Deals: 46mm Jet Black Apple Watch Series 10 $399 + gold models, first leather iPhone 16 Camera Control case, more
Today might be your very last day to take advantage of the pre-order offers we are tracking on the new iPad mini 7, but the deals are now flying elsewhere with the return of all-time low pricing on the 46mm Apple Watch Series 10 in Jet Black. That offers is joined by a new low on the 42mm model as well as the first deal on Apple’s 42mm Gold Titanium Apple Watch Series 10 with the Gold Milanese Loop. Beyond that, the M2 iPad Air deals are also flying today alongside a new low on Spigen’s impressive iPhone 16 Ultra Hybrid T MagFit Camera Control case and the debut of the very first leather iPhone 16 case with a sapphire crystal Camera Control button (we have an exclusive deal for you too). Head below for a closer look at everything.  more…

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Great-looking portable display does double duty as USB-C hub [Review] ★★★★☆
Boost your productivity with the Plugable 15.6” USB-C Portable Display and hub. Add screen space and USB-C ports to your MacBook or iPad. (via Cult of Mac - Apple news, rumors, reviews and how-tos)

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Fear not, M4 Macs are still coming ‘very soon’
Macworld We’ve been hearing for a while now that Apple is going to release new M4 Macs this fall. Well, now it’s fall (in the Northern Hemisphere) and we’ve now reached the stage of the news cycle where we’re all waiting for the news to drop, but instead we’re getting reports that the news is dropping soon. The latest report comes from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, who’s really been the most persistent source for these reports of the M4 Mac release. In a new X post, Gurman reiterated what he’s reported in the past, stating that the Mac release is coming “very soon.” In line with what I’ve been reporting for a while, Apple will very soon launch its new Macs. There should be some hands-ons outside of Cupertino and online video. I expect the M4 iMac, MacBook Pro, revamped Mac mini and USB-C accessories. https://t.co/I1bDoPjGiP— Mark Gurman (@markgurman) October 22, 2024 Gurman states that there will be “hands-on outside of Cupertino,” which likely means that the company is holding in-person demonstrations for a small number of media in New York City or other locations, something the company has done several times in the past, including for last year’s “Scary Fast” event that also had an in-person gathering in Mexico City. Gurman also reports that there will be an “online video” but doesn’t offer specifics, like if the video will be a full presentation or a series of lengthy ads. After the release of the iPad mini (which was rumored to be released with the M4 Macs), there was a thought that Apple would forego a Mac event and simply issue press releases, which could still happen–after all, a new product release in and of itself is an “event” for Apple. Gurman has reported in the past that the M4 Macs to be released will be the MacBook Pro, iMac, and a redesigned Mac mini. The reports of USB-C accessories have picked up momentum recently as well, with a MacRumors report that code in the iOS 18.1 release candidate includes code for a new Magic Mouse 2, Magic Trackpad 2, and “several new Magic Keyboards.” Apple’s Mac accessories are among the last to have a Lightning port after Apple updated the AirPods Max in September. So, yep, by all accounts, the M4 Macs are still coming–maybe even by the time you read this, Apple will have made the official announcement. But if they didn’t, you can get the lowdown on the M4 Mac release cycle for the whole Mac lineup.

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iPhone 17 and beyond: Apple's most ambitious lineup
Apple's John Ternus is enthused about the iPhone 17 and beyond, with him saying in a leaked memo that the company is working on most ambitious lineup the company has ever worked on. Here's why.Render of a possible future — and slimmer — iPhoneEven Tim Cook has noticed he's over used the line, "this is the best iPhone we've ever made," and seems to have dialled that back. But Apple executives do still tend to lean on their hyperbole API, and now it seems they do so even in internal memos.As spotted by Bloomberg, Apple's senior vice president of Hardware Engineering, John Ternus, has been stirring up the troops. The planned next iPhones are, he said, the "most ambitious in the product's history." Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

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Jony Ive’s former design team is nearly all gone from Apple, has it mattered?
It’s hard to talk about Apple design without mentioning Jony Ive. But years after Ive’s departure from Apple, most of his former team is now gone too. Has it really mattered? more…

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Apple said to launch new M4 Macs ‘very soon’
Apple's M4 Macs for 2024 - iMac, MacBook Pro, and Mac mini - will launch "very soon." These Macs will be ready for Apple Intelligence… The post appeared first on MacDailyNews.

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iPad mini 7 review roundup: Better in small ways
Early reviewers got their hands on the iPad mini 7. They praised the performance increase, though it might not go far enough. (via Cult of Mac - Apple news, rumors, reviews and how-tos)

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TSMC alerts U.S. to possible AI chip sanctions breach by Huawei
TSMC has advised the U.S. that there was an attempt by Huawei to violate sanctions against China restricting the export of AI chips to China, as the probe that could affect Apple chip production rolls on.Dies on wafers - Image credit: TSMCThe United States introduced controls in 2022 that severely restricts any exports of AI chips to China. Two years later, TSMC is warning that there was an attempt to break those rules.TSMC told the US Commerce Department that a customer had placed an order for chips that seemingly breached the sanctions, reports Reuters. The customer attempted to order a chip that was similar in design to the Ascend 910B, a processor designed by Huawei. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

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TikTok diagnosed creator with Type 1 diabetes before his doctor did
TikTok isn’t the first place I’d think of in relation to the concept of the wisdom of crowds, but it seems I may be underestimating the streaming video app … more…

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Apple’s new 8.3-inch iPad mini is the only small tablet worth owning
Apple this month introduced the new iPad mini, supercharged by the A17 Pro chip and Apple Intelligence, the easy-to-use… The post appeared first on MacDailyNews.

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iPad mini review roundup: Minor but needed evolution
The first reviews for the new iPad mini are out, and the general consensus is that it's a relatively safe update that depends on Apple Intelligence to be worthwhile.iPad mini 7 with A17 ProApple's update to the iPad mini introduces relatively few changes to the form. It is practically the definition of a spec-bump update, with the main change being the A17 Pro chip, while everything else remains static.This is certainly a play to make it a device consumers could buy to use Apple Intelligence on a tablet. At least, without buying a Pro. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

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iCloud Drive review: The cloud storage service all Apple users can access
Macworld At a glanceExpert's Rating Pros Baked into all Apple OS platforms. Additional features available. Simple way to sync the things you need so you can access them wherever you are. Cons Web app is a little sluggish. Low storage limit for free plan. Doesn’t work so well for collaboration outside the Apple echosystem. Our Verdict What better way to access your Mac, iPhone and iPad files via the cloud than Apple’s own iCloud platform? Despite some minor inconveniences, it has a lot to offer and is well worth a look. Price When Reviewed This value will show the geolocated pricing text for product undefined Best Pricing Today Price When ReviewedFree (5GB), 99c (50GB), $2.99 (200GB), $9.99 (2TB), $29.99 (6TB), $59.99 (12TB) a month Best Prices Today: Apple iCloud Retailer Price $0.99 View Deal Price comparison from over 24,000 stores worldwide Product Price Price comparison from Backmarket There are a whole host of cloud-based storage services for your Mac, but one of the best is included with the devices you already own. iCloud Drive, part of Apple’s iCloud, has come a long way (trust me, I’ve been using it for years), and while it’s not as prevalent as something like Google Drive or OneDrive, it’s a much better option for Mac users than you may have considered. And, if you are already paying for iCloud, paying for another syncing service, like Google Drive, or Microsoft OneDrive, probably doesn’t make sense. iCloud is an Apple service that allows you to sync data to and from all your devices via the cloud. It includes iCloud Photos (where you can store all your photos and videos so they appear on all your devices), iCloud Mail (your own iCloud email address, the ability to view your email on any device you log into) and various security features such as the VPN-like iCloud+ Private Relay). In this review, we are mainly concerned with how well iCloud syncs the files on your Mac to the cloud so you can access them on any of your devices. Can iCloud act as an off-site backup? Is iCloud a way to share files with others? Read more about iCloud here: What is iCloud and how to use it. There are various tiers of storage you can choose from depending on how much of your data you are storing in Apple’s cloud. See: How much is iCloud? Getting set up in iCloud iCloud Drive is easy to access from your Mac’s settings. Apple Chances are you set up iCloud years ago when registering a new device. iCloud has been around since 2011 (before that it was MobileMe, and before that .Mac). But if you are new to Macs, and new to Apple, setting up iCloud is pretty easy. Open System Settings on your Mac. Click on the Apple Account section at the top of the left-hand column. Click on iCloud. Choose what you want to sync to iCloud: this can include Photos, Passwords, Notes, Messages, email and more. Click on iCloud Drive: then you can select some folders on your Mac that will automatically sync to the cloud. Choose to sync Desktop & Documents folders and as long as the things you need are in those folders they will be accessible wherever you are. You will need to choose how much iCloud storage you think you need. There’s a free 5GB but that’s not enough for anything useful. If you are syncing all your photos you will need a lot of storage. You can share your iCloud storage with your family. Once you have iCloud set up you need only log in to iCloud on your Mac, and all your other Apple devices, and you will have access to the files on any of your devices via iCloud Drive. For example, you can move from editing a Pages document on your Mac to adding something you thought of on the way home via the same document on your iPhone. Using iCloud Drive as an off-site backup iCloud Drive is easy to find and works across plenty of apps, Apple or otherwise. Apple We like the way that syncing our Mac Desktop means that we have access to everything we have saved there on all our devices. The same can be said of any files that automatically save to Documents. However, if you want to sync anything else on your Mac it won’t be automated. You could create a folder that you store in iCloud Drive that you periodically drag files to, but you need to physically do this. You will have access to iCloud Drive right from the sidebar in Finder, making it easy to drop files into it throughout the working day. The folder you create can act like a backup of those files, but it’s important to note that iCloud does not provide a means to automate the backup of files. It is a syncing service: any changes you make on your Mac will automatically sync to the document stored in iCloud. You cannot move things to the cloud and delete them from your Mac to free up space. Deleting from the Mac deletes the iCloud version too. Therefore we’d say that if you want to back up your Mac to the cloud Apple’s iCloud is not the ideal solution. Using iCloud Drive for file sharing and collaboration Screenshot Foundry One advantage that Google Docs and Microsoft OneDrive have over Apple’s iCloud Drive is when it comes to file sharing. The biggest advantage is probably the simple fact that the majority of people use the Microsoft apps to create documents and other files they might want to share. Therefore sharing files via Microsoft OneDrive makes a lot of sense. Google is only slightly less popular than the Office apps, and it’s likely that who ever you are sharing with has the necessary apps to work with the file you are sharing. iCloud, on the other hand, works well with Pages, Numbers and Keynote, but if the person you are sharing the file with doesn’t use those apps then it’s just an extra layer of complication to your collaboration. Sure the app they use can convert and read those documents, but it’s just easier if everyone is usine the same app. If the person you are working with is an Apple user like you, and prefers to use Pages, Numbers and Keynote, then iCloud is a very simple way to get in sync. From any Pages, Numbers, Keynote or other Apple-type of document you can choose to Share with a collaborator: Start by clicking on the Share icon. Choose between Collaborate or Send Copy. Pick the method you want to share it (AirDrop, Mail, Messages). Choose the person you wish to send it to. That person should see an alert and be able to open the file and work on it with you. You can also use iCloud to share large files that might clog up email. For example, if you want to share a video when you attempt to email it macOS will offer to upload it to iCloud and share a link via which your recipient can download it. iCloud Drive benefits iCloud Drive is baked into everything across iOS, iPadOS, and macOS. Pretty much every app from Apple uses it to automatically sync, be it Notes, Pages, Numbers, or Keynote. Plus access to the iCloud Drive is easy – it’s essentially another folder on your machine. The service offers so much in addition to file syncing, from a way to view your photos on any of your devices (and save space on your devices because the full-resolution version is stored in the cloud), to a way to access all your Messages – and reply to them – from any of your devices, and all the other security benefits such as the ability to hide your email address when signing up for services (so you can avoid spam). Once you are sold on the many benefits of iCloud the fact that you can store and sync your files and share them with others is a nice advantage. iCloud Drive annoyances I still prefer to use iCloud Drive locally because the web view is slow. Apple While it’s great that it is possible to access our iCloud Drive via the web – perfect if you only have access to a PC and need to get something from your Mac, it can be very sluggish using it this way. It’s not bad (and has actually gotten better over the last few years), but it’s still pretty slow compared to rivals like Google Drive. While it’s nice to be able to access things like Pages and Numbers from the web, sharing files or accessing cloud versions of apps is dramatically slower than opening it locally. If you switch between Windows and Mac relatively regularly, that you may prefer a snappier option like Google Drive instead. Also, it’s a small complaint, but many of your plan’s settings can only be adjusted on your Apple device. That’s likely to be for security reasons, but you can’t upgrade your plan without having your iPhone or Mac handy. iCloud Drive price Speaking of plans, that’s our other grumble. The 5GB limit for free users is so low that it may as well not exist. You can expect to stump up 99 cents for the 50GB plan, but that’s unlikely to be enough if you want to sync a big photo library. You can pay $2.99/£2.99 a month for 200GB, then there is a jump to $9.99/£8.99 a month for 2TB, all the way up to $59.99/£54.99 for a whopping 12TB. While these plans can be shared via your family plan, so you can get the most for your 2TB of storage, the fact that there is no option between the not-enough 200GB and the far-too-much 2TB, is disappointing. Once you pay for iCloud storage you can enjoy additional features like Custom Email, Hide My Email, and Private Relay. Should you use iCloud Drive? If you’re only using Apple devices, iCloud Drive is a no-brainer – and you have it already. You’ll need to pay for storage, but it offers so much for your money you will be glad you did. You can use iCloud to sync your files (and photos) across all your devices, just remember it’s not a backup in the sense that you can then delete files from your Mac (or any other device). However, you may want to look elsewhere if you want to sync and collaborate with other users in different ecosystems.

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TSMC says it reported itself to US govt; Apple chip production may be at risk [U]
The US Commerce Department is carrying out an investigation into whether Apple chipmaker TSMC breached US sanctions against China by supplying smartphone and AI chips to Huawei. The probe was in part driven by Huawei’s surprising ability to resume competing with iPhones. Update: A new report today says that TSMC reported itself to the US government based on its own suspicions about an order. more…

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Tim Cook in China visiting stores, developers, musicians, universities, photographer
Apple CEO Tim Cook is currently in China, taking time to visit retail store, developers, musicians, universities, and a well-known fashion photographer … more…

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New iPad mini reviews: Jelly scrolling is fixed (probably)
Ahead of tomorrow’s launch day, the first reviews of the new iPad mini (A17 Pro) have been published. These reviews give us a closer look at the new device, including details on the display, performance, colors, and more. Head below for our roundup of the first iPad mini (A17 Pro) reviews… more…

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Apple TV+ releases trailer for new Apple Original podcast ‘Extrasensory,’ premiering October 28th
Apple TV+ this week announced the new, mind-bending Apple Original podcast “Extrasensory,” premiering October 28th… The post appeared first on MacDailyNews.

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Hands-on with the 2024 iPad mini: Spot the differences
A quick look at what’s new in Apple’s tiny tablet.

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Microsoft Turns Honeypot Into Sour Grapes for Web Marauders
Deception is critical to the malevolent activity of Black Hat hackers, but, as Microsoft recently showed, it can also be a powerful weapon against those hackers. The post appeared first on TechNewsWorld.

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These simple accessories will elevate your Macbook experience
With the M4 MacBook Pros just around the corner, now is the perfect time to consider some great accessories to enhance your experience. Whether you’re sticking with your current MacBook or upgrading, these accessories are compatible with various models, including the M2, M3, and soon-to-be M4 MacBooks. Here are seven must-have items for any MacBook user. more…

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Is Apple really two years behind on AI, and does it matter anyway?
Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reported over the weekend that some Apple employees believe that the company is about two years behind the curve on artificial intelligence. Tim Cook didn’t directly address that during an interview with the WSJ, but did say that the company’s aim is always to be best, not first – and that this includes AI … more…

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Apple will finally fix the iPhone 16 freeze/restart bug with next week’s update
Macworld While some people are surely loving their new iPhone 16, many users have been afflicted since their launch last month by a serious bug causing their phones to freeze, ignore touch inputs, and then randomly restart. But it looks like the end is finally in sight, with the rollout of a major software update which is understood to contain a fix. As Macworld reported in September, numerous iPhone 16 owners have complained of display “dead spots” which, if touched, cause the entire screen to become unresponsive to taps and swipes, and the phone to restart. Not every unit is affected, but there have been enough reports to get Apple’s attention: on Reddit, on MacRumors’ forums, and on Apple’s own Community pages. For a worryingly long time, Apple didn’t appear to have noticed or was unable to solve the problem. iOS 18.01 arrived on October 3 without affected owners noting any improvement (indeed I can confirm that my iPhone 16 Plus, which currently runs iOS 18.01, had the problem this morning), while as of its seventh beta, iOS 18.1 didn’t seem to contain a fix either. But it has now been confirmed (via MacRumors) that the public release of iOS 18.1 will patch the issue. This is officially mentioned in the update’s release notes, which emerged yesterday alongside the release candidate. Why did it take so long for such a serious bug to get fixed? Maybe Apple’s software department has just been busy because this has been something of a cursed update cycle. Only last month iPadOS 18 had to be pulled after bricking the M4 iPad Pro, while the Apple Watch faced a mirror image of the iPhone 16’s problem when users reported “ghost touches” earlier this year. iOS 18.1 is expected to roll out on Monday, October 28. It’s easy to update your iPhone; simply open the Settings app, go to Software Update, and follow the prompts. The update contains other patches and fixes, as well as new Apple Intelligence features for the iPhone 16, so it’s well worth installing at your earliest convenience.

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iPhone 16 Pro restart bug is fixed in iOS 18.1
The upcoming update to iOS 18.1 will fix a random crashing issue for owners of the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max.iPhone 16 ProFollowing the release of the iPhone 16, owners of the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max took to the Apple Support Communities and other social platforms to report a problem. Their smartphones were locking up and restarting during typical everyday use.Part of Monday's collection of release candidates, the build of iOS 18.1 reveals that Apple will be fixing the problem with the full public release of that OS update. Elements of a release candidate are intended for the final release, and will carry over to it unless Apple finds an issue. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

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Revealed: How Apple creates your passwords
Macworld When you log into a new service or website on an iPhone, iPad, or Mac, the operating system will promptly suggest a ready-made password that you can accept or reject. This password will be quite long; it will not contain any recognizable words; and it will contain special characters such as hyphens and numbers. All of this fulfills the requirements for passwords so that attackers cannot crack them easily by brute force, simply guessing common combinations of characters. However, if you’ve adopted a few such passwords from iOS or macOS, you’ll probably have noticed a pattern emerging. They’re not just random. The character sequence is always divided into three sections, with hyphens in between, and the three short parts each sound a bit like words–just not words that occur in any earthly language. Is this a coincidence, or is it intentional? And how does Apple come up with these passwords? Apple’s secret language The passwords suggested by iOS and macOS actually follow a sophisticated system, reveals Ricki Mondello, a long-time Apple employee on the security team. The iPhone manufacturer introduced the system in 2018 with iOS 12, and there’s even a WWDC video about it. The suggested passwords consist of twenty characters, mostly letters, and the hyphens divide these sequences into three equal parts. The idea is that users find it much easier to memorise three short sections than one long sequence of symbols: an important consideration if they ever have to enter the password manually on another platform. To further help users remember the passwords, at least in short-term memory, the individual letter parts are structured to create syllables that can be spoken (or ‘heard’ in your head): a consonant is followed by a vowel, then another consonant. Apple has created a library of 19 consonants and 6 vowels and uses them to form randomly generated syllables that do not occur in any natural language. There is also a block list of some combinations, which primarily contains the syllables that can occur in profane language. Another rule you may have spotted: Apple’s proposed passwords each feature just one capital letter. According to Mondello, the reasoning here is that it’s much easier to enter lower-case letters, even on exotic keyboards such as on a game controller. Finally, the single digit that occurs in an apparently random position in the auto-generated password actually has rules governing where it appears: it can appear on either side of a hyphen or at the very end of the password, but it will never appear in the middle of one of Apple’s made-up ‘words’. The hidden logic of auto-generated passwords To conclude, Apple’s randomly generated passwords are not actually random at all but follow several fixed rules. In this way, Apple creates a compromise between strong passwords that cannot be guessed and reasonably good usability if the user has to type them in manually on other platforms.

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French publishers try again to get Apple to drop Distraction Control
A consortium of publishers and ad companies in France have written to Tim Cook to ask him to ditch Distraction Control, undaunted by how he ignored them last time.Distraction Control lets users wipe away website elements they don't want to seeIt was in May 2024 when members of French organizations including Alliance Digitale, and press organization Alliance de la Presse d'Information Generale, read AppleInsider and went wide-eyed. For AppleInsider had exclusively revealed Apple's Web Eraser, which would later be renamed on release as Distraction Control.At the time, Web Eraser was expected to let Safari users remove any part of a website from view, and naturally target number one would be ads. So the consortium wrote to Tim Cook, asking that Apple abandon it. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

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Meta testing Face ID-like video selfie to recover your Instagram or Facebook account
Meta is testing facial recognition as a way of letting you instantly recover your Instagram or Facebook account if you find yourself locked out. The process of submitting a video selfie looks much the same as that used to register for Face ID, requiring you to turn your head in different directions. The company is also using the technology to detect and block scams using celebrities … more…

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A day in the life of CEO Tim Cook: The hunt for Diet Mountain Dew
Macworld Yes, it is time once again to ask the question, what makes Tim tick? Is it a bomb? Did he swallow an alarm clock? Where is that sound coming from?! IT’S DRIVING US CRAZY! The Wall Street Journal got some face time (actual faces, actual time) with Apple CEO Tim Cook: “Tim Cook on Why Apple’s Huge Bets Will Pay Off” Read on to find out if he says it’s because you Apple fans will buy anything the company sells because it’s all just marketing. You dopes. (Spoiler: he does not say this.) Cook describes his morning routine. The first thing Tim Cook does when he wakes up is check his iPhone. Tim has long been subscribed to several hilarious Tumblr accounts of cats failing to jump up on the kitchen counter. It’s a fun way to start the day. No, Cook is doing business stuff! Checking emails, reviewing sales reports, finding out which executives are leaving, ordering more staples and copy paper, gossiping with Mel in accounting about Beth in logistics who has a crush on Barb, but not the one from procurement, the one in accounts receivable. Does this sound right? The Macalope hasn’t worked in an office for a while but that’s what he remembers going on. Then he puts the phone away. It’s time to get his own pulse up. He turns on political news. No, that is also a hilarious joke (hilarious). In reality, he works out with his Apple Watch and AirPods. When he’s done, he uses a MacBook Air. Then a MacBook Pro. And, then, for some reason, an iMac. Seriously, he said this. He’s out of control. “Every day,” he says, “every product.”  iPhone 16 silicone case? Yep. 30W USB-C power adapter. Check. AirTag FineWoven Key Ring? Yes. In all the colors. It’s a good thing he does not actually run a dog food company or he’d be as sick as one. Dog food company CEO, mouth full of kibble: “I HAVE TO EAT OUR DOG FOOD! IT’S CALLED ‘DOGFOODING’!” Dog food company CEO’s spouse: “BUT IT’S KILLING YOU! NO ONE IS SUPPOSED TO EAT THAT MANY SNOUTS!” Cook and other Apple executives repeat one of the company’s long-time mantras: Not first, but best.  Indeed, this is evidenced today as, according to Mark Gurman, Apple believes it’s two years behind its rivals in AI technology. This is born out of the company’s current strategy of integrating other AI products into its operating systems, outsourcing the job of telling users to eat rocks and glue. IDG It’s worth noting that Apple was also behind on mapping capabilities when it ended its integration relationship with Google but has since caught up on at least enough to make the difference negligible for most users. Being behind doesn’t mean it’ll always be behind. But let’s get back to Tim Cook, who is still ticking like an alternator attached to a dead battery. We’re about to find that one of the things that makes him tick is sucralose. …he drinks Diet Mountain Dew, though not as much as he once did, because Apple doesn’t stock his favorite soda. Just imagine a sad Tim Cook standing in front of a vending machine with a dollar in his hand. “Oh, darn! Ah, guess ah’ll just git a Sprite, then.” [heavy sigh] Dude, you could make Wink Cola come back if you wanted to. The Macalope’s pretty sure someone can get you some damn diet Mountain Dew. “Area Man Owns Every Apple Product But Can’t Get Diet Mountain Dew” One of the peculiar things about Apple is how many of its most successful products once appeared to be failures. Yeah, weird! Happens so much someone could almost have a reasonably successful career as a mythical beast based on it! Cook is refreshingly honest about the Vision Pro. “At $3,500, it’s not a mass-market product,” Cook says. “Right now, it’s an early-adopter product.” Presumably, the rumored $2,000 Vision, which could be coming as early as next year, will be more of an on-time-adopter product, or just fashionably early, if that’s a thing. The Journal manages to tease some interesting anecdotes and perspectives out of Cook for this piece if it is a bit hagiographic. Still, Cook and Apple are pretty successful. A soupçon hagiography isn’t that out of place.

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How the new AirPods Pro hearing features were developed
Apple has let cameras in to its usually secret audio testing facility, revealing a spherical 50-speaker array that was used in creating the hearing test in AirPods Pro 2.AirPods Pro 2Early reviewers of the hearing test in the AirPods Pro 2 have unanimously called it impressive, and it will be coming to users by the end of October 2024. Ahead of that launch, Apple let ABC show "Good Morning America" into its testing facility known as Fantasia Lab."We don't let cameras in this place normally," John Ternus, senior vice president of hardware engineering at Apple told ABC. "And so it's a little bit of an out-of-body experience for everybody." Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

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How to create a bootable USB macOS installer
Macworld In this article, we’ll run through the steps necessary to create a bootable installer of the Mac operating system, whether it’s so you can install the latest version of the macOS on multiple Macs, install the latest macOS beta, perform a clean install of macOS, or just to be prepared with an emergency disk if your Mac experiences problems and you don’t want to connect to the internet in Recovery mode (or you can’t access Recovery mode). If you want to find out how to make a bootable install of the latest macOS beta, macOS Sequoia, macOS Sonoma, macOS Ventura, macOS Monterey, Big Sur, Catalina, Mojave, or an older version of Mac OS X or macOS, you’ve come to the right place. You can also use your bootable installer to install macOS on a separate volume of your hard drive (or on a partition if you are running an older version of the Mac OS). It’s also a hassle-free way to go back to an older version of macOS and a great option if you found downloading the installer took a long time and you don’t fancy spending the next few days downloading it multiple times on multiple Macs. Once is quite enough! Luckily, making a bootable installation of the Mac operating system became a whole lot easier when Apple launched OS X Mavericks back in 2013. With that version of Mac OS X, and all versions since, it’s been possible to use the Terminal command createinstallmedia to create a bootable installer of the macOS, in this article we’ll show you how. We will run through the following steps to create a bootable USB for Mac: Get the macOS installer files Create a bootable installer for macOS Choose the correct createinstallmedia command If you want to run macOS on an external drive, which is slightly different, we have a separate article. What you need to make a bootable USB for Mac There are two main things you’ll need to make your bootable install drive: a USB stick (or a Thunderbolt drive) and the installation files. Once you have those two things the process shouldn’t take very long.  A 15GB Flash Drive (at least!) We recommend a 15GB (or more) drive, more would be advisable. The installer for Monterey was 12GB while Big Sur’s installer was 13GB. We recommend a Flash memory stick, rather than a standard hard drive, as it will be quicker. You’ll also benefit from USB 3, or USB Type C – this may be your only choice if you have a newer Mac (otherwise you will need an adapter). If you have an M1 Mac you might actually be better off with a Thunderbolt drive because there have been some issues with using USB drives with the M1 Mac. Read our round-up of the best SSD drives for Mac where we recommend the LaCie Portable SSD, but you could use any cheap USB thumb drive. Note: If you have data on the drive that you plan to use you will need to transfer it to another drive, or get a new drive, as it will be completely formatted and erased. The installation files Depending on which version of macOS you are running, and the version you want to to install, you will either be able to get the installation files from Software Update in System Preferences, the Mac App Store, or you will have to obtain them from elsewhere. The Mac App Store is probably the easier option, but there can still be difficulties depending on which version of macOS your machine is running, and if you were hoping to grab older installation files that can be tricky – we have another article discussing how to get older versions of macOS. It goes without saying that you will need an internet connection to download the software and you may need it while installing the version of macOS if it needs to check for firmware or confirm your iCloud credentials. Step 1: Get macOS installer files As we said already, how you get the installation files will depend on the version of macOS you are running, and the version you want the installer for. Below we’ll look at how to get various macOS installers – including how to get older versions of the macOS or even Mac OS X. We do have a dedicated article about How to download old Mac OS X and macOS versions. How to get macOS Sequoia installer macOS Sequoia can be found on the Mac App Store or downloaded via Software Update if you haven’t yet installed it. Download the installation files, but make sure you stop before the actual installation starts. When the installation starts the files will be disposed of, so you need to step in beforehand! Once the installation files for Sequoia are downloaded you will be able to find them in the Applications folder via the Finder. It will look something like this: You need to use this installation file to make the bootable installer on your USB stick. Instructions for that are below. How to get a macOS beta installer If you want to try out the latest beta you’ll need to sign up for the beta program, you will then be able to download the installer files. We explain how to get and install the macOS beta here. Below you will find the createinstallmedia code you’ll need for installing the latest beta via a USB below. How to get Sonoma, Ventura, Monterey, Big Sur or older installer To get the installer for macOS Sonoma, Ventura, Monterey or Big Sur follow these steps: Click these links to get the version of macOS you want from the Mac App Store. You may need to close the Mac App Store and use Safari for this to work. macOS Sonoma macOS Ventura macOS Monterey macOS Big Sur macOS Catalina macOS Mojave macOS High Sierra Click on Get and the installation files will start to download. You may see a warning asking for confirmation that you want to download the software if you are already running it. Once the installer is downloaded DO NOT click on install as you need the installation file for the next stage of this tutorial. Getting old versions of macOS is a little more difficult if you don’t know where to look, but Apple provides dmg files of these older macOS versions(you need to download them in Safari). A disk image named InstallOS.dmg will download and once it does you need to locate the pkg installer inside the disk image. macOS Sierra Mac OS X El Capitan Mac OS X Yosemite Step 2: Create a bootable installer for macOS Now you have the installation files, we can move on to the process of making the bootable installer. Note, the createinstallmedia method described here doesn’t work under OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard or earlier – it requires OS X 10.7 Lion or later. Also, the processes have changed slightly since Mavericks so if your looking to create an installation of one of the ‘Cat’ versions of Mac OS X you should read this older article instead. Since Mavericks, creating a bootable installation of macOS requires a single command in Terminal. The createinstallmedia command makes it possible to create a bootable copy of an installer on any drive that’s connected to your Mac. You’ll find all the createinstallmedia commands below, including the Monterey createinstallmedia command. Note that the createinstallmedia command erases anything on your external disk though, so make sure there’s nothing on it that you need. These are the instructions to follow to create your bootable USB – note there will be tiny adjustments depending on the installer you require: Plug in an external drive with at least 15GB space as that’s how much the installer will require. Launch Disk Utility (press Command + spacebar and start to type Disk Utility). Before this next step, note: if you are running High Sierra or later you will need to click on the View dropdown below the close minimize buttons. Choose Show All Devices from the options. Now you will see the external root drive in addition to the volume below it. Select the root drive in the sidebar (the next step won’t work if you only select the volume). Click on Erase. Choose Mac OS Extended (Journaled) as the Format. Choose GUID Partition Map as the Scheme. Your drive will probably be called ‘Untitled’ by default, you could give your drive a name such as ‘macOS’ or ‘USB’. (Note you will need to replace the term ‘MyVolume’ in the createinstallmedia command below with whatever name you give your drive). Click on Erase. Wait while Disk Utility creates the partition and sets up the drive (this can take a few minutes). Then click Done. Now you are ready to make your bootable installer: open Terminal (the easiest way is to press Command + spacebar and then start typing Terminal. Otherwise you’ll find it in the Utilities folder). Copy the text that corresponds to the version of macOS you are installing into Terminal – you’ll find the text in the section below. Make sure that you use the name you have given your drive – e.g. change Untitled to MyVolume. Click Enter/Return. Terminal will ask for a password. This is your user password. Note you won’t see characters appear as you type it in, that’s fine. After typing in your password, press Enter. Terminal may also ask for permission to access the removable drive. Click ok. Terminal will warn that it is about to erase the drive (so make sure there wasn’t anything important on it – there shouldn’t be if you already formatted it as per the instructions above). If you want to continue press Y and then Return. The process can take a while, you’ll see “Erasing Disk: 0%… 10%… 20%… 30%…100%… Now Terminal will spend a few minutes copying the installer file to your drive. “Copying installer files to disk… Copy complete” and so on will appear in the Terminal window. When Terminal has finished copying the installer you will see the words Copy complete and Done appear. Step 3: Use the USB installer to update your Mac Now you have the installer on the external drive you can use that to install copies of macOS on multiple Macs (as long as the Macs are supported by that version). Plug the external drive into the Mac that you want to install the macOS on. Start up the Mac. If you have an Intel-powered Mac hold down the Option/Alt key while it is booting up. If it’s an M1 Mac then you just press and hold the On switch until you see various options. Your Mac will eventually display the Startup Manager, click on your external drive to select that as the startup disk. Your Mac will now start up in Recovery Mode. Click on Install macOS and then click on Continue. The version of macOS on the bootable drive should start to install on your Mac now. (If you want to do a clean install, which means wiping your Mac first, follow the instructions here: How to do a clean install on a Mac. Eventually, the Mac should restart. Wait while the update takes place and then enjoy your newly updated operating system. When your Mac starts up you should see the option to Install the version of macOS you have on the installer. Foundry You can also run the Mac operating system directly from an external drive rather than your built-in startup disk, this is handy if you are testing new versions of the Mac OS. The process is different to the one described above though, and we cover it here: Read about How to run macOS on an external hard drive here. Note that older versions of macOS used “applicationpath” while newer ones don’t – if you use the command you will get an error (we have the code for the all versions of macOS and Mac OS X below). createinstallmedia commands  The createinstallmedia command will be slightly different depending on which version of macOS you are wanting to use. Note MyVolume may have a different name for you, for example it might be USB or Untitled. Check in Disk Utilities, it’s the name of the external disk you are using. Beware that we have heard of people copying and pasting in the -- only for them to change to a – in Terminal, so be careful of that. There should be two dashes! Sequoia sudo /Applications/Install macOS Sequoia.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/MyVolume Sequoia beta sudo /Applications/Install macOS Sequoia beta.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/MyVolume --nointeraction Sonoma sudo /Applications/Install macOS Sonoma.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/MyVolume Ventura sudo /Applications/Install macOS Ventura.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/MyVolume Monterey sudo /Applications/Install macOS Monterey.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/MyVolume Big Sur sudo /Applications/Install macOS Big Sur.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/MyVolume Catalina sudo /Applications/Install macOS Catalina.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/MyVolume Mojave sudo /Applications/Install macOS Mojave.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/MyVolume High Sierra sudo /Applications/Install macOS High Sierra.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/MyVolume Sierra sudo /Applications/Install macOS Sierra.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/MyVolume --applicationpath /Applications/Install/ macOS/ Sierra.app El Capitan sudo /Applications/Install OS X El Capitan.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/MyVolume --applicationpath /Applications/Install OS X El Capitan.app Yosemite sudo /Applications/Install OS X Yosemite.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/MyVolume --applicationpath /Applications/Install OS X Yosemite.app For more advice read: How to start up your M1 or M2 Mac from an external drive

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Apple @ Work Podcast: JNUC recap
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, I talk with Michael Covington from Jamf about the 2024 Jamf Nation User Conference in Nashville. more…

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M4 Mac mini could release as soon as this week
Apple might unveil its revamped M4 and M4 Pro-powered Mac mini featuring up to five USB-C ports as soon as this week. (via Cult of Mac - Apple news, rumors, reviews and how-tos)

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