Happy weekend, everyone! We’ve got another insane issue of Cult of Mac Magazine for you this week, full of details on Apple’s new iMac, Magic peripherals, the best updates in iWork’s new update, fresh how-tos, product reviews, and a sad goodbye to one of Apple’s ultimate fans.
All this (and plenty more!) in this week’s Cult of Mac Magazine – be sure to download your own copy of our fantastic app today.
Here’s the latest top stories for this week.
The way we consume news is changing at a rapid pace, and both Apple and Twitter are trying to cater to readers’ need for speed and convenience.
iOS 9’s new Apple News app and the recently launched Twitter Moments both exist because millennials aren’t reading the newspaper every morning or watching news broadcasts in the evening. We get our news primarily from the Internet, often without having to click on articles or read hundreds of words for context.
Online media’s big push toward keeping news relevant and immediate caters to our ever-shrinking attention spans. For better or worse, we’ve gravitated toward bite-size information and entertaining listicles.
Twitter figured that out long ago. Apple still hasn’t.
The iPhone 6s’ new Live Photos feature created a new media format, but there’s one major problem with the new moving pictures: You have to own an iPhone 6s to see them.
Most of your friends probably haven’t upgraded yet, which means those cool Live Photos you’ve snapped are only viewable by you. However, there is a way to transform your favorite Live Photo into a shareable GIF or video file, allowing everyone to see the movement in your picture, no matter what device they’re on.
Here’s how to do it:
Apple banned over 250 apps from the App Store that were using software to access users’ personal information. These apps managed to get through the App Store approval process with private APIs, which are against the rules. Apple took action shortly after news broke this morning that a security firm discovered these apps.
Fingerprint scanners on Android devices have been hit-or-miss (mostly miss) in recent years, but they’re getting a whole lot better. There’s no better example of that than the new Nexus 5X, which is even faster at recognizing your print than the new Touch ID sensor in iPhone 6s.
Whether for presentations or driving your cat up the wall, laser pointers are as fun as they are useful. Given everything else an iPhone can do, it only makes sense that it also be able to shine a focused beam of light when and where you need one. The iPin Laser Pointer fits neatly inside your iPhone’s headphone jack, turning it into a red laser pointer. Batteries aren’t an issue, since the iPin sips power straight from the phone, and a built-in switch that means you can leave it in the jack when not in use. iPin also comes with a slideshow-controlling app, which together with the laser make this a great option for anyone who gives regular presentations.
El Capitan has a ton of neat new features, but no OS ever arrives completely error-free. This year’s OS X update is no different — leading some impatient online types to go so far as to label it “El Crapitan.”
Some of these problems have been solved. Others haven’t. But we’ve compiled a list of some of the most widespread complaints. Check out the hall of shame below.
Love Hultén has created a beautiful replica of the original 128k Macintosh made almost entirely out of American walnut. Known for his craftsmanship in building replicas and concepts of gaming consoles among other gadgets, Hultén has taken that love and applied it to one of Apple’s most beloved products to date. He calls it the Golden Apple.
Samsung is expected to follow Apple’s footsteps and build a pressure-sensitive display into next year’s Galaxy S7, according to recent reports — and now a new patent backs up those claims with proof that the South Korean company has been hard at work on a similar technology for over a year.
Kyle Wiens thinks the iPad should be banned. It’s a “highly immoral” product, he says, because it can’t be opened and repaired when the battery dies. It’s a throwaway device, and he wants governments to prohibit it.
“It’s not designed to be long-lasting,” said Wiens, who is the co-founder and CEO of iFixit. “It’s like selling a car that has to be replaced when the tires wear out.”
Wiens is the Bernie Sanders of the electronics industry. He doesn’t just want reform — he wants revolution!
Here’s why.
Apple Bike, anyone? According to a new report, Apple’s continued recruitment of auto experts has resulted in the closure of an electric motorcycle startup.
Called Mission Motors, the company had drawn comparisons with Tesla — only to shut down back in May after Apple raided some of its top engineers.
At least two Mission employees joined Apple in 2012, while over the past year another dozen are reported to have started work with the company.
How do weekends go by so quickly? It’s already halfway through the end-of-week break but — don’t worry — we’ve got the app hookup you need, whether you’re planning on a lazy game-playing Sunday, or a day of out-and-about photo-snapping action.
What have we picked as the best apps of the past seven days? Read on to find out.
A sure sign that solar energy is growing is in the small devices it’s showing up in. ZeroLemon’s SolarJuice 20,000 mAh Battery can power up anything that charges via a USB cable — iPhones, Android, and beyond — all with energy it soaks in from the great power outlet in the sky. This is a great way to ensure as long as you’re within reach of the sky, you’re always within reach of a charge, for just $49.99 at Cult of Mac Deals.
Let’s face it: The green plastic band I have for my Apple Watch Sport is useful and comfortable, but it’s not classy. I wear it to the gym with no reservations, but a night out on the town? Maybe if I were an adolescent.
When I strap Nomad’s new Italian leather replacement band to my wrist, however, I finally feel like a grownup. This is one beautiful Apple Watch strap.
It’s been nearly four years since Lytro started shipping their first pocket-sized light field camera. The technology has advanced since then, and the Lytro Illum represents its cutting edge. It still takes the stunning ‘living pictures’ of its predecessor — images based on the full light field that can be refocused and subtly repositioned after they’ve been shot — but right now you can get it for nearly half off the normal price, $699.99 at Cult of Mac Deals.
This week on Cult of Mac’s podcast: The pros and cons of Apple’s new 4K and 5K iMacs, plus, the new Magic Keyboard, Magic Mouse 2 and Magic Trackpad 2 — we’ve got our grubby hands on Apple’s new peripherals and we’re ready to share what we love (and what we don’t).
And stay tuned for CultCast 2nd Hour with guest Blake J. Harris, author of Console Wars: Sega, Nintendo, and the Battle that Defined a Generation, to be regaled with the story of the 90s video game war that pitted newcomer, Sega of America, against Nintendo, maker of Super Mario Brothers, Duck Hunt, and the unstoppable force that was the Nintendo Entertainment System.
Around the world, Apple Watch is helping people make life-changing improvements to their health and fitness.
I recently asked Cult of Mac readers to share their experiences getting in shape with Apple Watch, and the response has been amazing. Here are some of the inspiring stories I received — and some great insights into how you can use an Apple Watch to smash your fitness goals.
A test to pit the two different iPhone 6s models against each other — one with a TSMC chip and the other with a Samsung chip — has officially debunked Chipgate. It turns out there are no discernible differences in battery life between the two.
Consumer Reports acquired an iPhone 6s with an A9 chip made from TSMC and another from Samsung. They made sure all settings were equal on both devices including the carrier, brightness settings, wireless connections, iOS version, running apps and more. Then they got to work.
Apple delivered the 4K iMac many fans have been waiting for this week, but it’s not quite the all-in-one powerhouse some were expecting. Look past its beautiful design and you’ll find a lot of drawbacks you probably wouldn’t (and shouldn’t) expect to get with a $1,500 computer.
The upside is, this gives another great topic for a slanging match.
So join us in this week’s Friday Night Fight between Cult of Android and Cult of Mac as we go head to head over one question: Is the 4K iMac a total ripoff?
Apple’s magical new Mouse, TrackPad and keyboard have been given the official teardown treatment from the guys at iFixit today, revealing the minuscule components inside the rechargeable new peripherals.
The teardown on the keyboard reveals the tiny new battery Apple squeezed in that has some design similarities to the iPhone’s battery. iFixit also took a closer look at the new Taptic Engine in the pricey Magic TrackPad 2, and filleted the Magic Mouse 2.
Check out what’s inside each device:
Perhaps as we continue to evolve, our thumbs will grow longer so future generations will be able to reach the back menu arrow at the top of the iPhone. But we can’t wait hundreds of years for that.
We either need to lift an extra finger, god forbid, or purchase a glass screen protector that essentially gives our struggling thumb invisible back and forward buttons.
These days, it’s all too easy to feel vulnerable whenever conducting a transaction, sending a message, or even just idly surfing the web. One way to feel secure is with a secure virtual private network, and for those of us without the IT chops to set one up ourselves there’s proXPN VPN. Right now you can get a lifetime subscription to proXPN’s VPN service for a full 98% off the normal price, $39 at Cult of Mac Deals.
Apple will snub Samsung and call upon TSMC to exclusively produce all of its next-generation A10 processors for 2016’s iOS devices, according to a new report. It’s thought Apple considers TSMC’s chips to be superior to Samsung’s in performance and efficiency.
Apple has released a new ad for iPhone 6s, focusing on its incredible new 3D Touch technology.
The 30-second video highlights the Peek and Pop gestures, and demonstrates the many ways in which that can be useful during everyday use.
You’ll never be without an Internet connection in U.K. towns and cities in the future, thanks to Wi-Fi-emitting sidewalks.
Chesham in Buckinghamshire has become the first town to deliver Wi-Fi at speeds of up to 166 Mbps, seven times the average broadband speed in the U.K., through “Smart Pavements” courtesy of broadband provider Virgin Media.