Apple released updates for iOS, iPadOS and macOS on Wednesday that fix a variety of small problems. These aren’t big changes, but if you’ve got one of the problems outlined in the release notes, they should prove quite welcome indeed.
Here’s how Apple describes today’s updates — iOS 13.6.1 (and the iPad equivalent) and macOS Catalina 10.15.6 supplemental update:
This standup setup is definitely ready for its close-up. Artfully outfitted by Fujifilm North America salesman Brandon Remler, it sports a pair of laptops. But the real focus falls on Remler’s array of cameras, both film and digital.
“I do primarily use digital,” Remler told Cult of Mac in an email. “I did film for 20 years and it has a great feel and experience. Now moved on to Fujifilm GFX system. Gfx100 or Gfx50 — as well as our other Fujifilm x series (have one of everything so it’s not fair ;-).”
The next Goodfellas or Taxi Driver might be an Apple Original. Cupertino signed Martin Scorcese’s Sikelia Productions to a first-look deal that will see him direct and produce films and TV shows for Apple TV+.
It’s the latest high-profile pact signed by Apple execs as they seek to corner the market on the world’s most talented visual creators. The company continues to hustle, buying big-name properties and signing directors, actors, producers and other top Hollywood talent to exclusive deals.
Apple previously signed multiyear deals with Ridley Scott, Leonardo DiCaprio, Alfonso Cuarón, Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Idris Elba. Snagging Scorsese adds another top-shelf visual storyteller to the mix.
Parallels Desktop 16 for Mac launched Tuesday, bringing new features and performance enhancements that mean the virtualization software delivers the “ultimate Windows-on-Mac experience,” the company said.
The update also preps the popular software for the upcoming release of macOS Big Sur. That required a major effort from Parallels’ engineers.
“We had to re-engineer all of the (kernel extensions) that we would need from scratch to work with the new macOS kext that’s integrated into the product,” said John Uppendahl, Parallels’ VP of global communications, during an online briefing about the software. “And to give you context, that alone took 25 man-years of engineering work.”
We’re all going to miss Phil Schiller now that he’s stepped down from his role as Apple’s marketing chief. He was a close friend of Steve Jobs, and he played a major role in Cupertino for decades.
To be clear, he’s not leaving Apple entirely. Instead, he became an Apple Fellow (and he’ll run the App Store and Apple Events). Still, it’s a big change for Cupertino. In tribute to an Apple OG, let’s take a trip down memory lane and relive Phil Schiller’s greatest hits.
That post is just one of the good reads you’ll find in this week’s free issue of Cult of Mac Magazine. Download it now and get all the week’s top Apple news, reviews and how-tos in an easy-to-read package.
For law teacher Craig Smith, working from home meant improvising. And the inexpensive but effective DIY setup he concocted throws together a couple of strange Apple bedfellows: He uses a vintage PowerBook G4 to elevate his main computer, an 11-inch iPad Pro.
“I needed a little more room to spread out and not feel claustrophobic,” Smith told Cult of Mac. “So, I moved my setup to the dining room table that seats six, as I have little need these days to use it as a spot to actually dine.”
That’s when he got creative with ergonomics and pressed his vintage PowerBook into service as an iPad stand.
If you put your fitness goals on the back burner due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s time to turn up the heat. And if you own an Apple Watch, the wonderful wearable is your ultimate post-lockdown fitness pal.
These tips will help you get back in shape, post-lockdown, with a little help from your friend. Find out how in this week’s free issue of Cult of Mac Magazine. Download it now to read on your iOS device, or follow the links below to read this week’s top Apple news, how-tos and reviews in your browser.
This week, you’ll get the scoop on another surprisingly good Apple earnings call. Plus, a full rundown of Tim Cook’s relatively painless appearance during a congressional antitrust hearing.
The 2020 iPhones likely won’t arrive until October at the earliest, Apple said during Thursday’s earnings call.
“Last year we started selling new iPhones in late September,” said Apple CFO Luca Maestri. “This year, we project supply to be available a few weeks later.”
Apple’s board of directors has approved a four-to-one stock split, the company said Thursday. AAPL stock, which closed Thursday at $384.76, should go for around $100 a share when the split occurs in late August.
The news, revealed in Apple’s blowout Q3 2020 earnings report, means investors with one share at close of business on Aug. 24 will be given three additional shares trading at one-fourth the price. It’s basically a psychological move that makes Apple stock seem more affordable.
Apple CEO Tim Cook defended App Store business practices and said his company treats all software developers equally as he faced questioning Wednesday in front of the House Judiciary antitrust subcommittee.
Cook said it’s in Apple’s best interest to treat devs fairly. The company wants the best and brightest to write iOS apps, he said, because killer software proves essential for a company engaged in a “street fight for market share in the smartphone business.”
Dimpy Bhalotia’s captivating pictures racked up big wins at this week’s prestigious iPhone Photography Awards. Find out how she does it — and how you can take better pictures with your iPhone — in this week’s issue of Cult of Mac Magazine. The free iOS mag was built for reading on your iPad or iPhone.
Grab it now and get your weekend reading squared away. We filled it with how-tos for all your Apple gear and reviews of things like new podcast Apple News Today. Plus, you’ll get your fill of Apple news (like Cupertino’s big commitment to go 100% carbon neutral).
Download it now. Or hit the links below to read the stories in your browser.
Facebook Messenger’s new App Lock feature lets you add an extra layer of security to the popular chat app. iPhone and iPad users can switch on Face ID or Touch ID so they never need to worry about anybody seeing their messages.
The previously rumored feature, which Facebook rolled out for iOS devices Wednesday, is easy to enable. Plus, you can tweak a setting to make sure App Lock works ideally for you. Here’s all you need to do to turn on Face ID or Touch ID for Facebook Messenger.
Apple News Today, the breezy new podcast showcasing the day’s top news stories, sounds perfectly peppy and polished. Maybe too perfectly polished, in fact — you won’t find a single rough edge on this slickly produced daily news report, which Apple unleashed last week with iOS 13.6. You will endure no energized, partisan rants, either. These straight-down-the-middle reports won’t get your blood boiling while you make your morning coffee or tea. If you’re tired of partisanship, this is the antidote.
What you will find in the weekday audio show is steady promotion of the Apple News app, and of Apple News+, the company’s reportedly struggling subscription news service. This upbeat and earnest free daily news briefing basically functions as a Trojan horse for getting in the ears of potential Apple News+ subscribers.
If you’ve always dreamed of running a Windows or Mac operating system on iPhone or iPad, this is your lucky day. We’ve got how-tos that show you how to run Windows XP or Mac OS X on an iOS device. It turns out it’s not that difficult — and it doesn’t require a jailbreak!
If you’re not up for a weekend project like that, don’t worry. We’ve got plenty of other good reading in this week’s free issue of Cult of Mac Magazine. Download it now and enjoy all the week’s top stories on your iPad or iPhone.
It’s got plenty of Apple news, including info on iOS 13.6 and the other software updates Apple released this week.
Apple released iOS 13.6 Wednesday, boosting its Apple News offering and bringing other new features to iPhone and iPad.
As expected, the company added audio versions of key stories from Apple News+, the paid version of its news aggregation service. Apple also added a new daily audio show called Apple News Today, which is available in the free version of the Apple News app.
In addition, the company beefed up its list of organizations pumping news content into the service. However, the Apple News audio features will only be available to U.S. users, the company said.
If you owned an iPhone that took a performance hit after a controversial iOS update, Apple might owe you $25. The payments follow Apple’s settlement of a class-action lawsuit over “Batterygate.”
However, to get your check, your claim must be received by October 6, 2020. Find out how to apply for a Batterygate payment, and exactly what you need to qualify, below.
Today, the App Store is a part of every iPhone owner’s life — but it almost didn’t happen. Get the story behind that near-miss, plus some other fascinating App Store factoids, in this week’s issue of Cult of Mac Magazine.
It’s free, and it also packs the latest Apple news and how-tos. Plus, this week we’ve got reviews of three new Apple TV+ offerings, including Tom Hanks’ World War II movie, Greyhound.
Download it now and enjoy it on your favorite iOS device. (Or use the links below to read in your browser.)
If you’re applying for jobs and want to help recruiters avoid an awkward moment as they struggle to pronounce your name, a new LinkedIn feature can help.
It just takes a minute to record the proper pronunciation of your name and add the audio clip to the networking and job-search platform. Here’s how to do potential recruiters a solid — and how to have a little (possibly ill-advised) fun if you dare.
Tom Hanks said Tuesday that Apple TV+ “saved the day” by releasing his new World War II movie during the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic. In fact, the actor couldn’t say enough good things about Apple when he hit The Today Show to promo Greyhound, which debuts on Apple TV+ this Friday.
All the happy talk came a day after Hanks made headlines for calling Greyhound’s upcoming streaming debut an “absolute heartbreak.”
Choetech’s Dual Wireless Charger is so convenient and reasonably priced that it’s always a no-brainer to recommend. And that’s before the gigantic discount you can get on this two-up wireless charging mat at Amazon today.
Logitech launched Mac versions of its popular MX Keys and MX Master 3 on Tuesday, giving the pro keyboard and mouse a space gray makeover and adding some Apple-specific tweaks.
Most of the changes seem totally awesome for the “Mac purists” Logitech is targeting with these high-end accessories. One change might not be so welcome, though, depending on your experience with Bluetooth peripherals.
The company also released a new Mac-oriented version of its smaller K380 keyboard in white and pink color options.
David William Hearn, co-creator of revolutionary iPad music notation app StaffPad, reveals the decade-long quest that earned the app an Apple Design Award.
You’ll find that story, plus the usual roundup of iPhone and Mac news and rumors, in this week’s free issue of Cult of Mac Magazine. It’s packed with Apple how-tos and reviews, too. Download it to read the slick iOS mag on your iPad, or hit the links below to get the stories in your browser.
P.S. Don’t miss our Fourth of July sale in the Cult of Mac Store.
The Elegiant Wire Tracker looks unassuming, but it helped me solve a frustrating problem: identifying the Ethernet cables buried behind the walls of my house. The inexpensive kit consists of a little plastic probe about the size of a Polish sausage and an emitter about the size of an iPhone (only it’s an inch or so thick).
It’s made of blue plastic, so it doesn’t pack that heavyweight “pro” feel, but it seems fairly durable. And if you need to figure out which Ethernet cable goes where, it gets the job done.
It might seem totally impossible in 2020, but upcoming Apple TV+ documentary Boys State makes politics look fun. The first trailer, which Apple released Tuesday, introduces some of the real-life young men who engage in an annual Texas tradition that’s basically summer camp for citizens.
That might sound nerdy and dry, but the first promo spot crackles with energy. It feels almost like a mashup of Election, Dazed and Confused and Napoleon Dynamite (with a little bit of Little America and, hopefully, Meatballs, thrown in to spice things up).
We didn’t get the new Apple hardware we expected during this week’s WWDC keynote, but we did get a whole bunch of hot new software. Get our take on upcoming updates to Apple’s biggest platforms — macOS Big Sur, iOS 14, iPadOS 14, watchOS 7 and more — in this week’s free issue of Cult of Mac Magazine.
Don’t miss our roundup of all the cool “hidden” iOS 14 features that Apple couldn’t squeeze into its slick virtual keynote. We’ll also toss in the rest of our coverage of this year’s Worldwide Developers Conference, plus some handy how-tos and reviews. Read it all in the free mag (which you can download from the App Store) or in the links below.