Apple restored the Walkie-Talkie function with a watchOS update. Photo: Leander Kahney/Cult of Mac
Apple brought the Walkie-Talkie app back online today with a watchOS update after disabling it earlier this month with an undisclosed vulnerability that might have allowed eavesdropping.
The release of watchOS 5.3 also brings the ECG app for users in Canada and Singapore.
This could be the last update for iOS 12 Photo: Apple
The long wait for iOS 12.4 is finally over after Apple made the software update available to all iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch owners this morning.
In what will likely be the last major upgrade for iOS 12, the iOS 12.4 update brings a number of big improvements, including the ability to directly transfer data from an old iPhone to a new one. There are also tons of bug fixes and other changes, but the most notable thing about iOS 12.4 might be what it’s missing: Apple Card.
Slack today confirmed a brand new version of its desktop app that will finally fix painfully slow performance many users have been suffering for years.
The new app for Mac and Windows is completely rebuilt with a focus on speed. It promises to launch 33% faster and take up 50% less RAM than before.
News, iPhone apps, iPad apps, podcasts Photo: Charlie Sorrel/Cult of Mac
Overcast, the podcast app of choice for lovers of good design, powerful-yet-straightforward features, and the color orange, just added a brand-new recommendations feature.
Previously, Overcast used a Twitter-based recommendation engine. But developer Marco Arment says almost nobody used it. Now, he’s replaced it with recommendations based on users’ personal listening habits, and the result is amazing. I already added a few new podcast subscriptions based on its suggestions.
Williams is next in line for the CEO’s office. Photo: Apple
Apple operations chief Jeff Williams is the most important person at the company after CEO Tim Cook, according to a new report.
Williams, who has also taken over Apple’s design studio following the departure of Jony Ive, is thought to be first in line to replace Cook when the time is right.
“He’s very much in the mold of the current chief executive: a paragon of operational efficiency and even temper,” said several current and former colleagues.
A close-up look at the gold Apple Watch from 2015 to see what made it tick. Photo: David Pierini/Cult of Mac
The 18-karat gold Apple Watch Edition drew a ton of social media ballyhoo when the pricey luxury watch was part of the first generation watches in 2015.
But who would pay $10,000 for a watch sure to be obsolete in a hurry? As many predicted, not a lot of people.
This smart pepper spray will sound an alarm and alert your emergency contacts when used. Photo: Cult of Mac Deals
These days, everything’s smart, from our houses to our phones to our cars to our light bulbs. Protecting yourself has been smart since before technology, so this feature-rich pepper spray is smart twice.
Apple Watch could be better than ever next year. Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
Apple Watch is expected to come with brand new display technology as soon as next year, according to a new report.
Apple is said to be in advanced talks with display makers over bringing microLED screens to its popular wearable. One advantage of the switch will be longer battery life in between charges.
The first iPhone with ProMotion? Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
The 2020 iPhone lineup could bring a huge display upgrade that will put it on par with iPad Pro in terms of refresh rate.
One leaker says Apple is “considering” 120Hz panels for next year’s handsets. It would be the first time its ProMotion technology has graced an OLED screen since its debut in 2017.
The new CarPlay Dashboard puts everything you need on your... dashboard. Photo: Apple
We’ve already extolled our excitement over CarPlay changes coming in iOS 13. But now that the beta season is well underway, we’ve had the chance to go fully hands on.
After taking it on a road trip, using it while commuting, and exploring the new features, this is our hands-on look at CarPlay in iOS 13.
These renewed Apple Magic Mouse and Keyboard are essential tools of wireless convenience. Photo: Cult of Mac Deals
Whether you’re working on a laptop or a desktop computer, it means being tied to the machine. That is, unless you go wireless with Apple’s Magic Mouse and Keyboard.
The best deals of this week include massive bundles of Mac Apps, digital marketing lessons, terabytes of backup, and lots more. Photo: Cult of Mac Deals
This week, the Cult of Mac Store got some massive new deals on useful apps, instruction and digital tools. Below you’ll find a bundle of 10 Mac apps, to a tool for converting websites to searchable text, 10 terabytes of backup storage, and more. Deals range from 50% to 98% off, so read on for more details:
Expect great things from the Apple A14 processor. CGI: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company will begin volume production of 5nm chips in the first half of 2020, according to the company’s chief financial officer.
The Taiwanese foundry manufactures all Apple’s processors. TSMC’s move to 5nm comes right on time to employ this cutting-edge process in the A14 CPUs for next year’s iPhone and iPad models.
A single iPhone dwarfs the Apollo Guidance Computer's processing power. Photo: NASA. Cover: Leander Kahney/Cult of Mac
Fifty years after the Apollo moon mission, the leaps in mankind’s computing power continue to amaze. For instance, did you know an iPhone could manage 120 million moon missions at once?
Get the story behind that astonishing stat, plus the latest on CarPlay, FaceApp and the likely design of this year’s new iPhones, in this week’s issue of Cult of Mac Magazine. It’s jam-packed with all the Apple news, reviews and how-tos you can fit into your weekend. (Prefer to read in your browser? Get the headlines below.)
Savings you won’t want to miss! Image: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac
Treat yourself to some new Apple Watch bands and accessories and enjoy some big discounts on the Cult of Mac Watch Store.
We have gorgeous aluminum link bracelets, premium charging stands that work with Apple Watch and iPhone, and speedy wireless charging pads all on sale for a limited time.
Check them out right here and see how much you can save.
Los Angeles designer Ian Delucca customized AirPods with gold and diamonds for a series that “guides us into new relationships with the material world.”
And you can have that relationship with the blinged-out AirPods for $20,000.
A known hazard from using a cell phone on a flight will — at long last — be removed by the end of 2019. Photo: Boeing
Dozens of airplanes still have equipment subject to cellular phone interference. This is one of the reasons why iPhones and Androids have to be in airplane mode during flight. Fortunately, this danger will soon go away. The best-known cockpit system to have problems with cellular radios has to be replaced before the end of 2019.
Does that mean in-flight phone calls will become part of travel?
Safari is full of new tricks in iPadOS. Photo: Charlie Sorrel/Cult of Mac
If you currently use a third-party bookmark manager, you might be able to ditch it when you upgrade your iPhone or iPad to iOS 13. The main new feature is that you can now save all your open tabs into a bookmark folder, then reopen all the links in that folder with one tap. But that’s not all. Thanks to iPadOS’ new contextual menus, the built-in bookmarks got way easier to use.
The Apple Watch is turning out to be a life-saver! Photo: Apple
Someone needs to get the Apple Watch its own comic book series, because right now it’s saving more lives than most DC and Marvel superheroes put together.
The latest case involves a 48-year-old U.K. man who underwent lifesaving heart surgery after a series of Apple Watch alerts about his low heart rate.
KyoAni was attacked in an arson attack this week. Image: Kyoto Animation
Tim Cook has sent his condolences to the Japanese animation studio targeted in a suspected arson attack. The attack resulted in the deaths of 33 people. It is Japan’s worst mass killing in 20 years.
“Kyoto Animation is home to some of the world’s most talented animators and dreamers,” Cook tweeted. “The devastating attack today is a tragedy felt far beyond Japan.”
Watch award-winning documentaries with CuriosityStream for $2 a month Photo: Cult of Mac Deals
There’s so much to learn about the world around us. So when you sit down to watch Netflix, keep in mind you could be streaming content that informs as well as entertains — and at a small fraction of the price.