Apple has launched a major project to allow alternative app stores on iPhones and iPads by 2024. The effort is meant to comply with the European Union’s Digital Markets Act, which comes fully into force then, and other possible national or regional laws that will make Apple allow sideloading of apps, according to new report Tuesday.
The end result should see Apple allowing people to download third-party software to iPhones and iPads from somewhere other than the App Store for the first time.
Need ideas for practical stocking stuffers that friends and family will actually use? The SwitchEasy Flash Sale in the Cult of Mac Store is on through 11:59 p.m. PST on December 13.
You can pick any of three compact wall chargers with USB-C and USB-A ports. There’s a potent 30W version, another 30W with cable storage and a tiny 20W version. Check them out.
The holiday season is fast-unfolding, and Christmas will be here before Hermey the elf from the classic Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer can say “Well, sir, someday I’d like to be a dentist.”
So it’s time to act fast if you want to get a gadget-y gift for the techie or geek in your life in time for deliveries by December 25. Check out some cool ideas below.
They’re all small enough to fit in a stocking; prices range from a cheap $20 to a few hundred bucks (for those very special stockings). And there’s plenty more good stuff in the Cult of Mac Store.
A number of devices across Eve Systems’ product lineup are receiving support for the home automation networking standard Matter with a new, optional firmware update, the company said Monday.
Matter support — which lets devices from different makers work together over the same network — will come to Thread-enabled devices in the company’s Eve Door and Window, Eve Motion and Eve Energy lineups.
Ahoy there, would-be video streamers — today’s featured computer setup comes from an airtight and seaworthy pro streaming operation you might want to emulate.
The folks behind Sailing Illustrated streams shared their rig, based on a Mac Studio, an M1 Mac mini, an M1 MacBook Pro, a Rode RodeCaster Pro production studio and a slew of related gear and software.
Just in time for the holidays, DJI released a tiny, more affordable version of its DJI Mini 3 Pro drone. Just subtract the world “Pro” from the name.
The new DJI Mini 3 weighs in at a svelte 249 grams (8.78 ounces) or less and shoots detail-rich, 4K HDR video, the company said.
Some setups are no-nonsense, just the facts, ma’am — strictly utilitarian. Others are fanciful and full of toys. Today’s featured setup leans toward the latter, with its burgeoning population of Transformer figures crowding the shelf above the display and even related wall art.
And there’s plenty of gaming going on there, too, via a custom gaming PC and Nintendo Switch OLED in addition to an M1 MacBook Air and 12.9-inch iPad Pro.
Oh, and it has one of the coolest speaker systems ever made, too.
“Get your bling on with the Casetify Glitter Apple Watch Band!” says Casetify in its listing for the distinctive band. And at this time of year, the festive bands — available in four fun colors — seem especially merry.
But you can rock the sparkling band any time of year for whatever festivities you’re into. Just head to the Cult of Mac Store.
Are your Apple accessories and cables becoming a messy hassle, especially when you travel? Mujjo, known for its vegan leather products, unveiled a new collection of eco-friendly nylon tech organizers Thursday.
The Mujjo Tech Kit and Tech Case help keep your growing gaggle of tech accessories tidy and untangled, the company said.
‘Tis the season for outstanding and affordable accessories for your Apple products, and Momax is playing Santa Claus. The company offers 10 great products for travelers, work-from-home toilers and Apple power users alike.
And rest assured, in addition to discounts available on Amazon for the devices, you can take another 15% off with the special coupon code CULTXMAS2022. Happy holidays!
Apple TV+ offered a first look at season 3 of its award-winning drama Truth Be Told Thursday, introducing a new cast member in the process.
Actress Gabrielle Union joins Oscar-winner Octavia Spencer on the NAACP Image Award-winning show. Season 3 kicks off on January 20.
Apple and its employees have raised more than $880 million in charitable giving for nearly 44,000 groups all over the world since the Employee Giving program started 11 years ago, the company said Thursday.
As part of that, more than 76,000 Apple workers have put in over 2.1 million volunteer hours. Apple matches employee giving and volunteer hours with donations, too, in addition to its corporate grants to organizations.
Apple said Wednesday users are gaining three new security features to protect their data in the cloud, with some available now and some to come. The overall program is called Advanced Data Protection.
The three new functions to help keep data and communications safe are iMessage Contact Key Verification, Security Keys for Apple ID and Advanced Data Protection for iCloud, the company said.
The Critics Choice Association showered Apple TV+ Tuesday with 10 nominations for the upcoming 28th Annual Critics Choice Awards. They include Best Drama Series nods for workplace psycho-drama Severance and dark comedy-drama Bad Sisters, plus Best Foreign Language Series noms for Pachinko and Tehran.
Nominations honored six series in total. The other two nominations covered acting in prison suspense thriller Black Bird and family drama The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey. See more specifics below.
In today’s featured computer setup, owned by a web developer, a 2012 Mac mini shares the spotlight with a new 16-inch M1 MacBook Pro.
Before you think, “Wow, the Mac mini must be amazing, competing with that sleek new laptop,” nah, this is more like take-your-great-grandfather-to-work day for the elderly little desktop machine.
It’s around because it still works for light lifting. And it does indeed show impressive longevity.
So you think you’ve got style? Well, is your GaN charger decked out in Italian leather? We didn’t think so. But now it can be, if you order the powerful and stylish VogDUO 65-watt Slim GaN Charger.
In a sea of white, black and gray plastic wall warts, this incredibly unique-looking GaN charger really stands out. And it’s available right now at a 15% discount. Plus, you can order it as a gift with that same discount in time for Christmas. That way, you can give the practical gift of power and style to a friend or family member.
Apple said Tuesday the App Store is undergoing “the most comprehensive upgrade to pricing capabilities” since its launch, allowing prices to be set as low as 29 cents and as high as $10,000.
It will start offering developers 700 new price points to apply to the apps they sell, plus new tools to make international selling easier to manage.
Just ahead the holidays, Sabrent offered a new set of solid state drives (SSD) that could be a perfect little gift for any techie on your list — the updated Sabrent Rocket Nano V2.
The redesigned version, no larger than a “fun-sized” candy bar, supports fast data transfer speeds and can store up to 4TB. And they can fit in someone’s pocket.
It’s not easy to find the perfect iPad case, whether you’re walking around with a little iPad mini 6, a standard 10.2-inch iPad or the latest 12.9-inch iPad Pro. But it gets a lot easier if you know about Zugu Case. The company’s practical and attractive cases are among the highest-rated and best-reviewed iPad cases in the world for a reason.
So cease your searching. You just found the Zugu iPad case you didn’t know you were looking for.
If you’re looking for a new podcast to addict yourself to, you’re in luck. Apple Podcasts unveiled the podcasts, episodes and channels its listeners paid the most attention to in 2022 (and in the case of subscriber shows and channels, paid the most money to, apparently).
Check out how Apple Podcasts sliced and diced its most popular content in the lists below. You might find a great new way to spend off-time during the holidays.
The Los Angeles-based company Azio successfully crowd-funded its Cascade 75 mechanical keyboard on Kickstarter last year. Now it’s back with the Cascade 98, a 98% layout keyboard with a full-sized number pad that comes in slim or regular profiles. It has surpassed its funding goal.
Keychron and others have led the way with low-profile mechanical keyboards that don’t stand as tall as the classics. Azio said their new version is the first one with a full-sized number pad.
Apple’s AirTag tracking device can be a lifesaver, whether you’ve lost something valuable or suffered theft. And what makes AirTag even better? A simple, secure device that protects it and attaches it to your valuable, whether that’s a suitcase or your pet dog.
That would be the Elkson AirTag Holder with Keychain, brand new to the Cult of Mac Store. And for a limited time, you can get the holder and keychain for 47% off the regular price. That’s a savings of $7.
Occasionally a computer setup crops up that just makes you say, “WTF?” That’s what a colleague said about a DIY extravaganza he came across in which three 30-inch Cinema Displays were mounted under glass inside a desk.
The Cinema Display imagery shows up on a mammoth 85-inch screen above — all in a huge, homemade desk assembly. WTF, indeed.
★★★★☆
If you ever work on the road, you know relying on your laptop for sound can be as disappointing as relying on it instead of an external display for visuals. Not every laptop has great — or even good — speakers.
Enter Edifier and its MF200 Portable Bluetooth Speaker. The company sent me one for review. The elegant little wedge-shaped soundbar can add plenty of power and clarity to “meh” laptop speakers.
But that doesn’t necessarily mean the MF200 blows away all laptop speakers, as I’ll explain below.
“In a world like this, you can have it all,” says actor Billy Crudup, from The Morning Show, at the top of a new Apple TV+ trailer. It’s called “Apple TV+ Winter 2022 & Beyond | Official Preview,” and it’s all about year-end fare on the streaming service and what you can look forward to in 2023.
It short YouTube video may not give you all, as the Crudup clip implies, but it shows a lot of quality entertainment on tap now and upcoming.