November 12, 1996: Apple lays out a wild plan to get into the restaurant business, saying it will open a chain of Apple Cafes with a touchscreen point-of-sale system. A bit like the company’s future retail stores — but without the computers and iPhones for sale — the Apple restaurants would open in cities around the world.
The first, Apple says, will be a 15,000-square-foot restaurant in Los Angeles, opening in late 1997.
Spoiler alert: None of this happens.
Fans of Saturday Night Live alum Kristen Wiig and the rest of the star-studded cast of Apple TV comedy Palm Royale have reason to rejoice — season 2 streams Wednesday. And according to reviews, it brings a new murder mystery and a darker tone to the comedy.
You not only get Wiig, you get legend Carol Burnett, pop icon Ricky Martin and veteran actors Bruce and Laura Dern — among others! Newsweek calls the new season “darker, funnier and deeper.” People.com notes Burnett’s character crafts a typically “wicked plan” in the first episode. Comic Book Resources even claims the show is Apple TV’s best comedy.
AI prompt engineering tool PromptBuilder helps you create, optimize and manage prompts for all the major AI tools. It works with OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Google Gemini and more to make sure you get the results you envision.
If you’ve ever spent 20 minutes rewriting the same ChatGPT prompt hoping for better output, you already know how frustrating prompt crafting can be. But with a one-time payment of just $199 (MSRP $1,764), this lifetime subscription to PromptBuilder’s Unlimited Plan can make that pain go away.
If you’re an Apple user who’s been eyeing Samsung’s SmartThings ecosystem, you might be wondering how well it plays with Siri and your other Apple devices. The good news? SmartThings has robust HomeKit support, meaning you can control a wide range of smart home devices using Siri voice commands, the Home app and Apple’s automation features. Here are five impressive ways to integrate SmartThings into your Apple-powered smart home.
★★★★★
The Kuxiu X40 Turbo is a great three-in-one charger that supports the fastest MagSafe and Qi charging speeds possible on the latest iPhones. That means you can get 25W wireless iPhone charging while simultaneously topping up your Apple Watch and AirPods.
The X40 Turbo is the follow-up to my previous personal favorite charger, the X40. In addition to extra power, the new model boasts a refined design while maintaining its predecessor’s stellar build quality. It comes with everything you need in the box: the charger, a cable, a power adapter and a nice linen travel case.
Here’s why it’s the perfect three-way charger for home or travel. Keep reading or watch our video review.
Apple just started selling PlayStation VR2 Sense controllers on its website, offering Vision Pro gamers a route to a whole new level of interaction. The accessories, which Sony does not sell separately, should arrive in Apple Stores on November 17.
The PSV R2 Sense controllers wrap around each hand and feature a three-axis gyroscope, a three-axis accelerometer, and built-in buttons, triggers and analog sticks for enhanced VR gaming. Adding them to your Vision Pro setup should take gaming to a whole new level.
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 $79.97 (regularly $139.99).
At any normal price, the new iPhone Pocket is silly. At $230, it’s silly and pretentious. Apple charges a hefty fee for an unholy union between a scarf and a sock.
It’s easy to mock, and the internet did plenty of that Tuesday after Apple took the wraps off its latest iPhone accessory. But the iPhone Pocket drew immediate fans, as well. In fact, Vogue said the fashion-forward iPhone sack “could just be the season’s must-have accessory.”
★★★★★
The Planck SSD was created specifically for iPhone, and is so small and well-designed that it plugs into the handset’s USB-C port and practically disappears. But there’s still room for up to 2 terabytes of storage.
Even better, it’s rocket-fast. So fast that it enables high-resolution/high-framerate ProRes video to be recorded from iPhone Pro models, making the Planck SSD an ideal tool for creators and professional videographers.
I tested the drive and came away very impressed. It even comes with a useful collection of accessories.
November 11, 2015: Apple’s first iPad Pro goes on sale after months of speculation about the giant-size tablet.
With its much larger screen, professional-oriented targeting and dreaded (optional) stylus, the 12.9-inch iPad Pro represents Apple CEO Tim Cook’s cleanest break yet from Steve Jobs’ vision for iOS devices.
And it turned out all the better for it!
1ForAll AI is a content creation platform for generating images, text and videos — and it’s only $90 for life (regularly $792).
Content creation gets messy fast when you have to jump between five different apps just to finish one project. If you write a script in one tool, generate a voiceover in another, and then hunt down an image generator and video editor, the process becomes slow and expensive.
1ForAll AI cuts down on the chaos by putting voice, image and video creation in one place, so you can go from idea to finished content without switching tabs or juggling subscriptions.
Shortcuts are more innovative than ever in iOS 26, thanks to Apple Intelligence. They now support LLM-based actions and automations that can make quick work of various time-consuming tasks. You can streamline audio transcription, movie streaming, food tracking and more.
Best of all, Apple users are sharing an increasing number of user-created shortcuts that you can try out for free. I compiled a list of the 13 most exciting shortcuts powered by Apple Intelligence to give you a taste of just how useful they can be.
Apple teamed up with the Japanese design firm behind Steve Jobs’ famous black turtlenecks to create a new iPhone accessory: the iPhone Pocket.
Inspired by “a piece of cloth” and produced in collaboration with Issey Miyake, it features a seamless, singular 3D-knitted construction.
“This clever extra pocket exemplifies those ideas and is a natural accompaniment to our products,” said Molly Anderson, Apple’s vice president of industrial design, in a press release Tuesday.
Apple might have silently discontinued the original HomePod mini. The tiny smart speaker is out of stock across several U.S. retailers, fueling speculation that a new model might be coming soon.
Sure, you can use the built-in Photos app to edit pictures on your iPhone, but an AI photo editor can open up a world of advanced possibilities. Apple’s stock photo-editing tools have come a long way in recent years, but they still make it hard to produce the picture you originally thought you would get.
Luminar Mobile, an AI photo editor for iPhone, iPad, Vision Pro and Android devices, is somehow both simple and feature-rich. With it, you can easily realize your visions. And you can get a lifetime subscription for just $19.99 per device (MSRP $47.99).
The Mophie Juice Pack wraps your iPhone in a protective case that’s also a battery that adds hours of use. On Monday, it launched versions specifically for iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max or iPhone Air.
Mophie did more than make the battery cases closely fit Apple’s latest. The updated versions deliver longer battery life, stronger protection, better ergonomics and more.
The second-generation iPhone Air won’t launch next fall, according to an unconfirmed report published Monday. The super-slim new smartphone is apparently such a dud with customers that Apple put the follow-up on hold.
Reports that the iPhone Air hasn’t found an audience have circulated almost since the handset premiered in September.
The Mac isn’t carrying its weight. In fact, it’s Apple’s lowest-selling product line, sitting behind even the Apple Watch. And despite macOS being a standout platform, it lags far behind Windows where it matters: worldwide adoption.
Apple needs a fresh angle, and the rumored budget MacBook might be the first real chance to rewrite the Mac’s trajectory.
November 10, 1983: Microsoft tells the world about an upcoming product called Windows that will bring the graphical user interface to IBM PCs. Although Microsoft’s announcement about the new operating system comes shortly before Apple launches the Mac, Windows 1.0 won’t actually ship until November 1985, earning it an early reputation as “vaporware.”
At the time, Apple doesn’t view Windows as much of a threat. That doesn’t take long to change, however.
AirPods 4 are already Apple’s most reasonably priced wireless earbuds, and a new deal knocks a whomping 34% off the cost. That makes them just $84.99 — an amazing price! Or there’s the version that adds active noice cancellation, which are currently 16% off.
Whether you need to replace an aging set of earbuds or get your first, now could be a great time to buy.
Apple reportedly plans to expand the iPhone‘s satellite connectivity capabilities beyond emergency calling and texting. It is working on a framework to enable third-party apps to use satellite connectivity.
Additionally, the company plans to bring satellite connectivity to Apple Maps to enable navigation in areas without cellular coverage.
Apple Watch SE is already the most affordable wearable Apple makes, and a deal knocks up to 32% off the second-generation of this budget smartwatch. Some case-and-band combos of the 40mm model just dropped to $159.99! For an Apple Watch! And the larger 44mm version is 29% off at $189.99.
An Apple Watch can help motivate you to exercise and track your progress, or just make it easier to read incoming texts. If you don’t have a smartwatch, now is a great time to buy.
When Apple needs to install a security patch onto an iPhone, iPad or Mac, it now does so without requiring the user to do anything — or even be aware of the update. The new Background Security Improvements feature delivers “additional security protections between software updates,” according to Apple.
It’s a feature of iOS 26.1, iPadOS 26.1 and macOS 26.1, but users have the option to deactivate it.
This week on Cult of Mac’s podcast: Apple reportedly plans to pay a cool $1 billion a year to use Google Gemini to make Siri smarter. How do we feel about that? Honestly, anything that fixes Siri sooner rather than later would be a big win.
Anybody creeped out about iPhones and Macs with Google inside should rest easy, though. Apple plans to keep everything safe and secure. And Cupertino’s still scrambling to get its own AI up to speed.
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.
If you’re still living with a clunky, dial-twisting home thermostat, it’s time for an upgrade to a smart model like the Google Nest Learning Thermostat. It learns how you like your home to feel, then takes over the temperature changes for you, delivering a delightful mix of comfort and savings.
Even better, this refurbished third-gen Google Nest Learning Thermostat costs just $99.99, making it one of the easiest and smartest home upgrades you can make.
In fact, this deal drops the price below Amazon’s current discount on the same model.