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Lenovo’s new iPhone 6 clone is disappointing under the hood

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Lenovo’s new Sisley handset may not feature the protruding camera and unsightly antenna bands that were criticized in some corners about the iPhone, but don’t let it be said that this is entirely an iPhone 6 carbon copy without the compromises.

Having had its hardware capabilities revealed, it’s clear exactly where the sacrifices have been made: and they’re entirely related to the specs.

Read on to find out why this is no iPhone beater.

Dropbox denies hack, says old logins were scraped from third-party services

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Dropbox
Photo: Dropbox
Photo: Dropbox

Update: A Dropbox spokesperson has confirmed that its service has not been hacked and that the exposed logins were mostly expired and harvested from third-party services. More information below.

An anonymous party has allegedly hacked 6,937,081 Dropbox accounts and gained access to email addresses and passwords in plain text. Hundreds of account emails and passwords have been posted online as proof, with whoever is responsible claiming that more will be shared after receiving Bitcoin donations.

Leaked iPad Air 2 logic board allegedly confirms A8x chip and 2GB of RAM

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The 2nd gen iPad Air's A8X chip and logic board. Photo: Apple.Club.tw
The 2nd gen iPad Air's A8X chip and logic board. Photo: Apple.Club.tw

The full details of Apple’s second-generation iPad Air will be revealed in just four short days, but Apple.Club.tw has published a photo of an alleged iPad Air 2 logic board that reveals Cupertino has a souped up A8X chip ready for the new tablet.

If the logic board is genuine, it confirms rumors that Apple will improve the Air’s performance with a special A-chip variant, like the A5X and A6X processors used in previous iPads. The logic board also appears to contain 2GB of RAM, though the chip numbers are a bit hard to read.

Just add iPhone to these costumes for total Halloween domination

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I can *see* you. Screengrab: Digital Dudz
I can *see* you. Screengrab: Digital Dudz

You know you hate showing up to the Halloween party with that lame generic pirate costume. We all do, but we all end up doing it.

Then there’s those of us who want to make the coolest, most unique costume ever. But we never do, because, let’s face it, we just don’t have the time.

Your solution, then, just may be these amazing just-add-iPhone costumes from Digital Dudz. You buy the mask or shirt, download a free app, and you’re suddenly the best costume at the party. Check out the video below to see how it all works.

Leaked Lenovo Sisley looks like an iPhone 6 without the compromises

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In an effort to make the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus as thin and as light as possible, Apple made some sacrifices. Battery life — particularly on the smaller iPhone 6 — isn’t as good as it could have been, and the rear-facing iSight camera on both devices sticks right out. Could the Cupertino company have done a better job?

Lenovo seems to think so. Leaked pictures of its upcoming Sisley handset show a device that looks almost identical to the iPhone 6 — without the protruding camera and with slightly less unsightly antenna bands.

Apple replaces JT and Jimmy with The IT Crowd for U.K. iPhone 6 ads

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Apple’s iPhone 6 ad campaign featuring Jimmy Fallon and Justin Timberlake has churned out some of the company’s funnest ads in years, but to put a British twist on the commercials, Apple’s getting some help from The IT Crowd.

Chris O’Dowd and Richard Ayoade have teamed up for Apple’s UK iPhone 6 campaign and re-dubbed the first two iPhone 6 commercials – ‘Duo’ and ‘Health’ – that were first broadcast in the U.S. last month. The iPhone action and dialogue are pretty much the same as the U.S. version, except listening to O’Dowd’s Irish accent wax poetic about Health.app sounds so much better.

Check out the other ad below:

App widgets in OS X Yosemite will make Notification Center useful at last

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Screenshot: Cultured Code

iOS 8 and OS X Yosemite are designed to work closely together. Just like iOS 8, third-party developers are even encouraged to write extensions and widgets for their Mac apps. The result is a more seamless experience between an app’s iOS and OS X versions.

Such will be the case with Things by Cultured Code, an Apple Design Award winning task manager that was recently updated for iOS 8. Cultured Code has shared with Cult of Mac its plans for the Mac app when Yosemite drops, including a first look at how third-party apps will utilize Notification Center on Yosemite.

This song was written by iOS 8’s autocomplete function

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I’ve always liked Jonathan Mann, the YouTube artist who became popular for writing and uploading a brand new song each and every day. Mann’s a big Apple fan, too, and over the years has put together numerous songs concerning everything from the iPhone 4’s Antennagate (which Steve Jobs actually danced to,) to duets with Siri, to a recap of the Apple Watch unveiling.

In his latest song (number 2,110!) he uses iOS 8’s new autocomplete function to compose a nonsensical song that — how do I put this delicately? — is still more entertaining and listenable than a large percentage of the music on the radio.

I won’t reproduce the lyrics here, since they’re essentially meaningless, but it’s a fun exercise nonetheless that may just be able to displace Mann’s WWDC song, which is still kicking around my head months later.

Via: The Loop

Apple slaps suppliers with a $50 million fine for leaking secrets

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Photo: Michelangelo Carrieri/Flickr
Photo: Michelangelo Carrieri/Flickr

Apple’s bankrupt sapphire supplier GT Advanced Technologies might have stayed quiet about its reasons for the bankruptcy, but a few details are nonetheless starting to emerge.

Two of the most intriguing tidbits concerning the case regard the cost of sapphire production for GT Advanced Technologies, and the financial penalties Apple imposes on any supplier who leaks information about future products.

Finnish prime minister accuses Apple of crashing his country’s economy

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Photo: Estonian Foreign Ministry/Flickr
Finnish prime minister Alexander Stubb. Photo: Estonian Foreign Ministry/Flickr

People blame Apple for the craziest things: from crafting metal devices that bend if you apply enough pressure, to giving out free albums, to — now — crashing national economies.

Today’s “gate” incident (Finnishgate?) comes from Finland Prime Minister Alexander Stubb, who blames the iPhone maker for bringing down two of his country’s biggest exports: Nokia and paper.

“The iPhone killed Nokia and the iPad killed the paper industry, but we’ll make a comeback,” Alexander Stubb told an interviewer for CNBC.

iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus coming to 36 new countries this month

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Product image of iPhone 6 Plus, which set a new sales record for Apple by selling 10 million over its launch weekend.
This is Apple's fastest iPhone rollout to date. Photo: Apple
Photo: Apple

Apple is bringing the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus to 36 new countries by the end of this month. The Cupertino company today confirmed that the devices will be available in Monaco on October 17 — the same day they go on sale in China and India — and then in Israel on October 23.

Xiaomi dismisses Jony Ive’s ‘design theft’ accusations

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Going, going, gone! Photo: Xiaomi
Photo: Xiaomi

Interviewed at the recent Vanity Fair Summit, Jony Ive had strong words for companies like Xiaomi producing iPhone copycats.

“I don’t see it as flattery, I see it as theft, and it’s lazy,” he said, when asked about the Chinese smartphone maker whose devices bear something of a striking resemblance to the iPhone.

Responding in an interview with the Economic Times, Xiaomi’s VP for International markets Hugo Barra suggested that it’s unfair to place the blame on Xiaomi — because Apple copies other people too.

Apple takes over 20 million iPhone 6 preorders in China

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iPhone 6 and 6 Plus Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac
Photo: Jim Merithew

The iPhone 6 and 6 Plus may have shattered preorder records in the U.S. and elsewhere with a massive 4 million units reservations, but that’s apparently nothing compared to China.

Having had its arrival in China delayed to a lack of regulatory approval, preorders for the iPhone 6 family of devices have reportedly hit 20 million in the country since officially being made available on Friday.

Former CEO John Sculley explains how Apple sells experiences

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I’m a sucker for Apple history, and I particularly enjoy hearing from the people who had an impact on shaping Steve Jobs into the incredible force of nature that he became.

In a new interview with John Sculley, the former Apple CEO sheds some light on what may have been his single biggest lasting impact on Apple: the drive toward making the experience of using an Apple product one of the company’s most important focuses.

Sculley catches a lot of flack for being the CEO who kicked Jobs out of Apple back in 1985, but after Jobs and Tim Cook he was the best of CEO Apple ever had, and someone who’s always interesting to hear talk about Apple. In this particular video he shares his thoughts on the original Macintosh ad and why Apple trumps everyone else at marketing.

More of Sculley’s thoughts after the jump.

Best deals of the week: Batman, Espionage 3, BT Speaker, iRest, and more [Deals]

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There’s a veritible treasure trove of cool stuff available every week at Cult of Mac Deals and, best of all, none of it will cost you an arm and a leg.

Today we put a spotlight on just a few of those supremely awesome deals so be sure to check them out. Of course, you can go to the Cult of Mac Deals page and see all the deals if these don’t tickle your fancy.

Ready your wallets and catch our Oct. 16th iPad and Mac predictions on The CultCast

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This week on The CultCast: Just when you thought it was safe to close your wallet, Apple goes and announces yet another hardware event. Yessir, Oct. 16 is just days away, and if you’re eyeballin’ a new Mac or iPad, don’t miss our event-day predictions. Plus—-ever wonder what it’s like to have a brand new iPhone 6 Plus stolen right out of your hands? Well we can tell you firsthand, and we want your help to catch the crooks.

Chuckle your way through each week’s best Apple stories! Stream or download new and past episodes of The CultCast now on your Mac or iDevice by subscribing on iTunes, or hit play below and let the chuckles begin.

Our thanks to lynda.com for sponsoring this episode! Learn virtually any application at your own pace from expert-taught video tutorials at lynda.com.

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Click on for the show notes.

Bankrupt sapphire supplier seeks to cut ties with ‘oppressive’ Apple

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The iPhone 6's Touch ID sensor is greatly improved over the 5s &mdash for me, anyway.
With GTAT gone, who will supply the sapphire for Apple components like Touch ID? Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

We’ve witnessed a quick unraveling of GT Advanced Technologies (GTAT), Apple’s main sapphire supplier, since the company suddenly filed for bankruptcy earlier this week.

New court filings indicate that GTAT wants to take legal action against Apple for its “oppressive and burdensome” terms. The sapphire maker also plans to shut down its Arizona plant by December 31st, which leaves Apple’s sapphire production in limbo. The Arizona plant shuttering will also result in the loss of 890 jobs.

Beats and Bose end their patent beef

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Photo: Kārlis Dambrāns/Flickr
Photo: Kārlis Dambrāns/Flickr

A budding feud between Bose and Beats Electronics has ended with both sides settling out of court. Although the terms haven’t been made public, according to Bose the matter has been satisfactorily “resolved” and will no longer go to trial.

Both sides have agreed to pay their own costs and legal fees, and have asked the International Trade Commission to suspend its investigation into the disagreement.

8-bit Miyazaki tribute film will fill you with nostalgia

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It's rainy out there for neighbors. Screengrab: Pablo Fernandez Eyre
It's rainy out there for neighbors. Screengrab: Pablo Fernandez Eyre

My Neighbor Totoro, Spirited Away, Howl’s Moving Castle. Ponyo, Kiki’s Delivery Service. Chances are you’re thinking of these lovely, peaceful, wonderful animated films right now.

And these are just a few of the fantastic and bewitching animated films that Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli have made together over the past couple of decades. Now, however, Miyazaki has retired after making one final, autobiographical film, The Wind Rises. Studio Ghibli has put its film-making on hold, as well, citing restructuring.

Independent filmmaker Pablo Fernandez Eyre was a little sad when he heard the news.

“I decided to make a tribute to show my love for movies like Princess Mononoke and Spirited Away,” he told Cult of Mac in an email. Check out his moving 8-bit piece below.

Last chance to get Dragon Dictate for Mac 4, the world’s #1 speech recognition software [Deals]

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“A keyboard? How quaint,” said Scotty, the USS Enterprise’s Chief Engineer, when it was suggested he use a keyboard instead of voicing commands to a computer. How quaint indeed.

Now, with Dragon Dictate for Mac 4, you can give your quaint keyboard a well deserved rest. Get this revolutionary software for your Mac at half price, just $99.99, at Cult of Mac Deals. This is your last chance to pick up this deal, so jump on this one now.