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TODAY’S CAN’T MISS DEALS:

Take nearly $300 off Apple’s 13-inch 256GB Retina MacBook Pro: $1,200 shipped (Reg. $1,499)

Jump into the world of tvOS apps with a 64GB Apple TV (refurb) for $110 shipped (Orig. $199)

These best-selling AmazonBasics Computer Speakers are available in AC or USB-powered models for $12 Prime shipped

App Store Free App of the Week: Power Hover goes free for the very first time (Reg. $4)

Carmageddon iOS death racer goes free for the first time in over a year (Reg. $1)

The original Angry Birds game for iOS gets updated with new content and goes free for the first time in years (Reg. up to $3)

The best headphone stands & hangers to keep your desk/office nice and tidy

Here are our top-picks for your backpack this school year to stay organized and powered up

How-To: Quickly (and safely!) clean your HDTV using only a few basic items

MORE NEW GEAR FROM TODAY:

Parrot’s stylish Zik 2.0 Bluetooth Noise Cancelling Headphones are on sale in multiple colors: $199 shipped (Reg. $250)

Smartphone Accessories: Gooloo 2-in-1 Bluetooth Transmitter/Receiver Adapter $23 Prime shipped (Reg. $30), more

• Grab a free two-month subscription to Pandora One and enjoy your music without ads
• This Sony 64GB Flash Drive has USB 3.0 and microUSB connectivity for $15
• Games/Apps: LEGO Star Wars Force Awakens $40, iOS freebies, more
• The Bourne Classified Collection on Blu-ray $20, more
• Acer’s 11.6-inch Chromebook is a great buy for the upcoming school year at $150

This month’s gaming freebies are now live! Xbox: wp.me/p1xTlR-U87 PlayStation: wp.me/p1xTlR-UbZ https://t.co/viZeRxosGc

—
9to5Toys (@9to5toys) August 01, 2016

MORE DEALS STILL LIVE:

Logitech’s awesome MX Master Wireless Mouse for Mac/PC has never been cheaper at Amazon: $68 shipped (Reg. $80)

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Filed under: Apple

According to the latest data from IDC out today, Apple continued its lead of the worldwide tablet market in Q2 despite a decline in overall sales.

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Filed under: Apple

We’re excited to announce the launch of the 9to5Mac Academy (academy.9to5mac.com). In addition to our all around Apple coverage, you’re now able to score a myriad of tech, business, and software and improvement courses at great prices… more…

Filed under: Apple

Back in February an East Texas court ruled that Apple must pay more than $625 million in damages to VirnetX over patent infringement related to iMessage and FaceTime. The patent case was especially notable for being one of the highest amounts rewarded in history, but the plaintiff in the case wasn’t satisfied and asked for $190 million more in damages four months later. But for now it’s back to the step one for Apple and VirnetX in this case as a federal judge has decided the case must be revisited…

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Filed under: Apple

I’ve always imagined that working in an Apple Store is one of those jobs where you see it all, and a Thrillist interview with three anonymous staff members confirms that – rather literally.

The stuff that would pop up on people’s computers when we would do a data migration… when the photos imported into iPhoto, it would flash each photo on the screen as it was importing. So. Many. ****. Pics. Some things just can’t be unseen.

Not all of the stories they tell sound quite as credible, but one of them did have a great tip if you’re looking to get a free replacement for a damaged product without AppleCare Plus …

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Filed under: Apple

We all know that Apple’s numbers are huge, whether it’s quarterly revenue in the tens of billions of dollars, or more than a billion iPhones sold, but if Tim Cook had a dashboard on his desk showing the numbers in real time, what would that look like?

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Filed under: Apple

Didi Chuxing, the market-leading ride-hailing service in China, has bought out Uber’s operations in the country, reports Bloomberg. The deal gives Uber and its investors a total 20% shareholding in Didi.

Didi will buy Uber’s brand, business and data in the country, the Chinese company said in a statement.

The WSJ notes that Didi will also invest $1B in Uber as part of the deal, the same amount Apple invested in Didi back in May …

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Filed under: Apple

Apple continues to experiment in the social media space to promote its businesses and products. In this vein, iBooks has launched its own official Instagram account this weekend. Apple is using the photo-centric social network to share book artwork, quotes, min-reviews and more. Interestingly, none of the posts so far feature call-to-action links where users can directly purchase the promoted novels from iBooks itself.

It appears to be using a more subtle marketing approach, raising awareness of books which users can then lookup and buy from the iBookstore if they choose.

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Filed under: Apple

There’s been a lot of pent up anticipation for the iOS 9.3.3 jailbreak, and Pangu, the Chinese security researchers behind the latest tool, have answered the call.

Unfortunately, it appears that some jailbreakers have had various accounts compromised after jailbreaking, and several users on the popular subreddit r/jailbreak have corroborated these claims.

To be fair, it’s possible that these reported breaches are just a big coincidence, or that a compromise occurred after the tool left Pangu’s hands for distribution. Whatever the reason, however, it highlights one of the potential risks involved with jailbreaking. more…

Filed under: Apple

Over the past year, Kanye West has become known for his bizarre Twitter tirades. Earlier this year, the rapper publicly asked Mark Zuckerberg, Larry Page, and other tech moguls to invest “$1 billion into Kanye West ideas.” This afternoon, Kanye hopped on Twitter to criticize an apparent “beef” between Apple Music and Tidal.

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Filed under: Apple