iTunes

Apple's use of HTTPS for its App Store isn't winning it any friends from the Chinese government.

The company seems to have recently turned on the more secure protocol for its App Store. Before that switch, censors in China could block Chinese users from searching for certain types of apps, such as VPN software, according to Greatfire.org, which monitors Chinese Internet censorship.

Searching for such apps would cause the actual connection to reset, meaning users in China couldn't download them even if they were available in the Chinese App Store.

But now with the more secure … Read more

So, congratulations! Perhaps you're the owner of a new iPad this holiday season. If so, you've come to the right place. Apple's tablet is incredibly easy to use, but there are still plenty of ways to set up and optimize your iPad to take advantage of everything it has to offer. Some of these suggestions may be obvious; others might not.

Regardless, here's what I do when I take a new iPad out of its crisp white box. I think you should do the same. At the least, these tips should help you get on your feet.… Read more

Holiday shoppers looking for a gift for their favorite Apple fan can save $10 on an iTunes gift card via Walmart.

The retail company is now offering a $50 electronic iTunes gift card for $40. That seems to be the only deal since Walmart is selling all other iTunes gift cards at their regular prices.

Buyers who opt for the deal receive an initial confirmation e-mail from Walmart and then a second e-mail with access to a PIN. After receiving the PIN, you can then send the card as a gift to your recipient. The turnaround seems to vary, however. … Read more

There are plenty of iOS devices on holiday wish lists this year. Which means there's bound to be plenty of iOS devices under trees, waiting for anxious kids to unbox and begin using them.

On the other side of those iOS devices are parents, like you, trying to figure out how to limit the amount of spending on games, apps, books music and movies their kids (or perhaps themselves) can do in iTunes.

Today I found a feature in iTunes I didn't know existed; the ability to set up a monthly iTunes allowance for specific Apple IDs. Brilliant! … Read more

Apple today released another minor update to iOS 6 that promises to fix a Wi-Fi issue affecting its newest devices.

The software, which went out this morning to the iPhone 5 and iPad Mini, says simply that it "fixes a bug that could impact Wi-Fi." No additional features or security fixes are part of the update, according to the company's release notes.

The update comes just a day after Apple gave developers a fourth beta of iOS 6.1. That software, which is expected by the end of the year, or shortly thereafter, brings new boarding pass … Read more

Best Buy is once again offering a deal on iTunes Gift Cards.

The brick-and-mortar retailer's Deal of the Day is a 15 percent discount on an iTunes gift card. For $85, Best Buy's online customers will receive a $100 iTunes gift card, which can be used for music, movies, television shows, apps, and other digital goods available in Apple's marketplace.

Best Buy offered a similar deal in June, offering a 15 percent discount on its full range of iTunes gift cards. The company did the same last month for holiday shoppers.

This time around, Best Buy's … Read more

Anyone wanting to download the SpongeBob Diner Dash game from Apple's iTunes app store today is out of luck.

Nickelodeon has removed the app from the store after an advocacy group filed a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission alleging the game violated children's online privacy rights by collecting their e-mail addresses without parents' permission.

According to the Center for Digital Democracy, which filed the complaint earlier today, cable network Nickelodeon and mobile game-maker PlayFirst are misleadingly marketing the game and are violating the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA).

SpongeBob Diner Dash is a free app … Read more

Apple this afternoon pushed out its first update to iTunes 11, restoring a useful feature that was removed from the previous version.

iTunes 11.0.1, which went out as a free update to users today, brings back the built-in tool to find duplicate songs, one of the seven features CNET highlighted as missing in the jump from Apple's last major iTunes release.

The update also fixes an issue that kept purchased items from showing up in the library if Apple's paid iTunes Match subscription service was enabled, along with an issue that kept the AirPlay icon from … Read more

Apple has once again named its top picks for software released on its various application stores.

Formerly dubbed iTunes Rewind, Apple's gone back to a simple "Best of" header, with editorial choices from the App Store for iOS and OS X.

Taking top honors for the iPhone was Bad Robot's Action Movie FX, the software that adds computer generated action sequences to video you've shot on your iPhone or iPad. The software actually came out last December, though its developers put out version 2.0 this October. Meanwhile, Ubisoft's $2.99 Rayman Jungle Run … Read more