A broken Apple Watch and scratched up iPod never looked better. Photo: Elvin Hu
Apple taught Elvin Hu new languages.
Born in China, Hu refined his English by watching Apple keynote events. He also came to understand the visual language of Apple’s product photography.
The latter inspired Hu, a design student at The Cooper Union in New York City, to create a series of product shots showing broken and well-worn Apple gadgets in hands that share similar gouges and scratches.
iOS 12.3.1 only takes out a few bugs, but it still should be installed. Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
Apple unexpectedly introduced iOS 12.3.1 this afternoon. It comes just a few weeks after the last update, and apparently only takes care of three bugs, two of which relate to spam in Messages.
The iPhone SE 2 is likely to look a lot like the original. Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
There’s a glimmer of hope that Apple will once again make a truly budget handset. Information leaking out of this company’s supply chain indicates that there could be an iPhone SE 2 introduced in 2020.
Designer Alvaro Pabesio published a beautiful new concept that showcases what some of the most popular requested features could look like. Dark Mode, an updated Files, a redesigned volume indicator, iMessage profiles and more are on full display, plus some tweaks that Alvaro dreamed up himself.
Full-screen Touch ID might be a highlight of the 2020 iPhone. Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
While Apple seems to be phasing out fingerprint scanners in favor of facial recognition, sources in the Asian iPhone supply chain reportedly claim that Touch ID will actually be back next year, and better than ever.
The 2020 iPhone will also supposedly be the first with 5G as well as a 3D rear-facing sensor.
What’s inside a 2019 MacBook Pro key. Photo: iFixit
Apple just dropped a new MacBook Pro with faster Intel processors that deliver even greater performance. But more importantly, it features “new material” that Apple hopes will fix its keyboard woes.
The machine now been pulled apart by iFixit so that we can see exactly what’s changed under the hood. Don’t expect anything too dramatic or you’ll be sorely disappointed.
iPhones rely on minerals exported by China. Photo: Kristal Chan/Cult of Mac
As battle lines are drawn between China and the U.S. in its burgeoning trade war, China has one big advantage working in its favor. The country is a primary source of “rare earths” used by manufacturers around the world — including Apple.
This category of 17 elements is used in multiple iPhone components. These include cameras, speakers, taptic engines, and receiver components. It’s yet another way Apple could be hurt by a trade war.
Clicker Heroes is gone and may not be back. Photo: Playsaurus
Apple has kicked a popular iOS game out of the App Store after a Chinese company stole its name.
Clicker Heroes, which first made its debut on iPhone and iPad back in 2015, is a highly-rated idle RPG from Playsaurus. It’s usually free to download, but it’s no longer available on iOS.
There’s currently no word on if or when it will return, but it doesn’t look good.
Get years of comprehensive VPN protection for a fraction the usual price. Photo: Cult of Mac Deals
The benefits of using a VPN to connect to the internet almost always outweigh the costs. It also helps if the VPN is rated highly on the App Store (4.6 out of 5 stars from over 27,000 reviews). But if price is what’s holding you back, this deal is for you.
Apple finally did it—they put 8 cores in a MacBook Pro. Photo: Apple
This week on The CultCast: Apple releases the MacBook Pro we never thought possible, packed with Intel’s newest 8-core chip! But can a machine this slim handle the heat? Plus: WWDC 2019 is officially on! We talk our keynote predictions. And even more good news, Apple announces two new warranty repair programs to fix MacBook’s most troubling issues… for FREE.
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Got to love that pixel art! Photo: Benjamin Rivers Inc.
Worse Than Death, the new game created by horror title Home creator Benjamin Rivers, has a release date in the App Store.
The pixel art action-adventure game, which combines puzzle solving and exploration with plenty of scares will debut on June 26. Check out the trailer below.
Samsung still hasn’t provided a new launch date. Photo: Samsung
The future of Samsung’s first foldable phone looks uncertain again after Best Buy canceled all existing preorders.
The retailer says it wants to put customers first and “ensure they are taken care of in the best possible manner.” It doesn’t want people hanging on for a phone that still has no release date.
A glimpse at Apple's new store. Photo: Mobile 01/Apple
A new image posted online shows that Apple is gearing up to open its second Apple Store in Taiwan. The photo shows that Apple has erected its customary white construction barriers around the new store, complete with Apple branding.
The new retail outlet is located at the bottom of the Xinyi A13 shopping mall in Taipei’s commercial hub District. From the look of things, the store has a roof design reminiscent of its Chicago flagship store.
Apple Music now shares celeb playlists by Chris Hemsworth, Lizzo, and more. Photo: Apple
Apple’s got no shortage of celebrity friends — and a few of them just shared their summer playlists to Apple Music.
Apple’s “Summertime Sounds” curated playlist collection contains the tracks hand-picked (well, presumably) by names including Chris Hemsworth, Lizzo, Shawn Mendes, J Balvin, and more. Want to know what Thor is bumping as he heads on the latest Avengers press tour? This might be your best hope of answering that question.
Fill your belly with cheap tacos this weekend. Photo: Apple
Apple Pay users can now enjoy $1 tacos at Taco Bell.
Apple’s latest promotion, which applies to any regular crunchy or soft-seasoned beef taco, runs through May 29. You’ll need the Taco Bell app on your iPhone to take advantage of it.
Lego Legacy: Heroes Unboxed looks like a lot of fun. Photo: Gameloft
Gameloft has confirmed it is working on a brand new role-playing game for mobile that’s set in the Lego universe.
Lego Legacy: Heroes Unboxed will make its debut this fall. It’s the first Lego game in the RPG genre, and it promises to be a lot of fun for fans of the Lego franchise and RPG games.
Wouldn’t it be great if you could take that awesome (and hilarious!) GIF, and use it as an animated wallpaper for your iPhone? You could wake your iPhone, press on the screen, and watch the action unfold. Over and over. And over.
Sadly, GIF wallpapers are impossible. Or are they? Well, you can’t set an actual GIF to run as your lock-screen wallpaper, but you can convert any GIF into a Live Photo, and use that to animate your iPhone’s lock screen.
You should install iOS 12.3, but be aware that if you do so you can’t go back to the previous version. Photo: Pexels
All who’ve upgraded their phone or tablet to iOS 12.3 can no longer backtrack to the previous version. This is because Apple has stopped signing iOS 12.2.
It’s not a reflection on that older version, but a standard action for the company to take. It always ends the installation of obsolescent versions shortly after a new one is introduced.
Apple’s clip-on keyboard isn’t very protective. Dodocase makes a folio sleeve that fits around it for extra shielding. Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
The Apple Smart Keyboard Folio turns an iPad Pro into an ultralight laptop, but it’s so slim it doesn’t do much to shield the tablet inside. We tested a sleeve from Dodocase that goes around Apple’s keyboard to protect both it and the iPad. It also improves the look of the keyboard case.
Be sure to read our hands-on review of the handy Keyboard Folio Sleeve.
Clicker for Mac makes it that much easier to watch your favorite Netflix shows and movies. Photo: Cult of Mac Deals
Now that Netflix is the 800-lb gorilla of content providers everywhere, accessing and streaming their vast library has improved from its modest beginnings. Yet even despite the enhancements to their service, it can still be a pain to have to open a browser and enter your password to get to your queue.
The 2019 MacBook Pro is the first with an 8-core processor, giving it better performance running complex software. Photo: Apple
Apple’s marketing for the recently-announced 2019 MacBook Pro emphasizes how much faster it than last year’s model, and now a benchmark score may confirm that this macOS laptop is almost 30 percent speedier.
Add your own music to your iPhone without iTunes. Photo: Charlie Sorrel/Cult of Mac
Maybe in iOS 13 we’ll be able to add songs to our music iPhone libraries without having to wake up a Mac or PC running iTunes. Until then, there’s no way to listen to songs downloaded from Bandcamp, or exported from GarageBand, alongside the rest of your music collection.
But there’s a workaround. Vox is a slightly confusing music app that combines your built-in Apple Music library with your Soundcloud, Spotify, and other services. And it will also let you import any audio file, and then add it to playlists and so on. Let’s know more about how to achieve this.
10.8% in ’94. Plus, Apple’s software sales were growing more slowly than those of rival companies. Curious about what is an Apple Fellow? This article provides more insights.
Steve Jobs sends a message to the competition. Photo: Andy Hertzfield
A new book compiling the doodles and jotted notes of famous figures includes two from Apple co-founder Steve Jobs, each with a cryptic reference to the bane of his existence, IBM.
Debuting last week, Scrawl: An A to Z of Famous Doodles is filled with the scribbles of more than 100 historically important people, from Queen Victoria and President Dwight Eisenhower to Clara Barton and Albert Einstein.
You'll be surprised how much your old Apple Watch is worth. Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
There’s never been a better time to upgrade your Apple Watch. Series 3 models are now available for under $200 — the lowest price yet — and smaller discounts on the Series 4 are popping up all the time.
Yours could be even more affordable if you turn your old Apple Watch into cash. Cult of Macbuys back your old Apple devices at excellent prices, and we won’t leave you waiting weeks for your cash.
Apparently, the CEO of Huawei would rather have one of these iPhones than a handset made by his own company. Photo: Apple
Rising trade tensions have brought calls in China to boycott Apple devices in favor of Huawei handsets, but the iPhone has an unlikely cheerleader: the CEO of Huawei admits he buys iPhones for his family.
“One can’t narrowly think love for Huawei should mean loving Huawei phones,” said CEO and founder Ren Zhengfei.