Mobile menu toggle

5 takeaways from Apple’s latest Mac-tastic quarter

By

Mac FTW! Apple earnings Q2 2021: Sales of new M1 Macs powered Apple to yet another record-smashing quarter.
Sales of new M1 Macs powered Apple to yet another record-smashing quarter.
Photo: Wes Hicks/Unsplash CC

Apple did it again. It just announced a quarter where it didn’t just beat everyone’s expectations, it blew them away. The Mac had a phenomenal quarter, and so did iPhone and iPad.

But you don’t have to bury yourself in spreadsheets to get the lowdown on what it all means. Just read on.

Get all the tools you need to launch your startup (and succeed!) for just $50

By

Startups
Startups.com will help you make your dream a reality.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

All great businesses start with a great concept. But after that, it can be difficult to know where to go next. From establishing operations, building an effective marketing campaign and ultimately boosting sales, entrepreneurs face a million challenges.

And while you might know you need help, it can be difficult to know what questions to ask, or where to even start. This lifetime subscription to Startups.com Unlimited gives you the education, tools and advice you need to make your great idea a true business success.

Apple shines in hugely successful quarter

By

Apple earnings call 2Q 2021: Apple racks up another impressive quarter.
Apple racks up another impressive quarter.
Photo: Razvan Chisu/Unsplash CC

The first three months of 2021 brought a flood of revenue for Apple, up 54% from last year. And profits, too. The company had a successful quarter all around, with double-digit growth in iPhone, Mac, iPad, wearables and services revenue.

A shining star in the results was iPhone revenue, which increased by a whopping 65%. But other product categories increased by even higher percentages.

Activate your iPhone, iPad or Apple Watch flashlight from Control Center [Pro tip]

By

Enable your flashlight inside Control Center
Get a better view in the dark.
Image: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac

Control Center Pro Tips WeekWe want to help you master Control Center, one of the most powerful and underutilized features on Apple devices. Cult of Mac’s Control Center Pro Tips series will show you how to make the most of this useful toolbox on iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch and Mac.

Searching for something in a dark room? You can turn your iPhone, iPad and even your Apple Watch into a flashlight with just one tap inside Control Center. We’ll show you how.

Wait, couples setups aren’t a thing, are they? [Setups]

By

Harmonious his-and-hers setups? Aww.
Harmonious his-and-hers setups? Aww.
Photo: thateconomistguy@Reddit

OK, maybe it’s a tad premature to freak out over couples’ setups being some sort of thing now. After all, the sample size here is just one, and we have no intention of carrying out any kind of exhaustive and exhausting survey or study on the matter.

Redditor thateconomistguy presents a “couples study space” where he and his girlfriend pore over economics research side by side under the frames in which they plan to display their upcoming master’s degree diplomas.

Quickly capture voice memos with this Control Center shortcut [Pro tip]

By

Use Voice Memos with this Control Center shortcut
Don't miss the chance to save important info.
Image: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac

Control Center Pro Tips WeekWe want to help you master Control Center, one of the most powerful and underutilized features on Apple devices. Cult of Mac’s Control Center Pro Tips series will show you how to make the most of this useful toolbox on iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch and Mac.

Did you know you can quickly capture a voice memo or audio recording with a simple Control Center shortcut? It’ll save you having to hunt down the Voice Memos app, or from having to place another unnecessary icon on your Home screen that you might not need every single day.

We’ll show you how to get set up.

Apple investors prepare for another boffo quarter

By

Apple’s financial results were all the company could ask for.
Multiple products are expected to contribute to Apple announcing stellar financial results for last quarter.
Graphic: Cult of Mac

Wall Street thinks Apple recently finished an amazing quarter. If the analysts are right, the company will reveal on Wednesday the results of a January-through-March period with significant revenue growth in all its products, both hardware and services.

These Bluetooth earbuds are a great, affordable alternative to AirPods at just $25

By

bluetooth earbuds
No need to break the bank with these great Bluetooth earbuds.
Photo: Sound Sense

It’s pretty hard to argue against the quality of AirPods and AirPods Pro — especially if you’re a fan of Apple products. Unfortunately, they come with a pretty hefty price tag. And while reviewers across the board can make the argument that they come loaded with premium features, you can find similarly high-quality earbuds for a fraction of the price.

These Sound Sense Bluetooth Earphones + Portable Charging Box are a great AirPods alternative, offering both high-quality sound and 30 hours of playback off a single charge.

Russia fines Apple $12 million over App Store complaint

By

Apple in Russia
Apple is accused of exploiting its market position.
Photo: Caviar

Russia’s Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) has fined Apple $12 million for allegedly abuse its prominent position in the world of mobile apps.

It claims that Apple gives its own products a competitive advantage on iOS. Apple “respectfully [disagrees]” with the decision.

Easily manage Bluetooth devices inside Control Center [Pro tip]

By

Manage Bluetooth devices in Control Center
Managing wireless devices can be easy with Control Center.
Image: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac

Control Center Pro Tips WeekWe want to help you master Control Center, one of the most powerful and underutilized features on Apple devices. Cult of Mac’s Control Center Pro Tips series will show you how to make the most of this useful toolbox on iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch and Mac.

Quickly connect to Bluetooth devices by using Control Center on iPhone, iPad, and Mac. You won’t need to fiddle around inside Settings or System Preferences — just a couple of taps is all it takes to start pairing.

We’ll show you how.

Quickly toggle Do Not Disturb mode using Control Center [Pro tip]

By

Toggle Do Not Disturb in Control Center
The quickest, easiest way to silence your device.
Image: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac

Control Center Pro Tips Week

We want to help you master Control Center, one of the most powerful and underutilized features on Apple devices. Cult of Mac’s Control Center Pro Tips series will show you how to make the most of this useful toolbox on iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch and Mac.

Heading into an important meeting and need your iPhone to keep quiet? Don’t worry about turning off your device or messing around inside the Settings app; toggle Do Not Disturb mode with one tap in Control Center.

We’ll show you how on all Apple devices.

Era of crazy growth for AirPods may be over

By

Apple has big plans for the AirPods lineup.
AirPod sales have been growing at crazy speeds... until now.
Photo: Omid Armin/Unsplash CC

AirPods have been on a crazy upward trajectory since Apple introduced them in 2016. However, that unassailable rise may have finally stalled, according to a report from Nikkei Asia published Wednesday.

The publication claims that Apple has cut orders for AirPods by 25-30% after being stuck with excess inventory sitting around in warehouses. This is due to the ever-expanding competition Apple faces from other companies making their own rival wireless earbuds — many at a lower price point than Apple.

Toggle True Tone in no time from inside Control Center [Pro tip]

By

Toggle True Tone in Control Center
Don't waste your time inside System Preferences.
Image: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac

Control Center Pro Tips WeekWe want to help you master Control Center, one of the most powerful and underutilized features on Apple devices. Cult of Mac’s Control Center Pro Tips series will show you how to make the most of this useful toolbox on iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch and Mac.

Need to disable True Tone on your iPhone, iPad, or Mac? You could open the Settings app and dig around inside there for a few minutes until you find what you need. Or you could toggle the feature in an instant right inside Control Center.

We’ll show you how.

Australian antitrust watchdog threatens App Store regulation

By

TikTok continues to dominate the App Store in 2020.
App developers should be allowed to sell app purchases outside the App Store.
Photo: Kon Karampelas/Unsplash CC

Australia’s antitrust competition watchdog says that it may have to step in and regulate the App Store if Apple doesn’t do so first.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) wants app store operators — including both Apple and Google — to allow developers to take payments outside of the respective app stores. This would stop both companies taking commission from every app-related purchase in which apps are available through their online stores.

Tiger kings: New Apple podcast tackles the legend of Siegfried & Roy

By

Siegfried and Roy
An intriguing subject for Apple's next podcast.
Photo: Carolhi/Wikipedia CC

Netflix has Joe Exotic and Tiger King. Now Apple is making its own move into the, err, big cat showbiz entertainment genre with a podcast on pop culture icons Siegfried & Roy.

The forthcoming Apple podcast will chronicle the career of the famous German-American entertainers, who were known for their Las Vegas shows featuring white lions and tigers. Siegfried Fischbacher died in January. His partner, Roy Horn — who was famously mauled by a tiger in 2003 during the duo’s live show — died last year due to coronavirus.

SanDisk’s 2-in-1 flash drive lets iPhone, Mac, iPad securely exchange files [Review]

By

SanDisk iXpand Flash Drive Luxe review
The SanDisk iXpand Flash Drive Luxe has both USB-C and Lightning connectors for maximum compatibility.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

The SanDisk iXpand Flash Drive Luxe includes both Lightning and USB Type-C connectors so it plugs into almost any computer. You can easily access the same collection of files from an iPhone, Mac or iPad without resorting to iCloud, etc. Even better, the drive is small and comes in an all-metal casing.

I tested the iXpand Luxe with multiple devices. Here’s its strengths and weaknesses.

$40 fitness watch offers 15 different health-tracking features

By

fitness watch
This robust fitness watch is an affordable Apple Watch alternative.
Photo: Smart Fit

If there’s one thing you should get a handle on, it’s your overall wellness. An Apple Watch works great for that, but you don’t necessarily need to spend the same amount of cash to get a robust fitness tracker. The Smart Fit Multi-Functional Wellness & Fitness Watch offers 15 high-tech features to help you monitor stats that will help you meet your fitness goals.

Twelve South Forté elevates iPhone 12 MagSafe charging

By

Twelve South Forté is available now from Apple stores and Apple.com
The Twelve South Forté is a new iPhone 12 magnetic stand that also charges at 15 watts.
Photo: Twelve South

iPhone 12 users can take advantage of the built-in MagSafe charger with the Twelve South Forté. This stand quickly powers up the handset while also raising it up so it’s ready to be used hands free.

Apple likes the design enough to put it on Apple Store.

Apple AR glasses might not arrive as soon as we thought

By

Apple AR glasses might not be unwieldy.
Apple AR glasses are reportedly holding in the prototype stage.
Illustration: Apple

Apple’s much-rumored AR glasses reportedly suffered a setback and might not be out as soon thought. The wearable augmented-reality accessory could have gone into production in the first quarter of 2022, but that’s now supposedly unlikely.

Why you won’t see App Tracking Transparency prompts immediately

By

App Tracking Transparency will be part of iOS 14.5, iPadOS 14.5 and tvOS 14.5. It’s already showing up in betas.
Developers get to say when the feature goes live. But there's a catch.
Graphic: Cult of Mac

Apple debuted iOS 14.5, with its App Tracking Transparency feature, on Monday. But if you updated your iPhone or iPad, and haven’t seen a flurry of alerts about apps wanting to track you, don’t be concerned. The controversial privacy feature is working as advertised.

That’s because the new privacy tracking prompt, which asks users if they want to allow an app to track them on other companies’ apps and websites, will only show up when a developer agrees for the feature to go live on their specific app. Until they push it live, they’re blocked from tracking users via Apple’s Identifier for Advertisers (aka IDFA).

Extend battery life by using Low Power Mode in Control Center [Pro tip]

By

Activate Low Power Mode in Control Center
Enable Low Power Mode to get you through a long day.
Image: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac

Control Center Pro Tips WeekWe want to help you master Control Center, one of the most powerful and underutilized features on Apple devices. Cult of Mac’s Control Center Pro Tips series will show you how to make the most of this useful toolbox on iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch and Mac.

Worried your iPhone or iPad battery isn’t going to last you all day? Activate Low Power Mode inside Control Center to minimize how much energy your device is consuming when it’s not being used. It’s super-simple to use, won’t get in your way, and it makes a big difference.

We’ll show you how and explain a similar feature — Power Reserve — that you can activate on Apple Watch.