Apps

Swifty is an app that provides an interactive set of tutorials that gradually guide you through the basics of Swift on your iPhone or iPad, from the very basics of variables and data types to the essentials of object-oriented programming.

Privacy campaigners are demanding that toymaker Mattel halts the production of Hello Barbie, a Wi-Fi enabled doll that records children's conversations to learn about their likes, dislikes, and ambitions. Mattel says the doll's voice-recognition technology allows it have a "unique relationship" with its owner, but advocates from the Campaign for a Commercial-free Childhood (CCFC) say the new technology could be exploited....

Late last week, news leaked that YouTube was poised to release a new, kid-friendly version of its YouTube service for mobile devices. Today, much to the delight of families everywhere, that app has now arrived, complete with a simplified design, a curated selection of kid-safe content, parental controls, and more. Google says the app will be made available to families on both Android and…

This week's list includes SwiftKey's latest update, an eye-tracking app to help improve your concentration and an app to help Windows Phone users customize their home screen.

Apple's new Swift programming language has only been available for a few months, but iOS and OS X developers from American Airlines, Getty Images, LinkedIn and Duolingo are reporting favorable impressions--ranging from increased productivity to fewer bugs in their shipping apps--as interest in the new language rapidly accelerates.

Two popular brands released interesting new apps for the Apple ecosystem on Tuesday, as web-based password manager LastPass unveiled its first native Mac app while educational non-profit Khan Academy launched an all-new iPad app.

A new company called Kiko Labs is today releasing a series of “brain-training” games for children. Think, perhaps: a Lumosity for the preschool-plus set. Like others claiming to promote cognitive skill development through gameplay, Kiko Labs’ games were developed in partnership with a scientific advisory board, who advised the company on how to best translate dozens of…

When the iPad made its debut in April 2010, the first Touchpress app—The Elements: A Visual Exploration—was right there with it. The app was actually an ebook in disguise, with stunningly beautiful and interactive 3D illustrations, and it seemed almost perfectly designed to rebut skeptics (and there were many) who believed tablets could only be niche gadgets. Elements truly showed us the iPad’s potential as a vessel for rich, interactive experiences that wouldn’t be the same on the iPhone or even on...

When it comes to keeping those pesky resolutions, your smartphone can actually be your best friend

Apple on Tuesday released its annual "Best of 2014" list for the App Store's most-downloaded and highest-grossing titles, revealing so-called "freemium" games as the year's biggest money-makers.

Even if you’re a relatively “good” drunk, you’re still far dumber than you are when you’re sober. It’s just science. So technology, as it is wont to do, is swooping in to save the day. A new app called Endui (End DUI) was launched by government and police officials in Maryland with about $50,000 in funding from the National Highway Traffic Safety…

Apple on Monday debuted its curated list of the best content available from its various digital platforms, including apps, music, movies, books, podcasts and more.

SAT test preparation” is a phrase guaranteed to evoke a mixture of horror, anxiety, and boredom in even the most diligent high school student. Mobile game developer Pixelberry Studios, however, believes it can make test prep entertaining by incorporating SAT vocabulary into the latest version of its role-playing game “High School Story.”

Kidaptive, the maker of children’s educational iPad applications with a curriculum focused on Kindergarten readiness, has now released a new app designed just for parents. Called “Learner Mosaic,” the app offers parents personalized insights into how well their child is progressing based on their behavior and activity within Kidaptive’s applications, and soon, within…

On the biggest e-sales day of the year, app developers are getting in on the action with hefty Cyber Monday price cuts on popular titles for iOS and Mac, including half-price and free deals for Fantastical, Assassin's Creed Pirates, Pixelmator and more.

Hot or Not founder James Hong has come a long way since building a site that helped people rank the attractiveness of others, ultimately paving the path for speed dating apps like Tinder. Today a father of three, Hong now has a different set of priorities. One of those was keeping his kids safe from the unsuitable, adult-oriented content that fills YouTube. To fix the problem for himself and…

After years of dealing with slow and expensive broadband connections, many Myanmar Internet users finally got access to affordable 3G thanks to recent service rollouts by telecoms Telenor and Ooredoo. A Yangon-based mobile app company called Revo Tech hopes to take advantage of the country’s speedier Internet by becoming a “first mover” in its startup ecosystem.

Code School, the online learning destination that grew out of founder Gregg Pollack’s longtime efforts in creating and sharing technical content with a developer audience, has now made the leap to mobile. With the new iOS application, developers can watch Code School’s over 300 instructional videos covering JavaScript, HTML/CSS, Ruby, iOS and Git as well as other popular…

GoldieBlox, the San Francisco Bay Area startup focused on building toys for girls aimed at getting them hooked on engineering, has this morning taken its first steps into the digital realm with the debut of a new iOS application – the company’s first – GoldieBlox and the Movie Machine, as well as a “digital playground” called Bloxtown.com.The new app works as…

Google has rolled out a new iPhone app called Primer, aimed at teaching startups the fundamentals of marketing – with a Google spin, of course. The new app, available only on iOS for now, but coming soon to Android, complements the Google Primer website which further explains how the mini-marketing lessons Google provides overlaps with the company’s larger agenda.“We…

ToyTalk, the makers of kids entertainment applications for iPad, has just released its first paid application with the launch of a character-driven touch and play app called SpeakaLegend. But the team may have even bigger news on the way in the form of licensing deals for its speech recognition tech with some of the best-known children’s brands, we hear.This startup is a fascinating…

In sync with the public rollout of its next-generation mobile operating system, Apple on Thursday released updates for each of its first-party iOS apps that bring minor tweaks and fixes for compatibility with iOS 8.

When Star Walk launched it was one of those "only on the iPad" kind of apps. Since then many have used it as their digital window to space....

The App Store offers some very powerful calculators for those who need to take on higher-level math or are just tired of the stock Apple offering....

This week's list includes the latest app out of the Sesame Street Workshop, an updated NFL mobile and a new maddeningly difficult game from the creator of Flappy Bird.