Cult of Mac

Late last week, Apple stopped signing iOS 15.4 following the release of iOS 15.4.1, making it impossible for users to downgrade their iPhones’ software. But the change also inadvertently stopped people from updating their new Studio Displays’ firmware, based on iOS.

Complaints ensued on Sunday. And before the end of the day, Cupertino re-signed iOS 15.4, making it valid and verifiable to servers again.

Did Apple release the $1,599 Studio Display with so much fanfare only to forget about it when it launched iOS 15.4.1?

Anyone who buys a desktop Mac or wants a desktop feel using their MacBook is going to need a decent-sized external display. And wouldn’t it be grand if we all had $5,000 to spend on an Apple Pro Display XDR? Well, we don’t. In fact, scratching together enough cash to buy a new, more-affordable Studio Display can feel like a stretch for many folks.

The owner of today’s featured computer setup figured out a clever way to run a brilliant Liquid Retina XDR Display at much less cost with their new Mac Studio. What’s the catch? Well, it’s only a 12.9-inch display. Because it’s an iPad.

Insert the Wemo Smart Plug with Thread into any wall socket and you can use HomeKit to control any plug-in appliance with your iPhone. It’s easy. Plus, this gadget (obviously) offers Thread mesh networking, the future of smart home tech.

I tested in my own home. Here’s why there’s a lot to like.

Mac shipments grew 4.3% year-over-year in the first quarter of 2022. But its biggest rivals dropped — HP shipments plunged almost 18%, for example.

The pandemic boom in computer sales is slowing, but it’s affecting Apple less.

If you’re in the market for new speakers for home use, consider waiting to buy until next month, when Klipsch rolls out 10 overhauled speakers from its iconic, affordable Reference line. If you live in the Europe or the U.K., you can get them now, but the U.S. launch is in May.

Klipsch, which features the slogan “Pissing off the neighbors since 1946” on its website, overhauled the series for use in hi-fi, home theater and Dolby Atmos systems.

Unveiled at a special event way back in 2014, the first Apple Watch looked similar to the wearable we know and love today. But looks can be deceiving. Take the Digital Crown and Side Button, for example. Their design may not have changed, but their functionality is now very different.

Apple Watch went through a radical evolution over the past eight years. What started out as an “intimate way to connect and communicate,” has become primarily a health and fitness device.

This pivot is uncharacteristic of Apple. Products like iPod, iPhone and iPad launched with a clear vision and remained true to it. The Apple Watch’s evolution suggests a shift in Cupertino’s approach to new products, and provides tantalizing clues to the future of the company’s rumored next platform launch: realityOS.

No matter what industry you work in, Microsoft Excel is one of the most valuable programs you can master. Thankfully, you can become a total expert on this leading spreadsheet software from home.

All you need is The 2022 Complete Microsoft Excel Expert Bundle, which is on sale today for just $34.99 (regularly $4,788). With 12 separate courses included in this epic bundle, that works out to less than $3 a course.

Elon Musk is not going to be on the Twitter board of directors, despite what was announced a few days ago. The Twitter CEO says the change is “for the best.”

Musk is retaining his 9.2% stake in the company, though. And he’s has shown a lot of enthusiasm about Twitter recently. Why he’s not joining its board is unclear.

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Nothing says springtime is here like a visit from the Easter Beagle. Snoopy and his friends are back in It’s the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown, showing now on Apple TV+. Watch now to enjoy this and many other Peanuts holiday specials on Apple’s streaming video service.

Here’s what you need to watch it.

Apple could fix a major iPhone pain point by introducing some “fairly significant enhancements” to notifications in iOS 16, according to a reliable source. Further, the company could make major improvements to health and activity tracking in watchOS 9.

The Cupertino company also supposedly will debut a new multitasking interface in iPadOS 16.

The Apple Watch Series 7 has been discounted to its lowest-ever price on Amazon in the last 30 days, making it the perfect time to pick one up. Amazon lists the 41mm Apple Watch Series 7 for only $329 — a whopping $70 discount from its retail price of $399.

The 45mm model sees a similar $69.01 discount, so you can get it for just $359.99 while Amazon’s sale lasts.

A career in software development and data visualization requires a diverse range of skills. Theoretically, you could acquire them on your own through trial and error. But your time could be better spent with a dedicated set of teachers.

The 2022 Ultimate Big Data Certification Bundle can teach you the basics of Python, Raspberry Pi and additional skills you’ll be able to master with practice. For a limited time, this bundle is on sale for $24.99 (regularly $2,000).

Every time I think I can’t possibly discover other awesome, useful or fun new apps, I find a game or utility that makes something in my life just a little better or easier.

This week, a couple of great utilities, a way to simplify your photo editing process, and a ridiculously addictive game all managed to impress me. But surely these are the last good ones out there, right? (Want to tell me about another awesome app? Send me an email or find me on Twitter at @IanFuchs.)

This week on Cult of Mac’s podcast: We’ve got a date for WWDC22! Now, the only question is, what tricks will Apple pull out of its virtual hat this year?

Also on The CultCast:

• Is Apple’s M1 Ultra chip ultra-disappointing? The first speed tests look underwhelming.
• The latest on Apple’s quest to develop a folding iPhone.
• Ukrainians use Find My to locate thieving Russian troops.

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 livestream, embedded below.

Special thanks to this week’s CultCast sponsors:

• The new Jamf Fundamentals plan gives small-to-midsize businesses the tools they need to easily manage all their Apple devices. CultCast fans can manage three devices free! Sign up at jamf.com/beyond.
• Squarespace gives you all the tools you need to set up your very own website and start selling anything. Start your free website trial today at squarespace.com/cultcast (no credit card required). Save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain with code cultcast at checkout.

CODA, Severance and Slow Horses all showed up in this week’s top 10 most-watched movies and TV shows. Each is from Apple TV+, and they show the streaming service has become a strong competitor against Netflix, Hulu and Disney+.

Perhaps this will silence any lingering doubts about Apple’s foray into film and TV.

The AirPods Pro has been discounted to just $174 on Amazon, down from its retail price of $249. That’s a $75 discount and a deal you should not miss if you have been eyeing the earbuds for a long time now.

The regular AirPods 2 and 3 are also on sale if you can’t stretch your budget for the Pro model.

Want to learn a future-proofed skill that’s in demand with many of the biggest employers on the planet? The Python programming language is one of the greatest specialities you can have.

Right now, you can learn everything you need to know about it with The 2022 Complete Python Certification Bootcamp Bundle. And it’s on sale for just $34.99 (regularly $2,388).

Slow Horses enters the thick of its spy games this week in an excellent third episode. Jackson Lamb is in Dutch with M15 chief Diana Taverner just as she screws up an important operation — and implicates him and his whole team at Slough House, the reject pile of the British intelligence service.

As a result, they enter into a sleazy bargain to clean up the mess together. Of course, nothing’s ever as easy as it seems when your business is underhanded espionage. The pace and the tension ratchet up for a marvelous little installment of this new spy show on Apple TV+.

Ever wanted to match the exact color of something you’ve seen in real life? Now you can with this futuristic device. Whether it’s the deep blue of a custom car’s paint job or the vibrant orange of a California poppy, the Nix Mini Color Sensor V2 can duplicate it. And right now, this highly praised gadget is on sale for just $83.95 (regularly $99).

Apple is reportedly about to release a power adapter with dual USB-C ports, not just one. It’s hardly cutting-edge — accessory makers have offered similar wall chargers for years. But it’s good news for those who prefer Apple-branded gear.

There’ve been rumors Apple is going to start using gallium nitride in its chargers. A dual-port one might be a sign this is finally happening.

Pachinko, the new Apple TV+ series based on the book by Min Jin Lee, arrives in Japan and returns to Korea in this week’s episode.

Solomon and Sunja become amateur detectives in search of a lost woman and a missing grave site. Houses become homes, and countries swallow each other up in the search for identity. No one’s exactly happy, but the characters muddle their way toward something like peace with the worlds they’ve left behind.

All along the way, this epic show continues to impress.

WeCrashed, the Apple TV+ show about overhyped co-working startup WeWork, starts to bring the walls down around founder Adam Neumann this week. As his wife, Rebekah, demands more and more of the pie for herself, Adam keeps screwing up important meetings and losing his standing among his investors and cheerleaders.

The wheels are about to come off — and the only one who can’t see it is Adam. Now, if only any of this were remotely as compelling as the directors and writers deemed it, it would be a lot more exciting to tune into the fifth episode of a show about how supposedly terrible investment banking is that nevertheless revels in all the resulting excess.

Want a selfie stick that’s good for more than just selfies? EasySelfie from SwitchEasy is a selfie stick and tripod in one that could greatly improve your on-the-go photography game. It works with iPhone as well as other cameras (including GoPro) and its aluminum design is ultra-portable.

Bag yours today from the Cult of Mac Store and save 33%. But do it now — this sale ends at 11:59 p.m. PDT on April 9.

Take a long holiday in a gorgeous villa with all the time in the world to drive beautiful supercars. We can’t do it in reality, but we can in Gear.Club Stradale. The multiplayer racing game for a variety of platforms zoomed onto Apple Arcade on Friday.

In addition, the Sega classic Sonic Dash also made the jump to Apple’s gaming subscription service.

The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey, the Apple TV+ series based on the book by Walter Mosley, winds down with a somber closing chapter. Ptolemy has one last score to settle before his memory leaves him for good and Robyn is once more on her own.

The only thing left for him to do in this breathtaking finale is leave the world a better place than he found it.

Ptolemy Grey has been an odd six hours of TV: part science fiction parable, part brutal historical memoir, part comment on race relations and changing mores, and part beautiful family/relationship drama. It perhaps had a little trouble keeping every single element in even proportions. But for every little misstep or fumble, there are dramatic beats, performance notes, shots, cuts and scenes that are worth twice a regular TV show’s whole season.