Mobile menu toggle

Apple’s not predicting a big sales bump for Apple Watch 2

By

Apple-Watch-2-concept-by-Eric-Huismann-780x439
Apple Watch 2 may not be the big seller some are predicting.
Photo: Eric Heisuman

The Apple Watch 2 is expected to be a notable improvement on the original, but according to a new report Apple’s not expecting to see a big sales bump for the next-gen device.

In fact, Apple’s weaker-than-expected predicted numbers are a major reason why it opted to stick with Quanta Computer for production, rather than shifting manufacturing over to Foxconn, which builds the (much) higher volume iPhone.

Apple is now selling refurbished Apple TV 4 units online

By

appletv
Apple's best Apple TV 4 price yet!
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

Apple rarely reduces its prices, but if you’re looking to grab the company’s fourth-generation Apple TV for a bargain this is your lucky day — because Apple just added refurbished TV 4 models to its online store.

The basic 32GB set-top box will set you back $129, which represents a saving of $20 from the regular price of $149. The 64GB model, meanwhile, carries a price tag of $169, which equals $30 off the normal $199.

Apple could pay $532 million for infringing on iMessage patents

By

breaking-bad-huells-money-bed-640x360
Apple may have an unexpected payout on its hands.
Photo: Breaking Bad

Apple could owe up to $532 million for infringing on secure communication patents, used for both its FaceTime and its iMessage services — or at least it will if patent-holding entity VirnetX Holding Corporation has its way.

A lawyer for the firm told a court in (where else?) the Eastern District of Texas that, “Apple hasn’t played fair. They have taken Virnetx’s intellectual property without permission.”

Samsung is bringing all its best apps to iOS

By

samsung-is-bringing-all-its-best-apps-to-ios-image-cultofandroidcomwp-contentuploads201506apple-samsung-iphone-galaxy-patent-war1-jpg
Samsung apps are coming to iOS.
Photo: Kārlis Dambrāns/Flickr CC
apple-samsung-iphone-galaxy-patent-war

Samsung and Apple have been bitter smartphone rivals for nearly a decade now, but it appears that Samsung may be ready to finally embrace iOS.

Some of Samsung’s best apps (if not all) are coming to iOS soon, according to a new report that claims the Galaxy-maker plans to pull a Microsoft and bring its apps to Apple’s platform as part of its effort to increase adoption of its connected devices.

Apple busts out new betas for OS X, tvOS and Apple Watch

By

A new beta is out for OS X El Capitan.
A new beta is out for OS X El Capitan.
Photo: Apple

Apple has dished out a brand new batch of beta software updates today for developers, bringing new software to OS X, Apple TV and Apple Watch.

The new software updates come exactly two weeks after Apple served up the first beta versions of iOS 9.3, watchOS 2.2, tvOS 9.2, and OS X 10.11.4, all of which bring a host of new features to your favorite Apple products.

iOS 9.3 beta 2 brings new goodies

By

iOS 9.3 beta 2, now available for download. Image: Oliver Haslam - Cult of Mac
iOS 9.3 beta 2, now available for download.
Image: Oliver Haslam/Cult of Mac

Apple just seeded the latest build of iOS 9.3 to developers, with beta 2 now available to download via an over-the-air update on devices with either a current iOS 9.3 beta build installed or Apple’s developer profile configured.

The download, the third beta release of iOS 9.3 following beta 1 and the subsequent beta 1.1, doesn’t yet appear to be available via Apple’s online developer portal.

Best manual camera apps for iPhone

By

iphone-sunset-unsplash-photo-750x500
For when the stock Camera app just doesn't cut it.
Photo: Unsplash.com

app-factor-logo-thumbnail Manual camera apps for iPhone offer better control over settings like exposure, focus, ISO and shutter speed. If you’ve ever shot photos in an environment where the light wasn’t ideal or had a rough time balancing shadows and light, you would benefit from a manual camera app.

While these kinds of apps aren’t always necessary, a great one is a good tool to have in your app arsenal. These are currently the best manual camera apps for iPhone.

‘Leaked’ schematic reveals changes coming to iPad Air 3

By

iPad Air 3 will pick up some tricks from the iPad Pro.
iPad Air 3 will pick up some tricks from the iPad Pro.
Photo: Apple

The upcoming iPad Air 3 might look a lot like the new iPad Pro, only a bit smaller, according to a purported new leak.

The update to the Air line could be coming down the pipeline as soon as March, and it appears that the refreshed tablet could come with four-speaker audio.

Sprint ad hits Verizon right in the balls

By

sprint-ad-hits-verizon-right-in-the-balls-image-cultofandroidcomwp-contentuploads201601verizon-sprint-att-t-mobile-balls-ad-jpg
Sprint isn't satisfied with Verizon's ballsy claims.
Photo: Sprint
verizon-sprint-att-t-mobile-balls-ad
Sprint isn’t satisfied with Verizon’s ballsy claims. Photo: Sprint

The war between mobile carriers in the U.S. continues to heat up and with the latest battle, it’s personal. Sprint came out with a new ad that directly targets Verizon’s from just a few weeks ago. Using big, colorful balls to symbolize network quality and performance, Sprint claims Verizon’s ad is rubbish and outdated while the yellow network is the true champion.

Why Apple’s earnings call might be a shocker

By

Apple raked in the cash last quarter.
Apple raked in the cash last quarter.
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

Apple is set to reveal how much money it made over the 2015 holiday shopping season, and per usual, it’s expected to be a record-breaker.

Tim Cook and Luca Maestri will dive into all the details of Apple’s Q1 2016 earnings report tomorrow at 2 p.m. Pacific but there’s really only one number Wall Street really wants to know: total iPhones sales. Even though Apple may record its highest earnings ever, some analysts are predicting that iPhone sales may have declined for the first time, which could send Apple’s stock price sinking.

Here are six things to watch for during Apple’s Q1 2016 earnings call:

Old iPhones could erase gloom from earnings report

By

iPhone 6s
Oh dear.
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

Analysts with sobering certainty say Apple is set to report its first ever decline in iPhone sales. Reports of cutbacks in production and shipments, and chatter about the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus not offering enough new features to inspire a rush to upgrade all point to one bummer of an earnings report.

But they might be overlooking one indicator – sales of older iPhones.

Apple puts the brakes on struggling electric car project

By

Apple car concept art shows what Cupertino might put on the road.
Apple car concept art shows what Cupertino might put on the road.
Photo: Aristomenis Tsirbas/Freelancer

Jony Ive is apparently not pleased with progress on the secret Apple car project.

Apple has more than 1,000 employees working on its electric car, dubbed Project Titan, but the company reportedly has put a hiring freeze in place after a post-holiday progress review revealed the Apple car isn’t on the right track.

Tech business is looking for project managers, now’s the time to become one [Deals]

By

Nows your chance to upgrade your resume with project management skills.
Nows your chance to upgrade your resume with project management skills.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

As the tech industry grows, the need for people skilled in organizing and ushering projects to completion is growing too. That makes project management one of the most lucrative skills you can learn, making eduCBA’s Project Management and Quality Management bundle of over 100 courses an invaluable resource for anyone looking to get in on this growing field. With lifetime access, you can grow your skill set at the pace that works for you, and become a competent project manager in any field, and right now it’s just $39 at Cult of Mac Deals.

This one weird website will cause your smartphone to crash

By

this-one-weird-website-will-cause-your-smartphone-to-crash-image-cultofandroidcomwp-contentuploads201504iPhone-6-Plus-vs-Note-4-jpg
Smartphone owners are, presumably, furious.
Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Android
Smartphone owners are, presumably, furious. Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Android
Smartphone owners are, presumably, furious. Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Android

Watch out for people sending you links to the website CrashSafari dot com, which is causing smartphones and PCs around the world to crash by overloading their browsers with a self-generating address bar text string that causes devices to stop responding.

Although the name refers to Apple’s default browser for Mac and iOS devices, the website also causes Android devices running Chrome to slow down and, in some cases, to actually heat up.

Keep iOS 9 Low Power Mode on indefinitely with this jailbreak tweak

By

ios-9-beta-2-battery-low-power-mode
iOS 9's Low Power Mode significantly reduces iPhone battery drain.
Photo: George Tinari/Cult of Mac

Low Battery Mode might be my favorite thing about iOS 9. It radically improves battery life on an iPhone when your device dips down to 20%.

The only problem? Once your iPhone charges a sufficient amount, Low Battery Mode automatically switches off. Which is a shame, because if you kept Low Battery Mode on all the time, you could eke out hours more battery life from iOS.

Sadly, iOS 9 doesn’t let you keep Low Battery Mode on all the time. But if you’ve got a jailbroken device? That functionality is just an install away.

Microsoft Surface needs a timeout after another NFL letdown

By

Screen Shot 2016-01-25 at 14.04.37
This was one time Apple's probably glad the Surface wasn't mistakenly called the iPad.
Photo: CBS

After making the mistake of repeatedly referring to the Microsoft Surface as an iPad, announcers finally got the right name for the NFL’s sponsor tablet… only for this to be the occasion on which the device stopped working on live TV.

The incident took place during Sunday’s AFC Championship game between the Denver Broncos and New England Patriots, resulting in the kind of negative publicity Microsoft surely never dreamed its $400 million sponsorship would lead to.

Daimler’s CEO sounds scared of the Apple Car

By

Apple Car might be coming, but will it be special?
Apple Car might be coming, but will it be special?
Image: Aristomenis Tsirbas/Freelancer

Although Steve Zadesky may be leaving Cupertino, Project Titan (the so-called Apple Car project) is apparently progressing at a fast enough rate that the German auto industry is starting to get scared.

Ask the CEO of Germany’s Daimler AG, owner of Mercedes-Benz, who says that after visiting Silicon Valley, he’s starting to get worried: companies like Apple are further along with their automobile plans than he thought.

Apple engineer says Safari t.co Twitter fix on the way

By

T.co links work in every browser. except Safari.
T.co links work in every browser. except Safari.
Photo:

If you browse Twitter on Safari, there’s a longstanding obnoxious bug where Safari won’t full resolve shortened t.co links. That results in an error message: “Safari can’t open the page because the server where this page is located is not responding.”

Good news, though. Apple’s finally going to fix it.

Apple’s iPhone 5se allegedly pictured on camera next to the iPhone 5

By

The iPhone 5 on the left, the iPhone 5se on the right.
The iPhone 5 on the left, the iPhone 5se on the right.
Photo: Onemorething.nl

Just a couple days ago, we heard some of the strongest evidence yet that Apple would soon release a new 4-inch iPhone, supposedly called the iPhone 5se. Now we’ve got a shot of what it allegedly looks like in direct comparison  to the iPhone 5. And surprise! The supposed iPhone 5se is plenty sexy.

New MacBooks expected to arrive by June

By

macbook air
New MacBooks are on the way.
Photo: Apple

Apple is set to release new MacBook models within the coming months, claims reliable KGI Securities Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.

Following on from recent news suggesting Macs are one of the only PC makers on an upwards trajectory, Kuo also says that Apple’s MacBooks have had “solid growth” among enterprise customers in recent months.

Fire breaks out at iPhone factory in China

By

404611
Fortunately no iPhones were harmed in the taking of this photo.
Photo: Weibo

A fire broke out over the weekend a Foxconn factory in China that is used to manufacture iPhones. The fire reportedly started Sunday night, although it was fortunately brought under control by the fire department before too much damage could take place.

Apple preparing to open its 33rd store in China

By

mixc-mall-qingdao-web-copy
The location for Apple's next retail store.
Photo: Benoy

The Chinese economy may be down, but Apple’s not taking its foot off the gas for a second when it comes to hitting its target of opening 40 Apple Stores in China by the end of 2016.

The country’s 33rd Apple Store is set to open at 10am local time next Saturday, January 31, at the giant MixC shopping mall in Qingdao, a city in eastern Shandong Province on the east coast of China.

London’s mayor defends Apple’s tax practices in E.U.

By

money
London's mayor doesn't think Apple's necessarily in the wrong.
Photo: Universal Pictures

Apple’s tax situation in Europe is currently the subject of an E.U. investigation — and public opinion hasn’t been helped too much by Google recently agreeing to pay what many view as a derisory sum of £130 million ($185m) in U.K. back taxes for the past ten years.

But Cupertino has an unexpected champion in the form of tousle-haired London mayor (and possible next Prime Minister) Boris Johnson. Kind of.