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

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office today granted Apple a patent that describes a display capable of reading a user's fingerprint without a dedicated Touch ID sensor (via AppleInsider). The patent is interesting given current rumors swirling around the iPhone 8, which is expected to do away with the home button and integrate Touch ID directly into the display, but perhaps more noteworthy is the...

Apple is actively working on ways to ensure its content delivery services are robust enough to stand up to the challenge of "fake news", according to Apple's senior vice president of software and services, Eddy Cue. Cue made the comments during a wide-ranging interview at the Code Media conference on Monday evening. Echoing comments recently made by CEO Tim Cook, Cue said that technology...

Amazon's push into the services space continued today with the launch of Chime, a new online VoIP call and video messaging platform aimed at business users. Apart from video conferencing and chat messaging, Amazon Chime allows users to host or join virtual meetings with a single click, and share content and screens across multiple platforms, including Mac, Windows, iOS and Android devices. ...

20th Century Fox today announced that its popular Movie of the Day app is expanding to the Apple TV ahead of Valentine's Day, giving Apple TV users an opportunity to get iTunes movie titles at a discounted price. The app offers a different movie each day at prices that are generally more affordable than other online sources. Each deal is available for 24 hours. Tomorrow's movie, Kingsman: ...

Kanex today announced that its MultiSync Foldable Travel Keyboard is now available for purchase following its introduction at CES 2017 last month. The universal keyboard, compatible with iOS, Android, and Windows devices, features an ergonomic V-shape layout with a foldable and compact design, making it a convenient accessory for travel. The keyboard can wirelessly connect to and switch...

Apple has ranked fourth in Fast Company's annual list of The Most Innovative Companies of 2017 published today, moving up three spots from its seventh-place finish in 2016. Apple trailed behind Amazon, Google, and Uber, and directly ahead of Snapchat, Facebook, and Netflix in the list of 50 companies. The publication credited Apple for designing four of its own chips last year, which allows...

Apple Maps has been updated with comprehensive transit data for the Detroit, Michigan metropolitan area, and for the Canadian city of Windsor, Ontario directly across the Detroit River, enabling users in both cities and certain suburbs to navigate using public transportation such as buses and trains. In the Metro Detroit area, Apple Maps routing supports DDOT and SMART buses, the Detroit...

Target currently has "no plans" to support Apple Pay in its stores, a company spokesperson confirmed to MacRumors today. Regarding a since-deleted AskTarget tweet that said Apple Pay was "awesome" and suggested support was forthcoming, the U.S. retail giant said "the information shared with this guest was incorrect."We have no plans or work underway currently to make Apple Pay available in...

Google Maps today updated its iOS and Android apps with a listing feature that lets users save and add their favorite locations to customized lists, which they can subsequently share to friends and family. Once a list is created, users can also follow other people's lists for inspiration when visiting new cities. To add a location into a list, navigate to it in the Google Maps app and tap...

Apple has placed an order to Samsung Display for 60 million OLED panels for this year's iPhone 8, in addition to the 100 million units reportedly ordered by Apple last April. If the numbers are accurate, today's news confirms the display maker as Apple's main source of OLED screens for the next-generation iPhone (via The Korea Herald). iPhone 8 concept images According to those familiar with...

Apple has added a small but useful tweak to CarPlay in iOS 10.3, giving drivers a quicker and safer way to switch between apps without having to take their eyes off the road for long periods of time. Before the update, users had to tap twice to get to another app in CarPlay: one tap to go home, and another tap on the designated app icon. Image via The Verge Now, Apple has streamlined that...

U.S. retail giant Target may be planning to accept Apple Pay in the future, according to a recent tweet spotted by 9to5Mac. AskTarget, the retailer's verified customer service account on Twitter, said Apple pay is "awesome" and that Target is "working on getting this technology into our stores." It even quipped "we'll catch up with the 21st century soon!" @_MAlN - Apple pay is awesome! We're ...

To coincide with the 59th Annual Grammy Awards ceremony on Sunday, Warner Bros. Records today announced that Prince's well-known hits are now available on streaming music services such as Apple Music, Spotify, Google Play Music, Pandora, and iHeartRadio Plus and All Access, after a nearly two year exclusivity period with Tidal. Prince, who passed away in April 2016, had pulled his music from ...

Tesla has updated its iPhone app with a completely redesigned user interface and Touch ID support for quick access to keyless driving. The app now has a much cleaner aesthetic, a trio of shortcuts on the main screen for quick access to frequently used controls, and a more detailed render of the vehicle in the "Climate" menu. A new Today widget in Notification Center allows users to monitor...

Sprint today introduced a limited time promotion that offers new customers—existing customers do not qualify—unlimited talk, text, and data for $50 per month for the first line, $40 per month for the second line, and no additional cost for up to three additional lines. A family of five, for example, would pay $90 per month as a base cost—but there's lots of fine print and caveats to...

Popular bookmarking service Instapaper faced an extended outage this week, beginning at 12:30PM PT on February 8th and remaining offline for 31 hours. Although the service is now back online, users only have access to the last six weeks of saved articles, running back through December 20, 2016. The company said it chose to restore just the last six weeks of articles right now "in the interest...

WhatsApp is in the process of rolling out a two-step verification feature for the messaging platform from today. The security option has been in testing for several months, but is finally going live for all users of the app. With the optional feature, WhatsApp users will be able to securely verify their number with a custom-generated six-digit passcode whenever they install the app on a new...

One day away from their official launch, new information is beginning to come out about the BeatsX Earphones thanks to a couple of hands-on videos and reviews that have been posted online. In Jonathan Morrison's newest video, titled BeatsX Wireless vs Apple AirPods, the YouTuber has discovered that all purchases of BeatsX come with a code for three free months of Apple Music, akin to users...