Apple and a handful of private Medicare insurers are exploring a deal that could subsidize the cost of Apple Watches for people over 65 to use for health tracking.
Insurance companies offering the Apple Watch free or at a reduced cost as a carrot to get healthy is a growing trend as the watch continues to grab headlines for its health benefits.
Expect a bit of a design overhaul since the last time you saw the Razr. Photo: OptoScalpel/Wikipedia CC
Motorola is planning to bring back its popular pre-iPhone line of Razr handsets — but don’t expect it to cost what a cellphone cost back in the early 2000s.
According to a new report, Motorola’s revived flip phone brand could carry a price tag of $1,500 when it launches. In other words, it’s trying to take on the iPhone, a handset whose popularity helped cement the Razr’s fate, with a new phone that costs more than Apple’s flagship. We’ll give it to Motorola: That’s a bold strategy!
Another small but significant reference to Apple’s long-awaited AirPower charging mat has been spotted this week, giving fans hope that the product is still in the pipeline after all.
AirPower is mentioned on an Apple product page for its new Smart Battery Case for iPhone XS. But what does it mean?
Apple removed the InfoWars app last year. Photo: Infowars
Streaming service Roku is the latest tech company to follow Apple’s lead in banning right wing conspiracy website InfoWars from its platform.
Apple booted podcasts from the website off its platform back in September, following by banning InfoWars and host Alex Jones from the App Store. These decisions prompted other tech companies such as Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter to follow in its footsteps. Now they have been joined by Roku.
The Apple TV started as a passion project. Photo: Philosophy Talk
Scott Forstall has been largely absent from the tech world since leaving Apple following the Apple Maps debacle in 2012. However, in recent times he’s been giving a few more interviews about his time at Apple — when some people predicted he could even be a potential future CEO.
In a new interview on Philosophy Talk’s The Creative Life, Forstall talked about (among other things) his work on the iPod, iPhone, and iPad. Including a rather intriguing anecdote about the creation of the Apple TV.
TweetDeck, the must-have Twitter app for any power user, just got a nice update on macOS that adds a gorgeous new dark mode. The version 3.10 release has also been rebuilt to “fix many crashes.”
Verizon customers could get a treat worth dancing about. Photo: Apple
Update:Verizon has officially confirmed this offer.
“When we introduced six months free of Apple Music to Verizon Unlimited subscribers, we said it was just the beginning of a great collaboration between Verizon and Apple to bring music streaming to our loyal customers,” said Angie Klein, vice president of marketing at Verizon. “Our customers loved the offer, so we’re expanding the value of our Beyond Unlimited and Above Unlimited plans by including Apple Music at the same plan price. You can stream more of the music you love on the network you deserve.”
According to a new report, Verizon is set to offer Apple Music as a freebie service to customers on two of its “unlimited” cell phone plans. This would, in essence, reduce Apple’s $9.99 per month subscription costs to zero — while boosting Apple’s subscriber numbers as well.
Apple may have to pay up big bucks. Image: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
A U.S. appeals court has upheld a $440 million judgment against Apple by “patent troll” VirnetX, an intellectual property licensing firm which has been battling Apple for years.
VirnetX won a $302 million verdict against Apple in 2016. That figure has now grown to $440 million thanks to interest, enhanced damages, and additional costs.
A customer shared their story with Tim Cook. Photo: Leander Kahney/Cult of Mac
Tim Cook shared a story on Twitter, describing how an Apple Watch user potentially had his life saved when his wearable device warned of an irregular heartbeat.
Elissa Lombardo, who alerted Cook of the incident, said that her husband had owned his Apple Watch for just a couple of days before he was sent the alert. The Apple Watch revealed signs of atrial fibrillation and an elevated heart rate of 150 beats per minute — compared to a normal resting heart rate of 60 to 100bmp.
This is the original color of the Nomad Apple Watch Modern Strap and AirPods Rugged Case. Photo: Nomad
Leather is a popular choice for Apple Watch bands but the latest from Nomad takes this material in a slightly unusual direction: it’s as untreated as possible. The intent is that this light-colored band will take on a patina over time.
Nomad also just introduced an AirPods case of the same material.
Coppola and Murray both scored Oscar noms for "Lost in Translation." Photo: Focus Pictures
Apple is officially getting into the movie-making business.
After inking deals for over a dozen original TV shows, Apple is ready to make its first-ever movie and it’s bringing in Hollywood legend Bill Murray to star in the flick.
The new Smart Battery Case is a lot like the old one. Photo: Apple
Apple fans that scooped up one of the company’s newest iPhones are finally getting some much-needed relief for their batteries with the release of Apple’s new Smart Battery Cases for iPhone XS, XS Max and XR.
A major topic of debate about the iPhone XI is camera lens placement. This is the latest possibility. Photo: OnLeaks/CompareRaja
Several rumors about the next iPhone point to it having three camera lenses but don’t agree on how they’ll be arranged. The latest leaked render shows it with the lenses neatly lined up in a row.
This unconfirmed image also shows a smaller notch.
Maybe the price on that Apple Watch Series 4 isn't so steep. Screenshot: Hodinkee
Tony Fadell invented the iPod and hundreds of millions of people bought one. But he can’t expect those kinds of sales with his latest creation – a watch costing $48,800.
The Ressence Type 2 has a relatively modest price tag in the luxury watch space. A brand like Patek Phillipe can fetch a couple hundred thousand dollars just for a used timepiece.
DuckDuckGo searches can now include Apple Maps data without violating your privacy. Photo: DuckDuckGo
DuckDuckGo teamed up with Apple toprotect user privacy for map and address-related searches. Their agreement gives users of the search engine access to continually updated maps, enhanced satellite imagery and more without exposing their data.
The pairing seems natural as both Apple and DuckDuckGo have taken strong stances on protecting user privacy.
Nike is on a mission to kill shoelaces for good with its new pair of app-controlled sneakers, which made their official debut today.
Taking a page right out of Back to the Future II, Nike’s new Adapt BB self-lacing shoes pack wireless connectivity, and a custom motor and gear train, to give athletes a perfect fit without having to fuss with retying their laces.
Don’t let dongle’s dangle — wrangle the tangle. Photo: Pad & Quill
Check out Pad & Quill’s latest trio of gadget organizers. The Tech Folio, Tech Folio Mini, and Tech Folio Pro are variously-sized pouches with pockets, clips, and stretchy bands with which to wrangle and organize your cables and gadgets. Let’s take a look.
Prepare to pay more for Netflix. Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac
Netflix has confirmed another price hike for subscribers in the United States — its biggest increase since it launched 12 years ago.
The company’s most popular plan, which offers high-definition streaming on up to two different devices simultaneously, will now cost $13 a month, up from $11 a month.
Netflix says it will use the cash to “continue investing in great entertainment.”
Most of us don’t need that advice, but one Chinese man, aged just 25, is now bedridden with organ failure after selling his kidney to buy the latest Apple devices eight years ago.
Analysts want Apple to snap up a movie studio. We disagree. Photo: Naoya Fujii/Flickr CC
How can Apple’s streaming video service battle established competitors like Netflix? Simple: Buy a movie studio.
That’s the battle cry from certain Wall Street analysts, who suggest that Apple use its Scrooge McDuck-style cash pile to buy everything from Sony Pictures to Disney.
As sexy as that idea might sound on paper, however, in reality it would be a terrible idea. Here are three reasons why.
Baby oil: an important part of any dragon-slaying lifestyle. Photo: Sega
Want to forget about 2019 for a few minutes and travel back to the glorious 16-bit gaming days of the 1990s? You’ll soon be in luck, because Sega is reportedly getting ready to launch classic side-scrolling beat’em-up Golden Axe II for iOS.
Qualcomm previously won an iPhone ban in the country. Photo: Qualcomm
The recent court-appointed sales ban on certain iPhone models in Germany could be at risk. That’s thanks to a decision by a German court on Tuesday, who ruled against Qualcomm in its patent case against Apple.
The regional court in the city of Mannheim threw out the Qualcomm suit, claiming that the patent was not being violated due to Apple’s use of Qualcomm chips in its older iPhones. Qualcomm has said it plans to appeal.
Charlie Sloth is joining Apple from the BBC. Screenshot: Beats 1/YouTube
Former BBC Radio 1 and 1Xtra DJ Charlie Sloth has officially joined Apple. The Charlie Sloth Rap Show on Beats 1 starts 12pm PT/3pm ET on Saturday January 19.
“I feel that U.K. music is in a place that it’s never been in my whole time supporting the culture in the way that I have,” Sloth told Beats presenter Zane Lowe in an interview. “I feel that it’s desired in a way it’s never been before globally — and with Apple Music and Beats 1 I feel that I offer something to these artists in the UK that no other platform can offer at the moment.”
Apple's first 5nm chips are expected to ship in iPhone and iPad this year. Photo: iFixit
Apple reportedly replaced a whopping 11 million iPhone batteries last year — 10 times as many as anticipated.
Apple CEO Tim Cook has already cited this as one of the reasons why new iPhone sales are slowing. It is believed the company expected to perform between 1 and 2 million replacements under its heavily-discounted $29 program.