Year: 2016

How to login with Comcast Xfinity on unsupported Apple TV apps

Sébastien Page ∙ Updated March 29, 2019

I've been catching up with AMC's The Walking Dead on my iPad because AMC didn't offer a dedicated Apple TV app until last week. As soon as the Apple TV app was made available, I tried logging in using the same Comcast Xfinity credentials I used on the iPad app, but to my surprise, Xfinity was not an option.

How could Xfinity be an option on the AMC app for iPad but not for Apple TV? Does it have anything to do with rights and what devices can be used to watch certain shows? Honestly, I have no idea, but as I complained about this issue on the latest episode of Let's Talk iOS, a listener was quick to email me with a simple workaround.

Changing your Apple ID payment method on Mac or PC

Anthony Bouchard ∙ Updated January 7, 2021

Not too long ago, we showed you how you can edit your Apple ID payment information from your iOS device, but the same task can also be accomplished from your Mac or PC in a similar number of steps.

Whether you've received a new credit card that you want to use, or you wish to change the credit card you have on file for your Apple ID, changing your payment information allows future purchases made through Apple's online stores, such as the App Store, Books Store, or iTunes Store, to be billed to the new credit card you're adding.

In this tutorial, we'll show you how you can change your Apple ID payment information from your Mac or PC.

How to view recent Safari history on iPhone and iPad

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated March 1, 2023

On any given day, I browse the web a lot—be it catching up on the news, doing research on future stories or skimming through my favorites to learn what's the latest. And more often than not do I find myself struggling to make my way back to an article I stumbled upon a few hours ago.

Locating a specific item in browsing history can feel like finding a needle in the haystack, especially if you're on the go.

Yes, I could just tap Safari's back button multiple times or swipe to go back a single webpage at a time until I found the webpage I was looking for, but that's a time-consuming process which unnecessarily wastes my iPhone's cellular data.

As you'll discover in this tutorial, Safari provides a very handy, though not immediately obvious shortcut which allows you to quickly jump to any previously visited webpage.

Deal: get 93% off the new MacPhun photo creativity bundle

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 3, 2016

After delighting iPhone photography fans with free high-quality filters for Photos for Mac, California-based developer MacPhun is back with a very tempting offer in the form of a photo creativity bundle “unlike any other”. They're calling it the Creative Kit XXL and let me tell you something—“XXL” is used there for a very good reason.

Not only do you get six premium photo-editing applications for your Mac in this bundle, but a ton of other goodies.

Some of the bonus content ad benefits you get with Creative Kit XXL: 40+ guides from leading photographers, 1200+ creative presets, six additional Mac apps for watermarking and resizing images and deep partner discounts.

And all of these perks can be yours in exchange for just $129, a cool 93 percent discount over the combined $2,000+ price for the included apps, tools and materials. Yup, that's a massive savings of $1,871.

Apple seeds new betas of iOS, tvOS and OS X

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 3, 2016

Apple on Tuesday seeded brand new betas of the iOS, tvOS and OS X operating systems to members of the Apple Developer Program. iOS 9.3.2 beta 4 (build 13F68), tvOS 9.2.1 beta 4 (build 13Y772) and OS X El Capitan 10.11.5 beta 4 are all available for download on devices running earlier betas. Standalone installers can be downloaded through Apple's Dev Center for developers and are also available for public testing for members of the Apple Beta Software Program.

Apple barred from selling used iPhones in India

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 3, 2016

The Indian government has turned down Apple's request to sell refurbished iPhones in the country after Samsung and local phone vendors voiced their opposition to the move on environmental grounds, Bloomberg reported today.

This is a setback for the Cupertino firm: its iPhone has a minuscule two percent markets share in India, where half of the population is about 25 years old.

Satellite TV provider Dish launches iPhone repair service

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated March 19, 2019

In a surprise move today, satellite television provider Dish Network unveiled a brand new smartphone repair service for customers in the United States who can ask for a technician to visit them and fix their iPhone's screen or battery. The service is called 'Smart Phone Repair On Your Turf'.

Dish has deployed its nationwide fleet of technicians who can reach homes or businesses in any of the 50 U.S. states to repair iPhones for consumers whether or not they are Dish customers.

So, what kind of prices does Dish charge for screen and battery repairs?

iPhone SE is more popular than Apple anticipated so it’s boosting production

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 3, 2016

Due to stronger-than-expected sales of the four-inch iPhone SE, Apple has boosted production of the handset in the second quarter of this year, Taiwanese trade publication DigiTimes reported Tuesday.

Citing industry sources, DigiTimes claims Apple's just increased orders for the iPhone SE to more than five million units from the original plan of 3.5-4 million units in the second quarter of 2016.

It’s now technically possible to embed a fingerprint scanner beneath a smartphone display

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated November 12, 2017

Apple's 'iPhone 7' hasn't arrived yet but that hasn't stopped analysts from predicting that an 'iPhone 8' will ditch the iconic Home button. Conventional wisdom has it that 3D Touch will simulate Home button presses while fingerprint recognition should be realized by incorporating the Touch ID sensor into the display itself.

What conventional wisdom doesn't help explain is how such a technology might work. Well, now we know: LG announced its Innotek division has achieved a major technological breakthrough in producing the world's first in-screen fingerprint scanner.

“LG Innotek cut a shallow furrow of 0.01 inches (0.3 mm) thick on the lower backside of the cover glass and installed the fingerprint sensor inside of it with using their supreme precision and combination technology,” explains the company.

Twelve South TimePorter for Apple Watch review

Andrew O'Hara ∙ May 3, 2016

I travel quite often and have spent an embarrassing amount of time looking for the perfect travel charger for my Apple Watch. I want to pack a few extra bands, the charging puck, and the wall adapter. Yet nothing I've run across can handle all that, let alone while looking good. That was at least the case before I ran across the TimePorter from Twelve South.

Alleged iPhone 7 part has 3.5mm headphone jack we thought would be going away

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 3, 2016

An image of a purported component for Apple's unannounced next-generation iPhone has leaked out yesterday courtesy of French blog NowhereElse.fr and—surprise, surprise—it depicts a 3.5mm headphone jack. Remember, the rumor-mill has been cognizant for months that the century-old analog audio jack will be removed from an 'iPhone 7' in favor of Lightning-powered or wireless headphones.

The image appears to show a Lightning cable assembly, supposedly for an iPhone device, and it looks a tad different compared to the same part found in the current-generation iPhone 6s.

Airplane Enhancer+ takes iPhone battery preservation to the extreme

Anthony Bouchard ∙ Updated October 16, 2018

Airplane Mode is a feature built into your iOS devices that makes your devices airplane friendly by disabling all the wireless radios that could be a nuisance to on-board plane equipment, but it can also be used to increase your battery life.

Since the wireless radios are put to rest when your device's Airplane Mode option is enabled, you'll burn through less battery on a single charge with the feature turned on, and this is basically the idea behind a new jailbreak tweak dubbed Airplane Enhancer+.