Mobile menu toggle

News - page 380

A tiny office corner becomes a tiny workspace [Setups]

By •

MacBook Pro Setup
This is where Larsson "vibes at night."
Photo: Andreas Larsson

Andreas Larsson is a Sweden-based security technician who converted a tiny corner of his office into a bonafide workspace. He had limited space to work with so he tried to squeeze every inch out of it. His friend, who works at an office furnishing company, custom-built a desk to span 46 inches — the entire length of his office.

Apple reveals if its own apps live up to promises of privacy

By •

During the WWDC 2020 keynote, Apple doubled down on its commitment to privacy.
Apple’s own applications will carry privacy labels revealing how they collect and use personal information about users.
Photo: Apple

Apple isn’t exempting itself from a new privacy rule requiring App Store software to reveal how users’ information is used. Even the applications that come pre-installed on iPhone and iPad will display their privacy info in the App Store.

Satechi’s new foldable stand lets an iPad hover over your keyboard

By •

Satechi Aluminum Foldable Stand launched December 9 on the Apple Store.
Combine the Satechi Aluminum Foldable Stand with a keyboard to make a mobile computer better than a laptop.
Photo: Apple/Satechi

The Apple online store just became the exclusive source of an updated version of Satechi’s foldable iPad stand. This holds a tablet at wide range of heights and viewing angles. And it makes the screen “hover” above a keyboard.

Tim Cook talks national parks, Screen Time, and never holding a selfie stick in new podcast

By •

CEO Tim Cook photo via Fox Business
Not a big selfie stick user, apparently.
Photo: Fox Business

Apple Park’s conference rooms are named after national parks, such as Grand Canyon. Apple Park has a two-and-a-half mile running track. Tim Cook has never used a selfie stick in his life.

These are three of the revelations that come out of a new Outside podcast episode, featuring a conversation with Cook as he and host Michael Roberts take a stroll through Apple Park. Along the way, the conversation touches on Cook’s love of nature and fitness, the design of Apple Park, AR, Apple’s health contributions, and more.

Apple adapting Blake Crouch’s parallel universe thriller Dark Matter for Apple TV+

By •

Dark Matter cover
Coming soon to an Apple TV+ subscription near you.
Photo: Ballantine Books

Apple TV+ snapped up the rights to Blake Crouch’s excellent quantum-tinged parallel universe thriller Dark Matter. Crouch, whose Wayward Pines novels were turned into a sci-fi show of the same name, will adapt his 2016 novel for screen.

The New York Times bestseller Dark Matter follows the story of Jason Dessen, a family man and high-school physics teacher. Walking home one night, Dessen is abducted by a masked stranger and injected with a drug. When he wakes up, he finds that he’s living in a world in which he’s unmarried and has achieved astonishing professional success.

Apple helps former NFL linebacker DeMarcus Ware build his new fitness app

By •

D2W app
DeMarcus Ware's new fitness app Driven to Win launches today.
Photo: D2W

Former NFL linebacker DeMarcus Ware is launching an iOS fitness app called Driven to Win (D2W) — and Apple helped him build it.

The former Dallas Cowboys star said was invited to Cupertino to meet with Apple engineers who helped him develop the app. Starting in 2019, he made a total of nine trips to Apple’s offices to meet with the company’s developers.

Water-resistance, U1 chip, swappable bands are just a few things MIA from AirPods Max

By •

Internal components of AirPods Max spaced out horizontally.
AirPods Max pack in plenty of impressive tech, but some stuff didn't make it.
Photo: Apple

Apple’s U1 chip, allowing for devices to more accurately connect to others nearby using ultra-wideband technology, is MIA in Apple’s pricey new $549 AirPods Max headphones.

The chip, which Apple introduced in 2019 with the iPhone 11, was rumored to show up in the AirPods Max. But according to a tweet by Bloomberg‘s Mark Gurman, Apple had to scrap a number of big features it planned to include in the high-end headphones it launched Tuesday.

Apple’s been working on AirPods Max since the first-gen AirPods shipped

By •

AirPods Max will set you back $549.
AirPods Max sport an over-ear design with top-quality audio, Active Noise Cancellation, spatial audio, and more.
Photo: Apple

The AirPods Max headphones may have only been announced this week, but Apple’s been working on them since the first-gen AirPods shipped back in 2016.

This interesting tidbit comes from a (now deleted) tweet from Dinesh Dave, currently a product designer at Facebook, but previously a Senior Interactive Designer at Apple. While no-one expects hit products to be created overnight, it gives a sense of how far out Apple’s working in its product roadmap.

For All Mankind sci-fi drama picked up for stellar third season on Apple TV+

By •

‘For All Mankind’ season two premiering globally on Apple TV+ on February 19, 2021.
Apple TV+ gave an early season three renewal to For All Mankind.
Photo: Apple

Apple TV+ is clearly confident about For All Mankind. The alternate-history sci-fi series got a green light for a third season on Tuesday. And that’s months before the second season debuts on Apple’s streaming video service.

The show depicts a different version of the space race — one that begins with the USSR beating the US to the Earth’s moon.

Apple’s autonomous car unit gets a new driver

By •

The Apple Car won‘t look anything like this. At all.
The Apple autonomous vehicle project is now part of the company’s AI division.
Illustration: Cult of Mac

Apple’s self-driving car division is reportedly on the move, but not in the usual way. The project has been transferred into Apple’s artificial intelligence division.

The reorg comes at the retirement of Bob Mansfield, who’d been managing the company’s not-so-secret autonomous vehicle development.

Mix and match AirPods Max ear cushions for cool color combos

By •

AirPods Max red and black
This red and black AirPods Max color combo isn’t available from Apple, but you can make it yourself.
Photo: Apple/Cult of Mac

Those with very deep pockets can make their AirPods Max colors even more personalized. Ear cushions for the headphones are replaceable and come in a variety of hues. They sure aren‘t cheap, though.

But save some money for a charger, because there’s no power adapter in the box.

iOS 14.3 with ProRAW support for iPhone 12 Pro is nearly here

By •

iOS 14.3 Release Candidate, iPadOS 14.3Release Candidate, watchOS 7.2 Release Candidate and tvOS 14.3 Release Candidate.
Look at all those Release Candidates. iPhone users can grab iOS 14.3 in less than a week. And iPadOS 14.3, watchOS 7.2 and tvOS 14.3 are nearly here too.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

Apple gave developers early access to iOS 14.3 on Tuesday, which will bring ProRAW support to the iPhone 12 Pro models. Plus, it and the iPad equivalent will give everyone more information about the privacy practices of the apps they use.

Apple also seeded to devs the release candidates for watchOS 7.2 and tvOS 14.3 on Tuesday.

That weird AirPods Max case gives jokesters plenty of ammo

By •

AirPods Max or AirPods Bra. You decide. The internet happily points out the ... quirks in the AirPods Max design.
The internet happily points out the ... quirks in the AirPods Max design.
Image: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

After Apple unveiled AirPods Max this morning, the internet jumped quickly into mockery mode. The pricey over-the-ears headphones come with a case that lots of jokesters think looks like a bra.

And that’s just the start.

Bag a bargain iMac, MacBook refurb from $359.99 today only

By •

Save on MacBook, iPad refurbs
Don't miss out!
Photo: Apple

Need to pick up an affordable Mac ahead of the holidays? Check out Woot’s one-day sale on iMac and MacBook refurbs. There are a whole bunch of models to choose from, with prices starting at just $359.99.

They’re selling fast, so bag yours before they’re all gone!

This post contains affiliate links. Cult of Mac may earn a commission when you use our links to buy items.

Transfer iPhone photos to hard drive to free up space with OWC Copy That

By •

OWC Copy That is a free image-transfer app for iOS and iPadOS.
Move multiple iPhone or iPad photos and videos to an external drive with ease using OWC Copy That.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

OWC’s just-released Copy That application frees up space on iPhone or iPad by transferring images or videos to external drives. Alternatively, it can easily back up an collection of these files.

And it’s free, with an in-app purchase for extra features.

Logitech Circle View Doorbell joins short list of HomeKit doorbells

By •

Logitech Circle View Doorbell: A HomeKit doorbell with a modern look.
The Logitech Circle View Doorbell wouldn't look out of place on a modern home like this.
Photo: Naomi Ellsworth/Unsplash CC

Logitech unveiled the Circle View Doorbell on Tuesday, calling it “the first wired video doorbell developed exclusively for Apple HomeKit.”

The $199.99 accessory features Face Recognition and Logitech TrueView video, and works with most wired doorbell systems, Logitech said.

Too late: AirPods Max’s hottest colors won’t arrive by Christmas [Updated]

By •

If you didn't order already, it's not going to be a blue AirPods Max Christmas.
If you didn't order already, it's not going to be a blue AirPods Max Christmas.
Photo: Apple

If you wanted AirPods Max in blue, pink or green, it looks like you’ll be waiting till well into 2021. Order one of the three hottest colors of the pricey new over-the-ear headphones now, and they won’t be delivered for 12 to 14 weeks, according to Apple’s online store.

Those shipping times slipped quickly after Apple launched the high-end headphones via press release early Tuesday morning. By late morning West Coast time, space gray AirPods Max delivery times had slipped as well — to December 31. Only the silver option still showed as being available for delivery prior to Christmas.

Act fast, and you can get them between December 15 and 17. But adding custom engraving pushes the delivery date to December 29 for that model. (Update 2: By midafternoon West Coast time on Tuesday, even the silver AirPods Max delivery window had slipped to December 31 – January 8.)

Tripadvisor app gets booted from the App Store in China

By •

Tripadvisor
Won't someone think of the children!?
Photo: Tripadvisor

Apple has pulled the Tripadvisor app from its China App Store on the orders of the Chinese government as it works to “clean up” the internet, CNN reports.

The Tripadvisor app, which somehow ran afoul of the government, was one of 105 apps deemed to be illegal. Since the Tripadvisor app is mainly concerned with hotel reviews, its removal seems more than a little surprising. However, it’s far from the first app to get the boot from the localized China App Store.

Another judge seemingly shoots down Trump’s TikTok ban

By •

U.S. investigations of TikTok gather steam.
TikTok's not going away just yet.
Photo: Kon Karampelas/Unsplash CC

A second judge in the United States has granted a preliminary injunction blocking the Trump administration’s attempted ban on TikTok.

Washington-based US District Judge Carl Nichols made the decision late Monday. This followed US judge Wendy Beetlestone in Pennsylvania making a similar ruling in late September. Trump’s ban would have stopped Apple and Google from offering TikTok downloads in their respective app stores.

AirPods Max: Apple’s new over-ear headphones look fantastic but mighty pricey

By •

AirPods Max are available to order for $549.
AirPods Max, the first over-the-ear headphones sold under the Apple brand, combine a custom acoustic design with Apple H1 chips and advanced software.
Photo: Apple

Apple expanded its popular AirPods lineup Tuesday, unveiling a new over-the-ear model dubbed AirPods Max.

The high-end headphones promise to deliver “the magic of AirPods” in an all-new design. They boast high-fidelity, spatial audio and active noise cancellation like AirPods Pro. And they come in five colors. They’re available to order today, priced at $549.

Apple Fitness+ launches on December 14

By •

Apple Fitness+ will whip you into shape starting December 14.
Apple Fitness+ will whip you into shape starting Monday.
Photo: Apple

Apple Fitness+, Apple’s $9.99-a-month subscription workout service built around Apple Watch, will launch December 14.

The service will launch with 10 workout types. These include High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT), Strength, Yoga, Dance, Core, Cycling, Treadmill (for running and walking), Rowing and Mindful Cooldown. The sessions are led by an elite team of fitness experts we profiled here.

You can now listen to Apple Music on Google Nest speakers

By •

Google Nest smart speakers
A new place for you to listen to Apple Music.
Photo: Google

Apple Music subscribers can now use Apple’s streaming music service on Google Nest smart speakers, thanks to an update. It means that users can access the Apple Music catalog with voice commands on their Nest Audio, Nest Hub Max and Nest Mini.

Google’s smart speakers supports various streaming audio services, such as Spotify. However, Apple Music was not among them. In order to listen to Apple Music, users previously needed to use an Amazon Echo device or Apple’s own HomePod.

Another one more thing: Could AirPods Studio headphones launch Tuesday?

By •

AirPods Studio will apparently look much like this.
Are these what AirPods Studio will look like?
Render: Jon Prosser/cconceptcreator

Apple may have staged an unprecedented three product events in three months, but it could have one more debut up its sleeve. (Yes, even after calling last month’s event “One More Thing” .)

If a last minute report is to be believed, Apple could, as early as Tuesday, unveil its AirPods Studio headphones. Well, maybe.