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Zac Hall

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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

Connect with Zac Hall

Apple Watch Series 9 comes out Friday, but you still can’t buy the Magnetic Link band [U]

Update: Three days after Apple Watch Series 9 hit stores, Apple has opened up orders for Magnetic Link bands. They start shipping near the end of next month.


Here’s a bit of a mystery: it’s the eve of Apple Watch Series 9 launch day, and you still can’t order the new Magnetic Link band.

The product page has been live since the September 12 event ended, but it still shows up as unavailable. If you try to configure an Apple Watch Series 9 with the Magnetic Link when ordering, the checkout flow stops and says to “check back later for availability.”

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Resident Evil Village coming to iPhone 15 Pro and M1+ iPads next month

During the iPhone 15 Pro event, Apple used Resident Evil gameplay to show off the GPU power of the A17 Pro chip. Now Capcom has released pricing and availability details for the two Resident Evil titles that will run on iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max. Both games will be free to demo and require an in-app purchase to fully unlock.

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Apple explains why only revised AirPods Pro 2 support lossless audio from Vision Pro

Apple Vision Pro with AirPods Pro 2

Apple’s AirPods Pro 2 with USB-C charging arrive in stores today. The new hardware is more than just a revised charging case though. As we know, the updated AirPods Pro 2 will be capable of streaming lossless audio from the Vision Pro headset when it ships early next year. Apple credits the H2 chip, but it’s still been a bit of a mystery since both versions have this processor.

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Apple releases iOS 17.0.1/2 with iPhone 15 fix, new macOS Sonoma RC, watchOS 10.0.1, more

Twelve South HiRise 3 Deluxe

Apple has released what will likely be the shipping version of macOS Sonoma for developer and public beta testers. The new version comes just a few days before macOS 14 is set to officially debut for everyone.

In addition to the new macOS Sonoma RC, Apple has issued minor bug fix and security updates to iOS 17 and watchOS 10 and new shipping macOS releases.

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Poll: Has iOS 17 improved Apple’s autocorrect for you?

iOS 17 autocorrect

iOS 17 has only been out a few days, and people are already praising the new autocorrect. That’s great news to anyone who has fumbled with autocorrect over the last few years.

The last time Apple made a big deal about autocorrect, it was about using machine learning and the iPhone install base to make autocorrect smarter than ever. It turns out that might have made autocorrect learn all the wrong lessons.

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Tempo now lets you add custom scheduled workouts to the Apple Watch Workout app

One of the wonderful things about relying on indie developers to make great apps is the fact that they almost always adopt new features on day one. Take Tempo 5 for example. Apple just released iOS 17 and watchOS 10 with a new custom workout feature for developers, and Tempo has already baked in support for planning and add custom run, walk, and hike workouts.

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Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2 reviews: Double Tap, pink, and Siri responsiveness

Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2 come out on Friday, and the first round of reviews are in.

To recap, Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2 are almost entirely about the new S9 chip. This enables on-device Siri processing for some commands, and health queries will be supported later this year. Apple is also adding a new “Double Tap” gesture that lets you select buttons on the screen by pinching your fingers.

Both watches have 1000 nit brighter displays, bringing the Series 9 to 2000 nits and Ultra 2 to 3000 nits. The original Apple Watch peaked at 500 nits before doubling a year later. Speaking of doubling, Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2 double the 32GB storage capacity to 64GB for the first time. Oh, and there’s an upgraded ultrawideband chip inside.

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