9to5Mac

Listen to a recap of the top stories of the day from 9to5Mac. 9to5Mac Daily is available on iTunes and Apple’s Podcasts app, Stitcher, TuneIn, Google Play, or through our dedicated RSS feed for Overcast and other podcast players.

Sponsored by Roborock: Check out Roborock’s incredible Black Friday Deals now.

The streaming era has certainly changed the way we listen to music. There are curated playlists, algorithms and many other influences. With this in mind, the developers behind NowPlaying are now launching an Apple TV app, which aims to encourage people to listen to entire albums like in the old days.

TORRAS is excited to announce that its popular next-generation Ostand 360 spin stand case for the iPhone 16 series is now available in brand new colors!

Don’t miss out on TORRAS’ 15% Black Friday discount on the new iPhone 16 Ostand 360 case. Plus, 9to5Mac readers get an exclusive additional 10% off with the promo code 925macbf – making this deal even sweeter!

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) will now be going after more scammers after it closed a significant loophole in the law.

The agency says the expanded scope of the Telemarketing Sales Rule (TSR) will be of particular benefit to seniors, who disproportionately fall victim to fake tech support calls …

The popular Apple sci-fi drama Severance is getting an official companion podcast, alongside the release of season two. The podcast will be hosted by the show’s director Ben Stiller, and star Adam Scott (Mark). It will include appearances from other cast members like Britt Lower (Helly), Zach Cherry, as well as the show’s creator Dan Erickson.

The podcast will debut on January 7th, with daily episodes covering each episode of Severance season one. The podcast will continue in weekly instalments alongside the premiere of every new episode of season two of the show. As a reminder, Severance season two commences January 17, with new episodes each Friday.

Update: We have now updated our Black Friday collection with all of the most notable deals carrying over to Cyber Monday alongside a host of new offers across Apple’s latest releases and just about every other product category out there as well.

We are now ready to bring together all of the best Cyber Monday Apple deals into one handy collection for you. There are big-time price drop across just about all of Apple’s latest releases, from the new M4 Macs and the all-new iPad mini 7 to AirPods and more for the biggest shopping event of the season. Those offers are joining a range of discounts on various Apple gear accessories as well as just about every other product category, from smart TVs and e-bikes to gaming gear, smart home, loads of fashion brands, and a whole lot more. Head below to scope all of the best Cyber Monday deals.

This is Rumor Replay, a new weekly column at 9to5Mac that provides a quick rundown of the most recent Apple product rumors, with my analysis and commentary. Today: iOS 19 rumors point to a backloaded launch, plus iPhone 17 Pro and Air come into focus, the future of AirPods Max, and more.

Here are this week’s Apple rumors.

A heartwarming new Apple holiday video entitled Heartstrings showcases the new hearing aid feature offered by AirPods Pro 2.

It shows the experience of a father being transformed from hearing only muffled sounds as his family opens gifts, sings songs and tells him they love him to being able to clearly hear everyone …

Apple held out for a long time on switching from text messaging to RCS (rich communication services), but finally announced that it would be doing so as part of iOS 18. The move brings many iMessage-like features to text messages between iPhone and Android users.

Mobile carriers also need to support the switch, and UK telco Three has just texted customers to announce that it will be doing so from next month …

9to5Mac Security Bite is exclusively brought to you by Mosyle, the only Apple Unified Platform. Making Apple devices work-ready and enterprise-safe is all we do. Our unique integrated approach to management and security combines state-of-the-art Apple-specific security solutions for fully automated Hardening & Compliance, Next Generation EDR, AI-powered Zero Trust, and exclusive Privilege Management with the most powerful and modern Apple MDM on the market. The result is a totally automated Apple Unified Platform currently trusted by over 45,000 organizations to make millions of Apple devices work-ready with no effort and at an affordable cost. Request your EXTENDED TRIAL today and understand why Mosyle is everything you need to work with Apple.

In this week’s special edition of Security Bite, Mosyle, a leader in Apple Device Management and Security, has exclusively revealed to 9to5Mac details on a new family of Mac malware loaders. Mosyle’s Security Research team discovered these new threats are written in unconventional programming languages and use several other sneaky techniques to evade detection.

Update: Australia has now voted to ban social media use by children under the age of 16. In a 9to5Mac reader poll on the issue, the vast majority of you thought the US should do the same – see the end of the piece.

The impact of social media use by kids is perhaps one of the hottest topics in tech. There’s significant evidence that social media apps like Instagram can be harmful to the mental health of children, while others argue that it can also enable social connection.

Popular video conferencing platform Zoom agreed to pay $85M in compensation back in 2021 after it was revealed that the company lied to users about the type of encryption it offered. It has now offered to pay an $18M fine to the Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) in order to settle an investigation into the same security and privacy issue.

Zoom disclosed the offer in a regulatory filing …

It’s been six years since Apple first introduced Screen Time in iOS 12, allowing us to see just how much time we spend using our phones, while also allowing parents to set limits for their kids. The feature was extended to Macs a year later.

Apple has also introduced additional features intended to make our devices less addictive, but a recent study suggests that our screen usage may be higher than ever …

With Apple Intelligence and Genmoji, users can now create their own emoji. Even so, the classic emoji are still available and will certainly never go out of style. The emoji are so popular that one artist has now turned Apple’s running shoe emoji into a real product.

It’s Black Friday season once again, meaning it’s the best time of year to save some money. We’ve gathered a list of our favorite indie app deals this holiday season – allowing you to try out something new on your iPhone, all while supporting small, independent app developers. There are 25 apps highlighted here, but there’s even more deals to find, linked at the bottom.

Microsoft this year teased a new feature for Windows called “Microsoft Recall,” which essentially captures snapshots of everything that happens on the PC and uses AI to let users quickly find something they’ve forgotten. After much controversy, the feature is now available in beta – and I believe Apple could do something similar on the Mac, but in the right way.

Listen to a recap of the top stories of the day from 9to5Mac. 9to5Mac Daily is available on iTunes and Apple’s Podcasts app, Stitcher, TuneIn, Google Play, or through our dedicated RSS feed for Overcast and other podcast players.

Sponsored by Roborock: Check out Roborock’s incredible Black Friday Deals now.

Wicked’s successful film adaptation has brought The Wizard of Oz back into public discourse, and some have noted its parallels found in Ted Lasso. Now, series writer and star Brett Goldstein has set the record straight about the close relationship between the Apple TV+ series and the classic film and book.

Apple silicon has led to significant advancements on the Mac, including the recent M4 models. But some of the best evidence for Apple’s advantages in silicon is found in a surprising and unconventional place: the iPad mini 7.

From now through December 31, save 20% on all 9to5Mac Daily Plus, 9to5Mac Happy Hour Plus, and 9to5Mac Pro annual subscriptions with promo code HOLIDAY! Visit 9to5mac.com/join to sign up.

Benjamin and Chance debate the appeal of the iPhone 17 Air as more details about the redesigned phone leak out. And Siri is set for more LLM-powered updates, but maybe not until spring 2026. Is that too late for Apple to ever catch up to the state of the art?

And in Happy Hour Plus, Benjamin gives his opinion on all the Apple Intelligence features available so far, and Chance is impressed by the nano-texture display on the new MacBook Pro. Subscribe at 9to5mac.com/join.

• Sponsored by LegalZoom: Launch, run, and protect your business to make it official at Legalzoom.com. Use promo code HAPPYHR to save 10%.
• Sponsored by Roborock: check out Roborock’s incredible Black Friday Deals now.  

USB-C/Thunderbolt display options have really grown in recent years. While Apple’s Pro Display XDR isn’t the best fit for most Mac users at $5,000+, it also offers the more affordable Studio Display. But there are many great choices from LG, Samsung, BenQ, and more. Here are the best USB-C/Thunderbolt displays with many available in the $400-$1,600 range.

Update 11/27/24: For a limited time grab 57% off the 5K Samsung ViewFinity S9 or get 19% off the 5K Apple Studio Display.