iPad

Apple announcement April 20 2021

Tim Cook kicked off today's virtual Apple event with a nod to Earth Day by giving a rundown of Apple's progress toward its goal of being entirely carbon neutral by 2030. While previous virtual announcements felt stilted and unevenly paced, today's event went in the opposite direction, with the camera swooping around the Apple campus, colorful graphics darting across the screen, and Tim Cook cosplaying Tom Cruise in Mission Impossible. Overall it was a packed hour with lots of exciting product announcements. Here's our rundown of everything Cook and team introduced today, including M1 iMacs, the surprise addition of the M1 chip to the iPad Pro, a new Apple TV 4K with redesigned Siri remote, the long-awaited AirTag Bluetooth tracker, subscription tiers in Apple Podcasts, an Apple Card for the whole family, and a purple iPhone 12.

With an ever-increasing number of note-taking apps appearing in the App Store, Apple has responded with solid updates to its iOS Notes App in iOS 11. The most popular third-party note-taking apps are apps that can convert writing to text, scan documents with the iPhone, and search handwritten text. In iOS 11 Notes app, Apple has integrated these popular features seamlessly. These updates to the iOS Notes App will be included in the September iOS 11 update, so we have drawn up a guide on how to use the Notes app for iPad and iPhone in iOS 11.

Review: The 2020 iPad Air

By Amy Spitzfaden Both

I’ve always had a hard time seeing where a tablet fits into my technology landscape. I have a laptop, I have a phone, why would I need a hybrid? But the 2020 iPad Air’s portability and processing power (not to mention color options) caught my attention, and I finally crossed the threshold into iPad ownership. I have to say: I like it.

If you've set up Screen Time on an iPhone or iPad for your child and have blocked or limited social media and other apps, those apps' services may still be accessible via their URL websites, providing kids with a way to get around your parental controls. Here's how to block a website on Safari, Chrome, or any browser on an iPhone or iPad. Whether it's Facebook, YouTube, or any other website that's too mature for your kids, you'll be able to fully block an app's website and not worry about kids finding a way to use them. This tip can also be used by adults who are trying to limit their own social media use, or don't want adult content unexpectedly popping up on their devices.

With the advent of streaming gaming services along with the migration of Apple Silicon-powered laptops to run iOS applications, the ability to play high-end, graphically intense games on iOS devices has arrived. PlayStation 4 owners have had the ability to stream their PS4 games to their iPads or iPhones ever since Sony released its free PS4 Remote app. Unfortunately, even though Microsoft has provided Android users the ability to do the same for Xbox owners, iOS users are still waiting for official support. Given the ongoing public battles between Apple and Microsoft on being allowed to stream games via Microsoft's Xbox Game Pass service, Xbox owners wanting to stream games to their iOS devices need a third-party alternative. 

One of my favorite digital board game translations of all time is Temple Gates Games' Race for the Galaxy ($6.99). Shortly after releasing Race, Temple Gates announced it was working on the dice-based version of the game, appropriately called Roll for the Galaxy ($9.99). Several years later, the company has finally made good on its promise with the simultaneous release of the game on PC, Android, and iOS. Read on to find out if Roll for the Galaxy is my new favorite digital board game.

Battery chargers are as ubiquitous as wireless headsets, and trying to find that perfect needle in such a large haystack isn't easy. Some chargers have wireless capability with an anemic number of wired ports. Others have huge battery charge storage but are bulky and not that portable. And nearly all the chargers I've reviewed in the past have confusing battery level LED dot indicators that make determining remaining charge level a mystery. Infinacore has addressed nearly all these shortcomings with the Pandora Portable Power (P3) charging device ($39.95). Read on to find out how the company did.

While nearly all of the headphones I review for iPhone Life are wireless, there are those rare occasions when a product comes along that is so unique with lofty claims that warrant further investigation. Such a product is AIAIAI's TMA-2 HD wired modular headphones ($295). Just like vinyl records compared to CD's, wired headphones still offer an edge over their wireless counterparts in terms of audio fidelity since, unlike Bluetooth, there is no compression or manipulation of audio data to factor in wireless transmission data size or errors. And since all iPad models still include a headphone jack and there are people who don't want to deal with the hassles of maintaining a battery charge with their headsets just to quietly listen to music or watch a video, this review is mostly for them.

As a major segment of the US population ages, so too grows the number of people showing signs of hearing loss. Whether you listened to or frequented rock concerts or danced the night away at thumping loud parties in your younger years, you may be experiencing hearing loss to some degree. Difficulty hearing can be both frustrating and inconvenient. While your hearing loss may not yet require an expensive audiologist screening or hearing aid, many folks notice that everyday sounds and conversations are inaudible. Olive Union designed an impressive wireless earbud called the Olive Smart Ear ($299) to amplify sound, which allows the wearer to hear different audio frequencies better.  Is it worth the three hundred-dollar price tag? Read on to find out.

Today's Apple event was as notable for what it didn't announce (no new iPhones) as much as for what it did (two new Apple Watches and two new iPads along with two new subscription services). At times the brief, virtual announcement seemed to drag on endlessly as if Tim Cook and team were trying to fill time with videos recapping what they had just announced and an overview of the company's environmental initiatives. However, even with a shorter, iPhone-free event, there was plenty to get excited about. Here's a roundup of everything Apple unveiled, including the Apple Watch Series 6, Apple Watch SE, iPad (8th generation), iPad Air, and the Fitness+ and Apple One subscriptions.

When I wrote my iPad rumor roundup last month, I included the idea that Apple had a 10.8-inch edge-to-edge display iPad or iPad Air ready to reveal. That rumor proves to have been a little right and a little wrong! Today Apple unveiled the fourth-generation iPad Air, and it includes a 10.9-inch, Liquid Retina edge-to-edge display, a first for the iPad Air family. Besides this all-screen display, what's new about the fourth-gen iPad Air? In a word, lots. Let's go over all the improvements Apple has made to the iPad Air, including its A14 Bionic Chip with Neural Engine, removal of the Home button, new display upgrades, camera and audio upgrades, and more.   

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