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Apple’s Bastille Day tribute is a neat twist on its ‘Shot on iPhone’ ads

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Bastille Day
Apple made the French flag out of different photographs.
Photo: Apple

To celebrate Bastille Day, the start of 1789’s French Revolution, Apple has changed the homepage of its Apple France website to show a picture of the French Tricolor flag.

The twist? In a neat touch, Apple has tied the tribute into its acclaimed “Shot on iPhone” campaign by making the flag out of a variety of blue, white and red-filtered photographs taken by French iPhone owners.

Today in Apple history: App Store hits 10 million downloads

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App Store
What was the first app you downloaded on your iPhone?
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

July 14: Today in Apple history: App Store hits 10 million downloads July 14, 2008: Apple crows that its newly opened App Store hit a massive 10 million downloads in its first 72 hours.

“The App Store is a grand slam, with a staggering 10 million applications downloaded in just three days,” Steve Jobs said in a statement issued eight years ago today. “Developers have created some extraordinary applications, and the App Store can wirelessly deliver them to every iPhone and iPod touch user instantly.”

Will EU hammer Apple for Irish tax arrangements? We’ll know soon

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Apple may owe billions of euros in back taxes.
Apple may owe billions of euros in back taxes.
Photo: Milo Kahney/Cult of Mac

Apple’s tax drama in Europe will finally come to a close later this fall.

The iPhone-maker has come under scrutiny from the European Union due to its tax deal with Ireland that safe guards Apple from paying taxes on billions of dollars in profits. Ireland’s finance minister revealed that he has no idea which way the decision will go, but he was told it’s coming soon.

Facebook Messenger now lets you Peek and Pop on iPhone 6s

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And you thought all those Facebook messages were private. Sucker!
Update Facebook Messenger now if you have an iPhone 6s!
Photo: Rob LeFebvre/Cult of Mac

Facebook Messenger is now even more awesome on iPhone 6s.

Thanks to the app’s latest update, you can now take advantage of useful 3D Touch gestures that let you Peek and Pop into all your ongoing conversations — and into all the media shared within them.

How to get more news in your Facebook feed

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the Facebook logo on an iPhone 6 Plus
You Facebook feed doesn't have to be all about family and friends.
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

If you’ve noticed a serious lack of actual news in your Facebook News Feed since the beginning of July, you’re not alone.

The social network recently made big changes to its News Feed algorithm to emphasize posts from friends and family, and fewer posts from the sites and pages you’ve liked. The end result has transformed many users’ feeds into an endlessly scrollable collection of baby pics, birthday posts and political drama no one wants to touch.

Thankfully, there’s a way to take back some control of your page so that important posts from news sites show up more frequently.

‘Small-batch’ bag company rolls out backpack with big space

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The Bolt laptop backpack gives a busy person the right stuff.
The Bolt laptop backpack gives a busy person the right stuff.
Photo: WaterField Designs

The description “small batch” is often associated with bourbon and cigars. With those words come an expectation of a higher quality derived from artisanal techniques, not possible with mass production.

WaterField Designs refers to itself as “small batch” and the company’s bags and cases, especially for Apple computing products, fit nicely in the company of a fine cigar or whiskey. Its latest product, the Bolt Laptop Backpack, stands apart from its oft-sporty-looking backpack brethren.

Win a chance to wire up your smart home with Amazon’s Alexa [Deals]

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Enter to win a suite of smart home products, centered around Amazon Echo.
Enter to win a suite of smart home products, centered around Amazon Echo.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

Making your home ‘smart’ means more than giving it a computerized brain — it takes a whole central nervous system. That’s exactly what this giveaway offers. It includes four devices that will transform how you interact with your house — from controlling your appliances and lighting, to the thermostat and even answering the door — all centered around Amazon’s hands-free hub, Echo, controllable via their digital assistant, Alexa.

Lightning EarPods pictured again ahead of iPhone 7

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Leaked EarPods with Lightning
Apple's new EarPods or third-party fakes?
Photo: Weibo

New EarPods equipped with a Lightning connector have again been pictured ahead of the iPhone 7’s launch this fall. It’s thought Apple’s next-generation devices won’t have 3.5mm headphone jacks like all their predecessors, but these EarPods could ease the pain of that loss.

The best Amazon Prime Day deals [Liveblog]

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Amazon Prime Day deals
Step right up and get your Prime Day deals.
Illustration: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Amazon’s Prime Day is here, delivering big sales on tons of items. Cult of Mac is rounding up the best picks, and you can get in on the hot, hot shopping action right now — even if you’re not an Amazon Prime member.

Samsung shows us why the iPhone needs an OLED display

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Samsung believes the future is OLED.
Samsung believes the future is OLED.
Photo: Samsung

Apple prides itself on delivering the best LCD displays you’ll find in a smartphone, but they pale in comparison to the OLED screens offered by its rivals. Samsung proves that — and shows us why the iPhone needs an OLED display — in the awesome comparison video below.

Apple Watch tops all wearables in customer satisfaction rankings

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Apple Watch
Apple Watch has a better satisfaction score than any wearable.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

The first watch from Apple is starting to rack up awards as quickly as its first smartphone did when it launched.

In its annual survey for fitness band device satisfaction, J.D. Power found that Apple Watch has a higher rating among customers than any other smartwatch, making it the most beloved wearable in the world.

Pokémon Go update fixes Google security issues

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Pokemon GO
It's now safe to catch 'em all.
Photo: Niantic Labs

Catching Pokémon on your iPhone just got a lot safer thanks to the first-ever update to Pokémon Go.

Developer Niantic Labs pushed out a fix today that resolves the security issue that gave Pokémon Go full access to some players’ Google accounts without their knowledge, or providing a way to revoke access without losing progress in the game.

Libratone’s new wireless speaker is the One you want on the go [Reviews]

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Libratone One Click portable bluetooth speaker
Meet the Libratone ONE Click.
Photo: Buster Hein/Cult of Mac

Libratone makes speakers so gorgeous they look like they belong in a museum more than in my home. The company’s latest wireless speaker is so damn cool I’m tempted to take it with me everywhere.

The new ONE Click speaker from Libratone’s new portable lineup packs more features than any wireless speaker I’ve ever used while coming in a form factor that is adaptable to so many different uses it’ll make your head spin.

Fun new iOS app is like karaoke for movie fans

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Actor Edward Kerr brings stardom - or just fun - to the small screen with his iOS app ROLR.
Actor Edward Kerr brings stardom - or just fun - to the small screen with his iOS app ROLR.
Photo: ROLR

A star of silver and television screens wants to help others become stars of the small screen – their iPhone screens that is – with an iOS app that lets users act out their favorite movie scenes.

Actor Edward Kerr on Tuesday rolled out ROLR, a new video collaboration app he created to help people connect around the world through a universal love of films. An in-app teleprompter feeds you your lines from scenes from a selection of classic films, you record your part and then invite members of ROLR community to be your co-stars.

How to install iOS 10 public beta the right way

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PublicBeta
Try out Apple's latest OS before anyone else.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

The iOS 10 public beta is finally here! It’s never a great idea to install beta releases on a primary device, but many of us just can’t wait to get our hands on the latest features. Fortunately, if you update properly, there’s an easy route back if you decide it’s just not stable enough for you.

Our helpful step-by-step tutorial video that will walk you through the whole process!

If Spider-Man had an iPhone, this is the case he’d use [Deals]

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Anti-Gravity iPhone 6:6S Case
Nano-suction technology lets this case stick almost anywhere.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

With a great iPhone comes great responsibility — after all, dropping it can cost lots of money and cause a serious headache. That’s why we buy cases to protect our prized devices, but you can add another level of security and flexibility with the Anti-Gravity iPhone 6/6s Case, which turns any surface into a gripping surface. And right now you can get this wall-clinging case for $29.99 at Cult of Mac Deals.

Today in Apple history: iTunes sells its 100 millionth song

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itunes_dof
This was a massive milestone for paid music downloads at the time.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

July 12 July 12, 2004: Apple boasts that the iTunes Music Store has sold its 100,000,000th song, and marks the occasion with a generous gift for the lucky downloader.

The song in question is Zero 7’s “Somersault (Dangermouse remix),” purchased by Kevin Britten from Hays, Kansas. The 20-year-old receives a personal phone call from Apple CEO Steve Jobs congratulating him. Britten also gets a 17-inch PowerBook, a 40GB iPod and a gift certificate for a massive 10,000 (!) iTunes songs.

Apple donates $1 million to help Chinese flood victims

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China
Tim Cook meeting with China's vice premier.
Photo: Apple

Apple has donated $1 million to the efforts of the China Foundation for Poverty Alleviation (CFPA), following China’s worst flood in years.

“Our thoughts are with all those devastated by the flooding along the Yangtze River,” Tim Cook wrote in a note on Chinese social networking site Weibo, which he first joined back in May 2015.