Table of contents for Issue 111 in iPad & iPhone User

Apple has announced it has sold one billion iPhones. That’s a huge milestone, but its timing is strangely awkward. Tim Cook told employees in Cupertino that the billionth iPhone had been sold, but this announcement came just one day after Apple’s Q3 2016 saw disappointing iPhone sales, declining to 40.4 million units sold, from 47.5 million in the year-ago quarter. “Last week we passed another major milestone when we sold the billionth iPhone,” Cook said in a press release. “We never set out to make the most, but we’ve always set out to make the best products that make a difference. Thank you to everyone at Apple for helping change the world every day.” The next iPhone revision is expected in September, but rumours suggest Apple isn’t significantly altering its…

We hear from Apple CEO Tim Cook during the company’s quarterly earnings calls, but lately the leader of Apple has been opening up in ways that non-analysts can understand. First he sat down with Fast Company, and then gave an in-depth Washington Post interview on Cook’s five-year anniversary as CEO offered more insight into the company’s past failures and future surprises. A lot has changed in the last five years, Cook told the Post. Steve Jobs passed away just six weeks after Cook took the reins, which came as a shock, he said. Apple expanded its product lineup after Jobs’s death, and some of those devices were conceived of and developed entirely without Jobs’s input. Apple just sold its one billionth iPhone, even as analysts and investors fret over the…

i Phone vs Android (or iOS vs Android, to be more precise) has been the biggest rivalry in tech for the best part of a decade, long ago eclipsing the desktop wars between Apple and Microsoft, and Apple and IBM. There’s well over 800 million active iPhone users in the world right now (Apple reckons the number is above a billion); but that’s nothing to Android, which has something like a billion and a half. But which of those two clans should you join? Is an iPhone or an Android smartphone your best bet for value for money, features, security, ease of use, app selection and more? We’ll be honest: here at iPad & iPhone User we sit unashamedly in the iOS camp, and reckon iOS 9 is the best…

Taking your iPad Pro and iPhone out on the road? These apps can help you get some serious work done without a computer. Whether you’re on a business trip and forced to connect to random Wi-Fi networks, or you’re spending the day at a local coffee shop for a change of scenery, you can remain productive while keeping your data safe and secure. Protect your data Something we hardly think about when we’re at home or in the office is someone snooping on our Wi-Fi traffic, looking for bits and pieces of personal information as we go about our daily tasks. But when you’re using public Wi-Fi networks, you should constantly think about just that scenario. You’ve probably used one without even thinking twice about it. But recently, I’ve started…

Wireless charging has been a feature of many Android smartphones for some time now, but the technology has yet to make an appearance on Apple’s flagship smartphone, the iPhone. Rumours suggest it might make an appearance on the upcoming iPhone 7, but nothing has been confirmed. While it’s arguably not a big deal to some people, there are others that would like to take advantages of the slightly easier life that wireless charging enables. Here, we explain what wireless charging is and show you how to wirelessly charge your iPhone 5, 5c, 5s, 6, 6 Plus, 6s and 6s Plus. What is wireless charging? Contrary to the name, wireless charging isn’t actually wireless as your phone won’t be charged automatically when in range of a wireless charging pad (like Wi-Fi)…

Another quarter brings with it Apple financial results – nearly $8 billion in profit this time, despite a whole lot of tough year-over-year sales and revenue comparisons. But as a part of the results we also get the chance to hear directly from Apple’s executives, in the quarterly ritual of the conference call with analysts. There’s always good stuff to be gleaned from this call, and this quarter was no exception. Here’s what we learned. Optimism about the iPhone buying cycle Combine the changes to the way people buy smartphones (especially in the United States) with the sales fall-off from the iPhone 6 to the iPhone 6s, and a lot of people are worried that the buying cycle of the iPhone is going to be elongated. In other words, while…

Apple’s CEO Tim Cook has described India as one of the company’s fastest growing markets and has proposed to the government a program to offer refurbished phones in the country as a way to get around the high prices of its devices in a price-sensitive market. Cook is also said to have discussed with India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi in May the “possibilities of manufacturing and retailing in India,” a move that would help the company avoid the high import duties on smartphones and other products that the authorities have imposed to encourage local manufacture. However, data from Strategy Analytics suggests that until these plans are put into action the company may continue to see a middling performance in the country. Shipments of the Apple iOS on smartphones fell to…

An Apple security chief unexpectedly announced the company will pay for vulnerabilities found in certain aspects of iOS and iCloud. The program will launch in September by invitation only for a few dozen researchers with whom Apple has an existing strong relationship, and payouts will be based on severity and category. The top fees across five areas range from $25,000 to $200,000, but could be much lower. The announcement came during a presentation by Ivan Krstic, Apple’s head of security engineering and architecture, at the Black Hat security research conference in Las Vegas. The presentation also included a level of technical detail and disclosure of security – here, related to AutoUnlock, HomeKit, and iCloud Keychain – that has been mostly absent in the past at conferences, according to those present.…

The idea behind Pokémon GO is simple, but in the space of a month this augmented-reality mobile game created by The Pokémon Company and Niantic has become the highest-earning mobile app in history. What gives? First, I have to level with you: I didn’t grow up as a Pokémon fan, and I never understood what all the younger kids were so excited about. I guess I thought it was all a bit ‘sad’, but I now feel weirdly defensive of the game. Just the other day I had to hold myself back when a stranger in the pub told me I was too old to be playing Pokémon GO. Outrageous. Things changed in September last year when I wrote an article about the then upcoming Pokémon GO game. Site traffic…

One of the hottest apps on Android and iOS at the moment is the photo editing marvel Prisma. Unlike the filters found on Instagram or Snapchat, Prisma offers a far more artistic flourish thanks to its colourful and painting-like effects. We’ll take you through the basic features so that you can share your images in no time at all. Here’s how to use Prisma on iOS. The interface At its heart Prisma is quite a simple app. Loading it up on your smartphone will present you with two main areas. The upper section is where your image can be seen or captured, while the lower half holds a few settings options. On the left you’ll see the lightning icon which represents the flash. The default option is to have it…

Niantic isn’t the only company benefiting from the Pokémon GO craze (read our review on page 61). It appears that Apple is along for the ride, as well. Apple CEO Tim Cook tweeted: Apple doesn’t release download numbers, but third-party analysts estimate that downloads of Pokémon GO are in the tens of millions worldwide. Though the app is free, in-app purchases are available. Since Apple collects 30 percent from each purchase, that money quickly adds up. One analyst told Fortune that it’s possible that Apple could earn as much as $3 billion within the next year or two. Though Cook doesn’t specifically say that Pokémon GO is the reason for the record-breaking month, it’s easy to connect the dots. During Apple’s Q3 2016 financial results announcement (see page 4), Cook…

Now that it’s nearly September, the iPhone 7 rumours are getting even louder, since its expected unveiling (thought to be 7 September) is right around the corner. To help keep track of all the speculation, we’ve collected every rumour we’ve heard so far. The rumour: ‘Reliable sources’ have confirmed to Japanese tech site Mac Otakara that next month’s iPhone models will be called iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus. Hence, this rumour contradicts previous reports that Apple will release three new models this year. Earlier rumours suggested that Apple would introduce a higher-tier Pro version that would feature a Smart Connector and an even better camera. This rumour was also picked up by MacRumours. Plausible? Apple has chosen to stay with the status quo when it comes to the two-model…

Refurbished Apple products are technically pre-owned, but they undergo such a rigorous refurbishing process that it’s unlikely you’ll even notice. In fact pre-owned may mean only used once, perhaps it’s a unit that was loaned to a journalist, or it was returned by a customer who decided they wanted a different model, or maybe there was a fault with it – a fault that Apple will have rectified as part of its refurbishment when it got it ready for sale. What do you get? If you buy a refurbished iPad from Apple, you’ll get the same one-year warranty as if you bought a brand-new iPad, all of the manuals and accessories that come with a new iPad, a brand new battery and outer shell and a new white box for…

If you’ve got an iOS device and you’re pondering the best way to connect it to a television, you’ve come to the right place. You have two options: • Connect your iPhone or iPad to a television using the Lightning Digital AV Adaptor and a HDMI cable • Connect your iPhone or iPad to an Apple TV device using AirPlay Both have their merits: it all depends on your preferences. We also consider ways to get the new Apple TV involved – it has a part to play here, too. Lightning Digital AV Adaptor The easiest option is to buy a Lightning Digital AV Adaptor from the Apple Store. At £40 it’s not cheap, and you’ll also need an HDMI Cable. The adaptor contains an HDMI port to plug into…

It started as rumbles and turned into solid rumours. Now, with the report from Bloomberg by Mark Gurman that the next iPhone won’t have a headphone jack, it seems like a sure thing. The standard audio plug that’s been around for decades (and in every Mac, iPod, iPad, and iPhone) is being removed from Apple’s most popular product. As someone who’s been listening to music on plugged-in headphones since at least the 1980s, this has been a difficult story to come to terms with. The iPhone succeeded the iPod as my go-to music player. I’m listening to music on my iPhone via a pair of wired headphones right now. But Gurman’s sources are generally impeccable, and I’m starting to come to terms with the inevitability of this change. I’ve gone…