With a recent study showing the virus that causes COVID-19 can live up to 28 days on glass and stainless steel, it might be time to double down on your disinfectant efforts. Remind me again what iPhones are made of … oh, yeah, glass and metal. Yikes!

One easy way to sanitize your iPhone and other small items is to use a device like the Mophie UV Sanitizer with a built-in wireless charger. While the company doesn’t specifically claim that the device kills COVID-19 dead, another recent study showed definitively that ultraviolet light can kill the potentially deadly virus.

At some point, “better safe than sorry” comes into play.

Recurring subscriptions have changed how we pay for digital content. And, while each service might only demand a couple of our hard-earned bucks at a time, the costs can quickly add up.

According to a report citing data from mobile measurement firm Adjust, the average person in the U.S. spends $20.78 a month on app subscriptions. And, given that this just an average, many spend a whole lot more than that.

If Spotify remains your main streaming music listening platform, there’s some good news: the streaming giant has finally released an iOS 14 widget that lets you quickly access recently played artists, podcasts, and albums in a single tap.

There are both small and medium-sized versions of the widget. The smaller of these shows your most recently listened to item. Meanwhile, the medium-sized widget offers a more luxurious, five most recent items array.

Had a little too much of the news lately? As 2020 winds down (at last!), there’s no better time to immerse yourself in historical events.

Living, as we do, in the age of binge-watching, you can stream history straight to your favorite viewing or listening devices. And this inexpensive subscription service makes sure you’re never lacking for something new and intriguing to explore.

Beyond saying it would be available in October, Apple didn’t announce a precise launch date for the iPad Air 4 when it showed it off at last month’s “Time Flies” event.

Eagle-eyed Apple watchers may have uncovered the official release date, with Best Buy’s Canadian website listing October 23 as the date it will go on sale. While that’s not conclusive on its own, it coincides with a previous date suggested by Apple tipster Jon Prosser.

Pick up a 10.5-inch iPad Pro and enjoy a whopping $299.01 off the usual price with Amazon’s biggest ever discount. You can pick up a 64GB model with Wi-Fi + Cellular connectivity for just $479.99.

Get yours before they’re all gone!

While it’s long been considered a fundamental spec for computers, Apple doesn’t publicize the amount of RAM its iPhones ship with. But newly published AnTuTu scores, referring to a popular Chinese benchmarking tool, appears to shed some light on this year’s iPhone 12 handsets.

They suggest that the iPhone 12 comes with 4GB of RAM. Meanwhile, the iPhone 12 Pro model comes with 6GB of RAM. If accurate, that would be an increase for the Pro models from the 4GB used for both variants of iPhone 11 last year.

Apple is currently facing a mini-scandal involving messaging app Telegram and posts made by pro-democracy protestors in Belarus, which Apple asked to be removed.

The posts concern political controversy in the country, following this year’s election of President Alexander Lukashenko. Lukashenko, who has been president of Belarus since 1994, supposedly won 80 percent of the vote in August. However, opposition has accused his party of rigging the election, with the fallout continuing several months later.

The release of two upcoming Apple accessories may have just been rescheduled. AirTags item trackers jumped up, but AirPods Studio headphones slid back, according to information supposedly leaking out of Cupertino on Wednesday.

Apple won’t include a wall charger or a pair of headphones with the upcoming iPhone 12 series. And it doesn’t stop there. The company no longer bundles these accessories with any handset ordered from the Apple Store. Even if they came in the box before.

The LiDAR Scanner in the iPhone 12 Pro makes Apple’s new flagship device an augmented reality powerhouse. It enables the handset to make an accurate 3D map of its location into which virtual objects can then be placed.

However, the scanner apparently has been added to the iPhone 12 Pro models in a “build it and they will come” strategy. Apple didn’t show many specific applications demonstrating the benefits of the tech during Tuesday’s launch event for the device.

There was something big missing from Tuesday’s iPhone 12 event. And, no, I’m not talking about AirTags, AirPods Studio, a new Apple TV, Apple Silicon Macs or live attendees.

The thing that went missing was an “S” at the end of the new iPhones’ names. The demise of the naming convention to indicate alternate-year iPhones marked the end of an era. And it’s totally a good thing.

UPDATE: Apple lowered the iPhone 12 price for T-Mobile/Sprint subscribers on Friday.

The prices Apple promotes for the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini aren’t for everyone. Subscribers to T-Mobile/Sprint must pay $30 more. The same goes for anyone who wants an unlocked unit.

This isn’t the case for the iPhone 12 Pro series.

Amazon is offering a whopping $400 off the 16-inch MacBook Pro for the first time. You can pick up an Intel Core i9 model with 16GB of RAM and 1TB of storage for just $2,399 — down from $2,799.

You can also save $300 on the Intel Core i7 model.

The iPhone 12 mini is, without a doubt, the iPhone I’ll be buying this year. In an upgrade cycle in which I fully expected the iPhone 12 Pro to win me over, the 12 mini emerged as my absolute favorite iPhone of Tuesday’s “Hi, Speed” event — and, perhaps, my most anticipated iPhone in years.

It’s a blend of classic iPhone and modern iPhone: the handset I’ve wanted since Apple devices started growing progressively bigger around the time CEO Tim Cook took the reins at Apple. Here’s what makes the iPhone 12 mini so compelling.

Prime Day (or at least the first day of this misnamed two-day shopping event) has come and gone, but that doesn’t mean you can’t find great deals on iPhone accessories. Cult of Mac Deals rounded up of some of the best to ease your post-Prime Day shopping withdrawal — and we’re still offering an extra 20% off almost everything in our store.

You can use coupon code “OCTSALE20” at checkout to get the extra savings on almost all of these must-have iPhone accessories. But the savings madness can’t go on forever. In fact, the extra 20% discount ends today.

Ready for an Apple Watch upgrade? Treat yourself to a new model on Amazon today and enjoy stellar Prime Day savings. A bunch of models — including Apple Watch 3 and Apple Watch 6 — are discounted.

Get yours before they sell out!

Mario Kart Tour recently turned one, marking its first year on iOS following its debut in September 2019. To celebrate, the game is offering a slew of anniversary themed celebrations — including new characters, courses, and an intriguing new Auto mode.

Auto Mode can be selected at the beginning of a race. You can then watch the characters speed round the course a bit like an extended demo mode. If you’re into taking screenshots of the game, it’s a good addition since you don’t have to worry about controlling the character.

Musician Jonathan Mann’s got more stickability than the new MagSage connector on the iPhone 12. Since gaining the attention of Apple fans with a song about Apple’s Antennagate PR disaster that even made Steve Jobs dance, Mann unleashes a new Apple-themed song every time the company does a media event.

His latest (mildly NSFW) song, “Does this iPhone have 5G,” sets to music some of the social media reactions to Apple’s Tuesday product showcase. Check it out.

Customers who buy a new iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Apple TV, or Mac receive three months of access to Apple Arcade, Apple’s subscription gaming service.

They can also receive 12 months of free Apple TV+ access — but there’s a catch.

Apple gave developers access to the final pre-release versions of iOS 14.1 and iPadOS 14.1 on Tuesday. This is an important last step before releasing these upgrades to the public.

However, we don’t yet know when they’ll be available for iPhone and iPad.

I imagine Tim Cook seething with rage.

And I imagine workers in Apple’s marketing department filled with a gut-churning mixture of righteous anger, paranoia and dread.

What could cause such unpleasantness inside the pristine glass walls of Apple’s spaceship HQ (or within remote employees’ home bubbles)? Tuesday morning, images of the entire iPhone 12 lineup and HomePod mini leaked just hours ahead of Apple’s “Hi, Speed” event.

Apple’s “Hi, Speed” event included the company’s most critical release of 2020: the much-anticipated iPhone 12 series. And a long-awaited cheaper HomePod, too.

Here are the most important takeaways from Tuesday’s event to put these new products in context.

It happens before every Apple event. The rumor mill, tech blogs (hello), and iPhone-obsessed nerds pin every hope, dream and desire on the next version of Apple’s devices.

More often than not, those desires are dashed, pushing those wants off to another event. While Apple’s iPhone 12 event showed the steps the company is taking toward iterating on its most popular device, there were also some things left on the wish list.

Apple’s beloved MagSafe branding made its return at Tuesday’s “Hi, Speed” Apple event. And, if it’s not quite like it was before, isn’t that the same as every single story about something being brought back from the beyond?

The new, different version of MagSafe will allow users to snap on accessories to the back of their iPhones. Think wallets, cases and — in a new move for Apple — its first official wireless charging pads for iPhone.