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News - page 213

Plugable’s expansive new 13-port USB-C desktop dock adds dual 4K displays

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Plugable's expansive new 13-port USB-C desktop dock adds dual 4K displays
With the Plugable UD-6950PDH on your desktop, your Mac can have 13 more ports and two more 4K monitors.
Photo: Plugable

The Plugable UD-6950PDH is a just-launched USB-C dock that lets Mac users add a wide variety of accessories via a whopping 13 ports. And that includes a pair of 4K monitors even on Macs that not designed to handle that many.

On top of that, the dock offers 100W of power for charging high-end MacBooks.

Das Keyboard hunts serious Mac users with MacTigr low-profile mechanical keyboard

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Das Keyboard hunts serious Mac users with MacTigr low-profile mechanical keyboard
Not for Windows users. Das Keyboard promises MacTigr provides "a premium Mac typing experience."
Photo: Das Keyboard

Unlike so many keyboards, the MacTigr is specifically for Mac. The designers at Das Keyboard included Mac-specific keys in a low-profile mechanical keyboard made of high-quality materials.

In addition to Cherry MX Low Profile Red mechanical switches, the accessory is packed with extra features, like a volume knob, sleep button and even a two-port USB-C hub.

Apple kicks its return-to-office plan back into gear

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The walkway around Apple Park.
Apple Park will soon be busier.
Photo: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac

Apple’s oft-delayed plan to require corporate employees to be in the office three days a week is reportedly back on.

Apple employees are already required to be in the offices two days a week. That will reportedly jump to three days a week starting in early September.

Life By Ella trailer shows a very upbeat teen in new Apple TV+ series

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'Life By Ella' trailer shows a very upbeat teen in new Apple TV+ series
Life By Ella premieres globally September 2, 2022 on Apple TV+.
Photo: Apple TV+

Life By Ella follows a teen as she takes herself in a bold new direction: She’s going to seize every day and experience everything she was afraid to do before. The kids and family series debuts September 2 on Apple TV+.

Apple posted an extremely upbeat trailer for the upcoming show Monday.

New AirVersa air purifier for HomeKit gets Thread networking support

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AirVersa's new Purelle air purifier works with HomeKit as well as the Thread wireless networking protocol.
AirVersa's new Purelle air purifier works with HomeKit as well as the Thread wireless networking protocol.
Photo: AirVersa

AirVersa’s new Purelle Smart Air Purifier for HomeKit came out on Amazon in the U.S. on Saturday. According to the company, it’s the first air purifier to support the Thread networking standard.

That Thread support will be important when the Matter home automation standard starts helping devices made by different makers work well together.

Dual Studio Displays dole out killer color consistency [Setups]

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Two Studio Displays offer identical color consistency.
Two Studio Displays offer identical color consistency.
Photo: [email protected]

If there’s one thing Apple displays are known for, it’s high prices. OK — all joking aside — if there are two things they’re known for, it’s crisp, accurate colors and being worth the price for that level of quality.

After all, those who work or play with graphics, photos, video or animation need great color.

And if you go dual-display, it helps if they’re the same model. Today’s featured Mac Studio setup, for example, corrected mismatched displays and the resulting color inconsistency by adding a second Studio Display.

Severance and Ted Lasso rake in awards from Hollywood critics

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Christopher Walken, John Turturro and Zach Cherry in “Severance” on Apple TV+. It won 5 awards from the Hollywood Critics Association.
Christopher Walken, John Turturro and Zach Cherry in “Severance” on Apple TV+. The series won 5 awards from the Hollywood Critics Association.
Photo: Apple TV+

Two of the best-loved shows on Apple TV+ — Severance and Ted Lasso — took home honors over the weekend from the Hollywood Critics Association TV Awards.

Severance won five awards, including Best Drama, and Ted Lasso won two awards, including Best Comedy. Apple TV+ topped all streaming services with 53 nominations overall.

Pump 245 watts into your gear with new GaN desktop charger and power bank

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Pump 245 watts into your gear with new GaN desktop charger and power bank
Hype has a pair of GaN accessories that can handle 245W either in the office or on the go.
Photo: Sanyo/Hyper

The switch to gallium nitride continues to lead to less bulky but more powerful charging accessories. As their names indicate, the HyperJuice 245W GaN Desktop Charger and 245W USB-C Battery Pack can each supply 245 watts of power, but GaN means they aren’t oversized.

Both launched Monday.

Heatwave in China may hurt iPad supply

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Future iPhones might need a Vapor Chamber cooling system
It's hot and dry enough in China to affect iPad production.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

It’s hot in China. Hot enough that the government is ordering industries in parts of the country to temporarily halt electrical consumption so there’s enough left for air conditioning. An Apple analyst warns that iPad assembly could be affected.

Apple is expected to launch a redesigned budget iPad and an updated iPad Pro this autumn, and production problems could limit their availability.

How scientific are Apple’s health and fitness features?

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Putting Apple's health & fitness features under a microscope
Let's put Apple's health and fitness features under a microscope.
Photo: Graham Bower/Cult of Mac/Rouibi Dhia Eddine Nadjm*

In a recent report, Apple outlined the “rigorous scientific validation processes” used to develop the health and fitness features baked into its products.

Wearables like Apple Watch monitor our bodies around the clock, providing health insights in real time. That’s a new and unprecedented development in medical technology. The benefits are already clear, as the report illustrates, with anecdotes about how Apple Watch has saved lives.

But anecdotal evidence is not the same as scientific research. By cherry-picking the best outcomes, anecdotes risk overlooking the bigger picture. Scientists must look at all the outcomes, not just the good ones. With that in mind, I took a closer look at the scientific studies cited in Apple’s report, to find out what they tell us about the impact Apple Watch is having on our health.

Entering handwritten text with Scribble coming to Microsoft Office for iPad

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Scribble is the most significant new feature in iPadOS 14
Handwriting to text is coming to the iPad version of Microsoft Office.
Photo: Apple

The newest beta of Microsoft Office gives iPad users the option to convert handwriting done with an Apple Pencil or other stylus into text using Apple’s Scribble system. It’ll should be available to all in the near future.

Apple’s handwriting-recognition system uses AI to recognize letters and words, and will allow users to quickly edit a document or spreadsheet on the go with a stylus. But it could also be used to write entire Word docs.

Apple once proposed team-up on for-pay version of Facebook without ads

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Apple proposed for-pay version of Facebook without ads
Apple suggested Facebook create a for-pay version, with Apple getting a cut of the subscription revenue.
Image: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

Apple tried to talk Facebook into creating a version of its social network without adverts, according to a new report. Users would pay a subscription fee and would not be tracked for advertising purposes.

Obviously, it didn’t happen.

What we already know about Apple Watch Series 8

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Apple Watch Pro with flash screen
A new top-of-the-line Apple Watch Pro allegedly coming in 2022 will have a flat screen and a titanium body.
Concept: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

You don’t have to wait until September to get the details on the next-gen Apple Watch. Many of them leaked out already.

Here’s what to expect out of the upcoming Series 8, and a new “extreme sports” Apple Watch. An updated Apple Watch SE is also supposedly in the offing.

These two tweaks would make iOS 16 even more amazing [The CultCast]

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The CultCast podcast: iOS 16 is almost there, but we'll be disappointed if Apple doesn't polish these two things.
New features coming in iOS 16 look impressive, but we'll be disappointed if Apple doesn't polish these two things.
Image: Cult of Mac

This week on Cult of Mac’s podcast: We’re taking a long look (and listen) at all the hottest new features coming in iOS 16, including the return of the battery percentage indicator. Some of the impending changes look (and sound) great. Others … not so much.

We want two big tweaks: a polished version of the battery percentage indicator, and an iPhone ping that doesn’t sound like garbage. (The existing one is great, and the proposed one is definitely not an upgrade.)

But, hey, there’s still time for Tim Cook’s team of tweakers to bring things up to snuff. In fact, somebody already did the heavy lifting for them on that battery icon (see below)!

Take on Darth Vader in Star Wars update to Zen Pinball Party on Apple Arcade

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Take on Darth Vader in 'Star Wars' update to 'Zen Pinball Party' on Apple Arcade
Play pinball with Luke, Han, Leia, Anakin and Ahsoka.
Photo: Zen Studios

Play pinball in a galaxy far, far away as an update to Zen Pinball Party adds two new tables based on Star Wars. Enjoy characters and music from some of the bast of the Skywalker saga.

The pinball game launched on Apple Arcade in 2021, and already lets players have a go at tables with a Kung Fu Panda theme, or Trolls, or How to Train Your Dragon.

Stephen Colbert’s mashup of Severance and The Office is hilarious

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"Stephen C." annoys Irving B. at Lumon Industries in "Severance" parody.
Photo: Late Show with Stephen Colbert

The Late Show With Stephen Colbert created a parody Thursday night of the psychological thriller Severance on Apple TV+. The segment’s a must-see for fans of the show, or for fans of nouveu-comedy classic The Office, which figures into the mashup heavily.

I just called Severance a psychological thriller. In his lead-in to the video, which you can watch below, Colbert was probably more accurate.

Severance is easily one of the top dystopian workplace sci-fi mystery black comedy psychological thrillers I’ve ever seen,” he deadpanned, getting a laugh.

Mac Studio workstation makeover enhances whole room [Setups]

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In an
In an "after" picture, one larger monitor on a desk shelf instead of two on the desk opens up the space nicely.
Photo: [email protected]

With so many people working from home these days, a whole lot of them spend much of their life in one room — wherever the computer setup is, that is. And that’s all the more the case in apartments and small homes. So improving the setup can have a pretty big impact.

In today’s featured Mac Studio setup, swapping out two smaller displays for one bigger one, adding a desk shelf and making a few other changes made quite a difference in enhancing the workspace.

Apple commits to revealing what’s in AirPods firmware updates

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Product photo of original AirPods outside their case to illustrate a
AIrPods firmware updates are about to get a lot less mysterious.
Photo: Dagny Reese/Unsplash License

AirPods users will soon be able to discover what’s new in each firmware update. The current iOS 16 beta includes a link to a description of the current firmware on Apple’s website.

That’s a notable change from iOS 15 and before, where firmware updates for these wireless earbuds are an almost complete mystery.

Apple TV+ picks up dark comedy Physical for third season

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Rose Byrne plays fitness entrepreneur Sheila Rubin in
Rose Byrne gets to keep playing fitness entrepreneur Sheila Rubin in "Physical" on Apple TV+.
Photo: Apple TV+

Physical starring Rose Byrne will return to Apple TV+ for a third season. The dark comedy about a female fitness guru is set in the 1980s.

There were some questions about the show’s future after a shaky first season, but season two made continuing the series a no-brainer.

Why you should never use the browser in Facebook and Instagram

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Why you should never use the browser in Facebook and Instagram
You can always count on Meta apps to suck up as much users data as possible.
Graphic: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

The web browser that Meta built into the iPhone Facebook and Instagram applications can collect far more information about users than they probably realize. It can “track every single interaction with external websites,” according to a developer.

But users don’t have to stay in this sketchy browser. Leaving it is easy – here’s how.

Grovemade adds small and medium sizes to its desk-shelf lineup

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Now available in small and medium sizes. This one is made from walnut-based plywood.
Now available in small and medium sizes. This one is made from walnut-based plywood.
Photo: Grovemade

Accessories-maker Grovemade recently added small and medium sizes to its lineup of desk shelves, which are wooden stands or risers for monitors and laptops that help you organize and store other items.

We see the Portland, Oregon-based company’s desk shelves from time to time in people’s workstations in Setups feature articles.

Today in Apple history: Happy birthday, Steve Wozniak!

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Steve Wozniak wax sculpture fake eyes
Apple's merry prankster celebrates another spin around the sun.
Photo: Madame Tussauds

August 11: Today in Apple history: Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak is born August 11, 1950: Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak is born. While Steve Jobs may be the most admired Apple figure, Woz might be the most well-loved by fans.

In addition to his most famous creation, the Apple II, Wozniak is also responsible for imbuing Apple’s products with his fun-loving personality.

Happy birthday, Woz!

And the winner of the best-macOS-wallpaper-ever tournament is …

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Is this your favorite macOS wallpaper?
Is this your favorite macOS wallpaper?
Photo: Apple

Apple aficionado Basic Apple Guy ran a “bracket” polling competition — think March Madness basketball, but without any perspiration — to determine the greatest macOS wallpaper ever. And users have spoken, according to a tweet pointing to final results Wednesday.

In a field of 18 competitors, macOS Catalina wallpaper emerged the champion (pictured above).

Disney+ price jumps sharply

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Disney+ logo
You'll be paying more to stream Disney, Marvel and Star Wars series.
Photo: The Walt Disney Company

Disney will soon hike the monthly subscription price of its streaming service almost 40%. When Disney+ first launched, it was one of the cheapest streaming streaming services. Not for much longer.

The company also increased the cost of Hulu and ESPN+.

Watch: Pirates infielder slides into third, iPhone slides out of his pocket

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Watch: Pirates infielder slides into third, iPhone slides out of his pocket
Shown here: one of many reasons baseball players aren't allowed to carry iPhones on the field.
Screenshot: Bally Sports Arizona

Rodolfo Castro of the Pittsburg Pirates made an epic slide into third base Wednesday. His iPhone also tagged third – we know because the handset flew out of his pocket and hit the base.

The umpire had to point out to the baseball player that that the iPhone was lying on the field.