iPad - page 5

Getting by with Apple’s not-quite-mechanical keyboard [Setups]

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That Apple keyboard looks mechanical but it's not.
That Apple keyboard looks mechanical but it's not.
Photo: Federico_Rosellini@Reddit.com

Mechanical keyboards are all the rage for those who love the old-school typing feel and don’t mind the clackety-clacking noise. Today’s featured MacBook Pro and Studio Display setup features an old Apple A1048, which certainly looks the part of a mechanical keeb (but it’s not).

Read on the learn more about Apple’s past keyboards that are mechanical — and some that only look like it.

First Final Cut Pro update for iPad adds support for new keyboard shortcuts

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Final Cut Pro for iPad gives users the ultimate mobile studio for all their video and editing needs — no matter where they are.
Final Cut Pro for iPad's first update is here.
Photo: Apple

Apple on Tuesday rolled out the first update for Final Cut Pro for iPad since its release in May this year. The v1.1 release adds support for new keyboard shortcuts and improves the app’s overall stability and performance.

Final Cut’s iPad version is not as feature-rich as its Mac version. Apple is working on reducing that gap, with the latest update taking a small step in achieving this.

New Apple-certified GaN charging station powers up 6 devices at once

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You might not always have to charge six devices at once, but with this charging station, you can.
You might not always have to charge six devices at once, but with this charging station, you can.
Photo: ESR

ESR just launched a Kickstarter campaign for an unprecedented, Apple-certified 100-watt 6-in-1 charging station with GaN technology to juice up all your devices.

The company called the device — which can charge iPhone, iPad, MacBook, Apple Watch and AirPods simultaneously — the “world’s first” of its kind. You can preorder it now at a 20% discount. And it may serve all your charging needs.

Here’s why people are learning to love Apple Maps

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Apple Maps' use of 3D imagery led the way, but in other ways it trailed Google Maps.
Apple Maps' use of 3D imagery led the way, but in other ways it trailed Google Maps.
Photo: Apple

After its launch in 2012, Apple Maps performed so badly that Apple CEO Tim Cook actually apologized for the service and fired the company’s head of software (for the disastrous launch and other reasons). But now, many people actually choose Apple Maps over Google Maps and other services, according to a new report.

6 mind-blowing Continuity features every Apple user should know

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It all works together
Your Apple devices can work together in more ways than you may expect.
Image: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac

Nothing illustrates the power of Apple’s ecosystem like the Continuity features that help your Mac, iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch work seamlessly together. Thanks to Continuity, your iPhone can serve as your Mac’s webcam. You can start an email on one device and instantly pick it up on another. You can use the same keyboard and mouse with a Mac and iPad, copy and paste across devices and more.

These features flex the power of Apple’s hardware and software — and they would never be possible on a PC. Unfortunately, that means a lot of people don’t learn about these features because they don’t expect so much from their computers.

In this post (and the accompanying video), I will show you some of the time-saving, annoyance-busting Continuity features you can enjoy when you go all-in on the Apple ecosystem.

3 cool new wallpapers you won’t regret downloading

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Basic Apple Guy's
Basic Apple Guy's "Trip Around the Sun" wallpaper puts things in perspective.
Photo: Basic Apple Guy

Mac maven Basic Apple Guy seemingly never stops creating gorgeous wallpapers you can download and put on your Apple screens — Mac, iPad and iPhone. Just in the past couple of weeks he’s made three beauties for you to try out.

Check out the images and see descriptions and links below.

Sweet deals on Mac, iPad and Apple accessories linger on after Prime Day

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The new MacBook Air features a spacious, high-resolution 15.3-inch Liquid Retina display — 25 percent larger than the 13-inch MacBook Air with M2.
The 15-inch MacBook Air is new but you can still find a discount on it, and other Apple products, in after-Prime Day sales.
Photo: Apple

Although Amazon’s Prime Day is over, you have not missed your chance to save money on iPad, MacBook or AirPods. These Apple products are still on sale with enticing discounts.

But don’t wait — these deals could disappear at any time.

Think twice before installing iOS 17 public beta

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iOS 17: Out of Focus
iOS 17 hasn’t quite come into focus yet.
Photo: Cult of Mac

Apple just gave the general public access to the latest iOS 17 beta, but before you put it on your iPhone, the Cult of Mac staff has some warnings. We’ve used the betas for weeks, and while it’s gone well for some people, it’s been a dumpster fire for others.

Public betas for macOS Sonoma and iPadOS 17 are also available, and we also have comments for anyone thinking of putting those on their Mac or iPad.

Best Prime Day deals on Apple gear and accessories [Updated]

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Best Prime Day deals 2023 on Apple gear, day two.
Amazon's Prime Day event is a great time to find Apple deals. Here are the best we've tracked down so far.
Photo: Brooke Cagle/Unsplash License/Modified by Cult of Mac

Looking for the absolute best Amazon Prime Day deals on Apple gear and accessories? Us too. In fact, the only thing we like more than Apple gear is a great deal on Apple gear.

So far we’ve found cheap MacBooks, AirTag competitors that cost less than $15 a pop, rock-bottom pricing on must-have software like Microsoft Office for Mac, and sweet deals that will save you hundreds on power banks and solar generators to keep your gear powered up. We even put together an inexpensive bundle that can add Apple CarPlay to your ride.

We’ll update this post as we continue to search for the best Prime Day deals — on Amazon and beyond.

OLED iPad almost certainly coming in 2024

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Here's more proof iPad will get gorgeous OLED screens
An iPad with a beautiful OLED display should be out in under a year.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

Apple will upgrade the next iPad Pro with an OLED display in 2024, according to a market research firm. This is the latest in a long series of reports indicating that these top-tier tablets are moving beyond traditional LED screens.

However, the same source indicates that the first MacBook with OLED won‘t be out before 2027.

Get an iPad Air with Beats headphones for just $99.97

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Get a Grade A refurbished bundle featuring an iPad Air and Beats headphones for only $99.97 before Prime Day.
Save $50 ahead of Prime Day on a Grade A refurbished iPad Air and renewed Beats Flex headphones bundle.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

Why wait for Amazon Prime Day to score your next tech deal? During our Deal Days event, you can pick up a like-new original iPad Air and renewed Beats Flex headphones for just $99.97.

Yes, it’s a 10-year-old tablet that recently aged out onto Apple’s obsolete list. However, it’s still got a beautiful Retina screen that makes it great for many things, including watching videos. It’s great for kids, and you can’t beat the pricing on this bundle, which also includes some extra perks in addition to the two main items.

Don’t sit on this deal, though. There’s a limited quantity available. And even if the bundle doesn’t sell out, this limited-time offer expires July 14 at 11:59 p.m. Pacific.

Apple reminds us that iPad Pro does augmented reality, too

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Apple reminds us that iPad Pro does augmented reality too
Deep Field transforms kids’ drawings to 3D with AR and iPad.
Photo: Apple

With all the buzz about its upcoming Vision Pro augmented-reality headset, Apple sent out a reminder that iPad Pro also has AR capabilities. The tablet powers Deep Field, an application that lets children use an Apple Pencil to draw plants inspired by works of art, and have their creations rendered into 3D via the magic of augmented reality.

Tiny new action camera shoots at 2.7K resolution anywhere

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Insta360 Go 3 action camera
Insta360's new Go 3 action camera shoots by itself, but also fits into its Action Pod for charging and use with a flip LED screen.
Photo: Insta360

People love shooting video with their iPhones, but action cameras are gaining in popularity as they get smaller and even easier to stick on a ski helmet or bicycle handlebars.

Case in point: Insta360 just released its Go 3 action camera, which is about the size of your thumb when detached from its remote charging pod with flip LED screen.

Darkboard offers creatives an iPad stand for drawing and notetaking

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Astropad Darkboard makes drawing on an iPad more comfortable
The iPad's slender bezels won't make drawing a challenge any more with Darkboard.
Photo: Astropad

The Astropad Darkboard is a new lightweight, ergonomic drawing surface for iPad. It gives artists a place to rest their arm while drawing without covering the tablet’s screen.

After a successful launch on Kickstarter, the product is now available worldwide.

Apple is reportedly working on iMac with 30-inch-plus screen

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New iMac with 30-inch display in development
Would you buy an iMac with a 30-inch+ display?
Photo/Graphics: Apple/Rajesh

Aside from the inevitable iPhone refresh (and the headset everyone’s buzzing about), Apple reportedly has several other major new products lined up for launch in 2023 and the first half of 2024. This includes revamped iPad Pros with OLED displays, new Macs powered by a next-gen M3 processor and an upgrade to the Apple Watch Ultra.

Apple also is supposedly in the early stages of developing an iMac with a display that measures more than 30 inches.

Supercharge MacBook on the go with Ugreen’s new power bank

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Charge up to three devices at once from the new power bank's big 25,000mAh battery.
Charge up to three devices at once from the new power bank's big 25,000mAh battery.
Photo: Ugreen

Ugreen introduced its latest on-the-go charger for MacBooks and other gear Thursday. The new Ugreen 145W Power Bank offers fast charging and a rather large 25,000mAh battery capacity.

The company said “the intelligent power bank can charge three devices simultaneously and even charge a 13-inch Macbook Air in just 90 minutes.”

New updates for iPhone, Mac and Apple Watch squash bugs

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Updates is here for your iPhone bugs
Almost every Apple computer just got operating system updates designed to deal with pesky bugs.
Photo: Cult of Mac/Egor Kamelev/Pexels

Apple just introduced a slew of operating system updates. That includes iOS 16.5.1, macOS 13.4.1, watchOS 9.5.2 and iPadOS 16.5.1, which fix bugs in the most recent versions.

But it also released bug-fix updates for older versions of the operating systems going back as far as 2020.

What hasn’t yet arrived on Wednesday are the much-anticipated second round of betas for iOS 17 and macOS Sonoma.

In search of the perfect podcast? Now it’s easier to find.

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Nine new subcategories of Podcasts with their own popularity charts help you narrow down the search.
Nine new subcategories of Podcasts with their own popularity charts help you narrow down the search.
Photo: Apple

If you feel lost in a sea of podcasts without a paddle, Apple offered some new rowing implements Tuesday. After all, navigating podcasts can feel as hopeless as floundering among streaming TV shows and movies.

The company said Apple Podcasts will elevate nine “new and noteworthy” subcategories for browsing, plus related popularity charts and the new Podcasts by Language browsing tool.

These iOS 17, iPadOS 17 and macOS Sonoma features are not coming to older devices

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New contact posters, iMessage stickers and voicemail transcription
Certain new iOS 17 features will not come to all iPhones capable of running the new OS.
Photo: Apple

iOS 17, iPadOS 17 and macOS Sonoma are not big upgrades. However, they will bring plenty of little improvements that add up to a better experience on iPhone, iPad and Mac. Despite that, Apple dropped support for some older iPhones, iPads and Macs with its upcoming OS releases.

That’s only part of the disappointment equation, though. Several new features won’t work on older Apple gear, even though the devices can run the new operating systems.

Many of the new features in iOS 17 and iPadOS 17 that won’t make it to older iPhones and iPads will go missing primarily because they are very resource-hungry. As for Macs, several macOS Sonoma features won’t come to Intel-based machines. This is sort of a given, since Apple switched to in-house chips that deliver better performance while maintaining ruthless power efficiency. The list of features not available on Intel Macs will only expand over time until Apple eventually drops support for them altogether.

Now that you the reasons for the omissions, here’s a rundown of new features in iOS 17, iPadOS 17 and macOS Sonoma that won’t work on older devices.

EU forces removable batteries on iPhone and iPad

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iPhone 14 is easier to repair than any of its predecessors in years.
iPhone 14 is easier to disassemble than its predecessors, but Apple might have to go further.
Photo: iFixit

The European Parliament passed sweeping legislation last week intended to make recycling batteries easier. The new rules will require Apple to redesign iPhone and iPad so their batteries can be replaced by users. (Android devices will face the same mandate.)

This will be the second major hardware change to Apple products to result from EU legislation. iPhones soon will come with a USB-C port in place of Lightning because of a European requirement.

Today in Apple history: iPad 2 leak lands insiders in prison

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The iPad Pro.
Leaking pre-release images could land you behind bars.
Photo: Leander Kahney/Cult of Mac

June 15: Today in Apple history: iPad 2 leak lands insiders in prison June 15, 2011: Three people get sentenced to prison in China for leaking information about the iPad 2 prior to its release.

The Foxconn R&D employees receive sentences ranging from one year to 18 months. They also must pay fines between $4,500 and $23,000. If you ever wonder why more Apple products don’t leak prior to release, this might help explain why!

Formidable workstation scores 2 Apple ‘hat tricks’ [Setups]

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It's pretty much all Apple here, with special appearance by other companies for recording and lighting purposes.
It's pretty much all Apple here, with special appearance by other companies for recording and lighting purposes.
Photo: magmamadman@Reddit.com

The only reason today’s featured setup isn’t 100% Apple is that Cupertino doesn’t make its own condenser USB microphones, lighting or desks.

Literally everything else in the setup is from Apple, including a computing “hat trick” of desktop Mac, laptop Mac and Apple tablet, plus a second hat trick for peripherals, with an Apple display, Apple input devices and Apple audio.

Slick new backpack includes Find My locator

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The straightforward backpack features Find My functionality and is made from recycled bottles.
The straightforward backpack features Find My functionality and is made from recycled bottles.
Photo: Targus

Known for laptop cases and other accessories, Targus recently unveiled its new Cypress Hero Backpack with Find My Locator.

So if it goes missing, you can find the eco-friendly pack and any gear in it using your iPhone, iPad or Mac.

Apple health updates boost mind and body across platforms

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New health features come to iOS 17, iPadOS 17 and watchOS 10.
New health features come to iOS 17, iPadOS 17 and watchOS 10.
Photo: Apple
WWDC23

At WWDC23, Apple said it’s adding a slew of new health features in iOS 17, iPadOS 17 and watchOS 10 that will help you take care of yourself physically and emotionally.

And while new mental health and vision features are coming across platforms, the more-general Health app finally arrives on iPad, as well.

Hands on with iOS 17 Autocorrect and intelligent input improvements

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iOS 17 Keyboard settings
Entering text gets a bit easier, with fewer typos, in iOS 17.
Graphic: Apple
WWDC23

Apple is souping up the systems for entering text into iPhone with iOS 17. Autocorrect is getting enhanced with AI for fewer typos, as part of multiple improvements to what Apple calls “intelligent input.” And Dictation is getting a boost that promises more-accurate voice recognition, too.

I tested the changes in the first iOS 17 beta. Here’s how well they work … so far.