Apps

Apple updates Mac iWork apps with support for real-time collaboration

In addition to macOS Sierra, Apple on Tuesday also released updates for its Mac iWork apps to support real-time collaboration. The feature was announced at the iPhone 7 event earlier this month, and was added to iOS apps last week.

Real-time collaboration is exactly what it sounds like. With it, users can work simultaneously in any iWork app regardless of device. A list is displayed of all current document editors, and users see the others' cursor activity in real time.

Tweetbot for Mac updated with support for macOS Sierra, extended Tweets and more

Tweetbot users will be happy to hear that the Tapbots have updated their popular Twitter client today to support the just-released macOS Sierra software. The release brings the app to version 2.4.2, and it includes several improvements.

Among these improvements is support for extended Tweets—a change Twitter made to its service this week that prevents media URLs and Quote Tweets from counting against your 140 character limit. It also now supports extended videos.

How to remove built-in applications from iPhone or iPad

Just like you probably do, I have a folder on my iPhone whose sole purpose is to store all of Apple's apps that I don't use. Stocks, Compass, Voice Memos, Tips, etc. They're all in there because I can't get rid of them. But this is changing!

Beginning with iOS 10, Apple now allows you to delete some built-in applications from your iPhone or iPad to help you tidy things up and bit and rid you of apps you don't actually use.

This comes with some minor strings attached. For one, apps aren't technically deleted from your device. That said, the process to remove them and get them back on the Home screen is similar to how you handle other apps. We'll have a look at all this right now.

Media, polls and quoted tweets no longer count against Twitter’s 140-character limit

In May of this year, Twitter promised it would be stopping counting media and other non-text content against its 140-character limit. Today, the company announced that embedded photos, videos, GIFs, polls and quoted tweets no longer count toward your 140 characters.

Twitter originally promised to also stop counting user mentions like @iDownloadBlog, but didn't specify today when it'll drop @usernames from the character count.

Video: iPhone 7 running circles around Note 7 in terms of switching apps

Apple makes the fastest smartphone chips on the planet and the iPhone 7's in-house designed A10 Fusion chip has given top Android handset makers who buy off-the-shelf processors plenty to worry about. Tight interplay between Apple-designed silicon, operating system, apps and services gives the iPhone a distinct advantage over competitors when it comes to smooth app switching and multitasking.

A non-scientific video put together by YouTuber PhoneBuff, which compares app loading and switching times on the iPhone 7 and Samsung's latest Note 7, highlights the benefits of designing the hardware and software under one roof as Apple's new phone with half the Note 7's RAM runs circles around Samsung's exploding flagship in terms of loading and switching apps.

AppRestrict lets you stay productive by putting time limits on your apps

I have a pretty bad problem with procrastination, which is made worse by all the distractions I deal with, and it seems like a mutual issue for a lot of people who own smartphones because notifications always go off left and right.

Fortunately, a new jailbreak tweak called AppRestrict offers a way to stay more productive with your life by setting time frames for which certain apps on your iPhone or iPad will be locked to keep you from getting distracted.

Hardbound, Couchy, RAW and other apps to check out this weekend

It's been a crazy week, what with the iPhone 7 launch and all. So we know everyone is ready to kick back and relax this weekend with some fun new apps and games. The latest edition of our Apps of the Week roundup includes a unique reading app, a TV series manager, and a new raw camera app. Plus we have a couple of new games for you to check out.

What’s Dock on Apple Watch and how to use it?

Apple Watch showing Dock

When you press the side button on your Apple Watch, you see the Dock. Depending on the setting, the watchOS Dock has either your favorite apps or the ones you used recently. In this tutorial, we tell you more about the Apple Watch Dock, how to use it, add favorite apps, and get the most of it.

Apple’s free app of the week: Super Phantom Cat

Apple on Thursday updated its App of the Week promotion with the game Super Phantom Cat. This means that for the next 7 days, you can download this popular retro platformer for both iPhone and iPad for free—a solid savings of $2.

This charming side scroller is beloved for its beautiful retro graphics and whimsical character design, retro styling, and easy Mario-esque controls. It also features an awesome chip tune soundtrack, unlockable characters, and bonus levels.

YouTube for iPhone picks up 3D Touch shortcuts

To say that YouTube, one of my favorite mobile apps from Google, has poor 3D touch support would be an understatement: it's been now a full year since the iPhone 6s introduced the world to 3D Touch and yet support for the technology is literally non-existent in YouTube for iOS.

Conveniently ahead of the iPhone 7's arrival, Google yesterday moved to assuage some of the concerns of users who have been craving for 3D Touch in the app, releasing a small update which enables some interesting shortcuts on the Home screen.

How to filter and block spam phone calls on iPhone

Starting with iOS 10, Apple is allowing a new type of applications in the App Store: apps that can detect and block spam phone calls from telemarketers, debt collectors, scammers, and automated systems. These apps act as an extension of the Phone application, and in theory, they can help you filter out those calls from people you don't want to talk to.

In this post, we will have a look at how these applications work and how to use them.

WhatsApp rolls out its iOS 10 update with Phone/Siri support & more

WhatsApp is one of the showcase apps for CallKit, Apple's new framework allowing VoIP calls to integrate with iOS 10's Phone app and behave like cellular calls. Today, WhatsApp has rolled out its anticipated update which enables integration with Phone and Siri on iOS 10 while bringing out half a dozen other features and improvements like forwarding multiple chats at once, a new iOS 10 widget that lets you go to a recent WhatsApp chat or see which chats have unread messages, and more.