Apple had plans to deliver a phone long before Steve Jobs took to the stage of Macworld 2007 to show off the iPhone.
Around 14 years earlier, the company previewed a prototype device called the Wizzy Active Lifestyle Telephone, or the WALT, which combined a telephone and fax machine into one.
Here’s a rare look at the prototype that shows just what WALT can do.
Owners of late-model iPhones (starting with iPhone 8) can stash all their old Lightning cables in a desk drawer and start charging their phone more easily with a wireless charger. Instead of sticking a wire into your phone and attaching it to a power adapter, you just place the phone on a small charger pad — or on a stand-up charging pad — and you’re good to go.
Now that Apple officially killed off its AirPower charging mat, it’s time to take the plunge and get yourself a third-party wireless charger. And if you’ve got one of those newfangled AirPods wireless charging cases, a charging pad is even more essential to your setup.
Here are our recommendations for best wireless chargers.
This might seem like an absurd subject for a how-to. I mean, all you have to do to charge your new AirPods with the new wireless charging case is toss them onto the charging mat, right? That’s true, but there are a couple of neat tricks that you might like to know.
They are simple, but these AirPods charging tips can save you frustration and wasted time.
Mobile gaming has never been better, but you’re missing out if you’re playing the latest titles with touch controls. A good controller is a worthwhile purchase, but should you spend $75 on the Gamevice?
It looks great, boasts the best design of any iPhone controller, and never needs charging. It also works with almost any iPhone. The only problem? It disappoints where it matters most.
Yes, this sounds like a joke about the olde worlde CEO who has his secretary print his emails, then transcribe his dictated replies. But printing message threads can be pretty useful. Lawyers, for example, may want a printed record, or a PDF, of a message thread. And even regular humans might appreciate a well-formatted archive of their messages that can be easily searched and marked up.
You still can’t do this on your iDevice. However, thanks to the amazing iMazing Mac app, you can quickly create PDFs of your messages, and even print them. Onto paper.
Picaso Lab hand makes a professional-looking leather sleeve that goes around both the latest 12.9-inch iPad Pro and the Smart Folio Keyboard. It offers much more protection to the tablet than just Apple’s keyboard case. And this sleeve looks far better than Apple’s folio.
Read on for our full review of this great-looking protective cover.
Hyperspektiv is a contradiction. Photo-editing apps are designed to make your photos look better by making them look nicer. Hyperspektiv is designed to make your photos look better by making them look worse.
Not only that, it’s one of a handful of photo apps that don’t try to mimic the limitations of film photography, like grain and light leaks. Instead, it ditches the nostalgia and uses truly digital means to glitch up your images, turning them into stills and videos that would look fantastic in a music video.
I don’t travel much, but when I do, I like to do it properly. And by “properly,” I mean with all my gadgets organized. Yes, you can drop your chargers into the bottom of your backpack or suitcase. Or you can stuff them into a pocket.
But they’ll get damaged, you’ll end up losing something, and if you need to take out one charger, adapter, dongle or cable, you’ll end up dropping the rest all over the floor of the departure lounge.
You need to get organized, and here’s one great way to do it.
If you’ve got a new Series 4 Apple Watch, but have been lamenting that the precision aluminum bands from Hong Kong-based Juuk don’t fit, fret no longer.
After painstaking detective work and many hours of redesign, the fruits of Juuk’s labors are starting to hit the market. Currently the Vitero Ruby Grey, Vitero Cosmic Grey and Ligero Obsidian are available for the Series 4 Apple Watch, with more to follow.
WaterField Designs’ new Sutter Slim Backpack keeps a low profile while swallowing up a 15-inch MacBook, a 12.9-inch iPad Pro and a bunch of other gear.
A few neat features make it sound like a pretty great way to carry all that tech we drag around everyday.
Mac lovers looking for relief from Apple’s new butterfly keyboards may have found a new hero in the Keychron K1, which is supposedly the world’s slimmest mechanical keyboard ever.
The Keychron K1 looks like a hybrid of Apple’s Magic Keyboard crossed with a modern mechanical keyboard. It’s so small you can carry it anywhere and it looks so good you won’t be embarrassed to be hauling around your beloved keyboard.
Take a closer look:
It’s January of a brand new year, and you find yourself with two things that go well together: a resolution for better fitness and a new Apple Watch. What you might be missing is a band that is made to stand up to the rigors of a tough workout.
There’s good news: The Cult of Mac Watch Store has you covered. Here are a few bands that might help you become more fit in 2019:
Before Apple started selling the 2018 iPad Pro USB-C power charger as a stand-alone product, Scosche introduced one that’s slightly more expensive but offers significant advantages.
In addition, Scosche sells a USB-C/USB-A car charger that iPad Pro users should consider as well.
We’ve shown you the best gifts for iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch users, but what if the person you’re buying for is a long-time Apple fan whose first love was the Mac? Then you should start your shopping right here!
This guide is filled with awesome accessories and gadgets that every Mac addict will enjoy. We’ve handpicked only the best — things we’ve used, reviewed, and would recommend — so that you can be sure your hard-earned cash is being well spent.
Check out our gift guide selections for Mac users below.
Even a 15-inch MacBook Pro screen feels cramped when compared to a big desktop display. Too bad toting around a second screen for your laptop isn’t practical.
But maybe it is. Luna Display is a tiny wireless adapter that lets an iPad act as an external display for a Mac. We tested this accessory to see how well it lives up to its promise of a hassle-free way of extending our MacBook screen when on the go. Read on to find out how it did.
Were you ever in the middle of trying to get that perfect photo, framing it just-so, and tweaking the exposure and focus for the perfect shot, when your mother called to remind you of your own child’s birthday? It could totally happen. And for pro photographers using the iPhone as their preferred camera (which is a great idea, BTW), the risk of interruptions is even greater.
That’s why noted iPhone photographer Austin Mann came up with a great way to shut up your iPhone while you’re busy shooting. It’s called Shoot Mode, and it’s yet another example of how useful Siri Shortcuts can be — even in tiny doses.
New aluminum iPad Pro keyboards from Brydge fully embrace the concept of turning the tablet into a laptop.
The company is teasing the clip-on keyboards with images that show off their beautiful all-aluminum casings and backlit keys.
Linea Go is the little sister of Linea, perhaps the best pick-up-and-go drawing app on the iPad. And unlike the iPad, where there are a ton of really top-end drawing and painting apps, the iPhone has far fewer, especially if you just want a great way to lay down a quick sketch.
If nothing else, Linea Go shows just how great it would be if the Apple Pencil worked with the iPhone.
USB Type C — it’s no longer a novelty but an emerging connectivity standard for Apple products. As a newer, more powerful variation of the same USB we all know and love (well, kinda), USB-C features higher power and faster data transfer than its predecessors via a smaller connector.
While older USB Type A and B were a great gift for Mac users — few mourned the passing of ADB and SCSI — USB is often finicky. Just plugging in an old-school USB cable can prove challenging, since you must position the connector just so for it to slide smoothly into the port. That often means several tries to achieve the proper angle and orientation.
Those obstacles disappear with USB-C because, in addition to its smaller size, it is designed to be reversible — with no up or down orientation, just like a Lightning cable — and the cables can have the same type of connector on both ends.
Instagram just added Nametags to its app, to make it easier to share your account with other people. Instead of forcing them to try to remember your Instagram username, you can just show them your Instagram Nametag, and they scan it from their own Instagram app.
It’s a neat feature, already in use on Snapchat. And — of course — you can customize your Nametag. Lets check it out.
An iPhone gravestone spotted in Russia marks the final resting place of a young woman who reportedly worked in an Apple retail position.
A video posted online shows the iPhone-inspired grave marker. The unique monument boasts an Apple logo, side buttons and an image of the deceased 25-year-old on the screen. It’s the ultimate tribute to an Apple fan!
iOS 12 has finally landed, bringing with it a whole raft of new features and updates like Siri Shortcuts and enhanced AR. It offers plenty of opportunity for developers to innovate and build awesome new apps. That is, if you know the development ropes.
By Chris Brantner
With the football season heating up, it’s time to make sure you have a way to catch all the biggest matchups. Luckily, watching NFL games no longer requires you to pay for an overpriced cable subscription. And Apple users have a plethora of options to stream pro football without cable this season.
No matter which Apple device you use, you’ll find a wide range of apps to let you watch NFL football. Here’s a rundown of some of the best options for streaming NFL games this season.
When Steve Jobs died in 2011, pundits wondered how the company would continue to make great products without him.
The question is partly answered by programmer Ken Kocienda’s new book, Creative Selection, which describes his 15 years working at Apple helping to develop the original iPhone, iPad and Safari web browser.
Kocienda’s book is a remarkable insider’s story that shows how Apple creates the software that it’s rightly famous for.
MyPhones Unlimited, the company behind our successful iPhone buyback program, is offering Cult of Mac readers $50 off refurbished MacBook Airs. These laptops come in the original box with the original Apple charger. Each refurbished laptop undergoes a thorough 30-point inspection and comes with a 60-day warranty with hassle-free returns.
These lightweight Mac laptops start at just $399 with the discount. Best Buy is currently offering the very same refurbished MacBook Air for $689, so these prices are a steal. So, if you’ve been waiting for a hot deal, this is it. Use coupon code “CULT” and grab a refurbished 11-inch MacBook Air before they sell out.