Kwikset Halo Select, Govee ice maker, & iPhone StandBy dock on HomeKit Insider
On this episode of the HomeKit Insider Podcast we go over another new smart lock from Kwikset, talk about the viral iPhone StandBy dock, and test the Govee smart ice maker.HomeKit Insider PodcastKwikset has launched the new Halo Select smart lock that works over Wi-Fi or can use Matter over Thread. It's a compact retrofit lock that also has a built-in exterior keypad.Ecobee has also announced a new smart lock endeavor, integrating with Assa Abloy brands August and Yale. You can now unlock your compatible smart lock directly from the live view. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

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This $40 lifetime subscription gives you access to ChatGPT, Mistral AI and more, all in one place
Get an AI tool that brings top AI models like ChatGPT, Mistral AI and more together in one interface. Enter 1minAI, the all-in-one AI tool. (via Cult of Mac - Apple news, rumors, reviews and how-tos)

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Instagram might make your video look terrible if it’s not popular
Instagram head Adam Mosseri has admitted that the company may reduce the quality of your video if it thinks it’s not getting enough views … more…

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iPhone 16 sales banned in Indonesia until Apple invests more in the country
The iPhone 16 is not allowed to be sold in Indonesia, with the sales ban triggered by a lack of investment by Apple into the country.Jakarta - Image credit: Tom Fisk/PexelsOn October 11, it was warned that Apple faces the prospect of a sales ban in Indonesia, if it didn't manage to renew a content requirements certification in time. A few weeks later, that ban has become a reality."Imported iPhone 16 hardwares cannot be marketed in the country, because Apple Indonesia has not fulfilled its investment commitment to earn a local content certification," said industry ministry spokesperson Febri Hendri Antoni Arief on Friday to Reuters. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

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Apple’s first smart display could resurrect one of its most beloved designs
Macworld All eyes are currently on Apple’s exciting week of Mac launches, but the company has something more unusual up its sleeve for next year: a smart display with an oddly familiar design. In the latest edition of his Power On newsletter, Bloomberg reporter Mark Gurman predicts that this long-rumored product will resemble the “sunflower” G4 iMac from 2002 in its physical design, with a screen up top and a curved base down below. This is now regarded as a classic of industrial design, but Apple hasn’t done anything similar since then, preferring to either build the innards of the machine into the screen itself (as in the modern iMac) or to use a separate tower (as in the Mac Pro). The smart display won’t look exactly like the 2002 iMac, of course. For one thing, it will be considerably smaller. Gurman says the display itself will be roughly the size of two iPhones side by side, which suggests something in the region of 150x150mm. This display will sit “at an angle” on a small base reminiscent of the iMac’s circular bottom, Gurman explains–although in functional terms this format means it’s much like a HomePod with a screen. “The small size fits with the idea that the product will be relatively cheap and easy to have in different rooms of the home,” he writes. The device is intended to function as a hub for smart home products and is expected to eventually sit alongside a more expensive sibling display with a robotic limb. For more information on both of Apple’s in-development smart displays, check our coverage from last month. These aren’t new rumors, although as is generally the case with such projects, we’re gradually learning more about the specifics–such as this month’s information about the design.

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Apple’s Mac poised to take significant leap with new M4 processors
Starting this week, Apple will begin adding the powerful M4 family of processors to its indomitable Mac lineup, setting the stage for the … The post appeared first on MacDailyNews.

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Cash App data breach victims have just a few weeks to claim up to $2,575
If you had a Cash App account between August 2018 and August 2024, you could be eligible to claim up to $2,575 in compensation for a data breach – but only if you submit your claim quickly … more…

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Cisdem PDFMaster: A simple PDF editor
Macworld At a glanceExpert's Rating Pros Unsophisticated user interface. Fluid performance with minimal lags. One-time and recurring payment options. Cons Misleading branding and product description. Some functionalities don’t always work reliably. Doesn’t offer a mobile version for iOS and iPadOS. Our Verdict Cisdem PDFMaster for macOS is a decent app for those looking to make casual adjustments to their documents, although it lacks features for professionals. EaseUS is also packaging this up as its Mac PDF solution, which is a bit confusing. Price When Reviewed This value will show the geolocated pricing text for product undefined Best Pricing Today Price When Reviewed$59.95 a year or $89.95 with lifetime uppgrades from EaseUS, or $49.99 a year of $99.99 lifetime plan from Cisdem Best Prices Today: Cisdem PDFMaster for Mac (aka EaseUS PDF Editor) Retailer Price Cisdem $49.99 View Deal EaseUS $59.95 View Deal App Store $69.99 View Deal Price comparison from over 24,000 stores worldwide Product Price Price comparison from Backmarket With so many industries embracing paperless procedures, document editors have become more essential than ever. Finding the right software for your Mac can be cumbersome, though, as there are dozens of reputable PDF editors for Mac out there. One of the options you may come across during your hunt is that from EaseUS. While the company’s own PDF editor is exclusive to Windows, its website offers PDFMaster for macOS—developed by its partner Cisdem. So, keep in mind that the screenshots and feature descriptions highlighted on the EaseUS website do not reflect those of Cisdem PDFMaster. If you’ve used EaseUS’ PDF editor for Windows, you won’t be getting the same set of tools on the Mac version since the two apps are completely different. Pricing and availability Cisdem PDFMaster for Mac (aka EaseUS PDF Editor for Mac) is offered through multiple channels, including Apple’s App Store, the aforementioned EaseUS website, and Cisdem’s official website. Each of the three versions features distinct functionality, user interface, and price. In this particular review, we will be looking at the version downloaded from EaseUS. You can grab a copy of Cisdem PDFMaster from the EaseUS website for free. Once its 14-day trial expires, you will have to pay $89.95 once or $59.95 per year to continue using the software. Those with short-term PDF editing needs may have to look elsewhere, as the macOS version doesn’t provide a monthly subscription plan. It’s also worth noting that Cisdem PDFMaster doesn’t offer a mobile version for iOS and iPadOS users. So, you will be limited to getting work done from your Mac. See our top free PDF editors for Mac. First impressions Foundry When launching Cisdem PDFMaster on your Mac, you’ll be greeted by a minimalistic user interface. It features modern-looking buttons and labels and doesn’t bloat the app with unnecessarily complex options. Once you load a PDF document in the app, the toolbar it surfaces is similarly straightforward and easy to grasp. It’s ideal for beginners with limited tech knowledge rather than those seeking an advanced PDF editor. Cisdem PDFMaster’s features Foundry While Cisdem PDFMaster’s feature set is somewhat limited compared to more professional apps, it generally gets the job done for those with casual PDF editing needs. As you’d expect, you get to edit the text in the document, allowing you to add or remove words, change the font, insert links, move things around, etc. The software also supports extensive annotation, including shape insertion, highlighting, underlining, striking through, leaving comments, guiding with arrows, and so on. Like other popular PDF editors, you also get to insert images, stamps, and digital signatures. Other neat tools include watermarking, document cropping, conversion to multiple file formats, size shrinking, optical character recognition (OCR), redaction, page reorganization, PDF comparisons, area calculations, and much more. While most of the features above work reliably for me, I’ve encountered some hiccups when using other tools. For example, exporting a PDF after password-protecting it didn’t actually secure it, and I could still open the document without entering the assigned password. Otherwise, the app does what it does well. Foundry Should you buy Cisdem PDFMaster or EaseUS PDF Editor for Mac Cisdem PDFMaster for macOS is a decent app for those looking to make casual adjustments to their documents. While the app offers the commonly sought functionalities, it misses out on the more advanced customizations that pro users may need. If you edit PDF files professionally, Cisdem’s solution may be somewhat lacking. Similarly, if you tend to hand off tasks between your Mac and iDevices, PDFMaster isn’t the app to pick. The software makes more sense for those planning to make minor tweaks to personal documents or annotate other people’s submissions to provide feedback. We were just a bit confused by the fact that EaseUS is also packaging this up as its Mac PDF solution.

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Neither Apple nor Masimo could admit what the $250 case was really about
The $250 (yep, there’s no missing ‘M’ from the end of that number) Apple was awarded in its patent infringement case against Masimo might seem amusing – as John Gruber wryly noted, it’s just about enough to buy one Apple Watch SE. But what was even more amusing is than neither Apple not Masimo could admit what the case was really about for the respective parties … more…

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Arm Goes to War Against Qualcomm: Stupid Squared
Because of Intel’s relative weakness at the moment, Arm has an opportunity to move outside of its smartphone base and solidly into PCs. Instead of backing Qualcomm’s play, Arm has decided to cancel Qualcomm’s license. This move not only appears to be an abuse of power but is extremely ill-timed. The post appeared first on TechNewsWorld.

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Apple banned from selling iPhone 16 in Indonesia
Apple cannot sell the iPhone 16 in Indonesia, following a ban by the government for falling to meet the domestic content requirements. (via Cult of Mac - Apple news, rumors, reviews and how-tos)

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iPhone 16 demand remains in line with the iPhone 15
Investment bank JP Morgan says that demand for the iPhone 16 range is roughly the same as for the iPhone 15 in 2023, but shipping times for the Pro models are shrinking.iPhone 16 [left], iPhone 16 ProWith Apple not releasing details of how many iPhones it is making, nor breaking it down by model type, JP Morgan tracks shipping times. Its analysts have previously said that iPhone 16 Pro Max has been high, but all other models resemble the shipping times for the iPhone 15 range.In a note to investors seen by AppleInsider, JP Morgan says that shipping lead times have moderately improved for all iPhone 16 models. However, the "decline is particularly notable across the Pro models." Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

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Why Apple’s ‘exciting week of announcements’ is better than an event
Macworld There’s a risk, if you do something for long enough, that you forget why you started doing it in the first place. And fail to realize that you’ve turned a once-useful activity into a cargo-cult ritual. Take the Apple special event. These used to be some of the most electrifying experiences in the tech industry. Start with a groundbreaking product launch (iMac, iPhone, MacBook Air), sprinkle in some Steve Jobs razzle-dazzle, and fill the auditorium with a crowd so whoop-prone they should be tested for pertussis, and the result is, well, magical. Why would you hold an event to announce your product, when events cost money and put everyone involved to great inconvenience? Why not just ship the devices straight out to stores, and spend the money on advertising? Because the person-to-person experience has no equal for sharing a sense of enthusiasm. Because seeing is believing. And because a one-off event makes people plan their week around finding out what you’ve got to announce, adverts just make them reach for the remote. Apple still holds press events—it held one last month—but they’re completely different these days. Nobody can do what Steve Jobs once did, but his role is filled by a rotating cast who do their best to come close: Tim Cook as compere; Jonny Ive (until he departed) as the mystical evangelist; Craig Federighi as the likable gag man. Some can equal the founder’s polish, but none can match his stagecraft, his ability to build anticipation and make an event unmissable. On top of this, Apple has largely given up on the idea of the live event. This policy began as a pragmatic response to COVID-19 but has continued well beyond the point when it was medically useful because the company recognized the secondary benefits. Pre-recorded events carry no risk of product malfunctions (such as Federighi’s unfortunate experience when unveiling Face ID in 2017), require less logistical organization, and enable presenters to rattle through a greater volume of material in less time. But they also remove the entire purpose of press events, which is to make the audience feel part of history, that they were there when something happened. There’s a reason why Rolling Stones tickets cost $150 and Rolling Stones DVDs cost $10. With all this in mind, I can’t pretend to be especially sad to discover that the rumored October event will instead be a weeklong series of announcements, presumably by means of a press release or three. A lot of Apple’s meetings could have been an email; this one actually will be. And little, I suspect, will be lost. I will admit that going for press releases instead of an event isn’t a terribly promising sign, in the sense that Apple would probably hold an event if it thought the announcements were going to be momentous enough to justify one. And for that reason we shouldn’t expect anything this week, despite Greg Joswiak’s optimistic word choice, to rival the original iMac or MacBook Air for excitement. But were we expecting that anyway? And has the company allowed dullness to stop it from holding events in the past? September’s event was pretty dull in the grand scheme of things, and my suspicion is that habit rather than a sense of urgency caused Apple to send out the invites on that occasion. In actual fact, here at Macworld, we’re expecting announcements this week that may not live up to that “exciting” tag, but should be important and worthwhile. Apple has a lot of Macs to unveil: the M4 versions of the iMac, the MacBook Pro, and the Mac mini, the latter of which is likely to feature an actual physical redesign, something Mac fans haven’t seen in a while. The Mac mini is a key product in Apple’s ecosystem, much like the iPhone SE and 10th-gen iPad, but because it isn’t a “pro” device it will probably never get the stage time it merits. This week (today, in fact) will also mark the public launch of Apple Intelligence, which will arrive with the iOS 18.1 and macOS 15.1 updates. Whether that will be officially tied in with Exciting Week remains to be seen, but the joy of a week, as opposed to an event, is that you don’t have to limit the number of things you talk about, or even come up with a coherent theme. Who knows, we might even get a press release about the much-needed 11th-gen iPad… although I rather doubt it. Ultimately, though, the primary reason why this is better than an event is it’s easier for journalists to cover it. We don’t have to sit through a two-hour presentation taking notes like a maniac and then write them up for six hours while mainlining pizza and vanilla rooibos. We can cover the announcements at a leisurely pace, as they come in, and give each one the time and attention it deserves. And if there’s anything more exciting than calm working conditions, I’d like to hear about it. Happy Exciting Week, everyone. Foundry Welcome to our weekly Apple Breakfast column, which includes all the Apple news you missed last week in a handy bite-sized roundup. We call it Apple Breakfast because we think it goes great with a Monday morning cup of coffee or tea, but it’s cool if you want to give it a read during lunch or dinner hours too. Trending: Top stories Apple confirms ‘an exciting week’ of Mac news, starting today! With iOS 18, loving your iPhone is a real chore. Why the ‘iPhone SE Plus’ makes more sense than you think. Apple Intelligence is coming to fix the iPhone notification mess—finally. Revealed: How Apple creates your passwords. A day in the life of CEO Tim Cook: The hunt for Diet Mountain Dew. Apple is forcing Jason Cross to turn to Google because Siri won’t do this one simple thing. Revealed: The true cost of the iPhone 16. The new iPad mini is only boring because the next model will be amazing. Podcast of the week Apple is all set to release iOS 18.1, and with it comes Apple Intelligence, Apple’s much-hyped set of AI features. In the latest episode of the Macworld Podcast, we talk about what we can expect from iOS 18.1 and how it will affect how you use your iPhone. We may also see new M4 Macs. You can catch every episode of the Macworld Podcast on Spotify, Soundcloud, the Podcasts app, or our own site. Reviews corner iCloud Drive review: The cloud storage service all Apple users can access. Google Drive review: Why Google rules cloud storage. Adata SE920 External SSD review: Turbo storage for mobile content creators. Scuf Nomad review: Compact iPhone controller with customization options. The rumor mill Fear not, M4 Macs are still coming ‘very soon’. Apple is working on a new App Store just for games, report claims. Early 2025 Apple bonanza includes M4 MacBook Air, iPhone SE, iPad Air, 11th-gen iPad. More RAM, more ports, and sweet Space Black? The new M4 MacBook Pro might finally get everything right. Software updates, bugs, and problems Apple will finally fix the iPhone 16 freeze/restart bug with this week’s update. iOS 18.2 beta is available with loads of new Apple Intelligence features. Apple updates firmware on older AirPods models version 6F21. And with that, we’re done for this week’s Apple Breakfast. If you’d like to get regular roundups, sign up for our newsletters. You can also follow us on Facebook, Threads, or Twitter for discussion of breaking Apple news stories. See you next Monday, and stay Appley.

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https://www.powerpage.org/?p=84118
Electronics repair website iFixit this weekend shared an iPad mini 7 teardown video, and it adds some mystery to the device’s “jelly scrolling” improvements. “Jelly scrolling” refers to screen tearing, which can cause text or images on one side of the screen to appear to be tilted downwards because of a mismatch in refresh rates. […] Source

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Ipsos iSay Review: Earn and Make the Consumer World a Better Place?
We’ve all seen our share of consumer survey platforms where you earn some points and exchange them for cash or gift cards. Ipsos iSay is the latest to come out of this niche, backed by the powerful Ipsos pedigree. Consumer and brand-wise, there are a few hooks that can benefit both ends as we’ll find […] The post appeared first on iLounge.

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iPad mini 7 teardown reveals no internal changes for jelly scrolling fix
An iPad mini 7 teardown reveals Apple leaving the display controller's position unchanged, raising questions on how it fixed jelly scrolling. (via Cult of Mac - Apple news, rumors, reviews and how-tos)

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iPhone 16 now banned in Indonesia over Apple’s unfulfilled investment commitments
Earlier this week, the Indonesian government has banned the sale and use of iPhone 16 models in the country, alongside other Apple products released this fall, including the Apple Watch Series 10. The ban occurred because Apple failed to meet some of its investment commitments in the country (via The Economic Times). more…

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iPad 11: Here’s what the rumors say about Apple’s cheapest iPad
Apple skipped updating their this year (and last year as well), leaving it with the over four year old A14 chipset. They did lower the price earlier this year, from $449 to $349, but we should finally see a real refresh next spring. Here’s what to expect. more…

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Protect Yourself Against Location Tracking Abuses
Recent revelations of unauthorized location tracking by Babel Street expose privacy vulnerabilities for iPhone users. Adam Engst offers actionable strategies to reduce the likelihood of having your privacy violated by data brokers.

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Meta Quest 3S review: Something Apple would never make
Meta released a brand new mixed reality headset about two week ago, the . It’s their cheapest mixed reality headset by far, starting at a price of $299, compared to the $499 starting price of Meta Quest 3. Don’t get confused though, the S in 3S does not mean it’s better, even though you may think that. It’s a great value for mixed reality – but something Apple would never make. more…

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