Apple is investing more than $400 million in affordable housing projects and homeowner assistance programs in California, the company said Monday.

This sizable contribution is part of a multiyear commitment by Apple to spend $2.5 billion fighting the California housing crisis. The money will “support thousands of Californians with first-time homebuyer assistance or new affordable housing units.”

Sometime in 2021 Apple will be the world’s first $2 trillion company, predicts Wedbush analyst Dan Ives in his latest note to clients.

Ives — one of the most bullish of Apple investors — believes that Apple’s “5G tailwinds and services momentum” has the potential to push it past the $2 trillion market cap.

Woot’s spectacular sale on refurbished iPhones is back, with big savings to be had on a wide range of models. Prices start at a mere $99.99 for iPhone 6s and rise to just $769.99 for iPhone 11 Pro Max.

This sale is good for today only. Enjoy it while you can!

Mark Zuckerberg introduced large numbers of people to the idea of taping over their MacBook’s camera when, in 2016, he uploaded a photo that revealed a few of his security measures.

But Apple says using camera coverings can hurt MacBooks. In a new support document, Apple notes that covering the MacBook’s built-in FaceTime camera could interfere with the computer’s ambient light sensor, which is located next to the camera. The sensor controls True Tone and the Mac’s automatic brightness feature.

Apple has acquired the movie rights to an adaptation of graphic novel Snow Blind, starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Deadline reported over the weekend.

The movie (and the 2017 graphic novel it was based on) is about a teenager, Teddy, who finds out that his family have been in the Witness Protection Program for years. Now someone after revenge has managed to locate them.

Germs are a major concern these days, so it’s important to stay vigilant. That’s especially true of one of the biggest vectors for germs in daily life: our phones. This sleek, simple desk accessory makes keeping your mobile device germ-free.

Today, the App Store is a part of every iPhone owner’s life — but it almost didn’t happen. Get the story behind that near-miss, plus some other fascinating App Store factoids, in this week’s issue of Cult of Mac Magazine.

It’s free, and it also packs the latest Apple news and how-tos. Plus, this week we’ve got reviews of three new Apple TV+ offerings, including Tom Hanks’ World War II movie, Greyhound.

Download it now and enjoy it on your favorite iOS device. (Or use the links below to read in your browser.)

Even if you’re stuck at home, learning a new language offers a passport to the wider world. Picking up a new language happens fastest with full immersion — and technology can make that happen virtually.

Sam Rosenthal held onto his determination to make Where Cards Fall for almost a decade. And it’s paid off, as the game garnered a 2020 Apple Design Award.

In a lengthy interview with Apple, the developer shared insights into the design process for this title. Including how he tends to think of games as buildings the players move around in.

Aspiring developers might learn from his experiences.

This Mac security post is presented by Intego.

Macs have a reputation for being less vulnerable than PCs to online threats like malware and viruses, but your machine is certainly not invulnerable. Far from it, actually. It can pay to invest in a suite of security apps like those in Intego Mac Premium Bundle X9 to protect your Mac from a variety of online threats.

This week on The CultCast: We’ve got more details on the 14-inch MacBook Pro, and Apple Maps gets a new feature that blows us away! Plus: We talk our two-week impressions of iOS 14, and a major Hollywood film is coming to Apple TV+.

Our thanks to Squarespace for supporting this episode. Easily create a beautiful website all by yourself, at Squarespace.com/cultcast. Use offer code CultCast at checkout to get 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain.

It’s been almost five years since Apple brought picture-in-picture to iPad, and yet the feature still isn’t supported by the official YouTube app. But there are other ways to enjoy PiP with YouTube videos.

Discover two of the best in this how-to guide.

Creaks starts with strange noises behind the walls. Soon, you’re confronting avian folk and deadly furniture monsters. This game, which debuted Friday on Apple Arcade, is a puzzle adventure with hand-painted visuals and eerie original music.

Do you remember the world of software distribution before the App Store? It was a fragmented nightmare that made it very difficult for many companies, particularly smaller ones, to get their products out. The App Store changed all that, while also showing the world that the iPhone could have a different “killer app” depending on the user.

With today marking the App Store’s birthday, here are 10 factoids you (probably) didn’t know about Apple’s mobile app marketplace.

Foxconn has reportedly started trial production on polarized, semi-transparent AR lenses that could be used for Apple Glass, according to The Information.

The Friday paywalled report says the lenses are between one and two years away from entering mass production. However, they have already passed the prototyping phase, having been in development for three years.

It’s always possible to squeeze a little more out of your Mac. The trick is to get the right apps.

We rounded up some of the best deals on the best Mac software for productivity, creativity and overall utility. Grab ’em while they’re hot!

The latest Apple Pay summer offer promises customers half off the cost of Snapfish photo books, cards, and more — so long as they pay for their purchase using Apple’s mobile payments service and a special code.

Snapfish is a web-based photo-printing service that lets users upload images and have them printed out as photo albums, greetings cards, and the like. The latest Apple Pay deal (one of the best yet) gives customers 50% off purchases through July 15.

Amazon’s Deal of the Day offers big discounts on 2019 MacBook Pro units. You can save up to $449 on renewed 13-inch models, which look and work as good as new. Get yours for as little as $1,149.99.

Apple will ship its first Apple Silicon-based MacBook Air late 2020 or early 2021, reliable Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo claimed in a note published Friday.

Kuo has previously said a 13.3-inch Apple Silicon MacBook Pro will ship before the end of the year. However, this is the first time he has talked about the future of the MacBook Air line.

The (potentially) best news of all? Kuo thinks the switch from Intel CPUs could make the MacBook Air even cheaper than current models.

It’s a busy day for Apple TV+ as two new shows and the Tom Hanks World War II drama Greyhound all made their debut Friday on Apple’s streaming TV service.

Check out the trailers — and Cult of Mac‘s reviews — below.

Shipments of Apple Macs increased a full 36% year-over-year during the second quarter of 2020, according to a market-research firm. The growth is pegged to individuals, companies and schools buying computers to make remote work and learning possible during the COVID-19 pandemic.

A concept artist created a video that breathes life into many of the iPhone 12 rumors that are circulating. It could give a real look at what Apple will unveil in autumn, including at least one significant design change.

Watch the video now:

Apple seeded what might be the last version of iOS 13 and the iPad equivalent exclusively to developers on Thursday. This “golden master” update brings the debut of CarKey, allowing iPhones to unlock or start vehicles. There are other new features as well, not just bug fixes.

In addition, what are apparently the final betas of watchOS 6.2.8 and tvOS 13.4.8 went to developers too.

iOS 14 makes it easier than ever to keep a tidy Home screen, thanks to the ability to hide Home screen pages and its brilliant new App Library. Here’s how to send new downloads to the App Library automatically so that you don’t have to worry about cleaning up yourself later on.

After giving developers access to iOS 14 and iPadOS 14 betas in June, Apple on Thursday let the general public test prerelease versions, too.

The are significant upgrades, packed with features that won‘t be available in non-beta form until autumn.