Jordan Kahn

Apple is reportedly gearing up to open its first official retail store in Taiwan with a new location planned for the Taipei 101 mall, according to a new report from Taiwan’s Central News Agency.

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To enhance the feature within Facebook Messenger that lets users send money to one another, today the app is getting an update that enables payments among groups of users. The feature is aimed at people that want to be able to easily split restaurant bills or send money to friends, and works via group conversations in Messenger. It’s first coming to desktop, but should arrive later for iPhone and iPad users as the Android app today gets access first. 
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An update to Instagram coming today aims to improve the service’s Direct messaging feature by combining disappearing photos and videos with text conversations into a single thread. Previously the features were separated, with disappearing photos and videos in their own conversation separate from text chats, meaning that you could have multiple threads going with the same person(s) within Direct.

Today’s update hopes to streamline your inbox within Direct by making the disappearing photos and videos appear inline within text conversations when it’s the same contact(s):

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Now that it looks quite clear Apple isn’t having a Spring event– it introduced new iPads, pre-announced new Mac Pros, and launched its Clips app in recent weeks without one– all eyes are on its Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) scheduled for June.

There are already quite a few clues about what to expect, and this week we’re taking a look at new features that we’d like to see included in Apple’s next major OS releases. Today, we get things started with macOS…

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Minecraft announced today on its blog that an upcoming update for the game will bring a new community-driven Marketplace feature to players of the Pocket edition of the game for iPhone, iPad, and other mobile devices.

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In this week’s top stories: Apple’s Mac Pro, display & iMac pre-announcements, Clips, iPhone 8 & Apple Watch Series 3 reports, and much more.

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Both Spotify and Apple Music users today have noticed that albums from hip-hop artist Jay-Z, who happens to be owner of competing music streaming service Tidal, have been removed from the services.

It appears that most of the artist’s original albums have been removed while some content where he is a featured artist or collaborator, and perhaps not the sole owner of the content, remains available for streaming. Tidal representatives have not officially announced the move, but Spotify’s support team is confirming the removal to users of the service on social media (via MacRumors).

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Following a report earlier this week claiming that the launch of Apple’s next-generation iPhone may be pushed to October or November, another report today adds more weight to a possible delay for the device versus the usual early to mid September launch dates of previous generations.

The report from Drexel Hamilton analyst Brian White (via CNBC), claims that Apple’s expected high-end 5.8-inch model in the new iPhone 8 could be delayed beyond September due to difficulties related to the 3D sensing technology rumored to debut on the device:

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Following announcements from Mitsubishi and Scania yesterday, Honda today unveiled the latest new vehicles that will come with Apple’s in-dash CarPlay system standard with a reveal of its new 2017 Civic Si Coupe and Sedan models.

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Apple’s new Clips social video editing app officially launched today for iPhone and iPad following an unveiling last month. While we’ve yet to spend significant time with the app ourselves, the reviews so far seem to be mixed with most reviewers noting similarities to Snapchat and some early shortcomings. The reviewers seem to agree the app provides fun and promising editing features, but most also noticed the user interface proved to be a little too difficult or confusing.

Head below for a full roundup of the reviews and some hands-on video:

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Microsoft today released a new app for Apple’s iMessage platform, giving users tools to plan events with friends via the messaging app.

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After first announcing the service back in February, today YouTube TV is officially launching in select U.S. markets.

The standalone TV service that offers users 4 big networks and other channels with unlimited DVR functionality for $35 a month comes today to both mobile devices and desktop users in New York City, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Philadelphia and Chicago ahead of a broader roll out.

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In a very uncharacteristic move for Apple, the company today decided to address recent concerns among its pro market and pre-announce an all-new, rethought Mac Pro in the cards for next year at earlierst. Less exciting is the spec bumps that make the current lineup more affordable in the meantime, and the company also added in confirmation that new iMac models are coming later this year. But is Apple’s pre-announcement for new Mac Pros enough to address pro concerns?

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Starbucks today updated its iPhone app to add a new “Starbucks Gifts” iMessage app, allowing users send gift cards through Apple’s iMessage and pay for them using Apple Pay.

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Following reports last month that Spotify was considering restricting some of its biggest releases to paid users as it renegotiates royalty deals with record labels, today the company confirms it has now inked such an agreement with at least one major label partner.

The new multi-year deal with Universal Music Group will mean that some new album releases on Spotify will only be available to paid subscribers. New singles released will continue to be available for free users. The exclusivity to paid subscribers, however, will only be for the first two weeks of release and will be up to the artists:

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Apple Pay today added more banks and credit unions that now support the payment service, including over 20 for the U.S. and two new banks in Russia. The full list of newly added banks is below.

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