iOS 10.3.3 will likely be the last update before iOS 11. Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
Hot on the heels of Apple’s latest big batch of beta builds, the company has seeded two more updates to developers this morning, bringing new a bunch of bug fixes and performance improvements to iOS 10 and tvOS 10.
Lots of polish, and a few new features, in iOS 11 developer beta 2. Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
Apple just released iOS 11 beta 2, and as expected it irons out plenty of wrinkles. It’s still not ready for everyday use on a main machine, because there are still plenty of glitches (the Dock and all kinds of multitasking were missing from my iPad Pro until I rebooted, for example). But overall the latest iOS 11 beta is a lot smoother, and a lot faster-feeling compared to the first beta.
Siri should be a lot smarter. Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
Apple may have left a big clue in iOS 11 that points to huge design changes coming later this year to the iPhone 8.
While doing some testing with the new Do Not Disturb When Driving feature, eagle-eyed Apple observers have spotted a new icon for Siri in iOS 11 that appears to be a perfect replacement for the Home button Apple is supposedly planning to ditch.
New beta updates are out for iPhone and iPad. Photo: Apple
Developers received the second batch of beta builds today of the new software Apple unveiled earlier this month during its Worldwide Developers Conference.
Beta build 2 for iOS 11, macOS High Sierra, tvOS 11 and watchOS 4 got seeded to developers this afternoon, as well as a number of other tools and platforms that are available to download from Apple’s Developer Center.
You can now pay for a full year or Apple Music in advance. Photo: Apple
Apple is finally ready to give music fans a killer deal on the Apple Music streaming service with an all-new option that lets you pay for a full year’s subscription at a discounted rate.
iOS 11 features a big Apple Pay update. Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
iOS 11’s Apple Pay Cash feature will support peer-to-peer payments, but PayPal’s CEO wants people to know that its similar Venmo app hasn’t been “Sherlocked.”
That refers to an app or service that is developed by a third-party, only for Apple to start providing exactly the same functionality in a system update. It’s a devastating move that can have a disastrous impact on companies.
Here’s why PayPal’s CEO doesn’t think Venmo will fall into the same trap.
The new 10.5-inch iPad Pro puts monstrous power at your fingertips. Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
In this week’s Cult of Mac Magazine, we review the new 10.5-inch iPad Pro, which was unveiled at last week’s Worldwide Developers Conference. Also, get a first look at the new iPad in our featured unboxing video.
Check out leaked photos of alleged big changes coming to iPhone 8. Rumors say it will feature an all-glass design in the front and back in order to support wireless charging.
Discover five new ways to extend your MacBook battery life, and get a hands-on look at the new features coming to watchOS 4.
Phil Schiller said Apple won't release the HomePod till it's satisfied with the quality. Photo: Digital Trends
This week on The CultCast: Early reviews for the new iPad Pro and HomePod show Apple’s done it again. Plus: Someone in the Apple supply chain just accidentally leaked some of iPhone 8’s marquee features; speed tests show a big CPU boost in the new MacBook Pro; Apple finally offers us iCloud Storage sharing; our favorite unannounced iOS 11 features; and we’ll tell you what we like (and don’t) about the apps and gadgets we’re currently testing in an all-new Under Review.
Our thanks to Squarespace for supporting this episode. It’s simple to accept Apple Pay and sell your wares with your very own Squarespace.com website. Enter offer code “CultCast” at checkout to get 10 percent off any hosting plan.
In iOS 11, you won't need to remember anything when you get a new iPhone. Screenshot: Cult of Mac
Setting up a new iOS device is pretty easy, but it’s about to get even easier thanks to iOS 11’s new Automatic Setup feature, which lets you hold your old device near your new one to transfer across essential info.
All you need to set up a new iOS device are your iCloud login details, and the password for your WiFi network. But even that can be a bit of a pain, especially if you use a super-secure passwords that you store in something like 1Password. In order to get to your passwords, you need to install 1Password. But in order to install 1Password, you need to input your iCloud ID and your WiFi login. Automatic Setup will put an end to that.
Don't pay full price for a 10.5-inch iPad Pro. Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
I could be the poster boy for Apple’s “iPad problem.”
That problem, in a nutshell, is this: Even long-in-the-tooth iPads several generations old continue to work just fine for many everyday tasks. That, in turn, slows the upgrade cycle. iPad sales drop, and pundits pile on to declare that Apple is doomed. Again.
I’m one of those cheapskates who couldn’t be bothered to shell out for a new iPad over the past few years but a freak accident — and the surprisingly convincing unveiling of the 10.5-inch iPad Pro at last week’s Worldwide Developers Conference — finally coaxed me out of iPad complacency.
I’m thrilled I finally wised up. The new 10.5-inch iPad Pro is a beast of a machine that’s so fast, smooth and responsive that it makes me feel like I’m in a sci-fi movie interacting with a killer device that hasn’t been invented yet. It feels like the future!
Scanning paper documents is easy in the iOS 11 Notes app. Photo: Cult of Mac
In iOS 11, the Notes app really wants to become the go-to place for you to dump all your ideas, all your snippets, and all your, uh, PDF scans. New in iOS 11 is the ability to scan a sheet of paper right there in the Notes app, then scrawl on it using the new PDF markup features built into Apple’s new mobile OS>
Potentially, the Notes app in iOS 11 will be able to replace apps like Evernote (aka “Everbloat”), as well as purpose-built scanning apps like Scanner Pro. Let’s see how to make a scan, and if the Notes app does enough to be your sole go-to notes destination.
Apple's still got some iOS 10 bugs to kill. Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
While Apple is busy working toward the public release of iOS 11 and macOS High Sierra, coding is still underway on the the last updates for all of Apple’s old platforms with the release of a new batch of beta updates today.
Hacker who tried to extort Apple for $100k is spared prison Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac
Apple will automatically migrate iCloud users to two-step verification when they upgrade to iOS 11 or macOS High Sierra.
Apple says its “most advanced” account security is required to use some of the latest features of its operating systems, so it’s no longer optional if you plan on updating your devices.
ARKit will be a game-changer for iPhone rumormongers. Photo: ConceptsiPhone
Apple’s new ARKit tech could completely change the way we view the world, including when it comes to iPhone rumors.
Using the newly release ARKit framework Apple debuted at WWDC 2017, the folks at ConceptsiPhone have created a new video that brings the iPhone 8 into the real-world. What’s most impressive is ARKit’s ability to track the iPhone 8 concept, making it look like someone got heir hands on an early unit.
Would Drag and Drop work well on iPhone's smaller screen? Photo: Apple
One of the best new iOS 11 features for iPad could soon make its way to the iPhone.
iOS 11 was unveiled one week ago at Apple’s WWDC 2017 keynote where the iPad got some much-needed productivity features like Drag and Drop. It appears that Apple may be testing bringing the feature to the iPhone as well. One clever developers dug into the first iOS 11 beta and discovered that Drag and Drop can be turned on for the iPhone too.
iOS 11's Smart Invert feature brings a stunning dark mode Photo: Cult of Mac
Some users have been longing for an iOS “dark mode” for quite a while. With iOS 11, Apple is introducing a new Smart Invert feature that replicates the dark mode functionality, though it’s not quite there yet. It builds upon iOS’ classic Invert Colors mode but excludes some images, media and apps that use dark color styles.
Here’s how you can try out the hidden dark mode in iOS 11 right now.
Are you pleased with what you saw at WWDC 2017? Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
This year’s WWDC keynote was an early Christmas for Apple fans. It delivered the big updates to iOS, macOS, and watchOS we were eagerly anticipating; a 10.5-inch iPad Pro; updated Macs with Intel Kaby Lake processors, plus nice surprises like the iMac Pro and HomePod.
But is this Apple back at its best, or do we need more out of Cupertino? Are fancy software updates enough to breathe new life into boring hardware? Is Apple’s new push into virtual reality and machine learning too little, too late?
Join us in this week’s Friday Night Fight as we battle it out over a bumper WWDC!
Despite removing its annual Design Awards show from the WWDC 2017 schedule last month, Apple still handed out awards for the best apps of the year at its developer conference and games were the biggest winners.
New features in iOS 11 make the iPad a multitasking beast. Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
iOS 11 brings brilliant new features and enough design tweaks to make everything feel fresh. The first developer beta landed this week, and we’re loving what we see – especially when it comes to the great new options for iPad users.
Apple's WWDC 2017 Platforms State of the Union session gets boiled down to its bare essentials in these sketchnotes. Photo: Andy McNally/Cult of Mac
The WWDC 2017 Platforms State of the Union, during which Apple laid out what’s new for developers, brimmed with updates. The session at Apple’s annual developer conference focused on fundamentals of and refinements to iOS 11, Swift and Xcode, delivering vital details for coders.
Relive the session’s highlights with these sketchnotes, which should give Apple developers and Apple users alike much to be excited about.
The best gesture in iOS 11 isn't just for iPad. Photo: Apple
Apple brought drag and drop to the iPad with iOS 11, making it easier than ever to transfer content between multiple apps. It turns out the feature will also be available on the iPhone — but it won’t be anywhere near as good.
iOS 11 can prevent apps like Uber and Waze from using your location at all times.
Apple has added a new location option in the update that will rollout to everyone this fall, which only allows certain apps to access location data while they are open and active.
32-bit apps won't launch on iOS 11. Here's how to get a list of the ones on your device. Photo: Cult of Mac
iOS 11 won’t run any 32-bit apps. Most of the time, that won’t make any difference — most apps you use every day were updated to be 64-bit a long time ago. But we all have a few of those old apps laying around that haven’t been updated in years. Perhaps they’re still useful for you, or maybe Apple kicked the app out of the App Store and there’s no modern alternative?
Under iOS 11, those apps will no longer work. You may as well just delete them. And to help, there’s a spot in the Setting app where you can see a list of all those incompatible apps.
The iOS 11 video player even supports YouTube's auto-generated captions, not that you'll ever want to use them. Photo: Cult of Mac
iOS 11 has gotten a big upgrade to its QuickView video player, the one that takes care of videos playing in apps, on web sites, and so on. Previously you only got a basic video scrubber, a volume slider, and a play button. Now, you can not only access subtitles and AirPlay right from the video screen, but you can control pretty much everything in the new iOS 11 video player with a keyboard.
Clean up the busiest sites automatically with the new Persistent Reader View. Photo: Cult of Mac
Do you have any websites you read regularly in Reader view? Maybe they’re covered in popovers that keep distracting you? Or perhaps the design hurts your sensitive eyes, or the otherwise smart author insists on using Comic Sans for the text body? Well, there’s good news: Safari on iOS 11 and macOS High Sierra now let you activate Persistent Reader View, which automatically switches the clean Reader view in as the page loads.