Around this time in 2016, the predictions for the next year had reached something of a consensus: 2017 would be the year of augmented reality. But a funny thing happened on the way to the future — nothing much, really. At least not for the first half of the year.
One of the most popular usages of modern-day smartphones is listening to music. It doesn't matter if you download or stream your tunes, you are part of a massive group of users who do exactly the same. While statistics are a bit foggy on how many smartphones users download music, we do know that over 68% of American smartphone owners stream music on a daily basis.
Privacy and security go hand in hand, especially for smartphones. When it comes to privacy, you decide what personal information about yourself is out there to discover. Security, on the other hand, is all about enforcing those privacy decisions.
The private automobile has been an intrinsic part of our lives for around a hundred years. But over the last decade, car sharing has gained a very small but growing part of the mobility market. The more recent rise of companies like Uber and Lyft is witness to a more dramatic shift in mobility and car ownership. Private vehicle ownership to a transportation-as-a-service model has already started, and high capability SAE Level 4 vehicles will complete this trend.
Have you ever seen those super-expensive universal remote controls like the Logitech Harmony and thought to yourself, "Man, I really want one of those, but that's just too much money"?
Thought I would cross-post a piece I did a while ago.
First of all, I would like you all to meet my good friend Iggy. There he is, in all his scaly reptilian glory. As you can see, he spends a lot more time on top of his cage than inside of it. You see, Iggy here doesn't deal well AT ALL with confinement. I don't know if it's possible for a lizard to be claustrophobic, but if it is possible, then Iggy definitely is. When his previous owner gave him to me, I tried to keep him in the cage, but I quickly realized that it was a bad idea. When confin...
Computer crashes, fried hard drives, red rings of death, delinquent memory cards... nothing is worse than dysfunctional technology. In just a minute, your favorite and most used device has become the biggest headache of your life, frustrating you to the brink of madness. But what's worse than your electronics just giving up on you?
If anybody knows how to pick a lock, it's Schuyler Towne.
The biggest update to arrive since iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 just came out, and it's packed with new features and changes for your iPhone or iPad. From new Apple Intelligence capabilities to Game Center improvements and new calling tools, there's a lot going on in iOS 18.1 and iPadOS 18.1.
Apple's iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 have been out since September, but more features are coming, and you can test them after installing a beta build. Chief among them is Apple Intelligence, which debuted on iOS and iPadOS 18.1. But now you can test even newer Apple Intelligence features such as Image Playground, Genmoji, ChatGPT integration, and Visual Intelligence with iOS and iPadOS 18.2.
Apple announced support for mobile driver's licenses and state identification cards in Apple Wallet back in 2021, and Arizona was the first state to jump on board in 2022. Fast forward to now, and only eight states let you add a driver's license or state ID to Apple Wallet on your iPhone and Apple Watch. It has been a slow rollout, but more states are coming or are at least showing interest.
Apple has revolutionized how we write with the introduction of its new Writing Tools, powered by Apple Intelligence. In beta on iPhone, iPad, and Mac, these tools allow you to select text and use intelligent features to summarize, proofread, or rewrite it until the tone and wording are just right. In a future beta, Writing Tools can even write original content for you.
As the iOS 18 beta continues, Apple's still investing time into fixing up iOS 17. Compared to iOS 17.4 and iOS 17.5, which both had over 30 new features and changes, iOS 17.6 is a relatively small software update for iPhone. But there are still some important things to know about.
Phone in one pocket, wallet in the other? It's the classic combo guaranteed to give you more pocket bulge. But it's 2024. Half that stuff in your wallet is practically antique. It's time to finally ditch all the dead weight and get a MagSafe wallet for iPhone — and we've got the best picks to slim you down to the essentials.
Apple's latest iPhone software update — iOS 17.5 — is finally ready for prime time. Released on May 13, it includes at least 32 new features and changes you need to know about, from a new game and offline news access to new wallpapers and anti-stalking capabilities.
On your iCloud Mail account, you can easily use subaddressing to create hundreds of new iCloud email addresses to give to companies and other parties, all of which go straight to your primary iCloud email address's inbox. The problem with these types of alternative email addresses is that you can't ever respond to emails with the plus tag intact. But Apple has another alternative for you to start using.
There's a powerful tool on your iPhone that can fine-tune your iOS experience based on what you're doing and when, and it's completely customizable. With it, you can control what notifications appear or are silenced, who can call you, which Home Screen pages you want to view, the Lock Screens you can pick from, and more. And you can automate it based on a variety of triggers.
The last iOS software update was a modest one, but iOS 17.4 has a lot more for your iPhone, including changes to emoji, Podcasts, security, Safari, widgets, Apple Cash, CarPlay, and more.
Apple's first big iOS 17 point update for iPhone just came out, and it includes some of the features initially planned for the iOS 17.0 release last September. But there's much more to iOS 17.1 than that — exciting new features and changes are hiding within Books, Music, StandBy, App Store, Lock Screen wallpapers, Apple Wallet, and more.
Safari's massive upgrade in Apple's latest iPhone software update includes new features you won't find in any other web browsers on iOS, from better ways to stay organized to enhanced security and further privacy protections.
When you want a helpful task manager on your iPhone or iPad, any of the nine apps in this guide should be at the top of your list. But we'll review each app's features to help you determine which one might be best for your workflow.
There is a whole world of smartphone accessories out there, some of which are more quirky than others and don't get the recognition they deserve. But these sometimes strange, sometimes embarrassing products can really make life easier on your iPhone or Android phone.
The volume buttons on the side of your iPhone can do more than just adjust the volume levels for media, ringers, alerts, Siri, and other sounds and voices. You can use them to perform different actions in certain apps and even create custom actions using the Shortcuts app. It's not exactly button mapping, but it's as close as you'll get without jailbreaking iOS.
Your iPhone has a safety feature that makes it easier to call 911 in the U.S. and other emergency services abroad. Instead of fumbling with your iPhone's dialer, you can call someone for help in various ways — with or without your hands.
Apple's iOS 16.6 software update for iPhone was released on July 24, with iOS 16.7 following on September 21. While Apple is currently focused on improving iOS 17, we may see iOS 16.8 pop up. When it does, you can try out all the upcoming new features as long as you're OK with running beta software on your iPhone.
Apple pushed out its iPadOS 16.6 update for iPad on July 24, with iPadOS 16.7 following on September 21. While the company is currently working on improving iPadOS 17, we may still see an iPadOS 16.8 update. If that happens, you can try out all the upcoming new features as long as you're OK with running beta software on your iPad.
Apple's iOS 16.3 update for iPhone had impressive new features, but iOS 16.4 might impress you even more.
Unlike most of Apple's other apps and services, it's not always obvious when Siri gets new features. Even if you're an avid Siri user, there's no way you can catch them all, especially when half of them aren't even mentioned by Apple anywhere. But that's what we're here for, and this is everything you need to know about Siri in the latest group of features.
You've decided you want to lose weight or build lean muscle. That's great! Now grab your smartphone. It's a valuable asset that can help you achieve your physical fitness goals, whether to improve your health or enhance your appearance, and I'm going to show you how.
There's a hidden feature on iOS that will turn your iPhone or Apple Watch into a remote control for your nearby iPad or other Apple devices — and it's nowhere near as complicated as Switch Control.
It hasn't been long since Apple released iOS 16.0 with over 350 new features, but iOS 16.1 just came out with even more cool updates for your iPhone. While some of the recent upgrades were expected, others are somewhat surprising — and there's even one that you may not even think was possible.
You may prefer reading news stories, web articles, and books on your iPhone over listening to them in spoken form. Still, sometimes it's necessary when driving, walking, cycling, cleaning, working, or performing other activities requiring a little multitasking. To help you out, Apple has a text-to-speech service on your iPhone — you just need to know how to find and set it up.
Apple's just ushered in a new era for widgets on your iPhone. With the iOS 16 update, each of your lock screens can have up to five widgets. While Apple's apps were the first to get lock screen widgets, third-party developers can code their own ones into their apps — and here's a list of every app we know so far that does.
Apple's new iOS 16 software update is finally here, and there are over 350 new features and changes for you to enjoy on your iPhone. There are major lock screen and home screen improvements, a pleasant surprise for the Contacts app, and tons of new upgrades to Safari, Mail, Messages, and more.
While the Maps app hasn't received as big an update in iOS 16 as Books, Messages, Photos, and Weather did, there are still quite a few exciting new features to enjoy on your iPhone.
Beta software can be exciting because you get to experience cool new features before most other people. But it can have unwanted consequences such as bugs, UI glitches, and horrible battery life that'll make you wish you never installed it. If that sounds like you with iOS 16 beta or iPadOS 16 beta, you can downgrade to iOS 15.5 or iPadOS 15.5 for a more stable user experience.
Not all weather sources are equal. When you're looking at the forecast, you hope that it's at least semi-accurate so you can plan the week and days ahead, but many sources are unreliable. And with the famous Dark Sky API shutting down on March 31, 2023, you'll need an alternative source of weather information if you use an app that utilizes that API.
SharePlay is arguably one of the most significant features to hit FaceTime since group calls, and it's still hard to find apps that support shared experiences in FaceTime. Apple does list a few apps, but there is no official index of all the apps with SharePlay integration. That's where we come in.
Apple doesn't include its Calculator app on the iPad and never did. One almost appeared over 12 years ago but was nothing more than a blown-up version of the iPhone app. Since then, the company still hasn't made an iPad-optimized calculator, and there is no shortage of third-party alternatives to fill the gap. It may happen one day, but for now, these are the best calculator apps for your iPad.
