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You’ll really like this adorable little speaker

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You just want to touch it, right?
You just want to touch it, right?
Photo: Rob LeFebvre/Cult of Mac

Best List: Sugr Cube wireless speaker by Sugr

Oh, my, is this a cute little speaker. It’s so adorable that I’ve waited through three software updates and spent more time charging the speaker to test than almost any other one I’ve ever reviewed.

Why? Because this thing is drop-dead adorable. The Sugr Cube looks like something straight out of Cupertino: I wouldn’t be surprised to find one sitting on an Apple retail store display table before long.

Pay what you want for invaluable photo tools, tips and training [Deals]

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Pay what you want for this bundle of photo courses and top quality assets from some of the world's top shooters.
Pay what you want for this bundle of photo courses and top quality assets from some of the world's top shooters.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

We live in an image-driven culture, and as a result photography is undergoing a new renaissance. If you work in any form of media, you can benefit from having resources and experience in photography, which is exactly what this bundle offers, from massive photo asset libraries to comprehensive lessons. The best part, you can pay what you want for the whole thing and support the work of Save the Children in the process.

Proposed law could ban Apple from selling iPhones in California

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The iPhone isn't ditching LCD screens.
Designed by Apple in California. Just not for sale there.
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

Apple could be banned from selling iPhones on its home turf of California if a new bill banning unbreakable encryption is passed.

Called bill 1681, the proposed law was put forward by California assembly member Jim Cooper, who wants any smartphone sold in California after July 1, 2015 to be “capable of being decrypted and unlocked by its manufacturer or its operating system provider.”

The future of UI for iOS 10 … or iOS 20?

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This video has lots of great ideas about how iOS 10's UI should work.
This video has lots of great ideas about how iOS 10's UI should work.
Photo: Cult of Mac

A lot of “next-gen iPhone” concepts are pretty crappy. Whimsical fancies that have nothing to do with the reality of industrial design. And hey, that’s true of this iPhone 7 concept, which imagines an edge-to-edge display that totally ditches a physical home button. You will not see an iPhone like this anytime in the near future.

But that’s not to say the concept isn’t cool. Because eventually, Apple will release a full-screen iPhone. And when it does, this concept has a lot of cool ideas about how future iOS UIs will work, once the hardware catches up.

Why you should upgrade your older iPhone to iOS 9.2.1

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iOS 9.2.1 vs 8.4.1 speedtest
Aaaaaaaand ... go.
Photo: iApple Bytes

Some informal testing reveals that if you’re still rocking an old iPhone, you should probably upgrade to iOS 9.2.1.

iApple Bytes put three different models of older iPhones — the 4s, 5 and 5s — up against each other in a variety of tests designed to see which of them was faster starting up, using apps and running Siri, Apple’s digital assistant. Half were running the brand-new iOS 9.2.1, which arrived yesterday, and half were still on iOS 8.4.1, which has been around since August 2015.

You can see their results below in iApple Bytes’ series of videos.

Apple’s new Music Memos app makes songwriting chimp-simple

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Easy to use music creation app means the end of complex demos.
Easy-to-use music creation app Music Memos does away with complex demos.
Photo: Rob LeFebvre/Cult of Mac

Apple’s new app, Music Memos, is hands-down the best free music-creation app I’ve ever used on my iPhone. The amount of tech packed into this tiny little iOS app is nothing short of amazing, and it shows Apple’s continuing commitment to the creative community.

Music Memos lets you sit down with your iPhone, tap the screen, and record music. Then it will totally figure out what you played, and supply fairly decent drum and bass tracks to complement your chords. Wow.

I’ve played in live bands that can’t even do that.

Take my word on this: If you can play even rudimentary guitar, piano or even ukulele, you owe it to yourself to give Music Memos a try.

Your iPhone can now alert you every time police kill someone in the U.S.

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Archives sends push notifications when police kill someone.
Archives sends push notifications when police kill someone.
Photo: Josh Begley

Controversial coder and data artist Josh Begley is back with a new app called Archives that shines a light on the contentious issue of police violence that’s rocking the U.S.

Archives’ premise is simple: Every time cops kill someone in the United States, your iPhone receives a simple alert containing only the victim’s name.

iPhone-hugging leather case won’t go soft around the edges

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This one should last and last without dropping your cards out.
This one should last and last without dropping your cards out.
Photo: Rob LeFebvre/Cult of Mac

Best List: Leather Wallet Case 80° for iPhone 6s Plus by Mujjo

If there’s one thing about leather iPhone cases, it’s that while they wear nicely and look great when distressed, they tend to get a little floppy. The last leather iPhone case I put on my iPhone 6 Plus went all soft and let my ATM card and driver’s license fall out, forcing me to take a trip to the DMV and the bank to get replacements.

That won’t be the, well, case with this upgraded leather wallet case from Mujjo. Its molded-plastic base snuggles my iPhone 6 Plus, while its stiff, stitched pocket keeps my cards safely ensconced without too much give.

There’s never been a better time to learn Linux [Deals]

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Linux is more relevant than ever, and now you can add it to your skillset for an unbeatable price.
Linux is more relevant than ever, and now you can add it to your skillset for an unbeatable price.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

As more people learn the importance of open software and operating systems, Linux is more relevant than ever. Learning Linux can seem imposing, but even if you have no idea what a command line is, this bundle of lessons will make you a maestro of one of the most relevant software platforms in the world. The entire set of five courses, clocking in at over 22 of hours, is just $19.

Here’s some of what’s included:

How to send app crash reports to OS X Notification Center

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Crash reports don't have to interrupt your Zen.
Crash reports don't have to interrupt your Zen.
Photo: Lifehacker

OS X is about as reliable as any operating system out there, but apps still can — and do — crash. When they do, they take up the entire middle of your screen, interrupting whatever you’re doing, even if the app that crashed was running in the background.

It’s a mild annoyance, true, but it doesn’t have to be an annoyance at all. Here’s how to push crash messages to Notification Center instead of the middle of your screen.

India may be about to get its own Apple Stores

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India Apple Stores
The closest thing India currently has to an Apple Store.
Photo: Lawrence Sinclair/Flickr CC

With the Chinese economy slowing, Apple’s got another heavily-populated country in its sights — with Apple India filing an application to open official Apple Stores with the country’s department of industrial policy and promotion.

“We have just received Apple’s proposal. We are examining it,” said India’s DIPP Secretary Amitabh Kant.

More evidence of Apple’s frustrating fight to build TV service

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Apple TV
The streaming TV service is still on the way, but not without some bumps in the road.
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

John Skipper, president of ESPN, talked quite a bit in an interview about the future of Apple TV and in particular, Apple’s plans for a streaming television service that may or may not include ESPN. He revealed that Apple is apparently having a hard time sorting out the details with programmers.

“We have ongoing conversations,” Skipper told The Wall Street Journal. “They have been frustrated by their ability to construct something which works for them with programmers. We continue to try to work with them.”

How I quickly fixed a weird Siri Remote problem

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Wonky Menu button? Try this weird trick.
Wonky Menu button? Try this weird trick.
Photo: Rob LeFebvre/Cult of Mac

I’ve been suffering with this strange issue for about a week: my Apple TV’s Siri Remote’s Menu button stopped working.

All the other buttons–Home, Siri, Volume and Play–worked, so it didn’t seem like a huge deal at first. But then I was digging around in the Settings app and realized that the Menu button is indispensible for one thing: moving backward in an app. Without it, I was stuck in the Settings pane that I had clicked through to; there was no getting back to the main Settings page.

Here’s what I did to get the Siri Remote’s Menu button working again.

iOS 9.2.1 brings lots of bug fixes

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A new iOS 9 update is here
Ladies and gentlemen, it's time to update your iOS devices!
Photo: Apple

The first public update for iOS 9 this year has finally arrived in the form of iOS 9.2.1, which was made available to all iPhone, iPad and iPod touch users this morning.

Get it now: OS X update boosts Mac performance

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A new beta is out for OS X El Capitan.
El Capitan's third big update brings performance enhancements and bug fixes.
Photo: Apple

The newest build of OS X El Capitan is now available to the public after undergoing a month of beta testing.

OS X 10.11.3 can now be downloaded and installed by all Mac users with supported hardware. It’s a free update that promises to bring a number of enhancements, including performance improvements and tons of bug fixes.

Pay what you want to learn programming for web, Apple Watch, iOS 9 and more [Deals]

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Learn to code for mobile or web with these 10 hands-on, comprehensive lessons.
Learn to code for mobile or web with these 10 hands-on, comprehensive lessons.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

The world of programming is wide and wild, bristling with enough different languages, platforms and workflows to leave anyone dizzy. These 10 courses, clocking in at over 178 hours of content, offer a travel guide for the prospective coder. The best part might be that you can get it for whatever you’re willing to pay, and a portion of every dollar you spend goes to support the important work of Save the Children.

Apple will provide free products for Super Bowl committee

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A still from the classic Apple
Still Apple's most iconic Super Bowl moment.
Photo: Apple

As one of the tech companies sponsoring this year’s Super Bowl, Apple is reportedly doing more than just lending its support to the biggest event on the NFL calendar. According to a new report, Apple will also be providing the host committee with free products and equipment.

Despite this, Apple has chosen not to have its name or logo included in any of the marketing materials for the event.

Diversity report shows Apple’s U.S. workforce still mainly white

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diversity Apple
Apple has pledged to do more on the diversity front.
Photo: Apple

Apple’s U.S. workforce is a bit more diverse than it was a year ago, but still predominantly white and male, suggests the most recent EEO-1 Federal Employer Information report.

According to newly-released figures, roughly 30 percent of Apple’s U.S. employees are female, around 8.6 percent are African-American, and 11.7 percent are hispanic or Latino. That’s marginally up from 29 percent female, 8 percent African-American, and 11.5 percent hispanic and Latino in 2014.

How to flip your Apple Watch for surprise benefits

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Turn that crown upside down!
Turn that crown upside down!
Photo: Rob LeFebvre/Cult of Mac

The Apple Watch is designed with the Digital Crown in the same place as where traditional watches have their own crown to set the time. It’s a design choice that helps us think of this new tiny computer on our wrist as something comfortable and familiar.

But there’s no reason the Digital Crown should remain on the right, as it defaults to if you’re wearing your Apple Watch on your left wrist.

In fact, flipping it around can make things on your Apple Watch even better. Check it out.

The internet can be a frightening place. Don’t go in without protection. [Deals]

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proXPN guards your data and browsing activity with a super secure encryption, and offers full customer support.
proXPN guards your data and browsing activity with a super secure encryption, and offers full customer support.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

The internet is a wonderful, wild, and sometimes scary place — with identity thieves, data snoops, and other less than savory characters wandering the web, you should never enter without protection. A great way to add a layer of security is through a virtual private network, but for anyone without an IT degree that can seem out of the question. That’s why there’s proXPN VPN, and right now you can get a lifetime subscription for a whopping 89% off the usual price, only $39.

Apple’s homepage pays tribute to Martin Luther King Jr.

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Screen Shot 2016-01-18 at 13.59.07
"Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, ‘What are you doing for others?"
Photo: Apple

As per tradition, Apple has changed its homepage to an image of Civil Rights leader and minister Martin Luther King Jr. in commemoration of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

The quote used alongside the photo is one of King’s stating: “Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, ‘What are you doing for others?’” This is similar to Tim Cook’s stated mission for Apple as a company focused on being a “force for good” in the world.