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News - page 771

How Apple could smartify iOS’ Do Not Disturb feature

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Patent
"Do Not Disturb" could get a lot more intelligent.
Photo: Apple/USPTO

With iOS 11, Apple introduced a “Do Not Disturb” feature that texts callers to let them know you’re driving or otherwise engaged if they try and phone when you’re busy. But a future version of the technology could perform a more useful feat by texting context-specific responses to the person calling.

In a patent application published today, Apple describes how your iPhone could analyze available information — ranging from fitness tracking apps to your calendar and location information — to figure out the most useful response to a message.

OS X has now outlasted Apple’s classic Mac OS

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os x
OS X passed a major milestone this week.
Photo: Olarila

Call it macOS or OS X if you want, but today Apple’s Mac operating system passed a major milestone: overtaking Apple’s classic Mac OS by a single day.

Pointed out by Jason Snell of Six Colors, the original Mac operating system lasted 6,269 days from January 24, 1984 to March 24, 2001. The current operating system, meanwhile, has lasted from March 24, 2001 to the present day — a total of 6,270 days! Time sure flies, right?

Facebook two-factor authentication no longer needs a phone number

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Facebook two-factor authentication
You can now make Facebook more secure without handing over your number.
Photo: Facebook

You can now secure your Facebook account with two-factor authentication without handing over your phone number.

The social network now works alongside apps like Google Authenticator, Duo Security, and more. Its setup process has also been refined to make bolstering security a simpler experience.

Latest Apple Pay promotion gives you free food delivery from Postmates

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Apple Pay
This is just the latest in a long-running series of Apple Pay promotions.
Photo: Apple

Apple wants you to use Apple Pay and it’s willing to reward you if you’ll give it a shot. The company’s latest Apple Pay promotion offers free delivery on food ordered from food delivery service Postmates through its app.

Unlike many of the one-week promotions Apple runs for Apple Pay, this offer runs through the end of June.

Apple is missing out on billions in subscription fees

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Apple waives developer fees for nonprofits, others in 8 additional countries
Apple should be squeezing more money out of customers. Or so one analyst thinks!
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Apple’s Services division is growing rapidly, but according to analyst Gene Munster it is still leaving billions of dollars on the table by failing to monetize its software in the way that it could.

Munster says that Apple should be following other high tech companies by charging monthly subscription fees for Pro Apps, aimed at audio and visual professionals. These apps include Final Cut Pro, Logic Pro X, Motion, Compressor and MainStage 3, each of which Apple currently sells for a one-off fee.

iPhone SE 2 stars in beautiful concept TV ad

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Watch a iPhone SE 2 TV ad
No, the new iPhone SE won't look like this.
Screencap: Creative Concepts

The look of iPhone ads is familiar. A cool song blares while the device sleekly moves before the camera. An artist has used that formula to create an ad for the iPhone SE 2, a smartphone not yet released.

The look of the phone matches the latest rumors of this upcoming budget model. It seems almost real.

Trump can’t use his iPhone to block protesters from his Twitter feed

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This is the Trump iPhone, but not Trump's iPhone.
This isn't really Trump's phone. But he does use an iPhone to tweet, and to violate the Constitution.
Photo: Caviar

All President Donald Trump’s many tweets come from his trusty iPhone, and he’s not shy about blocking people who use this social network platform to respond to his comments.

Today, however, a federal judge ruled that blocking anyone from accessing the president’s Twitter feed is a violation of the First Amendment to the Constitution.

iOS 12 concept dreams of grouped notifications and more

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iOS 12
It's time for Apple to bundle notifications.
Photo: Matt Birchler

The grand unveiling of iOS 12 is just a few weeks away and there’s one feature on everybody’s wishlist: grouped notifications.

iOS 11’s notification screen is a mess when you get multiple notifications from the same app, but developer Matt Birchler has created a simple concept that shows how Apple could make the lock screen notifications so much better.

Here’s how they would look:

Apple Watch wins Q1 wearables race, no matter who you ask

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Apple Watch
Rival market analysts peg Apple Watch shipments at different numbers, but the winner in the smartwatch market isn't in doubt.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Apple was the top wearables vendor in Q1 according to market analysis firm Canalys. A rival analyst from Asymco also placed Apple at the top, but with a higher total of devices shipped. Canalys put the number at 3.8 million. the other at just over 4 million.

Disagreements like this are possible because Apple itself doesn’t reveal how many smartwatches it sells. Still, both groups of analysts agree that Apple Watch leads the market.

This alligator skin iPhone X will destroy your bank account

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Hadoro iPhone
3D carbon fiber, aligator skin and gold were used in Hadoro's iPhones.
Photo: Hadoro

The French luxury designer brand Hadoro has just taken the crown for the most expensive iPhone X ever created.

We’ve seen gold iPhones that pay tribute to Putin and Harry and Meghan. We’ve even seen an iPhone X with solar panels in the back. All of those were ridiculously expensive. But none of them compare to Hadoro’s lineup of 20 custom designed iPhones that cost between $5200 – $10,399.

Take a look at the two most expensive models:

Eccentric CEO bashes Apple to shill smartphones

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Chinese smartphone CEO who made his name dissing Apple declared a 'deadbeat'
Chinese smartphone CEO who made his name dissing Apple declared a 'deadbeat'
Photo: Handout/The South China Morning Post

Entrepreneur Luo Yonghao has a smartphone company in China that is losing money and has yet to capture even 1 percent of the market share.

So the CEO of Smartisan is making a lot of noise — including firing potshots at Apple — to raise his brand’s profile.

Apple may owe you $50 for iPhone battery replacement

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These are the 4 main parts you need.
You may be eligible for a $50 Apple credit.
Photo: Strange Parts

iPhone customers who paid for an out-of-warranty battery replacement last year are getting hooked up with a refund from Apple.

The company revealed today that it will start offering a $50 credit to all customers who purchased a battery replacement for the iPhone 6 and later.

iPhone 7 Plus tops customer satisfaction survey

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iPhone 7 Plus lineup
The iPhone X didn't get the best score on the latest ACSI survey, it was the iPhone 7 Plus instead.
Image: Apple

The iPhone X is the world’s best-selling smartphone, but it’s an older Apple model that scored highest on the American Customer Satisfaction Index.

The iPhone 7 Plus beat out all of the newer iOS models, and solidly outscored the iPhone X. Naturally, it also trounced every Android device.

Facebook can help you find the perfect plumber

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Marketplace
Facebook Marketplace has a useful new feature.
Photo: Facebook

Whether you’re looking to hire a cleaner or a plumber, Mark Zuckerberg is your hookup! No, Facebook’s CEO isn’t moonlighting as a tradesperson, but his Facebook Marketplace service is branching out in a potentially handy new direction.

From today, users in the U.S. can use Marketplace to find the right professional for the job, starting with home services. Facebook has partnered with Handy, HomeAdvisor, and Porch for the new feature, which offers thousands of available professionals right now.

WhatsApp bug lets blocked contacts send messages

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

A new WhatsApp bug allows blocked contacts to continue sending messages, view online status, and see profile pictures. The problem appears to be on the server side, but WhatsApp is yet to confirm a fix or even acknowledge its existence.

WWDC livestream will support Chrome and Firefox this year

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At WWDC 2018, Apple will show us the future of iOS and its other platforms.
You're no longer limited to Safari or *shudder* Microsoft Edge.
Photo: Apple

There’s something a bit different about this year’s WWDC livestream. As always, you’ll be able to watch it using Apple’s Safari browser, the WWDC app or Apple TV. However, for the first time Apple is also supporting Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox.

In previous years, neither has been available to users, meaning that viewers were limited to either one of Apple’s proprietary options or, if they were using a Windows 10 PC, Microsoft Edge.

Apple promises APFS support for Fusion Drives soon

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APFS
Maybe look for it at WWDC.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Apple will share news regarding APFS for Mac Fusion Drives “very soon,” claims Apple’s software engineering VP, Craig Federighi.

Short for Apple File System, APFS was introduced with the arrival of macOS High Sierra. It’s optimized for modern Apple devices that increasingly rely on flash storage, but Apple’s Mac Fusion Drives — which combine regular hard disks with a small amount of flash storage — weren’t supported beyond the first few beta versions.

Windows 10 code suggests Microsoft isn’t done battling iPhone

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Windows 10 Mobile
Windows phones could be about to make a comeback.
Photo: Microsoft

New code discovered in Windows 10 suggests Microsoft isn’t ready to give up its fight against the iPhone just yet.

Microsoft’s mobile platform as we know it is all but dead, but it looks like the company is hard at work on yet another operating system that could power its long-awaited Surface Phone.

Here’s what Foxconn will manufacture at new Wisconsin facility

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iPhone sales drive Apple’s biggest supplier to big profits
Foxconn's U.S. facility will open in 2020.
Photo: CBS

The percentage of each iPhone made in the U.S. may increase, claims a new report, suggesting that manufacturer Foxconn’s proposed Wisconsin factory will be used for producing small and medium-sized LCD — and possibly eventually OLED — smartphone displays.

That’s a change in strategy from the original plan, which reportedly focused on large-sized displays for televisions and monitors. Foxconn allegedly made the decision due to cost considerations.

Apple now lets you download a copy of all the data it has on you

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Apple data privacy
Apple’s Data and Privacy website launched last year
Photo: Apple

Apple is now giving users the opportunity to download a copy of all the data the company has collected from them. This includes App Store and iTunes activity, Apple ID account and device information, online and retail store activity, AppleCare support history, and more.

The tool is part of Apple’s new Data and Privacy website, which also allows users to correct any information Apple holds about them, and deactivate their account completely.

Disgruntled users are suing Apple over its ‘defective’ MacBook keyboard

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MacBook butterfly keyboard
The butterfly switch made MacBook keyboards thinner. It also reportedly broke them.
Photo: Apple

Apple’s MacBook butterfly switch keyboards are landing its makers in court, thanks to a new class action lawsuit which was filed in California court this Tuesday.

The class action suit alleges that Apple is selling a product that is known to be defective. In particular, it claims that the keyboard stops working as it should when dust and other particles begin to build up under the keys. As a result, customers can be made to pay out hundreds of dollars in repairs in cases where the laptop is no longer under Apple warranty.

FBI admits it has far fewer unlockable iPhones than claimed

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FBI director says Feds still can't unlock iPhone in Pensacola shooting case
The FBI's argument why it needs an iPhone 'backdoor' just got a lot weaker.
Photo: Dave Newman/Flickr CC

FBI director Christopher Wray has said multiple times that his agency has 7,775 locked phones involved in investigations that it can’t access. Now, the law enforcement agency admits the number is far smaller.

Previously, Wray argued that the large number of unlockable devices is why Apple needs to build a ‘backdoor’ into iOS for police.

Major 2018 iPhone component already in production

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Apple A12 replaces A11 Bionic
The A11 Bionic is a fine processor, but the Apple A12 is expected to be even better.
Photo: iFixit

The Apple A12 processor, the heart of the 2018 iPhone, is reportedly already being manufactured. It’s being produced by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., which has made Apple’s chips for years.

Even though the next iPhone isn’t expected until fall, TSMC isn’t getting a head start. It takes about three months to convert silicon into a microprocessor.