Reviews - page 73

GarageBand for iOS often gets dismissed as a toy by more experienced musicians. That’s partly because it’s free, and partly because it looks so simple when you first fire it up. And it is dead easy to use — making some great music is simple even for a first timer. But if you take a while to dig in, you might be surprised at just how music power GarageBand for iOS now packs. And the latest 2.3 update adds enough amazing new features that it really could be called 3.0. Lets take a look.

Smartphones are changing, and every manufacturer possesses its own take on what the future should look like. Apple’s vision is the iPhone X, which arrives 10 years after the original with big changes and an even bigger price tag. In this iPhone X review, we’ll take a look at everything that makes this groundbreaking device Apple’s finest smartphone ever.

For iPhone X, Apple did away with aluminum unibodies, chunky bezels, Touch ID and the beloved Home button. In their place, iPhone X sports polished stainless steel and smooth glass, an edge-to-edge Super Retina HD display, and Face ID.

The result proves stunning. Apple just made the iPhone exciting again. But is iPhone X worth $999?

The iPhone X is almost here. Preorders have been taken, so now it’s time to spend the rest of the week until delivery choosing accessories for your new iPhone X.

Unlike the iPhone 8, which fits perfectly into (most) existing iPhone 7 cases, the iPhone X needs new clothes. Here are the best and/or most interesting iPhone 8 cases so far.

Nylon bands for Apple Watch are in high demand for their comfort and versatility. Add in great engineering and style, and you’ve got the ideal strap to fit your everyday needs.

Enter Casetify, a company that believes in being radically unique, creating beautifully designed, made-to-order products that are hand-inspected from beginning to end.

The company recently launched its line of Nylon Fabric Bands for Apple Watch, and we’re now featuring them all in our Watch Store. A great value at $40!

You know that completely satisfied feeling you get when you first lay your hands on a truly luxurious product? Maybe you remember that special moment when you peeled off the plastic covering from a pristine Apple product. Or when you first slid behind the wheel of an outrageous European sports car (with the requisite leather interior).

Nobody necessarily needs that level of luxury. But sometimes you want to treat yourself (or a friend) to the very best. I totally got that lavish feeling when I first saw a Woolnut leather sleeve for MacBook Pro with Touch Bar.

The Roland Go mixer is a little USB-powered mixer that lets you hook up a whole band’s worth of instruments to your iPhone, and record them. You can plug in almost anything, you can listen direct to the mix with headphones, and you can even pipe in music from an MP3 player or another iPhone via jack. On paper, it seems fantastic. In the studio, or bedroom, though, it proves to be just the opposite.

Update: The Apple Watch Powerbank by Zens is now available at the Watch Store with free shipping!

Best List: Apple Watch Powerbank by Zens

Most external batteries for the Apple Watch are BYOC — Bring Your Own Cable — and have bulky winding systems for tucking the cable away.

Not the compact Apple Watch Powerbank from Zens, perhaps the most portable external battery pack on the market.

Tyke might be just about the simplest app you ever saw. It is also really, really useful. Tyke puts a little icon in your Mac’s menubar, and when you click it, it opens up a text scratchpad. You can jot in a quick note, or paste in some info. And that’s about it.

Two great new shelf apps for iPads running iOS 11 have launched recently, and both are worth a look. One is Yoink, which has a long history as a shelf app on the Mac. The other is Gladys, with distinguishes itself by being both super-simple to use, and full of geeky extras.

Compared to the radical redesign of the iPhone X, the iPhone 8 Plus looks quite familiar. With the exception of a glass back and a few superficial changes, it employs the same form factor that Apple’s been using since the iPhone 6 Plus. However, it packs some serious internal upgrades that make a difference in day-to-day use.

I picked up the 8 Plus on launch day and have been using it for just over a week. How does it rate? Get my take in the video and written reviews below. Also, don’t miss our huge iPhone 8 and 8 Plus case giveaway at the bottom of the post.

Breathe new life into your existing Apple Watch or customize your new Series 3 with a cool, contemporary nylon band inspired by the original NATO strap of the 1970s. Best yet, these bands compare in quality to Apple’s nylon offering, and cost ten bucks less.

Nyloon started with the goal of making high-quality versions of the NATO straps created by the British Ministry of Defence in 1973. The result is a line of sporty, versatile and easily interchangeable nylon bands that sell fast.

Check out Watch Store’s full lineup of Nylon bands for Apple Watch, and read on to learn more about Nyloon’s must-have strap.

iOS 11’s neat Split View and Drag and Drop implementation has spawned a new class of apps, for iOS at least: shelf apps. These apps provide a slide-out shelf, or junk drawer, into which you can drag items for temporary storage.

This proves useful for all kinds of reasons. You may want to gather up a whole bunch of files for different places before dragging them into an email. You may want to have oft-used files, or snippets of text, or URLs close to hand, or you may like to use a shelf to organize a project, keeping everything together.

However you use them, you can find several shelf apps on the App Store so far, with more arriving all the time. Here’s a look at the Cult of Mac pick for best shelf app (along with a few other options that offer different features).

Apple TV has finally caught up with the 4K revolution.

It may be late to the game, but Apple’s newest set-top box pulls out all the stops to be the best on the field. It’s packing incredibly powerful new hardware that leaves competitors in the dust, and a much-improved tvOS platform that is years ahead of its rivals.

It may seem pricey starting at $179, but with amazingly sharp videos and great apps and games all rolled into one, Apple TV 4K is well worth the upgrade.

Watch our Apple TV video review:

Early reviews of the Apple Watch Series 3 are now dropping ahead of its official debut on Friday, September 22. If you’re still in two minds about whether you should upgrade, they should help you make that all-important decision.

The general consensus is that LTE is a great addition to Apple’s wearable lineup. Just don’t expect a drastically different experience, and prepare yourself for some early teething troubles.

The iPhone’s camera is good enough that it can be most people’s only camera — including professional photographers. The iPhone is a multi-purpose computer, though, not just a camera, so it can sometimes do with a little help when it comes to ergonomics, or to adding a little extra reach with a telephoto lens. These are the iPhone 8 camera gizmos you should buy:

The iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus may cost as much as the top-end iPhone X, but that certainly doesn’t mean you don’t want to protect your new iPhone.

You’ll find a range of cases on the market. Ultra-thin “skins” will to protect your iPhone 8 from scratches without changing its appearance much. Heavy-duty armor will save it from concrete smashes. And wallet-style cases let get organized. Here are our top picks for the iPhone 8/8 Plus cases you need to know about.

IOS 11 is a huge update to Apple’s mobile operating system, but only if you’re using an iPad. While the iPhone gets its fair share of tweaks and polish, the iPad is transformed into a different machine. When you install iOS 11, your iPad will be transformed from a big iPhone, into a slick mobile computer. It has completely changed how I use my iPad, to the extent that I probably never need to buy another Mac again.

The headline features are drag-and-drop between apps, a new Mac-like Dock, a Finder-like app named Files, and a radically re-thought Control Center that echoes the one found in — you guessed it — the Mac. IOS 11, then, brings many of the Mac’s best features to the iPad, but redesigned to suit the touch screen.

What does this mean for daily use? It means that Mac and PC users can switch to the iPad without having to relearn how to do everything, and existing users will no longer feel like they have their hands tied while trying to do the simplest tasks.

Lumu Power light meter for iPhone

The iPhone democratized photography and disrupted the video and camera industry. Now a new product that plugs into the iPhone’s Lightning port aims to replace an important photographer’s tool — the handheld light meter.

The Lumu Power light meter is a small, plug-in photodiode that looks like a pingpong ball cut in half. The light meter, a product of Lumu Labs from Slovenia, rose out of a Kickstarter campaign in 2015. It’s won favorable reviews from photographers and photo websites as the company works to improve the companion app.

Best List: BUBM gadget and cord organizer by ATailorBird

Pulling your charging cord from your shoulder bag or backpack can resemble that gag where you think you’re opening a can of peanuts and get surprised by springy snakes. Your bag’s other contents can catch on your cords and fly out.

The BUBM cord and gadget organizing case offers just one surprise. The mundane task of organizing your cords and other small accessories turns out to be fun and satisfying.

I’ve never been one to wear a camera bag with the shoulder strap going across my body. I put all the burden on my right shoulder and, as time wore on, I wore out my shoulder.

The TurnStyle V2.0 sling bag by Think Tank Photo changed the way I carry my camera gear. For one, I now carry it more comfortably.

Best List: Commuter Satchel by Toffee

After years of depositing my MacBook into an oversize, freebie laptop bag, it was time. Time to forego the ugly, embrace the new and, most importantly, get some real protection for my Mac.

The Commuter Satchel by Toffee arrived at the request of one of my colleagues. He, too, recognized the deplorable excuse of a laptop bag I was lugging around.

I can’t emphasize how much I love this sleek and stylish satchel.

Best List: Nerve Black messenger bag by booq

Most messenger bags would look out of place slung over the shoulder of a leather-clad Harley rider. Not the Nerve Black by booq: It exhibits a transcendent cool, whether paired with a business suit or motorcycle chaps.

There’s no cowhide on this bag. Yet the water-repellent tarpaulin flap looks a lot like leather and makes a striking first impression.

This Apple Watch clone costs more than an Apple Watch Edition, but comes with zero apps. The H. Moser Swiss Alp Watch Zzzz might look like it’s straight outta Cupertino, but it’s actually an old-fashioned luxury timepiece.

Would you pay $26,900 for an Apple Watch clone without all the smart functionality? See our video review for more on this completely bonkers Swiss watch.

If you’re looking for a way to lose a few hours later today, you could do a lot worse than Groovebox, a free music-making app for iPhone and iPad. It’s simple enough to start making music as soon as you launch it, but offers enough depth (and enough in-app purchases) to keep you going for quite a while.

Ever since Apple released the first iOS 11 beta to developers, I’ve run each version on my primary iPhone 7 and my 9.7-inch iPad Pro. While iOS 11 doesn’t bring a radical redesign, it’s been great, with several extremely useful new features (especially for iPad).

To get the full rundown on what I like, what I don’t like, and my general thoughts on iOS 11 after a month’s use, watch the video below.