New apps and updates to existing software are pushed to the App Store and other online marketplaces every day, and there are simply too many of them to keep track of all of the changes. AppleInsider has collected together some of the main macOS and iOS updates and launches from the last week that you should know about.
This week's highlighted apps include the addition of podcasts to Plex for iOS, the streamlined interface of Overflow 3.0 for macOS, and a bunch of changes to both Things 3 versions for iPad and iPhone.
Microsoft Groove
Microsoft actually retired Groove as a streaming music service last year, faced with tough competition from the likes of Apple, Spotify, and Pandora. It has kept clients around though, supporting them as a means to listen to files stored on OneDrive.
As of June 1, both the iOS and Android Groove apps have been pulled from download. A Windows 10 app remains available.
Affected users should consider moving to another streaming service, such as Apple Music.
Safari Technology Preview 57
Installed separately from the regular version of Safari, the Technology Preview offers developers and the public a chance to test bugfixes and upcoming featuers before they migrate to everyone.
Update 57 includes fixes and minor feature upgrades for animations, accessibility, media, JavaScript, WebDriver, Web Inspector, and the Storage Access API.
Get it for macOS: Free Requires macOS 10.13.
Plex for iOS
The popular media server system now supports podcasts, including features like variable speed playback, cross-device location sync, and recommendations for new shows. The app's overall discovery interface has been overhauled, for instance letting users enable and disable content types and personalize their homescreens. Content can be added from a variety of sources including cloud servers.
Other improvements include multiple audio streams for Live TV, and a collection of bugfixes, dealing with issues like recording all the events for a particular sports team.
Get it for iOS: Free Requires iOS 9.3 or later.
Camera+ 2
Camera+ 2 is a complete redesign of the photography app, for instance not only supporting both iPhones and iPads but offering multitasking on the latter. A single purchase unlocks all features across all platforms.
The main purpose of the app is enabling maximum manual control, including not just shutter speed, ISO, and white balance, but working in RAW, and flexible depth adjustments when using an iPhone 7 Plus, 8 Plus, or X. Some dedicated modes include Smile and Stabilizer, which only shoot when a smile or a stable image is detected respectively, as well as Burst, Timer, and Slow Shutter.
Get it for iOS: $2.99 Requires iOS 11 or later.
Overflow 3.0
Overflow is a visual launcher for macOS, letting people cut back on Dock items by moving some of them into single app. Tabs further organize them into sub-categories, such as images or work.
The 3.0 update sports a streamlined interface, "Type-to-Search" for finding any item on a Mac, and the ability to drag in URLs from Finder or a Web browser. Stunt Software has also added Quicklook and more keyboard commands.
Get it for macOS: $14.99
Philips Hue 3.0
Philips' long-promised overhaul of its iPhone and iPad app is now available, and implements a streamlined interface intended to fix common complaints. It should for instance be faster to reach favorite colors and scenes, and users can access brightness and light visualization controls within rooms. New color pickers are meant to enable better control and grouping of lights.
There also over 30 new preset picture scenes, and a revised "picture-to-light" algorithm for generating scenes from camera roll images.
Get it for iOS: Free Requires iOS 10 or later.
Things 3 for iPad and iPhone
Updates have been made to both versions of Things 3, with the iPad and iOS versions getting their own set of changes in the latest update.
Things 3 for iPad version 3.6 adds keyboard-based selection to bring it closer to the Mac version, allowing the arrow keys and Shift to be used to select more to-do items, and over 70 other keyboard shortcuts, with available options viewable by holding the Command key on any view. This also applies to popovers, which can be selected and filtered quickly with keyboard shortcuts.
Type Travel, the Mac feature that allowed users to navigate the app by typing straight away, without the need to use a shortcut, is also present in the iPad edition. Lastly for this version, it is possible to drag and drop to-dos into the Things sidebar, tags and deadlines can be applied to multiple to-dos at once, and there is now support for app-wide undo and redo.
Things 3 for iPhone 3.6 also adds some new features, including applying tags to multiple to-dos at once, deadlines receiving a similar treatment, and the ability to duplicate a multi-selected group of to-dos.
Get Things 3 for iPad: $19.99. Requires iOS 10.0 or later.
Get Things 3 for iPhone: $9.99. Requires iOS 10.0 or later.
4 Comments
Whatever you do, do not buy the Things app. We need to stop supporting apps that are not universal. There is no reason to be charging money for both an iPhone and iPad app when they're usually virtually about the same application.
Things looks great but I’m just using Notes for free. :)
I just read your whole post here. And honestly glad to know about different apps you are talking about. Looks much informative and clean.