Buy all the 2020 iPad Pro units you want. Photo: Apple/Cult of Mac
The limit on the number of iPhones, iPads and new MacBook Air models each customer could purchase that Apple put into place a few days ago has already been lifted everywhere outside China.
This means any hoarders who have money left after buying every scrap of TP in their town can stock up on Apple devices, hoping the limited supply will make prices skyrocket.
Oprah Winfrey and Apple pull together a quick interview series for Apple TV+ focusing on the COVID-19 pandemic and how to deal with its implications. Photo: Apple
Apple TV+ has launched a surprise interview series with former talk show Oprah Winfrey talking about the global coronavirus pandemic. In its first episode, Winfrey spoke to actor Idris Eba, one of several celebrities to test positive for COVID-19.
The series – entitled “Oprah Talks COVID-19“- debuted Saturday, with little production value for a quick-to-air show. Winfrey’s first installment features FaceTime interviews with Elba and his wife, Sabrina Dhowre.
An updated Apple Smart Keyboard Folio is one of the best keyboards available now for the 2020 iPad Pro. Photo: Apple
Adding an extra camera lens and LiDAR to the 2020 iPad Pro changed the design enough that virtually all keyboard cases designed for its predecessor can’t be used with the new model. And Apple’s own Magic Keyboard won‘t debut for months.
Still, there are already a couple of keyboard cases available for people expecting a new iPad Pro to arrive this week.
On the back of the coronavirus pandemic, Best Buy has closed its doors indefinitely. Photo: Mike Mozart/Flickr CC
As COVID-19 continues to impact businesses big and small across America, Best Buy announced Saturday it is closing all of its 997 North America locations temporarily except for curbside pickup services. Best Buy is one of the nation’s largest independent retailers of Apple products.
The Fortune 100 company with 125,000 employees has not offered a timeline for how long the new policy will last.
Expect Netflix to stay in the no. 1 spot for the foreseeable future. Photo: Brad Gibson / Cult of Mac
Netflix is stepping up to help people affected by the COVID-19 pandemic by creating a $100 million fund that will go to support production and other workers in the industry.
Apple has enhanced Siri to answer government-approved questions regarding COVID-19 coronavirus. Photo: Brad Gibson / Cult of Mac
Apple enhanced its Siri voice assistant Saturday with a step-by-step query instructing users on determining if they have been exposed to COVID-19, the worldwide coronavirus pandemic.
The instructions are based on specific instructions from the U.S. Public Health Service, a division of the Department of Health and Human Services, as well as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
A LiDAR scanner might be a significant new feature of the iPhone 12. Photo: svetapple.sk
A major new feature in this fall’s iPhone 12 is rumored to be a LiDAR scanner. A concept artist created a series of images showing what this change might look like.
This scanner would enable the next high-end iPhone models to create an accurate 3D map of their location, greatly improving augmented reality applications.
With most movie theaters closed, The Walt Disney Company is moving Onward online earlier than expected. Photo: Disney/Pixar
With U.S. cinema chains like AMC, Cinemark, Landmark, Alamo Drafthouse and Cineplex Odeon closed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, The Walt Disney Company moved up the online release of Pixar animated film Onward two weeks.
Apple is donating 2 million masks, such as this N95 ventilator mask, to help in the COVID-19 pandemic fight. Photo: CNN video still image
Apple has pledged to donate two million industrial respiratory masks to help health-care workers fighting the coronavirus pandemic in the United States and Europe, U.S. Vice President Mike Pence revealed during Saturday’s White House press briefing.
Pence called on other companies to step up and follow suit with more physical donations. Pence was optimistic about the supply of masks and said clothing-maker Hanesbrands is retrofitting some of its factories to make masks.
Got an Apple product repair stuck in a shuttered Apple Store? It's safe. Photo: Brad Gibson/Cult of Mac
Repaired devices that customers couldn’t pick up before Apple Stores closed will remain piled up for some time due to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic.
Many Mac and iPhone owners now find themselves between a rock and a hard place, according to various reports and social media posts.
Find out what makes that practically blasphemous statement true in this week’s free issue of Cult of Mac Magazine. Download it now and read it on your iPad or iPhone. Or get the links below for our blowout coverage of the new iPad Pro. You’ll also find the rest of the week’s top Apple news, reviews and how-tos.
Apple appears to have heeded the E.U. request to lower quality of its Apple TV+ service to reduce the strain on the internet. Photo: Cult of Mac
Following a request to streaming services to switch from high definition to standard in an effort to reduce the strain on the internet, indications were Friday that Apple has followed suit of other major services and slowed down its Apple TV+ streaming service.
Cult of Mac has confirmed through two Apple TV users – one in Great Britain and one in southern France – that the quality of content on Apple TV+ has been lowered. Subscribers described the differences as primarily fast-moving content that is slower to refresh, heavily compressed and more pixelated.
Agent 8 doesn’t look much like James Bond. Photo: Sumo Digital
Spyder brings a new perspective on the spy thriller. Today’s addition to the Apple Arcade subscription service features a tiny robot spider on a mission to save the great big world.
This itsy-bitsy superspy must use his gadgets to sabotage the nefarious plans of villians, requiring players see everything from a new perspective.
Stay informed. Or stay entertained. Screenshot: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac
Apple is making it easier for Podcasts users to discover new shows focused on the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The app’s new “Coronavirus: Stay Informed” section highlights content from the likes of CNN, NPR, BBC and ABC News.
2020 MacBook Air benchmarks show it’s far faster than the Mac laptop it’s replacing. Photo: Apple
The MacBook Air unveiled this week offers performance up to 73% faster than the version of this Mac laptop released in 2018, according to benchmark tests done by a reviewer.
The speed boost comes from the new model‘s 10th-generation Intel Core processor. Its predecessor has a slower, 8th-gen chip.
Self-isolation orders in San Francisco emptied this studio at WaterField Designs. Photo: WaterField Designs
Gary Waterfield should be collaborating with colleagues today over the hum of sewing machines producing an elegant leather crossbody laptop bag.
The small-batch tech backpacks and shoulder bags of WaterField Designs since 1998 have attracted discerning Apple users. Waterfield likes to time a new production run with an Apple product launch.
But when Apple unveiled the new MacBook Air and iPad Pro with Magic Keyboard this week, the handful of WaterField employees were stuck in their San Francisco-area homes on one of the strictest lockdowns since the coronavirus invaded American soil.
The vertical carry better distributes the weight. Photo: WaterField Designs
A new MacBook Air or iPad Pro with Magic Keyboard deserves protection that smells good.
Hear the name WaterField Designs and the part of the brain connected to the nose instantly recalls the rich scent of full grain leather.
One day after Apple announced its two newest products, the small-batch San Francisco manufacturer unveiled the Hitch Crossbody Laptop Brief, in two sizes with two padded compartments for both an iPad and MacBook.
CarPlay: good for your infotainment system, not your reaction times. Photo: Sony
Using Apple’s CarPlay platform in its current state is worse for drivers’ reaction times than being high on weed, at the drink-drive legal limit, or texting behind the wheel, a new study claims.
IAM RoadSmart, the biggest road U.K. safety charity, analyzed the impact of various in-car distractions. While CarPlay may make the experience of using your car’s infotainment system more enjoyable, the group’s research concludes that it certainly won’t make you a better driver.
“The fundamental issue of these systems [is that they require] you to take your eyes off the road ahead,” Neil Greig, policy and research director for IAM RoadSmart, told Cult of Mac. However, Greig said steps could be taken to make systems like CarPlay safer.
The 2020 iPad Pro benchmarks are high, but not much better than its predecessor’s. Photo: Apple
The 2020 iPad Pro is less than 1% faster than the previous model, according to a popular benchmarking test. The numbers appear to be the result of the new model not using Apple’s latest-generation processor.
The new tablet does offer improved graphics capabilities, however.
Apple is doing its part to promote proper behavior during pandemic. Photo: Apple Music/iTunes
Apple is doing its part to help positive messaging regarding the coronavirus pandemic by sharing a White House video emphasizing the importance of social distancing.
The public service announcement features three core members of the White House’s Coronavirus Task Force. It’s visible in the video carousel on Apple Music and iTunes. You do not need an active Apple Music subscription to view it.
YouTube and Amazon Prime Video cut streaming bitrates in Europe. Image: Brad Gibson/Cult of Mac
YouTube and Amazon Prime Video confirmed Friday they will will start throttling video quality in Europe in an effort to reduce the strain on network infrastructure during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The temporary measure will see all YouTube videos displayed in standard definition by default, though, it is still be possible for viewers to select a higher resolution.
This is kind of like a metaphor. Photo: Unsplash/Moritz Mentges
Apple’s supply chain is still weathering the effects of the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, a report published late Thursday by Bloomberg makes clear.
Even though China has seemingly overcome the worst of the coronavirus spread, Apple products are continuing the suffer the impacts. That is likely to manifest itself in the form of delays for new products and fresh batches of existing ones.
Let's talk about Apple's beautiful new hardware. Photo: @YSR50
This week on The CultCast: Our reactions to Apple’s new hardware! Plus, we’ll tell you everything you need to know about Apple’s new Mac mini, MacBook Air, iPad Pro and Magic Keyboard.
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