iPad By Davis: “Apple reportedly notifying customers of in-app purchase settlement details” plus 4 more

Apple reportedly notifying customers of in-app purchase settlement details
Week in review: Apple TV update, RSS after Google Reader, Insta-vine and more!
iPad Art: Superheroes, Cheeky Style
How To: Slice Cheese on an iPad?
Games of the week: Doodle Jump, Minion Rush, Icebreaker and more!

Apple reportedly notifying customers of in-app purchase settlement details

Posted: 24 Jun 2013 02:41 AM PDT

Customers whose kids racked up in-app purchase bills without their knowledge can reportedly now begin to seek some form of compensation. An email from the "Apple In-App Purchase Litigation Administrator" has begun to hit inboxes, and 9to5Mac managed to get hold of a copy:

If your iTunes account was charged for an in-app purchase made by a minor in a game app without your knowledge or permission, you could be entitled to benefits under a class action settlement.

The parties have reached a settlement in a consolidated class action lawsuit against Apple Inc. ("Apple") regarding in-app purchases of game currency charged by minors to an iTunes account without the account holder's knowledge or permission. If the settlement is court-approved, your rights may be affected. The United States District Court for the Northern District of California authorized this notice. The Court will have a hearing to consider whether to approve the settlement so that the benefits may be paid. This summary provides basic information about the settlement.

Those who racked up $30 or less will receive a $5 iTunes gift card as compensation, but those who exceeded that may end up receiving a cash reimbursement. Any iMore readers received the same email? Shout out in the comments!

Source: 9to5Mac

Week in review: Apple TV update, RSS after Google Reader, Insta-vine and more!

Posted: 23 Jun 2013 03:49 PM PDT

Things have started to settle back into some kind of normality following the intensity of WWDC week, but there has still been plenty going on to keep us all busy. This week we saw an Apple TV update that brought some additional channels to the set-top box, the RSS feed market opens up a little more just a week out from Google Reader's shutdown, and Instagram does Vine, and adds video (with filters) to their massive social photo sharing network. This is the week that was.

Facebook had a press event scheduled for this week -- just an hour before Samsung held their big Premiere 2013 event in London -- and for a while it was shrouded in mystery. The invites went out by regular 'snail mail' and didn't seem to hint at much. Then, right at the start of the week it was rumored that Instagram might be trying to out-do Vine by adding video. Come Thursday, that's just what we got. 15 second video clips, filters, and Instagram's massive network to share it on. Thankfully, the updated app also comes with a way to shut off auto-play.

Apple TV received a software update this week that added a selection of new channels, including ESPN and HBO:GO. Qello, Crunchyroll and Sky News rounded out the new channels, but what was received still comes as a disappointment to some. You have to be a HBO or ESPN subscriber to use their channels, Qello is also a subscription service, and in the UK at least, Sky News is a free-to-view television channel. But, any love for the Apple TV is better than no love at all.

Our own Peter Cohen also weighed in with some good thoughts on the state of the Apple TV following this latest update.

We're little over a week out from Google's scheduled shutdown of their Reader RSS service, and the race to to replace continues. This week saw the early favorite Feedly take the next step towards becoming an all out replacement service by launching Feedly Cloud, with Newsify becoming the first third-party app on iOS to use their API. AOL also quietly emerged as the latest contender in the space, with the news emerging that they will begin accepting invites for their own Reader service from Monday June 24.

We had a couple of big name game releases for iOS and Mac this week. First up XCOM: Energy Unknown saw it's iPad debut promising a full console port designed for the mobile environment. It isn't cheap, but it's definitely a premium title that we're excited to have on iOS.

Also this week Rockstar Games announced that Max Payne 3 would finally be coming to the Mac. Not a particularly new title, it's a case of better late than never for Max Payne 3 but is still a welcome addition to the Mac gaming stable.

Now we're clear of WWDC, the iMore team has begun dissecting all that we saw unveiled, starting with iOS 7. If you missed them the first time around, be sure to drop by and give the posts below a read.

And of course, this week was Apps week on Talk Mobile 2013. Some really great discussions came about from all the great readers across Mobile Nations, but if you missed any of it hit the Talk Mobile link at the top of any of the sites to recap on all the weeks great content.

That's it for another seven days. This was just a taster of the last weeks news, but be sure to drop into the comments and let us know what stood out for you!

iPad Art: Superheroes, Cheeky Style

Posted: 23 Jun 2013 09:32 AM PDT

This week's selection of iPad art is all about superheroes, done by one of my favorite iPad artists, Cheeky Raffy.

The first image, shown above, is titled 'Spidey' and I love this dark version of Spiderman. This iPad painting was created with the Procreate app – as were the other two featured below.

Next up is Thor:

And finally Hulk:

I love the darkness and colors in all three of these iPad paintings.

Check out more of Cheeky Raffy's great iPad artwork at his Raffy Co Flickr stream.

Doodle Jump - Ally Kazmucha

Out of all the games that I've played on my iPhone, Doodle Jump has always remained a staple from the very beginning. I don't even remember when exactly Doodle Jump was released but I know it was a very long time ago. The thing I love about it is that it never really has gotten old for me. I still have friends and family members that play it to this day.

The best part is that the developers still continuously update it and create new themes and crazy monsters. While the premise has always remained the same, it just hasn't seemed to grow old to me. I'm still trying to beat my high scores to this day and occasionally I still get a friend or family member telling me they finally bested my score.

It's an all around great game at just as great of a price.

$0.99 - Download Now

Knights of Pen and Paper - Joseph Keller

Some friends sit down at a table, write up character sheets, and their adventure begins. This is the premise of Knights of Pen and Paper, where you play the role of a group of tabletop roleplaying game players as the make their way through adventures in their favorite pen and paper game. Select a few players from a diverse group, each with their own unique ability that helps them play the game, then select a class for that player. All classic roleplaying archetypes such as Paladin, Mage, and Rouge, each class comes with a set of upgradable powers to help you battle the monsters your players will encounter. Their adventure will take your players' characters across a vast and varied continent, completing quests such as finding magical stones to battling beasts and saving townsfolk. If you enjoy RPGs and an 8-bit art style, then Knights of Pen and Paper is certainly worth a look.

$2.99 - Download Now

Icebreaker - Simon Sage

This week Rovio, the makers of Angry Birds, acted as a publisher for a new game called Icebreaker. This is a first for them, but I guess when you've got more money than god, you can make transitions like that. Icebreaker was originally a flash game, and involves slicing through blocks of ice in order to get abandoned vikings to their longboats. Those blocks of ice can be smashed up if they get to the boat after sliding or swinging across the stage, since your main character is there at the ready with an oversized hammer. There are also bonus chests scattered around the level to earn extra coins, which can be used to unlock new branching stages. Icebreaker is actually an awful lot like Perfection, which I looked at last week, only with a bit more of a Cut the Rope vibe. What I like most about Icebreaker though are the chunky, low-fi graphics and the nuggets of funny dialog between each level.

$0.99 - Download now

Minion Rush - Chris Parsons

The lovable little minions are back for Despicable Me 2 and to help promote that they've got a pretty fun little movie tie in game as well from Gameloft. It's a classic swipe based game where you have to collect bananas and avoid whatever may pop up in your path. That all sounds a bit easy but it's really not. Trust me. I've wasted a good amount of time on this. If you're a Temple Run kid of fan, you'll like Minion Rush plus, it's got a lot of humor in it. The game is free to download but has the typical in-app purchases of "coins" to help you progress through the came which can add up.

Free - Download Now

MetalStorm: Online - Peter Cohen

It's one thing to fly jets in iOS games; it's another thing entirely to do it online with other players. MetalStorm: Online is a modern jet dogfighting game that's free to download (in-app purchases can be used to improve your jets). It's easy to control and play using a combination of gyroscopic support, swipe commands and clearly marked buttons on the HUD. Despite its name, MetalStorm: Online has plenty to do offline, too - single player missions that don't require other folks. Of course, the online games are where this one shines - chat with others using an in-game voice system and leverage Game Center to find other people to play. AirPlay support means you can stream games to your Apple TV.

Free - Download now

Real Racing 3 - Richard Devine

I know, I know, the in-app purchases in Real Racing 3 really haven't been handled that well. But truth be told, I haven't spent much more than the cost of its predecessor on it, and I'm still enjoying it immensely. In fact, it's about the only game I play on my iPad every single day. I love racing, and I love racing games, and Real Racing 3 (ignoring the IAP's) is about the best racing game I've ever played on a mobile device. The graphics are sublime, the control system is excellent, and you can get a decent amount of life out of it without handing over a penny. I'm not a fan of how they handled the IAP's on this one, but I'm also not letting it ruin my enjoyment of a truly fantastic game.

Free - Download Now

iPad by Davis

lunes, 24 de junio de 2013