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6,297 'Apps' stories April 2010 - October 2015
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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.

Opinion: Is iOS’s Home screen heading towards text-free 3D icons?

Avatar for Jeremy Horwitz Oct 1 2015 - 11:23 am PT
56 Comments

Is Apple considering another round of major changes to iOS’s Home screen? If watchOS and tvOS are any indication, the answer could be “yes.” Earlier this year, Apple launched the Apple Watch with a purely text-free Home screen, requiring users to identify 20-some initial apps (and manually-added third-party apps) by icon designs alone. This month, it will release the fourth-generation Apple TV with a refreshed UI, again almost entirely eliminating below-app text in favor of redesigned icons with 3D depth.

While it would be easy to write off Apple’s changes to text labels as one-off decisions for “really small screen” and “really big screen” devices, they collectively raise an interesting question: if developers properly redesigned their iOS icons, would text labels — a staple of graphical user interfaces for decades — really be necessary any more? I’ll take a look at some of the pros and cons below…


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HBO Now updated with iOS 9’s picture-in-picture iPad feature

Avatar for Zac Hall Oct 1 2015 - 11:19 am PT
2 Comments

One of iOS 9’s most useful features on modern iPads is the ability to playback videos from the Home screen or other apps using picture-in-picture. Video services have to opt-in to supporting PIP, though, so it means App Store apps must be updated before the feature works.

HBO has done just that with their iOS 9 update for iPad, supporting picture-in-picture when you leave the HBO Now app while you’re watching a movie or TV show. The feature is only mentioned in the update for the standalone HBO Now service, however, so the HBO Go version which requires a cable subscription may not support it.
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Tweetbot 4 for iOS adds redesigned iPad UI and new activity view that puts Twitter’s to shame

Avatar for Mike Beasley Oct 1 2015 - 9:10 am PT
10 Comments

Tweetbot for iOS has undergone another big upgrade today. The new release marks the first time the iPad version of the app has been redesigned to match the all-new UI introduced in iOS 7. iPhone users need not feel left out, however, as this update has a set of new features and design tweaks for you as well.

Let’s dive right in and take a look at what’s new.


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9to5Toys Last Call: iPad Air Wi-FI + LTE $300, iPhone 6 Battery Case $29, UE Roll Bluetooth Speaker $90, more

Avatar for Oct 1 2015 - 8:58 am PT
0 Comments

Keep up with the best gear and deals on the web by signing up for the 9to5Toys Newsletter. Also, be sure to check us out on: Twitter, RSS Feed, Facebook, Google+ and Safari push notifications.

Today’s can’t miss deals:

Last Call Updates:

App Store Gorgeous Games for $1 Sale: Tengami, Superbrothers, KAMI, Icebreaker, Out There, many more

Apple iPad Air 16GB Wi-Fi + Cellular (AT&T or Verizon) for $300 shipped (Reg. $529)

Apple iPad Air 2 Wi-Fi: 16GB $380 shipped (Reg. $499), 64GB $490 shipped (Reg. $599)

Lenmar MAVEN iPhone 6 MFi Apple-Certified 3,000mAh Battery Case $29 shipped (Orig. $100), more

UE ROLL 360 Bluetooth Speaker (all colors): $90 shipped (Reg. $100)

Get a no-contract iPhone 6s from Boost Mobile for just $450 shipped (Orig. $649)

More new gear from today:

Daily Deals: FitDesk v2.0 Exercise Bike w/ Massage Bar $205, SanDisk Ultra 32GB Micro USB/USB 3.0 Flash Drive $11, more

More deals still alive:

Free PS Plus Games for October: Super Meat Boy, Broken Age, Kickbeat, more

Free Xbox Live Gold Games for October: Valiant Hearts, The Walking Dead, more

Networking: ZyXEL AV500 Powerline $25 shipped (Reg. $50+), travel routers, more

New products & more

TiVo makes the DVR sexy with 4K content, AirPlay and one-click commercial skipping

Skype for Mac now supports Split View on OS X El Capitan

Avatar for Zac Hall Sep 30 2015 - 12:49 pm PT
3 Comments

Just in time for Apple’s official release of OS X El Capitan, Microsoft is out with a new version of Skype with features only available on the new operating system. Available in Skype 7.13 for Mac, the messaging and video chatting app now supports Apple’s new Split View feature for running Skype side-by-side with another full screen app. 
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Popular Reeder 3 RSS client hits the Mac App Store with redesigned themes + OS X El Capitan features

Avatar for Zac Hall Sep 30 2015 - 9:42 am PT
4 Comments

Timed cleverly with the launch of OS X El Capitan, the popular RSS client Reeder is officially out with version 3.0 today with full support for OS X 10.11. As we first saw in Reeder 3’s public beta, the latest version of the feed reader includes a selection of Yosemite and El Capitan style themes with translucency and modern design.

OS X El Capitan users will benefit from new features including using Reeder in split-screen mode next to other supported full-screen apps. The new version also supports Apple’s new system font, San Francisco, plus a lot of customization options to make the reading environment best fit your needs. Check out the full release notes below:

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9to5Toys Last Call: Anker Dual-USB Solar Charger $40, WD 4TB NAS $160, Cards Against Humanity 20% off, more

Avatar for Sep 30 2015 - 9:06 am PT
0 Comments

Keep up with the best gear and deals on the web by signing up for the 9to5Toys Newsletter. Also, be sure to check us out on: Twitter, RSS Feed, Facebook, Google+ and Safari push notifications.

Today’s can’t miss deals:

Last Call Updates:

TiVo makes the DVR sexy with 4K content, AirPlay and one-click commercial skipping

Anker 14W Dual-USB Port Solar Charger: $40 shipped (Reg. $50+)

WD My Cloud 4TB Personal Cloud Storage NAS $160 shipped (Orig. $220)

Amazon Gold Box – Cards Against Humanity 20% off: Starter Kit ($20) and Expansion Packs ($8)

Get a no-contract iPhone 6s from Boost Mobile for just $450 shipped (Orig. $649)

Apple iPad Air 2 Wi-Fi: 16GB $380 shipped (Reg. $499), 64GB $490 shipped (Reg. $599)

More new gear from today:

LG 34-inch 21:9 UltraWide LED IPS Monitor: $620 shipped (Reg. $780+)

More deals still alive:

USB Power: Anker 15,600mAh Battery Pack $24 (Reg. $30), Lumsing Wall Charger + 3-ft. MFi Lightning Cable $10, more

Four magazine subs for $16 (or less): Wired, Dwell, ESPN, GQ, Rolling Stone, Men’s Fitness, and many more

New products & more:

Bose’s latest connected speaker lowers the entry price into the SoundTouch family

Keurig’s new KOLD brewer lets you make Coca-Cola at home but it’s going to cost you

Google wants Apple Music to play on Chromecast Audio … but Apple is silent for now

Avatar for Stephen Hall Sep 30 2015 - 8:54 am PT
17 Comments

During the announcement of Google’s Chromecast Audio yesterday, the company made sure to mention that music subscription leader Spotify will soon be one of the many music streaming services supported by the platform. With many Apple Music subscriptions renewing (or not renewing) and Google unveiling a $35 dongle that retrofits our existing home speakers with Wi-Fi, some are rightfully wondering: What about Apple Music?

According to statements from one Googler (via TrustedReviews), Google has no bar on any platform joining in on supporting Chromecast, and the Mountain View company has already directly asked Apple to play along…
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Apple strikes US drone attack-reporting ‘Metadata+’ from App Store

Avatar for Zac Hall Sep 30 2015 - 7:52 am PT
15 Comments

As long as there has been an App Store, Apple has practiced strong discretion over which apps it approves and which it doesn’t allow on the iPhone and iPad. This has sometimes meant controversy for Apple, as its judgement is called into question when apps that were once approved are sometimes pulled for questionable reasons. Metadata+, an app that sends iPhone users alerts when a US drone strike leads to death, is the latest casualty, The Guardian reports…
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Box debuts ‘Capture’ iPhone app that lets businesses create workflows using the camera

Avatar for Zac Hall Sep 29 2015 - 11:00 am PT
0 Comments


After chatting with Tim Cook about Apple and the enterprise at BoxWorks today, Box took the wraps off a new app for business customers using the iPhone camera. Box Capture is an iOS-only app with enterprise-friendly features like security compliance built on Box’s mobile software development tools.
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iTunes Connect update adds Push Notifications for app review and other important status changes

Avatar for Benjamin Mayo Sep 29 2015 - 10:50 am PT
0 Comments

Apple has rolled out version 3.1 of its mobile client for iTunes Connect for iPhone and iPad users. The update adds new push notification options to keep up to date with changes to your apps as a developer. For instance, you can now be informed when your app moves to in review, when your iTunes Connect contracts expire or when you receive royalties for incoming payments.


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9to5Toys Last Call: SanDisk Wi-Fi flash drive $30, Bluetooth 4.1 sport headphones $18, iPad Air 2 $380, more

Avatar for Justin Kahn Sep 29 2015 - 9:07 am PT
0 Comments

Keep up with the best gear and deals on the web by signing up for the 9to5Toys Newsletter. Also, be sure to check us out on: Twitter, RSS Feed, Facebook, Google+ and Safari push notifications.

Today’s can’t miss deals:

Last Call Updates: 

Get a no-contract iPhone 6s from Boost Mobile for just $450 shipped (Orig. $649)

SanDisk Connect Wi-Fi Flash Drive for iOS/Android: 64GB $50 (Reg. $60), 32GB $30 (Reg. $40)

Daily Deals: Aukey Bluetooth 4.1 sweat-proof Headphones $18, SanDisk 128GB USB 2.0 Flash Drive $24, more

Apple iPad Air 2 Wi-Fi: 16GB $380 shipped (Reg. $499), 64GB $490 shipped (Reg. $599)

iTunes gift cards 20% off: $100 for $80, $50 for $40, $25 for $20 shipped

Gift Cards w/ email delivery: Staples $100 for $85, Applebee’s $50 for $40, other restaurants, more

Review: JBL’s new Xtreme Bluetooth speaker goes big on sound and design

More new gear from today:

Gold Box – D-Link DOCIS 3.0 Cable Modem for Comcast, Time Warner, Cox, more $60 shipped (Reg. $80)

[tweet https://twitter.com/9to5toys/status/648841547312726017 align=’center’]

More deals still alive:

USB Power: Anker 15,600mAh Battery Pack $24 (Reg. $30), Lumsing Wall Charger + 3-ft. MFi Lightning Cable $10, more

Keep your Wi-Fi running during a power outage – APC Network Backup UPS w/ dual USB: $40 shipped (Reg. $65)

New products & more:

GoPro introduces a new cost-effective action camera with Wi-Fi capabilities

Exploride combines the best iPhone features into one safe head-up display unit for your car

Microsoft is announcing a new Xbox One bundle every day this week

9to5Toys Last Call: iTunes Gift Cards 20% off, APC 8-Outlet UPS $42, Anker 15,600mAh Power Bank $24, more

Avatar for Sep 28 2015 - 9:03 am PT
0 Comments

Keep up with the best gear and deals on the web by signing up for the 9to5Toys Newsletter. Also, be sure to check us out on: Twitter, RSS Feed, Facebook, Google+ and Safari push notifications.

Today’s can’t miss deals:

Last Call Updates:

SanDisk Connect Wi-Fi Flash Drive for iOS/Android: 64GB $50 (Reg. $60), 32GB $30 (Reg. $40)

iTunes gift cards 20% off: $100 for $80, $50 for $40, $25 for $20 shipped

Gift Cards w/ email delivery: Staples $100 for $85, Applebee’s $50 for $40, other restaurants, more

Daily Deals: APC Back-UPS 550VA 8-outlet UPS $42, BenQ 1080p DLP Projector $630, more

Keep your Wi-Fi running during a power outage – APC Network Backup UPS w/ dual USB: $40 shipped (Reg. $65)

USB Power: Anker 15,600mAh Battery Pack $24 (Reg. $30), Lumsing Wall Charger + 3-ft. MFi Lightning Cable $10, more

GoPro introduces a new cost-effective action camera with Wi-Fi capabilities

Review: JBL’s new Xtreme Bluetooth speaker goes big on sound and design

More new gear from today:

Games/Apps: Dishonored Definitive $30, Disney Infinity 3.0 Star Wars Starter Pack $50, iOS freebies, more

More deals still alive:

App Store Free App of the Week: Doodle Jump SpongeBob SquarePants ($2 value)

GoPro HERO4 Session + $40 Amazon Gift Card: $299 ($440 value)

New products & more:

You can make the new J-Force electric surfboard go 0-35MPH with the bend of your finger

Apple’s new Beats Active Collection brings sporty colors to familiar headphones

Site claims to be offering Apple Music for Android beta access

Avatar for Cam Bunton Sep 28 2015 - 6:11 am PT
13 Comments

UPDATE: One of our readers over at 9to5Google, with experience of using Betabound commented the following: “Centercode, who runs Betabound, has been around for over a decade running software/hardware betas. I have been through numerous tests with them. I understand the skepticism but this is a legit company.” Perhaps then, we can be a little less skeptical of the beta test.

Apple surprised the tech world back in June when it announced that its music streaming service, Apple Music, would be making its way cross-platform. Up until then, the company has kept all of its mobile products in-house, and hadn’t offered anything on the Google Play Store except for the ‘Move to iOS’ app – and we all know how that turned out. A company is now claiming that Apple has started beta-testing the Android version of Apple Music.

Members of Betabound.com have received emails inviting them to apply to test Apple’s music app for Android. Little detail is given in the email, except a short paragraph and a linked questionnaire which hopeful testers have to fill in. Betabound, a Centercode company, proudly labels the test as an exclusive.

We’re excited to invite you to come test Apple Music for Android. If you’re a current Android user that would like to join the beta for the new music streaming service, you won’t want to miss this opportunity. To learn more and apply, click the link below. Best of luck! The Betabound team.

Contracting out beta-testing would be a very unusual move for Apple, so we’re skeptical. While it could be suggested that the Android community’s response to its last app prompted Apple to try a much quieter launch this time, we haven’t heard of Betabound, so would be reluctant to take the company’s word for it and hand over the user data it wants in return for claimed access.

9to5Toys Last Call: Amazon Prime $67, Lytro 16GB Digital Camera $80, GoPro Session + Gift Card $299, more

Avatar for Trevor Daugherty Sep 25 2015 - 9:10 am PT
0 Comments

Keep up with the best gear and deals on the web by signing up for the 9to5Toys Newsletter. Also, be sure to check us out on: Twitter, RSS Feed, Facebook, Google+ and Safari push notifications.

Today’s can’t miss deals:

Last Call Updates: 

Get iPhone 6s sooner by going through this eBay store, even Rose Gold (potential tax advantages + Paypal options)

Today only! Amazon slashes Prime memberships down to just $67

First Generation Lytro 16GB Digital Camera $80 (Orig. $199)

GoPro HERO4 Session + $40 Amazon Gift Card: $299 ($440 value)

App Store Free App of the Week: Doodle Jump SpongeBob SquarePants ($2 value)

$100 iTunes Gift Card for $80 w/ email delivery via PayPal: save 20% on movies, apps, more

Gift Cards w/ email delivery: Staples $100 for $85, Applebee’s $50 for $40, other restaurants, more

LAST CHANCE! Giveaway: This is Ground’s Mod Laptop 2 is a road warrior’s dream bag, up to $499 value

More new gear from today:

Samsung 850 EVO 2TB 2.5-inch Internal Solid-State Drive: $675 shipped (Reg. $745+)

  • Games/Apps: Xbox One Halo 5 Wireless Controller pre-order $60, Star Wars Battlefront pre-order w/ $25 GC, more
  • Daily Deals: Logitech Harmony Smart Control + Remote (Refurb) $65, TP-LINK Wireless N150 Travel Router $10, more
  • City Sports extra 20% off: Nike Pro Dri-Fit Hoodie $36 (Orig. $90), Under Armour & Adidas Jackets, more

[tweet https://twitter.com/9to5toys/status/647438938722967552 align=’center’]

More deals still alive:

The best 5-port USB power supply (Aukey 8A/40W) is $10 Prime shipped (orig. $50)

Spigen iPhone 6s/Plus cases in multiple styles and colors as low as $3 with free shipping

Wrap your new iPhone 6s with Speck’s CandyShell Grip case for $14 shipped (Reg. $25+), more

New products & more:

Kwikset drops the extras on its new internet-connected deadbolt lock to hit a lower price point

Apple’s new Beats Active Collection brings sporty colors to familiar headphones

Roundup: The best apps with 3D Touch to try out on your new iPhone 6s

Avatar for Benjamin Mayo Sep 25 2015 - 6:24 am PT
8 Comments

The iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus launch today, with a pressure sensitive 3D Touch screen being touted as one of the phone’s flagship new features. Apps can take advantage of 3D Touch in many ways, such as using firm presses to reveal quick actions on the Home screen or use Peek and Pop metaphors to quickly preview content from within the UI.

Naturally, Apple has added 3D Touch features to its own apps. Try firmly pressing on a link from within Safari, or quickly call one of your Favorites by using the Phone app’s 3D Touch quick actions. You can even force press on the keyboard to enable trackpad cursor input. However, as is true in most cases, the most interesting innovations come from the third-party App Store community.

We’ve compiled a list of the best third-party apps that have updated to include 3D Touch features, so you can try them out on your brand new iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus …


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The iPad Pro is too big to get Office apps for free, says Microsoft

Avatar for Ben Lovejoy Sep 25 2015 - 4:36 am PT
38 Comments

Current iPad owners can download Microsoft Office apps free of charge, using them for both viewing and basic editing – but that won’t be the case with the iPad Pro, Microsoft told arsTechnica.

Office on the iPad Pro will require an Office 365 subscription for any and all editing. That’s because Microsoft defines a 10.1 inch cutoff. Anything below 10.1 inches is a “true mobile device” and as such qualifies for free access to the core editing capabilities. But above that threshold and it’s not a “true mobile device” any longer, it’s something else entirely, and it will need an Office 365 subscription as a result … 


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Adobe shows off upgraded Photoshop and Premiere Elements 14 with camera shake removal, motion titles, more

Avatar for Zac Hall Sep 24 2015 - 9:01 pm PT
1 Comment

Adobe is out with its annual Photoshop Elements and Premier Elements updates, which let you quickly edit and share your photos and videos from the desktop. The consumer friendly Photoshop Elements 14 and Premier Elements 14 includes handy new features that everyday photographers will appreciate including dramatic camera shake and haze removal tools for enhancing images plus motion titles for creating profession looking movies.
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Apple updates TestFlight app with support for tvOS internal testing

Avatar for Mike Beasley Sep 24 2015 - 8:58 pm PT
1 Comment

On the eve of this year’s iPhone launch, Apple has pushed out an update to the TestFlight application to enable internal testing of apps on tvOS. The Apple TV operating system has is now in its second beta version for users who have access to pre-release hardware.

Developers have been able to test locally on their devices by plugging them directly into Xcode and building their app, but today’s TestFlight update will allow them to distribute the builds over-the-air to other members of the same development team.


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You can now pay your Netflix membership via iTunes including discounts and credits

Avatar for Chance Miller Sep 24 2015 - 6:45 pm PT
5 Comments

Netflix today has announced an update to its iOS app that ads the ability for users to subscribe to the service from within the iOS app itself. The change was announced in a new advertisement from Netflix that stars two characters from its hit show Orange is the New Black talking to an iPhone using Siri for the first time, which can be seen below. PayPal is holding a sale on iTunes Gift Cards that makes subscribing to Netflix via in-app purchase even more tempting…


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Apple Store app on iOS updated with iPhone 6s support, iOS 9 bug fixes

Avatar for Chance Miller Sep 24 2015 - 2:43 pm PT
1 Comment

As the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus gradually become available around the world, Apple this evening has rolled out an update to the Apple Store app on iOS. The update brings the app to version 3.5 and includes a couple of minor changes.

First off, Apple says the update is an “iOS compatibility update,” meaning that it fixes any issues that may have arisen with the launch of iOS 9 to the public last week and the subsequent release of iOS 9.0.1. Furthermore, the update adds support for the iPhone 6s. At this point, it’s unclear what specifically this means. We’ll have to wait until we get our hands on an iPhone 6s tomorrow to be sure, but it could mean support for features like 3D Touch. Or it could something more minor, such as simple compatibility updates.

Nevertheless, the latest version of the Apple Store app for iOS can be downloaded from the App Store now for free.