All posts by mactips

Best Apple deals: $99 AirPods 4, $56 AirTag 4-Pack, $2,499 M5 Pro 16-inch MacBook Pro

By Christine McKee Fresh deals are in effect this Monday, with a 4-pack of first-gen AirTags on sale for $56.99, while AirPods 4 are back down to $99. The new M5 Pro 16-inch MacBook Pro is also $200 off.Grab a steeper price drop on Apple’s new 16-inch MacBook Pro today.We’re following fresh price drops on new and blowout Apple gear this Monday, with standout deals on AirTags, AirPods, and 2026 MacBook Pros. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

Source:: Apple Insider

      

Tariff refunds have started, but Apple won’t see cash back for months

By Amber Neely The feds are gearing up to pay out refunds to businesses affected by the Trump administration’s reciprocal tariffs, but Apple won’t see one dime of the $3.2 billion it has already paid likely until July 2026.Trump launching his tariffs in April 2205On Monday, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) announced that it has begun developing a refund program to pay back some of the import duties imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). The program is known as Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries (CAPE).CAPE is voluntary, and Importers of Record (IORs) and Customs brokers will need to apply via the ACE portal to get the refunds. The process seems quite involved. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

Source:: Apple Insider

      

An expected iPhone model will probably drop off the iOS 27 compatibility list

By William Gallagher A plausible leak claims to have the complete list of iPhones that will support the forthcoming iOS 27, and which ones will forever remain on iOS 26.Apple’s iPhone 11 will not run iOS 27, claims leakerApple does work to make its newest releases of iOS work on as many generations of its iPhones as possible, but there is always a limit. With iOS 26, for instance, the iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, and iPhone XR were dropped.Now while Apple has yet to provide a compatibility list, and won’t until WWDC 2026, a leaker claims to have all of the details. According to leaker Instant Digital on the Weibo Chinese social media site, iOS 27 will be supported on these iPhones: Rumor Score: 🤯 Likely Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

Source:: Apple Insider

      

Epic ‘Earthset’ video was shot on iPhone, and is a must-watch

By Malcolm Owen NASA astronaut Reid Wiseman has shared a spectacular “Earthset” video from the Artemis II mission, shot on iPhone. You really need to watch it.Earthset, shot on iPhone – Image Credit: Reid WisemanThe Artemis II mission has been a big marketing boon for Apple, due to the astronauts being supplied the iPhone 17 Pro Max for the round-Moon flight. While there have been stunning images shared from the mission, with some short on the iPhones, one just-released video has taken space imaging to another level.Posted to X on Monday, Commander Reid Wiseman shared a vertical video shot through a window. The 53-second clip shows the horizon of the Moon as the astronauts flew by, with the Earth peeking around the side. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

Source:: Apple Insider

      

Apple TV audio issues, testing Aqara P100 & more on Smart Home Insider

By Andrew O’Hara On this week’s episode of the Smart Home Insider podcast, an Amazon Fire TV hardware update, testing the Aqara P100 multi-sensor, setting up Apple TV audio properly, and more exciting home automation news.Smart Home Insider PodcastAmazon kicked off the news with several updates to its Fire TV lineup. Most notable was the $35 Fire Stick HD that is now 30% faster and can be powered directly from a TV’s USB port.It is running Amazon’s new operating system Vega that will be on all Fire devices going forward. Plus, it has Alexa+ built-in to help with your TV watching as well as control your smart home devices. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

Source:: Apple Insider

      

Mac sales on the rise, prior to RAM & SSD pricing hammering PC market

By Andrew Orr Apple’s Mac shipments outpaced the PC market in the first quarter of 2026, but the growth reflects a mix of product timing and industry-wide pressure rather than a clean demand rebound.A stack of MacBooksIn the first quarter of 2026, global PC shipments hit 63.3 million units, marking a 3.2% increase compared to 2025. The rise was driven by consumers and businesses rushing to buy PCs before anticipated memory price hikes.Additionally, the large number of existing Windows 10 systems prompted many to upgrade, affecting both the consumer and commercial sectors. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

Source:: Apple Insider

      

Apple TV reaping the benefits of stale content on bigger streamers

By Andrew Orr Apple TV is gaining ground in the U.S. streaming market. Here’s how much Apple TV viewership has grown over the last few years, and how the gap is narrowing among the top platforms.Apple TV 4KStreaming spent the last decade rewarding scale, with Netflix and Prime Video building libraries so large that finding something to watch became a chore. Scale still defines the top tier, but oversized catalogs now slow people down instead of pulling them in.New Q1 2026 data from JustWatch, based on more than 35 million U.S. streaming interactions between January 1 and March 31, shows the gap beginning to tighten. Netflix leads at 19% and Prime Video follows at 17%, while Disney+ holds 16% and Apple TV has climbed to 12%. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

Source:: Apple Insider

      

These are rumored to be the four iPhone 18 Pro colors

By Malcolm Owen The rumor mill is still churning on the iPhone 18 Pro colors, with a new leak showing what the colors may be.Four possible colors of iPhone 18 ProThe iPhone rumor mill has been on a bit of a color kick lately, with multiple rumors claiming to know which Apple will use in 2028. For the iPhone 18 Pro, it seems that there could be four colors on the way.The image shared by Weibo leaker Ice Universe shows what appear to be rear camera plateaus for the iPhone 18 Pro. It is unclear where they were sourced from, but they may be shots gathered from an accessory maker, rather than the actual Apple supply chain. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

Source:: Apple Insider

      

India says Apple can’t delay investigation of a potential $38 billion fine

By William Gallagher Regulators in India have set a final hearing date over the country’s potential $38 billion antitrust fine against Apple and the App Store. Apple is apparently not cooperating.Tim Cook in a previous visit to India — image credit: AppleThe Competition Commission of India (CCI) determined in July 2024 that Apple has “significant influence” over digital products and services, and that it has abused its market dominance. Consequently, the CCI imposed a fine, but in March of the same year, revised laws came into effect which meant that this fine could be much greater.Apple is challenging the law which lets India set fines based on global turnover instead of local. According to Reuters, has so far not submitted financial details that the CCI says it needs to calculate the fine. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

Source:: Apple Insider

      

Sunday Reboot: Japan ads, AI assistance, and a nice retirement

By Malcolm Owen In this week’s “Sunday Reboot,” Apple Japan shines with its delightful ads, Siri engineers learn about AI, and a feel-good Apple executive retirement story.Ads, AI, and retirementSunday Reboot is a weekly column covering some of the lighter stories within the Apple reality distortion field from the past seven days. All to get the next week underway with a good first step.This week, users were scammed by a Freecash app that somehow got through App Store review, researchers came up with a way to steal $10,000 from a locked iPhone, and details surfaced about a paraplegic pilot’s death for an Apple Immersive Video documentary. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

Source:: Apple Insider