The Apple Watch doesn’t just take your step count — it has three activity rings that track different levels of energy you burn throughout the day.

New to watchOS 11, you have additional options for customization and for taking a break when you need it. You can have different goals for each ring for different days of the week, so it can fit your workout schedule. When you want a rest day or if you fall ill, you can take up to a month-long break without losing your streak.

If you’re all-in on the fitness tracking, you can add widgets that show your rings on your Apple Watch face and widgets on your iPhone. Or, on the other hand, if you find it a bit annoying, you can turn off all the notifications so they won’t bother you anymore.

Here’s everything you need to know about the Apple Watch activity rings.

Apple made huge strides towards improving repairability with the iPhone 16. Sadly, despite getting a big internal redesign, the Apple Watch Series 10 is not as repair-friendly as the new iPhones.

A teardown from iFixit details the wearable’s innards and all the changes Apple made to slim down its design.

As a longtime iPhone user — now with a new iPhone 16 Pro — I like to flirt with the idea of going naked, with no case at all. But then I usually wimp out and go minimal instead. Totallee has built its reputation on barely-there minimalism, so I thought I’d give the Totallee Super Thin Case, Clear Grip Case and tempered glass screen protector a try. And true to form, Totallee iPhone cases offer protection without bulk. To my surprise, I liked the thin case and screen protector combo the most. It just seems like my black titanium iPhone, but with more grip and added peace of mind.

Apple’s big step into artificial intelligence is scheduled for this month, and a prediction from a generally reliable source may have just named the release date: October 28. This will reportedly be when new iOS, macOS and iPadOS versions usher in Apple Intelligence.

These AI capabilities were unveiled in June at the company’s developers conference and have been in public beta testing for weeks, so it’s now a waiting game for the full launch.

Apple’s next-gen M4 Macs will reportedly arrive November 1, rather than in October as is generally expected. A few days before that, the company supposedly plans to release iOS 18.1 with Apple Intelligence support.

The new Macs that will debut include M4 MacBook Pros, Mac mini, and an iMac.

This week on Cult of Mac’s podcast: If Apple does host a big October event, M4 Macs and iPads likely will steal the show. We talk about what to expect from the upcoming Apple products.

Also on The CultCast:

• Other Apple gear is on a longer timeline, including iPhone SE 4, upgraded iPad Airs and a next-gen Vision Pro.
• There’s also a rumored low-end smart display running a mysterious new operating system called “homeOS.”
• And finally, Erfon gives us an in-depth, ears-on review of one week with AirPods 4. He’s not crazy about the fit, and the active noise cancellation is a mixed bag.

Listen to this week’s episode of The CultCast in the Podcasts app or your favorite podcast app. (Be sure to subscribe and leave us a review if you like it!) Or watch the video live stream, embedded below.

Apple Intelligence makes its debut with 10 new features — and some of it is fantastic. Apple Intelligence has some genuinely impressive new features, and some of it will have a big impact on daily life.

Apple Intelligence is the name for Apple’s next-generation AI and machine learning-powered features that are coming to iPhone, iPad and Mac. These first 10 features are available in iOS 18.1 and macOS Sequoia 15.1 right now. Some of the biggest features like Visual Intelligence, Image Playground and the all-new Siri aren’t here (and might not ship for a while) but Apple has still managed to make a good first impression.

Here’s what you can expect. Keep reading or watch our video to see it in action.

The new Soundcore Space One Pro wireless noise-canceling headphones generated some buzz in the audio community, promising top-notch sound quality and advanced features for a typically reasonable price from Anker’s audio brand. Keen to see if they’d live up to expectations, I tried them out. And I found that they’re great at the list price of $200. But when the price dips — and it usually does — they’ll become an absolutely fantastic value. Read my Soundcore Space One Pro headphones review below for more information.

If you own an iPhone 13, should you upgrade to the iPhone 16 for its faster performance, better cameras and Apple Intelligence support? Or should you wait another year?

Three years is a long time in the tech world. The iPhone 13 launched in 2021 with cutting-edge specs. But in 2024, it is showing its age, especially when compared to the iPhone 16. Find out if this is the year to upgrade in our in-depth buying guide, which pits iPhone 16 versus iPhone 13.

A federal jury found two Chinese men living in Maryland guilty Tuesday in a fake iPhone fraud scheme. They attempted to defraud Apple in a $3 million scheme to replace fake iPhones with real ones, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia said.

Haotian Sun and Pengfei Xue’s mail fraud convictions carry a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.

UPDATE: Five years after their arrest, Sun was sentenced to 57 months in prison and Xue was sentenced to 54 months in prison, according to Justice.gov, for conspiracy to commit mail fraud and mail fraud. And the judge ordered Sun to serve three years of supervised release and pay $1,072,000 in restitution. Judge Kelly ordered Xue to serve three years of supervised release and pay $397,800 in restitution.