Subscription apps are thriving right now, and nowhere more so than on iOS. According to a new report from app analytics platform Sensor Tower, worldwide spending on the top 100 subscription apps on the App Store generated $10.3 billion in 2020.
That’s a massive 32% increase from the $7.8 billion spent in 2019. It’s also close to four times what Android apps in the Google Play store pulled in in 2020. (They earned just $2.7 billion.)
That's a whole lot of Apple Watches. Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac
More than 100 million people in the world now wear an Apple Watch, Above Avalon analyst Neil Cybart claims.
Provided those numbers are accurate, that’s the equivalent of every single person in California, Texas and Florida, the three most populous U.S. states — and with a good few warehouses of Apple Watches left over.
The former CEO of Netflix thinks Apple needs to spend more money on content to take on Netflix and Disney+. Photo: Apple
Netflix co-founder Marc Randolph has some advice for Apple. He thinks the company needs to really commit by spending more money on content for Apple TV+ to successfully compete in the streaming market.
Dress to impress with the Adonit Prime iPad or iPhone stylus. Photo: Adonit
The Adonit Prime is a stylus for the luxury shopper. There are versions for Apple tablets or iPhone, and both are made with premium materials.
With a price of $250, the Prime is for business professionals who want a digital stylus for the boardroom or office. A desktop charging stand both stores and shows off the accessory.
Congress wants to know if Apple can confirm the accuracy of App Privacy labels like this one. Photo: Cult of Mac
A U.S. House of Representatives committee sent Apple CEO Tim Cook a letter with questions about the App Privacy labels displayed in the App Store. The letter was prompted by a published report that many of these privacy “nutrition labels” contain incorrect information.
Objects from For All Mankind seemingly float in front of you with a new augmented realty application. Screenshot: Apple TV+
Fans of the Apple TV+ sci-fi series For All Mankind can enjoy a free augmented-reality application that lets them virtually handle objects from the alternate-history show.
Season two — which premiers in February on Apple’s streaming service — begins about a decade after the events of season one. The For All Mankind: Time Capsule AR app helps bridge the gap.
There’s no need to carry around extra screens for your MacBook if you have augmented reality. Screenshot: Dominick Hofacker
Apple’s upcoming augmented-reality glasses could make additional MacBook screens unnecessary. An AR concept video shows how virtual displays could appear next to real ones, making the user more productive without having to carry around all that hardware.
Get up to $75 for your old buds. Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac
You can pick up new AirPods at pretty terrific prices right now, which means it’s a great time to upgrade if you’re still rocking Apple’s original wireless buds. And we can help make the upgrade even more affordable.
Safari’s anti-phishing tool is about to get even more secure. Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
The Fraudulent Website Warning system built into Safari in the upcoming iOS 14.5 reportedly takes an additional step to protect your identity. Apple licenses the scam-prevention service from Google, and going forward will block that company from knowing users’ IP addresses through the use of a proxy server.
David Wilcox's setup centers on a 27-inch 5K iMac with 28-inch Samsung monitors on either side of it. Photo: David Wilcox
David Wilcox is an IT consultant working from home in Bristol, England. His remote work situation means he gets to tweak his setup just as he likes, he told Cult of Mac.
Wilcox’s central command is a 27-inch 5K iMac from 2019. Humming along with it are two 28-inch U2HE850 monitors paired and run together via a Startech Thunderbolt 3 to Dual DisplayPort Adapter.
With that much screen real estate and a plethora of networking gear, he gets a lot done.
“My first computer was a Sinclair [Research] ZX81,” he said, referring to a machine made by Timex Corp. in the United Kingdom starting in 1981. “So this setup is just about a home-computing Nirvana!”
With the global pandemic causing many students to rely on remote learning, it’s not a great time to be in higher education. But there is one small bright spot: Cupertino just doubled the free trial period for Apple Music for students in select countries.
Instead of the standard three-month trial, students in higher education can now get six months before they must shell out a monthly fee. The extended trial, only available to new Apple Music customers, runs through April 30.
New Apple Watch could have a game-changing new feature. Screenshot: Apple
Patent applications published Thursday shed new light on Apple’s quest to create a noninvasive blood sugar sensor. Unconfirmed rumors point to the transformative medical feature arriving in this year’s Apple Watch upgrade. If true, it could offer diabetics and others a convenient way to accurately track blood glucose levels.
New movie will tell the story of a robot assistant (not necessarily this one) that kills its owner. Photo: Alex Knight/Unsplash CC
Apple reportedly acquired the rights to Dolly, a science fiction courtroom drama about a robot companion that kills its owner, then proclaims itself innocent and demands a court trial.
The movie is set to star Academy Award nominee Florence Pugh (Little Women). No director has yet been attached.
The Essex Serpent is coming to Apple TV+ in an adaptation starring Claire Danes. Image: Serpent's Tail/Profile Books
Claire Danes will reportedly star in The Essex Serpent, a drama series about a 19th century widow who goes monster hunting. The show will be based on a popular novel.
Previously Keira Knightley was going to take the lead, but she bowed out of the project over COVID-related scheduling problems.
Apple’s rumored electric vehicle could be just a nice luxury item that appeals to Apple fans with a lot of disposable income, similar to the HomePod or AirPods Max — but far more expensive. Or it could alter the automotive experience in a far more profound, Apple-esque manner.
I’d bet on the latter option. Apple doesn’t do things by halves. Steve Jobs famously stated that he wanted to build a personal computer that would put a ding in the universe. The iPhone, Apple Stores, the Apple Watch, iTunes and the App Store — those all changed the way that we use technology on a regular basis. They solved a bigger problem than just giving us a nice, Apple-branded version of an existing product to play with.
If Apple makes a car, it will likely remake the way we think about cars. Here are five ways Cupertino could do that.
Apple Maps in iOS 14.5 will let users report hazards to fellow motorists. Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
Apple Maps will start collecting crowd-sourced accident reports when iOS 14.5 is released. The beta version already lets users test sharing the locations of accidents, speed traps and other hazards.
This is hardly cutting edge, of course. Google Waze has included the feature for years.
The Mophie Wireless Charging Stand+ takes on plenty of Apple gear. Photo: Zagg/Mophie
Mophie’s new Wireless Charging Stand+ powers an iPhone, AirPods and Apple Watch simultaneously. Plus, it props up the handset so it can be used while charging.
The accessory hit online store shelves on Wednesday.
Edward Wang's setup features an ultra-wide monitor. (Note the eye-strain-reducing BenQ Screen Bar lighting atop the monitor.) Photo: Edward Wang
Basking Ridge, New Jersey-based Edward Wang, Ph.D., is an executive director with Quest Diagnostics. He took some serious time and effort making his setup a clean and powerful tool for health care work and audiovisual play. Once he diagnosed and treated a cable-management malady stemming from several separate pieces of computer and audio equipment, his setup delighted him.
Coming soon to a face near you? Photo: Taeyeon Kim
Apple and A-series chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. teamed up to develop “ultra-advanced display technology” at a special facility in Taiwan, a Wednesday report claims.
The Micro OLED displays measure less than 1 inch in size, according to Nikkei Asia. Apple potentially could use the displays for its long-rumored augmented reality glasses. However, it seems likely it will take “several years” to bring the hardware to market.
Nissan is the latest automaker mentioned as a possible manufacturing partner to produce the rumored Apple car.
Makoto Uchida, Nissan’s CEO, was asked about teaming with Apple at a press conference Tuesday. Uchida responded that Nissan should be looking to “work with companies that are knowledgeable, with good experience, through partnership and collaboration,” according to The Wall Street Journal.
That’s not exactly a “yes,” but it’s certainly not a “no,” either.
Apple will swap out the battery for free. Photo: Apple
According to Apple, a “very small number” of MacBook Pros sold in 2016 and 2017 have an issue that stops the battery charging beyond 1%.
As a result, Apple has launched a free battery replacement program to swap out these faulty batteries — so that customers can join the rest of us in the exclusive “our batteries charge up to 100%” club.
The forced sale of TikTok’s American operations to a group of U.S. buyers including Walmart and Oracle has been indefinitely postponed, The Wall Street Journal reports.
TikTok became a major target of former President Donald Trump, who claimed the Chinese-owned video-sharing service posed a security risk. However, it seems that President Joe Biden’s administration is not so dead-set on banishing the super-popular app from the United States.
The Satechi USB-C Watch AirPods Charger is two, two, two accessories in one. Photo: Satechi
A clever trick by designers at Satechi combines an Apple Watch charger and an AirPods charger into a single small accessory. On one side is a charging mat for the wearable, but flip it over to power up the case for Apple’s wireless earbuds.
The Satechi USB-C Watch AirPods Charger debuted on Tuesday exclusively from the online Apple Store.
The iPhone 12 mini is a great little device ... that almost no one wants. Photo: Lyle Kahney/Cult of Mac
iPhone 12 mini is the worst selling of the new iOS handsets by a wide margin. Apple should be embarrassed because there was plenty of evidence before the launch that sales would be poor. Take note: Another super-small iPhone would just compound the mistake.
Apple test cars drove more miles in 2020 than the previous year. And they were apparently more reliable. Illustration: Cult of Mac
Apple Car on-road testing increased substantially in 2020. The number of miles driven went up 2.5 times. It’s another sign the company is getting more serious about its self-driving vehicle.