Siri

A new Dutch horror film called App aims to make cell phone usage in theaters socially acceptable by allowing users to interact with the movie via their smartphones. Moviegoers are encouraged to download a free app from the App Store which uses special technology to send messages and images to the audience in real time.

2CFilm, who produced the movie, is touting App as the first movie with a "second screen", and promises the film will stand alone for those who prefer to keep their cell phones turned off. However, the producers didn't explain what happens when people using the app start to receive outside calls or texts during the movie.

Apple's Maps manager Richard Williamson was fired after flaws in the mapping software "hurt" the iPhone 5, according to Bloomberg. Senior Vice President Eddy Cue fired Williamson, who oversaw the Apple Maps development, on Tuesday. Unnamed sources familiar with the matter told Bloomberg Cue is planning to “install a new leadership team” to oversee the Maps application, and is seeking advice from outside mapping-technology experts TomTom NV.

Apple has been criticized for ditching Google Maps for its own inferior mapping software. The Maps debacle didn't hurt iPhone 5 sales, but it did force Apple CEO Tim Cook to issue a rare apology for an Apple product. The Apple Maps mess also prompted Nokia and Google to create rival mapping apps to be used with iOS devices. Nokia's HERE app is already available for download, while Google is expected to unveil its map application in the near future.

The latest major update to the iOS Apple Store app is here. Passbook integration was expected but Apple didn't stop there. Users of the app can now use Siri to get information about Apple products using voice queries.

Changes have been made to point-of-sale devices in Apple's retail stores to complement the additional functionality found in the Apple Store app. Passbook-ready digital gift cards came online just yesterday, and can now be purchased, gifted and used to pay for Apple products.

Google Search is getting rave reviews, and side-by-side comparisons have shown Google's voice assistant is much faster and sometimes more accurate than Apple's Siri. Jalbreakers who would like to kick Siri to the curb can do so by downloading the NowNow jailbreak utility from the BigBoss repo in Cydia. NowNow allows you to replace Siri by launching the Google Search app with an Activator function. To do so, just download the utility, locate the NowNow option under Settings and tap Activation Methods. You can then select the function you would like to use to activate the Google Search app. To replace Siri select "Short Hold" under the Home Button options. Holding the Home Button will now bring up the Google Search app instead of the Siri screen.