Google today announced that its app indexing feature is now compatible with the HTTP deep link standards for iOS 9, which will allow iOS users to open mobile app content directly from the Google Search results page in Safari for iOS.
To use the feature, developers need to add Universal Links to their iOS apps and then integrate with Google's SDK. For end users, this change will result in better integration between search results and apps.
For example, when searching for a restaurant with Google Search and getting a Yelp result, clicking on the Yelp link will open the Yelp app on iOS instead of opening the Yelp website within Safari.
Google's app indexing feature for iOS was announced in May, but prior to today, it was limited to the Chrome browser and Google app for iOS. iOS users will begin to see app content in Safari on iOS starting at the end of October.
Since iOS 9 was released to the public on September 16, some users with POP email accounts have been having trouble opening emails with attachments. There's a 22 page thread on the Apple discussion forums covering the issue, which currently has more than 200 replies from users who are all experiencing the same problem.
Customers with a wide range of devices are receiving a "Message not yet downloaded from server" error whenever they attempt to open an email message with an attachment. The problem appears to be affecting Apple customers who have POP email accounts and is causing issues with both new and old emails.
I am having exactly the same issue. Many of my old mails on my iPad just saying not yet downloaded from the server. I am using a pop account on both my iPad and windows live mail. I have tried deleting my email accounts and adding back in. Even some emails that were received this morning are now showing as not being downloaded from the server.
Deleting email accounts and adding them back in does not fix the issue, but downloading an alternate email program from the App Store seems to have worked for many users as a temporary fix. Turning off Wi-Fi also allows some users to read their previously downloaded emails and access attachments, but images are not viewable.
One customer experiencing issues received a response from Apple's engineering team, suggesting the email issue occurs when an email account has been configured to remove a copy of emails on the server. This has left some wondering whether the behavior is an intended function or a bug, but while leaving messages on the server solves some of the problem, sent and trash emails remain unaccessible. The requirement to leave messages on the server also defeats the purpose of a POP email account.
This issue usually starts if one of the devices/computers that was setup with this email account has been configured to remove a copy of emails on the server. If this is the case, the customer will need to check the settings of all the devices and computers that are running this email account.
iOS leaves messages on the POP3 server by default. iOS never stores email permanently, whether POP3 or IMAP. If they are removed from the server by another device then this issue can occur.
A test that you may want to do to confirm this is to have the customer produce the error by opening one affected mail on the iOS device, and then locate that specific email on his webmail. If not found, then the device is behaving as expected. If found, please try to forward it to the same mailbox and see if the same issue occurs.
While these email problems have been plaguing users since iOS 9 was released, Apple did not fix the problem in iOS 9.0.1 or iOS 9.0.2, the two minor bug fix updates that have been released to the public since September 16. It is not clear if iOS 9.1, the first major update to iOS, fixes the issue, and Apple has not given any statement on whether some kind of fix is planned or if there's been an intentional change to the way POP email accounts work on iOS in iOS 9.
For this week's giveaway, we've teamed up with Duluth Pack to give one lucky MacRumors reader a chance to win one of the company's Deluxe Laptop Daypacks. Made of a rugged canvas, the Deluxe Laptop Daypack includes leather accents for better durability and resistance to wear, and it has adjustable leather shoulder straps for comfort.
There's a big pocket on the outside for holding things like cords, smartphones, and other small accessories, and there are dividers within that pocket to keep things organized. Inside, there's a padded laptop sleeve that's able to hold a laptop that's up to 15 inches high and 16 inches wide, which is plenty of room for all of Apple's laptops, up to the 15-inch Retina MacBook Pro.
The Deluxe Laptop Dayback is a good-sized bag that's going to hold a ton of stuff along with a laptop. It measures in at 18 inches tall by 14 inches wide, and it comes with a lifetime warranty that covers all craftsmanship and hardware used in its construction.
Duluth Pack's Daypacks are available in a wide range of colors, from traditional shades of black and brown to brighter colors like red, pink, and tangerine. The Deluxe Laptop Daypack is priced at $275, but Duluth also offers other Daypacks, bags, and briefcases at lower prices.
One MacRumors reader will win a Duluth Deluxe Daypack in the color of their choosing. To enter to win, use the Rafflecopter widget below and enter an email address. Email addresses will be used solely for contact purposes to reach the winner and send the prize.
You can earn additional entries by subscribing to our weekly newsletter, subscribing to our YouTube channel, following us on Twitter, or visiting the MacRumorsFacebook page. Due to the complexities of international laws regarding giveaways, only U.S. residents who are 18 years of age or older are eligible to enter.
The contest will run from today (October 9) at 12:15 p.m. Pacific Time through 12:15 p.m. Pacific Time on October 16. The winner will be chosen randomly on October 16 and will be contacted by email. The winner has 48 hours to respond and provide a shipping address before a new winner is chosen. The prize will be shipped to the winner for free.
Independent podcast network Relay FM today launched its first iOS app, giving Relay FM listeners a dedicated spot to listen to their favorite podcast shows. The app is designed to allow users to discover new podcasts to listen to and then subscribe to their favorites, with push notifications sent whenever a show is streaming live.
Relay FM's new app has a clean, vibrant look with eye-catching animated artwork. Relay FM lets users listen to podcasts live and catch up on recent episodes, but it's not a complete podcast client. As noted by TechCrunch, there's no way to subscribe to shows within the app or listen to past episodes.
Also new in the world of podcasting apps is an updated version of Marco Arment's popular Overcast app. Overcast 2 has gone free, with all of the app's features available at no cost, but there is an monthly patronage option for customers who want to support the app. Overcast 2 also includes streaming for a better listening experience.
Episodes can now be played immediately without waiting for them to download, and new episodes can be listened to through streaming instead of via download in order to save storage space. A built-in storage manager lets users see how much space downloaded podcasts are consuming and it includes options to delete downloads and stream episodes on demand.
According to Marco Arment, Overcast 2's streaming architecture has improved battery life and made all playback faster to start and more reliable. Features like Smart Speed and Voice Boost have been enhanced, with Smart Speed adapting dynamically to quieter voices.
There are also 3D Touch launch shortcuts, better search, improved communication with the Apple Watch app, and more. A full list of features is available on Marco.org.
Smile Software has released TextExpander 5.1.2 with a fix for OS X El Capitan-related crashing on launch and other minor bug fixes and improvements. The update is free for all users running TextExpander 5 or later.
TextExpander is a popular typing utility for Mac that can expand custom keystroke shortcuts into frequently-used text and pictures. The tool can insert text ranging from email signatures to paragraphs, automatically fix typos, autocomplete forms and more.
What's new in 5.1.2:
Addresses El Capitan related crash on launch
Other minor fixes and improvements
What's New in Version 5:
Suggests snippets from phrases you habitually type
Reminds you of missed opportunities to use your abbreviations
Customize snippet file location
Sync via iCloud Drive or any sync folder
Simplified expansion of lengthy fill-ins and scripts
Search and expand snippets, abbreviations, and suggestions inline as you type
Preview expanded snippet
Refreshed statistics display
Supports JavaScript snippets that also operate on iOS
Updated for Mac OS X 10.10 Yosemite (required)
TextExpander 5 is $44.95 with a free trial available, or $19.95 for users upgrading from a previous version.
The much-anticipated Steve Jobs film today launches in select theaters across the United States, following its debut at a few film festivals throughout September and October. To coincide with the film's release, on its YouTube channel Universal Pictures has published a handful of new TV spots, inside looks, and the first full clip from the movie. In the scene, Seth Rogen as Steve Wozniak confronts Michael Fassbender's Steve Jobs over the impending launch of the NeXT Computer.
Alongside the scene, Universal shared four new TV spots for the movie that have been promoting its release over the past few weeks, most of them centering around Rolling Stone's four-star review of the film. The company also shared "a look inside" the newly released film, including short interview clips with its cast and crew that focus on writer Aaron Sorkin and director Danny Boyle.
The first impressions of the film at festivals in Telluride and New York have been largely positive, centering on Fassbender's performance and the risky, yet rewarding liberties that Sorkin takes with certain aspects of Jobs' life. Currently, the film sits at a 91 percent fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with 50 fresh reviews to 5 rotten.
Steve Jobs launches today in select theaters in New York and Los Angeles and will see a slow rollout to more select theaters in places like Toronto and Boston on October 16. The actual, wide release is set for closer to the end of the month on October 23.
Apple has updated its regional websites for Chile, The Philippines and South Africa to indicate the Apple Watch will be available in those countries on October 23.
Apple Watch became available for purchase on October 9 in Belgium, Finland, Norway, Luxembourg and Poland. The wrist-worn device expands to Brazil and Columbia on October 16 and to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates on October 22.
April 24: Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, UK, US
June 26: Italy, Mexico, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland, and Taiwan
July 17: The Netherlands, Sweden, and Thailand
July 31: New Zealand, Russia, and Turkey
September 25: Austria, Denmark, and Ireland
October 9: Belgium, Finland, Norway, Luxembourg, and Poland
October 16: Brazil and Colombia
October 22: Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates
October 23: Chile, Philippines, and South Africa
In the Philippines, the Apple Watch Sport starts at ₱ 19,990.00, which is roughly $437 in U.S. dollars as of October 15. Apple Watch prices in Chile and South Africa are not yet listed on the Apple Online Store.
Apple tonight removed some ad blockers, among other apps, from the App Store for installing root certificates that would allow developers to view encrypted traffic from their users, reportsiMore. In a statement provided to the publication, Apple said it was working with developers to get the apps back into the App Store.
Apple is deeply committed to protecting customer privacy and security. We’ve removed a few apps from the App Store that install root certificates which enable the monitoring of customer network data that can in turn be used to compromise SSL/TLS security solutions. We are working closely with these developers to quickly get their apps back on the App Store, while ensuring customer privacy and security is not at risk.
With iOS 9, Apple allowed developers to create content blockers that would block ads on websites in Safari. Some ad blockers were removed because they could use the installed root certificates to view customer data passing through them. However, iMore notes that the ad blockers removed from the App Store are slightly different than the content blockers Apple enabled with iOS 9.
The ad blockers removed from the App Store block ads and other content inside apps by "exposing all your private Internet traffic to the blocker," according to iMore. The apps are set up in a way that allows a user's traffic to flow through the developer's servers to perform the content blocking. One of the apps that has been removed is Been Choice, who notes that they will resubmit their app tomorrow with the necessary changes.
While Apple has enabled developers to create content blockers for Safari, it currently has no systems in place to allow developers to block content within apps.
The PC market continues to slide, according to the latest estimates, and while Apple is seeing only a small gain or loss in shipments year-over-year depending on who is doing the counting, the Mac maker continues to outpace the overall market.
Gartner's Preliminary Worldwide PC Vendor Unit Shipment Estimates for 3Q15 (Thousands of Units)
Gartner's numbers show Apple shipping 5.6 million Macs worldwide during the third quarter, an increase of 1.5 percent over the third quarter of 2014 and good enough for fourth place with 7.6 percent of the market, placing behind Lenovo, HP, and Dell. The global market as a whole saw a 7.7 percent decline in shipments, with only Dell at 0.5 percent joining Apple among top vendors with shipment growth.
Gartner's Preliminary U.S. PC Vendor Unit Shipment Estimates for 3Q15 (Thousands of Units)
In the U.S., Gartner estimates Apple's shipments grew 7.3 percent to 2.5 million, ahead of the market's 1.3 percent growth. Apple ranked third with 14.8 percent of the market, although Lenovo is rapidly closing with strong U.S. sales growth.
Apple's U.S. Market Share Trend: 1Q06-3Q15 (Gartner)
Compared to Gartner, IDC predicts steeper losses for the PC market, pegging the global shipment decline at 10.8 percent year-over-year with Apple falling 3.4 percent. That was, however, still good enough for fourth place worldwide with 7.5 percent of the market. IDC's U.S. numbers put Apple at 1.6 percent growth, reaching 13.7 percent share to edge out Lenovo as the third largest seller of PCs while the overall U.S. market fell 0.7 percent.
A better picture of Apple's Mac shipments will come on October 27 when the company reports earnings for the typically strong back-to-school quarter.
Delta today updated its Fly Delta app with Apple Pay support. This makes Delta the first U.S.-based airline to allow users to purchase tickets via Apple Pay.
“Our Fly Delta app has come a long way since it was first introduced in 2010. More than 18 million customers have now downloaded the Fly Delta app and we are excited to be the first U.S.-based airline to allow our customers to book and pay for their tickets with Apple Pay. By providing a way to pay for flights with just the touch of a fingertip, Delta continues to optimize our robust mobile channels and provide an easy-to-use and seamless digital experience for our customers,” said Rhonda Crawford, Vice President - eCommerce.
While the app supports Apple Pay, Delta notes that it's not yet available for SkyMiles award bookings, trip extras, trip insurance or seat upgrades. The app also has an updated "Today" view that'll allow passengers to easily view their eBoarding pass on the day of travel.
Apple Pay has slowly been rolling out to more vendors over the past months. Earlier today, Apple announced that the service would be available at Starbucks, KFC and Chili's in 2016.
The iPhone 6s and 6s Plus are now available SIM-free in Apple's online store, allowing potential customers to buy an unlocked iPhone with no carrier attached. The new option was first spotted by MacRumors forum member Ternary. On its website, Apple explains the differences between a regular iPhone and a SIM-free one.
The SIM-free iPhone comes without a wireless contract commitment or carrier financing. It doesn’t come with a nano-SIM card for iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s Plus, iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, or iPhone 5s. And because it’s unlocked, it isn’t tied to one carrier, so you can get a nano-SIM from any supported carrier worldwide, such as AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon, or Sprint in the United States.
Purchasing a SIM-free iPhone means that customers have to pay for the full price of the device upfront. It's ideal for customers who want to avoid multi-year commitments with carriers or for travelers who want to easily be able to switch to local carriers when traveling abroad. The SIM-free iPhone 6s is model A1633 while the iPhone 6s Plus is model A1634.
In a new interview with German newspaper Handelsblatt (viaBusiness Insider), Tesla CEO Elon Musk spoke about his thoughts on the much-rumored Apple Car. Additionally, Musk was asked what he thought about Apple hiring away some of Tesla's "most important engineers."
Important engineers? They have hired people we’ve fired. We always jokingly call Apple the “Tesla Graveyard.” If you don’t make it at Tesla, you go work at Apple. I’m not kidding.
Musk was then asked whether he takes Apple's car ambitions seriously, to which he joked "did you ever take a look at the Apple Watch?" He went on to say that it was good Apple was moving toward and investing in a car and that it's the "next logical thing" for the company to offer "significant innovation."
The Tesla CEO went on to poke fun at the newly announced Apple Pencil and iPad Pro, saying that innovation in the form of a new pencil or a bigger iPad are "not relevant enough." However, Musk cautions that cars are far more complex than smartphones and smartwatches. "You can't just go to a supplier like Foxconn and say: Build me a car," Musk told the German newspaper.
Apple and Tesla have hired each other's employees over the course of the last year, with Musk saying that Apple has hired away "very few people" from the car company despite offering $250,000 signing bonuses and 60 percent salary increases to its employees. Tesla has hired nearly 150 Apple employees.
Apple's iPhone 6s and 6s Plus are now available for purchase in Taiwan, marking the start of the second wave iPhone launch. Beginning October 9, iPhone 6s and 6s Plus availability is expanding to more than 40 countries, the bulk of which are in Europe. In each country, Apple retail stores, Apple Authorized Resellers, and local carriers will begin offering the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus as retail locations begin opening in the morning.
A full list of countries where the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus will be available as October 9 rolls around is below:
Locations in Taiwan recently began selling the new iPhones, with some customers that having waited in line for more than 60 hours to get one of the first available phones in the country (via TechBang).
Customers line up for the iPhone 6s in Taiwan, via TechBang
In several of the countries where the iPhone 6s launch is still a few hours off, customers are already lining up. In Copenhagen and Sweden, customers are waiting outside Telia stores to get an iPhone. In Russia, customers have the option to get their iPhone 6s and 6s Plus devices delivered via taxi, and in Italy, customers are waiting in line at the Apple Store in Campi Bizenzio as a fundraiser for a pediatric hospital.
Following today's launch, iPhone 6s and 6s Plus availability will also be expanding to additional countries as part of additional waves set to take place in subsequent weeks.
- October 10: Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and United Arab Emirates - October 15: Israel - October 16: India, Kazakhstan, Macedonia, Malaysia, Malta, Montenegro, South Africa, and Turkey - October 23: Belarus, Guam, Moldova, Serbia, South Korea, and Ukraine
In a recent press release announcing opening weekend iPhone 6s and 6s Plus sales of more than 13 million, Apple said the company will bring the new iPhones to more than 130 countries by the end of the year.
With the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus, Apple didn't increase battery life over the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, which means battery cases are going to remain a popular accessory for at least another year. In our latest video review, we went hands on with the ibattz Mojo Refuel Invictus battery case, which will fit the iPhone 6s Plus or the iPhone 6 Plus.
The ibattz is equipped with two removable and replaceable 3,000 mAh batteries, for a total capacity of 6,000 mAh. Each one of the batteries has enough juice to charge an iPhone 6 Plus or 6s Plus about 70 percent of the way, so combined, there's enough power to keep an iPhone going for a couple of days.
With two batteries in the Invictus Refuel case, it's quite heavy, but we didn't think the case itself was too bulky considering it's housing multiple batteries. There's a power button at the bottom of the case with LEDs for each battery, so you can get an idea of how much battery is left at a glance. The case itself recharges using micro-USB.
We liked the power this case provided, but we weren't a fan of the construction of the case itself. The materials felt a bit cheap and we were worried we'd break it putting it on the iPhone. The bulk of the phone also rendered the mute switch unusable due to a faulty mute switch on the case itself, so this is probably a case most users are going to want to pass on.
Popular coffee chain Starbucks will begin accepting Apple Pay by the end of the year, says Apple Pay vice president Jennifer Bailey, who spoke today at Re/code's Code Mobile Conference in Half Moon Bay, California.
Starbucks plans to team up with Apple to launch an Apple Pay pilot program in select U.S. stores this year before rolling Apple Pay out to approximately 7,500 company-owned Starbucks locations in the United States in early 2016. The Apple Pay payments service will be connected to Starbucks' own loyalty program, but it is not clear if Starbucks customers who make purchases with Apple Pay will be able to earn Starbucks rewards.
At the current time, Starbucks uses its own barcode-based in-app mobile payments system for coffee and snack purchases made within its retail stores. The Starbucks iOS app does support Apple Pay, but only for reloading Starbucks cards. Given the popularity of Starbucks, Apple Pay availability at the chain could be a major boon for Apple.
In addition to Starbucks, Apple Pay will also be available in KFC fast food locations and Chili's sit-down restaurants starting next year. In Chili's, customers will be able to pay for their food directly at their tables using Apple Pay.
On stage, Bailey said Apple was "fully committed to NFC," calling it the "best technology out there" for mobile payments. She also said Apple wants to bring Apple Pay to as many countries as possible in the future, expanding beyond the United Kingdom and the United States.
Over the past several days, a slew of battery tests on the iPhone 6s and the iPhone 6s Plus have revealed some performance differences between models that have an A9 chip manufactured by TSMC and those with an A9 chip created by Samsung. While various benchmarking and real world usage tests have shown differences of 6 percent to 22 percent, in favor of TSMC chips, Apple says that its own testing has shown battery life variations of only two to three percent.
In a statement given to TechCrunch, Apple says that it has done internal testing and gathered customer data to determine the performance difference between the two chips in the iPhones.
With the Apple-designed A9 chip in your iPhone 6s or iPhone 6s Plus, you are getting the most advanced smartphone chip in the world. Every chip we ship meets Apple's highest standards for providing incredible performance and deliver great battery life, regardless of iPhone 6s capacity, color, or model.
Certain manufactured lab tests which run the processors with a continuous heavy workload until the battery depletes are not representative of real-world usage, since they spend an unrealistic amount of time at the highest CPU performance state. It's a misleading way to measure real-world battery life. Our testing and customer data show the actual battery life of the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus, even taking into account variable component differences, vary within just 2-3% of each other.
Apple says that early battery benchmark tests conducted by customers, such as those we shared yesterday, are not reflective of real world usage conditions. The two to three percent difference that Apple has seen in data gathered from customers is "well within its manufacturing tolerances" and is a level of variation that could be seen between two devices with the same chip.
Apple's statement on real world usage reflects what recent YouTube tests have revealed. Side-by-side battery tests comparing a TSMC iPhone and a Samsung iPhone did not show differences as dramatic as benchmark tests have shown, but those videos are also not quite indicative of real world usage results. On the MacRumors forums, opinions on battery life have been highly mixed. While some users with Samsung chips have reported poor battery life, others have not reported issues.
iPhone 6s and 6s Plus sales will expand to several additional countries on October 23 as part of a fourth wave launch, with the device becoming available in Serbia, Moldova, Belarus, Ukraine, and Guam.
There are no Apple retail locations in those countries, but various Apple Reseller Stores and carriers will begin offering the two new iPhones on that date.
Starting tomorrow, iPhone 6s and 6s Plus sales are expanding to more than 40 additional countries around the world. Currently, the devices are only available in first wave launch countries that include Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, New Zealand, Puerto Rico, Singapore, the UK, and the United States.
Launches in various countries will happen on the following dates:
October 10: Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and United Arab Emirates
October 16: India, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, South Africa, and Turkey
October 23: Belarus, Guam, Moldova, Serbia, and Ukraine
The iPhone 6s and 6s Plus will continue to expand to additional countries throughout 2015, as Apple has said it plans to make the two devices available in more than 130 countries by the end of the year.
Update: According to Apple's site, the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus will also be launching in Israel on October 15, Macedonia, Malta, and Montenegro on October 16, and South Korea on October 23.
Adobe updated its lineup of mobile apps earlier this week, and among those updates was a new version of Lightroom, the company's iOS-based photo editing app. As part of the recent update to Lightroom, Adobe quietly made the app available to all users, removing the need for a subscription to Creative Cloud.
Prior to this week, the free Lightroom app was dependent on the desktop version of Lightroom and it required users to have one of Adobe's Creative Cloud subscription plans. Signing up first on Lightroom used to activate a trial Creative Cloud account, giving iOS users only a limited amount of time to use the app. Now restriction free, Lightroom can be downloaded by all iOS users at no cost and used to manage and edit photos on iOS indefinitely.
The Next Web was the first to highlight the change to Lightroom, and the site spoke to Adobe's director of product management for digital imaging Tom Hogarty who said Lightroom has been a popular choice for mobile users. Adobe is likely hoping the change will draw potential subscribers to Adobe's other apps.
We're seeing alot of people come in first on Lightroom mobile, so now we're allowing people to use it locally on their local assets, their local photos and videos on their phone and tablet for as long as they like.
More and more people are adopting the phone as their primary camera, taking the DSLR out less and less, and we're seeing the same thing with the use of Lightroom. Some users are creative pros who are aiming for efficiency, but many others are just consumers who love photography.
Lightroom for mobile devices has many of the same capabilities that are available for the desktop and it's a powerful editing tool on iOS devices. It includes one-touch improvement tools and more advanced adjustments for fixing problems like insufficient lighting or unwanted objects.
The recent update to the app adds a new haze removal feature that's useful for removing haze in landscaping photos, and it includes a targeted adjustment to that allows colors in a specific area to be tuned. It also offers an in-app Adobe camera, integration with Photoshop Fix, and better organizational tools.