Innholdsfortegnelse for Spring 2025 i MacLife

MOST OF US Have lots of Bluetooth and Wi–Fi devices paired with our Macs, or at least sitting on our network. So how can you get to grips with managing them all? With macOS, the answer to that question is straightforward. For the most part you delve into the System Settings and, for the rest, you can fire up a web browser. The same goes for managing any Wi-Fi networks that you’ve connected to (either currently or in the past). One thing’s for sure, it won’t take that long before you’ve got on top of those potentially long lists. In this tutorial, we’ll explain how you can take stock of the connected items, renaming them if it’ll make individual devices easier to identify, and removing any that you’re not sure…

$119.99 From https://rayconglobal.com Features 15,000mAh battery, USB-C, USB-A, integrated USB-C cable, 15W wireless charging pad THERE ARE PLENTY of power banks around to cater to our seemingly endless thirst for recharging our devices on the move. And while capacities are hard to increase without adding size and weight, some developers are focusing on adding value in other ways. Raycon’s highly portable 5–in–1 Magic Laptop Power Bank has a 15,000 mAh capacity housed in a sleek, rugged body with a rubber loop for easy carrying. That capacity is impressive and will recharge even larger phones and some iPads a couple of times. Equipped with a USB–C port as well as a USB–A, the bank also has a retractable USB–C cable hardwired with a Lightning adapter. We’ve seen these hardwired cables in…

FAMINES, PLAGUES, AND an increase in natural disasters? Those may be the conventional signals that the end times are approaching, but surely nothing could signal the coming apocalypse faster than one thing I thought I’d never see — porn apps on the app store. Not the official Apple App Store, of course, but one of the alternatives that the European Union (EU) is now forcing Apple to open up its devices to in a non–consensual way. First a bit of backstory. The EU, has named Apple as one of the six tech giants — which it calls “gatekeepers” — that it aims to rein in with its Digital Markets Act (DMA). The iOS App Store, it has decided, is too much of a monopoly, and alternative app stores, outside of…

APPLE HAS RELEASED an updated Mac Studio with an Apple M4 Max or new M3 Ultra chip, a powerhouse “ultimate pro desktop” with up to half a terabyte of memory. The new model was announced at the same time as a widely anticipated MacBook Air with M4 processor (see review, page 66). The previous Mac Studio with M2 Max or M2 Ultra chip was introduced in June 2023, along with the Mac Pro with M2 Ultra, which has not been updated. The new Mac Studio starts at $1,999, the same as the previous–generation Mac Studio with M2 Max, but this now buys you an M4 Max chip with 14–core CPU, 32–core GPU, and 16–core Neural Engine, 36GB unified memory, and 512GB SSD storage. Options include M4 Max with 16–core CPU…

SEQUOIA HAS SOME wonderful features, many of which you might not know about. The new Apple Intelligence features are here to help in a number of applications, with amazing tools such as Image Playground, Genmoji, and the near–ubiquitous Writing Tools. Photos has had a complete redesign, and also picked up a few new tricks along the way. Look out, too, for new Safari features, some great visual effects in the Music app, and exciting Messages effects. Don’t miss the Mail app’s in–depth features and interesting ways to get more from apps such as Podcasts and Books, too. Not all the features discussed in this article were introduced with macOS Sequoia, but they’re all available in the latest Mac operating system, and are all things you might have missed. So whether…

DO YOU WANT The good news? You can have the latest headlines from a wide variety of sources delivered straight to your desktop. Now do you want the bad news? You can have that as well! In fact, courtesy of the Apple News app, you can stay informed in any way you wish. It lets you choose your favorite news channels and topics, decide on the types of stories you like to see, and even receive email newsletters and notifications about all the latest breaking news. With a click of the “…” next to a headline in your feed (or by selecting the Bookmark or Share icons when reading a story) you can save or share content. You can also catch up with your favorite sports teams, subscribe to individual…

ULTRA–WIDEBAND (UWB) technology and Apple’s Find My ecosystem have come a long way since their initial introduction. UWB has become a key part of Apple’s tracking and location services, extending its presence across various devices, including the Apple Watch, HomePod, and iPhone. Over the years, Apple has refined its implementation of UWB, adding new capabilities and expanding its functionality. The latest iOS 18.2 update represents another leap forward, enabling you to enlist family and friends in finding your lost items, enhancing the collaborative potential of the Find My network. The new U2 chip, which was introduced in 2023 with the iPhone 15 series and Apple Watch Series 9, marks a significant upgrade over the U1 chip that debuted in the iPhone 11. This UWB–enabled chip offers improved location precision and…

$6.99/month (Apple Arcade) From www.builtbysnowman.com Needs macOS 12 or later SKATE CITY: NEW YORK takes the proven Skate City formula, relocates it to the Big Apple and adds a few new tricks (like wall riding), but is recognizable enough for old hands to enjoy. Its side–scrolling 2.5D setting drops you in various New York neighborhoods, where you perform tricks, grind on rails, jump down staircases and evade security guards. There are three game modes to explore: a tutorial, a Free Skate Mode, and a Pro Skate Mode with goals and challenges. The tutorial is extensive, with interactive guides on every aspect, and you’re rewarded for completing them with points that you can spend on changing your skater’s look or unlocking areas. These areas — the starting Manhattan and the unlockable Central…

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI) Features are everywhere right now, particularly embedding themselves into photo–editing apps. The best implementation of the bunch can be found in Adobe Photoshop 2025 due to the power of its tools. Photoshop (from $22.99/month) uses Adobe Firefly — the creative powerhouse’s generative AI tool — to speed up a host of traditional photo–fixing tasks, such as removing unwanted objects, replacing skies, or isolating a subject from their background. As well as speeding up traditional fixes, Adobe’s generative AI can also be used in more fun and creative ways, such as changing the time of day (or even the season) of a picture. You can use AI to coax a smile from a pouty model and “persuade” a shy subject to make eye contact. And you could also…

WITH HACKERS AND Data brokers desperately coveting your email address, it’s important to keep your private data safe. With Apple’s Hide My Email feature, you can create unlimited unique email addresses wherever you log in. Anything sent to these addresses is automatically forwarded to your personal inbox, and any replies you send will instead appear to come from the Hide My Email address. This ensures your primary email address doesn’t fall into the wrong hands. If an address created by Hide My Email gets leaked, you can just disable it, and because Hide My Email creates a new address for each app and account you use, none of your other logins will be affected. It’s built into “Sign in with Apple” and iCloud+, which means you need a paid subscription…

$400 (2TB, as tested), $600 (4TB) From www.seagate.com Features Full–speed Thunderbolt 5, Thunderbolt 3 and USB4 with recent Macs, IP68–rated, 98x65x17mm, Thunderbolt 5 cable, waterproof USB–C port THUNDERBOLT 5 IS coming of age, and not just for the few who can afford high–end Macs. LaCie’s new mobile SSD claims compatibility with Thunderbolt 3 on Intel Macs, USB4 on most Apple silicon models, and Thunderbolt 5 on the elite with M4 Pro or Max chips. This latest addition to LaCie’s well–proven range of rugged SSDs comes in a distinctive deep ultramarine rubber–covered enclosure. This brings significant improvements on previous models, as it’s claimed to be dust– and dirt–tight, resistant to immersion in water at a depth of 1.5 meters for 30 minutes to IP68, and can survive drops from three meters…

$69.99 From www.logitech.com Features Low–profile keys, SilentTouch mouse, Easy–Switch between three devices, Bluetooth LE LOGITECH’S POP ICON Combo is a pairing of keyboard and mouse that aims to bring a splash of color to your setup for a reasonable price. Four colorways are available, each a pleasing mix of hues ranging from a tech–friendly graphite and green to rose or lilac against off–white, or off–white and orange. The build quality is solid and though mostly recycled plastic, feels robust. Unlike some similar products there’s no wiring or USB at all. Power is via AAA batteries — two for the keyboard and one for the mouse. Logitech claims up to 36 months of battery life for the keyboard and 24 for the mouse in typical use. Fixed rechargeable batteries would have…