app store

Software
February 21, 2012
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Microsoft Office for iPad gets pictured, launch expected in coming weeks [updated]

By on February 21, 2012 at 9:45 AM.

Microsoft Office for iPad gets pictured, launch expected in coming weeks [updated]

Microsoft is confirmed to be working on a version of its wildly popular Office productivity suite for Apple’s iPad, and The Daily managed to get some hands on time with the highly anticipated software ahead of its release. Microsoft Office for iPad will bring Word, Excel and PowerPoint functionality to Apple’s tablet — presuming the app is approved by Apple — and it is unclear if Microsoft has plans to add additional Office applications in the future. The app has a similar look to Microsoft’s OneNote app for iOS, which borrows largely from the Metro-themed Office software on the Windows Phone platform. The Daily’s report states that Microsoft plans to submit Office for iPad to Apple for approval in the coming weeks, though a firm time frame was not provided.

UPDATE Microsoft told ZDNet that the image above is a fake. The company did not comment on whether or not it has a version of Office for the iPad in development. More →

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Computers
February 20, 2012
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Apple may launch revamped iTunes Store, App Store later this year

By on February 20, 2012 at 7:15 PM.

Apple may launch revamped iTunes Store, App Store later this year

Apple may be working on an overhaul of its iTunes Store and App Store, according to 9to5Mac. Due to growing competition from music streaming services like Spotify and the growing popularity of Amazon’s online music store, the redesign of the iTunes Store is considered “a top priority for Apple.” The Cupertino-based company is looking to simplify the service and deliver a more user-friendly interface than the one afforded by its current design. The redesign will reportedly simplify content discovery, and it will “make the iTunes Store a much more engaging experience.” The revamped stores are reportedly scheduled to launch later this year. More →

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Software
February 17, 2012
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Apple counts down to 25 billion App Store downloads

By on February 17, 2012 at 2:25 PM.

Apple counts down to 25 billion App Store downloads

Apple on Friday initiated a countdown to 25 billion iTunes App Store downloads. The running total currently sits just under 24.3 billion downloads and Apple is offering a prize to the user who downloads the 25 billionth application. “As of today, nearly 25 billion apps have been downloaded worldwide. Which is almost as amazing as the apps themselves. So we want to say thanks,” Apple wrote on its website. “Download the 25 billionth app, and you could win a US$10,000 App Store Gift Card. Just visit the App Store and download your best app yet.” Apple’s iOS App Store opened its doors in July 2008 alongside the launch of the iPhone 3G, and the company would later launch the Mac App Store in October 2010. More →

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mobile
February 16, 2012
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Jailbreak apps leak private data less than Apple-approved apps, study shows

By on February 16, 2012 at 6:45 PM.

Jailbreak apps leak private data less than Apple-approved apps, study shows

Last week it was discovered that a number of popular iPhone apps were invading users’ privacy and uploading entire address books to external servers. The data uploaded included full names, phone numbers and email addresses, and the offending apps never asked for permission to transfer this sensitive data. A group of researchers at the University of California at Santa Barbara and the International Security Systems Lab began a study last year to discover how and where iPhone apps were transmitting data, reports Forbes. The team found that one in five free apps in Apple’s App Store was uploading private data to external servers, and apps from Cydia, an app store for jailbroken iPhones, would leak private data less frequently than Apple-approved apps. Read on for more. More →

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mobile
February 7, 2012
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Apple warns developers not to manipulate App Store rankings

By on February 7, 2012 at 6:40 PM.

Apple warns developers not to manipulate App Store rankings

On Monday, a Touchstone Arcade thread from a disgruntled developer claimed numerous apps in Apple’s App Store were promoted into the top 25 using illegal services. The poster accused a number of big-name developers such as Crowdstar of using such services. Crowdstar’s co-founder Suren Markosian immediately denied the accusation, assuring customers it promotes its apps “using legitimate advertising channels such as flurry, chartboost, iAds, etc.” The thread gained a good deal of buzz, however, prompting Apple to post a warning to remind developers to adhere to guidelines when promoting their apps. “Once you build a great app, you want everyone to know about it,” reads Apple’s warning. “However, when you promote your app, you should avoid using services that advertise or guarantee top placement in App Store charts. Even if you are not personally engaged in manipulating App Store chart rankings or user reviews, employing services that do so on your behalf may result in the loss of your Apple Developer Program membership.” More →

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Business
February 2, 2012
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Apple snatches Microsoft marketing exec as assault on gaming industry continues

By on February 2, 2012 at 8:20 AM.

Apple snatches Microsoft marketing exec as assault on gaming industry continues

Apple has hired a former marketing executive from Microsoft to help promote the App Store and iTunes in Europe, MCV reports. Robin Burrowes, former head of Xbox LIVE marketing in the EMEA region for Microsoft, joined Apple in January according to his LinkedIn profile. His formal duties at Apple remain unclear — Burrowes’s profile only states that his role involves “App Store Marketing” — but the executive’s background suggests gaming will be a strong focus. Apple has hired a number of executives with experience in the gaming market recently, including Nintendo’s former head of public relations Robert Saunders and former Activision, EA and Xbox PR head Nick Grange. The video game industry finds itself among a number of businesses that have been disrupted by Apple’s iOS lineup, and the company’s recent hires suggest that Apple intends to continue pushing the gaming capabilities of its mobile device lineup. More →

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mobile
January 24, 2012
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Cross-platform voice assistant Evi looks to compete with Siri

By on January 24, 2012 at 10:45 AM.

Cross-platform voice assistant Evi looks to compete with Siri

Since the launch of the iPhone 4S, we have seen numerous Siri clones come and go. While Siri does have its flaws, the feature is unique, smart, user-friendly and at times, hilarious. Most alternatives promise these same features, unfortunately they never seem to deliver. Enter Evi, a Siri alternative that promises to bring users even more functionality than Apple’s digital personal assistant. The program is created by True Knowledge and uses the company’s Answer Engine to provide users with what it claims to be a limitless amount of information. The app is available for free in the Android Market and for $0.99 in the App Store, and that price covers the cost of using Nuance voice recognition (the same voice recognition technology as Siri), which the Android version does not feature require. Read on for more. More →

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mobile
January 23, 2012
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Cydia-style app store for Android coming soon

By on January 23, 2012 at 5:05 PM.

Cydia-style app store for Android coming soon

Google’s open approach with the Android platform means developers can build applications that make use of parts of the operating system that iOS developers can’t even consider if they hope to get their apps approved for distribution through Apple’s App Store. Even still, however, there are a number of Android developers with apps that have been banned from Google’s Android Market for various reasons. While iOS developers looking to get around Apple’s strict policies can turn to Cydia, the third-party app store available to jailbreakers, Android developers with banned apps do not have a centralized location through which they can distribute their wares — but that will soon change. Android developer Koushik Dutta recently revealed that he is working on a third-party application distribution resource that will function much like Cydia does on iOS devices. Dutta, known for his work on custom “CyanogenMod” Android ROMs, published an image of the app listing utility that will allow developers to add products to the store, hinting that progress is being made and we may soon see an initial release. Paid and free apps will be available in the CyanogenMod App Store, and a cut of sales will be taken just as it is in the Android Market. Dutta hasn’t yet announced a launch time frame for the new app store. More →

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mobile
January 12, 2012
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CyanogenMod passes 1 million active users, banned app store coming soon?

By on January 12, 2012 at 9:28 PM.

CyanogenMod passes 1 million active users, banned app store coming soon?

One of the advantages of owning an Android device is the ability to install a custom ROM and making your device perfect for your tastes. You can’t talk about custom ROMs without mentioning the king of them all, CyanogenMod, which has just surpassed 1 million downloads. Created by Steve “Cyanogen” Kondik, the CyanogenMod team offers up-to-date custom ROMs that extend a phone’s capabilities with added features and utilities. Additionally, CM team member Koushik Dutta has been dabbling into the idea of creating an app store exclusively for root apps. With carriers and Google continuing to police the Android Market, removing tether apps, one click root apps, and emulators, Koush has become increasingly frustrated and originally proposed the idea of a root app store to Amazon, however the company was not interested. The proposed store would be open-source and available to any custom ROM, not just CyanogenMod. More →

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mobile
January 4, 2012
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Android Market tops 400,000 apps as developers embrace Google

By on January 4, 2012 at 9:25 AM.

Android Market tops 400,000 apps as developers embrace Google

Google’s Android Market reportedly reached a new milestone over New Year’s weekend, surpassing 400,000 available applications for the first time. Mobile app watcher Distimo on Tuesday reported the feat, which it says was accomplished in about the same amount of time that it took Apple’s App Store — both on-device software catalogs reportedly took approximately 40 months to pass the 400,000-app mark. Distimo notes that the pace at which the Android Market is growing has accelerated recently; the Market took 31 months to reach 200,000 apps, but it needed only four more months to reach 300,000 apps and another five months to pass 400,000 available apps. The report also states that developers are embracing the Android platform more quickly than ever before as well, and Google now has more than 100,000 publishers with an average of 4.1 apps each in the Market. Comparatively, Apple’s App Store is currently home to more than 530,000 apps according to third-party monitor AppShopper. Two graphs highlighting the Distimo’s data follow below. More →

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Breaking
December 12, 2011
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Apple’s Mac App Store passes 100 million downloads

By on December 12, 2011 at 8:32 AM.

Apple’s Mac App Store passes 100 million downloads

Apple’s Mac App Store hasn’t changed the industry quite like its iOS App Store did three years ago, but the Cupertino-based company on Monday announced that it has now served more than 100 million downloads from its desktop software store. ”In just three years the App Store changed how people get mobile apps, and now the Mac App Store is changing the traditional PC software industry,” said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing, in a statement. “With more than 100 million downloads in less than a year, the Mac App Store is the largest and fastest growing PC software store in the world.” Apple also said that its iOS App Store now holds more than 500,000 apps that have been collectively downloaded more than 18 billion times. The comapny’s full press release follows below. More →

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mobile
December 8, 2011
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More than a million mobile apps now available across major platforms

By on December 8, 2011 at 2:00 PM.

More than a million mobile apps now available across major platforms

More than one million mobile applications are now available across the top-four mobile platforms according to analytics company Mobilewalla. The firm said recently that it anticipated the million-app threshold would likely be crossed this week, and as of Thursday the total number of available apps in Apple’s iOS App Store, Google’s Android Market, RIM’s BlackBerry App World and Microsoft’s Windows Marketplace totals 1,001,219 combined. The iOS App Store is home to 597,253 mobile apps according to Mobilewalla, and the Android Market now holds 324,003 apps. BlackBerry App World is home to 43,548 apps and Microsoft’s Windows Marketplace now includes 36,415 apps for the year-old Windows Phone platform. “The growth of apps is the fastest growing consumer segment in the history of commerce,” Mobilewalla founder Anindya Datta said in a statement last week.

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mobile
December 5, 2011
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Available apps across major mobile platforms approaching million-app milestone

By on December 5, 2011 at 7:30 AM.

Available apps across major mobile platforms approaching million-app milestone

The total number of mobile applications available across the top-four smartphone platforms in the world is now approaching the 1 million-app milestone, further highlighting the rapid growth of the smartphone and tablet software market. As of the end of last week, there were 989,863 applications available across Apple’s iOS App Store, Google’s Android Marketplace, RIM’s BlackBerry App World and Microsoft’s Windows Phone Marketplace according to analytics company Mobilewalla. Apple continues to lead the pack in terms of volume with 590,138 apps in the App Store, Android trails with 320,315, RIM holds the No.3 spot with 43,544 and Microsoft rounds out the top-4 with 35,479 apps. ”This is truly an astonishing accomplishment that cannot be ignored,” Mobilewalla founder Anindya Datta said in a statement. “The growth of apps is the fastest growing consumer segment in the history of commerce. The app race began in July, 2008 when the iTunes App store opened and Google followed with the launch of the Android operating system in October, 2008. Recently, app marketplaces have been launched for the Blackberry RIM and Microsoft Windows Phone platforms.” Mobilewalla‘s full press release follows below.

More →

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