Apple is facing a new controversy surrounding user data and I-phone apps, and it's ironic because when it comes to privacy, Apple has taken a firm stance that goes much further than online giants like Amazon, Google and Facebook. In fact, Apple CEO Tim Cook has gone so far as to declare privacy is a human right, shortly before rolling out an ad campaign centered on the slogan "what happens on your I-phone, stays on your I-phone." So it's come as a big surprise to the Apple faithful that there are dozens of trackers running on your I-phone - and delivering the data they gather throughout the day and night.
A test run with a new app called "Disconnect" found over 5,400 trackers had gathered more than 1.5 gigabytes of data in just a single week. Even more troubling, a lot of the tracking isn't necessarily made clear in the privacy policy of the apps you're using. And what happens with all that private information may also not be spelled out in end user agreements. A lot of the time, it was even difficult to track where the data was going, opening up users to the possibility of identity theft or data corruption.
The good news - most of the data blocked by the "Disconnect" app is simply ad tracking information for apps you get for free, and some of the captured data is about how you interact with apps so that developers can improve them over time - meaning most of the apps sending data aren't doing it to "spy" on you. Still, Apple may have to do a significant amount of damage control if it turns out their privacy pledge isn't as transparent as they thought it would be.
The new Material Theme Play Store redesign is now rolling out with version 15.1.24. The refreshed design updates the Play Store with a clean whitewashed theme and drops the green. You might remember we first covered this back in April when the new design was discovered from an APK teardown.
Besides dropping all the green, it has also moved the navigation bar from the top to the bottom and removed the music category. No worries though, you can still browse music by opening it from the hamburger menu.
Some other immediate changes you'll notice include more rounded corners, a new font, and the new flat design that no longer uses a card interface, lines, or drop shadows.
The app pages have also gotten a major facelift, with the ratings and stats pushed to the top and an install button that now runs the entire horizontal length of the page. Not only that, but when you install an app the old download bar has been revamped into a circle that goes around the app's icon.
Overall, the new design provides users with a cleaner and more cohesive look which brings it up to date with Material Theme standards. If you've been following Google's other apps, you'll know we've seen similar facelifts for Gmail, Google Drive, Google Voice, and a few others.
If you're not yet seeing the new design, make sure you have version 15.1.24 of the app or download it from APKMirror. If you have the latest version of the Play Store and you still don't see it, try clearing the cache in the app settings.
Not only has the Play Store gotten a big UI refresh, but Google has also been making changes behind the scenes. On May 30, we reported on big updates to Play Store policies regarding sexual content, hate speech, loot boxes, and the sale of marijuana.
Apple will kick off its World Wide Developer’s Conference next week, where the tech giant is sure to have several announcements about its latest software.
Starting on Monday, Apple is expected to take the wraps off its new operating systems, including iOS 13. Apple’s mobile operating system is tipped to add dark mode, a popular feature that has already arrived on macOS, according to 9to5Mac.
Dark mode looks the most striking on apps with white backgrounds, but it also has a more practical side. Newer iPhones like the iPhone X and XS have OLED displays that use less power in dark mode and, as a result, can extend battery life.
Apple's Messages app is also expected to see a refresh, becoming increasingly similar to WhatsApp. It's anticipated it will get features that allow users to create a profile picture and who is able to see the picture. Additionally, the Mail app is slated to get better organized with the addition of searchable categories.
Tim Cook, CEO, speaks during Apple's annual world wide developer conference (WWDC) in San Jose, California, U.S. June 5, 2017. REUTERS/Stephen Lam - RTX395JL
(REUTERS/Stephen Lam)
It's also possible that there may be a sleep mode in the works that turns on Do Not Disturb and mutes incoming notifications. Other upgrades may include a redesigned Find My iPhone app that unifies it with Find My Friends, according to reports.
Multi-tasking on the iPad may be enhanced, thanks to the new version of iOS. For example, users will be able to open multiple windows of the same application.
With the update of the Mac operating system, users can expect to see more progress toward so-called universal apps for developers. The aim is for developers to design a single app that works on the Mac or iOS – on mouse/trackpad or touchscreen, respectively.
This could boost the number of apps on the Mac since it would make it easier for developers to target both platforms. Cupertino, Calif.-based Apple may move new apps to macOS 10.15 such as an upgraded Apple Books, a new Music app, Podcasts, and Find My iPhone/Find My Friends, according to Bloomberg.
The bad news for macOS 10.15 is some older apps may not work because 32-bit apps will no longer be supported, due to support limited for 64-bit apps in the new macOS. For example, old 32-bit versions of the QuickTime Player won’t work but the newer 64-bit version will.
In addition to updates to Apple's Mac operating system, the Apple Watch is also expected to get improvements to its operating system, watchOS.
The Apple Watch will finally get its own App Store, so you can download apps right to the Watch for the first time. To date, you have had to update the Watch via your iPhone.
Health apps are a big reason the Apple Watch is the best-selling smartwatch. New health apps expected include one that tracks menstrual cycles and one for pill reminders. Other planned apps are a Voice Memos app, calculator and an audiobook app.
While WWDC has largely been software focused in the past, Apple has occasionally announced new hardware, including new Macs. Some rumors suggest Apple may show the redesigned Mac Pro, which the company has been working on and is Pro aimed at its high-end users. It would likely come with the latest and greatest chips and hardware and be modular for easy upgrades.
After a lackluster Black Ops 4 release, Activision is predictably taking the Call of Duty back to its most popular incarnation with the stupidly named Call of Duty: Modern Warfare.
So, let’s address the name first.
The original Modern Warfare, named Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, was, as its name suggests the fourth entry in the series. It was also the first to drop the World War II themes on which the series was, to then, based. It was also a smash hit, and its sequels—the creatively titled Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare and Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare 3—each raised the bar, catapulting COD into one of the biggest franchises in gaming history.
COD also saw great success with a second series, Black Ops, but its other titles, each an attempt to jumpstart a new series, were mostly lackluster and failed, at least within the context of COD, to generate much excitement. So Activision has retooled in recent years and has gone back to its roots: The previous two COD titles, Call of Duty: WWII and Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, harkened back to great COD series of the past. And it was assumed, correctly, that the next title would be a new entry in the Modern Warfare series.
And that it would be called Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4. But it’s not. I guess because of the oddness of the naming of the first MW title, which had a 4 in it.
OK, whatever.
Aside from hitting the same kind of creative brick wall that led to the previous two COD games, it looks like the new MW will differ from those games in at least one important way. Unlike BO4, it will have a single-player campaign, and Activision claims it will be grittier than ever—grittier, even, than the controversial MW2 sequence in which the player was instructed to indiscriminately kill civilians in a Russian airport—and, to my eyes, it appears to use a lot of DOOM 3-style darkness to amp up the tension.
Activision’s David Hodgson published the exact same blog post to Sony’s and Microsoft’s video game blogs, and it is incredibly short on details. Based on the trailer, however, the new MW sees the return of familiar characters, familiar scenarios—including, even the lame “you’re wounded and being dragged by a compadre and must fend off chasing enemies with a pistol—and familiar environments, including the Middle East. There’s night vision, ghillie suits, aircraft strikes of all kinds, and close combat, all the things that COD fans cherished from the original MW series.
And … I don’t know. As I griped previously in Another Black Ops? Call of Duty is Stuck in the Past, Activision’s inability to push COD forward has led to the franchise getting stuck in the past. It’s become the Marvel Universe of gaming, the same thing over and over again.
BO4 was notable almost solely because it introduced a battle royale game mode in response to the success of Fortnite, which is stealing away players, media attention, and dollars, and has jumpstarted the e-sports industry in ways that, frankly, COD should have capitalized on first. Worse, it ruined the year-long value for those of us, like me, who prefer traditional multiplayer and expect regular, and high-quality, map drops. It’s been very light, and many of the “new” maps are just reimagined versions of existing maps with different weather. Come on.
The new MW, meanwhile, promises a more traditional experience of multiplayer, campaign, and co-op gameplay … and that’s about it. If you peruse the Call of Duty website, you’ll discover almost nothing about the new game at all. Other than its release date, October 24, and that it will come in five editions for some reason, three of which are digital.
Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) starts this Monday, June 3, with a stage presentation by Apple executives at 10am Pacific Time. WWDC is usually one of the two biggest Apple events of the year (the other is the now-recurring iPhone/Apple Watch event in the fall), and it generally focuses on software.
It has become tradition for Apple to introduce new versions of its operating systems to developers at WWDC. Those systems include iOS for iPhone, iPad, and iPod; macOS for Mac; watchOS for Apple Watch; and tvOS for Apple TV and Apple TV 4K. In fact, these are some of the primary purposes of the event. So you can expect to see detailed presentations during Apple's keynote on each of those, plus deeper dives for developers in the various sessions at the convention center, which will also be made available as videos on Apple's developer portal.
To prepare for the event, we're recording what we deem to be the likeliest-to-be-true rumors, reports, and predictions ahead of the show—not just for software, but for hardware too.
Let's dig in.
iOS 13
Enlarge/ From left to right: the iPhone 8, the iPhone XS, the iPhone XR, and the iPhone XS Max.
Samuel Axon
We'll start with iOS. Much of what we know about iOS 13 comes from a recent Bloomberg report, as well as a handful of leaks shared by 9to5Mac in recent weeks. Apple focused iOS 12 on fixing bugs and improving performance on older devices, with the company postponing some features to iOS 13. It's likely iPhone and iPad users will finally see some of the features they didn't get last year, but performance and stability remain a focus.
With those priorities in mind, Apple has, in fact, made some big changes to how it approaches developing iOS over the past year or two. We don't know much about exactly how performance will be improved, though. The Bloomberg report says there will be new, perhaps faster animations for the multitasking interface and for closing apps.
When it comes to new features, though, we know a little more.
Enlarge/ Screenshots of iOS 13's Dark Mode, according to 9to5Mac.
We've seen multiple reports citing reliable sources that Apple will bring Dark Mode—which was introduced to macOS with last year's 10.14 Mojave update—to iOS devices. Just this week, 9to5Mac published what it believes to be screenshots of Dark Mode (pictured above). It's a boon for users who find themselves using their phones in bed late at night or while watching a movie or TV in their home theater, for sure, but glare on those glossy screens will mean you'll probably want to keep the standard light mode on when out and about during the day.
iPad improvements
While we don't have many details, multiple reports have said that the iPad will get a new multitasking interface and that there will be long-asked-for changes to the home screen as well. Further, Apple plans to introduce a way for users to easily cycle between different versions of the same application, though it is unclear what the benefit of this would be to mainstream users. (Obviously, developers and some power users could benefit from this tremendously.)
A 9to5Mac report also citing sources familiar with Apple's plans said some kind of new windowed application interface will be introduced—this may be the same thing as the Bloomberg report's note on multitasking, or it could be something else. In any case, according to 9to5Mac, "Each window will also be able to contain sheets that are initially attached to a portion of the screen but can be detached with a drag gesture, becoming a card that can be moved around freely." Users will be able to stack the cards or dismiss them with some sort of gesture.
Finally, the sources behind the same 9to5Mac report said that Safari on the iPad will begin defaulting to the desktop version of websites instead of the mobile version whenever possible.
Updated apps
Tweaks to existing apps that are made by Apple and included with the OS are expected with each new iOS release. Apple is expected to make notable changes to Mail, Health, Messages, Maps, Books, and particularly Reminders.
For example, the Bloomberg report says that Apple will make it easier to access and track saved locations in Maps. The report also says that users will be able to mute threads in Mail, the Health app will display new and different information on its main screen, and Reminders will get a much-needed total overhaul.
Safari usually sees some big changes; this time, rumor has it that Apple will introduce a new downloads interface—at least on iPad. Apple may also combine the somewhat-infrequently used Find My Phone and Find My Friends apps into one.
Other iOS changes
The Bloomberg report also indicated that Apple will introduce a SwiftKey-like swipe keyboard. These have been available as third-party apps for quite some time, but like any platform holder with an abundance of resources, Apple has generally not hesitated to undercut developers with its own first-party version of a concept popularized by the developer community in the past.
Finally, Apple reportedly plans to introduce several new parent-focused features for Screen Time, the Settings panel that came out last year. Screen Time lets users control what apps and content can be accessed when, as well as track their usage with helpful metrics.
If you were hoping for some undead action in Call of Duty Modern Warfare then you're out of luck, as there's no zombies mode in the latest Call of Duty. Campaign Gameplay Director Jacob Minkoff dropped the news in an interview with Playstation Lifestyle, saying that "we’re trying to create an authentic, realistic feeling world. We don’t have the flexibility to do something like put zombies in the game. That would compromise the feeling of playing in a world that feels realistic and authentic and relative to today’s conflicts and things we face".
From the sounds of it, this year's Call of Duty is leaning hard into the realism angle, and we thankfully haven't yet got to the stage of human history where glowing-eyed zombies are a reality thanks to a virus/curse/alien invasion. Minkoff mentioned that previous games like Black Ops 4 included zombies "because they focus on more of the stylized, graphic novel, super-hero experience, [so] they can have the much more ‘out there’ different types of gameplay in their games", whereas Modern Warfare is dealing with (perhaps) uncomfortably realistic issues like the terrorist cell al-Qaeda.
For Treyarch it sounds like there was simply no way to make a zombies mode work alongside real-life issues like terrorism, as according to Minkoff when it comes to gameplay and story progression in particular "knowing that we needed to keep it more similar across the different modes, we decided to really lean into that, and make it completely continuous". Looks like even without a zombies mode there's still going to be plenty to keep you busy in Modern Warfare, and we'll just have to wait until October 25 to see it in action.
For more Call of Duty Modern Warfare info, here's everything we know about the Call of Duty Modern Warfare season pass, or look below to see what we thought of the game!
When AMD launched its third-gen Zen 2-based Ryzen processors, it also introduced the next generation PCIe 4.0 controllers. Now, Gigabyte has launched one of the first PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSDs that shows the incredible speed potential of the new tech. The AORUS NVMe Gen4 SSD can hit up to 5,000MB/s read speeds and 4,400 MB/s write performance. That's about 56 percent faster read and over double the write speeds of Samsung's 970 EVO, currently one of the fastest NVMe SSDs on the market.
Gigabyte isn't the only company to launch a PCI 4.0 SSD, as Corsair also unveiled the MP600 NVMe SSD with very similar performance. Both products use the Phison PS5016-E16 controller and 3D TLC (triple-level cell) NAND flash memory chips (from Toshiba, in the case of the AORUS).
The AURUS NVMe Gen4 SSD has a full body copper heat spreader, indicating that things might get pretty hot when it hits those top speeds. Gigabyte claims that the heatsink reduces temperatures by about 14 percent.
The drive will come in 1TB and 2TB sizes and the only way to get the most out of it, for now, will be to buy Gigabyte's X570 motherboard and one of the new Ryzen processors. Everything, including the AORUS SSD, motherboard and Ryzen chips will arrive sometime in July. There's no price, but given that this is a bleeding edge product, expect to be one of the more expensive NVMe SSDs available.
When AMD launched its third-gen Zen 2-based Ryzen processors, it also introduced the next generation PCIe 4.0 controllers. Now, Gigabyte has launched one of the first PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSDs that shows the incredible speed potential of the new tech. The AORUS NVMe Gen4 SSD can hit up to 5,000MB/s read speeds and 4,400 MB/s write performance. That's about 56 percent faster read and over double the write speeds of Samsung's 970 EVO, currently one of the fastest NVMe SSDs on the market.
Gigabyte isn't the only company to launch a PCI 4.0 SSD, as Corsair also unveiled the MP600 NVMe SSD with very similar performance. Both products use the Phison PS5016-E16 controller and 3D TLC (triple-level cell) NAND flash memory chips (from Toshiba, in the case of the AORUS).
The AURUS NVMe Gen4 SSD has a full body copper heat spreader, indicating that things might get pretty hot when it hits those top speeds. Gigabyte claims that the heatsink reduces temperatures by about 14 percent.
The drive will come in 1TB and 2TB sizes and the only way to get the most out of it, for now, will be to buy Gigabyte's X570 motherboard and one of the new Ryzen processors. Everything, including the AORUS SSD, motherboard and Ryzen chips will arrive sometime in July. There's no price, but given that this is a bleeding edge product, expect to be one of the more expensive NVMe SSDs available.
When AMD launched its third-gen Zen 2-based Ryzen processors, it also introduced the next generation PCIe 4.0 controllers. Now, Gigabyte has launched one of the first PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSDs that shows the incredible speed potential of the new tech. The AORUS NVMe Gen4 SSD can hit up to 5,000MB/s read speeds and 4,400 MB/s write performance. That's about 56 percent faster read and over double the write speeds of Samsung's 970 EVO, currently one of the fastest NVMe SSDs on the market.
Gigabyte isn't the only company to launch a PCI 4.0 SSD, as Corsair also unveiled the MP600 NVMe SSD with very similar performance. Both products use the Phison PS5016-E16 controller and 3D TLC (triple-level cell) NAND flash memory chips (from Toshiba, in the case of the AORUS).
The AURUS NVMe Gen4 SSD has a full body copper heat spreader, indicating that things might get pretty hot when it hits those top speeds. Gigabyte claims that the heatsink reduces temperatures by about 14 percent.
The drive will come in 1TB and 2TB sizes and the only way to get the most out of it, for now, will be to buy Gigabyte's X570 motherboard and one of the new Ryzen processors. Everything, including the AORUS SSD, motherboard and Ryzen chips will arrive sometime in July. There's no price, but given that this is a bleeding edge product, expect to be one of the more expensive NVMe SSDs available.
The Games with Gold 2019 line-up is headlined by NHL 19 and Rivals of Aether on Xbox One and Portal: Still Alive and Earth Defence Force 2017 for Xbox 360.
NHL 19 and Portal: Still Alive are the games first up, with the EA ice hockey game available between June 1 to June 30 and Portal available from June 1 to June 15.
Rivals of Aether is next up on Xbox One, available between June 16 and July 15 and Earth Defence Force 2017 available between June 16 and June 30.
ORIGINAL: Games with Gold June 2019 line-up will be revealed by Major Nelson soon with a whole host of new free Xbox One games getting announced.
Time is running out for the Games with Gold June 2019 announcement to be made with only a few days left in the month.
While Sony announce their new PS Plus line-ups on a specific day in the month, Microsoft are a bit more unpredictable.
The new Games with Gold reveal typically takes place at the end of the month, but the date and time that happens at varies.
The only thing that’s certain is Microsoft historically have not announced new selections of Xbox One free games on the last day in the month.
So, that means the Games with Gold June 2019 announcement is most likely to happen today (Thursday May 30).
As the Games with Gold June 2019 announcement approaches Major Nelson has delivered some great news to Xbox One fans.
New Deals with Gold offers have become available ahead of the Games with Gold June 2019 announcement being made.
The headline deals are Tekken 7 being reduced from £39.99 to £20 and Dark Souls Remastered being reduced from £34.99 to £24.49.
These money saving deals are only available for Xbox Live Gold members.
Click here to find out the full list of Deals with Gold that are running right now for a limited time only.
The news comes as another great offer is running which Xbox One fans can take advantage of at the moment.
Recently the price of a yearly Xbox Live Gold membership in the UK rose from £39.99 to £49.99.
Microsoft said this was taking place to “address market conditions”.
But right now you can get a saving of 26 per cent on the new price of an Xbox Live Gold yearly membership at CDKeys.
The online retailer is offering a big saving on Xbox Live with the price of a yearly subscription reduced to £36.79.
PC players, rejoice: Microsoft is bringing its previously-Xbox exclusive subscription service, Xbox Game Pass, to Windows 10. The company is promising "a curated library" with more than 100 titles from various third-party developers including Bethesda, Deep Silver, Devolver Digital and Sega. Phil Spencer confirmed the company's "intent" to make new Xbox exclusives available on the same day as their general release. That includes upcoming titles from Obsidian Entertainment, inXile Entertainment, and the other studios that Microsoft acquired last year. Subscribers will also get a few other perks including discounts of up to 20 percent for games in the Microsoft Store.
The new Game Pass sounds, in short, just like the console equivalent that launched in June 2017. It's not clear, though, how much the PC service will cost and if you'll need separate subscriptions for both platforms. Microsoft says it will be "sharing more at E3," including "when and how you'll experience the new Xbox Game Pass service for PC gamers," so stay tuned.
Today, Microsoft also announced its intention to release, at launch, first-party games through multiple storefronts on PC. That means the next Gears of War should, in theory, be available through Steam and possibly the Epic Games Store, not just the generally-disliked Microsoft Store. The company had already promised to release Halo: The Maser Chief Collection on Steam later this year. Today's announcement goes further, though, ensuring that all new games are available immediately in the stores that PC players typically prefer. Microsoft has also vowed to bring more than 20 older titles to Steam, including Gears 5 and all Age of Empires I, II and III: Definitive Editions.
Last, but certainly not least: the Microsoft Store will soon support native Win32 apps. That means developers can build and serve the same file to Steam, the Epic Games Store and the Microsoft Store -- they won't have to bother with the Universal Windows Platform (UWP) API, if that's their preference. The move should make it easier, and more attractive, for companies to distribute their games through the Microsoft Store. That could expand its catalog and, possibly, make it a more useful and relevant storefront for PC gamers.
"It's critical that we make decisions that reinforce the open nature of the PC, focusing on how best to unite players on all devices around the games they love," Spencer said. "That philosophy will guide us as we introduce new ways to discover and play games on Windows." For Microsoft, the strategy is simple: offer Xbox-branded games and services to as many people as possible. We already know that Xbox Live -- including your achievements, clubs and friends list -- will soon be available in Android, iOS and Switch games. Throw in Project xCloud, a still-in-development streaming service, and you can imagine a future where the Xbox brand is literally anywhere and everywhere.
Microsoft says it’s committed to supporting competing PC game stores and it’s announcing today that it will distribute more Xbox Game Studios titles through Valve’s Steam marketplace. Typically, Microsoft has distributed its games through only Xbox Live on its game console platform and through its own Windows storefront on PC. Now, Microsoft says it wants to better support player choice and let customers buy games in more than one destination on PC.
“Our intent is to make our Xbox Game Studios PC games available in multiple stores, including our own Microsoft Store on Windows, at their launch. We believe you should have choice in where you buy your PC games,” writes Xbox chief Phil Spencer in a blog post announcing the shift in strategy. The move follows Microsoft’s decision to publish its upcoming Halo: The Master Chief Collection on Steam.
“We will continue to add to the more than 20 Xbox Game Studios titles on Steam, starting with Gears 5 and all Age of Empires I, II, and III: Definitive Editions,” Spencer explains. “We know millions of PC gamers trust Steam as a great source to buy PC games and we’ve heard the feedback that PC gamers would like choice.”
It’s not an unusual move for Microsoft these days, especially not since Spencer took over the Xbox division in 2014 under CEO Satya Nadella, who promoted him again in the fall of 2017 to run all of the company’s gaming initiatives spanning Xbox and Windows 10.
The two have worked together to build a far more open and cooperative Microsoft, and that’s given birth to a lot of genuinely player-friendly advancements in the Xbox and Windows departments. Xbox games published by Microsoft can now be played on the PC free of charge, thanks to the Xbox Play Anywhere initiative, while Microsoft worked with Nintendo and game developers like Epic and Psyonix to successfully apply pressure on Sony to support cross-platform play. The company is also pioneering a new business model for games with its Xbox Game Pass subscription, and its upcoming xCloud cloud gaming service is poised to introduce an all-new distribution model for delivering games and potentially upending how games are both funded and sold.
What’s remarkable in this case is that Microsoft is standing somewhat in opposition to Epic Games, a company whose CEO Tim Sweeney once criticized Microsoft for attempting to create a closed ecosystem with its Universal Windows Platform strategy, which attempted to distribute all software, including PC games, exclusively through its own storefront.
”Microsoft has built a closed platform-within-a-platform into Windows 10,” Sweeney wrote in a 2015 op-ed in The Guardian, “as the first apparent step towards locking down the consumer PC ecosystem and monopolising app distribution and commerce.” At the time, Sweeney called for Microsoft to let developers publish games built using UWP on other stores. He went so far as to say UWP “can, should, must, and will die.”
Now, it’s Epic that’s trying to supplant Steam with its own game store and finding itself embroiled in controversy stemming mostly from its exclusivity contracts it secures with developers. Of course, Epic’s approach is much different than Microsoft’s was back then, given it does not own the Windows operating system and has nowhere near the level of power and control Microsoft did when it was trying to push UWP. But Epic, having grown to a level of unprecedented power in the PC marketplace due to the success of Fortnite, is discovering just how hard it is to dethrone Steam.
Microsoft, on the other hand, has given up entirely on that vision and is instead embracing a much more open model. And it extends beyond gaming. Microsoft recently announced a partnership with Google to rebuild its Edge browser, once built on UWP, using the open-source Chromium framework.
“We also know that there are other stores on PC, and we are working to enable more choice in which store you can find our Xbox Game Studios titles in the future,” Spencer writes, indicating that Microsoft may eventually publish its games on Epic’s store as well. Spencer goes on to say that the company is committed to providing voice and text chat, friends lists, and cross-play across PC and console to all titles it publishes under Xbox Game Studios. “On Windows 10 you’ll find this functionality in the Xbox Game Bar, which we’ll continue to evolve and expand,” he adds.
In addition to this shift to support Steam and competing stores, Microsoft says it’s also opening up support in the Microsoft Store for games built as native Win32 apps, which is the predominant Windows app format and the format that UWP effectively was designed to replace. This all but ensures UWP will fall out of favor with game studios that may have felt forced to adopt the format in recent years to better access core Windows 10 features.
“We recognize that Win32 is the app format that game developers love to use and gamers love to play, so we are excited to share that we will be enabling full support for native Win32 games to the Microsoft Store on Windows,” Spencer writes. “This will unlock more options for developers and gamers alike, allowing for the customization and control they’ve come to expect from the open Windows gaming ecosystem.”
Apple will kick off its developer conference Monday.
Apple
At WWDC next week, Apple may be talking to developers. But it's really all about you.
Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference is the company's annual gathering where it hosts designers and engineers making apps for iPhones, iPads and other Apple devices. Thousands will descend on the McEnery Convention Center in San Jose, California, at 10 a.m. PT on Monday to hear CEO Tim Cook and various executives outline their strategy for the company's software. They'll spend the rest of the week at sessions about the new technology and walk away with plans for updating their apps.
WWDC typically isn't where Apple launches new devices. Instead, it updates its iOS software for iPhones and iPads, MacOS for its computers, TVOS for Apple TV and WatchOS for the Apple Watch. Despite all of that news, most of what it unveils won't be available until later in the year, at best. Even if you're a big software fan, some of Apple's announcements, like discussions about the Swift programming language, get technical pretty fast.
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iOS 13, MacOS 10.15 and MacPro: Everything we’re expecting...
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It may be easy to think WWDC doesn't have anything for you. You're not going to see the next iPhone there, and Oprah's not going to show up. She's already been to one Apple event this year, after all. What could a developer-focused show really offer you?
But if you look past all the talk about Swift and APIs, you'll find quite a lot. While WWDC is all about the developers, it's also Apple's way of teasing the features and services you'll see in products coming later this year. You won't see the new iPhone, but you will see what its interface will look like. You may not get the new Mac Pro, but at the very least, Apple will try to make you feel like it hasn't forgotten the creative professionals. And there will be various health, augmented reality and privacy advancements you'll soon get to access.
But just because it's doing more on its own doesn't mean Apple doesn't need developers. After all, it's their apps that keep you reaching for your iPhone. And Apple will give them even more ways to improve those apps you use everyday.
"Apple's not going to have a service for everything out there," Creative Strategies analyst Carolina Milanesi said. "At the end of the day, developers drive engagement, drive new use case and drive the link the consumer has with their device."
While Apple likely won't completely overhaul the App Store, it's got to find ways to keep its developers -- and in return, you -- happy.
At a time when rival Google is touting its artificial intelligence prowess, Apple's software also needs to be smarter. Apple's Siri Shortcuts feature from last year allows the company's digital assistant to complete complex tasks with a single voice command -- or sometimes without a voice command at all. But Siri still doesn't match up to the assistants from Google and Amazon.
The breadth of apps in the App Store isn't the advantage it used to be.
"I don't know the last time I downloaded a new app from the App Store," Milanesi said. "We're now in a very mature part of the market. Apple can't tell the same story."
Beyond the iPhone
This year, there could be two major announcements by Apple that actually have very little to do with its iPhones: the launch of a Watch App Store and a bigger push with Project Marzipan, the effort to make iPhone and iPad apps run on Macs.
Apple's huge installed base of iPhone users has made developing for the iOS App Store an easy sell. At the end of 2018, there were 1.4 billion Apple devices actively used around the globe, the company said in late January during its quarterly earnings report. More than 900 million of them were iPhones.
That same focus hasn't extended to Apple's other products, though. The Mac App Store never really took off, with most software on computers coming through Web browsers. Not all developers have made companion Apple Watch apps, and Apple TV has largely centered around video, not the gaming platform Apple once envisioned. It can even be hard to find apps optimized for Apple's various iPads.
The next version of Apple's WatchOS is expected to make the Apple Watch more "independent." You'll be able to download apps directly from your watch -- even if your phone is nowhere around. Today, Apple Watch apps are companions to the main iPhone app. You currently add them, update them or change their settings through your smartphone, not your watch.
"The watch is an area where Apple has an enormous lead over the competition," Techsponential analyst Avi Greengart said. "But there's still a lot of headroom on the watch."
Mac attention?
The biggest advancements from WWDC could come to Apple's long-neglected Mac computer line.
Apple still generates about 10% to 15% of its quarterly sales from its computer line, but it hasn't given its Macs as much attention in recent years as other its devices like the iPhone and Apple Watch. In October 2016, Apple redesigned the MacBook Pro laptop for the first time in four years, but the "butterfly switch" keyboard it's used in every new laptop since then has been criticized. Last week, Apple said it would replace all defective butterfly switch keyboards for free -- even on the new MacBook Pro models it just unveiled.
Apple's Mac Pro is long overdue for an update.
CNET
Power users, like graphic designers, also have been waiting for more pro-friendly features for years. The company hasn't made big changes to its high-power Mac Pro since 2013. Notable for its cylindrical design, the Mac Pro is favored by creatives who need a lot of horsepower for professional purposes. Apple said in April 2017 that it's working on a big refresh of the computer, but a year later, it said the device wouldn't hit the market until sometime in 2019.
It's unclear whether Apple will actually launch the Mac Pro at WWDC, but it likely will spend a big chunk of its keynote on its computer line.
At the end of Apple's WWDC presentation last year, the company gave a sneak peak of Project Marzipan, its effort to make it easy to take apps developed for iOS devices to Macs. Its MacOS update released in September included four of Apple's own apps that originated on iOS -- News, Stocks, Voice Memos and Home.
This year at WWDC, Apple is expected to open that capability up to third party developers, as well as port more of its own iOS apps, like Podcasts, to the Mac. Marzipan brings Apple's mobile devices and computers one step closer -- without actually merging them.
Like much of WWDC, it may seem wonky and pretty removed from your actual devices. But listen closely, and you just might see the future of those Apple products you'll one day hold in your hands.
