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

In today's review, we're talking a look at iPhone 6 Plus cases from Speck, a well-known accessory company that sells its products in dozens of retail stores. Speck has been in the case-making business for many years now and it offers several iconic cases like the CandyShell and the MightyShell. All of Speck's cases provide a reasonable compromise between protection and thickness. They can keep ...

Apple Watch includes a miniature version of Apple Maps, which offers many of the same features as the full iOS version if you know how to access them. Some of what Maps can do is fairly obvious, but there are a few features that require a bit more know-how. If you are interested in learning the ins and outs of Apple Maps on Watch OS and would like to know some simple tips for getting the most...

A new report out today by Adobe Digital Index (ADI) put Apple atop a list of streaming media providers (via CMO), the Apple TV and iOS devices representing 62 percent of all authenticated pay-for-TV video views, or any online app that requires a cable subscription to access. Measuring all video content from free ad-based YouTube clips to "shows accessed through an authenticated app-based or TV...

Jawbone is returning to Apple Stores, with both the Jawbone UP2 and UP3 to go on sale as early as next month. The news was confirmed by the company's senior product manager Jason Donahue at a press event in Japan, as reported by Mac Otakara (via AppleInsider). He informed those in attendance that the fitness tracker would be in stock in Japanese Apple Stores by "early July," and that other...

Typo Innovations today announced that it will begin selling its iPad Air keyboard case at Apple Stores and through its website, according to Re/code. The announcement comes just two days after Typo reached a settlement with BlackBerry that will prevent it from selling Typo for iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus due to its similar look and functionality as the physical keyboard found on most BlackBerry...

As promised, Flexibits today updated Fantastical 2 for the iPhone to version 2.3, adding support for the Apple Watch. Fantastical 2's new Apple Watch app includes a list of all upcoming meetings and appointments, a list of Reminders, a Glance with quick access to a daily schedule, and the ability to add events directly on your wrist. Flexibits' co-founder Michael Simmons told MacRumors that...

The accessory market for the Apple Watch exploded almost immediately after the wearable was announced back in March, with stands specifically becoming the popular announcement of well-known third-party accessory companies like Twelve South and Mophie. Although most of the stands won't break the bank, some of the cheapest start at around $30, and some of the higher-end alternatives can go as high...

Twelve South is an accessory company that's known for its high-quality stands for the iPhone, iPad, and Mac, so it's no surprise that it was one of the first to announce a dock for the Apple Watch. The Twelve South HiRise for Apple Watch follows in the footsteps of the company's other HiRise docks, offering an Apple Watch storage and charging solution that's attractive, well-designed, and...

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office today published a patent application filed by Apple in November 2012 (via AppleInsider), detailing a version of Apple's Earbuds that would smartly detect when two users are sharing the same earphone set and in-turn switch audio to single- or multi-user mode. The headphones would use a variety of sensors, including an "angle sensor configured to measure an...

Apple updated its Apple Pay participating issuers list today with 12 additional banks, credit unions and financial institutions supporting the contactless payment service in the United States. Apple Pay now has over 300 participating issuers nationwide, and several hundred more plan to support the NFC-based mobile payment service in the future. The newly added Apple Pay participating issuers...

Following in the footsteps of iHome, Lutron and Elgato, Ecobee and Insteon, two of Apple's other HomeKit partners, are also announcing new HomeKit-compatible products today. Ecobee is announcing a new smart thermostat, while Insteon is introducing the Insteon Hub for adding HomeKit compatibility to Insteon's range of switches, outlets, thermostats, and lightbulbs. Ecobee's existing thermostat...

ElevationLab today announced the launch of an updated version of its popular Elevation Dock for the iPhone, adding new features like a wider design to accommodate the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus, new lateral supports for improved stability, and a built-in Apple-certified Lightning connector. The Elevation Dock originated on Kickstarter in 2012, and quickly became a popular choice for...

BlackBerry and Typo Keyboard have reached the end of a lengthy lawsuit over Typo's BlackBerry-esque iPhone case that adds a physical keyboard to the Apple product (via The Verge). The lawsuit dating back to January 2014 argued that Typo, which saw significant publicity due to Ryan Seacrest's backing, willfully infringed on patents and "blatantly copied" BlackBerry's keyboard design. Today's...

Apple Watch uses both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth to transfer data to the iPhone. It defaults to a Bluetooth connection whenever possible because it conserves power, but if your iPhone is not in Bluetooth range, Apple Watch will switch over to compatible Wi-Fi if it is available. For Wi-Fi to work on Apple Watch, it needs to be 802.11b/g/n on a 2.4GHz band. It will not connect to the faster speed 5GHz ...

Our newest video review takes a look at a selection of iPad Air 2 cases from popular accessory maker Incipio. The Tuxen, the Octane, and the Clarion are all multi-purpose folio-style cases that offer varying degrees of protection without adding a lot of bulk to Apple's ultra slim iPad Air 2. The Tuxen is the most expensive at $50, and it's also the case that looks the nicest. It offers full...

Flexibits, the developers behind the popular Fantastical 2 calendar app for iOS and Mac, today released a teaser suggesting the app will be expanding to the Apple Watch in the near future. A new page on the Flexibits website reads "It's almost time" before transitioning over to the Apple Watch depicting a screenshot from the new app. Little can be determined about the upcoming Apple Watch app...

For our next giveaway, we've partnered with Ztylus, a maker of smartphone cases with interchangeable accessory attachments. Ztylus is graciously offering one limited edition Rose Gold Camera Kit for the iPhone 6 or iPhone 6 Plus that retails for $149.95. The Ztylus Rose Gold Camera Kit consists of a full-coverage case and a 4-in-1 lens attachment. The case itself has a textured leather...

The iOS bug that was discovered earlier in the week and causes an iPhone to crash after receiving a specific string of symbols and characters, today expanded to both the Twitter and Snapchat iOS apps (via The Guardian). The bug not only crashes an iPhone, but causes the Messages app to repeatedly crash after being opened to anything other than the conversation in which the string of characters...