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Want to pit Street Fighter against Power Rangers? Now you can

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PR vs SF Group Shot
The crossover you never thought would happen.
Photo: Power Rangers: Legacy Wars

Two franchises I love, Power Rangers and Street Fighter are crossing over for team-based real-time mobile fighting game, Power Rangers: Legacy Wars.

If you’ve been waiting since the 1990s to pit Chun-Li against the Pink Ranger or Akuma against Lord Zedd, today is your lucky day. Check out the action-packed trailer below.

Fortnite update brings customizable HUD, burst assault rifle

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Fortnite burst assault rifle
The new Burst assault rifle will help you gun down this challenge.
Photo: Epic Games

Fortnite Battle Royale’s latest update has hit the App Store. Players have a new burst assault rifle to enjoy, as well as a new limited-time game mode. Epic Games has also added the ability to customize the game’s heads-up display on iPhone and iPad.

But it’s not all good news.

Turn your iPhone into a handy household hub [Deals]

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Make your phone and your home complimentary with this roundup of awesome accessories.
Make your phone and your home complimentary with this roundup of awesome accessories.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

Own an iPhone? Live in a house or apartment? Then you’ve got a match made in heaven. The two can work in harmony, if you have the right accessories. So we’ve rounded up some of the coolest peripherals for bringing your home and phone together, including a wireless charging kit, a robotic vacuum cleaner, a Bluetooth audio hub, and more. Some of these are discounted by more than half off, so read on for more details:

iPhone SE 2 could pack iPhone X features into compact form factor

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iPhone SE CAD
A miniature iPhone X? Yes please!
Photo: Olixar

If you love the design of the iPhone X, but yearn for the smaller form factor of the 2012-era iPhone 5s, you could well find yourself in luck this year.

According to a new report, Apple’s next-gen iPhone SE is set to be the same size as its predecessor, but boast the same edge-to-edge display and “notch” of the iPhone X. This would mean that it would have more screen real estate than the original iPhone SE, although the body would stay the same size.

PicoBrew’s beer robot now brews kombucha, coffee and more

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PicoBrew Pico U brewing appliance is smaller, cheaper and far more capable than its predecessors.
Pico U is smaller, cheaper and far more capable than its predecessors.
Photo: PicoBrew

PicoBrew’s new Pico U, which the company calls “the world’s first universal craft beverage brewing appliance,” does more than brew great beer. The “U” stands for “universal,” because the Pico U also makes kombucha, horchata and milk-based drinks, as well as tea and single-serving coffee.

It’s also small enough to fit on a kitchen countertop — and costs far less than its predecessors. Pico U offers so many brewing options, at a price that’s so attainable, that Donald Brewer, PicoBrew’s VP of sales, calls it the “Instant Pot for brewed beverages.”

Apple demands $1 billion from Samsung for patent infringement

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Apple and Samsung return to court
Apple and Samsung are battling it out again.
Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac

Apple wants Samsung to cough up a whopping $1 billion in damages for infringing iPhone design patents.

The two companies again returned to court this week over the long-running dispute, which first began seven years ago. Apple told jurors that Samsung should hand over all the profit it made on four devices that were heavily inspired by the iPhone. Samsung’s lawyers disagree.

Doom’s lead programmer recalls working with Steve Jobs

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Doom cover
John Carmack was one of the brains behind some of the biggest PC games of the 1980s and 90s.
Photo: Id Software

Id Software co-founder John Carmack was behind some of the most iconic computer game of the 1980s and 90s. This week, the legendary coder behind the smash hit games Wolfenstein 3D, Doom, and Quake shared some memories of working with Steve Jobs.

Writing on Facebook, Carmack described some of his interactions with Jobs over the years — for better and for worse.

WhatsApp makes big improvements to group messaging

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WhatsApp
You’ll need a new iPhone if you can’t update to iOS 8 or later.
Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac

WhatsApp is rolling out big improvements to group messaging that make it easier to manage your conversations, catch up on what you’ve missed, and more. It has also added enhanced controls for group admins.

Here’s what you have to look forward to on iPhone today.

Panicked Apple investors shed stocks quickly during iPhone X scare

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Apple waives developer fees for nonprofits, others in 8 additional countries
Remember the iPhone X flop that never happened?
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Remember how Apple was doomed earlier this year, and how the iPhone X was a massive flop — only for Apple to pull out a record March quarter and prove everyone wrong? Well, it seems that a large number of folks took the Apple failure narrative pretty seriously.

According to a new report, during the first three months of this year, institutional investors reduced their holdings in Apple at a greater rate than any time since the 2008 financial crisis. In total, that added up to around 153 million shares sold.

Incognito mode spotted in YouTube app

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Youtube’s Incognito mode
Incognito mode in the YouTube app would make it a snap to keep your video history on the downlow.
Photo: freestocks.org/Pexels CC

It may soon become easier to keep private some of the videos you watch in the YouTube app. Google is reportedly testing an Incognito mode for this service.

This is a confidentiality feature already common in web browsers, but not in video streaming. But many people use their iPhone’s YouTube to research topics they prefer not everyone know about. It can be as innocent as looking for help with a birthday gift.

PUBG Mobile gets a new place to battle, other improvements

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PUBG Mobile 0.5.0
PUBG Mobile is bigger and better.
Photo: PlayerUnknown

The long-awaited 0.5.0 update launched for the iOS version of PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds. It’s loaded with new features, including the Miramar desert map with additional vehicles and weapons.

PUBG is a popular combat game available for a variety of platforms, with a mobile version for iPad and iPhone. It’s one of the top competitors for Fortnite.

These silicone Apple Watch bands are perfect for adventure-seekers [Watch Store]

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carterjett
Carterjett’s Tire Tread Sport Apple Watch Band in Red with Matte Gray hardware.
Photo: Carterjett

Cult of Mac Watch Store is proud to feature a growing and evolving collection of the best Apple Watch bands and accessories on the market. And, we’re excited to announce the latest addition to our curated collection of Apple Watch bands: Las Vegas-based Carterjett.

The result of this creative collaboration is Carterjett’s collection of well-made, great looking Apple Watch bands well-suited for sweat and outdoor activity yet stylish enough to take you into the evening. Best yet, these Apple Watch bands are easy on the wallet.

Google News lands on iOS with sleek new interface

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Google News
Grab the new Google News app while it's hot.
Photo: Google

Apple News is getting some fresh competition today from it’s biggest rival in Silicon Valley today.

Google launched its new Google News app this afternoon that was revealed at Google I/O last week. The updated app brings an all-new UI that’s supposed to give you a faster, smarter briefing on the top news stories going on right now.

Display Industry Awards honor iPad Pro, iPhone X

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The 10.5-inch iPad Pro is a real screamer.
The screen in the iPad Pro was named one of the Displays of the Year in the 23rd annual Display Industry Awards.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

The Society for Information Display (SID) says the iPad Pro’s screen offers “significant technological advances.” The professional organization also called the panel in iPhone X “outstanding.”

Both devices are winners in SID’s 23rd annual Display Industry Awards.

How to look up anything with one tap on Mac

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dictionary look up macos
Look up!
Photo: Caleb Roenigk/Flickr CC

On the Mac, you have long been able to tap on any word or phrase to look up a dictionary definition. Just click on the word using a three-finger tap on your trackpad, and the dictionary panel appears. But have you tried this recently? Today, in this simple popover panel, you can get full access to not just dictionary definitions, but news, Siri Knowledge, movie details, App Store listings, and lots more depending on what you’re looking up.

Let’s take a look.

A glimpse of Apple’s in-display fingerprint scanner that will never be

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The 2018 iPhone models aren't going to have an in-display Touch ID fingerprint scanner.
Touch ID could be back, but not as you know it.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

When Apple decided to create a bezel-less iPhone, it needed a replacement for the fingerprint scanner in the Home button. The company decided to go with facial recognition, but also looked into embedding a Touch ID scanner into the display.

A holdover from this period is a patent the company received today.

Tweetbot 3 for Mac brings night mode and video previews

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tweetbot 3 for mac
The Tweetbot you love, only better.
Photo: Tapbots

Tweetbot has long been our favorite third-party Twitter client for a whole bunch of awesome reasons — and now there’s even more. Tweetbot 3 today landed on macOS, bringing night mode, GIF and video previews, timeline filters, and more.

What’s more, developer Tapbots promises that Tweetbot will continue to work even if Twitter rolls out its controversial clampdown on unofficial apps.

Brainwavz B200 earbuds sound, and feel, better than AirPods [Review]

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The Brainwavz Audio B200 earbuds are some of the best around, even with a few compromises.
Some of the best earbuds around, even with a few compromises.
Photo: Brainwavz Audio

Looking for a new set of earbuds for the summer? Brainwavz Audio’s B200 earbuds deliver high-fidelity audio with impressive clarity and detail. Plus, their over-the-ear design won’t frustrate you by falling out.

Yes, picking these earbuds over AirPods means making a couple of big compromises. But after a few weeks of testing, these audiophile-grade earbuds won me over with their superior sound.

Finding unbiased jurors for Apple vs. Samsung trial wasn’t easy

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Samsung
Apple and Samsung went back to court this week. Or tried to.
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

There have been no shortage of days in court in the ongoing Samsung vs. Apple legal battle, which has raged since 2012. Something that is lacking? Unbiased jurors, apparently.

While a new round of courtroom drama kicked off this week, it apparently took a long time on day one to find jurors who were in a position to make a non-biased judgement. In all, multiple candidates were excused for various reasons of partiality. Here are some of them.

Get in on the AI gold rush with these essential skills [Deals]

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This massively discounted lesson bundle offers a great primer on the lucrative fields of machine learning and AI.
This massively discounted lesson bundle offers a great primer on the lucrative fields of machine learning and AI.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

The artificial intelligence industry is exploding. Machines might be coming to take our jobs, but working in AI is also one of the most lucrative gigs you can get, with salaries that reach into the 6 figures. But before you get in on AI, there’s a lot to learn.

Tim Cook told Trump tariffs are the wrong way to deal with China

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

Tim Cook has shared some of the details of his recent meeting with President Donald Trump, during which he reportedly criticized the White House’s trade war with China.

“I felt that tariffs were not the right approach there, and I showed him some more analytical kinds of things to demonstrate why,” Cook told Bloomberg Television. Cook is referring to the Trump administration’s 25 percent tariffs on around $50 billion worth of products entering the U.S. from China.

Snapchat introduces six-second ads that users can’t skip

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Snapchat ads
Hate being forced to watch ads? You're probably not going to be too happy.
Photo: Snapchat

Snapchat has started rolling out unskippable ads, promoting everything from the new Deadpool movie to Snapple and Samsung’s Galaxy S9 handset.

These six-second ads currently appear only in the professionally produced Shows found in Snapchat’s “Discover” section. Introducing unskippable ads marks a change in the company’s advertising strategy. Previously, Snapchat allowed users to skip commercials, although this proved to be unsustainable from a business perspective.