Tag: Group text »

Group Text!, an app specifically created to make group/selective messaging easier, has recently been updated with a few new features and an iOS 7 makeover.

The app has received an improved list manager that now includes search and mass-edit functions, has revamped attachment support, a redesigned info screen that mirrors iOS 7's minimal look, and miscellaneous bug fixes, of course. The update is already live, so if you're in the mood for a sleek group messaging app why not give it a download?

From Andrea Vettori:

Apple's senior engineer Jason Guy confirmed that it is indeed an iOS bug and they're going to fix it, but a system update (hopefully 7.0.3 and not 7.1...) is needed. Group Text! has been tested up to the latest beta of iOS 7 and it was working well, and it has also a long history of very happy users until iOS 7 has been released. Once we noticed it didn't work well with the GM version we worked night and day to add the "send in batches" feature to try to help existing customers and new customers to not be left alone with the bug. Ours is the only app, as far as I know, that offers this as a workaround.

In the hope Apple could fix the issue in time for the public release we submitted the app update with the batches feature, knowing that this could badly impact the app's popularity and rating (which did in fact happen). Leaving the iOS 6 version on the App Store was probably an easier solution while waiting for the fix from Apple, but this wouldn't be good for our existing customers. We care a lot about customer satisfaction and this is one of the reasons why our app is so popular.

At the moment Apple has not told me when the problem will be fixed. I only know they're working on it. Some users of the app found a way to go back to iOS 6 the first week after the 7 release. Others found an old device and they're using it for texting. We have a newsletter that can be subscribed to be notified when Apple releases a fix. Please let me know if this clarifies.

Don't hesitate to ask if you need more information and thanks again for writing.

The App Store is a busy place, and every week brings a slew of new apps. Keeping up with all the new releases is almost impossible at this point. To that end, we're going to be starting a weekly round-up of five new apps that have caught our interest for one reason or another. Hopefully, you'll be interested in each member of the "Friday Five," too. Please note that this list is not at all exhaustive, so feel free to chime in with your own suggestions!

We Rule by ngmoco
There was no way that We Rule wasn't going to make this list. ngmoco is the powerhouse behind popular games ranging from Rolando to Eliminate, and like most of their recent games, this one is freemium. We Rule is a kingdom-building game that bears something of a resemblance to the Facebook hit Farmville. The goal is to build up your kingdom as much as possible, which involves planting and harvesting crops among other things. There's also a strong social aspect, as you can visit friends' kingdoms and interact using ngmoco's Plus+ network.

Yahoo! Sketch-a-Search
Yahoo! Sketch-a-Search is a recent release from the well-known search engine. Instead of web search, however, this one's for restaurants. The app narrows in on your location, and then you can "sketch" a boundary line with your finger. The app will return a list of restaurants within your sketch. Though it might seem gimmicky, this could actually be useful—all too often, a simple radius search won't cut it. For most of the listings, the app also provides phone numbers, ratings, directions, photos, and menu pricing.

Flick Bowling 2
Freeverse is another studio that's had a lot of strong hits on its hands: Skee-ball and Flick Fishing come to mind. Their latest title is a bowling game with a decidedly bizarre story mode that involves travel through time and space. If you can grin at the game's spontaneous and nonsensical plot twists, you'll also be able to appreciate the improved touch controls. Flicking the ball with your finger gives you a surprising amount of precise control. If you've tried the original Flick Bowling, be sure to check out this sequel!

Group Text
Group Text is a free app that does what you'd expect: it lets you text a bunch of people at once! Like many other texting apps, it gives you free, unlimited texts by using your data plan, but the main draw is that you can hold "chat" conversations via text even if your friends don't have iPhones (or the app, for that matter). When one person replies, everyone receives a text with the update. Group Text certainly isn't a new concept, but it's free...so why not check it out?

Digg
And here I thought that Digg was getting old. Digg is a community where users can "digg" links that they deem to be awesome and worthy of promotion; the idea is that, theoretically, the best stuff rises to the top, whether it's from a major news site or an obscure blog. If you're still using the website, be sure to grab the recently-released free app. It actually does a lot of what the full-fledged service does: you can browse the usual popular categories, digg stories, save stories for later reading, and more. And besides...it's free!