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HomeKit Weekly: SwitchBot launches a battery-powered standing fan with Apple Home integration

SwitchBot Standing Circulator Fan

Fans are one of those categories where true innovation is kind of hard to find. Ultimately, it’s just there to cool things and circulate air. SwitchBot recently launched its new SwitchBot Standing Circulator Fan, which caught my eye for its built-in battery and Matter (and therefore Apple Home) compatibility. Let’s take a closer look at what this portable fan actually offers and what you need to know before picking one up.

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Lil Finder Guy pet was the gateway to building my own Mac apps with Codex

At the start of May, OpenAI released a playful feature inside its Codex desktop app for creating a virtual pet.

This silly little addition solved my biggest challenge with Codex: what should I do with it? My first real task with Codex was putting together a virtual Lil Finder Guy for fun.

A month later, I’m using two Mac apps that Codex built at my direction. Toying around with Codex Pets was the gateway for me to better understand its capabilities.

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Smart home diary: A fresh look as I start again in my new home

New smart home | A view from the balcony

I’ve recently completed what must be a strong contender for the longest-running saga in selling one home and buying another. I won’t bore you with the details, but the entire process from start to finish was two years almost exactly to the day. I have sadly sacrificed my former spectacular city view but let’s just say it was a good move.

I set an ambitious target of a fortnight for completing all the main home improvement work on my new apartment, and so far seem to be getting pretty close. This includes much of my new smart home setup …

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Deals: AirPods Pro 3, AirPods Max 2, Apple Watch from $219, black Trail Loop, MacBook Air, more

Today’s 9to5Toys Lunch Break is headlined by some of the best AirPods deals of the year – AirPods Pro 3 down at $199, AirPods 4 nearly 25% off, and the best price ever on AirPods Max 2. Alongside the most affordable Apple Watch Series 11 down at $299 ($100 off) and Apple Watch SE 3 down at $219, we also have a super rare discount hitting Apple’s latest black Ultra Trail Loop today and Spigen’s Athlex Trail Loop-style Apple Watch band at $20. Just be sure to also scope out these M5 MacBook Air models still up to $270 off. Head below for a closer look.

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iOS 27 bill splitting, new hardware waiting on new Siri, final WWDC expectations

Benjamin and Chance talk about the late-breaking iOS 27 rumors, including a new bill splitting feature for the Wallet app, as well as give their final expectations for next week’s WWDC announcements. Apple fixes Mayo’s iPhone Air battery glitch, and new Apple TV and HomePod models are apparently in the final testing stage. Also, code references reignite ideas about new cheaper (or free) tiers of Apple Music. 

And in Happy Hour Plus, on the eve of iOS 27, we give our 1 year retrospective on how iOS 26 has fared in the wild. Subscribe at 9to5mac.com/join.

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