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Hackers have just given iPhone and iPad users a big reason to upgrade to iOS 9 due out later today: it fixes a serious AirDrop security vulnerability.

Mark Dowd, an Australian security researcher with Azimuth Security, revealed this morning that iOS 8.4.1 contains a critic security flaw in AirDrop that could allow an attacker to install malware on any device within range. Worst of all, even if a victim tried to reject the incoming AirDrop file, the bug lets attackers tweak the iOS settings so the exploit will still work.

Check out the lethal bug in action:

Update: Apple has delayed deployment of watchOS 2, possibly for a day or more, after discovering a bug that’s taking longer to fix than expected.

Are you ready? It’s finally time to update your Apple Watch to watchOS 2. The software upgrade will let you run third-party apps right on the Watch without your iPhone, add nightstand mode and new watch faces (including your own photos), and much more.

If you’re ready to make it so, read on and get all these new features on your wrist today.

iOS 9 won’t shock you with a bunch of whiz-bang new features or a drastic new look, but in many ways, Apple’s latest mobile operating system is more important than its two immediate predecessors. While iOS 7 and iOS 8 laid a foundation that embraced the future of mobile design, iOS 9 is making all those changes worth a damn.

Apple drops iOS 9 today, bringing a more intelligent UI, better built-in apps, a smarter Siri and much more. Our iOS 9 review shows how the new software makes everything you do on your iPhone or iPad easier — and far faster — than ever before.

Whether you’re getting a new iPhone 6s or not, you’re going to want to upgrade to iOS 9 to take advantage of everything Apple’s new mobile operating system has to offer.

iOS 9 is ready to revolutionize your mobile life, but there are a few things you should do before making the leap. Here’s how to get your iPhone (or iPad) ready for its iOS 9 upgrade — the right way.

SAN FRANCISCO — Ultimate Ears could have borrowed the iPhone 6s tag line to market its new UE Boom 2 Bluetooth speakers.

Like Apple’s latest smartphones, which Cupertino hypes with the clever catchphrase “the only thing that’s changed is everything,” UE’s second-generation Bluetooth speaker is almost indistinguishable from its tubular predecessor — at least on the outside. But upgraded specs and a few pleasant surprises give the Boom 2 a welcome boost.

“There’s something magic about this design,” said Diego Gabathuler, head of brand and global marketing for Ultimate Ears, as he showed off the Boom 2 during a demo at the Cult of Mac offices. “It would have been a shame to take that magic away.”

Sometime in the last few weeks, I’ve had a big problem with Apple Music.

Whenever I’d start an album or playlist, I’d only hear the first song I chose, over and over and over.

I’d hit the Up Next list button and see the same song, endlessly repeated.

The fix is an easy one, but man did it frustrate me for weeks. Here’s how you can make sure you’re not stuck on repeat.

This is a guest post by Fraser Speirs, a teacher, systems administrator and consultant specializing in the application of modern mobile technology in schools. It originally appeared on his personal website.

“The iPad is the clearest expression of our vision of the future of personal computing.” — Tim Cook

The above statement by Apple’s CEO is — by far — the most important thing that happened for iPad at Apple’s event last Wednesday. We have been through more than three years of the iPad playing a distant second to the iPhone and, to some extent, even the Mac at Apple events. It’s been three long years of “Here’s the new thinner, faster iPad. We can’t wait to see what you do with it. Bye!”

New research suggests that iOS fitness apps stink at giving you a complete workout. As the developer of one such app, you might think I would disagree. But I don’t. In fact, the only thing I would challenge is the researchers’ conclusion that app developers could do better. They can’t.

Fitness apps can be indispensable if you already know what you are doing, but If you are new to exercise, you should not rely on them to get you started.

With Apple’s next-generation iPhones going on sale just after midnight PST, it’s time to decide whether you’re going to upgrade.

The iPhone 6s and 6s Plus are by far the biggest ‘S’ upgrades so far, with new 3D Touch displays, faster A9 processors, improved Touch ID, and the best iSight cameras yet. But are those things worth the upgrade fee?

Join us in this week’s Friday Night Fight between Cult of Android and Cult of Mac as we battle it out over whether you should spend your hard-earned cash on iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus.

Preorders of the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus are set to open tonight at 12:01 a.m. Pacific. Apple’s certainly made a ton of improvements to the preorder process over the years, but as the Apple Watch recently taught us, taking an extra few minutes to get your preorder in could cause your shipment to be delayed.

Demand for the new iPhone 6s is expected to be greater than ever, so we’ve compiled a handy guide to help you get the iPhone you want and get back to sleep before Apple’s servers get absolutely crushed.

Here’s what to do:

You know how McDonald’s (allegedly) has a secret menu? Plenty of people have heard about it, some use it frequently and bask in its glory, but most just stick to the regular menu.

That seems an awful lot like how 3D Touch could pan out.

This week on Cult of Mac’s podcast: Our reactions and impressions of all the gadgets unleashed at Apple’s media extravaganza! Plus: Why the 6s is the best “s” yet; a look into Apple’s efforts to architect the 6s’ new 3D Touch technology; why the Apple Pencil is not a stylus; and so. much. MORE…

Our thanks to Squarespace for supporting this episode. Build a beautiful website quick at Squarespace.com, and enter offer code CultCast at checkout to get 10 percent off.

Apple’s keynotes typically give you plenty worth singing about, and for “Song-A-Day” YouTuber Jonathan Mann, that’s reason enough to bust out new tunes.

Mann, whose catchy jingles once made Steve Jobs dance, always puts together a musical remix following Apple events, and this week’s jam-packed keynote is no exception.

If you don’t have time to sit through the entire 2-hour-plus event, or simply want to relive the most memorable lines with a catchy electronic backing, this is the video for you. Check it out below:

We get that yesterday’s Apple event was a marketing thing, which is why every presentation began with whoever was onstage telling us how “thrilled,” “excited” or “really happy” they were to be there. And the exaggeration just continued from those intros.

Here are some of the most outlandish and enthusiastically subjective lines that came from the stage at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium. We’ve organized them by speaker so you can see who “won” this verbal arms race of canned excitement.

This is a guest post by Linda Dong, a graphics expert and former designer at Apple. It originally appeared on her personal website.

A lot of hesitation (or dismissal) of the new Apple Pencil seems to stem from people’s belief that the Wacom Cintiq, currently regarded as the pinnacle of professional drawing stylus/surface design, is superior in performance and design at a similar price.

😩 *sigh*

Quite plainly, the Cintiq sucks in comparison. And I’ve been using them for years for industrial design sketching, UI and art. Let’s compare the experience:

Jen Folse used the Apple stage Wednesday to tell the world about Apple TV. She used her nails to express her loyalty to the company.

If you got close enough to Apple’s lone female staffer to present at the company’s fall product event Wednesday, you could see the wavy lines of blue, pink, red, yellow and white on her nails painted to look like Siri’s Apple Watch interface. Those same colors were also used in official promotions of the fall showcase.

Have a look:

A few extra megapixels is always welcome, but if there is one feature of the new iPhone 6s camera that gets us to say “Wow,” it is Live Photos.

The new Live Photos technology actually captures a brief moment before and after your snap, giving the subject in a finished picture motion and a bit of life. After seeing it for the first time, some said, “Wow, that’s cool!” And others said, “Wow, that’s nothing new.”

Jony Ive has one of the coolest, most suave voices among Apple’s executive leadership team. I could listen to him pronounce “aluminium” and “metallurgists” all day. Now, thanks to a creepy new soundboard, you can make Apple’s chief design officer say pretty much anything you want.

There’s been a disturbance in the Force: a free-to-play Star Wars game has arrived for iOS and Android, and it’s surprisingly damn good.

Star Wars: Uprising is the first video game that’s actually canon to the new Star Wars Universe, taking place between Return of the Jedi (VI) and the upcoming The Force Awakens (VII).

That alone merits a download, but once you start playing, you’ll find a really well-written storyline, some deep customization options, and an addictive gear collecting and upgrading system that will keep you going back for more. Check out the trailer below for some glorious Star Wars action.

Apple fans can’t purchase the iPhone 6s, Apple TV, or iPad Pro that were unveiled yesterday, but if you’re lucky you can pick up the cheap gold Apple Watch Sport today, now that Apple Stores have received limited supplies of new units.

Cult of Mac got an early look at the new gold finish thanks to a reader who already scooped up a 42mm gold Apple Watch Sport at the Apple Store in Gilbert, Arizona, and while the new model is way cheaper than its expensive Edition sibling, it still looks like a million bucks.

Take a closer look:

Apple rolled out one drool-worthy new gadget after another Wednesday.

The iPad Pro? Want.

A Hermes Apple Watch? Gotta have.

The new Apple TV? Gimme!

If you’re like me, you’ll want one of everything Tim Cook and crew showed off in Apple’s September showcase. But if you get one of everything, it is going to cost you.

Wow. That was a big deal. For a mere “s” upgrade, Apple went way above and beyond with today’s big product showcase. Three major product lines have been not just upgraded, but reinvented, and finally there’s a reason to buy the one that has been languishing — the Apple TV, which is now a gaming console as well as an entertainment center.

Maybe I’ve drunk too much Kool-Aid, but I thought this morning’s presentation was one for the history books.

You can almost see the new and improved iPhone 6s in your hands. Now, how about a new case for that gorgeous hunk of gear?

Several companies began showing off cases — everything from luxurious leather accessories to battery-extending packs — for the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus following Apple’s big fall products reveal in San Francisco today.

Apple is planning to make it easier than ever to stay addicted to the iPhone with the introduction of its new iPhone Upgrade Program that will allow fans to upgrade to a new device every single year.

Phil Schiller announced the new program on stage at Apple’s keynote today, revealing that pricing for the iPhone Upgrade Program starts at $32 per month, which is slightly more expensive than what you can get at a carrier, but it comes with some extra benefits too.

From the iPhone to the iPad to the Apple TV, Cupertino’s constellation of magical devices just got a little more magical.

Did you expect all that Apple goodness? Most of what we heard today already churned through the rumor mill: the plus-size iPad Pro; new Apple Watch finishes and bands; a refreshed Apple TV with games, apps and Siri functionality. And, oh yeah, the new iPhone 6s and 6s Plus with a whole new level of Force Touch, called 3D Touch.

There were even a few surprises, like the iPad Pro’s new Smart Keyboard and the iPad stylus, dubbed the Apple Pencil. But throughout today’s keynote by Tim Cook and his lieutenants, the series of under-the-hood upgrades they revealed promise to push all Apple products forward into the future.

Let’s take a moment to boil down all two hours and 10 minutes of this incredibly dense and surprisingly succinct Apple event.