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Today in Apple history: Apple unseats Nokia as top smartphone vendor

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Nokia
Remember when Nokia was on top of the world?
Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac

July 21: Today in Apple history: Apple unseats Nokia as top smartphone vendor July 21, 2011: Apple officially passes Nokia to become the world’s top smartphone vendor.

It’s a major milestone for Apple, which launched the iPhone just four years earlier. For Nokia, the Finnish company that dominated the cellphone market during the 1990s and early 2000s, it marks the end of an era.

Your iPhone will soon work on the moon

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A 4G moon cellular network. It’s really happening.
4G LTE on the Moon isn’t sci-fi. An iPhone could soon be able to make calls from the Lunar surface.
Photo: Alex Powell/Pexels cc

Nokia will build a 4G cellular network on the moon. It’ll allow future astronauts to make voice and video calls, but also transmit data and remotely control equipment.

The goal is to have the wireless network in place on Earth’s largest satellite by 2022. It’s part of NASA’s Artemis program, which has the goal of establishing a sustainable presence on the moon by the end of the decade.

T-Mobile reveals how lockdown is changing the way we use online connectivity

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Traffic lights as metaphor for motivation streaks
Traffic is up in some areas.
Photo: Charlie Sorrel/Cult of Mac

The COVID-19 pandemic is having all kinds of impact on everyday life. One of those is how we use our phones as we increasingly rely on connectivity to, well, keep us connected.

T-Mobile President of Technology Neville Ray recently shared some observations the newly merged carrier has made about changing cell phone habits during COVID-19.

Goldman Sachs thinks Apple could be the next Nokia

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Nokia
Nokia could have more in common with Apple than first though.
Photo: Nokia

A Goldman Sachs analyst thinks Apple’s revised earnings guidance might be the start of a longer-term story. According to Rod Hall, Apple could slash numbers even further later in the year, due to lowered expectations about iPhone sales.

Hall goes on to liken Apple to Nokia, a fallen giant in the mobile game. The company ruled the market early on, only to run into problems.

Smartphones covered in camera lenses will change everything

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multi-camera smartphones
Take a picture or nine with this smartphone prototype from Light.
Photo: Light via Photo Rumors

Mobile phone photography has been through a mostly meaningless megapixel war. Now on to the next battle – the smartphone with the most cameras.

Apple, true to its playbook, will watch while other companies fire opening salvos with smartphones packing three or more lenses.

5G iPhone will cost Apple a pretty penny

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iPhone 5G
Making the 5G iPhone is going to be a complex and expensive business.
Graphic: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

There’s no doubt Apple will eventually make a 5G iPhone. The high-speed standard was finalized a few months ago, and wireless service providers are building 5G networks.

The next step is for the companies that developed the technology to decide what they’ll charge Apple and other phone makers to license their patents. The total might be more than you expect.

Nokia’s iPhone X clone is amazingly affordable

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Nokia X5 iPhone X clone
The Nokia X5 looks like an iPhone X, but is nowhere near as expensive.
Photo: HMD Global

Just like every other smartphone maker, Nokia now offers its own iPhone X clone.

The Nokia X5 gives buyers a 5.86-inch edge-to-edge display and impressive specifications at an amazingly affordable price tag. There’s just one problem for now.

Cool new HealthKit gadgets can measure practically anything

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Cool new HealthKit-compatible gadgets at MWC
New HealthKit gadgets make health and fitness easier than ever.
Photos: Graham Bower/Cult of Mac

Mobile World Congress 2018 BARCELONA, Spain — Smart sperm testers, body cavity inspectors, Bluetooth pillows, holographic jump ropes and contactless thermometers. It’s all just another day at Mobile World Congress, where more and more companies show off their new HealthKit-compatible gadgets.

If you want your iPhone to know absolutely everything about what’s going on with your body, these handy medical devices are for you. Here’s what they do — and why they’re cool.