iOS

A drone that can hack into your phone?

Written by

This is really no different than the danger you face when you go out in any crowded public space. But that doesn’t mean the danger is not real. Pretty interesting.

An unknown iOS 7 feature that is a real game changer

Written by

Ever hear of the Multipeer Connectivity framework? No reason you should, unless you are an iOS developer and keep up with the latest and greatest evolutions in networking. But this is a game changer. Read the post for details.

See an airplane flying overhead? Siri can tell you all about it

Written by

Follow the headline link for all the details, but here’s the short and sweet version. Fire up Siri and say:

Flights overhead

If you are in a relatively urban area, you might be amazed at how many planes are overhead at any given moment.

We did a small Twitter experiment this morning, and it seem like the Wolfram Alpha database that makes this work only has data for North America. If you see an exception to this, please let me know (@davemark).

Apple adds Indie Game Showcase to iTunes

Written by

To get to the page, launch iTunes, click the App Store link at the top of the page to get to the App Store, then click the Indie Games Showcase banner at the top of the page (you might need to wait for it to rotate into view).

iBeacons used to nudge people in the nosebleed seats to upgrade

Written by

Some fans who bought nosebleed-seat tickets to see the Golden State Warriors received a friendly suggestion from their phones when they stepped off the escalators at Oracle Arena: Wouldn’t they like to spend a few extra bucks for a seat where they could actually distinguish Stephen Curry from Andrew Bogut?

See any downside to this? All good?

Siri’s “galaxy far far away” story

Written by

Siri has long told stories, but this one is new to me. Bring up Siri, and say:

Tell me a story

Keep going until you get one that starts:

OK…

Once upon a time, in a virtual galaxy far, far away, there was an intelligent young agent by the name of Siri.

Google watches and wearables will not run developer code, are notification devices

Written by

From Seeking Alpha (free reg-wall):

In effect, the watch is a device for using Google Now and cards that apps on the phone send to it.

This is an interesting model. It means that a Google watch is a satellite device that locks you in to the Google ecosystem. Since the watch without the phone is just a wrist-watch, or less, if it does not have the built in smarts to do its watch and alarm thing without its master.

Microsoft’s $2.5bn question: what if it doesn’t release Office for the iPad?

Written by

Tired of waiting for Office to be optimised for their mobile gadgets, a growing contingent of younger companies is turning to cheaper, simpler and touch-friendly apps that can perform word processing and other tasks in the “cloud” – on internet-based systems.

Take Artivest Holdings, a New York-based financial services startup that sells alternative investment products. The New York-based company uses an app called Quip, which combines word processing and messaging, to handle all but the most sensitive legal and financial files.

“There are no more Microsoft Word documents being circulated. If someone emails me a Word document, I’ll tell them to put it in Quip,” said Artivest’s chief investment officer David Levine.

I think this is dead on. My kids don’t use Office and they don’t own a watch. The world is definitely changing.

United Airlines to intro free in-flight movie service for iOS, not Android

Written by

From United Airlines:

Starting this April, we’re rolling out our new personal device entertainment system onboard select aircraft. With this new service, sponsored by the MileagePlus® Explorer Card, you can choose from over 150 movies and nearly 200 TV shows and watch them free of charge on your personal device.

And from the instructions:

Download the latest United app from the iTunes® App Store if you’ll be using a mobile device. Laptops do not require the app. (Android™ and other mobile devices are not fully supported at this time.)

Details on the changes that came with iOS 7.1

Written by

Nice writeup by the Andrew Cunningham at Ars Technica. This is definitely worth a read. One thing that struck me was the big overall benefit that came from subtly speeding up various animation elements from 7.0.x to 7.1. Watch the first video to get a sense of this. iOS 7.1 is on the right side.

iOS 7.1 puts an end to nested folders

Written by

Nested folders — or folders-within-folders — were a long-standing bug that Apple conveniently ignored for some time. It was a fantastic hidden feature that I’ve personally become dependent on. Having a perfectly clean home screen with a single folder used to house all my different app categories was a dream come true, but reality has now smacked me in the face.

Hold on now. If this is a bug, why complain if it gets fixed?

The evolution of the Digital Hub

Written by

Ben Thompson makes the case that the Digital Hub is a moving target, starting with the TV, then moving to the iPhone, then, possibly the iWatch, presuming such a thing exists.

The post is thought provoking, absolutely worth reading, though I do disagree with a premise here or there.

iOS 7.1 a noticeable speed improvement on iPhone 4

Written by

Lots of little fixes that will make life on an iPhone 4 better. In addition to all the items covered in the linked article, I also found Bluetooth syncing to be much more solid on our test phone. For example, with iOS 7.0.x, the music app in a Bluetooth connection stuttered frequently. With iOS 7.1, things are noticeably better.

Track your luggage using an iBeacon

Written by

[VIDEO]This is a brilliant app idea, assuming it works. Put an iBeacon in your luggage, get notified as your luggage arrives at baggage claim. Genius!

SXSW Festival to use iBeacons for first time

Written by

EventBase has been supporting SXSW with a native mobile app since 2011, allowing attendees to filter events by track or topic, then build and share their event schedules with their friends. This year, they’ve added iBeacons to the mix.