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PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds and other awesome apps of the week

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Awesome Apps
'Appy weekend, everyone!
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
Awesome Apps

A great battle royale game that’s sure to become one of the year’s most popular titles (and isn’t Fortnite!) is just one of our picks for this week’s “Awesome Apps of the Week.”

In addition, we’ve got a great update for a tremendous iPad drawing app, a minimalist puzzle game, and more. Check out our selections below.

Cult of Mac Magazine: What to expect from Apple’s big ‘field trip’ event, and more!

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cover
In this week's Cult of Mac Magazine: Apple will take a field trip out of Silicon Valley to host its first major event of 2018 next week, and much more.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

In this week’s Cult of Mac Magazine: Apple will take a field trip out of Silicon Valley to host its first major event of 2018 next week. Instead of focusing on iPhones and Apple Watches, this keynote will be all about education and creativity.

Rumors have been swirling for months that new MacBook Airs and an updated, inexpensive iPad could arrive this spring. We might see those, but Apple probably has a couple other surprises in store that you haven’t heard of. Here’s what to expect from Apple’s education event next Tuesday.

You’ll find that story and more in this issue. Get your free subscription to Cult of Mac Magazine from iTunes. Or read on for this week’s top stories.

Juuk’s Ligero Apple Watch band in Cosmic Grey is back

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juuk
The Ligero is built from robust 6061 series aluminum — the same aluminum used in the aircraft, automotive, boating and diving industries.
Photo: Juuk

When Eugene Ho first saw the Apple Watch, it made him think of a jukebox. If the watch piece is the player then the wristband is like a song that can be changed according to taste and mood.

Ho is building a band brand, Juuk Design, that acknowledges the watch wearer who likes to change bands on a whim. The Ligero is an aircraft-grade aluminum link band designed in vibrant finishes that will complement the aluminum Apple Watch model in Series 1-3.

Apple wants to bring these accessibility emoji to iOS

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Apple accessibility emoji
Apple's new emoji suggestions, designed to better represent those with a disability
Photo: Apple

Apple has proposed a bunch of new accessibility emoji that it wants to bring to iOS.

There are nine altogether — some of which are available in different genders and skin tones — including guide dogs, a heading aid, prosthetic limbs, and more.

Folding iPhone might land in 2020

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Learn valuable coding skills by building working apps in iOS 11.
Apple wants to make iPhones that double as iPads.
Photo: Ste Smith

Your next iPhone could soon double as an iPad.

According to the latest Apple rumor, the company plans to launch a folding iPhone in the next two years, bringing Westworld-style tablets to the real world.

AR app solves life’s greatest mystery: How to assemble Ikea products

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Dezeen
Talk about a killer app!
Photo: Adam Pickard

Augmented reality is still waiting on its “killer app,” but a new demo from Toronto designer Adam Pickard shows off a use-case we could likely all get on board with: turning paper Ikea manuals into animated demonstrations.

For anyone who has ever looked, with growing bafflement, at the blueprints for assembling their coffee table or new chest of drawers, this proof-of-concept demo is enough to have you gratefully reaching for your iPhone.

Apple rivals still pushing for fingerprint-scanning displays

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Touch ID
Apple may have ditched Touch ID under glass, but Android makers haven't.
Photo: Apple

Apple is reportedly two years ahead of its Android rivals when it comes to the technology behind Face ID, and that’s left the competition scrabbling around trying to find an alternative.

The solution they’re exploring? Fingerprint sensors embedded in smartphone displays, a.k.a. the biometric security system that Apple was reportedly investigating before it turned its attentions to face recognition.

Unsane actor says iPhone movie removes barriers for filmmakers

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iPhone movie
Joshua Leonard on the set of Steven Soderbergh’s thriller Unsane.
Photo: Fingerprint Releasing / Bleecker Street

When director Steven Soderbergh set out to make a movie on iPhone, he cast an actor familiar with surprising audiences with a film shot with lo-tech cameras.

Astute film nerds will make the connection between Joshua Leonard’s first film with his most recent. Leonard, who plays a stalker in Soderbergh’s Unsane, was in The Blair Witch Project, a 1999 indie box office hit shot on digital video cameras.

New hardware at Apple’s surprise education event? Catch our expectations on The CultCast

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Apple Education Event invitation
Are we getting new Macs next week?
Photo: Apple

This week on The CultCast: Apple’s surprise education event could showcase new, cheaper hardware — we’ll fill you in. Plus: A huge upgrade may be coming to the screens of Apple products; why 2018’s iPhone X refresh could cost less than last year’s model; the Fortnite iOS version will totally blow your mind; and you won’t believe how much some Fortnite streamers are earning.

Our thanks to Squarespace for supporting this episode of our podcast. It’s simple to accept Apple Pay and sell your wares with your very own Squarespace.com website. Enter offer code “CultCast” at checkout to get 10% off any hosting plan.

Tim Cook will co-chair China Development Forum event this weekend

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Foxconn employees accused of $43 million iPhone scam
Tim Cook meeting an iPhone manufacturer in China.
Photo: Apple

Tim Cook is headed to China this weekend, alongside Sundar Pichai, the CEO of Google, and Ginny Rometty, head of IBM. Cook will be heading co-chairing the China Development Forum, an annual event which aims to build relationships between Western corporations and the Chinese government.

The event comes at a challenging time when the U.S. and China are duking it out concerning trade tariffs and import duties.

Carriers are already discounting Samsung’s Galaxy S9

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Galaxy S9
The Galaxy S9 is one of the year's top handsets.
Photo: Samsung

The iPhone X is far from the only flagship handset to have reportedly suffered disappointing sales. Samsung’s Galaxy S9 may also be proving to be something of a disappointment, according to multiple reports.

One piece of evidence suggesting that this is the case? The fact that Verizon is already offering a buy one, get one free offer on Galaxy S9 handsets, while AT&T is giving customers a reduction of $595 off the price of handsets. That’s not something that’s typically offered for brand new iPhones!

Services poised to overthrow iPhone as Apple’s growth engine

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Apple Music
Apple Music and other services are becoming a huge money maker for Apple.
Photo: Apple

Apple’s long run of being an iPhone company is about to come to an end.

With iPhone X sales supposedly slipping, Apple’s days of depending on device sales for growth are almost over. But according to Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty, services will contribute more to Apple’s growth over the next five years than the iPhone will.

Apple vows to zip Siri’s loose lips in future update

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Sorry, Alexa: Siri still the most widespread AI assistant
Sorry, Alexa: Siri still the most widespread AI assistant
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Apple has promised it will fix Siri’s newly-discovered privacy problem in a future software update.

The flaw allows anyone to read your unread messages and other notifications without your passcode — even those that you’ve chosen to hide. It’s not yet clear if Apple will have the fix ready in time for iOS 11.3, which is already on its sixth beta release.

How Spike Jonze created that brilliant HomePod ad

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From The Rock to 'Your Verse': Apple's best ads of the 2010s
Mini-documentary sheds light on one of Apple's best ads in years.
Photo: Apple

A new video reveals the creative process behind Spike Jonze’s brilliant short film “Welcome Home,” which paints the HomePod as a miracle device.

Not just one of the best Apple ads in ages, it’s one of the best adverts anywhere. The HomePod commercial stars English singer FKA twigs as a city dweller whose drab apartment is transformed into a colorful wonderland by an Apple smart speaker.

Apple logo creator will share his design secrets at live event this month

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Janoff
Rob Janoff was the designer of Apple's iconic corporate logo.
Photo: Fiverr

The Apple logo is among the most iconic corporate symbols in the world, and (with minor color-related tweaks over the years) has been used to represent Apple since 1977.

If you want to hear the story behind it, from original designer Rob Janoff, you’ll get your chance this month — when Janoff appears at an event in New York City, discussing all things design.

2018 iPhone production starts early to bring Face ID to the masses

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Face ID iPhone X
Face ID will be on all three of Apple's new iPhones this year.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

All three of Apple’s proposed iPhone models for 2018 will reportedly include 3D sensing tech for augmented reality and Face ID — which means that Apple has its work cut out producing all of them.

As a result of last year’s 3D sensor production issues, it’s therefore getting started on manufacturing earlier this year, with trial production set to kick off as early as the second quarter of 2018.

YouTube becomes App Store’s top-grossing app for the first time

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YouTube dark logo
The world's most popular video streaming app is unsurprisingly a big money spinner.
Photo: YouTube

After eight years in the App Store, YouTube finally climbed to reach the number one spot for highest-grossing app in the U.S. this week.

Until now, YouTube has never ranked higher than the number three spot. While it’s not clear exactly what pushed YouTube into pole position, revenues have gotten a big increase in recent years due to the launch of its $9.99 a month YouTube Red service.

iPad Pro X concept wows with edge-to-edge design

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iPad Pro X
A concept iPad Pro X drawing shows an all-screen design, dual cameras.
Photo: Martin Hajek

Here’s what an iPad Pro with an iPhone X-style, edge-to-edge display might look like. Concept designer Martin Hajek combined the rumored iOS tablet with the logo for Apple’s next developer conference. (That’s where we might get our first actual glimpse of the device.)