David Snow, an expert on Apple hardware and software, writes on a variety of technological and cultural topics for Cult of Mac. They include Apple news, technology buying guides, and features about computer setups and Apple TV shows and movies.
With 30 years of experience covering technology and other subjects, he has written and edited for numerous print and online publications, including CMP Media, TechTV.com, CNET, Wired News, Red Herring magazine, Law.com, The National Law Journal and Law Technology News magazine. Among other roles, he served as executive editor of the Law.com network of websites and editorial director, technology, for ALM Media.
Snow graduated with a B.A. from Syracuse University with majors in magazine journalism and psychology. While there, he worked as a reporter for The Daily Orange newspaper and associate editor of Equal Time magazine.
Founder of the blog At the Waterline, he can be reached on X (formerly Twitter) via @atthewaterline and on Mastodon via @dsnow.
With 51 nominations, Apple TV+ stands to do well at the primetime Emmy Awards. Photo: Apple TV+
The Television Academy said Tuesday Apple TV+ received 51 Primetime Emmy nominations, including 20 for the hit comedy Ted Lasso.
That matches the show’s record-breaking number of Emmy nominations in 2021. And the psychological thriller Severance received 14 nominations this year, second most among the streaming service’s titles.
The new Jya Fjord and Fjord Pro air purifiers support HomeKit. Photo: Jya
If you’re looking for a HomeKit-enabled air purifier that can handle large rooms, you have a new option: SmartMi launched its new brand Jya and its Fjord air purifier.
It joins SmartMi’s two existing HomeKit air purifiers, but it features more of a “Nordic” aesthetic and is designed for larger rooms, the company said.
Another satisfied customer: New Studio Display pairs with an M1 MacBook Air (not shown) and a homemade keyboard. Photo: Asleep_Painting6103
Another week, another bunch of new Studio Displays shipped. They’re cropping up in Setups far and wide as replacements for until-recently-good-enough 4K monitors by the likes of LG and Dell.
Today’s featured M1 MacBook Air setup runs a new Studio Display in place of a 4K LG screen. And for input devices, the user opts for a Magic Trackpad over a mouse, using it with a pretty nifty homemade mechanical keyboard.
Amazon Prime Day features big deals on Bluetti power products this year. Photo: Bluetti
This post is brought to you by Bluetti.
If you’re wondering when Amazon Prime Day is this year, heads up — it’s Tuesday and Wednesday of this week! So you can look forward to price cuts from national brands and small businesses across virtually every category.
Taking a cue from the retail giant, power products maker Bluetti is calling its big annual shopping event “Bluetti Prime Day” on those same dates, July 12 and 13.
You can find the best deals at www.bluettipower.com on solar power stations, solar panels, various accessories and more. We link to the best deals below.
Get the optional strap and the sleeve becomes a shoulder bag. Photo: WaterField Designs
Got a new 13-inch M2 MacBook Air in need of some stylish protection? WaterField Designs just unveiled its new Magnetic Laptop Sleeve. It’s custom-fitted to that ultralight laptop.
The sleeve, made of waxed canvas in four color choices, offers serious protection, too.
And if you preorder one soon enough, you can get special early-bird gift. See below.
This lineup of purported iPhone 14 cases shows a "Plus" non-Pro model. Photo: DuanRui@Twitter
A photograph said to show leaked iPhone 14 cases supports the widespread idea that the series will feature four models and bigger camera bumps. And it appears to show a case for a large, non-Pro handset that may be called “iPhone 14 Plus.”
If this holds up at launch in a couple of months, the two smaller models will be iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Pro and the two bigger models will be iPhone 14 Plus (or Max) and iPhone 14 Pro Max.
This cozy corner benefits from Philips Hue Play light bars behind the Studio Display. Photo: [email protected]
Today’s featured M1 Pro MacBook workstation has a new Studio Display with bias lighting, illuminating the wall behind the display. It comes from three strategically placed Philips Hue Play bars that really make that corner of the small apartment “pop.”
Apple TV+ will clean up at this year's Hollywood Critics Association Awards. Photo: Apple TV+
Apple TV+ garnered a record 53 nominations for 16 shows across a range of genres — comedy, drama, documentary, anthology series, variety-sketch series — for the upcoming Hollywood Critics Association Awards.
Psychological thriller Severance and comedy Ted Lasso led the way with a dozen nominations apiece.
When you send a Bluetti E-Gift Card, they can choose whatever power products they want. Image: Bluetti
This post is brought to you by Bluetti.
Power stations, power banks, solar panels and related accessories make great gifts, but it’s not always easy to know exactly what your giftee needs. That’s what makes a Bluetti E-Gift Card so great — they can choose whatever power products they want!
And even better, Bluetti E-Gift Cards offer great savings and make for a quicker way to pay.
A great deal is a great deal, but the coming AirPods Pro 2 may feature sweet upgrades. Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac
Some great sales prices have popped up lately for Apple’s flagship earbuds, AirPods Pro. That may relate to the fact that the highly anticipated next-gen version with new features is expected to launch before the end of the year. And sellers want to clear out stock.
So should you take the deal behind door No. 1, or wait for whatever’s coming with AirPods Pro 2 behind door No. 2? Let’s look at your options for Apple’s top active noise-cancelling (ANC) wireless earbuds.
Elago brought back its best-selling Glide cases for iPhone 13. Photo: Elago
There’s nothing like a splash of color to jazz things up. Elago found that out years ago when it first offered its popular Glide series of cases, which feature two-tone color combinations. Now an improved, more-protective version of the case is out for iPhone 13 handsets.
And better yet, you can get a great price on a selection of Glide cases for iPhone 13 in the Cult of Mac Store.
You can get great deals right now on Apple Watch 7 and SE. Photo: Apple
Various discounts across the Apple Watch lineup appeared Thursday, including Apple Watch SE hitting an all-time low price on Amazon for the first time and models of Apple Watch Series 7 reaching or returning to all-time low prices.
Act fast, though — these deals often don’t last long.
"Luck" takes you to where luck comes from. Photo: Apple TV+
Feeling unlucky lately? Wouldn’t it be nice if a black cat who speaks English with a Scottish accent could take you to a magical land where luck is made?
Not bloody likely to happen, but you get the next best thing with Luck, the first full-length, 3D-animated film to hit Apple TV+, which offered a trailer for it Thursday.
An M1 Max MacBook Pro and Raspberry Pi help make this a home-automation station. Photo: [email protected]
Most of the time, when we talk about home automation, we’re talking about Apple’s HomeKit system. But today’s featured computer setup, which relies on a formidable M1 Max MacBook Pro and dual displays, goes another route.
The homeowner runs a Raspberry Pi with open-source software to achieve about 50 automations, including Siri integration.
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Image: Kdan
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With PDF Reader, you can create, read, edit, sign, scan, secure and convert PDFs on your iPhone, iPad or Mac. Learn more and download it below.
There's nothing like a classic leather Apple Watch band. Photo: Speidel
Nothing beats the classic style and comfort of a premium leather Apple Watch band. And calfskin leather typically makes for an especially supple version of the classic strap.
If you’re looking to upgrade the look and feel of your wrist, check out the Speidel Sport Calf Skin Leather Apple Watch Band. You can get a good price on it in the Cult of Mac Store.
Curved ultra-wide displays are all the rage lately, and it’s no wonder why. What a fantastic amount of real estate. But it can be worrisome buying one if you’re not sure how it will look with your Mac’s resolution and scaling options.
Today’s featured computer setup pairs a beast of a 16-inch M1 Max MacBook with a brilliant 40-inch LG 5K UltraWide curved display. Let’s look at how well it’s working and what some of the issues can be.
The White House said Friday it would award late Apple co-founder Steve Jobs the Presidential Medal of Freedom for his world-changing contributions to society.
★★★★☆
Edifier does a nice job with presentation on both NeoBuds Pro and NeoBuds S, including seven sets of eartips and a nice travel pouch. Photo: David Snow/Cult of Mac
Known for speakers and headphones with high-quality sound at affordable places, China-based Edifier plans to release a new set of true wireless earbuds with active noise cancellation (ANC) this month, the NeoBuds S. They closely track the look and feel of the well-regarded, high-resolution NeoBuds Pro the company rolled out in July 2021 — but with some promised improvements.
Edifier sent Cult of Mac a set of NeoBuds S to try out and see how well the company’s beefed-up noise cancellation and sound quality perform, among other features.
The cases' hard plastic materials catch iridescent light. Photo: Laut
An Apple accessory case is a case is a case is a case — except when it’s both protective and catches all the colors of the rainbow. That’s what Laut’s Holo cases for AirPods Pro, AirPods 3 and iPhone 13 do as they reflect iridescent light.
Check out the Laut Holo Collection in the Cult of Mac Store and get a great deal on a stylish and protective case.
At first Enjoy withdrew to assess its business priorities, but now it has filed for bankruptcy. Photo: Apple/Enjoy
Apple Store’s “Delivery with Setup” option appears to be done for. Its key partner, startup Enjoy, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy Thursday. That’s according to a Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filing.
This comes less than a year after the startup raised more than $250 million in growth capital and became a publicly traded company.
"Best Foot Forward" premieres July 22. Photo: Apple TV+
Apple TV+ offered its first trailer Thursday for a new family comedy called Best Foot Forward, in which a home-schooled kid with a prosthetic leg hits public middle school for the first time, determined to fit in.
Based on a true story, Best Foot Forward premieres July 22 on Apple TV+.
The new Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S2 feature improvements across the board, the company said. Photo: Bowers & Wilkins
Bowers & Wilkins is often cited for the great sound quality of its Px7 noise-canceling over-ear headphones, released in 2019, and a worthy rival to AirPods Max. Now the British audio specialists have overhauled the model with release of the Px7 S2 — but without a price increase.
And what’s more, the company said a new flagship model, the “luxurious” Px8, is coming soon.
CarPlay may not take over the whole dashboard with iOS 16, but it may let you pay for fuel from the infotainment center. Photo: Apple
Apple previewed the next generation of CarPlay at WWDC22, but most of those new features are a ways from becoming reality. However, the arrival of iOS 16 later this year could see new CarPlay apps for “fuel and driving tasks,” including a way to pay for fuel right from the vehicle’s infotainment center.