Another week, another set of active-noise-cancelling (ANC) wireless earbuds. The latest buds vying to take a piece of the AirPods pie are the updated OnePlus Nord Buds 2. They add ANC and improved sound quality over their super-affordable predecessor.
Nord Buds made a splash with good sound quality at a bargain-basement price of $39 when they came out. Now Nord Buds 2 piles on more features and boosts quality at a still-low $59 price point.
YouTube will soon get support for SharePlay, as well as videos with higher bitrates. And queuing up videos and jumping between devices will get easier, too.
The enhancements are part of Google efforts to get more subscribers for YouTube Premium.
Accessories maker ESR unveiled its new HaloLock Power Bank Wallet on Wednesday. Now on Amazon, the magnetic 3-in-1 device charges your phone, keep your cards in order and lets you “enjoy hands-free viewing in a sleek, pocket-friendly package,” the company said.
Not every computer setup flaunted and much-admired on social media is an Apple silicon powerhouse with an ultra-fast M1 or M2 chip. Today’s featured setup leans on a 6-year-old iMac and a MacBook Air almost twice as old as that.
But with the help of an impressive-yet-affordable audio gear list and a trio of gaming systems, the rig gets the work and play done. And don’t miss the beefed up iPod classic in the mix.
Mac shipments declined a jaw-dropping 41% year-over-year in the first quarter of 2023, according to a market-analysis firm. It seems Apple finally joined other PC makers in seeing reduced shipments of traditional computers.
PDFs are still the best way to send and share documents, contracts and invoices, whether you work from your office or run a small business at home. However, Apple users know it can be a nightmare to properly edit PDFs on standard Mac software.
But with a lifetime license to PDF Expert, you can create and convert beautifully readable documents and never have to struggle with trying to edit PDFs on macOS again. You can get it on sale for $69.99 (regularly $139), the best price online.
External screens for MacBook or iPad aren’t just convenient in the office — they’re also great to use on the go. There are a range of portable external displays on the market, including some with touchscreens.
Here are my recommendations for the best screens ready to go with you to a coffee shop or Paris.
The new Apple TV+ film about sneaking Tetris out of Communist Russia is pulling in plenty of viewers. It was actually more popular than Ted Lasso last week, according to one TV ratings company — though that Apple comedy is very popular, too.
And Shinking continues its long run in the top 10 most popular streaming shows, possibly because it’s now possible to binge the entire first season.
Whether you’re moving important work files or pictures of your cat, transferring files from one device to another can be a bit tedious. There are plenty of ways to get the job done, but many file-transfer methods require an internet connection, which isn’t always an option.
Instead, you could try a more direct method and get a flash drive that works with almost anything. The 4-in-1 Smart Flash Drive has four ways to connect and is compatible with most smart devices. Even better, there are two storage options for this accessory. 64G of storage is on sale for only $18.99 (regularly $29), while the 128GB version is going for just $28.99 (regularly $39).
You’ll have to act fast, though, since these price drops only last until April 11.
New detailed renders detail the more extensive changes Apple is planning for the iPhone 15 Pro series. Leaked CADs have already revealed the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro design.
This includes a bigger camera hump, slightly more compact dimensions, curved edges for the titanium chassis and more.
It doesn’t matter how well-equipped your team is if the data the business runs on is compromised. You could set up your salespeople with the best iPhones and iPads, your developers with top-of-the-line CPUs, and so on. But taking steps to address the rampant cybercrime out there can make the difference between survival and major struggle.
This week on Cult of Mac’s podcast: The M2 Pro-powered Mac mini is a dream machine for creative types, according to our reviewer D. Griffin Jones. He joins us to sing the praises of this pint-size powerhouse. (It’s quite an upgrade from the 2015 MacBook Pro he used before.)
Also on The CultCast:
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.
Is the car made of jelly? Or is the world? It’s both! It’s JellyCar Worlds. The game is a triumph of squishy physics, and a lot of fun to play.
If you enjoy driving games and puzzlers, you really owe it to yourself to try this. I have seven good reasons why it needs to be on your weekend agenda.
Considering how much time you spend online, are you doing enough to ensure complete privacy and safety? Cybersecurity threats continue to increase and evolve, leaving millions of internet users vulnerable. But, a strong VPN can provide protection.
For a limited time, you can pick up a lifetime subscription to Ivacy VPN for only $18.99 by using coupon code IVACY5 at checkout. This sub works with up to five devices. And it offers compatibility with macOS, iOS, Windows, Android, Linux, Roku, PS4, Xbox and more.
However, this deal lasts only through April 11.
Plenty of people dedicate serious time to gaming, but do you have what it takes to design a game yourself? If you’re curious about the process, or want to take a serious professional plunge, pick up this low-priced package of courses on game art development.
The 2023 Complete Blender Bundle is currently available for only $34.99 (regularly $655), with no coupon necessary. You’ll score enormous savings on instant access to five comprehensive courses on game art creation that total nearly 50 hours.
Doctor Who: An Unlikely Heist challenges players to solve mysteries by finding clues. The story-driven hidden-objects game debuted on Apple Arcade on Friday.
It’s the latest addition to Apple’s gaming service, which adds a new title almost every week.
★★☆☆☆
Extrapolations, the too-ambitious-in-all-the-wrong-ways Apple TV+ science fiction show “about” global climate change, revisits an old friend this week for a look at the courier job from hell.
The show’s focus this time around is not on the environment but rather on the personal toll of living in a future you can’t control or understand. The episode, entitled “2066: Lola,” is a laborious and overfamiliar story that is, for no good reason, longer than almost every other episode of Extrapolations.
iPhone, Mac and iPad users got fresh operating system updates on Friday. iOS 16.4.1, macOS 13.3.1 and iPadOS 16.4.1 fix a smattering of bugs on the devices — including some security vulnerabilities that Apple admits may have been exploited — but there are no new features.
At this time, there are no equivalent updates for Apple Watch or Apple TV.
No matter which AirPods you have, the Cult of Mac Easter Sale has something for you. Check out the selection of cool cases and stands in the Easter Savings collection.
See some highlights below, where the links go straight to the products. And if you think this sale is probably only for AirPods Pro, AirPods 3 and AirPods Max, guess again. Here’s six cases for AirPods 1 and 2, for example — all 25% off.
★★★★☆
The first season of Hello Tomorrow!, the Apple TV+ show about men selling lunar dreams and lies, comes to a close this week in high style.
Jack needs to tie up some loose ends, and he has no plan for what happens when his clients finally get to the moon. His son Joey must figure out who to honor, his mother or his father. Eddie has butterfingers and Shirley has to pay for it. And someone is, at long last, awake.
The season finale, entitled “What Could Be Better?,” is a great conclusion to a great season.
We often see computer setups festooned with several big external monitors, Mission Control style. But some great setups get by with zero external displays, like today’s featured iMac setup.
The iMac provides the main screen, of course. And then “black magic” makes the iPad Pro levitate as a second screen. Or something like that. See below.
Silo premieres in May, and Apple TV+ just released the full trailer for the upcoming drama series based on a bestselling trilogy of dystopian novels.
In the series, a few thousand people are left on earth hiding in a mile-deep silo. But what if everything they’ve ever been told about the outside world is a lie?
There’s nothing like an Easter egg hunt. And you can find fresh springtime deals on Microsoft software during the big Easter Sale at software activation keys provider CdkeySales.com. This week, you can take advantage of great prices on Microsoft Windows, Office and more. Don’t miss this chance for great bargains.
TL;DR: If you’re tired of forgetting passwords, a lifetime subscription to Sticky Password Premium can help. And it now costs only $23.97 until April 11.
★★☆☆☆
New Apple TV+ docuseries Boom! Boom! The World vs. Boris Becker centers on a famous tennis player embroiled in a scandal. Directed by prolific but utterly predictable documentarian Alex Gibney, the two-part series charts the rise and fall of the youngest Wimbledon champion in history.
Debuting today on Apple TV+, the straight-ahead documentary goes from Boris Becker’s historic wins to his similarly historic losses on the world stage thanks to dicey financial decisions. And it does so in the most formulaic fashion possible. That’s not the worst thing in the world, but it’s no ace, either.