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As expected, Apple Watch is now available for purchase in India. The launch of the device comes a month after Apple made its iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus available in the country. In India, Apple Watch is available from Apple’s official retail channels and starts at Rs 30,900.

Both the 38mm and 42mm models of the device are available in India. You can purchase Apple Watch in Gold, Rose Gold, Space Gray, Silver Anodized Aluminium; polished Silver or Space Black stainless steel, and 18-Carat Rose Gold and Yellow Gold (via Times of India).

The stainless steel models of Apple Watch start at 48,900 and Rs 52,900 for the 38mm and 42mm Stainless Steel Case respectively, including a white Sport Band. With a Link Bracelet, the price increases to Rs 95,900, while the Classic Buckle model comes in at Rs 60,900.

The 38mm 18-Carat Rose Gold model comes in at a hefty Rs 8.2 lakh paired with a white Sport Band, while the 42mm gold edition costs Rs 9.9 lakh and ranges to Rs 14.2 lakh. Like in the United States, Apple is also making its bands available separately, as well.

Times of India reports that the Indian government is considering relaxing local compulsory laws that currently prohibit Apple from opening wholly owned stores in the country. According to the report, Apple has been in India recently meeting with officials.

Currently, Indian trade laws prohibit companies from opening manufacturer-owned retail outlets unless a certain percentage of the manufacturing is done within the country. Should the Indian government choose to loosen these requirements, then Apple could open its own retail locations in the currently. Currently it sells it products via authorized resellers and via dedicated pop-up stores in Croma. Apple CEO Tim Cook has met with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the past to discuss opening retail locations in the country and perhaps bringing with it a portion of its manufacturing.

India is a market of growing interest for Apple, as growth in the country is currently outstripping that of China. 

Filed under: Apple Watch Tagged: Apple, Apple watch, India, retail

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Original story from Electrek.

Digital license plates are a relatively new concept that could open up the transport industry to an array of new features. Beyond the Big Brother-like properties the implementation of the technology could enable, like location tracking or alerts for expired registrations, it could also greatly facilitate fleet management and transfer of ownership – things that are crucial for the future of mobility to embrace autonomous driving and ride-sharing.

We learned that among Apple’s hundreds of recent hires with automotive experience, the company hired a veteran software engineer with an expertise in fleet management software and especially digital license plates.

Before going to work at Apple as a “Secret Agent” on “special projects” according to his LinkedIn profile, Rónán Ó Braonáin was Director of Engineering at Reviver, a stealth startup working on what Braonáin called “the world’s first digital license plate”.Prior to his stint at Reviver, Braonáin spent 5 years as a software engineer at BMW before becoming Chief Technology Officer at Vision Fleet, a company offering electric vehicle fleet management software and financing to businesses.

From an economic standpoint, the adoption of a digital license plate standard makes sense – at least for the government. The state could save millions on administrative costs related to car registrations and bring in significantly more revenue by changing the display to “expired registration” or something similar to incentivize drivers to pay their registration fees.

The technology has the potential to significantly reduce the workload of the DMV and could also be useful to further automate tolls and parking fees, but the potential for innovation goes way beyond cutting administrative efficiency.

Digital license plates could facilitate to process of sharing a vehicle or participating in a subscription based car-sharing program by allocating plate identifications to drivers over vehicles or maybe even a combination of both. In a world where car-sharing programs are becoming increasingly more popular, digital license plate technology could find itself a key technology to facilitate the adoption of new models of mobility.

There are some hurdles to overcome before the technology can make it to market. Visibility and durability under harsh weather and road conditions being the main technical challenges, but if Apple is indeed working on the concept for Project Titan, it could potentially give more legitimacy to the technology and help the effort to try to make it a standard.

Also noteworthy, Braonáin worked on BMW’s time-of-charge program for electric vehicles. Here he describes his latest position at the company:

Programmed smart charging applications in Java EE to make EV charging (a) more green, based on wind energy availability, (b) cheaper, based on adherence to a TOU tariff plan, (c) customisable, based on customer preferences and mobile app control.

Furthermore responsible for smart home HW/SW; its installation at the office; and integration of the EV into the smarter future home.

BMW started testing this program, now called “BMW i ChargeForward”, with a select few BMW i3 owners in the Bay Area.

Mark Gurman contributed to this report.

Picture: Digital license plate from Reviver.

Filed under: Apple Car Tagged: Apple, Apple Car, BMW, digital license plate, Project Titan, Reviver

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Google’s iPhone and iPad note capturing app is out with a feature update today in the latest version. Keep users can now add an app widget to the Today view in Notification Center for capturing material in the app from anywhere with a swipe down.

iOS users can also add a new Keep extension using the latest update for sending websites and other information to Keep without opening it and leaving the app you’re already in. Finally, the new version lets Keep users copy notes with Google Docs for the first time.

Google Keep lets you capture notes using labels and colors as well as photography and images on-the-go. Keep also supports capturing voice memos and making lists that backup and sync to your Google account. The new iOS widget lets you jump right into the app to create new note, lists, photos, and voice memos.

After only being available on Android for a couple years, Google brought Keep to iPhone and iPad just a few weeks ago. Download the latest version of Google Keep from the App Store to use the new features for free.

Filed under: Apps Tagged: Docs, Google, Keep, notes

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When Zolt announced the Laptop Charger Plus ($100) at CES this year, I was skeptical that the accessory — a practical, logical power solution — would actually make it to market. Zolt promised that it would work with any laptop, including Macs with MagSafe connectors, and at that point, zero third-party MagSafe accessories were available to purchase. But a week ago, a company called Beaver sent us Quarter, the first MagSafe-based battery pack and car charger. And now Zolt is sending out review samples of the finished Laptop Charger Plus, complete with both MagSafe 1 and MagSafe 2 cables (the $20 “Optional MacBook Accessory Cable”), which will hit stores in less than two weeks. Are MagSafe accessories finally about to become a real thing?

The Laptop Charger Plus continues the concept Twelve South pioneered with the $35 PlugBug, leveraging a MacBook wall adapter to charge both your laptop and a USB-based device, such as an iPhone or iPad. But Zolt’s execution goes several steps further, as it fully replaces any 11″ or 13″ MacBook’s wall adapter with something smaller while adding two extra USB ports. Even if the price is a bit steep, the all-in-one functionality may justify the expenditure for travelers with limited bag space…

Zolt’s box is primarily focused on common laptop power tips from major PC manufacturers, ranging from Asus to Dell, HP to Lenovo, Samsung and Toshiba. The Laptop Charger Plus comes in graphite (shown), orange, or violet, and sits in the middle of the box, while a black cable connects to all of the PC tips. As previously noted, Zolt sells the MagSafe cables as a $20 add-on to the system; they were bundled along with our review unit. Finally, though the manual mentions an included carrying case, it was nowhere to be found in the box.

Each of Zolt’s computer charging cables has a specially molded USB plug that’s deliberately designed not to fit into a conventional USB port — this is to avoid a situation where you try to connect the MagSafe adapters or PC charging cable to a regular USB port. Similarly, while the Laptop Charger Plus has three ports, the PC and Mac charging cables will only fit into the top one of those ports, one at a time. You’re not supposed to connect your iPhone, iPad, or other mobile device to the computer charging port. The two regular USB ports each have enough power to charge any iPad or iPhone at full speed, subject to one limitation: the power draw of your computer.

Total power output from the Laptop Charger Plus is 70 Watts. Zolt says that it’s designed to charge “most 40-65W laptops and UltraBooks,” plus at least one additional device such as an iPhone or iPad. Any MacBook of 13″ or less in size will work with the Charger’s power output without an issue. However, in the event that the total power drawn exceeds 70W, an LED on the unit will flash twice, noting that power is being prioritized to the mobile devices, reducing power to the laptop. A constant blink means that the unit is shutting down because of a short or other overaggressive power draw. During my testing, the adapter became warm but not hot to the touch while in separate use with a 13″ Retina MacBook Pro and an 11″ MacBook Air, which is expected behavior as per the manual. I wasn’t able to get the white light to flash during regular charging, though I suspect that there are circumstances where a 13″ laptop, an old iPad 3/4, and an iPhone 6 Plus all operating under full loads would be able to create a power draw issue.

The Laptop Charger Plus is small — 3.6″ long by 1.3″ wide, with folding blades for easy storage. That’s not much larger than a typical 4,000mAh tube-shaped battery pack, and markedly smaller than most MacBook wall adapters. The blades can be rotated 90 degrees to improve access to the 3 USB ports as needed, and your choice of included PC/Mac cables can be wrapped around the Charger for storage.

Should you get the Laptop Charger Plus? Mac users will probably flinch at the total price of the unit plus the MagSafe cabling, which is almost twice the price of most Apple MacBook power adapters. But if you need something that’s much smaller than carrying around two or three Apple adapters, Zolt’s design accomplishes a lot given its size. And from my perspective, the more MagSafe charging options that people can choose from, the better.

More From This Author

Check out more of my editorials, How-To guides, and reviews for 9to5Mac here! I’ve covered a lot of different topics of interest to Mac, iPad, iPhone, iPod, Apple TV, and Apple Watch users. In addition to my popular guide to the best Apple Watch docks and stands, I’ve recently discussed how to safely prepare and wipe your iPhone for resale or trade-in, and how to get the best iPhone trade-in price to help buy an iPhone 6s, amongst many other topics.

Filed under: Mac, Reviews Tagged: laptop charger, MagSafe, power adapter, Zolt

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Two days after seeding OS X 10.11.2 beta 2 to developers, Apple has pushed the update out to public beta testers as well. The developer version included a build number of 15C31f, which will likely match today’s release.

This update is needed to enable support for iOS 9.2’s “Wi-FI calling on other devices” feature, which was activated in the last beta.

Public beta users can download the update now from the Mac App Store’s Updates tab. New users can apply for the program at Apple’s beta website.

Filed under: Mac Tagged: Mac, OS X 10.11.2, OS X beta

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Pad & Quill, makers of some our favorite handcrafted wood and leather goods for iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch, today announced a new lineup of Apple Watch bands.

Adding to the first ‘Classic’ lineup of bands it launched (which we reviewed and loved), today the company started taking orders for the new “Lowry” band collection pictured above.

Here’s a closer look at the Lowry Leather Cuff for Apple Watch, which comes in 3 color options for the 42mm Apple Watch. Colors include American Tan, Chestnut or Galloper Black, inside you’ll find a velvet soft suede interior, while outside you’ll notice full-grain vegetable-tanned leather from Horween Tannery and “Durable nickel finish Apple Watch lugs and buckles”:

And here’s a closeup of the standard Lowry leather band, which includes all of the same features minus the cuff design. There is also a version for the 38mm Apple Watch for the standard Lowry band:

The Lowry Leather Cuff sells for $129, while the standard Lowry Leather band sells for $109. The company includes a 25 year warranty and 30 day money back promise with both of the products.

Compare that with the Pad & Quill “Classic” bands we reviewed previously ranging from $89 to $99.

You can check out all of Pad & Quill’s Apple Watch accessories here, which includes a new limited edition slim version of the Classic band. 

Filed under: Apple Watch, iOS Tagged: Accessories, Apple watch, bands, classic, cuff, full-grain, horween, Leather, lowry, Pad & Quill, tannery

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Keep up with the best gear and deals on the web by signing up for the 9to5Toys Newsletter. Also, be sure to check us out on: Twitter, RSS Feed, Facebook, Google+ and Safari push notifications.

Today’s can’t miss deals:

Displays: LG 34″ UltraWide $330 (Reg. $450+), Acer 34″ Curved QHD $866 (Reg. $1,050), plus 4K UHDTVs

Rayman Fiesta Run goes free on the App Store for the first time (Reg. $3)

Add Bluetooth to your speakers or car w/ Aukey’s Wireless Receiver: $10 Prime shipped (Reg. $20)

Review: How Amazon Echo changed my life + $130 special price ($50 off) for Amazon card holders

Sam’s Club One-Day Sale: iPhone 6s/Plus $100 off, iPad Air 2 64GB/128GB $150 off, PlayStation 4 $300, more

eBay calls on Black Friday shoppers to decide which products will get discounted this year

Amazon’s Black Friday Deals store is now open for business

Everything we know so far about this year’s best Black Friday deals and promotions

More new gear from today:

Games/Apps: Forza Horizon 2 $30, Toon Shooters & NOTE’d go free, more iOS freebies

• Headphones: Beyerdynamic DT 880 Pro Semi-Open Studios $160 (Orig. $320), more
• Timbuk2 40% off sale: Hudson Laptop Briefcase $161 (Orig. $269), more
• Jawbone Big Jambox Bluetooth Speaker (Open Box) $115 shipped (Orig. $300)
• Daily Deals: Philips Wake-up Lights starting at $49, Logitech Performance Mouse MX $45, more

More deals still alive:

Apple iPad Air 2 Wi-Fi: 16GB $399 (Reg. $499), 64GB $479 (Reg. $599), 128GB $559 (Reg. $699)

Apple iPad Mini 2, space gray or silver: $199 shipped ($70 off)

Apple iPad mini 2 128GB Wi-Fi + Cellular: $370 shipped (Orig. $829) wp.me/p1xTlR-Jdb https://t.co/3Nk2zXzOCl

—
9to5Toys (@9to5toys) November 03, 2015

Audio-Technica’s best selling ATH-M50x headphones in black: $119 shipped (Orig. $170), more

• Beats by Dr. Dre Pill 2.0 Portable Bluetooth Speaker $120 shipped (Orig. $200)
• Buy PowerBeats 2 Wireless In-Ear Headphones, get a $50 gift card: $144 (Orig. $200)
• Pebble Time Smartwatch for iOS and Android: $150 shipped (Reg. $200)
• Get the latest Nest Learning Thermostat (3rd Gen.) for $212 shipped (Reg. $249)
• iPhone 6/s dual-layer case in Space Gray, Silver or Gold: $3 Prime shipped (Reg. $12)
• Foscam Plug and Play HD Wireless/Wired Pan/Tilt IP Camera $75 shipped (Reg. $100)
• Seagate 4TB USB 3.0 Portable Hard Drive w/ 200GB of Cloud Storage: $130 (Reg. $150)
• Home Theater Audio: VIZIO 5.1-ch. Soundbar w/ Wireless Subwoofer $198 (Reg. $298+), more
• Factory Unlocked iPhones: 16GB iPhone 6 Plus $600, 64GB (Refurb) $450, more
• Magic Color Changing LED Light Bulb with Remote Control $9 (Reg. $33)
• Bookshelf speakers: Klipsch Icon 5-inch powered $100 (Reg. $164+), more
• USB-C 4-port hubs for new Macbooks by Aukey: $20 Prime shipped (Orig. $30)
• USB Power Deals: Lumsing 3-port Car Charger + Lightning Cable $8, more
• TP-LINK 802.11n pocket wireless router: $10 shipped (Orig. $40)
• Targus Ultra Twill Vuscape Case for iPad Air: $7 Prime shipped (83% off list)
• Mpow Petrel Bluetooth 4.0 Headphones $26 Prime shipped (Orig. $60), more
• SoundBot Bluetooth 4.0 Sports-Active Headphones $10 Prime shipped (Reg. $15)
• Fashion: 20% off at Amazon – Kenneth Cole Down Jacket $90 (Reg. $113),more
• Sling TV is giving away a 2nd gen Chromecast when you pre-pay three months
• Kindle First Books for November: Christmas in Good Hope, more
• Media: Breaking Bad Complete Series on Blu-ray $70 (Orig. $161), $3 DVDs, more
• Kindle savings (Prime only): Paperwhite $90 (Reg. $120), Voyage $170 (Reg. $200)
• JBL Voyager Portable Bluetooth Speaker $90 shipped (Reg. $119)
• Free PS Plus Games for November: The Walking Dead Season 2, more
• Free Xbox Live Gold Games for November: Pneuma Breath of Life, more

New products & more:

Unboxing and Review: Halo 5 Xbox One Limited Edition Console Bundle [Video]

Bosch made a robo-farmer that looks straight out of a galaxy far, far away

• The Room Three releases today, now available for download on the App Store
• Mellow Boards makes any skateboard electric and looks good doing it
• Pre-order Fallout 4 to receive Fallout 3 via Xbox One Backwards Compatibility
• PlayStation Now adds 105 titles as it aims to pick up more subscribers
• Mogees iPhone-connected sensor turns any object into a playable instrument
• Panasonic has a new line of solar powered products designed for those in need
• Amazon to offer midnight deliveries for Call of Duty: Black Ops III via Prime Now
• The LEGO Power Functions Idea Book teaches you how to build cars, contraptions and more

Filed under: Tips and Tricks Tagged: 9to5Toys, Amazon Gold Box, Amazon Prime, Black Friday, Cyber Monday, Daily Deals, Deals, eBay Daily Deals, free, Freebies, lg, Lunch Break, New Toy of the Day, Rayman Fiesta Run, UltraWide, video games

For more news on Tips and Tricks, 9to5Toys, and Daily Deals continue reading at 9to5Mac.

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Facebook is rolling out a new post format on the latest version of its iPhone app called Music Stories. The new format lets you share songs and albums from popular streaming music services, starting with Apple Music and Spotify, while friends can enjoy 30-second previews of what you share. The Music Stories format also looks rich within the app. Tapping play turns the artwork in a record-like spinning animation, and a button to listen to the whole track or album on the streaming service is presented on the right. 

In addition to making music sharing and discovery easier, Facebook notes that the linked song or album can be bought or saved easily through iTunes or Apple Music, and songs shared through Spotify can be saved to your account without ever leaving Facebook. While Music Story is limited to Apple Music and Spotify to start, Facebook says it will add support for additional streaming music services in the future.

To share a track to Facebook using Music Stories with Apple Music, for example, tap the Share arrow icon on any song directly in the Music app, the tap Copy to put the URL on your clipboard. Launch Facebook and start a new post, then tap and hold to paste the URL and create a Music Story on the social network.

Facebook’s new Music Stories format comes just a day after the social network revealed that it saw 1.01 billion daily active users on its platform during the month of September. Facebook is also expected to unveil a new standalone news-focused app called Notify next week with a list of media partners on board that sounds similar to Apple’s News app on iOS 9 but with push notifications for new stories.

Music Stories should also help promote Apple Music as a service in general. Tim Cook recently shared that the streaming music service has 6.5 million paid subscribers and 15 million members total including ongoing trial users.

Filed under: Apple Music, Apps Tagged: Apple Music, Facebook, iTunes, Music Stories, Spotify

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Several months ago, I wrote a three-part guide to making amazing wall art from your Mac’s photos (part 1, part 2, part 3) — a popular series that readers told me they’d really enjoyed. The premise: as photography has gone digital, most of the pictures we take have become trapped on our computers, rarely seeing the light of day. Turning your favorite photos into large-format wall art is a great way to decorate your home or office, and with the recent introduction of the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus, higher-resolution photos and ultra-high-res panoramas are possible, increasing the image quality of even your everyday snaps.

Even though Apple’s OS X Photos app focuses on making small prints, photo books, and calendars, there are some great third-party photo-to-wall art services out there. Previously, I looked at how to turn your photos into large-sized metal, acrylic, and canvas wall art. This brand new part 4 explores three additional services, looking for the first time at photo prints on wood, as well as spotlighting several nice variations on prior themes…

Turn Your Photos Into Wood Prints

After looking at other materials in prior parts of this guide, the one I really wanted to see for myself was printing on wood — a process that can either create a rustic, earthy look, or have a less prominent texture, depending on your preferences. To test wood prints, I looked at two well-respected photo printing services: Bay Photo and Shutterfly, two of the biggest names in wall art-sized photo printing.

Bay Photo offers two different ways to submit photos and order products. Its free Bay ROES app (shown below, and recently updated for El Capitan) handles everything, while a web-based interface can be used for basic prints, including the Maple Wood Prints ($22 for 5″ x 5″ to $875 for 48″ x 96″) tested here. The web app is extremely straightforward, and I was able to upload my photo, choose mounting/hanging options, and place an order very rapidly.

Bay offers the choice between either a “natural” or a “white” finish. Just to see what it was like, I went with the white finish, which reduces the amount of visible wood grain to make colors pop more. The result — using a photo I post-processed with MacPhun’s Intensify CK — was impressively color-accurate to the deliberately dreamy image I uploaded, and looked like a painting on wood, which I really liked. As suggested, the choice of a white front finish did noticeably reduce the amount of obvious wood grain in the print, which will suit some images (like the one above) better than others. And while the nail/screwholes-in-planks mounting solution isn’t fancy, it works.

As a contrast, Shutterfly’s Upload Your Own Design Wood Wall Art ($90 for 8″ x 10″, $400 for 24″ x 36″) comes only in a natural grain option that really lets the wood texture shine through. Shutterfly uses a very straightforward web-based interface for uploading and previewing photos, which really turns out to be important with a natural grain wood print: without a white initial layer, color saturation is going to be muted, so Shutterfly lets you tweak the image against a grain preview so you’ll know what to expect.

I started with a countryside castle photo, and based on Shutterfly’s previewing tool, felt that a little extra color saturation would be necessary to create contrast with the wood texture. While there are obvious differences between the original image and the finished print, the web preview gave me a very good idea of what to expect. The finished wood print had the natural wood look I’d wanted to see, plenty of detail, and a faded, rustic look that was only a little less color-intense than the web preview. It’s worth noting that while Shutterfly’s wood art prices look higher than Bay Photos, they’re offset by substantial coupon codes such as BUYMORE, which knock them down by up to 50%.

A New Twist On Metal Photo Printing

I’ve tested a bunch of compelling metal photo printing alternatives this year, and have generally been blown away by the results: particularly with a nice front finish, aluminum prints can look really stunning, rich in both color and detail. From a framing perspective, the most distinctive option I’ve seen is Bay Photo’s Double Float ($33.60 for 6″ x 8″ to $582 for 28″ x 40″). Standard metal printing is done on a single sheet of aluminum, but Double Float actually joins two layers of metal together to create a three-dimensional picture frame.

Because of the complexity of the layout process for a Double Float print, Bay requires you to use the Bay ROES app, which was recently updated for the latest version of OS X. While the app could use a little additional streamlining, it works very well to let you set up the top and bottom layers of your print, choosing crops and alignment. You can select from five different surface treatments (High Gloss, Mid-Gloss, Satin, Sheer Glossy or Sheer Matte), and either use the same image and treatment for both layers, or go with two images and treatments.

The sample Double Float print I made had deep blacks, excellent detail, and substantially accurate colors. Some of the dark shading nuances were lost in the bottom of the photo, but made up for by the rich, inky blacks, which really made the image compelling in person. Technically, I was very pleased by how this print’s alignment turned out — it was hard to be sure it would be perfect in 3D even after setting everything up the Bay ROES app — and the foam float mount between the surfaces provided a gentle but noticeable separation between the layers. If you’re looking for a way to add extra impact to a metal print, Double Float is a great choice.

A User-Friendly Canvas Wall Art Service

As its name suggests, CanvasPop specializes in printing photos on canvas — a process commonly known in the art world as giclée — and does a very good job, very quickly. The uploading and layout process is entirely web-based, and designed to be ultra-simple, so anyone can submit a print. Interestingly, CanvasPop keeps a chat window on screen to offer help instantly with the setup process, and prominently offers coupons that chop a significant percentage off of the official prices. (Before coupons, pricing starts at $37 for a 10″ by 10″ canvas, climbing to $422 for a gigantic 76″ by 38″ canvas with a wood frame.)

I was thrilled by the print quality on this rendition of my youngest daughter, which took a 22-Megapixel image up to a 20″ by 30″ size while accurately preserving both detail and colors; the original image had a warm yellow color temperature which the canvas print accurately replicated, even though my snapshots of the canvas doesn’t do the color matching justice. On the other hand, the image was cropped a little on the top and bottom, not enough to change the focus of the image, but enough that people looking for edge-to-edge reproduction should request CanvasPop’s (free) proofs to confirm the print will be exactly as expected.

While there are several frame and edge options — variable depths up to 2.5″ thick and your choice of colors or wood frames — mounting is simple. Given the canvas’s comparatively light weight, the included, pre-installed edge-to-edge rear wire works perfectly as a mounting solution. You can also choose three-canvas triptychs if you want to spread an image across multiple canvases, a premium-priced feature which can work extremely well with landscapes and panoramas.

Two Distinctive Acrylic Printing Options

The concept behind acrylic printing is much like the trick Apple used with the original iPod: use a thick layer of perfectly clear plastic to enhance the depth and “pop” of whatever’s below it. With acrylic photo prints, you can either use a large-sized basic photo printed on paper, or go with something more significant behind the plastic. As was the case with the wood prints above, I tested both Bay Photo and Shutterfly for this, as they’re heavy hitters with great options. The image above is Shutterfly’s Photo Gallery Acrylic Print ($70 for 8″ x 10″, $250 for 24″ x 36″), produced using the previously-mentioned web interface.

Even though Shutterfly’s Acrylic Print wasn’t as heavy as Bay’s version due to a difference in the backing materials I selected, the quality and impact were both stunning. The print arrived with optimized, intense colors and stainless steel mounting posts in the corners. Beyond nailing the colors and details of the original photo, the print really benefits from the gallery-quality look of the metal mounts, and the depth of the thick clear plastic front surface. This particular shot illustrates the power that a vanishing point-style photo can have to really draw you in when blown up to a large size.

The Bay version I tested is the Face-Mounted Acrylic Print ($19 for 4″ x 4″, $1,492 for 43″ x 96″), shown here with 1/4″ thick acrylic and a French Cleat mount. Most of the original images shown here were used without modification, but I used Bay’s web-based uploading tool to crop the photo a little, and the finished print was perfectly cropped and aligned as shown in the preview.

Beyond doing a great job of representing the original photo’s color and detail — again, the original image and print have a natural yellow warmth that snapshots don’t reproduce well —  Bay’s version really rocked in the depth department. Due to both the thick clear acrylic face and a more deluxe DiBond backing that sandwiches supporting pieces of metal behind the print, the Face-Mounted Acrylic Print was one of the most substantial-feeling and nicely mounted photo prints I’ve tested. If you’re going to turn one of your prints into something you hope to sell, Bay’s treatment has the heft that you’d expect from something with a premium price. You can choose the option that’s best for your budget and personal needs.

More From This Author

Check out more of my How-To guides and reviews for 9to5Mac here! My prior guides to turning digital photos into beautiful wall art (Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3) have been big hits with readers, and I’ve covered a lot of different topics of interest to Mac, iPad, iPhone, iPod, Apple TV, and Apple Watch users.

Filed under:
How-To, iOS, iOS Devices, Mac Tagged: acrylic, Aperture, Bay Photo, CanvasPop, IPhoto, Mac, metal prints, OS X, photo printing, photos, Shutterfly, wall art, wood prints

For more news on iOS Devices, iOS, and Mac continue reading at 9to5Mac.

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The Flickr iOS app has been update with support for 3D Touch on the latest iPhones. You can now upload a photo, view your feed, check notifications or carry out a Spotlight search right from the Home screen. Spotlight lets you search for albums, groups or recently-viewed photos.

The app also has a handy new 3D Touch feature within the app for deciding which photo to share from a selection … 

In your camera roll, we’ve added something unique to help you find your best shot. Press a photo to preview, then move your finger left/right to quickly page through neighboring photos. Once you’ve found your favorite, press harder to Pop full-screen.

Shared links now also open directly in the Flickr app, rather than Safari.

We’ve seen 3D Touch support added to a number of apps recently, including Apple’s own iWork suite, Skype, Snapchat and Evernote.

Filed under: Apps Tagged: Camera, Flickr, photos, Photostream

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A Belgian campaign group used the queue for the recent opening of the Apple Store in Brussels to create a clever video encouraging people to register as organ donors.

People on the waiting list for organ transplants ask those in the queue how long they have been waiting at the store, say they know how it feels to wait and offer to take their place in return for signing up to join the organ donor register. Organ donors can save up to eight people’s lives after their own death.

Back in 2010, Steve Jobs – who himself had a liver transplant – helped a California bill pass to make joining the register there a simple tickbox on the driver’s license form. You can also record your preference in the Medical ID section of the Health app, introduced in iOS 8.

Filed under: General Tagged: Apple Store Brussels, Health, Heart transplantation, Liver transplantation, Medical ID, Organ donor, Organ donor register, Organ transplantation

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Apple has opened a subsidiary company in Vietnam, its fastest-growing iPhone market, reports Reuters.

Apple Vietnam Limited Liability was established on Oct. 28 with a registered capital of 15 billion dong ($672,194), according to a news announcement recorded on Vietnam’s national business registry website.

The company will ‘conduct wholesale business,’ read: directly import and distribute iPhones within the country. Apple tripled its sales in Vietnam in the first half of last year – a higher growth rate than in either China or India, though of course among a far smaller population.

Photo: thousandwonders.net

Filed under: AAPL Company, iOS Devices Tagged: AAPL, Apple Inc, Asia, iPhone, South-east Asia, Vietnam

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There are many watch guys out there who are reluctant to give up their beautiful analog watches in favor of an Apple Watch, but still feel slightly envious about the convenience of wrist notifications. Chronos is a $99 gadget geared to solving that problem.

It’s a 3mm thick disk designed to be discreetly worn underneath an analog watch. It offers multi-color flashing lights and vibrations for notifications from your iPhone, and also offers limited tap-based control of iPhone apps. You can, for example, skip to the next track in the Music app.

The Verge reports that it’s probably something you’ll want to use only with larger watches.

Chronos does add an appreciable thickness to the watch, setting it higher off of your wrist, but it isn’t particularly noticeable when placed beneath a larger model.

Chronos will retail for $129, but the first 250 people to pre-order can snag one for $79. The bad news is that you’ll have to wait until the spring to receive it.

Filed under: Apple Watch Tagged: Apple watch, Chronos, Traditional smartwatch, Watch

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Walgreens announced this morning that support for accepting its rewards card in stores through Apple Pay is now live. Loyalty cards have long been supported using QR cards with scannable barcodes, but iOS 9 enabled the ability to use loyalty cards with NFC just like Apple Pay payments. Walgreens notes that it’s the first retailer to make use of this feature:

Walgreens Balance® Rewards members can now seamlessly use their account through Apple Pay – without separately scanning a Balance Rewards card or barcode. More than 85 million active Balance Rewards members will have the ability to earn and redeem loyalty points via Apple Pay, the easy, secure and private way to pay.

“We’re excited to be the first to provide our customers with increased ease of access to their Balance Rewards account and information when using Apple Pay,” said Sona Chawla, president of digital and chief marketing officer for Walgreens. “This offering supports our commitment to removing friction and enabling a simple and convenient customer experience.”

Walgreens’ reward card can be used with Apple Pay through the Wallet app in iOS 9 and watchOS 2 on the iPhone and Apple Watch after downloading the Walgreens app from the App Store and signing in with log in credentials. Notably, Walgreens was also among the first retailers to accept Apple Pay for payments last year.

Balance Rewards members can simply place their iPhone or Apple Watch near the checkout terminal to collect points rather than swiping a physical card, scanning a QR card, or supplying a phone number. Users with existing Balance Rewards cards in Wallet should automatically see the new card update as it recently changed on both iPhone and Apple Watch ahead of Walgreens move to turn on support for accepting it through Apple Pay.

In addition to Walgreens turning on support for its Balance Rewards card through Apple Pay, Kohl’s recently became the first retailer to enable its store credit card for use with Apple Pay. Apple also added more than 50 banks to work with Apple Pay this week.

New locations including Starbucks, KFC, and Chili’s will start accepting the mobile payment over the next few months. Canada and Australia will also gain Apple Pay this year through a deal with American Express in either country with Spain, Singapore and Hong Kong planned for 2016.

Filed under: Apple Pay Tagged: Apple pay, Balance Rewards, Walgreens

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Apple ran a new, minute-long Apple Music commercial during last night’s Country Music Association Awards, featuring hit country music singer-songwriter Kenny Chesney.

In the ad – filmed this summer at his concert at the Gillette Stadium in Foxboro MA, home of the super bowl champions New England Patriots – Chesney focuses on the human curation offered by Apple Music.

We need a place where music is treated with real reverence and respect, a place that’s got a human element, a human touch […] great songs recommended to me by people who live it …

The ad, which can be found on iTunes and watched below, also features a cameo appearance by the Apple Watch, Chesney using it to check his Activity rings.

Apple has been really going to town on video ads for Apple Music, with James Bay and Kygo featuring in mid-August; The Weeknd and John Travolta later the same month; Leon Bridges, Shamir and Flying Lotus in mid-September; and Mary J. Bilge alongside actors Kerry Washington and Taraji P. Henson, describing the service as ‘the instant boyfriend mixtape service.’

Filed under: AAPL Company

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