Skype’s filters bring some life to your video messages
The Skype team doesn’t have it easy these days — it not only has to compete with legions of live chat apps, but also the back-and-forth video messaging of Snapchat. What’s it going to do? Fight on Snapchat’s home turf, apparently. Microsoft has released Skype updates for Android and iOS that let you add “fun” filters to your video messages, such as a creepy inverted color scheme or goofy face stretching. Yes, it comes across as trying to stay hip with what the kids are doing, but it could be helpful if your birthday greeting just isn’t festive enough. And don’t worry if you like plain vanilla videos, since there’s something new for you as well. Skype now supports 3D Touch on the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus, so you can quickly start a call or peek at a conversation.
Source: Skype
Update Facebook on iOS now to keep it from draining your battery
Facebook users on iOS have had a sneaking suspicion that the app was starting to misbehave, to the detriment of their phone’s battery life. After saying it was looking into the issue, Facebook has now confirmed the problem and pushed out an update to the iOS app to help offer some relief. Facebook engineering manager Ari Grant said as much in a post today on (where else) Facebook, saying that the company “found a few key issues and have identified additional improvements, some of which are in the version of the app that was released today.” While there’s more Facebook says it can do to lessen battery draing, updating the app today should provide some immediate relief.
Source: Facebook
Chrome for iPad now supports iOS 9’s multitasking features
With iOS 9, Apple introduced a handful of new multitasking features for the iPad, like the ability to run two apps side by side. Now Google’s Chrome browser is ready to take advantage of these, thanks to an refreshed version of its universal iOS application. Aside from being able to use the Split View mode mentioned earlier, Chrome on iPad also supports Slide Over, as shown above; and Picture-in-Picture, which lets you browse websites and watch a pop-up video simultaneously. That said, Split View only works on iPad Air 2, iPad mini 4 and the soon-to-be-released iPad Pro, but the other tidbits are compatible with any tablet running Apple’s latest mobile OS.
Via: 9to5Mac
Source: App Store
iOS and OS X updates arrive with a ton of new emoji
If you’ve ever wanted to text taco pics from your iPhone or give the middle finger from your Mac, today’s your lucky day. Apple has released iOS 9.1 and OS X El Capitan 10.11.1, both of which add a slew of new Unicode emoji ranging from Mexican food through to rude gestures. There are some important under-the-hood fixes, too. Your iPhone 6s or 6s Plus is now smart enough to stop recording Live Photos when you lower the device, and OS X shouldn’t run into trouble with Office 2016. Whichever platform you’re using, you’ll likely want to update pronto — if just to see the cutesy characters you’d otherwise miss.
[Image credit: Emojipedia]
Source: MacRumors (1), (2)
Apple found liable of using University of Wisconsin’s patent
Apple can’t win every patent lawsuit it’s involved with. Here’s a good case in point: the tech giant has been found liable of using a 1998 patent owned by the University of Wisconsin without the proper permission. To be precise, that technology was designed to improve chip efficiency as you can see in this USPTO filing, and it was used in iPhones and iPads. The Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF) filed a case against Intel back in 2008 for using the same patent, but it was immediately settled out of court. It launched the lawsuit against Cupertino in January last year.
The court is slated to try the the case again to determine how much Apple should pay the University. According to Reuters, the judge presiding over the case believes it could be as much as $862.4 million in damages — huge, but even the full amount won’t make a dent in Apple’s finances. Cupertino’s and WARF’s legal battle is far from over yet, though. The company has to face another case WARF filed just last month, this time accusing it of using the technology to boost the efficiency of the iPhone 6s’, 6s Plus’ and the iPad Pro’s A9 and A9X chips.
Apple’s News app is disabled in China
The News app in iOS 9 is officially available only in the US, but you can still access stories when you’re traveling abroad… unless you’re visiting China, that is. A New York Times source understands that Apple has completely disabled News access in China, preventing you from reading anything new even if you’re using one of the country’s few uncensored connections on a US device. Apple hasn’t commented on why it’s switching things off, but the theory is that it would rather turn off News access altogether than deal with the many hassles of censoring individual sources and articles.
This kind of nation-specific deactivation isn’t new. Apple automatically disables Maps’ regular data when you’re in China, replacing it with government approved maps that blot out details of most other parts of the world. As software testing service head Larry Salibra notes, though, there are worries that Apple is a little too willing to automatically change features the moment you set foot in China, even if you’ve turned location services off. While the company’s current approach is arguably necessary if it wants to keep selling iOS devices in China (and it definitely wants to), the concern is that officials may ask Apple to selectively disable other apps that challenge the nation’s political status quo.
Source: New York Times
The best podcast app for iOS is now completely free
Overcast is widely considered to be the best podcast app on iOS, if not all mobile platforms. For many, its no-nonsense interface and slick features (such as cutting dead air and boosting voices) make Apple’s official app seem crude. You’ve had to pay $5 to see everything it has to offer, though… until now. App creator Marco Arment (he of Instapaper fame) has released Overcast 2, which switches to a completely free business model. As he puts it, he didn’t like seeing the majority of users (80 percent) miss out on the features he wrote — he’d rather make sure you see everything. You can still donate $1 per month if you want to help, but that contribution is strictly optional.
The new version isn’t just about unlocking existing features, as you might have guessed. You can now stream podcasts rather than downloading everything in advance, and keep tabs on your storage so that your collection doesn’t get out of control. There’s long overdue support for chapters, too, and you’ll get 3D Touch shortcuts if you happen to own an iPhone 6s or 6s Plus. All told, Overcast 2 is likely worth trying even if you passed on it the first time around — you can find out if it lives up to the hype without denting your bank account.
Via: Marco Arment
Source: App Store
Kanye West hates in-app purchases on kids games
When Kanye West runs for president, we know what at least one item on his platform will be — and there will probably be plenty of parents agreeing.
Fuck any game company that puts in-app purchases on kids games!!!
— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) October 10, 2015
That makes no sense!!! We give the iPad to our child and every 5 minutes there’s a new purchase!!!
— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) October 10, 2015
If a game is made for a 2 year old, just allow them to have fun and give the parents a break for Christ sake.
— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) October 10, 2015
Looking forward to future kanye tweets about data overages, someone playing with the thermostat & why are so many lights on
— Desus Nice (@desusnice) October 10, 2015
[Image credit: FilmMagic]
Apple Pay coming to Starbucks, KFC and Chili’s in the next year
In a sign that Apple Pay is gaining traction with even more retailers, VP of Apple Pay Jennifer Bailey has just announced on stage at Code/Mobile a plan to roll out Apple Pay in Starbucks, KFC and Chili’s locations across the country. You can expect to see Apple Pay in a few pilot Starbucks outlets later this year, with a larger roll out in 2016. Apple Pay in KFC should start early next year, while Chili’s is expected to implement a unique pay-at-the-table mobile payment solution.
Bailey also talked about a broader effort to add loyalty programs to Apple Pay. Walgreens loyalty program should be added to Apple Pay soon, and there are plans in place to support programs from Kohl’s, Coca Cola, Whole Foods, Panera Bread and much more as well. One of the issues of adding loyalty programs like these is that it often requires an upgrade to the point-of-sale terminal so the process will likely take some time. There are also plans in place to support even more department store cards, which are often used as loyalty cards as well. “You’ll see many more large merchants adopt Apple Pay because of our ability to support store cards,” she said.
There are other avenues for Apple Pay beyond just the retailer too. In-flight mobile payment could be a growth area in the future, as she mentions that you can already use Apple Pay in JetBlue flights and Delta has just incorporated Apple Pay in its app today. They’re also looking at incorporating Apple Pay in gas stations.
“We see an acceleration in adoption in merchant acceptance,” she said, adding that the company is continuously working on more partnerships.
Apple already blocked the first malware for non-jailbroken iPhones
With certain exceptions, most iOS-focused malware targets jailbroken devices whose compromised security makes them easy prey. However, there’s been concerns that a recent strain of malware, YiSpecter, can attack even ‘pure’ devices running stock iOS. Do you have to worry about catching a bug online and losing control over your device? Probably not, if you ask Apple. In a statement to The Loop, the company notes that it not only fixed the vulnerability with iOS 8.4, but blocked the apps handing out the offending code. The victims downloaded apps from “untrusted sources” (that is, outside of the App Store) Cupertino adds. In short, Apple believes this is a non-issue as long as you install updates and stay cautious — and given that more than half of its users are already running iOS 9, it might be right.
Via: AppleInsider
Source: The Loop
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