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iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini now comes in purple

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purple iphone 12
The iPhone 12 and 12 mini now come in purple.
Photo: Apple

In a surprise move, Apple just introduced a brand-new color for the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini — purple.

The new color spiced up Apple’s “Spring Loaded” special event Tuesday. It’s an unusual move for Apple, which rarely introduces new colors or finishes mid-cycle.

Apple AirTag tracking tags will help you find all the things

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Apple AirTag finally jumped from rumor to reality.
Apple jumped into the item-tracker business with AirTag. Attach one to something you don’t want to lose.
Photo: Apple

Apple just took the wraps off AirTag, a small tracker that users can attach to items for easy location at a later date.

Tile and other companies already offer rivals products. But Apple’s trackers offer technology that makes finding lost items easier and more accurate.

Multicolored iMacs? Tim Cook tweets out photo of Apple’s rainbow stage

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Rainbow stage
Party time at Apple.
Photo: Tim Cook/Apple

You know it’s a special day at Apple when the company whips out its rainbow stage. Designed by Apple’s industrial design team, back when Jony Ive was in charge, the rainbow stage — adorned in Apple’s classic logo colors — made its debut in May 2019. That year, it was used for a concert by Lady Gaga for Apple employees.

With many Apple employees currently working from home, a concert after today’s event seems unlikely. Nonetheless, Tim Cook — who tweeted out a picture of the rainbow stage — is clearly in a party mood.

Puppy swallows AirPods in charging case — and they still work

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Golden retrievers are sweet but not always the sharpest tool in the shed.
PSA: AirPods aren't there for eating.
Photo: Helena Lopes/Pexels CC

A pair of swallowed AirPods, still inside their charging case, were successfully extracted from a puppy — without damage to either dog or hearables.

UK-based owner Rachel Hick, from Hull, rushed her golden retriever Jimmy to the vets after it swallowed the wireless earbuds and charging case on Easter Sunday.

Apple’s losing the battle over podcasts. Here’s how it could emerge victorious.

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Apple Podcasts could get a premium tier.
Can Apple turn its Podcasts franchise around?
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

Is Apple finally getting serious about podcasting? With a premium podcast service reportedly in the works, and several exclusive shows already online, it looks like Apple might be ready to defend its turf when it comes to the increasingly popular medium.

It’s about time. The company that was so strongly identified with podcasts from the start is rapidly losing its dominance as competitors come on strong. Here’s how Apple could regain its podcasting edge.

Be right back: Apple Online Store down ahead of Spring Loaded event

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Be right back 1
Apple's Online Store is currently down. Purposely so.
Photo: Apple

Update: The Apple Online Store is down as well now. Expect it to go back up following the conclusion of today’s Apple event.

The Apple Online Store sitemap page is down ahead of today’s “Spring Loaded” event.

Usually, Apple takes the entire Apple Online Store down ahead of its special events. Today that doesn’t appear to have happened. (Although this could change as the day progresses.)

Nonetheless, this highlights that Apple is expecting to make some changes to the products on offer — likely including a new iPad Pro, iMac, and possible other products like Apple’s location-tracking AirTags. There may also be more information about Apple’s rumored Podcasts+ service.

Tantalizing 2021 iMac concepts get us ready for the real thing

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Tantalizing 2021 iMac concepts get us ready for the real thing
Apple might unveil on Tuesday a 2021 iMac that looks just like this concept design.
Screenshot: Amdix/ConceptsiPhone

A 2021 iMac is supposedly among the highlights of Apple “Spring Loaded” event on Tuesday. Concept artists have dreamed up proposals for what the upcoming all-in-one desktop might look like.

These vary as to details but are likely to please anyone tired of the very large screen bezels that have marked previous iMac models… and is looking forward to a speedy M-series processor.

Take a look at some of the eye-opening concepts before the big reveal on Tuesday.

Game on! Microsoft starts Xbox Cloud for iPhone and iPad public testing

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Xbox Cloud Gaming for iPad and iPhone
iPad and iPhone users will soon begin testing Xbox Cloud Gaming, allowing them to play 100+ console-quality games.
Photo: Microsoft

Lucky beta testers will get first access to Xbox Cloud Gaming this week. This allows subscribers to play 100+ console-quality games on an iPad or iPhone.

Apple put restrictive rules on cloud-gaming services wanting to appear in the App Store. Microsoft’s solution was to create a web app for its service.

Apple lets Parler return to the App Store after promises of moderation

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Apple lets Parlor return to the App Store after promises of moderation
Parler is expected to be back on the App Store after changing moderation policies.
Photo: Cult of Mac

The controversial social-networking service Parler will soon reappear in the App Store. Apple reportedly un-banned the service Monday after it promised to start moderating content.

Then service was banned from the iOS and Android software stores after it was used to plan the attack on the U.S. Capital in January.

Adobe co-founder Chuck Geschke passes away at 81

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Chuck
Truly a pioneer in computing history.
Photo: Carnegie Mellon

Adobe co-founder Charles “Chuck” Geschke passed away Friday at the age of 81, Adobe has confirmed. During his career, Geschke oversaw Adobe’s operations as it released game-changing innovations include Photoshop, along with ubiquitous file formats such as PDF.

Adobe’s history has long been entwined with Apple — including a $2.5 million investment from Apple in 1985 that led to the creation of a PostScript controller for the Apple LaserWriter.

Mood-lit musician isn’t grooving to M1 Mac mini’s sound [Setups]

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It's amazing what some light strips and display wallpaper can do for ambiance.
It's amazing what some light strips and display wallpaper can do for ambiance.
Photo: skylar_schutz@Reddit

Redditor skylar_schutz makes music on keyboard and guitar, but their Mac mini M1’s sound quality doesn’t do it for them. That’s not a huge shock. Many mini owners, past and present — if they’re even close to identifying as audiophiles — use AirPlay 2, Bluetooth or USB-wired speakers with their setups.

“The sound coming out from the M1 mac mini is just so-so … wouldn’t recommend it if you aim to enjoy listening to music from it, more so if you intend to do music production,” skylar_schutz wrote in reply to a question.

Premium Podcasts+ service could debut at Tuesday’s Apple event

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Apple Podcasts could get a premium tier.
Would you shell out for Podcasts+?
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

Apple could debut a premium podcast service at Tuesday’s “Spring Loaded” event, according to Recode reporter Peter Kafka.

“Pretty sure Apple is prepping its own podcast plan – a paid subscription service – on Tuesday,” Kafka tweeted Sunday.

No additional details are known about the possible podcast initiative, which presumably would join paid subscription services Apple News+, Apple Music, Apple TV+ and Apple Fitness+. The possibility of a paid podcasting service from Apple was rumored earlier this year.

Siri’s ignominious honor: Most accurate Apple leaker

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Apple’s AI-driven voice-controlled digital assistant Siri
Siri beats Prosser, Gurman, etc. to become the most accurate source of Apple leaks.
Image: Apple

Last week, Siri leaked the date and time of the upcoming Apple event. And this wasn’t the first time Apple’s own virtual assistant told the world about an upcoming event before the official announcement.

So step back Jon Prosser. Stand aside Mark Gurman. Siri is now the most accurate Apple leaker.

Our predictions for Apple’s big ‘Spring Loaded’ event [Cult of Mac Magazine 379]

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Apple Spring Loaded event predictions: Let's bust out the crystal ball.
Let's bust out the crystal ball.
Cover: Leander Kahney/Cult of Mac

As you might expect, we can’t wait to see what new gear Apple unleashes next Tuesday.

If you don’t mind spoiling the surprises, take a look at our predictions about what will bounce out of Cupertino’s magic pipeline during the “Spring Loaded” event.

However, if you’d rather skip the spoilers and spend your weekend watching astonishing animals, check out our reviews of the totally binge-worthy new season of Tiny World and the other new nature shows that just arrived on Apple TV+ for your Earth Day enjoyment.

Get up to speed with our iOS publication, Cult of Mac Magazine. Download the app for free to read on your iOS device, or get the links below.

Last chance! Enter to win a $200 MacBook Folio from Woolnut [Cult of Mac giveaway]

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Woolnut MacBook Folio giveaway: A European delight: Scandinavian leather outside, German felted wool inside.
A European delight: Scandinavian leather outside, German felted wool inside.
Photo: Woolnut

This week, Cult of Mac is giving away four beautiful, protective MacBook folios from our friends at Woolnut. Retailing at $196, Woolnut’s Folio is constructed from high-quality Scandinavian leather and German natural wool felt. The luxurious case is tailor-made to fit the MacBook like a glove.

If you want to protect your pricey MacBook, be sure to enter this giveaway.

Why we might see first M1 iMacs at Apple’s April 20 event

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Apple plans the 2021 iMac redesign we’ve been dreaming of
The 2021 iMac could dump the huge screen bezels of the current version. And move to Apple Silicon.
Concept: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

Trusted tipster Mark Gurman says the 2021 iMac all-in-one desktop might be the next to get the M1 processor. The announcement could be only a few days away.

And that’s only the beginning. There’s plenty more evidence that an upgraded iMac will launch at Apple’s April 20 event.

Apple Music pays musicians far more per stream than Spotify

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Apple Music pays musicians far more to stream each song than Spotify does
Apple Music is more fair to musicians than Spotify is.
Photo: Apple

Apple’s music service pays musicians double what archrival Spotify does to stream each song to subscribers.

This amount doesn’t directly affect users of either service, but it might make some people consider using the service that sends artists more money.

Two ‘trash can’ Macs form core of nerdy workstation built to last [Setups]

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Those two
Those two "trash cans" at upper left prove core to this setup.
Photo: XTJ7@Reddit

Redditor XTJ7, a programmer and photographer based in Germany, knows how to make a setup last and do just what he needs it to do. As his recent post declared, his setup’s core is two “trash can” Mac Pro towers from 2013 plus a racy gaming PC.

Yeah, you heard right: That’s two computers running from 2013 to now. Eight years might as well be a few decades as far as computer performance goes. But he has his reasons to wait on the upgrade.

Apple saves 861,000 tons of precious metals by ditching iPhone chargers

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iPhone 12 box
Miss power chargers from your iPhone box? The environment doesn't.
Photo: Marco Verch/Flickr CC

Apple has saved 861,000 metric tons of copper, tin, and zinc ore by removing power adapters from iPhones, starting last year. That’s one of the tidbits from Apple’s factoid-studded Environmental Progress Report, released Friday.

It showcases how Apple is working toward its efforts of achieving net carbon neutrality across its whole supply chain by 2030. As Apple notes, that includes “How [an Apple product is] designed, how it’s made, how it’s shipped, how it’s used, [and] how it’s recycled.”

Users can now spend credits to buy books inside the Audible app

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Audible
Buying books through Audible just got easier.
Photo: Audible

Both Apple and Amazon pride themselves in technology that “just works.” One thing that hasn’t previously “just worked,” however, was the cumbersome way purchases had to take place on the Amazon-owned Audible audiobook service.

While people who listen to their audiobooks on iPhone have to use the iOS app, and this app allowed them to search the catalog for other titles, there was no way to actually buy a new book via the app. Instead, users had to go to Audible.com to buy the books they wanted, before switching back to the app to listen to them.

PSA: Apple TV+ offers up new For All Mankind episode, Earth Day documentaries galore

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The Year Earth Changed 1
How did lockdown change the world for wildlife? David Attenborough will answer all.
Photo: Apple

It’s a busy day for Apple TV+ — with plenty of new material to watch on the Apple streaming video service. In addition to a new episode of For All Mankind, there is a plethora of new nature documentaries, narrated by some big names, and more.

Here’s what Friday, April 16 has in store for subscribers.