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Despite lawsuits, Qualcomm will still provide chips for 2018 iPhones

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Qualcomm patents
Qualcomm will share manufacturing duties with Intel.
Photo: Qualcomm

Breakups can be complicated. If you’ve built a life together, then extricating yourself from the other party isn’t necessarily as easy as ripping off a band-aid.

That’s a life lesson which applies to Qualcomm and Apple. Despite spending the last year-and-a-half feuding with one another, it seems that 2018-era iPhones are still going to rely on Qualcomm for a certain number of chips.

Because life is complex that way.

Battle between Apple and Microsoft is over

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Apple and Microsoft cooperate
Office running on a Mac shows that the long fight between Apple and Microsoft has been over for years.
Photo: Microsoft

Microsoft’s head of marketing says his company is no longer interested in battling with Apple. This is surely a shocking statement to anyone who remembers the days when these two brawled relentlessly. But those days are over.

The change was brought about by Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, who accepted the need to bring his company’s products to whatever devices could run them, not just Windows.

What did Tim Cook and Trump talk about?

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tariffs
Apple CEO Tim Cook has urged President Donald Trump to avoid tariffs with China.
Photos: White House/Apple

Apple’s CEO and the President of the United States took a meeting today in the Oval Office. Trade was at the top of the agenda for Tim Cook and Trump, as the President and China’s leaders increasingly put tariffs on each other’s products.

Cook was already in Washington to attend a White House formal dinner last night to honor the French President.

Google’s got a new challenge for Apple Music

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YouTube Music
Google Play Music is reportedly merging with YouTube Music.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

In the streaming music battle, the competition is between Spotify and Apple Music. Google Play Music is barely a blip, with 4 percent of the U.S. market.

But the situation is more complex than that. Google’s YouTube video service actually dominates streaming music, though it isn’t supposed to be in that business at all.

According to unconfirmed reports, Google plan is to merge its music service with another, and also turn millions of free YouTube listeners into paying customers.

Pick a side in Avengers: Infinity War with new OtterBox iPhone cases

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Avengers: Infinity War iPhone cases
Choose your favorite hero, or villain, from Avengers: Infinity War.
Photo: OtterBox

In case you’ve been living in a cave in Wakanda, tomorrow is the premiere of Marvel’s Avengers: Infinity War movie. Super-fans can celebrate with new Avengers iPhone cases from OtterBox.

These feature characters from Marvel’s highly anticipated movie, including Iron Man, Black Panther, Captain America and Thanos. Plus, there’s one that combines multiple images from this blockbuster superhero team-up flick.

How to record Apple TV on your Mac, wirelessly

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record Apple TV quicktime
QuickTime Player can record all kinds of things.
Photo: Cult of Mac

Today we’re going to learn how to record a movie that’s playing on your Apple TV direct to your Mac, with no wires required, no weird hacks, and not even any third-party software. The tools are all built into every Mac that ships. To record a movie off the “screen” of your Apple TV, you’re going to use Apple’s QuickTime app, and one of its lesser-known but super-powerful features.

DAW Cassette makes your music sound like it was recorded on tape

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daw cassette
You wouldn't leave your iPhone in the sun like this.
Photo: Jure Cuhalev/Flickr CC

There’s little that’s more hipster than an audio cassette. Its sound is far from perfect, it’s impractical, and — most important of all — it is easy to see that you’re using one. But that doesn’t mean that tapes were all bad. Lo-fi cassette decks actually add some rather pleasant audio artifacts to audio.

So what? Well, now you don’t need to lug around a Walkman and a bag of tapes to enjoy the retro sound of audio cassettes, because there’s a) an iOS audio plugin and b) a website that will tape-ify any track you like.

Putin’s mug and missile give iPhone that Cold War feel

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Caviar
There is now a nuclear option when shopping for an iPhone.
Photo: Caviar

A Cold War is all about rhetoric and saber-rattling. A Russian company called Caviar is taking advantage of growing tension between the United States and the former Soviet Union with a patriotic iPhone celebrating Russian President Vladimir Putin and the country’s newest cruise missile.

It’s called “Putin Ultimatum.”

Apple’s HomePod miscalculation will haunt the company for years

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homepod
Apple's premium pricing strategy for the first-generation HomePod may keep it from ever being really successful.
Photo: Apple

The fact that the HomePod isn’t selling well means that Apple has probably missed its chance to ever be a significant part of the smart speaker market, according to analysts from Deutsche Bank.

Sales of inexpensive rival devices are exploding, while Apple’s very pricy offering sits on the shelf. That may lock customers into non-Apple solutions.

Is this the year Apple fixes its broken iPhone naming strategy?

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iphone glitch
iPhone naming is all kinds of broken these days.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Apple could be about to change the way it names successive generations of iPhone. The aim would be to simplify a naming pattern that has become increasingly unwieldy in the past few years.

It’s about time — although that doesn’t mean a new iPhone naming system will necessarily make things any less confusing. Here’s why.

Capture notes quickly with Drafts [50 Essential iOS Apps #5]

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writing in Drafts for iPad
Drafts is where writing starts, before moving on to its final destination.
Photo: Ian Fuchs/Cult of Mac

50 Essential iOS Apps: Drafts 5 note taking and writing app While there are dozens of note-taking and writing apps available on iOS, few strike the balance of rich features and simple design the way Drafts does. Whether you’re looking for a quick way to digitally jot down a passing thought, take notes in a meeting, or store an address or phone number, the Drafts app makes it easy to quickly capture text before taking action.

Amazon’s Echo Dot Kids Edition gives parents complete control

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Echo Dot Kids
Echo Dot is now child-friendly.
Photo: Amazon

Now your little ones can get to know Alexa with the new Amazon Echo Dot Kids Edition.

It’s just like a regular Echo Dot, but it comes inside a colorful protective case and a one-year subscribtion to the “FreeTime Unlimited” service that gives parents complete control over content. You’ll have to pay a premium for those extra features, though.

If Mom loves Apple Watch, she’ll love these gifts! [Mother’s Day Gift Guide]

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mom
The editors of Cult of Mac Watch Store have rounded up a beautiful collection of Apple Watch bands, chargers and stands specifically picked for Mom in our Mother's Day Gift Guide.  
Photo: Lyle Kahney/Cult of Mac

Mother’s Day is on Sunday, May 13 — mark that down and get ready to pay homage to the woman who gave you life. How about a little something for her Apple Watch?

Cult of Mac has rounded up a beautiful collection of Apple Watch bands, chargers and stands specifically picked for Mom in our Mother’s Day Gift Guide.

If you mother is a nerd, a Luddite, a traveler or style maven, we’ve got you covered. There’s a unique gift for every Apple Watch-loving momma out there. Check out Cult of Mac Watch Store’s Mother’s Day Gift Guide, and shop now for on-time delivery. 

Google brings new Tasks app to iPhone and iPad

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Google Tasks iOS
Google Tasks for iOS can help you get stuff done.
Photo: Google

Google has finally decided that Tasks deserves a dedicated app on mobile.

Available now on iPhone and iPad, Tasks boasts a clean and simple interface with all the features you’ll need to stay productive. It also works closely alongside Google Calendar and Gmail to make managing your most important projects as easy as possible.

Tim Cook will meet with Trump later today

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President Trump: Apple encryption could protect ‘criminal minds’
We're guessing the pair have quite a bit to discuss.
Photo: Gage Skidmore/Flickr CC

Tim Cook will have a private meeting with President Donald Trump in the Oval Office later today, according to Trump’s official schedule.

While it’s not clear what they will be discussing, the 1:45 p.m. meeting comes a day after Cook was among the guests present at Trump’s first official state dinner.

Hogwarts Mystery puts you into the Harry Potter universe

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Harry Potter
Ever wanted to be a part of the Harry Potter world? Of course you have!
Photo: Photo:

Do you wish you could enjoy the Hogwarts experience for yourself as your very own custom character in the Harry Potter universe? Now you can, courtesy of the official launch of Jam City’s new game Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery on iOS.

Taking place in the 1980s, around four years after Voldemort attempted to kill Harry, the game doesn’t follow the story of any of the books. Nonetheless, it does include a number of recognizable characters from the series — many of them performed by the same actors who portrayed them in the movie franchise.

Check out the trailer below.

iPhone suppliers aren’t expecting business to pick up any time soon

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Tweak this iOS setting to make iPhone speakers louder. (Works with iPad and iPod, too!)
This year's iPhone production hasn't been seamless.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

iPhone component orders for Apple’s suppliers aren’t likely to pick up until the third quarter of this year, a new report suggests.

It’s just the latest bit of bad news in a series of recent reports suggesting that Apple is slashing orders for its present generation iPhones, and may be leaving manufacturers with excess inventory.

Google becomes latest company following Apple’s lead on pistol emoji

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Gun emoji from several companies
Phone and software companies are moving away from a realistic gun emoji to a harmless one.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

Google today joined the movement replacing the gun emoji with a water pistol. A number of other companies already made the same move amid a growing awareness of gun violence.  

Apple started this trend several years ago when it exchanged the pistol emoji for a harmless pool toy in iOS 10.

Tim Cook attends Trump’s first state dinner

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tariffs
Tim Cook sat down to dinner with Donald Trump, along with dozens of other politicians and CEOs.
Photos: White House/Apple

President Donald Trump held his first White House state dinner tonight since moving into the Oval Office, and Apple CEO Tim Cook was on the guest list.

The left-leaning Cook might have felt very much in the minority. Trump didn’t invite a single Democratic member of Congress to the dinner, but arch-conservative media mogul Rupert Murdoch was in attendance.

Get the macOS 10.13.4 update that fixes security flaws

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macOS high sierra
A security update for macOS 10.13.4 patches some potential problems.
Photo: Apple

Several weeks after the release of macOS 10.13.4, today came a security update that patches some holes in this High Sierra version. This isn’t so critical that it has to be installed right now, but Apple says “This update is recommended for all macOS High Sierra users.”

There’re also security fixes for Safari 11.1, which was introduced recently too.

How to cancel App Store subscriptions on iPhone or iPad

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cancel subscription app store
Remember these?
Photo: Charlie Sorrel/Cult of Mac

App subscriptions are great, mostly. Trial subscriptions let you try out all the app’s features for free, and if you like the app enough to keep using it, the developer gets an ongoing income that lets them keep improving the app. It’s a win-win.

But what if you signed up for a trial subscription, and you don’t like the app? Or maybe you subscribed to a monthly magazine, and those unread copies just keep piling up? Canceling a subscription is easy, whether it’s a fresh trial, or a years-long subscription you just don’t want any more. Here’s how.

Apple’s $16 billion tax trial will finally kick off this fall

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What’s it like to have your startup bought by Apple? Stressful
An appeal of an EU ruling that Apple benefited from Ireland functioning as a tax haven will kick off this fall.
Photo illustration: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

A court case to determine if Apple owes the European Union about €13 billion will begin in about six months.  The trial will determine if Ireland gave Apple illegal tax incentives.

The two are actually appealing a decision by the European Commission made in 2016 that Ireland is effectively a tax haven.

How to download all your old Instagram photos and videos

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Instagram
Instagram has a new tool for downloading old photos.
Photo: Instagram

Pulling your photos off of Instagram just got a lot easier.

Instagram revealed today that it is finally starting to roll out a new tool that lets any Instagram user retrieve all of the photos, videos, comments, likes and other data stored on Instagram’s servers.

Get your data by following these steps: