iOS

Adoption rate: iOS (60%) vs Android Jelly Bean (10%)

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 30, 2013

I just stumbled upon a nice post by Doug Hamlin highlighting how Android fragmentation seriously derails Google's ability to deploy the latest and greatest version of its mobile operating system to as many devices as possible, especially compared to Apple's iOS software. At the time of this writing, and based on Google's own numbers, Jelly Bean (both Android version 4.1 and 4.2) powers a total of 10.2 percent of devices in the wild. By contrast, 300 million Apple devices (out of 500 million) upgraded to iOS 6 and above in just five months...

Google Drive update brings multiple media uploads, QuickOffice integration

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 28, 2013

Five days ago, Google updated Drive for Android with the ability to create, edit, comment and present Google slides in offline mode. Today, the search firm has given some love to its iOS counterpart by adding a few new features you should know about. These include pinch-to-zoom on slides, multiple media uploads, QuickOffice integration and more. Additional information after the break...

5 things ‘Apple TV 3,2’ could be

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 28, 2013

A firmware release is always a nice starting point to hunt for code strings referencing yet-to-be-released hardware. Apple today released iOS 6.1 and an accompanying Apple TV 5.2 software, adding more LTE carriers and improving upon Siri (iPhones, iPads and iPods) while introducing enhanced iCloud features and bringing support for Bluetooth keyboards to the Apple TV.

Watchful hackers immediately spotted references to 'AppleTV 3,2'. As the current third-generation 1080p Apple TV hardware is designated as 'AppleTV 3,1', the newly discovered string might mean a minor Apple TV update could be in the works.

How minor? That remains to be seen and we can only speculate until Apple shows its card. Here, my top five picks as to what 'Apple TV 3,2' might represent (and, please, do feel free to add your own)...

Talk about duopoly: Apple, Android ship 92 percent of all smartphones

Ed Sutherland ∙ January 28, 2013

We've said it before, and yet another analyst confirms it: the smartphone market is a duopoly of Apple and Android. The two firms control 92 percent of the market, according to Strategy Analytics researchers. What does this mean? Of the 217 million smartphones shipped during the final quarter of 2012, 200 million were powered either by iOS or Android.

The concentration of the smartphone market in two hands is just the latest indication of an industry-wide consolidation. After mobile consumers in North America and Western Europe spent 2011 shifting from simple handsets to more capable phones, global smartphone growth in 2012 slowed to 43 percent from 64 percent...

12 Apple users in UK sue Google over Safari tracking

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated November 19, 2018

Although US District Judge Susan Illston recently approved the $22.5 million fine Google agreed to pay in order to settle the FTC claim that it illegally bypassed user privacy settings in Safari, the Internet giant is not yet off the hook over in the United Kingdom, where a group of twelve disgruntled users decided to take the search behemoth to the court over the scandal. A group called "Safari Users Against Google's Secret Tracking" hired a law firm to file a complaint conveniently timed ahead of the sixth annual Data Privacy Day in the country...

How to have iOS screenshots automagically appear in your Mac’s Finder

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 27, 2013

I've always loved the simplified iOS approach to screenshot taking just by pressing the power and home button simultaneously. This oft-used feature works in absolutely any app and, as an added bonus, iOS stores my screenies in the Camera Roll as crisp, lossless PNG files.

An indispensable part of my daily blogging workflow, I grab app graphics on a daily basis for use in reviews, news articles and guides such as this one. The old-school approach to syncing iOS screenshots (along with your photos) entails connecting your device to a Mac or PC via USB. But if you're anything like me, you've long cut the cord to enjoy the benefits of wireless sync.

Now, iCloud makes photo sync a no-brainer: that is, unless the very thought of firing up iPhoto or Aperture on your Mac just to access your Photo Stream drives you nuts.

There must be a better way to bypass these resource-intensive apps and have the screenshots taken on your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch automagically appear just a mouse click away in your Mac's Finder. Read on for the full breakdown...

Stanford’s free iOS developer’s class returns to iTunes U

Mike Schnier ∙ Updated May 1, 2017

Want to get started coding apps for iOS? Stanford University is relaunching their class 'Coding Together: Developing Apps for iPhone and iPad', with new material for iOS 6. We previously reported on the class in 2011. Since enrollment in the class is free on iTunes U and on Piazza, all you really need to participate is enough familiarity programming in C to get you through a couple first-year computer science credits. Over the course of the program, the class will teach students to program in Objective C.

The class is short, running from January 22nd to March 28th. While the class has already started, you can still sign up for enrollment on iTunes U and on Piazza as late as February 1st. You can also peek at the free lectures on iTunes if you are curious...

Our future connected homes

Jim Gresham ∙ Updated April 10, 2018

At CES, many new companies sprouted in the Connected Home category, the goal of which is to enable ordinary consumers to install connected devices without the hassle of professional appointments and labor charges. I see it as the home upgrade for dummies, a concept I can stand behind. Below, I take a quick glance at several connected home items from CES, all of which are easily installable and operate via iOS...

New concept spices up Lockscreen with widgets and new unlock action

Cody Lee ∙ Updated January 27, 2017

Users have been voicing their disdain for Apple's decision to stay the course with iOS for years. The operating system, albeit the addition of the App Store and a few new features, has remained largely unchanged since its introduction.

That disdain has sparked a number of iOS-related concepts, and we've just come across a new mockup. In an effort to change things up a bit, it adds widgets, toggles and a new unlocking mechanism to your iPhone's Lockscreen...

Apple job posting hints at new API/framework in iOS 7

Cody Lee ∙ January 23, 2013

This is kind of interesting. A new job posting has been spotted on Apple's website that calls for a Frameworks QA engineer that will help develop the "very first iPhone/iPad app that uses a new API/framework in the next version of iOS."

Now, Apple always adds new APIs/frameworks to new versions of iOS. But the interesting part here is that it directly refers to the development of a new iPhone/iPad app that directly depends on whatever this new API/framework is...

Pebble smartwatches shipping to Kickstarters as iOS app lingers in approval limbo

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 23, 2013

As promised, the Pebble E-Paper smartwatch (actually, it has a memory LCD screen) is now shipping to Kickstarter backers around the world, albeit initial volume is limited over some paperwork complications. As you know, the smartwatch device works in conjunction with a free iOS or Android app.

Pebble Technology today updated its Kickstarter page with a note acknowledging that Apple unfortunately has not yet approved the software even though Pebble submitted it two weeks ago. A version for Android devices is scheduled to go live on Google's Play Store tomorrow, January 24...

Netflix and YouTube working on an open AirPlay alternative

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 23, 2013

AirPlay, a wireless media technology from Apple featured on the Apple TV, iPhones, iPads, iPods and newer Macs running OS X Mountain Lion, is a major selling point because it allows users to seamlessly beam their photos, music and video from their computer or iDevice to a TV set via an Apple TV set-top box. However, Netflix teamed up with Google's YouTube on an AirPlay alternative and today the two have released official details.

DIAL, as it's called (an acronym for DIscovery And Launch), is an open second screen protocol which automatically discovers compliant devices to stream media. The new standard has impressive support from key content owners and consumer electronics makers, including the likes of BBC, Sony, Hulu and of course Samsung...