David Snow - page 30

Bluetti’s new, highly portable AC180 power station comes with several features that make it perfect for camping as well as home battery backup.

With enhancements including a 1,440-watt fast-charging rate, 1,800W of continuous AC power and a Power Lifting Mode that delivers up to 2,700W, the AC180 stands ready to deliver the power you need in a range of scenarios, from camping trips in the deepest wilderness to power outages at home. Bluetti kicks off the early bird sale on its new AC180 power generator Wednesday, with special pricing for a limited time.

Season 2 of sci-fi series Foundation explodes like a supernova on Apple TV+ July 14. That may sound a bit dramatic, but the main word that comes to mind upon watching the new trailer for the season the streaming service dropped Tuesday is … epic. And lots of stuff explodes in it.

Or let’s go with “epic saga,” the phrase Apple TV+ used to describe the hit show based on Isaac Asimov’s award-winning stories about a band of exiles defying a crumbling galactic empire.

As June speeds toward July, are you ready for summer? You can look like you are. Just refresh your Apple Watch’s look with a Goldenerre Color Pop band and a white case.

For a fresh look, you can choose from the band’s three color combos and pair the band with the company’s white case. The bands and the case are new in the Cult of Mac Store.

Baseus rolled out its new thin-and-compact battery pack Friday, the Baseus Blade HD Series 100W Power Bank. It provides 100 watts of power delivery from its 20,000mAh battery to keep MacBook, other laptops and various gadgets going.

In the battle over who offers the best 5K display, Apple doesn’t always win, even with Mac users. And it’s usually because of price.

Today’s featured Mac Studio setup relies on a 40-inch LG 5K2K curved ultra-wide monitor — picked over a pair of Studio Displays that would cost twice as much — and the user more-or-less said they they couldn’t be happier.

Apple’s AirPods charging cases are sleek, protective — and relentlessly white. So if you’d like to add a layer of extra protection along with a better grip and a choice of colors, Totallee offers new cases for AirPods Pro (2nd generation) and AirPods 3.

The company sent me its new case for AirPods Pro 2. The simple accessory gets the job done, as advertised.

Aqara released its first deadbolt smart lock Friday, the Smart Lock U100. It’s fully compatible with Apple’s HomeKit and you can open it with Home Key, fingerprints, passwords or — get this — a physical key.

Snark aside (a physical if often provided with smart locks for power outages), the stout new lock integrates with the Matter home automation standard and could become a vital part of HomeKit users’ smart-home arsenals.

This year, WWDC delivered an avalanche of new hardware as well as the usual major planned software releases — and the latter is already showing up in computer setups while the hardware hasn’t shipped yet.

Today’s featured setup may be all about its MacBook Pro, iPad and fine external monitor, but you can’t miss the brand-new, unreleased functionality showing up on another screen on display in the photograph.

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.

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.

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The $3,499 price of Vision Pro, the long-awaited AR/VR headset Apple rolled out at WWDC23, startles some people. You can find audience reaction videos out there with audible gasps when the price was announced (including among Apple employees, some posts claim). And mainstream headlines are joining in, too.

And of course social media hasn’t let up on the jokey memes. See below for a few choice examples.

A dozen “best-in-class” apps and games took honors in the Apple Design Awards Monday at WWDC23. Winning development teams hailed from around the world, delivering innovative apps with great design, Apple said.

“Apps and games are integral to how we live, work, and play. At Apple, we love to recognize outstanding developers whose apps reflect incredible creativity and design excellence,” said Susan Prescott, Apple’s vice president of Worldwide Developer Relations.

Just a day after Apple unveiled its Vision Pro AR/VR headset at WWDC23, news came along Tuesday that the company acquired Los Angeles-based AR headset startup Mira.

Mira makes headsets for other companies — notably Super Nintendo World theme parks — and holds contracts with the U.S. military.

Sharing your contact information and more with people will get easier with new AirDrop functionality in iOS 17. A new feature called NameDrop makes it about as simple as knocking iPhones together.

“Today, you either hand your phone to them, or one of you dictates your information while the other types it. Now there’s a better way,” said Apple SVP of Software Engineering Craig Federighi during Monday’s WWDC23 keynote. “Now you can just bring your phones close together.”

WWDC23’s keynote wasn’t just about big OS and hardware releases. It also brought some fun stuff — like new sticker functionality coming to the Messages app and beyond.

Using Messages on your iPhone (and perhaps elsewhere), you should be able to liven up your texting by turning any emoji, photo subject or even Live Photo (short video) into a sticker you can drag into any text bubble — or anywhere you use emoji.

Three years after it came out, Bluetti’s stalwart AC200P power station remains a high-value tool for all your power needs — whether you’re camping in a remote spot or living through a power outage at home. Right from the start, Bluetti’s all-in-one generator stood out because of its outstanding features and competitive price.

Along with macOS Sonoma and its new features will come Safari 17, the new iteration of Apple’s web browser. It brings an enhanced browsing experience with an even greater emphasis than before on privacy, and most changes will probably apply to iOS and iPadOS, as well.

The changes aren’t terribly glamorous, but beefed-up Private Browsing protects against prying eyes online and off, in addition to some other security enhancements.

And in terms of organization, the new Profiles feature helps you keep separate parts of your life separate and website apps keep your favorite sites at your fingertips.

Apple said Monday in the WWDC23 Keynote that tvOS 17 brings FaceTime to Apple TV 4K for the first time. So you can put your calls with family, friends and colleagues on the biggest screen you have.

“tvOS 17 transforms the biggest screen in the home with FaceTime and new video conferencing capabilities, giving Apple TV 4K users the ability to easily connect with anyone right from their living room,” said Bob Borchers, Apple’s vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing.

“New features and enhancements make Apple TV simpler to use and even more enjoyable, reinforcing it as the absolute best option in the living room for Apple customers,” he added.

Apple unveiled macOS 14 — aka macOS Sonoma — at WWDC23 Monday. It brings new gaming functionality, desktop widgets, video screensavers and Safari browser upgrades. That’s in addition to cross-device compatibility reflecting some of the new iOS 17 and iPadOS 17 features.

“Introducing macOS Sonoma a big new release that will make your Mac more delightful and even more productive,” said Craig Federighi, Apple’s senior vice president of Software Engineering.

“First, many of the features we talked about earlier on iOS and iPad OS are going to be great on the Mac. And macOS Sanoma brings a rich set of features that elevate the experience of macOS,” he added.

You may already have a mouse pad in your computer setup, but what about a desk mat? Similar concepts in some ways, those two. But many folks may not even think of a desk mat as a necessary item in a computer setup. Or they may consider it an afterthought rather than any sort of priority.

But the humble desk mat, reminiscent of grandpa’s desk blotter, has its benefits. And that came up with today’s featured, desk-mat-free M1 MacBook Air setup.

Maybe all this talk of superior AI chatbots is getting to Apple’s voice assistant. Siri interrupted a radio broadcast Saturday during a double-header matchup between the Boston Red Sox and the Tampa Bay Rays.

The voice assistant had a pretty good reason. The announcer said Siri’s name. But he was talking about Rays outfielder Jose Siri coming up to bat.

And Siri’s response was apparently unintelligible. Typical swing and a miss.

Calling WWDC23 Apple’s “most significant product launch event in nearly a decade,” a report Friday relayed new information about the event’s headlining hardware — Apple’s first AR/VR headset.

While the headset won’t go on sale for months, WWDC attendees and media can try demonstrations of it in a large new structure at Apple Park, and in future demos throughout the summer.

Some computer setups blow you away with the sheer number of components they include. Today’s featured M1 Mac mini rig not only has five computing devices — not counting a whole wall full of gaming systems — its gear list at the bottom of this post includes 33 items.

And that doesn’t even count the 3D printer, smartphones and a bunch of other items the user showcased.

Want to make Siri smart again and help boost Apple’s artificial-intelligence chops across the board? A recent Apple job posting shows it seeks “machine-learning engineers with a background and/or interest in conversational and generative AI.”

“This role will play a critical part in helping Apple change the way humans learn about learning,” the listing noted.

Hard to say if the new engineers will inject more gray matter into Siri, but one source suggests they might work on device-based apps for Apple’s AR/VR headset, expected to show on Monday at WWDC23 Monday.

Apple Card Savings accounts launched to great acclaim recently with their high yield, but some customers are complaining that withdrawing money and transferring funds through the Goldman Sachs-held accounts takes too long.

And some are leaving, according to a new report.