Apple is reportedly mere days away from launching Beats Solo Buds truly wireless earbuds. And Beats Solo 4 over-the-ears headphones will also premiere on Tuesday, April 30, according to an unconfirmed report.
Both will supposedly cost significantly less than similar AirPods models, though without all the same features.
You want to wake up with your iPhone charged. And you want a soothing night light to set the perfect mood during your downtime. If that sounds like you, this night light charging station is your perfect iPhone accessory.
Get a 15W wireless charger that doubles as a night light for just $39.99 (regularly $99).
We know new iPads are on the way, but the one thing we don’t expect at Apple’s May 7 event is a price cut. If you want a budget tablet, a refurbished iPad is the way to go. For a limited time, you can get a refurbished sixth-gen iPad for only $154.97, accessories included.
The action-comedy romance film Argylle stayed near the top of streaming popularity charts for a second week. The Apple TV+ spy-vs-spy thriller is chock full of celebrities.
Plus, the dark, gritty series Sugar drew big audiences on Apple’s streaming service last week, too. It features Colin Farrell as a private investigator solving a mystery.
There’s a good chance watching video on your iPhone is about to get better. Net neutrality rules passed by the FCC this week reportedly forbid U.S. wireless carriers from lowering the quality of streaming video to throttle the amount of data its consumes.
So if you watch Apple TV+, Netflix, etc. on your iPhone, your carrier is no longer allowed to reduce the video quality.
This week on Cult of Mac’s podcast: The surprise Apple event on May 7 looks like an iPad and Apple Pencil extravaganza. What’s on Cupertino’s agenda? We discuss all the latest iPad rumors.
Also on The CultCast:
Listen to this week’s episode of The CultCast in the Podcasts app or your favorite podcast app. (Be sure to subscribe and leave us a review if you like it!) Or watch the video live stream, embedded below.
While it might seem a little dystopian, the Pop-A-Shade tent is an excellent way for techies to spend time outdoors while staying plugged in to their work or creative projects. Protection from water is great for laptops and tablets. And shade from the sun is essential for preventing eyeball strain and sunburns. This pop-up tent does it all … and it’s on sale, just in time for your sizzling summer.
The Pop-A-Shade tent is 65% off right now at only $27.99 (regularly $79.99).
April 27, 2008: Psystar’s first Mac clones ship to customers. The new Open Computer means that, for the first time since the mid-1990s, there’s no need to assemble a “hackintosh” to run OS X on a non-Apple computer.
Unlike previous clone Macs, however, these low-priced computers don’t come with Cupertino’s blessing. Naturally, a fight ensues.
Many Apple users report suddenly being locked out of their Apple ID account on their devices. Worse, they could not log back into their account with their password, forcing them to reset their login credentials.
Apple has not yet acknowledged this issue, and it does not appear linked to any iCloud server outages.
Apple has reportedly resumed talks with OpenAI about using its technology to power iOS 18’s AI features. The company will use OpenAI’s LLM model to seemingly power an AI-based chatbot.
OpenAI and Apple are also discussing how they can integrate OpenAI features into iOS 18.
The PowerBand is a sporty Apple Watch band that comes with a built-in magnetic Apple Watch charger. The clever design will help you deal with two of the smartwatch’s most annoying shortcomings: its so-so battery life and the fact that you can only top up the Apple Watch battery using a specific type of charger.
Right now, you can snag a PowerBand for only $29.97 (regularly $49.99). That’s less than the cost of many Apple Watch bands that don’t come with a secret charger built in.
Applications that advertised the ability to use AI to turn regular images into nudes have reportedly been removed from the iPhone App Store.
Apple needed to be notified of their existence, though.
A new 75% compact mechanical gaming keyboard with a retro look includes a decidedly modern and unusual feature — a customizable LCD screen. The Epomaker TH80 Pro V2 VIA is “designed for an extreme gaming and typing experience,” the company said Thursday.
The cool new keeb is an update on Epomaker’s popular TH80 Pro keyboard.
April 26, 1996: Mac OS Copland, Apple’s eagerly anticipated but much-delayed operating system for the Macintosh, suffers a fatal blow when the senior VP in charge of the project leaves the company.
David C. Nagel, Apple’s chief technologist, previously promised Mac OS Copland would ship to users by mid-1996 at the latest. With meeting that deadline no longer possible, he leaves Apple for a job running AT&T Laboratories.
It’s yet another sign that Apple’s top-to-bottom Mac operating system upgrade is in major trouble.
Monitor stands, aka monitor risers or desk shelves, are often unsung heroes of computer setups. Even just a single shelf can add so much in terms of organization and ergonomics. In today’s colorful and artistic Mac mini workstation, the Fenge monitor riser is crucial. Without it, the desktop would devolve into chaos.
The easiest way to convert a YouTube video to an MP4 for free is with an app called 4K Video Downloader for Mac and PC. This tool gives you all kinds of options for converting video and audio from YouTube, TikTok, Facebook, Soundcloud, Twitch and more.
If you want to save videos or podcasts to your computer to include in a video of your own, this app is the easiest way to download the highest-quality original.
It has other uses, too. If you’re going on a flight, or if you simply have a slow internet connection, you can use it to download what you want to watch in advance. If you’re privacy-conscious but you still want to watch a TikTok sent to you by a friend, you can download the clip without visiting the website.
Here’s how it works.
If Earth Day got you thinking about ways to reduce your carbon footprint, check out these rechargeable batteries. They can prevent up to 2,000 disposable batteries from entering landfills — and save you hundreds of dollars in the process.
Plus, these batteries come with a twist. Unlike other rechargeables, you don’t need a clunky charging station. They recharge with an included four-way micro-USB cable you plug directly into them!
Get a four-pack of rechargeable AA batteries for $15.99 (regularly $49.95). (AAA batteries are also available.)
Checking the health and maximum capacity of the battery in your beloved iPad isn’t as easy as it should be, but we can walk you through the process.
Finding out how worn out the tablet’s battery is can help you decide if it’s time for a new model.
A juicy and lurid new documentary crime series is coming to Apple TV+ soon with Hollywood Con Queen, judging by the fast-paced trailer the streamer dropped for it Thursday. It “explores the shocking story behind one of Hollywood’s biggest scams.”
The three-part docuseries premieres May 8 on Apple TV+.
April 25, 1990: Steve Jobs shuts down Pixar’s hardware division (yes, it used to have one!), ending production of the pricey Pixar Image Computer immediately.
Jobs sells the company’s hardware unit to Fremont, California-based imaging company Vicom Systems for a paltry $2 million.
Although Apple’s chip-maker TSMC will start making processors with a 2nm process in 2025, production could begin too late for next year’s iPhone.
Still, TSMC says 1.6nm chips will go into production in 2026.
The new iMazing 3 app redesign brings a fresh user interface and Vision Pro connectivity support to the software, developer DigiDNA said Wednesday. The widely used software helps you manage iPhone, iPad and iPod content and functionality from a Mac.
“In the eight year since we released iMazing 2, regular updates have improved functionality and expanded device and OS support,” said DigiDNA CEO Jerome Bedat.
“To achieve our vision for iMazing 3, we had to redevelop our approach, with a modern user interface and new codebase that will allow us to deliver features in the future that no one else can offer,” he added.
You don’t need to dust off your old Atari (if you even still owne it) or travel back in time to play your old favorite arcade games. This retro-inspired Atari console from My Arcade comes with officially licensed titles like Pong, Asteroids and more than 200 others.
And, dare we say, it’s also a bit cooler than the original.
Plus, it’s on sale. While the My Arcade Atari Game Station Pro regularly sells for $99.99, you can get a new, open-box model for only $69.99.
Apple Pencil 3 is apparently right around the corner, and leaks indicate the next iPad stylus will offer several features not in the previous one. That includes a new “squeeze” gesture, haptic feedback and Find My support.
Plus, it might also work as a Vision Pro stylus.
WhatsApp is making it easier to log into your account on your iPhone with passkey support. The feature will allow you to verify your identity through Face ID, Touch ID, or device PIN.
Once you have set up a passkey for your WhatsApp account, you can set up the app on a new iPhone through biometric authentication, skipping the SMS code entirely.
