflect new data regarding iOS 7 adoption. According to the company's usage data, the new operating system is running on 78% of iOS devices accessing the App Store.

That's a nice little jump up from earlier this month, when Apple noted that iOS 7 adoption had hit 74%. The move can be attributed to the success of the iPhone and iPad over the holiday season and [possibly] the just-released iOS 7 jailbreak...

Day 6 of Apple’s 12 Days of Gifts: ‘New Year’s Eve Mix’ by Avicii

Cody Lee ∙ Updated March 20, 2018

We are now on day 6 of the big 12 Days of Gifts event, meaning the company has removed the Hugo movie and has posted a new free item for download. Today’s gift is the song 'New Year's Eve Mix' by popular Swedish producer Avicii.

It's been a huge year for Avicii, who has been topping charts around the globe with his latest album True. And New Year's Eve Mix is a 9-minute track that features a mashup of some of his hit songs from that album such as 'Hey Brother.'

NYT Magazine design director joining Apple’s marketing team

Cody Lee ∙ Updated May 16, 2018

Speaking with media outlet Mediabistro, longtime New York Times Magazine design director Arem Duplessis revealed that he is leaving the publication to take a position at Apple. He'll be joining the company's internal marketing team, though his specific role is unknown.

This is a significant hire for Apple, as Duplessis is a highly-regarded designer who is responsible for some of the most beautiful covers of the NYT Magazine in the last decade. And his department has won the ADC's 'Design Team of The Year' award the past 3 years in a row...

Archos previews array of iOS-compatible wearable gadgets and connected home gizmos

Christian Zibreg ∙ December 30, 2013

Ahead of the looming 2014 Consumer Electronics Show, the French consumer electronics company Archos is previewing an upcoming line of devices and accessories, including 'Connected Self' smartwatches and health trackers and various 'Connected Home' appliances, all designed to be compatible with Apple's iOS and Google's Android mobile operating systems.

There will also be a Connected Self mobile application to “serve as the backbone application for all connected self devices” allowing folks to track their activity, check their health-related data, turn on the lights, automatically capture video when motion sensors are triggered and lots more. The full breakdown is right past the jump...

Google updates Picasa, adds Google+ Auto Backup standalone Mac tool

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 26, 2016

Google has been offering its standalone Picasa Mac app for years and while it may lack ease of use and elegance of Apple's own iPhoto and Aperture software, by no means is it a slouch.

Matter of fact, I've been using the program for years as my primary point of entry for sorting, geotagging and organizing images in folders prior to importing them to Aperture for advanced touch ups and album management.

But aside from maintenance updates, Picasa for Mac spent much of 2013 unchanged in terms of features, so much so that I began to suspect that Google could perhaps discontinue it in order to make room for a standalone Google+ Photos app for the Mac.

Instead, yesterday's update has proven there's still life left in Picasa. In addition to a few new features and complementary fixes, the improved Picasa also brings out a brand new standalone tool allowing you to synchronize a batch of photos and videos residing on your Mac with Google+ Photos...

Apple and Samsung again discussing patent dispute settlement

Cody Lee ∙ December 30, 2013

Apple and Samsung are said to again be conferring over a possible settlement to their years-long patent dispute. According to a new report, the two companies are in "working level discussions" regarding a potential deal.

There are still major obstacles though, and the two firms have a lot of work to do in terms of narrowing their differences over royalty fees and patent access. Apple, for example, wants Samsung to pay up to $30 per device...

Purported prototype of original iPhone sells for $1500 on eBay

Cody Lee ∙ December 30, 2013

An alleged iPhone prototype sold on eBay this morning for a staggering $1500. The handset appears to be in excellent condition, and the screenshots provided by the owner show the device running what looks like Apple's internal diagnostic software.

The seller specifically calls it an 'original iPhone engineering prototype,' with signal strength measurements etched on the rear casing. And he says he's selling it because his wife told him he had "too much stuff" and he needed to reduce his collection...