T-Mobile Now Offers Unlimited Talk, Text and 4G LTE Data in Canada and Mexico at No Additional Charge [iOS Blog]
T-Mobile has announced a new “Un-carrier” move called “Mobile Without Borders” that enables customers with Simple Choice postpaid and prepaid plans to send and receive unlimited phone calls, text messages and use 4G LTE data in Canada and Mexico at no additional cost. The extended three-country plan will be available starting July 15 in select Canadian and Mexican markets.
T-Mobile customers with Simple Choice plans will be able to make unlimited calls to and from the United States to any number, including landlines and mobile phones, in Mexico and Canada, alongside unlimited text messaging and the full monthly allotment of 4G LTE data they would normally have in the U.S. at no extra charge. Music Freedom is included while roaming in Canada or Mexico.
Canadian and Mexican residents looking to take advantage of this T-Mobile promotion are out of luck, as Simple Choice customers must reside in the U.S. and primary usage must occur on T-Mobile’s network in the U.S. The carrier also warns that Simple Choice plans are not intended for extended international usage. Data Stash will be available for use while in Canada or Mexico later this year.
Coverage in Canada includes Banff National Park, Bay of Fundy, Brampton, Burnaby, Calgary, Edmonton, Gatineau, Halifax, Hamilton, Kitchener, Laval, London, Longueuil, Markham, Mississauga, Montreal, Niagara Falls, Ottawa, Quebec City, Regina, Richmond, Saskatoon, St Johns, Surrey, Toronto, Vancouver, Vaughan, Victoria, Whistler, Windsor and Winnipeg. Coverage in Mexico includes 117 markets.
Starting next Wednesday, customers that sign up for a new Simple Choice postpaid or prepaid plan will automatically be enrolled in the Mobile Without Borders program. Existing Simple Choice customers can opt-in online, by phone or at a T-Mobile store for free. T-Mobile customers on promotional or legacy plans can add Mobile Without Borders for $10 per month. Mobile Without Borders business plans are also available.
Serif’s Image Editing App ‘Affinity Photo’ Launches for Mac [Mac Blog]
Professional image editing app Affinity Photo, created by the same team that’s behind the award-winning Affinity Designer app, is today launching in the Mac App Store. Affinity Photo is designed to allow photographers to enhance, edit, and retouch images and is the culmination of five years of work.
The app includes a huge range of photo editing tools for everything from minor manipulations to drastic edits that alter shapes and remove objects from images. It’s been in beta testing since February and has been updated with features and improvements that beta testers have requested.
As an app oriented at professionals, Affinity Photo includes features like lens and exposure corrections, live filter layers, controls for channels and masks, advanced layer handling, RAW support, 16-bit channel editing, ICC color management, detailed EXIF info, Photoshop PSD import and export, and frequency separation editing that separates color from texture for retouching skin. According to Affinity Photo‘s developers, the speed at which it completes tasks and the app’s ability to show edits in real time are the most notable features to be aware of.
“The performance of the product is what we are most proud of,” said Tony Brightman, head of Affinity development. “We take full advantage of all the latest Apple technologies like OpenGL, Grand Central Dispatch and Core Graphics. What this means to the user is whether it’s a 100 megapixel image or a complex composition with 1000s of layers, you can still pan and zoom at 60fps and see live views of all adjustments, brushes, blend modes and filters with no compromise. It’s this speed and depth of features which really makes Affinity Photo a joy to use, and sets it apart from anything else out there.”
Affinity Photo also includes specific task-focused workspaces for developing, post-processing, liquify, and export, plus it has customizable toolbars with drag and drop panels. It offers vector drawing and text editing tools, an advanced brush engine with custom brush options, unlimited layers, a snapping system with pixel alignment, and an undo history for undoing changes.
For retouching and making corrections to photos, there’s an Inpainting brush for removing unwanted objects, a selection brush for selecting detailed elements in an image, a tool for removing blemishes and red eye, single-plane and dual-pane perspective correction, and a Liquify tool for manipulating images with warps, pinches, twirls, and more. There are also quite a few effects for adding features like tilt-shift, shadows, glow, blurs, and distortions.
In addition to taking advantage of features like OpenGL and Core Graphics, Affinity Photo is compatible with Macs that have a Force Touch trackpad, enabling pressure sensitivity. It supports Retina displays, is fully optimized for 64-bit and multi-core processors, and includes iCloud Drive support.
To celebrate its launch, Affinity Photo is available from the Mac App Store for $39.99 until July 23. After that time, the price will increase to $49.99.
Samsung may be #1 in the USA, but they are still losing!
Despite Samsung’s recent onslaught of bad fortune, the latest smartphone data from Kantar Worldpanel ComTech puts the popular phone maker back in the #1 spot in the USA. This is good news for Sammy, as they have finally taken back the crown they once held so dearly. The sad news is that chances are no one is celebrating in Samsung’s Korean head quarters. Even though Samsung is winning, they are still losing!
The report states the Android operating system continues to grow its market share when taking a look at the three months of the year ending in May 2015. Android now holds 64.9% of the US smartphone market, showing a 2.8% increase over last year. The real question is whether this is, in large, thanks to Samsung or not.
The Galaxy phone maker is reported to have regained the market lead in the US with an increase from 52% (3 months ending in April) to 55% (three months ending in May). This means they were able to retake 3% of the market in just one month, mostly thanks to the Samsung Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge. The Galaxy S6 went on to become one of the best-selling smartphones in the US after the iPhone 6 and Samsung Galaxy S5.
How is Samsung losing?
Here’s where things get interesting: Samsung also improved their year-over-year statistics, with market share only down by 0.5%, as opposed to 2014’s 1.6% during the same period of time. According to these numbers, Samsung is still losing sales… they are just losing them slower.
Regardless, these changes don’t seem significant enough to place Samsung in a victorious state. A big factor is that Apple is beginning to lose sales as the iPhone 6 hype starts to die down. Meanwhile, Samsung’s flagship device is brand new and should probably be doing much better. The real numbers will come once we compare both devices’ statistics on equal terms. Keep in mind the Galaxy S6 is still the third most sold smartphone in the USA, not the first.
It could be argued that Apple numbers are going down thanks to Samsung’s awesome smartphones, which offer an improved build quality, stunning design, an insane camera and top-notch performance. The phone is a beast, but we can’t give Samsung all the credit for taking down Apple; LG has managed to nearly double its market share year-over-year, which is helping the cause. Now that is an impressive statistic!
Not to mention, Samsung continues to report more quarterly profit drops, with Q2 2015 expected to be the 7th in a row (wow!) Not even their best smartphone ever was able to take them out of this whole they are digging themselves into.
Why is this? These matters are complex and no one can give you a straight explanation as to why Samsung keeps spiraling down. Some say it has to do with Samsung’s supply not being able to meet customer demand. That may be a factor, but we also have to consider Samsung’s phones haven’t exactly been meeting consumer expectations either.
Previous Galaxy smartphones performed great, but the build quality was horrendous. Samsung went back to the drawing board after realizing a change was due. They wanted to improve their strategy and create a Galaxy S6 worthy of consumer envy. This thing had to be powerful and well-built, and they sure accomplished it. The Samsung Galaxy S6 really is amazing in many ways, but it’s still not the hero Samsung was looking for, nor the one we deserved.
I believe Samsung is still trying way too hard to compete with Apple, as opposed to placing more attention on what their customers want. One of the main reasons why Samsung critics stuck to Galaxy phones was that these devices continued to support expandable storage and removable batteries. It was what differentiated them, yet the Samsung Galaxy S6 got rid of both features. And chances are the Samsung Galaxy Note 5 will do the same.
There are good arguments to the exclusion of these, something we make sure to mention in our opinion piece regarding the Note 5’s lack of microSD support. My gripe with this whole issue is more about the lack of a removable battery. Have you used a Samsung Galaxy S6? Its battery life is disgusting! The thing seriously won’t last me half a day. And now I can’t even swap batteries when one dies? One day I said “forget this” and just stopped using it.
If Samsung was going to improve the build quality by sacrificing battery life (or the removable battery), we would have liked it to be a sizable battery, at least. This is why so many are finding refuge in LG’s latest smartphone, the G4. It offers a huge removable battery, great performance and a design that is also amazing. In a different way, but it’s amazing.
The real question is whether the Galaxy S6 will continue to sell as well as it has. And if all my beliefs on Samsung’s decline are right, the Samsung Galaxy Note 5 won’t really help much, as the latest rumors suggest the it will pretty much be a larger Galaxy S6 with a stylus.
Like I said above… Samsung may be #1, but they are still losing. Their numbers are still going down, their new devices have flaws they don’t plan on changing and the awesome improvements pale against the sacrifices Samsung had to take. But tell us, guys. Would you agree with me that Samsung made some bad decisions? What factors would you credit their decline to? Sound off in the comments and let us know whether you agree or disagree with me.
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Spotify tells iOS users how to avoid iTunes charges and pay less
Spotify isn’t happy that its iOS customers have to pay an additional $3 for a premium subscription if they make the purchase through the App Store. That’s why it’s planning to send them instructions on how to apply for a subscription straight from the company’s website. The Verge got its hands on a copy of the letter, wherein Spotify made clear that “the normal Premium price is only $9.99, but Apple charges 30 percent on all payments made through iTunes.” That ups the total to $12.99, which is only $2 away from Apple Music’s six-person family plan. That email, if you haven’t gotten it yet, contains links that make it easy to cancel Spotify’s auto-renew on iTunes and redirect you to the service’s website. You’ll have to wait until your current month ends before you can subscribe again, but after you do, you won’t have to pay $12.99 again.
As Bloomberg notes, Apple doesn’t allow links within apps that allow people to make purchases from external websites. That’s likely what prompted the streaming service to decide on sending an email blast instead of adding a PSA inside the app. The publication also points out that Apple only adds $$$ on top of goods or services if it doesn’t have a competing product. For instance, you apparently don’t have to pay extra if you buy a plane ticket through United Airlines’ iPhone app. Since Cupertino’s new Music streaming service has a lot of competitors in addition to Spotify, it’s facing antitrust investigations in a couple of states.
[Image credit: AFP/Getty Images]
Filed under: Misc, Mobile, Apple
Via: Bloomberg
Source: The Verge
Spotify tells iOS users how to avoid iTunes charges and pay less
Spotify isn’t happy that its iOS customers have to pay an additional $3 for a premium subscription if they make the purchase through the App Store. That’s why it’s planning to send them instructions on how to apply for a subscription straight from the company’s website. The Verge got its hands on a copy of the letter, wherein Spotify made clear that “the normal Premium price is only $9.99, but Apple charges 30 percent on all payments made through iTunes.” That ups the total to $12.99, which is only $2 away from Apple Music’s six-person family plan. That email, if you haven’t gotten it yet, contains links that make it easy to cancel Spotify’s auto-renew on iTunes and redirect you to the service’s website. You’ll have to wait until your current month ends before you can subscribe again, but after you do, you won’t have to pay $12.99 again.
As Bloomberg notes, Apple doesn’t allow links within apps that allow people to make purchases from external websites. That’s likely what prompted the streaming service to decide on sending an email blast instead of adding a PSA inside the app. The publication also points out that Apple only adds $$$ on top of goods or services if it doesn’t have a competing product. For instance, you apparently don’t have to pay extra if you buy a plane ticket through United Airlines’ iPhone app. Since Cupertino’s new Music streaming service has a lot of competitors in addition to Spotify, it’s facing antitrust investigations in a couple of states.
[Image credit: AFP/Getty Images]
Filed under: Misc, Mobile, Apple
Via: Bloomberg
Source: The Verge
iPhone encryption has locked out Manhattan cops just 74 times
You’ll frequently hear law enforcement complain that it can’t break the full-drive encryption in newer smartphone operating systems, but how often does the police run into that problem, really? Thanks to a US Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, you now have a better idea. The Manhattan District Attorney’s office has revealed that, out of the 92 cases where an iPhone with iOS 8 has been involved so far, the cops have been locked out 74 times. District Attorney Cyrus Vance portrays this as proof that officers need backdoors or other forms of guaranteed access, noting that there’s at least one case (in Illinois) where evidence from a victim’s iPhone led to a conviction. Police shouldn’t simply be told that there’s “nothing [they] can do,” he says.
Context is everything, however, and this isn’t quite as dire a situation as Vance made it out to be. The Manhattan DA typically handles 100,000 cases a year — 0.07 percent is a drop in the bucket. Moreover, there’s no records showing whether or not the encryption actually stopped the investigation cold. It’s possible that the security merely forced officers to rely on other forms of evidence. While there’s still a concern that clever criminals will take advantage of encryption, there’s also no data showing that there would be enough arrests to justify the reduced privacy.
[Image credit: Shutterstock]
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Apple
Source: Wired
Engadget’s new buyer’s guide picks: LG’s G4 and a ton of audio gear
It’s been almost two months since we’ve updated our various buyer’s guides, but we’ve made up for lost time by adding a dozen new picks. Most of those are in our portable audio category, with nearly everything replaced with something newer (or better). We’ve rounded out our other categories too, though, with the LG G4 ranking as one of our new favorite phones, and the Fitbit Charge and LG Watch Urbane getting nods in the wearables section. Those are some of the more notable additions, but feel free to poke around — and stay tuned to see what we add next month.
Filed under: Cellphones, Portable Audio/Video, Wearables, Apple, Samsung, Microsoft, LG
Source: Engadget Buyer’s Guide
Apple Introduces Revamped Two-Factor Authentication for iOS 9 and OS X El Capitan
With the third betas of iOS 9 and OS X 10.11 El Capitan, Apple is introducing a revamped two-factor authentication system, according to both the beta release notes and a detailed support FAQ that outlines the changes.
The new two-factor authentication system is different from Apple’s existing two-step verification system, using “different methods” to trust devices and deliver verification codes. Apple also says it includes a “more streamlined user experience.”
Based on the support document, the new two-factor authentication system works similarly to the existing two-step verification system. Any device that you sign into using two-factor authentication in iOS 9 or El Capitan becomes a trusted device that can be used to verify identify when signing into other devices or services linked to an Apple ID.
Apple recommends that iOS 9 and OS X El Capitan beta testers using the new two-factor authentication system update all of their devices to iOS 9 or El Capitan for “the best experience.” As outlined in the release notes, customers who use two-factor authentication with older devices may be required to use a six-digit verification code at the end of a password instead of in a dedicated verification field.
If you enable two-factor authentication, iTunes purchases on Mac and Windows will require you to append a 6-digit code to the end of your password on every purchase. The 6-digit code will automatically be sent to your iOS 9 or OS X El Capitan devices.
Older devices are also not able to receive two-factor authentication codes when used with devices running iOS 9 and El Capitan, but customers who stick with the older two-step verification system should not run into any issues as Apple tests the newer two-factor authentication system. Apple does not recommend that customers using two-step verification swap over to two-factor authentication until the feature is available to all.
First introduced in March of 2013, two-factor verification is an opt-in system that increases the security of Apple ID accounts. Since its debut, Apple has been woking to expand two-factor authentication to cover several different services like iCloud, iMessage, and FaceTime.
It is not entirely clear what other changes the new two-factor authentication system brings to iOS and Mac devices, but the switch to a new system may allow Apple to further extend the functionality of two-factor authentication in the future.
iOS 9 and OS X El Capitan Public Betas Coming Soon
With the third betas of iOS 9 and OS X El Capitan, Apple introduced a new two-factor authentication system. A support document accompanying the feature explicitly mentions that it’s designed for “the public betas of iOS 9 and OS X El Capitan,” suggesting public beta access to the operating systems is coming soon.
When Apple introduced iOS 9 and OS X 10.11 El Capitan at its Worldwide Developers Conference, the company promised that a public beta would be available beginning in July, so customers who are enrolled in Apple’s public beta testing programs may not have much longer to wait to get access to the new software.
It is not clear exactly when the public beta will be seeded to customers, but the wording in the support document suggests beta testers will be receiving access to the same third betas of iOS 9 and OS X 10.11 that were seeded to developers this morning.
Public beta tests for major software releases are a relatively new feature from Apple, introduced for OS X with OS X Yosemite last year and iOS with the release of iOS 8.3 in March of 2015. iOS and Mac users can sign up for Apple’s Beta Software Program on the company’s dedicated beta testing site.
iOS 9 Beta 3 Tidbits: 4×4 Folders on iPad, Screenshot and Selfie Folder, News App, and More
Apple today released the third beta of iOS 9, which has turned out to be the biggest update to the operating system so far. It adds a revamped Music app with access to Apple Music, the News app that was first unveiled at WWDC, a new two-factor authentication system, and several other smaller tweaks, along with the traditional performance improvements and bug fixes.
With today’s changes, the beta is feeling faster, more polished, and more full featured. For beta testers and those eager to know what’s coming in the OS ahead of its official release, we’ve rounded up a complete list of all of the new changes introduced in iOS 9 beta 3 below.
News app – Today’s beta is the first iOS 9 beta to include Apple’s new News app, first announced at WWDC. The news app offers up a curated list of news stories based on each user’s preferences and interests. The News app appears to be available only to U.S. users for the time being.
Two-Factor Authentication – iOS 9 and OS X 10.11 El Capitan include an entirely revamped two-factor authentication system that Apple says is more streamlined.
App folders on iPad – App folders on the iPad now display apps in a 4×4 arrangement instead of a 3×3 arrangement, allowing users to see more apps in a folder at a glance.
Photo app folders – There are new folders for selfies and screenshots in the Photos app, where face shots and screenshots are aggregated.
Music app – The Music app in iOS 9 has been updated, giving beta testers access to Apple Music, Beats 1 radio, and Apple Connect.
Music settings – There’s a new option in the Settings app under “Music” to stream music at the highest quality while using a cellular connection.
Additional feature updates in iOS 9 beta 3 will be added here as they are discovered. Apple should continue to release regular updates to iOS 9 at two to three week intervals throughout the beta testing period to bring minor performance boosts and changes ahead of the operating system’s official launch. iOS 9 is expected to be released to the public in the fall, but a public beta test will come first and is expected in the near future.
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