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How-to posted for jailbreaking iOS 6 on A4-powered iPhones, iPods
Once the gold master version of iOS 6 landed in the hands of developers, the iPhone Dev Team was quick to release an iOS 6-compatible version of its Redsn0w jailbreak tool. Now that iOS 6 is available to the public, select iPhone and iPod touch owners can download the tool and jailbreak their device. This latest version of Redsn0w includes support for iOS 6 devices with an A4 processor, which limits the jailbreak to the iPhone 4, the iPhone 3GS and the fourth generation iPod touch. You should also note that this is a tethered jailbreak, so you will have to connect your iOS device to your Mac every time you reboot your phone. If you don't mind the tethered part of the jailbreak, Redmond Pie has an excellent set of directions that'll step you through the process. iPhone 5, iPhone 4S or iPad 2/3 owners running iOS 6 will have to wait for the Dev Team to successfully jailbreak those devices and package the hack into a public-friendly format. There's no ETA on when the Dev Team will release the jailbreak for these newer devices, so owners will have to practice patience while the Dev Team works out all the details. [Via Engadget]
Swiss Federal Railways accuses Apple of copying its clock
Switzerland's Schweizerische Bundesbahnen (Swiss Federal Railway service) has accused Apple of copying its iconic clock in the new Clock app for iPad [Google translation], introduced with iOS 6. The Hans Hilfiker-designed clock has become a symbol of Switzerland itself. The newspaper article notes that Apple Switzerland declined to comment. The clock face has been licensed elsewhere. [Via MacRumors]
Ad network Chitika reports iOS 6 on 15% of compatible devices
While this is based upon info taken from people using Chitika's service, we've found overall trends are quite nicely tracked by this data. The latest report says that a full 15 percent of eligible iPhones, iPod touches and iPads are already running iOS 6. Considering it was released just yesterday? That's impressive. As TechCrunch points out, after two months of Jelly Bean (the latest Android OS) availability, Google has seen an adoption rate of only 1.5%. Apple customers are a little quicker to react and install whenever a new iOS appears, it seems. Of course, considering iOS 6 was Apple's first full version update over the air (5.0.1 saw the debut of OTA updates), adoption is likely that much faster as a result.
List of Passbook-ready apps compiled
Gizmodo has compiled a list of Passbook-ready apps, which isn't as many as people were expecting, and is missing previously demonstrated businesses such as Delta, Amtrak, Starbucks and the Apple Store. There's a few Passbook-ready apps not on the list, such as the Canadian movie chain Cineplex, but it's a good resource to start looking for them. We should be seeing more of these apps in the next few months as companies use tools such as the newly launched PassTools to help them make the leap to Passbook.
Passbook is failing to live up to expectations
Passbook is what I've been most eager to try iOS 6. My husband teases me about poking through a wallet full of cards for different locations, and one of my favorite apps is the Starbucks app, which allows me to use my iPhone to pay for my drinks. Passbook was billed as the iPhone's digital wallet, which can be used to store boarding passes, movie tickets, coupons, store loyalty cards, etc. -- all into a single place. Nice idea. Too bad the execution's not going very well. The first issue for a lot of people is that upon launching the app, there is an error message that does not allow you to connect to the Passbook-specific part of the App Store. Thanks to the Apple support forums, there is a fix for that. Follow the following steps: Go into Settings > General > Date and Time > Set Automatically. Turn that setting off. Set the date one year ahead Access Passbook again and go into the App Store from it. It should be working. Then you can go turn the "set automatically" setting back on in Date and Time. It doesn't get better from there. Despite prominent billing during the iOS 6 announcement in June, Starbucks isn't a part of Passbook yet. So, I downloaded the Target, Walgreens and United Airlines apps. Instead of populating Passbook, they showed up on my home screen instead. That didn't seem right. It's not, said fellow TUAW editor Dave Caolo. "You must first use a Passbook-enabled app in order to have it show up," he said. So, you can install an app, but it won't appear in Passbook unless you use the associated iOS app. That kind of defeats the purpose of it, doesn't it? You shouldn't need to buy a movie ticket, planet ticket, etc. in order to get an app to work properly, especially a marquee feature of iOS 6. I did get it to work with the Walgreens app since its Balance Rewards card is free. When you select the store from the App Store, it will automatically download that app to your phone. A screen appears when you first launch the app, letting you know that it's Passbook-compatible. If you don't have an account, you can sign up for it through the app. Once you're done, you can choose to add the loyalty card to Passbook. So, what do you do with those extra apps you suddenly have? If you delete them, will it remove the Passbook entry? I deleted the Walgreens app, and the loyalty card remained in the Passbook. Eventually, I got the Target app to work. If you're signing up for an account for the first time, you'll go through a lovely rigamarole involving creating an account, then resetting your password. Then, you can activate mobile coupons. After confirming via text message, the coupons will appear in the app and you can add them to Passbook by scrolling to the bottom of the coupon screen, then delete the Target app if you don't want to keep it. When an item is in Passbook, you can tap on the "i" symbol in the bottom right-hand corner to find out more information. You can see if the associated app is installed -- useful for if you've tossed it in a folder -- and in the case of the Target coupons, what the coupon is good for. The cards are set to update automatically, so it'll be interesting if the Target one does next week since I deleted the app. It shouldn't be this complicated. At the very least, it should work like CardStar or Key Ring Rewards Card, where you can add a loyalty card or service without having to download the associated app. If you still want the standalone app, you can install it beyond that by using the link from Passbook. It took a good 30 minutes of configuring separate apps, including setting up accounts, in order to get passes into the Passbook for the first time. And then there's actually using Passbook. TechCrunch's Darryl Etherington tested it at the movies, and the experience was just as stellar (note the sarcasm) as setting up Passbook for the first time. Since then, the Cineplex app has received an update that fixed his problem, but he deemed that the whole Passbook process is just needlessly complicated. I agree with Darryl. Passbook is not intuitive and not ready for the real world. If you can actually get passes into Passbook, it should great if the business is ready to support it. It's getting to that point that's going to turn away a lot of users.
Navigon and StreetPilot Onboard update adds public transport, Apple Maps and iPhone 5 support
Navigon's gearing up for tomorrow's big day by updating its, erm, Navigon and StreetPilot Onboard apps. The refreshed software adds support for the iPhone 5's new 4-inch display as well as baking in public transport listings to Cupertino's presently underwhelming mapping offering. It's also gaining the promised "last mile" function to record the location of your car when finishing your journey on foot, sparing you the embarrassment of getting lost in the multi-storey lot when you return. The company's offering a $10 discount on its apps if you pick 'em up before October 3rd, while the in-app purchase of Urban Guidance has been reduced from $5 to $3 for the same period. Update: We've had a note from Garmin to say that while Navigon update is now available, StreetPilot Onboard has been slightly delayed.
PSA: Passbook supported apps now listed in iOS 6 App Store
Now that iOS 6 has officially landed, Apple has pulled back the veil revealing the first wave of apps to support its new Passbook feature. The initial group of companies to jump on the bandwagon include: Ticketmaster, Live Nation, Lufthansa, MLB.com At Bat, Sephora to Go, Walgreens and Fandango Movies. While this list is a tad bit shorter than we hoped for, it's safe to say that more apps will follow in the not-so-distant future. Want to be the first to know when they arrive? Be sure to keep an eye on the Passbook section of the App Store for the latest updates.
Maps missing info dismays some iOS 6 users
Detail differences between Apple's new maps (top) and Google maps (bottom) have some iOS 6 users scratching their heads and wondering how long Apple will take to bring their Maps database up to speed. Developer Mathieu Roy shared the above maps, which highlight how the newly Apple-sourced versions still have plenty of growing room. Developer Jeremy Tregunna adds "That map isn't so bad; the entire city of Escazú in San José, Costa Rica, is missing, and it's misspelled 'Escaza.'" Satisified with Maps? Or disappointed by Maps gaps? How has your iOS 6 transition been going? Update: Rich Gaywood points to this iOS 6 Maps Tumblr. Update: The Guardian reports, "Within minutes of the launch of the iOS6 operating system, which comes preloaded with Apple Maps, users were reporting that Paddington station had vanished, London had been relocated to Ontario, the Sears Tower in Chicago had shrunk, and Helsinki railway station had been turned into a park." Update: Reggie sends us this composite image. A picture is worth a thousand words.
iOS 6: Accessibility gets a boost
There are a number of new accessibility options in iOS 6 today, and you don't necessarily need to be disabled to use them. For example, I accidentally dropped my iPhone 4 a few weeks ago and broke the Sleep button on top of the unit, and since then, I've been using the AssistiveTouch feature in the options to lock my phone's screen with software rather than hardware. That menu has received an update in the new OS, allowing direct access to Voice Control, Screenshot and the Multitasking menu, among other new and updated options. iOS 6 also offers a new service called Guided Access, which allows you to lock down your phone to the use of one app, and then also enables you to circle off any part of the screen that you don't want usable. This could be great for children. For example, if they want to draw with your iPad's screen but you don't want them going into any other apps or deleting any other work you might have, you can use Guided Access to make sure they're only doing what you allow them to do. iOS has drawn a lot of attention (and rightfully so) for making sure it's accessible to anyone, no matter how they are able to use it. However, these accessibility features can be usable for everyone. There's a lot of hidden functionality in these features, already included in the OS that you just installed.
Apple web page outage inadvertently disabled iOS 6 device WiFi networking
If you have a new iOS 6 install, you may have experienced a temporary WiFi outage this evening. The problem seems to have stemmed from an unavailable Apple webpage. According to Steve Streza, iOS 6 pings a test URL that's different from previous installs, which simply used apple.com. When the web page at that URL went down, so did WiFi access. This URL is meant to allow captive portal network detection at venues like hotels. The problem seems to have been resolved on Apple's end, and WiFi access is, as far as we know, restored for iOS 6 users. If the problem persists, you may have to toggle Wi-Fi off/on on your iOS device. Update: TUAW Reader dmatos points out that this page seems to have been used in previous versions of iOS as well.
Maps for iOS 6: A great start but some big gaps
Make no mistake. Maps for iOS 6 is a great achievement for Apple. Starting from basically a blank slate and making some strategic acquisitions and partnerships (TomTom, Placebase, C3, Poly9, Waze) in map data, POI information and 3D fly-over images, Maps is amazing for what it does. On the other hand, comparing it to Google Maps, which has been around since 2004 and leverages the company's experience and expertise in mapping, is going to leave Apple coming up short. I've been using Maps for several weeks, in beta and the golden master version, so I've gathered my thoughts and experiences to share with you. Map Display It is very clean and easy to read. Roadsigns are displayed boldly and the navigation information is very clear. The map can be displayed in 2D or 3D, with or without satellite imagery. I think most people will prefer the display to Google maps in the iPhone, which Apple has banished anyway. The Apple maps are vector maps, so they are infinitely zoomable. Google maps are actually a series of still images, that expand for a set amount, and then quickly replace the image with a fresh one. I think the vector maps from Apple are far more preferable. %Gallery-165989% The 3D flyover images are only available for big cities in the US, UK, France and Canada, and they are impressive, but probably not as useful as Google Street View when you are trying to find a location. Note that Apple maps requires a data connection. Maps are not cached and if you are away from any kind of internet connectivity you are plain out of luck. Apple should allow pre-downloading of specific areas, or deal with a lot of user complaints. Google Maps on iOS had the same problem, but several third party navigation apps like Navigon stepped into the breach with onboard maps that work anywhere. Apple isn't going to load the whole country on an iPhone -- users would be up in arms -- but Maps needs a trip-planning mode that will allow you to have the maps you need on board. Finding a POI A navigation program is only as good as the database behind it. The Google POI listings are very complete. Of course, it will sometimes steer you to an out-of-business store or restaurant, but Google really does try to keep up. Apple has a good, but not excellent POI roster. In general, here in Arizona, it works quite well, and it seems to be sourced mostly from Yelp. It seems to do better on resturants than other types of businesses. It's generally up to date, but on occasion it misses a location I know is there. I think the Maps app is US centric. Reports from overseas are pretty consistent in identifying omissions, especially in Europe and Asia. Voice integration I think the brightest spot with Apple's maps is the way it works without typing. Say, "Take me home," and the app does just that. Say, "Find direction to the nearest pharmacy," and off it goes. Typing and driving just don't go together, and this feature works very well. You can also navigate to anything in your contacts list by just saying that is where you want to go. The app uses the Siri voice, and the turn-by-turn directions are clear and concise. Google, for whatever reasons, never offered turn-by-turn directions on its iOS app, although it does for Android phones. It's likely Google Maps will be back to the App Store very soon, but whether or not it will have turn-by-turn directions is unknown at this point. The voice-controlled feature on Apple Maps is superior to anything Google offered on the iPhone. It is a pleasure to use and simply reduces distractions when driving. Note: an increasing number of states won't let you pick up your phone to talk on it, so your options are limited but with Bluetooth speakers there are some safe workarounds. Traffic Maps offers traffic information for the US and several countries. I don't live in a place with lots of traffic issues, but I've seen information appear and Maps warns you when your route may have delays. Alerts are quite clear, with a popup that says something like "Faster Route Available: Due to traffic, rerouting can save 8 minutes." Icons show you accidents, alerts and construction. Transit directions There's a big gap here. Apple Maps simply doesn't have them. Apple says it is going to integrate them from 3rd parties, but if you live in a big city and are dependent on public transportation, you are not going to like Maps at all. This may get better, and it will have to if Apple is going to compete with Google. Summing up Apple felt it had to dump Google Maps from iOS. Apple and Google are in serious competition, and Apple didn't want to partner with a company it no longer trusted. It's understandable, but Google Maps had features that simply aren't in Apple Maps yet, and some may never appear. If you are a casual maps user, Apple's app is going to be just fine in most cases. It will get you from here to there with reliable directions and traffic. If you are a Google Maps power user you are going to be unhappy. The detail, POIs and transportation data are far superior on Google. Street view is more useful than 3D flyovers, as impressive as the technology is. Seeing a 3D rendering of a destination just isn't competition for a street-level view. For now, you can get Google Maps on your iPhone browser, but it is ugly, and awkward to use. That said, Maps is a terrific and free addition to iOS. When Google Maps returns, you'll have a choice, but will give up Siri integration which is both powerful and helpful. If Google offers turn-by-turn directions, that's going to be terrific for those that want to go that way. Meanwhile, 3rd parties are updating their navigation apps because they will have to compete with the free Maps app from Apple. In the end, their will be a lot of full featured choices. For now, with this first version of Maps from Apple, there are trade-offs and no easy replacements. I find Maps works fine for about 90% of my needs. You may feel differently for your own particular navigation desires, especially if you use public transportation. Maps features are hardware dependent. Flyover and turn-by-turn navigation are only available on the iPhone 5, 4S, iPad 2 or later, and iPod touch 5th generation. If you have an older phone, you'll get maps, traffic information, and local search with directions.
Apple updates nearly every app for iOS 6, sneaks in key GarageBand, iPhoto and Podcasts updates
If you didn't already know that iOS 6 was out in the wild, Apple just delivered a torrent of mobile app updates to make it perfectly clear. Virtually every app that isn't preloaded now has explicit iOS 6 support to keep it running smoothly, and some of the upgrades are thankfully more than just skin-deep compatibility tweaks. Among the highlights are Podcasts' new subscription list syncing through iCloud, ringtone creation with GarageBand and iPhoto support for 36.5-megapixel image editing on the latest devices -- you know, for that moment you need to tweak Nikon D800 photos on an iPhone 5. We're including direct links to a few of the juicier updates, but we'd recommend checking AppleInsider's comprehensive list to see everything that you're missing.
iOS 6: iTunes, App Store, and iBooks all remodeled
One of my most-used apps on the iPhone is actually the App Store app itself -- I download lots and lots of different apps for review, and I constantly need to search around and find information on apps for posts. So I'm excited to see that all three of Apple's major content stores on iOS have been updated for iOS 6: iTunes' music and movies store, the App Store itself, and even the iBookstore have all been updated for the new OS. The most obvious change at first will likely be the slight color change: The top and bottom bars in each store are now a darker gray. And there is more information listed more clearly in each store. In the App Store app, each app now shows a screenshot along with the price and title, and you swipe from left to right to browse through the apps in search, rather than just seeing a big list. iTunes looks different as well, and you can now buy apps and content without getting kicked out of the app completely. These changes are all fairly small -- mostly just simple UI tweaks or ease-of-use updates. But they should make buying and finding content on these stores easier, especially for those of us who end up using them often.
TUAW TV Live, 2pm PT/5pm ET: Yet another non-Steve edition!
It's Wednesday, and this week's TUAW TV Live will again feature 100 percent less Steve. For September, since Steve is off adventuring, the duty of entertaining you all this afternoon falls to Kelly and Doc Rock. We'll see how it goes. This week we'll have to see if we can find anything at all to talk about. It's not like Apple released any new hardware or updated iOS or Mountain Lion or anything. Below, you'll find a Ustream livestream viewer and a chat tool. The chat tool allows you to participate by asking questions or making comments. If you're driving somewhere and would like to watch TUAW TV Live while you're stuck in traffic, please don't -- keep your eyes on the road! However, if someone else is doing the driving, you can watch the show on your iPhone and join the chat by downloading the free Ustream App. It's a universal app and is wonderful on an iPad, both for viewing and participating in the chat. We'll start at about 5 PM ET, so if you're seeing a prerecorded show, be sure to refresh your browser until you see the live stream. For those of you who are not able to join us for the live edition, you'll be able to view it later this evening on our TUAW Video YouTube channel and as part of the TUAW TV Live podcast viewable in iTunes or on any of your Apple devices. No Flash? Check out the YouTube channel or podcast listed above or click here.
iOS 6: Minor visual changes come to the Music app
In iOS 5, the iPad's iPod app got both a name change to "Music" and a complete rethinking of the user interface. While some people may have found the new, visually-driven interface an improvement, I found it so cumbersome that it forced me to completely re-evaluate the media distribution across my devices. I wound up putting most of my music on my iPhone and only keeping the most essential of tracks on my iPad, because the navigation UI just isn't suited to a huge library like mine. Thankfully, the changes made in iOS 6 are nowhere near as radical as those in iOS 5. In fact, on the iPad the only change I can find is a most welcome one. The design in iOS 5 had a confusing and inconsistent color scheme for shuffle, repeat and AirPlay controls, which made it all but impossible to tell at a glance what the control's state was. Apple's made a simple but important change for iOS 6: on the "Now Playing" screen, controls are now bright orange when active and light grey when inactive. This is a big improvement over the "white when active, slightly less white when inactive" color scheme from iOS 5. Unfortunately, the Music app is still pretty much a mess on the iPad as far as navigating through the library goes. It's even more unfortunate that the forthcoming major redesign of iTunes appears to be heading in that direction on the Mac side of things. It continues to baffle me that Apple abandoned the perfectly good iPod app UI from iOS 4 in favor of this absolute mess; every time I use the Remote app on my iPad I'm struck by how much easier it is to navigate another machine's music library than the library stored on the device in my hands. On the iPhone/iPod touch side of things, for the first time the Music app has received a significant visual overhaul. That may sound ominous considering how I've excoriated the iPad version of the app, but the changes to the iPhone version are much more modest and essentially amount to a reskinning of the interface. Navigation screens are much more monochromatic -- someone in Apple's music division must really love grey -- and active tabs on the bottom "depress" instead of glowing blue as they did before. The "Now Playing" screen received some visual tweaks as well. Instead of just floating white controls against a black background, the back, play/pause and forward controls now rest within actual button designs. Just like on the iPad, active controls for repeat, shuffle and AirPlay now glow orange instead of blue like before. The color blue has also vanished from the volume and progress sliders, replaced with the increasingly ubiquitous grey. Both sliders got a very subtle and admittedly nifty addition. Instead of shadowed white dots as before, the sliders now have metallic-looking knobs -- and the appearance of the "light" striking those knobs changes direction depending on how the device is oriented. It's a perfect example of the sort of attention to detail Apple puts into its interfaces; it doesn't make the app any easier or harder to use, but it does make it feel cooler. Overall, iOS 6's re-skinning of the Music app's interface on the iPhone/iPod touch is a much more successful endeavor than iOS 5's badly fumbled redesign of the same app for the iPad. Although the visual alterations took some getting used to, they don't interfere in any way with the actual usability of the app. Considering the trend in music app design from Apple over the past couple years, that's high praise.
iOS 6: Restoring App-specific privacy permissions
Don't you hate it when an app asks for permission to use photos or location data and you hit the wrong button? In iOS 6, you can bypass this headache and change permissions on an app-by-app basis. Go to Settings > Privacy > Service Type, e.g. Location Services or Contacts, and enable or disable permission for individual apps. You'll find a list of applications that have requested access to each privileged data type. These privacy settings include: Location Services Contacts Calendars Reminders Photos Bluetooth Sharing Twitter, and Facebook Toggle each setting from On to Off or Off to On to match your exact needs. If you messed up in the application itself, this gives you a second (and third, and so forth) chance at ensuring your privacy settings are exactly what you desire.
iOS 6: FaceTime over cellular
With iOS 6, FaceTime gets a feature that it arguably should have had from day one: FaceTime now works over a cellular connection, not just WiFi. That's assuming you have the right device, and assuming your carrier allows FaceTime over 3G/LTE without making you jump through hoops first. *cough*AT&T*cough* Even though the iPhone 4 and iPad 2 WiFi + 3G model both have 3G and FaceTime capabilities, for some reason only the third-generation iPad, iPhone 4S and iPhone 5 have been blessed with FaceTime over 3G capabilities. There's been no word why the iPhone 4 and iPad 2 don't get this feature, and it's doubtful they'll get it later down the line. If you're unfortunate enough to be an AT&T customer, there's yet another artificial obstacle to your FaceTime over cellular bliss: you have to be on a Mobile Share data plan, which are hit or miss as to whether they actually save consumers money or not. If you're not with AT&T, and your mobile data provider isn't out to deliberately make it difficult to actually use your phone's features on their network, you'll be away laughing on FaceTime after setting the "Use Mobile Data" toggle in FaceTime's settings. In my own testing, FaceTime over 3G works pretty much the same as it does over WiFi. FaceTime calls get pushed to your device automatically so long as you have coverage; I forgot I even had this activated until I got a FaceTime call from my dad while I was dropping my bike off at the shop. Audio and video quality are both great over 3G, and video quality in particular seems subjectively better than what I get via Skype over the same connection. I had decent 3G coverage while testing FaceTime on both my iPhone and iPad, so I never experienced any lag, stuttering, dropped calls or other issues. Keep in mind this is a video call from a cafe in central New Zealand made to my father's house in Tennessee. Living in the future is awesome. Now the big question I'm sure has been on your mind all this time: how much data does all this use? Surprisingly, not as much as you might think. A 47-minute FaceTime call over 3G on my iPad used only about 65 megabytes. That's still over 10 percent of my monthly data allowance on that device (New Zealand telcos are very stingy with their data). However, I'm not going to be making FaceTime calls of that length very often when I'm away from my home or work WiFi, so the hit to my data isn't concerning. Bottom line: don't expect to spend hours upon hours on FaceTime every month without taking a big hit to your data allowance, but short calls here and there aren't a big deal. Whether or not you feel comfortable taking a FaceTime call in public is up to you, but at least now in iOS 6 you have the option.
iOS 6: Safari and iCloud Tabs
With iOS 6, Safari gets two features that competing mobile browsers have boasted for some time: tab syncing across multiple devices and a fullscreen viewing mode on the iPhone. iCloud tab syncing is a deceptively simple but powerful feature that integrates the browsing experience across multiple devices. Any iPhone, iPad or iPod touch running iOS 6 and any Mac running OS X Mountain Lion will, if connected to the internet and your iCloud account, sync any open tabs across all of your devices. iCloud Tab syncing between Macs has been possible since Mountain Lion's debut; iOS 6 brings this feature to Apple's handheld devices. This means the days of emailing links between devices or simply trying to remember what that one website was you were viewing on your iPad in the bathroom when you're sitting at your Mac in the living room are now over. Any tabs open on any device can be viewed on any other device. This does of course raise some red flags if you prefer to keep your browsing as private as possible. With a little patience, anyone with access to one of your devices could easily see what you're up to in your browsing session on another computer. Enabling Private Browsing on any device stops its Safari tabs from syncing as long as Private Browsing is enabled. You can also disable iCloud tab syncing altogether by turning off Safari syncing in Settings. On the iPhone, while using Mobile Safari in landscape mode you can toggle a fullscreen mode via a touch control in the lower right of the screen. Once toggled, the URL/search bar at the top and the toolbar at the bottom will slide aside, presenting far more actual content on the screen. Simple hover buttons for forward/back will still show up, as will the fullscreen toggle. As far as new features go for Safari in iOS 6, that's basically it. Reading List has a new offline reading mode similar to what Instapaper's offered for years, Safari gets the same simplified sharing button interface that's in the rest of iOS, and switching between Bookmarks, History, and Reading List is slightly easier on the iPad now thanks to a minor interface tweak. Safari in iOS 6 still doesn't feel like it takes full advantage of the capabilities of the devices' multitouch screens. It seems strange that multitouch gestures I take for granted on the Mac, like two-finger swipes to go forward/back or pinching out to see a tab switcher, don't work on my iPhone or iPad. Maybe I'm in the minority, but I think gestures like those definitely have a place on Apple's touchscreen devices. Fullscreen mode on the iPhone
iOS 6: The iPad Clock app
The fact that the iPad never had its own built-in Clock app always seemed like a curious omission. After all, the iPhone has had one from the day it launched; I don't know about you, but the iPhone's alarm is what wakes me up every weekday morning. In iOS 6, that strange exclusion ends, as the iPad now has its very own Clock app. Does this mean the App Store's glut of third-party alarm clock apps has been Sherlocked now? Should developers of such apps start shaking in their shoes over Apple's offering? Hardly. The new built-in Clock app on the iPad satisfies only the most basic of user needs, and the user interface is such a weird hodgepodge of design elements that it almost feels like someone issued this as a challenge to an intern: "Here, go make a Clock app for the iPad. Don't spend too much time on it." If you're familiar with the Clock app on the iPhone, you'll find few surprises here. The basic functions are the same: World Clock, Alarm, Stopwatch and Timer. World Clock is probably my favorite interface in this app and the only part of it that seems up to Apple's usual design ethos. The design is rather evocative of old 1960s world clock designs, and basic weather info shows on the map for each city you add. Tapping on any of the clocks brings up a truly enormous, fullscreen clock like the one in this post's main image. The Alarm section of the app has a basic viewer at the top showing the time of any selected alarm. The bottom two-thirds shows a weekly viewer that will display any alarms you've set up. Strangely, alarms in this section aren't draggable to new times, even though they totally look like something you should be able to tap and drag around. Setting up a new alarm uses a UI essentially identical to that on an iPhone. iPad (3) users can also use Siri to set up or view created alarms; this is usually my preferred method. The Stopwatch portion of this app feels like the most ridiculous addition at first glance. I couldn't come up with any ideas for actual use cases until someone told me it would be handy for coaches or other trainers for sports. The design for this portion looks almost nothing like its iPhone counterpart, and to me it just looks weird and hastily thrown together. That thrown-together look persists in the Timer portion of the app, where once again UI elements from the iPhone have been pasted in and surrounded by strange, overly simplistic and not particularly engaging floating controls. Like the Alarm tab, all functions here can be set up with Siri commands on the iPad (3), and again that's my preferred method of interacting with the timer. If all you're looking for in a clock app is the bare minimum, this built-in app for the iPad might suit you fine. But it's certainly the least Apple-looking app I've seen from Apple in a while, and many aspects of its design just rubbed me the wrong way.
iOS 6: Talking to Siri -- Settings
If you're not an iPhone 4S owner, chances are that until today you haven't been talking to Siri, Apple's wonderful virtual assistant. With iOS 6, Siri debuts on the iPad 3, the iPhone 5, and the iPod touch fifth generation. A horde of new users are getting ready to jump on the Siri bandwagon this week. You enable Siri from Settings > General > Siri on your device. The Siri pane lets you choose a language, link a primary contact ("My Info"), specify when you want the service to speak to you, and (for iPhone only) enable or disable the "Raise to Speak" option. Make sure Siri is switched to ON, and set "My Info" to point to your personal contact info on your device. This sets the default contact for your identity from your personal address book. Choosing a contact lets Siri knows where "home" is, what your name is and so forth. It also allows Siri to associate relationships with your contact, such as "my spouse" or "my boss" or "my doctor." Make sure this option points to the appropriate contact so that when Siri tries to help you, it's working with the right person. Next, select the language and region you want Siri to use for your interaction. This tells Siri how to talk to you and how to interpret your speech. It also sets Siri's gender. US English Siri is female; UK Siri is male. The Voice Feedback option enables Siri to respond to you with voice as well as text. This is great for informal situations, but can be inappropriate for business settings. You probably don't want Siri speaking up in meetings, making snarky comments about your boss. Select from "Always" and "Handsfree only". Finally, there's "Raise to Speak" -- for iPhones only. This toggle enables Siri to respond using input from the iPhone's proximity sensor. When you move the device to your ear, Siri speaks up discreetly, talking out of the phone's non-public speaker. Only you know that you're not on a real call. You're just privately talking to Siri. After adjusting settings, you're ready to get started. Press and hold the Home button or raise the phone to your ear. You'll hear a double-chime letting you know that Siri is listening. Say "Hello" and get ready to begin your Siri journey. To get started, try asking Siri about the weather. "Will it be cold tonight?" or "Should I bring an umbrella?" help showcase how fun and user-friendly Siri can be. Ask Siri about sports ("How did the Marlins do last night?") or find somewhere to eat ("I'm hungry!"). You can also ask Siri to tell you a joke, to sing you a song or you can inquire about its likes and dislikes. Not sure what else you can say to Siri? Say "Please help me" or tap the small "i" on Siri's first "What can I help you with?" speech bubble. There's also a post to help with that! Erica Sadun and Steven Sande are the authors of Talking to Siri, a handy guide for Siri users.
