Apps

Hulu Plus app updated with new design, in-app subscriptions and more

Hulu has posted a major update for its Hulu Plus iOS client, bringing the app to version 4.0. The update features a number of enhancements, including an all new design, new navigation options, and in-app subscriptions, which allows you to subscribe to the Hulu Plus service.

In addition to these changes, the Hulu Plus app also received a new Search function, which now offers contextually grouped results to help you find what you're looking for. The app has also been updated to support iOS 8, and to "run beautifully" on the new iPhone 6 and 6 Plus.

Halfbrick Studios launches completely redesigned Fruit Ninja game

Halfbrick Studios has released today what it is calling the "biggest update ever" to Fruit Ninja. The popular game, which has garnered nearly 700k reviews on the App Store, has been redesigned from the ground up with new content, gameplay elements and more.

At its core, most of the mechanics are still the same—the game is still about slicing fruit as quickly and efficiently as possible. But there are a lot of additions, such as new experience and currency systems, which are used to buy various upgrades and power ups.

Artistic photography app Fragment is Apple’s new Free App of the Week

Artistry in iPhone photography can now be in everyone's hands with Fragment, Apple's new Free App of the Week. As you know, each Thursday the App Store editorial team cherry-picks a new app to slash from its regular price to zero bucks, for a week.

Fragment by Pixite is a nifty little iPhone and iPad app that puts cool prismatic effects in your pocket, allowing you to transform your snaps into unique artworks.

It also plays nice with iOS 8 and includes a handy extension to edit your images right within the stock Photos app. Fragment is free until next Thursday, a $1.99 saving.

iOS 8 Translator Keyboard lets you translate text from one language to another

You can now put Translator Keyboard by developer Steven Barnegren on your list of system wide third-party keyboards available in the App Store for the iPhone, iPod touch and iPad devices running iOS 8 or later.

First spotted by MacRumors, the $1.99 iPhone and iPad software makes it easy to translate any text to 44 different languages (and translate from 30 languages) by choosing your source and target language straight from the keyboard.

Twitter for Mac gains photos in DMs, picks up supports for multiple images per tweet

After refreshing its iPhone and iPad app with support for Interactive Notifications on iOS 8 and revamped profile pages, the micro-blogging platform Twitter on Thursday issued an update to its Mac client implementing a pair of new photo features.

The first allows you to add an image to your direct messages and the other introduces support for attaching up to four images to a single tweet.

Twitter for Mac 3.1 is available free in the Mac App Store.

Pioneer releases aftermarket CarPlay systems, Spotify updated with CarPlay support

A pair of CarPlay-related news reports is making the rounds this morning, one confirming the official release of the first aftermarket CarPlay systems from Pioneer and the other announcing an updated Spotify application for the iPhone and iPad with built-in support for Apple's in-car platform.

As announced back in April, CarPlay is now available as a software update for Pioneer's existing 2014 in-dash multimedia systems, the $1400 AVIC-8000NEX, $1200 AVIC-7000NEX, $900 AVIC-6000NEX, $750 AVIC-5000NEX and the $700 AVH-4000NEX systems.

The company also announced a new $600 smartphone receiver, AppRadio 4, with CarPlay compatibility.

Bleacher Buddy helps you find what channel the game is on

Bleacher Buddy is an iPhone app built to answer the age-old question: "what channel is the game on?" It's not a new app by any means, but I came across it for the first time today, and with the fall sports season now in full swing, I figured it'd be pertinent to mention it.

Using Bleacher Buddy is as easy as you'd expect it to be. You start off by giving it your zip code, and then selecting your satellite or cable TV provider. Once that's done, tell the app what sport, or specific game, you want to watch, and it will tell you which channel to turn to.

A first look at Brightkey for iOS 8

I’m of the philosophy that if you are going to add a third-party keyboard to your iPhone, there is no reason to waste time with boring designs. The brighter, the better. My fascination with third-party keyboards starts with how different they look than Apple’s standard one.

Brightkey for iOS 8 is just about as different as they come. It features eight different skins, including five candy-colored keyboards. I just want to eat my iPhone it’s so cute. Plus, this keyboard has one standout feature that you'll love.

Modern Combat 5 updated with support for iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus

Modern Combat 5, meet iPhone 6. Gameloft has just posted an update for the latest edition of its popular first-person shooter franchise, Modern Combat, with support for the larger displays found in Apple's new 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch handsets.

Even casual gamers will immediately notice the difference after updating. Since Modern Combat 5 now supports the higher resolutions of the larger displays, it no longer has to upscale images, meaning graphics appear much cleaner and sharper.

Tweetbot delivers iPhone 6 support, iOS 8 Extensions, Interactive Notifications and more

Tweetbot, the popular Twitter client for the iPhone and iPad by Tapbots, on Wednesday issed a substantial refresh to its iPhone app, bringing out a couple iOS 8 goodies and other enhancements available across both iOS 7 and iOS 8 devices.

A free update for existing users, Tweetbot 3.5 includes native display support for the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus so your timeline no longer looks fuzzy as the app takes full advantage of every single pixel of screen real estate.

It's also optimized for iOS 8 with support for Share Sheet extensions, custom actions and actionable notifications that can be interacted with on the Lock screen, within the Notification Center and right on the alert banner.

Wunderlist gains Dropbox integration and more

Wunderlist, the increasingly popular cross-platform to-do and task list by German developer 6Wunderkinder, picked up support for cloud-based Dropbox storage in its most recent 3.1.1 update Wednesday, in addition to other enhancements designed to improve your experience.

Available free of charge in the App Store, Wunderlist for the iPhone, iPad and Mac now uses your profile picture when you sign up with Google+.

Last but not least, the app features crisper looking items on Retina HD screens on the new iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus and packs in a few other nice-to-haves and fixes.