As CES 2022 gets underway this week in Las Vegas, lighting company Sengled said it planned to launch several new HomeKit-compatible lighting products. They include Wi-Fi Video-Sync TV Light Strips, Wi-Fi Outdoor String Lights and a Wi-Fi Portable Lamp.
Apple just became the first publicly traded U.S. company to be valued at a whopping $3 trillion. AAPL stock topped out at $182.88 a share Monday before dropping slightly, bringing the market cap back below the $3 trillion milestone.
It closed at $182.01, leaving Apple’s market cap at an astonishing $2.99 trillion. But it continued to climb once again in after-hours trading.
The HyperDrive Turntable Dock for iMac includes a 360-degree swivel mechanism that makes turning the computer a breeze. Plus, it has room for an SSD and 10 useful ports.
Hyper also unveiled on Monday the HyperDrive Thunderbolt 4 Power Hub, which combines a docking station and 100W computer charger.
Both are nominated for CES Innovation Awards.
Eve Systems had two HomeKit-related news items at CES 2022 in Las Vegas on Monday, rolling out an all-new Eve Outdoor Cam for an early April launch and saying its Thread-connected smart blinds — MotionBlinds — are now widely available.
For the first computer setup featured in the new year, we look backward. Not to the recently subsided and mostly loathed 2021, but further back to a controversial Apple product launch from nearly a decade ago. And deeper into Apple’s storied history. Cult of Mac reader Michael De Jong shared some interesting older gear and some iconic imagery with us in his setup photographs.
Apple engineers and other staffers who helped develop the M1 chip are receiving T-shirts to celebrate its one-year anniversary. The shirts feature a picture of an M1 chip, according to a photo posted to Twitter by a senior Apple worker.
“Every so often, something comes along that changes everything,” reads an accompanying note. “Congratulations and thank you for helping make Apple M1 possible!”
Tim Cook’s mission to make Apple’s Services business a behemoth all by itself is paying off in a big way. The latest Wall Street estimate pegs its total value at a whopping $1.5 trillion — more than a third of Apple’s total market cap.
To put that figure into perspective, it’s more than the national net worth of most countries — including Ukraine, Hungary, Peru and Qatar combined.
T-Mobile and Verizon have discontinued the iPad rebate program which offered customers up to $200 back when they activated a cellular device. The move comes after growing complaints about the program’s reliability.
Many users who tried taking advantage of the promotion were met with frustrating responses and poor customer service from both carriers, which reportedly denied the rebate program ever existed on a number of occasions.
Apple’s next desktop monitor won’t be cheap, but it could be significantly less expensive than the high-end Pro Display XDR, according to a new report.
The new standalone screen is expected to land with a price tag of around $2,500. In comparison, the Pro Display XDR still starts at $4,999 — and that’s without the optional (but arguably necessary) stand that costs $999.
Apple will launch a second generation of AirPods Pro in the fall, according to an analyst who’s also a reliable tipster. The upgraded earbuds allegedly will offer better sound than the current version, via support for lossless audio. And there reportedly will be other changes, too, including a new design.
Long before the launch, AirPods of all kinds are shipping like crazy, thanks to Apple’s lowering the cost, according to the same analyst.
In a festive New Year’s promotion, Elago is offering every accessory in the Cult of Mac Store — hundreds of items, all in one place — at 15% off through January 7. No matter what Apple products you may have received as gifts over the holidays, there’s something for your in the sale. We cover some highlights below.
The new M1 Macs are impressive — especially the newest of the new, the M1 Pro and M1 Max MacBooks. They’re so impressive, we see them replacing even late-model desktop Macs that have years of useful and even impressive life left in them. Such is the case with today’s year-end setup.
In a twist on the old phrase uttered at this time of year, “Out with the (not very) old, in with the (insanely great) new.”
Apple might break into a new product category in 2022. The company reportedly will unveil its long-rumored virtual reality and augmented reality headset.
Over the years, Apple profoundly changed the smartphone, tablet, smartwatch and MP3 player markets, taking niche products mainstream. It’s possible it’s about to do the same for VR/AR.
A year after the debut of AirPods Max, an analysis of user reviews found that buyers like the over-the-ear headphones less than rival products. The main problem: price.
For comparison, the same study by consumer research company Revuze shows people who buy Apple’s basic AirPods seem much more satisfied. And user reviews of other Apple products are usually quite positive, too.
“It is off-brand and surprising to see how poorly the AirPods Max product was received over the course of the year since its release,” Revuze CEO Boaz Grinvald told Cult of Mac.
Apple Watch’s Digital Crown helps users take full advantage of the watchOS interface, beyond using the wearable’s touchscreen. But it looks like future Apple Watches might ditch the crown in favor of optical sensors, according to a new patent the Cupertino tech giant filed.
The well-regarded Slopes app that provides resort information to skiers and snowboarders — and helps them track their exploits carving mountain trails — saw four major updates in December. They include privacy-focused live location sharing and enhanced maps for iPhone and Apple Watch.
2022 could be the year Apple takes iMac to the next level. Various leaks point to an iMac Pro with a blazing-fast processor and a beautiful screen.
But it’s not supposed to be any larger than the biggest current iMac, though the overall design is expected to change.
We keep coming across two great secrets of super-clean desktops when it comes to computer setups. As shown in today’s featured setup, they’re both about creating significant amounts of open desk space in different ways — without losing any access to your gear or forfeiting any computing power.
And we’re not just talking about clearing away basic clutter, or even cable clutter, although that always helps. We’re talking about how you can get some of your main equipment up and off the desk so you have room in front of you. Redditor kurtvdpoel demonstrates the two excellent methods in his post, “Home office with Mac mini Apple M1.”
If you got an Apple Watch for Christmas, or even if you already had one — congratulations on owning one of the best smartwatches! Now, it’s time to up your band game (aka your Apple Watch strap). For a limited time, you can get the Speidel Square Tip Oiled Leather Band for Apple Watch for just $9.89 in the Cult of Mac Store. That’s 70% off the regular price!
Competition for highly skilled engineers and programmers is fierce in Silicon Valley, and Apple’s answer is big bonuses for employees it really wants to hold on to. It reportedly rewarded some workers with up to $180,000 in company stock.
These were apparently unscheduled and not part of usual compensation packages.
Apple won‘t let the iPad languish in 2022. Most notably, some big improvements are reportedly coming to the display and charging capabilities of the iPad Pro line.
And the iPad Air and iPad won‘t be overlooked, either.
Apple received a patent for a foldable iPad cover/stand capable of holding the tablet up in a range of viewing angles. It’s a notable improvement over the current Apple Smart Cover.
Of course, there are plenty of third-party folding iPad stands with comparable capabilities. But people are more likely to pick Apple’s version because it’s Apple.
The eagerly anticipated and much-praised Apple TV+ original series Foundation, based on the epic Isaac Asimov novels of the 1950s, has received a modern-day distinction, of sorts — it’s among the most-pirated shows of the year online. As such, it’s in good company.
It’s not quite the same sort of honor as the scads of awards Apple TV+ has been winning for shows like Ted Lasso and Stillwater, but it’s impressive nonetheless.
In gift-giving season, sometimes you get something you already have or something that isn’t quite what you wanted. So, if you can exchange the item for something you truly covet — like a killer pair of Apple AirPods or Beats earbuds — you probably should.
But how do you choose between earbuds made by Apple and earbuds made by Apple subsidiary Beats by Dre? We’ve laid out the specs for four popular sets of buds, below, pitting AirPods Pro against Beats Fit Pro and the new AirPods (3rd gen) against Beats Studio Buds. But all the specs listed in each chart are the same, so it’s not difficult to compare and contrast all four.
A new, red-and-gold, limited-edition design for Beats Studio Buds will celebrate the Lunar New Year in China and other countries — the Year of the Tiger — Apple said on Monday.
This follows a recent release of another predominately red, limited-edition design in collaboration with the men’s fashion store Union we wrote about earlier in December.