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New York Times bails on Apple News

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‘The New York Times’ kicked Apple News to the curb
Don’t expect to see The New York Times in Apple News any more.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

New York Times articles stopped appearing in the Apple News app on Monday. The newspaper ended its partnership with Apple because the Times wants a more direct connection between itself and its customers.

This is not just about the Apple News+ subscription service. Content from this source no longer appears in the free version either.

Apple will have a hard time signing New York Times

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Apple News
The NYT's CEO has a warning about Apple News-style services.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

The New York Times has yet to sign up to Apple’s news subscription service — and it’s got a warning for those publishers who do.

Mark Thompson, chief executive of the NYT warns publishers that third-party distribution could mean losing control of their product. The New York Times is the biggest U.S. newspaper, as measured by its approximately 4 million subscribers.

Apple subscription news service might lack two key players

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Apple News
Don't expect the service to be a comprehensive one on day one.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Major newspapers including The New York Times and Washington Post are yet to sign up to Apple’s news subscription service, a new report claims.

With less than one week to go, Apple will be working overtime to hammer down partners for its Apple Music-of-publishing service. However, while there are some big names on board, others could be absent.

Apple joins opposition to Trump transgender policy

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President Trump: Apple encryption could protect ‘criminal minds’
Trump wants transgenders to be redefined out of existence.
Photo: Bloomberg

Some of the biggest company’s in the country have come out in open opposition to transgender policy changes proposed by US president Donald Trump.

Apple, Amazon, Facebook and Google are among 50 companies that signed a letter condemning Trump’s alleged plans to limit the definition of gender to birth anatomy. The companies — representing over $2.4 trillion in annual revenue — say that what harms transgender people harms their companies.

Binge on your favorite books, audiobooks, and magazines with the Netflix for reading [Deals]

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For less than the price of a paperback each month, get unlimited access to a vast library of books, articles, and lots more.
For less than the price of a paperback each month, get unlimited access to a vast library of books, articles, and lots more.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

Some people say it’s hard to make time for reading. But others find the challenge in being able to afford all the books they’d like to consume. In both cases this subscription service can help, bringing unlimited written content to all your devices.

Apple in talks with major newspapers for subscription service

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Texture
Texture might add daily news.
Photo: Apple

Apple is trying to get three of the biggest newspapers in the U.S. to join forces for a new subscription service.

The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and the Washington Post have all allegedly been in talks with Apple this summer. Apple is proposing that the newspapers join its digital magazine service, Texture.

iOS 12 Screen Time weans teen off Snapchat, slowly but surely

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Screen Time
Screen Time helped one teen fight iPhone addiction.
Photo: Apple

Parents, worried their iPhone-carrying kids are addicted to their screens, likely rejoiced when iOS 12 was announced with a new feature that monitors screen time and allows users to set time limits.

Childless yet eager to test the feature, New York Times tech reporter Brian X. Chen borrowed a kid from an editor for a near-month-long test run of Screen Time – and it worked.

HomePod meta review: Superb sound, stupid Siri

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The HomePod was a no-show in 2017.
HomePod is finally here.
Photo: Apple

In the first reviews for Apple’s new HomePod speaker, everyone totally raves about the smart speaker’s pristine sound quality. Siri, on the other hand, doesn’t sound so brilliant.

Apple seeded a few review units to major outlets ahead of this Friday’s HomePod launch. The embargo lifted this morning, and the early reviews reveal a few surprising tidbits about the HomePod.

Here’s what people are saying:

Price tag on iPhone 8 will likely start at $999

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face tracking
Facial recognition could be the next big thing on iPhone.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Getting your hands on Apple’s next generation iPhone won’t be cheap.

According to the latest report from the New York Times, the iPhone 8’s price tag will start out at a whopping $999, making it the most expensive smartphone Apple’s ever introduced.