The massive Memorial Day Sale is still going on in the Cult of Mac Store, running through the end of the day on Monday, May 29. You can get up to 30% off great accessories for Apple products from half a dozen leading brands: Elago, Rilee & Lo, SwitchEasy, Mifa, Laut, Bucardo and Nine Twenty Eight.
See some sale highlights below and check out the whole sale on hundreds of items before it’s too late!
Part of the fun of covering computer setups for Cult of Mac is seeing how a setup is never “done.” Blood, sweat, tears and time may go into it, but it will always need something — whether that’s missing functionality, better decoration or the next generation of a key device.
Today’s featured M2 MacBook Air setup is a good example. Since we featured an earlier version of it just weeks ago, the user made important changes. He added two components to maximize crucial iPad functionality and pump up audio.
Looking to buy a new iPad, Apple Watch, Mac, or AirPods? Take advantage of the Memorial Day sale across various retailers, and you can save big on your purchase.
Given that Apple products are almost always in demand, they are heavily discounted this Memorial Day.
This week on Cult of Mac’s podcast: iOS 17 might turn your iPhone into a dashboard for your smart home. Plus, Apple’s new journaling app seems like it will arrive soon as well. With WWDC23 just weeks away, we don’t have long to wait.
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.
After a long wait, Final Cut Pro, Apple’s professional video editing software, is now available for M1 or newer iPads. Editors accustomed to Final Cut Pro on their Mac can easily switch to their iPad as a portable editing machine.
However, before starting with Final Cut Pro on your iPad, you need to know how it differs from the Mac build. Both versions enable pro-level video editing, but they are understandably different in key ways.
Some of the computer setups on social media with the biggest “wow” factor are Mac Pro-based. And some boast not one but multiple Pro Display XDRs, Apple’s unattainably high-priced top monitor. But some “wow” setup have both a Mac Pro and multiple Pro Display XDRs, like today’s featured rig.
And discussion prompted by the setup covers a key issue to consider when you’ve got a big, heavy, gorgeous, super-expensive display. What’s the most solid, safe and wiggle-free mount to use with it?
Qi2 is a new wireless charging standard expected to go into widespread use later in 2023. And, according to an unconfirmed report, the upcoming iPhone 15 will be one of the handsets that supports it, including 15W charging.
That’s not surprising, considering Qi2 is heavily based on the MagSafe system built into current iPhones.
Moft released its cool, origami-style Snap Float Folio for iPad in 2022, offering a versatile four stand positions for the tablet. Now the company has updated the folio, reinforcing it and adding stronger magnets for a better hold, among other changes.
“In retrospect, yeah, stronger magnets would definitely improve the stand,” said Ed Hardy, Cult of Mac‘s reviewer of the original Snap Float. He loved it then, and it sounds like the new one’s even better.
A new power bank from Belkin includes a built-in wireless charger that can juice up the latest Apple Watch models in the minimum amount of time. The battery also can simultaneously replenish an iPhone through its USB-C port.
The BoostCharge Pro Fast Wireless Charger for Apple Watch + Power Bank 10K launched Thursday.
With spring soon turning to summer, isn’t it time you lightened up your look and added a bit of bling? Maybe a studded leather Apple Watch band in taupe and some shiny and colorful Apple Watch cases to go with it are just the thing.
Goldenerre’s popular leather band is now available in a taupe color in the Cult of Mac Store, along with shiny gold and silver Apple Watch cases, with (or without) rhinestones for maximum bling.
A newly published patent filing shows Apple is exploring the possibility of building support for the Find My device locating system into a future version of the Apple Pencil. At the very least, the stylus might be able to play an alert sound to make it more findable.
Other products from the company already have this feature.
Apple TV+ went wheels-up Thursday with a trailer for the upcoming thriller series Hijack. In it, Idris Elba plays a business negotiator who finds himself on a hijacked airliner and sets about handling a desperate situation that is much more complicated than it first appears — with the lives of 200 passengers at stake.
On the plane the clock is very much ticking, and so is ours as we wait for this show to take off. It debuts June 28 on Apple TV+.
OpenAI’s ChatGPT for iOS makes the much-hyped chatbot easy to use on an iPhone. It’s powered by the same artificial intelligence as the web version, so it’s useful in many ways for people on the go. Plus, the app has its own voice-recognition system. And the basic version is free.
The ChatGPT AI already stirred up enormous controversy. But here are some suggestions for how to use the new iPhone application in positive ways.
The 2023 Mac mini with the powerful Apple M2 processor is already an amazing deal, and shoppers can now save even more by buying a refurbished unit.
These are primarily desktops that consumers bought then returned so supplies are limited. There are no units with the M2 Pro processor available at this time, for example.
Walking into a doctor’s office to be greeted by a public announcement of the medical condition you’re there to have treated would be a nightmare. A nightmare that plays out in the latest Apple video advert.
But one person in the ad is safe from embarrassment: the one who stores her medical data in the iPhone Health app, which Apple designed to protect user privacy.
The always-on display in recent iPhones will get a new use in iOS 17, according to a tipster. The device will reportedly show upcoming appointments, controls for smart home accessories, and more.
We won’t have long to wait to find out if this is an accurate leak — the official unveiling of iOS 17 at WWDC23 is expected in under two weeks.
The Snoopy Show season 3 premieres in June on Apple TV+, with Charlie Brown’s dog, his pal Woodstock and the rest of the Peanuts gang setting off for more fun. The trailer for the new season shows the irrepressible pooch becoming an airline pilot, a surfer, a skater, a pirate and much more.
And this is just one of the Peanuts shows coming soon to Apple TV+, including a new series.
With Apple apparently on the verge of releasing its first AR/VR headset at WWDC23, an Israeli startup called Sightful has unveiled Spacetop, which it calls “the world’s first augmented-reality laptop.”
Spacetop has no dedicated display. The user dons AR glasses to view tabs across a curved, 100-inch virtual space that no one else can see. You have to wonder if this practical step into AR is the right move at the right time — or too practical for its own good.
Apple’s 5K Studio Display in on the pricey side for many folks, so many less-expensive 4K monitors like the one in today’s featured MacBook Pro and Lenovo laptop setup tend to stand in for it.
But not every big-selling 4K display is designed to look like it belongs in an Apple setup. This one is.
Netflix’s crackdown on password sharing has arrived in the US. Going forward, your friends or family members will have to pay extra to stream content from Netflix if they were leeching from your account.
Netflix’s new account-sharing rules require all members to reside in the same household.
With the release of Govee’s first Matter-compatible smart light — the LED Strip Light M1 — users can connect lighting across smart home automation platforms like HomeKit and others, the company said Monday.
Responding to years of requests for iPad versions of professional-grade software, Apple released Final Cut Pro and Logic Pro for iPadOS on Tuesday.
These are not “lite” versions of Apple’s video editing and music creation software. They are equivalent to the macOS ones, but adapted for iPad. And that includes additional features.
Want to buy a new MacBook Air? Apple’s old but still powerful M1 MacBook Air is available with a whopping $199 discount on Amazon.
This fantastic deal brings the value of the machine down to $799.99.
On Monday Baseus released its new PowerCombo 6-in-1 Charging Station, a desktop power-strip tower featuring a retractable USB-C cable.
In addition to the cable, the device includes three electrical outlets for computers, monitors and other electronics, plus a 65-watt USB-C port and a 60W USB-A port for charging devices like iPads, iPhones and AirPods.
Apple said Tuesday it struck a “new multiyear, multibillion-dollar agreement” with technology manufacturer Broadcom to develop 5G radio frequency components in the United States.
“We’re thrilled to make commitments that harness the ingenuity, creativity and innovative spirit of American manufacturing,” said Apple CEO Tim Cook.
“All of Apple’s products depend on technology engineered and built here in the United States, and we’ll continue to deepen our investments in the U.S. economy because we have an unshakable belief in America’s future,” he added.