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Steve Jobs’ ad guru calls iPhone names ‘a war against common sense’

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Author Ken Segall worked in advertising with Steve Jobs for more than a dozen years. His new book is called Think Simple.
Ken Segall put the “i” in iMac, and now he wants iPhone names to make more sense.
Photo: Doug Schneider Photography

Apple’s decision to name its new flagship product the “iPhone XS Max” has drawn criticism. But none so harsh as from Ken Segall, who worked closely with Apple co-founder Steve Jobs on marketing for over a decade.

He says he feels “a sense of dread” before every iPhone press event because “when it comes to iPhone naming, Apple seems to wage a war against common sense.”

Group FaceTime returns in first macOS 10.14.1 public beta

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Group FaceTime Mac
Anyone willing to install macOS 10.14.1 beta 1 can try out Group FaceTime.
Photo: Apple

macOS 10.14 Mojave is still very new, but Apple isn’t resting on its laurels. It has already released the first public beta of a significant update.

Version 10.14.1 isn’t just bug fixes; it’s the first with Group FaceTime, a feature Apple has been promising since early summer.

iPhone XR gets go-ahead for October launch

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iPhone XR portrait mode
Thinking the iPhone XR would have been worth the wait?
Photo: Apple

The iPhone XR has been cleared for takeoff by the FCC.

Apple’s budget-friendly phone received the FCC’s official stamp of approval this morning, allowing the company to go-ahead with its plans to start taking pre-orders for the iPhone XR on October 19.

How to create your first Siri Shortcut

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Using shortcuts is easy, once you know how it works.
Using Shortcuts is easy, once you know how it works.
Photo: Charlie Sorrel/Cult of Mac

Shortcuts is the hot new feature of iOS 12. The Shortcuts app lets you automate some crazy stuff, for instance this shortcut that activates the iPhone’s camera and sends an SMS if the cops pull you over. Thanks to Apple’s terminology, Shortcuts is a little confusing. Is it an automation tool? Does it have something to do with Siri? Why would you use it?

We’ll answer these questions, and then build an awesome shortcut so you can see how the app works.

Logic Pro X and MainStage 3 get updated with tons of new tweaks

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Logic Pro X
Logic Pro X is the go-to software for audio pros.
Photo: Apple

Apple’s professional audio editing software, Logic Pro X, got a sizeable update today, bringing a host of new features to make editing and mixing music even easier.

Logic Pro X version 10.4.2 now allows users to save space on their Mac’s hard drive by relocating the Sound Library to external storage. There’s also a ton of performance fixes as well as tons of tweaks aimed at making editing faster.

Shocker! Clever kids find ways around Screen Time restrictions

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Woman in China temporarily goes blind in one eye after smartphone overuse
iOS 12's new Screen Time feature isn't a panacea for good parenting. Even small children can find workarounds.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

iOS 12’s Screen Time feature lets parents monitor and limit how much time their children spend on their iPhone and iPad. It should surprise no one that smart kids with lots of free time have found ways to circumvent the limits.

This is only the first version of Screen Time, and Apple will likely close these loopholes in future updates.

Cops nab 7 suspects in Apple Store robbery crime wave

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Thieves grab MacBooks from an Apple Store
A frame of CCTV footage showing one of the recent robberies.
Screenshot: CBS New York/Apple

Seven suspects have been arrested in connection to the spate of Apple Store thefts taking place across the Bay Area. Multiple law enforcement agencies cooperated to crack an organized crime ring targeting Apple Stores throughout the region.

The Oakland Police Department said that it, “assisted another law enforcement agency by arresting multiple individuals wanted on criminal warrants.” These arrests, it continued, were, “in connection to large-scale crimes that were committed throughout the state of California.”

LG latest smartphone to one-up Apple on camera count

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LG V40
The LG V40 and its many cameras.
Photo: LG

Korean electronic’s giant LG is teasing the rollout of a new smartphone with multiple cameras.

The LG V40 will feature three cameras on the back plus two front-facing cameras, joining Samsung and Huawei in what is shaping up to be a marketing war featuring the phone with the most cameras.

Every iPhone ranked, from worst to best

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Nicole Arbour 3
What was your favorite iPhone?
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

The new iPhone XS and XS Max are generating rave reviews. Having marked the iPhone’s 10th anniversary with last year’s awe-inducing iPhone X, Apple has now set the stage for a second decade of smartphone innovation.

But what about all the awesome iPhones that led us to this point? Which models are the classics that will occupy museum shelves long after they’ve stopped working? I decided to dive in at the deep end and rank every phone Apple ever made. Wish me luck!

Learn lifelong lessons in coding, design and more from hundreds of courses [Deals]

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Score a lifetime membership to Stone River's eLessons in coding, animation, and lots more.
Score a lifetime membership to Stone River's eLessons in coding, animation, and lots more.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

When it comes to technology – whether it’s coding, design, animation, or anything else that involves computers – there’s always more to learn. But time can feel like it’s in short supply, so there’s real value in being able to learn at your own pace.

Mueller spotted at Genius Bar appointment in Washington, D.C.

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Cohen
See, the country's power brokers are ordinary folks like us!
Photo: Kelly Cohen/Twitter

The Apple Store can be quite the place to spot celebrities and well-known public figures. An image doing the rounds on Twitter shows Robert Mueller, the special prosecutor in charge of the Russia investigation, participating in a recent Genius Bar session.

The Genius Bar appointment took place at the Apple Store in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Mueller appears to be having issues with his MacBook Pro.

Apple Watch wearers in U.K. could wait years for ECG feature

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Apple Watch ECG
Not impressed by the ECG? You’ll have more time to return your Watch.
Photo: Apple

Apple Watch Series 4’s incredible ability to offer electrocardiograms (ECG) is one of the biggest reasons to upgrade this year. But you can’t use it yet.

Those in the U.S. will be able to get their hands on the feature before the end of 2018, but for those in other countries, the wait could be a lot longer. If you live in the U.K., you may even have to wait “years,” one report warns.

Apple flaw lets hackers steal business passwords

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The CIA has a team of more than 5,000 hackers.
Businesses beware.
Photo: Brian Klug/Flickr CC

Many businesses choose to spend more on Apple smartphones and computers because they’re supposed to be safer than more affordable alternatives running Android or Windows. But they’re not completely bulletproof.

Researchers have discovered a worrying flaw in one Apple service that allows hackers to steal business passwords from macOS and iOS devices.

Fortnite season 6 kicks off with massive changes

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Fortnite haunted castle
Visit the new haunted castle in Fortnite season 6.
Photo: Epic Games

It’s time to gear up for Fortnite season six.

The mammoth update, available today across all platforms, brings new areas to explore, new consumables that make you invisible to your enemies, and pets that you carry with you wherever you go. It also removes a number of popular items from the game to make room for others.

Palo Alto Apple Store robbed twice in less than 12 hours

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Tim Cook
Tim Cook recently showed up at the Palo Alto Apple Store to greet customers.
Photo: CNBC

The Apple Store in downtown Palo Alto was robbed twice in 12 hours over the weekend, as the Californian Apple Store crime spree continues.

In the first instance, a gang of eight males entered the store after 7pm on Saturday, and began snatching iPhones and other devices, before fleeing in multiple vehicles. In the early hours of Sunday morning, the store’s glass doors were then shattered with rocks, and more products were taken.

Teenager who hacked Apple’s servers gets 8 months’ probation

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hacking pic
Teenager got off without a jail sentence.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

The Australian teenager who hacked into Apple’s servers and downloaded sensitive data has been given probation in place of a jail sentence.

The verdict was announced on Thursday. The teenager, who carried out the hacking between June 2015 and April 2017, has not been named because their identity as a juvenile offender is protected under Australian law. They were 16-years-old at the time that the first hacking incident took place.

David Hockney’s new stained glass window was designed on an iPad

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iPad
Design a window? There's an app for that.
Photo: Westminster Abbey

British artist David Hockney has unveiled a new stained glass window at London’s renowned Westminster Abbey, commissioned to celebrate the reign of The Queen.

So far, so ordinary, you might think? Except that this window was designed by Hockney on his iPad, before being turned into a 28 x 11.5-foot window by a stained glass studio.

iPhone XS selfie cam is so beautiful it spawned an ugly conspiracy theory

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iPhone XS beautygate
"Beautygate" – Does the front-facing camera of the iPhone XS smooth too many blemishes?
Photo: chemicalsam/Reddit

The iPhone XS and its front-facing camera are supposed to help its owners make better self-portraits. However, some think their iPhone selfies look better than they should.

Users are taking to internet forums like Reddit to question whether Apple added an undisclosed beauty filter to the front-facing camera on the iPhone XS and XS Max. Some are even posting side-by-side selfies taken with an XS and an older handset to make a case that the newest iPhone has more than deeper pixels and an improved portrait mode going for it.

Apple tells Senate privacy is a ‘fundamental human right’

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Apple
Bud Tribble has been with Apple longer than any other employee.
Photo: CSPAN

Apple’s VP of software technology, Bud Tribble, made an appearance before the U.S. Senate’s Commerce Committee today to advocate for an overhaul of privacy laws in the country.

During the hearing, Apple was joined by other figures from tech giants like Google, Amazon, Twitter, and others to advise lawmakers on the current state of internet privacy. Tribble told lawmakers that Apple views privacy as a “fundamental human right,” but the company went short of offering solutions.

Apple Watch Series 4 packs smaller batteries than Series 3

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Man’s brand new Apple Watch turns out to be toilet plunger
Man’s brand new Apple Watch turns out to be toilet plunger
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Apple Watch Series 4 lasts up to 18 hours on a single charge — just like its predecessors — and it somehow manages that with significantly smaller batteries.

An official Product Information sheet confirms Apple’s latest wearables have around 20 percent less battery capacity than Series 3 devices. It’s a testament to the power efficiency of the new components.

iOS 12.1 will bring Dual SIM feature to iPhone XS and XS Max

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When iPhone Dual SIM support appears in iOS 12.1, it will be possible to use two service plans at once with Apple's latest models.
When iPhone Dual SIM support appears in iOS 12.1, it will be possible to use two service plans at once with Apple's latest models.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

A hotly anticipated feature wasn’t available when the iPhone XS models arrived last week, but Apple is hard at work bringing Dual SIM support to these new handsets. This cutting-edge features is included in the first iOS 12.1 beta.

When the full version of the operating system update becomes available later this fall, the iPhone XS and XS Max will be able to simultaneously connect to two cellular providers.

Scriptable controls your iPhone with JavaScript

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Scriptable works a lot like Siri Shortcuts, only more difficult.
Scriptable works a lot like Siri Shortcuts, only more difficult.
Photo: Scriptable

Now that you’re finally getting used to iOS 12’s new Shortcuts app, here comes Scriptable, a new automation app that runs JavaScript. It can make powerful and deep connections with your iPhone or iPad — working with the Files app, for example, or Reminders.

Why would you want such a thing? Well, maybe you know how to program JavaScript. Scriptable lets you take your code, and integrate it with iOS. You can make your own scripts and use them to automate iOS. For instance, how about creating something as simple as a custom save menu that lets you rename files as you save them?