Everything Apple

Monday, 8 January 2018

Google brings its different payment platforms together under the Google Pay brand

Google Pay products Google is simplifying the way it presents its different payments tools to consumers, uniting them under a new brand called Google Pay. In a Google blog post, Vice President of Product Management for Payments Pali Bhat described this as more of a rebranding than a change to the underlying products or technology. He said the products being brought together include Android Pay (Google’s… Read More

Ripple, a Tinder spinoff backed by Match, launches app for professional networking

 A team of former Tinder employees, led by Tinder’s original CTO Ryan Ogle, are today launching a new app aimed at professional networking. The app, called Ripple, aims to be a sort of mobile-first alternative to LinkedIn that addresses some of the problems common to the aging, now Microsoft-owned business networking platform. LinkedIn today has a heavy focus on job searching and head… Read More

Saturday, 6 January 2018

The light and dark of AI-powered smartphones

 As more smartphones get on device AI processing powers it could support a new range of advanced consumer features. But what kind of value exchange might be required for mobile users to tap into these touted ‘AI smarts’? Read More

Friday, 5 January 2018

Member of group that used Grindr to find and assault gay men gets 15 years

 The first sentence has been handed down in a case centered on the use of Grindr as a platform from which to perpetrate hate crimes. Nigel Garrett was given 15 years yesterday after pleading guilty to a list of crimes including assault, carjacking, and use of firearms, the Tyler Morning Telegraph reported. Read More

App revenue climbed 35 percent to $60 billion in 2017

 Global app revenue climbed 35 percent in 2017 to reach nearly $60 billion, according to a new report today from app intelligence firm Sensor Tower, which measured paid apps, subscriptions, and in-app purchases across both Apple’s App Store and Google Play. However, Apple is the one pulling n the most revenue, the report found – at nearly double that of Google Play. Specifically,… Read More

Thursday, 4 January 2018

Apple in good cheer over a billion-dollar Christmas and New Year’s on the App Store

 The week after Christmas is a lazy one, but the App Store was working overtime. Apple triumphantly announced today that the late holiday season brought in more than a billion dollars in purchases on its mobile marketplace. Read More

Lea’s live event assistant for Messenger makes buying tickets easier

 Buying event tickets online isn’t a great experience. Sites like Ticketmaster are the default, but are difficult to use and expensive. A startup called Lea wants to offer a more modern experience by combining event search, discovery, seat selection and payment all in a single application that works right in Facebook Messenger. Yes, that’s right – Lea is a chatbot. And while… Read More

Nintendo Switch is the fastest-selling video game console ever in the U.S.

 Nintendo has managed to sell so many of its Nintendo Switch console that it’s become not only its own fastest-selling console, but also the fastest selling in the U.S. ever, beating the record set by the Wii back during its launch. The Switch has sold over 4.8 million units in its first 10 months of availability, which beats out the Wii’s 4 million sold during the same initial… Read More

Wednesday, 3 January 2018

Instagram tests letting users post Stories directly to WhatsApp

 Last October, Facebook extended the usage (and flexibility) of Instagram Stories — the Snapchat-like feature that lets you patch together photos and videos into a slide show — by making it easy to directly post a Story to Facebook. Now Facebook is looking at how to bring WhatsApp into the fold. Read More

Apple readies Siri for the HomePod by adding a podcast-powered news brief

 The HomePod had a bit of a notable production setback, back in December, but Apple’s high-end smart speaker is still on track for an “early 2018” release. As it preps for the release of its first Siri-focused device, the company is making some tweaks to its voice assistant. As 9to5Mac first noted, the latest beta version of iOS (11.2.5) sports a new news feature. “Hey… Read More

Apple Developer Program fee waivers are now available for nonprofits, schools and government

 Apple announced today it will begin allowing select publishers to waive the membership fees associated with its App Developer Program. Specifically, the new fee waivers will be offered to “nonprofit organizations, accredited educational institutions, and government entities,” says Apple. For starters, the waivers will be available in the U.S., but the company had said in December… Read More

Tuesday, 2 January 2018

Apple buys app development service Buddybuild

 Apple continues to ramp up its efforts to court developers by making it easier to create and iterate their apps for its platforms. The iPhone giant has now acquired Buddybuild, a Vancouver-based app tools startup that describes itself as “mobile iteration platform” focused on continuous integration and debugging tools — essentially giving an app development team a simple… Read More