David Snow - page 9

If you’re like me, Amazon Prime Day is partly about scoring cool stuff you otherwise find uncomfortably pricey. I can’t go around buying every set of headphones and earbuds that catch my eye. But with Prime Day headphones deals, maybe I can sneak something sweet-sounding past my sense of guilt, you know?

And so can you! Check out some of the absolute best Amazon Prime Days deals on headphones and earbuds below. I found wishlist-worthy cans and buds with savings of $100 or more (in some cases, much more — even discounts of $305 off primo open-back cans, $315 off top noise-canceling headphones and $150 off some seriously nice earbuds).

Apple prepares to launch its first major update to the Vision Pro AR/VR headset as early as this year, featuring a faster M4 processor and a redesigned strap aimed at addressing comfort complaints that have plagued the $3,499 device since its launch, according to a new report.

There’s still plenty of time left in Amazon Prime Day this week to snag deals on multi-device MagSafe chargers from Belkin and other makers. So if you want, say, Belkin’s MagSafe 3-in-1 Fast Wireless Charging Pad for nearly half off — or other good deals on chargers for iPhone, Apple Watch and AirPods from various companies — see the Amazon links below. And note that Prime Day prices may fluctuate.

Today’s featured setup sports an M1 Max MacBook Pro still going strong, but the user posted the workstation on social media to show off a newly added Mchose mechanical keyboard — an unfamiliar but solid-looking brand. And I couldn’t help notice the stellar audio gear in the mix, including excellent Yamaha studio monitors for focused sound in the room, plus a surprising array of great headphones and audio interfaces.

Right now you can get the best Amazon Prime Day Beats audio deals on great headphones and earbuds — some pretty close to their lowest prices ever. For example, a fresh price drop on Beats’ awesome flagship headphones, Beats Studio Pro, gives you a whopping $180 discount. At just $169.95, they’re 51% off and just $10 above their lowest-ever price.

Another great example? You can nab a whopping $80 off the excellent Beats Studio Buds+ at just $89.95 — a 47%-off discount! And you get the new Powerbeats Pro 2 sport earbuds for $198.95, or $80 off.

Portable wireless speakers these days give home audio a run for its money — but you can take them anywhere (or enjoy them on the kitchen counter or in the shower). The likes of Beats Pill and Bluetooth boxes from companies like Bose, JBL and Soundcore keep getting smaller, more waterproof and better sounding. So gear up for summer barbecues and fall hayrides — or just having better audio in the kitchen, for that matter. Check out Prime Day speaker deals on wireless units below.

Even with seasons five and six yet to stream, here comes Slow Horses season 7! Apple TV+ officially greenlit a seventh season of its hit spy drama “Slow Horses” Tuesday. So the adventures of dysfunctional British MI5 intelligence team continue. The announcement comes as the Emmy and BAFTA Award-winning series continues to garner critical acclaim and build a devoted fanbase.

“Slow Horses has won fans all over the world with its unique mix of self-deprecating British humor and high-octane action,” said Jay Hunt, creative director, Europe, Apple TV+. “I’m delighted viewers will have another season to enjoy Gary’s magnificent performance as Jackson Lamb alongside the Slow Horses’ slightly inept spycraft.”

Seems like smallish portable monitors are cropping up more often lately as fixtures in computer setups featuring other display options. Today’s dual-Mac setup sports a massive curved external display with an 18-inch portable just below, front and center.

And those aren’t the only two screens. A tablet mounted on an arm comes into play too, but it’s not an iPad.

Clever Cleaner is a new, completely free iPhone storage cleanup app that helps you reclaim valuable space, organize photo libraries and speed up your phone’s performance.

Developed by Clever Files, maker of popular data-recovery tool Disk Drill, it stands out in a crowded market for one simple reason: It actually delivers on its promises of fast iPhone cleaner app that’s completely free to use — and free of advertising.

“We believe everyone should have access to a high-quality, reliable and safe cleaning tool for your iPhone,” Clever Files says. “Clever Cleaner is our way of giving back to the community, ensuring people don’t have to sacrifice privacy or pay monthly subscriptions just to keep their devices organized.”

Apple Music Replay All Time launched Monday, letting listeners see which tracks they’ve played over their history with the service.

It comes as part of a broader 10th-anniversary celebration for the music-streaming service. Other upgrades include an upcoming top-500 Apple Music tracks countdown, special programming on Apple Music Radio and a new Apple Music studio planned to open in Los Angeles this summer.

Apple Music celebrates its 10th anniversary by opening an ambitious new creative music facility in Los Angeles, in addition to offering special programming on Apple Music Radio, the iPhone giant said Monday. The new studio signals the streaming service’s commitment to supporting artists and expanding beyond traditional music streaming.

“Apple Music Radio has always been a home for storytelling and artistry, serving as a space for bold conversations and surprising moments,” said Rachel Newman, Apple Music’s co-head. “With this new studio, we are furthering our commitment to creating a space for artists to create, connect and share their vision.”

Near the very top of my list of enviable things about computer setups sit two drool-worthy items — one, when the setup is in an irresistibly cool remodeled space, like a man cave or a she shed, and two, when the setup’s audio blows the dang roof off. Today’s expansive example is a multi-computer, multi-display outfit in the UK with a very special stereo system, one of Apple’s brilliant failures — iPod Hi-Fi. It’s so much more than an iPod dock.

A growing number of people rely on iPad tablets — particularly iPad Pro — as their main daily driver. And with iPadOS 26 software currently in beta testing and available to all in September, this will become even easier to do. Today’s featured iPad-Studio Display setup doesn’t abandon Mac — in fact, it includes a hidden M4 MacBook Pro — but it makes the most of iPad Pro and looks damn good doing it.

Apple TV+ heats up this summer with the true-crime drama Smoke season 1 igniting small screens everywhere Friday, with investigators on the trail of two serial arsonists. The streamer recently revealed a first look and a trailer, below, for the nine-episode series, starring and executive produced by Taron Egerton. And now you can watch the show on Apple TV+.

Inspired by the popular podcast Firebug, Smoke reunites the creative team behind Apple’s critically acclaimed limited psycho-drama Black Bird. It should appeal to fans of crime dramas, psychological thrillers and the previous Dennis Lehane-Egerton collaboration on Black Bird. Smoke looks like a must-watch addition to the Apple TV+ lineup.

Update 2: Smoke streams as of Friday, June 27, on Apple TV+. Reviews so far are mixed but leaning positive. The Boston Globe said the show “stretches too much story over too many episodes.” But The Guardian said “no TV show has ever been worth sticking with more,” adding the “smart, mesmerizing and hugely entertaining” series more than pays off after the first two somewhat shaky episodes.

Update 1: Apple TV+ just released a new trailer for upcoming drama series Smoke. Clocking in at just over 2 minutes, the tense trailer pits two would-be allies — the Fire Dept. arson investigator played by Egerton and the Police crime scene expert played by Jurnee Smollett — against each other in a psychological game with a timer on it. When will the arsonists, whoever they are, kill again? And at least one of them might be Egerton’s character.

Apple celebrated 20 years of Apple podcasts on Thursday by unveiling a curated collection of 20 shows that it said helped shape the medium into what it is today. The first podcasts in iTunes debuted back in 2005, before the name “Apple Podcasts” became a thing. This new list is like a roadmap to quality content that goes back in time.

“This list is a love letter to the podcasts that left a lasting impact on us and the ones we continue to recommend again and again,” the streamer wrote. “They are shows with hosts that feel like friends, and shows that make us press play immediately on the latest episode to hear what happens next. These shows have measurably improved our lives and helped define this medium we know and love.”

I’ve been amazed lately about how incredibly good affordable headphones from brands like EarFun, Soundcore and Edifier continue to get. When I tested the recently released EarFun Tune Pro cans for a review, I had a hard time telling them apart, in several important ways, from the excellent — and much more expensive — Beats Studio Pro. And now you can get an EarFun Tune Pro headphones deal on Amazon for an even lower price — just $53.99 (for a limited time).

Our friends at Anker Solix built a big launch sale on Wednesday around their new rolling beast of a backup power plant for your home, appliances and Apple devices — the F3000 Portable Power Station. Right now you can get an amazing $1,000 off the electrical generator itself. And in addition to the basic F3000 Portable Power Station launch deal, you can score even more savings on bundles pairing it with other essentials, like extension batteries, solar panels and power cables.

The launch sale with all the options below runs through Wednesday, July 2.

Apple TV+ subscribers will soon get an exclusive look inside one of college basketball’s greatest dynasties. It’s a new three-part documentary series focused on the University of Connecticut (UCONN) women’s basketball program. The series chronicles four decades of unprecedented success under legendary head coach Geno Auriemma. That includes the team’s most recent triumph as 2025 NCAA National Champions, of course. No other team, men or women, has won so many championships — 12.

“This series offers fans an exclusive view into 40 seasons of UConn women’s basketball, and I’m really excited for audiences to be able to see all the hard work that has built this program,” Auriemma said.

The three-part documentary series doesn’t have a title or a streaming date yet, however.

Sometimes a computer setup may look basic or boring at a glance — but it still might get the job done quite well and pack some surprisingly cool gear. Today’s featured setup, centered on an M3 MacBook Air with dual monitors, is a good example. It features not only Apple’s great lightweight laptop driving a pair of displays, but some other solid peripherals — like a Harman Kardon Bluetooth speaker I’ve never seen before in a setup featured on Cult of Mac.

And while the user seemed unsure his not-super-cool setup warranted posting on social media, he ended up getting lots of reassurance and good advice for improvements.

The new Apple Sports app version 3.0 dropped Wednesday, packing significant improvements that should make following your favorite teams and matches easier than ever on iPhone. The update brings a redesigned home screen with more personalization, some new baseball features and, more importantly for certain sports fans, new coverage of professional tennis — just in time for Wimbledon!

Here’s some encouraging news for Apple users eagerly awaiting the next generation of smart wearable — new technology could cool down overheating smart glasses. The world’s first active cooling system small enough to fit inside the frame of smart glasses arrives with µCooling fan-on-a-chip technology, xMEMS Labs said Tuesday.

That potentially addresses one of the biggest obstacles facing AR glasses projects like Apple’s rumored one. A sophisticated system in a frame generates heat against a user’s skin, and a passive heat sink may not dissipate it enough.

JetBlue Airways now offers real-time baggage tracking through its mobile app and supports Apple AirTag location sharing to help recover delayed or misplaced luggage, the airline said Monday. So now it joins other airlines in AirTag/Find My network integration. As such, JetBlue’s new changes should certainly appeal to Apple device users on the go.

“We are constantly looking for ways to offer our customers a more convenient travel experience,” said Carol Clements, JetBlue’s chief digital and technology officer. “As part of our JetForward strategy, we’re focused on delivering the products and perks our customers want. This new in-app bag tracking feature, along with AirTag location sharing for baggage recovery, are designed to bring customers peace of mind when checking their bags with JetBlue.”

I’d call it a rare sighting in setups featured on Cult of Mac, but I think it’s actually a first sighting ever — stacked dual displays held together by hinges. As such, they’re actually one product, the Uperfect Delta Dual Portable Monitor. To say the least, it’s unusual to see one in a home setup, driven in this case by an M4 MacBook Pro. And those two screens make up just half the setup’s total of four.

EarFun Clip earbuds entered an increasingly crowded open-ear clip-on audio market Monday, promising premium features at a midrange $70 price point at launch (normally $89.99). In my EarFun Clip Open-Ear Wireless Earbuds review, I find they don’t fit me very well (I guess my big head means big ears, too). But they may suit many buyers, and the lightweight earbuds challenge the notion that you need to spend well over $100 for quality open-ear audio.

While brands like Sony and Soundcore are better known, EarFun has quietly developed open-ear wireless earbuds that deserve attention, particularly for active users who need awareness of their surroundings. For those they fit, EarFun Clip offers great sound at a great price.

Apple posted a clever new marketing tool Friday that puts students in charge of making their own sales pitch — a customizable template called The Parent Presentation, designed to help convince parents that a Mac is essential for college success. And it comes complete with a video demo by comedian and Saturday Night Live performer Martin Herlihy (part of the trio behind those Please Don’t Destroy digital shorts videos, which are a lot funnier than his work here, to be honest).

Update: Apple made the YouTube video private for unknown reasons Saturday. It remains offline, although The Parent Presentation is still available as a free download.