Posts tagged with "iOS"

Finally: Previous Purchases Coming To iOS App Store

Apple is updating its iOS App Store tonight. After search filters, Apple added a much requested feature: apps already purchased get an “Install” button instead of the usual “Buy” one. Why is this a big deal? Because having the “Buy” button was confusing, as it wasn’t easy to remember which apps you had already bought. Now, if you’re trying to install an app you have already bought one, it’s much easier.

Sure, it’s not as useful as the “Purchases” tab in the Mac App Store (which lets you see all your app purchase history at once), but we think this is a great (and much needed) first step nonetheless. The new feature is only enabled on the iPad App Store right now, but it shouldn’t be a problem for Apple to add it to the iPhone and iPod touch as well (unlike filters, which require some screen space).

Thanks, App Store team.

#MacStoriesDeals - Thursday

All this bad weather in the US must be keeping App devs from dropping their prices! Here’s today’s deals on iOS, Mac, and Mac App Store apps that are on sale for a limited time, so get ‘em while they’re hot! Read more

iAds Twice as Effective as TV Says Apple, Campbell’s

A Nielsen study shows iPhone users are paying attention, while TV views – eh, not so much. iAds started around 7 months ago on our iDevices and now there are effectiveness studies showing up, this one from Campbell’s (the soup maker).

People exposed to one of Campbell’s iAds were more than twice as likely to recall it than those who had seen a Campbell’s TV ad. This five-week Nielsen study showed that consumers who saw an iAd remembered Campbell’s brand five times more often than TV ad respondents and the ad’s  message three times more often. iAd respondents were four times as likely to to purchase Campbell’s than the TV viewers. Users also liked the ad five times more than the TV commercial. Read more

Rumor: Apple Planning iPad 2 & iOS 4.3 Event Next Week

According to website MacNotes.de, which previously reported the next-generation iPad is set to come out in the first weeks of April, Apple is planning a media event next week to discuss the new features in iOS 4.3 and provide a preview of the iPad 2.

A release date between 2nd and 9th April seems quite likely, sources - not only ours - pointed to a release in early April. The only question is: When will the iPad 2 be presented? One manufacturer of iPad accessoires now told us Apple is planning on holding an event next week.

Our guess is Apple will present the iPad 2 as a “One more thing” during a special iOS 4.3 developer event next week. iOS 4.3 is still a beta, Apple released the third beta on Tuesday. It still contains critical bugs, but might be released soon as soon as all the bugs are fixed.

The rumor follows a series of reports surfaced last night that hint at the release of iOS 4.3 in two weeks. iOS 4.3 is currently being tested with developers and has reached the beta 3 status, which may lead to a release of a GM seed next week. If the rumors are to be believed, in two weeks (and after the release of the Verizon iPhone on February 10th) Apple could roll out iOS 4.3 for all iOS devices, which, among other features, will introduce the Personal Hotspot functionality on the iPhone. The timing is also somewhat curious: the long anticipated iPad newspaper The Daily offers a free trial of two weeks, sponsored by Verizon Wireless. The Verizon iPhone will come out on Feb. 10 with the Personal Hotspot feature as an exclusive; AT&T iPhones will get Personal Hotspot only with iOS 4.3. Looking at the numbers and hints, the two-week timeframe seems likely.

It is unclear, however, why would Apple hold an event to announce both a new version of iOS and the iPad 2 as “one more thing”. Usually, new devices are always given a dedicated media event, not a brief preview during an iOS-related event. [via]

iOS 4.3 To Be Released Within Two Weeks?

Rumors and nuggets of information circulating around the web seem to suggest that the next update to iOS, 4.3, will come within the next two weeks. These suggestions come from a few sources, from David Pogue to John Gruber and The Daily’s launch.

As 9to5Mac was able to pick up on, David Pogue’s review on the Verizon iPhone contained a snippet that was later updated and removed. It was the statement that AT&T’s iPhone will get the Hotspot feature on February 13, there was no insinuation by Pogue that this was his guess but just written plain out as a fact.

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#MacStoriesDeals - Wednesday

All this bad weather in the US must be keeping App devs from dropping their prices! Here’s today’s deals on iOS, Mac, and Mac App Store apps that are on sale for a limited time, so get ‘em while they’re hot! Read more

QNAP’s NAS Streams Media To iOS via WiFi and 3G

If streaming music and movies remotely to iOS devices is your thing, QNAP’s latest NAS offering is something to keep an eye on. The new series, which will be available for sale later this month, comes with up to 8 TB of storage, 1.2 GHz CPU and 256 MB of RAM. Other than these interesting specs, the TS-x12 model can stream all kinds of media to iOS devices via WiFi or 3G, or to your PS3 and Xbox 360 with UPnP. Sounds pretty cool.

The Mac platform doesn’t lack media centers that through mobile companion apps can stream content to the iPhone and iPad. But if you don’t want to install apps like Plex on your Mac and you prefer having a solution like a full-featured NAS, QNAP’s upcoming products might just be what you need. [via Gizmodo]

iOS, Android and RIM Deadlocked in US Smartphone Market Share

Nielson has revealed its latest statistics on smartphone ownership in the US and there is some fascinating information contained in the report. 31% of all mobile consumers in the US owned a smartphone as of December last year. Ethnic and racial minorities also dominated ownership of smartphones with Asian/Pacific Islanders and Hispanics having 45% smartphone penetration, African-Americans also had higher numbers at 33% whilst White Americans were at a much lower 27%.

The smartphone war between RIM’s BlackBerry, Apple’s iPhone and Google’s Android operating system was also at dead heat by the end of 2010. Apple was just ahead at 28% of the mobile operating system share but has been sitting steady at around that rate for a year. RIM’s BlackBerry OS market share continued diving and was at 27% and Google’s Android continued steaming upwards reaching it’s highest share of 27%.

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Google Shopper for iPhone Now Available

Back in November, Google announced their Shopper app for Android. Millions of Android users have downloaded it and now it’s time for us iOS users to get a taste. Thats right, Google Shopper is now available for iPhone.  The Google Mobile Blog has just posted a formal introduction to the app. In case you didn’t know, Shopper turns your iPhone into a shopping assistant so you can learn more about products and read relevant user reviews, compare prices at online and local stores, and save and share products for later consideration.

Shopper checks your searches by cover art, barcodes, typing or voice search then after you get your results you can choose a specific product that you like. It also lets you compare prices from other retailers and even locate nearby shops that sell your product. Some retailers will even provide inventory information so you can check and see if your trip across town will be worth it. Read more