Echo - page 2

We talk iPhone’s 8 big price hike and our favorite HomeKit smart lights on The CultCast

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It's time to make the iPhone exciting again.
It's time to make the iPhone exciting again.
Photo: @YSR50

This week, on The CultCast: rumors point to a big iPhone 8 price hike. What’s the max you would pay? Plus: Intel makes a huge move to push Thunderbolt into the mainstream; Ikea about to drop tons of great HomeKit gadgets on us; DJI’s Spark selfie drone is a compact powerhouse; we’ll tell you about our favorite smart lights; and we’ll tell you about the weird and whacky gadgets we’re reviewing in an all-new Under Review!

Our thanks to Blue Apron for supporting this episode. Blue Apron makes it easy to cook delicious meals at home. Get your first three meals free at BlueApron.com/CultCast.

New MacBook Pros as WWDC? Don’t miss this week’s CultCast!

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Are you ready for Apple to make Macs
Are you ready for Apple to make Macs "pro" again?
Photo: Cult of Mac

This week, on The CultCast: new MacBook Pros at WWDC? Insiders say yes! We’ll tell you all we know. Plus: why future Macs might get much faster CPUs; Apple makes a big move to bring manufacturing back to the US; and we’ll wrap up with 5 weird and whacky facts about the new Apple Park campus.

Our thanks to Squarespace for supporting this episode. It’s simple to accept Apple Pay and sell your wares with your very own Squarespace.com website. Enter offer code CultCast at checkout to get 10% off any hosting plan.

Apple’s new Siri speaker could be revealed at WWDC

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Ask Alexa to manage your appointments for you.
Ask Alexa to manage your appointments for you.
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

Apple could unveil its new smart speaker powered by Siri at the Worldwide Developers Conference in June, according to new claims.

Earlier this week, we heard the company is currently in the process of finalizing the design of its first standalone Siri device, which is expected to take on the Amazon Echo. Now we have an idea what it might look like and when it could be revealed.

The Apple Watch business is way bigger than you think

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apple watch bands
Apple Watch Series 3 needs to be special.
Photo: Apple

Apple Watch gets a lot of stick for being a “me-too” product, and people who don’t see the need for a smartwatch assume the business is a bust. There’s this crazy perception that Apple Watch is just not selling — but that couldn’t be further from the truth.

The Apple Watch, alongside other Apple wearables, is now raking in billions of dollars every year. The business is huge. So huge, in fact, that it would be a Fortune 500 company all by itself, outselling supposed smash hits like Microsoft’s Surface tablets and the Amazon Echo.

Here’s why Apple Watch isn’t the flop you think it is.

Samsung nearly tops Apple in J.D. Power smartphone rankings

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Samsung
The exploding Note 7 didn't hurt Samsung's status.
Photo: Jim Merithew / Cult of Mac

The gap between Apple and Samsung is narrower than it has ever been, according to J.D. Power’s 2017 smartphone satisfaction rankings that have the iPhone-maker in the lead by just one point.

Apple took the number one spot with a total score of 840. Meanwhile Samsung somehow crept up to the second spot with 839 points, even though it had a disastrous last half of 2016 with the exploding Note 7 fiasco.

Amazon may soon launch an Alexa-powered security camera

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This could be Amazon's next big product.
This could be Amazon's next big product.
Photo: AFTVnews

Amazon’s next Alexa product won’t just be able to listen to you. It can watch your every move.

Leaked images of a new home security camera created by Amazon hit the internet today, giving us our first glimpse of what the company’s Dropcam competitor will look like.

Amazon plans touchscreen Alexa speaker

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Amazon Echo
Using Alexa is about to get even better.
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

Amazon is planning to capitalize on the success of its Alexa speakers by launching a high-end model with improved audio and a built-in touchscreen, according to a new report.

It would become the first Alexa speaker with a display, which is expected to show useful information like weather forecasts, calendar appointments and breaking news.

Apple’s Echo rival will always be watching you

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img_4184-1.jpg
Can Apple top the amazing Amazon Echo?
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

Details of Apple’s upcoming Amazon Echo competitor are starting to surface, and it sounds like it could be both Apple’s most futuristic and creepiest product yet. 

The iPhone-maker is considering adding a camera to its Echo rival, according to a new report that claims the device will be able to tell who is using it just by looking at you.

Apple plans to make Amazon Echo rival by opening Siri

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Sorry, Alexa: Siri still the most widespread AI assistant
Siri might gets its own product.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

The next evolution of Siri could feature a new Apple product designed to directly compete with Amazon’s successful Echo device.

Apple is reportedly planning to make a rival to the Amazon Echo, but the in order to compete with the device’s incredible array of features and services, Apple plans to open up Siri to third-party apps.

Amazon Echo will now keep you up-to-date on election news

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Amazon Echo
Maybe just go with your brain, too, when you hit the voting booth.
Photo: NBC News

Keeping up with the latest information on the current presidential election just got easier if you’re an Amazon Echo owner.

NBC News has created a new “skill” for Alexa, the Echo’s virtual assistant: Now Alexa can read you top election headlines, candidate bios, election calendar events, and even the latest delegate counts.

Let’s see Siri do that, eh?