Apps

Spotify for iPad overhauled with dark UI, gains Your Music feature

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated October 13, 2018

Spotify, the leading music-streaming service hailing from Sweden, gave its iPad app on Thursday a little love. For starters, the team has crafted Skype for iPad's user interface around an all-new dark look.

As a result, Spotify at last has consistent appearance on the iPad, iPhone and Mac — down to the same dark theme, precise typography and rounded iconography.

Moreover, the Your Music feature which debuted in the iPhone edition in April 2014 is now available on the iPad, too. Representing a better way to save, organize and browse your favorite songs, Your Music is a replacement to user-generated playlists. With Your Music, you can add tracks which sync across every device, without having to create playlists or use the starring feature that lumps all starred songs into a huge list.

Download Spotify free of charge in the App Store.

Flipboard 3.0 is out with design refresh, Zite-fueled ‘Topics’ feature and more

Cody Lee ∙ October 30, 2014

Flipboard today released version 3.0 of its iOS client, and as you can imagine, it's a significant update. The design of the app has been refreshed, and is now more magazine-like and elegant, complete with fresh typography and a new navigation bar for easier browsing.

Additionally, Flipboard has introduced a new 'Topics' feature, which is powered by Zite's technology and Flipboard's own curators. There are over 30,000 topics to follow, each featuring content by top publishers and websites, that can be both searched and explored.

You can now preview stickers in Facebook’s latest Messenger update

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 27, 2016

The social networking giant Facebook on Wednesday pushed a small update to its Messenger client for the iPhone and iPad which lets you preview sticker animations.

Facebook Messenger 12.0 (what's up with version numbers, Facebook?) allows you to press and hold down on a sticker to expand it and view any animations before sending it.

The app is available free in the App Store.

OneNote gains Touch ID, iOS 8 Storage extension and more

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 26, 2018

Microsoft on Tuesday updated OneNote for iOS and OS X with useful new features, including fingerprint based Touch ID authentication to unlock password protected sections of your notebooks.

There's also a new Storage Provider extension in iOS 8 which let you easily add files to your notebooks from your favorite cloud storage service like, say, Dropbox.

On the iPhone, OneNote finally allows you to move and rearrange your notes anywhere you like. Moreover, the note-taking app has now gained ability to open notebooks stored on SharePoint Servers.

OneNote for the iPhone, iPad and Mac apps are free downloads.

Gameloft pushes action-packed, Halloween-themed Asphalt 8 update

Christian Zibreg ∙ October 28, 2014

Halloween is coming, and in Asphalt 8, “the monsters of speed are ready”, said French games maker Gameloft in the most recent update Tuesday to its gravity-defying Asphalt 8: Airborne racer.

Featuring an all-new Halloween Special multiplayer event with the Infected Mode, a pair of new daily time-limited events and the free Koenigsegg One:1, the fastest car in the game, this update to the award-winning free-to-play game should not be missed.

And if you're a fan of Twitch, broadcasting functionality has now been restored in the latest build. Grab Asphalt 8 for free in the App Store.

Plex updated with iPhone 6 support, Chromecast improvements and more

Christian Zibreg ∙ October 28, 2014

Plex, the popular cross-platform media player and my go-to home theater solution, on Tuesday issued a nice refresh to its iPhone and iPad application containing support for the 4.7-inch iPhone 6 and 5.5-inch iPhone 6 Plus screens.

Plex 3.5.2, now compatible with iOS 8, has also been updated with improved support for Google's $35 Chromecast HDMI dongle and contains additional bug fixes.

The universal app will run you $4.99.

Shazam updated for iOS 8 with Today widget for tagged music and more

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 27, 2016

Shazam, a song-matching service that recently passed 100 million active users, on Tuesday released a major update to its free iPhone and iPad application.

Available free of charge in the App Store, the refreshed Shazam 8.0 has been optimized for iOS 8 and introduces a handy Today widget that lists tagged music recognized through the background-listening Auto Shazam feature.

A new Charts page in News Feed lists collates popular tracks other Shazam users have tagged and track lists now have a nicer looking layout.

Great Big War Game and other Rubicon titles free for the weekend

Cody Lee ∙ Updated March 17, 2019

If you're looking for a little entertainment this weekend in the form of a new iOS game, you might check out some of Rubicon's titles. The UK-based indie developer has discounted nearly all of its iOS library down to free for the next two days.

This includes the massively popular turn-based strategy "Great War Game" series, as well as other games like Zombies: Dead in 20, Fruit Blitz and Yachty Deluxe. They normally range in cost from $1 to $3, so we're talking $10+ in savings here.

RGB Express goes free as Apple’s App of the Week

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 17, 2018

Apple has named the popular mini truck puzzler RGB Express its app of the week for this week. This means that from now through next Thursday, you’ll be able to pick up the title for free in the App Store—a solid $3 discount from its normal price tag.

For those who haven't played RGB Express, the game is simple. Players are tasked with drawing routes for their trucks in a way that ensures every house receives the correct package. There are over 200 levels, which of course get progressively tougher.

Tumblr for iOS gains 2-factor authentication, new video player and commenting features

Christian Zibreg ∙ October 23, 2014

Since Yahoo's $1.1 billion acquisition of the popular blogging platform Tumblr in May of 2013, the Internet giant has been consistently adding new features and enhancements to Tumblr's nicely done iPhone and iPad application.

In its latest update Thursday, Tumblr has picked up three useful features. Firstly, you can now use Tumblr's two-factor authentication to log in securely into the app. Prior versions required you to visit Tumblr's web interface in order to create an app-specific code for use with the app.

Now the process has been simplified as Tumblr's two-factor implementation now supports code creation via authenticator apps such as Authly or Google's own Authenticator for iOS. If you're not using authenticator apps, Tumblr can instead text you a code to your mobile phone number.

The other two features are explained right after the break

Tumblr is available free in the App Store.

NHL 2K hits the App Store

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 30, 2018

2K Games on Thursday released NHL 2K for the iPhone and iPad, a successor to its previous hockey game which can no longer be found in the App Store. Unlike rival Electronic Arts's sports-themed freemium games, NHL 2K is a paid download that will run you eight bucks a pop for the privilege of playing the full game that doesn't limit your gameplay or constantly ask for cash.

Featuring iOS controller support, live roster updates, the My Career mode where you control one player and earn skill points to build up ratings over multiple seasons, turn-based multiplayer penalty shootout using Game Center, in addition to a fast-paced arcade style 3-on-3 mode, this one's feature packed and well poised to storm the App Store charts.

Pixelmator for iPad is here

Christian Zibreg ∙ October 23, 2014

Announced at Apple's iPad media event earlier this month, Pixelmator for iPad launched on Thursday at a special introductory price of $4.99. Originally a Mac app, this incredible Photoshop replacement, built exclusively for the Apple tablet, has all of the hallmarks of its Mac counterpart.

The app's been especially optimized to take advantage of the power provided by the Apple-designed A8X processor ticking inside the new iPad Air 2, though it runs plenty smoothly on A7 devices like the iPad mini 2 and the original iPad Air.

The range of features and capabilities that have been ported over from the Mac edition is astounding and I don't think I'm exaggerating when I say that this is one hell of an image editing application that fans of mobile photography and productivity have been craving for since the iPad's inception.