Hasta La Gadget!

We’ve been anticipating the arrival of photo filters on Twitter’s app for awhile now, with a rumor having surfaced back on November 2 that the social network was going to launch its own filters to compete against Instagram. The information came from inside sources, who stated that the filters would be launched “in the coming months.” Now, a little over a month later, Twitter has officially announced the photo filters and rolled them out to its iOS and Android apps.

The issue quickly gained attention as Instagram pushed out a “glitch” that caused its photos to appear cropped or otherwise incorrect on Twitter. This turned out to be intentional, with Instagram’s CEO stating that users would be better off viewing the images on Instagram rather than via the Twitter cards. Soon after, the Instagram images stopped appearing in Twitter altogether.

Yesterday we reported that sources claimed Twitter would be launching its photo filters this month, and that the app was currently in testing. Now, a short 24 hours later, both the updated iOS and Android apps have been launched via their respective app stores. Says the social network, “Starting today, you’ll be able to edit and refine your photos, right from Twitter.”

The new apps offer eight filters, including Black and White, Warm, Cool, Vintage, Cinematic, and Happy. The filters’ effects can be viewed before being applied to an image using both grid and swiping views. Images can be “auto-enhanced” using a color and light balancing tool, and can be cropped using the new “Crop” tool. You can check out the new photo options via the nifty video from Twitter below.

[via Android Community]

Twitter launches photo filters for iOS and Android apps is written by Brittany Hillen & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Google+ is “the fastest-growing network thingy ever” Google’s Vic Gundotra has claimed, with 235m active users on the social network. The latest batch of activity stats comes as Google launches Google+ Communities, its challenge to Facebook Groups and other online discussion boards, though the 235m figure doesn’t mean that every one of those users are regularly hitting up the Google+ site.

In fact, the 235m figure includes anybody who +1′s an app in Google Play, who uses Hangouts in Gmail, or who connects with their friends in search. Around 135m are active in the Google+ stream itself, still an impressive number, though the minority in comparison to the more than 500m who Gundotra says have upgraded their account.

“During the holidays we reconnect with loved ones and rediscover what makes us tick” Gundotra writes. “And it’s times like these that remind me why we started Google+ in the first place: to make online sharing as meaningful as the real thing.”

With the addition of Google+ Communities, meanwhile, Google may well cut through some of the new-user confusion any social network faces. The Communities will eventually feed into search, meaning they’re likely to be discovered – and participated in – by users seeking out similar topics and themes, such as cookery or cats. Once they start using a Community page, a greater user of Google+ in general is likely.

Google: 235m active Google+ users is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Despite the uncomfortable environment Twitter has created for third-party clients that compete with its own app, the Iconfactory has forged ahead and released Twitterrific 5 for iOS users. The app will be available for users on December 6, which accounts for most of the world at this point. Pacific time zone Apple users will have to wait two more hours to nab it.

Version 5 of Twitterrific brings with it a completely revamped user interface, which has been redesigned from scratch. The default style itself is quite different than Twitter’s style, but it can be modified to suit users’ own individual tastes. Colors, text sizes, and fonts can all be changed, line height can be modified, avatars can be removed if you don’t want to view them, and other options, such as automatically toggling between light and dark themes when its daytime and nighttime.

Other features include switching between accounts easily, viewing in-app notifications about tweets, pull-to-refresh, and support for VoiceOver, among others. IPad users get a pinnable sidebar to make things easier, while all users can utilize threaded DM view. The app can be time-synced to iCloud, and will automatically translate foreign language tweets into the user’s default language.

The Iconfactory is offering a limited-time discount of 50-percent to celebrate the launch. Users can nab Twitterrific 5 for iOS from iTunes or the App Store for $2.99. The app is 5.1MB in size, and is compatible with the iPhone 3GS/4/4S/5, iPod Touch 3rd/4th/5th generations, and the iPad. Must be running iOS 5 or higher.

[via The Verge]

Twitterrific 5 for iOS available now via the App Store is written by Brittany Hillen & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

In early November, Foursquare added the ability for iOS users to mention friends who don’t have an account with the social network, as well as a host of other features, including check-in location ranking. Now the company has pushed out another update for its iOS app – a revamped check-in screen and highlights. This brings the version number up to 5.3.5.

The new features for Foursquare on iOS include check-in highlights and a revamped check-in screen, as well as a feature allowing users to more rapidly find places nearby that have been recently opened. For example, users can scan through check-in highlights under friends’ check-ins. The changes aren’t huge, but are certainly something advid users will notice and appreciate.

In what is perhaps the most strange “What’s New” version update on iTunes, Foursquare offers this: “Are we not drawn onward to new era? A man, a plan, a canal, Panama! Look out for check-in highlights under your friends’ check-ins. Go hang a salami; I’m a lasagna hog! Try some recently opened places nearby. Race car! Enjoy speedier check-ins, plus a shiny new check-in screen. So many dynamos! Search for ‘peppermint’ or ‘cider’ for some holiday treats!”

Obviously, you can nab the latest update from iTunes or the App Store. It’s 12MB in size, and requires iOS 5.0 or higher. For those who like random – and relatively obscure – facts, Foursquare also noted that this update, version 5.3.5, is the first palindromic version number since April 2011′s 3.0.3. And now you know.

[via The Next Web]

Foursquare’s iOS app gets revamped check-in screen is written by Brittany Hillen & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Zynga and Facebook aren’t the bosom buddies they used to be, and as a result, Zynga’s shares are down 7-percent. This comes after a regulatory filing revealed the contract between the two companies has loosened their ties quite a bit. Among other things, Facebook will be able to start producing its own games for the social network next year, something it previously was not able to.

Zynga is no longer contractually bound to exclusively provide its games on Facebook, nor to give Facebook any exclusive games. Likewise, the company is no longer required to have Facebook advertisements on its properties. For Facebook’s part in this, although the social network is now allowed to produce its own games, it stated the it does not have plans to do so.

This, of course, boots Zynga from the Facebook pedestal upon which it perched, wherein it previously had a special status with the social network. While the company has been taking steps to become more independent, it garners most of its revenue from Facebook, making this move a bit precarious. The relationship is symbiotic, however, with Facebook also making a decent amount of revenue from Zynga, although the amount has dropped almost 50-percent in the last year.

Zynga has been under fire lately for its quiet layoff that took place during Apple’s event last month. Employees were backhanded, given only two hours to pack up their stuff and get out. This came after reports that the company experienced a $23 million loss in the second quarter of this year.

[via Wired]

Zynga loses Facebook’s favor, shares drop 7% is written by Brittany Hillen & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.