Why are massive smog clouds over China good news for Apple? Morgan Stanley analysts explain in their latest note to clients: Because pollution it suggests that Chinese manufacturing is ramping up again.
Probably correct? Sure. Slightly off-brand messaging for Earth Day? You bet!
Verizon offers free wireless data to help its customers be productive from home or keep entertained. Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
In May, Verizon Wireless customers get an additional 15GB of mobile data for free for a second month of the COVID-19 crisis.
Many people under stay-at-home orders during the pandemic depend on their iPhone, Android or mobile hotspot to connect to the internet, and hence the world.
An iPhone SE ad offers the least elaborate device unboxing ever. Photo: Apple/TheApplePost
Some people make a big production out of unboxing their new iPhone. What’s supposedly an upcoming iPhone SE ad takes the opposite approach with Apple’s just-released budget handset.
Los Angeles has cleaner air under COVID-19 restrictions. Photo: David Pierini/Cult of Mac
A pandemic that kills thousands offers no silver linings.
But stay-at-home orders to slow the spread of COVID-19 shows us a window for what living with clean air is like.
An air quality tech company, whose global measurements can be monitored on an iOS app, says greenhouse gas emissions are so low right now, Los Angeles has the cleanest air of all metropolitans areas in the U.S.
When you’re having a Zoom meeting and Satan drops in unexpectedly? That’s Zoombombing. Photo: Zoom/Cult of Mac
Zoom on Wednesday committed to upgrading the encryption in its video-chatting app. And Zoom 5.0, which will be out within the week, will include additional security controls for meeting hosts, like the ability to report disruptive users.
Use of this platform rose enormously since people around the world went into self quarantine. And criticism of Zoom’s security and privacy controls also increased dramatically as Zoombombing became a thing.
Sell today to earn even more! Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
Sell your old Apple devices to Cult of Mac now to earn an additional $10 for Earth Day. We typically pay more than other buyback services, and we cough up real cash, fast!
Find out how much your old iPhone, iPad, MacBook, and other Apple devices are really worth — and use our promo code to get even more.
Orders yours today from $39.99. Photo: Twelve South
Twelve South’s stunning SurfacePad is a case (kind of) for iPhone owners who hate cases — and it’s now available for iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, and iPhone 11 Pro Max.
SurfacePad is a sheet of high-end leather that sticks to the back of your device and wraps around to cover its display. It keeps your iPhone free from scracthes, without the drawbacks of a traditional case.
Group FaceTime use apparently exists mainly in Apple publicity pictures. Photo: Apple
Americans love Apple’s video chatting app FaceTime, according to the results of a survey released Wednesday. But they don’t use it for group chats. As a result, use of FaceTime hasn’t increased at all while millions of people around the world self quarantine.
Instead, rival Zoom has enormously increased in popularity in recent weeks.
An iPad’s AppleCare+ accidental damage coverage plan protects these keyboards too. Photo: Apple
The just-released iPad Pro Magic Keyboard costs more than some iPads, and it’s possible to get AppleCare+ repair insurance for it. Just not directly.
Purchasing AppleCare+ adds accidental damage coverage to an iPad, as well as some Apple-branded accessories. That includes keyboards, like the very expensive one that debuted last week.
Download it from the App Store today. Photo: Facebook
Facebook Messenger Kids, the free chat app designed specifically for your little ones, on Wednesday expanded its reach to more than 70 new markets and added a number of helpful new features.
It’s now possible for parents to give kids control over their contacts (if they wish), and for kids to join approved groups. The changes come at a time when many children are out of school and unable to see friends.
It's been almost eight years since the last iMac redesign. Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
A redesigned iMac, a more affordable HomePod, and a powerful new Apple TV are just some of the products Apple has planned for 2020, according to one reliable reporter.
Bloomberg’sMark Gurman also revealed expectations for the 5G iPhone lineup, scheduled to launch this fall, and for a 14-inch MacBook Pro during a Twitter Q&A with followers on Tuesday.
It might even make you miss the Home button. Photo: Apple
The iPhone SE, with its iPhone 8 form factor, proves that you can teach an old dog new tricks. With the first reviews for the new handset having hit the internet, pundits are in agreement that, well, the iPhone SE is pretty darn great.
In fact, if Apple’s made any kind of misstep it may have been showing us that you can get a pretty amazing iPhone for the price of a mid-level handset. Here’s what the initial reviewers are saying:
Unlike most email-based phone hacks, which involve making someone click a link or visit a website, this exploit does not require victims to do anything other than download (although not necessarily open) an email. It nonetheless could let hackers install malicious software on their devices.
That's a cat house ... made from a TV box. Photo: Samsung
We know Apple makes some of the prettiest packaging you’ll ever find wrapped around electronics, but it’s really just trash when you’re done with it. Samsung has found a terrific way to make its packaging useful.
Boxes built for the company’s newest TV sets can be turned quickly and easily turned into cardboard cat houses, small furniture, and other useful things when you’re done with them.
That's one way to liven up your next work meeting. Photo: Avatarify
Zoom calls have exploded during the current coronavirus lockdown. But if you’ve already exhausted the possibilities of different angles and backdrops for your video calls, why not try being a different person entirely? You know, like former Apple CEO and co-founder Steve Jobs.
At least, that’s the tech demo/experiment created by coders Ali Aliev and Karim Iskakov. They’ve developed an Animoji or Memoji-style tool called Avatarify that lets users superimpose a real-time mask onto themselves during video calls.
You can't activate it yourself just yet. Photo: WABetaInfo
A new beta version of the Facebook app for iOS contains hidden resources that suggest a dark mode is on its way to iPhone and iPad.
The feature is expected to work in tandem with the system-wide dark mode settings on iOS for automatic activation and deactivation, but users should be able to toggle it manually, too.
Senator Hawley is concerned about Apple and Google's privacy for contact-tracing data. Photo: Apple/Google
Sen. Josh Hawley wants Apple and Google to have some skin in the game when it comes to keeping data private in their joint coronavirus contact-tracing project. Hawley’s idea? That the Apple and Google CEOs — Tim Cook and Sundar Pichai, respectively — should take personal responsibility for ensuring the data is kept private.
“If you seek to assure the public, make your stake in this project personal,” the Republican senator from Missouri wrote Tuesday in a letter to Cook and Pichai. “Make a commitment that you and other executives will be personally liable if you stop protecting privacy, such as by granting advertising companies access to the interface once the pandemic is over.”
T-Mobile is wasting no time expanding — and solidifying — its 5G network in the U.S. following its recently completed merger with Sprint. The two companies, now one, are combining their networks following the landmark merger.
On Tuesday, T-Mobile announced that its 5G 2.5 GHz mid-band spectrum is now live in parts of Philadelphia, offering T-Mobile customers with compatible 5G phones the opportunity to take advantage of the new super-speedy connectivity — with peaks of nearly 600 Mbps.
Note the substantially smaller notch in this iPhone 12 concept. Photo: svetapple.sk
A set of concept 3D renders released Tuesday depict all the latest iPhone 12 rumors, including a recent report that this upcoming handset will have a substantially smaller screen cutout.
The images also include other features widely expected to be part of the autumn 2020 iPhone, like a LiDAR scanner.
Netflix owes a guy now in prison for a lot of its almost 16 million new subscribers in the first quarter. Photo: Brad Gibson / Cult of Mac
Apple and its Apple TV+ streaming service could only dream of numbers this big.
Call it the ‘Tiger King effect’ or whatever you like, but Netflix benefited from the stay-at-home, shelter-in-place directive by adding 15.77 million new subscribers worldwide in the first quarter, according to earnings results released Monday.
A refurbished Apple Watch Series 5 is up to 15% less than a new one. Photo: Apple/Cult of Mac
One way to score a deal on the the latest Apple Watch Series 5 is buy a unit that someone purchased then returned to Apple. These get rigorously refurbished, then are offered to the public at up to 15% off the regular price.
Tuesday is the first day Series 5 units have been available refurbished.
The 2020 iPad Air could sport a larger display than this 2019 model. Photo: Apple
Apple is going to increase the sizes of the displays in the 2020 iPad Air and an iMac model also coming later this year, according to an unconfirmed report coming out of Asia.
But neither of these will be MiniLED screens, as Apple will reportedly not have any computer using this type of display until 2021.
Make the right donation to charity and you can take a meeting with Larry Jackson, Global Creative Director of Apple Music. Photo: Larry Jackson/Instagram
If your music career or business would be boosted by meeting with someone high up at Apple Music, then this is your lucky day. Three high-level executives at Apple’s music streaming service are auctioning off private meetings.
Proceeds from these auctions go to the Pablove Foundation, which invests in pediatric cancer research.
Huawei needs to have more confidence in its smartphone cameras. Screenshot: Huapeng Zhao/Weibo
The cameras in Huawei smartphones are class-leading. Yet, the company was caught again using a photo shot with a DSLR in an ad to promote pictures produced with their handsets.
Best, of all, the gaffe was discovered by the winner of an iPhone photography contest.