Don’t think you’re going to add a new HomePod 2 to your original HomePod to make a stereo pair. It’s not possible because pairs can only be made with two of the same model.
It’s not a new limitation – a first-generation HomePod can’t be in a stereo pair with a HomePod mini, either. But many people might be unaware of the restriction.
Apple unveiled HomePod 2 on Wednesday, bringing its full-size smart speaker back from the dead. The new model offers high-quality audio and new smart-home features, but comes in at the same price as its predecessor.
“With the popularity of HomePod mini, we’ve seen growing interest in even more powerful acoustics achievable in a larger HomePod. We’re thrilled to bring the next generation of HomePod to customers around the world,” said Greg Joswiak, Apple’s SVP of worldwide marketing, in a press release.
Those who prefer to get their Apple announcements via video don’t have to feel left out. Although the 2023 MacBook Pro and Mac mini didn’t get a big, glitzy press event, and were instead unveiled Tuesday via press release, Cupertino created a launch video much like the ones put out with previous products.
Watch as John Ternus, SVP for Hardware Engineering, plays host to announce the latest macOS notebook and desktop.
The just-announced 2023 MacBook Pro includes Apple M2 Pro or M2 Max chips, but these weren’t made with the newest 3nm process. That will have to wait until the 2024 versions, according to a reliable source of insider info.
At least the wait supposedly won’t be much more than a year for the faster, more efficient processors.
Part of the reason the 2023 MacBook Pro looks amazing is the wallpapers Apple used. But obviously you don’t have to buy the new notebook just to get the wallpapers. They’re available to download now.
Get them to dress up your own MacBook.
The telephoto lens in the iPhone 15 Pro will get a noticeable jump in image quality if a series of leaks about a periscope lens turn out to be accurate.
The change should also shink the thickness of the camera hump.
The most important feature of the new Hyper Thunderbolt 4 Power Hub is something it doesn’t have: a giant power brick. The three-port hub offers 40Gbps data transfers as its rivals do, but in a more compact form.
The device was unveiled in summer 2022 and went through crowdfunding but is only now available for all to buy.
A Canadian regulatory agency recently approved a MacBook Pro that Apple itself has yet to announce. Few details were leaked aside from the notebook supporting Wi-Fi 6E, an improvement on the current version of the short-range wireless networking standard.
Currently, only the newest iPad Pro has Wi-Fi 6E.
To snooze a wake-up alarm on your iPhone, you can tap the screen or press any button. Or you might build an elaborate mechanism that spans most of your bedroom and sends the handset on a wild adventure. That’s what one inventor recently did.
The Rube Goldberg device is the creation of Joseph Herscher, who makes them for a living.
The time when iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max buyers could expect a long wait to get Apple’s latest are over. The top-of-the-line iOS handsets can now be ordered from the Apple store for next-day delivery.
That’s a far cry from last fall when the wait stretched out over a month.
You may have felt a seismic shift recently. The origin was Apple Park in Cupertino, where Tim Cook and Co. decided to start work on a touchscreen MacBook Pro. This is something the company has been adamantly against for many years, going back to a scathing comment from the late Steve Jobs.
But the computing world has changed enormously since Jobs mocked touchscreen laptops. Today, there are plenty of reasons for Apple to make one.
Apple apparently plans to re-release its update to the underlying architecture of its HomeKit home-automation system in the near future. The upgraded platform for the Home app is included in the latest iOS and iPadOS betas.
The company briefly made this update available to all users in December before withdrawing it due to unspecified problems.
The iPhone 15 is expected to get a facelift along with other design changes, and a new concept video and images present a very early look at the handset Apple might launch this autumn.
The concept artist started with details that have leaked out already and mixed in some of their own hopes. The result is splendid.
Illustrated is a new puzzle game — literally. Players put together jigsaw puzzle pieces to assemble beautiful illustrations.
Putting puzzles together is a meditative process for many, and the new game embraces that, with each containing a quote or other wisdom. It’s now available on Apple Arcade for iPhone, Mac and more.
Windows 11 users can now download preview versions of the Apple Music and Apple TV applications.
In late 2022, Microsoft committed to getting them into the Windows Store this year.
And a new Apple Devices app is a significant move toward phasing out iTunes for Windows.
Apple is reportedly phasing out traditional buttons, starting with the iPhone 15 Pro models. The handsets will still seem to have them, but it’ll be a high-tech trick performed with haptic feedback.
The change should make the iOS devices more durable and waterproof.
Apple Business Connect is a new tool that enables businesses to claim their location place cards in Apple Maps, Messages, Wallet, Siri and other apps.
It debuted Wednesday, and owners of businesses of all sizes can now customize their place cards.
Apple’s shipments of Mac desktops and notebooks grew modestly in 2022, according to market research firm. That’s in stark contrast to shipments of PCs that dropped enormously last year.
And Apple could have done even better if it hadn’t pushed back the release of new Macs past the fourth quarter.
Adonit Star is an iPad stylus for those who love antiques but don’t want to forgo modern technology. It’s designed to look like a fountain pen, not the usual plastic pencil.
It’s an accessory any 19th century lawyer would be proud to own. But is surprisingly affordable.
The Face ID sensors reportedly will be hidden from users in next year’s iPhone 16 Pro. That would free up space for more screen area.
If true, under-display Face ID might mean that the days of the Dynamic Island are numbered, even though the feature only recently debuted in the iPhone 14 Pro.
★★★★☆
Your Mac and MacBook can easily share a monitor, and quickly flip between them, with the IOGear 2-Port 4K USB-C KVM Switch with DisplayPort Output.
I tested it in my home office, and it really reduces the hassle of switching between two computers. And it lets the computers easily share a wired mouse and keyboard.
Apple will bring a microLED screen to its wrist wearable, according to a reliable source of insider info. This would replace the OLED displays currently in Apple Watch.
A switch to microLED would bring an improved type of screen: brighter and less prone to burn-in.
Apple’s drawn-out effort to make its own 5G modem will reportedly begin to bear fruit in 2024. This will replace ones now sourced from Qualcomm.
And the iPhone-maker is also working to produce other wireless chips it currently gets from Broadcom.
iPhone users can now find a parking space with Apple Maps. Starting Monday, the navigation application has SpotHero built in, giving parking options for more than 8,000 locations across North America.
The feature is free, though the spaces are not. Here’s how to use it.
The iPhone 15 is reportedly in trial production, a fairly early stage in bringing the product to market. Still, it means the final feature set and design are essentially complete and Apple is thinking about assembling the device.
Trial production is going on at a Foxconn plant in China. The iPhone 15 will also be made in India.