As part of a hearing concerning its proposed 850 million euro ($960 million) data center in Athenry, Ireland, Apple has acknowledged that it has no current plans to build power generators on the site, and would therefore be plugging into the Irish national grid.

The result? That according to a residents group, Apple will wind up as the largest private user of electricity in the state, consuming 8 percent of the national capacity — or more than the entire daily power usage of Dublin, which is home to over half a million people.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) may have reportedly scored Apple’s A-series orders for the next-gen iPhone 7, but with plenty of rivals on its tail it’s not shying away from putting in the work (and, more importantly, the cash) to ensure it stays Apple’s chipmaker of note.

According to TSMC’s co-CEO Mark Liu, this means spending a massive, record-setting $2.2 billion on R&D this year; a significantly higher figure than the $1.067 it spend researching new processes last year.

Otterbox has made a name for its self by offering the biggest and bulkiest iPhone cases imaginable, but with its latest product all that rubbery protection comes with a ton of utility.

Google has again given up on competing with the Apple TV and other set-top boxes after discontinuing the Nexus Player. The Asus-made device is no longer available from the Google Store — but this doesn’t mean Android TV is dead.

Google’s self-driving car project is moving to Detroit.

The CEO of Alphabet’s driverless car project, John Krafcik, revealed today that the company plans to lay down roots in the Greater Detroit Area by establishing a self-driving technology development center.

Apple has rolled out its fifth update for the Safari Technology Preview, making a long list of improvements to things like JavaScript, CSS, and the Web Inspector. The release also bolsters security and stability.

Apple is credited with designing the smartphone as we know it today, but it turns out some people were using touchscreen devices in 1670. At least that’s what Tim Cook saw when he laid eyes on a 346-year-old painting from Pieter de Hooch and spotted an iPhone.

Xiaomi, aka the biggest copy-cat in tech, has decided to stop ripping off Apple for a bit and instead set its sights on drone maker DJI by unveiling its first cheap knockoff drone, the Mi Drone. And it doesn’t look that bad.

The Mi Drone takes some obvious inspiration from DJI’s Phantom lineup, only its way more affordable. For about $460 you can grab the 4K flier, or if you’re cool with just 1080p video you can buy the cheaper model, priced around $380.

It’s not as portable as other drones we’ve seen like the AirDog, but it comes with 27-minutes of battery life and some killer features that could rival the Phantom 4.

Watch it fly below:

“It’s alright,” I tell the Upright posture trainer, which is attached to the base of my spine. “I’ll do it right this time.”

I’m not looking at the device itself; that would be impossible. Instead, I’m looking at the three smiley-face icons in the thing’s companion app. The green one is lit up now, but I just slipped into yellow for a second before I caught myself, and if it hits the red one — either from me slouching or overextending my back — it will be unpleasant.

The Apple Car isn’t expected to hit the road until 2020 at the earliest, but Apple’s engineers are already laying the foundation for one of the most challenging aspect of electric vehicles: keeping them charged up.

Apple appears to be preparing the ground work for its charging infrastructure, according to a new report claiming the company is scooping up engineers that specialize in electric charing stations.

Apple’s notebooks pack some of the best laptop batteries out there, but you’re always going to find yourself low on power when using your MacBook on the road. Fortunately, Kanex’s new PowerGo battery pack can save the day.

Packing 15,000 mAh of power and USB-C connectivity, it’s capable of giving your 12-inch Retina MacBook a full charge on the go — and it’ll keep your iOS devices topped up, too.

Samsung’s excellent Galaxy S7 series will have almost certainly exacerbated falling iPhone demand in recent months, and now the South Korean company is working to ensure that things won’t be any easier for the iPhone 7 lineup.

New rumors say its next-generation Galaxy Note phablet will be its best smartphone yet, with stellar specifications, outstanding design, and a new virtual reality experience that will make the iPhone 7 Plus look like trash.

Herschel is just about the top name in travel gear today, making bags and luggage that are as tough as they are good-looking. Let’s be honest — they put your suitcases and backpacks to shame. Premium bags like these go for a premium price, that is unless you enter this massive giveaway. This Herschel travel bundle includes five items that would normally cost a pretty penny, from suitcases to duffels and backpacks and more, but if you can enter today for a chance to get the whole shebang for free.

Apple manufacturer Foxconn has been talking about investing in robots for years now, but apparently it’s finally done it — replacing more than half of the employees at one of its factories with machines.

“The Foxconn factory has reduced its employee strength from 110,000 to 50,000, thanks to the introduction of robots,” said a government official, adding that “it has tasted success in reduction of labour costs” and that more companies are now likely to follow suit.

Microsoft may be doing great in some areas of its business, but it’s struggling in others — with “exhibit A” being its smartphone business.

Having sold off its feature phone business this month, Microsoft has now announced plans to “scale back” its smartphone output — which will impact “up to 1,850 jobs worldwide,” although Microsoft still claims it’s got some “great new devices” being developed for the future.

Check out Terry Myerson, Microsoft’s head of Windows’ message to employees:

Apple is expected to deliver one of its biggest ever MacBook Pro refreshes later this year, ushering in a thinner and lighter design and amazing new features. One of them, according to a reliable analyst, will be an OLED touch pad.

Here’s why that would be a stellar addition to Apple’s best notebook.

Apple may have fixed its disastrous Error 53 fault that disables iPhones which had a home button or cables related to Touch ID replaced by an unauthorized third-party.

However, a class action suit brought by a number of iPhone owners is claiming that Apple didn’t do enough — and yet not lived up to its promise to reimburse customers whose phones were bricked by the error.

Apple may be running into problems in China, but it doesn’t seem like its campaign to expand into India — another vast country with plenty of potential for smartphone growth — is going any better.

According to a new report, India’s finance minister has ruled that Apple must conform to local sourcing laws to open official Apple Stores within India, despite previous rumors stating that Apple would be exempted from such rules.

The iPhone 7 may be boasting a few more internal modifications than we had thought, but think again if you’re expecting Apple to offer a full-on redesign of the design and form factor it has been using since 2014’s iPhone 6.

That’s according to a new photo posted online, reportedly showing a very familiar glass screen protector planned for the next-gen handset, looking very much like the one employed by the iPhone 6 and 6s.

The next evolution of Siri could feature a new Apple product designed to directly compete with Amazon’s successful Echo device.

Apple is reportedly planning to make a rival to the Amazon Echo, but the in order to compete with the device’s incredible array of features and services, Apple plans to open up Siri to third-party apps.

Renowned practical cryptography expert Jon Callas is returning to Apple to help the iPhone-maker stay ahead of hackers and the FBI in its on going battle with security. 

Callas co-founded well known secure communications companies such as Silent Circle, Blackphone, and PGP Corp. This will be his third stint at Apple where he is expected to ramp up security features across Apple’s wide ranging product line up.

I’ve already shown you what’s on my iPhone and given you a tour of my office, so now it’s time to find out what I carry with me when I’m on the road.

Video and photography are a big part of what I do here at Cult of Mac, and just because I’m away from my office doesn’t mean I’m not creating something for the YouTube channel or for the team’s articles.

Check out the full video tour below to find out what’s in my bag when I’m on the go!

RapidWeaver 7 is here, giving OS X users the ability to build beautiful websites without writing a single line of code. The update brings an overhauled FTP engine, brand new website themes, and useful features like the SEO health checker.

Alphabet chairman Eric Schmidt has finally come clean to his long love affair with iPhone.

The former Google CEO was spotted using an iPhone to take pictures in South Korea earlier this year and was finally confronted about using the enemy’s device at a CNBC’s Startup Fest in Amsterdam this week.

Schmidt admitted that he does use an iPhone and an Android device at the same time, but one is clearly superior.

Twitter is rolling out some big changes that are going to change the way you tweet in the future. Users can now say more when tweeting others and posting media links, and it’s finally possible to retweet and quote yourself.