The itty-bitty Samsung USB Type-C Flash Drive is now available with up to 512GB of storage capacity — twice as much as before. And the company’s miniature USB-A version also doubled in capacity.
Plus, the 256GB versions are on sale at some nice discounts.
The cost of streaming Disney+, Hulu and ESPN+ goes up this autumn. The three streaming video services are ready to watch on Mac, iPad, iPhone or Apple TV. It’ll just cost a bit more in a few months.
The new prices could be important to those currently getting these services free or cheaply by sharing passwords. Disney CEO Bob Iger warned that a crackdown on the practice starts soon.
August 7, 2006: Apple unleashes the first Mac Pro, a high-end desktop computer that completes the company’s transition from PowerPC to Intel processors.
Built for computation-heavy tasks like 3D rendering and professional audio and video editing, the quad-core, 64-bit Mac Pro serves as a replacement for the Power Mac G5 (from which it borrows its aluminum “cheese grater” design).
We’ve seen quite a few instances of stacked external displays in setups, but today’s M2 MacBook Pro rig might be the first time we’ve seen Studio Displays mounted that way. With all the questions commenters asked about the workstation, the user ended up laying out quite a few points about why it works great.
Flip a switch in iOS 18 and the Camera app will add music playing on an iPhone to the video being recorded on the device. It’s an easy way to add background music to a video.
Just be careful about copyright violations.
Apple will make bypassing Gatekeeper’s runtime protection harder in macOS Sequoia by doing away with a handy shortcut that allows Mac users to avoid security restrictions for software that doesn’t come from the App Store.
The company announced this change Tuesday following the release of macOS Sequoia public beta 3.
Apple is set to bolster Apple Arcade gaming with three exciting new titles in September. NFL Retro Bowl ’25 headlines the additions. It’s an exclusive collaboration between the National Football League and the creators of the popular App Store game Retro Bowl.
Apple should never have entered into the deal that had Google paying billions every year to be the default search engine for iPhone, Mac and iPad. And it’s shameful that it’ll take a court order to finally make Apple do the right thing
A company that claims to carefully protect the privacy of its users shouldn’t be part of an arrangement that steered those users toward Google, whose business is built on privacy violation.
August 6, 1997: In one of the most famous moments in Apple history, Steve Jobs reveals a $150 million Microsoft investment that saved his company from ruin.
Although often presented as an inexplicable gesture of good faith on the part of Microsoft boss Bill Gates, the cash infusion into Apple actually benefits both companies.
San Antonio Spurs legend and NBA commentator Sean Elliott recently experienced a health scare highlighting Apple Watch’s potentially life-saving capabilities. Elliott, known his role in the Spurs’ first championship, found himself at the center of a different kind of heart-pounding drama, according to a report.
“My watch kept telling me you’re in Atrial Fibrillation. It just kept telling me over and over again, and I said, ‘there’s no way, I feel fine,'” Elliott recounted in an interview. Despite feeling no symptoms, the persistent warnings from his smartwatch eventually prompted him to seek medical attention. And it’s a good thing he did.
A U.S. federal judge ruled Monday that Google paying Apple billions to be the default search engine on iPhone and other devices is a violation of antitrust law. He said it makes Google a monopolist.
This is the result of a court case brought by the Department of Justice against Google. Apple isn’t directly involved, though its annual income may have just dropped by $15 billion or $20 billion. Or more.
Apple added Distraction Control to the Safari web browser in the iOS 18, iPadOS 18 and macOS Sequoia 15 betas released Monday. The new feature allows users to remove elements they find irritating or distracting from web pages.
Some have called Distraction Control an ad blocker. It’s not. Or certainly not a very good one.
Some people prefer two or more displays in their computer setup, some go for just one — often a big one. Today’s outstanding MacBook Pro setup, run by an Apple admin no less, goes ultra-wide and then some with a 49-inch curved Samsung display. It’s massive.
The Apple Watch SE 3 will come in a plastic casing, if a noted source of Apple insider info is correct. Skipping the usual aluminum case will allow the wearable to come in a broad array of colors, potentially making it more appealing to younger buyers.
It’ll also likely be cheaper to make, which is important for Apple’s budget wearable.
August 5, 1997: Apple gets into a standoff with Power Computing, a maker of Macintosh clones. It marks the beginning of the end for Apple’s mid-’90s strategy of licensing the Mac operating system.
“If the [Mac] platform goes closed, it is over,” predicts Power Computing CEO Joel J. Kocher of Apple’s strategy. “[It’s] total destruction. The kiss of death.” Of course, things don’t turn out exactly like that for Apple…
Apple will reportedly launch M4-powered MacBooks and iMacs later this year. But the company will wait until 2025 to refresh its entire Mac lineup with its latest M-series chip.
The MacBook Air and other high-end desktop Macs will reportedly get their M4 upgrade next year.
This week on Cult of Mac’s podcast: Leaked iPhone 16 dummy units offer a possible peek at what this year’s lineup will look like. While the black titanium pro model looks pretty badass, let’s hope the other colors don’t prove accurate!
You can see the leaked iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro Max dummy units we’re talking about in the show notes below.
Also on The CultCast:
Listen to this week’s episode of The CultCast in the Podcasts app or your favorite podcast app. (Be sure to subscribe and leave us a review if you like it!) Or watch the video live stream, embedded below.
August 4, 2008: In an internal memo, Steve Jobs owns up to mistakes in launching MobileMe, spinning Apple’s bungled cloud service rollout as a learning opportunity.
“It was a mistake to launch MobileMe at the same time as iPhone 3G, iPhone 2.0 software and the App Store,” Jobs writes in an email to Apple employees. “We all had more than enough to do, and MobileMe could have been delayed without consequence.”
Add Samsung Electronics chairman Lee Jae-yong to the list of people who think his company’s new smartwatch and wireless earbuds are much too similar to Apple’s. He reportedly got angry at executives of Samsung’s mobile (MX) division for approving such copycat devices.
One company executive allegedly admitted his company’s new wearable products are “Apple design plagiarism.”
The Apple TV+ crime drama Presumed Innocent has been among the most watched shows on streaming since launching in mid-June, according to analysts. Season one of the series — which stars Jake Gyllenhaal as a man who might, or might not, have murdered the woman he’s having an affair with — recently wrapped up, and the opportunity to bingewatch all the episodes pushed the show to become the most viewed on any streaming platform, according to analysts.
Plus, the reimagining of Time Bandits found a big audience, and Natalie Portman’s Lady in the Lake had another strong week.
August 3, 2009: Google CEO Eric Schmidt resigns from Apple’s board of directors amidst increasing competition between the two companies.
The root of the problem? The growing feud over Android’s encroachment on iOS as the two smartphone platforms battle for dominance.
Apple could use 24MP front cameras across its iPhone 17 lineup in 2025. This will even include the rumored new “iPhone 17 Slim,” which supposedly will stand out with its sleek and slim design.
As per a new analyst report, the new selfie camera might use a six-element plastic lens.
The number of iPads shipped during Q2 2024 grew sharply when compared to the same quarter of last year, according to market analysts. It’s the first year-over-year increase in Apple’s tablet shipments since 2022.
The long-awaited launch of powerful new iPad models is credited for the improvement.
Apple pulled its latest ad starring the Underdogs Friday after complaints in Thailand over the spot’s negative depiction of the country.
This marks the second time Apple removed an ad after widespread complaints this year.
A rookie FBI agent uncovers a massive money-laundering operation in American horse racing led by Mexico’s deadly Zetas cartel, according to a trailer Apple TV+ dropped Tuesday for the documentary series Cowboy Cartel. Watch it below.
The fascinating story, featuring first-time interviews with key players, looks like a tough but satisfying ride. The series debuts on Apple TV+ on August 2.
Update: As of Friday, you can watch this documentary and see how Mexican cartel Los Zetas infiltrated American horse racing and what a rookie FBI agent tried to do about it. Reviews so far seem a bit mixed. The story itself is compelling, but the story-telling may be a little forced in its use of re-enactments, for example (according to The New York Times). But other sources, like The Daily Beast, compare it favorably to the Netflix drama Narcos, and not just as a wanna-be version.