Innehållsförteckning för #154 från AppleMagazine

Apple is expected to step up its efforts to boost recently slumping iPad sales with the unveiling of its latest tablet computer at an Oct. 16 event. The showcase also is expected to feature an update to the operating system for its Mac computers and the possible release of a new digital payment service called Apple Pay. The company's new iPhones released last month include a wireless chip equipped to make the payments, but the service isn't available yet. In keeping with its usual practice, Apple Inc. isn't saying what's on the agenda. Instead, a cryptic invitation sent Wednesday to reporters and analysts simply said: "It's been way too long." This is the time of the year that Apple typically releases its latest products to cash in on the holiday…

WHAT MAKES THE NEW DEVICE'S SNAPPER A TRUE LEADER A great camera is not, of course, most people's sole justification for purchasing a smartphone. It will almost certainly not be the only reason you are contemplating purchasing an iPhone 6 or iPhone 6 Plus, if you have not done so already. After all, not only do you have that slickly redesigned outer casing to get you salivating, but the devices also come with a wealth of new and improved features. The A8 chip not only promises truly zippy speed, but delivers it, as we have revealed elsewhere in this publication. Then, there's the new Apple Pay system for making convenient mobile payments, not to mention the endless new functionalities brought by iOS 8, including the new Health app, QuickType keyboard…

Smartphone users feeling overwhelmed by the onslaught of communications and devices vying for their time can turn to new apps to help them take a break and concentrate on other things. More than 70 percent of consumers in the United States own a smartphone and the typical adult spends about 90 minutes a day on their device, an increase of 30 percent since last year, according to global information and measurements company Nielsen. But new apps aim to make users aware of how much time they spend on their smartphones and to help them limit it. Offtime, a new app for Android-compatible phones, lets users unplug from their devices without missing anything important. "We all love our digital devices. But every once in a while we want to take time…

iOS #01 - Five Nights at Freddy's By Scott Cawthon Category: Games / Price: $2.99 Requires iOS 5.1 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch. This app is optimized for iPhone 5. #02 - Minecraft - Pocket Edition By Mojang Category: Games / Price: $6.99 Requires iOS 5.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch. This app is optimized for iPhone 5. #03 - Goblin Sword By Eleftherios Christodoulatos Category: Games / Price: $0.99 Requires iOS 5.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch. This app is optimized for iPhone 5. #04 - Sleep Cycle alarm clock By Northcube AB Category: Health & Fitness / Price: $0.99 Requires iOS 6.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch. This app is optimized for…

Just because you can talk to your car doesn't mean you should. Two new studies have found that voice-activated smartphones and dashboard infotainment systems may be making the distracted-driving problem worse instead of better. The systems let drivers do things like tune the radio, send a text message, or make a phone call while keeping their eyes on the road and their hands on the wheel, but many of these systems are so error-prone or complex that they require more concentration from drivers rather than less, according to studies released Tuesday by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety and the University of Utah. One study examined infotainment systems in some of the most common auto brands on the road: Chevrolet, Chrysler, Ford, Hyundai and Mercedes. The second study tested the…

Twitter is suing the FBI and the Department of Justice to be able to release more information about government surveillance of its users. Twitter Inc. filed a lawsuit Tuesday in a California federal court to publish its full "transparency report/' which documents government requests for user information. The published report does not include the exact number of national security requests because Twitter, along with other Internet companies, has been prohibited from disclosing that information, even if no requests were received. The San Francisco-based social media company said in a blog post that it believes it's entitled under the First Amendment to "respond to our users' concerns and to the statements of U.S. government officials by providing information about the scope of U.S. government surveillance." Spokespeopleforthe FBI and DOJ weren't immediately…

It's a tough challenge for the National Football League to entice fans off their comfy couches and into stadiums when ticket prices are almost as high as the sport's TV ratings. The temptation to stay home goes beyond cost. Equipped with high-definition televisions, Wi-Fi and laptops, tablets and smartphones, fans at home can watch multiple games on Sunday while simultaneously checking their fantasy rosters and celebrating (or taunting) friends via text. So when the owners of the San Francisco 49ers drew up plans for the team's new $1.3 billion stadium, they tapped the ingenuity surrounding their Silicon Valley home. The result? Levi's Stadium is home to the first mobile app designed to enhance every aspect of a fan's stadium experience, from steering fans to their parking spots to identifying the…

Hackers stole personal information from millions of JPMorgan Chase customers this summer, in one of the biggest breaches of a financial company. The bank says only non-financial data was taken -names, addresses, telephone numbers and email. But that's still a lot of personal detail, and experts warn that customers need to be vigilant about identity theft in the next several months. The theft - involving 76 million households and seven million small businesses - raises questions about the safety of personal information, especially at banks. What risks do people face? Will this keep happening? And can bank customers reduce the threat of identity or financial theft? Q: How concerned should I be if the hackers didn't get Social Security numbers, bank account or credit card information? A: We may not…

South Korea's president is cracking down on rumors in cyberspace in a campaign that threatens the popularity of Kakao Talk, the leading social media service in a country with ambitions to become a global technology leader. Prosecutors announced the crackdown two weeks ago after President Park Geun-hye complained about insults directed at her and said false rumors "divided the society." That rattled users of Kakao Talk, a smartphonebased messaging app used by 35 million of South Korea's 50 million people. It prompted a surge of interest in a previously little-known German competitor, Telegram. Rankey.com, a research firm, said an estimated 610,000 South Korean smartphone users visited Telegram on Wednesday, a 40-fold increase over Sept. 14, before the crackdown was announced. The company said its estimate was based on a randomly…

Transformers: Age of Extinction Optimus Prime and the Autobots are required to save humanity from a terrifying new extinction threat. However, with the government turning against them, they also need the assistance of new allies, such as inventor Cade Yeager (Mark Wahl berg) and the formidable Dinobots. FIVE FACTS: 1. The film takes place five years after Transformers: Dark of the Moon, following the Decepticon invasion of Chicago. 2. Returning Transformers include not only Optimus Prime, but also Bumblebee, Ratchet, Leadfoot, Brains and Megatron (now known as Galvatron). 3. The movie is the first in the series to feature the Dinobots. 4. It has grossed more than $1 billion worldwide in box office revenue. 5. A fifth Transformers film is already set for a 2016 release. Chef This Henrik Ruben…

'Fury" is rolling into "World of Tanks./; Before the World War II tank drama reaches theaters Oct. 17, video gamers can make like Brad Pitt's character, Sgt. Don "Wardaddy" Collier, and steer a virtual rendition of the tank he commands in the film. It's the latest example of a likeminded movie and game aligning to hype each other, and it marks the first Hollywood pact for the popular online tank combat title. "It made sense," said Victor Kislyi, CEO of "World of Tanks" developer Wargaming. "Both audiences are interested in historical accuracy, so why don't we do something together? We didn't want to overdo it. We appreciate the opportunity, but our audience wants appropriateness. It's show business. You never know how it's going to turn out before the premiere." The…

An American and two Japanese scientists won the 2014 Nobel Prize for Physics on Tuesday for inventing a new energy-efficient and environment-friendly light source, leading to the creation of modern LED light bulbs. Isamu Akasaki and Hiroshi Amano of Japan and Japanese-born U.S. citizen Shuji Nakamura won the prize for developing the blue light-emitting diode (LED) - the missing piece that now allows manufacturers to produce white-light lamps. The arrival of such lamps is changing the way homes and workplaces are lit, offering a longerlasting and more efficient alternative to the incandescent bulbs pioneered by Joseph Swan and Thomas Edison at the end of the 19th century. "Red and green LEDs have been around for a long time but blue was really missing. Thanks to the blue LED we now…

Hewlett-Packard is splitting itself into two companies, one focused on its personal computer and printing business and another on technology services such as data storage, servers and software, betting that it can drive faster sales growth with more-focused operations. Hewlett-Packard, like other PC makers, has struggled as customers shifted toward smartphones and tablets and away from desktops and laptops. It also has been shifting its services business toward cloud computing opportunities as fewer customers opt for traditional data storage. The company has posted revenue declines in 11 of the past 12 quarters and laid off tens of thousands of people in recent years as it attempts to cut costs. HP hopes that the two units will be worth more separately and be able to grow more quickly apart than they…

GOOD SHOWING AGAINST BOTH RIVALS AND PREDECESSORS You've read the press release by now. You've also probably spent months poring over the online rumor pages. Now that they've finally officially broken cover and appeared in the shops, you might have even spent time playing around with them, contemplating whether now is the time to buy. Yes, we are -of course - referring to the recently unveiled iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. Now, there are many things that will dictate whether you actually plump for that final purchase. It might be those stunning Retina HD displays that do it for you, or perhaps the convenient Apple Pay payments system. Alternatively, you might be in the market for a 'phablet' and reckon that the iPhone 6 Plus is exactly what you have…

iOS #01 - Facebook Messenger By Facebook, Inc. Category: Social Networking Requires iOS 7.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch. This app is optimized for iPhone 5. #02 - Spider-Man Unlimited By Gameloft Category: Games Requires iOS 6.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone 4, iPhone 4S, iPhone 5, iPhone 5c, iPhone 5s, iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, iPad, and iPod touch. This app is optimized for iPhone 5. #03 - Yik Yak By Yik Yak, LLC Category: Social Networking Requires iOS 7.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch. This app is optimized for iPhone 5. #04 - Amazing Thief By Ketchapp Category: Games Requires iOS 6.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch. This app is optimized for iPhone 5. #05 -…

747 (Deluxe) Lady Antebellum The country music trio mark a departure from previous albums with their sixth studio effort, 747, their first not to be co-produced by Paul Worley. Instead, Nathan Chapman is their main collaborator. The result is an album of more upbeat material that embraces their present status as pop crossover stars. FIVE FACTS: 1. The album was called 747 because the track itself, according to group member Hillary Scott, "has this pushing, driving spirit about it that sums up our attitude right now." 2. She added:"We are pushing ourselves as a band and as songwriters... taking ourselves out of our comfort zone and not taking ourselves too seriously. There's an urgency and an energy to it that we've never released before." 3. Lead single"Bartender"topped the US Country…

The city has scuttled an outdoor media company's project slated to install in payphone booths thousands of transmitters that could track people's movements by sending signals to their smartphones. Titan, which sells ad space in more than 5,000 phone kiosks, had received approval from the city to place the transmitters, known as beacons, in the booths, and 500 had already been installed around Manhattan. The beacons emit a signal that is picked up by smartphones. The technology is most often used to send ads, called push advertising, onto people's cellphones. But the signal, which uses Bluetooth rather than Wi-Fi or cellular signals, could also be used to track the movements of the phones' owners, which would have added to the ever-increasing layers of surveillance installed in the nation's largest city…