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Camera backpack gives you ready access for any adventure

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The BackLight 26L comes in two colors and provides gear access without removing the pack.
The BackLight 26L comes in two colors and provides gear access without removing the pack.
Photo: MindShift Gear

If having an ice axe loop on your camera bag is important to you, than you are probably the kind of photographer that is the muse of MindShift Gear.

The company that designs bags and other accessories for hardy outdoor photographers will begin shipping a new camera backpack in October featuring a rear-panel compartment that allows access to your gear without taking off your backpack.

And yes, there’s a spot for your ice axe.

Samsung reminds iPhone users they can’t customize iOS

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samsung-reminds-iphone-users-they-cant-customize-ios-image-cultofandroidcomwp-contentuploads201509Galaxy-customization-jpg
A custom theme on the Galaxy Note 5.
Photo: Samsung
A custom theme on the Galaxy Note 5. Photo: Samsung
A custom theme on the Galaxy Note 5. Photo: Samsung

If it doesn’t look like your phone, it’s not your phone… apparently.

That’s the tagline for a new Samsung ad that hopes to remind iPhone users they can’t customize iOS, and should therefore choose a Galaxy smartphone instead.

Viper SmartStart makes your smartwatch an essential car accessory

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viper-smartstart-makes-your-smartwatch-an-essential-car-accessory-image-cultofandroidcomwp-contentuploads201509Viper-SmartStart-jpg
Viper SmartStart comes to your wrist.
Photo: Viper
Viper SmartStart comes to your wrist. Photo: Viper
Viper SmartStart comes to your wrist. Photo: Viper

Remember that Ericsson phone that let James Bond control his BMW 750iL remotely in Tomorrow Never Dies? Now you can have your own… kind of.

Viper SmartStart is a smartwatch app for Android Wear and Apple Watch that puts car controls on your wrist, allowing you to locate, start, and control your vehicle before you even get in it.

What could be better than a lifetime of secure, premium VPN protection for 89% off? [Deals]

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A lifetime subscription to proXPN VPN offers secure browsing and online identity while lifting location restrictions.
A lifetime subscription to proXPN VPN offers secure browsing and online identity while lifting location restrictions.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

The internet is a wonderful, weird, and scary place. Protecting yourself online can be a full-time job, but with private network services like proXPN VPN, you can guard your online activity and identity easily. Right now, a premium lifetime subscription to their service is just $39 at Cult of Mac Deals.

Smart bulb colors your world without breaking the bank

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You can control the Nyrius smart bulb with your smartphone.
You can control the Nyrius smart bulb with your smartphone.
Photo: Nyrius

If you found the transition from incandescent to fluorescent painful, you will be relieved to know you are in the midst of a lightbulb moment. This is the year when the price of LED-based smart bulbs, with the color and quality of light controlled by mobile apps, falls far enough to go mainstream.

Entering the highly competitive space is Ontario-based Nyrius, which today rolls out a light bulb for $39.99.

Plex and VLC are coming to the new Apple TV

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Two of the best streaming media apps are coming to the new Apple TV.
Two of the best streaming media apps are coming to the new Apple TV.
Photo: Cult of Mac

If you’re worried for some reason that the new Apple TV might not have strong enough video chops with all those apps and games, good news: Plex and VLC, two of the best video apps around, are coming to Apple’s new set-top box.

Apple Car based on BMW i3 would be a ‘nice idea,’ says CEO

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Apple Car
Tim Cook allegedly wanted to use the BMW i3's body for Apple Car.
Photo: BMW

BMW’s CEO Harald Krüger thinks an Apple Car modelled on BMW’s electric i3 vehicle would be a “nice idea,” although he’s keeping tight-lipped about the chances of it actually happening.

And when there’s the potential of iPhone money involved, who can blame him?

Why the iPhone 6s is heavier than the iPhone 6

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The iPhone 6s has more junk in the trunk.
The iPhone 6s has more junk in the trunk.
Photo: Apple

In appearance, the new iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus look almost identical to the handsets that preceded them. But pick them up, and even without turning the handsets on you might notice a difference: Each is about 11 percent heavier than the previous year’s model.

Why’d the iPhone get so chunky? It’s all about 3D Touch.

Apple may launch iPad Air 3 this year after all

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iPad Air 2 Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac
The iPad Air 3 is still M.I.A.
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

The lack of an iPad Air 3 at last week’s Apple event was a surprise to some people, despite what we had heard along the way.

According to a new set of rumors, however, Apple hasn’t forgotten about its third-generation iPad Air for the 2015/2016 product cycle and will, in fact, be launching just such a device soon — either later this year or early next.

And if the M.I.A. tablet’s specs are anything like they’re rumored to be, it’ll be an upgrade worth waiting for!

Ex-Apple exec’s $35 million mansion is smart home of our dreams

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Heading
If the house of the future looks like this, I can't wait to get there.
Photo: Suzanne Perkins

Former Apple exec Michael Barnick is selling his $35 million California mansion, and all we can say is … wow!

Not only is the home the epitome of iPod minimalist modernism, but it’s (perhaps unsurprisingly) pretty high-tech, too. Controllable entirely via iPhone or iPad, the list of automated features includes lighting, music, TV, air conditioning, window blinds, fireplaces and door locks — with Barnick himself designing the home-automation setup.

Check out some of the gorgeous pictures below.

Crazy Apple fans tried to sell their kidneys for iPhone 6s

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iPhone 6s gets the biggest iSight upgrade yet.
Taking out a kidney's as easy as popping out an iPhone camera lens. Or something.
Photo: Apple

How much do you want an iPhone 6s? Probably not as much as the two men in China’s eastern Jiangsu Province who reportedly attempted to sell their kidneys to buy Apple’s latest must-have handset.

The bizarre story claims that friends Wu and Huang decided to sell a kidney each to get the money for an iPhone (mistake No. 1), and found an illegal agent on the Internet (mistake No. 2) who would help them.

UE Boom 2 speaker brings more of everything (except for screws)

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The UE Boom 2 is pretty on the inside, too.
The UE Boom 2 is pretty on the inside, too.
Photo: Ultimate Ears

SAN FRANCISCO — Ultimate Ears could have borrowed the iPhone 6s tag line to market its new UE Boom 2 Bluetooth speakers.

Like Apple’s latest smartphones, which Cupertino hypes with the clever catchphrase “the only thing that’s changed is everything,” UE’s second-generation Bluetooth speaker is almost indistinguishable from its tubular predecessor — at least on the outside. But upgraded specs and a few pleasant surprises give the Boom 2 a welcome boost.

“There’s something magic about this design,” said Diego Gabathuler, head of brand and global marketing for Ultimate Ears, as he showed off the Boom 2 during a demo at the Cult of Mac offices. “It would have been a shame to take that magic away.”

Apple’s super-size iPad Pro could be hard to find early on

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ipad-pro
The iPad Pro is on its way. Just not in the quantities you might expect.
Photo: Apple

Tim Cook told us the iPad Pro was the “biggest news in iPad since the original iPad,” but you wouldn’t necessarily know that based on initial availability of the plus-size tablet.

Apple is reportedly experiencing panel shortages for the device, making it likely that iPad Pro shipments will come in at less than 3 million for the last three months of 2015.

Burberry’s new channel brings a taste of luxury to Apple Music

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Burberry is now on Apple Music.
Burberry is now on Apple Music.
Photo: Apple Music

Fashion brand Burberry is coming to Apple Music with its own channel, and it plans on bringing a lot of luxury with it.

The company will curate its own channel on Apple Music starting Tuesday, offering listeners a taste of performances, songs and films that have come out of Burberry’s work with British artists.

Tim Cook gets mobbed during surprise NYC appearance

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Tim cook
Apple and Tim Cook have plenty to cheer about.
Photo: Apple

Tim Cook made a surprise appearance today at the Fifth Ave Apple Store in NYC ahead of his appearance on the Late Show with Stephen Colbert tomorrow night.

During his visit, Cook mingled with the customers, took selfies, and photobombed Eddy Cue before getting swarmed by a mob of fans anxious to get a close-up with the Apple CEO. Buzzfeed created a Snapchat story of the CEO’s visit which wasn’t announced to fans or employees before he dropped in for some quality times with customers.

Here are a few highlights from Cook’s NYC debut:

New app tracks the movies you haven’t seen (yet)

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So many movies, so little time.
So many movies, so little time.
Photo: Sofa app

Have you ever found yourself staring at the Netflix or Amazon Prime Video screen on your TV, or drooling a bit while you page through the Redbox screens at a red kiosk near you?

It’s frustrating, especially when you’re always hearing about movies that you must see right now, but can’t seem to remember when you’re on the couch (or sofa, get it?) with a remote in hand.

The developers of Sofa have you covered, though, with a new app aimed at helping you find and track all those flicks you haven’t seen, but want to.

Creepy Jobs and Gates portraits contain double the nightmare fuel

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Steve Jobs before and after, with maybe a little judgement about water sales.
Steve Jobs before and after, with maybe a little judgement about water sales.
Photo: Fulvio Obregon

“Me and My Other Me” is a series of illustrated portraits of celebrities. The roster of folks drawn up include tech giants like Bill Gates and Steve Jobs as well as music mega-stars like Mick Jagger and Michael Jackson.

What makes them creepy–aside from the highly detailed cartoonish art style, that is–is that they’re portraits of both younger and older versions of the subjects.

Just take a look at a few of these disturbing pieces of art below and you’ll see what I mean.

Apple Music showcases 4 new artists to ‘discover’

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Apple Music is awesome -- but can it replace the iTunes Store?
If you're looking for new stuff to listen to on Apple Music, the company has some suggestions.
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

Apple Music has done a pretty decent job of suggesting content to users over its first couple of months. Between its auto-generated playlists based on your preference bubbles and curation straight from famous acts and DJs, you should have little trouble finding something you might not mind sticking in your earholes. And a new batch of ads for the streaming service has even more suggestions.

You can check out what Apple Music wants you to discover in the videos below.

Save your ears from Apple Music’s endless loops

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Even Belle & Sebastian can get old with too much repetition.
Even Belle & Sebastian can get old with too much repetition.
Screen: Rob LeFebvre/Cult of Mac

Sometime in the last few weeks, I’ve had a big problem with Apple Music.

Whenever I’d start an album or playlist, I’d only hear the first song I chose, over and over and over.

I’d hit the Up Next list button and see the same song, endlessly repeated.

The fix is an easy one, but man did it frustrate me for weeks. Here’s how you can make sure you’re not stuck on repeat.

Here’s why you may not get your iPhone 6s Plus on day one

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The iPhone 6s Plus might be hard to find on launch day.
The iPhone 6s Plus might be hard to find on launch day.
Photo: Apple

Shipping dates for the iPhone 6s Plus have already slipped to 3 – 4 weeks on Apple’s website, and it appears that the low supply may be due to production problems with its bigger than big display.

In a new note to investors, KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo claims that one of Apple’s suppliers of the backlight display module is experiencing issues creating the new 3D Touch display, which could make the new iPhone hard to find in stores on launch day.

PowerClip will make your keychain feel inadequate

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Charging your iPhone and data storage are two of the many functions of the PowerClip.
Charging your iPhone and data storage are two of the many functions of the PowerClip.
Photo: Mirai

It seems a bit risky for your tech startup to make its first product a keychain. But London-based Mirai has one you’ll get a charge out of – literally.

The PowerClip is a key fob that serves first and foremost as a charger for your iPhone or Android smartphone. But it also has other functions, including an activity tracker, flashlight, key- and phone-finder and serves as a data storage device.

Save over 50% on the award-winning Scrivener 2 [Deals]

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Scrivener declutters the digital writing process, presenting all research and notes on one screen.
Scrivener declutters the digital writing process, presenting all research and notes on one screen.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

We were told that computers would make word processing way more efficient and less time-consuming. By now we all know the truth — writing on a computer is like fighting through an obstacle course of distractions, scattered notes and half-read articles. Scrivener is a word processor and project management app that streamlines and organizes research and writing on your computer, an invaluable resource that you can get for $19.50 at Cult of Mac Deals.