Apple Seeds First iOS 9.3.3 Beta to Public Beta Testers
Apple today released the first beta of an upcoming iOS 9.3.3 update for public beta testers, one day after seeding the first iOS 9.3.3 beta to developers. iOS 9.3.3 comes one week after the release of iOS 9.3.2, an update focusing primarily on bug fixes.
Beta testers who have signed up for Apple’s beta testing program will receive the iOS 9.3.3 update over-the-air after installing the proper certificate on their iOS device.
Those who want to be a part of Apple’s beta testing program can sign up to participate through the beta testing website, which gives users access to both iOS and OS X betas.
As another minor 9.x.x update, iOS 9.3.3 appears to include mainly under-the-hood bug fixes and performance improvements to address issues that have been discovered since the release of iOS 9.3.2. iOS 9.3.3 is not yet available for the 9.7-inch iPad Pro due to an iOS 9.3.2 issue that has caused some 9.7-inch iPad Pro devices to be bricked.
No outward-facing changes or immediately apparent bug fixes were discovered in the first developer beta of iOS 9.3.3.
Related Roundup: iOS 9
Tag: iOS 9.3.3
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Apple Working on Amazon Echo Competitor, Opening Siri Up to Developers
Apple is actively developing a product that would compete with the Amazon Echo and Google Home, reports The Information. Citing a source with direct knowledge of Apple’s plans, the report suggests Apple is working on a Siri-based device that would include a speaker and microphone that could be used for features like listening to music, getting news headlines, and more.
In addition to developing such a device, Apple is planning to improve Siri by opening the voice assistant up to outside developers. Apple is said to be preparing to release a Siri software development kit that would allow developers to make their apps and their app content accessible through Siri voice commands. Apple plans to require developers to use the tool responsibly.
Opening Siri up to third-party developers will go a long way towards expanding the capabilities of Apple’s virtual assistant. Right now, Siri only works with a handful of apps like OpenTable and Yelp, and Apple has been hesitant to develop a Siri API and improve Siri’s functionality because of privacy concerns.
According to The Information, a Siri SDK could be introduced as soon as WWDC, meaning third-party Siri access would be built into iOS 10 and perhaps OS X 10.12, which is also rumored to be gaining Siri support.
Both Amazon and Google have developed robust in-home personal assistant devices built around their respective AI platforms, which Apple hopes to compete with. The products are able to perform a wide range of features, from giving weather reports and answering queries to controlling smart home devices like light bulbs and thermostats. The Amazon Echo has been well-received, and Google’s Home product, just announced at Google I/O, supports similar features.
Apple has reportedly been working on an Echo competitor since before the Echo debuted last year, and it will perhaps include features like a speaker, Internet access, and the ability to control HomeKit products. It is not known when Apple will be ready to debut its home accessory or how it will fit into the company’s existing product lineup.
Related Roundups: WWDC 2016, iOS 10
Tags: Siri, Amazon Echo
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Apple Releases Firmware Update 7.6.7 and 7.7.7 for AirPort Base Stations
Apple today released a new firmware update for all of its 802.11n Wi-Fi base stations, including the AirPort Express, AirPort Extreme, and AirPort Time Capsule. According to Apple’s release notes, the update includes bug fixes and is designed to improve the stability and performance of the products.
This update:
– Fixes an issue which may prevent communication between clients on the same network
– Improves performance with an extended guest network
– Addresses potential naming conflicts with Bonjour Sleep Proxy
Apple has also released a 7.7.7 update for its 802.11ac Wi-Fi Base stations, including the latest AirPort Extreme and AirPort Time Capsule models.
The firmware updates can be installed through the AirPort Utility app for iOS or OS X.
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Apple Releases First OS X 10.11.6 El Capitan Beta to Public Beta Testers
Apple today seeded the first beta of an upcoming OS X 10.11.6 beta to public beta testers, just a day after releasing the first OS X 10.11.6 beta to developers and one week after releasing OS X 10.11.5, the fifth update to the OS X 10.11 operating system.
The new beta is available through the Software Update mechanism in the Mac App Store for those who are enrolled in Apple’s beta testing program. Those wishing to join the program can sign up on Apple’s beta testing website.
Like many of the previous updates to the OS X 10.11 El Capitan operating system, OS X 10.11.6 appears to be minor in scale, focusing on under-the-hood bug fixes, security enhancements, and performance improvements. No obvious outward-facing changes or bug fixes were discovered in the first developer beta.
Related Roundup: OS X El Capitan
Tag: OS X 10.11.6
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Apple CarPlay: A guide to connecting your iPhone to your car – CNET
Getting a new car is fun, until you get into the infotainment system. Car makers — whose expertise is in vehicles, not software — tend to build overly complicated systems that make you feel like a caveman using a smartphone for the very first time.
That’s not a good thing when you have other priorities. For instance, keeping your eyes on the road.
Carmakers aren’t necessarily changing their ways, but they are giving drivers another, more familiar infotainment option: CarPlay. It’s Apple’s way of applying its iPhone software expertise to the car, with Siri voice commands at the core.
Jason Cipriani/CNET
Why you want CarPlay
CarPlay is a stripped-down version of iOS designed for your car. With it, you can send messages with iMessage, play music, get directions, listen to podcasts, stream radio (Beats1, of course), and call people — without ever touching your phone.
The system relies heavily on Siri voice commands, so you can keep your eyes on the road, not on your phone’s tiny screen.
It sounds like it’s basically iOS for your car, but it’s not. CarPlay doesn’t replace the standard entertainment system — it’s just an app. So when you need to do car-specific tasks like adjust the temperature, view a backup camera, listen to SiriusXM or adjust your car’s general settings, you’ll exit CarPlay and go back to the standard interface.
Which cars does CarPlay work with?
As long as you have an iPhone 5 or newer, running iOS 7.1 and above, your phone will work with CarPlay. But that’s only half the equation. Let’s look at the cars that support Apple CarPlay.
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Apple has a complete list of compatible cars, broken down by make and model. You can look at the list in its entirety here. There are 24 different car makers on the list, with a total of 114 car models offering CarPlay support.
Don’t get discouraged when you realize all the cars on the list are 2016 models or newer — you can retrofit an older vehicle with CarPlay support through third-party solutions. Here are a few examples:
- Pioneer offers 11 different aftermarket options with CarPlay support. Pricing ranges from $700 to $1,400.
- JBL also produces an aftermarket CarPlay unit, which retails at $399.
- Alpine and Kenwood also offer their own CarPlay-equipped systems.
As long as you’re willing to swap out your car’s infotainment unit with a CarPlay-ready one, just about any car can be made compatible.
Setting up CarPlay
Grab a Lightning-to-USB cable, plug it into your iPhone, plug the USB end into your car, and you’re set.
The first time you plug in your phone, you’ll have to go through a quick approval process to let your car access your phone. (You’ll want to be parked, not driving.) From there on, all you’ll do is connect your phone and it’ll automatically go into CarPlay mode.
At this point, the CarPlay app will automatically launch, or you’ll select it from the infotainment system’s menu. The main screen is a grid of app icons that looks like an adapted version of your iPhone’s home screen. On the left side is the time and a cell signal meter. Just below the stats, you’ll see a digitized version of the iPhone’s home button. Tap on that at any time to go back to the home screen, or tap and hold to activate Siri.
Navigating the interface is done with the standard taps and swipes, but sadly, the second-nature pinch-to-zoom gesture is missing from Maps. Instead, you’ll need to tap on buttons to zoom in or out of a given map. That’s likely a design choice reflective of the car’s hardware, not CarPlay.
Jason Cipriani/CNET
About Apple’s CarPlay apps…
For safety reasons, not all apps are available through CarPlay, and what you see is what you get. You can’t add, remove or rearrange the icons, so the default setup — Phone, Music, Maps, Messages, Now Playing, Podcasts and Audiobooks — is fixed.
More about CarPlay
- Android Auto vs. Apple CarPlay
- Apple CarPlay review
- Chrysler and Dodge are getting CarPlay
There is one exception, though. Depending on your car manufacturer, you might see a shortcut to your car’s primary infotainment system within CarPlay, so you can do things like quickly switch audio modes or control climate settings.
Back to the default Apple apps. One thing you’ll notice is how basic they are. The Phone app, for example, doesn’t automatically bring up any sort of dial pad. Instead, you’re immediately prompted by voice to give the name of the person you want to call. You’ll need to tap on Show Contacts to view more options like Favorites, Recents, Contacts, Keyboard and Voicemail.
The Messages app is similarly Siri-driven. A voice prompts immediately for the name of the person you want to message. If you have unread messages, Siri will ask if you want your unread messages read out loud or if you want to compose a new message.
If you try to use the Messages app like you do on your phone, you’ll be deterred. You can view your conversation list, but you can’t view the message thread the way you can on your iPhone. Instead, tapping on a contact’s thread prompts Siri to, once again, ask you who you want to message. The rest of the apps are similar — bare-bones and Siri-driven.
Jason Cipriani/CNET
Installing non-Apple apps
Non-Apple apps are what make CarPlay awesome. On the official CarPlay site, Apple lists some of the better-known music and radio apps like Spotify, Slacker and NPR News as being CarPlay-compatible. But if you want to see a complete list of compatible apps, search the App Store for “CarPlay.”
Any third-party CarPlay apps will automatically show up on the second page of the CarPlay screen; just like on your iPhone. Just know that in some cases, you’ll need to go finish any app setup on your phone before it’ll appear in CarPlay. For instance, with the podcast app Clammr, I had to follow the prompts to select favorite podcasts and news categories before anything would show up in the CarPlay app.
Right now, only third-party music and audio apps work with CarPlay, so don’t hold your breath for Google Maps to work with CarPlay anytime soon.
The best part: Siri
You can still use Siri as you normally do when your iPhone is in CarPlay mode. You can ask for things like sports scores and weather — basically, any commands but Web searches. For instance, you can say things like:
- Tell me the weather.
- Call __
- Get directions to __
- Play ____
- Send a message to ___
- Is ___ open right now?
Depending on your car’s setup, you can prompt Siri a few different ways. For vehicles with a Bluetooth button on the steering wheel, just press and hold the button until you hear the familiar Siri tone. Or, tap and hold the digital home button on the CarPlay screen (it’s on the left).
Finally, if you have “Hey Siri” set up on your iPhone, you can just say “Hey, Siri” and say your commands.
Mortal Skies 3: Excruciating difficulty on top of a fun game (Review)
Overview
There are a lot of things waiting to destroy your aircraft.
Mortal Skies 3: World War 1 puts you in the seat of your own aircraft, with only one goal in mind: to destroy all your enemies while avoiding your own death. Developer Erwin Jansen also added several elements to make the gameplay more fun and varied, such as power-ups, different types of ships and epic boss fights.
Features
The game’s premise is so simple that you don’t even need a tutorial for it. You control a plane in a top-down field that is constantly firing, and your goal is to destroy as many enemies as you can before they take away the three lives the game gives you.
Normal enemy planes come in packs of four. Fortunately for you, most of them never fire at you directly. When you destroy the whole group, they may drop either coins or power-ups. Coins are used to buy new ships and guns, while power-ups have a temporary effect on your ship. You can get gun upgrades, missiles, fireballs, and even a couple of friendly ships beside you blasting at enemies.
If you reach the end of a level (good luck with that), the game will show everything you’ve destroyed.
Ships can also drop some special items, like napalm (which creates two big fireballs that destroy everything they touch) and a bomb that annihilates everything in sight.
Sadly for you, planes aren’t the only things that want you dead. There are some towers hidden behind walls that are ready to take you down. Also, elements like tanks, helicopters, and bunkers are ready to help the enemy in case everything else fails. Some of these enemies even shoot missiles instead of normal bullets, making it really hard to survive if you don’t annihilate them quickly.
Also, at the end of the match, you may get experience points, which can be applied to specific parts of your aircraft. There’s no apparent way of getting these back, so you’ll have to use them consciously.
General Impressions
I will repeat what I said in the title: the difficulty in this game is out of this world. I’m pretty sure even the developer acknowledges it, since there’s a slider for increasing (hell no) and decreasing the difficulty. Power-ups definitely help, but you don’t get them all the time, so you’re mostly on your own.
Huge boss fights await you.
Other than that, the game is really fun. There are very few moments where you can rest; most of the time, you’re just dealing with the increasing amount of things going on. There are planes coming from everywhere, helicopters shooting you consistently, and huge bosses. On top of that, you have to deal with towers, bunkers, missiles, and everything in between. All of these factors combined result in an immensely fun game that will not forgive any kind of mistake or oversight.
Another thing I want to point out is that the game performs really well. Even when there’s a lot of ships, missiles and bullets flying around, I never saw the game stutter or drop frames, so kudos to the developer for optimizing the game.
Options
There’s actually a slider to change the difficulty level.
As previously said, the biggest (and most peculiar) option is a slider to change the game’s difficulty level. It defaults at 100%, but it can go as low as 75% or, if you’re into masochism, as high as 250%. You can also change the music’s volume (but not the sound effects’ volume).
Graphics and Sound
The game itself has barely appropriate graphics. Enemies’ planes (and your own) are bright and sufficiently detailed, while the explosions are decent. The background looks a little blurry, but there’s the possibility that the developer did this on purpose.
The biggest problem lies in everything that comes before. The game tries to adhere closely to a very old-fashioned theme involving wood and bolts (which may sound good on paper), but it turns out looking cluttered and unpolished. Also, there are some resources that are not big enough for high-res screens, so they appear pixelated on my Nexus 6. Since there are several phones with the 1440p resolution the big ol’ Shamu boasts, it’s not something that can be overlooked.
There are several ships you can buy with coins.
Music in the game is very upbeat. When I first heard the tunes, my immediate thought was “these tunes would fit in a Pokemon game.” There are very few songs, and the ones available are rather short, so they may start to annoy you after a while. Fortunately, you can turn it off altogether in settings. A little thing that bothers me is that you can clearly hear the moment where the tune loops, since it’s not as seamless as it should be.
Sound effects are also adequate. For the most part, they are well done and add a lot to the atmosphere, but there are also some of them that sound really dull (like explosions you would hear on a SNES game) and are not believable at all.
What we like:
- Very easy to play.
- A lot of elements and twists.
- Several aircraft to choose from.
Room for improvement:
- Difficulty is sometimes too much.
- Some pixelated graphics and bad interface overall.
- A couple of sound effects are really bad.
Conclusion
Behind the torturous difficulty, Mortal Skies 3: World War 1 is an easy-to-play game that’s full of twists and surprises. Unfortunately, outside of the core experience, there’s an interface that’s bordering on unfinished, and the music + sound effects combo is nothing to write home about. If you are prepared to overlook some glaring flaws, like some pixelated graphics here and there, and a couple of really bad sound effects, then you can definitely get some fun out of Mortal Skies 3.
Download and install from the Google Play Store.
Twitter changes tweet rules to give you more characters, sort of
Twitter is making one of the biggest changes to tweet rules since the social network first launched. You will soon be able to tweet images, videos and like without them taking up part of the allowed 140 characters,
That means tweets will be more expressive, even when additional media files are attached.
In addition, names will not count towards the character limit in retweets. This will be especially useful for retweet chains where multiple accounts are included.
Other changes include the ability to retweet or quote your own tweets, so you can republish something from your archives with additional commentary. And any new tweets with a @name included will now be tweeted to all followers.
“One of the biggest priorities for this year is to refine our product and make it simpler,” said Twitter’s CEO Jack Dorsey. “We’re focused on making Twitter a whole lot easier and faster. This is what Twitter is great at – what’s happening now, live conversation and the simplicity that we started the service with.”
The changes will be rolled out over the “coming months” but they have been announced early in order to give developers a chance to update their third-party apps and devices. Twitter, TweetDeck and all of the first party products will be updated in time.
Pebble 2 vs Pebble Classic: What’s the difference?
Pebble has announced an update to the humble Pebble, its first generation smartwatch, appropriately called the Pebble 2.
In many ways the Pebble 2 reflects the Pebble heritage, offering many of the same features and functions. But with a new focus on giving you a connected fitness experience, we’ve drilled through the details to sort out what’s what.
If you’re wondering what the difference is between the Pebble 2 and the original Pebble Classic, then read on.
Pebble 2 vs Pebble: Design and build
The original Pebble was notable for its fun plastic build. The Pebble 2 continues the cute story with a polycarbonate (plastic) body and a 22mm lug for the strap. It comes in five colours: black, white, aqua, flame and lime and measures 39.5 x 30.2 x 9.8mm, not including the lugs. The Pebble 2 weighs 31.7g.
The Pebble Classic also has that polycarbonate body and comes in black or red/black currently, although other colours have been available. The Pebble Classic measures 52 x 36 x 11.5 (including the lugs) and it weighs 38g. Again it offers a 22mm width strap.
The Pebble 2 has slimmed down, lost some of the bezel, for a more compact and lighter device, but the original Pebble was water resistant to 50m, now it’s water resistant to 30m in the Pebble 2.
Pebble 2 vs Pebble: Display
The Pebble was notable for its use of the E-Paper display, meaning much less battery drain than LCD smartwatch rivals. That’s not changed, with E-Paper still the display of choice on the new Pebble.
The Pebble 2 has a 1.26-inch display with a 144 x 168 resolution, sitting under Gorilla Glass 3 to keep it protected. It is black and white. If those specs sound familiar, that’s because it’s the same as the Pebble Classic, that also has a 1.26-inch E-Paper display with 144 x 168 resolution.
No change there then: if you’re a fan of Pebble, at least the display won’t have changed much.
Pebble 2 vs Pebble: Hardware
When it comes to the hardware, the Pebble 2 comes with an ARM Cortex M4 processor, whereas the original has an ARM Cortex M3. The M4 was in the Pebble Time previously, so is likely to give a slight boost in performance over the original model.
Pebble is all about battery life – especially when pitched against Apple Watch or Android Wear – and the Pebble 2 offers 7 days of battery life according to Pebble’s stats. The Pebble Classic offers 7 days of battery too, so we’d expect a similar experience.
There’s a big change on the hardware front though with the inclusion of an optical heart rate sensor on the rear of the Pebble 2. The old Pebble doesn’t offer this function. Both offer Bluetooth, but there’s no Wi-Fi or GPS on either.
Pebble 2 vs Pebble: Features
As our comparison of the hardware revealed, the big difference in features between the new Pebble and the old is going to be heart rate tracking.
Pebble 2 is now a bone fide fitness watch, offering to keep track of your steps, sleep and heart activity, using Pebble Health to collate your details.
The original Pebble offered apps for sports, but lacked the hardware for your heart rate, although it offered sleep and activity tracking. The Pebble 2 is definitely going to be an enhancement for sports fans.
The Pebble 2 will run the latest version of Pebble OS, with over 13,000 apps available.
Pebble 2 vs Pebble: Conclusions
The Pebble 2 very much sticks to the premise of the original Pebble it now betters. The design is more advanced, making better use of space, while adding the new heart rate sensor on the back.
That means the new Pebble 2 will expand its feature set and appeal to those interested in keeping track of their fitness, but the experience is likely to remain fairly close overall. At the end of the day, both the Pebble 2 and the Pebble Classic offer a compact black and white display in a polycarbonate body, bringing connected features to your iPhone or Android device through a range of innovative apps.
The original Pebble is currently selling for £79.99. The Pebble 2 will sell for $99 (£70) on Kickstarter, with the standard retail price set to be $129 (£90).
Pebble 2016 line-up: Pebble Core, Pebble 2 and Pebble Time 2 explained
Pebble has announced a trio of new products that enhance the company’s standing in the smartwatch and wearables sector.
The first couple are replacement devices for its Pebble and Pebble Time watches. Cunningly titled Pebble 2 and Pebble Time 2, they each update the respective devices.
The Pebble 2 is similarly styled to the original Pebble and has a black and white E-Paper screen as before. It has a 168 x 144 screen resolution, is high contrast and covered in Corning Gorilla Glass 3 to keep it scratch free.
What’s new about the Pebble 2 and Pebble 2 smartwatches?
An ARM Cortex M4 processor runs the show and battery life is claimed to last up to seven days between charging. It is waterproof up to 30 metres.
The most impressive new feature is a built-in optical heart rate monitor so the watch can double as a fitness tracker more capably.
Also coming with a heart rate monitor is the Pebble Time 2. It also looks similar to the previous generation device it replaces, although you will also be able to get it in a gold finish.
Pebble
The 64-colour E-Paper screen has a 228 x 200 resolution and is also covered in Gorilla Glass 3. The casing in this watch is made of marine grade stainless steel.
Battery life is claimed to last up to 10 days and it too is waterproof to a depth of 30 metres.
Where can I get the Pebble 2 or Pebble Time 2?
As with previous Pebble products, you can snag a Pebble 2 or Pebble Time 2 through Kickstarter initially, with starting prices on the crowd-funding site starting at $99 (£67) and $169 (£115) respectively. Full retail price is estimated at $129 and $199 respectively.
The Pebble 2 will start to ship in September, while the Pebble Time 2 will ship from November. Both devices will be available on Pebble.com and from other retailers from early 2017.
READ: Pebble 2 vs Pebble Time 2: What’s the difference?
What is the Pebble Core?
The Pebble Core is a departure for the company in that it’s not a watch at all. Instead it is a wearable device you clip onto clothing or even pop into a pocket.
The Core can still be hooked up to your iPhone or Android phone, but also has a Micro SIM card slot, so can work independently.
Pebble
It has built-in GPS, so can track running pace and distances without needing to take a phone with you running, for example. It also syncs with Runkeeper, Strava, MapMyRun, Google Fit and Under Armour Record so you can make sense of the data gathered.
Spotify streaming on the run
It can stream music through Spotify if you have a premium account and a headphone socket means you can have your headset connected directly. There is also the option to capture voice notes using the Core’s built-in microphone.
If you do connect it wirelessly to your phone, you can also use it to activate Pebble apps, such as ordering an Uber. An SOS button can be set to automatically send an emergency notification to friends and family.
The battery lasts up to nine hours and features wireless charging through a Qi charger or the included cable. There is 4GB of internal storage and Bluetooth and wi-fi connectivity is on board.
The Pebble Core comes in two colours – white or black – and starts at $69 on Kickstarter. The estimated full retail price is $99. It will ship from January 2017.
READ: Pebble 2 vs Pebble: What’s the difference?
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