apps

Forecast for Revamped Weather Channel iPhone App Looks Bright

Bonnie Cha in Product News on May 18 at 11:15 am PT

The Weather Channel iPhone app finally gets a major redesign after three years.

Mobile Gaming Is Hot, but Pocket Gems Won’t Sell Out

Tricia Duryee in Commerce on May 17 at 9:26 am PT

Pocket Gems says it is not for sale, even though other mobile gaming companies like OMGPOP and Funzio are cashing out at big valuations.

Going on Vacation? Ditch the Paper Guidebook and Try These Apps.

Lauren Goode in Product Reviews on May 14 at 6:00 am PT

Stuck on Earth offers a visual tour of the world; Frommer’s day-by-day guides are packed with info.

Pebble Creator on How He Closed $10 Million on Kickstarter: Build for Mom

Lauren Goode in Product News on May 10 at 10:20 am PT

The now-famous Pebble watch has received more than $10 million in pledges on Kickstarter.

Funzio’s Big Exit to Gree Fueled by Only Three Hit Game Titles

Tricia Duryee in Commerce on May 4 at 4:42 pm PT

Funzio’s $210 million sale to Tokyo-based Gree this week makes it the second mobile game company with a relatively short operating history to be snapped up recently.

News Byte

Facebook Expands Timeline App Vocabulary With “Action Links”

Mike Isaac in Social on May 2 at 4:53 pm PT

Facebook on Wednesday introduced a new set of Timeline actions that will allow users to carry out app-specific behaviors from within the Facebook News Feed, Ticker or Timeline. So, saving a favorite Foursquare place, “fave”-ing a Fab.com product or making other changes with the so-called “action links” will reflect on the apps outside of the Facebook environment. The move is one in a string of efforts to more fully integrate third-party apps into the Facebook ecosystem.

Is Dropbox Pulling a Honey Badger on the App Store?

Mike Isaac in Mobile on May 2 at 3:26 pm PT

Apple catches Dropbox’s hand in the App Store cookie jar, smacks them down.

News Byte

Google Expands Carrier Billing for Digital Content

Ina Fried in Mobile on May 2 at 10:57 am PT

Google said Wednesday that customers can now charge more types of Android content to their cellphone bill, including music, movies, books and apps. Google is partnered with a number of carriers globally, including T-Mobile in the U.S., with Sprint coming soon.