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iTunes Festival adds over 20 new artists to concert lineup

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Apple is stuffing the lineup of its 2014 iTunes Festival concert in London next month with the additions of Jenny Lewis, Lenny Kravitz, SOHN, Jessie Ware, Ryan Adams and 16 other artists and bands.

The new acts will join the likes of Pharrell, Beck, David Guetta and Robert Plant at the Roundhouse in London, with the first acts taking the stage on September 1st followed by 29 more days of music. Tickets are free if you live in the U.K., but if you’re stuck in the U.S., all of the concerts will be streamed live to Apple TV and iTunes.

Here’s the full list of artists that were just added:

7 amazing extensions we want to see in iOS 8

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A new iOS 8 update is here.
We can't wait for iOS 8 to supercharge our trusty iPhones with Extensions. Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac
Photo: Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

iOS 8 will bring Extensions to your iPhone and iPad. Extensions are essentially miniature versions of apps that can be run inside other apps. For instance, if you have Evernote installed on your iPhone, you could pop up the Evernote Extension when you’re running the Mail app, and save a snippet of that email to your Evernote account.

Clearly this is huge. It’s something that Android and Windows Phone users have enjoyed for a while, but Apple has – typically – taken its time to get it right. In fact, you have probably used Apple’s own “test” Extensions already: Whenever you see the Mail sheet roll down inside another app, or you access the built-in Twitter sharing box, you’re using an Extension.

But what kind of things can Extensions do for us? I’ve been thinking about that, and here’s a wish list of Extensions I’d love to see.

Sprint’s new ‘Framily’ plans give you 20GB of data for only $100 a month

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You can pick up an iPad mini or 4th gen iPad from Sprint today — if you're lucky.
You can pick up an iPad mini or 4th gen iPad from Sprint today — if you're lucky.

Sprint has seen better days. Now existing as the distant fourth wireless carrier in America, it needs a win to score customers back.

Sprint’s recently announced new “Framily” plans might just be that win. They not only let you feel like you have a speech impediment everytime you say the word ‘Framily’, but they offer twice as much data as the likes of AT&T and Verizon, for about the same price.

Burning iPhone forces plane to make emergency evacuation

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Perfectly burnt iPhone. Photo: Carlos Sancho Flickr

The TSA has started treating smartphones with dead batteries like potential bombs, but after an iPhone mishap on one plane caused an emergency evacuation, maybe they should be more worried about all the iPhones with a full charge too.

Panic broke out on a flight bound for Prague this weekend after an iPhone 5 caught fire in a passenger’s bag, causing the entire plane to be evacuated back to the main terminal.

Flappy Bird creator previews ridiculously addictive new game

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Flappy Bird developer Dong Nguyen has a new game coming out this Thursday, and it looks to be as brutally difficult and addictive as his original viral hit.

According to Eli Hodapp over at TouchArcade, Swing Copters contains the same one-tap gameplay as Flappy Bird, only this time you’re guiding a little character up through platforms that have swinging hammers on them, rather than horizontally through Mario-esque pipes.

Here’s a video to give you an idea:

Leaked schematic points to NFC’s arrival on iPhone 6

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Not a year goes by without NFC rumors trying to steal the spotlight during iPhone rumor season, and while this year has certainly been no exception, leaked schematic details reveal NFC might actually land on the iPhone 6 this year.

An alleged bare logic board for the iPhone 6 was the first hard evidence that NFC really is coming to the iPhone 6, but now a Chinese repair firm has found what it claims to a wiring schematic specifically for the iPhone 6’s NFC chip.

This gorgeous and elegant bamboo gadget will turn any desk into a standing desk

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If you’re anything like me, you’re probably interested in trying a standing desk… but not quite so committed to the idea of standing all day that you’d be willing to throw out your office chair.

Which is why I’m so interested in the Lift. Now on Kickstarter, it’s a gorgeous and elegant wooden desk gadget that allows you to convert your existing desk to and from a standing desk at will.

April Zero and the quest to become the world’s most transparent human

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Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac
San Francisco designer Anand Sharma shares endless private details about his life on his April Zero website. Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

Anand Sharma has eaten 17 burritos in the last 141 days. An avid runner and rock climber, the San Francisco-based designer has visited parks seven times this month. He weighed 153.9 pounds and was at 18.4% bodyfat after his 5.5-mile run yesterday. He burned 688 calories during that run.

He gets around a lot, too: On July 15, he flew from Hong Kong to Changi, Singapore. Then he grabbed a bite at the Kampong Glam Cafe. He also spent 94 minutes in a car and 70 minutes on the Lomprayah high-speed ferry that day. During his long day of travel, his heart rate hit a high of 94 and a low of 66 (averaging a slightly higher than usual 79). He didn’t share any photos on Instagram, but he pushed 25 commits to code-sharing site Github.

Sharma, who was 24.382007813 years old as of this writing, is already the most transparent human being on Earth, and he’s just getting started. Fully embracing the data-hungry demands of the quantified-self movement as well as the constant spotlight of social media, he routinely shares every little detail about his life, from his travels and meals to his vital signs and work, on the slickly designed April Zero website he launched last month. Now he wants to invite you to his way of life. He’s working on a new app that will make it easy for anyone to have their own version of April Zero.

Cult of Mac talked with Sharma about April Zero, the benefits of living in public, and the possibilities of Apple’s long-rumored health-centric wearable.

More proof that the iPhone 6 will come with an evolved new Lightning cable

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Last week, we told you about shots that had leaked from within Foxconn, which reportedly showed new Lightning cables developed by Apple that featured fully reversible USB connectors.

We were excited, but there was only one problem: the images seemed a little sketchy. But a new image from reliable leaker Sonny Dickson‘s Twitter feed indicates that the reversible USB plug is indeed coming to new Lightning cables, perhaps as early as the iPhone 6.

Apple wins an Emmy

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Amongst Cupertino’s many other accomplishments, you can now chalk up Emmy Award Winner. Apple has just won the Most Outstanding Commercial of the Year award for its wonderful iPhone 5s ad, “Misunderstood.”

True Blood services fans in penultimate episode, ‘Love Is To Die’

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Seething along with Eric Northman. Photo: John P. Johnson/HBO
Seething along with Eric Northman. Photo: John P. Johnson/HBO

Beginning just moments after the shocking end of last week’s episode of True Blood, the final season’s second-to-last entry tightens down on the remaining relationships: Sookie and Bill. Hoyt and Jessica. Eric and Pam (and Ginger!). Jason and new girl. A little Lafayette and James, a tiny smattering of Arlene and Keith. Couples are the way to go in Bon Temps.

Once again, we’ve got character dialogue that sounds like a love letter to the fans from the writers of this HBO-powered vampire drama that airs Sunday nights.

“As much as I appreciate compelling character drama,” says Pam in full sarcasm mode, “but the Yakuza are upstairs, so need I remind you to keep it the f*ck down, volume-wise?”

Spoilers below, so don’t say we didn’t warn you.

Winner of the Swivl + our 25k Giveaway!

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A little over two weeks ago, we posted our ‘Shoot Like a Pro’ video series, where we gave you iPhone photography tips along with the chance to win a $500 Swivl.

We had over 140 entries, all of which where entered into a randomiser and one winner has prevailed, check out today’s video to see who won! But stick around to find out about our huge 25k Giveaway, for your chance to win some awesome gear. Just leave a comment on the video and share our Youtube channel to help us reach 25,000 subscribers before September 9th.

Subscribe to Cult of Mac TV on YouTube to catch all our latest videos.

The incredible talent of Robin Williams and Oculus Rift comes to OS X on The CultCast

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This week: Robin Williams. We remember the incredible passion, talent, comedy and heartbreak of one of life’s great artists. Then, stay tuned for this week’s best iPhone 6 and iPad rumors; Oculus Rift comes to OS X; the good, bad, and ugly of iTunes Family Sharing; and we pitch our favorite gadgets and apps in an all-new Faves N’Raves.

Join us and Youtube gadget-reviewer extrordinaire, Lewis Hilsenteger (aka UnboxTherapy), for this very fun and heart-filled CultCast. Stream or download new and past episodes of The CultCast now on your Mac or iDevice by subscribing on iTunes, or hit play below and let the chuckles begin.

Our thanks to Automatic for supporting this episode. Plug Automatic’s Link adapter into your car’s data port, and paired with their beautiful app, you’ll be able to find your parked car, learn how to save fuel with tips based on your actual driving, and even diagnose and turn off your car’s check engine light. See it out in action and save 20% off your new Automatic now at Automatic.com/cultcast.

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Sam Sung charity auction raises $2,653 for Children’s Wish Foundation

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Photo: Sam Sung
Photo: Sam Sung

Sam Sung, the most ironically named Apple retail employee on Earth, is giving away his work shirt, badge and business card to raise money for charity. The eBay auction ended last night with a winning bid of $2,653.

“I had a great time working for Apple and would recommend it to anyone,” said Sung in the auction description. “I hope my old business card will go to another fellow Apple enthusiast with a sense of humour and the desire to help raise some money for a good cause.”

All proceeds from the auction will go to The Children’s Wish Foundation, a nonprofit group that “provides children living with life threatening illnesses the opportunity to realize their most heartfelt wish.”

The best new books, music and movies to amp up your weekend

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So you don't have to slog through a lake of reviews to find something you’re just going to put down after 10 minutes, Cult of Mac has waded through the iTunes Store to compile a list of the best new books, movies and music to come out this week.
This week we've found a documentary one of the world’s most iconic bearded faces, an other-worldly album from Fka Twigs, a book about the birth of Korea’s cool pop culture, the funniest summer comedy of the year and much more.  
Enjoy!

So you don't have to slog through a lake of reviews to find something you’re just going to put down after 10 minutes, Cult of Mac has waded through the iTunes Store to compile a list of the best new books, movies and music to come out this week.

This week we've found a documentary one of the world’s most iconic bearded faces, an other-worldly album from Fka Twigs, a book about the birth of Korea’s cool pop culture, the funniest summer comedy of the year and much more.

Enjoy!