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Tag: Memoji

  • WWDC 2020: Apple announces macOS “Big Sur,” highlights new features en route

    Apple on Monday previewed the latest version of macOS, entitled “Big Sur,” and cited it as the biggest update since Mac OS X oh so many years ago. The update offers a dramatic redesign, new features for Safari, updates to Messages, and other new features.

    Starting off, Apple has described the new design as “spacious,” offering easier navigation while offering redesigned elements such as the curvature of window corners to the palette of colors and materials.

    Dock icons have been redesigned to be more consistent with icons across Apple’s ecosystem, reducing visual complexity, and bringing users’ content front and center.

    One major change is Control Center, which offers quick access to controls from the desktop. Notification Center has been redesigned to offer more interactive notifications and redesigned widgets in different sizes, making it more akin to the design of iOS 14.

    Apple has announced that Safari will receive “the biggest update to Safari since its original launch in 2003.” Tabs have been redesigned to make navigating Safari faster, with favicons displayed by default so it’s easier to see where to click at a glance.

    Upon opening Safari, users will be offered a new start page that can be customized with a background image as well as sections like a Reading List and iCloud tabs. Safari will offer built-in translation tools covering seven languages while browsing. Safari will also support a Privacy Report system that allows users to choose when and which websites a Safari extension can work with.

    Apple’s Messages application will feature pinned conversations as well as a refined search function. Screen effects will be supported on macOS, and users will be able to create and customize their Memoji on a Mac. In conversations, there will be a new photo picker and #images support, making it possible to share GIFs on the macOS ‌Messages‌ app without a third-party app.

    In addition, group messaging features will offer inline replies and @mentions, allowing users to directly address someone, or a specific text, amid a large group or long conversation. Users will also be able to set a photo or emoji for their group conversation that can function as their personal icon during the chat.

    macOS Big Sur will be released this fall as a free update. It’s currently available to Apple Developer Program members as of today, and will be offered as a public beta come July.

    Stay tuned for additional details as they become available.

    Via MacRumors

  • Apple releases iOS 13.4, iPadOS 13.4, updates

    You’ve been hankering for its arrival.

    And it’s here.

    Apple on Tuesday released its iOS 13.4 and iPadOS 13.4 operating systems. The updates, which weigh in at several hundred megabyte downloads, offer the following fixes, changes, and new features:

    • New cursor design highlights app icons and other UI elements.
    • Magic Keyboard for iPad support on iPad Pro 12.9-inch (3rd generation or later) and iPad Pro 11-inch (1st generation or later)
    • Magic Mouse, Magic Mouse 2, Magic Trackpad, Magic Trackpad 2, and third-party Bluetooth and USB mouse support
    • iCloud Drive folder sharing from the Files app
    • Mail: Always-visible controls to delete, move, reply to, or compose a message in conversation view
    • AR Quick Look supports audio playback in USDZ files
    • Universal Purchase support enables the use of a singular purchase of a participating app across iPhone, iPod touch, iPad, Mac, and Apple TV
    • Nine new Memoji stickers, including Smiling Face with Hearts, Hands Pressed Together, and Party Face

    The updates, as always, can be downloaded and installed by going to Settings > General > Software Update.

    If you’ve had a chance to try the updates and have any feedback to offer, please let us know about your experience in the comments.

    Via The Mac Observer

  • Apple releases fourth iOS 13.4, iPadOS 13.4 developer betas, hints at upcoming new features

    Apple has just released its fourth developer betas for iOS 13.4 and iPadOS 13.4, and they look to contain some cool new features.

    First among these is iCloud folder sharing, which was first demoed at WWDC last summer. With this, devices running iOS 13.4, iPadOS 13.4, and macOS 10.15.4, will finally be able to share iCloud folders.

    Apple has also included Combined Mac and iOS Purchases, which allow developers to sell iPad and iPhone apps bundled together. The new Xcode 11.4 beta automatically enables “unified purchases” for new Catalyst-based apps, but existing apps can enable the feature, too. 

    The change applies to more than just initial purchases, too. In-app purchases can be shared across Mac and iOS versions of an app, if the developer enables unified purchasing.

    There’s also new evidence that iOS 13.4 and watchOS 6.2 will include a “CarKey” API that both integrates apps with Wallet, and will allow you to use your iPhone or Apple Watch as your key to lock, unlock, or start your car, provided your car has NFC key capabilities.

    Apple is also said to be adding navigation and call controls for third-party apps under CarPlay, though this will require development from other software companies to see what comes along.

    The Mail app now features a new toolbar, which offers speedy access to common functions such as Send to Trash, Move Message, Flag, and Reply. The Reply button opens a panel with a host of common functions like reply, reply all, forward, and archive.

    The presence of nine new Memoji icons seems interesting, and should at least offer something cool to send along to a friend during the day.

    Finally, an “OS Recovery” feature seems to be in the works. This would allow an iPhone or iPad to recover its OS via the Internet or a connection to another iPhone without having to plug into a Mac or a PC. Macs already sport this feature, and it’s neat to see this come along on the mobile end.

    If you’ve had a chance to tinker with the new betas, please let us know what you make of them in the comments.

    Via Macworld and developer.apple.com

  • Apple releases iOS 13.4 Public Beta 1, iPad OS 13.4 Public Beta 1

    If you’re hankering for iOS 13.4 and iPadOS 13.4, the first public beta just hit.

    After releasing the developer beta of iOS 13.4, the public beta is now available for people signed up to Apple’s program. Users can sign up at Apple’s beta web page, as linked below. F

    New features include:

    • Sharing folders in iCloud (a feature introduced with iOS 13 but Apple pulled it)
    • New/old Mail tab: It separates the reply and delete buttons
    • 9 new Memoji and Animoji
    • Shortcuts: New action called Shazam It
    • Universal app purchases
    • CarKey API for NFC car keys

    If you have the beta certificate installed you can get the latest update in Settings > General > Software Update.

    If you’ve had a chance to play around with either of these betas, please let us know about your experience in the comments.

    Via The Mac Observer and beta.apple.com

  • Apple releases iOS 13.3, iPadOS 13.3, and tvOS 13.3

    The long-awaited 13.3 updates arrived today as Apple released iOS 13.3, iPadOS 13.3, and tvOS 13.3. The updates feature bug fixes, improvements, and larger features.

    Among the more significant features is an addition to Screen Time called “Communication Limits,” which allows parents to control who their kids can talk to, whether it’s during allowed Screen Time or during downtime. Two controls limit communication to “Everyone” and “Contacts Only.”

    This works across Phone, FaceTime, Messages, and iCloud contacts. Communication to known emergency numbers will always be allowed.

    Another major new feature within iOS 13.3 is Memoji Stickers, which function as emoji based on a user’s Memoji avatar. Memoji and Animoji stickers were automatically added to the keyboard, but iOS 13.3 gives you the ability to remove this section if you want. To adjust this, go to Settings > General > Keyboard.

    The updates are several hundred megabyte downloads, and can be located, downloaded, and installed by navigating to Settings > General > Software Update.

    If you’ve have a chance to try the iOS 13.3, iPadOS 13.3, or tvOS 13.3 updates, please let us know about your experience in the comments.

    Via The Mac Observer