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iPhone 12 Pro will pack triple camera lens array and LiDAR sensor

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iphone-12-pro
Are you excited about this year's iPhone 12 refresh?
Photo: The Hacker 34

The iPhone 12 Pro could boast a revised camera array on the rear, complete with a LiDAR scanner like the one found on the 2020 iPad Pro, a new image posted online suggests.

The schematic image was posted on Twitter Saturday by leakster @Choco_bit, who has previously shared information about forthcoming Apple launches. The seemingly Apple-produced image reportedly comes from iOS 14, courtesy of the ConceptsiPhone Instagram.

Apple builds 1 million face shields a week for medical workers

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Apple CEO Tim Cook shows off a face shield Apple is making for medical workers.
CEO Tim Cook shows off a face shield Apple is making for medical workers.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

Apple CEO Tim Cook said Sunday that the company is building face shields for medical workers. These are already being distributed in the US, and the plan is to make a million of them a week to be sent to around the world.

In addition, Cook revealed the company has sourced, but not yet donated, over 20 million face masks. The head of Apple said “We’re working continuously and closely with governments at all levels to ensure these are donated to places of greatest need.”

Satechi makes the best Apple Watch travel charger we’ve seen [Review]

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Satechi USB-C Magnetic Charging Dock for Apple Watch review
Satechi Charging Dock for Apple Watch is about the same size as Apple’s wearable.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

The Satechi USB-C Magnetic Charging Dock for the Apple Watch is more portable than Apple’s own. And because it uses USB-C, it’s easier to use with a MacBook or iPad Pro — just plug it straight in.

I put the Satechi USB-C Magnetic Charging Dock for Apple Watch through a battery of tests. Here’s how it stood up.

iPad Pro is a Swiss Army knife, not a surgeon’s scalpel [Opinion]

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The iPad Pro is the perfect tool for many people.
The iPad Pro is the perfect tool for many people.
Photo: DP Spender/Cult of Mac

By DP Spender

The launch of the new 2020 iPad Pro brought a plethora of articles from tech journalists asking, “Is this Apple’s laptop replacement?” That question is so open-ended, it might as well be an infinite loop. It’s like asking a toolmaker, “Is your new hammer a suitable replacement for last year’s wrench?”

It is in many ways a pointless question — and one that in my opinion totally misses the point. The question should be, “Does the 2020 iPad Pro get your job done?” To which my answer is yes, but then so did the 2018 model.

Watch Epix movies and shows for free through Apple TV app

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Epix is available through the Apple TV app.
Just open the Apple TV app to access Epix streaming content at no charge.
Photo: Apple/Epix

All the streaming content of the cable channel Epix is reportedly free to Apple users until May 2. Original shows like Pennyworth and Godfather of Harlem as well a wide selection of movies are available from Epix through the Apple TV app.

Take your mind off COVID-19 with Relic Radio vintage radio podcasts [What We’re Into]

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Relic Radio vintage radio podcasts take my mind off the coronavirus pandemic.
Vintage radio podcasts are perfect for taking your mind off the coronavirus pandemic.
Photo: Lewis Wallace/Cult of Mac

What We're Into bug The nonstop onslaught of coronavirus news is making me a little crazy. Headlines asides, COVID-19-related content even infects the stream of shows in my Podcasts app. To ease my coronapanic, lately I’ve been binging on something a lot more relaxing: vintage radio podcasts from Relic Radio.

Served up through a variety of free podcasts, these old-time radio dramas really help take my mind off the rapidly unfolding COVID-19 horror show.

10 things you didn’t know about Apple Watch [Cult of Mac Magazine 343]

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Apple Watch trivia: So you think you know Apple Watch, do you?
So you think you know Apple Watch, do you?
Cover: Leander Kahney/Cult of Mac

Take your mind off the coronavirus pandemic with our latest installment of Apple trivia. This time we focus on Cupertino’s kick-ass wearable. Yes, it’s 10 things you probably didn’t know about Apple Watch. For more diversions, read our latest reviews of Apple TV+ shows: The Amazing Stories season finale and promising new mystery Home Before Dark.

If you must dwell on COVID-19, how about a timely how-to? Learn how to make your own DIY mask (thanks to clever instructions from a legendary Apple coder). Get the low-down on that project as well as more Apple news, how-tos and reviews in this week’s free issue of Cult of Mac Magazine.

Download it from the iOS App Store now. Or get the week’s top stories below.

Make yourself more marketable as an Excel expert [Deals]

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The Premium A to Z Microsoft Excel Bundle
Score lifelong access to almost two days' worth of instruction in Excel from beginning up to advanced.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

The world’s current chaos and uncertainty make this the perfect time to prepare for the future job market. There’s one thing we can be sure of: The future will continue to run on Microsoft Office suite. That means this massive Microsoft Excel lesson bundle will boost almost anyone’s resume.

Amazing Stories ends with a bang, should have settled for a whimper [Review]

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Kerry Bishé in Amazing Stories
Kerry Bishé closes out the first season of the new Amazing Stories
Photo: Apple TV+

Amazing Stories’ season finale “The Rift” serves as a case study into the rebooted show’s highs and lows. With its five-episode run complete, the ways in which the Apple TV+ anthology series succeeded — and the ways it failed to cohere — become more obvious than ever.

“The Rift” was directed by Mark Mylod and written by Don Handfield and Richard Rayner (co-creators of History Channel’s Knightfall). However, the episode takes more cues from executive producer Steven Spielberg than nearly any of the preceding entries, to both its detriment and its occasional benefit. The real MVP of the piece, however, is the perpetually underrated Kerry Bishé.

Apple slashes HomePod price in half for employees

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Apple debuts HomePod in India at its cheapest price yet
Are you excited at the prospect of a new HomePod?
Photo: Charlie Sorrel/Cult of Mac

Apple is hooking up its employees with some huge discounts on a few of its audio products this week.

It’s unclear whether it’s being done to help employees be entertained while working from home during the COVID-19 pandemic or an effort to move surplus units during a sales lull.

Lawmakers want proof Apple’s COVID-19 app protects privacy

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apple
The new COVID-19 app and website provide the latest information and guidance from the CDC for users across the US.
Photo: Apple

A group of U.S. Senators is requesting assurances from CEO Tim Cook that Apple has privacy protections built into the company’s new COVID-19 screening app and website.

Senators Kamala Harris, Richard Blumenthal, Bob Menedez and Cory Booker sent a letter addressed to Cook on Friday voicing concerns about the private health data of Americans.

Celebs join the COVID-19 fight by telling billions to stay home

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Selena Gomez shows us how to wash
If the singing thing doesn't pan out...
Screenshot: Selena Gomez/Instagram

Say what you will about celebrity influencers. They are using social media to tell millions of followers to stay home and “wash your hands.”

Taking a break from vanity and self-branding (well, sort of), influencers have answered the call by the United Nations to use their platforms to promote public health messages to help contain the spread of COVID-19.

Amazon plans to delay Prime Day due to COVID-19

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amazon
You'll have to wait a little longer for Amazon's day of killer deals.
Photo: Amazon

Amazon’s annual shopping bonanza holiday, Prime Day, has reportedly been delayed due to the global impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Prime Day, which started in 2015 as a way to boost sales in the summer, is usually held in July, but according to Reuters, the online retailer plans to push the marketing event to August.

Facebook allegedly tried to buy Pegasus spyware to secretly track iPhone users

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Facebook Onavo Protect iOS
Facebook’s Onavo Protect did the opposite of protecting users. And it could have been more effective with Pegasus spyware.
Photo: Facebook

NSO Group accuses Facebook of trying to buy access to its Pegasus surveillance software so it could better track the activities of iPhone users.

The spyware supposedly would have gone into Onavo Protect, a VPN app Facebook pulled off the App Store back in 2018 for violating Apple’s data-collection policies.

How to make your own coronavirus Ragmask

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Make your own protective mask with Ragmask's amazing guide.
Make your own protective mask with Ragmask's amazing guide.
Photo: Ragmask

Do you need a coronavirus mask? The World Health Organization still says no, unless you are caring for someone with COVID-19 or carrying the virus that causes it yourself. But perhaps The WHO isn’t as impartial as we’d like to think. As health experts’ opinions on the subject evolve, a DIY homemade mask looks increasingly enticing.

Perhaps wearing a mask when you take the subway or visit a supermarket is a good idea after all. Whatever, none of this changes the fact that you cannot buy a mask anywhere. But you can make your own. Check out the Ragmask, a homemade mask deign from Loren Brichter. Yes, that Loren Brichter — the former Apple employee who went on to develop Tweetie and was dubbed the “high priest of app design” by The Wall Street Journal.

Apple Card base APR rate drops 2% for some users

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Apple Card’s ‘elite card’ status is hitting retailers in the wallet
Apple Card benefits keep getting better.
Photo: Apple

Some Apple Card users received a surprise APR rate drop this week thanks to the two recent interest rate cuts made by the U.S. Federal Reserve in March. The Apple Card’s base APR decreased by 2% for many Apple Card holders, bringing a little extra credit relief during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Home Before Dark gives us a tiny hero for uncertain times [Review]

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Home Before Dark review: Jibrail Nantambu, Brooklynn Prince and Deric McCabe solve crime adorably.
Jibrail Nantambu, Brooklynn Prince and Deric McCabe solve crime adorably in Home Before Dark .
Photo: Apple TV+

Based on the real-life exploits of preteen reporter Hilde Kate Lysiak, who was a published journalist before she had all her teeth, Apple TV+’s new series Home Before Dark is an exciting and endearing new offering.

The streaming service released all 10 episodes of the show’s first season Friday. The first three brisk episodes build a strong case for the show’s quick renewal.  And they also reveal Home Before Dark’s tiny hero, Brooklynn Prince, as a certified star.

T-Mobile reveals how lockdown is changing the way we use online connectivity

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Traffic lights as metaphor for motivation streaks
Traffic is up in some areas.
Photo: Charlie Sorrel/Cult of Mac

The COVID-19 pandemic is having all kinds of impact on everyday life. One of those is how we use our phones as we increasingly rely on connectivity to, well, keep us connected.

T-Mobile President of Technology Neville Ray recently shared some observations the newly merged carrier has made about changing cell phone habits during COVID-19.