Apple recently released updates for its suite of iWork applications, for both Mac and iOS. The company updated iWork to version 9.3 for compatibility with the iOS 1.7 updates. Pages, Numbers, and Keynote which were updated to version 1.7 added new features such as adding reflections to shapes and the ability to lock and unlock objects. Other features of Pages includes:

• Use Change Tracking to track changes to body text in a document
• Accept and reject individual changes as you review a document
• Import Pages and Microsoft Word documents with change tracking and continue to track changes to body text
• Preserve tracked changes in documents exported in Microsoft Word or Pages format
• Preserve calculations in tables when importing from and exporting to Pages for Mac
• Add reflections to shapes
• Lock and unlock objects

Apple also updated Numbers to version 1.7 to reflect some of the iOS changes on the Mac.

Numbers 1.7:

In this release Numbers for iOS is updated for improved compatibility with Microsoft Excel and Numbers for Mac.

• Hide and unhide rows and columns
• Import and export Numbers for Mac spreadsheets with filters, and turn filters on and off
• Preserve rich text in tables when importing and exporting
• Add reflections to shapes
• Lock and unlock objects

Keynote also received several new features, such as importing and exporting all Microsoft PowerPoint and Keynote for Mac slide sizes. Other features include:

• Import and export all Microsoft PowerPoint and Keynote for Mac slide sizes
• Import and export presentation themes, complete with master slides and preset styles
• Play back all Keynote action builds including Move, Rotate, Scale, and Opacity
• Add new slide transitions including Shimmer and Sparkle
• Preserve calculations in tables when importing from and exporting to Keynote for Mac
• Add reflections to shapes
• New print layouts include options to print with presenter notes, with builds, and without backgrounds
• Lock and unlock objects

The Mac version of the iWork applications can be downloaded via the Mac App Store, however, users that bought the boxed version of iWork can update via Software Update.

{Via MacRumors}

Following the public release of iOS 6 on Wednesday, Apple also updated its suite of iOS iLife applications, including iMovie, GarageBand and iPhoto for iPhone 5. iPhoto version 1.1 is the biggest of all of the updates, and has been updated to support the new fourth generation iPod touch as well as the new iPhone 5.

These apps have been optimised to run on the taller screen of iPhone 5, utilising the extra pixels to allow easy editing in iMovie in landscape mode or seeing more of the instruments in GarageBand. The number a third-party developers have already pushed updates to their apps to run on the new iPhone 5 including Twitter, Facebook, Flipboard and many more.

iPhoto {App Store}

– Added support for iPod touch (4th generation and later)
– Coaching tips have been added to the Help system on the iPhone and iPod touch
– Effects now include six new Apple-designed ink effects such as Chalk and Palette Knife
– Images up to 36.5 megapixels are now supported*
– Full resolution photos can now be imported via iTunes File Sharing
– Tag albums can be created by adding custom tags to photos
– “Updating Library” alert appears less frequently
– Multiple photos can now be saved to the Camera Roll at one time
– Cropping presets now use detected faces to determine composition
– Tilt-shift and gradient effects can now be rotated

GarageBand was updated to version 1.3, now allowing users to create their own ringtones as well as import music from the iOS device itself.

– Create custom ringtones and alerts for your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch
– Import songs from the Music library on your iOS device
– Play or record with GarageBand in the background while using other apps
– Addresses a number of minor issues related to overall performance and stability

iMovie was updated to version 1.4 with the ability to upload 1080p HD resolution for sharing to YouTube, Facebook, and Vimeo.

– Three new trailers — Adrenaline, Coming of Age, and Teen
– Add photos to any trailer and have them automatically animate with the Ken Burns effect
– On iPad, open the Precision Editor to create split audio edits
– Play clips in the Video Browser before adding them to your project
– Create a slideshow by sharing photos from iPhoto for iOS
– Tap the help icon to display Coaching tips
– 1080p HD upload resolution is now available for sharing to YouTube, Facebook, Vimeo, and CNN iReport
– Audio recordings captured in a project now appear in the Audio Browser for easy access

With these new updates, Apple has made the iLife apps for iPhone, iPod touch and iPad much more powerful, bringing them closer to desktop class applications. With iOS 6, the apps run much faster and are more integrated than before.

Earlier this month, MacStories reported that Apple was setting up to add a new ‘Food & Drink’ app category to the App Store. The site mentioned that existing iOS developers were alerted by Apple that such as category was going to be added.

According to Apple, the new category will include “apps that help users cook and bake, mix drinks, manage recipes, find new restaurants and bars, and learn what their friends like to eat and drink”. Food & Drink won’t include diet, grocery shopping, coupon clipping, or food-related game apps.

On Thursday, the report was proven to be true when Apple added in the category and boasted that there were 2,800 paid apps and 4,000 free apps for iPhone as well as 1200 Paid and 1000 Free apps in the iPad. Apple has only contacted developers who have Food and Drink apps being placed within the section.

As a result, customers will be able to browse the App Store more easily for food and drink related applications, and download other similar apps. Apps that are relevant to the category will gradually be brought over to the new category, which were previously placed under the ‘Lifestyle’ section for lack of a better description.

{via MacRumors}

This allows Apple to not only gain more worldwide revenue, but it allows them to gain a bigger base of developers that can now develop and sell their applications in their own country. Although Apple has been focusing mainly on the United States as well as Asia, the company is now reaching out to other nations, including a few in Africa and parts of South America. The full list of countries that recently received the App Store is as follows:

Albania, Benin, Bhutan, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Cape Verde, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Fiji, Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Liberia, Malawi, Mauritania, Federated States of Micronesia, Mongolia, Mozambique, Namibia, Nepal, Palau, Papua New Guinea, São Tomé and Príncipe, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Solomon Islands, Swaziland, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine and Zimbabwe.

By adding in these new countries, Apple is offering their over 600,000 applications, 200,000 tailored for the iPad to millions of new customers, who will likely push the Cupertino company’s 30 billion downloads to a far greater success.

{via AppleInsider}

Apple purchased San-Francisco start-up, Chomp, in February in order to utilize its App Search service for their own App Store. However, Chomp retained its app search service for Android users, until late last week. Apple likely decided to pull support for Android in order to minimize the usage of the website and focus it on iOS applications. Chomp also has the possibility of being integrated into iTunes, so that the service can access the data directly from the application, as opposed to users going to the Chomp website.

Apple has surpassed 25 billion app downloads from the App Store, making it one of the most successful applications stores out there. Chomp would allow Apple to organize all of its applications, and let users find them more easily and efficiently. Searching for apps in the iTunes App Store can be quite the task, with limitations on sections of apps, and type of apps.

Chomp was purchased by Apple for $50 million, a substantial amount of money, when considering that Chomp would be integrated into Apple’s ecosystem and would become one of the many features in its operations.

As of right now, Apple has not released any plans as to what they intend to do with Chomp, but the Cupertino company has made it clear that they are no longer supporting Android.

{Image Credit – TUAW}

Apple’s App Store was released to the public in 2008, and started off with only a handful of apps. The App Store has since grown to become one of the largest online services in the world, suppling millions of iOS users with fun and intuitive applications. On Friday, Apple’s App Store finally hit the 25 billion downloads mark, making it the highest number of apps ever downloaded.

The winner of the promotion, who has not yet been announced, will be awarded a $10,000 gift card valid for App Store, Mac App Store, or any other iTunes Store content. Apple has conducted similar promotions in the past, for the App Store and iTunes Store and offered a range of products from iPod touch to Macbook Pro. The prize for 25 billion downloads is a $10,000 giftcard for online purchases with no hardware.

Apple has approved a total of nearly three quarters of a million apps for the App Store, with over 550,000 of them currently available in the store.

After its introduction in 2008, it took roughly two and a half years to reach 10 Billion downloads, and another six months to 15 billion downloads. With the latest 25 billion milestone, the iTunes Store acheived over 10 billion of the 25 billion mark in only 8 months, the fastest downloading period ever for the App Store.

The winner of Apple’s App Store promotion is expected to announced in the coming week once the company has verified the results and contacted the winner.

{via Mac Rumors}

Meanwhile Apple’s own iTunes App Store now boasts close to 250,000 Apps currently in its storefront, and has had some 300,000 different Apps pass through it during its lifetime. The 50,000 differential is for Apps that have either been pulled by their own authors, or removed by Apple.

Is 250,000 Apps and 100 Million users impressive to you? Or is it simply too many apps and too many people? Are you one of the millions that uses Facebook on your iPhone? Let us know your views in the comments…

Is it because the perfect twitter app does not exist or you just love to try out new twitter apps?

Vote for the best twitter app and leave a comment below. Two comments will be randomly chosen as app promo code winners!

Help us spread the word: Retweet, Digg, Stumble!