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Pro Tip: Your Apple Watch’s Activation Lock may already be on

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Apple Watch Siri
Yes, Siri. It's already on.
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

Pro Tip Cult of Mac bugThis week’s release of watchOS 2 brings a much-needed security update to Apple’s wearable by adding Activation Lock to the device, and the great news is that you may not even have to do anything to add it.

Activation Lock has been around for a while for other Apple devices, and its purpose is to keep thieves from using them even if they manage to get ahold of your preciouses. The first version of watchOS only included basic locking features and a passkey, which wouldn’t keep smart evildoers from gaining access to sensitive data like your Apple Pay data.

Here’s how the feature shows up on the Apple Watch.

Photo app lets you send the party snaps when you’re sober

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Flashgap lets you take pictures at the party, but then makes you wait a day before you can share them.
Flashgap lets you take pictures at the party, but then makes you wait a day before you can share them.
Photo: Flashgap

There is a growing category of apps that fall under the heading, Apps to save us from ourselves. There are messaging apps that delay the sending of text messages and apps and hardware that measure the amount of alcohol on your breath.

Flashgap enters this category – probably in time for some – to stop embarrassing party photos from making the rounds before you’ve had a chance to sober up and consider who will get to see your fun and foolishness.

3D Touch turns iPhone 6s keyboard into a touchpad

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Selecting text on the iPhone 6s is ridiculously easy.
Selecting text on the iPhone 6s is ridiculously easy.
Photo: Matthew Panzarino/Twitter

Selecting text on the iPhone 6s will be a whole lot easier thanks to the introduction of 3D Touch, which can quickly change your iOS 9 keyboard into a trackpad.

iPhone 6s owners will be able to use two levels of touch to activate the trackpad, and then a deeper push to highlight text. The trick was first discovered by Apple analyst Ben Bajarin while reviewing the upcoming smartphone. TechCrunch’s Matthew Panzarino uploaded a video this afternoon showing off the new feature and it might be the best reason yet to upgrade to the new 3D Touch iPhones.

Check it out in action:

10 native apps that give Apple Watch some independence

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Native apps, like Dark Sky, take advantage of the new OS for Apple Watch.
Native apps, like Dark Sky, take advantage of the new OS for Apple Watch.
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

The future of computing may be sitting on your wrist, but it’s still tethered to something a little old-fashioned. But as of Monday, the Apple Watch’s new operating system allows it to cut a few of the cords that connect it to the iPhone.

Apple’s watchOS 2 debuted, giving the watch new superpowers but also allowing native apps to run independently of the iPhone.

How to set up third-party complications in watchOS 2

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watchOS 2 third party complications
Third-party complications are here in watchOS 2.
Photo: Evan Killham/Cult of Mac

Third-party complications have arrived to the Apple Watch in watchOS 2, and setting them up is far from complicated.

The new operating system for Apple’s wearable dropped this week, and this is one of the features the company has talked up the most. And rightly so, because it adds a ton of new functionality to the device.

Here’s how to put a wealth of new information on your watch face.

Get lost in Lifeline 2’s fantasy world on Apple Watch

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Help Arika avoid mortal danger while she wisecracks at you.
Help Arika avoid mortal danger while she wisecracks at you.
Photo: Rob LeFebvre/Cult of Mac

Dave Justus is no stranger to writing video games, having written both Telltale’s The Wolf Among Us adventure game for Mac, PC and console, as well as the original Lifeline, a text-based story game that brought the epic struggles of an astronaut named Taylor to our wrists.

With the help of 3 Minute Games’ lead game designer Mars Jokela, Justus has created another massive adventure that still fits inside your Apple Watch. This time, however, you’ll have a conversation with Arika, a young woman with magical powers who needs your help to escape mortal danger.

Lifeline 2: Bloodline is a funny, moving, and above all human story that really plays to the strengths of the Apple Watch; it’s like having a text conversation (with a cheeky magician) from your wrist.

“We’ve built Lifeline 2 to be a bigger and richer experience,” says Jokela via email, “[but] the story is still focused on a likable, relatable character who desperately needs your help.”

Apple is aiming for 6 cores in A10 processor

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If you think the A9 processor is fast, wait 'til you see the A10.
If you think the A9 processor is fast, wait 'til you see the A10.
Photo: Apple

The iPhone 6s is the fastest smartphone on the planet, but according to a new rumor, Apple is planning to make a huge leap with its A10 processor in the iPhone 7 that will turn the device into an unbelievable speed machine.

It seems a bit early to start talking about the iPhone 7’s processor when the 6s hasn’t even gone on sale yet, however, the Apple rumor mill has spit out a rumor claiming Apple’s A10 processor will boast 6 cores.

Become an Apple Watch time traveler with watchOS 2

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Time travel without a flux capacitor - right on your wrist.
Time travel without a flux capacitor - right on your wrist.
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

If there’s one thing we could all benefit from, it’s more time in the day. Unfortunately, Time Travel on the new Apple Watch operating system, watchOS 2, won’t actually let you travel back in time to get a few extra hours of Netflix in, no matter which edition you purchased.

However, watchOS 2 does now include a new feature called Time Travel, which lets you see the past and future right on your wrist. You can check what the weather will be a few hours from now for your drive home, see if you’ve got any appointments later in the day, or just figure out what time the sun set yesterday to prove you were home before it got dark.

Either way, here’s how to Time Travel on your Apple Watch running watchOS 2.

You won’t be able to buy an iPhone 6s on launch day in these 5 states

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iphone-6s-3d-touch
Chipgate won't drain your battery, says Apple.
Photo: Apple

Despite being sold out online, the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus will be available for walk-in purchase on September 25th, except for customers in five unlucky states.

Apple revealed in a press press release that customers in Hong Kong, China, Japan and five U.S.states won’t be able to walk-in to a local Apple Store at 8 a.m. local time on Friday, September 25th to buy the best iPhone Apple’ ever created.

Here are the five states that won’t sell you an iPhone on launch day:

How to tell if you’re using a counterfeit version of Xcode

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Double-check that you're using the right version of Xcode to build apps.
Double-check that you're using the right version of Xcode to build apps.
Photo: Johan Larrson/Flickr

Developers who have downloaded Xcode from an non-Apple source now have a way to tell if the version their using is an official Apple version, or if it might be infected by XcodeGhost, which wreaked havoc on the App Store on Sunday.

Apple has outlined how to verify if you’re using a counterfeit version of Xcode in a new support document. Developers should always download Xcode directly from the Mac App Store or Developer Website, but if you haven’t, follow these steps to make sure your copy is legit:

Amazon’s Web Services rule the net, here’s a chance to learn all about them for just $19 [Deals]

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original_2579_AWSEngineerCertificationBundle_MF-MAIN

Netflix, Instagram, Airbnb, Vine, the list on major web outfits that build at least part of their operations on Amazon Web Services (AWS) is as long as it is impressive. Knowledge of how Amazon’s cloud hosting platform works is invaluable to any web developer or IT professional, and this course bundle — going for 93% off — is a great opportunity to get caught up and certified for just $19 at Cult of Mac Deals.

GM exec calls Apple Car a ‘gigantic money pit’

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giphy
I like to think this is how Tim Cook starts his day.
Photo: Walt Disney Television Animation

Industry insiders are absolutely positive that Apple has no business entering the smartphone smartwatch car industry — with former GM Vice Chairman Bob Lutz telling CNBC that an Apple Car has the potential to be a, “gigantic money pit.”

Yep, we agree Lutz — an autonomous Apple Car has the potential to make loads of money for Apple.

Oh wait, you mean the bad kind of money pit?

Spectacular without surprises: What critics think of iPhone 6s

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how-iphone-6s-stacks-up-against-android-rivals-image-cultofandroidcomwp-contentuploads201509Screen-Shot-2015-09-09-at-203842-png
Check out our iPhone 6s metareview.
Photo: Apple

It’s been two weeks since Apple announced its latest iPhones, and the first reviews are in — letting the rest of the world know what we can expect to find this Friday (or possibly before, if you’re an AT&T customer.)

So what do reviewers think? Mainly that 3D Touch is the way of the future, that Apple should concentrate on battery life, and that the iPhone 6s may just be Apple’s greatest handset yet… although the iPhone 7 will be better.

Yep, it’s a mixture of insane expectations coming into contact with an iPhone that was only ever going to be a marginal improvement on last year’s best-selling iPhone 6.

Check out the highlights below:

The only thing better than beautiful bikes? Innovative bike gear

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DeRosa carbon fiber road bike
Found on the floor at Interbike was this beautiful Italian goodness in the form of a blinged-out DeRosa.
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

LAS VEGAS — If you need proof that the entrepreneurial spirit is alive and well in the bike industry, look no further than Interbike. The massive bike show here is an undeniable indication that innovators are still plugging away in their garages, trying to build the next big thing and prep it for Kickstarter.

Independent innovators are making cargo bikes one at a time, marketing lightweight welding masks to protect riders from the rain, and dreaming up helmet inserts for the world’s great sweaters. Cult of Mac takes one more lap around the convention center hall …

Apple Watch Rickroll shows Apple’s no stranger to LOLZ

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rickroll-2_1024
You wouldn't get this from any other company.
Photo: Cult of Mac

Apple has hidden a Rickroll in plain sight in its latest Apple Watch help page, with a FAQ on how to add friends on your Apple Watch spelling out a very familiar reference.

Sure, it’s all a bit 2008 by now, but there’s still something hilarious about Apple spelling out “NE VE RG ON NA GI VE YU UP” as the initials of your apparent Apple Watch friends.

Well played, Apple. Well played!

One lucky iPhone 6s customer has already received their order

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iPhone 6s
What's the betting Tim Cook's not too happy about this?
Photo: Adrienne/Moonshine Design

One incredibly lucky Apple fan, San Diego-based Twitter user @MoonshineDesign, has already received her brand new Rose Gold iPhone 6s — several days ahead of its Friday release date.

Adrienne went on to post a variety of photos of the device, along with videos shot with the camera and even a Geekbench test, confirming the 2GB of RAM for the device.

iPhone case leads to panic at one of Europe’s busiest airports

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MAIN-iPhone-gun-case
An iPhone case similar to the above caused the problem.
Photo: Mirror

An iPhone brought one of Europe’s busiest airports to a panicked stand yesterday — resulting in considerable delays as one terminal gate was closed for “security reasons.”

Why? A passenger supposed to be travelling from Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport thought it was a bright idea to do so with his iPhone in a custom case made to look like a gun.

This is why we can’t have nice things.

4 watchOS 2 improvements you didn’t know you wanted

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Apple Watch Update
The new custom faces aren't the only great part of watchOS 2.
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

Apple’s second major iteration of its wearable firmware, watchOS 2, is finally out today, and it has some extra fun features hiding along with all of the ones the company has been talking about since it first announced the update back in June.

Sure, native apps and custom watch faces are cool, but watchOS 2 also contains some smaller updates that you have to look for. Here are some of the hidden gems.

Give your Apple Watch a facelift with watchOS 2

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Apple Watch is a killer device, even without a
Apple Watch is a killer device, even without a "killer app."
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

I was so excited to have a color screen on my Apple Watch when I picked the Sport up this past April.

When I went through all the watch faces, though, I was rather underwhelmed; really, you have a bright, high-resolution monitor on your wrist and all you can do is put a moving moth or Mickey Mouse on it? Ugh.

Luckily, with watchOS 2, Apple’s made things just a little brighter and a little more animated. Here’s how to get these snappy new watch faces on your own Apple Watch.

Is this Apple exec poking fun at Project Titan sleuths?

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Apple car concept art side doors
If Apple really is working on an electric car, DJ Novotney has one heck of a sense of humor.
Photo: Aristomenis Tsirbas/Freelancer

An Apple exec reportedly working on the company’s secret car project might be playing mind games with the Apple Kremlinologists searching for clues.

Is it the tech world’s biggest insider joke, or a sly hint that Apple’s automotive ambitions are real?

FAQ: Everything you need to know about the XcodeGhost App Store hack

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Pirate Flag
Steve Jobs' old mantra about "It's better to be a pirate than join the navy" probably wasn't on Apple's application form.
Photo: George Hodan/Public Domain Pictures

If you’re as confused as we were when we first heard about the major App Store hack over the weekend, we’re here to help.

Here’s a compilation of everything we know about the XcodeGhost story, and we’ll be updating it as more develops.

Ex-baseball player makes pitch to turn iPhone into radar gun

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The Scoutee can attach to an iPhone and record pitch speeds and other data it sends to an app.
The Scoutee can attach to an iPhone and record pitch speeds and other data it sends to an app.
Photo: Scoutee

Miha Uhan’s dream of standing on a big league mound is dead. But he’s still got a big pitch that could impact the game of baseball.

The former Slovenia national team player now leads a team of developers who have created a small device that can turn an iPhone into a radar gun to clock the speed of a thrown baseball.