News - page 65

Moft is way beyond its fundraising goal for its new Moft Snap Flow iPhone stand, which snaps to the handset magnetically and unfolds to give you a little organizer with pen and paper. Having raised more than 13 times the funding goal of $10,000 on Kickstarter, the accessories company will most likely put the new Snap Flow into production. With nearly 2,400 people financially backing it so far, there seems to be an appetite for the old-school accessory.

But in the meantime, you can pledge for one on Kickstarter at 20% off through July 31. So who needs a Samsung-style smartphone stylus (or Apple’s Notes app), anyway?

AltStore PAL, the first third-party app marketplace for iOS, now lets users install apps created by independent developers. The change, which arrived Wednesday in AltStore PAL version 2.1, makes previously restricted apps available to iPhone owners in the European Union.

“This means apps that have been rejected by the App Store — such as torrenting apps and virtual machines — have another path forward for the first time ever,” Riley Testut, developer of AltStore, told Cult of Mac.

The update is launching with a few third-party apps available now — iTorrent, qBitControl and PeopleDrop — “apps that are only possible with AltStore PAL,” according to Testut.

Are you ready for some football … with iPads? This upcoming college football season should see plenty of Apple tablets teaming up with coaches and players on the sidelines. Two powerhouse NCAA Division I conferences — Southeastern (SEC) and Atlantic Coast (ACC) — recently struck deals with Apple to use iPads in college football games.

iPad’s “unique capabilities and versatility make it the ideal solution to support coaches and student-athletes,” said Scott Brodrick, a manager in Apple’s worldwide iPad product marketing group. “With an unrivaled combination of advanced displays, powerful performance, portability, fast connectivity, all day battery life and versatile accessories, iPad will let coaches and players make in-game adjustments and empower athletes to compete at the highest level.”

The new Pitaka MagEZ Case 2 for iPad Pro fuses stylish design and tough protection for your tablet, the company said Wednesday. And what’s more, you can use it more like a desktop computer or laptop with a highly functional magnetic case like this one.

Many folks building a computer setup love a good trick for compartmentalizing a bit — essentially, any way they can neaten up the space in a way that enhances productivity. That could include something we don’t see often enough in setups: multi-use keyboard trays. Today’s Mac Studio user proudly displays a wooden one for Magic Keyboard mini and Magic Trackpad 2. And you can find many others out there, like the popular Twelve South MagicBridge.

Trays like that give your keyboard and trackpad — or/or mouse, in some cases — one modular place to live, and you can easily move the pair or trio around as one unit or hold it in your lap.

iPhone users could use AI to create their own artwork for playlists in Apple Music, according to code reportedly found in the latest iOS 18 beta. The feature would use Apple Intelligence’s ability to generate images based on simple instructions.

If true, this is be one of multiple new artificial intelligence capabilities coming to iPhone.

Apple could add a variable aperture to the iPhone 17’s primary camera. A variable aperture, commonly found in DSLRs and other high-end cameras, would allow the sensor to limit the light intake for higher-quality images.

It also would enable a better depth-of-field effect, with a nice background blur when taking close-up shots of a subject.

Apple is reportedly moving ahead with making an iPhone with a folding screen. If multiple unconfirmed reports from Tuesday turn out to be true, the first foldable iPhone could hit the market in 2026.

An iPhone Fold would be the first significant change to the standard “slab” design of iOS handsets since, well, ever.

July 23, 2012: Looking for the perfect spokesman for its new virtual assistant Siri, Apple turns to the director behind some of Hollywood’s most violent gangster movies. A new ad shows Martin Scorsese using Siri voice commands on his iPhone to juggle his busy schedule.

One in a string of celebrity-studded ads showcasing the Apple’s recently released virtual assistant, it ranks among the best.

The number of Android applications on Google Play is likely to drop after Google updated its Minimum Functionality policy to block apps that “only have limited functionality and content.”

Unlike the experience in Apple’s App Store, Android users must wade knee-deep through useless apps to find anything worthwhile. The new policy should remedy this … assuming Google enforces it.

The first over-ear headphones with solid-state micro speakers are almost here, AMPACS said Tuesday. It noted reference-design prototypes with xMEMS solid-state micro speakers are now available. That brings us one big step closer to headphone makers putting it in their new headphones. That could start after the production version of the design becomes available to them in September. Before now, the new micro speakers were limited to earbuds.

xMEMS Labs’ patented 2-way module architecture uses solid-state micro speakers for mids and highs and a dynamic driver for bass. It improves spatial audio accuracy and reduces weight for gamers compared to conventional single-driver cans, AMPACS said. The new reference design is a cost-effective advance that could figure into multiple audio brands’ headphones.

Ahead of the latest news, Cult of Mac conducted an interview with folks behind the development from xMEMS Labs in May. After all, you have to wonder if some future AirPods Max or Beats cans might incorporate the technology (for the record, xMEMS told Cult of Mac it’s open to working with all partners, but confirmed none).

Apple is updating Safari this year for a cleaner, faster web browsing experience on iPhones, iPads and Macs. While the enhanced Reader mode and Highlights stand out as key additions to Safari in iOS 18, iPadOS 18 and macOS Sequoia, several other changes will come to Apple’s web browser as well.

Below we’ll look at all the improvements coming to Safari later this year.

The CEO of Rivian says his company has no intention of ever adding Apple CarPlay to its electric vehicles. This means drivers can’t plug their iPhone into an R2, R3, etc., and gain easy access to Apple Music, Maps, etc., as they can in so many other car models.

CEO R.J. Scaringe says the decision was about keeping control of the user experience, but money has played a role in similar decisions.

Slack added a trio of iPhone and iPad Home Screen widgets on Monday — the first ever for the popular team communication app.

Users can jump directly to unread messages or update their status with these widgets. Or even launch Slack directly from their Lock Screen.

The upcoming fourth-generation iPhone SE might see a pretty big size increase and become the first SE handset to boast an OLED screen, according to the latest rumors. Other rumored upgrades for the budget iPhone include a powerful 48MP camera and more memory so it can run Apple Intelligence features.

Those are some big changes for an entry-level handset folks thought might be on the chopping block not long ago.

A super-slim version of the iPhone 17 could stand out as the most expensive option in Apple’s lineup, even though it wouldn’t come with all the features of the Pro models in that same series.

Other specifications for 2025’s iPhone 17 series supposedly leaked out over the weekend as well.

A Monday update to the Apple Sports app brings Major League Baseball pitching data as well as support for Leagues Cup soccer action, coming up just days from now.

Apple reportedly wants to reduce the amount of money it pours into its Apple TV+ streaming service. And the company also wants to get more bang for its buck.

The result likely will be fewer Apple TV+ shows, and decreased spending on marquee projects. Plus, underperforming series can expect to get canceled more quickly.

If you want to sound good on video calls or podcasts, you need a good mic like the Audio-Technica AT2020USB+ Microphone with shock mount in today’s MacBook Pro setup. And the user can move it around easily enough because he places it on a low-profile Elgato microphone arm.

Own a PS4 or PlayStation 5? You can get three months of Apple TV+ subscription for free courtesy of Sony.

As part of a promotional offer, Sony is giving existing PS4 and PS5 owners free three-month Apple TV+ trial access.

Sunny, a mystery thriller with a darkly comic bent starring Rashida Jones and a robot, quickly became one of the most popular shows on streaming after premiering on Apple TV+ earlier in July.

But it’s not even the most-watched Apple series. That honor belongs to the crime drama Presumed Innocent, which has drawn a big audience for weeks.

A faulty Windows security update crashed Windows computers across the world on Friday. Any PC that installed the update got hit with the infamous Windows Blue Screen of Death, leading to planes being grounded, disruptions at banks, stores that can’t make transactions, and many more problems.

As a macOS user, there’s no reason for you to feel left out. You can install the BSOD as a wallpaper on your Mac and pretend to join in.

A new version of the Eve Weather Connected Weather Station supports the Matter home-automation standard even as the company maintains a HomeKit-only version for those without a Matter hub, Eve Systems said Thursday. Eve Weather keeps you informed of conditions outside and can interact with HomeKit and other platforms to set automations. That could include adjusting the thermostat and turning on lights, or even telling Siri to do so.

Apple unveiled a slate of new Immersive Videos for Vision Pro in the form of series and films Thursday. So users of the AR/VR headset are in for some new audio-visual treats. And some are available now.

“Apple Immersive Video is a groundbreaking leap forward for storytelling, offering Apple Vision Pro users remarkable experiences with an unparalleled sense of realism and immersion,” said Tor Myhren, Apple’s vice president of Marketing Communications.

The computer setup we feature today sports a powerful Mac Studio desktop computer and an impressive phalanx of external displays, yet commenters’ attention focused mainly on the monitor light. It’s actually an EppieBasic LED Desk Lamp rather than a typical monitor light bar, but it serves the same purposes. The user obliged commenters and explained why he loves it.