Cult of Mac

The new Apple Sports iPhone app just received its first big update. It’s now ready for basketball’s March Madness and baseball’s Opening Day.

The free sports app that debuted in February gives fans access to real-time scores, stats and more for their favorite teams across a wide range of sports leagues.

If you are concerned about online privacy and security, you have options to secure your digital experience. If you also want to avoid geo-blocking while enjoying fast internet speeds, we’ve got a great combo for you. Together, these two services from Unlocator will help you stay safe online while getting around geographic restrictions.

Pick up the Unlocator VPN and Smart DNS duo while it’s on sale for just $29.99. You can use it on up to five devices, and the services work on multiple platforms.

Apple’s $3,500 Vision Pro is only available in the US right now. But this could change soon, with the company purportedly preparing to launch the headset in nine new countries.

As a part of the AR headset’s international expansion, Vision Pro’s virtual keyboard will gain support for 12 new languages.

Let’s face it. For those trying to lose weight, stepping on the bathroom scale can be the last thing we want to do. We assign too much emotional weight to that single number, when it only tells part of the story. A smart scale can help put things into perspective.

The Roomie Sophie is a smart scale that uses pinpoint sensors to measure various factors related to your overall health. For a limited time, you can grab this innovative scale for only $25.97 (regularly $79).

Baseus’ new Blade 2 Ultra-Thin 65W Laptop Power Bank provides enough portable power to keep MacBooks and other devices going. It also adds some interesting advanced features designed to make it even more useful.

The 65-watt, 12,000mAh power bank, released Monday, includes a charge information display and offers intelligent app control. Plus, it can charge two devices at once.

Bonus: For a limited time, the super-slender power bank is available at 30% off with promo code 30OFFBLADE, which drops the Blade 2 price to just $69.99.

Vision Pro demonstrated its healthcare chops recently, assisting a surgical team operating on a patient’s spine in the U.K., reports indicated. It marked the first Vision pro surgery in Europe and one of the first worldwide, undoubtedly.

Because a nurse assisting the surgeons wore the device, they could efficiently help prepare for and track the procedure.

Is bigger always better? Nope. And the debate rages on over how big an OLED smart TV display should be to best-suit a computer setup. Would you go large at over 50 inches, or stick to, say, 42 inches or smaller?

Today’s MacBook Pro setup raised the issue again, surfacing some sensible advice. And the smart TV in question is on sale!

The list of comedies on Apple TV+ will expand with the addition of one starring Owen Wilson as a washed-up golf pro stepping up to coach a teen in the sport.

The series — which does not yet bear a name — seems to have a lot in common with Ted Lasso, another sports-themed comedy that was an enormous success for Apple TV+.

March 13, 1997: With Apple preparing to cut thousands of jobs, CNN reports that “the coffin door is closing” on Cupertino. Apple is doomed! Doomed!

Knowing what happened in the years following, we guess this could technically be considered “fake news.”

AirPods can work surprisingly well as hearing aids. Thanks to Transparency mode, AirPods Pro will boost the sound of your environment around you. They can give you freaky Spiderman super-hearing if you boost input volume to the max. And Conversation Boost on the latest AirPods Pro 2 can intelligently raise the volume of people talking to you (while lowering the volume of your music or podcasts).

My prescription hearing aids were out of action recently due to a battery problem, so for a few weeks, I used my AirPods Pro as hearing aids.

For the most part, they’ve been pretty good. They work best when set up properly, which is a bit of a chore, but here’s how to do it.

Apple will soon debut the M3 iPad Pros with OLED screens, but perhaps not as soon as many had hoped. And a new leak indicates the smaller 11.1-inch model could be in short supply at launch.

The 12.9-inch iPad Pro apparently won’t have any supply issues.

Social media and FaceTime mean we’re all shooting more iPhone videos and photos than ever — sometimes in lighting conditions that are far from ideal. This Mini Foldable Stream Light is easy to take anywhere, so it provides better lighting anytime (and anywhere) you plan to be streaming video or taking pix.

Right now, you can elevate your imagery for a very low price. Get the Mini Foldable Stream Light for only $23.99 (regularly $29).

iPhone 15 Pro Max Vision is a version of Apple’s premier handset modified so it matches the look of the Vision Pro AR headset. It’s from Dubai-based Caviar, and is actually a beautiful option for someone who uses both devices.

But buyers will need deep pockets. The modification adds tremendously to the cost of the iPhone.

And you have to see Caviar’s crazy mod that turns a Samsung S24 Ultra into a Tesla Cybertruck. Both creations are part of Caviar’s Future collection, designed to reflect “the most prominent futuristic hits,” according to the company.

March 12, 2010: Apple passes Walmart and investment firm Berkshire Hathaway in value to take third place in market capitalization among publicly listed U.S. companies. The Apple market cap soars past $200 billion, fueled by intense excitement over the first-generation iPad.

Things look good for the company as it guns for powerhouses ExxonMobil and Microsoft.

The GameSir X2s Type-C Mobile Controller is ready to make your mobile gaming so much better. Wrap the telescope design around your iPhone 15 to be ready for your favorite RPG, FPS and other advanced games.

It boasts Hall Effect sticks and triggers in a familiar arrangement, but is always ready for you to pick it up and go.

I tested it with my iPhone 15 and had quite a lot of fun. It also works with Androids. And if you’re still rocking a Lightning-enabled iPhone, don’t feel left out — GameSir has a version for you, too.

Apple’s M3 MacBook Pro packs the best bits of its more powerful M3 Pro and M3 Max siblings at a lower price point. At $1,599, the laptop is also $400 cheaper than its siblings.

Amazon’s latest deal drops the price of the 14-inch M3 MacBook Pro by $199. The discount means you can get the machine for as low as $1,399.

Keeping powered up on the go is always a challenge, and there’s nothing worse than your iPhone giving out while providing directions or your Apple Watch shutting down during a workout. Fortunately, you can bring on-the-go charging anywhere with this 5-in-1 Multi-Device Power Pack.

The core of this power pack is a 10,00mAh battery holding enough capacity to charge multiple Apple devices several times. Now, you can snag this nifty charging solution for only $69.99 (regularly $119).

EU developers can forgo the App Store entirely and distribute their apps directly to iPhone users from their own websites, Apple said Tuesday. This is a significant reversal from Apple’s original rules, which required devs that wanted to skip the official App Store to place iPhone software in third-party software marketplaces.

In another major change, Apple also will allow EU developers to create app marketplaces that sell only their own software.

You can get a temporary debit card number to pay with Apple Cash online in case you want to pay with your balance on a site that doesn’t accept Apple Pay. If you have a lot of money sitting in your Apple Cash account, this can be a convenient way to pay without using your other cards. (It’s also handy if you don’t have any credit or debit cards from other banks.)

In case it’s unclear, Apple Cash is what you receive when someone sends you money via iMessage. It’s not to be confused with the other products with similar names. Apple Card is a highly rated credit card you can apply for. (It’s a physical card, made of titanium.) Apple Card Savings is a high-interest savings account for people with a physical Apple Card. And Apple Pay is a payment method (secured by Face ID, Touch ID or your device’s passcode) that lets you pay with credit/debit cards from other banks.

Previously, you could only pay with your Apple Cash via Apple Pay (or transfer it to your bank). Now, you can tie your Apple Cash to a virtual card number to pay using your Apple Cash balance online. Here’s how to set it up.

Airfare is getting more expensive, and those prices won’t improve during peak travel times. With one of the best AI flight scanners on the market, and exclusive prenegotiated travel deals, OneAir’s Elite plan stands apart from the pack. It’s an AI travel app that can help you save on flights, hotels and rental cars for life.

And thanks to a limited-time sale, you can get a lifetime membership to OneAir Elite for just $79.97. That’s an 89% discount off the regular price of $790.

A deal on a four-pack of AirTags brings the Apple tracker back down to its lowest price ever. Each AirTag costs less than $20 after a 20% discount from Amazon or Best Buy. If you’d prefer a single tracker, that’s up to 17% off the usual price.

AirTags are a great way to keep you from leaving important items behind, or to help you find them if you misplace them.

Powerful new health and wellness apps take advantage of visionOS’s “infinite canvas” to use spatial experiences to improve patient outcomes in clinical settings and at home, Apple said Monday. It seems that Vision Pro health apps are changing medical care.

“We’re thrilled to see the incredible apps that developers across the healthcare community are bringing to Apple Vision Pro,” said Susan Prescott, Apple’s vice president of Worldwide Developer Relations. “The imagination and drive of our developers, combined with the technical capabilities of visionOS, are igniting new possibilities for physicians, frontline workers, and even students, and we can’t wait to see what’s to come.”

March 11, 2011: How do you follow up your biggest product debut ever? That’s the question Apple needs to answer as it releases the iPad 2.

Apple’s second-generation tablet boasts a faster dual-core A5 processor inside a lighter build. It’s also the first iPad to feature VGA front-facing and 720p rear-facing cameras.

AirPods Pro might be able to act more like a hearing aid with the release of iOS 18, according to an Apple tipster.

The additional audio function would benefit those with slight hearing loss who aren’t ready for more serious hearing assistance.

Pimping out a computer setup with vintage gear is super-cool, even if the old stuff doesn’t get much use (or is solely for display purposes). Today’s M1 MacBook Pro setup recently added a new Studio Display, and both of those modern machines bask in the glory of a nearby classic Macintosh SE from the 1980s.

The ancient all-in-one computer still works and it even gets some use.