Apps

Coupons.com announced today that it is adding Passbook integration to its mobile site, allowing users to save dozens of coupons from leading retailers directly to the iOS 6 Passbook app. While the company is not making its entire selection of coupons available to iOS users initially, it does have a long list of notable retailers included in its Passbook-Ready gallery accessible on iOS devices. The company’s mobile app has not yet been updated with the Passbook functionality, but visiting coupons.com will prompt you to visit and add Passbook coupons.

Users of iPhone 5 or iOS 6 simply visit www.coupons.com on their mobile phone, select the Passbook button, and tap Add to Passbook for the coupons they want. Then, just show the offers in Passbook at the cash register for instant discounts.

Some of the retailer partners the website is currently offering Passbook coupons for include Barnes & Noble, Macy’s, Old Navy, OshKosh B’gosh, PETCO, PetSmart, Sears, Michaels, and Avenue. The coupons display the expiration date, a scannable barcode, and instructions to show cashiers how to process the offer:

Each Passbook “coupon” includes a description of the offer (such as “Save up to 20% on Your Entire Order”), the expiration date, and a scannable barcode. An “information” button at the bottom right corner of the offer provides instructions for cashiers on how to process the coupon (including a numeric code that can be manually typed into the cash register if the barcode is not scanning automatically) and additional information (such as purchase requirements).

The company highlighted a few of the offers currently available to Passbook users, and it noted the gallery would be updated frequently:
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Apple CEO Tim Cook is live on stage at the company’s special media event in California, and he just announced a new version of iBooks.

News and features:

• 400 million iBooks downloads
• Continuous scrolling
• Better integrated with iCloud— purchased books show up on shelf
• Fantastic new ways to share — tap favorite quote and share on Facebook and Twitter
• Supporting over 40 languages— new Korean, Chinese, Japanese
• Available today, free download

Education news and iBooks Author:

• iBooks textbooks reinvent the textbook full screen gorgeous layouts, interactive
• Textbook available for 80 percent of high school
• 2,500 US classrooms with iBooks textbooks
• Publishers can now take own fonts and provide custom look
• Multitouch widgets
• 94 percent of fortune 500 is testing or deploying iPad—seeing similar in smaller business

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[vimeo http://www.vimeo.com/51841853 w=600&h=381]

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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It’s finally here. Tapbots unleashed a new member of their extremely popular Tweetbot family on the world today in the form of Tweetbot for Mac. The new bot has been eagerly awaited by Twitter users since it went into public alpha in the middle of July.

The OS X version of the popular iOS client boasts a similar feature-set, including timeline position syncing between devices via Tweet Marker, and even more syncing options through iCloud. Keep reading for all the details (and a ton of screenshots).

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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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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=ykCnnBSA0t4]

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?feature=player_embedded&v=s5o3LQreyXY#!]

On top of our usual list of apps and updates hitting the App Store today, we also get word from Tweetie/Twitter for Mac developer Atebits that it has version 1.0 of a new app currently in review. We don’t know yet what it is, but we’ll certainly keep you updated when it hits the App Store. Atebits made the announcement on its Twitter account:

[tweet https://twitter.com/atebits/status/257899233477271553]

Modern Combat 4 Zero Hour: Gameloft’s much anticipated Modern Combat 4 Zero Hour is coming to iOS with full iPhone 5 support this fall, and today we get another look at the Havok engine-powered title in the above dev diary.

iTunes Connect Mobile version 2.0.2: 

-Minor bug fix for push notifications.
-Adds support for iPhone 5.

Netflix version 2.4.1:

– Added support for Swedish language.
– Bug fixes and General performance improvements.

Skype version 4.1.1:

-Fix for iPhone 5 and iOS 6 calling and video issues

Circa News for iPhone: Launching today as a free app for iPhone and iPod touch, Circa News is an interesting news reader for Circa’s political coverage that presents articles as a “collection of details about a story: the facts, stats, quotes, pictures, maps, and more.”

eBay Fashion version 1.8.0: 

-Redesigned navigation to make it easier for you to find what you’re looking for!
-The App now supports only iOS 5 and above
-Bug fixes

Action Movie FX version 2.0: We’ve had fun with hollywood style special effects app Action Movie FX since its release, and today the app gets even more content with 4 new Sci-fi FX, support for iPad and iPhone 5, and HD versions of all previous effects:

What’s New in Version 2
– 4 ALL NEW BLOCKBUSTER SCI-FI FX
*INVADERS PACK: ALIEN BURST & SPACE DESTROYER
*CYBORG PACK: ROBO ATTACK & LASER BLASTER
– HD Ready versions of ALL FX
– NEW iPAD FEATURES including:
* Pinch to Zoom
* Drag to Place FX
* Swap FX
– Optimized for iPhone 5 & iPad!

Skype WiFi version 1.2:

• iPhone/iPad universal app
• Support for additional WiFi network providers
• Tested on iOS 6
• Bug fixes

my AT&T version 2.4.2:
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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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TweetDeck version 2.0.0: Popular Mac App Store Twitter client TweetDeck gets a big update today that brings a revamped UI with “Improved clarity of columns and Tweets”, the ability to change font sizes, and redesigned profile panels with images. The updated app, which includes a toggle to switch between the classic dark and a new light view (pictured above), also now allows unfollow, block, and report spam actions to function for tweets in all columns. Features of new app are highlighted in a blog post on the TweetDeck blog, and the full release notes from iTunes are below:

• Redesigned UI
• Improved clarity of columns and Tweets
• New option to choose the app colour – dark or light
• Ability to change font size under Settings > General
• Redesigned & improved profile panel, including profile header images
• Unfollow, Block & Report spam actions now remove tweets from all columns
• Popup windows can now be repositioned using drag handle in top-left corner
• Repeated retweets are no longer displayed in Timeline columns
• Reduced the volume of the notification sound
• Tweet actions now available on Tweets in the Add Column menu
• $Tags are now linkified
• Fixed some display issues with Growl notifications
• Plus lots of other fixes and smaller updates

Calendars by Readdle: Readdle is re-launching its Calendars app that it calls the “most elegant and easy to use Google Calendar client available on the AppStore.” In other words, the app is now fully iPhone 5, and iOS 6 compatibility, fixing a crash some of the app’s 400k users had been experiencing.

Snapseed version 1.4.2:

-Snapseed now supports iOS 6 and the iPhone 5

-Flickr Support has been temporarily disabled due to a violation of the Apple App Store Guidelines. We are working with Flickr and Apple to find a solution to bring Flickr support back to Snapseed. 

Recall: Launching today in the App Store, Recall is an interesting new app that allows you to store and get notifications for recommendations you have received for movies, music, apps, books etc. For example, you can search for and save movies to a “My Items” list, allowing you to receive notifications when a specific movie is released. The idea is to save items as people recommend them to you, so in the future the app will act as a quick way to recall those recommendations and get notified of availability. It will also allow you to share recommendations with other Recall users via email and social networks, as well as browse new releases and top charts. The app essentially works as a wish list for iTunes content and new movies with built-in reminders and sharing, features the App Store and iTunes on iOS are currently missing. A promo video for the app is below:

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As the new Passbook feature available on iOS 6 starts to settle in the hands of more users, the sales of printed tickets may start to go down. MarketWatch reported this afternoon that Major League Baseball wants to phase out printed tickets all together and move to apps like Passbook to deliver tickets instead. The MLB tested this type of digital ticket sale with four teams during the last two weeks of the season. From the sound of it, results are better than expected.

Bob Bowman, CEO of MLB Advance Media, told MarketWatch that 1,500 e-ticket buyers, or 12 percent, bought their tickets using Passbook. He was shocked: “That adoption rate really floored us – there is no question our fans want digital tickets.” This has to be just what Apple wants.

Passbook offers benefits that paper tickets do not. Sure, there is nothing like having the paper ticket as a collectors item, but the benefits of a digital version may seem worth it to some. Bowman explained, “Fans can use the tickets, forward them to a friend, resell them, or even donate them to charity – and they never get lost or left at home.” Fans can also purchase a paper ticket, leave it at home, and use their ticket via Passbook instead.
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[slideshow]

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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From 9to5Toys.com:

Stacksocial is offering a bundle of Mac productivity apps valued at $1,209 for only $50. Each of the 11 apps were handpicked by the Stacksocial staff and include apps to help your eBay business, edit PDF files, be more efficient within Mac Mail, and so much more. The Mac is already one of the most productive personal computers on the market and with these apps you will get even more done. The deal is valid for only another four days, so act now. The full list of apps is as follows:

• Kinemac ($299) – Animate everything in 3D real time animation.
• MoneyWell ($50) – Powerful proactive budgeting for all your financing needs.
• Printopia ($20) – Print to any computer using your mobile phone.
• PDFClerk Pro ($50) – A powerful PDF editor.
• MailTags 3 ($30) – Tame your email by tagging your mail.
• GarageSale ($40) – The all-in-one eBay tool for Mac OS X.
• Interarchy ($40) – The better way to FTP.
• SitePoint Ebook Bundle ($59) – Two bestselling Ebooks on JQuery and CSS.
• Impressionist UI Package ($149) – Over 300 elements for web design.
• ThemeSpectrum ($196) – 4 Premium Responsive WP Themes – Your Choice.
• Tokokoo ($276) – 4 WordPress Themes – Your Choice.
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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sjo7zwrGA8w&feature=youtu.be]

Updates:

Tentacles: Enter the Dolphin: Released today on iOS for iPhone and iPad, Microsoft’s “Tentacles: Enter the Dolphin” was previously only available as a Windows Phone marketplace exclusive. Microsoft made its entrance into iOS gaming with the Kinectimals app released late last year, but that title wasn’t exactly aimed at the hardcore gamers. Microsoft describes the Press Play developed title as an “action packed, top-down platformer with fascinating 3D-animated Vein, Intestine and Brain levels.”

Where’s My Perry?: Disney’s physics-based puzzlers from the developers of the “Where’s My Water” series received an update today with 20 free new levels, new achievements, and more.

Starbucks UK version 2.4: No Passbook support yet.

• Now easier to sign up and start earning Rewards with our new account creation flow
• iOS6 support
• Accessibility, data optimization, and performance improvements
• Multiple bug fixes

1Password for iPad version 3.7:

* Improved VoiceOver support.
* Added ability to see generated passwords.
* Bug fixes.

Verizon FiOS Mobile version 1.3.9: 

In order to improve your FiOS Mobile Remote experience, we have simplified the Set Top Box pairing. Now all you have to do is sign in using your Verizon Account ID and Password.

iOS Game Sales:
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