Zac Hall is a Senior Editor, covering Apple, AI, and the modern technology landscape.
He joined 9to5Mac in April 2013, originally as a writer and copy editor.
He later served as Lead Editor from May 2016 through December 2020, before shifting focus to creating the Space Explored website.
In 2015, Zac began co-hosting 9to5Mac Happy Hour, establishing the format of the site’s premier podcast, which he hosted for eight years.
In 2018, he created 9to5Mac Daily, providing audio recaps of Apple and technology news each weekday. He also created and hosted multiple seasons of the 9to5Mac Watch Time podcast, a health and fitness-focused interview series.
Zac currently focuses on writing for 9to5Mac. He is based in the lovely Gulf Coast town of Ocean Springs, MS, where he lives with his brilliant kids and Nova, his adventurous Cavachon rescue pup.
Contact: zac@9to5mac.com
I’ve tested a few BenQ products lately. My favorite has been their Mac monitor with Apple Studio Display specs and a more affordable price. The most fun? A new category for me: projectors. The GP520 4K HDR model BenQ loaned me to test alleviated my concerns about the practicality of a projector instead of a TV.
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Jeff Williams, often considered Tim Cook’s successor, is leaving Apple. Sabih Khan, a 30-year veteran of the company, is Apple’s next chief operating officer. Does Khan taking Cook’s old job make him CEO-designate? Jeff Williams retiring certainly clears the path for Khan to climb up the succession planning ladder. However, I would wager that Apple’s CEO succession plan isn’t changing.
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How dead is FireWire support in macOS Tahoe 26? As dead as the iPod, as far as the Mac is concerned, which is at least a little sad. Stephen Hackett checked.
In classic 512 Pixels fashion, he’s conjured together a real world demonstration using a battle-tested FireWire 800 cable-connected drive, two Thunderbolt adapters including a Thunderbolt 2 to 3 dongle, and a Mac. Woof.
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Sorry or you’re welcome? Apple’s new Liquid Glass visual element is getting any icy design change in some places before it reaches customers. iOS 26 developer beta 3, which will likely be iOS 26 public beta 1 later this month, reduces the transparency effect in a number of places like navigation bars in certain apps. In the example above, the top shows beta 2 while the bottom shows the current look in beta 3.
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iOS 26 beta 3 is out now for iPhones on the developer beta. Below we’re collecting all of the iOS 26 beta 3 changes compared to the previous version.
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Four weeks have passed since Apple unveiled iOS 26 and the major software redesign coming for iPhone. Now it’s time to start testing the third developer beta preview and see how performance and polish have improved. iOS 26 also includes loads of new features and functionality in addition to the new Liquid Glass-inspired look and feel.
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Update 6/25/2025: Eight days later, version 36.10.1 on the App Store restores iOS 26 support.
Fortnite returned to the U.S. App Store last month after a five year hiatus over litigation between Epic Games and Apple. As of today, however, Fortnite is as good as gone on iPhones and iPads running the iOS 26 and iPadOS 26 beta.
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T-Mobile has been testing a beta version of its T-Satellite service with customers for several weeks now. Starting next month, the beta period will start to wind down as satellite connectivity officially launches as a paid service. Beyond the commercial launch, T-Mobile has also announced when the service will expand beyond text message support to include data.
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Apple has added a new toggle to show the menu bar background in macOS Tahoe 26 beta 2. The option was added after beta 1 arrived with no menu bar background and no toggle to restore it.
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Apple has restored decades of precedent and restored color balance to the Finder icon in macOS Tahoe 26 beta 2. A controversial change in beta 1 was met with a healthy dose of criticism.
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iOS 26 beta 2 is out now for iPhones on the developer beta. Below we’re collecting everything that has changed between the original and latest beta.
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Apple has released iOS 26 beta 2. The update replaces iOS 26 beta 1 which arrived on June 9 (followed by an updated build for iPhone 15 and iPhone 16 on June 13).
The second version of the pre-release iPhone software update is available now for developer beta testers. Apple will expand iOS 26 beta testing in July when it adds the major new version to its public beta channel too.
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Apple doesn’t talk much about RAM and iPads. Popular iPad games, however, are forcing the conversation. Fortnite and Roblox, for example, are saying game over to an iPad model with a kid-friendly price that Apple sold until last year.
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Apple Vision Pro owners will soon get to experience the exhilarating world of motorcycle racing. CANAL+ announced an upcoming Apple Immersive Video film that will bring viewers directly into the world of MotoGP racing. The project marks the first third-party studio production in Apple’s Immersive Video format, filmed entirely with Blackmagic’s URSA Cine Immersive camera system designed specifically for Vision Pro content.
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Apple Watch has nearly 60 faces, and watchOS 26 optimizes way more than before for Apple Watch Series 10. It’s not all good news with watchOS 26, however, as Apple continues to discontinue watch faces through software updates.
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Apple’s TestFlight app for distributing pre-release software has been updated with new features and performance gains.
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Apple disbanded its router hardware team in 2016 and officially exited the business in 2018. Now in 2025, Apple is signaling that one of the last remaining benefits of its networking hardware will be disabled next year.
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Turns out you don’t need an Aston Martin to have a new CarPlay experience in 2025. That’s because iOS 26 brings a fresh coat of paint and some new features to CarPlay for everyone.
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Apple Watch Series 10 features an upgraded display with a faster refresh rate. This enables select watch faces to display a ticking seconds indicator even in always-on mode. However, most watch faces don’t actually take advantage of the new hardware yet. The watchOS 26 software update coming this fall will change that.
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iOS 26 beta 1 for iPhone is now available for developers. Apple announced the next major software update for iPhone today as part of its WWDC 2025 keynote event. iOS 26 follows iOS 18 as each Apple operating system replaces the incremental version number with a reference to the year ahead.
The update is available as an over-the-air software update in the Settings app on devices with the developer beta software option enabled.
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Apple has officially announced watchOS 26, the successor to watchOS 11. The new name aligns with iOS 26 (and using the upcoming year to reference each software version). The flagship new software feature for Apple Watch in watchOS 26 is called Workout Buddy, an Apple Intelligence-powered fitness feature.
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Apple has officially announced iOS 26, the successor to iOS 18. The renamed software update starts with a new design.
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Happy Nintendo Switch 2 Day to those who celebrate. Turns out the iPhone is an officially supported accessory.
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Theater for visionOS premiered a year ago with a clever software launch campaign: exclusively streaming John Gruber’s The Talk Show post-WWDC event live with 3D video.
The Apple Vision Pro app has continued to mature since its debut, adding extensive Plex support and a full-blown immersive planetarium that now hosts the 2025 SXSW award-winning “Resolution” music experience.
Next up, Theater is returning as the exclusive home to The Talk Show Live event stream.
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