Apple users can now share their favorite app with a friend or loved one, by gifting it to them for the holidays.
The feature, which allows one user to buy an app for another and send it to them through the AppStore, is back, after disappearing when Apple launched iOS 6 back in September.
While logged into the AppStore, users can find the app they want to give. Click the Share button, and then the Gift option.
Enter your Apple ID password, confirm your payment method, and enter the email address of the person you're gifting the app to.
You can add a personal message, and even set a specific date for the gift to appear in the recipient's inbox.
Confirm and you're done.
The giftee will receive an email with a link to the app, which is now paid in full for them.
This is one of those nice little features that gets so much better when you put a little thought into it.
Many apps are 99 cents, and some very high quality, productivity focused apps are still under five dollars, so it's a very inexpensive way to do something nice. But since there are so many apps to choose from, it's also a convenient opportunity to give something customized to the recipient's tastes.
Picking just the right app for the right person can make an even better impression than buying something expensive, physical and impersonal.
And it's a great way to get someone involved in an app or game that you're really into.
And if they don't like it, no worries-they haven't paid anything for it and it's not sitting around collecting dust in their closet. They should even be able to delete it and download it again if they decide they miss it.
The option is available via iOS 6 on iPhones and iPads, or through the online AppStore on Macs and PCs.