Hackers using forged emergency law enforcement requests got user data from Apple and Meta. Photo: Clint Patterson
In the middle of last year, Apple and Facebook parent company Meta Platforms gave customer data to hackers. They enticed the companies by pretending to be law enforcement officials, three people with knowledge of the matter said.
Chicago-based artist Belinda Kuo mainly uses an iPad Air, Apple Pencil and the Procreate app in her work. Photo: Apple
In the latest installment of a series in which Apple showcases artists and professionals using its devices, Chicago-based lettering artist Belinda Kou explained how an iPad Air diverted her from studies in biopsychology to an art career.
One of these is an iMac and the other is the Apple Studio Display. Which is which? Photo: iFixit
iFixit showed people the interior of the new Apple Studio Display next to a partially disassembled iMac and asked them to pick which is which. You can play along at home by looking at the image above.
Most people got it wrong. Apple’s latest external monitor (on the left) is packed with features, and that’s reflected in its surprisingly complex internal design.
iFixit put the device through a full teardown and found that many of the most important components of the new external monitor showed up in previous Apple devices.
The Carrot Weather, known for snarky forecasts and powerful features, just got a big update. Photo: Carrot Weather
If weather apps were judged solely on snarky attitude, there would be one clear favorite: Carrot Weather. But even judged by factors like tracking the weather and variety of features, it’s a darned good app. And now, with a major update released Wednesday “to celebrate the triumphant return of allergy season,” it’s even better.
Bad news: Looks like an iPhone with an in-display Touch ID scanner will remain only a dream. Concept: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
An in-screen fingerprint scanner won’t be part of any iPhone for at least three years, according to a trusted analyst. That raises the strong possibility that Touch ID will never again be part of Apple’s flagship smartphones — despite occasional rumors to the contrary.
Apple may have abandoned the idea after a recent improvement to Face ID.
Is it OK to rest your display on top of your Mac mini? Photo: techsteveo@Reddit.com
We’ve written about storing a Mac mini in an upright rather than a flat position to save space. It’s OK to do if the machine’s intake and exhaust vents are not blocked. But what about using your Mac mini as a stand for a display, as in today’s featured computer setup?
It’s not necessarily quite as cut-and-dried as the upright mini question. Whether it’s totally fine or a little risky depends a little more on the specific Mac mini and the kind of monitor you use.
Elisabeth Moss stars in the series and serves as executive producer. Photo: Apple TV+
When Apple TV+ put out its first, brief trailer in February for its upcoming metaphysical-horror-thiller Shining Girls, it looked disturbing and disorienting. Now the streaming service has put out the first full trailer for the show, which stars Elisabeth Moss and premieres April 29.
If anything, Shining Girls looks even more unsettling — but almost to the point of absurdity.
The new Ambio OS now supports AirPlay 2 for use with Ambio soundbars. Photo: Sennheiser
German audio powerhouse Sennheiser rolled out its Ambeo operating system for Ambeo soundbars Tuesday, adding AirPlay 2 support and more. The company also distributed a major software update to its Smart Control app, adding new features.
Automatic updates are designed to drop late. Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
iPhone and iPad users should manually install the latest iOS and iPadOS updates if they want to get their hands on Apple’s newest features and improvements as quickly as possible, according to one Cupertino chief.
Craig Federighi, Apple’s senior vice president of software engineering, confirmed that automatic software updates don’t drop until one to four weeks after the company makes them available to manual updaters.
'We put people first in everything that we do.' Photo: Apple
Apple on Wednesday revealed a new Supplier Employee Development Fund that will offer $50 million to expand access to learning and skills development.
The fund includes new partnerships with leading right advocates, universities, and nonprofits, Apple said. Cupertino will also focus on working alongside supply chain partners to “amplify worker voice” and support rights programs.
Apple just cannot avoid new App Store complaints. Image: Apple
Apple faces an incredibly pricey lawsuit in the Netherlands, where the company is accused of “market dominance,” “anti-competitive practices,” and overcharging App Store users for apps and in-app subscriptions.
The Consumer Competition Claims Foundation believes Apple has been able to charge “excessively high prices” by excluding all competition and then abusing its “monopoly position.” It says damages could total $5.5 billion.
There may soon be yet another streaming service to add to your roster. The National Football League is said to be considering a platform of its own, dubbed NFL+, that will stream live games to smartphones, tablets, and laptops.
NFL+ could also provide access to radio, podcasts and team content, according to a new report, which claims teams were briefed on the plans at the annual NFL owners’ meeting that recently took place in Palm Beach, Florida.
It's now easier to send silent messages, GIFs, payments, and more. Image: Meta
Facebook Messenger? Meta Messenger? Just Messenger? We don’t know what it’s supposed to be called these days. But we do know it just added a bunch of useful, Slack-like shortcuts that help you get things done faster.
You can use them to silently deliver messages without notifications, to find the perfect GIF, to send payments and more — all without having to fiddle around inside menus. And Meta says even more are coming later this year.
A careful examination of a photo of an early Apple prototype finds it carries an unexpected name. Photo: Paul Terrell/Apple-1 Registry
The first computer built by Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak is the Apple-1, right? Not quite. Turns out before that was the “Apple Computer A.”
Unfortunately, the actual Apple prototype with that name was not found. But pictures of it from 1976 were. And they show details of this handmade Apple prototype.
Be careful who you buy that used iPhone from. If it’s hot, Apple won‘t ever fix it. Photo: iFixit
An iPhone reported missing or stolen to an industry database can not be repaired at an Apple Store, according to a new company policy.
This means that people need to be careful who they buy from. If they get a deal on a device that turns out to be stolen, they might not able to get it fixed.
Twenty hours of playback between charges? Not bad. Photo: Audio-Technica
One of the impressive features of the growing number of moderately priced, high-quality earbuds on the market is just how long playback lasts between charges. That’s in part because the case where you store them also charges them. But Audio-Technica just rolled out a new set of earbuds that really moves the needle on battery life.
The company’s new ATH-CKS50TW Solid Bass Truly Wireless Earbuds claim up to 20 hours of continuous playback on a single charge, or 50 hours counting the case’s charge. All that, plus the new buds feature low latency and active noise-cancellation (ANC).
You'll look like a real filmmaker carrying this thing around. Photo: Moment
Moment added to its lineup of MagSafe-compatible accessories for iPhone Tuesday with three new products and two product updates. The marquee event is the rollout of the Mobile Filmmaker Cage to enhance your iPhone video shooting.
The cage co-stars with the new Moment Strap Anywhere Mount and the new Stick-on Adapter, which can help mount your smartphone in a variety of situations.
Play ball! Friday Night Baseball on Apple TV+ starts April 8. Photo: Paul Lim/Flickr CC
Apple TV+ got lucky with timing of the April 8 debut of Friday Night Baseball. The live sports show will start with the much-anticipated New York Mets debut of three-time Cy Young winner and eight-time All-Star Max Scherzer in a matchup with All-Star Juan Soto and the Washington Nationals.
That game will be followed by the Houston Astros versus the Los Angeles Angels. These weekly doubleheaders are free to watch and available to anyone with internet access (in eight countries to start). And they’re only on Apple TV+, with no subscription required (for a limited time).
Apple Watch Series 7 owners are suffering more charging problems just two months after earlier issues were eliminated. Some owners report that fast charging is broken after installing the latest watchOS 8.5 update.
Faster charging is one of Apple Watch Series 7’s biggest selling points. Top-ups are supposed to be around 33% quicker than on previous models — but only if you’re using the right charging accessories.
We should be able to locate every type of Apple accessory with Find My. Image: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
I’ve misplaced my AirPods case. It’s in my house … somewhere. Fortunately, I can use the Find My app to locate it, as though it were a lost AirPod or AirTag.
Ha, ha, ha! No, I can’t. AirPods cases don’t offer Find My support. Just as the feature is missing from far too many other Apple accessories.
This needs to change. Find My is amazing, but limited by not being on devices that need it.
Update:In autumn 2022, Apple built Find My support into AirPods Pro 2, a sign that the tracking system might be coming to more peripherals.
Apple’s share price was up 0.5% at the end of trading on Monday, marking a 10th consecutive increase for the first time in more than a decade.
That’s despite reports that indicate Apple has been forced to slash iPhone SE 3 orders due to weaker-than-expected demand. But one analyst says investors are more interested in the performance of iPhone 14 later this year.
Better than iTunes in every single way. Image: Cider Collective
iTunes has become a slow and bloated mess over the years — which is why it no longer exists on Mac. But for those who are stuck with Windows, suffering iTunes is necessary if you want to enjoy Apple Music. Or is it?
There are other ways to take advantage of your Apple Music subscription on third-party machines. You could use the web app in a browser of your choice, or you could download Cider, a new and far greater iTunes alternative.
Cider, which is also available on Mac if you aren’t happy with the default Music app, offers a clean and simple user interface and almost all of the features we’ve come to expect from Apple’s streaming service — plus extras.
Don’t you just hate it when you accidentally refresh TikTok and lose the video you were watching? It can be incredibly difficult to track down the video again if you don’t know which account posted it. But a solution could be on the way.
TikTok is finally testing a new “watch history” feature where you’ll find all the clips you’ve recently consumed. It’s only available in the beta version of the TikTok app for now — but it could soon roll out to everyone.