Apps

Twitter cofounder Jack Dorsey is not the only photo-loving business executive upset by Instagram in recent weeks. While Dorsey stopped posting photos on Instagram after Facebook reportedly beat his Twitter to an acquisition of the app, Apple Senior Vice President Phil Schiller quit Instagram for another reason: Android.

A reader noticed Schiller deleted his Instagram account (@schiller), and then reached out to Apple’s most visible public speaker by Twitter for confirmation. Schiller told the reader that he quit the rising photo-based social network, because the app “jumped the shark” when it launched on the Android platform.

In terms of iOS marketing, which is something that Schiller runs at the highest level, Instagram could have been seen as a pull for smartphone buyers to the iOS platform. The fun, convenient, and growing network was featured several times in Apple’s App Store—even winning “App of the Year” recognition. As marketing chief at Apple, seeing one of the platform’s most popular third-party pieces of software running on millions of Android phones is a disappointing sight.

Update: 9to5mac reader Clayton got in touch (we verified headers) with SVP Schiller who clarified his position… a little:

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Read It Later is a popular bookmarking service that allows you to save articles, web pages, videos and more for later, and today it just got a huge update. Now called “Pocket,” the service moved the focus from just reading later to doing later. Where Read It Later focused mostly on how to view long articles you did not have time to read before, Pocket will focus on a variety of media types, such as images and videos. The Pocket blog noted that YouTube is its most saved site, and it has dedicated many blog posts in the past to showcasing the top saved videos for that week, so the improved support for saving videos will certainly be appreciated.

The new “Pocket” app (a free update for owners the previous paid version of Read It Later, and available free on the App Store to new users) is also much prettier and easier to use. The new app features thumbnails to your pages for faster identification, a filter for separating different media types, the ability to bulk-edit posts, and more. However, the biggest change in the “Pocket” app is the new, much-improved design, which is cleaner and easier to use than the previous version. Of course, all the previous features of Read It Later are still there, such as link tagging and third-party app support, and your lists will remain untouched when you upgrade.

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Apple updated its “Cards” app for creating and sending physical greeting cards that originally launched in October of last year at the iPhone 4S unveiling. Included in version 1.1 of the iOS app are new letterpress cards for Mother’s Day, which are just in time for the holiday that is celebrated in most countries during April or May (May 13 in the United States this year).

Other additions include “Get Well” cards, new designs for birthdays, thank yous, and other categories. As always, you can grab the update from the App Store now as a free download.

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As pointed out by MacStories, Apple recently removed trials for the iWork suite and Aperture 3 from Apple.com. The webpage formerly home to the iWork trial now includes a message informing users that iWork apps, such as Keynote, Pages, and Numbers, are available through the Mac App Store. Apple removed the trial for a short while last year before returning it; however, the company also informed users last month that the iWork.com Beta service would shut down July 31. Apple does not currently offer trial versions of the $20 Mac Store apps.

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Prior to the Final Cut Pro X unveiling and release last year, Apple showcased some of the new features to a small group of professional videos editors. This was in order to prepare these editors for Apple’s drastic change in their direction for professional video editing. Those meetings were off the record, but today, Apple held on-the-record meetings with some of the industry’s noted professional video editors in order to describe more new features coming to Final Cut Pro X. According to video editor Larry Jordan, Apple has provided him some background on Final Cut Pro X’s performance thus far, and a look into the future.

One of the major changes with the initial release of Final Cut Pro X was its exclusivity to the Mac App Store. Jordan asked Apple why the App Store provides a better expierience over boxed software, and Apple’s response covers security and flexibility:

I asked what the benefits were to using the Mac App Store for distribution, and was told that it provided a wider end-user license, greater distribution flexibility, and supported Apple’s focus on security through “sandboxing” applications. Apple wants customers to feel secure purchasing software through the Mac App Store.

Apple then told Jordan that they have an update coming later this year with new features and enhancements. While none of the new features were actually demoed to Jordan, Apple is planning to include Multichannel Audio Editing Tools, Dual Viewers, MXF Plug-in Support, and RED camera support. Jordan says that the current audio editing tools in Final Cut Pro X are “weak” so he is “excited” to see what Apple will add to the software later this year. Dual-viewers will be an important feature that allows video editors to easily compare two clips. Jordan describes how Apple will improve MFX support:

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Today, Microsoft released Service Pack 2 for Office for Mac 2011, which features many bug fixes and a couple of new features.

We appreciated your feedback! As the newest member of the Office for Mac family, Outlook 2011 continues to get the most requests from consumers and businesses alike; therefore, our top priority for this release was Outlook, and this service pack resolves many of the most common requests. The more notable Outlook enhancements include:
• Sync performance with Exchange server,
• Performance improvements while deleting multiple items,
• Displaying email message content, and sending email.

Outlook performance is also improved in IMAP account sync and the database rebuild utility. New capabilities include:
• Scheduling resources in the calendar,
• Distribution list expansion,
• Day number display in the calendar.

Word, Excel, and PowerPoint have improved performance with additional modest improvements. For example, we updated PowerPoint to take advantage of full screen view in Lion, and we improved grammar checkers for Italian and German languages. We also made it easier to work with Office documents on SkyDrive and addressed several smaller issues in response to your feedback.

You can grab the update from Microsoft on its website or through Office’s built-in updater.

As we noted in February, “MLB.com At Bat 2012” launched to bring baseball fanatics scores, news, and analysis for free. The app also includes an in-app subscription of $14.99 (or $2.99 a month) that provides in-game audio. However, if you are a huge fan, you can pay the $120 a year subscription for in-game video.

MLB’s Advanced Media office announced today (via GigaOm) that the app reached 3 million downloads just a week into the MLB’s 2012 season. Seeing a ton of success, the 2012 version of the app was the top sports app on both iOS and Android for the past few weeks. There were also 800,000 audio and video live streams combined every day. It took four months for those numbers to be reached last season.

“MLB.com at Bat” is definitely a unique app, providing its fans with fair prices to follow their favorite teams. The NBA also offers a similar app for free with in-app subscription, so you can watch all the league’s games. The MLB and NBA also both have an app available on the Apple TV that allows you to watch games if you pay for each respective subscription.

The new user-interface and in-app purchase model is most likely why the MLB app is off to a great start. Moreover, with 800,000 streams going a day, it looks like a good majority of those 3 million users are paying for the app.

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Today, an Apple patent application popped up detailing a content creation and authoring tool that would allow designers to create content rich applications for various devices without programming code. While Apple’s patent covers a wide range of possible applications for the platform, it is clear to see the patent is describing the visual programming workflow introduced with iAD producer, Apple’s motion-rich ad creation platform launched in 2010.

The patent—described in detail by PatentlyApple— provided the images above and and to the right, which clearly show elements of the existing iAD platform.

Apple’s invention provides technology relating to a digital content authoring tool for amateur and professional content developers alike, without the need to understand or access any computer code. Additionally, the authoring tool is further equipped with the ability to manage digital assets and configure them for distribution and viewing on a variety of electronic devices – many of which have diverse hardware capabilities. Accordingly, the presently described technology eliminates many barriers to creating and publishing deliverable electronic content.
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[slideshow]

Update: The app is live on most stores now including the U.S. store for $2.99 here.

Rockstar announced a couple of weeks ago that the iOS port of classic PC, PlayStation 2, and Xbox title “Max Payne” would make its way to the App Store April 12. One day early, it looks like the game is already available in App Stores around the world with the New Zealand store, the Australian store, and others already listing the game.

The game in terms of plot and gameplay does not stray far from the original, but Rockstar updated the port with new high-res textures and graphics with full support for the iPhone 4S and the third-generation iPad’s Retina displays. Controls were reconfigured for the touchscreen, and Rockstar is bundling support for its Social Club Xbox Live-like network for iPhone 4, 4S, iPad 2, and the new iPad users. The game will also support cheats, such as the “Skip to Level.”

We will keep you updated when “Max Payne” lands in the United States store, most likely for around the $4.99 $2.99 mark. When it does, the universal app will be compatible with iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4, iPhone 4S, iPod Touch 4, iPad 1, iPad 2, and the new iPad.

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Scanner Pro by Readdle, one of the most popular and functional scanner-replacement applications for iOS, has received a major update. The update adds on all new iPad version that is super intuitive, easy to learn, and very functional. Scanner Pro for the iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch uses your device’s camera to essentially scan any document onto your iPad. Like a real scanner, but more conveniently because you are using a mobile camera that can connect to the internet. That internet connection allows you to quickly upload your scanned documents to sites like Dropbox, Evernote and Google Docs.

The application was already state-of-the-art in terms of its image processing and features like custom page sizes and integrated printing, but today’s update adds a few more enhancements. Searching through your scan library is now available making Scanner Pro more usable for power users. Another important power-user (and consumer) feature is the ability to place your scans in folders. The folder system works and looks similarly to the iWork for iOS folder system, so users of those applications will feel right at home. The new update also adds improved image processing to make scanning documents and even quicker process. The new Scanner Pro (it’s a universal app and has iPad Retina support) is now available as a free update or for $6.99 for first time users.

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[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5fh_Ez7SOsA]

Popular jailbreak tweak and App Store developer Adam Bell released a new and unique tweak for jailbroken iPhones. It is called “Stride” and replaces your iPhone or iPod touch’s slide-to-unlock and passcode input screen with a fully customizable gesture unlock system.

As you can see in the promotional video above, you are not limited by a 9-point field like Android phones or by having to draw a specified pattern on top of an image. You can practically draw any shape, letter, or gesture that you want. You can even use a signature.

The gesture entry into your iPhone and iPod touch is built to act as a replacement for your PIN code, which appears after you “slide to unlock,” but the tweak was developed with two layers of security in mind.

The PIN unlock will appear after you draw your gesture, but it is completely optional for those who just want to rely on the gesture unlock. Skipping PIN entry is an easy-to-access option in Stride’s preferences. Additionally, there is a button to skip the gesture unlock and enter your PIN code when you suddenly find yourself unable to remember your gesture.

Stride costs $2.99 and is available from the Big Boss Repo in the Cydia Store.

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Developer Steven Troughton-Smith has re-written his acclaimed Speed for iPhone application for the iPad. The new iPad application takes full advantage of the iPad’s larger display, Retina graphics support, and the device’s GPS. The concept of Speed is simple: it uses the iPad’s sensors, including the GPS, to be able to process and inform users how fast their car is moving. The application has a beautifully embedded Google Map interface to show your car (as a blue dot) in motion, and also uses the device’s compass to which direction you are headed. The application also features a center dial (analog or digital) that allows users to setup a maximum speed. If a user goes above the set speed limit, the iPad will notify them that they are passing this limit. This is perfect for speed-limited driving environments, and pushes the iPad as a fully digital car dashboard replacement or complement.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nfMAqzxy9CQ]

The application will also tell you how long (in terms of distance) you have travelled, much like a car will tell you in the dashboard, when the application is running and even in the background. If you flick up on the Speed dashboard interface, you are presented with options such as true north and magnetic north for the compass feature, analog or digital presentation for the speed limiter, trip total resetting, and background tracking. The interface of the application is beautifully crafted and appears like a real car dashboard complete with a leather background and chromed-out toggles.

In our real life tests, the application is very accurate against our actual real-life car speeds measured by our actual car dashboards. For anyone living in this digital world, Speed for iPad is the future – we believe of car dashboards. On an iPad, it’s portable, can be held by anyone in the car, and can be your media center with the device’s built-in music player. iPad car dashboard mounts are even already appearing. Something important to note about Speed for iPad is the development process that went into the application. Speed started as one of the initial App Store applications, grew very popular (the app even was promoted by Apple), and has now been completely redesigned and re-written for the iPad with a host of new features. This circle will continue when Speed 2 launches later this year for the iPhone, complete with all the new innovations in this new iPad app.

Speed for iPad is available for $2.99 on the App Store today. You can read more about Speed at the official website. Press release:

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Over the past few weeks, security experts have warned Mac users of a new virus making its rounds called the “Flashback” trojan. Flashback is allegedly on over 600,000 Macs, which is roughly 1-percent of the 45 million out there. Flashback exploits a pair of vulnerabilities in older versions of Java. Apple may have patched it, but it is still out there and running on many machines.

How do you know if you are infected? F-Secure has a few Terminal commands to check your machine. For the many who are not adept at keeping their Java updates fresh, terminal commands are going to be even more foreign. Luckily, ArsTechnica points us to a free Flashback checker available on github. The app runs the same checks as you would in Terminal, but automates it for you.

We ran the test ourselves and were clean, but one of our readers found that he had the virus last week. It is definitely worth checking out. If your Mac does have Flashback, F-secure offers a great guide on how to remove it.

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Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg just announced that the social network has acquired photo-sharing app “Instagram” for $1 billion. Instagram’s CEO Kevin Systrom also made a statement through the company’s blog and confirmed it will “be working with Facebook to evolve Instagram and build the network.”

Zuckerberg’s full announcement is below, and Facebook’s official press release is here:

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Today, the company behind the speech recognition software baked into Apple’s Siri, Nuance, announced the latest version of its Mac application would go head-to-head with Adobe Acrobat. For $99, the company launched version 3 of its “Nuance PDF Converter for Mac” with a ton of new features.

Perhaps the biggest new addition is integration with Nuance’s servers, allowing you to save and access PDFs anywhere through Evernote or Nuance’s own PaperPort Anywhere platform. Other new features include the company’s optical character recognition technology for creating searchable PDFs and one-click word and spreadsheet documents through Nuance OmniPage Document Conversion integration. Nuance is also integrating FormTyper, a feature “which accurately and automatically converts PDF and scanned paper forms into professional looking electronic forms that can be filled, saved and shared online.”

Nuance PDF Converter for Mac will be live later today for $99 through the company’s website here. The previous version of the app is also available through Apple’s online store, so version 3 will likely make its way there soon. Nuance noted the app is just a fraction of Adobe Acrobat Professional for the Mac, which sells for $449. The full press release is below.

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The Sparrow team just announced version 1.1 for “Sparrow for iPhone” on its official blog, while also revealing Push API is coming to the iOS app’s next version:

Thanks to your amazing support, we feel confident that Apple might revise its position on the Push API. We’ll submit a first version of Sparrow 1.2 including it. This might delay Sparrow 1.2 validation but we’re already working with some partners to include Push in future versions of Sparrow without needing Apple clearance.

Push is coming. With or without Apple.

The team also said version 1.2 will include localization in nine languages, landscape mode when composing, and swipe up and down gestures to move between messages.

A screenshot gallery and version 1.1 updates are below. 

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