Apple to Promote iOS Games With New Dedicated Twitter Account
Apple today expanded its presence on social networking site Twitter, creating a new Twitter account dedicated to sharing App Store games. According to the account bio, which features the tagline, “Embrace the future of gaming,” it’s run by Apple’s team of Games Editors.
Apple has long had an App Store Twitter account that frequently shares new and popular games, but it also shares standard apps, creating a feed that’s somewhat unfocused. Apple appears to have made the decision to distinguish and promote games separately from non-gaming apps going forward, in an effort to streamline each account and give both games and regular apps more attention.
Games have been a cornerstone of the App Store since it first launched, and Apple makes an effort to highlight different game compilations and editor’s picks on a weekly basis, in addition to offering frequent sales and detailed gaming categories.
Tap. Tap. Hello, world. pic.twitter.com/zp9yT0PLpF
— App Store Games (@AppStoreGames) September 3, 2015
http://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
It is not clear why Apple has chosen today to create a new Twitter account for gaming as gaming on iOS has been highly popular for several years, but it could be related to the fact that the App Store is set to expand to a new device in the very near future, the Apple TV. Launching next week, the new Apple TV will include a full App Store and a motion-enabled remote control able to be used for gaming purposes.
Thus far, the App Store Games account has only tweeted once, but following a retweet from the main App Store account, it’s already at more than a thousand followers in just a half hour.
Apple Focused on Improving Apple Music Ahead of Android Launch
Just over two months after the launch of Apple Music, the streaming music service has received a mix of praise and criticism from early adopters. Beats 1 and curated playlists are among the most acclaimed features of Apple Music, while a confusing user interface and iTunes library issues have caused frustration among some users.
Addressing those issues, iTunes executive Oliver Schusser told The Guardian on Thursday that the company is actively working to improve Apple Music, ahead of its launch on Android and Sonos-connected hi-fi systems in the fall.
“There’s a lot of work going into making the product better. Our focus is on editorial and playlists, and obviously we have teams all around the world working on that, but we’re also adding features and cleaning up certain things,” Oliver Schusser, vice president, iTunes International, told the Guardian.
Schusser also said Apple still has “a bit of homework to be done” to improve Apple Music Connect, a social platform for artists to connect with fans. Beats co-founder Jimmy Iovine admitted last month that Apple Music Connect is a work in progress.
“Apple Music Connect is growing big-time with more and more artists connecting to their fans, but we still have a bit of homework to be done for the rest of the year.”
Apple Music launched for iOS, Mac and PC on June 30, with some 11 million users signing up to take advantage of the service’s free three-month trial period. That trial will expire for some users soon, meaning they will have to choose between paying $9.99 per month or using iTunes or other methods of listening to music.
“If you follow the industry and look at the numbers, the download business has been really, really healthy. iTunes is a big part of our business, still, and will continue to be, so we focus just as much time and energy on maintaining that, editorially and working on features,” said Schusser.
Schusser assures that Apple is only interested in the long-term picture for Apple Music, rather than constantly measuring how many users are signing up. Starting later this month, it should become clearer just how many users are interested in using the service as paid subscribers.
‘Steve Jobs’ to Premiere at Telluride Film Festival This Weekend Ahead of October Release
Although it was believed that Danny Boyle’s Steve Jobs film would see its world debut as the Centerpiece for the New York Film Festival on October 3, today it was announced that the new movie is actually set to debut this weekend at the 42nd Annual Telluride Film Festival in Colorado (via Entertainment Weekly).
Scheduled around the Labor Day weekend, there is no date set for the premiere of Steve Jobs as of yet, but the festival runs from September 4 through September 7, so it will air for festival attendees sometime this weekend. Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak is also headed to the festival.
“We are thrilled to present such an exhilarating, diverse program for the 42nd Telluride Film Festival,” said executive director Julie Huntsinger. “This year was an abundance of riches, particularly within the documentary category, and we feel privileged to celebrate these films and their artists with our audience in one of the most beautiful locations in the world.”
It was also announced that director Danny Boyle would receive one of the 2015 Silver Medallion Awards, which are “given to recognize an artist’s significant contribution to the world of cinema.” Although the caliber of talent behind the scenes is impressive, there have of course been little to no rumblings as to how the Aaron Sorkin-penned version of the former Apple CEO will compare with 2011’s jOBS. With the premiere set to happen sometime this weekend at Telluride, that could begin to change as word of the movie begins to come out of the festival screenings.
‘6S Marketing’ Ad Agency Asks Apple to Rename ‘iPhone 6s’
6S Marketing, an ad agency located in New York, is hoping to persuade Apple to change the name of its upcoming iOS device, the iPhone 6s, to the iPhone 7. The company has written an open letter addressed to Apple and rented several billboards, one in Times Square, reading “Dear Universe, Please call it the iPhone 7. Sincerely, 6S Marketing.”
6S Marketing has also tagged its billboards with a campaign hashtag, #WeAre6S, which it says it uses to “highlight our unique and fun company culture.”
In the letter posted on its website, 6S Marketing goes on to say the company has heard rumors the next-generation iPhone will be called the iPhone 6s, and urges Apple to “reconsider” before detailing the company’s long history.
See, our company name is 6S Marketing, but our clients, friends, and colleagues simply refer to us as good ol’ “6S.” It’s a small name but a big part of our identity — one we’ve been using since 2000, when we started this company in my tiny apartment. At that time, we didn’t think that one of the biggest, and most well-respected, companies would use it to name a mobile device. (We were still using Motorola flip phones at the time, after all.)
The reason we chose the name “6S” is that it sound like “success” (get it?).
As we’re now less than a week away from the unveiling of the next-generation iPhone 6s and 6s Plus, there would be no time for Apple to change its own marketing materials and packaging even should it choose to consider 6S Marketing’s plea, a fact the company likely knows, making this more of a publicity stunt than a genuine request.
Apple’s iPhone naming scheme has been the same for multiple years in a row, having kicked off with the iPhone 3GS. 6S Marketing’s publication of its letter at this late date in Apple’s development cycle suggests the company is simply hoping to garner some attention ahead of the September 9 introduction of the next-generation iPhone.
6S Marketing ends its open letter with the following: “Hopefully, this message will reach you in time and you’ll reconsider leaving “6S” to the originals — we’ve been rocking it since the millennium, after all.”
Skype Updates iOS and Android Apps With New Design, Improved Messaging, and Enhanced Search
Skype today announced a new update for both its iOS and Android mobile apps that introduce a new design experience, a few tweaks to the service’s messaging functions, and some enhanced search functionality. The new update, version 6.0, promises to be a “simple, familiar” experience for Skype users, but with a bevy of new features and touch inputs that will help the service’s users get in and out of conversations with more ease.
The company has introduced swipe gestures to do just that, letting users quickly start calls and manage message threads with quick and easy right and left swipes. The message feature as a whole has been bolstered, with easier access to sharing photos, links, emoticons, and even location status while also on a video or voice call. Along with enhanced search and improvements to the iPad app, version 6.0 aims to be the most robust iOS Skype experience yet.
Here is what’s new:
Redesigned for iPhone and iPad – We’ve redesigned Skype for both iPhone and iPad to make the apps easier to use than ever before. The new navigation is simple, familiar and gets you to your conversations fast. With Skype 6.0 you can use swipe gestures to quickly make calls and easily manage your messages. We have also made it easier to share photos, web links, emoticons and your location while you’re on a voice or video call.
Enhanced search – We’ve made it easier to find things in Skype. Simply use the new recents tab to search your messages and find contacts and groups.
The features you love, now on iPad – All the features you love on Skype for iPhone are on your iPad too. We’ve made messaging on Skype for iPad a whole lot better – you can share your location, send large emoticons, see web link previews and easily send and receive photos. Skype for iPad also helps you stay in touch with your groups – now start a group chat or a group voice call straight from your iPad.
Skype for Android sees a handful of the same featured updates in its own overhaul, but has a few exclusive features — like an ever-present “floating action button” to instantly start a call from anywhere in the app — that Android users can check out here. For everyone else, the Skype for iPhone [Direct Link] and Skype for iPad [Direct Link] apps are available to download from the App Store for free.
Griffin Expands Survivor Lineup With Two New iPhone 6 and 6 Plus Cases
Griffin today announced an expansion of its popular Survivor case lineup for the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, introducing the new Survivor Summit and the Survivor Journey. Like its existing Survivor cases, both the Summit and the Journey offer military grade protection for Apple’s iPhones.
The Survivor Summit is Griffin’s most protective Survivor case yet, featuring a sealed weatherproof design that’s resistant to dust, rain, mud, and snow. It includes a screen shield that both serves as a stand and protects the touchscreen and home button from grime.
With rubber bumpers and a built-in impact resistance system that suspends and cushions the iPhone within the case, the Summit can survive 10-foot drops onto concrete. According to Griffin, despite the high level of protection, the Summit is “slim enough to easily slide into pockets.”
The Survivor Journey is not as protective as the Survivor Summit, but it’s thinner and sleeker. Described by Griffin as “ultra-thin, ultra-tough,” the Journey is a one piece snap-on shell that deflects and absorbs impacts to survive a 6.6 foot drop onto concrete.
The Journey includes Griffin’s “Impact Dispersion System” that includes multiple layers, housing the iPhone inside a rigid, shatterproof shell coated in a material that’s easy to grip.
Survivor Summit and Journey take our best-selling case line to a whole new level with sleek, slim designs that continue to offer the extreme protection users have grown to love from our Survivor cases,” said Aaron Jones, Survivor Category Manager at Griffin Technology.
The Survivor Summit is available from Griffin.com in black/blue, black/clear, black, and pink/gray. It’s priced at $49.99 for the iPhone 6 and $59.99 for the iPhone 6 Plus.
The Survivor Journey is available from Griffin.com in black/blue, black/white, black/gray, and pink/gray. It’s priced at $29.99 for the iPhone 6 and $39.99 for the iPhone 6 Plus.
KGI Expects New iPhones to Have 5MP Front Camera, Retain 16GB, 64GB and 128GB Capacities
KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has issued a note to investors that claims the so-called “iPhone 6s” will be offered in 16GB, 64GB and 128GB storage capacities, the same sizes available for the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus.
Kuo also claims the iPhone 6s will have an improved front-facing FaceTime camera with a 5-megapixel sensor, and reaffirms three much-rumored features: Force Touch, a new rose gold casing color and an upgraded Touch ID fingerprint scanner.
Kuo’s prediction corroborates multiple rumors that claim Apple will retain 16GB, 64GB and 128GB storage sizes for the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus, which are expected to be announced at the company’s September 9th media event in San Francisco.
Kuo says the iPhone 6s entered mass production in mid-August after some manufacturing bottlenecks due to Force Touch, casing and vibration motors.
Apple Sells Over 1 Million Apple Watches in China, Increases ‘iPhone 6s’ Orders Ahead of Launch
Apple is believed to have sold over over 1.07 million Apple Watches in China, according to data analysis company TalkingData (via Business Insider). The company uses a monitoring platform supported by over 80,000 mobile apps — including the country’s most popular app WeChat, with over 1 billion registered users — to receive its data.
Many remain curious as to how many Apple Watches the company has sold specifically, but Apple continues to remain firm on not assigning a tangible number to the sales figures of its new wearable device. After a few weeks of speculation, in July CEO Tim Cook gave the closest hint to the success of the Apple Watch, stating that its sales had “exceeded expectations” at the company.
Also of note today is a new report from Japan Display Inc. CEO Mitsuru Homma, who stated that the display manufacturer’s “biggest client” is ramping up orders ahead of an upcoming launch for the unnamed company’s newest smartphone (via Reuters). JPI has been known to work with Apple in the past, and was reported earlier in the year to be seeking a partnership with the Cupertino company in becoming its go-to manufacturer for iPhone screens with a $1.7 billion display plant.
Mitsuru Homma, who was appointed CEO in June, said weakness in China’s smartphone market, the world’s biggest, amid that country’s broader economic slowdown was not affecting the orders for display screens it was getting from its top client.
“They’re coming to us with more orders, saying ‘give us more, give us more’. They keep increasing,” he told Reuters in an interview.
Homma fielded questions about “difficult technology” causing production stalls in the manufacturing process — most likely this year’s inclusion of Force Touch — but he still believes that “ramp-up is going well.” The big reveal of the “iPhone 6s” and “iPhone 6s Plus” is just under a week away on September 9. The latest rumors point to a slightly thicker and larger “S” generation device, with the possibility of Apple Watch-like motion wallpapers and a slightly overhauled iOS thanks to the addition of Force Touch.
Airbnb’s Apple Watch app focuses on putting hosts and guests in touch
The last year or so has seen Airbnb put a major focus behind design, from its company logo and identity to new apps for phones and tablets. Now, it’s putting its attention towards a new platform: wearables. Starting today, the iOS Airbnb app is compatible with the Apple Watch. Fortunately, Airbnb put a lot of thought into what features would make the most sense living on your wrist rather than try and cram the entire experience onto the smallest screen in your life. To that end, the first iteration of Airbnb’s Watch app will focus primarily on messaging, so hosts and guests can stay in touch quickly.
Airbnb went through numerous tests of the Watch’s capabilities to decide what made the most sense for its app, and told us that enabling hosts quickly respond to booking inquiries and questions was one of the most important things it thought it could do. When you receive a message, you’ll get a notification on your watch that you can respond to using your voice or one of the pre-written responses, just like Apple’s own messaging app. The coolest thing Airbnb is doing here, however, is that it lets you write your own pre-selected responses. So if you’re tired of guests pinging you for your WiFi password, you can set up a response with that info and have it always at the ready for a quick reply. You’ll have the same features at your disposal if you’re traveling, but we figure that hosts will probably be more likely to benefit from the fast interactions the Watch offers.
Similarly, hosts will have the ability to respond to booking inquiries from their wrists. When an Airbnb user submits their request, you’ll see all the details in the notification, including your guest’s name, the dates they want to stay and their full message. You can accept right then or send a message back if you’re not ready to confirm the booking. On the guest’s side, you’ll get a notification when your booking request is accepted.
That’s about all the app can do, and that’s probably for the best. If you open the app without a notification prompting you, you’ll just get an overview of your messaging box; you can look at the conversation thread and respond if you’re so inclined. Otherwise, it’s pretty bare bones — there’s just no reason to use such a tiny screen to do things like search for listings or do more detailed management of your upcoming reservations. That’s all stuff better suited to a bigger screen. That said, we feel like the “canned” responses that Airbnb are including in the Watch app could be just as useful in the full-sized iPhone version — but as of today, that app is unchanged. Hopefully the next update will change that; for now you can go grab the Apple Watch version of Airbnb in the App Store today.
Tags: airbnb, airbnbapp, apple, applewatch, booking, messaging, travel
Why the ants in this video kept crawling around an iPhone
Okay, what we’re seeing here (probably) isn’t a bizarre ant ritual passed down from generation to generation, hailing the iPhone as their new queen and overlord. The video’s description on YouTube claims the insects acted that way, because they were affected by the “electromagnetic wave of an incoming call.” University of New England associate professor Nigel Andrew agrees: “[They] have magnetic receptors in their antennae. If they’re travelling long distances they use magnetic cues from the earth to know if they are going north, east, south or west.”
However, Simon Robson (a social insect researcher) says ants are prone to crawling around in circles even without a gadget in the middle. Plus, it could be the result of losing the pheromone trail they need to follow the rest of the group. That’s just the way their species are wired, so we might merely be seeing ants being ants doing an ant-y thing. Whatever the real reason is, you can watch the insects worship swirl around the device below.
Filed under:
Misc, Mobile, Apple
Via:
Yahoo
Tags: ants, apple, iphone, mobilepostcross, mysteriousantritual
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