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News - page 742

$10,000 gold AirPods aren’t a sound decision

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gold AirPods
Spend like a rock star these 24K yellow gold AirPods.
Photo: Brikk

Lose one of your AirPods and you might be mad that you have to pay the Apple Store for a replacement.

But basic anger and $69 won’t begin to cover the loss of an AirPod when the set was purchased through accessory company Brikk, which offers a pair in 24K yellow gold for $10,000.

Next MacBook might take unfortunate performance hit

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MacBook Internal makeup
Because Intel can't get its act together, Apple's apparently going to release a low-cost MacBook that's slower than it should be.
Photo: Apple

After waiting years, Apple is reportedly given up on using some of Intel’s long-delayed processors in the budget MacBook expected this fall. Instead, the device will include chips that debuted last year.

Problems like this could be one of the reasons Apple is supposedly going to move macOS onto its own ARM-based processors and away from Intel.

Feast your eyes on the iPhone X Plus and new LCD iPhone

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New iPhones 2018
Only a couple of months to go!
Photo: Ben Geskin

Want a possible early glimpse at what appears to be this year’s fancy new 6.5-inch iPhone X Plus and 6.1-inch LCD iPhone? Renowned Apple leaker Ben Geskin is here to help!

Geskin posted the images on Twitter. He describes the iPhones in the pictures as “dummy models,” meaning that they are models he has made based on leaked Apple schematics. Check out more images below.

U.S. government agencies may finally listen to Jobs’ advice on Flash

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Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more.
Steve Jobs was off the Adobe Flash train way back in 2010.
Photo: Adobe

Whether it was imagining a computer in every home in the 1970s or talking about selling software online before the internet was a thing, Steve Jobs was way ahead of his time.

The latest example? That a whole eight years after Jobs’ penned his open letter about the perils of using Adobe Flash, the U.S. government is finally getting around to abandoning the plugin; concerned about Flash’s “inherent security vulnerabilities” as it reaches its final days.

Fortnite’s controversial guided missile is making a comeback

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Fortnite guided missile
The guided missile didn't last long, but it's on its way back!
Photo: Epic Games

If you thought you had seen the last of the controversial guided missile in Fortnite Battle Royale, think again.

Epic has confirmed the weapon is making a comeback in a future update. This time, however, it will work a little differently to give those defending it some chance.

Watch Tim Cook address LGBT community at LoveLoud festival

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Tim Cook
Tim Cook in attendance at LoveLoud.
Photo: LoveLoud

Tim Cook made an appearance at Utah’s 2018 LoveLoud festival over the weekend, sharing a few thoughts with the crowd before introducing the band Imagine Dragons.

LoveLoud is a music festival celebrating the LGBTQ+ community. During his tenure as Apple CEO, Tim Cook has been a proud and outspoken advocate for LGBTQ+ rights. Watch his comments to the crowd below.

Apple may cave to government demands to keep iPhones in India

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Apple supplier is increasing its ability to build masses of iPhones in India
Apple had a privacy standoff with the Indian government.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Faced with the threat of having the iPhone out of India altogether, Apple has supposedly agreed to implement a government-sanctioned Do Not Disturb app on its platform.

Apple had previously refused to carry the app, which it claimed violates user privacy by allowing the Indian government to access customers’ call and text message logs. Last week, we reported how this standoff could have resulted in the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India requiring mobile operators in the country to stop supporting the iPhone as a result.

2018 iPhone with 6.1-inch LCD might boast slender screen bezels after all

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The 2018 iPhone may sport a new type of LCD from Japan DIsplay with thinner screen bezels.
The 2018 iPhone may sport a new type of LCD from Japan Display with thinner screen bezels.
Photo: Japan Display

There’s good news and bad news about the more-affordable 6.1-inch iPhone supposedly in development. The good new is it may have bezels almost as thin as the iPhone X. The bad news is it’s not expected until November.

Apple is reportedly turning to a new type of LCD for this upcoming model. This will enable the slim bezels, but the supplier has run into production problems.

2018 iPad Pro might make a change you’ll hate

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2018 iPad Pro concept art
Smaller bezels will reportedly be a highlight of the 2018 iPad Pro, but will that make up for a huge drawback?
Photo: Álvaro Pabesio

The next-generation iPad Pro is going to have some nice improvements, like smaller screen bezels resulting in an edge-to-edge look.

But not every change is likely to go down well with fans. Apple is also supposedly going to remove the headphone jack, as it has done in its iPhone line. But that’s probably not the move that will draw the most criticism.

Philips Adore mirror brings HomeKit automation into the bathroom

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The Philips Adore bathroom mirror can e controlled through Apple's HomeKit home automation.
The Philips Adore bathroom mirror can be controlled through Apple's HomeKit home automation.
Photo: Philips

Think about how nice it would be to have the best lighted bathroom mirror and dim the lights without having to get out of the tub. That’s one of the promises of the Adore Bathroom lighted mirror as it can be controlled from your iPhone or iPad.

The center of this product is a standard mirror that’s about 20 inches across. This is surrounded by a while LED light that can be dim or bright.

Apple wants to turn all its devices into wireless chargers

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Adding wireless chargers to the MacBook Pro seems a no-brainer.
Adding wireless chargers to the MacBook Pro seems a no-brainer.
Photo: Apple

What if your every Apple device could wirelessly charge almost every other one? Engineers came up with plans to put wireless chargers in MacBooks, iPads, and iPhones so they could charge each other, or an Apple Watch.

Building inductive chargers into macOS laptops is such an obvious idea it’s a bit surprising the 2018 MacBook Pro doesn’t include them. But Apple took this idea to its logical extreme.

Apple looks to turn Time Bandits into TV show

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Time Bandits
The time-traveling dwarves of Time Bandits.
Photo: Handmade Films

Terry Gilliam’s fantasy film Time Bandits is set to be turned into a TV series by Apple.

The iPhone-maker is reportedly closing in on a deal that would give it the rights to make a TV series based on the 1981 movie, but Terry Gilliam won’t be attached as a writer for the series.

Trump administration takes a first step toward regulating Facebook, Google

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Facebook employees
The US government may soon be looking over Facebook's shoulder to better protect your privacy. Unless Facebook and Google can prevent it, of course.
Photo: Facebook

The Commerce Dept. is reportedly talking to social networking companies and consumer advocates about rules to protect online privacy. Also included are possible protections for companies that have data breeches.

This is supposedly laying the groundwork for legislation that might be proposed this fall.

Huawei could beat Samsung and Apple to a foldable phone

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Chinese company Huawei wants the media buzz that would come with releasing the world's first foldable phone.
Chinese company Huawei wants the media buzz that would come with releasing the world's first foldable phone.
Photo: Kārlis Dambrāns/Flickr CC

Both Samsung and Apple are reportedly working on foldable phones, but China’s Huawei could be the first to get one on the market.

Phones that can unfold to the size of small tablets have the potential to shake up the mobile device industry in the coming years.

Apple offers free repairs to victims of Japan floods

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ginza apple store
The Ginza Apple store in Tokyo.
Photo: Denise Chan/Flickr CC

People in Japan hit by the recent massive floods are getting a little help from Apple if their iPhones, Macs or iPads were damaged as a result of the floods.

In a message posted on its regional support site, Apple says it is offering flood victims free repairs on damaged Apple products from now until the end of September.

Apple slapped with second lawsuit over Siri

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HomePod siri
Apple has long been a target for patent lawsuits.
Photo: Charlie Sorrel/Cult of Mac

A company named SpeakWare is suing Apple, Samsung, and Microsoft, claiming that all three are infringing on one of its patents.

Specifically, it claims that the tech trio are illegally using technology described in SpeakWare’s 2002 patent for “Hands-Free, Voice-Operated Remote Control Transmitter.” The allegedly infringing products are voice-activated systems which are used to control appliances. In Apple’s case, that’s Siri.

Orlando Bloom doesn’t want to see your iPad at his show

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Orlando Bloom
Taking your iPad to watch Orlando Bloom perform is a bad idea.
Photo: Gage Skidmore/Flickr CC

Apple’s normally happy to get a public shout-out for one of its products from a celebrity. It’s unlikely to be quite so chuffed about a recent incident involving actor Orlando Bloom, however.

Bloom was acting in a play at Trafalgar Studios in London, England, when he flipped out at an audience member using an iPad during his performance.

Telegram now securely stores your most important documents

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Telegram Passport secure document storage
Telegram Passport wants to be the go-to authorization service.
Photo: Telegram

Secure messaging app Telegram now lets you save copies of your most important documents so that you always have them with you.

Telegram Passport can hold your driving license, passport, other forms of ID, and more — and promises to protect them with end-to-end encryption. You can then use those documents to prove who you are when logging into other services.

2018 MacBook Pro performance, after the patch, on The CultCast

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CultCast MacBook Pro
Just how good is the 2018 MacBook Pro after Apple's patch?
Photo: Apple

This week on The CultCast: Apple has issued a patch that significantly increases performance for all 2018 MacBook Pros, but there’s one glaring problem it doesn’t fix…. We talk benchmarks and real-world performance. Plus, we take a peek at the new HomePod features from iOS 12 beta, and we wrap up with your emails!

Our thanks to Squarespace for supporting this episode. It’s simple to accept Apple Pay and sell your wares with your very own Squarespace website. Enter offer code CultCast at checkout to get 10% off your first hosting plan or domain.

Grid Autosport is a hit, despite hefty price tag

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GRID Autosport racing
See, you don't need in-app purchases to be a success!
Photo: Feral Interactive

Grid Autosport, the AAA racing game that offers a console-quality racing experience on iOS, has passed more than 100,000 downloads since debuting on the platform last November.

That’s an impressive figure in its own right. But it’s also welcome news for anyone who’d like to see fewer of the freemium games loaded with in-app purchases that have clogged the App Store in recent years. Here’s why.