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Apple Watch heart monitor provides evidence in dramatic stabbing case

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Apple Watch alerts user of irregular heart rhythms in sleep
Your Apple Watch is always monitoring your heart. Usually that’s a good thing.
Photo: Apple

A Michigan man demonstrates why you should take off your Apple Watch before committing a crime. Even when you’re faking one.

Sean Sammit claims he was attacked outside the synagogue where he works, but the heart rate monitor in his wearable shows something different.

The best music apps this week, again

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Yes, more music apps again this week.
Yes, more music apps again this week.
Photo: Cult of Mac

If you love making music, then you’re in the right place. If not, then next week I promise to write more about some non-music apps again — if the developers release some. Until then, we can bomb the bass, make some tunes with Tune Maker, get Unisonic with JAX, and take control of our stereo widths, all with the tap of a touch-screen.

Nail your New Year’s fitness resolutions with Apple Watch

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Cult of Mac magazine cover, issue 330
Your Apple Watch can help you nail your New Year's fitness resolutions.
Photo: Graham Bower / Cult of Mac

New year, new you! With the Twenty-twenties just getting started, it’s time to get rolling on your New Year’s resolutions.

If you want to make amends for pigging out and get in shape for the new decade, we have an essential guide to nailing your New Year’s resolutions with Apple Watch.

Plus we have a guide to getting started with HomeKit automation, some juicy new iPhone 12 rumors, and advice on how to control a remote Mac using iMessage screen sharing. It’s all in this week’s free Cult of Mac Magazine.

Wait time for AirPods Pro stretches into February

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Demand could far exceed supply for AirPods this holidays
Apple still can’t keep up with heavy demand for AirPods Pro.
Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac

The holiday shopping season is behind us, but demand for AirPods Pro still exceeds supply. Orders placed on Apple.com won‘t ship before early February.

But those who live in a large metropolitan area have an option that could get them Apple’s new in-ear headphones much sooner.

Apple adds free emoji engraving on AirPods

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Apple's free engraving of AirPods
Your AirPods case is a blank canvass.
Screenshot: Apple

Customers ready to click the “buy” button on a pair of new AirPods now have the option to have Apple customize the charging case with a name, phrase or emoji.

Apple posted a banner ad on its website to announce that its free engraving services now extend to AirPods and AirPods Pro.

Exclusive: Mario Kart Tour‘s in-app purchases a massive money-maker for Nintendo

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Mario Kart Tour is a massive money spinner for Nintendo
Success shows why Nintendo changes its strategy on mobile games.
Photo: Nintendo

Nintendo’s new subscription model seems to be paying off in droves for the company — as shown by the company’s most popular mobile game, Mario Kart Tour.

Mario Kart Tour debuted to massive download numbers in late September 2019. According to Apple it was the most downloaded App Store game of 2019. But as figures exclusively obtained by Cult of Mac show, it’s proving quite the money generator as well.

Apple may be prepping a super-charged gaming Mac. Seriously. We discuss, on The CultCast

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CultCast 421
Your next gaming PC might be a Mac!

This week on The CultCast: According to a new report, Apple is prepping a new super-charged gaming Mac for WWDC! We discuss… Plus: full-screen TouchID will be replacing FaceID in a notch-less 2020 iPhone, at least according to a new rumor.

Our thanks to Linked In for supporting this episode. A business is only as strong as its people, and every hire matters… head to LinkedIn.com/cultcast and get a $50 credit toward your first job post.

Apple TV+ is already running low on content 2 months on [Opinion]

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Apple TV+ series Servant accused of ripping off Sundance movie
Total amount of new content on Apple TV+ this week? 74 minutes.
Photo: Apple

It’s Friday, which means, among other things, that it’s new Apple TV+ episode day; providing hours of fresh viewing to while away the first weekend of 2020.

Or, rather it would be if the well of new Apple TV+ shows wasn’t already running weirdly dry. Just 53 days since launching, Apple TV+ this week gained just two new episodes of shows — a total of 74 minutes of new content. That’s MacBook Air thin.

Apple shares just passed another historic milestone

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International governments plan to rethink tax rules for the ‘digital age’
It's crazy to say, but $2 trillion may not be too far out of sight!
Photo: Pixabay/Pexels CC

Apple shares hit an historic $300 milestone Thursday, representing a new overall all-time high. The amazing figure gives Apple a market cap of $1.3 trillion. That takes Apple a whole lot closer to the once crazy dream of being valued at a whopping $2 trillion.

New Year’s Resolutions for Tim Cook, anyone?

Former HBO chief signs five-year producer deal with Apple TV+

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file photo of former HBO chief Richard Plepler
Former HBO CEO Richard Plepler, right, in 2012 with Nikolaj Coster-Waldau.
Photo: Ander Krusberg/ Peabody Awards

Forner HBO chief executive Richard Plepler has signed a five-year deal with Apple to make original feature films, documentaries and television series for Apple TV Plus.

Plepler was at HBO for 27 years and played important roles in the rise of original programming at the network.

Christmas Day app spending tops $250 million dollars for first time ever

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App Store icon
Business is booming for the App Store.
Photo: PhotoAtelier/Flickr

Christmas Day turned out to be one of the biggest moneymaking days ever for Apple and Google as far as app sales go.

SensorTower published its latest report of holiday app sales revealing that overall spending on the App Store and Google Play topped $277 million on Christmas Day. Thanks to consumers who had just been gifted new devices and gift cards, spending rose 11% compared to last year, and games were the biggest winner.

Brydge’s newest keyboard brings a trackpad to 2018 iPad Pro

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Brydge-Pro-Keyboard-iPad
The iPad Pro keyboard we've been waiting for.
Photo: Brydge

Brydge just dropped its first keyboard with a built-in trackpad for the 2018 iPad Pro. And it’s everything we’ve been waiting for.

The Pro+ Keyboard is one of the first to take full advantage of mouse support in iPadOS. It also offers handy shortcuts that make it easy to access system features like the Dock and App Exposé.

There’s also a standalone iPad Pro trackpad for those who don’t need the keyboard.

Why Salesforce chief gave up AppStore.com for Apple

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Why Salesforce chief gave up AppStore.com for Apple
Spoiler: It was all thanks to Steve Jobs.
Photo: Ben Stanfield/Flickr CC

Go to AppStore.com and it will connect you with, well, the App Store. And you’ve got Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff to thank for it.

In his recent book Trailblazer, Benioff tells the story of how Steve Jobs gave him the idea for what became the first enterprise app store. And how Benioff later thanked Jobs by signing over the AppStore.com domain.

‘iPhone SE 2’ could get bigger and better sibling in 2020

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iPhone SE
Two new iPhone SE models for 2020?
Photo: Sam Mills/Cult of Mac

It’s no surprise Apple is working on a new iPhone SE for 2020. Recent rumors have indicated it will make its debut in the spring. But that particular model might be just one of two planned for this year.

A new report claims Apple is also working on a larger, “upgraded” version that will be available later in the year.

Apple reportedly adding another supplier for its ultra-popular AirPods Pro

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Apple reportedly adding another supplier for its ultra-popular AirPods Pro
Apple is doing its darndest to keep up with demand.
Photo: Apple

Apple is seemingly having a supplier shakeup to kickstart the 2020s — with Cupertino shifting production for some of its biggest products to other manufacturers. Including adding another supplier for its ultra-popular AirPods Pro.

According to longtime Apple analyst Ming-Chi, Apple will be making changes to the suppliers of the AirPods Pro, the S-series chips for the next-gen Apple Watch, the iPod touch and the non-cellular iPad.

Apple Music and its rivals dominate US music market

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Streaming services like Apple Music dominate the US music market
Apple Music is one of the main players in today's music industry.
Photo: Apple

Streaming music services such as Apple Music have completely taken over the music market, a new report from the Recording Industry Association of America makes clear.

The organization notes that streaming now accounts for a massive 80% of the music market in the United States. That’s up from a minuscule 7% a decade ago in 2010. In the first half of 2019, 61 million people in the US had streaming subscriptions.

7-year-old kid accidentally eats his holiday gift AirPod

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7-year-old accidentally eats his holiday AirPods
This is the not the recommended place to store your AirPods.
Screenshot: Local21News

One of the first things I heard when Apple first showed off its AirPods was “wow, those are going to be easy to lose.” If you’ve got a kid in the house, however, you might also want to consider how swallowable they are.

That’s a lesson learned by a parent in DeKalb County, Georgia over the holidays. They had a scary incident in which an AirPods Christmas gift was swallowed by their 7-year-old son. Fortunately, he’s okay.

Apple patches things up with mobile GPU maker Imagination

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Apple patches things up with mobile GPU maker Imagination
Imagination built GPUs for Apple since the iPod before the two companies fell out.
Photo: Apple

UK chip company Imagination Technologies has agreed to a new licensing deal with Apple. The British company designed Apple’s mobile graphics processors for years. However, it fell out with Cupertino three years ago. Apple instead focused on developing its own mobile GPUs in-house.

Recently Imagination launched a new generation of its mobile GPU architecture which it calls the most important upgrade in 15 years. The new multi-year agreement between Apple and Imagination is good news for both companies.

Publisher of longtime Apple II magazine passes away

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two Nibble magazine covers
Two Nibble covers, including the first edition, left.
Photo: Brian Wiser

Mike Harvey, well known to the Apple II community as the founder and publisher of Nibble magazine, passed away recently at his North Carolina home. He was 84.

His death was announced this morning by the Apple Puget Sound Program Library Exchange, an Apple user group that started in 1978.

Start the New Year off right with up to 77% off Just Mobile, Rilee & Lo

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Just-Mobile-Riley-Lo-BF
Apple Watch bands, charging stands, iPhone cases, and more.
Photos: Just Mobile, Riley & Lo

Still got holiday cash left to spend? Bag yourself a New Year bargain with up to 77% off Just Mobile and Rilee & Lo in the Cult of Mac Store.

You’ll find iPhone cases and wireless charging pads, Apple Watch bands, and lots more — all at big discounts. This sale is good for a limited time, so enjoy it while you can.

WhatsApp is dropping support for iOS 8 in early 2020

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Facebook messaging apps
Coming soon to an iPhone near you?
Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac

WhatsApp today confirmed it will drop support for devices running iOS 8 early next year.

You’ll need to update to iOS 9 or later to continue using the app. WhatsApp warns that some features could stop working at any time after support ends in February.