Cult of Mac

Glossy mystery series Surface gets off to a bumpy, soapy start this week on Apple TV+. Gugu Mbatha-Raw (who you might know from The Morning Show) stars as Sophie, a woman who lost her memory after what could have been an accident or a suicide attempt.

Like Truth Be Told, another Apple TV+ series from producer Reese Witherspoon, this one is a prestige look at a woman undergoing a lot of changes in her life as the result of crime … or is it?

Apple earnings calls with analysts can offer fascinating glimpses behind the scenes at the iPhone-maker. Most of the time, though, they are dull as toast. That’s true even for the June quarter, when Apple managed to snatch financial success from the jaws of supply constraints.

But we endured the tedium of the call so you don’t have to. Just read on to get the interesting details almost lost in all the talk of basis points and CAPEX.

If you’re setting up a website, you need to take hosting costs into account. Hosting services aren’t always expensive, but they usually demand a monthly payment to maintain your site’s digital real estate.

iBrave works a little differently, though: It’s selling subscriptions for $99.99 (regularly $2,997), which can set you up with lifetime web hosting for unlimited domains, without monthly payments or additional subscription fees.

Apple overcame considerable headwinds to set a new revenue record during its most recent financial quarter, the company said Thursday. Cupertino once again beat analysts’ expectations, despite COVID-19 lockdowns in China that slowed Mac and iPad production.

“Our June quarter results continued to demonstrate our ability to manage our business effectively despite the challenging operating environment,” said Luca Maestri, Apple’s chief financial officer, in a press release announcing the Q3 2022 earnings.

Apple will reportedly design future Mac processors at a new R&D center in Jerusalem.

The company already does chip development in Israel. Some of the more powerful M1 variants were designed in the country.

The Apple Leather Wallet with MagSafe magnetically clings to an iPhone. And it has a useful trick: The phone shows the user the location the wallet was last detached, so it’s easier to find if it gets lost. If you’re looking for a sleek and functional folder wallet, check out this review for more details.

As a fan of Apple’s Find My application, I decided to try it out.

In partnership with Sony, Backbone said Thursday it’s launching a new PlayStation Edition of its popular game controller for iPhone.

And players will also find a new dedicated section inside the Backbone app for iOS. It includes new releases and updates from PlayStation.

Just about a week after collaborating with Twitch streamer Nickmercs, Apple subsidiary Beats is out with another special-edition release of Beats Studio Buds, this time with design firm Futura Laboratories.

This is the second Beats collaboration for the design firm’s founder, the graffiti artist Futura.

The first Apple store in India won’t open until 2023. Apple has been trying to open the retail location since 2019, but it’s been beset with delays.

The Mumbai store is supposed to be part of an important shift in the way the company does business in India. Another store in the country is also on the way.

Shouldn’t it be exciting to invest in the stock market? Unfortunately, when you have to process so many fail-safes, you could lose quite a bit of that enjoyment.

Get the thrill of investment back by letting an app do the safety screening for you. Stock screener Tykr helps you quickly find great investments, so you don’t accidentally pick from the bottom of the barrel when you’re plunking down a huge sum. And lifetime Pro plans are currently on sale for only $119 (regularly $900).

Both Apple and Meta (formerly Facebook) are both building AR/VR headsets, but they’re going about it in dramatically different ways. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg reportedly told Meta employees the two companies are in “a competition of philosophies and ideas.”

It’s possible the metaverse is the future of the internet. And Zuckerberg describes Meta as being a leader in creating an open metaverse with multiple companies working together, while he says Apple is creating its own closed version.

But Zuckerberg’s comments ignore another major philosophical difference between the twin companies. Apple believes in protecting user privacy, but Meta makes its money by collecting and selling information about users.

A former Lamborghini executive recently joined Apple to lead design of the company’s long-rumored self-driving car, according to a new report Wednesday.

As Apple works toward releasing an electric vehicle before the end of this decade, the addition of Luigi Taraborrelli, who worked for the fabled Italian automaker for 20 years, could accelerate the project.

Traveling abroad might be intimidating at first, but it doesn’t have to stay that way. Just a few years ago, if you wanted to talk to someone in another language, you’d either have to spend months studying or cling to a dictionary and try your best.

Now, you can land in another country and use the Newyes Scan Reader Pen 3 to read or live-translate in another language for you. For a limited time, this portable language translator is on sale for $124.99 (regularly $199).

Everyone knows leather Apple Watch bands are a timeless class-act, long-popular for a variety of reasons. But which kind of leather matters, too. One type might be quite durable but stiff, needing breaking in. Another type might be incredibly soft and supple from the get-go.

One option for the latter type would be ostrich leather. And while it’s always a premium choice, the Cult of Mac Store has a beautiful band for a surprisingly affordable price.

The Garvey sisters vowed to always take care of each other, which leads them toward murdering their abusive brother-in-law. Their scheme plays out in Bad Sisters, a creation of Irish actress, writer and producer Sharon Horgan, who is known for her darkly funny shows.

The comedy/thriller series debuts on Apple TV+ in August, and a trailer debuted Wednesday.

This post is brought to you by Bluetti.

Do you dream of achieving power independence? Whether that means living off the grid or just keeping your home lit when the power goes out, Bluetti’s got a new, top-of-the-line solar power station for you.

Just last year the company put out its modular AC300 solar station and B300 battery module combo. Now it’s back with a worthy successor — the even more powerful AC500 and B300S combo.

The newest update of the Firefox browser includes a performance boost for computers with displays running at a 120Hz refresh rate or higher. That’s good news for anyone with a 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro model from 2021, which have ProMotion displays.

Those MacBook models feature Liquid Retina XDR displays with ProMotion technology for adaptive refresh rates ranging from 24Hz to 120Hz.

Today’s featured setup looks, at a glance, like it sports dual mounted laptops. But one’s an iPad Pro with a Magic Keyboard and one’s a MacBook Pro, floating on either side of a 32-inch external Samsung display. Universal Control lets the user work across the screens.

His only problem seems to be that silver Magic Trackpad sticking out like a sore thumb in darker surroundings. Naturally, social media came to the rescue with possible fixes.

Apple reportedly put down $445 million for a 67.5-acre corporate center in San Diego. This will be a new corporate campus for the iPhone-maker.

The purchase comes after Apple vowed in 2021 to increase its workforce to more than 5,000 in the Southern California city.

When Apple said in July at WWDC22 it would launch Apple Pay Later with iOS 16, it effectively said it would enter the short-term loan business, known for “buy now, pay later” plans.

So it’s no big surprise that the Cupertino tech giant — accustomed to regulatory scrutiny in the U.S. and abroad — is now facing it from financial industry regulators.

But what’s somewhat surprising is that regulators are making noise about a host of concerns even before Apple Pay Later comes out.

If you’re packing a charger for the road, you probably don’t want it to take up too much space, much less carry more than one for your iPhone and Apple Watch. That’s where this Two-in-One Folding Wireless Magnetic Charger comes in handy.

This iPhone, Apple Watch and Qi-compatible charger can power two devices at once, and it folds into a compact square. It looks almost exactly like Apple’s MagSafe Duo charger, which retails for $129.

But you don’t need to pay that much. For a limited time, you can get this wireless folding charger for $69.99 (regularly $114).

Sometimes you’re only up for one trip. Unfortunately, that doesn’t change if you need to grab groceries, a new shirt for work and your prescription meds. But, with a Sam’s Club membership, you can fit all that and more into one trip. You could even grab a new microwave while you’re at it.

For a limited time, you can get a one-year membership for Sam’s Club plus a $10 e-gift card for only $24.88 (regularly $55).

Continue reading

Olpr’s awesome AirTag accessories are all beautifully made from genuine leather. The company sells a bag charm, a luggage tag and a keyring, all of which come with a side helping of class. And you can bag yours at up to 33% off the usual price in the Cult of Mac Store for a limited time.

During the sale, prices start at just $25 for these luxe AirTag accessories that let you securely attach one of Apple’s trackers to your precious belongings.

OtterBox rolled out its new iPhone and Apple Watch charger Tuesday — the 2-in-1 Charging Station with MagSafe. Not just “MagSafe-compatible,” it offers your iPhone a full 15W charge and your Apple Watch a 5W charge.

And if you want to charge your AirPods case instead of your iPhone, you can.

The sleek wireless charging stand, featuring a white-and-silver combo colorway called “Future,” is sold by both OtterBox and Apple.

Apple reportedly had an M1-powered Mac Pro ready to ship months ago but decided against launching it. Instead, the company decided to unveil an M2 Extreme-powered version later this year.

The Cupertino giant is seemingly also not working on redesigning the Mac mini anytime soon.