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Whew! Trump tariffs won’t hit iPhone, Mac and other electronics. [Updated]

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The iPhone is free from Trump tariffs
The iPhone is free from Trump tariffs.
Photo: Google Gemini/Cult of Mac

In a tremendous turnaround, President Donald Trump removed the hefty tariffs he’d imposed on phone, computers and many other electronics being imported into the United States. The change, which came late Friday, should prevent price hikes that Apple, HP, Dell, etc. would likely have had to charge customers to pay for the import taxes.

There will reportedly also be no tariffs on processors, TVs, solar panels, flash drives and removable memory cards — no matter what country they are made in.

Update: The Trump administration said Sunday that it only provided electronics with temporary tariff relief.

Today in Apple history: Apple co-founder quits and cashes in his stake for $800

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Ron Wayne: today, and when he co-founded Apple in 1976
Ron Wayne today and when he co-founded Apple in 1976.
Photo: Ron Wayne

April 12: Today in Apple history: Apple co-founder Ron Wayne quits and cashes in his stake for $800 April 12, 1976: Apple’s third co-founder, a former Atari colleague of Steve Wozniak’s named Ron Wayne, cashes in his Apple shares for just $800.

Wayne, who owns a 10% stake in the company, throws in the towel after worrying that he doesn’t have the time or energy to properly invest in Apple. He later receives an extra $1,500 check to seal the deal. When he cashes it, he loses out on an investment that could have been worth billions.

“I was 40 and these kids were in their 20s,” Wayne told Cult of Mac decades later, referring to Wozniak and Steve Jobs. “They were whirlwinds — it was like having a tiger by the tail. If I had stayed with Apple I probably would have wound up the richest man in the cemetery.”

Find great new recipes with Apple News+ Food

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Find Great Recipes in Apple News
Check out its big catalog of dinners, lunches, brunches and everything in-between.
Image: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac

Apple News+ Food is a great way to find recipes on your iPhone. It gives you personal recommendations and offers dozens of filters to find all kinds of recipes, from easy slow-cooker fare to gluten-free concoctions. Plus, all the recipes are nicely formatted, with easy-to-read instructions. And you can save recipes you like for later to build up a personal catalog of go-to dishes.

It’s a very well-thought-out addition to an Apple News+ subscription, a tasty complement to the service’s news stories, magazine features and daily puzzles. Apple is slowly but surely replicating all the great features of traditional newspapers.

Here’s how to get cooking with Apple News+ Food. Keep reading or watch our hands-on video.

Get this top-rated PDF editing software for the best price on the web

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Photo of a computer with UPDF Pro PDF etiro on the screen, with a keyboard and other accessories on the desk.
Never struggle to edit a PDF again with this top-rated software.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

Whether you use a Mac or any other operating system, there is a universal truth we all know: Editing PDFs can be one of the most frustrating tasks on earth. The top-rated UPDF Pro app can make working with the file format easier, and lifetime subscriptions are on sale for just $47.97 (regularly $149.99).

That’s the best price on the web — and more than two-thirds off the regular price of this excellent PDF editor.

These wild gaming light bars look like antennas [Setups]

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Govee light bars
Those sticks on either side of the display are Govee Gaming Light Bars just behind the Logi speakers.
Photo: [email protected]

Every so often a computer setup on social media throws me for a loop with some odd visual — and it’s often related to desirable gear. Today’s M4 Mac mini workstation looks like it keeps a pair of walkie-talkies in the mix. But they’re actually computer speakers with tall, stick-like Govee light bars for gaming sitting right behind them. The way the light bars stick up makes them looks like antennas.

Apple Watch SOS saves desperate swimmer swept out to sea [Update: Video]

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Apple Watch Emergency SOS
Apple Watch Emergency SOS leads to a dramatic helicopter rescue Down Under.
Photo: Surf Life Saving NSW

In a harrowing incident off the coast of Australia, an experienced swimmer’s routine morning body surfing session turned potentially deadly after riptides took him out to sea. Fortunately, 49-year-old Rick Shearman remembered the SOS feature on his Apple Watch Ultra. Using it led to a dramatic helicopter rescue that saved his life on July 13, 2024.

Update: Apple Australia’s YouTube channel posted a new video Thursday, below, dramatizing Shearman’s rescue. It recreates his desperate SOS call, his struggles amid huge swells and the dramatic relief when the rescue helicopter appears overhead. The video only lasts a minute, but by the end, with music swelling, it might bring you to tears.

Jon Hamm lives his best lie in edgy drama Your Friends and Neighbors [Now streaming!]

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Your Friends & Neighbors trailer
That fancy gate looks an awful lot like jail bars.
Photo: Apple TV+

A handsome and charming hedge fund manager gets fired and turns to a life of crime, stealing from his well-heeled neighbors by night — inadvertently uncovering their surprisingly dangerous secrets. That’s the gist of the entertaining trailer Apple TV+ dropped recently for drama Your Friends & Neighbors. Starring Jon Hamm, Olivia Munn and Amanda Peet, it debuts April 11.

And get this — Apple has so much confidence in the new show, it green-lighted the second season before the first one even aired.

Update: Your Friends & Neighbors started streaming on Apple TV+ on Friday (actually Thursday evening, per the streamer’s usual practice). Reviews so far are good. The Daily Beast said Hamm aand Peet “are at the top of their game” in the show. For NPR, the drama brought to mind John Cheever’s classic novels about the soullessness of American suburbs. And Deadline said the series “combines social commentary, dark humor, twisty relationships and a murder mystery.” And the already planned season two might be darker in tone.

Save on an AirTag-like tracking card that slides right into your wallet

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An iPhone locating a GPS wallet tracker card
Pick up a three-pack of these wallet-friendly tracking cards today.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

The Slim GPS Tracker Card is built to slide into your wallet. It looks like a credit card but works with Apple’s Find My app. This slender AirTag alternative also proves perfect for attaching to luggage or a work ID.

It’s a thin, subtle tracker that works a lot like an AirTag. And right now, you can grab a three-pack on sale for just $64.99 (regularly $105).

M3 Ultra vs. M4 Max: Which Mac Studio chip should you pick?

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Mac Studio with M3 Ultra or M4 Max chip?
Pick wisely between the M3 Ultra and M4 Max Mac Studio.
Photo/Graphics: Apple/Rajesh Pandey

The Mac Studio reigns supreme as Apple’s most powerful desktop computer to date. However, when it comes to pitting the M3 Ultra Mac Studio vs. the M4 Max Mac Studio, which should you spring for?

The M3 Ultra processor packs up to a 32-core CPU and 80-core GPU. That’s a staggering amount of horsepower. However, the M4 Max uses a new CPU architecture, offering faster single-core performance.

So, which powerhouse Apple computer will suit your workflow better: Mac Studio with M3 Ultra or M4 Max? It depends on several factors.

AI-enhanced Siri could launch sooner than expected

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Image of an Apple logo and the words
We might not have to wait another year for the much-anticipated AI-enhanced Siri.
Image: ChatGPT/Cult of Mac

Apple’s release date for a much smarter version of Siri will reportedly come in the fall, according to sources inside the company. While that’s many months later than Apple originally hoped, it’s still far sooner than some people feared.

Perhaps a recent shakeup of the Siri management team is bearing fruit.

Why iPhone prices probably won’t rise soon

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Apple iPhone shipments
Plane loads of iPhones rushed to the U.S. recently.
Image: Cult of Mac/Google Gemini

New details emerged Thursday about Apple’s mad scramble to import millions of iPhones ahead of President Donald Trump’s tariffs. The company reportedly rushed 600 tons of iPhones into the United States from India last week. And, while there has been no word of a similar pre-tariff rush of iPhone imports from China, it seems unlikely Apple would overlook such an obvious move.

All this means there are surely even more iPhones, Macs, etc., stockpiled to meet U.S. consumer demand without price hikes — at least in the short term.

Affordable adapter adds 5 Ethernet to your MacBook [Review] ★★★★★

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Plugable USBC-E5000 USB-C to Ethernet adapter★★★★★
This is what you need to bring high-speed wired internet access to your MacBook.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

The Plugable USBC-E5000 5 Gbps USB-C Ethernet Adapter is as good as having an Ethernet port on your MacBook. Connect it to your cable, plug it into your Mac, and you no longer need to worry about the vagaries of Wi-Fi — you have a solid and secure wired internet connection.

Even better, it supports very fast internet connections for those with hefty connectivity demands.

I tested the affordable USB-C to Ethernet adapter in my home office and on the road to be sure it’s worth the money.

Today in Apple history: Steve Jobs loses control of the Mac

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Mac 128k Beauty Shot
Steve Jobs was distraught at being removed as general manager of the Mac division.
Photo: iFixit

April 10: Today in Apple history: Steve Jobs loses control of the Mac April 10, 1985: During a fateful meeting, Apple CEO John Sculley threatens to resign unless the company’s board of directors removes Steve Jobs as executive VP and general manager of the Macintosh division.

Sculley’s threat triggers a series of events that ultimately will result in Jobs’ exit. The marathon board meeting — which continues for several hours the next day — leads to Jobs losing his operating role within the company. However, the Apple board allows him to stay on as chairman. Things won’t exactly play out like that.

Apple Watch alerts catch life-threatening cancer just in time

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Apple Watch alerts
Apple's Vitals app noticed the repeatedly elevated heart rate that sent her to the doctor, resulting in the alarming diagnosis.
Photo: Apple

We hear plenty of stories about Apple Watch saving lives, but they rarely if ever involve cancer — until now. According to news from down under, Apple Watch’s persistent alerts about an elevated heart rate helped save a New Zealand psychiatrist’s life, leading to a diagnosis of acute myeloid leukemia just hours before potential organ failure.

Your summer needs a soundtrack — and the Skullcandy Terrain Mini speaker delivers

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A red Skullcandy mini speaker
Get a mini Skullcandy wireless speaker at 12% off with free shipping!
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

The Skullcandy Terrain Mini Bluetooth speaker is compact, rugged, waterproof and, most importantly, it sounds really good.

This isn’t some tinny little speaker that fades into the background. The Terrain Mini delivers bold, immersive sound with a clarity that surprises you the moment you hit play. It’s perfect for playlists on the go, whether that means jazz at sunset, bassy beats when the party’s jumping or sing-alongs around a bonfire.

And right now, you can get one for just $34.99 (regularly $39.99) with free U.S. shipping, while supplies last.

How to run DeepSeek and other LLMs locally on your Mac

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Run LLM locally on your Mac
Run DeepSeek or Meta's Llama locally on your Mac!
Graphics: Rajesh Pandey/CultOfMac

ChatGPT, Google’s Gemini and Apple Intelligence are powerful, but they all share one major drawback — they need constant access to the internet to work. If you value privacy and want better performance, running a large language model like DeepSeek, Google’s Gemma or Meta’s Llama locally on your Mac is a great alternative.

Think it sounds complicated? It’s easier than you think. With the right tools, you can run DeepSeek or any other popular LLM locally on your Mac with minimal effort.

Apple opens the toolbox with iPhone 16e DIY repair parts

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iPhone 16e standing up vertically on a pine table surface, used to illustrate an iPhone 16e review
Broke your iPhone 16e already? You can now order replacement parts directly from Apple.
Photo: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac

Apple now sells iPhone 16e repair parts for DIYers and enthusiasts. You can purchase replacement parts through Apple’s online Self Service Repair Store in the US and Europe.

The spare parts go on sale within 1.5 months of the iPhone 16e hitting retail stores.

Teens overwhelmingly choose iPhone but avoid Apple TV+

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Teens with iPhone
It can be difficult getting a picture of teens without an iPhone.
Photo: cotton bro studio/pexels

Android just can’t catch a break from U.S. teens. A survey found that 88% of that age group own an iPhone — a figure that’s held fairly steady for years.

What’s not positive news for Apple is how very few teens watch the Apple TV+ streaming service.

All the ways to run Windows 11 on a Mac

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Windows 11 in a macOS Remote Desktop
Connect to a Windows 11 PC from Remote Desktop on your Mac.
Screenshot: Apple/Microsoft

How can you run Microsoft Windows on a Mac these days? Fifteen years ago, the answer was simple: Just install Windows using Boot Camp. Today, you have loads of other options — even though Boot Camp itself does not work on Macs with Apple silicon processors.

You can use a virtual machine, pay to access Windows in the cloud from a web browser, use special software to get access to a couple of essential apps or simply Remote Desktop in to a PC. Which path forward is right for you? I’ll run through them all.

Sci-fi action comedy Murderbot stays true to its brilliant source novels [Apple TV+ trailer]

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Murderbot season 1 on Apple TV+
Murderbot is a lot lighter than you might expect.
Photo: Apple TV+

Murderbot is not a horror series. It’s sci-fi action comedy, no matter what the name implies — a new trailer for the upcoming Apple TV+ series makes that clear. And the trailer also shows that the plot sticks close to Martha Wells’ award-winning novels.

Watch the trailer for Murderbot season 1 that debuts in May to see for yourself:

Apple supplier in China weighs moving production to US

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manufacturing relocations due to tariffs
According to one supplier, some iPhone assembly could move out of China, and maybe even to the US.
Photo: Steve Jurvetson/Flickr CC

Apple supplier Luxshare started discussing potential manufacturing relocations due to tariffs with customers, including a possible production shift to the United States, according to a new report. It cited comments made by company chairwoman Wang Laichun during an analyst call Wednesday. The Chinese manufacturer assembles iPhones and AirPods for the tech giant.

“If there is a commercial guarantee and we are able to conduct a good evaluation, we do not rule out having some products being localized to meet the needs of the US market,” Wang stated, adding that the company would carefully weigh “long-term development and safety considerations” before making such moves.

Mac mini drives brilliant pair of well-mounted displays [Setups]

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Asus displays
The good-looking and symmetrical setup features a pair of Asus displays nicely mounted on arms.
Photo: [email protected]

Few things take a computer setup up a few notches more than a good monitor mount — especially when it features dual arms positioning dual displays well off the desk. Today’s M4 Mac mini setup enjoys a pair of solidly affordable 4K Asus displays mounted on a Huanuo Dual Monitor Stand with two highly adjustable arms for optimal positioning.

Mac shipments grow faster than any PC maker can match

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A 13-inch MacBook Air with the lid closed.
Demand causes Mac shipments to keep going up and up.
Photo: Lyle Kahney/Cult of Mac

Mac shipments continue a steady upward trend, increasing 14.1% year over year during the first quarter of 2025, according to a market research firm. While three PC makers sell more units than Apple, none can match Cupertino’s annual growth rate.

But the analysts note that tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump on computers brought into the United States will have “a direct inflationary impact” later in the year, potentially cooling demand for computers of all types.