The Staples Singers appear in "1971: The Year that Music Changed Everything" on Apple TV+. Photo: Apple TV+
Apple TV+ won its very first BAFTA TV Awards Sunday for two documentaries, 9/11: Inside the President’s War Room and 1971: The Year That Music Changed Everything.
Each year the BAFTAs honor the best British programs and productions in addition to honoring films, such as CODA on Apple TV+, with separate awards.
Pit yourself against the demonic forces of Skarn, Lord of Damnation in Diablo Immortal. Photo: Blizzard Entertainment
Diablo fans will be soon able to answer the call to battle on their iPhone. On June 2, Blizzard Entertainment will launch Diablo Immortal, a massively multiplayer online action role-playing game for phones and tablets.
There’ll also be a PC version, and players will be able enjoy the game across platforms.
You can set these to block out your own bodily noises, like panting, during a workout. Photo: Sennheiser
Sennheiser is rolling out a new set of true wireless earbuds for fitness enthusiasts. The company said its Sport True Wireless buds include an Aware EQ passthrough setting that can reduce noises from your own body during exercise, such as your pounding heartbeat, your huffing and puffing, and your footsteps.
Those white desktop speakers might not be cutting it. Photo: [email protected]
You can have a lot of good gear in your computer setup but still feel it falls short somehow. Like with today’s featured setup, you could have a recent MacBook Pro and an Xbox Series X gaming console. You could have a sweet curved gaming monitor. You might even have a kick-ass Lego Technic McLaren Formula 1 Race Car mounted on the wall.
But do you have stellar audio or just OK audio? That’s the issue our setup’s owner faces.
Jon Stewart is back behind the anchor desk on Apple TV+. Photo: Apple TV+
Comedian Jon Stewart, host of The Problem With Jon Stewart on Apple TV+, won the Mark Twain Prize for humor for his long stint hosting The Daily Show and his activism on behalf of veterans and 9/11 responders.
Stewart received the award at a ceremony Sunday at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C.
"Slow Horses" on Apple TV+ features Gary Oldman as Jackson Lamb, plus a lot of muttered words and phrases you might need help understanding. Photo: Apple TV+
There’s nothing like discovering a truly rich and deep source of entertainment — like a darkly amusing TV series that you find out is made from a whole lineup of engrossing books that you at least aspire to read. Such is the case with Slow Horses on Apple TV+, adapted from a series of spy-thriller novels by Mick Herron.
The dozen books and subsequent TV show rise from a complex world of spy circles with Cold War underpinnings leading into and out of MI5. That’s the U.K.’s primary security agency, sort of like the FBI in the U.S. In the story, a dysfunctional team of MI5 agents relegated to “Slough House” become embroiled in matters of national security, often at odds with M15 first-stringers.
Even if you’ve got a good ear for U.K. and European accents, you may still find yourself baffled by the in-jokes, shop talk and slang coming out of the characters’ mouths. Good thing there are helpful reference materials out there, like a whole glossary of terms.
A hidden image in the updated iOS app shows the upcoming air quality monitor. Photo: Ecobee
It appears Ecobee, the Canadian smart home accessories maker, will soon release a new version of its SmartThermostat with an air-quality sensor built right in.
The leak of the upcoming product came in the form of a hidden image in an update to the company’s iOS app.
Apple is warning developers of "outdated" applications that they'll soon be removed from the App Store. Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
Numerous developers report that their applications that aren’t being actively updated will soon be kicked out of the App Store. This is apparently part of an ongoing effort by Apple to remove “outdated” software from the store.
Devs must submit new versions of their applications to stay in the store, which means they’ll have to comply with newer Apple policies.
The new 3-in-1 magnetic wireless charger from Excitrus is affordable, and you can get another 20% off with a launch code. Photo: Excitrus
Need a MagSafe-compatible charger that won’t break the bank? Mobile charging specialist Excitrus, known for power banks, rolled out its capable new 3-in-1 MagSafe Wireless Charging Stand on Thursday.
Not only does it come with an 18W fast-charging wall adapter and an elegant LED light circle on the main charging pad, but the price is right — especially with an additional 20% off as a launch discount. See the details below.
Looks like 2022 is gonna be bumpin'! Image: Lewis Wallace/Cult of Mac
This week on Cult of Mac’s podcast: It sounds like Apple is planning nearly a dozen new Macs with a next-gen M2 processor. The question is, just how big of a speed bump will that new chip bring? And then there’s iPhone 14, which sounds like it might come with a very big bump indeed — and not the kind you might be hoping for.
Also on The CultCast:
The original HomePod never ceases to surprise.
iPhone 14 could be the ultimate smartphone for narcissists.
Apple might be prepping an ingenious hybrid device to take over your living room.
When you’re tired of wearing earbuds, you’ve got options. Very strange options.
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 what you hear.) Or watch the video livestream, embedded below.
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The European Union takes another step toward tough regulations on tech giants like Apple. Photo: Freestocks.org
The European Union may force Apple to make big changes to its App Store as well as services like FaceTime and Messages, if a leaked version of an EU antitrust proposal becomes law.
The draft is said to be the “final version” of the Digital Markets Act, provisionally approved by EU regulators in March. It seeks to restrict how tech giants operate in order to foster greater competition.
Blast off! Moonshot – A Journey Home premiered Friday. Photo: Noodlecake Games
Physics-based puzzlers are all the rage, and the latest Apple Arcade game takes the concept to the stars. In Moonshot – A Journey Home, players use a slingshot to reunite a wandering moon with its home planet.
It debuted Friday on Apple’s gaming service, which now offers more than 200 titles.
The new Anker 736 USB Charger is compact, powerful and versatile. Photo: Anker
Anker showed off its much-anticipated 736 USB Charger at CES back in January. At long last, now you can buy the powerful-but-compact 100W gallium nitride (GaN) charger at Amazon.
And you might want to do just that. It looks like Anker’s new GaN II charger beats Apple’s 96W charger in three ways. It’s smaller, more powerful and more versatile.
The computer setup was updated this month and it couldn't be much nicer. Photo: [email protected]
A picture is worth a thousand words, they say. So today’s M1 Mac mini-driven computer setup, with eight smashing photos, must be roughly equivalent to 8,000 words. But instead of burying you in a horrible cascade of text, we’ll let the pictures tell most of the elegant rig’s story.
The newly updated setup has some exceedingly nice touches. Each of the photos below includes a little commentary.
2nm processors made by TSMC will be faster while using less power than today's 5nm iPhone and Mac chips. Image: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
iPhones will continue getting smaller, faster and more efficient processors for years to come. TSMC, the company that manufactures all Apple’s chips, says it should be able produce processors in 2025 that are an amazing 2nm. These should make today’s fastest Macs and iPhones look like slugs in comparison.
Rival Intel is working hard to keep up. It says it’ll pass TSMC in a few years – but it’s missed plenty of similar self-imposed deadlines over the years.
Many film and TV editors say Final Cut Pro is powerful and fun to use. So why can't it be a professional standard? Image: Apple
In an open letter sent to Apple CEO Tim Cook on Tuesday, more than 100 film and TV professionals called on the company to publicly commit to building its video editing software Final Cut Pro into an industry-standard tool.
The group praised FCP as as “the biggest leap forward in editing technology since the move to digital” but complained it’s not living up to its potential.
The group noted, bitterly, that even the crew on CODA — the first streaming service release to win a Best Picture Oscar, and Apple’s own release — would probably not have chosen to edit it with FCP.
The iPhone 13 dwarfs the iPhone 13 mini in size as well as sales. Photo: Apple
The iPhone 13 series is selling very well… with one exception. The iPhone 13 mini is not attracting U.S. buyers, according to a report by a market-research firm.
This helps explain why the upcoming iPhone 14 series isn’t expected to have a “mini” version with a 5.4-inch screen.
The stand's sleek, magnetic design lifts your iPad off your desk. Photo: Lululook
Our latest giveaway is for iPad owners. We are giving away five Lululook bundles to five lucky winners. Each bundle features one Urban iPad Magnetic Stand and one 33w GaN USB-C charger.
If you own an 11-inch or 12.9-inch iPad Pro, the sleek Urban Magnetic Stand will elevate your iPad and make viewing and working more user-friendly. The 33w GaN USB-C charger is compact and will charge your devices quickly. This $90 bundle will make your desktop flow, so make sure to enter the giveaway below.
The Sonos "Fury" budget soundbar will probably look similar to the Sonos Beam (pictured), but a bit shorter. It should launch with black and white finishes. Photo: Sonos
If you’d love to add a Sonos soundbar to your home theater but you find the company’s well-regarded products a tad pricey, just wait. According to a new leak, Sonos will release its least-expensive soundbar ever — just $249 — in early June.
The M2 processor could be a highlight of WWDC22. Image: Apple/Cult of Mac
The wait for a redesigned MacBook Air with an M2 processor will be over soon, if a tipster is correct. The notebook will supposedly be announced at Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference in June. And a version of the Mac mini with the M2 allegedly will be unveiled at the same time.
If true, these will be the first Macs with the improved replacement for Apple’s M1 processor.
"The Big Conn" is a four-part Apple TV+ documentary series and podcast coming May 6. Photo: Apple TV+
Former eastern Kentucky lawyer Eric C. Conn is notorious for committing the largest-ever Social Security fraud, bilking the U.S. government and taxpayers out of $550 million. Plus, he partied with porn stars and opened a brothel before leading authorities on a major chase.
Apple TV+ covers the whole sordid affair like a blanket, judging by the new trailer for upcoming documentary series and podcast, The Big Conn.
You can give your wearable different looks with different Duo cases. Photo: Elago
Accessories maven Elago has a cool new way for you to protect your pricey Apple Watch while also dressing it up. The Elago Duo Case for Apple Watch completely wraps around your wearable’s housing. And the case’s accent pieces in different colors can be swapped out to freshen up your look.
You could have a different-looking case for every day of the week. People might even ask why you have so many Apple Watches!
Turning a design into a product doesn't have to happen in China. Photo: Apple/Cult of Mac
Apple will increase the number of countries where it does an important phase in developing products, according to a industry analyst. Currently, its R&D-oriented New Product Introduction (NPI) sites are in China, but the company plans to build NPI offices in other places as well.
Recent COVID shutdowns — which have disrupted several recent products — are supposedly the reason for the change.
Score up to 20% off on Grid Studio frames for Earth Day Photo: Leander Kahney/Cult of Mac
Grid Studio, known for turning old iPhones into a piece of art, will offer a 20% discount across all its frames to celebrate Earth Day. It will also donate 10% of its sales proceeds to charity.