This home automation post is brought to you by SwitchBot.

These days, people control more and more aspects of their lives remotely through apps. And it’s no longer just “smart” devices like wired doorbells, thermostats and lights. Even your not-so-smart devices can join the party.

Now, with SwitchBot products, you can control many of your ordinary, old-fashioned appliances and use them with home-automation systems like Siri, Amazon Alexa and Google Home.

Join the One Dollar Club

And even better, right now you can try SwitchBot for just a buck by joining the One Dollar Club.

SwitchBot makes about a dozen products. Today we’ll focus on two, the SwitchBot Bot smart switch and the SwitchBot Hub Mini smart remote. They can be used separately or together.

Facebook and Instagram have added the ability to hide likes and view counts — a feature that’s been in the works for a while. You can block counts on your own posts and well as on those from others.

We’ll show you how to enable the setting inside Facebook and Instagram for iPhone and iPad.

The popular Kingdom Rush game is getting rebooted as a medieval fantasy RPG with a storyline. Legends of Kingdom Rush is coming June 11 exclusively to Apple Arcade for iPhone, Mac and more.

Choose your heroes to fight creeps and save the world.

The Mosquito Coast, the bold Apple TV+ potboiler about a family on the run from the law, wraps up its impressive first season this week with the end of the road — a few roads actually — in sight.

It’s a gripping finale that will leave you breathlessly waiting for the show’s just-announced second season.

Whether it’s the classic Peanuts holidays specials or newer series like Snoopy in Space, Apple TV+ is the home of all things Charlie Brown, Snoopy and the gang these days.

Debuting later this month will be a great new addition to the collection: A star-studded feature documentary that tells the story of Peanuts and its impact. Check out the trailer below.

Redditor StevenJ95 recently moved from an apartment to a house, allowing him to have a new home office. For the first time. He’s got room enough in there for his MacBook Pro, his Samsung curved ultrawide monitor and even his Tesla Model S, Cybertruck and Supercharger.

OK, those last three are two diecast model cars and a cute little desktop Tesla charger for phones and such. But he does have a real Tesla Model 3 — which he sensibly parks elsewhere — as well as a lot of enthusiasm for the brand, judging by how he decorates his setup.

Pick up Anker’s awesome 5-in-1 USB-C hub and charger on Amazon today and get a generous $40 off the usual price.

The PowerPort hub keeps your iPad, MacBook and more topped up while allowing you to connect up to four USB devices and a 4K monitor over HDMI. It’s now at its lowest-ever price for a limited time only.

If you’re always looking for new apps to boost your creativity and improve your workflow, check out Setapp. This service helps boost Mac and iPhone productivity via a curated collection of more than 210 apps that cover nearly every need.

Typically retailing for $119, a year-long subscription to Setapp is now available for just $69 (42% off its normal price). With it, you get full access to all the great Mac apps in Setapp’s impressive library.

Former Apple design boss Jony Ive has hired at least four of his former Cupertino colleagues to work at his LoveFrom design firm, according to The Information.

Since leaving Apple in 2019, Ive reportedly hired Chris Wilson, Patch Kessler, Jeff Tiller and Wan Si. All four worked with Ive in Apple’s design team. Wilson created GUI elements such as icons and menus. Kessler worked in product design and helped create the MacBook Force Touch trackpad. And Tiller is a communications specialist who worked for the Apple design team.

The latest hire is Wan, who designed on app icons, home screens and buttons.

With Lisey’s Story, Apple TV+ officially enters the Stephen King business, a step every streaming service must eventually take. The new miniseries, based on King’s novel of the same name, just so happens to boast an astonishing pedigree. So the inevitable move reads less like calculation and more like certainty for once.

This is a miniseries that, at least initially, looks like it’s firing on all cylinders.

What does Apple’s oft-discussed, never-shipped AirPower charging pad have in common with Baron Samedi, the voodoo priest from the 1973 James Bond movie Live and Let Die? Two things predominantly: 1) People think they’re folklore until they actually appear, and 2) They seemingly can’t die.

That’s right: After dodging death more times than Evel Knievel, a new Bloomberg report claims that AirPower is back on. Again. Or, at the very least, the project still has a heartbeat.

Pick up Apple’s official MagSafe Wallet for iPhone 12 on Amazon today to enjoy a rare discount of up to $9.45. The saddle brown option can be yours for just $49.55 — down from $59. Choose California poppy instead for $54.99.

Amazon is also still offering $5 off the official MagSafe Charger.

Apple is planning some exciting new additions for its iPad line. According to Bloomberg, Apple plans to bring wireless charging to the iPad Pro, along with the first iPad mini redesign in six years.

The wireless charging iPad will supposedly debut in 2022. The redesigned iPad mini — complete with narrower bezels and possible removed Home button — will meanwhile arrive later this year.

This year’s Amazon Prime Day kicks off on June 21, but as usual, Amazon is offering some deals well in advance. For a limited time only, Prime subscribers can bag smart Fire TV sets from as little as $99.99.

Get yours before they’re gone to save up to $120!

We’re spending more time online than ever before — and between all your different accounts for entertainment, productivity and communication, it’s incredibly easy to fall victim to a security breach. In fact, there were 2,935 reported breaches in the first three quarters of 2020, more than ever previously reported.

Apple moved to address many of the privacy concerns raised after the release of AirTags. The item trackers launched with anti-stalking features, but a new firmware update is tightening them up further.

AirTags will start more quickly warning people if they’re being used to follow someone. And an Android app that can detect these trackers is in development.

If you’re going away this summer and leaving your home in the hands of someone else, you might want to give them control of your HomeKit devices. And it’s really easy to do that inside the Home app.

Here’s how to invite anyone with an iPhone, iPad or Mac to control your smart home gadgets as a guest.

Turn your iPad Pro into a desktop computer almost anywhere with the Satechi Aluminum Stand & Hub. It folds to be easily carried, but opens to hold up the tablet and provide a USB-A port, HDMI port and more.

Keep your AirTag protected and secured to almost anything with the simple, stylish and affordable SwitchEasy Skin.

Made from sturdy silicone, the Skin is non-toxic and environmentally friendly. It shows off both sides of your AirTag while allowing you to easily attach it to backpacks, purses, suitcases and more.

Bag yours today for as little as $12.99.

Want to capture a low-light photo without using the Night mode feature on newer iPhone models? It’s real easy to turn off right inside the built-in Camera app. We’ll show you how.

Apple employees are expected to return to the office this autumn. A memo sent to employees says they should plan to be on the office three days a week, if not more. That includes the company headquarters.

The change comes as COVID-19 infection rates in the U.S. have fallen dramatically in recent weeks.

A simple copy-and-paste app called Paste Keyboard shot to the top of the App Store charts this week after languishing in obscurity for years.

Made by 28-year-old South Korean developer Techin Park, the keyboard app hitched a ride on TikTok’s massive success — and then dethroned it as the most popular app in the United States.

“Everyone is curious how such [a] simple idea, copy and paste, has trumped the almighty TikTok in app rank,” Park told Cult of Mac. “Copy and paste is a feature we all use at least once daily. Not many think it’s special. But in reality, increasing efficiency [when it comes to] how we copy and paste can save a lot more of our time than we possibly think.”

And, apparently, score you crazy numbers of downloads, too.

There are so many productivity-boosting apps out there, it can be difficult to choose just one when it comes to the functionality you want. Whether you want the perfect communication tool, an easy-to-use video editing app or a bunch of different things in between, the cost of multiple subscriptions can really add up. And it gets worse if you want to run Windows apps on your Mac.

Luckily, there’s The All-Star Mac Bundle Featuring Parallels Pro. This bundle includes five award-winning apps that cover a wide range of functions, from productivity to contact management, cybersecurity to PDF navigation. And the headline app lets you run Windows apps on your Mac.

This bundle is on sale for just $49.99. That’s 94% less than the total value, which is $876. Even better, you can get an additional 30% off with code ALLSTARMAC for a limited time.

Keep your iPhone, iPad, Mac and more topped up and connected with generous discounts on Amazon Basics charging cables and USB-C hubs.

Prices start at just $6.31 for a three-foot fast charging cable, while a 30W USB-C charger with GaN technology can be yours for $17.29. Amazon’s 3-in-1 USB-C hub is down to just $25.49.

The discounts are good for a limited time only, so enjoy them while you can.

This year’s iPhones will debut in the third week of September, although that date could “push out into early October” due to “continued product model tweaks,” says Wedbush analyst Dan Ives.

In a new note to clients, Ives gives his expectations for the debut of the next-gen iPhones — as well as a forecast of Apple’s expectations for the handsets. If he’s accurate, Apple’s expecting some very big things indeed for the iPhone 13.