Messages

Columba: a biteSMS alternative offering Quick Compose/Reply, scheduled messages, and more

Although biteSMS is no longer supported on the latest versions of iOS, a jailbreak tweak called Columba for iOS 9 brings some of the functionality biteSMS users loved to jailbroken iOS 9 devices.

Columba for iOS 9 comes complete with Quick Compose and Quick Reply, as well as a slew of other must-have features for sending and receiving messages from your jailbroken iPhone.

Apple patent would integrate Siri into Messages to assist with tasks via bot-style commands

You've been able to ask Siri to send messages on your behalf for a few years now and with iOS 10, Apple's expanded Siri capabilities to third-party apps like mobile payments. But if a new patent for a “Virtual assistant in a communication session” that the company filed with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is anything to go by, the virtual assistant could soon be integrated deep into Messages, assisting users with peer-to-peer payments, scheduling dinner and providing other chat bot-style interactions within message threads.

10+ new features in iOS 10.2 beta 1

Apple yesterday issued beta 1 of the forthcoming iOS 10.2 software update for the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch. For starters, iOS 10.2 beta 1 includes three new wallpapers, provides a bunch of new emoji as part of the Unicode 9.0 standard and gives Camera the optional ability to remember filter, Live Photo and mode settings.

Star ratings are back in the Music app and Videos has its own widget. Oh, and you can now annoy friends with a brand new animation in Messages.

Without further ado, here's our video hands-on with iOS 10.2 beta 1 accompanied by a detailed description of all the new features and enhancements.

How to use Digital Touch in Messages for iPhone and iPad

Digital Touch debuted as a sort of gimmicky feature of the Apple Watch software. On iOS 10, Digital Touch has made its way into the stock Messages app, making it easy and to add various effects to photo or video attachments, send sketches, taps, kisses, heartbeats and more. In this step-by-step tutorial, you're going to learn how to express your feelings in style with the Digital Touch features on your iOS 10-enabled iPhone, iPad or iPod touch.

Identifying songs inside iOS 10 Messages with Shazam’s new iMessage app

Shazam, a music identification service that's integrated into iOS (“Hey Siri, what song is this?”), recently celebrated a billionth download of its popular mobile app. Today, the company pushed a sweet little update to Shazam and Shazam Encore iOS apps in the App Store. Bumped to version 10.1, the refresh software packs in a brand new iMessage app with support for music detection within iOS 10's stock Messages app, here's how to use it.

You can reduce motion and keep iMessage effects in iOS 10.1 beta

A handy improvement has been discovered in the first two betas of iOS 10.1: the ability to reduce motion while retaining the various iOS 10 iMessage features. It seems Apple has heard the complaints of users (me included) who like to turn off Parallax and other UI animations, but still want to be able to enjoy the new Messages app.

Apple threatens pulling an app for pranking friends with stickers that mimic iMessage bubbles

Apple on Friday threatened to pull Phoneys, a 99-cent sticker pack which lets you prank friends by putting words in their mouth. The #1 Top Paid item in the Messages App Store, Phoneys employs a simple trick to make the illusion work: it provides stickers that look exactly like the blue iMessage bubbles. Phoneys developer Adam Howell says Apple told him it would be pulling the app next Thursday unless it's fundamentally changed so that the stickers looked nothing like iMessage bubbles.

Apple airs new ‘Balloons’ ad highlighting iPhone 7 and expressive messaging

Apple's much improved Messages app in iOS 10 is more expressive than ever, especially with nicely done animations that take over the entire screen.

One of the fullscreen effects in Messages, a bunch of balloons that fly up from the bottom of the screen, is the central theme of a new iPhone 7 commercial that Apple posted on its YouTube channel today.

The 30-second commercial wraps up with the message, “The all-new iPhone 7, with expressive messages. Practically magic.”