Apps

Google quietly removes Sparrow email client from App Store and Mac App Store

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 27, 2016

It's the end of the road for the beloved Sparrow email client as Google quietly pulled the free iPhone and Mac download from the App Store and Mac App Store, TechCrunch reported Tuesday.

The Internet giant snapped up the French startup, its apps and technology back in July of 2012, much to the dismay of the Apple community, for a reported $25 million.

Existing users who have downloaded Sparrow to their Mac through the Mac App Store, and have a copy of Sparrow for iOS in desktop iTunes, can continue using the app and should be able to install it on their other devices.

The app's been fully removed from iTunes servers and is no longer available for re-download through the Purchased tab of the App Store and Mac App Store. The Mac edition is still available directly from Sparrow’s own web site.

Word, Excel and PowerPoint for iOS gain iCloud storage integration

Christian Zibreg ∙ February 17, 2015

Windows maker Microsoft today announced it's bringing out new cloud storage integration to Word, Excel and PowerPoint apps for the iPhone and iPad, including the iCloud file picker on iOS and Office Online integration for viewing and editing.

The much appreciated support for Apple's cloud-based storage permits customers to store their documents, presentations and spreadsheets to iCloud and access them on their other iOS and Mac devices.

Legend turns text into fun animations to spice up your messaging apps

Lory Gil ∙ Updated January 28, 2019

Static chats are already old news. It’s time to throw something fresh in the mix with images featuring animated texts. You poignant posts on WhatsApp should have even more of an effect.

Legend – Animated Text in Video & GIF is a text creator that lets you customize whatever you have to say and turns it into a fun animation that you can share with others through your various messaging apps.

Create low poly art from your photos using Trigraphy

Lory Gil ∙ Updated May 17, 2018

Fans of the low poly art movement will be happy to know that, there’s an app for that. Now, instead of building the geometric vector design from scratch, anyone can turn any image into something Piet Mondrian would be impressed with.

Trigraphy is a photography app that turns any picture into low poly geometric art. You can make a still life out of things you find in your kitchen and it will be good enough to frame.

New Watch apps previewed: MoneyWiz and MileWiz

Christian Zibreg ∙ February 16, 2015

Ahead of its wearable release in April, Apple invited select developers to submit their Watch apps for the inclusion in the App Store. We've already seen previews of Todoist, we know eBay is working on a bidding Watch app and Nimblebit even created a puzzle game for it.

And now, developer SilverWiz has posted a pair of previews of its two productivity apps for the device: the personal finance app MoneyWiz 2 and the automatic mileage tracking software MileWiz.

VLC media player is back in the App Store

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated February 27, 2015

VLC, the popular cross-platform media player which lets you watch AVI videos on your iPhone and iPad without conversion (as well as other non-iOS-friendly media types), is back in the App Store following a long-standing licensing dispute.

In addition to resolving licensing issues, this edition of VLC brings a few noteworthy enhancements to the table which I'll lay out for you after the jump.

UPDATE: following a soft-launch in New Zealand, the app on February 27, 2015, finally went live in the US App Store.

Weafo lets you quickly transfer files to multiple recipients using App Extensions

Lory Gil ∙ Updated May 17, 2018

Stop me if you’ve heard this one before. You have a large file that you want to send to someone, but it’s too big for email. So, you open up Dropbox or some other cloud storage service. What if you could share large files without the need of Dropbox, or AirDrop, or email, or any of that?

Weafo is an app extension that lets you transfer files to a recipient on the same Wi-Fi network using a designated web address. Select the file you want. Tap the Share icon. Tell the recipient the address. You’re done.

Cava Racing, SNL, Phone Doctor Plus, and more apps to check out this weekend

Lory Gil ∙ Updated May 3, 2018

I don’t know what you guys have been up to, but I’ve spent all of my free time playing Radiation Island for the past week. I can’t get enough of that game. If you aren’t into the whole lovey-dovey holiday, or maybe don’t have anyone to spend Valentine’s Day with, you may need something else to occupy your time. We’ve got a list of apps and games we think will help get you through the weekend.

Nintendo working on social ‘Mii’ smartphone app

Cody Lee ∙ February 13, 2015

Nintendo is working on a new smartphone app, the company's President Satoru Iwata told business magazine Nikkei on Thursday. It's in development now, and should be finished around the time Nintendo reports its annual earnings in May.

According to Iwata, the app will feature Miis—the lovable, customizable avatars that represent players used in Nintendo Wii and Nintendo Wii U. Players will be able to customize their Mii characters, and share them on their social networks.

Foursquare gains iOS 8 widget, can now serve recommendations without logging in

Christian Zibreg ∙ February 13, 2015

After adding a widget to its check-in app called Swarm back in December, Foursquare's main iPhone application today finally received a brand new Today widget for iOS 8's Notification Center of its own.

Moreover, the latest 8.7 update added personalized recommendations while logged out, so you don't need to even have an account with Foursquare to receive tips and recommendations about nearby places.

Just open the app to get started.

Nike+ FuelBand app integrated with Apple’s Health, now uses your iPhone to track movement

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated October 14, 2018

It only took, what, five months, but Nike's FuelBand application for the iPhone was finally refreshed Friday, adding much-needed integration with Apple's HealthKit platform. As a result, a dedicated FuelBand accessory is no longer required to track your activity or earn Fuel points, your iPhone now does this.

To reflect this change in direction, the app has been rebranded and is now being marketed as just Nike+ Fuel.

In addition to getting more insight into your activity in iOS 8's Health app, HealthKit integration makes your Fuel points visible in and accessible by other apps.

Apple asks devs to blur out guns and nudity on App Store screenshots and promotional footage

Christian Zibreg ∙ February 13, 2015

Apple is determined to make the App Store a safe playground for children and has begun enforcing its own long-standing which requires that app icons, screenshots and video previews adhere to the 4+ age rating, PocketGamer reports.

Developers who do not censor the App Store marketing material will see their apps rejected from the store. A few devs corroborated Apple's intent to make the App Store family-friendly and inoffensive.

Some of the developers who voiced their concern include Tempo developer Splash Damage, creators of Gang Nations and Bullet Rush and many others.