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Turn your iPhone into a universal remote, and more [Week’s Best Deals]

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Protect your browsing and bypass restrictions with a convenient and effective VPN
Protect your browsing and bypass restrictions with a convenient and effective VPN
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

Another week, another delivery of great new deals to share with you. This time around, we’ve got a lifetime of virtual private network access, a coin-sized transmitter that turns your phone into a universal remote, a lifetime of password consolidation and protection, and a tough, water resistant wireless Bluetooth speaker. They’re all worth checking out and discounted by as much as 94 percent. Read on for more details:

How to take better photos and build an Instagram following, this week on The CultCast

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Instagram photography tips
Better Instagram photography awaits you on The CultCast.
Photo: The Gilashark/Instagram

This week on The CultCast: Learn Instagram tips, tricks and techniques to take beautiful iPhone photos and build a massive following. Plus: The crazy exploding Samsung Galaxy Note 7 saga ends with a strange twist; rumors point to Macs with radically new e-ink keyboards; and an honest look at Siri versus the AI competition.

This episode is supported by CultCloth, the best way to keep your iPhone 7, Apple Watch, Mac and iPad sparkling clean. Check them out at CultCloth.co and for a limited time save 20 percent with code JetBlack.

$770 off a Samsung 4K HD TV, $130 off Apple Watch and more [Deals]

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Deals on Apple Watch Sport, the DJI Phantom 4 drone, and a Canon camera highlight this week’s best of the internet.
Deals on Apple Watch Sport, the DJI Phantom 4 drone, and a Canon camera highlight this week’s best of the internet.

The internet is going bananas with deals this week, with huge savings on Apple Watch Sport, one of Samsung’s flagship 4K HD TVs, and much more. We’ve scoured the web to find some of the best deals on things you might need, as well as some things you just might really want.

This tiny universal remote brings Jetsons-level convenience [Deals]

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This coin-sized device makes your home's devices controllable right from your phone
This coin-sized device makes your home's devices controllable right from your phone
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

So much of science fiction has been driven by an interest in things that we imagine would make our lives better, and sometime the real world delivers. The KlikR, a sleek and small Bluetooth module that makes any infrared-controlled device accessible from a smartphone, instantly brings a bit of that feeling of futurism into the home.

This coin-size gadget is an instant upgrade for your most-used electronics, and right now you can get one for just $19.99 at Cult of Mac Deals.

Google’s Apple Watch rivals to land in early 2017

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Photo of two alleged Google Nexus smartwatches
They'll bring the Google Assistant to your wrist.
Photo: Android Police

Google stepped up its fight against the iPhone when it launched its new Pixel smartphones earlier this month, and now it’s preparing to take on Apple Watch, too.

According to the latest whispers, the company will launch its first Android Wear watches — complete with Google Assistant — in early 2017.

On eBay, a Galaxy Note 7 box is worth more than the phone

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galaxy note 7
There's some consolation for Note 7 owners.
Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac

Now that Samsung has asked for all Galaxy Note 7 units to be returned and ceased production, the device is worthless. Even if you decide to keep yours (which you shouldn’t), it’s going to have no resale value. But you might be surprised to learn that its box has.

Some Note 7 owners have already taken to selling their packaging on eBay, and some listings are calling for as much as $60.

Steve Jobs is her main squeeze when she visits Apple Store

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body pillow
Ayano Tominaga shares a little pillow talk with Steve Jobs while waiting to purchase the iPhone 7.
Photo: Ayano Tominaga/Instagram

Cult of Mac 2.0 bugApple co-founder Steve Jobs was known to have a prickly personality. But Japanese internet star Ayano Tominaga can honestly say Jobs is a good cuddler.

Tominaga is a popular tech journalist, Apple fan and IT consultant who can be seen at the launch of every new iPhone, camping out in line at the Apple Store in Tokyo clutching a body pillow featuring the likeness of Jobs.

How to change the feedback strength of iPhone 7’s Home button

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iPhone 7 Home button
iPhone 7's new home button is awesome.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus deliver an all-new Home button that uses the Taptic Engine inside your device to simulate clicks. It doesn’t actually move in and out like a traditional iPhone Home button, but that’s not a bad thing.

Not only does it make your iPhone more reliable (without a moving button there’s no need to worry about it failing), but it also makes it more water-resistant. It’s also customizable; you can adjust the strength of the haptic feedback to make your clicks more noticeable.

Here’s how.

Now half off, this Bluetooth speaker is sonic gold and tough as nails [Deals]

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These water-resistant Bluetooth speakers offer 12-hour playtime on a single charge
These water-resistant Bluetooth speakers offer 12-hour playtime on a single charge
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

Bluetooth is the way we’re getting our music now, thanks in large part to the headphone jack-free iPhone 7. Lucky for us, Bluetooth speakers are keeping right up — for proof, just look at this new water-resistant, long-lasting, shock-absorbing speaker from Braven. It’s a speaker that’s up to the challenge of being a workhorse for bringing the noise, and right now you can get one for just $49.99 at Cult of Mac Deals.

Apple may be working on keyboard with e-ink display keys

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The next Magic Keyboard may look something like this.
The next Magic Keyboard may look something like this.
Photo: Sonder

Apple is reportedly in talks to acquire an Australian startup called Sonder that specializes in making keyboards with individual e-ink displays on each key.

The Sonder acquisition is supposedly part of Apple’s plan to update its Magic Keyboard in 2018 with a smart keyboard module and color e-ink keys that allow programs to quickly swap characters for shortcuts or change to a different language.

Check out the e-ink keyboard in action:

How to activate Siri with ‘Hey Siri’ on macOS Sierra

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Hey Siri macOS
Here's a workaround to bring "Hey Siri" to your Mac.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

The ability to activate Siri by saying “Hey Siri” is an incredibly useful feature on iOS. Want to do it on macOS Sierra? Too bad you can’t.

Or, rather, you can’t through the usual Siri system preferences. However, if you’re really intent on being able to start up Siri without hitting a single key or mouse click, it’s possible to do it using Sierra’s Accessibility options. Here’s how.

Samsung still can’t solve its exploding Galaxy Note 7 problem

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Galaxy Note 7 edge
Samsung has given up on the Note 7, but it still has to solve its fiery problem.
Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac

After recalling 2.5 million Galaxy Note 7 handsets and finally ceasing production of its flagship phablet earlier this week, Samsung still cannot get to the bottom of its exploding battery issue, according to a new report.

The South Korean company initially believed that defective batteries from a certain supplier were the problem, but after replacement units with new cells started catching fire, Samsung has been unable to pinpoint the cause of the issue.

It’s worrying news for Samsung smartphone fans.

Learn front-end web development and save almost $1,000 [Deals]

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Spend 48 hours with HTML, CSS, and JavaScript to become an in-demand front end engineer
Spend 48 hours with HTML, CSS, and JavaScript to become an in-demand front end engineer
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

Development for web users is one of the most lucrative and portable skills you can learn today. It can be hard to know where to start in front-end development though, making this bundle an especially great opportunity. Clocking in at 48 hours, it’s a comprehensive set of 8 lessons covering basic and advanced concepts and techniques in HTML, CSS, JavaScript and more. It usually goes for over $1,000, but right now you can get the whole thing for just $39 at Cult of Mac Deals.

Amazon’s new music streaming service costs as little as $3.99 per month

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Screen Shot 2016-10-12 at 14.14.31
Guess who's got a brand new music service!
Photo: Amazon

Apple Music has a new competitor in the form of Amazon, which today launched music streaming service Amazon Music Unlimited.

The premium service carries the same $9.99 monthly fee as Apple Music for regular users, although Prime customers get a reduced $7.99 monthly charge — while owners of the Amazon Echo can use an Amazon Music Unlimited subscription through the standalone device for a mere $3.99 per month.

This contraption makes bottled beer drink like draft [Review]

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Beer
Mix technology and beer without worrying thanks to Fizzics.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Technology and alcohol don’t usually mix. It normally results in lost iPhones or inebriated calls to an ex. But, I might make an exception for the Fizzics Draft Beer System.

Fizzics is designed to enhance the flavor and aroma of any bottle, can or even 64 oz. growler you place inside. Without the use of any CO2 or nitrogen cartridges, the boozy contraption aims to give you the fresh from the tap experience by using sound technology. But, does it work?

I gladly took on the challenge to try out the Fizzics and put it to the test. Check out the review below.

LOL: Galaxy Note 7 return kit includes fire-proof box and gloves

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Note-7-return-kit
Don't return your Note 7 without one of these.
Photo: XDA Developers

After watching $17 billion fall off its market value today, it’s still too early for Samsung to laugh about the whole Galaxy Note 7 debacle. But that doesn’t mean we can’t.

This video of a Note 7 return kit, which includes a fire-proof box and gloves, will certainly put a smile on your face.

How Steve Jobs’ swimming failure became unlikely inspiration

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Steve King never would've guessed that he would be designing products to go with computers created by an old swim club teammate, Steve Jobs.
Steve King never would've guessed that he would be designing products to go with computers created by an old swim club teammate, Steve Jobs.
Photo: PRISM

Cult of Mac 2.0 bug Two people couldn’t have been further apart as they sat close to each other on carpool rides to swim meets. Steve King was a jock. The other kid was a geek.

But the geek did something one day that King would never forget. King watched as his teammate made a horrific turn at the wall in the backstroke and popped up in a neighboring lane.

Steve Jobs was immediately disqualified. He got back in his lane and finished the race.

One-day discounts on Lytro camera, Steamcrate subs and more [Deals]

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This 2015 App of the Year will reinvent the way you work and collaborate with PDFs
This 2015 App of the Year will reinvent the way you work and collaborate with PDFs
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

We’ve always got a great raft of deals on great gear and gadgets, but for one day only those prices are dipping even lower. From the award-winning PDF Expert to the revolutionary Lytro Illum camera, a powerful tool for capturing online video and a year of access to a library of awesome games on Steam. Each is discounted even further than their already reduced price but just for one day, so now’s the time to jump on this:

New WD drive puts terabytes in the palm of your hand

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Western Digital My Passport for Macs
Back it up! The new Western Digital My Passport for Macs holds 4 terabytes.
Photo: David Pierini/Cult of Mac

The best work I ever did as a photographer resides in a collection of Western Digital external hard drives that are stored in an old, large camera bag in my closet. The images span more than a decade and with any one of the WD My Passport drives, I can confidently plug one in and quickly find some black-and-white relic of my past.

You can see the progress of time in the pictures (clothes and hair styles) as well as in the design and sizes of the WD drives. Each year, the drives offered more storage space in the same basic compact housing.

So I was astonished a couple of weeks back when the UPS driver dropped off a WD My Passport sized just a little bigger than a deck of cards — with a whopping 4 terabytes of storage.

Forget the Galaxy Note 7 and buy an iPhone 7 Plus

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Galaxy Note 7
R.I.P., Galaxy Note 7.
Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac

Still thinking about making the Galaxy Note 7 your next smartphone? Forget about it.

I gave Samsung’s latest flagship a glowing review last month. But amid reports that supposedly “safe” replacement devices are overheating and exploding, there’s no good reason to buy a Galaxy Note 7 anymore.

Do yourself a favor and get the iPhone 7 Plus instead.

Save almost $5,000 off a lifetime with this distraction-killing app [Deals]

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BlankPage
Streamline your workflow with this distraction-eliminating writing app.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

If you write code or create content, you’ve probably had to develop a way to keep the the distractions at bay. It’s hard to stay on task when a universe of distractions is right at your fingertips, but BlankPage makes the struggle a little less struggle-y.

The software wraps up everything you need to get your work done while keeping out common interferences. And right now you can get a lifetime subscription for just $24 at Cult of Mac Deals.

Apple and Samsung head back to Supreme Court this week

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Samsung
Apple and Samsung will clash again tomorrow.
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

Samsung and Apple will go back to the Supreme Court this week as part of their never-ending legal battle over patents.

The Tuesday hearing will concern how much of the $399 million patent-infringement damages awarded against Samsung the South Korean tech giant should actually pay.