Today’s Mac Pro and smart TV setup is a rare find for two reasons. First, Mac Pro costs so much that we rarely see it in the wild. Second, while big smart TVs used as computer displays continue to gain popularity, we don’t often hear users saying they’re one of the best they’ve ever had. But that’s the case with this LG C2 smart TV setup, used by a photographer and musician.
In it, a powerful cheese-grater Mac Pro drives a gargantuan 42-inch smart TV as an external display.
Campfire Audio’s new Fathom earbuds cost an eye-watering $1,049. What’s perhaps even more surprising is that they’re wired earbuds.
Well, there must be some special technology in those, right? Right. And even though they have a cable, of course you can use them with your Mac or another device with an audio jack.
Apple’s long-rumored (and apparently delayed) OLED iPad Pro with M3 chip could launch in early May. Alongside the Pro iPads, Apple reportedly will unveil a new iPad Air, a third-gen Apple Pencil and a redesigned Magic Keyboard.
To prepare for the impending launch of the new iPads, Apple’s retail stores will receive new product marketing materials soon, according to the latest report.
April 7, 1997: Apple’s System 7 operating system receives its last update with the shipping of Mac OS 7.6.1.
The update brings a few bug fixes and support for Apple’s new PCI Power Macs and the PowerBook 3400. Most importantly, it marks the end of the System 7 era, which dawned way back in 1991.
After Apple’s thunderous launch of the M3, M3 Pro and M3 Max chips a few months ago, these chips likely will roll out as spec bumps in the MacStudio, Mac Pro and Mac mini later this year.
An M4 MacBook Pro remains a possibility for this fall. (I suspect M4 will be the first “must-have” Mac upgrade for anyone still on an M1-series chip.)
The Apple TV+ comedy Palm Royale holds on near the top of the streaming ratings charts for the second week in a row. It’s drawn in a large audience since it’s debut March 20.
And the new detective series Sugar on Apple’s streaming service might do just as well.
Apple reportedly struck a deal with Shutterstock to license its massive library of images and videos to train its AI models. The precise deal value remains unclear, but estimates suggest a range of $25 million-$50 million.
As a part of the licensing, Apple will gain access to millions of images and videos in Shutterstock’s library.
This week on Cult of Mac’s podcast: After pulling the plug on an ambitious project — creating a self-driving car — Apple sets its sights on making … home robots?!? Say it ain’t so, Tim!
Also on The CultCast:
Listen to this week’s episode of The CultCast in the Podcasts app or your favorite podcast app. (Be sure to subscribe and leave us a review if you like it!) Or watch the video live stream, embedded below.
Sega’s newest action puzzle game Puyo Puyo Puzzle Pop is a falling-object game on which players connect icons to erase them. The latest addition to the Puyo Puyo series is playable on iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV and Apple Vision Pro, and is an Apple Arcade exclusive.
Plus there are two new classics in the gaming service for young and old.
April 6, 1939: John Sculley is born in New York City. He will grow up to be hailed as a business and marketing genius, eventually overseeing Apple’s transformation into the most profitable personal computer company in the world.
After a remarkable stint as president of Pepsi-Cola, Sculley will take over as Apple’s third CEO in 1983. He runs Apple for a 10-year period, guiding the creation of the revolutionary Newton MessagePad.
During Sculley’s decade at the helm, Apple sells more personal computers than any other company. But most people still remember him for his role in kicking Steve Jobs out of Cupertino.
Apple is opening its walled garden to game emulators. The company has updated the App Store guidelines to reflect that developers can now list retro game emulators for download worldwide.
Additionally, the updated guidelines make it easier for music streaming apps to redirect users to an external website. However, this change is only applicable to the EU.
Elago makes a staggering array of accessories for Apple products, from Apple Watch bands and device chargers to iPad stands and whimsical cases that look like classic gear from yesteryear.
The Cult of Mac Store offers 173 Elago products for sale. Check them out, and see some highlights below.
A collection of 100 wild-looking smartphone cases inspired by the upcoming solar eclipse is selling out fast. The one-of-a-kind solar eclipse iPhone cases, made by the craftspeople at Carved, will give your handset an out-of-this-world look.
“We’ve been working hard to capture the essence of this coming 2024 eclipse,” the company said Friday on its Facebook page. “In all the excitement we’ve made a very limited run of eclipse designs just for you!”
It’s somewhat rare that we come across a Mac Pro setup on social media for the obvious reason that Apple’s top desktop computer costs a fortune. And the ones we see are often older than 2019’s cheese grater design. But today’s Mac Pro and smart TV setup is a welcome exception to that rule.
It sports a powerful cheese-grater Mac Pro driving a gargantuan smart TV as an external display.
And what’s more, a classic iMac G4 that still works and Wall-E and Eve toys from the Pixar movie look on from a shelf!
April 5, 2006: Apple introduces the public beta of Boot Camp, software that allows users with an Intel-based Mac to run Windows XP on their machines.
Boot Camp will officially arrive in Mac OS X Leopard, which debuts at Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference a few months later.
A day after a pair of unknown iPads were found listed on the Bureau of Indian Standards certification website, two more have now turned up. These are almost certainly tablets that have been the topic of many leaks in recent months.
The 2024 iPad Pro and iPad Air might have just taken another small step toward release.
Following the shutdown of the Apple Car project, the Cupertino giant is laying off more than 600 employees. Many other affected employees worked on developing micro LED displays for the Apple Watch and future products.
The laid-off employees worked in and around Santa Clara, near Apple’s California headquarters.
April 4, 1975: Microsoft is founded by childhood friends Bill Gates and Paul Allen. The software company destined to become a tech behemoth — and a major Apple frenemy.
A few years later, Microsoft will break through to the mainstream with Excel and Word, becoming a key developer of Macintosh software. Then comes the Windows operating system, looking suspiciously Apple-like. After Windows arrives, Microsoft and Apple will embark upon a long-running feud.
Images of iPhone 16 “dummy” units have been published by a tipster with an established record. They show the redesigned camera hump reportedly coming to the two non-Pro models and other changes.
The pictures are the best look yet at the handsets Apple is expected to launch in autumn 2024.
Teams in Cupertino are working on Apple personal home robotic devices, including a mobile robot and a table-top device with a moving display, according to a new report.
These early efforts toward Apple robots could constitute future revenue sources now that the Project Titan car sits on the scrap heap.
The citizens of a small town called Deerfield continue to see their lives upended by a fortune-telling machine known as Morpho, according to the season 2 trailer Apple TV+ dropped Wednesday for philosophical comedy series The Big Door Prize.
Starring Emmy Award winner Chris O’Dowd, the well-liked comedy’s 10-episode second season debuts Wednesday, April 24, with three episodes.
Following a lull of a few weeks, Apple seeded the first beta of iOS 17.5 to developers Tuesday. While iOS 17.4 was a big release, iOS 17.5 beta 1 packs relatively minor (albeit important) changes.
Below are all the changes we have spotted in the first iOS 17.5 beta.
April 3, 2010: The first iPad hits store shelves after months of anticipation. The tablet Apple CEO Steve Jobs called “magical and revolutionary” at its unveiling earlier in the year quickly becomes a major success.
Jobs initially showed off Apple’s first tablet on January 27, 2010. And there had been rumors long before then. But the wait for the iPad is finally over … at least for people in the United States. (The iPad’s international debut won’t happen until May.)
A systems engineer who works for a software developer showed off today’s M1 Pro MacBook Pro setup, which features unusual audio. Razer Nommo Chroma gaming speakers rarely come up in setups despite their high coolness factor. They look a bit like highway patrol speed guns. And the noise-canceling wireless earbuds are a favorite — Soundcore Space A40.
A 7.4-magnitude earthquake that hit Taiwan on Wednesday — the worst in 25 years — killed at least nine people, injured more than 900 and toppled buildings. It also reportedly forced Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company to stop chip production, at least temporarily.
TSMC makes the processors that go into iPhone, Mac and other Apple products.
