Apple close to signing deal with Time Warner Cable for Apple TV

Bloomberg reports that according to their sources Apple is close a signing a deal with Time Warner Cable (TWC) to bring TWC TV app to Apple TV.

Earlier in the month, Time Warner Cable CEO Glenn Britt spoke at an event where he said the company was talking with Apple, Microsoft, and Samsung about live video streaming. 

TWC already has a TWC TV app on Roku set-top box and Xbox gaming console, which allows subscribers to watch up to 300 live channels on their television connected to the device. We’re assuming that a TWC TV app on Apple TV will work in a similar fashion, essentially allowing TWC subscribers to watch live TV channels without the needed a set-top box.

Apple has been slowly but steadily expanding the content available on Apple TV. It recently released a software update, which brought HBO Go and WatchESPN to the device. While Apple continues to say that Apple TV is a hobby project, the company has seen the sales rise over the years.

The report also notes that Apple is hiring Pete Distad, Hulu’s former senior vice president of marketing and distribution, to help in negotiations with the media and cable companies.

Apple launches 2013 “Back to School” promotion

As expected, Apple has launched its 2013 “Back to school” promotion.

Apple is offering a $100 App Store gift card with the purchase of a Mac, and a $50 gift card with the purchase of an iPhone or iPad.

The gift cards can be used on the iTunes Store, the iBooks Store or the App Store to buy any digital content being sold through the store.

It is the first time Apple has included the iPhone in the promotion. As usual, the Mac mini has been excluded from the promotion.

You must be a college student, a student accepted to a college, a parent buying for a college student, or a faculty or staff member from any grade level to qualify for the App Store Gift card and get education pricing on a Mac.

The promotion is available in the following countries: Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom, and United States. 

iOS 7 includes new accessibility option that lets you to control your iPhone with head movements

Apple has added an interesting new accessibility option in iOS 7 that allows you to control your iOS device with head movements.

The option can be found in the Switch Control section under Accessibility, which is meant for users who need assistance with physical and motor movements.

Here’s how Apple describes the Switch Control feature:

Switch Control allows you to use your iOS device by sequentially highlighting items on the screen that can be activated through adaptive accessory.

Users can configure the switch control settings to use the left or right hand movement as a tap, access the app switcher, as the Home Button, to access the Notification Center or Siri, or to increase or decrease the volume.

9to5Mac have posted the video to demonstrate how the feature works:

As you can see, you can use the head movements to navigate the device, however it is quite tedious. If you’re planning to give it a shot then it is also important to point out that enabling the switch control feature disable touch input, so proceed with caution.

Let us know what you think of the feature in the comments.

Via: 9to5Mac

iOS 7 beta 2 !! Over view

iOS 7 Beta 2 What’s New  - Yesterday, Apple made iOS 7 Beta 2 available to all of their developers. The update included few UI tweaks and a couple of new apps. Below, we have compiled a list of what this update includes:

iOS 7 Beta 2 What’s New

• Recognize this? That’s right, the Voice Memos app is back in iOS 7 Beta 2 and features an all-new flat UI.

• iOS 7 Beta 2 comes with a built in Nike Plus app. We like what we see.

• The lock screen automatically shows media controls when playing music.

• There are new icons for some email providers in the Settings screen.

• Activated in iOS 7 Beta 2, the iCloud Keychain keeps all of your passwords and credit card information stored on the cloud, across your devices.

• iMessage now includes avatars for contacts in Group Chat. You can drag messages to the left to view the time it was sent. The app also displays nicknames above your friends messages.

• Reminders app features a new schedule button that displays a list of your upcoming tasks.

• The Weather app includes a redesigned button on the bottom right of the screen that shows you forecasts for all of the cities you have added.

• Siri includes the ability to choose a male or female voice.

• Control Center includes a new icon for the stopwatch, and a better layout for music controls.

• The bookmarks screen’s layout is adjusted with new tabs.

• Newsstand gets a new look.

How to check if your iPhone is Unlocked or Not

Having your iPhone locked to a carrier can be a pain if you need to switch SIMs. Especially while you’re travelling, and you try slipping in another SIM card only to find that you’re blocked from using it. Knowledge is power, and to be forewarned is to be forearmed. Here’s how to find out, in advance, if your iPhone is locked to your carrier or not.

The basic method

The easiest way is to get a spare SIM card, from a different network to your current provider, and try it in your phone. A few minutes after changing the SIM cards – you should reboot your iPhone to be sure – you will see the new network name in the status bar if your phone is unlocked. If your phone is locked, you’ll get a pop-up error asking you to insert a valid SIM card.

You should do this sooner rather than later if you will be travelling. You don’t want to be stuck in a foreign country and not be able to buy phone service!

The online method

If you can’t get hold of a spare SIM card and you need to know whether you’re locked or not, there’s a website that can help. IMEI.info can access a public database of IMEI codes which tracks which phones in the world are carrier locked or not. To use this service, you’ll need to obtain your iPhone’s IMEI code – which is a code that is unique to your device.

If you have a SIM card installed, and only if, you can see the IMEI code by dialing *#06#. You can also get the IMEI code via the Settings app by navigating to General > About and scrolling down.

Alternatively, you can plug your iPhone into your Mac or PC and start iTunes. On the device Summary screen, you’ll see a line showing your phone number (the line below the phone’s data capacity). Click on the phone number, which will reveal the IMEI code. The IMEI code is also engraved on the back case near the bottom in case of some iOS devices like the iPhone 5 and the original iPhone or engraved on the SIM card tray in case of the iPhone 3G, iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S.

Once you have the IMEI code, return toIMEI.info and input the code. You’ll see a table of basic information about your model of phone. Some details may be incorrect. For example, it reported my 16GB iPhone 5 as having 32GB.

Notice on the right of the page a set of coloured boxes. The “SIMLock and Warranty” check in green is free, however you need to register an account at this stage. After you’ve registered and logged in to your account, click on the “SIMLock and Warranty” button. It will prompt you to spread the word. Click on Check Apple phone details button to continue.

It will take a few seconds to process your request and display if your phone is locked or unlocked (next to the SIM Lock field) as you can see in the screenshot below.