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Apple Stores risk losing some of what made them great

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Apple West Lake
Do you think that Apple Stores have gotten worse over time?
Photo: Apple

Apple Stores have long been leaders when it comes to the customer experience. But that’s starting to change, as decisions made by Apple erode some of the things which once made them great.

At least, that’s according to a new article from Bloomberg, which singles out a few key examples.

Angela Ahrendts was ‘incredibly insecure’ about joining Apple

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Angela Ahrendts.
Ahrendts at an iPhone keynote during her tenure at Apple.
Screenshot: Apple

Apple’s former retail boss Angela Ahrendts was one of Apple’s most well-compensated executives during her time at the company. But in her first interview since parting ways with Apple, Ahrendts reveals how worried she was initially about joining.

“I was, on my own accord, incredibly insecure,” she told LinkedIn’s Hello Monday podcast. “I’m 54 years old, and it’s Apple, for God’s sake! I don’t speak that language. I am not a left-brain engineer operator. I mean, I could talk myself out of it forever.”

One charging strip supports four international formats [Deals]

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This slim international charging strip supports EU, UK, US, and AU outlets.
This slim international charging strip supports EU, UK, US, and AU outlets.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

Traveling internationally is enough of a hassle on its own. Dealing with the different standards and formats involved in powering our gear makes it even more of a headache. So instead of carrying around a bag full of converters and adapters, just get this adaptable powerstrip.

Twitter now lets you add GIFs, video or photos to retweets

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Twitter
Twitter says this feature was much-demanded by users.
Photo: Twitter

If you’ve ever dreamed of being able to add a GIF into your Twitter retweet (and what self-respecting citizen of 2019 has not?), this is your lucky day!

Twitter has introduced the ability for users to retweet a message with an accompanying GIF, photo or video. “People come to Twitter to share their thoughts on interests, events, and news, and we wanted to give them more ways to express themselves,” the company said. “Also, you asked for this!”

New Apple Music app might steal the show with macOS 10.15

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Podcasts and Apple TV are among the applications expected to make the jump from iOS to macOS 10.15.
With original content being developed for television, Apple is reportedly looking to create podcasts.
Photo: Apple/Cult of Mac

Apple’s ongoing project to make it relatively simple for developers to port iPad software to macOS is apparently on schedule. This will reportedly be a highlight of next month’s developers conference.

In addition, Apple executives will unveil several of their own iOS apps ported to macOS 10.15, as well as a Mac version of the Music app.

Tim Cook explains why Apple isn’t a tech company anymore

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Tim Cook and Co. bring the hardware heat at The Brooklyn Academy of Music during the
Apple is now a consumer company.
Photo: Tim Cook

Apple CEO Tim Cook sounded absolutely ecstatic to count Warren Buffett as one of his company’s investors during an interview at Berkshire Hathaway’s shareholders meeting this morning.

Cook made a cameo in the company’s opening video — that also introduced Apple’s new Buffett-themed game — and sat down with CNBC to talk about his relationship with Warren, Apple’s culture, privacy and more.

How to block ads and malware on iOS

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This is the web without content blockers.
This is the web without content blockers.
Photo: Charlie Sorrel/Cult of Mac

Way back in iOS 9 days, Apple added “content blocking” to the iPhone and iPad. More commonly known as “ad-blockers,” this tech lets you use third-party apps to block ads, malware, trackers, comments, and more, in Mobile Safari. Apple itself doesn’t do any more than make blocking possible. To actual decide what to block, you need a third-party app.

Enabling ad-blocking is easy, once you know how, and you can set-and-forget it once done. Or you can keep on top of things, adding custom rules, and white-listing trusted websites. Here’s how.

New Trump trade rhetoric spells trouble for Apple

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Apple shares suffer biggest decline since August
Apple shares suffer biggest decline since August
Photo: White House

Apple started its work week to news of its stock in freefall thanks to Sunday tweets by President Donald Trump threatening to tag more Chinese goods with a 25 percent tariff unless the two countries can reach a trade deal by Friday.

This may be just another Trump Twitter rant to put pressure on negotiations. But if he follows through on an additional $200 billion in goods, Apple may be forced to build iPhone, iPads, and Macs elsewhere.

Wildly customizable keyboard unleashes iPad creativity

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The new Buchla Thunder layout for the Sensel Morph.
The new Buchla Thunder layout for the Sensel Morph.
Photo: Sensel

The Sensel Morph is a different kind of “keyboard” for the iPad or Mac. It’s a pressure-sensitive panel onto which you can slap various silicone overlays, turning it from a QWERTY keyboard into a piano, a movie-editing controller or many other specialized interfaces.

It’s a customizable, wildly imaginative input device designed for musicians, video editors, illustrators, writers and other creative types.

Microsoft’s Edge browser is coming to the Mac ‘soon’

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Microsoft
Get your hands on it today.
Photo: Microsoft

Microsoft kicked off its annual Build 2019 developer conference this morning and to the surprise of Apple fans, the Windows-maker showed off some new software that runs on Mac.

Windows 10 users have been able to test early builds of Microsoft’s Edge Chromium browsers since last month, but it looks like Mac users won’t have to wait long to test out Edge. Microsoft doesn’t have a launch date yet, however, it briefly teased Edge running on macOS in a new video.

Apple made an iPhone game just for Warren Buffett

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Warren Buffett
Get ready to sling papers till your fingers hurt.
Photo: Apple

Apple finally came out with its first new video game for iPhone since the App Store debuted in 2008, and it’s dedicated to the iPhone-maker’s largest shareholder, Warren Buffett. It’s called Warren Buffett’s Paper Wizard, and it sounded like a joke at first.

Apple CEO Tim Cook made a cameo appearance at Berkshire Hathaway’s shareholder meeting this morning to reveal the new game. In Paper Wizard, players cruise around tossing newspapers at houses as an homage to Buffett, who worked a paper route as a kid to make money. Now he’s one of the richest men in the world (and with his own paper boi video game to boot).

iOS 13 could be Apple’s biggest iPad-focused upgrade ever

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Apple Smart Keyboard Folio turns the 2018 iPad Pro into a notebook.
Details leaking out ahead of next month’s iOS 13 announcement indicate it will offer plenty for iPad, but iPhone won‘t be overlooked.
Photo: Apple

The unveiling of iOS 13 is expected in less than a month, and a new report spills details on many of the improvements supposedly coming. For iPhone users, iOS 13 is bringing refinements to already existing features. iPad users, on the other hand, are supposedly getting plenty of new capabilities.

Apple Watch might get its own App Store

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It’s time to cut the cable and set Apple Watch free
Apple Watches running watchOS 6 could be significantly more independent from iPhone than their predecessors.
Photo: Graham Bower/Cult of Mac

Apple Watch is reportedly going to become less tied to iPhone this fall. An unconfirmed report indicates that watchOS 6 will have its own App Store, allowing wearers to download software directly.

And this is just one of the changes supposedly in store for Apple’s popular wearable.

5 reasons Apple should dump Intel processors [Opinion]

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Intel processors have overstayed their welcome in Macs of all types, but especially MacBooks.
Intel processors have overstayed their welcome in Macs of all types, but especially MacBooks.
Photo: Apple/Cult of Mac

It’s past time Macs stopped depending on Intel processors. There’s new evidence to show they’ve outlived their usefulness. A switch to Apple-designed chips will make macOS devices better for a variety of reasons, including increased speed and battery life.

iPads and iPhones already use processors designed by Apple. Unconfirmed reports indicate that the company is pushing forward with plans to ditch Intel’s processors in Macs, too. The first MacBook or iMac with an Apple processor could be out as soon as 2020.

Logitech Crayon is a more affordable Apple Pencil alternative [Updated review]

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Save big by getting a Logitech Crayon for your iPad Pro instead of an Apple Pencil 2.
The Logitech Crayon costs less than the Apple Pencil, and it now works with the 2018 iPad Pro and other recent iOS tablets.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

iPad is a great educational tool, no matter the age of the student. But some children are too young for a keyboard. That’s where the Logitech Crayon comes in. It’s a digital pencil designed for students to write and draw on a variety of iPad and iPad Pro models.

We put this educational accessory to the test.

What’s brewing for iOS and macOS [Cult of Mac Magazine No. 295]

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Get the latest rumors about what's coming in iOS 13 (and macOS 10.15).
Get the latest rumors about what's coming in iOS (and macOS).
Cover: Marty Cortinas/Cult of Mac

With rumors, leaks and discoveries coming in hot and heavy, we’re getting a pretty good idea of exactly what iOS 13 and macOS 10.15 will look like when they land.

We’ve got three ways to get the latest. You can read our iOS/macOS rumor roundup, watch our YouTube video on the same subject or indulge in that story and more in our free Cult of Mac Magazine for iOS.