Apple reportedly put in a bid to buy the rap-battle series Verzuz

Evan Selleck ∙ May 28, 2021

Back in 2020, Apple Music and Beats 1 welcomed a new element to its listening library: Verzuz. It's a live-streaming event that pits two artists in a lyrical one-on-one battle.

At the time, the site, which launched initially on Instagram Live, was going to see a worthwhile time slot on Beats 1 while also still streaming on Facebook's Instagram platform. The first episode for Apple Music/Beats 1 premiered in mid-July of last year, and apparently it was a pretty successful launch. A new report says Apple was looking to outright acquire the rap-battle site.

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New AirPods Pro will reportedly boost fitness tracking features, AirPods 3 coming later this year; new HomePods in development, no AirPods Max 2 in the works

Evan Selleck ∙ May 28, 2021
AirPods Pro

The rumor mill has been pumping out expectations for new AirPods and AirPods Pro for quite some time. But the new truly wireless headphones have yet to actually launch.

And while we're still waiting, we've got new reports to sift through. This time around it's from Bloomberg, with Mark Gurman aiming to tell us what to expect this year. In his latest report, we learn that Apple is still planning on launching new AirPods and AirPods Pro models. So, that's the good news.

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Luv lets jailbroken Spotify users like or dislike songs from anywhere in iOS

Anthony Bouchard ∙ Updated April 16, 2022

Many media streaming apps like Spotify provide a like button so that you can tell the app you like what you hear. The app then tries to curate playback based on the feedback you give it.

I enjoy the ability to enhance music playback in this way, as it helps with artist discovery. But it frustrates me that you need to physically be in the Spotify app to like a song, which calls for a multitasking and gesture shenanigans even when you’re trying to get something done in another app.

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Walletigious disables the MagSafe wallet animation on pwned iPhone 12 devices

Anthony Bouchard ∙ Updated October 20, 2021

MagSafe is a relatively new feature that ships with the iPhone 12 lineup, and it lets users connect wireless chargers and other accessories such as cases, wallets, and battery packs to their handset with the satisfying click that comes with magnetic attraction.

In many instances, connecting first-party and other licensed MagSafe accessories to a supported iPhone results in an aesthetically pleasing animation. Even Apple’s MagSafe wallets provides an animation of their own that’s distinguished from the one you see when connecting to a MagSafe charger.

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iPad Air to be handed out to all incoming freshmen at the University of Nevada, Reno

Evan Selleck ∙ May 27, 2021

Education continues to be an important element to Apple, which usually relies on the company working with educational bodies in some way or another.

Like, for instance, today's announcement from the University of Nevada, Reno. The university says it is teaming up with Apple to provide the incoming freshman class with new iPad models. The goal, according to the announcement, is to develop a "common learning platform" for all students, providing equal access to technology. The university is calling it the "Digital Wolf Pack initiative."

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Kia is offering a free Apple Watch for select customers who buy a 2022 EV6 First Edition

Evan Selleck ∙ May 27, 2021

In an effort to help drum up interest in its newest EV, Kia is offering a sweet deal: a free Apple Watch if you're lucky enough to secure the right model.

Kia is offering a free gift for those who are lucky enough to get their hands on one of the first 2022 EV6 First Edition models. The gift will go out to the first 1,500 customers who pick up the electric automobile. After that initial batch is bought up, no more free Apple Watches for customers who buy the vehicle.

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Apple confirms iCloud Mail is experiencing some issues, may be slow or unavailable

Evan Selleck ∙ May 27, 2021

iCloud is one of the most integral elements of Apple's business model. But, while it serves as the backbone to many other services, sometimes an outage happens. And sometimes an outage hits a specific service in particular.

Every once in a while, Apple will update its official system status page to reflect an outage of some kind. It's not as rare as some might like, unfortunately. And today, iCloud Mail users have probably already discovered the service is having some issues.

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