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How to escape those awkward iMessage group convos

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So long, farewell, auf wiedersehen, goodbye!
So long, farewell, auf wiedersehen, goodbye!
Photo: Rob LeFebvre/Cult of Mac

You know how it is — you get invited to a multi-person chat via iMessage with people you sort of know and it gets all kinds of awkward and annoying as the group blows up your iPhone with a ton of messages you really don’t want to pay attention to.

What’s a popular girl or guy like you to do? There are a couple of ways to get out of those iMessage group conversations so you can finally relax.

Apple might unveil Pencil-ready iPad Air 3 in March

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ipad-stylus-creation-apps
The iPad Air will reportedly be updated in March.
Photo: Apple

It appears we won’t have to wait much longer to see what the next-generation iPad Air will look like.

Apple plans to unveil the iPad Air 3 at a special event in March, according to a new report, which claims new Apple Watch hardware will also get some stage time during the keynote.

Best weather widgets for iPhone

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Four apps that make checking the weather on your iPhone quick and easy.
Four apps that make checking the weather on your iPhone quick and easy.
Photo: Ally Kazmucha/The App Factor

app-factor-logo-thumbnailI don’t like spending a lot of time inside weather apps. Instead, I’d rather just swipe down and view current and impending conditions within the Today view section of Notification Center.

That’s why, when looking at weather apps to try, one of my criteria is that whatever one I choose, it comes complete with widget support. Depending on what kind of weather data you need, these weather apps currently have the best weather widgets for iPhone.

Home security kit will keep you safe (but not your wallet)

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MyFox's wireless home security hardware works well but will cost you a pretty penny.
MyFox's wireless home security hardware works well but will cost you a pretty penny.
Photo: Stephen Smith/Cult of Mac

A few years ago, home security systems were a luxury for the rich and famous (or at least the well-off). They could be super-expensive, clunky, and usually had to be installed by a team of security specialists.

But times are changing. As the market becomes flooded with smart home-security systems, they get better and better. A great example: wireless security systems by MyFox.

Get your iPhone into (and out of) recovery mode with this free software

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ReiBoot is free software that makes it possible to rescue your phone's OS no matter what kind of trouble it runs into.
ReiBoot is free software that makes it possible to rescue your phone's OS no matter what kind of trouble it runs into.
Photo: Tenorshare

This post is brought to you by Tenorshare, maker of ReiBoot and iPhone Care Pro.

Too many of us know the sense of powerlessness that comes with staring at a red Apple logo on an iPhone screen for minutes on end, or seeing the device stuck in an endless restart loop. When the time comes to restore a corrupted or compromised iPhone, the simplicity of an iOS device can turn into an imposing, tangled mess as you use iTunes to wake it up from its digital coma.

iOS 9.3 public beta 2 brings Night Shift toggle to the people

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Toggle Night Shift right from Control Center.
Toggle Night Shift right from Control Center.
Photo: Rob LeFebvre/Cult of Mac

Following up Monday’s release of iOS 9.3 beta 2 to developers, Apple’s continued its plan to get its latest mobile operating system into the hands of public beta testers as well.

This morning sees the provision of iOS 9.3 public beta 2, which brings with it a new Control Center button to toggle Night Shift — the feature that decreases sleep-disturbing blue light on your iPhone.

San Jose says yes to sprawling new Apple campus

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Apple hQ
Apple's building a new office in San Jose.
Photo: Apple

Apple is officially moving into San Jose.

The company received unanimous approval from the San Jose city council this week to develop on property it has leased in North San Jose for the next 15 years. The council approved Apple to build up to 4.15 million square feet of space, but what Apple plans to do with it is still a mystery.

Apple’s senior director of real estate development, Kristina Raspe, told the city council that the company still doesn’t have any firm plans on how the space will be used.

Twist this giant knob to make your music sound better

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Twist the night away with this headphone amp's gigantic dial.
Twist the night away with this headphone amp's gigantic dial.
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

Best List: The Element headphone amplifier by JDS Labs

“Take the conn, Jimmy.”

“Aye aye, Captain.”

Every single time I lay my hands on The Element’s giant, super-precise dial of sonic control, that Star Trek scene rolls through my head. Which is a little weird for me, since Captain Kirk and I have the same name, but I overlook this small snag as I dial in the perfect volume on my JDS Labs headphone amplifier.

Chrome update gives iOS users a speed boost

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Chrome for iOS  just got faster.
Chrome for iOS just got faster.
Photo: Google

Good news for iOS users who prefer Chrome: Google’s browser is now as fast as mobile Safari.

Chrome has switched to the WKWebView engine, which first became a feature in 2014 with iOS 8, allowing third-party browsers access to the same rendering engine as Safari.

Teach your old Mac a new set of tricks [Deals]

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Pay what you want to get 8 productiviy-boosting apps for your Mac.
Pay what you want to get 8 productiviy-boosting apps for your Mac.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

You love your Mac, but you can always make it even more lovely. These eight apps will boost your favorite computer’s safety and your productivity across a wide swath of uses, from data recovery to Android management to unlocking PDFs and beyond. The best part, you can pay whatever you want for the whole thing, and a portion of every dollar you drop will go towards the important work of Save the Children.

Samsung to copy iPhone Upgrade Program to stop switchers

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samsung-to-copy-iphone-upgrade-program-to-stop-switchers-image-cultofandroidcomwp-contentuploads201511Galaxy-S6-cam-jpg
Samsung doesn't want you to commit to Apple. Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Android
Samsung doesn’t want you to commit to Apple. Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Android

Samsung is reportedly planning to launch its own upgrade program to give Galaxy smartphone fans an easy and more affordable route to its latest devices.

The move would be a direct response to Apple’s iPhone Upgrade Program, and could prevent long-time users from making the switch to iOS.

Apple is once again China’s top smartphone brand

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China iPhone sales
Tim Cook is bullish on China for good reason.
Photo: Apple

Apple continues to get a better foothold in China, despite a slowdown in the country’s smartphone market.

According to the latest smartphone sales data from Kantar Worldpanel ComTech, in the month of December Apple regained its status as China’s most sought-after smartphone brand, with a sales share of 27 percent for urban China.

Apple may release special iPhone 7 Plus aimed at pro photographers

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You've got the (force) touch! Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac
Apple could release four different iPhone variants this year.
Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac

Ever since it unveiled the iPhone 5s and 5c in 2013, Apple has split its iPhone launch lineup in two each year. According to well-connected KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, however, Apple may further subdivide its iPhones — with not one but two iPhone 7 Plus variants set to arrive this September.

In a Wednesday note to investors, Kuo claims that Apple will launch one 5.5-inch handset with the regular iSight camera, while a second, rarer version will sport a dual-camera design for higher-definition images.

Apple Watch beats Rolex in luxury brands ranking

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Not everybody who bought the Apple Watch is wearing it.
The Apple Watch was the only smartwatch which made the list.
Photo: Apple

The Apple Watch has displaced Rolex on a list of luxury global brands, as measured by analytics firm NetBase, measuring social media mentions and consumer sentiment from more than 700 million posts between 2014 and 2015.

The Apple Watch took the no. 1 place in the list’s “watches” category — made all the more impressive by the fact that it was the only smartwatch featured. Other watchmakers it outranked included Tag Heuer, Richemont, Curren and Patek Phillippe.

Twitter wants to borrow some of Apple’s PR black magic

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Twitter
Twitter's looking to hire Apple's former Senior Director of Worldwide Corporate Communications.
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

Compared to tech companies whose PR departments act like celebrity hangers-on, bigging you up and laughing at your jokes to win favor, Apple’s uber-succesful public relations department is more like the movie Mean Girls in its approach to those not on its wanted list.

And with the proposed new hiring of a former Apple communications wizard, it seems that Twitter’s looking to get in on the Cupertino-style action.

Nifty app uses Morse code to send Apple Watch messages

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Who would've thought a dot and a dash could solve all your messaging problems?
Photo: Patryk Laurent

Although there are ways of messaging people with the Apple Watch — either with Siri dictation, or using pre-written responses and emojis — as far as I know, no-one has yet come up with the perfect method for typing and sending messages from the device itself, without needing to whip out your iPhone to help do so.

That’s exactly the problem Patryk Laurent, cognitive scientist working at the Brain Corporation in San Diego — and an avid Apple Watch fan — has set out out to solve. His solution is a nifty homemade app, which allows users to input their messages using Morse code.

Yes, it’s every bit as geeky and awesome as it sounds.

Siri drops fat beats in awesome musical collaborations

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Siri
"Hey, Siri? Let's spit hot fire."
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

Siri’s latest trick has it setting the tempo for the Internet’s beatboxing magic.

Apple’s digital assistant may not be the best beatboxer on its own, but it can provide the backdrop for some more talented people. And those people have found a way to get Siri to lay it down so that they can spit hot fire and record it for our entertainment.

All it takes is a little math.

The 5 biggest takeaways from Apple’s biggest quarter ever

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It's a veritable tornado of cash!
It's a veritable tornado of cash!
Photo: PublicDomainPictures/Pixabay

Apple reported record revenue during its earnings call Tuesday, but Tim Cook almost sounded like he was channeling Game of Thrones characters. He didn’t actually say “winter is coming,” but he might as well have.

Revenue is high for now, but iPhone sales are slowing down, the iPad continues to underperform and — most troublesome of all — the global economy will continue to play havoc with Apple’s bottom line.

Still, Cook and Co. remain optimistic about Apple’s ability to continue its world-beating performance. Here are five of the biggest takeaways we got from Apple’s Q1 2016 earnings call today with Cook and Apple CFO Luca Maestri.

Liveblog: Apple’s make-or-break earnings call

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LOVELOUD
Apple CEO Tim Cook will introduce the band Imagine Dragons Satuday at the LOVELOUD Festival in Utah.
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

The stakes couldn’t be higher today for Apple’s first earnings report of 2016.

Depending on how well Apple’s holiday season went, the company could set new records for the most profits in a quarter by any company ever as well as total number of iPhones sold in any quarter.

Apple racks up largest quarterly profit in history

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Apple's back on top again.
Apple's back on top again.
Photo: Apple

Apple’s earnings for Q1 2016 have broken the world record for the most profit made by a company in one quarter.

With total revenue hitting $75.9 billion, Apple managed to rake in a record $18.48 billion in profit. The company managed to increase iPhone sales to 74.8 million despite predictions from Wall Street that the company would see decline. However, Apple did warn investors in its guidance that next quarter may be the the first time growth drops.

Despite missing on some numbers, Tim Cook praise Apple’s team calling Q1 2016 “Apple’s biggest quarter ever.”