Newsstand - page 55

Thanks to unprecedented early leaks, some of the biggest new features planned for iOS 14 have already been spoiled. Apple is supposedly making some huge changes to the Home screen, iMessages, HomeKit, Apple Pencil and much more in its next-gen mobile operating system.

The recent wave of leaks proved so overwhelming that we rounded them all up in one place. We will keep updating the list as we inch closer to this summer’s Worldwide Developers Conference, where Apple traditionally previews all of its upcoming platform updates.

Apple’s new Magic Keyboard case for the iPad Pro looks amazing. But its most impressive feature (aside from that incredibly solid-looking hinge) will become available to any iPad owner with a mouse or trackpad laying around. The new trackpad support coming next week in iOS 13.4 works with pretty much any Bluetooth or USB mouse. You just connect the peripheral, and a cursor appears on the iPad screen.

This is a much, much better system than the cobbled-together mouse support that already exists in iOS 13’s Accessibility settings. Instead of simply imitating a finger on-screen, Apple completely rethought how a cursor should work on a touch-based device. This thing is deep, as we’re about to see.

Here’s a hands-on look at the new iPad mouse and trackpad features.

Ten years ago, the iPad was a barely capable, outsize version of the iPhone. The idea that it could outdo the Mac was laughable. And yet here we are, a decade later with the 2020 iPad Pro, and that’s exactly what has happened.

The Mac has stood still (or even gone backward, if you count that keyboard), while the iPad has turned into the computer from the future. Here’s what Apple’s two platforms look like in a head-to-head battle in 2020.

The first 2020 iPad Pro orders will start reaching customers next Wednesday, March 25. You don’t need to wait that long to see what it will look like on your desk, complete with amazing Magic Keyboard, however.

Using the power of augmented reality, Apple can put a virtual iPad Pro anywhere in your home. But be warned: If you didn’t already want a 2020 iPad Pro, you will after you see one right in front of you.

A new Apple demonstration video surfaced Thursday, this one showing off the powerful marquee feature of the new iPad Pro, the LiDAR Scanner.

Words do not explain this augmented reality tool quite like seeing it being demoed by various developers.

Quirky but excellent new book iBauhaus traces Apple’s design principles to a German design school nearly a century old. Written by art expert Nicholas Fox Weber, the book won’t appeal to everyone.

If you’re exclusively interested in behind-the-scenes details of how Apple makes and sells its products, this book probably isn’t for you. If you shuddered through Jony Ive interviews heavy on design-speak, this definitely isn’t the book for you.

However, a certain segment of readers — myself included — will find iBauhaus really enjoyable. And they will learn a lot about the design of the iPhone along the way.

Every 2020 iPad Pro reportedly includes 50% more RAM than most versions of its predecessor. This goes along with an enhanced processor.

In addition, Apple’s latest tablet also supposedly includes the U1 chip for directionally-aware AirDrop.

Update: Tests with Apple’s latest tablet confirm that it has 6GB of RAM.  However, it does not have the U1 chip.

Apple is bringing true trackpad support (and improved mouse support) to the iPad. Get ready to enjoy it by learning all the new gestures from Craig Federighi, Apple’s senior vice president of Software Engineering.

In a new video released by Apple Wednesday, Federighi demonstrates the improvements and shows how simple swipes can help you access Control Center, switch between apps in Slide Over, return to the Home screen, and more.

COVID-19 lockdowns mean more and more people will find themselves working from home. While everyone agrees that staying away from the office is the right thing to do, working from home nonetheless comes with certain challenges. These work-from-home accessories can help.

If you want to thrive in this new environment, you should consider investing in some or all of these items. They will make you more productive, and more comfortable, as you wait out the coronavirus pandemic. And, yes, I assume you already own a computer you can work on. (If not, those new iPad Pros look pretty hot.)

On Tuesday, we looked at five great iOS apps for working from home. While all of those (apart from the game, perhaps) work on the Mac, let’s take a look at five Mac apps that will help you be more productive behind your front door.

The 2020 iPad Pro is the first Apple computer with LiDAR. This innovation enables the tablet to make an accurate 3D map of its location. Combine it with software improvements and this tablet is, in Apple’s words, “the world’s best device for augmented reality.”

And the LiDAR scanner might be usable for other purposes, as well.

Apple’s exciting new Magic Keyboard is going to make working on iPad Pro better than ever when the accessory debuts in May. It’s a huge improvement over the Smart Keyboard Folio in so many ways.

Prices start at $299, which makes the Magic Keyboard an expensive upgrade. For many iPad Pro users, however, it will be well worth it. Here are five reasons why the Magic Keyboard with trackpad blows our minds.

Apple updated its entire Mac mini line Wednesday, offering double the SSD storage capacity at the regular price.

A $799 Mac mini is available with 256GB of PCIe-based SSD storage. Meanwhile, the $1,099 Mac mini now comes with 512GB of SSD storage as standard.

Apple updated its MacBook Air lineup Wednesday, adding a redesigned scissor-switch Magic Keyboard, twice the storage, a reported two times faster CPU and a lower price tag starting at $999.

Apple said the new MacBook Air comes with twice the storage capacity of the previous model. The new base model starts at 256GB, with up to 80% faster graphics performance. It also supports the Apple 6K Pro Display XDR.

Apple surprised the world Wednesday with a brand-new iPad Pro that packs a LiDAR Scanner, Ultra Wide camera and studio-quality microphones. The tablet is powered by an improved A12Z Bionic chip that makes it faster than many laptops.

Consumers can order it beginning today from the Apple Online Store, with prices starting at $799.

We already gave you some ideas on how to work from home, and how to stop yourself from going insane while you’re stuck in COVID-19 lockdown. Today we’re going to take a look at some great iOS apps to use while you’re working from home.

New book Samsung Rising tells the story of Apple’s biggest rival in the smartphone era. It chronicles Samsung’s decades-long ascent, and the fierce competition between the South Korean tech giant’s Galaxy smartphones and the iPhone.

Smartly written and reported by veteran journalist Geoffrey Cain, Samsung Rising will certainly keep your brain active and your fingers flipping pages.

Portable battery packs are a must-have for anyone who finds their iPhone running low on juice before the day is done. But who wants to tackle tangled cables on the go? With Xvida’s wireless charging battery, you don’t have to.

This 4,000mAh power bank packs Qi charging technology, so it can top up your iPhone — and a whole host of other devices — without wires. Bag yours today from the Cult of Mac Store.

Has the government in your city or country shut down everything due to COVID-19? Are the bars, gyms and other nonessential places closed? Are you stuck at home, cooped up with nothing but Facebook and Twitter to fan the flames of your outrage and fear?

Don’t worry. There are plenty of things to do at home. Why not take advantage of all that extra time and use it for something you enjoy?

Apple vs. Samsung is the modern Apple vs. Microsoft — a battle between seemingly unstoppable tech titans. In his new book, Samsung Rising, author Geoffrey Cain charts the surprising story of the South Korean electronics giant. He also reveals how a burning desire to beat Apple drove Samsung’s successful strategies.

Cain, a former reporter for Time and Fast Company, based his book on more than 400 interviews. Over the years, he spoke with top Samsung and Apple executives to gain an insider’s perspective on the battle between the two companies. In this exclusive interview with Cult of Mac, he serves up surprising insight into a tech rivalry for the ages.

The second episode of the redesigned Amazing Stories finds its legs with a story of a track star caught between life and death.

If showrunners Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz have anything even a fraction as good as this up their sleeves for the rest of the season, Amazing Stories might prove the strongest of Apple TV+ shows, considering its short episode order.

At some point, fairly recently, Safari started opening new tabs to the right of the currently open tab, instead of opening them at the end of the tab bar, as nature intended. This means that you have to search for the newly opened tab, instead of just knowing exactly where it is. I can see the point of opening tabs next to the current one, but I don’t like it.

Happily, there’s a way to revert Safari’s behavior to the good old way — the way my grandmother, and her grandmother before her, dealt with their tabs. It’s a simple option inside Safari’s debug menu. Wait? Debug menu?

Apple on Friday confirmed that its annual Worldwide Developers Conference will go ahead in June with “an all-new online format” and not take place at a conference center as has happened since the first WWDC in 1987.

The high-tech giant said the approach was essential amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, but that it was determined to deliver a full program with an online keynote and developer sessions. Apple has also confirmed it will commit $1 million to local San Jose organizations to offset revenue loss as a result of WWDC going online-only.

This week on The CultCast: iOS 14 leaks! We’ll run you through the best new features. Plus: Corona has hit the tech industry hard, and will mean delays for some of your most anticipated gadgets. Is Apple’s rumored March event canceled too? We’ll tell you what we know.

Open up a newspaper, visit a news site or turn on the TV, and you’ll see the end of the world is nigh. And, of course, the COVID-19 coronavirus is serious business, especially if you are in one of the vulnerable categories.

But that doesn’t mean you need to panic. In fact, panicking about anything usually just makes things worse. So, how do you stay informed about the rapidly spreading disease without succumbing to media terror?