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Spotify thinks App Store charges are squashing the competition

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Apple raked in the cash last quarter.
Spotify is upset that Apple rinses subscription services for money. Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

Spotify’s not happy about the way that Apple charges a 30 percent fee toward sales thorough its App Store, including subscription services.

The tax structure means that in order for Spotify to make $9.99 per month for its premium service it has had to raise the app subscription price to $12.99 — which prices it out of the market compared to the lower-cost Apple-owned Beats Music service, set to launch this summer.

Elon Musk couldn’t be more excited about Apple Car

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

If Apple ever does get around to building an electric car, no-one would welcome the move more than Tesla CEO Elon Musk.

In Tesla’s Q1 earnings call yesterday, the pioneering entrepreneur behind Tesla, Space X and, most recently, revolutionary solar batteries chimed in on Apple’s reported electric car plans.

Here’s what he had to say.

Supergirl is latest rare super heroine to snag TV series

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Melissa Benoist takes on the disttaff side of Superman. Photo: Variety
Melissa Benoist takes on the disttaff side of Superman. Photo: Variety

CBS just landed Supergirl, the network’s first series pick up for the upcoming season.

This is, of course, rather historic, since the last decent female-led superhero show was 1975’s Wonder Woman, starring Lynda Carter. It’s even got a chance of being pretty good, as it’s coming from the same creators of successful DC properties The Flash and Arrow, both over on the CW Network.

The less said the better about Electro Woman and Dyna Girl or the more modern yet still awful Birds of Prey.

Parody iPhone ad is just about the freakiest thing you’ve ever seen

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What do you get when you cross an Apple ad with J-horror? Photo: Noka Films
What do you get when you cross an Apple ad with J-horror? Photo: Noka Films

From the dystopian “1984” Macintosh commercial to its disastrous “Lemmings” follow-up, Apple ads haven’t always been full of jokes, tinkly music and Jony Ive saying “aluminium” in a soothing voice.

Nothing Apple has ever created, however, has been quite as weirdly disturbing as this iPhone ad parody from the folks at Noka Films.

Add custom replies to Apple Watch, seem less robotic

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Don't be such a square when you reply. Photo: Rob LeFebvre/Cult of Mac
Don't be such a square when you reply. Photo: Rob LeFebvre/Cult of Mac

Messaging is one of the best use cases for Apple Watch – you get a message, you dictate a reply, you get on with your day.

Apple has included several pre-written responses for you to use when you’re just too busy to dictate a response (or don’t want to talk into your watch). They’re pretty awful, though, ranging from the terse (“OK”) to the fairly robotic (“Sorry, I can’t talk right now”). None of them really quite fit the way we talk, do they?

Happily, Apple lets you change these canned responses to better reflect your personality and style. Here’s how to do so.

iPhone is killing it in Europe thanks to Android switchers

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Photo: Cult of Android
Photo: Cult of Android

Europe was supplanted by China this past quarter as the second most important market for Apple, but according to a new report from Kantar, the iPhone-maker is gaining grown in Europe thanks to Android switchers.

Over 30% of Apple’s new customers in Europe last quarter switched over from Android. All the new converts have pushed iOS’ marketshare in Europes five largest countries to 20.3%, marking a 1.8% increase from 2014.

Check out the graph below:

Free up space on your iPhone with Duplicate Photos Fixer

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Photo: Duplicate Photo Fixer
Photo: Duplicate Photo Fixer
Photo:

This post is brought to you by Systweak Software, creator of free iOS app Duplicate Photo Fixer.

If your iPhone is short on storage, it’s most likely crammed with pictures and videos — especially if you’re not prone to sorting your photos manually. In fact, photos and videos typically occupy more than 50 percent of storage space on iOS devices, according to Systweak Software. And up to 10 percent of the photos could be duplicates created inadvertently during the simple act of shooting or editing pictures with your iPhone.

Luckily, Systweak Software’s free Duplicate Photos Fixer makes it easy to locate, evaluate and delete duplicate photos. The iOS app is a quick and simple way to recover valuable storage space and organize your photos.

Apple Watch dominates competition in Consumer Reports test

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Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

We’ve already seen the Apple Watch’s durability get tested in some pretty extreme ways. Now Consumer Reports is weighing in with tests of its own and Apple Watch dominated the smartwatch competition.

Both the stainless-steel Apple Watch and Apple Watch Sport passed their water-resistance test. The stainless-steel model also stood out for its sapphire display after surviving a test of up to 9 Mohs, just below diamond hardness.

Watch the full test below:

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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post-321730-image-26ba1a2d9f2c54d2819cc1a76fee3b7e-jpg
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
Photo:

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.