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News - page 1109

Live Photos are great — just not for 16GB iPhones

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iPhone 6s has Live Photos.
Live Photos consume twice the space of regular iPhone pics.
Photo: Apple

When Phil Schiller introduced the iPhone 6s’ new Live Photos, he noted that Apple had implemented it, “in a space-efficient way, so they don’t take up much more room.”

In fact, according to a new report, Live Photos take up around 2x the space of a regular still photo. That’s still an impressive bit of compression on Apple’s part, but also likely to make life a bit tougher for those planning to buy the entry-level 16GB iPhone 6s.

Apple’s iPhone 6s keynote is even more magical as a musical

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Tim cook
Just when you thought Apple's keynote couldn't get any more memorable.
Photo: Apple

Apple’s keynotes typically give you plenty worth singing about, and for “Song-A-Day” YouTuber Jonathan Mann, that’s reason enough to bust out new tunes.

Mann, whose catchy jingles once made Steve Jobs dance, always puts together a musical remix following Apple events, and this week’s jam-packed keynote is no exception.

If you don’t have time to sit through the entire 2-hour-plus event, or simply want to relive the most memorable lines with a catchy electronic backing, this is the video for you. Check it out below:

Bill Graham Civic hosted Apple’s biggest hyperbole-fest ever

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The iPhone 6s Plus might be hard to find on launch day.
All Apple's saying is that the iPhone 6s will be the most amazing, dynamic, life-changing thing you've ever seen.
Photo: Apple

We get that yesterday’s Apple event was a marketing thing, which is why every presentation began with whoever was onstage telling us how “thrilled,” “excited” or “really happy” they were to be there. And the exaggeration just continued from those intros.

Here are some of the most outlandish and enthusiastically subjective lines that came from the stage at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium. We’ve organized them by speaker so you can see who “won” this verbal arms race of canned excitement.

Former NBA player uses all 5 fingers to palm Apple products

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Rex Chapman stole a lot of Apple gear to pay for his addiction.
Rex Chapman stole a lot of Apple gear to pay for his addiction.
Photo: Mark Cornelison/Lexington Leader-Herald

Former NBA player Rex Chapman pleaded guilty to four counts of felony theft this week. He was arrested for not only stealing over $15,000 worth of Apple gear from the store in Scottsdale, Arizona, but also for selling it at local pawn shops.

Chapman allegedly pretended to use the Apple Store’s self-checkout system, leaving without actually paying for the items.

Why Apple Pencil blows away Wacom Cintiq

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The Apple Pencil makes drawing on an iPad Pro incredibly precise.
The Apple Pencil makes drawing on an iPad Pro incredibly precise.
Photo: Apple

This is a guest post by Linda Dong, a graphics expert and former designer at Apple. It originally appeared on her personal website.

A lot of hesitation (or dismissal) of the new Apple Pencil seems to stem from people’s belief that the Wacom Cintiq, currently regarded as the pinnacle of professional drawing stylus/surface design, is superior in performance and design at a similar price.

😩 *sigh*

Quite plainly, the Cintiq sucks in comparison. And I’ve been using them for years for industrial design sketching, UI and art. Let’s compare the experience:

Latest Apple fashion? Cool Siri-themed fingernails

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Apple senior design producer Jen Folse talks about the changes to Apple TV.
Apple senior design producer Jen Folse talks about the changes to Apple TV.
Photo: Apple

Jen Folse used the Apple stage Wednesday to tell the world about Apple TV. She used her nails to express her loyalty to the company.

If you got close enough to Apple’s lone female staffer to present at the company’s fall product event Wednesday, you could see the wavy lines of blue, pink, red, yellow and white on her nails painted to look like Siri’s Apple Watch interface. Those same colors were also used in official promotions of the fall showcase.

Have a look:

Are Apple’s Live Photos a gimmick or a game-changer?

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Live Photos bring a little life to your still images.
Live Photos bring a little life to your still images.
Photo: Apple

A few extra megapixels is always welcome, but if there is one feature of the new iPhone 6s camera that gets us to say “Wow,” it is Live Photos.

The new Live Photos technology actually captures a brief moment before and after your snap, giving the subject in a finished picture motion and a bit of life. After seeing it for the first time, some said, “Wow, that’s cool!” And others said, “Wow, that’s nothing new.”

Samsung and Sony take jealous stabs at Apple

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Apple's back on top again.
Apple's back on top again.
Photo: Apple
Tim Cook doesn't care. Photo: Apple
Tim Cook doesn’t care. Photo: Apple

Haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate.

Apple was reminded of this after its keynote on Wednesday when rivals Samsung and Sony took to Twitter to mock the length of its presentation — and its new iPhone 6s.

Creepy soundboard turns Jony Ive into your puppet

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Ever want to control Jony Ive? Now you can.
Ever want to control Jony Ive? Now you can.
Photo: Jony Jive

Jony Ive has one of the coolest, most suave voices among Apple’s executive leadership team. I could listen to him pronounce “aluminium” and “metallurgists” all day. Now, thanks to a creepy new soundboard, you can make Apple’s chief design officer say pretty much anything you want.

Star Wars: Uprising is hotter than a night on Hoth inside a tauntaun

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star-wars-uprising-is-hotter-than-a-night-on-hoth-inside-a-tauntaun-image-cultofandroidcomwp-contentuploads201509SWUP_EN_Title_Screen_01-jpg
The first video game that's officially sanctioned as canon by Lucasfilm is a free-to-play game? Photo: Kabam
The first video game that’s officially sanctioned as canon by Lucasfilm is a free-to-play game? Photo: Kabam

There’s been a disturbance in the Force: a free-to-play Star Wars game has arrived for iOS and Android, and it’s surprisingly damn good.

Star Wars: Uprising is the first video game that’s actually canon to the new Star Wars Universe, taking place between Return of the Jedi (VI) and the upcoming The Force Awakens (VII).

That alone merits a download, but once you start playing, you’ll find a really well-written storyline, some deep customization options, and an addictive gear collecting and upgrading system that will keep you going back for more. Check out the trailer below for some glorious Star Wars action.

Google takes the fight to Apple Pay today

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google-takes-the-fight-to-apple-pay-today-image-cultofandroidcomwp-contentuploads201509Android-Pay-png
Get ready for Android Pay.
Photo: Google
Get ready for Android Pay. Photo: Google
Get ready for Android Pay. Photo: Google

Android Pay has begun rolling out to users with support at more than 1 million locations throughout the U.S.

The Apple Pay competitor, which was first unveiled at Google I/O back in May, is available on NFC-equipped smartphones running Android 4.4 KitKat and above, and it’s compatible with a whole host of banks and credit card providers.

Apple boosts price of AppleCare+, slashes iCloud storage fees

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AppleCare
79 Apple Stores are part of the pilot.
Photo: Apple

Adding AppleCare+ coverage to your iPhone 6s is going to cost you a little more extra this year. Apple didn’t announce any pricing changes on stage at yesterday’s event, but the company did update its website to reflect the higher prices, and not only will iPhone 6s owners have to pay more to buy AppleCare+, they’ll also be charged more for service fees.

Pokémon GO puts pocket monsters in the real world

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pokemon-go-puts-pocket-monsters-in-the-real-world-image-cultofandroidcomwp-contentuploads201509Pokemon_GO_logo-png
Pokémon GO is coming to Android and iOS in 2016.
Photo: The Pokémon Company
Pokémon GO is coming to Android and iOS in 2016. Photo: The Pokémon Company
Pokémon GO is coming to Android and iOS in 2016. Photo: The Pokémon Company

The Pokémon Company’s second smartphone game is going to bring your favorite pocket monsters to the real world for the first time.

Pokémon GO, which is coming to Android and iOS in 2016, is a location-based game that will let you find, fight, and catch Pokémon in the cities, towns, and neighborhoods around you like never before.

Get a closer look at the el cheapo gold Apple Watch

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The gold Apple Watch looks great with a navy band.
The gold Apple Watch looks great with a navy band.
Photo: Blake Kimball

Apple fans can’t purchase the iPhone 6s, Apple TV, or iPad Pro that were unveiled yesterday, but if you’re lucky you can pick up the cheap gold Apple Watch Sport today, now that Apple Stores have received limited supplies of new units.

Cult of Mac got an early look at the new gold finish thanks to a reader who already scooped up a 42mm gold Apple Watch Sport at the Apple Store in Gilbert, Arizona, and while the new model is way cheaper than its expensive Edition sibling, it still looks like a million bucks.

Take a closer look:

T-Mobile will slash $125 off your new iPhone 6s

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t-mobilejohn-legere
John Legere would love to be your iPhone 6s Uncarrier.
Photo: T-Mobile

T-Mobile sure wants to be your carrier for the new iPhone 6s.

Having previously introduced attention-grabbing offers like Apple Music streaming which doesn’t take a byte out of your monthly data allowance, the Uncannier is now offering customers the chance to get their hands on a 16GB iPhone 6s for $125 less than its normal sales price of $649.

And outspoken CEO John Legere wants to make sure you know T-Mobile coverage is better than ever, too.

iOS 9.1 adds new emoji for tacos, burritos, unicorns and more

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Are you ready for taco emoji?
Are you ready for taco emoji?
Photo: Unicode Consortium

While the just-released iOS 9.1. beta is light on major features, it does contain some big additions for the iPhone’s emoji keyboard.

Tons of new emoji were added in iOS 9.1 as part of the system’s update to Unicode 8.0 standards, which includes support for burrito, taco and unicorn pictograms. There’s also a stop hand, upside-down smiley face, a turkey, prayer beads, and much more.

Here’s a look at all the new emoji:

21-inch iMac with spectacular 4K display is coming this year

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CODMW3-Press-iMac1
The new iMac should match the pixel density of its 5K big brother.
Photo: Apple

Apple reportedly kicked off production of its new 21-inch 4K iMac earlier this month, according to a new report — with the new desktop computers said to be arriving in stores sometime in the fourth quarter.

It is claimed that the new iMac will boast a pixel density the same as Apple’s larger 27-inch 5K iMac, which began shipping almost a year ago. If Apple follows a similar release pattern with its 21-inch iMac, we could well see the new computer officially launch in October.

Having a hot demo at an Apple keynote comes at a cost

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Screen Shot 2015-09-10 at 10.54.02
AirStrip's servers skipped a beat after the Apple keynote.
Photo: Apple

When Apple sends its millions of followers your way, you’d better be ready!

That’s the lesson learned by mobile health developer AirStrip Technologies, which reports that it was unprepared for the stampede of digital feet which came after its Apple Watch demo at yesterday’s keynote.

“Our website was crashed within seconds,” AirStrip CEO Alan Portela said — adding that, “I have to confess, I didn’t know we were going to be right after Tim Cook.”

Full Apple upgrade won’t come cheap

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The iPad Pro goes on sale November 11th.
The iPad Pro goes on sale November 11th.
Photo: Apple

Apple rolled out one drool-worthy new gadget after another Wednesday.

The iPad Pro? Want.

A Hermes Apple Watch? Gotta have.

The new Apple TV? Gimme!

If you’re like me, you’ll want one of everything Tim Cook and crew showed off in Apple’s September showcase. But if you get one of everything, it is going to cost you.

First blush not exactly first gush for new Apple products

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The new iPhone 6s in the hands of journalist during Apple's September event Wednesday.
The new iPhone 6s in the hands of journalist during Apple's September event Wednesday.
Photo: The Verge/YouTube

After a little playtime with Apple’s new products Wednesday, the bloggers and tech reporters who cover Cupertino wrote positive reviews, but nothing seemed to make anyone pause and say wow.

The hands-on reviews and observations of the new Apple TV, the iPad Pro and iPhone 6s were measured praises of what may come later, the story appears to be more about evolution than revelation.

Logitech is ready to compete with Apple’s Smart Cover keyboard

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This is all you get to see for now.
This is all you get to see for now.
Photo: Logitech

Wow, that was fast – Logitech, purveyor of fine Apple accessories for a long time, has just pulled the curtains from around its new Create Keyboard Case, made to work with the iPad Pro just announced this morning. The case is an alternative to Apple’s also just-announced Smart Cover.

Perhaps its even more telling that Logitech worked with Apple to get its new Create keyboard to market on day one; something that never happened in the past at Apple. If the mothership is helping third-party companies ahead of new products, consumers will ultimately win out with more day-one options for all their magical Apple gear.