The fourth generation Apple TV was announced at Apple’s September event and now that it has been released worldwide we wanted to give you the low-down on what’s new to help you decide if you need it is something you need.




The big selling point for the new device is the ‘tvOS’ platform, which includes a TV app store that has not previously been seen on the Apple TV. This means that 3rd party developers can add apps that will increase the value of the Apple TV immensely over time. Previous generations have been limited to the apps that Apple had put on the device.









With Channel 10’s ‘TenPlay’ already on the device, and Plus7, 9Jumpin, SBS On Demand and ABC iView expected to be available soon, the Apple TV is eliminating the need for a set-top-box.









The Apple TV now also allows you to access movies, music and photos from your computer to watch on screen, which can be extremely useful and will significantly reduce the need to AirPlay media from your phone or computer.

Siri has also been incorporated into the device, allowing you to press a button on the remote and speak commands such as “Find movies with Orlando Bloom” or “Open Netflix”. Siri will search across the apps you have installed in order to find what you asked. Siri is also useful when watching a movie, you can ask for the movie to be fast forwarded 20 minutes, or if you missed something you can say “what did they say” and Siri will rewind the movie 15 seconds so you can hear it again.




You can also now control the volume and turn subtitles on and off with one swipe of the remote.




The Apple TV now doubles as a device similar to the Nintendo Wii. You can use the remote as a swinging baton to play games such as Beat Sports.




With Apps such as AirBnB, Periscope, Sing Alongs, online shopping and much more to come, the fourth generation Apple TV is definitely a device worth having in our opinion.









The fourth generation Apple TV comes with the option of 32gb and 64gb of storage needed to store your apps and games.




For more information on the fourth generation Apple TVs, please contact the eStorm office today!

This month Apple released the new iOS 9 update, available for all iPhones and iPads and we wanted to give you a run down on what’s new with this update.

Phone Number Lookup

In iOS 9, your iPhone can gather data from the Mail app to suggest who might be calling when an unknown call comes in. The same works for outgoing calls; if you call someone who you have not yet added into your contact list but you have communicated with via email, your iPhone will pull their name and number with a “maybe” next to it, eliminating the need for you to dig back through your emails to find their number.

Searching Settings


You may remember in previous versions of iOS that you had to go into just about every settings tab in order to do something simple like manage your location services, but with iOS 9 this has become a whole lot easier. One quick swipe down from the top of the settings menu lets you search for any one of the settings that are typically buried.

View all your selfies or screenshots at once

If you head into Photos, you’ll find two new sections: selfies and screenshots. Whenever you take a screenshot of something on your screen you it will automatically be placed in a separate folder just for screenshots, making the process of digging through to find something a lot easier. The selfie folder could also be very useful for those trying to narrow down their new profile picture.

Multi-Tasking

Using an iPad is much more multi-task friendly in iOS 9. You can now see multiple apps on your screen at once, change the size of the split screen and manipulate both windows at the same time. For example, you could browse a recipe on Safari whilst writing a shopping list in Notes using the split screen. Switching between apps can be frustrating so we are big fans of this update!

Create more with Notes

An update to Notes also shows a vast improvement with iOS 9. The updated version allows you to add bold titles, web links, pictures, custom drawings and checklists to enhance the text of the note. You can now use the Notes app to speak thorough notes, complete work and more. Notes also allows for easy note deployment through messages, mail and social media.

Low-power mode

Although this setting does all of the things we could manually do on an iPhone, this mode does it automatically without us having to think about it. The low-power mode gives you more battery by doing things like stopping apps from refreshing in the background and cutting off animations. Your iPhone will still perform all key functions though.

See what’s killing your battery

This brings us to our next point, iOS 9 allows you to see what is draining your battery so you can minimise that app and maximise your battery life if you need to.

The News app

Apple have also reinvented The News app for iOS 9. Instead of having to purchase subscriptions to publications, you can now instantly follow publications such as The Daily Mail for free.

Apple and IBM have launched new Enterprise apps for iOS that enable new ways to work across a range of industries. The two companies formed a partnership in 2014 and as a result we will see the release of over 100 new apps that have been designed to be implemented in workplaces.

Here are a selection of the new apps:

Shift Track for Managers

Shift Track replaces the inefficient paper schedules with a smarter approach to staff scheduling. Using powerful analytics and intuitive dashboards, Shift Track makes it easy for managers to stay on top of staff schedules, time-off requests and employee hours. The app uses push notifications to alert managers about holiday leave requests, or to track sick leave. This app will empower managers with a vast amount of visibility and control over staff schedules that once implemented managers will never look back.

Shift Sync for Employees

Shift Sync is available for the iPhone and Apple Watch, giving employees more control over their schedules. Staff members can view and interact with their schedules, accept or decline schedule changes, submit holiday leave requests and keep track of sick leave and paid time off. Push notifications can be enabled to let the team know who is rostered and who is available. This app is designed to eliminate schedule surprises and enable better planning for the entire workplace.

Travel Plan for Business Travellers

Travel Plan is designed to make trip planning simple and intuitive for business travellers. Powerful analytics scan your Calendar events as potential trip suggestions, recognise frequent destinations and automatically factor in trip parameters to provide personalised travel recommendations. The trip options are filtered by user preferences, travel history and company policies. Business travellers will spend less time on planning with the Travel Plan app and it will keep the reservations within budget for the users company.

Travel Track for Business Travellers

Travel Track for iPhone and Apple Watch uses the data collected from Calendar and reservations made to connect everyone in your travel group. The app will integrate everything from flight itineraries to local service recommendations, and everything in-between. Travel Track’s collaboration features allow each person on the trip to share their travel status, and compare notes on hotels, car rental agencies and other local services. Location and time based push notifications provide flight check-in reminders or alerts on flight delays. This app creates ease of mind when travelling as everything you need is in one place.

Asset Inspect for Field Technicians

The Asset Inspect app makes asset inspections and maintenance fast, safe and efficient. The app uses predictive analytics to provide field technicians with “most likely cause” scenarios so they know what they are looking for. Asset Inspect then puts manuals, specifications, and work history at the field technician’s fingertips so they know what to do next. Workers can also collaborate with other experts via FaceTime, use the camera to scan assets and use the built-in microphone to record equipment sounds for operational analysis. The app also features push notifications that provide technicians with new job alerts in real time. Expert Resolve helps field service professionals get the job done right the first time.

Safe Site for Forepersons

The Safe Site app is designed to provide a safe workplace for those who work on site. The iPhone app features a built-in camera and microphone that let forepersons document, pinpoint and broadcast unsafe conditions instantly. Site Safe can be used by site managers to promptly respond to risks, report near misses and incidents, as well as share alerts with nearby employees. The app will also alert forepersons when they are in close proximity of an identified hazard. Safe Site uses predictive analytics to recommend actions and potential resolutions based on previous accumulated data and safety practices related to the incident. Keeping everyone updated on critical information using real-time information and analytics allow for a safer and more productive workplace.

For more information, and to see the rest of the newly release apps visit Apple’s website.