Mobile menu toggle

Safari - page 2

Google wants iPhone users to stop using Safari for web search

By

Google search on iPhone
Google wants iPhone users to move away from Safari for web search.
Photo: Rajesh Pandey/Cult of Mac

A new report details that Google wants to reduce its reliance on Apple for search revenue. Despite being the leader in search, Google pays Apple billions of dollars yearly to remain the iPhone’s default search engine.

iPhone searchers comprise about 36% of Google’s total search revenue.

Safari surfaces web page highlights, summaries and video control

By

Safari browser web page Reader
New Safari features will help you get a lot more out of your visits to websites.
Photo: Apple

Apple Let Loose Event:Apple’s Safari web browser will learn a few new tricks across Apple devices, including web page highlights and summaries, as well as better-integrated control of videos online, the iPhone giant pointed out Monday in its Safari updates at WWDC24 section of the Keynote.

“In this release, we’re making it even better with easier ways to discover content and streamline your browsing. When you’re on a site Safari can now help you discover more about the page with highlights,” said Beth Dakin, Apple’s senior manager, Safari Software Engineering.

Apple will allow alternative browser defaults and engines in EU

By

Screenshot of default browser screen in iOS.
EU users are about to get a lot more choice for their default browser and browser engines.
Screenshot: Apple

Apple is further opening up iOS to alternative browsers and browser engines, as part of Cupertino’s plan to comply with the European Union’s Digital Markets Act.

In iOS 17.4 — launched Thursday as a beta — iPhone users in the EU will have a lot more choice over the default browser and browser engines.

The biggest change will be the ability to use alternative browser engines, like Google’s Blink renderer instead of Apple’s WebKit.

EU Digital Markets Act will open iPhone to sideloading of apps

By

European Union
The European Union takes another step toward tough regulations on tech giants like Apple.
Photo: Freestocks.org

Now that iOS and the App Store have been labeled “gatekeepers” by the European Commission, the EU’s Digital Markets Act requires Apple to allow users to install applications directly onto iPhones. And sideloading is just one of the sweeping changes resulting from the DMA. Users apparently will be able to replace Siri with one of its rivals, for example. Other services, like iMessage, might require modification later.

One thing’s clear: The iPhone won’t be the same after the Digital Markets Act goes into effect in spring 2024.

iOS 17 beta 7: All the new features and changes

By

iOS 17 preview
The fourth iOS 17 developer beta is here with some minor changes.
Photo: Apple

Apple continues beta testing iOS 17, with the seventh beta dropping on August 22nd. As the beta program has progressed, the company has made fewer and fewer user-facing changes to new builds.

It’s the same story with iOS 17 beta 7, which hardly packs any meaningful changes or improvements. Below is everything new in the latest iOS 17 and iPadOS 17 beta.

10 more sweet tweaks and changes in iOS 17

By

Text:
These are smaller features, but they’re no less awesome.
Image: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac

iOS 17 has a lot of great headlining features — and many more features Apple didn’t have time to mention during the WWDC23 keynote. Today, I’m going one level deeper: Here are 10 more tweaks and smaller changes that could have a big impact on daily life with your iPhone after you update to iOS 17.

Hands on with Safari Profiles, Apple’s latest attempt to curb tab clutter

By

Hands on with Safari Profiles
Safari Profiles make it easier to keep work and personal browsing separate. But the upcoming feature can also simplify sharing an iPad.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

With Safari Profiles, Apple takes another swing at helping us organize all the browser tabs we have open. The new feature lets users put tabs and tab groups into separate areas, helping keep work and our personal lives from interfering.

Beyond that, Safari Profiles also could enable two or more people to more easily share the web browser, which can be a huge benefit for iPad users.

I’ve been testing the new feature in the first betas of iOS 17, macOS Sonoma and iPadOS 17, all of which Apple unveiled at WWDC23 this week.

How to improve security in Safari Private Browsing with iOS 17 and macOS Sonoma

By

How to make Safari Private Browsing much more private
Safari Private Browsing mode will soon get multiple new features to prevent online tracking.
Photo: Killian Bell/Ed Hardy
WWDC23

Private Browsing mode in Apple Safari will soon get even more secure. It’ll be locked against someone else accessing it, and incorporate new tools to prevent websites from tracking users.

The additional privacy features are coming in iOS 17, macOS Sonoma and iPadOS 17, all of which were unveiled at WWDC23 this week.

Safari 17 in macOS Sonoma beefs up user privacy

By

Enhanced Private Browsing helps protect against online trackers as well as folks who gain access to your computer.
Enhanced Private Browsing helps protect against online trackers as well as folks who gain access to your computer.
Photo: Apple
WWDC23

Along with macOS Sonoma and its new features will come Safari 17, the new iteration of Apple’s web browser. It brings an enhanced browsing experience with an even greater emphasis than before on privacy, and most changes will probably apply to iOS and iPadOS, as well.

The changes aren’t terribly glamorous, but beefed-up Private Browsing protects against prying eyes online and off, in addition to some other security enhancements.

And in terms of organization, the new Profiles feature helps you keep separate parts of your life separate and website apps keep your favorite sites at your fingertips.

How to manage browser tabs so they don’t stress you out

By

How to manage browser tabs so they don't stress you out
Browser clutter can be stressful, no matter what device it happens on.
Image: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

A recent study found that web browser clutter is a source of stress for many people. It’s a result of keeping large numbers of tabs open and disorganized.

Here are some tips for managing the number of browser tabs you keep open, including using Safari’s system for organizing them.

Apple fixes security vulnerabilities and bugs with iOS and macOS updates [Updated]

By

Apple goes on bug hunt with new iOS 16.4.1 update
iOS 16.4.1 is ready for your iPhone. And there are macOS and iPadOS updates, too.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

iPhone, Mac and iPad users got fresh operating system updates on Friday. iOS 16.4.1, macOS 13.3.1 and iPadOS 16.4.1 fix a smattering of bugs on the devices — including some security vulnerabilities that Apple admits may have been exploited — but there are no new features.

At this time, there are no equivalent updates for Apple Watch or Apple TV.

Ted Lasso star puts human face on privacy in new Apple video

By

Actor Nick Muhammed -- aka Nate on
Actor Nick Muhammed -- aka Nate on "Ted Lasso" -- makes learning about iPhone privacy features fun.
Photo: Apple

Marking Data Privacy Day on Tuesday, Apple introduced new educational resources meant to help users take better control of their data, including a whimsical short film starring one of Ted Lasso‘s popular cast members.

The video, a new Today at Apple Session and Cupertino’s added statements on its ongoing security efforts come amid ever-rising cyberattacks and about a month after the company released Advanced Data Protection.

20 years of Safari: A visual history

By

Safari @ 20: Visual history.
Safari, the web browser of choice for Mac users since 2003.
Image: Cult of Mac

Over the past 20 years, Apple’s Safari web browser grew from a speedy young upstart to a polished professional. Released on this day in 2003 as a free download, Safari has been bundled with every version of the Mac operating system since.

Take a trip down memory lane as we look at how Safari has evolved over the years.

Happy 20th birthday to Safari, Apple’s browser that blossomed late

By

The original logo for Apple's Safari web browser with the headline,
The first version of Safari, running on Mac OS X Panther. At launch, Apple's browser was fast but buggy.
Image: Cult of Mac

The Safari browser turns 20 years old today, and I remember excitedly firing it up for the first time.

When Steve Jobs introduced Safari at Macworld 2003, he described the brand-new browser as a speed demon and way easier to use than competitors.

“Buckle up,” he said with a smile. “We have done our own browser and it’s hot … it’s sweet.”

A few weeks later, I deleted it in disgust. Safari wasn’t sweet. It sucked!

macOS users need to update to Safari 15.6.1 to close a security hole

By

Safari now has more than 1 billion users.
macOS Big Sur or macOS Catalina users really need Safari 15.6.1.
Photo: Apple

A recent macOS Monterey update deals with a nasty security problem in WebKit. But Apple is aware many users don’t upgrade to the latest operating system versions, so it also released Safari 15.6.1. The web browser update allows anyone using older macOS versions to avoid the vulnerability.

The browser update is free and available now.

Safari becomes second browser to surpass 1 billion users

By

Safari now has more than 1 billion users.
Safari now has more than 1 billion users.
Photo: Apple
WWDC22 - Brought to you by CleanMyMac X

Apple’s Safari web browser recently topped 1 billion users, a new study indicates, making it the second browser to do so. Even so, it still lags well behind Google Chrome in popularity.

“1,006,232,879 internet users (19.16% of all internet users) now use the Safari browser, making it the second browser with over a billion users,” the Atlas VPN report said.

Get the most battery life out of your MacBook

By

Get the most battery life out of your Mac.
Get the most battery life out of your Mac.
Image: Apple

How do you kill that which cannot die? The MacBook Air and MacBook Pro boast industry-leading battery life. In the PC world, the high power consumption of Intel processors means you generally must choose between battery life and performance.

The latest MacBooks use Apple’s own custom chips, cut from the same cloth as the iPhone and iPad chips Apple has been designing since 2010 (and, in a roundabout way, the one they made for the Apple Newton in 1994). This is what powers them to last all day at full speed.

If you want to take your M1 Max MacBook Pro to the coffee shop to get work done, and you leave your power cable at home — even if you’re editing 8K ProRes video streams in Final Cut Pro — you still might be ordering lunch and staying through dinner. How could one possibly need more battery life, and how do you get it?

How to block adult content on iPhone and iPad

By

Restrict website access with these tools.
Restrict website access with these tools.
Photo: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac

There is a lot of explicit content out there on the internet, or so I am told.

Before handing a device off to a child, you may want to disable or limit access to the wide-open internet and App Store. Read on to learn how to block explicit content on iPhone and iPad.

Devs come together to fight Apple’s ‘anti-competitive’ browser restrictions

By

iPadOS 15 review
It's about time!
Image: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac

A group of software engineers have joined forces to form the Open Web Advocacy (OWA), which will fight Apple’s “anti-competitive” web browser restrictions on iPhone and iPad.

The OWA says that Apple’s tight controls, which prevent third-party browsers from using their own engines on iOS, has stalled innovation for the past 10 years and “prevented web apps from taking off on mobile.”

How to use Safari Tab Groups to take control of your browser tabs

By

How to get organized with Safari Tab Groups
Use Safari Tab Groups to arrange all those browser tabs you have open..
Photo: Cult of Mac

Keeping large numbers of browser tabs open is such a common habit that Apple created a system to organize them. Safari Tab Groups let you put open tabs into logical collections so you can more easily work with them. And the same groups are available across all your Apple devices.

The system gets a little complicated. But here’s how to get started with Safari Tab Groups.

Safari stops saving passwords without user names in iOS and iPadOS 15.4

By

lock
To save you from confusion later.
Photo: Chepe Nicoli/Unsplash

iOS and iPadOS 15.4 make a small but welcome change to the way in which Safari saves login information. As of the third beta release, which rolled out to developers on Tuesday, passwords without user names won’t be saved.

The change, which also applies to macOS 12.3 Monterey, means users will be prompted to add a user name before they can save a new password. It helps prevent a buildup of passwords you can’t remember the user names for.

iOS 15.4 paves the way for web apps to deliver push notifications

By

2021 iPad mini packs 5G
A big improvement for mobile apps on the web.
Photo: Apple

Apple’s first iOS 15.4 beta, rolled out to registered developers last week, lays the groundwork for web apps to deliver push notifications.

The feature, long available in Safari for macOS, always stood out as a notable omission on iPhone and iPad. Fortunately for those who use mobile web apps frequently, that looks set to change in the near future.