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Apple announced the redesigned Mac mini with M4 chip last October. It’s by no means a new product at this point, and it’s nearly a year old. However, I think it may be one of Apple’s greatest gifts to up and coming creators, developers, and all sorts of creative professionals.

Welcome to Indie App Spotlight. This is a weekly 9to5Mac series where we showcase the latest apps in the indie app world. If you’re a developer and would like your app featured, get in contact.

If you’re a massive Pokémon trading card came enthusiast, you might found yourself with thousands of cards in your collection. Mint aims to make things easier for collectors, by giving yourself an easy way to track your whole collection, its value, and more. It’s also designed for iOS 26 and Liquid Glass, and will look right at home on your iPhone.

Apple TV is ramping up its promotion for the upcoming streaming launch of F1: The Movie on Apple TV, timed for the Las Vegas F1 weekend and the launch of a new 50% off for 6 months deal for Black Friday.

The Sphere dominates the Vegas strip, and Apple TV took advantage of the unique shape of the structure to show a depiction of Brad Pitt’s Sonny Hayes inside his APX GP racing helmet.

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Plastic webcam covers—especially of the sliding kind—boomed in popularity sometime in the 2010s as a low-tech way to keep hackers from eavesdropping on compromised machines. The concern felt justified at the time. But by 2020, Apple was beginning to issue warnings that those covers aren’t actually needed and can even damage a MacBook’s display.

For this Security Bite, let’s set the tin-foil hats aside and talk about why webcam covers don’t meaningfully improve privacy, can cause features like True Tone to not work properly, and are far more likely to damage your screen than stop someone from spying on you.

I have tested many smart locks over the years. They all promise convenience but always fall short, with apps that look like they are stuck in 2013, poor battery life, and compatibility headaches. Avia has taken a different approach. Their award-winning lineup focuses purely on Apple compatibility and integration, as well as battery efficiency and ease of use. Here is what you should know about their three new products!

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I believe Apple’s rise as the preferred device for IT teams comes from its focused approach to solving real problems first, then building the tools that make it easy for companies to connect their entire stack and have everything just work. While some companies in years past built their ecosystems around lock in and doing everything, Apple built its enterprise strategy around integration. The new collaboration between JumpCloud and Google Workspace is the latest reminder that the future of enterprise IT is not about competition. It is about cooperation for the customer, even when you compete at the same time.

Today, Apple published the list of studies it will present at the 39th annual Conference on Neural Information Processing Systems (NeurIPS) in San Diego. Here are the details.

Apple researchers have published a study that looks into how LLMs can analyze audio and motion data to get a better overview of the user’s activities. Here are the details.

Apple unveiled its Black Friday 2025 deal earlier this week, with an offer of free gift cards up to $250 each for buying certain products. If you plan to shop at Apple on Black Friday, there are two perks of using Apple Card you should absolutely keep in mind.

A fun new video from the PhoneBuff YouTube channel shows just how much faster iPhones actually get year over year. Or do they? Watch it below to find out.

iPadOS 26 is easily the most significant change to the iPad software we’ve ever seen. Between the new multitasking windows in 26.0, the slide-over refinements in 26.1, and now the return of Split View in 26.2, multitasking on the iPad finally feels natural, intuitive, and productive without compromise. It’s as if Apple finally heard what I have wanted from the iPad since it got its own operating system with iPadOS 13. The best part is that Apple is giving iPad users the best of all forms of multitasking, from full windowed mode, Stage Manager, and the new multitasking. After using it for a few months, I’ve discovered some of my favorite features and use cases.

As I reported a few weeks ago, SwitchBot keeps expanding its lineup of Matter-enabled devices, and this week I’ve been using the new SwitchBot Smart RGBICWW Floor Lamp. If you want a smart lamp that’s bright enough for daily use but flexible enough to create ambiance, this one has worked great thus far. It connects directly to HomeKit through Matter, eliminating the need for a hub outside of a HomeKit hub. It can produce up to 1200 lumens of light and supports warm white, cool white, and full-color modes.

Apple TV has put together a strong lineup to kick off 2026, including three fan-favorite shows returning soon that you still have time to catch up on. Here’s what’s coming.

Last week Apple launched a new feature for iOS 26.1 users: Digital ID in Apple Wallet. Here’s why the new feature could become a gift that keeps giving.

Apple Maps recently gained several new features in iOS 26, but the one that could make the biggest impact for users involves an essential app function: search. Here’s what’s new.

Supply chain leaks indicate Apple is currently finalizing details for next fall’s iPhone 18 line, and the latest reporting says the new iPhone 18 Pro will come with at least two key design changes.

Apple has started shaking up its iPhone release schedule, shifting certain models out of the fall and into the following winter and spring. There’s an iPhone 17e expected to launch in early 2026, and the latest rumor indicates it will pack a big camera upgrade.

After macOS Tahoe launched, some intrepid developers noticed that Electron apps could cause the Mac’s rendering system to be overloaded due to an incompatibility with the way Electron apps were overriding the default window corner mask. Users would experience issues like stuttery scrolling when interacting with any app (including non-Electron ones), as long as an Electron app window was currently visible on the desktop.

Major Electron-based apps have subsequently released software updates to work around this bug, but this meant waiting for an update from the developer of each Electron app installed on your Mac. With the latest 26.2 betas, Apple has now fixed the incompatibility at a system-wide level.

Analyst Jeff Pu is out with a new investor note today with details on Apple’s timeline for new product launches over the next year.

In the investor note, seen by 9to5Mac, Pu says that Apple will kick off 2026 with the launch of three new low-cost products: the iPhone 17e, a low-cost MacBook, and an updated base model iPad. These devices will launch sometime in mid-Q1 2026, Pu reports.

Apple has two great, affordable iPads that most people consider: the base iPad, and the iPad Air. Over time, these iPads have always been relatively similar, making it a rather interesting debate. With current deals, theres only $150 between these two iPads, which really begs the question: should you pay more for the iPad Air, or save some money with the base iPad?

The sequel to one of Apple’s most-watched comedies is now available to Apple TV subscribers.