The iPhone went out this hole in the fuselage. Photo: National Transportation Safety Board
An iPhone found beside a road in Portland reportedly dropped from an Alaska Airlines jet after part of the fuselage detached in flight, immediately depressurizing the cabin. The iPhone is undamaged despite a 16,000-foot plunge.
A screenshot from a video posted on X shows the transparent display in action. Photo: Dave Snelling, @snellingD on X
Samsung showed off three transparent microLED displays at its First Look event Sunday just ahead of CES 2024 in Las Vegas, according to reports. Two of them are tinted, but the totally clear one can have an especially hologram-like effect.
Don’t get too excited, though. With no availability or pricing information available yet, it might be a while before even any rich people you know can buy these.
The M2 MacBook Air is powerful despite being incredibly slim and lightweight. Photo: Apple
You can nab a 15-inch M2 MacBook Air for $1,049.99 on Amazon right now — $249 off the regular price of $1,299. That’s only about a buck behind the all-time low price the behemoth retailer has offered for the machine.
Once again, a monitor riser (and other updates) elevates a computer setup. Photo: [email protected]
Multiple-display computer setups are all the rage, but can a workstation benefit from losing one of its external monitors, even one with 4K resolution?
If today’s featured MacBook Pro rig is any indication, yes, it can — especially if the outfit sees a bunch of other cool upgrades at the same time, like a cool new monitor riser, an open stand for the MacBook Pro and a great new office chair.
Lily Gladstone's performance in Flowers of the Killer Moon earned her a Golden Globes win for best actress. Photo: Apple TV+
After receiving 14 Golden Globes nominations, Apple TV+ notched just one win Sunday — but it was a big one. Lily Gladstone became the first Indigenous winner of a best-actress Golden Globe for her performance in Martin Scorsese’s historical epic Killers of the Flower Moon.
So, while Apple TV+ remains the only streamer to win an Oscar — 2022’s Best Picture for CODA — it didn’t exactly clean up this year at the Globes, which tend to foreshadow the Academy Awards.
Pre-orders for Apple Vision Pro go live in a couple of weeks. Photo: Apple
Apple’s Vision Pro headset finally has a release date. Apple will accept preorders for Vision Pro in the United States starting Friday, January 19, at 5 a.m. Pacific, the company said Monday.
The headset’s retail availability will begin February 2 at all U.S. Apple Stores, with in-store demos also beginning that day. You also can place your Vision Pro order through Apple’s online store.
Function101's stylish desk mat also keeps cables in place. Photo: Cult of Mac Deals
Life is chaotic. But if there’s any place in the house that should reflect order, it’s your workspace. Sadly, that philosophy can be at odds with most home offices, where more connected devices mean more productivity — but more piles of tangled cables.
In the new year, you don’t need to battle with a disorganized work setup, especially when you have Function101’s Desk Mat Pro and Cable Block XL cord managers. This organizational duo is now on sale for $54.99 (regularly $59) through January 14.
mophie's renewed juice pack keeps iPhone 15 series handsets powered up. Photo: mophie
Zagg-owned mobile-accessories maker mophie let loose a blast from the past with a fresh twist at CES Monday, rolling out its re-engineered Juice Pack cellphone battery case to keep iPhone 15 series handsets charged anywhere.
And the company, which has made Juice Pack products since the first iPhone launched in 2007, also let everyone know its Qi2 Snap+ Powerstation Mini with Stand won a CES 2024 Innovation Award.
The Vision Pro headset is almost here. Photo: Apple
Apple reportedly already started shipping the Vision Pro headset in small quantities to its U.S. warehouses. From there, the AR headset will reach the company’s retail stores.
All these preparations suggest a February launch, ensuring Apple will stick to its promised “early next year” timeframe for releasing its next major product.
Let this $45.99 magnetic battery charge your iPhone, AirPods and more. Photo: Cult of Mac Deals
If you’ve still got an entire corner of your countertop devoted to charging your Apple devices, here’s a PSA: You can finally do away with that spaghetti bowl of cords. Wireless charging has always been more convenient, but thanks to the power and design of the ZeroLemon MagJuice+ Magnetic Wireless Battery Pack, it’s portable and affordable, too.
This coupon takes $12 extra off a top-selling app hub, but it won't last. Photo: Cult of Mac Deals
We’ve been on the Setapp train for years. And the subscription service, which offers hundreds of great Mac apps for one low price, just keeps getting better. Especially with this Setapp sale.
The more than 240 Mac apps in Setapp run the gamut, and you can find the one(s) you need with a simple search. With this special New Year’s promo from Cult of Mac Deals, you can gain access to them all for nearly $50 off the usual price with promo code WINTER15.
★★★★☆
The new version of the mophie 3-in-1 Travel Charger with MagSafe is even more capable. Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
Roll out the mophie 3-in-1 Travel Charger with MagSafe and it’s ready to juice up your iPhone, Apple Watch and AirPods. Just drop the devices on their appropriate wireless charging mat. And, to make it easier to take on the road, the accessory comes with a carrying case.
I used the original 2022 model, and mophie introduced a new version in late 2023. I retested the multidevice travel charger to see how quickly it wirelessly powers up a variety of Apple products and how easy it is to carry around. Here are my updated results.
★★★★☆
Tears and hugs aside, Kelly Baldwin isn't falling for her dad's BS. Photo: Apple TV+
Season 4 of For All Mankind entered its tense final phase Friday, with action heating up on Mars and on Earth ahead of climactic episode 10. Episode 9, “Brazil,” is all about setting up that endgame (and it really could be the End, as we await Apple TV+ news of season 5 renewal … or not).
But two characters won’t live to see that endgame. And many more lives are at risk as forces on Earth seek to control the fight in space over the Goldilocks asteroid’s vast mineral wealth — and maybe even the future of space exploration.
Say what you will about old Apple hardware, it’s cool and it’s got staying power — sometimes to an amazing degree. Today’s featured setup, for example, sports a 16-year-old Mac Pro with some modifications driving a 19-year old Cinema Display (the big one — 30 inches — first released in 2004, a mere 20 years ago).
The user’s just happy she’s getting the venerable desktop machine to run as fast as her spritely young MacBook Pro … from 2012.
Apple takes a different approach to AI from many of its competitors. Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
As artificial intelligence and machine learning become mainstream in business, large tech firms like Amazon and Facebook look to introduce AI features that transform the way we engage online through predictive purchase models and other algorithmic means. But how does Apple use AI?
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In contrast to competitors’ high-profile activities, Apple lays low on the AI revolution. In fact, the company scarcely mentioned AI at all until recently. You’d be forgiven for thinking Cupertino might not even be involved in the buzziest tech around.
But it definitely is. Apple’s business teams are cooking up many AI and ML opportunities. Still, Apple takes on AI challenges from a different angle with a more intuitive approach. Let’s look behind the scenes at the world’s largest tech company to see how tomorrow’s ideas are shaping today’s products.
Expect a faster Mac Studio in mid-year -- possibly at WWDC2024. Photo: Apple
A third-generation, speed improved version of the Mac Studio is reportedly on Apple’s agenda for around the middle of 2024. An Apple M3 Ultra processor will supposedly be the highlight of the next iteration of the professional-grade macOS desktop.
If you miss physical buttons and can get used to a much-bigger iPhone, this could be for you. Photo: Clicks Technology
Clicks Technology unveiled its first product Thursday — Clicks Creator Keyboard. It’s a case that fits around an iPhone, providing a full keyboard with physical buttons that may remind people of BlackBerry’s heyday.
“We use keyboards on our desktops, laptops and tablets every day – so it’s kind of odd that we abandoned physical buttons on the smartphone,” said Michael Fisher, Clicks Technology co-founder and a popular YouTube tech reviewer known as MrMobile.
“Clicks brings the tactility and precision of a physical keyboard to iPhone, so people don’t have to wait until they get back to their desks to create or communicate with the satisfying feedback only real buttons can provide,” he added.
Tamagotchi Adventure Kingdom is one of three games added to Apple Arcade on Thursday. Photo: Apple Arcade/Bandai Namco
Tamagotchi Adventure Kingdom promises an epic and nostalgic adventure, while Cornsweeper is a reimagined version of a classic. These are two of the latest additions to Apple Arcade’s extensive catalogue, and are now playable on iPhone, Mac and more.
More are on the way, as are content updates to other popular games in the service.
Dell's new 40-inch ultra-wide curved display packs 5K resolution and 5-star eye-comfort certification. Photo: Dell
Dell introduced new 34-inch and 40-inch ultra-wide, curved, high-resolution monitors Thursday ahead of CES 2024 in Las Vegas, including a big 5K screen that ratchets up the competition against Studio Display and other smaller 5K screens. Dell’s new monitors go on sale in late February.
Both screens are certified for eye comfort, but the larger one is “the world’s first 40-inch 5K monitor certified for five-star eye comfort,” the company said.
If you want a high-quality, feature-rich PDF editor but don't want to pay top prices, PDF Editor PDF Book Reader could be for you. Claim your free one-year subscription now! Image: PDF Editor PDF Book Reader
For anyone who only needs a PDF editor to occasionally sign or modify a document, paying Adobe Acrobat’s monthly price may be too much. So it’s a good thing you have less-expensive yet feature-rich apps like PDF Editor PDF Book Reader to try.
People have relied on the app for years, and now it’s optimized with new features to work brilliantly on iPhones with iOS 17 and on iPads with iPadOS 17. Plus, Cult of Mac readers can get a free one-year subscription to the app (details below).
New workouts count down to the Apple Music Super Bowl LVIII Halftime Show. Photo: Apple
Apple Fitness+ brings fresh ways for users to stay active and mindful in the new year with new activities starting January 8, Apple said Thursday.
You can try a new sound meditation theme, a workout program with golfer Rose Zhang, an Artist Spotlight series tied to the Apple Music Super Bowl LVIII Halftime Show, Time to Walk episodes available on Apple Podcasts for the first time and more.
Stainless steel bands are durable and stylish. Photo: Speidel
Stainless steel Apple Watch bands are where high-tech meets durability, style and comfort. And Speidel makes some exceptional examples, including its Stainless Steel Linked Watchband for Apple Watch.
Believe it or not, right now you can get that tough and stylish band for less than $40 in the Cult of Mac Store.