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How to watch Apple’s ‘More in the Making’ keynote

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Tim Cook and Ivanka Trump
Are you ready for Apple's big event?
Photo: Apple

Apple’s ‘More in the Making’ keynote is less than 24 hours away where the company is expected to unveil a slew of new iPads and Macs.

Unlike last month’s iPhone keynote at Apple Park, this week’s event will be hosted at the Brooklyn Academy of Music and it’s starting early at 10 a.m. ET. If you didn’t get an invite to the event, don’t worry, the entire thing will be live-streamed.

Here’s how to tune in on whatever device you’re using.

Creative hack gives you stunning iPhone macro shots

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Paul Adshead
Making a macro lens is easy. Shooting with it is another story.
Photo: Paul Adshead/Fstoppers

Commercial photographer Paul Adshead could have spent a few bucks for a macro lens attachment for his iPhone. Instead, a MacGyver-type of a hack gave him a lens and ethereal macro photos that seem achievable with only a high-powered microscope.

Feeling adventurous and uninspired by his smartphone photos, Adshead harvested an internal lens from a 1990s-era CD drive and, with a little tack-it putty, affixed it to his iPhone.

Services could make up nearly half of Apple’s profits by 2020

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Apple waives developer fees for nonprofits, others in 8 additional countries
Apple's Services division is a money-minting machine.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Apple’s burgeoning Services division could make up 40 percent of the company’s gross profits by fiscal 2020, predicts Jefferies analyst Timothy O’Shea.

O’Shea says that Apple’s growing Services are the creamy sweet icing (not exactly his words) on top of the cake that is the existing “stable” iPhone business. As a result, he puts a price target of $265 a share on the Cupertino giant.

New Apple Pencil could support gesture recognition

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google handwriting apple pencil
We could see a new Apple Pencil this week.
Photo: Charlie Sorrel/Cult of Mac

Apple Pencil is the best iPad stylus money can buy — and it could be about to get even better.

iOS code reveals an updated model, which is likely to make its debut during tomorrow’s “More in the Making” event, will support gestures that make it even more powerful. It could also pack a physical button that provides access to useful functions.

Apple investigates reports of underage workers at Apple Watch factory

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App Home Screen Apple Watch Series 4
The incident allegedly took place at Apple manufacturer Quanta.
Photo: Leander Kahney/Cult of Mac

Apple has said that it will investigate allegations that one of its manufacturers used high school students to build Apple Watches in China.

The news came to light late last week, when the Hong Kong-based labor rights group Students and Scholars Against Corporate Misbehavior (SACOM) said it had received a report. Today, Apple issued a statement saying previous audits revealed no cases of underage labor, but that it will carry out its own investigations.

iBeacon use slows to ‘a trickle’

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beacon1
iBeacons were introduced as part of iOS 7.
Photo: Apple

iBeacons haven’t exactly caught on as Apple hoped, and neither have the similar smartphone-communicating beacons launched by other companies like Google.

But why has beacon adoption slowed to “a trickle?” A new report lays out several possible explanations.

Versace could bring back 1990s Apple sneakers

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Apple sneaker 2
Here's what Apple's original 1990s sneakers looked like.
Photo: Heritage Auction

These days, the term “Apple wearable” immediately makes you think of the Apple Watch. But back in the 1990s, Apple created sneakers that carried the company’s rainbow-colored logo.

Jump forward a quarter century, and Versace’s head sneaker designer just posted an image on Instagram that bears a striking resemblance to Apple’s sneakers. Check it out.

Qualcomm claims Apple owes $7 billion for royalty payments

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Qualcomm patents
Qualcomm has been battling with Apple since early 2017.
Photo: Qualcomm

Qualcomm has told a federal court in San Diego that Apple is $7 billion behind in its royalty patents to the firm for technology which uses Qualcomm licenses.

Apple, which has been locked in a battle with Qualcomm for close to two years, has disputed the amount that it owes. It also claims that Qualcomm is trying to force it to pay for certain patents twice over: once for the use of Qualcomm’s chips in iPhones and once for patent royalties.

iPhone XR review: Why buy anything else?

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iPhone XR review: With a great screen, cameras, battery life and Face ID, the iPhone XR is a nifty smartphone.
With a great screen, cameras, battery life and Face ID, the iPhone XR is a nifty smartphone.
Photo: Kristal Chan/Cult of Mac

The iPhone XR is typical Apple. It’s an entry-level phone with a bunch of premium features. Jony Ive just cannot cut corners, even if he wanted to. This is no plasticky, cut-rate phone built to meet a price point. It’s a primo phone with primo features (and a primo price tag, TBH). It just happens to be the cheapest new iPhone in Apple’s lineup.

The XR delivers everything customers care about: a big, beautiful screen; great cameras; long battery life; and Face ID.

The iPhone XR is arguably Apple’s most interesting smartphone of 2018 because of this slightly odd bundle of budget/premium features. It’s arguably a $1,200 phone in a $750 package.

For a chance to win a brand-new iPhone XR, enter our free giveaway here.

iOS 12 icon essentially confirms iPad Pro redesign

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ipad pro
This artist's concept was created months ago and it actually turns out to be really close to the appearance of the 2018 iPad Pro.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

If anyone still needs to be convinced that the iPad Pro series is about to undergo a major facelift, the most compelling evidence yet has come to light. An icon that clearly shows the look of Apple’s next tablets has just been found buried in iOS 12.

These devices are getting a nip here and a tuck there, resulting in their biggest redesign since… ever.

Why it’s time for Apple to pull the plug on Lightning cables [Opinion]

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iPhone Lightning connector
The Lightning port is a relic of the past, and it belongs with SCSI ports and buggy whips.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

On Tuesday, Apple is almost certainly going to unveil the first iPad with a USB-C port. This could easily mark the beginning of the end for the Lightning connector across all iOS devices.

USB is a welcome addition to the iPad, but Apple should take a more radical step for the iPhone line. Instead of exchanging the Lightning connector for another data/power port, maybe these handsets shouldn’t have one at all.

Wirelessly charge your iPhone at home or in the car [Deals]

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Wirelessly revive your iPhone at home or on the road with these convenient, quick chargers.
Wirelessly revive your iPhone at home or on the road with these convenient, quick chargers.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

Wireless charging is one of the coolest features of today’s smartphones. But depending on where you are, it can be more or less convenient. So we’ve rounded up a pair of wireless chargers for Qi-enabled phones, perfect for any home, office, or automobile.

iPhone XR boasts bigger battery than Apple’s flagship phone

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Compare the battery sizes of the iPhone 8, iPhone XR, iPhone 8 Plus, and the iPhone XS.
Compare the battery sizes of the iPhone 8, iPhone XR, iPhone 8 Plus, and the iPhone XS. The one from the XR is thicker than the 8 Plus'.
Photo: IFIXIT

The first teardowns of the iPhone XR reveal a surprising fact: it has a larger battery than virtually all previous iOS smartphones, even the iPhone XS.

Reviews of the iPhone XR indicate it lasts a long time between charges, though no one agrees on exactly how long. Apple promises that this device will go 1.5 hours longer than the iPhone 8 Plus.

We’ve got serious iPhone XR envy! [Cult of Mac Magazine]

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Just how good is the iPhone XR? We're head over heels! Read all about it in Cult of Mac Magazine Issue No. 268.
Just how good is the iPhone XR? We're head over heels!
Cover: Leander Kahney/Cult of Mac

The world can’t stop raving about the iPhone XR, Apple’s reasonably priced underdog. Sure, it’s not exactly cheap. And it doesn’t pack all the features of the iPhone XS and XS Max. However, it does check most of the boxes. And in some ways, it’s actually better than Cupertino’s current high-end offerings.

Find out why everybody’s going completely nuts for the iPhone XR in this week’s issue of our magazine. It’s free and it’s fun to read on an iPad or iPhone. Get your free subscription to Cult of Mac Magazine from iTunes now.

Bonus: Read on for a chance to win the iPhone XR we showcased in our unboxing video!

Gear up and upgrade your health routine [Deals]

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We've rounded up some of the best deals on gear that'll enhance your active life.
We've rounded up some of the best deals on gear that'll enhance your active life.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

The more technology enters our lives, the harder it can be to stay physically active. So, to help keep healthy, we’ve rounded up some of the best tech for staying fit. We’ve got workout-ready Bluetooth earbuds, a year of online personal training, a portable home gym, and a fitness-oriented smartwatch. Most are discounted by more than half, read on for more details:

Halloween spooktacular sale! Get two cool and colorful NATO Apple Watch bands for $65!

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Nyloon
Nyloon is offering two NATO-style Apple Watch bands for $65 on the Cult of Mac Apple Watch Store.
Photo: Ste Smith / Cult of Mac

Halloween is right around the corner and to celebrate this spooky holiday, Nyloon is offering a limited-time deal through the Cult of Mac Watch Store on their top-notch NATO-style bands.

Starting Saturday October 27th and ending on Wednesday October 31 (Halloween night) you can snag two Nyloon Apple Watch bands for only $65 from our online Watch Store. This is the perfect time to stock up on gifts for friends and family, or to just treat yourself!

iPhone XR first look: So awesome we’re giving it away!

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iPhone XR giveaway: Enter to win this gorgeous blue iPhone.
Enter to win this gorgeous blue iPhone XR.
Photo: Kristal Chan/Cult of Mac

After unboxing the brand new iPhone XR, I can confidently say that this is a fantastic phone. Apple cut very few corners. The iPhone XR is beautifully designed, with a great big, edge-to-edge display. It’s incredibly fast, and camera performance is excellent. It looks awesome. The drawbacks are mostly minor.

Basically, it’s a $1,200 phone in a $750 package.

Check out the video to see our first impressions. Then read on to find out how you can enter to win the 128GB blue speed demon showcased in the video. Yep, it’s free to enter our iPhone XR giveaway. (Frankly, it’s going to be hard to part with this beautiful machine.)

5 great apps that bust out the bokeh on iPhone XS and XR

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The iPhone XS' new bokeh tool is just the beginning.
The iPhone XS' new bokeh tool is just the beginning.
Photo: Charlie Sorrel/Cult of Mac

The iPhone XS camera is pretty incredible. The device uses its two rear cameras, plus the A12 chip’s Neural Engine, to record such an accurate 3D map of the scene that you can adjust the background blur with a slider. But that depth map is useful for more than just blurring backgrounds. It can be used by other apps to:

  • Add realistic lights to a scene.
  • Choose any subject to be in focus, not just the one you picked when shooting.
  • Add custom background blurs.
  • Remove and replace backgrounds, like movie green-screen effects.

The iPhone XS is the gold standard for iOS cameras, but the XR manages some excellent tricks of its own. Despite having only one rear camera, the XR can still recognise people, and then use AI and the super-powerful A12 Neural Engine to separate out the person form the background. While this portrait matte isn’t as detailed as an iPhone XS depth map, it can in theory still be used to do many of the same tricks.

Today we’ll look at the best depth apps for the new iPhone XS, XR, and XS Max.

Apple bars Bloomberg from iPad event as payback for spy chip story

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More than a year of reporting went into
More than a year of reporting went into "The Big Hack," an explosive story about Chinese spy chips.
Photo: Bloomberg Businessweek

Apple and Amazon are already starting to make retaliatory moves on Bloomberg Businessweek for its claims that the two companies’ servers were hacked by China.

Amazon pulled its Q4 ads from Bloomberg’s website, cutting off significant ad revenue. Meanwhile, Apple has decided to give Bloomberg the old Gizmodo treatment — by banning the company from next week’s “There’s More in the Making” event.

Apple Watches across Europe could crash this weekend

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Man’s brand new Apple Watch turns out to be toilet plunger
Europeans, you can easily save your wearable from an Apple Watch DST bug causing you problems on Sunday.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Daylight Saving Time comes to an end in Europe early Sunday morning, and this could cause problems for Apple Watch Series 4 owners.

There could be a repeat of what happened in Australia earlier this month. Apple Watch wearers saw their wearable crash over-and-over on the day DST ended because one of the Watch complications couldn’t deal with a 25-hour day.