The Innocn 49-inch OLED ultrawide monitor is an eye-catching monitor, and I'm a big fan. But some concerns may mean that Mac owners should choose something else.


I know that might not make a lot of sense, especially when I explain all of the things I like about this monitor. It's surprisingly affordable with some impressive specs, and it's changed the way I work.

It's also been a revelation when gaming, albeit with some limitations that aren't the monitor's fault. There's something to be said for playing an immersive game on a monitor that fills your vision.


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Apple has added the iPhone 7 Plus and two iPhone 8 models to its list of vintage and obsolete products, as it's been more than five years since both devices launched.


The iPhone 7 Plus, which launched in 2016, was the first iPhone to feature a dual rear camera system. Along with its smaller iPhone 7 counterpart, the iPhone 7 Plus introduced a solid-state home button and a jet black color option, but that was eight years ago.

Apple considers one of its products "vintage" when it stopped distributing them for sale more than five years ago, and less than seven years ago. Once a product hasn't been sold new for more than seven years, it's then classified as "obsolete." The company provides service and parts for vintage products for up to seven years, assuming the necessary parts are available.


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An Apple research paper suggests that humanoid robots can be more effectively trained with human instructors as well as robot demonstrators, which is part of a new combined approach the company calls "PH2D."


On Wednesday, a week after the company revealed its Matrix3D and StreamBridge AI models, Apple published new research on robots and how to train them. The iPhone maker's previous robotics efforts included the creation of a robotic lamp, among other things, but Apple's latest study deals with humanoid robots specifically.

The research paper, titled "Humanoid Policy ~ Human Policy," details the inadequacies of traditional robot-training methods and proposes a new solution that's both scalable and cost-effective.


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Memorial Day price drops are knocking up to $500 off Apple's M4 and M4 Pro Mac mini range, delivering prices from $529.


Both Amazon and B&H are discounting the current Mac mini product line by up to $500, reflecting the lowest prices on numerous upgraded configurations. Prices start at just $529 for the M4 range, with the steepest discounts available on the M4 Pro models.

Latest M4 Mac mini discounts


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OpenAI just made its biggest move yet — buying Jony Ive's AI startup — with hopes of building something that feels as magical as the first iPhone.


Initially, it was reported that OpenAI would buy Jony Ive's AI startup, simply named "io", for $500 million. To say that the actual sale cost was a bit higher would be an understatement.

The final sale price wound up being nearly $6.5 billion — in stock.


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Apple's actions to fight the injunction from its Epic Games App Store legal fight interfered with plans to launch the Xbox mobile web store, Microsoft has said.


The continuing legal drama between Apple and Epic Games over an anti-steering injunction harmed more than the two companies, it is alleged. According to an amicus brief supplied to the United States District Court for the Northern District of California on May 20, Microsoft's plans were impacted by Apple's unwillingness to play ball.

The brief, first reported by The Verge, focuses on the injunction, which required Apple to allow developers to link out to external websites to handle payments. The injunction was intended to permit external transactions, but Apple's implementation was far from what was intended by the court.


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Apple Pay is now the fifth most widely available online payment option as more shoppers ditch traditional checkout forms for faster, mobile-first alternatives.


A May 2025 study by Merchant Machine found Apple Pay is available on 5.25% of websites globally. That puts it just behind American Express and ahead of Shopify Pay, Google Pay, and Stripe.

PayPal remains the clear leader, appearing on more than a quarter of websites at 26.24%.


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Apple iPhone owners are still sticking with the brand at rates that shame every other smartphone producer, and a small dip in loyalty doesn't mean much without better data.


Apple iPhone owners aren't quite as loyal as they used to be. New data shows that 89% bought another iPhone when upgrading. That figure, known as the loyalty rate, measures how often customers stick with the same brand.

Though 89% still stick with the company when upgrading, that's down from a 94% high in 2021, according to new data from Consumer Intelligence Research Partners (CIRP).


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The WWDC 2025 visionOS 3 debut will be the first look at what an annual update cycle looks like for Apple Vision Pro software. Here are some of our hopes for the platform.


There is a call for a lighter, cheaper Apple Vision Pro, but Apple can't provide that through a software update. There are plenty of quality-of-life updates that could help boost the platform.

When Apple Vision Pro launched in February 2024, it ran visionOS 1.0 with Apple's view of what the platform should be. After a few months of being used by more than just Apple engineers, the company was able to tackle a lot of issues not identified in beta testing.


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If you're not quite ready to pony up the $70 a month it takes to access Adobe's Creative Cloud Pro plan, there are plenty of low-cost and no-cost alternatives out there. Here are our favorites, updated on May 21, 2025.


Adobe products are industry standard, and, for many people, nothing else will do. I get it.

While I know that there are a plethora of alternatives to Photoshop available, I've also been using Photoshop since I was fourteen, which means I've got two more decades of experience with it. Photoshop is muscle memory for me, and that convenience is worth quite a bit.


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Recent regular media reporting about the newly publicized AirPlay "Airborne" vulnerability made it sound like your smart home and iPhones are wide open for attackers to rob you blind. They aren't.


Let's recap, because there's been a lot of hysteria lately.

AirPlay and CarPlay make it easy to stream media, mirror your screen, or connect your iPhone to your car. In April 2025, security researchers at Oligo discovered vulnerabilities in how some third-party devices implement AirPlay.


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One user tracking his stolen iPhone has led to the uncovering of a global theft system where it hardly matters that your device is locked.


Increasingly sophisticated thieves have previously been reported using tracking data to steal iPhones before they are delivered. Whether it's that or snatching iPhones out of people's hands, though, it appears that at least many stolen devices are then shipped internationally.

According to the Financial Times, they end up in the Huaqiangbei district of Shenzhen, China. It's an ironic place for them to go, since Shenzhen is around 30 minutes drive from where Foxconn originally manufactures so many of them.


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The Notes app in iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 makes it easy to add an audio recording to a note, and create a written transcription of it if desired. Here's how to do it.


It has long been possible to add an audio recording to a note created in the Notes app, but in earlier iOS versions it was a little more cumbersome. Users would open the Voice Memos app, record the audio, and then attach that recording to a new note in the Notes app.

As of iOS 18, that functionality is directly available in Notes — though it is still somewhat hidden until you know how to find it. The big change compared to the previous Voice Memos app is that Notes can now also provide a written transcript of what was said, if you are using an iPhone 12 or later.


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Apple was in danger of having to show up in court on May 27 if it didn't respond satisfactorily to a show cause order by Wednesday, but neither is no longer necessary.


After two Fortnite App Store submissions were seemingly ghosted by Apple, Judge Yvonne Gonzalez ordered Apple to show cause by May 21. After that, Apple wasted little time in getting the game approved and back on the US App Store.

A joint filing shared with AppleInsider by Epic shows the two companies had resolved all issues related to the show cause order. The filing means Apple will no longer need to submit anything, nor will it have to appear in court on May 27.


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Over four years after Epic broke App Store rules and sparked a billion-dollar battle, "Fortnite" is finally back on iPhone and iPad.


For those who have missed playing Fortnite on iPhone and iPad, today's your lucky day: it's back on the App Store. After successfully passing its review in early May, the game has been cleared by Apple and made available to players once more.

It's been four years since Fortnite was last available on iOS. In the summer of 2020, Epic willingly violated Apple's App Store rules by allowing players the option to purchase Fortnite's in-game currency directly from Epic.


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Apple has released a new firmware update for the USB-C variant of the AirPods Max, although no information is available about the update's contents.


Tuesday's firmware update increases the build number to 7E108, up from the previous 7E101. Unlike most firmware updates, this software release is only compatible with the more recent version of the AirPods Max, equipped with a USB-C port.

Though the exact contents of the 7E108 firmware update are unclear, the software likely includes various bug fixes and quality-of-life improvements, possibly for new AirPods Max features introduced with the earlier 7E101 update.


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The Gemini app for iOS is being updated with extra AI smarts, including a better-performing Gemini 2.5 Flash and a new Gemini Live camera.


Google I/O is the search giant's annual gathering to show off the company's latest innovations. As usual, a lot of it is about artificial intelligence, and some of it applies to iOS.

The Gemini app for iOS is the beneficiary of some of the announcements, with updates to the app rolling out to users from Tuesday onwards.


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Third-party developers will allegedly be able to incorporate Apple Intelligence models into their apps in iOS 19, in an initiative that could significantly boost adoption of Apple's AI efforts.


Apple's existing AI-based offerings are under the banner of Apple Intelligence. While the rollout of features under the masthead has been slow, it may become even more useful in the near future.

According to a report on Tuesday from Bloomberg, Apple is working on ways to let external developers take advantage of its AI models. Third-party apps will be able to incorporate features that lean on models Apple has developed and implemented into its Apple Intelligence features.


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A slew of new Elgato Stream Decks have been announced, aimed at everyone from the usual individuals, through network users and DIY fans, and even on to other manufacturers.


Elgato's Stream Deck may have begun as an accessory for gamers and streamers, but it's become a whole series of devices for Mac productivity. Now Elgato has announced four new variants designed to expand the Stream Deck's use and widen its appeal.

The four new additions to the Stream Deck range are:


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Adobe's new "Creative Cloud Pro" plan now comes with a new name, a bigger bill, and not much else. Here's how the price tiers compare in May 2025.


Adobe has just announced that it will jump prices on its Creative Cloud All Apps plan — and gave it a bit of a rebrand in the process. At a time when everything is becoming more expensive, the move seems, at best, poorly timed.

Starting June 17, Adobe will jack up prices for access to its Creative Cloud subscription, and prices will go into effect upon a user's next renewal date. Here's what you can expect.


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Three weeks before the keynote, Apple has started to lay out what developers can expect from WWDC 2025, including the scheduling of key presentations and other sessions.


The initial announcement of WWDC in March gave a heads-up to developers to prepare for the June 9 to June 13 event. On Tuesday, Apple offered more of an insight of what to expect from the week-long developer-centric conference.

The main event in terms of updates will be the keynote, which will be held on the first day, June 9, at 10 a.m. Pacific, 1 p.m. Eastern. The keynote, which will be streamed on Apple.com, the Apple TV app, and YouTube, will play host to Apple's key changes to its operating systems, including iOS 19 and macOS 16.


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Not only can the Bluetti Apex 300 keep your lights on and appliances running during an outage as a portable power station, it can also work as a 0ms UPS for your Apple gear.


Bluetti offers a range of portable power stations and home backup solutions, but the latest Apex 300 Solar Generator is a first-of-its-kind model. It combines portability with serious power and grid-tied integration.

Get an early bird discount


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A Thunderbolt 4 or Thunderbolt 5 dock is the absolute best way to charge and add ports and to your MacBook Pro with one cable. Here are AppleInsider's recommendations for the best Thunderbolt docks, updated on May 20, 2025.


One of the problems when buying a MacBook is that you'll feel like there aren't enough ports for all of your hardware. The answer to that is to acquire a dock, which immediately adds a variety of ports to your computing setup.

However, not all docks are created equal. We know, because we've tested about all of them.


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Tariffs, politics, and shifting priorities are unraveling the iPhone supply chain that once tied the US and China together.


In April 2025, China's smartphone shipments to the United States dropped 72% year over year to $688.5 million, their lowest monthly total since June 2011. That fall significantly outpaced the 21% drop in overall Chinese exports to the US, according to data from China's General Administration of Customs.

China exported $7.58 billion worth of mobile phones globally in April, meaning less than 10% of that went to the US. The sharp decline speaks to how fast trade policy can redraw long-established shipping routes and production plans.


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Users of iOS 18.4 or iPadOS 18.4 worldwide can now switch their default translation app from Apple's stock one to Google's. Here's how to do it.


Apple introduced the ability to change default email and browsers with iOS 14 back in 2020. It subsequently added more options until in iOS 18.2, it included Messages and others.

But from iOS 18.4 in March 2025 Apple added the option to change the default translation app. Now according to the app's release notes in the App Store, Google Translate users can take advantage of this.


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With 20 ports, plenty of power, and an accommodating design that is well-matched to any modern Mac the CalDigit TS5 Plus is an excellent dock in an already competitive landscape.


With every new Thunderbolt upgrade, we get a new wave of docks. CalDigit has provided be with the CalDigit TS5 Plus, which is the most premium dock that CalDigit now makes.

It's got a familiar design for fans of its previous incarnations but utilizes the latest Thunderbolt 5 spec. Here's how it holds up.


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Google has released an iOS app for NotebookLM, bringing its AI-based research tool for understanding large stretches of text to the small screen.


Google introduced NotebookLM in July 2023, pitching it as an experimental AI-powered notebook to help people with research. Previously available online, NotebookLM is now spreading to mobile, with the release of iOS, iPadOS, and Android apps.

The idea of NotebookLM is that it can offer the same sort of insights into content as ChatGPT, Google Gemini, or other AI chatbot services. The difference is that it is limited to only accessing the documents and sources you specify, nothing else.


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The Cannes Film Festival has hosted the world premiere of "Bono: Stories of Surrender," the first Apple TV+ music documentary to have a feature-length Apple Vision Pro immersive video edition.


The new Apple TV+ documentary will be released in both 8K and 180-degree versions, marking the first time a feature-length special has been released in the Apple Immersive Video format. While it will have been the 8K edition that was shown at Cannes, the Apple Vision Pro version places the headset wearer onstage with Bono.

According to Apple, the documentary is a "bold and lyrical exploration of Bono's one man show," and is directed by Andrew Dominik. Australian director Dominik previously documented Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds' recording of their sixteenth album, in a film called "One More Time With Feeling."


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Apple has been fined $131,000 by a Russian court that found it guilty of breaking the country's laws on what it describes as LGBT propaganda.


In 2023, a Russian kangaroo court fined Apple $42,000, or what was then two seconds of profit, over "spreading false information about the Ukraine conflict." Apple News had basically included news reports saying that there was such a conflict, which broke Russian laws against discussions siding with Ukraine.

Now a different Russian court has also fined Apple around two seconds' worth of profit. It's just that by 2025, that per-second profit was much higher.


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Some files in macOS may not be necessary and can be safely removed from your Mac. Here's how to delete them.


macOS is a UNIX-based system at its core, and as such, its filesystem arrangement is more complex than it first appears.

This is partly because macOS and the Finder hide parts of the filesystem on disk from users, mostly parts that only macOS needs and which most users never need to be concerned about.


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If you need good coffee and want ultimate control over your brew, the xBloom Studio home coffee maker is an iPhone app-connected way to do the job very well — if you're willing to pay the entry price.


Having freshly-brewed coffee whenever you want is a problem that has pretty much been solved, thanks to the introduction of coffee pods. But, while this does give you coffee that can't really be called good by any means at a touch of a button at home without too much effort, there's always room for improvement.

Much improvement. Those coffee pods can be pretty bad.


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Apple Filing Protocol is one of Apple's original file-sharing technologies. Its client software will soon be gone from macOS forever.


The year after Apple released the Macintosh in 1984, it introduced a proprietary networking standard called Apple Filing Protocol. Part of a suite of software which included AppleTalk, AppleShare, and Apple cabling hardware called LocalTalk, AFP allowed users to share files across Macs on local area networks.

This was a decade before the Internet and its open protocols became popular in the mid-1990s.


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Epic Games' "Fortnite" is still not approved on the US App Store, and a federal judge has ordered Apple to explain in very short order why it's defying the antisteering court order in the ongoing dispute.


In a new filing, Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers called out Apple for not following an injunction issued earlier in the case. Epic claims Apple is dragging its feet in approving Fortnite on the US app store, and the judge seems to agree.

Epic's SEO, Tim Sweeney, posted a screenshot of the order on his personal X account on Monday.


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Apple has released an update for iPadOS 17.7.8, updating some older iPads to correct an issue from the previous patch.


Apple issued updates for older versions of iPadOS on May 12, bringing models that can't run iPadOS 18 up to iPadOS 17.7.7. One week later, and Apple's replaced the update.

The release of iPadOS 17.7.8 on Monday build number 21H440. It is intended to be installed on the second-generation 12.9-inch iPad Pro, the 10.5-inch iPad Pro, and the sixth-generation iPad.


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Save $1,100 instantly on a loaded 14-inch MacBook Pro thanks to an inventory clearance sale at OWC.


A discount of $1,100 is in effect on this blowout M3 Pro MacBook Pro 14-inch at OWC, an Apple reseller and well-known manufacturer of docking stations and storage solutions for Apple users. With the substantial savings, readers can pick up the upgraded system in Space Black for just $2,499, delivering the lowest price we've seen on this configuration.

Save $1,100 at OWC


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Foxconn has made a $1.5 billion investment into its India arm, a move that will almost certainly fund its expansion of iPhone production in the country.


India is growing as a production base for iPhones, as Apple diversifies its supply chain away from a China-centric model. Expanding in India requires resources, and one supply chain member is contributing more.

Hon Hai, also known as Foxconn, is investing $1.5 billion in its India business. In a stock exchange filing seen by Bloomberg on Monday, the investment is being made via the company's subsidiary in Singapore.


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A new examination of Apple partner TSMC's Arizona facility shines a spotlight on how the U.S. bet on domestic chipmaking is colliding with labor shortages, cost overruns, and global dependencies.


Just outside Phoenix, a sleek, high-security facility is taking shape. Known as Fab 21, the site is operated by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) and will soon be one of the most advanced chipmaking facilities in the world.

The microscopic transistors produced here will power Apple devices, artificial intelligence systems and critical infrastructure, representing a significant shift of advanced technology manufacturing to American soil.


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Apple invited a select group of student influencers to its one-day "Apple University" experience, highlighting how its tools support education and content creation.


In March, Apple held an Apple student experience, nicknamed "Apple University," for student influencers. The one-day, invite-only event was designed to help students better grasp how Apple's products can help with both school and content creation.

One student, Heaven Marley, was chosen to participate. She caught up with People after the event.


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Big tech's lawyers are doing an great deal of work to protect companies like Apple, Google, and Amazon, and there's a new trend of turning attorney-client privilege into a sketchy legal strategy.


Apple's constant legal wrangling has caused a lot of work for its lawyers, just like many other tech giants. However, big tech legal battles are now so massive and important to the company's bottom line that new legal tactics need to be employed.

In a profile of how the major courtroom fights have played out, The Wall Street Journal alleges that the legal teams of big tech outfits are enabling the companies to hide evidence. Or at the very least, delay handing over requested documents until the last possible moment.


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On the latest episode of the HomeKit Insider Podcast, Daniel Moneta, Chair of the Matter Marketing and Product Subgroup at the CSA, joins to talk about the future of Matter and more.


Daniel Moneta, Chair of the Matter Marketing and Product Subgroup at the Connectivity Standards Alliance (CSA), guest hosts the podcast this week on the heels of the spring update to the Matter spec. The CSA is the overseeing organization behind Matter that develops the spec.

A man of many hats, Daniel has a deep understanding of the Matter spec as well as how it works with different ecosystems, including Samsung SmartThings and Apple Home.


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