Joe Rossignol

Synaptics today released a new beta version of DisplayLink Manager for macOS with long-awaited support for external display rotation on M1 Macs. A company representative said a final release is planned by late December provided that beta testing is successful. DisplayLink adapters have proven popular with M1 models of the MacBook Air and 13-inch MacBook Pro, as they allow for multiple...

Apple's annual four-day Black Friday through Cyber Monday shopping event is now underway in the United States and select other countries, with customers able to receive a free Apple gift card with the purchase of select products through November 29. Participating countries include the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the UK, Ireland, France, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Germany,...

Apple's annual four-day Black Friday through Cyber Monday shopping event has begun in Australia and New Zealand, with customers able to receive a free Apple gift card with the purchase of select products through November 29. The promotion is available on Apple's online store, in the Apple Store app, and at Apple Store locations in Australia. As usual, refurbished products are not eligible...

Shazam, the popular music recognition service that Apple acquired in 2018, updated its iPhone and iPad app today with the ability to find more songs by analyzing the audio that is playing for a longer period before offering a result. Shazam users can take advantage of the improved functionality by updating to version 15.0 of the app, which is available now on the App Store. Shazam is also...

Apple today shared its annual holidays ad titled "Saving Simon," shot on the iPhone 13 Pro with unspecified "additional software and hardware" used. Directed by Oscar-nominated actor and filmmaker Jason Reitman and his father, Oscar-nominated film director Ivan Reitman, Apple describes the three-minute ad as "a story for everyone who can't wait for the holidays to get here." The ad is set to ...

Apple recently announced a new self-service repair program that will provide customers with access to Apple genuine parts, tools, and manuals for completing their own repairs of select devices, starting with iPhone 12 and iPhone 13 models. Apple said the program will launch early next year in the U.S. and expand to additional countries throughout 2022. Apple CEO Tim Cook briefly shared his...

Apple recently updated its website to indicate that an upcoming iOS 15 and watchOS 8 feature that will let you add your driver's license or state ID to your iPhone and Apple Watch in participating U.S. states has been delayed until early 2022. Apple previously said the feature would launch in late 2021. In September, Apple said Arizona and Georgia would be among the first states to introduce ...

Apple today made the HomePod mini available to order in yellow, orange, and blue in Australia and New Zealand, several weeks after the new colors were released in the United States, Canada, China, Hong Kong, Japan, and Taiwan. The new yellow, orange, and blue models all have color-matched woven power cables, but there's still a white Apple sticker in the box, along with a 20W USB-C power...

Last week, Apple announced a new self-service repair program that will provide customers with access to Apple genuine parts, tools, and manuals for completing their own repairs of select devices, starting with the iPhone 12 and iPhone 13 lineups and later Macs with M1 chips. Apple said the program will be available starting early next year in the United States and expand to additional countries...

Apple recently announced that it will soon be opening a second retail store in the heart of Berlin. The store will be located on the popular Rosenthaler Strasse shopping street in Mitte, the historic center of Germany's capital city. Apple has yet to share a specific opening date for the Rosenthaler Strasse store, which will accompany Apple's existing Kurfürstendamm store in Berlin....

It has been just over two years since the launch of Apple Arcade, and the subscription-based gaming service's catalog continues to grow. Two new games were released on Apple Arcade today, with an additional two coming soon. The latest additions to Apple Arcade include the classic arcade shooting game Galaga Wars from Bandai Namco and the popular tower defense game Kingdom Rush Frontiers from ...

Apple today announced that a new 3D map of Washington, D.C. in the Apple Maps app will allow users to explore the city's landmarks and memorials, such as the World War II Memorial, Korean War Veterans Memorial, and Vietnam Veterans Memorial. The new mapping experience does not appear to be visible yet, but it likely will be soon. Alongside the release of iOS 15 in September, Apple Maps...

Accessory maker Targus this week announced that its Cypress Hero EcoSmart Backpack with built-in support for Apple's Find My app has been named a CES 2022 Innovation Awards Honoree ahead of the annual tech event in Las Vegas. The backpack is equipped with a small tracking module that allows the backpack's location to be tracked in the Find My app on the iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch...

Apple today began selling an updated version of the Rotor Riot game controller with newly added "Home" and "Options" buttons. The controller, designed for use with the iPhone and iPad, is priced at $49.99 on Apple's online store and delivers in one to two days. Rotor Riot is advertised as the only Lightning-connected, full-sized game controller available today. The direct Lightning...

Apple today announced the debut of Apple Business Essentials, a new subscription-based service that will offer device management like setup and onboarding, iCloud storage, and optional 24/7 access to Apple Support for small businesses with up to 500 employees. Apple Business Essentials will enable small businesses to easily configure, deploy, and manage Apple products from anywhere, and...

While it may feel rather hard to believe, today marks one year since the first Macs with Apple silicon were unveiled to the world. At a virtual event on November 10, 2020, Apple introduced its custom-designed M1 chip, followed by three new Macs powered by the chip, including the MacBook Air, the lower-end 13-inch MacBook Pro, and the lower-end Mac mini. With the M1 chip, Apple delivered...

If you are planning to purchase an Apple device, accessory, or gift card for someone as a Christmas gift this year, Apple has shared the latest dates that these items can be ordered by with free shipping to ensure delivery prior to December 25 in the United States. Apple has also provided "order by" deadlines for products in select other countries, including Australia, Canada, Germany, Italy, Fran...

Two weeks after Apple's redesigned MacBook Pro models launched, some configurations of the notebooks remain in tight supply. While standard configurations of the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models ordered through Apple's online store are estimated for delivery in the first week of December, many custom configurations are shipping in late December, and some are even backordered into 2022. ...

Apple today announced that developers will be able to submit new and updated app submissions via App Store Connect throughout the upcoming holiday season. Apple notes that the app review process may take longer from November 24 to November 28 and from December 23 to December 27:This year, we're pleased to continue accepting submissions in App Store Connect throughout the upcoming holidays....

Intel last week unveiled its first 12th-generation "Alder Lake" processors with the launch of six new processors aimed at desktop computers, including the high-end Core i9-12900K, a 16-core chip with eight performance cores and eight efficiency cores. While the first 12th-generation processors are desktop class, they still make for an interesting comparison with Apple's M1 Pro and M1 Max...