App Store

Alas, we’re one step closer to an App Store not filled with iOS 6 keyboards. Google released Translate 2.1 today, bringing support for the iOS 7 keyboard released last September to the iPhone and iPad.

The update also expands support for its new handwriting input method to a number of additional languages including Arabic, Esperanto, Gujarati, Hebrew, Javanese, Maltese, Maori, Marathi, Persian, Punjabi, Telugu, and Zulu.

Google first introduced its handwriting input method last September. Google Translate 2.1 is available now on the App Store.
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Realmac asking Clear+ users to migrate to Clear, going free for 24 hours

Zac Hall Feb 18 2014 - 6:00 am PT

10 Comments

2/27 Update: It’s live.

3/6 Update: Last round.

tl;dr Use this, not this, and read on to find out how and why.

Last September, Realmac released a new version of its to-do list app Clear that included visual tweaks and iOS 7 feature support. This version of Clear also ran natively on the iPad for the first time and was a separate purchase from the App Store.

This lead to a great deal of feedback from customers displeased with having to buy a new version of Clear for an iOS 7 update on the iPhone (especially when iPad support for the biggest selling point, but not every iPhone customer has an iPad)…
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iTunes Connect update brings modernized look, sales breakdowns by category, region and more

Benjamin Mayo Feb 17 2014 - 3:26 pm PT

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Sales data redacted.

Apple today updated the Sales and Trends section of iTunes Connect, giving developers more detailed information about the origin of their apps’ sales as well as a modernized visual style.

The new update answers many of the issues developers have raised in recent years about the opaqueness of the App Store sales process. For instance, developers can now separate out sales by territory, platform, of purchase and category. This means that developers can get a better idea of how customers are finding their apps in the store. In the example above, you can see that the app was mainly found through the ‘Games’ category, with exposure in the ‘Entertainment’ category accounting for only a small fraction of total sales.

Rovio announces new ‘Angry Birds Stella’ game coming this fall

Jordan Kahn Feb 13 2014 - 6:32 am PT

After a couple of teases that a new Angry Birds title was incoming, Rovio today announced that a new game called “Angry Birds Stella” is coming soon. The game features a female lead character unlike the majority of Rovio’s other games, but there aren’t many details about how else it might differ from other Angry Birds titles.

Angry Birds Stella will open a door to a part of the Angry Birds universe you’ve never seen before! There will be plenty of fun and adventure, but the bunch of passionate pals will also have to deal with some serious issues in order to protect their friendship and the environment they live in. Luckily, Stella and her friends are good at finding creative solutions!

No word on an official release date, but Rovio says the game will ship sometime in the fall.

Wall Street Journal corroborates new Apple TV incoming, but says content plans have been scaled back

Benjamin Mayo Feb 13 2014 - 1:01 am PT

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The Wall Street Journal has published a report that largely corroborates what Bloomberg said earlier; a new Apple TV is under development with Apple currently in negotiation stages for content deals, with at least Time Warner Cable. However, the Wall Street Journal adds some new information about what these talks entail.

Initially, it appears that Apple wanted an independent Apple TV product to offer TV shows and films exclusively over the Internet. However, now it appears that Apple is scaling back some of its ambition due to resistance from content companies.

Rdio iOS app gets playlist editing, user & critic reviews, more

Jordan Kahn Feb 11 2014 - 1:04 pm PT

Rdio, the popular subscription music service, is rolling out an update today to its iPhone and iPad app that brings a couple of welcomed new features including playlist editing for iPhone and iPod touch and reviews. As for the new playlist editing features, Rdio explained in its blog post:

Now, you can update your playlists from your iPhone or iPod touch — in addition to creating playlists and adding new tracks, you can now remove and rearrange tracks until you’ve made the best playlist ever (or it’s dethroned by your next playlist, of course). You can also customize the playlist artwork, change its visibility and collaboration settings, and more.

The new Rdio app also includes reviews for albums and playlists from both users and critics. Not only will you now be able to write your own album and playlist reviews from within the app, you’ll also be able to browse reviews from critics in addition to reviews written by other users.

Rdio notes in its blog post that it has “also made tweaks to the app’s design, user interface, and overall performance.”

The updated Rdio app for iPhone and iPad is available on the App Store for free.

iTunes as a standalone business would be ranked 130 in the Fortune 500

Ben Lovejoy Feb 11 2014 - 4:12 am PT

3 Comments

Asymco has calculated that if iTunes were a standalone business, it would be ranked 130 in the Fortune 500 list of top U.S. companies after its gross annual revenue grew 34 percent year-on-year to $23.5B. This would put it between Alcoa and Eli Lilly in the rankings, and is almost half of Google’s core search business – not bad for what was originally intended to be a break-even operation …

Growth was driven by increases in revenue from App sales reflecting continued growth in the installed base of iOS devices and the expansion in the number of third-party iOS Apps available. Net sales of digital content, including music, movies, TV shows and books, from the iTunes Store was relatively flat in the first quarter of 2014 compared to the first quarter of 2013.

Asymco also calculated the cost to Apple of making both the Mavericks update and iWork software free …
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Flappy Bird developer ‘It was just too addictive’, felt guilty for people wasting time

Benjamin Mayo Feb 11 2014 - 4:03 am PT

8 Comments

Getty Images

Dong Nguyen made waves at the weekend after announcing Flappy Bird would be removed from the App Store. In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, Nguyen explains his — unorthodox — reasoning.

“It was just too addictive,” Mr. Dong said. He says he didn’t intend for people to play the game for hours at a time, as many gamers appear to have done.

“That was the main negative. So I decided to take it down,” he said.

New Apple TV hardware references already appearing in iOS 7 builds

Mark Gurman Feb 10 2014 - 10:31 am PT

23 Comments

We reported last fall that a revamped Apple TV set-top-box is in the works, and then we learned earlier this year that the new box would likely be introduced in the first half of 2014. Sources said at the time that the new model would be redesigned (at least on the inside) and would sport new content (perhaps a true App Store or gaming functionality). Since that time, sources indicated that internal prototypes for the new device include AirPort Express-like functionality, a form of enhanced iOS gaming integration, and a TV tuner component for connecting to existing cable setups.

Now, we have located a reference to the next-generation Apple TV inside of iOS 7 software builds:

Shazam iPhone app redesign incoming w/ new features

Jordan Kahn Feb 10 2014 - 8:07 am PT

Update Feb. 25: The redesign we told you was incoming today started rolling out to iOS users globally. The updated app is available on the App Store now and the company notes that other new features are coming soon, including:

· Quick access to lyrics with a preview as soon as a track is matched, and with direct access to the music video and additional videos related to a song;

· Recommendations unique to Shazam;

· Lightning fast access to the most important information about any show broadcast on over 160 TV channels in the US: music in the show, cast and crew, and more;

· More engaging biographies and discographies, making it easy to go from discovering a great track to learning about and experiencing more from the band.

Shazam, the audio recognition app that lets users find currently playing songs and more, today announced that a redesign of its iPhone app is rolling out ahead of a larger change to the experience coming later this month. Today’s update replaces much of the light, baby blue color theme Shazam has long used and also introduces new features for accessing content and getting recommendations:

Over the coming weeks, Shazam’s more than 150 million iPhone users will see a new tag result experience as it is rolled out, with Android users getting it shortly thereafter. The new experience means Shazaming becomes the beginning of a journey, giving users effortless access to:

· A brand new look and feel for music and television results with easy access to previewing, buying, and sharing a track;

· Quick access to lyrics with a preview as soon as a track is matched;

· Direct access to the music video and additional videos related to a song; and,

· Recommendations unique to Shazam

The updated Shazam iPhone app will be available through both the Free and Encore versions.

Unverified: Flappy Bird pulled by Apple after copyright complaint from Nintendo? [Updated: Not true]

Ben Lovejoy Feb 10 2014 - 3:50 am PT

11 Comments

Update: Nintendo has sent an email to the WSJ denying that it has made any complaint about the app’s similarity to Super Mario Bros.

Apple’n’Apps, a relatively unknown site without much of a track record, is suggesting that Flappy Bird may have been pulled by Apple after Nintendo complained about copyright infringement regarding the graphics used in the game. Those pipes do look “Super Mario-esque”. The developer Dong Nguyen had claimed he was withdrawing it voluntarily, and that there were no legal issues. But there’s some gray area there we suppose.

A person familiar with the App Store review process tells Apple’N’Apps that Flappy Bird wasn’t removed voluntarily by Mr. Nguyen, as he claims. It turns out that Nintendo got in touch with Apple regarding the art assets in Flappy Bird claiming that they’re in direct violation of their copyrights. Apple contacted Mr. Nguyen regarding the copyright claim, and that’s why we saw the new updated version with graphic changes to the pipes [as well as fewer ads]. Nintendo already decided that they had seen enough, and Apple is the one who pushed Mr. Nguyen to remove Flappy Bird (with 24 hour notice).

We’ve asked Apple for a comment, and will update if we receive a response, though the version arguably makes more sense than a developer voluntarily forsaking around $50,000 a day in revenue due to the attention the game was receiving. Dong Nguyen’s two other games remain on the App Store, currently ranking #4 and #18.

Apple is know to err on the side of caution where copyright complaints are concerned.

The app has also been pulled from Google Play, which tells us nothing either way: if the claim is true then Nintendo would have approached Google also, but equally the developer would have voluntarily removed from both stores.

Flappy Bird creator promises to remove popular game from App Store by tomorrow

Chance Miller Feb 8 2014 - 11:36 am PT

14 Comments

After reaching the top of App Store charts, the hit iOS game Flappy Bird will be removed from the App Store. According to tweets from the developer Dong Nguyen, it sounds like the game will be removed from both the iOS and Android app stores in just 22 hours. In the tweets, Nguyen says he “cannot take this anymore” and refers to the game’s success as ruining his “simple life.” He says the decision has nothing to do with legal issues. Nguyen also says he has no interest in selling the game to anyone and that he’ll continue to make games.

I am sorry 'Flappy Bird' users, 22 hours from now, I will take 'Flappy Bird' down. I cannot take this anymore.

— Dong Nguyen (@dongatory) February 8, 2014

I can call 'Flappy Bird' is a success of mine. But it also ruins my simple life. So now I hate it.

— Dong Nguyen (@dongatory) February 8, 2014

Infuse 2.2 for iOS incoming with new features & performance improvements

Jordan Kahn Feb 7 2014 - 5:56 am PT

1 Comment

We were quite impressed with the redesigned Infuse media player from developers FireCore when it first launched version 2 last month. The app, which supports 14 video formats and 1080p playback, is today getting an update to version 2.2 with a few notable new features and performance enhancements.

The update includes some features highly requested by users including the ability to download files form network shares for offline playback, as well as new “rich cover art and video info” when browsing network shares. Other new features include a new list view option, a volume boost setting, and an option to disable metadata fetching.

A full list of improvements in today’s update below:

Download files from network shares (for offline playback)
Browse network shares with rich cover art and video info
List view option
Volume boost setting
Option to disable metadata fetching (good for home videos)
Improved streaming speed and reliability
Improved detection of network devices
Improved clarity of In-App purchase prompts
Improved playback of some video formats
Other performance and stability improvements

The Infuse 2.2 update should be hitting the App Store any minute.

Apple pulls last remaining Bitcoin wallet app from App Store

Ben Lovejoy Feb 6 2014 - 4:08 am PT

17 Comments

Photo: wired.com

Blockchain, the most popular Bitcoin wallet app, has become the latest casualty of Apple’s apparent crackdown on Bitcoin apps. The app was removed from the App Store yesterday without explanation.

Apple had previously removed BitPak and Coinbase, leaving Blockchain the only remaining Bitcoin wallet app. Blockchain had been in the store since April 2012, and has around 120,000 users, and developer Nicolas Cary is accusing Apple of having an ulterior motive for its removal …
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Phonejoy app provides complete list of App Store games compatible w/ MFi controllers

Jordan Kahn Feb 5 2014 - 8:52 pm PT

One of the complaints about Apple’s new MFi game controllers has been the lack of an App Store section that lists games updated with support. Some of the manufacturers are maintaining lists of their own online, but it would be nice to be able to browse the App Store and easily find games that work with the controllers. That’s why I’m pleased about a new app called Phonejoy that offers a slick UI to browse around 100 iOS 7 games and counting that are compatible with the MFi game controllers. It’s also listing games that support the popular iCade controllers and other gamepads released before Apple’s new MFi program.

Over the last month we’ve seen the first few Apple authorized game controllers released by manufacturers through Apple’s new MFi program hitting the market. While the program’s aim to implement a standardized controller framework brings a lot of potential for gaming on iOS, we’ve covered in detail how the first few controllers have had a bit of a rough start. On top of lack of support from developers and users not being able to easily find content, consumers also rebelled against the $99 price point leading several manufacturers to drop launch prices as low as $70.

We’ve covered some of the issues with Apple’s new MFi game controller program and also reviewed the first few to hit the market from Logitech, Moga, and SteelSeries.

The Phonejoy app is available on the App Store for free now and the company also has a Kickstarter project for its own controller that it plans to ship in March.

Apple subsidiary FileMaker passes 1 million downloads of iOS app on App Store

Jordan Kahn Feb 5 2014 - 6:29 am PT

Apple subsidiary FileMaker announced today that it has reached over 1,000,000 downloads on the App Store of its FileMaker Go database management app. The news follows the release of FileMaker 13 in December, which came alongside a streamlined iOS companion app for iPhone and iPad with new features including barcode scanning, native iOS behaviors, gesture-based navigation and much more.

“Businesses are using the FileMaker Platform to create solutions that manage everything from sales contacts and inventory to medical data on iPad and iPhone,” said Ryan Rosenberg, vice president, marketing and services, FileMaker, Inc. “With the recent launch of FileMaker 13, customers will find it easier than ever to design innovative mobile solutions.”

The FileMaker Go for iPad and iPhone App is part of FileMaker’s comprehensive lineup of desktop, server and iOS software for creating custom business solutions that run on iPad, iPhone, Windows, Mac, and web browsers. The FileMaker 13 Platform includes expanded support for native iOS behaviors (such as popovers and slide controls) and new features (such as bar code scanning) that speed data capture on iPad and iPhone. FileMaker Go is now a single app for both iPad and iPhone.

The latest version of FileMaker Pro 13 is available through Apple for $329 (on Amazon as low as $280) and the FileMaker Go app for iPhone and iPad is on the App Store for free.

Google Wallet iOS app gets loyalty card scanning, notifications for nearby merchants

Jordan Kahn Feb 4 2014 - 9:44 am PT

After rolling out the update to Android devices last week, Google today updated its Google Wallet app for iOS with the ability to scan physical loyalty cards. Rather than having to type out your account information to join a new program within the app, scanning a physical loyalty card from a supported retailer will auto-populate your info and automate the process.

The updated app also now includes new notifications for nearby retailers related to loyalty programs you’ve joined. If you’ve joined the Walgreens program, for example, you’ll get notifications reminding you “to shop and earn rewards” when close to a brick and mortar retail location.

The updated Google Wallet iOS app is available on the App Store now.

Google Maps for iOS now notifies drivers of alternative, faster routes while driving

Benjamin Mayo Feb 4 2014 - 4:23 am PT

4 Comments

Google continues to push its Maps product on iOS in the latest update, version 2.6. The app now alerts the driver when faster routes become available when navigating. This reflects functionality found in dedicated sat navs. Rather than simply offering several routing options at the beginning of your journey, Google will keep aware of traffic and road conditions in case a faster route appears later.

Theoretically, this means you are always on the fastest route possible when navigating. As always, the app is free.

Pebble launches smartwatch app store w/ 1000 apps & watchfaces through iOS app

Jordan Kahn Feb 3 2014 - 10:35 am PT

Previously revealed in December alongside a new SDK for developers, smartwatch maker Pebble is today launching its dedicated app store for the device. The company’s blog post says the store is now live through the Pebble app on iOS and currently offers over 1000 apps and watchfaces:

The appstore features separate areas for apps and watchfaces, with six app categories: Daily, Tools & Utilities, Notifications, Remotes, Fitness, and Games. This makes it easier than ever to find your next favorite app — whether you’re tracking your workout, managing your music, or controlling your thermostat.

Since Pebble is only capable of running eight apps at any one time, the app also features a locker feature that will allow users to store and manage downloaded apps. All content in the store is currently offered for free as Pebble does not yet allow developers to charge for apps or watchfaces.

You can download the updated Pebble Smartwatch app rolling out today for iOS to check out the new app store.

Cycloramic hits top of App Store after Shark Tank appearance, $500k investment & 100k downloads in an hour

Jordan Kahn Feb 1 2014 - 4:42 pm PT

24 Comments

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jeZhnEHOMzY]

What happens when your app gets featured on ABC’s Shark Tank, the TV show where rich investors listen to pitches from wannabe entrepreneurs looking to raise funds? For app developers Egos Ventures it means shooting up hundreds of spots on the App Store charts to become the top paid app in the store overnight. The developers behind the hands-free panorama app called Cycloramic were able to capture a $500k investment from two of the Sharks on last night’s episode. We spoke to the developer who appeared on the show last night, Bruno Francois, to find out a little about the experience and get some stats on downloads following the investment.
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M7-powered Pedometer++ gets major update with new design and export options

Benjamin Mayo Jan 31 2014 - 2:00 pm PT

Pedometer++ rose to fame after developer David Smith moved quickly to have an M7-enabled fitness app available for the iPhone 5s. The newest update builds on the original in several key ways. Importantly, it changes the design of the app from a list to a chart-centric format showing one week of activity at a time. You can flip through a week at a time, a big improvement of the previous layout.

The tint color of the app indicates the current day’s progress towards the daily step goal. If you have hit your daily limit, it changes the feel of the entire look. The navigation bar, buttons and titles turn green to reflect your achievement. It’s a really clever detail that just adds that extra level of polish to the app.