A new Kickstarter project is aiming to build minimal charging docks designed to hold Apple’s 8-pin Lightning Cable. The underside of each “MikroDok” features a Mikro-suction adhesive backing, which allows the doc to be securely positioned and also moved multiple times.
Google has beaten out Facebook to acquire London-based Artificial Intelligence company DeepMind — for an amount alleged to be in excess of $500 million.
DeepMind was founded by neuroscientist and chess prodigy Demis Hassabis, as well as Skype and Kazaa developer Jaan Tallin, and researcher Shane Legg. While it is unknown exactly what the company is working on, it describes itself as a “a cutting edge artificial intelligence company” to build general-purpose learning algorithms for simulations, e-commerce, and games.
While Tweetbot has added a feature that allows timelines to stream to iPhone and iPad, this is currently limited to Wi-Fi only.
Thanks to a new jailbreak tweak called Tweetbot 3 Stream 3G/LTE, however, the ultra-useful feature can now be carried over to 4G LTE and 3G cellular data networks.
Readability, the oft-overlooked but competent rival to Instapaper and Pocket, has reached v2.0, and added an iOS 7 makeover, plus a few neat new features.
This must be just about the worst gadget ever, which of course makes it the most fun to write about gadget ever. It’s a love-detecting bra, which will only open its front clasp if “true love” is detected. Where “true love” means “iPhone” and “detected” means Bluetooth.
Virgin Mobile has been competitive with its iPhone pricing ever since it came out of the gate, and that trend doesn’t appear to be going anywhere.
In the U.S., Virgin Mobile has reduced its unsubsidized iPhone prices by 10 percent in a time-limited, Web exclusive offer — meaning that you can pick up a 16gB iPhone 5s for $494.99: representing $154 less than the unsubsidized handset cost from Apple’s Online Store.
In Germany, bank cards come with NFC chips that let you make small payments just by tapping your wallet onto the POS machine. You pre-load the chip with money from your bank account (only small amounts are allowed, because if you lose the card you lose the money) and spend it as cash.
So I finally see the point of NFC in a phone. And now I can have NFC in my iPhone, thanks to Incipio’s Cashwrap case.
Cortex Camera fixes one big deficiency with the iPhone’s camera: low-light noise. Or more specifically, the iPhone has no way to avoid cranking the ISO when shooting in low light. With a regular camera, you can just choose a longer shutter speed to keep the ISO low, steady the camera on a tripod or other sturdy base, and enjoy noise-free pictures taken in the dark.
And now you can (kinda) do this with your iPhone, using this sweet and simple app.
Today brings a big update for users of Pushpin, the already-excellent Pinboard bookmarking client for iOS. V 3.0 brings a sweet iOS-friendly look (it really does look great), plus a proper iPad interface, plus… well, a lot. Let’s taker a quick look.
Macminicolo has been around for nine years, plugging Mac Minis into its data center and letting you use them as your own. Thy can work as servers, or just as 24/7 automation machines. Now, the folks at Macminicolo have launched Macprocolo (Mac Pro Co-location). You can probably guess what it is.
For the 30th Anniversary of the Mac, it’s not just Cupertino that is getting in on the celebration: Apple retail stores have also been marking the occasion with a special 30th anniversay window display, commemorative black t-shirts, and even special name badges for the employees.
Check out some pictures of the t-shirt and name badges below.
On January 24, 1984, Steve Jobs unveiled the Mac, a personal computer which changed the world. You’d expect Steve Jobs to have his customary swagger as he unveiled the computer which would change everything: in fact, he seemed kind of nervous. He was, after all, still basically a kid.
In this recently discovered footage of Jobs’ second time showing off the Mac — this time in front of the Boston Computer Society six days later, on January 30, 1984 — things are different. Jobs seems like just as much of a showman as he did when he unveiled the iPhone. It’s impressive stuff, and a fitting way to remember the man on the 30th anniversary of the most famous PC ever.
If you’d like more information about the presentation, check out Techland write-up.
Source: Technland
CUPERTINO, Calif. — The Cult of Mac team is heading down to Cupertino to cover the special 30th anniversary celebration of the Mac, which promises to feature many of the original members of the Mac dev team.
Hit the jump for our liveblog of the evening’s events. We’ll start posting at about 5.30PM PST, about 30 minutes before the event is scheduled to start.
The Mac 30th Anniversary Celebration is being held at Cupertino’s Flint Center; the same 2,400-seat venue where Steve Jobs first introduced the Mac on January 24, 1984.
It was organized by Steve Jobs’ old friend Daniel Kottke, and filmmaker Gabreal Franklin, an early Mac software developer who is making a video documentary about the era.
There will be music, unreleased photos and video, and a big group photo. The event will feature three panel discussions:
During the evening, Apple’s original angel investor and 2nd CEO, Mike Markkula, will gather 100 members of the dev team on stage for a group photo.
If you’re in the area, tickets start at $109.75 each and are available via Ticketmaster. Yeah, it’s pricey, but after expenses, all proceeds will be donated to charity, organizers say.
128K of RAM? Who could use it all?! We celebrate 30 years of Mac and remember some vintage models of yore on our newest CultCast. Plus, Google Contacts will make you a cuter nerd; Beats music has a feature others should copy; Jailbreaking is losing its luster; and a trusty iOS app makes watching unsupported video formats a cinch.
Enjoy a few laughs whilst getting caught up on each week’s best Apple stories! 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 audio adventure begin.
Thanks to FreshBooks for supporting this episode! FreshBooks is the simple cloud accounting solution that’s helping thousands of new entrepreneurs and small business owners save time billing and get paid faster. Sign up free today.
This week, we’re all about the Mac. Cult of Mac Magazine fetes the 30 year anniversary of the Macintosh, arguably the first Apple product to gain a large (dare we say cult?) following.
To do it right, we’ve got an exclusive cover created by Mac icon designer Susan Kare; the final version you’ll find in Newsstand was picked from the four sketches above by Cult of Mac readers who voted on Twitter and Facebook.
The issue focuses on the impact of the Mac and includes a Q&A by Cult of Mac publisher Leander Kahney with Apple evangelist Guy Kawasaki plus recollections straight from the 80s of Macworld founder Dave Bunnell. Along with the birthday celebrations, we’ll also feature our weekly picks from iTunes and the App store along with advice from an actual Apple store Genius.
This week also marks the debut of latest version of our app, brought to you by the smarties over at XOXCO using Packagr, a multi-platform digital publishing tool. We think it’s pretty great. But if you run into any problems downloading the mag, email me directly or hit the “send” tab top right and we’ll sort it out for ‘ya.
Apple is getting ready for a 30th Mac Anniversary party at the company HQ, according to pictures that have just started showing up on Instagram.
Several pictures from Apple’s Cupertino HQ taken in the last hour or so show giant birthday banners that have been hung off buildings. “Happy Birthday, Mac,” they say.
The photos are accompanied by hashtags mentioning #party and #concert. One picture shows technicians unpacking equipment, possibly for a live music act. In 2011, the British supergroup Coldplay played a set during the tribute to Steve Jobs.
Here are some more pictures of the party preparations. There’s also pictures of the big posters around the campus quad with thousands of employee’s names.
UPDATE: The U.S. pop band One Republic played the gig that was attended by hundreds of employees. Here’s a short clip of the performance.
Apple CEO Tim Cook even tweeted about it. “Celebrating Mac’s 30th with some of my closest friends in Cupertino with OneRepublic,” he wrote. “Awesome.”
While there are a whole lot of smartphone-controlled helicopters on the market, there are surprisingly few smartphone controlled planes available. It is this niche that German toy company TobyRich is hoping to fill with its recently launched SmartPlane.
For those of us who grew up on a 1980s diet of Top Gun, this is your chance to “buzz the tower” again and again — all using your iPhone, and done from the comfort of your own home.
As part of Apple’s celebration of the Mac’s 30th anniversary, the company invited David Muir of ABC News to its Cupertino headquarters for a rare interview with CEO Tim Cook. A couple teaser clips have already aired, and the full special will premiere tonight on ABC’s World News With Diane Sawyer.
In the interview, Cook was joined by Apple executives Craig Federighi and Bud Tribble. Federighi is in charge of Apple’s software, and Tribble was a member of the original Apple Macintosh design team.
There are several juicy tidbits to be gleaned from the interview excerpts, including the confirmation that Apple’s new factory in Arizona will manufacture sapphire glass. Cook also shared his thoughts on the iWatch rumors, NSA, and more.
The Mac turns 30 today. It’s a big day for Apple, and obviously it’s a big day for every member of the Cult of Mac (that means you!).
Here’s a roundup of all our stories about the Mac’s milestone:
There are a bunch of apps out on iOS for kids, from educational apps to sports apps and more. Sure, you can get reviews of these games by adults, sometimes even from parents of kids who use them.
We thought it’d be fun, though, to ask the kids themselves.
Welcome to Kid APProved, a series of videos in which we ask our own children what they think of apps on the App Store that they’re using.
This week, it’s a game about bringing rainbows of happiness to sad, grey creatures, TCHOW Rainbow from TCHOW. Here’s what our Kid APProved reporter “Battle” thinks.
To celebrate the Mac’s 30th anniversary today, Apple created an amazing font set made up of tiny little Macs. It depicts every model the Cupertino company has released since the original Macintosh made its debut back in 1984, and with the right URL, you can download it for yourself.
Hiding in Apple’s slick birthday tribute to the Mac is the most common of desktop creatures — a Microsoft mouse. The out-of-place peripheral shows up in a new video that highlights the Mac’s amazing impact on the world, and it sticks out like a sore thumb.
The original Mac was released thirty years ago today, and to celebrate, Apple has unveiled a special “30 Years” section of its official website that allows users to scroll through a visual timeline of the Mac’s history, starting with the original all the way to the new Mac Pro.
Back in 1984, the birth of the Macintosh was not a quiet affair. Among his many talents, Steve Jobs was one of the great orators and inspiring speakers of our time. Part sage, part showman, Jobs combined the wizardry of a magician with the skills of a master salesman. The Macintosh was his baby, the intended salvation for Apple, and he wanted it launched with flair.
Many people have heard about, but not seen, one of the most influential demos of all — the actual unveiling of the Macintosh on January 24, 1984. In front of a group of Apple shareholders and VIPs, and giving a hint of Apple keynotes to come, a tuxedo-clad Jobs and his magical child stole the show. Now you can relive that glorious moment.
According to Phil Schiller, merging the OS X and iOS operating systems would be a “waste of energy.”
Schiller was giving an interview with MacWorld on the eve of the Mac’s thirtieth anniversary. Asked about the chances of such a convergence, Schiller had the following to say: