Google Maps for Apple iPhone and iPad now lets you follow your favorite places
While Apple reigns supreme on mobile from both a hardware and operating system perspective (iPhone and iOS are best in class), Google is still king of apps and services. Things like Google Maps, Chrome, and Gmail are used by many iPhone and iPad users. Why do Apple fans opt for these Google solutions? They simply work well and are extremely dependable. Apple Maps, for instance, is good, but Google Maps is great. The search giant provides reliable tools that people enjoy using.
Today, Google announces that its Maps app for iOS is getting even better. You see, users can now "follow" their favorite locations, such as theaters, restaurants, and museums to name a few. As a result of following these places, you will be provided with interesting information about them, such as discounts, holiday hours, or dinner specials, for example.
New concept video of iOS 13 is packed with exciting features
We won’t get a proper look at iOS 13 until Apple reveals it later in the year, but that isn’t going to stop people from coming up with some ideas of how the mobile operating system should look.
Just a couple of weeks ago we saw one iOS 13 concept video, and now another has surfaced. A collaboration between AppleiDesigner and Skyline News, this latest concept is packed with ideas to get excited about for iPhone and iPad users alike -- a redesigned status bar, system-wide dark mode, some great-looking wallpapers, and customizable lock screen elements.
Facebook has been paying people to install a VPN that harvests data about them
An investigation has revealed that Facebook has been paying people aged between 13 and 35 to install a data harvesting VPN tool. The "Facebook Research" VPN was offered to iOS and Android users who were paid up to $20 per month -- plus referral commissions -- to provide the social network with near-unfettered access to phone, app and web usage data (a Root Certificate is installed to give a terrifying level of access).
As news of the activity came to light, Facebook has announced that the program (sometimes referred to as Project Atlas) is being terminated on iOS, but it seems that it will be continuing on Android. If this sounds slightly familiar, you just need to think back a few months to when Facebook's Onavo Protect VPN was kicked out of the App Store for violating Apple's data collection rules.
Fortnite update brings support for external controllers to iOS and Android
Epic Games has released an update to the mobile version of Fortnite which will help to level the playing field between iOS, Android, console and desktop gamers.
If you've struggled to battle with the game's on-screen controls, Fortnite patch 7.30 could be just what you have been waiting for. In addition to other new features and bug fixes, the update adds support for Bluetooth controllers in iOS and Android -- and a new weapon!
Even Microsoft Edge thinks the Daily Mail website is an untrustworthy source of news
Users of Microsoft Edge have a new feature to help protect them from fake news. The Android and iOS versions of the Edge browser now offer NewsGuard integration, warning when people visit untrustworthy sites.
The feature may only just have gone live, but there are already some amusing -- or pleasing, depending on your point of view -- results coming from it. Perhaps the most notable is that the Daily Mail website, Mail Online, is flagged up as "generally fails to maintain basic standards of accuracy and accountability".
Yubico reveals its first Lightning security key for iOS devices
Yubico offers a selection of security keys that can protect your data and which work with a growing number of popular apps and websites. They can replace passwords, or provide easy -- and strong -- two-factor authentication (2FA).
Today at CES, Yubico revealed a private preview of YubiKey for Lightning, bringing the company’s physical token authentication to iPhones for the first time
Twitter is bringing back the reverse chronological timeline starting today
For those who like simple chronology, Twitter's insistence on delivering tweets in an algorithm powered order that is seemingly random has long been a source of frustration. Today, the social site launches a new way to switch between reverse chronological order or the algorithm-driven "top tweets" ordering.
To allow for easy switching between the two modes, Twitter is rolling out a new "sparkle" button to its mobile app. The change is being made available to iOS users first, but Android owners will not be far behind.
Apple releases iOS 12.1.2 with eSIM fixes -- but Qualcomm is still not happy
Apple has made iOS 12.1.2 available to iPhone users, just two weeks after the public release of iOS 12.1.1. The fourth update to the iPhone operating system since it was launched includes fixes for problems with eSIM and connectivity.
But while iPhone owners around the world will be pleased to receive another update, Qualcomm remains unhappy with Apple. The company complained that Apple was violating two of its software patents, and last week a Chinese court banned the sale of certain older iPhones. Apple said that this week's update would "address any possible concern about our compliance with the order"; Qualcomm says the company is still violating the court order.
Google Maps 'For You' tab comes to iPhone
Google Maps is probably the best navigation and maps application available today -- it is chock full of useful features. While Apple Maps is actually pretty great these days, the search giant's offering still reigns supreme. It isn't hard to see why Google's app is so good -- the company collects data on its users to create a more focused experience. In other words, if you are willing to trade privacy for convenience, Google Maps is sure to delight you.
As a way to leverage some of the information it collects, Google Maps introduced a new "For You" tab for Android users earlier this year. It is essentially a personalized section based on the data Google has collected on the user. Today, iPhone and iPad users in more than 40 countries get to take advantage of this feature too. In addition, the search giant announces it has expanded "For You" Android availability to users in more countries too.
Develop cross-platform apps using Google's Flutter
Speak to most app developers and they’ll tell you it’s much harder, more complicated and less interesting to produce an Android app, compared to iOS. Indeed, ask for a quote and both will be priced separately as both require separate development time and teams.
This might all be about to change with the final first release of a new cross-platform development tool from Google. Imagine a toolkit that you can use to program the functionality, allowing the UI framework to be provided to you separately and seamlessly.
Instagram's new Close Friends option lets you limit the audience for Stories
Instagram has announced the rollout of Close Friends, a feature that makes it possible to create a list of people with whom you'd like to share Stories. This is very different to the current approach which sees Stories shared with everyone.
The feature has been beta tested for nearly a year and a half and is now ready for primetime. Rolling out to iOS and Androind in the coming days, the new feature will be welcomed by those who had concerns about privacy on Instagram.
Microsoft rolls out Camera Upload and improved MyAnalytics in the OneDrive mobile apps
Microsoft is rolling out new features to the mobile version of OneDrive. The company has also announced that it is introducing a new Block Download feature in "late November" that can be used to stop people from making copies of a file or its contents.
Android and iOS users can look forward to improvement to the MyAnalytics component, but the big OneDrive news is that the Camera Upload feature has now left beta and is available to everyone -- if they are using Android, that is.
Now you can use Siri to launch Google Assistant on your iPhone
If you have an iPhone, you use Siri; if you have an Android phone, you use Google Assistant. Right? Thanks to Siri Shortcuts -- and an update from Google -- it's now easier than ever to access Google Assistant on your iPhone with a voice command.
With iOS 12, Apple introduced Siri Shortcuts giving users the opportunity to record their own voice triggers that can then be used to perform different actions. Now Google Assistant supports Siri Shortcuts, so you can access it via Siri.
Your Time On Facebook rolls out, revealing how much time you waste in the social network's mobile apps
It is a little while -- over three months, in fact -- since Facebook said that it was planning to launch a tool that would give users some insight into the amount of time they spent using the social network. This tool is now rolling out.
Unimaginatively called Your Time On Facebook, the tool offers a dashboard that gives a very basic overview of how long you spend using Facebook each day. But going beyond this, it can also be used to set daily reminders to help you to cut down your usage. Trying to kick your Facebook habit? Maybe this could help.
Google is killing off SMS notifications for Calendar
In early January 2019, you will no longer be able to receive SMS notifications about Google Calendar events. The change will affect Android and iOS users.
While Google does not give an explicit reason for killing off SMS notifications -- other than seemingly not wanting to offer too many means of receiving notifications -- the company says that users should not notice any difference because of in-app notifications.
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