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- Tuesday September 17
- 11:15 am6 reasons why you need to upgrade to macOS Sequoia
Macworld Since macOS is such a mature operating system, there’s no need to rush to upgrade to the latest version as soon as it’s released. But Apple does include features that you’ll want to use regularly as soon as you discover them, and macOS Sequoia is no exception in this case. Here are the top six features in the latest Mac operating system, macOS Sequoia. Sequoia has many more features, but these are the ones that will convince you to press that download button. For more information about macOS Sequoia, check out the following: macOS Sequoia superguide: Everything you need to know about the Mac update How to get your Mac ready for macOS Sequoia How to install macOS Sequoia on your Mac iPhone mirroring Foundry Foundry Foundry Mac users tend to also use iPhones, and while iCloud helps with syncing between the two platforms, there’s still a clear line of separation between the two. With iPhone Mirroring, that line blurs quite a bit, allowing users to access their iPhones directly from their Macs—literally. The feature allows you to see your iPhone’s screen on your Mac to check notifications, launch apps, and do anything else you’d do if your phone was in your hand. To use this feature, you do need to meet some requirements: Your Mac must be an M-series model or an Intel Mac with a T2 chip The iPhone must have iOS 18 installed Wi-Fi and Bluetooth need to be on With iPhone Mirroring, your iPhone appears on your Mac and you can use it as if was in your hands–well, almost, because using a mouse/trackpad on your Mac is different from an iPhone touchscreen. Get all the details on iPhone Mirroring. Window tiling Foundry Foundry Foundry You see that mess of windows you have open on your Mac right now? It’s going to get a lot better with macOS Sequoia’s window tiling. When you drag a window to the edge of the screen, you’ll find a place on the desktop where you can slot that window. You can sort your windows and make it easier to find the one you need. Sequoia’s window tiling has some limits, but it’ll be good enough for most people. If not, there are an array of third-party windows tiling utilities available that extend the capability. Whatever the case, Sequoia’s new feature takes you down the path toward windows sanity. Learn all about macOS Sequoia Window Tiling. Safari Distraction Control Foundry Foundry Foundry Wish you could do away with annoy ads, images, videos, and whatever else you run into on the web? (Yes, this site included.) You can now make them disappear with a click in Safari in macOS Sequoia (and iOS 18). With Distraction Control turned on, all you have to do is point abnd click on an element, and poof! It’s gone. The web feels safe again. Learn all about Safari Distraction Control. New Passwords app Foundry Foundry Foundry Admit it: your passwords are written on pieces of paper scattered across your desk, maybe even on Post-It notes stuck to your display. Or you use the same password for all your accounts because it’s too difficult to remember all those complicated letters, numbers, and symbols. Don’t do that anymore! Get started with good security habits by using the new Password app in macOS Sequoia. The Passwords app ties into Safari and it’s also on iOS 18 and iPadOS 18, so your passwords are accessible no matter which platform you are using. If you Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge, extensions are available. If you already use a third-party password manager, bravo! You probably won’t abandon it. Check out our hands-on with the iOS 18 Passwords app–but the Sequoia version is nearly identical. Better Notes app Foundry Foundry Foundry Notes has become my go-to app for both little bits of stuff I need to stash and for long-form notes–that’s probably true for you, too. With Notes in macOS Sequoia, Apple has added several new features to make it even more useful: You can now record audio clips within a note. Notes can create a searchable transcript that’s in sync with the audio. Sections are collapsible to make it easier to scan your note. Math expressions are calculated within your note. Support for color highlights to make text stand out. Retro ‘Macintosh’ wallpaper Foundry Foundry Foundry I saved the best new feature for last. (I’m exaggerating, but this is pretty cool.) Apple always adds new wallpaper in major macOS upgrades, but the one in Sequoia is a new surprise. The new “Macintosh” wallpaper artistically showcases old UI elements of the original Mac operating system in an array of colors. It looks fantastic and is a wonderful ode to the Mac’s origins. The “Macintosh” wallpaper can also be used as a screen saver. What about Apple Intelligence? Why are none of the AI-based features called Apple Intelligence not on this list? They’re not ready yet–Apple announced that Apple Intelligence will start to roll out AI features with macOS 15.1 next month, with more to come across 2025. A few Apple Intelligence features are in the Sequoia 15.1 beta that is currently in beta testing. The features it includes are summaries, writing tools, photo search, and more. It doesn’t have any ChatGPT-based features, which will come next year.10:57 amSetapp Mobile now available without invitation, at €9.49/month
Setapp Mobile, a third-party iOS app store offering multiple apps for a single monthly subscription, is now available to anyone in the EU. It follows an invitation-only beta that launched back in May. As with any third-party app store, Apple makes you jump through quite a few hoops to install it, but downloading apps from within it is then quick and easy … more…10:30 amThe iPhone 16 is doomed and it’s all Apple Intelligence’s fault
Macworld It is now about 15 minutes after iPhone preordering opened and, yes, the Macalope believes we can say categorically that the iPhone 16 line is an abject failure. Sad. Surely it will be pulled from the market soon. This might seem early but it is not the earliest an Apple product has been declared troubled by poor sales. In recent memory, the prize goes to the Vision Pro, which was reported to have production cuts in the summer before it was released. Not only that, these “drastic” production cuts were reported to be to 400,000 units. Nine months later, after the Vision Pro’s release, another outfit reported Apple was undertaking “unfavorable” production cuts to… 400,000 units. Yes, the Vision Pro’s production figures were cut twice to the same number. Honestly, the Macalope’s not sure how you top that. That should be enshrined in the Apple Doom Hall of Fame. Regardless, it’s another year, another set of iPhones, but the same smell of doom: “Phone 16 first weekend pre-order analysis:…Pro series demand lower than expected“ Yes, according to Ming-Chi Kuo, both the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max are underselling their iPhone 15 Pro counterparts. Kuo estimated that sales of all four iPhone 16 models reached about 37 million units in the first weekend after Apple began accepting pre-orders, which is down nearly 13 percent compared to first-weekend sales of the iPhone 15 series last year. That said, the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus are selling better than the year-ago models. While first-weekend sales of the iPhone 16 Plus and standard version were up YoY, their impact on total iPhone shipments is limited. Ming-Chi Kuo, September 15, 2024 Hey, didn’t someone in a dapper suit and adorned with antlers suggest just last week that the standard models would do better this year? Turns out whoever that might have been was right. And remarkably handsome. Fun at parties. Cries while watching nerd movies. Etc. There’s a fair bit of speculation going on that the problem (assuming there really is a problem here) is AI. Please feel free to make your own Scooby Doo memes of Fred pulling the mask off the ghost and it’s AI. The problem with AI is like a rephrasing of that old joke about the food being bad and coming in such small portions: no one wants it and it’s not coming for months. “These Two Apple Intelligence Features Not Expected Until iOS 18.2” Sadly, those two things are not “Any kind of relevance for most customers” and “Not being told to eat a barrel full of rocks and drink a nice glass of liquid soap when asked for easy weeknight dinner recipes”. No, it’s Genmoji and Image Playground, a playground the Macalope imagines you will find connected to Uncanny Valley Grade School in Trained On Other People’s Work Without Their Consentville. Lotta weird place names in the upper midwest. The iPhone 16 lineup is a nice set of phones and their sales figures are based on a lot of complicated variables, some having to do with the life cycle of previous phones, inflation, confidence about the future and many other factors. The Macalope, a long-time fan of the iPhone mini, is finally giving up and buying an iPhone 16 but certainly not for AI. For the Camera Control button. Remember those predictions that AI would drive a super cycle of phone sales? “Top Goldman Sachs analyst says the world is moving into a new super cycle” That was January. And here in September…. yeah, looks like that’s not happening. And it’s not because Apple is rolling out these features slowly. Most of AI is just another big tech attempt to cut out the middleman, only this time the middleman isn’t taxi companies or hotels, it’s writers and artists. That wasn’t something people were clamoring for. Don’t be surprised when they don’t rush out to slap down $1,000 for it.10:17 amHow Apple Watch sleep apnea detection works in watchOS 11
Following FDA approval, Apple will shortly launch its sleep apnea detection feature for the Apple Watch, and has now published a health paper detailing its development and verification.Apple Watch is gaining sleep apnea detectionAnnounced as one of Apple's major new health features — alongside hearing health — at the "It's Glowtime" event, Apple Watch sleep apnea detection required FDA approval. The Food and Drug Administration has now granted approval, and the feature will be rolling out to at least the US presently. Apple has now also released a 10-page report on the feature, called "Estimating Breathing Disturbances and Sleep Apnea Risk from Apple Watch."The document is not attributed to any authors, but otherwise is a regular academic filing on how the feature works. It also specifically details how Apple's research was validated by the wider health community. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums09:51 amTime Bandits cancelled by Apple TV+
Apple TV+ time-travelling fantasy has run out of time — Taika Waititi's "Time Bandits" will not return for a second season.Lisa Kudrow in "Time Bandits"The aim of turning the 1981 hot movie "Time Bandits" into a series for Apple TV+ has been going on since before the streamer even launched. Back in 2018, the show was known to be in active development.Deadline, which broke the news of the cancellation, says that Apple bought the rights to the movie from a consortium including Paramount Television Studios. Just as with the original film, the TV version was produced by the UK's HandMade Films. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums09:15 amApple releases macOS Sequoia, iOS 18, and iPadOS operating systems
Monday proved to be one of Apple’s Mega-Update-O-Rama days with the company releasing macOS 15 Sequoia, the new version of its desktop and notebook operating system as well as iOS 18 and iPadOS 18, the newest upgrade for its iPhone and iPad mobile devices. macOS Sequoia is a free update that can be downloaded on […] Source09:00 amiOS 18’s new home screen features are a long-awaited win for flexibility
Wiggle mode gets an update that opens up almost Android-like customization.09:00 amApple releases macOS Sonoma 14.7, iOS 17.7, and iPadOS 17.7 updates
On Apple’s Mega-Day-of -Updates, the company released what were essentially maintenance updates to its macOS Sonoma, iOS, and iPadOS operating systems. The company publicly released macOS Sonoma 14.7, iOS 17.7, and iPadOS 17.7, the updates offering security fixes for all users. As usual, the updates can be located by navigating to Settings > General > […] Source08:46 amiOS 18 Apple Music helps you discover new music with the personalized New tab
Apple Music takes a significant-if-subtle step forward in iOS 18, with the New tab. ‘New’ is more than just a new name for the previous ‘Browse’ tab. Each user will see a different curated collection of music in the New tab, based on their personal listening preferences … more…04:29 amApple released watchOS 11, but they haven’t fixed this one annoyance from last year
Apple radically redesigned watchOS last year, marking one of the biggest design shifts since the inception of . With watchOS 10, Apple made two key changes to how you navigate your that I never really loved, and there’s still no option to change them in watchOS 11. more…03:43 amHere’s how to check if your carrier already supports RCS on iPhone
Apple on Monday released iOS 18 to the public, and one of the new features is support for Rich Communications Services, or RCS, in the Messages app. However, RCS support must be enabled by each carrier, and a page on Apple’s website lists which carriers already provide RCS support on the . more…03:08 amHow to compress folders on iPad to save on storage space
Compressing folders on an iPad is a quick and easy way to optimize storage, improve file sharing, and organize your digital life. Here's how.Files appCompressing folders on an iPad can be useful for two main reasons — optimizing storage and making it easier to handle multiple files. When you compress a folder, you reduce its size in some cases, but not always.For example, files like JPEGs or other formats that are already compressed won't shrink much further. However, the real benefit of compression is in bundling multiple files into one. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums02:29 amAirPods 4 review: big deal, small package
I’ve been an AirPods user since 2016, and an AirPods Pro user since 2019. In-ear tips are a better fit for my ears, and Active Noise Cancellation and Transparency modes define the modern AirPods experience for me. For some, however, in-ear tips are a non-starter. For others, the $249 retail price is a tall order for a pair of earbuds. Apple addresses both cost and design with the all-new AirPods 4. more…02:24 amiOS 18 will warn you when you’re using a slow iPhone charger
iOS 18 includes a couple of notable changes to iPhone battery health and charging settings. Apple has added more charging limit settings for iPhone 15 users, along with information about when you’re using a slow charger. more…01:10 amMeta bans Russian media outlet RT and others, citing ‘foreign interference activity’
Meta, the social media giant that operates Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and WhatsApp, among others, announced Monday that it had banned RT and other Russian state media outlets from its platforms, citing ‘foreign interference activity’ in US elections. more…12:27 amPSA: Choosing a preferred Home Hub in iOS 18 can be a bit tricky
As reported back in June, iOS 18 and tvOS 18 add an option that finally lets users choose an Apple TV or HomePod as their preferred Home Hub to control remotely. These updates are now available to the public, but choosing a preferred Home Hub can be a bit tricky. more…Monday September 1611:41 pmProtect your brand new iPhone 16 in style with rugged cases from SUPCASE and I-Blason
Apple has just announced the new iPhone 16 lineup, and as you prepare to make your preorder, you want to make sure you also have a great case to go with it, to keep your new phone pristine. Trusted phone case makers SUPCASE and I-Blason are ready, with a brand new lineup of rugged cases offering 360-degree protection for your iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro or iPhone 16 Pro Max. These new cases are some of the only ones to feature protection for the iPhone’s new camera control button with 46 pure copper conductors that allow you to still utilize all of the new camera button’s capacitive touch, pressure and sliding gestures. i-Blason has the 2-part Armorbox case, and its flexible Halo Mag case on offer. SUPCASE has the Unicorn Beetle range, with Unicorn Beetle PRO, Unicorn Beetle PRO Mag, Unicorn Beetle MAG, Unicorn Beetle GRIP and Unicorn Beetle Mag XT options. Here’s a closer look at these great cases for your new phone … more…11:35 pmiPadOS 18 makes it easier to choose and add emoji when typing in iPhone apps
The experience of using iPhone apps on the iPad isn’t exactly great, but things got better with Stage Manager, since apps not optimized for iPhone can run in floating windows on the screen. But with iPadOS 18, Apple has made a small but important change to improve the use of iPhone apps on the iPad, and it’s all about emoji. more…11:05 pmGoogle updates Search widget on iPhone with customizable shortcuts, like Gemini
The Search widget offered by the Google app on iPhone and iPad now offers customizable shortcuts, including to Gemini. more…10:52 pmDon't wait to update: iOS 18 introduces key security fixes
Apple's iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 introduce a variety of different security improvements and fixes. Here's what you need to know, and why you should consider updating right away.iOS 18 introduces many important security fixes.On Monday, Apple released its latest operating systems, iOS 18 and iPadOS 18, making them finally available to the general public. While the updates themselves introduce an assortment of new features, they also contain many important security fixes.As with every major iOS update, iOS 18 fixes core security issues related to different features and aspects of the operating system. Many of the fixes introduced on Monday prevent attackers, apps, and unauthorized users from gaining access to sensitive user information, such as contact details or photos. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums