Skip to main content

Apps

6,285 'Apps' stories April 2010 - April 2013
See All Stories

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.

Twitter #music for iPhone, iPod touch is now playing

Avatar for Zac Hall Apr 18 2013 - 8:25 am PT
0 Comments

Twitter launched its new music discovery app Twitter #music for iPhone today.

Twitter #music takes a step toward filling the void created when everyone migrated from MySpace, which was one of the most effective music discovery tools for me until it was largely vacated.

Twitter promises to “change the way people find music, based on Twitter,” per the social network’s blog, which I believe will be widely appreciated.


Expand
Expanding
Close

Site default logo image

LinkedIn iPhone app updated with simpler, more personalized interface

Avatar for Mark Gurman Apr 17 2013 - 9:10 pm PT
0 Comments

LinkedIn has updated its iPhone and iPod touch application with a redesigned, simpler user-interface that is more personalized. Additionally, the update allows for more actions from the Updates Stream. The iPad app does not appear to have picked up the new interface yet, but the tablet-optimized version did receive bug fixes and performance improvements. Release notes:


Expand
Expanding
Close

Yahoo plans to launch iPad email app, new iOS weather app tomorrow (Update: Live)

Avatar for Mark Gurman Apr 17 2013 - 6:14 pm PT
0 Comments
Site default logo image

Update: Yahoo! Weather is now available in the App Store. Yahoo! Mail for iPad is also available in the App Store.

Yahoo plans to release an in-house weather app for iOS and an iPad version of its Yahoo Mail app as soon as tomorrow, according to a person familiar with the apps.

The iPad version of Yahoo Mail is optimized for the iPad’s larger screen, and it is already available for the iPhone and iPod touch. Late last year, Yahoo released a redesigned version of its iPhone application that focused on speed and intuitiveness.

Yahoo’s new weather app is notable as the company already is in a partnership with Apple to provide the data for the Weather app pre-installed on all iPhone and iPod touch models…


Expand
Expanding
Close

Site default logo image

Things for Mac, iPad, and iPhone gets a speed boost, improved time zone support

Avatar for Mark Gurman Apr 17 2013 - 2:29 pm PT
0 Comments

The Things to-do management app for Mac OS X, iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch has been updated today with speed improvements for both the actual application and for downloading and syncing with the Things Cloud service.

We’ve identified the resource hogs and improved performance in key areas that were troublesome in the past. Below are some measurements we took before and after these improvements. Overall, the app now feels much more responsive, especially when you perform an action on multiple items at once.

Additionally, the application’s time zone support has been improved.

For this release we’ve been through and carefully adjusted all the date-related functionality in Things. It’s been a considerable amount of work, but these improvements – which affect scheduled dates, due dates, repeating tasks, local notifications, and the Daily Review – are a good and necessary foundation going forward.

I’ve been testing out the app updates for a couple of months now, and the improvements seem to live up to Cultured Code’s (the developer) claims.

Things is meant for users with many to-dos that need to sort their work into projects. With that in mind, the suite is a bit pricier than applications in the same category: Things for Mac (49.99), Things for iPad ($19.99), Things for iPhone/iPod touch($9.99). The three apps sync with a free Things Cloud system.

Release notes below:


Expand
Expanding
Close

iPhone, iPad leads in business, profitability, Android leads in smartphone marketshare

Avatar for Zac Hall Apr 17 2013 - 10:40 am PT
0 Comments
Site default logo image

via techin5.com

Henry McCracken over at Time has done us all a favor by collecting various data sets that illustrate the state of iOS versus Android.

The data ranges from device marketshare to revenue from app downloads, which presents some stark differences between the two platforms.

We unpack the results below.


Expand
Expanding
Close

Site default logo image

Time Warner Cable iOS app updated with ability to stream live TV away from home

Avatar for Mark Gurman Apr 17 2013 - 9:39 am PT
0 Comments

As announced yesterday, Time Warner Cable has updated its iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch application with the ability to access and stream select OnDemand content and TV channels while away from home. Previously, the application could only stream TV while you were in your home with Time Warner Cable TV service. Additionally, the app update has improved filtering and sorting for categories and shows. Bug fixes and various performance enhancements are also included in the 3.2.0 update.


Expand
Expanding
Close

Richard Williamson, former Apple executive who led Maps team, Loren Brichter join Facebook

Avatar for Mark Gurman Apr 16 2013 - 3:29 pm PT
0 Comments
Site default logo image

According to Bloomberg‘s Adam Satariano, Richard Williamson has joined Facebook. We’ve independently heard the same. Williamson is a former iOS executive from Apple who was reportedly terminated over Apple Maps. Williamson ran Apple’s iOS 6 Maps team and also worked on Siri features.

Williamson joined Facebook in the past couple of weeks to be a manager within its expanding mobile-software group, said two of the people, who declined to be identified because the information isn’t public.

Facebook’s hire of Williamson is notable as the social network reportedly has hired several former Apple engineers to work on various projects, including the Facebook Home software and various other mobile applications. Williamson’s hire marks one of the more high-profile hires of former Apple employees.

Following up on this morning’s news that Loren Brichter is working with Facebook some capacity, Bloomberg also notes that the company has actually hired the Letterpress developer and former Apple employee as a consultant.


Expand
Expanding
Close

Site default logo image

Leaked document apparently shows AppGratis enticed developers with potential high App Store rankings

Avatar for Mark Gurman Apr 16 2013 - 11:07 am PT
0 Comments

Business Insider has obtained a leaked document that seems to show that AppGratis enticed developers with potential high iTunes App Store rankings. According to the document, AppGratis said that if a developer invests $100,000 with them, an app will likely reach the top 5 spots on the App Store top charts.

Of course, reaching the top of the App Store rankings is highly lucrative as hundreds of millions of iOS devices are given a prominent view to the top of the App Store charts.

AppGratis was reportedly originally pulled from the App Store for mimicking Apple’s App Store and for sending its users ad-like push notifications. Of course, the aforementioned apparent move by AppGratis to inflate rankings is a serious concern for Apple and it is something that Apple, of course, wants to keep out of its App Store. Interestingly, AppGratis, yesterday, seems to have denied participating in inflating App Store rankings.

Since the App Store algorithm has been based on download velocity only for so long, advertisers know exactly what they are doing.Reaching the the top of any App Store is a simple and logical equation. But we’re not in this business.


Expand
Expanding
Close

Site default logo image

Mailbox email app for iPhone removes reservation system following scaling improvements

Avatar for Mark Gurman Apr 16 2013 - 9:26 am PT
0 Comments

The Mailbox for iPhone email application no longer has a reservation system, its developers announced today. The developers say that improved scaling contributed to this.

Good news! Mailbox is now available without having to wait in line. After 10 weeks of around-the-clock hard work, our engineering team has scaled the Mailbox service to deliver over 100 million messages per day (and growing). We believe we can now confidently handle new users as they sign up, so we’ve pulled down the reservation system.

It is unclear if Dropbox, the new owner of Mailbox, contributed to the new scaling efforts. The developers say that the app processes 100 million emails per day. Yesterday, Mailbox was updated with interface enhancements and new snooze options.


Expand
Expanding
Close

Site default logo image

Time Warner Cable announces out-of-home live TV streaming coming to iOS devices tomorrow

Avatar for Zac Hall Apr 16 2013 - 9:23 am PT
0 Comments

via digitallanding.com

Time Warner Cable is launching out-of-home video on-demand and live content streaming to its TWC TV app for iPhone and iPad tomorrow.

Live channels will include Aspire, BBC America, beIn, Big Ten Network, FearNet, Fox News Channel, Fox business, GMC, Pac-12 Network and TV Guide Network; while channels like MTV and Comedy Central will offer video on-demand, according to Engadget.

The broadcast company first offered in-home VOD and TV streaming support two years ago, but allowing live content to be viewed remotely is a huge feature for Time Warner Cable customers.

Site default logo image

Vine support added to trending places app ‘Now’

Avatar for Ben Lovejoy Apr 16 2013 - 3:54 am PT
0 Comments

When you offer an app to help people find trending places, you probably want to make sure it’s using trending technologies too. Now, the free app that builds a ‘social map’ of popular bars restaurants and events around you, has been updated to support Vine videos. So if you want to check out the atmosphere before you head over there, you can get six seconds (actually six-and-a-half) of video to help you decide. (Via TNW.)

Site default logo image

Apple releases minor Xcode update with fixes/improvements

Avatar for Mark Gurman Apr 15 2013 - 5:23 pm PT
0 Comments

Today, Apple has released a minor update to its Mac Xcode software development suite. The update includes various performance improvements and bug fixes. It is available on the Mac App Store as a free update. Thanks, D!

What’s New in Version 4.6.2

• Improves LLDB performance for debugging Objective-C code.
• Fixes an issue where the crash log database could grow very large.
• Additional bug fixes and stability improvements.


Expand
Expanding
Close

Site default logo image

Mailbox email app for iPhone updated with improved swipes, smarter snoozes

Avatar for Apr 15 2013 - 1:59 pm PT
0 Comments

Mailbox for iPhone and iPod touch, the popular Gmail application recently acquired by Dropbox, has been updated with a couple neat enhancements. Adjustments for snooze times are now more specific, swipes are faster, and the UI has been updated with various tweaks. Additionally, bug and performance fixes are also present.

What’s New in Version 1.2.0

– smarter snoozes (adjust based on time of day and week)
– faster swipes (swipe as many items at one time as you want)
– UI improvements (e.g. double-tap a name bubble to see email address)
– bug fixes (including swipe-to-open bug) and performance improvements


Expand
Expanding
Close

Site default logo image

YouTube app for iOS now offers access to Live Streams, TV queuing

Avatar for Mark Gurman Apr 15 2013 - 11:55 am PT
0 Comments

Today, Google has updated its YouTube for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch application with a few important new enhancements. Notably, users of the application can now access Live streams directly from within the app.

Additionally, the interface has been updated for quicker access to subscriptions via the My Subscriptions feed. TV queuing, another notable addition, will allow users to create a queue of videos to watch later on their TV.


Expand
Expanding
Close

The search for the top App.net client

Avatar for Mike Beasley Apr 15 2013 - 9:13 am PT
0 Comments
Site default logo image

Welcome to 9to5Mac’s Smackdown series, where we compare the top hardware and software accessories for your Apple products.

App.net (or “ADN,” as many users have come to call it) was launched last year as an alternative to other microblogging platforms that had become more hostile to developers in recent months. The idea wasn’t so much about ripping off Twitter as it was about giving developers a friendly place to build cool apps and services. Rather than being funded by venture capitalists or advertisments, ADN was funded solely by the people using the platform. Users and app developers paid a yearly fee to get into the network or build on its API.

In the time since it was opened to the public, ADN has lowered their annual fee, introduced feature-limited, invitation-only free accounts, a cloud storage service, and more. Thanks to the developer-friendly atmosphere, many amazing iPhone clients have been released. In today’s smackdown, we’re going to put three of the most popular, fully-featured apps head-to-head to determine which one is the best.

If you want to give these apps a try, you’ll need either a free or paid ADN account. The free accounts are only available by invitation, but lucky for you we happen to have 400 invitations to hand out. Want to claim one? Just click this link and sign up. Once you get there, be sure to follow us.


Expand
Expanding
Close

Site default logo image

Pebble Watch SDK goes live, new watch faces and apps to come

Avatar for 9to5 Staff Apr 12 2013 - 12:56 pm PT
0 Comments

Family-of-3-Pebbles

Pebble, the E-Ink smart-watch for iPhones and Android devices which raised over 10 million dollars on Kickstarter is about to get a lot of new features. Today, Pebble announced that the watch SDK is being released today. The SDK will allow developers to create custom watch faces, alerts and new apps.

At the moment, there’s less than 10 available watch faces and only one app, but expect those numbers to grow dramatically now that developers can get their hands on a public SDK.

You can grab the SDK from Pebble’s website right here.

Apple nears ‘iRadio’ streaming deal with Warner and Universal in a dozen markets, royalties on par with Pandora rates

Avatar for Seth Weintraub Apr 11 2013 - 5:04 pm PT
0 Comments
Site default logo image

We’ve heard no end of rumors of a streaming Radio player from Apple.  We even found pay radio buttons in the iPad’s music player app code earlier this year:

The Apple radio service, once rumored for late 2012 to Q1/2013, has now been pushed back to mid-late 2013 because of difficulty signing the labels. Today the Verge says that Warner is all but signed up at rates comparable to what Pandora pays the labels  – which is to say a lot. Earlier reports put Apple’s asking price much lower.

Apple is expected to sign its first interner radio licensing agreement with a major record label perhaps as soon as next week, multiple sources with knowledge of the talks have told The Verge…Apple initially offered to pay 6 cents per 100 songs streamed, or about half of what Pandora pays. Now, Apple will pay rates nearly “neck and neck” with Pandora, one of the sources said.

Update: CNET reports that Universal is also close to signing and that Apple is hoping to go into a dozen territories by summer:

The press has dubbed the service iRadio, in negotiations with the labels Apple is referring to it as its “new streaming service,” says a source…Apple is building some unique features, such as the ability to jump back to the beginning of a song…Apple is hoping to quickly unveil the service in up to a dozen territories, according to sources, including the U.K, France, Germany, Australia, and Japan.

We’re hoping that Apple has an announcement to make at WWDC, if not earlier.

France calls Apple’s decision to remove AppGratis ‘extremely brutal and unilateral’, will ask EU for tighter regulation

Avatar for Jordan Kahn Apr 11 2013 - 1:59 pm PT
0 Comments
Site default logo image

Following a controversy in which Apple removed app discovery service AppGratis from its App Store for breaking Apple’s guidelines, Reuters reports today that regulators in France are planning to ask the European Commission and EU member states for better regulation of technology companies. The statement was made by French junior minister for digital economy Fleur Pellerin on a recent trip to AppGratis publisher iMediapp. Fleur described Apple’s decision to pull AppGratis as “extremely brutal and unilateral”:

“This behaviour is not worthy of a company of this size,” Pellerin said. She added that certain Internet companies were guilty of “repeated abusive behaviour” and said she would ask the European Commission and EU member states to better regulate digital platforms, search engines and social media.

The decision comes as Apple is drawing some heat for its broad App Store guidelines that have allowed it to remove some apps that promote App Store content but not others. Apple originally said that AppGratis was removed for breaking a guideline that warns against “Apps that display Apps other than your own for purchase or promotion in a manner similar to or confusing with the App Store.” Apple also said AppGratis was in violation of guideline 5.6 that says “apps cannot use Push Notifications to send advertising, promotions, or direct marketing of any kind.

AllThingsD reported that sources have indicated Apple’s removal of AppGratis is part of a broader crackdown on app discovery applications, but a grey area still remains regarding how Apple decides which apps are approved and which are removed.

Apple told Retuers today that it had discussions with AppGratis prior to the removal and that the developers had “disregarded its technical specifications.”
Expand
Expanding
Close

Site default logo image

Bump for iPhone loses the ability to share iTunes tracks between devices

Avatar for Mike Beasley Apr 11 2013 - 12:07 pm PT
0 Comments

The popular peer-to-peer file sharing app Bump was updated to version 3.5.8 today, and according to the change notes one of the features has been removed. Apparently at Apple’s request, the developers have disabled the ability to share music from your iTunes library to another Bump user or your computer.

New in 3.5.8:
+ Bug fixes and performance improvements.
+ We’re sorry, but we are no longer permitted access to iTunes audio files on the device. Removing access to iTunes audio files in the file sharing section.

If you want to keep this feature, be sure to save a copy of the old version of the app in case you accidentally update. You can just drag the Bump icon out of the Apps section of your iTunes library and drop it in a folder to keep it there. If you ever accidentally update to the new version, you can just delete the app from your phone and iTunes library, then drag the old version into iTunes and reinstall it on your device from there.

If you’re jailbroken and want to avoid an accidental update, the free tweak Update Hider can hide the update from the App Store entirely.

Site default logo image

Showtime Anytime iOS app updated with support for Comcast XFINITY subscribers, iPhone 5 & iOS 6

Avatar for Jordan Kahn Apr 11 2013 - 12:02 pm PT
0 Comments

The app that provides access to full-length TV shows for Showtime subscribers was initially only available to AT&T U-verse and Verizon FiOS customers. Showtime Networks later added support for DIRECTV and Optimum subscribers, but today updated its universal iPhone/iPad app to provide support for Comcast XFINITY.

Also included in version 1.4 of the app is support for iPhone 5, optimized video playback for iOS 6 and a few welcomed performance enhancements:

What’s New in Version 1.4

– Available to Showtime subscribers with AT&T U-verse, Comcast XFINITY, DIRECTV, Optimum and Verizon FiOS!
– Support for iPhone 5
– Optimized video playback for iOS 6
– Improved tap targets for controls in video player
– Improved performance and stability
– Minor bug fixes

Site default logo image

Real Racing 3 iOS app updated with vehicles from Chevy, 100+ new events, cloud save, much more

Avatar for Jordan Kahn Apr 11 2013 - 6:15 am PT
0 Comments

While the highly anticipated Real Racing 3 from EA received a lot of press when it first launched back in February, much of it was negative attention due to developer Firemonkey’s decision opt for an in-app purchase, freemium model. Despite that, Real Racing 3 is considered one of the top racing games for iOS devices, and today it receives a massive update bringing new vehicles, events, and game modes to the title.

Version 1.1.0 of Real Racing 3 includes the return of vehicles from Chevrolet such as the Chevrolet Cobalt SS and the Camaro ZL1, 100+ new events bringing the total up to over 1,000, and the ability to save to the cloud and transfer saves between devices. The update also brings a new event type called “Hunter!”:

What’s New in Version 1.1.0

Ladies and gentlemen, start your engines. American fan favorite Chevrolet makes its return to Real Racing! This update features the Chevrolet Cobalt SS and the Camaro ZL1, an all-new Hunter mode, Cloud Save functionality, and 100+ new events! Plus, compare and compete using the new friends leaderboard.

• New manufacturer – Chevrolet! The Cobalt SS and the Camaro ZL1 join the lineup
• New event type – Hunter! Chase down the hunted car and overtake within one lap
• 100+ new events! Total number of events now exceeds 1,000!
• Cloud Save functionality! Transfer your save data between devices
• New social features! See who is online and compare how your friends are doing with the statistics leaderboard
• Check your TSM mailbox for the latest friend notifications
• Improved tutorial and main menu
• Numerous additional improvements, fixes, and performance optimizations

Site default logo image

Comixology, not Apple, responsible for not publishing controversial comic

Avatar for Zac Hall Apr 10 2013 - 11:22 am PT
0 Comments

via paperblog.com

Comixology CEO Dan Steinberge addressed the company’s customers today clarifying that Apple was not responsible for withholding its comic Saga #12 from the Comixology iOS app.

In the last 24 hours there has been a lot of chatter about Apple banning Saga #12 from our Comics App on the Apple App Store due to depictions of gay sex. This is simply not true, and we’d like to clarify.

As a partner of Apple, we have an obligation to respect its policies for apps and the books offered in apps. Based on our understanding of those policies, we believed that Saga #12 could not be made available in our app, and so we did not release it today.

In the last 24 hours there has been a lot of chatter about Apple banning Saga #12 from our Comics App on the Apple App Store due to depictions of gay sex. This is simply not true, and we’d like to clarify.

As a partner of Apple, we have an obligation to respect its policies for apps and the books offered in apps. Based on our understanding of those policies, we believed that Saga #12 could not be made available in our app, and so we did not release it today.

We did not interpret the content in question as involving any particular sexual orientation, and frankly that would have been a completely irrelevant consideration under any circumstance.

Given this, it should be clear that Apple did not reject Saga #12.

Steinberger went on to say that its decision to not publish Saga #12 was based on a more conservative interpretation of Apple’s guidelines.

After hearing from Apple this morning, we can say that our interpretation of its policies was mistaken. You’ll be glad to know that Saga #12 will be available on our App Store app soon.

Comixology’s apology wraps up what became a public contention against Apple and it’s App Store policies.