Tim Cook catches a cab with Didi Chuxing's Chuxing's Jean Liu. Photo: Tim Cook/Twitter
Apple CEO Tim Cook had nothing but high praise for Didi Chuxing CEO Jean Liu in an exert he wrote about her for Time magazine.
Liu was named one of Time’s 100 most influential people of 2017. Cook, who sits on Didi’s board, was asked to write about Liu and said that her taxi-hailing startup is changing how people in China connect and commute with its convenience and flexibility.
Apple is taking Earth Day more seriously than ever this year. The company just published a new series of animated videos that go behind the scenes on the company’s goal to create zero waste.
The four new videos highlight the crazy things Apple does to be as environmentally friendly as possible. Each one-minute video focuses on challenges the company already overcame, whether it’s making yak-friendly solar farms in China, building breathable walls for Apple Park or creating fake sweat for iPhone tests.
Tim Cook meeting with China's vice premier on a previous visit. Photo: Apple
Apple has run into another hurdle in China, with internet regulators in the country reportedly calling on Apple to “tighten its checks” on live streaming apps which appear in the App Store.
While no specific live streaming apps are mentioned, popular apps include Periscope, Facebook Live, and others. Apparently the concern on this occasion concerns possible “management loopholes” with the apps in question. However, this is far from the first time the Chinese government has kicked up a fuss about Apple.
These are the 4 main parts you need. Photo: Strange Parts
Want to save a ton of money on a new iPhone? Try building your own.
Using a bunch of replacement parts bought at a marketplace in China, an ingenious YouTuber proves it’s entirely possible to build your own iPhone 6s. It turns out buying the parts is way cheaper than getting an iPhone 6s directly from Apple, as long as you’re cool assembling the tiny parts on your own.
But there's a definite chance of further delays. Photo: Foxconn
NYU graduate student Dejian Zeng pulled back the curtain on Apple’s factories in a tell-all that details his six-week stint working on an iPhone assembly line in China.
Zeng’s lengthy interview reveals details on everything from conditions inside a Pegatron dormitory to how Apple slowly shifts production for new iPhone models. Some of the most interesting bits, though, are the tiny details that show how working in an Apple factory could drive you crazy.
This is what it's like to make an iPhone. Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
Horrible sleeping conditions. Bad food. And boring tasks.
That’s what you can expect if you ever land at job at an iPhone factory, according to an ex-Pegatron employee and NYU grad student who went undercover at one of Apple’s factories in China.
President Donald Trump has called on Apple to bring iPhone manufacturing jobs to the U.S., but if Americans learn what it’s really like inside an iPhone factory, filling those jobs might be impossible.
Apple’s most important manufacturing parter is getting ready to make a huge investment that could make it one of the world’s biggest chipmakers.
The Japanese government is hoping Toshiba will sell itself to a domestic company, but Taiwan’s Hon Hai Precision Industries (aka Foxconn) is preparing to make a huge offer for the company that could shake up the tech world.
A woman in East China’s Jiangsu Province claims that a new Matte Black iPhone 7 exploded while she was charging it next to her bed.
The woman, who is identified only as Yin, says that she was fortunately out of the room when the incident happened. “My phone ran out of battery, so I left it to charge on my bedside table,” she said. “I went out for a walk and heard the explosion when I came home. Then I realized it was my phone.”
Apple's old iPhone is still a top-seller. Photo: Buster Hein/Cult of Mac
The iPhone 7 may have got all the attention last year, but it turns out that the older iPhone 6s was actually the most popular smartphone in the world during 2016.
A new study from IHS Markit found that not only did the iPhone 6s outsell its newer sibling, it dominated Samsung’s lineup of newer Galaxy S7 phones too.
Tim Cook has repeatedly dissed Microsoft’s Surface tablets by comparing them to a toaster-refrigerator, but during his trip to China this week the Apple CEO was forced to spend some up-close time with the convertible tablet.
Tim Cook and part of the Ofo team. Photo: Tim Cook/Weibo
Apple CEO Tim Cook is currently on another tour of China this week and is staying busy by visiting some of the hottest startups in the country.
This morning Cook paid a visit to bike-sharing startup Ofo which is already valued at $1 billion and counts Uber-rival/Apple-ally Didi Chuxing as one of its investors.
Shanghai will be home to one of them. Photo: Apple
Apple has confirmed plans to open two additional research and development centers in China this year.
The centers in Shanghai and Suzhou will focus on developing technical experts for its local supply chain, and attracting graduates from universities like Peking University, Tsinghua University, and Shanghai Jiaotong University.
iOS and Android are killing off the competition. Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
iOS saw continued growth in almost every market around the world last quarter, according to the latest data, while iPhone 7 remains a top seller in key countries.
Android also achieved market share increases in every region but the U.S., while BlackBerry, Windows, and other mobile operating systems continue to die out.
Breaking news: iCloud's closing. (Not that one!) Photo: iCloud.net
In an attempt to crack down on confusion and protect its intellectual property rights, Apple has acquired the website iCloud.net, previously the home of a small Chinese social network.
The web address now displays a message revealing that the site as it currently exists will be closing at the end of the month, and that all existing user data will be destroyed.
Apple is ultra-protective of prototype iPhones. Photo: Sonny Dickson
It’s no secret that Apple loves to keep products secret, but thanks to a new leak we can now see the crazy lengths the company goes to just to keep prototype iPhones under wraps.
Notorious Apple leaker Sonny Dickson has put out some new images of an ugly iPhone case allegedly used by Apple to keep the iPhone 6s secret. From the outside it doesn’t look like much, but there are a bunch of tiny details that help Apple keep features from leaking.
China has taken issue with the iPhone battery issues. Photo: Apple
An Apple representative has met with a government-sanctioned consumer watchdog organization in Beijing, China to discuss the ongoing iPhone battery drain issues.
The issue in question relates to to iPhone 6s handsets which shut down with reportedly 30 percent of battery life remaining. The fault has been widely discussed, but the Chinese government has been particularly outspoken about the issue.
Under CEO Sundar Pichai, Google is betting big on AI. Photo: Google
Apple’s five year reign as the world’s most valuable brand has come to an end. For now.
Even though the iPhone-maker reported historic revenues and profits during its Q1 2017 earnings call yesterday, Google has supplanted Apple in the latest brand rankings.
Get ready for Apple's most exciting earnings call of 2017. Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
Apple is set to reveal its first quarterly earnings report of 2017 and, if Wall Street’s estimates are any indicator, it could be Apple’s biggest quarter ever.
After multiple quarters of declining revenues, today’s call could see the company return to growth, lifted by strong iPhone sales over the holidays and a burgeoning services business that has quickly become Apple’s second-biggest moneymaker.
Tim Cook and Luca Maestri are scheduled to hold an open call with investors today at 2 p.m. Pacific. As usual, Cult of Mac will be here liveblogging and analyzing all the action. Get prepped for the call with our guide on what to expect, and join the fun in the liveblog below.
Peter Thiel separates Tim Cook and Donald Trump at tech summit. Photo: Sean Spicer/Twitter
The Trump administration and Apple appear to be patching up their rocky relationship after Apple CEO Tim Cook met with two of Trump’s closest advisers this week.
Apple is asking a lot of the Indian government. Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
Apple is currently weighing up the possibility of building new manufacturing facilities in India. Its decision rests on whether it can strike a deal over perks with the Indian government. Here are some of the things the company is requesting.
iPhone 8 is expected to be a huge success for Apple this year. Photo: iDropNews
Analysts have labeled Apple a “top pick” for investors in 2017.
Morgan Stanley predicts Apple will have a successful year due to a variety of factors, including the much-anticipated iPhone 8, a potential 11-point deduction in tax rate, and consumer loyalty in China where iPhone sales are expected to grow 20 percent.
Apple's relationship with China is complicated. Photo: Apple
iPhone users in China are no longer able to download the app for the most popular newspaper publisher in the U.S.
Chinese government officials reportedly demanded that Apple remove all of TheNew York Times apps from the App Store in China, blocking access to one of the few channels the paper has to reach readers in mainland China.