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News - page 1119

Creepy Jobs and Gates portraits contain double the nightmare fuel

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Steve Jobs before and after, with maybe a little judgement about water sales.
Steve Jobs before and after, with maybe a little judgement about water sales.
Photo: Fulvio Obregon

“Me and My Other Me” is a series of illustrated portraits of celebrities. The roster of folks drawn up include tech giants like Bill Gates and Steve Jobs as well as music mega-stars like Mick Jagger and Michael Jackson.

What makes them creepy–aside from the highly detailed cartoonish art style, that is–is that they’re portraits of both younger and older versions of the subjects.

Just take a look at a few of these disturbing pieces of art below and you’ll see what I mean.

Apple Music showcases 4 new artists to ‘discover’

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Apple Music is awesome -- but can it replace the iTunes Store?
If you're looking for new stuff to listen to on Apple Music, the company has some suggestions.
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

Apple Music has done a pretty decent job of suggesting content to users over its first couple of months. Between its auto-generated playlists based on your preference bubbles and curation straight from famous acts and DJs, you should have little trouble finding something you might not mind sticking in your earholes. And a new batch of ads for the streaming service has even more suggestions.

You can check out what Apple Music wants you to discover in the videos below.

Here’s why you may not get your iPhone 6s Plus on day one

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The iPhone 6s Plus might be hard to find on launch day.
The iPhone 6s Plus might be hard to find on launch day.
Photo: Apple

Shipping dates for the iPhone 6s Plus have already slipped to 3 – 4 weeks on Apple’s website, and it appears that the low supply may be due to production problems with its bigger than big display.

In a new note to investors, KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo claims that one of Apple’s suppliers of the backlight display module is experiencing issues creating the new 3D Touch display, which could make the new iPhone hard to find in stores on launch day.

PowerClip will make your keychain feel inadequate

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Charging your iPhone and data storage are two of the many functions of the PowerClip.
Charging your iPhone and data storage are two of the many functions of the PowerClip.
Photo: Mirai

It seems a bit risky for your tech startup to make its first product a keychain. But London-based Mirai has one you’ll get a charge out of – literally.

The PowerClip is a key fob that serves first and foremost as a charger for your iPhone or Android smartphone. But it also has other functions, including an activity tracker, flashlight, key- and phone-finder and serves as a data storage device.

Ultra-tough Catalyst case is the ultimate iPad Pro-tection

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Catalyst will have an iPad Pro case available in early 2016 that promises to be spill- and drop-proof like its cases for iPhone.
Catalyst will have an iPad Pro case available in early 2016 that promises to be spill- and drop-proof like its cases for iPhone.
Rendering: Catalyst

Accessories company Catalyst likes to assume the extreme in everybody. Its marketing wants us to fret not about getting our iPhone or Apple Watch wet or dirty. Catalyst projects the confidence that it has your investment protected.

So, less than a week after Apple announced a new iPad Pro, Catalyst is touting the specs of a military-tough iPad Pro case that will be available after the first of the year.

HopStop shuts down after Apple sucks the life out of it

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iphone-transit
With Transit coming in iOS 9, HopStop doesn't need to exist anymore.
Photo: Apple

It looks like HopStop is doing the walk of shame back from Apple’s apartment. The city transit mapping service is shutting down as of this October. Apple acquired HopStop in 2013 and seems to have used up just about all of the data it wants for its own Maps app, so the folks in Cupertino have apparently moved on.

Jony Ive soundboard ‘personally offended’ Apple’s design guru

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Ever want to control Jony Ive? Now you can.
This joke didn't go over well at Cupertino.
Photo: Jony Jive

With his soothing British accent, love of flowery design terms, and immediately recognizable pronunciation of “aluminium,” few people in tech are as widely parodied as Jony Ive.

Impressions of Ive have become a tech industry trope in their own right, but last week an Ive-centric joke debuted online, which Apple’s design guru apparently found so offensive that he had Apple’s legal team contact the creators to take it down.

Belgium’s first Apple Store celebrates local comic art

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Apple asked Belgian's comic art community to help announce a new store in Brussels.
Apple asked Belgian's comic art community to help announce a new store in Brussels.
Photo: Apple/YouTube

Comic books are considered an important part of Belgian culture. So it seemed only fitting that one of the biggest icons in pop culture, Apple, would team up with comic artists for the opening of the first-ever Apple store in Brussels.

Apple released a two-minute video over the weekend on its YouTube channel to show off the artists behind the marketing to announce the store’s opening, set for Saturday.

iPhone 6s pre-orders on course to beat last year’s record

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iphone-6s-3d-touch
Get ready for more shattered records.
Photo: Apple

Apple is reportedly on track to beat 2014’s record-smashing 10 million+ iPhone 6 and 6 Plus pre-orders, according to a statement released by the company.

“Customer response to iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus has been extremely positive and preorders this weekend were very strong around the world,” a spokesperson for Apple says. “We are on pace to beat last year’s 10 million unit first-weekend record when the new iPhones go on sale September 25.”

TSMC may have already nailed down Apple’s A10 chip orders

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chips
Round one. Fight.
Photo: Cult of Mac

The iPhone 6s isn’t even out yet, but already reports are claiming that Apple has awarded its A10 processor orders for the next eagerly-anticipated iPhone upgrade, the iPhone 7.

The winning company if you believe said rumors? None other than Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company — the manufacturer said to be making half of Apple’s A9 chips for the iPhone 6s.

Do we believe it? Count me in the “skeptical” pile.

Here’s how much iPhone 6s will cost around the world

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Apple raked in the cash last quarter.
Feel sorry for the Apple fans of France.
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

Just because you can buy the same model of iPhone 6s all over the world doesn’t mean that you’ll be paying the same for it.

When international prices are converted into U.S. dollars, some markets pay up to 30 percent more for the basic 16GB iPhone 6s than customers in the United States.

The country being hit the hardest? France, due to the domestic weakening of the Euro over the past twelve months. Sacré bleu, indeed!

It’s not too late to pre-order your iPhone 6s for launch day

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how-iphone-6s-stacks-up-against-android-rivals-image-cultofandroidcomwp-contentuploads201509Screen-Shot-2015-09-09-at-203842-png
Order your iPhone 6s now and you won't have to wait weeks for delivery.
Photo: Apple

If you haven’t already pre-ordered your new iPhone 6s, you’ve still got a great chance of getting one on launch day — unless you want a Rose Gold model.

The new color option has become the first to sell out completely in many markets, but the Silver, Gold, and Space Gray are still widely available for delivery and personal pickup on Friday, September 25.

The new Apple TV will be free to (some) developers

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The new Apple TV will be provided free to developers who win Apple's lottery.
The new Apple TV will be provided free to developers who win Apple's lottery.
Photo: Apple

In what appears to be a first, Apple is providing free hardware for software developers.

Monday could be the lucky day for a limited number of developers who signed up for the Apple TV Developer Kit.

Not only will they get the new hardware six weeks in advance of it going on sale, they’ll get it for free, Apple has confirmed.

Howler, Seashine, and other awesome apps of the week

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appsoftheweek_1024
'Appy weekend everyone!
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

The weekend lasts a way-too-quick 48 hours, so it’s essential that you don’t waste time downloading the wrong app.

Fortunately, Cult of Mac is here to fill you in on the best pieces of mobile software to hit the App Store as of late. From a photo-app-with-a-difference to a fantastic new Star Wars title, we’ve got you covered whatever your interests.

Make sure you check out our picks below:

Fitness apps are not for beginners

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Fitness apps can tell you how to do an exercise, but they can't check whether you're doing it right.
Fitness apps can tell you how to do an exercise, but they can't check whether you're doing it right.
Photo: Graham Bower/Cult of Mac

New research suggests that iOS fitness apps stink at giving you a complete workout. As the developer of one such app, you might think I would disagree. But I don’t. In fact, the only thing I would challenge is the researchers’ conclusion that app developers could do better. They can’t.

Fitness apps can be indispensable if you already know what you are doing, but If you are new to exercise, you should not rely on them to get you started.

Jimmy Kimmel’s iPhone 6s gag makes Apple owners look foolish

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iPhone 6s versus iPhone 1
I mean, they look the same to me.
Photo: Apple

We’re all pretty excited about the upcoming release of the iPhone 6s, Apple’s latest and shiniest hardware. And it seems that some people are so excited about the new phone that it makes them forget a bunch of things — like what an original iPhone looks like.

Kimmel sent an interviewer out on the street, where he presented passersby with the original, 2007 iPhone, told them it was a demo version of the 6s, and asked them how the “new” phone looks to them. You can see the cringeworthy results in the video below.

Cult of Mac Magazine: Everything we know about Apple’s hot new gear

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So many great things!
So many great things!
Cover: Stephen Smith/Cult of Mac

If you missed Apple’s big event this past Wednesday, we’ve got you covered. All the details you need are here in one convenient digital magazine for your weekend reading pleasure. Want to know all about the new iPhone 6s? The new Apple TV? What about the iPad Pro with it’s new Apple Pencil?

It’s all here, so don’t be shy – download the latest issue of Cult of Mac Magazine right here and dive in to get the skinny on these exciting new products, plus much much more.

Activision commits to Apple TV with big console games

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Another plastic guitar, another rock star in the making.
Another plastic guitar, another rock star in the making.
Photo: Activision

One of the biggest video gaming companies ever has just affirmed its support for the new Apple TV, itself just revealed this week by Apple.

Activision wrote a blog post detailing the games it will bring Skylanders SuperChargers, Guitar Hero Live, and Geometry Wars 3: Dimensions Evolved to Apple TV, which shows a confidence in Apple’s ability to create yet another fantastic home for gaming as it did with iOS.

These aren’t casual like Crossy Road (though those types of games will do well on the big screen, too), but full console versions of popular titles.

This smart camera tells you when your idea is not original

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Sorry, no pictures here.
Sorry, no pictures here.
Photo: Phillipp Schmitt

Imagine pointing your lens at something and the camera not letting you take the picture because what you are looking at has been photographed too many times.

Copenhagen designer and artist Phillipp Schmitt has developed the Camera Restricta, a device that first tracks its own location and searches online for photos that have been geotagged for the area within the camera’s range.

Is iPhone 6s really worth the upgrade?

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iPhone 6 and iPhone 6s square off in this week's Friday Night Fight.
iPhone 6 and iPhone 6s square off in this week's Friday Night Fight.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

With Apple’s next-generation iPhones going on sale just after midnight PST, it’s time to decide whether you’re going to upgrade.

Friday-Night-Fights-bug-2The iPhone 6s and 6s Plus are by far the biggest ‘S’ upgrades so far, with new 3D Touch displays, faster A9 processors, improved Touch ID, and the best iSight cameras yet. But are those things worth the upgrade fee?

Join us in this week’s Friday Night Fight between Cult of Android and Cult of Mac as we battle it out over whether you should spend your hard-earned cash on iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus.

iPhone 6s preorders begin: Here’s how to get what you want

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Pretty in pink. I mean Rose Gold.
Pretty in pink. I mean Rose Gold.
Photo: Apple

Preorders of the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus are set to open tonight at 12:01 a.m. Pacific. Apple’s certainly made a ton of improvements to the preorder process over the years, but as the Apple Watch recently taught us, taking an extra few minutes to get your preorder in could cause your shipment to be delayed.

Demand for the new iPhone 6s is expected to be greater than ever, so we’ve compiled a handy guide to help you get the iPhone you want and get back to sleep before Apple’s servers get absolutely crushed.

Here’s what to do:

The NFL can’t stop calling Microsoft Surface an iPad

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Patriots coach Bill Belichick on the sidelines with an 'iPad.'
Patriots coach Bill Belichick on the sidelines with an 'iPad.'
Photo: NBC

Microsoft is paying $400 million this season to make the Surface the official tablet of the NFL but the league’s announcers still can’t stop calling it an iPad.

The 2015 NFL season officially kicked off last night with the first game between the Steelers and the Patriots. After NBC returned from a commercial break, the network showed a shot of Belichick working with one of the many Microsoft Surface tablets that are provided on the sideline, only instead of talking up the league’s Microsoft partnership, announcer Al Michaels commented how Belichick was ‘on his iPad.”

Watch the clip below: