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The Mac rumor mill has been going into overdrive lately, with information about Apple’s release schedule for 2026. We’ve heard reports about every Mac in the lineup (including the enigmatic Mac Pro), except for one: the iMac. Not a peep about Apple’s iconic all-in-one desktop computer. The current M4 iMac was released back in 2024, and Apple released the M5 MacBook Pro in November. An M5 update to the iMac certainly seems timely, and it’s entirely possible that Apple will release it sometime next year, perhaps along with the M5 MacBook Air in the spring. Or maybe not. Given that we haven’t heard any rumors about an upcoming iMac, Apple might now have a different approach to its product cycle. When you consider Apple’s past chip history, how the iMac is built, and…

You have undoubtedly heard about the recent massive spike in RAM prices. RAM for consumer devices like desktops, laptops, graphics cards, and smartphones (DDR, GDDR, and LPDDR memory) has skyrocketed in recent weeks. Prices are 50 to 100 percent higher than they were back in the summer, with some premium 32GB DDR5 kits going for as much as $400 at Amazon! The problem, as it so often is, traces back to AI. The massive rush to build more AI data centers at all costs has already increased demand for water and electricity, and previously sucked up much of the supply chain for the chips we use in consumer devices. RAM appears to be the latest culprit. AI data centers are using up a lot of the supply of DDR memory, but…

Back in September, when macOS 26 Tahoe arrived for download on my MacBook, I installed it along with millions of other people. I didn’t give it a second thought—I have an M3 Max MacBook Pro with 36GB of RAM and 1TB of storage. Running Tahoe shouldn’t be an issue. But it was. Almost immediately from the first day I installed it, I experienced intermittent freezes lasting a second or two that would interrupt whatever I was doing. I couldn’t tie it down to a single app, and it was difficult to predict. Some days it would happen numerous times each hour, but other days it wouldn’t happen much at all. I tried all the usual tricks—closing apps, restarting, shutting down—and of course I immediately updated to macOS 26.0.1, all to no…

Compared to the iPhone and its complex functions, the Apple TV 4K is a relatively simple device. You’ve got a simple Home Screen with large icons, a few menus across apps, and just not much to set up, really. Nevertheless, tvOS enables power users to customize certain UI elements, system behavior, the Siri Remote, and more. Here are some of the essential settings tweaks that can help you personalize your Apple TV experience in as little as 15 minutes. 1. CUSTOMIZE THE SIRI REMOTE Before getting started, you’ll want to ensure that your Apple TV’s bundled Siri Remote behaves as expected. Head to the Settings app and visit the Remotes and Devices section. There, you can optionally speed up or turn off the remote’s touch surface after testing its default sensitivity.…

Since the debut of the TrueDepth camera system with the iPhone X, the front-facing camera has mostly seen incremental upgrades. Features like Night mode, Photographic Styles, sharper image quality, and 4K video have trickled in over the years, but the overall selfie experience has remained largely unchanged. Instead, Apple has focused most of its innovation on the rear-facing Pro camera system, pushing the boundaries of mobile photography and videography. With the latest iPhone models, that strategy changed in a big way. Apple has added a slew of new front-camera improvements to all of its new phones, not just the highest-end 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max variants. Not sure what they are or what they do? Here’s a breakdown of all the fresh selfie camera additions bundled with your new…

Whereas the Apple Watch Ultra 2 offered very minimal upgrades three years ago, the Ultra 3 is a complete overhaul of Apple’s rugged outdoor smartwatch. In addition to the expected leap to a new chip, the manufacturer has given the device a longer-lasting battery and a bigger and better screen. There is also new connectivity that could come in handy on wilderness hikes. In addition to the switch from LTE to 5G, the smartwatch can use satellite connections to contact emergency services or share your location with contacts. So it’s not a minor update. But is it a worthwhile one? Read on to find out. BIGGER AND BETTER DISPLAY If you place the Ultra 1 and Ultra 3 next to each other, you’ll notice how thin the display edges have become.…

Given the choice, Apple would have rolled out its first custom-designed Mac chips on its own terms, probably at a high-profile event in the Steve Jobs Theater at Apple Park. But given that it was November 2020, the company was forced to release a 45-minute video instead. No amount of in-person theatrics would have upstaged the star of that show, the M1 processor. Five years later, it’s clear that the arrival of Apple silicon has utterly changed the trajectory of the Mac. A CAREFUL START In that first event (which you can relive in this YouTube video), Apple announced its first wave of M1 Macs: the MacBook Air, 13-inch MacBook Pro, and Mac mini. The Macs themselves all used the same design as their Intel predecessors, as Apple wrapped potentially scary…

Apple Mail is a decent alternative to Microsoft Outlook, Mozilla Thunderbird, Spark, and all the other email clients available for the Mac. But even though Apple has been delivering its in-house mail client for years and regularly updates it, it doesn’t come without criticisms—it could be a much better email client if it weren’t for these annoyances. HALF-HEARTED AI IMPLEMENTATION Since macOS 15.4 and iOS 18.4, Apple Intelligence has been an integral part of the operating system and also of Apple Mail, but it can still only tinker with email texts—summaries, smart replies, writing tools, and a bit more. There is enormous potential for AI features, especially in email management and spam detection. Instead of relying on real artificial intelligence, Apple Mail continues to rely on so-called “intelligent” folders for…

Portable monitors are often units that sit separately alongside your laptop, allowing you to use them together side by side or on their own with the MacBook’s screen closed. The Duex Float 2 and Float 2 Pro, from Mobile Pixels, are neater than that. It’s a single screen that is positioned in a stacked arrangement above the MacBook’s own display—as its name would like have it, it “floats.” You simply place your MacBook below the second screen, and hey presto, you have two screens that mean you are not having to move your head from side to side to enjoy the extra screen space. If you use the included magnets, you can keep this stacked screen setup attached to your MacBook. That also makes the setup more stable when in…

Audio Pro recently updated its entire range of speakers with a new “W Generation” that puts the emphasis on wireless connectivity and streaming. We liked its C10 MKII W, which provides hi-fi sound quality in a compact, one-piece design that makes it a good rival for Apple’s HomePod. But, of course, many people still prefer proper stereo speakers, and Audio Pro’s new range does include a number of stereo speakers of different sizes, starting with the new A28 W at $720/£500. The A28 W is described as a set of bookshelf speakers, but they’re fairly large, with each speaker standing 238mm high, 150mm wide, and 200mm deep. The two speakers just about fit onto my desk, sitting on either side of my 27-inch iMac, but they’ll be more at home…

The big news in wireless charging is Qi 2.2 (or Qi2 25W, as some are calling it). It’s the latest version of the Qi2 wireless charging standard that increases charging speed from its previous 15W maximum to 25W, close to what you get from wired cable charging for phones and other mobile devices. Apple was first to bring 25W wireless charging to market on its MagSafe Charger alongside the iPhone 16 launch, which was followed by the Qi 2.2 standard. Qi2.2 promised all sorts of multi-function fast wireless chargers, such as the Belkin UltraCharge Pro 3-in-1 Charging Dock. The first power bank to be certified as Qi 2.2 compliant is Ugreen’s MagFlow Magnetic Wireless Power Bank (10000mAh, Qi2 25W). We tested it to discover whether the benefits of 25W wireless…

Now is a great time to buy a new Apple computer. One of the biggest decisions you’ll have to make when buying a new Mac is whether you should buy a desktop model or opt for a laptop instead. Apple’s laptops might seem like the best choice, with a combination of portability and price, but Apple also offers a great selection of desktops, from the teeny-tiny M4 Mac mini to the all-in-one iMac. So the next time you’re shopping for a new Mac, consider joining Team Desktop and opting for one of Apple’s less portable Macs instead of a MacBook. STATIONARY COMFORT Let’s face it, hunching over a MacBook for hours on end does your body no favors. You’ll typically use your laptop on an arm-level surface, whether that’s a desk…

Whether it’s the kids’ videos, Mom’s holiday photos, or Dad’s music collection, a family can quickly accumulate large amounts of data. Then there are the backups of all the devices found in a modern home. A Network Attached Storage (NAS) system is usually a better solution than directly connected hard drives or even SSDs because it’s a lot cheaper than renting expensive cloud storage and tidier and more convenient than hosting a stack of external hard drives. NAS was once primarily the preserve of professionals but is now increasingly finding its way into private households. This is partly due to the simpler setup but also to falling prices—as seen in two of the Ugreen DH series of NAS drives: the DH2300 and DH4300 Plus. From the entry-level $209 two-bay NASync DH2300 to…

Twenty years ago, Mac OS X Tiger introduced us to a search feature that would stand the test of time: Spotlight. And while at the time I found myself ambivalent about its many quirks, some of which were maddening, with the benefit of hindsight, it’s hard not to be impressed by how far Spotlight has come. Almost every year, Apple has made Spotlight a little better, and macOS Tahoe is its biggest and most impressive upgrade ever. So let’s celebrate Spotlight for what it was, is, and is about to become. WHEN DISKS BECAME BIG ENOUGH TO SEARCH As soon as the classic Mac OS became capable of holding more than a few dozen files on tiny floppy disks, there was a need to find files. So Apple introduced a…

While the rest of the world was waiting for the M5 iPad Pro earlier this month, I decided to buy an M4 iPad Pro, just days before Apple dropped its big M5 announcement, in fact. Yes, I knew the M5 iPad Pro was imminent. But the deal I got on the previous generation model was compelling enough that I didn’t hesitate. When the M5 model arrived, I was still within my return window. However, after digging into what’s new on the new iPad Pro, I’ve concluded that going for the M5 isn’t the no-brainer it appears to be. In fact, I’m here to argue that buying the M4 version now could be the smarter move if you want to save some money. And if you already have an M4 iPad…

The Wavlink USB-C DisplayLink (DL7400) is a full docking station with an impressive 14 ports, including two DisplayPort++ 1.4 ports and two HDMI 2.1 ports, that can support up to four external 4K displays at 60Hz—even with an Apple-limited single-display M1 MacBook Air. We have tested other DisplayLink docks that support up to four external monitors, but none that achieve that feat on Apple’s M1 and M2 MacBook Air models. Apple limits its MacBooks equipped with plain (non-Pro or Max) M1 and M2 processors to just one external display, but one of the workarounds this constraint is connecting via a DisplayLink dock. DisplayLink is third-party software that enables Macs to support more screens than Apple allows for, and you need a dock with a DisplayLink chipset to connect the Mac…

After months of testing, Apple has released iOS 26 to the public, and it’s a major update. The new version of the iPhone operating system features a new look and feel with Liquid Glass, which will instantly make your iPhone look fresh. But that’s not all. Under the hood, there are a bunch of refinements, utilities, and new APIs worth exploring. Here are the top things you absolutely should try once you update your iPhone to iOS 26. 1. EXPLORE THE NEW LIQUID GLASS INTERFACE Possibly the most notable change in iOS 26 is Liquid Glass, which is what Apple calls its new interface available across its family of operating systems. Liquid Glass simulates the effects of glass on the screen, bringing much more transparency and brightness to elements such as…

As the name suggests, VirtualBox (in version 7.2 at the time of this review) is a virtualization tool—similar to Parallels Desktop and VMware Fusion—that allows you to create a virtual machine (VM) that can run Windows and Windows apps from within the macOS itself. It’s fallen behind its rivals in recent years as it lacked support for Macs with Apple Silicon, but it made something of a comeback with the 7.1 update in September 2024 that finally added support for Apple Silicon alongside older Intel Macs. A number of maintenance updates have followed since then, bringing VirtualBox to version 7.2.4 at the end of October 2025. VirtualBox is owned by database giant Oracle, but it’s available as an open-source program and it’s free for personal and educational use. There’s also an…

The AirPods Pro 2 are one of Apple’s best products of the last decade. They were great when released three years ago and have only gotten better with one software update after another adding useful new capabilities. AirPods Pro 3 seems like only a minor update, at first. They changed the eartips? The shape of the bud part is just a little bit different? It measures heart rate now (which my Apple Watch already does)? More like AirPods Pro 2.5, am I right? But despite using the same H2 chip as AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 4, the thoughtful changes to Apple’s best earbuds make them significantly better without raising the price tag. I hesitate to recommend them as an upgrade to AirPods Pro 2 users, but it’s easy to see…

Thunderbolt 5 is a much bigger performance shift than Thunderbolt 4 was compared to Thunderbolt 3, which was just some Windows certification changes plus a few actual spec updates. The latest Thunderbolt 5 (TB5) connection standard doubles the bandwidth from 40Gbps to bidirectional 80Gbps, with 120Gbps possible as enhanced Bandwidth Boost for video. PCIe throughput increases from 32Gbps to 64Gbps, which is particularly beneficial for storage such as high-performance SSDs or RAID devices. Power delivery potential over Thunderbolt 5 goes up from 100W to 240W. OWC is one of the major makers of docking stations, so we have been looking forward to testing its first Thunderbolt 5 dock. OWC also has a cut-down Thunderbolt 5 Hub, which we will be testing soon. Aside from the new, faster connection standard there…

Thunderbolt 5 is backward compatible with earlier versions of Thunderbolt and all the way back to USB-C. Investing in it now is the best way to future-proof your desktop technology and be ready for super-fast connectivity even if you don’t have a Thunderbolt 5–ready Mac at the moment. A docking station puts a lot of connections within arm’s reach, and the Plugable Thunderbolt 5 dock hosts a bunch of fast ports from 80Gbps Thunderbolt 5 itself to 2.5Gb Ethernet. DESIGN The silvery Plugable Thunderbolt 5 dock can be placed in either a horizontal position or vertically through the included stand (see image below). The aluminum chassis feels solid, and we appreciate the on-off button at the front. While your laptop’s power management should regulate how much power is input, we…

When pre-event rumors claimed that the iPhone 17 series would have a new horizontal camera bar, I admit that I was concerned. At the time, all we had were renders and supposed CAD designs, with the assumption that the camera bar’s purpose was to bulk up the camera array to make the rest of the phone seem even thinner. As it turns out, I was completely wrong. But as Tim Cook reminded everyone at the “Awe Dropping” event in September, Apple is the company of “design is how it works,” where a good design is one that works seamlessly and enriches your life, not just one that is visually appealing but devoid of functionality. As Apple demonstrated, the iPhone Air’s and 17 Pro’s camera “plateau” isn’t just a camera bar. Rather,…

What was long considered impossible has now been a reality for almost four years: iPhone owners are allowed to pick their own default apps for core functions such as email, phone, messaging, and web browsing. While Apple was reluctant to grant users these freedoms, pressure from regulators and competitors finally forced the company to yield ground. But how open is the system really? Who benefits? And are the non-Apple options genuinely useful in everyday life, or are they just a way to appease competition authorities? Let’s investigate. WHAT DOES A “DEFAULT APP” MEAN IN iOS? The default app for any given function is the one that iOS will use if it is not instructed otherwise. Until 2020, for example, Apple rigidly controlled which app “mailto:” and web links would open…

Most mice and keyboards will work with a Mac, but there aren’t many that are specifically designed for use with Macs. Many mice and keyboards also require an app that provides additional features, such as the ability to reprogram the buttons on a mouse or the Function keys on a keyboard. In recent years, Logitech has been one of the few companies that provides a proper Mac app for its MX range of mice and keyboards, which has made it the first choice for many Mac users who wanted an alternative to Apple’s own Magic mice and keyboards. Logitech has finally got some competition, though, as the gaming gurus at Razer have released a new version of its Synapse app that finally works on Macs with Apple Silicon (there was a…

With the rise of third-party antiviral and anti-malware applications for the Mac, the question of how macOS defends against malware on its own has surfaced. To this end, is it safe to use macOS on its own and rely exclusively on macOS and security updates from Apple, or are you better off using a well-reviewed antiviral and anti-malware suite in conjunction with the native macOS layers of protection? Being somewhere between brave, curious, and outright idiotic, I backed up everything on my MacBook Pro as a Time Machine volume on my external hard drive, removed all third-party protection software, and then proceeded to run all of the Objective-See Mac Malware Collection across my operating system, throwing more than 130 chunks of questionable software at macOS 15.6.1 to see how things would hold…

Fourteen years ago this month, Steve Jobs resigned and Tim Cook became the CEO of Apple. Given Jobs’s ongoing health issues, Cook’s ascension wasn’t unexpected; he had, in fact, filled the role during Jobs’s multiple leaves of absence. Cook was a familiar face and promised to be a steady hand at Apple, but if there ever was a tough act to follow, it was Steve Jobs. But here we are, living in an era where Cook has now served as Apple CEO longer than Jobs did. The Apple of 2025 is quite different from the company Cook took control of back in 2011. Today’s Apple generates nearly four times the revenue that the company did when Cook took over, driven by more-than-quadrupling iPhone revenue. Back in 2011, there was one iPhone;…

Most portable drives are designed to be used with Macs and PCs, but Lexar’s Professional Go Portable SSD With Hub is primarily designed for the iPhone. In fact, the company’s website states that it is “specifically designed for iPhone 15/16 users” and aims to provide extra storage for recording high-quality ProRes video (as only the iPhone 15 and 16 allow you to record onto external drives). However, the Professional Go is equipped with a standard USB-C port, so you can easily use it with a Mac as well if you want, and it’s certainly small enough to carry around along with a MacBook when you’re traveling. You could also use it to back up your iPhone recordings onto your Mac for safekeeping. Unlike most conventional portable drives, the Professional Go…

Ever since the introduction of the iPod in 2001, Apple has had to navigate the intricacies of a multi-device ecosystem. In the earliest of days, that meant dealing with the iPod as an ancillary media device, reliant upon a Mac (or later a PC) for everything from activation to syncing media. Over the last twelve years, the Apple ecosystem has gotten only more complex, with the addition of iPhones and iPads, the Apple TV, the Apple Watch, AirPods, the HomePod, and more. And while the Mac may be the elder statesperson of this assemblage, it’s found its responsibilities decentralized. No longer does the iPhone or iPad require a Mac just to function; newer devices like the Apple Watch and HomePod never have. But the Mac still remains a member of…

I usually work at home, but I like to go to a local coffee shop and work there while I grab some lunch. When I do go to the office, it’s an open space. In both of those situations, I feel a little exposed because people can easily see what I’m doing on my MacBook screen. We’ve all had that instance when we’ve caught someone peeking at the screen you’re working on—it’s awkward regardless of how discreet you care to be about what you’re working on. You can maintain some of that privacy on your MacBook by using a screen overlay that cuts down the viewing angle of the MacBook. I’ve been using the StarTech.com Laptop Privacy Screen, and it’s helped me feel less exposed and more comfortable in those…

Let’s face it, the idea of cloning your Mac’s hard drive can be simultaneously awesome and intimidating. This enters the next level of tech prowess, and you want to be sure that the archive you’re creating on an external volume is spot on, can be easily accessed later, and is easy to recover data from in a pinch, especially if the original hard drive is failing, making the infamous “click of death” sound, or mechanically spinning itself into nonfunctional slag. This is where Shirt Pocket’s SuperDuper! comes in (version 3.8 at the time of this review). Long a favorite of the Mac techie community, SuperDuper! has been a reliable go-to in the event that your hard drive was failing and data needed to be recovered from it. While not quite as…

The redesigned MacBook Pro has everything to make a Mac user happy. I called the 14-inch MacBook Pro “a truly satisfying laptop” and said, “It can now wear the crown of the professional’s choice without hesitation”. It’s perhaps one of the best laptops Apple has made in the past 15 years. But it’s been nearly ten months since I wrote that review, and the sheen has figuratively worn off. While I still have no qualms about recommending the MacBook Pro to users who demand the most from their Macs, I can’t help but think about what I’d like Apple to update on the MacBook Pro to make it even better than it is now. Here’s a list of features I want to see come to the next MacBook Pro. 1.…

Apple’s release of the new MacBook Air was highly anticipated, mostly for two reasons: its redesign and the introduction of the M2 processor, the next generation of Apple’s M-series of chips. As expected, the reviews for the M2 MacBook Air have been favorable, with Macworld’s Jason Cross calling it “a success” and a “delightful everyday computer for most users.” But the praise for the MacBook Air has been overshadowed by reports of throttled performance. Article after article warns of a performance “shortcoming”, “severe” throttling, and the notion that it “can’t handle the heat”, and video after video demonstrates what’s supposedly wrong with the new laptop. It might lead some people to question whether it’s worth their money and wonder what Apple was thinking. We’ve been here before, people. Back in 2020 when…

Passwords are among the banes of most people’s online lives. Even though passkeys (where you can use a second device to prove you are you and gain access) are beginning to make things easier, it will be a long time before we move away from the confusing collection of numbers, symbols, and letters (at least one of which should be uppercase) that online services demand. Remembering the various account details for each site or app we use is an overwhelming task, meaning we often resort to having the same login for everything, which is a disaster waiting to happen. To get around this, without having to write down all our passwords in a little book or, worse still, in the notes app on your phone, a password manager is a…

There’s no doubt that in the five years since the M1 chip, Apple silicon has changed the MacBook in radical ways. We’ve seen a massive performance uptick compared to the prior Intel chips, phenomenal battery life, and cool and quiet performance. The difference is day and night. But after a few years, we’ve gotten used to the improvements. Each Apple silicon chip feels impressive, but nowhere near as exciting as it used to be. In some ways, we’ve come to take it all for granted. We can see that reflected in the M5 MacBook Pro. Both before and after it launched, this device was framed as an iterative update with very little to differentiate it from the M4 version. We were told to just expect a chip refresh and very…

You may not think much about it, but the virtual keyboard is one of the most essential parts of how the iPhone works. Over the years, Apple has made countless refinements to make typing easier, from auto-correct and predictive suggestions to swipe typing and smarter layouts. However, since the release of iOS 26 last September, a growing number of users have been complaining that something feels off. If you’ve noticed more typos than usual, you’re not alone. And it turns out there really is a bug affecting the iPhone’s virtual keyboard. TYPING THE RIGHT LETTER, BUT GETTING THE WRONG ONE INSTEAD A YouTuber named Michi NekoMichi recently shared a video compiling complaints about the iPhone keyboard. According to NekoMichi’s video, he is “making more mistakes than usual” when typing in…

We’ve seen a few solid-state drives that support the latest Thunderbolt 5 standard in recent months, such as LaCie’s own Rugged SSD Pro5, but Thunderbolt 5 drives are still pretty expensive—and, of course, there’s currently only a handful of Mac models that actually support Thunderbolt 5 right now (although Apple is widely rumored to be launching a number of new MacBook Pro models as I sit here writing this review). If you don’t have Thunderbolt 5 on your Mac, or you don’t want to pay a premium for Thunderbolt 5 performance, then LaCie’s Rugged SSD4 is a more affordable option that opts for USB4 rather than Thunderbolt, but can still provide good performance for backing up all your important files. Prices for the Rugged SSD4 start at just $119.99/£139.99 for a drive with…

In contrast to the iPhone Air, this year’s new flagship Apple Watch sprang few surprises. The Series 11 is very much more of the same, in most respects following the same formula as 2024’s excellent (and also conservative) Series 10 and breaking very little new ground. That isn’t necessarily a bad thing, of course. The Apple Watch has always been a high-quality product capable of effortlessly dominating its market. And while aesthetically speaking, the Apple Watch has evolved at a glacial pace, its design has a timeless charm. If the Series 11 can only address the few weaknesses of the previous model while delivering top-tier performance, it should earn a hearty recommendation. So let’s find out. In our in-depth Apple Watch Series 11 review, we put the device through a grueling…

We all have too many cables in the house…until you suddenly need one, and then they all mysteriously morph into the ones you don’t need: Why did I even keep a USB-A to USB-A cable? The Rolling Square inCharge XL may be all you need, and it shouldn’t be easy to lose. CHARGE THEM ALL This is a 6-in-1 cable claims to have it all: two inputs (USB-C and USB-A) and three outputs (USB-C, Lightning, and MicroUSB), giving you the following charging solutions: > USB-C to USB-C (100W) > USB-C to Lightning (27W) > USB-C to MicroUSB (10W) > USB-A to USB-C (18W) > USB-A to Lightning (18W) > USB-A to Micro USB (10W) EU law and common sense means we should all soon be doing all our wired connections…

When Apple introduced the iPhone 15 Pro, it retired the classic mute switch, which had been part of the iPhone design since the very first model. These days, all iPhones feature a customizable Action button, which users can freely remap to various different actions. Some of the default actions include muting the iPhone, toggling a Focus mode, launching the Camera app, recognizing a song, recording audio, and translating speech. While these actions are sufficient for many users, the pros may find them lackluster. Fortunately, iOS supports deeper customizations through Apple’s Shortcuts app, allowing the Action button to perform a practically infinite number of tasks. Once you understand the logic behind the feature, you should be able to build and assign any desired shortcut. GENERIC CONTROL CENTER TOGGLES If you find…

Thunderbolt 5 represents a more significant performance boost over Thunderbolt 4 than 4 was over 3. The latest MacBook Pro models, M4 Pro Mac mini, and M4 Mac Studio all boast Thunderbolt 5 ports, bringing with them up to 80Gbps data-transfer speeds and 120Gbps video bandwidth. Today, even MacBooks come with enough ports for most people, but professional users or people with the need for multiple external displays and/or fast storage may find a separate docking station is required to add all the connections they need without using up all the ports on their main computer. The best Mac Thunderbolt docking stations are loaded with fast ports, bringing extra Thunderbolt, USB-C, USB-A, 2.5Gb Ethernet, card readers, and audio ports. The CalDigit TS5 Plus has a staggering 20! All those extra ports…

There are few more frustrating iPhone experiences than receiving a spam call. Whether it’s interrupting your work or play, it doesn’t take much for a junk call to take you out of the moment. The problem is that they’re seemingly extremely difficult to stop, and no matter what you try, a few still seem to make it through the net. At least, that was the case before iOS 26’s Call Screening feature came along. Since I installed iOS 26, it’s stopped unwanted calls in their tracks, leaving me in spam-free bliss all day long. The way Call Screening works is extremely simple. When you get a call from an unknown number, the caller will first be put through to an automated voice that asks them to identify themselves and describe…

In today’s world of cloud storage and painless wireless transfers plus inexpensive SD and microSD card readers, it’s easy to forget how useful the old-school flash thumb drives can be—especially as most still persevere with the old legacy rectangular USB-A connector that hasn’t been seen on a Mac since 2017’s MacBook Air. Flash drives were once the kings of portable storage, prized for their portability, ease of use, and offline data transfer capabilities. If you wanted to quickly and securely move files between devices without an internet connection, they were the perfect tool. Cloud storage is now the norm, but it is slower and less data secure, and it usually requires a monthly subscription. SD CARDS VERSUS FLASH DRIVES Modern MacBook Pros (and the Mac Studio) boast an SDXC card…

The late 1980s and early to mid-1990s were Apple’s weirdest and wildest era. Wedged between the triumph of the original Macintosh and the return of Steve Jobs was a sort of period of Wilderness Years when the company flailed all over the place, ultimately flaming out and requiring the now-famous rescue by its co-founder. To be sure, 1990s Apple was a company with a load of problems, from out-of-control research labs building unsellable products to fruitless quests for software stacks that would reinvent documents and replace Mac OS itself. But that era of calamity and excess was also the source of some real gems, including the product that debuted 34 years ago, on Dec. 2, 1991: QuickTime. PREHISTORY OF MULTIMEDIA If you’re under the age of 40, you probably don’t remember…

A few years ago, if you had told me that in 2026 we’d be chatting with our documents, I would’ve giggled and questioned your sanity. Now it’s the new norm, with companies like OpenAI and Google letting you upload files to their AI platforms and have their chatbots analyze their contents on your behalf. To maintain its dominance in the productivity space, Adobe has launched a similar AI-centric service called Acrobat Studio. Like OpenAI’s ChatGPT Projects and Google’s NotebookLM, Acrobat Studio lets you upload multiple documents to a dedicated digital space. You can then ask the AI chatbot questions about the uploaded information, sparing you from manually reading long walls of text. The subscription also bundles other Adobe services, like Express Premium, the full PDF editing toolbox, 250 generative credits…

ESR follows up its 15W Qi2 3-in-1 Charging Stations with a new Q12 25W (Qi 2.2) version that will shave some iPhone charging time off your schedule, while pepping up your Apple Watch and AirPods at the same time. The popular 3-in-1 Wireless Charging Set was first available as a 7.5W MagSafe-compatible charger, then as a faster 15W Qi2 version. That was swiftly followed by a newer version boasting the company’s own CryoBoost cooling technology that pushed it to the top of our charging speed charts. ESR has now refined that speedy 3-in-1 charger with the 25W wireless standard alongside the temperature-controlling CryoBoost. STAYING COOL The biggest efficiency blocker in wireless charging is heat. If a device is too hot or too cold, wireless charging and indeed general battery performance…

It’s no secret that the iPhone has matured, with dramatic innovations now arriving only every several years. The regular iPhone 17 adopting past Pro exclusives is a clear admission that we’re approaching the iPhone’s final form. As such, Pro users on an annual upgrade cycle often find little to be impressed by—and this year appears to be no different. While one could easily distinguish the iPhone 16 Pro Max from the 17 Pro Max visually, the actual upgrades this year are relatively limited. Beyond the overhauled chassis, casual users will likely notice the sharper telephoto and selfie cameras—and a few other obvious changes. Despite this, I decided to upgrade from last year’s flagship to the iPhone 17 Pro Max, and I don’t regret it one bit. A WHOLE LOT OF MEGAPIXELS…

The iPhone 17 arrived last fall, and as always, it has a slew of upgrades over prior models, especially when it comes to the front camera. Many people enjoy taking selfies and filming vlogs with their iPhone (myself included), and all the new iPhone 17 models—including the ultra-thin Air—have some really cool new tricks up their sleeves. But is it a reason to rush out and upgrade your iPhone 16? Here’s a detailed comparison of the iPhone 17’s front camera versus the 16’s front camera. A LOOK AT THE TECH SPECS If you look at the iPhone 17 page on Apple’s website, you’ll quickly see that the front camera now has a new square-shaped sensor rather than a rectangular one. You’ll also learn that the new sensor is higher quality:…

In December 2024, I reviewed the BenQ MA270U, an excellent 27-inch, 4K display that’s designed for use with the Mac. The MA270U, however, has a matte display—it’s a great-looking matte display, but some people, especially Mac people, prefer a glossy screen. Fortunately, BenQ has a new display, the MA270UP, and it’s the same as the MA270U, except that it features a glossy front. Now you have a choice, glossy or matte, and best of all, you get a great display (with the same on-screen controls, specifications, software, and so on) and an attractive price. SPECIFICATIONS Size: 27 inches Glass front: Nano Gloss Panel Aspect ratio: 16:9 Native resolution: 3840×2160 Panel type/backlight: IPS/LED backlight Response time: 5 ms Contrast ratio: 1200:1 Frequency: 24Hz to 60Hz Color depth: 10-bit Brightness: 400 nits…

I’ve been using the iPhone Air nonstop for over a week and I still can’t tell if I love it or hate it. In so many ways, it just feels like the future. But every day I run into some compromise or cut corner that frustrates me. In a very real sense, the iPhone Air asks you to pay more for less. It’s less in good ways: It’s the slimmest iPhone ever and is so light for its size that it surprises you every time you pick it up. But it’s also less in bad ways: a single rear camera, one poor earpiece speaker, and significantly less battery life. It delights and disappoints in equal measure, especially for an iPhone that costs a thousand dollars or more. THE iPHONE AIR…

The gaming brand Razer introduced the Razer Joro at the beginning of May 2025, a compact gaming keyboard designed for mobile use. For Mac users, there is an interesting novelty: The Joro is the first keyboard from Razer with Mac keys (or, strictly speaking, with double print). The Razer Joro is almost a perfect replacement for the Magic Keyboard. DESIGN AND WORKMANSHIP Typical Razer: The Joro has a simple, completely black design. The body consists of a plastic base and an aluminum cover—where you touch the keyboard most often. This ensures a high-quality typing experience, but also reduces production costs and weight. Weighing only 13.2oz (374g) and with compact dimensions of 11.7×4.4×0.65 inches (29.8×11.2×1.65cm), the Joro can be easily stowed away in a MacBook backpack or bag. The Joro has…

There was a time when Apple offered one iPhone model. That’s it. You want an iPhone, you got it. Does someone else you know want an iPhone? They got the same one you did. Times are a little more complicated, and now Apple offers multiple iPhone lines and models. Plenty of reasons exist for why that is, including the evolution of technology, the maturing of the market, Apple’s approach to sales, and more. But all that doesn’t matter to you. What matters is that a simple task is no longer so: Which iPhone should I get? Apple is doing its part to clarify which iPhone is the right one for each customer. Take the iPhone 17 Pro Max, the focus of this review. It’s Apple’s top-of-the-line phone, and it’s oozing…

For the longest time, Mac folder personalization was primarily limited to adding a name, tag, and custom icon. While you could tweak the look further through unofficial means, the default methods were quite restrained. With macOS Tahoe, that’s all finally changed. You can now easily add symbols or emojis, change the folder’s color, set a default look, and much more. Customize your folders to help organize your Mac or to add a little bit of your personal style. Here’s how. PICK A COLOR OR TAG FOR YOUR FOLDER If you’re a Mac user, you’re likely already familiar with tags in the Finder app. Tags let you organize files and folders based on criteria of your choosing. Each tag can have its own name and color, making it easy to identify…

Apple has just unveiled iPadOS 26 (yes, you read that right) at the Worldwide Developers Conference opening keynote. The update not only brings a brand-new interface for the iPad’s operating system, but also improves many aspects of iPadOS to make it more like macOS. From the new Liquid Glass design language to more desktop features and a few extra apps, these are the main new features coming to your iPad with iPadOS 26. iPADOS 26, NOT 19 As strange as it may sound, the successor to iPadOS 18 is not version 19, but 26. That’s because Apple has finally decided to unify the version number of all its operating systems. This means that iOS, iPadOS, macOS, watchOS, tvOS and visionOS are all now at version 26. “Why 26?” you ask.…

It’s been more than three years since Apple announced the Studio Display, a cheaper alternative to the Pro Display XDR for Mac users looking for a great external monitor with Retina quality. Even with rumors suggesting that Apple will launch an updated monitor next year with better technologies, I couldn’t help myself and bought a Studio Display a while ago. Why on earth did I buy one now? That’s exactly what I asked myself right before buying it. But after using it for several months, I’m happy to say that I don’t regret it. At the same time, I know it may not be the right choice for everyone. If you’re torn between buying the current Studio Display now or waiting for a potential refresh, here’s what you should know. THE EXPERIENCE…

How important is a toggle? You probably haven’t given much thought to those little settings sliders you find scattered throughout iOS. But what if a toggle can shine a light on how a system is designed and the priorities of its creators? That’s something we can learn about Apple’s Liquid Glass redesign, and it’s not an encouraging lesson. Don’t get me wrong—there’s a lot to love about Liquid Glass. I think it looks gorgeous in macOS Tahoe, and there are plenty of places in iOS 26 where it’s a real step up over the designs we saw in iOS 18 and before. But it’s hard for me to deny I’m often irritated by it and left with the feeling that it’s an indulgence on Apple’s part, an example of the company trying…

In a couple of months, Apple will release macOS 26, which brings some nice features to your Mac, including Liquid Glass, a new Phone app, and vastly improved Spotlight Search (page 80). But like other recent updates, it lacks an eye-opening feature that leaves users in awe. When you take macOS 26 into context with the rest of Apple’s upcoming software releases, the Mac was vastly overshadowed. It could make a devoted Mac user wonder if the platform even matters anymore. iPADOS 26: THE FUTURE The most exciting release this fall will be iPadOS 26 and its new windowing system. Not only is it a much-needed feature, but it’s also well done—it works like it does on the Mac but with a more modern flair. After trying to implement a…

If you’re like me, you probably have at least one old iPhone lying in a drawer, or an obsolete iPad that hasn’t been updated in years. Using these devices as your main phone or tablet is impossible as they no longer run the latest software and the battery life isn’t the best. Even so, there are still some things you can do with these devices if you don’t want to just throw them away—especially at a time when some people are trying to spend more time away from modern technology. From a smart home controller to a pseudo-iPod, here are some ideas on how you can breathe new life into an obsolete iPhone or iPad. TURN YOUR iPAD INTO A DIGITAL PHOTO BOOK iPads are excellent devices for viewing photos.…

The Apple Vision Pro is a perplexing piece of hardware. It’s a technological marvel that stuns the senses, but it lacks the killer app and content needed to overcome the initial cost of investment and awkward ergonomics. I’m fascinated by its potential and was brave enough to hold on to the Vision Pro beyond the return window. When I use it, I am reminded of its unique abilities, such as its Mac Virtual Display feature. Bringing a boring “real world” experience to a hybrid virtual one sounds good on the surface, but the original Mac Virtual Display was limited and didn’t offer much of a benefit. But in visionOS 2.2, Apple added the ability to support a wide or ultrawide monitor, making the feature much more useful. It was one feature…

In my review of the first Express 1M2 for PCWorld, I was stoked that uber-fast USB4 storage was finally at hand. In Macworld’s review, it was touted that SSDs don’t get much better than this. At the time, that was true. Now it’s not, thanks to the 1M2 80G. By the last three letters in the moniker, you might guess that the new model is 80Gbps. It is. It’s also USB4 80Gbps, so unlike Thunderbolt 5, it can also function on any USB port. It’s fast. We like it. FEATURES Though it looks almost identical to the older 1M2 (basically a large silver heatsink with an NVMe SSD inside), the 80G is slightly different. The silver color is a bit brighter, and the Type-C port on the business end is…

Apple makes the best smartwatches on the market, but what if your budget doesn’t stretch to the $399 Series 11? (Let alone the $799 Ultra 3.) You consider the Apple Watch SE, which starts at just $249. Particularly now that Apple has launched the substantially upgraded 3rd-gen model. In our in-depth Apple Watch SE 3 review, we put the device through a battery of tests and help you decide if this is the best Apple Watch for you. DESIGN: REASSURINGLY FAMILIAR Historically, the Apple Watch SE tends to trail a few years behind the main line when it comes to design, and that remains the case here: In terms of chassis and screen size, for example, the SE 3 has more in common with the Series 6 from 2020 than the Series…

One gripe you’ll hear about Pages, Apple’s otherwise excellent word processing and page layout application, is that it provides little in the way of support for printing labels. While it’s true that Pages doesn’t ship with any built-in label templates, it’s actually easy to create and use standard labels using Pages. Here’s how. 1. CHECK FOR A PREMADE TEMPLATE You might already know that you can download tons of Microsoft Word templates for the most common labels directly from the company’s website. You can open a Word template in Pages, but you’ll often need to adjust the measurements slightly to make the templates work. (If you choose to go this route, skip to Step 6.) The Avery Label website has a large selection of templates, and many non-Avery labels work with…

Since the iPad was introduced in 2010, users have endured the same Safari experience they knew from the iPhone, which fueled jabs that Apple’s tablet was little more than a gigantic version of the iPhone. Interfaces for commonly used sites like WordPress wouldn’t load properly. Google Docs forced you to a dedicated app that lacked features of both the desktop and mobile versions. Sometimes you simply couldn’t see key interface elements that you’d get on the desktop version of a site. Apple has finally given us a Safari browsing experience that makes it easier to take the iPad seriously as a laptop alternative or replacement. With iPadOS 13, here are some of the treats you can expect. DESKTOP-CLASS BROWSING All the other changes essentially build off this one. The app’s…

When the iPad arrived in 2010, it was instantly clear that Apple got it right. The tablet computer wasn’t a new thing, but the design and interface of the iPad were on a different level, with a slim form factor, speedy processor, multi-touch interface, and a satisfying experience. It felt like a device from the future. Now that we’re in that future, the original iPad seems like a relic with giant bezels and a thicker body than two of the latest iPads stacked together. The latest iPad Pro has a processor that’s light years ahead of the A4 that shipped in the original iPad and a design that brings a significantly larger display in a body that’s nearly 75 percent thinner: Original iPad Height: 9.56 inches (242.8mm) Width: 7.47 inches (189.7mm)…

The iPad Pro offers a simple deal: Pay more, and get the best possible performance and the widest range of functions. The new iPad Pro M4 also fulfills this promise. It is exclusively equipped with Apple’s most modern chip and offers an impressive OLED display with HDR support for the first time. I don’t want to dwell on the question “Can an iPad replace a MacBook?” for long, as it’s been discussed far too often. (Many users long ago decided that it can.) Complaining about the high price is also pointless; it’s simply very expensive. The more interesting question is how much better the new iPad Pro is than its predecessor from 2022 and the new iPad Air, and whether it justifies that high price. We can say without reservation…

There seem to be two types of users when it comes to Spotlight in macOS. Some use Spotlight regularly, maybe to the point where it’s the main user interface element for everything on the Mac—for example, to launch an app or document, the user activates Spotlight, types it in the search field, and then clicks on the desired result. Then there are the users who barely use Spotlight at all. Regardless of how you use Spotlight, Apple has made it a much better tool to use in macOS Ventura. If you use it all the time, your experience is going to improve, and if you don’t use it at all, you may start to do so. Let’s take a look at why Spotlight is now a better search tool on…

Last fall, Apple announced an upgrade to the iPad mini. Remember the iPad mini? Can’t blame you if you don’t—after all, it seemed like Apple forgot about it, because it released the last one over three years ago. After waiting all this time, the upgrades Apple made to the iPad mini (A17 Pro)—Apple ditched the generational naming in favor of chip identification, like the other iPads—feel like they don’t amount to much, at least on the surface. What you will find is that the new iPad mini has been modernized with internal upgrades, which should keep it relevant for, say, another three years until the next refresh or redesign. The iPad mini is still a great tablet, perhaps the best at its size and better than larger, non-Apple tablets. But if…

I’m known as the Apple guy in my social circle. Friends and family routinely ask for purchasing advice, and I often end up reviewing their iPhones to see whether they’re missing useful apps, features, or settings. In many cases, I find people misusing their devices or disabling core functions due to unfounded worries. You have probably heard at least one of these 12 misconceptions before, and if you’re new to iOS or simply unsure how the platform works, you might believe them. Let us give you a clearer understanding of how your iPhone operates. 1. APP-CLOSING ASSUMPTIONS I frequently hear users—particularly recent switchers accustomed to Android—complain about needing to close iPhone apps manually. Many Android phones have long offered a button to close all active apps at once, while iOS…

When Apple introduced the new iPhone 17 and iPhone 17 Pro/Max, it highlighted their even faster fast-charging abilities. With an appropriate USB-C charger that can deliver at least 40 watts, it can charge up to 50 percent in just 20 minutes, where prior iPhones took 30 minutes (50 percent longer). It also introduced an intriguing new power adapter. The 40W Dynamic Power Adapter with 60W Max is nothing if not confusing. It’s small—surprisingly so for an Apple charger with this capacity—and seemingly made for iPhones. But what does “60W max” even mean? If it can go up to 60 watts, shouldn’t it just be called a 60-watt power adapter? And what is it even for, if none of the new phones need it to charge as quickly as possible? Let’s break down…

One of the coolest new features of iOS 26 is the ability to do live, real-time translation in its most critical communications apps. This new capability runs entirely on device, so none of your sensitive communications go anywhere. And it works in multiple apps and even on multiple devices. With iOS 26 and the latest AirPods firmware, you can live-translate spoken languages with AirPods Pro 2 and 3, or AirPods 4 with ANC. But you don’t need a pair of AirPods to do Live Translation—you can also use your iPhone to get live translation in FaceTime and Messages, as well as during phone calls. Here’s how it works. LIVE TRANSLATION IN PHONE CALLS The most obvious application is in the Phone app. When you call someone speaking a foreign language, your…

Artificial intelligence is rapidly transforming digital workspaces, boosting efficiency and streamlining workflows. It has become a vital asset (and increasingly an expectation) for workflows, but AI still often requires human oversight. Like many other software companies, Adobe is joining the revolution by developing and integrating native AI features into Photoshop. Generative Fill is the highlight AI feature in Photoshop. Powered by Adobe Firefly, the tool lets you create images and insert them into projects using simple text prompts. More recently, the company unveiled three new AI perks: Harmonize, Generative Upscale, and an improved object eraser. I’ve put them all to the test to see how well (or terribly) they perform, and whether creatives will appreciate the output quality. The AI features are part of the latest version of the software.…

If Apple’s Magic Keyboard isn’t quite hitting the spot for you, branching out into the world of mechanical keyboards is often a good bet. The Lemokey L1 HE is a premium option with a price tag to match, but it’s overflowing with high-end features that promise to elevate your typing experience. Let’s start with the aspect that’s most apparent when you first unbox this keyboard: its phenomenal weight. It’s built like a tank, with an all-aluminum chassis and barely a strip of plastic in sight. It tipped the scales at a smidge over 2 kg (just under 4.5 lbs), and chances are it’s the heaviest keyboard you’ll ever use. There’s no need to worry about it shifting around your desk in day-to-day usage—this thing is staying put, no matter what. Not…

Apple has officially released iOS 26 to everyone, and while changes like Liquid Glass make the update impossible to miss, there are plenty of useful new features that aren’t as obvious. Some of them are buried in menus, and others only appear when you know where to look. Here are some of the best hidden features of iOS 26 that are worth trying, and exactly where to find them. USE AIRPODS AS A VIDEO-RECORDING MIC One of the most practical additions in iOS 26 is the ability to use your AirPods as an external microphone when recording videos with the iPhone camera. This means you can capture clearer audio, even if you’re standing a bit away from the iPhone. To do this, follow these steps: 1. Put your AirPods in your…

One of the most consequential developments in the history of computing happened 50 years ago. It set Apple on course to becoming one of the most valuable companies on the planet and changed the face of computing in unfathomable ways. Yet you’ve probably never even heard of what went down. It’s an often-overlooked moment that had incredible consequences for years to come. Typing on a computer is something we all take for granted today. One of Apple’s key philosophies has long been to get the technology out of your way—Steve Jobs and Jony Ive have waxed lyrical on that idea—so day to day, we never really think much about how writing on a computer actually works. We can debate the pros and cons of various displays and even build our…

I was there on that early October day 14 years ago when Apple–led on stage by Tim Cook, Phil Schiller, and Scott Forstall–rolled out iOS 5, the iPhone 4S, and one of the most important iOS features ever, Siri. (Steve Jobs wasn’t there, an empty seat left for him in the front row. He died the next day.) Siri was the first true “voice assistant,” a voice-driven interface that Jobs clearly thought would be a huge part of the future of how we use our devices. He legendarily called Siri’s co-founder 24 straight days to express his desire to buy the app and add it to iOS. While Apple got there first, competitors followed. In some ways, it’s the contrary example to what Apple normally does: Instead of entering a category…

Apple might have owned the Beats brand since 2014, but you wouldn’t know it by looking at the lineup. Over the past few years, Apple has largely kept the Beats identity intact. Last summer, Apple gave the Beats Pill speaker a new lease on life, and earlier this year, it gave the Powerbeats Pro 2 a heart-rate sensor before its own AirPods Pro. Apple’s Beats has launched the newest member of the non-AirPods family, the Powerbeats Fit. If the Powerbeats Fit look familiar, that’s because they are. Beats is revamping the excellent Beats Fit Pro to bring them under the umbrella of the high-end Powerbeats brand. I had the chance to try out the new earbuds at an event held by Apple and Beats and walked away impressed. A GYM-FRIENDLY DESIGN The…

Apple’s macOS 26 public betas are now out, marking another major milestone on the road to their release this fall. While all the social-media discourse has been about Apple’s new Liquid Glass design, that talk obscures some of Apple’s other interesting choices in this year’s operating system cycle. While Apple would probably insist (like a proud parent) that it doesn’t have favorites among its platforms, the choices Apple has made in this cycle say an awful lot about the company’s priorities, especially when it comes to the Mac. LIVING IN GLASS HOUSES Let’s start with the Liquid Glass design itself. The entire premise of this design is that Apple’s devices are largely featureless glass slabs, so creating a software interface that plays on the illusion that it’s actually a set of glass…

In their early days, the iPad and MacBook were distinct devices that served completely different purposes. Recently, Apple began blurring the lines between the two, with the tablet gaining power-user features once exclusive to laptops. The latest iPad Pro with the M5 chip marks another milestone in this transition, featuring upgraded technology that allows more users to actually use it as a practical MacBook substitute. At this point, the iPad Pro is thinner, lighter, and more portable than a MacBook Air—and even surpasses it in performance and so many other aspects. PERFORMANCE: M5 POWER, WITH MORE AI When buying a new computer, you typically look into its processing power first. You wouldn’t want the operating system to lag or apps to crash while you get everyday work done. While, for good…

Going into this review for the M5 MacBook Pro, I wasn’t expecting much. The laptop it replaced, the M4 MacBook Pro, is excellent. But more importantly, that M4 laptop addressed many issues with the M3, M2, and M1 MacBook Pros, including the webcam quality and starting memory. The experience with the M4 MacBook Pro was so satisfying that I was a bit blasé about the M5 MacBook Pro—the only thing that’s really new in the laptop is the M5. That’s it. After spending time with the new M5 MacBook Pro, that indifference quickly evolved into being impressed. In all, the M5 MacBook Pro is an incremental update, but it does make some big performance leaps in graphics and SSD throughput that made me say, “Wow!” OUR MODEL’S SPECIFICATIONS This review is…

Life simulators are among the longest-lived and most-played game genres, and hardly any other title has dominated the field like The Sims. Game developer Krafton wants to set new sim standards with Inzoi with a realistic, open world, smart AI, in-depth design options, and lots of customization. Particularly noteworthy is that Inzoi surprises with a Mac release that’s almost an equal to the PC version. In this review, I’ll examine whether Inzoi is the creative new beginning many Sims fans are hoping for, and how the ambitious project performs on macOS in everyday life. GAMEPLAY AND FEATURES: FREEDOM, SIMULATION, DRAMA The heart of Inzoi lies in an open, detailed city in which digital life follows its own rules. Compared to established representatives of the genre, Inzoi feels much more “alive”…

The Ugreen Nexode Power Bank 20000mAh 165W with Retractable USB-C Cable tells you nearly everything you need to know about it in just its name. It’s a compact 20K laptop battery pack that can deliver a total of 165W of power, including 100W from its extremely convenient built-in USB-C cable. You can buy higher-capacity portable laptop power banks and even units with two integrated USB-C cables, but the Ugreen Nexode 20K USB-C Cable power bank is a solid performer that might be everything you need on the road with your laptop and other devices. TECH SPECS Battery capacity: 20000mAh (72Wh) Fastest power output: 100W Total power output: 165W Power input: 100W USB ports: 1× USB-C cable (100W PD 3.0); 1× USB-C port (100W PD 3.0); 1× USB-A (33W) Dimensions: 5.7×2.1×2…

Beats recently launched the new Powerbeats Fit—a revamped version of the popular Beats Fit Pro. The earbuds are an alternative to Apple’s AirPods, and it’s hard not to compare them to the brand-new AirPods Pro 3, which were also recently released. While both are designed to work seamlessly with the iPhone, they do have some key differences. If you’re unsure which one is right for you, read on as we compare Powerbeats Fit and AirPods Pro 3 in design, sound quality, and more. DESIGN AND COMFORT The first thing you’ll notice is that the two pairs of earbuds were designed for very different lifestyles. Powerbeats Fit are clearly built with sports and workouts in mind. Beats redesigned the wingtip to be more flexible, which gives them a more secure fit…

It wasn’t so long ago that 15W MagSafe was the fastest any magnetic wireless charger could output power to an iPhone? Since the launch of the latest Qi 2.2 technology, charger manufacturers have been racing to bring out wireless gadgets at the new top 25W speed. While Apple was first to 25W, that speed was limited to just its one-trick pony MagSafe Charger, a solid but solitary pad on the end of a variable length cable. Since then, multi-device chargers have appeared matching the 25W Apple charger at its claimed 50% iPhone charge in “around 30 minutes.” Qi 2.2 (aka Qi2 25W) is a new tech that takes 15W Qi2 and revs up the power output to a possible 25W for the iPhone 16 and 17 models—excluding the 16e (not…

Fender Studio is a cross-platform (Android, iOS, Windows, macOS) combination 16-track audio recorder and guitar amplifier simulation app. Plug your guitar into your interface or device, fire up Studio, start a’pluckin, and record the results. It’s very cool and rock-solid, and it’s useful for practice and capturing ideas. However, it’s missing quite a few features whose absence might have you looking to the company’s far more capable (and far more complex) Studio One. What, an upsell app from a major vendor? Tell me it ain’t so. All joking aside, as a free amp sim that records, Fender Studio is fantastic. Fender Studio supports recording and playing back up to 16 tracks of audio and includes a bunch of the company’s effects (FXs) to make it all sound good. Most saliently,…

Stacked dual displays are becoming more popular as people realize their ergonomic benefits compared to two side-by-side monitors, especially where space is at a premium—say, in a tight home-working space or WeWork. Finding a portable stacked monitor that is large enough when in use but discreet when folded up has been a dream of mine since I left an office space and moved to a more domestic setting. I’ve used a stacked screen for a few years (after many years with two 27-inch displays side by side), starting with the solidly built and somewhat colossal Mobile Pixels Geminos, moving on to the smaller but more portable UPerfect Delta Max Touch, and now have been using the Max’s bigger sibling—the superlatively named Delta Mega, which is nearly as large as the Geminos…

There’s a gulf between the things Apple loves to talk about and the things its customers actually choose to buy. At the Awe Dropping event this past September, the company focused heavily on the iPhone Air, 17 Pro, and 17 Pro Max, a trio of glamorous, top-spec show ponies. But far more people will buy the simple, standard iPhone 17. The question is not whether the 17 is a weaker phone than the Air and 17 Pro. The three phones start at $799, $999, and $1,099, respectively; of course it’s a weaker phone. The question is whether the 17’s sum total of benefits and compromises represents better value than its siblings—and I would argue that it absolutely does. “Simple” and “standard” are relative terms that shouldn’t disguise this phone’s impressive…

Certainly one of the main highlights of iOS 26, which was announced in June at the Worldwide Developers Conference 2025, is the new Liquid Glass interface. But the update also comes with a lot of other new features—such as many new application programming interfaces that open up a lot of possibilities for app developers. While Liquid Glass is the most notable change for anyone trying out the iOS 26 public beta, it’s not the only one. With smarter battery tools, improvements for AirPods and Apple Music, and more capabilities powered by Apple Intelligence, the update brings improvements to everyone. So even if you’re not a fan of the new Liquid Glass interface or are wondering what else iOS 26 has to offer, we’re here to show you that the update…

Apple’s MagSafe technology has transformed the iPhone power bank from a lumpen battery pack to a handbag-ready convenience essential. A magnetic MagSafe power bank clamps to any iPhone newer than the 11 to revolutionize wireless charging with efficiency and power. Pull your power bank from your pocket or bag and simply clamp it to the back of your iPhone to start immediate charging. No wires, no buttons to push. The Belkin BoostCharge Pro Magnetic Power Bank with Qi2 15W 5K continues—maybe even advances—the company’s obsession with extraordinarily long product names, but we can forgive this predilection as this is not only the most colorful power bank we’ve reviewed but also the one that aced our battery performance tests with a new highest score. CHARGING POWER We’ll start with that test…

With the announcement that macOS Tahoe will be the last Mac OS version to support Intel Macs, Apple’s preparing to close the books on the third chip transition in Mac history. It doesn’t get a lot of attention, but Apple is absolutely the best company in the world at picking up stakes and moving its platforms somewhere else. Over its 41 years of existence, the Mac has run on four entirely different processor architectures (not to mention two different operating system foundations), all the while remaining more or less the same familiar Mac we know and love. This is not an easy feat to accomplish once, let alone three times. Apple’s gotten very good at this. Twenty years ago, it was the switch to Intel. Five years ago, the switch…

Compared to the iPhone and its complex functions, the Apple TV 4K is a relatively simple device. You’ve got a simple Home Screen with large icons, a few menus across apps, and not much to set up, really. Nevertheless, tvOS enables power users to customize certain UI elements, system behavior, the Siri Remote, and more. Here are some of the essential tweaks to settings that can help you personalize your Apple TV experience in as little as 15 minutes. 1. CUSTOMIZE THE REMOTE Before getting started, you’ll want to ensure that your Apple TV’s bundled Siri Remote behaves as expected. Head to the Settings app and visit the Remotes and Devices section. There, you can optionally speed up or turn off the remote’s touch surface after testing its default sensitivity.…

The latest version of ChatGPT, GPT5, was released earlier this month, promising “a significant leap in intelligence over all our previous models.” GPT-5 has already been activated as the standard model for free ChatGPT users; you only have to pay if you need more capacity or usage or the Pro version with “extended reasoning.” This all sounds great. But can it live up to the hype? And why should Mac users, and Apple fans in general, care about ChatGPT-5? Allow us to explain. ANOTHER STEP TOWARD SUPERINTELLIGENCE? Let’s start by drilling down into what exactly OpenAI means by a leap in intelligence. For one thing, the company’s CEO, Sam Altman, is convinced that the new version has taken a big step toward artificial general intelligence, which refers to the theoretical…

If Safari is your primary browser, like it is for me, it’s certainly one of the most important apps on the Mac. But did you know you can make it do more? You can with browser extensions. If you aren’t familiar with them, they are software add-ons that add functionality to Safari. Safari doesn’t have as many extensions as Google Chrome, but there are several you can take advantage of. Safari extensions are available through the App Store. You can find extensions for Mac Safari by selecting Safari → Safari Extensions in the Safari menu bar. Then click on the Browse Extensions button. An overview page will then open in the Mac App Store. Free and paid extensions are available; installed plug-ins are also automatically made available on iOS and…

When you update to iOS 26 this fall, your iPhone is going to feel dramatically different. There are always lots of new features in each major yearly release, but few are as in-your-face as those this year. There’s an all-new design and dramatic changes to some of the apps you use most, including Phone, Camera, Messages, and Safari. Here are the biggest changes coming to iOS this year. JUMPING UP TO 26 Apple is changing its naming scheme from sequential version numbers (which were all over the place, with different devices having different version numbers) to a year-based system. The OS versions that will carry Apple through 2026 will all be version 26. So you’ll have iOS 26, macOS 26, iPadOS 26, watchOS 26, visionOS 26, tvOS 26, and…

Plugable has radically redesigned its popular UD-6950PDH docking station, which now comes to the attention of owners of the M1 and M2 (and to a lesser degree M3) Macs. With this docking station, Macs with the plain (nonPro or Max) Mion. If you’re in or around the tech space (like a discerning Macworld reader would be), then you may have heard of Notion. What originally appears to be a (very capable) note-taking app is actually much more, but ask anyone who uses it regularly what they use it for and you can expect more than one use. That’s because Notion, while it initially feels like a handy document editor, is a powerful database creation suite that features a whole host of features, and now has integrations with standalone Mail and…

When you turn on your Mac, various apps, add-ons, and invisible background processes start running all by themselves. This is usually what you want, but you may sometimes see items running that you don’t recall adding yourself. Where do they come from? Sometimes these processes and apps can cause problems, and you need to remove them for your Mac to behave normally. And even if there’s not a problem, such items can increase your Mac’s startup time and may decrease performance, you’ll want to make sure your Mac is loading only items that are useful to you. Here’s a quick primer on the various kinds of startup and login items and how to manage them. LOGIN ITEMS MacOS 13 (Venutra) or later: Open System Settings and click General, then click…

With macOS 10.15 Catalina, Apple killed iTunes, but its heart still beats in different apps across the operating system. Judging by email received, knowing where to find them can be a treasure hunt. Here’s how iTunes was split up. MUSIC Remember when iTunes was all about music? You no longer have to remember, because the Music app replaces most of iTunes’s features and is, true to its name, all about Music. In Music, you find your music library, manage an Apple Music subscription, and purchase songs, albums, and music videos from the iTunes Store. (See, iTunes isn’t really dead!) SUBSCRIPTIONS You used to rely on the iTunes account feature to view and manage subscriptions. That’s migrated in Catalina to the App Store. You can reach this either from the Apple…

There was a brief shining moment where it seemed like Apple might really have cracked the automotive industry—it wasn’t necessarily for the reasons you might think. Yes, the company tried hard for years to build its own car in a variety of ways, everything from designing the underlying automotive systems to building the whole thing from the ground up. But it wasn’t Apple’s own ambitious car project (now by all accounts dead and buried) that saw it make inroads into the automobile sector. It was the relatively modest addition of CarPlay. Now, the question of where CarPlay is heading has become increasingly murky in the wake of Apple’s car project’s demise. The company announced (fave.co/3XndIAO) a next-generation push that can use all of a car’s displays, with an interface tailored…

Sometimes an application that could have been outstanding sabotages itself, with a series of corporate and engineering decisions as well as bugs twisting a potentially great idea into something clunky and awkward to use. This may have been the case with PC Matic, as the macOS version stumbles out the gate and never regains its stride, and a series of infuriating corporate decisions makes a frustrating interface only that much more infuriating. First and foremost, PC Matic is an application for macOS that, like similar applications, works to scan for and remove viruses and malware—take a look at our roundup of the “Best Antivirus for Mac”. The app takes a unique approach in that it’s centered around customizable blacklist and whitelist classifications, which designate which applications and file systems are…

In some ways the modern working-from-home trend means we don’t need to think about protecting our MacBooks as much, since they tend to stay put on a desk at home. But on those occasions when we need to cart a laptop into the office, pack it in a suitcase, or add it to carry-on luggage, the need to protect it from bumps and scrapes should be paramount. Too many times I’ve wrapped my laptop in a towel inside a suitcase, or dropped it into a rucksack and risked it not being protected. Sure, I could buy a bag designed for laptops, but they are often huge, bulky and heavy. So I end up slotting it in my usual bag and jumping on a train. What’s the worst that can happen,…