‘Prisma’ App’s Art-Inspired Photo Filters Take Social Media by Storm
Amid all the hype for Pokémon Go this week, one non-game release that’s enjoying relatively quiet success in the App Store is a new photo editor called Prisma.
The brainchild of a team of Russian developers, Prisma describes itself simply as an “editor for Instagram”, but has attracted far wider attention thanks to an impressive series of stylistic and art-inspired filters.
The app uses a server-side combination of neural networks and artificial intelligence to apply the 33 different filters, which can be changed in intensity using a sliding scale. The results can be immediately shared over Instagram or Facebook, or using the options found in the iOS Share Sheet.
The app is currently available in 25 different countries and has achieved 300,000 downloads each day in 10 of those markets, leading developers scrambling to double their server capacity to process all the information.
Once Prisma’s developers have got to grips with the surge in popularity, the team says the app will soon add support for videos and immersive VR.
Prisma is a free download on the App Store for iPhone and iPad. [Direct Link]
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Drawing App ‘Procreate Pocket’ Available for Free Through Apple Store App
Popular drawing and sketching app Procreate Pocket for the iPhone can be downloaded for free this week through Apple’s Apple Store app. Procreate Pocket has a wide range of painting, sketching, and drawing tools for making art on the iPhone.
On the iPhone 6s, it features 3D Touch pressure sensitivity, and it can be used with an Apple Watch for quick color selection. There’s a full layering system, 18 layer blend modes, tools for adjusting hue, saturation, brightness, and curves, and more.
To get the app, make sure to follow these instructions:
Open the Apple Store app.
Tap “Stores” on the tab bar at the bottom of the app.
Scroll down to “iPhone Upgrade Program.”
Swipe left three times until you see the Procreate icon.
Tap the icon.
Choose “Download now for free.”
When taken to the App Store, enter your password and then click “Redeem.” The app will start downloading automatically.Apple has offered several free apps through its own Apple Store app in the past, including Day One 2. The deal only pertains to the iPhone version of Procreate, normally priced at $2.99. [Direct Link]
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Apple Expands Shot on iPhone Campaign With Photos Focusing on Colors
Apple is expanding its “Shot on iPhone” advertising campaign with a new series of images focusing on color, reports TechCrunch. The images focus on “the bright, vibrant colors you’ll find in the world around you,” with Apple putting up new billboards and other imagery featuring the new photographs.
The “Colors” campaign will focus on sharing photographs taken by people local to the area where billboards and other signage are located, and new photographs are going up in the United States, Canada, the UK, Australia, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey, Russia, UAE, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Japan, Singapore, Hong Kong, India, Korea, China, Malaysia, New Zealand, and Thailand.
Image via TechCrunch
Apple’s “Shot on iPhone” campaign began in early 2015 following the launch of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, and Apple re-launched it in early 2016 it to show off images taken with the improved iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus. Most recently, billboards and artwork for the Shot on iPhone campaign featured snapshots of people.
Apple is likely to continue on with the Shot on iPhone campaign for some time, as the upcoming iPhone 7 Plus is rumored to feature a much-improved dual-lens camera that will allow for crisper, sharper images and other notable improvements. The iPhone 7, while not gaining a dual-lens camera, is expected to include similar improvements introduced through the inclusion of a larger sensor.
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Facebook Slideshow livens up your photos and videos
It’s easy to post a ton of photos from your weekend adventures to Facebook, but let’s face it: there are only so many people willing to flip through your photos one at a time. Facebook might just have a way to spice things up, though. It’s trotting out a Slideshow feature that turns your photos and videos into themed clips that will be easier to watch. All you need to do to get one is take five or more photos or videos in 24 hours — Facebook will create an initial clip all on its own. After that, it’s a matter of customizing the slideshow by adding or removing shots and choosing the theme. The feature is only reaching iOS users this week, but it’ll be a big help if it gets friends to check out your vacation gallery.
Microsoft puts your company intranet on your iPhone
Look, we know: accessing your company’s intranet is about as exciting as watching paint dry. However, wouldn’t you rather have the option of using it from your phone, instead of having to sit at a computer? Microsoft thinks so. It just launched SharePoint for iOS, its first mobile SharePoint app. The tool gives you access to the files, portals, sites and teams that you’re used to on the desktop. It’s also smart enough to hop between apps depending on what you’re accessing. It’ll jump to OneDrive if you’re peeking at the company’s document library, for instance, or switch to one of the Office apps if you’re opening a recent file.
Microsoft is quick to admit that this is a “first step,” and that there may well be features you’ll miss (such as company-wide announcements) that are coming later this year. You should also see Android and universal Windows apps in a similar time frame. So long as those aren’t showstoppers, though, the app should be worth grabbing — if just because it can keep you away from your desk for a little bit longer.
Source: Office Blogs, App Store
Sonos puts speaker controls on your iPhone’s lock screen
Ask iPhone-toting Sonos speaker owners about their biggest gripe and they’ll probably point to the lack of at-a-glance controls. You have to launch the app every time, which is a pain when you just want to pause a song from across the room. Life is about to get much easier, though: Sonos has updated its iOS controller app to introduce lock screen controls. They behave almost exactly like what you’d see for on-device music playback. The only big difference is that it’ll identify both the source of the tunes and where they’re playing. You can’t switch rooms or audio sources, alas, but it’s still far more convenient than unlocking your phone.
There’s more. If you have an iPhone 6s or 6s Plus, you finally have 3D Touch support for shortcuts to common tasks from the home screen (such as accessing favorites) and peek-and-pop access to content. You’ll get Split View and Slide Over on the iPad, too, so you don’t have to constantly juggle apps to see what’s playing. There’s simpler Trueplay speaker tuning and higher-quality Napster/Rhapsody streaming as well. About the only thing missing is an Apple Watch app to control tunes from your wrist (seriously, Sonos, get on that). If that’s not an obstacle, though, you can check out the new features today.
Source: App Store
E-Book Buyers to Start Receiving Credits on Tuesday as Part of Apple Price Fixing Settlement
Starting on Tuesday, June 21, U.S. customers who purchased e-books from Apple and other retailers like Amazon and Barnes & Noble will begin receiving payouts from the $450 million settlement Apple agreed to pay after being found guilty of conspiring to fix the prices of e-books.
Customers will be receiving a $6.93 credit for each book that was a New York Times bestseller, and a $1.57 credit for other e-books. Customers eligible for credits include those who purchased e-books between April 1, 2010 and May 21, 2012.
Attorneys say the process is uniquely simple for consumers — credits will be automatically sent directly into the accounts of consumers at major book retailers, including Amazon.com Inc., Barnes & Noble Inc., Kobo Inc. and Apple. Retailers will issue emails and put the credits in the accounts simultaneously.
If e-book purchasers requested a check in lieu of a credit, they will receive a check. If purchasers received a credit during the first round of distribution of publisher settlements, and they did not opt out, they will automatically receive a credit.
The U.S. Department of Justice first accused Apple and five other publishers — HarperCollins, Simon and Schuster, Hachette Book Group, Macmillan, and Penguin — of colluding to fix the prices of e-books in 2010, suggesting they had worked to raise prices of e-books to weaken Amazon’s dominant position in the market and restructure the business model of the industry.
While all of the publishers settled early on, Apple fought the accusation for years and maintained its innocence, but ultimately, a ruling in 2013 found the company guilty of price fixing. A series of appeals were unsuccessful, and after the Supreme Court declined to hear the case, Apple was forced to pay a $450 million settlement.
$400 million of that $450 million is earmarked for customers who purchased e-books, with $30 million going towards legal fees and $20 million going to states who were also involved in the lawsuit.
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Netflix now does picture-in-picture video on your iPad
Ever since Apple introduced picture-in-picture video in iOS 9, iPad owners have been wondering one thing: when can I use the feature with Netflix? At last, it’s here. An update to the iOS app has introduced picture-in-picture for any iPad running at least iOS 9.3.2, giving you an easy way to keep that House of Cards marathon going while you check email or chat with friends. Netflix is more than a little late to the party (Hulu and others had the feature soon after iOS 9 arrived), but it’s good to know that the streaming service is listening to what viewers want.
Source: App Store
Your iPad can double as a smart home hub with iOS 10
No inclination to get the latest Apple TV just to give yourself a hub for your HomeKit devices? If you have a reasonably recent iPad hanging around, you won’t have to. Apple tells SlashGear that iOS 10 can use your iPad as a smart home hub as long as the tablet is both plugged in and connected to your network. It seems like an odd move, but Apple says it’s all about increasing HomeKit’s reach — you can’t buy the new Apple TV in countries like China, so the iPad offers that remote home automation instead. Either way, you probably won’t want to try this in a multi-person household. You don’t want to lose out-of-home control over your thermostat just because Junior wants to play Hearthstone.
Source: SlashGear
iOS 10 can livestream your games
You won’t have to use an Android phone if you want to livestream your mobile gaming sessions. Apple has revealed that iOS 10 will include ReplayKit Live, a feature that livestreams apps in addition to previous recording support. As you might expect, you can also include your own audio or video remarks. You’ll have to wait for both iOS 10 and supporting apps, of course (Mobcrush is one of the first to make plans), but it could be a big deal for iOS gamers who’ve wanted to share a hot new title while they’re playing it. ReplayKit Live should be useful in more productive apps, too — it could help teachers demonstrate concepts through educational apps, or open the window to live technical help.
Via: 9to5Mac
Source: Mobcrush (Medium)
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