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Apple has a cunning plan to boost profitability in India

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apples-india-enterprise-boss-quits-to-sell-android-phones-2-image-cultofandroidcomwp-contentuploads201601iphone_india001-780x614-780x614-jpg
Apple is still trying to find the right strategy for India.
Photo: Apple

As the next giant untapped market shimmering on the horizon, Apple is looking to grow its brand in India — and to do so it’s taking the bold step of exiting the rapidly-growing sub-Rs 20,000 ($290) smartphone category by stopping selling its older iPhone 4s and 5c handsets.

But the reason totally makes sense.

iPad shipments could hit new low this quarter

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iPad Pro
iPad shipments are continuing to fall.
Photo: Leander Kahney / Cult of Mac

Apple could be in for its worst ever quarter for iPad shipments, with a new report claiming that the first three months of 2016 are set to hit a historic low for Apple’s tablets with just 9.8 million units shipping.

If correct, those numbers would be down 39.1 percent on quarter and close to 20 percent on-year. While Apple has been experiencing falling iPad demand for some time now, this would be especially bad considering that Q1 2016 is also expected to bring the first ever quarter of declining iPhone sales.

Tim Cook: Apple will fight to stop the FBI accessing your data

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Tim Cook
Tim Cook wants the public to be aware of the importance of this issue.
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

Apple has posted an open letter, signed by Tim Cook, in response to the FBI’s request that Apple unlock the iPhone at the center of a San Bernardino court case.

While United States magistrated judge Sheri Pym wants Apple to hand the FBI a custom firmware file that would allow the unlocking of the handset in question, Apple argues that this represents an, “unprecedented step which threatens the security of our customers.”

And Cook wants the public to be aware of all the details.

Apple must unlock the iPhone 5c’s encryption… or else

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The iPhone 5c might be broken wide open. And what's next?
The iPhone 5c might be broken wide open. And what's next?
Photo: Apple

In December 2015, Syed Rizwan Farook shot up an office party in an apparent terrorist attack in San Bernardino, California. He may have coordinated the attack on an iPhone 5c.

Since then, authorities have been trying to decrypt the device. And now, a U.S. magistrate is trying to force Apple to unlock it.

Ex-Apple designer builds easy-to-use artificial brain

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The Brain by Mike Matas
Good call. We definitely want to teach the machines love before they become self-aware.
Photo: Mike Matas (via YouTube)

We may be a small step closer to the robot wars thanks to former Apple designer Mike Matas.

Matas’ previous work includes user interfaces for Apple’s Maps, Photos, and Camera apps, as well as the Nest smart thermostat. And he showed off his latest creation, an artificial brain called (appropriately enough) The Brain, via a quick demo on YouTube. It’s a neural network that with an expectedly sharp and clean interface, and in the video, he shows how he can teach The Brain to spit out emojis based on different shapes that he draws.

Check it out below.

New HomeKit gadget tracks how much electricity you’re wasting

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Elgato Eve Energy
Elgato Eve Energy is here to make you feel bad about your power consumption.
Photo: Elgato

Gadget maker Elgato has been churning out HomeKit-compatible devices like crazy, and it’s just dropped another that takes the smartplug concept one further.

Eve Energy became available for sale in the U.S. today after a European launch. It plugs into your wall, and then a device of your choice plugs into it. You’ll be able to turn the thing off and on with your phone either through Elgato’s app or with Siri, and plenty of things on the market already do that. But Energy will also tell you how much power the thing plugged into it uses, which adds a new layer of functionality to the gadget.

Meet the tiniest game of pong for your Apple Watch

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Play a classic (and super-cute) game of Pong on your Apple Watch.
Play a classic (and super-cute) game of Pong on your Apple Watch.
Photo: Matt Wiechec

Is this the most adorable thing you’ve ever seen on your wrist? Yes, yes it is. It’s the tiniest game of pong you ever did see, too.

Game developer Matt Wiechec has made A Tiny Game of Pong for the Apple Watch and it hits all the right nostalgic notes for ancient gaming fans like myself and retro-cool folks like you.

Check it out.

How to unlock your iPhone’s secret emoticon powers

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Send your friends these adorable text-based emoticons.
Send your friends these adorable text-based emoticons.
Photo: Rob LeFebvre/Cult of Mac

Emoji has sort of taken over my iMessage conversations on the iPhone lately, and I’m willing to bet you use a lot of the cute little pictures too.

What if I told you there was a hidden treasure trove of text-based emoticons that you can access in addition to your favorite emoji?

Even better — it’s easy to enable these iPhone secret emoticons. Here’s how.

iPhone 7 may boast extra protection from electromagnetic interference

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Apple chips are getting EMI shielding.
Apple chips are getting EMI shielding.
Photo: Apple

Apple is allegedly planning to beef up the iPhone 7’s shielding against electromagnetic interference this year with new protections for all of the device’s major chips.

The iPhone 7 may not be able to survive a devastating EMP attack — like the one presidential candidate Ted Cruz has been really worried about lately — but it should lead to better performance, according to a report out of South Korea claiming Apple has already hired StatsChipPac and Amkor to do the shielding.

10 Mac storage tips to help you free up extra hard drive space

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Running out of hard drive space on your Mac? These 10 tips can help you free up space you didn't know you were even using!
Running out of hard drive space on your Mac? These 10 tips can help you free up space you didn't know you were even using!
Photo: Ally Kazmucha/The App Factor

app-factor-logo-thumbnailIs your Mac out of storage space, or getting dangerously close? If so, there are lots of things you can do to free up some much-need disk space. In many cases, you don’t even have to remove personal files and media. From finding and removing duplicate photo libraries to learning how to better utilize some of Apple’s cloud services, we can help you figure out what’s eating your storage and, more importantly, how to fix it.

Heavy-duty Lightning cable is damn near unbreakable

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mos-spring-lightning-cable - 1
Let's put the "indestructible cable" through the paces.
Photo: George Tinari/Cult of Mac

As important as it was for Apple to make the switch from 30-pin cables to Lightning cables alongside the release of the iPhone 5, there is one significant problem Apple has yet to address over the years: the durability of its charging cables. They bend, fray, tear and sometimes just stop working altogether even with only moderate use over time. Thankfully, third-party accessory makers have caught on to this, and have started offering solutions. One such offering is the MOS Spring Lightning Cable, which claims right on the packaging to be “the indestructible charge/sync cable.”

Apple to build $25 million office in India

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India
Apple wants to dramatically improve its 2 percent share on the smartphone market in India.
Photo: Tim Cook/Twitter

Apple has set its sights on taking over the smartphone market in India and its planning to bring more than just retail jobs to the country in the process.

The company confirmed today that it is planning to invest $25 million in a new office complex this year in Hyderabad that will bring 4,500 jobs to the area during the construction process.

Got an old Android? Sell it to us for a great price!

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got-an-old-android-sell-it-to-us-for-a-great-price-image-cultofandroidcomwp-contentuploads20160220140529_sims-erecycling_0536-final-640x426-jpg
It's easy to turn your old devices into cash.
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

Got an old Android you don’t use anymore? It’s useless to you in the bottom of a drawer, but if you dig it out and dust it off, you can sell it to us for cold hard cash!

We’re buying used and broken Android and Microsoft devices through our new buyback program, and we pay more than Best Buy, Gazelle, and Walmart in most cases. We’ll even buy used wearables, watches, and devices that don’t even work anymore.

Bon Appétit takes iPhone food photography to whole new level

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Shot on iPhone 6s.
Shot on iPhone 6s.
Photo: Marcus Nilsson/Bon Appétit

Hipsters have been using the iPhone to document their meals on Instagram for years now, but the culinary geniuses at Bon Appétit are taking iPhone food photography to unprecedented levels for its March issue.

Bon Appétit sent its top photographers to shoot everything from food festivals to fine-dining dishes for next month’s Culture issue, only instead of lugging around their pro-level DSLRs and wide array of lenses, the photogs were only allowed to use their iPhones.

The end result is a gorgeous 43-page spread that will make your mouth water. The issue hits newsstands this week, but the company has already revealed some of the incredible photos that you won’t believe were shot on iPhone.

Hours left to nab these amazing deals on tech tools and gear [Deals]

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Visually organize all your data and tasks with a single intuitive app
Visually organize all your data and tasks with a single intuitive app
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

Want to stay organized and productive with your data? Tired of juggling USB cords, running out of juice on your laptop or worrying about data theft when you go online? If you answered yes to any of that, check out some of these deals ending in just a matter of hours.

Sorry, haters! Signs point to a massive January for Apple

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iPhone 6s boasts a new 12-megapixel camera.
Reports of the iPhone's demise may have been greatly exaggerated.
Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac

Forget all the doom predictions about Apple — according to Drexel Hamilton analyst Brian White, the company may have just had its best January since 2008.

Although Apple itself has said that iPhone sales are likely to fall for the first time ever in the January quarter, White claims that his own analysis of Apple’s suppliers suggests that things are looking far from bleak.

Steve Jobs is now available to buy on Blu-ray and DVD

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Aaron Sorkin’s Steve Jobs movie is coming to Netflix
You can now enjoy Steve Jobs from the comfort of your living room.
Photo: François Duhamel/©2015 Universal Studios

If you didn’t catch Steve Jobs in theaters (and, based on the box office, chances are you didn’t!) Universal Pictures Home Entertainment today released the movie on Blu-ray and DVD.

Extras for the controversial, somewhat divisive film include an “Inside Jobs: The Making of Steve Jobs” bonus feature, and audio commentaries from director Danny Boyle, writer Aaron Sorkin and editor Elliot Graham.

And, hey, if you don’t feel like shelling out for it, you can always enter our free giveaway here.

Apple Pay will go live in China this week

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Apple in talks to bring Apple Pay to Israel
Apple Pay is finally coming to Apple's second biggest market.
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

It may have taken a bit longer than Tim Cook hoped, but Apple Pay is finally launching in China this week — with bank representatives from the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, China Guangfa Bank and China Construction Bank revealing that the mobile payments service will be available from February 18.

These three banks will be joined by 16 other Chinese banks and financial organizations over the coming months.

Kanye ‘the next Steve Jobs’ West turns his back on Apple

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Kanye
Kanye rocking his Apple Watch Edition.
Photo: Justjared

Whether it’s proclaiming himself the next Steve Jobs, screening the recent Aaron Sorkin movie as a birthday gift for his wife, appearing with a rare custom gold-band Apple Watch Edition, or inviting Steve Wozniak to be one of the first to see his baby daughter, Kanye West has always been an enormous Apple fan.

That appears to have changed, however, with the mercurial rapper/pop star sending out a series of bizarre tweets in which — among many, many other things — he pleads with Facebook and Google (but not Apple) to invest $1 billion in “Kanye West ideas” and says that his latest album will never appear on Apple Music.

Best news and RSS apps for iPhone and iPad

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The built-in Apple News app won't cut it for many. Try these awesome news and RSS apps instead!
The built-in Apple News app won't cut it for many. Try these awesome news and RSS apps instead!
Photo: Ally Kazmucha/The App Factor

app-factor-logo-thumbnailThe iPhone and iPad are both great ways to consume news and RSS on the go, or while simply lounging around the house. No matter what service you use — Feedly, Feed Wrangler or something else — there are tons of RSS and news apps that support them. If you don’t need a news aggregator service, or don’t even know what that means, there are still news apps that can help you find interesting things to read.

These are currently the best of the best news apps available for iPhone and iPad — and why I think they’re so great.

Switch to AT&T and get $650 per line, second phone free

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AT&T really wants your business.
Photo: AT&T
ATT-switch-save
AT&T really wants your business. Photo: AT&T

AT&T wants you! So much so that the carrier is currently offering $650 per line when you switch from Sprint, T-Mobile, or Verizon and bring your number with you.

What’s more, if you buy one of the latest devices, you’ll get a second handset free.