Top stories - page 679

Consumers have a nasty habit of throwing out their electronics as soon as newer, shinier models become available, and they rarely ever do so properly. Nearly 42 million tons of e-waste — everything from microwaves and electric shavers to washing machines, laptops, cellphones, TVs and computer monitors — entered the global garbage stream in 2014, according to a United Nations University report.

Like all trash, this stuff doesn’t just disappear. Instead, it stacks up in landfills. Unlike most trash, however, e-waste is often packed with valuable components — as well as toxic chemicals and materials that can cause real damage wherever they end up.

Apple releases a new iPhone 6 battery case and everyone hates it. Poor Apple.

This week, we chronicle the beating Apple’s Smart Battery Case takes from the internet, including a look at its insides, how the internet questions Jony Ive’s sanity, and the history of ‘humped’ design at Apple. That, plus accessories just as ugly as the new case, Apples updates to every OS it makes, the things we really don’t need in Apple Watch 2, and how to choose the right running app.

All this and much, much more in this week’s Cult of Mac Magazine. Check out the top stories below.

You have so much great video footage on your iPhone, but therein lies the problem. The thought of sitting down at a computer to edit any of it seems like a mountain you have no time to climb.

Cielo de la Paz is happy to help you reach the summit – rather quickly, too. de la Paz is a fearless creator whose soulful wanderings with her iPhone camera inspired Apple to select some of her work for the “Shot on iPhone 6” advertising campaign.

Quick! Get yourself over to the Google Store now, where you can claim a free Star Wars Cardboard, courtesy of Google. The limited edition headsets are themed to look like BB-8, a First Order Stormtrooper, Kylo Ren, and RS-D2 — but you can only pick one!

Maps is shaping up to be a pretty great navigational tool with its tight integration in iOS 9 and OS X El Capitan, as well as with much more error-free data.

I use Maps as a sort of mobile, digital yellow pages, finding businesses in town and looking up their phone number, hours of operation, website address, and more. It’s a couple of taps in, which can seem tedious after a while.

Now, though, with an iPhone 6s or 6s Plus, you can get this info in a summarized form, using the new 3D Touch. Here’s how.

Unlike any other consumer electronics company, Apple has been nailing product design for decades. Jony Ive and his incredibly talented team have produced countless iconic gadgets that rivals can only dream of, and it’s the biggest reason why the company is so successful today.

But there are suggestions that Apple’s design prowess is beginning to slip away. Under new leadership, Apple has rolled out a number of products — most recently the butt-ugly Smart Battery Case — that have led some fans to question various design decisions.

Are those fans right to be concerned? Is it downhill from here for Apple’s design team, or is this a whole lot of fuss over nothing?

Join us in this week’s Friday Night Fight between Cult of Android and Cult of Mac as we battle it out over those questions and more — and weigh in with your thoughts down in the comments section!

My truck’s getting up in years and lacks many of the conveniences of a late-model vehicle. Forget about an in-dash touchscreen monitor — it doesn’t even have a USB port.

That means I’m stuck using a cigarette lighter adapter to charge my iPhone (which serves as my GPS on many trips). I’ve tried and enjoyed Gosin’s four-port charger, which is awesome for those rare times I’ve got a handful of devices to juice up, but that portly wonder juts out fairly far into the truck’s cabin. Like my truck itself, it is functional but slightly unsightly.

And then there’s the svelte Scosche reVolt dual car charger. Its disarming good looks have ruined me.

Want a spectacular stat for a Friday? Apple stock has increased 22,250 percent since its IPO almost 35 years ago.

And the accompanying depressing thought: If you had taken the money a new Apple computer cost at the time and instead spent it on AAPL stock during its 1980 public offering, you’d be sitting on a personal fortune of $965,650 today — just a few dollars away from being a freshly-minted millionaire.

The days are ticking away until you’re expected to present that special someone in your life with a thoughtful gift. If you’re stressing out about what to get, or what you might end up paying, take a look at this list of awesome gifts available at a fraction of the usual price. From DIY electronics to bluetooth speakers and even world class socks, whoever you’re shopping for, we’ve got you covered.

Apple is selling an enormous amount of iPhones right now, but in its efforts to get an extra holiday sales bump it’s pushing an unsolicited pop-up notification to owners of older iPhone handsets — informing them of how “ridiculously powerful” the iPhone 6s is.

The latest quarterly report from antivirus company AVG has outed the battery-killingest, storage-hoggingest apps currently available.

Some of the culprits are unsurprising, but a few might be murdering your phone’s performance without you knowing, like some kind of ninjas that have somehow taken app form. All of this and more happens in “Appsassins,” the screenplay I’m pitching to SyFy.

But here are the biggest offenders, because that’s really the more important information here.

Didn’t think the Apple Watch would catch on? Not everyone agrees, especially analysts who study sales projections.

Cupertino is on track to sell 21 million watches and rake in about $8.4 billion in revenue in the first 12 months of the Apple Watch, according to one of the hottest Apple analysts around. Not bad for a company that entered the wearables game late.

Best List: Screw sports sunglasses by Spy Optics

Choosing a pair of sports shades is always a balancing act of form versus function. Luckily, Spy Optics makes sunglasses for every face and every activity.

With its Screw series of shades, Spy found the sweet spot where you get what you need while sweating your ass off without looking like an ass when standing in line at the coffee shop.

For the Apple fans disappointed in the Quasimodo look of the new Smart Battery Case, there is probably great satisfaction in seeing it all busted up. Yes, the staff at iFixit wasted no time prying one open to behold the guts of the beast.

iFixit did not defend the case from the “ugly” tag so many people gave it in its’ first 24 hours of public life. The technicians were impressed with the ducting on the case, which turned a downward-facing speaker into one that faces forward. The microphone also faces forward and iFixit wonders if this a preview on future designs.

More of the things we can’t leave home without have batteries. That means a greater chance for frustration over forgotten chargers and occupied wall outlets, but it doesn’t have to be that way. We’ve found a charger for every situation, and almost any budget.

Google knows your best photos shouldn’t stay hidden away inside your camera roll, so it is making it incredibly easy to share them with friends.

A new Google Photos update, which is rolling out today on Android, iOS, and the web, introduces shared albums, which you can send to friends via SMS, email, or instant message.

After the rumblings and grumblings that we’ll get our first look at the Apple Watch 2 in as soon as three months, the Internet is ablaze with all of the great features the update “should” have. But let’s not go overboard, here, because not all of these suggestions would make the new wearable better.

We aren’t talking about Android compatibility, complete independence from its paired phone, or a better battery life; we’d welcome any of those updates in a second. But we couldn’t really see a need or want for a few of the rumored/desired new features, regardless of how crazy awesome they might seem at first.

Apple made a minor design faux pas with its newly-launched iPhone Smart Battery Case, so of course all of the company’s rivals are doing the mature thing and getting on with their own work, knowing that joining the pile-on will only come back to bite them.

Wait — that’s not what’s happening at all! In fact, LG and Asus today debuted two new ads poking fun of Apple, while at the same time advertising the alleged superiority of their LG V10 and Asus ZenFone Max phones respectively.

Tim Cook saw all the complaints fanboys levied against the ugly new Smart Battery Case his company unveiled this week, but the Apple CEO is defending the controversial new product, claiming Apple’s designers  used ‘great insight’ to solve a crutial flaw facing most battery cases.

Apple didn’t just see a standard year-over-year improvement in the enterprise market in 2015. iPhones, iPads and Macs all saw significant growth and adoption rates over the competition. JAMF Software published its annual survey for 2015 that reveals trends about Apple products and their role in the enterprise. The findings are excellent news for the folks in Cupertino: enterprise users adore OS X and iOS.

“Driven by user preference, increased productivity capabilities, and security advantages, Apple is no longer requested by users and executives—it’s demanded,” JAMF reports.

There are times when you need to sign a contract or other document that comes over via email. You could print it out, sign with a pen, and then scan it back to the recipient, of course, but that takes forever. Might as well fax it.

If you get a PDF form via the Mail app on your iPhone, however, you can sign it right there on your little pocket computer using just your finger, and then mail it back, all without ever committing ink to paper.

Here’s how.

Apple’s Lightning to USB connector has ostensibly been about connecting your iPad to a camera to import images directly to your tablet.

Now, with iOS 9.2, it looks like the same adapter can be used on your iPhone to get photos onto your smaller-screened device.

There’s even some evidence that the Lightning to USB adapter works to connect other USB peripherals, like MIDI keyboards or USB-powered microphones. If you’re a musician on the road without access to your iPad, this might be your new best solution.

Cult of Android is looking for writers who can help us deliver breaking news and helpful how-tos on a daily basis. If you have a passion for Android and you want to get paid to write about it, come join us!

Best List: Double Layered Knit Touchscreen Gloves by Mujjo

It’s almost winter, and if you reside in an area with a climate like mine, you know you’ll be carrying gloves with you no matter where you go. When you live someplace like Anchorage, Alaska, even a quick trip outside to the trash bin requires that you cover up.

And yet, we live in a touchscreen world. I have my iPhone with me all the time, and I use it to stay connected to my kids and family members as I move around the winter wonderland. Pulling off a glove every time I want to play a song or answer a text is time-consuming and sometimes dangerous.

If that’s something you worry about, Mujjo’s got you covered, quite literally, with these new double-layered touchscreen gloves.

‘Tis the season to freak out over what to get for the tech savvy folks in our lives. It’s easy to get overwhelmed by the vast variety of gadgets and gear on offer these days, especially if you’re on a budget, which is why we’ve put together this list of five deals on some of the coolest gifts out there. From USB-powered guitars to VR headsets and upgraded SNES controllers, pick up one or grab the whole list — there’s something here for everyone.