Apple’s Weather app never gets to have any fun. Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
You can be certain it’s never 69 degrees in Cupertino. Never. In what might be a somewhat amazing level of prudishness, Apple’s default iPhone Weather app reportedly will not indicate that the temperature is one degree warmer than 68.
Jason Sudeikis and Brendan Hunt in Ted Lasso Photo: Apple TV+
Hit comedy Ted Lasso put another one into the back of the net for Apple TV+. Or it put another 20 there, if you like. The show notched 20 Emmy nominations today, breaking the record for a first-year comedy that Glee set in 2010 with 19.
Here's how the new MagSafe Battery Pack looks when attached to iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max. Photo: Apple
On its website Tuesday, Apple offered a new MagSafe Battery Pack, designed to work with the iPhone 12 series from mini to Pro Max. That is, it’s designed to work as of the release of iOS 14.7, due imminently.
Unlike all the other unofficially “MagSafe compatible” wireless battery packs that came out after the iPhone 12’s release, this one’s MagSafe-approved, straight from Apple. It took a while, but it’s here.
iOS 14.7 brings some tweaks, but isn’t a major update. Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
The release candidate for iOS 14.7 was seeded to developers on Tuesday. It includes some promised improvements to the Apple Card, and it enables users to use a just-announced MagSafe Battery Pack. In addition, it allows users to manage timers on a HomePod.
Plus, the macOS Big Sur 11.5 release candidate, iPadOS 14.7 RC, watchOS 7.6 RC and tvOS 14.7 RC were also made available for developers.
It's in beta testing now! Photo: WhatsApp/Cult of Mac
The ability to send or receive a WhatsApp photo or video message that automatically disappears after one viewing is rolling out to iOS beta users of the messaging app, just as it did in late June to Android beta users.
Nomad offers a new leather case for your Apple MagSafe Charger. Photo: Nomad Goods
Accessories-maker Nomad Goods wants to cover your world of Apple gadgets in leather. Even the ones you probably don’t carry around every day. Its newest product is a leather cover designed to protect and beautify the iPhone 12 series’ magnetic charging puck, Apple’s MagSafe Charger.
Grab version 10.5.4 from the Mac App Store today. Photo: Apple
Apple on Tuesday rolled out a fresh Final Cut Pro update to eliminate a bug and improve its blade tool pointer. The version 10.5.4 release is free for existing Final Cut Pro owners and available to download now.
Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter Jessie Reyez also stars in the 'Made in Canada' video. Photo: Apple
Apple’s newest “Behind the Mac” ad shines a spotlight on Justin Bieber, Shawn Mendes, and other Canadian artists who use a Mac to bring their creations to life. But it seems to forget that Apple makes desktops, too.
Check out the new 30-second video, titled “Made in Canada,” below.
Foxconn and Aleees could get the go-ahead from Apple. Photo: Jaguar
Apple apparently wants to build car batteries on its home soil. The company is eyeing a number of manufacturers as it plans to set up factories in the United States, according to a new report.
Foxconn, already one of Apple’s largest manufacturing partners, or Advanced Lithium Electrochemistry (Aleees) could get battery orders from Cupertino in the future, sources say.
The 2021 MacBook Pro might be beautiful, but not offer the same amount of RAM as its Intel-based predecessor. Photo: Antonio De Rosa
The much-anticipated 2021 MacBook Pro models will be limited to a maximum of 32GB of data, according to an unconfirmed report. But the same source indicates that the upcoming macOS notebooks will have speedy SD slots and backlit TouchID sensors.
Don’t worry: looks like Ted Lasso season 2 will be as good as the first one. Photo: Apple TV+
The second season of Ted Lasso doesn’t premiere until July 23 but critics given early access absolutely love the upcoming episodes. The season two of the Apple TV+ comedy has a 100% approval rating from the review-aggregator Rotten Tomatoes.
Anker's Life P3 wireless earbuds add noise cancellation and fun colors. Photo: Anker
Last week Anker added the new Life P3 active-noise-cancelling (ANC) wireless earbuds to its Soundcore lineup — in an array of bright colors for an affordable price.
HomePod and HomePod mini will soon be able to take advantage of a significant improvement to Apple Music. Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac
The latest beta of the HomePod system software adds support for Apple Music lossless audio. This allows both the large and small versions of Apple’s smart speaker to play music in a very high-quality format.
Jon Stewart interviewed President Barak Obama. Photo: The White House
Do you miss the Jon Stewart era of The Daily Show? Are you fully vaccinated for Covid-19 and willing to prove it? Can you get to New York City with haste? If you answered “yes,” then you can watch July in-studio tapings of Apple TV+ current-affairs show The Problem with Jon Stewart for free.
If a UK court orders Apple to pay a tremendous patent licensing fee, the iPhone maker might decide it’s better to just leave the country. Photo: Sora Shimazaki/Pexels CC
Apple reportedly warned a U.K. court that it might withdraw from the country if it must pay an enormous patent licensing fee. The iPhone-maker is being sued by Optis Cellular Technology over patents Apple says are invalid because they cover standard cellular-wireless technology.
The custom-made redwood desk is nice, but the Pro Display XDR is stunning. Photo: [email protected]
Gorgeous, high-definition monitors hold a place of honor in many a computer setup. And sometimes it’s several displays, actually. But we rarely come across one of the most amazing monitors out there: the Apple Pro Display XDR. Why? Well, it costs $6,000, for one thing. Or, if you’re lucky, not quite that much.
So if you’re not a wealthy or financially irresponsible person, what’s a reasonable alternative to the Pro Display XDR?
The M1 iMac is one of only two machines Apple currently sells with a 1080p camera. Photo: Apple
Apple is planning to bring high-definition FaceTime cameras to all next-generation Mac models, one tipster claims. The move will start with the upcoming MacBook Pro refresh, expected later this year.
Could it be Apple's fastest desktop to date? Photo: Apple
A larger iMac powered by Apple Silicon is “en route” and could feature an even faster “M2X” chip, according to reliable reporter Mark Gurman.
The next-generation all-in-one is expected to replace the 27-inch iMac with an even larger screen — perhaps around 30 inches — and could well be Apple’s fastest desktop to date.
Like the newest iPad Air, only smaller. Concept: Parker Ortolani
Apple’s new iPad mini is on track to launch this fall with its “biggest redesign” to date, according to one reliable reporter.
The sixth-generation device, which could look like a more compact version of the iPad Air, is expected to feature a larger edge-to-edge screen. It could be powered by the lightning-fast A14 Bionic chip.
Find out how to use FaceTime's hot new features. Cover: Leander Kahney/Cult of Mac
FaceTime is about to get even better. In iOS 15, which is available now as a free public beta, Apple’s proprietary messaging service gets great new audio and video features. Plus, you can use it to communicate with Android and Windows folks as well.
Find out what these new FaceTime features do, and how to use them, in this week’s free issue of Cult of Mac Magazine. Also don’t miss this week:
The CollarTrek is a sturdy leather dog collar with a nifty AirTag pocket, ensuring your doggy is trackable. Photo: CollarTrek
If you have a dog that runs away or just doesn’t listen, this week’s giveaway is for you. The CollarTrek dog collar securely holds an AirTag in place, making sure Fido’s location is easily trackable at all times.
Keep your dog safe and sound by entering this week’s giveaway. Enter and you could win one of four CollarTrek Leather AirTag dog collars.
Jason Sudeikis, center, plays a clueless college football coach in the Apple TV+ comedy. Photo: Apple TV+
The popular Apple TV+ comedy Ted Lasso notched more nominations than any other show for the inaugural HCA TV Awards, with eight. Apple TV+ got 15 nominations overall.
Chris Reed's dual-monitor M1 MacBook Pro setup was a long time in the making. Photo: Chris Reed
Working student Chris Reed told Cult of Mac he put a year of work into his “slow build” home office and computer setup. In that year he strove to achieve a clean and balanced look, and, judging by his pics and comments, it seems he got there.
Reed said he wanted to go with dual monitors rather than a wide screen display to save some money. He’s pleased with his choice of 32-inch Samsung 1080p curved monitors, run along with his 2020 MacBook Pro and his iPad Pro.
First there was 2015’s brilliant Alto’s Adventure. Then there was 2018’s superb Alto’s Odyssey. Now the third entry in the series, Alto’s Odyssey: The Lost City, is coming to Apple Arcade July 16 — and, boy, does the newly released trailer get our hopes up.
Describing the Alto’s games is a bit difficult. They’re, in essence, endless runners, in which the focus is on traversing environments such as snowy peaks and sandy dunes. But if that makes it sound like a sport’s game, you’d be wrong. These titles are all about the gorgeous, almost hypnotic graphics and sound that make it feel more like Monument Valley than SSX: Tricky.
The battle has been raging since last summer. Screenshot: Epic Games
There’s no outcome yet announced for Epic Games’ battle with Apple in the United States. But the Australian Federal Court just handed a victory (of sorts) to the Fornite maker: giving it permission to proceed with its fight with Apple in Oz.
The lawsuit alleges that Apple is abusing its position in the marketplace by not allowing companies to distribute their apps on iOS outside the App Store. Epic’s efforts to battle Apple in Australia temporarily halted earlier this year due to a jurisdiction clauses stopping Australian lawsuits from proceeding if a similar case is being heard elsewhere in the world. The judge said they wanted to see what the US case would conclude before continue.
However, three Federal Court judges have ruled that it can continue — since it involves conduct in the Australian market that is of importance to the public.