Your iPhone is set up as a still camera first and foremost, so it tends to automatically focus and expose your images. This is fantastic when you need a quick snapshot, but when you’re taking video, the constant re-focusing and exposure adjustment just makes everything look blurry and amateur.

You can tap the screen in either video or photo modes to get a quick adjustment, but the minute you or or subject moves, all bets are off. Your best chance, then, at keeping your iPhone videos blur-free is to lock the focus and exposure.

Here’s how.

The latest update to Facebook’s Messenger app will let you use it even if you don’t have (or want) an account for the social-media platform.

It’s still Facebook, though, so you’re going to have to cough up some personal info.

Taylor Swift, who made Apple blink this week by criticizing the company for initially denying musicians royalties during the free trial period of its new streaming service, now has her gaze square on the photographer who implied her stance is hypocritical.

Swift, through a spokesperson in England, said music photographer Jason Sheldon misrepresented the contract shooters sign before her concerts, saying it does not force them to sign away the rights to their shots.

Adobe Systems Inc. has yet another patch for you to download and install to fix yet another critical security hole in its ubiquitous Flash Player browser plugin.

Hackers are already onto the exploit, so if you use Adobe Flash Player, you really need to download and apply the patch.

Better yet, though: just stop using Flash Player.

The launch of the original iPhone and the first Apple Watch have been polar opposites. While the iPhone was available at Apple Stores and third-parties on launch day, getting your hands on an Apple Watch on April 24th was almost impossible.

According to researchers at Morgan Stanley, that’s because the Apple Watch is in even more demand than the original iPhone weeks after it launched in 2007.

When it comes to cool Android hacks, this one’s got to be up there with the best.

Developer Josh Max has managed to get Google’s mobile platform running on a Texas graphing calculator with about as much power as a kitchen wall clock. It doesn’t just boot up, either; it’s also capable of running apps, like early Android game Lunar Lander.

Pharrell Williams has been Apple’s BFF lately, but when it comes to the battle between Apple and Taylor Swift, Skateboard P is on Team Taytay.

The eleven-time Grammy award winning artist spoke at the Cannes Lions Festival today (where Apple just scooped up a big award), and said that what Taylor did was a great thing for music.

When you’re powering your iPhone or iPad, you don’t want to be stuck next to an outlet in order to use them while they charge. The solution? This 10-foot Apple charging cable, now $18.99 at Cult of Mac Deals.

Indie musicians haven’t been too keen on Apple’s music streaming service that originally planned to cut them out of a paycheck for three months. Now that Taylor Swift has won her battle against Apple Music, thousands of indie artists are changing their tune toward the upcoming service.

No matter how robust you believe your smartphone case to be, battering it with a hammer just for the sake of it is never a good idea. One young boy learned this the hard way when he smashed his smartphone to bits in an effort to show friends how strong his case was.

If you’re a fan of iOS gaming you’ve probably visited (or should visit) TouchArcade, which just so happens to be the largest and oldest iOS gaming website on the Internet.

Featuring news, reviews, guides, interviews, and one of the best iOS gaming forums you’ll find anywhere, TouchArcade is a great resource for anyone who feels like we’re currently in the middle of something of a golden age for mobile gaming.

But the site needs your help.

Flavio Sarescia’s photography is on billboards around the world, walls of train stations and even the back cover of a magazine. Yet he makes his living selling dog food.
 
His moody photo of a resting surfer on a rocky New Zealand beach at sunset caught the eye of Apple and landed in the “Shot on iPhone 6” advertising campaign, a collection of photos and videos from more than 50 iPhone 6 users prominently displayed in more than 70 cities around the world.

Sarescia and other hobbyists have pictures alongside those of established professionals, a subtle pitch to the rest of us that suggests whether the iPhone 6 is in the hands of an amateur or artist, both can create on “equal” terms. We all can make great pictures.

Thanks to iOS and Android, Apple and Google have been locked in a battle with each other for years now.

Which is why it’s all the more ironic that Google would choose to unveil its latest Street View feature by letting users scale Yosemite’s “El Capitan” — the vertical rock formation which just so happens to also be the name of Apple’s next OS X iteration.

The Taylor Swift/Apple Music controversy has reignited discussion about what exactly the trend toward music streaming is going to do to artists.

If you’re concerned that your favorite singer isn’t getting enough dough, you may be interested to check out Eternify, a brand new website which lets users play any song they want from Spotify’s catalog in loops lasting 30 seconds — gradually racking up pay-per-stream royalties for the artist or band in question.

“Music streaming’s virtually worthless for artists,” the website reads. “But we can change that.”

Apple’s crowdsourced “Shot on iPhone” ad campaign’s not just a hit with customers — it’s raking in plaudits from the pros as well.

The iPhone campaign and its accompanying “World Gallery” picked up the top prize at the Outdoor Lions competition at Cannes, with jury president Juan Carlos Ortiz describing it as “not just a great idea, [but] a game-changer.”

We couldn’t agree more.

If you’ve been waiting for Apple to make an iPhone with a flexible OLED display, you may be getting your wish — although not for at least a few more years. According to a new report coming out of South Korea, Apple is “very likely” to release its first iPhone with a flexible OLED display in 2018, and the company’s display suppliers are currently “working on it.”

Does this mean we’re about seeing bendgate part two?

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The internet is overflowing with ideas, news and perspective on basically every topic imaginable. But much of the web’s daily deluge of information is recycled or diluted.

Especially if you have a real passion for something.

The constant skimming of mindless aggregators, RSS and up-vote feeds looking for something meaningful can leave you wanting.

After all, the best insight usually comes from other people who share your passion; musicians sharing what their fellow artists and friends are listening to; politicos with their favorite roster of reporters and analysts and Apple fans have the Cult of Mac team.

The University of New South Wales in Australia is the latest school to tell students that wrist-worn devices, especially smartwatches like Apple Watch, are not welcome during exams.

Administrators issued the ban to get ahead of any possibility that the new gadgets could be used to cheat.

Apple seeded iOS 9 beta 2 to developers today and while there aren’t any groundbreaking new features or drastic improvements, the company did manage to add a bunch of little changes and tweaks across the OS.

Most of the improvements are small design changes, but there are a couple really useful additions too, like adding Handoff to the app switcher, search improvements are more.

Take a look at everything that’s new in iOS 9 beta 2:

Everybody loves a good Siri Easter egg, but they aren’t always “ha-ha” funny.

The city of Regina in Saskatchewan, Canada, has apparently seen some serious fallout in the wake of the latest viral “Ask Siri about … ” trend.

Remember Echo, Amazon’s Siri-in-a-tube which was first announced back in November, but until now has only been available on an invitation-only basis?

If the idea of getting hold of Jeff Bezos’ standalone virtual assistant appeals to you, today is your lucky day — as Echo is now available to all U.S. customers for $179.99 via Amazon.com.

Upgrading to a new version of iOS isn’t an easy task if you’ve got a device with 16GB or storage or less. Starting with iOS 9 though, Apple’s going to help you free up space by automatically deleting your apps. But don’t worry, it’ll put them right back after updates are done.

This is what the notification looks like if you don’t have enough space:

Apple Music is ready to launch in just seven days, and it looks like it’s coming with some exclusive songs too.

Pharrell tweeted out a short video of an unreleased song ‘Freedom’ this morning. Based on the tweet, it looks like the song could be part of a new album that’s coming exclusively to Apple Music.

Check out a short snippet of it below:

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office granted Apple 52 patents today, including a notable patent for a new hearing aid technology that would make the iPhone an even better device for the hearing impaired.

Instagram is already one of the best way to explore your friends lives, and now with its latest update, it wants to be even better at helping you scout awesome travel spots before you hit the road.