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iPad mini 7 teardown reveals no internal changes for jelly scrolling fix

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iPad mini 7 teardown
iPad mini 7's teardown raises more questions than it answers.
Screenshot: iFixit

iFixit’s iPad mini 7 teardown reveals that Apple made almost no internal changes to the device. Its internal layout is also the same as that of the iPad mini 6.

Interestingly, rumors previously indicated Apple rotating the iPad mini 7’s display controller to fix the jelly scrolling issue. But that’s not the case.

Today in Apple history: Dell PCs overtake Macs in education market

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eMac
At the turn of the century, some observers accused Steve Jobs of failing one of Apple's most popular markets.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

October 27: Today in Apple history: Dell PCs overtake Macs in education market October 27, 1999: Dell Computer overtakes Apple in the educational market, stealing Cupertino’s crown as the top company selling computers to U.S. schools. Dell’s cheap Windows PCs make sense for schools looking to buy computers without breaking the bank.

Steve Jobs, still in the process of rebuilding Apple after its near-collapse in the 1990s, faces heavy criticism for ignoring one of the company’s strongest markets.

Apple’s first smart home display might debut with affordable price tag

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HomePod with a 7-inch display concept
Apple's first smart display could take design inspiration from the iMac G4.
Concept: Rajesh/Cult of Mac

Apple’s upcoming smart home display could feature an iMac-like base from a couple of decades ago. The smart home screen also could sport a display size similar to “two iPhones side by side.”

And a reasonable price tag could put it in range for many buyers.

Get a 12.9-inch iPad Pro for just $399.99

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Product photo of the iPad Pro.
This is a refurbished device, but it's still in near-mint condition with a grade "A" rating. That's how you can get an iPad Pro for only $399.99.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

Normally, you pay a lot for a jumbo iPad Pro, but sometimes a sale comes along and you can get that big-screen tablet at a steep discount. Like, for instance, this near-mint refurbished 12.9-inch iPad Pro for just $399.99.

It’s a third-gen model from 2018, but it’s still great for a wide variety of uses. And it doesn’t cost $1,299 like the latest model does.

Today in Apple history: iPod Photo brings color display to music machine

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The iPod Photo brought us one step closer to the iPhone.
The iPod Photo brought us one step closer to the iPhone.
Photo: Apple

October 26: Today in Apple history: iPod Photo launch brings color display to music machine October 26, 2004: Apple debuts the iPod Photo, a device capable of putting not just 15,000 songs in your pocket, but also 25,000 photographs. The new device “lets you take your entire music and photo library with you wherever you go,” Apple says.

It is the first iPod to offer a color screen and the ability to display digital images and album cover art. The iPod Photo represents a big step forward in the functionality of Apple’s iconic music player.

This one’s huge: The boatload of new features in iOS 18.1

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New Features in iOS 18.1
There’s more than Apple Intelligence. Although, Apple Intelligence is a lot.
Image: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac

iOS 18.1 comes with a veritable boatload of big new features. The update, which is out now, brings Apple Intelligence, hearing aid support for AirPods, sleep apnea detection for Apple Watch, phone call recording and more.

Apple Intelligence features are being rolled out slowly with every new iOS update. The process is expected to take a while. This first update hits the ground running with 10 features. But that’s not all — there’s more in this update for those of us with an older iPhone or who live in the European Union.

Keep reading or watch our video on the new features in iOS 18.1.

Apple’s next health frontier: Tackling diabetes with blood sugar app

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Apple blood sugar app
The app under development is separate from plans for a noninvasive blood sugar monitor.
Photo: Pexels

Apple is secretly testing a new health app designed to help individuals with prediabetes manage their diet and lifestyle choices, according to a new report. The experimental app, tested with select employees earlier this year, focuses on helping users understand how different foods affect their blood sugar levels. That might help stave off Type 2 diabetes for some.

Some might use it just to marvel at how that cookie is spiking their blood sugar and choose an apple next time, instead.

AI falls low on user wishlists for smartphone upgrades. See what they really want.

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AI low on smartphone upgrade wishlists
iPhone and other smartphone shoppers may not have AI at top of mind.
Photo: Apple

With Apple Intelligence features coming out to much fanfare, it seems smartphone users don’t actually rank AI very high on their wishlists when considering smartphone upgrades, according to a new survey out Friday. With AI low on smartphone upgrade wishlists, what do they crave? Much higher among their hopes are longer battery life, more storage and better cameras. You know, the “classics.”

No laughs for Billy Crystal in this horror show [Update: Before now streaming]

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trailer for psychological thriller Before
Ouch! Which hurts more, the ripped-open face or the kid in your brain? Expect surprises about who Crystal's character and the kid he's trying to help really are.
Photo: Apple TV+

Billy Crystal has enjoyed a long career in comedy as a standup and in film and TV roles, but that’s not all he does. The unnerving trailer Apple TV+ dropped Tuesday for his new series Before, billed as a psychological thriller and a “supernatural mystery,” pushes a truckload of horror tropes fit to run you down in the dark of night. You weren’t sleeping anyway.

And Crystal not only stars but also executive produces the creepy-looking limited series, set to premiere October 25 on Apple TV+.

Update: Billy Crystal’s psycho-thriller limited series Before started streaming Friday on Apple TV+, so have at it. Reviews so far seem mixed, by the way. Some call Crystal “convincingly somber” and “spooky.” Others call the series “the year’s most disappointing show” and a “stagnant, repetitive mess.” Wow, tell us how you really feel.

Today in Apple history: OS X Panther claws its way onto Macs

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Mac OS X Panther brings Exposé and other new features.
OS X Panther brought cool new features to Macs.
Screenshot: Gudebookgallery/Apple

October 25 Today in Apple history: Mac OS X Panther arrives on Macs October 25, 2003: Mac OS X Panther arrives on Macintosh computers, bringing several useful new features and making Safari Apple’s default web browser for the first time.

The new Exposé feature in OS X Panther lets Mac users instantly view all open windows at once. And the new iChat AV allows people to talk with audio and video as well as text.

Try not to trip over all the Mac Pros in this guy’s office [Setups]

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Mac Pro collection
This guy's a MacBook Pro and PC laptop user, but he's got three Mac Pro machines he wants to work on.
Photo: [email protected]

Today’s featured M3 MacBook Pro setup comes from a user who packs not one, not two but three Mac Pro desktop computers (you know, the famously powerful and expensive ones). He uses a “trash can” Mac Pro regularly, but he’s not sure what he’ll do with the other two that he acquired recently for his Mac Pro collection, other than work on them. In the meantime, he’s got his Apple laptop, but his work makes him deal with a PC laptop most of the time, he said.

Massively intimidating iPhone cases take fight to London street thieves

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The Unsnatchable iPhone cases
Trying grabbing that as you race past on your scooter.
Photo: The Unsnatchable

In central London, thieves snatch an iPhone out of someone’s hand every 6 minutes, often via passing moped. The problem is so pervasive someone came up with a new line of comically intimidating iPhone cases as part of an awareness campaign called “The Unsnatchable.”

One case bristles with silver spikes. Another looks like an angry electric eel. A third conveys a curse within. And a fourth takes the form of a gauntlet you wear to clutch the handset in an iron grip.

Get scary good deals on Microsoft Windows and Office in CdkeySales Halloween Sale

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Halloween sale on Microsoft
Head to CdkeySales.com to score major savings on Microsoft software (and use code CULT to save an additional 30%).
Photo: CdkeySales.com

Are you ready for frightfully great deals on Microsoft productivity software like Windows 11 Pro and Office 2019? It’s not as fun as trick or treating, but it helps you get things done. And the CdkeySales Halloween Sale slashes some prices by up to 91%! In the sale, you will find big discounts on productivity software like Windows and Microsoft Office. That includes Windows 10 Pro for just $17.05 — and a free upgrade comes with it! Or you can cut straight to the chase and buy a Windows 11 CD key on sale at a deeply discounted price.

You can always find remarkably low prices at software activation keys provider CdkeySales.com. To get the most savings, enter promo code CULT. That cuts an additional 30% off the site’s low prices on genuine software keys. And don’t forget: When you buy a Windows 10 key, you get a free upgrade to Windows 11!

AirPods Pro 2 firmware update preps for new hearing-aid features

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AirPods Pro 2 firmware update - hearing aids
The new AirPods Pro 2 firmware update will enable hearing aid functionality coming with iOS 18.1 and iPadOS 18.1.
Photo: Apple

A new AirPods Pro 2 hearing aid firmware update sets the soundstage for the new Apple Hearing Health features expected with Monday’s public release of iOS 18.1 and iPadOS 18.1. Apple began rolling out the update Thursday. The new features are Hearing Test, Hearing Aid and Hearing Protection.

Intended for both Lightning and USB-C versions of the earbuds, firmware version 7B19 updates from the previous version 7A305.

Why you should install the last iOS 18.1 beta on your iPhone today [Update]

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Don’t want for iOS 18.1. Install it now.
Don’t want for iOS 18.1. Install it now.
Graphic: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

iOS 18.1 will go out to iPhones everywhere next week, but you don’t need to wait. It’s possible to go ahead and install the final version this weekend when you have time to tinker with it. Plus, doing so lets you jump ahead of everyone else in requesting access to the cool new Apple Intelligence features.

Getting iOS 18.1 now won’t require doing anything dodgy or risky. You’ll download the final version of the upgrade straight from Apple … just a little earlier than scheduled.

UPDATE: This suggestion is now moot because iOS 18.1 launched on Monday.

Today in Apple history: The world prepares for the NeXT Computer

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People couldn't wait to discover Steve Jobs' next move at NeXT Computer.
People couldn't wait to discover Steve Jobs' next move.
Image: Newsweek

October 24 Today in Apple history: World prepares for the NeXT Computer October 24, 1988: Three years after leaving Apple, Steve Jobs prepares to launch the NeXT Computer, a machine he hopes will cement his reputation as a tech genius and blow away the machines produced by Cupertino.

The new NeXT Computer receives a wave of positive publicity. Fawning stories show exactly what the 33-year-old Jobs has been working on — and what’s coming next.

Math genius and NSA spook calculate conspiracy in Prime Target on Apple TV+

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Prime Target on Apple TV+
If you add up math genius, computer (in)security, the NSA and vile plots, does it equal riveting TV? Hopefully. The new show stars SAG Award winner Leo Woodall and Quintessa Swindell.
Photo: Apple TV+

Prime Target, a new conspiracy thriller series involving a math genius, an NSA agent and probably a whole lot of paranoia, begins streaming January 25, Apple TV+ said Thursday. The eight-episode series starring SAG Award winner Leo Woodall, Quintessa Swindell and Stephen Rea, among others. It comes to us from writer Steve Thompson (Sherlock, Vienna Blood).

Woolnut sleeve wraps iPad Pro in luxurious pebbled leather [Updated Review]

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Woolnut Leather Sleeve for iPad Pro
The Woolnut Leather Sleeve for iPad Pro offers an exceptional look and feel.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

Any case can protect your iPad, and the right one can also make it look handsome. The Woolnut Leather Sleeve has a minimalist vibe, but the pebbled leather gives a very sophisticated appearance to the iPad Pro.

I wrapped several of my Apple tablets in the case over years, I can share what’s it’s really like to use.

Apple’s October Mac event is on … sort of

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Apple October 2024 event invitation
An invitation went out to watch out for Apple product announcements all next week.
Photo: Apple

Apple let the world know Thursday that its much-anticipated October event won’t be a traditional one. Instead, it’ll be a week of announcements of new products via press releases.

What the PR blitz will bring is supposed to be a secret, of course. But we already know much of what’s likely coming: MacBook Pro, iMac and Mac mini, all running the M4 processor, plus the iPad 11.

Mujjo MaizCase for iPhone gets right what Apple FineWoven got wrong [Review] ★★★★☆

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Mujjo MaizCase review★★★★☆
The handsome case offers a snug fit and a good grip. Shown here with iPhone 16 Pro.
Photo: David Snow/Cult of Mac

In the ever-evolving world of smartphone accessories, Mujjo MaizCase for iPhone stands out as a compelling alternative to traditional leather for anyone looking for a blend of sustainability, style and protection. In this Mujjo MaizCase review, I’ll go into the various reasons why.

As Apple moves away from its traditional leather cases — with a stumble into the unpopular FineWoven material — Mujjo steps in with an eco-friendly alternative that delivers premium feel and functionality.

The iPhone’s haptic keyboard is fantastic: Here’s how to turn it on

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Turn On The Clicky Keyboard
Get a clicky keyboard on your phone, too.
Image: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac

Studies show that a haptic keyboard improves touchscreen typing speed and input accuracy, but very few people know you can enable it on your iPhone.

Android phones years ago had haptic keyboards, but without a precision vibration motor, the haptic feedback was too slow to complete the illusion. With the Taptic Engine — hardware in every iPhone since the iPhone 6s that can simulate all kinds of vibrating textures — Apple created a perfectly convincing effect to enable the haptic keyboard way back in iOS 16.

Leaving the keyboard click sounds on in public is a minor social faux pas, but you really do type better when you have some sort of feedback for hitting the keys. It feels incredible. I turned it on years ago, and every time I type something in on a friend’s phone without it enabled, it feels broken. You can’t go back once you turn it on — it’s that great.

Read on to see where to enable it.

iOS 18.2 finally makes changing default iPhone apps a snap

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iOS 18.2 beta 1 lets iPhone users change additional default apps.
iOS 18.2 beta 1 lets iPhone users change additional default apps.
Photo: Apple/Cult of Mac

iOS 18.2 beta 1, which went to developers on Wednesday, includes a new section in Settings that lets users specify which applications to set as their defaults for handling email, messages, phone calls and more. In some cases, setting this simply gets easier. In others, changing the default app previously wasn’t possible at all.

We already knew this change would happen in Europe, but Apple made it clear Wednesday that it’ll be available worldwide.