The Apple Watch can detect a leading cause of heart attacks — an unadvertised capability that could have big implications for health monitoring — according to a Dutch doctor.

After using the Apple Watch’s electrocardiogram feature, Dr. Ruud Koster, a cardiologist from Amsterdam, accidentally discovered that he had a potentially fatal heart blockage that caused myocardial ischemia. The doctor wrote a paper about his experience and now recommends that the Apple Watch be studied for its ability to alert wearers about potentially deadly heart blockages.

Apple TV+ gave a series order on Tuesday to The Dispatcher, a crime thriller starring Patrick Brammall.

The upcoming series will follow an Australian police detective hunting for his missing daughter.

A whole gaggle of once-popular emoji seem to be falling out of favor among texters and others, according to a new report from creative subscription service Superside. So now you can see if your faves made the list of the world’s most unpopular emoji.

“When conducting our study, it was shocking to see some once-popular emoji among the most endangered globally,” a Superside spokesperson told Cult of Mac. “As new emoji continue to emerge, it will be quite interesting to see if these rankings might change as the years go on and trends change.”

And what happens to deeply unpopular emoji, anyway? In a word, nothing.

Resident Evil 7 biohazard by Capcom launched Tuesday on iPhone 15 Pro, top-tier iPad models and M-series Macs. The horror title is the latest AAA game to hit these Apple devices.

Two other games in the series are already available for premium Apple devices, and Resident Evil 2 Remake is in the process of being ported, too.

Apple has increased its order of next-generation A18 chips from TSMC to between 90 million and 100 million units, according to a new report. That suggests it may anticipate increasing demand for its upcoming Apple Intelligence-boosted iPhone 16 series. An increase of roughly 10 million units over last year is nothing to sneeze at.

Cloud storage is great, but like any technology, it has a time and place. When you want guaranteed storage that doesn’t require an internet connection to access, what you really need is an external drive. This 2TB portable SSD keeps your data close and your devices unclogged. And for a limited time, it costs just $44.97.

This SSD quickly sold out the last few times we offered it. Now it’s back in stock, and it’s available again as a Cult of Mac Deals exclusive … while supplies last!

Using the powerful online Voice Cleaner tool with Lalal.ai, you can remove background audio from any voice memo or video to get clear, crisp vocals free of other noise. It’s a great way to recover professional sounding audio out of a botched recording. The vocal and instrumental features can also help you isolate or separate a variety of instruments from a song to use in resampling or editing.

Here’s how it works.

Pitaka MagEZ Folio 2 case both protects your iPad when you’re carrying it around and offers an origami kickstand when it’s time to use the tablet. It can be configured to hold the tablet at a variety of angles, in both portrait and landscape modes. Plus there’s a strap to hold an Apple Pencil in place.

I tested the version with my new M4 iPad Pro, and I like the sleek, lightweight design. Read on for more of my thoughts on this case.

If you want to turn your living room into a home movie theater, just grab some popcorn, a soda and this wireless Samsung soundbar and subwoofer. There’s nothing like surround sound to make you fall in love during a rom-com or jump in surprise during a horror film.

Save 45% with this open-box deal on a Samsung soundbar. It’s new, with imperfect packaging, and you can get it for just $109.99 (regularly $199.99).

The Sonos Ace is the first pair of wireless headphones from the company renowned for its room-pounding wireless speakers. With premium features and a fat price tag to match, the Sonos headphones compete with Apple’s over-ear headphones, the AirPods Max. But in a Sonos Ace versus AirPods Max comparison, which pair of high-end headphones comes out on top?

If you have the money to spend, check out the specs, pros and cons of each model in our hands-on comparison.

Apple has added support for alternative payment methods to the visionOS App Store. This move comes following the release of visionOS 1.2 in early June.

The Vision Pro’s App Store will support alternative payment methods only in the EU, where the headset launches on July 12.

There are some photographs you just can’t get — or get well — without a selfie stick. And if that selfie stick is also a portable tripod and a camera remote, all the better, right? That’s the SwitchEasy EasySelfie. It does it all.

If you hurry, you can get it in the Cult of Mac Store for just $34.99 (22% off). However, this sale ends next Wednesday!

With the summer travel season in full swing, it’s time to think about keeping your Apple devices ready for the road. Here are some of the best wireless travel chargers for powering up your iPhone and Apple Watch at the same time.

I’ve been a frequent traveler for many years, toting Apple devices across three continents. I’m happy to share my experience.

Apple officially designated some classic products “vintage” Monday, as it put iPhone X plus original AirPods and HomePod on the “vintage” list. That’s a classification that the iPhone giant includes prior to the products becoming “obsolete” and no longer serviced.

For those unfamiliar with NZXT, it’s a company based in Los Angeles that makes high-performance gaming PCs and the gear that goes with them. Today’s M1 Mac mini setup relies on a raft of NZXT devices, including a NZXT Function keyboard. It’s a customizable mechanical keeb designed for gamers with some pretty high-level functionality.

It won’t be long before parents can hand their iPhone or iPad to a small child and be sure they don’t go on the web or accidentally make a phone call. The ability to lock apps so that they require Face ID to open is coming in iOS 18 and iPadOS 18. Apple has consistently introduced new features to enhance privacy and security, as seen in updates covered by apple.news.

I tested the new feature, and while it isn’t as useful as being able to make separate accounts for different users would be, it’s still a welcome change.

Like it or not, starting a business (or trying to become an influencer) means putting yourself out there. Utilizing social media is a step in the right direction, but launching a website is mandatory if you want to make yourself stand out. And finding a great lifetime web hosting service is the place to start.

HostVerge will help you create as many websites (with subdomains) as you need, even with custom email addresses. Grab a lifetime subscription for just $178.99 (regularly $699) and make your online dreams come true.

 Soccer fans can watch the rest of the MLS season for $49. That’s half what Apple typically charges for an MLS Season Pass.

Subscribers can stream every match plus analysis and exclusive content. No Apple device required. If you’re wondering how much is MLS Season Pass, you can find more details in the first look at iPhone 17 Air’s alleged design.

Apple could equip a future AirPods variant with camera modules. The earbuds may incorporate an IR camera, like the one Apple uses for iPhone’s Face ID.

This will apparently help the AirPods Pro to better integrate with the Vision Pro and improve the spatial computing experience.

Apple will reportedly bring Apple Intelligence to the Vision Pro. The AI-powered features will not arrive alongside iOS 18, iPadOS 18 and macOS Sequoia, but will eventually come to Apple’s AR/VR headset.

Many Apple Intelligence features would greatly benefit visionOS and help speed up its existing workflows.

PDFs have become the standard for document sharing and archiving, but the file format is notoriously difficult to work with and manipulate. However, there is a way around that problem, thanks to purpose-built PDF editors like PDF Reader Pro for Mac.

For a limited time, this highly rated PDF editor for Mac is on sale for just $29.97 (regularly $59).

Apple TV+ subscribers are getting new comedies and thrillers to enjoy in summer 2024. And there are plenty of big-name stars, too. Eight new shows debuted between the beginning of June and the end of August (and a film to boot).

Here’s what’s new on Apple’s streaming service or coming in the next two months.

This week on Cult of Mac’s podcast: We’re excited about a bigger Apple Watch screen, dubious about a cheaper Vision headset tethered to an iPhone or Mac, and excited about new features coming soon to AirPods Pro.

Also on The CultCast:

• The latest iOS 18 beta brings a few new features, including a couple we haven’t talked much about.
• iPhone repairs are about to get a little more user-friendly.
• Sorry, EU. No Apple Intelligence for you! Is Apple actually scared to deploy its AI suite to Europe, or is Tim Cook playing chicken with EU regulators?

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.

Podcasts and TED Talks are a lot of things, but short isn’t one of them. Sure, there’s a time and place for a three-hour deep dive, but the 15 minutes you have free after work isn’t one of them.

Apple only shows off its finished products, which makes the company’s secret prototypes and early concepts all the more fascinating. Details of these first-draft designs usually don’t come out until years after Apple dreams them up and discards them. Even if you’re well-versed in Apple history, these alternate-history unreleased Apple products will intrigue and confuse.

The wild and crazy ideas go back more than 40 years. If anything, it proves that Apple continuously skates toward the next hit. The quest for innovation continues, no matter whether the company is in dire straits or cruising on success. Keep reading or watch our video to see the wildest Apple products that might have been.