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Pro tip: Speed up user account switching in macOS Big Sur

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macOS Big Sur fast account switching
Make sharing a Mac a little easier.
Image: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac

Pro-tip-4If you share a Mac with others and are frequently switching between user accounts, you’ll be pleased to know you can do that quicker than ever in macOS Big Sur, thanks to a new feature called fast user switching.

You’ll need to set it up yourself because Apple doesn’t enable it by default, but it’s super-simple to do. We’ll show you how.

Bucardo Sport Apple Watch band plays as hard as you do [Review]

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Bucardo Sport Apple Watch band review
The Bucardo Sport is a Apple Watch band ready to hit the court when you are.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

Apple Watch is meant to be worn while exercising, and the Bucardo Sport is a Watch band created with athletes in mind. But it also looks great for everyday use.

The sporty Apple Watch band comes in a range of colors, and it’s made of performance fabric. Find out what it’s like to wear.

‘Batterygate’ rumbles on as European class-action suit demands damages

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iphone
Issue affected older iPhones.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Blame an iOS update if you’d like, but Apple’s iPhone speed-throttling saga continues to progress slowly. The latest update is legal action being leveled at Apple in Europe in the form of a class-action lawsuit for iPhone 6 and 6s series devices sold in Belgium, Spain, Italy and Portugal.

The advocacy group behind the suit, Euroconsumers, said Wednesday that it is bringing a case to cover up to 2 million handsets that fall under this category. “Consumers are increasingly upset by products wearing out too quickly, the iPhone 6 models being a very concrete example of that,” Els Bruggeman, head of policy and enforcement at Euroconsumers, said in a statement.

Apple’s first 27-inch, 5K Retina iMac is now officially vintage

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iMac Retina 5K
This was a beast of an iMac back in the day. It's still pretty great now.
Photo: Apple

Apple’s first Retina 5K iMacs, launched in late 2014, are officially considered vintage by Apple.

The Retina 5K, 27-inch iMacs were a game-changer for Apple. At the time, 27-inch iMacs were still relatively new, just a few years old. The 5K overhaul was an astonishing leap forward, however — making it one of Apple’s most compelling new Macs in years.

Quickly learn SwiftUI to build beautiful apps for Apple devices

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SwiftUI Apps for Apple Platforms
Score two great courses that'll teach you the inner workings of Apple's go-to programming language.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

Building apps for mobile or desktop devices might seem like magic — heck, Apple even described its SwiftUI coding language as “magic.”

But anyone can do it, if they have some basic knowledge about languages like SwiftUI. This pair of courses offers an accessible but comprehensive entry point, so you can start working with Apple’s powerful tool for building apps.

Patched iOS vulnerability would have let users seize control of iPhones over Wi-Fi

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Airdrop ios iPad iPhone
Vulnerability relied on the tech that makes AirDrop work
Photo: Charlie Sorrel/Cult of Mac

A security vulnerability patched by Apple earlier this year could have allowed users to remote access an entire iPhone over Wi-Fi without the need for any user interaction, a security researcher has revealed.

Ian Beer, a researcher at Google’s vulnerability research unit Project Zero, shared details of the vulnerability Tuesday. He spent six months developing proof-of-concept exploits to prove its effectiveness. Fortunately, he doesn’t believe a similar exploit was ever utilized by hackers in the wild.

iPhone Game of the Year Genshin Impact pulls in almost $400 million in 2 months

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Genshin Impact
Genshin Impact is one of the year's most notable new games.
Photo: Genshin Impact

Genshin Impact is Apple’s pick for iPhone Game of the Year, despite only landing in the App Store at the end of September. That’s not its only impressive claim to fame, however. According to app analytics platform Sensor Tower, the open-world RPG generated close to $400 million in its first two months alone.

That averages more than $6 million a day across both iOS and Android — with Apple’s platform accounting for the majority of that spending.

These are Apple’s picks for the best apps of 2020

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Best of 2020 app award
For the first time, Apple created a physical award to hand out to winners.
Photo: Apple

As 2020 thankfully sputters to its conclusion, Apple has released its list of the year’s best 15 apps and games “notable for their positive cultural impact, helpfulness, and importance.”

The App Store Best of 2020 winners cover a multitude of areas — from the Zoom app that more or less defined the year of lockdown to streaming service Disney+ to a nifty sleep app.

Boost your resume with these online courses in our surprise Cyber Tuesday sale

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Cyber Tuesday, Resume-Boosting Courses: Make yourself more marketable with these online courses, all at big savings.
Take your nerd factor up a notch with these online courses, all at big savings.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

If you’re looking to learn a new skill before the year ends — and earn a fat promotion (or even a make a big career change) by 2021 — look no further than these four top online courses. Whether you want to learn to code or master Adobe, these four online courses are sure to give your resume the boost it needs to help you meet your goals.

For a limited time, you can get all four courses at a whopping 65% off the sale price by using promo code CMSAVE65 at checkout for Cyber Tuesday — so be sure to snag them now!

Apple recommends the best podcasts, books and audiobooks of 2020

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Apple names its best podcasts, books and audiobooks of 2020
These are some of Apple’s choices for best book or podcast of 2020.
Graphic: Cult of Mac

With the year winding down, Apple picked its favorite podcasts, books and audiobooks of 2020. The offerings “kept us entertained, made us think, provided a much-needed escape, or filled our hearts up,“ noted Apple.

All the recommendations are, of course, available through Apple Podcasts or Apple Books.

How to switch your Apple Watch to a new iPhone

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How to switch your Apple Watch to a new iPhone
Here’s how to get your Apple Watch ready for your new iPhone.
Photo: Cult of Mac

You just got a shiny new iPhone 12 and of course you want your Apple Watch to play nicely with it. You could reset the Watch to start out fresh, but there’s an easier way switch your Apple Watch to your new iPhone.

Here’s what you do.

Apple TV+ snaps up psychological thriller series Surface

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'The Morning Show' star Gugu Mbatha-Raw is coming to a new Apple TV+ show called 'Surface.'
The Morning Show star Gugu Mbatha-Raw is coming to a new Apple TV+ show called Called.
Photo: Apple TV+

Fans of Defending Jacob and Servant listen up: Apple has ordered a new psychological thriller series titled Surface. The show, which likely won’t debut on Apple TV+ until 2022, stars Gugu Mbatha-Raw, already known to Apple TV+ viewers as Hannah Shoenfeld in The Morning Show.

The series is written and exec-produced by Veronica West, who has previously worked on Mercy, Brothers & Sisters, Hart of Dixie and State of Affairs.

Cyber Monday deals are still here

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Desklab Portable Monitor: These hardware and software deals will set you up for success.
These hardware and software deals will set you up for success.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

There are a few quintessential things you need for any work-from-home setup — but sales and marketing professionals know there are a few special items required for that line of work.

Other than keen negotiation skills and the ability to communicate effectively, these hardware and software buys are just what you need to drive revenue and close the deal. Plus, for a limited time, you can enjoy these items on sale for an extended Cyber Monday.

Apple reportedly lobbied to ‘limit’ bill involving forced labor in China

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AllOfUS says Apple helps censorship in China
Apple does lots of business in China.
Photo: AllOfUs

Apple was one of several large companies that reportedly lobbied to weaken a bill that sought to bar U.S. companies from making products in China with the aid of forced Uighur labor, according to The New York Times.

The Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act passed the House with a 406-3 margin in September, and has the necessary support to pass the Senate. It aims to ban U.S. companies from importing products made in the Xinjiang region unless the manufacturers can prove they do not use forced labor.

Apple delivers millions of units of PPE to help battle COVID-19

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Apple delivers PPE
Apple has been working to battle the spread of coronavirus.
Photo: Apple

Apple has delivered millions of units of personal protective equipment to the Ministry of Health in Zambia to fight the spread of COVID-19.

In response to the coronavirus, Apple earlier this year started sending its charitable donations through the (Red) nonprofit to help the Global Fund provide critical support to health systems most threatened by the pandemic. This will continue through June 30, 2021.

Apple’s $129 MagSafe Duo charger could ship December 21

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MagSafe Duo
Should ship in time for the holidays.
Photo: Apple

Apple still hasn’t announced a date for its MagSafe Duo charger, which could stir fears among more nervous fans of a repeat of the much delayed, ill-fated AirPower charger of a few years back.

Have no fear, though: If an Apple reseller in Switzerland is to be believed, we don’t have too much longer to wait until the MagSafe Duo will be shipping.

Linux might come to M1 Macs with your help

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Linux on an M1 Mac is possible. With a lot of work.
A developer with decades of experience porting Linux to game consoles wants to make a Linux M1 Mac.
Photo: Cult of Mac

Hector Martin (aka marcan) wants to port a full, useful version of the Linux operating system to the new Macs running Apple Silicon, but he needs help.

He’s got the skills for it — he put Linux on a PlayStation 4, for example. But the developer wants assistance from the public bringing the operating system to Macs running the new M1 processor. Not technical help, but financial contributions.

RAVpower USB-C wall charger is ideal for the iPhone 12 [Review]

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RAVpower PD 30W USB-C Charger with Lightning Cable review
RAVpower’s USB-C wall charger and cable is just right for the iPhone 12.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

RAVpower PD 30W USB-C Charger with Lightning Cable can be the wall charger that iPhone 12 users need. It includes USB-C and USB-A ports, and fold-down electrical prongs. And it juices up iOS handsets as fast as possible — far quicker than Apple’s old 5W chargers. Plus, it even comes with a charging cable for use with older iPhones.

Read on for the results of my real-world testing of the wall charger and cable combo.

Save an extra 40% on these skill-building apps for Cyber Monday

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Best Skill-Building Apps: Learn something new and useful with these handy apps.
Learn something new and useful with these handy apps.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

If you’re like us, you’re probably already looking forward to next year and how it could be better — in more ways than one. If you’re interested in learning a new language or earning a new certification to beef up your resume, look no further than this roundup of skill-building apps and software.

With Cyber Monday pricing, you can get them for an extra 40% off with code CMSAVE40 for a limited time.

How to reset HomePod and HomePod mini to fix strange glitches

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How to reset HomePod and HomePod mini
Bring an unresponsive HomePod back to life.
Image: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac

Many of the glitches and frustrations you might encounter with HomePod and HomePod mini can usually be fixed with a simple factory reset. It’s easy to do and doesn’t take long, but Apple doesn’t make it immediately obvious how a reset is performed. So we’ll show you what you need to do.