We reported earlier this month that Apple was waiting on city officials from Austin, Texas to decide whether to offer the company an $8.6 million incentive over 10 years as part of Apple’s proposal to invest $304 million in a new campus. The Texas Enterprise Fund is already kicking in $21 million over 10 years as part of the deal, and last night the City Council unanimously approved the $8.6 million in incentives....
Apple is facing a lawsuit in Australia after an iPhone X user claims the device exploded in his pocket, leading to second-degree burns. As reported by 7 News, the incident occurred in 2019 and the man is now taking legal action after Apple allegedly failed to respond to his inquiries about the problem. The report explains: Due to the exploding iPhone X, De Rose says that he suffered “second degree burns” to his thigh....
The Mandalorian, the new Disney+ Star Wars live-action TV series, is three episodes in, and already has a breakout star: Baby Yoda. The puppet – which is so adorable that its mere presence made Werner Herzog weep – has a distinct visual similarity to another Disney property: Muppet Babies. In an ideal, felt-made world, The Mandalorian would be a backdoor pilot a new cross-over series, and what better place for The Muppet Babies than on the Jedi Council?...
When the Department of Homeland Security implemented a ban on laptops and tablets being carried in hand baggage on US-bound flights from a number of international airports, it seemed obvious that this was going to hit airlines hard. This has now been confirmed by an AP report … We speculated that many people would abandon travel plans in response. Some business travel would be made less financially viable with employees unable to work during the flight, and tourists were likely to likely to change or cancel plans rather than risk loss or damage to their expensive equipment in hold baggage systems....
Following the presumed acquisition of Beats, Apple plans to up its music game with support for high-resolution audio files in a revamped Music app in iOS 8, and to offer a higher-quality version of its In-Ear Headphones, reports Japanese blog Macotakara. The source of the high-res audio rumor appears somewhat circumstantial, linked to a Warner Music post about the forthcoming release of a ‘Super Deluxe’ version of three remastered early Led Zeppelin albums in 96kHz/24-bit form – a resolution the current iOS Music app cannot play....
In an effort to bring all of your messaging apps into a single place, Beeper does the heavy lifting and can even bring iMessage to Android and Windows. Created by the founder of Pebble smartwatches, Eric Migicovsky, Beeper costs $10 a month and does one job. It acts as a central hub for almost every major messaging app that most people use. That includes Telegram, WhatsApp, SMS, Discord, Slack, Facebook Messenger, Google Hangouts, Skype, Signal, IRC, Twitter DMs, and even Apple iMessage....
I wasn’t expecting to still be writing an Apple Watch Diary four years in … As I mentioned last week, I managed to knock my Apple Watch off a bathroom cabinet onto a tiled floor, smashing the screen. The Watch was still fully-functional (well, pings no longer sounded, though Siri still responded), but the damage was pretty bad so wasn’t something I could live with for more than a few days …...
China has officially approved the Apple Watch electrocardiogram (ECG) feature that first arrived with the Series 4 wearable. The regulatory green light means Apple could launch the functionality with a software update for users in the country any time now. Apple announced its ECG feature along with Apple Watch Series 4 back in the fall of 2018 with the capability actually rolling out in the US in December 2018. Apple Watch ECG has slowly continued to roll out to more countries over the last few years with Australia and Vietnam gaining it with watchOS 7....
We expect Apple to announce a new video service in two parts on Monday. Half will contain original TV shows with major Hollywood stars produced with Apple’s money that will likely debut this fall. The other half of the video service will rely on selling subscriptions for competing video services like HBO through the TV app. Days before Apple’s big ‘It’s Showtime’ announcements, Recode has new behind-the-curtain details of what to expect....
While most fans prepare for the series finale of The CW’s long-running DC superhero show Arrow by simply setting their DVRs, one super-fan has launched multiple campaigns to honor the show’s memory with a statue of the Emerald Archer himself. Arrow will fires its parting shot in Tuesday’s highly-anticipated finale, which fans hope will wrap up any remaining plot threads, and give actor Stephen Amell’s version of the hero a happy-ish ending after an impressive eight-season run....
Batwoman’s villain Alice seems to be the key to Batman’s disappearance in the Arrowverse. The first season of Batwoman has centered upon Kate Kane’s relationship with her twisted sister Alice. In the background, though, there’s another mystery: just what has happened to Batman and his Bat-family? Kate has returned to a Gotham bereft of its greatest defender. Neither Batman nor Bruce Wayne have been seen in three years, and not even the theft of his mother Martha’s pearl necklace prompted his return....
Astroneer is the first game by System Era Softworks, a third-person space and planet exploration sandbox that allows players to collect resources, build bases, and pretty much explore freely - provided their characters have the needed oxygen in their suits to do so. You’d be forgiven for thinking Astroneer sounds conspicuously like No Man’s Sky, another space exploration game with similar mechanics. Rather than focusing on hardcore survival like that title however, Astroneer leans into base building and offers a more mainstream, laid back experience comparatively....
AT&T has announced the latest cities to be upgraded with its 5G network. However, there aren’t really any devices that can make use of it yet. In any case, Chicago and Minneapolis will be the latest to see the next generation cellular network. As reported by Engadget, AT&T has announced in a press release today that it will be bringing 5G to a total of 21 US cities by the end of this year, with Chicago and Minneapolis the latest to be named....
The cast of Avengers: Endgame sings a special Marvel-themed version of the hit song “We Didn’t Start the Fire.” After 11 years and 21 films of build-up, the culmination of the MCU’s industry-redefining Infinity Saga is almost here. The movie had its world premiere yesterday, earning rave reactions following the screening. While fans still have a few more days to wait before watching Endgame for themselves, it sounds like directors Joe and Anthony Russo delivered a product that lives up to the uncontrollable hype....
The Bachelorette’s Mike Johnson might not be seeing Demi Lovato anymore, but that doesn’t mean his dating life is boring. This past weekend, the reality star escorted one lucky fan from the University of South Carolina to her semi-formal dance. Documenting the experience on Instagram, Johnson said the unconventional evening was full of fun memories. Johnson first made a splash in Bachelor Nation during Hannah Brown’s season of The Bachelorette. Fans immediately fell for his brutally honest personality, as well as his charming smile....
The world of Batman: The Animated Series is coming back this April with Batman: The Adventures Continue. Paul Dini and Alan Burnett, the original producers of the Batman: The Animated Series, are returning to write, and Ty Templeton will be illustrating in Bruce Timm and Eric Radomski’s style that made the 90s-show famous. Batman: The Adventure Continues takes place in the same world and shortly after the events and cover some gaps in the stories told in the animated series....
Beats by Dre unveiled the new Beats Studio 3 Wireless Skyline Collection last week, and today the three new colors of the Bluetooth over-ear headphones are available to purchase. We’ve got a hands-on look at the new Desert Sand version to share. The new Skyline Collection includes four finishes — Midnight Black, Crystal Blue, Desert Sand, and Shadow Gray — each with a splash of gold on the signature ‘b’ logos and metal bands....
After being announced last month, it’s finally time for Apple to open up iPhone 12 mini pre-orders along with iPhone 12 Pro Max. Pre-orders are set to launch Friday at 5 AM PT or 8 AM ET as Apple continues to move away from its historical middle of the night launch times. The best iPhone 12 mini pre-order deals will center around switching from one provider to another with the pot sweetening even further if you’re willing to trade in a previous-generation device....
A few notable app updates and deals crossed our path today, and we will continue to update as the day goes on, but first a bit of news. New to-do list app Any.DO launched this weekend and hit 100,000 total downloads in only 24 hours, according to TechCrunch. The app first became popular on Android, and then it finally jumped ship to iOS. Any.DO enables you to manage tasks cross-platform by allowing you to keep them synced up for all your devices and in a number of lists....
Architecture, creativity, and community. These are the themes that best summarize Apple retail in 2018. Over the past year, Apple has worked in new ways to expand its global and local reach. The company has challenged the traditional definition of brick-and-mortar stores during an uncertain time for many retailers. By opening increasingly ambitious and inviting locations supported by an engaging schedule of creative events, Apple hopes that its 500 million yearly visitors won’t just shop, but also discover a place to connect with like-minded individuals in their own communities....
