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News - page 1077

Apple expected to bid on Thursday Night Football streaming deal

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Football
Would Thursday Night Football be a touchdown for Apple TV?
Photo: NFL Network

The NFL is looking for a new partner to host Thursday Night Football, and it appears that Apple may be gunning to make an interception from Yahoo and Google.

Traditional networks like CBS, ESPN, Fox, and NBC were all informed by the NFL that it is ready to accept bid for broadcasting rights to its Thursday Night Football package, but the league also notified Apple that it can bid for a non-exclusive streaming deal for Apple TV and iOS users.

iOS 9.2 autocorrects ‘lardass’ to ‘Kardashian’

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Photo: TMZ

Someone at Apple appears to be playing a joke on the Kardashians. Either that, or the neural net powering iOS 9’s typo suggestions has unlocked a new synonym.

All iPhones and iPads running iOS 9.2 now autocorrects the word ‘lardass’ to ‘Kardashian.’ News of the comic correction first started making waves yesterday when DJ Phoenix tweeted about the little ‘glitch’ that appears to make fun of Kardashian’s famously ample sized derrière.

I didn’t believe it at first, so I decided to check it out for myself and here’s what autocorrect suggested:

Star Wars is back: The Force Awakens is as awesome as you hoped it would be

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A sci-fi spectacle firmly rooted in what it means to be human.
A sci-fi spectacle firmly rooted in what it means to be human.
Photo: Disney/Lucasfilm

If we ignore the prequels (and, heck, who doesn’t), there hasn’t been a solid Star Wars film in 32 years.

That’s all about to change if film critics reviewing the new film in the franchise, The Force Awakens, are right. The first reviews are in and boy, are they positive. While a few reviewers point out some valid flaws in the nostalgia machine, even the “negative” reviews are fairly upbeat.

Here’s our spoiler-free roundup of some of the best reviews out there so far.

Force Awakens cast gives us all a nerdgasm with a cappella version of Star Wars

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The Force is strong with this one.
The Force is strong with this one.
Photo: Jimmy Fallon

There are two things in the universe that give us incomparable joy: Apple devices and Star Wars nerdery.

The latter is strong with the video below, where Jimmy Fallon, his house band The Roots, and the major cast members from The Force Awakens sing a medley of Star Wars music in a giant Brady Bunch-style colored grid.

If your lightsaber doesn’t explode with joy when you watch, there’s obviously something wrong with you.

Check it out below.

Rdio marches to death playing the high notes

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The Rdio app just got better than ever. Photo: Rdio.
You won't be able to stream from Rdio on Christmas this year.
Photo: Rdio

Rdio made the date of its demise official this morning. The streaming music service as we know it will cease to exist on December 22 — just six days from today — at 5 p.m. Pacific time. Rdio sent around an email to its users to let them know the specifics of the shutdown.

“Rdio is being acquired, and the service is shutting down worldwide on December 22,” the company wrote on its Goodbye page. “We’re excited to bring great music experiences to even more listeners in the future as part of the Pandora team.”

‘Peak smartphone’ is why Tim Cook is so hot for switchers

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Apple CEO Tim Cook gladly welcomes Android users to make the switch.
Apple CEO Tim Cook gladly welcomes Android users to make the switch.
Photo: Roberto Baldwin/The Next Web (2014)

Apple convinced us we couldn’t live without a smartphone. Now many of us have a smartphone in hand and Apple may be facing the curse side of the blessing — finding new customers for the iPhone.

Credit Suisse recently issued a report to investors that further fuels speculation that iPhone sales will dip for the first time since Apple introduced it in 2007. The upshot: Smartphone ownership is approaching 100 percent. We’re nearing “peak smartphone.”

The first guy to hack the iPhone built a self-driving car by himself

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George Hotz aka 'geohot' unveiling the world's first unlocked iPhone
George Hotz aka 'geohot' unveiling the world's first unlocked iPhone
Photo: geohot/Youtube

George Hotz made a name for himself at 17 years-old as the first person to hack the iPhone, but his next project could be headed on a collision course with Apple’s self-driving car.

Using affordable electronics that any nerd on the street can purchase, Hotz revealed that he hacked an Acura ILX to become a self-driving car. The hack uses a lidar system on the roof with cameras mounted on the front and back that plug into a computer in the glove box. To top it off, Hotz added a 21.5-inch touch screen to the dash, and replaced the gear shift with a joy stick controller.

“Modern cars are very electronic and computer,” Hotz told Bloomberg. “If you ask me, I know a bit about cars, but I’m not a car guy. I’m a computer guy. Cars are computers.”

Soon you can screen Steve Jobs in your living room

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Aaron Sorkin’s Steve Jobs movie is coming to Netflix
Steve Jobs movie may gain a wider audience on home video.
Photo: François Duhamel/©2015 Universal Studios

If you’ve been waiting to check out Aaron Sorkin’s Steve Jobs movie (and, based on the dismal box office figures, people certainly haven’t rushed out to theaters), you’ve got a couple more months before you can watch it from the comfort of your own home.

iPhone 6s tops Galaxy S6 in Google’s ‘Year of Search’ list

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iphone-6s-tops-galaxy-s6-in-googles-year-of-search-list-image-cultofandroidcomwp-contentuploads201510iPhone-6s-camera-jpg
We're all still obsessed with the iPhone apparently.
Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Android
We're all still obsessed with the iPhone apparently. Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Android
We’re all still obsessed with the iPhone apparently. Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Android

iPhone ranks as the no. 1 consumer tech gadget on Google’s newly-released “Year of Search” list, beating Samsung’s Galaxy S6 as the smartphone we were, apparently, all looking for this year.

Apple and IBM have built 100 enterprise apps for iOS

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IBM has hit a major milestone with its Apple partnership.
Photo: IBM

Apple and IBM today announced that they have hit their partnership goal of creating more than 100 IBM MobileFirst iOS enterprise apps together. These so far cover 14 different industries and 65 individual professions — ranging from wealth advisors to flight attendants, first responders, nurses and retail buyers.

And the two companies aren’t finished yet!

Australia welcomes Android Pay, despite Apple Pay snub

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australia-welcomes-android-pay-despite-apple-pay-snub-2-image-cultofandroidcomwp-contentuploads201509Android-Pay-png
Australia says g'day to Android Pay, still won't put a shrimp on the barbie for Apple Pay.
Photo: Google
Android Pay is saying G'day to more Australian customers. Photo: Google
Australia says g’day to Android Pay, still won’t put a shrimp on the barbie for Apple Pay. Photo: Google

Australian banks including Westpac, ANZ and Macquarie have announced that they will soon accept contactless payments made via Android Pay — although would-be Apple Pay customers are still being left out in the cold.

The reason? Banks still aren’t happy with Apple’s terms for its mobile payments solution, and showing that they are willing to accept Android Pay is a way of forcing a better deal with Apple.

Apple officially shuts down its Twitter analytics acquisition

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Screen-Shot-2013-12-02-at-4.58.45-PM-640x351
Topsy has searched its last tweet.
Photo: Topsy

Two years after it acquired Topsy, a San Francisco-based firm offering Twitter analytics to companies, Apple has officially shut down the service.

“We’ve searched our last tweet,” Topsy has noted on its official Twitter account. Topsy’s website redirects to an Apple support page detailing how users can use search features on iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.

Jeb Bush thinks Apple Watch is flawed, but still cool

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While on the campaign trial, Jeb Bush usually doesn't hold forth on the Apple Watch's strengths and weaknesses.
While on the campaign trial, Jeb Bush usually doesn't hold forth on the Apple Watch's strengths and weaknesses.
Photo: John Pemble/Flickr CC

Poor Jeb Bush. He can’t even discuss the Apple Watch and its shortcomings without coming off as overly exasperated.

“It’s not as intuitive as the other Apple products,” he said in a recent video interview with Business Insider. “The battery gives out too quick,” he continued, exhibiting the kind of head-bobbing body language he usually reserves for queries about his flailing presidential bid or Donald Trump’s oversimplified answers to complex questions.

Pac-Man 256 bursts onto the big screen via Apple TV

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Chasing ghosts was never this much fun.
Chasing ghosts was never this much fun.
Photo: Rob LeFebvre/Cult of Mac

Pac-Man is a touchstone of gamer nostalgia, and Hipster Whale (the dynamic duo behind runaway hit Crossy Road) has created one of the best spin-offs yet: Pac-Man 256.

Better yet, it looks like the free-to-play endless runner cum dot muncher is now available on your high-def living room screen via the Apple TV itself.

Facebook is finally fixing its ‘real name’ problem

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Facebook
You probably still won't be able to go by "Imperator Furiosa," regardless of how awesome she and her name are.
Photo: Thomas Ulrich/Pixabay

After some controversies and embarrassing missteps, social-media giant Facebook is introducing tools to let its users go by the names they most identify with.

The tools it’s rolling out today will change up both how account owners can both report on and respond to real-name challenges.

Siri technology is coming soon to more apps, fridges and even robots

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Command your robot to find your cat with just your voice.
Command your robot to find your cat with just your voice.
Photo: Nuance

Your smart life is about to get even smarter with a new set of software development tools that will let coders include world-class speech recognition and natural language processing — the same stuff that powers Siri, Apple’s personal digital assistant — to thermostats, refrigerators, apps and, yes, even robots.

The folks at Nuance have created a new system, currently in beta, to allow any company to include code with language commands that are specific to their hardware or apps. It’s called Nuance Mix, and anyone can sign in and create their own speech-recognition code to work with their apps or connected devices.

“Any developer, big or small, can come in and define a custom set of use cases,” Nuance’s Kenn Harper told Cult of Mac during a demo of the SDK. “You’re going to start talking to everything at home and work — speech is about to get more ubiquitous.”

Ekster special smart wallet keeps your cards safe and trackable

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Ekster wallets promise  extra security from data thieves.
Ekster wallets promise extra security from data thieves.
Photo: Ekster

I would love a smart wallet that doubles my money. Tuck in a five spot and boom! Alexander Hamilton.

That would be a magic wallet. A good smart wallet, though, can help protect you from losing your money.

At least, that is the idea behind the ultra-thin Ekster Smart Wallet, which provides RFID blocking to keep credit cards secure and has a GPS tracking device that communicates with a smartphone app when the wallet is out of range or even lost.

Soccer coach equips players with iPads to overcome language barrier

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iPad Air 2
Free iPads for a game of football a week? Where do I sign up?
Photo: Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

With his ability to fire people up and get them motivated, Steve Jobs has been likened to a great football coach. And now to bring things full circle, a real football coach (or “soccer” to you American readers!) is using Jobs’ creation, the iPad, to help coach his players.

The coach in question is Gary Neville, who a new report claims has distributed iPads to the Valencia football team to teach them strategies on the pitch, while covering up for his lack of fluency in Spanish.

Gene Munster admits he got Apple all wrong (again)

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iPhone 6S
The iPhone Upgrade Program could be a monster hit for Apple.
Photo: Buster Hein/Cult of Mac

Hit-and-miss Apple analyst Gene Munster has admitted he couldn’t have been more wrong about the likely customer uptake of Apple’s iPhone Upgrade Program, the $32+ per month scheme designed to get new iPhones into the hands of people happy to pay a monthly fee to Apple.

Elon Musk: I met Steve Jobs and he was a jerk

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Why Salesforce chief gave up AppStore.com for Apple
Steve Jobs was allegedly unaware of who Elon Musk was.
Photo: Ben Stanfield/Flickr CC

Tesla CEO and all-around real-life Iron Man Elon Musk has been on quite the roll, making various verbal swipes at Apple as of late — and a new interview he gave to GQ doesn’t break the mold.

Describing Steve Jobs as “kind of a jerk,” and saying, “It’s not that I care about currying favor with Apple” before backing off his answers, the parts of Musk’s interview concerning Cupertino read like a textbook case in passive-aggressive behavior.

Whatever happened to the guy who thought an Apple Car was a “great idea?”