Google apologizes for crude Apple image in Google Maps
By now you’ve probably seen that sneaky little surprise in Google maps of an Android pissing on an Apple logo. We all sort of figured Google didn’t have anything to do with it, (not intentionally, anyway) but they’ve publicly come out and apologized for the gag, anyway.
The image ended up in the service thanks to Map Maker, which allows users to upload information about their local areas so Google wouldn’t have to do all of the heavy lifting. The edits are supposed to be reviewed and moderated before getting published, but it looks like Google got a little lazy this time around.
Either way, the joke might be worth a chuckle, especially if you’re on the Android side of the fence, but it’s still a little immature and Google is working on getting it taken down as quickly as possible, as they should. I bet they’ll be stepping up their Map Maker moderation team after this, too.
source: Washington Post
Come comment on this article: Google apologizes for crude Apple image in Google Maps
How to Get Your Apple Watch Up and Running [iOS Blog]
If you are one of the lucky few to receive your Apple Watch on launch day, you are probably excitedly going through the steps to setting up and customizing your device. With a completely new operating system to get used to, we’ve got a couple of tips for getting your Apple Watch ready for daily use.
Apple Watch Overview
Apple yesterday released a user guide for its wrist-worn device that provides a detailed overview of the case for those who aren’t yet familiar with various features. For starters, you can easily identify the Digital Crown/Home button on the side of the watch case. Press it to go to the Home screen while viewing an app, or to display the watch face.
You can also double-click the Digital Crown to access your most recently used app. To activate Siri, press and hold it. Zoom in and out or scroll by turning the crown.
The side button, which sits just below the Digital Crown is used to show or hide friends, turn on or off Apple Watch, and access Apple Pay (with a double-click).
The back side of the case houses the speaker, heart rate sensor, and microphone. You will also be able to remove your watch band by pressing the band release buttons on the back of the case.
Read more 
How to Get Your Apple Watch Up and Running [iOS Blog]
If you are one of the lucky few to receive your Apple Watch on launch day, you are probably excitedly going through the steps to setting up and customizing your device. With a completely new operating system to get used to, we’ve got a couple of tips for getting your Apple Watch ready for daily use.
Apple Watch Overview
Apple yesterday released a user guide for its wrist-worn device that provides a detailed overview of the case for those who aren’t yet familiar with various features. For starters, you can easily identify the Digital Crown/Home button on the side of the watch case. Press it to go to the Home screen while viewing an app, or to display the watch face.
You can also double-click the Digital Crown to access your most recently used app. To activate Siri, press and hold it. Zoom in and out or scroll by turning the crown.
The side button, which sits just below the Digital Crown is used to show or hide friends, turn on or off Apple Watch, and access Apple Pay (with a double-click).
The back side of the case houses the speaker, heart rate sensor, and microphone. You will also be able to remove your watch band by pressing the band release buttons on the back of the case.
Read more
Watch the Apple Watch unbox itself
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The appointed time has finally arrived. Months after its unveiling, Apple’s Watch is finally finding its way onto the public’s wrists. Yet, as is often the case with product debuts from the company in Cupertino, demand outstrips supply (for now). Fear not, would-be Watch wearers, even if you haven’t gotten your hands on one — yet — Engadget can still give you that kid-on-Christmas-morning feeling with our unboxing video.
Are you among the fortunate few who got one of Apple’s coveted Watches? Well, we want to see your unboxing videos, too. Be it Vine, Instagram or YouTube clip, just send it to us via Twitter using the hashtag #Gadgetsnaps or pop a link to the video in the comments below. We’ll be sharing our favorites next week, so show us what you got! And, stay tuned for our full review…
Photos by Will Lipman, video produced and edited by Ina Maria
Videos Showcase Apple Watch Launch Lines, Teardown and More
Today is Apple Watch launch day in the United States and eight other first wave launch countries, and many customers around the world are busy setting up their new smartwatch or anxiously waiting for their package to be delivered. Meanwhile, the teardown team at repair website iFixit flew to Melbourne, Australia to get their hands on the Apple Watch and take it apart to see what’s inside.
iFixit started by prying open the display and disconnecting the display and digitizer cables underneath, getting a first look at the Taptic Engine, inside of the Digital Crown and internal 205 mAh battery. Digging further into the Apple Watch, the team got a closer look at various components for haptic feedback, an ambient light sensor and S1 integrated processor. Overall, the Apple Watch received a 5 out of 10 repairability score.
Back in Los Angeles, several thousands of miles away from the teardown, KTLA reporter Rich DeMuro was on site at Maxfield in West Hollywood to interview various people waiting in line to purchase the Apple Watch. It was confirmed earlier this week that the Apple Watch would go on sale in limited quantities at Maxfield and other select fashion boutiques such as Colette in Paris and Dover Street Market in Tokyo and London.
DeMuro also provided a basic overview of the Apple Watch’s core features, including watch faces, heart rate monitoring, health and fitness tracking, phone calling and stock apps. In line with many early reviews, he said that the Apple Watch is not a device that everyone needs, but that the wrist-worn device has high-quality apps and provides a better overall experience than many Android Wear alternatives.
Apple Watch launched today in the United States, Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan and United Kingdom following a two-week pre-order window that started April 10 at 12:01 AM Pacific. The watch will be sold exclusively online until at least June, with no walk-in purchases being taken at Apple retail stores in any of the first wave launch countries.
MacRumors Giveaway: Pad & Quill Valet Luxury Sleeve and Apple Watch Accessory [Mac Blog]
For our next giveaway here at MacRumors, we’ve again partnered with Pad & Quill, the maker of premium MacBook, iPhone, and iPad cases and other accessories. Pad & Quill is graciously offering a package of two prizes for this giveaway – the winner will be able to choose one leather Valet Luxury Sleeve (for the 11-inch Macbook Air, 12-inch MacBook, or 13-inch MacBook Pro, or the 15-inch MacBook Pro) plus any one of the company’s Apple Watch Accessories.
The Valet Luxury Sleeves are made of full-grain leather and have hand-pounded copper rivet closures, and also feature extra pockets to carry an iPad and other accessories. The version for the 15-inch MacBook Pro retails for $149.99 while the version for the smaller MacBook models retails for $119.99.
Pad & Quill has a number of accessories for the Apple Watch, including the Timber Catchall that was announced earlier this week, and the Luxury Pocket Stand that was revealed last month. All of Pad & Quill’s Apple Watch accessories can be seen on this page and they range in value from $49.99 to $119.99.
To enter to win, use the Rafflecopter widget below and enter your email address. Your email address will not be given to any third party and will be used solely for contact purposes to reach the winner. You can earn additional entries by subscribing to our weekly newsletter, subscribing to our YouTube Channel, following us on Twitter, or visiting the MacRumors Facebook page. Due to the complexities of international laws regarding giveaways, only U.S. residents who are 18 years of age or older are eligible to enter.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
This contest will run from today (April 24) at 10:00 am Pacific time through 10:00 am Pacific time on May 1. The winner will be chosen randomly on May 1 and will be contacted by email. The winner has 48 hours to respond and provide a shipping address. The prizes will be shipped to the winner for free.
Apple Watch app roundup: It’s all on the wrist
It’s Apple Watch day. And whether you received one already, or are stuck waiting a few weeks for it, you’ll want apps to make the most out of your new wearable when the time comes. Thankfully, we here at Engadget are always thinking about you, the reader, so we’ve put together a list of third-party apps that stand out from the 3,000-plus expected to be available at launch. But first, let’s talk about some essentials. The Twitter and Instagram Apple Watch apps, for starters, will let you check out tweets and view photos right on your wrist, among other things. Sports fans, meanwhile, have access to apps like ESPN, MLB At Bat and NBA Game Time, which makes it easy to keep up with scores without having to pull out your iPhone.
The Apple Watch is going to play a big role for fitness buffs too, and there are a number of apps to choose from in that department: Misfit, Nike+ Running, Runtastic and RunKeeper, to mention a few. Travel often? Don’t worry: Delta and American Airlines, two of the most popular airlines, both have apps. Of course, you may also want to kill time every now and then; for those cases, there are games such as Rules!, a tiny puzzle designed to give your brain a workout, and Pantagu, a novel, fast-paced take on the classic Tic-Tac-Toe. Oh, and then there’s the Chipotle app. Because burritos.
We’ll be updating the list below as more companies and services make their iOS apps friendly with the Apple Watch, so make sure to bookmark this page for future use.
Food
Chipotle — App Store
Yelp — App Store
OpenTable — App Store
Green Kitchen — App Store
Lifestyle
Nike+ Running — App Store
Runtastic — App Store
RunKeeper — App Store
Misfit — App Store
Lifesum — App Store
Strava — App Store
Games and Miscellaneous
Rules! – App Store
Pantagu – App Store
Runeblade — App Store
Mattel Magic 8 Ball — App Store
justWink — App Store
Sky Guide — App Store
Honeywell Lyric — App Store
AOL — App Store
Yahoo Weather — App Store
Music
Pandora — App Store
iHeartRadio — App Store
Shazam — App Store
Djay 2 — App Store
Musixmatch — App Store
News and Sports
The New York Times — App Store
CNN — App Store
NPR One — App Store
The Huffington Post — App Store
ESPN — App Store
NBA Game Time — App Store
MLB At Bat — App Store
Productivity
Evernote — App Store
Adobe Creative Cloud — App Store
Mint — App Store
Gero Time Management Companion — App Store
Merriam-Webster — App Store
1Password — App Store
Gneo — App Store
Shopping
Amazon — App Store
eBay — App Store
Target — App Store
Fandango — App Store
StubHub — App Store
Social and Messaging
Instagram — App Store
Twitter — App Store
Foursquare — App Store
Yo — App Store
Pip — App Store
Travel and Transportation
Uber — App Store
BMW i Remote — App Store
Citymapper — App Store
Trip Advisor — App Store
Expedia — App Store
Delta Airlines — App Store
American Airlines — App Store
British Airways — App Store
SPG: Starwood Hotels — App Store
Filed under: Cellphones, Wearables, Software, Mobile, Apple
SquareTrade Announces 2-Year Apple Watch Protection Plans [iOS Blog]
Alternative insurance protection plan service SquareTrade today confirmed support for both the Apple Watch Sport and mid-tier Apple Watch models. The plans sit near the cost of AppleCare+ for the Watch, but cover accidental damage done to the device, unlike the additional charge required in AppleCare+.
The SquareTrade Apple Watch plans offer customers options with and without deductibles. So, for example, the Apple Watch Sport plan ranges from $59 to $69 (with deductible) and $129 to $159 (with no deductible). Similarly, the mid-tier Apple Watch models stretch from $79 to $149 (with deductible) and $169 to $239 (without deductible).
Both Watch tiers are 2-year plans covering malfunctions as well as accidental damage. The company believes that one of the most likely points of risk for the Watch will be “among others, drops and falls from nightly charging stations.” But it assure customers that anything beyond intentional damage, loss, or theft will be covered by the plan.
“We don’t mean to dampen all the excitement about the Apple Watch, but inevitably the klutz in us will come out. Just like smartphones, the Apple Watch accompanies us everywhere and is susceptible to the wear and tear of daily life,” said Jessica Hoffman, vice president of global communications for SquareTrade.
The company has even gone so far as to create a “Wrisk” Predictor Lifestyle Quiz that aims to predict which Apple Watch model is most suitable for each customer’s lifestyle. The company created the so-called Wrisk Factor to detect and perceive the risks for the wrist-worn device.
AppleCare+, in comparison, sees its two-year plans priced at $49 (plus $69 deductible for accidental damage) for the Sport and $69 (plus $79 deductible for accidental damage) for the mid-tier Watch, with the only gradient pricing range increasing with the added option of a combination iPhone/Apple Watch plan. AppleCare+ also provides a $1500 plan for the Apple Watch Edition, but SquareTrade appears to have opted out in focusing on those higher-end customers for its new Watch protection plans.
5 Android apps you shouldn’t miss this week! – Android Apps Weekly
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Sponsored by nPerf Speed Test
[Price: Free with in-app purchases]
nPerf Speed Test is a comprehensive speed test application that allows you to test your web speed. It does so in three tests which includes your classic speed test along with a browsing load test and a YouTube streaming test. You can test on a WiFi or mobile connection and even compare your final score with other carriers and Internet Service Providers. You can track history and location of each speed test and it even comes with a pretty decent user interface. It’s free to use and we’d like to thank nPerf Speed Test for their support of Android Apps Weekly. Learn more about the app and test your speed here.
Welcome back to Android Apps Weekly! Here are the headlines from this last week:
- A woman claimed her account was hacked and is suing Google for allegedly unauthorized in-app purchases that apparently cost her thousands of dollars. According to court documents, her account was charged 650 times and she managed to not notice the money missing or receive any of the emails you always get when you buy things.
- A new Humble Bundle is out now and includes 10 titles from Tin Man Games. You can pay whatever you want and get four titles, pay the average and get four additional titles. For a flat $9, you get all ten games. It’s a great way to get some awesome games on the cheap.
- A new study came out to show the Q1 numbers for both Google Play and the Apple App Store. As per the norm, Google Play has more apps and more app downloads but iOS continues to lead in overall revenue. Nothing new here, but it is the latest stat sheet and we don’t expect it to change anytime soon.
- Some developers in Italy who call themselves OrangeSec managed to port Cortana to Android. There are a lot of limitations including no offline mode and it’s only it’s Italian, but it’s still Cortana’s backend that’s being accessed. We imagine Microsoft will shut it down eventually but it’s still fun to see.
- In a blog post released earlier this week, Adobe has officially promised to support Android better in the future. Adobe has Android apps but their more innovative creations have remained iOS exclusives and that is about to change. We can expect to see some progress on this over the summer of this year.
For more Android apps and games releases, headlines, and updates, don’t forget to check out this week’s newsletter where we round up all of the apps news from the last week. If you’re so inclined, you can also sign up using your email to get this news delivered directly to your inbox every single week.
Subscribe to our Android Apps Weekly newsletter!
Android for Work
[Price: Free]
Google has released the official Android for Work application. Obviously you’ll need to have Android for Work on the web to make this work but it’s nice to see it available for mobile devices and tablets. The compatibility is a bit limited, but you should be able to find all of the tools there including contacts, calendar, downloads, the office suite, and email. It also includes the hallmark admin control of Android for Work.
Servicely
[Price: Free / $2.16]
Servicely is a root application developed by Francisco Franco. The app allows you to identify, control, and shut off processes that may be draining your battery while you’re not using your device. It’s similar to Greenify but works more efficiently to keep tasks shut off so they don’t keep your phone awake when it shouldn’t be. There is a pro version that you can access for free and then donate later if you want to. We think you should.
Tiny Guardians
[Price: $3.99 with in-app purchases]
Tiny Guardians is a tower defense style game that was released to relatively positive reviews this last week. Like your typical tower defense games, your goal is to guard against waves of bad guys. Unlike tower defense games, Tiny Guardians doesn’t have any towers. You controls guardians that must defeat all the bad guys and you lose if your strategy doesn’t work out and your guardians die. It’s a unique concept that could be a lot of fun.
Hello Caller ID and Blocking
[Price: Free]
Hello is a new application from Facebook that acts as a dialer app for their Facebook Messenger service. Messenger has had calls for a while but now has a dedicated interface to access them. On top of working with Facebook’s service, you can automatically block calls, get free calls and texts over Messenger, and integration with your phone contacts and Facebook. It does work like a regular phone dialer with your number if you need that.
Mortal Kombat X
[Price: Free with in-app purchases]
The long awaited Mortal Kombat X is here, kind of! The game has made its way to the Google Play Store but it has only been soft-launched in select markets ostensibly for testing purposes. We don’t know when it will roll out to everyone but it is here and that means it’s coming very soon. Mortal Kombat X features a whole bunch of your favorite MK characters along with classic tropes from the series like fatalities. It should be a lot of fun once it’s fully released.
Wrap up
If we missed any great Android apps or games news, let us know about it in the comments!
Apple Outlines Types of Apple Watch Damage Eligible for Warranty Service
MacRumors has obtained official Visual Mechanical Inspection information for the Apple Watch that reveals what type of damage is eligible for warranty service, out-of-warranty service or no service at all. These guidelines are adhered to by Apple authorized service providers and are based upon Apple’s standard 1-year limited hardware warranty for the Apple Watch.
Apple Watch damage that is eligible for warranty service includes user-claimed debris under the display glass or pixel anomaly, a back cover removed with no damage, and any condensation in the heart rate sensor windows. In particular, the document states that a removed back cover is only covered when not accompanied by enclosure damage or evidence of prying.
Apple Watch damage that is eligible for out-of-warranty service includes a cracked, missing, removed or damaged Digital Crown cap, extreme abrasion, puncture holes, missing buttons resulting from a drop, any chips or multiple cracks in the display glass, a removed back cover with evidence of enclosure damage or prying, a bent or split band enclosure, a missing or removed band release button, or cracks in the back cover.
Apple Watch damage considered nonreturnable and ineligible for warranty service includes a disassembled unit or missing parts, catastrophic damage, counterfeit or third-party parts, and unauthorized modifications such as aftermarket displays and other non-Apple installed parts. Catastrophic damage may still be covered under an AppleCare+ Protection Plan on a case-by-case basis.
Apple disclosed earlier this month that it will charge out-of-warranty service fees of $229, $329 and $2,800 for the Sport, Watch and Edition models respectively for repairs not covered by Apple’s limited one-year warranty or AppleCare+ for Apple Watch. Out-of-warranty battery service is also available for $79 plus an applicable $6.95 shipping charge if required for all Apple Watch models.
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