At an event in São Paulo, Brazil today, Google announced that its one-on-one video calling app, Duo, will be soon gaining audio-only calling on iOS and Android. The feature is already available starting today to customers in Brazil and will be rolling out to users around the world in the coming days. With the update, Duo for iPhone now supports both video and audio calling and effectively becomes a viable alternative to Apple's FaceTime.
iPad
From the latest news to the most comprehensive tutorials, learn how to get the most out of your iPad with our step-by-step guides and expert tips.
Google’s Snapseed app picks up new Double Exposure filter + Pose & Expand tools
Google just pushed a new version of Snapseed for iPhone and iPad to App Store. Snapseed version 2.17 includes a new Face Pose tool, the app's second tool that focuses on working with portraits and selfies. There's also a new Double Exposure filter for blending two photos using analog film techniques and digital image processing. You can grab the latest version of Snapseed for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch at no charge from App Store.
Camera+ updated with RAW saving improvements, 3D Touch Peek and Pop & more
Camera+, my favorite iPhone photography app, was updated this morning on App Store with new features putting more RAW power at your fingertips while adding support for Peek and Pop gestures in the app on 3D Touch-enabled devices like the iPhone 6s/7 series. Building on the previous update which enabled RAW shooting and editing, the new Camera+ version 9.1 includes new RAW options for saving and exporting images at the best possible quality.
Starbucks will soon let you gift coffee via iMessage
During a shareholder meeting held this morning, Starbucks revealed its mobile app will soon gain the ability to send gifts in Apple's Messages app with Apple Pay. According to the official press release, a forthcoming update will also bring an Outlook add-in integration that will permit users who'd like to gift beverages through Microsoft Outlook to do just that. Additionally, the coffeehouse chain recently started rolling out its AI-powered digital barista.
WhatsApp brings back text-only status, adds new features in latest update
A few weeks ago, WhatsApp rolled out auto-vanishing slideshows with photos, videos, emoji characters, drawings and more. Called Status, it supplanted WhatsApp's text-only feature that's been part of the app since its inception. Turns out many users are hating the change, turning to social media to express their disdain with WhatsApp's relentless cloning of Snapchat. WhatsApp developers responded by promising to bring back text-only statuses.
Today, WhatsApp for iPhone was updated with the addition of text-only statuses, called About, whilst gaining a few new features.
Google Maps gains real time location and trip sharing features
Google today announced that you can now let your friends and family know where you are and when you'll get there, right from Google Maps for iOS and Android. The answer to “where are you?” is only a tap away—with this useful new feature, people you share with can track your real-time location on iPhone, iPad, mobile web and desktop. Additionally, you can share your trip progress from navigation with others.
How to teach your iPhone or iPad to recognize people’s faces in the Photos app
Organizing one’s photos by date or occasion is by far the most common methodology in photography, and of course why wouldn’t it be? The simple fact of the matter is that a chronological structure of photos satisfies most search requests because you pretty much know immediately where to look for a certain snapshot. With that said, more unconventional efforts such as accumulating every single photo taken by the beach or all shots of your family ever snapped, quickly render the chronologic album structure rigid and dated.
Everything Apple announced today
Apple showed today that it doesn't need a special event to launch a bunch of different products. Without too much fanfare, the company launched a handful of new products and also updated, or rather upgraded a few ones in the process.
For those of you who didn't have time to read through it all, we've put together a short video rounding up everything Apple announced today.
Apple phases out iPad Air 2 and iPad mini 2
Apple today bid farewell to both the 9.7-inch iPad Air 2 model and its smaller, older brother—the 7.9-inch iPad mini 2.
As of today, neither iPad Air 2 nor iPad mini 2 are available to purchase from Apple. Earlier this morning, the Cupertino firm announced a new 9.7-inch tablet model, called simply iPad.
Simultaneously, the company phased-out the 32-gigabyte edition of iPad mini 4 while giving the iPad mini 4 lineup twice the storage without increasing prices.
32GB iPad mini 4 discontinued, replaced with 128GB model for $399
Apple today unveiled a new $329 9.7-inch tablet with a brighter, non-laminated Retina display and the A9 chip while discontinuing the 32-gigabyte edition of the fourth-generation iPad mini. At the same time, the Cupertino company has replaced the 32GB Wi-Fi iPad mini 4 model with a 128-gigabyte one priced at $399 for the Wi-Fi-only version, or $529 for the 128-gigabyte Wi-Fi + Cellular edition.
Swift Playgrounds gains editing tweaks, 5 new languages, MapKit support & more
Apple announced today that Swift Playgrounds, its free iPad app aimed at teaching kids and students the basics of coding in Swift, has gained some new features. Aside from being available in five additional languages—Simplified Chinese, Japanese, French, German and Latin American Spanish—the new version sports editing improvements and supports the MapKit and Swift 3.1 code in your playgrounds.
Apple’s Clips app lets you create expressive videos with voice-activated Live Titles & more
Alongside announcing a new low-cost 9.7-inch iPad model with a brighter Retina display and the A9 chip, the iPhone 7/Plus (PRODUCT)RED Special Edition series in a vibrant red finish and new Spring-themed Apple Watch bands, Apple today also announced a brand new iOS app designed to allow users to create expressive videos on their iPhone, iPad or iPod touch. The app is coming soon to App Store so watch this space for further updates.