NFC payment systems have been around for a while, but with Apple Pay having just enabled iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus users to process transactions in a seamless fashion, the wider retail industry has been making the necessary preparations. But while many outlets are working on bringing NFC to the fore, it's worth pointing out that Apple Pay already works with many pre-existing, open NFC terminals, and thus, you can already use NFC and Touch ID on iPhone 6 and 6 Plus to make payments. The app we've featured below will help you to source those places that support NFC payments, and if even for no other reason than to test out the new system, be sure to catch the details after the fold.
One of the major announcements at last month's Apple event - aside from the introduction of two new smartphones and the company's inaugural smartwatch effort - was that of Apple Pay, a contactless, NFC-driven system that would allow iOS 8 users to seamlessly pay for goods at a wide selection of outlets. As excited as we were about this significant new initiative, Apple did make it clear at the time that Apple Pay wouldn't be hitting the scene until this month. With iOS 8.1 now upon us, we're likely to witness a rapid, concerted effort to support the new infrastructure, and this has begun quite close to home today with an update to the Apple Store app.
When Apple announced the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus it also announced the inclusion of a new chip, the M8. The successor to the M7 that was found in the iPhone 5s, Apple's M8 is the processor that handles all the data that relates to movement and relative location while using the minimum of power. The M8 is what makes apps like Health and associated utilities possible.
Apple has updated its iWork suite of apps with a bunch of new features for both OS X Yosemite and iOS 8. The complete set of changes along with direct download links can be found right here.
It's been a big day for software updates today, and with some very large companies still yet to push out updates to their iOS apps that add support for the larger screen sizes of the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, seeing that little red badge on the App Store is still surprisingly exciting.
Cycloramic for iPhone 6 just went free on iTunes for a limited period. Earlier we covered Cycloramic built for the iPhone 5, but it worked for both the iPhone 4 and 4s. The award winning app, has now been specifically made for the iPhone 6, and allows users to capture hands-free panoramas and videos using the front-facing or rear camera. Cycoloramic achieves this by activating the built-in vibration motors of the iPhone 6 in a manner that allows the device to rotate a complete 360-degrees, as it captures images, and instantaneously stitches them together to generate a panoramic photo.
HDR or High Dynamic Range photography has long since aided those looking to take snaps in low light, but while the HDR setting has been available on iPhone from the 2010 introduction of the iPhone 4, video is quite a different matter. But for those in ownership of the iPhone 6 or the iPhone 6 Plus, help is at hand courtesy of a new, third-party app, which shoots video in HDR and can, when tweaked properly, offer a better standard of output versus Apple's stock software.
A few days back, Skype introduced some revamped features for its desktop client, with a distinct focus on improving the user's instant messaging experience. So while Skype is busy improving the users' experience on both, the mobile and desktop version of its app, let us introduce you to Skype Qik. Taking a distinctly different route than Skype, Skype Qik is built for asynchronous video messaging, where you create and share video messages with online and offline users. The app gives you a slight peek into what Skype may have looked like had it started out as an app for the mobile.
A new hidden menu lets users record 1080p video using Instagram's Hyperlapse app, with more options also opened up for good measure.
When Apple announced that custom keyboards were coming to the iPhone and iPad with iOS 8, everyone's attentions immediately turned to keyboards like Swype and Swiftkey. It's easy to see why, too. Being able to swipe instead of type is the exact kind of thing Apple no doubt had in mind when it decided to allow third-party apps to be installed on its precious hardware. It did not, we suspect, expect to see they keyboard we just came across.
















