Reviews - page 17

Apple TV+’s epic space opera Foundation shores up its defenses this week as everyone prepares for the second crisis.

Hari and Gaal have a crucial appointment with an ancient power. Cleric and Day both need to rescue the last men in the galaxy that either of them wants to ask for help. And new and greater puzzles wait behind every corner.

Great pacing, great character work and a couple of welcome additions to the Foundation cast make this week’s episode, “King and Commoner,” appointment television.

Swagger takes a look at personal responsibility this week, as Jace ponders his future after taking a tough stance.

He and Crystal spend an eventful, meaningful day together, while higher-ups decide what to do with the divisive athlete. Ike, Tonya and Emery must work through the Jace situation, while he needs to deal with his own confidence issues. Entitled “Jace + Crystal,” it’s a very fine episode of an Apple TV+ sports drama that produces little else.

The Beanie Bubble, the new Apple TV+ movie about a product you rightly moved on from despite its momentary stranglehold on culture, is fleetingly persuasive but hopelessly conventional.

Directed by the lead singer of OK Go and Al Gore’s daughter, the movie tells the true story of the creation of and exploitation of the Beanie Babies craze of the 1990s.

Hit Apple TV+ thriller Hijack nears its final destination this week. Sam Nelson’s family is in danger and he can’t do much to stop the potential devastation.

What he can do is take control of the hijacked airplane. But will the rest of the passengers help him? And will the kidnappers let down their guard long enough to allow him to do so? The episode, entitled “Comply Slowly,” is a white-knuckler.

Whether you vacation at the beach, in the mountains or anywhere in between, you’ll surely bring your iPhone, Apple Watch and maybe an iPad or even a MacBook with you. We have suggestions for accessories to simplify keeping your gear charged and organized. Plus some to make the trip more fun.

We’ve tested all these gadgets so we know they do what they promise.

The Pitaka MagEz Slider 2 combines a desktop stand for your iPhone with a MagSafe power bank, so your handset can get juiced up wherever you go. Just slide the external battery out and take it with you. As a bonus, the swiveling stand also includes an AirPods charger.

It originally launched in 2022, and there’s second-generation version out with an improved design. I put the updated charging stand on my desk to test it out in everyday use. Here’s what I found.

Swagger takes a hard look at incarceration this week in a season-best episode of the Apple TV+ basketball drama.

With the eyes of their community on them, Jace and Team Swagger head to a juvenile detention center to learn and to play as they sweat their futures. Entitled “Are We Free?,” it’s a terrific episode filled with great performance notes and stunning direction.

The SwitchEasy MagPower 4-in-1 Magnetic Wireless Charging Stand can wirelessly power up a MagSafe iPhone while also juicing up an Apple Watch, AirPods and more. And it even has a nightlight as a bonus.

I’ve had the stand either on my desk or beside my bed for a couple weeks now. Here’s what it’s like in real-world use.

Note: This stand is currently on sale in the Cult of Mac Store’s SwitchEasy flash sale.

Apple TV+’s epic science fiction series Foundation deals with the fallout from an assassination attempt, a potential marriage and the opening of a puzzle cube this week.

In the episode, entitled “A Glimpse of Darkness,” Salvor and Gaal have their overdue reunion with Hari Seldon. Plus, some new converts are betrayed by their faith. And Hari, like Schrodinger’s cat, may or may not be in a box. It’s a very good episode between major developments.

New Apple TV+ sports doc Stephen Curry: Underrated follows the Golden State Warriors star and his quest to bring his team back after a bad season.

The film documents the various rises and falls of the player with the three-pointer record and the slim build, showing us who Curry is off the court as well as on. It’s a very conventional but likable look at the kind of talent that doesn’t come along every day.

The Kuxiu X40 3-in-1 charger simplifies travel by juicing up your iPhone, Apple Watch and AirPods from one device, cable and outlet. It folds flat for sticking in your bag — it even comes with a little carrying case. Its handsome design and premium materials make it suitable as a permanent desk companion, too.

Without a handy travel charger like this, hitting the road with all your devices — iPhone, Apple Watch, AirPods and possibly a MacBook, iPad or Nintendo Switch — can become a big nightmare of device-specific cables. iPhones and AirPods charge with a Lightning cable, the Apple Watch has its own unique puck thing and most other devices are on USB-C, except for some MacBooks that have MagSafe, too.

The Kuxiu X40 replaces two to three of the special charging cables that we, people with Apple devices, are used to taking with us everywhere we go. You don’t need your Lightning cable and your Watch cable. All you need to put in your bag is the Kuxiu X40 and a beefy USB-C power cable to charge all your devices on a weekend away from home.

It’s regularly on sale for less, but even its original $79.99 price is competitive for what you get.

Sam runs out of options, and Stuart runs out of patience, in this week’s tense installment of Apple TV+ hostage thriller Hijack.

Stuart’s secrets start to spill out as a desperate move to save someone close to him brings the whole operation dangerously close to failure. While Sam tries to stay a step ahead of everyone, there are just some things he can’t know or understand until it’s too late.

If you’re among the many folks who balk at the high price of Apple’s excellent Studio Display, intriguing new alternatives just arrived. Alogic recently unveiled its new 27-inch Clarity Pro and Clarity Pro Touch 4K displays, building up the line after releasing the original Clarity display last year.

I gave the Clarity Pro Touch a go and found it beautiful to look at and highly functional, as well. Priced at hundreds less than Apple’s Studio Display, either of the new Clarity displays should make a tempting alternative.

Superlative Apple TV basketball drama Swagger puts Jace in the hot seat this week, as allegations prove too tough to beat. Jace does something crazy in the name of helping his community but it makes things even more fraught.

Meanwhile, Ike and Emory are at loggerheads about how to handle their star player. And Crystal must decide how she feels about her life once more becoming the subject of public debate. Entitled “Through the Fire,” it’s a typically excellent installment of this fiery show.

Epic sci-fi series Foundation, based on the work of Isaac Asimov, returns to Apple TV+ for a second season this week and blows expectations clean into the next galaxy.

The expensive, expansive show overcome opening night jitters in season one to become one of the more watchable and exciting things on Apple TV+, thanks in no small part to a game cast, tense set pieces, fleet drama and exquisite effects.

Apple TV+ needed its own Battlestar Galactica or Mandalorian, and Foundation more than met the challenge. Will it be able to repeat the successes of its first season?

Apple TV+ comedy Platonic closes its hilarious first season this week with a sentimental look at the way two people have to understand the limits of their relationship.

Sylvia and her husband Charlie find a new home that seems to signal the end of their recent troubles. But will there be a place for Will in this new version of their life? The answer probably won’t shock you, but it’s basically moving anyway.

Juuk’s Qrono band for Apple Watch offers everything you could want from a metal bracelet without the nasty drawbacks. It looks terrific but won’t weigh you down. And, like all Juuk bands, it’s built to last.

Here’s why the Qrono is the only metal band I’ll wear with my Apple Watch.

High-flying Apple TV+ thriller Hijack deals with a new threat this week even as the last one is still being mopped up in the airplane’s aisles.

As Sam finds himself in bondage, he devises a clever new avenue of contacting the ground and gaining the upper hand without seeming to. There’s panic in Bucharest, Marsha gets a message, and the hijackers are getting jumpy on a perfectly decent installment of the new hit series.

Apple TV+ comedy The Afterparty returns for a second infuriating season Wednesday. Not even the presence of some of our best actors (Paul Walter Hauser, Mary Holland and John Cho among them) can focus the writing and direction of this show to the point where its gimmick makes sense or its performances seem calibrated to the design of the show.

Unfortunately, this genre-hopping misfire was spent before it was reloaded.

The SwitchEasy Origami Protective Case folds into three different styles of iPad stand, giving you a range of options for typing, reading and browsing.

I tested this clever folio case with my own iPad. There’s plenty to like here. (Update: The case is currently on sale at 30% off in the Cult of Mac Store.)

The 2023 version of the mophie powerstation packs in 10,000 mAh and a trio of USB ports to charge your Apple or Android devices. It can keep an iPhone 14 going for a weekend, or give a boost to a MacBook or iPad.

I put the external battery to through testing to see how well it stands up to real-world use.

Apple TV+ limited series The Crowded Room plays its final hand this week, and the show finally broke me the way it reportedly “broke” its lead actor, Tom Holland. Danny finally gets to know all of his personalities at Rya’s behest, though he may have blown his chances at a fair trial already.

The show’s prior attempts at sensitively depicting Danny’s mental illness take a turn for the deeply unserious this week. And for this recapper, there is just no sane way to move forward.

This week on Swagger, Jace and Ike’s latest victory is a short-lived affair. When Crystal comes to Jace with worrying possibilities for his future, he shuts down — leaving Phil, Drew and Musa to panic.

Meanwhile, Jenna and Tonya start making plans. And Ike and Emery decide to hash out their differences the old-fashioned way. The episode, entitled “Rise + Fall,” is good and tense. And it points the way toward much darker events to come on the Apple TV+ basketball drama.

With the EZCast Beam J4a, you can carry a big-screen TV everywhere you go. The pico projector is amazingly small, but is ready to show movies, games or presentations wherever you need it to. Just plug it into your Mac or iPad.

I love this thing. Absolutely freaking love it. But that doesn’t mean it’s perfect. Read on to see what I mean.

Platonic heads into the home stretch this week as the Apple TV+ comedy about two friends who interrupt each other’s lives and relationships digs into jealousy.

Charlie takes his anger out on a co-worker in the strangest way imaginable. Sylvia takes out her anger directly on Charlie. And Will takes out his anger on his co-workers, who in turn take out their frustration on him. It’s less of a listening and learning week than a wit’s end week on this very easily consumed show.