MacRumors iPhone and iPad Blog: Apps, News, and Rumors

This past weekend, Niantic held a real-life event for the popular iOS and Android game Pokémon Go, called Pokémon Go Fest, where fans from all over the world descended upon Chicago to hunt for Pokémon in Grant Park. Ahead of the event, Niantic promised increased Pokémon encounters, challenges and rewards for the game's three teams, an exclusive in-game medal, special PokéStops, and more....

Mobile chip suppliers in Apple's supply chain are reportedly seeing a drop in orders from rival handset makers as other companies adopt a "wait-and-see" approach in anticipation of what the "iPhone 8" might bring, according to a new report on Monday (via DigiTimes). While chip makers saw Apple's orders pick up last month, demand from non-Apple customers has been slow, according to sources at...

Apple has acquired specialist machinery from Sunic System to build its own OLED panel research and development line in Taiwan, according to a report on Monday. Korea-based Sunic manufactures systems for OLED display production and supply for both pilot and mass production lines. According to ET News, Apple has purchased chemical vapor deposition (CVD) machines from the company to reduce its...

Encrypted messaging app Telegram received an update on Sunday that makes it the latest chat platform to embrace Snapchat-style disappearing messages. Up until now, Telegram users have only been able to send text-based "secret chats" that self-delete, but in version 4.2 of the app they can now share videos and photos armed with a self-destruct timer. Timers are set using the clock icon in ...

This week I'm finally allowed to talk about what should be some pretty massive news for iOS gamers who are also old-school MMORPG players: RuneScape for mobile was announced, and it's coming in late 2017 / early 2018 for Android and iOS. If the name RuneScape doesn't ring a bell, it's a browser-based MMORPG that was first released back in 2001. Like EverQuest and Ultima Online, players who were...

A few testers on the iOS 11 beta have noticed that new editorial content appeared within the App Store this week, related to information about HBO NOW, Pokémon Go, and new App of the Day and Game of the Day cards. MacRumors forum member mariusignorello posted about the new content recently, pointing out other changes as well, like updated carousels on the Apps and Games tabs. Previously, the App...

Wisconsin resident Xai Thao and her home insurance provider State Farm have jointly sued Apple for over $75,000 this week, claiming the company sold Thao a defective and dangerous iPhone 4s that started a fire in her home last year. The lawsuit, filed in U.S. district court, alleges the house fire was the direct result of the iPhone's battery short-circuiting and heating up. Thao nor anyone...

Mozilla has released Firefox 8.0 for iOS with several notable new features including a Night Mode, a built-in QR code reader, and a redesigned tab experience. Changes to the web browser's tabs mean users now see recently visited sites whenever they open up a new one, combined with highlights from previous web visits. Mozilla says this change in particular will be rolled out to users gradually...

LG Chemical will be the sole supplier of batteries for Apple's "iPhone 9" next year, according to The Korea Economic Daily. If the report is accurate, the South Korean firm has scored a big win, since Apple usually takes a multi-vendor approach when it comes to sourcing batteries for its iPhones. Citing industry insiders, the newspaper said LG has made a sizable investment to bolster the...

The Computer & Communications Industry Association, a lobbying group that represents Google, eBay, Amazon, Microsoft, Facebook, Netflix, Intel, Samsung, and other tech companies today asked the United States International Trade Commission to reject Qualcomm's request for an import ban on select iPhone and iPad models. According to the CCIA, preventing Apple from importing iPhones made abroad ...

Puzzle game Yankai's Triangle was named Apple's App of the Week, making it free to download for the next seven days. This is the first time the game has been made available for free since it was released in November of 2016. Yankai's Triangle is, as the name suggests, a puzzle game based on triangles. The idea is to tap on different colored triangles to rotate them into a triangle shape to...

Google's music subscription service, Google Play Music, now has a dedicated CarPlay app available, according to comments shared on reddit. That means Google Play Music users who own a vehicle equipped with CarPlay can access their music directly through the CarPlay interface when an iPhone is connected to the car. The Google Play Music CarPlay app is sectioned off into Home, Recents, Music...

Apple today announced that it will feature a live global performance of popular Canadian indie band Arcade Fire on Friday, July 27 at 5:30 p.m. Pacific Time. Arcade Fire is promoting its upcoming album, Everything Now, which is set to be released on July 28, a day after the live Apple performance. Several songs from the new album have already been released and are available on Apple...

Best Buy today opened up its Black Friday in July sale for My Best Buy members only, with early access ending tonight at 11:59 p.m. CT. As usual, the sale includes a handful of Apple and Apple-related products with notable markdowns, like the 9.7-inch and 12.9-inch iPad Pro, iPad mini 4, MacBook Air, BeatsX, and more. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Best Buy and may earn...

Similar to devices like Eero and Google Wi-Fi, Luma is a Wi-Fi mesh system that launched in 2015, providing users with whole home Wi-Fi, parental controls, and network security scanning. Today, the company announced a new optional subscription model is coming to its mesh router, called "Luma Guardian," and it introduces a privacy VPN, antivirus software, ISP speed monitoring, and priority tech...

Apple has expanded mobile phone billing to Denmark, Hong Kong, and Sweden, according to an updated support document on its website. The feature is now supported by the carrier Three in each of the countries, in addition to SmarTone in Hong Kong and Telenor in Sweden. The payment method enables customers to pay for iTunes Store content, App Store apps, iBooks, and Apple Music subscriptions ...

Microsoft today released an update for SwiftKey that includes a handful of new features including emoji prediction and enhancements to 3D Touch gestures. Users who tap on the emoji key will now see a new prediction panel that automatically suggests up to 18 relevant emoji depending on what they type, saving them the trouble of searching through the entire list. The update also includes...

Hulu today announced a new distribution deal with 20th Century Fox, which will see almost 3,000 new episodes of popular Fox dramas and comedies added to Hulu's streaming service. Hulu has obtained streaming rights to every episode of long-running hits like How I Met Your Mother, Burn Notice, Bones, and Glee, along with all 11 seasons of M*A*S*H and the complete NYPD Blue library. A list of...