Mobile menu toggle

Athletes’ and musicians’ Apple accounts hacked in phishing scheme

By

Fraudster steals $16k from victim posing as Apple tech support
Dear sir or madam, I am from Apple tech support. What is your password? Love, totally legit guy
Photo: Donald Tong/Pexels CC

Everyone needs to watch out for hackers phishing for their account details, and that includes celebrities. A Georgia man tricked pro athletes and rappers into giving up login details for their Apple accounts, which he used to access to their credit cards, according to the FBI.

Apple snags expert on electric motors from Tesla

By

iCar concept
Hiring an expert on electric powertrains raises the odds Apple is designing its own vehicle. Just not this one.
Photo: NeoMam Studios

Apple’s electric car program just got a major boost. It’s hired away Tesla’s VP of Engineering, an expert on electric powertrains.

Dr. Michael Schwekutsch joined Apple this month.

From charging hubs to AirPod alternatives, these are the best deals of the month [Deals]

By

This month's best deals include affordable AirPod alternatives, a tool for mapping Wi-Fi networks, and more.
This month's best deals include affordable AirPod alternatives, a tool for mapping Wi-Fi networks, and more.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

As winter winds down, March showed that the deals on gear and gadgets are heating up, so we’ve rounded up the best of the bunch. They include awesome alternatives to AirPods, a tool for mapping and troubleshooting Wi-Fi networks, a powerful, portable wireless charging hub, and more. Each is discounted by half or more, read on for details:

Win a copy of iMazing and take control of your iOS devices [Giveaway]

By

The latest version of iMazing, an iOS device manager for Mac and PC, adds iOS 10.3 compatibility and great new features
The easiest way to create local backups.
Image: DigiDNA

Backing up your devices can save you a world of pain when things go wrong. And yet, so many people still don’t back up on a regular basis. If you’re one of them, you should change that for World Backup Day 2019 on March 31.

World Backup Day encourages everyone to back up their most important data. To make it as simple and as cheap as possible for you, we’re giving away ten copies of the excellent iMazing app for Mac and PC. It’s the best way to create local backups that prevent your precious memories from getting lost.

T-Mobile’s Phone BoothE is an unbelievable blast from the past

By

T-Mobile CEO John Legere with the Phone BoothE.
T-Mobile CEO John Legere with the Phone BoothE.
Photo: T-Mobile

Sometimes old ideas still have some life in them. That’s apparently the thought behind the T-Mobile Phone BoothE, designed to give this carrier’s customers a space to make phone calls in peace and quiet.

As a bonus, Clark Kent once again has a place to quickly change into Superman.

Apple shows off new services, then kills AirPower [Cult of Mac Magazine No. 290]

By

When we say
When we say "no new hardware this week," we really mean it. (RIP, AirPower.)
Cover: Leander Kahney/Cult of Mac

Apple pulls back the curtain on its wily master plan, giving us our first glimpse at a squeaky-clean new TV service, an ambitious subscription videogame service, a slightly familiar-sounding magazine and news service and more. (Spoiler alert: The Apple credit card steals the show.)

And then, after all that, Cupertino unceremoniously pulls the plug on its AirPower wireless charging mat.

Get our take on Apple’s new services, plus new how-tos and reviews, in this week’s issue of Cult of Mac Magazine for iOS. Download the free app now, or get the links below to read the week’s best stories in your browser.

Score a sweet set of Bluetooth headphones for about $20 [Deals]

By

This set of Bluetooth headphones comes delivers great audio, long range, and a 6-hour battery life.
This set of Bluetooth headphones comes delivers great audio, long range, and a 6-hour battery life.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

When it comes to convenient, portable audio, Bluetooth earphones is the way to go. Unfortunately though, you usually have to weigh comfort and audio quality against price. Not so with this set of long-lasting, high quality, massively discounted over-ear headphones.

This dual iPhone and Apple Watch charger is a great AirPower alternative [Watch Store]

By

ZENS Dual Watch Aluminum Wireless Charger for iPhone Xr iPhone Xs
Dual+Watch tops up iPhone, Apple Watch, and AirPods in one.
Photo: Zens

Now that Apple’s AirPower charging mat has been cancelled, this dual iPhone and Apple Watch charger is perhaps the best alternative.

Like the AirPower, the Dual+Watch Aluminium Wireless Charger can charge three devices simultaneously, including the new wireless AirPods.

What went wrong with Apple’s doomed AirPower charging mat?

By

AirPower
Sadly, AirPower now resides in a shallow grave.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

AirPower is officially dead.

It’s been about 1.5 years since Apple titillated fans by revealing a wireless charging mat that supposedly would charge not one, not two, but three Apple devices at the same time.

Frankly, it looked too good to be true at the time. And after a year of avoiding the subject, Apple confirmed today that AirPower will never caress the backside of your iPhone, Apple Watch and AirPods at the same time.

This is an unofficial guide to why AirPower failed.

People can’t wait to get their hands on Apple Card

By

Apple Card
So far, Apple Card seems to be generating more excitement than this company’s TV service.
Photo: Apple

Apple unveiled four new services last week, including its much-anticipated lineup of TV shows, but the Apple credit card apparently stole the show.

A survey found that a whopping 85 percent of iPhone users are at least somewhat interested in this card, which is an adjunct to Apple Pay.

Best wireless iPhone chargers now that AirPower is dead

By

Wireless chargers
Wireless chargers are easy to use and look stylish in any room.
Photo: Mophie

Owners of late-model iPhones (starting with iPhone 8) can stash all their old Lightning cables in a desk drawer and start charging their phone more easily with a wireless charger. Instead of sticking a wire into your phone and attaching it to a power adapter, you just place the phone on a small charger pad — or on a stand-up charging pad — and you’re good to go.

Now that Apple officially killed off its AirPower charging mat, it’s time to take the plunge and get yourself a third-party wireless charger. And if you’ve got one of those newfangled AirPods wireless charging cases, a charging pad is even more essential to your setup.

Here are our recommendations for best wireless chargers.

This cool Apple Card feature keeps your number super-safe

By

Apple Card
Of course Apple made the most beautiful credit card ever.
Photo: Apple

The days of worrying about someone stealing your credit card number during a transaction are about to be long-gone once Apple Card launches.

New details about Apple Card and its features were revealed today and one of the most surprising tidbits is that the credit card number can be regenerated with a push of a button to protect you from fraud.

How to record digital audio from your iPhone to your Mac with iDAM

By

Audio and USB, together again.
Audio and USB, together again.
Photo: Charlie Sorrel/Cult of Mac

Did you know that you can send the audio from your iPhone or iPad to your Mac via the Lightning cable? That audio stays in pristine digital ones and zeros, and can be recorded (or otherwise used) anywhere you can edit audio on your Mac.

For musicians, this turns your iPad and all its music apps into a plugin for your Mac. And for anyone else, it could just be a neat way to route audio into your Mac’s speakers. The feature is called iDAM, and it’s built into your Apple devices. Oh, and it works with MIDI too.

AirPower is officially dead

By

AirPower image Australia
AirPower will forever remain a pipe dream.
Photo: Apple

RIP AirPower.

iPhone lovers have been waiting more than a year for Apple’s wireless charging mat to finally launch, but the company announced today that it has officially canceled its AirPower project because it’s simply too dang hard to make it.

$80 off Apple Watch and bargain accessories [Deals & Steals]

By

watchOS 5 Face
Apple Watch Series 3 has never been cheaper.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Best Buy has again slashed the price of Apple Watch Series 3 to just $199, matching the best discount we’ve seen on this model so far. That price applies to the 38mm version with GPS, which usually costs $279. And it’s just one of the awesome offers in today’s Deals & Steals roundup.

We also have some massive discounts on great computer peripherals from Logitech, and 63 percent off the SanDisk iXpand flash drive for iPhone and iPad. Plus, you can pick up a 9-in-1 lens kit that will help you step up your smartphone photography for under $16.

Apple will close Texture in May after arrival of News+

By

Goodbye Texture
'Texture is ending.'
Photo: Apple

Apple will close down Texture in May following the recent launch of Apple News+.

Texture, another magazine subscription service, was acquired by Apple for an undisclosed sum last spring. Cupertino encourages existing subscribers to migrate to its new platform. But those who don’t use Mac or iOS will have to find their magazines elsewhere.

Don’t even think about repairing the AirPods 2

By

AirPods 2
If your AirPods look like this, your music-listening days are over.
Photo: iFixit

Apple’s second-generation AirPods may be better than ever, but they’re certainly not any more repairable. A new teardown reveals that the next-gen wireless earphones aren’t “designed to be serviced” in any meaningful capacity.

The challenge of repairing them doesn’t necessarily guarantee a short lifespan. However, it does suggest that these probably won’t be hanging around long-term.

Gmail app finally gets handy swipe actions on iOS

By

Gmail swipe actions
It's as simple as a swipe.
Photo: Google

The official Gmail app for iOS finally boasts handy swipe gestures that make dealing with your email easier. You can swipe to snooze, mark as read, archive, and more. There’s also the ability to customize the actions if you don’t like the default setup.

Mac users in China can no longer use Taiwan flag emoji

By

Taiwan
Not China's favorite emoji symbol.
Photo: Maya-Anaïs Yataghène/Flickr CC

As countries, it’s fair to say that China and Taiwan aren’t exactly BFFs. For evidence of this, look no further than the recently released macOS 10.14.4. Eagle-eyed users in China have noticed that their Mac devices can no longer display the Taiwan flag emoji.

The flag ban can’t even be circumvented by changing the region in your Mac’s System Preferences.

AirPods absolutely dominate the wireless headphones market

By

AirPods wall display is on show in New York.
They may be small, but AirPods are a big hit.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

AirPods aren’t just a massive hit for Apple, they’re a giant in the overall “wireless hearables” market. According to new research from Counterpoint, AirPods made up a massive 60 percent of the overall market in Q4 2018.

It would have been even bigger, too, if customers hadn’t been waiting on Apple’s updated AirPods 2 at the time!

 TV+,  Card,  Arcade,  News+, we react to it all, on The CultCast

By

CultCast 381 Lisa
Apple's got four new services for you to choose from.
Photo: @YSR50

This week on The CultCast:  News+,  TV+,  Arcade,  Card … we react to it all. We’ll fill in the details on Apple’s new services. And, just when you thought it was safe to type, Apple apologizes for yet more MacBook Air and MacBook Pro keyboard issues.

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..