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Trade tensions stall Apple Intelligence rollout in China

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Apple Intelligence rollout in China
A regulatory mess and political uncertainty delay the rollout of Apple Intelligence in China.
Photo: Grok

Apple’s much-anticipated launch of Apple Intelligence in China has been indefinitely delayed as the company’s AI partnership with Alibaba faces regulatory roadblocks tied to the intensifying trade war between the United States and China, according to a new report.

Apple A20 chip will move to 2nm and bring the RAM inside

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Apple A20 chip
The A20 chip will arrive in 2026 with the iPhone 18 generation.
Image: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac

Apple’s A20 chip, which likely will power the iPhone 18 Pro and folding iPhone, reportedly will use a new technology that integrates RAM inside the chip. Bringing the memory closer to the CPU, GPU and Neural Engine might provide significant boosts in performance, battery life and thermal efficiency.

The A20 also would be Apple’s first chip produced using the cutting-edge 2 nanometer process. Rumors that the die shrink would arrive this year now seem to be totally dead.

How to set up Game Center to pwn your friends

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Game On With Game Center
Set up Game Center and you can compete with friends in the games you both play.
Image: Apple/D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac

Apple’s Game Center service lets you compete with friends and unlock achievements in the games you play. You can see where you rank among your friends — and globally. Achievements will give you a list of missions to accomplish to prove your mastery of the game. You can even play live multiplayer games on all your separate devices using SharePlay.

Up until iOS 10, Game Center existed as a separate app on iPhone and iPad, which made this all easier to manage. And rumor has it that Apple will replace Game Center with the next major version of iOS, to be announced next week at WWDC25.

How do you manage your Game Center account now, on iOS 18? What options do you have? How do you add friends?

Today in Apple history: iOS overtakes BlackBerry OS

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A BlackBerry device running BlackBerry OS that shows an empty battery icon on its screen.
Time was running out for BlackBerry.
Photo: Kārlis Dambrāns/Flickr CC

June 3: Today in Apple history: iOS overtakes BlackBerry OS for first time June 3, 2011: iOS overtakes Research in Motion’s BlackBerry operating system for the first time, with Apple’s mobile operating system inching past BlackBerry OS.

While Android remains comfortably in the lead in terms of market share, the news marks the beginning of the end for BlackBerry as a smartphone powerhouse.

Apple Intelligence might take a backseat at WWDC25

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Apple Intelligence at WWDC25
WWDC25 won’t be as Apple Intelligence-packed as last year.
Image: Apple/D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac

Apple doesn’t have as many Apple Intelligence features to announce at WWDC25 as it did during last year’s developer conference. However, a handful of new AI features should arrive, including Apple Intelligence-generated Shortcuts automations, an Apple Intelligence API for developers, and AI-powered health tips. Apple’s foundation language model itself will also be improved, with versions in four different sizes currently in testing.

Here’s what to expect on Apple Intelligence next Monday during the WWDC25 keynote.

How to use Freeform, Apple’s collaborative digital whiteboard app

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You Should Check Out Freeform
Freeform is a weird and very underrated Apple app.
Image: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac

Apple’s Freeform app for iPhone, iPad, Mac and Vision Pro is a digital whiteboard you can use to brainstorm or gather ideas in one infinitely scrolling canvas.

You can use Freeform to throw together ideas with a colleague. You could build a presentation using Freeform’s scenes, kind of like using Prezi. Or, you can use Freeform as a drawing app with your iPad and Apple Pencil.

Freeform comes with all kinds of features for adding text boxes, rich links, drawings, clip art, sticky notes, files, photos, videos and more. It’s a great way to build a mood board or connect big ideas.

Keep reading below or watch our video guide to find out how to use Freeform.

Today in Apple history: Newspaper replaces photo staff with iPhones

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More than a trillion photos were captured in 2015.
A big Chicago daily pulls the plug on staff photographers.
Photo: HypeBeast

May 31: Today in Apple history: Chicago Sun-Times replaces photo staff with iPhones May 31, 2013: The Chicago Sun-Times fires all 28 of its photographers, with the goal of training its staff to shoot photos using iPhones instead. Pulitzer Prize winner John H. White is among those who lose their jobs.

The move is significant not just because of what it says about the declining newspaper industry. It also spotlights the iPhone’s growing acceptance as a professional camera.

Danny Boyle shoots 28 Years Later sequel on 20 iPhones at once

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28 Years Later shot on 20 iPhones at once
That's quite an iPhone camera rig tracking that infected dude.
Photo: Sony Pictures Entertainment

Danny Boyle will soon bring the infected back to the big screen in ways that would make any iPhone cinematographer jealous. The acclaimed director behind the original 28 Days Later returns for the long-awaited sequel 28 Years Later. And he uses cutting-edge iPhone technology alongside traditional filmmaking techniques to create what he calls a “poor man’s bullet time” effect (a la The Matrix movies), according to a new report.

Apple is already developing the iPhone replacement

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Concept art of Apple smart glasses that could serve as the iPhone replacement, with the words
Apple Vision Air could be the iPhone replacement. Eventually.
AI concept: ChatGPT/Cult of Mac

Apple makes the bestselling phone, smartwatch and wireless headphones, and is fantastically profitable as a result. But if it can’t develop the Next Big Thing, it could easily be out of business in 10 years. But there’s no cause for concern — Apple is already working on the product that’ll replace the iPhone: smart glasses.

Even better, Apple is taking two approaches for developing smart glasses, which should go a long way toward ensuring that it makes the definitive version of the must-have computer of the 2030s.

iPhone dominates list of world’s bestselling smartphones

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iPhone Series 16 day in photos
More people around the world buy the iPhone 16 than any other model.
Photo: Apple

The iPhone 16 is the bestselling smartphone in the world, according to a market research firm. In fact, the global list of the top five bestselling handsets in the first quarter of 2025 includes four iPhones and one Samsung model in the bottom slot.

According to the analysts, the iPhone 16 base model outsold either of the Pro variants in Q1.

How to keep your iPhone battery from going to crap

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Keep It Like-New for Longer
Maximize your long-term battery health.
Image: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac

Adopting a few smart habits can preserve your iPhone battery health, greatly extending the device’s useful lifespan.

By simply tweaking how you use and charge your device, you can keep your battery from going bad, which is often cited as a reason to upgrade to a new iPhone. Just make these easy lifestyle changes, and your iPhone should last longer in the long term.

Keep reading or watch our video to find out how to boost your iPhone battery health.

Apple analyst warns political pressure may outweigh tariff impact

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Apple logo with White House in the background.
Apple should take the 25% tariff hit instead of making iPhones in the U.S.
Illustration: ChatGPT

President Donald Trump wants Apple to make iPhones in the United States. Otherwise, he threatens to impose a 25% tariff on the company.

A well-connected supply chain analyst thinks that, from a profitability standpoint, it’s better for Apple to absorb the 25% tariff on iPhones. But the bigger concern is the growing political pressure from the U.S. president.

Save your iPhone by unlocking with an old passcode

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Can I Get A Little Help Here?
In iOS 17, you have an easier path forward if you forget your iPhone's new passcode.
Image: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac/Pexels

If you forgot your new iPhone passcode, you can reset it with your old one for up to three days later. This can save you hours of trying to remember the new passcode, or worse, resetting your phone from a backup.

You just have to tap Forgot Passcode? on the Lock Screen after you enter it several incorrect times.

Keep reading for a detailed walkthrough. And don’t worry — if you change your passcode intentionally to keep someone out, you can instantly expire your old one.

Apple temporarily boosts iPhone trade-in values

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Apple raises iPhone trade in values
Now's the time to trade in your old iPhone at Apple. Maybe get a nice iPhone 16 Pro or iPhone 16e?
Photo: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac

iPhone trade-in values get a boost from now through June 18 when you turn over your old iPhone online or in an Apple Store, the Cupertino tech giant said Friday. The monetary increases are modest, but hey, every dollar counts. So now, or anytime Apple raises iPhone trade-in values, is the time to refresh your handset with a shiny new one from the iPhone 16 lineup.

Trump threatens 25% tariff on iPhones not made in US

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President Donald Trump and Apple CEO Tim Cook
President Trump threatened Apple CEO Tim Cook with an iPhone-specific tariff.
Illustration: ChatGPT

President Donald Trump renewed his call on Friday that the iPhone be made in the United States, and threatened Apple with a special 25% tariff if the device gets assembled anywhere else.

Previously, Apple seemed caught up in Trump’s trade war with China, as so many of its products are assembled there. But now Trump’s ire turned specifically on Apple, causing him to threaten import taxes on its products alone.

What to expect in iOS 19: Rumors point to design overhaul

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What to expect in iOS 19
It amounts to a big update.
Photo: Rajesh Pandey/Cult of Mac

Rumors swirling ahead of WWDC25 give us a decent idea about what to expect in iOS 19. The new operating system, which Apple will showcase when its annual developer conference kicks off June 9, shapes up as one of the more significant iPhone software updates lately.

The iOS 19 overhaul promises to transform how users interact with their devices through big design changes, enhanced AI capabilities and improved cross-platform integration.

Will Jony Ive’s secret new AI products kill Apple? Doubtful.

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AI-generated image of Jony Ive and Sam Altman with a next-gen AI device.
An AI-generated image of Jony Ive and Sam Altman with a next-gen AI device.
AI image: Grok/Cult of Mac

Will Jony Ive and Sam Altman’s new partnership dethrone Apple? A lot of people seem to think that in a battle of OpenAI vs. Apple, the iPhone maker is on borrowed time.

Looking at social media, the hype about OpenAI’s acquisition of Ive’s startup io is off the charts. Many pundits predict doom for Apple, which is already widely assumed to be woefully behind in AI. Apple’s stock took a big dive on the news of OpenAI’s acquisition of Ive’s secret company Wednesday.

But I highly doubt that Ive and Altman will topple Apple from its throne. Apple still has massive advantages — and they’re perhaps unassailable. Here’s why.

How to hide your secret photos in the iPhone’s Photos app

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Don’t Let Anyone See
Keep your photos locked up like Fort Knox.
Image: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac

You can easily hide photos and videos on your iPhone to keep secret and/or illicit images out of your main Photos library library. Hiding items from the camera roll makes sure nobody except you can see your embarrassing pictures, salacious nudes or old selfies with your ex.

Apple introduced the Hidden photo album years ago in iOS 8. But after Apple redesigned the Photos app in iOS 18, you can no longer find it at the bottom of the Albums tab — because the tab bar is gone.

Here’s what hiding photos does to your iPhone, how you can do stash those incriminating or mortifying pix, and where to find them.

CarPlay Ultra finally arrives with complete dashboard makeover (for some)

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CarPlay Ultra
With CarPlay Ultra, content populates all the driver’s screens, including the instrument cluster.
Photo: Apple

After a five-month delay from its original timeline, Apple’s next-generation CarPlay experience is finally hitting the road. Dubbed “CarPlay Ultra,” the deeply integrated system that Apple first previewed in 2022 has begun rolling out to Aston Martin vehicles in the United States and Canada, with more automakers soon to follow.

What’s the deal with that orange and green dot on your iPhone?

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What Does That Dot Mean?
A long-standing mystery solved.
Image: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac

What does the orange dot on your iPhone mean — and while we’re at it, how about the green dot? These mysterious dots can appear in the Dynamic Island of newer iPhones, or in the upper right corner of older models, near the battery icon.

The dots are part of Apple’s vast system of privacy and security features built into the iPhone. Of course, these privacy features only work if you know what they mean and how to use them — so keep reading for the answer below.

What to expect from the 20th anniversary iPhone

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20th anniversary iPhone concept
The twentieth anniversary iPhone might use a design that breaks away from today’s models.
AI concept: ChatGPT/Cult of Mac

Apple reportedly plans to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the iPhone with a new model that introduces some of the most significant design changes to the handset since the iPhone X. That includes saying goodbye to the Dynamic Island.

The upcoming model should break the iPhone design out of the rut it’s been in for too many years.

Everything new in iOS 18.5

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iOS 18.5
iOS 18.5 is high, but somewhat light on changes.
Image: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

After over a month of beta testing, iOS 18.5 is now available for all compatible iPhones. Unlike previous point iOS 18 releases, the new build does not pack any significant new features.

The update mainly includes minor changes, but older iPhones will receive one major new feature. Keep reading to know about everything new in iOS 18.5 and iPadOS 18.5.

Today in Apple history: Bill Gates predicts doom for Apple’s biggest product

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Bill Gates on iPod: Smartphone sales will doom music players.
Unfortunately for Gates, Steve Jobs was one step ahead.
Photo: 60 Minutes

May 12: Today in Apple history: Bill Gates predicts doom for iPod, Apple's biggest product May 12, 2005: Longtime Apple frenemy Bill Gates tells a German newspaper that Apple may have hit it big with the iPod, but that its success isn’t going to last forever.

The reason for his take on the iPod’s future? Mobile phones are going to steal the music player’s market share.

The good news for Gates is that he was right on the money. The bad news for Microsoft is that Apple cannibalized itself by making the iPhone. And Apple’s smartphone became even more successful than the iPod.

This clever PopSocket-style grip also works with MagSafe [Review] ★★★★★

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Black iPhone 16 Pro with the Ohsnap Snap 4 Luxe on the back, sitting on a gray microfiber cloth.★★★★★
It’s thinner than the lower level of the camera plateau.
Photo: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac

If you want both a grip on the back of your phone for ergonomics and MagSafe charging for convenience, you might think there are no good options. Well, finally, there is — the Snap Grip Luxe combines both in an incredibly slim and clever design.

It’s truly the best of both worlds — you have a better grasp on your phone, so you won’t drop it; you have a built-in stand for watching videos anywhere you go; and you can still use your MagSafe chargers or even battery packs. You can freely detach it and put it on a different phone case if you want.

Cleverest of all, it’s only 2.5mm thin, so it doesn’t add any more bulk to the back than the camera bump your phone already has.

Keep reading below for the full review.

Schedule an email to send in the future in Apple Mail

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Never Forget to Send It
Let your computer handle sending emails. It’s what they’re good at.
Image: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac

You can save time — and make sure your messages always go out when they’re supposed to — when you schedule email from the Apple Mail app. You can set your mail to deliver at any date or time in the future, whether it’s next Monday at 9 a.m. sharp, in two weeks’ time or even years from now.

If you work with someone in a different time zone, you can schedule messages to arrive just when they start their workday, which is especially helpful if the allotted time is in the middle of the night for you. You can schedule a series of reminders for that one irritatingly forgetful client of yours. Or, if you work remotely, you can try (and risk) prewriting messages to your boss to maintain the illusion of regular work. You can even schedule emails to remind you of an important anniversary, years down the line.

It’s easy to set up. Keep reading or watch our short video.