A short time ago, Apple announced that it will hold an event on September 9, 2024, at 10 AM Pacific time with the tagline “It’s Glowtime.” Glowtime is likely a reference to the new capabilities coming to Siri with the updates coming to the company’s OSes. If history is any indica … | Continue reading
Allison Johnson, writing for The Verge on the latest EU-mandated and Apple-designed changes to iOS in Europe: They’re getting all kinds of stuff because they have cool regulators, not like, regular regulators. Third-party app stores, the ability for browsers to run their own engi … | Continue reading
Enjoy the latest episodes from MacStories’ family of podcasts: Sigmund and Devon highlight the return of Pachinko and share their earliest experiences with Apple TV. The gang shares their very sane, and not at all controversial 👀 notification preferences. Then they explor … | Continue reading
Today, Apple announced a series of new changes coming later this year to users running iOS and iPadOS in the European Union. In March 2024, as part of Apple’s response to the DMA, iOS 17.4 introduced a new browser choice screen that prompted users in the EU to choose a new defaul … | Continue reading
Yesterday, during Gamescom’s opening night ceremonies, Netflix Games released a trailer for Monument Valley 3. The franchise’s sequel from Ustwo Games, which has been in development for five years, will be published exclusively on Apple’s App Store and Android by Netflix Games on … | Continue reading
Enjoy the latest episodes from MacStories’ family of podcasts: This week, Federico and I look at the gadget landscape to find inspiration for expanding Apple’s hardware lineup. On AppStories+, a behind-the-scenes look at our expansion into video and a conversation about the Visio … | Continue reading
Apple Podcasts got the full Apple Music treatment with its own web app today. The UI is essentially the same as Apple’s native app but with the added flexibility of working on non-Apple devices. Apple says Podcasts works on all major browsers, including Safari, Chrome, Edge, and … | Continue reading
Today on its website, Procreate announced that it would not build generative AI tools into its apps. The company’s position is clear and unequivocal: Generative AI is ripping the humanity out of things. Built on a foundation of theft, the technology is steering us toward a barren … | Continue reading
I thoroughly enjoyed this two-part series on the Twenty Thousand Hertz podcast about sound design at Apple and the care that goes into crafting sound effects and alerts that complement the user experience (speaking of the parts of Apple I still love). I’ll be honest: like many ot … | Continue reading
The headline may be a little provocative, but this article by Matt Birchler encapsulates a lot of the feelings I shared on the latest episode of Connected following Apple’s decisions regarding the Patreon iOS app. Part of this is that Apple is no longer the underdog, they’re the … | Continue reading
Enjoy the latest episodes from MacStories’ family of podcasts: Sigmund and Devon highlight the debut of Bad Monkey, discuss the future of Apple Original Films in theaters, and go on an immersive elephant adventure with Wild Life. Sponsored By: Play – Save and Organize Videos to W … | Continue reading
Source: Epic Games. Epic Games launched its iOS alternative app marketplace in the EU today with three of its games: Fortnite, Rocket League Sideswipe, and Fall Guys. Those games are also available from AltStore PAL and will be available later from Aptoide, both of which offer al … | Continue reading
Jason Snell has an excellent interview on Six Colors with Zach Gage one of the creators of Puzzmo and a ton of other games we’ve covered on MacStories over the years. Federico and I interviewed Zach ages ago on AppStories, and more recently at WWDC, and the only thing I like more … | Continue reading
Earlier today, Apple announced another major new functionality coming to iOS 18.1: the ability for third-party apps to offer NFC transactions via the iPhone’s Secure Element: Starting with iOS 18.1, developers will be able to offer NFC contactless transactions using the Secure El … | Continue reading
Images taken using Process Zero. Source: Lux. Today, Lux released an update to Halide, its manual control camera app. The marquee feature is Process Zero, a mode that allows photographers to take images with no algorithmic or AI processing. As Lux’s Ben Sandofsky explains it: Pro … | Continue reading
Enjoy the latest episodes from MacStories’ family of podcasts: This week, Federico and John rethink podcast apps, exploring why it’s such a tricking category to get right for the greatest number of users. This week, Federico returns to join John and Brendon to recap the latest po … | Continue reading
Today, we’re expanding NPC: Next Portable Console to include video on YouTube. The reception to the show has been fantastic. NPC debuted in the top five on the Apple Podcasts Video Game chart and has been attracting more listeners every week as an audio-only podcast on YouTube. H … | Continue reading
I’ve used Federico’s Apple Frames shortcut to add device frames to screenshots for years. It’s a great way to quickly process multiple screenshots and upload them to the MacStories CDN with minimal effort. But as great as Shortcuts is for simplifying this sort of task, there are … | Continue reading
Today, Patreon alerted creators who use its platform that Patreon must begin using Apple’s In-App Purchases system in its iOS app or face the app’s removal from the store. According to Patreon: This has two major consequences for creators: Apple will be applying their 30% App Sto … | Continue reading
Enjoy the latest episodes from MacStories’ family of podcasts: Sigmund and Devon preview Apple Intelligence, highlight new Apple Original heist flick The Instigators, discuss improvements to Continuity Camera in the tvOS 18 beta, and recap Land of Women. Chris is absent for myste … | Continue reading
Enjoy the latest episodes from MacStories’ family of podcasts: This week, I am joined by Jonathan to preview watchOS 11, which is one of the most feature packed OSes being updated this fall. On AppStories+, John reports on how his travel tech setup fared. Setapp – the place to ge … | Continue reading
One of my greatest frustrations with read-later apps is how hard most make it to get your data out on your terms. Few allow you to export links using Shortcuts or some other system, and even fewer offer to do the same with highlights – until now. With version 2.0, GoodLinks adds … | Continue reading
Yesterday, Federal District Judge Amit Mehta issued a ruling in the U.S. Justice Department’s antitrust case against Google in favor of the government. Judge Mehta didn’t mince words: Google is a monopolist, and it has acted as one to maintain its monopoly. It has violated Sectio … | Continue reading
The Dynamic Island has been one of my favorite software additions to the iPhone since it was introduced with the iPhone 14 Pro lineup. The feature is a fun blend of hardware and software that turns the new pill-shaped TrueDepth camera array into a status bar that can collapse and … | Continue reading
Upgraded offers an easy way to get the MacBook you need right away — and in the future. Choose a new MacBook Air or MacBook Pro, starting at $36.06 and $52.17 a month, respectively, then upgrade to the latest model every two years. Interest rates start at 0%, and AppleCare+ is in … | Continue reading
Yesterday, Vidit Bhargava, the developer of LookUp, Word of the Day, and other apps, published an excellent story on Pixel Posts about designing for today’s app interactions. Vidit makes the excellent point that the way we use apps is changing. They’re no longer iPhone-only islan … | Continue reading
Enjoy the latest episodes from MacStories’ family of podcasts: This week on Magic Rays of Light, Sigmund and Devon are joined by developer Devin Davies to chat about Crouton, summer movie snacks, and more. They also highlight the debut of Women in Blue and recap season one of Pre … | Continue reading
Last quarter, Apple reported revenue of $90.8 billion, which was a 4% year-over-year drop. The decline reflected weak iPhone sales in China, which were somewhat mitigated by increases in the company’s services business. Today, third-quarter earnings are out and Apple reported rev … | Continue reading
Earlier this year, Neil Long of mobilegamer.biz published an inside look at Apple Arcade from game developers’ perspectives. The story reflected developers’ frustration stemming from their interactions with Apple, project cancelations, declining revenue, and more. The story didn’ … | Continue reading
Enjoy the latest episodes from MacStories’ family of podcasts: In the latest episode, Brendon and John go it alone without Federico with Powkiddy V10 follow-up, a report on Brendon’s first week with the Nothing CMF Phone 1 and a first look at the Ayn Odin2 Mini. Along the way, th … | Continue reading
Unread by Golden Hill Software has long been an excellent and elegant RSS client for iOS and iPadOS. Today, it arrives on macOS with version 4.0. While I have been exploring new ways to keep up with my favorite feeds as the web enters its federated era, using Unread on the Mac ha … | Continue reading
Enjoy the latest episodes from MacStories’ family of podcasts: This week, Sigmund is joined by guest co-host Christopher Lawley to highlight the debut of Time Bandits and talk about Apple’s upcoming slate of immersive video releases. This week, Niléane reviews the AirPods Max, Ma … | Continue reading
Yesterday, AltStore co-creator Riley Testut posted on Mastodon that the ‘cat’s out of the bag.’ That cat was the announcement from Epic Games that their hugely popular game ‘Fortnite’ would be coming to AltStore PAL in the EU. Epic had previously announced they would be launching … | Continue reading
Today, Apple has launched Apple Maps on the web in a surprise announcement. This beta version of Apple Maps on the web is accessible via the url beta.maps.apple.com, and is said by the company to be compatible with Google Chrome, Safari, and Microsoft Edge on Windows. Additionall … | Continue reading
Even though we have a podcast together, I promise I did not talk to my friend Brendon about something I started doing myself last month: using EarPods – yes, the old wired ones – as my “universal earbuds” that can connect to just about anything these days. In any case, Brendon ca … | Continue reading
Enjoy the latest episodes from MacStories’ family of podcasts: This week, John tours the highlights of the macOS Sequoia public beta. This episode is sponsored by: Setapp – the place to get apps. Use the code appstories20 at checkout for 20% off. This week, Robb located some pizz … | Continue reading
Enjoy the latest episodes from MacStories’ family of podcasts: This week on Magic Rays of Light, Devon is joined by guest co-host Jonathan Reed to discuss Jonathan’s first impressions of Apple Vision Pro, new Apple Original documentary series Omnivore, 72 Emmy Awards nominations … | Continue reading
Source: Apple. Beginning today, Apple says it will begin releasing a series of films, documentaries, music, sports, travel, and other video content for the Vision Pro. First up is ‘Hot Air Balloons,’ which will be available beginning at 6 PM Pacific today, and is part of a series … | Continue reading
Smart Script and Math Notes are two of the most notable features coming to iPadOS this fall. Both take advantage of the Apple Pencil and the iPad’s computer power to do a lot of complex work under the hood, which makes taking good-looking notes and working with numbers and equati … | Continue reading
Enjoy the latest episodes from MacStories’ family of podcasts: This week, Federico and John run down the highlights of the iOS and iPadOS 18 public betas that were released today. On AppStories+, Federico and John compare earbud notes, covering recent models from Sennheiser, Tech … | Continue reading
Federico has been on quite a journey with his gear setup over the past few months. If you’ve been following along on NPC: Next Portable Console, MacStories Unwind, and AppStories, you know that he’s been assembling a modular system that lets him switch effortlessly from work to p … | Continue reading
The past few months have been busy at MacStories. The release of new iPads was followed by our launch of new podcasts and then WWDC. Along the way, my gear setup has changed a little, too. Portable Setup Changes 11” iPad Pro and Accessories Leading up to Apple’s spring event and … | Continue reading
There are thousands of things on sale during Amazon Prime Day, including a lot of my favorite gadgets, so I thought I’d highlight the deals I’ve found for the gear I’ve used, tested, and love. Here are my top picks. Apple Hardware and Accessory Deals Apple Studio Display with Adj … | Continue reading
Overcast has long been my favorite podcast player on iOS and iPadOS with its beautifully simple user interface that complements a great audio engine. Today, developer Marco Arment is celebrating Overcast’s tenth anniversary with the release of a new version featuring a user inter … | Continue reading
iOS 18 launches in public beta today. My experience with iOS 18 and iPadOS 18, launching today in public beta for everyone to try, has been characterized by smaller, yet welcome enhancements to Apple’s productivity apps, a redesign I was originally wrong about, and an emphasis on … | Continue reading
Sequoia is not your typical macOS release. In recent years, new features of all Apple OSes have been increasingly meted out over time instead of dropping all at once in the fall. That’s been true of macOS, too, but this year, the magnitude of the staged release will be more prono … | Continue reading
Last year, Apple declared watchOS 10 the biggest update to the Apple Watch’s software since its introduction. I don’t think that was actually the case, but there were undoubtedly some notable changes to how we interact with our watches every day, with the introduction of the Smar … | Continue reading
Enjoy the latest episodes from MacStories’ family of podcasts: This week on Magic Rays of Light, Sigmund and Devon spotlight the theatrical release of Fly Me to the Moon, revisit the idea of an Apple TV Pro, recap Trying season four, and highlight new Apple Original series Sunny … | Continue reading