While iOS 8.4 users have been able to try out the new Apple Music service since this morning, developers running the latest iOS 9 beta seed have been left out. This will change “early next week,” however, according to Apple Senior Vice President of Internet Software and Services Eddy Cue. In a reply to a user on Twitter, Cue said that a new beta of iOS 9 will be available next week with Apple Music integration:
Update: after about 35 minutes, it appears that the Beats 1 stream is back online. The outage may have been caused by an Amazon Web services outage on the East Coast of the US.
Many readers are reporting Beats1 Radio is offline with error -12880 on iOS and just a spin on iTunes for Mac. As per usual, Apple’s System status page shows no outage but currently we aren’t able to find anyone able to get online.
iTunes is showing the below error:
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In addition to iOS 8.4 and OS X 10.10.4, Apple has released a new version of iTunes for Mac that brings Apple Music to the desktop. The update also supports streaming Apple’s new Beats 1 24/7 live radio station and includes a refreshed icon.
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Today we’re taking a quick look at Apple Music. This new service came along with the iOS 8.4 update and effectively merges Beats Music with a new streaming service from Apple. The good news is, Apple Music will also be available for Android and Apple TV as well later this fall. Everyone also gets a 3 month free trial in case you’re on the fence about subscribing to the service right away…
[Update: iMessage requests supported as well.]
Apple Music and its accompanying 24/7 always on radio station Beats 1 launched earlier today with Zane Lowe hosting. Alongside Apple Music, the company launched a refreshed Tumblr blog with Beats 1’s schedule. The company has also launched a webpage inviting users to request content to be played.
For fall 2015, Apple is preparing an “S” iPhone upgrade that superficially preserves the exterior designs of the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, but includes a collection of major internal changes. In May, we reported that this new “iPhone 6S” line would debut this fall with a Force Touch, pressure-sensitive display as one of its marquee features. Now, a proven source familiar with Apple’s supply chain has provided us with the most extensive look yet at Apple’s next iPhone, sharing the first photos of the iPhone 6S’s external metal casing, plus an in-depth look at the new iPhone’s internals. Today, we’re focusing on the exterior of the next iPhone, which appears to refute a number of potential changes that some have speculated were destined for this model.
As promised, Apple has released GarageBand 10.1 through the Mac App Store. The update includes previously highlighted new features including 10 new Drummers, new synths and a ‘Transform Pad’ feature. The update also includes support for Apple’s new Force Touch trackpads from the 12-inch MacBook and 15-inch MacBook Pro. For artists publishing to Apple Music, its new streaming music service launched today, GarageBand 10.1 adds the ability to publish directly to Apple Music Connect. Full release notes below:
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iBooks Author 2.3 also includes new ePub templates to make multi-touch textbook creation easier. You can download the free update now from the Mac App Store.
What’s New in Version 2.3
• iBooks for iPhone now supports books made with iBooks Author
• Create Multi-Touch books using new ePub templates
SoundHound, a popular sound recognition app for detecting and searching for songs and other audio clips, today gets an update that brings integration with the just launched Apple Music streaming service.
With the updated SoundHound app landing today, users will now get an “Apple Music Listen Now” link to listen to a song on the streaming service (when available) through the home screen, song pages, and throughout the app.
Other competitive apps, such as Shazam, have already updated with similar functionality. The apps previously only linked users to purchase songs through iTunes and other services, but also promote competitive streaming services for listening such as Spotify and Rdio. For SoundHound, users will find an Apple Music streaming link next to songs through various features, including: music identification, personalized History, Top Charts, or Music Maps.
Interestingly, SoundHound will also be promoting Apple Music’s Beats 1 live radio station:
SoundHound is also showcasing Apple Music’s new global radio streaming station Beats 1. Users will see a “Beats 1 Radio” row within song pages, enabling easy, one-tap access to listen to the streaming radio broadcast, which features various artists hosting programs and full-time DJs, led by ex-BBC host Zane Lowe.
You can grab SoundHound on the App Store now.
After first announcing plans earlier this month to become a storefront of sorts with a new Buyable Pins feature, Pinterest just confirmed the feature is rolling out today for iPhone and iPad users in the US. In addition to the new buyable pins feature, Pinterest is also launching “Shop our picks” with curated lists of items for various product categories.
As a catalog of ideas, our mission is to help people bring their creative ideas to life. In the next few weeks, 30 million Pins all over Pinterest will become buyable (this includes Pins people have already saved that will light up with blue prices at launch). You’ll see products from brands like Macy’s, Neiman Marcus and Nordstrom, retailers powered by Demandware like Gardener’s Supply Company and Michaels, and Shopify stores like Poler Outdoor Stuff and SOBU.
Pinterest notes that users will notice a blue price tag next to buyable pins that will show up in user’s home feed, boards, category feeds, search results and recommendations.
Here’s a closer look at how the feature will appear in the iPhone app:
The feature is rolling out slowly in the US. If you’re a Pinterest user, keep an eye out for an email notification that will let you know when buyable pins are available to you.
With the release of iOS 8.4 today, many users found themselves faced with the decision to upgrade now or wait until a jailbreak is available so they can continue using their tweaks. That choice just got a lot easier, as the Taig development team has announced that the exploits used in their 8.3 jailbreak are all still available in the new update.
Apple Music officially launched today in iOS 8.4 alongside an integrated radio service featuring the 24/7 live streaming station known as Beats 1. Everyone is getting a free three month trial, but once that ends, Apple will start charging the credit card on your Apple ID with either the $9.99/month plan or the $14.99/month family plan (depending on what you selected when first signing up). If you want to cancel your subscription, or just keep it from auto-renewing so you can go month-to-month and manually activate it when you want, below we’ve put together a quick guide on how to do so across platforms:
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Despite lackluster support from major carrier partners, Apple’s carrier-agnostic Apple SIM demonstrated its potential today with the announcement that GigSky — “the first global mobile network designed for travelers” — will offer short-term iPad Air 2 and iPad mini 3 cellular data plans in over 90 countries and territories. “Now there’s no need to pick-up a local SIM, hunt for Wi-Fi, or travel in fear of excessive data roaming charges,” GigSky explained. “iPad users can choose a GigSky data plan upon arrival right from their iPad Air 2 or iPad mini 3 with Apple SIM installed, and easily connect to family and friends, stay in touch and share their travel.”
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Apple’s Beats 1 internet radio service has just gone live following the release of the iOS 8.4 software update earlier today. Host Zane Lowe introduced the station, saying, “We spent the last three months trying to build this radio station. Now we can build no more.”
The first song to play on the service was City by Spring King. Lowe said the song had been used for a variety of purposes at the station, including sound checks and demos to get other artists on board with Beats 1.
Beats 1 is part of Apple Music, the new on-demand streaming service first debuted at WWDC last month. Users running the latest iOS software can listen to the free Beats 1 stream, which will feature a variety of shows from hosts like Dr. Dre and Drake.
Popular medial player VLC for iOS today gets a notable update that brings support for Apple Watch alongside other new features and a long list of improvements and fixes.
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A federal appeals court today has upheld the 2013 ruling in Apple’s long-winded and high-profile ebooks case. The case, which centered around Apple price fixing content in the iBooks store, went through three years of litigation thanks mostly to Apple. Today’s ruling by a federal appeals court will see Apple pay $450 million in damages at long last.
Apple has just released a new version of Beats Music for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch that adds the ability to migrate from the subscription music service to Apple Music which replaces it. The migration assistant keeps both playlists and saved music from artists and albums intact when moving to Apple Music.
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In addition to iOS 8.4, Apple has now publicly released OS X 10.10.4 to all users. The point update focuses on security and stability improvements with a fix for notable networking issues with OS X Yosemite as well as fixes for Mail, improvements to Photos migration from iPhoto and Aperture, and more. Apple first began testing the update to the Mac with developers in late April.
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As promised, Apple has just released the iOS 8.4 software update featuring an all-new Music app for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch to the public after testing with developers since mid-April. While it includes smaller changes throughout, the update primarily delivers an overhauled Music app with Apple Music (notice the new icon), its brand new subscription music streaming service, and Beats 1, its 24/7 live radio station that launches today.
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Apple has continued making lots of progress at its under construction Campus 2 site in Cupertino ahead of plans to move in late next year, evident by this latest drone flyover courtesy of our friend MyithZ.
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Europe is an odd place to live. In some respects, it acts like one big country (you can drive across it without ever seeing a border or showing a passport), while in other ways it is very definitely individual countries – like paying roaming charges outside your own country for calls, text messages and data.
We’ve been promised an end to roaming charges for what feels like forever, and the good news is that after years of discussion and debate, the European Union finally agreed to a date. The bad news is that the date isn’t until June 15th 2017.
It means that from 15 June 2017 you can use your mobile device when travelling in the EU paying the same prices as at home (domestic prices). For instance, if you pay for a monthly volume of minutes, SMS and data in your country, any voice call, SMS and data session you make while travelling abroad in the EU will be deducted from that volume as if you were at home, with no extra charges. This means the end of roaming charges as Europeans experience them today in their daily life.
The EU has gradually imposed caps on roaming charges, and the current ones of €0.19/minute for calls and €0.06 per text message aren’t too bad, but €0.20/MB for data is the killer, making it easy to rack up a hefty bill with perfectly normal use of a smartphone in other European countries.
The EU has also agreed to net neutrality rules, though watered down with exceptions for ‘innovative’ services that require higher than usual bandwidth – like Netflix. The EU says that these services can be prioritized so long as this doesn’t harm other services, but as everyone would otherwise get the fastest speed for everything, this provision doesn’t appear to have any real meaning.
Speaking to Rolling Stone about creating Beats 1 radio, Trent Reznor said he wanted to recreate the feeling you got when walking into a really good independent record store.
I want that feeling of walking into an independent record shop, if there are still any that exist, like Amoeba [Records], and being delighted by the choices and the way music is presented to you with love and care. It’s exciting. And you leave with stuff you wouldn’t have dreamed you wanted and you’re excited to listen and share it and experience it.
Reznor, who was previously Chief Creative Officer at Beats Music, said that listening to Zane Lowe’s BBC radio show totally inspired him …
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In an interview with The Loop, Apple SVP Eddy Cue and Beats founder Jimmy Iovine said that depth, breadth and musical knowledge would allow Apple Music to succeed in a market where all streaming services offer access to the same 30M songs.
“One of the things we wanted with Apple Music was depth, said Cue. “We wanted you to be immersed in it when you started using it.”
I had one of the most fascinating meetings ever today.
— Jim Dalrymple (@jdalrymple) June 29, 2015
Iovine pointed out that playlists generated by algorithms tended to be predictable, while those curated by people with deep knowledge of the music industry could make surprising connections – using Bruce Springsteen as an example.
[With an algorithm, you can] pretty much guess what’s going to be played. Bob Seger, John Mellencamp, and Tom Petty are always popular choices.
What freaked me out is that Apple Music played ‘Paint It Black,’ which I happen to know is one of Springsteen’s favorite Stones songs.
Iovine said that most algorithms stuck to one genre and era, while human DJs could mix things up because “the DJ is in the middle, explaining how it works.” This, said Cue, generated greater breadth, and you could find a hip-hop track following a rock one …
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