Phil Schiller - page 2

How Apple tricks our brains into accepting high prices

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This genius psychological tactic makes Apple's high prices seem totally reasonable.
This genius psychological tactic makes Apple's high prices seem totally reasonable.
Photo: meo/Pexels CC

During the WWDC 2019 keynote, most of Apple’s latest creations drew enthusiastic applause, with one notable exception. The price of Apple’s new Pro Display XDR elicited a somewhat cooler response. But considering just how expensive the monitor is, the fact that it got any applause at all was pretty remarkable.

This is not the first time Apple has had to convince us to pony up for an eye-watering sticker price. Cupertino pulls from a well-established playbook for its keynotes, often employing behavioral science techniques to help soften the blow. (To our brains at least, if not to our wallets).

Is Apple’s modular Mac Pro doomed to flop?

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Mac pro
The new Mac Pro will bring in the bags for Apple.
Photo: Erfon Elijah

Two whole years ago, Apple promised pro users that it would completely revamp the Mac Pro. Apple teased that it’s making a modular system that will have the flexibility professionals need.

With Worldwide Developers Conference 2019 on the horizon, our first glimpse of the modular Mac Pro could be less than two months away, but The CultCast host Erfon Elijah is ready to douse your hopes of getting a new dream machine this year.

In his latest video, Erfon goes over all the reasons why the modular Mac Pro sounds amazing in theory but could be a giant dud. From a design that looks like some IHOP flapjacks to pricing concerns, there’s some good evidence to be skeptical about the new computer, especially when you consider Apple’s recent track record with its “Pro” machines.

Watch Erfon count down the reasons why the next Mac Pro might flop.

Tim Cook is ready to testify in Qualcomm trial

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Tim Cook talks diversity, sustainability, and coming out as gay
We doubt that Tim Cook will look quite so happy on the day.
Safari: Apple

Tim Cook will offer testimony as part of Apple’s legal battle with Qualcomm. Cook will discuss Apple’s business practices, strategy, agreements with cellular network carriers, and more.

He’s not the only senior Apple executive ready to talk, either. Former hardware boss Bob Mansfield, current COO Jeff Williams, SVP of Worldwide Marketing Phil Schiller and others will chime in as part of the case.

Apple reveals WWDC 2019 set for June 3 – 7 [Update: Register now!]

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WWDC 2019
It’s going to be big!
Photo: Apple

Update: Heads up developers! Today is the last day to register for WWDC 2019.

Apple’s annual Worldwide Developers Conference officially has a date.

This morning, Apple revealed that it will host WWDC 2019 in San Jose, California, from June 3 to 7. The event brings together thousands of developers from across the world, giving them access to Apple’s engineers for hands-on training. It’s also the place where Apple unveils its biggest software updates of the year. Based on early rumors, it could be one of the most exciting WWDC’s in years.

Apple may finally preview a revamped Mac Pro at WWDC 2019

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Mac Pro
The new Mac Pro will be modular again, just like this one.
Photo: Apple

Apple may finally give fans a first look at its revamped Mac Pro at WWDC 2019.

The company promised in the spring of 2017 that it would “rethink” its high-end desktop following feedback from professional users. The new model is expected to come with a more modular design that can be easily upgraded, but we’re still waiting for an update on Apple’s progress.

iPhones’ blazing A12 Bionic chip powers ‘new era of photography’

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A12 Bionic chip
Phill Schiller showing off pictures from the new iPhone Xs
Photo: Apple

Any mobile photographer wearing an Apple Watch likely received a notification about an irregular heartbeat as they watched Phil Schiller talk this morning about the iPhone Xs series’ new camera.

Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of worldwide marketing, flashed several stunning images on the screen during today’s Gather Round keynote at the Steve Jobs Theater. The images showed depth, detail and colors not seen from previous-gen iPhones, including the current flagship iPhone X.

Live blog: Apple unveils its biggest iPhone lineup ever

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iphones
The iPhone XS Max will be the largest iPhone Apple ever made.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Apple’s most anticipated keynote of 2018 is finally here and thanks to a bevy of leaks, it might be short on surprises.

Details about the entire 2018 iPhone lineup have already surfaced online, even as Tim Cook and the gang get set to take the stage at the Steve Jobs Theater this morning.

Will Apple be able to pull out “one more thing” to wow fans? We’ll find out in just a few hours. Come on in and join Cult of Mac‘s live blog for a full breakdown on everything that is announced today.

New MacBook Pros come with 6-core processors, quieter keyboards

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The new 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Pro models with Touch Bar up the ante for pro users.
The new 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Pro models with Touch Bar up the ante for pro users.
Photo: Apple

Apple just updated its MacBook Pro line, ramping up performance and adding various advanced features. Phil Schiller, Apple’s marketing VP, calls the new Apple laptops “the fastest and most powerful notebook we’ve ever made.”

The new MacBook Pro with Touch Bar models boast 8th-generation “Coffee Lake” Intel Core processors, with 6-core CPUs in the 15-inch model and quad-core CPUs on the 13-inch model.

The hype is real, HomePod is incredible … catch our discussion on The CultCast

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X-ray view of HomePod
Is HomePod nearing its end, or just getting started?
Photo: Apple

Friends, HomePod is even better than the hype! It’s one of the best products Apple’s ever made. Don’t miss our discussion on The CultCast. Plus: HomePod versus the rivals; the big HomePod flaw you need to know about (one Apple is trying to downplay); how Apple plans to revamp its future software; and, is another new Apple product on the horizon? We think so, and we’ll tell you what it is.

Our thanks to Squarespace for supporting this episode. It’s simple to accept Apple Pay and sell your wares with your very own Squarespace.com website. Enter offer code CultCast at checkout to get 10% off any hosting plan.

Peek inside the lab that perfected HomePod audio

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WWDC2017
It took Apple six years to create the HomePod.
Photo: Apple

Apple’s quest to build the perfect sounding speaker could also give a huge boost to audio quality on future iPhones, iPads and Macs.

To promote the launch of its new HomePod speaker, Apple gave journalists a behind-the-scenes look inside the custom audio lab it built to fine-tune every aspect of HomePod’s sound. Not only did Apple one of the best audio teams in the world, but it also gave them tools no company in the world can match.

App Store shatters revenue record on New Year’s Day

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New Year's apps
It’s still
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

2018 is already starting to look like a historic year for Apple after the company just broke the record for the most revenue pulled in by the App Store in a single day.

Apple revealed today that iPhone and iPad customers spent an astounding $300 million in the App Store on New Year’s day, shattering the previous record of $240 million.

Apple shrugs off recent bugs as ‘one bad week’

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Phil Schiller said Apple won't release the HomePod till it's satisfied with the quality.
Phil Schiller said Apple won't release the HomePod till it's satisfied with the quality.
Photo: Digital Trends

Apple fans and enthusiastic gadget reviewers will ultimately remember 2017 as the year of a reinvented iPhone. But as the year draws to an end, Apple marketing chief Phil Schiller has a few other things on his mind, such as delays in releasing the company’s first smart speaker and a “bad week” of software bugs and security holes.

iPhone X seemed ‘impossible’ to make, Apple says

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iPhone X
The iPhone X feels like the future.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Apple media boss Phil Schiller says that even though Face ID on the iPhone X works nearly flawlessly at one point in the device’s development the entire thing seemed impossible.

Schiller sat down for an interview to talk about Apple’s latest products like the iPhone X, HomePod and even the iMac Pro which is coming out later this week.

Phil Schiller says all of Face ID’s competitors ‘stink’

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Phil Schiller
Phil Schiller says iPhone X will dictate the direction of smartphones for the next decade.
Photo: Apple

Apple marketing guru Phil Schiller has heard the haters saying the iPhone X wasn’t the first smartphone to get facial recognition. But according to Schiller, that doesn’t matter at all.

“They all stink,” says Schiller in a new interview discussing Apple’s new facial recognition feature. The wide-ranging interview touches on everything from AirPods to virtual reality, but what sets Face ID apart is what got Schiller the most excited.

Apple reveals epic 3-year drive to perfect A11 Bionic chip

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A11 Bionic chip is Apple's most powerful smartphone processor ever.
A11 Bionic chip is Apple's most powerful smartphone processor ever.
Photo: Apple

The new A11 Bionic processor that powers the iPhone 8 and iPhone X is the most powerful smartphone chip Apple ever created. But making a processor that’s perfect for AI tasks took some big bets by Apple.

In a new interview with the company’s SVP of hardware tech, Johny Srouji, and marketing boss Phil Schiller, Apple reveals how it took three years to come up with the perfect solution.

Hilarious iPhone X parody ad skewers Apple’s $1,000 emoji machine

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animoji
Are Apple's animoji a must-have feature?
Photo: Apple

Apple’s futuristic iPhone X was revealed less than 24 hours ago, but it’s taken the internet no time at all to lambast it with a series of jokes and parody videos.

Skewering the worst new iPhone features is a time-honored tradition after an Apple keynote, and YouTuber jacksfilms has come out with one of the most hilarious parodies we’ve seen yet. The short video takes iPhone X to task for adding its silly notch and ridiculous 3D emoji instead of other, more useful features.

Prepare to laugh your animoji face off.

Live blog: Apple unveils iPhone X, Apple Watch 3 and more

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Steve Jobs
With a photo of Steve Jobs in the background, Tim Cook talks about Apple's goal to "inspire the next generation of creators and innovators" in the new Steve Jobs Theater.
Photo: Apple

The wait for the iPhone X is nearly over.

Today at 10 a.m. Pacific in Apple Park’s shiny new Steve Jobs Theater, the most futuristic smartphone to ever come out of Cupertino will finally be unveiled. Over a year’s worth of rumors have led to this moment. Even though there’s almost nothing we don’t know about the new smartphone, anticipation is still off the charts for Apple’s $1,000 iPhone.

Cult of Mac will be right here live-blogging all the action with up-to-the minute analysis and insight. We’ll break down all the new features and surprises. The iPhone X won’t be the only star of today’s show, either: We’re expecting a new Apple Watch, updated Apple TV and much more!

Tim Cook and Co. are set to hit the stage soon, so grab some popcorn and come join the party below:

Birth of the iPhone: How Apple turned clunky prototypes into a truly magical device

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iPhone 2G prototype
iPhone 2G prototype
Photo: Jim Abeles/Flickr CC

iPhone turns 10 The world had never seen anything like the iPhone when Apple launched the device on June 29, 2007. But the touchscreen device that blew everyone’s minds immediately didn’t come about so easily.

The iPhone was the result of years of arduous work by Apple’s industrial designers. They labored over a long string of prototypes and CAD designs in their quest to produce the ultimate smartphone.

This excerpt from my book Jony Ive: The Genius Behind Apple’s Greatest Products offers an inside account of the iPhone’s birth.

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Did Phil Schiller really want a physical keyboard on iPhone?

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Blackberry won its case against Ryan Seacrest. Photo: Typo
Phil Schiller allegedly wanted the iPhone to look more like this. Possibly.
Photo: Typo

One of the fascinating tidbits of Apple history that emerged online this week was the story that Phil Schiller was insistent that the original iPhone ship with a physical keyboard.

Only problem is, no-one seems to know whether it’s true or not. Former Apple exec Tony Fadell claimed it is. Schiller denied it. Now Fadell has denied it, too, but the author he told the story to is sticking by what he was told. What a mess!

iMac’s terrible code name was an in-joke between Jobs and Schiller

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iMac design: The iMac G3 was a bit fatter than model than today's models.
The iMac G3 could have had a very different name.
Photo: Apple

The first iMac’s frightful code name was an in-joke that reflected Steve Jobs’ respect for Sony.

The working name — “MacMan” — was so horrible it would “curdle your blood,” according to Ken Segall, the Apple exec who eventually came up with the name “iMac.” Nearly 20 years after Apple shipped the iMac G3, we now have an explanation for the craptacular internal name — courtesy of Phil Schiller, the guy who came up with it.

What they said: Best Apple quotes of 2016

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Best Apple quotes 2016
If you can't say something nice ...
Image: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

2016 Year in Review Cult of Mac The world of quotes is a poorer place without Steve Jobs, who was a quote machine. Nonetheless, plenty of people talked about Apple this year, whether lauding the company’s successes or damning its strategies.

Here are the most memorable Apple quotes of 2016.