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6,235 'Apps' stories April 2010 - February 2014
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Learn about the latest news for iOS, Mac, Apple Watch, and Apple TV apps

Apps for iOS, macOS, tvOS, and watchOS power our modern world. 9to5Mac will update you on the latest news, review, and updates for all types of apps. “There’s an App for that”.

The term came became part of our vocabulary when Steve Jobs announced The App Store as part of the iPhone 2.0 software update in 2008.

Over the years, the term has become as common as kleenex for describing applications on all of our devices. Apple’s platforms have apps for just about anything from finance, banking, sports, social media, podcasting, music, and more. We have a guide for helping you discover the best ones as well. Apps are now on everything from our TV, to our smartphones, on our laptops, and all the way down to our wrists.

As new ones are released or existing ones have major updates, the team here at 9to5Mac will bring you the latest news and reviews. If you want to follow along with video footage, be sure to follow 9to5Mac on YouTube. Scroll down below our latest updates on all things relating to applications on iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV, and Apple Watch.

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

Avatar for Jordan Kahn Feb 1 2014 - 4:42 pm PT
24 Comments
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[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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Offers you can’t refuse: $100 off all MacBooks, up to 70% off 2K iOS games, Samsung 3D BR player $55, more

Avatar for Jan 31 2014 - 11:58 am PT
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Be sure to follow 9to5Toys to keep up with the best gear and deals on the web: Twitter, RSS Feed, Facebook, Google+ and subscribe to the new Safari push notifications feature.

Today’s can’t miss deals: 

Best Buy 2-Day Doorbusters: $100 off all Apple MacBooks and 21″ iMac for $1,150 ($150 savings)

Game/App Deals: Up to 70% off 2K iOS games, Tilt to Live: $1 (Reg. $3), 100 Rogues: $1 (Reg. $3), iOS freebies, more

Samsung Smart 3D Blu-ray Wifi BluRay player (refurb): $55 shipped. Add Godfather series Blu-ray for an offer you can’t refuse


Other great deals from today:

More great deals still alive:

How to live stream NFL Super Bowl XLVIII on your iPhone or iPad

Avatar for Jordan Kahn Jan 31 2014 - 8:57 am PT
13 Comments
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Was Apple’s long time advertising partner Lee Clow— the guy behind Apple’s 1984 Super Bowl ad, PC vs Mac, and many others— really hinting at an Apple Super Bowl ad for this Sunday? Would you like to see a commercial from Apple at the game this weekend?

NFL Super Bowl XLVIII between the Denver Broncos and the Seattle Seahawks officially kicks off this Sunday at 6:30pm ET in chilly New Jersey, and this year there are a few options for live streaming the game from your iPhone or iPad. It’s going to be tough to get an official stream on your iPhone if you’re not a Verizon and NFL subscriber, but all iPad (and Mac) users will be able to get an official stream of pre-game coverage and the actual game for free through FOX in the US. Head below for all the info on what apps will have live streams and the best places to find Super Bowl ads, replays, and more.
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Adobe VideoBite, a bite-sized video editor for iPhone, now allows titles, photos & music

Avatar for Ben Lovejoy Jan 31 2014 - 6:06 am PT
10 Comments
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Adobe VideoBite, an iOS app designed to make video editing as quick and easy as possible, has been updated to allow titles, photos and music to be added, turning it into a fully-fledged editor while retaining its simple user-interface.

Heartwarming Apple ads aside, I’ve always been rather skeptical of the real-world practicality of video editing on a phone, but I have to confess that VideoBite does make it a very slick process. Trimming clips, for example, involves nothing more than pressing a heart icon at the beginning and end of the bit you want to keep. Adding transitions and music is just as easy, and your finished masterpiece is saved to your camera roll, with exports to Facebook, YouTube and email also supported … 
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MLB begins rollout of iBeacon technology in baseball stadiums for next season

Avatar for Mike Beasley Jan 30 2014 - 4:25 pm PT
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Last year it was reported that Major League Baseball fans would soon be able to take advantage of iOS 7’s iBeacon support inside professional baseball stadiums. The technology would be utilized in the MLB.com At The Ballpark app to customize the app’s interface to any given ballpark.

The app could direct users to their seats or points of interest such as concessions stands. Similar to Passbook’s lockscreen functionality, plans were also reportedly underway to allow the app to automatically present a ticket upon entering the gate.


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9to5Toys Last Call: AirPort Extreme $169, JBL/Bose/Denon headphone deals, HooToo USB 3.0 hubs from $11, more

Avatar for Jan 30 2014 - 10:03 am PT
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Be sure to follow 9to5Toys to keep up with the best gear and deals on the web: Twitter, RSS Feed, Facebook, Google+ and subscribe to the new Safari push notifications feature.

Today’s can’t miss deals: 

Last Call updates:

 

Apple AirPort Extreme (6th gen) 802.11ac wireless base station $169 shipped (Reg. $199)

Headphone Deals:

HooToo USB 3.0 Hubs: 7-port $27 (Reg. $65), 4-port slim bus-powered $11 (Reg. $15)

Other great deals from today:

  • New! Game/App Deals: Mini Ninjas, City Maps 2Go Pro and Car Club go free on iOS, Terraria for Android: $2 (Reg. $5), iOS freebies, more
  • New! iOttie Easy View Universal iPhone car mount $13 shipped (Reg. $23)


More great deals still alive:

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Evernote iOS apps get new customizable home screen w/ three color themes & much more

Avatar for Jordan Kahn Jan 30 2014 - 8:25 am PT
0 Comments

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8HOROMnILMo]

Evernote pushed out a nice update to its iOS app today that brings a new customizable homescreen that will offer a few ways for users to personalize their experience. First off, the new home screen includes three color themes– Light, Dark, and Classic– but it will also now let users “add, remove, and rearrange sections” and quickly hide & reveal details for each:

The first thing you’ll notice are the redesigned New Note buttons that now sit at the top of the screen. They’re big, clear and easy to tap. Right above them, is the Settings gear. Tap it to get to the home screen customization options.

Also new in today’s update is the ability to automatically save scanned business cards to your contacts and adjust the quality of audio notes to “optimize for sound or file size.” Another new option will put the sync status bar below the Settings gear. In addition, Evernote said in a blog post that the new app is faster and more responsive:

We’ve made the app snappier and more responsive. For example, titling and retitling notes is now approximately a lot faster. Tap into the note title and the cursor pops in right away, note title suggestions appear to make things even quicker. We’ve also tweaked the note editor to make frequently used features easy to find. No more delays. In and out.

Version 7.3.0 of Evernote for iPhone and iPad is available on the App Store now.

SwiftKey keyboard arrives on iOS as Evernote-infused app, third-party integration possible

Avatar for Mark Gurman Jan 30 2014 - 5:59 am PT
3 Comments
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SwiftKey, a popular Android keyboard option, has arrived on iOS. No, not as a keyboard that you can install to replace Apple’s iOS touchscreen keyboard, but in the form of a free App Store application. The name of the application is SwiftKey Note and it is available on the iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch. More details below:


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UK watchdog finalizes rules for free-to-play games, requires compliance by April 1st

Avatar for Benjamin Mayo Jan 30 2014 - 4:57 am PT
2 Comments

The UK’s Office of Fair Trading has today published its final “principles” for free-to-play games, after starting an investigation back in April last year. Publishers have until April 1st to comply to the regulations or their titles breach UK consumer law and may result in legal action … 
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New official Paper app aims to turn Facebook into a beautiful, magazine-style experience

Avatar for Ben Lovejoy Jan 30 2014 - 4:54 am PT
11 Comments
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Update: Now available

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IhrbT9O6kW8]

Facebook has made many changes to its newsfeed over the years (each usually generating howls of protest on launch and then viewed as business as usual within a week or two), but the interface on web and iOS app alike has seen only minor tweaks. Popup photos aside, it’s essentially remained a clean but uninspiring scrolling layout.

All this is set to change with the launch of Paper, a new iOS-only app set to launch in the U.S. on 3rd February.

Paper makes storytelling more beautiful with an immersive design and fullscreen, distraction-free layouts. We’ve also made it easier to craft and share beautiful stories of your own …


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Twitter for iOS updated with improved photo tools, content recommendations, more

Avatar for Zac Hall Jan 29 2014 - 11:30 am PT
0 Comments

Twitter released a feature update to its iOS app today bringing new photo-centric features to the social client. Version 6.1 delivers a photo gallery to the tweet compose view making it quicker to sort through your images as well as improvements to photo editing.

Users should also find new content recommendations at the top of the timeline, a feature that may have been popping up for some users before.

The last major update to Twitter also focused on photo sharing as it introduced DM image support.

Twitter 6.1 is available for free on the App Store.

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9to5Toys Last Call: Up to 33% off Belkin WeMo home automation, Chromecast from $25, LifeProof Frē iPhone 5 $30, more

Avatar for Jan 29 2014 - 9:59 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+ and subscribe to the new Safari push notifications feature.

Today’s can’t miss deals: 

Last Call updates:

Amazon Gold Box: Up to 33% off select Belkin WeMo home automation products

Google Chromecast $25 for .EDU emails or $30 for everyone else

LifeProof Fre case for iPhone 5 (black): $30 shipped (Reg. $80)

Other great deals from today:

More great deals still alive:

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Gmail bug means iOS users may have accidentally deleted mail, says Google

Avatar for Ben Lovejoy Jan 29 2014 - 5:25 am PT
0 Comments

A Gmail bug affecting the iOS app, mobile browsers and the offline version of Gmail may have resulted in users deleting or spam-marking the wrong emails, says Google.

The bug may have affected emails received between 15th and 22nd January. Google is encouraging users to check their spam and trash folders for email that does not belong there.

Via The Verge

Google releases tool to let devs bring Chrome apps to iOS & Android

Avatar for Jordan Kahn Jan 28 2014 - 10:04 am PT
6 Comments
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After letting us know last month that it was getting ready to release a toolkit to let developers easily bring their Chrome web apps to iOS and Android, today Google released a developer preview of the tool. In its blog post, Google explains the tool is based on open-source framework Apache Cordova, which allows devs to build native apps for iOS and Android using CSS, HTML, and Javascript. It’s also making a lot of its own core Chrome APIs available to developers through the preview. It essentially means devs will be able to bring their Chrome web apps to the App Store and Google Play, but it will also let them build new cross platform apps in CSS, HTML, and Javascript. Google explained how it works:
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9to5Toys Lunch Break: $30 off Retina iPad mini, Virgin iPhone 5s $440, 15″ Retina MacBook Pro (newest) $1700, more

Avatar for Jan 28 2014 - 9:58 am PT
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Be sure to follow 9to5Toys to keep up with the best gear and deals on the web: Twitter, RSS Feed, Facebook, Google+ and subscribe to the new Safari push notifications feature.

Today’s can’t miss deals: 


Apple Tablet Roundup: $30 off all iPad mini w/ Retina display WiFi models, iPad 4th gen 128GB $520, more

Virgin Mobile cuts unsubsidized iPhone 5s to $440 or iPhone 5c for $360 shipped (Update)

Apple 15″ MacBook Pro w/ Retina display (current gen) 2.0GHz/8GB RAM/256GB $1,700 shipped (Reg. $1999)

Other great deals from today:


More great deals still alive:

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Popular lyrics site Rap Genius launches new Genius app for iPhone

Avatar for Zac Hall Jan 28 2014 - 9:55 am PT
1 Comment

Just a month after Rap Genius got stung by Google for gaming search engine results, the lyrics and annotation site is delivering its popular service to iOS users with the launch of its first iPhone app.

While it features an optimized view of its annotated lyrics service its known for, it also has a Shazam-like feature for picking out the music playing around you. If you have music saved to your iPhone in the Music app, Rap Genius will pick songs it has lyrics for and present those to you as well. The music discovery feature was a bit hit-or-miss for me and a rather limited number of songs from my Music app appear, but the lyrics service of course works really well for the songs it does have.

Genius by Rap Genius is available for iPhone and iPod touch for free on the App Store.

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Rovio responds to claims Angry Birds was targeted by NSA smartphone surveillance program

Avatar for Jordan Kahn Jan 28 2014 - 6:07 am PT
1 Comment

Yesterday we reported on new leaked docs from Edward Snowden reported by The New York Times and others that detailed secret NSA and GCHQ programs used to siphon data from popular smartphone apps on both iOS and Android. While Apple and Google have yet to respond to the reports, today one of the main developers singled out in the claims has. Rovio, maker of the popular Angry Birds game that was mentioned several times in the reports, today posted a response on its website.

The developer confirms that it in no way works with NSA, GCHQ or any other government organization to provide data about users, but it does point to third-party advertising networks as a possibility of the leaks:

The alleged surveillance may be conducted through third party advertising networks used by millions of commercial web sites and mobile applications across all industries. If advertising networks are indeed targeted, it would appear that no internet-enabled device that visits ad-enabled web sites or uses ad-enabled applications is immune to such surveillance. Rovio does not allow any third party network to use or hand over personal end-user data from Rovio’s apps.

Referring to the third-party advertising networks, Rovio CEO Mikael Hed said the company would have to “re-evaluate working with these networks if they are being used for spying purposes.”

Angry Birds wasn’t the only app specifically mentioned in the leaked docs, however. The reports claim the NSA program is capable of intercepting information ranging from location, age, and sex of users to address books, buddy lists, phone logs, geographic data and more from various mobile apps and third-party ad networks. Twitter, Google Maps, Facebook and others were also specifically mentioned in yesterday’s reports.

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Facebook update allows you to hide certain stories and people from your news feed

Avatar for Mike Beasley Jan 27 2014 - 4:01 pm PT
4 Comments

A Facebook for iOS update that was released earlier today includes the ability to hide certain people from your main news feed. To do so, just tap the downward arrow on any post and select the “I don’t like this post” option. From there you can select from a few different options for hiding the post or the user that posted it.

The iPhone version of the app also allows you to see all of your videos in a single album. This feature didn’t make it to the iPad version for some reason, but it might make the jump in a future update.

You can grab the updated app for free on the iOS App Store.

What’s New in Version 6.9

• Choose whose posts you see in News Feed
• See all the videos you’ve uploaded in one album (iPhone only)

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MyPhotostream: Photo Stream for Mac without iPhoto’s baggage

Avatar for Zac Hall Jan 27 2014 - 11:53 am PT
16 Comments

MyPhotostream is a simple, standalone Mac app for viewing your pictures from Photo Stream without having to open the mammoth of an app that iPhoto has become.

This app removes a major point of friction for me, and I’m guessing I’m not alone. Open iPhoto and it’s loading your image library, checking location data, updating Photo Stream and Shared Photo Streams, and who knows what else. If you’re viewing iPhoto in full-screen (as it best appears in my opinion) and you have a camera or iOS device connected, it will pull you back to a desktop view and take over the screen with a modal import prompt (even if auto-import is disabled); it’s a mess.

MyPhotostream digs your Photo Stream photos out of the mess and presents them in a simple, customizable grid view.
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New leaked docs show NSA collects personal data from smartphone apps

Avatar for Jordan Kahn Jan 27 2014 - 11:47 am PT
5 Comments
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New documents leaked by Edward Snowden and reported by The New York Times, The Guardian and ProPublica detail how the NSA and its British counterpart can collect users’ personal data through smartphone apps. The reports specifically mention popular apps like Angry Birds, Twitter, Google Maps and Facebook and claim the NSA is capable of intercepting information ranging from location, age, and sex of users to address books, buddy lists, phone logs, geographic data and more:

The N.S.A. and Britain’s Government Communications Headquarters were working together on how to collect and store data from dozens of smartphone apps by 2007, according to the documents, provided by Edward J. Snowden, the former N.S.A. contractor. Since then, the agencies have traded recipes for grabbing location and planning data when a target uses Google Maps, and for vacuuming up address books, buddy lists, phone logs and the geographic data embedded in photos when someone sends a post to the mobile versions of Facebook, Flickr, LinkedIn, Twitter and other services.

At least one of the app developers, Rovio, is not surprisingly unaware of any of the activity mentioned in the documents, but it will be up to the app developers, Apple, and Google to address the issue and clarify for users if their personal data is safe. In a recent interview with ABC, Apple CEO Tim Cook commented on the controversy over surveillance programs and promised he would press congress for more transparency:
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Dark Sky update brings iOS 7 design, beautiful 3D radar maps and more detailed forecasts

Avatar for Benjamin Mayo Jan 27 2014 - 10:05 am PT
3 Comments

The Forecast team today released their iOS 7 update for Dark Sky ($3.99), the ‘down-to-the-minute’ weather app. The update strips back the bevels and gloss to fit the iOS 7 aesthetic. The new design puts the most important information — the current weather conditions — front and center. A graph plot of upcoming precipitation is also available at a glance on the main page of the app.

Blurring has also been used to great effect, with the forecast information superimposed on a blurred view of the global radar maps. These maps are beautifully rendered; the radar patterns smoothly transition over time. In addition to the radically new design, version 4 also brings much forecasts that span longer into the future. The next 24 hours is prioritised, but 7-day outlooks are available with a swipe. The day-by-day breakdowns offer a lot of information, more so than most weather reports will provide.

From the developers’ blog:

Completely rewritten from scratch, it sets aside the limitations of the web to become the weather app we’ve always wanted — and always wanted to build. It’s the culmination of over two years of work in figuring out how to display and organize weather data the right way. And it’s a full featured weather app — something we swore we’d never do — but it still remains true to its original focus on what’s happening right now, where you’re standing.

The developers say the app is a complete rewrite, which makes the fact they are not charging for the update impressive. For new customers, Dark Sky is available for $3.99 on the App Store. Note that Dark Sky coverage currently encompasses the United States, the UK and Ireland. The developers have said that they are actively working on adding data for more regions.

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9to5Toys Last Call: $50 off all iPad Air models, 50% off OtterBox Armor Series, up to 73% off SwissGear backpacks, more

Avatar for Jan 24 2014 - 10:03 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+ and subscribe to the new Safari push notifications feature.

Today’s can’t miss deals: 

Last Call updates:

https://twitter.com/9to5toys/status/426837161368121344
Best Buy 2-Day Doorbuster Sale: $50 off iPad Air plus iPad mini/iPhone discounts

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SFBOnvOR4MA]Get 50% off all Otterbox Armor Series cases & 25% off select Otterbox Defender cases

Amazon Gold Box: Up to 73% off SwissGear computer backpacks

Other great deals from today:

More great deals still alive:

iWork for iOS and Mac updated with password-protected files, new Keynote transitions, and a lot more

Avatar for Mike Beasley Jan 23 2014 - 3:11 pm PT
5 Comments
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Following today’s Keynote for Mac and iWork for iCloud updates, Apple has updated Pages, Keynote, and Numbers for iPhone and iPad to version 2.1 today. The Mac versions of Pages and Numbers have also received updates. Like the web versions, each app gained support for sharing password-protected documents via iCloud links.

Keynote for iOS also gained new transitions, a remote feature for controlling the Mac version, and more.

Keynote for iOS
• Use the new remote feature to control slideshows on other devices
• New transitions including Droplet and Grid
• Enhanced presenter display options
• Share password-protected documents via iCloud link
• Create charts with date, time, and duration values
• Custom number formats in charts are preserved on import of Keynote ’09 and Microsoft PowerPoint presentations
• Improved compatibility with Microsoft PowerPoint 2013 presentations
• Bug fixes and stability improvements

Keynote Remote, which is integrated into the aforementioned update, is no longer visible in the App Store. But the direct link continues to work.


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