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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.

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Adobe Photoshop Lightroom goes Retina

Adobe announced this afternoon that Adobe Photoshop Lightroom has been updated with Retina graphics to support the Retina MacBook Pro. The update comes in the way of the Lightroom 4.3 Release Candidate — RV label indicating it’s being tested before going to the — available through Adobe Labs this afternoon. Additionally, Adobe added 13 new cameras and a slew of bug fixes in the update. We’ve listed them below:


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Parallels 8 updated with USB 3.0 support, Windows 8 tablet gestures, more

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Parallels introduced a big update today for Parallels Desktop 8 for Mac. It includes new features for Windows 8 users, full USB 3.0 support, and improved Retina display settings. On top of support for Windows 8 tablet gestures, Parallels is including a Windows 8 tile that allows users to access shared Mac apps. According to Parallels, the update also includes faster USB 3.0 performance, an increased limit for virtual machines running large apps, and “Smooth transitions when entering and exiting Coherence mode”:

Now Mac users can enjoy new features including Windows 8 tablet gestures and use a Windows 8 interface tile to access shared Mac apps.  These updates, plus the already deep Parallels Desktop 8 integration of Mac OS X and Windows 8, enable people to also use Mountain Lion’s Dictation feature in Windows applications, add Windows apps to Launchpad and the Mac Dock, enjoy brilliant Retina display resolution for Windows apps and more – making Parallels Desktop 8 an ideal way to run Windows 8 on a Mac without rebooting.
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Clear, Pinterest, Jingu Friends, Square Wallet, Fantastical for iPhone, iDisplay, more

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News:

Pay with Square at Starbucks: We already knew Starbucks was signed up to bring Square payments to 7,000 of its stores via the newly renamed “Square Wallet” app. Starbucks just confirmed in a press release that starting today it will officially begin accepting Square payments via a scanned QR.

Fantastical for iPhone: Those familiar with the Mac OS X desktop version of the Fantastical app will be pleased to know developers Flexbits have announced an iPhone version is in the works and coming soon. The Mac version is a slick, menu bar item calendar app for access to reminders and calendar functions, but also has support for iCal, BusyCal, Entourage, Outlook, iCloud, Google Calendar or Yahoo! Calendar. You can sign up to find out when it becomes available here.

New app releases:

Clear for Mac: We knew it was coming and today the Mac App Store version of the popular Clear to do app for iPhone officially makes its way to the Mac.

Jingu Friends:Originally available as a BlackBerry app with more than a million downloads since May 2011 and 3.5 million messages sent monthly, the developers of the Jingu Friends app have released an iOS version of the app today on the App Store. The app allows you to discover new people to chat with through a lounge environment that “immediately drops you into a global conversation stream where you can listen or participate.” From there you can find out more about the messaging apps participants use:

All messages posted on Jingu Friends are public, but users can take their conversations private through seamless integration into smartphone messaging apps like BBM, Hookt, WhatsApp and Kik.

Dragon’s Lair: The classic arcade game already made its way to iPhone and iPad earlier this year, and now the Mac version is available on the Mac App Store for $9.99 now.

FreshBooks for iPad: FreshBooks is coming to the iPad today with version 1.1 introducing a universal app that now supports both iPhone and iPad.

FreshBooks – The Fastest Way To Track Time, Organize Expenses & Invoice Your Clients, Anytime, Anywhere.

Updates: 

Pinterest version 2.1: Pinterest is introducing a new feature today that allows users to create up to three secret boards to share with friends and family. In a blog post, Pinterest explained how to use the new feature: “go to your profile, tap on the Boards tab, and scroll down to the bottom until you see a button that says Create a Secret Board.”

• Block or report other users
• Create up to 3 secret boards
• Edit boards from your device

Clear version 1.2: Clear for iPhone gets a big update today that brings iCloud support, the ability to share quotes on Twitter and Facebook, quick list switching, and more:
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Jailbreak tweak augments Siri with Google Voice Search (Video)

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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=e54gK0UpAxs#!]

The Google Now-like voice recognition features introduced to the Google Search for iOS app last month have been getting a lot of attention. Maps might not be the only area Apple cannot compete with Google. As highlighted in a video comparison we posted earlier this week, Google’s voice search feature has Siri beat. And many users are taking note. Today, AppAdvice pointed us to a new Jailbreak tweak called “NowNow” that allows you to call up Google voice search (from within the Google Search iOS app) by holding down the Home button—just like Siri. It appears you can also select alternate methods to invoke the feature, so you should be able to continue to use both if want. The tweak is available via the BigBoss repository now for free.


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Xbox SmartGlass, Curiosity, Tweetbot, Sparkling Maps, Rockmelt, more

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Xbox SmartGlass: Microsoft updated its My Xbox LIVE app for iPhone and iPad last night, renaming the app “Xbox SmartGlass” and introducing a number of new features. The app now works as the full fledged second screen “SmartGlass” experience for Xbox that Microsoft originally unveiled for Windows 8 devices.

Xbox SmartGlass lets you:
• Navigate your Xbox 360 with swipe and tap
• Use your phone’s keyboard to type to your Xbox 360
• Browse the Internet on your Xbox 360 with full keyboard and zooming
• Play, pause, fast forward, rewind, and stop videos and music on your Xbox 360
• Search the full Xbox catalog of music, video, and games
• Enjoy rich, interactive experiences from select game and entertainment content creators
• Track and compare your achievements with your Xbox friends
• Change up your 3D avatar
• Message your Xbox friends
• Edit your Xbox profile

Sparkling Maps version 1.1: Apple has decided to accept an update to Sparkling Maps that brings “vastly improved turn by turn navigation” and “better StreetView” powered by Google data. According to its developers,”This is now the first available app on Apple devices that offers streetview and turn by turn navigation on google maps data.”

Curiosity – what’s inside the cube: Developer of the Fable series Peter Molyneux is out with an interesting cross-platform title that is also now available on the App Store for iPhone and iPad. The game consists of users tapping away at a giant cube made up of billions of smaller cubes. Nobody knows what’s inside (unsold copies of Fable?), but users will work together across platforms to find out the mystery inside of the cube.

Deep in the centre of the cube is something life-changingly amazing, but only the first person to reach the centre will discover what’s inside.

Tweetbot for Mac version 1.0.1: The Tweetbot Mac App Store app was just updated with a ton of new features, fixes, and improvements. Included in the update is support for “Reading list as a Read Later service” on 10.8 and up, the ability to disable Streaming from within preferences, as well as better keyboard support in “people searcher”. You can also now navigate the timeline using the jk keys. A full list of what’s new is below: 
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All of your Election Day apps right here…

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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QdpGd74DrBM&feature=player_embedded]

9to5Mac scoured Apple’s App Store and the Web for the most talked about, best-rated or just plain interesting apps related to the 2012 U.S. Presidential Election, the candidates and their respective campaigns, and general news coverage for election night. Check out the roundup below; we will continually update throughout the day.

Oh, and check out the newly published YouTube video above of a voting machine supposedly “altering votes” earlier this morning. Eeek. 

Campaign apps

1. Obama for America by the Democratic Party for iOS | Free
More details on this official campaign app are available in 9to5Mac’s original coverage of its launch.

2. Romney-Ryan for iOS | Free
The official campaign app aggregates the latest news and updates, offers folks a chance to donate, and it provides exclusive campaign information with sharing options friends and family.

Election apps

1. Super PAC App for iOS | Free
Discover more about the presidential election ads on TV. The app identifies commercials from all political groups, including Super PACs, and the official campaigns.

2. 2012 Map: The Presidential Election App for iOS | $1.99
User can create, save, and share 2012 presidential election scenarios with this app that includes “Live” maps updated daily with the newest polling data and “Historical” maps that detail every election from 1789 through 2008.

3. Election 2012 Issues: Obama vs Romney in Their Own Words for iPhone | Free
Answer arguments about candidate’s views with videos of them using their own words. This app is non-partisan and details both Barack Obama and Mitt Romney’s position.

4. Election Results 2012 for iOS | 99 cents
Real-time election results for GOP primaries, Senate, Governor, House races, and the Presidential elections in November 2012.

5. VoterHub by AT&T for iPhone | Free
This is a “non-partisan clearinghouse for information on the 2012 election season, and future elections, in all 50 states,” with options for checking voter registration status, registering to vote, finding local polling place, getting detailed information on each candidate, and aggregating the latest election news from The Associated Press, etc.

6. Campaign 2012 – Obama vs Romney US Presidential Election News for iOS | Free
A source of up-to-date information about the 2012 U.S. presidential election with continually updated news, opinions, and analysis from many news sources. No subscription fees, either.

7. Electoral Vote Polls for iOS | Free
Electoral-Vote.com tracks the poll numbers for upcoming Senate, House, and Presidential elections. The site is popular, but now folks can now stay informed on the latest poll numbers on an iOS device.

8. 270toWin for iOS | 99 cents
According to the app’s description on the App Store: “It takes 270 electoral votes to win the White House. Make your predictions by starting with one of our many library maps. With one touch you are on your way to deciding which states will go to the Republican party, which ones will go to the Democratic party and which ones are leaning, likely or undecided.”  Maps will update on Nov. 6 as states are called.

9. Presidential Election Race 2012 for iPhone | 99 cents
Follow the electoral vote scoreboard and state-by-state poll results, and monitor the swing states with alerts for new polls with the latest election news, a map of how each state is trending, the number of electoral votes for each state, and the history of each state’s voting record since 1940.

10.  Settle It! PolitiFact’s Argument Ender by TIMES Publishing for iOS | Free
Resolve political disputes with this app that checks facts in campaign ads and tests users’ knowledge. Folks can also find fact-checks by searching name, keywords and subject, browse Truth-O-Meter ratings by person and subject, and share their findings by email, Facebook and Twitter.


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Facebook iOS app updated with new messaging features, multiple photo sharing, & Facebook Gifts

Update: As noted by commenters below, you might want avoid this 5.1 update. It appears to have made the app unusable for some.

Update 2: Facebook gave us this statement: 

Facebook found the issue and have addressed it server side. It should be working fine as of 30 minutes ago.

[tweet https://twitter.com/9to5mac/status/265767333723791362]

Facebook updated its iOS app today to version 5.1 with a number of new features including the ability to send real “Facebook Gifts” (for U.S. users)—a feature previously only available through the desktop app. There are also a few new messaging and sharing features included:

• Swipe left anywhere in the app to quickly see who’s available and send a message
• Add friends you message most to the top of your Favorites
• Share multiple photos fast
• Give real gifts to your friends using Facebook Gifts (US-only)
• When sending messages, see who’s active so you and your friends know how soon to expect a reply

Reader eBooks by Sony, Angry Birds Star Wars, BBC iPlayer, Facebook, Instagram rolls out Web profiles, app sales, and more

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9to5Mac compiled another list of the top app news, updates, and launches in our usual roundup below. The highlights from today includes statistics on how the newly Web-geared Instagram helped capture Hurricane Sandy in real-time, a new eBook app by Sony, and a shiny teaser trailer for Rovio’s Angry Birds Star Wars (above). Oh, and a few app sales—check it out:

News

1. Angry Birds Star Wars
After releasing a string of teasers for its title landing on iOS Nov. 8, Rovio posted the first official full-length gameplay trailer today for its new Star Wars edition of Angry Birds.

Angry Birds Star Wars will be out on November 8, but until then, watch this gameplay trailer and scream “OH MY GOODNESS!!!!” to yourself in the mirror

2. Instagram | Free
Hurricane Sandy barreled through the East Coast last week, and those in its stormy path made sure to document all of the havoc in real-time with the help of Instagram. Instagram CEO Kevin Systrom revealed to GigaOM today that folks uploaded over 800,000 photos tagged with the #Sandy hashtag. Systrom specifically noted Sandy was “probably the biggest event to be captured on Instagram.” The news from Systrom this morning came as the Facebook-acquired company also announced the rollout of new Web profiles with a very Facebook-esque look (via official Instagram blog):

You’ve asked for Instagram on the web and we’ve listened. Over the next few days, we’ll be rolling out Instagram profiles on the web!

Your web profile features a selection of your recently shared photographs just above your profile photo and bio, giving others a snapshot of the photos you share on Instagram. In addition, you can follow users, comment & like photos and edit your profile easily and directly from the web. It’s a beautiful new way to share your Instagram photos!

Just launched
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Report profiles Google’s internal feelings over whether Apple will approve Google Maps app

iOS 5 Maps with Google’s backend

The Guardian published a new report today that cited unnamed sources and throws around phrases like “not optimistic” and “unlikely event” in regards to Apple ever allowing a Google Maps iOS app.

The story claimed Google’s app is ready to ship by the end of 2012, but Google is torn about the likelihood of Apple ever giving an official go-ahead:

While one source indicated increased hopes that the dedicated Google Maps iOS app will eventually be approved now that Apple’s maps leader, Scott Forstall, has departed the company, another was less than enthusiastic about any increased prospects, citing industry politics and Apple’s need to save face as much as possible and “keep moving forward in an effort to make its obviously inferior product better”. Apple unveiled the section, which on Monday listed ten free and paid-for apps, to spotlight alternative mapping apps for iOS in an effort to placate users over response to criticisms of its own Maps app.

The Guardian specifically noted Apple’s reluctance to give Google Maps any attention in iOS. The company apparently went as far as to neglect apps in the “Find maps for your iPhone” section of the App Store that use Google Maps APIs:

Further, a source at Google told me the feeling is that those apps were purposely left out of the new section because they promote Google and its “superior product” – at a time when there is so much bad blood between the companies over the continuing smartphone patent litigation (following allegations from the late Steve Jobs that Google’s Android OS ripped off iOS). In other words, no matter how bad Apple’s Maps are, the company still wants its users to move on from Google – and forget about them. This doesn’t bode well for the approval of an official Google Maps app, the source says.

Despite the pessimistic outlook of the anonymous Google sources, the Guardian said Apple and the folks in Mountain View are in constant talks. So, the tide could potentially change without any notice. With that said, they firmly believe Apple will never again make Google Maps a default mapping solution in iOS.


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Evernote 5 for iOS, Podcasts, Amtrak adds Passbook support, Infinity Blade sale, more

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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=6PdY1c_C-Qk]

As always, we’ll update the list of new apps and updates below as they hit the App Store:

Evernote 5 for iOS: Following the introduction of a new desktop version, Evernote is teasing the upcoming release of Evernote 5 for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch on its blog today. Version 5 of the iOS app is completely redesigned and includes a new Quick Note button, a “Recent Notes” list on iPad, as well as “Views for Notes, Notebooks, Tags, and Places.” We get a preview of the new app in the video above.

Amtrak version 1.3: The official Amtrak app has added Passbook support today with the new eTickets now accepted at all stations:

From the integrated eTicket screen you select the action button to add it to Passbook. Passbook eTickets can be shown and scanned by conductors onboard Amtrak trains nationwide.

Podcasts version 1.1.2: Apple updated its Podcasts app today with a few new features and enhancements:

• Tapping a podcast in Top Stations now reveals episodes you can play
• You can now easily turn on automatic downloads for all subscribed podcasts in Settings
• Addresses an issue where previously played or deleted episodes unexpectedly reappear as new
• Resolves an issue where Podcasts may unexpectedly play after a phone call or alarm
• Includes additional stability and performance improvements

iOS App Sales:
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Apple updates Safari (6.0.2), iPhoto (9.4.2) and Aperture (3.4.2)

Along with the release of iOS 6.0.1 to the masses and 6.1 for developers, Apple released small updates for Safari, iPhoto, and Aperture this afternoon. To start, Safari hit version 6.0.2 and looks to just be security fixes, but several readers below are saying the update isn’t working.

As for iPhoto, there are new features in version 9.4.2:

• Photos now can be added to shared streams or My Photo Stream by dragging them to “Photo Stream” in the source list
• Multiple email addresses can now be copied and pasted in the “Shared with” field for shared streams
• When more than five subscribers “Like” a photo in a shared stream, their names are now displayed correctly
• Contextual menu now includes an Import command to import all the photos contained in a shared photo stream
• Addresses the reliability of Shared Photo Streams when switching between iPhoto and Aperture with the same library
• Fixes an issue that could prevent Microsoft Outlook from being used to email photos from within iPhoto
• Updated national holidays are available for use in printed photo calendars
• Includes stability improvements

Aperture 3.4.2:

• Photos received via My Photo Stream or shared streams can now be added directly to other shared streams
• Multiple email addresses can now be copied and pasted in the “Shared with” field for shared streams
• When more than five subscribers “Like” a photo in a shared stream, all their names are now displayed correctly
• The Info panel for a shared stream now includes an Unsubscribe button
• The status line in the toolstrip now displays the number of new photos added to a shared stream
• Faces are now properly detected on photos imported into a library from a shared stream
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Angry Birds Space, Path for iPad, Clear for Mac, Air Patriots, more

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Angry Birds Space version 1.3.1: Ten new Mars levels today for Angry Birds Space and the HD iPad version:

-Navigate 10 volcanic new levels, including the Mars Curiosity Rover boss level!
Get three stars on all levels to unlock a new antenna egg level!
-Hunt for the hidden rover to unlock a super-secret bonus level!
-All new space eagle bonus levels, one per episode! Get 100% on the space eagle destruction meter to unlock 5 new levels!

Path for iPad: Path announced on its blog a new version of its iOS app is hitting the App store later today that will bring a Path experience tailored specifically for iPad. The blog post described some of the enhancements for iPad, including: the ability to see “the day on one screen and swipe to see previous days”, and redesigned full-screen and landscape-views to show more content.

Air Patriots: Amazon Game Studios is launching its first mobile game on a number of platforms today including iPhone and iPad. The title is a tower defense game allowing you to “control a squadron of planes by drawing the paths they will follow to engage the enemy.” You can get it for free on the App Store now with a $3 map pack available as an in-app purchase.

Clear for Mac: We have covered the slick designed “Clear” to-do list app for iPhone in the past. Developers Realmac Software have now officially announced a Mac version of the app landing in the Mac App Store on November 8th for $14.99. The app includes iCloud support for easily managing lists across the iOS and Mac versions, and a “gestural interface built for your trackpad.”

SlingPlayer Mobile version 3.1: 
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Onavo Count lets you track your cellular data usage app-by-app

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[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pL_zovUxT5k]

With most cellular carriers moving away from the beloved unlimited data plans of yore, many smartphone users now find themselves trying to cut back on data usage while still doing all of the things they want or need to get done on their phones. Unfortunately, that’s sometimes harder than it sounds. Some apps may seem simple enough, but could actually be downloading massive amounts of data in the background. Users could also be using an app much more than they realize, resulting in overages, fees, and a strong feeling of contempt for carriers.

Until now, there has been no way for iPhone users to track down which apps on their phones were using large chunks of their data plan without their knowledge. Fortunately, the good folks at Onavo have heard the cries of outraged users on limited data plans and come to our rescue.


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Borderlands Legends, Cards, Paper for iPad, MapQuest, Dolphin Browser, more

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Borderlands Legends: We knew it was coming and today 2K has finally released the iOS version of the Borderlands franchise. It’s not exactly the full Borderlands you’re familiar with from consoles, but first impressions seem to be strong.

Borderlands Legends is the latest addition to the Borderland franchise, specifically designed for mobile and tablet. Control Mordecai, Lilith, Brick and Roland and take out the oncoming waves of enemies. Collect in-game cash by destroying enemies and purchase new weapons. Earn experience and level up your characters, unlocking new skills and abilities! Each character has their own set of unique skills and abilities, use them wisely to survive!

Cards version 2.0.1: Apple has updated its Cards app for creating and sending physical, personalized greeting cards on iPhone and iPad. One new feature in the update is the ability to “Easily swap photos in cards containing multiple photos.” There are also a few fixes to common issues:

• Easily swap photos in cards containing multiple photos
• Fixes an issue that caused previously mailed cards to display as drafts in Card History
• Fixes several issues that caused the app to quit unexpectedly

Paper by FiftyThree: If you look closely, a few of the features added to the popular “Paper” app today were actually leaked by Phil Schiller on stage during the iPad mini event earlier this month. New features include a Mixer for playing with shades, a new color palette, and and pressure input via the Expressive Ink Engine:
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Review: WeatherSnitch 2 is a sleek, feature-packed weather app for the iPhone

The iPhone comes with a pretty decent weather app, but many people find it to be lacking. Aside from the fact that it only predicts up to seven days of weather, many find its forecasts—which are powered by Yahoo!—to be somewhat inaccurate.

That’s a void that WeatherSnitch 2 is eager to fill. WeatherSnitch’s interface is packed with all the weather-related information you could possibly want, but presented in a neat and orderly way that makes sense.


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Need For Speed Most Wanted, Nike+ Kinect Training, Yahoo!, ooVoo Video Chat, Google Search, more

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Need for Speed Most Wanted: EA is out with the iOS version of its latest Need for Speed title today. It previously released Most Wanted for consoles and teased the iOS version, but now the app is officially on the App Store for $6.99. The game features over 35 customizable cars, touch and tilt steering, and EA Origin support to check leaderboards across platforms.

Evade a relentless police force while you clash with street racers. Race and chase hot cars like the SRT Viper GTS, Porsche 911 Carrera S, Hummer H1 Alpha, and many more. Feel the intensity of no-brakes-allowed street racing with realistic full-car damage for the first time on mobile.

Nike+ Kinect Training: Nike already has a few different iOS apps tied to its Nike+ gear. Today the company launched an iPhone app designed to work exclusively with Nike+ Kinect Training for Xbox 360. The app syncs with your personalized training workouts from the game, allowing you to access all of the content from your console on your iPhone.

You can track your programme progress, explore your workouts, get Challenge reminders, connect and cheer on friends and prepare for upcoming sessions.

ooVoo Video Chat version 1.3.0: A nice update goes to the free, 12-way HD group video chat app today:

* Support for iPhone 5 and iPod touch 5th generation with 4-way display
* Landscape video mode on iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch
* Improved connectivity
* Bug fixes for iOS 6

Yahoo! version 2.3.3:
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Angry Birds Star Wars, Netbot for App.net, Find My Friends, Pandora Radio, more

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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=0Yq9idnT1OM#!]

Angry Birds Star Wars: Rovio has been teasing the Star Wars edition of Angry Birds for a few weeks now, but today we get our first look at gameplay from the new title. The game appears to be just a Star Wars themed version of the traditional Angry Birds gameplay. Rovio has more on its Tumblr. Angry Birds Star Wars will hit the App Store on November 8th.

Netbot for App.net: The App.net client made by Tweetbot creators Tabots is receiving a nice update today that brings push notifications, as well as an “experimental post search” feature. In addition, the update includes a number of fixes and improvements and is also available to the iPad version.

-Push Notifications
-Experimental Post Search
-Various other fixes and improvements

Discovery Channel HD: Discovery Channel updated its iPad app today to include “an interactive second screen experience synchronized to the premiere of two MythBusters episodes.” The episodes are airing this Sunday, November 4th at 8pm. The update also includes optimizations for iOS 6.

GAME mobile app: One of UK’s biggest game retailers is launching a new iOS app today that offers access to its Game Reward and Gamestation Elite programs.

Find My Friends version 2.0.1:

• Temporary friends are listed under Followers in the Me tab
• Friends’ notifications regarding your location appear in Me > Followers

Pandora Radio version 4.0: One of the biggest updates today goes to Pandora Radio’s iOS app. On top of new sharing options and redesigned user experience, the update also introduces a ton of new features. Full list below:


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Philips launching app controlled ‘hue personal wireless lighting’ bulbs at Apple Stores tomorrow

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Philips announced today that it would launch what it called “the world’s smartest LED bulb” exclusively at Apple stores starting tomorrow. The bulbs themselves work like any standard light bulb, but they use a bridge plugged into your router to allow you to personalize lighting settings and timers. This of course is not the first app-enabled product for the home to hit Apple Stores. Apple already sold the first and second-generation of the Nest Learning Thermostat.

The hue bulbs provide all “shades of white, from warm white light to cold with light,” as well as a selection of colors and pre-programmed settings. You can even use a photo from your device as a color palette and save and program settings to activate at certain times of day. Philips said the hue bulbs consume 80 percent less power than traditional bulbs.

Philips will sell a hue starter kit at Apple stores tomorrow that consists of three 50Watt hue bulbs and the hue bridge. That will sell for $199. You’ll also have the ability to purchase additional individual bulbs for $60 and add up to 50 to your existing hue bridge.

Philips is even offering the hue app and an open source platform to developers:


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GTA: Vice City for iOS, Tweetbot, Hipchat, Instamac, 99 cent deals, more

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Grand Theft Auto: Vice City: Rockstar Games announced on its blog today that Grand Theft Auto Vice City’s will officially make its way to iOS in celebration of the title’s 10th anniversary. Rockstar is promising a release this fall and more details in the weeks to come:

In conjunction with the anniversary, we’re pleased to announce that we’ll be releasing an Anniversary Edition of Grand Theft Auto: Vice City for select iOS and Android devices later this fall. This upcoming version will bring the full experience to mobile devices, featuring native high-resolution graphics and several enhancements unique to the iOS and Android platforms. Stay tuned for more details in the weeks ahead including a list of compatible iOS and Android devices.

Tweetbot version 2.6: 

-Support for Twitter’s new header image
-Ability to create custom locations
-Various other fixes and improvements

Instamac: Released on the Mac App Store today, Instamac is a streamlined Instagram client for Mac that is currently selling for 99 cents. We’ve been playing with it and have nothing but positive first impressions. It will go up to $4.99 after 24 hours, so we suggest picking it up now.

HipChat version 1.8: 9to5’s favorite group chat app gets a big update today with iPhone 5 support:

* Lots of performance improvements, especially for large groups
* iPhone 5 support
* Fix edit mode for Active Chats
* Start app on Active Chats display instead of Lobby
* Clear password on signout
* Mark users as away when they background the app (ensure notifications get sent when app is not visible)
* Keep reconnect banner displaying until app reconnects (even when switching views)

American Express version 3.1.0:

-Get fraud warnings, account alerts and credit-related notices delivered to your mobile device.

Evernote 5 for Mac: Evernote is teasing the latest version of its Mac app today that boasts over 100 new features (via MacStories). A video introduction of the redesigned app is below:
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Apple announces iCloud up 40M users to 190M since July

During its Q4 earnings call today, Apple announced it is now up to 190 million iCloud users. That’s an increase of 40 million users since it last updated us on the progress of the service in Q3. Back in July, Apple said the service was at 150 million users—up 25 million in three months since they reported 125 million users in April. iCloud is clearly continuing to pick up speed and increasing its growth rate, with the company adding 40 million new users in the last three months for its fiscal Q4.

Parallels warns Mac users to not upgrade to Windows 8

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Parallels for Mac virtualization software has been getting major updates this year with the recent release of version 8, making it even easier to run Mac and Windows apps side by side. In version 7, it made it a lot easier to upgrade and buy copies of Windows directly from within the app, and we even had a Windows 8 developer preview up and running. Unfortunately, with today’s launch of Microsoft’s Windows 8, Parallel’s is warning Mac users that the app is not ready to update to the new OS.

In a support document on the company’s website, it issued a “critical and urgent Windows 8 service advisory” telling customers it should wait before upgrading from an existing installation of Windows to Windows 8:
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Bad Piggies, Kindle, Cut the Rope, National Geographic Magazine for iPhone, more

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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KeGUE__O3w4&feature=plcp]

Bad Piggies version 1.1.0: Rovio has updated its new Bad Piggies title with 15 new levels today, as well as a new free sandbox level. The update also includes its biggest sandbox level yet, called “Field of Dreams”, as an in-app purchase.

 The Bad piggies finally did it — they finally got the eggs! But can they hold on to them with the Angry Birds in hot pursuit? Even under the cover of darkness, they’ll need all of their best machines to stay ahead! 

-Fly through 15 tricky new levels with the birds on your tail!
-Take cover in a brand new moonlit theme!
-Unleash your creativity on a free new sandbox level!
-Introducing the Field of Dreams: Our biggest sandbox level yet, now available for purchase!

National Geographic Magazine version 2.1: With this update the free app is now available to National Geographic subscribers on the  iPhone:

• Now available for iPhone!

Kindle version 3.4: A nice update to the Kindle iOS app comes following Apple releasing new features for iBooks. The app now supports Japanese with vertical text & Manga, an option to read books in the publisher suggested font, and a new “Caecilia” font choice. Also included is X-Ray for Textbooks:

X-Ray for Textbooks gives you instant access to all the most important terms and concepts in a book, with glossary definitions, links to relevant textbook pages, and related content from Wikipedia and YouTube (available on many of the most popular print replica textbooks)

Cut the Rope version 2.0: Popular Chillingo title Cut the Rope is getting updated today with new levels, iPhone 5 and Game Center support, and more. The HD iPad version gets the same update
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