Apple announced the release of its new iPhone 12, iPhone 12 Mini, iPhone 12 Pro and Pro Max, and iPad Air devices. These devices feature the new A14 Bionic chip and the smartphones include 5G service. These phones can be charged with the MagSave wireless charger, but items such as credit cards and other magnetic cards must not be placed between the phone and charger.
Tag Archives: iPhone
Foxit free PDF Reader app
Foxit, a maker of document and imaging software, has a free lightweight PDF Reader app for Windows, Mac, and Linux as well as mobile apps for iPhones, iPads, and Android devices. A list of free and paid Foxit products can be found at www.foxitsoftware.com/downloads.
Apple releases iOS 14 and new Apple Watches
Apple announced the release of iOS 14, new Apple Watches, and other products and services at its September 2020 event.
iOS 14 has several new features, including a new Translate app with 11 languages, digital versions of car keys, and Home app for smart home management.
iOS 14 also shows if an app is using the camera or phone. A green indicator will appear if an app is using the device’s camera, and an orange indicator will appear if the microphone is in use. App settings for hardware use can be changed under Settings > Privacy.
Apple has provided a list of compatible devices for iOS 14 and iPadOS.
New watches include the Apple Watch 6 Series and Apple Watch SE. Watch OS 7 also includes sleep tracking and other health related features.
Downdetector shows outage information for websites and services
Downdetector shows outage information and status for widely used websites and services such as mobile and internet service providers, social media sites, banking and financial services, etc. This includes:
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- Most recent outages
- Facebook, Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp
- Twitter, YouTube, Instagram and Snapchat
- Verizon, T-Mobile and Sprint
- AT&T, Comcast / Xfinity, Spectrum, CenturyLink, Frontier and Cox
- Google, Gmail, Google Cloud, and Google Hangouts
- Google Drive, OneDrive, Dropbox and Box
- Apple Maps, iCloud, iMessage, and iWork
- Office 365, Outlook, Sharepoint, Skype and Skype for Business
- Visual Studio, Microsoft Teams, Azure, and Exchange
- Amazon Web Services (AWS), Cloudflare, and Zoom
Apple announces upcoming release of iOS 14
Apple announced the upcoming releases of several new technologies at its Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in June 2020, including:
iTunes replaced on Apple devices by Apple Music and TV apps
iTunes has been replaced by Apple Music, Apple TV, Apple Books, and Apple Podcasts on iOS and MacOS devices. Prior iTunes media library content can now be found in these new apps. Instructions on how to manage Apple Music and other subscriptions are available.
Apple reports some iPhone 6 smartphones experiencing power on issues
Apple released a statement that some iPhone 6 smartphones cannot be turned on due to a failed internal component. iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus users can see if their phone may be affected by entering the phone serial number at this link.
Apple iPhone 5 users will also have to do an iOS update or they may experience issues in several major iPhone apps starting on November 3rd 2019.
New Apple products include iPhone 11 and Watch Series 5
Apple announced the upcoming release of several new products at its September 10th 2019 event, including:
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- iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 11 Pro Max with new camera features such as Night Mode
- iPad with 10.2 inch display and iPadOS
- Watch Series 5 and WatchOS 6 with built-in compass and international emergency calling, Noise app decibel detector and Calculator app
- iOS 13 with Dark Mode and Silence Unknown Callers call blocking feature
- Sign in with Apple secure app authentication for iOS, macOS, watchOS, and tvOS using Apple ID
- Apple TV+ (Apple TV Plus) streaming video service that starts at $4.99 per month, but is free for one year if customers buy an Apple device after September 10th 2019.
Update: The new 16-inch MacBook Pro with Magic Keyboard was released in November 2019.
Microsoft Office free apps for smartphones and tablets with 10.1 inch or smaller screen
Microsoft Office apps such as Excel, Word, and PowerPoint are available as free downloads for iOS , Android and Windows smartphones and tablets that have a screen size of 10.1 inches or smaller. Users can view, edit and create new Office format files with these free apps once they login with a Microsoft user account, but they must subscribe to Office 365 to unlock all app functionality. Free web brower versions of Office apps are also available for users logged into OneDrive.
Students and teachers with a valid school email address are also eligible for the free Office 365 Education version.
Apple device users can run the iWork productivity apps, which includes Pages, Numbers, and Keynote.
Office Apps for Windows 10 Mobile will no longer be supported by Microsoft as of January 12, 2021.
Apple Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) announcements
Apple made several major announcements at its Apple Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in June 2019, including:
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- The upcoming release of iOS 13 for iPhone 6s and later versions with Dark Mode and Sign in with Apple authentication
- iPadOS – a dedicated operating system for iPad
- watchOS 6
- macOS Catalina
- Mac Pro – a high end desktop computer
- SwiftUI – a development framework that can create apps across Apple platforms