Mobile menu toggle

Hands On: Capture Home Invaders, Not Freaky Time In Your Living Room [CES 2014]

By

Cult _of_Mac_CES_2014_80x80

https://youtu.be/_RenT6bTtis

LAS VEGAS — Webcams are such a thing of the past. The Canary is an Indiegogo-funded security camera and app that uses algorithms to detect abnormal movement in your home and send you an alert.

Which means, of course, that you can use the Canary not only to get notifications when there’s out-of-the-ordinary activity recorded, but also to capture video you can look at later that may not have tripped a notification.

We talked with the Canary crew at CES, as you can see in the video above.

Super Hexagon Creator Is Bringing Classic Platformer VVVVVV To iOS

By

post-261497-image-935780799d3dc91d2b5703aeb127da94-jpg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FxuacwotoQw

Terry Cavanaugh is one of the more talented developers in indie game development right now, with his famously difficult game Super Hexagon taking one of our top picks for 2012 Game Of The Year.

One of Cavanaugh’s previous games was a Metroid-like retro space platformer called VVVVVV. It’s available on Mac, and super fun, featuring a reversible gravity mechanic that makes the game one of the biggest charmers to hit the indie gaming scene in years. And now, it’s coming to the iPhone and iPad.

BiteSMS, The Best Reason For Text Maniacs To Jailbreak, Now Works With iOS 7

By

Screen Shot 2014-01-08 at 7.59.41 AM

One of the most popular reasons to jailbreak an iPhone is BiteSMS, a jailbreak tweak that supper charges text messaging with better messaging alerts, quick reply and more. Unfortunately, ever since the iOS 7 jailbreak came along BiteSMS has been MIA, but that’s all changed with the release of BiteSMS for iOS 7, which not only updates the popular messaging app to be compatible with Apple’s latest mobile OS but also adds support for modern devices with 64-bit A7 processors.

What The iWatch Could Look Like Running iOS 7 [Concept]

By

We’ve seen famed Apple concept designer Martin Hajek’s take on Cupertino’s possibly mythical, believed-to-be-forthcoming iWatch before, but that was before iOS 7 came along. So Hajek decided to adapt his design for the post-Forstall age.

The result? The iWatch S and iWatch C, which have not only been updated to support iOS 7 (at least in Hajek’s head), but which have taken some new design cues from the iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c.

New E-Commerce Channel Will Help Apple Reach Growing Number Of Chinese Shoppers

By

chinese in Apple store

Apple has opened an official online store on popular Chinese e-commerce gateway Tmall.

Run by Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., Tmall was launched in 2008 and hosts more than 70,000 merchants — including global brands such as Nike and Gap.

While Apple hasn’t officially commented on its Tmall store opening, an Alibaba rep has confirmed that this is an official Apple page and that it opened recently.

Hands On: Corning’s New Antimicrobial Gorilla Glass Will Clean Your iPhone [CES 2014]

By

Corning Antimicrobial Gorilla Glass is here to help your iPhone pass the ick test.
Would your phone pass the ick test?
Photo: Cult of Mac

CES 2014 bug LAS VEGAS –Your iPhone is dirty. You know how we know? We subjected our intrepid reporter’s iPhone to Corning’s on-site contaminant test at CES in Vegas.

Corning is there, talking to Cult of Mac about its new Gorilla Glass, which will have a layer of ionic silver embedded in it. That will decrease the amount of bacteria on your iPhone screen while still being crazy-strong and scratch-resistant.

The result? It’s pretty gross.

Polaroid’s New C3 Action Cam Is A Retro-Styled Throwback To Its Glory Days [CES 2014]

By

Polaroidcube

CES 2014 bug

Okay, thanks to buyouts and changing leadership it’s not the same company that once inspired Steve Jobs, but Polaroid’s newly-unveiled C3 is still a retro-styled throwback to the brand’s glory days.

Taking the form of a cube-shaped 35mm machine, the C3 combines a wide angle lens that can take still images at 1.3-, 3- and 5-megapixels, as well as recording high-definition video.

Apple Celebrates Chinese New Year With Sale In Select Asian Countries

By

(Credit: CNET)
(Screenshot credit: CNET)

Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales may be over for most of us — but lucky Apple fans in China, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand and Taiwan can pick up a cut-price iPad Air, iPhone 5s or other devices thanks to the company’s annual Chinese New Year online sale.

The sale, which lasts for one day only, takes place January 10.

Nifty Bluetooth Necklace Lets Your iPhone Control Its Color Scheme [CES 2014]

By

(Credit: CSR)
(Credit: CSR)

CES 2014 bug

What if you could control the color of your jewelry (provided you wear some, that is) using your iPhone?

This thought is behind the development of a new line of Bluetooth smart jewelry from UK-based chip maker CRS — able to connect to mobile devices so that wearers that customize the color and brightness to suit their mood, or match a particular outfit.

Braven’s Wi-Fi Vibe Station Turns Your Bluetooth Speakers Into A Multi-Room Sound System [CES 2014]

By

BRAVEN-Vibe

CES 2014 bug Cult of Mac favorite Braven is showing off a wireless speaker at CES this year. It’s totally not what you’re expecting, though: The Vibe System is a range of hybrid Bluetooth/Wi-Fi speakers that can be used individually – hooked up to your iDevices – or in multiroom concert, Sonos-style. And being from Braven, it all runs away from mains power.

Thanks To iPhone, The Revolution In Home Automation Is Nigh! (No Really, This Time It is) [CES 2014]

By

IMG_2740
Nexia's Matt McGroven says his company's app makes home automation appealing to consumers, not geeks, and soon we'll all be controlling our homes from iPhone screens.

CES 2014 bug LAS VEGAS — We’ve heard the same story for years: the revolution in home automation is just around the corner! And yet, despite the hype, it still hasn’t arrived. But talk to vendors at CES, and they say it finally is just around the corner — thanks to the iPhone.

The iPhone finally gives ordinary consumers a bunch of good reasons to automate their homes, beyond the geeky thrill of turning on the sprinklers from the couch. For example, it can alleviate the universal anxiety of worrying about the stove when away on vacation. Paired with a connected-range (there are several on show here at CES), your iPhone can you tell you if the oven is on, and then let you switch it off.

The best evidence that home automation has arrived is that the nation’s home builders are finally including home automation technology in many new homes as standard. Lennar Homes, the third biggest home builder in the US, is making home automation standard in more than 20,0000 new homes this year, said Matt McGroven, marketing leader of Nexia, a San Francisco-based home automation company.

Nexia makes an app that works in conjunction with a Home Bridge ($60 on Amazon) and service ($9 a month). With 70% of users on iOS, Nexia controls a wide range of automated products, from nannycams to lighting, locks, thermostats, and dozens of others.

“You can do a bunch of cool and genuinely useful things,” he said.

iWatch Production Reportedly Plagued By Screen, Battery Issues

By

(an iWatch concept design)
(an iWatch concept design)

Wearables are all the rage at CES this week, but everyone is waiting to see what Apple does with its rumored iWatch. The mysterious device has been in the rumor mill for several years now, but reports have started picking up more frequently in the past year.

According to The Information, Apple is running into problems developing its watch-like device. Specific panel technology isn’t mentioned in the report, but Apple has apparently had problems choosing the right display. A “sizable” team is working on the project, which was reported last year. Battery issues (which are tied to the screen problems) have also been slowing development.

Yahoo’s News Digest App Wants To Reinvent The Way You Consume News [CES 2014]

By

Screen Shot 2014-01-07 at 3.12.13 PM

CES 2014 bug LAS VEGAS — There are countless ways to catch up on the news thanks to the advent of services like Flipboard and Feedly. You may stick to traditional papers like The New York Times or USA Today, scan Twitter or Facebook, use RSS, visit a few of your favorite sites every day, or a combination of all the above. The possibilities are endless.

Then there’s Yahoo. At a big keynote today during CES, the tech giant announced its new News Digest app for iPhone. It’s a beautiful, bold take on presenting the news that has a good chance of being quite successful.

The Fastest-Charging iPhone Battery Packs In The West? [CES 2014]

By

IMG_2726
MyCharge president Jim Dara demonstrates the new Talk & Charge battery pack for the iPhone 5 line. Instead of attaching it to your iPhone, you just hold it next to it, which makes it easy to use with just about any iPhone case.

CES 2014 bug LAS VEGAS — The simplest solution is always the best. Take external battery packs for your iPhone, which are sometimes hard to use when you’re actually talking on the phone. Either you have to remove your case to snap in a battery case, or you have a long cord dangling to an external pack in your pocket.

MyCharge’s clever Talk & Charge ($100) is a slim external battery pack that works with any and every iPhone case on the market because it doesn’t physically attach to your iPhone; you just hold it against the back of your iPhone while talking, like an electronics sandwich. Simple.

It’s almost the same size and shape as an iPhone 5s or 5c. It boasts a 3000mAh battery (good for more than two full iPhone 5 charges) and a Lightning cable built right in, so you’ll never forget your charging cable again. It’s a nice touch.

In fact, I think all of MyCharge’s wares are thoughtfully designed. The tech is pretty good too. According to the company, they are the fastest chargers on the market. Check out their well-designed charging bricks:

Bheestie Bag Is A Wet iPhone’s Best Friend [CES 2014]

By

bhestiebag

 

 

 

Cult _of_Mac_CES_2014_80x80LAS VEGAS – Dropping your iPhone in a pool of water can be a traumatic experience. Especially if you don’t have AppleCare+. Sure, there are a bunch of home remedy methods you can try to dry it out, but I’ve never had any success shoving my soaked iPhone in a bag of rice. Enter Bheestie, a small plastic bag that claims to remove water from you gadgets faster than any home remedy.