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Every iPhone ranked, from worst to best

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Nicole Arbour 3
What was your favorite iPhone?
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

The new iPhone XS and XS Max are generating rave reviews. Having marked the iPhone’s 10th anniversary with last year’s awe-inducing iPhone X, Apple has now set the stage for a second decade of smartphone innovation.

But what about all the awesome iPhones that led us to this point? Which models are the classics that will occupy museum shelves long after they’ve stopped working? I decided to dive in at the deep end and rank every phone Apple ever made. Wish me luck!

Learn lifelong lessons in coding, design and more from hundreds of courses [Deals]

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Score a lifetime membership to Stone River's eLessons in coding, animation, and lots more.
Score a lifetime membership to Stone River's eLessons in coding, animation, and lots more.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

When it comes to technology – whether it’s coding, design, animation, or anything else that involves computers – there’s always more to learn. But time can feel like it’s in short supply, so there’s real value in being able to learn at your own pace.

Mueller spotted at Genius Bar appointment in Washington, D.C.

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Cohen
See, the country's power brokers are ordinary folks like us!
Photo: Kelly Cohen/Twitter

The Apple Store can be quite the place to spot celebrities and well-known public figures. An image doing the rounds on Twitter shows Robert Mueller, the special prosecutor in charge of the Russia investigation, participating in a recent Genius Bar session.

The Genius Bar appointment took place at the Apple Store in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Mueller appears to be having issues with his MacBook Pro.

Apple Watch wearers in U.K. could wait years for ECG feature

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Apple Watch ECG
Not impressed by the ECG? You’ll have more time to return your Watch.
Photo: Apple

Apple Watch Series 4’s incredible ability to offer electrocardiograms (ECG) is one of the biggest reasons to upgrade this year. But you can’t use it yet.

Those in the U.S. will be able to get their hands on the feature before the end of 2018, but for those in other countries, the wait could be a lot longer. If you live in the U.K., you may even have to wait “years,” one report warns.

Apple flaw lets hackers steal business passwords

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The CIA has a team of more than 5,000 hackers.
Businesses beware.
Photo: Brian Klug/Flickr CC

Many businesses choose to spend more on Apple smartphones and computers because they’re supposed to be safer than more affordable alternatives running Android or Windows. But they’re not completely bulletproof.

Researchers have discovered a worrying flaw in one Apple service that allows hackers to steal business passwords from macOS and iOS devices.

Fortnite season 6 kicks off with massive changes

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Fortnite haunted castle
Visit the new haunted castle in Fortnite season 6.
Photo: Epic Games

It’s time to gear up for Fortnite season six.

The mammoth update, available today across all platforms, brings new areas to explore, new consumables that make you invisible to your enemies, and pets that you carry with you wherever you go. It also removes a number of popular items from the game to make room for others.

Palo Alto Apple Store robbed twice in less than 12 hours

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Tim Cook
Tim Cook recently showed up at the Palo Alto Apple Store to greet customers.
Photo: CNBC

The Apple Store in downtown Palo Alto was robbed twice in 12 hours over the weekend, as the Californian Apple Store crime spree continues.

In the first instance, a gang of eight males entered the store after 7pm on Saturday, and began snatching iPhones and other devices, before fleeing in multiple vehicles. In the early hours of Sunday morning, the store’s glass doors were then shattered with rocks, and more products were taken.

Teenager who hacked Apple’s servers gets 8 months’ probation

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hacking pic
Teenager got off without a jail sentence.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

The Australian teenager who hacked into Apple’s servers and downloaded sensitive data has been given probation in place of a jail sentence.

The verdict was announced on Thursday. The teenager, who carried out the hacking between June 2015 and April 2017, has not been named because their identity as a juvenile offender is protected under Australian law. They were 16-years-old at the time that the first hacking incident took place.

David Hockney’s new stained glass window was designed on an iPad

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iPad
Design a window? There's an app for that.
Photo: Westminster Abbey

British artist David Hockney has unveiled a new stained glass window at London’s renowned Westminster Abbey, commissioned to celebrate the reign of The Queen.

So far, so ordinary, you might think? Except that this window was designed by Hockney on his iPad, before being turned into a 28 x 11.5-foot window by a stained glass studio.

iPhone XS selfie cam is so beautiful it spawned an ugly conspiracy theory

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iPhone XS beautygate
"Beautygate" – Does the front-facing camera of the iPhone XS smooth too many blemishes?
Photo: chemicalsam/Reddit

The iPhone XS and its front-facing camera are supposed to help its owners make better self-portraits. However, some think their iPhone selfies look better than they should.

Users are taking to internet forums like Reddit to question whether Apple added an undisclosed beauty filter to the front-facing camera on the iPhone XS and XS Max. Some are even posting side-by-side selfies taken with an XS and an older handset to make a case that the newest iPhone has more than deeper pixels and an improved portrait mode going for it.

Apple tells Senate privacy is a ‘fundamental human right’

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Apple
Bud Tribble has been with Apple longer than any other employee.
Photo: CSPAN

Apple’s VP of software technology, Bud Tribble, made an appearance before the U.S. Senate’s Commerce Committee today to advocate for an overhaul of privacy laws in the country.

During the hearing, Apple was joined by other figures from tech giants like Google, Amazon, Twitter, and others to advise lawmakers on the current state of internet privacy. Tribble told lawmakers that Apple views privacy as a “fundamental human right,” but the company went short of offering solutions.

Apple Watch Series 4 packs smaller batteries than Series 3

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Man’s brand new Apple Watch turns out to be toilet plunger
Man’s brand new Apple Watch turns out to be toilet plunger
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Apple Watch Series 4 lasts up to 18 hours on a single charge — just like its predecessors — and it somehow manages that with significantly smaller batteries.

An official Product Information sheet confirms Apple’s latest wearables have around 20 percent less battery capacity than Series 3 devices. It’s a testament to the power efficiency of the new components.

iOS 12.1 will bring Dual SIM feature to iPhone XS and XS Max

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When iPhone Dual SIM support appears in iOS 12.1, it will be possible to use two service plans at once with Apple's latest models.
When iPhone Dual SIM support appears in iOS 12.1, it will be possible to use two service plans at once with Apple's latest models.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

A hotly anticipated feature wasn’t available when the iPhone XS models arrived last week, but Apple is hard at work bringing Dual SIM support to these new handsets. This cutting-edge features is included in the first iOS 12.1 beta.

When the full version of the operating system update becomes available later this fall, the iPhone XS and XS Max will be able to simultaneously connect to two cellular providers.

Scriptable controls your iPhone with JavaScript

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Scriptable works a lot like Siri Shortcuts, only more difficult.
Scriptable works a lot like Siri Shortcuts, only more difficult.
Photo: Scriptable

Now that you’re finally getting used to iOS 12’s new Shortcuts app, here comes Scriptable, a new automation app that runs JavaScript. It can make powerful and deep connections with your iPhone or iPad — working with the Files app, for example, or Reminders.

Why would you want such a thing? Well, maybe you know how to program JavaScript. Scriptable lets you take your code, and integrate it with iOS. You can make your own scripts and use them to automate iOS. For instance, how about creating something as simple as a custom save menu that lets you rename files as you save them?

Working Apple-1 sells to mystery buyer for $375,000

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RR Auction 1
The computer sold to a mystery buyer online.
Photo: RR Auction

A rare working Apple-1 computer, one of just 200 built by Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak in 1976, has sold at auction for $375,000.

The computer is thought to be just one of only around 15 Apple-1 models still in working order. The auction took place in Boston, MA, on Tuesday. The buyer was an “anonymous businessman,” who placed his bid online.

Learn what it takes to podcast like a pro [Deals]

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Study the tools and techniques that make for professional-grade podcasting.
Study the tools and techniques that make for professional-grade podcasting.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

Launching a podcast is something anybody can do, which is why it seems like everybody is. With so much content out there, quality stands out. So if you’re looking to get in on the podcast action, it pays to know how to do it right.

Second Apple Watch Series 4 supplier added to meet demand

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Apple Watch Series 4
Customers sure love their new Apple Watch Series 4!
Photo: Apple

The Apple Watch Series 4 may be the first “must have” generation of Apple’s wearable device, and manufacturer Quanta Computer is working to full capacity to make sure it reaches as many customers as possible.

According to a new report, Quanta Computer’s capacity for the new Apple Watch at its factory in Changshu, eastern China is already “fully loaded.” In an effort to deliver even more of the devices, Apple has recruited a second supplier — Compal Electronics — which will start mass production in November.

Apple removes controversial Siri Suggestions for fake news

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BuzzFeed/Safari
One of the controversial suggested sites.
Screenshot: BuzzFeed/Safari

Apple removed several questionable websites serving up fake news and conspiracy theories via Safari’s “Siri Suggested” search results.

The recommended websites pointed users to posts about the “Pizzagate” hoax, Holocaust denier articles, and debunked race-based “science” stories. After BuzzFeed News alerted Apple to these bogus results, Cupertino promptly removed the recommendations.

Supply chain sources think high price could hurt iPhone XS orders

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iPhone XS box gold
Just like the iPhone X, folks are predicting gloom for the iPhone XS -- based on its price tag.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Déjà vu much? A new report claims that the high price of Apple’s new iPhone XS series is likely to result in a slow down in demand later in 2018, after the initial fanfare for the new devices fades. This is said to be particularly true for the iPhone XS Max, which costs up to $1,449 for the 512 GB version.

While that’s certainly a possibility, however, remember that many people predicted the same fate would befall the iPhone X last year — and they wound up being spectacularly wrong.

Apple News doesn’t pay off for publishers, despite traffic growth

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Apple News
Apple News is Apple's attempt to steal the news crown from Facebook.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Apple News is doing better than ever for Apple, but many publishers are still making barely anything from the platform.

According to a new report, lots of publishers are seeing big increases in traffic from Apple’s News aggregation service. However, due to the fact that Apple News keeps users inside its app, rather than redirecting to the original websites, this doesn’t necessarily translate into ad dollars for publishers. Far from it, in fact!

macOS 10.14.1 goes to developers as a beta

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Group FaceTime Mac
The most likely improvement in macOS 10.14.1 beta 1 is the return of Group FaceTime.
Photo: Apple

macOS 10.14 Mojave launched yesterday, but Apple already started testing the next version. Developers were just given access to a pre-release beta of macOS 10.14.1.

With availability so recent, it’s not yet known what’s in the new version. That said, the most likely enhancement is the return of Group FaceTime.