iOS

The Information has a new report out discussing Apple’s progress on a mobile wallet payments service. The post echoes reporting by 9to5Mac earlier in the year.

The report says the service may launch this fall, enabling iPhone users to pay for goods with their devices in retail outlets. Apple has apparently discussed the plans with credit card institutions, according to the report, as a user’s banking information “would essentially be uploaded to the wallet”. Apparently, Visa is already onboard with the project.

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Apple is gearing up for its first major hardware and software launches of 2014. The Cupertino-based company is “tentatively” planning a keynote address in mid-September to announce the iPhone 6 and provide final details on iOS 8, according to sources briefed on the plans.

These people say that the second and third weeks of September are the mostly likely weeks for the event to be held, but they add that manufacturing uncertainties could alter the event’s timeframe. A decision has not been finalized, and sources made it clear that the plans are in flux.

The event will showcase at least the new iPhone 6 with a 4.7-inch screen, the sources say, but a final decision on debuting the larger, 5.5-inch “phablet” model at the event has not been made. The 4.7-inch variant of the new phone is farther along in both internal testing and manufacturing preparation, the sources added.

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With Apple reporting lower-than-expected iPad sales for the second quarter in a row, it’s likely that Tim Cook will be once again be called on to reassure investors that the decline in year-on-year sales won’t continue indefinitely.

Cook has been very bullish on the iPad, despite the numbers, pointing especially to growing sales in the education sector and the opportunity for tablet growth in enterprise.

The penetration in business is low, it’s only 20 percent. If you looked at the penetration of notebooks in business it would be over 60 percent. We think there is a substantial upside in business.”

I think he’s right, especially with the IBM partnership. I mentioned in my opinion piece then that increasing penetration in enterprise could also help drive consumer migration from Android, as it gives people exposure to iOS devices. But the impact this has could well be offset by the iPhone 6 … 
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In addition to launching a redesigned version on Android, Fleksy today has given us a first look at its upcoming keyboard offering for Apple’s iOS 8. iOS 8 launches this fall with several new iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch features, including the ability for developers to launch custom system-wide keyboards. Fleksy previously announced that it is working on a keyboard for iOS 8 and has opened up signups for a beta, but today the company provided us with the first images and some new details…

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Earlier this week, Apple denied claims that it had hidden secret backdoors in its iOS platform that could allow the government or malicious users to extract a variety of critical and personal details about a device’s user from an iPhone or iPad, sometimes storing that data in unencrypted formats.

Today, the company published a new document on its support website explaining the diagnostic tools that iOS uses to collect data for troubleshooting and other purposes. According to the document:

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Even though Apple will begin integrating iOS and OS X in new, mutually beneficial ways with iOS 8 and OS X Yosemite, Apple currently plans to stagger the releases of the two operating systems, according to people briefed on the plans. iOS 8 will launch in September alongside the iPhone 6, and OS X Yosemite will launch approximately a month later, in October, according to the sources…

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Toady’s new beta update to iOS 8 features a change to the way the built-in dictation system works. In previous versions of iOS, dictating text into an app would send your voice to Apple’s server once you finished speaking to be analyzed and return the converted text. Siri used to function the same way, but with iOS 8 Apple made changes that allowed voice input to be streamed to the server for conversion while the user was still speaking.

As of iOS 8 beta 4, the system keyboard’s dictation feature now works the same way. Just like in Siri, you can now see each word appear almost immediately as you speak. It allows you to catch errors more quickly as they happen and brings the various voice-powered features of iOS in-line.

Check out the video below to see it in action:

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Earlier today, Apple released iOS 8 beta 4 with a redesigned Control Center feature, OS X Yosemite Developer Preview 4 with various interface tweaks, and a new iTunes 12 Mac app with a refreshed look and feel. Above is our video that takes a closer look at these various changes and enhancements.

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[vimeo 101133002 w=700 h=381]

Facebook announced today that it’s rolling out a new feature for its mobile apps that will let users save content for easy access at a later date. A list of saved content from Facebook— including links to things like places, movies, TV, and music— will appear in the Facebook mobile apps in the “More” section and on the left side bar on the web.
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Apple’s release notes for OS X Yosemite Developer Preview 4 reveal that the company will be wiping CloudKit data tomorrow.

This data has to do with the new iCloud storage APIs in iOS 8 and Yosemite as well as with the upcoming iCloud Drive online storage feature. It’s best to safely store anything of importance before tomorrow’s wipe:

CloudKit Note: All public CloudKit databases are scheduled to be emptied on Tuesday, July 22nd.

Apple previously wiped CloudKit data ahead of iOS 8 beta 3 and OS X Yosemite Developer Preview 3. Thanks, Genady!

Update: Apple has emailed developers about the wipe, noting that iCloud Drive, Photos, and other iCloud-related products besides CloudKit storage will not be wiped:

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If you’re a long-time Apple watcher, you may be familiar with Flurry Analytics as Steve Jobs’ favorite analytics firm. The video above sums up his opinion well on the topic. Today, Re/code breaks the news that Yahoo’s prolific Mergers and Acquisition department will be acquiring Flurry for “hundreds of millions of dollars” later today. TechCrunch pegs the price at roughly $300 million. As for Apple, the Cupertino-based company will be launching its own iOS analytics software this fall alongside iOS 8.

Update: The purchase is now official:

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iOS 8 beta 4 brings a new app to the iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch called Tips. The application, as the name implies, provides quick tips and tutorials about iOS features. The app will be updated on a regular basis with new ways to use iOS device features. Apple has also launched a Tips website (in beta) so these tutorials can be accessed from a Mac web browser. You can find a full gallery of the current implementation of Tips, below:

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As expected, Apple has released OS X 10.10 Yosemite Developer Preview 4. It is available via the Mac App Store Software Update tab for developers running earlier versions of Yosemite. Apple has also released a revamped iTunes 12 to developers (full gallery here). Previous updates previously brought various design tweaks and feature enhancements, and Preview 4 is likely to do the same thing. Yosemite launches this fall with updated Mail, Messages, and Calendar apps, in addition to a system-wide redesign and improved integration with iOS Devices. We’ll be updating this post as new changes are discovered, and you can let us know what you find at tips@9to5mac.com.

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Apple today released iOS 8 beta 4 to developers. It is now available via Software Update in Settings for those running earlier betas of iOS 8 on the iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch. The new update likely brings further design enhancements and bug fixes. iOS 8 comes out this fall and adds new features like health tracking, improved messaging, more efficient email management, and bolstered photo editing. We’ll be updating this post (below) as we discover new changes, and you can send us what you find to tips@9to5mac.com.

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Last week, YouTuber Marques Brownlee got his hands on what is claimed to be a sapphire glass panel from Apple’s upcoming iPhone 6. The initial video (found here) put the panel through a variety of torture tests including, knives, keys, and even a flexibility test to show off the panel’s durability. While there were no scientific tests performed to prove the front glass is actually sapphire, the result of each test was very impressive. Well, apparently that wasn’t enough…

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The European Commission has complained that Apple is taking too long to implement protections for freemium games in the App Store, reports BBC News. The Commission has decreed that both Apple and Google, the two biggest app store vendors, must make the “true cost of apps” clear before purchase. However, officials are upset that Apple has not yet committed to any such measures.

“Regrettably, no concrete and immediate solutions have been made by Apple to date to address the concerns linked in particular to payment authorisation,” the Commission said in a statement.

“Apple has proposed to address those concerns. However, no firm commitment and no timing have been provided for the implementation of such possible future changes.

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