Spotify is the largest music streamer in the world. Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac
Spotify now has more active users than any other music streaming service on the planet, but when it comes to paid subscribers, it looks like growth has stalled.
The Swedish music streaming service revealed today that it now has 100 million active users — up from the 75 million it had last year — however its paid subscribers total hasn’t budged since March.
Employees love working at Apple. Photo: Milo Kahney/Cult of Mac
Apple is one of the top 5 companies in the U.S. when it comes to attracting and keeping talent, but its rivals Facebook and Google are even better.
LinkedIn has come out with its first ever Top Attractors list based on insights from tracking billions of data points of its 433 million members and discovered that in the employee perks arm race, few can top Google.
There is a way to get iOS 10 early. Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
You’re probably itching to get your hands on the new iOS 10 beta, but if you’re not a registered developer, that’s not easy. But it’s not impossible. Here’s how fans are downloading and installing iOS 10 months early!
From the sound of things, Nest CEO Tony Fadell learned quite a bit from working with Steve Jobs. Photo: Nest
Nest co-founder and CEO Tony Fadell revealed today that he’s taking flight and leaving the company he created.
The godfather of the iPod hit a grand slam with the launch of his smart-thermostat company that was bought by Google, but it appears he’s ready to call it quits just six years into Nest’s run.
Google won't let the robots take over. Photo: Google
Google’s DeepMind team has been working with scientists to create a way in which humans can kill artificial intelligence agents before they can turn on us.
It’s a concern many have as the AI systems being developed by tech giants become more intelligent and more capable — but Google has us covered.
So you forgot to activate Find My iPhone when setting up your new iOS device, and now you’ve lost it. Fear not, because thanks to Google, you have a backup service.
Simply type “I lost my phone” into Google Search and you’ll be able to locate all the devices connected to your account.
Messenger is finally getting encryption. Photo: Facebook
Facebook plans to tighten security on its popular Messenger platform this summer, but it won’t be turned on for all users by default.
Messenger will add a new end-to-end encryption feature that prevents hackers and the government from being able to read your text messages. Facebook won’t be able to read your messages either though, and that will seriously hurt its ability to make bots great if you decide to opt-in to better security.
Yet more reasons to download the Google app. Photo: Google
Google’s official iOS app is getting a massive speed boost. Its latest update cuts down loading times significantly using new Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP) technology, and adds sports highlights that are baked into Google Now cards.
The Nexus Player is no longer available. Photo: Google
Google has again given up on competing with the Apple TV and other set-top boxes after discontinuing the Nexus Player. The Asus-made device is no longer available from the Google Store — but this doesn’t mean Android TV is dead.
Apple Car might be coming, but will it be special? Image: Aristomenis Tsirbas/Freelancer
The Apple Car isn’t expected to hit the road until 2020 at the earliest, but Apple’s engineers are already laying the foundation for one of the most challenging aspect of electric vehicles: keeping them charged up.
Apple appears to be preparing the ground work for its charging infrastructure, according to a new report claiming the company is scooping up engineers that specialize in electric charing stations.
Apple Music just lost its big advantage over Spotify. Photo: Spotify
Spotify has finally matched Apple Music’s awesome family plan, giving up to six users unlimited access for just $14.99 a month. Each user gets their own account with their own playlists and recommendations, and there are no restrictions or ads.
Siri's slipping, but can it come back? Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac
At its I/O conference in California this week, Google gave us a preview of the new Google Assistant that’s coming later this year. It’s like Siri, only it’s vastly more intelligent. It does everything you want a digital assistant to do and more.
And just like a lot of Google services, Assistant will be available on iOS — not only in the official Google app, but also inside the new Allo messenger. It will be competing with Apple’s AI in its own backyard, and the Cupertino company should be worried about that.
But can Siri catch up, or have Apple’s rivals now too far ahead in artificial intelligence? Join us in this week’s Friday Night Fight as we battle it out over digital assistants.
Gboard is probably the best third-party keyboard on iOS. Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
Google now offers its very own keyboard for iOS, and it’s awesome. It’s packed full of useful features like glide typing and built-in search, and it has a clean and simple design that’s a pleasure to type on. It’s probably the best third-party keyboard on iPhone.
But there are 10 things you should know about Gboard before you get set up.
You can add third-party complications to your favorite face in Wear 2.0. Photo: Google
Google today gave us a glimpse at its upcoming Android Wear 2.0 update, which is going to make your smartwatch even smarter. It’s the biggest update to the wearable platform so far, with brand new features and big improvements — some of which were snagged from Apple Watch.
Google Duo makes cross-platform video calling great. Photo: Google
Google has its very own answer to iMessage in Allo, and now it’s taking on FaceTime, too. Google Duo is a brand new video calling platform that’s available to Android and iOS users, and it’s packing unique features you won’t find elsewhere.
"'Allo, guvna!" Google's new messaging app is obviously British. Photo: Google
Watch out Facebook Messenger, Google is taking another stab at messaging with its newly revealed app called Allo.
Does the world really need another messaging app? Probably not. But Google is hoping that it has finally created the perfect mix of features that will make you ditch Snapchat and Facebook.
Google Home is coming later this year, and it looks amazing. Photo: Google
Google is already helping you with everyday tasks on your smartphone, and now it’s coming to your home. With the new Google Home speaker, you get an intelligent digital assistant that’s there for you whenever you need it — and you’ll be amazed at what it can do.
Will Google I/O give Apple anything to worry about? Photo: Google
Google is kicking off its I/O developer conference at 10 a.m. PT today, and it’s going to give us a great look at some of the things Apple will be competing with over the next 12 months.
If you’re interested in keeping up, you can watch the whole thing live right here.
The Apple TV had a surge of sales last year. Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
The fourth generation Apple TV experienced the largest increase in unit sales last year among streaming media players but it hasn’t been good enough to supplant Roku as the top streamer in the U.S.
Apple TV’s biggest weakness appears to be its price point. New research shows that smaller stick streamers made up half of last year’s sales and Apple’s competition reaped the rewards.
YouTube goes all in on VR. Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac
It’s time to dust off that virtual reality headset you bought for your iPhone. Thanks to a new YouTube update that’s rolling out now, it’s finally possible to watch any video in glorious VR.
Spaces is coming to Android, iOS, and the web today. Photo: Google
Google isn’t waiting until its I/O conference next week to put its latest app in your hands. The company today launched Spaces for Android, iOS, and the web, making it easy to share just about anything with your favorite groups of friends.
Google is finally stepping up its bid to kill Flash content. Later this year, its Chrome browser will default to HTML5 wherever possible, using Flash only as a last resort.
The move should make Chrome speedier and more stable — and better on battery life when used on a MacBook.
If you’re an iPhone user who loves Google, or you just like to keep up with the competition, then you’ll be pleased to know there’s now an official iPhone app for next week’s Google I/O conference.
You can use it to keep track of events, navigate your way around if you’re going to be there, and to watch the keynote and sessions live if you’ve been following from home.