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Save hundreds on the newest 13-inch MacBook Pro today only

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13-inch MacBook Pro from 2019
Bag yours before they're all gone!
Photo: Apple

Another day, another crazy deal on Apple products from Woot. This time it has 13-inch MacBook Pro (2019) units, refurbished by Apple, available at hundreds off their usual prices. You can get yours for as little as $899.99!

This sale is good for today only, so enjoy it while you can.

This post contains affiliate links. Cult of Mac may earn a commission when you use our links to buy items.

Fancade is a massive iOS game collection app that lets you create your own

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New iOS app Fancade lets you play existing games or make your own.
New iOS app Fancade lets you play existing games or make your own.
Image: Fancade

What could be better than a mobile app that lets you play masses of games, like an old-school arcade squeezed onto your iPhone? A mobile app that lets you play masses of games and make your own new ones.

That’s what Swedish developer Martin Magni created with Fancade, a new iOS app launching Thursday. It offers a huge collection of mini-games, all created using the app itself, along with a drag-and-drop game-maker that lets you create your own.

Led by iPad, global tablet shipments are set to surge in second quarter 2020

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There are no iPad or iPhone purchases limits
iPad looks set to remain world's no. 1 tablet in Q2.
Photo: Apple/Cult of Mac

According to a new report from Digitimes Research, global tablet shipments will climb 45.5% sequentially and 9.9% year-on-year in the second quarter of 2020, reflecting the recovery of China’s supply chain and backed-up demand for tablets for e-learning.

Apple, which retained its position as the world’s no. 1 tablet maker in early 2020, is reported to “significantly increase” iPad orders for Q2.

TikTok just enjoyed the best quarter of any mobile app ever

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TikTok 1
TikTok has been downloaded at least 2 billion times.
Photo: TikTok

Social video app TikTok isn’t just a big hit on iOS. According to new data published Wednesday by app analytics platform Sensor Tower, it’s an unprecedented hit — having enjoyed the best quarter of any app ever.

The firm says that TikTok has now been downloaded more than 2 billion times globally across both the App Store and Google Play Store. This comes just five months after it passed the 1.5 billion downloads milestone.

Qualcomm predicts strong 5G smartphone demand into 2021, hinting at Apple’s iPhone plans

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qualcomm.modem.chip
Qualcomm expects to sell a lot of modem chipsets for 5G mobiles - like the iPhone - in the next year.
Photo: Qualcomm

Chipmaker Qualcomm said Wednesday it expects the smartphone industry to ship 30% fewer mobile phones in the second quarter as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, but predicted the demand for 5G smartphones will accelerate from the second half of 2020 into the new year.

As a provider of modem chips to Apple, the predictions give further evidence that the Cupertino-based high-tech giant is on track to release it’s first 5G-ready iPhone lineup later this year simply based on Qualcomm’s estimates of product demand.

CleanMyMac X drive-decluttering software finally hits Mac App Store

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CleanMyMac X
It took 12 years, but CleanMyMac is on the App Store.
Photo: MacPaw

The popular utility CleanMyMac debuted way back in 2008, but MacPaw is finally bringing it to the Mac App Store all these years later. This will make it easier to find, buy and install.

The developer admits it did only direct sales of this product for business reasons. But the App Store version will also lack some features of the version sold on the MacPaw website for technical reasons.

Group FaceTime gets a lot less chaotic in latest iOS beta

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group-facetime-grid.1
Sick of those taking on Group FaceTime growing in size? iOS 13.5 beta let's you disable it.
Photo: Apple

A Group FaceTime feature some people find irritating can be disabled in the upcoming iOS version. Currently, the tile showing the face of the person speaking gets larger, pushing everyone else aside. The iOS 13.5 beta introduced Wednesday gives users the option to turn this off.

Apple for work: How to secure Apple devices in your enterprise with Hexnode MDM

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Need to manage employees' Apple devices? Hexnode offers the tools you need.
Need to remotely manage employee iPhones, Macs and iPads? Hexnode offers the tools you need.
Photo: Hexnode

This MDM post is brought to you by Hexnode.

Does your organization use Apple devices? If so, you’ve nailed the first step. It’s a well-known fact that the Cupertino folks deal a better hand than Android when it comes to enterprise security. You’ve started off strong by equipping your employees with the best in class Apple devices. But to win the round, you need to know how to make the best out of your cards. And that’s exactly what Hexnode is here for. 

iOS 13.5 beta speeds up iPhone sign-ins while wearing a mask

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iOS 13.5 makes signing into your iPhone wearing a mask.faster.
All kinds of people are wearing masks these days, and it’ll soon be easier to access your iPhone while wearing one.
Photo: cottonbro/Pexels

Unlocking your iPhone while wearing a protective mask might get a little quicker in iOS 13.5. Apple released a new beta of this upcoming version Wednesday, and it includes a neat trick that skips Face ID to immediately ask for a passcode if it detects the user is wearing a mask.

Video DisplayPort standard ups its game with faster data speed and 16K display support

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A Thunderbolt 3 cable is also a USB4 cable.
DisplayPort Alt Mode 2.0 brings a number of faster capabilities to USB4.
Photo: Caldigit

The Video Electronics Standards Association announced Wednesday the release of version 2.0 of the DisplayPort Alternate Mode standard that will support future compatible products with video data speeds up to 80 Gigabits per second and 16K displays up to 60Hz refresh rate.

The interface standard, which is part of USB-C connectors on Apple’s current Mac product line, is primarily used to connect a video source to a device like a flat-screen display, but can also carry audio, USB, and other forms of data.

How to find a COVID-19 testing station with Apple Maps

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Map
See all the local testing locations on a map.
Photo: Capturing the human heart/Unsplash

As of yesterday, Apple Maps can now show you local COVID-19 testing stations, so you can find the nearest one and get yourself checked out. It’s really easy to do, but it does require a search to activate the new map layer.

Here’s how to find a COVID-19 test near you. Note: This currently only works in the United States.

New iOS beta brings first look at Apple’s COVID-19 contact-tracing API

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iPhone showing coronavirus that causes COVID-19
iPhones will help slow the spread of the novel coronavirus that’s the cause of Covid-19.
Photo: Cult of Mac/Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

The third beta of iOS 13.5 released on Wednesday gives developers their first look at the coronavirus contact-tracing tool that Apple is creating in cooperation with Google.

iPadOS 13.5 Developer Beta 3 was also debuted today, along with the initial beta of Xcode 11.5.

Apple earnings on Thursday: Here’s what to watch for

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Apple.logo.paris.store
Apple will want to quickly forget about its fiscal second quarter earnings results and move on.
Photo: Josh Davidson/Cult of Mac

Apple reports its fiscal second-quarter earnings results Thursday afternoon, and chances are good that Cupertino will be glad to see the first three months of 2020 fade into history.

Having said that, things might not be as bad as many expect due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Oh, there won’t be any record-breaking figures, but there are some pretty good indicators that the news won’t be all doom and gloom.

As is always the case, though, the devil will be in the details. Apple’s conference call after issuing its Q2 2020 earnings report will be even more interesting than the numbers themselves.

Google Meet goes free to tackle Zoom’s lockdown dominance

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Google Meet 1
From live transcription to 100-person support, Google Meets is packed with features.
Photo: Google Meet

To lend a helping hand during coronavirus lockdown, Google Wednesday announced that it will be making its premium videoconferencing service Google Meet free to users starting in the next few weeks.

Google Meet is the business-oriented version of Google Hangouts. It supports up to 100 callers with no time limits on conversations, making it a good enterprise-focused video chat tool. While normally Google Meet comes with a price tag attached, it’s now free to all Google users through September 30.

These are the best games for reducing stress during lockdown

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Sims-4
Sims, available on Mac and iOS, is rated the best stress reliever.
Photo: EA

A good video game is a great way to escape the COVID-19 pandemic and forget, just for a little while, about the nasty impact it’s having on the world. But which video games should you play? Which titles are proven to help?

A new study reveals the best games to play for reducing stress — and those that should be avoided if your primary goal is a positive, calming experience. We’ll highlight those you can enjoy on Mac and iOS.

Score more than 40 hours of Adobe graphic design training [Deals]

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The 2020 Adobe Graphic Design Certification School
Get schooled in Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

Graphic design skills are useful for professionals and hobbyists alike. So whether you’re looking to boost your earning potential, or just make better use of your digital creative tools, this trio of courses in three top Adobe creative apps will give you the skills you seek.

The 2020 Adobe Graphic Design Certification School covers Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign. And the whole thing is available at a small fraction of the usual cost.

Spotify had massive 130 million paid subscribers at the end of Q1

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Spotify app now playing screen
Spotify still has a commanding lead in the streaming music wars.
Photo: Ian Fuchs/Cult of Mac

Spotify has 163 million free, ad-supported users, and an impressive 130 million paid subscribers, the streaming music giant announced Wednesday in its financial earnings for Q1 2020. These premium subscribers are up 6 million from the end of the previous quarter, and 30 million year-on-year.

While Apple hasn’t released updated Apple Music subscriber figures for a while now, it last announced 60 million paying customers last summer. Although Apple Music has reportedly experienced a nice bump while people are stuck home during lockdown, that suggests that Spotify is still enjoying a comfortable lead in the streaming war.

20 Apple Watch home workouts you can do during lockdown

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No excuses! You could be doing one of these workouts right now.
No excuses! You could be doing one of these workouts right now.
Photo: Graham Bower/Cult of Mac

Apple Watch supports a huge selection of workout types, but most of the popular ones, like running and swimming, you probably can’t do right now thanks to the coronavirus lockdown. Fortunately, if you delve a little deeper, you’ll find plenty of Apple Watch home workouts you can choose from that require little or no special equipment.

So why not take the opportunity to master a whole new kind of exercise? Here are 20 Apple Watch indoor workout options you can do at home right now.

iPhone was third-fastest growing smartphone brand in India during Q1

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Foxconn moving additional iPhone production to India as coronavirus disrupts work
Apple has just a couple of percentage points of the India market. But it's headed in the right direction.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

iPhone achieved 78 percent growth in India’s fast-growing smartphone market year-on-year for the first quarter of 2020, new figures from Counterpoint Research suggest.

While Apple is still a tiny fraction of the Indian smartphone market, that makes the iPhone the third fastest-growing brand in the country, following Realme and Oppo. There’s still a long way to go before it can threaten the top-selling likes of Xiaomi, Vivo, and Samsung, however.

Apple pays $18 million to settle lawsuit saying it broke FaceTime on older devices

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FaceTime
Lawsuit argued Apple broke FaceTime on older devices.
Photo: Apple

Apple agreed to pay $18 million to claimants in a California class-action lawsuit that argued Cupertino broke FaceTime on older iPhone devices to save money.

The court filing, made Monday, means that members of the class action each will receive a whopping $3 for their troubles. However, that amount could increase if some members fail to cash their checks. The remainder of the money will cover lawyer fees and other costs.