This week: 

• A new cheaper HomePod is likely on the way
• A leaked apple email harkens the end of iTunes
• It looks like changing the battery in your older iOS devices can bring some surprising performance increases
• MoviePass is tracking iOS users every move, and privacy experts are madder than a beehive
• And we wrap up with a What We’re Into, with our reviews Black Panther, Annihilation, Daredevil, The Punisher, and the first security camera for your car!

  This episode supported by   Casper’s American-made mattresses have just the right amount of memory foam and latex, and people everywhere love them.  Learn why and get $50 towards any mattress at Casper.com/cultcast.   Print postage from your office and take advantage of special shipping discounts at pb.com/cultcast, and beat the postage rate increase with exclusive discounts on letters.  Plans start at just $5 a month!   CultCloth will keep your iPhone X, Apple Watch, Mac and iPad sparkling clean, and for a limited time use code CULTCAST at checkout to score a free CleanCloth with any order at CultCloth.co.   On the show this week @erfon / @lkahney / @lewiswallace   Cheaper HomePod might lead Apple’s push for lower prices https://www.cultofmac.com/533247/cheaper-homepod-iphone-ipad/

• A version between $150 and $200 will change that, if a report from Taiwan’s Economic Daily News is correct.
• This unconfirmed report doesn’t say what features will change to lower the cost that significantly. However, a separate research note from Rosenblatt analyst Jun Zhang says the upcoming cheaper HomePod will be smaller.
• This isn’t expected to be a replacement for the current HomePod. It would be a lower-priced alternative that’s within the grasp of a far wider potential audience, enabling Apple to better compete with the Amazon Echo and Dot smart speakers.

    Leaked Apple email hints at the possible end of iTunes  https://www.cultofmac.com/532813/apple-end-of-itunes-email/

• Apple could kill off iTunes in the near future, a new report suggests.
• It cites an email that Apple reportedly wrote to people in the music industry recently, announcing the “end of iTunes LPs.” The iTunes LP format was first introduced in 2009 and let publishers add interactive artwork, along with assorted iTunes Extras, with their content.
• The LP format never achieved great popularity. However, the fact that Apple plans to ditch iTunes LPs in 2018 potentially hints at the possibility that Apple may stop selling iTunes music downloads in the near future.
• According to a previous report by The Wall Street Journal, Apple Music is currently growing at a rate of around 5 percent each month.

    Here’s how much a new iPhone battery boosts performance https://www.cultofmac.com/532787/iphone-battery-replacement-comparison/

• A new video posted online by Bennett Sorbo compares an iPhone 6s with depleted battery against one with a fresh battery.
• The two iPhones are then put head to head as they run through a variety of CPU-intensive tasks, including opening apps, using the internet, playing games and videos, and more.

  MoviePass says it’s ‘exploring’ gathering location data on users, but it won’t sell it https://www.theverge.com/2018/3/5/17083280/moviepass-location-based-user-tracking-data-privacy-app-policy-changes

• MoviePass responded late this evening to a number of reports calling into question the company’s privacy policy after CEO Mitch Lowe publicly claimed the theater subscription service tracks its users’ locations.

  Apple’s new HomePod commercial is a work of art https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=305ryPvU6A8