Opinion: Cellular Apple Watch in time, sure, but these issues need love too
I touched on my thoughts on a cellular Apple Watch 2 briefly when detailing WSJ’s report, but I want to expand a bit further and think out loud about the possibility. In short, I think an untethered Apple Watch with built-in cellular connectivity is inevitable, but in the short term there are other problems I suspect will be solved first. That’s not to say that Apple couldn’t introduce cellular and fix other issues, but having an embedded data connection is low on my list of requests this year.
Filed under: Apple Watch, Opinion Tagged: Apple watch
Review: OWC’s Aura PCIe flash storage lets you upgrade the storage capacity of your Mid-2013 and later MacBook
As an owner of a Late 2013 MacBook Pro with Retina Display, it’s slowly beginning to show its age. However, I find that this machine, an i7-powered rig with 16GB of RAM, is still plenty powerful for the applications that I run on a day-to-day basis. For example, with Final Cut Pro X, it’s not the fastest machine in the world (it lacks dedicated graphics), but it’s still plenty competent when it comes to editing and exporting 4K videos.
The biggest bottleneck that I’ve encountered with this computer is its storage capabilities, and that’s something I’ve been trying to deal with since the day I purchased it. With only 256 GB of flash storage, space has been hard to come by since day one. That wouldn’t be so bad if there was a way to upgrade the amount of internal storage, but sadly there has been no upgrade solution…until now.
Back in early March, OWC made a splash by announcing the very first flash storage upgrade solution the MacBook Pro as far back as the Late-2013 product cycle, and the MacBook Air, as far back as the Mid-2013 product cycle. Yes, finally! MacBook Pro and MacBook Air owners with qualifying machines can come out of the storage dark ages with OWC’s new Aura PCIe flash storage upgrade.
more…
Filed under: Mac, Reviews Tagged: Aura PCIe Flash Storage, Flash storage, how to, MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, OWC, PCIe, PCIe SSD, Upgrade, video
Facebook reportedly developing standalone camera app w/ live streaming features
The Wall Street Journal reports Facebook is working on a new camera app separate from its main offerings that the company hopes will encourage increased sharing of photos and videos. The still in-development app in its current form opens immediately to a camera mode and there are plans to offer live streaming video functionality as well, according to the report:
Filed under: Apps Tagged: app, Camera, Facebook, live, video
Latest iPhone 6s ads recruit Neil Patrick Harris, highlight 4K camera & Touch ID features
After focusing heavily on Earth Day in its last round of YouTube uploads, Apple today has shared a pair of new iPhone 6s ads that each highlight a different feature of the device. First ad is entitled “Fingerprint” and focuses on what Touch ID enables users to do, while the second ad is entitled “Onions” and highlights the 4K camera capabilities of the device.
Filed under: iOS Devices
Report: Faster Apple Watch 2 may feature built-in cellular connectivity
Apple Watch has been on the market for a year now, and The Wall Street Journal has a new report in which it compares the product’s estimated sales to the original iPhone’s in its first year. Apple has never released hard Apple Watch sales numbers as it does for iPhones, iPads, and Macs, but WSJ says twice as many Apple Watches have been sold during the first year as iPhones during its first year. Apple sold 192.3 million iPhones during its first four quarters on the market.
Obviously that’s not an apples to apples comparison, but it’s one way to paint Apple Watch positively as iPhone has taken off with quarter after quarter growth until now. Tomorrow Apple is scheduled to release its quarterly earnings report covering the January through March period where Tim Cook is likely to reflect on the first year of Apple Watch in some degree.
Looking forward, the WSJ’s report includes one nugget about what to expect about the Apple Watch 2 likely to launch later this year:
Filed under: Apple Watch Tagged: Apple watch
9to5Toys Lunch Break: 13” MacBook Air from $700, Beats Pill+ $166, Onkyo 4K 5.1-Ch. Receiver/Speaker Bundle $300, more
Keep up with the best gear and deals on the web by signing up for the 9to5Toys Newsletter. Also, be sure to check us out on: Twitter, RSS Feed, Facebook, Google+ and Safari push notifications.
TODAY’S CAN’T MISS DEALS:
Apple 13-inch MacBook Air 1.6GHz/4GB/128GB (early 2015) from $700 shipped w/ .edu (Orig. $999)
Beats Pill+ Portable Bluetooth Speaker w/ Lightning charging: $166 shipped (Reg. $230)
Onkyo 5.1-Channel 4K Home Theater Receiver/Speaker Package w/ Bluetooth $300 shipped (Reg. $400)
Best Buy 4-Day sale: Apple Watch w/ Stainless Steel casing $200 off, deals from $349 shipped
MacBook Air: 13-inch 1.6GHz/4GB/128GB $800 (Orig. $999), 11-inch 256GB from $875 (Reg. $1,099), more
App Store Free App of the Week: Readdle’s Calendars 5 for iOS goes free for the first time in years (Reg. up to $7)
Upgrade Your Mac with 3 Great Apps: Scapple $9 (Orig. $15), STAMP Premium $5 (Orig. $10), Ghostnote $7 (Orig. $10)
Apple offers Day One 2 iOS journal app for free ($10 value)
The best accessories for Apple’s 12-inch MacBook: USB-C cables, hubs, flash storage, more
Apple drops the price on refurbished 12-inch MacBooks, now start at $929 shipped
MORE NEW GEAR FROM TODAY:
UE Roll Bluetooth Speaker in Black or Blue: $55-$59 shipped ($70 new)
- Daily Deals: Brother Mono Laser Printer w/ AirPrint $170, more
- Seagate Backup Plus Slim 4TB USB 3.0 Portable Hard Drive: $110 (Reg. $130), more
- Gift Cards up to 20% off w/ email delivery: AMC Theatres, Regal Movies, much more
- AUKEY Bluetooth Speaker $26, Trainium iPhone 6/s Clear Case $2, more
- Games/Apps: Trine 3 for Mac hits its lowest price yet $6, more
- The entire Lifeline text adventure trilogy for Android is down to $0.10/ea. (Reg. $3)
- Amazon Gold Box – Strategy board games up to 40% off: Risk $16, more
- Mother’s Day Gift Guide: top-picks your mom will love to unwrap this year
- Sun Joe Yard Tools up to 44% off: 16″ Cordless Lawn Mower $199 (Reg. $300), more
MORE DEALS STILL ALIVE:
Best Buy 4-day sale: Beats Studio Over-Ears $150 or Wireless $250, Powerbeats2 Active Collection $130, Roku HDTVs from $170, more
Dock your iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch with this Rosewood Desk Stand for $20 Prime shipped
- Amazon Kindle e-Readers from $60 shipped, Paperwhite $100, more
- Ultra HD 4K Displays: Panasonic 50-inch 60Hz Smart TV $500 (Reg. $600+), more
- Logitech 75 watts 5.1 Surround Sound Speakers (Refurb) $35 shipped (Reg. $60)
- Limited edition Moto X Pure designed by Jonathan Adler down to $300 (Reg. $475)
- Audio-Technica ATH-M40X Over-Ear Headphones + FiiO E6 Amp: $82 ($105 value)
- Adonit Jot Pro Fine Point Stylus for iPad, iPhone & Android devices: $22 (Reg. $30)
- LG ChromeBase 22″ 1080p All-in-One Cloud Desktop: $229 shipped (Reg. $300)
- Apple iPad Air 16GB Wi-Fi in Space Gray or Silver $249 shipped (Orig. $399)
- Amazon adds new color options and storage to its insane $50 7-inch Fire Tablet lineup
- Fashion- 20% off dresses by Adrianna Papell, Donna Morgan & more
- Green Deals: Miracle-Gro AeroGarden LED w/ Seed Kit $70 (Reg. $100), more
- Seagate 2TB USB 3.0 Expansion Portable Hard Drive $60 shipped (Reg. $84)
- Green Deals: Leviton 12-ft. 5kw Electric Vehicle Charger $350 (Reg. $400), more
- LeapFrog Reading and Writing System $17 Prime shipped (Reg. $27+), more
- Home: Philips Electric Toothbrush w/ glass charger $170 (Reg. $200), more
- Sennheiser HD 600 Open-Back Pro Headphones + $150 Amazon gift card: $400 ($550 value)
- PSN Digital Games up to 60% off: GTA Trilogy for PS4 from $19, more
- Harman Kardon 7.1-Ch. 4K A/V Receiver w/ AirPlay: $298 shipped (Orig. $800)
- Green Deals: Philips 100W A21 Dimmable LED Lightbulb $13 Prime shipped (Reg. $22), more
- Fashion: Banana Republic 50% off sale items, more
- Gift Cards up to 20% off: Babies/Toys R Us, Old Navy, CVS, more
Review: Are these third-party $11 Apple Watch Sport bands any good? Turns out, they aren’t too bad.
NEW PRODUCTS & MORE:
Ilumi extends its line of Bluetooth-connected smart lightbulbs to outdoor spaces
- SanDisk’s new iXpand Flash Drive for iPhone & iPad sports a fresh design and speed boost
- Bang & Olufsen’s new A1 Bluetooth speaker brings 24-hour playback and USB-C charging
- Edelkrone wants to replace your tripod with its slick new camera stand
- VIZIO introduces the new M-Series with an updated design and 4K HDR displays
- DJI’s new professional-grade drone is incredibly powerful and intelligent
- Samsung goes big with the “world’s first” bezel-less curved 4K Ultra HDTV
- LEGO reveals a massive 1,600 piece Minecraft set loaded with zombies, more
- Improve your kitchen skills with the best under $10 utensils
- Some of the best SNES games of all-time hit Nintendo’s 3DS eShop
- Amazon’s new $290 Kindle Oasis is a slim, luxury e-reader with months of battery life
Filed under: Tips and Tricks Tagged: 9to5Toys, Amazon, app deals, Beats Pill, Best Buy, Daily Deals, free apps, Gold Box, MacBook Air, Onkyo, video games
Home, one of the best HomeKit apps for iOS, gains 3D Touch shortcuts + design tweaks
Apple doesn’t include a Home app for HomeKit like it does a Health app for HealthKit, but Matthias Hochgatterer’s Home app is a worthy solution for anyone diving into Apple’s Siri-controlled home automation platform. In testing various HomeKit-compatible smart accessories, Home for iOS has been a critical piece of the puzzle in making everything work correctly and reliably.
Siri controls HomeKit, but third-party apps from various accessory makers are needed for creating scenes and triggers that really make home automation come to life. Eve does the best job of making one app for all HomeKit accessories, but a dedicated HomeKit app with excellent support for all accessories is ideal. Home, which costs $14.99 but is available for iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch, is a rather essential purchase for having a good experience with Apple’s HomeKit.
Last week we shared the latest HomeKit app on the market, Hesperus, which features an approachable design and customization options at no cost but lacks iPad and Apple Watch apps and Notification Center widgets for now. I mentioned Home for iOS, which is obviously pricier up front, and noted how its Settings-like design can feel cold in comparison. Over the weekend, however, Home for iOS reached version 1.6, which includes tweaks to how accessories are organized plus some nice iconography that I think really enhances the overall design.
Review: The Dux for iPad Pro is a lightweight, rugged case with a handy Apple Pencil holster
Ever since the iPad Pro came out, it seemed like an obvious third-party accessory would be a case that could also hold a Pencil. However, six months on, the number of iPad Pro cases with good Apple Pencil compatibility is still pretty small.
The Dux ($59.95) is a solid attempt at such a case, a lightweight 12.9-inch iPad enclosure providing some protection against drops and bangs, with an Apple Pencil holster on the side. Its simplicity is refreshing, but that brings with it some shortcomings. Read on for my review.
Filed under: AAPL Company, iOS, iOS Devices, Reviews, Tech Industry Tagged: Apple, Apple Pencil, iOS, iPad, ipad case
Sketchy rumor suggests iPhone 7 could feature flush touch-sensitive Home button, waterproof and dustproof casing
The iPhone 7, expected to debut later this year, is not believed to be a major design overhaul from the iPhone 6s, but that doesn’t mean it won’t include some substantial exterior changes, at least according to one sketchy Chinese rumor site. The reports indicate that the iPhone 7 could feature a digital touch-sensitive Home button, essentially making the iPhone front completely flush, replacing the current physical clicky hardware button. This would help make the iPhone 7 completely waterproof and dustproof, via Storm …
Filed under: AAPL Company, iOS, iOS Devices Tagged: Apps, home button, iOS, iPhone 7, rumors
Apple features Prince collection of albums, songs, & more on iTunes
In honor of the passing of musician Prince, Apple is featuring a collection of albums, songs, movies and more on iTunes.
Filed under: Apple Music Tagged: Apple, collection, discography, iTunes, Prince