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News - page 606

‘AirPods 3’ could bring big design changes this year

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AirPods 2 with box on desk
AirPods Pro could be more affordable thank you think.
Photo: Ian Fuchs/Cult of Mac

Apple’s third-generation AirPods could bring big internal design changes, according to a new report.

Supply chain sources claim Apple will switch to system-in-package (SiP) technology that frees up space inside each bud. The move could allow other components to be squeezed inside the tiny wireless headphones.

Google CEO takes a shot at tech giants which sell privacy as a ‘luxury’ product

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Google
You guys, we think he was talking about Apple! (Maybe.)
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

Google and Apple’s feud has cooled a lot in recent years. But like a married couple who are staying together until the kids are at college, neither company is beyond throwing a bit of undercover shade at the other.

Tim Cook has previously taken issue with tech giants which gobble up user data. Now Google CEO Sundar Pichai has taken to the New York Times to blast unnamed tech giants which sell privacy as a “luxury good.”

Apple finalizing locations for proposed India retail flagship

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Bangkok apple store
Apple could finally be getting its India flagship store.
Photo: Apple

Whether Apple will ever open an official flagship retail store in India is the greatest “will they, won’t they” off-and-on relationship since Pam and Jim in The Office.

From the sound of things, things are back in the “it’s happening” category. According to a new report, Apple has finalized a short list of locations for its first Apple Store in the country.

Renders offer early look at 2019 iPhone XR with two cameras

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iPhone XR successor with big battery
A bigger battery is now on the list of rumored features on the successor to the iPhone XR
Photo: PriceBaba/OnLeaks

New renders offer Apple fans an early glimpse at the rumored 2019 iPhone XR with an additional rear-facing camera.

The images, which are allegedly based on leaked information, show a significantly larger camera bump on the back of the device. But no obvious changes to its front.

Apple has spent at least $24 billion buying back its own shares this year

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Cash app with cash money
Apple isn't afraid to splash the cash on share buybacks.
Photo: Ian Fuchs/Cult of Mac

After slowing down on buying back shares in Q4 when they were cheap, Apple is once again ramping up its share repurchases.

In the first three months of 2019, Apple spent a massive $24 billion buying back its own shares. The board of directors has also added a further $75 billion to Apple’s share repurchase authorization.

Tim Cook talks coding with WWDC 2019 scholarship winner

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Tim Cook talks diversity, sustainability, and coming out as gay
Cook took time out of his busy day to meet with a possible future coding superstar.
Photo: Apple

Considering that a cup of coffee with Tim Cook goes for hundreds of thousands of dollars, you’ve got to be pretty lucky as an up-and-coming coder to get some quality time with Apple’s CEO.

That’s exactly the situation that 16-year-old Liam Rosenfeld found himself in this week, however. One of the 350 U.S. student recipients of a WWDC 2019 scholarship, Ronsenfeld had the rare opportunity to meet and talk with Apple’s honcho.

Hit battle royale game Apex Legends could be on its way to iOS

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Apex Legends
"Advanced negotiations" are currently going on.
Photo: EA Games

2019’s battle royale game Apex Legends has been a big hit for EA. In its first month available, the game broke free-to-play records for raking in cash on video games consoles and Windows.

Now the popular game could be on its way to iOS, too. In doing so, it would follow in the established big money footsteps laid out by the likes of Fortnite and PUBG.

Google remains cautious about making a folding Pixel

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The Huawei Mate X folding phone
Google has probably prototyped a Pixel similar to the upcoming Huawei Mate X.
Photo: Huawei

Add Google’s name to the list of companies investigating flexible-screen phones. The head of development for the Pixel line says his team is at the prototype stage.

Apple is also experimenting with this tech, while companies like Samsung and Huawei are moving ahead with production models. Or at least they are trying to.

Apple offers 10% bonus on cash added to your Apple ID

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Apple will add to the funds you put in your Apple ID account this week.
Apple will add to the funds you put in your Apple ID account this week.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

For the rest of this week, Apple will chip in an extra 10 percent to funds added to App Store accounts. This is essentially free money for those willing to commit some cash to buying apps or other services at some point in the future.

Melodramatic Apple video urges iPhone trade-ins

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Apple’s new video positions trading in your old iPhone as a moral decision, not a financial one.
Apple’s new video positions trading in your old iPhone as a moral decision, not a financial one.
Photo: Apple

Apple’s latest video takes trading in your old iPhone from a simple transaction to more of an emotional journey. Even so, trade-ins have become an important tool this company is using to spur sales.

Watch the new video now:

Fact checkers will start patrolling Instagram for bogus posts

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Instagram fact checking
Instagram will use fact-checking teams to identify false information.
Photo: Instagram

As part of a promise to choke off fake news and conspiracy theories on its platforms, Facebook will begin sniffing out false posts on its photo-sharing app, Instagram.

Facebook reportedly has 52 “fact-checking partners” in 30 countries to flag dubious posts, a program it has been building since December 2016, one month after a contentious presidential election that was widely considered influenced by bad actors using social media.

iOS 12.3 inches closer to launch with new beta

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The Apple TV app gets a raft of new features in iOS 12.3.
The Apple TV app gets a raft of new features in iOS 12.3.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

The fifth beta for iOS 12.3 was released to developers this morning, arriving just one week after iOS 12.4 beta 4 came out. Apple seeded watchOS 5.2.1 beta 5, tvOS 12.3 beta 5 and macOS 10.14.5 beta 5 to developers as well.

It appears that this beta mostly focuses mostly on performance fixes as Apple readies it for launch soon. iOS 12.3 will probably be the last major update before Apple reveals iOS 13 at WWDC 2019 at the beginning of June.

You can now try out Microsoft’s new Edge browser for macOS

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Microsoft
Get your hands on it today.
Photo: Microsoft

Microsoft is bringing its brand new Edge browser to macOS “soon,” but you don’t have to wait any longer to get your hands on an early version.

Both Canary and Developer builds are now available to Mac users. You won’t want to use them for everyday browsing, but they’re great for getting an early taste of Edge ahead of its official debut.

How Apple could turn personal data into a gold mine for the masses [Opinion]

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Apple is the best on privacy, but it's still not close to what we need.
Apple is the best on privacy, but it's still not close to what we need.
Photo: Ash Edmonds/Unsplash

Apple should be building a data marketplace for its users, not raising fears about privacy. Privacy is about preventing the leakage of personal data and does nothing about the ownership and monetization of that data.

Individuals should be getting paid for their data directly, not the companies that collect that data. And that should be the focus of Apple’s efforts.

iOS 13 concept shows how iPad file management ought to work

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iOS 13 files app iPad mount an external drive
Having an iPad mount an external drive isn’t asking for too much, is it?
Photo: Daniel Korpai

A new concept video imagines Apple’s tablet without the limitations on file management that frustrate so many iPad users. In it, the designer combines his re-imagined iOS Files app with earlier work improving multitasking.

Watch his video now:

Apple stock could be about to make a major rally

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money
AAPL could be headed straight to the top, baby!
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

After crashing late last year, Apple stock has had a massive resurgence this year. Its next milestone to hit? Being on track to flash a so-called “golden cross” technical pattern.

This indicates the potential for a major rally. It takes place when a stock’s short-term moving average crosses above its long-term moving average. Golden crosses have recently appeared for Facebook, Amazon, Netflix, and Google parent company Alphabet.

Apple Stores risk losing some of what made them great

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Apple West Lake
Do you think that Apple Stores have gotten worse over time?
Photo: Apple

Apple Stores have long been leaders when it comes to the customer experience. But that’s starting to change, as decisions made by Apple erode some of the things which once made them great.

At least, that’s according to a new article from Bloomberg, which singles out a few key examples.

Angela Ahrendts was ‘incredibly insecure’ about joining Apple

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Angela Ahrendts.
Ahrendts at an iPhone keynote during her tenure at Apple.
Screenshot: Apple

Apple’s former retail boss Angela Ahrendts was one of Apple’s most well-compensated executives during her time at the company. But in her first interview since parting ways with Apple, Ahrendts reveals how worried she was initially about joining.

“I was, on my own accord, incredibly insecure,” she told LinkedIn’s Hello Monday podcast. “I’m 54 years old, and it’s Apple, for God’s sake! I don’t speak that language. I am not a left-brain engineer operator. I mean, I could talk myself out of it forever.”