New Apps & Games

The best Apple TV apps and games for your big screen TV

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated October 16, 2018

The Apple TV launch will be accompanied by a surprisingly comprehensive list of third-party apps and games, some of which were shown off on stage during Apple's media presentation last month. Ahead of tomorrow's launch, a much larger selection of premium triple-A games and apps is available for the device.

We've compiled a list of the games and apps that we think are going to make a difference on the big screen. If you have pre-ordered your Apple TV, bookmark this article as you'll want to download these apps as soon as your shiny new box drops on your doorstep.

Review: reclaim iPhone storage lost to Live Photos with this free app

Christian Zibreg ∙ October 27, 2015

Live Photos, one of the hallmark features of the new iPhone, is prominently featured in Apple's commercials and even jailbreakers can get it on older devices via a recently released jailbreak tweak.

The only problem with Live Photos is that they take up about two times the space of normal images. While iOS's Photos app lets you turn a Live Photo into a still photo with a few taps, the process quickly becomes cumbersome when processing multiple Live Photos.

Besides, the method doesn't really remove anything as you can revert back anytime.

A new iPhone app called Lean from developer Tiny Whale, available for free in the App Store, automates the process of cleaning up one or more unwanted Live Photos, so you end up with their normal representation which helps save storage space on your iPhone.

Review: track how well you sleep at night with Sleep++ for Apple Watch

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated February 4, 2018

I was having high hopes ahead of the Apple Watch unveiling that detailed sleep analytics would be part of the headline feature set, based in no small part on the company's hiring efforts in that field.

As a blogger, my sleep is basically in disarray so I was keeping my fingers crossed that Apple's wearable would benefit my rest. Much to my surprise, the device arrived without specialized sleep-tracking functions.

But thanks to developer David Smith's nifty little app called Sleep++, I can now measure the duration and quality of my sleep thanks to the power of software.

Instagram releases Boomerang, a Live Photos-like iPhone app for creating looping clips

Christian Zibreg ∙ October 22, 2015

Facebook-owned Instagram is taking on Live Photos, one of Apple's headline iPhone 6s features, with a brand new 1-second video loop app called Boomerang. Available free of charge in the App Store, Boomerang aims to turn everyday moments into “something fun and unexpected.”

The app couldn't be simpler. You just point your iPhone's front or rear camera and press a button to take a burst of ten photos.

Boomerang then stitches the individual images together into a one-second sped-up video that plays forward and backward in a looping manner, similar in appearance and function to Apple's Live Photos feature.

Brain-racking puzzler ‘Please, Don’t Touch Anything’ makes its App Store debut

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 28, 2016

UK-based iPhone developer and publisher BulkyPix today released a perplexing new game in the App Store, created in partnership with Four Quarters. Please, Don't Touch Anything, as it's aptly named, is a cryptic, brain-racking puzzler about bathroom breaks, screwdrivers and nuclear explosions. Yup, you read that right.

Featuring more than two dozen levels, retro pixel art, atmospheric chip tune soundtrack, touch-optimized gameplay with pinch-to-zoom and support for older devices like the iPhone 4, the iOS edition of the game brings nine exclusive new endings that cannot be found in the Steam version, which released earlier this year.

Activision launches Guitar Hero Live for iOS with optional wireless guitar controller bundles

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated October 16, 2018

Publisher Activision today announced immediate availability of a new iPhone iPod touch and iPad game, called Guitar Hero Live. It includes two free of charge trial songs, with hundreds more available when you purchase a controller bundle.

The game is available in the United States starting today and will be launching in Europe this coming Friday, October 23, with an Apple TV version releasing later this year.

An optional $99 bundle is available from major retailers around the country with an AA batteries-powered Bluetooth Low Energy guitar controller along with guitar strap and included redeem code. A two-guitar bundle is $149.99.

Minecraft: Story Mode now available on iOS

Christian Zibreg ∙ October 15, 2015

Telltale Games and Microsoft-owned Mojang, the creators of Minecraft, have teamed up on a brand new, narrative-driven game set in the Minecraft universe. Titled Minecraft: Story Mode, the game launched today in the App Store as a $4.99 download for the iPhone, iPod touch and iPad.

Minecraft: Story Mode is framed as a full-blown adventure game. It's not a Minecraft add-on nor does it require the original Minecraft game. Like other Telltale Games releases, Minecraft: Story Mode is a multi-part episodic series.

Review: wrist dialing is easy with Watch Keypad, an app Apple should have made

Christian Zibreg ∙ October 5, 2015

WatchOS 2 appeals to sausage-fingered types with its bigger, square keypad, and that's quite cool by me, but isn't its lack of a dialing functionality in apps like Messages and Phone quite a shame? This poses a major problem when needing to place a phone call from the wrist to a number you don't have assigned to a contact.

Watch Keypad by Dutch developer Rob De Ruiter, as the name suggests, solves this problem in one fell swoop.

This app makes it real simple and easy to type a phone number to call from your Apple Watch, without any restrictions on contacts. I spent some quality time testing Watch Keypad and will be using a lot going forward, here's why.

Adobe releases Photoshop Fix and Capture CC for iPhone and iPad

Christian Zibreg ∙ October 5, 2015

Adobe launched new services at its annual Adobe MAX creativity conference today while updating the Creative Cloud lineup and releasing a pair of brand new mobile apps: Photoshop Fix and Capture CC.

Built on the Photoshop technology, Photoshop Fix, a free download from the App Store, brings desktop tools like Liguify and Healing Brush to image editing on the go.

Capture CC, another new app available at no charge, includes functionality provided by several mobile apps like Adobe Brush, Adobe Color, Adobe Hue and Adobe Shape.

Review: CiderTV doubles as gesture-rich Apple TV remote and volume control for your television

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated March 17, 2019

I was researching software remotes for the Apple TV the other day and stumbled upon CiderTV by Aivee Apps. But wait, doesn't Apple's own Remote app for the iPhone and iPad get the job done?

Er, not quite. It's buggy, slow and just a pain in the you-know-what. I want a solution that goes beyond Remote's basic functionality, with features like richer gestures and DLNA volume control for compatible TV sets.

That way, I wouldn't have to constantly juggle between the tiny Apple TV remote and another one for my TV. CiderTV does just that—and then some more—and is available at no charge.

Electronic Arts releases Need for Speed: No Limits in App Store

Christian Zibreg ∙ October 1, 2015

Electronics Arts' newest racing game on mobile, called Need for Speed: No Limits, is now available in the App Store as a freemium download. Created by developer Firemonkeys which brought you Real Racing 3, this new game challenges you to become a reckless yet respected driver.

A stable of sports cars available in No Limits include the Subaru BRZ, BMW M4, McLaren 650s, Porsche 911 and many more. Unlike previous Need for Speed Games, No Limits is big on customization.

Review: Password Chef—enjoy untethered password entry with recipes

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated March 17, 2019

The App Store offers several high-quality apps that help you create strong passwords for various services, manage your passwords and synchronize them between devices with ease, AgileBits' freemium 1Password being perhaps the most popular one.

But there's now a brand new password manager on the block which takes a clever approach to securing all your online accounts with strong passwords but without having to actually remember them.

How about re-creating passwords from recipes?

Welcome to Naranja Studio's Password Chef, a novel $2.99 app for the iPhone, iPod touch and iPad which takes advantage of unique recipes to basically turn any site name into an easy-to-recall password, canceling the need for additional software or devices.