News - page 568

Google has confirmed plans to buy Fitbit as it looks to step up its fight against Apple Watch. The deal, worth approximately $2.1 billion, will bring new Made by Google wearables to market.

“Together, we aim to spur innovation in wearables and build helpful products to benefit more people around the world,” Google said.

Apple TV+ launched this morning. Costing $4.99 per month (or free to anyone who buys a new iPhone, iPad, Apple TV or Mac), the subscription service brings Apple’s eagerly anticipated original TV shows to anyone who wants to watch them.

But what exactly does the service feature so far? And what’s the timeline for the release of Apple’s other shows? Check out our rundown.

Mario Kart Tour on mobile will finally get its much-anticipated multiplayer mode next month. It will initially arrive in beta, giving players the opportunity to compete online for the first time.

But there’s a catch. You can’t enjoy the beta unless you’re coughing up for the game’s Gold Pass.

This week on The CultCast: AirPod Pros! You want them, we got them. We’ll tell you what’s new, what’s good, what’s not, and how they compare to the regular AirPods. We’ve got lots to say…. Plus: The first Apple TV+ reviews are trickling in, and, well … they’re not great.

Our thanks to Belkin for supporting this episode. Belkin cables are built to last and supported with a five-year warranty. If you’re tired of broken, burned-out cables, switch to Belkin, and save 30% off your order with code CultCast at checkout.

Apple has upgraded five executives to Vice President status. This includes one returning early iPhone executive, a report from Bloomberg notes.

Paul Meade is the new VP of hardware engineering, Jon Andrews is now VP of software engineering, Gary Geaves is VP of acoustics, and Kaiann Drance is VP of marketing. Apple has also brought back Bob Borchers, who has been named VP of product marketing.

Everyone who was busy ogling the “cheesegrater” design of the 2019 Mac Pro can be forgiven for not paying attention to the keyboard. But Apple is prepping multiple keyboards that match the silver-and-black look of this powerful desktop.

An image of one of these not publicly seen before has come to light.

Apple’s two largest competitors enjoyed growth in smartphone sales last quarter, with both Samsung and Huawei up. iPhone sales dropped, however.

The market analysts at Canalys credited the decline to weak demand for the 2018 iPhone models as customers anticipated Apple’s 2019 offerings.

Just in time for Halloween, Apple TV+ is serving up two new teasers of its mysterious new series called Servant.

Created by M. Night Shyamalan, Servant follows a married couple who cope with the loss of their child by buying a therapy doll. Details on the show are being kept under wraps, including Rupert Grint’s enigmatic character Julian Pierce. Judging from the trailers and teasers we’ve seen so far though, a lot of weird stuff is about to go down.

This series looks creepy asf:

Despite being named Donald Trump’s cybersecurity expert in 2017, Rudy Giuliani is so clueless about tech, he had to go to the Apple Store genius bar for help unlocking his iPhone.

Leaked internal documents from Apple reveal that just a few weeks after being tapped as Trump’s top cyber guy, Giuliani waited in front of a San Francisco Apple store with a very pressing issue: he had forgotten his passcode and couldn’t unlock his iPhone.

Now that the iPhone 11 line brings an ultra-wide camera to the bump, there is some question on what to do with an extra-wide lens attachment you may have purchased from brands like Moment, Sandmarc or olloclip.

The short answer: Use it. For now, it’s the better option.

Newly leaked screenshots depict an updated AirTags section in the “Find My” app. Although they are referred to by their codename “B389,” the screenshots show how AirTags findability will work.

AirPods are the rumored item tracker tags which promise to help users to locate bags, keys, and assorted other valuables.

There are plenty of reasons to be enthusiastic about Apple’s massive earnings call yesterday. One analyst who’s not happy, however, is Barclays analyst Tim Long. In a note to clients, Long writes that Apple average selling price for iPhones may be slipping.

Apple stopped reporting unit sales for the iPhone last year. Instead, it focused on ramping up the average price it sells each iPhone for. Perhaps not enough, though.

Apple TV+’s post-apocalyptic fantasy show See seems like Apple’s attempt to tap into the fandom of Game of Thrones (or, at least, the seasons up until the last two when everyone loved it.) Jason Momoa starred in both shows. His pick for a personal favorite? See. Here’s why.

Most of us lovingly look after our newest Apple devices to ensure they last as long as possible. iFixit pulls them apart in the name of science. Its latest teardown victim? AirPods Pro.

You won’t be shocked to find that there’s loads of tiny tech inside Apple’s newest earbuds. But you might be surprised to see how different they are to regular AirPods on the inside.

Apple this week rolled out an emergency iOS 13.2.1 update for HomePod. The 25MB release comes just days after iOS 13.2, which was bricking HomePod speakers for some unlucky users.

China has been one of the biggest causes of Apple instability in recent times, particularly when it comes to trade tensions between China and the United States. Things may be starting to stabilize, however, as Tim Cook noted in Apple’s earnings call yesterday.

That’s good news when it comes to the country Cook has said is Apple’s future biggest customer.

Tim Cook thinks Apple’s awesome new AirPods Pro are “complementary” to the original AirPods. No, he’s not just referring to the fact that there is a space in the market for both products. He thinks many AirPods Pro customers will buy and own regular AirPods as well.

And you know what? Given Apple’s amazing track record in the “hearables” area, I don’t have any problem believing he might just be right.

A quick glance at the Apple Q4 2019 earnings report shows the company just finished a record three months, but a deeper dive into the numbers reveals how Apple managed to pull in more revenue than it ever has in a July-through-September period, including strong increases from wearables, iPad and Services.

Apple shares are soaring in after-hours trading today thanks to yet another record-breaking earnings report.

Tim Cook and Apple CFO Luca Maestri got on the phone with investors after the numbers came and provided some surprising details on how Apple hit a new high for Q4 revenue despite slowing iPhone sales. While everyone has been focusing on Apple’s booming services business, one of the company’s other product categories has transformed into its true growth engine.

Apple Card users can soon use this credit card to buy an iPhone with payments stretching over two years, but without incurring any interest.

It’s already possible to buy an iOS handset through the iPhone Upgrade Program, but this requires a separate loan.

Dr. David Tsay recently joined Apple, apparently to bring new features to devices like the Apple Watch that monitor the wearer’s heart. He’s an expert in the field, and also just left a position as Associate Chief Transformation Officer for NewYork-Presbyterian Innovation Center.

This is the second prominent cardiologist brought onboard in two years.

Apple earnings report for the fourth fiscal quarter of 2019 met the most bullish of Wall Street expectations this afternoon with a Q4 record high of $64 billion in revenue and $3.03 earnings per share.

Apple’s stock price started soaring in after-hours trading on news of the positive earnings. With the iPhone 11 on sale for just 10 days during Q4, Apple CEO Tim Cook gave credit to Apple’s booming service business and the Apple Watch and AirPods for pushing the quarter to record heights.

An addition to OtterBox’s Star Wars iPhone cases celebrates Kylo Ren wearing his helmet again, while a second salutes the droids that are so important to these films.

These two join cases with more than a dozen other designs from Lucasfilm’s ongoing sci-fi saga.

When I tested a pair of Mujjo touchscreen gloves last year, my only complaint was that they could have been warmer. With two new styles, the Netherlands-based company is upping the ante on heat.

Winter is coming. Are you ready?

Apple is ready to unveil its last earnings report of 2019 this week, and investors are anxiously waiting to hear some good news on iPhone sales.

All early indications point to sales of the iPhone 11 and iPhone 11 Pro performing even better than expected. But because the new devices were only on sale for the very tail end of the quarter, they might not have given Apple the growth Wall Street is desperate to see.

Apple CEO Tim Cook and CFO Luca Maestri are set to divulge all the details for Apple’s fiscal Q4 2019 earnings on Wednesday, October 30, at 2 p.m. PDT. Per usual, Cult of Mac will be analyzing all the data right when it drops and there are a couple of areas and metrics that are key to keeping Apple’s stock price soaring.