As a Mac user, you already know how to take a quick screenshot with the ⌘⇧3 and ⌘⇧4 shortcuts. But did you know that you can also capture a video recording of your screen? If you’re running macOS Mojave, making a Mac screen recording proves as easy as hitting a shortcut, just like grabbing a screenshot. Older Macs can do it, too, albeit with a little more futzing.
Noise-canceling headphones are fantastic. They cut down on traffic noise, airplane rumble and even — to a certain extent — the racket from that never-ending construction work across the street. Not only is life more pleasant without this noise pollution, but less background noise is also healthier for your ears.
Because you’re not trying to drown out the ambient noise with your music, you can set the volume lower, thus preserving your hearing (as well as your sanity).
Today we’ll see how to choose from the different kinds of available noise-canceling headphones, and how to use them. What this won’t be is a buyer’s guide — although I do have some recommendations based on personal use.
Mac users who’ve used the Zoom video conferencing application can now be assured that a serious security flaw has been dealt with. Apple pushed out a patch that removed the vulnerability from every Mac, without users needing to do anything.
Before the fix, the flaw potentially let malicious websites force people into Zoom video calls.
Ever dreamed of penning a Hollywood blockbuster? Turns out there’s an app for that: social reading and writing app Wattpad.
With more than 70 million monthly users (and growing fast), Wattpad is a low-key App Store hit. The app is like Instagram, but for sharing stories instead of photos. It’s a great way to find fantastic new stories — and it’s flipping the script on how Hollywood makes movies.
The Uniq HydeAir isn’t your standard 10,000mAh external battery. Beyond USB-A and USB-C ports, it also lets you enjoy the benefits of wireless charging when traveling. And it even has a built-in stand for your phone.
Charge into our hands-on review to discover if HydeAir is right for you.
Apple is moving out of the deserts of macOS Mojave and onto the island of Catalina for the release of macOS 10.15.
macOS Catalina is one of the most important updates for the Mac in years. It packs tons of new features focused on privacy, accessibility and performance while also delivering some fresh UI changes and new apps.
A rare Apple-1 computer built by Steve Wozniak in 1976 has sold for $471,000 in a Christie’s auction.
According to the Apple-1 Registry of known Apple-1 computers, this is number 10 of just 68 thought to be still in existence. Only 200 Apple-1 computers were ever made.
Apple revealed this morning that it has new plan to stop online ads from tracking internet users across the web.
With some new technology that will soon be implemented in Safari, Apple thinks it has found a way to give both advertisers and privacy advocates what they one. It’s called Privacy Preserving Ad Click Attribution and even though the name is lame, it could be a game changer.
The moment smartphones gained the ability to track the number of steps people took every day, insurance companies were ready to find ways to use that data to offer people cheaper premiums.
The moment that happened, enterprising (and slightly underhanded) entrepreneurs were ready to give lazy people a workaround to make it look like they were walking much further than they really were.
What kind of workaround, you ask? Well, something along the lines of this:
Way back in iOS 9 days, Apple added “content blocking” to the iPhone and iPad. More commonly known as “ad-blockers,” this tech lets you use third-party apps to block ads, malware, trackers, comments, and more, in Mobile Safari. Apple itself doesn’t do any more than make blocking possible. To actual decide what to block, you need a third-party app.
Enabling ad-blocking is easy, once you know how, and you can set-and-forget it once done. Or you can keep on top of things, adding custom rules, and white-listing trusted websites. Here’s how.
Accessorizing your Apple Watch with a slew of bands can be an expensive undertaking. But if you know where to look, you can find some high-quality bands that seem just as good as Apple’s — but only cost a fraction of the price.
The CultCast host Erfon Elijah is out with a new video today that will show you how you can pimp out your Apple Watch with multiple colorful bands without breaking the bank. The trick is knowing where to look on eBay and Amazon.
Take a look at some of these gorgeous bands!
If you have an old Mac that doesn’t support AirDrop, or you use a PC with your iPhone or iPad, then getting files from one to the other is a real pain. Readdle’s Documents app fixes this, making it easy to beam anything from one place to the other, wirelessly. Today we’re going to see just how easy it is. And one other neat trick is that you can use this on any computer, not just your own.
Two whole years ago, Apple promised pro users that it would completely revamp the Mac Pro. Apple teased that it’s making a modular system that will have the flexibility professionals need.
With Worldwide Developers Conference 2019 on the horizon, our first glimpse of the modular Mac Pro could be less than two months away, but The CultCast host Erfon Elijah is ready to douse your hopes of getting a new dream machine this year.
In his latest video, Erfon goes over all the reasons why the modular Mac Pro sounds amazing in theory but could be a giant dud. From a design that looks like some IHOP flapjacks to pricing concerns, there’s some good evidence to be skeptical about the new computer, especially when you consider Apple’s recent track record with its “Pro” machines.
Watch Erfon count down the reasons why the next Mac Pro might flop.
Deciding now that an folding iPhone is a terrible idea is premature. There just isn’t enough information yet to judge whether any such device is something you’ll want. And it’s betting against Apple’s history of success in areas where others have failed.
While the first foldable devices from other companies have serious flaws, that in no way means any eventual Apple device with a flexible screen will be equally bad. There’s actually plenty of reason to think it won’t.
Contrary to what you might expect, merging PDFs is easier on your iPhone than on your Mac. On the desktop, you first need to open both PDFs in the Preview app, and then work out how to combine the two of them. On the iPhone or iPad, you can select your PDFs in the Files app (or in the Mail app, or anywhere else you find them), and use a quick shortcut to combine and save them in one go.
It’s instant, foolproof, and Just Works™. Let’s see just how easy it is to merge PDFs on iOS.
This week on The CultCast: News+, TV+, Arcade, Card … we react to it all. We’ll fill in the details on Apple’s new services. And, just when you thought it was safe to type, Apple apologizes for yet more MacBook Air and MacBook Pro keyboard issues.
Our thanks to Squarespace for supporting this episode. Easily create a beautiful website all by yourself, at Squarespace.com/cultcast. Use offer code CultCast at checkout to get 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain..
Apple today added two new iPads to its lineup while dropping the 10.5-inch iPad Pro released in 2017. It now offers five different tablets, each of which has its own advantages. So how do you choose the right one?
Which iPad is best for unparalleled performance? Which one offers more bang for your buck? Which is starting to look a little long in the tooth?
Our in-depth comparison shows you exactly how all five of Apple’s current iPads stack up — and helps you decide which one is worth your hard-earned cash.
Earlier this week I wrote abut using Shortcuts to build a simple download manager for iOS. It works great, but there’s a better solution. It’s an app called Yoink, and it can be a download manager, and way more.
Facebook Messenger now has a secret new dark mode on iOS, two months after the feature entered public testing. It looks particularly great on OLED devices, like the iPhone X and iPhone XS, and you can enable it in just a few simple steps.
Here’s how.
The just-announced LG G8 ThinQ packs a forward-facing sensor that allows users to control some of the phone’s functions with hand gestures, with no need to touch the screen.
The sensors used by the iPhone for Face ID should be able to duplicate this functionality. And that, in turn could simplify use of the device.
Yes, the radio.
Some phones, and some old iPods — the clip-on Nano, for example — have real radio receivers built in. They can pick up over-the-air AM and FM waves, and play them, just like you were in a car from the olden days. The iPhone and iPad, though, have never had working radio tuners. But thanks to internet streaming, it doesn’t matter. You can listen to live radio anywhere, using an app.
Today we’ll see one super-simple app that works a lot like an old radio, and another app that I don’t really like, but that does pretty much anything you could want in a radio-streaming app.
If I was still a stoner student, and I liked to “smoke out” and stare at something other than wildlife documentaries for hours on end, I’d be letting my baked brain cruise the world using the Apple TV’s Aerial screen savers. Or perhaps not. As a mind-expanding student, I probably would’ve spent all my cash on munchies, and not have anything left for the comparatively expensive Apple TV.
The Apple TV’s Aerials are great. But did you know that you don’t have to just sit back, spark up and stare? You actually have some control over them, unlike a weed-smoker’s control over their appetite.
Have you ever sat on the couch, or out on the porch with your iPad, and realized that the file you need is on your Mac? And only on your Mac — not in Dropbox or iCloud Drive or some other easy-to-reach storage? You have to get up, walk to the Mac, and then work out how to get that file onto your iPad.
It doesn’t have to be this way. With one app, you can put all of your Mac’s (or PC’s) folders and files right there inside the iPad’s Files app, ready to browse. Let’s do it.
I can’t tell you how much I love GarageBand on the iPad. But even though it’s a fantastic app, and totally self-contained, sometimes you need to use a Mac. That’s because the iOS version lacks several features of the desktop version. But that’s OK, because the Mac can open iOS GarageBand projects easily. And today we’re going to see how to do it.
Apple may have only debuted its latest iPads at the end of 2018, but it is reportedly gearing up to launch at least two more in the first half of 2019.
According to a new report, Apple touchscreen suppliers are expecting new “entry-level” iPads, including a new iPad mini and an upgrade on last year’s cheaper 9.7-inch iPad.