On the other hand, iOS 9 and iOS 8.4 also take on challenging third-party developers who currently offer apps in 5 thriving app store categories. Many developers behind the apps in these categories are venture-backed and now Apple has become their competitor.
Here are the 5 categories that will be deeply impacted by iOS 9 and iOS 8.4.
Apple Music will be available on June 30 as a part of iOS 8.4 update. The revamped music app on iOS will feature Apple’s latest music streaming service. There are three parts to the new service from Apple.
The service will be priced at $9.99 per month and $14.99 per month for family plan.
Apple Music will directly compete with streaming giants like Spotify, SoundCloud, Rdio, iHeart Radio, Pandora Radio, TuneIn Radio, and even Vevo to name a few.
iOS 9 will replace Newsstand with all new Apple News app. It allows publishers to create unique experiences by providing engaging content with brilliant typography, animated objects, transitions and more.
Users will be able to find articles and stories relevant to their interest, bookmark and view recommended content. The new app will support iAd advertising for publishers.
News app in iOS 9 will directly compete with Flipboard.
In iOS 9 Apple is going after productivity apps that let you take rich notes with the all new Notes app.
The updated app allows you to add photos, scribble on your note, insert checklists, embed links and maps. It also has a new Attachments Browser that “organizes all the items attached to your notes in one simple view, so it’s easy to find what you’re looking for.”
It will also support a share extension so that you can take notes within apps like Safari, Maps, and many more.
Notes in iOS 9 will compete with Evernote, Google News, Feedly, and many more.
Apple has been working on transit direction for iOS since a long time. The company is now ready to launch its own transit directions in iOS 9 Maps app. It will feature public transit information with routes and directions.
Since the Maps app works on both iOS and OS X, you’ll be able to plan your trip on the Mac and follow in on the way on your iPhone or iPad. It’s worth noting that Transit will be available only in select cities in the US for the time being,
The new Maps app in iOS 9 with transit information will compete with Moovit.
Apple announced its Health app as a part of iOS 8 last year. In iOS 9 the Health is receiving an update to track “Sexual Activity”. In the updated Health app users will be able to record the date and time you had sex and whether you used contraception or not.
With a special focus on women, the Health app will now be able to track menstrual cycles and help in monitoring physical changes.
This update will now put many third-party apps on alert. Some of the apps that help in tracking mensural cycles include Glow, Ovia Fertility, Clue and many more.
{via CB Insights}
]]> https://touchreviews.net/ios-9-takes-challenging-5-thriving-app-store-categories/feed/ 0There appears to be a new darling of the iOS world, certainly according to Twitter at least, and that is in the form of Clear, a brand new ToDo management app for the iPhone and iPod Touch.
As with all good apps it launches with quick 7 step overview of the app that gets you started and gives you the tools to explore the app. Clear for iPhone also starts you off with 7 items that help train you on how to interact with them.
Swipe left or right to delete or complete a task while you can pull down on the list or pulling apart to add a new task to the top or in the middle of your existing items.
There are 3 levels to the app that you can drill through. The uppermost level includes the settings, tips & tricks and themes which will come back to later. From this level you can drill down to your lists either by tap the list bar or by swiping up on the screen.
The same can be done to access the individual items in the list, either tap them or swipe up on the screen. After just a few minutes on the app it all becomes very intuitive and you’ll find it becomes second nature in next to no time.
As mentioned previously Clear also has multiple Theme’s installed including a bonus one for those of you who have Tweetbot installed, and after all why wouldn’t you? The default theme is called Heat Map and your items are prioritized using color, The darker the red the more important the task is and as you re-order them by tapping and dragging them up and down the screen the color is updated too.
As I am colorblind I always get a little concerned when ever an application uses color as a navigation tool. However, because each of the themes simply uses different shades of the same color it works perfectly, even for those inflicted with color site deficiencies!
It’s the simple things that make Clear for iPhone {$.99} so easy to pick up and make it so usable, such as the fact that if you create a list or item that is blank it will automatically delete it and the fact that there are multiple ways to navigate the app.
Clear is not going to be for you though if you want to track large tasks as each item can only be 28 characters long and there is no ability to add notes. Not that it ever claims to be such a thing, it’s just worth noting that Clear is going to help you manage the little things in life and not projects!
But it’s that simplicity that makes Clear for iPhone so great, adding, clearing and deleting tasks has never been so easy and enjoyable, you’ll end up creating tasks for yourself just so that you can complete them!
What we like:
What to know:
Take A Note is a versatile note taking application with direct access to your notes from any PC or Mac computer. You can browse all your notes as text, sound and image files, copy these files to your computer and even add existing text documents as new notes.
Take A Note has everything you need for your note taking needs on the go: four types of notes, custom categories, search, send by email functions and very nice custom made interface.
It is one of those applications which aims at providing value for money, functionality and easy to use interface.
This app is capable of taking notes in all forms: Text, Draw, Photo and Audio. Readdle has produced an amazing document sharing app like ReaddleDocs and now a Notes app which makes taking notes easier and manageable.
Take A Note has a very simple User Interface you have an option to Add Note, view Notes. Wifi Access, Search and a settings option.
Add Notes
Here you can choose the type of note you would like to create choose from Text Note, Audio Note, Draw Note or Photo Note. Text Note looks like iPhone’s native notes app with an additional option to categorize your notes in any any custom category. While composing your note you can also email the note you created within the app. With Audio Note you can record anything you would like to keep safe. Draw Note allows you to scribble anything on the screen with options to choose pen size, erase, email, add comments and categorize. With Photo Note you can choose any picture from your Saved Photos, Photo Library or take a new picture within the app, pan, zoom, comment and save your photo memo.
Notes
There are 5 default categories in which your notes are automatically sorted: All, Text, Audio, Drawing, Photo and then your custom categories. Each category shows the number of notes it has.
Wi-fi- Access
Take A Note uses WebDAV protocol and may be mounted as network drive. So, you can easily transfer your files from your iPhone/iPod touch to your computer. This feature also allows you to enable or disable password protection for Wi-fi access. With Wi-fi access Take A Note makes backing up and sharing your notes very easy.
Search
Search for the notes you created either by Title or Content.
Settings
Enable Password Lock for the app, change font settings, volume boost and Alphabetical Sort.
Take A Note is definitely a must have for all those who find themselves writing notes at random places and losing track of important information and on the other hand it certainly qualifies for professional use.
The Good
The Not So Good