Apps

Gboard gains voice typing, Google Doodles, new languages & iOS 10 emoji in latest update

Christian Zibreg ∙ February 23, 2017

Gboard, Google's iPhone keyboard that comes with Google Search, glide typing, GIFs, emojis and other advanced features built in, received a notable refresh on App Store. Bumped to version 1.3, Gboard includes support for fifteen new languages and brings a useful dictation feature that Google is calling Voice Typing. Additionally, you can now see a day’s Google Doodle right from the keyboard and enjoy Apple's latest iOS 10 emoji.

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17 months later, Gmail gains a single 3D Touch shortcut

Christian Zibreg ∙ February 22, 2017

Google today refreshed its mobile Gmail app for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch on App Store, adding very limited 3D Touch support nearly a year and a half after Apple first brought pressure sensing to iPhone's display with the September 2015 release of iPhone 6s.

Owners of the iPhone 6s/7 series can now press Gmail's icon to quickly compose a message, but that's about it. Thank you, Google, but seriously?

In my view, Google doesn't really have a clue how to properly build 3D Touch gestures into Gmail in a manner that would save users time and boost their productivity.

The app still lacks Peek and Pop gestures., but we'll get those next year, right?

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You can now share multiple photos and videos in one Instagram post

Christian Zibreg ∙ February 22, 2017

Photo-sharing service Instagram announced today that users are now able to share up to ten photos and videos in a single post and swipe through to see them all. Such multi-item posts are presented inline in your feed in a carousel format that displays only the first item of the post.

The first photo or video shows a new icon, denoting there’s more to see. Simply swipe to reveal additional media.

You can adjust the order in which your photos and videos appear, edit them one by one or apply a filter to everything at once. Instagram 10.9 for iOS is required for this functionality.

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Report: U.S. iPhone users spent an average of $40 on apps last year

Cody Lee ∙ February 21, 2017

iPhone owners in the United States spent an average of $40 on apps last year, reports analytics firm Sensor Tower. That number includes both premium and in-app purchases, and it represents a $5 increase from 2015.

Unsurprisingly, most of that money is going to games. Sensor Tower says more than 80% of US App Store revenue in 2016 came from games, and it shows on the device level—users spent an average of $27 on games.

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The best iMessage games

Steffen Reich ∙ Updated October 13, 2023

When Apple took the wraps off the iMessage App Store last year, it quickly became evident that the messaging service would become the next playground for some weird and wonderful applications. Since then, developers have largely graced us with conventional stickers and app extensions, despite another under-represented category increasingly showing promise: iMessage games.

Almost half a year after opening the gate, it seems a good time to take stock of the games playable through Apple's messenger and hand-pick the ones not only most captivating but also smartest at circumnavigating the limitations of iMessage. If you fancy the thought of challenging a friend to a duel on iMessage but don't want to waste anyone's time trialling potential duds, read on to find out about the current top performers on the iMessage App Store.

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See how Alexa compares to Siri with Reverb

Christian Zibreg ∙ February 20, 2017

If you missed our post nearly a year ago about a web app at Echoism.io that lets you try out Alexa in a web browser, you're going to like a new app, called Reverb, that brings Amazon's personal assistant to your Mac desktop, as well as iPhone and iPad.

The brain child of developers at digital consultancy agency Rain, Reverb is available at no charge from App Store and Mac App Store or in your favorite web browser.

Reverb takes advantage of the fact that Amazon’s Alexa Voice Service is now available as a web service to access through a web browser and other thin clients, with the recent API 2.0 update having enabled a richer set of features.

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New in iOS 10.3: name and shame list for outdated 32-bit apps

Christian Zibreg ∙ February 20, 2017

Apple today seeded a third beta of iOS 10.3 to members of the Apple Developer Program. It's nothing to write home about in terms of new stuff, with the notable exception of a curious new section suggesting that iOS 11 is likely going to be 64-bit only. The first beta of iOS 10.3 introduced a reworded prompt when launching 32-bit apps.

In iOS 10.3 beta 3, there's now a dedicated section within the Settings app where any outdated apps installed on the user's device are named and shamed.

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Google’s dedicated search app gains filters for local results, Gboard & enhanced AMP support

Christian Zibreg ∙ February 17, 2017

Google's dedicated search app was updated this morning on App Store with a trio of nice-to-haves. For starters, you can now easily filter your local search results for museums, coffee shops, restaurants and other places of interest. With an expanded support for Google's Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP), more webpages will now load instantly within the app. AMP-optimized webpages are denoted on search results with a lightning bolt icon. Lastly, you can now use Google's gesture-driven Gboard keyboard in the mobile search app.

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You’ll soon be able to apply for a job in Facebook’s mobile app and on the web

Christian Zibreg ∙ February 16, 2017

Facebook on Thursday announced it's rolling out a new Jobs section on the mobile app and via the web interface at facebook.com/jobs. This new feature will allow users to find and apply for hourly-paid job openings advertised on the service by small businesses in the United States and Canada.

Designed for lower-skilled workers and people who aren’t actively looking for a job, the new section is currently in limited testing in the US. Job posts will be accessible through News Feed via a dedicated Jobs tab and promoted on the business' Facebook Page.

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Remember AppGratis? It shut down today.

Christian Zibreg ∙ February 15, 2017

After seven years and more than fifty million installs globally, the app discovery service AppGratis announced it's shutting down today. Founded in 2010 by French engineer Simon Dawlat, AppGratis curators found and recommended apps that were featured to download for free or at a significantly reduced price.

As some of you will recall, Apple in a controversial move nuked the app from orbit back in April 2013 over a violation of App Store rules regarding third-party app promotion and marketing. After it was dumped from App Store, AppGratis launched an Android version of the app.

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