Get into the holiday spirit with our iPhone 16 Pro Max giveaway! Don’t miss your chance to win a brand-new iPhone 16 Pro Max.
These Apple Watch Straps Are Helping The Planet
Icon Days has a new Apple Watch strap. Not only does it look stylish, but it is also helping protect the planet. The Navy Flame strap is made of premium of leather but it is also plastic free. That includes the packaging. Furthermore, 10% of profits go to environmental charities. The strap is compatible with all Apple Watch models. It costs £39 ($52) and there is free UK shipping in time for Christmas.
VICE Tests Amazon Ring’s Security, and it’s Not Good
Journalists at VICE tested the security of Amazon Ring security cameras, and they call it “awful.”
Ring is not offering basic security precautions, such as double-checking whether someone logging in from an unknown IP address is the legitimate user, or providing a way to see how many users are currently logged in—entirely common security measures across a wealth of online services.
Apple Removes ‘Rewound’ App That Made Your iPhone Look Like an iPod
Apple has removed the music app called Rewound that let people download skins to make the app look like old iPods.
To be fair, the iPod skins didn’t come pre-installed with the Rewound app—users had to download them separately once the app was installed. Though, you only have to look at tweets from users to see that the skins did in fact, look very much like the iPod Classic. However, Apple also reportedly took issue with the fact Rewound charged users for Apple Music features. Rewound says this was “less unreasonable” but noted that Apple had already approved in-app purchases before click wheel skins became popular.
”Less unreasonable.” I’d say that charging people for another company’s service is a big NO NO.
Apple Announces LGBT Documentary ‘Visible: Out on Television’
Today Apple announced that an LGBT documentary called Visible: Out on Television will premiere on its service February 14, 2020.
Walt Mossberg Looks Back on a Decade of Tim Cook
Apple journalist Walt Mossberg looks back at the past decade of Apple and how it fares under the leadership of Tim Cook.
Apple remains what it has been for many years: the single most important consumer tech hardware company, a major force not only in its industry but in society at large. And now, it is huge and rich to boot. But it’s still unclear if it can be anybody’s favorite music provider, TV network, or news service.
Or if it can launch another blockbuster device.
Power Up 3 Devices at Once with this 8,000mAh Hyper Charging Power Pack: $21.24
We have a deal on the HyperCharger PRO V.2 All-in-One Charger, an 8,000mAh portable battery with built-in Lightning and micro-USB cables, plus a USB-C adapter for charging those devices. It also has a USB charging port for plugging in a third device at the same time. It’s $24.99 through our deal, but coupon code MERRYSAVE15 brings it down to $21.24 at checkout.
AAPL Shareholders to Vote on its Human Rights Policies
At Apple’s annual shareholder meeting next year it faces shareholders who want the company to define how it handles certain demands.
Mac Pro Teardown, iMac Pro's Future – TMO Daily Observations 2019-12-17
Andrew Orr and John Martellaro join host Kelly Guimont to discuss the new Mac Pro teardown from iFixit, and the future of the iMac Pro.
Malwarebytes Finds Increase in Mac Threat Detections in 2019
Cybersecurity threats against Macs increased in 2019, with some of the world’s biggest threats targetting Apple devices Malwarebytes found.
Save $15 on a $100 iTunes Gift Card on Amazon
Amazon is offering two deals on iTunes gift cards in time for the holiday season, one for a US$100 gift card and a US$50 gift card.
Camera+ 2 Adds 12 Features for the Holidays
Camera+ 2 is a good camera for iOS, and LateNiteSoft added 12 new features just in time for the holidays. Here’s one feature that I like:
Sometimes the mood just isn’t quite right, and a bit of lighting makes all the difference. Enter, torch mode. But sometimes that little light on your device is just too bright. We want mood not glare right? Well we’ve got mood to spare now that we’ve given you a wheel to customize the brightness of your torch anywhere between 10 and 100%. So whether you’re roasting chestnuts by the fire or skating in the park, you’ll always have perfect lighting.
The Pop-Up Store That is The Set For Apple TV's 'Helpsters'
A pop-up shop appeared in New York City. It turns out it is the set of Apple TV+ kids show Helpsters, according to 9to5Mac.
Apple is continuing to expand the reach of its Apple TV+ content. In addition to various book partnerships, Apple is also opening a pop-up in New York to promote its “Helpsters” live-action puppet series. Update: This is actually the set and filming location for the show. This was spotted by Parker Ortolani on Twitter. The pop-up, located at 220 W 16 St, is free of Apple branding aside from a “Watch on Apple TV” badge on the window. The window displays showcase the characters from the show with the tagline “Four problems, big or small, we’re here to help solve them.”
A WhatsApp Bug Could Crash the App And Delete Group Chats
Security firm CheckPoint revealed a flaw in WhatsApp. It could repeatedly crash the messaging service and permanently delete group chats and associated media, ZDNET reported.
In order to launch the application-crashing attack, the attacker first of all needs to gain entry to the WhatsApp group they intend to target – although given that the chat app allows up to 256 users per group, this might not prove too difficult. An attacker would need to have some hacking skills in order to carry out the attack, with the ability to browse WhatsApp Web and open Chrome’s DevTools, as well as gaining access to the secret parameters used by the application as part of how group chats operate.
Pixelmator Pro Adds ‘ML Super Resolution’
In the latest update Pixelmator Pro adds a machine learning feature called ML Super Resolution as a way to enhance small, blurry images.
Mac Pro Gets High Score in iFixit Teardown
iFixit recently completed its teardown of the Mac Pro, giving it a repairability score of 9 out of 10.
The Mac is back and more Pro than ever, throwing away the cylindrical “trash can” design in favor of something that resembles a computer. Its appearance may harken to the original Mac Pro from 2006, but can it compare in the repairability department? We dropped six thousand dollars and one block of hard cheddar to find out. Let’s tear it down.
They listed two negative things: The SSD cards are modular and custom-made by Apple. This could make replacing them a bit complicated. And it could be expensive to replace a part that isn’t on Apple’s already-limited list of approved repairs.
Instagram Increases its Fight Against Fake News
Instagram has increased its attempts to counter fake news on the platform, taking its third-party fact-checking program global.
Deezer Expands Ability to Ban Songs You Don't Like
Music streaming service Deezer expanded its ‘Ban’ feature to allow users to better tailor the music they hear in ‘Flow’ mixes.
Smile TextExpander Evangelist Jeff Gamet - TMO Background Mode Interview
Jeff Gamet the former managing editor of The Mac Observer, a position he held for 13 years. He’s also a book author and noted podcaster. About a year ago, Jeff left TMO to become the Smile TextExpander Evangelist.
With a year at his new job under his belt, I asked Jeff about his accomplishments, challenges, and ongoing change in perspective being an evangelist for a major software company. We chatted about being deep on macOS, the TextExpander transition to macOS Catalina, the change being heavily involved in Apple developer relations and the change in work habits, especially being no longer immersed in every Apple product and service. We also chatted about his new 16-inch MacBook Pro at some length. Jeff was as he always is: charming and warm.
Apple in Talks to Buy Office Space in Pittsburgh
Apple is reportedly in talks to buy up to 90,000 square feet of space in the Pittsburgh Athletic Association building.
AirPods Pro and AirPods 2 Get Firmware Updates
AirPods Pro and AirPods 2 both received firmware updates today. The update for both products is the same: 2C54.
Apple News Partnership, A New Mac Model – TMO Daily Observations 2019-12-16
Charlotte Henry and John Martellaro join host Kelly Guimont to discuss Apple News partnering with ABC, and John’s proposal of a new Mac.
Time Picks 3 Apple Devices as Best Gadgets of 2010s
Time has picked three Apple devices in its list of the 10 Best Gadgets of the 2010s. The devices are the iPad, Apple Watch, and AirPods.
Last Chance for the 2020 Limited Edition Mac Bundle w/Parallels, iMazing, TextExpander, More: $48
You have one last chance at the 2020 Limited Edition Mac Bundle. This bundle has 13 Mac apps, including Parallels, iMazing, and TextExpander. You’ll also find PDF Expert, Windscribe VPN Pro, RapidWeaver 8, Disk Drill Pro, Aurora HDR 2019, and more. The 2020 Limited Edition Mac Bundle is $59.99 through our deal, but coupon code MACSAVE20 brings it down to $48. And the deal officially ends December 16th at 11:59 PM PST.
New Keyboard ‘Typewise’ Claims 80% Fewer Typos
Typewise is a new keyboard that claims to reduce typos by 80% thanks to its hexagonal design. The developers invited me to test the app, and while there is a learning curve it does have a tutorial to follow. I haven’t given up the default keyboard though, but if you’re looking for an alternative I recommend you at least try Typewise out.
Typewise has been completely redesigned to provide an optimal typing experience on the smartphone. The layout was optimized for typing with two thumbs, because, according to the Cambridge study, 74% of users write this way and achieve the highest typing speed. Two space buttons placed in the middle of the keyboard allow these most frequently used keys to be reached as easily as possible.