Posts in news

Apple Posts New “Designed Together” Commercial for iPhone 5c and iOS 7

Alongside the release of iOS 7 and a refresh of the App Store for newly updated iOS 7 apps, Apple has today posted a new commercial for the iPhone 5c and the new OS.

Called “Designed Together”, the commercial focuses on how the design of the iPhone 5c and iOS 7 complement each other in various ways. Apple’s message is that, with the iPhone 5c and iOS 7, the difference between hardware and software has been blurred, much like many aspects of its new operating system. There are playful animations that see iOS 7 features morphing into iPhone 5c hardware, and parts of the iPhone 5c’s colored shell becoming pieces of the iOS 7 interface.

The interplay between hardware and software is something that Apple has been remarking for the past week since the announcement of the iPhone 5c and iPhone 5s, and it’s no surprise that the company is now promoting the idea to the general public through a fun, delightful ad.

You can watch the embedded video below. Read more

Apple Launches “Designed for iOS 7” App Store Section

Following the public launch of iOS 7 earlier today, Apple has now launched a new section on the App Store aimed at showcasing apps that have been redesigned and updated to take advantage of iOS 7.

The section, called “Designed for iOS 7” can be accessed by opening the front page of the App Store on any iOS device. At the moment of writing this, the section collects 45 iPhone and iPad apps that have been updated for iOS 7, including big names like Evernote, TED, and OpenTable, as well as apps from independent developers like Twitterrific, Reeder 2, Pocket Casts 4, and Perfect Weather.

Today, Apple is also promoting individual iOS 7 apps on the front page of the App Store with custom banners and links to other iOS 7-related sections, such as Newsstand apps.

Back in July, I wondered how Apple would promote apps made for iOS 7:

Apple isn’t new to custom sections and features for apps that have been enhanced for new system features, OS releases, or new devices. iOS 7, however, will effectively split the App Store in two: apps that were built before iOS 7, and those from developers who care about supporting this major change. This wouldn’t be a problem if every app on the App Store was updated regularly; unfortunately, cleaning the App Store’s back catalogue isn’t a new topic of discussion – today, there are apps on the Store that haven’t been updated in 2 or 3 years (I found apps last updated in 2008) and that will likely remain unchanged with iOS 7. Does Apple want to treat those “classic” apps in the same way that modern iOS 7 apps should be treated?

Apple isn’t new to custom, curated sections on the App Store, and it’ll be interesting to see how they will continue to promote iOS 7 apps over time and organize search results to highlight apps that have been updated in recent months.

You can view the “Designed for iOS 7” section here. Our coverage of iOS 7-ready apps can be found here. Read more

Apple Updates AirPort Utility and Apple Store Apps with iOS 7 Support

Ahead of iOS 7’s public launch, expected later today, Apple has started updating their App Store apps (the ones that don’t come pre-installed on iOS) with support for the new operating system. The first two apps released this morning to get the iOS 7 treatment are AirPort Utility and the Apple Store app.

Both apps have been updated to include the new default iOS 7 UI; based on initial tests, it doesn’t seem like Apple added new major functionality to the apps. AirPort Utility, used to manage and configure AirPort stations directly on iOS, has received an integrated status/bar navigation bar that keeps the app’s existing color scheme. There still is a main screen listing all your active AirPort devices, which you can tap on to enter another view for hardware information and more.

The Apple Store’s update is more substantial from a design standpoint, with Apple including a new app icon and redesigned graphics throughout the app. Apple Store now comes with edge-to-edge sections, translucencies, and thinner tab bar icons that are consistent with Apple’s other iOS 7 apps.

You can find updates to AirPort Utility and Apple Store on the App Store.

Apple Releases OS X 10.8.5

Apple has released OS X Mountain Lion 10.8.5, an update that brings improvements for file transfers, WiFi, Mail, and more. The last update to Mountain Lion, version 10.8.4, was released in June, ahead of WWDC. It appears that this new version fixes a CoreText bug that caused strings of text containing Arabic characters to crash certain Mac apps.

Full changelog below:

  • Fixes an issue that may prevent Mail from displaying messages
  • Improves AFP file transfer performance over 802.11ac Wi-Fi
  • Resolves an issue that may prevent a screen saver from starting automatically
  • Improves Xsan reliability
  • Improves reliability when transferring large files over Ethernet
  • Improves performance when authenticating to an Open Directory server
  • Addresses an issue that prevented a smart card from unlocking preference panes in System Preferences
  • Contains the improvements included in MacBook Air (Mid 2013) Software Update 1.0

OS X 10.8.5 is currently available through Software Update on the Mac App Store. We’ll post links to standalone downloads as soon as they’re available.

Update: Download links from Apple.

Chrome For iOS Update Brings New Icon, Improved Voice Search and Navigation

Released earlier today on the App Store, Chrome for iOS version 29.0.1547.11 (according to Google’s release notes) brings various search and navigation improvements, as well as a new white-themed icon that seems to be aimed at making Chrome fit more with the upcoming aesthetic of iOS 7.

The first improvement is better handling of single sign on with other Google apps for iOS, something that the company has been focusing on lately to provide an even tighter integration between its apps for iPhones and iPads.

Alongside bug fixes and stability improvements, Google has added a way to more easily swipe back from a webpage to search results: when you search on Google and choose a result, when you go back to your search query you’ll see a new animation and, more importantly, your previous results instantly appear on screen. Switching back and forth between results was cumbersome in the old Chrome, as it wasn’t fast and often led to problems with the Google Search page reloading again.

Last, Google says that Voice Search has been enhanced with pronoun support for chaining queries like “Who is Barack Obama?” followed by “Who is his wife?”. in my tests, the feature worked as advertised with US English Voice Search, correctly displaying results for the aforementioned person/wife combination, as well as “What is the capital of Italy?” and “What is its population?”. However, improved pronoun support doesn’t seem to be working with Italian yet, which wouldn’t be surprising considering that Google rolled out international versions of Voice Search months after the US launch.

You can get the latest Chrome for iOS update on the App Store.

September 10th iPhone Event: All the Other Stuff

Today’s iPhone event was short and to the point. Instead of introducing handfuls of new products and apps, we were presented with a quick iOS 7 overview of what was already announced at WWDC, some iWork and app updates (more on that in a second), and then the iPhones themselves alongside accompanying cases. Honestly, this made for one of the most satisfying iPhone events in ages.

Read more

iPhone 5c: Everything You Need to Know

During today’s media event at the Apple Campus in Cupertino, California, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing, Phil Schiller, took the stage to announce the iPhone 5c. The iPhone 5c is Apple’s first plastic-bodied phone with a 4-inch screen, is shaped like the iPod touch, and is also Apple’s first iPhone that’s available in an array of bright colors. The 16 GB iPhone 5c starts at $99 on contract.

Read more

Apple Announces iOS 7 Coming On September 18

As widely expected, Apple has today confirmed the official release date of iOS 7 at a media event held on the company’s campus in Cupertino. iOS 7 will be released on Wednesday, September 18th, for the iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.

iOS 7 is a major rethinking of Apple’s mobile operating system that sports a redesigned user interface with a focus on clarity and deference, and new features such as Control Center, new Multitasking, improved Notification Center and Siri, iTunes Radio, AirDrop, and more. iOS 7 was first announced at Apple’s WWDC earlier this year, where Apple also confirmed that the update would include over 1500 new APIs for developers to create apps with.

Apple hasn’t announced a Golden Master seed of iOS 7 yet, but it will presumably be released to developers today. Typically the last developer release before a public launch, the GM seed will allow developers to make final preparations to their iOS 7-ready apps and submit them to the App Store.

For more coverage, check out our September 10 news hub and follow @macstoriesnet on Twitter.

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