App Store

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Angry Birds Seasons version 2.3.0: Rovio updated its Seasons edition of Angry Birds with 30 new levels for Halloween and much more. The HD iPad version gets the same update.

BOO! The pigs are hiding in their spookiest location yet: a haunted house! The Angry Birds will have to brave ghosts and ghouls to get their eggs back — if they can survive the house first! Are your eyes playing tricks on you or did that painting just move?!

-Explore the scary secrets of the brand new haunted house!
-Try to survive 30 all new spooky levels!
-Shiver and shake to the ghostly new Halloween music!
-Use the brand new ghost bricks for fun trick shots!
-Say hello to Frankenswine and the other pigs, all dressed up for Halloween!

Square Register version 2.4: Square is officially rolling out its payment service internationally today with the Canadian launch and an updated Square Register iOS app. Full details in the company’s press release here.

– Square Register is now available in Canada!

Opera Mini version 7.0.5:

 – Integration with iOS Facebook framework (iOS 6+)
– Improved performance when saving large images
– Fixed freeze after sharing via email
– Fixed video playback on youtube.com (iPhone and iPod)
– Performance and stability fixes
– Added support for iOS 4.2.1
– Various iOS 6 related fixes

Music Unlimited version 1.2: The iOS app for Sony’s subscription music service gets a decent update today with the ability to “Create channels inspired by your favorite artists” and more:

· My Channels – Create channels inspired by your favorite artists.
· Playlist management – Create and edit playlists on your mobile device.
· Some features have been improved.

Lumify version 2.0: One of our favorite new social video apps gets a big update:
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A few apps updated, went on sale, or made announcements recently, and 9to5Mac gathered the most noteworthy ones in our regular round up below. Today’s selection includes a new app by Mosaic and Yobongo, updates to popular action-packed games, and a couple huge price drops. Per usual, we will continue to update this list throughout the day.

New:

1. Mosaic | Not yet live
Mixbook, a scrapbook, calendar, and photobook company, acquired chat service Yobongo earlier this year, and the two forces have been working on an iOS project, called “Mosaic,” that unveiled at 12 p.m. EST today (video above). 9to5Mac was able to get a sneak peak:

Mosaic is basically a product app that lets users build and create formatted photo albums from images stored on their iOS devices. The app’s UI is clean, fast, and fluid, and the limited options provide an easy “1,2,3-step” experience. Simply select the photos, choose a mat color preference, and then place the order.

The Mosaic photobook costs roughly $20, but it ships fast, arrives in sturdy, eye-pleasing packaging, and the entire product feels very high in quality. In fact, when I created my Mosaic, I chose low-lit, grainy, blown-up pictures, because I wanted to see how well the images would appear after going through Mixbook’s printing press. Much to my surprise—they came out crisp, clear, and stunningly vivid (pictures below).

While Mosaic is just an app for putting digital images into a nicely printed photobook, its user-experience and caliber of artisanship make it certainly worth noting. Check it out: www.HeyMosaic.com

More updates and price drops below.

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StubHub Tickets: There are a few notable apps already hitting the App Store today. StubHub, which recently announced Passbook support for University of Texas and Purdue University, is today announcing Passbook integration for University of North Carolina Tar Heels events starting with the first home football game on October 27. StubHub has rolled out support for Apple’s new Passbook app for four schools total, but plans to roll out support for its 60+ partners in the near future, which include franchises in the NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL and NCAA. Tar Heels fans will now have the “Add to Passbook” option available when purchasing tickets through StubHub’s iOS app.

ReaddleDocs version 3.2.5:

– iPhone 5 compatibility

KODAK Professional Film App: Kodak released a new app today that allows users to learn about types of Kodak films, file formats, and where to buy and process film.

For example, are you in the UK and looking for KODAK PORTRA Professional 160 film? Or in Australia looking for a lab to develop your EKTAR 100 images? Simply download the app, select your country and find trusted partners to supply and develop your film.

VLC 2.0.4: Popular open source VLC media player is getting a big update today that includes support for new codecs and a ton of improvements and fixes:
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Carmageddon: Thanks to a Kickstarter project, Carmageddon makes its return today as a universal iOS app with iPhone 5 support and most of the features of the original Mac and PC title. In case you’re unfamiliar, the game was banned in many countries for its gory vehicular combat gameplay (by 1997 standards anyway). The game clearly still has a cult following and the iOS version comes with a few enhancements over the original including Game Center support, leaderboards, and customizable controls. Carmageddon is free today only to celebrate the launch and will soon increase to $2.

Steam version 1.1.0: With the latest update to Steam’s iOS app we finally get native iPhone 5 support. However, the biggest addition is the announcement all Steam account users worldwide can now access the app. Also included in version 1.1.0 is support for 25 new languages and a few fixes:

* Access via the Steam mobile app is now available to all Steam account holders
* Native support for iPhone5
* Increased robustness of Chat in unreliable network conditions
* Fixed issues with global menu rendering, notably the inability to select “Settings” after device rotation
* Support for 25 langauges
* Improved general stability

Fring version 6.0: The popular Fring messaging, calling, and video calling app gets an improved UI, better fringOut rates, iOS 6 support and 4-way group calls:

* Phone number only registration (no username/password login)
* Improved look and feel
* Even better fringOut rates
* Group calls with up to 4 users
* Improved security
* iOS 6 compatible

Sonic Jump: SEGA is releasing a new Doodle Jump-style Sonic title today. The game features familiar Sonic stages and characters, boss battles, and other elements of Sonic games, but switches to an all vertical gameplay style made popular on iOS by Doodle Jump. It’s already available in New Zealand and will hit all App Stores by midnight tonight.

Checkmark 1.1: We recently had good things to say about this new take on Apple’s Reminders app in our review. Today it gets a number of new features including recurring and snooze reminders, map improvements, and iOS 6/iPhone 5 support:

• Recurring reminders (NEW FEATURE)
• Snooze reminders (NEW FEATURE)
• Support for iOS 6 and iPhone 5
• Map improvements (Satellite/Hybrid views, Drop a pin anywhere)
• Improved radius control for locations (larger radius options, new slider UI to choose radius)

Angry Birds Star Wars lands on November 8th and Rovio just posted another teaser:
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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dcJGdlJlbHA]
Google+ version 3.2: Google has updated its iOS app for Google+ today with a number of welcomed new features. On top of iPhone and iOS 6 support, the app now allows Google+ page owners to view, post and make comments. Other features include the ability to edit posts and “search for people and posts on iPad.”

✓ Support for iPhone 5 and iOS 6
✓ Google+ page owners can view, post and comment from mobile
✓ Ability to edit posts
✓ Ability to search for people and posts on iPad

Bad Piggies Best Egg Recipes: Rovio is today releasing its first book app in the form of a Bad Piggies themed cookbook on the App Store. Currently available for $1, the app will soon go back to its regular price of $4.99. PaidContent got a chance to check out the app at the Frankfurt Book Fair and has all the details of the launch.

Crazy Taxi: SEGA’s arcade classic Crazy Taxi makes a return on iOS today based on a port of the 2000 Dreamcast version. The app is available now on the App Store for $4.99 and features the original music from Bad Religion and The Offspring, touch and tilt controls, and Game Center support.

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A few apps updated, went on sale, or made announcements recently, and 9to5Mac gathered the most noteworthy ones in our regular round up below. Today’s selection includes app accessory news from Tim Cook’s second favorite company, Nike, a few tweaks to an official Walking Dead game in celebration of the show’s upcoming season three premiere, a fresh app for creating Passbook passes, two alternative Maps app updates, and a price drop. Per usual, we will continue to update this list throughout the day.

Check them out:

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Tim Cook just posted the above letter on Apple’s website to reminisce and pay homage to the company’s late cofounder, Steve Jobs.

Today is the one-year anniversary of Jobs’ passing, so Apple updated its homepage early this morning with a video montage to remember his life and death. The nearly two-minute video presents a slideshow of Jobs throughout his career and it softly ends with “Remembering Steve”.

Apple unveiled the iPhone 4S on Oct. 4, 2011, but one seat left open for Jobs at the packed event notably sat empty. The next day, Jobs died. After he passed, at just 56 years old, news of his death flooded the Internet, TV, newspapers, and homes. Millions of people immediately emailed Apple, and the company subsequently created a “Remembering Steve” page to display a massive compilation of condolences that poured in from around the world.

The tribute letter from Apple’s current CEO appears upon completion of the “Remembering Steve” video. In the message, Cook describes Jobs’ death as a “sad and difficult time”. The executive hopes, however, that everyone will “reflect on [Jobs’] extraordinary life and the many ways he made the world a better place.” A screenshot of Cook’s entire letter is above, while a text version is available after the break.

Apple has become the most valuable company in the world during the last year, and it is hard not to give respect to the man whose imagination and innovation helped push the company to record-breaking heights.

A slight variation of the above went to employees in a company email:

Team,

Steve’s passing one year ago today was a sad and difficult time for all of us. I hope that today everyone will reflect on his extraordinary life and the many ways he made the world a better place. As you and I know firsthand, one of the greatest gifts Steve gave to the world is Apple. No company has ever inspired such creativity or set such high standards for itself. Our values originated from Steve and his spirit will forever be the foundation of Apple. We share the great privilege and responsibility of carrying his legacy into the future. I’m incredibly proud of the work we are doing, delivering products that our customers love and dreaming up new ones that will delight them down the road. Thank you for dedicating your talents and so much of your lives to Apple. It’s a wonderful tribute to Steve’s memory and everything he stood for.

Tim

The video and screenshot gallery of the homepage is below:
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Many apps updated, went on sale, or made announcements recently, and 9to5Mac gathered the most noteworthy ones in our regular round up below. Today’s crop includes a few giveaways by developer Shape.ag, an alternative to Apple Maps featuring Google data, notable iPhone 5 updates, price drops for popular iOS apps, and etc. Per usual, we will continue to update this list throughout the day.

Check them out:

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Google UK Marketing Director Dan Cobley briefly spoke with Bloomberg TV today on Apple’s decision to remove Google Maps from iOS 6, but the most intriguing part about his statement concerned how people could continue to use Google Maps after updating.

Cobley noted folks on iOS 6 can still “use Google Maps by downloading them or going to the Google Maps website.” This is an interesting comment, however, as there is no Google Maps-related app from Google available in the App Store aside from the Google Earth app. It features 3D layers, including roads, borders, places, photos and more, but it is not an adequate Google Maps replacement. There is also no existing option to download a map from Google Maps in mobile Safari.

Therefore, it is currently unclear what Cobley meant by “downloading them.” SearchEngineLand asked Google today when iOS would get a new Google Maps app, though, and if it would feature turn-by-turn navigation. Google replied:

We believe Google Maps are the most comprehensive, accurate and easy-to-use maps in the world. Our goal is to make Google Maps available to everyone who wants to use it, regardless of device, browser, or operating system.

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