Tim Cook is in China, visiting Shanghai to promote Apple Watch, pay a trip to one of one of the local Apple Stores, and meet with developers and Apple users.
Cook marked the trip by posting on his official Weibo account, the microblogging account that acts as China’s version of Twitter. While he is upbeat about meeting with Chinese fans, however, the visit comes at a tough time — with a burgeoning trade war with the U.S. and questionable claims about Chinese spy chips allegedly used by Apple.
Watching an immersive video or VR experience, it’s easy to think you’d need bulky or expensive gear to create similar content. But that’s not the case. In fact, 360-degree video is more accessible than it’s ever been.
Minecraft for Apple TV has been scrapped. Users can no longer download the game from the tvOS App Store, while existing players have been informed that the title will no longer receive updates or support.
The game’s removal is being blamed on a lack of players. Developer Mojang explains that it needs to “reallocate resources to the platforms that our players use the most.”
Actress Katherine LaNasa from the TV series Imposters and Satisfaction has joined the cast of Apple thriller series Are You Sleeping?, about a Serial-style crime podcast which reopens a murder case.
Interestingly, she will play a new character to replace the one originally played by actress Moon Bloodgood, who left the show after filming four out of the eight season one episodes. According to trade publication Deadline, the character’s role in the show is being completely rewritten.
Microsoft is bringing Sticky Notes to your iPhone and iPad. You will be able to use them inside OneNote to quickly jot down notes and reminders on the go, and you’ll be able to sync notes from Windows to iOS.
It is looking increasingly likely that Apple will deliver a new iPad Pro lineup before the end of 2018. A new report, citing a number of sources familiar with the company’s plans, reveals some things we can look forward to.
Here’s what to expect from the next-generation iPad Pro’s display, Face ID, Apple Pencil, and more.
One of the cool things about iOS gaming has been seeing how developers incorporate Apple’s new technologies into the games that they offer. At first, it was features like the accelerometer and now, thanks to the TrueDepth sensors used for Face ID, Apple’s face tracking tech is set to be incorporated into next-gen titles.
One of the first out of the gate is the upcoming Reigns: Game of Thrones. According to a new report, the title will use facial tracking technology in an innovative way: by asking you to carry out stare-downs with the various characters.
One of the sources named in Bloomberg‘s recent report on alleged Chinese spy chips in motherboards used by Apple and other companies has cast doubts on the story.
Speaking on a podcast published this week, security researcher Joe Fitzpatrick said that the hardware implant approach described “doesn’t make sense.”
Be warned: anyone who upgrades their iPhone or iPad to iOS 12 no longer has the option to downgrade. It’s not possible to go back to any version of iOS 11. Not that there’s much reason to want to.
This isn’t an unusual move. With today’s release of iOS 12.0.1, going to iOS 11 would be two jumps back, and it’s very rare for Apple to allow that.
Google took a one-two punch to the chin today by having to admit its once-ballyhooed Facebook competitor is a dud. There’s so little interest in Google+ that it’s being killed off.
That would normally be bad enough, but the shutdown isn’t just because of lack of interest. A bug in Google+ exposed the personal information of users, something Google didn’t mention for a half a year.
Apple may have downplayed one major feature for the display of the iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max.
Based on testing from Tsing-Hua University in Taiwan, it turns out that the new OLED displays are healthier for your eyes than the LCD-based displays found in previous iPhones.
Dieter Rams, a god-like figure to industrial designers around the world, usually speaks very glowingly about the design of Apple products.
But in a new documentary with the aptly minimalist title Rams, he expresses a growing sadness and frustration over the disposable excess that Apple and other Silicon Valley tech companies produce.
Back in the distant mists of 2012, everyone needed an adapter to plug their collection of 30-pin charging cables into Apple’s new Lightning port. Fast forward to today and this once crucial accessory is no longer necessary. To the point where it’s been dropped from the online Apple Store.
Anyone with iOS 12 — and we know that’s most of you — should download a small update that fixes bugs that have affected some users. A Wi-Fi slowdown problem was only bothering iPhone XS users, but a charging issue plagued a much wider swath of people.
iOS 12.0.1 deals with both, and makes a couple of other small tweaks too.
Fiery Feeds is an iOS news-reading app that lets you subscribe to any sites you like, and read all their new stories in one place. It’s way better than relying on Twitter for you news, because important stories never get lost in a sea of doggy GIFs. And the new v2.1 gets a visual overhaul, plus support for using Pinboard as a read-later service. I love it.
Microsoft plans to start streaming high-end games to your iPhone, iPad, and other devices.
Its new service, dubbed “Project XCloud,” will remove the need for dedicated games consoles and pricey PCs — but you’ll have to wait until next year just to trial it.
Do you trust Facebook to put a camera and microphone in your living room? If not, you’ll want to avoid Portal, its new smart displays focused on video chat.
Portal and Portal Plus make it easy to keep in touch with friends and family when you can’t see them face-to-face in real life. They can also play music, stream video, and do anything Amazon Alexa can do.
New iPhone, new reason to stress out over drops and dings. There are all sorts of cases of all different shapes and sizes to choose from, but sometimes simple is best.
Apple is reportedly in talks with U.K. telecommunications company BT, regarding a possible partnership in which Apple TV boxes are provided to subscribers.
As per the Daily Telegraph, both groups are, “in early discussions over a deal that would make BT’s mobile brand EE a major distributor of Apple TV set-top boxes.”
A lawsuit against Google, claiming to represent 4.4 million iPhone users, has been thrown out of court by a U.K. judge.
The Apple-using coalition, a group called “Google You Owe Us,” was asking for up to $1 billion in damages. This was to have been split among Safari users affected by Google’s allegedly unlawful data collection, which involved Google supposedly bypassing privacy settings to categorize users for advertising.
There are plenty of stories published about Apple that I’m sure it would rather not floating around the internet. But when it is accused of having had its motherboards — along with those used by dozens of other companies — breached by Chinese spy chips, it springs into action.
That’s what Apple did over the weekend when it told Congress that there is absolutely no evidence that it has been the victim of a sophisticated attack on its supply chain. This is what had been alleged in a recent article by Bloomberg BusinessWeek.
The Department of Homeland Security says that it believes Apple’s denial of claims that Chinese spies had inserted malicious chips into its computer system. Based on current evidence, at least.
This week we dim our Mojave screens down with a couple of Dark Mode utilities, we get a new Portrait HD mode in Darkroom, and learn how British English Siri pronounces “Fantastical.”
Learning to build apps offers all kinds of opportunities, both professional and creative. It’s a world of endless potential, with an endless amount to learn. So whether you’re a beginner or a pro, this bundle of 10 courses can help sharpen your skills.
After wrapping our “50 Essential iOS Apps” series, we sorted the winners to make it easier for you to download the best of the best. (Plus, we added Cult of Mac readers’ picks for must-have alternatives.)
You’ll find that list and much more in this week’s issue of our magazine. It’s free and it looks great on an iPad or iPhone. Get your free subscription to Cult of Mac Magazine from iTunes now. Or read on for this week’s top stories.