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Check out the all-new screenshot markup tools in iOS 13

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Screenshot markup tools
The colorful new screenshot markup tools in iOS 13.
Photo: Andrea Nepori

Instant Markup is one of the best parts of the iOS screenshot tool, and in iOS 13 and iPadOS it’s better than ever. The tools are more flexible, you get more colors, and it even remembers your selections for next time. It still doesn’t offer all the advanced features of a markup app like Annotable (you can’t pixelate parts of the image, for example), but it’s more than good enough for most uses.

Let’s see what’s new in the iOS 13 screenshot markup tool.

2020 iPhone to sport smaller notch, bigger 5G antennas

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2020-iPhone-antenna
Our first look at the 2020 iPhone?
Photo: Ben Geskin

Apple reportedly is working on a number of big design changes for the 2020 iPhone lineup. It wants to shrink the notch (finally!) and add wider antenna bands that will support 5G connectivity.

The company is said to be testing a number of prototype designs — all of which feature smaller notches. Apple also is planning for a future without Lightning connectivity.

How to mute annoying email threads in iOS 13

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Mute email
Mute entire email threads as easily as muting your music.
Photo: Charlie Sorrel/Cult of Mac

Have you ever been part of one of those threads where your boss sends out a fairly benign yet pointless email, and then one of your less-smart co-workers hijacks the thread with reply-alls about dress code for the upcoming office team-building excursion? Before long, the thread is an embarrassing morass of arguments on whether sneakers count as casual shoes, and who will sit where during dinner.

Your moronic co-worker (hopefully) ends up getting a do-not-promote mark in their personnel file. While you, thanks to today’s tip, manage not only to stay above the fray, but to completely ignore it. That’s because you’re about to see how easy it is to mute an email thread so you never have to see it again.

iPad sketch app Paper adds brilliant creative templates [Review]

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These exquisitely designed digital journals in Paper by WeTransfer will get anyone’s creative juices flowing.
These exquisitely designed digital journals will get anyone’s creative juices flowing.
Photo: Graham Bower/Cult of Mac

Looking for some fun stuff to do with your Apple Pencil? Then you should definitely check out today’s update to Paper by WeTransfer, which introduces a new Paper Store.

Despite its name, the Paper Store doesn’t actually sell paper. Instead it offers a range of 28 digital journals created by brilliant designers and illustrators. These journals are filled with creative prompts, exercises and drawing tutorials that will get your creative juices flowing. And they’re a whole lot of fun to use.

Doodling has never been so easy or productive.

Future smartphone case is designed to look (and act) just like human skin

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Future smartphone case is designed to look (and act) just like human skin
Get ready for some strange looks when you answer your phone in public.
Photo: Marc Teyssier

Had enough of your regular smartphone protective case? Soon, you might be able to go full David Cronenberg body horror and get your hands on one that looks like it’s fashioned out of human skin.

Okay, so that gross description of the work of researchers at Telecom Paris is only partially accurate. Yes, it’s a design that is going to freak out a few people. However, there’s also some pretty nifty tech involved. Here’s what it can do.

Here’s your first glimpse of that 16-inch MacBook Pro. Or not.

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beta icon of MacBook Pro
A French blog is reporting this image as proof that Apple is about to roll out a 16-inch MacBook Pro.
Screenshot: MacGeneration

Behold, the rumored 16-inch MacBook Pro. Now, here’s your grain of salt.

A French blog this morning published what it called a rendering for a new Mac laptop that was discovered hidden in a macOS Catalina beta.

Skeptics, from Twitter to tech news sites, quickly tamped down any excitement by pointing out the icon’s similarities to the current 15-inch model.

Apple AR is already here, and you’re probably wearing it right now [Opinion]

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Apple AR already surrounds us.
Apple’s AR already surrounds us.
Photo: Drew Graham/Unsplash

“Apple is all-in on augmented reality. But where will it lead?” That’s a pretty standard view of Apple’s experiments with visual AR, aka overlaying virtual objects onto the real world, via the iPhone’s camera and screen.

But Apple is already providing a fully immersive AR overlay onto the real world, to millions of users — only it isn’t using a screen. AirPods are augmented reality. They are also a part of a new computing paradigm that Apple snuck into the world without telling anybody. This paradigm currently consists of AirPods, iPhone, Apple Watch and the HomePod. And it is as discreet and low-key as it is important.

‘AirPods Pro’ with noise cancellation could debut this month

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AirPods 2 pairing with iPhone
I've spent MANY hours with these in my ears.
Photo: Ian Fuchs/Cult of Mac

Apple is expected to deliver pricier “AirPods Pro” with noise cancellation later this month, according to a new report.

Images of the buds were leaked by Apple in an iOS 13.2 beta earlier this month. They are expected to offer multiple listening modes and could cost around $100 more than the regular models.

iPhone SE 2 is getting BIG upgrades… We fill you in, on The CultCast

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CultCast 410
According a reliable analyst, iPhone SE 2's specs and price will be shockingly good.
Photo: Apple

This week on The CultCast: iPhone SE 2 is almost here! And its specs and price are surprisingly good… Plus: finally! Long awaited camera upgrades are coming to iOS 13; Apple TV+ finally lays out the details of their launch shows; and AMC’s new movie streaming is going to take on Apple Movies with a genius feature Apple can’t possibly match.

Our thanks to Belkin for supporting this episode. Belkin Cables are built to last and supported with a 5-year warranty. If you’re tired of broken burnt out cables, switch to Belkin, and save 30% off your order with code CultCast at checkout.

How to enter Mac passwords with your Apple Watch

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Apple Watch password
Is there anything the Apple Watch can’t do?
Photo: Jens Kreuter/Unsplash

You know how you can double-press the side button on your Apple Watch, and then wave it over a contactless terminal to pay with your credit card? Wouldn’t it be great if you could do the same with your Mac login password? Instead of having to type your password to authenticate yourself, you’d be able to double-tap the Apple Watch’s side button to do it instantly.

Well, now you can do exactly this — if you’re running macOS Catalina.

iOS 13’s powerful new Slide Over features make it useful at last

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Slide Over in iPadOS 13 is like having an iPhone inside your iPad.
Slide Over is like having an iPhone inside your iPad.
Photo: Charlie Sorrel/Cult of Mac

In iOS 13, Slide Over goes from being a useful-but-annoying novelty, to being an essential utility. Instead of only letting you dock one app window to the side of the screen, and sliding it out for a quick look or edit, Slide Over is now fully integrated.

In iOS 13, you can have multiple Slide Over panels, you can switch between them as easily as switching apps on an iPhone, you can open almost anything into a Slide Over pane, and you can easily turn a Slide Over app into a full-screen app. Here’s how it all works.

Contemporary leather cuff makes Apple Watch ultra-comfortable

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Monowear-leather-cuff-1
And it's surprisingly affordable.
Photo: Monowear

Look no further than this contemporary leather cuff if you want an Apple Watch band that’s super-stylish and insanely comfortable.

It’s Monowear’s most comfortable band yet, and it’s available now from the Cult of Mac Store in two terrific color options. The cuff is compatible with all versions of Apple Watch in all sizes. Order yours today!

How to master the Apple Watch Dock

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Apple Watch dock

Photo: Charlie Sorrel/Cult of Mac

There are two buttons on the Apple Watch. You can press the Digital Crown, and you can press the side button. If you press the side button when your watch is displaying its watch face, then you’ll pop up the Dock. But what, exactly, is the Apple Watch Dock?

Just like the docks on macOS and iOS, it provides quick access to your most-used apps. But the Apple Watch Dock doesn’t work like the docks on Apple’s other devices. Here’s how to use it — and how to customize it.

Why can’t you turn off Personal Hotspot in iOS 13?

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Personal hotspot
No, not that kind of hot spot.
Photo: Charlie Sorrel/Cult of Mac

iOS 13 isn’t just about exciting new bugs. Apple did a lot of cleaning up and moving things around in its latest mobile operating system. One big, behind-the-scenes feature change comes in the iPhone’s Personal Hotspot. You can no longer turn it off. Or rather, you haven’t been able to turn it off for a while now. It’s just that iOS 13 finally makes it explicit.

However, this doesn’t mean your iPhone will constantly broadcast its hotspot status, or that it will run down your battery. In fact, this feature is now easier to understand, and more sensibly described, than ever. Here’s what the Personal Hotspot changes in iOS 13 mean.

Beats Solo Pro headphones drop with active noise cancellation

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Beats Solo Pro
Beats Solo Pro come with “Hey Siri” support, Active Noise Cancellation, and a carrying case.
Photo: Apple

An Apple subsidiary has stolen a march on the AirPods line by launching Beats Solo Pro, headphones with active noise cancellation.

But this isn’t a set of tiny eabuds, though. It’s for people who want larger, on-ear headphones.

How to make your Mac’s dictionary popup way, way faster

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spotlight popup
A spotlight, looking something up.
Photo: Richard Ciraulo/Unsplash

What happens when you use a three-finger tap on your Mac’s touchpad to look up a word? In olden times, it would bring up a dictionary definition, instantly. Today, it probably doesn’t do anything. Not for a few seconds at least. Or rather, it pops up a panel right away, but then it takes a few seconds to load whatever Siri reckons you might be looking for.

So, how do we stop this madness? Easy. We switch it off in the Mac’s settings, aka System Preferences.

iPhone SE 2 will be Apple’s most affordable smartphone to date

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iPhone 7
It will cost you under $400.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Apple’s second-generation iPhone SE 2 will be its most affordable smartphone yet, according to one reliable analyst.

The upcoming device, which is expected to look like iPhone 8 and be powered by Apple’s new A13 Bionic chip, is expected to cost less than $400 when it goes on sale in early 2020.

Gear4 slim cases protect an iPhone 11 from a 13-foot fall [Review]

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Gear4 Hampton, Battersea, Oxford Eco and Crystal Palace Neon
The Gear4 Hampton, Battersea, Oxford Eco and Crystal Palace Neon are just some of the iPhone 11 and 11 Pro series cases this company offers.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

Gear4 cases can save an iPhone 11 or 11 Pro series from breaking if dropped quite long distances, but they aren’t as bulky as typical rugged cases. The lineup for all three of Apple’s latest is surprisingly attractive, given how protective they are.

I tried out several of Gear4’s offerings, and find they might be just what your new iPhone needs.

How to stop Siri from snooping on you

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Stop siri snooping: LOL look how small Apple made the
LOL look how small Apple made the "Not Now" button.
Photo: Cult of Mac

iOS 13.2 adds controls for Apple’s unpopular Siri data collection program. Now, users can opt in to “Siri and Dictation Analytics,” which translates to letting your iPhone or iPad upload all your Siri interactions so Cupertino can improve the virtual assistant’s accuracy.

Previously, Apple disabled this program because of its unpopularity. Now, it’s back — but under your control.

How to make Siri announce and read your messages

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Announce Messages with Siri
Siri can now read out your incoming messages, automatically.
Photo: Charlie Sorrel/Cult of Mac

In iOS 13.2, Siri can announce your incoming messages and read them to you. This is the kind of feature that is so useful, and obvious, that it seems like it should have always been there. It’s called Announce Messages with Siri, and it does just that.

Here’s how to set it up and use it