Jeroen Dijsselbloem, president of the eurozone’s finance ministers, has accused Apple of “[failing] to grasp” the public outcry concerning tax avoidance by multinational corporations.
He was referring to last week’s landmark decision, which handed Apple an enormous tax bill of 13 billion euros ($14.52 billion), based on its supposed underpayment of taxes in the Republic of Ireland. Apple paid a reported 0.005 percent tax on its European profits in 2014.
Want to find out which apps were gracing our iPhones, iPads and Macs this week? Check our list below.
From a neat Facebook Messenger update to a tremendous new puzzle game, this is the perfect way to spend the remainder of your weekend.
We never quite know what to expect in our deals inbox from week to week, which means we’re often pleasantly surprised. This week was no exception — from a game changing app for making writing more efficient, to a 4-port USB charger, waterproof Bluetooth earbuds, and an awesome train simulator. Now who could’ve predicted that rogue’s gallery of righteous deals? Read on for more details:
Lensbaby and GoPro. Pair the creator of artistic effects lenses with the king of the action cam and things could get interesting.
Lensbaby hopes so has it rolls out its Circular 180+ lens to fit the Hero series of GoPro point of view action cameras.
This week brought in some of the coolest deals we’ve seen. From a military-grade Lightning cable to a Bluetooth speaker that’s shower-ready, a stylus specifically designed to integrate with Adobe Creative Cloud and a sexy Bluetooth boombox. This gear and gadgetry was already attractive, but with discounts of up to 60 percent they’re damn near irresistible. Take a look for more details:
This week The CultCast: What new hardware will Apple bestow upon us at next week’s iPhone 7 event? Don’t miss our predictions! Plus: New video shows iPhone 7 Plus in the wild, and we explain Apple’s Irish tax woes (then argue about the situation).
Our thanks to Squarespace for supporting this episode. It’s simple to build a website that looks beautiful on any device that visits at Squarespace.com. Enter offer code CultCast at checkout to get 10% off.
All hell broke loose last week when Nike relaunched its much loved Nike+ Running app with a new offering called “Nike+ Run Club.” Plagued with bugs, sluggish performance and missing features, this update has infuriated some of Nike’s most loyal users, including me. Nike+ Running used to have an impressive 4.5 star rating on the App Store. Since the update, this has plummeted to just 1.5 stars. And Nike’s Facebook and Twitter accounts are now flooded with gripes.
So what happened? How could a single update turn one of the best iPhone running apps into one of the worst?
The past week has been one to forget for both Apple and Samsung. While Cupertino was handed a hefty tax bill by the European Commission, Sammy has had to recall every Galaxy Note 7 unit sold so far for fear of them exploding.
But which one will be most damaging, and which will quickly be forgotten? Apple’s tax fight is sure to rage on for months, but will faulty phones leave a bad taste in the mouths of Samsung fans a lot longer?
Join us in this week’s Friday Night Fight as we discuss the sad start to September for Apple and Samsung.
Apple isn’t expected to make any design changes to the outside of the Apple Watch 2, but when Jony Ive does give it a makeover we wouldn’t mind if it came with some chamfered edges like in this concept from designer Jan Petrmichl.
In his concept, Petrmichl imagines a slimmer, sharper Apple Watch that also looks more like a shiny piece of jewelry.
Take a look:
Building a smartphone with modular components that could be quickly swapped out for different parts sounds like a really cool idea, but Google is ready to admit no one actually wants one.
Apple’s stock Music app is getting a big overhaul with iOS 10, and one of the biggest new features to look forward to is the ability to view lyrics while listening to favorite tracks. Here’s what you need to do to find them.
Apple’s still-unnamed “spaceship” campus won’t be completed until the end of this year, but it’s looking less and less like Tim Cook’s beautiful pile of dirt and more like a finished HQ every single day — as drone operator Matthew Roberts’ latest flyover video makes abundantly clear.
Check out the action below:
This is the third story in a three-part series on jailbreaking iOS.
When Melissa Archer learned she would die at the hands of a serial killer, she made one last request: “I asked if I could have a death scene because I am a nerd.”
Her death had significance. It meant a long run as a mainstay and fan favorite of daytime soap operas was about to go on hiatus. It also meant she would have more time to devote to another passion — jailbreaking iPhones and inventing new features.
Streaming videos has opened up a whole new way to enjoy TV shows and movies, but when the connection drops so does the fun. We used to videotape and DVR our favorite content, but in the streaming age you need something more like Movie Sherlock Pro. It lets you easily stockpile movies, shows, YouTube videos, and more on your Mac. This is an invaluable addition to any media lover’s toolkit, and right now you can get it for just $15 at Cult of Mac Deals.
Apple has ordered so many iPhone 7 units ahead of its big launch next month that RAM supplies are quickly diminishing, causing prices to increase. Even desktop RAM is taking a hit as manufacturers turn their attention to smartphone components.
The Irish government will lodge a formal appeal with the European Commission over the enormous tax bill of 13 billion euros ($14.52 billion) handed out to Apple earlier this week.
Ahead of next week’s iPhone 7 launch, Apple has finally gotten around to activating an official @Apple Twitter account, which has already attracted 130K followers — despite not sending a single tweet yet.
Apple first registered the @Apple Twitter handle back in September 2011, around the time of the iPhone 4s launch, although the account was not live until now.
It seems things just got a whole lot easier for the upcoming iPhone 7 Plus. Its biggest rival, Samsung’s new Galaxy Note 7, has officially been recalled worldwide due to a worrying battery issue that has caused some handsets to explode.
The iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus are set to be joined on stage by some new headphones from Beats by Dre.
Apple accidentally leaked the info of the new products in an email sent to a French website from the Beats PR team that revealed multiple new products will be announced at the September 7th keynote.
Lazy iOS app developers better watch out.
The purge is coming.
Galaxy Note 7 owners might want to start getting ready to ship their devices back to Samsung, after a new report from South Korea claims the company is set to announce an unprecedented global recall.
Samsung’s recall could come as soon as this weekend. The company recently launched an investigation into users’ claims that the Note 7 has a tendency to explode while charging.
The design of the Apple Watch 2 won’t look much different on the outside, but the insides have been completely reworked based on some leaked parts revealed in a new video.
To make room for the new GPS, barometer and larger battery, it appears that Apple has reconfigured the layout of its system on a chip and added a new display that looks significantly thinner.
Take a look:
Want to own a bunch of Steve Jobs’ old crap from the ’80s and ’90s?
Some of the Apple co-founder’s personal items have just hit the auction block, giving some Jobs-obsessed nerd the first opportunity ever to drape his or her naked body in the same bathrobe as the dude that invented the iPhone.
Through innovations like “Hey Siri” on iOS, and the ability to pin Siri search results to your Mac’s Notification Center, Apple has been working to make its virtual assistant more useful than ever. One more such application is the ability to use Siri to multitask on macOS Sierra.
Here’s how to take advantage of this feature when running the latest Mac operating system, which is currently in public beta and will be released this fall.
This is the second story in a three-part series on jailbreaking iOS.
Apple may have used “Think Different” as a marketing slogan once upon a time, but there is a kind of underground network of iOS developers who claim the two words as a reason to exist.
But with their idea of “Think Different,” they add this: “Look Different.”