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Embrace the new Kindle Paperwhite for reading bliss

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Get a gazillion books at your fingertips day and night with the Kindle Paperwhite.
Get a gazillion books at your fingertips day and night with the Kindle Paperwhite.
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

Best List: Amazon Kindle Paperwhite

My wife is a voracious reader. And a bit of a hoarder.

So I tried to convince her to start reading ebooks on her iPad mini, instead of constantly bringing home new books from the book store. But it was not an easy transition. Partly because she loves to support our local bookstores and partly because she didn’t love the reading experience on the iPad.

Into the house comes a Paperwhite and all that changed.

iPad tops Best Buy survey of most desired tech gifts

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Best Buy is preparing for shoppers wanting iPads.
Best Buy is preparing for shoppers wanting iPads.
Photo: Apple

Want the new iPad or MacBook for Christmas? You’re not alone. Big box store Best Buy found the iPad the most desired tech gift this holiday season, according to a survey of 2,000 people.

The MacBook came in third behind the Bose QuietComfort noise cancelling headphones. Of the 15 tech items listed, the Apple Watch ranked 12th.

Tiny shock absorbers could save you a fortune in iPhone repairs

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broken-iPhone-5
An avoidable disaster?
Photo: Cult of Mac

iPhones are pretty tough things, but despite all the Gorilla Glass and engineering magic Apple can throw at them, they’re still susceptible to broken screens when dropped.

That could change in future iPhone models, with a newly-published patent application describing an automated mechanism for protecting the iPhone display with a method straight out of James Bond.

Instagram takes on Apple’s Live Photos with Boomerang

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Boomerang is just like Live Photos.
Boomerang is just like Live Photos.
Photo: Instagram

Instagram’s new app Boomerang lets users create one-second videos of everyday moments, then share them to Instagram, Facebook or Twitter.

The new app is a lot like the new Live Photos feature Apple introduced on the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus. Boomerang takes a burst of five photos, stitches them together into a mini-video, then plays the clip in forward and then reverse — you know, just like a boomerang!

Here’s how it works:

Give yourself the capacity to code with this bundle of lessons [Deals]

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Step up your coding game or start from scratch with this bundle of 8 lessons.
Step up your coding game or start from scratch with this bundle of 8 lessons.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

It’s never too late to learn a new skill, and coding is one skill that’s worth acquiring no matter when you choose to start. Few things look as good on a resume as confidence with a variety of coding languages and techniques, which is what this bundle of 8 courses offers. With over 74 hours of training on everything from basic web development to Ruby, Python, Node, and other essential elements of the modern coding landscape, there’s something here to enhance anybody’s skill set. And right now you can get in on these lessons for a whopping 94% off the regular price, just $59.

Another Apple partner accused of unsafe worker conditions

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timcookgoestochina
Tim Cook visits one of Apple's factories in China.
Photo: Tim Cook

One of Apple’s supply chain iPhone manufacturers is under fire for unsafe and illegal labor practices — and for once it’s not Foxconn.

This time the company is Pegatron, which worker rights group China Labor Watch says has not cleaned up its act, despite Apple claiming that it would investigate it back in 2013 after 86 labour rights violations were identified at three of its factories.

Twitter flips out over Apple’s new bird-flipping emoji

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Look for a one-fingered salute coming soon to a text near you.
Look for a one-fingered salute coming soon to a text near you.
Photo: iOS 9.1

Remember in grade school when you learned what the middle finger meant? Twitter was kind of like that Thursday morning as giggly and astonished people reported their discovery of a middle-finger emoji in their iOS update.

This is not new news. We knew the finger would fly when the iOS update was announced earlier. Maybe it got lost in the excitement of finally getting a taco emoji. Who knows. But the tweets about the bird were refreshing 20 and 30 at a time every few seconds this morning.

To most taking to social media, the middle finger feels naughty and delicious.

HomeKit makes Philips Hue smartbulbs even cooler

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Philips-Hue-smartbulbs
The new Philips Hue starter set might be the first must-have gear for people interested in HomeKit.
Photo: Evan Killham

If you’re even slightly interested in having smart lighting for your house, the new Philips Hue bridge, which supports Apple’s HomeKit automated-home framework, should be in your shopping cart right now.

Controlling your lights from your phone is one level of crazy future-stuff, but doing it with your voice drops you into an episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation. And you definitely want your home to feel like an episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation.

Tim Cook defends faltering Chinese economy

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tim-university-china
Tim Cook says Apple will continue to invest in China.
Photo: Apple

Tim Cook has stuck his neck out again in support of the Chinese economy, saying that Apple will continue to pour money into the market, despite a slowing stock market and economy.

“I know some people are worried about the economy,” Cook said in an interview with the Chinese Xinhua news agency. “We’ll continue to invest. China is a superb place to be. Nothing has changed that.”

Is your Mac or iPhone charger an energy vampire?

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Don't worry. This isn't a vampire.
Don't worry. This isn't a vampire.
Photo: Hildgrim/Flickr CC

If you’re environmentally conscious at all, or if you’re just trying to save a few pennies on your electricity bill, you’re probably aware that a lot of gadgets suck up a surprising amount of energy when in standby mode.

Consequently, many people suggest that you should totally unplug these “energy vampires” when they’re not in use … but how seriously should you take that? Should you be totally unplugging your MacBook charger, or your iPad charger, when it’s not in use?

Up yours, Unicorn Burrito: Unleash iOS 9.1’s awesome new emojis

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Emojis
This sad, middle finger-free existence is over in iOS 9.1.
Photo: Evan Killham/Cult of Mac

This week’s update to iOS 9.1 did more than just squash some bugs and tweak the Shift key. It also added a ton of new emojis to your built-in keyboard. If you want to put a number on it, iOS 9.1 adds 184 new, tiny pictures to spice up your text messages.

It may be hard to keep track of which ones are new, so we gathered up the newcomers for your convenience — along with where to find them.

Twitter’s next OS X update will bring support for El Capitan’s dark mode

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Twitter is getting a much needed overhaul on the Mac.
Twitter is getting a much needed overhaul on the Mac.
Photo: Rus Yusupov

Although the microblogging service pays a lot of attention to its iOS client, even rolling out a new feature called Moments last week, Twitter has traditionally ignored its OS X client. But it’s about to get a much needed update, including a dark mode custom tailored for OS X El Capitan.

New Apple Watch ads promote eBay, Uber and sucking face

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The worst time for your Apple Watch to bother you, and Apple makes an ad for it.
The worst time for your Apple Watch to bother you, and Apple makes an ad for it.
Screenshot: Cult of Mac

Although Apple’s still remaining mum on official sales numbers, Cupertino isn’t laying off the Apple Watch marketing as we approach the holiday season. Apple just released five new short ads highlighting Apple Watch’s ability to take advantage of Siri, Apple Music, Apple Pay, notifications, fitness tracking and more.

iOS 9 has already broken the 60% barrier

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Here's what time iOS 9 is landing in your area.
iOS 9 is crushing it in adoption figures.
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

The public version of iOS 9 has been available for just over one month, and already it’s passed the 60 percent adoption threshold — with 2x the number of users as are currently using its predecessor, iOS 8.

Kanye West gives Kim Kardashian the gift of Steve Jobs at surprise party

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Aaron Sorkin’s Steve Jobs movie is coming to Netflix
I'mma let you finish, but Steve Jobs was the greatest movie of all time!
Photo: François Duhamel/©2015 Universal Studios

Whether he’s giving Tim Cook unrequested business advice, inviting Steve Wozniak to see his newborn daughter, or talking about his admiration for Jony Ives (sic), Kanye West has proven himself to be a pretty unabashed Apple fan.

Which is why it’s probably no surprise that, when he took in on himself to organize a surprise party for wife Kim Kardashian’s 35th birthday, a special screening of Aaron Sorkin’s new Steve Jobs movie was top of the list.

Apple steps up its clean energy efforts in China

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Apple is spreading its green initiative to China. Photo: Apple
Apple is now carbon neutral in China. But it's not stopping there.
Photo: Apple

Apple and Foxconn are teaming up to build solar power plants that will ensure its iPhone-manufacturing factories in China run on 100 percent clean energy.

Foxconn has committed to constructing more than 400 megawatts of solar power plants, beginning in China’s Henan Province, by 2018. Apple will also build an addition 200 megawatts of solar projects throughout China, helping offset the carbon produced by the rest of its supply chain.

Beddi is an alarm clock that’s more like having your own butler

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The Beddi smart alarm clock has a host of functions. Waking you from sleep is just a start.
The Beddi smart alarm clock has a host of functions. Waking you from sleep is just a start.
Photo: Witti

You may have broke your last alarm clock swiping it off your nightstand as you tried to make it stop doing that one thing it’s supposed to do – get your ass out of bed.

In its place comes Beddi, the clock that teams up with your iPhone to wake you, get the coffee started and even hail you an Uber ride. Dock your phone at night for charging, enjoy some pillow talk with Siri, activate a mood light and fall asleep to white noise.

Ferrari boss thinks Cupertino will outsource Apple Car

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Apple Car
Magna International Inc. is making cars for BMW.
Photo: BMW

It’s an open secret that Apple is building it’s own electric car, but according to the chairman of Ferrari, Sergio Marchionne, it’s unlikely that the company will actually manufacture the vehicle on its own.

In an interview this morning on CNBC, Marchionne said that he believes the automotive industry is a space where Apple could really exhibit its skills. However, designing a car and making it are two different things, so Apple will probably have to outsource production.

YouTube’s new streaming service charges iOS users an Apple tax

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YouTube is going ad-free, for a price.
YouTube is going ad-free, for a price.
Photo: Google

Google revealed that it’s getting into the subscription video streaming game today with the introduction of YouTube Red.

The new $9.99-per-month service will give customers ad-free access to all of YouTube’s content, but the company plans to charge customers extra if they sign up through iOS.

Clever leather wallet case can turn iPhone 6s into a dock

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nodus-access-case-2-featured
This Italian leather case also attaches with the Micro Dock from Nodus.
Photo: George Tinari/Cult of Mac

I go through phases of different cases that I like to style my iPhone with. Back in the day I used to like clear cases just to show off the fact that I have an iPhone at all, but lately I’ve been really digging leather. That’s why I was particularly excited to try out the new Access Case 2 from Nodus, but it’s more than just good looks. It works as a compact wallet and dock for your phone as well. Yes, an actual dock.

Apple drops new software for Watch and TV, too

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WatchOS 2.0.1 is out.
WatchOS 2.0.1 is out.
Photo: Apple

The first big updates for iOS 9 and El Capitan were released by Apple this morning, but the company has some smaller updates for the Apple Watch and Apple TV 4, too.

The GM for tvOS was seeded today to developers who already got their hands on the early release Apple TV 4 units. That software will be the final version the new set-top box ships with next week. Apple Watch owners also received an update in the form of watchOS 2.0.1.

The Apple Watch update contains the following fixes:

OS X 10.11.1 update brings new emoji, Microsoft Office fixes and more

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

The first big update for OS X El Capitan has been released to the public today after months of beta testing of its new features and improvements.

OS X 10.11.1 brings more than 150 new emoji characters to the Mac, along with improved compatibility with Microsoft Office 2016, better VoiceOver reliability and numerous other bug fixes. The update can be now loaded through the Mac App Store or via the Software Update option in the Apple menu.

Here’s a full list of the improvements: