Report: Apple faces increased scrutinization from Chinese government amid security fears

Last month, Apple saw its iBooks and Movies services go offline in China amid review by government regulators and now it looks as if the company’s struggles in the country may not end there. According to a new report from The New York Times, Apple is among a handful of foreign tech companies that the Chinese government is scrutinizing in fear of security threats.

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Filed under: AAPL Company Tagged: Apple, china

Report: Twitter to stop counting links and photos towards 140-character limit

While earlier reports claimed Twitter was considering ditching the 140-character limit altogether, Bloomberg offers up some more details on Twitter’s plans for the limitation. According to the report, Twitter will soon stop counting photos and links towards the 140-character limit as a way to encourage people to add more media to their tweets.

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Filed under: Apps Tagged: Twitter

Adobe updates Capture CC iOS app w/ new Patterns feature, more

Adobe today announced an update to Adobe Capture CC—its iOS app that lets users capture and edit images for use in its other editing apps.

The update brings a new Patterns feature that the company says “transforms any image or real-world object into a geometric or organic pattern.”

“Traditionally, the process of creating a pattern required manual tiling and a tedious chore of blending between tiles. The newest capability in Capture CC automatically blends the seams between tiles for a perfect pattern.”

And you can see in the screenshots above how the patterns feature works from with the Capture CC app on iPhone. After taking a photo, the feature allows you to select a portion of the photo to use and then automatically generates a pattern for you to preview.

Adobe offered up some other examples of the new Patterns feature in action. This one is made using a source photo of the Statue of Liberty:

Adobe-CC-Patterns

Also included in the update:

IMPROVED SHAPE EDITING

Users asked for more editing controls when creating a new shape. You can now remove unwanted details or break connected paths with the new erase tool. 

OTHER FIXES AND IMPROVEMENTS

This release also includes several bug fixes and improved app stability.

The updated Capture CC app for iOS, version 2.0, is available on the App Store now.

Filed under: Apps Tagged: Adobe, App Store, Capture CC, iOS, patterns, update

Mac Software Bundle: Pick any 10 of 50 solid apps +$22 credit for $22

From 9to5toys.com:

Bundlehunt offers any 10 out of a choice of 50 Mac Apps for a total price of $22 bucks. Even better, Bundlehunt gives you $22 to spend at $5.50 increments over the next year making the bundle somewhat ‘free’.

There are a significant amount of notable apps from a wide variety of categories, many of them which retail above the $22 asking price alone including:

  Swift Publisher

Swift Publisher

Versatile desktop publishing app with many templates.

$29.95
  Paragon - NTFS for Mac 14

Paragon – NTFS for Mac 14

$19.95
  Paragon - Camptune X

Paragon – Camptune X

Resize Mac’s Boot Camp volume with ease.

$19.95
  Tonality CK

Tonality CK

Professional-grade monochrome image editor.

$69.99
  Commander One PRO

Commander One PRO

Dual-pane file manager

$29.95
  Focus

Focus

Block distracting websites and apps.

$19.99
  Intensify CK

Intensify CK

Create clarity and intensity in your photos.

$59.99
  Aer

Aer

Web site and server management.

$59
  Morph Age

Morph Age

Morph faces, warp images.

$49.95
  Paperless

Paperless

Digital documents manager.

$49.95
  TidyUp

TidyUp

$29.99
  Deliver Express -Standard

Deliver Express -Standard

Automated file delivery with hot folder processing (up to 50 destinations)

$79.95
  Records

Records

A full-featured and powerful personal database app for the Mac

$29.99
  HyperPlan

HyperPlan

Simple Visual Planning, Scheduling and Tracking Software

$40
  MacBooster 3

MacBooster 3

Maintains and optimizes your system (release candidate).

$39.95
  Mellel

Mellel

The word processor for scholars, writers, and long document writing.

$39
  Periscope-Pro

Periscope-Pro

Watch your home, kids, and pets from anywhere!

$19.99
  Total Video Player Pro

Total Video Player Pro

Video player with extended functionality.

$19.99
  PhotoStitcher

PhotoStitcher

Create panoramic images from your photos.

$19.99
  YummyFTP Watcher

YummyFTP Watcher

Automated FTP/S + SFTP + WebDAV/S client.

$19.99
  Elmedia Player PRO

Elmedia Player PRO

Multi-format media player, Pro version available.

$19.95
  FilePane

FilePane

Empower drag-and-drop on your Mac.

$6.99
  Lab.Fone for Android

Lab.Fone for Android

Recover deleted data from Android devices.

$55.95
  StoryMill

StoryMill

Novel-writing software.

$29.95
  Super PhotoCut

Super PhotoCut

Separate photo foreground from background.

$19.99
  Quick Print

Quick Print

Print selected Finder items without opening native applications.

$9.99
  Contact Page Pro

Contact Page Pro

Create contact sheets of pictures with captions.

$59.99
  DupHunter

DupHunter

Duplicate image finder

$19.99
  Pixelstyle Photo Editor

Pixelstyle Photo Editor

Design alternative to PhotoShop.

$29.99
  Montage

Montage

$29.95
  Android Assistant

Android Assistant

Backup and Manage Android data on Mac.

$34.95
  Smart Trash

Smart Trash

Enhances Mac OS X Trash functions.

$10
  X-Mirage

X-Mirage

Mirror your iOS devices on your Mac.

$16
  Mobile Transfer

Mobile Transfer

Transfer all data from one mobile phone to another

$34.95
  Image Smith

Image Smith

Process ton of images all at once.

$14.99
  PDF Encrypter

PDF Encrypter

Encrypt any PDF file with the user or owner password

$29.95
  Data Recovery for Mac

Data Recovery for Mac

Find back all your lost data from Mac and various external disk easily.

$69.95
  Data Recovery for iPhone iPad iPod

Data Recovery for iPhone iPad iPod

An all-in-one tool to help Mac users recover lost or deleted data from iDevices quickly.

$59.95

Filed under: Tips and Tricks Tagged: Apple Inc, Desktop publishing, NTFS

Apple reportedly planning 3 India Apple Stores, new San Francisco location opening May 21

Earlier today we learned that Tim Cook will likely be visiting India following his current trip to China, and a new report has since followed shedding new details on Apple’s retail entrance into India. We’ve also been tracking progress on Apple’s brand new San Francisco location, which is finally set to open on Saturday, May 21st, just in time for WWDC next month.

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Filed under: AAPL Company

Apple releases iTunes 12.4 with interface and navigation changes

In addition to releasing software updates across iOS, Mac, and watchOS, Apple today has released an update to iTunes. The update brings iTunes to version 12.4 and includes the design tweaks that were initially rumored earlier this month.

iTunes 12.4 introduces a variety of interface tweaks that Apple says make it easier to navigate the app and switch between different kinds of content. First off, there’s a new media picker that allows users to quickly switch between Music, Movies, TV shows, and more.

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Filed under: Mac Tagged: Apple, iTunes, iTunes 12.4

Apple releases watchOS 2.2.1 for Apple Watch with various bug fixes and security improvements

Alongside iOS 9.3.2, Apple has also released a bug fix update for Apple Watch in the form of watchOS 2.2.1. The release notes indicate the OTA update (weighing in at around 30 MB) includes various bug fixes and security updates. Given the version number, we aren’t expecting any new features but we’ll update if we see anything new. Check the Apple Watch app on the iPhone to update to the latest firmware.

To install updates on Apple Watch, connect the paired, nearby, iPhone to WiFi and connect the Apple Watch to its charger. The Apple Watch hardware needs at least 50% battery in order for the update to go through.

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Filed under: AAPL Company, Apple Watch, iOS Devices Tagged: Apple watch, performance, software, Updates