Siri typically works pretty well when you’re just sitting around at home — or at least, it can usually hear you just fine. Whether or not you get the results you need is another question, but a prototype device created by engineers at Duke University could one day help Apple’s digital assistant understand you just as well if you’re in a crowded room or a car.
It’ll just have to get a little smaller first.
This week, Apple has released a ton of new updates into the wild, including better-and-better versions of iOS 8, an iTunes that does Apple Music a bit better, and a Boot Camp that will let you run Windows 10 on your Mac. Try that on your Chromebook.
We’ve got a ton more, too, like killer tips and tricks for the public beta of iOS 9, a slick feature on trailblazer photographers who took selfies back in the day, and some ideas on how Apple Watch should track weightlifting sessions at your local gym.
All that and much, much more in this week’s Cult of Mac Magazine
(Note: Because of Cult of Mac’s recent redesign, some images are not displaying properly in this week’s issue of Cult of Mac Magazine. We apologize in advance — and we’re working on it.)
There’s a smartwatch app for almost everything, but very few are useful to the men and women who work in microgravity.
So NASA is asking the pubic to design a smartwatch app for its astronauts to do everything from keeping them organized during science experiments to alerting them to space debris approaching.
Apple is definitely working on a self-driving car project, and according to some new documents, Project Titan appears to be further along than anyone thought.
Rumors of Apple’s car project first starting surfacing at the beginning of this year, with an announcement not expected until 2020 at the earliest, but the Guardian reports that Apple is already trying to secure a super-secret Bay Area test facility for the electric car.
Apple Watch owners with gigantic wrists are getting some relief today from Apple with a new set of extra-long bands that that can wrap around wrists up to 245mm.
The Apple Store is now stocking a new Link Bracelet Kit that can an add up to six additional stainless steel links to the 42mm Link bracelet. Apple is also introducing some new XL Sport bands for those using the cheaper model.
I wanted to find photos from my vacation a couple of weeks ago, so I figured I’d try out Siri’s new iOS 9 functionality.
“Siri,” I said, “show me photos from Hawaii.”
Dutifully, Apple’s updated digital assistant pulled up photos from my trip to Oahu a couple of years ago. They’re lovely, but I wanted more recent pictures.
“Siri, show me photos from Hawaii last week,” I said, reasonably.
As soon as I finished speaking, there they were. Siri had launched my Photos app on my iPhone and brought up the photos I’d taken while in Kona. Great stuff.
Here are some other ways you can get Siri to find the photos you want in the huge pile you have sitting on your iPhone.
Like every other company, Apple and Google have had their share of highs and lows in the past — but one thing that’s for sure is that neither of them can keep going from strength-to-strength indefinitely; they’ll both stumble at some point in the future.
But which will be the first to take a tumble?
Join us in this week’s Friday Night Fight between Cult of Android and Cult of Mac as we battle it out over that very question!
“Welcome to Spotify, Mr. President,” tweeted the streaming music giant Friday morning. That’s right: The president of the United States just shared two vacation playlists — and he didn’t use Apple Music.
The two music lists, titled “The President’s Summer Playlist: Day” and “The President’s Summer Playlist: Night,” contain 20 songs each, showing an eclectic taste with a diverse artist representation, including the Isley Brothers, Bob Dylan, Otis Redding and (ugh) Coldplay.
Apple is expected to unveil its new lineup of iPads at a keynote event in early September, but according to a recent rumor mill, the iPad Air 3 might not make an appearance on stage.
Chinese-based tablet supply chain makers have supposedly received decreasing orders because Apple plans to be more conservative with its tablet product line, claims DigiTimes sources who say a replacement for the iPad Air 2 isn’t in the works yet.
In his quest to get hold of a brand new iPhone, a teenager from the Netherlands has been arrested for attempting to steal a priceless artefact from the ancient city of Pompeii.
Making games can be as fun as playing them, and the key to mastering both is practice. After working through this bundle of lessons, you’ll be ready for the iOS game-making equivalent of Carnegie Hall. Covering the how-tos with over 20 games in four different genres, this package from StackSkills usually goes for over $2,000. But right now the whole thing is just $20 at Cult of Mac Deals.
Apple supplier Foxconn is reportedly cutting costs and widening its margins to keep ahead of the pack as the Chinese smartphone market slows, according to a new report.
We’ve spent thousands of man-hours over the years debating whether Android is better than iOS, or vice versa. A new video series by YouTube video producers ColdfusTion explores that same premise, by talking through the history of both platforms and how they’ve evolved over the years.
Whether you’re new to the world of mobile, or just fancy a trip down memory lane on a Friday, it’s well worth a watch. Check it out below:
An accidental Siri “butt dial” recently saved a teen’s life by allowing him to dial 911 while trapped under a truck, with his arms pinned down.
Rock music history is rife with musicians who developed a sort of god complex from money and fame.
A recent posting on Instagram indicates fame is unlikely to corrupt Brittany Howard, lead singer and guitarist for Alabama Shakes, who used the photo- and video-sharing platform to give a fan a guitar lesson.
Vacation films used to be something to fear. The blurry Super 8 home movie from the lake or the two-hour slide show of the neighbor’s trip to the Badlands would quickly put us to sleep (although we might have preferred death).
But these days, anyone can shoot and edit their vacation films with cinematic flair thanks to the latest smartphones and software that gives us tools that once required a film school degree. Just look at these stunning videos and you’ll see state-of-the-art summer memories, circa 2015.
Apple is looking to bring fighter-jet technology to your car’s dashboard, according to a new report that claims the iPhone maker is working on a 27- to 50-inch heads-up display for automobiles that will be completely controlled by gestures.
The U.S. Federal Circuit Court of Appeals has refused to give a second look to Samsung’s appeal of the original jury verdict saying that it violated Apple’s patents for the iPhone.
Originally slated for announcement during Apple’s alleged September 9 event, the rumored live TV service launch is now being pushed back to 2016. It turns out those stubborn TV networks are foiling Apple’s plans to deliver sooner. Fortunately, the new Apple TV hardware should still get a proper unveiling next month.
We already knew that Apple has taken an interest in how its third-party partners present their wares in the Apple Store, but a leaked memo is describing just how seriously the company is taking this new initiative.
Other than the clean white background that it’s so fond of, Apple is also asking vendors to pay attention to the typefaces they use and even the angles from which they photograph their products.
So it turns out Apple is controlling and particular. Who knew?
Apple’s new Wallet app replaces Passbook in iOS 9, currently in public beta. Just like Passbook, when you wave your iPhone at an Apple Pay kiosk, it will only let you choose your default credit card and pay for the goods or services you bought.
In iOS 9 beta, you’ll also be able to choose any of your other provisioned credit cards from your Apple Pay account without even unlocking your iPhone or accessing the Wallet app.
Here’s how.
While Apple’s long been criticized as a hiring mostly white males, the company has made some big improvements in the last year, hiring its largest-ever group of employees from underrepresented groups.
It’s an open secret that Apple is poised to take on the auto industry with its rumored electric car project, and according to Apple design guru Marc Newson, the automotive industry is stalled.
In a new interview, the Apple designer touches on a number of topics, ranging from his love of fountain pens to his current design pet peeve: boring cars.
Along with the public release of iOS 8.4.1, which added lots of fixes for Apple Music and Beats 1, Apple also has a bevy of iTunes improvements ready today.
Apple just released iTunes 12.2.2, and the update makes using Beats 1 and Apple Music in iTunes a slightly less horrible experience.
We’re eagerly anticipating iOS 9 next month, but Apple’s got a few more fixes to give us in iOS 8.4.1, which is likely the final mobile upgrade to iOS 8.
Apple released iOS 8.4.1 to the public this morning, bringing with it a number of performance enhancements and bug fixes, plus some nice updates for Apple Music and Beats 1.