| Cult of Mac

iOS 15.4.1 improves iPhone battery life, macOS 12.3.1 fixes Bluetooth bug

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iOS 15.4.1 release improves iPhone battery life, macOS 12.3.1 fixes Bluetooth bug
If you have an Apple device, it probably got an OS update on Thursday.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

Apple introduced bug fix updates for every one of its operating systems on Thursday. These updates should improve the battery life on iPhone and iPad. And for Mac users, the new version fixes well-publicized bugs recently introduced by macOS 12.3.

However, there are no new features in macOS Monterey 12.3.1, iOS 15.4.1, iPadOS 15.4.1, watchOS 8.5.1 and tvOS 15.4.1 — Apple just fixed small problems. All five updates are available to download immediately.

Apple Maps gets a major upgrade in Canada

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Apple Maps gets a major upgrade in Canada
Enjoy a more detailed city experience, with 3D buildings and landmarks.
Images: Apple

Apple Maps users in Canada can now enjoy a more detailed mapping experience, as well as enhanced navigation, in several big cities.

Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver are the latest to get Apple’s most recent Maps upgrades — which first debuted in London, Los Angeles, New York City, and the San Francisco Bay Area in iOS 15 last September.

macOS 12.3 Monterey users fight external monitor, game controller issues

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Monitor cinema display
How is macOS Monterey 12.3 holding up for you?
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

A growing number of Mac users are reporting issues with external monitors and game controllers after updating to macOS Monterey 12.3.

Some say their Mac no longer detects connected displays at all, while others are frustrated that their Xbox, PlayStation, and other third-party gamepads are not functioning over Bluetooth — even when the controller is connected.

Apple’s Universal Control and Face ID with a mask are almost here

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Apple’s Universal Control and Face ID with a mask are almost here
Apple seeded to developers release candidates for all of its operating systems.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

Apple seeded to developers the release candidates of macOS Monterey 12.3 and iPadOS 15.4 on Tuesday. That’s the final step before introducing them to the public, which will finally give Mac and iPad users access to the long-delayed Universal Control.

The iOS 15.4 Release Candidate also went to developers, so iPhone users will soon be able to unlock their iPhone with Face ID while wearing a mask. Plus, the watchOS 8.5 RC and tvOS 15.4 RC were seeded as well.

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

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Safari Keychain passwords
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.

Universal Control on Mac and iPad is one of Apple’s most magical features yet

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Universal Control
It "just works," and it does so magnificently.
Photo: Apple

Universal Control, which is finally in testing ahead of its public debut, lets you control a Mac and an iPad with the same keyboard and mouse, bringing the two computers closer together than ever before. It’s particularly handy if you rely on both macOS and iPadOS apps and find yourself regularly switching between them.

The feature looked pretty ambitious and exciting when Apple previewed it during its Worldwide Developers Conference keynote back in June. And now that it’s here (mostly) and we’ve had the chance to try it out, we firmly believe it is one of Cupertino’s most magical features to date.

Here’s why Universal Control will knock your socks off.

macOS Monterey 12.3 beta resumes testing Universal Control [Updated]

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macOS Monterey Universal Control: Coming soon to a Mac (and other Apple gear) near you.
Universal Control: Coming to a Mac (and other Apple gear) near you. Eventually.
Photo: Apple

Apple seeded the first beta for macOS Monterey 12.3 to developers on Thursday. It includes the long-overdue Universal Control feature, suggesting this will finally launch soon.

The beta comes just a day after macOS 12.2 ended testing and was released to the public.

macOS 12.2 is out with smoother ProMotion scrolling … maybe

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macOS Monterey 12.2 is out with smoother ProMotion scrolling… maybe
macOS 12.2 takes care of a few bugs.
Photo: Apple/Cult of Mac

Mac users can now install macOS Monterey 12.2. Apple is vague about what’s in the new version. However, prerelease beta testers indicate it brings a rewritten Apple Music app and smoother scrolling for MacBooks with ProMotion displays. It definitely fixes a serious Safari bug.

Apple also released iOS 15.3 and iPadOS 15.3 to the public Wednesday. And watchOS 8.4, too.

Smoother ProMotion scrolling moves closer with macOS 12.2 release candidate

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Smoother ProMotion scrolling moves closer with macOS 12.2 release candidate
The macOS 12.2 release candidate means a full release is almost here.
Photo: Cult of Mac

The macOS Monterey 12.2 release candidate went to developers on Thursday. This makes a full launch only a few days away.

Apple has yet to give an official list of changes in the upcoming version, but beta testers indicate it will offer smoother scrolling on MacBooks with ProMotion displays and a rewritten Apple Music app.

Apple also seeded to developers iOS 15.3 RC, iPadOS 15.3 RC, watchOS 8.4 RC and tvOS 15.3 RC on Thursday.