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

Apple today seeded the fifth beta of an upcoming watchOS 3.1.1 update to developers for testing purposes, one week after seeding the fourth watchOS 3.1.1 beta and more than a month after releasing watchOS 3.1, the first update to the watchOS 3 operating system. watchOS 3.1.1 can be downloaded through the dedicated Apple Watch app on the iPhone by going to General -> Software Update. To install ...

Apple customers may be familiar with the option of walking into an Apple retail store, purchasing a product with the Apple Store app, and walking out without checking out or even speaking to a single employee, and now Amazon seeks to one-up that experience with a new concept called Amazon Go. Amazon Go provides a checkout-free shopping experience that, to the naked eye, looks exactly like...

A robbery at an Apple Store in Palo Alto over the weekend has continued a string of Apple Store-related burglaries plaguing the Bay Area over the past few weeks. In Palo Alto, the University Avenue Apple Store was targeted by between eight and ten individuals who drove a rented SUV directly into the store's floor-to-ceiling glass front, and made away with an unspecified amount of iPhones, iPads,...

Apple Maps has been updated with comprehensive transit data for Minnesota's twin cities Minneapolis and Saint Paul, enabling iPhone users in the metropolitan area to navigate using public transportation, including Metro Transit buses and trains. Apple introduced Transit in Maps as part of iOS 9 in select cities around the world, including Baltimore, Berlin, Boston, Chicago, London, Los...

Sales related to virtual reality and augmented reality products "have been weaker than expected," according to data collected by a number of market research firms and shared by DigiTimes. A lack of content and expensive prices, specifically for VR headsets, are two factors said to be at the center of the weak demand for the technology as 2016 closes out. The results could potentially have a...

Apple has been criticized in South Korea for its mobile app refund policy which game developers say removes them from the process and is regularly being abused. Apple controls the App Store payment refund process for paid-for apps and determines whether to give refunds to consumers. According to The Korea Times, because Apple does not provide information about who has been issued a refund,...

Apple this evening updated its executive profiles page to remove Paul Deneve, suggesting he may no longer be with the company or has left the executive team. Hired in 2013, Paul Deneve served as Apple's vice president of special projects, reporting to Apple CEO Tim Cook. Paul Deneve came to Apple from luxury fashion house Yves Saint Laurent, where he served as CEO. Deneve, who joined Apple as...

Apple today updated its Apple Store app for iOS to version 4.1, adding support for rich notifications and expanding the functionality of the Apple Store app on the Apple Watch. Rich notifications, available in iOS 10, deliver more information than a standard notification and in many cases, are interactive, so you can do more without having to unlock your phone. In addition to supporting iOS ...

Apple is set to change its pricing from U.S. dollars to local currencies for apps and in-app purchases in nine different countries later this month. Beginning in the next few weeks, developers will be paid in the local currency for sales in the following countries: Egypt (Egyptian Pound), Kazakhstan (Kazakhstani Tenge), Malaysia (Malaysian Ringgit), Nigeria (Nigerian Naira), Pakistan...

A former senior Foxconn manager was recently indicted for stealing 5,700 iPhones in China to pocket around $1.56 million. Factoring in his accomplices, the entire scheme made $2.2 million between 2013 and 2014 by stealing only the iPhones which were supposed to be scrapped on the manufacturing line, and selling them to various shops in China, according to a report by Asia One (via Business Insider...

Analysts at financial firm Oppenheimer today added to the pile of criticisms aimed at Apple and its current, and future, state of innovation within the technology industry. In a recently published note (via Business Insider), the firm addressed a few "strategic issues" it currently has with Apple, as well as concern for the future trajectory of the company. In the near-future, Oppenheimer...

Google issued an update to its YouTube app for iOS this week that adds a progress bar to the thumbnails of previously watched videos, allowing users to resume playback from where they left off. Ever have trouble remembering if you've seen a video or how far you made it through the video? We have added a progress bar to all previously watched thumbnails that lets you know how far you made it...

ZENS recently debuted its latest product, an iPhone/Apple Watch Power Bank that has a built-in Apple Watch charging puck and a USB port, allowing you to charge all of your devices at once. Priced at €69.99 (or $78.00) the 4,000 mAh ZENS Power Bank is about the size and shape of a chocolate bar, though perhaps a bit wider. Because it's neither short nor particularly flat, it doesn't fit well...

Apple has reduced its orders for the iPhone 7 with suppliers, following the initial sales influx within the first month of the device's launch this past September. Supply chain sources speaking with Digitimes pointed towards strong demand for the Jet Black iPhone 7 and Samsung's Galaxy Note 7 issues as catalysts for the initial shipping momentum, but both factors have now trailed off in producing ...

Popular iOS game Tiny Wings has launched today on the fourth-generation Apple TV for $2.99. The launch was teased by the game's creator on YouTube earlier in the week, with a video that showcased the game, now called "Tiny Wings TV," and its split-screen multiplayer abilities. Two players can play the game together on one Siri Remote, or with a combination of a Siri Remote and an Apple...

HSBC has announced it now accepts Apple Pay in Singapore as of December 1. Visa and MasterCard credit cards issued by the bank can now be used with Apple Pay wherever contactless payments are accepted in the country. Between now and January 15, 2017, the first 8,000 HSBC customers will receive $5 off every Apple Pay transaction with their HSBC credit cards, with a minimum spend of $10 per...

YouTube has announced it now supports 4K live streaming at 60 frames per second, enabling content creators to live broadcast both 360-degree and standard video in the high resolution standard. Viewers with screens equipped to take advantage of the resolution shouldn't have to wait long to tune in to regularly streamed 4K broadcasts. YouTube said the first event to be live streamed in 4K will...

Two days after the initial announcement, AT&T's new streaming television service DirecTV Now has officially launched on the iOS and Apple TV App Stores as a free initial download. [Direct Link] The service will allow customers to stream and subscribe to various channel bundles that range in price from $35 to $70, "with no commitments, no equipment, and no installers." Specifically, the bundles ...