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This week, on The CultCast: Apple aims to end music downloads; you can now live stream your aerial drone flights to iDevices worldwide; staggering facts about who’s making money in the app store; creators of Siri demo an even smarter AI; the ridiculous resale value of old Apple tech; and we reveal our Best List of the gadgets we’re currently coveting.

Our thanks to Freshbooks for supporting this episode. FreshBooks is the easy-to-use invoicing software designed to help small business owners get organized, save time invoicing and get paid faster. Get started now with a 30-day free trial.

Vodafone U.K. has told iPhone 4S users that it’s okay to update their handsets to Apple’s latest iOS 6.1.1 release. The carrier had previously warned that updating to iOS 6.1 could cause connectivity problems, but it has now confirmed that those issues are fixed in the latest release.

A pair of European carriers have told iPhone 4S users not to upgrade to Apple’s latest iOS 6.1 firmware due to the 3G connectivity issues that come with it. Both Vodafone U.K. and 3 Austria have reported the issues, which sometimes makesit difficult for the device to connect to the network, or make or receive calls and texts.

Think Tank’s new Airport Commuter camera bag ($199) is something of a paradox: Though it’s the size of a normal backpack, it manages to fit an abnormal amount of glass, gear, a full-size a Macbook Pro, and an iPad.

But could such a compact bag hold so many precious items in harmony? I packed it up, strapped it on, and set out to find out.

Power! It’s the stuff I’m always hunting for in the halls of conventions, like the upcoming 2013 Consumer Electronics Show (CES). For you see, when you’re multi-touching your iPhone 5 morning, noon, and night, a once-a-day charge isn’t going to cut it.

So this year, when I’m gadget-hunting on the floors of CES, in my bag I’ll definitely be carrying the Mophie Juice Pack Powerstation ($79). It’s tiny, looks great (more on that in a sec), and will charge a dying iPhone 5 up to two times. Yes sir, in my short time with it thus far, I reckon it’s already become one of my favorite new iPhone accessories.

Galaxy Tab; Nexus 7; Kindle Fire HD—they’re all doomed, and on this week’s CultCast, we’ll tell why Apple’s new iPad mini will most definitely sit as the king of all tabs small.

Then, we review a new social iOS game so stellar, it’ll have you clamoring for Game Center friends just so you can get your fix.

All that and more on our newest CultCast! Subscribe now on iTunes, or easily stream The CultCast via Apple’s free Podcasts App.

Note: Some listeners have informed us that iTunes isn’t displaying episode 39 yet, but if you subscribe, it will show up and download just fine.

Onwards, to the show notes!

Phiaton’s new Moderna MS 200 earphones ($149) sound good and have great sound isolation, sure, but what’s more important is how good they look plugged in to your new iPhone 5.

Back in June, I reviewed the Somersault from iBackFlip Studios, a novel sling-style backpack built to give you quick, on-the-go access to your beloved iPad. I liked the Somersault’s unique iPad-centric design, and so when the iBackflip guys asked me if I’d like to peep their new smaller and lighter Slim version ($79), I said “righto guv’nas!” Which of course, in colloquial British, means yes.

At this year’s Consumer Electronics Show in Vegas, the only thing I was hunting down more than free drinks and after-parties, was power outlets. Yes sir, I love my purdy white iPhone 4S, but on days of heavy use, I find I need to charge it two times or more before the day is through.

The Dual USB Power Bank from Verbatim (about $65), provides a a massive amount of portable power that should keep anyone from outlet-hunting in the inky-shadows of Vegas convention halls. But the question is, how does it perform while charging two connected devices or the power-hungry new iPad?

[UPDATE: See the end of the post for a possible solution, which works for some people.]

Many iPad 3 users are experiencing a bug which kills their 3G connection every time they connect to a Wi-Fi network. The cellular connection looks normal, with the carrier name, the 3G logo and reception bars, but when you try to do anything that requires a connection, it either times out or throws the error messages “Could not activate cellular data network.”

I am having the exact same problem, and here’s what’s happening.