I don’t generally call for anyone to be fired, but an App Store reviewer who cannot see how Ice Cubes “differ[s] from a mobile web browsing experience” is an embarrassment to the company, and providing fodder for every frustrated developer who thinks Apple has completely lost its way as a company and platform steward that respects the work of independent developers.
iPhone Twitter clients were the shining lights of that design playground a decade ago. The best interfaces to Twitter, on any platforms, were all native apps on the iPhone and Mac. We’re now on the cusp of a new frontier with Mastodon, and it’s Apple’s utterly clueless bureaucratic App Store reviewers who are doing their best to lock the new playground’s gates before they even open.
Apple published a new support document that covers “what to do if you can’t set up or update your HomePod after Advanced Data Protection is enabled.”
Those who pick up a new HomePod mini might be affected as well as those who try to set up or update an older full-size HomePod.
Following its new HomePod announcement on Wednesday, Apple has quietly bumped up the price of its HomePod mini in several European countries.
Where the “preview” nature of this app really shows is in its general instability and slow operations. I’m on the latest version of Windows 11, and sometimes when I search for something in Apple Music, search suggestions come up immediately underneath the search field, but actual results take more than 15 seconds to load. Other times the results page stays blank and I have to quit the app and reopen it.
Out today with its first major update for 2023, Smart Gym now has redesigned routines and exercises, a new Monthly Summary, a new Monthly widget, new App Shortcuts, “Up Next” on the main screen, and more.
Gentler Streak is one of the most popular exercise companion apps for iPhone and Apple Watch users. This week, the developers behind Gentler Streak released a major update to the app that lets users keep track of their Apple Watch workouts from their iPhone thanks to Live Activities.
While you can search for new music on Spotify and feed the platform’s AI information on your listening habits, Smores makes it easier to stumble upon that new music with their feed. I don’t see myself sitting down and using Smores to actively seek new music, but I do myself opening the app while I’m walking to work or riding the bus and passively listening for something I might enjoy.
Kicking off the calendar year with its first big update, popular iOS app for kids Pok Pok Playroom has received new content to learn about and celebrate the Lunar New Year.
As part of the Apple Lisa's 40th birthday celebrations, the Computer History Museum has released the source code for Lisa OS version 3.1 under an Apple Academic License Agreement. With Apple's blessing, the Pascal source code is available for download from the CHM website after filling out a form.
For example, Apple changed a line of text that will appear in the iPhone’s standard Music app from “A Shortcut to Apple Classical” to “Open in Apple Music Classical,” suggesting that Apple has changed the name of the app, at least tentatively. Another line of code says “Explore this artist in the app designed for classical music.”
The running of App Stores is a major embarrassment to Apple. The opposite of everything good one can say about all the other Apple products can be applied to the running of App Stores. There is no attention to details, there are no delights to be found, and it is "tarnishing Apple's reputation."
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Thanks for reading.