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Apple’s new iMac Pro is now available to order with a December 27th arrival date for the first deliveries. Along with the new machine, Apple is also updating its flagship software including Final Cut Pro and Logic Pro X. While we are seeing some major updates to Apple’s professional video editing suite, Logic Pro X is also getting iMac Pro support and other improvements today.  more…

Apple has launched a new promotion to encourage Apple Pay use this holiday shopping season. The company is offering a $5 App Store & iTunes gift card with purchases at qualifying online retailers in the United States.

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Apple CEO Tim Cook and Koch Industries CEO Charles Koch are arguably at opposite ends of the political spectrum on many issues, but the two chief executives are speaking in unison on one major issue: immigration. Cook and Koch have co-authored an op-ed published by The Washington Post in which the duo calls on Congress to pass legislation that protects the children of undocumented immigrants.

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Snapchat has become known for its viral AR filters and today the company is making it easier for anyone to take a stab at designing them. As announced in a company blog post, Snap has released a new Lens Studio design app for macOS and Windows in an effort to spur AR growth and creativity…

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Along with the iMac Pro availability today, we’re finding out more details about accessories and options. Apple has changed how it handles its VESA mount, giving iMac Pro users flexibility to change between using the stand and mount as they please.

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Serif, the company behind such apps as Affinity Designer and Affinity Photo, has made a significant splash over the last few years with apps aimed at creative professionals. What makes apps like Affinity Designer so appealing is that they can be purchased for a flat cost without a subscription, and can function as an outright replacement for the equivalent software under Adobe’s Creative Cloud umbrella.

Despite the success of apps like Affinity Photo — the iPad version just won Apple’s app of the year award — Serif isn’t resting on its laurels. Affinity Publisher, a desktop publishing app that aims to attract Adobe InDesign customers, has been teased on video ahead of its upcoming 2018 beta launch period.  more…

I was really impressed when Microsoft launched its iPhone-only Seeing AI app designed to ‘narrate the world’ to blind and visually impaired people. The app uses AI to recognize what it is seeing, and turn that into an audio description …

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Canary has announced that it plans to introduce new AI-driven features to its home security cameras early next year. The first new AI-powered feature will be Person Detection, and Canary will offer it to all customers at no extra charge.

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The iPhone X isn’t the only new gadget to boast an OLED screen. A startup that says it wants to spark conversations between strangers has launched Beam, a wearable OLED button that allows you to display anything you want, and update it as often as you like …

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Apple originally debuted its new iMac Pro back at WWDC in June, saying it would be available in December. After the grueling 6 month wait, the iMac Pro is officially available from Apple. Prices start at $4,999 and the first orders arriving December 27th.

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Today is a big day for creative professionals in the Apple ecosystem. Not only does it mark the launch of the new iMac Pro, a powerful all-in-one beast specifically built with professional creatives in mind, but it also marks the launch of the next major version of Final Cut Pro X.

Although this latest Final Cut Pro X update brings it to version 10.4, don’t be fooled into thinking it contains only minor features or bug fixes. On the contrary, Final Cut Pro 10.4 contains several new major features and/or enhancements, along with a slew of other additions, making this one of the biggest releases in the app’s six-and-a-half year history.

After visiting with Apple in New York for a demonstration of the update, we’ve been testing Final Cut Pro 10.4 to learn all about what’s changed. In this hands-on post and high-level video walkthrough, we showcase many of the newest changes and features, including 360° video editing, enhanced color grading, HDR updates, iMovie for iOS support, HEVC, custom LUTs, and more. more…

Walt Disney has announced a deal to buy most of 21st Century Fox in a deal worth around $66B, made up of $52.4B in stock and around $13.7B in net debt.

The purchase excludes Fox News, Fox Business and Fox Sports, but includes all of the entertainment assets, including Fox’s 30% stake in Hulu. Coupled to Disney’s existing 30% share, that would give the company a controlling interest …

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SoundCloud has announced ‘a brand new home experience’ with a new look and a focus on personalized recommendations as it seeks to work its way out of its financial troubles.

With over 170 million tracks, there’s always something new to stream, share, or get stuck in your head on SoundCloud. For listeners who want to discover music first, the new SoundCloud home serves up curated recommendations, personalized playlists, and exclusive culture-focused audio content—direct from creators and often years ahead of what’s on the mainstream charts …

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The Iconfactory has updated Twitterific 5 for iPhone to include a true black theme primarily aimed at iPhone X users. In addition to the visual appeal, OLED screens don’t need to power black areas, so it will also save battery-life …

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Finisar has clarified that the $390M contribution from Apple’s Advanced Manufacturing Fund announced yesterday is not an investment in the company, but rather an agreed payment for anticipated future orders. The company makes vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs), which are a key part of the Face ID system used in the iPhone X, as well as enabling Animoji.

As with the $200M Corning deal earlier in the year, the $390M commitment isn’t an altruistic gesture on Apple’s part …

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iOS 11 introduced a new indoor mapping feature that offers walking directions through a variety of different airports and malls. Apple has been slowly rolling out support for additional buildings, but changes and additions have been hard to track…

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Redbox today officially launched its streaming video on-demand service. Originally known for its rental kiosks, Redbox has suffered from stagnant growth as streaming video has become many people’s go-to for consuming content. The new Redbox On Demand service is accessible via iOS and Apple TV…

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