Double the size of your MacBook screen by using your iPad as a second monitor with Luna Display. Photo: Astro HQ
Anyone who feels their MacBook’s screen is too cramped can now use their iPad as as second display just by plugging in a dongle. Luna Display is now available to all after a successful Kickstarter campaign.
Astro HQ promises that its hardware/software solution is better than purely software options for using an iPad as an external monitor.
Jamal Khashoggi's Apple Watch might be able to tell investigators if he's still alive. Photo: Apple
A prominent critic of Saudi Arabia went into that country’s consulate in Istanbul last week and never came out again. Evidence of what happened to him might come from his Apple Watch.
The burning question the wearable potentially could answer: is Jamal Khashoggi still alive?
Snap is launching a whole bunch of original shows. Photo: Snap
Apple’s not the only tech company hopping on the original content bandwagon in 2018. Snapchat company Snap is launching new shows in partnership with Hollywood production companies. And they’re coming as soon as today.
Called “Snap Originals,” they won’t be full-length shows like Apple is busy commissioning, though. In keeping with the short-term hook that made Snapchat popular, the company is cranking out five-minute episodes shot vertically for viewing on mobile devices.
This single app offers several layers of protection from online security and privacy threats. Photo: Cult of Mac Deals
Being online means being constantly tracked, and exposed to data theft. So whether you’re done with being targeted for ads, or want to avoid having your identity stolen, this single tool will do double duty to protect you.
Dance off in the new Disco Domination LTM. Photo: Epic Games
Fortnite’s weekly update has finally dropped across all platforms, bringing a new Disco Domination limited-time game mode (LTM), the new Quadlauncher weapon, and more.
The update also improves performance on a number of platforms, and fixes bugs that were introduced with previous builds.
Recent report claimed that Apple's data center had been infiltrated by spy chips. Photo: Pexels
It’s not yet clear how much veracity there is to the recent Bloomberg report claiming that companies, including Apple and Amazon, were sold data servers compromised by Chinese spies. However, a bipartisan pair of U.S. senators want answers from the manufacturer in question.
In a letter addressed to motherboard supplier Supermicro, senators Marco Rubio and Richard Blumenthal request the answers to eight queries. Here’s what they want to know:
Stardew Valley is finally going mobile. Photo: Chucklefish Limited
Popular indie farming simulator Stardew Valley is finally making the leap to iPhone and iPad.
The game has proven a smash hit on Mac and PC, selling over 400,000 copies during its first two weeks of availability, and has been well-received on console, with glowing review scores on Metacritic. You’ll be able to play it on iOS later this month.
Startup is helping Apple's video and photo editing tools get smarter. Photo: Spektral
Apple has acquired a Danish visual effects company which uses machine learning technology for image and video editing.
Based in Copenhagen, Denmark, the startup Spektral was acquired late in 2017, although news of the purchase has only come to light now. One of the company’s core technologies relates to real-time green screen processing that’s capable of separating people and objects from a background and dropping them into a scene with an alternate backdrop.
Apple is spending upwards of $1 billion making original TV shows, but little has been publicly said about the initiative just yet. According to Netflix’s chief content officer, not only are customers in the dark about how Apple will make its shows available — even the folks making the shows for Apple don’t know.
Speaking at the Vanity Fair New Establishment Summit in Los Angeles, Netflix’s Ted Sarandos said that, “I don’t have any idea what that Apple product is going to be. I don’t think anybody does. I don’t think people making shows for them have any idea.”
Apple has been hit with a class action lawsuit for allegedly tricking iTunes customers into buying its TV season bundles by misleading them over how many episodes are contained.
iTunes sells shows by individual episodes, whole seasons, or season passes, which includes current and future episodes not yet available. The lawsuit takes aim at this last option, claiming that Apple sneakily counts promotional clips as episodes.
The major change in iOS 12.1 is a feature that should have been in iOS 12: Group FaceTime. Photo: Apple
Apple seeded the third beta of iOS 12.1 to developers this afternoon. In what’s possibly a new speed record, that version is already available to the general public.
The major change coming in the final version is support for Group FaceTime, but there’re other enhancements too.
Expect a rise in iPhone sales as users of Apple's current models move to the 2018 lineup. Photo: Apple
Almost everyone who wants a smartphone already has one, so device makers depend on upgrades among current customers to make money. Fortunately for Apple, an analyst reports there’s a surge of interest in buying a newer model.
The rising desire to upgrade isn’t limited to iPhone users, but the analyst says Apple will benefit the most.
Is there a major difference? Depends on the size of the screen on which each is viewed. Photo: Ed Gregory/Pictures In Color
Director Steven Soderbergh called the iPhone the future of cinematography. Filmmaker and photographer Ed Gregory isn’t quite ready to put down his cinema camera.
Still, Gregory came away pretty impressed with the video capabilities of the iPhone XS Max when he tested it recently against his Canon C200.
This is what The Hoff's instagram tag could look like. Photo: Charlie Sorrel/Cult of Mac
Instagram just added Nametags to its app, to make it easier to share your account with other people. Instead of forcing them to try to remember your Instagram username, you can just show them your Instagram Nametag, and they scan it from their own Instagram app.
It’s a neat feature, already in use on Snapchat. And — of course — you can customize your Nametag. Lets check it out.
watchOS 5.1 shows no sign of getting the Apple Watch ECG application so many people are waiting for. Photo: Apple
There’s bad news for Apple Watch Series 4 users: the third beta of watchOS 5.1 is out and it still lacks an ECG application. The hardware to take an electrocardiogram is built into Apple’s latest wearable but the software is still MIA.
There’s also a new beta of tvOS 12.1 today, along with iOS 12.1 beta 3. The latest macOS 10.14.1 pre-release version came out yesterday.
One of iOS 12’s most powerful features — a newfound compatibility with password management apps — kind of flew under the radar. But that doesn’t mean it’s not a big deal. In fact, this is a huge step forward for password managers like Dashlane, because it makes them far easier to use on iPhones and iPads.
With the recent Facebook hack compromising the personal data of 50 million users, there’s never been a better time to change all your passwords. And if you’re going to use strong, unique and extremely hard-to-remember passwords for every site you visit or web service you use, you’re going to need industrial-strength password management.
Chinese iPhone fraud involved removing components from devices then deliberately breaking them so Apple would replace the handset. Photo: Warren R.M. Stuart/Flickr CC
Fraudulent iPhone repair claims are big business in China. To the point where about 60 percent of the handsets being repaired under warranty in that country were part of scams.
Apple has had to make draconian efforts to even slow the rate at which Chinese criminal gangs are stealing from it.
The Pixel 3 camera has an eye on the competition. Photo: Google
Google called its new Pixel 3 “the best end-to-end photography experience” Tuesday and has adopted features and marketing strategies that made the iPhone a global success and camera industry game-changer.
But marketing and megapixels will not be where these two smartphone cameras do battle. The competition shifts to artificial intelligence and how it makes each phone camera perform.
Halide brings the incredible Smart RAW to iPhone XS. Photo: Chroma Noir
Last week, Halide developer Sebastiaan de With debunked Beautygate, and introduced something called Smart RAW, all in one blog post. Now, Smart RAW is available in Halide 1.10, and it takes the iPhone XS camera to a whole new level.
Miss Piggy rides shotgun with Jason Sudeikis in the second season of Carpool Karaoke. Photo: Apple
Apple’s Carpool Karaoke TV series is already back with a new season and based on the new preview Apple posted, the pairings are going to be even crazier than last season’s.
Matthew McConaughey and Snoop Dogg are spotted rolling down the street together in the teaser Apple posted this morning. That’s just the start of the wildness though. The Muppets, Weird Al and the Lonely Island crew also make an appearance.
Developers received a brand new beta for iOS 12.1 this morning, bringing a host of new tweaks and performance improvements to the iPhone and iPad.
iOS 12.1 beta 3 comes one week after Apple seeded the last beta build to developers. The company also released the third beta builds of watchOS 5.1 and tvOS 12.1 to developers today.
Google unleashed its latest wave of hardware designed to take on Apple and Amazon by combining its powerful software with custom-designed hardware. And it actually looks pretty good.
Three new products were unveiled at Google’s event in New York City this morning: the Pixel 3, Pixel Slate and Google Home Hub. All three pack some interesting new features that some of Apple’s own products can’t match. But there are also glaring weaknesses in the new Google products. Like the horrifically huge notch on the Pixel 3 to start with.
Tim Cook is visiting China at a time when there are lots of questions in the air. Photo: Tim Cook/Weibo
Tim Cook is in China, visiting Shanghai to promote Apple Watch, pay a trip to one of one of the local Apple Stores, and meet with developers and Apple users.
Cook marked the trip by posting on his official Weibo account, the microblogging account that acts as China’s version of Twitter. While he is upbeat about meeting with Chinese fans, however, the visit comes at a tough time — with a burgeoning trade war with the U.S. and questionable claims about Chinese spy chips allegedly used by Apple.
Get in on the immersive video fun with this handheld, durable 360 degree camera. Photo: Cult of Mac Deals
Watching an immersive video or VR experience, it’s easy to think you’d need bulky or expensive gear to create similar content. But that’s not the case. In fact, 360-degree video is more accessible than it’s ever been.