Remember that time Microsoft’s Steve Ballmer openly laughed at the iPhone? Well, it turns out the phone business isn’t so easy after all, because for the second year in a row Microsoft has announced it’s laying off large numbers of people — this time mainly involved with Windows Phone hardware.

Despite cutting a total of 7,800 jobs, however, Microsoft insists it’s not throwing in the towel on its Windows Phone division, and still plans to push forward with Windows 10 Mobile and launch new Lumia flagship devices later in 2015.

If you ever want to find some evidence of just how significant Apple is these days, take a look at how it can impact upon seemingly unrelated areas — like, say, tourism.

According to a new report, following Apple’s decision to name last year’s OS X version after Yosemite national park, interest in the beloved American landmark skyrocketed.

Pretty much everyone I’ve spoken to about Apple Music is loving it so far, but how much is it resonating with the general public? Quite a bit, according to the above-average upgrade rate for iOS 8.4 which can already be found on the devices of 40 percent of all active users.

For those keeping track at home, that’s only marginally less than the adoption rate of the most popular Android versions, such as KitKat and Jelly Bean — which have been around for years instead of just one week.

Based on changes in taxes and foreign exchange rates, Apple is set to increase the prices of App Store apps in Mexico, South Africa, South Korea and Turkey.

From electrocution while trying to get the perfect background, to accidentally shooting oneself while posing with a pistol, Russian selfies seem to be pretty dangerous things — with more than 100 leading to serious injuries in the country in the pas year alone.

With that kind of track record, it’s no wonder that Russia’s police force wants to do something about it — which they’ve apparently done by issuing a brochure packed with handy graphics showing how to take selfies without risking potentially fatal injuries.

Nobody’s really sure what to do with wearables like the Apple Watch, and we don’t just mean in the “How does this improve my life?” sense of it. Safety and cheating concerns are putting it on a lot of people’s ban radar, and laws are scrambling to incorporate the new tech as needed.

But some researchers at Penn State are about to see if the Apple Watch might find a home in the classroom, after all.

According to Eddy Cue, Apple’s senior vice president of Internet Software and Services, his team is on top of the recent removal of Home Sharing from the iOS 8.4 update.

Cue tweeted that we can expect the feature, which lets you share music across Home Sharing-enabled Apple devices on the same network, will return in iOS 9.

Tinder is going hands-free, but not how you’re thinking, sicko.

Developer T-3 has looked at dating app Tinder, which has people swiping left or right to choose potential connections, and thought, “That seems like a lot of work.”

Its solution: Let your involuntary physical functions swipe for you. You can see the idea in action in the video below.

Apple put up a new page on its website detailing the qualifications that third-party iPhone and iPad accessory makers must meet before the company will start selling those products in retail stores or online in the Apple Store. It’s not exactly the easiest process to meet Apple’s high quality standards. In fact, Apple now touts that these cases are “tested to the limit” before they make it on store shelves.

You know that feature when you order online from Domino’s that keeps you posted on the process of your order and even tells you which employee has put your pizza in the oven, and who just left the store to bring it to you?

I love that feature, for some reason. I don’t think it makes me some kind of creepy pizza stalker, if that’s even a thing.

But my main issue is that I had to keep my laptop open to stay on top of the whole process. Luckily, however, Domino’s has addressed that one, strangely specific gripe with the latest update to its mobile app.

One of Apple Watch’s best features is it can replace your wallet with NFC payments. Now Jawbone is ready to get in on the contactless payments too with the introduction of its newest wearable, the UP4.

I was shooting my son’s school play a couple of months ago with my iPhone, as I don’t have a dedicated video camera any more. Because I sat up close, I wasn’t really able to capture the whole stage in one shot.

What I needed was a wide-angle lens. That’s where these PhotoJojo magnetically attachable lenses come in.

When you’re shooting video with an iPhone, there are times when you want a bit more control over the image without having to resort to a confusing app.

The simplest way to get an altered image is an attachable lens, and these magnetically attached lenses from PhotoJojo do just the trick.

Opening a new Apple product for the first time is pretty close to a holy experience. Part of that is because Apple spends so much time perfecting product packaging so it’s simple, elegant and secure without compromising on intuitiveness.

However, it’s a mistake to think Apple is the only company that pours thought and care into something as basic as a box. In light of the recent rumor that Apple will be working with third-party accessory makers to co-design packaging for their products in Apple retail stores, it’s clear many other companies care as well. It’s about being eye-catching without straying from uniformity, it’s about being simple yet still adorned.

With this spirit in mind, take a look at some of the other electronic companies out there getting extremely creative with their product packaging. The goal for these seems to be making the boxes as gorgeous as the products themselves – and they succeed.

Get ready to waste entire days of your life as Don’t Starve, an endlessly life-threatening survival game from Klei Entertainment, is headed to your iPad as of July 9.

Don’t Starve: Pocket Edition will only run you a tasty $4.99, and it’ll be worth every penny. I can’t count the number of hours I’ve spent walking my little Edward Gorey-inspired characters around the various environments in game, dodging spiders, avoiding fish-men and collecting tons of resources to make sure I don’t actually starve to death.

To have this sweet time-suck of a game on my iPad? Pure bliss.

The difference in Uli Emanuele’s latest wingsuit flight and a thread going the eye of a needle is that if it misses, the thread gets a do-over.

So to tell you that Emanuele’s shot through a small opening in a rock formation in Switzerland was successful shouldn’t spoil the video. You will cringe and scoot tensely to the edge of your seat.

Emanuele’s jump, filmed with GoPro cameras mounted to his chest and helmet, was posted to YouTube on July 1 and already is approaching 3 million views.

If you’re starting to figure out how you can use HomeKit to make your house less dumb, you can now get started by heading to the Apple Store and picking up the ecobee3, the first thermostat that works with Apple’s smart-appliance platform.

The device retails for $249, and it’s available in North America Apple Stores today.

The first gameplay footage of Star Wars: Uprising was unveiled by publisher Kabam today, and if you weren’t already stoked to take on the remnants of the Empire, this should do the trick.

Blasters, force powers, flamethrowers, and plenty of swordplay brings the action in the developer’s first demo for the real time strategy game that picks up after the destruction of the second Death Star. The game is coming out on iOS and Android in September in anticipation of the release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens at the end of the year.

Checkout the first gameplay footage:

The Apple Watch went on sale just over two months ago, but it appears that consumer interest in Apple’s wearable has taken a huge dive since launch week.

Apple kicked off launch week in April selling an average of 200,000 watches a day, however a new report from Slice Intelligence claims sales have dropped to fewer than 20,000 a day in the U.S., marking a 90% drop off since the week of April 10th.

You can see how interest has slowly dropped in the chart below:

The iPhone’s standby mode is coming under fire from the state-controlled media in China, which released a new report claiming Apple’s smartphone is stealing data from customers.

While its profits may be falling on the back of weak smartphone sales, it’s not all bad news for Samsung. The South Korean company has been named the most reputable company in the U.S. technology industry in the Reputation Institute’s latest RepTrak report.

Apple TV owners can finally access all of Showtime’s series and movie without a cable subscription starting today.

Following in the path of HBO Now, the company just launched it’s stand-alone streaming package that works on iOS devices and Apple TV, and its cheaper than HBO.

If you’ve got an iOS phone, you’ve got one of the world’s most popular gaming platforms in your pocket. If you want to build the game that inspires others to gleefully smudge up their screens, you don’t have to worry about not having studied video game design in college. MakeSchool’s Free iOS Game Hacking Course will give you everything you need to build your own big hit for the tiny screen.

Be honest. When you got your first flip phone, you flicked your wrist to open it and said “Kirk to Enterprise” or “Beam me up, Scotty!”

It was fun to pretend, but the true Star Trek fan has been clamoring for a more authentic experience, a phone that looks like the real Star Fleet issued communicator.

Come January, you will be over the moon (or moons depending on the planet) when the Wand Company begins shipping a Bluetooth handset that looks identical to an original series communicator.

Tim Cook has been appointed to a six-year term at the Duke University Board of Trustees, the school announced today. Cook joins alongside Coca-Cola Foundation Chairwoman Lisa Borders, PRM Advisors founder Patricia Morton, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver and ValueAct Capital CEO Jeff Ubben.

If you live in the Queens area of New York you can welcome your very own Apple Store this Saturday — when the latest brick-and-mortar retail store opens at the Queens Center mall.

The store itself is set to be one of the largest mall-located Apple Stores in New York.