In just a few days on May 7, Apple will stream an Apple Event during which I expect to see new iPads announced. What new features will Apple include in the new iPads being announced next week? Dan Moren of Six Colors has some ideas, which he shares in this article for Macworld. There is also a rumor that the new iPad Pro will use not the latest M3 chip but the M4 chip. Jason Cross of Macworld explains why that rumor might not be so crazy after all. For example, if Apple has access to M4 processors but only in a limited supply, a high-end product like the iPad Pro that doesn't sell in huge quantities like some other Apple products might be a perfect place to debut this new chip. I'm incredibly excited to see what Apple will show us. And now, the news of note from the past week:
- Ryan Christoffel of 9to5Mac explains why the new transcripts feature in Apple Podcasts is handy.
- Zac Hall of 9to5Mac reviews the HoverBar Duo from TwelveSouth, an adjustable iPad mount that can also be used with an iPhone for a FaceTime call. It is available on Amazon for $79.99.
- We have all heard stories about how the AFib feature on the Apple Watch can be life-saving. William Gallagher of AppleInsider reports that the FDA has now "approved the Apple Watch's atrial fibrillation history feature under its stringent Medical Device Development Tools program that specifies what devices health professionals can rely on."
- For example, Gallagher also shares the tale of a woman who produces videos for Peloton who explains that an Apple Watch saved her life by alerting her that she may have AFib.
- A number of iPhone owners across the country have been finding the alarm function on their iPhones did not work, causing some people to miss work. Andrew Cunningham of Ars Technica notes that Apple is aware of the problem.
- As reported by Michael Simon of Macworld, you can now get the beautiful Apple Studio Display 5K monitor from Amazon for only $1,299.97, an all-time low and a $300 savings. I use this monitor with my Mac mini and it looks great, has great speakers, and has lots of other features. You can also use it as an external display for an iPad.
- Christian Zibreg of iDownloadBlog reports that the Documents app by Readdle can now transcribe audio and video (such as interviews, lectures, podcasts, etc.).
- Many consumer devices for the home such as routers and smart home devices come with dumb default passwords. And since many people never think to change the password, hackers can often guess the password required to undermine the security of devices in your home. Ben Lovejoy of 9to5Mac reports that new cybersecurity laws in the UK and EU will ban the use of dumb default passwords in these devices.
- For all of the initial computers that I used in the early 1980s—my Sinclair ZX81, the Apple ][ computers that I used at school, and my second home computer, the Commodore 64—I programmed in BASIC. Benj Edwards of Ars Technica reports that BASIC is now 60 years old. I didn't realize that the programming language started as far back as 1964. So I guess what I'm trying to say is: 10 PRINT "HAPPY BIRTHDAY BASIC" / 20 GOTO 10 / RUN.
- If you want to use an iPhone 15 to take 4K ProRes video, it uses a ton of storage so you will probably need to save to external storage. Julie Strietelmeir of The Gadgeteer reviews a device from Hagibis ($36.99 on Amazon) that attaches to the back of an iPhone using MagSafe and holds an M.2 2230 NVMe SSD card (which is not included). Seems like an interesting solution that doesn't add much bulk to the iPhone.
- Two Apple TV+ shows that I enjoyed—Sow Horses and Silo—won BAFTA awards, which David Snow of Cult of Mac says is essentially the British Oscars.
- Charles Martin of Apple Insider shares tips for keeping your Apple TV's 4K Siri remote charged and ready to go.
- And finally, it turns out that you can drop an iPhone from 300 feet, or even 16,000 feet, and it can still work. How is that possible? Joanna Stern of the Wall Street Journal shows you the answer in this video:
