Andrew has scoured the App Store to give you a roundup of Apple alternative apps. This is a good companion to the Google alternative app list.
Happy 2018 Birthday Siri! Apple's Virtual Assistant is 7
Happy 2018 Birthday Siri! Apple’s virtual assistant made her debut on October 4, 2011 which makes her seven years old today. Siri is now more powerful than ever, and with the release of iOS 12 users can work to customize the assistant a bit with the Shortcuts app. Siri can make calls or send texts for you whether you are driving, have your hands full, or are simply on the go. It also offers proactive suggestions, like texting someone that you’re running late for a meeting, so you can stay in touch effortlessly. Set alarms, timers, and reminders. Get directions. Preview your calendar. Siri can do it all without your ever having to pick up a device. Based on your routine, Siri can even anticipate what you might need to help you breeze through your day. Machine learning is constantly making Siri smarter. And you can personalize Siri to make it even more useful. Choose to have Siri speak one of 21 different languages. Teach Siri who your family members are. And spell out unusual words so Siri can recognize them in the future.
Apple FY 18 Q4 Results to be Released on November 1
The fiscal year quarter four results will be presented as part of a conference call at 2:00 p.m. PT / 5:00 p.m. ET.
Sid Meier's Civilization VI Now on iPhone and It's on Sale
Sid Meier’s Civilization VI is a popular turn-based game and part of the Civilization game series. The company behind the game—Aspyr Media—recently reengineered the game to make it available for the iPad. And now it’s available for the iPhone as well. To celebrate the game is 60% off at US$23.99, when it’s normally US$59.99. Download now and play your first 60 turns for free. Purchase the full game to build an empire that stands the test of time. Civilization VI requires iOS 11 and an iPhone 7 or 7 Plus, iPhone 8 or 8 Plus, iPhone X, iPad Air 2, iPad 2017, or any iPad Pro. The game offers new ways to interact with your world, expand your empire across the map, advance your culture, and compete against history’s greatest leaders to build a civilization that will stand the test of time. Play as one of 20 historical leaders including Roosevelt (America) and Victoria (England).
Not Everyone Got the FEMA Presidential Alert
No matter what carrier you’re on, a wide range of people seemed to have been affected.
China's Computer Spying Chips, Presidential Alert Follow Up - TMO Daily Observations 2018-10-04
Andrew Orr and Bryan Chaffin join Jeff Gamet to explore a report that China snuck spy chips onto servers Apple, Amazon, and U.S. government agencies used, plus they follow up on yesterday’s smartphone emergency alert test.
COWIN 6110 Portable Bluetooth Speaker: $42.99
We have a deal on the COWIN 6110 Portable Bluetooth Speaker. This device has a battery life of up to 10 hours listening and supports Bluetooth 4.1. Its shell is made from aluminum, too. It’s $49.99 through our deal.
iOS 12: How to Make Your First Shortcut and Add a Siri Command
Making your first Shortcut in iOS 12 on your iPhone or iPad doesn’t have to be difficult or complicated. Here’s how to get started, and how to add a Siri voice command, too.
BBC Radio 1 Hip-hop DJ Charlie Sloth Joining Apple Music
BBC hip-hop DJ Charlie Sloth is leaving his current gig to join Apple Music. Just like Zane Lowe, his show broadcast on BBC Radio 1, and now he’ll be on Beats 1.
China Reportedly Snuck Spy Chips Onto Apple, Amazon Servers
Bloomberg says spies in China managed to add a chip to servers Apple, Amazon, government agencies, and other companies were using. The chips were found on Supermicro server and were no bigger than a grain of rice. They let the People’s Liberation Army, and presumably other government agencies capture data and even remotely control compromised servers. From Bloomberg’s report:
The attack by Chinese spies reached almost 30 U.S. companies, including Amazon and Apple, by compromising America’s technology supply chain, according to extensive interviews with government and corporate sources.
Apple vehemently denies the report and calls out what it says are factual errors. The other companies deny the report, too. Apple stopped buying Supermicro servers in 2016 after discovering an unrelated security issue. Amazon bought Elemental Technologies, the company that wrote the software running on Supermicro servers, to run on its own custom designed hardware. Either China pulled off the most amazing hack ever: altering server hardware during manufacture for espionage, or Bloomberg and its sources got the story completely wrong.
