You can stick this all-in-one charging station on a nightstand. Photo: Native Union
Does charging up all your gadgets in one place sound good? Native Union rolled out a new MagSafe-compatible 3-in-1 wireless charging station Tuesday that should do the trick, topping up your iPhone, AirPods and Apple Watch all in one go.
The compact Native Union Snap 3-in-1 Magnetic Wireless Charger joins the previously released Snap 2-in-1 in the company’s charging lineup.
Nice stems on those. But $400 nice? Photo: Bang & Olufsen
Danish audio legend Bang & Olufsen has struck out in a new yet familiar direction with its latest true wireless earbuds, the Beoplay EX. It’s the company’s first set of earbuds with stems, which makes them look a lot like AirPods Pro.
As a premium offering, Beoplay EX boasts all of the expected features, like active noise cancellation (ANC). The buds also claim top-notch sound and demand a high price for it — $399, considerably more than AirPods Pro and other major contenders.
Daisy the robot can disassemble up to 1.2 million phones each year, helping Apple recover more valuable materials for recycling. Photo: Apple
For the first time, Apple is putting certified recycled gold in the iPhone. It’s part of the company’s increased use of recycled content across its products. Because of these efforts, nearly 20% of all material used in Apple products in 2021 was recycled, a new high point for the company.
“As people around the world join in celebrating Earth Day, we are making real progress in our work to address the climate crisis and to one day make our products without taking anything from the earth,” said Lisa Jackson, Apple’s vice president of environment, policy and social initiatives, in a press release Tuesday.
Apple also added a new shredderbot that rips apart audio modules to its robot recycling crew.
Hang ten with some of the top surfers in the world. Photo: Apple TV+
Apple TV+ released the first trailer Monday for Make or Break, a new seven-part documentary series that delivers behind-the-scenes access to the world’s best surfers. The series follows them as they battle for the world title at the World Surf League (WSL) Championship Tour (CT).
In the trailer, you get to briefly meet a bunch of the world’s best surfers and get a taste of the huge challenges they face.
And dude, you can’t unsee the surfboard with the big shark-bite taken out of it.
Apple TV+ might score a touchdown with NFL Sunday Ticket. Concept: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
Apple might be about to put down billions to intercept NFL Sunday Ticket, which would allow it to stream out-of-market games every week of future football seasons.
GoPro's new version of the Hero10 Black strips away weight and bulk for use with drones. Photo: GoPro
GoPro rolled out a new first-person view (FPV) drone camera last week, though only in the U.S. It’s a stripped-down version of the company’s popular Hero10 Black action camera called the GoPro Hero10 Black Bones.
As the name implies, it’s bare-bones, brought down to a very light weight. So you can attach it to your drone and fly it around.
A small collection of adapters can really make your life easier. Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
Adapters simplify the sometimes-messy process of connecting things to our computers. I regularly travel, and I’ve found there are three USB adapters that get me through most of my connection problems.
If you, for example, suddenly need to use a new accessory at a client’s office, or get power at an airport, these adapters will get you through. And they are very affordable.
Cook during a previous commencement address. Photo: George Washington University
Gallaudet University confirmed Saturday that Apple CEO Tim Cook agreed to deliver its commencement address next month. Cook responded to a student’s invitation via Twitter to speak at the school’s 152nd Commencement on May 13.
Gallaudet, located in Washington, D.C., calls itself the only university in the world where Deaf, deaf-blind and hard-of-hearing students live and learn bilingually in American Sign Language and English.
Apple and the university have close ties, with Gallaudet serving as an Apple Campus. Incoming students are equipped with a MacBook Pro or an iPad Pro. And the school praised Apple TV+ Oscar-winning film CODA for its realistic portrayal of a deaf family.
Oh, you didn't know the new Studio Display levitates? Well, sort of. Photo: [email protected]
After Apple rolled out its new Studio Display on March 18, the reviews poured in. Many praised the 27-inch 5K display. But some found faults. Ultimately, after the dust settled, a primary question lingered. It’s good, for the most part, but is it worth the $1,600 price?
Today’s featured setup seems to answer the question in the affirmative. See how the Studio Display in the photo floats in the air? When you think about it, it’s really just a matter of factoring in the value of levitation.
Eufy's new smart lock is also a wide-angle security camera and a motion-detecting doorbell. Photo: Eufy
Eufy has a new Kickstarter campaign for what it calls “the see-everything smart lock.” It’s the Eufy Video Smart Lock, a 3-in-1 device that works as a fingerprint-detecting lock, a 2K, wide-angle camera and a dual motion-detection doorbell, the company said.
Now that’s a capable gadget. And it has a substantial price to match. See below.
Apple is still hard at work on a HomePod/Apple TV combo with a FaceTime camera. Graphic: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
The next HomePod reportedly won’t be a replacement for the full-size smart speaker. Apple is instead working on a combination Apple TV, HomePod and FaceTime camera.
The device supposedly will be the heart of Apple’s smart home strategy.
Pick up the premium AirPods Max with a $80 discount Photo: Lewis Wallace/Cult of Mac
AirPods Max, Apple’s premium over-the-ear headphones, are currently discounted by $70 to $479.
If you are in the market for a high-end headphone that integrates seamlessly with your iPhone and other Apple devices, you cannot go wrong with the AirPods Max.
Apple is managing to stand out in the streaming market in Q1 2022. Photo: Cult of Mac
More streaming viewers watched the drama CODA on Apple TV+ than any other movie or series during the first three months of 2022, according to a ratings tracker. And the thriller Severance on Apple’s streaming service came in third place overall.
That means Apple TV+ streamed two shows with more viewers than anything on Netflix, Amazon, Hulu or Disney+.
Yes, you're AirPods Pro case can look like an adorable little Mac. Photo: Elago
Elago makes so many fun and interesting accessories for Apple products, it’s hard to know where to begin. But begin you should, because Saturday and Sunday you can get 20% off everything Elago in the Cult of Mac Store.
Don’t worry. There are a mind-numbing 148 products to choose from, but we’ll help you pick some choice items below. And you can browse everything in Elago’s Easter weekend sale, of course. But don’t dawdle. It’s only for the weekend, and it ends Sunday!
BluShark's Apple Watch bands come in a great variety of materials and colors. Photo: BluShark
If you’re thinking about freshening up your Apple Watch band — or giving one as a gift to a family member or friend — you’re in luck. This weekend only, April 16 – 17, BluShark is offering all of its bands at 20% off in the Cult of Mac Store.
With a choice of 41 different straps in a variety of materials and colors, you’re bound to find something great. And there’s a handsome Canvas Strap Roll to carry your watches, straps and tools, as well.
The deals on the 2021 iPad Pro lineup are too good to ignore Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
The M1 iPad Pro is discounted by up to $400 on Amazon, making it the perfect time to pick one up. The 11-inch iPad Pro sees a sweet $50 discount off its retail price, bringing its price down to $749.
The best deal is on the top-end 12.9-inch iPad Pro with cellular connectivity and 2TB storage that’s discounted by $400.
Core is a game-development tool previously limited to PCs. Photo: Manticore Games
Core is a free tool for creating games that runs on Unreal Engine, which is only available on PC. But as part of its one-year anniversary, developer Manticore Games said Friday that Core is coming to macOS and iOS in summer 2022.
When Mac, iPhone and iPad get Core, gamers will be able to cross-play between versions with Windows gamers, Manticore said. And developers can start playing with Core for iOS on Friday.
A new wave of lockdowns in China could put Apple millions of units behind on iPhone production. Illustration: Cult of Mac
Analysts note that new COVID-19 lockdowns in China are hitting Apple’s supply chain hard. And the pain will likely worsen, with production falling behind by up to 10 million iPhones.
And this is not just about iPhones. Authorities have halted production at three key suppliers for iPhone, iPad and Mac assembly. Meanwhile, Apple is negotiating to reopen production lines, though success could be hard to come by, according to one analyst Friday.
This computer setup simply has more in it than there appears. Photo: [email protected]
At a glance, today’s featured computer setup appears simpler than it really is. It showcases a Mac mini, a pair of mounted monitors and some typical-looking input devices. A row of water bottles stands to the right because the owner, who lives in India, is big on hydration as summer hits the subcontinent.
But there’s more to the setup than meets the eye. And some of it escapes the camera’s lens.
The M1 iMac is the perfect machine for your home office at its discounted price Photo: Apple
Apple’s excellent 24-inch M1 iMac is cheaper than ever on Amazon right now. The base model with 7-core GPU and 256GB storage is available for $1,199 after a $100 discount.
The more powerful model with 8-core GPU sees an even more attractive discount of $150.
TSMC, the company that makes CPUs for iPhone and Mac, will have a 3 nanometer production process up and running in the second half of 2022. But that’s almost certainly too late for Apple’s upcoming A16 and M2 processors.
Still, these chips will benefit from TSMC’s 4nm process.
You could soon enter WeWork locations using your iPhone Photo: Leander Kahney/Cult of Mac
WeWork is working on turning your iPhone or Apple Watch into access keys for its buildings. References to the company working on Apple Wallet integration have been found in the latest version of its app.
Use Apple Pay to donate to a good cause this year around Earth Day. Photo: Apple
If you care about environmental causes, Apple just gave you a pretty painless way to give. Starting Thursday and running through Earth Day on April 22, Apple will donate $1 to the World Wildlife Fund for every Apple Pay transaction in Apple stores, on the store app or on Apple.com.
So start buying stuff and join the fight to save the planet’s beleaguered species.