Version 3.8.031 January 2024Happy New Year everyone!
We’re kicking 2024 off with a small release that includes fixes for a couple of troublesome bugs, as well as improvements that will ensure Portal works smoothly on Apple Vision Pro.
- Fix for a situation where Shortcuts wouldn't play Portal’s audio if ‘Mix with Other Apps’ was turned on
- Longer currencies, such as the Norwegian Krone, now fit the size of your screen better and avoid prices displaying confusingly.
- Tweaks and enhancements have been made that mean Portal can be used compatibly on Apple Vision Pro.
- We’ve made some improvements to articles in the library. They can now include image captions and embedded portals.
Thank you to everyone that encouraged us to bring Portal to Apple Vision Pro - this update brings full compatibility to our existing iPad app. We hope you absolutely love experiencing Portal on this exciting new platform!
We also wanted to say a massive thank you for all the positive feedback we have received for the latest instalment of our Iceland collection: ‘The Fire Within’. We couldn’t be happier to hear that you are enjoying them! The exciting thing is there’s lots more amazing new portals to come and we can’t wait to share them with you - so stay tuned!
In the meantime, if there’s anything we can do to improve your experience, however big or small, please don’t hesitate to drop us a line at [email protected] - we’d love to hear from you.
Thanks as always,
Andy, Nick, Tim & Stu - Team Portal..
Version 3.7.421 February 2023Massive thanks go out to Alyx from the USA who recently helped us track down an elusive bug that was causing Portal’s audio and visuals to cut out! In truth, without his help we’d still be in the dark - what a legend!
*Bug Fix*
Downloading lots of portals at the same time now no longer causes audio playback to cut out and visuals to disappear.
*Improvements*
The awesome folks at Nanoleaf have kindly agreed to extend Portal customers’ exclusive discount across their full range of products. New discount code is available in Portal’s lighting setup.
Thanks again to Alyx and the Nanoleaf team - you both light up our world in your own way :)
PS. To everyone that’s put their hand up to help us test our Mac beta - the exciting news is we’re not too far away now. We simply can’t wait for you to give it a whirl. And if you haven’t volunteered yet but would like to, please drop us a line at [email protected] - the more the merrier!.
Version 3.7.219 October 2022With Halloween coming up, we wanted to release a few tricky fixes and share a few treats too :)
*Improvements*
- Perfectly scaled visuals for iPhone 14 screen sizes
- Dynamic Island audio control support
- New App Intents support allows you to use “play” shortcuts to start Portal’s audio without needing to open the app or unlock your device
- Regularly used portals will now appear in Spotlight searches and Siri suggestions
- Automatic Siri support means you can now use Siri with Portal without manually setting up a shortcut first
*Fixes*
- Lock Screen controls now show every time, previously they might not show after exiting the Library
- Added note that AirPlay, Control Center & Lock Screen controls are not supported when using Mix Audio feature
- 3.7.1 fixes a crash that could stop the App from launching for some customers
- 3.7.2 hopefully fixes a crash that was affecting some customers, this one has been tricky to reproduce so please do get in touch if you are still experiencing issues.
If you have encountered any bugs or have any thoughts on how we might improve things, please don’t hesitate to get in touch - we love to hear from you.
PS. Excitingly, we’re making great progress on bringing Portal to Mac and we’d absolutely love your help testing out our beta. No technical expertise required, just a love of immersive sounds and visuals! If you’re keen, please drop us a line at [email protected].
Version 3.6.101 September 2022Hey all, just a small update from us that smooths out a couple of niggly issues that you’ve flagged with us. Special shout out to Andrey from Stockholm, who helped uncover a breathing-exercise bug that was causing Portal to crash - thanks again mate!
*Bug Fix*
- Portal no longer crashes when scrolling to the end of the list of breathing exercises whilst using an iPad trackpad.
*Improvements*
- Improved Premium sign-up wording that makes it clearer that only Annual Memberships include a 7-day free trial.
- Various small interface tweaks & fixes.
If there’s anything at all that we can do to improve your experience, however big or small, please feel free to get in touch at [email protected]
PS. THANK YOU for all the amazing feedback for our new St Lucia collection - we’re over the moon that it’s been so well received so far! There are more St Lu portals to come, so please keep your eyes peeled..
Version 3.6.011 July 2022Huge thanks to Ingo from Buenos Aires who recently flagged an issue preventing him from playing/pausing Portal via the touch controls on his Sony headphones.
This release fixes this and we've also snuck in some Library improvements which will go live in the next few days that will help make navigation easier as our collections continue to grow...(in fact we have some exciting new portals in the wings - so keep your eyes peeled!)
*Bug Fixes*
- Play/pause functionality now works reliably across a range of headphones when Portal's running in the foreground.
- Fixes an issue preventing lock screen audio controls from showing in certain circumstances.
*Improvements*
- Improved Library curation, making it easier for you to find & discover the perfect portal for whatever your mood, need or fancy.
- Improved Library signposting, so you know what's new, updated and what's just around the corner.
Thanks again Ingo and everyone else out there helping us improve Portal :)
If there's anything bugging you or you have any feedback on the Library changes, please drop us a line at [email protected].
Version 3.5.922 April 2022With this update, we’re pleased to let you know that we’ve squashed a few Siri-related bugs and also introduced some improvements to our smart lighting experience that’ll make things a whole lot smoother.
*** Siri Bug Fixes ***
- Fixes crashes whenever Portal would respond to a Siri shortcut whilst running in the background.
- Portal no longer freezes when a Siri command is used whilst Portal is running in the foreground.
- Portal no longer dismisses Siri before he/she has had the chance to respond :)
*** Smart Lighting Improvements ***
- Lighting re-syncs to previous state whenever Portal’s brought to the foreground.
- The option to turn the lights off when un-syncing has been added. Just long-press the lighting control dial.
- A note clarifying that HomeKit wakeup alarms are only supported when Portal is left running in the foreground has been added.
Huge thanks to all those that provided the feedback that helped make the above possible - you know who you are!
If there’s anything bugging you or something you’d wish Portal could do, please don’t hesitate to email us at [email protected].
Version 3.5.305 November 2021We've got a treat for your ears...the magic of Dynamic Spatial Audio has arrived!
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With Portal our ultimate goal is to deliver an experience that allows you to truly escape and "feel like you're there" in the midst of some of the world's greatest locations.
Sound has always been at the heart of this experience and we've been thrilled by recent advances in Spatial Audio technology that have allowed us to push what's possible in terms of realism and immersion.
If you own a pair of AirPods Pro, AirPods Max or 3rd generation AirPods this release adds support for Dynamic Spatial Audio which uses head tracking technology to anchor the soundscapes around you. If you turn your head your virtual surroundings will remain in place, just as they would do in real life.
It's been a labour of love and the culmination of almost 12 months of Research & Development, requiring us to completely re-engineer our entire sound production and delivery pipeline, all in the pursuit of a natural & realistic experience.
We've worked with the world's greatest Spatial Audio field recordists to re-release a large proportion of the library with full support for Dynamic Spatial Audio and we've partnered with Atmoky, a world-leading Spatial Audio R&D company, to implement state-of-the-art Spatial Audio rendering within the app that's specifically tailored for natural ambiences.
Even if you don't have a pair of AirPods that support headtracking you'll still hear the benefits over the coming months as we release new content using the upgraded technology and further push what's possible through both headphone and speaker playback... :)
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Additionally, 3.5.3 includes the following changes:
- We've added more details about what's included in Portal Premium.
- The audio controls now fit better on smaller iPad screen sizes.
- Launching Portal with 'mix with others" turned on whilst another audio source is playing no longer pauses the other App's audio.
- Shortcuts and Quick Actions now automatically start playback if Portal was previously in a paused state..
Version 3.4.209 August 2021This is a bug fix release but keep your eyes peeled for some exciting new features coming to your device very soon!
We've fixed two alarm issues that might have been impacting your enjoyment of Portal.
- Wake-up alarms are now more reliable.
- Wake-up alarms now restore your previous screen brightness when complete.
Big thanks to our customers who helped track down these issues, if you have any feedback, good or bad, please get in touch with us via [email protected]. We'd love to hear from you..
Version 3.4.110 June 2021Immersive lighting just got a massive upgrade with the introduction of HomeKit, Nanoleaf, multi-colour & multi-zone support!
We love delivering immersive experiences that whisk you away to peaceful corners of the world. Our lighting integration plays an important role in shaping that experience, helping capture the feel and mood of a place. Until now we’ve only been able to share this with the Philips Hue community…this release changes that and also introduces some much requested new features and improvements.
* New Features *
Nanoleaf & HomeKit Support.
Effortlessly connect your Nanoleaf and HomeKit compatible lights. Just tap to sync - so simple it feels like magic!
Harmonise A Symphony Of Lights.
Sync your Philips Hue, Nanoleaf and HomeKit lights in perfect harmony with each other - across multiple rooms and even multiple lighting connections. Sit back and enjoy the show.
Multi-Colour Immersion.
If you sync multiple lights you’ll now enjoy a spectrum of colour that conveys the feel and mood of your chosen escape.
* Improvements *
- Wakeup alarm lighting now matches your chosen wakeup portal.
- Improved lighting connection stability to handle more edge cases and syncing issues.
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v3.4.1 includes the following additional changes:
- A new setting to customise what should happen if you have lights that are not able to render multiple colours is now available at: Settings > Lighting > White Light Behaviour.
- Lights no longer un-sync when entering the library. Now they remain synced with the last active portal.
- Nanoleaf zones now attempt to find a matching icon based on the zone name rather than always showing the Nanoleaf logo.
- To avoid confusion the zone select screen now makes it clear when some but not all connections in a grouped zone are selected.
- We've improved our FAQ to make it faster to find the information you need and easier for us to keep updated.
- Fix the brightness calculation for Philips Hue lights that could lead to some scenes appearing too dim.
- Nanoleaf panels now always correctly un-sync to their powered off state if that is where they started from.
- Connections that are unreachable when loading the zones list no-longer block it from loading, they now show a warning message below the list of available zones.
- The "Tap to Preview" audio volume in the alarm settings now works when audio is paused globally.
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Thank you to everyone who suggested these features and improvements - your enthusiasm and encouragement has been amazing! We hope you thoroughly enjoy them.
Please drop us a line at [email protected] or leave us an App Store review if you have any feedback - we’d love to hear from you..
Version 3.3.215 April 2021This is a minor update, we've squashed some bugs and made some tweaks based on all your amazing feedback. We hope it helps to make your day run that little bit smoother.
- Startup Freezes: A small number of customers reported freezes on the launch screen after the last update. This should be fixed now. Please reach out if you are still experiencing the issue after updating.
- Video Freezes: Portal videos no longer pause when you remove your headphones. Now only the Audio playback pauses. (Pro-tip: you can long-press on the speaker icon to resume audio playback.)
- Clock Hiding: Several customers got in touch confused with how the clock hiding and auto-hide interface options interacted. We've combined these into a single option called "Clock & Controls Visibility" you can find it in "Settings".
- Haptics Confusion: Haptic options for breathing exercises are now only shown if your devices supports them. So that's iPhone 7 or newer running iOS13 and up.
- Download Indicators: Checkmarks for previously downloaded portals had vanished from the library but their back now. Phew.
- New Website: Ever wondered why we exist, what we believe in or who’s our ultimate guide and inspiration? Check out our brand-new website at portal.app and let us know what you think!
Thanks to all our customers who have provided suggestions or reported issues and patiently waited for these fixes. Please do keep the feedback flowing by emailing us at [email protected].
Version 3.3.003 February 2021We've been stuck in lockdown over here in London and Andy's taken the opportunity to do some early spring cleaning in the app, squishing some bugs and implementing a few small features we've been wanting to introduce for a while!
New Features
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Feel It In Your Fingers.
Haptic feedback for breathing exercises for those that prefer to close their eyes and breathe.
If At First You Don’t Succeed, We Have A Plan B.
Ability to manually provide an IP address when Hue Bridge discovery isn’t possible.
Gather Around The Campfire.
We’ve launched our blog, “The Campfire”, where you can hear our thoughts, plans and aspirations at the intersection of nature & technology. Find it here: https://portal.app/campfire
Improvements
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* Portal start times are randomised to avoid always launching portals with the same starting point.
* Enhanced Philips Hue syncing and error feedback.
* Improved automatic Philips Hue Bridge discovery.
* Fixes an issue when launching Siri shortcuts whilst the Library is open.
* Fix for when breathing exercise animations occasionally fall out of sync.
* Fixes an issue that could cause the incorrect focus timer alarm to sound when the Library is open, or audio playback is paused.
Massive thanks to everyone who has reported a bug and provided suggestions for improvements, your support as ever is amazing and very much appreciated!
Please do keep them coming by emailing us at [email protected].
Version 3.1.023 October 2020* Support for the latest iPhones and iPad Air
* Improvements to Siri Shortcuts with support for the new Sleep wind down shortcuts in the iOS 14 Health App, suggested shortcuts and correct listing of available downloaded Portals.
Version 3.0.601 October 2020Portal V3 - featuring a beautiful new library interface and our biggest content update yet.
* Scottish Highland collection of 14 Portals
* Slovenian Alps collection of 11 Portals
* Curated collections organised around use and location
* Portal Premium Membership launch - an annual subscription to access the entire Portal Library (existing paid users will be upgraded for free)
* Spring Barley Field (Devon UK) is now available to everyone for FREE
* All new Portals delivered in retina-quality, ultra high definition
Please note for existing premium users - to reduce the size of the app some of your on-device Portals will not be pre-downloaded after the update. You can re-download any missing Portals from the library (swipe down anywhere on the main portal explorer screen to reveal the library).
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3.0.6
* Allows customisation of the timer sound.
