Apple plans to issue an update fixing two severe OS X Yosemite security flaws “as soon as possible,” according to a new report.

One bug is the recently discovered Thunderstrike 2, which allows attackers to overwrite a computer’s firmware in a way that is impossible to reverse unless users have the wherewithal to open up their Mac and manually reflash the chip.

The other is a “privilege escalation” bug known as DYLD that allows a program to run as though it has administrator access without prompting users to enter their passwords.

A new video mockup shows how Force Touch might work on the iPhone 6s, the less-expensive Apple smartphone expected to hit shelves next month.

Given that we’ve already seen how Force Touch is implemented on the Apple Watch and MacBook, this neat conceptual video shows some of the many ways we may use the technology in new iPhones.

Apple Music now offers replays of several Beats 1 shows through a feature called Beats 1 Replays.

These full replays aren’t particularly easy to find, but here’s how you can locate them and catch up with shows you’ve missed in their entirety.

Apple Music has its share of big-name supporters from the world of music, but Oasis’ Noel Gallagher isn’t one of them.

The outspoken musician — who has taken issue with just about every topic under the sun at some time or other — criticized Apple Music for its Beats 1 radio station and its “Connect” feature.

A Marine widow has had her stolen iPhone returned to her after revealing that it contained the text message and photos from her late husband, who was killed in a helicopter crash in Nepal.

“This is probably the happiest I’ve been in the last three months,” said Haley Johnson after she recovered the handset.

Are you tired of your Instagram feed being low on sponsored posts from companies trying to sell you things? If so, here comes the best news you’ve ever heard.

The company has opened up its advertising code to make it easier than ever for partners to get ads all up in the Facebook-owned photo-sharing app.

MadeWorn made a name for itself putting insanely detailed engravings on expensive Rolexes for celebrities willing to shell out thousands of dollars for the custom timepieces. Now the Los Angeles-based company has put founder and artist Blaine Halvorson’s touch on the Apple Watch — and it looks absolutely crazy.

Apple’s creation of the Beats 1 radio station has been one of the best parts about the company’s new Apple Music streaming service, but it might not be Apple’s only station for much longer.

As part of the deal Apple signed with major labels ahead of launch, Apple Music has the option to expand its lineup of Beats radio stations nearly at will, according to a new report citing sources with knowledge of the situation.

We hear all the time how technology makes our lives better. But many such advances leave the world’s 285 million visually impaired people in the dark.

Not so with this invention: A South Korean startup has developed a smartwatch with a face that has four sets of six dots that represent braille characters.

A lot of products promise to help you lose weight without requiring you to do any extra work. And here’s another one.

Thin Ice is a line of smart clothing, and its creators say that it will melt fat by tricking your body into thinking it’s colder than it is. And that’s it; that’s how they say it works. You can learn more in the occasionally awkward video below.

This post is brought to you by Lucidpress.

Anyone involved in digital publishing is pretty much forced to work with one of two applications: Microsoft’s Publisher or Adobe’s InDesign. The pricing of the two reflects the fact that they’re the only two games in town. And since Publisher is PC-only, Mac users have only one option.

Lucidpress thinks people are hungry for a viable alternative, so it’s created a web-based publishing platform that’s as scalable and feature-rich as any of the big-name desktop software — but priced for access to anybody.

Apple seeded a new beta of OS X El Capitan yesterday, and now the company is making the same software available to its public beta testers.

The fourth El Capitan public beta comes less than a week after Apple released the last one. And while it’s light on major new features, it comes with a bunch of bug fixes and performance improvements.

T-Mobile is doing pretty hot lately, but it’s unfortunately at Sprint’s expense. While the latter carrier has been declining in market share for the past couple of years, it’s finally now in last place out of the four major U.S. wireless carriers. T-Mobile snatched the bronze model.

In the quarterly earnings call, Sprint said it had 57.7 million customers with a net gain of 675,000. T-Mobile, however, gained 2.1 million customers last quarter for a grand total of 58.9 million.

CONTINUE READING »

It happens all the time: you spot a tiny error in a PDF document, and you’re powerless to fix it. Instead of accessing the original doc, opening it, making the change and saving another copy, what if you could just edit the dang PDF? That’s what PDFPen lets you do, along with a bunch of other functions that’ll make PDFs a lot more pliable, and right now it’s going for half off at $37.

Just a day after Business Insider reported that Apple is planning to become a wireless carrier by launching an MVNO, the iPhone-maker’s PR team is squashing the rumor.

We should pity the astronauts on the International Space Station, especially the two who are currently there for a year.

Just feet away from where they probably drink their Tang, the Japanese Experiment Module will soon hold samples of that country’s legendary Suntory whiskey to see how it ages in microgravity.

Suntory announced last week that it was sending whiskey samples on a Japanese transfer vehicle that will take off on Aug. 16 to rendezvous with the ISS. Some of the whiskey will be stored for up to two years to see how it mellows in space.

Taylor Swift shares a few more details about her Apple Music beef and subsequent reconciliation in the latest issue of Vanity Fair, while reserving her harshest words for Apple’s streaming rival Spotify.

You understand bird’s-eye view. How about the view of its prey?

It’s likely that mouse or fish don’t even see the canopy of feathers coming. Our eyes and brains barely work fast enough to process the sight ourselves, so the guys who work in the studio for the BBC’s Earth Unplugged slowed it down for us.

The Earth Unplugged slow-motion studio, which loves to deconstruct the spit of cobras and the flight of fleas frame by frame, has compiled a 70-second clip of a variety of birds as they take off, float and hover and, of course, stick their landings.

New 5K 27-inch iMacs and a 4K 21.5-inch model are almost certainly on the the way, according to code discovered in yesterday’s sixth OS X El Capitan beta.

An in-depth look at the latest version of El Capitan reveals three new files referencing the new Mac resolutions, while an accompanying image suggests the exterior design of the machines will remain largely unchanged from current models.

Apple’s long-rumored (and eagerly anticipated) iPhone 5c successor, the iPhone 6c, may not have been shelved after all — but instead pushed back to the second quarter of 2016, according to a new report.

Sources in the supply chain say Apple’s next-gen budget smartphone will also boast advanced “FinFET” processors to deliver increased performance and greater power efficiency.

There are plenty of advantages to larger, phablet handsets like the iPhone 6, but an obvious disadvantage is that they’re less easy to transport by slipping them into your pocket.

Industrial designer David Tsai has come up with an interesting solution to that problem with his new 3-D-printed iPhone keychain case, which allows you to easily attach the device to a belt or similar in order to avoid accidentally dropping it.

Isn’t it the most Samsung thing in the world to introduce a new technology that’s actually kind of interesting, and then ruin any originality points it picked up by blatantly ripping off Apple?

That’s exactly what happened when Samsung recently announced the SE370, the industry’s first computer monitor with integrated wireless charging function for mobile devices — only to “borrow” the exact same charging battery charging icon Apple used back in its skeuomorphic days before iOS 7 came along.

Oh, Samsung, will you never learn?

CONTINUE READING>>

It’s usually a question of when, not if, your charging cable is going to start wearing around the point where the cord meets the connector. And maybe you’ll try to make it work for a little while, but sooner or later your denial will wear off and you’re going to have to drop the cash on a new one. And then the whole sad process starts over.

One company is hoping to break the cycle with a leather cable that is not only tough but also aims to be the best-working cord you’ve ever bought.

OK, play time is over. Last week’s article on five things to do with your obsolete Apple TV was meant to bring some light humor to your day, but we heard your comments loud and clear. Many of you looking for legitimate tips on what to do with an old Apple TV felt misled by the headline when you wound up scrolling through a sarcastic list. For that, we apologize. I apologize.

But we’re not all talk and no action at Cult of Mac. Without further ado, here is an actual list of nine things – four extras because we like you a lot – that you can do with your old or soon-to-be-obsolete Apple TV. For real this time. Seriously.

After releasing the last El Capitan beta one week ago, Apple has seeded the sixth beta of OS X 10.11 El Capitan this afternoon, full of new fixes and features for developers.