As a longtime iPhone user — now with a new iPhone 16 Pro — I like to flirt with the idea of going naked, with no case at all. But then I usually wimp out and go minimal instead. Totallee has built its reputation on barely-there minimalism, so I thought I’d give the Totallee Super Thin Case, Clear Grip Case and tempered glass screen protector a try. And true to form, Totallee iPhone cases offer protection without bulk. To my surprise, I liked the thin case and screen protector combo the most. It just seems like my black titanium iPhone, but with more grip and added peace of mind.

An alleged unboxing video of the M4 MacBook Pro went live on YouTube over the weekend. The early hands-on, if real, shows that Apple’s next MacBook will pack impressive performance improvements over the M3 version.

The video supposedly reveals the M4 MacBook Pro’s specs, featuring a 10-core CPU, 16GB RAM, and an unchanged design but with a color twist.

The Samsung T9 SSD is quick and it’s very portable. Plus, for a short time, it’s up to 45% off.  Opt for 1TB, 2TB or even 4TB of additional storage for your Mac or iPad.

For an even more affordable option, the older Samsung T7 series is available for as much as 44% off.

Apple’s big step into artificial intelligence is scheduled for this month, and a prediction from a generally reliable source may have just named the release date: October 28. This will reportedly be when new iOS, macOS and iPadOS versions usher in Apple Intelligence.

These AI capabilities were unveiled in June at the company’s developers conference and have been in public beta testing for weeks, so it’s now a waiting game for the full launch.

Apple’s next-gen M4 Macs will reportedly arrive November 1, rather than in October as is generally expected. A few days before that, the company supposedly plans to release iOS 18.1 with Apple Intelligence support.

The new Macs that will debut include M4 MacBook Pros, Mac mini, and an iMac.

This week on Cult of Mac’s podcast: If Apple does host a big October event, M4 Macs and iPads likely will steal the show. We talk about what to expect from the upcoming Apple products.

Also on The CultCast:

• Other Apple gear is on a longer timeline, including iPhone SE 4, upgraded iPad Airs and a next-gen Vision Pro.
• There’s also a rumored low-end smart display running a mysterious new operating system called “homeOS.”
• And finally, Erfon gives us an in-depth, ears-on review of one week with AirPods 4. He’s not crazy about the fit, and the active noise cancellation is a mixed bag.

Listen to this week’s episode of The CultCast in the Podcasts app or your favorite podcast app. (Be sure to subscribe and leave us a review if you like it!) Or watch the video live stream, embedded below.

The Apple TV+ team-up between George Clooney and Brad Pitt hit number one on a ratings company’s popularity chart the first week the film is available to stream.

It’s not surprising: the two superstars could probably take the leads in Uncle Wiggly and the Runaway Cheese and it would be a hit.

Apple Intelligence makes its debut with 10 new features — and some of it is fantastic. Apple Intelligence has some genuinely impressive new features, and some of it will have a big impact on daily life.

Apple Intelligence is the name for Apple’s next-generation AI and machine learning-powered features that are coming to iPhone, iPad and Mac. These first 10 features are available in iOS 18.1 and macOS Sequoia 15.1 right now. Some of the biggest features like Visual Intelligence, Image Playground and the all-new Siri aren’t here (and might not ship for a while) but Apple has still managed to make a good first impression.

Here’s what you can expect. Keep reading or watch our video to see it in action.

When you need to convert a video to a different file format, what’s a quick, easy way to do it? Movavi’s free Online Video Converter. This incredibly intuitive tool makes the tedious task simple.

And if you need to convert really big video files, or edit them, Movavi’s desktop converter software can help. More than 70 million users in more than 190 countries enjoy software from Movavi, which turned 20 years old in 2024.

Find out how to use the free online video converter below.

Today’s setup comes from a user with two MacBooks and two external displays. They’re like to clean it up and make it more mininalistic, but they also want to add a new M2 iPad Air. So they did the sensible thing and asked social media. See how that went, below.

The new lever-based Smart Lock U300 brings Apple Home Key functionality to a wider range of doors you might want to unlock with your iPhone or Apple Watch, including those without traditional deadbolts, Aqara said Thursday. It previewed the lock back at CES in January. Now it’s finally on sale — with a nice launch discount (see below).

The new Soundcore Space One Pro wireless noise-canceling headphones generated some buzz in the audio community, promising top-notch sound quality and advanced features for a typically reasonable price from Anker’s audio brand. Keen to see if they’d live up to expectations, I tried them out. And I found that they’re great at the list price of $200. But when the price dips — and it usually does — they’ll become an absolutely fantastic value. Read my Soundcore Space One Pro headphones review below for more information.

AI writing tools work wonders, but AI detectors can flag your content if it leans too heavily on robo-prose. If you want your AI writing to be undetectable, you must edit all that content yourself, but it takes time to add the human touch. Sometimes, there just isn’t room in the schedule, but that’s OK. There’s a robot for that, too. You can use an AI humanizer like Undetectable Humanizer.

The Undetectable Humanizer transforms your AI-generated text into natural, human-like prose to help it bypass AI detection systems. This tool is a great get for writers, content creators and business owners who need to save as much time as they can when creating engaging content. A lifetime subscription to this effective AI humanizer is on sale now for $139.99 (regularly $2,880).

If you own an iPhone 13, should you upgrade to the iPhone 16 for its faster performance, better cameras and Apple Intelligence support? Or should you wait another year?

Three years is a long time in the tech world. The iPhone 13 launched in 2021 with cutting-edge specs. But in 2024, it is showing its age, especially when compared to the iPhone 16. Find out if this is the year to upgrade in our in-depth buying guide, which pits iPhone 16 versus iPhone 13.

Apple is now assembling iPhone 16 Pro units in India, giving its local manufacturing efforts a huge boost.

It also plans to open four new Apple Stores in India to expand its presence further.

Apple’s next iPhone SE might use the same A18 chip as the iPhone 16 and 8GB RAM. It will also use the same cameras as the iPhone 15.

The upcoming iPhone SE 4 will reportedly sport a new design that will see Apple ditch the physical Home button. It will also stand out for being the first product in Apple’s portfolio to use its in-house 5G modem.

Apple released iOS 18.0.1 on Thursday to fix an annoying bug that made the touchscreen unresponsive on iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro. The new iPadOS 18.0.1 corrects several problems, too, including one that bricked some M4 iPad Pro units when installing the original iPadOS 18 version.

In addition, macOS Sequoia 15.0.1 and visionOS 2.0.1 also arrived Thursday with minor bug fixes.

Twelve South PlugBug is the first power supply to support Apple’s Find My technology. That means the USB-C wall charger can be located with an iPhone app, and it warns its owner if it’s being left behind in a coffee shop or hotel room.

One version includes a pair of ports and puts out 50W. A second has four USB-C ports and 120W.

I put PlugBug through real-world testing, and came out loving it.

The new Oura Ring 4, with a sleek and subtle design and improved health sensing, is now available for preorders, ŌURA said Thursday. Shipping of the new smart ring — which is sure to spark a new round of speculation on when Apple will launch its own — begins October 15.

“The next-generation Oura Ring 4, reimagined Oura App, and the development of the Smart Sensing platform represent significant steps forward for wearables across accuracy, comfort, personalization and design,” said ŌURA CEO Tom Hale.

NBA preseason games start this weekend. If you didn’t make the draft this year, you can still get in on the basketball action with NBA 2K25 Arcade Edition, which launched Thursday. This is the definitive basketball game for Apple devices, and each new annual upgrade adds even more features.

The feature-packed offering is now on Apple Arcade for iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple TV.

A federal jury found two Chinese men living in Maryland guilty Tuesday in a fake iPhone fraud scheme. They attempted to defraud Apple in a $3 million scheme to replace fake iPhones with real ones, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia said.

Haotian Sun and Pengfei Xue’s mail fraud convictions carry a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.

UPDATE: Five years after their arrest, Sun was sentenced to 57 months in prison and Xue was sentenced to 54 months in prison, according to Justice.gov, for conspiracy to commit mail fraud and mail fraud. And the judge ordered Sun to serve three years of supervised release and pay $1,072,000 in restitution. Judge Kelly ordered Xue to serve three years of supervised release and pay $397,800 in restitution.

Soundcore’s new flagship Liberty 4 Pro earbuds boast the company’s most sophisticated active noise cancellation (ANC) yet, plus a cool new charging case with a screen and touchbar that let you view and adjust settings on the buds, the company said Thursday.

The iPhone’s Action button replaces the former ring/mute switch, and while it can fulfill the same purpose, there’s much more you can do with it. Apple gives you a bunch of options out of the box if you want instant access to your flashlight, camera, Shazam and more.

You pick the function, and it’s just a button push away. You can even turbo-charge the Action button by running a shortcut.

Setting up the Action button to do your bidding is easy. And once you do, you’ll undoubtedly enjoy quick access to your favorite feature.

The mystery that unfolded in the Apple TV+ series Sugar will continue with season two. The streaming service approved more episodes of the dark, gritty tale Wednesday. Highlights of the first season include a brilliant performance by Colin Farrell, as well as what was called “one of the greatest plot twists in recent TV history.”

“It has been incredibly exciting to see audiences around the world embrace Sugar, and we are thrilled to return for a second season,” said executive producers Audrey Chon and Simon Kinberg in a press release.

ChatGPT and AI automation tools are taking over the workplace, allowing businesses and individuals to boost their productivity and streamline their workflows. If you want to market yourself as an expert in these areas, you need training in AI and ChatGPT. And that’s exactly what you get with the ChatGPT & Automation E-Degree.

For less than $25 and a little bit of study, you can get up to speed on the hottest tech of the moment.

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