Ofcom plans to let you switch mobile network by breakup text

Ofcom has today put forward a more detailed plan on how it intends to make switching mobile providers easier, and it’s as simple as sending a text. Instead of having to sit through an awkward call to your current carrier — which typically starts on hold and ends with you batting away upgrade offers and tariff discounts — customers will be able to shoot off a text or hop online and immediately receive the PAC code they need to transfer their number to a new provider.

Ofcom’s been thinking about simplifying the process for the best part of two years now. Initially, it floated the idea of “gaining-provider led” switching. This would’ve meant you only needed to talk to the carrier you wanted to move to, and it would take care of the rest, including cancelling your current contract. Thanks to Ofcom, this is how you go about changing broadband provider these days.

The “gaining-provider led” option is now off the table, as it would’ve cost the mobile industry an estimated £87 million to implement. In order to minimise costs that could trickle down to the consumer, Ofcom settled on the “auto-switch” process, which will cost less than half as much over ten years. While not quite as convenient, the expanded proposals address the majority of complaints customers have with the existing switching process.

After sending the free text message or doing the equivalent online, your current provider will be required to get back to you immediately with either your PAC code, or what’s called a “cancellation code” if you’re not fussed about keeping your number. In the same breathe, they’ll also notify you of any early exit fees and outstanding device costs you may be on the hook for, or remind you of your remaining credit balance if you’re on pay-as-you-go.

The code you receive will be valid for 30 days, and all you need to do is shoot this off to your new provider, which will be obliged to arrange the switch within one working day. This speedy system ensures there’s no overlap, so at no point should you be paying two carriers at the same time. In fact, Ofcom with ban mobile networks from charging any kind of notice period fee after you’ve decided to switch. This is also where the “cancellation code” comes in, because even if you’re not bothered about porting your number, the gaining provider needs this to confirm with your previous provider that the relationship’s over.

Though Ofcom now seems to have all the bases covered, it’s still putting the proposals up for consultation until the end of June. The regulator intends to have everything finalised by autumn, at which point we’ll know what kind of implementation timeline carriers are looking at.

Via: BBC

Source: Ofcom (1), (2)

The best car GPS

By Eric Adams and Rik Paul

This post was done in partnership with The Wirecutter, a buyer’s guide to the best technology. When readers choose to buy The Wirecutter’s independently chosen editorial picks, it may earn affiliate commissions that support its work. Read the full article here.

After spending more than 70 hours researching the latest car GPS models and testing the top contenders over 1,200 miles of rural, suburban, and urban orienteering, we recommend the new Garmin Drive 51 LMT-S as the best in-car navigation device for most people. It’s easier to use and more driver-friendly than the competition.

Who this is for—or when a phone isn’t enough

Though many people now rely on their smartphones for turn-by-turn directions, the best GPS devices can still make navigating to your destination easier, thanks to handy features such as built-in databases, displays that show clearly what lane to be in at interchanges and which highway signs to follow, points of interest with TripAdvisor and Foursquare integration, a speed-limit display for the road you’re on, a variety of driver and safety alerts, and more natural, landmark-specific voice directions. Although a smartphone can work well for most people for day-to-day navigation, we think stand-alone GPS units can be better in some situations, especially for longer trips. For more on who should get a car GPS, see our full guide.

How we picked and tested

For this update, we tested eight car GPS models. Photos: Rik Paul and Nathan Paul

To get the big picture of this category, we compared the specs and features of all current models. We did a survey of several hundred Wirecutter readers to see what their preferences were. And we looked at customer reviews on Amazon and Best Buy’s site to see what the consensus was on specific models and manufacturers.

For our newest update, we got the latest models from the major brands and put them through our thorough hands-on testing, logging hundreds of miles on highways and backroads to check out the latest features and assess their overall ease of use. We looked at how accessible the settings were, and how quickly we could input a destination and get a route. We tinkered with the screen settings, explored the various route-preference options, and gauged how quickly we could make the device do our bidding. For more on how we tested, see our full guide.

Our pick

The Garmin Drive 51 LMT-S provides the best blend of usability, features, and value of any of the models we looked at. Photos: Rik Paul and Nathan Paul

All of the devices we looked at performed very well during our testing, but none could match the Garmin Drive 51 LMT-S in its combination of features, value, and usability. It retains Garmin’s great user interface and broad feature set, which together have kept the company’s models among our picks and historically at the top of Consumer Reports ratings (subscription required). The Drive 51 LMT-S is the least expensive Garmin model we tested, but it has a clear 5-inch screen and all of the essential features we expect in a good GPS device, without the extras that many people can do without. It’s effortless to use and instantaneous in its responsiveness.

In addition to providing free lifetime map updates and traffic alerts, the Drive 51 LMT-S, like all of the models in Garmin’s Drive series, comes with a variety of key features. They include integration of millions of preloaded Foursquare-sourced destinations to supplement its own points-of-interest (POI) database; its Real Directions feature, which generates more-natural voice instructions (for instance, “turn right at the movie theater”); and compatibility with Garmin’s BC 30 wireless backup camera and babyCam. Like all current Garmin GPS devices, it also provides a suite of safety and driver alerts.

The Garmin Drive 51 LMT-S has a few quirks. For one thing, the TFT screen—which the unit has instead of a capacitive touchscreen similar to what you find on a smartphone—lacks real sensitivity, so you have to get used to tapping with a bit of oomph, and scrolling with your finger through menus is far from smooth. We often accidentally activated whatever menu option our finger landed on rather than successfully scrolling. Fortunately, the unit has big up/down arrows to the left that you can use if you don’t like the finger scrolling.

Runner-up

The DriveSmart 51 LMT-S has a multitouch screen with pinch-to-zoom capability. Photos: Rik Paul and Nathan Paul

Our top pick gives you everything you need for easy navigation for under $200. But if you don’t mind spending more, you can get what we’ve found to be some handy extras with the Garmin DriveSmart 51 LMT-S. It offers all the functionality of the Drive 51 LMT-S, along with a nicer display, voice-activated navigation, and the ability to easily update the device’s maps and software through its built-in Wi-Fi support. When connected via Bluetooth to your smartphone, the DriveSmart 51 LMT-S also lets you conduct hands-free phone calls and receive incoming text messages and calendar reminders, something our top pick can’t do. So if you appreciate a little nudge in convenience and your budget allows, skip straight to this model.

Budget pick

The TomTom Go 50 S is a good basic navigator that will get you to your destination. Photos: Rik Paul and Nathan Paul

If you want reliable navigation for considerably less cash, we recommend the TomTom Go 50 S. It’s a fully functional, if basic, navigator that has many of the hallmarks of modern devices, including lane guidance, traffic (through a smartphone connection), and free lifetime maps of the US, Canada, and Mexico. The Go 50 S also has the same 5 inches of screen real estate as our top pick, and in many metro areas it will display familiar landmarks in 3D mode so you can more easily orient yourself with the map.

Though it will alert you to safety-camera locations (speed and red lights), the Go 50 S doesn’t provide the array of alerts the new Garmin devices do. It’s slightly bulkier than the Garmin models, and for us its processor was a bit sluggish in response time when we tapped on the screen. Overall, we didn’t find TomTom’s interface to be quite as driver-friendly or helpful as Garmin’s. But the TomTom Go 50 S will reliably take you where you need to go for less money.

Upgrade for safety features

When you’ve navigated to an address, the Garmin DriveAssist 51 LMT-S switches to a real-life view of the street with your destination marked. When the pink circle reaches all the way around, you’re there. Photos: Rik Paul and Nathan Paul

With more drivers choosing to add a dash cam to their car, we’re now starting to see more combo devices that serve both as a GPS device and as a dash cam. For our latest update, we tested two such models: the Garmin DriveAssist 51 LMT-S and the Magellan RoadMate 6630T-LM. Of those two, we prefer the Garmin, mostly for the same reasons we’ve described for the company’s other models, namely the more refined interface and better overall navigational experience. Both models also provide a couple of camera-based safety features—forward-collision and lane-departure warnings—that give you an extra hedge against distracted or drowsy driving without your having to install additional sensors. And with these features, too, we prefer Garmin’s execution over Magellan’s.

This guide may have been updated by The Wirecutter. To see the current recommendation, please go here.

Note from The Wirecutter: When readers choose to buy our independently chosen editorial picks, we may earn affiliate commissions that support our work.

‘Destiny 2’ on PC won’t have dedicated multiplayer servers

There’s good news, and bad news, about Destiny 2 for PC gamers. On the plus side is the fact that it exists on PCs at all — the first game never left consoles. But, unfortunately, it looks like we’ll have to settle for multiplayer matches without dedicated servers, PC Gamer reports.

Destiny 2 will instead continue to rely on peer-to-peer networking, like the original game. For players, it means that they might have to deal with more latency and instability during their frag fests. Dedicated servers, on the other hand, are typically more reliable and something PC gamers are used to seeing in big budget games.

“It is a complicated typology,” Destiny 2 PC lead, David Shaw, told PC Gamer. “We do not have dedicated servers for Destiny 2 on PC.” He went on to acknowledge problems some players have had with Destiny’s low “tick rate,” or the speed at which the game communicated with multiplayer peers and servers. While Shaw isn’t discussing any potential solutions yet, it’s at least a good sign that Bungie is thinking about issues from the last game.

Also a bummer for PC gamers, we still don’t know when they’ll actually get Destiny 2. While the game is scheduled to hit consoles on September 8th, things are still up in the air for the PC version.

“We’re not committed to a PC date yet, but at Bungie we’re totally committed to making a PC build as great as we can,” Destiny 2 director Luke Smith told PC Gamer. “Our partnership with Blizzard and being on Battle.net, we want to make sure that this version of the game has the time it needs to bake in the oven so it’s a delicious piece of bread when it comes out.”

Via: Polygon

Source: PC Gamer, (2)

Spotify expands its AI arsenal for better music recommendations

Spotify’s editorial selection and music discovery process are hard to beat (ahem, Google Play Music) and it might get a little better with the company’s latest acquisition. The music streaming service has just picked up Niland, a Paris-based machine learning startup that focuses on music search and recommendations. “The team from Niland will join our New York office and help Spotify continue innovating and improving our recommendation and personalization technologies resulting in more music discovery, which benefits both fans and artists,” a press release says.

“The best part of our journey was hearing from our clients how they were using Niland API to create innovative products that help musicians cut through the noise,” Niland writes.

Spotify has absorbed AI-minded companies in the past, and its Discover Weekly playlists have proven pretty popular with listeners. There’s a distinct chance that this could end up making its recommendations better than they currently are, which would be a boon for everyone involved. Users get relevant music to listen to which leads to artists earning more royalties and Spotify getting a cut of the streaming fees. It’s probably one of the more straightforward benefit paths in tech, to be honest.

Via: TechCrunch

Source: Spotify, Niland

Mercedes Benz is building cars that know the road better than you

As we approach a blind corner on a twisty mountain road above Sunnyvale, there’s a moment when I’m sitting in the passenger seat of a pre-production Mercedes Benz S-Class and I’m not not sure that the updated Intelligent Drive will really slow the car down in time for what’s up ahead. It does, and continues to do so for every corner it encounters. It’s an impressive step in the automaker’s march towards an autonomous vehicle.

Introduced at the Shanghai Auto Show in April, the new S-Class sports comes with the automaker’s latest version of Intelligent Drive. The update brings new features to Active Distance Assist Distronic (adaptive cruise control) and Active Steering. Steering is now smarter about automatic lane changes with only tap on the stalk needed to initiate the feature. If the car doesn’t find an open space after 10 seconds, it’ll abort its mission. But more impressive is Distronic’s ability to grab data from Mercedes’ mapping partner, Here, and adjust the speed of the car as it enters and exits a corner. The driver doesn’t have to use the brake and accelerator. Just turn the wheel and enjoy the ride.

The software determines the speed the S-Class should take a corner based on traffic, its current speed, and data supplied by Here provide the angle and tilt of the corner. The result is an impressive use of braking and accelerating that’s smoother than expected. Actually, it was even a better experience than when I’m the passenger while some of my human friends drive mountain roads.

Active Distance Assist Distronic works in conjunction with the vehicle’s current drive mode. In sport mode, it aggressively winds its way around corners. In comfort mode, it’s a relaxing drive. In eco mode, it’s painfully slow as it links corners together in the chillest way possible. If you’re going to be paying S-Class prices for a car, you should be able to use a feature as you see fit. Unfortunately, there’s no word on pricing and while some Distronic features will be standard, some of them will cost extra.

Overall the latest version of Intelligent Drive is a solid step towards the company’s goal of full autonomy. But the company (like all automakers) is adamant that the driver still needs to be in control and paying attention.

Still, if you’re not that jazzed on giving your car the power to accelerate and brake outside of the highway, you can’t deny that the S-Class’ safety features will probably keep you out of more than a few fender benders. There’s emergency stop, brake, evasive steering assistance, an infrared camera that detects humans and large animals at night and displays them on the dash — all meant to keep you and your passengers safe.

Like the current S-Class the vehicle also comes with car-to-car (and eventually infrastructure) communications so you’re vehicle will know what’s happening ahead even if you don’t.

By the end of the ride, I was confident enough in the system to stop checking the driver’s feet to see if he really wasn’t using the brake and accelerator. Even in sport mode, when it felt the car was entering a turn a little too quickly, I stopped trying to stomp on the invisible brake on the floorboard or brace myself. The car knew what it was doing and I was comfortable with that. It’ll be years before Mercedes (or any other automaker for that matter) has a fully autonomous car on the road, but for now, those that can afford an S-Class will have one the closest things that’s on the road.

Apple Celebrates Global Accessibility Awareness Day With Stevie Wonder Concert

Apple yesterday held a concert at One Infinite Loop in honor of Global Accessibility Awareness Day. This morning, CEO Tim Cook tweeted out a thank you to Stevie Wonder, who performed at the concert.

Thank you to the incomparable Stevie Wonder for lifting hearts and celebrating accessibility with us! #GAAD pic.twitter.com/WvePkgte5R

— Tim Cook (@tim_cook) May 19, 2017

The event marked one of Apple’s traditional “Beer Bash” celebrations, which in the past have seen performances by Maroon 5, One Republic, Darius Rucker, and more, usually coinciding with a major milestone like the 30th anniversary of the Macintosh.

Apple has been highlighting the importance of accessibility features throughout the week, beginning with a large collection of “Designed for” promotional videos that it posted on YouTube on Tuesday. The clips showcased features like VoiceOver and Made for iPhone hearing aids, accompanied by personal stories of how Apple fans with disabilities use each feature.

Signed, Sealed, Delivered pic.twitter.com/CI38dIU8Vj

— James Craig (@cookiecrook) May 19, 2017

On Wednesday, Tim Cook then sat down with three accessibility activists to discuss the company’s accessibility features across its range of devices. Last October, Apple published an all-new accessibility website that brings all of these features to the forefront as a way to explain and celebrate how the company has built unique accessibility features into iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV, and Apple Watch.

Tag: accessibility
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iTunes Launches Sale and LEGO-Themed Makeover for Digital Release of ‘The LEGO Batman Movie’

Apple today gave the iTunes Movies storefront a small visual overhaul to coincide with the digital home release of The LEGO Batman Movie, which will debut on DVD and Blu-Ray on June 13.

With the update, the iTunes Movies carousel has a collection of films on sale for a limited time, and with a LEGO-themed visual twist. These include previous DC universe movies like Batman Begins (HD $4.99), The Dark Knight (HD $7.99), The Dark Knight Rises (HD $7.99), Man of Steel (HD $7.99), and Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice (HD $9.99), most of which get shout-outs within The LEGO Batman Movie.

The theme and sale extends to the early Batman movies, as well, including Tim Burton’s original Batman (HD $7.99) and Batman Returns (HD $7.99), and Joel Schumacher’s Batman Forever (HD $7.99) and Batman & Robin (HD $7.99).

The LEGO theme goes beyond the iTunes Movies carousel, and even includes LEGO figures and art on some of the films’ main iTunes pages, including for Man of Steel and Batman v. Superman. Those interested in the actual The LEGO Batman Movie can purchase the film in HD for $19.99, or opt for a two-movie bundle that includes the original The LEGO Movie for $24.99.

There are a handful of non-superhero movies with sale prices and a LEGO makeover on iTunes today as well, including The Wizard of Oz (HD $7.99), Gremlins (HD $7.99), The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (HD $7.99), The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (HD $7.99), and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 (HD $9.99). As with the superhero movies, all of these films have characters that make cameos of some kind within The LEGO Movie and The LEGO Batman Movie.

(Thanks, DJ Horton!)

Tags: LEGO, iTunes
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ElcomSoft Claims It’s Able to Recover Deleted iCloud Notes Well Past Apple’s 30-Day Window

Russian software company ElcomSoft today claimed in a blog post that iCloud notes marked as deleted are being stored on Apple’s servers well past the advertised 30-day period they are kept in the “Recently Deleted” folder.

ElcomSoft said it used an updated version of its Phone Breaker tool, version 6.5, to recover dozens of iCloud notes deleted more than a month ago. ElcomSoft said many of the notes were deleted a few weeks past the 30-day window, but in some cases, it was allegedly able to extract notes deleted “several months ago.”

When a user deletes a note in Apple’s Notes app, it’s moved to the “Recently Deleted” folder, which explicitly states that “notes are permanently deleted after 30 days.” Likewise, a support document on Apple’s website says users can view and recover notes for up to 30 days before they’re permanently deleted.

However, ElcomSoft CEO Vladimir Katalov said the oldest note it was able to retrieve was deleted around five years ago:

“We did it again,” says Vladimir Katalov, ElcomSoft CEO. “After recovering deleted photos and Safari browsing history from iCloud, we now add the ability to recover deleted notes from the same source regardless of how much time has passed after the deletion. The oldest record we’ve been able to pull was deleted back in 2012.”

In its blog post, ElcomSoft said it was able to extract 334 notes from an iPhone with only 288 notes stored on it, including those in the “Recently Deleted” folder. In other words, ElcomSoft claims it was able to recover 46 notes deleted more than 30 days ago, and that was only one example.

Nevertheless, ElcomSoft said that its ability to extract iCloud notes deleted more than 30 days ago is “not necessarily” guaranteed. “While some of our test accounts did indeed contain deleted notes going all the way back to 2015, some other accounts contained much less than that,” it explained.

ElcomSoft said its Phone Breaker tool is the only software it knows of that can be used to recover iCloud notes deleted more than 30 days ago. It also said the latest version of its Phone Viewer tool is needed to view them. The tools start at $79 each and appear to be compatible with both Mac and Windows.

To extract and view deleted notes, ElcomSoft says all someone has to do is launch Phone Breaker version 6.5 or newer, click “Download Synced Data from iCloud,” authenticate with an Apple ID and password or a binary authentication token, wait for the download to complete, and open the file in Phone Viewer.

ElcomSoft’s Phone Viewer tool appears to show recovered iCloud notes
ElcomSoft said “there is no doubt Apple will fix the current issue,” but it didn’t confirm if it has been in contact with the company. MacRumors has opted not to use the Phone Breaker tool out of an abundance of caution. Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment today.

Last year, ElcomSoft generated headlines when it claimed Apple “secretly” syncs Phone and FaceTime call history logs on iCloud, even with backups turned off. In a statement, Apple said it offers call history syncing “as a convenience to our customers so that they can return calls from any of their devices.”

In February, ElcomSoft also found that iCloud was allegedly storing deleted Safari browser history for a long period of time, ranging from several months to over a year. Forbes reported that Apple quietly “started purging older history records” once the news broke, but Apple never officially commented.

Tags: Notes, ElcomSoft
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TouchArcade iOS Gaming Roundup: Zelda, The Sims, Oceanhorn 2, and More

Hey everyone! I’m Eli Hodapp, and I serve as Editor in Chief over at MacRumors’ sister-site TouchArcade. If you haven’t heard of us before, we’re the largest iOS-exclusive gaming site out there. We post daily news, reviews, previews, and more, covering the latest and greatest in the world of mobile gaming. We regularly stream iOS games on Twitch, and we’ve got our own forums which are packed with iOS gamers and developers discussing both new and upcoming games. Also, if you’re into the whole Discord chat thing, we’ve got a great Discord server which is similarly packed with people talking about mobile gaming around the clock.

If you’re a podcast person, The TouchArcade Show is a weekly podcast we publish every Friday. iOS gaming is way more than Clash of Clans and Candy Crush, and through these weekly roundups we hopefully aim to keep you tuned in to the big news items of the week, as well as some great new games to check out. If any of this seems interesting you, I encourage you to get involved in the TouchArcade community by following any of the above links, as these new weekly roundups here at MacRumors are just a taster and there’s a lot more where this came from.

Noteworthy News

This week started off strong with some (very) early news on Monday morning surrounding rumors that Nintendo is planning a Zelda game for mobile. Both Super Mario Run and Fire Emblem Heroes have been incredibly popular, and with an Animal Crossing game on the way, it makes sense that Nintendo would continue to slowly bring their franchises to mobile.

This upcoming Zelda game will undoubtedly be free to play, and the internet seems to be split between thinking it will have a one-time unlock like Super Mario Run or whether it’ll have endless spending potential through randomized draws like Fire Emblem Heroes. Analysts speculate Fire Emblem Heroes has made significantly more than Super Mario Run, so if Nintendo is following the money, the question of mobile Zelda payment models may already be settled. Regardless, it’s possible more news surrounding iOS Zelda will be revealed at E3 which kicks off on June 14th.

Another big upcoming release to look forward to is Ubisoft’s Rocksmith which has soft launched in Canada. (It is common practice to release big games in limited regions, like Canada, before launching worldwide. This is known as a “soft launch.”) Rocksmith was first released on the XBOX 360 back in October 2011, and differed significantly from the explosion of other music and rhythm games at the time.

Unlike Guitar Hero or Rock Band which had you fiddling around with plastic instruments consisting of paddles, buttons, and pedals, Rocksmith had you plug in a real electric guitar and the game actually taught you how to play it – claiming to be able to do it in 60 days. The upcoming iOS version supports both electric guitars through various adapters as well as acoustic guitars using your iOS device’s microphone. Better yet, it’s totally free to download and try with (as of this writing) four songs included for free with more available via IAP. New “professionally curated and transcribed” songs will be available every week.

In other soft launch news, a brand new The Sims game called The Sims Mobile soft launched in Brazil. There’s been a Sims game on the App Store for a few years now titled The Sims Freeplay, which is a significantly trimmed down version of The Sims on the PC. The new The Sims Mobile, on the other hand, seems to be offering an experience that’s far closer to the depth experienced in a “real” Sims game.

Players will of course be able to create Sims and their homes, but this time around the game emphasizes stories you can create, with Sims that even eventually retire, unlocking careers and hobbies for future generations of Sims. Additionally, the new The Sims Mobile features a robust multiplayer component.

Holly molly! Just saw Death Road to Canada in Designated Survivor ep20! Congrats @rocketcatgames! pic.twitter.com/zR0dbuS3ZQ

— Kris Antoni (@kerissakti) May 14, 2017

Rocketcat Games’ Death Road to Canada is a masterpiece of a mobile game, and it seems the rest of the world is catching on. The game was briefly featured in Netflix’s Designated Survivor, season one episode twenty. It’s a fitting pairing, as in Death Road to Canada you’re a lone survivor inside of a zombie apocalypse doing everything you can to make it to Canada.

This isn’t the first time mobile games have been featured in Netflix series, as Agar.io was seen in season four of House of Cards, while Monument Valley made an appearance previously on the show. Someone high up at Netflix must really love mobile gaming for them to keep giving these subtle nods to incredible iOS titles.

The currently available Oceanhorn: Monster of Uncharted Seas is the closest thing you’ll find to a real-deal Zelda game on the App Store, at least until Nintendo releases its version. The original Oceanhorn was incredibly popular and well received, and anticipation surrounding the release of Oceanhorn 2: Knights of the Lost Realm couldn’t be higher. The game was shown at the Nordic Game event in Malmö, Sweden, and we’ll be following news of this game very closely as it approaches the end of its development.

As far as games you can actually download and play now are concerned, this was a great week for releases. The best places to look when finding new iOS games to download is our hot games listing as well as our latest reviews. Most recently, the artistic adventure game Old Man’s Journey knocked our socks off. In the game, you interact with the environment to solve puzzles and help an old man on his way. The story of the game had a profound effect on us.

Also, while the mash-up might seem crazy, I promise Arkanoid vs Space Invaders totally makes sense once you start playing it. In a nutshell, you use an Arkanoid-like paddle to deflect incoming enemy fire from 150 levels of different Space Invader enemy waves. There are multiple characters to unlock, boss battles, and a super-difficult hard mode as well.

On the subject of interesting spins on classic arcade games, No Stick Shooter takes the basic idea of Missile Command and cranks it up to 11 with unbelievably frantic gameplay. Players balance multiple different weapons to defend against seemingly endless arrays of different enemies.

Last, but not least, (and a little old compared to these other three games but still worth mentioning) is Spaceplan. With a pace that is the complete opposite of No Stick Shooter, Spaceplan is one of the most innovative clickers we’ve ever played as it takes some totally unexpected turns, and features an amazing story that reminded us a lot of the book/movie The Martian. A prototype of Spaceplan is playable in your browser, but the mobile version of the game is much, much better.

That’s all from me, so stay tuned for next week’s iOS gaming roundup here on MacRumors, or for all this and much (much) more, come on over to TouchArcade!

Tag: TouchArcade gaming roundup
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These digital filters will add instant pizzazz to your aerial drone shots

Why it matters to you

Enhancing color in aerial video is time consuming, but these new presets make quick work of the process.

PolarPro, the company that boosts aerial drone video with custom-sized filters, is now developing filters for after the shot, too. On Thursday, May 18, PolarPro announced Aurora, a set of cinematic color presets designed for drone videography.

The software is designed to enhance D-Log video (the videographer’s equivalent to a RAW photo) by taking advantage of the file format’s wider dynamic range while helping users quickly enhance the color in the footage. The 12 cinematic color presets have two variations, one designed specifically for the camera profile on the DJI Mavic Pro and another for the Phantom Pro 4, with additional versions for more drone cameras expected to launch in the future. The presets are compatible with a number of editing programs, including Adobe Premier, After Effects, and Photoshop, as well as Final Cut X (with an additional plug-in) and DaVinci Resolve.

The presets offer a range of different color enhancements, with several including variations for warm, cool, and neutral colors. The Elektra preset adds a pop of color while Purity sticks with more natural color enhancement. Deep adds saturation and darker blacks and shadows while the Classic preset is designed for a Hollywood look with more pastel colors. Morpheus and Knight create their styles by pushing the greens and blues to enhance the video’s mood.

All of the presets are designed to enhance D-log, which offers aerial photographers a wider dynamic range but flat color profiles that require editing. Using the camera’s built-in color profile narrows the camera’s light capturing capabilities down to eight stops, PolarPro explained, while shooting in D-log has no color profile but a 12-stop dynamic range for more detail in the lightest and darkest areas and more control over the editing process. The new presets are designed to take advantage of the D-log format but helps minimize the required editing by quickly re-calibrating those colors.

The cinematic color presets sell for $30, with versions for the Mavic Pro and Phantom 4 Pro.