Apple product reviews and recommendations | Cult of Mac

Monarch: Legacy of Monsters episode 5 references you might have missed [Apple TV+ recap]

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'Monarch: Legacy of Monsters' episode 5: San Francisco after Godzilla fought two kaiju there.
This is San Francisco after Godzilla fought two kaiju in the heart of the city.
Photo: Apple TV+

Monarch: Legacy of Monsters episode five focuses on Cate Randa’s backstory from when she survived the battle between Godzilla and two kaiju that destroyed much of San Franciso. Plus, a betrayal!

Read on for monster-size spoilers about the latest episode, plus some speculation about the show’s future.

In between space disasters, emotional thrusters propel For All Mankind [Apple TV+ recap] ★★★

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Danielle in ★★★
Danieille handles news of the Goldilocks mission in stride, but soon she's screaming "F-You!" at Ed Baldwin. Twice.
Photo: Apple TV_

“Ground control, is that a negative on fatal space accidents in this week’s episode? Roger that. Initiate teardrops protocol.” For All Mankind‘s “Goldilocks” episode, number 5 in season 4, pushes plot lines forward Friday under the power of emotional cataclysms more than space-based action.

But it’s a meaty episode nonetheless. The whole season will turn on the importance of a certain newly discovered space rock named Goldilocks.

This rainbow Apple Watch band will dazzle you with color [Under Review]

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Juuk Ligero Rainbow Apple Watch band review: The colors on this aluminum Apple Watch band will take your breath away.
The vibrant colors on this aluminum Apple Watch band will take your breath away.
Photo: Lewis Wallace/Cult of Mac

Under Review on The CultCast: PRODUCT NAME REVIEW “Oooooooh!” my wife squealed when I pulled the Juuk Ligero Rainbow Apple Watch band out of the shipping carton. The brightly colored links in the aluminum bracelet definitely caught her eye.

Unfortunately for her, the band wouldn’t fit her smaller Apple Watch. So I got to try it.

The Rainbow Ligero looks like no other band you’ve seen. As with Juuk’s other metal Apple Watch bands, the Rainbow version’s striking looks provoke an immediate reaction. Its bold colors — red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple — shimmer on the wrist. And now it’s back in the Cult of Mac Store.

This Mac app directly beams files over the internet [Awesome Apps]

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Blip file transfers
Blip, a new app for Mac and Android, is a better way to transfer files.
Image: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac
Awesome Apps

Blip is a delightful utilty that lets you transfer files across the internet — directly from your Mac to theirs. There’s no middleman uploading to and downloading from a cloud, no pesky web app to sign into. It’s like beaming your files onto someone else’s computer.

It’s the easiest and most straightforward way to send someone large folders of files or complex projects from your Mac. And best of all, it’s totally free and secure.

Stay dry with Rainbow Weather’s hyper-local AI forecasts [Awesome Apps]

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Rainbow Weather: AI Forecast app
Avoid the raindrops -- or hurricanes, if it comes to that -- with the Rainbow Weather app.
Photo: Rainbow Weather
Awesome Apps

Tired of getting caught in the rain? Startup Rainbow Weather released its hyper-local rain-alert and hurricane-tracking app Rainbow Weather in November, giving you a great way to track weather tied to your precise location at all times via your iPhone.

Meow! Stray proves great gaming can happen on a Mac [Review] ★★★★★

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Photo of the Stray title screen on a Mac, with two cats sitting on the desk nearby★★★★★
Stray is a game for Mac gamers and cat lovers.
Photo: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac

In Stray, you play as a cat wandering through a cyberpunk version of the Kowloon Walled City, the most densely populated city in the world (and a fascinating footnote of history). In this future, though, the city teems with robots who dream of visiting the outside world.

It’s been out for PC, Xbox and PlayStation for a while, but the Mac version is out now on the Mac App Store.

Stray is a gripping game in an exquisitely designed and immersive world that proves gaming on the Mac is on the rise once again.

Edit video on iPhone and external drives with powerful LumaFusion [Awesome Apps]

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Edit video on iPhone and external drives with powerful 'LumaFusion'
With LumaFusion, you don't need storage space on your iPhone to edit huge video files on an SSD.
Photo: LumaTouch
Awesome Apps

With an iPhone 15 Pro or Pro Max, you can record high-resolution video directly to an external SSD. And the latest version of the iPhone app LumaFusion lets you edit with the video still on the external drive, too. Don’t try that with any other video editor for iOS.

That’s on top of the many other features of the iPhone and iPad application, which offers multitrack video editing with a focus on controlling everything with touch.

Monarch: Legacy of Monsters episode 4 references you might have missed [Apple TV+ recap]

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'Monarch: Legacy of Monsters' Episode 4 -- Frost Vark Titan
It’s the Frost Vark Titan! Run!!
Photo: Apple TV+

TV+ Review The fourth episode of Monarch: Legacy of Monsters is out, and anyone who’s been dissatisfied about the amount of screen time kaijus got before will have nothing to complain about.

Read on if you’re ready for Godzilla-size spoilers about the latest episode, plus some speculation about the show’s future.

Space soap opera For All Mankind hits stride in ‘House Divided’ episode [Apple TV+ recap] ★★★

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For All Mankind, season 4, episode 4, Ed Baldwin sees Svetlana off.★★★
Ed got what might be a first and only kiss from Svetlana, headed for trial in India.
Photo: Apple TV+

Not much happens Friday on alt-history space soap opera For All Mankind season 4’s fourth episode, “House Divided.” Let’s see. Two Russians have a shoving match on Mars, almost killing one and nearly causing the return of the Cold War. The former head of NASA goes to work for the Soviets and immediately impresses her frighteningly KGB-connected boss. And longtime space heroes Danielle Poole and Ed Baldwin suffer a major falling out that could threaten peace in Happy Valley, Mars.

And by the way, geriatric Ed — the show wants us to believe Joel Kinnaman’s characters is now in his 70s — finally does get the tender smooch from a young cosmonaut threatened in episode 3. Alas, poor Miles Dale, despite sparks flying on Mars, doesn’t quite get to make out with his burgeoning love interest.

This is the USB-C game controller your iPhone 15 needs [Review] ★★★★

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GameSir G8 Galileo review★★★★
GameSir G8 Galileo makes iPhone gaming more fun.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

Wrap your iPhone 15 in the GameSir G8 Galileo and you have the physical buttons, triggers and sticks needed for high-end gaming. And it has a USB-C port so it works with Apple’s latest handsets. Plus the game controller includes swappable sticks, pass-through charging, a headphone jack and more.

I tested GameSir G8 Galileo with my iPhone 15. I had a heck of a good time.