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Rajesh Pandey - page 23

macOS Sequoia brings iPhone and Mac closer than ever

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Apple software chief Craig Federighi unveils macOS Sequoia at WWDC24.
And the next Mac operating system is ... macOS Sequoia!
Photo: Apple

Apple Let Loose Event: macOS Sequoia brings the “incredible features” of iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 to your Mac. This includes improvements to the Messages app, Math Notes and more.

Craig Federighi, the Apple software VP who unveiled macOS Sequoia during Monday’s WWDC24 keynote, said the new Mac operating system “introduces even more features to help you effortlessly get things done.”

iOS 18 could bring an even better Dark Mode

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The App Store is slowly filling with applications that support Dark Mode.
Dark Mode is one of many features made possible by the iOS 13 SDK.
Photo: Apple

iOS 18 could add a dark tint to the iPhone’s Home Screen app icons in Dark Mode. This should give them a stealthy look and help them blend with the system’s overall dark theme.

Additionally, Apple will allow you to lock first-party apps like Mail and Messages in iOS 18 using Face ID.

M3 MacBook Air now available on Apple’s refurbished store

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2024 MacBook Air
Buy refurbished M3 MacBook Air from Apple and save big.
Photo: Apple

You can now buy a refurbished M3 MacBook Air directly from Apple in the US. The company recently updated its Certified Refurbished store, listing the new Air.

Depending on your desired model, you can save up to $200 on the refurbished M3 MacBook Air.

Your bedside table deserves this 3-in-1 charging station [Review] ★★★★

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ESR Qi2 3-in-1 charging station★★★★
ESR's Qi2 3-in-1 charging station can wirelessly fast charge your iPhone, Apple Watch, and AirPods.
Photo: Rajesh Pandey/Cult of Mac

A multidevice charger like the ESR Qi2 3-in-1 Wireless Charging Station is a must-have, especially if you own an iPhone, Apple Watch and AirPods. A 3-in-1 charger removes the hassle of dealing with multiple power bricks and cables, which occupy unwanted desk space and power sockets.

ESR recently launched its Qi2 3-in-1 wireless charging station, which stands out for its Qi2 support and detachable Apple Watch charger. Its small footprint, sturdy design and welcome extras make it a solid contender for a prime spot on your nightstand.

Apple’s newest Macs and iPads ship with hidden Thread radio

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Apple Magic Keyboard for M4 iPad Pro
Apple could be future-proofing its Macs and iPads with this move.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

iPhone 15 Pro and 2nd gen HomePod are not the only Apple devices to ship with a Thread router. The company has secretly shipped all its recent iPad and Mac models with the smart home radio as well.

Unlike on the iPhones though, the Thread router is not active. This could explain why Apple has not advertised its inclusion in the specs page of its new Macs and iPads.

iPhone’s standard warranty no longer covers hairline display cracks

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Apple-Store-logo
Apple wants you to pay for hairline crack repairs now.
Photo: Laurenz Heymann/Unsplash

Apple just made a major change to its standard warranty terms for the iPhone and Apple Watch. Going forward, the company will no longer cover a single hairline crack under its warranty.

Instead, users must pay for the repair or claim accidental damage under their AppleCare plan.

Apple wants to bring Apple TV+ to China

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Apple may simplify its TV app for users by the end of the year.
Apple is looking at ways to bring Apple TV+ and Apple Arcade to China.
Photo: Apple

Apple held talks with China Mobile in 2023 to bring Apple TV+ and Apple Arcade to China. If the two parties agree, Apple will gain access to over 200 million of China Mobile’s broadband and TV customers.

It is unclear whether Apple and China Mobile are still in talks and have reached an agreement.

iPhone 16 Pro’s display could sport seriously small bezels

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In a break, Apple may use
Apple really wants to slim down the bezels on the iPhone 16 Pro.
Graphic: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

The iPhone 16 Pro could sport the world’s slimmest bezels on a smartphone. Its borders will apparently measure just 1.2mm, with the iPhone 16 Pro Max having even slimmer bezels at 1.15mm.

The slimmer bezels should help offset the size increase due to Apple using larger displays on its 2024 iPhones.

Apple’s 2024 iPad Air features a binned M2 chip with 9-core GPU

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The 2024 iPad Air lineup comes in two new colors, blue and purple, in addition to silver and space gray.
M2 iPad Air's GPU configuration is not what Apple initially claimed.
Photo: Apple

Apple’s 2024 iPad Air ships with a binned M2 chip featuring a 9-core GPU. The company’s original announcement claimed it packs a 10-core GPU.

The Cupertino giant silently updated the iPad Air’s tech specs page to reflect this change.

iMessage could let you animate words in texts in iOS 18

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Court filings show why Apple didn't port iMessage to Android.
Text animation effects might be coming to iMessage in iOS 18.
Photo: Alexander Shatov/Unsplash CC

Apple could add new text effects to iMessage in iOS 18. One of the effects reportedly includes the ability to animate individual words in a message. If you’re curious about how to bold text in iMessage, Apple has some useful tricks that can help make your messages stand out.

iMessage, Apple’s proprietary instant messaging service, already supports many message effects and animations to add some excitement to texts. The possible new text effects in iOS 18 should make things even more eye-catching and fun.

Siri could let you control individual apps in iOS 18

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Siri with AI artificial intelligence
AI could finally give us the Siri we deserve.
Photo: Cult of Mac/Nadezhda Moryak

As a part of its AI upgrade, Siri in iOS 18 will reportedly enable control of individual apps through your voice. Apple has supposedly  upgraded its voice assistant’s underlying architecture using LLMs to achieve this.

Additionally, Apple will process many basic AI tasks on-device in iOS 18 for faster response and a better user experience.

M2 iPad Pro vs. M2 iPad Air: Should you upgrade?

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M2 iPad Pro vs. M2 iPAd Air comparison
Should you ditch your Pro for the newest Air?
Image: Apple/Rajesh Pandey/Cult of Mac

Apple’s recently released M2 iPad Air packs modest upgrades over its predecessor and the same processor as 2022’s M2 iPad Pro. How do the two Apple tablets with identical M2 chips compare? Find out in our M2 iPad Pro vs. M2 iPad Air comparison.

While the new midrange tablet seems tempting, an iPad Air is still an Air, not a Pro.

iPhone sales in China rebound thanks to discounts

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The iPhone 15 Pro Max camera array, pictured in front of a green plant.
iPhone sales in China reportedly spiked by 52%.
Photo: Lyle Kahney/Cult of Mac

iPhone shipments apparently bounced back sharply in China in recent months. Apple reportedly saw a 52% increase in shipments following heavy discounts by third-party retailers.

Since the beginning of 2024, Apple has seen a double-digit decline in iPhone demand in China. A resurgent Huawei also made things difficult for Apple, as the Chinese company registered a sales growth of 69.9% in the first quarter.

iOS 18 could feature generative AI-powered custom emoji tool

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Emoji search coming in iOS 14
iOS 18 might let you create custom emoji using generative AI.
Photo: Bernard Hermant

Apple might use generative AI in iOS 18 to allow iPhone users to create custom emojis, letting them express themselves just the way they want. The company is already at the forefront of adding the latest Unicode emoji to iOS.

Additionally, Apple is working on an AI-powered smart recaps feature. It will provide you with a summary of your missed notifications, new messages, documents, and more.

iOS 18 could bring new Home Screen personalization options

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iOS 18 concept video
iOS 18 could allow you to change the app icon colors on your iPhone's Home Screen.
Concept: Kevin Kall

iOS 18 reportedly will let iPhone users change app icon colors on the Home Screen. Plus, they would be able to put the icons anywhere they want.

Since iOS’ inception, app icons on iPhone’s Home Screen have snapped to a grid, much to the dismay of some users. However, Apple could finally tweak this behavior with iOS 18.

iPhone 14 listed on Apple’s refurbished store with big discounts

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iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max brought big-time camera-system upgrades.
You can now buy a refurbished iPhone 14 directly from Apple.
Photo: Leander

Nearly 20 months after its launch, Apple has started selling refurbished iPhone 14 through its Certified Refurbished store. For now, the refurbished units are only on sale in the US.

You can purchase any model from the iPhone 14 model from Apple’s Certified Refurbished store, including the iPhone 14 Pro Max.

Ikea Sjöss 45W charger: Why buy anything else? [Review] ★★★★

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Ikea Sjöss 45W charger review★★★★
The Ikea Sjöss 45W is the best dual USB-C charger you can buy for cheap.
Photo: Rajesh Pandey/Cult of Mac

Plenty of power bricks with dual USB-C ports give you options for charging your Apple devices. But Ikea — yes, the company known for its DIY furniture — has a new offering that trumps them all from a value viewpoint. As you’ll find out in our review of the Ikea Sjöss 45W charger, it packs two USB-C ports and supports all popular fast charging standards.

The effective power adapter stands out for its super-low price, which significantly undercuts the competition. Below is our quick review of the Ikea Sjöss 45W USB-C charger.

Apple details iOS 17.5 bug that resurfaced deleted photos

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iPhone 15 telephoto camera
Old photos that resurfaced on your iPhone due to a bug were not seen by anyone else.
Screenshot: Apple

Apple provided more details Thursday about a nasty iOS 17.5 bug that resurfaced old and deleted photos for some iPhone users. Since the software glitch resurfaced photos from as far back as 2010, some people theorized that iCloud Photos secretly stored their deleted images.

However, Apple shot down such theories in its explanation. (The company rolled out iOS 17.5.1 on Tuesday to patch the bug.)

M4 iPad Pro vs. M2 iPad Pro comparison: What’s different?

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M4 iPad Pro vs. M2 iPad Pro comparison
Should you ditch your M2 iPad Pro and get the M4 iPad Pro?
Photo: Apple/Rajesh Pandey

Apple’s newest M4 iPad Pros pack the best display technology, the company’s latest and greatest M4 processor, and other keen advances. But exactly how do the latest tablets differ from their M2-powered predecessors? Our M4 iPad Pro vs. M2 iPad Pro comparison reveals the answers to questions you might have.

Should you upgrade to the 13-inch iPad Pro with M4 chip if you already own the M2 12.9-inch iPad Pro? And what about the 11-inch model? Find out in this head-to-head comparison that pits the M4 iPad Pro against the M2 iPad Pro.

Apple’s online Education Store gets a fresh new look

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Apple's revamped online education store
Apple's Education Store gets a fresh new look.
Image: Apple

Apple’s Education Store has received a big visual makeover. The new design is similar to Apple’s online store, which switched to the new theme in 2021.

Back then, Apple only updated its main online store, with the Education Store sticking to the old theme.

iPhone SE 4 could get a price hike

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iPhone SE in Red
iPhone SE could get a big design and size upgrade
Photo: Filipe Alves

Apple’s next iPhone SE refresh could have a higher price tag than the current model. A leak indicates Apple might bump the iPhone SE 4’s price by 10%.

Despite the possible hike, Apple apparently wants to keep the price of its compact iPhone below $499.

Apple temporarily boosts iPhone trade-in values

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iPhone 13 Pro
Apple will pay you more for your old iPhone if you buy a new one.
Photo: Leander Kahney/Cult of Mac

For a limited time, Apple has boosted the trade-in values of old iPhones when buying a new iPhone. The higher trade-in prices will apply until June 3.

Based on the model you are exchanging for your new iPhone, you will get an extra $10-$30 credit.

Apple leaker floats iPhone 16 and 16 Pro color predictions

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iPhone 15 Pro color options
iPhone 16 Pro might ditch the blue for a rose shade.
Photo: Sophia Stark/Unsplash

Apple could launch the iPhone 16 Pro in a new rose shade, replacing the iPhone 15 Pro’s blue titanium color. The other color options should remain similar, though they might have a different hue. For the iPhone 16 series, Apple might offer a new white shade, while retaining the iPhone 15‘s four other color options.

The iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro color case predictions come from TF International Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. He thinks Apple might change the marketing names of certain colors this year. And even if it does not, the analyst thinks they “may look different,” he wrote Sunday on X.

Siri could get a more conversational voice in iOS 18

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Siri
Will iOS 18 finally deliver the Siri we have always deserved?
Photo: Apple

Apple reportedly will make Siri’s voice more conversational in iOS 18. Plus, the voice assistant will gain several “proactive intelligence” features that will help in daily life.

Apple also might collaborate with OpenAI to integrate its chatbot and AI technology into iOS 18.

iPhone 16 Pro Max battery could get an energy density upgrade

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iPhone 15 Pro Max teardown
Apple's next Max iPhone could use a battery with higher energy density.
Photo: iFixit

Apple could use higher-density cells for the iPhone 16 Pro Max’s battery. This would allow the company to improve battery life without increasing the battery size. Or it could reduce battery capacity without negatively affecting the phone’s runtime.

Also, for the first time, Apple might use a stainless steel battery case on the upcoming iPhone.