The new Lock Screen is just one of the best new features in iOS 16. Image: Apple
There’s a lot to like in iOS 16, so I couldn’t resist installing the first beta to test the best new features. Here’s my hands-on experience with the new Lock Screen, improvements in the Messages and Mail apps, and more. These are just my favorites from the couple of days I’ve had to test the initial beta.
Plus, the next version of iOS adds other features that might be great — when Apple gets them working right.
This smart visual password manager makes security a breeze. Photo: Cult of Mac Deals
You want to keep all your online accounts secure, but creating (and then remembering) a robust and unique password for each is basically impossible for anyone who’s not Rain Man. And you don’t want to be doubling down on the same password — that’s one of the stupidest things you can do.
That’s why you should consider a simple password manager that can do the work for you. One example is Mindpass, a unique password tool that saves all your passwords in a 3D environment that only you know how to get through. For a limited time, you can purchase a Mindpass Unlimited Plan for $29.99 (regularly $180).
SwiftScan is the best scanner app out there. Screenshot: Joe White/Cult of Mac
Gone are the days where folks needed a document scanner sitting atop their desks. Instead, we have our trusty iPhones! When friends ask me which app they should be using to turn paper documents into PDFs, I point them in the direction of SwiftScan. Let me tell you why.
There’ll only be three seasons of the massive Apple TV+ hit Ted Lasso. One of the series writers and stars says the plan is to end the show with the upcoming season three.
That’s bad news for fans. And for Apple too, which needs every successful show it can get for its streaming service.
You can't have iPadOS 16's Stage Manager multitasking system without one of the capabilities of the M1 processor. Graphic: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
iPadOS 16 gives Apple tablets some powerful new capabilities, but there have been protests that these are limited to iPad models with the M1 processor. Apple promises this isn’t a trick to force people to upgrade their computers.
The iPad-maker says that only the M-series processors can deliver enough RAM to display eight applications at once.
Charge three devices at once with this compact wireless charger. Photo: Cult of Mac Deals
Wireless chargers might have been a novelty a few years ago, but now they’re a real competitor for wired chargers. Especially when you find one that can power multiple devices without taking up a wall full of outlets.
One example is the MagStack, a portable wireless charging pad that can power three devices — iPhone, Apple Watch and AirPods — at once. It’s on sale for $44.99 (regularly $69) for a limited time.
Taron Egerton ends up in jail in Black Bird. But if he just does this one, incredibly hellish thing ... Photo: Apple TV+
Say things went sideways and you somehow ended up in prison, sentenced to 10 years. But authorities offer you freedom if you do just one thing for them. Transfer to a super-max facility for the criminally insane. Befriend a serial killer who may soon get out. And get him to confess more of his crimes.
Would you do it?
If the trailer for Apple TV+ psychological thriller series Black Bird is any indication, maybe don’t do it. That thing, promoting a true story brought to the screen by crime novelist Dennis Lehane, looks brutal — and potentially riveting.
Apple discussed its overhauled Home app and HomeKit at WWDC22. Photo: Apple
Apple rebuilt its Home app from the ground up for iOS 16, ensuring it will make managing HomeKit a breeze and support the upcoming Matter home-automation standard.
But for those who’ve been using an iPad as a hub for HomeKit, the house party’s over as of iOS 16’s release.
Auracast will let many Bluetooth headphones share the same audio broadcast. Photo: Bluetooth SIG
Bluetooth headphones are nearly ubiquitous, and an upcoming feature called Auracast will allow computers or phones to stream music to not just one Bluetooth receiver but all of them in the area.
While one goal of Bluetooth’s Auracast broadcast audio is to let people share their music with groups, it also has more practical uses.
Apple streamlined its Books app for iOS 16 and iPadOS 15. Photo: Apple
For your reading pleasure, Apple redesigned its Books apps in iOS 16 and iPadOS 16. When those operating systems hit your devices later this year, you should find the Books interface less distracting and more customizable.
iPad gets a lot more Mac-like in iPaOS 16. Here's what it's like to use the new multitasking features. Image: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
One of the most-requested iPad features is here. Stage Manager in iPadOS 16 puts applications in resizable, floating windows. I’ve tested the first beta of the new system for several days now, and there’s a lot to like. And there’s plenty of frustration too. But some of that comes from this being an early beta.
Here’s my hands-on experience with the iPad’s new multitasking system, and why I think it’s going to change the way many of us use our tablets.
eSIMs are about to get even easier to move from one iPhone to another. Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
iOS 16 will make it easier to transfer an eSIM between iPhones using Bluetooth.
As spotted by @carsonwaldrop on Twitter, iOS 16 adds an option to import an eSIM from another iPhone in the “Set up eSIM” menu. Apple requires that the other iPhone is nearby, unlocked, has Bluetooth turned on, and is running iOS 16 during the process.
WaterField Designs' new travel bag for Mac Studio and accessories will get your gear there in style. Photo: WaterField Designs
WaterField Designs unveiled its new Mac Studio Travel Bag Wednesday, giving you a protective and stylish carry case for the Mac Studio plus a keyboard, mouse, hard drive and other accessories.
Designed to help you take Apple’s powerful new desktop computer from place to place, the bag keeps your computer setup organized and protected, the company said.
RoomPlan puts the LiDAR Scanner on iPhones and iPads to good use. Photo: Apple
A new framework dubbed RoomPlan will allow apps to quickly create 3D floor plans of rooms using the LiDAR Scanner in recent iPhones and iPads.
The Swift API will allow real estate and e-commerce apps to scan and create a room’s floor plan. This can then be used for remodeling and interior design changes. Despite its wow factor, Apple did not talk about the RoomPlan API onstage during Monday’s WWDC22 keynote.
Brad Pitt stars as a retired race car driver who gets back in the Formula One game. Photo: Glen Wheeler/Unsplash
Apple Original Films outraced other studios to win a deal for the rights to a Formula One racing film starring Brad Pitt. Notably, the resulting agreement takes a new road to theatrical and streaming distribution.
And Pitt’s not the only big name here. Joseph Kosinski directs and Jerry Bruckheimer produces the as-yet-untitled movie.
Getflix can boost how much content you can stream.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals
When all you want to do is browse and stream TV and movies, a full virtual private network can feel like overkill. Similarly, connecting to your VPN just to look at Facebook or shop on Amazon seems overwhelming.
If you need a simplified smart DNS and VPN, consider Getflix. It unlocks worldwide content such as streaming services with basically no setup. Plus, a lifetime subscription is on sale for just $49 (regularly $540) for a limited time.
When people talk about a "clean" setup, this is pretty much what they mean. Photo: [email protected]
We see plenty of paired HomePod minis in our travels online among computer setups, but not many stereo twosomes of the OG HomePods, the big ones Apple discontinued that may one day return in some form.
So today’s featured M1 MacBook Air setup is not only super-clean, it rocks that killer sound system and boasts a pricey 5K monitor that rivals Apple’s Studio Display.
And it’s the first setup we’ve come across where someone hates on the wildly popular Logitech MX Master 3 wireless mouse.
SoundForm Immerse earbuds are Belkin’s top-of-the-line audio solution. Photo: Belkin
The just-launched Belkin SoundForm Immerse Bluetooth earbuds offer more than just great sound. They have active noise cancellation, and also work with Apple’s Find My network so they can be located with an iPhone.
They offer many of the same features as Apple’s AirPods Pro but at a lower cost.
Should you buy the M2 MacBook Air over the new Pro model? Photo: Apple
Both of Apple’s latest laptops — the M2 MacBook Air and the M2 MacBook Pro — run on the same powerful new chip. With only a $100 difference between the two, what exactly sets them apart? Does the new MacBook Pro live up to its “pro” name, or is the Air the better buy?
Here’s a look at the differences between the two new Mac laptops unveiled during Monday’s WWDC22 keynote.
Apple's bringing some much-wanted features to it native email client. Photo: Apple
Alongside a slew of software updates announced at WWDC22, Apple said its Mail app will let you schedule email delivery and undo sends, among other changes that bring the client closer in functionality to some of its leading competitors.
That’s handy for shooting off emails at ideal times and for clawing back those notes you realize you shouldn’t have sent (you know, because you forgot the attachment, not necessarily because you said something awful).
Craig Federighi, Apple software chief, made a pitch for more Mac and iPad gaming at WWDC22. Screenshot: Apple
Mac is not the preferred platform for most gamers, but Metal 3 in macOS Ventura shows Apple hasn’t given up. And iPadOS 16 is getting support for a wider range of game controllers.
These are just a couple of gaming features Apple is bringing to Mac and iPad.
Floppy disks are making a comeback! (As AirTag cases). Photo: Elago
Everything old is new again, eventually. Music from the 1990s. Fashion from the 1980s. Facial hair from the 1970s. And now floppy disks, an important storage medium from the closing decades of the last century.
They’ve returned in the form of an Apple accessory from Elago — namely, a particularly clever case for an AirTag tracking device.
It’s retro-cool. It keeps your AirTag safe and secure. And best of all, the Elago Floppy Disk Case for AirTag is only $12.99 in the Cult of Mac Store.