Keep track of your keys the smart way: Attach an AirTag to them with KeySmart Air. Photo: Cult of Mac Deals
The KeySmart Air is a smart AirTag key holder that offers a major improvement over your standard AirTag keychain. Instead of connecting your AirTag to an existing keychain, the KeySmart Air becomes your keychain.
Get lifetime access to online learning courses for only $24.97. Photo: Cult of Mac Deals
Learning something new is supposed to be exciting and rewarding. But how can you do it as an adult without enrolling in traditional college courses? Easy — check out StackSkills Unlimited.
This online platform offers hundreds of courses in a wide variety of subjects, and you can get access to them all for life for only $29.97 (regularly $600). You won’t find this amazing platform anywhere else. And this incredible deal ends tonight!
Californians will soon be able to add their driver’s licenses and state IDs to Apple Wallet. Photo: Apple
California residents will soon gain the ability to add their driver’s licenses and state IDs to Apple Wallet, Apple said Thursday. The feature will let users present their identification using just an iPhone or Apple Watch rather than using a physical card. California drivers licenses in Apple Wallet is a big step forward for the program, given that the Golden State is the country’s most populous, with nearly 40 million residents.
“We’re excited to be working with the state of California to bring IDs in Apple Wallet to Apple’s home state soon, and provide residents with an easy, secure, and private way to present their California driver’s license and state ID in person and in app using Apple Wallet,” said Jennifer Bailey, Apple’s vice president of Apple Pay and Apple Wallet.
“Whether using IDs in Apple Wallet to breeze through travel, or to securely verify age or identity at businesses, California driver’s licenses and state IDs in Apple Wallet make ID presentment seamless — all with the security built into iPhone and Apple Watch,” she added.
The side button does much more than you think. Who needs an action button? Image: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac
The iPhone 15 Pro’s customizable Action button lets you pick from several presets, including Accessibility — which lets you choose from 25 different accessibility features that you can toggle on or off. These features aren’t limited to the iPhone 15 Pro’s Action button, either. On any older iPhone, you can simply triple-click the side button to access those same 25 accessibility features.
Here are all 25 of the accessibility features you can assign to a button on your iPhone — and what they do.
The new Kardashian colors for Beats Fit Pro are like her previous neutral tones for Feats Fit Pro earbuds. Photo: Apple
The new Beats Studio Pro x Kim Kardashian over-ear headphones came out Thursday in moon, dune and earth colors, broadening the noise-canceling cans’ color palette with some neutral Kardashian hues a la her previous Beats Fit Pro earbuds release. But the over-ear cans in new colors cost full price, at $350, whereas it’s not difficult these days to find the four regular colors on sale for about $180.
“I’m so excited we’re bringing these three popular, chic colors to Beats’ most iconic and advanced headphones,” Kardashian said in press materials. “Beats Studio has always been a fashion statement, so I can’t wait to see how everyone styles them.”
★★★★☆
ESR Rebound Magnetic Keyboard Case 360 lets iPad users type in portrait mode, not only landscape. Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
ESR’s Rebound Magnetic Keyboard Case 360 includes a protective case for an iPad as well as a keyboard and trackpad. It offers typing with the tablet in portrait or landscape, a trick Apple’s own case/keyboard can’t match. You also can use the case when you leave the keyboard behind.
I tested it with my 13-inch iPad Pro. Here are my hands-on impressions.
The J.D. Power 2024 U.S. Credit Card Satisfaction Study named Apple Card the Best Co-Branded Credit Card for Customer Satisfaction with No Annual Fee. Photo: Apple
For the fourth year running, Apple Card is tops in customer satisfaction, along with issuer Goldman Sachs, according to the 2024 U.S. Credit Card Satisfaction Study by J.D. Power. They came out No. 1 in their segment, co-branded credit cards with no annual fee.
On this day in 1998, the world said "hello" to the computer that would save Apple. Photo: Apple
August 15, 1998: The original iMac — Apple’s brightly colored, translucent Macintosh relaunch — goes on sale to a rabid audience. Steve Jobs’ first major new product since returning to Apple, the internet-ready iMac G3 line will cement his legacy as a forward-thinking tech visionary.
The all-in-one computer also introduces the world to the design talents of Jony Ive — and pretty much saves Apple in the process.
Until now, new users had to pay a yearly subscription fee of €1.50 with VAT. This allowed Riley Testut to cover the Core Technology Fee (CTE), which Apple charges from third-party EU app stores.
Sonos’ new mobile app is so bad that the company is reportedly considering bringing back its old S2 app. The company released its revamped mobile app in May this year, just a few weeks before the Sonos Ace launched.
Since then, Sonos users have criticized the app for missing basic features.
The teaser trailer doesn't tell us much. Photo: Apple TV+
The enigmatic teaser trailer Apple TV+ dropped Wednesday for psychological thriller series Disclaimer, from Oscar-winning director Alfonso Cuarón and starring Oscar winners Cate Blanchett and Kevin Kline, disclaims very little beyond a dark and foreboding mood and a warning to “be aware” of the assumptions that color our understanding of a story.
The seven-episode limited series debuts on Apple TV+ October 11.
UPDATE: After publishing the initial post, I realized a clever deep fake appears to be in play in the trailer’s narration, so I thought I’d better mention it (better late than never!) It only took seven days after posting about the trailer for me to realize I knew the narrator’s voice. And it seems she never said what she seemed to say in the trailer. See below.
Surely, Apple's iPad-on-a-stick won't look like this AI-generated monstrosity. But you get the idea. AI image: Midjourney/Cult of Mac
Apple is reportedly ramping up work on a tabletop computer that’s essentially an iPad on a robot arm that can rotate and tilt the tablet to keep it facing the user.
This might be the source of previous rumors of a HomePod with a large screen.
Apple Watch Series 9 takes the prize at the iPhone giant's top-selling wearble. Image: Apple
A new study sheds light on which Apple Watch model consumers buy most — and least, and in between — Consumer Intelligence Research Partners (CIRP) said Wednesday. Enthusiasts who assume the most popular Apple Watch model must be the biggest and best (Ultra 2) or the most cost-effective (SE2) miss the mark. They might be surprised that middle-market Series 9 takes the crown, followed by Series 8, which Apple no longer even sells.
Ensure your AirPods are the real deal. Image: Cult of Mac
Fake AirPods are a bigger problem than you might think. With so many legit-looking AirPods clones floating around, it can prove difficult to spot counterfeit earbuds.
However, you can take several steps to see if the AirPods you are contemplating buying — or that you already bought — are genuine Apple products.
With iOS 18.1, developers will gain access to API enabling secure, in-app NFC payments. Photo: Square
The introduction of NFC and Secure Element (SE) APIs in iOS 18.1 unlocks new monetization opportunities for iOS app developers, Apple said Wednesday — though fees apply. But on the plus side, secure in-app near-field communication (NFC) transactions in iOS 18.1 will let devs integrate secure, contactless transactions directly within their apps on iPhone, independent of Apple Pay and Apple Wallet.
If you think there's something wrong with Face ID on your iPad, it could be it's set to be too picky. Graphic: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
I’ve read complaints online that Face ID on iPads is defective. I think what’s happening instead is that the biometric security system in Apple’s tablets has been set to be overly exacting. If it seems like Face ID is not working on your iPad, changing a single security setting can help.
I turned off the Require Attention setting on my iPad Pro and it made Face ID noticeably better. Presto, unlocking anything on my iPad became quick and easy. Previously, it felt like the computer was working to avoid giving me access.
Admittedly, changing this setting made my tablet a little bit less secure. But that’s a very small risk for a significant gain in usability. I recommend it to anyone who uses an iPad and thinks Face ID is not working properly.
In the fourth leg of "The Relay" race, a wheelchair racer takes on a runner in the 400m. Photo: Apple
Ahead of the Paralympic Games in Paris, a new Apple video called ‘”The Relay” shows athletes with and without disabilities training and then competing together in a series of events. Each competitor shows the same drive, dedication and spirit — all with the help of Apple gear, of course.
“Apple products are designed for every athlete,” reads the video tagline. “And every body.”
A judge's decision proves very damaging to Apple. Image: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
August 14, 1991: As Apple and Microsoft head to court to battle each other, the tide begins to turn against Cupertino and its claims that Windows unlawfully copies the look and feel of Mac OS. A judge’s ruling calls into question the basic tenet of Apple’s copyright lawsuit against Microsoft over Windows 2.03.
The case concerns whether key elements of Apple’s operating system are original enough for copyright protection. The decision turns out to be a major blow against Apple — and the start of the company’s 1990s decline.
In this setup, one arm mounted on the desk handles the laptop and two external displays. Photo: [email protected]
Today’s featured MacBook Pro setup belongs to a coder in Panama who uses two excellent stands to lift almost all of his gear off his desk. One’s a microphone arm doubling as a headphone stand. The other, more-substantial rig is a Vivo Dual Monitor Desk Mount that holds aloft two external displays and a MacBook Pro on a tray. That really tidies up the desk.
Vince Vaughn stars in the new Apple TV+ comedy series "Bad Monkey." Photo: Apple TV+
Curiously, a furry primate only shows up in glimpses in Wednesday’s new trailer for Bill Lawrence’s new Apple TV+ comedy series Bad Monkey. Not counting glib ex-detective Vince Vaughn, that is. Lawrence brought us vaunted comedy smash hit Ted Lasso, by the way.
The show, based on Carl Hiaasen’s New York Times-bestselling novel, debuts on Apple TV+ on August 14.
UPDATE: The new 10-episode comedy series Bad Monkey from Ted Lasso creator Bill Lawrence is now streaming on Apple TV+ as of Wednesday. Vince Vaughn stars as a disgraced Miami detective who might get his job back if he can just transport a severed arm from point A to point B, and maybe prove murder along the way. Reviews so far seem to like Vaughn in the wise-cracking role, with a few caveats. Time‘s review headline: “Bad Monkey Is a Beachy Crime Drama Drowning in Ted Lasso Quirk.” You can watch and decide if that’s a good thing or a bad thing.
An array of iPhones will act as video assistant referees at soccer matches in England. Photo: Markus Spiske/Pexels
Correctly determining when soccer players are offside turns out to be surprisingly difficult. And the English Premier League turned to an unusual source for a fix: an offside-detection system powered by dozens of iPhones.
The same system might someday be used to track players in other sports, too.
Get a back-to-school Apple laptop at a back-to-school price. Photo: Cult of Mac Deals
Your old computer might have gasped its way through last semester, but if you’re getting ready for fall classes, it might be time for a machine that can handle more than two Chrome tabs. No, that doesn’t mean you must take your financial aid and hand it all over for a big fancy computer with a big fancy price tag. Instead, check out the specs on a refurbished Intel MacBook Air.
Grab a discount on the Tykr stock screener and make the most of your investments. Photo: Cult of Mac Deals
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The Tykr stock screener analyzes stocks for you and teaches you how and where to invest. Your first wise investment? Grabbing it before this deal expires. During this sale, you can get a lifetime subscription to Tykr for just $120 when you use code SAVENOW at checkout.
Applications for the fifth Apple Entrepreneur Camp are now open. And it will include in-person sessions for the first time. Photo: Apple
Apple just opened applications for its fifth annual Entrepreneur Camp, and for the first time since it started in 2019, it will feature in-person sessions, Apple Developer said Tuesday. Until now it’s been all-virtual, mainly due to COVID-19 pandemic precautions.
Apple called the camp “a one-on-one, product-focused technology lab designed to empower underrepresented founders and developers, elevate their app-driven businesses and build dynamic communities.”
The Action button opens a world of possibilities. Image: Apple/D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac
You can go beyond the basics if you customize the iPhone’s Action button with shortcuts. You can make a fart sound, or get ChatGPT to help you write an email, or just about anything else you dream up.
Apple lets you assign the iPhone’s Action button to one of eight preassigned things — but if you choose Shortcut, you can do much more. Shortcuts offer a way to reach inside an app and automatically run a feature without opening it. With the iPhone 16’s Action button, you have a physical button you can press no matter what you’re doing on your phone, adding quick access to custom actions.
Some power users use the Action button to do incredibly useful (or frivolous) things. I’ll show you how to do the same — and also how you can trick your phone into assigning two or more shortcuts to the single Action button.