Take one look at any screenshot from a pre-iOS 7 iPhone, and you’ll wonder how we ever used such a hideous interface for so many years. The skeumorphic design language included so much fake wood, glossy plastic and gray gradient that there’s almost nowhere to put the actual contents of the app.

iOS 7 went way too far in the opposite direction, with flat white pages and skinny text. Is that a button? Is it just a label? Can I press it? Who knows? We’re still suffering from this UI ambiguity today, in iOS 13. Text got thicker, but it’s still hard to know what to press, and what is just there to be read.

Clearly, there’s a space between these two extremes. Something as clean as iOS 7 and, at the same time, as obvious and usable as iOS 6 and previous versions. But what would that look like? I know what I want it to look like. It’s called “neumorphism,” and it looks fantastic.

See in spring in style with these hot new Apple Watch bands from Speidel.

We’ve got stunning double tours, traditional leather straps, and premium stainless steel bracelets — all available today on the Cult of Mac Store. Prices start at just $19.95.

Switch on a hotel TV, and you’ll likely run into its paywall very quickly. You probably don’t want to view any of the hotel’s stupid pay channels, but maybe you do want to hook up your iPad and watch some of the shows you brought along with you.

You’re typically still out of luck, though. These locked-up TVs won’t let you access their HDMI ports. Nor will they let you connect via AirPlay, if they even support Apple’s streaming protocol. However, there’s an absurdly easy way to disable all this dumb “security” and watch video from your iPad or iPhone to a hotel TV.

Now might be the best time to buy that MacBook you’ve been considering. Factory shutdowns in China because of the coronavirus outbreak will reportedly lead to shortages of components needed to make laptops.

The long-awaited successor to the popular iPhone SE remains on track for launch sometime next month, a top analyst on Apple’s supply chain in China said.

TF International Securities’ Ming-Chi Kuo said in a note to investors that coronavirus has not impeded production of the budget-friendly iPhone. The new handset is known as either the iPhone SE 2 or iPhone 9.

We could be waiting longer for the mysterious “AirPods Pro Lite” headphones Apple is rumored to be developing. A new report claims production will not begin during the second half of 2020 as originally planned.

Apple is expected to deliver a big iPad Pro refresh this March, and that’s still on track despite the ongoing coronavirus epidemic, according to a new report. Supplies could be limited at launch, however, with production likely to be slow to ramp up until after April.

Warren Buffett’s investment firm Berkshire Hathaway sold more than $800 million of Apple stock in the last quarter of 2019.

Buffett is probably Apple’s most famous investor and cheerleader. Berkshire Hathaway is the Cupertino tech giant’s biggest shareholder, with an estimated 5.4% stake in the company.

Any day that you can save on great digital goodies is a holiday to us. So these Presidents Day deals on gear, gadgets and apps deserve double celebration. They include deals as high as 99% on VPN protection, noise-canceling headphones, iOS coding training and more.

It’s the Olympic Games this summer — and Sonic the Hedgehog and friends are ready to help mark the occasion.

Coming to iOS May 7, the game will pit Sonic against the villainous Dr. Robotnik/Eggman in a battle for, err, sporting excellence in Tokyo. It sounds kind of crazy, but looks like it could be a fair amount of fun. Check out the trailer below.

Apple Maps transit directions are now expanding their reach across Europe.

The feature was previously available in only a handful of regions outside the United States. It can now be enjoyed in cities across France, Germany, and Spain as part of Apple’s mission to improve functionality for Europe in 2020.

Apple captured a record 75.6% chunk of the premium smartphone market in India, a report by International Data Corporation (IDC) claims.

That market segment covers handsets $500 and above. That’s undoubtedly impressive, although it’s still a fraction of the overall market in a country where the average phone price is $159 and the average annual income is $1,892.

The iPad may be the world’s most popular tablet, but there’s no official Instagram app available for it — and Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri says it’s because the photo- and video-sharing social network is just too busy to make one.

As reported by Verge editor Chris Welch, Mosseri said that “we only have so many people, and lots to do. … It hasn’t bubbled up as the next best thing to do yet.”

This week we dock apps with SwitchGlass, convert photos from Aperture to Lightroom with Avalanche, rip music to shreds with Scatterbrain, and more.

This Presidents Day, instead of thinking about presidents, why not upgrade the apps in your iOS and Mac devices? We’ve rounded up some awesome deals on great software, from half off to as much as 94% off of VPNs, website builders, task managers and more.

The Scosche BaseLynx can quickly charge every Apple device you have — AirPods to MacBook Pro — either wirelessly or via cable. And this system is modular so you can get just the components you need and not the ones you don’t.

I’ve used it to power my Apple Watch, iPhone and iPad. Here’s how it survived real-world use.

A 13-year-old Oklahoma boy sent a frightened text to his mother after his Apple Watch showed his heart rate was at 190 beats per minute while he was sitting still. But thanks to this warning — and a lengthy operation — he’s back to playing sports.

Even today’s simplest accessories include more powerful computers than were used decades ago. To demonstrate, an engineer set out to prove that a USB-C charger from accessory-maker Anker includes a more capable CPU than the one that guided Apollo 11 to the Moon.

With Samsung trotting out its newest smartphones — including one that folds like a clamshell, and one with an advanced camera system — it’s time to compare the South Korean company’s offerings to Apple’s gear.

Cult of Mac identified five features Apple should totally swipe from Samsung for the next iPhone. Find out about Samsung’s state of the art — and what it means for Apple — in this week’s Cult of Mac Magazine. The free iOS mag is stuffed with Apple news and opinion, tips and how-tos for Apple device owners, and product reviews and recommendations. Download it to read on iPad, or visit the links to this week’s top posts below.

These days, any distraction from politics is a welcome thing. So take this Presidents Day to swoop up some awesome deals on gear and gadgets. That includes VPN subscriptions, noise-canceling headphones, a 3-in-1 wireless power bank, even a phone case that doubles as a gaming console.

Qualcomm’s 5G antenna design isn’t up to par with Apple’s design standards, reveals a new report that claims Apple is building its own antenna for this year’s 5G iPhones.

Fast Company claims Apple has decided to do the design work itself on the 5G antenna but it will still use Qualcomm’s 5G modem chip. If true, Apple would be adding an extra level of difficulty for churning out a reliable 5G iPhone during one of its most anticipated upgrade cycles in years.

Japanese health officials passed out some 2,000 iPhones to quarantined passengers stuck on board a cruise ship with an outbreak of coronavirus.

The iPhones will allow stranded passengers to consult with doctors, order medications and work through anxiety with mental health professionals.

The Do Not Disturb mode built into iOS is excellent. It hides incoming alerts, and generally stops you from being disturbed by outside forces. But it won’t save you from yourself. What if you accidentally click on a YouTube link or — more likely — that GIF you clicked in Tweetbot turns out to be a noisy video? The sudden racket will surely wake your spouse.

Today we’ll see how to make a shortcut that automatically silences your iPhone whenever it enters Do Not Disturb mode.

This Windows 10 and Microsoft Office upgrades post is presented by URcdkeys.

If you’re running Windows 7, you should know Microsoft Corp. stopped supporting that version of the operating system in January. So you’re past due for an inexpensive upgrade courtesy of URcdkeys, which is currently offering 20% off various Windows 10 and Microsoft Office upgrades for Cult of Mac readers when they use a special code at checkout.

Apple retail stores in Beijing are taking customers’ temperatures and requiring them to wear surgical masks as the area tries to normalize amidst the coronavirus outbreak in the country.

Five Apple stores in Beijing reopened their doors with limited hours today after being closed since last month. CNBC senior correspondent Eunice Yoon posted a video from one of the newly reopened stores and the inside is shockingly empty.

Take a look at the entrance process: