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How to use Live Captions to get subtitles for absolutely anything in iOS 16

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Live Captions will let you read a podcast! …kinda.
Live Captions are great! You’ can watch videos wherever you are, in places where you can’t be loud and you don’t have headphones, like late at night in bed or on the train. At least, you will once it works.
Image: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac

Live Captions, in iOS 16, generate subtitles of any audio playing in any app on your iPhone. Powered by the Neural Engine in Apple’s custom silicon, the capability to turn words from music and/or videos into real-time text is a boon to many users, in many different situations.

If you’re hard of hearing, for instance, the ability to see instant captions on the screen is a game changer. Or, if you don’t have headphones when you’re sitting in bed late at night and your partner is asleep – or you’re in any situation where you don’t want to make noise, like on the bus or in an office – you can turn on Live Captions to get subtitles.

The applications are endless and exciting. Here’s how to use Live Captions in iOS 16.

It’s time to say goodbye to SwiftKey for iPhone

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SwiftKey works great on the giant iPhone 6 Plus.
SwiftKey for iOS is riding off into the sunset.
Photo: Killian Bell

Microsoft is killing SwiftKey for iOS, one of the most popular third-party keyboard apps for iPhone. The company will remove the app from the App Store and end its support on October 5.

SwiftKey first became available for iPhones in 2014. Microsoft acquired the keyboard app in 2016 and eventually discontinued its own Word Flow keyboard for iPhone.

Win a 100W GaN compact charger to take anywhere [Cult of Mac giveaway]

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Lululook 100W GaN charger giveaway: This petite but powerful charger packs four ports so you can fast-charge all your devices simultaneously.
This petite but powerful charger packs four ports so you can fast-charge all your devices simultaneously.
Photo: Lululook

The Cult of Mac giveaway prize this week is a great fit for anyone who has any electrical device they wish to charge quickly. We teamed up with Lululook for five lucky winners to get their hands on a four-port, 100W USB-C GaN charger.

This fierce device houses three USB-C ports along with one USB-A port, and pumps out enough power to charge up a MacBook Pro. And, at just over 2 inches, it’s the perfect charger to take anywhere to keep all your gear juiced up.

Go old school with this wooden iPad stylus

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Go old school with this wooden iPad stylus
The Adonit LOG wooden iPad stylus combines sustainability and functionality.
Photo: Adonit

The Adonit Log is a new iPad stylus that skips the usual plastic or metal body and instead uses sustainably-sourced wood. It’s like using a pencil with your tablet.

But the stylus still includes high-tech features, including a 1-millimeter tip for high accuracy, palm rejection and a long-lasting battery.

Split vocals and step up your audio production with this AI-powered iOS app

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Produce music like a pro with major savings on editing software.
Make complicated music production simple with this $40 editing software
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

The music industry has exploded in recent decades, and with numerous courses teaching people how to create their own hits, virtually anyone with a laptop can make something majestic.

The challenging part is choosing the right software. EasySplitter Pro offers helpful tools that might become one of your mashup essentials. Lifetime subscriptions are on sale for $39.99 (regularly $599) for a limited time.

Cloudflare goes all in on Apple’s CAPTCHA alternative

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Apple Automatic Verification will help save us from CAPTCHA hassles
Apple users may be freed from CAPTCHA with the help of Cloudflare's Turnstile.
Image: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

Apple’s Automatic Verification system for websites is getting a big boost from Cloudflare. The web security company just unveiled Turnstile, a free alternative to those irritating CAPTCHA image tests. This has Apple’s system built in.

Turnstile, now in open beta testing, is available to anyone, not just Cloudflare customers.

Square now supports Apple ‘Tap to Pay on iPhone’ contactless payment system

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Square now supports Apple's Tap to Pay on iPhone
Retailers that use Square's POS software can now accept contactless payments directly on an iPhone.
Photo: Square

Square now offers Apple’s Tap to Pay on iPhone system to sellers in the U.S. With it, businesses can accept contactless payments directly on their iPhone – no additional hardware required.

Apple launched its new payment method earlier in 2022, and already uses it in its own stores.

New Logitech mechanical mini keyboard is designed for Mac

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New Logitech mechanical keyboard is designed for Mac
The MX Mechanical Mini keyboard and Lift mouse are part of Logitech's new "Designed for Mac" collection.
Photo: Logitech

Logitech just launched its first mechanical keyboard optimized for Mac. The MX Mechanical Mini features low-profile switches and backlighting.

It’s joined by the MX Master 3S mouse and the Lift mouse in Logitech’s new “Designed for Mac” collection.

Never mind the MacBook Pro, you’re going to want this glowing duck [Setups]

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Just try to stay in the warm glow of that duck.
Just try to stay in the warm glow of that duck and you might get some work done.
Photo: [email protected]

You can amass an array of the world’s most formidable tech gear and photograph it, but if you get a cute animal in the frame — living or inanimate — that’s where all eyes will go.

Today’s clean MacBook Pro setup boasts a 34-inch curved ultra-wide display, a custom mechanical keyboard and other cool stuff.

But it also has a duck that glows.

Keep your Apple Watch ready with this keychain charger

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Always have a powered-up Apple Watch with this keychain charging tool.
Always have a powered-up Apple Watch with this keychain charging tool.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

Apple Watches seem to get better every year; their only limit appears to be their batteries. If you’re not willing to shell out $799 to get the new Apple Watch Ultra, which boasts up to 60 hours of battery life, you can still get enough juice for multi-day excursions with this Apple Watch-compatible wireless keychain.

This very portable Apple Watch charger is on sale now for just $19.99 (regularly $49).

Apple will produce fewer iPhone 14 units due to low demand

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iPhone 14
Weak demand means Apple won't produce as many iPhone 14 units as initially forecasted.
Photo: Apple

Apple has reportedly gone back on its plans to boost iPhone 14 production for the year. The company seemingly nixed the original plan after demand for the “standard” iPhone 14 did not surge after its release.

The situation is very different for the iPhone 14 Pro.

iOS 16.1 beta 3: All the new features and changes

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iOS 16.1 beta begins testing new iPhone features
The first iOS 16.1 betas packed several new features and changes, and now beta 3 includes even more.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

Apple continues its testing of iOS 16.1 and iPadOS 16 with a new beta release. The new builds come a week after the latest beta.

The third iOS 16.1 beta and fourth iPadOS 16.1 beta bring some major changes, including opening up Stage Manager to 2018 and 2020 iPad Pros. Below is a look at everything new and changed in iOS 16.1 beta 3 and iPadOS 16.1 beta 4.

Learn to find, sell and ship anything with these Amazon drop-shipping courses

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Launch your own Amazon business with this dropshipping bundle.
Build your online store with this Amazon dropshipping course bundle.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

Amazon is often the first or second stop for the latest and most interesting products, and much of that rests on its Fulfillment by Amazon wing. The 2023 All-in-One Amazon Dropshipping and Private Label Bundle can show you how to launch your own business on the back of Amazon’s infrastructure.

Apple relents on Stage Manager, adds new multitasking system to older iPads

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iPadOS 16 Stage Manager
Some non-M1 iPads will support Stage Manager too.
Image: Apple

Apple listened to a chorus of user complaints by bringing support for Stage Manager to some older iPad models that don’t have the M1 processor. That gives more tablets access to the system that puts iPadOS applications in resizable, floating windows.

But the news isn’t all good. The company also decided to delay full support for external displays until later. The feature won’t be part of iPadOS 16.1 when it launches.

Korean mermaids are coming to Apple TV+

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A commemoration of the haenyeo stands on Jeju Island.
A commemoration of the haenyeo stands on Jeju Island.
Photo: Pixabay

“Korea’s mermaids,” also affectionally known as “rowdy grandmas,” are elderly free divers who for generations have caught seafood off South Korea’s Jeju Island to feed their community.

They’re known in Korean as the haenyeo. Apple TV+ said Tuesday an upcoming documentary film will tell their story, including how younger generations are filling their ranks to keep the time-honored — and environmentally sustainable — tradition from dying out.

M2 MacBook Air drops to lowest-ever price after massive $149 discount

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2022 MacBook Air with M2 processor
The M2 MacBook Air has never been this cheap before.
Photo: Apple

You can save a staggering $149 on the M2 MacBook Air right now. Amazon just discounted certain variants of the very capable laptop to their lowest-ever prices.

The entry-level MacBook Air powered by Apple’s M2 chip typically starts at $1,199. Thanks to this deal, you can get it for $1,099.

Archeologists’ new tool for excavating Pompeii: iPad Pro

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Archeologists’ new tool for excavating Pompeii: the iPad Pro
Dr. Jordan Rogers uses iPad Pro to conduct a 3D scan of the pit his team is excavating in an ancient Roman kitchen in Pompeii.
Photo: Apple

The iPad has joined the traditional tools of archeology. Along with shovels, brushes and buckets, the team excavating Pompeii uses Apple’s tablet to record what they find.

“iPad is the perfect archaeology machine,” says Allison Emmerson, who is leading the dig at the long-buried Roman city.

4 small changes would bring big improvements to iPad Pro

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These 4 changes would dramatically improve the 2022 iPad Pro
More USB-C ports would make the 2022 iPad Pro far more capable.
Concept: Apple/Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

The 2022 iPad Pro that almost certainly will launch in October raises hopes among tablet fans for significant hardware improvements. The basic iPad design is great, but there are nevertheless a few changes that need to be made.

Here’s a handful of suggestions that would make the iPad Pro easier to use without mucking up the best tablet on the market.

Rugged enclosure easily converts SSDs into external Mac drives [Review] ★★★★★

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Satechi USB-C Aluminum Tool-Free Enclosure review: For M.2 NVMe or SATA SSD★★★★★
Easily turn an M.2 NVMe or SATA SSD into a drive for your Mac or iPad with this enclosure from Satechi.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

The Satechi USB-C Aluminum Tool-Free Enclosure allows M.2 PCIe NVMe and SATA solid state drives to be easily added to a Mac or iPad. The rugged enclosure includes a USB-C port for wide compatibility.

I installed an SSD into Satechi’s enclosure and tested it in my home office. It was as simple as one could hope.

Elevate your photos and videos with this $150 dual-camera drone bundle

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Save 62 percent off these dual-camera quadcopters by Ninja Dragon.
Give your photos and videos a real lift for $150 with these Ninja Dragon drones.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

Another year, another iPhone. And another camera upgrade. But no matter how much Apple upgrades its cameras, its phones will never shoot aerial footage.

That’s where camera drones come in handy. They can give you sweeping sky views that you can control from an iPhone app. And this dual-drone bundle by Ninja Dragon is on sale for $149.99 (regularly $398). Yup, that’s two dual-camera drones for $150.

How to use iPhone’s Lockdown Mode in iOS 16

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Lockdown Mode is extremely useful for the select few who actually need it.
Lockdown Mode is extremely useful for the select few who actually need it and frivolous for ordinary people like me.
Screenshot: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac

Lockdown Mode is a new option in iOS 16 that limits system features for maximum security. Apple designed it to protect its products from sophisticated spyware, like NSO Group’s Pegasus spyware, which has been used to target journalists, politicians, dissidents and activists around the world.

Spyware like Pegasus may seem like an unlikely threat. But for some, Lockdown Mode could be life or death. U.S. citizens need not worry at the moment, but it doesn’t take a wild imagination to picture how such spyware might be embraced by slightly more fascist administrations.

Right now, Lockdown Mode is meant for high-profile activists and journalists. And I mean real journalists — the kind who expose state secrets — not bloggers like me. Read on to find out how to enable Lockdown Mode and how it affects your device’s functionality.

Launch your rap career with a year of expert-mastered beats for $99

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Become the next Kanye with a year of unlimited beats for less than $100 today.
Make money from your music with a year of unlimited beats for less than $100.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

Whether you sing or rap, you need a background track to accompany your music. With Beatopia, you get exclusive access to high-quality beats to pair with your vocals. For a limited time, you can purchase a one-year subscription for $99 (regularly $135), the best price you’ll find on the web.

Apple’s online store in India offers festive season discount on purchases

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Apple.logo.paris.store
Apple is running a festive season offer on its online store in India.
Photo: Josh Davidson/Cult of Mac

With the festive season starting in India, Apple is running a new offer on its online store in the country. You can enjoy a discount of up to Rs. 7,000 ($93) on your purchases through the store.

The offer is eligible on all orders worth at least Rs 41,900. Additionally, the company is offering No Cost EMI on cards from most banks.