Latest news with #Invites
Yahoo
11-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
How the Apple Invites App Can Help You Plan Your Next Party
This year's Super Bowl has taken wing, but hopefully the annual sports extravaganza isn't the only reason to bring your friends together. Birthdays, anniversaries and other celebrations need scheduling with a way to keep track of guests, all of which can be made easier using Apple's latest iOS app, Invites. In addition to handling the basics, the Invites app lets you add a playlist to get your friends in the proper mood -- is it a casual bookish affair, a raucous dance party or maybe even a raucous book reading? -- and you can also create a shared Photos album where everyone can pool their pictures from the event. The Invites app has a lot of moving parts, so I've walked through the process -- with far too much time spent making AI-generated backgrounds that would likely inspire my friends to create and host their own less-embarrassing parties. There's also a web version if you don't want to install the app. In the app, tap the Create Event button or the + button to get started. Tap Event Title and type a name for the event, choosing from one of four fonts. I'm surprised those are the only faces -- two sans-serif options, one serif and a round variation -- but Apple has always leaned more toward "restrained and refined" in the design options of its apps. The name can be whatever you want, but if you're going to create an AI-generated background in the next step, be aware that the title becomes the first text prompt. And now the fun part, creating a background. Tap Add Background to reveal a bunch of emoji-based designs, generic photos and colored shapes. If you have an image in your Photos library or want to snap a quick picture, tap the Photos or Camera button. But since this is the age of Apple Intelligence, and because I couldn't resist seeing what would happen, on a device that supports Apple's AI technology you'll see a Playground button. That launches an interface for Image Playground, the app that generates images based on text prompts. I mentioned that the event title becomes the initial prompt, which turned out to be problematic with my "Super-Duper Bowl Party" because it rendered everything with a bowl (which makes sense when you realize the title could technically describe a party celebrating bowls). To refine the image, add words in the Describe an image field. I was highly amused that "football" added a soccer ball, but changing that to "American football" created variations of the familiar pigskin. After much amusing trial and error, I got a workable background image by combining the terms "nachos and beer," "American football," and "stadium." Tap Done to apply the background. You can always tap the Edit Background button to generate new alternatives, or if you think the Image Playground background is likely to scare people off, switch to a photo or pre-made image. The invitation needs the basics, so tap the Date and Time button to specify the day and start time. Turn on Include End Time and pick a time to politely let your guests know when they need to skedaddle. Tap Done. Next, tap Location and set your current location or search for a venue using the Search Locations field. Tap Done. Although your guests likely know what a Super Bowl party entails, let's add a description anyway. In the box with "Hosted by [Your Name]," tap Add a description. Type what you'd like your guests to know in the Event Description field. Again, because we're leaning into AI for this example, we can ask Apple Intelligence to help us with the text. Touch and hold within the text and then tap Select All to highlight everything in the field. Then tap the Rewrite button that appears in the suggestion bar. (You can also tap the colorful Apple Intelligence logo to access the full suite of writing tools.) A rewritten version replaces your original text. In the Rewrite panel that appears at the bottom of the screen, you can continue to tap the Rewrite button for more variations -- after the second one, the button shrinks and a block of Undo and Redo buttons appears so you can cycle through the generated options. Or tap Original to return to the initial text. Tap Done to exit the writing tools, and then tap Done again to save the event details. Tap the Create Album button to make a new Apple Photos album that the people you invite can add their own photos to. Tap Add Photos if you want to get the album started with one of your own images. You can also attach an Apple Music playlist that your guests can listen to when they receive the invite, if you want to help spark the mood. Tap Add Playlist and choose or create a playlist; unfortunately, Apple Music playlists that Apple creates, such as "Big Game," don't come up in the search results. It's almost time to get the word out. First, tap Preview to see what your friends will see when they receive your invite. Make sure everything looks good -- double-check the date, time and location -- and then tap Next. Is this a party that can be crashed by anyone, or is it a small affair? In the next screen, you get to choose. To send the invite to several people, such as in a group text, choose the Invite with Public Link options. Those include Messages, Mail and the Share Link option, but also a Copy Link that adds the invite link to your clipboard so you can share it in other ways. To make sure word doesn't spread too far and you end up with a 1980s high school movie situation where everyone and their sister shows up for the party, turn on the Approve Guests checkbox. For a private gathering, tap Choose a Guest under Invite Individuals and pick the people you want to invite. (Note that the first time you do this, the app needs permission to access your Contacts list, but the wording suggests that you might add every contact to the invitation. That's not the case – it's only to let the Invites app read your contacts.) Search for the person and tap their name. Then send an invitation link using Messages or Mail. You can also tap Share Link to generate the invite link that can be sent using other methods. Repeat that process for each person you want to invite. When people respond, they appear in the Guest List section. With the party and guest list sorted, maybe it's finally time to upgrade your television?
WIRED
08-02-2025
- Entertainment
- WIRED
Apple's Invites App Requires an iCloud+ Subscription to Host an Event
Apple launched a new app this week called Invites. It saw all the attention Partiful was getting—the free online party-invite app was Google's best app of 2024—and said, 'Hold my beer.' Partiful threw a jab at Apple, calling it a copycat, though it's hardly the first event-invite app. You can download Apple's Invites from the App Store right now, and while anyone can RSVP to an event on any device (Android or iOS), an iCloud+ subscription is required to create and host events. To create an invite, choose an image from your photo library or use a preloaded option in the app. Don't like the options? Guess what? You can use Apple Intelligence's Image Playground to generate images and its Writing Tools to drum up text for your invitation. Anything to get you to use Apple Intelligence. Photograph: Apple With the Weather app and Apple Maps integration, the invite will include the forecast for the day of the event and directions to the location. If you have an Apple Music subscription, you can contribute to a collaborative playlist accessible through the invite. The most natural integration is Apple Photos, as you can create a Shared Album that allows invitees to add photos and videos from the event so they're all in one place. No need to message your friends asking to 'send the photos from last night!' after a night out. If you have an iCloud+ subscription, you can create an event, share invitations, view RSVPs, and manage which details are included in the preview (like the home address or event background). For invitees, the app works with both Apple and non-Apple devices. Guests with an Apple device running iOS 18 or later can interact with an invite through the app (you need to be signed in to iCloud) or a web link. Android users need to use the latter but can still contribute to the Shared Album. This would've come in handy for a joint birthday party I threw with a friend last weekend, but at least I can now delete the Partiful app from my phone. —Brenda Stolyar Gear Roundup All the top gear news of the week in one place. Sonos' Next Chapter Sonos is reportedly readying a new video streaming box designed to expand its reach deeper into the home theater marketplace. According to a report from The Verge, the new box, nicknamed Pinewood, is an Android-based device with software developed in partnership with a digital ads firm. The box aims to wrangle streaming services like Netflix, Max, and Disney+ under a common interface with universal search via the Sonos app, Sonos Voice Control, and a physical remote. Pinewood will reportedly offer multiple HDMI inputs to connect devices like game consoles and Blu-ray players directly, giving Sonos control over the entire home theater I/O ecosystem. Additionally, the box could allow users to assemble Sonos speakers like the Era 300 and Era 100 into a surround sound system, bypassing the current requirement for a Sonos soundbar like the Arc Ultra (9/10, WIRED Recommends). Which speakers and configurations will be supported has yet to be determined. All this potential functionality explains the price, which the report estimates could run from $200 to $400—a hefty sum that would put it well beyond traditional streaming boxes like the Roku Ultra, Google TV Streamer 4K, and Apple TV 4K.
Yahoo
06-02-2025
- Yahoo
Apple Invites lets you invite everyone to your parties (even if they're on Android)
KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 6 — 'Oh, another app. Not a product.' It's amazing how disdain can transmit over chat but that was a colleague's reaction to Apple's new Invites app. Which left me with the task of actually trying the app because, as Malaysians say, bagi chance-lah (give it a chance). The thing about Apple is that it makes some pretty good, free, useful apps such as Clips (for simple social media videos), Freeform (an easy to use digital whiteboard), Journal (a digital journal) but like Apple TV+ you just don't hear about how good they are because people are more excited about products. Now everyone can RSVP First thing first: why do we need an Invites app? Meta's Facebook has Events and auto-RSVP requests. There's also Google Forms and just sending people a WhatsApp. To see what Invites had to bring to the table, I decided to create an invite to an event I hope happens at the end of my nearly two-year cancer treatment plan. I hope to have my oncologist be able to tell me that I have achieved NED — No Evidence of Disease and that would definitely be a great excuse for a party. With Invites, it's a fairly simple process. You download the app and click a button to create an Event. Select a Background from either a template or your own Camera or Photos. Fill in salient details such as date, time, location and description. Optionally you can create a photo album and Apple Music playlist you can share with guests. To RSVP, guests may do it from the app or from the Web if on Android. It's slightly more fiddly on the Web as apparently Android users will need a free account to view photos for instance. Note: The Invites app on iOS is only available to users with a paid plan and there is no Android version, though Android users will still be able to RSVP to Invites invitations. If for any reason you would rather not invite people via Facebook, Google or WhatsApp and have an iPhone, Invites is convenient and simple to use and best of all, no one gets left off the guestlist whatever phone they use. Now there's no excuse to bo jio (not invite) your friends when you're having an impromptu gathering at the mamak for supper — use Invites to send out a quick request to meet up at your favourite Indomie place and you're gold. Invites is already available for download for phones running iOS 18 or later.
Yahoo
05-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Apple Invites is a new iPhone app to manage your social life
Engadget has been testing and reviewing consumer tech since 2004. Our stories may include affiliate links; if you buy something through a link, we may earn a commission. Read more about how we evaluate products. Typically when we think of Apple and "invites," it's because the company is about to show off some new gear at a splashy product launch. But this time around, the product in question is a new invites app. The idea behind Apple Invites is that you can create and share custom invitations for any event or occasion. You can use your own photos or backgrounds in the app as an image for the invite. Image Playground is built into Invites and you can use that to generate an images for the invitation instead. Other Apple Intelligence features such as Writing Tools are baked in as well, in case you need a hand to craft the right message for your invitation. It's worth noting that only folks with a paid iCloud (aka iCloud+) plan can create an invite in the app. There are no limits on how many events you can host, but each one is limited to 100 participants. As might expect, events will appear in the Calendar app (to which Apple has made some changes in recent months, including the integration of Reminders, amid the rollout of iOS 18). Anyone can RSVP to invites in the app or on the web. You won't need an Apple Account or device to do so. You can also add photos and photos and videos from the event to a Shared Album (in case you need to feel like it's 2008 and we're all living on Facebook again). Best of all, you can help decide what to listen to during the get-together by collaborating on Apple Music playlists. There's Weather and Maps integration to provide guests with directions and a forecast on the day of the event. Privacy is a factor here. Hosts can choose whether to share their home address in the invite, while guests have control over how their details appear to others. The app seems useful and pretty fun. The Shared Albums and Apple Music collaboration features make it seem more interesting than a boring-ass Outlook invite ever could be. Update, February 4, 1:18PM ET: A previous version of this story indicated that an iPhone and Apple Invites were required to add photos and videos to the Shared Album for the event. This isn't the case, as it's possible to do so via the web on any device.
