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Apple could drop the 15-inch MacBook Pro

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2019 MacBook Pro
The already slender MacBook bezels could nearly disappear in the 16-inch version.
Photo: Apple

Apple’s next MacBook Pro will reportedly fit a 16-inch screen into the same size chassis as the current 15-inch model. An industry analyst says Apple plans to take the logical step and drop the smaller screen option.

This would keep Apple’s laptop lineup simple, with just 13-inch or 16-inch MacBook Pros, and a 13-inch MacBook Air.

This tool ensures your kids use their iPhones safely

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Take control of your kids' devices with FamiSafe.
Take control of your kids' devices with FamiSafe.
Photo: Tim Gouw/Unsplash CC

This post is presented by Wondershare.

It’s 2019, so kids are practically born with a smartphone in their hands. The ability to communicate and access information anywhere is mostly a great thing. But for parents, there are plenty of reasons to be concerned about the content their kids are consuming, or the amount of time they’re spending staring at a screen.

However, with the right app, you can make sure your youngsters stay away from risky videos and websites. In fact, you can even use children’s mobile devices to enhance their safety.

Tim Cook’s lovely tribute to Toni Morrison draws clueless responses

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Tim Cook tweet about the passing of Toni Morrison
Not the place to bring up 5G.
Screenshot: Tim Cook/Twitter

Apple CEO Tim Cook used twitter this morning to reflect on the passing of American author Toni Morrison, thanking her for “the beauty you revealed in our world.”

Cook joined a chorus of tributes from people touched by Morrison’s novels. He pulled a poignant quote from an acceptance speech she gave in 1993 when she was awarded the Nobel Prize for literature.

How to add a custom iMessage avatar in iOS 13

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Memoji are awesome. Here's how to make your own.
Now you can use Memoji in iMessage profiles.
Photo: Charlie Sorrel/Cult of Mac

You know how you can add an avatar to pretty much any social app ever, and all your friends, family, contacts, etc., will see it? Well, in iOS 13 you can finally do the same for iMessages.

No longer will you have to hope that your contacts use a nice photo of you, or worry that your boss is using a picture of a cute pig or pussycat to represent you in the group chat. Now you can add and share your own avatar, or even a Memoji. Let’s see how.

Apple-owned FileMaker has a new name and focus

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FileMaker
FileMaker isn’t going away, but the company that makes it is expanding what it does.
Photo: Claris

FileMaker changed its name to Claris. That might sound familiar as it’s the name the company had when Apple founded it way back in 1986.

The move is part of expanding what it does, beyond making a relational database application.

Japan’s Fair Trade Commission investigates Apple again

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Apple Japan required carriers to subsidize iPhone
Apple is accused of abusing its power with suppliers.
Photo: Apple

Japan’s Fair Trade Commission is investigating Apple’s tactics for selling iPhones in the country.

The Japanese FTC thinks Apple might have abused its power by pressuring Japanese suppliers into unfavorable deals. Questionable methods allegedly include providing free technology and expertise to Apple affiliates, stopping them from selling to other companies, and making them shoulder costs for unforeseen problems.

Apple might give hackers special iPhones to plug security problems

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The CIA has a team of more than 5,000 hackers.
This is what a real hacker looks like. Dry ice is not optional.
Photo: Brian Klug/Flickr CC

Apple has historically not been a company in favor of people jailbreaking its devices. So why would Cupertino give hackers special iPhones to help them find weaknesses in iOS? To patch those problems, of course!

According to a new report, Apple will announce plans this week at the Black Hat security conference in Las Vegas to hand out such devices to security researchers. Apple also will introduce a new Mac bug bounty program to reward anyone who finds security problems in macOS.

We probably know when Apple will introduce the iPhone 11

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iPhone 11R and 11 Max on wooden railing
You haven't got too much longer to wait!
Photo: Ian Fuchs/Cult of Mac

The iPhone 11 could be in your hands in just 45 days, the president of Japanese telecommunications company SoftBank may have accidentally revealed.

Speaking at an investor event over the weekend, SoftBank President Ken Miyauchi suggested that the new iPhone will be available September 20.

Inateck’s USB-C hub brings back ports you forgot you need [Review]

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Inateck 8-in-1 USB-C Hub
This 8-port hub lets you hook your Mac or iPad Pro up to almost anything.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

The designers of Inateck’s latest USB-C hub obviously believe that too much is never enough. It has eight ports, including the typical USB-A and HDMI ones but also some real legacy ports, including Ethernet and even VGA. There’s also a built-in removable USB-C cable for use on the go.

There’s a lot to test here, but I put this full-featured hub through its paces. Plug into my review to see what I learned.

This is what happens if you try to put a folder named ‘Dropbox’ in iCloud Drive

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A dropped box
A dropped box.
Photo: Charlie Sorrel/Cult of Mac

Dropbox is getting increasingly bloated and annoying — on the Mac, at least. When iOS 13 ships later this year, you’ll be able to share whole iCloud folders with other people, so you can ditch DropBox altogether. But how will you switch?

One thing you can’t do is just drag your Dropbox folder into iCloud Drive. iCloud just won’t let you. In fact, you can’t even create a new folder and name it “Dropbox.” WTF?

AT&T gives free Spotify Premium to unlimited subscribers

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Spotify discover weekly, daily mix, playlists, and sharing features
This should help Spotify grow its subscriber base.
Photo: Ian Fuchs

AT&T is ready to sweeten the deal for some of its monthly subscribers by offering free Spotify premium as of its new entertainment perks.

The carrier revealed its new entertainment perks today that also gives customers the option to choose HBO, Cinemax, Showtime, Starz or Pandora as their free entertainment options. Even if you don’t have a qualifying wireless plan, you can still get some other Spotify perks.

Fossil’s Gen 5 watches offer better iPhone integration

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Fossil Gen 5 smart watches
Fossil unveiled the first Wear OS watches that can make iPhone calls.
Photo: Fossil

Fossil’s fifth-generation smart watches run Google’s Wear OS, but they don’t reject iOS users. Users will be able to make and receive phone calls when connected to an iPhone over Bluetooth, a first for wearable with this operating system. These wrist-worn devices also can go multiple days on a single charge.

The company just unveiled its first Gen 5 models in a range of colors.

New Apple Card site shows exactly how you can get one

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Apple Card
We can't wait for Apple Card.
Photo: Apple

Apple Card inched a little bit closer to its public launch today with the unveiling of a new website that walks users through the sign-up process.

The new wallet.Apple.com provides details on the application process as well as offers visitors the option to get notified when Apple Card launches. Tim Cook revealed during the company’s earnings report last week that the launch is slated for sometime in August.

Facebook and YouTube would be more profitable without advertising

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the Facebook logo on an iPhone 6 Plus
Facebook would be more profitable if users paid a monthly subscription fee.
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

Many of our favorite applications are free because advertisers pay for them. But what if that changed? How much would you pay for Facebook or YouTube without advertising… and without these apps profiling everything about you?

A survey conducted by a market-research firm found that subscription fees people would pay for these apps would make them more profitable than they are now.

Tim Cook calls for politicians to come together to address gun violence

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Apple revenues
Tim Cook wants politicians to put aside their differences.
Photo: Apple

After mass shootings in Texas and Ohio, Apple CEO Tim Cook called for lawmakers to come together to resolve the problem of gun violence.

“I’m heartbroken about what’s happening in my country,” Cook wrote on Twitter. “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing and expecting different results. It’s time for good people with different views to stop finger pointing and come together to address this violence for the good of our country.”

Apple ramps up R&D spending like there’s no tomorrow

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R&D
One of Apple's shiny R&D investment centers where it invents the future.
Photo: Apple

Apple spent more money on research and development in the past quarter than it spent in any three-month period in the company’s history. Q3 2019 R&D spending also accounted for the largest proportion of Apple revenue since 2003, back when the iPod ruled as Apple’s biggest seller.

At a time when the iPhone no longer accounts for most of Apple’s revenue, this level of investment suggests that there are some big things in the works in Cupertino.

2021 iPhones could boast both Face ID and in-display Touch ID

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iPhone
Touch ID could make a return.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

Apple could release an iPhone with both Face ID and under-display Touch ID in 2021, a new report by renowned Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo claims.

Before the iPhone X introduced Face ID, rumors abounded that Apple was trying to develop Touch ID that would work as part of the iPhone’s display. However, it supposedly ran into technical challenges.

12 Apple 1s turn computer festival into ‘Disneyland for nerds’

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Apple 1 collection at Vintage Computer Festival West
Twelve of the 70 Apple 1 computers still in existence were at the Vintage Computer Festival West this past weekend.
Photo: Erik Klein/Vintage Computer Federation

Only 70 Apple 1 computers are known to exist. But collectors gathered twelve of them over the weekend for the annual Vintage Computer Festival West at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, Calif.

This is no small feat considering the fragility and rarity of the humble machine that launched a computing revolution — and one of the world’s most influential companies.

“They are the computers that started Apple,” Dag Spicer, senior curator for the museum, told Cult of Mac. “People are completely blown away.”

Apple Card isn’t for jailbreakers or cryptocurrency buyers

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Antana/Flickr CC
Not the card for Bitcoin lovers.
Photo: Antana/Flickr CC

Apple eagerly anticipated Apple Card could be the most consumer-friendly credit card on the market. However, there are a few rules that could put off a small number of users.

In Goldman Sachs’ customer agreement for the card, it notes that Apple Card is not for people who jailbreak their iPhones. And it can’t be used for buying Bitcoin, lottery tickets, and a few other things, either.

China tariffs may not make iPhones more expensive for customers

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iPhone XS Max
Ming-Chi Kuo thinks Apple will absorb the cost of increased import duties.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

Don’t panic: the introduction of new import tariffs by President Trump isn’t going to make the next iPhone even more expensive!

That’s the message from reliable Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. In his latest note to client, Kuo says that he thinks Apple will absorb the cost of any tariffs, rather than pass them on to customers.