Ed Hardy has been writing full-time about tech for 25 years, and using it for much longer than that. His intro to Apple was a Macintosh Classic II (which he still has), but now he uses a 13-inch iPad Pro as his primary computer. He’s written for NotebookReview, TabletPCReview, and Brighthand, as well as other sites.
Apple wants relief from Trump's tariffs on Apple Watch and other products imported from China. Photo: Leander Kahney/Cult of Mac
Apple requested exemptions for the import taxes it must pay when bringing many of its products from China. Currently, the Trump administration levies these on Apple Watch, AirPods, iMac and more.
These tariffs went into place in September as Apple got caught up in President Donald Trump’s trade war with China.
Apple wants to make iPad Pro an even better laptop replacement. Photo: Apple
Huawei has often been guilty of introducing products “inspired” by Apple designers, and it’s apparently doing so again with an upcoming tablet. Leaked images of the Huawei MatePad Pro show it looks almost exactly like an iPad Pro. Even the name is copied.
With Adonit Note+, you can draw Tippy. Or take notes, sign PDFs, and more. Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
Adonit Note+ is a pressure-sensitive iPad stylus that stands up well in a head-to-head competition with Apple Pencil, and even beats it in some areas. It offers tilt detection and pressure sensitivity, as well as shortcut buttons. All at a price definitely lower than Apple’s stylus.
We used this Apple Pencil alternative for both writing and drawing — read our Adonit Note+ review to see how it handles in real-world use.
Apple Arcade gets preferential treatment. Allegedly. Photo: Apple
Two just-released Apple Arcade titles demonstrate the wide variety offerings in this gaming service. The Mosaic is about escaping the dreadful loneliness of modern life, while Monomals features silly animal DJs having a music contest.
Apple also added three other titles to its service, two of which are platformers.
This isn’t the only keyboard designed to match the 2019 Mac Pro. Photo: Apple
Everyone who was busy ogling the “cheesegrater” design of the 2019 Mac Pro can be forgiven for not paying attention to the keyboard. But Apple is prepping multiple keyboards that match the silver-and-black look of this powerful desktop.
An image of one of these not publicly seen before has come to light.
Revenue from iPad and accessories like Apple TV is up, but iPhone and Mac are down. Photo: Apple
A quick glance at the Apple Q4 2019 earnings report shows the company just finished a record three months, but a deeper dive into the numbers reveals how Apple managed to pull in more revenue than it ever has in a July-through-September period, including strong increases from wearables, iPad and Services.
Apple Watch’s heart-monitoring capabilities could see future improvements thanks to prominent cardiologists hired by Apple. Photo: Lewis Wallace/Cult of Mac
Dr. David Tsay recently joined Apple, apparently to bring new features to devices like the Apple Watch that monitor the wearer’s heart. He’s an expert in the field, and also just left a position as Associate Chief Transformation Officer for NewYork-Presbyterian Innovation Center.
This is the second prominent cardiologist brought onboard in two years.
What would the Star Wars saga be without droids and Kylo Renn? Photo: OtterBox
An addition to OtterBox’s Star Wars iPhone cases celebrates Kylo Ren wearing his helmet again, while a second salutes the droids that are so important to these films.
These two join cases with more than a dozen other designs from Lucasfilm’s ongoing sci-fi saga.
The 2019 Mac Pro along with the Pro Display XDR were unveiled at WWDC in June. Photo: Apple
The FCC just signed off on Apple’s next professional-grade desktop. The 2019 Mac Pro was announced this summer, and this approval clears the way for a release.
Zack Van Amburg and Jamie Erlicht got the tough job of building Apple TV+ from nothing. Photo: Apple
The first slate of Apple TV+ shows would seem to have little in common — they range from a teen comedy to a sci-fi epic — but the company’s top entertainment programming execs say they are all about relationships.
They also worked hard to make this new streaming service fit with the rest of Apple.
Apple might quietly unveil an iPhone 11 Smart Battery Case this week, like this one for last year’s handset. Photo: Apple
Rather than having an October event, Apple unveiled AirPods Pro today via press release. This sparked speculation that the company plans to quietly take the wraps off more products this week.
A release date for the Mac Pro, fresh Apple TV hardware, and other items could be announced, one each day.
The tiny GeoZilla GPS Tracker can be found anywhere cell phones work. Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
The GeoZilla GPS Tracker can find your dog if he gets out of the yard, even if he takes a plane to Reno. Or it can locate your lost luggage if the airline accidentally ships it to Australia.
There are plenty of tracking tags that can discover your keys in your living room, but the GeoZilla GPS Tracker uses built-in cellular-wireless access so it can be found anywhere.
Read on to find out if this is the ultra-portable global tracker you’ve been hoping for.
This Apple-1 has a mind-boggling price, but it’s nearly unique. Photo: krishmiti/eBay
The original Apple-1 is rare, but an eBay auction going on now is for a nearly unique version with a wood case made by the Byte Shop. There are reportedly only 6 of these still in existence. That’s why the seller is asking a cool $1,750,000.
Additions to Apple Arcade let you run around a barnyard as a muddy pig, or clobber legends of Slavic myth. Photo: Apple
Five newly released Apple Arcade games run the gamut from a side-scroller starring Lancelot wielding a laser sword all the way to a farmhand chasing down muddy pigs.
With these varied additions, Apple has almost reached the goal of 100 titles in its recently launched subscription gaming service.
An iPad Pro with Sentis Libra attached could be mistaken for a MacBook. Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
The Sentis Libra gives an iPad Pro a keyboard and trackpad, allowing it to act as both a tablet and a laptop — something no MacBook can do.
However, rival keyboard maker Brydge accuses Sentis of using its patented design. Cult of Mac has both a Libra prototype and the most recent Brydge Pro, and we compare the two and let everyone judge whether the accusations made against this device stand up.
The Libra is undoubtedly great, including a highly-functional trackpad. So the real question is, who deserves credit for the design?
Anker eufyCam 2 protects your privacy. Photo: Anker
Anker is adopting Apple’s tech that makes video security systems more private and secure. It’s upcoming eufyCam 2 uses the Apple Home app to stream live video directly to an iPhone or iPad, without going through an Anker server.
Not resting on their laurels, engineers are looking for ways to improve Apple Pencil. Photo: Apple/Cult of Mac
A next-generation Apple Pencil could have a built-in touchscreen. And it’s apparently an actual improvement, not just something bolted on to make it cost more. The display would let the user know what color they’re about to draw with.
The more-affordable iPhone 11 is outselling either of the Pro series models. Photo: Apple
The iPhone 11 along with the Pro series reportedly accounted for a sizable chunk of Apple’s August-through-September handset sales, even though they were only available for two weeks during that quarter.
The most popular new model is the 6.1-inch iPhone 11, which costs significantly less than that iPhone 11 Pro series.
CNN’s NewsCo will go head to head-with Apple’s news service, as well as ones from Facebook and others. Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
CNN is creating a news aggregator that will collect content from a variety of sources, with some portion of the service requiring a subscription. If this sounds familiar, it’s because that’s exactly what Apple News is.
There’s no coincidence — CNN thinks Apple and other big tech companies have too much control over the news.
Your next Apple Watch could be made by Foxconn, who also assembles iPhone and iPad. Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
Apple Watch might go through a big change behind the scenes. Until now, this wearable has been assembled mostly by Quanta, but that’s reportedly going to change next year. No less than three companies are going to take on the job.