Shazam for iOS has introduced an update that makes app navigation more simple and streamlined. Gone are the traditional navigation tabs at the bottom of the screen; they have been replaced by a paginated layout where a swipe left or right is used to switch screens.
Apple has rebranded their iTunes podcast directory as “Apple Podcasts.” You can still find Encore in the same ‘ol place.
I do wonder how much longer iTunes will remain. Splitting that (very bloated) app up has to on some roadmap somewhere.
Apple has released their new Clips video app. MacStories has a nice rundown of the features:
Overall, Clips is well-polished, packed with tools, and it does well what it’s designed for. The recent onslaught of ephemeral, short-form video content on services like Snapchat and Instagram was clearly a strong influence on Clips’ creation. And while I haven’t gotten into the ‘Stories’ craze myself, I’m still expecting to be a somewhat-regular Clips user. Whereas I find something like Instagram Stories intimidating because I don’t like the pressure of shooting and immediately sharing something. Clips allows those who want to move that fast to do so, while people like me can take their time – I can record something, save it to the Photos app, maybe share it with my wife or a friend, and if I end up really liking it, I can later share to social media.
John Gruber, writing at Daring Fireball:
Apple is currently hard at work on a “completely rethought” Mac Pro, with a modular design that can accommodate high-end CPUs and big honking hot-running GPUs, and which should make it easier for Apple to update with new components on a regular basis. They’re also working on Apple-branded pro displays to go with them.
And:
Regarding iMacs, Schiller also said that new iMacs are in the works, slated for release some time this year (no specifics other than “this year”), including “configurations of iMac specifically with the pro customer in mind and acknowledging that our most popular desktop with pros is an iMac.”
Nice. I love my 5K iMac, it’s the best desktop computer I’ve ever owned. (And now we have fodder for all the tech podcasts for the next six months in anticipation, and for the six months after when the results aren’t perfectly tailored to each individual.) I’m just glad that the rumors of the Mac’s demise seem to have been greatly exaggerated.
Apple has released updates to watchOS and macOS. The addition of “theatre mode” for the Apple Watch is a welcome addition. Here’s MacStories with the details:
watchOS 3.2 adds Theater Mode. According to the beta release notes published on Apple’s developer site, Theater Mode lets users mute their Watch and disable raise-to-wake. Theater Mode is accessible by swiping up from the bottom of the Apple Watch’s screen. While the feature is engaged, notifications are silent, but you still receive haptic feedback when a notification is received and can view a notification by pressing the Digital Crown.
And macOS gets “night shift.”
Drake’s latest project More Life was streamed 300 million times worldwide in its first week on Apple Music, Republic Records tells The Verge, surpassing the 250 million streams the label said Views, an Apple Music exclusive, did in its first week last year. The biggest first week for any album on a single service is Ed Sheeran’s Divide, which was streamed 375 million times on Spotify. The label also says early calculations for More Life have it at around 600 million streams worldwide, which would be a record for an album.
Those are big numbers.
Apple has acquired one of my favorite apps: Workflow. Matthew Panzarino of TechCrunch got the scoop:
Apple has finalized a deal to acquire Workflow today — a tool that lets you hook together apps and functions within apps in strings of commands to automate tasks. We’ve been tracking this one for a while but were able to confirm just now that the ink on the deal is drying as we speak.
I hope this means we’ll see even more integration and automation advances in iOS in the near future.
Apple have released a new version of iTunes which finally lets you watch your rental movies across multiple devices:
The new ‘watch anywhere’ feature for rentals appears to require iOS 10.3 and tvOS 10.2 however, although iOS is currently in developer and public beta and tvOS is only available in developer beta previews. Both software updates are likely coming soon for all users based on previous beta cycles as well as this iTunes release.
Apple announced some new things this morning, including a new Product(Red) iPhone:
“Since we began working with (RED) 10 years ago, our customers have made a significant impact in fighting the spread of AIDS through the purchase of our products, from the original iPod nano (PRODUCT)RED Special Edition all the way to today’s lineup of Beats products and accessories for iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO.
And a new lower priced iPad:
Starting at $329 for the 32 GB Wi-Fi version and simply called ‘iPad’, the new device appears to be a lower-cost replacement for the iPad Air line as the company’s iPad lineup now includes iPad mini 4, the new ‘iPad’, and the iPad Pro in existing 9.7″ and 12.9″ configurations. Neither iPad Pro model received any update this morning. The iPad mini 4, on the other hand, now offers more capacity for the same price: the 128 GB Wi-Fi model is now priced at $399, while the 128 GB Wi-Fi + Cellular is available at $529.
And some new Apple Watch bands:
Amongst the hubbub of today’s announcements, one thing went unmentioned: new Apple Watch bands! (Well, new colors, anyway.) You can now grab a $49 Sport Band in Camellia, Pebble, or Azure; $49 Woven Nylon bands in Orange (and blue), Berry, Red (and yellow/gray), and, uh “Pollen” (blue/yellow/green). Also, the Nike+ Sport bands in Anthracite/Black, Pure Platinum/White, and Black/Volt, are now available as $49 options—previously, you could only get them by buying the Nike+ edition of the Watch.
Chance the Rapper has posted on Twitter a little more about his deal with Apple:
I wanna clear things up. @apple gave me half a mil and a commercial to post Coloring Book exclusively on applemusic for 2 weeks
Damn.
Apple has announced details about their new campus, “Apple Park.”
Steve would have turned 62 this Friday, February 24. To honor his memory and his enduring influence on Apple and the world, the theater at Apple Park will be named the Steve Jobs Theater. Opening later this year, the entrance to the 1,000-seat auditorium is a 20-foot-tall glass cylinder, 165 feet in diameter, supporting a metallic carbon-fiber roof. The Steve Jobs Theater is situated atop a hill — one of the highest points within Apple Park — overlooking meadows and the main building.
Rogue Amoeba has released their new Mac app SoundSource:
From SoundSource’s menu bar icon, you can instantly configure the audio devices your Mac uses for Input, Output and Sound Effects. In seconds, you can adjust the volume for each of your audio devices or switch between connected devices. SoundSource can also enable the soft play-thru of audio from input devices. Use the Play-Thru window to monitor any connected input, such as a microphone, right through your headphones or other output.
Joanna Stern, at the Wall Street Journal:
Apple has added an alarm to help find earbuds in proximity. Tap “Play Sound” in the iOS app and the AirPod will start chirping. In the app, you can specify which AirPod you’d like to sound. Only problem? If the AirPod’s battery runs out, it’ll remain silent.
In regard to losing these little suckers, I agree with John Gruber:
In short, the best way not to lose them is to treat them as easily lost, valuable objects. I’ve misplaced my AirPods in my house far more often than I’ve come close to actually losing them — that’s the feature I’m looking forward to with AirPods support in Find My iPhone.
I spoke in more detail about the AirPods on last week’s podcast, but, in short: I love these things and don’t think I could go back to any other type of in-ear headphone.
Logic Pro X for macOS and GarageBand for iOS have both been updated today. MacStories has a good rundown of the new features:
Logic Pro X 10.3 adds Touch Bar support to the app for the first time, implementing it in a number of ways. The Touch Bar can serve as an instrument, allowing users to tap out a drum beat or play a piano keyboard. Power users will appreciate the ability to keep some of their favorite controls on the Touch Bar, as it can be configured with different keyboard shortcuts to suit each person’s needs. There is also the option to navigate audio waveforms using the Touch Bar.
Ten years ago today Steve Jobs introduced the iPhone. That’s still got to be one of the greatest product introductions of all time. The Telegraph put together a collection of reactions after the initial launch, I liked this one:
The problem here is that while Apple can play the fashion game as well as any company, there is no evidence that it can play it fast enough. These phones go in and out of style so fast that unless Apple has half a dozen variants in the pipeline, its phone, even if immediately successful, will be passé within 3 months.
There is no likelihood that Apple can be successful in a business this competitive.
I’ll admit that I didn’t understand what made the iPhone special or different from my BlackBerry until I used one for the first time. That’s when I knew it was going to be an absolute game changer.
Backchannel also has an interview with Apple executive Phil Schiller:
“That undervalues how earth-shattering the iPhone was when it first came to market, and we all first got them and fell in love with them,” he says. “iPhone made the idea of a smartphone real. It really was a computer in your pocket. The idea of real internet, real web browser, MultiTouch. There were so many things that are core to what is the smartphone today, that created a product that customers fell in love with, that then also demanded more stuff on them, more apps.”
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