Cult of Mac

Remember those goofy VHS interactive video board games they had back in the early 90s? I had one, based on Star Trek: The Next Generation. It came out in 1993, so you can pick one up from eBay for about $24 these days. I remember being just super excited that I could play a board game and fake-interact with klingons on the television set, remote in hand to pause, fast forward, and rewind as the board game told me what to do.

Imagine my surprise now when I can have a party at my house with up to 15 iOS device owners, playing a drawing charades game on a huge flat screen TV with nothing but a tiny computer that everyone brought into the house with them, their fingers, and a tiny hockey-puck sized device connected to the television. Now that would feel like science-fiction.

Draw-It, Push-It, a new game for iOS devices, purports to do just that.

Earlier today T-Mobile announced that it will finally start selling Apple products in 2013. As the last major U.S. carrier to not offer Apple’s beloved iPhone, it’s about time T-Mobile joined the cool kids’ table.

T-Mobile CEO John Legere has promised that buying the iPhone on his network will be “dramatically different” due to the carrier’s decision to abandon subsidized wireless contracts altogether. This is a huge move that could either make or break T-Mobile, and it will hopefully make buying smartphones like the iPhone a better experience for U.S. customers. 

NBC has sent us a teaser clip from the show’s upcoming interview with Apple CEO Tim Cook. The exclusive segment with Brian Williams and Cook will air tonight at 10 P.M. Eastern/ 9 P.M Central on Rock Center.

In the one minute clip, Cook praises the iOS virtual keyboard and admits that he has “ditched physical keyboards” in favor of his iPhone and iPad.

Last month, HTC and Apple reached a cross-licensing settlement that would put a 10-year kibosh on any litigation between the two. While HTC’s Peter Chou was happy enough to call the settlement “A Good Ending,” Samsung saw it as an opportunity to have injunction proceedings against them thrown out.

Today Apple issued a significant update to Final Cut Pro that squashes a number of bugs. The 10.0.7 update addresses “overall stability, performance and compatibility” according to Apple, and it’s a free download for existing users in the Mac App Store.

The last Final Cut Pro update was released back in October, and it brought several key new features, including multichannel audio and RED camera support.

One of the better Yuletide traditions is the venerable holiday Advent Calendar, in which each day of December leading up to Christmas is marked off on a special calendar by opening its corresponding door to find a small gift, toy or chocolate squirreled away inside.

This year, we here at Cult of Mac decided we wanted to give our readers their very own Apple-themed advent calendar, filled with the year’s best apps, gadgets, stories and other curios. So each day in December, we’re going to lovingly peel back the door on the Cult of Mac 2012 Advent Calendar to reveal another delicious morsel, something really special that came out this year that we think every one of you should enjoy.

So what’s up with door number 6? It’s a handy little charging solution called the PlugBug that puts a spare 10 watt USB charger in your MacBook power brick.

The latest evolution of Spotify was revealed today at a press event in New York City that showed off Spotify’s new browser app, music discovery features, social additions and more.

Spotify users will now be able to get the same experience they’ve become accustomed to with the desktop client via a new web-based player. The new web-player will allow users to search and play music, create playlist, and use other new features Spotify unveiled today that will help people find newer, better, cooler music.

Macally was one of the first manufacturers to get its iPad mini cases onto the market when the device was launched back in early November, and this one from the guys at MobileFun caught my eye for a number of reasons.

It provides protection for both the front and back of the device, with a hard plastic shell that houses the iPad mini, and a plastic cover that’s lined in soft, suede-like material. The cover also doubles as a stand for typing and watching movies.

The case provides access to your all of your device’s ports and buttons, and includes a cutout for its rear-facing camera. It’s priced at $47 and comes in a range of colors, but is it worth that price tag?

So, Facetime over cellular data networks has been available to some AT&T unlimited data customers since late November.

What about you? Is your iPhone able to use this much-anticipated feature? How do you know? Well, read on, and we’ll show you.

Hackers have long preferred to focus their attacks on Microsoft’s operating systems over the years, but there have been signs that they’re starting to target OS X as well. With the threat of security attacks looming in the background Apple has decided they need to get help from the very hackers that know how to exploit their software.

To help lock down its security issues, Apple has hired the same noted computer security researcher, and former hacker, who helped Microsoft fix Window Vista’s security bugs.

The short form: Zagg’s Pro Plus has got to be the best compact iPad keyboard I have used (and I have used a lot). It is also backlit, incredibly light and doubles as an iPad case.

But it has one fatal flaw – your iPad 3 or later will probably fall out.

Google+ continues to evolve into one of the greatest social network/community platforms available (the best in my opinion). Many skeptics claimed it would become another failed Google project, constantly referring to it as a ghost town. If you’ve ever used Google+, then you already know what a crock those claims are, and in fact, Google+ is growing faster than ever.

Earlier today, Apple CEO Tim Cook announced that, starting in 2013, Apple would start investing over $100 million in local business to build Macs in the United States.

Even more intriguing, he said one model of Mac would be made exclusively in the U.S. But which one?

Tim Cook wouldn’t say, but when you think about it, there’s one obvious contender: the Mac Pro. Here’s why.

It’s December, which means that the lack of real news combined with my absurd love for iPhone and camera-related gewgaws takes over, bring a rain of plastic crap down on the pages of Cult of Mac. Sometimes this intersects with a genuinely useful accessory, and today we bring you the 3-in-1 Lightning Camera Connector.

Google has been busy rolling out updates to its mobile apps this week, making big improvements to the Gmail and YouTube app for iOS. But it seems the company hasn’t quite finished yet. It just rolled out some major changes to Google Shopper for Android and iOS — including a new look and new features — which are sure to make Christmas shopping on your smartphone a great deal easier.

As the only major carrier in the U.S. to not offer the iPhone, T-Mobile has been suffering lately as their customers have fled to other carriers to get an iPhone. Deutsche Telecom announced today that T-Mobile USA has entered into an agreement with Apple to bring the iPhone to their network.

Don’t rush to the Apple Store to pick up your T-Mobile iPhone just yet though. T-Mobile say they won’t be selling Apple products in the U.S. until 2013. T-Mobile plans to roll out significant investments in their broadband LTE infrastructure in the U.S. between 2013 and 2020.

Tim Cook announced that Apple is ready to invest $100 million into bringing some of its Mac production back to the U.S. in 2013. Foxconn, the major supplier to Apple, said that they’re ready to expand in the U.S. too, as more of their clients have requested their products be made in the U.S.A.

As Foxconn’s biggest client and the largest technology company in the world, Apple’s move to bring manufacturing jobs back to the U.S. could trigger more companies to follow suit, and Foxconn wants to meet the challenge.

Apple’s holiday tradition of giving away freebies for Christmas continues this year with the re-launch of their 12 Days of Christmas App. The app actually looks and functions exactly like last year’s 12 Days of Christmas app.

Like previous versions of the app, 12 Days of Christmas will give away a selection of songs, music videos, apps, and books for free. Each giveaway item is only available for 24-hours so this is an app you’ll want to keep tabs on.

This spinning, five-lens-bayonet case for the iPhone 5 looks fantastic, but it’s hard to get past both a) the price ($140, or HK$1,080) and b) the name (TurtleJacket PentaEye!)

Still, it’s billed as a tool for the “serious iPhoneographer,” so let’s take a look.

The GoPano Micro is a Kickstarter project that’s really taken off, becoming a huge success on the iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S. So it’s no surprise to see that it’s soon coming to iPhone 5. It’s available to pre-order now from the GoPano store, priced at $60, with shipping expected to begin later this month.

We’ve already posted all of the best quotes from Apple CEO Tim Cook’s major new interview with Bloomberg Businessweek, but this deserves highlighting: in the interview, Tim Cook explained why he fired iOS chief Scott Forstall, strongly indicating that Forstall was a divisive, political figure in Apple who flew in the face of the spirit of collaboration the company strives for.

6Wunderkinder has announced a brand new version of Wunderlist that’s coming to Android, iOS, Mac, and PC just in time for Christmas. Wunderlist 2 has been “reengineered, rebuilt and redesigned, from start to finish,” its creators tease. Check out what’s new and get a glimpse of the new app in the preview video below.

The season is fast approaching for tradeshows, and with it the need for desperate booth-builders to find newer and more gimmicky ways to hawk their wares. I predict that the iPad mini will be the hot ticket this year (or rather, early next year), and New PC Gadgets seems to agree, for it has just launched an acrylic security stand for the little tablet.

Looking to get an iPad mini with super-speedy LTE access ridiculously cheap? If you’re in the United Kingdom, then you’re in luck. EE, the U.K.’s first and only 4G network, is now offering Apple’s new tablet subsidized for just £50 (approx. $81) — providing you’re happy to sign up for a new two-year agreement at £36 (approx. $58) per month.

Apple CEO Tim Cook just didn’t talk with Businessweek today in an unpredecented interview, he’s also going to be on NBC’s “Rock Center” tonight talking to Brian Williams… and in a new preview of the upcoming episode, Tim Cook has hinted strongly that Apple will be entering the HDTV market sooner rather than later.