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Deals: iPad mini 7 $100 off, Apple Watch Ultra $409 off, Twelve South Qi2 charging stand, Bose headphones, more

Your Tuesday deals on Apple gear and accessories are now live and at the ready down below. We are once again tracking $100 price drops on the latest iPad mini 7, including the mid-range 256GB model, as well as an ongoing offer on the 36GB M4 Max MacBook Pro at $350 off. From there we move over to OG Apple Watch Ultra units at up to $409 off the original list price, a new all-time low on Twelve South’s latest 15W Qi2 HiRise 2 MagSafe Charging Stand, and Bose QuietComfort Ultra Bluetooth Headphones at $100 off. All of that and more awaits below in today’s 9to5Toys Lunch Break.

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Five VPN apps in the App Store had links to Chinese military

Five VPN apps in the App Store had links to Chinese military | Close-up of a Chinese flag

At least five VPN apps in the App Store were found to have links to the Chinese military, according to a new report today. Three of them have racked up more than a million downloads.

A subsidiary of one of the Chinese companies behind the apps is currently hiring for a role in “monitoring and analysing platform data,” with a familiarity with American culture listed as a job requirement …

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There are two big issues with Apple’s reported ‘AI doctor’ plan

There are two big issues with Apple's reported 'AI doctor' plan | Friendly-looking white robot

Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reported a couple of days ago on what he described as “Apple’s biggest push into health yet with a new AI doctor.”

While I completely understand why Apple would want to do this, I think the company will need to tread extremely carefully to avoid the risk of doing more harm than good …

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It’s not just Apple Intelligence: Alexa+ also launching without key features

It's not just Apple Intelligence: Alexa+ also launching without most features | Man in hardware store asking Alexa+ which part he needs for a repair

Apple has gotten a lot of flack for talking up Apple Intelligence while delivering very little of it, and now it seems Amazon is about to do the exact same thing.

A new report citing internal company documents suggests that Alexa+, Amazon’s equivalent of the new Siri, will also launch without many of its headline features …

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Apple @ Work Podcast: The meeting of the Brads

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In this episode of Apple @ Work, I talk with Brad Kowalk from Hero Assistant about the problems with the current generation of digital assistants, what’s needed to advance the technology, and where we are most likely headed.

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Top 10 iOS 18.4 Features – New Emoji, Ambient Music, and more [Video]

Apple has released iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 to the public and despite it not including the highly anticipated contextual Siri with on screen awareness, it still arrives with several noteworthy features. In this hands on video, we step through the top 10 iOS 18.4 features and changes that users should be aware of. Be sure to subscribe to 9to5Mac on YouTube for more iOS-related videos.

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MagSafe Monday: This 3-in-1 MagSafe charger is perfect for travel

MagSafe 3-in-1 dock

I have tried dozens of MagSafe chargers in the past few years. I swap the ones on my desk, nightstand, and travel bag almost monthly as I try out new ones. This 3-in-1 foldable MagSafe charger fits squarely in the “could be awesome, could be a gimmick” category. It folds down small, charges an iPhone, Apple Watch, and AirPods simultaneously, and promises fast charging in a slim package.

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