Apple’s flagship handset — iPhone 17 Pro — claimed the crown as the fastest-charging phone in a rigorous new lab test, beating out rivals from Samsung, Google, Motorola, and more, according to a new report.

New data shows how Apple’s iPhone bucks a US smartphone sales slump. Apple grew U.S. iPhone sales by 1.3% year-over-year in the first quarter of 2026, even as the broader American smartphone market contracted sharply, according to a new report.

For iPhone owners and fans of the Apple ecosystem, the numbers paint a picture of a brand that continues to tighten its grip on the U.S. market despite a challenging environment for the industry as a whole.

May 14, 1992: Apple co-founder Steve Jobs‘ company NeXT runs into trouble as it loses a crucial deal with Businessland after the computer retailer closes its stores.

It comes at a time when NeXT’s luck is going from bad to worse. The Businessland closure marks one of the lowest points in Jobs’ career — before everything starts to turn around again.

The Knog Scout Travel is a tracker tag that stands out with an 85 decimal motion-sensitive alarm. Put it on your suitcase, and if someone moves it, the tag will let everyone nearby know it.

And it supports Apple’s Find My network, so the tag (and your luggage) can be tracked down almost anywhere if they go missing.

I put this travel accessory to the test. Here’s how it stood up.

New charging gadgets rarely excite me, but this one does. Twelve South built its new PowerClip, a 2,000mAh emergency power bank, around a simple premise. Most people already own a backup charger, but they rarely have it with them when they really need it. The tiny, lightweight PowerClip fixes that by living on your keychain, pocket or bag rather than in a drawer at home, the company said Tuesday.

And it’s only about the size of a container of dental floss — complete with two built-in cables! I would forget I had it with me — but hopefully remember it when my iPhone battery dropped into the red zone. 

If your iPhone is always blowing up with junk and spam, you can stop notifications dead in their tracks. You may not know that you can entirely disable notifications per-app and turn off different types of notifications to keep them from cluttering your phone. 

I’m not afraid to disable all notifications from an app if it crosses me one time too many. For others, I allow notifications on the Lock Screen, but disable them from Notification Center, so they’re more temporary. 

Here’s how you can do it, too. Check out our quick video.

Apple finally found a software fix for one of the most mocked Mac design decisions in years. In macOS 26.5 Tahoe, released Monday, Apple added a new option that allows M4 Mac mini owners to turn on their machines without picking them up.

Apple’s recently disclosed acquisition of Color.io suggests a renewed focus on rebuilding Cupertino’s creative software suite.

Through a subsidiary, Apple acquired Patchflyer GmbH in January and hired the company’s sole employee, according to an EU filing. Patchflyer developed Color.io, a web-based cinematic color grading platform used by filmmakers and video professionals. And the purchase looks like part of a long-term strategy to win over creatives.

With the ChatOn all-in-one AI assistant, you can access multiple top AI models, image-creation tools and real-time search, all in one app — and all for one low price.

For a limited time, get five years of ChatOn for just $98 with code CHAT30.

The HomePod operating system occasionally needs updating, because the device is a lot more than a simple speaker — it’s a computer. Here’s how to make sure your Apple smart speaker has the software version released this week. The new HomePod Software version 26.5 is a simple bug-fix update, but it’s still worth installing. Who wants bugs? 

If you depend on automatic updates, it’s possible your smart speaker hasn’t yet installed the update. Here’s how to do so manually.

May 13, 1991: Apple releases System 7, the biggest upgrade to the Mac operating system since the original Macintosh computer shipped in 1984. The new Mac OS is whip-fast, beautiful to look at, and boasts a bevy of innovative features.

The longest-lasting of Apple’s classic Mac operating systems, it will remain current until System 8 replaces it in 1997.

Foxconn, a critical supplier for major hardware companies including Apple and Nvidia, confirmed Tuesday that a cyberattack struck its North American operations. And the group behind the attack claims to have walked away with a trove of sensitive data touching some of the world’s biggest tech companies.

That could include Apple files, but it’s difficult to say which ones and how important they are.

Fingerprint recognition is so last year: You can unlock your front door with a simple wave of your hand with a Philips 5000 Series lock.

This premium lock uses touchless palm scanning to identify you by your veins. It also offers Wi-Fi connectivity, app controls and auto-locking features to modernize your front door for just $212.49 (MSRP $279.99). Oh, and if you want, you can use a physical key as well, you luddite!

The colorful Pride Luminance wallpaper and watch face add beautiful color gradients to your iPhone and Apple Watch. You can download them both after updating to iOS 26.5 and watchOS 26.5.

Since they’re part of Apple’s annual Pride collection, they come with a bunch of preset styles for various pride flags. But you can customize the Lock Screen wallpaper and the Apple Watch face however you want. With a light and dark shade of the same color, the vertical stripes and gradients shimmer and animate when you swipe up to unlock your phone. Or you can go to the other extreme, picking up to 12 colors from the Luminance palette.

This is easily the best Pride wallpaper Apple has produced yet — in fact, it’s a great wallpaper, period. Check it out in our quick video or keep reading.

Google is making it easier to switch from iPhone to Android. The company worked with Apple to improve the iOS-to-Android migration experience.

Now, when switching from iPhone to Android, you can transfer your passwords, photos, messages, apps, and home screen layout.

PDFs are arguably one of the most-used document formats by professionals, students and casual users alike. However, while they might be the best way to transmit documents, they’re not entirely easy to work with unless you own a capable PDF editor for Mac like PDF Expert.

Fortunately, this app makes handling, organizing, annotating, merging and editing PDFs effortless. And you can get a lifetime license to this award-winning Mac app for just $69.97 (regularly $139.99).

WhatsApp is entering its subscription era, with a new paid tier for some iPhone users called WhatsApp Plus.

While existing WhatsApp features will remain free, the subscription brings cosmetic and functional upgrades such as premium ringtones, custom icons and the ability to pin more chats.

watchOS 26.5, which Apple released Monday, finally fixes a pair of annoying Apple Watch problems. It also brings a wildly customizable — and seemingly quite popular — Pride Luminance watch face that complements the similar iPhone wallpaper.

Here’s what’s new with the watchOS 26.5 update (plus a hint at what watchOS 27 might bring).

For the upcoming iOS 27 update, Apple will introduce a fully customizable Camera app, a ground-up redesign of Siri and visual changes across a range of built-in apps, according to a new report Tuesday.

Apple will showcase the update and other operating system changes at its Worldwide Developers Conference on June 8. 

Apple fans and coin collectors snatched up a new tribute to Steve Jobs on Tuesday. As part of its ongoing American Innovation $1 Coin Program, the United States Mint put the Steve Jobs coin up for sale at 9 a.m. Pacific time this morning — and it sold out almost instantly.

The coin honors the late Apple co-founder and his impact on technology and culture, celebrating one of the most influential figures in technology history. But the image of Jobs is somewhat questionable.

The MacBook Pro with the standard M5 chip and loaded up with plenty of RAM and storage released in 2025 dropped to its lowest price ever. Amazon hacked 14% off the price, saving buyers $300!

And those looking for the more powerful versions powered by M5 Pro and M5 Max chips can save on these premium machines, too. Amazon knocked up to $200 and sometimes more off the prices for the 2026 MacBook Pro, including both the 14-inch and 16-inch screen sizes.

Whichever chip you choose, save on a powerful macOS notebook today!

Since I spend a lot of time using Safari on my iPhone, any new tips and tricks I learn can feel life-changing. Apple’s mobile web browser proves absolutely instrumental to my iPhone usage (and odds are, it does for you, too).

Here are a few of my favorite hidden features. These Safari tips will help you browse the web faster, clean up your experience and restore tabs you accidentally close. I also have a handy shortcut you can download at the end.

Keep reading or watch our video.

Microsoft Visual Studio Pro 2026 is a full coding environment for building, testing, debugging and collaborating on software projects.

It doesn’t run on our beloved Macs, but we know that some Cult of Mac readers use Windows PCs (and also love a good deal). And this is definitely that: You can get a lifetime license to Microsoft Visual Studio Pro 2026 for just $34.97 (regularly $499.99).

Apple Arcade subscribers are in for a treat this month, as the beloved characters from the Emmy-winning animated series Bluey take over five popular games on the platform in a limited-time crossover event kicking off May 21.

“As we continue to grow Bluey in interactive, it’s important that each experience reflects what families love about the brand — its playfulness and creativity, and how it brings people of all ages together,” said Marina Mello, BBC Studios’ global director of Gaming & Interactive.

May 12, 2005: Longtime Apple frenemy Bill Gates tells a German newspaper that Apple may have hit it big with the iPod, but that its success isn’t going to last forever.

The reason for the Microsoft co-founder’s doomy take on the iPod’s future? He thinks mobile phones will steal the music player’s market share.

The good news for Gates is that he was right on the money. The bad news for Microsoft is that Apple cannibalized itself by making the iPhone. And Apple’s smartphone became even more successful than the iPod.