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Sometimes it’s all about the irresistible knick-knacks [Setups]

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computer setup decor
In this "after" photo, the cable management looks good, but commenters seem more interested in the cool decorative items.
Photo: [email protected]

This Mac mini and iPad Pro setup shows off a great cable management effort, complete with “before” and “after” photos. And yet all commenters wanted to know about — and I don’t blame them — are the cool knick-knacks. Mostly mood-lighting-related, they’re functional decor. And maybe everyone should have these three items in their setup!

4 young filmmakers show how iPhone 16 Pro Max does movies right

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iPhone 16 Pro Max does movies right
Four emerging filmmakers find a lot to love in shooting with iPhone 16 Pro Max.
Photo: Apple

Four talented Indian filmmakers push creative boundaries, showing how iPhone 16 Pro Max does movies right and demonstrating how Apple’s latest technology democratizes high-quality filmmaking, Apple said Tuesday in a feature story. The emerging auteurs’ work is part of the 2025 MAMI Select: Filmed on iPhone program.

Today in Apple history: Cupertino fires back after Microsoft’s ‘Apple tax’ ads

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Microsoft Windows
Microsoft ads take issue with Apple's premium prices.
Photo: Microsoft

April 16 Today in Apple history April 16, 2009: Apple hits back at Microsoft following an advertisement that criticizes Cupertino for failing to sell decent laptops for less than $1,000.

“A PC is no bargain when it doesn’t do what you want,” Mac PR director Bill Evans tells Bloomberg. “The one thing that both Apple and Microsoft can agree on is that everyone thinks the Mac is cool. With its great designs and advanced software, nothing matches it at any price.”

Get a 3-in-1 folding travel charger for just $25

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A photo shows the Aduro PowerUp Trinity three-in-one wireless charging station
Grab this three-in-one wireless charging station for a song.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

Aduro’s PowerUp Trinity 3-in-1 Charging Station is a folding wireless charger that can power up an iPhone, Apple Watch and AirPods at the same time. It looks a bit like Apple’s discontinued MagSafe Duo, but can do more — at a fraction of the price.

It can lie flat or fold into a triangle so you can look at your iPhone while it charges. It also packs up small, so it’s great for when you hit the road. And right now, it’s on sale for just $24.99.

Unlosable smart bottle with Find My doubles as iPhone stand — for a price [Review] ★★★

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Journey Reevus bottle with Find My★★★
You can track the bottle on Apple devices using Find My. If you leave it behind, you'll get alerts.
Photo: David Snow/Cult of Mac

Lost your water bottle again? Journey Reevus Insulated Stainless Steel Bottle could fix that, permanently — if you’re willing to pay for it. It’s pricey because it’s not just another insulated stainless steel bottle, but the first one that integrates with Apple Find My tracking and functions as a MagSafe iPhone stand. So at $90 (or $76.50 with launch discount), it’s kind crazy steep. But this Reevus smart bottle review finds it might actually be worth it, especially if you’re one of those people who carries around water bottles all the time and tends to lose them.

Save your iPhone and Apple Account by setting up a recovery contact

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Phone A Friend
Get help from a trusted person when you need it.
Photo: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac

If you ever lose access to your Apple Account or iPhone, you’ll be happy you set up a recovery contact in advance. Once you do, a trusted person can remotely unlock your iPhone for you if you can’t recall your password.

It only takes a few moments to set up — and could be a huge weight off your shoulders if you’re desperate, frustrated and just want to unlock your Apple account. Once you designate a recovery contact (and they accept), you can easily ask them for help.

Here’s how it works.

Colorful Beats Cables bring durability and style to Apple device charging

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Beats Cables launch
Here's a rapid red USB-C to USB-C cable running between a Pill speaker and a smartphone.
Photo: Beats

With Tuesday’s Beats Cables launch, Apple subsidiary Beats officially entered the charging accessories market with its first-ever collection of reinforced charging cables. They bring the brand’s signature style to an often overlooked but essential product category. Available at apple.com, new Beats Cables feature a tangle-free woven design specifically engineered to prevent fraying and increase durability.

New Chipolo Pop item tracker works with iPhone and Android

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Chipolo Pop tracker tag
The Chipolo Pop tracker tag comes in a rainbow of colors.
Photo: Chipolo

Unlike rival item trackers, the Chipolo Pop doesn’t force you to choose between iPhone and Android. You can find your misplaced keys or cat with either Apple’s Find My network or Google’s Find My Device.

Plus, the Bluetooth tracker tag comes in a range of colors.

Today in Apple history: Apple scrambles to fix doomed Apple III

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Apple III
The problems encountered by the Apple III sound strangely familiar.
Photo: Alker33/YouTube

April 15: Today in Apple history: Apple scrambles to fix doomed Apple III April 15, 1981: Apple CEO Mike Markkula defends the struggling Apple III computer with a surprisingly straightforward admission. The comment comes even as the company pushes an unorthodox “fix” for the Apple III motherboard, which tends to overheat due to a questionable design.

“It would be dishonest for me to sit here and say that it’s perfect,” Markkula tells The Wall Street Journal, after critics blast the new computer for its overheating motherboard. Apple’s official solution to the problem? Ask users to drop their Apple III from a height of 6 inches to reseat the chips.

Apple chooses Samsung for foldable iPhone OLED displays

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Folding iPhone concept
Folding iPhone concept
AI concept: ChatGPT/Cult of Mac

Apple chose Samsung Display as the exclusive supplier of OLED panels for its first foldable iPhone, expected to launch in 2026, according to a new report. The decision marks a departure from Apple’s typical multi-supplier strategy. It could help ensure high quality and reinvigorate the foldable OLED market.

Grab refurbished AirPods Pro 2 for less than $160

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AirPods Pro 2
Get your pair of refurbished AirPods Pro 2 at a discounted price!
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

We can’t say it often enough: AirPods Pro 2 are the best earbuds for any Apple fan. If you want to pick up a pair of these noise-canceling earbuds on the cheap, jump on this refurbished AirPods Pro 2 deal, which knocks the $249 list price down to just $159.99.

That’s $30 cheaper than the current best deal on new AirPods Pro 2.

3 ways to stop your Mac from sleeping

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Keep Your Mac Awake
I certainly can’t stay up all night, but my Mac can.
Image: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac

You can stop your Mac from sleeping if you want it to stay on indefinitely. This might prove handy if you find it locking when you don’t want it to, like during a class or meeting. You don’t need to wiggle the mouse every few minutes to keep the screen on.

There are a few different ways to set this up. The simplest and most permanent way is to disable sleep entirely in your Mac’s System Settings. However, if you just want a quick way to disable sleep temporarily, there’s a simple command you can enter in the Terminal. Or, if you want something more user-friendly and customizable, there’s a free app you can download that you can toggle on and off from your Mac’s menu bar.

Here are the three best solutions if you want to stop your Mac from sleeping.

How Apple gets AI training data without violating anyone’s privacy

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Apple Intelligence privacy
Apple explains how training its LLMs won’t be a user privacy nightmare.
Photo: Apple/Cult of Mac

Apple’s AI efforts don’t have to be hampered by its commitment to user privacy. A blog post published Monday explains how the company can generate the data needed to train its large language models without the privacy violations caused by Apple itself reading people’s emails or messages.

It’s an indirect, opt-in system that takes advantage of the small AIs the Apple builds into millions of users’ devices.

This portable 4K touchscreen monitor is simply the best [Review] ★★★★★

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Photo of Espresso 15 Pro touchscreen display for a review★★★★★
The Espresso 15 Pro looks stunning.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

The Espresso 15 Pro offers everything Apple users want in a high-end portable monitor. 4K? Yes. Gorgeous. Oh, yeah. Touchscreen? Got it. USB-C? Check.

It has an all-aluminum body that makes it look great from any angle. And as a bonus, it comes with an innovative stand that lets you position the screen where you want it, even above your notebook.

I used the Espresso 15 Pro display in my home office and when working remotely, and am simply blown away. Here’s why.

Find the excitement of Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown on your iPhone today

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Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown got ported to iPhone and Android
The thrilling Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown can now be played on iPhone and iPad.
Photo: Ubisoft

Ubisoft released Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown on Monday for iPhone, iPad and Android. The award-winning action-adventure platformer challenges players to use Time Powers to defeat time-corrupted enemies and save the land.

The game runs at 60 FPS on recent generations of mobile devices.

Old Thunderbolt displays keep up with new Studio Display [Setups]

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Thunderbolt Displays
This user loves the color reproduction on their Thunderbolt displays.
Photo: [email protected]

Have you ever run multiple displays with different resolutions? Today’s featured Mac mini setup sports older Apple Thunderbolt Displays (2.5K resolution, aka 2560 x 1440p) flanking a newer Studio Display (5K, or 5120 x 2880p). Seems like that might cause a touch of seasickness looking back and forth between them all the time — or maybe a sticky mouse cursor — but it doesn’t bother the user at all. For them, it’s all about the excellent color reproduction across the board.

Today in Apple history: Macintosh 512Ke further enhances the Mac

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The Macintosh 512Ke muddies the Mac waters just a smidge.
The 512Ke muddies the Mac waters just a smidge.
Photo: Vectronicsappleworld

April 14: Today in Apple history: Macintosh 512Ke launches April 14, 1986: The “low-cost” Macintosh 512Ke brings hardware upgrades — and a bit of confusion — to the low end of the Mac lineup.

The Mac 512Ke is an “enhanced” (hence the “e”) model of the Mac 512K. The upgrade addresses complaints that the original Mac lacked enough memory. The 512Ke adds a double-density 800KB floppy drive and a 128KB ROM to the Mac 512K formula.

Apple leads the global smartphone market

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iPhone 16e standing up vertically on a pine table surface, used to illustrate an iPhone 16e review
iPhone 16e helped propel Apple to the top of the world smartphone market.
Photo: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac

For the first time ever, Apple has claimed the global smartphone crown in the opening quarter of the year, thanks largely to the success of its iPhone 16e, according to data released Monday by a market analysis firm. With a strategic push into emerging markets and a rare off-cycle product launch, the tech giant surged past Samsung in Q1 2025 — a shift in the high-stakes battle for mobile dominance.

Apple sales grew during the period, while those of its chief rival Samsung dropped.

5 Mac accessories I can’t live without

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Image of a Mac with the word
Improve your Mac experience with these accessories.
Photo: Rajesh Pandey/CultOfMac

Apple makes the best desktop PCs and laptops. But I cannot say the same for its accessories. While I have been using Macs for more than a decade, I rely on these five Mac accessories made by third parties to enhance my experience.

The list ranges from a wireless keyboard to an ergonomic mouse to headphones that will amaze you with their noise cancellation. Read about my five favorite Mac accessories below.

Tariff relief for iPhone and Mac doesn’t last long

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AI painting of an iPhone, with the words
iPhones and Macs will eventually be slapped with reciprocal tariffs.
AI image: Midjourney/Cult of Mac

After the U.S. government seemed to exempt iPhones, Macs and other electronics from hefty tariffs Friday, a clarification issued Sunday by President Donald Trump revealed that’s not the case.

Trump said on Truth Social that his administration did not announce a tariff exemption Friday. Instead, the “existing 20% Fentanyl Tariffs” will still apply to electronics — with higher tariffs possibly coming soon.

Today in Apple history: Early iPad rumor gets Apple fans buzzing

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iPad Pro 2
According to a 2005 rumor, Apple planned to launch a 15-inch tablet.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

April 13: Today in Apple history: Early iPad rumor gets Apple fans buzzing April 13, 2005: The tech world gets excited when a sketchy rumor suggests Apple is building a tablet computer.

The Chinese-language report claims Quanta will build a 15-inch touchscreen tablet PC with detachable keyboard. Apple will supposedly ship the device in the first quarter of 2006. Things don’t turn out quite like that, but the rumor offers the first hint about Apple’s secret iPad project.

iPadOS 19 may finally blur the line between iPad and Mac

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M4 iPad Pro in hand
Will iPadOS 19 allow the iPad to live up to its potential?
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

The next big iPadOS overhaul will make the OS more like macOS. That’s what a new report claims, indicating Apple will focus on “productivity, multitasking and app window management.”

All these changes will make iPadOS behave closer to macOS than iOS.

The great iOS 19 squircles controversy [The CultCast]

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Image of iPhone with leaked iOS 19 Home Screen, along with
Why is funnier: stouter squircles or squabbling leakers?
Image: Cult of Mac

This week on Cult of Mac’s podcast: The latest video from Front Page Tech leaker in chief Jon Prosser gives us a closer look at what iOS 19 might look like. Its glossy UI elements and rounder “squircles” for app icons get us pondering the future. And the feud between Prosser and Bloomberg scoop machine Mark Gurman gets us laughing!

Also on The CultCast:

  • The iPhone 17 Pro might not look as different as previous rumors indicated.
  • The threat of rising prices due to tariffs propels some shoppers to Apple stores for a little (probably unnecessary 😬) panic buying.
  • On a related topic, if you thought Apple might move its manufacturing to the United States to avoid import tariffs, don’t hold your breath.
  • And finally, Griffin explains how you can do almost anything on your iPhone using voice commands.

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.