Who Knew One Direction's New Perfume Could Actually Do This!

GETTY

There are so many things that we love about One Direction's You & I fragrance, from the scent itself to the awesome campaign photos of the band and the fun action-packed commercials the guys starred in. Thanks to Harry Styles' mom, Anne, we have one more reason to obsess over the perfume!

Mama showed off a pretty photo collage on Instagram, and she's wearing the gold band as a totally stylish ring:

We never even realized that you could use the perfume bottle's cap as an awesome ring! Did you?

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The SIM card is about to die

The SIM card is about to die

Chris Ziegler

The Verge

If there's one thing I've learned about Apple's dealings with SIM cards in the past seven years, it's that Apple gets what Apple wants.
The little gold-plated circuits — which identify you as a subscriber on a particular carrier — plug into phones, tablets, and basically anything else with a cellular radio. Customers of GSM carriers like AT&T and T-Mobile have been using them since time immemorial; CDMA carriers like Sprint and Verizon have started using them since switching to LTE. Apple hates SIMs, and has hated them for as long as the iPhone has existed: it is known to have explored the use of embedded, non-removable SIMs in the past.

Finally, with the iPad Air 2 and mini 3, Apple has decided to start making its move by using a reprogrammable SIM that can be taken from carrier to carrier, switching networks and pricing plans through user-friendly software alone. It's called "Apple SIM." Not every carrier is on board yet — Apple SIM is still removable, and carrier-bought iPads will use regular, locked SIMs — but the writing is on the wall. The wounds are mortal. Within a year or two, you'll probably never see a SIM card in an Apple product again. You may not even see a tray.

Within a year or two, you'll probably never see a SIM card in an Apple product again
Every time Apple has tweaked the SIM formula, it has won. Just look at the original iPhone in 2007: the notion of a handset with a SIM card that could only be accessed by triggering a fidgety little tray using a paper clip was insane. Yet today, many flagship smartphones are using them (the main holdouts are phones with replaceable batteries — another notion that Apple practically shut down). "SIM tools," little pieces of easy-to-lose steel that will prick you if you're not careful, just seem like a totally normal thing to find in the box of a new phone now.

Next there was 3FF — better known as micro-SIM — which debuted on the original iPad in 2010. At the time, it wasn't fun: Apple broke compatibility with an enormous ecosystem of GSM devices, which made sharing an account with your iPad a huge pain. Slowly, carriers started offering micro-SIMs, but you still needed a flimsy, hard-to-find adapter to use those cards anywhere else. (It took a full product cycle, more than a year, for other manufacturers to skate to Apple's puck.) Apple never looked back, switching to micro-SIM with the iPhone 4 later that same year.

Apple isn't afraid to break compatibility
It happened all over again with 4FF, the nano-SIM standard that today's iPads and iPhones use. Apple first fought and won against a consortium of other phone manufacturers who were proposing a different (and more advanced) nano-SIM, then it introduced the new card to the market mere weeks later with the iPhone 5. Once more, carriers and competing phone makers had to catch up — even this year's Samsung Galaxy S5 is still on the older micro-SIM.

Apple's unique place in the market gives it extraordinary power over carriers, which are notorious for being difficult to work with and, often, stuck in their ways. And with the Apple SIM, only a small number of carriers are on board so far: AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint, and UK's EE (Verizon, perhaps the most stubborn of them all, is missing). But, as with the introduction of the micro-SIM on the original iPad, this is a tell by Apple. It's a warning that the next iPhone will be using reprogrammable SIMs — and if a carrier would like to offer that iPhone, it had better start getting ready. It's easy to imagine that Apple could just eliminate the tray altogether, leaving uncooperative carriers on the sideline.

It's easy to bemoan the death of the removable SIM; for GSM customers, it's a symbol of freedom, a way to move between phones at will. But in reality, Apple's rapid progression from mini- to micro- to nano-SIM has already left us with a fragmented market, and tossing a SIM between Android and iOS phones can lead to provisioning issues that leave you stuck on the phone with customer service anyway. If Apple forces this issue — which, by all appearances, it's going to — it'll light a fire beneath carriers and competing phone makers that makes switching carriers easier than ever. (Switching devices, not so much.)

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Will Apple Pay be the next iRevolution?

Will Apple Pay be the next iRevolution?

BRANDON BAILEY, AP Technology Writer

CUPERTINO, Calif. — Apple's skinnier iPads and flashy big-screen iMac are sleek and stunning. But the tech giant is making a bigger strategic bet with next week's launch of Apple Pay — the mobile pay service aimed at turning your iPhone into your wallet.

The service, which goes live Monday and has hundreds of banks on board, is "hugely important" says Forrester Research analyst Frank Gillett. It puts Apple in the middle of a wide range of consumer transactions, underscoring Apple's value as a brand and giving people a powerful new reason to buy iPhones, iPads and other gadgets.

Apple Pay is designed to work on the company's newest iPhones, which contain a chip that allows payments at a special terminal in retail outlets. It also will be available on the new iPad Air 2 for online purchases only.

"It's a strategic advance not just because it may be a new revenue source, but because it injects Apple into a whole different value stream" for customers and the company's business partners, Gillett says.
Mobile pay isn't new; rival tech companies and the banking industry have worked on such systems for years. But Apple is launching its new service at an ideal time, says Gartner tech analyst Van Baker. Consumers are increasingly worried about the security of traditional credit and debit cards and U.S. merchants are facing new mandates to switch to safer chip-based cards or other payment systems.

"Consumers are going to have to learn a new way to pay," Baker said. "That levels the playing field for new technology."
Assuming there are no system breakdowns or security flaws, Apple will get the benefit of pioneering a mobile payment system that has widespread brand recognition and acceptance from consumers, retailers and banks. That's crucial to its success, said MasterCard Inc. executive James Anderson, but he doesn't expect Apple will hold the market by itself. The payment processor plans to work with other digital systems as well.

"We've done a lot of work with Google over the years and I expect we'll continue to work with them," Anderson said.
As for the new iPad Air 2 announced at a company event Thursday, analysts praised its technical features, including faster processors, better cameras and Touch ID, which lets users unlock the device with a fingerprint.

"I've heard people say it's evolutionary, rather than revolutionary," tech expert Carolina Milanesi of the research firm Kantar Worldpanel said after Apple's announcement. But she added, "why do you need to revolutionize something that's already the best in its class?"
The new super-thin iPads should sell well during the upcoming holiday shopping season, even as the worldwide tablet market is showing signs of slowing growth, analysts said. But they're not the kind of game-changing new product that has made Apple a darling of Silicon Valley and the tech industry's most valuable company.

The new 27-inch iMac desktop computer with a high-resolution Retina screen struck Bob O'Donnell of TECHnalysis Research as the most cutting-edge hardware product announced Thursday.
"It's stunning. It shows Apple is doing cool new stuff," he said. "Unfortunately it's not going to sell to a lot of people. Not many people are willing to pay $2,499 for a new desktop computer anymore."
The next major hardware release is likely to be Apple's smart watch, due out next year. Cook and other executives teased the device several times Thursday, even getting comedian Stephen Colbert in on the act. Reached via Mac call, "Chief of Secrecy" Colbert told head software engineer Craig Federighi to "get back to work" because he was "jonesing for some jewelry."

TECHnalysis' O'Donnell thinks the watch is "an interesting product," but notes that it will compete against fitness trackers and other devices that are primarily niche products. And many of its functions can already be performed on smartphones.

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OS X Yosemite review: a solid upgrade for everyone (especially iPhone users)

OS X Yosemite review: a solid upgrade for everyone (especially iPhone users)

Dana Wollman

Engadget

Apple's latest desktop operating system, Yosemite, is available today as a free download for anyone with a reasonably new (or not-so-new) Mac. Here's the thing, though: Many of you are already using it. In an unusual twist, Apple not only gave us a sneak peek of the software, but also allowed a large section of the public to take it for a spin while it was still in development. Though the company has declined to say how many people signed up for the beta program (there were a million available spots), we're sure many of you are running it right now, and don't even need to read a full review.
That said, I wanted to finish what I started. Back when I posted my initial preview, I was able to discuss lots of things -- the iOS-inspired design, the new Safari browser -- but certain stuff wasn't ready for prime time. I'm talking about iCloud Drive, Apple's new cross-platform storage service, as well as "Continuity," a set of features that allow Macs to better integrate with iOS. Think: the ability to receive calls on your Mac, or to start reading an article on your iPad and finish it on your laptop. Now that the software is final -- and now that I've had a chance to test all the features -- I'm ready to weigh in. Suffice to say, it's clear that to make the most out of Yosemite, you need an iDevice to go with it. But even for Mac users who don't also own an iPhone (guilty!), this is still a solid upgrade. Read on to see what I mean.

Look and feel

Regardless of whether you're also an iOS user, you're going to be treated to a noticeably different design. From the dock to the "minimize" button within apps, everything in OS X has a flatter, more modern aesthetic. All of Apple's built-in apps have new dock icons, devoid of any 3D shading or skeuomorphic details. The menu bar now sits flush against the rest of the desktop -- not that it was ever in the way. Inside apps, there's a narrower toolbar up top, with buttons either hidden or arranged in a single row. Make no mistake: There's a big emphasis on tidiness here, not to mention space savings.
Additionally, Apple moved to a new font and new icons -- some of them lifted straight from iOS (take the "share" button in Finder, for example). Speaking of Finder, the "stoplights," those red, yellow and green buttons in the upper-left corner, are now flat as well; no 3D effects here. More importantly, that green button now lets you bring apps to full screen -- a change many of you will appreciate. Finally, Apple went all-in with translucent panels. You could already see that in last year's "Mavericks" release, what with its see-through menu bar, but with Yosemite, Apple went a step further. Here, the toolbar inside apps is also translucent, so that the color changes depending on your wallpaper or which windows are open in the background. Even the box you see when you adjust the volume has a subtle translucent effect. In any case, I hope you like see-through detailing, because Apple clearly does.
Personally, I like the design, but I understand there are some who think the old version was just fine, and didn't need fixing. For what it's worth, I don't really think about it anymore. That's largely because the OS X user experience is fundamentally unchanged; I get around the operating system the same way I always did. So, once I tired of my little game -- looking for design-related Easter eggs (hello, new battery-charging icon!) -- it was business as usual. In fact, now that I've been using Yosemite awhile, I barely even notice the new look. And that's a good thing.

Continuity

I'll talk about Continuity next, since it's one of the most important features of Yosemite, and also one of the few things I didn't get to address in my initial preview. Before I dive in, though, I need to rain on a few people's parades: Although Yosemite itself can run on machines dating back several years (2007, in some cases), the Continuity feature in particular will only work with newer devices. Specifically, you'll need a MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, iMac or Mac mini from 2012 or later. If you have a Mac Pro, it has to be from at least late 2013. If you plan on using AirDrop to share files between your Mac and an iOS device, that iOS device must have a Lightning connector and run iOS 7 or higher. Finally, of course, you'll need to make sure all your devices are signed in with the Apple ID.

Phone calls and text messages

Got it? Good. Now, on to the fun stuff. Of all the new Continuity features, the ability to send and receive calls and texts from your Mac is perhaps the flashiest. In either case, you'll need an iPhone running iOS 8 (make that 8.1 for texting). With voice calls, you can get started pretty quickly (just sign into FaceTime on both devices), but for texting, you'll have to go through a one-time setup process. This involves having a six-digit verification code sent to your Mac, which you then enter on your phone. Pretty straightforward.
Once you're set up, initiating a phone call is as easy as clicking on a phone number anywhere in the OS (Maps, contact cards, et cetera). Incoming calls will appear as a notification in the upper-right corner, with options to mute or switch to a video call once you pick up. Also, even if your phone is right next to your computer, both will ring; you'll always have the option of picking up in either place.
It's a similar deal with texts: Incoming messages live in the built-in Messages app on both your computer and your iOS device. To send a text, you can use Messages, obviously, or you can click on a phone number in Contacts, Calendar or Safari (it's not like with initiating a phone call, where you can click a phone number anywhere in the OS). Finally, you can send and receive SMS/MMS messages regardless of what device your friends are using.

Instant Hotspot

Also included in Yosemite (and iOS 8.1) is the ability to automatically use your iPhone as a hotspot for your Mac. So long as you're signed in with the same Apple ID, and connected over Bluetooth, Instant Hotspot will make your phone appear in your WiFi network list as just another connection. From there, in that same list, you can see your phone's LTE signal, as well as your remaining battery life.
"OK," you're saying, "but I could have used my iPhone as a hotspot anyway." This is very true. But, there are a couple advantages to doing it this way. For one, Instant Hotspot allows your phone to automatically disconnect when not in use. Also, once your Mac detects that it's connected to the internet via your iPhone, it will delay certain data-intensive tasks, like software updates and Time Machine backups, until you're back on WiFi.

Handoff

Handoff is a feature I mentioned earlier, the one that lets you start doing something on one device, and pick it up on another. Maybe you started reading an Engadget story on your iPhone on your commute into work, and want to finish it at the office. Or maybe you looked up something in Maps before leaving for a meeting, and want to take it with you. You get the idea. In any case, if you're picking up on your Mac, you'll see a pop-up notification in the dock, near whatever app it is you're using. So, when I opened up Engadget on an iPhone, for instance, I saw the above notification near the Safari icon on my desktop. It's all pretty self-explanatory, but keep in mind that if you're using multiple iOS devices (say, an iPhone and an iPad), your Mac will only show you one Handoff notification at a time, and it will always be the more recent of the two.
Finally, obvious as it might be, Handoff only works if both devices are turned on. Also, Handoff was originally designed to work with Apple's own apps, including Mail, Safari, Maps, Messages, Reminders, Calendar, Contacts, Notes, Keynote, Numbers and Pages. Thankfully, though, Apple has released an API to developers, which means we'll probably soon see this feature baked into lots of third-party apps like Chrome, Gmail and Mailbox. Handoff is neat, but I hope no one ever feels compelled to abandon their favorite apps for it.

AirDrop

AirDrop is a feature that debuted three years ago back on OS X Lion, allowing Macs to share files over a peer-to-peer connection, no WiFi required. With Yosemite, though, Apple is extending that feature to include not just Macs, but, you guessed it, iOS devices as well. In addition, your friends can now send you things from AirDrop even when you don't have Finder open, which is also something you couldn't do before.
If you happen to be sending something to yourself (read: to a different device with the same Apple ID), the file will just download automatically. If you really are sharing with a friend, though, you'll see a notification on your Mac, asking if you choose to accept the download. You'll also see whom the download's from, along with a preview of the file -- say, an image thumbnail.

iCloud Drive

You've heard of Google Drive. And Microsoft OneDrive. Now Apple is introducing iCloud Drive and yes, it's exactly what it sounds like: an online repository for your files, with the option to access them on a variety of different devices. That includes Macs, iPhones, iPads and iPod touches, of course, though Apple also released a Windows desktop client as well. It's such a no-brainer idea, in fact, that I still can't believe Apple didn't already offer a service like this. In fact, though, prior to Yosemite, storing things in iCloud just meant backing up your stuff there; it didn't mean you had a way of retrieving individual files.
As before, Apple offers 5GB of free iCloud storage -- a bit skimpy considering Microsoft and Google each hand out 15 gigs. On the bright side, Apple has lowered the prices on its data plans so that they're now roughly the same price as what you'd pay for extra Google storage: 200GB for $4 and so on. Even then, Google is sometimes the better deal: It offers a terabyte for $10, for instance, whereas Apple charges $20 for the same amount of space.
On the desktop, at least, iCloud Drive is like a mash-up of Dropbox and Finder. Just drag files into the iCloud Drive folder, listed in the left sidebar in Finder. Then, if you felt like it, you could organize the files with tags and subfolders. Easy peasy. It's on the mobile side that iCloud Drive suddenly becomes less intuitive. Right now, at least, Apple doesn't have a standalone Drive app for mobile devices, the way Microsoft and Google do with their respective services. Instead, you have to go into one of Apple's own mobile apps, like Pages, and then open the file as you normally would. Alternatively, you can always go to iCloud.com, but going to a website on your mobile device is hardly a substitute for a proper standalone app.

Family Sharing

While we're on the subject of cloud storage, Yosemite and iOS 8 usher in a new feature called Family Sharing, which lets you share App Store purchases for up to six accounts, even if you have different Apple IDs. (Amazon recently introduced a nearly identical feature on its own Kindle Fire tablets.) In addition to iTunes purchases, you can also share things like photos and family calendars. Lastly, Apple's new "Ask to Buy" feature should go a long way in preventing kids from racking up unwanted App Store bills. I don't have kids myself, but for my friends' sake, I'm very glad Apple added this.
To set up Family Sharing on your Mac, you'll need to go to System Preferences, iCloud and then "Manage Family." Specifically, you'll have to name yourself the organizer, so to speak, as well as designate a stored payment option. This seems a bit redundant, considering you probably already have a credit card attached to your Apple account, but hey: At least this step is quick.

Spotlight

If you already own a Mac or iPhone, then you're well familiar with Spotlight, the built-in search tool that has, until now, let you search for files, emails and anything else you have stored on your device. With the introduction of both iOS 8 and Yosemite, though, the search tool has gotten quite a bit smarter. Now, when you search Spotlight, you'll see previews for Wikipedia entries, Bing search results, contacts and any iTunes purchases you have on your computer. It can also serve up local search results like movie times and maps, provided you have "Spotlight Suggestions" enabled in system settings. Lastly, the new Spotlight does unit conversions -- things like distance, currency and so on.
In particular, I appreciate how tidy the search results are. Whereas Spotlight used to sit in the menu bar with drop-down results, it now takes the form of a search bar that pops up in the middle of your screen (you can either press the search icon in the menu bar or hit Command-Space bar). The Spotlight bar opens on top of windows, so you don't have to minimize what you're working on. As you start to type, the search tool will offer auto-complete suggestions to make things easier. From there, you can act on certain things from the search results -- open an address in Maps, for example, or click an email address to start composing a message. All told, then, the new search tool is quite useful. My only request: Add the ability to get to specific system settings, like you can in Windows 8.

Safari

It's a similar situation with Safari. Apple's built-in web browser now shows search results that mirror Spotlight -- everything from movie times to Wikipedia previews. (Note: For reasons that remain unclear, not every region will have this feature, though the US is, of course, included.) In keeping with Yosemite's new, flat design aesthetic, the layout here is much cleaner, too. Click the URL bar (the "Smart Search Field") to see a pop-up with your favorites. In the toolbar, everything is now arranged in one line (the option to show the side pane used to be one level down). The "Reader mode" button also has a new design -- just one of many small design tweaks you'll find throughout the OS.
Meanwhile, a new tabs view shows tabs from your Mac and iOS device (there's a tabs button for this). My favorite part is that the tabs are stacked in instances where you opened multiple pages from the same site -- it goes a long way in reducing clutter. Additionally, you can close tabs remotely, so long as the remote device is running either Yosemite or iOS 8 (if all you want to do is open remote tabs, you just need iOS 6 or higher, or Mavericks on the desktop side). Finally, Safari's "share" button now shows recent shares. It's also "extensible," which is to say you can add extensions to share via more apps, even if they aren't part of the default sharing menu.
In addition, Apple made a few privacy and performance improvements. For starters, DuckDuckGo is now one of four preset search engines, with Google, Yahoo and Bing being the other three. You can also now open private browsing in a new window, even if you already started a regular browsing session in a different window. (In Mavericks, once you turn on private browsing, you're turning it on for every subsequent window and tab you open.) The private browsing window is also easy to tell apart, with a "private browsing enabled" banner and a lock symbol in the address bar. It's also now easier to specify a time period for clearing your browser history -- specifically, you get the option of "last hour," "today" or "today and yesterday." Speaking of history, by the way, you can see your history for all of your iCloud devices, not just the Mac you happen to be working on. Finally, there's a stronger cookie option: "Allow from current website only," which excludes cookies even from sites you've visited before.
Meanwhile, on the performance side, this is the first version of Safari to support the WebGL standard. In fact, performance overall should be a touch faster, thanks to a new JavaScript engine. Apple also claims this edition is a little gentler on battery life -- you should get up to three more hours of Netflix streaming here than on Chrome or Firefox, or at least that's what Apple says.

Messages

Apple's built-in Messages app has also gotten an upgrade. Basically, it's picked up many of the same features as Messages in iOS 8, which is to say you can now mute, leave or add participants to a conversation. Unfortunately, as I said in my preview, you need to already have at least three people in the conversation to do any of these things. That kind of makes sense for muting and leaving a thread -- you don't wanna just leave someone hanging -- but I don't see why two people having a conversation can't add a third. What if Terrence and I are about to go to the bar and think Edgar should come too? Could happen, right?
Moving on, you can also name individual conversations, if you're so popular that even your SMS list needs organization. Additionally, if your texting partner is using iOS 8 and has elected to share their location, you can view a map inside the Messages app that shows where your friend is -- a useful tool if you're struggling to find each other in a crowded area. Meanwhile, a Camera Roll-type stream now sits on the right side of the Messages app, showing all the photos and videos you and your friends have uploaded to the thread. (Yes, this includes a mix of images from Macs and iOS devices.) As on iOS 8, there's a new "Soundbites" feature allowing you to attach an audio clip up to 100MB. From there, senders and recipients can both choose to either keep the message, or let it expire after two minutes, à la Snapchat. Finally, a new feature in Yosemite allows you to start a screen-sharing session between Macs with someone who you've already conversed with on iMessage.

Mail

The Mail app looks the same as it did on the previous version of OS X, but hidden in there are three new features you should know about. The first is Mail Drop, which helps you skirt attachment-size limits by storing large files (up to 5GB) in iCloud instead. It's not even an option you have to look for in the settings; if you try to upload a large-enough file, you'll see a pop-up asking if you'd like to use Mail Drop instead. Assuming you do that, the attachment will be encrypted on Apple's servers, and no, it won't count against your iCloud storage. If the recipient of your message also happens to have a Yosemite machine, the attachment will just download automatically, without the user having to do anything. If your friend doesn't have Yosemite, they can click a download link, which will be available for 30 days.
Meanwhile, Apple also added smarter suggestions in the Mail app's search field. In particular, it now does a better job recognizing typos, and suggests results based on what it thinks you were trying to say. Not a life-changing feature -- it doesn't take long to retype "burgers" when you originally wrote "bugrers" -- but it's certainly nice to have.
Last thing: A new "Markup" feature lets you add shapes and text to email attachments, complete with formatting options like fonts and text colors. Just hover over a PDF or image after you insert it into your draft email, and click on the "Markup" option that'll appear over on the right side. You can also sign documents by either writing with your finger, or using your Mac's iSight camera to photograph your signature on a piece of paper. Meanwhile, if you wanted to really home in on something, there's an option to zoom in on a specific part of the document and crop everything else out.
Finally, you can draw on the document, at which point Markup will attempt to smooth out your scribblings if you happen to make a shape it recognizes. If you dash out a crooked arrow sign, for instance, Apple will give you the option of swapping in a straight, more professional-looking one instead (you can also keep the crooked one, if you prefer).

Calendar and Notification Center

I saved this section for last because of all the changes in OS X Yosemite, the tweaks to Calendar and Notification Center were perhaps the most minor. In Calendar, the only new thing is a day view, with an inline, full-height inspection pane, where you can see things like a map of your appointment location, the local weather and a list of attendees.
Similarly, the Notification Center now has a "Today" view, which you can customize with widgets from the Mac App Store (calendar, weather, stocks, world clock, reminders, social networking, et cetera). Additionally, Apple released an API to developers, so they can tweak their own apps for the Notification Center too, if they want to. In practice, it functions kind of like the old Dashboard, though you can still go there too, if you're averse to change. Personally, I find the Notification Center is simply easier to access -- you can either click the icon in the upper-right corner of the screen, or swipe in from the right with two fingers.

Wrap-up

In theory, Apple's OS X Yosemite update is for everybody. And in a way, it is -- almost anyone can download it for free, so long as they have a Mac that came out sometime in the last five years or so. In reality, though, this release is mainly for people who own an iDevice, whether it's an iPhone, iPad or iPod touch. All of the most compelling features -- Handoff, iMessage integration, shared browser history, the ability to receive calls on your computer -- are reserved specifically for iOS users. For people like me, who own an Android phone and use Microsoft OneDrive for storage, this is a more modest upgrade. That said, even those of you who dabble in multiple OSes will appreciate the flat new design, Spotlight search and improved Safari layout. Just accept the fact that you're not getting as much out of the new operating system as you could be.

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iPad Air 2 vs. the competition: Is it the tablet to beat?

iPad Air 2 vs. the competition: Is it the tablet to beat?

Kris Naudus

Engadget

There was a time when it was hard to find someone who would argue with Apple's claim that the iPad was heavyweight tablet champ. But now Android slates like the Galaxy Tab Pro 10.1, the Xperia Tablet Z2 and the recently announced Nexus 9 are making a run at the title. Sure, the iPad still has some great apps, but how does the latest iPad Air compare to the competition under the hood? Check out the tale of the tape below, and decide for yourself if the iPad Air 2 has what it takes to stay on top.

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iPad mini 3 vs. the competition: Which will you hold in one hand?

iPad mini 3 vs. the competition: Which will you hold in one hand?

Kris Naudus

Engadget

The iPhone might be getting bigger with each iteration, but it's not quite at tablet size yet. There's still plenty of room for the latest 7.9-inch iPad mini, now equipped with Touch ID. But is that enough to justify buying one over other 7-inch slates? We've sized up the iPad mini 3 against some of its more popular competitors to see which tablet's specs give you the most bang for the buck. If matching the iPad mini 3 up against the Nexus 7, Galaxy Tab4 7.0 and Kindle Fire HD 7-inch isn't enough for you, make your own comparison with our handy tool and decide for yourself which tablet really comes out on top.

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Apple Pay launches Monday with support from Starbucks, Macy's and others

Apple Pay launches Monday with support from Starbucks, Macy's and others

Steve Dent

Engadget

Apple has just kicked off its iPad extravaganza with a big piece of news about its Apple Pay 

initiative. It'll launch this Monday, and now has the support of 500 US banks along with major retailers like Starbucks, Macy's, McDonald's, Disney, Walgreens and Target. That means if you decided to splurge on one of Apple's meaty new handsets, the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, you'll finally be able to put their NFC chips to good use

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Here’s Everything Apple Announced at Today’s Event

Here’s Everything Apple Announced at Today’s Event

Christina Bonnington

Wired 

CUPERTINO, CALIFORNIA—Today, Apple introduced new iPads, a new 5K iMac, and detailed two of its latest software offerings: OS X Yosemite and iOS 8.1. Unlike the giant media event the company held last month to show off its new iPhones and Watch, today’s gathering at its headquarters here was more subdued.
First, the software news. OS X Yosemite is available as a free download starting today. The latest update to Apple’s mobile operating system, iOS 8.1, will be available Monday. In addition to a beta of iCloud photo libraries, 8.1 will also include Apple Pay . It will also bring back Camera Roll, for those who missed that feature. On top of that, Apple reworked its iWork suite in an update you can grab today. And for developers looking forward to the Apple Watch, the company announced WatchKit, an SDK for those who want to get their apps ready for the device before it goes on sale.

Thinner, Lighter, More Golden iPads

But Apple knew what everyone was really there for: new iPads . Shaving 18 percent of its thickness from the iPad Air (which was already 20 percent thinner than its predecessor), the iPad Air 2 measures in at 6.1mm thick, making it the thinnest tablet on the market. You can stack two on top of one another and they’ll still be thinner than the original iPad.
To make it so thin, Apple eliminated all the micro thin layers of air between the layers of the display, optically bonding them together. The company also reduced internal reflection and added an anti-reflective coating that it claims reduces reflections by 56 percent. Inside, the new iPad Airs have a 64-bit A8x processor that offers 40 percent faster CPU performance and 2.5 percent faster GPU performance. In all, it’s 180 times faster than the original iPad. It gets 10 hours of battery life, too.

Better Camera, and TouchID

Apple also updated its camera, which is now 8 megapixels, with f/2.4 aperture. It can shoot 1080p video, and can also do panoramas, burst mode, time-lapse, and slo-mo. The FaceTime HD front camera is also improved with an f/2.2 aperture. Connectivity is faster with more LTE bands and faster 802.11ac Wi-Fi. Oh, and of course, it has TouchID, so it can take advantage of ApplePay and TouchID app extensions.
The new iPad Air 2 can be pre-ordered tomorrow starting at $499 for 16 GB, $599 for 64 GB, and $699 for 128 GB. In addition to Silver and Space Gray, it now comes in Gold.

Mini Gets TouchID Too

Apple also upgraded the iPad mini, giving it Touch ID. The iPad Mini 3 starts at $399 for 16 GB, $499 for 64 GB and $599 for 128 GB. Apple dropped the price of the iPad mini 2 and iPad Air by $100, and you can still grab the original iPad mini for $249.

Big Resolution Bump for iMacs

In other news, Apple introduced the iMac with Retina Display . It’s a 27-inch display with 5120 x 2880 pixel resolution (that’s 14.7 million pixels). Apple calls it a “Retina 5K” display. Apple’s introduced a slew of new technologies to control all those pixels, including a new timing chip, oxide TFT materials, and organic passivation, as well as a thinner, more efficient LED backlight. The company says the new machine is 30 percent more energy efficient than its predecessor.
Powering that beautiful display is a 3.5 Ghz i5 processor (upgradable to 4 Ghz), Radeon graphics, 8 GB of memory, and a 1 TB fusion drive. Apple is selling the iMac with Retina display starting today for $2,499. It’s configurable all the way up to roughly $5,000.
Last but not least, Apple updated the Mac Mini with 4th-generation Intel processors, Iris and HD graphics 5000, PCIe based Flash storage, and 802.11ac WiFi. It also has two Thunderbolt 2 ports. The tiny, energy-efficient desktop starts at $499.

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Taylor Swift Is Unrecognizable After Her Latest Edgy Makeover

Credit: Harper's Bazaar Germany, Paola Kudacki

We did a major double-take when we saw the pics from Taylor Swift's latest magazine photo shoot. In her cover story for Harper's Bazaar Germany, Taylor rocks super straight and spiky bangs and even a faux pixie cut! 

Credit: Harper's Bazaar Germany, Paola Kudacki

Credit: Harper's Bazaar Germany, Paola Kudacki

We barely recognized her with such a dramatic hair switch-up, and we totally thought she cut her hair!

Credit: Harper's Bazaar Germany, Paola Kudacki

In her new photos, Taylor wears everything from fall coats to sporty gymwear,

Credit: Harper's Bazaar Germany, Paola Kudacki

 which just serves as proof that she can flawlessly pull off any style she tries.

Credit: Harper's Bazaar Germany, Paola Kudacki

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Taylor Swift's Diet Coke ad features new '1989' song and a hundred or so cats

Taylor Swift's Diet Coke ad features new '1989' song and a hundred or so cats

Taylor Swift isn’t just a music superstar (So. many. Grammys), movie star (The Giver, anyone?) and all-around icon (her hair! Her style! Her massive circle of famous BFFs!). She’s also the spokesgirl for Diet Coke and her latest commercial for the company is kind of (totally, completely) amazing.

In the commercial, Diet Coke literally makes life a paradise for Taylor. Every time she takes a sip, a new fluffy kitten appears until she’s pretty much drowning in kittens (she had to have been taking the tiniest sips ever to pull that off, but we’ll let it slide because it’s just too cute to question). The commercial is adorable (Olivia Benson even makes an appearance at the end!), but the real OMG part is that a new, unreleased song from 1989 is playing in the background. 

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Google's Android 5.0 is called Lollipop

Google's Android 5.0 is called Lollipop

Edgar Alvarez

Engadget 

Google has just announced that the next major version of Android, 5.0, will be known as Lollipop. After months of teasing it, the search giant is finally taking what was previously known as Android "L" into the mainstream, with the first set of the devices set to be arriving soon. Speaking of which, Android Lollipop will be shown off
Developing...
Source: Google

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Blocks' modular smartwatch will talk to your iPhone

Blocks' modular smartwatch will talk to your iPhone

Jon Fingas

Engadget

Blocks first unveiled its modular smartwatch with a plan to use Android Wear, much as Project Ara smartphone will use a special version of Android. However, there has been a change of plans -- and it's good news if you're not of the Google persuasion. The team now says that it's using a version of the open source Tizen platform that should support Android, iOS and Windows Phone, so you probably won't have to give up a favorite device just to try this out. The Blocks team also has access to Intel's newest processors thanks to a prize from a recent design challenge, and modules will have removable covers that let you change both the style and functionality of your wristwear. This is still an incredibly ambitious project that may not pan out as planned, but it's evident that the pieces are quickly falling into place.
Source: Phonebloks

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