Connected, Episode 277: Good Luck Not Waking Up the Entire Building

On this week’s episode of Connected: After working out what the award should be for the two Chairman spots, the boys ponder the future of the iPad Pro’s accessories and the holes on the back of the rack-mounted Mac Pro. Then, Myke provides a tour of CES. You can listen below (and … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

iA Writer 5.4 Adds New Export Options, Local Backups, and Hashtag Suggestions

Over the holidays, the iA Writer team released version 5.4 of its iOS, iPadOS, and Mac apps, which added improved export options. The iOS and iPadOS apps also gained local backups and hashtag suggestions. The new export feature adds the ability to share, export, print, and copy f … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

Sam Henri Gold Launches The Unofficial Apple Archive

Last summer, Sam Henri Gold uploaded hundreds of images, videos, and other historical Apple material to Google Drive from the company’s earliest days to present. The collection didn’t last long. The flood of people trying to download its contents slowed the archive to a crawl, an … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

Arcade Highlights: Grindstone

When it comes to mobile games, all a new title has to do to draw me in is show a Candy Crush-style grid of objects. There’s something about the simple mechanic of making connections on a grid that’s hard for me to resist. Most of the time, though, I find that while such games can | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

The Case for Low Power Mode on the Mac

Marco Arment on marco.org, outlining his self-created Low Power Mode-like system which relies on a third-party app, and making the case for Apple to add something similar as an official macOS feature: The vast majority of the time I’m using it, the 16-inch MacBook Pro is a much b … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

AppStories, Episode 145 – Shortcuts Utility Apps

This week on AppStories, we cover Shortcuts utilities including Toolbox Pro, Pushcut, and LaunchCuts. They also preview an upcoming Shortcuts utility from Simon Stovring called Data Jar and explain the difference between Shortcuts, shortcuts, Siri Shortcuts, and other terminology … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

Toggl: Simple Time Tracking Combined with Powerful Reporting [Sponsor]

Toggl brings together simple time tracking with powerful reporting. It’s a combination that allows you to account for your time effortlessly and gain valuable insights, and now is a terrific time to sign up for a paid annual plan. That’s because to celebrate the new year, Toggl i … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

Apple Shows Off Daisy the Recycling Robot

We’ve covered Apple’s recycling robot Daisy, and its predecessor, Liam, before. Both are part of Apple’s efforts to become a ‘closed-loop’ manufacturer that doesn’t rely on the mining industry for the materials that make up its products. Apple gave Reuters a tour of the warehouse … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

CES: A Tour of the Most Interesting (and Strange) Tech Announcements

CES has been going strong all week with announcements of new gadgets: home automation gear, TVs, computers, and lots more. Many mobile phone makers and some big industry players sit out CES, but there is still plenty of news from companies big and small with new products and tech … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

Adapt, Episode 16: Having Fun with the iPad

On this week’s episode of Adapt: Federico and Ryan ease into the new year by taking a break from iPad productivity and explaining how they use the device for fun. Plus a challenge recap, #AskAdapt, and more. You can listen below (and find the show notes here), and don’t forget to … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

Front and Center, a Mac Utility from John Siracusa and Lee Fyock

John Siracusa writes on Hypercritical about the new Mac utility he just released in partnership with Lee Fyock. Following the release of macOS Catalina and its lack of support for 32-bit apps, such as DragThing, Siracusa needed a new solution for restoring a classic Mac OS behavi … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

Connected, Episode 276: Symbiosis, Osmosis, Whatever

On this week’s episode of Connected: The boys kick of 2020 with a lot of follow-up including clarifying what being a Chairman means, a challenge for the Upgradies and a debate about the iPad Air, then conversations about LaunchCuts and Twitter’s iPad app. You can listen below (an … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

LaunchCuts Review: A Better Way to Organize Your Shortcuts with Folders, Advanced Search, and Custom Views

Developed by Adam Tow, LaunchCuts is the latest entry in a series of meta-utilities designed to extend Apple’s Shortcuts app with new functionalities. Unlike Toolbox Pro and Pushcut, however, LaunchCuts is the most peculiar and niche I’ve tested insofar as it doesn’t provide Shor … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

Apple Announces Night Mode Photography Contest

About this time last year, Apple announced its first-ever ‘Shot on iPhone’ photography challenge judged by a panel of professional photographers and Apple employees. Apple is back with a new contest app this year asking users to submit their Night mode photos. Through January 29t … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

Defining Apple’s Decade

Benjamin Mayo of 9to5Mac has published an excellent journey down memory lane of Apple’s last decade: Apple entered the 2010s just as the iPhone began to explode in popularity. The iPhone became the most successful consumer product, ever. Sales surged for another five years and st … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

Apple Details 2019 App Store Stats and Recaps Other Services

In a press release today, Apple shared App Store revenue numbers for the 2019 holiday season, which set an all-time record for single day sales on New Year’s Day: Since the App Store launched in 2008, developers have earned over $155 billion, with a quarter of those earnings comi … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

AppStories, Episode 144 – Getting More Out of Safari for iPadOS

This week on AppStories, we discuss the sort of sophisticated web apps that can be used with Safari on iPadOS 13 and share a bunch of tips and tricks based on Apple’s latest updates to Safari. Sponsored by: Health IQ – Insurance for the Health Conscious. Save up to 41%. Take the … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

Desktop-Class Safari for iPad: A Hands-On Look at the Difference the iPadOS Update Makes to Apple’s Browser

For about four years, I’ve sat down at my Mac to produce Club MacStories’ two newsletters using Mailchimp. There’s a lot I like about Mailchimp, but that has never included the company’s web app. Mailchimp relies heavily on dragging and dropping content blocks in a browser window … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

Brydge Announces Pro+ Keyboard with Trackpad for the iPad Pro and a Standalone Trackpad

Today Brydge announced the Pro+ keyboard for the iPad Pro, which incorporates a trackpad. The keyboard was first revealed in connection with a lawsuit filed by Brydge against another keyboard maker that Brydge says violated a patent on the company’s keyboard hinge. Although Brydg … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

Using Sofa to Track TV Shows and Movies Watched in 2019

As December comes to a close, now is the perfect time to reflect on how the year was spent, both with deep existential questions but also lighter, fun matters – such as surveying your TV and movie consumption over the year. Until recently I didn’t have a system I was satisfied wi … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

How I Modded the Silicone Tips of AirPods Pro with a Memory Foam Layer

I love my AirPods Pro and, ever since I bought them last October, I’ve been taking advantage of their noise cancellation technology to use them in more contexts than the original AirPods.1 They sound better than any other wireless earbuds I’ve tested (obviously, they sound much w … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

Stephen Coyle on the Reduced Bluetooth Latency of AirPods Pro

Stephen Coyle has followed up on previous tests he conducted on Bluetooth latency of AirPods. This time, he tested the AirPods Pro using the iOS system keyboard, his rhythm game Tapt, and a shotgun microphone, to measure the delay between triggering a sound on an iPad Pro and pla … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

2019 Winter Festival of Artisanal Software [Sponsor]

The 2019 Artisanal Software Festival is a fantastic collection of carefully-crafted apps for writing, research, thinking, and more at terrific prices. As in past years, software artisans from around the globe come together to offer fair discounts direct to you from the workshop d … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

Satechi Debuts Cleverly-Designed USB-C Apple Watch Charger

Satechi began selling a new MFi-certified Apple Watch charger today with a clever design that looks perfect for iPad Pro users. The charger, which is made of space gray aluminum and retails for $44.99 in the US, has a USB-C connector that plugs directly into devices with USB-C po … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

Twitter Rolling Out Redesigned iPad Interface

Chance Miller, writing for 9to5Mac: Twitter is rolling out an update to the official Twitter for iPad app that brings a much-needed interface redesign. With today’s update, Twitter for iPad now better takes advantage of the added screen real estate available on the iPad. As first … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

Connected, Episode 274: 2019 in Review: The Date of November Came in September

On this week’s episode of Connected: 2019 was a wild year, complete with the death of AirPower, the announcement of iPadOS, the release of the iPhone 11 and the return of the Mac Pro. This week, Stephen, Federico and Myke revisit the headlines that made this year so hectic. You c … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

AppStories, Episode 143 – The 2019 MacStories Selects Awards

This week, we reveal the 2019 MacStories Selects Awards. Sponsored by: Linode – High-performance SSD Linux servers for all of your infrastructure needs. Get a $20 credit. Kensington The Professionals Choice. Find the right docking solutions for your organization today. Re:Schedul … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

MacStories Selects 2019: Recognizing the Best Apps of the Year

John: The process of picking the MacStories Selects awards is simple. During the past year as we used and reviewed hundreds of apps, Federico, Ryan, and I kept a shared note in Apple Notes with a list of the apps that struck us as potential candidates for one of our 2019 awards. … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

Apple, Google, Amazon, and the Zigbee Alliance Announce Project Connected Home Over IP

In a press release today, Apple announced that it is part of a new working group with Google, Amazon, and the Zigbee Alliance called Project Connected Home over IP. According to Apple’s press release: The goal of the Connected Home over IP project is to simplify development for m … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

Introducing MusicBot: The All-in-One Apple Music Assistant, Powered by Shortcuts

For the past several months, I’ve been working on a shortcut designed to be the ultimate assistant for Apple Music. Called MusicBot, the shortcut encompasses dozens of different features and aims to be an all-in-one assistant that helps you listen to music more quickly, generate … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

Things’ Quick Find Feature Upgraded Across iPhone, iPad, and Mac

Today the popular task manager Things was updated with several small, but noteworthy enhancements to its Quick Find feature across iPhone and iPad versions, with the Mac update arriving shortly. There’s a convenient new way to access Quick Find, recent lists are now displayed aut … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

PowerPhotos: The Ultimate Toolbox for Photos on the Mac [Sponsor]

PowerPhotos is the perfect Mac utility to help you manage multiple photo libraries. As technology marches forward, digital cameras produce larger and larger image files, which makes it easy to create huge, unmanageable Photos libraries of tens of thousands of images that quickly … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

Apple Podcasts Now Available on Amazon Alexa Devices

Amazon today has announced a new partnership with Apple that brings the full Apple Podcasts catalog to all Alexa-enabled devices in the U.S.: Beginning today, Alexa customers in the U.S. will be able to listen to more than 800,000 podcasts available through Apple Podcasts on thei … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

Adapt, Episode 15: 2020 iPad Wishes

On this week’s episode of Adapt: On the brink of the new year, Federico and Ryan share their hopes for the iPad in 2020, then review Ryan’s USB drive challenge and answer some #AskAdapt questions. You can listen below (and find the show notes here), and don’t forget to send us qu … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

Connected, Episode 273: Come on, Guys, Let’s Go to the Station

On this week’s episode of Connected: Stephen and Myke are joined by John Voorhees to talk about the new Mac Pro, then Federico reflects on the 5th anniversary of Shortcuts. You can listen below (and find the show notes here). [audio_player src=”https://www.podtrac.com/pts/redirec … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

Twitter Adds Support for iOS Live Photos by Making Them GIFs

Twitter today announced long-overdue support for iOS Live Photos. Rolling out now on all compatible platforms, whenever you add a Live Photo to a tweet you’re composing, you’ll see a new GIF button in the corner of the image. By default the button is crossed out, indicating the L … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

Mac Pro Accessory Roundup: Stand, Mount, Webcam, Lock Adapter, and More

After having been pre-announced by nearly 1,000 days, the new Mac Pro finally went up for sale yesterday on Apple.com, alongside the Pro Display XDR. Complementing these two devices, a variety of new accessories have also just launched, some from Apple and others from third-party … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

Mac Pro and Pro Display XDR Unboxings and Impressions

Earlier today, Apple began accepting orders for the all-new Mac Pro, which will start shipping to customers in 1-2 weeks. Reminiscent of what Apple did when it released the iMac Pro, the new Mac Pro was provided to a very limited set of reviewers with video production experience … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

Apple Releases iOS and iPadOS 13.3 with Communication Limits, Removable Memoji Stickers, and tvOS 13.3 with Alternate Top Shelf for TV

Apple today released what are surely its last major point releases of software for the year, iOS, iPadOS, and tvOS 13.3, alongside minor updates for the company’s other platforms. In fitting the trend of an out-of-the-ordinary software release cycle, which was largely caused by a … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

Apple Begins Accepting Pre-Orders for the New Mac Pro and Pro Display XDR with Shipping Beginning in 1-2 Weeks

First revealed at WWDC this past June, Apple has begun taking pre-orders for its next-generation Mac Pro and 32-inch Pro Display XDR with in-store availability and shipping beginning in 1-2 weeks. The new Mac Pro’s specs are a huge step up from the previous cylindrical model. As … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

The MacStories Selects Awards Are Just Around the Corner

Last year, we introduced readers to the MacStories Selects Awards, which honored our favorite apps of 2018 in various categories. The MacStories Selects Awards will be back again this year with awards in the following eight categories: App of the Year Best New App Best App Update … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

Drafts for Mac: It’s Action Time

When Drafts for Mac first arrived, I knew there were great things to come – not that it wasn’t an excellent app already! But since that time, Drafts for Mac has evolved. What was previously a functional app is now functional, automatable, and more importantly a flexible tool that … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

Lightroom 5.1 Adds Direct SD Card Importing on iPad and iPhone, Plus New Export Options

As promised this fall, Adobe has updated Lightroom for iPad and Lightroom Photo Editor for the iPhone with the ability to import image files from SD cards directly inside the app. The company has added new options when exporting your photos too. I’ve been using the beta of Lightr … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

Linea Sketch Adopting Subscription Model in 2020

The Iconfactory has announced that Linea Sketch, its popular iPad sketching app, will be moving from paid up front to a subscription business model. This transition will take place in early 2020 with the release of Linea 3.0. We tried hard to avoid a subscription, but the costs t … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

AppStories, Episode 142 – Our 2020 App Wishes

This week, we share our 2020 wishes for Apple’s system apps on iOS and the Mac. Sponsored by: Luna Display – Turn any Mac or iPad into a wireless second display. Linode – High-performance SSD Linux servers for all of your infrastructure needs. Get a $20 credit. Kensington – The P … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

Mac Power Users, Episode 513 – Catalyst Apps on the Mac, with John Voorhees

It was a pleasure to spend time with David Sparks and Stephen Hackett talking about Catalyst apps on the Mac for episode 513 of Mac Power Users. I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about and covering Catalyst for the past 18 months since Apple gave developers a sneak peek at it dur … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

Prizmo 5: The Pro Scanner with Powerful Editing Tools for the iPhone and iPad [Sponsor]

Prizmo 5 is the premier solution for fast, streamlined scanning and powerful, accurate OCR on the iPhone and iPad. The app’s hallmark is the efficiency of its capture workflow, which is driven by an elegant and intuitive UI coupled with the latest iOS and iPadOS features. Creacee … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago

Connected, Episode 272: If the Issue Persists, Contact Apple

On last week’s episode of Connected: Apple is handing out awards, and Myke is dealing with the fallout of his TV purchase. Stephen is aware that musicians exist and Federico wants all the 2020 rumors to be true. You can listen below (and find the show notes here). [audio_player s … | Continue reading


@macstories.net | 4 years ago