Apple made an enormous number of changes in its 2021 operating system updates. Many of these drew plenty of attention — like the FaceTime upgrade — but some useful improvements might have been overlooked in all the hoopla.
Here are nine new features in iOS 15, iPadOS 15 and macOS Monterey you might have overlooked.
These days, a high-end timepiece is more a fashion statement than anything else. The fact that a traditional watch only tells time doesn’t seem as impressive when stacked up against smartwatches, which can monitor health, set reminders and connect you to the world with calls and messages.
There are plenty of Apple Watch alternatives that look like but cost less than Cupertino’s killer wearable. If you want an affordable device dedicated to health monitoring, look no further than this 1.3-inch color screen smartwatch from Ineedmeone. For a limited time, this functional, fashionable take on the smartwatch costs only $36.95.
Apple Podcasts Subscriptions went live Tuesday, allowing podcasters around the world to charge monthly subscriptions for their shows. When announced at Apple’s Spring Loaded event in April, the company billed the feature as a “global marketplace for listeners to discover premium subscriptions offered by their favorite creators.”
The premium podcasts show up in Apple’s Podcast app, complete with the ability to subscribe, in more than 170 countries and regions, Apple said. And the new option gives podcasters a fresh way to cash in on the craze Apple helped start.
Still waiting for a PlayStation 5 or an Xbox Series X? You’re not alone. Console restocks are still making headlines, with Best Buy reportedly selling out of new PS5 stock in just 11 minutes.
If you’re one of the millions worldwide waiting for the latest gaming console, there may be a way to skip the line and land the gaming setup of your dreams. For a limited time, you can enter the Big Summer of Gaming Giveaway and win more than $5,000 in the best gaming gear on the market.
Save on some of the best accessories money can buy for iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch and Mac in the Cult of Mac Store’s big Father’s Day sale. Enjoy up to 72% of cases, bands, charging stands, and more from the likes of Elago, Elkson, Monowear, and SwitchEasy.
These are limited-time offers, so enjoy them while you can!
The classic writer’s garret, a small room where a tortured scribe toils over lonely hours to put words on the page — using a quill or a fountain pen or maybe a Smith Corona typewriter — has been tastefully updated.
Now it’s all about a 12.9-inch iPad Pro locked hard into the Ulysses text editor to prevent any distractions. There’s also a highly customized mechanical keyboard and really nice noise-canceling headphones. At least that’s how Scottish novelist Matt Gemmell limits his gear in a minimalistic setup, he told Cult of Mac.
It helps him focus on writing. That, and sitting his ass down in the chair for hours a day. The chair is a Herman Miller Aeron, by the way. The spartan surroundings need not lack comfort, after all. It’s about limiting distractions.
Beats Studio Buds just became a strong competitor for AirPods Pro. Which is odd, as they’re both made by Apple.
Studio Buds are truly wireless headphones that offer active noise cancellation and access to Apple’s Find My network. They come in a variety of colors for $149.99.
While brunches and flowers accompany Mother’s Day every year, the common trope around Father’s Day is that thoughtful gifts for dad seem impossible to find. Socks, ties, watches and golf-related items are classic gift ideas for good reason. But if your pops is a bit of a bookworm, then you may want to check out this exclusive deal on a subscription to Blinkist. This Father’s Day, you can get a two-year subscription to Blinkist Premium for $99.99 (regularly $383).
Pick up Beats Solo Pro wireless headphones at half their usual price for a limited time only. Woot is offering brand-new units for just $149.99 — down from $299.95 — while stocks last.
Solo Pro headphones offer active noise cancellation, an Apple H1 chip for fast and stable connectivity, and up to 22 hours of battery life in between charges. And most importantly, they sound terrific!
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PopSockets PopGrips are already wildly popular, and the new MagSafe system in the iPhone 12 series improved on the design. Instead of having to attach with adhesive, the pop-up phone handles cling tightly to magnets built into Apple’s handsets.
I tried the standard PopGrip and the wallet version with an iPhone 12, and they stood up brilliantly to real-world use.
We’re big fans of the Apple Watch, but great smartwatches don’t have to cost a small fortune. Case in point: The C-Max Chrono-Max Smartwatch, which is on sale today for just $59.99. That’s a 72% discount off the regular price of $219.
Boasting a dozen different features, all displayed on a lush, full-color, 1.69-inch touchscreen display, the C-Max Chrono-Max means you’ll never miss a call, chat or text again, as you’ll receive an alert right to your watch for each through useful push notifications.
This week’s Worldwide Developers Conference brought an avalanche of info about what to expect from Apple’s next-gen operating systems. Our top story runs down our overall first impressions after Monday’s WWDC keynote. And our newsy roundups showcase each platform’s new key features.
Also don’t miss Ed Hardy’s deeper hands-on dives into key features coming in iOS 15 and iPadOS 15. You can read all that and more in this week’s free issue of Cult of Mac Magazine. Just download and enjoy on your favorite iOS device. Alternatively, you can use the links below to read our coverage in your browser of choice.
If you want to get exhaustive, you can dig through all our posts by key platform: iOS 15, macOS Monterey, iPadOS 15, watchOS 8 and tvOS.
iOS 15 makes it a whole lot easier to move images, text and files between applications. The familiar drag-and-drop action makes the jump to iPhone, and it’s surprisingly simple to use.
I’m testing the first iOS beta on an iPhone 12, and this new sharing system is one of the best additions. There are even benefits for iPad users.
The beauty of Apple AirTags is that the tracking tags attach to your valuables and allow you to find them with your iPhone, from anywhere. But that also means your AirTags are constantly on the move — and vulnerable to damage.
That’s why anyone who invested in an AirTag needs a solid case to keep it protected. One of the best is this Apple AirTag Protector Case, which is on sale right now for just $14.95. That’s a 50% discount off the regular price of $29.
It seems Apple can’t keep a lid on Beats Studio Buds. Celebrities keep getting photographed wearing the not-yet-announced in-ear wireless headphones, and now the launch date has leaked out.
They are still MIA for regular folks to buy. But since they showed up in yet another social media post by a famous athlete, Apple is seemingly playing a calculated long game when it comes to ramping up anticipation.
The wild Apple TV+ adaptation of Stephen King’s Lisey’s Story gets even richer and more imaginative in this week’s episode. Having introduced Lisey, the troubled widow of a famous writer, the miniseries starts drawing out the details of the other people who populate its real and imaginary worlds.
Director Pablo Larraín continues to flex his artistic muscles as he creates a compelling fantasy world. And one character in particular proves delightfully unnerving.
Redditor UGenya806, who works in marketing for San Francisco-based DocuSign in Germany, takes appearances on Zoom calls seriously. After all, their job has always been remote and will remain so, even when others return to offices following the COVID-19 pandemic.
UGenya806’s setup centers on an M1 Mac mini tethered to dual Dell 24-inch 4K monitors and a CalDigit TS3 Thunderbolt 3 Dock. The mini is connected wirelessly to a Magic Keyboard and a Magic Trackpad.
A stand-mounted MacBook Air rounds out the mix, but is usually used separately as a standalone machine, not with the peripherals.
The new and ultra-slim M1 iMac just hit a new low after Amazon slashed $50 off the base model. Bag yours today in blue or silver for just $1,249 — down from $1,299 — before the discount disappears.
Apple is encouraging iPhone and iPad app developers to up their 5G game and embrace super-speedy connectivity.
In a new guide titled “Optimize your app for 5G,” Apple says “5G networking can provide even more opportunities to take advantage of high-bandwidth and low-latency connections in your app.”
It also outlines the benefits the technology can bring to things like games, streaming, machine learning, and augmented reality.
Home Before Dark, the Apple TV+ show about a cute and cuddly girl reporter, returns for more incongruous drama and more bad parenting. The show got off to something of a generic start in its first season, sandwiched between popular styles and uncertain of its identity.
But in its second season, which debuts today, the show digs a little deeper into the setting and characters. As a result, the creative team produced something close to an essential season.
Apple has begun testing a revamped iCloud Mail interface for the web. The new look resembles the most recent version of the built-in Mail app in macOS and iPadOS, and users can try out the beta today.
iOS and iPadOS 15 give app developers the ability to hide sensitive information in lock screen widgets until a device has been unlocked.
The change is part of an upgrade to the WidgetKit framework, first introduced in iOS and iPadOS 14 last year, and will be particularly useful for things like banking and budgeting apps.
The annual Apple Design Awards honor excellence in innovation, ingenuity, and technical achievement in iOS and iPadOS application and game design. A dozen winners were named Thursday in categories ranging from outstanding Interaction to apps that are just fun.
Linedock 16” is for anyone who’s ever thought, “I wish my MacBook had more ports and a longer battery life. And more storage!” The docking station fits under your notebook and adds ten ports, a 99.9Wh battery and up to 2TB of storage.
I tested the version of Linedock for 16-inch MacBooks. It totally blew my socks off.
Ulrich Kranz, who once developed electric cars for auto-giant BMW, has reportedly been hired by Apple. He’ll become an important part of the Mac-maker’s ongoing efforts to create a self-driving Apple car.