iPod Touch

Oceanhorn 2 confirmed to use Unreal 4 engine, first screenshots look stunning

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 30, 2017

Oceanhorn: Monster of Uncharted Seas by Cornfox & Bros. is among the best-looking, Zelda-like action adventure games I've ever played on mobile. As we recently reported, the team is now hard at work on a sequel, titled Oceanhorn 2: Knights of the Lost Realm, which will use the praised Unreal 4 graphics engine to make porting to other platforms a lot easier.

The proprietary graphics engine from the original didn't give the team enough flexibility nor has it allowed them to more quickly add new features so they've switched to arguably the most powerful game engine in the industry, developers explained.

How and where to share faster with AirDrop

Steffen Reich ∙ Updated January 25, 2018

In the absence of reliable figures from Apple, it is not much more than conjecture to say that AirDrop is likely a feature often neglected by the average iOS user. The gut feeling persists though, simply based on day to day observations, and it is a tenable position to take until proven wrong by Cupertino or another reputable source. The file transfer protocol is indeed handy for the transfer of heavier media files (e.g. videos, photo albums), but often only becomes relevant to us when we for example have upgraded to a new device.

Next to sheer transmission speed however, there are other notable areas where AirDrop has the clear edge when it comes to sharing all kinds of material from your iPhone. The AirDrop icon has now fully permeated the sharing tab in iOS 10’s user interface and that is for a good reason: it is without fail going to be more nimble than iMessage, Mail or other contenders, often actually skipping steps that would throttle the process elsewhere. Such being the case, here are some unique scenarios where AirDrop excels on your iPhone and why you should try to embrace the feature more regularly.

Infuse updated with support for DVD videos, NFS streaming, Library and folder search & more

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 27, 2017

The versatile media player Infuse by aTV Flash Black developer Firecore was updated this week with several new features and enhancements, including the ability to play DVD videos saved as VIDEO_TS, .dvdmedia or ISO/IMG archives.

Other new features in Infuse 5.2 for iOS and tvOS include Library and folder search, the ability to stream media from NFS-formatted network shares, sort your media by release date and more.

HomeKit has about 100 certified devices more than two years since inception

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 27, 2017

HomeKit, Apple's software framework for communicating with and controlling connected accessories in a user's home, currently works with about a hundred certified devices, Reuters said Friday.

By contrast, there are currently about 250 devices that are certified to work with Alexa, thanks to Amazon's open-systems approach and even financial incentives for some partners.

But HomeKit, which debuted alongside iOS 8 in September 2014, now has an agile competitor in Amazon's Alexa voice-controlled digital assistant which can also control smart accessories in the home with a few spoken words. The Reuters report outlines some of the requirements Apple imposes on device makers who wish to become HomeKit-certified.

HBO GO picks up support for Single sign-on and Apple’s new TV app

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 26, 2017

Apple today put HBO GO on the list of video apps supported in its new TV app via the Single-sign on feature that recently launched in iOS 10 and tvOS 10.

This lets HBO GO users sign in with their cable or satellite credentials on their iPhone, iPad, iPod touch or Apple TV to enjoy instant access to HBO shows, not only in Apple's own TV app but in other supported video apps that their pay TV subscription includes.

iOS 10.3 will let apps change their Home screen icon at any time, no update required

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 26, 2017

Tucked away amid a flurry of new reports covering upcoming new features in Apple's operating system updates, like Theater Mode on Apple Watch and Siri in watch apps, Night Shift on Mac and Find My AirPods on iPhone, Apple yesterday quietly announced that developers will soon be allowed to change their app’s Home screen icon programmatically, whenever they like.

In other words, an update is no longer required to push out the new icon artwork.

The seemingly unimportant change opens up a world of new possibilities for interactions with your favorite apps that simply were not possible before.

Google Translate’s augmented reality feature, Word Lens, now works with Japanese

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 26, 2017

In addition to updating the Popular Times feature in Google Maps for iPhone and iPad with real-time data, the search giant also issued another noteworthy update, this one concerning its dedicated Translate app on App Store. Bumped to version 5.5, the free download can now translate photos of signs, menus and similar items from Japanese to English, and vice versa. That's because its augmented reality feature, called Word Lens, has been updated to recognize Japanese content on photos and video.

Google Maps for iOS now lets you see in real time how busy your favorite place is

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 26, 2017

Popular Times is one of the most useful features of Google Maps on the web. Android users have had the privilege of enjoying this feature in the mobile app for quite a few months, and now iPhone and iPad users can see how busy their favorite place is, in real-time, in Google Maps 4.27 for iOS. Aside from this feature, the free download includes the ability to quickly access addresses in the clipboard while searching and bug fixes.

Apple Support app now available in 22 countries and 13 languages

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 26, 2017

Following its November 2016 debut in The Netherlands and subsequent U.S. launch the following month, Apple's dedicated Support app for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch has now expanded to more countries.

As first noted by MacRumors, the free of charge software is now available for download in 22 countries and features support for thirteen languages.

Facebook is about to clone Snapchat again, this time in its mainline mobile app

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 25, 2017

Facebook didn't stop at ripping off Snapchat's Stories feature with auto-vanishing slideshows on Instagram. According to a Wednesday report from Business Insider, the social network is currently testing a similar feature in its mainline mobile app.

A company spokesperson told the publication that Facebook Stories will soon start appearing at the top of the mobile Facebook app, allowing you to tap each circle to see a friend's story.

iOS 10.3 brings support for Verizon Wi-Fi Calling on other iCloud-connected devices

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 25, 2017

U.S. wireless carriers like AT&T, Verizon, Sprint and T-Mobile have supported Wi-Fi Calling for some time now, with AT&T, Sprint and T-Mobile also supporting Wi-Fi Calling on other iCloud-connected devices like iPad, iPod touch, Apple Watch and Mac. According to user reports on MacRumors' forums, iOS 10.3 beta 1 supports Integrated Calling on Verizon.

With this handy feature, compatible iCloud-signed devices can make and receive calls using your carrier's account even when your iPhone isn't nearby.

How to use Travel Time in Calendar on iPhone and Mac

Steffen Reich ∙ Updated May 7, 2018

Travel Time is a nifty addition to Apple’s Calendar app, capable of precisely estimating the duration of your upcoming trip based on parameters such as milage and traffic. Used properly, it can notably ease some of your daily scheduling woes, but paradoxically, a large contingent of regular Calendar users still routinely overlook the feature.

Formerly introduced as frequent locations and traffic conditions widgets, the service has only slowly gained traction amongst users. Travel Time today however has come of age and is now neatly integrated into one of the most popular productivity applications both on iOS and macOS. So if you didn’t get the memo on the virtues of Travel Time in Calendar, here’s what you need to know.