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

Apple has updated its Apple Store app today with "various improvements and performance enhancements", with international users in several countries also gaining the ability to use gift cards purchased in the app within Passbook. The company introduced Passbook gift card support for the app in October 2012, but the feature was exclusive to users in the United States. Now users in a select...

Nike's second-generation FuelBand SE is now available for purchase from the Online Apple Store and is available from select retail locations beginning today according to Apple's Personal Pickup options. The FuelBand SE looks similar to the original Nike FuelBand, but adds colored accents in yellow, pink, and red. It also incorporates Bluetooth LE (4.0), which significantly cuts down on power...

Knock, a newly released app for both iOS and Mac, is designed to allow users to unlock their Macs via Bluetooth with an iPhone, replacing traditional password logins. After downloading the Knock app for iOS and the accompanying app for the Mac, an iPhone can unlock a connected Mac with two knocks on the back of the iPhone. The iOS app pairs specifically with the Mac app, which creates a secure ...

Adding to its growing BookBook line of products, TwelveSouth today announced its new Travel Journal, a unified iPad and accessory carrying case.The Travel Journal is designed to carry an iPad, power adapter, cables, head phones, and more, using a collection of pockets and adjustable bands to organize and protect items, all inside a large BookBook-style case.BookBook Travel Journal looks like...

Google today released a major update to its Google Search app for iOS, implementing a multitude of new features to Google Now, its built-in personal assistant often compared to Apple's Siri. With the update, Google Now has gained Notifications, Reminders, new cards that include tickets and boarding passes, and handsfree voice activation on the iPhone 4s and later. Voice searches and commands...

Philips has expanded its Hue line of app-controlled lighting with a new bulb, the BR30, which is designed to fit into recessed sockets typically installed in living rooms and kitchens with a standard E26 screw fitting. BR30 bulbs are designed to deliver 600 lumens of light, similar to the standard Hue bulbs, but the BR30 is a downlight, delivering light in a downward beam rather than providing ...

T-Mobile revealed today in its Q3 2013 results that it sold a total of 5.6 million smartphones in the quarter, including 3.6 million under its own brand. As noted by AllThingsD, T-Mobile Chief Marketing Officer Mike Sievert indicated that the iPhone represented 15% of that latter number, putting iPhone sales for the quarter at just 540,000. T-Mobile noted during its earnings conference call...

Comcast has relaunched its Xfinity TV Player app as Xfinity TV Go for iOS devices, allowing subscribers to now stream TV shows and movies from the service's premium channels on both the iPhone and iPad. The app also allows users to download TV shows and movies to their devices for offline viewing, and also includes parental control options. Currently, streaming and downloading of video is only...

iDevices has developed a successor to its popular iGrill meat thermometer, the iGrillmini. First introduced in 2011, the iGrill is designed to connect a probe to the iPhone via Bluetooth, allowing for the remote monitoring of cooking food. The updated second-generation iGrillmini functions similarly to the iGrill, but the exterior has been overhauled and the product itself features a number of ...

From November 3 to November 9, Target is running an in-store promotion for its trade-in program that provides customers with a gift card worth at least $200 for any iPad, including low value first-generation models. iPads can be brought to any Target mobility store. The promotion applies to any "previous model working iPad," which means the iPad must be able to power on. Target's rules also...

The Autumn 2013 edition of Stanford University professor Paul Hegarty's popular Developing iOS Apps course is now live on iTunes U, fully updated for iOS 7. Professor Hegarty teaches the class every year and it remains an excellent introduction to iOS for coders looking to build their skills.So far, videos and notes from four lectures have been posted, and more will be added throughout...

Popular racing game Asphalt 8: Airborne, first introduced in August, is free-to-play with a new update that also includes additional cars, races, and multiplayer tracks. Along with a Clio R.S., the game includes limited time races and 7 new reverse tracks in multiplayer mode. There are new power ups to purchase as well, including the Tuning Kit, Nitro, and Double Credits. With the update,...

App marketing service Fiksu has been tracking adoption of Apple's recent products, sharing some interesting data today comparing the new iPad Air to previous iPad launches. Two days after the launch of the iPad Air, the new tablet's share of overall iPad activity is five times that of the iPad 4 and more than three times that of the iPad mini following their launches last year. The iPad Air...

Back in 2011, Apple teamed up with Ericsson, Microsoft, BlackBerry, and Sony to form a consortium to bid on a collection of 6,000 patents and patent applications from Nortel, a communications company that went bankrupt in 2009. The team of companies, called the "Rockstar consortium" paid a total of $4.5 billion for the patents following a bidding war with Google and said at the time that the...

Apple appears to have discontinued the iPad Smart Cases and Smart Covers designed to fit the second, third, and fourth-generation iPads. As noted by iLounge, Apple's Online Store is no longer offering the products online for shipping, but there are a limited number of cases and covers (in dark gray) that can be ordered for in store pickup. It is possible that retail stores may also have other...

Apple has been ranked second, edged out slightly by Samsung in J.D. Power's latest U.S. tablet satisfaction study. Samsung scored 835 on a 1,000 point scale, while Apple was just behind at 833. Both companies got 5-star ratings from J.D. Power.The survey found Apple scores particularly well in performance and ease of operation, while Samsung improved across all five factors measured by J.D....

For a number of years, Apple has asked that developers use only images of black iOS devices in their App Store marketing materials, although that restriction has never been firmly enforced. With the new look of iOS 7, Apple has been turning its promotional focus to white devices, and as noted by 9to5Mac earlier this month, the company removed language restricting developers to black devices,...

Pocket God developer Bolt Creative has released Pocket God: Ooga Jump for iOS devices, a game based on an "easter egg" character and gameplay from the popular iOS title Doodle Jump. The game has players take controller of a pygmy named Ooga as the character attempts to collect gems through various platforms while bouncing upward. Mini games also appear during gameplay, and the user may also spend ...