Apps

There are a lot of workout company apps available on the App Store, but a new app called “Push” has been getting a lot of attention recently. That’s because the app helps users count push-ups during a workout using the iPhone’s TrueDepth camera.

Hidden Bar is a free Bartender alternative which might find itself seeing quite an uptake in demand, following the surprise takeover of the popular Mac utility.

While Bartender’s creator did later chip in with some comforting words, Bartender has a fairly frightening list of permissions – including the ability to take screengrabs of our Macs – so it’s not surprising that a number of us have opted to err on the side of caution …

WWDC is only a few days away, and typically the conference is the place Apple announces the winning apps of its Apple Design Awards. This year, however, the full list of 2024 winners has been announced today and will be recognized formally next week during WWDC.

Here are the apps of the year, according to Apple.

Earlier this week, users of the popular Menu Bar utility, Bartender, were surprised to learn that the app had been sold months ago with no formal announcement. Users on Reddit expressed concerns about whether the app was safe to use anymore.

Now, the app’s original developer and owner has released a formal statement. He confirms the app’s acquisition by new owners, and seeks to bring assurance that Bartender’s future is bright.

Update: Both the UK’s Information Commissioner’s Office and the European Commission have now launched investigations into the legality of making it opt-out instead of opt-in.

If you use Instagram or Facebook, Meta is using your data to train its AI models. The company uses posts as training material for its generative AI systems. Privacy legislation in the UK and European Union means that the company is forced to offer an opt-out option – but it is doing so in a rather sketchy way …

We are only days away from Apple announcing an official partnership with OpenAI to bring ChatGPT-style intelligence to iOS 18 and perhaps a new and improved Siri.

Ahead of those announcements, the ChatGPT iPhone app has been updated so you can keep talking to ChatGPT while multitasking in other apps. This enables a much more powerful, desktop-like experience while using the iPhone.

Bartender is a popular Mac app that lets users customize and add new functions to the macOS Menu Bar. However, the app was recently acquired by new and unknown developers without disclosure, which raised concerns among current Bartender users.

The iPhone Camera app has gained a lot of features since 2007. Users can do things like change the focus, choose between different modes, apply filters, use Night Mode, and much more. And while some users (like me) prefer the option of using third-party apps with even more controls, Zerocam is a new iPhone camera app that has zero controls or settings.

ChatGPT is down for many, with OpenAI acknowledging on its status page that the chatbot is “unavailable for some users.”

The partial outage appears to be global, though recovery does now appear to be in progress, with DownDetector showing a decline in the number of reports …

Instagram as a company seems to have never heard of this little niche product called the iPad. There may never be an Instagram iPad app, which doesn’t bode well for Threads’ own chances of native iPad support either.

But did you know that you can get an app-like Threads experience on the iPad right now? Here’s how to unlock the best iPad experience for Threads.

The TikTok algorithm could be split, claims a report, with a US-only version used for the hugely popular app to try to avoid a ban.

Developer Bytedance has tweeted that the report is not accurate, but its message appears to be more a repetition of its legal stance than a specific denial …

Meta is offering teenagers a strengthened version of its Instagram Limits tool. When set to its highest level, only Close Friends will be able to comment, reply, tag, mention, or message them.

It’s the latest development in the company’s protections for teens, after anti-grooming blocks and nudity blurring introduced earlier in the year …

Update: A US court has fast-tracked the appeal, which will be heard in September. TikTok owner Bytedance has just three weeks to file its arguments for the ban to be overturned.

Bytedance, the parent company of TikTok, is suing the US government, arguing that the threatened ban is unconstitutional. The company had previously said it would do so, though it had been unclear whether it would follow through.

The company is fighting a law which forces it to either sell the app to an American company, or be banned from operating in the US …

Today alongside confirming the details for WWDC 2024’s keynote and other offerings, Apple has announced its Apple Design Award finalists for the year.

As per tradition, Apple annually recognizes some of the best apps on the App Store across a variety of categories. The finalists this year consist of 42 apps and games across a total of seven categories, with three apps and three games in each category. Brand new this year: a Spatial Computing category highlighting six Vision Pro apps.

Mark Gurman reported over the weekend that customizing iOS app icons will be one of the new features we can expect to see in iOS 18.

On the face of it, that seems a relatively minor cosmetic change, but I think it does open the door to using it in rather an impactful way …

Today in the latest update to Arc Search for iPhone, search is becoming more conversational. The new ‘Arc Search’ feature aims to replicate the dynamics of talking on the phone, providing Arc users with a more voice assistant-like experience.

The popular security utility Little Snitch, which monitors Mac network traffic for suspicious activity, has been updated to a much more modern interface, with a whole range of new features.

Key among these is DNS encryption, which shields server name queries, and a curated list of blocklists which can be installed with a single click …