Brad Gibson - page 3

TiVo Stream 4K challenges Apple TV 4K with long-awaited release, but no Apple TV app support

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Is the TiVo Stream 4K a worthy Apple TV opponent? Probably, but no Apple TV+ support hurts.
Photo: TiVo

After months of anticipation and weeks of social media teasing, the TiVo Stream 4K was released Wednesday, a streaming box that brings together on-demand and live streaming services into one device without having to switch from app to app to find and watch shows.

At an introductory price of $49.99 with no monthly subscription for TV scheduling data, the TiVo Stream 4K will take on the Apple TV 4K with a starting price of $179 and the top-selling Roku streaming device.

The disappointing news for Apple TV app users and Apple TV+ subscribers is that TiVo’s newest product currently will not support the app or integration of Apple’s programming as Apple does not have an Android app.

Twitter testing new threaded conversation layout on iOS and web

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A new Twitter threaded conversation layout might declutter the tweet machine.
A new threaded conversation layout might declutter Twitter.
Image: Twitter

Twitter announced Tuesday it has started testing a new way threaded conversation layout meant to make it easier for its users to see who is communicating to whom.

The new layout – being tested on Twitter’s iOS app and via the web – is meant to help users keep better track of long threads and people responding to sub-tweets coming off an original thread.

Apple broadens Apple Maps mobility trends to all 50 states, more regions

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The mobility data trends tool based on data from Apple Maps.
As more people commute, Apple Maps is adding more data to its Mobility Trends report to help with COVID-19 studies.
Photo: Apple

Apple has expanded the data available through its Mobility Trends Reports tool. A report indicates all 50 states are now covered along with about 580 new sub-regions.

The data is meant to help healthcare authorities analyze the spread of coronavirus and slow the spread of COVID-19. It was initially introduced to aggregate data from major cities and 63 countries or regions.

Apple’s virtual Worldwide Developers Conference to begin June 22

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Following cancellation of its face-to-face conference, Apple is going online with WWDC, starting June 22.
Photo: Apple

Apple announced Tuesday it will host its 2020 Worldwide Developers Conference virtually, beginning June 22. It will be available to view using the Apple Developer app, streamed on the Apple Developer website and free for all registered developers.

Apple did not give any details of a keynote event to announce various products, but is expected to hold one on the conferences opening day.

France threatens Apple in standoff over COVID-19 contract-tracing privacy

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Any of the new iPhones can handle the worst rainstorm.
France plans to go it alone on COVID-19 contact tracing for mobile phones.
Photo: Apple

A French official accused Apple on Tuesday of hampering the effectiveness of the country’s COVID-19 contract-tracing platform by blocking access to data via Bluetooth.

France minister for digital technology Cedric O told BFM Business TV that Apple “could have helped us make the application work even better on the iPhone. They have not wished to do so.”

Apple questions U.S. government interference in Corellium copyright suit

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iOS Apps Main
A copyright case between Apple and Corellium is now of great interest to the DOJ. But why?
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

Apple is disputing the interference of the U.S. Justice Department in a copyright suit against software maker Corellium as questions arise as to why the federal government is now involved in the case.

The Department of Justice has now intervened in the case asking Apple to delay its request for a deposition of Corellium cofounder Chris Wade, and inquiring to what evidence Apple is planning on presenting before its lawyers question Wade.

Apple and Google’s contract-tracing system to ban Location Services access

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New guidelines are meant to help developers create easy-to-understand contact tracing apps.
Photo: Apple/Google

Apple and Google released additional details about their coronavirus contact-tracing system Monday, informing public health officials that they will not be able to use Location Services to track people. The companies also said they will limit use of the contact-tracing API to one per country.

Both companies also showed off what an app might look like on people’s smartphones — and shared sample pieces of code local governments could use in their own mobile apps.

Adhesive sensor might spot coronavirus symptoms using an iPad

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Monitoring for COVID-19 symptoms this device is iPad-ready to collect data.
Photo: Northwestern University

An adhesive sensor much like a Band-Aid has been developed by Northwestern University to monitor for early signs of COVID-19 infection when connected wirelessly to an iPad.

Announced Monday, the device sticks to the throat and looks for coughing and various onset symptoms of COVID-19 to aid treatment of patients with the deadly virus.

Apple to reopen first retail store in Europe May 5 since pandemic shutdown

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Vienna becomes first Apple store to reopen in Europe following COVID-19 pandemic.
Photo: Eric Weber for Cult of Mac

Apple will reopen its store in Vienna, Austria, on Tuesday, as its retail operations slowly emerge from a worldwide shutdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Vienna store is Apple’s first outside of China and South Korea to reopen after the company shuttered its brick-and-mortar locations in March.

According to Austria’s Heute newspaper, the only store in Austria will reopen with additional security precautions, including social distance and adjusted opening hours. Customers will be required to wear a protective mask and will be checked for a fever.

Automatic Labs shuttering connected car service May 28

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Tough times, tough competition has taken its toll on Automatic Labs.
Photo: Automatic Labs

Automatic Labs is shutting down is vehicle monitoring service which worked with the iPhone beginning May 28, saying Friday its business has been adversely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The service provides various data via a diagnostic port on many vehicles as well as warns authorities when a car has been in an accident.

Apple reportedly plans store reopenings in Austria, Australia in next few weeks

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Apple's stunning Covent Garden store will be one of the many London stores making provisions for international journalists.
Outside China, Apple might reopen in Austria and Australia soon.
Photo: Apple

Apple plans to reopen its retail stores in Austria and Australia sometime in the next one to two weeks, Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook said Thursday.

Cook told Blooomberg he believes that “just a few, not a large number” of stores in the United States will re-open in the first half of May.

iPhone 12 prices rumored to stay close to current models, even with OLED screen upgrades

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iPhone 12 with LiDAR scanner
Change out the display and add a LiDAR camera, and the expected iPhone 12 models are rumored to stay closely the same price as current models.
Photo: svetapple.sk

Pricing on Apple’s expected 5G-ready iPhones will remain mostly the same, even though they are predicted to include OLED screens, according to a new report.

Front Page Tech analyst Jon Prosser tweeted Thursday base pricing on what Cult of Mac has reported as four new iPhone 12 models coming later this year.

Qualcomm predicts strong 5G smartphone demand into 2021, hinting at Apple’s iPhone plans

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Qualcomm expects to sell a lot of modem chipsets for 5G mobiles - like the iPhone - in the next year.
Photo: Qualcomm

Chipmaker Qualcomm said Wednesday it expects the smartphone industry to ship 30% fewer mobile phones in the second quarter as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, but predicted the demand for 5G smartphones will accelerate from the second half of 2020 into the new year.

As a provider of modem chips to Apple, the predictions give further evidence that the Cupertino-based high-tech giant is on track to release it’s first 5G-ready iPhone lineup later this year simply based on Qualcomm’s estimates of product demand.

Video DisplayPort standard ups its game with faster data speed and 16K display support

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A Thunderbolt 3 cable is also a USB4 cable.
DisplayPort Alt Mode 2.0 brings a number of faster capabilities to USB4.
Photo: Caldigit

The Video Electronics Standards Association announced Wednesday the release of version 2.0 of the DisplayPort Alternate Mode standard that will support future compatible products with video data speeds up to 80 Gigabits per second and 16K displays up to 60Hz refresh rate.

The interface standard, which is part of USB-C connectors on Apple’s current Mac product line, is primarily used to connect a video source to a device like a flat-screen display, but can also carry audio, USB, and other forms of data.