iOS

In addition to releasing iOS 7.1.2 today for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch, Apple has just released OS X Mavericks 10.9.4 for Macs (direct combo update download link). The update brings various bug fixes, improvements, and security enhancements to the Mac:

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Apple has released iOS 7.1.2 to end users today over-the-air with the following changes:

• Improves iBeacon connectivity and stability
• Fixes a bug with data transfer for some 3rd party accessories, including bar code scanners
• Corrects an issue with data protection class of Mail attachments

The update is available over-the-air or via iTunes for the latest iPhones, iPads, and iPod touches. The fix for Mail addresses a well-publicized security problem regarding attachments. Apple has also released OS X 10.9.4 with various bug fixes and security enhancements.

The build number is 11D257 and it comes in at approximately 30 MB over-the-air on the iPad and 32 MB on the iPhone. The update is approximately 1.4GB for a complete download via iTunes.

In addition, Apple has released Apple TV software version 6.2 (build number 11D257c) without any major changes. The update addresses stability and performance issues:

• Includes general performance and stability improvements.

Download links below:

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Following up on its announcement that it will support CarPlay in its cars beginning in 2015, Audi has provided more details about the rollout. According to the luxury car-maker, iOS CarPlay support will arrive in models for Europe in 2015, while North American models will see the software in center consoles in early 2016. Audi has also detailed how the functionality with be integrated:

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Japanese paper Nikkei has published a new report on their website comparing the mockups of the iPhone 6 to their supply chain sources. As translated by GforGames, the report says that while the mockups offer a good estimate of the final design, some key details are omitted.

Many of the things claimed in the report are obvious discrepancies, like button misalignment, but the report hones in on the antenna design (which has been critiqued by some readers) specifically. It says that the final iPhone 6 may not feature the ‘stripes’ at all, claiming that these simply mark out an area for glass materials to replace the aluminium frame, just like the iPhone 5s. Another possibility is that the stripe appearance is still present, but the stripes will be made out of attractive highly-polished glass.

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Apple has begun airing a new TV ad to promote the iPhone 5s that focuses on uses by parents within both “Smart Homes” and in everyday family life. The ad, aptly named “Parenthood,” shows how the iPhone can be used to record home video, find a lost dog, monitor the children, and turn off the lights in the living room. The ad comes ahead of HomeKit Smart Home appliance integration with iOS 8 this fall. Sources have also indicated that Apple is developing its own line of connected hardware for the home. Apple’s previous iPhone ad, part of the same “more powerful than you think series” demonstrated various uses for the iPhone in the health and fitness space. You can watch the latest ad below:

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Last week a team of developers released the first untethered iOS 7.1.1 jailbreak, dubbed “Pangu.” At the time, the application only ran on Windows and the entire interface was in Chinese. However, a Mac version of the software was promised, and today that promise has been kept.

Pangu 1.1 was released on the dev team’s website earlier today and brings a handful of changes. Most importantly, the software now supports Mac OS X and sports a new English UI. The update goes deeper than just the desktop app, though. Bug fixes have been made to the jailbreak itself to fix issues such as a boot loop on certain devices that was being reported by those who had used version 1.0.

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Following Apple’s announcement that it has ceased software development of the Aperture professional photo editing software for Mac and the development of iPhoto on iOS and OS X, Adobe has issued a statement. The digital software company is promoting its Lightroom and Creative Cloud photo editing and management products for the web, iOS, and OS X:

Today, Apple announced they will no longer be developing Aperture in light of their new photography app for OS X. If you are an Aperture or iPhoto customer looking for change, check out our new Creative Cloud Photography plan announced last week, or our standalone Lightroom app for your desktop as alternatives.

Adobe also says that it is “doubling down” on those products and that a “rich roadmap” is ahead for the coming weeks, months and years:

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Apple has told 9to5Mac that that the company will be ceasing development of Aperture and iPhoto, offering Photos for OS X as a replacement, which was first shown at WWDC.

With the introduction of the new Photos app and iCloud Photo Library, enabling you to safely store all of your photos in iCloud and access them from anywhere, there will be no new development of Aperture. When Photos for OS X ships next year, users will be able to migrate their existing Aperture libraries to Photos for OS X.

Apple says libraries will be able to migrate across to the new application when the application ships. Apple is working with Adobe to offer a upgrade path to Lightroom. As noted by TechCrunch, Apple will offer a Yosemite compatibility update for Aperture, but otherwise development has ended.

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Audi today announced in a press release that it plans to integrate Apple’s CarPlay technology to its vehicles possibly as soon as next year. This makes Audi the first automobile company to join Apple’s initial list of committed partners since the Cupertino-company announced the feature’s roll out plans in detail earlier this year in March although Alpine and Pioneer have been added for announcing support for aftermarket solutions.

Audi has not yet been added to Apple’s CarPlay microsite which lists each car company with a commitment to support CarPlay, but Audi says that CarPlay integration with its vehicles “is taking place through intensive dialog between the Audi development lab in Silicon Valley and Apple.” While its unclear just how far along Audi’s partnership with Apple is since Apple hasn’t added Audi to its list of partners, for its part Audi says it plans to roll out the first models supporting CarPlay in 2015.
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Earlier today Apple made a significant change to the iPod touch lineup. Aside from a few small hardware improvements to the lowest-end model, the company has—for the first time—started to close the price gap between storage tiers.

When the iPod touch first launched, there was a $70 gap between the 8 GB and 16 GB models. Jumping from 16 GB to 32 GB would cost an extra $100. However, with the launch of the second-generation iPod touch, the gap between the lowest two tiers increased to $100, and it’s stayed there ever since.

Until today, that is. Now, for the first time since the debut of the first iPhone in 2007, there is a mere $50 gap between all three capacities of an iOS device. Is this a sign that Apple is ready to give in and drop the ridiculous $100 pricing tiers on future big ticket premium devices when the actual Flash storage and controllers only cost Apple a few bucks? Or will we continue to see a $100 price gap between iPhones when the next-gen model is revealed this fall?

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With iPhones in pockets, Macs on desks, iPads in bags, and iWatches soon coming to the wrist, Apple is said to be eyeing another category for continued growth: Smart Home hardware. The Cupertino-company is said to have assembled a team to work on various hardware products for the home that deeply integrate with the existing array of Apple devices on the market…

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Multiple sources are indicating that Apple will launch a new variant of the iPod touch next week. iGen.fr is saying that the same source who leaked information about the early 2013 16 GB 5th generation iPod touch is now saying yet another model will launch in the near future. However, their report does not go into specifics about particular changes.

MacRumors believes that the new device will be a modified version of the current 16 GB iPod touch at a lower price point. According to the site, the low-end Touch will reclaim a back-facing camera and go on sale for $199. Compared to the current 16 GB Touch, this supposed new model would both be $30 cheaper and feature two cameras.

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A new jailbreak from a Chinese team dubbed “Pangu” has been released, and reports are spreading quickly around the Internet that it does indeed successfully install the famed “Cydia” jailbreak package installer application. It appears that this jailbreak is similar to the TaiG side of the evasi0n jailbreak from last year in that it also includes a sketchy Chinese pirated app installer.

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Microsoft is making notable improvements to its storage offerings for its OneDrive cloud-based service. The company is announcing today that OneDrive storage at the free tier will be more than doubled, Office 365 storage will see a major increase, and that there will be storage price drops across the board. Here are the three main announcements in more detail:

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jQ0UiebO1OY

A few days ago, 9to5Mac published some details about the elusive City Tours feature of iOS 8 found hidden in secret debug menus. It was thought that this was the only way to see the feature. However, reader Stefan Kuijt has now discovered that the feature is actually exposed publicly in the iOS 8 UI, albeit extremely hidden. This means anyone with the iOS 8 beta can try City Tours without any modification. The video above shows the current public user-interface in action, touring a selection of France’s famous landmarks.

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Apple is gearing up to launch two larger iPhone sizes this fall: a 4.7-inch version and a 5.5-inch model. While the 4.7-inch version has been leaked extensively with a thinner body design, the 5.5-inch model only saw its first significant leak in the form of a dummy model last week. Today, Sonny Dickson has exclusively shared with us a pair of photos claimed to be showing the LCD display component for that larger iPhone with 5.5-inch screen. The photos show the display attached to a ruler that indicates a screen with a diagonal measurement of approximately 14cm:

That 14cm converts to the 5.5-inches heavily rumored for the next-generation Apple smartphone. While these photos do not provide us with any breakthrough information about the new iPhone, the photos, at best, do show that Apple is already producing components for the larger sized phone and this means that production is likely nearing. Several reports have indicated that the 5.5-inch model will be in short supply upon launch and that the phone may even be released multiple weeks following the 4.7-inch version…

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