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Apple Watch inches closer to in-store pickup

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Apple Watch supply is finally catching up with demand. Photo: Leander Kahney/Cult of Mac

Apple is getting ready to offer customers the chance to pick up their new Apple Watches in brick-and-mortar retail stores, according to a new option on the Apple Online Store describing the service as “available soon.”

On eBay and Craigslist, every Apple Watch is pure gold

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Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac
The Apple Watch is a hot ticket on eBay and Craigslist as owners cash in on long wait times. Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac
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With shipping dates for new Apple Watch orders slipping to July and beyond, some owners are selling their devices in hopes of turning a quick profit.

It seems to be working. There’s a brisk trade of Apple Watches on eBay and Craigslist, with some used devices fetching up to twice their retail value.

“I am wearing the watch as we speak,” said one seller, who identified himself as Ben and has a stainless steel Apple Watch on Craigslist for more than $200 over the list price.

“I’ve been wearing the Watch since I posted that hoping to get a small profit,” he said. “Part of me hoped nobody would offer me the extra few hundred because I really wanted to wear this gorgeous first-gen product! I haven’t worn a watch in 10 years.”

Tim Cook lunch auction hits $200,000, but time’s running out

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How much would you pay for lunch with Tim Cook? Photo: Apple

If you fancy sitting down over lunch with Tim Cook, along with being the Apple CEO’s guest at a future Apple keynote, you’d better hurry.

That’s because today marks the end of the annual Tim Cook Lunch auction to raise money for Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights — with the bidding currently standing at $200,000.

FTC already concerned about possible Beats Music antitrust violation

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So long as the next episode doesn't include antitrust violations, that is. Photo: Beats Music
So long as the next episode doesn't include antitrust violations, that is. Photo: Beats Music

Apple may be struggling to finalize deals with record labels ahead of its Beats Music rebranding this summer, but that’s not stopping the U.S. Federal Trade Commission from scrutinizing it for potential antitrust violations, according to a new report.

The reason? Despite currently experiencing an 8 percent drop in its iTunes popularity, Apple’s history as the largest seller of music downloads means it could theoretically abuse its position to put rival companies on the back-foot.

Former Apple retail boss’ new gadget site will send tech experts to your home

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Steve Jobs and Ron Johnson at Apple's Fifth Avenue Apple Store grand opening.
Steve Jobs and Johnson at Apple's Fifth Avenue Apple Store grand opening. Photo: Richard Agullar
Photo: Richard Agullar

Ron Johnson, a.k.a. the former Apple retail guru who played a key role in launching the Apple Store, has officially launched his new startup.

Called Enjoy Technology, Johnson’s website sells dozens of high-end tech gadgets, including smartphones, laptops, speakers, tablets, and drones — only with the added twist that customers get free home setup from an expert at no extra cost.

Conan O’Brien shows us how to fix Apple Watch’s tattoo problem

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Photo: Team Coco
Tattoos are no problem with Apple Watch Hand. Photo: Team Coco

Apple Watch has a known issue where it doesn’t exactly play nice with tattoos. For some wearers with dark wrist tattoos the device can’t detect if you have a pulse, but according to Conan O’Brien, it’s not really glitch if Apple can sell you a fix.

So far Apple’s only advice seems to be, “just don’t get wrist tattoos,” but the late-night TV show host has come up with his own hilarious way to fix the TattooGate problem.

Let us introduce you to the Apple Watch Hand:

Apple wants to dissect your genes with the iPhone

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Gene testing, coming soon to an iPhone near you. Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac
Gene testing, coming soon to an iPhone near you. Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac
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The next big feature for the iPhone might involve a lot of spitting. Apple is planning to launch new Research Kit studies at WWDC in June that will focus on DNA studies, according to a new report, claiming Apple is collaborating with researchers in the U.S. to create two new apps.

The new apps will be based on ResearchKit, Apple’s software platform that helps scientists and hospitals run medical studies on the iPhone. If successful, the new studies could give many iPhone users their first look at their genetic information by sending a ‘spit-kit’ to an Apple-approved laboratory.

Patents suggest Apple TV wand full of Cupertino magic

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"Applus TViticus!" Photo: Warner Bros.

The high-tech “magic wand”-style controller rumored to ship with the refreshed Apple TV this summer may be the culmination of close to a decade’s R&D on the part of Apple.

Is this the “simplest user interface you could imagine” that Steve Jobs told Walter Isaacson about when he claimed he had “finally cracked” the way to build a perfect TV?

If so, we’ve combed through the patents to reveal how it might work.

Use AirPlay to turn Apple Watch into a Music hub

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Play your tunes on the big screen. Photo: Rob LeFebvre/Cult of Mac
Play your tunes on the big screen. Photo: Rob LeFebvre/Cult of Mac

Playing music on the Apple Watch is a lovely thing. You can control your iPhone’s Music app using the Apple Watch Music app, choosing playlists and adjusting volume on the fly.

You can even start apps like Spotify or Rdio on your iPhone, then use the Music Glance on your Apple Watch to forward, reverse, pause or play music from these streaming services.

Did you know, however, that you can also send music from your Apple Watch to your Apple TV or any AirPlay-enabled speaker?

Here’s how.

Move over, Marissa! Angela Ahrendts is highest-paid woman in U.S.

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Ahrendts
Will.i.am cheesin' with Apple retail chief Angela Ahrendts at the Apple Watch unveiling. Photo: Leander Kahney/ Cult of Mac
Photo: Leander Kahney/Cult of Mac

Stealing Angela Ahrendts away from Burberry didn’t come cheap for Apple. The new VP of retail operations quickly became one of the top paid execs at Apple in 2014, and according to a new report, the former Burberry CEO has already become the highest paid woman in the U.S., beating out Yahoo’s Marissa Mayer.

The true definitions of the world’s most popular emojis

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Instagram found a way to decipher emojis. Photo: Cult of Mac
Photo: Apple

 

Emoji have gone from cute little pictograms only teens use, to a near-universal method of expression for all languages in about four years. Instagram has been tracking the use of emoji in posts and noticed an explosion of emoji after Apple added the keyboard to iOS in October 2011.

Today, nearly 60% of all Instagram posts in Finland use emoji, while users in countries like France, U.K., Russia, Italy and U.S.A. include emoji in 40% – 50% of posts. Using a tool called word2vec that reads through text and predicts the context around a given emoji, Instagram’s engineers have combed through millions of posts to decipher the true meaning of emoji.

Here are the most popular emoji and their definitions:

Vainglory’s biggest update yet brings character skins to the MOBA-fest

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Six new hero skins are here! Photo: Super Evil Megacorp
Six new hero skins are here! Photo: Super Evil Megacorp

If you’re like us, you’ve been playing the crap out of the amazingly addictive online arena game, Vainglory, since it came out for the iPad and iPhone, ganking enemies from the safety of the bushes, releasing the Kraken, and pushing down the lane to smash the opposing team’s base crystal to win the game.

While the development team at Super Evil Megacorp has released updates in the past, they’ve just dropped the most major update yet: the introduction of a character skin system to customize the look of your heroes as they dash across the map, wreaking havoc and crushing the enemy team.

There are six new heroes with two tiers of customization out in the update today, with a ton more to come.

Here’s how it’s going to work.

Home Depot says lack of Apple Pay support is nothing personal

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How to set up Apple Pay on Apple Watch.
Apple Pay on Apple Watch. Photo: Rob LeFebvre/Cult of Mac
Photo: Rob LeFebvre/Cult of Mac

An outcry from customers who found that Home Depot no longer accepts Apple Pay resulted from an upgrade to the hardware chain’s in-store payment systems.

Stephen Holmes, Home Depot’s director of corporate communications, told Cult of Mac the problem is not specific to Apple Pay. This means that nobody, including Google Wallet users, can make electronic payments right now because the company is working on its NFC terminals.

“We don’t have the capability to accept [Apple Pay] online, and our NFC is currently inactive as we upgrade our systems,” he said.

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This deal’s almost gone, so act fast. Get 3 years of VPN Unlimited for $19 at Cult of Mac Deals.

Apple TV picks up new USA NOW and CBS Sports channels

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Add CBS to the list of broadcasters ready to sign a deal for Apple TV
Apple TV gained some new channels today. Photo: Cult of Mac
Photo: Cult of Mac

The redesigned Apple TV and its accompanying streaming service are still nowhere to be seen, but Apple beefed up its channel offerings for its little black box today, adding new icons for USA Now and CBS Sports.

The new Apple TV’s channels offer viewers access to on-demand sports, TV shows, and movies to customers in the United States, and Apple’s also added Shomi and Crave TV for users in Canada. Both new channels are available as an over-the-air update and should be showing up on users’ boxes today.

Here’s a look at what you can watch:

Luxury watchmaker IWC takes on Apple Watch with new strap sensor

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This ugly sensor is IWC's answer to Apple Watch. Photo: IWC

If you need more evidence that the luxury Swiss watchmakers are as truly screwed as Jony Ive predicted, look no further than IWC’s laughable answer for keeping up with the Apple Watch.

The luxury watch company is adding a smart sensor called IWC Connect to the strap of its Big Pilot watch, a favorite of horologist collectors including John Mayer. Details on what the fitness sensor can actually do haven’t been revealed, but IWC created a ridiculously dramatic teaser trailer for the new strap that you can watch below:

Lonely Apple Watch buyers turn to the Internet to share their heartbeats

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Photo: Apple
I just want someone to share my heartbeat with! Photo: Apple

One of the most original features of the Apple Watch is the ability to send your heartbeat to a friend or loved one. With only a small fraction of Watches having shipped, however, early adopters are turning to the Internet to try and find other Apple fans willing to test out the new feature.

I can’t quite work out whether this is depressing, or the perfect hook for a 2015 update of Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan’s You’ve Got Mail.

Apple Watch is a miniature replica of the original iPhone

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Like father, like son. Photo: fourseven66/reddit

With its small screen and 0.46-inch thickness, the original iPhone from 2007 looks like an antique these days. Put it next to the Apple Watch, however, and it’s remarkable how similar the two devices look in terms of their design language.

At 0.45 inches, the Apple Watch is ever so slightly thinner, but its rounded edges, color and overall aesthetic certainly appear reminiscent of the first-generation Apple handset, don’t you think?

Insiders expect iPad business to continue to tumble in 2015

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Apple's iPad business may not turn around any time soon. Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac
Apple's iPad business may not turn around any time soon. Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

The iPad has had five consecutive quarters of negative shipment growth, and according to Apple’s supply chain, that’s not changing any time soon!

According to a new report coming out of Asia, Apple’s supply chain manufacturers expect iPad shipments to fall another 20 percent on-year in 2015 — and they’re pinning the blame on the increased demand for plus-sized smartphones.

Epic Australian journey gets remixed for smartphone era

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Inside Tracks by photographer and publisher Rick Smolan makes use of the Aurasma smartphone app to bring some of the photos to life. Photo: Against All Odds Productions
Inside Tracks by photographer Rick Smolan makes use of the Aurasma smartphone app to bring some of the photos to life. Photo: Against All Odds Productions

Rick Smolan, creator of the Day in the Life series, has made a career out of turning complicated ideas into groundbreaking photography books. His latest book is more personal — and equally innovative. It’s a collection of photographs he made in 1977 that seemingly come to life with a smartphone app.

Inside Tracks combines Smolan’s photographs of a woman’s trek across the Australian Outback with a smartphone app that, when pointed at one of the pictures, brings the reader to a corresponding scene from a movie about the epic journey.

“It’s the best book I’ve ever done,” said Smolan, a New York Times best-selling author. “It has done amazingly well, especially for it being self-published. The smartphone feature has fascinated people. It’s an inspiring story with cool technology.”