The Epic Games Store made a splash when it first launched as a Steam competitor in early 2019, at least partly due to Epic’s decision to give away at least one game for free every week. But now it looks like Epic isn’t stopping with games. Epic CEO Tim Sweeney just announced the first non-game […]
Tag: app store
Cydia app store creator files lawsuit against Apple, claims anti-competitive behavior
When the first iPhone was released in 2007, it didn’t have an app store. Instead, it came with a handful of Apple-made apps pre-installed and if you wanted to do anything else with the phone, Apple suggested opening the Safari browser and using web apps. The following year, Apple introduced the App Store. But it […]
Lilbits: The iPhone 12 is coming (in four versions)
Apple is holding its iPhone 12 launch event on October 13. But the company isn’t just launching one iPhone 12. According to recent leaks, there will be four different models with starting prices ranging from $699 to $1099. The company may also introduce a $99 HomePod Mini, which would be more of a direct competitor with […]
13 companies form coalition to protest Apple, Google app store policies
Epic has been engaged in a high-profile battle with Apple and Google over their app store policies. But the game maker isn’t the only company dissatisfied with Apple and Google taking a 30-percent cut of sales, insisting that all revenue generated from apps in their stores is subject to this “app tax,” and holding other […]
Lilbits: IFTTT goes Pro, and Eero goes WiFi 6, and Bluetooth goes… vulnerable
For the past 10 years, IFTTT (If This, Then That) has been offering a free service that lets you connect cloud services using recipes. For example, I used it to dump my daily Fitbit stats into a Google Spreadsheet for a few years. But now IFTTT is going Pro, which means that after October 7th, […]
New App Store guidelines could bring game streaming to iPhones (maybe)
Over the past year Google, Microsoft, NVIDIA, and Facebook all launched game streaming services that promise to let you play console-quality games on internet-connected devices such as phones, tablets, low-power computers, or smart TVs. And so far Apple has refused to let you use any of those services on an iPhone or iPad. Now Apple […]
Lilbits: A handheld Nintendo Wii, a $200 OnePlus smartphone, and TuneIn drops out (one of its Pro features)
Some folks like to play classic console games by using emulators on smartphones, tablets, or handheld game systems with modern hardware. And then there’s the community of Nintendo Wii hackers who literally cut Nintendo’s 2006 game console down to size and stuff the components inside of custom cases. We’ve seen projects that put a Wii […]
Lilbits: Nintendo Switch 4K coming next year, Samsung Galaxy Z 2 Fold next month
Last year Nintendo released a smaller, cheaper, and slightly less capable version of its popular Switch game console. Now rumor has it that the company will make a move in the other direction next year, by launching a pricier, more powerful version of the Nintendo Switch that adds support for 4K displays. We probably won’t […]
How to install Fortnite on Android (now that it’s gone from the Play Store)
The developer of the wildly popular battle royale game Fortnite launched their own battle against Apple and Google this week. In a well-orchestrated series of moves, Epic intentionally broke the rules of the App Store and Google Play, which resulted in Fortnite being kicked out of both stores… and in response Epic file lawsuits against […]
Lilbits: Apple “Prime,” Intel Alder Lake-S, and an Epic game of chicken
When Epic first brought its incredibly popular video game Fortnite to smartphones two years ago, the company sidestepped the App Store and Google Play by offering its own Android app launcher. Eventually Epic made its game available in the official Android and iOS app stores, but company officials were never happy about having to split […]
Daily Deals (12-20-2019)
Looking for a last-minute gift, but don’t want to actually venture out of the house or hope that online retailers can deliver on their promises to deliver by December 24th? Digital gift cards to the rescue — eBay offers cards for hundreds of stores. And if you’ve got an Apple user in your shopping list, […]
AltStore is an alternate App Store for iOS… no jailbreak required
Apple’s iPhones and iPads popularized the idea of app stores, which make it easy to find and install apps and manage updates all from one place. But while competitors like Google, Amazon, and Microsoft have all launched their own app stores, they also make it fairly easy for users to install apps from other sources. […]