Messenger probably isn’t the greatest option for your main messaging app, but being able to reset the default could let you choose apps that offer a better experience than Messenger or Apple’s Messages.

Android’s mobile OS already lets users choose their preferred messaging app. Sadly, Apple is probably not going to give users that choice. Apple’s Messages app is still one reason that people buy Apple hardware, and Apple uses the encrypted messages to brag about its privacy practices. 

But not allowing users to choose their default messaging app could add to the argument that Apple practices “monopolist behaviors.” The company is facing increased criticism over its App Store fees, and it is the target of multiple antitrust investigations. Today, Epic Games, Spotify and others announced the Coalition for App Fairness, an alliance to pressure both Apple and Google to change their app store rules and other restrictive policies. 

Apple has purchased Scout FM, an app that makes it easy to find podcasts tailored to your tastes, according to Bloomberg. Rather than just letting you choose individual podcasts, Scout FM curates them based on your listening history. Much like YouTube or TikTok, its AI algorithms adjust to your preferences over time, removing things you tend to skip.

Apple confirmed the acquisition, which reportedly happened earlier this year. The app used to be available on iOS (including CarPlay), Android and Alexa, but Apple shut it down on all platforms shortly after the deal was made.

Todoist is consistently one of our favorite to-do apps. The company is pretty good about releasing useful updates, and today it’s adding a Boards feature that should make it even easier to organize and visualize your tasks and projects.

The Boards format makes Todoist look a whole lot like Trello, another one of our favorite project management apps. The feature lets you view tasks as cards, and you can drag the cards horizontally into customizable categories. If you’re not totally sold on the format, you can switch projects back and forth between cards and traditional lists as you work.

The Xbox app, which is a beta release, has a design that matches the updated user interface on Xbox One and the Xbox Series X/S dashboard. It works in concert with the share button on the latest version of the Xbox Wireless Controller. When you capture a screenshot or clip, you’ll be able to select which social networks to which you want to share it from your phone or tablet. You’ll be able to share it on the Highlights section of your profile as well.

You’ll be able to use the app to set up an Xbox Series X or Series S, so while the console is downloading updates, you can configure your settings. On top of that, you’ll be able to manage your game library with the app or use it as a remote control.

The app includes access to profiles too, so you can see what your friends are playing and invite them to a party. There’s a unified search function that’ll display game titles and friends in results.

The Xbox app is available now from the Play Store. It’s not clear when Microsoft will roll out the app on iOS.

When you switch countries, your language settings won’t change as well, so need to worry about getting lost in the interface. Besides localized recommendations for music, podcasts and audiobooks, you’ll see any local shows that are set to take place in that country.

You can switch regions through Deezer’s settings menu. The feature is available through both the mobile and web apps, as well as all the 180 countries in which you can subscribe to the service. While a feature like this probably won’t give Deezer an advantage in its battle with giants like Spotify, it’s a nifty feature if you’re already a subscriber.

Fitbit’s $329 Sense smartwatch just earned clearance from the FDA (and the EU’s regulatory body) for its electrocardiogram (ECG) app. When the “advanced health” wearable arrives this October, it will be able to assess heart rhythms for atrial fibrillation, or AFib.

AFib is a heart condition that affects more than 33.5 million people globally and has serious complications, including stroke. The condition is notoriously difficult to detect because the heart doesn’t always present an abnormal rhythm when a patient is in their doctor’s office. A study used to evaluate Fitbit’s algorithm found that it could detect 98.7 percent of AFib cases.

Waze users can now view their saved locations on the web and select them when searching for an origin or destination, so you won’t have to enter your home address for every trip. The new features are available on both iOS and Android devices.

These are relatively minor, but definitely helpful, changes. The ability to save trips across the web and apps is also available on Google Maps, so you could argue that the two are getting closer in terms of the features they offer. Though, as we learned last week, Google Maps is using DeepMind AI to improve its ETAs with traffic predictions. As far as we know, Waze doesn’t pack that level of AI tech.

Thanks to the upgraded app, users will be able to set up their Neato D10 in just six steps. As promised, Neato vacuums now work with Siri Shortcuts, as well as Alexa and Google Assistant. You can map up to three floorplans, set “zone” cleaning, get cleaning summaries, choose turbo and eco modes and use remote start and scheduling.

Neato revealed the Neato D10, along with slightly paired down Neato D9 and Neato D8 models, at IFA 2020 in Berlin today. The Neato D9 and Neato D8 use the company’s LaserSmart mapping technology and have shorter run times than the D10, 120 minutes and 90 minutes, respectively.

The new product line is set to arrive in North America, Europe and Japan this fall, but the company has not yet revealed pricing. For reference, its existing Botvac D7 Connected cost $800. That puts Neato’s robotic vacuums in the range of the iRobot Roomba i7+, which originally sold for $1,000 but is now on sale for $700.

Screen Pass, the Movies Anywhere feature that allows you to lend a digital film you own to a friend or family member, is now available to all users in the US. When you share a movie with someone (which you can do over text, email or instant message), they’ll have seven days to accept the invitation and 14 days to start watching. Once they begin the movie, they’ll have 72 hours to finish it. Users can lend up to three films per month — though, beyond that, you can share the same title as many times as you want. 

At the moment, approximately 6,500 movies are Screen Pass-eligible, accounting for more than 80 percent of the platform’s library. To use the feature, you need to have redeemed a non-promotional digital code within the last six months.

Each year, an estimated 10 million people in the US take birth control pills. But remembering to take each pill can be challenging, and 80 percent of people miss at least one pill per month. That leads to an estimated one million unplanned pregnancies and may cause complications for those who take the pill for other health reasons. To address this, the company Emme has just launched a new smart case that reminds users to take their pill daily.

The $99 Emme Smart Case records the pills you take — and those you miss — and automatically updates a companion iOS app via Bluetooth. The app provides daily reminders — most pills are more effective when they’re taken around the same time every day — that auto-update when you change time zones. It also offers real-time guidance if you miss a pill, and you can track things like your mood and pill side effects.