In an email to affiliate users today, Apple said that it will be increasing Apple Music commission rates to 100%, which is twice as much as before. In conjunction with that move, however, Apple is also decreasing iTunes Music affiliate rates.

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In today’s earnings call, Apple CEO Tim Cook announced that Apple Pay will be rolling out in Brazil soon. While he didn’t give us an exact date, Cook said it would be coming soon.

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Just a few minutes ago, Apple officially announced its fiscal first quarter results for 2018, representing the massive holiday shopping season and the first quarter of iPhone X sales. The company reported profits of $20.1 billion on revenue of $88.3 billion, selling 77.3 million iPhones, 5.1 million Macs, and 13.2 million iPads.

Next up is Apple’s quarterly earnings call with Tim Cook and CFO Luca Maestri. It will kickoff at 2PM PT/5PM ET. Follow along below…

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After forecasting a record quarter with revenue between $84 billion and $87 billion, Apple has just reported its quarterly results for the last three months of 2017. While Apple’s previous quarter included initial iPhone 8 sales, today’s results are the first to include initial iPhone X sales as it launched in early November.

Apple reports $88.3b in revenue and $20.1b profit from 77.3m iPhones, 13.2m iPads, and 5.1m Macs sold. That compares to $78.4b in revenue and $17.89b in profit from 78.3m iPhones, 13m iPads, and 5.3m Macs in the same quarter a year ago. Apple reported $52.6b in revenue and $10.7b profit from 46.7m iPhones, 10.3m iPads, and 5.4m Macs during the previous quarter.

Full press release after the break, and stick around for our earnings call live blog at the top of the hour:

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Sylvania’s Smart+ LED flexible light strips work with Apple HomeKit right out-of-the-box without requiring a hub. They’re also $30 cheaper than the comparable Philips Hue solution, so what’s the catch? If you only care about the HomeKit experience, there really isn’t one. Here’s my experience:

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Everyone gets excited about the iMac Pro’s multi-core functionality, and rightfully so. Having applications like Final Cut Pro X and Screen Flow 7, apps that take advantage of multiple cores to speed up work, can have major performance implications. Another speed-oriented iMac Pro feature can make a noticeable difference in certain workflows as well.

One of the more unheralded new additions to the iMac line is support for UHS-II SD Cards. It means that users may experience noticeably faster file transfer speeds when offloading photos and video footage to the iMac Pro from supported cards. more…

Coach has today released some new Apple Watch bands. The new Apple Watch Strap comes in black or brown while the Strap with Prints and Strap with Tea Rose are now available in new colors.

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New ARKit enhancements will be coming in iOS 11.3 in the form of ARKit 1.5. New changes will bring improved surface mapping, an increase up to 50% in resolution, and more.

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From 9to5Toys:

Apple is now officially offering certified refurbished iPhone 7/Plus units in the ‘Special Deals’ section of its online store. The discounts aren’t particularly steep here, with most models going for around 10% off the new condition price. Offers start at $499 for the 32GB iPhone 7 model, while the larger 7 Plus is available from $599. As always, Apple refurbished products come with all original accessories, a one-year warranty, and are eligible for AppleCare.

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Pokémon GO has today released an interesting ‘nature documentary-style’ ad promoting the game and the recent addition of new Pokémon. Meanwhile, Pokémon GO developer Niantic has purchased an AR startup.

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