• Apps & Updates
• Apps
• update
• app
• Google Maps

Google Maps for iOS updated with improved hotel search, tweaked transit directions

Mike Beasley Oct 31 2013 - 7:40 pm PT

0 Comments

The Google Maps app for iPhone and iPad has been updated with a few changes to the hotel search feature and transit directions. When searching for a hotel, the app now presents some sponsored rates (ads, basically—but useful ones). You can also quickly access a map from the transit directions preview screen, as well as a list of upcoming departure times.

The app also include “bug fixes,” which are always nice. The complete change log is below.

What’s New in Version 2.4.3

● Improved hotel search results with sponsored rates and booking links
● Quick access to map and upcoming departures in transit directions preview
● Bug fixes

• Apps & Updates
• Apps
• Apple TV
• London
• 2013
• iTunes Festival

iTunes Festival apps updated w/ live EPs from festival performers

Jordan Kahn Oct 31 2013 - 6:16 pm PT

0 Comments

Apple has updated its iTunes Festival app for iOS tonight, the app where users can access live streamed content from Apple’s month long musical festival held during September. While Apple has now removed the video content that was only available for a limited time, it has added a number of live EPs from festival performers. It’s also added the content to the iTunes Festival app on Apple TV and started promoting the EPs in iTunes on the Mac.

All of the albums were recorded live during the iTunes Festival last month at The Roadhouse art center in London.

The live EPs are available for select artists including Sigur Ros, Janelle Monae, The Lumineers, Queens of the Stone Age,  John Legend, Phox, and others, and run $10 and below depending on the number of songs on each album.

During Apple’s iPhone event in September, Tim Cook noted that the iTunes Festival event, now in its seventh year, reached around 100+ countries through its live streams with more than 20 million people applying for tickets to attend the live show.

• Tech Industry
• Google
• Samsung
• Microsoft
• patents

Google, Samsung, and others sued over search patents by Apple-backed Nortel group

Mike Beasley Oct 31 2013 - 4:44 pm PT

2 Comments

Google, Samsung, and several other Android handset manufacturers are being sued by Rockstar, a consortium backed by Apple and several other tech companies, over alleged infringement of several search patents acquired by Rockstar from Nortel in 2011. Last year HTC reached a ten-year agreement with Apple as part of a patent infringement settlement. That deal would result in both companies licensing existing and future patents from one another, but it seems that agreement does not apply in this case.

The seven patents in question deal with matching search terms to relevant advertisements. Google is primarily a search and advertising company, so a loss in this case could be a serious blow. At the heart of the suit is Google’s Android platform, which Rockstar says infringes these web search patents. Because Samsung, HTC, Huawei, and others build on this platform, they are also being named in the suit.

Rockstar acquired the patents for over $4 billion last year and claims that Google’s continued use of the unlicensed technology is a wilful infringement of the consortium’s intellectual property.

• iPad
• Apple News
• MacBook
• iPad Air
• Tech Industry

Best Buy offering $100 discount on MacBook Airs this weekend, $25 gift card with iPad 4

Mark Gurman Oct 31 2013 - 3:53 pm PT

0 Comments

Alongside the launch of the iPad Air tomorrow, Best Buy is holding some special price promotions for some MacBook and older iPad models. The company says that it will provide $100 discounts on all MacBook Air models on Friday and Saturday. The offer will be available both via the company’s online store and in its chain of physical retail stores. If you don’t absolutely need one of these devices this week it is best to hold tight and watch 9to5Toys (on Twitter too!) as we expect even heavier discounts throughout the holiday season.

The company will also offer a discount on the non-Retina 13-inch MacBook Pro. Currently, the Best Buy Online Store offers the $1499 configuration with 8GB of RAM and a 750GB hard drive for $1349, but the company will take off an extra $150 ($1249) for Friday and Saturday. Like with the MacBook Air deal, this offer is applicable both in-store and online. Keep in mind, that for $50 more, you can get a thinner, lighter Retina 13-inch MacBook Pro, but that will come with substantially less storage and half the RAM.

In addition to the price cuts on Macs, buyers of the fourth-generation iPad with Retina display at Best Buy stores will get a $25 gift card. With the iPad Air coming in at $499, this older iPad model will cost $449 before the gift card. Also, the wireless Jawbone Jambox speaker system will be cut from $149 to $199. The speaker deal will run from Friday until Saturday this weekend, and the iPad 4 deal is already live.

• Apps
• Augmented Reality (AR)
• iOS 7
• Star Walk

Stargazing app Star Walk updated for iOS 7 with an all-new design

Sarah Guarino Oct 31 2013 - 3:35 pm PT

0 Comments

Star Walk, the popular and award-winning astronomy app which has previously been featured in Apple’s ads, has just lauched a brand-new version with a redesigned interface for iOS 7. It has the same look and feel as the new OS, with a clean, flat interface. The new Star Walk makes it easier than ever to stargaze. Now you no longer have to deal with reading and interpreting star charts, or twisting and turning in awkward positions to find the objects you are looking for while holding a red light.

Using this augmented reality app, users just need to hold and point the iPhone, iPod Touch or the iPad up at the sky. The app reveals over two hundred thousand stars (in their original color according to the star catalog), constellations, planets, satellites, comets and galaxies. Best of all the device does not have to be connected to the internet or a 3G network to use.

Expand
Expanding
Close

• AAPL Company
• iOS Devices
• iPad Air
• Accessories
• cases

Apple Online Store lists Smart Case and Cover for older iPads as discontinued (Update: no longer discontinued)

Mike Beasley Oct 31 2013 - 2:47 pm PT

0 Comments

Update: A few hours after these listings appeared on the store, Apple has reversed course and no longer lists either case as discontinued. However, both cases are now only available in gray rather than the full range of colors that were previously available.

Despite keeping the iPad 2 around for yet another year, Apple has discontinued the cases that it designed alongside the second-generation tablet. Both accessories are still available for sale for the time being, although some colors are now listed as “unavailable to ship” and will probably be removed in the coming days.

This move is likely due to the constantly-decreasing demand for the older iPad model in favor of the new iPad Air, which neither of these cases will fit. The iPad Air goes on sale tomorrow morning starting at $499 for the 16 GB Wi-Fi model.

• AAPL Company
• Apps
• App Store
• update
• app

App Store banner corroborates impending iOS 7 update for Apple’s Remote app

Mike Beasley Oct 31 2013 - 2:33 pm PT

6 Comments

Image via MacRumors

A banner that appeared in the Colombian App Store seems to indicate that Apple may finally be updating its Remote app with a new design for iOS 7. The banner sports a redesigned icon that we first noticed earlier this month in the iTunes device manager. The new icon uses much more white than the previous version and conforms to the icon grid used to design Apple’s other iOS 7 icons.

Many of Apple’s apps have already been updated with a new design, but updates for Remote, Find My Friends, iTunes Connect and iBooks have been noticeably absent. It seems at least one of those will be redesigned in the near future, although there’s still no word yet on when the others might finally get a makeover.

We haven’t been able to independently confirm the precense of the banner in the App Store, which was likely published earlier by accident.

• AAPL Company
• iPad
• Apple News
• iPad Air
• Hong Kong

iPad Air already sold out at Hong Kong Apple Online Store

Mark Gurman Oct 31 2013 - 10:51 am PT

1 Comment

Just hours after going live for sale in several countries in the Asia-Pacific, all models of the iPad Air have become “currently unavailable” at the Hong Kong store. The store opened up with a quote for 1-2 week shipping times, which was substantially longer than the 24 hour shipping times seen in countries such as Australia. Overall, at least in the United States and Europe, iPad Air supplies are expected to be plentiful.

Expand
Expanding
Close

• AAPL Company
• Apps
• 9to5Toys
• 9to5Toys Lunch Break
• video games

9to5Toys Last Call: OtterBox iPhone 5 Defender case $15, FREE week of NBA League Pass, $100 off iPad 4, more

Oct 31 2013 - 10:18 am PT

0 Comments

Be sure to follow 9to5Toys to keep up with the best gear and deals on the web: Twitter, RSS Feed, Facebook, Google+.

Today’s can’t miss deals:

OtterBox iPhone 5 Defender Series Case (multiple colors): $15 shipped (Reg. $50), Chromo 2000mAh 5c battery case: $20 shipped

Watch the first week of the NBA season for FREE on your iPhone, iPad, more

Take $100 off iPad 4th gen. with Retina display, 16GB $399/32GB $499

Other great deals from today:

• New! Ergotron LX Desk Mount LCD adjustable arm $99 (Reg. $169), side-by-side $198 (Reg. $329)
• New! 2K’s iOS Halloween sale discounts XCOM, 2K Drive, NBA 2K14, NHL 2K11, Civ Revolution, and more
• New! Game/App Deals: Deus Ex $2 price drop, Infinity Blade III Soul Hunter update, 7 haunting Android hits FREE, iOS freebies
  
• New! 1 year magazine sub to Wired: print + digital access for $5 shipped, Entrepreneur $4.50 (both Reg. $60)

The best deals that are still alive:

• RAVPower Icona 10000mAh external power bank $25.99 (Reg. $40)
• Slingbox SOLO: Stream live TV to your iPhone/iPad (Refurb.) $60 shipped
• 32GB Galaxy Nexus for Verizon (refurb) $115 shipped
• This Week In Entertainment: Eminem preorder, Toby Keith, Arcade Fire, R.I.P.D., Monsters Univ, more
• Griffin PowerDock 5 charging station for iPhone, iPad, Android: $80 shipped (Reg. $100)
• Get a free Sonos wireless bridge ($49 value) w/ the purchase of any Sonos Play wireless streaming speaker
• The best Apple-certified (MFi) Lightning cables in various lengths, colors, and styles

Mac software bundles:

• The SuperStacked Mac Bundle: Over $3,000 Worth Of Premium Developer & Designer Tools – $49 today, but price increases everyday it’s on sale.

New product announcements & reviews:

• Target’s PS4 launch week ad leaks: will offer buy 2 get 1 free on PS4, Xbox One games, others
• Amazon launches Kindle Matchbook, offering Kindle versions of print books for $3 or less
• JBL releases new Pulse Bluetooth speaker covered in LEDs that dance along to the music
• Amazon increases free shipping order threshold to $35, Prime becomes even more valuable in run up to holidays

• iOS Devices
• Apple News
• iPhone 5s
• iPhone 5c
• developers

Apple to Devs: Gold iPhone not best for marketing materials

Jordan Kahn Oct 31 2013 - 7:45 am PT

4 Comments

Earlier this month we reported that Apple had changed its developer marketing guidelines after years of only allowing images of the black iPhone in marketing material. Since Apple’s new lineup of iPhones features a number of new colors for the device for the first time, we noted that Apple tweaked its guidelines to allow other colors of the device, including white and certain iPhone 5c colors. Now, Apple has updated its guidelines once again, this time specifically excluding the gold iPhone 5s from the list of colors allowed in photography and video marketing material (via MacRumors):

Feature only the most current Apple products in the following finishes or colors: iPhone 5s in silver or space gray, iPhone 5c in white or blue, iPad Air in silver or space gray, and iPad mini in silver or space gray. If multiple Apple products are shown, display them in the correct relative sizes.

You’ll notice that it’s also not allowing certain colors of the iPhone 5c (only blue and white are listed), so gold specifically doesn’t seem to be the issue. As it did previously, Apple provides downloads of iPhone images for developers to place their screenshots on and use for marketing purposes. Those downloads are limited to the iPad Air, iPad mini, and iPhone 5s in Silver/white and Space Gray, and the iPhone 5c and iPod touch in black and blue models.

It’s unclear Apple’s reasoning for not allowing the gold model of the iPhone 5s and certain colors of the iPhone 5c. It could possibly be due to Apple’s desire to keep the popular colors unique to its own marketing material, or perhaps Apple thinks screenshots do not show as well on certain colors as they do on black and silver models.

• AAPL Company
• iPhones
• faa
• iPads
• Electronics

As expected, FAA permits use of electronic devices during all phases of flight

Ben Lovejoy Oct 31 2013 - 7:26 am PT

2 Comments

As first intimated back in March and pretty much a done deal in September, the FAA has confirmed that use of portable electronic devices by airline passengers will be permitted from gate to gate. Cellular devices must be in flight mode throughout, and you cannot make voice calls, even via Wi-Fi.

The ruling only gives the go-ahead to airlines, so there’s no saying when individual airlines might start applying the policy, but it’s unlikely to be before next year.

One uncertainty remains: the FAA says that approval is for ‘lightweight’ devices and gives examples, but doesn’t actually specify a weight.

Once an airline verifies the tolerance of its fleet, it can allow passengers to use handheld, lightweight electronic devices – such as tablets, e-readers, and smartphones—at all altitudes

It’s not immediately clear whether the permission includes laptops. Given the rather thin line between a lightweight laptop and a tablet, not to mention the difficulty non-technical cabin crew would have distinguishing a tablet with keyboard accessory from a laptop, this seems something of an oversight. Perhaps the rules should allow anything with an ‘Air’ in the name …

• AAPL Company
• iPad mini
• Retina Display
• launch
• target

Retina iPad mini launch date: Thursday, Nov. 21st says Target

Mike Beasley Oct 30 2013 - 7:43 pm PT

0 Comments

Target has posted its listing for the Retina iPad mini (via MacRumors) with a release date of November 21st, though we believe this is more than likely a speculative date as retailers like Target don’t usually get such early information. The previous-generation LTE iPad mini launched on November 21st, 2012, so it’s quite possible that this date is based on that.

Apple noted during the Q4 2013 earnings call that the tablet would be available “later in November,” but didn’t give a specific date. In the past, Apple’s definition of “later” in the month has been sometime during the last week.

As other retailers begin listing upcoming Apple devices on their stores, we’ll likely see a variety of availabilty dates, but each will be an educated guess at most. November 21st is also a Thursday, and Apple typically sticks to Fridays for major device launches.

Expand
Expanding
Close