filters
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Yahoo Mail for Android now lets you filter emails while on the move
If you're an email fiend, you already know the value of filters -- you can easily color code and label incoming emails with a few simple rules so that your inbox isn't a cluttered mess. Unfortunately, however, if you're a Gmail user, you were only able to create and edit those filters on the web and not on the Android app, which seems like a weird oversight. It's even more embarrassing, then, that Google rival Yahoo has just introduced this feature into its own Android app. Yep, as of today, Yahoo Mail for Android will let you create, update and remove filters. Simply tap the option at the bottom of the sidebar and you'll be guided through setting one up -- as usual, you can filter emails by sender, recipient or its content. Of course, you'll have to be a Yahoo Mail user to take advantage of all this in the first place; hopefully this will light a fire under the folks at Mountain View to add this much-needed feature so Gmail users won't feel left out. If you do use Yahoo Mail on Android, however, go on and download the latest update so that you can get to reaching Inbox Zero that much faster.
The majority of Brits are disabling government-backed porn filters
Don't be too shocked, but the UK government's porn filter isn't proving very popular. A new report from communications regulator Ofcom reveals that just one in every seven customers are letting the big four UK ISPs guard them from porn and other online nasties. While tiny minorities of users at Virgin Media (four percent), BT (five percent) and Sky (eight percent) opted to keep the filter, TalkTalk ranked as a significant outlier: it reports that 36 percent of customers enabled the government-mandated filters on their home router. TalkTalk puts it down to the fact it pre-ticks the selection box, meaning more customers are likely to keep the option enabled on their account.
The Daily Grind: Would you like more client-side customization options?
Lord of the Rings Online's latest patch brings some interesting client-side changes to the long-running fantasy MMO. Namely, the update gives you the ability to turn off other players' cosmetic pets. Turbine's announcement post mentions that this will help if you're having performance problems, but it'll also help with immersion if, like me, you're one of those crazy Tolkien nutters who wants a Tolkien-based MMO to look like Tolkien's Middle-earth. In fact, I'd love to see the option expanded to include Loremaster combat pets, Runekeeper spell effects, and heck, even an ignore list that filters annoying players out of the game visually instead of just removing their chat. That last one may be technically impossible, but I can dream! What about you, Massively readers? Would you like to see more client-side customization options in your MMOs? If so, what sorts? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Hipstamatic brings its retro filter editing to video with Cinamatic
Hipstamatic was early to the filter-driven photo editing fray, and now it takes aim at Vine with the Cinamatic app. The new offering allows users to long press on the screen to record videos that range up to 15 seconds in length -- just like you've encountered before. Once the footage has been captured, a smattering of retro-inspired presets are available for punching up the vids. Unfortunately, there's no way to delete portions of of the video right now, so you'll have to start fresh when you drop an accidental expletive. Unlike Vine or some other popular apps, there's no built-in feed. Cinamatic means for you to beam clips out to other social avenues for circulation. The price of admission is $1.99 and it comes with five filters to start, with the ability to make those tempting in-app purchases to pad the toolbox.
Prism for iOS is a new unique filter based editor for your photos
Prism (U.S. $2.99) takes a unique spin on applying photo filters. You load an image, and the app checks to see what colors make up your photo. It then displays a filter wheel, and as you move around the outer edge and explore the central parts of the wheel you will see a variety of effects. Some are subtle, others are pretty wacky. Of course, the ultimate filter selection is up to you. Prism also lets you engage the iPhone camera and snap away with filters applied. There isn't a help menu, but you can view how it all works in an online video. I would put the app in the "you figure it out by exploring" category. There's nothing wrong with that, but some people might be frustrated. Even selecting photos isn't exactly standard. When you start, the latest item in your camera roll appears. You can swipe to the next one, or use the wheel to rapidly move in your library. The app really is a clever way of applying filters, and you'll get a lot of ideas exploring the many permutations offered. Prism provides 14 color-based filter groups and 128 filters. Your images are saved at full resolution. Prism is a great way to explore the possibilities in each photo you take. You'll have to invest some time learning how the app works, but with that investment comes the power to create some really expressive images. Prism is not a universal app, so it's best for the iPhone or iPod touch. It requires iOS 7.0 or greater, and it's optimized for the iPhone 5.
Twitter is making searches easier with filters for news, videos and more
Searching Twitter for a video you saw last week isn't always the easiest thing in the world, but a new update for the microblogging platform might fix that. New search filters are available that'll allow you to separate your query by location, whether the tweet has a video or photo attached or if it's a newsy 140 characters. This seems more like a universal roll-out than a test, but, given Twitter's history, you may have to wait for a more controlled way of searching for time-travelers.
Snapchat iOS update discreetly adds replay, filters and overlays for weather, time or speed
And suddenly, moments shared over Snapchat were a little less fleeting. The service is known for only allowing you to watch a shared image or video once, and only for a second, but the app's latest iOS update changes everything: now you can replay pictures or videos. The feature is hidden in the application's additional services menu (and comes with no explanation of what it does, exactly), but it allows users to replay old Snaps at the rate of one a day. While this doesn't quite make Snaps public, it does make them a bit more enduring. Users who tend to create Snaps of a more ...personal nature may want to think twice before sharing. The application's other updates are a bit less game changing. Users can now apply "Smart Filters" to their images, which overlay your Snaps with data including current weather, time, or the speed they're traveling, along with new visual filters (swipe from right to left to activate them) and text options. The app has even added a "front-facing flash," but don't get too excited -- it just flashes a bright white image on your smartphone's screen as you capture a poorly-lit selfie. Itching to update? Check out that iTunes link below.
Apple confirms iOS 7 removes content filters from school-issued iPads, fix coming soon
It seems you can't release a major operating system update these days without a few things going wrong. The latest iOS 7 issue is affecting iPads issued by schools. After updating, the content filters put in place through the Apple Configurator tool are no longer effective, leaving students with unrestricted access to the internet when used at home (school WiFi networks often have separate filters in place that restrict access through all devices). According to an AllThingsD report, a school district in Colorado is collecting iPads at the end of each school day in the meantime -- it's hardly a sustainable long-term solution, but Apple, which acknowledged the issue, expects a fix this month. One crafty administrator set up a DNS block to prevent students from upgrading to iOS 7, but for many other schools, the damage is already done.
Google+ brings Snapseed-powered photo editing tools to desktop Chrome (video)
Google added Snapseed photo editing to its Google+ apps on Android and iOS back in March, and now it's bringing them to the desktop. The new tools include Auto Enhance, selective adjust editing, and filters, all powered by the Chrome browser's Native Client tech. Not familiar with how that works? Google brought Native Client to Chrome back in 2011, and it allows developers to port code written in languages like C and C++ so it runs in the browser. Vic Gundotra said on Google+ that this is the Snapseed app built for Chrome, so we'll see if more mobile apps and features follow it over. If you're not using Chrome you'll have to live with basic crop and rotate editing tools on Google+, but even those have been shifted around to make them easier to find. Once the new options are available on your account (as usual, they're rolling out slowly over the next few weeks) all you'll need to do is select one of your photos in Chrome and hit "edit" to see them. Until then, check out the video demo embedded after the break.
Analog Camera for iPhone makes one-handed photo effects and sharing a reality
When Realmac Software created Clear a little over a year ago, the big attraction was the ability to perform most to-do list tasks with a single swipe or two. Today the company has introduced Analog Camera for iPhone (US$0.99 introductory price), an app that brings much of the same ease of use to applying photo effects to your iPhone images and then sharing them with others. Realmac decided not to pack as many filters and effects into the app as possible, and instead focused on making sure that the app was fast and fun to use. I think they've accomplished that goal with Analog Camera, as it is an app you'll want to use for those photos you capture with your iPhone. Like my favorite "pro" iPhone camera app, Camera+, Analog Camera provides a way to shoot images with separate focus and exposure points. You don't need to use the heads-up display for exposure and focus; in fact, Analog Camera launches in full auto mode and can return to that mode at any time with a double tap on the display. %Gallery-189566% For combined exposure and focus, you use a single tap, and to get to the separate exposure and focus, use two fingers to tap on the screen. There's a horizon line that appears on the screen to get your photos lined up. If you want to use Analog Camera to shap photos for Instagram, you're in luck -- the app only takes square format photos. You don't have to take new photos to apply effects or share them with your friends, as you have fast access to your camera roll and photo stream at the top of the screen while you're in camera mode. The last four photos are always in view, and a swipe down shows all of your camera roll. To visit the photo stream, you just swipe to the left. When you grab a rectangular image to apply filters, it is immediately shown with a square crop box overlayed. You can drag the crop box around to get the right composition, zoom in if necessary and then apply the crop with a tap. Unlike some photo apps I've reviewed previously, Analog Camera comes with only eight filters. They're all rather subtle, aiming to add a specific feel to your image without destroying it or adding a border. There's no current integration with Analog for Mac, which has been around for a while. However, the Realmac team says that a June update of the Mac app will add the eight iPhone filters. Sharing is also quite easy. Once you've finished with a photo, you can save it to the camera roll, send it via email or post it to Twitter, Facebook or Sina Weibo. Your images can also be sent to many other apps -- on my iPhone, it gave me the choice of opening the image in PhotoForge 2, QuickOffice, iPhoto, Tumblr, Halftone, Instashare, Dropbox, Camera+, Path, Instagram and more. If you're looking for tons of filters, you're not going to find them in Analog Camera -- at least not the current incarnation. I'd personally like to see at least eight or nine more filters added to the mix, just so I don't have to send images to another app to apply a favorite. For a 1.0 product, though, Analog Camera for iPhone is rock-solid, easy to use and a lot of fun. Get it while it's available for just a buck.
Hipstamatic's photo filter app Oggl now open for everyone
Hipstamatic's subscription-based photo filter app is now publicly available on iTunes, a few weeks after its invite-only launch. Oggl is a free download, and you get five of its parent app's virtual lenses and films that you can mix and match to concoct your own filters from the get-go -- it also lets you edit a photo's effects after you've taken it. But if you find its small selection of lenses and films limiting and you'd prefer to have the whole enchilada (read: all Hipstamatic filters), you've got to part with $2.99 per quarter or $9.99 per year. No word yet on whether an Android version is in the works, but a preview of the app shown at the Nokia Lumia 925 launch event indicates that it's on its way to Windows Phone 8.
Tweetdeck update for Mac and Windows adds filters for columns and search
Tweetdeck, the Twitter client that's more popular (and useful) than the company's own native desktop app, is getting a version bump that has everything to do with filters. Available for Windows and Mac users now, the update lets social tweakers get granular as they sort through columns and search with new content and user filters. Keen to see a column filled with only RTs? You can do that now, as well as filter by using select terms, media, verified users and lists. A minor visual refresh is also bundled in that gives users the option to expand column width and choose from more font sizes, alongside a couple of handy new shortcuts. If you're running Tweetdeck now, it's likely you'll be prompted to update. Or you can head to the source below to get things started now.
Zuvo Water's Stratus cleans your H2O with WiFi filters, cloud-connected app
Few of us are fortunate enough to enjoy clean municipal tap water -- the rest have to make do with clunky bacteria-riddled filters and wasteful bottled H2O. Enter Zuvo Water, which has hopped on Indiegogo to fund its elaborate and tech-centric Stratus water purification system. It includes WiFi-enabled hardware, filters, optional "intelligent" faucets and a cloud-connected smartphone app that'll tell you when to swap out old cartridges for new ones. These are no ordinary filters either -- they go beyond simple carbon filtration by combining ultraviolet light (UV), oxygenation and carbon with a patented five-step process, which Zuvo claims makes it the "only filter system in the world that is self cleaning." Beat that, Brita. Two kinds of Stratus filters can be part of the setup: a countertop model for existing taps and another that fits under the counter to accommodate one of Zuvo's touch-sensitive faucets designed by D2M (which was incidentally behind Kickstarter-success Instacube). The faucets come in Bamboo, Acacia tri-flow and Hibiscus designs, and with chrome, brushed nickel or oil-rubbed bronze finishes. In case you don't have your smartphone app handy, the taps are equipped with LED lights to show the water's filter status as well -- blue means clean, yellow means not so much and red means you should probably get a new filter, pronto. In addition to managing your filters, the aforementioned app also offers a personalized hydration coach that'll remind you of your daily water consumption needs.
Photo Sense is a clever image editor for Mac and iOS
Most of us are acquiring loads of images on our computers and iOS devices. Many are pretty dull, spur-of-the moment photos that are taken and forgotten. Photo Sense (US$33.99) is a nifty, automated photo editing app for OS X that can bring forgotten photos back to life. It's great for those that don't want a high-end app's expense or steep learning curve. Photo Sense also has an iOS app, but more about that later. On the Mac, you drag your images into Photo Sense where they sit ready for editing. I use the term "editing" loosely, because usually, it's just a one-click operation. After the click, your image will, in most cases, be greatly improved. If not, you can do some manual tweaking. The app features full undo, and you can see before and after views simultaneously. Photo Sense can be used as an external editor in iPhoto, Aperture or Lightroom. You can try multiple operations on an image while keeping the original intact. There are several filters available too, like black and white and various textures. Of course, color balance and saturation adjustments are also available. %Gallery-176543% Batch Processing is supported, and you can downsize images and change the image type if you like. How did it work? Surprisingly well. I brought in some unprocessed pictures taken with my Canon DSLR, and in every case it made improvements. Yes, I could have done much of that in Photoshop, but for the average casual shooter, this is a very nice solution. You have control over what is done to the image when you auto-fix it, but I think most people will stick with the defaults. The program is quick to do its work, and I saw no crashes or bad behavior. The user interface is straightforward and easy to figure out. On to the iOS version. It's not as fully featured, of course. This $1.99 universal app will automatically enhance your photos, but there isn't any range of adjustment, other than turning a feature off like sharpening. I thought the app improved most photos without any negative effects, but with Snapseed now free, that's probably a better iOS option with a broader range of features. Photo Sense for Mac OS is a different story. I liked the way it worked. There's no real effort involved in improving a photo. The technology behind the app is strong, and all the behind-the-scenes work is done in the LAB color space, which can give you superior results. While Photo Sense isn't cheap, it is competitive with other image editors that are more complicated and don't always give such good results. There is a lite version that lets you try the Mac app for $3.99. I think the developer would get more buyers if the lite version was free. Photo Sense for iOS requires OS X 10.6 or later and a 64-bit processor. I've included some screen shots from both the Mac and iOS versions.
YouTube video editing brings in real-time previews, trims UI down to the basics
YouTube's video editing suite is officially a toddler in human years, so it's about time that it grew a little more beyond learning how to walk and talk. By far the most conspicuous sign of maturity is a new real-time preview that shows edits and filter options as you play -- you'll now know if that effects filter at 1:37 is festive or just gaudy. The overall interface is also a little more buttoned-down with a simpler interface that cuts back on unnecessary clutter. YouTube has been rolling out the editor update in recent hours and may have wrapped up by the time you're reading this, which we'd take as a cue to start producing that streaming masterpiece.
Fujifilm unwraps FinePix F800EXR camera with wireless sharing to Android, iOS
If your company doesn't have a camera with WiFi sharing somewhere in your lineup, many will say you're not even in the photography game. Fujifilm is definitely playing: welcome the FinePix F800EXR, its first camera with wireless sharing as part and parcel of the experience. Its centerpiece is a free Photo Receiver app for Android and iOS devices that will catch as many 30 images at a time from an ad hoc WiFi camera link. The matching (if unceremoniously named) Camera Application can return the gesture by geotagging shots as well as finding existing photos on the map. Fujifilm will even pre-Instagram the photos through six new on-camera filters for those who can't stand posting images online without at least some Lomo or tilt-shift effects thrown in. As for the actual camera part of the camera, Fujifilm is keeping afloat in the competitive waters with a 16-megapixel, CMOS-based EXR sensor that can widen the dynamic range or lower the noise if sheer resolution isn't all that vital. An equally noteworthy 20x (25-500mm equivalent) lens out in front will zoom in a lot closer than any phone camera -- well, most of them. We're otherwise looking at the technology we'd expect in a point-and-shoot of this class, such as full-resolution burst shooting at up to eight frames per second, 1080p video and a RAW mode for image quality sticklers. Stores should have the F800EXR in August for about $350, or about as much as the Galaxy Nexus that just might serve as its companion.
Facebook Camera hands-on
Facebook has kept itself rather busy in the last month or so with such tasks as going public and purchasing popular photo-sharing app Instagram, but that doesn't mean it stopped working on other projects in the meantime. This realization is apparent with the launch of Facebook Camera, a photo-centric application that chooses to remain separated from the company's general mobile representation. It's still connected with the social network, of course, but it brings a fresh user interface and some light Photoshop-esque features to the table: filters, cropping, zoom, twist and so on. We had the opportunity to grab the new app and take it for a spin on an iPhone, so check out the gallery and continue below for our first impressions. %Gallery-156116%
Instagram for Android update adds support for tablets, WiFi handsets and SD card installs
It's only been three days since Instagram launched on Android and the only thing that seems to match the influx of new users is the pace at which the company is pushing out updates to enhance support and tweak a few glitches. The latest one to hit today (1.0.3) promises expanded support for tablets and WiFi handsets, app installation on the SD card for storage-limited users and fixing an audio mute bug during capture. If you haven't delved into its photo sharing and filter features already, check out our hands-on to see how this highly anticipated app has made the transition to Android, or just hit the source link below and install it yourself.
Facebook sets sights on Instagram users with photo filter integration
What now Instagram? You wouldn't sell to Facebook and now ol' Zucks is moving on without you. That's right, friends... the social network genius himself is scheming alongside his engineers to integrate photo filters within the company's mobile application. The CEO hopes to lure users away from the popular photography app and keep them tethered to his site via mobile handset. Apparently the tech has been ready for a bit, but the boss wants his team to add more editing options before the feature is released into the wild.
TUAW's Daily App: Instagram
There is a plethora of various photo apps around, both for taking pictures and for sharing them on social networks. But Instagram is an excellent solution for both, and it's elegant enough to make you reconsider your current workflow. Personally, I've just been taking pictures with the standard camera app and uploading them with the official Twitter app. But Instagram adds the ability to make your photos artistic with a wide number of filters, add location and social network data to them in the app itself, then share them with any number of social networks, from simple stuff like Twitter and Facebook to more complicated connections like Flickr and even Tumblr. The app is completely free, too, and they're planning to keep it that way. There may be add-ons for filters in the future (or, I presume, some advertising on the actual Web pages created by the pictures), but how awesome that a great app and service like this appreciates the value of free. Like I said, you probably already have a workflow for taking and sharing pictures from your iPhone, but Instagram is good enough to make you give it a shot anyway. It's a free download and is available on the App Store right now.
