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Your anonymous OpenTable reviews will soon display your first name
The change will roll out on May 22.
Google’s .new shortcut now works with sites like Spotify and Microsoft
Last year, Google introduced .new shortcuts that made it easier to create a new Google Doc, Sheet, Slide, Site or Form -- simply enter the file type you wish to create into your browser and tack .new onto the end. Last week, Google brought the feature to Calendar, and now it's expanding it to other sites like Spotify. Soon, any company or organization will be able to register a .new domain to help their users start tasks faster.
OpenTable now offers delivery with help from Uber Eats and Grubhub
As of today, you can use OpenTable's updated iOS app to book dinner reservations or have your food delivered. OpenTable announced that it's partnering with Uber Eats, Caviar and Grubhub to offer meal delivery from over 8,000 restaurants in 90 cities across the US.
Google Maps app gets overhauled, adds Uber and Opentable
Google Maps, otherwise known as the mapping app that Apple Maps so desperately wishes it could be, got a little bit better today with an app refresh. The update brings with it a cleaner look and less clutter, which happens to match the post-iOS 7 aesthetic perfectly, along with support for third-party apps such as OpenTable and Uber. For restaurants which already accept OpenTable reservations, Google Maps users will be able to claim time slots right from within the mapping app itself. Likewise, when plotting directions in the app, Uber customers will be able to see estimated pickup times and pricing information, as long as they already have the Uber app installed on their phones. Google notes that the update will roll out within the next few days, so keep an eye out for the new and improved Maps.
Google Maps gets a makeover with built-in restaurant reservations
At long last, Google Maps has received the Material Design revamp that many were expecting -- and it's more than just a skin-deep upgrade. New versions of Maps' Android and iOS apps focus on the super-flat graphics and lively animations that you'd expect from Google's new design language, but they also include built-in restaurant reservations through OpenTable. If you're in the US, you can now book a table right from a place page instead of visiting a website or launching another app.
Google app gets a conversational search upgrade, learns to use OpenTable
Nothing makes voice-recognition software shine more than good conversational algorithms -- and the natural-search function in the Google app just got a minor upgrade. Not only can use your hotel confirmation to find nearby restaurants, but also now you can casually ask it to show you the restaurant's menu or book a reservation via OpenTable. You'll still have to do a little work to complete the reservation, however (Google only gets the booking started), and it's still not perfect: If a given restaurant doesn't support OpenTable or doesn't have a menu online, the process kind of falls apart. Still, it's a nice upgrade, assuming you've already come to terms with the fact that Google's algorithms are skimming your email. [Image credit: Google]
Google Glass tempts travelers with new apps from Foursquare, OpenTable and TripIt
Now available to one and all (but still in beta, only for US residents and priced at $1,500), Google Glass is adding another selling point: travel accessory. That's thanks to new Glassware from Foursquare (we hope a Swarm patch is included), OpenTable and TripIt, adding to other services that support the device like Google's own Maps and Field Trip. TechCrunch also points out that the augmented reality app Word Lens launched a Glass app last fall that lets it superimpose translations over whatever you're looking at -- handy if you don't know the language. The TripIt app keeps your flight info in view, the Foursquare app can do checkins by voice and OpenTable of course brings easily set up reservations. Will this push you into ordering a headset? Maybe not, but if you need one more way to look slightly out of place while on the road, we think we have an answer. [Image credit: Michel Porro/WireImage]
OpenTable launches pilot mobile payment program in San Francisco
Soon you'll be able to use OpenTable to not only book your restaurant reservation, but pay for your meal as well. As rumored last year, the program is currently being tested at new diners and restaurants in San Francisco area, with plans to expand to new eateries and locations in the future. Similar to how PayPal allows you to pay at restaurants by having you check in when you arrive, OpenTable treats your reservation as a check-in of sorts. Paying for your night out with the app involves simply adding a credit card before your eat. When you're done with dessert, you can view your check and complete the transaction on your phone without having to get a bill from your waiter, freeing you up to head on to your next adventure that much faster. With any luck, additional tester tables will open up soon -- the company says it plans to let users request access to the pilot program in the near future.
New Apple patent hints the company may be entering the restaurant-reservation market
Thanks to Siri, Apple can quickly help you find movie times and buy tickets, make an appointment on your calendar and sometimes rickroll you. At this point, Siri can even help you make a reservation at a restaurant, although that's through integration with OpenTable. (Try asking Siri "Make reservations for two at an Italian restaurant at 7 PM" for an example.) According to Patently Apple, the company has just filed a patent for an even more powerful dining-management system that combines making reservations, managing wait lists and even ordering items, all from the comfort of customers' phones. Apple's patent idea builds on Siri's existing capabilities, adding the ability to find restaurants that currently have a short wait time for a table. As time goes on, the system becomes more powerful, learning from how long users actually have to wait for their table to produce a more accurate wait time. The patent even goes so far as to allow users to pre-enter information about things like their food allergies or preferences in order to have menu items recommended that match their taste or survival needs. It presents some fascinating possibilities about the future of mobile reservations. We're curious to see how OpenTable and other reservation services will compete if Apple enters this particular market. Of course, not all Apple patents ever make it to actual working products, but it's interesting to see how the company is looking at making it easier for us to spend our money eating out all the time. You can read the whole patent application below. Apple Reservation & Ordering System Patent Application
iOS 7 app update roundup: it's a flat, flat, flat world
Even if you don't feel like coughing up the cash for either the iPhone 5c or iPhone 5s, those eligible for an update (that's if you own an iPhone 4 or up, or an iPad 2 onward) can at least console themselves with iOS 7, which debuts today. Gone is the skeuomorphic design of the Forstall era, and in its place is a flatter interface that promises an entirely new experience for iOS devotees. As such, developers everywhere have been scrambling to get their apps redesigned to match the new mobile OS out of Cupertino. While we can't possibly cover every update, we've compiled a quick list after the break of the more substantial app revamps that have come our way.
iOS 7: Siri starts to shine
It's no secret that I'm a big fan of Siri, Apple's intelligent assistant. While Siri hasn't yet become as smart or as useful as 2001: A Space Odyssey's HAL 9000 (which might be a good thing), Apple has quietly added some new features to Siri in iOS 7 that turn it from a useful but sometimes frustrating beta app to a really helpful assistant. Siri's new interface fits into iOS 7 better than the previous incarnation did in iOS 6. It literally fades into view on top of whatever you're looking at when you invoke Siri. You'll find that Siri answers your questions faster and usually more accurately. Apple also has Siri check more sources than ever before, such as Bing, Wikipedia, and Twitter. That means that not only do you get more answers, but it's easy to get a second opinion on an answer. And most of those answers no longer show up in a third-party application – instead, they're displayed in Siri's new and beautiful user interface. Siri's new user interface In line with iOS 7's new look, Siri now sports a different appearance. When you invoke Siri by either lifting your iPhone to your ear or pressing your iOS device's home button for two seconds, a line appears on the screen. That line turns into a "sound wave" (image above at right) mimicking your voice pattern when you begin talking – it's Siri's way of telling you it is listening to you. Once you've spoken, that line curls up around the Siri microphone icon and then "spins" to indicate that it is looking for a response. If you don't talk for a while, Siri plays the familiar two-tone prompt and then begins listing a number of things that you can ask it. In the past, this list was scrollable with a finger. Now, hints show up five at a time and then fly off the screen. New voice and ability to select gender Siri has a new, more natural voice. To my ears, it speaks somewhat faster and with a more human-like sound. The biggest change to Siri's voice in iOS 7 is the ability to select a gender. In the United States, Siri has always been female, while iOS users in the United Kingdom have always heard a male voice. Voices of both sexes are now included for English, French, and German, so if you feel like a different voice might be more pleasant to your ears, you can switch it quickly and easily. To do so, launch the Settings app, tap the General button, then tap Siri. The gender setting is set by tapping on Voice Gender, at which time a selection of male or female can be made if it's available for your language. If you decide that the new voice is less clear to you or just doesn't please you, a switch back to the other gender is just a tap away. Selecting a different language Siri has become quite the international gadabout, now available in 19 different regionalized languages. Remember that changing the language not only changes the voice prompts that you'll receive from Siri, but it will also expect you to be speaking to it in that specific language or regional accent. In other words, you can't speak to Siri in English and have it respond to you in Mandarin Chinese. The languages and regionalizations that are available to you include: Chinese – Hong Kong Cantonese, Chinese Mandarin, and Taiwanese Mandarin English – United States, United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia French – Canada, France, and Switzerland German – Germany and Switzerland Italian – Italy and Switzerland Japanese Korean Spanish – Mexico, Spain, and United States Switching Siri languages is done in Settings > General > Siri. A tap on Language presents a list of the available languages for you to select. New Siri Features Siri has some new features that have become apparent during our time beta-testing the new operating system. Here's a sampling of what we've found: Ability to set the timer to the second Previously, it was only possible to set the timer to whole minutes, for example "Set a timer to three minutes". Now Siri responds to commands like "Set a timer to two minutes and 41 seconds" properly instead of acting confused. Controlling your device settings It's nice to know that while designing iOS 7, Apple really listened to some of the complaints that have been around since the original iPhone came out in 2007. For example, Control Center makes it easier to turn Wi-Fi and Bluetooth on and off without having to go into Settings. But what's even more exciting is that iOS 7 brings some settings to the realm of hands-free by adding them to Siri. Here are some of the many settings that Siri can control or at least query: With iOS 7, being able to set your iPhone to Airplane Mode while boarding a flight with your hands full is as easy as invoking Siri and saying "Turn on Airplane Mode". Siri warns you that it will stop working if you turn on Airplane Mode, and even asks for reassurance that you really do want to cut yourself off from the rest of the Internet. Finding out what your friends are doing iOS has been integrated with Twitter for a while, but now Siri is getting in on the act. No, Siri doesn't have it's own Twitter account now, but you can interact with your Twitter friends through Siri and find out what's trending. As long as a friend's contact card has a Twitter name on it, you can ask Siri what they're up to: Want to know what's trending on Twitter? Just ask Siri "What's going on?" You can also follow favorite hashtags by asking, for example, "Find tweets with the hashtag TUAW". Unfortunately, this social Siri searching doesn't work for Facebook yet. Ask Siri what a friend is saying on Facebook and you'll get an apologetic response that "I can't search Facebook". Telling your friends what you're doing No more typing on the little virtual keyboard to tell your friends on Twitter and Facebook what you're currently doing – now Siri posts those all-important social network updates for you. For Facebook, posting information to your wall is as simple as either saying "Post to facebook" or "Write on my wall" followed by whatever you want your friends to know. Siri asks you to verify your message, and then posts it. Hands-off tweeting is also a reality in iOS 7. You can send a tweet just by prefacing your message with the word "Tweet", and even add a hashtag by using the word "hashtag" followed by whatever the hashtag happens to be. Better integration with Yelp and OpenTable Siri's been working on becoming close friends with the servers at Yelp and OpenTable databases. For you, this means that it's easier than ever to find a good restaurant and in many cases, even make reservations. For example, let's say that you're suddenly craving a Fire Chicken Burrito and margaritas and want to find a good nearby Mexican restaurant. While Siri has always provided restaurant listings, it now works hand in hand with Yelp to give you ratings, reviews, and even the hours that the restaurant is open. For the over 25,000 restaurants that use the OpenTable reservation system, Siri can now make a reservation for you. Choose a specific place or just a type of restaurant, let Siri know how many people are in your party and what time you'd like to eat, and it will get you a list of available restaurants and reservation times. A few taps, and your reservation confirmation is in your email. Playing back voice mail Here's a new feature that's quite helpful when you're driving a car and using a hands-free system or headset. No longer do you have to grope for your phone and attempt to tap your way to your unheard voice mail messages –- you can just ask Siri to play them back for you. At the end of the message, Siri politely asks if you'd like to call that person back or play the message again. You can reply with "Call back" or "Play the message again" to have Siri perform either of those actions, or just say "No" to move on. Checking missed phone calls and returning calls There's nothing worse than not being able to answer a phone call because you're busy or in an unsafe situation like driving. Now you can ask Siri to list recent missed calls. If there's a name associated with a call, you can ask Siri to return the call to that person. It's yet another way that Siri is making it easier for you to keep in touch without touching the screen. Controlling iTunes Radio iTunes Radio is a fun new addition to iOS 7. You can listen to a huge variety of tunes on an array of stations that you can create. Siri's in on the act and plays your favorite stations on demand. Not sure what song is playing? Just ask Siri and you'll get an instant answer. Controlling Music Siri used to live in your iPhone next to another app that could control your music playback – Voice Control. Now Siri's taken over that job and Voice Control has retired from Apple, collecting a healthy pension check and surfing all day at Mavericks. To listen to music in your library, all you have to do is ask Siri. In the mood for pop music or some other genre? Need to pause the music for a minute while you talk with someone? Just tell Siri "Pause" and the music is paused. When your conversation is over with, say "Resume" and the music starts up again where it left off. Siri can also play a shuffled list of all of the songs by a particular artist if you just ask it to "Play songs by [name of artist]". Conclusion While brevity keeps me from saying too much about Siri's new capabilities under iOS 7, I encourage our readers to work with the intelligent assistant more often now. Siri has seemingly migrated from a sometimes buggy beta app to a more polished helper, and that makes a huge difference in how the service will be received by users. Parts of this post are excerpted from iOS 7 Quick Guide, an upcoming Amazon Kindle/iBooks ebook title. The book is targeted at experienced iOS users who want to hit the ground running with iOS 7. The authors, Yoni Heisler, Erica Sadun, and Steve Sande, Yoni Heisler, Erica Sadun and Steve Sande wrote iOS 7 Quick Guide, an upcoming Amazon/iBooks eBook. It's aimed at experienced iOS users who want to hit the ground running for iOS 7. They're sharing some of their tips on TUAW in a series of posts about the iOS 7 upgrade.
Yelp update gives restaurant-goers full power to review from iPhones
In the past, users of the popular Yelp iPhone app could do just about anything on their devices that they could on the service's full website except one important thing -- leave full reviews. According to Ingrid Lunden at our sister site TechCrunch, here's how Eric Singley (VP of consumer and mobile products) responded in 2009 to a request from users to be able to leave reviews without having to resort to the desktop website: "We occasionally hear from other passionate Yelpers on why we haven't enabled review publishing from our mobile applications. There are several reasons why we do this...Well imagine what it would be like if reviews were done in SMS shorthand: 'OK so, IANAE, but AFAIC this place has THE best Cfood. It was gr8! ADBB' Um, yeah." Well, Yelp has apparently been seeing pressure from other apps that do allow users to leave detailed feedback -- apps like Foursquare, Groupon, Square and Facebook. The new update finally provides the capability, with a company spokesperson now saying that: "Having to wait until you get home to say what you think is a thing of the past – if you've had a wonderful experience, you want to shout about it there and then." Funny how competition can drive someone to change their mind, albeit slowly. Yelp has also made some significant moves recently, re-launching its "Nearby" feature that gives users suggestions about restaurants and other businesses nearby and purchasing OpenTable competitor SeatMe. Whether that's enough to nudge the business into the black is anyone's guess.
Daily Update for August 13, 2013
It's the TUAW Daily Update, your source for Apple news in a convenient audio format. You'll get all the top Apple stories of the day in three to five minutes for a quick review of what's happening in the Apple world. You can listen to today's Apple stories by clicking the inline player (requires Flash) or the non-Flash link below. To subscribe to the podcast for daily listening through iTunes, click here. No Flash? Click here to listen. Subscribe via RSS
Facebook adds OpenTable reservations plus TV, movie information
According to Facebook, over 800 million people access their pages monthly via a mobile device. Now those users will be able to book tables in the 20,000+ restaurants served by OpenTable from within the Facebook Mobile app. You do not need to be a member of OpenTable or leave the Facebook app; just go to your desired restaurant's page on Facebook. This new service, beginning on Monday, according to CNET, is available to iOS and Android users. Mac|Life notes that you can search for your desired restaurant or use Facebook's "Nearby" feature on your iPhone to find a restaurant. They further state that your reservations will not appear in your News Feed nor can you share your reservations with friends, so your privacy is preserved. In addition to this gastronomic boost, Facebook is also adding TV and movie information to their Facebook pages. CNET reports that associated air times, channel information and content descriptions for US prime-time TV shows and movies will appear on the program's Facebook page automatically. Jennifer Van Grove at CNET states, "Both additions turn Facebook's mobile properties into places where people can go to fulfill more of their needs." Leif Johnson at Mac|Life gives Facebook credit for "working to keep itself relevant and to make business pages 'more useful and actionable for people.'"
Facebook for iOS now integrated with OpenTable reservations and Rovi TV info
Facebook has begun integrating OpenTable and Rovi TV guide information to its mobile Pages so users can now book a reservation and check out what's coming on TV right within the social networking app. For the former, there'll be a Reservations prompt located in the restaurant's Facebook Page, underneath the address and hours of operation. Simply pick the desired date, time and party size, and you can book a table in seconds. The Rovi integration, on the other hand, provides information on upcoming episodes of your favorite TV shows so you'll know exactly when and which channel it'll be on. The OpenTable and Rovi integrations are live right now on the mobile web as well as in the latest iOS app update, which also lets you tap and search for hashtags. iOS users can go ahead and get it from the source link below, while Android users will have to sit tight for now.
OpenTable for iPhone to begin testing mobile payments
OpenTable is already the most popular restaurant-reservation system in the world, and now the company is planning a new twist -- mobile payments for your meals from its namesake app (free). Matthew Roberts, chief executive of OpenTable, told the New York Times' Brian X. Chen that the payment process will be straightforward and is currently in testing. Once a meal is completed, a diner would open the app, review the check, add a tip and then approve the payment. For restaurants, the mobile payment service would be a boon, as it provides another reason for diners to use the app and come to the restaurant. OpenTable won't take a cut of the transaction, although they already charge restaurants for reservations made through the service in addition to an equipment service charge. The company's pilot program is being tested in 20 restaurants, and there are some kinks to work out. For example, paying with an app means that a diner may just get up and leave, in which case the waiter might think the diner is skipping the check. OpenTable is looking at ways to notify the restaurant workers so they don't go chasing diners out of a building.
OpenTable sees mobile payments on the horizon, first in San Francisco
Adventurous foodies are likely familiar with the concept of snout to tail dining, which incorporates the entire animal -- even the exotic bits -- into recipes that stray from the norm. Soon enough, OpenTable may offer a different take on start-to-finish dining by incorporating payments into its restaurant reservation platform. The system is said to still be in testing, which would require that diners merely open the OpenTable app, select a tip amount and hit the payment button. As a boon to restaurant owners, OpenTable isn't planning on taking a cut from the transaction; instead, it's looking to attract and retain users, and perhaps stay ahead of emerging competitors such as Groupon and Yelp. According to The New York Times, OpenTable will use an in-house payment system that it acquired this year from JustChalo. If all goes well, the new feature will be introduced to San Francisco by year's end, with other markets to follow. Apparently, OpenTable is still hammering out its notification system, so as to avoid unpleasant scenarios such as accusing paying customers of skipping out on the bill.
Yelp gobbles up SeatMe, an emerging competitor to OpenTable
Yelp just made its partnership with OpenTable very, very awkward with the announcement that it'll purchase a competing reservation service known as SeatMe for $12.7 million. The 16-person operation, based in San Francisco, runs a web and app platform that focuses on restaurants and nightlife activities. According to TechCrunch, SeatMe sent an email to its current customers in the wake of the announcement, with a promise that the service will continue operation. Meanwhile, Yelp is positioning the acquisition as a compliment to its existing offerings, which suggests that the company may bide its time before re-evaluating its partnership with OpenTable. If anything, it looks like Yelp's getting very serious about reservations and appointment bookings, and that could mean a more convenient future for you.
Groupon takes on OpenTable with 'Groupon Reserve,' bundles reservations with coupons
Not satisfied with simply locking down your discount mountain-climbing lessons and hot stone massages, Groupon announced Groupon Reserve this morning, which aims to bundle time-based discounts with restaurant reservations. Groupon's tapping Savored.com's reservation tech to handle the heavy-lifting behind the scenes -- the service is already live in 10 markets, including New York City and Los Angeles, and seemingly goes after OpenTable head-on. Of course, Groupon Reserve isn't quite the same service as OpenTable. With Reserve, you plug in a time, party size, date and city, and you're offered a variety of restaurant options with discounts, whereas with OpenTable you're simply plugging in the aforementioned info and looking for a spot. Though Groupon Reserve only handles restaurant reservations thus far, the plan is for "spas, salons and hotels" in the coming months; ambiguous options from "top beauty, product, travel and entertainment brands" are also in the cards. Groupon Reserve will reach international shores and even more US cities "by the end of 2013." Now if you'll excuse us, we're arranging a more affordable date at Butter. We're pretty fancy.
Toyota sends out free Entune upgrade, adds three apps and voice control
Got a Toyota with Entune? Then keep an eye on your mailbox. We're getting word that a free upgrade has started to be sent out to customers. The refresh adds some of the apps we first heard about back in January last year: iHeartRadio, MovieTickets.com and OpenTable. As well as being able to enjoy more radio, book movie tickets and restaurant tables, a new voice recognition update means you can do even more while keeping your eyes on the road. Toyota says that it'll be upgrading most models, if you want to know for sure, tap up the more coverage link for the breakdown. [Thanks, Nate]
