The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)

Pulse by Sengled: iOS-controllable LED lights, with speakers by JBL Posted: 15 Oct 2014 03:00 PM PDT Smartphone-controlled LED lights with integrated speakers are nothing new, but they've always had some shortcomings. For one thing, there was always the speakers, which seemed to be an added afterthought and never provided decent stereo sound....

CleanUp for iOS will quickly trash unwanted photos Posted: 15 Oct 2014 02:30 PM PDT CleanUp is a terrific, free utility for iOS that has only one job -- it quickly deletes photos cluttering up your iDevice. You might wonder why you'd need such a thing. The answer is that Apple's method is a bit cumbersome. You can get a thumbnail...

Mac App Store frustrations begin to boil over Posted: 15 Oct 2014 02:00 PM PDT Over the weekend, just a few days before an Apple event that is expected to be the debut of some new Mac hardware, Bare Bones Software revealed that the company will no longer sell new versions of its popular BBEdit HTML/text editor on the Mac App...

Build and race your own space vehicle with RoverCraft Racing Posted: 15 Oct 2014 01:30 PM PDT RoverCraft Racing is a game for iOS in which you are an astronaut driving your rovercraft around on Earth, or perhaps foreign territory in our galaxy. The game doesn't really so much involve racing other than trying to beat your own records, but it...

Is Apple experiencing a problematic decline in software quality? Posted: 15 Oct 2014 01:00 PM PDT While any new major software release is bound to have its fair share of bugs, the number and severity of glitches that accompanied the rollout of iOS 8 were far greater than we've come to expect from Apple. Many early iOS 8 users were quick to report...

YouTube for iOS gets updated with full support for iPhone 6 and 6 Plus Posted: 15 Oct 2014 12:30 PM PDT YouTube for iOS has been updated to offer fully optimized support for the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus. Users will now be able to use the larger keyboard, see more suggestions on the screen and enjoy other visual improvements. In addition, users across all...

Skype for iOS updated for optimized iPhone 6 experience Posted: 15 Oct 2014 12:00 PM PDT Microsoft has released a new update for Skype's iOS app offering users with the larger iPhone 6 and 6+ an optimized user interface. In addition, the app now allows users to mark individual conversations as read/unread, disable notification sounds in...

Apple accidentally leaks details on the iPad Air 2 and iPad Mini 3 Posted: 15 Oct 2014 11:45 AM PDT Apple's next big product announcement was expected to be on October 16, but thanks to an accidental leak in iBooks, we know about the iPad Air 2 and iPad Mini 3 today. Spotted by Mark Gurman of 9to5Mac in the iOS 8.1 iPad user guide, the screen shots...

Get detailed instruction to life's nagging problems with Trusper Posted: 15 Oct 2014 11:30 AM PDT As a child of the digital age my first impulse when presented with a "How do I do X?" question is to ask the internet. For the most part I can find the answers to most questions within a few clicks. But it's often more difficult to find usable...

Opera still exists, releases Opera 25 redesign to prove it Posted: 15 Oct 2014 11:00 AM PDT When was the last time you used the Opera browser on your Mac? Never? Well if you're a fan of beautiful bookmarks, you might want to consider changing that for Opera 25. The new Opera update brings with it something the company calls Visual...

Cord cutters rejoice, HBO is finally going to be available without cable Posted: 15 Oct 2014 10:30 AM PDT In 2015, for the first time since the service launched, you will be able to watch an HBO stream online without a cable subscription. The news was formally announced on October 15 at a Time Warner Inc. investor meeting by HBO chairman and CEO Richard...

Join us tomorrow for a liveblog of the Apple event Posted: 15 Oct 2014 10:00 AM PDT Time flies! It seems like it was just yesterday that we were prepping for Apple's last product announcement event, and here we are again. This time, we expect to see new iPads, new Macs, and probably an announcement of the release date for Mac OS X...

Verus case for iPhone 6 Plus gets the job done Posted: 15 Oct 2014 09:30 AM PDT When it comes to the iPhone 6 Plus, relatively few case options were available at launch, especially for buyers with a long list of must-have requirements. As one of the TUAW staffers put it, companies who pride themselves on making the best and most...

Bono apologizes for automatic "Songs of Innocence" downloads Posted: 15 Oct 2014 09:00 AM PDT In a move that Tim Cook probably assumed would "delight" iTunes customers, Apple this past September made U2's latest album, Songs of Innocence, available for free to all iTunes. In doing so, a number of users with no interest in the album were...

YouTube Find: History of Apple's brand in under three minutes Posted: 15 Oct 2014 08:00 AM PDT FastCompany's BrandEvolution series takes a look some the most popular brands in world and how they have changed over the years. A recent episode explores Apple, showcasing the company's advertising campaigns starting with the original Apple I and...

Sapphire production problems at GTAT may have started back in February Posted: 15 Oct 2014 07:00 AM PDT The more news that comes to light regarding Apple's sapphire manufacturing deal with GT Advanced Technologies (GTAT), the more it starts to look like the partnership barely got off of the ground. According to a new report published in the Wall...

SnapDare is Snapchat and "truth or dare" combined Posted: 15 Oct 2014 06:30 AM PDT SnapDare is a social networking app modeled after the classic sleepover party 'Truth or Dare'. It requires iOS7 or later, is optimized by iPhone5 and compatible with the iPod touch and iPad. The app asks you to create a username and password and...

Drafts 4 brings a new hope to a favorite iOS utility Posted: 15 Oct 2014 06:00 AM PDT Drafts lives in my dock on both my iPad and iPhone. Any time I start to write anything on my iOS device, I start writing it in Drafts, because I know that I can leave it, switch to another app, or several other apps, and when I come back to Drafts,...

Combine Colors: Add the colors and mix the numbers Posted: 15 Oct 2014 05:30 AM PDT Combining number bubbles of the same color to add up to higher numbers to keep the screen from being filled with bubbles is the objective in Combine Colors (free with in app purchases). The gameplay is very similar to Threes! or 2048 with the concept...

WorldRelay Tuner lets you create your own micro-channel on iOS Posted: 14 Oct 2014 04:00 PM PDT WorldRelay Tuner (free) is a fascinating variation on the many radio tuner apps available. This app gives you audio and video streams, lets you save favorites, and watch or listen to what you want. It also includes live streaming cameras from a...

Type less, search more, with More or Less Posted: 14 Oct 2014 03:30 PM PDT More or Less is an app that is designed for the iPhone and iPad ad optimized for iPhone 5. It requires iOS 5.0 or later. It is a Google powered search optimization tool that allows a user to customize a search by indicating that top search links are...