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Steve Jobs was talking about the power of remote working back in 1990

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Steve Jobs 1990 interview
Jobs was predicting the power of Slack and similar tools 30 years ago.
Photo: The Machine That Changed the World

As a result of coronavirus-induced lockdowns, the way we work has changed dramatically in 2020. Plenty of employees and businesses are now talking seriously about remote working and whether it represents a viable path forward for reimagining employment.

It turns out that Steve Jobs was talking about this exact topic 30 years ago. No, Jobs didn’t foresee COVID-19. But an old interview clips unearthed by journalist Jon Erlichman shares Jobs’ thoughts on the way technology can transform the way that you and I work.

Check it out.

Possibly delayed iPhone 12 will boast ‘high-end’ camera array

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iPhone 12 rumors mix in this concept video.
The new iPhone will boast a new 'high-end' camera, says reliable Apple analyst.
Screenshot: ConceptsiPhone

The makers of the “high-end” camera lens arrays used in the iPhone 12 will reportedly start shipping them in mid-July, says reliable Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo in a research note published Friday.

Kuo doesn’t deal exactly what these new lenses consist of. However, he has previously suggested that the iPhone 12 will feature seven-element lenses that will offer superior image quality to the iPhone 11 and 11 Pro due to increased light transmission rate.

iPadOS 14 brings huge Apple Pencil advances

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Apple Pencil just got much more useful in iPadOS 14.
Use an Apple Pencil to enter text anywhere with Scribble in iPadOS 14.
Photo: Apple

WWDC 2020 iPad owners can use an Apple Pencil to write words into any text box thanks to iPadOS 14, which Apple announced Monday at its developers conference.

And there are other enhancements coming as well, like home screen widgets, improvements to search, and some user interface tweaks.

Amazing Apple Magic Keyboard might come to more iPads

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iPad-Pro-Magic-Trackpad-3
The eye-catching Apple Magic keyboard could be available for a range of iPads.
Photo: Apple

There’ll be versions of Apple’s clip-on Magic Keyboard for other models besides the iPad Pro, according to a reliable source.

Apple’s accessory wowed reviewers and users this spring, but it’s currently only for the company’s top-tier tablets. Apparently, that’s going to change.

iPadOS 14 expected to add new uses for Apple Pencil

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Sketching with an Apple Pencil is the merest tip of the iceberg of Apple’s suggestions for making your iPad Pro more useful.
Get ready for Apple Pencil to become useful for more than artists and students.
Screenshot: Apple

iPadOS 14 reportedly will bring multiple new features to Apple Pencil. On Tuesday came word that Safari will offer new markup tools for webpages.

An earlier report indicated the next iPadOS version could finally bring handwriting recognition to Apple tablets.

Former Windows division boss goes all-in on iPad Pro with his new ‘desktop PC’ setup

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iPad-Pro-Magic-Trackpad-3
The iPad is more of a real computer every day.
Photo: Apple

Is the iPad Pro good enough to double as a serious desktop computer? If you ask Steven Sinofsky, former president of the Windows division at Microsoft, the answer is a resounding “yes.”

In a recent tweet, Sinofsky shared a photo of the setup for his “new desktop PC.” And, for a guy who made his name working for one of Apple’s long-time biggest competitors, it’s pretty darn Apple-centric.

iOS 13.5 brings Apple’s COVID-19 tools to the masses

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iOS 13.5 golden master is available only to developers.
iOS 13.5 makes it faster to unlock an iPhone while wearing a mask, as well as other features related to COVID-19.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

All iPhone users can now install iOS 13.5. This includes the tools Apple and Google created to make COVID-19 contact-tracing applications. And this update brings a number of other new features focused on the current crisis.

Apple also released iPadOS 13.5, which incorporates many of the same features.

OtterBox Defender protects your iPad Pro like a tank [Review]

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OtterBox Defender for 2020 iPad Pro review
If you use your tablet outside more than in an office, you really need to consider the OtterBox Defender for 2020 iPad Pro.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

iPad Pros used in the field require hard-core protection, and there’s no better option than the OtterBox Defender. The case wraps the tablet in layer upon layer of plastic to cushion it from serious accidents. There’s even a built-in screen protector.

I encased my 2020 iPad Pro in the latest version of the OtterBox Defender to do some real-world testing. Here’s what I found out.

iMac redesign, cheaper HomePod, new Apple TV reportedly coming in 2020

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iMac Apple
It's been almost eight years since the last iMac redesign.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

A redesigned iMac, a more affordable HomePod, and a powerful new Apple TV are just some of the products Apple has planned for 2020, according to one reliable reporter.

Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman also revealed expectations for the 5G iPhone lineup, scheduled to launch this fall, and for a 14-inch MacBook Pro during a Twitter Q&A with followers on Tuesday.

iPad ventilator simulators play crucial role training doctors during COVID-19 crisis

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hamilton.medical.ipad.simulator.1
An iPad and Mac simulator is helping medical workers learn to use ventilators during the coronavirus pandemic.
Photo: Hamilton Medical

A ventilator simulator app for iPad and Mac is helping medical workers quickly learn how to use the life-saving machines during the coronavirus pandemic. The software, originally developed for classroom use, is now being used to train doctors on the fly as demand for ventilators — and professionals who can operate them — soars due to COVID-19.

The free simulator software looks and operates just like the Hamilton-C6, a state-of-the-art ventilator sold by Switzerland-based Hamilton Medical AG, one of the world’s largest medical ventilator manufacturers. Much like a flight simulator for pilots, the iPad app allows medical professionals unfamiliar with mechanical ventilators, or simply rusty after years of not using them, to practice adjusting settings without endangering lives.

“You don’t want to practice on a real patient, so that’s why we developed this simulator that basically provides that interaction,” Alexander Starcevic, director of marketing at Hamilton Medical AG, told Cult of Mac. “It provides you with a real interface that you have on the real ventilator. In addition, you have behind this a patient model that actually responds to what you’re setting.”

watchOS 7 may add kid-friendly Activity rings to Apple Watch

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Apple Watch Activity
Kids will be able to fill their rings to unlock rewards.
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

Apple is planning to make some big changes to the Activity Rings on Apple Watch so that it’s more kid-friendly.

Leaked code from iOS 14 reveals that Apple plans to tweak how the move ring works when Apple Watch is in Kid Mode, allowing parents to set goals from their own iPhones. Instead of tracking calories burned though, the feature will focus on just movement.

No, Apple is not throttling its A-series chips for easy upgrades later

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2020 iPad Pro builds on the 2018 model.
The 2020 iPad Pro offers an additional GPU core, but its chip hasn't changed.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

A new investigation into Apple’s improved A12Z Bionic chip inside the 2020 iPad Pro reveals that it features exactly the same GPU found in the A12X Bionic for 2018 iPad Pro units. The one big difference is that an additional eighth core is now enabled, making it slightly faster.

Many fans are now criticizing Apple for what seems, at first glance, as intentional throttling. It is assumed Cupertino is disabling features in its newest chips, only to enable them later and market them as improved — even though they’re essentially the same on the inside.

Could it be that this is a scheme to make quick and easy cash? Actually, no. This is standard practice across the semiconductor industry. Others like Intel and Nvidia use exactly the same approach — and there’s a very good reason for it.

Here’s the real reason why an A12Z is just an A12X with unlocked potential.

LiDAR scanner makes 2020 iPad Pro an augmented reality powerhouse

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Look inside the LiDAR scanner in the 2020 iPad Pro
The innovative LiDAR scanner in the 2020 iPad Pro is fast and accurate.
Photo: Apple/Cult of Mac

The 2020 iPad Pro is the first Apple computer with LiDAR. This innovation enables the tablet to make an accurate 3D map of its location. Combine it with software improvements and this tablet is, in Apple’s words, “the world’s best device for augmented reality.”

And the LiDAR scanner might be usable for other purposes, as well.

watchOS 7 might bring shareable Apple Watch faces, improvements for parents

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watchOS 5 Face
Got an Apple Watch face you really like? Soon you might be able to easily share it with a friend.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

A leak from inside Apple indicates the next watchOS version will allow users to share Watch faces. In addition, parents allegedly will be able to set “Schooltime” limits, restricting what a child’s Apple Watch can do during certain hours.

Other changes coming in watchOS 7 have come to light as well.

How to mark email as junk on your iPhone

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junk mail
The inevitable spam:junk-mail metaphor image
Photo: Pau Casals/Unsplash

Your iPhone’s Mail app is pretty good. It does most of what you need, and you can be sure that it doesn’t steal your email password, or send details from your incoming mail to Apple. There are even a bunch of very powerful smart folders and features hidden in its sidebar. But getting basic stuff done is sometimes awkward, thanks to Apple’s insistence on hiding everything in the name of minimalism.

That includes marking an email as spam. It’s actually easy, but you might not know how to do it. Today we’ll look at three ways to mark email as junk mail.

Tim Cook takes wait-and-see attitude toward constantly changing coronavirus; ‘reason for optimism, but we’ll see’

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Apple CEO Tim Cook is optimistic about Apple’s future
CEO Tim Cook says “Apple is fundamentally strong.”
Photo: Fox Business

CEO Tim Cook promises Apple is fundamentally strong and will weather the problems resulting from the coronavirus spreading around the world. He says his focus isn’t on short-term changes in Apple’s share price, despite a recent significant drop.

In a wide-ranging interview with Fox Business recorded Thursday in Birmingham, Alabama, Cook also discussed whether his company will move more device production out of China, and his relationship with President Donald Trump.

Low-end AirPods rumor gains traction yet remains ‘lite’ on credible details

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They AirPods Pro fit in their case like nothing ever happened.
These AirPods Pro are full-strength.
Photo: Charlie Sorrel/Cult of Mac

Tossed into the swirl of rumors and reports about coronavirus and its impact on Apple production is an alleged new entry to the AirPods lineup called “AirPods Pro Lite.”

The quotes bookending the product name are because no one is sure what to make of what is essentially a rumor first reported by a Chinese website with a mixed record for accuracy.

In the last few days, reports have surfaced in DigiTimes of a second “lite” version supplier, giving further credence to the various reports.

Samsung copies Apple again with AirDrop clone

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Samsung Quick Share is an AirDrop ripoff.
Samsung’s Quick Share is just like a feature iPhones have had since iOS 7.
Photo: Samsung

Quick Share, a highlight of Samsung’s latest handsets, is a feature iPhone owners have been using for over 8 years.  The Galaxy S20 and other new models from this company can wirelessly send files directly between two devices… just like Apple’s AirDrop.

This Siri shortcut scans and translates text on any photo, sign or menu

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translate scan shortcut
What could this possibly mean?
Photo: Jon Tyson/Unsplash

I live in Germany, and even though my German is fine, I often get beaten by notices and signs. In my native England, signs and notices are snappy. They use few words, and often annoying slogans, to get the point across. In Germany, an A4 (legal-size) sheet of paper with densely spaced type is the norm. And that’s just from neighbors complaining about people leaving their strollers on the wrong side of the entrance hall.

So, I decided to do something about it. I wrote a Siri Shortcut that scans one of these German essays using the iPhone’s camera, translates it, and shows it to you. There are apps that can do something similar, but my shortcut is way better, for several reasons.