Jeff Benjamin

Today, Thunderbolt 3 peripheral specialist Akitio announced a new partnership with Intel that has resulted in a special edition version of the Akitio Node PCIe box. The collaboration sees Intel contributing its just-released Optane 905P, a 960GB PCIe SSD — the current king of SSDs from a speed perspective — to the fire engine red Thunderbolt 3 enclosure.
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If you’re looking for an eGPU that doesn’t occupy a lot of desk real estate, you basically have two options — the Sonnet eGFX Breakaway Puck, and Gigabyte’s just-released RX 580 Gaming Box.

Whereas the Sonnet option comes with an RX 570, Gigabyte packs a more powerful RX 580 inside an area that’s a little bit larger than the Breakaway Puck. Should MacBook Pro users looking for a portable eGPU solution consider the RX 580 Gaming Box? Watch our hands-on video inside for more details.
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Apple today released an update for Final Cut Pro X that addresses a couple of annoying bugs that some users may have been experiencing. Version 10.4.2 of Final Cut Pro X arrives three weeks after version 10.4.1, a major update that brought about new features like closed captioning workflows and ProRes RAW support.
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One of the biggest sources of supply chain-based pre-release Apple hardware information has departed his position of nearly six and a half years. Ming-Chi Kuo, top Apple analyst at KGI Securities, left the company last Friday, April 27th, according to a report by the China Times via Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman.

KGI is Taiwan’s second-largest securities firm, and is set to mark its 30th year in business later this September. Kuo, who is easily the firm’s most recognizable analyst by name, previously worked at Taiwanese news company Digitimes. Now he appears to be largely moving on from reporting about Apple.
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If you’re in the market for a Thunderbolt 3 device that allows you to connect to up to two 4K displays at 60 Hz simultaneously, but don’t want to invest in a full on external GPU, then the Mantiz Titan may be worth considering. A multi-video dock featuring dual DisplayPort 1.2 connections and a single HDMI 2.0a connection, this unit allows you to connect a Thunderbolt 3-enabled MacBook Pro or iMac to two 4K displays at once.

Users can opt to use both DisplayPort connections or a single DisplayPort + HDMI connection to achieve a dual 4K display setup. In other words, the Titan allows you to quickly connect to multiple external displays without the need for an eGPU box with dedicated graphics card. Watch our hands-on video for a brief look at the Mantiz Titan in action.
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In this hands-on video walkthrough, we step through several basic and several advanced app icon management tips for iPhone users. Chances are you’ll know many, if not most of these, but there’s probably at least one or two tips that have flown under your radar. Watch our hands-on video to find out.
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Even though Final Cut Pro X curiously doesn’t support external GPUs yet, DaVinci Resolve is another popular NLE that already works with eGPUs on macOS. In fact, the $299 Studio edition supports multiple GPUs, which can have a noticeable effect on both timeline and render/export performance.

I’ve been super impressed with the relentlessness that Blackmagic Design, the creators behind DaVinci Resolve, has displayed while iterating on its hardware and software products. For example, DaVinci Resolve has progressed from what was primarily viewed as a colorist’s tool that you’d use and round trip back to your primary NLE, to a competent standalone NLE. The upcoming version 15, now in beta, even sports a motion graphics platform called Fusion that’s baked right in.

As I recently traversed the show floor in Las Vegas at NAB 2018, there was a noticeable buzz about DaVinci Resolve — several popular vendors specifically named-dropped Resolve in reference to its eGPU support, and noted the impressive performance gains made possible by this feature.

In this hands-on video walkthrough, I showcase using DaVinci Resolve with multiple eGPUs. As you’ll see, an eGPU can turn a MacBook Pro — a machine that may struggle editing in DaVinci Resolve on its own — into a capable editing machine.
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Now that macOS 10.13.4 is out, Apple is now officially supporting certain eGPU configurations for eligible Macs. As I outlined in a recent state of eGPU post, all currently released Thunderbolt 3-enabled Macs are eGPU compatible, including the 4K and 5K iMac, the iMac Pro, and the 2016/2017 MacBook Pro.

With this in mind, we recently got our hands on the Sonnet eGFX Breakaway Box 650W to unbox and document some first impressions. If you’re looking for the best overall Apple-recommended external GPU chassis for your Thunderbolt 3-enabled MacBook Pro or iMac, then look no further. Sonnet’s eGFX Breakaway Box is an eGPU enclosure that can power the most powerful Mac-compatible GPU — the AMD Radeon RX Vega 64 — while providing enough power to charge a 15-inch MacBook Pro at full speed. Watch our video walkthrough for more hands-on details and benchmarks.
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Apple’s mid-cycle (PRODUCT)RED iPhone 8 special edition is now arriving to customers who ordered online earlier in the week, and is also available for in-store pickup at most retail Apple Store locations.

Like last year’s iPhone 7 special edition release, Apple will donate a portion of the proceeds for the red iPhone 8 to charity. If you didn’t care for the look of the (PRODUCT)RED iPhone 7, there are two key differences with this year’s model that may change your opinion this time around. Watch our hands-on video unboxing and walkthrough for more details.
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The new closed captioning tools in Final Cut Pro 10.4 provide an easy way to create more accessible content. Closed captions are also useful for creating content that’s watchable in environments where it’s not practical to turn up the volume.

Closed captioning can help expand your reach by assigning different languages to your captions for easy interpretation. Needless to say, this is a major new workflow addition to Final Cut Pro X, one that might pay dividends as far as broadening your audience is concerned. Watch our hands-on video for a brief look at some of the high level closed captioning tool set features.

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As promised last Thursday, Apple released a major update to Final Cut Pro X this morning. Version 10.4.1 of Final Cut Pro X brings two new key features to the table in closed captioning and ProRes RAW support, along with a whole host of additional features and changes.

Those who already own Final Cut Pro X can download 10.4.1 free of charge from the Mac App Store. Everyone else can purchase the well-regarded NLE for $299 with no reoccurring subscription fees.
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It was a mere four months ago when Final Cut Pro X received a major update in the form of version 10.4. That update ushered in exciting new features like 360 VR, advanced color grading, HDR support, and more.

Today ahead of next week’s NAB 2018 in Las Vegas, Apple is announcing the next major update to its professional NLE — Final Cut Pro 10.4.1. Available for download this coming Monday, April 9th, version 10.4.1 includes support for two big new features: ProRes RAW and a powerful new closed captioning toolset.

As is usually the case, the update will be accompanied by updates to companion tools Compressor and Motion. What all can you expect from Monday’s Final Cut Pro 10.4.1 release? Have a look as we break down details related to each change.
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With last week’s launch of macOS 10.13.4, Apple officially rolled out external GPU support as it promised at WWDC. As we noted last week, Apple has released updated documentation highlighting the details of eGPU implementation.

It also provided updated documentation to better help developers with targeting external GPUs in their applications. On this week’s episode of Back to the Mac, we discuss eGPU support in macOS 10.13.4, including some of the finer details about external vs internal display support, GPU monitoring, and more.

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The first iOS 11.4 beta was seeded to developers earlier this afternoon, and it brings back several features that were found in previous betas. Watch our hands-on video walkthrough inside for a brief look at what’s included.
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Apple entered new territory with last year’s budget model $329 iPad — largely popular for reducing the barrier to entry for first time iPad owners. This time around, the thought of a budget iPad isn’t so crazy, as we’ve had a whole year to marinate on the idea.

Like last year’s model, the 6th generation 2018 iPad can be a compelling device if it happens to fit your needs. The good news is that it’s pretty easy to determine where this new iPad may fit in, and whether you should buy it or not. Have a look at our hands-on video walkthrough inside for the details.
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As expected, Apple’s new 2018 iPad, which was announced earlier this week, has arrived at retail locations. Both Apple retail stores and Best Buy locations are showing stock, allowing customers to walk in to a store and purchase a 6th-generation iPad today.
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Today Apple released macOS 10.13.4 to the public, bringing official external graphics support to the Mac. Apple has published a new document to help users navigate the ins and outs of eGPU support, including a list of eligible Mac hardware, external graphics enclosures, and GPUs. If you’re considering adopting an external graphics setup, then you definitely want to be familiar with Apple’s published requirements.
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Update: Some customers have started receiving their iPad deliveries.

If you ordered a new 2018 iPad, you may want to check your shipment status, as we’ve received word via email that some deliveries are scheduled to arrive tomorrow, March 30th.
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The iWork suite, including Pages, received a substantial update today as a part of Apple’s iPad education event in Chicago. The biggest feature included in the new update is Apple Pencil support for annotating text and objects and for drawing within a document.

In this hands-on video walkthrough, we step through how to use both drawing and Smart Annotations in Pages. Even if you don’t have an Apple Pencil, Smart Annotations and drawing support enhances the overall usefulness of the entire iWork suite.
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Apple has released new spring-infused colors two popular 10.5-inch iPad Pro accessories — the Leather Sleeve and Smart Cover.

The Leather Sleeve is a high quality, all leather product with a slot for Apple Pencil storage. The 12.9-inch iPad Pro also features a first party Leather Sleeve accessory, but these two new colors appear exclusive to the smaller, and likely more popular, 10.5-inch iPad Pro.

Along with the Leather Sleeve colors, Apple has also introduced two Smart Covers for the iPad Pro featuring new colors.
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