Join us at MacTech Pro San Francisco

About the Event
Date: May 22, 2019
Time: All Day. See Detailed Schedule.
Registration at 8:30am
Sessions start at 9am. Day ends by 6pm.

Location:
TBA closer to the event.

Sessions Chair: Neil Ticktin

The post MacTech Pro San Francisco appeared first on MacTech.com.

Last week, regulators in India forced Apple to remove the viral TikTok video sharing app from the App Store one inappropriate content concerns. Now, however, an Indian state court has moved to lift the ban.

more…

The post Indian government lifts TikTok ban, says it can return to the App Store appeared first on 9to5Mac.

Axios writes:

Tristan Harris, the former Googler who helped popularize the notion of “time well spent” laid out the shift he says the tech industry needs to make in order to stop, as he puts it, “downgrading humanity.” … Harris made the case that today’s technology downgrades humanity by creating a vast artificial social system powered by “overwhelming” AI and an “extractive” attention economy.

The problem, as Harris notes, is that the first company to blink loses.

We have a deal on the Mighty Vibe Spotify Offline Player. This device is just what the name suggests: it will play your Spotify music on-the-go without a smartphone or Internet connection.  It’s Bluetooth and Wi-Fi enabled, supports wired and most Bluetooth headphones and speakers, has 1,000+ song storage, and is durable and has a built-in clip-on. Plus, the promo video below is definitely funny. It’s $76.99 through our deal.

Facebook is preparing to pay a record-setting fine to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission for privacy violations following the Cambridge Analytica fiasco, as the social network is earmarking $3 billion to go towards its expenses and a potential $5 billion fine, depending on how it negotiates with the regulator.

Apple CEO Tim Cook has once again come out in favor of regulation of the tech industry, even as he expressed distrust of government intervention.

Read original article

The CEO of AT&T has proposed higher pricing for 5G connectivity, suggesting data plans for the next-generation mobile networks could be closer to that of broadband packages, including both allowances of data and tiered maximum speeds.

Last week, 9to5Mac reported that Screen Time, and many other iOS features, are coming to the Mac this year. Following our report, designer Jacob Grozian has imagined what Screen Time might look like on the Mac when macOS 10.15 is released this year.

more…

The post macOS 10.15 concept envisions rumored Screen Time feature with ambitious design [Gallery] appeared first on 9to5Mac.

Signing up for a subscription service like Apple News+ through iOS is kind of fun. A menu pops pop, you activate Face ID or Touch ID, and the world’s most satisfying ding lets you know your purchase was successful. It’s simplicity itself.

As for unsubscribing? That’s not so simple, but it’s better than it used to be. For years Apple would make you venture into depths of the Settings app that you probably never even knew existed in order to find your list of subscriptions, and you can still take that route if you wish. Now, though, Apple now lets you access your subscriptions directly through the App Store app. It’s still not incredibly intuitive, but it’s a massive improvement over the hoops we had to jump through.

To read this article in full, please click here

Earlier this month Patently Apple posted a report titled " For Q1 2019 Apple's iPhone XR was #1 in the U.S. & Britain while the iPhone X was Apple's best Seller in Urban China." The Kantar based report told us that Apple was #1 in the U.S. without providing actual numbers. Today we have more concrete data from Consumer Intelligence Research Partners (CIRP) on Apple's Fiscal Q2 2019 (calendar Q1 2019) that ended March 30, 2019.

How many of you are old enough to remember Bob Vila? As a kid, I loved his version of “This Old House” (I never liked the episodes after he left) even though I have no skill or even interest in construction or carpentry. Vila made it seem effortless and easy.

∞ Read this on The Loop

Apple continues to dominate when it comes to customer support, according to Laptop Mag's annual tech support showdown, which is designed to help customers determine which companies are offering the most reliable customer service in the tech industry.

Apple received an aggregate score of 91, earning 54 points for its web-based tech support and 37 points for its phone-based tech support. Laptop Mag says that Apple's support staff are among the "fastest and most knowledgeable," offering up "accurate answers" to Mac questions across live chat, social media, and the phone.

In a more in-depth breakdown of Apple's score, Laptop Mag says its editors queried Apple about Dark Mode in macOS Mojave, disabling automatic updates, and turning off the webcams...

In the past, aftermarket iPhone screens were a hit or miss regardless of whether you got them from the US or China. The quality was not consistent and the reliability was a coin toss. The warranties were difficult to claim and, in most cases, nonexistent.  Most of the US suppliers were simply trying different suppliers

The post How Good Are Aftermarket iPhone Screens appeared first on iLounge.

Today is an all hardware episode, Andrew Orr and John Martellaro join host Kelly Guimont to discuss butterfly keyboards and SSD upgrades.

More allegations about how owners of the Amazon Echo smart speaker range are having their privacy infringed by the retailer have surfaced, with the latest claim involving an internal team of Alexa auditors having access to customer data that can reveal their home address.

Material depicting child abuse l is still being widely shared across WhatsApp. An investigation by The Next Web found the Facebook-owned messaging service had failed to tackle the problem, despite assurances it would do so.

Despite Facebook’s attempts to clamp down on inappropriate content, the two-week long investigation conducted in March found dozens of WhatsApp chat groups with hundreds of members that share child sexual abuse material. The groups were identified through a third-party WhatsApp public group discovery app that Google recently banned from Play Store, but can still be sideloaded using the installation files that are available online elsewhere. Nitish Chandan, a cybersecurity specialist who is also the project manager of CPF, found that members are...

On April 24, 2015, the original Apple Watch launched in nine countries around the world. Four years later and we are now on the fourth iteration of the wearable device, the Apple Watch Series 4. Over the years Apple has worked on improving Apple Watch with a better and bigger display, water resistance, additional health and fitness features, and more.

Apple Watch (first generation)

As usual for Apple products, rumors about an Apple wearable device began ramping up in the years before the official Apple Watch launch. In 2013, Apple filed a trademark for an "iWatch," despite the fact that the device would eventually be known as the Apple Watch. Apple did the same thing for the iPad, seeking to secure rights for the...

Tim Cook addressed the TIME 100 Summit Tuesday. There, he encouraged people to put down their iPhones. He even said he turned off push notifications from lots of apps, reported Techcrunch.

Today, when users install new apps they often say “No” to push notifications. And with Apple’s new tools to control notifications, users are now actively triaging which apps can get in touch. In fact, that’s what Tim Cook says he did, too. “If you guys aren’t doing this — if you have an iPhone and you’re not doing it, I would encourage you to really do this — monitor these [push notifications],” the CEO suggested to the audience. “What it has done for me personally is I’ve gone in and gutted the number of notifications,” Cook said. “Because I asked myself: ‘Do I really need to be getting thousands of notifications a day?’

Sir Jony Ive does not make a huge number of media appearances. When he does, they tend to be worth taking in. Design magazine Document has an in-depth interview with Sir. Jony and Dior top designer Kim Jones in its new edition. In it, he talked about design tools, the future, and the values that run through Apple.

To me, what the institution represents first and foremost is a set of values and a clear sense of why Apple exists, and what contribution we can make to culture—what contribution we can make to society. What I can bring to that is to practice what I do within those values and to extend them. I think it stems from my sense of curiosity. I’m absurdly, frantically inquisitive. Given that I’ve been at Apple for nearly 30 years now, I think I’m sort of steeped in those values. I think the values are powerful but they’re general, and it’s how you turn your curiosity and ideas into vision. I think that very simplistically describes my relationship with...

A jury trial involving iPhone 4’s, iPhone 4S’s and iPhone 5’s with alleged defective sleep/wake (power) buttons will start on Oct. 25, 2019.

The complaint alleges that Apple sold the aforementioned smartphone models with defective sleep/wake (power) buttons and failed to disclose (or insufficiently disclosed) this defect to purchasers in violation of various California state laws. This action seeks relief for alleged claims of breach of warranty and alleged violations of the California Consumers Legal Remedies Act, the California Unfair Competition Law, the California Song-Beverly Act and the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act. 

The complaint seeks damages in the form of recovery of the cost to repair the broken sleep/wake button or the diminished value of the iPhone due to the broken sleep/wake button, along with restitution, injunctive and declaratory relief.

Apple denies all of the allegations and denies it did anything improper...

Persecond is the easy, fun way to create a beautiful timelapse video. Import an image sequence from any camera, trim the length of your video, adjust the speed and playback direction, and you’re done. Export in broadcast quality or import to Flixel Cinemagraph Pro and create an amazing timelapse+cinemagraph hybrid video. It’s magical visual storytelling at its best.

Features

• Drag-and-Drop. - Drag-and-drop or browse for an image set; Persecond sorts them automatically.
• Quick Edit. - Trim your in and out points, set the play direction, and pick a speed.
• Done. - That’s it--export in HD or broadcast quality or upload and share.

Note: the trial app puts a watermark on the result video

Version 1.4.4:

• Fixes an issue that prevents opening files by double-clicking or drag & drop to the Dock icon

...

Apple News+ officially launched one month ago today, which means those who subscribed to the free trial are about to get hit with their first monthly bill. If you’ve spent some time with the service and decided it’s not for you, here’s how to cancel Apple News+.

more…

The post Here’s how to cancel your Apple News+ trial and avoid a $10 charge appeared first on 9to5Mac.

Tomorrow marks a month since Apple announced its Apple News+ subscription service, which means if you signed up on March 25 following the event, you're going to start getting charged $9.99 per month.

If you're not happy with Apple News+ and want to avoid the fee, make sure to cancel today. Here's how:

• Open up the Apple News app.
• On iPad, scroll to the bottom of the side bar. On iPhone, tap the "Following" tab.
• Choose "Manage Subscriptions."
• Tap on "Cancel Free Trial."

Once you've canceled Apple News+, the free trial ends immediately and you won't be charged. If you don't cancel, your subscription will renew at $9.99 per month going forward. After canceling, you can opt to resubscribe, and you'll be charged $9.99...

Apple has earned another first place ranking for its laptop customer service when compared to other tech companies. Laptop Mag today released its 2019 study that found Apple far ahead of competition like Samsung, Microsoft, HP, and more when it comes to both phone and web support for computers.

more…

The post Apple earns first place in laptop customer support ranking with 91/100 score, 6 minute avg. call time appeared first on 9to5Mac.

Whether you're looking for an over-the-ear, on-ear, or in-ear model, we'll help you find the perfect pair.

Vacuuming is one of the most hated household chores. Here are your best choices for outsourcing it to some automated help.

Samsung this week said it intends to spend $116 billion by 2030 in order to beat the likes of Intel, Qualcomm, and TSMC for a lead role in logic chip manufacturing.

The latest Best Buy 4 day sale highlights the top deals in this episode of 9to5Toys Lunch Break, along with offers on iPhone 6s and AmazonBasics Mac accessories. Head below for more.

more…

The post New Best Buy 4 day sale discounts MacBook Pro and Sonos, plus get a $100 Amazon gift card w/ iPhone 6s, more appeared first on 9to5Mac.

Apple has claimed the top spot on Laptop Magazine's 2019 customer service ratings, scoring 91 out of 100 based on a mix of phone and online performance.

Google announced today that its Google Fit app that launched on Android in 2014 is now available for iOS.

Last August, Google Fit was completely revamped with the Material Theme and a focus on two new metrics. The health and activity tracking application is now coming to iOS with full Apple Health integration.

more…

The post Google Fit now available on iOS with Apple Health sync appeared first on 9to5Mac.

Samsung's chip division is its most lucrative, but memory chip prices are falling and the company's overall operating profits are slipping. In response, Samsung just announced a $116 billion investment in non-memory chip R&D and production infras...

A class action lawsuit originally filed against Apple in 2013 over broken iPhone 4, iPhone 4s, and later iPhone 5 power buttons is finally set to proceed to jury trial in San Diego state court beginning October 25, 2019.

The lawsuit alleges that Apple knowingly sold the aforementioned iPhone models with "defective" power buttons and refused to properly remedy the issue. For this, Apple is accused of "deceptive" or "fraudulent" business practices, breach of warranty, and violating multiple California consumer laws.

The proposed class includes California residents who purchased an iPhone 4, iPhone 4s, or iPhone 5 from Apple or a third-party retailer:iPhone 4 and 4S Class:

All California citizens who purchased one or more iPhone 4 or 4S smartphones from Apple or a third-party retailer, from June 24, 2010 through October 10, 2011 for the iPhone 4, and from October 11, 2011 through September 20...

After initially selling out within hours, Amazon's $500 off discount is back on Apple's latest Mid 2018 13-inch MacBook Pro with Touch Bar that's equipped with a 512GB SSD. With stock available on May 3, now is the time to order the upgraded MacBook Pro at the lowest price ever before inventory runs out.

A designer's obligations to the world don't end after a product ships, said Apple chief design officer Jony Ive in an interview published this week.

After the latest Facebook privacy fiasco which involved Instagram passwords, regulators are looking even more closely at Mark Zuckerberg.

Here’s the picture, Steve plush with iPod.

Want one? The Reddit poster bought it here.

∞ Read this on The Loop

Wired:

What if an Ethereum owner stored their digital money with a private key—the unguessable, 78-digit string of numbers that protects the currency stashed at a certain address—that had a value of 1?

To Bednarek’s surprise, he found that dead-simple key had in fact once held currency, according to the blockchain that records all Ethereum transactions. But the cash had already been taken out of the Ethereum wallet that used it—almost certainly by a thief who had thought to guess a private key of 1 long before Bednarek had.

And:

That initial discovery piqued Bednarek’s curiosity. So he tried a few more consecutive keys: 2, 3, 4, and then a couple dozen more, all of which had been similarly emptied. So he and his colleagues at the security consultancy Independent Security Evaluators wrote some code, fired up some cloud servers, and tried a few dozen billion more.

Seems such an obvious tack to take. And reinforces my avoidance of blockchain backed...

Apple continues to lead global premium smartphone segment by capturing more than half of the market while OnePlus entered the top five brands in the premium segment for the first time ever in 2018 as competition intensified in the global premium smartphone segment. The segment grew faster than the global smartphone market, according to Counterpoint Research’s Market Monitor 2018 service.

The segment grew 14% year-on-year (YoY) in terms of sell-in and 18% YoY in terms of sell-through. Growth was driven by new iPhones and launches in a premium segment from Chinese manufacturers like Huawei, OPPO, OnePlus.

Apple remained the market leader capturing 51% share of the premium segment, a significant lead over its nearest competitor Samsung which had a 22% share. However, Chinese brands made their mark as Huawei’s share in the segment reached double digits (10...

The upcoming spring/summer 2019 edition of Document Journal includes a fascinating new conversation between Apple’s Chief Design Officer Jony Ive and Kim Jones, Creative Director for fashion brand Dior Men since 2018. Ahead of the magazine’s release in May, the full interview has been published online and is filled with observations from the two designers.

more…

The post Jony Ive and Dior designer Kim Jones discuss the environmental cost of design, challenges of working for the future, more appeared first on 9to5Mac.

In observation of Distracted Driving Month this April, The Zebra, an insurance comparison site, surveyed 2,107 Americans to uncover what activities are distracting them on the road. 

The survey revealed that 78% of Americans admit to engaging in activities other than concentrating on the road, even though the majority of them (66%) feel guilty while doing so. And iPhone users are twice as likely to text and drive as Android users.

According to The Zebra, when looking at iPhone vs. Android owners, Apple users are more addicted to their mobile devices, as they’re more prone to text, take photos, video-chat and more while driving. 

Emotional commercials and big brand petitions tell us that a text message can wait, yet 73% of respondents who admitted to texting and driving agree that this risky act can be classified as an addiction. Eighty percent of people in this group...

QNAP Systems has launched the next-gen TDS-16489U R2 NAS that features dual Inte Xeon® E5-2600 v4 processors, and a dual OS system for businesses to flexibly deploy an operating system that fits their needs and goals. 

Users can take advantage of the ZFS-based QES for enterprise-level, efficient and reliable storage for mission-critical tasks, or to install QTS for virtual machine applications, diverse applications, and auto-tiered storage, according to David Tsao, product manager of QNAP.

The TDS-16489U R2 features two processors (with Intel Xeon E5-2620 v4 8-core CPU and Intel Xeon E5-2630 v4 10-core CPU configurations), three independent SAS 12Gb/s controllers, and up to 1 TB quad-channel DDR4 2133MHz RDIMM/LRDIMM RAM (16 DIMM). Four 10GbE SFP+ ports fulfill bandwidth-demanding applications such as...

QNAP Systems has launched the next-gen TDS-16489U R2 NAS that features dual Inte Xeon® E5-2600 v4 processors, and a dual OS system for businesses to flexibly deploy an operating system that fits their needs and goals. 

Users can take advantage of the ZFS-based QES for enterprise-level, efficient and reliable storage for mission-critical tasks, or to install QTS for virtual machine applications, diverse applications, and auto-tiered storage, according to David Tsao, product manager of QNAP.

The TDS-16489U R2 features two processors (with Intel Xeon E5-2620 v4 8-core CPU and Intel Xeon E5-2630 v4 10-core CPU configurations), three independent SAS 12Gb/s controllers, and up to 1 TB quad-channel DDR4 2133MHz RDIMM/LRDIMM RAM (16 DIMM). Four 10GbE SFP+ ports fulfill bandwidth-demanding applications such as...

The latest data from Consumer Intelligence Research Partners (CIRP) suggests that the iPhone XR continues to dominate US smartphone sales. The XR is the best-selling model for the second quarter running.

The news follows Kantar data showing that the iPhone XR was also the best-selling smartphone in the UK …

more…

The post iPhone XR continues to dominate US smartphone sales, says CIRP appeared first on 9to5Mac.

Reddit:

Just got my first set of AirPods two weeks ago. Really enjoying them now that my company has switched to iOS and I tote around 2 iPhones. Then today I just popped them in to walk to the office and an Amber Alert game in. Through the AirPods. Full blast loud. My eyes watered and I threw one out as fast as possible but didn’t quite get the other in time as I tried to dismiss the alert. Holy hell my ears are ringing so loud. Is there any way to turn that down??

Amber alerts are designed to play at max volume, to get your attention. I get that.

But seems to me, Apple should do a bit of testing with AirPods volume, set a max limit for emergency klaxons and Amber alerts. There are people who need their AirPods at full volume, so not clear that a hard volume level cutoff is the right answer, but seems clear that the current in ear volume for Amber alerts and the like is just too loud and, perhaps, harmful to hearing.

...

LibertyApp has released Server Ranger 2.5 (https://www.serverranger.com), an update to their website and server monitoring solution for Mac, Windows and Linux systems.

It monitors your devices, websites and servers so you don’t have to, automatically sending you alerts when things go wrong. Create alert policies for websites and servers that have a slow response or go offline. Version 2.5 includes stability improvements, introduces Raspberry Pi support and offers the Mac version on and off the Mac App Store.

Server Ranger 2.5 is a free update for current customers. For new users the cost is $49.99.

The post Server Ranger 2.5 upgraded with stability improvements, more appeared first on MacTech.com.

LibertyApp has released Server Ranger 2.5 (https://www.serverranger.com), an update to their website and server monitoring solution for Mac, Windows and Linux systems.

It monitors your devices, websites and servers so you don’t have to, automatically sending you alerts when things go wrong. Create alert policies for websites and servers that have a slow response or go offline. Version 2.5 includes stability improvements, introduces Raspberry Pi support and offers the Mac version on and off the Mac App Store.

Server Ranger 2.5 is a free update for current customers. For new users the cost is $49.99.

The post Server Ranger 2.5 upgraded with stability improvements, more appeared first on MacTech.com.

In a note to clients — as noted by AppleInsider — analyst Ming-Chi Kuo says Apple will release two new AirPod models later this year or in early 2020. The Sellers Research Group (that’s me) says, barring any production problems, we’ll see them this year, so Apple can capitalize on holiday spending.

He says one of the wireless earbuds will sport an all-new form-factor at a higher price. The second model will have the same design and cost as the current AirPods, Kuo adds.

He doesn’t elaborate on what design changes we might expect. However, possibilities are new health features, enhanced audio quality, a new coating for improved grip and noise cancellation tech.

Whatever the changes, Kuo predicts that Apple will sell 52 million units in 2019, and between 75 million and 85 million in...

Cloud services are great for keeping your data backed up in the cloud, syncing to a number of devices simultaneously, and archiving information that's important but just not needed each and every day. Some services can be ridiculously expensive, but that's not the case with Zoolz Cloud Storage. Can you imagine paying only $19.99 for 1TB of Cold Storage? That’s our deal for today for what TopTenReviews called the "Number 1 Best Business Cloud Storage Service": Zoolz Cloud Storage. 

With this plan you get:

• Backup 1TB of Cold Storage w/ no limitations

• ...

iFixit:

Well, we’ve finally got the Samsung Galaxy Fold on our teardown table. This is, without question, an ambitious first-generation device—the idea of having both a smartphone and a tablet in your pocket at all times is pretty exciting! That said, a number of early reviewers had some durability issues with their review units, ultimately leading to a launch postponement. Are these temporary setbacks? Or are we headed for a full-blown AirPower-style product cancellation?

The teardown is full of great pics and details, but this little bit goes to the heart of the matter:

Unlike the dull slabs of glass we’re used to, this smartphone/tablet hybrid has lots of potential entry points—and not the good kind.

To achieve the fold, the thin bezel that surrounds (and protects) the screen leaves a gap where the two halves meet.

And:

This 7 mm gap doesn’t seem like a huge deal, but it leaves the display exposed—so should something accidentally enter,...

It feels like we've always had Apple Watches, but it's only a very few years since the first ones were shipped to customers. Yet if it's still really a new product, you can trace rumors of Apple's work on it back to at least 2010.

Google has launched some new tools in a bid to fight misinformation about upcoming elections in Europe. A large part of that effort is focused on YouTube, where Google will launch publisher transparency labels in Europe, showing news sources which re...

In a new study (n=2,000) 51% of iPhone users said they text and drive, compared to 35% for Android users.

16% of iPhone users said they never get distracted while driving (vs. 23% of Android users and 38% of users of other mobile operating systems).

iPhone users are more than twice as likely than Android users to video-chat, use Instagram, stream shows on Netflix or Hulu, and take photos and videos while driving.

10% of iPhone users admitted watching videos on YouTube while driving, while 4% of Android users admitted to doing the same.

With a number of high profile elections taking place around the world in the coming months, social media platforms are gearing themselves up for the inevitable onslaught of fake news and misleading information. Twitter has announced that it's doublin...

If you’re like me, you suffer from cable clutter. Even though I have a 27-inch iMac 5K with a decent amount of internal storage, I have connections to: an external hard drive; various adapter cables; and a surge protector to protect all these gadgets.

The result? A crowded desktop. One simple solution: The BlueLounge CableBox Mini, a $30 solution that tidies up your desktop and looks good doing it. You just plug your devices into the supplied four-socket surge protector, then stow away the surplus cable lengths, and close the lid. The CableBox has cable outlets on two sides, which makes it convenient for stashing cords, adapters and small USB hubs, while still retaining access to them.

Rubber feet keep it from sliding around on your desktop — or the floor, if you prefer it there. I keep my CableBox Mini behind my iMac where it houses an USB hub and my iPhone charger. However, you can also use it under a desk or near a TV.

The...

Apple’s MacBook keyboard replacement program solved one problem: customers would no longer have to pay for a fix for an Apple design failure. But, as I wrote recently, it still left many of us with another one: the hassle of living without our machine for a week – even those of us fortunate enough to have a backup machine.

I called an Apple Store, and they told me they’d need it for about five days, and that’s a much bigger deal […] It’s not that it’s impossible to be without it – I managed before – but it is a major hassle. I have my key work apps and bookmarks set up on my MacBook Air, but I know from that experience that there are a zillion small things that will drive me nuts in the week I’m without the...

Following just hours after a Digitimes report on ‘AirPods 3′, the veritable TF Industries’ Ming-Chi Kuo reports that Apple is set to launch two new AirPods hardware models as early as the fourth quarter of 2019, quoting a ‘4Q19 – 1Q20’ timeframe.

One of these models is reported as an iterative update to the existing AirPods, and other will come with an all-new form factor and associated higher price.

more…

The post Kuo: Two new AirPods models in Q4 2019 – Q1 2020, one features an all-new design and higher price appeared first on 9to5Mac.

Apple Pay is now available to customers of Austria's Erste Bank und Sparkasse, as well as via German-based N26's Mastercard.

A letter from Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers reveals that Foxconn is indeed seeking to renegotiate the scale of its investment, which was originally supposed to generate 13,000 jobs in the state. The company has so far renamed an office building which currently appears empty.

Foxconn had previously said that it remained committed to the contract despite Gov. Evans stating that ‘the deal is no longer in play‘ …

more…...

Apple has been granted a patent (number 10,269,369) for a “system and method of noise reduction for a mobile device.” The goal is to make it easier to hear phone calls on your iPhone when you’re in a noisy environment.

In the patent filing, Apple notes that you can use using headphones, earbuds, or headset when talking on your iPhone. However, a common complaint with these hands-free modes of operation is that the speech captured by the microphone port or the headset includes environmental noise such as wind noise, secondary speakers in the background.

Here’s Apple’s summary of the invention: “System of noise reduction for mobile devices includes blind source separator (BSS) and noise suppressor. BSS receives signals from at least two audio pickup channels. BSS includes sound source separator, voice source detector, equalizer, and auto-disabler. Sound source separator generates signals representing first sound source and second sound source...

If the explosive popularity of the The Sims over the years has taught us anything, it's that people love playing god. Players have been given control of everything from theme parks to hospitals, and now aspiring site planners can add a zoo to their C...

Worldwide IT spending is projected to total $3.79 trillion in 2019, an increase of 1.1% from 2018, according to the latest forecast by Gartner, Inc. (www.gartner.com).

“Currency headwinds fueled by the strengthening U.S. dollar have caused us to revise our 2019 IT spending forecast down from the previous quarter,” said John-David Lovelock, research vice president at Gartner. “Through the remainder of 2019, the U.S. dollar is expected to trend stronger, while enduring tremendous volatility due to uncertain economic and political environments and trade wars. In 2019, technology product managers will have to get more strategic with their portfolio mix by balancing products and services that will post growth in 2019 with those larger markets that will trend flat to down. Successful product managers in 2020 will have had a long-term view to the changes made in 2019.”

The data center systems segment will experience the largest decline in...

Worldwide IT spending is projected to total $3.79 trillion in 2019, an increase of 1.1% from 2018, according to the latest forecast by Gartner, Inc. (www.gartner.com).

“Currency headwinds fueled by the strengthening U.S. dollar have caused us to revise our 2019 IT spending forecast down from the previous quarter,” said John-David Lovelock, research vice president at Gartner. “Through the remainder of 2019, the U.S. dollar is expected to trend stronger, while enduring tremendous volatility due to uncertain economic and political environments and trade wars. In 2019, technology product managers will have to get more strategic with their portfolio mix by balancing products and services that will post growth in 2019 with those larger markets that will trend flat to down. Successful product managers in 2020 will have had a long-term view to the changes made in 2019.”

The data center systems segment will experience the largest decline in...

Vivaldi is a browser for our friends.

We live in our browsers. Choose one that has the features you need, a style that fits and values you can stand by. From the look and feel, to how you interact with your browser, every aspect of Vivaldi can be tweaked and customized. You’re in control. Online privacy is more important than ever and how your browser handles sensitive data is crucial. Vivaldi doesn’t track or store any of your data. Managing hundreds of tabs is a breeze, and built-in tools like Notes and screen Capture mean there’s no need to hunt for add-ons.

Version 2.4.1488.40:

• You can now build your own interface by moving buttons between toolbars. Hold Shift and drag a button (like Back or Forward) to try it out. We've also added new ways to manage and access your bookmarks, set up multiple user profiles and added a simple calculator to Quick Commands.

• OS X 10.10 or later
...

Hey, good morning! You look fabulous.

Looking for a new laptop? New CPUs and GPUs are just begging for you to upgrade. And if you have a bigger purchase in mind, you should check out the new Teslas, which feature more range than ever -- up to 370 mi...

Apple Pay officially launched in Austria this morning. Apple's mobile payment system is now supported by the country's largest bank Erste Bank und Sparkasse, as well as German-based mobile bank N26, allowing customers to add bank cards to their digital wallet.

Apple says additional Apple Pay partners "coming soon" to Austria will include Bank Austria, Boon, Edenred, Revolut and VIMPay.

Last month, both Erste Bank und Sparkasse and N26 banks announced that Apple Pay was coming to Austria, with support for Maestro, Mastercard, and Visa debit and credit cards.

Apple Pay...

Audio performance improves with ANC on, but it's still somewhat congested and veiled, especially in noisy environments.

When I reviewed last year’s 12.9-inch iPad Pro, I praised its power but remained skeptical that it could take the place of a MacBook. Logitech seems to have taken such concerns as a challenge in designing the Slim Folio Pro for the 2018 11- and 12.9-inch iPad Pros, and it did so well that I feel safe in saying that this is the closest you’re going to get to making Apple’s pricey tablet feel like a laptop.

Leif Johnson

I’m always scared I’m going to smash the edges of my iPad Pro with Apple’s keyboard case. It’d have to take a heavy hit for that to happen with the Slim Folio Pro.

To read this article in full, please...

DigiTimes reports this morning that Apple is set to launch third-generation AirPods with a noise cancelation function by the end of the year, a claim at odds with rumors that Apple's AirPods 3 have been pushed back to 2020.

Apple is reportedly set to release its third-generation AirPods for sales by the end of 2019, with the new wireless earphones to incorporate a noise cancellation function. And Taiwan's Inventec reportedly will be the major assembler of AirPods 3, while China's Luxshare Precision will also grab part of the orders for the new device, according to industry sources.Today's report claims that Apple will fend off competition from rival brands of true wireless earbuds by including a noise-canceling function in its third-generation AirPods, although doing so could throw up new design and assembly challenges.

The sources...

Digitimes today reports that Apple is working with assemblers and suppliers to ready a third generation ‘AirPods 3’ by the end of this year. This is not the first rumor of this ilk. AirPods 2 with wireless charging case debuted in March, and even before then there were publications claiming there would be separate spring and fall AirPods refreshes.

Digitimes says the primary feature of the late 2019 AirPods will be noise cancellation. Like AirPods 2, AirPods 3 are expected to be manufactured by Inventec and Luxshare Precision.

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Verizon has turned to Google to provide its internet subscribers with streamable shows and other content. The carrier has announced that it's going to offer YouTube TV, the platform's premium service, to both wireless 5G home and Fios broadband custo...

Google Chrome is a Web browser by Google, created to be a modern platform for Web pages and applications. It utilizes very fast loading of Web pages and has a V8 engine, which is a custom built JavaScript engine. Because Google has used parts from Apple's Safari and Mozilla's Firefox browsers, they made the project open source.

Version 74.0.3729.108:

• Full changelog can be found here

• OS X 10.10 or later

Download Now]]>

Despite calls from officials in the US and elsewhere to ban Huawei from its 5G networks, the UK has reportedly approved the company's participation in "non-core" parts of its next-gen rollout. It already has a presence in similar areas of the 4G netw...

HoudahSpot is a versatile desktop search tool. Use HoudahSpot to locate hard-to-find files and keep frequently used files within reach.

HoudahSpot will immediately feel familiar. It works just the way you expect search to work. Start with a simple search. Refine it by adding and combining criteria. Browse search results. Add columns. Preview files and text matches. Pick the files you really need.

• Find files by name, text, content kind, author, recipient, pixel count, etc.
• Combine criteria to narrow down search results
• Specify which folders to search and which ones to exclude
• Add any of the hundreds of columns available
• Apply filters to reduce search results to only the relevant items
• Preview files and text matches
• Open files and, where the application supports it, continue searching for text matches by pressing command-G (Find Next)
• Set up templates for recurring searches...

iFinance allows you to keep track of your income and spending -- from your lunchbreak coffee to your new car -- in the most convenient and fastest way. Clearly arranged transaction lists of all your financial resources from your debit account to your credit card and cash show you exactly what you spend your money on - the first and most crucial step in getting your finances on-track. iFinance lets you know how your assets perform. Have it analyze your finances and the available charts and reports will show you instantly what your biggest spending items are and where there's potential for savings. The convenient budget feature helps you review your financial goals. How much money can you spend today if you want to stay within your budget? How much more income is needed to achieve your monthly goal?

It supports several different banking file formats, such as CSV, QIF, OFX, and mt940. Import your data by using one of these formats or retrieve your bank account...

What do think about the Phillies new logo? Since its unpredicted release last December 2018, fans reactions were apparently divided. And you read them mostly on Twitter. So while some fans are getting the hang of it, you may be one of the few who wants to wear a t-shirt with the new logo on

The post Best Phillies T-shirts Available Online That Will Make You Look Awesome appeared first on iLounge.

Cloud storage offers a few unique benefits compared to local or external storage. First, it’s based on the cloud, which means you can access them anytime and anywhere with a device connected to the internet. Data can be automatically backed up and you save time from manually syncing files across your devices. Reliable cloud server

The post 5 Best iCloud Alternatives For Storing Data appeared first on iLounge.

It's being report late today that "The top Democrats and Republicans on the U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee on Tuesday wrote Google Chief Executive Sundar Pichai raising concerns about reports of a massive database of precise consumer location information on hundreds of millions of consumers known as 'SensorVault.'

Rare has shed new light on just what stories you'll see in Sea of Thieves' anniversary update, and the first one might just scratch the itch if you think the core game is a bit threadbare. A new trailer for the first "Tall Tales" story, "Shores of Go...

BioWare has added a string of content to keep Anthem fresh, although there are some omissions that could rankle early fans of the shared-world shooter. The newly available 1.1.0 update adds a new Stronghold (aka dungeon), Sunken Cell, that gives you...

A few days ago, Samsung had sent out many units of the Galaxy Fold to reviewers. However, almost all reviewers started to face an issue with the display issue. According to Reuters, Samsung has now announced to retrieve all its review units of the Galaxy Fold that they had sent distributed. Reviewers had faced flickering

The post Samsung to retrieve all Galaxy Fold devices appeared first on iLounge.

Since Steve and I can’t cover everything, at the end of each week day, we’ll offer this wrap-up of news items you should check out.

Apple CEO Tim Cook has added his voice to the growing chorus of prominent people both inside and outside the tech sector that are calling for government to become more involved in regulating technology firms, according to The Street.

As noted by AppleInsider, Beyonce's Lemonade album is now finally available on Apple Music as well as other streaming services like Spotify. Apple is promoting the album...

After reporting strong Q1 earnings this morning, Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey this afternoon met with President Trump at the White House. The goal of the meeting was to talk about “protecting the health of the public conversation” ahead of the 2020 elections, Twitter said in a statement.

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Snap today reported its Q1 2019 earnings, beating analyst estimates across the board. As detailed by CNBC, the company reported $320 million in revenue, with a less per share of 10 cents. The company also returned to growth in terms of active users.

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Sometimes an iOS app wants access to your Contacts — for good but sometimes also bad reasons. Here’s how control which apps can read your iOS Contacts. And revoke permission if necessary.

Razer last week announced the launch of its latest eGPU, the $400 Razer Core X Chroma, equipped with, as the name suggests, Razer's signature Chroma lighting.

Razer sent us one of the Core X Chroma eGPUs to check out, and we've gone hands-on with it in our latest YouTube video to see how well it works with Apple's Macs.

Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos.

The Core X Chroma looks similar to the previous-generation Core X eGPU, with a rather large all-aluminum enclosure that will support NVIDIA GeForce RTX, GeForce GTX, and Quadro cards along with AMD XConnect-enabled Radeon and Radeon Pro cards (note that there are no suitable modern NVIDIA drivers, so most...

Tim Cook is not one of Time’s 100 most influential people of 2019. Nonetheless, as a three-time honoree of that list, he was invited to be interviewed by Nancy Gibbs at the Time 100 Summit. As expected, Cook didn’t reveal any details about new products, software, or services. Instead, the questions posed and answers given were broad, touching on Cook’s and Apple’s values and how technology fits into the world we live in.

Here’s some of what he said about a variety of issues. Quotes have been lightly edited for clarity.

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After selling to Nokia and then returning to its own brand, Withings is back in action bringing stylish and functional fitness devices to market. The way that I first got turned on to Withings was when I was looking for a stylish watch with heart rate tracking. Back then, it was the Nokia Steel HR that caught my eye. It delivered everything I wanted functionality-wise in a sleek analog design – and at $180, it’s a pretty affordable wearable. Then, a few months after I bought the Nokia Steel HR, Withings came out with the Steel HR Sport with a dark grey stainless steel case. This is the look I originally wanted with the Nokia. The Sport is a little more expensive at $200, but not by much...

We have a deal on the LizaTech 1080p Wireless WiFi Battery IP Camera. This 1080p camera is wireless, has a motion sensor, a 104 degree view, night vision, and a lot more. Check out the list of specs on the deal listing. It’s $149.99 through us.

Jack Dorsey and other Twitter executives will have a 30 minute meeting with President Trump about “The health of the public conversation on Twitter.”

“As you know, I believe that conversation, not silence, bridges gaps and drives towards solutions,” Dorsey wrote. “I have met with every world leader who has extended an invitation to me, and I believe the discussions have been productive, and the outcomes meaningful.”

Jack: “Mr. President, please stop threatening people on Twitter.”

Apple today seeded the third beta of an upcoming iOS 12.3 update to its public beta testing group, one day after seeding the beta to developers and two weeks after releasing the second public beta.

Beta testers who have joined Apple's beta testing program will receive the iOS 12.3 beta update over-the-air after installing the proper certificate on an iOS device.

Those who want to download the new beta can do so after signing up for the beta program, which gives access to iOS, macOS, and tvOS betas.

iOS 12.3 brings the new TV app that Apple first introduced at its March 25 event. The TV app is an updated version of the original TV app, offering up TV shows, movies, sports, news, and more all in one easy-to-access spot.

The updated TV app has improved content recommendations available through a new "For You" section in the app, which will suggest shows and movies you...

Instagram first added support for polls in Stories two years ago, and today the feature is being updated with support for multiple choice questions. The new “quiz sticker” allows users to ask their followers multiple choice questions directly though Instagram Stories.

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Change the volume and output device for individual apps. Adjust your Mac’s audio device settings and levels instantly, from anywhere. Even apply built-in and third-party audio effects to any audio on your Mac. It’s all possible right from your menu bar, with SoundSource. This is truly powerful audio control.

For years, if I need an audio utility app, I always go to Rogue Amoeba first. They make great quality apps and chances are they make something that will get the job done. The company’s newest is called SoundSource, but check out the other apps while you’re there.

∞ Read this on The Loop

Rumor has it that Apple Pay Austria is supposed to launch tomorrow, although we’re not sure which banks will support it at launch.

This is Apple priming the pump for Apple TV+ in the fall.

∞ Read this on The Loop

Apple has launched a new YouTube channel dubbed Apple TV that has info on its upcoming Apple TV+ streaming service, which is launching this fall.

The channel shows clips, trailers and more for its original TV shows and movies. It’s divided into categories such as “Indie Exclusives,” “Ones to Watch,” “Hot Trailers,” and “Behind the Scenes with….”

Apple has over 30 original series in various stages of production. Pricing and availability for the Apple TV+ video subscription service will be announced later this fall.

Andrew Orr and Bryan Chaffin join host Kelly Guimont to talk about JC Penney’s removing Apple Pay and Elon Musk’s vision for Tesla taxicabs.

Apple has silently begun a new YouTube channel, "Apple TV," apparently laying the groundwork for this fall's Apple TV+ launch.