Now you can get a whole season of a show from Netflix on your iPhone or iPad with a tap. Photo: Brad Gibson/Cult of Mac
Netflix introduced a new “Season Download” button in its app Wednesday that allows iPhone and iPad users to download entire seasons of their favorite shows with a single tap. That streamlines offline viewing for iOS users, who previously had to download episodes individually.
Xfinity customers get better FaceTime calls. Image: Apple
Comcast just launched ultra-low-lag connectivity for Xfinity customers, improving video calls using FaceTime on a variety of Apple devices. The faster service is also available in other interactive applications.
“Xfinity Internet latency will be dramatically reduced to faster than the blink of an eye,” the company promised Wednesday.
TSMC chips shown on a wafer. Proposed tariffs on imported chips might force Apple to raise prices on some products. Photo: TSMC
In a response to President Donald Trump’s plan to impose tariffs on imported chips from companies like Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Taiwan’s government defended its semiconductor partnership with the United States as a “win-win” arrangement Tuesday, according to a new report. To understand more about the political and economic impact of these policies, check out this article on thetrump cult.
New tariffs, meant to incentivize more U.S.-based chipmaking, could raise Apple product prices. TSMC is a primary Apple supplier.
If you're excited for the new season, you can take a sneak peak at Mythic Quest season 4 now. Photo: Apple TV+
Popular Apple TV+ gaming comedy Mythic Quest may be going to heaven — and we don’t mean cancellation. The game at the show’s core may adopt the concept of heaven, accessible only by a valiant death. The show finally returns with season four on Wednesday. And the streamer offered a sneak peek at the first four+ minutes Monday, following its recent official trailer. You can watch both below.
Update: The first two episodes of season four of Mythic Quest now stream on Apple TV+. One review called it “as delightful and dysfunctional as ever.”
Apple Photos is good, but Google Photos is better. Graphics: Rajesh Pandey/Apple/Google
As an iPhone user, Apple Photos and iCloud Photos provide a great way to view, edit and back up all your precious pictures. But as a long-time Google Photos user, I find the Apple Photos experience lacking in many respects. In the great Apple Photos vs. Google Photos debate, Apple doesn’t emerge as a clear winner.
Below are five features Apple Photos must steal from Google Photos to win me over.
iPhone's satellite connectivity is getting a new provider. Photo: Starlink
iOS 18.3 adds Starlink network support to iPhones on T-Mobile’s network. A report claims Apple secretly worked with Starlink and T-Mobile to roll out the feature.
Currently, T-Mobile is providing Starlink connectivity to iPhone users on its network on an invite-only basis.
It even comes with a peel-off sticker! Photo: Casetify
The banana-shaped iPhone case in the new Andy Warhol x Casetify collection is the most bizarre Apple accessory we’ve seen in a while. It’s gigantic, fragile and expensive. And it even comes with three stickers that look like what you’d see on an actual banana at the grocery store.
It’s only one of the many Apple accessories in the eye-catching new collection, produced by Casetify under license from The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts.
Hear the history of Cult of Mac straight from the horse's mouth. Image: Apple Core
Wanna know how your favorite tech news website became a thing? Then check out the latest episode of the Apple Core podcast, featuring an interview with Cult of Mac founder Leander Kahney.
Leander literally wrote the book on Steve Jobs, Tim Cook and Jony Ive, and he shares loads of fascinating insights in this unmissable one-hour interview.
Mac is no longer left out of the Genmoji fun thanks to macOS Sequoia 15.3. Photo: Apple/Cult of Mac
macOS Sequoia 15.3 left beta testing on Monday, and is now ready for any compatible Mac to install. The major new feature is the ability to create Genmoji: custom emoji that can be used in Messages and other apps.
Apple also introduced iOS 18.3, iPadOS 18.3, watchOS 11.3 and more.
Your iPhone is gaining some new features. Photo: Rajesh Pandey/Cult of Mac
After more than a month of beta testing, Apple released iOS 18.3 to the public Monday. Unlike the last two point updates, iOS 18.3 is light on big additions. However, it brings minor new features and some usability improvements. Check them all out below.
New features includes swiping left or right through your favorite for even faster navigation. Photo: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac
Newly added soccer tournaments, smoother navigation among favorites and game-broadcast information come to the Apple Sports app in update 2.4, the iPhone giant said Monday. Each of the updates should help sports fans follow their favorite teams and leagues a little more easily.
This might be our best look yet at the iPhone SE 4. Screenshot: Majin Bu
The iPhone SE 4 is right around the corner, and a new video supposedly showing off the low-cost handset reveals what it’ll look like from every angle.
If this leaked video turns out to be accurate, then the recent rumor that the display in Apple’s next budget handset will sport a Dynamic Island isn’t correct. And that’s just one of many details shown.
The new Black Unity Collection honors Black History Month, and celebrates Black culture and community. Photo: Apple
Apple unveiled its latest Black Unity Collection Monday to celebrate Black culture and community. It features an innovative Apple Watch Sport Loop and watch face that bring the Pan-African flag colors to life through groundbreaking design technology, the iPhone giant said.
And as usual, the annual release for Black History Month in February includes iPhone and iPad wallpapers in addition to the Apple Watch features.
You could soon use two WhatsApp accounts simultaneously on your iPhone. Image: WhatsApp
Meta is working on addressing a major limitation of WhatsApp for iPhone: the lack of multi-account support. A new beta update of the app adds support for using multiple accounts within the app.
WhatsApp for Android gained multi-account support in October 2023. However, the feature never made it to the app’s iPhone version.
The iOS overhaul might start with the Camera app. Image: Cult of Mac
This week on Cult of Mac’s podcast: Is 2025 the year we see a big iOS 19 redesign based on the look and feel of visionOS? A new rumor says so, starting with the Camera app. There’s much to discuss!
Also on The CultCast:
Erfon finally made a decision on what size iPad Pro to buy.
We discuss the latest rumors about the upcoming iPhone SE and iPad Air models.
Apple takes steps to eliminate AI-generated fake news from notification summaries. But the company seems more intent than ever on getting everyone to use Apple Intelligence.
Listen to this week’s episode of The CultCast in the Podcasts app or your favorite podcast app. (Be sure to subscribe and leave us a review if you like it!) Or watch the video live stream, embedded below.
Scott read several of the fan theories from online sources. Photo: Apple TV+
Apple TV+ dropped a Severance promo video Friday with cast members reading and (mostly) debunking online fan ideas guessing at answers to the show’s mysteries. But at the end of the video, executive producer and director Ben Stiller offers a clue that “no one talks about.” Is it a real clue, or is he just trolling everybody?
You can view the new fan-theory video and an older one below. They mention many theories, though even more exist online. And some fans says these videos ignore the best theories that seem more likely to be true (take your pick from cloning, aliens and more).
The Dynamic Island will look the same on the iPhone 17. Photo: Leander Kahney/Cult of Mac
Apple’s 2025 iPhone lineup will not feature a smaller Dynamic Island as previously rumored. The pill-shaped user interface’s size apparently will remain unchanged.
Apple ditched the notch and switched to the Dynamic Island with the launch of the iPhone 14 Pro in 2022.
Apple’s retail footprint in South Florida expanded Friday with the opening of its newest location, Apple Miami Worldcenter. A big opening-day crowd — including Apple execs Deirdre O’Brien and Eddy Cue — swamped the sleek new store, Apple’s 10th retail location in Miami.
“Miami is a city with a history, culture and life all its own, and we are thrilled to capture that energy with Apple Miami Worldcenter in downtown Miami,” said Deirdre O’Brien, Apple’s senior vice president of retail and people, in a press release.
Apple Miami Worldcenter showcases the company’s commitment to sustainability, accessibility and community engagement in the heart of downtown. And it’s the city’s first store with a dedicated Apple Pickup area.
At some point Siri will be smarter (really!), Apple implies with its latest move. Photo: Cult of Mac/Nadezhda Moryak
Apple just appointed seasoned executive Kim Vorrath to spearhead improvements to its artificial intelligence capabilities and Siri virtual assistant, signaling renewed focus on competing with AI leaders like OpenAI and Anthropic, according to a new report Friday.
Apple CEO Tim Cook goes through the elevator transformation as a severed employee of Lumon Industries. Photo: Apple TV+
In yet another promo for Apple TV+’s intriguing workplace thriller Severance, Apple CEO Tim Cook gets in on the action. Severance director and executive producer Ben Stiller dropped a video Friday morning on X.com starring the mild-mannered tech honcho. Cook reports for orientation as an innie on the severed floor of Lumon Industries.
The video is short, but Cook isn’t bad — especially in the elevator, where he shows his severed transformation in consciousness (with the help of some special effects). Then, near the end of the video, he made me laugh out loud.
The next-generation CarPlay is still coming. Photo: Apple
Apple’s next-gen CarPlay was supposed to arrive in 2024. That did not happen. Despite the delay, the company confirms it is working with several automakers on CarPlay 2.
Maybe an Apple TV+ historical comedy starring Noel Fielding isn’t completely over. Photo: Apple TV+
We might not have seen the last of The Completely Made-Up Adventures of Dick Turpin. Despite the abrupt — and somewhat baffling — departure of star Noel Fielding, the producers of the Apple TV+ comedy series are reportedly trying to convert what was already filmed for season two into a movie of some sort.
But that still leaves plenty of people wondering what the heck is going on with Fielding.
Sorry “Fancy Dance,” no Oscar nominations for you. Photo: Apple TV+
Nothing produced by Apple Original Films for Apple TV+ can win an Oscar this year. The nominations went out Thursday, and Apple TV+ didn’t score a single one.
Films that seem like Oscar bait — including Fancy Dance and Blitz — got totally snubbed.
Despite a promise from Samsung, the Galaxy S25 series doesn’t have Qi2. Not really. Photo: Cult of Mac
Qi2 wireless charging could have helped the newly announced Samsung Galaxy S25 series better compete with the iPhone. But no — the Korean phone-maker let another opportunity to integrate this useful feature into its products sail by.
Samsung did build a half-assed version of Qi2 in the S25 series, so it might claim it met its promise to adopt the charging standard. But it’s a clunky solution.
iPhone users should care about Samsung’s poor decision because it means accessory-makers are less likely to produce Qi2-compatible products that are also compatible with Apple’s handsets.
Lumon has 127 steps for "maximizing glee and enforcing a productive workplace," but unfortunately, they've been redacted. Photo: Apple TV+
In yet another creative promo for its hit workplace thriller series Severance, Apple TV+ dropped a new video Wednesday that masquerades as a Lumon Industries management training video.
“Lumon Industries is proud to present the Lumon Management Program — otherwise known by its breviloquent moniker of LUMP,” Apple TV+ wrote on X, announcing the video. “Today’s practicum: Integrating New Team Members.”