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Asking Siri to charge your phone could one day save your life

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siri exploit
"Siri, help me reach the emergency services."
Photo: Apple

From subtly dissing Rihanna to teaching you math with a Cookie Monster reference, Siri is packed full of offbeat Easter eggs. But here’s one that could actually one day prove useful, and even life-saving. Maybe.

If you’re ever in a situation where you need to phone the police but — for whatever reason — aren’t able to, asking Siri to “charge my phone 100 percent” will automatically dial emergency services. Neat, huh?

This $1,000 case costs more than the iPhone it’s designed to protect

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Simple, elegant, and very, very expensive.
Photo: Gresso

Given that your smartphone case is supposed to be there to stop you accidentally damaging the expensive electronic device underneath it, it seems slightly bonkers to spend more on protecting your  iPhone than you do on the iPhone itself.

That’s exactly what luxury company Gresso is doing with its new iPhone 6 case, however. Made of 18K Gold and Grade 5 Titanium, the case advertises itself as “luxury minimalism” — in contrast to other high-end iPhone cases which veer to the blinged-out rapper end of the spectrum.

If you ever wanted an iPhone case which says “I’m sophisticated and understated, but still make more in an hour than you do in a month,” this is probably it.

Solar-powered iPhones would be a sunny proposition for Apple

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Better than mains charging, surely.
Photo: Lilttleskittle/Flickr CC

Whether you’re talking about an iPhone or a MacBook, extending battery life is one of the biggest challenges faced by both engineers and users.

According to a new patent application published today, one of the ways Apple is looking to solve this problem is by incorporating solar cells into its future trackpads, Magic Mice, wireless keyboards, and iPhones.

A way of cutting down — or possibly even removing — the need to continuously plug in our beloved Apple devices in order to keep them juiced up? Yes, please.

How to avoid fake iOS crash scam that wants to steal your cash

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Give us your money, or the iPhone gets it!
Give us your money, or the iPhone gets it!
Photo: Cult of Mac

An iOS scam designed to cheat people out of money is being reported by users in both the United States and the U.K.

A number of iPhone and iPad users have received pop-up notifications on their devices informing them that iOS has crashed, that their personal data is being stolen by a third party, and that the only way to solve the problem is (surprise!) to pay between $19 and $80 for a fix.

Sounds legit. Where do we send our money?

Dark Horse unleashes Hell(boy) on your messages with branded emoji sets

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Hellboy-emojis
Now, you can use Hellboy emojis to drop the Right Hand of Doom on your friends in iMessages.
Photo: Swype

How big a fan of Hellboy are you?

If you answered, “Such a big fan that I wish ‘Hellboy’ were a language I could speak all the time — if only someone would make a keyboard to that effect,” you’re in luck because custom keyboard designer Swype has teamed up with publisher Dark Horse Comics to bring both Red and samurai rabbit Usagi Yojimbo to your iMessages.

3.3 million more people will now experience Sharknado 2 on Netflix

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Like flipping the bird to everyone else.
Like flipping the bird to everyone else.
Photo: Netflix

Netflix just added 3.3 million more subscribers, the company said in a live Google Hangout Wednesday morning, making cable just that much more irrelevant with the news.

CEO Reed Hastings even showed up to the earnings call in a Bojack Horseman sweater, contrasting nicely with all the other suits onscreen.

It’s like he’s letting everyone know that Netflix can’t be stopped, and he’ll wear whatever he damn well pleases, thank you very much.

Netflix’s stock price has also rocketed up for the just finished fiscal quarter, which comes on the heels of the June 23rd announcement of a seven-to-one stock split.

Sounds like Netflix is taking a cue from Apple’s playbook on this one.

London Transport to Apple Pay users: Charge or be charged

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Apple Pay is coming to the U.K. this fall.
Make sure you check your battery before you use Apple Pay on the Tube.
Photo: Apple

Apple Pay dropped in the U.K. this week, and iPhone 6 and Apple Watch users can employ the touchless payment method to travel on a variety of public transports, including subway, London Overground, busses, and trams. But public agency Transport for London has issued an advisory to those who wish to pay for their commute with the power of living in the future:

Make sure your devices have enough juice to get you where you’re going, or it’ll cost you.

Apple Watch will now control Hulu from your wrist

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Nope. It's just a remote.
Nope. It's just a remote.
Photo: Rob LeFebvre/Cult of Mac

There are two kinds of people in this world, those that want to watch television on their wrist, and those that don’t.

I fall into the first camp, so you can imagine my disappointment when I heard that while the update to Hulu’s iOS app includes support for Apple Watch, it does not include (dang it!) support for watching TV on Apple’s hot new wearable. Boo.

It does, however, allow you to control Apple Watch, as it’s a remote for Hulu on the various devices Hulu comes on, like Apple TV, PlayStation 3 and 4, Chromecast and Xbox ONE. So, I guess there’s that.

Neil Young pulls his albums from Apple Music ’cause they sound soooo bad

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Neil Young hates your silly music stream services
Neil Young hates your silly music streaming services
Photo: Kris Krüg/Flickr

Canadian singer-songwriter and musician turned high-fidelity music spokesman, Neil Young, announced that he’s fed up with music streaming service. Sure, there’s a lot less money in streaming than selling albums, but Young revealed to fans that he’s pulling his albums from Apple Music and other services today because the music just sounds too horrible for him to tolerate.

The Pono Player creator told fans this morning that the sound quality was dramatically reduced by ‘bad deals’ made without his consent so he has no choice but to pull his entire catalog from Apple Music, Spotify, and Tidal so that you, the fan, aren’t harmed by hearing his music in the worst quality in the history of broadcasting — which is probably the way you’ve been listening to his music the past five years.

Here is Young’s full explanation:

Maybe Apple Watch isn’t doomed after all

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Apple Watch is doing just fine, thank you.
Apple Watch is doing just fine, thank you.
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

That Slice data? Totally misleading, says analyst Mark Hibben.

Instead, he says, Apple sold over 4.5 million Apple Watches in two months of the June fiscal quarter. That’s way more than the 1 million units of the original iPhone Apple sold when it first launched in 2007.

“Apple Watch has a bright future,” writes Hibben, “despite what some market research polls might indicate. In its launch quarter, Watch will add about $2 billion in revenue to Apple’s top line.”

With numbers like that, even Apple can’t call the Apple Watch a hobby.

Going fast: a lifetime of online security from VPN Land, now 75% off [Deals]

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If you use the internet (we’ll go ahead and assume you do), you’re inevitably vulnerable to all sorts of sneaky advertisers and downright thieves trying to take your data, your money, even your identity. We all hate thieves (again, let’s just assume you do), but few of us lack the know-how to make our connection to the internet more secure, making VPN Land’s Lifetime Subscription a great option – and also a great bargain at $49.00.

Apple unveils new iPods in six colors

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iPod, therefore I am.
iPod, therefore I am.
Photo: Apple

After a short amount of time offline, the Apple Online Store is back up and running — selling a refreshed line of iPods, featuring some feature upgrades, and a nifty new gold color option.

Apple has released new iPod shuffle, nano, and touch devices, representing the first major upgrade for the product lines since way back in 2012. While the shuffle and nano both get the new gold color — alongside five other color options — the biggest upgrade is reserved for the iPod touch.

Shanghai company creates a golden Steve Jobs bust to inspire its workers

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Steve Jobs was anything but a bust as CEO.
Steve Jobs was anything but a bust as CEO.
Photo: China News

Steve Jobs passed away almost four years ago, and people are still unveiling tributes to Apple’s late co-founder.

The latest is from a Shanghai company that created a gold bust of Jobs to greet employees as they sign in for work each day. The idea behind it is reportedly to “[inspire] in employees Jobs’s insistence on finding the best way to do something.”

Like sign in to work, presumably.

Majority of iPhone users would consider buying Apple Car

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Watch out Tesla, here comes the iCar.
Photo: Cult of Mac

The idea that Apple is working on a car is something the company still hasn’t admitted to, other than describing the product category as the “ultimate mobile device,” but that’s not going to stop industry watchers from speculating about it.

A Nielsen and SBD survey recently asked 14,000 iPhone-owning car buyers whether they would buy an Apple-branded automobile. And if the results are to be believed, Apple may be in a good position to get into the car biz.

This War of Mine brings the horrors of conflict to your iPad

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Make difficult choices in this compelling survival game, now on iPad.
Make difficult choices in this compelling survival game, now on iPad.
Photo: 11 bit studios

Phenomenal survival game, This War of Mine, is now available on your iPad (and select Android tablets).

The team did a fantastic job of creating the atmosphere of war from the perspective of the civilian’s caught up in it. The game’s visuals, music and play mechanics all work together to create an utterly compelling experience as a non-combatant trapped in a war zone, hungry and vulnerable.

It’s something every one should play, and now that it’s on sale for mobile tablets, everyone can. Check out the launch trailer below.

Apple may drop iPad Air 3 to focus on iPad Pro in 2015

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The iPad Pro could delay the iPad Air, cancel the iPad mini.
The iPad Pro could delay the iPad Air, cancel the iPad mini.
Photo: CURVED

We’ve been reporting plenty about the upcoming 12.9-inch iPad Pro, but so far there’s been next to nothing about the next-generation iPad Air, which most people are expecting this fall alongside a new iPad mini.

According to a new report, there’s a very good reason for that: The iPad Air 3 has been delayed until next year so that Apple’s manufacturers can instead focus on preparing the iPad Pro instead.

Apple’s diversity figures show increase in number of black employees

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diversity Apple
Apple is pledging to do more on the diversity front.
Photo: Apple

Speaking at Fortune’s Brainstorm Conference in Aspen, Colorado, Apple’s head of human resources has revealed that the company will record a 1 percent increase in its proportion of black employees in 2015. “We were pleasantly surprised to realize that we did have some movement,” said Denise Young Smith.

Apple will release its next diversity report this summer, showing increases for both women and racial minorities, Smith continued. She says that diversity in hiring is key to Apple’s talent strategy.

Chevron tests new gas pumps that accept Apple Pay

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How to set up Apple Pay on Apple Watch so you can breeze through checkout lines.
Apple Pay is coming to the gas pump.
Photo: Apple

Apple Pay makes buying items quicker than ever thanks to its tap-to-pay technology that is ridiculously easy to use. But if you want to use Apple Pay to purchase gas, you still have to deal with going inside the store and making a transaction at the register rather than at the pump.

That could soon change, though, as Chevron announced today that it has started a pilot program in Northern California that lets drivers fuel up and pay for their gas with Apple Pay, right at the dispenser.

Here’s where you can find the Apple Pay pumps:

The good and the bad of Apple Watch’s waterproofing

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Apple Watch ocean workout
One brave man takes his Apple Watch into the ocean. For science.
Photo: Craig Hockenberry

A new report suggests that the Apple Watch’s maker has sold its wearable short when it comes to its performance in water.

Developer Craig Hockenberry says that the wearable works (mostly) fine in liquid and knows because he swims with his smartwatch regularly. In the ocean.

Where sharks live.

Twitter working to repair relationships with devs

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Twitter managed to create a swarm of disgruntled developers over the past few years. It worked tirelessly to break down many of the third-party apps that made the social network successful. Now, as Twitter discovers what it really is as a service, it’s working to repair relationships with developers and elevate the platform. This ought to be a win-win for everyone.

T-Mobile outdoes Verizon with new family deal

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T-Mobile introduced a new family plan that’s directly targeting Verizon Wireless and isn’t shying away from it. The new plan, which offers 10GB of 4G LTE data to each family member plus unlimited talk and text starting at $100 per month, bests Verizon’s shared 10GB of data for four members at $140.

T-Mobile’s CEO John Legere hasn’t been nice to competitors since taking the reigns and doesn’t seem interested in starting now. While Verizon claims its family plan is actually $80 per month, Legere argues that you’ll get charged at least $140 per month when all the additional fees add up.