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2018 iPhones may not come with free headphone dongle

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iPhone-Lightning
New regulations could force Apple to ditch Lightning cables in Europe.
Photo: Tinhte

Apple might be planning to make it even more difficult to use your old 3.5mm headphones if you buy a new iPhone this year.

New iPhones have included a Lightning port adapter for headphones ever since Apple removed the headphone jack on the iPhone 7. That free dongle is about to go away this year, according to one Apple analyst.

Is iPhone X really a flop? We’ll know for sure tomorrow

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Apple earnings
Investors are hoping for good news from Tim Cook.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

The second Apple earnings report of 2018 is set to come out on May 1 and Wall Street’s top analysts are worried that disappointing news is on the horizon.

Rumors have been circulating for months that iPhone X sales have been far weaker than Apple expected. The company’s stock price has been slipping in the last two weeks leading up to the Q2 2018 earnings report. Everyone’s waiting to see if Apple can pull out another surprise, but the signs don’t look too promising.

Per usual, Cult of Mac will be here to live blog all the action as it transpires on Tuesday, May 1, at 2 p.m. Pacific. Here’s what to watch for on the call:

Steve Jobs autograph is a bargain at only $20,000

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Steve Jobs autograph
The elusive Steve Jobs autograph is an expensive pursuit.
Photo: Press Pass Collectibles

As Apple collectibles go, a Steve Jobs autograph is almost as rare as the Apple 1. Both are pricey investments.

However, a TIME magazine cover featuring Jobs and the signature he loathed giving out is kind of a bargain at a penny shy of $20,000.

Apple News lands its first exclusive with John McCain memoir

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Apple/Walt Mossberg/Twitter
Apple is serious about news.
Screenshot: Apple/Walt Mossberg/Twitter

Apple is offering a free book excerpt from Senator John McCain’s new political memoir, The Restless Waves, coming out on May 22.

The section, which is available through the Apple News app, is referred to as an Apple News exclusive. While it was not written exclusively by Apple, it nonetheless underlines how Apple is taking a renewed interest in news reportage and publishing.

Apple may be primed for disappointment in China

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Apple Store
How has Apple done in China this quarter? Analysts don't think too well.
Photo: Apple

In a disastrous turn of events, Apple may have lost up to half its market share in Greater China, analysts report.

A combination of poor adoption of Apple’s latest generation of iPhone handsets and increased competition from domestic handset makers like Huawei and Oppo might have slashed Apple’s business in a market Tim Cook is convinced is Apple’s biggest hope.

World’s most famous Apple analyst may no longer be reporting on Apple

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Digitimes
Ming-Chi Kuo has been breaking news about Apple for years.
Photo: Digitimes

When it comes to analysts and Apple-watchers, Ming-Chi Kuo is one of the most accurate sources out there; having covered the Cupertino company in his job at KGI since early 2012.

However, it seems that Kuo is moving on to greener pastures for a job with another firm. Unfortunately for Apple fans, this may mean focusing on non-Apple companies instead.

Apple delays production of cheaper $799 MacBook Air

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A plain manila envelope became a key stage prop for selling the MacBook Air.
Apple hasn't revealed why production has been pushed back.
Photo: Apple

Volume production of Apple’s budget MacBook Air has reportedly been delayed until the second half of 2018, according to sources in the supply chain.

Usually reliable Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo previously said he expected the next-gen MacBook Air to launch during the second quarter of this year, between April and June.

Reddit user discovers Siri’s potty mouth

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HomePod siri
One of the more unexpected bugs to find in iOS.
Photo: Charlie Sorrel/Cult of Mac

Siri may be a friendly (if slightly dim) neighborhood smart assistant, but not everything about Apple’s A.I. voice is entirely G-rated.

Over the weekend, Reddit went Siri mad after one user noted that it was possible to get Siri to spout our the word “mother*@$^%r” in response to a seemingly innocuous question. Check below for the video evidence.

Sprint and T-Mobile come together in controversial merger

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t-mobile
T-Mobile CEO John Legere will head the merged Sprint and T-Mobile. Assuming the Feds let the deal go through, of course
Photo: T-Mobile

Do you get your iPhone service from Sprint? Not for much longer. The third and fourth largest U.S. carriers just announced they’re merging. But the plan to join Sprint and T-Mobile is already drawing significant criticism.

The combined company will be called T-Mobile, and will be headed by John Legere, T-Mobile’s current CEO. That’s assuming the $59 billion deal gets approved by government regulators.

Take a look at the largest collection of Apple prototypes anywhere

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Apple prototypes
A clear Macintosh SE is among Hap Plains' collection of Apple prototypes.
Photo: CNBC

Just about all of us have a few classic Apple devices we just can’t bear to get rid of.  But Hap Plain takes it to the next level. And beyond. He collects and sells Apple prototypes for top dollar.

He has about 258. And his collection is a more than just a history of the company. It’s a testament all the effort needed to create the great Apple desktops, PDAs, and phones of the past.

iPhone X is the best selling smartphone in the world?

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iphone
According to a market research company, 5.1 percent of all smartphones sold globally in February were the iPhone X.
Photo: Apple

There’s been a lot of pessimism about the iPhone X lately, but a market research firm says that this device was the top selling smartphone in the world by a wide margin in February.

The company also says Apple had all four of the best selling smartphones globally that month. 

DAW Cassette, 1Blocker X, Bands in Town, and other awesome apps of the week

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Awesome Apps
'Appy weekend.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

This week you can block all kinds of evil internet content with, make your music sound like it was recorded onto a crappy old cassette tape, translate any web-page right inside mobile Safari, and listen to the songs of bands that are playing live in your town. Yes, its time for your favorite Sunday read, the cult of Mac Apps of the Week roundup.

iOS 11.3 jailbreak might never go public

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iOS 11.3 jailbreak
An iOS 11.3 jailbreak was created, but probably won't be made public.
Graphic: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

The good news is that someone managed to create an iOS 11.3 jailbreak. The bad news is that the person who managed the trick probably won’t turn it into anything the general public can use.

While this once would have left a significant percentage of the iPhone community tearing its hair out, these days jailbreaking is almost dead.

We talk iPhone SE leaks, Steve Jobs saving Pixar, and the brightest flashlight on earth on The CultCast

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MacBook Pro
Another episode of The CultCast, packed with this week's best Apple stories.
Photo: The CultCast

This week on a very feisty episode of The CultCast: New iPhone SE will steal one of iPhone X’s best features; how Steve Jobs saved Pixar, then stole all their stock; MoviePass ends its unlimited movie option; Gal Gadot promotes Huawei on Twitter … from an iPhone; and we wrap with the best iPhone camera lenses, wireless security system, and the most powerful flashlight on Earth in an all-new Under Review.

Our thanks to Udemy for support thing episode. Whether you’re looking to learn something new or just sharpen your skills, Udemy has over 65,000 courses starting at just 11.99.
Visit Ude.my/CULTCAST or download the Udemy app to learn anytime, anywhere.

Apple VR headset might sport two 8K displays

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VR
Will Apple be the company that finally makes VR cool?
Photo: Cult of Mac

Apple’s next big thing could be a virtual reality headset.

According to a new report, the iPhone-maker is planning to launch its own headset in 2020 that can handle both AR and VR technology. And in true Apple fashion, it’ll pack some innovations that could finally bring VR into the mainstream.

Microsoft previews best features of Office 2019

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Office 2019
Excel in Office 2019 will get funnel charts and 2D maps.
Photo: Microsoft

Microsoft released Office 2019 Preview today, with the full release expected later this year. This early version is only for Windows, though a macOS edition will be out “in the coming months,” according to the company.

This version of the giant productivity suite is for those who don’t want to pay a monthly fee for Office 365. 

Tim Cook vs. Steve Jobs: Who is Apple’s best CEO ever?

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And the winner for best Apple CEO is ...
Both great leaders, but who managed Apple better?
Photo illustration: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Steve Jobs was a mercurial genius with a singular knack for turning bright ideas into shiny new products. Tim Cook is an operations wizard who hammered Apple’s supply chain into a manufacturing powerhouse.

If you’re an Apple fan, you know the widely accepted narrative. You’ve heard the stories about these powerful CEOs and their various strengths and weaknesses. But who helmed Apple most successfully?

We put Cupertino’s most capable execs head-to-head to determine which Apple era was really the best. Get ready to settle things once and for all!

Google Inbox will get iPhone X support ‘soon’

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Google Inbox iPhone
We don't need two Gmail clients anymore.
Photo: Google

Google Inbox will finally be optimized for iPhone X “soon,” according to a new report.

Google has been working hard to update its most important iOS apps for Apple’s flagship smartphone since it made its debut last November — but Inbox, its nicest Gmail client, has somehow been neglected. Now that Gmail’s big redesign is out of the way, that’s set to change.

Amazon could soon be worth even more than Apple

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Amazon
Amazon has had one heck of a 2018 so far!
Photo: Mike Seyfang/Flickr CC

Apple has pretty much clung onto its title of world’s most valuable company since early in Tim Cook’s reign at the top. However, it may not hold that claim for too much longer if Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos has much to say about it!

Amazon shares rose 7.1 percent for a record high in premarket trading today, following the company’s massive Q1 earnings. That narrows Apple’s market cap lead to less than $50 billion.

Apple may have wildly misjudged iPhone X demand

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iphone x
Apple has pared iPhone X production way back.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Apple is usually pretty great at gauging demand for its products. Something seems to have gone wildly wrong for the iPhone X, however, since the company is now reportedly trying to “burn off” its excess supply of the devices after disappointing adoption rates.

According to a source speaking with Fast Company, Apple ordered the production of way too many iPhone X units in the last calendar quarter of 2017, and is now dealing with excess supply.

iTunes arrives in the Microsoft Store after lengthy delay

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iTunes Microsoft Store
Windows 10 S users can now enjoy iTunes, too.
Photo: Microsoft

iTunes is finally available to download from the Microsoft Store for the first time.

The release makes it possible for Windows 10 S users, who cannot install applications obtained from third-party sources, to get their hands on Apple’s popular entertainment platform. This version of iTunes is exactly the same as the one available through Apple’s website.

Tim Cook was ‘very helpful’ in Trump meeting at the White House

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President Trump: Apple encryption could protect ‘criminal minds’
Tim Cook met with President Trump earlier this week.
Photo: Gage Skidmore/Flickr CC

Apple CEO Tim Cook was reportedly “most helpful” during his White House meeting with President Donald Trump earlier this week. Cook was enthusiastic about the Trump administration’s recent tax cuts, and also had some advice about business dealings in China.

“I really enjoyed the meeting,” Larry Kudlow, director of the National Economic Council, told CNBC’s Squawk on the Street. “I spent a good amount of time with [Cook], and then we came back and we visited the POTUS.”

iPhone shipments up significantly in China

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Hong Kong police arrest smugglers with $1 million of iPhones and other devices
Hong Kong police arrest smugglers with $1 million of iPhones and other devices
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

Shipments of iPhone in China increased 32 percent in the first quarter of this year. This was during a period when the overall Chinese handset market declined. 

Many Chinese see Apple devices as status symbols and pick them over local brands that cost significantly less.

Apple’s AirPort router lineup is officially dead

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AirPort Express
Apple is getting out of the router business.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

The biggest tech company in the world is getting out of WiFi. Kind of…

Apple decided to finally put the nail in the coffin for its lineup of AirPort routers that haven’t been updated in years. We’ve known this day has been coming for nearly two years, but Apple just officially gave us the bad news.

Here’s the official statement: