Cullen Thomas

Author Details

Cullen Thomas's picture

Author Details

Cullen Thomas

Cullen Thomas is a senior instructor at iPhone Life. For ten years as faculty at Maharishi University, Cullen taught subjects ranging from camera and audio hardware to game design. Cullen applies a passion for gadgetry to answer questions about iPhones, iPads, Macs, and Apple cloud services; to teach live classes; and to specialize in the privacy and security aspects of the Apple ecosystem. Cullen has dual degrees in Media & Communications and Literature, and a Masters degree from the David Lynch Graduate School of Cinematic Arts.

Offline, Cullen designs videogames with Thought Spike Games, writes fiction, and studies new nerdery.

Mastodon: @CullenWritesTech@infosec.exchange

Email: cullen@iphonelife.com

Signal: +1-512-814-5526

The announcements at Apple’s WWDC 2020 had plenty of hype for iPhones, iPads, Mac, and Apple Watch, but not every reveal that day came with a song and dance. A few key features of the new suite of operating systems were slipped into documentation released online without fanfare: on-device Siri processing; deeper support for third-party mail, web browsing, and music apps; and more. Maybe Apple thought we wouldn’t be as excited about these features, but for at least a few of these, we definitely are!

A billboard outside Las Vegas declares, “What Happens on your iPhone stays on your iPhone,” as part of a massive push by Apple to define the brand as one that stands up for your privacy. You may have noticed the advertising. A TV spot from Apple declares: “There is more private information on your phone than in your home. . . Your location, your messages, your heart rate after a run; these are private things, personal things, and they should belong to you.” As emotive music swells over those last lines, I’m not left inspired. Instead, I feel a sense of dystopia at living in a world where an elite brand like Apple sells you your own privacy as if it were a luxury commodity. Surely nothing should be more obviously a private possession than the right to possess privacy. Yet, there is money to be made in selling privacy, and that is a sure sign that we do not own it by rights. But what exactly is Apple selling? I’d like to discuss a few of the more common fears and annoyances associated with privacy, as well as what Apple is doing and what you can do to protect yourself.

Unblocking a number on your iPhone couldn’t be easier, thanks to the forward thinkers at Apple who knew that the handy block feature should not be permanent. That’s because it’s easy to block someone accidentally or unknowingly. Maybe you were blocking robo-callers or spam texters and blocked a contact by mistake. Or maybe you intentionally blocked a friend or colleague so as not to be disturbed for a period of time and now you want to undo that. Or maybe you’re having trouble calling a contact, or vice versa, so you want to find the blocked list and check to see if that number is on it. Here’s how to do it.

The Best VPN apps for iPhones and iPads can be difficult to choose. Between looking for VPN apps that don’t track you, that provide good server coverage, good customer service, and all the different features, there is a lot to check up on. We’ve written before about what a VPN is and what to look for when shopping for a VPN, but here we’ll list our favorite VPN apps, with a special emphasis on ease of use and simplicity rather than feature bloat. 

These days, anyone can be a weather nerd. There is so much information from so many good sources that we can plan our vacations and outings with greater confidence than ever before. Using our iPhone weather apps, we know when the sun will rise and set, we can see the paths of impending storms, and we can even see whether lightning is striking the ground or vice versa. What we love about having access to all of this information is that there is a weather app for everyone. Between free weather apps and paid weather apps, there is no limit on the information available for the casual user or the full-on weather enthusiast. So here are our picks for each category.

AirPods cutting out, not working, not connecting, or skipping? Here are some common AirPods problems and their easy solutions. Whether your issue is with Airpods, AirPods 2nd Generation, or AirPods pro, we've got you covered. Between sharing your AirPods with other people's devices and using two sets of AirPods with one iPhone, you can get a lot of mileage out of your set. But even though they're normally more reliable than other true wireless headphones, you'll still sometimes need to do some AirPod troubleshooting. We're here to help.

The Activity app tracks and records all your Apple Watch workouts, including steps taken and time standing, but it does much more than that. Beginning with iOS 13 and now improved with iOS 14, it also offers a big-picture view of your health with Trends and Highlights. It learns your activity habits and offers tailored suggestions just for you. Let’s take a look at how to use Trends to keep track of your health, set goals, and get motivated to go the extra mile.

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