Apple made its iWork suite—Pages, Numbers, and Keynote—free on Tuesday, as well as two of the iLife apps*—GarageBand and iMovie. While they were already free to new Mac and iOS device customers (since 2013), making the price “free” makes them easier to download by everyone.
If You're Looking for Floppy Disks, Amazon's Got Them - Really
If you remember fondly the old days of passing files around by “sneakernet,” or using floppy disks, you might be amused at what Jeff Butts has discovered. Floppy disk drives and the diskettes you need for them are still widely available from at least one retailer.
12 Mac Apps and 3 Courses in the Supersized Creative Mac Bundle for $29
Our friends at Stack Commerce have put together a great deal on 12 Mac apps and 3 training sources. It’s called the Supersized Creative Mac Bundle, and features several photo apps, filters, writing tools, Roxio Toast Express, mind mapping software, and more. The training courses cover photography, video editing, and web design. All for $29.
Apple's Pro iMac to Compete with Microsoft Surface Studio
We know Apple has an iMac with pro features planned for later this year, and a new report says it’ll be designed to compete with Microsoft’s Surface Studio all-in-one PC. Apple also has updates for its current models coming, most likely in the second half of the year.
What We Want in Apple's Pro iMac - TMO Daily Observations 2017-04-18
Apple says an iMac with pro features is coming later this year, but didn’t elaborate on exactly what that entails. Jeff Butts and Dave Hamilton join Jeff Gamet to talk about what they’d like to see in the new model. Spoiler: they were able to distill that down to two words.
Apple Settles Unwired Planet's Patent Infringement Case Hours Before Trial
Unwired Planet’s patent infringement lawsuit against Apple is finally over because the two companies reached an undisclosed settlement just a day before they were scheduled to go to trial. The agreement most likely includes Apple writing a big check, and the patent holding company agreeing to leave the iPhone and Mac maker alone.
Bloomberg Backs Up iPhone 8 Big Screen Design Reports
Another report is out saying the iPhone 8 will sport an almost bezel-free display, and this time it’s from Bloomberg. This one backs up what we’ve already heard: A bigger display in an iPhone 7-size body, curved glass edges, OLED, and no physical Home button.
Logitech POP Smart Button Gets HomeKit Support
Logitech’s POP Smart Button is getting HomeKit support, and its POP Smart Button Kit will be available in Apple’s retail stores. The button supports a wide range of devices, so you can use it to control non-HomeKit gear, too.
Google Maps for iOS Adds Turn-by-Turn Directions to Lock Screen Widget
Google updated its Google Maps app for iOS Monday. Version 4.30’s chief new feature is turn-by-turn directions on the lock screen courtesy of a Directions widget. With that widget, users can arrow through each direction in any active route from the lock screen or the Today view (swipe left on the Home Screen). Users can also send their location via Google Maps through iMessage. Both features give Google Maps a dramatically more integrated experience in iOS, erasing some of the pain points of not being the built-in Maps service for Apple’s mobile operating system. The Directions widget will need to be added to your lock screen, while the location feature is available through iMessage. The update is free, meaning you remain the product.
A Full Screen 'iPhone X' Leak I Can Get Behind
KK Sneak Leaks has posted a leak of what’s supposed to be Apple’s full-screen iPhone, the so-called iPhone X. I don’t know if it’s real, but it’s a leak I can get behind. And for what it’s worth, KK gave it a 99% reliability. Bryan Chaffin takes us on a tour.