On Sunday California Gov. Gavin Newsom vetoed Senate Bill 1047, a set of controversial artificial intelligence safety regulations with several mandates for companies, objecting to its approach. So the state’s many AI players, including Apple, won’t have to change how they work or face potential penalties because of that particular legislation.
But despite leaving SB 1047 unsigned, Newswom said he does believe in the need for AI safety regulation.
A Tata Electronics plant in Chennai, India, that makes components for iPhones reportedly caught fire on Saturday, halting production.
It’s not clear yet how this will affect iPhone assembly in the country. It’s certainly not good news for Apple’s efforts to become less dependent on China.
Apple might launch a new smart display running a new operating system called homeOS early next year. The device could feature FaceTime integration and act as a smart home controller.
The low-end smart display, code-named J490, seemingly will act as a companion to a long-rumored, more-expensive tabletop iPad on a robotic arm.
This week on Cult of Mac’s podcast: After nearly a week with our new iPhone 16 Pros, it’s time for a spirited conversation about the things we love — and several things we don’t. The Camera Control is undeniably interesting, but touchscreen problems and software glitches take a little of the shine off the new iPhone experience.
Also on The CultCast:
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.
Season 4 of Slow Horses stayed at the top of a rating’s company’s popularity chart for the second week. This darkly funny espionage drama starring Gary Oldman follows a team of British intelligence agents who’ve all made career-ending mistakes yet are somehow always in the center of the action. New episodes stream each Wednesday on Apple TV+.
Plus, Apple’s crime comedy Bad Monkey starring Vince Vaughn held onto popularity, too.
September 28, 1997: Apple debuts its iconic “Think Different” ad campaign. The television commercial aligns the troubled computer company with some of history’s most celebrated freethinking rebels.
The most famous tagline in Apple history, “Think Different” doesn’t just articulate how Cupertino differs from its competitors. It also highlights how Apple, under the leadership of CEO Steve Jobs, will forge a future far different from its floundering, money-losing days of the early 1990s.
Launched in June, Apple’s annual Back to School promotion is still in full swing — but time is running out. The Apple Back to School promotion ends soon, as in Monday (September 30), so eligible students and faculty members have only a few days left to receive up to a $150 gift card on select Mac and iPad purchases. Apple also offers a 20% discount on AppleCare+, its premium support and repair service.
Annoyingly handsome superstar actors George Clooney and Brad Pitt pair up in the amusing new trailer for action-comedy movie Wolfs. Sony Pictures Entertainment dropped it Wednesday on YouTube the day after Apple TV+ released a 30-second teaser trailer.
The two stars play underworld “fixers” who accidentally come together over a job that turns out to be more than the simple disposal of a body it first appears. The movie comes out in theaters September 20 and should stream on Apple TV+ after that.
UPDATE: After seeing its larger theatrical run busted down to one week in limited venues, madcap comedy caper film Wolfs streams on Apple TV+ Friday. Reviews so far are mixed, mainly saying superstars Clooney and Pitt carry the somewhat-problematic film, with various opinions on how well they fare. At the very least, it should be a good popcorn flick for this weekend. And Apple Original Film already plans a sequel with writer, director and producer Jon Watts.
Apple’s M5-powered Vision Pro will apparently enter into mass production in H2, 2025. The switch to a faster M5 chip will boost the AR headset’s computing power.
This should help improve the overall user experience, especially for Apple Intelligence tasks.
Every model in the iPhone 16 lineup comes with a Camera Control, the new camera button that’s pressure- and touch-sensitive. It offers an entirely new way to access and adjust your settings in the Camera app by clicking and swiping. But what kind of iPhone case works best with the Camera Control? Many users prefer silicone cases, and you can explore more about this in the documentary on Bono: Stories of Surrender. Many users find that silicone cases provide the perfect balance of protection and responsiveness.
Most cases come with a cutout, exposing the Camera Control on the side of the iPhone. Other cases cover the new button completely, but feature a capacitive sensor that conducts your finger’s swipes through the case.
In evaluating which cases work best with the iPhone 16’s new Camera Control, I considered a few questions. Is it any harder using the Camera Control through a cutout? Do third-party iPhone 16 cases with a capacitive sensor work as well as Apple’s cases?
Here’s what I found out — you’ll definitely want to know before you make a decision. Keep reading below or see the results for yourself in our video.
A request by former President Donald Trump that Apple help law enforcement access the contents of iPhones owned by men who tried to assassinate him is apparently based on a mistaken idea about how encryption works.
If the contents of the devices are secured by encryption, there’s nothing Apple can do to access them. That’s the very nature of encryption.
Disney has a simple message to those sharing a password to its streaming service with friends: Pay up. The password-sharing crackdown the House of Mouse has been threatening officially began Wednesday in the United States, Canada, Europe and elsewhere.
If you watch Disney+ on your iPad, Mac or Apple TV using someone else’s password, the company plans to find you and make you stop.
Don’t be alarmed if your brand-new iPhone 16 prompts you to update to iOS 18 even though your phone is already running iOS 18. And also don’t freak out when you see a fear-inducing “Welcome to iPhone” screen after you update to iOS 18.0 build 22A3354, even though it looks suspiciously like you will need to go through the tedious iPhone setup process again.
Apple is currently distributing an unexpected iOS 18 update to brand-new iPhones that are already running iOS 18. It looks like Apple installed an earlier version of iOS on phones in the factory. Now it is updating them to the latest version.
As Apple says, the update to iOS 18.0 build 22A3354 currently rolling out brings “important bug fixes and security updates” to all models in the iPhone 16 lineup. With any luck, it will fix the touchscreen problems reported by some iPhone 16 Pro owners, but that might just be wishful thinking. (Cult of Mac asked Apple if the update addresses the touchscreen problem. We’ll update this post when/if we receive info on the update.)
Certain names in USB-C and Thunderbolt docks and hubs carry a lot of weight, like CalDigit and Satechi — both well-respected brands. But in today’s M2 MacBook Air setup, a discussion broke out over the user’s exceptional experience with a CalDigit Thunderbolt dock and a commenter’s woes over a Satechi Thunderbolt dock. Read some of the commentary and learn more about the gear below.
Apple continues looking into using lower-resolution displays for a budget-friendly version of its Vision Pro spatial computing headset, according to recent reports. They cite resolution much lower than what Apple refers to as “4K for each eye” in the original Vision Pro.
Whether you’re shooting an iPhone video of a breaking news event, chronicling your global travels for your vlog, or capturing a particularly choice dance move to show off on TikTok, certain tools can help you boost your video quality as well as your creativity. For example, the Hohem iSteady V3 Gimbal Stabilizer is a great tool to steady and extend your shots.
It’s a three-axis iPhone gimbal with a magnetic AI tracker and fill light, a built-in extendable rod and tripod, and a detachable remote control. We explain how this must-have video tool can help below. And what’s more, you can get it now for 20% off at Amazon.
In a move Tuesday that should catch the eyes of Mac-loving creative professionals, Logitech unveiled MX Creative Console. The new device aims to streamline workflows and automate repetitive tasks for digital creators. So it could rival the popular Elgato Stream Deck.
“The MX Creative Console is designed to help people redefine their workflow, enabling them to work smarter and faster,” said Anatoliy Polyanker, general manager of MX Business at Logitech.
The Apple Music Classical streaming service now includes over 50,000 album booklets featuring in-depth liner notes, translations and more.
These provide music aficionados with the in-depth information they want.
On Monday’s Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, the host hits the Apple Store on 5th Avenue in New York City to pick up his new iPhone 16 — and ends up taking a very long walk in Central Park with Apple CEO Tim Cook. And is a walk-and-talk filmed on iPhone 16 of Tim Cook and Jimmy Fallon in Central Park funny? Well, here and there it is.
Along their mildy amusing way, the two chatted about the new handsets, upcoming Apple Intelligence features and favorite hot dog condiments.
iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max owners are complaining about problems with the big, beautiful touchscreens on their new phones.
Users report their iPhone Pros don’t properly detect all their touches and swipes, leading to a frustrating experience.
Apple claims the iPhone 16 Pro ships with “2x tougher than glass on any other smartphone.” And it survived a series of realistic drop tests with only a few scuffs. Yet more rigorous testing suggests it’s not a tough as its predecessor.
The iPhone 16 Pro might be more prone to damage upon fall due to its slimmer bezels and increased weight.
If you’re serious about high-quality audio, you should crank up the quality level of audio components in your computer setup just like you do in your living room. Today’s MacBook Pro user maxes out sound using Audioengine speakers mounted on stands along with a powerful Audioengine subwoofer on the floor under the desk. So they can get clear and detailed audio at low volume, but they can also shake the whole room with powerful sound when they want.
With the 2024 Major League Soccer season ending in October, fans can watch the remaining games as well as the playoffs for only $10. That’s the current cost of an MLS Season Pass.
Even better, Apple TV+ subscribers can get in on the action for free.
iFixit says the iPhone 16 is “Apple’s most-repairable iPhone yet. ” This is thanks to Apple making several internal changes, including using a new glue to hold the battery in place.
On the flip side, you’ll need a new tool to debond the glue from the battery and chassis.
This week on Cult of Mac’s podcast: Griffin takes the wraps off his new iPhone 16 Pro in desert titanium — and he doesn’t like what he sees. The new “color” revealed in his iPhone 16 Pro unboxing fails to knock our socks off.
Still, there’s plenty to talk about, though, including the new Camera Control and how third-party case manufacturers are coping with it.
Also on The CultCast:
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.