Apps

Siri for Apple Watch is about to get much more useful

In addition to highlighting a new Theater Mode in watchOS 3.2, Apple yesterday announced that the upcoming software update will also enable support for Siri in third-party Apple Watch apps. As you probably know by now, the SiriKit framework made its debut in iOS 10.

It's an officially sanctioned way for developers to enrich their apps for messaging, payments, ride-booking, workouts, calling and searching photos with Siri interactions.

With SiriKit support in watchOS 3.2, developers can add spoken commands to Apple Watch apps to let users ask the personal assistant on their wrist to do things like book a ride, send a message, make a payment or accomplish other supported tasks.

Apple will soon allow developers to respond publicly to App Store reviews

Following yesterday's release of iOS 10.3 and macOS Sierra 10.12.4 betas, Apple announced new features allowing iPhone, iPad and Mac developers to respond publicly to reviews on App Store and Mac App Store while letting customers provide ratings and reviews without leaving their app.

Speaking to The Loop's Jim Dalrymple and Daring Fireball's John Gruber, the Cupertino company provided some noteworthy highlights outlining the upcoming App Store review policy changes.

Setapp launches publicly: get unlimited access to 60+ paid Mac apps for a flat monthly fee

Developer MacPaw's new Netflix-like subscription service for prime Mac apps has been in invite-only beta since December 2016. Beginning today, Setapp is available to everyone in exchange for a flat monthly fee of $9.99. An alternative to Apple’s Mac App Store, Setapp gives you unlimited access to 61 Mac apps, with more to be added as additional developers join the service. These are fully functional apps that update automatically and contain no In-App Purchases, paid upgrades or ads.

WhatsApp gains offline message sending, overhauled storage usage screen & more

Facebook-owned WhatsApp was refreshed on App Store this morning with a few new features. Bumped to version 2.17.1, the iPhone application now lets you queue up messages while offline to be delivered when the device regains an Internet connection.

WhatsApp's storage management screen has been redesigned and now allows you to selectively delete specific media file types on a per-chat basis.

As promised, Snapchat has gained universal search and updated look

As promised recently, Snapchat's mobile application was refreshed on App Store this morning with an updated look and a brand new universal search feature. Snapchat 10.0 for iOS, a free download from App Store, puts a universal search bar at the top of the interface. Other aspects of Snapchat's experience have been refined as well. The refreshed look was available to Android users for some time now as the company said it would reach iPhone users soon, and now it's made good on that promise.

AntiTracker lets you know every time someone tracks you with Find My Friends [jailbreak]

Find My Friends is an app made by Apple that lets you track the location of your friends and family so you can find out their whereabouts at any time of the day, but it can also be a real privacy concern.

While some people enable this feature voluntarily so that their family members can keep tabs on them or so that friends can meet up with one another, others have the feature enabled on them behind their backs so their significant others can stalk them.

If you’re paranoid about whether or not you’re being tracked, then you need a new free jailbreak tweak called AntiTracker.

Socratic, Tunity, YEAY, and other apps to check out this weekend

It's the weekend again, and you know what that means! It's time for another edition of our Apps of the Week roundup. This week's episode features some great apps including one that helps you with your homework and one that allows you to stream audio to your iPhone from a nearby muted television. And as always, we've selected two awesome new games for you to check out.

Hulu for iOS gains user profiles for multiple-user accounts, offline viewing in the works

Hulu for iOS was updated on App Store with personalized profiles for multiple-user accounts following the introduction of single-user profiles in December 2016.

Personalized profiles for multiple users who share a single Hulu account are now available on the web at Hulu.com and in the mobile Hulu app for iOS and other platforms, TechCrunch reported yesterday.

The oft-requested offline viewing feature will arrive “in a few months” as the company is working hard on the technology as well as on securing content rights, Hulu CEO Mike Hopkins told Adweek.

Nintendo announces new ‘Fire Emblem’ game coming to iOS February 2

Nintendo on Wednesday announced that its next game released for mobile will be a new entry from the popular Fire Emblem franchise. It's called Fire Emblem Heroes, and it is slated to launch on iOS and Android on February 2.

Like other FE titles, Heroes is a tactical roleplaying game with upgradeable characters from the series. In this all-new storyline, players are tasked with summoning warriors to fight in epic battles between two warring kingdoms.

Apple updates GarageBand and Logic Pro X with pro-level features, including Touch Bar support

Apple today updated its GarageBand and Logic Pro X apps with new features designed to support music makers “from enthusiasts to pros.” GarageBand for iOS 2.2 now provides the creative synthesizer Alchemy and has a new browser for easier searching through instruments and patches.

Logic Pro X 10.3 has been refreshed with a modern interface and now includes features for pro audio production and support for Touch Bar shortcuts on the new MacBook Pro.