watchOS

Following this year’s September iPhone event, Apple has begun seeding out the final builds for watchOS 3. This golden master release can be downloaded as an update from the Watch app on an iPhone, or its appropriate configuration file can be downloaded from Apple’s Developer Center. watchOS 3 GM should be the final release we see before an official release of watchOS 3 is made public. watchOS 3’s public release date is set for next week, September 13th.

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Apple has just begun rolling out watchOS 3 beta 6 to developers today. Those looking to grab the new release can head over to the Watch app on their iPhones, select General and then Software Update. watchOS 3 beta 6 is available to download as a Configuration Profile from the Apple developer center for newer users looking to test out the upcoming system. Release notes fixes are now at the bottom of the post.

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Apple has just begun rolling out watchOS 3 beta 4 to developers today. Those looking to grab the new release can head over to the Watch app on their iPhones, select General and then Software Update. watchOS 3 beta 4 is available to download as a Configuration Profile from the Apple developer center for newer users looking to test out the upcoming system. Release notes fixes are now at the bottom of the post.

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Apple has begun rolling out the third watchOS 3 beta to developers today. Those looking to update can head to the Watch app on their iPhones, select General and Software Update. watchOS 3 beta 3 is available to download as a Configuration Profile from the Apple developer center for newer users looking to test out the upcoming system. Release notes are not yet available, but should be up soon.

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The Dock in watchOS 3 was arguably the biggest new feature to hit the Apple Watch at WWDC 2016. It’s a feature that allows you to find and switch to your most used apps. It takes the best of the Glances model from previous versions of watchOS and merges it with an updated and actionable interface.

The Dock promotes using apps in a way that no such feature on the Apple Watch has until now. In my opinion, it breathes new life into the Apple Watch, providing practical functionality that was missing in previous iterations of watchOS. Have a look at our hands-on dive into the Dock as we explore this exciting new feature.
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After today’s jam-packed event, Apple has published the full keynote video from this year’s WWDC. Apple has also released the promo videos used during the keynote showing off iOS 10’s newest features and a video dedicated to developers. On the same page with the full keynote page, Apple lists the preview pages showcasing what we’ll be seeing in the official software releases later this fall.

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It’s Monday, June 13th and Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference is about to kick off with the company’s opening keynote and press event at 10 AM PT/1 PM ET.

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In this week’s top stories we break down the latest iPhone 7 leaks, the new iTunes 12.4 release, Tim Cook’s trip to India & much more. Head below for the usual roundup of handy links to all of this week’s most shared stories:

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Apple has announced that it is ending support for the original watchOS SDK and original Apple Watch 1.0 apps, which required a phone to even open. From June 1st, Apple will require developers of new Apple Watch apps to use the native SDK, which came with watchOS 2. The requirement was posted on the Apple Developer news page last night.

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[UPDATE: Apple has confirmed what Siri told us earlier today. The company has now issued a press release in which it says that WWDC will be held from June 13th through June 17th in San Francisco. The same lottery process applies to getting tickets this year as in previous years. Developers can apply for tickets via the WWDC website now through Friday, April 22 at 10:00 a.m. PDT.

In a change from traditional years, the Monday keynote will be held at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, not Moscone West. All other conference sessions will take place at Moscone, though. The annual Bash will also be held at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium.]

In an unusual chain of events, it appears Apple is announcing the WWDC dates through Siri. Although the Apple website has not been updated with any new info, Siri is proudly proclaiming that WWDC 2016 will indeed be held in San Francisco from June 13th to June 17th. Although Siri didn’t explicitly say, it is almost certain that WWDC will once again be held at Moscone West, simply because it’s the best choice of venue for an event like this in San Francisco. This is an unusual announcement nonetheless, it being the first time Apple has used Siri as the primary announcement vehicle for one of its events. WWDC is expected to feature the unveiling of iOS 10, OS X 10.12 and more …

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Alongside iOS 9.3 today, Apple has released watchOS 2.2, the latest software update for all Apple Watch owners. Starting with watchOS 2.2, iPhones running iOS 9.3 or later can pair and swap between multiple Apple Watch models; changing between Apple Watch models previously required a lengthy unpairing and re-pairing process. Apple Watch users will also notice an enhanced Maps app and more starting with the watchOS 2.2 update.

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If Apple’s most recent hardware events were about going bigger (larger iPhones, a jumbo iPad, and a new Apple TV), Apple’s March 21st event is about going smaller. Apple yesterday officially sent invites to its much-anticipated event to be held at its Cupertino campus with the tagline “Let us loop you in.” The event, which was originally internally scheduled for a week earlier, will focus on Apple’s new 4-inch iPhone SE, a smaller, 9.7-inch iPad Pro, and new Apple Watch bands. The company will likely also reveal the final versions of iOS 9.3, tvOS 9.2, watchOS 2.2, OS X 10.11.4, and an iTunes update. We’ve reported nearly the entirety of what’s expected to come at the event, so read on for a full roundup of everything we’re likely to see. (Updated March 18th with the latest information):

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Apple today has released the fourth watchOS 2.2 beta for Apple Watch developers. In terms of new features, the watchOS 2.2 so far has added a totally revamped Apple Maps app and glance, and it’s required to use iOS 9.3 beta’s new multi-watch feature. We’ll check out the latest beta version of the upcoming release and highlight any changes below.

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Apple today has released the third watchOS 2.2 beta for Apple Watch developers. In terms of new features, the watchOS 2.2 so far has added a totally revamps Apple Maps app and glance and is required to use iOS 9.3 beta’s new multi-watch feature. We’ll check out the latest beta version of the upcoming release and highlight any changes below.

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Apple has released the second watchOS 2.2 beta for Apple Watch testers today. Pairing multiple Apple Watches to a single iPhone is a feature of the iOS 9.3 beta and requires the watchOS 2.2 beta on each Apple Watch. The latest software update in testing also includes a revamped Maps app with the Nearby feature first introduced in iOS 9.0.  We’ll check out the latest beta version of the upcoming release and highlight any changes below.

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Even though I’ve owned a Mac for going on 5+ years now, I never thought I would actually end up using screen savers. But the launch of Aerial a few months ago, which I’ve been using daily ever since, has definitely changed my mind. Awesome Apple TV screen savers on the Mac is a win. And today I came across the Apple Watch Screen Saver for OS X by Rasmus Nielsen and immediately knew it would be my next screen saver of choice.

Incorporating over 80 combinations of the already recognizable and well designed Apple Watch faces, all in Retina display quality, it makes a great additional screen saver to have installed. For those unfamiliar with the process of installing new screen savers on the Mac, or just want an overview before starting, I’ve put together a small guide below to walk you through the process:

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Siri percolated throughout all of Apple’s platforms in 2015. It started with iPhone in 2011, iPad in 2012, debuted on Apple Watch in early 2015 and Apple TV with the new model a few months ago. It’s quickly becoming a premier feature on these platforms, with live-as-you-speak transcription and radically new features like ‘Remind me about this’ contextual tasks when inside apps. Except for one platform of course. Mac OS X has been ignored and left abandoned with regards to true voice searching and Siri. It’s 2016, and I want Apple to bring Siri to the Mac.

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The Maps app for the Apple Watch is set to receive a useful upgrade with new features with the upcoming watchOS 2.2 release. Currently in beta, the upcoming software update adds the Nearby search features in Apple Maps as well as quick navigation buttons for travel directions to home and work addresses.

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Tim Cook teased Apple’s product pipeline to investors back in October 2013 by saying the company would enter new categories with releases that fall and “across 2014.” This set the expectation that the next year would include new releases in each quarter rather than staying mostly quiet until WWDC in June, then saving new iPhones, iPads, and Macs for the fall.

Perhaps that was a promise better made a year later as most new products in 2014 were once again kept for the fall, but 2015 has been one where Apple has truly released new products all across the year. So many, in fact, that it’s probably difficult to recall every single new hardware and software product without referencing the history books.

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There are a few new goodies for iOS developers shipping during the holiday season. Over the weekend, app analytics firm AppFigures released a cool new feature called ‘Sharable Review Cards’. Essentially, developers can curate their App Store reviews for some of their best feedback and quickly share a link to that comment for others to admire.

The cards take on the theme from the app icon, so each review card appearance matches the app it is about. In the example above, my app Bingo Machine uses a dark blue background tint, so the AppFigures Card uses the same blue for the review title. It’s a pretty cool feature for devs who want to positively promote their app on social media with actual customer testimonials.

There are also some new releases from Facebook’s Parse, the third-party cloud sync framework that Apple later aped with its own CloudKit service, with complete support for the newest Apple platforms, namely watchOS and tvOS.

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