If you’re getting a new iPhone XS or iPhone XS Max today, and maybe an Apple Watch Series 4, you need to know how to get everything set up. TMO’s own John Martellaro has you covered. Read on to learn how to get up and running.
Want to Play with a 3D iPhone XS on your iPhone? Apple Has a Site for That
Apple has a cool mini website to show off the iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max. Just load it up in Safari or Chrome on your mobile phone and you can spin the new iPhone models around by tilting your display. Phone specs pop up as the iPhones twirl around so you can learn more about them, plus you can choose which model you’re looking at, and the phone color, too. It’s a pretty cool was to explore the iPhone XS and XS Max.
Chris Evans Starring in 'Defending Jacob' Series for Apple
Chris Evans, best known for playing Captain America in Marvel’s Avengers movies, has signed on to play the lead in «Defending Jacob» in Apple’s original content lineup. The 8-episode series is based on the best selling novel by Willian Landay, and it’ll be directed by Oscar-nominated Morten Ryan. Deadline says,
Defending Jacob is described as a a gripping, character-driven thriller based on Landay’s 2012 novel published by Random House. The book tells the story of a father dealing with the accusation that his son is a 14-year-old murderer.
Apple’s original content line up is steadily growing and looks to be pretty strong. It’ll be interesting to see how Apple fares against Netflix and Amazon Prime when its shows start airing.
Audible Brings Its Audio Books to Apple Watch
Amazon’s Audible added support for Apple Watch to its iOS app. With version 3.0 of the Audible app for iOS, users will be able to sync their audio books to their Apple Watch, and play them back over Bluetooth without having their iPhone handy. You’ll be able to rewind, pause, and set a sleep timer from your Apple Watch, too. The company also announced that monthly subscribers get two Audible Originals and one audiobook per month included with their subscription. Version 3.0 of the Audible app is on the App Store now. It’s a free download.
Math Nerds: Researchers Found a Pattern in Seemingly Random Distribution of Prime Numbers
I’ll be the first to note that much of this article was over my mathematical head, but it’s super cool. The short version is that some sciency-math folks decided to treat prime numbers like they were atom-like particles. Their model showed what could be a pattern in the distribution of prime numbers, something previously considered random. Motherboard has an article on it, and here’s a snippet:
Together with his student Ge Zhang and number theorist Matthew de-Courcy-Ireland, Torquato computationally represented the primes as a one-dimensional string of atoms and scattered light off them. The result, published in the Journal of Statistical Mechanics: Theory and Experiment last week, was astounding: not only did they create a quasicrystal-like interference pattern, but it was a type of fractal pattern that has never been seen before. Torquato told Quanta Magazine that this implies prime numbers “are a completely new category of structures” when considered as a physical system.
Big Cable Asks For More Money, Refuses to Discuss Internet Speeds
Big Cable companies are asking for more government handouts, and say «now’s not the time» to talk about internet speeds in the United States.
If the speed goes up, the percentage and competition levels go down – and spark uncomfortable questions like: why is the most technologically advanced nation on the planet providing slower speeds to fewer people at higher cost than any other comparable Western economy?
The answer is that U.S. telecoms want it this way. They want as much money from American taxpayers as possible while refusing to do anything. The real question should be: Why do we let corporations get away with so much corruption?
Inside Look at NSO Group iPhone Malware
Motherboard got an inside look at the NSO Group iPhone malware. It works fast and can infect fully-up-to-date Android phones and iPhones.
The company has a group of engineers dedicated to making sure the company’s tools keep working because cell phone companies are in a constant “war” against government hacking providers “to block all those open windows that allow companies like NSO to go in,” according to the entrepreneur who attended the meeting, who was told that as part of the company’s sales pitch.
Scary stuff. NSO Group sells its products to customers (governments) that target political dissidents, journalists, and even an Amnesty International researcher. It claims the product can’t work in the United States.
Activity Trackers Now Mandatory for John Hancock Insurance
John Hancock insurance will make it mandatory to have an activity tracker, whether it be an iPhone, Apple Watch, or some other device.
The move by the 156-year-old insurer, owned by Canada’s Manulife, marks a major shift for the company, which unveiled its first interactive life insurance policy in 2015. It is now applying the model across all of its life coverage.
In the past it relied on a reward system for people who had an activity tracker, like gift cards.
Become a Maker with 12 eBooks on 3D Printing, CNC Routing, and More: $19.99
Get your inner Maker on with today’s deal with The CAD & 3D Printing eBook Bundle By Make. This bundle of 12 ebooks covers 3D printing, CNC printing, designing, 3D carving, and more. Each book in the bundle is described in the deal, and you can get the whole thing for $19.99.
Here's the Best Apple Watch Series 4 Size Comparison
Just how big will you new Apple Watch Series 4 be compared to the Apple Watch you already have? Allison Sheridan from the NosillaCast podcast did the math because she’s really frakking smart. Turns out the new 40mm model’s display area, which replaces the 38mm model, is 35% bigger and actually 2% bigger than the old 42mm’s display. The 44mm display is 32% bigger than the screen on the 42mm model it replaces. She also did the math for pixel density, case dimensions, and more. Check out her comparisons so you’re ready when your new Apple Watch shows up on Friday.
