Patent Details Potential Future Find My iPhone Features

If features presented in a patent application from Apple this morning come to fruition, the ‘Find My iPhone’ service will become far more powerful in keeping your data secure. The primary feature described in the patent is one where the device would be able to detect a potential ‘intrusion’ by an unauthorised user of the device when an incorrect passcode is entered multiple times. It would proactively raise the security risk and then take steps to secure a users data.

When a raised security level is reached, certain files and content would be selectively protected. This data could be scrambled instead of wiped out – meaning that if a user does get the device back they still have the data and just have to unscramble it. The raised security level could also transition the device into a surveillance mode where the device records certain actions taken by a user including their actions, the ambient sounds, location of the device and then sends that data out, presumably to iCloud.

If a device is lost or stolen, it could become purposively limited from making calls, text messages and using mobile data so that the user doesn’t face costs from their mobile provider. Similarly, if the device has access to a corporate VPN, that VPN data could be altered when the device faces a raised security risk.

The patent also describes a system of how if a device is or presumed to be lost or stolen that it could request the location of the device. A pop-up would appear on the device, warning that location data is about to be sent, a user could then over-ride it with the correct passcode, or alternatively, contact the owner. Presumably this would be helpful if someone who found the device is trying to return the device.

[Via Patently Apple]

Discovr Apps Is Like Pandora For The App Store

Back in January I reviewed Discovr, an interactive music map that was aimed at letting you easily and joyfully discover new artists and songs based on your tastes. By providing an original interface that turned classic hyperlinking into an interactive experience with animated maps and multitouch, Discovr still holds up as one of the most original iPad apps to explore the iTunes Store in an alternate view that, eventually, also made its way to the iPhone. But after music, the Filter Squad developers might have asked themselves what is that iOS users want to discover on a daily basis. And that is apps, obviously. Discovr Apps, a new version of Discovr available in the App Store at $0.99, runs on the iPhone and iPad and, just like its music counterpart, wants to turn the App Store categories and links into a map that changes every time according to the suggestions you’re given and the apps you’re interested in.

In the main page, you’re presented with a search box to manually start looking for an app, or two tabs at the bottom: recommended for you, and suggested apps. For those who don’t know how Discovr works: after the first element – in our case, an app – pops up on screen, a tap will generate related items connected to it, thus creating a map. As you keep tapping to view related items, the map grows and the connections expand. To view an item in detail, you just have to double-tap and you’re brought to an App Store-like page with description and screenshots. If you want a broader view of the map you’ve generated, pinch to go back.

You can share discoveries on Twitter and Facebook or via email, but the main point of the app is to sit down, check out the recommendations or start with an app you like, and see where Discovr brings you with its interactive system. And as far as recommendations go, I’m very satisfied with this app-focused version of Discovr: even more than Discovr for music, I found app suggestions to be really tailored to my tastes and needs, with gems like Twitterrific, Evernote, Simplenote and Writings often showing up in my maps.

Discovr is, once again, an interesting experiment that offers an intuitive way to discover media you’d probably miss in the sea of App Store apps and updates. At $0.99 in the App Store, that’s an investment you should consider to discover more great apps in the future.

Angry Birds Updated With New Episode, Rovio Boasts Of 1 Million Downloads A Day

The unbelievably popular Angry Birds app has today received a new update, version 1.6.0, which brings a new episode for users to play with. The new underground episode, titled ‘Mining and Dining with the Burrowing Piggies’, is jam packed with another 15 levels to complete.

With a bottomless appetite, the bad piggies have burrowed deep in underground caverns to hide the eggs they stole from you. Use the landscape and geology to your advantage to chase the pigs out of their hiding holes, gather rare gems, and retrieve the eggs!

The new levels are cave themed and as usual there are jewels to find, but there is also new a gameplay mechanic – shoot at the hanging stalactites to “pop those pesky burrowing piggies”. Apart from the new levels, Rovio has tweaked some existing levels that were stonewalling people. The app update is available for both the iPhone version version and iPad version of Angry Birds.

Meanwhile, Peter Vesterbacka CEO of Rovio, spoke at the openIDEAS Conference in Europe today and revealed that the Angry Birds games are now seeing over a million downloads per day. You may recall that Rovio revealed that over Christmas Day last year it saw its most successful day ever with one million downloads – now that’s a daily occurance. In recent times it had also surpassed 250 million downloads.

[Via The Next Web]

Yahoo Tries To Improve App Search With Yahoo! App Search And AppSpot

Yahoo today launched a new search service that aims to improve the searching experience for the iPhone App Store and the Android Marketplace. The service brings a new app called Yahoo! AppSpot to the iPhone and Android as well as the Yahoo! App Search website.

With 425,000-plus apps in the Apple App Store and 200,000 apps in Android Market, we know finding what you want can be exhausting. And even more challenging: There are times you don’t know the specific name of the app, so you’re leaving it up to chance that you’re actually downloading the app you really want.

Yahoo claims to be able to search the App Store and Android Marketplace more intelligently as well as also offering users personal recommendations from within the AppSpot app. The personal recommendations feature works by first taking a look at all the apps you currently have on your iPhone (it asks for permission) and then displays eight suggestions for each category of the store. Unfortunately the recommendation system seemed very poor for me at least, suggesting a rather bizarre range of apps from ‘Alphabet Car’ to ‘Justin Bieber Revenge’ to ‘Foreclosure Search’.

Both the website and the app from Yahoo gives you all the same information that Apple’s own store provides, including: a description, rating, price and screenshots. If you choose to download the app through the AppSpot app it will launch you straight over to the App Store app. If you’re on the website on your Mac/PC though it will give you the option to either send an SMS with a link, open up the iTunes Preview page in your browser or display a QR code with the link embedded (the AppSpot App has a QR reader inbuilt).

You can try Yahoo! App Search from here and download the Yahoo! AppSpot App from here. Jump the break for a video promo.

[Via Engadget]
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Apple Launches 2011 Back To School Promotion In US And Europe, Features $100 Gift Card

As had been rumored and then confirmed last night, Apple has launched its 2011 Back to School promotion today, featuring a $100 gift card for use on any of Apple’s digital stores. The promotion runs from today until September 20th this year and is available for college students and faculty staff.

When you buy a new qualifying Mac with Apple education pricing* from June 16, 2011, through September 20, 2011, you’ll get a $100 Back to School Card

The qualifying Mac’s include the MacBook, MacBook Pro, MacBook Air and iMac – all of which are at a discounted rate for students. The gift card will work on the Mac App Store, App Store, iTunes Store or the iBookstore. The promotional page also highlights some accessories to help you “Gear up for college” as well as suggested “Apps for Studies” and “Apps for Study Breaks”.

The promotion has also launched in the UK where a £65 gift card is offered and in various other European countries where a 75 € gift card is offered.

Back To School Promo Finally Launching Tomorrow, $100 Gift Card Confirmed

The much anticipated Back to School 2011 promotion that was initially rumored to kick off in May, and then set for an announcement at WWDC with special iPad discounts, has finally been confirmed to kick off tomorrow, June 16, with a $100 gift card to buy software and media in Apple’s digital Stores. Photos posted by Italian website iPadevice [Google Translation] and MacRumors confirm that Apple has finalized work on the promotion, which will run until September 20, 2011, and will include a $100 (€75) gift card for software purchases. As Apple’s gift cards can be used everywhere though (iTunes Store, App Store, iBookstore), students who buy a new Mac will be able to redeem a code to use with apps, songs, movies, or books.

In the past years, Apple offered free iPods with the purchase of a new Mac as a clear sign of the company wanting to push iOS devices in the educational market – each student would get a free iPod touch, create an Apple ID to download apps, and eventually be tied to Apple’s ecosystem with other iOS devices. With the launch of the Mac App Store, however, and the upcoming OS X Lion, it appears Apple wants to heavily promote how the new Store will become the best way for Mac users to discover and buy software. In spite of the universal nature of gift cards, Apple clearly states on the promo material that $100 to spend on the Mac App Store can be used to buy Pages, Keynote, and Numbers.

OS X Lion Developer Preview 4 Update Released

As Lion’s development moves forward and nears the public release set for July, Apple has pushed another update to developers running OS X Lion Developer Preview 4. The new version, available through the Software Update control panel on the desktop, weighs at 656 MB and should be one of the latest updates before Lion gets its pre-announced Mac App Store rollout this summer. Lion will be available at $29.99 as digital-only upgrade for all your Macs configured with your Apple ID.

We’ll update this story with more details on what’s new as we get them, so make sure to refresh this page later.

Update: Build number is 11A494a. First reports seem to indicate the login window has got a new linen background – the login window was briefly shown during the WWDC keynote. [image via]

Chinese Court Sends 3 To Jail for Leaking iPad 2 Details

In what could possibly be related to the arrest of Foxconn employees back in December, Tuesday, a Chinese court have convicted three individuals with leaking Apple trade secrets and have sentenced them to prison. In March, Foxconn employees that leaked case designs revealing the iPad 2’s shape were convicted of violating Foxconn’s trade secrets–an employee who was previously a manager of MacTop and two others were sentenced on similar charges on Tuesday–case designs were leaked revealing the shape of the iPad 2. Two of the individuals claimed to be Foxconn employees, so they may likely be linked be the same individuals we’ve heard about before.

It said that Xiao Chengsong, general manager of Shenzhen MacTop Electronics Co., had offered 20,000 yuan, or about $3,000, plus discounts on MacTop products to a former Hon Hai employee named Hou Pengna, for information about the iPad 2. The court said Ms. Hou then paid Lin Kecheng, a Hon Hai research-and-development employee, to get digital images of the device’s back cover from last September, six months before the iPad 2 was publicly announced.

Many leaked case designs made their way online before Apple’s announcement, and an iPad 2 was even spotted at this year’s CES. The individuals will serve sentences up to 18 months with fines ranging from $4,500 to $23,000.

[WSJ via MacRumors]

Evernote for Mac Update Brings New View, Useful Note Links

An important update for Evernote, the cross-platform “memory tool” that allows you to capture notes, ideas, images and webpages, is coming out today on Mac and Windows and, after some weeks of testing, I can say it’s one of the most interesting new versions of the desktop app to date. The new Evernote 2.2, in fact, heavily relies on a new feature called “note links” that assigns a unique URL to each note in your Evernote account – meaning, you can generate a note link, paste it somewhere else on your Mac, and clicking on it will automatically open that note in Evernote. It’s very handy if you’ve always wanted to add relevant Evernote information to, say, calendar events or OmniFocus but never found the right way to do so. With note links and the new “copy to notebook” functionality, notes in Evernote 2.2 can be linked, duplicated and accessed from anywhere. If you paste a note link on your iOS device, the system will try to launch the Evernote app with that note in the foreground – again, this is a very welcome addition that has greatly improved my Evernote workflow in the way I can reference notes and link items between various notebooks. On top of that, you can also select multiple notes and grab a list of links with a single click.

There’s more in Evernote 2.2 however: the new Snippet view, much like on the iPhone, allows you to view text and image thumbnails for notes in your account at a glance. Rather than displaying a simple list of note titles, snippet view combines text, tags, dates and media to offer an integrated view of what’s in your Evernote – plus, it looks really nice. Evernote writes on the official blog:

If you use Mixed View in your note list, the most obvious change you’ll see is the new Snippet View. Snippets are designed to provide the most useful information possible at a glance. If your note contains only text, then the Snippet will display the text at full width. If the note contains both images and text, then it will show text and a thumbnail. If it’s just an image, then the snippet will show the note title and a larger thumbnail. Not only does this view give you more information about the content of the notes, but it also makes browsing through your notes easier.

Last, new navigation buttons in the upper left corner let you easily navigate back and forth between content you’ve viewed and archived, and just like the web browser click & hold on the buttons will bring up a menu with more navigation options.

While waiting for the promised huge update for the iPad version that will bring a new UI and rich text editing capabilities, you can get the new Mac version from the Mac App Store or Evernote’s website. Evernote 2.2 is propagating at the moment of writing this, so if you don’t see the update right away, you should try later today.