Tim Cook has written to Apple employees, defending the decision to remove an app used by protestors in Hong Kong from the iOS App Store.
Alleged Apple Employee Says 'Things are so Broken Here at Apple'
A conversation on Hacker News from an alleged Apple employee says that things are broken at Apple and no one communicates.
Broken management structure. I have had many managers (a red flag in itself) but even worse none of the managers take suggestions from engineers. Everything is purely top down. If an engineer realizes there is a problem on a macro scale they cannot fix it. It is literally impossible to unite more than 1.5 teams to get anything done.
Obviously there is no way to tell if they are real or not (At least, my surface research for these linked teasers can’t tell). Another commenter mentions “overt sexism that I’ve been witness to in iCloud management…”
Amazon Music Now Featured on Apple TV
Amazon Music now joins Spotify as third-party features available on Apple TV. Download the Amazon Music app to get started.
For now, the tvOS Amazon Music app is available for Apple TV 4K and Apple TV HD users in thirteen countries: the U.S., UK, Australia, New Zealand, Brazil, Canada, France, Italy, Spain, Germany, Mexico, Japan, and India.
Amazon Music is a free download from the App Store.
Alfonso Cuarón Makes Multi-Year Deal With Apple
Alfonso Cuarón has set a multi-year deal with Apple for its Apple TV+ while still managing his deal with Anonymous Content.
Doing it Wrong With iOS Screen Time Limits
According to USA Today,
Some screen time is worse than others when it comes to kids and academic performance, according to a new analysis published in the medical journal JAMA Pediatrics.
Television viewing, followed by video games, were the two activities most tied to poor school performance, researchers showed in a review of 58 studies published over the decades.”
Other activities: not so much. This is a helpful article for parents.
iPM PU Leather Wallet Case for iPhone 11 with Kickstand: $12.99
We have a deal on the PM Leather Protective Wallet Case. This wallet-style case is made from PU leather, and it includes slots for credit cards, ID cards, and one large pocket for your bills. It also has a kickstand function for propping your iPhone up. We’re linking to the black case for the iPhone 11 for $12.99. There’s a pulldown menu for iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 11 Pro Max, too, as well as several color choices.
Mac Memory, Catalina's Potential – TMO Daily Observations 2019-10-10
Dave Hamilton and John Martellaro join host Kelly Guimont to discuss the right amount of RAM in a Mac, and Catalina’s place in macOS history.
Apple Accidentally Revealed 'PhoenixCE' Diagnostic Software
Redditor u/BickNlinko bought a certified refurbished MacBook Pro from Apple and it had diagnostic software called ‘PhoenixCE’ left on it.
#BoycottApple Trends on Twitter After Company's Recent Moves
The hashtag #BoycottApple is trending on Twitter after Apple removed the HKMap and Quartz apps from the App Store at the behest of China.
Just after Apple removed the apps, #BoycottApple has been trending on all the social media platforms with users voicing their discontent with Apple’s move. Unfortunately, this isn’t the first time Apple has been under fire for pulling something like this. Back in 2017, the company pulled The New York Times app from the App Store stating that the Chinese government had requested the app’s removal because it was “in violation of local regulations.”
Phil Schiller: “Courage.”
Apple Releases Trailer for 'Truth Be Told' Based on Are You Sleeping
Today Apple shared a trailer for its upcoming series Truth Be Told based on a novel by Kathleen Barber called Are You Sleeping.
Every truth has a consequence. When new evidence compels podcaster Poppy Parnell (Octavia Spencer) to reopen the murder case that made her a national sensation, she comes face to face with Warren Cave (Aaron Paul), the man she may have mistakenly helped to put behind bars. Her investigation navigates urgent concerns about privacy, media and race. Truth Be Told is created by Nichelle Tramble Spellman and stars Octavia Spencer, Aaron Paul, Lizzy Caplan, Elizabeth Perkins, Michael Beach, Mekhi Phifer, Tracie Thoms, Haneefah Wood and Ron Cephas Jones.
You can watch the trailer on YouTube here.
Pixelmator Pro 1.5 Supports macOS Catalina, Sidecar, and Mac Pro
Pixelmator Pro 1.5 Avalon adds support for macOS Catalina, Sidecar, and enhancements for the Mac Pro and its Pro Display XDR.
Adobe Announces New Creative Cloud Desktop App
Adobe has redesigned its Creative Cloud desktop app for macOS Catalina. It makes it easier to access and manage your content.
Apple Card Comes now With Disaster Relief
Apple is offering Disaster Relief to Apple Card customers in areas that experience natural disasters such as flooding and earthquakes.
Apple Watch 4 Gets Important Security Update
Apple Watch Series 4 got the watchOS 5.3.2 update that had previously been rolled out the Apple Watch Series 1,2, and 3.
Texas Hold'em Updated for iPad
Apple’s classic Texas Hold’em game has be updated for iPad, 9to5Mac reported. The game can be play in fullscreen, Split View, or Slide Over mode.
With Texas Hold’em iPad support, you can play in full screen or while using other applications thanks to support for Split View and Slide Over multitasking… Apple’s Texas Hold’em game was originally created for the iPod and was one of the first games released for the iPhone in 2008. Apple has breathed new life into the game this year in honor of the App Store’s 10th anniversary (which was technically last year.)
How Apple Pay and an Out-of-Battery iPhone Turned a £1.50 Bus Ticket Into a £1000 Nightmare
Londoners can pay for their travel using Apple Pay. However, it all went wrong for one, landing her with a £476 fine and a criminal record.
EyeQue Launches Vision Monitoring Kit
Today EyeQue has launched a vision monitoring kit that includes the EyeQue VisionCheck, PDCheck, and the new EyeQue Insight Plus.
The EyeQue Vision Monitoring Kit is available now on Indiegogo, with pledge levels starting at $119 (retail value: $205). The product is slated to ship to backers by the end of November 2019, in time for the holidays (limited quantities). Learn more about EyeQue at eyeque.com and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube for more updates.
Oprah Explains Why her Book Club is Coming to Apple
Oprah announced last month that she is bringing her book club to Apple TV+ and Apple Books. In her self-titled magazine, naturally, the media queen explained why she had done so. And yes, it is all about those pockets!
I’ve joined forces with Apple to create what I hope will be the world’s most vibrant book club, engaging readers everywhere in conversations with one another—and with the authors who conjure the magic. Apple is in a billion pockets, y’all. To me, that presents a magnificent opportunity to connect the world through reading. With each announcement of a new book club selection, you’ll have a chance to buy the book, read it, and then take part in a conversation with the author about the story and the writing process. Authors are my rock stars.
Apple Backtracks and Removes Hong Kong Protest App
Apple has pulled an app used by protestors in Hong Kong for a second time, saying it broke local laws, following heavy criticism from China.
NYC And Cellebrite, Lightning Cables – TMO Daily Observations 2019-10-09
John Martellaro and Andrew Orr join host Kelly Guimont to discuss Cellebrite’s new partnership and other iPhone hacks like Lightning cables.
Clean Email 1-Year Subscription: $9.99
We have a deal on a one year subscription to Clean Email, an online bulk email cleaner designed to help you to take control of your mailbox. It relies on powerful rules and filters you can define to efficiently segment your mailbox into relevant groups, allowing you to quickly identify useful and clean up useless emails with a few clicks. One year is $9.99 through our deal.
10 Features in macOS Catalina You Need to Know
MacMost has a good video on YouTube where he shares 10 macOS Catalina features. They’re smaller features that don’t get the same attention or shoutout by Apple, but they’re good to know. The first one he mentions is a feature that I noticed but was annoyed about. When you hover or long-click the green fullscreen button in Safari, it now brings up a menu window to enter full screen or tile the window to the left or right. While it makes this capability more obvious it also adds an extra step, when just dragging the window by the green button was faster. In any case the video is pretty helpful and you can watch it here.
Apple Sells Xbox Wireless Controller on Online Store
Apple recently started selling Microsoft’s Xbox wireless controller on its online store. Currently though it’s unavailable for purchase.
New York City Partners With Cellebrite to Hack iPhones
Documents reveal that New York City law enforcement has a partnership with Cellebrite to hack iPhones.
Previously, if law enforcement wanted to get into newer devices, they had to send the phones to one of Cellebrite’s digital forensics labs, located in New Jersey and Virginia. But Cellebrite’s new UFED Premium program gave law enforcement the ability to “unlock and extract data from all iOS and high-end Android devices” on their own, using software installed on computers in their offices.
I’ve always wondered if eventually Apple will remove the Lightning port from the iPhone once wireless charging becomes the norm. Side effects may include better waterproofing and worsened hacking.