News - page 1181

The Apple Watch and everything it will do is not a new idea. Watches for years have been able to store data, give us directions, offer a means to communicate at a distance and, yes, show us our heartbeat.

 It’s just that you couldn’t get all of those functions wearing just one watch. For each function, there was a separate wrist gadget.

So on the eve of the Apple Watch launch, consider the technologically advanced timepieces that paved the way to this momentous day. You might be even more impressed with the power of your new device.

Although it was a little bit of a let-down when it launched on the iPhone and iPad, Minecraft: Pocket Edition has come a long way in the last four years.

As iOS devices have become more and more powerful, Mojang has added back in many of the features it had to strip from Minecraft to get it to run on the iPhone’s limited specs initially. Now one of the biggest missing features from Minecraft: Pocket Edition is in development: The Nether, Minecraft’s hell-like dimension.

If you regret the band you chose for your Apple Watch when you ordered it online, don’t sweat it: Apple will allow you to return it within 14 days for another band. But there’s a few caveats.

Update: The video has already been removed, but I’ve replaced it with a cached version.

We now know what Pharrell Williams’ payment was for his advance gold Apple Watch Edition: Promising to not laugh at Tim Cook, Eddy Cue, and Phil Schiller’s “dad dancing” moves during yesterday’s live concert at Apple’s Cupertino HQ.

In this week’s All-New X-Men #40, long-time team member Iceman comes out as gay — his secret being revealed through an endearing conversation with telepathic teammate Jean Grey.

But Iceman’s far from the only LGBT character in sequential art history. As one of Cult of Mac’s comic gurus, I combed through the archives for six more examples of beloved LGBT comic book characters to demonstrate the medium’s continued commitment to diversity.

The revelation? That’s it’s far from the headline-provoking novelty it once was. And that there are more than you might imagine.

And to think some readers probably figured Tim Cook — with his Tony Stark-like tech fortune and desire to make the world a better place — was the world’s only gay superhero.

Here’s a story you never hear about Mac users.

A 37-year-old Colorado man was so frustrated with his malfunctioning Dell XPS 410 desktop that he pulled out a pistol and proceeded to unload eight rounds right into its worthless side.

Apple has started notifying numerous Apple Watch customers who preordered the device that their orders have shipped, and that they can expect to receive the eagerly anticipated device tomorrow.

Woop woop!

You can be a fan of hockey, and you can be a fan of iPhone live streaming apps like Periscope and Meerkat, but according to the National Hockey League, you can’t be both. The NHL has just laid down the proverbial banhammer on Periscope and Meerkat.

Apple wants to overhaul its mapping navigation system, providing a solution that is more reminiscent of a real human navigator, according to a patent application uncovered by Cult of Mac today.

In doing so, the company could improve its long-maligned Apple Maps app, while also gaining ground on rivals such as Google.

Three new videos show how Apple Watch will make fitness and banking easier than ever.

The videos are part of Apple’s Guided Tour series of informational clips, which are a must-watch for anybody anxiously awaiting delivery of their Apple Watch. The latest ones show off the Activity, Workout and Apple Pay apps that will soon take up residence on the wrists of Apple smartwatch owners.

Apple stores won’t let you walk out with an Apple Watch for the foreseeable future, but select boutiques around the world will have certain models in stock this Friday, April 24th.

When shipping estimates for the Apple Watch fell to June in only a matter of minutes, many preorder customers were left frustrated and in despair.

But there’s hope yet: Apple is already preparing to ship Watch orders that originally weren’t slated to arrive for over a month.

When you’re talking about a device like the Apple Watch — which allows you to send something as intimate as your heartbeat to another person — it’s inevitable that hookup apps aren’t going to be far away.

That’s exactly what WatchMe88 represents: an app designed to alert fellow Apple Watch-owners in your vicinity that you’re single and ready to mingle.

What’s the best way to get a gold Apple Watch early? If you’re Pharrell, the answer is to have a concert at Apple headquarters.

Employees at Apple’s Cupertino campus are being treated to a special performance from the ‘Happy’ singer, who was the first person spotted wearing the gold Apple Watch in the wild.

Natatlie Kerris has been one of the most prominent figures on Apple’s PR team for the past decade, but today she announced that she’s ready to jettison from the mothership.

In a message posted on Twitter today, Kerris says she’s stepping away from Apple after working at the company for the past 14 years. The former PR director hasn’t said what she’ll be doing next, but based on the Steve Jobs quote she shared in her tweet, she’ll be moving on to a new adventure soon.

Were you hoping to get your Apple Watch preorder on Friday? We were, but based on the shipment status of our orders here at Cult of Mac HQ, all our watches are still stuck at “Preparing for Shipment” despite the fact we’ve already been charged for the orders.

We asked Apple fans this morning if they’re starting to worry that their preorders might not arrive as quickly as expected and the responses bordered closer to panic than simply worried.

There’s still no sign whether Apple Watch preorders will actually arrive on doorsteps by Friday, but at least one customer has already received an Apple Watch preorder — sort of.

A reddit user in Australia posted pictures this morning of an Apple Watch charging cable that arrived on his doorstep a few days early, despite the package’s status still being set to “Preparing for Shipment” yesterday.

This is what it looks like when you open the box:

Apple Watch promises to be the most personal device you’ve ever strapped on by keeping track of everything from your movement to your heart rate, 24 hours a day.

Mixing high tech with high fashion can be tricky, but in a new support document, Apple details how it uses what’s known as “photoplethysmography” to track your heart rate by flashing green light at your veins.

Here’s how Apple Watch’s heart rate tech works:

Adobe’s Behance, Adobe Color CC, and Creative Cloud apps have all been updated to include Apple Watch support in a move designed to both sell more iOS apps as well as inspire their current customers to get outside of the computer and create.

“That’s because designers get a lot of their best ideas,” writes Adobe’s David Macy, “not while sitting at our desks, but from interacting with and observing the world around us.”

Apple Watch preorders are supposed to start delivering on April 24th, but almost everyone we’ve talked to is still seeing a ‘Preparing for shipment’ status on their orders.

Tracking information for Apple Watch orders still haven’t been sent out yet, however, some reddit users have discovered a way to manually pull your tracking info from UPS. The solution is a bit hit or miss, but if you’re desperate for more info about your pre-order it’s worth a try.

Here’s how to find your tracking info:

Here’s what would happen if Superman and Batman got together for coffee to talk about the big trailer reveal of the past week.

No, it’s not Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.

Instead, Supes is excited about Star Wars: The Force Awakens, and calls it the best trailer out there. Batman tries to get the Man of Steel to consider their own dual trailer to no avail.

Superhero banter, sarcasm, and some pretty funny lines ahead. You’ve been warned.

Apple Watch might be the most controversial product Cupertino’s ever launched, but according to Jony Ive, Apple’s been on this path since the Jobs and Woz founded the company.

The Apple design boss and Marc Newson opened the inaugural Condé Nast International Luxury Conference today in Florence, Italy, to talk about their smartwatch that’s part fashion item, part tech gadget. Ive and Newson sat down with conference host Suzy Menkes and explained how they approached the development of Apple WAtch.

“We don’t look at the world through predetermined market opportunities,” said Ive. “What we’ve done fairly consistently is try to invest tremendous care in the development of our products.”

Here are the eight most important bits we learned about the Apple Watch’s development:

Customers in Italy will be able to preorder the Apple Watch from May 8, according to an internal source speaking to Italian Apple website iSpazio.

If true, this will kick off the second wave of Apple Watch launches, with the first beginning in the United States and nine other countries earlier this month.

When you hold up your wrist to admire your new Apple Watch, the shiny new device might also catch the eye of an opportunistic thief.

Police and security experts are urging common sense and awareness of surroundings when interacting in public with the new smartwatch, which will begin arriving on doorsteps and adorning wrists Friday.

Unlike the sapphire crystal used in the Apple Watch and Apple Watch Edition, the low-end Apple Watch Sport uses a scratch-resistant fortified ion-X glass display to protect your next must-have Apple device from the wear-and-tear of its daily grind. But how does it hold up?

Thanks to Lewis Hilsenteger of Unbox Therapy we apparently have our answer. Using ion-X glass covers provided by Apple leaker extraordinaire Sonny Dickson, Hilsenteger runs the glass covers through a gauntlet of keys, knives, steel wool, and different types of sandpaper.

You can check out his video below.