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Today we're tracking a pair of deals, one on the Apple Pencil 2 and one on the 2020 M1 MacBook Air. These sales include the current best price online for the Apple Pencil 2, and an all-time low price on the MacBook Air.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

Apple Pencil 2
Firstly, Woot has the Apple Pencil 2 for $109.99, down from $129.00. This sale isn't the lowest price we've ever tracked on this accessory, as it's been down to $99.00 in previous sales earlier this year, but it's still a solid second-best deal if you're looking to purchase an Apple Pencil 2 this week.


$19 OFFApple Pencil 2 for $109.99

The Apple Pencil 2 is compatible with the new iPad mini 6, but not the new 10.2-inch iPad. For that tablet, only the original Apple Pencil is supported.

MacBook Air
Amazon today has the 512GB M1 MacBook Air for $1,099.99, down from $1,249.00. This is a match of the all-time low price on this model of the 2020 MacBook Air, and it's available in Space Gray and Silver.



You'll see this sale price reflected on the checkout screen, once an automatic coupon is applied to your order. While the Gold option won't be available until around October 1, you can still purchase a Gold MacBook Air today at this discounted price ahead of the delayed shipping date.

$149 OFFM1 MacBook Air (512GB) for $1,099.99

The 256GB model is on sale as well, available for $849.99, down from $999.00. All three colors are discounted for this model, but none are in stock today. This is still the lowest price we've ever tracked for the 256GB MacBook Air, so if you're willing to wait a few weeks, it's worth locking in this price while it's available.

You can find even more discounts on other MacBooks by visiting our Best Deals guide for MacBook Pro and MacBook Air. In this guide we track the steepest discounts for the newest MacBook models every week, so be sure to bookmark it and check back often if you're shopping for a new Apple notebook.Related Roundup: Apple Deals
This article, "Deals: Get the Apple Pencil 2 for $109.99 ($19 Off) and 512GB M1 MacBook Air for $1,099.99 ($149 Off)" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Amazon today is offering the 512GB M1 MacBook Air for $1,099.99, down from $1,249.00. This is a match of the all-time low price on this model of the 2020 MacBook Air, and it's available in Gold and Silver.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

You'll see this sale price reflected on the checkout screen, once an automatic coupon is applied to your order. Only the Gold color is available to ship today, while the Silver option won't be available until around September 21. You can still purchase a Silver MacBook Air today at this discounted price ahead of the delayed shipping date.

$149 OFFM1 MacBook Air (512GB) for $1,099.99

The 256GB model is on sale as well, available for $849.99, down from $999.00. All three colors are discounted for this model, but none are in stock today. This is still the lowest price we've ever tracked for the 256GB MacBook Air, so if you're willing to wait a few weeks, it's worth locking in this price while it's available.

You can find even more discounts on other MacBooks by visiting our Best Deals guide for MacBook Pro and MacBook Air. In this guide we track the steepest discounts for the newest MacBook models every week, so be sure to bookmark it and check back often if you're shopping for a new Apple notebook.Related Roundup: Apple Deals
This article, "Deals: Amazon Takes $149 Off 2020 MacBook Air Models, Starting at $849.99 for 256GB" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Amazon today introduced new low prices on the M1 MacBook Air for both 256GB and 512GB storage options. To start, you can get the 256GB model for $849.99, down from an original price of $999.00.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Amazon. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

Only Silver and Gold are available at this price on Amazon. This sale marks a new all-time low price for Apple's 2020 M1 MacBook Air, providing the cheapest entry price into the lineup since it debuted last year.

$149 OFFM1 MacBook Air (256GB) for $849.99

Likewise, the 512GB version of the M1 MacBook Air is seeing a notable discount to $1,099.99, down from $1,249.00. This is a record low price for the notebook, and it's available in all colors.

$149 OFFM1 MacBook Air (512GB) for $1,099.99

You can find even more discounts on other MacBooks by visiting our Best Deals guide for MacBook Pro and MacBook Air. In this guide we track the steepest discounts for the newest MacBook models every week, so be sure to bookmark it and check back often if you're shopping for a new Apple notebook.Related Roundup: Apple Deals
This article, "Deals: Amazon Drops Price of 256GB M1 MacBook Air to New Low of $849.99 ($149 Off)" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Amazon this week has the M1 MacBook Pro on sale in both 256GB and 512GB configurations, including a return to record low prices for both models. Prices start at $1,099.99 for the 256GB MacBook Pro, down from $1,299.00. You'll see the discount after an automatic coupon worth $49.01 is applied at the checkout screen on Amazon.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Amazon. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

This price is a match of the previous all-time low price on the 256GB M1 MacBook Pro. This model of Apple's notebook line includes the same aluminum body with large Force Touch trackpad as previous generations, speakers at the side of the keyboard, and a 13.3-inch display with slim black bezels. Both colors are on sale and available to ship out today.

$199 OFF256GB M1 MacBook Pro for $1,099.99

Secondly, Amazon has the 512GB MacBook Pro for $1,299.99, down from $1,499.00. This sale price is available in both Silver and Space Gray, and it's sold directly from Amazon.

$199 OFF512GB M1 MacBook Pro for $1,299.99

You can find even more discounts on other MacBooks by visiting our Best Deals guide for MacBook Pro and MacBook Air. In this guide we track the steepest discounts for the newest MacBook models every week, so be sure to bookmark it and check back often if you're shopping for a new Apple notebook.Related Roundup: Apple DealsRelated Forum: MacBook Pro
This article, "Deals: All-Time Low Prices Return to Apple's M1 MacBook Pro, Starting at $1,099.99 for 256GB" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Best Buy and Amazon are both offering great deals on numerous models of the MacBook Pro and MacBook Air today, including a handful of record low deals on the latest Apple notebooks.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

13-Inch M1 MacBook Air
Starting with the 2020 M1 13-inch MacBook Air, you'll find the 256GB notebook for $899.00 at Amazon and $899.99 at Best Buy, down from $999.00. Amazon stock has dwindled and will "ship soon," but Best Buy has plenty of stock in all three colors.

Additionally, both retailers have the 512GB M1 MacBook Air at $1,099.99, down from $1,249.00. While this is a record low price on the 512GB notebook, the 256GB model's discount is a second-best price.

• M1 MacBook Air, 256GB - $899.99, down from $999.00 at Best Buy / Amazon


• M1 MacBook Air, 512GB - $1,099.99, down from $1,249.00 at Best Buy / Amazon

13-Inch M1 MacBook Pro
For the newest MacBook Pro models, Best Buy and Amazon have lowest ever prices on the new 2020 M1 13-inch MacBook Pro. You can get the 256GB notebook for $1,099.99, down from $1,299.00, in both Silver and Space Gray.

For more storage, the 512GB M1 MacBook Pro is on sale for $1,299.99, down from $1,499.00. This model is also available in both Silver and Space Gray at this price.

• M1 MacBook Pro, 256GB - $1,099.99, down from $1,299.00 at Best Buy / Amazon


• M1 MacBook Pro, 512GB - $1,299.99, down from $1,499.00 at Best Buy / Amazon

You can find even more discounts on other MacBooks by visiting our Best Deals guide for MacBook Pro and MacBook Air. In this guide we track the steepest discounts for the newest MacBook models every week, so be sure to bookmark it and check back often if you're shopping for a new Apple notebook.Related Roundup: Apple Deals
This article, "Deals: Take Up to $199 Off Apple's M1 MacBook Pro and MacBook Air at Best Buy and Amazon" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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A record low discount has returned to Apple's 512GB M1 Mac mini today on Amazon. You can get this model for $799.00, down from its original price of $899.00.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Amazon. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

This sale matches the previous all-time low price on the 512GB M1 Mac mini seen on Amazon, and it's available to ship out today. You'll find a matching sale over at B&H Photo, which offers free expedited shipping for orders placed in the United States.

$100 OFFM1 Mac mini (512GB) for $799.99

At this time, the 256GB M1 Mac mini is not seeing a steep discount at any retailer, with Amazon offering the lowest price at $659.00, down from $699.00. The best price on this model has been $599.00, so we recommend waiting for a better deal.

Keep up with all of this week's best discounts on Apple products and related accessories in our dedicated Apple Deals roundup.Related Roundups: Apple Deals, Mac miniBuyer's Guide: Mac Mini (Neutral)Related Forum: Mac mini
This article, "Deals: Get Apple's 512GB M1 Mac Mini for Record Low of $799 on Amazon ($100 Off)" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple's MacBook Pro and MacBook Air lineup is seeing all-time low discounts across the board today, including the 2019 16-inch MacBook Pro, 2020 13-inch MacBook Air, and 2020 13-inch MacBook Pro.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

13-Inch M1 MacBook Air
Starting with the 2020 M1 13-inch MacBook Air, Amazon has the 256GB notebook for $899.00, down from $999.00. This price is available in all three colors of Gold, Silver, and Space Gray, but stock is dwindling on the latter two options.

$100 OFF13-inch MacBook Air (256GB) for $899.00

Additionally, Amazon is also selling the 512GB M1 MacBook Air at $1,099.00, down from $1,249.00. Both of these discounts represent all-time low prices, and they're shipped and sold directly from Amazon.

$150 OFF13-inch MacBook Air (512GB) for $1,099.00

13-Inch M1 MacBook Pro
For the newest MacBook Pro models, Amazon has lowest ever prices on the new 2020 M1 13-inch MacBook Pro. You can get the 256GB notebook for $1,099.99, down from $1,299.00, in both Silver and Space Gray.

$199 OFF13-inch MacBook Pro (256GB) for $1,099.99

For more storage, the 512GB M1 MacBook Pro is on sale for $1,299.99, down from $1,499.00. This model is also available in both Silver and Space Gray at this price.

$199 OFF13-inch MacBook Pro (512GB) for $1,299.99

16-Inch MacBook Pro
Moving to the 16-inch MacBook Pro, we're tracking record low prices on both storage options for this 2019 notebook. You can get the 512GB model for $1,999.99, down from $2,399.00. This sale is available in both Silver and Space Gray color options.

$399 OFF16-inch MacBook Pro (512GB) for $1,999.99

The 1TB 16-inch MacBook Pro is on sale for $2,299.99, down from $2,799.00. Like the other model, this is an all-time low price, but it's only available in Silver. Both notebooks are sold by Amazon and are ready to ship today.

$499 OFF16-inch MacBook Pro (1TB) for $2,299.99

You can find even more discounts on other MacBooks by visiting our Best Deals guide for MacBook Pro and MacBook Air. In this guide we track the steepest discounts for the newest MacBook models every week, so be sure to bookmark it and check back often if you're shopping for a new Apple notebook.Related Roundups: Apple Deals, MacBook Pro, MacBook AirBuyer's Guide: MacBook Pro (Caution), 13" MacBook Air (Neutral)Related Forums: MacBook Pro, MacBook Air
This article, "Deals: Shop Record Low Prices Across Apple's Full MacBook Pro and MacBook Air Lineup (Up to $499 Off)" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Today we're tracking a pair of deals on the M1 13-inch MacBook Pro from late 2020, with Amazon matching previous record low prices on both storage options for this model.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

Starting with the 256GB 13-inch MacBook Pro, you can get this model for $1,099.99 in Space Gray on Amazon, down from $1,299.00. At the time of writing, the Silver model is out of stock for this sale.

$199 OFFM1 MacBook Pro (256GB) for $1,099.99

You can also get the 512GB 13-inch MacBook Pro on sale today, priced at $1,299.99, down from $1,499.00. Both Silver and Space Gray colors are available for this model, and they're shipped and sold by Amazon.

$199 OFFM1 MacBook Pro (512GB) for $1,299.99

Both of these discounts found today on Amazon match the previous all-time low prices on these M1 MacBook Pro models, making them the best sales online this week. You won't need any coupon code or have to wait for a discount at checkout, as both sales have been directly applied already by Amazon.

You can find the best monthly deals on all new MacBook Pro and MacBook Air notebooks in our "Best Deals" guide. Be sure to visit the guide and bookmark it if you're on the hunt for a new Apple notebook; we'll be updating it weekly as we discover new MacBook offers across the web.Related Roundup: Apple DealsRelated Forum: MacBook Pro
This article, "Deals: Find All-Time Low Prices on M1 MacBook Pro Models in Amazon's Newest Sales ($199 Off)" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Amazon, B&H Photo, and Adorama today are discounting the M1 MacBook Air to match previous record low prices for both 256GB and 512GB storage options. To start, you can get the 256GB model for $899.00 today on Adorama, down from an original price of $999.00.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Amazon. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

Only Silver and Space Gray are available at this price on Adorama. You can also find this sale on Amazon, with a $50 automatic coupon applied at checkout on the Gold and Silver colors. Gold is available to ship in one to two business days, and Silver will be in stock soon, according to Amazon.

$100 OFFM1 MacBook Air (256GB) for $899.00

Likewise, the 512GB version of the M1 MacBook Air is seeing a notable discount to $1,099.00, down from $1,249.00. This is a record low price for the notebook, and it's available in all colors. For Silver and Space Gray, you'll find an automatic coupon that will be applied to your order at the checkout screen. The same sale can be found at B&H Photo on the Gold model.

$150 OFFM1 MacBook Air (512GB) for $1,099.00

You can find even more discounts on other MacBooks by visiting our Best Deals guide for MacBook Pro and MacBook Air. In this guide we track the steepest discounts for the newest MacBook models every week, so be sure to bookmark it and check back often if you're shopping for a new Apple notebook.Related Roundups: Apple Deals, MacBook AirBuyer's Guide: 13" MacBook Air (Neutral)Related Forum: MacBook Air
This article, "Deals: Get the M1 MacBook Air for Up to $150 Off, Starting at $899 for 256GB" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Amazon today is offering the 512GB M1 MacBook Air for $1,099.00, down from $1,249.00. This is beating the previous sale price by about $50, and represents a new low price for this model of the 2020 MacBook Air.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

You can get the M1 MacBook Air at this price in both Gold and Silver. For the latter color option, you'll see the price reflected at the checkout screen once a $50 coupon is automatically applied.

$150 OFFM1 MacBook Air (512GB) for $1,099.00

The 256GB model is on sale as well, available for $899.00, down from $999.00. This is a sale price that we've been tracking for most of the summer, so it remains a solid deal if you are shopping for the entry level model of the MacBook Air.

You can find even more discounts on other MacBooks by visiting our Best Deals guide for MacBook Pro and MacBook Air. In this guide we track the steepest discounts for the newest MacBook models every week, so be sure to bookmark it and check back often if you're shopping for a new Apple notebook.Related Roundups: Apple Deals, MacBook AirBuyer's Guide: 13" MacBook Air (Neutral)Related Forum: MacBook Air
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Amazon this week has a sale on Apple's new 24-inch M1 iMac in two configurations. Sales start with the 7-core GPU with 256GB, priced at $1,249.99, down from $1,299.00. This sale is available in Blue and Silver.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Amazon. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

This sale is a match of the previous record low price on this version of the M1 iMac. No other retailers are matching the sale as of writing, so you'll only find this deal on Amazon.

$49 OFFM1 iMac (7-Core GPU, 256GB) for $1,249.99

In another new sale, Amazon is also offering $49 off the M1 iMac with the 8-core GPU and 256GB of storage, priced at $1,449.99, down from $1,499.00. These iMacs are sold directly from Amazon and both are available to ship today.

$49 OFFM1 iMac (8-Core GPU, 256GB) for $1,449.99

You can keep track of ongoing sales on Apple's iMac line by visiting our Best iMac Deals guide. There, we keep track of the best iMac offers from Amazon, Adorama, B&H Photo, and other retailers, so be sure to check back often if you're shopping for an iMac for the first time, or thinking of upgrading.Related Roundups: Apple Deals, iMacBuyer's Guide: iMac (Neutral)Related Forum: iMac
This article, "Deals: Get $49 Off Apple's New M1 iMacs, Starting at $1,249.99 for 7-Core 256GB" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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In the wake of Prime Day, Amazon is still discounting the M1 MacBook Air to record low prices in both 256GB and 512GB storage options. To start, you can get the 256GB model for $899.99 today on Amazon, down from an original price of $999.00.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Amazon. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

As of writing, all colors are in stock and ready to ship from Amazon. The sale has also been applied automatically so you won't need to wait until the checkout screen to see the discount price.

$99 OFFM1 MacBook Air (256GB) for $899.99

Likewise, the 512GB version of the M1 MacBook Air is seeing a notable discount to $1,099.99, down from $1,249.00. This is a record low price for the notebook, and you'll see this price at the checkout screen once a coupon worth $50 is applied.

$149 OFFM1 MacBook Air (512GB) for $1,099.99

You can find even more discounts on other MacBooks by visiting our Best Deals guide for MacBook Pro and MacBook Air. In this guide we track the steepest discounts for the newest MacBook models every week, so be sure to bookmark it and check back often if you're shopping for a new Apple notebook.Related Roundup: Apple Deals
This article, "Deals: Amazon Continuing to Discount M1 MacBook Air Models to All-Time Low Prices (Save Up to $149)" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple's 512GB M1 MacBook Air has returned to its all-time low price of $1,149.00, down from $1,249.00. This sale is available on Amazon, and only for the Gold color option. Stock appears to be low, although Amazon sometimes has more in stock than is reflected on the website.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

Apple updated the MacBook Air in November 2020 with the new Apple M1 chip, which has an 8-core CPU, a 7- or 8-core GPU, and a 16-core Neural Engine for machine learning. These updates brought about improved performance, better battery life, and more. There's also a 256GB model, but we aren't seeing any notable discounts this week.

$100 OFFM1 MacBook Air (512GB) for $1,149.00

You can find the best monthly deals on all new MacBook Pro and MacBook Air notebooks in our new "Best Deals" guide. Be sure to visit the guide and bookmark it if you're on the hunt for a new Apple notebook; we'll be updating it weekly as we discover new MacBook offers across the web.Related Roundups: Apple Deals, MacBook AirBuyer's Guide: 13" MacBook Air (Neutral)Related Forum: MacBook Air
This article, "Deals: Amazon Discounts 512GB M1 MacBook Air to Match Record Low Price of $1,149 ($100 Off)" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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At Amazon today you can get Apple's 13-inch M1 MacBook Pro (512GB) for $1,299.99, down from $1,499.00 on Amazon. You'll see this price at the checkout screen after an automatic coupon worth $50 is applied.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Amazon. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

This sale is available in both Silver and Space Gray color options, and it's in stock and ready to ship. At a total of $199 off the original price, this is a match of the previous low price on this model of the MacBook Pro.

$199 OFFM1 MacBook Pro (512GB) for $1,299.99

If anyone's on the hunt for the entry level version of the M1 MacBook Pro, Amazon does have the 256GB model at its typical sale price of $1,149.99, down from $1,299.00. There's no checkout coupon for this one, and it's also being discounted in both colors.

You can find even more discounts on other MacBooks by visiting our Best Deals guide for MacBook Pro and MacBook Air. In this guide we track the steepest discounts for the newest MacBook models every week, so be sure to bookmark it and check back often if you're shopping for a new Apple notebook.Related Roundup: Apple DealsRelated Forum: MacBook Pro
This article, "Deals: Apple's 512GB M1 MacBook Pro Hits $1,299.99 on Amazon ($199 Off, Lowest Price)" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Amazon today is taking $49 off Apple's new 24-inch M1 iMac in two configurations. Sales start with the 7-core GPU with 256GB, priced at $1,249.99, down from $1,299.00. This sale is available in Blue and Silver.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Amazon. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

Amazon previously was discounting this model down to around $1,258.99, making today's sale a new all-time low on this model of the M1 iMac. No other retailers are matching the sale as of writing, so you'll only find this deal on Amazon.

$49 OFFM1 iMac (7-Core GPU, 256GB) for $1,249.99

In another new sale, Amazon is also offering $49 off the M1 iMac with the 8-core GPU and 256GB of storage, priced at $1,449.99, down from $1,499.00. These iMacs are sold directly from Amazon and both are available to ship today.

$49 OFFM1 iMac (8-Core GPU, 256GB) for $1,449.99

You can keep track of ongoing sales on Apple's iMac line by visiting our Best iMac Deals guide. There, we keep track of the best iMac offers from Amazon, Adorama, B&H Photo, and other retailers, so be sure to check back often if you're shopping for an iMac for the first time, or thinking of upgrading.Related Roundup: Apple Deals
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Record low discounts have returned to Apple's 2020 M1 Mac mini on Amazon today, in both 256GB and 512GB storage options. For the 256GB model, you won't see the sale price until you reach the checkout screen and receive an automatic coupon on your order.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Amazon. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

Starting with the 256GB M1 Mac mini, you can get this version for $599.99, down from $699.00. This is beating the previous Amazon low price of $639.00, and it's in stock and ready to ship today.

$99 OFFM1 Mac mini (256GB) for $599.99

You can also save $100 on the 512GB M1 Mac mini, available for $799.00, down from $899.00. This is another all-time low price on the M1 Mac mini, beating the previous record low of $829.00 on Amazon and other retailers.

$100 OFFM1 Mac mini (512GB) for $799.99

Keep up with all of this week's best discounts on Apple products and related accessories in our dedicated Apple Deals roundup.Related Roundups: Apple Deals, Mac miniBuyer's Guide: Mac Mini (Neutral)Related Forum: Mac mini
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Amazon today has introduced another discount on Apple's 512GB 27-inch 5K iMac with 6-core CPU. We've been tracking a discount down to $1,699.99 over the past few weeks, and now you can get this 2020 model for $1,599.99, down from $1,999.00, after an automatic coupon worth $299.01 is applied at checkout.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Amazon. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

This is now the best price we've ever tracked for this model of the 27-inch iMac across all retailers. The iMac is ready to ship today with Amazon's typical free shipping for all Prime members.

$399 OFF27-inch iMac (512GB SSD) for $1,599.99

Additionally, the 256GB 27-inch 5K iMac is on sale for $1,499.99, down from $1,699.00. This model hasn't seen a discount in a few weeks, and now Amazon has introduced a sale alongside the 512GB model. You'll see the markdown at checkout after a $199.01 discount is automatically applied.

$299 OFF27-inch iMac (256GB SSD) for $1,499.99

You can keep track of ongoing sales on Apple's iMac line by visiting our Best iMac Deals guide. There, we keep track of the best iMac offers from Amazon, Adorama, B&H Photo, and other retailers, so be sure to check back often if you're shopping for an iMac for the first time, or thinking of upgrading.Related Roundups: Apple Deals, iMacBuyer's Guide: iMac (Neutral)Related Forum: iMac
This article, "Deals: Amazon Introduces Pair of Record Low Prices on Apple's 27-Inch iMacs (Save Up to $399)" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Today we're tracking an ongoing record low price on Apple's 512GB 27-inch 5K iMac with 6-core CPU from 2020. You can get this model for $1,699.99 on Amazon, down from $1,999.00, after an automatic coupon worth $199.01 is applied at checkout.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Amazon. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

This sale was introduced last month on Amazon and it remains the best discount we've ever tracked for this model of the 27-inch Intel iMac. Amazon's discount is so steep it's pricing the 512GB model down to the same level as the 256GB 27-inch iMac.

$299 OFF27-inch iMac (512GB SSD) for $1,699.99

The iMac is in stock and sold by Amazon, ready to ship today with Amazon's typical free shipping for all Prime members. You can keep track of ongoing sales on Apple's iMac line by visiting our Best iMac Deals guide.

There, we keep track of the best iMac offers from Amazon, Adorama, B&H Photo, and other retailers, so be sure to check back often if you're shopping for an iMac for the first time, or thinking of upgrading.Related Roundups: Apple Deals, iMacBuyer's Guide: iMac (Neutral)Related Forum: iMac
This article, "Deals: Amazon Discounts 512GB 27-Inch iMac to Lowest Price of $1,699.99 ($299 Off)" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Amazon this week is still hosting a record low deal on Apple's 512GB 27-inch 5K iMac with 6-core CPU. You can get this 2020 model for $1,699.99, down from $1,999.00, after an automatic coupon worth $199.01 is applied at checkout.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Amazon. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

This sale is particularly notable because it knocks down the 512GB 27-inch iMac to the same price level as the 256GB model. It's also the best price we've ever tracked across all of the major Apple resellers online. The iMac is ready to ship today with Amazon's typical free shipping for all Prime members.

$299 OFF27-inch iMac (512GB SSD) for $1,699.99

You can keep track of ongoing sales on Apple's iMac line by visiting our Best iMac Deals guide. There, we keep track of the best iMac offers from Amazon, Adorama, B&H Photo, and other retailers, so be sure to check back often if you're shopping for an iMac for the first time, or thinking of upgrading.Related Roundups: Apple Deals, iMacBuyer's Guide: iMac (Neutral)Related Forum: iMac
This article, "Deals: Get Apple's 512GB 27-Inch iMac for Lowest Price of $1,699.99 ($299 Off)" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple's M1 MacBook Air with a 256GB SSD has returned to its all-time low price of $899.99 today on Amazon, down from an original price of $999.00. This sale will be seen after an automatic coupon worth $50 is applied at checkout.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Amazon. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

As of writing, only the Gold color option is in stock and ready to ship from Amazon. Silver is delayed by over a month, but Space Gray will be "in stock soon" according to Amazon's stock estimation.

$99 OFFM1 MacBook Air (256GB) for $899.99

Likewise, the 512GB version of the M1 MacBook Air is seeing a notable discount to $1,099.99, down from $1,249.00. This is a record low price for the notebook, and it's only available at this price in Gold.

$149 OFFM1 MacBook Air (512GB) for $1,099.99

You can find even more discounts on other MacBooks by visiting our Best Deals guide for MacBook Pro and MacBook Air. In this guide we track the steepest discounts for the newest MacBook models every week, so be sure to bookmark it and check back often if you're shopping for a new Apple notebook.Related Roundups: Apple Deals, MacBook AirBuyer's Guide: 13" MacBook Air (Neutral)Related Forum: MacBook Air
This article, "Deals: Amazon Discounting M1 MacBook Air Models By Up to $149, Starting at $899.99 for 256GB" first appeared on MacRumors.com

Discuss this article in our forums

Apple News & Mac Rumors Breaking All Day

During today’s Oval Office announcement of the American Manufacturing Program (AMP), a visibly nervous Tim Cook presented President Trump with a “unique unit of one” piece of Kentucky-made glass, mounted on a 24k gold stand crafted in Utah.

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Sonos is synonymous with premium audio gear, and soon, some of that gear will carry an even more premium price tag.

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Apple just announced a new “$100 billion commitment to America”, which includes plans to move the manufacturing of all of the cover glass for iPhone and Apple Watch to the U.S. Here are the details.

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It’s become common for AirPods to get new features with each major version of iOS. That’s true with iOS 26, especially for AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 4. But it seems iOS 26 also introduces a rarity: an update to how the AirPods charging case works.

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This week, OpenAI released its long-awaited open weight model called gpt-oss. Part of the appeal of gpt-oss is that you can run it locally on your own hardware, including . Here’s how to get started and what to expect.

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After years of minimal changes, CarPlay is getting a huge update this fall. Among the variety of big and small new features in iOS 26, CarPlay has a much improved solution for how incoming phone calls are handled.

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F1 The Movie has shown strong legs at the box office, but Apple’s summer hit is about to get another financial boost: F1 is being re-released in IMAX theaters starting this Friday, with tickets on sale now. Here are the details.

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Next month, the iPhone lineup is getting a brand new model: the iPhone 17 Air. Per various reports, Apple plans to drop its Plus option in favor of an ultra-thin new form factor that could tempt a lot of Pro users. Here are seven features coming to the iPhone 17 Air.

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In the many years that’ve passed since the introduction of the $999 iPhone X, there have almost always been rumors of an iPhone price hike – and we’re still yet to see a major one come to fruition. Granted, there have been other minor price hikes over time. In the midst of tariffs, it seems more likely than ever that there’ll be a price hike of some sorts this year – and we’ll be discussing those rumors here today.

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Apple TV+ is having a very strong year, and this fall’s lineup will continue that trend. From major returning series like Slow Horses and The Morning Show to compelling new shows like Pluribus, and several high-profile movies, there’s a lot coming. Plus, Apple likely has releases planned it hasn’t yet announced. But as of now, here’s everything new coming to Apple TV+ this fall.

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OpenAI is having a big week. Yesterday, the leading AI firm dropped not one, but two open-weight models, including one that can run well on Apple silicon Macs. Next? GPT-5 is coming to ChatGPT.

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Two quick updates to a couple of stories from this morning involving Apple, the Trump administration, and increased India tariffs. First, CNBC reports that the $100 billion U.S. investment increase (over four years) announcement is currently scheduled for 4:30 ET today.

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Today’s 9to5Toys Lunch Break is really all about the MacBook Air. Alongside ongoing deals on AirPods 4 and Mac mini, today we are focused on Apple’s most affordable MacBook – M4 MacBook Air models are still starting from $799, but we now have a rare deal on an upgraded 1TB configuration at $200 off (this is one you can’t even get on Amazon). Those offers join a chance at the 24GB M3 MacBook Air at $500 off the list price as well as the 1TB M4 Pro MacBook Pro up to $289 off and the BACKBONE One Gen 2 USB-C iPhone controller. Everything awaits below. 

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Last year, Apple was rumored to launch a new Apple Watch Ultra—but it didn’t. Instead, we only got a black finish for the existing Ultra 2. Now, with an Apple Watch Ultra 3 upgrade truly around the corner, it’s increasingly sounding like it will be very much worth the wait.

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Meta is updating Instagram today with some familiar social network features from other services. For example, the photo- and video-sharing service is basically getting its own version of the classic retweet. Separately, Instagram continues to take inspiration from Snapchat with its own social map feature.

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When Apple unveils the iPhone 17 lineup next month, it seems like we’ll also see a new version of Apple’s first-party protective cases as well. If the latest rumors are true, the iPhone 17 case lineup will take a design cue from the charging case.

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iOS 26 will bring big feature updates to apps like Wallet, Music, Messages, and more. But there are also several new features coming to the App Store, here’s what’s new in iOS 26.

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A report says that Trump will shortly make an announcement from the White House claiming that Apple will spend a further $100 billion on US manufacturing over the next four years.

Apple has so far not confirmed the announcement, which would bring its total domestic spending promise to $600 billion …

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Shifting final assembly of Apple products like iPhone from China to India has helped Apple avoid costly tariffs in the United States. But what happens when the US imposes similar tariffs in India to those seen in China?

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The Hulu app isn’t long for this world, according to Disney. While the standalone app is being phased out, however, the brand that Disney now owns in full is set for international expansion.

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ESPN is launching its long-awaited standalone streaming service later this month. The sports-focused subscription video service officially has a launch date, bundle pricing, and other details confirmed.

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It seems scarcely a week goes by now without receiving at least one job scam message on either iMessage or WhatsApp.

Meta has now introduced two new tools to help you identify scams, whether they arrive as individual messages or as posts to group chats …

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We yesterday highlighted what is quite possibly the smallest user-facing change in the latest iOS 26 beta: the ability to revert the camera app slider to its previous direction.

While this is in itself a very tiny change, I do think it ought to be a guiding principle for Apple’s approach to user interfaces …

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A few weeks ago, a few strings of code in the Apple Support app showed that it could soon get a “Support Assistant,” based on generative models. The assistant is now live, as a limited experiment.

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Just days after releasing macOS 15.6, Apple is now rolling out release candidate versions of macOS 15.7, as well as macOS 14.8. This suggests that the official updates could come sooner than expected.

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It’s been just over a week since Apple released iOS 18.6. Since the iPhone software update has shipped without issue, Apple has stopped signing the older iOS 18.5 software version.

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Among the many tidbits included in today’s iOS 26 beta release is a new notification style that pops up when the iPhone reaches low battery levels. Here’s what that animation looks like.

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iOS 26 is shaping up to be huge for Apple Music users, with the Music app getting its most feature-packed update in years. Here’s everything new coming to Apple Music in iOS 26.

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Recently there have been over 1.7 million mobile power banks recalled. The reason? Most power banks still use lithium-ion cells filled with flammable liquid electrolytes that present a real risk. Drop it, leave it in heat, or overcharge it, puncture it – and it can swell, and even ignite causing fire.

How do powebank makers address this problem? BMX is launching its SolidSafe mobile power bank on Kickstarter with a solid core that significantly reduces the amount of flammable liquid inside the battery. This reduces the risk of fire and catastrophic failure. It’s so effective that it can even withstand damage from a hammer and a nail. Watch the full video for an in-depth demonstration.

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With today’s developer beta 5 releases, Apple also rolled out a new version of Xcode 26 beta that brings a notable change: two distinct download options, one of them being Apple silicon-specific.

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iOS 26 is a feature-packed update, but the biggest change is easily the new Liquid Glass design. And the latest iOS 26 beta shows that despite criticism, Apple isn’t backing down from its original Liquid Glass vision.

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Since 2008, China has observed National Fitness Day on August 8. And in recent years, Apple has marked the occasion with an exclusive Apple Watch challenge. This year will be no exception.

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On today’s developer beta release of macOS Tahoe 26, Apple replaced the old Macintosh HD icon, which depicted an actual hard disk drive, with a new SSD-looking icon. Here’s what it looks like.

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Apple Watch Ultra 3 is coming very soon, and an image discovered in the new iOS 26 beta just revealed that a larger screen is apparently on the way.

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Apple has updated every Home Screen app icon in iOS 26. As of beta 5, AirDrop has undergone the same redesign for its icon in the share sheet.

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A small but annoying change in iOS 26 beta has been driving Mail app users bananas since June. As of beta 5, however, Apple has reverted that change and avoided making even more people complain.

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iOS 26 includes a redesigned Camera app that changes how you switch between shooting modes. As of iOS 26 beta 5, the redesign comes with a new toggle in Settings as well.

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iOS 26 beta 5 is out now for iPhones on the developer beta release cycle. Below we’re collecting all of the iOS 26 beta 5 changes compared to the previous version.

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Living up to its name, OpenAI has released not one but two new open-weight AI models after promising to deliver a new open-weight model earlier this year. The two models, gpt-oss-20b and gpt-oss-120b, are available to download for free now.

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iPadOS 26 developer beta 5 is rolling out now, bringing the latest changes ahead of the software’s public launch next month. Here’s what to expect.

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Apple has released the fifth developer beta version of iOS 26. We expect the redesigned version of the iPhone software to officially launch next month. Apple also launched the first public beta version of iOS 26 last week. The latest build is 23A5308g.

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Apple has just released watchOS 26 beta 5, the latest update for developers running the Apple Watch beta. Here’s what to expect.

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Alongside the new macOS 26 developer beta 5, Apple has also pushed out the fifth developer beta of visionOS 26, and the rest of its operating systems.

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Apple just released a fresh batch of developer betas, including the latest test build of macOS 26 Tahoe. Here are the details.

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Apple TV users, there’s a new tvOS 26 beta rolling out today. tvOS 26 beta 5 is now available for download.

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Complaints on Reddit shared over the past week have exposed a problem with Sonos’ first-gen Roam speakers overheating and partially melting, which the company just acknowledged while downplaying the number of known cases.

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Earlier this year, we told you about plans for a standalone streaming service from FOX with a former Apple TV+ veteran at the helm. As of today, FOX has announced pricing and the launch date for its direct to consumers subscription video service.

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In May, AI firm Anthropic introduced its Claude 4 family of models with a focus on improvements to coding, reasoning, and following instructions. Three months later, Anthropic is back with Claude Opus 4.1, which it says upgrades “agentic tasks, real-world coding, and reasoning.”

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Looking for a way to step up your creative capture game? is out with a new modular microphone with AI-powered noise cancelation that works with a range of devices.

The BOYA Magic is being billed as the world’s first AI-powered, shape-shifting wireless microphone, and it’s now available after a successful Kickstarter campaign.

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Apple TV+ has become a go-to streamer for sci-fi fans, and very soon, there will be two huge—but very different—sci-fi epics airing at the same time: Foundation and Invasion.

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Alongside the ongoing exclusive deal we have for 9to5 readers – $500 off M4 iPad Pro – today’s 9to5Toys Lunch Break is starting off with a new Amazon all-time low on the 13-inch 256GB M2 iPad Air Wi-Fi + Cell at $350 off. We then move over to iPhone 16 Pro as the Natural Renewed Premium listing is now $450 off the new price alongside M4 Pro Mac mini configs at $200 off, Apple Pencil (USB-C) at $50 Prime shipped (one of the best prices ever), and a giant discount on Twelve South’s PlugBug 2-port USB-C wall charger with Find My at $20. Everything awaits below in detail. 

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Spotify has been gradually rolling out its Audiobooks+ service around the world, and today it has reached subscribers in the United States.

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The most likely iPhone 17 event date is now the rumored iPhone 17 event date. No surprises there. But when should we expect Apple to actually confirm the date of its next big product reveal?

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We’ve long been expecting new Apple TV 4K hardware to launch soon, but now that seems more likely than ever thanks to a new corroborating report.

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Three Chinese tablet brands have all enjoyed dramatic growth over the past year as they try to compete with the market-leading iPad. While even their combined shipments can’t compete, their growth rate suggests they could become a threat within a year or two.

However, iPadOS 26 looks set to change the game significantly, making it harder than ever for competing brands to catch up …

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Apple TV+ is having its best year ever, and that’s arguably true for comedies too. The streamer has been on a hot streak with acclaimed comedies like The Studio, Stick, and Mythic Quest. And now one returning Apple TV+ series—Platonic—sounds like it’s delivered the goods with season 2’s new batch of episodes.

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Most Apple users stick with their machines longer than they would like to.

Not because they love the slowdowns… but because upgrading is expensive, and reselling takes time most people don’t have.

That’s where Upgraded comes in.

Upgraded is a tech upgrade program built for Apple lovers. You pay monthly, starting at $33.28/mo for MacBooks and $31.89/mo for iPad Pros, and have the option to upgrade every 2 years to the latest model.

It’s simple, clear, and is blowing up in popularity with Apple fans. And they just recently launched their iPad Upgrade Program, so you can now get an iPad Pro on the same simple plan.

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Apple chipmaker TSMC has said that several then-employees tried to steal trade secrets relating to the company’s most advanced chip process. TSMC fired the individuals concerned and is now taking legal action against them. The former employees may also face criminal prosecution.

The report relates to the company’s 2-nanometer chip process, which is expected to be used for the A20 chips across next year’s iPhone 18 lineup …

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We’ve previously suggested Tuesday, September 9 as the most likely date for the iPhone 17 event, and a new report says that internal documents held by carriers confirms this.

That would mean pre-orders on September 12, shipping on September 19 …

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I’ve always thought that the iMac G4 was one of the most beautiful products Apple has ever made. It’s now more than two decades old, but I still think it looks as futuristic as it did on the day it launched.

I’d also say that Apple’s 2025 Mac operating system looks somehow just right on this 2002 machine, as ably achieved by self-described tinkerer Colby Sheets …

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Apple @ Work is exclusively brought to you by Mosyle, the only Apple Unified Platform. Mosyle is the only solution that integrates in a single professional-grade platform all the solutions necessary to seamlessly and automatically deploy, manage & protect Apple devices at work. Over 45,000 organizations trust Mosyle to make millions of Apple devices work-ready with no effort and at an affordable cost. Request your EXTENDED TRIAL today and understand why Mosyle is everything you need to work with Apple.

In this episode of Apple @ Work, Alcyr Araujo joins the show to discuss the overall implications of device management system migration and how it impacts customers, pricing, and renewals. Note: Since we recorded this episode, Apple has updated the macOS beta to allow for migrations for Standard User accounts.

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Ahead of iOS 26 launching this fall, Apple Music for Android is beta testing version 5.0.0 with new features and design tweaks.

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Heads-up if your Mac is still running macOS 11 Big Sur: Valve has announced that, in a few weeks, the Steam Client will stop running on these Macs due to a Chromium compatibility limitation. Here are the details.

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Apple is expanding its growing lineup of original podcasts with Unicorn Girl, a new nine-part investigative series debuting this month. Here are the details.

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David Pogue’s been covering technology (and Apple) for longer than many 9to5Mac readers have been alive. And to celebrate Apple’s upcoming 50th anniversary next April, the “CBS Sunday Morning” correspondent is where he promises stories, photos, and “fresh interviews” that will help tell the story of how 1976 Apple became today’s Apple.

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Perplexity has long been accused of deliberately bypassing anti-scraping measures to retrieve web content. While the company has historically dismissed these accusations as disingenuous or misunderstandings, a new report shows that not only is the practice still happening, but it may actually be getting worse.

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Apple CEO Tim Cook has long been skilled at talking up the company’s products. But in new remarks made just days ago, Cook hinted that he’s never been as excited about Apple’s product roadmap as now.

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Apple may say that most iPhones sold in the U.S. are now assembled in India, but that doesn’t necessarily mean Apple has reduced its reliance on China. Patrick McGee, who literally wrote the book on , explains.

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Castro, the inbox and queue-based podcast app for iPhone, has just launched its first ever iPad app. Here are the details.

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Every month, JustWatch reveals the most-watched shows and movies among its users worldwide, which can offer a glimpse into what the wider audience is into. Here’s what topped the charts on Apple TV+ in July.

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It’s going to be a big fall for Apple, with 15+ new products expected—including the ultra-thin iPhone 17 Air. But what about Apple’s flagship Pro models? Here are seven new features coming to the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max.

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Amid ongoing uncertainty around when AirPods Pro 3 might finally arrive, one thing is very clear: AirPods Pro 2 just keep getting better. Here’s how the trend of AirPods Pro 2 improvements will continue in iOS 26.

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This is one of the few I’ve found that supports six cards and still strikes a nice balance between slim and functional. It has a kickstand. It has strong magnets. It also doesn’t feel like I’ve strapped a brack to the back of my iPhone either.

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OpenAI is updating how ChatGPT works to encourage healthier use and avoid unintended consequences. One change that OpenAI says ChatGPT users will see “starting today” is a technique used by other digital services.

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With a little over two weeks until the announcement, a new Pixel 10 “Soon” teaser from Google heavily needles how Apple hasn’t been able to ship the Siri AI upgrades for the iPhone 16. 

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Apple’s Siri-related news hasn’t been great so far this year, but the company sounds confident it can turn things around. Here’s the Siri update that software head Craig Federighi reportedly shared in Apple’s all-hands meeting.

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Five years ago, Apple reportedly considered acquiring podcast studio Wondery for around $400 million. At the time, Spotify and other companies were spending millions on putting podcasts behind paywalls to boost their businesses and steal mindshare from Apple.

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Today’s 9to5Toys Lunch Break is starting off with the most affordable current-generation AirPods 4 back down at $99 alongside some exclusive iPad deals for 9to5 readers – 13-inch M2 iPad Air Wi-Fi + Cell at $299 off and a giant $500+ off Apple’s 1TB M4 iPad Pro. We also have the return of the 32GB M2 Max Mac Studio at $900 off the original price and a notable discount on the 24GB M3 MacBook Air at $450 off the list price – M4 models are still starting from $799 as well. Everything else awaits below. 

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Apple TV+ has a packed fall on the way, including several highly anticipated movie debuts. Now, one of those films—Highest 2 Lowest—has premiered a trailer showing what to expect from the Denzel Washington crime thriller.

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A Bloomberg report over the weekend suggested that Apple has created a new Answers, Knowledge and Information team as part of its Apple Intelligence efforts.

While that might not sound like a huge deal, effectively just catching up with what others are doing, I actually think it’s about the smartest thing the company could be doing right now in terms of addressing Siri’s reputation …

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Earlier this year Apple shared early details of its forthcoming plans to support brain-controlled technology for iPhone, iPad, and more. Now, a new video has been published showing the first live demonstration of the tech.

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The price for streaming ad-free music is about to increase for Spotify subscribers in several markets around the world, according to the company.

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We’re about a month away from the unveiling of Apple’s new iPhone 17 lineup. But today, a new report from The Elec shares about a big display upgrade in the works for a future iPhone model.

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Reddit CEO Steve Huffman confirmed plans for paid subreddits earlier this year but now says that the initiative has been de–prioritized.

However, he says that the company still believes in the opportunity, suggesting that a Reddit paywall of some kind will be introduced at some stage …

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T-Mobile last year announced that it was buying most of US Cellular, in a deal said to be worth a total of $4.4B. That deal has now completed.

T-Mobile says that USCellular customers will stay on their existing plans “for now,” adding that they will later be able to choose to switch to one of the carrier’s unlimited plans …

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We’ve already had a first look at what is alleged to be the battery for the upcoming iPhone 17 Air, but a new photo gives us a really good sense of just how thin it is.

The photo shows the battery side-by-side with that of the iPhone 17 Pro …

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Alongside an iPhone Fold expected to launch next year, Apple has long been reported to be working on a foldable iPad with an 18.8-inch display. There have, however, been very different estimates of the timeline for the product – and the latest report isn’t good news.

Estimates have so far ranged from late next year to sometime in 2028, and an analyst who previously expected a 2026 unveiling has now changed his mind …

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According to the latest edition of Mark Gurman’s Power On newsletter, Apple has a new plan up its sleeve to rival the competition in the AI search space. This is a major pivot from Apple’s previous stance, where the company said it didn’t want to develop a chatbot.

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In the Apple Silicon era, MacBooks have become more affordable than ever – with brand new models starting as low as $649. With looming global tariffs, these great deals could potentially be coming to an end soon – so if you’re in the market for a new MacBook for any reason, now may be one of the best ever times to purchase.

Apple’s upcoming macOS 26 update is also rumored to drop support for some additional Intel Macs, so if you’d like to stay on the latest and greatest Apple software, nows a fitting time to upgrade.

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9to5Mac is brought to you by Incogni: Protect your personal info from prying eyes. With Incogni, you can scrub your deeply sensitive information from data brokers across the web, including people search sites. Incogni limits your phone number, address, email, SSN, and more from circulating. Fight back against unwanted data brokers with a 30-day money back guarantee.

Over the years, Apple has introduced multiple features that help preserve your privacy and curb abusive tracking and data mining from your activity. Here are three settings every privacy-conscious user should have enabled on their iPhone.

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Welcome to Indie App Spotlight. This is a weekly 9to5Mac series where we showcase the latest apps in the indie app world. If you’re a developer and would like your app featured, get in contact.

Everyone likes saving money when making a big purchase, and a lot of people would like to consider used goods. That said, the hassle can often be too much to deal with, so buying something new just feels easier.

Scout is a new app that makes searching Facebook Marketplace much easier, and can hopefully help you score some deals.

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The is capable of capturing plenty of varying scenes, and has been for many years. Ever since iPhone 11 Pro, we’ve had a triple camera array, allowing for ultrawide, wide, and telephoto shots. Despite this, many companies still offer third party lens solutions for your iPhone, allowing you to capture even more with your iPhone.

ShiftCam is one of those companies, and today I’ll be reviewing their lens. It’s like an Ultrawide, but with a bit more perspective.

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It’s becoming increasingly rare to find a tech accessory in 2025 that’s both functional and fun to use. As so many of these accessories become more commoditized, they begin to function and look the same, making them fade into the background. So when I saw the Wokyis Retro Docking Station for the M4 Mac mini, I was immediately intrigued. It transforms the Mac mini into something straight out of 1984. On paper, it had all the functions I needed out of a dock, but it was also such a cool-looking product. After using it for three weeks, it checked off every box. Here is what you need to know.

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This fall, Apple will debut the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max. While camera upgrades have almost always been the star of the show when it comes to, this year in particular is a bit special. We’ll be delving into everything currently rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro camera, and what that’ll mean for your photos.

more…

Apple @ Work is exclusively brought to you by Mosyle, the only Apple Unified Platform. Mosyle is the only solution that integrates in a single professional-grade platform all the solutions necessary to seamlessly and automatically deploy, manage & protect Apple devices at work. Over 45,000 organizations trust Mosyle to make millions of Apple devices work-ready with no effort and at an affordable cost. Request your EXTENDED TRIAL today and understand why Mosyle is everything you need to work with Apple.

It’s time to retire the idea that “MDM is all you need.” We are past that with Apple in the enterprise. What we need now is a shift in mindset. Pushing configuration profiles and deploying apps to the Mac is just a piece of a larger puzzle to making Apple the best endpoint in the enterprise. The real work happens when you start thinking about the entire service portfolio around Apple devices. That’s where success with Apple in the enterprise happens.

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9to5Mac is brought to you by Incogni: Protect your personal info from prying eyes. With Incogni, you can scrub your deeply sensitive information from data brokers across the web, including people search sites. Incogni limits your phone number, address, email, SSN, and more from circulating. Fight back against unwanted data brokers with a 30-day money back guarantee.

Apple uses two different forms of encryption for your iCloud data – a strong form for particularly sensitive data like the Health and Journal apps, but a weaker one for a lot of other data you still wouldn’t want falling into the wrong hands.

Fortunately the company gives you the option of switching to strong encryption for all your iCloud data, and while there are a few steps involved, it’s a worthwhile security and privacy safeguard …

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Five years after Apple stops selling a product, it may become ‘vintage’, meaning Apple will still repair it. Five years after that, it can become ‘obsolete,’ and Apple no longer offers hardware service or parts. Today’s that day for the Series 1. Here’s what that means

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Meta is following TikTok’s lead, and will restrict private accounts, and accounts with less than 1,000 followers, from going live. Here are the details.

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Just one day after revealing its financial results and fielding questions about Apple’s lag in AI, Tim Cook turned inward, holding what Bloomberg described as an ‘hourlong pep talk’ during a company-wide all-hands meeting. Here are the details.

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Since 2020, Japan’s Fair Trade Commission has investigated Apple and Google’s dominance in the mobile market. This week, the watchdog published a series of new guidelines that the two companies must comply with, chief among them allowing third-party app stores. Here are the details.

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AppleInsider News Feed

Apple's latest announcement of a further $100 billion investment in US manufacturing is a positive, but it still has incredibly little to do with reshoring iPhone assembly.


Tim Cook and Donald Trump, at the Mac Pro factory
The expected announcement of Apple investing more in the US comes after extraordinary pressure from Trump to make the iPhone in the States. But it wasn't about making the iPhone in the US — because it cannot be.

Returning iPhone production to the US would ultimately benefit the country, and it would start undoing the decades of all manufacturing leaving America. It's also very unlikely to happen in a decade, much less the handful of years that the Trump administration wants it to.


Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

Apple will be making another $100 billion investment to enhance the company's manufacturing facilities in the United States, but there are no new companies named, nor any efforts to move full device assembly to the US.


Tim Cook (left) with Donald Trump in a meeting during the latter's first presidential term
Following an initial hint of an announcement and a confirmation of it happening later on Wednesday, President Donald Trump and Tim Cook have made the now-unsurprising announcement.

Apple is pledging to make more investments into manufacturing in the United States, with the total commitment being valued at $100 billion. The move is one that the Trump administration hopes will reshore the production of components in the United States.


Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

Apple Original Films is bringing "F1 The Movie" back to theaters in IMAX, following its record-breaking run as the company's most successful release to date.


Brad Pitt in "F1"
After an impressive box office run, Apple Original's hit film"F1 The Movie" is heading back to IMAX starting Friday, August 8, 2025. Tickets are on sale now at select theaters, with a wider release to additional IMAX and large-format screens set for August 15.

According to distributors, it is the highest-grossing original film of 2025 so far. It is also the highest-grossing Hollywood film of the year in IMAX, with $85 million and counting at the global box office.


Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

One of the two new open-weight models from OpenAI can bring ChatGPT-like reasoning to your Mac with no subscription needed.


New models from OpenAI
On August 5, OpenAI launched two new large language models with publicly available weights: gpt-oss-20b and gpt-oss-120b. These are the first open-weight models from the company since GPT-2 in 2019.

Both are released under the Apache 2.0 license, which allows for free commercial use and modification. Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, described the smaller model as the best and most usable open model currently available.


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Apple CEO Tim Cook will be joining President Donald Trump at the White House on Wednesday afternoon to jointly announce Apple's $100 billion U.S. investment.


Apple CEO Tim Cook [left] with Donald Trump [right] at a Mac Pro factory
Apple is expected to be making an additional investment into manufacturing in the United States later on Wednesday, as part of a planned announcement at the White House. Following reports that there will be an announcement and that Apple CEO Tim Cook will be in attendance, there's now a predicted time for it to take place.

A White House official told CNBC that there will be an announcement by both Cook and Trump that will be held in the Oval Office. That event will occur at 4:30 p.m. Eastern.


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Apple's average iPhone price in the U.S. just hit a record high for a June quarter, breaking seasonal patterns and signaling stronger-than-expected pricing momentum.


iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro
According to Consumer Intelligence Research Partners, the weighted average retail price of iPhones sold in the U.S. reached $985 in the June 2025 quarter. That's up from $971 in March 2025 and identical to the number from June 2024.

It's also the highest ever for a June quarter, but the increase was smaller than expected, especially given the shift in Apple's lineup.


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Visitors hoping to take in the view from Apple Park's rooftop terrace in August 2025 will have to wait, as the space is temporarily closed for improvements.


Apple's Rooftop terrace: Image Credit: Apple
It looks like Apple is doing a bit of sprucing up at the Apple Park Visitor Center. If you're planning a visit in August, the rooftop terrace will be off-limits until September 1. The notice doesn't say specifically what is being done, but rather that "some improvements" are being made.

When open, the rooftop terrace is primarily used as a spot to hang out and enjoy the view. Normally accessible by stairs and an elevator, it boasts chairs and tables for visitors to relax at.


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Apple's iPhone production shift to India has been hit by a doubling of tariffs, as President Donald Trump hammers the country for buying Russian oil.


The iPhone 17 is supposed to be imported to the U.S. from India - Image Credit: AppleInsider
Apple has worked hard to mitigate the effects of tariffs against its supply chain by diversifying away from a China-centric approach. While it has paid off so far for the iPhone maker, an unrelated presidential complaint may still harm the effort.

On Wednesday, President Donald Trump hit India with an additional 25% import tariff. The executive order is on top of the existing 25% tariff on Indian imports into the United States, reports the Financial Times.


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Leaker Majin Bu has combined his mixed track record of iPhone 17 rumors with his mixed track record of case rumors, to produce a questionable report about Apple's forthcoming iPhone case designs.


Purported Apple iPhone 17 cases. Note the Camera Control cutouts — image credit: Majin Bu
It's not as if this is the first rumor about iPhone 17 cases, though usually their focus has been about the camera cutouts. But now regular leaker Majin Bu has released new claims — and this time, he is not even trying to sell his own ones.

Instead, Bu claims to have details of the cases that Apple itself has designed. As ever, he's careful to say that he has details and to not explicitly say he has the cases, but he is showing photographs that may or may not be his.


Rumor Score: 💩 B#$&(*it


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Disguised as federal agents, a group of men from California allegedly zip-tied employees and stole hundreds of iPhones from a Portland shipping center.


iPhone 16 Pro
Five men from the San Francisco Bay Area have been indicted in connection with a robbery targeting a business that handled Apple iPhones. The U.S. Attorney's Office announced the charges on August 5.

The indictment names Cankun He, Hailong Ma, Robert Maynard, Yuxiang Wei, and Jordan Cantie as part of the alleged conspiracy. The targeted facility, located in Oregon, primarily functioned as a reshipping center.


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After an early-morning tease, further reports claim that Apple will invest another $100 billion into manufacturing in the United States, and President Donald Trump is expected to announce it on Wednesday alongside CEO Tim Cook.


Tim Cook [left], President Donald Trump [right]
Early on Wednesday, it was said by a White House advisor that Apple could make a major announcement involving investment in the United States later in the day, A short time later, and the White House has pressed ahead in declaring it will be happening.

The statement from White House spokesperson Taylor Rogers received by Bloomberg states that Apple will be announcing another investment into U.S.-based manufacturing.


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White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett has hinted that Apple could be making a major investment announcement sometime on Wednesday, albeit without explaining what that announcement will be.


Inside Apple's R&D center in Austin, Texas — image credit: Apple
Apple occasionally makes public announcements pledging to make major investments in the United States. If the White House is correct, Apple could be making another one on Wednesday.

In an interview on Wednesday morning, White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett said that it was probable that Apple will be making one such investment announcement later in the day. The interview with Fox Business Network caught by Reuters was about investment pledges made by companies during the second term of President Donald Trump.


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Gamers with older Macs who want to keep using Steam will need to upgrade to macOS Monterey or later if they can, as Valve is cutting support for macOS Big Sur in October.


Steam
Steam is a mainstay of PC and Mac gaming, selling hundreds of thousands of games for multiple platforms. While it does operate a macOS storefront, it will be culling support for some users if they refuse to update their operating system.

In a Steam Support post, the Valve Software-operated store warns that it will officially stop supporting macOS 11 Big Sur on October 15, 2025. After that date, the Steam client won't run on that and earlier versions of macOS.


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Bill Gates and Steve Jobs came together 28 years ago, when Microsoft agreed to invest $150 million in Apple stock. The deal shocked Apple purists, but it helped put Apple on a firm footing for a few reasons — and made the company's historic run possible in the second Steve Jobs era.


Steve Jobs (left) and Bill Gates in 2007 — image credit: D5 Conference
In August of 1997, Steve Jobs had just become Apple's de facto interim CEO, following the ouster of previous CEO Gil Amelio. Jobs acted quickly with a series of moves, including cancelling the Newton, Cyberdog, and other product lines developed during his exile from the company.

But Jobs' next move was even more bold and shocking. In an effort to bring the company into financial solvency, Jobs did the unthinkable: He made a deal with Bill Gates and Microsoft.


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President Trump has announced that iPhone processor supplier TSMC is to invest $300 billion in US manufacturing, and says a semiconductor tariff is imminent.


TSMC is reportedly investing more in US expansion
After Trump threatened higher tariffs on imports from India in time for the iPhone 17 launch, he has now been claiming the US will see greater foreign investment as well as the awaited semiconductor tariff announcements.

"You know, we have the biggest in the world, as you know, from Taiwan is coming over and spending $300 billion in Arizona," Trump said on CNBC's "Squawk Box," "building the biggest plant in the world for chips and semiconductors."


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Backing up your Mac is not just something you do when testing betas like macOS Tahoe; it is an everyday essential if you want to avoid risking losing irreplaceable work.


You may never glance at your Mac's drive, but you need to make a copy of it.
Maybe you think you don't need backups because your work is like throughput in a larger workflow. You get sent a task, you work on it, then you send it on to someone else as if in an assembly line, and never, ever go back to anything you did before.

But, at the absolute least, you have spent time adjusting and configuring your tools so that you can work so efficiently — and every one of those settings can be lost. Plus, if someone does come back to you about your work, you know it will be an emergency.


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Apple may have only just released macOS Sequoia 15.6 on July 29, but it is already prepping the next update alongside a point update to macOS Sonoma — likely for a security-related patch.


Apple shares new RCs for macOS 14.8 and macOS 15.7. Image source: Apple
All eyes are on macOS Tahoe 26, but that doesn't mean Apple has forgotten about its previous operating systems. It is still providing security patches to macOS Sonoma, and macOS Sequoia is still the main-line public operating system.

On Tuesday, Apple released a surprise release candidate beta for macOS Sonoma 14.8 and macOS Sequoia 15.7. The release notes don't note anything specific beyond bug fixes and general updates.


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The Orico MiniTower is a fun, two-bay RAID enclosure to boost your desktop Mac storage inexpensively. It's just too bad that it's limited to 10 gigabit USB-C speed.


Orico MiniTower 2 Bay RAID review: Looks like a really tall Mac mini, with a white removable lid.
Since the dawn of SCSI, and even before with a hard drive with a floppy drive connector around the same time that the Mac 512k shipped, external mass storage has been de rigeur on Mac. The fees Apple has always, always charged for storage upgrades are disproportionately high, to the point that we recommended using external upgrades.

External drives and network-attached storage devices often save a significant amount of cash, compared to Apple's pricey capacity upgrades.


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macOS Tahoe quietly retires the old Mac drive icon in favor of a sleeker, SSD-inspired design.


Swapping out the Mac HD icon for a new SSD-inspired one
Tuesday's developer beta release of macOS Tahoe 26 brought a bit of sad news. The old Macintosh HD icon is getting replaced.

The old icon depicted an actual hard drive — it was a metal box that boasted screws, vents, and even a warning sticker. Impressive, considering Apple canned the practice of using hard drives over a decade ago.


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There's another virus spreading in China, but despite what you may have heard on social media, it is not airborne, is contained, and isn't comparable to the COVID-19 situation for Apple or the world yet.


Foxconn likely won't be affected by the virus. Image source: Foxconn
The Coronavirus pandemic that shut down the world started with China and affected everyone globally. Apple's business was significantly impacted due to its heavy reliance on China.

Things have changed thanks to Apple's reshuffling of its supply chain and its growing presence in India. The BBC reports that there's a new virus outbreak in China, but there's no need to worry — this isn't another Coronavirus or pandemic situation.


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The fifth developer beta of iOS 26 has arrived, and it brings an additional setting for the Camera app, along with some hidden details about a future Apple Watch Ultra. Here's what's new.


iOS 26 developer beta 5 delivers new toggles for the Camera and Mail apps, along with some visual tweaks.
On Tuesday, two weeks after the debut of the fourth developer beta, Apple released iOS 26 developer beta 5. The update increases the build number to 23A5308g, replacing 23A5297i.

As a whole, the iOS 26 update introduced a variety of useful enhancements, including improvements to Image Playground, Shortcuts, and new features for the Messages and Phone apps.


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A leaked detail in the iOS 26 beta indicates the Apple Watch Ultra 3 could have an almost imperceptibly larger display than the Apple Watch Ultra 2.


Apple Watch Ultra 2
A third iteration of the Apple Watch Ultra is rumored to be on the way with new features like satellite emergency messaging. However, Apple itself may have accidentally leaked one of the changes to the wearable.

In the iOS 26 developer beta, Aaron Perris of MacRumors discovered an Apple Watch image within the software that was unusually sized. It had a resolution that doesn't match any existing Apple Watch screen.


Rumor Score: 🤔 Possible


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As subscription prices rise, Roku introduces Howdy: a bare-bones, ad-free streaming that costs less than a cup of coffee per month.


Roku launches its new streaming service, Howdy
Roku has introduced Howdy, a new subscription video-on-demand service available for $2.99 per month. The service launches nationwide on Tuesday, August 5.

Howdy offers ad-free streaming with unlimited access to nearly 10,000 hours of content. The catalog includes titles from Lionsgate, Warner Bros. Discovery, FilmRise, and select Roku Originals.


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Early Sonos Roam speakers are overheating, with enough complaints of melted charging cables, jackhammer-type noises, and even a burning plastic smell coming from affected devices forcing the company to respond.


Sonos' first-gen Roam speakers are reportedly melting. Image Credit: u/elsato on Reddit
The original Sonos Roam was launched back in 2021, though much about the portable Bluetooth and Wi-Fi-enabled speaker was known ahead of launch. One thing users weren't expecting, however, was that their charging cable and sometimes the speaker itself would melt.

Multiple Reddit posts, some dating back to 2022, detail similar issues with the first-generation Sonos Roam. Users have reported "a burnt smell coming from the speaker," and they have also complained of a "melted USB connector," among other things. Many of the social media posts contained imagery of burnt and partially melted charging cables.


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The fifth developer beta round has arrived for the milestone operating systems, with fresh builds available for iOS 26, iPadOS 26, macOS 26 Tahoe, watchOS 26, tvOS 26, and visionOS 26.


Apple's hardware getting the 26-generation update - Image Credit: Apple
The fifth round surfaces after the fourth, which landed on July 22. The third appeared on July 7 for iOS 26, iPadOS 26, watchOS 26, macOS 26 Tahoe, and visionOS 26, but tvOS 26, arrived one day later on July 8.

• iOS 26 and iPadOS 26 beta 5 is build 23A5308g, replacing 23A5297i



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The team behind Hyper has launched a new brand, Better Mobile Xperience. Starting with the SolidSafe MagSafe battery pack, they want to redefine the iPhone accessory market — and we've been using one.


The new BMX MagSafe batteries
Hyper has been a mainstay in the Apple accessory space for decades. Some team members here at AppleInsider still have the original HyperJuice battery packs that used real MagSafe cables to charge Macs.

In March 2021, Hyper was officially acquired by Targus. While Hyper has still kept its core Apple audience in that time, it was time for some of the original members to move on.


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B&H is blowing out M3 MacBook Air models, with a stellar $450 discount on an upgraded configuration with 24GB of RAM.


Save $450 on this upgraded 15-inch MacBook Air.
Available for $1,249 in the Midnight finish, this blowout deal at B&H Photo reflects a $450 instant discount on the 15-inch MacBook Air laptop. Equipped with Apple's last-gen M3 chip, which has a 10-core GPU, this configuration's standout spec is the upgrade to 24GB of RAM.

Save $450 on 24GB M3 MacBook Air


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Newly revealed research from Apple shows that it has been exploring how to get Apple Vision Pro to track its wearer's breathing as part of health monitoring.


He could be happier about wearing Apple Glasses — image credit: Apple
Back in June 2024, code found in visionOS suggested that the Apple Vision Pro was going to get respiratory tracking. Specifically, it was code that suggested this would be a feature of the headset's Mindfulness app.

References in code, and especially when there were several as there were this time, usually mean a feature is imminent. One year later, there's no sign of it in the Apple Vision Pro.


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Apple's new AI-powered Support Assistant hasn't officially launched for everyone, but some users are able to test an early preview.


Credit: Apple
In July, we learned that there was a strong likelihood that Apple would soon launch a ChatGPT-style AI assistant for Apple Support. Now, it appears to be all but confirmed, thanks to a newly unearthed page titled "Support Assistant Terms of Use."

The page, spotted by MacRumors, confirms that the seemingly yet-unreleased Apple Support feature uses generative models. It also says that the feature is for technical support only.


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Three people, including a pair of former employees of TSMC, were arrested for allegedly stealing proprietary technology from Apple's chip partner, Taiwanese prosecutors have confirmed.


Dies on wafers - Image Credit: TSMC
Industrial espionage can be lucrative but a very high-stakes crime for those involved. In the case of three people in Taiwan, they have been arrested for allegedly taking secrets from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, TSMC.

TSMC alerted prosecutors to the activity after internal monitoring discovered "potential trade secret leaks," reports the Financial Times.


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From misplaced AirPods to missing luggage, Apple's Find My app has quietly become one of the most essential tools in the Apple ecosystem — and recent updates make it more powerful than ever. Here's how to get the most out of it.


Apple Find My
Built into every iPhone, iPad and Mac, Find My taps into Apple's massive network of nearly one billion devices to locate your gear with surprising accuracy. Whether you've left your iPhone at a concert, tagged your backpack with an AirTag or want to share your location with family, it works quietly in the background to keep you connected.

The app combines what started as two separate tools — Find My iPhone and Find My Friends — which Apple merged in 2019 with iOS 13. Since then, it's evolved into a comprehensive tracking system that can locate devices even when they're powered off, offline or erased.


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A new report citing internal cellphone carrier sources says that Apple will unveil the iPhone 17 family on a date that's been previously rumored to host the event.


iPhone 17 Pro - Image Credit: AppleInsider
The new report fits in with previous rumors stating that the launch would be in the week beginning September 8, 2025. AppleInsider noted that out of respect for 9/11, Apple does not hold launches on September 11, nor does it hold them on Fridays, so September 12 was out.

According to German site iPhone Ticker, cellphone carriers in that country have been told that the event will be on Tuesday, September 9. The report claims to be based on information from multiple carriers, which may be to back up its likelihood of being correct, or may be to protect a source.


Rumor Score: 🤯 Likely


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The Action Button on the iPhone 15 and iPhone 16 provides one-click access to features, but strangely it can only perform one action. With a quick workaround in the Shortcuts apps, it's possible to use the Action Button to trigger up to eight applications or automations.


The iPhone Action Button is more powerful than you may think.
The Action button has several default functions, including toggling silent mode, launching an app, setting focus, and more.

The Action Button can only be assigned to perform a specific task, which is unusual when Apple uses double and triple clicks on the AirPods to perform different functions.


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Originally retailing for $79, you can save $30 on the handy iPad stylus with a limited-time discount.


Get an Apple Pencil USB-C for just $49.99 with coupon.
The Apple Pencil (USB-C) is compatible with the latest iPads, from the 2025 iPad with an A16 chip to M4 iPad Pros. You can pick one up in new, bulk packaging for $49.99 with promo code SCHOOLTEN at Amazon-owned Woot.

Save on Apple Pencil USB-C with code SCHOOLTEN


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Perplexity was discovered to be actively bypassing blocks from websites to scrape content in 2024, and a new report shows that it has continued with increasing sophistication as the company defends the practice.


Perplexity's logo surrounded by lights and flowers. Image source: Perplexity
Apple received some significant blowback when it was discovered that Applebot had been crawling the web for years to get data to train Apple Intelligence. Websites immediately blocked the bot, and others, which sparked some interesting discoveries about how AI companies are operating.

A year on, and at least one company is still doing everything in its power to ignore robots.txt and scrape webpages anyway — Perplexity. According to a report from Cloudflare, Perplexity is using several techniques to undermine the trust expected on the web and access data to train its large language models.


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The ProtoArc EM11 NL is a low-cost way to make your Mac desktop a little more ergonomic, if you can get your head around using a vertical mouse.


ProtoArc EM11 NL review: Vertical mice can be better for long-term use
We are spoiled for choice when it comes to configurations, options, colors, and connectivity, with every manufacturer working to stand out among the competition.

Across the sea of offerings, the relatively young company of ProtoArc emerged as a manufacturer in 2021. It had an eye towards improving ergonomic support across its keyboard and mouse offerings to reduce the daily fatigue of long hours of use.


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Apple's new number one iPhone manufacturing country, India, will face a significant tariff increase, after the Trump administration caught it selling oil to Russia.


President Trump has threatened India with even higher tariffs.
The "reciprocal" tariff policy of the United States under the Trump administration is nothing short of chaotic. So far, it's provoked a surge of pre-tariff iPhone buying, and will cost Apple more than $2 billion in import fees over two quarters.

Now, the ever-changing tariff situation looks as though it will induce additional costs for the iPhone maker.


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Pot meet kettle: the latest ad for Google Pixel 10 says iPhone owners should stop waiting around for unreleased AI and come to the platform where new features are abandoned at a breakneck pace.


Google wants to attract potential buyers upset at Apple Intelligence. Image source: Google
Google has been taking pot shots at Apple during its Google Pixel ad campaigns, making fun of Apple's implementation of AI and controversies surrounding it. The latest ad is an odd one considering Google considers one missed feature shipment worthy of jumping platforms when it is the king of killing projects.

Leaks in the world of Android have gotten so prevalent that Google has started pre-announcing its new smartphones to try and generate some hype before the monolithic iPhone season. The latest ad for its unreleased smartphone suggests that instead of buying a Google Pixel 10 for its features, whatever they may be, iPhone users should switch because of their annoyance at Apple missing a single feature shipment.


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The Wokyis M5 gives your M4 Mac mini a cute retro Mac form factor, storage, a five-inch screen, and USB-A ports. What's not to like?


Wokyis M5 Mac mini Dock review: Powered on, it's a retro marvel.
AppleInsider has looked at a lot of docks over the years. They get dull after a while, since they're all based on designs from one or two Chinese manufacturers.

We've never tried one as interesting as the Wokyis M5.


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On the latest HomeKit Insider Podcast episode, Jen Tuohy once again joins to cover the demise of Wemo, Aqara's new gear, and to talk about smart chicken coops.


HomeKit Insider Podcast
We kick off the episode discussing Apple's recent work on Adaptive Temperature. This new feature, uncovered in the code of iOS 26, has not been announced but seems to build on Apple's work in AI and Adaptive Lighting.

It will be able to automatically adjust the temperature in your home based on when you leave and when it predicts you will arrive home. It can also adjust based on your current energy rates to help save you money.


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Apple TV+'s newest theatrical release, a neo-noir thriller directed by Spike Lee and starring Denzel Washington, is set to drop on August 15.


'Highest 2 Lowest' hits theaters August 15, Apple TV+ Sept. 5
When a young boy is kidnapped by mistake, a legendary music mogul has to decide if he's the one who should pay the ransom. "Highest 2 Lowest" reimagines Akira Kurosawa's "High and Low" through the lens of the modern music industry.

Denzel Washington stars as music mogul David King. The film also stars ASAP Rocky, Ice Spice, Jeffrey Wright, Ilfenesh Hadera, and Dean Winters.


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Scammers are sending fake DocuSign emails that appear to show charges from major companies, including Apple, in an attempt to catch users off guard.


Fake Apple email from scammers
Just about everybody on the AppleInsider staff is receiving messages that look like billing receipts for recent Apple Pay purchases. The email claims a subscription has been charged to your account and includes a phone number to call if it wasn't you.

Don't call it. Don't click on anything.


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Spotify is increasing the cost of its music streaming service in most territories, in a move that brings pricing in the rest of the world in line with its North American plans.


Spotify Premium's going to be more expensive, but not in the U.S.
During 2024, Spotify continued its trend of increasing its pricing over time, bringing its U.S. service to $11.99 for an individual plan. One year later, it is preparing similar increases in other territories.

In a notice released on Monday, Spotify says that Premium subscribers in markets across South Asia, the Middle East, Africa, Europe, Latin America, and the Asia-Pacific region will soon face a price increase. Emails will be sent out to subscribers throughout August, warning of the price rises.


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Apple's thin-and-light M4 MacBook Air with an upgrade to 512GB of storage is on sale today, bringing the cost down to the lowest price ever.


Save $200 on a variety of M4 MacBook Air models.
You can pick up the 13-inch M4 MacBook Air configuration with a bump up to 512GB of storage for just $999 at Amazon, reflecting a $200 discount off retail (just in time for back-to-school shopping).

Save $200 on M4 MacBook Air


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Apple's new thought control protocol has now been shown in use by Synchron, a medical company that has made a prototype for using iPads solely by thinking.


Patient Mark Jackson uses an iPad solely through thought control — image credit: Synchron
Apple's Brain-Computer Interface Human Interface Device (BCI HID) protocol is a series of standard controls presented as form of API that any developer can use. The standard was launched in May 2025, when Synchron its use with a patient learning to use the Apple Vision Pro through the system.

Now the same company — and the same patient — have unveiled a patient using an iPad solely through thought control.


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You have to get emailed a survey, but if Apple asks you how you feel about your current iPhone, you now also get the chance to say you'd really like an iPhone Fold.


Apple's foldable iPhone could debut in 2026, unless enough users tick "Not at all interested" in the new survey
Apple does occasionally email users with a survey, such as in 2024 when it wanted to see if Apple Watch users were interested in smart rings. There's no way to get yourself onto the new survey, but if you are emailed, you have the first chance to tell Apple just how interested you are in folding devices.

Under the question "How important are the following aspects for your next smartphone purchase?", Apple offers 14 possibilities. The 11th is "Foldable design," and like the rest has options from "Not at all important" to "Extremely important."


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Apple is thinking about bringing its iPad Tandem OLED tech to the iPhone to increase the brightness and potentially prolong the battery life of future models.


Tandem OLED uses multiple OLED layers - Image Credit: Apple
When Apple introduced the OLED iPad Pro in 2024, it did so with Tandem OLED panels. Now, it is seriously considering using the same technology on a future iPhone upgrade.

According to sources of The Elec, LG Display had talked to Apple about a Simplified Tandem OLED panel in 2024. Apple then talked to Samsung Display, its other main OLED partner, about the technology.


Rumor Score: 🤔 Possible


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New images purporting to be of the battery for the expected iPhone 17 Air have leaked — and these are more plausible than the dubious last ones, which had to be retracted.


Top: iPhone 17 Air battery. Bottom: iPhone 17 Pro battery — image credit; yeux1122
On August 1, 2025, leaker Majin Bu released what he first claimed to be images of the battery for the iPhone 17 Air, but then retracted it. While he specified a battery capacity that roughly fit with previous rumors, the images themselves were not conclusive and he later said they were actually for the iPhone 17 Pro.

Now leaker yeux1122 has released different images, and while they are still not confirmed, they are at least of a battery that is noticeably slim. In one side-on image comparing it to a purported iPhone 17 Pro one, the leaker says the iPhone 17 Air battery is only 2.49mm.


Rumor Score: 🤔 Possible


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An iPad-like foldable device probably won't ship by the end of 2026 but the iPhone Fold is still on schedule, according to a course correction by analyst Jeff Pu.


A mock-up of what a folding iPad could look like - Image Credit: AppleInsider
Apple is currently rumored to be working on a pair of foldable devices, with the iPhone Fold joined by a larger version that's closer to an iPad Pro in size. While the prospect of the smartphone version are good for a 2026 release, one analyst now doubts that the larger model will make it in the same timeframe.

A research note released after Apple's third-quarter earnings from GF Securities' Jeff Pu writes about "limited innovation" expected for the fall's iPhone 17 lineup. Rather than discuss that at length, Pu prefers to talk about the more exciting iPhone Fold.


Rumor Score: 🤔 Possible


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Summer savings are knocking up to $150 off a variety of Apple Watch styles, with prices dropping to as low as $169.


Save up to $150 across the Apple Watch line.
All three of the current Apple Watch lines — Apple Watch Ultra 2, Series 10, and SE 2 — are discounted at Amazon this August, with prices falling to as low as $169. The Apple Watch Ultra 2, in particular, is $150 off in select band styles, bringing the cost down to $649.99.

Save up to $150 on Apple Watches


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I’m Marco Arment, creator of Overcast, technology podcaster and writer, and coffee enthusiast.

Ten years ago, Apple’s Phil Schiller surprised Apple enthusiasts and developers by walking out on stage at John Gruber’s The Talk Show Live WWDC event and giving an open, human, honest interview to a somewhat jaded community.

I wrote this in response:

Both Apple and Phil Schiller himself took a huge risk in doing this. That they agreed at all is a noteworthy gift to this community of long-time enthusiasts, many of whom have felt under-appreciated as the company has grown.

[…]

Phil’s appearance on the show was warm, genuine, informative, and entertaining.

It was human.

And humanizing the company and its decisions, especially to developers — remember, developer relations is all under Phil — might be worth the PR risk.

This started a ten-year run of interviews by Apple executives on The Talk Show every year at WWDC that proved to be great, surprisingly safe PR for Apple.

No executive ever said something they shouldn’t have (they’re pros), no sensational or negative news stories ever resulted from them, and Apple’s enthusiastic fans and developers felt seen, heard, and appreciated.

*     *     *

For unspecified reasons, Apple has declined to participate this year, ending what had become a beloved tradition in our community — and I can’t help but suspect that it won’t come back. (A lot has changed in the meantime.)

Maybe Apple has good reasons. Maybe not. We’ll see what their WWDC PR strategy looks like in a couple of weeks.

In the absence of any other information, it’s easy to assume that Apple no longer wants its executives to be interviewed in a human, unscripted, unedited context that may contain hard questions, and that Apple no longer feels it necessary to show their appreciation to our community and developers in this way.

I hope that’s either not the case, or it doesn’t stay the case for long.

This will be the first WWDC I’m not attending since 2009 (excluding the remote 2020 one, of course). Given my realizations about my relationship with Apple and how they view developers, I’ve decided that it’s best for me to take a break this year, gain some perspective, and decide what my future relationship should look like.

Maybe Apple’s leaders are doing that, too.

Today, on the tenth anniversary of Overcast 1.0, I’m happy to launch a complete rewrite and redesign of most of the iOS app, built to carry Overcast into the next decade — and hopefully beyond.

Like podcasts better than blog posts? Listen to ATP #596 for more!

What’s new

• Much faster, more responsive, more reliable, and more accessible.
• Modern design, optimized for easily-reached controls on today’s phone sizes.
• Improvements throughout, such as undoing large seeks, new playlist-priority options, easier navigation, and more.

What’s not

• Most features. Overcast is still Overcast!
• The audio engine. It’s the best part of Overcast, and still leads the industry in sound quality, silence skipping, and volume normalization. (More soon!)
• The business. I’m still a one-person operation, with no funding or external ownership, serving only my customers.
• My principles. I always want to make the best podcast app, and I’ll never disrespect your time, attention, or privacy.

What’s gone

Streaming. Most big podcasts now use dynamic ad insertion, which causes bugs and problems for streaming playback.¹ Downloading episodes completely before they begin playback is much more reliable.

Tapping a non-downloaded episode will now open the playback screen, download it, then start playback. It works similarly to the way streaming did before, but playback begins after the download completes, not after a portion of it is buffered.

On today’s fast networks, this usually only takes a few extra seconds.

And in the near future, I’ll be adding smarter options and more control over selective downloading of episodes to further improve the experience for people who don’t automatically download every episode.

What’s next

• The last few missing features from the old app, such as Shortcuts support, storage management, and OPML. These are absent now, but will return soon.
• More options for downloading and deleting episodes.
• Upgrading the Apple Watch app to the new, faster sync engine. (The Watch app is currently unchanged from the previous one.)

And, of course, more features, including some of your most-requested features over the last decade.

Getting this rewrite out the door was a monumental task. Thank you for your patience as I work through this list!

Why?

Most of Overcast’s core code was 10 years old, which made it cumbersome or impossible to easily move with the times, adopt new iOS functionality, or add new features, especially as one person.

That’s why there haven’t been many new features or changes in years.

You saw it, and I saw it. I wasn’t able to serve my customers as well as I wanted.

For Overcast to have a future, it needed a modern foundation for its second decade. I’ve spent the past 18 months rebuilding most of the app with Swift, SwiftUI, Blackbird, and modern Swift concurrency.

Now, development is rapidly accelerating. I’m more responsive, iterating more quickly, and ultimately making the app much better.

Thank you all so much for the first decade of Overcast.

Here’s to the next one.

1. Dynamic ad insertion (DAI) splices ads into each download, and no two downloads are guaranteed to have the same number or duration of ads. So, for example, if the first half of an episode downloads, then the download fails, and it downloads the second half with another request, the combined audio may jump forward or back at the halfway mark, losing or repeating content. ↩︎

Overcast’s latest update (2022.2) brings the largest redesign in its nearly-eight-year history, plus many of the most frequently requested features and lots of under-the-hood improvements. I’m pretty proud of this one.

For this first and largest phase of the redesign, I focused on the home screen, playlist screen, typography, and spacing. (I plan to revamp the now-playing and individual-podcast screens in a later update.)

The home screen is radically different:

Home screen, before (left) and after (right).

• Playlists now have strong visual identities for nicer and easier navigation. Each playlist has a customizable color, and a custom icon can be selected from over 3,000 SF Symbols to match modern iOS design and the other icons within Overcast.

  And playlists can be manually reordered with drag-and-drop.

• Recently played and newly published episodes can now be displayed on the home screen for quick access, much like the widget and CarPlay experience.

• Podcasts can now be pinned to the top of the home-screen list.

  Pinned podcasts can also be manually reordered with drag-and-drop.

I’ve also rethought the old stacked “Podcasts” and “Played Podcasts” sections to better match people’s needs and expectations. Now, the toggle atop the podcast list switches between three modes: podcasts with current episodes, all followed podcasts, and inactive podcasts (those that you don’t follow and therefore won’t get any more episodes from, or haven’t posted a new episode in a long time).

The playlist screen’s structure remains mostly the same, while refining the design for the modern era:

Playlist screen, before (left) and after (right).

Here, it’s more apparent that I’ve replaced the system San Francisco font with an alternate variant, San Francisco Rounded, to increase legibility and better match the personality of the app.

I’ve also added highly demanded features:

• By far, Overcast’s most-requested feature is a Mark as Played feature. That’s now available as a checkmark button on episode rows, as well as a left-side swipe action.
• The second-most-requested feature is a way to view all starred episodes. Special playlists for Starred, Downloaded, and In Progress can now be created.

The light and dark themes now each have a customizable tint color from the modern iOS UI-color palette, including these favorites from beta testers:

And throughout the app, I’ve made tons of tweaks and bug fixes, including:

• Notifications and background downloads are now much more reliable.
• Episode downloads can now be individually deleted or re-downloaded.
• Links can now be opened in Safari. (under Nitpicky Details)
• Performance is now significantly better with very large playlists and collections.
• Fixed bugs with episode-duration detection, CarPlay lists, Mac-app sharing, and much more. So much is better in this update that I can’t even remember it all.

Thank you so much to everyone who helped me beta-test this massive update.

As always, Overcast is free in the App Store. Go get it!

Losing Steve affected me more than it probably should have, given that I never met him or had any correspondence with him.

But losing him was devastating — not just to my world, but the world.

He was a sort of virtual father figure: I was always hoping that maybe Steve would notice something I did.

We all wanted his attention and approval, and that drove us to do better work — even those of us who never worked at Apple.

Nobody replaced him in this role. Nobody can.

But as an outsider who had no personal relationship with him to mourn, it has been most depressing to consider how much of his work the world missed out on.

He wasn’t taken from us after a long, complete life — he was taken in his prime.

He had so much more to offer the world.

After the dust settles from the developer class-action settlement, the South Korean law, the JFTC announcement, and the Apple v. Epic decision, I think the most likely long-term outcome isn’t very different from the status quo — and that’s a good thing.

Allowing external purchases

Here’s what I think we’ll end up with:

• Apple will still require apps to use their IAP system for any qualifying purchases that occur in the apps themselves.
• All app types will be allowed to link out to a browser for other purchase methods.

• Most apps will be required to also offer IAP side-by-side with any external methods.¹

  Only “Reader apps” will be exempt from this requirement.²

• Apple will have many rules regarding the display, descriptions, and behavior of external purchases, many of which will be unpublished and ever-changing. App Review will be extremely harsh, inconsistent, capricious, petty, and punitive with their enforcement.³
• Apple won’t require price-matching between IAP and external purchases.

These few but important corrections reduce Apple’s worst behavior and should relieve most regulatory pressure.

The result won’t look much different than the status quo:

Most big media apps (qualifying as “reader” apps) won’t offer IAP, but will finally be allowed to link to their websites from their apps and offer purchases there.

Many games will offer both IAP and external purchases, with the external choice offering a discount, bonus gems, extra loot boxes, or other manipulative tricks to optimize the profitability of casino games for children (commissions from which have been the largest portion of Apple’s “services revenue” to date).

Most importantly, many products, services, and business models will become possible that previously weren’t, leading to more apps, more competition, and more money going to more places.

External purchase methods will evolve to be almost as convenient as IAP (especially if Apple Pay is permitted in this context), and payment processors will reduce the burden of manual credit-card entry with shared credentials available across multiple apps.

The payment-fraud doomsday scenarios argued by Apple and many fans mostly won’t happen, in part because App Review will prevent most obvious cases, but also because parents don’t typically offer their credit cards to untrustworthy children; and for buyers of all ages, most credit cards themselves provide stronger fraud prevention and easier recourse from unwanted charges than the App Store ever has.

No side-loading

I don’t expect side-loading or alternative app stores to become possible, and I’m relieved, because that is not a future I want for iOS.

When evaluating such ideas, I merely ask myself:

“What would Facebook do?”

Facebook owns four of the top ten apps in the world. If side-loading became possible, Facebook could remove Instagram, WhatsApp, the Facebook app, and Messenger from Apple’s App Store, requiring customers to install these extremely popular apps directly from Facebook via side-loading.

And everyone would.

Most people use a Facebook-owned app not because it’s a good app, but because it’s a means to an important end in their life. Social pressure, family pressure, and network lock-in prevent most users from seeking meaningful alternatives. People would jump through a few hoops if they had to.

Facebook would soon have apps that bypassed App Review installed on the majority of iPhones in the world.

Technical limitations of the OS would prevent the most egregious abuses, but there’s a lot they could still do. We don’t need to do much imagining — they already have attempted multiple hacks, workarounds, privacy invasions, and other unscrupulous and technically invasive behavior with their apps over time to surveil user behavior outside of their app and stay running longer in the background than users intend or expect.

The OS could evolve over time to reduce some of these vulnerabilities, but technical measures alone cannot address all of them.

Without the threat of App Review to keep them in check, Facebook’s apps would become even more monstrous than they already are.

As a user and a fan of iOS, I don’t want any part of that.

No alternative app stores

Alternative app stores would be even worse. Rather than offering individual apps via side-loading, Facebook could offer just one:

The Facebook App Store.

Instagram, WhatsApp, the Facebook app, and Messenger could all be available exclusively there.

The majority of iOS users in the world would soon install it, and Facebook would start using leverage in other areas — apps’ social accounts, stats packages, app-install ads, ad-attribution requirements — to heavily incentivize (and likely strong-arm) a huge number of developers to offer their apps in the Facebook App Store, likely in addition to Apple’s.

Maybe I’d be required to add the Facebook SDK to my app in order to be in their store, which they would then use to surveil my users.

Maybe I’d need to buy app-install ads to show up in search there at all.

Maybe I’d need to pay Facebook to “promote” each app update to reach more than a tiny percentage of my existing customers.

And Facebook wouldn’t even be the only app store likely to become a large player on iOS.

Amazon would almost certainly bring their garbage “Appstore” to iOS, but at least that one probably wouldn’t go anywhere.

Maybe Google would bring the Play Store to iOS and offer a unified SDK to develop a single codebase for iOS and Android, effectively making every app feel like an Android app and further marginalizing native apps when they’re already hurting.

Media conglomerates that own many big-name properties, like Disney, might each have their own app stores for their high-profile apps. Running your own store means you can promote all of your own apps as much as you want. What giant corporation would resist?

Don’t forget games! Epic and Steam would come to iOS with their own game stores. Maybe Microsoft and Nintendo, too.

Maybe you’d need to install seven different app stores on your iPhone just to get the apps and games you already use — and all without App Review to keep them in check.

Most developers would probably need to start submitting our apps to multiple app stores, each with its own rules, metadata, technical requirements, capabilities, approval delays, payment processing, stats, crash reports, ads, promotion methods, and user reviews.

As a user, a multiple-app-store world sounds like an annoying mess; as a developer, it terrifies me.

Apple’s App Store is the devil we know. The most viable alternatives that would crop up would be far worse.

Course correction

The way Apple runs its business isn’t perfect, but it’s also not a democracy.

I loved this part of Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers’ decision in Apple v. Epic, as quoted by Ben Thompson’s excellent article that you should read:

Apple has not offered any justification for the actions other than to argue entitlement. Where its actions harm competition and result in supracompetitive pricing and profits, Apple is wrong.

I interpret “entitlement” without a negative connotation here — Apple is entitled to run their platform mostly as they wish, with governmental interference only warranted to fix market-scale issues that harm large segments of commerce or society.

As a developer, I’d love to see more changes to Apple’s control over iOS. But it’s hard to make larger changes without potentially harming much of what makes iOS great for both users and developers.

Judge Gonzalez Rogers got it right: we needed a minor course correction to address the most egregiously anticompetitive behavior, but most of the way Apple runs iOS is best left to Apple.

1. If the South Korean law holds, IAP may not be required — but only in South Korea. With this exception, I expect the rest of these rules to be enforced the same way globally. ↩︎

2. Apple defines “reader” apps as “[allowing] a user to access previously purchased content or content subscriptions (specifically: magazines, newspapers, books, audio, music, and video).”

   This includes many apps that Apple’s services compete with, such as Netflix, Spotify, and Kindle, that raise anticompetitive concerns among regulators and legislators when forced to give Apple 30%. ↩︎

3. App Review has higher-level queues for managerial review of controversial rules or edge cases, typically identifiable from the outside by an app stuck with “In Review” status for days or weeks, and often ending in a phone call from “Bill”.

   I’d expect any app offering external purchases to have a very high chance of being escalated to a slower, more pain-in-the-ass review process, possibly causing it not to be worthwhile for most small developers to deal with.

   I have no plans to add external purchases to Overcast for multiple reasons, including this — but mostly because, for my purposes, I’m satisfied with Apple’s IAP system. ↩︎

Apple’s leaders continue to deny developers of two obvious truths:

• That our apps provide substantial value to iOS beyond the purchase commissions collected by Apple.
• That any portion of our customers came to our apps from our own marketing or reputation, rather than the App Store.

For Apple to continue to deny these is dishonest, factually wrong, and extremely insulting — not only to our efforts, but to the intelligence of all Apple developers and customers.

This isn’t about the 30%, or the 15%, or the prohibition of other payment systems, or the rules against telling our customers about our websites, or Apple’s many other restrictions. (Not today, at least.)

It’s about what Apple’s leadership thinks of us and our work.

*     *     *

It isn’t the App Store’s responsibility to the rest of Apple to “pay its way” by leveraging hefty fees on certain types of transactions. Modern society has come to rely so heavily on mobile apps that any phone manufacturer must ensure that such a healthy ecosystem exists as table stakes for anyone to buy their phones.

Without our apps, the iPhone has little value to most of its customers today.

If Apple wishes to continue advancing bizarre corporate-accounting arguments, the massive profits from the hardware business are what therefore truly “pay the way” of the App Store, public APIs, developer tools, and other app-development resources, just as the hardware profits must fund the development of Apple’s own hardware, software, and services that make the iPhone appeal to customers.

The forced App Store commissions, annual developer fees, and App Store Search Ads income are all just gravy. The “way” is already paid by the hardware — but Apple uses their position of power to double-dip.

And that’s just business. Apple’s a lot of things, and “generous” isn’t one.

But to bully and gaslight developers into thinking that we need to be kissing Apple’s feet for permitting us to add billions of dollars of value to their platform is not only greedy, stingy, and morally reprehensible, but deeply insulting.

*     *     *

Apple further extends the value argument, and defends their justification for forced commissions, by claiming responsibility for and ownership of the customer relationship between all iOS users and each app they choose to use.

This argument only makes sense — and even then, only somewhat — when apps are installed by a customer browsing the App Store, finding an app they hadn’t previously heard of, and choosing to install it based on App Store influence alone.

But in the common case — and for most app installations, the much more common case — of searching for a specific app by name or following a link or ad based on its developer’s own marketing or reputation, Apple has served no meaningful role in the customer acquisition and “deserves” nothing more from the transaction than what a CDN and commodity credit-card processor would charge.

The idea that the App Store is responsible for most customers of any reasonably well-known app is a fantasy.

It isn’t the App Store that has enabled all of the commerce on iOS — it’s the entire world of computing and modern society, created by a symbiotic ecosystem in which Apple played one part alongside many others. The world was already moving in this direction, and had Apple not played its part, someone else would’ve. The App Store is merely one platform’s forced distribution gateway, “facilitating” the commerce no more and no less than a web browser, an ISP or cellular carrier, a server-hosting company, or a credit-card processor.

For Apple to continue to claim otherwise is beyond insulting, and borders on delusion.

*     *     *

At WWDC next week, these same people are going to try to tell us a different story.

They’re going to tell us how amazing we are, how important our work is, and how much they value us. And for thousands of Apple employees who’ve made the great products and platforms that we love, including the hundreds of engineers presenting the sessions and working the labs, it’ll be genuine and true.

But the leaders have already shown us who they really are, what they really think of us, and how much they value our work.

Please forgive some sloppiness in my metaphors or phrasing — my writing skills are pretty rusty — and I’ll return the favor to anyone who responds.

A summary of today’s changes to 3.1.3 Other Purchase Methods:

Your app must use Apple’s in-app-purchase (IAP) system for all purchases made in the app.

Unless they’re purchases for goods or services that are consumed outside the app, in which case you are prohibited from using IAP.

Unless those goods or services consumed outside the app are magazines, newspapers, books, audio, music, or video, in which case, you are required to use IAP.

But if your app only “reads” previously purchased magazines, newspapers, books, audio, music, or video, and doesn’t mention the possibility of purchases anywhere in the app, you don’t need to use IAP.

Unless you offer account creation, in which case, you are required to use IAP.

Unless you only offer free account creation, in which case, you don’t need to use IAP.

But if you offer paid upgrades from free accounts within the app, you are required to use IAP.

Except for accounts that were created outside the app, which can offer paid account upgrades and don’t need to use IAP.

If you’re selling “experiences” between people, you don’t need to use IAP.

Unless those “experiences” include three or more people, or aren’t consumed live, in which case, you are required to use only IAP.

If your purchase is for services, features, or game items, you are required to use only IAP.

Unless you operate on multiple platforms, in which case, you can also offer purchasing outside the app. But you can’t tell anyone about it.

Unless you get their contact info somewhere else, in which case, you can tell them about it, but not in the app.

You are required to use IAP even if you sell your app or service directly to other people.

Unless you only sell it to businesses or groups for their employees or students to use, in which case, you still must use IAP, but you can include your own payment method as well.

Unless those groups are families, or unless those employees or students are somehow “consumers”, in which case, you must only use IAP.

Do I have that right?

*     *     *

How about an alternative that’s clear, fair, reasonable, and consistently enforceable?

Apps may offer other payment mechanisms in their app, as long as terms are clear and customers aren’t misled, and may or may not choose to implement in-app purchase based on its merits.

In one stroke, antitrust and regulatory pressure disappear, developer relations are significantly repaired, and Apple can go back to spending its time, resources, PR, and political capital on making their products better and customers happier.

The latest update to Overcast includes a feature that I’m especially proud of that took over a year to build.

Voice Boost 2 is an all-new audio engine that includes professional-grade, mastering-quality loudness normalization.

When I first introduced Overcast in 2014, Voice Boost was one of its headlining features:

Voice Boost is a combination of dynamic compression and equalization that can make many shows more listenable and normalize volume across all shows. This makes amateur-produced podcasts (including many of my favorites) more listenable in loud environments, like cars, where you’d otherwise need to crank the volume so loudly to hear the quiet parts that you’d blow your ears out when the loudest person spoke.

Voice Boost 2 achieves the same goal as the original Voice Boost, but with dramatically more sophisticated methods, leading to more consistent results and much better sound quality.

Goals

When I wrote the original Voice Boost with only a rudimentary understanding of audio processing, it was a single configuration of Apple’s AudioUnits that applied a fixed set of parameters to all podcasts, regardless of their audio characteristics. It was an effective but blunt tool, relying on aggressive level compression and a strong EQ to make the compression less noticeable.

Since then, I’ve edited over 500 podcasts, learned a lot more about how to master them properly, and developed a much better understanding of audio signal processing.

I set out to develop a better, smarter, and more refined Voice Boost that took advantage of everything I’d learned, with these audio goals:

• The effect should be much more subtle: mostly just consistent volume, plus slightly smoother tone.
• It should analyze the input audio and apply just enough processing to achieve a consistent volume level, modifying already-good audio as little as possible.
• It should sound good, and consistent, regardless of the volume dynamics of its input.
• Quality should be so good that I can even play high-quality music through it¹ and not notice any artifacts.

And these technical goals:

• Like Smart Speed and the original Voice Boost, it had to work as a streaming process, easily toggled on and off at will, without needing to scan the entire file first or look very far ahead.
• The code had to be pure C, with highly optimized and vectorized code, so it wouldn’t be a major power drain on older phones and could potentially run on much lower-power devices as well.
• I had to write every component from scratch, without using AudioUnits, because I wanted to understand and control everything, ensure the highest performance and sound quality, and avoid Apple’s platform-specific API limits.²
• It had to be modular and easily customizable, like a channel strip in an audio editor, so I could adjust the processing during development and testing, offer user customization down the road, and use the same engine to build myself a modular podcast-preproduction tool to save time in my weekly workflow (which I’ve been using for over a year).³

Live LUFS normalization

Since Voice Boost is mostly about high-quality volume analysis and loudness normalization, I went straight to the top, implementing the ITU BS.1770–4 standard that gives us the LUFS measurement seen in high-end audio editors.

Overcast now measures and adjusts podcast levels using this broadcast-standard perceptual loudness algorithm, at full quality, with no preprocessing.

Voice Boost 2 normalizes all podcasts to –14 LUFS — a level I chose because it closely matches the volume of Siri and most iOS turn-by-turn navigation voices, so when you’re listening to a podcast while driving, navigation interruptions are less jarring.

Most professionally produced podcasts are already mastered to similar volume levels, so Voice Boost 2 won’t overcompress them with aggressive processing — it’ll only apply as much correction as necessary to make them all the same volume.

A brief tutorial on clipping and distortion

This is about to get nerdier, but bear with me. (Yes, nerdier than ITU broadcast-loudness standards.)

Given a loudness measurement for the incoming audio, quieter podcasts need to be amplified to reach the target. But perceived loudness isn’t the peak of the incoming audio stream — it’s more of an average. Quiet-sounding audio can still have brief moments of loud peaks.

When increasing the volume of digital audio, the biggest challenge is not “clipping” during the peaks — not having any part of the signal pass above the volume ceiling of 0 dB. (It’s a negative scale. This is also why the LUFS value above, which is closely related to the decibel scale used here, is negative.)

Here’s the highest the signal should go, showing the individual audio samples (green dots) that can be processed by a podcast app before the DAC transforms them into audio (smooth green line):

It’ll sound right as long as the audio doesn’t cross above that top line (0 dB). Increase the volume even slightly too far, and some of the samples just slam into it and stay there, losing the tops of their smooth curves:

And that sounds terrible.

But I can’t just cap all the samples right below the limit and call it a day — that’s called a brickwall limiter — because then the shape of the audio line will actually represent different frequencies, telling the DAC to add noise that wasn’t really there.

Here, the bottom of each image shows the frequency breakdown:

The unclipped signal (left) shows only its original frequency of about 2100 Hz, but a basic brickwall limiter (right) results in the unwanted introduction of a bunch of extra frequencies.

That’s distortion. (If this is interesting to you, learn more about audio sampling theory here.)

Lookahead limiter

Avoiding audible distortion requires a lookahead limiter, which looks… ahead (😎) at the audio coming down the pipeline, and smoothly ramps the volume amplification down as a loud peak is approaching, then back up again afterward, just enough to avoid clipping and audible distortion, but so quickly that you don’t notice.⁴

After Voice Boost 2’s complete 32-bit audio processing pipeline, the last stage is a lookahead limiter, configured such that it can’t clip, no matter what audio comes through.

This gives vast flexibility in volume processing without sacrificing quality.

Voice Boost 2 also incorporates a dynamics compressor, but over time, I’ve kept reducing its strength as I’ve found it less necessary. Proper LUFS processing with a great lookahead limiter provides excellent volume normalization with almost no compression needed afterward.

True-peak detection

There’s one more way to introduce clipping that needs to be guarded against.

Digital audio is represented by samples that represent a point in time (green dots, again) on a sound wave (green line). But the sampled points don’t always land at the exact peaks of those waves:

The most common way to measure the peak of a waveform is to find the greatest absolute sample value. By this method, the top waveform peaks here would measure about –6 dB and –1.5 dB, respectively.

But the actual peak amplitudes of these waves is –1 dB! A simple limiter could still output clipped audio because it’s not seeing the true peaks.

Voice Boost 2’s limiter performs true-peak detection, rather than simply measuring sample peaks, to avoid this type of clipping and further reduce distortion.

Mastering-quality processing for everyone

Voice Boost 2 is a mastering-quality audio-processing pipeline that applies broadcast-standard loudness normalization, light compression and EQ, and a true-peak lookahead limiter to your podcasts, in real time, without sacrificing quality or battery life.

And it runs at less than 1% CPU usage on an iPhone SE.⁵

I intend to expose some of its customizability to customers in future updates, but I wanted to develop and ship the best default settings first to keep the app simple and usable to everyone. Now that it’s available to everyone, I may still subtly tweak the defaults in response to feedback. But as I’ve refined the settings during the beta period to be more universal, less customization has been necessary.⁶

Having achieved its goals of being more consistent and less aggressive, Voice Boost 2 is intentionally transparent. It’s not promoted more in the app or even labeled “Voice Boost 2”. It’s still Voice Boost — just better now.

If I did my job well, you’ll hardly notice it at all. You’ll have no idea that your podcasts are being remastered in your pocket.

But I’ll know. And the handful of you who really care will know. And that’s enough for me.

Voice Boost 2 is in today’s update (2020.1), along with these new features:

• AirPlay 2: Overcast can now play to HomePods and other AirPlay 2 devices much more responsively, with full-blown Smart Speed and Voice Boost, on iOS 13.1 and above.⁷
• Skip intros/outros: There’s a new per-podcast setting to skip a given number of seconds from the start and/or end of its episodes.
• Clip-sharing from private feeds. In retrospect, this restriction was unnecessary, so I lifted it.
• Restored iOS 12 compatibility. Going 13-only so soon was a mistake. Hear why on Under The Radar 181 and 183.

As usual, all of this is free for everyone in Overcast.

1. Those awesome Trey Anastasio acoustic shows are pretty quiet. ↩︎

2. Apple doesn’t make all of their audio APIs available on all platforms: some are Mac-only and never came to iOS, and watchOS has an even smaller subset than iOS. The more I can accomplish in my own code, the less I depend on Apple’s choices for which APIs they make available to developers. ↩︎

3. It’s just a command-line tool for now. You don’t want it. (But if you do… someday, maybe.) ↩︎

4. This all happens in milliseconds. ↩︎

5. At 1X, with Smart Speed enabled.

   Smart Speed was actually entirely rewritten as part of Voice Boost 2, but it’s less interesting. It performs the same job as before, but much more efficiently, and taking advantage of the measured loudness when Voice Boost is also enabled. ↩︎

6. For instance, I also built a de-esser into Voice Boost 2, but it slowly became unnecessary as I improved the other processing, so it’s not currently enabled. ↩︎

7. Smart Speed is a big deal here, I think — I’m not aware of any other podcast apps with silence-skipping over AirPlay 2.

   (Or LUFS normalization, or true-peak lookahead limiters.) ↩︎

In light of today’s rumor that a Pro Mode may be coming that seems to offer benefits in the opposite direction,¹ I wanted to re-make the case for a Low Power Mode on macOS — and explain why now is the time.

Modern hardware constantly pushes thermal and power limits, trying to strike a balance that minimizes noise and heat while maximizing performance and battery life.

Software also plays a role, trying to keep everything background-updated, content-indexed, and photo-analyzed so it’s ready for us when we want it, but not so aggressively that we notice any cost to performance or battery life.

Apple’s customers don’t usually have control over these balances, and they’re usually fixed at design time with little opportunity to adapt to changing circumstances or customer priorities.

The sole exception, Low Power Mode on iOS, seems to be a huge hit: by offering a single toggle that chooses a different balance, people are able to greatly extend their battery life when they know they’ll need it.²

Mac laptops need Low Power Mode, too. I believe so strongly in its potential because I’ve been using it on my laptops (in a way) for years, and it’s fantastic.

I’ve been disabling Intel Turbo Boost on my laptops with Turbo Boost Switcher Pro most of the time since 2015.

In 2018, I first argued for Low Power Mode on macOS with a list of possible tweaks, concluding that disabling Turbo Boost was still the best bang-for-the-buck tweak to improve battery life without a noticeable performance cost in most tasks.³

Recently, as Intel has crammed more cores and higher clocks into smaller form factors and pushed thermal limits to new extremes, the gains have become even more significant. Here’s some thermal testing from my 8-core 16-inch MacBook Pro:

16-inch MacBook Pro (Late 2019, 2.4 GHz 8-core i9)   Power Temp. Geekbench 5 single/multi xcodebuild Normal 82W 90°C 1260/7386 39 sec. No Turbo 31W−62% 65°C 669/5206−46/29% 62 sec.+59%

With Turbo Boost disabled, peak CPU power consumption drops by 62%, with a correspondingly huge reduction in temperature. This has two massive benefits:

• The fans never audibly spin up. When Turbo Boost is enabled, the fans annoyingly spin up every time the system is under a heavy sustained load. Disable it, and it’s almost impossible to get them to be audible.
• It runs significantly cooler. Turbo Boost lets laptops get too hot to comfortably hold in your lap, and so much heat radiates out that it can make hands sweaty. Disable it, and the laptop only gets moderately warm, not hot, and hands stay comfortably dry.

I haven’t done formal battery testing on the 16-inch, since it’s so difficult and time-consuming to do in a controlled way that’s actually useful to people, but anecdotally, I’m seeing similar battery gains by disabling Turbo Boost that I’ve seen with previous laptops: significantly longer battery life that I’d estimate to be between 30–50%.

This comes at a cost to performance, but:

• It’s not noticeable on most workloads.
• Parallel workloads are affected far less than single-threaded tasks, and most modern heavy workloads are parallelized.

• This is an 8-core laptop that’s competitive with my iMac Pro! It’s much faster than most people need (myself included) most of the time, so I can spare some performance to get other benefits.

  A fast laptop isn’t very useful if your hands are too sweaty to type, the battery dies in the middle of a flight, or the loud fans ruin your audio recording.

• When I really want to maximize performance, Turbo Boost Switcher Pro lets me quickly toggle it in the menu bar, so switching between modes is easy.

The vast majority of the time I’m using it, the 16-inch MacBook Pro is a much better laptop with Turbo Boost disabled.

It’s still fast enough to do everything I need (including significant development with Xcode), while remaining silent and cool, with incredible battery life.

But soon, I bet I won’t be able to do this anymore.

Turbo Boost Switcher Pro relies on a kernel extension that’s grandfathered into Apple’s latest security requirements, but it can never be updated — and when macOS Catalina loads it for the first time, it warns that it’ll be “incompatible with a future version of macOS.” I suspect that this is the last year I’ll get to run the latest OS and be able to turn off Turbo Boost at will, making all of my future laptop usage significantly worse.

Please, Apple, make this feature official: give us a Low Power Mode for macOS that disables Turbo Boost to keep our laptops cool, quiet, and long-lasting at times when those are more important to us than speed.

1. My guess is that “Pro Mode” doesn’t raise the peak performance, but instead raises the fan speeds to allow longer sustained operation at high Turbo Boost speeds. ↩︎

2. Low Power Mode has been so successful on iOS that Apple also thought it worthwhile to add a Low Data Mode to iOS 13, offering similar control over data usage. (Mac owners can get similar functionality with the excellent TripMode.) ↩︎

3. As I wrote back then, disabling discrete GPUs and Photos analysis are other obvious contributors to a good Mac Low Power Mode. ↩︎

After my first day with the new 16-inch MacBook Pro, I’m very optimistic about it.

🎧  Hear more on today’s Accidental Tech Podcast!

Two years ago, I wrote a wishlist to fix the MacBook Pro, and the 16-inch doesn’t actually deliver most of it. But time and technological progress are slowly getting Apple off the hook:

• The ports are unchanged. We’ll still need dongles. But USB-C is gradually becoming more common, and dongles are slowly — very slowly — getting less shitty.
• The Touch Bar isn’t optional. But a new hardware Esc key removes one of its biggest drawbacks, and accidental input should be reduced by the increased spacing between the Touch Bar and the top row of keys.
• The power brick still lacks its previous conveniences. There’s still no cable management, safety breakaway, or charging LED. But third parties are slowly filling some of these gaps.
• The headphone jack is still on the right (wrong) side, despite most single-sided headphone cables entering the left earcup. But the need for wired headphones is decreasing over time.

Addressing those would be nice, but as I wrote then, they paled in comparison to one huge issue: the butterfly keyboard.

The MacBook Pro must return to scissor keyswitches. If Apple only changes one thing about the next MacBook Pro, it should be this. It’s far more important than anything else on this list. […]

The Magic Keyboard’s scissor switches feel similar, but with a bit more travel, and all of the reliability and resilience of previous keyboard generations. […]

The Magic Keyboard only needs one change to be perfect for the MacBook Pro: returning to the “inverted-T” arrow-key arrangement by making the left- and right-arrow keys half-height again. This arrangement is much more natural and less error-prone because we can align our fingers by feeling the “T” shape, a crucial affordance for such frequently used keys that are so far from the home row.

That’s exactly what they’ve done, and I couldn’t be happier.

The new 16-inch MacBook Pro is a great computer in most other ways, but so were the MacBook Pros from the last few years. They were fast, powerful, capable workstations… but the butterfly keyboard took away from it all.

Not anymore.

I’m on cloud nine. Look at this glorious keyboard! An Esc key! Inverted-T arrow keys! A millimeter of key travel! Enough spacing between the keys for our fingers to accurately orient themselves! And keystrokes will probably work, 100% of the time, for years!

Five years ago, nobody would’ve considered any of these noteworthy, and readers would’ve suspected you weren’t of sound mind if you included them in a review.

Five years ago, laptop keyboards were fine. Everyone was pretty much satisfied with the ones they had, they worked, and we never had to talk or think about them.

Today, finally, we begin heading back to that world.

The butterfly keyboard was an anomaly — it was a huge departure from everything else we’d ever used, mostly not in good ways.

The new keyboard is very similar to the recent desktop Magic Keyboard, and I expect it to have a wide appeal, just as the Magic Keyboard does. It has slightly less travel and spacing, but the overall feeling is very similar — and it’s nothing at all like the butterfly keyboard.

I absolutely love it — not because it’s the most amazing keyboard in the world, but because it’s completely forgettable in the best possible way. It just feels normal again.

There’s a lot more to love about the 16-inch MacBook Pro. The screen and battery are bigger, but the size and weight barely increased. It’s almost as fast as my iMac Pro, and the new thermals can sustain higher performance. The speakers and microphone got huge, unexpected improvements.

And I didn’t get everything I wanted. But many of my wishlist items fall outside of what Apple is likely to ever do, and all of them are much less important than making the computer’s primary input device functional, acceptable, and reliable. Now we have the luxury of being able to complain about less-urgent wishes.

The biggest change is that I finally don’t feel like it’s constantly fighting me. Its design doesn’t feel spiteful. It’s a computer that doesn’t seem to hate being a computer. I’m not afraid to use it in the world, and I’m not avoiding using it because it’s unpleasant. The butterfly keyboard was the opposite, it never got better, I never got used to it, and good riddance to it.

Following in the footsteps of the fantastic iMac Pro, updated Mac Mini, and upcoming Mac Pro, the release of the 16-inch MacBook Pro ends a painful chapter of neglect and hubristic design of the Mac. Apple has finally turned the ship around.

We haven’t had long enough to fully test it yet. There may be flaws or shortcomings discovered over time — there usually are (and always have been). But frankly, it could catch fire twice a week and it would still be my favorite laptop Apple has made since 2015. Fortunately, upon initial usage, nothing bad really jumps out.

The new MacBook Pro has no massive asterisks or qualifications. It’s a great computer, period, and it feels so good to be able to say that again.

For the first time in years, without any major exceptions, we can see that Apple loves computers as much as we do.

🎧  Much more detail and discussion in the podcast!

Today’s Overcast update (2019.6) brings some great new features.

But first, I need to set low expectations for iOS 13, watchOS 6, and macOS Catalina updates this fall. Halfway through the summer, I’ve made much less progress than expected, having been overwhelmed by the required OS changes, my own technical and design debts, and unusually rough betas.

Rather than shipping a big iOS update, a standalone Watch app, and a Mac app on day one, these will probably come incrementally over the next year.

Fortunately, I haven’t stopped improving the app in the meantime.

Per-podcast customization, longer clips

You can now set download-vs.-stream and auto-delete behavior per podcast, one of the most frequently requested features over the last few years. (Sorry it took so long — it required a lot of server-side work for uninteresting reasons.)

I’ve also raised the clip-sharing length limit to 90 seconds. When I debuted this feature, I had to guess how it would be used and received, and 60 seconds seemed like a good limit. In practice, that’s sometimes a bit too short to capture a complete thought. 90 seconds should be better — most clips won’t need to be that long, but it’ll be nice to have the headroom when you need it.

“Suggestions for You” replacing Twitter

Overcast has had a Twitter-powered social-recommendations feature since version 1.0 in 2014, which made sense at the time: I didn’t have any popularity data to generate recommendations from, and social networks were nicer places to be than they are today.

But after five years, only 10% of active users have connected a Twitter account in Overcast, and only 0.2% of new podcast subscriptions have actually been added via Twitter recommendations.

Not only was the feature not providing much value to the 10% of people who enabled it, but the other 90% of Overcast’s customers haven’t been getting personalized recommendations at all.

In the meantime, I’ve accumulated five years of popularity data, so I tried writing my own recommendation engine. It worked — and it’s better.

Overcast now offers its own data-driven recommendation engine, and I’ve removed Twitter integration entirely.

Podcasts in the new “Suggestions for You” section of the Add Podcast screen are based on the shows you subscribe to, and what else their subscribers subscribe to, which gives much better recommendations without involving any social networks.

Most importantly, it works for all of Overcast’s customers.

*     *     *

As always, Overcast is free in the App Store. Give it a try.

Something big changed at Apple around the beginning of 2017.

They had encountered significant turbulence in the product line over the preceding years, especially Macs. It was a rough time to be a pro Mac user.

The “trash can” 2013 Mac Pro addressed only a fraction of the needs solved by the previous “cheese grater” towers, aged quickly without critical upgrade paths, and suffered from high GPU-failure rates from its cooling solution — all because its design prioritized size and appearance over performance and versatility in the one Mac model that should never make that tradeoff.

Over the next few years, it became clear that the Mac Pro was an embarrassing, outdated flop that Apple seemed to have little intention of ever updating, leaving its customers feeling unheard and abandoned. I think Apple learned a small lesson from it, but they learned a much bigger one a few years later.

The current MacBook Pro generation launched in late 2016, and I think Apple was truly caught completely by surprise when the new Touch Bar, sparse USB-C-only port offerings, high prices, and highly polarizing butterfly keyboard were met with harsh criticism, mixed reviews, and high failure rates. This one really hurt: while the Mac Pro is a niche machine for the highest-end and most-specialized needs, the popular MacBook Pro is the lifeblood of the Mac.

By the end of 2016, in addition to the generally buggy, neglected state macOS seemed to be perpetually stuck in, Apple had replaced its entire “pro” Mac lineup with controversial, limiting products that seemed optimized to flex Apple’s industrial-design muscles rather than actually addressing their customers’ needs.

The only company that can make computers for our OS seemed incapable of making good computers anymore. Each update threatened to remove or break things we needed or loved. Their newest designs felt punitive, rather than feeling like a celebration of computing.

Then, in April 2017, out of nowhere, Apple held a Mac Pro roundtable discussion with the press to announce that they were in the early stages of completely redesigning the Mac Pro.¹

The follow-up briefing a year later promised that the new Mac Pro would be released in 2019, and publicized the existence of a “Pro Workflow Team” of real pro users working inside Apple to inform the direction of their pro hardware and software.

It sounded like they’d gone from not listening to their customers at all to an institutionalized process of listening. And the newly designed Macs released since then have been great.²

The late-2017 iMac Pro, which I’m using to write this, is the best Mac I’ve ever owned by far. It’s versatile, incredibly powerful, beautiful, and silent. It’s so good that I’ll probably never really need a Mac Pro again,³ and if this was the only new “Mac Pro”, I’d be mostly fine with that.

The late-2018 Mac Mini replaced a pitiful, punitive, neglected relic with a practical, powerful mini-Mac-Pro. Apple could’ve let it die, or replaced it with a tiny, no-port marvel of uselessness, but instead, they made a computer so good that I started and ended a YouTube mini-career just to review it.

And the 2019 Mac Pro, finally unveiled last week, looks to be absolutely killer — it’s the first true successor to the tower Mac Pro, which saw its last real update almost a decade ago in 2010.⁴ It’s big, bulky, ludicrously fast, and almost obscenely upgradeable — exactly what a Mac Pro needs to be, and far better than any of us expected.

The new Mac Pro is, truly, a celebration of computing.

Even more importantly than any hardware releases, macOS itself has also seen massive engineering effort recently. For the first time in a decade, the Mac was a major focus of WWDC, with great new APIs poised to usher in a huge wave of fresh software.

To be fair, this story hasn’t ended yet. The Mac Pro isn’t actually out yet (and will be very expensive), they still need to resolve the problematic MacBook Pro with its next generation (rumors are promising), and the lack of standalone Apple displays under six thousand dollars really hurts the Mac Pro story.⁵

But I’m optimistic for the first time in years.

It’s hard to tell when Apple is listening. They speak concisely, infrequently, and only when they’re ready, saying absolutely nothing in the meantime, even when we’re all screaming about a product line as if it’s on fire. They make great progress, but often with courageous losses that never get reversed, so an extended silence because we’re stuck with a change forever is indistinguishable from an extended silence because the fix isn’t ready yet.

But there has clearly been a major shift in direction for the better since early 2017, and they couldn’t be more clear now:

Apple is listening again, they’ve still got it, and the Mac is back.

1. Based on what we’ve learned since, they had likely started the project a very short time before holding the roundtable. ↩︎

2. I’m excluding the 2018 MacBook Air because it feels like a stopgap that wasn’t originally planned to exist — the no-Touch-Bar 13” MacBook “Escape” seemed intended to replace it — that was rushed into the 2016-era generation mid-cycle, rather than being the first of a new design. Even so, with the large exception of the butterfly keyboard, it’s quite good. ↩︎

3. This doesn’t necessarily mean I won’t buy one. ↩︎

4. The 2010/“2012” Mac Pro was so good, and so upgradeable, that it’s still in surprisingly widespread use today for needs that weren’t possible or compelling on the “trashcan” successor. ↩︎

5. And the MacBook Pro. A very common setup for developers — Apple’s largest identified segment of pro users — is a 15” MacBook Pro connected to an external monitor, for which a good solution no longer exists. Developers would be much better served by a $1,500-ish standalone version of the iMac’s 5K display than a $6,000 XDR reference monitor for professional video colorists. ↩︎

Sharing podcasts has never been easy, but I’ve always tried to lead the way with Overcast, with publicly shareable episode links and optional recommendations from your Twitter friends since version 1.0 in 2014.

Podcast sharing has been limited to audio and links, but today’s social networks are more reliant on images and video, especially Instagram. Podcasts need video clips to be shared more easily today.

I’ve seen some video clips from tools specific to certain podcast networks or hosts, but they were never available to everyone, or for every show. So people mostly just haven’t shared podcast clips, understandably, because it has been too hard.

Not anymore.

▶️ ↩️

This remark on Unco by Stephen Hackett inspired me to finally solve this problem in a way that worked easily, for all podcasts, for both podcasters and listeners to use.

With today’s 2019.4 update¹, you can now share audio or video clips, up to a minute each, from any public podcast. Simply tap the share button in the upper-right corner.

You can generate an audio clip, or portrait, landscape, or square video, using your current Overcast theme setting.

In order to help spread podcasts further, I didn’t want to be heavy-handed in the Overcast branding — not everyone wants to advertise for one specific podcast app when promoting their shows. So the “Shared with Overcast” badge is optional, and if you’d like, you can also add an Apple Podcasts badge.

Finally, I wanted to extend the same app-agnosticism to Overcast’s share links. While this design still needs a lot of modernization, I’ve done a small refresh:

Now, for non-logged-in visitors, Overcast’s public sharing pages display badges for other podcast apps and the RSS feed for any podcast listed in Apple Podcasts.

It’s important for me to promote other apps like this, and to make it easy even for other people’s customers to benefit from Overcast’s sharing features, because there are much bigger threats than letting other open-ecosystem podcast apps get a few more users.

For podcasting to remain open and free, we must not leave major shortcomings for proprietary, locked-down services to exploit.² Conversely, the more we strengthen the open podcast ecosystem with content, functionality, and ease of use, the larger the barrier becomes that any walled garden must overcome to be compelling.

One of the most common shortcomings we hear is that podcasts are hard to share. Hopefully, Overcast’s new clip-sharing feature changes that, and other apps build similar features soon.

So go get Overcast and start sharing your favorite moments. It’ll help me, of course, but more importantly, it’ll help your favorite shows gain listeners, and it’ll strengthen the amazing, open, standards-based world of podcasting.

1. Like Slopes and Castro, I’ve changed to a date-based version-numbering scheme — 2019.4 is the fourth update released in 2019, the next version will be 2019.5, and so on — partly because version numbers don’t really matter anymore, but mostly because I no longer wanted to delay completed features until a major-version change or worry that I didn’t do enough to justify a certain number. ↩︎

2. YouTube was able to dominate video because it made everything easy in a medium that (at the time) was very hard to do elsewhere. If a proprietary service takes a very hard aspect of podcasting and makes it very easy, it may rapidly rise to prominence.

   Other major shortcomings I’m concerned about: the difficulty of getting sponsorships for small shows (“AdSense for podcasts”), and the complexity of creation and publishing (“Tumblr for podcasts”). This is probably why Spotify bought Anchor. ↩︎

▶️

The first thing someone does in a podcast app is add some podcasts, and most active Overcast users add at least two new podcasts each month.

Over 80% of podcasts are added to Overcast by searching, with the vast majority as searches for a specific podcast by name (rather than searching for generic keywords, such as “business”).

Good search is a critical, differentiating feature of any podcast app.

I’m not satisfied if the podcast you’re looking for is somewhere in the middle of a long list — I want it to be the first one, displayed quickly, after typing the fewest characters possible. I’ve been building toward this by analyzing years of popularity statistics and anonymous search data.

Instant Search is the next step in Overcast’s search evolution. It combines a small local cache with a highly optimized search service to give the most relevant results immediately as you type, even after only a single letter.¹

It’s a dramatic, delightful improvement to a critical, frequently used feature. This was a lot of fun to build, and I’m proud of it.

See for yourself! Overcast is free on the App Store.

1. If Instant Search isn’t instant right after you update, the cache hasn’t fully downloaded yet. It’s downloaded weekly, only on Wi-Fi, and is less than 5 MB. ↩︎

Watch my video review of the new iPad Pro in both sizes.

Rather than try to be comprehensive, I focused on what matters most to me: size choice between the 11” and 12.9”, the Smart Keyboard Folio from my perspective as a frequent 10.5” Smart Keyboard user, the new Pencil, and why “getting work done” isn’t important to me.

Watch the video review

I hardly ever think about my Mac Mini, but it serves a vital role for my family as our home-theater mixer, Plex server, ScanSnap server, Apple Photos backup, and Backblaze host for our NAS.¹ Almost every port on the back is in use, and it runs 24/7, reliably, in total silence.

Until last week, I thought it would be the last Mac Mini that Apple ever made.

And when rumors started swirling about an imminent Mac Mini update, I assumed the worst: if it came at all, it would be a tiny box with a slow, ultra-low-power processor and almost zero ports, optimizing for small size instead of versatility.

I don’t think this was an unreasonable fear after the 2014 Mac Mini update, which made many key aspects much worse without making anything much better. It seemed clear then, and for the following four years that it went without an update, that Apple held the Mac Mini and its customers in very low regard.

Not anymore.

The 2018 Mac Mini is real, and it’s spectacular.

It makes almost nothing worse and almost everything better, finally bringing the Mac Mini into the modern age.

Ports! Glorious ports!

Number one — and this is a big one these days, especially for this product — is that it’s not any less useful or versatile than the outgoing Mac Mini, including the generous assortment of ports. If the previous one served a role for you, the new one can probably do it just as well, and probably better and faster, with minimal donglage.²

It’s the same size as the old one, which is the right tradeoff. I know zero Mac Mini owners who really need it to get smaller, and many who don’t want it to get fewer ports or worse performance.

The point of the Mac Mini is to be as versatile as possible, addressing lots of diverse and edge-case needs that the other Macs can’t with their vastly different form factors and more opinionated designs. The Mac Mini needs to be a utility product, not a design statement. (Although, even as someone tired of space-gray everything, I have to admit that the Mini looks fantastic in its new color.)

The base price has increased to $800, and that’s not great. It’s partly justifiable because it’s much higher-end than before — the processors are much better, the architecture is higher-end and includes big advances like the T2, and all-SSD is standard — but it’s still an expensive product in absolute terms.

Apple lent me a high-end configuration for review — 6-core i7, 32 GB RAM, 1 TB SSD — which would cost $2499 (much of which is the SSD). This would’ve sounded crazy to spend on a Mac Mini a few years ago, but when it’s specced up like this, it’s targeting a much higher-end market than the previous model could. Compared to similarly specced iMacs and MacBook Pros, the pricing is generally reasonable.

And this can truly be a pro desktop, with just one exception.

Benchmarks

The big story to me is how incredibly fast this thing is. Granted, I’m testing the fastest CPU offered, but damn.

Geekbench results are very strong. The i7 Mac Mini scored better on single-core performance than every other Mac today (!) at 5912, and its multi-core score of nearly 24,740 beats every Mac to date except the iMac Pro and the old 12-core 2013 Mac Pro.

“Performance-competitive with pro Macs” was not high on my prediction list for a Mac Mini update, but here we are.

As the rate of CPU advancement has slowed dramatically over the last few years, Apple has found other ways to improve performance. The T2 is great for lots of security reasons — I wouldn’t buy a new Mac these days without it — but what you’re seeing here is its strength as a ridiculously fast SSD controller.

This Mac Mini builds my app, Overcast, much faster than my maxed-out 13-inch MacBook Pro, and about as quickly as my 10-core iMac Pro! Obviously, to achieve this result with only 6 cores, it’s not maxing out the CPU 100% of the time — it hits it in bursts while juggling a lot between the SSD and memory — but the result is that it’s incredibly fast as a development machine.

The Blackmagick Disk Speed Test shows that the raw SSD performance is effectively identical to the other T2 Macs shipped to date, and a huge improvement over the four-year-old Mac Mini.

A lot of people use Mac Minis as media or Plex servers, so I ran an H.265 transcoding test with ffmpeg. This maxes out all CPU cores, so the results predictably scale with the core count: the 6-core Mac Mini was much faster than the 4-core MacBook Pro, but the 10-core iMac Pro beat them both.

But if an app supports the T2’s hardware HEVC encoder,³ it can go much faster. And since every T2 so far performs identically, all T2 machines — from the 2018 MacBook Air to the iMac Pro — encode HEVC this way at the same speed, and all in complete silence because they’re barely touching the CPU.

I wasn’t able to notice any quality differences between the videos encoded with x265 and the T2’s hardware acceleration.

The only spec that lets it down is the Intel GPU. It’s fast enough for common tasks, but if your workload benefits from a strong GPU, you’re better off going for an iMac or a 15-inch MacBook Pro, or considering an eGPU setup.

Many Mac lines rely on Intel’s integrated GPUs to fit their physical and thermal needs, and Intel has been incredibly inconsistent over the last few years in delivering updated CPU-GPU combinations that would be suitable for many Macs.

We often blame Intel’s CPU roadmap (or Apple’s seeming indifference) for the lack of updates to certain Mac lines, but Intel’s GPU offerings are often the bigger issue. This is Intel’s fault, but it’s Apple’s problem — and Apple passes that problem right along to its customers.

But that’s it — aside from price, that’s the only downside. The GPU sucks. Everything else is awesome.

If you don’t need a strong GPU — and honestly, most Mac Mini use-cases don’t — this is a solid pick for a general-purpose Mac, even at the base-level configuration. Spec it up, and it’s more like a mini-Mac Pro.

A few assorted notes, with apologies for stealing Gruber’s format:

• It’s silent at idle. The i7’s fan noise does become clearly audible when it’s under heavy load: it’s in the ballpark of a modern MacBook Pro, but quieter.

  Interestingly, I disabled Turbo Boost to simulate the base i3 model’s thermals, and couldn’t get the fan to spin up audibly, no matter what I did. Those who prioritize silence under heavy loads should probably stick with the i3.

• This is the first non-iMac desktop Mac that lets you plug in a 5K display, at full quality, without dual cables or other unreliable hacks. We finally have 5K Retina Mac options beyond the iMac! Unfortunately, we still don’t have any great standalone 5K displays. (The LG UltraFine isn’t.)

• You can upgrade the RAM again! I never would’ve guessed this was coming, and I believe it’s the first time in a long time that an Apple product’s direct successor became more upgradeable and serviceable.

  I still recommend getting it with the right amount of RAM from Apple if possible, since third-party RAM has historically been a mess of unreliability and finger-pointing, but if you need that, it’s back. (The security screws inside — TR6? — still need some iFixit tools to get past.)

I Can’t Believe The Mac Mini Is This Awesome, I Can’t Even Say “Again” Because It Never Was

A new Mac Mini could’ve been so much worse. At many times in its past, it has seemed unloved, neglected, and downright punitive — a similar pattern to Apple’s other headless desktop, the Mac Pro. It seemed for a while that Apple lacked any interest in making Macs anymore, especially desktops.

Last year, with the introduction of the absolutely stellar iMac Pro, Apple showed us a glimpse of a potential new direction. It was downright perfect — a love letter to the Mac and its pro desktop users, and a clear turnaround in the way the company views the Mac for the better.

We didn’t know until now whether the iMac Pro’s greatness was a fluke. But now we have another data point: the last two desktops out of Apple have been incredible. After this, I have faith that they’re going to do the new Mac Pro justice when it finally ships next year.

The new Mac Mini is a great update, out of nowhere, to a product we thought would never be updated again.

Of course, with Apple’s track record on the Mac Mini, it may never be updated after this. This is either the first in a series of regular updates with which Apple proves that they care about the Mac Mini again, or it’s the last Mac Mini that will ever exist and we’ll all be hoarding them in a few years. We can’t know yet.

But today, this is a great update, a wonderful all-arounder for lots of potential needs, and just a fantastic little computer.

1. I do this via iSCSI, but I wouldn’t recommend it. It breaks and requires a new $200+ iSCSI initiator with almost every macOS update — which is why my Mac Mini still runs Sierra. In the near future, I’ll just directly attach some giant external hard drives to the Mac Mini and stop using the NAS. ↩︎

2. Unless you used optical audio, audio input, or the SD-card reader. (Shit, I use optical in and out.) ↩︎

3. ffmpeg can do it by specifying -c:v hevc_videotoolbox instead of -c:v x265. I also needed -vtag hvc1 for the output MP4s with either codec to be playable on macOS.

   Compressor uses the T2’s HEVC acceleration when encoding 8-bit HEVC, but not 10-bit. ↩︎

Quick, what time is it?

If that took you a bit longer than usual to tell the time on the Apple Watch’s new default Infograph face, you’re not alone:

• John Gruber finds it “far too busy”
• Jason Snell finds it “pretty and packed with features”, but misses hour numerals
• Zac Hall removes almost everything to improve legibility
• David Smith wrote his own complications (!) to improve contrast

I’ve configured mine acceptably, but Utility is still far more legible for telling the time at a quick glance:

Infograph, Utility

Infograph suffers from two major issues:

• The center complications reduce the contrast between the dial and hands, often making the hands hard to locate. This is avoidable with customization, although the defaults should be much more conservative.
• It takes too much cognitive effort (and therefore time) to distinguish the current hour. This is simply a flawed design.

It’s faster and easier to read analog time with the 1–12 numerals displayed on a watch, but many people prefer the cleaner look of a watch that uses lines, dots, or other shapes as hour markers instead. (Watch people call these “indices”.)

And it’s absolutely possible to design a highly legible dial with hour indices in many different styles. Here are some classics and modern takes:¹

Across a wide variety of brands, styles, and price points, a few key design principles are clear:

• The hour markers for 12 (and often 3/6/9) are more prominent.
• The hour indices are much larger than the minute markings.
• The hour hands nearly touch the hour indices.

These all improve legibility by making it as fast and easy as possible to know which hour is being indicated (and minimize the chance of an off-by-one error), first by orienting your eyes to the current rotation with the 12 marker, then by minimizing the distance between the hour hand and the indices it’s between.

Apple Watch’s analog faces all fail to achieve these principles:²

Color, Simple, Explorer

Color, Simple, and Explorer have easily distinguished hour markers, but Explorer’s are a bit too far from its hour hand.

None of them have distinguished 12 markers to aid in orientation.

While Explorer omits minute markings altogether, Simple bafflingly uses 30-second markings in place of its minute track, making time-telling even harder. I’ve never seen another watch with sub-minute markings identical to its minute markings.

Activity Analog, Utility, and Infograph without most complications

Activity Analog’s hour markers are faint and far from its hour hand, and the central activity rings quickly eliminate the hands’ contrast against the dial as they progress.

Utility (when configured without numbers) improves legibility slightly with its bold hour indices, but they’re still too small and too far from its hour hand, and there’s no differentiation for the 12 index.

Infograph is similar, but even worse: its hour indices are more faint, it uses 30-second markings instead of minute markings, and its default Calendar display wipes out the top three indices. (At least you can tell which way is up.)

Even with almost no complications, the basic essence of the Infograph dial has poor time legibility.

When it’s being used as Apple seems to intend, time-telling at a glance is so difficult that many people have actually suggested setting the digital time as the center complication, at which point the hands are just a nuisance and we should stop pretending it’s an analog face.

It’s great for Apple to offer a wide variety of Apple Watch faces, but most of them are short-lived novelties at best. We’re three years and four generations into the Apple Watch, and almost every Watch owner I know still uses the same handful of “good” faces.

If you want digital time with a good deal of complications, Modular is your only good choice (or Infograph Modular on the Series 4).³ If you want analog time with numerals, Utility is the only good option. If you want indices instead of numerals — probably the most popular analog watch style in the world — I don’t think there is a good option.

By now, we’ve seen Apple’s design range that they’re willing to ship as Watch faces, and while it seems broad at first glance, it’s actually pretty narrow.

And we’re restricted to the handful of good watch faces that Apple makes, because other developers aren’t allowed to make custom Watch faces.

The Apple Watch is an amazing feat of technology. It’s a computer. It can display anything. With no mechanical or physical limitations to hold us back, any watch-face design from anyone could plausibly be built, enabling a range of creativity, style, and usefulness that no single company could ever design on its own.

But they won’t let us. In a time when personal expression and innovation in watch fashion should be booming, they’re instead being eroded, as everyone in the room is increasingly wearing the same watch with the same two faces.

Open this door, Apple.

1. You can even see which model the Apple Watch’s hand shape comes from, which is not a coincidence. ↩︎

2. For Apple Watch faces offering multiple hour/minute styles, I selected the best one that didn’t have hour numerals, and most complications were disabled. ↩︎

3. Special shout-out to my favorite digital face, Solar. ↩︎

I apologize for the low battery level. Busy day.

It all started with the watchOS volume widget.

You see, Overcast’s previous Apple Watch app really sucked. I did my best with the capabilities of watchOS 1–4, but I couldn’t give people what they really wanted:

1. Standalone podcast playback on the Apple Watch without an iPhone. I briefly offered it through some bad hacks, but had to remove it.
2. Volume control on the Watch, which is increasingly important with the popularity of AirPods.

That’s why I nearly jumped for joy during the watchOS 5 announcement in June, when Apple unveiled most of my list of watchOS changes needed to make good podcast apps.

After a very busy summer, standalone Apple Watch playback is back in Overcast, and it’s actually good this time!

It’s not perfect:

• No cellular. Apple hasn’t released a good way to do cellular audio streaming in watchOS, and the bad ways wouldn’t be very useful.
• Sending podcasts to the Watch is slow. Overcast shrinks them to reduce the transfer time, but when (and how quickly) podcasts transfer is tightly controlled by watchOS to preserve battery life. Transfers still sometimes wait forever or silently fail.

Programmers like me can’t accept that something is just slow, so I’ve decided to make transfer speed irrelevant. Nobody cares how slowly podcasts transfer if it happens while they’re asleep!

Auto-Sync to Watch automatically tries to send your most recent podcasts to your Apple Watch whenever it gets a chance.¹ You can still send episodes manually from the queue button on an episode (≡⁺), but in my testing, I never needed to. Just pick up your Watch and go, and it’ll already have plenty of podcasts for your outing, all without having to manually sync anything or wait for slow transfers.

The Overcast 5.0.1 update, due out in a few days, makes Watch transfers even more reliable. (Sorry. Found a better way after 5.0 was approved.)

And Watch-crown volume control! Finally, the best way to use Overcast from your Apple Watch isn’t to delete it, letting the Now Playing app show up instead.

That’s where the other half of my summer workload began.

The watchOS volume widget offers minimal customization: just the color of the circle. I couldn’t make the line width a little narrower to match the rest of Overcast’s thin-line aesthetic. But that iOS 7-era thin-line aesthetic looked dated, and I’d wanted a design refresh for a while.

I decided to start modernizing the app’s design, screen by screen. I couldn’t do it all in one summer, so I started with the screen that needed the most help: Now Playing.

The previous Now Playing screen in Overcast 4.

The biggest problem of the previous design was the center artwork area, a scrollable set of “pages” that had speed and effects controls offscreen to the left, and the episode notes offscreen to the right.

Nobody ever found them. I’ve been getting emails almost every day from people asking where the speed controls were because they set them once and couldn’t find them again, or saying how they’d really like my app more if it offered speed controls. The only indication in the interface was three “page dots” below the scrollable area, but that wasn’t enough.

The new design maintains the same scrollable pages, but now as obvious, tactile cards. In my testing, everyone figured these out immediately.

Put differently, it’s like you’re navigating this through a phone-shaped window in the middle:

This design is not only more discoverable, but it allows me to fit more controls on screen, and in more reachable areas. Unlike the previous design, I can also fit the same controls on all devices, from the iPhone SE to the iPad Pro.

Designing a good Now Playing screen for a music or podcast app that’s nice, clean, and highly discoverable is incredibly difficult. I think I’ve finally found a good balance.

I’ve given chapters (when present) their own card with durations and inline progress bars. I’ve also finally revamped the sleep timer to ditch the ugly alert sheet, give it a proper UI for fast input, and show the remaining time in more useful ways:

There are lots of other improvements throughout the app as well. Some of the highlights:

• Search your podcasts and current episodes from the main screen, or go into a podcast’s screen to search its entire archive.
• Refreshed the podcast screen a little. (More to come.)
• Siri Shortcuts support, of course.

Plus smaller fixes and improvements:

• CarPlay performance is much better, especially for people with large collections.
• Podcasts now display their estimated release frequency (daily, weekly, etc.) if it can be inferred.
• Tap-to-load on images now loads all images from the same domain at once.
• Tons of bug fixes and performance improvements.

Overcast 5 requires iOS 12 and watchOS 5, and as always, it’s free.

Update your devices, then go get Overcast!

1. Up to 20 episodes are auto-synced today. This number will change as I refine the balance of resource usage. Auto-Sync to Watch is on by default and can be turned off in Nitpicky Details. ↩︎

Laptop battery life is decreasingly relevant to me as more airplanes offer power outlets. But sometimes you lose that lottery, as I did on my latest 8-hour daytime flight.

Apple’s “Up to 10 hours” claim doesn’t apply to my work,¹ which is usually a mix of Xcode, web browsing, and social time-wasting, so I knew I’d have to seriously conserve power.

Sometimes, you just need Low Power Mode: the switch added to iOS a few years ago to conserve battery life when you need it, at the expense of full performance and background tasks.

There’s no such feature on Mac laptops, but there should be. It could:

• Disable the discrete GPU on 15-inch models unless required for hardware reasons²
• Pause Photos syncing and analysis
• Pause Spotlight indexing
• Reduce the frequency of Time Machine backups
• Don’t download or install software updates
• Don’t download new content in iTunes
• Auto-dim the screen after a shorter time
• Let third-party apps detect Low Power Mode and reduce their background operations to only essential work

And the big one:

• Reduce the processor’s maximum wattage or disable Turbo Boost

Back in 2015, I experimented with disabling Turbo Boost and discovered that it reduced performance by about a third, but also boosted battery life by almost as much. Since then, I’ve been running Turbo Boost Switcher Pro to automatically disable Turbo Boost when I’m running on battery power, and it has been wonderful: I made it through that 8-hour flight only because Turbo Boost was off.

Over the last few days, I’ve run battery tests on my 2018 13-inch MacBook Pro with the (awesome) 2.7 GHz i7 and my 2015 2.2 GHz 15-inch³ to see how far I could push the battery life using Volta, which can disable Turbo Boost and/or set wattage limits on the CPU.

My test was based on the “Heavy” script from last time, but using xcodebuild every few minutes with Overcast’s current codebase (which is larger and includes some Swift). Improvements are in green and performance reductions are in red:

15-inch 2015 MacBook Pro (2.2 GHz quad-core i7)   Battery life Geekbench single/multi xcodebuild Normal 3:36 3963/13864 43.9s No Turbo 5:06+42% 2796/9917−29/28% 63.4s+44% 13-inch 2018 MacBook Pro (2.7 GHz quad-core i7)   Battery life Geekbench single/multi xcodebuild Normal 3:09 5412/18983 34.3s 28W 3:28+10% 5401/16326−0/14% 37.4s+9% 18W 4:05+29% 5248/14133−3/26% 43.5s+27% 12W 4:44+50% 4818/11835−11/38% 48.2s+41% No Turbo 5:05+61% 3624/13324−33/30% 48.9s+43% 6W 6:24+103% 4065/7596−25/60% 76.1s+121%

It’s impressive how much faster this new 13-inch model is than the best laptop ever made due to significant CPU and SSD improvements.

Dropping the wattage to 6W, the thermal limit of the fanless 12-inch MacBook, interestingly (but not surprisingly) makes it perform effectively identically to the best 12-inch MacBook in Geekbench. This is an extreme option, but one I’d occasionally take if offered. It roughly doubles compilation times, but also doubles the battery life.

This ratio holds for most other configurations: the gain in battery life is about as large as the loss in heavy-workload performance. That’s a trade-off I’d gladly make when I need to maximize runtime.

The best bang-for-the-buck option is still to just disable Turbo Boost. Single-threaded performance hurts more than with wattage-limiting, but it’s able to maintain better multi-threaded performance and more consistent thermals, and gets a larger battery gain relative to its performance loss.

And Volta, which offers both wattage limits and Turbo disabling, requires disabling System Integrity Protection to install an unsigned kernel extension, which I really don’t recommend. Turbo Boost Switcher, which doesn’t offer wattage control, works with SIP using a signed extension and its Pro version has more convenient features for automatic toggling.

For now, I’m going to continue to happily run Turbo Boost Switcher Pro to selectively give myself better battery life, and I recommend it for anyone else with the same need.

But what I ultimately want is for a true Low Power Mode built into macOS that could provide this sort of CPU throttling and software changes, which would ultimately achieve even greater gains.

1. Whose work does get 10 hours out of a MacBook Pro? None of the use-cases on the marketing page — Photography, Coding, Video Editing, 3D Graphics, and Gaming — are likely to achieve even half of that in practice. ↩︎

2. I’ve heard that 15-inch models are wired such that the discrete GPU is required when external displays are connected. Otherwise, whether it’s used or not is a software decision, and gfxCardStatus can override it in certain conditions. ↩︎

3. It’s not brand new, so it’s not a perfect comparison, but the battery only had 90 cycles before this test. ↩︎

Overcast 4.2 is out now. It enhances privacy in two major areas:

Anonymous sync by default

Overcast has offered anonymous sync accounts since 2014. They’re fully functional, but they lack email addresses or passwords, so they can’t log into the website. A login token is stored in iCloud so the account can be accessed after a restore or upgrade, or from other devices you own.

Previously, the login screen pushed email logins. But with four years of perspective, feedback, and usage data, I now think that’s the wrong move. Only a single-digit percentage of customers use the website, and the iCloud token-sync method solves cross-device logins for almost everyone.

Your personal data isn’t my business — it’s a liability. I want as little as possible. I don’t even log IP addresses anymore.

If I don’t need your email address, I really don’t want it.

68% of Overcast accounts have email addresses today. To reduce that as much as possible, I’ve made major changes to account handling:

The previous login screen (left) and the new one.

In Overcast 4.2, the login screen now prominently encourages anonymous accounts by default.

If you already have an account in iCloud, it’ll pop up a dialog box over this screen asking if you want to use it.

And the first time you launch 4.2, people with email-based accounts will be encouraged to migrate them to anonymous accounts:

The migration prompt that shows on the first run.

Finally, you can now change your account between email-based and anonymous whenever you want.

Blocking ad-tracking images

In most podcast apps, podcasts are downloaded automatically in the background. The only data sent to a podcast’s publisher about you or your behavior is your IP address and the app’s name. The IP address lets them derive your approximate region, but not much else.

They don’t know exactly who you are, whether you listened, when you listened, how far you listened, or whether you skipped certain parts.

Some large podcast producers are trying very hard to change that.

I’m not.

Big data ruined the web, and I’m not going to help bring it to podcasts. Publishers already get enough from Apple to inform ad rates and make content decisions — they don’t need more data from my customers. Podcasting has thrived, grown, and made tons of money for tons of people under the current model for over a decade. We already have all the data we need.

One of the ways publishers try to get around the limitations of the current model is by embedding remote images or invisible “tracking pixels” in each episode’s HTML show notes. When displayed in most apps, the images are automatically loaded from an analytics server, which can then record and track more information about you.

In Overcast 4.2, much like Mail (and for the same reason), remote images don’t load by default. A tappable placeholder shows you where each image will load from, and you can decide whether to load it or not.

I believe I’ve done this in the most secure way possible — I’m actually displaying the show notes using a strict Content Security Policy — and I would love to hear from anyone who finds a way to inject auto-loading remote images or execute arbitrary JavaScript in show notes.

Bug fixes

Overcast 4.2 also includes a bunch of minor fixes, and two big ones:

• Fixed the major slowdowns and high battery usage that resulted from extremely large podcast artwork.
• Password-protected episodes are now supported on password-protected feeds.

Get it now in the App Store!

Apple announced a new $100 billion commitment to America, a significant acceleration of its U.S. commitment that now totals $600 billion over four years.

Apple and Corning today announced a major expansion of their long-standing partnership to make precision glass for Apple products.

Apple today announced financial results for its fiscal 2025 third quarter ended June 28, 2025.

Leagues Cup 2025 begins on July 29, and MLS Season Pass on Apple TV is where fans in over 100 countries and regions can watch every match.

The Apple Manufacturing Academy in Detroit opens August 19, with free programming to train and support American businesses, innovators, and manufacturers.

Apple and Major League Baseball (MLB) today unveiled the September schedule for “Friday Night Baseball.”

Apple today unveiled AppleCare One, a new way for customers to cover multiple Apple products with one simple plan.

Apple today announced the expansion of Apple Retail into the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia with the launch of the Apple Store online and Apple Store app.

This month, SpongeBob SquarePants makes a splash in Snake.io+ and Crossy Road Castle with special events available exclusively on Apple Arcade.

Today, Apple News+ debuted Emoji Game, an original puzzle that challenges subscribers to use emoji to complete short phrases.

Apple TV+ today earned a record-breaking 81 Emmy Award nominations across 14 hit Apple Original titles for this year’s 77th Emmy Awards.

Today Apple announced a new investment of $500 million with MP Materials.

Apple today announced Jeff Williams will transition his role as chief operating officer later this month to Sabih Khan.

Apple Arcade is adding four exclusive games and rolling out fun updates to fan-favorite hits on the service.

Apple and Major League Baseball (MLB) today unveiled the August schedule for “Friday Night Baseball.”

As Apple Music marks 10 years, Apple unveils a brand-new state-of-the-art space in Los Angeles dedicated to artist-driven content.

Apple Sports today added tennis to its growing list of supported sports.

Apple today shared an update on new ways to help parents protect kids and teens online when using Apple products.

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At WWDC25, Apple unveiled Apple Games, an all-new destination for players to jump back into the games they love and have more fun with friends.

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Apple pledges to make all cover glass for iPhones and Apple Watches sold worldwide in the United States at Corning's plant in Kentucky.

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iOS 26 and macOS Tahoe 26 took another step toward release on Tuesday when Apple seeded the fifth round of betas to developers.

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This week on Cult of Mac’s podcast: Stephen Hackett joins Leander and Griffin to talk all about a big week of iPhone 17 Pro leaks. We have a camera rumor that’s absolutely bananas, models of the new colors — and a spy shot out in public? Also: tips on customizing your Home Screen, an almost-normal […]

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The Smartish Wallflower magnetically attaches to your iPhone, where it’s ready to do three important jobs.

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"Invasion" season 3 approaches. Apple TV+ added a full trailer to its previous teases. Looks like the ultimate battle to save humanity looms.

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On August 5, 1997, Apple got into a standoff with Power Computing, marking the beginning of the end of the Mac clone era.

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A beefier design, long battery life and advanced features make Apple Watch Ultra 2 a great deal for all (not just endurance athletes).

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Google’s latest Pixel 10 teaser throws shade at Apple’s delayed Siri upgrade, poking fun at the year-long wait for “coming soon” features.

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Snag a lifetime subscription to the AdGuard family plan. The iOS and Mac ad blocker also protects your privacy on Android and PC.

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Apple’s revenue from selling iPhones makes up a whopping 43% of the global smartphone total, dwarfing Samsung and others.

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Apple markets its products as privacy-forward and seamlessly integrated. You gain a lot by using Apple’s web browser, Safari, vs Chrome.

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Before its September launch, here is what the rumors reveal about the Apple Watch Series 11. It might bring a rush of new features. Or not.

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The new "Highest 2 Lowest" movie teaser trailer shows style to burn as Spike Lee and Denzel Washington take on a Kurosawa classic.

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On August 4, 2008, Apple CEO Steve Jobs sent an email to staffers addressing the massive mistakes made with the disastrous MobileMe launch.

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As a neurotechnology company demonstrated, thought control of Apple devices eliminates the need for hand gestures and voice control.

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This 8-in-1 EDC gadget is designed for anyone who needs fast charging. Save on a keychain charging cable with USB-C and Lightning.

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Today's featured Mac mini setup user loves his new Nuphy Air75 v3 low-profile mechanical keyboard. And that's not his only new gear.

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Verizon will end its free Apple Arcade and Google Play Pass perks for subscribers on its older 5G plans starting in late September.

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AnyTrans is a one-stop content manager for iOS devices. The app makes it easy to transfer any kind of data -- music, photos, texts, etc.

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Apple makes it easy to install prerelease AirPods firmware so you can try the audio enhancements coming in iOS 26 now. Here’s how to do it.

(via Cult of Mac - Your source for the latest Apple news, rumors, analysis, reviews, how-tos and deals.)

Apple's role in the new White House digital healthcare plan comes down to building apps to "kill the clipboard."

(via Cult of Mac - Your source for the latest Apple news, rumors, analysis, reviews, how-tos and deals.)

Making Sense of Technology

Apple rarely has sales, but Amazon does. They are offering $200 off a new M4 MacBook Air—Dave and I look through the options of other models and see what the best deal is. Apple Music has a new feature in iOS 26 allowing users to pin items to the top of the page. Apple is starting its Manufacturing Academy in Detroit beginning in August. We look at some of the details of that initiative. Follow this podcast Show Notes:

• Amazon Is Selling M4 MacBook Airs for $200 Off
• Apple Manufacturing Academy opens in Detroit on August 19
• iOS 26: How to Use the New Music Pins Feature
• Apple stuff, signed by Steve Jobs, Woz, even Tim Cook

Shows and movies we're watching

• After The Flood, BritBox
• Star Trek Strange New Worlds, Paramount+
• Anora, Hulu

Apple rarely has sales, but Amazon does. They are offering $200 off a new M4 MacBook Air—Dave and I look through the options of other models and see what the best deal is. Apple Music has a new feature in iOS 26 allowing users to pin items to the top of the page. Apple is starting its Manufacturing Academy in Detroit beginning in August. We look at some of the details of that initiative. Follow this podcast Show Notes: Amazon Is Selling M4 MacBook Airs for $200 Off Apple Manufacturing Academy opens in Detroit on August 19 iOS 26: How to Use the New Music Pins Feature Apple stuff, signed by Steve Jobs, Woz, even Tim Cook Shows and movies we’re watching After The Flood, BritBox Star Trek Strange New Worlds, Paramount+ Anora, Hulu

It was a sad week for me and many other music fans around the world, as we learned that Ozzy Osbourne died. Ozzy meant a lot to me and my music. I'll miss him. Dave and I talk about using captions while watching TV, and we take a look at AppleCare One, Apple's new device insurance subscription. Follow this podcast Show Notes:

• RIP, Ozzy
• Peter Cohen and Jim at Ozzfest
• Apple TV Captions
• Apple introduces AppleCare One
• Messages on iOS 26 will make it harder to fall for phishing scams

Shows and movies we're watching

• Tucci in Italy, Disney+
• The Bear, Season 4, Hulu
• Billy Joel: And so it goes, HBO

It was a sad week for me and many other music fans around the world, as we learned that Ozzy Osbourne died. Ozzy meant a lot to me and my music. I’ll miss him. Dave and I talk about using captions while watching TV, and we take a look at AppleCare One, Apple’s new device insurance subscription. Follow this podcast Show Notes: RIP, Ozzy Peter Cohen and Jim at Ozzfest Apple TV Captions Apple introduces AppleCare One Messages on iOS 26 will make it harder to fall for phishing scams Shows and movies we’re watching Tucci in Italy, Disney+ The Bear, Season 4, Hulu Billy Joel: And so it goes, HBO

Dave installed the latest beta of watchOS and found a new gesture that he really likes. I have one that I use a lot as well, so I'm not sure I'll change. Apple TV+ shows recieved an incredible amount of nominations for this year's Emmy Awards. The new tvOS now allows users to switch the keyboard to a grid, which is a welcome change. Follow this podcast Show Notes:

• Cal Raleigh, man of the people, The Big Dumper, wins Home Run Derby
• watchOS 26. Flick it
• Apple gets an astonishing 81 Emmy nominations
• Apple TV lets you change your search keyboard from linear (one line, across the screen) to a grid
• ChatGPT and other AI services are basically killing @Iconfactory

Shows and movies we're watching

• Mobland, Paramount+
• Ballard, Prime Video, from the Bosch universe
• Ya Never Know, Tom Selleck autobiography

Dave installed the latest beta of watchOS and found a new gesture that he really likes. I have one that I use a lot as well, so I’m not sure I’ll change. Apple TV+ shows recieved an incredible amount of nominations for this year’s Emmy Awards. The new tvOS now allows users to switch the keyboard to a grid, which is a welcome change. Follow this podcast Show Notes: Cal Raleigh, man of the people, The Big Dumper, wins Home Run Derby watchOS 26. Flick it Apple gets an astonishing 81 Emmy nominations Apple TV lets you change your search keyboard from linear (one line, across the screen) to a grid ChatGPT and other AI services are basically killing @Iconfactory Shows and movies we’re watching Mobland, Paramount+ Ballard, Prime Video, from the Bosch universe Ya Never Know, Tom Selleck autobiography

The turmoil at Apple is not new, but what is new is how some of the companies top AI engineers are leaving the company. The latest was lured away by Meta, who have just invested $3.5 billion in its artificial intelligence projects. Apple's longtime Chief Operating Officer, Jeff Williams, has announced he's retiring. Follow this podcast Brought to you by: LinkedIn Jobs: LinkedIn Jobs helps you find the candidates you want to talk to, faster. Did you know every week, nearly 40 million job seekers visit LinkedIn? Post your job for free at LinkedIn.com/DALRYMPLE. Terms and conditions apply. Show Notes:

• Apple faces AI talent turmoil as senior Siri researcher departs
• Apple announces chief operating officer transition
• Apple Loses Key AI Executive to Meta's Multimillion-Dollar Hiring Spree
• Meta Invests $3.5 Billion in World’s Largest Eye-Wear Maker

Shows and movies we're watching

• Black Snow, AMC+
• Kleo, Netflix
• MurderBot, Apple TV+

The turmoil at Apple is not new, but what is new is how some of the companies top AI engineers are leaving the company. The latest was lured away by Meta, who have just invested $3.5 billion in its artificial intelligence projects. Apple’s longtime Chief Operating Officer, Jeff Williams, has announced he’s retiring. Follow this podcast Brought to you by: LinkedIn Jobs: LinkedIn Jobs helps you find the candidates you want to talk to, faster. Did you know every week, nearly 40 million job seekers visit LinkedIn? Post your job for free at LinkedIn.com/DALRYMPLE. Terms and conditions apply. Show Notes: Apple faces AI talent turmoil as senior Siri researcher departs Apple announces chief operating officer transition Apple Loses Key AI Executive to Meta’s Multimillion-Dollar Hiring Spree Meta Invests $3.5 Billion in World’s Largest Eye-Wear Maker Shows and movies we’re watching Black Snow, AMC+ Kleo, Netflix MurderBot, Apple TV+

Dave got a new speaker assistant for his home... and it's powered by Alexa. We talk about how much better Alexa is than Siri and even throw in some comments about Gemini, Google's AI assistant (spoiler, it's better than Siri too). We also talk about charging one device off of anotherfor instance, charging your AirPods using your phone. And we look at some of the new features of Apple's new OSes. Follow this podcast Show Notes:

• Charge AirPods (or Even an iPhone) With Your iPhone
• iOS 26 Brings New Functionality to HomePod
• A few iOS 26 Best and Hidden Features
• iPhone Users Upset About Apple Promoting F1 Movie With Wallet App Notification

Shows and movies we're watching

• Anatomy of a Scandal, Netflix
• Sally, Disney+

Dave got a new speaker assistant for his home… and it’s powered by Alexa. We talk about how much better Alexa is than Siri and even throw in some comments about Gemini, Google’s AI assistant (spoiler, it’s better than Siri too). We also talk about charging one device off of anotherfor instance, charging your AirPods using your phone. And we look at some of the new features of Apple’s new OSes. Follow this podcast Show Notes: Charge AirPods (or Even an iPhone) With Your iPhone iOS 26 Brings New Functionality to HomePod A few iOS 26 Best and Hidden Features iPhone Users Upset About Apple Promoting F1 Movie With Wallet App Notification Shows and movies we’re watching Anatomy of a Scandal, Netflix Sally, Disney+

Have you ever shared your ETA with someone? Most of us have. Dave has a suggestion for how ETA should work in the future. We talk about the Apple's new design, Liquid Glass, and what drove the company to move in that direction for its OSes. We also talk about a new lawsuit that Apple faces over iCloud storage. Follow this podcast Brought to you by: LinkedIn Jobs: LinkedIn Jobs helps you find the candidates you want to talk to, faster. Did you know every week, nearly 40 million job seekers visit LinkedIn? Post your job for free at LinkedIn.com/DALRYMPLE. Terms and conditions apply. Show Notes:

• WWDC: The Bento Boxes
• On AR being the driver for Apple's Liquid Glass
• Apple must face consumer lawsuit over iCloud storage, US judge rules
• YouTube's Latest Move Against Ad Blockers: Video Delays

Shows and movies we're watching

• Anatomy of a Scandal, Netflix
• Trailer to upcoming Springsteen biopic

Have you ever shared your ETA with someone? Most of us have. Dave has a suggestion for how ETA should work in the future. We talk about the Apple’s new design, Liquid Glass, and what drove the company to move in that direction for its OSes. We also talk about a new lawsuit that Apple faces over iCloud storage. Follow this podcast Brought to you by: LinkedIn Jobs: LinkedIn Jobs helps you find the candidates you want to talk to, faster. Did you know every week, nearly 40 million job seekers visit LinkedIn? Post your job for free at LinkedIn.com/DALRYMPLE. Terms and conditions apply. Show Notes: WWDC: The Bento Boxes On AR being the driver for Apple’s Liquid Glass Apple must face consumer lawsuit over iCloud storage, US judge rules YouTube’s Latest Move Against Ad Blockers: Video Delays Shows and movies we’re watching Anatomy of a Scandal, Netflix Trailer to upcoming Springsteen biopic

Apple's annual WWDC was this week and there is a lot to unpack. We look at reactions from the keynote and dive into some of the announcements, like the new Liquid Glass interface, and of course, all of the new OS releases. There are some other featues that were announced as well, like AirPods translation that we'll talk about, as well. Follow this podcast Show Notes:

• MGSeigler on WWDC
• Apple supercharges its tools
• AirPods are more versatile than ever with studio-quality audio recording and camera remote
• visionOS 26
• iPadOS 26
• Apple Intelligence gets even more powerful
• macOS Tahoe 26
• watchOS 26
• iOS 26
• Joanna Stern interviews Craig Federighi and Greg Joswiak

Shows and movies we're watching

• Dept. Q, Netflix
• Secrets We Keep, Netflix
• Derek DelGaudio’s In & Of Itself, Hulu

Apple’s annual WWDC was this week and there is a lot to unpack. We look at reactions from the keynote and dive into some of the announcements, like the new Liquid Glass interface, and of course, all of the new OS releases. There are some other featues that were announced as well, like AirPods translation that we’ll talk about, as well. Follow this podcast Show Notes: MGSeigler on WWDC Apple supercharges its tools AirPods are more versatile than ever with studio-quality audio recording and camera remote visionOS 26 iPadOS 26 Apple Intelligence gets even more powerful macOS Tahoe 26 watchOS 26 iOS 26 Joanna Stern interviews Craig Federighi and Greg Joswiak Shows and movies we’re watching Dept. Q, Netflix Secrets We Keep, Netflix Derek DelGaudio’s In & Of Itself, Hulu

The podcast takes a little twist this week as Dave and I talk about our love of popcorn and Dave's new gadget to help him get the perfect batch every time. We also talk about some of the rumors surrounding WWDC and what we should expect from the keynote on Monday. One of the things that is supposedly changing is the numbering of all the OSes begining with this year's releases. Follow this podcast Show Notes:

• Popcorn Gadget
• Apple Denied
• WWDC: What to expect
• Sky
• Apple OS numbering rebrand
• Apple, says nah

Shows and movies we're watching

• Dept. Q, Netflix
• Stick, Apple TV+
• Fountain of youth, Apple TV+

The podcast takes a little twist this week as Dave and I talk about our love of popcorn and Dave’s new gadget to help him get the perfect batch every time. We also talk about some of the rumors surrounding WWDC and what we should expect from the keynote on Monday. One of the things that is supposedly changing is the numbering of all the OSes begining with this year’s releases. Follow this podcast Show Notes: Popcorn Gadget Apple Denied WWDC: What to expect Sky Apple OS numbering rebrand Apple, says nah Shows and movies we’re watching Dept. Q, Netflix Stick, Apple TV+ Fountain of youth, Apple TV+

The biggest news this week was the purchase of Jony Ive's company, io, by OpenAI for $6.5 billion dollars. According to the reports, I've's company is a device startup. Sam Altman said he is “excited to try to create a new generation of AI-powered computers.” Epic Games and Apple are continuing to spare, although it seems like the battle is coming to an end. Follow this podcast LinkedIn Jobs: LinkedIn Jobs helps you find the candidates you want to talk to, faster. Did you know every week, nearly 40 million job seekers visit LinkedIn? Post your job for free at LinkedIn.com/DALRYMPLE. Terms and conditions apply. Insta360 X5 Camera: Insta360 X5 Camera. To bag a free invisible selfie stick worth US$24.99 with your purchase, head to store.insta360.com and use the promo code "dalrymple", available for the first 30 standard package purchases only. Show Notes:

• Epic Games v. Apple: the fight for the future of the App Store
• Jony Ive to lead OpenAI’s design work following $6.5B acquisition of his company
• Check out the video of OpenAI's Sam Altman and Jony Ive
• What would you do if Steve Jobs quoted something you wrote?

Shows and movies we're watching

• Better, Hulu
• Netflix saves Sesame Street

The biggest news this week was the purchase of Jony Ive’s company, io, by OpenAI for $6.5 billion dollars. According to the reports, I’ve’s company is a device startup. Sam Altman said he is “excited to try to create a new generation of AI-powered computers.” Epic Games and Apple are continuing to spare, although it seems like the battle is coming to an end. Follow this podcast LinkedIn Jobs: LinkedIn Jobs helps you find the candidates you want to talk to, faster. Did you know every week, nearly 40 million job seekers visit LinkedIn? Post your job for free at LinkedIn.com/DALRYMPLE. Terms and conditions apply. Insta360 X5 Camera: Insta360 X5 Camera. To bag a free invisible selfie stick worth US$24.99 with your purchase, head to store.insta360.com and use the promo code “dalrymple”, available for the first 30 standard package purchases only. Show Notes: Epic Games v. Apple: the fight for the future of the App Store Jony Ive to lead OpenAI’s design work following $6.5B acquisition of his company Check out the video of OpenAI’s Sam Altman and Jony Ive What would you do if Steve Jobs quoted something you wrote? Shows and movies we’re watching Better, Hulu Netflix saves Sesame Street

Apple has introduced some new features in Apple Maps including a Detailed City Experience for the Formula 1 Grand Prix de Monaco. Maps also now has insights, ratings, and reviews from expert sources, most notably the Michelin Guide. Did you know Pope Leo has his own trading card? Not only that, it set a new sales record, topping LeBron James. Follow this podcast Show Notes:

• Pete Rose reinstated
• Pope Leo XIV trading card sets Topps Now sales record, exceeds LeBron and Wemby milestone cards
• Apple Maps brings a custom Detailed City Experience to the Formula 1 Grand Prix de Monaco
• Apple brings insights, ratings, and reviews from expert sources to Apple Maps
• CarPlay Ultra, the next generation of CarPlay, begins rolling out
• Universal Music Group and Apple Music announce Sound Therapy

Shows and movies we're watching

• Bad Sisters, Apple TV+
• It’s not TV. It’s HBO. Max.
• Conan O’Brien the Kennedy Center, Mark Twain prize for American humor, Netflix

Apple has introduced some new features in Apple Maps including a Detailed City Experience for the Formula 1 Grand Prix de Monaco. Maps also now has insights, ratings, and reviews from expert sources, most notably the Michelin Guide. Did you know Pope Leo has his own trading card? Not only that, it set a new sales record, topping LeBron James. Follow this podcast Show Notes: Pete Rose reinstated Pope Leo XIV trading card sets Topps Now sales record, exceeds LeBron and Wemby milestone cards Apple Maps brings a custom Detailed City Experience to the Formula 1 Grand Prix de Monaco Apple brings insights, ratings, and reviews from expert sources to Apple Maps CarPlay Ultra, the next generation of CarPlay, begins rolling out Universal Music Group and Apple Music announce Sound Therapy Shows and movies we’re watching Bad Sisters, Apple TV+ It’s not TV. It’s HBO. Max. Conan O’Brien the Kennedy Center, Mark Twain prize for American humor, Netflix

Some people have never used a cassette tape to listen to music, my kids being among them. This week Dave takes a little side route into one of his thoughts on listening to cassettes. We have spent a lot of time talking about things that Apple has done wrong this past year in regards to AI and Siri, so this week we change things up and talk about the things we love about Apple and what they have done right. Follow this podcast Show Notes:

• Dan Moren (Six Colors, Host of Inconceivable podcast) was on Jeopardy last night!
• Meta is reportedly working on facial recognition for its AI glasses
• Apple files appeal
• Is LLM memory going to Become the New iMessage Lock-in?
• Apple's new "Hands on with Apple Intelligence" video
• Apple, Google, and possible Gemini deal

Shows and movies we're watching

• Murder is Easy, BritBox
• Black Bag, Peacock

Some people have never used a cassette tape to listen to music, my kids being among them. This week Dave takes a little side route into one of his thoughts on listening to cassettes. We have spent a lot of time talking about things that Apple has done wrong this past year in regards to AI and Siri, so this week we change things up and talk about the things we love about Apple and what they have done right. Follow this podcast Show Notes: Dan Moren (Six Colors, Host of Inconceivable podcast) was on Jeopardy last night! Meta is reportedly working on facial recognition for its AI glasses Apple files appeal Is LLM memory going to Become the New iMessage Lock-in? Apple’s new “Hands on with Apple Intelligence” video Apple, Google, and possible Gemini deal Shows and movies we’re watching Murder is Easy, BritBox Black Bag, Peacock

I'm heading off to Miami this weekend to see the Formula 1 Grand Prix and take a tour of the pit lane. Dave tells us about his Formula 1 experience and his trip to Texas. We also talk about the rumored deal between Apple and Google to have Apple use Gemini in Apple Intelligence—this is probably the best news ever for Apple's AI efforts. If you haven't tried Gemini yet, you should—it's incredible. Apple is being forced to allow developers to get payment for their apps from outside the App Store, which means Apple doesn't get its 30% cut. Follow this podcast Show Notes:

• Miami Formula 1 Grand Prix
• Bono immersive movie
• Apple launches ‘Snapshot,’ a new way to discover artists, actors, and athletes
• Apple forced to give developers (almost) free reign to link out and avoid paying Apple’s 30% cut
• Apple Music Gets New Co-Heads in Latest Leadership Shuffle
• Apple, Google, and possible Gemini deal

Shows and movies we're watching

• The Lorenskog Disappearance, Netflix
• Conclave, Prime Video

I’m heading off to Miami this weekend to see the Formula 1 Grand Prix and take a tour of the pit lane. Dave tells us about his Formula 1 experience and his trip to Texas. We also talk about the rumored deal between Apple and Google to have Apple use Gemini in Apple Intelligence—this is probably the best news ever for Apple’s AI efforts. If you haven’t tried Gemini yet, you should—it’s incredible. Apple is being forced to allow developers to get payment for their apps from outside the App Store, which means Apple doesn’t get its 30% cut. Follow this podcast Show Notes: Miami Formula 1 Grand Prix Bono immersive movie Apple launches ‘Snapshot,’ a new way to discover artists, actors, and athletes Apple forced to give developers (almost) free reign to link out and avoid paying Apple’s 30% cut Apple Music Gets New Co-Heads in Latest Leadership Shuffle Apple, Google, and possible Gemini deal Shows and movies we’re watching The Lorenskog Disappearance, Netflix Conclave, Prime Video

Dave has a few questions for our listeners about the difference in inexpensive dash cams compared to the more expensive models. Apple dropped the "Available Now" tagline from its Apple Intelligence page because... well, it's not available. A new survey suggests that people would be willing to pay up to $10 a month for Apple Intelligence. Follow this podcast Brought to you by: Insta360 X5: To get a free 45-inch [114cm] invisible selfie stick worth US$24.99 with your Insta360 X5 purchase, head to store.insta360.com and use the promo code "dalrymple", available for the first 30 purchases only. Show Notes:

• Dash cam progress
• Apple drops ‘available now’ from Apple Intelligence page
• 1 in 2 Surveyed Willing to Pay at Least $10/Month for Apple Intelligence
• Siri and iOS 19
• YouTube’s 20th birthday
• Max Cracking Down on Password Sharing With New 'Extra Member' Feature

Shows and movies we're watching

• The Breakthrough, Netflix
• Will Trent, Hulu
• Conclave, Prime Video

Dave has a few questions for our listeners about the difference in inexpensive dash cams compared to the more expensive models. Apple dropped the “Available Now” tagline from its Apple Intelligence page because… well, it’s not available. A new survey suggests that people would be willing to pay up to $10 a month for Apple Intelligence. Follow this podcast Brought to you by: Insta360 X5: To get a free 45-inch [114cm] invisible selfie stick worth US$24.99 with your Insta360 X5 purchase, head to store.insta360.com and use the promo code “dalrymple”, available for the first 30 purchases only. Show Notes: Dash cam progress Apple drops ‘available now’ from Apple Intelligence page 1 in 2 Surveyed Willing to Pay at Least $10/Month for Apple Intelligence Siri and iOS 19 YouTube’s 20th birthday Max Cracking Down on Password Sharing With New ‘Extra Member’ Feature Shows and movies we’re watching The Breakthrough, Netflix Will Trent, Hulu Conclave, Prime Video

Kind of a special episode this week—it's Dave's birthday! This week Dave and I talk about Apple's abrupt changes to its marketing for Apple Intelligence, effectively downplaying the nonexistent technology. We also look at a story describing the internal turmoil of Siri and how badly Apple exectives mismanaged the entire AI revolution. Follow this podcast Brought to you by: LinkedIn Jobs: LinkedIn Jobs helps you find the candidates you want to talk to, faster. Did you know every week, nearly 40 million job seekers visit LinkedIn? Post your job for free at LinkedIn.com/DALRYMPLE. Terms and conditions apply. Show Notes:

• Life on other planets
• Apple Abruptly Changes Product Marketing Materials Amid Apple Intelligence Controversy
• Siri turmoil
• CVE security program used by Apple and others has funding removed
• AI generated music flooding online platforms
• Close your rings, get a physical pin

Shows and movies we're watching

• The Snow Girl, Netflix
• Mythic Quest cancelled
• The Residence, Netflix

Kind of a special episode this week—it’s Dave’s birthday! This week Dave and I talk about Apple’s abrupt changes to its marketing for Apple Intelligence, effectively downplaying the nonexistent technology. We also look at a story describing the internal turmoil of Siri and how badly Apple exectives mismanaged the entire AI revolution. Follow this podcast Brought to you by: LinkedIn Jobs: LinkedIn Jobs helps you find the candidates you want to talk to, faster. Did you know every week, nearly 40 million job seekers visit LinkedIn? Post your job for free at LinkedIn.com/DALRYMPLE. Terms and conditions apply. Show Notes: Life on other planets Apple Abruptly Changes Product Marketing Materials Amid Apple Intelligence Controversy Siri turmoil CVE security program used by Apple and others has funding removed AI generated music flooding online platforms Close your rings, get a physical pin Shows and movies we’re watching The Snow Girl, Netflix Mythic Quest cancelled The Residence, Netflix

The iPhone is as popular as ever among teens, according to a new study. That's important because as they grow up, they are the ones that will be buying new phones. With new tariffs expected to be imposed, Apple is flying planeloads of iPhones into the U.S. to ward off any immediate price increases. Apple Maps is now available as a web page on the iPhone, but is it necessary.  Follow this podcast Show Notes:

• Teens and Apple
• Apple is racing to fly planes of iPhones into the US ahead of Trump’s tariffs
• How many days of tariff-proof iPhone inventory can Apple build up?
• How Many New iPhones Can Fit on a Freight Plane?
• Apple Dethroned by Microsoft As Top-Valued Company Amid Tariff Fears
• Apple and tariff exemptions?
• Apple and tariff exemptions?
• Apple Maps web page now works on iPhone

Shows and movies we're watching

• Missing You, Netflix
• The Studio, Apple TV+
• Dope Thief, Apple TV+

The iPhone is as popular as ever among teens, according to a new study. That’s important because as they grow up, they are the ones that will be buying new phones. With new tariffs expected to be imposed, Apple is flying planeloads of iPhones into the U.S. to ward off any immediate price increases. Apple Maps is now available as a web page on the iPhone, but is it necessary. Follow this podcast Show Notes: Teens and Apple Apple is racing to fly planes of iPhones into the US ahead of Trump’s tariffs How many days of tariff-proof iPhone inventory can Apple build up? How Many New iPhones Can Fit on a Freight Plane? Apple Dethroned by Microsoft As Top-Valued Company Amid Tariff Fears Apple and tariff exemptions? Apple and tariff exemptions? Apple Maps web page now works on iPhone Shows and movies we’re watching Missing You, Netflix The Studio, Apple TV+ Dope Thief, Apple TV+

Dave spent a week in Ireland and gives us the highlight of his trip, including a really cool time spent with some big birds. Apple celebrated its 49th birthday this week—it's had to believe that the company (and me) are that old. WWDC is happening on June 9, 2025 the company announced, so get ready. Follow this podcast Show Notes:

• Happy 49th birthday, Apple
• Lossless audio and ultra-low latency audio come to AirPods Max
• Apple pulls AirPods Max firmware update that enables lossless over USB-C
• Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference returns the week of June 9
• WWDC Should Again Have Live Demos
• Apple Codename Provides Clue About iOS 19's Rumored New Design

Shows and movies we're watching

• The Catch, Acorn TV
• Lorne: The Man Who Invented Saturday night Live
• A Complete Unknown

Dave spent a week in Ireland and gives us the highlight of his trip, including a really cool time spent with some big birds. Apple celebrated its 49th birthday this week—it’s had to believe that the company (and me) are that old. WWDC is happening on June 9, 2025 the company announced, so get ready. Follow this podcast Show Notes: Happy 49th birthday, Apple Lossless audio and ultra-low latency audio come to AirPods Max Apple pulls AirPods Max firmware update that enables lossless over USB-C Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference returns the week of June 9 WWDC Should Again Have Live Demos Apple Codename Provides Clue About iOS 19’s Rumored New Design Shows and movies we’re watching The Catch, Acorn TV Lorne: The Man Who Invented Saturday night Live A Complete Unknown

Just when you think it couldn't get any worse, Siri strikes again. Ask Siri, "what month is it?" on your iPhone and you get the reply, "Sorry, I don't understand." Apple's Siri executive held a meeting about the technology and was pretty brutal about the failings Apple has had until now. Oh yeah, Apple Intelligence is delayed, again. Follow this podcast Brought to you by: LinkedIn Jobs: LinkedIn Jobs helps you find the candidates you want to talk to, faster. Did you know every week, nearly 40 million job seekers visit LinkedIn? Post your job for free at LinkedIn.com/DALRYMPLE. Terms and conditions apply. Show Notes:

• AirTag resetting drama
• Apple unveils immersive concert experience with Metallica for Apple Vision Pro
• Apple Siri exec Robby Walker, lays out some reality in Siri all hands meeting
• Should Tim apologize, a la Apple Maps?
• Michael Gartenberg on the Lessons Apple Learned (and Hopefully Has Not Forgotten) From MobileMe

Shows and movies we're watching

• The Are Murders, Netflix
• Celtics City, Max

Just when you think it couldn’t get any worse, Siri strikes again. Ask Siri, “what month is it?” on your iPhone and you get the reply, “Sorry, I don’t understand.” Apple’s Siri executive held a meeting about the technology and was pretty brutal about the failings Apple has had until now. Oh yeah, Apple Intelligence is delayed, again. Follow this podcast Brought to you by: LinkedIn Jobs: LinkedIn Jobs helps you find the candidates you want to talk to, faster. Did you know every week, nearly 40 million job seekers visit LinkedIn? Post your job for free at LinkedIn.com/DALRYMPLE. Terms and conditions apply. Show Notes: AirTag resetting drama Apple unveils immersive concert experience with Metallica for Apple Vision Pro Apple Siri exec Robby Walker, lays out some reality in Siri all hands meeting Should Tim apologize, a la Apple Maps? Michael Gartenberg on the Lessons Apple Learned (and Hopefully Has Not Forgotten) From MobileMe Shows and movies we’re watching The Are Murders, Netflix Celtics City, Max

It seems I may have been right after all—Apple is far behind in AI and now other people are realizing it too. Gruber wrote a scathing piece on Apple and its failed promises about Apple Intelligence. Apple unvieled an immersive concert experience featuring Metallica for its Vision Pro users, and Apple has officially delayed the release of the next generation Siri. Follow this podcast Show Notes:

• Something Is Rotten in the State of Cupertino
• Apple unveils immersive concert experience with Metallica for Apple Vision Pro
• A New System-Wide UI Look for iOS — Let Alone MacOS, Too — Would Be a Huge Deal
• Apple officially pushing back Siri

Shows and movies we're watching

• The Agency, Paramount+
• The Studio
• Running Point, Netflix

It seems I may have been right after all—Apple is far behind in AI and now other people are realizing it too. Gruber wrote a scathing piece on Apple and its failed promises about Apple Intelligence. Apple unvieled an immersive concert experience featuring Metallica for its Vision Pro users, and Apple has officially delayed the release of the next generation Siri. Follow this podcast Show Notes: Something Is Rotten in the State of Cupertino Apple unveils immersive concert experience with Metallica for Apple Vision Pro A New System-Wide UI Look for iOS — Let Alone MacOS, Too — Would Be a Huge Deal Apple officially pushing back Siri Shows and movies we’re watching The Agency, Paramount+ The Studio Running Point, Netflix

It was a big week for Apple with all kinds of new hardware announcements to fit every lifestyle and budget. We had a new iPad and a couple of models of the iPad Air; new MacBook Air M4; and the fastest Mac ever, the new Mac Studio. Follow this podcast Show Notes:

• Skype is dead. Long live Skype
• Fix for when your Apple TV remote stops changing the volume on your TV
• M3 iPad Air
• Apple unveils new Mac Studio, the most powerful Mac ever
• Apple reveals M3 Ultra, taking Apple silicon to a new extreme
• Apple announces new M4 MacBook Air, starting at $999

Shows and movies we're watching

• The Day of the Jackal, Peacock
• Boy Swallows Universe, Netflix
• Tracker, Paramount+

It was a big week for Apple with all kinds of new hardware announcements to fit every lifestyle and budget. We had a new iPad and a couple of models of the iPad Air; new MacBook Air M4; and the fastest Mac ever, the new Mac Studio. Follow this podcast Show Notes: Skype is dead. Long live Skype Fix for when your Apple TV remote stops changing the volume on your TV M3 iPad Air Apple unveils new Mac Studio, the most powerful Mac ever Apple reveals M3 Ultra, taking Apple silicon to a new extreme Apple announces new M4 MacBook Air, starting at $999 Shows and movies we’re watching The Day of the Jackal, Peacock Boy Swallows Universe, Netflix Tracker, Paramount+

The iPhone 16e was announced a little while ago so Dave and I take some time to look at the features of the new device and wonder if it fills the needs of its target market. Dave gives us a tip about giving visitors to your house a QR code to join the WiFi instead of sharing or telling everyone the password. Alexa+, Amazon's digital assistant is nearly complete and ready for primetime. Follow this podcast Show Notes:

• Steve Jobs' 70th birthday
• Jony Ive on the BBC’s Desert Island Discs
• Steve Jobs coin
• Is the iPhone 16e worth it?
• Passwords app and WiFi QR code
• Amazon Debuts Alexa+ Generative AI

Shows and movies we're watching

• Disclaimer, Apple TV+
• The Pitt, Noah Wiley, ER fame, Max

The iPhone 16e was announced a little while ago so Dave and I take some time to look at the features of the new device and wonder if it fills the needs of its target market. Dave gives us a tip about giving visitors to your house a QR code to join the WiFi instead of sharing or telling everyone the password. Alexa+, Amazon’s digital assistant is nearly complete and ready for primetime. Follow this podcast Show Notes: Steve Jobs’ 70th birthday Jony Ive on the BBC’s Desert Island Discs Steve Jobs coin Is the iPhone 16e worth it? Passwords app and WiFi QR code Amazon Debuts Alexa+ Generative AI Shows and movies we’re watching Disclaimer, Apple TV+ The Pitt, Noah Wiley, ER fame, Max

Apple news, app reviews, and stories by Federico Viticci and friends.

Enjoy the latest episodes from MacStories’ family of podcasts: AppStories https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m02I41Ss1ZsVideo can’t be loaded because JavaScript is disabled: The iPadOS and macOS 26 Public Betas | AppStories | Episode 448 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m02I41Ss1Zs) This week, Federico and John share their experiences with iPadOS and macOS 26, which are now available as part of Apple’s public beta program. […]

Enjoy the latest episodes from MacStories’ family of podcasts: AppStories https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m02I41Ss1Zs Video can’t be loaded because JavaScript is disabled: The iPadOS and macOS 26 Public Betas | AppStories | Episode 448 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m02I41Ss1Zs) This week, Federico and John share their experiences with iPadOS and macOS 26, which are now available as part of Apple’s public beta program. On AppStories+, Federico and John discuss the state of engagement bait posting about Apple and how it’s affecting the discourse about the company and its products. This episode is sponsored by: Turbulence Forecast – Know before you go. Get detailed turbulence forecasts for your exact route, now available 5 days in advance. Learn more at turbulenceforecast.com. NPC: Next Portable Console https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8fSJQpM3qug Video can’t be loaded because JavaScript is disabled: Brendon’s Bad Fur Day | NPC: Next Portable Console | Episode 44 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8fSJQpM3qug) This week, Brendon KONKRs AYANEO’s two-day announcement-fest and is joined by John and Federico for diversions into 3DS repairs, the GPD Win 5, Gamescom, and more. On NPC XL, which was released last week, Brendon, John, and Federico talked about the recent Nintendo Direct and shared a Switch 2 accessory update. AppStories, Episode 448, ‘The iPadOS and macOS 26 Public Betas’ Show Notes Apple’s iPadOS and macOS 26 Public Betas Our Public Beta Previews Thoughts on iPadOS 26 Hello, It’s Good to Be Back macOS Tahoe The MacStories Public Beta Preview Also Mentioned: Federico on Mac Power Users Logitech Combo Touch Keyboard Case for the 13” M4 iPad Pro AppStories+ Post-Show Federico and John discuss how social media has changed the way Apple and its products are covered by the media. NPC, Episode 44, ‘Brendon’s Bad Fur Day’ Show Notes The Latest Portable Gaming News US Tariff Exemptions are Ending All of your international packages are about to get more expensive The Verge GPD Win 5 GPD WIN 5, the world’s first Ryzen AI MAX 395+ Strix Halo handheld, to debut on August 1 GPD’s monster Strix Halo handheld requires a battery ‘backpack’ or a 180W charger Gamescom and Silksong Xbox will let you play Silksong at Gamescom in August Xbox handheld consoles ROG Ally and Ally X preorders open during Gamescom, report says It’s AYANEO All the Way Down AYANEO Announces World’s First Android-Based Flip Dualscreen Handheld Retroid and ANBERNIC should be scared of this budget sub-brand AYANEO Launches Konkr A New Lineup of “Budget” Handhelds AYANEO is working on a gaming phone, mini-laptop, and a whole lot more AYANEO Announce Three Android Devices (And A Controller) Lego Game Boy A New Game Boy is Coming and it’s…LEGO! NPC XL Video: Nintendo Direct: Partner Showcase 7.31.2025 The Verge’s Recap: Nintendo Direct Partner Showcase July 2025 all the news and trailers Subscribe to NPC XL NPC XL is a weekly members-only version of NPC with extra content, available exclusively through our new Patreon for $5/month. Each week on NPC XL, Federico, Brendon, and John record a special segment or deep dive about a particular topic that is released alongside the “regular” NPC episodes. You can subscribe here. MacStories launched its first podcast in 2017 with AppStories. Since then, the lineup has expanded to include a family of weekly shows that also includes MacStories Unwind, Magic Rays of Light, Comfort Zone, and NPC: Next Portable Console that collectively, cover a broad range of the modern media world from Apple’s streaming service and videogame hardware to apps for a growing audience that appreciates our thoughtful, in-depth approach to media. If you’re interested in advertising on our shows, you can learn more here or by contacting our Managing Editor, John Voorhees. Access Extra Content and Perks Founded in 2015, Club MacStories has delivered exclusive content every week for nearly a decade. What started with weekly and monthly email newsletters has blossomed into a family of memberships designed every MacStories fan. Club MacStories: Weekly and monthly newsletters via email and the web that are brimming with apps, tips, automation workflows, longform writing, early access to the MacStories Unwind podcast, periodic giveaways, and more; Club MacStories+: Everything that Club MacStories offers, plus an active Discord community, advanced search and custom RSS features for exploring the Club’s entire back catalog, bonus columns, and dozens of app discounts; Club Premier: All of the above and AppStories+, an extended version of our flagship podcast that’s delivered early, ad-free, and in high-bitrate audio. Learn more here and from our Club FAQs. Join Now

Today, we’re bringing back MacStoriesDeals, an outlet for sharing deals with the MacStories community. You can follow our curated collections of gadget and media deals here: Mastodon Bluesky Long-time readers may remember the MacStoriesDeals Twitter account, which we stopped posting to almost seven years ago. We used that account as a way to share the […]

Today, we’re bringing back MacStoriesDeals, an outlet for sharing deals with the MacStories community. You can follow our curated collections of gadget and media deals here: Mastodon Bluesky Long-time readers may remember the MacStoriesDeals Twitter account, which we stopped posting to almost seven years ago. We used that account as a way to share the deals that we came across. Over time, though, Apple slowed its app affiliate spending and then ended it altogether in 2017. That’s when MacStoriesDeals went from a useful resource for readers that also made us a little extra money to a chore we couldn’t justify spending the time on any longer. However, times change. Today, affiliate linking is bigger than ever, and MacStories’ coverage has grown to encompass more gadget reviews and stories, our Setups page, and other media coverage on MacStories Unwind and NPC: Next Portable Console. Plus, with the latest automation tools at our disposal, we can do more with MacStoriesDeals than we ever did before with less effort, which is why we’re bringing it back. There are plenty of other social media accounts and websites out there that aggregate deals, but MacStoriesDeals is going to be a little different. As we’ve noted in our Prime Day coverage the past couple of years, we only recommend deals for gear and media we’ve tried and brands we trust. In other words, these aren’t just any deals; they’re deals we think are worth your time and consideration based on over 25 years of collective editorial experience. The links you’ll find on MacStoriesDeals are affiliate links, usually from the U.S.-based Amazon and Apple storefronts, that will earn us roughly 2-7% when you use one and buy something. Of course, that will be disclosed in the posts, as it already is in the MacStories Privacy Policy. Affiliate link revenue is a small part of MacStories’ annual income, but with the changes the Internet and online media are undergoing, every little bit helps us continue to bring you MacStories’ unique perspective on the Apple universe and beyond. Rest assured, our approach to MacStoriesDeals is the same as it is everywhere at MacStories: we aren’t going to promote deals we don’t believe are worth your time and attention. We’re excited to be revitalizing MacStoriesDeals. It was a great resource for readers looking for bargains in the early days of the site, and we aim to make it so again. We’re also working on ways to do more for readers with MacStoriesDeals in the months ahead. Thanks for supporting everything we do at MacStories. We hope MacStoriesDeals adds a little more to the experience and you consider following along with the deals we recommend on Mastodon and Bluesky. Access Extra Content and Perks Founded in 2015, Club MacStories has delivered exclusive content every week for nearly a decade. What started with weekly and monthly email newsletters has blossomed into a family of memberships designed every MacStories fan. Club MacStories: Weekly and monthly newsletters via email and the web that are brimming with apps, tips, automation workflows, longform writing, early access to the MacStories Unwind podcast, periodic giveaways, and more; Club MacStories+: Everything that Club MacStories offers, plus an active Discord community, advanced search and custom RSS features for exploring the Club’s entire back catalog, bonus columns, and dozens of app discounts; Club Premier: All of the above and AppStories+, an extended version of our flagship podcast that’s delivered early, ad-free, and in high-bitrate audio. Learn more here and from our Club FAQs. Join Now

The promise of portable dual monitors has always been compelling, but the execution has consistently fallen short, until now. JSAUX’s FlipGo 16” Dual Touchscreen Monitor breaks new productivity ground for Mac users. Unlike some alternatives, the FlipGo Pro leverages both DisplayLink technology and native connectivity to deliver true dual-screen functionality on Apple silicon Macs with […]

The promise of portable dual monitors has always been compelling, but the execution has consistently fallen short, until now. JSAUX’s FlipGo 16” Dual Touchscreen Monitor breaks new productivity ground for Mac users. Unlike some alternatives, the FlipGo Pro leverages both DisplayLink technology and native connectivity to deliver true dual-screen functionality on Apple silicon Macs with a single USB-C cable. At its core, the FlipGo represents thoughtful engineering applied to everyday workflows. Its two 16-inch IPS panels deliver genuine 2.5K resolution (2560×1600 total resolution), 100% sRGB color accuracy, and 500 nits brightness. The key innovation lies in the FlipGo’s versatility: switch between UltraView mode for a single expansive workspace, DuoViews for independent dual screens, or ABC mode to create a true triple-monitor setup when combined with your MacBook’s display. You can learn more about the benefits of a foldable dual-screen setup in John’s review of the similar non-touch version of the FlipGo Pro here. Build quality of the FlipGo Pro is superb and is a big part of why it won an iF Design Award and Red Dot award in 2024. The aluminum construction feels substantial without being cumbersome at 1.6kg, while the magnetic mounting system secures everything when the screens are attached to their stand. Even the hinge mechanism is made from premium materials, making it perfect for professionals to take on the go daily. For those who value integrated workflows, the FlipGo’s built-in USB hub functionality provides two USB-A 2.0 ports and an additional USB-C port, effectively expanding your MacBook’s connectivity while powering the displays. When connected to external power, it even provides reverse charging to your laptop — a thoughtful touch that eliminates battery drain during extended sessions. Ready to transform your mobile workspace? Order the JSAUX FlipGo 16” Touchscreen today. This post includes affiliate links. Learn more here. Access Extra Content and Perks Founded in 2015, Club MacStories has delivered exclusive content every week for nearly a decade. What started with weekly and monthly email newsletters has blossomed into a family of memberships designed every MacStories fan. Club MacStories: Weekly and monthly newsletters via email and the web that are brimming with apps, tips, automation workflows, longform writing, early access to the MacStories Unwind podcast, periodic giveaways, and more; Club MacStories+: Everything that Club MacStories offers, plus an active Discord community, advanced search and custom RSS features for exploring the Club’s entire back catalog, bonus columns, and dozens of app discounts; Club Premier: All of the above and AppStories+, an extended version of our flagship podcast that’s delivered early, ad-free, and in high-bitrate audio. Learn more here and from our Club FAQs. Join Now

Enjoy the latest episodes from MacStories’ family of podcasts: Comfort Zone https://youtu.be/JYpERk6OaJwVideo can’t be loaded because JavaScript is disabled: Comfort Zone, Episode 60: And You Just Flick It! (https://youtu.be/JYpERk6OaJw) Niléane has to let loose on Liquid Glass, Chris runs into the arms of the iPad, and Matt challenges the gang to bring their hottest takes. […]

Enjoy the latest episodes from MacStories’ family of podcasts: Comfort Zone https://youtu.be/JYpERk6OaJw Video can’t be loaded because JavaScript is disabled: Comfort Zone, Episode 60: And You Just Flick It! (https://youtu.be/JYpERk6OaJw) Niléane has to let loose on Liquid Glass, Chris runs into the arms of the iPad, and Matt challenges the gang to bring their hottest takes. An episode full of spice! MacStories Unwind https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C_VSzpsL6J8 Video can’t be loaded because JavaScript is disabled: Oasis and Superheroes, MacStories Unwind (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C_VSzpsL6J8) This week, Federico recounts his trip to London to see Oasis play Wembley Stadium, and John recommends the new Fantastic Four movie plus a great deal on a classic comedy. Magic Rays of Light Sigmund and Devon preview the public beta of tvOS 26 and recap Apple Original comedy series Stick. Comfort Zone, Episode 60, ‘And You Just Flick It!’ Show Notes How would you have done our challenges? How would you answer the question at the end of the show? Let us know! Main Topics Liquid Glass and iPadOS 26 Other stuff Jason Snell’s macOS Tahoe Preview The Mac-ification of iPadOS MacStories Unwind, ‘Oasis and Superheroes’ Show Notes Picks Federico’s Pick: Oasis Live at Wembley Stadium John’s Pick: Fantastic Four: First Steps Unwind Deal Warm up for Happy Gilmore 2 on Netflix with the original: Happy Gilmore, released in 1996, is available in the TV app for just $7.99 MacStories Unwind+ We deliver MacStories Unwind+ to Club MacStories subscribers ad-free and early with high bitrate audio every week. To learn more about the benefits of a Club MacStories subscription, visit our Plans page. Magic Rays of Light, Episode 178, ‘The tvOS 26 Public Beta Preview and Stick’ Show Notes tvOS 26 Public Beta Apple Beta Program Apple TV News Bluey x Fruit Ninja Classic+ Apple Arcade Promotion Apple Original News First Look at The Savant The Lost Bus Trailer First Look at The Last Frontier The Last Frontier — Date Announcement First Look at Down Cemetery Road Pluribus — Date Announcement Pluribus — (202) 808-3981 Releases Chief of War Stillwater Recap Stick The Compassionate Friends Non-Profit Organization for Grief MISS Foundation TV App Highlights The Life of Chuck 28 Years Later Twisted Metal Final Destination Bloodlines Eyes of Wakanda 007: Road To A Million Caught by the Tides Bob Trevino Likes It Sorry, Baby Up Next King of the Hill Project Runway MacStories launched its first podcast in 2017 with AppStories. Since then, the lineup has expanded to include a family of weekly shows that also includes MacStories Unwind, Magic Rays of Light, Comfort Zone, and NPC: Next Portable Console that collectively, cover a broad range of the modern media world from Apple’s streaming service and videogame hardware to apps for a growing audience that appreciates our thoughtful, in-depth approach to media. If you’re interested in advertising on our shows, you can learn more here or by contacting our Managing Editor, John Voorhees. Access Extra Content and Perks Founded in 2015, Club MacStories has delivered exclusive content every week for nearly a decade. What started with weekly and monthly email newsletters has blossomed into a family of memberships designed every MacStories fan. Club MacStories: Weekly and monthly newsletters via email and the web that are brimming with apps, tips, automation workflows, longform writing, early access to the MacStories Unwind podcast, periodic giveaways, and more; Club MacStories+: Everything that Club MacStories offers, plus an active Discord community, advanced search and custom RSS features for exploring the Club’s entire back catalog, bonus columns, and dozens of app discounts; Club Premier: All of the above and AppStories+, an extended version of our flagship podcast that’s delivered early, ad-free, and in high-bitrate audio. Learn more here and from our Club FAQs. Join Now

Apple’s third-quarter 2025 earnings are out and Apple reported revenue of $94 billion, a 10% year-over-year gain. The diluted earnings per share was $1.57 an 12% year-over-year gain. Tim Cook had this to say: Today Apple is proud to report a June quarter revenue record with double-digit growth in iPhone, Mac and Services and growth around […]

Apple’s third-quarter 2025 earnings are out and Apple reported revenue of $94 billion, a 10% year-over-year gain. The diluted earnings per share was $1.57 an 12% year-over-year gain. Tim Cook had this to say: Today Apple is proud to report a June quarter revenue record with double-digit growth in iPhone, Mac and Services and growth around the world, in every geographic segment. At WWDC25, we were excited to introduce a beautiful new software design that extends across all of our platforms, and we announced even more great Apple Intelligence features. Going into today’s earnings, Reuters reported that the Wall Street consensus was for 4.2% growth in revenue to $89.34 billion, reflecting ongoing concerns over tariffs and the slow rollout of Apple Intelligence features. Today’s results are substantially better than expected, led by double-digit gains for iPhone, Mac, and Services sales. Apple’s board of directors has authorized a $0.26/share dividend, too. Access Extra Content and Perks Founded in 2015, Club MacStories has delivered exclusive content every week for nearly a decade. What started with weekly and monthly email newsletters has blossomed into a family of memberships designed every MacStories fan. Club MacStories: Weekly and monthly newsletters via email and the web that are brimming with apps, tips, automation workflows, longform writing, early access to the MacStories Unwind podcast, periodic giveaways, and more; Club MacStories+: Everything that Club MacStories offers, plus an active Discord community, advanced search and custom RSS features for exploring the Club’s entire back catalog, bonus columns, and dozens of app discounts; Club Premier: All of the above and AppStories+, an extended version of our flagship podcast that’s delivered early, ad-free, and in high-bitrate audio. Learn more here and from our Club FAQs. Join Now

iPadOS 26. Apple released the first public betas of iOS and iPadOS 26 last week, and I’m going to cut to the chase with this story: although I’m still wrapping my head around Liquid Glass and trying to understand where this new design language will land, iPadOS 26 has fundamentally revolutionized my workflow in just […]

iPadOS 26. Apple released the first public betas of iOS and iPadOS 26 last week, and I’m going to cut to the chase with this story: although I’m still wrapping my head around Liquid Glass and trying to understand where this new design language will land, iPadOS 26 has fundamentally revolutionized my workflow in just a little over a month. While talking to Craig Federighi at WWDC, I did get the sense that Apple was approaching the iPad platform from a different – perhaps more humble – perspective, with a newfound willingness to listen to power users and find a better balance between the simplicity of the iPad and its flexibility. Actually using iPadOS 26, however, has far exceeded my expectations – which pushed me to completely rethink my desk setup (again) and the apps I use around the iPad Pro and iPadOS 26. Conversely, I’ve been struggling to understand iOS 26 and the role of Liquid Glass. I’ve documented my issues with Apple’s new design with a variety of examples recently, but the truth is that at this point in the beta cycle, I don’t know what to write about Liquid Glass yet. For this reason, despite my many attempts to write this story over the past few weeks, I’ve decided to take a different approach. Today, I only feel comfortable sharing my opinion about iPadOS 26, and I’ve chosen to delay my analysis of iOS 26 until later this year. I’ve found it incredibly challenging to form an opinion on Liquid Glass and iOS 26 when everything is still so in flux and being adjusted on a beta-by-beta basis. I feel like sharing what I think about Liquid Glass right now would be a fruitless exercise, or shortsighted perhaps, one way or another. Instead, since I find iPadOS 26 to be more of a known entity at the moment, I’ve decided to focus on that and how this software update is changing the way I work. The time will come for me to write about Liquid Glass and Apple’s vision for the future of its software design. Today, though, I’m all about the iPad. It’s been an interesting month since WWDC. This year more than ever, I have a feeling that Apple isn’t done tweaking its OSes and much will continue to change between now and September. But for now, as always, let’s dive in. Working with iPadOS 26 I’ve been both very critical of and enthusiastic about the iPad platform over the past year or so. In May 2024, I published a story about all the shortcomings of iPadOS as they related to the ways I needed to get work done on my iPad Pro. From my perspective, that story was the encapsulation of years of pent-up frustration with various limitations of the iPad’s software that had been ignored by Apple in small, iterative iPadOS releases following the contentious launch of Stage Manager in iPadOS 16. Then, at the end of 2024, I wrote about how I overcame those software limitations thanks to external hardware connected to my 11” iPad Pro. That article was, in many ways, bittersweet: I had found ways to get all my work done on the iPad – including recording audio and video podcasts – but, quite literally, at what cost? Over the first half of 2025, I saw myself and other longtime iPad users progressively lose faith in the iPad and Apple’s understanding of what iPad power users wanted from it. This is why I (and others) spent some time getting to know macOS again; if Apple didn’t want to meaningfully improve iPadOS, the only way out seemed to be switching back to a desktop operating system with better multitasking, more native apps, and a greater degree of control over the everyday experience. After a month spent using iPadOS 26, I can say this: while this update doesn’t turn iPadOS into macOS and there continue to be notable advantages to the Mac platform, iPadOS 26 is a monumental release for the iPad that finally shows a vision for what a new breed of modular desktop operating system should be. iPadOS 26 succeeds in the challenging task of preserving the iPad’s intuitive nature while unlocking tremendous functionality for advanced users, who are no longer penalized for attempting to use an iPad as a laptop replacement. In fact, thanks to iPadOS 26, I think the laptop analogy isn’t even that apt anymore. The new iPadOS transforms the device into the hybrid, modular type of computer I’ve long wanted to see Apple formally embrace. iPadOS 26 is a monumental release for the iPad that finally shows a vision for what a new breed of modular desktop operating system should be. It starts with multitasking and windowing, which have been rethought around the familiar macOS model. By default, as Federighi explained in my interview, an iPad running iPadOS 26 can still be used in full-screen mode with one app at a time; it’s the familiar iPad experience that is consistent with the gesture-driven app navigation Apple invented with the iPhone X in 2017. During the setup flow – or at any point in the Settings app – you’ll be able to switch to the new ‘Windowed Apps’ mode, which lets you open a larger number of windows than before and resize or arrange them however you want. The new multitasking settings. I don’t want to rehash all the technicalities that I already explained last month (and which I will cover again in more depth for my final OS review in the fall), so instead, I’ll focus on how it’s felt to use this new mode over the past month on my 13” iPad Pro. iPadOS 26 is a game-changer for those who want to multitask on their iPads. Thanks to a new windowing engine that intelligently allocates resources across the OS and apps, you can now go beyond Stage Manager and open more than four windows at once in the same workspace. In fact, there aren’t multiple “workspaces” in windowed mode; when you click an app in the Dock or open one via Spotlight, it’s simply added as a new window on-screen, just like on the Mac. On my M4 iPad Pro, I was able to consistently use 12 windows at once before the system ran out of memory and ejected a window from the workspace. Performance may vary on less capable iPads, but don’t assume it’s dramatically different. I could also use 7–8 windows simultaneously on the A17 Pro iPad mini, with the only issue there being the physical size of the device. (More on this later.) Apple spent years working on this new windowing engine for iPad apps, and it shows. On so many occasions over the past month, I found myself working with my iPad Pro connected to the external monitor on my desk and realizing that the novelty had already worn off (in a good way!) and I was working with 10 windows at once without even realizing it. The system Apple created is both powerful and intentionally not opinionated. At long last, if you know what you’re doing and want to make an absolute mess of your workspace with a barrage of overlapping windows, you can. If you’re a power user, Apple no longer holds your hand and tries to steer you away from complexity; instead, iPadOS 26 embraces the potential for complexity – because that’s how serious work happens sometimes. That’s not to say iPadOS 26 doesn’t give you the tools to manage its new complex nature – quite the opposite. With the new, Mac-like triangular system pointer, it’s easier to click on small UI elements and precisely press buttons. The pointer no longer magnetically snaps to nearby interface elements, but it still helpfully shows what you’ve hovering over thanks to the delightful animations of Liquid Glass. And in another nice touch, if you’re working between an external monitor and the iPad’s screen or have a wallpaper that makes the pointer hard to find at a glance, you can now quickly “shake” the pointer (again, just like the Mac) to temporarily make it huge and easy to spot. Giant pointer. I’ve spent several days doing intense work on my iPad that involved multiple Safari windows, Obsidian, Notion, Claude, ChatGPT, various PDF documents open at once, and often some Oasis playing in the background. What I’ve appreciated most about iPadOS 26 thus far is the combination of two approaches: the “you’re on your own” philosophy when it comes to desktop-style windowing and the guided assistance of Apple’s multitasking tools. Unlike the old Stage Manager, iPadOS 26 lets you resize and arrange windows however you want. If I want to place a window so that half of it is actually off-screen and only a portion of it is visible, I can. If I want to make Ivory iPhone-sized but take advantage of Notion’s desktop-style layout to its full extent, I can. And when windows are resized, they adjust in real time, with fluid transitions between size classes that are updated frame by frame as you drag in lieu of iPadOS 16’s stuttery, jarring resize animations. If you’ve ever used a traditional desktop OS, all of this quickly becomes second nature and feels like the obvious solution that Apple should have shipped years ago rather than trying to reinvent the multitasking wheel. iPadOS 26 also reveals an underlying narrative that will deserve careful exploration later this year: the same iPad app can now have wildly different layouts or “postures”. This feels like the sort of characteristic that may come in handy for a potential foldable device in the future. With iPadOS 26, there is no longer a single concept of what “a true iPad app” should be like. But back to iPadOS 26’s multitasking. When I don’t want to spend time resizing and rearranging my windows, I love the fact that I can take advantage of tiling to quickly arrange my workspace. While researching this story, I had two LLMs open, plus Notion and YouTube. Rather than carefully arranging those windows on my external monitor, I could just head over to the “traffic light” window controls, right-click, and choose the ‘Quarters’ option to automatically tile those windows to the four quadrants of the screen. Splitting the screen into quarters. Unlike on the Mac, these controls also work with touch: by long-pressing on the window buttons, I can choose to move and resize windows or “fill and arrange” them with a selection of presets that – finally! – includes an option to tile three windows as columns, which is something that I always wanted from the old Split View system, especially when using the iPad Pro in landscape mode. Split View may be gone, but you can replicate it with iPadOS 26’s windowing. For instance, when researching vacation spots for this summer, I had Claude, ChatGPT, and Perplexity open. Thanks to iPadOS 26, I was able to quickly turn those windows into three columns, ask the same question across three different LLMs, and compare all of their answers at once. Comparing the results of three LLMs easily thanks to iPadOS 26. When I say that iPadOS 26 is a monumental release for the iPad, this is what I mean: there are so many more options now, and all of them are accessible via multiple input methods (touch, pointer, Apple Pencil, and keyboard shortcuts), on a variety of iPad models, with support for external monitors, and with support for different window layouts in different iPad orientations. (iPadOS 26 fully remembers your preferences for landscape and portrait layouts.) The breadth of available configurations and interactions is, frankly, astounding…and even overwhelming at first. There is, for example, a whole menu bar system that is reminiscent of the Mac but also uniquely tuned for touch and pointer access. The iPadOS 26 menu bar. The new menu bar is not always visible on-screen (which is one of my complaints for now, but more on that in a bit), but you can reveal it by swiping down from the top of any window’s title bar or by hitting Globe + M on a Magic Keyboard. The menu bar is the new place for you to discover app-related commands organized into categories as well as their associated keyboard shortcuts, replacing the keyboard “cheat sheet” panel that Apple introduced in iOS 9 and redesigned in iPadOS 15. Not only does the menu bar serve as the new home for discovering and learning app commands (a longstanding limitation of iPad apps), but it can also be used to find and activate system-level windowing commands to move and resize windows. I mean, just take a look at the full glory of commands for managing windows, along with keyboard shortcuts to quickly center windows or move them to a specific half of the screen, and tell me you’re not smiling right now. Glorious. Despite everything I’ve written so far, I feel like I’ve barely scratched the surface of everything iPadOS 26 has to offer for multitasking and windowing alone. Case in point: Stage Manager is now…pretty great? In another instance of taking a page from macOS, Apple has kept Stage Manager alive in iPadOS 26 and turned it into an optional “visual” mode whose sole purpose is to organize your windows, just like on the Mac. Regardless of whether you enable Stage Manager or not (it’s off by default), iPadOS 26’s windowing engine stays the same; you can always open a larger number of windows and freely move them around or resize them however you want. The only thing Stage Manager does now is organize windows into sets of functional workspaces that you can mix and match as you please. Stage Manager no longer dictates how many windows you can open or where they should go on-screen. Stage Manager in iPadOS 26. As a result, I now enjoy working with Stage Manager on my iPad Pro. When I feel like I need to split my windows into separate workspaces – such as one for work and another for social media apps – I can enable Stage Manager and use the familiar strip of window thumbnails on the left side of the screen to group related windows together. I very much agree with this decision. Rather than being the windowing system, Stage Manager is a feature on top of windowing; it’s optional, and I think it fulfills its destiny on the iPad now. I should also mention Apple’s new hybrid design for navigating between windowed and full-screen apps. In this case, Apple took another great lesson from macOS multitasking and elegantly applied it to iPadOS. If you’re in windowed mode, you can hit the green stoplight button to maximize a window and turn it into its own full-screen “space”. Doing so allows you to swipe horizontally on the Home indicator (like on the iPhone) to quickly switch between the current full-screen window and other apps that were previously used in full-screen. If you resize the full-screen window at any point, however, it returns to the original workspace, re-joining the windowed apps as if it never left. Swiping between full-screen windows. This is one of my favorite little touches of iPadOS 26 so far, and it feels like a crossover between the Mac’s classic Spaces feature and a miniaturized version of Stage Manager. When I want to temporarily focus on a particular task, I can enter full-screen mode and even swipe between multiple full-screen apps. I’ve been doing this when writing in Notion and Obsidian by either pressing the green button or hitting Globe + F. With this design, I can alternate between full-screen apps and my windowed workspace, and when I’m ready to jettison the full-screen app back into the workspace alongside other windows, that can be done too. Maybe I’m projecting, but I think this spatial design that gives equal importance to full-screen and windowed spaces may come in handy for a device that, theoretically, should also be able to alternate between single- and multi-window experiences. There is a lot more to say about iPadOS 26 multitasking, but I need to save further thoughts and experiments for my review in the fall. For now, I’ll say this: the increased flexibility of iPad multitasking, inspired by the Mac but still rooted in the iPad’s touch-driven interactions, makes it feel like age-old shackles have been taken off the platform, which is now ready to soar to new heights. Local Capture and Podcasting There are a couple of other aspects of iPadOS 26 I want to cover today beyond multitasking. First up is local capture, another feature I always wanted to have on the iPad, and which I also thought Apple would never build. With local capture, I can now use my iPad Pro to record audio and video podcasts with the setup I’ve been using for the past decade. When I’m on a Zoom call, iPadOS can record my local audio and video tracks from a connected microphone and camera and save them to a single video file. As I and others have widely documented over the years, this has historically been a problem for podcasters: due to the iOS/iPadOS audio and video architecture, as soon as you jumped on a VoIP call, you could no longer record inputs from connected devices. As a result, we’ve long resorted to workarounds that typically involved offloading the recording task to external hardware and then importing those files back into iPadOS and the Files app. It was expensive, time-consuming, and finicky at best. This is all changing with local capture, a feature enabled by a toggle in Control Center that takes care of the entire process end to end. You can activate local capture before starting a call, in which case the recording will start automatically as soon as the call becomes active, or you can start a call and then turn on local capture manually in Control Center. In either case, the end result doesn’t change: you’ll end up with an MP4 video file (saved in your Downloads folder by default) that contains the video track from a connected camera and the audio track from a connected microphone. That’s all there is to it. Starting Local Capture. I tested local capture for episodes of AppStories and Unwind, and it worked as advertised. When I was done, all I had to do was take the file and upload it to Google Drive so John could edit it and mix the podcast episode. I didn’t have to record video and audio separately on my Sony camera or audio interface: iPadOS’ local capture took care of everything and allowed me to stay on our Zoom call at the same time. A file saved with Local Capture. Local capture works, and I know it’ll allow me to dramatically simplify my podcast production pipeline without giving up on the hardware I’m already using. However, I’d like to see Apple iterate on local capture to offer a few more options for creators. I understand that Apple wanted to ship a highly optimized, one-click version of this feature that doesn’t require you to understand anything about file formats, encodings, or folder locations. But I also think that when you’re shipping a functionality specifically targeting podcasters (as called out by Apple at WWDC), you have to meet them halfway with some additional degree of control. For example, I’d like to: Choose whether I want to record a single file with audio and video or separate files for each track, Choose the file extension and encoding used for the recording, Have a page in the Settings app where I can select a destination folder and set basic properties for file naming criteria, and Start local capture with an automation in the Shortcuts app. In the grand scheme of things, I guess I should just be happy that Apple is finally acknowledging the existence of podcasters who want to record their shows on an iPad, and I absolutely am. But as we know, podcasters are a nitpicky bunch, and there’s plenty more that Apple could do to grow local capture beyond a mere toggle in Control Center. Using the iPad mini, Again I want to quickly mention how surprising and refreshing it has been to use iPadOS 26 on an iPad mini. I did not expect the update to be an enjoyable or productive experience on Apple’s most diminutive tablet; and yet, not only does iPadOS 26 with multiple windows run well on it, but it also serves as a strong showcase of iPadOS’ inherent touch-first nature. I’ve been testing iPadOS 26 on Apple’s latest iPad mini, and I haven’t had any issues opening 7–8 windows in the same workspace at once in windowed mode. Obviously, due to the physical constraints of Apple’s 8” tablet, iPadOS 26 does not yield the same expansive windowing experience as, say, a 13” iPad Pro: windows are small, and unless you enlarge them so they overlap with each other, you’re going to end up with a bunch of iPhone-sized windows floating on-screen at once. Windows on an iPad mini. And that’s exactly the point. iPadOS 26 on the iPad mini makes me appreciate touch interactions with iPad multitasking more than the iPad Pro, which I tend to always leave in the Magic Keyboard in laptop mode. As my third place device, the iPad mini is the kind of iPad that is designed to be held, touched, and directly manipulated. For this reason, I keep feeling that the combination of iPadOS 26 and the iPad mini is like a peek into the future of a foldable Apple device that I can hold in my hands while multitasking at the same time. The iPad mini with iPadOS 26 feels fundamentally different than the iPad Pro. It does not replace the productivity powerhouse that is the M4 iPad Pro, but rather complements it at the end of the day when I want to catch up on the news and social media. An iPhone does not let me multitask the same way; an iPad Pro – even the 11” model – does not feel as portable as the iPad mini, either. iPadOS 26 on the iPad mini feels like a separate branch of iPadOS: it unlocks the kind of delight that is often overshadowed by the iPad Pro’s pursuit of laptop features. Indeed, it makes me wonder if I’m witnessing a public preview of what a foldable Apple device may feel like next year. The combination of iPadOS 26 and the iPad mini is like a peek into the future of a foldable Apple device. The performance of iPadOS 26 on the iPad mini is a testament to Apple’s work on iPadOS’ new windowing engine, but it’s also a reminder that iPadOS is not a monolithic operating system. Now more than ever, iPadOS 26 feels like a new beginning for an OS that can be as powerful as a desktop and as portable as a phone, but greater than the sum of those two parts. A Lack of Apps My enthusiasm for iPadOS 26 and the work that has gone into windowing, local capture, and other enhancements like the menu bar and Files improvements should not be confused for an implicit acceptance of the iPad’s other, ongoing limitations. The reality is that despite its dozens of improvements, iPadOS 26 is not a miracle update that suddenly turns iPadOS into a 1:1 match for macOS. The reason is simple: while Apple can control the operating system and change it however they like, they cannot control the third-party app ecosystem and magically ensure that all the apps you can use on a Mac are now available on iPad as well. This is the problem I wrote about a few months ago in my story about the iPad’s sweet solution. Without rehashing that article, the crux of the problem here is that for a variety of technical, political, and financial reasons over the years, the iPadOS app ecosystem simply can’t match the flexibility of the Mac one. There are more indie and power user apps on the Mac than there are on the iPad. And even when the iPad does have a native app equivalent for a particular service, it’s often a glorified version of its iPhone app that cannot match the design and feature set of the desktop version. As a result, whenever I want to work with Notion, LLMs, a terminal, or my email inbox, I often have to use a web app on my iPad instead of a native iPad app. That’s not ideal, and there’s nothing iPadOS 26 can do to suddenly fix that state of affairs. That is, in fact, another lens we should consider iPadOS 26 through: you can have the best multitasking experience for the most powerful modular computer in the world, but there’s very little you can do with it if your favorite app doesn’t have a good iPadOS client…or even one at all. Increasingly, that is the case, and Apple will have to do something completely different from a windowing engine to turn that ship around. Unfortunately, I’m afraid it may be a little late for that. What Else Is Missing from iPadOS 26 Apple has made a lot of progress with iPadOS compared to where we left the company last year. But that does not mean there is nowhere left for the iPad’s software to go. In addition to the missing features I’ve shared above, here’s a grab bag of additional items I’d like to see Apple address in this release cycle and beyond, ideally with iPadOS 27: There is still no real “desktop mode” on external displays. When I connect my iPad Pro to my monitor, the Home Screen and Control Center are only accessible from the iPad Pro’s display. I’d love to be able to set my external monitor as the primary display for the iPad, allowing me to use widgets and access Control Center from there. Clamshell mode is still nowhere to be found. This one is likely related to the aforementioned missing feature: if an external monitor can’t be set as the primary one with access to key iPadOS functionalities, then we can’t expect to use the iPad Pro when closed in clamshell mode. This feels like an obvious next step for iPadOS now. Animations still feel slower compared to macOS. Despite all the multitasking improvements this year, it still feels like everything on iPadOS takes a fraction of a second too long to complete. The Mac feels snappier when it comes to opening windows, invoking Spotlight, and generally navigating the UI. I’d like to see Apple make the entire iPadOS interface a little bit faster with speedier animations. There are no Shortcuts actions for controlling multitasking and windows. We still don’t have any actions in Shortcuts to find and manage windows like we do on macOS. Now that iPadOS 26 has real windowing, power users should have access to equivalent Shortcuts actions to control windows on the iPad. Where is the new Spotlight? I suppose that it’s a good practice to “always leave them wanting more”, but I’m so incredibly jealous of the Spotlight overhaul on macOS this year. A clipboard manager and deeper integration with Shortcuts? I really hope this is in the cards for iPadOS 27. Exposé could be easier to use. I love that I can swipe up with three fingers to see all my currently open windows, but I find the feature slightly difficult to parse from a visual perspective because windows don’t carry any text labels or app icons. This omission is especially strange when you consider the fact that the regular app switcher features, well, app names and icons underneath each window. Let me always show the menu bar and pin some controls in there. I also love the addition of a menu bar, but having to swipe down or press a keyboard shortcut to show it gets annoying quickly. I’d love a setting to always show the menu bar by default. And while we’re at it, why not allow users to pin any control from Control Center to the menu bar? Okay, fine, we can save that one for next year, too. Wrap-Up My iPad Home Screen. There’s always going to be something for iPad users to wish for. In previous years, I would have said, “These features are never going to happen”. But having experienced iPadOS 26 and witnessed Apple’s re-alignment of the platform and the company’s commitment to it, I feel much more optimistic. iPadOS 26 makes me want to work from the iPad again, even when I could have more choice in apps and automations on macOS. That says something about the nature of this operating system, which I continue to see as Apple’s most exciting and unique work in a long time. I don’t know how long this feeling will last, but for now: hello iPad, it’s good to be back. Access Extra Content and Perks Founded in 2015, Club MacStories has delivered exclusive content every week for nearly a decade. What started with weekly and monthly email newsletters has blossomed into a family of memberships designed every MacStories fan. 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Author’s Note: Apple released the public beta of macOS 26 Tahoe last Thursday, two days after developer beta 4. Instead of rushing a preview of Tahoe to publication at the risk of missing important aspects of the release, I chose to spend the time necessary to thoroughly test Tahoe first. A year ago, the macOS […]

Author’s Note: Apple released the public beta of macOS 26 Tahoe last Thursday, two days after developer beta 4. Instead of rushing a preview of Tahoe to publication at the risk of missing important aspects of the release, I chose to spend the time necessary to thoroughly test Tahoe first. A year ago, the macOS Sequoia public beta debuted with a long list of caveats. Many of the features that had been shown off at WWDC 2024 weren’t in that initial public beta release or even the initial macOS 15.0 release, and some features, like a smarter Siri, still haven’t shipped. That made Sequoia feel incomplete. The release of macOS Tahoe 26 promises to be different. The features highlighted during WWDC 2025 are all in the public beta. Some are more polished than others, but everything is there to try today. With its surprisingly long list of new system apps, changes big and small at the macOS system level, and, of course, Liquid Glass, Tahoe’s public beta release is a fun one for users who like to explore Apple’s latest macOS innovations as early as possible. I’m not sold on every feature, but it’s still early, and this is a beta, so I’ll reserve my final judgment for the fall. However, there’s a lot coming in macOS Tahoe, which makes it worth taking a closer look at today, so let’s dig in. Should You Install macOS Tahoe? It always pays to be careful when installing beta software. Apple’s public betas have historically been stable, but you should back up your data and have a plan in case an app you rely on doesn’t work. I’ve had developer beta 4 running on my Mac Studio for a week, and many of the small bugs and annoyances from the earlier developer betas have been cleaned up. I’ve still had apps like Music and News crash here and there, and Spotlight seems to have lost track of my shortcuts, but overall, the first week with developer beta 4 (which is effectively the same as the public beta) have been fine. So my advice is that you should exercise caution, but don’t worry about Tahoe too much. Even before the public beta, the fun of trying macOS’ upcoming features outweighed the occasional headaches it caused. Design and Customization Liquid Glass Apple’s Icon Composer lets developers create Liquid Glass icons. Source: Apple. Before getting too deep into the many features and new apps Tahoe has to offer, we should consider where things stand with Apple’s new Liquid Glass design language on the Mac. The short answer is that Tahoe’s new design has been a moving target during the developer betas, and it doesn’t seem like it’s going to settle down until much further into the summer. In most places, Liquid Glass is applied in a less heavy-handed way on the Mac than it is on the iPhone, where text can be hard to read and features are often tucked away behind an extra tap. UI elements on the Mac emphasize translucency more than in the past, and there are touches of reflection and refraction of light coupled with playful animations, but the effect is more muted than on the iPhone overall. A hallmark of Liquid Glass on the Mac is the way sidebars and toolbar icons sit on a layer above the file list in Finder. In fact, some of the more prominent design choices from the earlier developer betas have been toned down for the public beta. For example, the sidebars in Finder and other apps had a layered look that made it seem as though there were two windows sitting on top of each other with a slight offset. That’s been changed to make the components look like part of a more unified whole. Dramatic drop shadows beneath toolbar controls have been softened in most places, too, which I appreciate. The translucence of Liquid Glass can be distracting when dark text is layered behind something like the Spotlight search bar. I generally like this interpretation of Liquid Glass on the Mac. It feels more vibrant and has a freshness I enjoy that retains the legibility of text in a way iOS 26 doesn’t. There are edge cases where icons and text beneath a translucent window can generate a smudgy effect that doesn’t look nice, but by and large, it’s a workable design. If that were the whole story of Liquid Glass on the Mac, I’d say it accomplishes Apple’s stated goal of focusing on a window’s content by differentiating elements like the toolbar and sidebar. However, there’s more to Liquid Glass than that. The Liquid Glass effect in apps like Games is much closer to iOS and iPadOS than it is to Finder and many other Mac apps. If you look at the newest apps coming to macOS Tahoe, like Games and Journal, you’ll find the same glassier look found in iOS 26. Buttons are transparent and shaped to distort content beneath them, leading to some of the same legibility issues as iOS. Between the two treatments, I greatly prefer the translucent look of Safari and Finder, and I think the more transparent version will look dated quickly. At the same time, I’m left wondering whether Apple simply hasn’t gotten to those existing apps yet, especially since the iOS 26 look extends to the Music app, too. The two designs are so different that it’s impossible to say whether Games, Journal, and Music are the beginning of a trend or apps that need to be Mac-ified. Tahoe’s Lock Screen. Other Liquid Glass highlights include Tahoe’s Lock Screen, where the clock takes on the same sort of transparency found on the iPhone and iPad. There are now multiple font choices for the Lock Screen clock as well. A gradient behind the menu bar makes it more legible against a light wallpaper. Also, by default, Tahoe’s menu bar is transparent. Whether or not you like this will undoubtedly depend on the wallpaper you use. I tend to use macOS’ system wallpapers, and the ones I’ve used all work well with the new menu bar look. Tahoe does put a dark gradient behind the menu bar, which helps with legibility, but if you find it hard to make out the icons in your menu bar against a light wallpaper, you have the option to revert to the Sequoia-style menu bar. Liquid Glass makes an appearance in Tahoe’s Dock, too, where your app icons sit on a translucent, glass-like surface that lets the colors of your wallpaper shine through. The ⌘-Tab UI is similar. And icons for system apps have been updated with a layered glass look that gives them a subtle dimensionality. Once you poke around Tahoe’s UI, I think you’ll see why I’m not sure what to think of Liquid Glass on the Mac yet. The design was a moving target throughout the first four developer betas, and to my eye, it still looks unfinished in the public beta. That likely means that Liquid Glass will undergo further changes between the public beta and its release this fall, so it’s not worth dwelling on the details too much or drawing any conclusions yet. However, if you have a preference for one of the approaches that Apple has taken with Liquid Glass in Tahoe over the other, I’d encourage you to file feedback, so Apple can get a feel for user sentiment on Tahoe’s design. Colors and Folders Theming allows you to colorize large portions of the macOS UI to your tastes. Source: Apple. With Tahoe, macOS will gain additional customization options, too. The system has had an option to pick an accent color since Mojave. With Tahoe, you will be able to take your customization a step further, choosing between Default, Dark, Clear, or Tinted icons and widgets. You can also choose a theme color, which is set to Multicolor by default. Switching your theme changes the text highlight color and folder color by default, but they can be independently changed, too. However, icon and widget tinting follows your theme color and can’t be set independently. That’s a lot of new settings, and they open up a lot of options that I haven’t fully explored yet. I expect I’ll probably land on the macOS default out of familiarity, but all the same, I’m glad Tahoe gives me more choices. Folders are more customizable than before as well. Color tags in Finder aren’t new, but now, when you apply one to a folder, the folder takes on the color of the tag. Right-click on a folder, and you have even more options to set folders apart from one another by choosing from a long, although not comprehensive, list of SF Symbols or emoji to add to the folder’s icon. As someone who manages lots of files every week, I greatly appreciate the added visual cues Tahoe lets me add to folders. System Features I’ve never been a heavy user of Control Center. Also, aside from beta testing every summer, I’ve always used custom launcher apps like Raycast instead of Spotlight. With Tahoe, I can already tell that’s going to change. Both features have a lot more to offer than in the past. Additionally, Tahoe introduces new ways to manage your menu bar, which are more limited than similar third-party apps in some ways but will probably be enough for most users. Control Center The new Control Center offers a lot more customization and support for third-party apps. To start, let’s take a closer look at Control Center. In the past, I’ve primarily used Control Center on my Mac to access the Now Playing widget, set Do Not Disturb, and adjust audio and video settings. Those features have all been useful, but with Tahoe, Control Center will gain iPhone and iPad levels of customization, including third-party controls. Among the new system controls, which share a similar Liquid Glass treatment as Apple’s other devices, are controls to: run a shortcut, take a screenshot, tile windows, set a timer, take a voice memo, access the Calculator app, enable accessibility features, and more. The Controls Gallery is a lot like the Widgets Gallery. New controls are accessed from the Controls Gallery that opens when you click on the ‘Edit Controls’ button at the bottom of the Control Center view. From the Gallery, you can drag new controls into Control Center or the menu bar. Alternatively, if you click on a control, you’ll get a pop-up menu that allows you to choose where to place it. Existing controls can also be resized and reordered when the Gallery is open. In addition to new system controls from Apple, the Controls Gallery will include options from third-party developers, who will be able to offer controls for their apps in the fall. I’ve only tried a few third-party controls so far, but I expect to spotlight my favorites this fall in my full review. Tahoe lets you create multiple Control Center-style panels in the menu bar. Control Center lacks the pagination found on the iPhone and iPad. Instead, when you activate the Controls Gallery, a plus button appears in the menu bar that lets you pick an icon and then add a separate Control Center panel that appears when you click it. It’s a great system that’s been tailored to the Mac, which I love. However, these new panels can only house the new Tahoe-style controls. Existing menu bar items will need to be updated by developers before you can tuck them behind a customized menu. Tahoe gives you control over which apps can put icons in your menu bar. Other Control Center features bleed into the menu bar, too. The controls don’t just live in Control Center; you can drag them out onto your menu bar if you prefer. That’s not new for system controls, but this fall, you’ll be able to do the same for third-party controls, too. From System Settings, Tahoe also lets you hide the menu bar items for any OS feature or third-party app. Menu bar management apps can do more, but I expect this will satisfy the needs of a lot of users, myself included. I like having Live Activities from my iPhone on my Mac, but in their collapsed state, many (like this Flighty Live Activity) aren’t very useful until expanded. Also new among your menu items are your iPhone’s Live Activities. If your iPhone is nearby and a Live Activity – like a timer or food delivery order – is running, it will appear in your menu bar. Click on a Live Activity, and it will expand from what you’d see in your iPhone’s Dynamic Island to full size, which is a good thing because I’ve found that text in the shrunken menu bar-height version is often too small to read at a desktop distance. Spotlight Spotlight has a lot of new productivity tricks up its sleeve. Spotlight gets tweaked at the margins with most macOS updates, but Tahoe goes much further. It turns Spotlight into an app and shortcut launcher, system-wide file and search tool, clipboard manager, and action launcher. Whereas some recent additions to Spotlight made it feel like a front end for content sources like Wikipedia, IMDb, and other repositories of web information, Tahoe’s Spotlight updates take a decidedly productivity-oriented approach. The top row of Spotlight’s App section offers suggested apps, followed by all of your other apps, including iPhone apps if you’d like. Triggering Spotlight brings up the same familiar text field you’re used to, but with a lot more options, many of which are keyboard-driven. Hit the Up Arrow key, and you’ll move through past searches in reverse chronological order. Use the Right Arrow key or move the pointer with your mouse or trackpad after Spotlight is invoked, and four buttons will appear to the right of the text field for Apps, Files, Actions, and Clipboard. Alternatively, once Spotlight is activated, you can jump between the four categories with ⌘ + 1 – ⌘ + 4. Spotlight’s Files section makes suggestions followed by recents, which are in line with what I’ve been working on today. The keyboard goodness doesn’t stop there. Search for an app, and you can open it by pressing Return, or hit the Tab key to search within that app. Alternatively, if you search for a keyword first, you can limit the search to a particular app by clicking on one of the app names that appear just below Spotlight’s text field. Plus, Shortcuts you create, App Shortcuts, and actions can all be assigned ‘quick keys,’ custom key combinations that serve as aliases for launching them with the press of a couple of keys. There are even slash commands for limiting your file searches to certain folders. Actions include an app’s menu items and App Shortcuts. Of the four categories accessible from Spotlight, Actions is the most interesting because it’s one of the first places that Apple’s App Intents system is on display. If you scroll through the actions available in Spotlight, you’ll find many of the one-off system and third-party actions that you’ll also find in the Shortcuts app’s action library. The difference, of course, is that they can be quickly accessed from Spotlight using quick keys without opening Shortcuts or setting up a shortcut first. Using Spotlight to open the iPhone app Shop with iPhone Mirroring. Spotlight also has access to every menu command for the active app. I’ve found this incredibly useful for tiling windows on my screen and sharing documents and URLs using the Share menu. Other enhancements to Spotlight include: The addition of cloud-based file services that are Mac file providers like Google Drive, Dropbox, and Box to Spotlight’s file index, The option to search for content and apps on your iPhone from your Mac and launch them via iPhone Mirroring, and A clipboard history that appears to save items you’ve copied in the last eight hours. My first month with the new Spotlight has been a good one. It doesn’t offer the same depth of features that many third-party launcher apps and clipboard managers do, but it covers the core feature set well and in a flexible, keyboard-driven way that I appreciate. In the past, my Spotlight use didn’t last long after I published my annual macOS review. This year is shaping up to be different. System Apps macOS Tahoe isn’t all about design and system features. It’s also an app-rich update, which is my favorite kind of macOS update. Shortcuts Finally. Shortcuts automations on the Mac. With all of Apple’s focus on App Intents and integrating them with Siri, I was concerned going into WWDC that Shortcuts would sit untouched on a shelf. So I was very pleasantly surprised to find that Shortcuts will get some important updates with Tahoe. There is still a lot more that can be done to make it better, but this year’s updates are nonetheless big ones. First, Tahoe will introduce automations, allowing shortcuts to be triggered automatically when: a time of day occurs, an alarm goes off, files and folders are updated, an external drive or display is connected or disconnected, an email message with certain metadata is received, a message is received from a certain sender or with specified content in the Messages app, a Wi-Fi or Bluetooth connection is made, an app is opened or closed, Stage Manager is started or closed, a Focus mode is activated or turned off, or a Mac laptop’s battery level is reached. I can think of other triggers I’d like to see added in the future, but this is an excellent start. Since installing the Tahoe beta, I’ve used the time of day trigger to generate a templated series of tasks for myself every week, and I’m happy to report that it has worked flawlessly. I feel seen. The other big addition to Shortcuts, which is also available on other OSes, is a set of Apple Intelligence actions. Apple’s Writing Tools are included, as are actions for Image Playground. However, the action with the most wide-ranging potential is the ‘Use Model’ action that allows users to access the local and Private Cloud Compute versions of Apple’s foundation models or OpenAI’s ChatGPT. The availability of all three models allows users to pick one based on considerations like speed, privacy, and context window size, and with natural language prompts, the action greatly simplifies many formerly complex shortcuts that required multiple conditional statements. Phone The Phone app. macOS Tahoe now has a Phone app of its own. A lot of iOS’ phone functionality was already embedded in macOS and apps like Contacts and FaceTime, but the combination of a standalone app and Apple’s Continuity features allows the Mac’s Phone app to work seamlessly with the iPhone version. I don’t use the Phone app a lot, but I’ve already found its presence on macOS useful when I’m at my desk. It’s great for making and receiving the kind of everyday calls that would be a bigger interruption if you had to reach for your iPhone. I’ve used it to make appointments and, even better, to screen calls. If you have call screening turned on and a call comes in, the notification on your Mac provides a play-by-play so you can see the caller being asked for their name and whether they leave one. At any time, you can intervene and answer the call yourself or hang it up. Screening a call from an unknown number. Another feature I recommend trying is Hold Assist. If you get stuck on a long hold, it saves your spot in the queue and lets you hang up. When a person comes on the line, you’re reconnected to the call in the Phone app, and the other person on the line is told you’ll be available in a moment. I’m also a fan of the voicemail summaries and the Unknown Callers list, which stays out of the way until you have time to review it and move any callers whom you actually know but aren’t in the Contacts app to your Known list. The design of the Phone app is nice too. I’ve never used Contacts’ favorites feature, but now that favorites appear at the top of the Phone app, I’m taking advantage of the option because it makes it so much easier to place a quick call to one of my family members. Another feature coming to Phone, Messages, and FaceTime in the fall is Live Translation, a feature that allows users to communicate in multiple languages using an on-device AI model for privacy. I’ll have more to say about Live Translation in my fall review, after I’ve had more time to test it. Reminders Reminders. With Reminders, Tahoe tiptoes into the sort of contextual use of AI that I hope we see a lot more of from Apple in the future. Reminders’ share extension has been infused with Apple Intelligence, allowing the extension to suggest tasks based on email messages, webpages, notes, and more. In my testing so far, it doesn’t always come up with a suggestion, but when it does, it feels like magic. I just wish I had more control over how Apple Intelligence suggestions work. I’d like to be able to supplement whatever prompt Apple is using to tailor suggestions to what I’m viewing. For example, that would allow me to generate a short summary along with a link for URLs I save for link posts. Suggested reminders from a Game Boy modding how-to guide on Reddit. Reminders has a couple of other fun tricks up its productivity sleeve, too. First, you can add tasks directly from Spotlight. As I discussed in its section above, Spotlight’s new app action approach has transformed it from a file and information retrieval tool to a lightweight automation helper, and Reminders is a great example of that, offering a way to add a task quickly without getting distracted from whatever else you’re doing. Second, the automatic categorization found in grocery lists has migrated to other lists. Under the hood, Reminders is using Apple Intelligence to organize long lists of tasks into neat and tidy sections when you want it to. I just wish section creation and organization actions were built into Shortcuts as well. Safari Safari’s Liquid Glass treatment is much more subtle than some other apps. The biggest change coming to Safari this fall is its Liquid Glass design. Buttons and the sidebar sit on a layer above webpage content. Tabs have been rounded into button-like elements, and the selected tab is more prominent than before. As in other apps, webpage content bleeds through the translucency of the toolbar, but the effect is less pronounced than on iOS or iPadOS. As for substantive features, Apple is bringing Advanced Fingerprinting Protection, which previously only applied to Private Browsing, to all tabs. Video Picture-in-Picture mode is easier to engage with a command in the Page menu that appears on the left side of the address bar. You’ll also be able to skip forward and back in a PiP video; however, despite the presence of a scrubbing bar at the bottom of a PiP video, you cannot drag the playhead forward and back in a video as of the public beta. You may also start seeing more Safari extensions this fall because developers will no longer need to have a Mac to develop and distribute them. Developers of Chrome and other extensions who work on Windows and Linux will be able to package their extensions for sale on the App Store without a Mac and a copy of Xcode to compile them. It’s a good move that I wish had been made long ago. Games I love Alto’s Odyssey, but this screenshot is a good example of how the Liquid Glass UI can be unreadable at times. That’s a Home tab on the far left. When rumors of an Apple Games app were first reported, many people assumed games were being moved out of the App Store and into their own storefront. As it turns out, Games isn’t that at all. It’s something much more ambitious. Games is Apple’s attempt to consolidate everything about gaming that happens after a game is first downloaded. First and foremost, Games is a way for Apple to showcase content, whether it’s on the App Store or Apple Arcade. The app also surfaces what you’ve recently played, making it easy to jump back into a game. As someone with a collection of dozens of games downloaded over the course of more than a decade, I also appreciate Games’ Library tab, where I can search and scroll through my games, although I’d like a genre filter to go along with the name and date sorting that the app currently offers. There’s definitely overlap between Games and the App Store, but I don’t think that’s a problem. In Games, the lists and editorial content have more room to breathe, which makes browsing and discovery easier, and additional details are always available via a button that takes you to a game’s App Store page. For developers, Games is a way to connect with fans without sending them to the App Store. Games are good candidates for the App Store’s events feature, which debuted with macOS Monterey, but it’s never made much sense to me that I had to go back to the store to find out about an event after I’d already downloaded a game. Now, those events appear in Games, where they can be part of the calculus for what to play next. Games encourages you to challenge your friends. Games is also an attempt to build a sense of community around its offerings. Game Center’s features like leaderboards are here, plus there’s a new Challenge system that aims to make single-player games competitive asynchronously. Setting up a challenge is as easy as picking a game, inviting a friend, and setting up a custom set of rules. The process is low friction, which I like, and incorporates Messages and FaceTime for getting in touch with whomever you’ve challenged. Whether people will use challenges, though, is another story that will depend on whether the Games app becomes the kind of hub for mobile gaming that Apple hopes it will be. I like the idea of Games and plan to spend more time with it this summer. The mix of game discovery and rediscovery with a touch of community has potential, but I’m not yet sure whether it will stick. Journal It always struck me as odd that Journal debuted on the iPhone, which is the hardest platform to type on after the Apple Watch. I get that Apple was emphasizing the media angle of Journal and the iPhone is where we are most likely to take pictures and enjoy media – not to mention that it travels with us. However, for a lot of people, a physical keyboard is a must-have when journaling, so it’s good to see the app is on both the iPad and Mac now. There’s not a lot more to say about Journal. It’s the same app available elsewhere, but that doesn’t make it any less important that it’s now on the Mac. Journaling is a habit that isn’t always easy to keep up with. The significance of Journal on the Mac is that it will help make it that much easier to form a journaling habit in the first place. Maybe 2025 will be the year I start journaling, but probably not. In a lot of ways, MacStories and the podcasts I co-host are my very public journal, and I already write a lot. So I don’t really expect to become a Journal user any more than I’ve been a user of any third-party journaling app. Still, every time I try Journal, I’m impressed by how easy it is to jot down a few thoughts and add a photo or other media in a way that’s fun to revisit. Notes Exporting a note as Markdown-formatted plain text. Notes hasn’t added a lot this year, but what it has added is something very important to the way I evaluate apps. No matter how good an app is, it gets a lot of side-eye from me if it’s hard to get your data out of it in an easy-to-use format. That was one of Notes’ perennial problems. It’s become a powerful note-taking app, but I always knew that using it was signing up for a lot of cleanup work if I wanted to move a highly formatted and structured note to another note-taking app or text editor. Tahoe’s Notes update resolves a lot of those issues by allowing notes to be exported and imported as Markdown, which is highly portable and easy to convert to other formats. Apple even has a solution for notes that include images: they get bundled with the exported note and file path references where they appear in the note. Messages I have yet to find a Messages background that isn’t distracting. The public beta of Messages includes a surprisingly large collection of small but meaningful features. A lot of MacStories’ planning happens in Messages, so I’m most excited about the improvements to search. The results look the same as in the past, divided into categories like Messages, Links, and Photos, but they are generally easier to navigate. Another useful addition coming to group threads in the fall is an indicator of who is typing a response. In addition to the three-dot typing indicator of the past, the profile picture of the typist is shown, too. I didn’t know how much I wanted this feature until I had it, and now that I have it, I love it. The redesigned conversation details sidebar is an improvement too. The profile picture of the person or group you’re texting with appears at the top of the window, making it harder to send a message to the wrong person. Then, when you click on the profile, the details sidebar opens, where you’ll find settings for the conversation, a list of participants, a new button for adding someone’s phone number to the Contacts app from a group thread, and tabs for links, documents, photos, and other content. A lot of what you’ll find in the sidebar was here before, but it’s better organized, making it easier to navigate. One new feature you’ll find in that sidebar is the option to set a background for your conversation. You can pick from a suggested list of built-in backgrounds, generate one using Image Playground’s tools, or choose one of your photos. I thought backgrounds might offer a nice way to distinguish one Messages thread from another, which they do, but I don’t really like the backgrounds Apple has added, and I find any background – my photos included – too distracting. As a result, I’m no longer using backgrounds and don’t have plans to use them again, except for further Tahoe testing purposes. Texts from unknown senders are more tucked away in Messages on Tahoe. So far, these have ranged from confirmation texts for doctor’s appointments to discount codes from a local pizzeria. What I appreciate most is that the texts are easily accessible but less disruptive. Of course, you can always approve a sender so they appear in your main Messages list. According to Apple, they are also actively screening spam messages. I’ve still seen a few, but the overall number has been low so far this summer. Finally, you can send polls in Messages, watch as people vote on your choices, and revise the choices. I need to spend more time with this feature, but I could see it coming in handy for deciding on things like where to go out for dinner with a group of friends. Music I wish Music’s playback controls hadn’t been moved to the bottom of the window. I wanted to touch on Music because it moves playback controls to the bottom of the window over the window’s content. The controls also use the iOS and iPadOS 26 flavor of Liquid Glass. I’m not a fan of this variety of Liquid Glass on the Mac, but I like the placement of Music’s controls even less. I may get used to the playback controls being at the bottom of the Music window eventually. However, even though I understand why Apple has moved controls like search bars to the bottom of apps’ views on iOS, there doesn’t seem to be any inherent logic to moving playback controls to the bottom of a window on the Mac. On the more functional side of things, Music now allows you to pin albums and playlists to the top of the app’s sidebar. There’s also a new AutoMix feature that’s supposed to blend one song into the next, but my experience with the effect has been underwhelming during the betas. Genmoji and Image Playground Genmoji have been added to Image Playground. I’m not a fan of generative image creation regardless of whether it’s pitched as lighthearted and fun, so Genmoji and Image Playground are not for me. However, both will be expanded with macOS Tahoe in notable ways. First, two Unicode emoji can be combined to create a hybrid Genmoji. This feature is a way to fill gaps in the official set of emoji by creating your own that look similar to their component parts. In my beta testing, the results have run the gamut from exactly what I was going for to weird and creepy. ChatGPT adds style options like Anime. Image Playground has been expanded as well to include access to ChatGPT image creation. You won’t find the full range of image generation tools available from OpenAI’s image models directly. Instead, you’ll have to choose between oil painting, watercolor, vector, anime, print, and ‘any style,’ which I believe picks one of the other styles at random. Using ChatGPT takes much longer than the local models offered by Apple, but the feature gives users more style options. Unlike Apple’s models, ChatGPT doesn’t let you view multiple outputs based on your prompt, which is undoubtedly due to the time it takes to generate each image, but you can always redo an image from scratch with the same prompt if you’d like. As of the public beta, it’s also worth noting that Image Playground remains labeled as a beta app. Other Themes in Terminal. There are other changes and new features coming to macOS Tahoe that I’ll explore in more detail in the fall, including: new parental controls, additional accessibility features, facial expression and personal attribute options in Genmoji, Game Overlay, low power mode while gaming, and enhanced controller support, Pinned Collections and new UI elements and customizations in the Photos app, support for 24-bit color and themes in Terminal, a new look for FaceTime that incorporates Contact Posters, a timeline of your password changes in Passwords, a sprinkling of Apple Intelligence throughout other parts of the system, such as Phone and Messages, and more. That’s all I have for now. I’m sure the design and other aspects of macOS will continue to evolve over the remainder of the summer, but for those interested in diving into the changes today, the public beta, which is available here, is the most stable version that I’ve tried so far. If you install Tahoe, be sure to have a backup plan in case something goes wrong, but enjoy the sneak peek at what is shaping up to be a good release overall, and I’ll see you in the fall with more details and a closer look at how Tahoe evolves between now and then. Access Extra Content and Perks Founded in 2015, Club MacStories has delivered exclusive content every week for nearly a decade. What started with weekly and monthly email newsletters has blossomed into a family of memberships designed every MacStories fan. Club MacStories: Weekly and monthly newsletters via email and the web that are brimming with apps, tips, automation workflows, longform writing, early access to the MacStories Unwind podcast, periodic giveaways, and more; Club MacStories+: Everything that Club MacStories offers, plus an active Discord community, advanced search and custom RSS features for exploring the Club’s entire back catalog, bonus columns, and dozens of app discounts; Club Premier: All of the above and AppStories+, an extended version of our flagship podcast that’s delivered early, ad-free, and in high-bitrate audio. Learn more here and from our Club FAQs. Join Now

Enjoy the latest episodes from MacStories’ family of podcasts: AppStories This week, John is joined by Brendon Bigley to explore the wide world of videogame companion apps from media trackers to game-specific companion apps. On AppStories+, John and Brendon dig into 16 years of App Store history to compile a list of games that have […]

Enjoy the latest episodes from MacStories’ family of podcasts: AppStories This week, John is joined by Brendon Bigley to explore the wide world of videogame companion apps from media trackers to game-specific companion apps. On AppStories+, John and Brendon dig into 16 years of App Store history to compile a list of games that have defined gaming on the iPhone. NPC: Next Portable Console https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JA5UwAaW-Y Video can’t be loaded because JavaScript is disabled: The Multitool of Handhelds | NPC: Next Portable Console | Episode 43 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JA5UwAaW-Y) This week, Brendon and John cover the ONEXSUGAR Sugar 1 dual-screen handheld, Sony’s power-saving and controller updates, and the latest ES-DE update for Android. Then, John reports back on the MagicX Zero 40 homework that Brendon gave him last week. On NPC XL, Brendon and John revisit two handhelds from the past year. Brendon explains why he loves the Ayn Odin 2 Mini even more than ever, and John rediscovers the AYANEO Pocket Micro in all of its overpowered glory. AppStories, Episode 47, ‘Gaming Sidekicks: Videogame Companion Apps with Brendon Bigley’ Show Notes Gaming Companion Apps Game Trackers Backloggd GameTrack GamingBuddy and SwitchBuddy GamePal Game and Franchise Companion Apps ACNH Travel Guide TotK Travel Guide MK World Travel Guide Ketchup General Media Trackers Sofa Sequel Letterboxd StoryGraph Other Ally Pro Quick Reviews Also mentioned: Brendon’s Animal Crossing video Animal Crossing City Folk Deluxe Bloons Severed Domino Drop Follow Brendon’s work at: Wavelengths.online Into the Aether NPC: Next Portable Console NPC, Episode 43, ‘The Multitool of Handhelds’ Show Notes The Latest Portable Gaming News ONEXSUGAR Sugar 1 goes up for preorder OneXSugar Playing with the first dual-screen transforming handheld ONEXSUGAR Sugar 1 handheld game console hits Indiegogo for $599 (Dual-screen Android handheld game console with a convertible design) The Kickstarter for this weird little transforming handheld just went live OneXSugar Officially Launches, and It Sure is Something Crazy New Take on Dual-Screen Gaming Sony’s beta controller update - power settings and multi-pairing controllers Sony’s new PS5 Power Saver mode sounds ideal for a PlayStation handheld The Verge New PS5 system update beta previews DualSense wireless controller pairing across multiple devices – PlayStation.Blog Sony DualSense Edge ES-DE Launches Version 3.3 and Adds New Fucntionality Also mentioned: Forgotten City The MagicX Zero 40 MagicX Zero 40 website Subscribe to NPC XL NPC XL is a weekly members-only version of NPC with extra content, available exclusively through our new Patreon for $5/month. Each week on NPC XL, Federico, Brendon, and John record a special segment or deep dive about a particular topic that is released alongside the “regular” NPC episodes. You can subscribe here. MacStories launched its first podcast in 2017 with AppStories. Since then, the lineup has expanded to include a family of weekly shows that also includes MacStories Unwind, Magic Rays of Light, Comfort Zone, and NPC: Next Portable Console that collectively, cover a broad range of the modern media world from Apple’s streaming service and videogame hardware to apps for a growing audience that appreciates our thoughtful, in-depth approach to media. If you’re interested in advertising on our shows, you can learn more here or by contacting our Managing Editor, John Voorhees. Access Extra Content and Perks Founded in 2015, Club MacStories has delivered exclusive content every week for nearly a decade. What started with weekly and monthly email newsletters has blossomed into a family of memberships designed every MacStories fan. Club MacStories: Weekly and monthly newsletters via email and the web that are brimming with apps, tips, automation workflows, longform writing, early access to the MacStories Unwind podcast, periodic giveaways, and more; Club MacStories+: Everything that Club MacStories offers, plus an active Discord community, advanced search and custom RSS features for exploring the Club’s entire back catalog, bonus columns, and dozens of app discounts; Club Premier: All of the above and AppStories+, an extended version of our flagship podcast that’s delivered early, ad-free, and in high-bitrate audio. Learn more here and from our Club FAQs. Join Now

Author’s Note: Apple released the public beta of watchOS 26 last Thursday, two days after developer beta 4. Instead of immediately publishing a preview of watchOS 26, I took the time to review the OS again to ensure my preview accurately reflected the version released as a public beta. Last year, watchOS 11 emerged from […]

Author’s Note: Apple released the public beta of watchOS 26 last Thursday, two days after developer beta 4. Instead of immediately publishing a preview of watchOS 26, I took the time to review the OS again to ensure my preview accurately reflected the version released as a public beta. Last year, watchOS 11 emerged from the bumpy launch of Apple Intelligence completely unscathed due to the fact that it included precisely zero AI features. Instead, what Apple Watch users got was a fully formed OS update that took some big swings in addition to refining many areas of the Apple Watch experience. It was a good year with notable updates across the system, particularly when it came to the Smart Stack and health and fitness features. It’s unfortunate, though perhaps not surprising, that this year’s new watchOS release – dubbed version 26, like its OS brethren – is what might be considered a quiet year. However, after living with the beta for over a month, I’m happy to report that while there aren’t any substantial new features, there are still clever flourishes here and there that make my daily use of the Apple Watch more enjoyable. Here’s a preview of what you can expect from watchOS 26. Liquid Glass Comparing the design of watchOS 11 (on the left side of each pair) to watchOS 26 (on the right side of each pair). First, the big news from WWDC: the redesign. Liquid Glass, as Apple made very clear, is a cross-platform design language that aligns each OS with the same visual style. While watchOS is indeed receiving a Liquid Glass makeover, it’s fair to say that, for the most part, it’s just a visual re-skinning of the UI. That’s not a criticism, though. While iOS features numerous animations and transitions in its UI, watchOS is primarily composed of static buttons. There are elements of motion in places like the Smart Stack and when scrolling stats in the Activity app, but Apple has wisely decided not to mess with them. Instead, buttons adopt Liquid Glass’ transparency with highlights around their edges. Control Center is more transparent, as is the Smart Stack, which adds a modicum of transparency to its widgets. It’s all subtle. Out of the box, the design works well, and it doesn’t have any readability issues, unlike iOS, iPadOS, and macOS. One of the best ways to experience the fresh look is to create a new Photos watch face and observe the translucent time as it stretches and shrinks to fit behind the people and pets in your images, just like on the iOS 26 Lock Screen. Workout Buddy The banner feature in watchOS 26 is Workout Buddy. It’s relatively easy to explain, and I guarantee you’ll know very quickly if it’s for you. Essentially, Workout Buddy is an AI-generated voice that provides you with periodic updates on your workout statistics as you exercise, along with motivational quotes that encourage you to “crush it”. I’ve turned it off because, while the comparative statistics can be of interest, the enthusiasm level of the voice is not for me. Yet, I know many who love it; as I said, you will know very quickly which way you fall. You can hear an example of the Workout Buddy voice in the WWDC Keynote here. Either way, Workout Buddy’s implementation is intriguing. The voices (you can choose from three) are generated by a model that utilizes voice data from Fitness+ trainers, although no special recordings were made for this purpose. As someone who uses Fitness+ regularly, I’ve found that the voices have this bizarre familiarity to them that I can never quite put my finger on. They sound like generic Fitness+ trainers, which I guess is the intention. Another intriguing feature of Workout Buddy is the way it will – in an attempt to seem like a real trainer – occasionally make reference to what you’re listening to. For example, it might say, “Enjoy your AppStories,” or, “Here’s a podcast about AI.” It’s weird, but again, I know several people who love it. There is a major limitation to Workout Buddy that’s worth noting: you need to have your Apple Intelligence-supported iPhone with you to do the processing. This makes me wonder if we’ll see an AI-capable chip in the Apple Watch Series 11 this fall. Other Workout Features Scrolling through the list of workouts. To me, the best new feature in the Workout app is the ability to customize workouts. For every exercise type, you are now presented with four buttons, each in a corner of the screen: Metrics and Views Experiences Workout Buddy and Alerts Media What this allows you to do is customize these settings for every single workout, and I love it. Settings for workout views and goals. In Metrics and Views, you can select the different metric views that are available to scroll through during your workout. Experiences will enable you to kick off a workout with a preset target in mind, such as a 5 km run. Workout Buddy and Alerts offers options for enabling or disabling Workout Buddy, selecting a voice, and receiving alerts for your heart rate, time, and splits. If Workout Buddy is turned on, these alerts will come from your “trainer”; if not, they will come from your Siri voice. Workout Buddy settings. Finally, the Media button reveals some new ways to autoplay media when you start a workout. When toggled on, you can select ‘Picked For You’ or ‘Choose Media’. Picked For You chooses music from your Apple Music library based on the type of workout you’re doing. When I did a walking workout, my Apple Watch played my Motivated playlist; when I did a cycling workout, it played my Energy playlist; a yoga workout triggered my Chill Music playlist. You get the idea. Choosing default media for a workout. If you don’t want to leave it to Apple’s playlists to provide the soundtrack for your workouts, you can choose a playlist from Apple Music or a podcast from Apple Podcasts. Third-party apps can also get in on the fun by updating their apps to support the InPlayMediaIntent API. Since the settings for each workout persist across multiple sessions, you could spend a considerable amount of time crafting the perfect setup for each type of workout that you do, and I think that’s fantastic. Apple appears increasingly keen on making the Apple Watch a tap-and-go device in various aspects of your life, and this is just another example. Great stuff. Smart Stack and Control Center Last year, the Smart Stack got some excellent upgrades in the form of Live Activities, interactive widgets, and suggested widgets. In watchOS 26, Apple is continuing to improve the Smart Stack by building on widgets. The animation of scrolling to expand a Smart Stack hint is lovely. Smart Stack hints are the most noticeable additions, and they’re nicely done. Using a new relevancy algorithm, the Smart Stack can draw from data such as the date and time, your sleep schedule, your location, and more to suggest a widget for your Smart Stack. You’ll see this suggestion first as a small circular icon at the bottom of your watch face. Tapping on it or scrolling up to reveal the Smart Stack will show the suggested widget at the top. I’ve run into a few situations where Smart Stack hints were useful to me. The first was when I arrived at my gym and got a suggestion to start a strength workout. Another was when a hint to activate Do Not Disturb appeared just as I was about to start a meeting. The last use case is also the easiest way you can trigger this feature: I opened the camera on my iPhone, and my Apple Watch displayed a hint to launch the Camera Remote app. It’s great to know this hint will appear each time I open my camera in case I need to control it with my watch. Developers can also take advantage of this new relevancy algorithm to have their apps suggest hints and add multiple widgets to the Smart Stack simultaneously. For example, you can include more than one widget for upcoming events in the Smart Stack if they are close enough together. Configurable widgets for the Weather app. Finally, in the Smart Stack, any app can now offer configurable widgets. This is an expansion of the single configurable widget that was available previously, allowing you to place three complications side by side. This way, developers don’t have to spend time creating numerous combinations of data widgets; they can simply allow the user to manually fill each complication-like slot with an option from their app. With hints and customizable widgets, Apple is doubling down on the personalization and, thus, the usefulness of the Smart Stack. If you haven’t fully configured your Smart Stack yet, now is the ideal time to begin. Control Center, as I mentioned last year, has remained unchanged for more than seven years and is still showing its age. Nevertheless, Apple has given it a little more utility this year with the addition of custom controls, similar to the controls you can add to Control Center on iOS. These controls can launch apps or perform actions within them straight from Control Center. Adding new controls to Control Center. Even though I think Control Center is well past due for a rethink, these custom controls put quick tasks like adjusting a home accessory, creating a new note (more on that later), or kicking off a shortcut just a button press away. I already run a couple of key HomeKit scenes regularly via Control Center, negating the need to pull out my iPhone or trust the unreliability of Siri. Again, as with all these new custom features, developers can make controls for their own apps as well. Even though the primary focus of the Apple Watch for most people is fitness, the ever-increasing utility and convenience of the Smart Stack and now Control Center are slowly but surely empowering the Apple Watch to serve as a useful dashboard of sorts, easily accessible on the wrist. Gestures In a column for Club MacStories at the start of the year, I wished for more gestures to come to the Apple Watch, adding to the already useful double tap feature. Thankfully, my wishes were granted with the arrival of a new wrist flick gesture. While looking at your watch (the feature is limited to Series 9 and 10 as well as the Ultra 2), if you swiftly rotate your wrist outwards and back again, the content on your screen will essentially be dismissed. Apple demoed the feature by using it to dismiss a notification and silence an alarm, but its usefulness goes beyond that. The best way to think of the wrist flick gesture is as a ‘back’ button. For example, if you’re in an app, flick your wrist to return to the list of apps. If you have the Smart Stack open, do the same gesture to return to your watch face. It seems simple, but after a month of use, I’ve found myself performing this gesture a lot. It has the satisfying effect of allowing you to back out of something without needing to tap away on your watch or squeeze the Digital Crown. My only criticism of this feature is that there is no API available for developers, unlike the one provided for double tap. I see why Apple hasn’t done this for now, as a wrist flick in an app will clear the app from the screen. However, I think it would be possible to string together some useful gesture combinations between wrist flick and double tap. Notes App Reminders has been on the Apple Watch since watchOS 3, so it’s pretty shocking it’s taken Apple this long to bring the Notes app along for the ride. The app itself is, unfortunately, very limited. In terms of content, you can only view your notes and check off list items; you can’t edit the text of notes themselves. You can pin or delete a note, though. And you can create new notes in the app, too. You can also create a note by asking Siri to “take a new note” and then dictating the contents or by tapping the Control Center control, which will also give you the option to type your thoughts out. I figured this would be a great way to capture thoughts both short and long, but unfortunately, during my month of usage, the Notes app has felt extremely restricted. The inability to edit notes sorely hampers it because every new idea needs to be recorded in a new note, which I find inefficient. The length of a note is also restricted by system dictation limits - two minutes for on-device languages, one minute for languages not on-device. When this limit is hit, watchOS will cut you off and open the incomplete note it’s just created, which is very frustrating. Other Notable Additions Series 10 owners who love the seconds hand, rejoice! Almost every watch face now updates every second when dimmed, taking advantage of the device’s 1Hz refresh rate. If you’re one of those people who have sounds on for your alerts, automatic volume adjustment is for you. This new feature automatically raises and lowers the volume of notifications, timers, Siri, and more based on the current ambient sound level. Messages gains many of the features of its OS counterparts, like chat backgrounds and Live Translation. Additionally, smart actions prompt you to take action based on the context of a message; for example, if someone asks where you are, Messages will show a button for you to share your location. You can even vote in polls! Messages on watchOS has often lagged behind other platforms in previous years, so it’s good to see these new additions come to the Apple Watch at the same time as the iPhone. Conversations in Messages now have custom backgrounds synced across platforms, and watch faces are now organised into categories in the gallery. The Face Gallery has been redesigned in watchOS 26, with faces organized into categories. We’re also losing a couple of watch faces this year, including, to my dismay, the Toy Story face. The Mickey and Minnie faces are still available, so I’m assuming this is due to the license for the popular franchise expiring rather than any problem between Apple and Disney. The Phone app gains Call Screening and Hold Assist, new features that also arrive this year on iOS, iPadOS, and macOS. These are great additions that are easy to keep an eye on via a widget that appears in your Smart Stack. As I covered earlier this year, Live Listen controls are coming to the Apple Watch, along with additional accessibility features like Live Captions. Simply place your iPhone near the sound source, and your watch will show a readout of the words picked up by the phone’s microphone. I’m not going to pretend this isn’t a quiet year for watchOS; it undoubtedly is. Following last year’s significant updates, I’d hoped to see further developments in areas like the Vitals app and Training Load, as well as improvements to sleep tracking. I’m disappointed that hasn’t happened with watchOS 26. That said, there are some clever touches throughout this update that make it clear Apple is still committed to enhancing the Apple Watch’s utility for users. The wrist flick gesture, the level of customization in the Workouts app, and the context-aware features in the Smart Stack and Messages are all small but very welcome additions to Apple’s smallest OS. Even Workout Buddy, though not ideal for me and a bit limited in functionality, will appeal to many. Just don’t ask me to start “crushing my goals”. If you want to test out these new features before they’re released this fall, you can do so now by enrolling in the watchOS 26 public beta. watchOS 26 is compatible with Apple Watch Series 6 and above, Apple Watch Ultra, and Apple Watch SE (2nd generation). Access Extra Content and Perks Founded in 2015, Club MacStories has delivered exclusive content every week for nearly a decade. What started with weekly and monthly email newsletters has blossomed into a family of memberships designed every MacStories fan. Club MacStories: Weekly and monthly newsletters via email and the web that are brimming with apps, tips, automation workflows, longform writing, early access to the MacStories Unwind podcast, periodic giveaways, and more; Club MacStories+: Everything that Club MacStories offers, plus an active Discord community, advanced search and custom RSS features for exploring the Club’s entire back catalog, bonus columns, and dozens of app discounts; Club Premier: All of the above and AppStories+, an extended version of our flagship podcast that’s delivered early, ad-free, and in high-bitrate audio. Learn more here and from our Club FAQs. Join Now

I’ve been using read-it-later apps since before I had an iPhone. For those of us who were Wi-Fi-only iPod touch users before owning iPhones, apps like Instapaper were great for reading on the go. Like in those early days, the read-later universe is once again hyper-competitive, with a lot of relatively new entrants such as […]

I’ve been using read-it-later apps since before I had an iPhone. For those of us who were Wi-Fi-only iPod touch users before owning iPhones, apps like Instapaper were great for reading on the go. Like in those early days, the read-later universe is once again hyper-competitive, with a lot of relatively new entrants such as Matter and Readwise Reader. That’s led to other apps shutting down. ElevenLabs bought and closed Omnivore, and most recently, Pocket, which debuted ages ago as Read It Later and was eventually acquired by Mozilla, shuttered. In the wake of Pocket’s demise, Nick Chapman, who used to work on Pocket, and the team at Less is Better debuted Folio, a new read-later app for the iPhone, the iPad, Android, and the web that they say is designed to capture the essence of Pocket. I used Pocket on and off over the years but always considered it a step behind alternatives, so my expectations for Folio weren’t high. Still, I was curious to see what Folio had to offer, especially because it must have been put together very quickly in order to be launched as Pocket shut down. Despite my initial reservations and some gaps in the app’s functionality, the Folio team has laid a great foundation with an excellent reading experience that’s worth keeping an eye on. Currently, there are four ways to get articles into Folio: a plus button in the app’s main UI for pasting URLs, a share extension for sending URLs to Folio from browsers and other apps, browser extensions for Chrome and Firefox (with a Safari extension coming soon, according to the developers), and import functionality in Folio’s settings that works with CSV files generated by Pocket (which you can alternatively sign into directly), Instapaper, Matter, Raindrop, and Readwise Reader. What’s missing, besides a Safari extension, is any Shortcuts support, which is disappointing since automations are some of the key ways I integrate my RSS reading with read-it-later apps. I’d also like to see Shortcuts support for finding saved articles and accessing their URLs along with other metadata. The iPad layout would probably work better divided into multiple columns when it’s filling the full screen. Where Folio shines is in its main reading list view, where your saved articles appear as a list that includes: the article’s title, the source publication, how long it will take to read, a thumbnail of the story’s hero image, an automatically generated tag that can be changed later, and Favorite and More buttons. Along the top of the article list is a sorting button to arrange stories from oldest to newest or newest to oldest, plus filters for favorited, tagged, highlighted, short, long, and archived articles. This view is also where you’ll find a button for full-text search and the plus button for adding new articles. The UI for reading is Folio’s greatest strength. The layout is simple and readable, which I appreciate. However, the touch target for the More button – which reveals Share, Favorite, Edit Tags, Archive, and Delete buttons – is so small that it’s easy to miss and open one of your articles instead. The menu of options is also something that I’d like to see in a popover when an article is long-pressed. Article swipe gestures with assignable shortcuts to any of these same actions would be a great addition, too. When you open a story, the app automatically scrolls to where you left off in the article, which is great. There are also options to listen to the article and open it in a Safari View Controller as well as another More button, which adds options for Display Settings and Open in Browser (your default external browser) along with the actions described above. There are multiple voices for listening to articles that can be played back at various speeds, and all of them are very good. However, the voices play back randomly; I’d like to be able to choose a voice myself. The display settings include a strong selection of over a dozen font choices and options to adjust font size, line spacing, content width, and justification. Together, it’s an excellent set of core settings that should let just about anyone dial in a comfortable reading experience. Less ideal is how aggressively Folio removes images from articles. The app’s text parsing on the sites I’ve visited is very good, but most articles are reduced to having an image or two no matter how many images the original article contained. Another significant limitation of Folio is that there’s no way to get your articles out of it, which is a shame given the emphasis the developers place on importing from other services. In addition to the ability to export a CSV file of everything, I’d love to see a Shortcuts action that includes filtering to allow for control over what is exported, for those situations when users simply want to use a URL in a multi-step workflow instead of exporting in bulk. Reading suggestions. It’s also worth mentioning that Folio includes a tab of reading suggestions, similar to the kinds of mainstream news stories you’d find in Apple News. I haven’t used this tab much because I typically find articles via RSS, but it has a wide variety of stories if you need something to read. Currently, Folio is free to download and try. Eventually, the team behind the app plans to charge for text-to-speech, highlighting, full-text search, and customizable fonts and spacing, along with other features that are in the works. I like that these features are free to try while the app is still being actively developed, but I’ve never seen it go well when an app takes away features and puts them behind a subscription, even if it’s stated up front as it is here. Still, it’s good to see that there’s a business plan for Folio, and although the pricing hasn’t been announced yet, I hope it will be set at an affordable level that also sustains the app long-term. At the end of the day, there are a lot of features I’d like to see refined and a lot of functionalities that I’d like to see added to Folio. That said, the core reading experience is excellent, and the app’s availability across Apple devices, the web, and Android covers everything from e-ink readers to desktop systems to smartphones and iPads. That’s a great start for an app that hasn’t been around for very long. Whether Folio can find a niche for itself among its many read-it-later competitors remains to be seen, but its prospects look good so far. Folio is available on the App Store for the iPhone and iPad as a free download. Certain features are slated to become paid in the future. Access Extra Content and Perks Founded in 2015, Club MacStories has delivered exclusive content every week for nearly a decade. What started with weekly and monthly email newsletters has blossomed into a family of memberships designed every MacStories fan. Club MacStories: Weekly and monthly newsletters via email and the web that are brimming with apps, tips, automation workflows, longform writing, early access to the MacStories Unwind podcast, periodic giveaways, and more; Club MacStories+: Everything that Club MacStories offers, plus an active Discord community, advanced search and custom RSS features for exploring the Club’s entire back catalog, bonus columns, and dozens of app discounts; Club Premier: All of the above and AppStories+, an extended version of our flagship podcast that’s delivered early, ad-free, and in high-bitrate audio. Learn more here and from our Club FAQs. Join Now

First announced in February, Apple said today that its Detroit Manufacturing Academy will open on August 19th. The academy is a collaboration with Michigan State University and according to Apple’s press release will: host small and medium-sized businesses from across the country in Detroit for various workshops with Apple experts. The courses are designed to […]

First announced in February, Apple said today that its Detroit Manufacturing Academy will open on August 19th. The academy is a collaboration with Michigan State University and according to Apple’s press release will: host small and medium-sized businesses from across the country in Detroit for various workshops with Apple experts. The courses are designed to help American companies transition to advanced manufacturing by implementing artificial intelligence and smart manufacturing techniques. Apple says the academy will also offer virtual programming led by its engineers later this year. Apple is under a lot of political pressure to move its hardware manufacturing to the US. That’s not the kind of thing that can happen overnight but programs like this are a good first step to developing the sort of local expertise necessary to build components for Apple’s gadgets. Access Extra Content and Perks Founded in 2015, Club MacStories has delivered exclusive content every week for nearly a decade. What started with weekly and monthly email newsletters has blossomed into a family of memberships designed every MacStories fan. Club MacStories: Weekly and monthly newsletters via email and the web that are brimming with apps, tips, automation workflows, longform writing, early access to the MacStories Unwind podcast, periodic giveaways, and more; Club MacStories+: Everything that Club MacStories offers, plus an active Discord community, advanced search and custom RSS features for exploring the Club’s entire back catalog, bonus columns, and dozens of app discounts; Club Premier: All of the above and AppStories+, an extended version of our flagship podcast that’s delivered early, ad-free, and in high-bitrate audio. Learn more here and from our Club FAQs. Join Now

For nearly two decades, anxious flyers have turned to an essential tool before boarding: Turbulence Forecast. This isn’t just another weather app. It’s a specialized service created by experts who have been helping passengers understand and prepare for flight conditions since 2005. Whether you’re a nervous flyer seeking peace of mind or simply want to […]

For nearly two decades, anxious flyers have turned to an essential tool before boarding: Turbulence Forecast. This isn’t just another weather app. It’s a specialized service created by experts who have been helping passengers understand and prepare for flight conditions since 2005. Whether you’re a nervous flyer seeking peace of mind or simply want to know what to expect on your upcoming trip, Turbulence Forecast delivers the most detailed turbulence predictions available anywhere. Turbulence Forecast’s comprehensive approach sets it apart from basic weather apps, with detailed, expert forecasts. These custom reports include an analysis of your specific route, weather patterns, storm systems, and jet stream effects. The app also features multiple specialized maps: Pilot Reports showing turbulence encounters, Maximum Turbulence Potential maps for route planning, and much more. Turbulence Forecast can generate route forecasts for individual flights and uses a feature called “Drift” to show how forecasts are expected to evolve over time, too. Plus, with an advanced Navigator subscription, you can extend turbulence forecasts up to five days before your trip. Built for iOS, with full iPad and Android support, the app integrates seamlessly with your travel workflow. Download Turbulence Forecast on the App Store to start planning smoother flights with confidence. The app is free to download with premium forecasting services and Navigator subscriptions available for those who want the most comprehensive analysis possible. You can learn more about all of Turbulence Forecast’s features on the app’s website. Our thanks to Turbulence Forecast for sponsoring MacStories this week. Access Extra Content and Perks Founded in 2015, Club MacStories has delivered exclusive content every week for nearly a decade. What started with weekly and monthly email newsletters has blossomed into a family of memberships designed every MacStories fan. Club MacStories: Weekly and monthly newsletters via email and the web that are brimming with apps, tips, automation workflows, longform writing, early access to the MacStories Unwind podcast, periodic giveaways, and more; Club MacStories+: Everything that Club MacStories offers, plus an active Discord community, advanced search and custom RSS features for exploring the Club’s entire back catalog, bonus columns, and dozens of app discounts; Club Premier: All of the above and AppStories+, an extended version of our flagship podcast that’s delivered early, ad-free, and in high-bitrate audio. Learn more here and from our Club FAQs. Join Now

Enjoy the latest episodes from MacStories’ family of podcasts: Comfort Zone https://youtu.be/KEg3dmi9_c4Video can’t be loaded because JavaScript is disabled: Comfort Zone, Episode 59: I am Full-on Bananza (https://youtu.be/KEg3dmi9_c4) Someone has lost their bananas, Matt brings Perplexity back from the dead, Niléane has a fun way to use Mastodon, and Chris challenges everyone to up their […]

Enjoy the latest episodes from MacStories’ family of podcasts: Comfort Zone https://youtu.be/KEg3dmi9_c4 Video can’t be loaded because JavaScript is disabled: Comfort Zone, Episode 59: I am Full-on Bananza (https://youtu.be/KEg3dmi9_c4) Someone has lost their bananas, Matt brings Perplexity back from the dead, Niléane has a fun way to use Mastodon, and Chris challenges everyone to up their widget game. MacStories Unwind https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FWKpaukk1KY Video can’t be loaded because JavaScript is disabled: Banana! | MacStories Unwind (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FWKpaukk1KY) This week, John struggles to update an old Apple TV and two HomePod minis, Federico sets up OTA TV, and they both go bananas over Donkey Kong Bananza. This episode is sponsored by: Hello Weather: The Exceptionally Useful Weather App for iOS, Totally Redesigned for 2025 Magic Rays of Light Sigmund and Devon begin one last journey to Acapulco and share their early impressions of the Games app. Comfort Zone, Episode 59, ‘I am Full-on Bananza’ Show Notes How would you have done our challenges? How would you answer the question at the end of the show? Let us know! 🔴 Donate to support Palestinian families and workers in Gaza: Keep Hope Alive: a Gaza Giving Circle Help Build a Lifeline for Students and Remote Workers in Gaza Main Topics Perplexity Comet browser Phanpy Other stuff The fan that actually cools an iPhone uBlock Origin Lite Donkey Kong Bananza TangerineUI FediFetcher Widgets for Obsidian Chris’s widget French weather alerts Follow the Hosts Chris on YouTube Matt on Birchtree Niléane on Mastodon Comfort Zone on Mastodon Comfort Zone on Bluesky” MacStories Unwind, ‘Banana!’ Show Notes Unplugged Topics John struggles to update an Apple TV and HomePod minis Federico installs an HDHomeRun for OTA TV Picks John and Federico’s Joint Pick: Donkey Kong Bananza MacStories Unwind+ We deliver MacStories Unwind+ to Club MacStories subscribers ad-free and early with high bitrate audio every week. To learn more about the benefits of a Club MacStories subscription, visit our Plans page. Magic Rays of Light, Episode 177, ‘Acapulco and the Games App’ Show Notes Pre-Roll Jason Blum Opens Up About the ‘M3GAN 2.0’ Flop, the Blumhouse Slump, and Bouncing Back | The Town Highlight Acapulco The Games App Introducing the Apple Games app: A personalized home for games | Apple Trailer Talk Platonic Stillwater Apple Original News Loot — Season 3 Date Announcement Ted Lasso — Season 4 Now in Production Grand modèle de langage | Upgrade Extras Acapulco — Season 2 Recap Foundation Season 3 Art Blast | ArtStation Magazine Foundation – Mind Meld with The Cast of Season 3 Murderbot — The Cast Plays Bitter/Sweet The Buccaneers — Set Tour with Josie Totah and Aubri Ibrag TV App Highlights Dangerous Animals Materialists South Park Code Of Silence Death of a Unicorn Happy Gilmore 2 The Phoenician Scheme Up Next Union The Wonderfully Weird World of Gumball Mickey Mouse Clubhouse+ Contact We want to hear from you! Contact us via our feedback form. Send us a voice message all week via iMessage or email to magic@macstories.net. Subscribe to Magic Rays of Light on YouTube and follow us on Mastodon and Bluesky. Sigmund Judge | Follow Sigmund on Mastodon or Bluesky Devon Dundee | Follow Devon on Mastodon or Bluesky MacStories launched its first podcast in 2017 with AppStories. Since then, the lineup has expanded to include a family of weekly shows that also includes MacStories Unwind, Magic Rays of Light, Comfort Zone, and NPC: Next Portable Console that collectively, cover a broad range of the modern media world from Apple’s streaming service and videogame hardware to apps for a growing audience that appreciates our thoughtful, in-depth approach to media. If you’re interested in advertising on our shows, you can learn more here or by contacting our Managing Editor, John Voorhees. Access Extra Content and Perks Founded in 2015, Club MacStories has delivered exclusive content every week for nearly a decade. What started with weekly and monthly email newsletters has blossomed into a family of memberships designed every MacStories fan. Club MacStories: Weekly and monthly newsletters via email and the web that are brimming with apps, tips, automation workflows, longform writing, early access to the MacStories Unwind podcast, periodic giveaways, and more; Club MacStories+: Everything that Club MacStories offers, plus an active Discord community, advanced search and custom RSS features for exploring the Club’s entire back catalog, bonus columns, and dozens of app discounts; Club Premier: All of the above and AppStories+, an extended version of our flagship podcast that’s delivered early, ad-free, and in high-bitrate audio. Learn more here and from our Club FAQs. Join Now

Apple announced today that it is consolidating its AppleCare+ plans into one program dubbed AppleCare One that will be available starting tomorrow. The new program is $19.99/month which covers three products. Additional products can be added for $5.99/month for each device added. Bob Borchers, Apple’s vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing, had this to say […]

Apple announced today that it is consolidating its AppleCare+ plans into one program dubbed AppleCare One that will be available starting tomorrow. The new program is $19.99/month which covers three products. Additional products can be added for $5.99/month for each device added. Bob Borchers, Apple’s vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing, had this to say of the new plan: At Apple, we’re focused on creating and delivering exceptional experiences. Built on the trusted foundation of AppleCare+, AppleCare One extends that same reliability and makes it easier than ever to protect the products you love and depend on like iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch, combining simplicity and exceptional value. Apple says that AppleCare One includes all of the features of AppleCare+ and expands the theft and loss protection from the iPhone to the iPad and Apple Watch. The company says that enrolling an iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch under the new program will save users up to $11/month compared to buying AppleCare+ for each device separately. Customers can also add existing devices to the new program that are up to four years old (or one year for headphones) if they are in good condition. That’s a big change from the usual 60 days from the date of purchase that customers have had to purchase AppleCare in the past. If you’re someone juggling multiple AppleCare accounts for a variety of devices, AppleCare one certainly sounds like a simpler, more flexible approach, as well as an opportunity to cover older devices. Access Extra Content and Perks Founded in 2015, Club MacStories has delivered exclusive content every week for nearly a decade. What started with weekly and monthly email newsletters has blossomed into a family of memberships designed every MacStories fan. Club MacStories: Weekly and monthly newsletters via email and the web that are brimming with apps, tips, automation workflows, longform writing, early access to the MacStories Unwind podcast, periodic giveaways, and more; Club MacStories+: Everything that Club MacStories offers, plus an active Discord community, advanced search and custom RSS features for exploring the Club’s entire back catalog, bonus columns, and dozens of app discounts; Club Premier: All of the above and AppStories+, an extended version of our flagship podcast that’s delivered early, ad-free, and in high-bitrate audio. Learn more here and from our Club FAQs. Join Now

Enjoy the latest episodes from MacStories’ family of podcasts: AppStories https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z0fz6wDxw80Video can’t be loaded because JavaScript is disabled: A Secondary Device Check-In | AppStories | Episode 446 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z0fz6wDxw80) This week, Federico and John explain how they use their secondary systems, which for John is the iPad and for Federico, the Mac. On AppStories+, Federico asks […]

Enjoy the latest episodes from MacStories’ family of podcasts: AppStories https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z0fz6wDxw80 Video can’t be loaded because JavaScript is disabled: A Secondary Device Check-In | AppStories | Episode 446 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z0fz6wDxw80) This week, Federico and John explain how they use their secondary systems, which for John is the iPad and for Federico, the Mac. On AppStories+, Federico asks whether technologies like web-based MCP render Apple’s native App Intents irrelevant. NPC: Next Portable Console https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EGj1bDCzpBI Video can’t be loaded because JavaScript is disabled: Hello from 1998: Revisiting Past Handhelds | NPC: Next Portable Console | Episode 42 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EGj1bDCzpBI) This week, John kicks off NPC with a return to 1998 before the crew digs into 8BitDo’s new Pro 3 controller, Thunderbolt 5 eGPU enclosures and docks, TrimUI’s ponderous Smart Pro Mini, and Federico and John’s first impressions of the MagicX Zero 40. Then, Brendon, John, and Federico each bring a handheld they haven’t used in a while back to the show, and as you might expect, Federico’s choice is a bit of a surprise. On NPC XL, Federico shows off the Lenovo G9 Gamepad. AppStories, Episode 466, ‘A Secondary Device Check-In’ Show Notes Switching Sides: A Secondary Device Check-In John 11” iPad Pro Federico M3 Ultra Mac Studio and M4 Pro MacBook Pro Relacon Handheld Trackball, Wireless USB AppStories+ Post-Show Longplay Longplay for Mac Launches with Powerful AI and Shortcuts Integration NPC, Episode 42, ‘Hello from 1998: Revisiting Past Handhelds’ Show Notes John’s Game Boy Streaming Setup Game Boy Camera cartridge Epilogue GB Operator OBS Studio using window capture, cropped Zoom set to the OBS virtual camera Follow-Up JSAUX 12-in-One Dock The Latest Portable Gaming News 8BitDo Pro 3 Pro 3 Bluetooth Gamepad The Pro 3 is 8BitDo’s first controller with swappable buttons Amazon pre-orders Thunderbolt 5 news Razer Introduces Next-Generation Connectivity and Performance with New Thunderbolt™ 5 Dock and Core X V2 - Razer Newsroom Razer Core X V2 - Thunderbolt™ 5 eGPU Razer United States Razer Thunderbolt™ 5 Dock Chroma Razer United States The TrimUI Smart Pro Mini Patent Leaks TrimUI Smart Pro Mini Patent Leaks: Could This Be the Next Big Thing - Retro Handhelds Revisiting Past Handhelds John - New Nintendo 3DS XL 3DS LCD Screens TN vs IPS IPS vs TN, should you hunt one or not (Very long post, possibly very boring too) r3DS Brendon - Anbernic RG28XX Anbernic RG28XX Tip: Currently about $28 if you buy direct whereas Amazon charges close to $55. Federico - Game Boy Macro Game Boy Macro Examples on Etsy Four-button model with light bar Aluminum, two-button model Subscribe to NPC XL NPC XL is a weekly members-only version of NPC with extra content, available exclusively through our new Patreon for $5/month. Each week on NPC XL, Federico, Brendon, and John record a special segment or deep dive about a particular topic that is released alongside the “regular” NPC episodes. You can subscribe here. MacStories launched its first podcast in 2017 with AppStories. Since then, the lineup has expanded to include a family of weekly shows that also includes MacStories Unwind, Magic Rays of Light, Comfort Zone, and NPC: Next Portable Console that collectively, cover a broad range of the modern media world from Apple’s streaming service and videogame hardware to apps for a growing audience that appreciates our thoughtful, in-depth approach to media. If you’re interested in advertising on our shows, you can learn more here or by contacting our Managing Editor, John Voorhees. Access Extra Content and Perks Founded in 2015, Club MacStories has delivered exclusive content every week for nearly a decade. What started with weekly and monthly email newsletters has blossomed into a family of memberships designed every MacStories fan. Club MacStories: Weekly and monthly newsletters via email and the web that are brimming with apps, tips, automation workflows, longform writing, early access to the MacStories Unwind podcast, periodic giveaways, and more; Club MacStories+: Everything that Club MacStories offers, plus an active Discord community, advanced search and custom RSS features for exploring the Club’s entire back catalog, bonus columns, and dozens of app discounts; Club Premier: All of the above and AppStories+, an extended version of our flagship podcast that’s delivered early, ad-free, and in high-bitrate audio. Learn more here and from our Club FAQs. Join Now

Reuters reports that Apple is on the brink of satisfying EU regulators with the changes the company has made to its developer program in the EU: Apple’s changes to its App Store rules and fees will likely secure the green light from EU antitrust regulators, people with direct knowledge of the matter said, a move that […]

Reuters reports that Apple is on the brink of satisfying EU regulators with the changes the company has made to its developer program in the EU: Apple’s changes to its App Store rules and fees will likely secure the green light from EU antitrust regulators, people with direct knowledge of the matter said, a move that would stave off potentially hefty daily fines for the iPhone maker. Reuters estimates that those fines, which would be on top of the 500 million euro fine already levied against Apple, could be as much as 50 million euros per day. No deal is finished until it’s formally announced, but if Reuters’ sources are correct, we should see an announcement from the European Commission in the coming weeks. → Source: reuters.com

One of the most beloved indie weather apps just got a massive overhaul, and it’s worth checking out as your new daily driver. The whole app has been modernized and rebuilt from the ground up, and it feels great. Hello Weather has always been known for its simple, friendly, super readable design, but the new […]

One of the most beloved indie weather apps just got a massive overhaul, and it’s worth checking out as your new daily driver. The whole app has been modernized and rebuilt from the ground up, and it feels great. Hello Weather has always been known for its simple, friendly, super readable design, but the new update pairs that simplicity with more depth, sophistication, and powerful new features. There are beautiful new summaries and visualizations for over a dozen data points like Wind, Air Quality, UV Index, and Moon phases. That’s along with extended hourly forecasts, excellent forecasts for the week ahead, and tons of little options to tune the app’s icons, themes, and layouts however you like them. The new update addresses some longstanding feature gaps, too: Hello Weather now has push notifications, a revamped radar, and an excellent refreshed Apple Watch app and complications. It also supports a dozen different data providers. You can switch from Apple Weather’s forecasts to ultra-detailed info from AccuWeather, Foreca, The Weather Company, and lots more. Stick with the source that’s best for your area, or swap between them to compare forecasts. Hello Weather respects your privacy, with one of the best data collection policies in the category. The app doesn’t track any user-identifiable data, sell ads, or anything like that. It’s a customer-focused app, thoughtfully designed, and made with care. Download Hello Weather and start a 7-day free trial. Access Extra Content and Perks Founded in 2015, Club MacStories has delivered exclusive content every week for nearly a decade. What started with weekly and monthly email newsletters has blossomed into a family of memberships designed every MacStories fan. Club MacStories: Weekly and monthly newsletters via email and the web that are brimming with apps, tips, automation workflows, longform writing, early access to the MacStories Unwind podcast, periodic giveaways, and more; Club MacStories+: Everything that Club MacStories offers, plus an active Discord community, advanced search and custom RSS features for exploring the Club’s entire back catalog, bonus columns, and dozens of app discounts; Club Premier: All of the above and AppStories+, an extended version of our flagship podcast that’s delivered early, ad-free, and in high-bitrate audio. Learn more here and from our Club FAQs. Join Now

ChatGPT agent in action. Earlier this week, OpenAI released ChatGPT agent, a new agentic model that combines the text-focused capabilities of Deep Research with the browser-based automation of Operator into a single, well, agent that can autonomously browse the web, read webpages, and interact with web apps. OpenAI describes the (lowercase) agent as ChatGPT having […]

ChatGPT agent in action. Earlier this week, OpenAI released ChatGPT agent, a new agentic model that combines the text-focused capabilities of Deep Research with the browser-based automation of Operator into a single, well, agent that can autonomously browse the web, read webpages, and interact with web apps. OpenAI describes the (lowercase) agent as ChatGPT having its own computer. From their blog: You can now ask ChatGPT to handle requests like “look at my calendar and brief me on upcoming client meetings based on recent news,” “plan and buy ingredients to make Japanese breakfast for four,” and “analyze three competitors and create a slide deck.” ChatGPT will intelligently navigate websites, filter results, prompt you to log in securely when needed, run code, conduct analysis, and even deliver editable slideshows and spreadsheets that summarize its findings. At the core of this new capability is a unified agentic system. It brings together three strengths of earlier breakthroughs: Operator’s⁠ ability to interact with websites, deep research’s⁠ skill in synthesizing information, and ChatGPT’s intelligence and conversational fluency. ChatGPT carries out these tasks using its own virtual computer, fluidly shifting between reasoning and action to handle complex workflows from start to finish, all based on your instructions. In the model’s official system card, OpenAI refers to ChatGPT agent as a “new agentic model in the same family as OpenAI o3”. There are also these interesting tidbits about ChatGPT agent’s ability to resist prompt injection from malicious prompts hidden in webpages: We’ve placed a particular emphasis on safeguarding ChatGPT agent against adversarial manipulation through prompt injection, which is a risk for agentic systems generally, and have prepared more extensive mitigations accordingly. Prompt injections are attempts by third parties to manipulate its behavior through malicious instructions that ChatGPT agent may encounter on the web while completing a task. For example, a malicious prompt hidden in a webpage, such as in invisible elements or metadata, could trick the agent into taking unintended actions, like sharing private data from a connector with the attacker, or taking a harmful action on a site the user has logged into. Because ChatGPT agent can take direct actions, successful attacks can have greater impact and pose higher risks. We’ve trained and tested the agent on identifying and resisting prompt injections, in addition to using monitoring to rapidly detect and respond to prompt injection attacks. Requiring explicit user confirmation before consequential actions further reduces the risk of harm from these attacks, and users can intervene in tasks as needed by taking over or pausing. Users should weigh these tradeoffs when deciding what information to provide to the agent, as well as take steps to minimize their exposure to these risks, such as disabling connectors when they aren’t needed for a task. What’s fascinating for me in this announcement is the multi-tool nature of ChatGPT agent. The ability to search the web and reason over large amounts of text was adopted from Deep Research; the visual browser (itself looking like a slimmed down version of Chrome running in a Linux VM) is an enhanced version of the Operator browser; there is an underlying terminal that agent can use to process text and make external API calls; agent also integrates with built-in connectors (for services like Gmail or Google Calendar) to directly access data from your accounts. All of these features come together as a single product that, based on my early tests, feels much better than Operator as far as an AI-driven web browser goes, and more customizable than Deep Research. After reading about what agent could do and seeing some of the early tests from other folks online, I had an idea for a long-running task that I’d been personally putting off for a long time, and which felt perfect for a background agent. I asked ChatGPT agent to process hundreds of issues of MacStories Weekly on the Club MacStories website, open each one, find stuff that I wrote, and compile all my Club articles into a list. Then, I asked it to spot patterns and ideas for follow-up stories based on things I wrote months ago, and which I’ve likely forgotten about. I could have used a regular model to kick off a long-running task that, say, parsed an RSS feed for my articles on Club MacStories, but I was curious to see how the agent would perform on its own instead. Long story short: it took it three sessions of 1 hour each, and the output was outstanding. After authenticating with my own Club account in the agent’s virtual browser at the beginning of the chat, the agent got to work. It started scrolling the Club homepage and clicking issues to open them and see if I wrote something for the newsletter that week. It quickly came up with a plan: it hit Control- F (not ⌘, since it mentioned it was running on Linux), searched for my name, and every time it found a match in the newsletter, it tried to understand if that was part of an article I wrote or another MacStories writer mentioning me by name. Agent devised a plan to browse issues of MacStories Weekly and search for my name to find content authored by me. The agent worked for an hour straight, without interrupting me, to parse 33 issues of MacStories Weekly, navigating through several pages of the Club website in the process. Was it slow compared to ingesting a full RSS feed and processing text? Sure, but it was also incredible to watch and see it do its thing in the background. Also, the Club website is an exception here: not every paywalled site offers a personalized RSS feed for individual members; I have to imagine that these capabilities may come in handy for hundreds of websites that cannot be “automated” with RSS or any other API in the future. In subsequent prompts within the same chat, I was able to let agent process 27 more issues of the newsletter for a total of 50 before any additional request returned an error, likely suggesting a context window limit. For every session, ChatGPT agent prepared a Markdown report that I could view from the ChatGPT app on iOS and iPadOS, but which I could only save as a PDF from the ChatGPT web app on desktop. The results were very good, with a summary of everything I wrote for each issue of Weekly I contributed to, plus some actually good suggestions at the end of each document for topics I may want to revisit or expand upon. I then decided to go even further and asked the agent to make me a Notion database about an upcoming trip we have this summer. Specifically, I gave it some initial details myself, but I told it to double-check everything via its Gmail connector. Once everything was confirmed, I asked to log into my Notion account and create a new database with the necessary details for the key activities on the trip. I only had to take over the browser twice at the beginning: the first time to log me into my Notion account; the second to bring up the modal window to create a new database because the agent couldn’t figure out how to display it. Then I left it to work on its own for an hour. ChatGPT agent creating a Notion database. After 60 minutes, it created a basic Notion database, all on its own, with entries for my flights, hotel, and other activities. Honestly, 60 minutes to create a database with five items isn’t great. But if you consider that this is the worst ChatGPT agent will ever be, and that it successfully created a database with properties and other metadata on its first try by cross-referencing data with my email, I think that’s pretty impressive. Then, when I was done with these experiments, I opened ChatGPT’s settings and wiped my data for remote browser connections, which I assume is equivalent to erasing all browsing data and activity from a device’s browser. ChatGPT agent doing research to plan a vacation with my dogs in Italy. I could see myself using ChatGPT agent on a regular basis to make it work autonomously and asynchronously on data-crunching tasks and other boring, text-heavy tasks I don’t want to do manually anymore, or which would literally take me days to complete instead of 60 minutes. Right now, my biggest issue with any ChatGPT product isn’t the model per se, but the lack of MCP support and third-party integrations. I don’t want my work to be stuck inside ChatGPT with a bunch of reports and PDFs I have to read inside chats. This is why, after the agent was done processing my newsletters, I took its PDFs, gave them to Claude, and asked it to extract article ideas and put them in my Content Planner in Notion. It worked perfectly, and there are some interesting follow-up ideas in there for old topics I may revisit soon. There are some nice ideas in here… …but I’d rather see them in the apps I use every day. These cards in Notion were created by Claude via Zapier’s MCP server. I think it’s clear, however, that the puck is skating in one direction: more compute, heavy tool usage, and vision capabilities combined with large context windows are turning chatbots into long-promised agents that can work alongside us on tasks we can’t or don’t want to do ourselves anymore. I’m quite impressed by what OpenAI delivered with this first version of ChatGPT agent; I hope the company can make good on its promise of MCP support in the ChatGPT app in the near future. Access Extra Content and Perks Founded in 2015, Club MacStories has delivered exclusive content every week for nearly a decade. What started with weekly and monthly email newsletters has blossomed into a family of memberships designed every MacStories fan. Club MacStories: Weekly and monthly newsletters via email and the web that are brimming with apps, tips, automation workflows, longform writing, early access to the MacStories Unwind podcast, periodic giveaways, and more; Club MacStories+: Everything that Club MacStories offers, plus an active Discord community, advanced search and custom RSS features for exploring the Club’s entire back catalog, bonus columns, and dozens of app discounts; Club Premier: All of the above and AppStories+, an extended version of our flagship podcast that’s delivered early, ad-free, and in high-bitrate audio. Learn more here and from our Club FAQs. Join Now

Enjoy the latest episodes from MacStories’ family of podcasts: Comfort Zone https://youtu.be/1CsG4rNpAqQVideo can’t be loaded because JavaScript is disabled: Comfort Zone, Episode 58: Birtchtree.co.uk.gov.edu.biz (https://youtu.be/1CsG4rNpAqQ) Chris has some cool new apps, Matt made some cool new apps, and Niléane challenges the dads to do their best Shark Tank impression. MacStories Unwind https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T_mqDnUfEf4Video can’t be loaded […]

Enjoy the latest episodes from MacStories’ family of podcasts: Comfort Zone https://youtu.be/1CsG4rNpAqQ Video can’t be loaded because JavaScript is disabled: Comfort Zone, Episode 58: Birtchtree.co.uk.gov.edu.biz (https://youtu.be/1CsG4rNpAqQ) Chris has some cool new apps, Matt made some cool new apps, and Niléane challenges the dads to do their best Shark Tank impression. MacStories Unwind https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T_mqDnUfEf4 Video can’t be loaded because JavaScript is disabled: Shifting Workflows and a Dark Comedy | MacStories Unwind (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T_mqDnUfEf4) This week, Federico’s return to Apple system apps has ended, and new workflow experiments have begun. Plus, John shares a dark comedy, and Federico has an anti-pick. Magic Rays of Light Sigmund and Devon return to the world of Foundation for its third season and share their favorite films and shows from the first half of 2025. Then, they recap the first season on Apple Original sci-fi comedy series Murderbot. Comfort Zone, Episode 58, ‘Birtchtree.co.uk.gov.edu.biz’ Show Notes Main Topics xSearch Obscura - Studio Other Stuff Arc browser Lucky for Safari iPhone cooling fan Anker USB-C cable LEGO Botanicals Happy Plants Ketchup for Pokémon Follow the Hosts Chris on YouTube Matt on Birchtree Niléane on Mastodon Comfort Zone on Mastodon Comfort Zone on Bluesky MacStories Unwind, ‘Shifting Workflows and a Dark Comedy’ Show Notes Federico’s Evolving Workflow: MCP and More Mentioned: HyperContext Longplay Longplay for Mac Launches with Powerful AI and Shortcuts Integration Longplay comes to the Mac Picks John’s Pick: Friendship Federico’s Anti-Pick: The Bear, Season 4 Unwind Deal Note: Sadly, since recording, Zombieland has returned to $14.99 but is still available as a $3.99 rental. Leave Feedback for John and Federico MacStories Unwind Feedback Form MacStories Unwind+ We deliver MacStories Unwind+ to Club MacStories subscribers ad-free and early with high bitrate audio every week. To learn more about the benefits of a Club MacStories subscription, visit our Plans page. Magic Rays of Light, Episode 176, ‘Foundation, Murderbot, and Our Favorite Films and Shows of 2025… So Far’ Show Notes Highlight Foundation Devon’s Top Movies of 2025 So Far F1: The Movie Deaf President Now! Thunderbolts* Echo Valley Fountain of Youth Sigmund’s Top Movies of 2025 So Far F1: The Movie Sinners Caught by the Tides Warfare Sorry, Baby Devon’s Top Shows of 2025 So Far Stick Adolescence Severance The Studio Daredevil: Born Again Sigmund’s Top Shows of 2025 So Far Severance Common Side Effects The Studio Couples Therapy The Bear The Pitt The Four Seasons Films Coming Later This Year Trailer Playlist Trailer Talk Acapulco Chief of War The Morning Show Apple Original News Neuromancer — In Production Invasion — Season 3 Official Teaser Releases The Wild Ones Apple Music Live: Central Cee Snoopy Presents: A Summer Musical Extras Owen Wilson | Zane Lowe Interview Long Way Home (Apple TV+ Original Series Soundtrack) The Buccaneers — Josie Totah on Set Foundation — Chaos of the Mule Foundation — Top 5 Best Moments in Season 1 and 2 AMA with Dennis Lehane Recap Murderbot TV App Highlights The Phoenician Scheme Jaws @ 50: The Definitive Inside Story Nobu How to Train Your Dragon Billy Joel: And So It Goes Up Next Simple Plan: The Kids in the Crowd Let God Sort Em Out – Clipse Sovereign Contact We want to hear from you! Contact us via our feedback form. Send us a voice message all week via iMessage or email to magic@macstories.net. Subscribe to Magic Rays of Light on YouTube and follow us on Mastodon and Bluesky. Sigmund Judge | Follow Sigmund on Mastodon or Bluesky Devon Dundee | Follow Devon on Mastodon or Bluesky MacStories launched its first podcast in 2017 with AppStories. Since then, the lineup has expanded to include a family of weekly shows that also includes MacStories Unwind, Magic Rays of Light, Comfort Zone, and NPC: Next Portable Console that collectively, cover a broad range of the modern media world from Apple’s streaming service and videogame hardware to apps for a growing audience that appreciates our thoughtful, in-depth approach to media. If you’re interested in advertising on our shows, you can learn more here or by contacting our Managing Editor, John Voorhees. Access Extra Content and Perks Founded in 2015, Club MacStories has delivered exclusive content every week for nearly a decade. What started with weekly and monthly email newsletters has blossomed into a family of memberships designed every MacStories fan. Club MacStories: Weekly and monthly newsletters via email and the web that are brimming with apps, tips, automation workflows, longform writing, early access to the MacStories Unwind podcast, periodic giveaways, and more; Club MacStories+: Everything that Club MacStories offers, plus an active Discord community, advanced search and custom RSS features for exploring the Club’s entire back catalog, bonus columns, and dozens of app discounts; Club Premier: All of the above and AppStories+, an extended version of our flagship podcast that’s delivered early, ad-free, and in high-bitrate audio. Learn more here and from our Club FAQs. Join Now

Source: Unicode Consortium. Every year, the Unicode Consortium announces new emoji that will be added in the fall and incorporated in iOS and other OSes in the months that follow. The latest batch that were announced today to coincide with World Emoji Day will be part of Unicode 17 and include: Trombone Treasure Chest Distorted […]

Source: Unicode Consortium. Every year, the Unicode Consortium announces new emoji that will be added in the fall and incorporated in iOS and other OSes in the months that follow. The latest batch that were announced today to coincide with World Emoji Day will be part of Unicode 17 and include: Trombone Treasure Chest Distorted Face Apple Core Fight Cloud Ballet Dancers Hairy Creature Orca As usual, it’s an eclectic mix that rounds out certain categories and includes other emoji that are just plain fun. I look forward to Federico trying to guess these on Connected. There’s an almost one-to-one overlap between the ones I know I’ll use the most and those that I think Federico will never guess. → Source: blog.unicode.org

Michael Teo Van Runkle, writing for Ars Technica, spent eight days testing CarPlay Ultra in an Aston Martin DB12 Volante. Van Runkle walks readers through the setup process, covers the themes available, and describes the experience of monitoring and controlling the car’s systems using Apple’s next-generation version of CarPlay. By and large, Van Runkle’s experience […]

Michael Teo Van Runkle, writing for Ars Technica, spent eight days testing CarPlay Ultra in an Aston Martin DB12 Volante. Van Runkle walks readers through the setup process, covers the themes available, and describes the experience of monitoring and controlling the car’s systems using Apple’s next-generation version of CarPlay. By and large, Van Runkle’s experience was positive: Ultra’s biggest improvements over preceding CarPlay generations are in the center console infotainment integration. Being able to access climate controls, drive modes, and traction settings without leaving the intuitive suite of CarPlay makes life much easier. In fact, changing between drive modes and turning traction control off or down via Aston’s nifty adjustable system caused less latency and lagging in the displays in Ultra. And for climate, Ultra actually brings up a much better screen after spinning the physical rotaries on the center console than you get through Aston’s UI—plus, I found a way to make the ventilated seats blow stronger, which I never located through the innate UI despite purposefully searching for a similar menu page. That said, it was not without glitches and hiccups along the way, some of which were difficult to pin on CarPlay Ultra versus Aston Martin’s systems. Precious few auto makers have signed on to offer CarPlay Ultra, but Kia and Porsche have said they will, too, which is a start. I remember when CarPlay debuted in 2014 with a similarly small lineup composed mostly of luxury brands like Ferrari and Mercedes-Benz. So, it’s not surprising Ultra is debuting in a car that starts at $265,000. It took years before the original CarPlay trickled down to ordinary, everyday cars. But they did, and now, with a few notable exceptions, like Tesla, Rivian, and GM EVs, you can find CarPlay in most makes and models. I hope CarPlay Ultra follows a similar trajectory. It looks great, and I’d love to have it in my next car, which I can confidently predict now will not be an Aston Martin. → Source: arstechnica.com

Yesterday, I wrote about the upcoming release of Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition on the Mac. Today, CD PROJEKT RED published a support document, listing the game’s Mac system requirements. As I wrote yesterday, the company says the game will work on all Apple silicon Macs; however, the beefier your CPU and memory, the better. As […]

Yesterday, I wrote about the upcoming release of Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition on the Mac. Today, CD PROJEKT RED published a support document, listing the game’s Mac system requirements. As I wrote yesterday, the company says the game will work on all Apple silicon Macs; however, the beefier your CPU and memory, the better. As reported by Tom Warren at The Verge today, the support document summarizes the game’s system requirements in four categories: Minimum, Recommended, High Fidelity, and Very High Fidelity. It’s worth checking out the support document and Warren’s coverage before buying Cyberpunk 2077, which still hasn’t shown up on the Mac App Store for pre-order, because if you want the Very High Fidelity experience, you’ll need at least an M3 Ultra or M4 Max with at least 36 GB of memory. → Source: support.cdprojektred.com

Enjoy the latest episodes from MacStories’ family of podcasts: AppStories https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d_JUANPiR1QVideo can’t be loaded because JavaScript is disabled: Imagining Apple’s Next Big Thing | AppStories | Episode 445 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d_JUANPiR1Q) This week, Federico and John share a grab bag of projects we’d like to see Apple pursue from software to hardware and corporate acquisitions. On AppStories+, […]

Enjoy the latest episodes from MacStories’ family of podcasts: AppStories https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d_JUANPiR1Q Video can’t be loaded because JavaScript is disabled: Imagining Apple’s Next Big Thing | AppStories | Episode 445 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d_JUANPiR1Q) This week, Federico and John share a grab bag of projects we’d like to see Apple pursue from software to hardware and corporate acquisitions. On AppStories+, Federico and John take their wish list further with a bunch of gadgets they’d like to see Apple make. This episode is sponsored by: Notion – Try the powerful, easy-to-use Notion AI today. NPC: Next Portable Console https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JS_bB7Mdo00 Video can’t be loaded because JavaScript is disabled: Joy-Lock™: Dbrand Trademarks Its Do-Over | NPC: Next Portable Console | Episode 41 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JS_bB7Mdo00) This week on NPC, lots of follow-up about microSD Express cards, the Switch 2 Dock, XR glasses, and the dbrand Killswitch – plus, Retroid’s second screen accessory, Windows handhelds, a new eGPU, and more. On NPC XL, John automates his Mac with the 8BitDo Micro, Brendon finally finds a Switch 2 Pro Controller, and Federico acquires a cozy PC controller. AppStories, Episode 445, ‘Imagining Apple’s Next Big Thing’ Show Notes Two Random Hardware Recommendations Federico: iFi hip-dac3 - Portable Hi-Res DAC/Headphone Amp John: Anker SOLIX C1000 Portable Power Station, 1800W Things We’d Like to See Apple Do Assigning Apple Some Big Ticket Projects A Siri Chatbot A Shortcuts Helper Bot Apple Glasses OS Dictation Tools Rethinking iPadOS and macOS’s Relationship Acquisitions Apple Should Make What’s the Deal with Google Gemini? AppStories+ Post-Show Gadgets We’d Like to See Apple Make New Displays A MagSafe Battery A Game Controller Folding Phone Soundbar Also Mentioned: Kuxiu K1 Pro 10,000 mAh (MagSafe and Batteries widget compatible) NPC, Episode 41, ‘Joy-Lock™: Dbrand Trademarks Its Do-Over’ Show Notes The Latest Portable Gaming News Follow-Up Follow up on microSD Express cards 1TB microSD Express from Lexar briefly showed up on Amazon for $184 but sold out now - much less than we expected. Meanwhile SanDisk’s 512GB card is showing August shipping dates on Amazon Switch 2 Dock Follow up Nintendo Switch 2 Travel Dock by CAD_is_my_Bane Download free STL model Printables.com I tested every 3rd party Nintendo Switch 2 dock so you don’t have to - Mono Confirmed Nintendo’s Switch 2 can work with existing docks and webcams after replacing their firmware The Verge XR Glasses and the Switch 2 Hagibis 8K 60Hz USB-C to HDMI 2.1 Cable PeakDo 4K HDMI To USB-C Adapter dbrand Killswitch followup dbrand has fixed their Switch 2 Joy-Con grips Retroid 2nd Screen Accessory Retroid Shows Off 3DS Emulation with Dual Screen Add-On Retroid Dual Screen Add-on Demo - YouTube Handheld News Miyoo Mini Flip Announced MSI Claw A8 with Ryzen Z2 Extreme tested performance rival for Lunar Lake - VideoCardz.com Xbox ASUS ROG Ally / Ally X Prices Leaked - $700 / $1050 Thunderbolt 5 eGPU ONEXGPU Lite eGPU with Thunderbolt 5 is on the way An Epilogue Update RetroAchievements and SNES later this year From the epilogue community on Reddit NPC XL Links and Show Notes: John repurposes the 8BitDo Micro controller. My Latest Mac Automation Tool is a Tiny Game Controller - MacStories Why Med Students Love 8BitDo’s Micro Controller Brendon finds a Nintendo Switch 2 Pro Controller at Best Buy Federico gets the Razer Wolverine v.3 Pro for his gaming PC Subscribe to NPC XL NPC XL is a weekly members-only version of NPC with extra content, available exclusively through our new Patreon for $5/month. Each week on NPC XL, Federico, Brendon, and John record a special segment or deep dive about a particular topic that is released alongside the “regular” NPC episodes. You can subscribe here. MacStories launched its first podcast in 2017 with AppStories. Since then, the lineup has expanded to include a family of weekly shows that also includes MacStories Unwind, Magic Rays of Light, Comfort Zone, and NPC: Next Portable Console that collectively, cover a broad range of the modern media world from Apple’s streaming service and videogame hardware to apps for a growing audience that appreciates our thoughtful, in-depth approach to media. If you’re interested in advertising on our shows, you can learn more here or by contacting our Managing Editor, John Voorhees. Access Extra Content and Perks Founded in 2015, Club MacStories has delivered exclusive content every week for nearly a decade. What started with weekly and monthly email newsletters has blossomed into a family of memberships designed every MacStories fan. Club MacStories: Weekly and monthly newsletters via email and the web that are brimming with apps, tips, automation workflows, longform writing, early access to the MacStories Unwind podcast, periodic giveaways, and more; Club MacStories+: Everything that Club MacStories offers, plus an active Discord community, advanced search and custom RSS features for exploring the Club’s entire back catalog, bonus columns, and dozens of app discounts; Club Premier: All of the above and AppStories+, an extended version of our flagship podcast that’s delivered early, ad-free, and in high-bitrate audio. Learn more here and from our Club FAQs. Join Now

Longplay by Adrian Schönig is an excellent album-oriented music app that integrates with Apple Music. The app started on iOS and iPadOS, then later added support for visionOS. With today’s update, Longplay is available on macOS, too, where it adds unique automation features. If you aren’t familiar with Longplay, be sure to check out my […]

Longplay by Adrian Schönig is an excellent album-oriented music app that integrates with Apple Music. The app started on iOS and iPadOS, then later added support for visionOS. With today’s update, Longplay is available on macOS, too, where it adds unique automation features. If you aren’t familiar with Longplay, be sure to check out my reviews of version 2.0 for iOS and iPadOS and the app’s debut on the Vision Pro. I love the app’s album art-forward design, collection and queuing systems for navigating and organizing large music libraries, and many other ways to sort, filter, and rediscover your favorite albums. Here’s how Adrian describes Longplay in a post introducing the Mac version: It filters out the albums where you only have a handful of tracks, and focusses on those complete or nearly complete albums in your library instead. It analyses your album stats to help you rediscover forgotten favourites and explore your library in different ways. You can organise your albums into collections, including smart ones. And you can go deep with automation support. With the introduction of Longplay for Mac, the app is now available everywhere, with feature parity across all versions. Plus, Longplay syncs across all devices, so your Collections and Smart Collections are available on every platform. The other big deal about Longplay for the Mac is its deep integration with automation tools. The app features the same extensive support for Shortcuts on Mac as it does elsewhere, with over two dozen available actions. It supports AppleScript, too, which is what drives an Alfred workflow that is linked in Longplay’s settings. Longplay also integrates with Last.fm and ListenBrainz for tracking what you listen to. Claude compiling a Longplay Collection based on a comparison of my Apple Music library to the list it created for me previously. However, the most interesting of all of Longplay’s automation integrations is its built-in MCP server. MCP is a protocol that allows AI chatbots like Claude to interact with apps. With Longplay’s MCP server, you can do things like create Collections and Smart Collections and queue albums for playback from inside a chatbot. What makes the integration so powerful is the ability to perform those actions with the sort of natural language requests that are the bread and butter of chatbots. For example, the other day I asked Claude Sonnet 4 to compile a list of the top 100 alternative and indie albums of the ’80s. After consulting several sources, Claude generated a list, which I then asked it to use to create a Longplay Collection using my Apple Music library. Claude got to work and created my Collection after comparing its list with my Apple Music library for a couple of minutes. Longplay is the first app I’ve tried that uses a built-in MCP server, and I’m sold. The combination of a chatbot’s research strength and Longplay’s actions makes its MCP integration a compelling way to explore your music. I had fewer of the albums on Claude’s list than I expected, which is something I’ll have to correct manually given MusicKit limitations. One downside of controlling Apple Music with an MCP server – which I want to emphasize is not a Longplay limitation – is that it can only create Longplay Collections from the albums in your library. You might expect that the MCP integration would allow Longplay to add all 100 of the albums in the Top 100 list to my library, but it can’t because MusicKit doesn’t offer that functionality. It’s a shortcoming of Apple’s that has held back automation in other areas like Shortcuts ever since the debut of Apple Music a decade ago. Apple’s API limitations aside, Longplay is one of the most automatable music apps I’ve tried. Add to that its beautiful design and thoughtful discovery features, and what you get is one of the premier music apps on any of Apple’s platforms. It’s made all the better by the addition of the Mac app, which nicely rounds out Longplay’s lineup. Longplay for Mac is available as a standalone purchase from the Mac App Store for $24.99 and directly from the Longplay website. Access Extra Content and Perks Founded in 2015, Club MacStories has delivered exclusive content every week for nearly a decade. What started with weekly and monthly email newsletters has blossomed into a family of memberships designed every MacStories fan. Club MacStories: Weekly and monthly newsletters via email and the web that are brimming with apps, tips, automation workflows, longform writing, early access to the MacStories Unwind podcast, periodic giveaways, and more; Club MacStories+: Everything that Club MacStories offers, plus an active Discord community, advanced search and custom RSS features for exploring the Club’s entire back catalog, bonus columns, and dozens of app discounts; Club Premier: All of the above and AppStories+, an extended version of our flagship podcast that’s delivered early, ad-free, and in high-bitrate audio. Learn more here and from our Club FAQs. Join Now

Source: CD PROJEKT RED. Last fall, alongside the announcement of the M4 MacBook Pro, Apple and CD PROJEKT RED said that Cyberpunk 2077 was coming to the Mac in early 2025. But when WWDC rolled around last month with no more news about when the game would come to the Mac, I thought it might […]

Source: CD PROJEKT RED. Last fall, alongside the announcement of the M4 MacBook Pro, Apple and CD PROJEKT RED said that Cyberpunk 2077 was coming to the Mac in early 2025. But when WWDC rolled around last month with no more news about when the game would come to the Mac, I thought it might slip to the fall when macOS Tahoe is expected to be released with Metal 4 and other game-friendly features. So it was a pleasant surprise to find out that Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition, which includes the Phantom Liberty DLC, will be out this Thursday on the Mac App Store, as well as on GOG.com, Steam, and the Epic Games Store. Cyberpunk, a notoriously demanding game when it comes to system resources, will run on any Apple silicon Mac with 16GB of memory that is running macOS Sequoia (or the Tahoe developer beta). Source: CD PROJEKT RED. To support every 16GB Apple silicon Mac since the M1 MacBook Air, Cyberpunk relies on the latest Metal technologies, including Tile-Based Deferred Rendering and tools like Metal’s C++ interface and the Metal Shader Converter, to optimize for Apple GPUs. The game also takes advantage of Apple’s MetalFX Upscaling. CD PROJEKT RED has gone all out with other compatibility features to make its game feel at home on the Mac, too, including: “For This Mac” graphics presets that are optimized for the Apple silicon hardware running the game, which promises to take the guess work out of configuring graphics settings; AMD FSR upscaling and frame generation optimized for Apple silicon Macs; Support for Spatial Audio and head tracking for those playing with AirPods; HDR support that is dynamically optimized for Apple’s XDR displays and HDR output for calibrated external displays; Magic Mouse, Magic Trackpad, and controller support; and Cross-progression across all platforms. In the fall, Apple says Cyberpunk will get a boost from the videogame technologies announced at WWDC 2025. Those include MetalFX Frame Interpolation to increase and stabilize frame rates, which Apple says will allow the game to hit 120 fps using the game’s Ultra settings when combined with MetalFX Upscaling. Cyberpunk will utilize MetalFX Frame Denoising to clean up the noise produced by its path-tracing renderer, too. Source: CD PROJEKT RED. I’m looking forward to trying Cyberpunk on the Mac. I already own it on Steam and have played it on the Steam Deck and the Nintendo Switch 2, both of which should be excellent points of comparison to the wide range of Macs that Apple says will run Cyberpunk 2077. The Mac version of Cyberpunk 2077 will debut this Thursday, July 17. There is no additional charge for the Mac version if you already purchased the game from one of the stores that offers it. Alternatively, you can purchase the game from the Mac App Store, where Cyberpunk 2077 is making its debut. Access Extra Content and Perks Founded in 2015, Club MacStories has delivered exclusive content every week for nearly a decade. What started with weekly and monthly email newsletters has blossomed into a family of memberships designed every MacStories fan. Club MacStories: Weekly and monthly newsletters via email and the web that are brimming with apps, tips, automation workflows, longform writing, early access to the MacStories Unwind podcast, periodic giveaways, and more; Club MacStories+: Everything that Club MacStories offers, plus an active Discord community, advanced search and custom RSS features for exploring the Club’s entire back catalog, bonus columns, and dozens of app discounts; Club Premier: All of the above and AppStories+, an extended version of our flagship podcast that’s delivered early, ad-free, and in high-bitrate audio. Learn more here and from our Club FAQs. Join Now

Matt Corey has once again gathered indie developers to organize a huge sale today and tomorrow. Corey, the maker of Bills to Budget and Signals, has organized a collection of over 250 apps that will be offered at a discount through Wednesday. The list is too long to publish here, but it includes many apps we’ve covered here on […]

Matt Corey has once again gathered indie developers to organize a huge sale today and tomorrow. Corey, the maker of Bills to Budget and Signals, has organized a collection of over 250 apps that will be offered at a discount through Wednesday. The list is too long to publish here, but it includes many apps we’ve covered here on MacStories and on Club MacStories in the past, including: Plinky Gamery HoudahSpot Kaleidoscope Longplay Quick Capture PowerPhotos Sunlitt Text Workflow Cardiobot Everlog Every Word Gentler Streak HomePass Launcher Lingon Pro MusicBox TV Remote There are a lot of great deals, with many apps discounted 50% or more. What’s listed above is a small fraction of the participating apps, so be sure to visit Indie App Sales and support these great indie apps. Access Extra Content and Perks Founded in 2015, Club MacStories has delivered exclusive content every week for nearly a decade. What started with weekly and monthly email newsletters has blossomed into a family of memberships designed every MacStories fan. Club MacStories: Weekly and monthly newsletters via email and the web that are brimming with apps, tips, automation workflows, longform writing, early access to the MacStories Unwind podcast, periodic giveaways, and more; Club MacStories+: Everything that Club MacStories offers, plus an active Discord community, advanced search and custom RSS features for exploring the Club’s entire back catalog, bonus columns, and dozens of app discounts; Club Premier: All of the above and AppStories+, an extended version of our flagship podcast that’s delivered early, ad-free, and in high-bitrate audio. Learn more here and from our Club FAQs. Join Now

The EU’s Digital Markets Act requires Apple to allow third parties to offer web browsers with their own browser engines. However, more than a year later, there are no browsers built with Chromium, Gecko, or any other engine in the EU. At a recent EU workshop on Apple’s compliance with the DMA’s browser requirements, Apple […]

The EU’s Digital Markets Act requires Apple to allow third parties to offer web browsers with their own browser engines. However, more than a year later, there are no browsers built with Chromium, Gecko, or any other engine in the EU. At a recent EU workshop on Apple’s compliance with the DMA’s browser requirements, Apple representatives were asked some pointed questions by Open Web Advocacy (OWA), and others about its browser engine policies. OWA, a non-profit that advocates for the open web, raised multiple issues with Apple’s approach to browser engines in the EU that they believe are holding back third-party engines. One issue is that versions of the same browser with different engines can’t be part of the same app bundle. According to OWA, that effectively means vendors like Google and Mozilla would need to release a new EU-only version of their browsers, starting the process of acquiring users from scratch, which I can’t imagine any browser company would sign up to do voluntarily. Another issue OWA raised is that there is currently no way for web developers outside the EU who are not associated with the browser makers to obtain browsers with competing engines for testing purposes. That’s a problem that’s been solved with other apps by allowing test versions to be distributed outside the EU. However, as things stand today, OWA says that web developers couldn’t use EU-only browsers for testing even if there were any available. Other issues were raised, too, but these two strike me as practical impediments to third-party browser engines that can and should be resolved. Apple’s responses to OWA’s challenges focused on privacy and security, which are legitimate factors to consider, but it’s disappointing that more than a year after the DMA took effect, the practical problems raised by OWA and others still haven’t been solved. → Source: open-web-advocacy.org

If you run a business, a side hustle, a podcast, or just want to stay in touch with a community, you know how important great email marketing can be. That’s where Direct Mail comes in — a native macOS app that makes it incredibly easy to design, send, and track email campaigns that get results. […]

If you run a business, a side hustle, a podcast, or just want to stay in touch with a community, you know how important great email marketing can be. That’s where Direct Mail comes in — a native macOS app that makes it incredibly easy to design, send, and track email campaigns that get results. Unlike web-based alternatives, Direct Mail is designed specifically for macOS, with the speed, polish, and Mac-first integration you expect. The brand-new Version 7 is a huge leap forward. This update brings a host of new features, including a reimagined user interface, smarter list management, powerful email signup forms, upgraded reporting, and all-new tools to help your emails stand out. Whether you’re sending to 10 people or 10,000, Direct Mail gives you the tools to do it professionally and painlessly. If you’ve ever been frustrated with clunky, web-based email marketing tools, or just want something that feels right at home on your Mac, check out Direct Mail. It’s free to download and try, with flexible pricing plans to match every budget — including pay-as-you-go options. You can be up and running with your first campaign in just minutes. Our friendly customer support reps are available via live chat to help with any questions, ensuring you’re never stuck. Get started today and expand your reach with powerful, Mac-first email marketing tools. Our thanks to Direct Mail for sponsoring MacStories this week. Access Extra Content and Perks Founded in 2015, Club MacStories has delivered exclusive content every week for nearly a decade. What started with weekly and monthly email newsletters has blossomed into a family of memberships designed every MacStories fan. Club MacStories: Weekly and monthly newsletters via email and the web that are brimming with apps, tips, automation workflows, longform writing, early access to the MacStories Unwind podcast, periodic giveaways, and more; Club MacStories+: Everything that Club MacStories offers, plus an active Discord community, advanced search and custom RSS features for exploring the Club’s entire back catalog, bonus columns, and dozens of app discounts; Club Premier: All of the above and AppStories+, an extended version of our flagship podcast that’s delivered early, ad-free, and in high-bitrate audio. Learn more here and from our Club FAQs. Join Now

Enjoy the latest episodes from MacStories’ family of podcasts: Comfort Zone https://youtu.be/lnt7SMgiCjwVideo can’t be loaded because JavaScript is disabled: Comfort Zone, Episode 57: Is This Podcast Real? (https://youtu.be/lnt7SMgiCjw) Everyone explains their gaming setups, Niléane went to war with her computer, and Matt is very impressed with how everyone integrated F1 into their workflows. MacStories Unwind […]

Enjoy the latest episodes from MacStories’ family of podcasts: Comfort Zone https://youtu.be/lnt7SMgiCjw Video can’t be loaded because JavaScript is disabled: Comfort Zone, Episode 57: Is This Podcast Real? (https://youtu.be/lnt7SMgiCjw) Everyone explains their gaming setups, Niléane went to war with her computer, and Matt is very impressed with how everyone integrated F1 into their workflows. MacStories Unwind https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TWPTCuM4McY Video can’t be loaded because JavaScript is disabled: Our Updated Gear Setups | MacStories Unwind (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TWPTCuM4McY) This week, Federico and John discuss the updates to their work and play tech gear setups. Comfort Zone, Episode 57, ‘Is This Podcast Real?’ Show Notes How would you have done our challenges? How would you answer the question at the end of the show? Let us know! Main Topics Legion Go Odin2 Portal Analogue Pocket Shadow VirtualBuddy Other Stuff Folder Preview Logitech MX Master 3S MOS Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time PEAK Follow the Hosts Chris on YouTube Matt on Birchtree Niléane on Mastodon Comfort Zone on Mastodon Comfort Zone on Bluesky MacStories Unwind, ‘Our Updated Gear Setups’ Show Notes Our Gear Setups Federico: ASUS ROG PG27UCDM monitor with built-in KVM Nintendo Switch 2 Mac Studio Coiled USB-C to USB-C Cable Razer Wolverine V3 Pro Controller Viture Pro XR glasses Viture Mobile dock John: Arylic LP10 AirPlay 2 Wireless Music Streamer GL.iNet GL-BE3600 (Slate 7) Portable Travel Router tomtoc Sling Bag Crossbody Backpack MOFT Invisible Laptop Stand MacStories Unwind+ We deliver MacStories Unwind+ to Club MacStories subscribers ad-free and early with high bitrate audio every week. To learn more about the benefits of a Club MacStories subscription, visit our Plans page. MacStories launched its first podcast in 2017 with AppStories. Since then, the lineup has expanded to include a family of weekly shows that also includes MacStories Unwind, Magic Rays of Light, Comfort Zone, and NPC: Next Portable Console that collectively, cover a broad range of the modern media world from Apple’s streaming service and videogame hardware to apps for a growing audience that appreciates our thoughtful, in-depth approach to media. If you’re interested in advertising on our shows, you can learn more here or by contacting our Managing Editor, John Voorhees. Access Extra Content and Perks Founded in 2015, Club MacStories has delivered exclusive content every week for nearly a decade. What started with weekly and monthly email newsletters has blossomed into a family of memberships designed every MacStories fan. Club MacStories: Weekly and monthly newsletters via email and the web that are brimming with apps, tips, automation workflows, longform writing, early access to the MacStories Unwind podcast, periodic giveaways, and more; Club MacStories+: Everything that Club MacStories offers, plus an active Discord community, advanced search and custom RSS features for exploring the Club’s entire back catalog, bonus columns, and dozens of app discounts; Club Premier: All of the above and AppStories+, an extended version of our flagship podcast that’s delivered early, ad-free, and in high-bitrate audio. Learn more here and from our Club FAQs. Join Now

Source: Console Variations. Retro Dodo, linking to the website Console Variations, has a story about the time Nintendo produced variants of the Game Boy Color that matched the iMac G3. All that seemingly remains of these color-matched Game Boys is the low-resolution image above from a 1999 issue of 64 Dream Magazine because Retro Dodo’s […]

Source: Console Variations. Retro Dodo, linking to the website Console Variations, has a story about the time Nintendo produced variants of the Game Boy Color that matched the iMac G3. All that seemingly remains of these color-matched Game Boys is the low-resolution image above from a 1999 issue of 64 Dream Magazine because Retro Dodo’s Sebastian Santabarbara went looking for the handhelds and was unable to find them anywhere online. Nintendo wasn’t alone in copying the vibrant translucency of the iMac G3. In the late ’90s it seemed like every consumer product maker did something similar. Most of those products have been lost to time and forgotten, but Nintendo fans are an intrepid bunch. I wouldn’t be surprised if these iMac-themed Game Boy Colors turn up in an auction online eventually. → Source: retrododo.com

An unofficial community about Apple and all of its devices and software.

Welcome to the Daily Advice Thread for /r/Apple. This thread can be used to ask for technical advice regarding Apple software and hardware, to ask questions regarding the buying or selling of Apple products or to post other short questions. Have a question you need answered? Ask away! Please remember to adhere to our rules, which can be found in the sidebar. Join our Discord and IRC chat rooms for support: Discord IRC Note: Comments are sorted by /new for your convenience. Here is an archive of all previous Daily Advice Threads. This is best viewed on a browser. If on mobile, type in the search bar [author:"AutoModerator" title:"Daily Advice Thread" or title:"Daily Tech Support Thread"] (without the brackets, and including the quotation marks around the titles and author.) The Daily Advice Thread is posted each day at 06:00 AM EST (Click HERE for other timezones) and then the old one is archived. It is advised to wait for the new thread to post your question if this time is nearing for quickest answer time. submitted by /u/AutoModerator [link] [comments]

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From The Article: “Five men from the San Francisco Bay Area used jackets with fake FBI logos, bulletproof vests, and bogus police lights for a heist to steal hundreds of Apple iPhones, federal prosecutors announced Tuesday.” submitted by /u/Fer65432_Plays [link] [comments]

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Summary Through Apple Intelligence: Apple’s latest iOS 26 beta shows the company is committed to its Liquid Glass design, despite criticism. The design, which has evolved throughout the beta cycle, is expected to remain largely unchanged until the September launch. While minor tweaks are possible, the current state of Liquid Glass is likely to be the final version. submitted by /u/Fer65432_Plays [link] [comments]

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From The Article: “The image suggests that the upcoming Apple Watch Ultra 3 could have a slightly larger display size, with a display resolution of 422 x 514. The current Apple Watch Ultra 2 has a 410 x 502 resolution.” submitted by /u/Fer65432_Plays [link] [comments]

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Reddit’s little corner for iPhone lovers (and some people who just mildly enjoy it…)

Welcome to the weekly stickied WSIB thread. Have any questions about buying, selling, trading, or giveaways? Ask away! Please remember to adhere to our rules, which can be found in the sidebar. As usual, if you have a serious issue with the subreddit, please contact the moderators directly. This thread is also for questions about preorders and shipments of devices Note: Comments are sorted by /new for your convenience. Here is an archive of all previous "What Should I Buy" threads. This is best viewed on a browser. If on mobile, type on the searchbar [title:"What Should I Buy" author:"AutoModerator"] (without the brackets, and including the quotation marks around the title and author.) submitted by /u/AutoModerator [link] [comments]

General advice for those concerned about their battery from the Support FAQ Wiki: Battery health Battery health depends on usage and a variety of other factors. It is normal to see a decrease in battery health by 7-10% per year, resulting in a battery health of 80-85% after 2 years. This number can fluctuate, remain the same, or decrease quickly over a small period and should not cause undue concern. Apple recommend battery replacement when your device falls below 80% battery health if you notice reduced battery life. If it falls below 80% within the first year you may be eligable for a free battery replacement. It fails after your warranty, it's a $69-$89 USD replacement cost for a battery. Contact Apple Support here. You can find more information about battery health and performance from Apple here. You can check the cycles count with Coconut Battery for Mac or iCopyBot for Windows. Battery life Issues relating to battery life can be categorised in three ways: Normal battery life that is to be expected due to use Reduced battery life caused by a recent update, iOS indexing, an iOS bug, or a third-party application Reduced battery life, or other abnormalities such as overheating or sudden power-off, caused by device or battery aging If you experience issues with your battery: Check your battery health. If it is below 80% or you are experiencing issues you suspect are related to device or battery age, see Apple Support. If you have a new or recently updated/restored device, wait a number of days for background process to complete. If you continue to have issues, wait for a further iOS update. If you are on iOS Beta, you can expect to have a decreased battery life. Review the advice below on maximising battery life Consider restoring your device. If issues persist, contact Apple Support. Maximising battery life - the amount of time your device runs before it needs to be recharged. Use low power mode (This reduces mail fetch, turns off background app refresh and increases the auto lock timer) Remove apps from background app refresh Ensure auto lock is on Turn off auto brightness and manually reduce brightness Use dark mode if your device has an OLED display Clearing background apps from the app switcher does not improve battery life Maximising battery lifespan - the amount of time your battery lasts until it needs to be replaced. Avoid extreme temperatures If you notice that your iPhone gets hot when charging, remove it from its case Store your iPhone in a cool place, switched off, and half-charged if not using it for long periods - and charge it every 6 months when in storage submitted by /u/AutoModerator [link] [comments]

I was wondering if there was anything I can do about getting my phone back. I have tried calling the number to the store but no answer. submitted by /u/CrimsonWeb02 [link] [comments]

I got my X on launch and kept it for exactly 51 months. Had the battery replaced twice ($25 each time) in that time and near the end the last few months was a stretch needed to carry power bank connected to it or it would die. Have had my 13 pro for around 43/44 months by the time the 17 is launched next month. It’s actually doing fine after only one battery change (currently at 92%). I could probably get another year out of it tbh. Still tempted to just get the 17. Interested to hear how long everyone’s keeping theirs for and if I’m running mine too long. I do use my phone for work quite a lot and in recent years have transitioned to pretty much most of my work load on my phone compared to the Mac so it does get used heavily. submitted by /u/madevo99 [link] [comments]

My iPhone 13 was stolen and I tracked it to a Walmart cash for phones kiosk. It's a third-party company out of Louisville. I submitted all the paperwork to prove ownership, and they told me they were sorry, but the phone had already been recycled, and there was nothing they could do. The phone's last location was actually in Louisville which is about 7 states away from me. Their suggestion was to call the Police. WTF! I already went and bought a new iPhone but I believe Walmart is partly culpable here. Is Walmart so desperate for cash that they need to have these sketchy kiosks in its stores? submitted by /u/Infinite-Computer205 [link] [comments]

Iphone 11pro to 16pro. I assume this isn’t normal to take up to 20 hours to transfer data. It’s already been like an hour and seems like the transfer progress didn’t move much. What can I do to fix it? submitted by /u/haz-solo [link] [comments]

6 years ago i got a 4gb iphone 2g at a thrift store, along with a random blackberry. I think it was under $10. There is somthing wrong with it, with the screen only responsive at the top. But, it is running iOS 1. There is no app store. As u can see the antenna cover is missing. How much do you think it is worth? submitted by /u/Appropriate-Gas-1837 [link] [comments]

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Thinking about downgrading to either an iPhone 12 or 13 mini submitted by /u/iwantshnacks [link] [comments]

https://9to5mac.com/2025/08/05/iphone-17-event-scheduled-for-september-9-according-to-carrier-documents/ submitted by /u/Spiritually-Fit [link] [comments]

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I currently have a Google pixel 9 pro and I'm being offered a iPhone 16 Pro for free. I've been an android user. For the people that have switched from android to iPhone - was it worth it and would you do it again? If not, why? submitted by /u/Scared-Jelly834 [link] [comments]

I just got my 16e. What do you guys use the action button for? submitted by /u/__Anonymous_666 [link] [comments]

Hey guys, dad recently bought the iPhone 15 pro. He has hearing issues and his hearing aids apparently work better with iphone than android. I'm gonna set it up for him but how do I access those features + what should I set his iPhone up as for someone like him submitted by /u/drizzylizzy [link] [comments]

So, I found this super thin MagSafe case. I used a magnetic case with my car mount and battery pack before. But stuff kept slipping off. I start looking for good look one. Then I randomly tried this thin one. That is super smooth to the touch and weirdly, the magnet is way stronger than anything I used before. Wondering is that just I don’t understand how MagSafe works? Does you guys think thicker case actually mean stronger magnets? Or just I using badly design before? Anyone else had this happen? submitted by /u/Naive-Ad-4511 [link] [comments]

About to trade this in. This is a 13. Do they come with this glass or is this a protector? I peeled off the protector I though it was the whole thing though. So not sure if this is is part of the phone that's cracked or not. Thanks. submitted by /u/Bizzyb843 [link] [comments]

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Kind of forgot this feature existed until my keyboard accidentally rotated (I usually keep rotation lock on), and got curious if many people actually use it (I can't see how it can be comfortable for anyone) submitted by /u/Background-Piano2770 [link] [comments]

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so I just bought this other iPhone I’m not gonna add it into a carrier, but if I sign into my Apple ID, will it be added to my carrier submitted by /u/Substantial_Top_2465 [link] [comments]

I just bought an iPhone 16 and I want to get used to the Apple Books reading interface. What settings are the best for reading fiction books for example? submitted by /u/prigo929 [link] [comments]

Can anyone help me find a screen protector? submitted by /u/Logical_Ear_4185 [link] [comments]

My iPhone 15 got water attacked. Today evening I exposed my iPhone in rain for few minutes and it got so much fog inside the camera lens. When I turn it on it again gets switch off after few minutes. And also the sim slot is not reading the sim. What to do and what not to do?? Any ideas how can I fix this and how long it will take.. Ps: I got my back panel changed once submitted by /u/dominantdaddy_3384 [link] [comments]

So basically last night my phone was working normally I had perfect sound in all apps and could people on a phone call. But sometime between then and this morning my sound took a crap apparently?? I have no idea what happened or what I did. I obviously made sure the silent switch is not on and that I’m not on do not disturb or have focus on or anything, also I’m not connected to Bluetooth and made sure to update my phone to the latest version of iOS and have force restarted my phone like 10 times, oh and I cleaned out all of the speaker holes really well just in case . Does anyone know wtf happened ? Is it an internal hardware issue? Or is there some easy obvious solution I am not aware of? I am stumped and I’m really wanting to buy a new phone just yet but it’s looking like I might have to. Please if anyone has any suggestions let me know I would appreciate it a ton. Also, side note , not sure if this could be a culprit, but about 3 weeks ago I removed my old broken screen and replaced it myself which is a very straight forward repair so I don’t think that would be the issue . Plus, this probably would’ve happened right after I changed the screen not 3 weeks later . Unless maybe a connection was knocked loose somehow internally I honestly have no clue. Just though I a would throw that out there in case it revealed exactly what could be the issue to someone that knows a ton more about this stuff than I do. Thank you in advance to anyone that can help. . :) submitted by /u/WockeshaMyLove [link] [comments]

I have my 14Pro since launch. And I have this issue since one month after launch if I’m not mistaken. Whenever I choose 5G (both Auto and On settings) my signal will drop completely zero, and after 1 few seconds it will come back, then again after a few seconds drops completely and this goes on and on. If I choose to have 4G it works fine. 5G auto doesn’t change to 4G but drops too. I’ve noticed that in areas with poor signal my 5G works fine (but slow speeds) and in areas with good strong signal it drops like I said. What I’ve tried over these years: reset networks settings, swamp SIM cards with one I know that works fine on 5G, contacted my carrier and they said it’s not their issue I’m afraid to do a factory reset cause I’m afraid of losing data even if I backup (plus the fact that it may be a software bug that can re-install when I restore my backup). submitted by /u/Kargiann [link] [comments]

Has anybody gone through the process for getting a new device for iPhone or Apple Watch on Apple care plus recently? Do they give you an exact replacement, or the same model of the current year? Just had my 15 pro max and ultra 2 stolen so just trying to understand what to expect submitted by /u/j_jack93 [link] [comments]

Is there a way to install fonts I use on graphics programmes, such as Affinity, on to my iPhone? Ideally without paying for it…! submitted by /u/FGW1155 [link] [comments]

With Apple Intelligence, you can now remove distracting objects from your photos with the Clean Up tool. Learn more about iPhone 16: https://apple.co/407Tyfl Learn more about Apple Intelligence: https://apple.co/4eGwlad Audio Description: https://youtu.be/1UOS4Tft3Xw “KATOOSSA” by Yacine Boularès #AppleIntelligence #iPhone16 #iphone16pro Welcome to the official Apple YouTube channel. Here you’ll find news about product launches, tutorials, and other great content. Our more than 160,000 employees are dedicated to making the best products on earth, and to leaving the world better than we found it.

The cast and crew take us behind the scenes of Big Man for a look at how the film was brought to life with iPhone 16 Pro. Using Cinematic mode, 4K 120 fps slow motion and the ability to shoot in Apple Log. Director Aneil Karia and Director of Photography Stuart Bentley BSC explain how filmmaking becomes more accessible than ever with iPhone 16 Pro. Watch Big Man in full: https://youtu.be/AUrLMJQf2Bw Learn more about iPhone 16 Pro: https://apple.co/3G296dA Audio Descriptions: https://youtu.be/zQwsabVWzoY #ShotOniPhone #iPhone16Pro #Stormzy #MerkyFilms Welcome to the official Apple YouTube channel. Here you’ll find news about product launches, tutorials, and other great content. Our more than 160,000 employees are dedicated to making the best products on earth, and to leaving the world better than we found it.

Big Man tells the fictional story of Tenzman, a world-weary musician, and the two bright, joyful kids who come into his life by chance. Soon the trio find themselves on a journey together — one that will reveal a better way forward for them all. A new film shot on iPhone 16 Pro by director Aneil Karia. Learn more about iPhone 16 Pro: https://apple.co/3G296dA Audio Descriptions: https://youtu.be/AFivb-EzYIs #ShotOniPhone #iPhone16Pro #Stormzy #MerkyFilms Welcome to the official Apple YouTube channel. Here you’ll find news about product launches, tutorials, and other great content. Our more than 160,000 employees are dedicated to making the best products on earth, and to leaving the world better than we found it.

This fall, visual intelligence will turn all those screenshots into events in your calendar that you actually show up to. Learn more at www.apple.com/os. Audio Descriptions: https://apple.co/4mTvN4p “Only You” by Ginger Root #Apple #WWDC25 #visualintelligence #iOS26 #macOS26 #calendar

This fall, Apple Intelligence will translate your conversations live on FaceTime, in text messages, and on calls. Learn more at www.apple.com/os. Audio Descriptions: https://apple.co/4kJOPsg “Only You” by Ginger Root #iPadOS26 #WWDC25 #Apple #iOS26 #macOS26 #AppleIntelligence #LiveTranslation

See you never. This fall, iOS26 will automatically throw those sketchy unwanted messages into a junk drawer for you. Learn more at www.apple.com/os. Audio Descriptions: https://apple.co/43U1dyO #Apple #WWDC25 #MessagesScreening #iOS26 #macOS26

No friendship breakups over here. This fall, you’ll be able to take polls in your group chats in Messages and split bills with your friends with Apple Cash. Learn more at www.apple.com/os/ Audio Descriptions: https://apple.co/43Yxh4R “Only You” by Ginger Root #Apple #WWDC25 #Messages #iOS26 #macOS26 #AppleCash

Meet our next chapter in software design, built with the sleek and expressive material Liquid Glass. This universal design puts greater focus on your content, creating a more personal experience that brings joy and delight across all our platforms while still feeling instantly familiar. Learn more at https://www.apple.com/os/ Audio Descriptions: https://youtu.be/ae9l-WL88mw #Apple #WWDC25 #LiquidGlass Welcome to the official Apple YouTube channel. Here you’ll find news about product launches, tutorials, and other great content. Our more than 160,000 employees are dedicated to making the best products on earth, and to leaving the world better than we found it.

This fall, you’ll be able to multitask with a ton of windows, access files from your Dock, navigate with a menu bar, and do so much more on your iPad. Learn more at www.apple.com/os/. “Only You” by Ginger Root #iPadOS26 #WWDC25 #Apple

Apple’s new look is coming soon. Learn more at www.apple.com/os. Audio Descriptions: https://apple.co/45MsrtK “Only You” by Ginger Root #LiquidGlass #WWDC25 #Apple #iOS26 #macOS26 #iPadOS26 #watchOS26

Woah. Here’s your guide to some of the big announcements from this year’s Worldwide Developers Conference. Watch the full keynote here: https://youtu.be/0_DjDdfqtUE Learn more at https://www.apple.com/os/ Audio Descriptions: https://youtu.be/xvEOwgprayg “Only You” by Ginger Root https://apple.co/Ginger-Root-Only-You #Apple #WWDC25 #LiquidGlass #AppleEvent Welcome to the official Apple YouTube channel. Here you’ll find news about product launches, tutorials, and other great content. Our more than 160,000 employees are dedicated to making the best products on earth, and to leaving the world better than we found it.

Watch the WWDC25 keynote introducing our broadest design update ever and a more helpful Apple Intelligence. You’ll also learn about exciting features coming with iOS 26, iPadOS 26, macOS 26, watchOS 26, visionOS 26, and tvOS 26. To watch the event interpreted in American Sign Language (ASL), please click here: https://youtu.be/UGFo6TF6d9U Audio Descriptions: https://apple.co/4l17UpS Tune in to the Platforms State of the Union livestream here: https://youtube.com/live/51iONeETSng For more on the Apple Worldwide Developers Conference, click here: https://apple.co/45ajSsF Subscribe to the Apple Developer channel to stay up to date on the latest Apple software, technologies, and platforms: https://www.youtube.com/@AppleDeveloper 00:00:00 Introduction 00:03:48 iOS 00:41:35 watchOS 00:48:48 tvOS 00:53:35 macOS 01:06:23 visionOS 01:14:17 iPadOS 01:26:05 Developers “Round and Round” by Ratt https://apple.co/Ratt-Round-and-Round “AJ's Vibe (Flipped by Black Milk)” by Robert Glasper https://apple.co/Robert-Glasper-AJs-Vibe-Flipped “Kimpton” by Barry Can't Swim, O’Flynn https://apple.co/BCS-OFlynn-Kimpton “Opus No. 1” by Tim Carleton https://apple.co/Tim-Carleton-Opus-Number-One “Dance on the World” by Maribou State, North Downs https://apple.co/Maribou-State-North-Downs-Dance “ILY” by Kapo, Myke Towers https://apple.co/Kapo-Myke-ILY "The Chase” by Hearts2Hearts https://apple.co/Hearts2Hearts-The-Chase “Girl Like Me" by PinkPantheress https://apple.co/PinkPantheress-Girl-Like-Me “The Mirror” by Polo & Pan https://apple.co/Polo-Pan-The-Mirror “Montmorency Falls” by Green Ring https://apple.co/Green-Ring-Montmorency-Falls “JUMP “ by Mura Masa https://apple.co/Mura-Masa-JUMP “Revolving door (Wreckno Remix)” by Tate McRae https://apple.co/Tate-McRae-Wreckno-Revolving-door “Vacay” by Aminé https://apple.co/Amine-Vacay “Pink Pony Club” by Chappell Roan https://apple.co/Chappell-Roan-Pink-Pony-Club “Approachable” by Gurriers https://apple.co/Gurriers-Approachable “6 out of 5 stars” performed by Allen Stone https://apple.co/Allen-Stone Want to keep enjoying the sounds of WWDC25? Check out the entire playlist on Apple Music. https://apple.co/WWDC25-Playlist #WWDC25 #AppleEvent #AppleKeynote Welcome to the official Apple YouTube channel. Here you’ll find news about product launches, tutorials, and other great content. Our more than 160,000 employees are dedicated to making the best products on earth, and to leaving the world better than we found it.

Magnifier on Mac makes the physical world more accessible for anyone with low vision. If you’re in a setting like a classroom, Magnifier connects to your iPhone camera so you can zoom in on a screen or whiteboard. You can also adjust brightness, contrast, color filters, and even perspective to make text and images easier to see. With Magnifier on Mac, you can now bring whatever is important into focus. Learn more: https://apple.co/3SGBwfO Audio Descriptions: https://youtu.be/sds0siWaI_E “Frankie” by Barrie https://apple.co/4knfefe #Apple #Accessibility #MacBookAir #MagnifierForMac Welcome to the official Apple YouTube channel. Here you’ll find news about product launches, tutorials, and other great content. Our more than 160,000 employees are dedicated to making the best products on earth, and to leaving the world better than we found it.

Use your iPhone from your Mac with iPhone Mirroring. Mac to school. Learn more: https://www.apple.com/education/college-students/ Audio Descriptions: https://youtu.be/8zntxJCWkIk #MacBookAir #MacBook #Mac Welcome to the official Apple YouTube channel. Here you’ll find news about product launches, tutorials, and other great content. Our more than 160,000 employees are dedicated to making the best products on earth, and to leaving the world better than we found it.

Transfer files seamlessly between iPhone and Mac with AirDrop. Mac to school. Learn more: https://www.apple.com/education/college-students/ Audio Descriptions: https://youtu.be/cyJ6fd8g3nQ #MacBookAir #MacBook #Mac Welcome to the official Apple YouTube channel. Here you’ll find news about product launches, tutorials, and other great content. Our more than 160,000 employees are dedicated to making the best products on earth, and to leaving the world better than we found it.

Join the Eney closed beta to experience a new category of AI companions —where your Mac tasks become simple conversations with an intelligent companion that truly understands your needs. https://macpaw.com/eney?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=influencer&utm_campaign=eney_beta_macrumors Apple’s next flagship phones — the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max — are just around the corner, and in this video we’re breaking down 17 of the biggest leaks, rumors, and upgrades expected at the iPhone 17 event next month! ✅ New aluminum frame + hybrid glass/metal back ✅ Anti-reflective display (matte finish?) ✅ Redesigned Dynamic Island (UI & hardware changes) ✅ Wider camera bump with LiDAR & flash repositioning ✅ New iPhone 17 Pro colors – Copper/Orange and Dark Blue ✅ Performance upgrades – 5000mAh battery, 12GB RAM, Wi-Fi 7, 25W Qi 2.2 wireless charging ✅ 48MP triple camera setup + 24MP selfie cam ✅ 8K and dual video recording support ✅ Vapor chamber cooling for better thermals ✅ MagSafe redesign & lower Apple logo 🔔 Don’t forget to subscribe and turn on notifications** for full coverage of the iPhone 17 launch, iOS 26, Apple Intelligence, and more Apple news as it happens. #iPhone17 #iPhone17Pro #iPhone17ProMax #AppleEvent2025 #iPhoneLeaks #iOS26 #AppleRumors #iPhoneCameraUpgrade #WiFi7 #iPhone17Colors #DynamicIsland 📲 Read more: https://www.macrumors.com/2025/08/05/iphone-17-pro-launching-next-month/ 🌐 Connect with Dan: 𝕏: https://twitter.com/danbarbera Instagram: https://instagram.com/danbarbera1 TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@macrumors Dan's YouTube Channel: https://youtube.com/danbarbera1 🎙️ Follow The MacRumors Show Podcast: https://youtube.com/@themacrumorsshow ⏱️ CHAPTERS 00:00 - Intro 00:13 - Aluminum frame + hybrid glass/metal back? 01:03 - Nano-texture iPhone? 01:31 - Sponsor: Eney 02:40 - Dynamic Island changes 03:43 - New camera bump spotted in wild? 04:27 - New orange and blue colors 05:17 - Rumored specs 05:58 - Camera rumors and improvements 07:32 - Vapor chamber cooling system? 08:08 - New logo placement The most popular Apple News & Rumors site on the Internet. Welcome to MacRumors, your ultimate destination for in-depth and insightful Mac reviews, where we go beyond the surface to bring you a comprehensive look at everything Apple & Mac! 🍎✨ 🖥️💻Thorough Reviews: We meticulously test and evaluate each product, exploring the features, performance, and understanding its capabilities. 🔍 In-Depth Analysis: Dive deep into the intricacies of Apple's latest technologies and innovations. 🌐 Mac News & Rumors: Stay up-to-date with our coverage of the latest tech news, and be the first to know about upcoming new Apple product releases, updates, and developments. 🔧 Apple Accessories: Enhance your Mac experience with our reviews and recommendations for must-have accessories. 💡 Tips & Tricks: Unlock the full potential of your Mac with our tips and tricks that make your user experience easy. Subscribe now and join our community of Mac enthusiasts!

Go to https://surfshark.com/macrumors or use code MACRUMORS at checkout to get 4 extra months of Surfshark VPN! macOS 26 is now available in public beta, and after a month of testing, I’m ready to share my early review of macOS 26. From a complete redesign of Spotlight Search to the new Liquid Glass UI, this update feels like a big leap forward for Mac users. ✅ Liquid Glass Design – Translucent UI, customizable icons, and widgets ✅ Spotlight Search Revamped – New clipboard manager, file search, and macOS actions ✅ Control Center Overhaul – More like iOS/iPadOS, fully customizable ✅ Phone App on Mac – Make calls, screen calls, and manage voicemail ✅ Reminders with Apple Intelligence – Auto-categorize your tasks ✅ Notes Markdown Export, Messages polls & typing indicators, Photos app updates ✅ New Apps – Games app, Journal app, and more ✅ macOS 26 Stability – Surprisingly solid for a beta Apple’s making macOS feel more intelligent, integrated, and fluid than ever before. If you’re on the fence about installing the beta, I’ll walk you through what works, what’s promising, and whether it’s stable enough for daily use. 🔔 Don’t forget to subscribe and turn on notifications for more Apple beta coverage, including iOS 26, iPadOS 26, macOS Sequoia, and more. #macOS26 #macOSTahoe #macOS26Features 📲 Read more: [WEBSITE LINKS HERE] 🌐 Connect with Dan: 𝕏: https://twitter.com/danbarbera Instagram: https://instagram.com/danbarbera1 TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@macrumors Dan's YouTube Channel: https://youtube.com/danbarbera1 🎙️ Follow The MacRumors Show Podcast: https://youtube.com/@TheMacRumorsShow ⏱️ CHAPTERS 00:00 - Liquid Glass on Mac 01:34 - Sponsor: Surfshark 03:14 - Spotlight 05:44 - Control Center 06:20 - Phone App 07:02 - Reminders, Messages, Notes 07:46 - Photos App 08:01 - New Journal and Games App 09:01 - Overall thoughts The most popular Apple News & Rumors site on the Internet. Welcome to MacRumors, your ultimate destination for in-depth and insightful Mac reviews, where we go beyond the surface to bring you a comprehensive look at everything Apple & Mac! 🍎✨ 🖥️💻Thorough Reviews: We meticulously test and evaluate each product, exploring the features, performance, and understanding its capabilities. 🔍 In-Depth Analysis: Dive deep into the intricacies of Apple's latest technologies and innovations. 🌐 Mac News & Rumors: Stay up-to-date with our coverage of the latest tech news, and be the first to know about upcoming new Apple product releases, updates, and developments. 🔧 Apple Accessories: Enhance your Mac experience with our reviews and recommendations for must-have accessories. 💡 Tips & Tricks: Unlock the full potential of your Mac with our tips and tricks that make your user experience easy. Subscribe now and join our community of Mac enthusiasts!

Apple is expected to release a brand-new Apple TV later this year, and it’s shaping up to be the biggest update yet. In this video, we break down the most exciting features and upgrades you can expect — from improved connectivity and performance to tvOS 26 enhancements and even a possible built-in camera for FaceTime and gestures! ✅ Wi-Fi 6E or Wi-Fi 7 support ✅ Faster chip (A18/A19?) for better performance & Apple Intelligence ✅ Rumored built-in camera for FaceTime & hand gestures ✅ tvOS 26 upgrades – Contact Posters, Live Captions, vertical content cards, and more ✅ Apple Music Sing App turns your iPhone into a wireless mic ✅ Liquid Glass UI makes its way to the big screen ✅ Potential sub-$100 price point 👀 🌐 Connect with Dan: 𝕏: https://twitter.com/danbarbera Instagram: https://instagram.com/danbarbera1 TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@macrumors Dan's YouTube Channel: https://youtube.com/danbarbera1 🎙️ Follow The MacRumors Show Podcast: https://youtube.com/@TheMacRumorsShow The most popular Apple News & Rumors site on the Internet. Welcome to MacRumors, your ultimate destination for in-depth and insightful Mac reviews, where we go beyond the surface to bring you a comprehensive look at everything Apple & Mac! 🍎✨ 🖥️💻Thorough Reviews: We meticulously test and evaluate each product, exploring the features, performance, and understanding its capabilities. 🔍 In-Depth Analysis: Dive deep into the intricacies of Apple's latest technologies and innovations. 🌐 Mac News & Rumors: Stay up-to-date with our coverage of the latest tech news, and be the first to know about upcoming new Apple product releases, updates, and developments. 🔧 Apple Accessories: Enhance your Mac experience with our reviews and recommendations for must-have accessories. 💡 Tips & Tricks: Unlock the full potential of your Mac with our tips and tricks that make your user experience easy. Subscribe now and join our community of Mac enthusiasts!

🚨 iPadOS 26 Public Beta is HERE! 🚨 Apple just dropped the public beta for iPadOS 26, and it’s a game-changer for iPad users. In this video, I walk you through all the iPad-specific features that make this update feel more like macOS for iPad—from redesigned multitasking and windowing to the all-new menu bar, exposé, and cursor changes. ✅ Multitasking Overhaul – Resize, reposition, and layer windows with full freedom using the updated Stage Manager ✅ Menu Bar + Traffic Light Controls – Just like on Mac, now on iPad ✅ New Files App Features – Colored folders, collapsible columns, default apps, and docked folders ✅ Preview App Now on iPad – Edit PDFs and images with your Apple Pencil ✅ Background Tasks – Export or transfer without stopping your workflow ✅ Plus: New cursor, Live Translation, and that slick Liquid Glass design 📲 Ready to try iPadOS 26 for yourself? Grab the public beta here: beta.apple.com 🌐 Connect with Dan: 𝕏: https://twitter.com/danbarbera Instagram: https://instagram.com/danbarbera1 TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@macrumors Dan's YouTube Channel: https://youtube.com/danbarbera1 🎙️ Follow The MacRumors Show Podcast: https://youtube.com/@TheMacRumorsShow The most popular Apple News & Rumors site on the Internet. Welcome to MacRumors, your ultimate destination for in-depth and insightful Mac reviews, where we go beyond the surface to bring you a comprehensive look at everything Apple & Mac! 🍎✨ 🖥️💻Thorough Reviews: We meticulously test and evaluate each product, exploring the features, performance, and understanding its capabilities. 🔍 In-Depth Analysis: Dive deep into the intricacies of Apple's latest technologies and innovations. 🌐 Mac News & Rumors: Stay up-to-date with our coverage of the latest tech news, and be the first to know about upcoming new Apple product releases, updates, and developments. 🔧 Apple Accessories: Enhance your Mac experience with our reviews and recommendations for must-have accessories. 💡 Tips & Tricks: Unlock the full potential of your Mac with our tips and tricks that make your user experience easy. Subscribe now and join our community of Mac enthusiasts!

Join the Eney closed beta to experience a new category of AI companions —where your Mac tasks become simple conversations with an intelligent companion that truly understands your needs. https://macpaw.com/eney?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=influencer&utm_campaign=eney_beta_macrumors iOS 26 isn't quite ready to launch yet, but we're far enough along in the testing process that Apple is seeding the update out to millions of public beta testers today. ‌iOS 26‌ is also now refined enough that we're able to share more detail on what this update will really mean for iPhone users when it comes in September. Try Public Beta --- https://beta.apple.com 🌐 Connect with Dan: 𝕏: https://twitter.com/danbarbera Instagram: https://instagram.com/danbarbera1 TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@macrumors Dan's YouTube Channel: https://youtube.com/danbarbera1 🎙️ Follow The MacRumors Show Podcast: https://youtube.com/@TheMacRumorsShow ⏱️ CHAPTERS 00:00 The most popular Apple News & Rumors site on the Internet. Welcome to MacRumors, your ultimate destination for in-depth and insightful Mac reviews, where we go beyond the surface to bring you a comprehensive look at everything Apple & Mac! 🍎✨ 🖥️💻Thorough Reviews: We meticulously test and evaluate each product, exploring the features, performance, and understanding its capabilities. 🔍 In-Depth Analysis: Dive deep into the intricacies of Apple's latest technologies and innovations. 🌐 Mac News & Rumors: Stay up-to-date with our coverage of the latest tech news, and be the first to know about upcoming new Apple product releases, updates, and developments. 🔧 Apple Accessories: Enhance your Mac experience with our reviews and recommendations for must-have accessories. 💡 Tips & Tricks: Unlock the full potential of your Mac with our tips and tricks that make your user experience easy. Subscribe now and join our community of Mac enthusiasts!

Join the Eney closed beta to experience a new category of AI companions —where your Mac tasks become simple conversations with an intelligent companion that truly understands your needs. https://macpaw.com/eney?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=influencer&utm_campaign=eney_beta_macrumors Apple is expected to hold its annual iPhone announcement event during the week of September 8, 2025, with September 9 or 10 emerging as the most likely dates. In a social media post today, Dickson shared images of alleged lens covers for the rear cameras on the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max models, with the following five color labels: black, gray, silver, dark blue, and orange. 📲 Read more: https://www.macrumors.com/2025/07/14/iphone-17-pro-all-new-color-rumored/ https://www.macrumors.com/2025/07/05/iphone-17-pro-max-vs-pro/https://www.macrumors.com/2025/07/14/iphone-17-dynamic-island-changes/ https://www.macrumors.com/2025/07/16/all-new-iphone-17-and-17-pro-colors-leaked/ 🌐 Connect with Dan: 𝕏: https://twitter.com/danbarbera Instagram: https://instagram.com/danbarbera1 TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@macrumors Dan's YouTube Channel: https://youtube.com/danbarbera1 🎙️ Follow The MacRumors Show Podcast: https://youtube.com/@TheMacRumorsShow ⏱️ CHAPTERS 00:00 - iPhone 17 Event Date 00:40 - A New Orange iPhone 17 Pro?? 02:16 - Sponsor: Eney 03:39 - ALL 15 iPhone 17 Colors 04:41 - Dynamic Island Changes 05:37 - New Design Changes The most popular Apple News & Rumors site on the Internet. Welcome to MacRumors, your ultimate destination for in-depth and insightful Mac reviews, where we go beyond the surface to bring you a comprehensive look at everything Apple & Mac! 🍎✨ 🖥️💻Thorough Reviews: We meticulously test and evaluate each product, exploring the features, performance, and understanding its capabilities. 🔍 In-Depth Analysis: Dive deep into the intricacies of Apple's latest technologies and innovations. 🌐 Mac News & Rumors: Stay up-to-date with our coverage of the latest tech news, and be the first to know about upcoming new Apple product releases, updates, and developments. 🔧 Apple Accessories: Enhance your Mac experience with our reviews and recommendations for must-have accessories. 💡 Tips & Tricks: Unlock the full potential of your Mac with our tips and tricks that make your user experience easy. Subscribe now and join our community of Mac enthusiasts!

A new hands-on video of an iPhone 17 Air dummy model has surfaced, providing a closer look at the rumored design of Apple's thinnest iPhone ever. According to Apple supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, the iPhone 17 Air will measure just 5.5mm at its thinnest point, surpassing the 6.9mm record held by the iPhone 6. However, to achieve this impressively thin and lightweight design, the device is expected to have some compromises compared to iPhone 17 Pro models, including worse battery life, only a single rear camera, only a single speaker, and an A19 chip instead of an A19 Pro chip. 📲 Read more: https://www.macrumors.com/2025/07/08/iphone-17-air-dummy-model-video/ 🌐 Connect with Dan: 𝕏: https://twitter.com/danbarbera Instagram: https://instagram.com/danbarbera1 TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@macrumors Dan's YouTube Channel: https://youtube.com/danbarbera1 🎙️ Follow The MacRumors Show Podcast: https://youtube.com/@TheMacRumorsShow The most popular Apple News & Rumors site on the Internet. Welcome to MacRumors, your ultimate destination for in-depth and insightful Mac reviews, where we go beyond the surface to bring you a comprehensive look at everything Apple & Mac! 🍎✨ 🖥️💻Thorough Reviews: We meticulously test and evaluate each product, exploring the features, performance, and understanding its capabilities. 🔍 In-Depth Analysis: Dive deep into the intricacies of Apple's latest technologies and innovations. 🌐 Mac News & Rumors: Stay up-to-date with our coverage of the latest tech news, and be the first to know about upcoming new Apple product releases, updates, and developments. 🔧 Apple Accessories: Enhance your Mac experience with our reviews and recommendations for must-have accessories. 💡 Tips & Tricks: Unlock the full potential of your Mac with our tips and tricks that make your user experience easy. Subscribe now and join our community of Mac enthusiasts!

As Apple gears up to debut its first-generation foldable iPhone next year, Samsung is on its seventh generation. Samsung today introduced its latest foldable smartphones, debuting the ultra thin Galaxy Z Fold7, the Galaxy Z Flip7, and a new, lower cost Z Flip7 FE. Positioned as Samsung's premium flagship foldable, the Galaxy Z Fold7 is thinner and larger than the foldable smartphones that came before it. When closed, the Fold7's AMOLED display is 6.5 inches, but when open, it's now 8 inches. It's noticeably thinner than the Fold6, measuring in at 8.9mm thick when folded and 4.2mm when unfolded. That's not too far off from rumors about Apple's foldable ‌iPhone‌, which could be 4.5mm when it's open and 9mm when closed. Galaxy Z Fold7: https://howl.link/vnc6c0gjyzbi6 Galaxy Z Flip7: https://howl.link/cp3q9n6h4qz8d Galaxy Z Flip7 FE: https://howl.link/b2orxq8bt1fsh 📲 Read more: https://www.macrumors.com/2025/07/08/samsung-galaxy-z-fold7/ 🌐 Connect with Dan: 𝕏: https://twitter.com/danbarbera Instagram: https://instagram.com/danbarbera1 TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@macrumors Dan's YouTube Channel: https://youtube.com/danbarbera1 🎙️ Follow The MacRumors Show Podcast: https://youtube.com/@TheMacRumorsShow ⏱️ CHAPTERS 00:00 - Intro 00:17 - Samsung Galaxy Z Fold7 04:32 - Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7 07:42 - Z Flip7 FE 08:45 - Galaxy Watch8 and Watch8 Classic The most popular Apple News & Rumors site on the Internet. Welcome to MacRumors, your ultimate destination for in-depth and insightful Mac reviews, where we go beyond the surface to bring you a comprehensive look at everything Apple & Mac! 🍎✨ 🖥️💻Thorough Reviews: We meticulously test and evaluate each product, exploring the features, performance, and understanding its capabilities. 🔍 In-Depth Analysis: Dive deep into the intricacies of Apple's latest technologies and innovations. 🌐 Mac News & Rumors: Stay up-to-date with our coverage of the latest tech news, and be the first to know about upcoming new Apple product releases, updates, and developments. 🔧 Apple Accessories: Enhance your Mac experience with our reviews and recommendations for must-have accessories. 💡 Tips & Tricks: Unlock the full potential of your Mac with our tips and tricks that make your user experience easy. Subscribe now and join our community of Mac enthusiasts!

Samsung first showed off its OLED M9 Smart Monitor back in January at CES, but now the 32-inch Mac-compatible display is launching. We were able to check it out early to see how it performs with a Mac. 🛍 Order Samsung's latest M-series displays: https://howl.link/gclkgbs59lo3n 📲 Read more: https://www.macrumors.com/2025/07/08/samsung-m9-smart-monitor-hands-on/ 🌐 Connect with Dan: 𝕏: https://twitter.com/danbarbera Instagram: https://instagram.com/danbarbera1 TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@macrumors Dan's YouTube Channel: https://youtube.com/danbarbera1 🎙️ Follow The MacRumors Show Podcast: https://youtube.com/@TheMacRumorsShow The most popular Apple News & Rumors site on the Internet. Welcome to MacRumors, your ultimate destination for in-depth and insightful Mac reviews, where we go beyond the surface to bring you a comprehensive look at everything Apple & Mac! 🍎✨ 🖥️💻Thorough Reviews: We meticulously test and evaluate each product, exploring the features, performance, and understanding its capabilities. 🔍 In-Depth Analysis: Dive deep into the intricacies of Apple's latest technologies and innovations. 🌐 Mac News & Rumors: Stay up-to-date with our coverage of the latest tech news, and be the first to know about upcoming new Apple product releases, updates, and developments. 🔧 Apple Accessories: Enhance your Mac experience with our reviews and recommendations for must-have accessories. 💡 Tips & Tricks: Unlock the full potential of your Mac with our tips and tricks that make your user experience easy. Subscribe now and join our community of Mac enthusiasts!

Apple supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo expects an all-new, more-affordable MacBook model powered by an iPhone chip to launch next year. The new MacBook will be equipped with the A18 Pro chip, according to Kuo. If so, it would be the first Mac to ever use an A-series chip from an iPhone. (In 2020, Apple did briefly offer developers a Mac mini with the iPad Pro's A12Z chip, to help them prepare for the Mac's transition from Intel processors to Apple silicon). 📲 Read more: https://www.macrumors.com/2025/07/02/macbook-a18-pro-chip-rumor-recap/ 🌐 Connect with Dan: 𝕏: https://twitter.com/danbarbera Instagram: https://instagram.com/danbarbera1 TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@macrumors Dan's YouTube Channel: https://youtube.com/danbarbera1 🎙️ Follow The MacRumors Show Podcast: https://youtube.com/@TheMacRumorsShow The most popular Apple News & Rumors site on the Internet. Welcome to MacRumors, your ultimate destination for in-depth and insightful Mac reviews, where we go beyond the surface to bring you a comprehensive look at everything Apple & Mac! 🍎✨ 🖥️💻Thorough Reviews: We meticulously test and evaluate each product, exploring the features, performance, and understanding its capabilities. 🔍 In-Depth Analysis: Dive deep into the intricacies of Apple's latest technologies and innovations. 🌐 Mac News & Rumors: Stay up-to-date with our coverage of the latest tech news, and be the first to know about upcoming new Apple product releases, updates, and developments. 🔧 Apple Accessories: Enhance your Mac experience with our reviews and recommendations for must-have accessories. 💡 Tips & Tricks: Unlock the full potential of your Mac with our tips and tricks that make your user experience easy. Subscribe now and join our community of Mac enthusiasts!

When you're away from home and want to play your Nintendo Switch 2 on a larger display, you can do so if you have a USB-C iPad. All you need is an app and a couple of accessories to get everything connected, as you will see in this video. ⬇️ What you need ⬇️ USB C Video Capture Card - https://amzn.to/4nD0fjJ or https://amzn.to/3IaXCVU Orion App for iPad - https://apps.apple.com/us/app/hdmi-monitor-orion/id6459355072 🌐 Connect with Dan: 𝕏: https://twitter.com/danbarbera Instagram: https://instagram.com/danbarbera1 TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@macrumors Dan's YouTube Channel: https://youtube.com/danbarbera1 🎙️ Follow The MacRumors Show Podcast: https://youtube.com/@TheMacRumorsShow The most popular Apple News & Rumors site on the Internet. Welcome to MacRumors, your ultimate destination for in-depth and insightful Mac reviews, where we go beyond the surface to bring you a comprehensive look at everything Apple & Mac! 🍎✨ 🖥️💻Thorough Reviews: We meticulously test and evaluate each product, exploring the features, performance, and understanding its capabilities. 🔍 In-Depth Analysis: Dive deep into the intricacies of Apple's latest technologies and innovations. 🌐 Mac News & Rumors: Stay up-to-date with our coverage of the latest tech news, and be the first to know about upcoming new Apple product releases, updates, and developments. 🔧 Apple Accessories: Enhance your Mac experience with our reviews and recommendations for must-have accessories. 💡 Tips & Tricks: Unlock the full potential of your Mac with our tips and tricks that make your user experience easy. Subscribe now and join our community of Mac enthusiasts!

Apple, iPhone, iPad, Mac News and Rumors

U.S. President Donald Trump today said that there will be a 100 percent tariff on chips and semiconductors imported into the United States, but with a major exception.


Companies that are building in the United States, or that have made a commitment to build in the U.S., will not have to pay the tariffs. Since Apple pledged to spend $600 billion on U.S. manufacturing, the company will presumably be exempted from the planned chip tariffs.

"If you're building in the United States, or made a commitment to build or are in the process, there's no charge," Trump said. He added that if companies promise to bring manufacturing to the U.S. and don't follow through, tariffs will be "added up" and "charged at a later date."

The Trump administration exempted semiconductors and derivative products like the iPhone from reciprocal tariffs in countries like China and India, but Trump has been promising to levy high fees on chip imports.

Apple sources its chips from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), and there were fears that chip tariffs could have a significant impact on Apple's costs as a result. For now, it looks like Apple is going to avoid any additional tariffs on the chips that it uses for its devices. Trump made the announcement during a White House press event with Apple CEO Tim Cook, where Cook announced an additional U.S. manufacturing investment. There is no word on when semiconductor tariffs will be put in place. Tag: Donald Trump
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Apple today said that it would increase its investment in U.S. manufacturing to $600 billion, pledging an additional $100 billion on top of the $500 billion it promised to spend in the U.S. across four years earlier this year.

"Today, we're proud to increase our investments across the United States to $600 billion over four years and launch our new American Manufacturing Program," said Tim Cook, Apple's CEO. "This includes new and expanded work with 10 companies across America. They produce components that are used in Apple products sold all over the world, and we're grateful to the President for his support."

Apple is establishing the American Manufacturing Program (AMP), which the company says is dedicated to bringing advanced manufacturing to the United States. AMP partners include Corning, Coherent, GlobalWafers America, Applied Materials, Amkor, Texas Instruments, Samsung, GlobalFoundries, and Broadcom.

Apple is expanding our US commitment to $600 billion over the next four years. And our new American Manufacturing Program will bring even more jobs and advanced manufacturing to the US. pic.twitter.com/6KWkTGJN3O

— Tim Cook (@tim_cook) August 6, 2025

Apple plans to use $2.5 billion of the AMP funding to expand its partnership with Corning. Corning and Apple are working together to create the "world's largest and most advanced smartphone class production line" in Corning's Kentucky factory. Apple says that 100 percent of the cover glass on iPhone and Apple Watch models sold worldwide will be made in the U.S. "soon." Apple and Corning are also going to open an "Apple-Corning Innovation Center" that will develop advanced materials and next-generation manufacturing platforms.

Apple is also working with several other companies to expand U.S. manufacturing, with a full list available on Apple's website.
This article, "Apple Announces American Manufacturing Program, Promises to Spend $600 Billion" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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In the fifth beta of iOS 26, Apple appears to have subtly upgraded AirPods charging. Code in ‌iOS 26‌ says that the AirPods Charging case "now more clearly indicates charging status," and that the AirPods will remind you when it's time to charge.


A screenshot shared on social media shows an AirPods splash screen with the same wording and an image of what the light on the AirPods charging case means. There are two different shades of amber for Charging and Charge Case, along with a green for Charged status.

This is new in Beta 5 right ?! I’ve never seen it before. pic.twitter.com/GC8BP7nTmP

— Minimal Nerd (@minimalnerd1) August 6, 2025

The AirPods charging case already uses an amber light when the case is charging and a green light when it's at full charge. When the AirPods case is open and the AirPods are inside, there's a green light that means the AirPods are fully charged and an amber light that means there is less than one full charge remaining.

It may be that the amber light indicating that the AirPods charging case needs to be topped up will show up even when the case is closed, since Apple's wording does suggest that there's something new in ‌iOS 26‌.

In prior ‌iOS 26‌ betas, Apple introduced an iPhone notification that alerts you when the AirPods are in need of a charge. The notification is sent even if the AirPods aren't in active use, so you can charge them up for later.Related Roundups: iOS 26, iPadOS 26Related Forum: iOS 26
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Apple today announced that its hit original film F1: The Movie will be re-released in select IMAX theaters around the world, due to popular demand. Tickets are on sale now for select IMAX theaters and showtimes beginning this Friday, August 8, and the film will expand to even more IMAX theaters on Friday, August 15.


F1: The Movie is a racing movie with a classic underdog story. In the film, Brad Pitt stars as an F1 driver who was an up-and-coming talent in the 1990s, until an accident nearly ended his career. Thirty years later, he is invited to join a former teammate's struggling F1 team, in a last-shot bid to save the team and become the best in the world.

The film is directed by Joseph Kosinski, who is known for other popular action films, including "Tron: Legacy" and "Top Gun: Maverick."


Apple said that the film has grossed more than $550 million at the global box office since its release in late June, making it the highest-grossing film that Pitt has ever been cast in. IMAX viewers can watch the entire film in an ultra-wide aspect ratio.

Standard showings of the film are still ongoing at many theaters too.

F1: The Movie will be available to stream on Apple TV+ at a later date. In the U.S., Apple TV+ costs $9.99 per month, or $99 per year. The streaming service is available through the Apple TV app on a wide variety of devices, and on the web at tv.apple.com, with a free seven-day trial available. Apple TV+ is also included in all Apple One bundles.Tag: Apple TV Plus
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The long wait for an Apple Watch Ultra 3 is nearly over, and a handful of new features and changes have been rumored for the device.


Below, we recap what to expect from the Apple Watch Ultra 3:

• A slightly larger display


• Satellite connectivity for sending and receiving text messages when Wi-Fi and cellular coverage is unavailable


• 5G support, up from LTE on the Apple Watch Ultra 2


• Likely a wide-angle OLED display that is brighter when viewed from an angle, and offers a higher refresh rate for the always-on display mode


• S10 chip or newer for faster performance


• Blood pressure monitoring has been rumored, but it might not be ready in time for the Apple Watch Ultra 3

Last year, the Apple Watch Ultra 2 received a black titanium case option, but otherwise the Ultra model has not received any hardware upgrades since 2023.

After a two-year wait, the Apple Watch Ultra 3 should be unveiled in September.Related Roundup: Apple Watch Ultra 2Buyer's Guide: Apple Watch Ultra (Don't Buy)Related Forum: Apple Watch
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U.S. President Donald Trump is increasing the tariff on goods from India to 50 percent starting on August 27, but Apple's manufacturing in the country won't be affected.


Semiconductors and derivative products like iPhones are already exempt from the existing 25 percent reciprocal tariffs that are in place. According to CNBC, the executive order increasing the tariff rate doubles the 25 percent reciprocal tariff rate to 50 percent, and semiconductors will continue to be exempt.

Apple is already unaffected by the 25 percent reciprocal tariffs in India that were put in place on August 1, and it looks like that's not going to change if and when tariffs increase to the 50 percent mark later in August.

Apple has been shifting a significant portion of its manufacturing from China to India for supply chain diversification and because of U.S.-China trade tensions. Apple partners like Foxconn and Pegatron have established factories in India for assembling the iPhone, and all five iPhone 16 models are assembled in the country for Indian customers and for export to countries like the U.S.

The order that exempts Apple from paying reciprocal tariffs is temporary, and exemptions could change at Trump's whim. Trump has said that no one is "getting off the hook," and that his administration is working on specific semiconductor levies that could impact Apple devices.

Apple is working hard to convince Trump not to subject it to additional tariffs. The company promised to invest $500 billion in U.S. manufacturing earlier this year, and today, Trump is announcing another $100 billion Apple investment in the form of a new U.S.-based Apple manufacturing program. Apple CEO Tim Cook will be present for the announcement.Tags: Donald Trump, India
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The iPhone 17 Pro could start with 256GB of storage as part of a $50 price increase across the lineup this year, a Weibo leaker has suggested.


In a new post, the leaker known as "Instant Digital" reiterated rumors that the iPhone 17 lineup will be announced on Tuesday, September 9 with a $50 price hike across the board, and pondered whether the increase could come hand-in-hand with a storage bump.

Today, the iPhone 16, 16 Plus, and 16 Pro start with 128GB of storage, and the iPhone 16 Pro Max starts with 256GB of storage. The four models are priced starting at $799, $899, $999, and $1,199, respectively.

In July, Jefferies said that Apple will implement a $50 price increase across the ‌iPhone 17‌ lineup to offset rising component costs and China tariffs. This means the ‌iPhone 17‌, 17 Air, 17 Pro, and 17 Pro Max will likely be priced at $849, $949, $1,049, and $1,249, if the company's positioning and pricing trends continue.

It's possible that Apple could increase the ‌iPhone 17 Pro‌'s base storage to 256GB, bringing it in line with the Pro Max, to help justify its $50 price increase. That would represent an effective price cut of $50 over today's ‌iPhone 16 Pro‌ with 256GB of storage and help to simplify the lineup.

Likewise, The Wall Street Journal reported in May that Apple was considering raising prices for its upcoming ‌iPhone 17‌ models. The company reportedly aims to pair the potential price hikes with new features and design changes to justify the increased cost to consumers, rather than attributing them to tariffs.Related Roundup: iPhone 17 ProTag: Instant DigitalRelated Forum: iPhone
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If you are planning to head to the Apple Park Visitor Center this month, be aware that the rooftop terrace will be temporarily closed.


Apple says the rooftop terrace will be receiving some unspecified "improvements," and it will be closed until Monday, September 1 as a result.

The notice was added to the Apple Park Visitor Center page within the past 24 hours.

When open, the rooftop terrace offers a partial view of Apple Park, and there are tables and chairs for sitting around. It can be reached via stairs or an elevator, and there is also a bathroom on that level. It is unclear what changes are planned.

Tourists headed to the Apple Park Visitor Center still have plenty to do. They can try out the latest Apple products, purchase Apple merchandise, grab a coffee at the on-site Caffè Macs, view a 3D model of the Apple Park campus, get creative with free "Today at Apple" sessions, and stroll through the adjacent "Mirage" public art installation.

Apple Park Visitor Center opened in November 2017. It is located directly across the street from Apple Park, in Cupertino, California.

Thanks, Filip Chudzinski!Tags: Apple Park, Apple Store
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Apple is planning to launch a "Liquid Silicone" line of cases for iPhone 17 and iPhone 17 Pro models, according to a hit-or-miss leaker known as "Majin Bu."


In a blog post today, the leaker shared images of the alleged cases, with some having a ripple effect on the back near the MagSafe charging area. The cases also have multiple cutouts for attaching a lanyard, which may be sold separately.

iOS 26 has a new Liquid Glass design. The leaker said the "Liquid Silicone" cases will have a "Liquid Glass effect" of some kind, but it is not entirely clear what that means.

AirPods Pro 2 charging cases also have a cutout for attaching a lanyard, and the iPod touch once had a built-in mechanism for attaching a lanyard.

The cases are described as "official samples," but we are not entirely convinced that they are actually designed by Apple. Some of the cases shown look rather bulky and low quality, so some skepticism is absolutely warranted here.



Alleged iPhone 17 cases via Majin Bu
Sketchy rumors about iPhone cases are nothing new, and sometimes they do turn out to be at least partially true. There was some skepticism about the "FineWoven" name when it first leaked a few years ago, and the name ended up being real, so we are reporting on the "Liquid Silicone" name just in case that name happens to be the real deal.

"Majin Bu" has a mixed track record with Apple rumors. They were most recently accurate about iPadOS 26 adding a Mac-like menu bar to iPads.

Apple should unveil the iPhone 17 series and cases in just over a month from now, so we will not have to wait much longer for official details.Related Roundups: iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Air, iPhone 17 ProTag: Majin BuRelated Forum: iPhone
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Amazon and Best Buy are both discounting Apple's 14-inch M4 MacBook Pro to record low prices this week, offering $300 off select models of the computer. In this article we're focusing on the 10-core configurations of the computer, but you'll also find sales on other M4 MacBook Pros at both retailers.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

Starting with the 10-core 16GB RAM/512GB 14-inch M4 MacBook Pro, you can get this model for $1,299.00 [Amazon/Best Buy], down from $1,599.00. This is the entry-level model of the M4 MacBook Pro, and it's never dropped below this price.

$300 OFFM4 14-inch MacBook Pro (512GB) for $1,299.00

You can also get both 1TB 14-inch M4 MacBook Pro on sale this week. The 10-core 16GB RAM/1TB model is available for $1,499.00 [Amazon/Best Buy] and the 10-core 24GB RAM/1TB model is available for $1,699.00 [Amazon/Best Buy]. Both of these are also $300 discounts and record low prices on each computer.

$300 OFFM4 14-inch MacBook Pro (16GB/1TB) for $1,499.00
$300 OFFM4 14-inch MacBook Pro (24GB/1TB) for $1,699.00

If you're on the hunt for more discounts, be sure to visit our Apple Deals roundup where we recap the best Apple-related bargains of the past week.



Deals Newsletter
Interested in hearing more about the best deals you can find in 2025? Sign up for our Deals Newsletter and we'll keep you updated so you don't miss the biggest deals of the season!




Related Roundup: Apple Deals
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President Trump will today announce that Apple will invest an additional $100 billion to support manufacturing in the United States (via Bloomberg).


The announcement is reportedly set to include a new manufacturing program to bring more of Apple's supply chain into the U.S. Apple CEO Tim Cook will appear alongside the President later today.

Apple has already announced $500 billion for US manufacturing over the next four years, including a new server manufacturing plant in Houston, a supplier academy in Michigan, and additional spending with domestic suppliers. Today's $100 billion takes Apple's total commitment to $600 billion.

The Trump administration has had a contentious relationship with Apple, threatening 25% tariffs on the company if it failed to move iPhone manufacturing to the United States. The latest announcement appears to be a detente in the relationship between the administration and the company.Tag: United States
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Recent reports have suggested Apple is actively considering bringing cellular connectivity to the Mac lineup as early as next year, but arch rival Microsoft isn't waiting around to find out – the company is launching its first 5G-enabled Surface laptop this month.


The Surface Laptop 5G is part of Microsoft's Copilot+ PC lineup aimed at business customers, featuring a 13.8-inch display and Intel Core Ultra (Series 2) processors. Microsoft says it has six "strategically placed antennas" that allow it to automatically adjust signal paths and power based on usage. The device includes both Nano SIM and eSIM options, and can also function as a hotspot for other devices.

Starting at $1,700, Microsoft says it will begin shipping its first 5G-enabled Surface laptop on August 26 with support for over 100 carriers worldwide – though its small print notes that 5G will be available "later in 2025."

The Surface Laptop's 5G capabilities come as Apple has begun deploying its custom-built C1 modem chip in some devices. The company introduced a sub-6GHz version of its 5G modem in the iPhone 16e earlier this year and is expected to include it in the upcoming iPhone 17 "Air," which will be unveiled next month.

According to a December report by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, Apple is "investigating" the possibility of adding a second-generation C2 modem to a future Mac as early as 2026. According to Gurman, Apple's next-generation C2 modem will support faster mmWave technology and is expected to arrive in 2026, debuting in Apple's iPhone 18 Pro models – with inclusion in a Mac potentially shortly after.

Apple has played with the idea of a cellular MacBook for years now. Back in 2007, the company developed MacBook Pro prototypes with integrated 3G connectivity, including a SIM card slot and an extendable cellular antenna along the right side of the lid. Despite these early experiments, Apple never released a MacBook with built-in cellular capabilities. Here's hoping 2026 will be the year it happens.Tags: C1, Microsoft Surface
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Steam will stop supporting macOS 11 Big Sur on October 15, 2025, according to Valve, requiring Mac users to upgrade to macOS Monterey or later to continue accessing the gaming platform.


The reason Steam will soon stop working on Big Sur is due to the client's reliance on an embedded version of Google Chrome, which no longer functions on older macOS versions. Future Steam updates will also require security features only available in macOS 12 and above.

Apple also discontinued security updates for Big Sur in 2023, and that's left legacy systems vulnerable to malware that could compromise Steam accounts and game performance. Valve is strongly recommending affected Mac users upgrade before the October deadline.

The announcement comes amid Steam's transition to a native Apple silicon client following Apple's stated plan to phase out Rosetta 2. Valve released the first native beta shortly after WWDC in June, signalling its dedication to continue to support Mac gaming. Testers have generally reported dramatically faster launch times and smoother navigation through the Store and Library.

Not that if you're still running Big Sur, you won't be able to launch Steam or any purchased games after the cutoff date. Tag: Steam
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Keeping track of missed calls can be challenging if you're juggling several tasks during the day. Thankfully, iOS 26 introduces a streamlined way to set callback reminders directly from the Phone app, making it less likely that you'll forget to return important calls.


Set a Callback Reminder for a Missed Call
When iOS 26 launches this fall (or if you're already on the beta), you'll be able to create callback reminders in the following way:

1. Open the Phone app.


2. Tap the Calls tab, then scroll down to Recents.


3. Swipe left across a missed call, then tap the blue clock icon.


4. Choose one of the following: Remind Me in 1 hour, Remind Me Tonight, Remind Me Tomorrow, Remind Me Later...

That's all there is to it. If you choose Remind Me Later..., you'll see a New Reminder interface where you can customize the reminder's time and date, and also choose which Reminders list it should be added to. The callback reminder will appear in your Reminders app with the contact's name, phone number, and any notes you added.

Managing Call Reminders
All call reminders appear automatically in the Reminders app. You can view, edit, or mark these reminders as complete just like any other reminder. To quickly call someone back from a reminder notification, simply tap the alert and then tap the phone icon in the reminder details.


Note that iOS 26 is currently in beta testing and will be released this fall alongside Apple's new iPhone 17 models, and the exact interface and options may vary slightly in the final release.
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Apple is no longer signing iOS 18.5, which means iPhone users who have upgraded to iOS 18.6 can no longer downgrade to the prior version of iOS. iOS 18.6 was released a little over a week ago.


"Signing" is a server-side verification check that Apple does when a new version of iOS is downloaded on an ‌iPhone‌. An update can't be downloaded and installed unless it passes the verification check, and the unsigning process prevents customers from installing outdated versions of iOS that are less secure.

Apple usually stops signing older software about a week after releasing an update, and doing so ensures that customers have the latest security improvements and are not vulnerable to known attacks.

iOS 18.6 was focused on security updates, and it addressed more than 20 vulnerabilities.
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Apple seeded the fifth developer beta of iOS 26 today, and while the number of significant changes has dropped, there are quite a few smaller tweaks. Apple is continuing to refine button placement, animations, and design in preparation for launching ‌iOS 26‌ in September.


Camera
Apple added a toggle in the Camera app to allow users to toggle on Classic Mode, a setting that reverses the scroll direction when you swap from mode to mode.


Mail
There is now a dedicated Select button in the Mail app, instead of the button being tucked away inside of the "..." menu.


AirDrop Icon
There is a new AirDrop icon in the Share Sheet.


Lock Screen
There is an animation when entering your passcode on the Lock Screen, with the numbers jumping in to place. There's also a new animation when locking the iPhone when playing music.

iOS 26 beta 5 adds a new animation to the passcode screen pic.twitter.com/ZO54DZokA9

— Aaron (@aaronp613) August 5, 2025

Control Center
There's a new bouncy animation when swiping through Control Center pages.

iOS 26 beta 5 tweaks Control Center's animation pic.twitter.com/lf33mimNIW

— Aaron (@aaronp613) August 5, 2025

Control Center Wi-Fi
The Wi-Fi button in Control Center now shows whether a Wi-Fi network is private or public when long pressing on the Wi-Fi icon. If a Wi-Fi network is password protected, it has a lock next to the Wi-Fi symbol.


Traveling Features
Apple is adding a predictive Siri feature that can determine when you are about to travel, showing suggestions for cellular connectivity while you are out of your home country.

Wallet
In the Wallet app, the "Payments" button for Apple Card is now labeled "Preauthorized Payments" to make it more clear what the button is for.


Splash Screens
There are ‌iOS 26‌ Splash Screens for more apps, giving people a preview of what's new.


Battery
There is a Dynamic Island low battery warning when the battery hits 20 percent on an ‌iPhone‌.


Dock
The Liquid Glass surrounding the Home Screen dock is wider


Fitness
There is a new icon for Fitness+ in the Fitness app.



Read More
We have additional info on all of the new features in ‌iOS 26‌ in our roundup.Related Roundups: iOS 26, iPadOS 26Related Forum: iOS 26
This article, "Everything New in iOS 26 Beta 5" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple today seeded a surprise release candidate version of macOS Sequoia 15.7, an update that will follow the ‌macOS Sequoia‌ 15.6 update from last week.


Developers can opt-in to the ‌‌macOS Sequoia‌‌ beta through the Software Update section of the System Settings app.

According to Apple's release notes, the update includes security fixes.

This update provides important security fixes and is recommended for all users.

Given the rapid escalation to release candidate status, ‌macOS Sequoia‌ 15.7 likely addresses a critical security bug. We'll likely see it released in the next few days.
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Apple has been updating some classic Mac icons during the macOS Tahoe beta, upsetting some longtime Mac users who prefer the original look. In beta 5, Apple changed the design of the built-in Mac storage icon, which you'll notice if you have it on your desktop.


The existing icon still resembled a hard disk drive, but the new icon looks like a modern solid state drive. Apple's Macs stopped using hard disk drives starting more than a decade ago. The low-cost 21.5-inch iMac was the last Mac that had a hard drive component, as it used Apple's SSD + HDD Fusion Drive. All current Macs use SSDs.

If you don't want to see the new icon, you can hide Macintosh HD from view entirely. To do so, open up the Finder app's settings and click the check mark next to "Hard disks."

Apple also updated Disk Utility and the Finder icon in earlier betas. With the Finder icon, Apple initially reversed the color scheme with the light shade on the left and the dark on the right, but the uproar was so significant that Apple had to return it to the classic color arrangement.
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Apple today released a firmware update for the 25W MagSafe Charger that is compatible with the iPhone 12 and later and the latest AirPods. The new firmware is version 2A168, up from the 2A146 firmware that came out last year. In the Settings app, the new firmware is version 148, up from 136.


Apple introduced the 2024 ‌MagSafe‌ charger alongside the iPhone 16 models back in September, and it is able to charge them at up to 25W. For the ‌iPhone‌ 12 models to the iPhone 15 models, charging is capped at 15W. Apple replaced all of its ‌MagSafe‌ chargers with the new model, and now only sells the 2024 version.

Firmware updates are released quietly over the air, and Apple does not provide release notes. We don't know what new features or bug fixes might be included in the software.

There is no clear method for updating a ‌‌MagSafe‌‌ charger's firmware, but it needs to be plugged in and connected to an Apple device for a firmware update to initiate. You can check your ‌‌MagSafe‌‌ Charger's firmware by following the instructions in our MagSafe Charger how to.Tag: MagSafe
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The latest iOS 26 beta includes imagery that confirms Apple's work on a new version of the Apple Watch Ultra, which is set to come out this fall. MacRumors contributor Aaron Perris found an Apple Watch image with a resolution that does not correspond to any current Apple Watch models.


The image suggests that the upcoming Apple Watch Ultra 3 could have a slightly larger display size, with a display resolution of 422 x 514. The current Apple Watch Ultra 2 has a 410 x 502 resolution.

We haven't heard rumors of an increase in casing size, but the Apple Watch Ultra 3 could be the same size as the current version with slimmed down bezels that allow for a larger display area.

Apple is expected to unveil the Apple Watch Ultra 3 in just over a month, alongside new iPhone 17 models and the Series 11 Apple Watch models.

Rumors suggest that the Ultra 3 will also feature satellite connectivity for off grid communication, a brighter display with a faster refresh rate, a new chip, and any health features that are coming such as blood pressure monitoring. Related Roundup: Apple Watch Ultra 2Buyer's Guide: Apple Watch Ultra (Don't Buy)Related Forum: Apple Watch
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News, tips, software, reviews, and more for Mac OS X, iPhone, iPad

iOS 26 beta 5 for iPhone and ipadOS 26 beta 5 for iPad have been made available for beta testers. The initial build is available for developer betas but the same build typically arrives soon after for public beta testers. While beta system software is intended for advanced users, technically speaking anyone can install the ... Read More

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Amazon continues to amaze with great deals on popular Apple gear, including big discounts on the AirPods Pro 2 with Hearing Aid functionality, AirPods 4, and cutting $200 off the price of basically all M4 MacBook Air models in both 13″ and 15″ display sizes. What’s not to like about big discounts that save you ... Read More

Have you ever thought that your MacBook Pro or MacBook Air trackpad could be used as a precise digital weighing scale? Maybe, maybe not, but one enterprising developer thought of exactly that idea, and has built a fun little app that transforms your trackpad into an accurate scale. This neat little apps functionality is achieved ... Read More

Amazon is offering $300 discounts on the 14″ M4 MacBook Pro model, available in multiple RAM and storage configurations. The 14″ MacBook Pro features the powerful M4 chip, 14″ XDR mini-LED display, magsafe charging, 12MP Center Stage camera, three USB-C / Thunderbolt 5 ports, SDXC card slot, HDMI port, and headphone jack, and available in ... Read More

The MacOS Tahoe 25 Public Beta program has begun, bringing the beta operating system to all interested Mac users. If you’re curious about installing and running the MacOS Tahoe 26 public beta, you’ll find this walkthrough helpful as we cover the system requirements, compatible Macs, caveats, and installation process. MacOS Tahoe 26 is intriguing with ... Read More

Amazon is continuing to offer incredible deal prices on the M4 MacBook Air series, with the 15″ model beginning at just $999 (down from $1199 retail) and the 13″ model starting at just $799 (down from $999 retail). But that’s not where the deals end, and they’re offering the same $200 discount across the board ... Read More

MacOS Sonoma and MacOS Ventura users will find security centric software updates available for their Macs, versioned as MacOS Sonoma 14.7.7 and MacOS Ventura 13.7.7. Additionally, Safari 18.6 is available for these versions of MacOS. These updates come along with macOS Sequoia 15.6 for Macs running Sequoia, and iOS 18.6, iPadOS 18.6 for iPhone and ... Read More

Apple has released iOS 18.6 for iPhone, and iPadOS 18.6 for iPad. The updates include bug fixes and security enhancements, and address an issue with Photos app where the Memory Movies were not able to be shared in some situations. Apple has also released iPadOS 17.7.9 with security fixes for select iPad models. Additionally, MacOS ... Read More

Apple has released macOS Sequoia 15.6 as a software update for Mac users. The primary focus of MacOS Sequoia 15.6 is bug fixes and security updates, and no major changes or features are expected. Aside from MacOS Sequoia 15.6, Apple has also released macOS Ventura 13.7.7 and macOS Sonoma 14.7.7 as security updates for those ... Read More

Apple has officially launched the Public Beta versions of iOS 26 for iPhone and iPadOS 26 for iPad. These public betas give everyday users early access to the latest features Apple is working on, without having to use the developer beta testing channel. If you’re a tech-savvy user who likes getting direct experience with new ... Read More

Amazon is offering all time low prices on the M4 MacBook Air series, taking $200 off each model in both 13″ and 15″ display sizes. You’ll find the M4 MacBook Air 13″ for just $799 for the 16GB/256GB base model while the 15″ base model is just $999. These deal prices are available in each ... Read More

Many people enjoy ambient background sounds of nature while working, studying, cooking, projects, meditating, focusing, amongst many other activities, and if you’re in that camp you’ll likely appreciate a fun little site called tree.fm. The tree.fm site allows you to listen to sounds of forests from around the world, and you can skip and shuffle ... Read More

Apple has started the MacOS Tahoe 26 Public Beta program, available for all interested users to explore. The first MacOS Tahoe 26 public beta build arrives a few days after the release of developer beta 4, which was also updated today with a new build number that matches the freshly released public beta. Separately, iOS ... Read More

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Time to power down for good.

One of the best mobile DACs I've reviewed, the iFi GO bar Kensei is a masterclass in build quality, and quality features, with audiophile-grade pricing

Have audiophile aspirations and a "beer wallet?" Fiio's KA11 delivers without breaking the bank if you have a solid pair of headphones or IEMs.

A wealth of features, a speedy pan and tilt motor, and smart security features make the Tapo TC73 the best on the market right now.

Aqara gets a lot right with their Smart Video Doorbell G4, including pricing and features. However, if your porch is tight, its aspect ratio may leave you a bit in the blind.

Smart privacy features, Wi-Fi 6, f/2.0 lens, and wallet-friendly pricing make the Aqara Camera E1 tough to beat.

This mobile Bluetooth DAC has it all! Beautiful design, highly functional features, and excellent sound quality make this my top pick right now.

Who says your indoor security camera needs to be all business to be effective? The Aqara Camera Hub G3 is long on features and fun!

This smooth DAC from iFi is a solid performer for those wanting to level up their desktop audio experience.

Paying just $60 for this high-quality DAC means you can spend your money where it counts most, high-quality headphones.

What you get for $100 with the Qudelix-5K is quite impressive, but that's just the beginning. Wait until you crack open the app! It's PEQ heaven.

Combining a great indoor PT camera, Zigbee hub, and a huge list of accessories to connect to makes the Aqara Camera Hub G2H Pro a HomeKit standout!

The former design lead at Apple has teamed up with Sam Altman’s artificial intelligence company.

Nebula's newest projector has already replaced my 4K television — but it comes with a price.

Anker has announced its updated MagGo range for 2024, which includes new power banks, stands, and more.

The Razer Huntsman V3 Pro Tenkeyless is a mechanical keyboard that you can make (almost) entirely your own, even without macOS support for its Synapse customisation app.

With my iPhone 16 Pro arriving on September 20, I'm already planning to buy these accessories for it.

With macOS Sequoia now available, I've bought these three accessories to help me multitask to the next level.

Now that iOS 18 is out, we’ve rounded up the best apps for your iPhone's newest update!

visionOS 2 is the first major software update for Apple Vision Pro, and now it's available for everyone to install after months of beta updates.

The latest software update for Macs is now available. You can install macOS Sequoia (version 15) on your device for some big upgrades.

After months of beta releases, Apple is finally rolling out the watchOS 11 update to all Apple Watch users with the Series 6 or newer.

Apple is officially rolling out iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 to all users, after months of beta releases. But, it launches without any Apple Intelligence features.

iOS 18 will feature a 'Repair Assistant', to help indicate what parts will work with your broken iPhone.

A plastic version of the Apple Watch SE 3 is still in development, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.

Netflix's app update is ending support for iOS 16, affecting older iPhones that can't run iOS 17 onward.

Apple Intelligence is now only available on iPhone 16 and 16 Pro models, unless you buy a used iPhone 15 Pro.

Geekbench results for iPhone 16 Pro suggest it'll be a powerhouse that could outperform your MacBook.

Your new iPhone won't include Apple Stickers, reports suggest, but you can ask for them if you feel nostalgic.

Apple's Senior Vice President of Hardware Technologies, Johny Srouji, has confirmed all new iPhone 16 models have 8GB of RAM.

Apple has confirmed third-party app stores will be available on the iPad from tomorrow, September 16.

You can now preorder iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro directly from Apple's site as well as select carriers!

The Apple Store is down in advance of iPhone 16 pre-orders.

Apple has received FDA clearance for its new hearing aids feature for the AirPods Pro 2.

Apple's iPhone 16 features up to 45W wired charging across the board.