It pays to read Cult of Mac, in more ways than one. Photo:
It pays to keep an eye open for great opportunities at Cult of Mac. Sometimes you’ll spot a great deal or tech insight — and sometimes you win brand new Apple gear for free!
Excel in Office 2019 will get funnel charts and 2D maps. Photo: Microsoft
Microsoft released Office 2019 Preview today, with the full release expected later this year. This early version is only for Windows, though a macOS edition will be out “in the coming months,” according to the company.
This version of the giant productivity suite is for those who don’t want to pay a monthly fee for Office 365.
Gmail's new super-clean interface is ready for duty. Photo: Cult of Mac
Gmail’s sweet new interface is rolling out to users. It offers the familiar simple text-based interface from the Gmail you all know and “love,” but it manages to be both less messy, and more useful. If you want to take it for a spin, then switching it on is easy.
Transit shows nearby transportation options and upcoming arrival times. Photo: Ian Fuchs/Cult of Mac
Public transportation can be a nightmare. Traveling in an unfamiliar city or relying on trains and buses to get around can leave you feeling overwhelmed and frustrated.
Transit for iPhone makes finding train bus, and subway schedules simple. With support for more than 80 U.S. cities and dozens more around the world, it is one of the most useful apps for making the right choice of transportation.
This week’s Apple deals roundup will help you get into shape without breaking the bank. You’ll see deals on the Apple Watch as well as Totu Sports Headphones. Plus, save on the newly released Space Gray Magic Mouse 2!
Both great leaders, but who managed Apple better? Photo illustration: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
Steve Jobs was a mercurial genius with a singular knack for turning bright ideas into shiny new products. Tim Cook is an operations wizard who hammered Apple’s supply chain into a manufacturing powerhouse.
If you’re an Apple fan, you know the widely accepted narrative. You’ve heard the stories about these powerful CEOs and their various strengths and weaknesses. But who helmed Apple most successfully?
We put Cupertino’s most capable execs head-to-head to determine which Apple era was really the best. Get ready to settle things once and for all!
We don't need two Gmail clients anymore. Photo: Google
Google Inbox will finally be optimized for iPhone X “soon,” according to a new report.
Google has been working hard to update its most important iOS apps for Apple’s flagship smartphone since it made its debut last November — but Inbox, its nicest Gmail client, has somehow been neglected. Now that Gmail’s big redesign is out of the way, that’s set to change.
We've rounded up next generation personal audio, touch-free smart controllers, and more ultra-modern gear. Photo: Cult of Mac Deals
With all the technological wonders we take for granted today, it’s easy to lose track of the cutting edge in consumer tech. So to keep that sense of wonder alive, we’ve rounded up some of the most innovative new personal gear and gadgets you can find.
Below you’ll find a solar-powered, antitheft backpack, a Bluetooth speaker that doubles as a wireless charger, a touch-free controller for IoT devices, and more. Even better, each item is massively discounted, some by more than half. Read on for more details.
Amazon has had one heck of a 2018 so far! Photo: Mike Seyfang/Flickr CC
Apple has pretty much clung onto its title of world’s most valuable company since early in Tim Cook’s reign at the top. However, it may not hold that claim for too much longer if Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos has much to say about it!
Amazon shares rose 7.1 percent for a record high in premarket trading today, following the company’s massive Q1 earnings. That narrows Apple’s market cap lead to less than $50 billion.
Apple has pared iPhone X production way back. Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
Apple is usually pretty great at gauging demand for its products. Something seems to have gone wildly wrong for the iPhone X, however, since the company is now reportedly trying to “burn off” its excess supply of the devices after disappointing adoption rates.
According to a source speaking with Fast Company, Apple ordered the production of way too many iPhone X units in the last calendar quarter of 2017, and is now dealing with excess supply.
Windows 10 S users can now enjoy iTunes, too. Photo: Microsoft
iTunes is finally available to download from the Microsoft Store for the first time.
The release makes it possible for Windows 10 S users, who cannot install applications obtained from third-party sources, to get their hands on Apple’s popular entertainment platform. This version of iTunes is exactly the same as the one available through Apple’s website.
Apple CEO Tim Cook was reportedly “most helpful” during his White House meeting with President Donald Trump earlier this week. Cook was enthusiastic about the Trump administration’s recent tax cuts, and also had some advice about business dealings in China.
“I really enjoyed the meeting,” Larry Kudlow, director of the National Economic Council, told CNBC’s Squawk on the Street. “I spent a good amount of time with [Cook], and then we came back and we visited the POTUS.”
Hong Kong police arrest smugglers with $1 million of iPhones and other devices Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
Shipments of iPhone in China increased 32 percent in the first quarter of this year. This was during a period when the overall Chinese handset market declined.
Many Chinese see Apple devices as status symbols and pick them over local brands that cost significantly less.
Apple is getting out of the router business. Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
The biggest tech company in the world is getting out of WiFi. Kind of…
Apple decided to finally put the nail in the coffin for its lineup of AirPort routers that haven’t been updated in years. We’ve known this day has been coming for nearly two years, but Apple just officially gave us the bad news.
The handy but not vital tricks that come with 3D Touch are reportedly going away. Photo: Apple
Say goodbye to 3D Touch. A very reliable analyst predicts one of the iPhones coming in autumn won’t have this pressure-sensitive technology, and none of the 2019 devices will.
Ming-Chi Kuo says it’s all because Apple is changing the components of its displays to make them lighter and less likely to break.
Steve Jobs’ brief for iPad: A piece of glass for emailing on the toilet Photo: Charlie Sorrel/Cult of Mac
Ever since iOS 9, you’ve been able to block ads, trackers, and other content in Mobile Safari. But as websites fought back, and the content-blocker apps added yet more rules in return, the war escalated. Blocker apps started to hit Apple’s hard limit of 50,000 rules.
Probably the most popular and comprehensive blocker is 1Blocker, which just got superseded by 1Blocker X. The new app splits off itself into seven “extensions,” each of which have 50,000 rules, bringing the total to 350,000 rules.
This doesn’t just allow 1Blocker X to boast in the app store. It also allows whole new categories of content blocking. The new setup works slightly differently, so let’s see how to get things started.
Maybe you’ve heard of this thing called cryptocurrency? Besides an investment craze, it’s a scene that may well define the future of money. One of the most popular and promising coins out there is Ethereum.
Maciej Kocemba, Opera Touch product manager, demonstrates how easily this mobile browser does a search. Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
The Opera Touch web browser tries to solve one problem: people want to use their phone one-handed, but searching the Web takes both hands. The whole focus of this just released app is one-handed searching and browsing.
Also announced today was Opera Flow, a simple method for synchronizing the new mobile browser with this company’s desktop one.
Screenshots can be saved anywhere, including iCloud. Photo: Charlie Sorrel/Cult of Mac
On your Mac, screenshots are pretty automatic. You hit the shortcut of your choice, and the resulting picture is saved to your desktop as a PNG image file. But what if you want a JPG? We’ve already covered that. How about saving the image to somewhere other than your desktop. Like iCloud maybe? Today we’ll see how to change the Mac’s default screenshot location to an iCloud folder.
If an EU law goes into effect, a dispute between Apple and Spotify over subscription fees would go to mediation. Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac
Spotify objects to Apple collecting a share of all the subscription fees paid by iOS users.A law proposed today in European Union would force Apple and Spotify into mediation on this issue.
And it’s not just Spotify. Under the proposal, Apple, Google, and other tech giants would have to appoint mediators in all their disagreements with smaller companies.
Two of the iPhone SE 2 images shared online. Photo: Letemsvetemapplem
If you’re on the lookout for a new iPhone with 3.5mm headphone jack, your dream may be answered with the upcoming iPhone SE 2.
Despite a previous report stating that Apple would ditch the popular port for the new handset, photos circulating on Chinese social media suggest this may not be the case after all. Whether that’s a good thing or not will largely depend on whether you’re still mourning the arrival of earbuds with a Lightning connection!
With 6 e-Books and 12.5 hours of content, learn the latest in machine learning. Photo: Cult of Mac Deals
Machine learning is shaping up to reshape the world, and there’s plenty of opportunity for developers. So it’s a great time to learn how machine learning works.
Startup will then sell your solution to (friendly) governments. Photo illustration: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
A new startup, based in the United Arab Emirates, promises to give $3 million to anyone who can successfully hack iOS devices.
The Crowdfense startup is looking for zero-day exploits, referring to hacking tools which exploit vulnerabilities unknown to the system creators. In addition to iOS, the company is seeking zero-day exploits for Windows, MacOS, iOS, and Android.
Charlotte Prodger is just the latest artist to use an Apple device for her work. Screenshot: Film London
One of the works nominated for this year’s Turner Prize, an annual award given out to the best British visual artist, is a short film that was shot on an iPhone.
Shortlisted Scottish artist Charlotte Prodger filmed her video Bridgit on an iPhone. It’s just the latest example of how Apple’s devices can be used by creators to make art.
The iPhone X hasn't sold in the quantities many expected. Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
Samsung has joined the chorus of voices complaining about weak iPhone X sales, citing the “slow demand for flexible OLED panels” in its earnings report as one of the reasons for its performance in the past financial quarter.
Although the display making part of Samsung’s business experienced 3.4 percent increased sales over the three month period, this was less than the 20 percent growth of Samsung in its entirety.