Friday is wrapping up the week with a collection of fresh Apple deals as we head into July 4th weekend, all of which are headlined by a chance to save $299 on the 27-inch Studio Display. It’s joined by some popular Twelve South Apple accessories getting in on the July 4th savings at the best prices of the year. And speaking of holiday weekend discounts, the Independence Day discounts carry over to AirPods Max at $99 off. Hit the jump for all that and more in the latest 9to5Toys Lunch Break.

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Everyone I know who has tried Apple’s upcoming spatial computer has been impressed, but the big question remains: What is Vision Pro for? Who will buy it, and why?

Having had the opportunity to use a similar high-end mixed reality headset, and to consider some of the use cases of that device, I think I’m now a step closer to being able to at least partially answer that question …

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Speaking of unfathomable numbers, Ted Lasso has been blazing through the charts at Nielsen. During the week of the season 3 finale, more than a billion minutes were spent watching the Apple TV+ comedy.

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We’ve been keeping a close eye on the ticker tape (ok, the Stocks app) as it seems that any day now could see a milestone APPL $3T valuation.

But as the company gets ever closer to hitting that market cap, a new Bloomberg piece argues that the recent announcement of Vision Pro likely plays little role in this …

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Apple’s spatial computer may not go on sale until some point next year, but that’s not stopping third-party companies from announcing Vision Pro accessories.

Popular iPhone case maker has announced a range of accessories for the upcoming headset, under the Bounce Vision sub-brand. These include personalized color combinations, and even one-of-a-kind designs …

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The European Union’s parliament has passed the Digital Markets Act, which is antitrust legislation that will force every platform to allow the distribution of apps through other digital stores – which will have a huge impact on Apple. And one of the companies most interested in this change is Meta, which has confirmed its plans to turn Facebook into a replacement for the App Store.

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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.

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Apollo is probably one of the most popular Reddit clients on Apple platforms. However, due to the latest changes announced by Reddit, most third-party clients are being shut down – and Apollo is one of them. With its last-ever update, Apollo has added an option that lets current subscribers reject a refund when the app is removed from the App Store. At the same time, users can download a special set of wallpapers.

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Benjamin and Chance discuss the appeal of a rumored 30-inch iMac, which could be the Apple Silicon spiritual successor to the Intel iMac Pro. A second-gen Apple Watch Ultra is also said to be coming this fall, faster than some may have expected. More details about how the Vision Pro works in VR are coming out, new Beats Studio Pro leaks, and we answer some #Ask9to5Mac questions.

Sponsored by Factor: Factor has everything I need for a week of flavorful, nutritious eats. Head to factormeals.com/happyhour50 and use code happyhour50 to get 50% off your first box.

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We’ve seen a lot of sealed original iPhones go up for auction in the last year. After a record was set in February at $63,000, demand and prices have died down in the last few months. However, now an auction house has a rare 4GB sealed original iPhone that it believes could garner up to $100,000.

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Satechi has debuted its latest Mac (and Windows) accessory with the Thunderbolt 4 Multimedia Pro Dock. The device features 16 different ports to cover all your needs including connectivity for external displays, legacy I/O, 2.5Gbps Ethernet, SD slots, 96W of pass-through power, and more.

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Speaking of tech industry layoffs, the makers of Pokémon GO are proving that they’re not immune to growing too fast either. Niantic announced today that it is closing its LA studio and cancelling new and upcoming AR game titles.

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The popular fitness tracking app and Apple Editors’ Choice award-winner SmartGym for iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch is out with a big update today. The release expands its database of exercises to almost 700, there’s a new Routine Progress feature, Apple Watch gets a number of upgrades, there’s a fresh history system, and more.

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It’s Thursday, and that means a fresh batch of deals courtesy of 9to5Toys. On tap today, rare discounts have landed on M2/Pro Mac mini models as all-time low savings takes up to $150 off. Today also saw the debut of the new Anker Soundcore Liberty 4 NC earbuds, which arrive with a launch discount to $80. Then go get in on the Independence Day savings that is taking 20% off Belkin 15W MagSafe charging stands from $80. Hit the jump for all that and more in the latest 9to5Toys Lunch Break.

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It’s been a tough week at Plex where the company has decided to let go of 20% of its workforce. Plex CEO Keith Valory blamed an unpredictable advertising market for the need to downsize.

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Apple TV+ launched in 2019 with a small catalog of original series. Now one of those star-studded flagship shows is returning for its third season.

“The Morning Show” will return to TV+ in September for a new 10-episode story arc.

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In May, I published an in-depth exposé detailing the downfall of Brydge, the once-thriving startup making popular keyboard accessories for iPad users. At the time, Brydge told me that an acquisition of the company was in the works involving a “third party via a foreclosure process initiated by its senior lender.”

That acquisition has now been revealed, with a company called Uinta Products announcing that it has acquired Brydge’s assets with support from investment firm Claret Capital.

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Construction work on TSMC’s Arizona chip plant, which is set to make chips for some older Apple devices, has run over budget and behind schedule – leading to plans to send over hundreds of additional workers from Taiwan to try to address the problems.

The news follows concerns about safety at the plant, after multiple accidents, and a claim that an active shooter drill was used to disguise the need to evacuate the plant after a gas leak …

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After launching a premium version of its platform, Snapchat reported a cool one million subscribers in just six weeks last summer. A year later, Snap is sharing a new milestone.

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Earlier this month, Anker revealed its new Soundcore Liberty 4 NC earbuds. After getting a first look at them in person, I went home with a pair of the brand’s latest true wireless earbuds and have been daily driving them since. The verdict after a few weeks? These may be some of the more affordable options on the market, but the Soundcore Liberty 4 NC punch well above their weight class and may very well be out there.

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The post Anker Soundcore Liberty 4 NC review: There’s no way these new earbuds cost just $100 appeared first on 9to5Mac.

We’re heating up on the beta period for Apple’s fall releases as macOS Sonoma, iOS 17, iPadOS 17, and tvOS 17 start on the journey of bug squashing and UI refinements. For IT professionals, this period isn’t a lull period – it’s a time when you should be working through your normal zero-touch deployment workflows to ensure nothing is broken that will stay broken by launch.

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There aren’t many cases of another company charging more than Apple for a similar product, but the Varjo XR-3 mixed-reality headset is a rare example.

Not having been one of the chosen few to be invited to try Vision Pro (was it something I said?), I took advantage of an invitation to try what Varjo believes is the most advanced mixed-reality device available. In particular, I wanted to see whether it could change my view of the tech as something that doesn’t yet justify the steep price-tag when it comes to my own needs …

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It would be hard to imagine iPhones being sold through a home shopping TV channel, but apparently Apple livestreaming in Chinese online shopping apps is a thing.

Livestreaming is a popular way for Chinese brands to promote themselves, but most of it is every bit as tacky as TV shopping channels, making it all the more surprising that Apple would join in …

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The public deadline for the Reddit API changes is July 1. Popular third-party client Apollo is one of the casualties, and just released its swan song update asking users to decline a refund on their outstanding subscriptions. Many other clients are also shuttering in two days time, with API usage costs set to skyrocket.

However, the developer of popular third-party client Narwhal Rick Harrison posted a surprise announcement that goes against the trend, saying that Narwhal will be able to continue operating (after originally stating that it would have to close down). A major new version, Narwhal 2, is also apparently coming soon and will be funded exclusively by a subscription pricing model.

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Apple and Spotify are back in court this week, as the EU antitrust case remains ongoing. The EU reached its preliminary conclusion in 2021 that App Store unfairly favored Apple Music over Spotify and other music streaming services.

Via Bloomberg, on Friday, Apple lawyers will argue that it has addressed competition concerns in the last two years and no more changes are necessary. In a statement, Spotify said recent App Store policy changes were “just for show” and do not address the core issue of Apple’s anti-steering rules.

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This month, Apple released the first beta of macOS Sonoma, which brings new features such as interactive widgets on the desktop, new tools for editing PDF files, and Game Mode. The update also comes with Safari 17, which brings improvements to Apple’s web browser. But if you don’t want to wait to try out the new Safari, Apple has now updated Safari Technology Preview with some of the features coming with macOS Sonoma.

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We’ve heard rumors about Apple working on a new generation of the 24-inch iMac, which would come with the M3 chip. However, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman recently reported that Apple also plans to introduce a larger 30-inch iMac in the future. While the existence of such a computer is currently unclear, we want to know if you would buy one.

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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.

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Last month, 9to5Mac exclusively revealed the forthcoming Beats Studio Pro over-ear headphones, the first new pair of over-ear headphones from Beats in over five years. Now, we’ve gotten our hands on the full spec sheet for Beats Studio Pro, revealing every new feature, battery life details, and more.

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Synology today is debuting the latest budget-friendly addition to its collection of NAS. The new DS223j may reside in a similar enclosure to the previous-generation model, but don’t let its unassuming appearance fool you. There’s an improved set of internal hardware that will mean Synology’s two-bay NAS remains the go-to, all while keeping the .

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Despite site-stopping protests by mods and users, Reddit leadership chose to brute force its way through any reasonable way of continuing third-party app support. Instead, the company hopes its luxury-priced API will be its secret shortcut to an overvalued IPO. As a result, Reddit’s official iOS app is being torpedo’d in the App Store.

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I’ve long considered Lutron Caseta the most elegant and user-friendly HomeKit lighting solution. Lutron makes the wall switch smart and works with standard dimmable bulbs; other solutions put the smarts in the bulbs then require remotes on the walls and never turning off the wall switch.

Lutron’s Fan Speed Control is the perfect complement to the existing line of dimmer light switches.  works with the same Lutron bridge which supports Apple HomeKit smart home control, making the new wall switches the best way to retrofit existing ceiling fans with Home app and Siri control.

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As Apple prepares to launch the iPhone 15 this fall, its key manufacturing partner Foxconn is cranking up hiring across its factories in China.

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Last week CIRP released a report showing the mix of Macs owned by customers with MacBooks making up the majority. Now the firm is back with a study showing how Mac owners are using their machines between personal, business, and education.

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Palmer Luckey hasn’t been shy about his enthusiasm for Apple Vision Pro. In a new podcast interview, the cofounder of Oculus has nothing but good things to say about Apple’s $3,500 mixed reality headset and what it means for the future of virtual reality.

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Halfway through the work week, our pals at 9to5Toys are rounding up all of the best Apple discounts for Wednesday. Leading today’s pack of deals, Apple Pencil 2 complements your new M2 iPad Pro as it falls to the second-best price yet at $89. Also getting in on the discounts, Anker’s just-released USB-C chargers are on sale from $16 to go alongside Philips Hue’s 3-bulb Color HomeKit starter kit with an included smart button dropping to $77. Hit the jump for all that and more in the latest 9to5Toys Lunch Break.

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Designer extraordinaire Basic Apple Guy has expanded on his sharp series of M2 wallpapers for iPhone, iPad, and Mac. Check out and download the new Minimal M2 Ultra wallpaper available in light and dark versions.

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Back in April, Proton launched a beta for the service that’s been one of the most requested by its users. Now Proton Pass, the end-to-end encrypted password manager has officially launched for all users on desktop and iOS/Android. And there’s even a free version that includes storing unlimited credentials and notes.

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Currently, if you’re deeply embedded in the Apple ecosystem, you likely have a huge range of data stored on iCloud – contacts, messages, calendars, photos, videos, mail, notes, documents, device backups, and more. Moving data from iCloud to a different cloud service (because of a price increase, say) is non-trivial, and that’s something a new law aims to change.

While Apple is committed to the principle of data portability, it doesn’t yet go out of its way to make the process easy for non-techy users …

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The post Moving data from iCloud may need to be made easier under upcoming EU law appeared first on 9to5Mac.

While Vision Pro is getting all the headlines at the moment, it’s likely that a future Apple Glasses device will be the one to turn wearable AR into a mass-market product. Apple was set to face competition from a product codenamed Google Iris, but a new report says that the search giant has now abandoned work on the device.

Project Iris was first reported some 18 months ago, and unlike the ill-fated Google Glass product, it did seem to be something people might actually be happy to wear …

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Major League Baseball scouts have traditionally relied on a combination of stats and experience to identify high school and college players with the potential to turn pro. But now the league is experimenting with new technology that could help make the process more reliable.

The system uses two iPhone cameras to capture movement, and artificial intelligence to analyze everything from a player’s future potential to their risk of injury …

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Idris Elba stars in the new seven-part thriller ‘Hijack’, streaming now on Apple TV+. The limited series features Idris Elba’s character Sam Nelson respond to an airplane hijacking. Similar to shows like ’24’, Hijack is told in real time across seven episodes.

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Netflix last year introduced a cheaper ad-based plan in an attempt to attract more subscribers, as people had been abandoning the platform due to the cost of regular plans. Even so, the company still offers a basic plan without ads – but that may not last long. In Canada, Netflix has now quietly killed this tier, forcing users to subscribe to the ad-based plan or pay more for higher tiers.

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Apple offers different financing options for customers buying new products, varying based on region. In Canada, you could finance a new iPhone, iPad, or Mac interest-free for up to 24 months. However, the company has quietly changed the financing terms offered in the country. From now on, all financing options have some interest rate.

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Hyundai’s complicated relationship with CarPlay might soon get a little bit easier to understand. A new report this week suggests that Hyundai plans to add support for wireless CarPlay and Android Auto to its cars that are also equipped with integrated satellite navigation, starting later this year. Historically, Hyundai cars with integrated navigation have only supported wired CarPlay.

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The post Report: Hyundai finally adding wireless CarPlay support to more cars starting this year appeared first on 9to5Mac.

OpenAI released the first official ChatGPT app for iOS in May, following the roaring success of the AI-based platform. Since then, the app has been updated with many new features, including support for Siri Shortcuts. Now the ChatGPT app for iOS is getting another update, this time with Microsoft’s Bing built in – but only for paid subscribers.

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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.

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There’s already been a lot of buzz around Silo on Apple TV+, and Apple just tweeted the first episode out for free.

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Hulu users are growing increasingly frustrated with a long-running bug affecting the ability to watch content in fullscreen on iPhone. Hulu says that it has been investigating this bug for over a month; a fix hasn’t been released, but there is a temporary workaround available.

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The post Hulu for iPhone fullscreen mode has been broken for nearly a month, many users say appeared first on 9to5Mac.

Once upon a time on Wall Street, Apple stock took a nosedive worth tens of billions of dollars for the company’s valuation. A few years later, Apple is fast approaching a $3 trillion valuation that it only briefly flirted with before.

Nevertheless, a class-action lawsuit blaming Apple CEO Tim Cook for defrauding investors refuses to go away.

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