iOS

Following the release of iOS 9.3, Shazam has released a significant update to its iOS app that bumps it version 9.4.1. The update deepens the app’s integration with Apple Music, allowing users to now more easily add songs they Shazam to their Apple Music library.

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After several hours of downtime, Apple’s Online Store is slowly coming back up and the iPhone SE and iPad Pro 9.7-inch are both now available for pre-order. The iPhone SE starts at $399 off-contract, while the iPad Pro starts at $599. Deliveries will begin in one week on March 31st.

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Israeili YNetNews reports that the so-far unnamed “third party” which has offered to help the FBI try to break into the San Bernardino iPhone is Cellebrite, a mobile forensics company based in Israel.

The FBI has been reportedly using the services of the Israeli-based company Cellebrite in its effort to break the protection on a terrorist’s locked iPhone, according to experts in the field familiar with the case. Cellebrite has not responded to the report. But if it is indeed the “third party” in question, and it is able to break into the terrorist’s iPhone, it would bring the high-stakes legal showdown between the government and Apple to an abrupt end. Cellebrite, considered one of the leading companies in the world in the field of digital forensics, has been working with the world’s biggest intelligence, defense and law enforcement authorities for many years. The company provides the FBI with decryption technology as part of a contract signed with the bureau in 2013.

Cellebrite declined to comment officially, and no information was given as to the method the company plans to use. One unlikely source claims to know …

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We’ve been seeing a few reports of the iOS 9.3 upgrade bricking the iPad 2, with the devices failing to activate at the end of the update.

The specifics reported in an Apple Support Communities thread, tweets to @applesupport and via email suggests that it may be nothing more than Apple’s activation servers struggling under the load, but some are reporting that their devices have still failed to activate 24+ hours later.

A couple of solutions have worked for some …

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As part of Apple’s Renew program, where the company is encouraging people to recycle their old devices to help the environment, Apple has posted some exclusive environmental wallpaper to download on its website. The URL (apple.com/thanks) is given out on cards in Apple Stores to people who recycle their old device in store, as a small gesture of appreciation.

However, the URL is open to anyone to visit and download some cute, exclusive, iOS 9 wallpaper that isn’t included in the default list of iOS wallpaper …

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According to a report from The Verge, Google is building its own third-party keyboard for iOS and has been doing so for “months.” While it’s unclear when or if the keyboard will be released, the report notes of several features Google has been working to implement as employees test it.

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Three years ago to the day, Apple added in two-step verification to help improve user security. The verification method relied on the user having another device readily available to help authenticate a sign-in. As of today, Apple has taken that security further by now offering two-factor authentication to all users running iOS 9 and OS X El Capitan.

Both methods strive to increase a user’s foothold in security practices, but both go about doing so in very different ways. Luckily, Apple has chosen to make sure that the end user experience is phenomenal no matter what method they choose.

Getting started, or switching to the new two-factor authentication is not without it’s questions. Let’s dive in and resolve them.

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Although the new 9.7 inch iPad Pro is superior to the 2015 12 inch iteration in some regards, including better cameras and display, it appears the raw processor is not as identical as Apple implied in its presentation. Although both models have an A9X processor, the 9.7 inch version actually has half the RAM and a slightly-lower clock speed CPU (via @panzer). Whilst the big iPad Pro has 4 GB RAM, the 9.7 inch iPad Pro has just 2 GB like the iPhone 6s.

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There are tons of new features included with yesterday’s release of iOS 9.3, and Night Shift — the new feature that automatically adjusts the screen’s color temperature to reduce blue light — is arguably its best new addition.

Unfortunately, Night Shift is automatically disabled when you enable Low Power Mode on your iPhone. Thanks to a clever workaround, however, it’s possible to use Night Shift in combination with Low Power Mode. In the brief tutorial that follows, we’ll show you how.
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Update: In a statement to CNBC, Apple has confirmed it is not planning to make an offer for Imagination Technologies. It did however hold some talks with the company about undisclosed topics.

ArsTechnica is reporting that Apple is in ‘advanced talks’ to acquire Imagination Technologies, makes of the PowerVR mobile GPU designs Apple licenses for its A9 and A9X SoCs. The company declined comment about any such acquisition of course. Apple began using Imagination Technologies GPUs since the Apple A4 chip. Rumors have been bubbling in recent years that Apple will eventually start designing its own mobile GPUs, in the same way it designs custom CPU silicon today. An acquisition of Imagination Technologies would be a clear signal the company is moving in that direction.

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With the release of iOS 9.3 yesterday, Apple included a major new feature that may help you sleep better at night: Night Shift. Night Shift works by changing the color temperature of your screen gradually as the day changes. In Control Center, you can toggle this feature on and off manually. In Settings, you can setup iOS 9.3’s Night Shift so that it automatically shifts the blue light of your iPhone or iPad screen with a schedule. The schedule options are either preset times set by the user or an automatic schedule based on sunrise and sunset.

However, after updating to iOS 9.3, some users have complained that the automatic Sunrise/Sunset option is not available for their devices. It turns out this is not a bug, or limited to certain countries as people suggest. In fact there is a simple fix …

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Following a lengthy beta period, Apple has now released iOS 9.3 for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch. iOS 9.3 is a significant feature update for Apple’s mobile operating system, with brand new additions like Night Shift, Touch ID Notes and more. iOS 9.3 runs on every iOS 9-capable device, including the brand new iPhone SE. The update appears to weigh in at a hefty 1.7 gigabytes.

See our full walkthrough of all the new iOS 9.3 features after the break …

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As part of its media event, Apple has announced a new 9.7 inch version of the iPad Pro from $599. It features much of the same internals as its 12.9 inch cousin, with A9X chip, Apple Pencil support and Smart Connector. Although in most respects, the iPad Pro is the same as its big brother it features significant upgrades in the camera department. The 9.7 inch iPad Pro has a 12 megapixel rear camera, 4K video recording and a 5 megapixel front camera. That being said, the iPad Pro now has a camera bump to support the advanced camera system.

Apple says the new iPad features a screen with a True Tone display, that automatically adjusts the color temperature of the screen based on the room environment.

Along with the smaller hardware, Apple is also releasing a new smaller Smart Keyboard to fit. Existing Apple Pencils are compatible with the new device. Apple is describing the iPad Pro as an ultimate PC replacement.

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It’s March 21st, the day of Apple’s March 2016 media event. As we’ve been reporting over the past several months, Apple is set to debut a new 4-inch smartphone called the iPhone SE, a 9.7-inch version of the iPad Pro, and new Apple Watch bands. You can read our extensive roundup to see all of our expectations. It is still to be seen if Apple CEO Tim Cook takes the stage to discuss the Apple/FBI case, which goes to court tomorrow morning. In this News Hub, we will be live blogging all of the major announcements and highlighting all of our site-wide coverage of the event. The event begins at 10 AM Pacific Time/1 PM Eastern Time, but we’ll be updating this post with the latest details before the event as well.

Be sure to follow us on Twitter for instant updates and read on for the latest in our News Hub:

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Researchers from Johns Hopkins University have found a vulnerability in iMessages that allowed them to decrypt both photos and videos sent via the service. Apple said that iOS 9 provided a partial fix – making the attack method more difficult – while it is fully fixed in iOS 9.3.

The Washington Post reports that the team advised Apple of the flaw, and will publish a paper as soon as iOS 9.3 has been officially released, expected for later today. The team has, however, explained in outline how their attack worked …

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On schedule, the Apple Online Store has gone down ahead of the media event later today. The website reads ‘We can’t wait to show you what we have in store’.

At 10 AM PT in Cupertino, Apple will hold its March press event. The company is expected to announce a new 4 inch iPhone, dubbed the iPhone SE, as well as a 9.7 inch iPad Pro and updates to its Apple Watch line.

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