Indice dei contenuti per August 2017 in Macworld Australia

If you’re curious about how to build your own Hackintosh, Kirk McElhearn and I recently built Hackintoshes and wrote about our experiences. These articles, which appear later in this section, are great starting points for researching your own Hackintosh. WHY YOU SHOULD BUILD A HACKINTOSH There are many reasons to build your own Hackintosh. Here are the three biggies. 1. Customization: You can build exactly what you need, not what Apple wants you to have. From a pint-sized portable to a full-size mega tower, onboard video or high-end video card, hard drive type, number, and capacity, speed and amount of RAM, etc. What you build is up to you and your needs (and budget). 2. Affordability: By buying your own parts and assembling them yourself, you can wind up with…

In this column, I point out things that Apple should fix in macOS, iOS, and in its services and hardware. But it’s important to acknowledge the company when it does fix some of the more egregious problems that plague users. Apple gave us an extensive look at the next versions of macOS ( go.macworld. com/cos ) and iOS ( go.macworld.com/is ) at its recent Worldwide Developers Conference ( go.macworld.com/devd ) keynote, and a number of the new features it announced fix long-standing issues. I’d like to highlight a few issues that Apple has announced that it will be fixing in the next versions of macOS and iOS. MESSAGES One of the biggest small announcements Apple made was that Messages will now sync across devices. This fixes the longstanding problem of…

Did you hear cries of regret and maybe a few cuss words in the background during Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference ( go.macworld.com/wdco ) keynote? If you did, it was from folks who bought a MacBook Pro ( go.macworld.com/mbr ) in the past few weeks. You see, during WWDC, Apple revealed an upgrade to the MacBook Pro to replace the models that were released just last fall ( go.macworld.com/fall ). Now, on the surface, the new MacBook Pro looks exactly the same, but all of the changes are found under-the-hood via performance bumps. And our test results do show an expected increase in speed, but it’s not enough to induce serious buyer’s remorse in anyone who recently bought a MacBook Pro of the previous generation—though it may spark a bit of…

GLIF TRIPOD ADAPTER FOR iPHONE studioneat.com Studio Neat’s latest tripod adapter, the $55 Glif, fits all phones (even non-Apple ones) in an attractive and well-made new design that uses a padded locking clamp and three mounting screw holes instead of one. The three tripod mount points let you mount an iPhone in either portrait and landscape orientations, or you can mount a mic, small lights, or a flash into the two remaining tripod holes. This compact adapter is the perfect companion for a serious iPhone photographer looking for maximum flexibility, as well as a casual snapshotter who wants a better way to hold their camera, even without a tripod. —GLENN FLEISHMAN URBAN ARMOR GEAR RUGGED CASE urbanarmorgear.com If you’re a klutz or haul your MacBook into situations where it’s liable…

The days of being tied to a single carrier with a locked phone for months on end are all but over. Where we once were forced into 24-month contracts with devices that were useless on any other network, nowadays your wireless carrier must unlock your phone if you request it. Seriously, they do. It’s actually a law. The Unlocking Consumer Choice and Wireless Competition Act makes it so any phone purchased after 2015 will work with any carrier, so your provider can’t keep your phone tied to their network because they feel like it. However, there are some terms and conditions that you’ll need to follow before you can pop another SIM into your phone, and of course they vary by carrier. GENERAL REQUIREMENTS Before you can hook up your…

If you’re buying the new 10.5-inch iPad Pro ( go.macworld.com/ipro ), you’re probably going to want a keyboard to go with it. But right now, you’ve only got two options that use the iPad’s Smart Connector. In one corner is Apple’s own $159 Smart Keyboard, a lightweight typing accessory that doubles as a screen cover. In the other is Logitech’s $130 Slim Combo keyboard, whose kickstand-equipped case and detachable keyboard practically turn the iPad into a Microsoft Surface ( go.macworld.com/pms ). These two iPad keyboards take vastly different approaches toward design and features, with Apple favoring elegance and Logitech aiming for utilitarianism. And together they make for a case study in how adding more features brings more trade-offs. THE SMART KEYBOARD GROWS UP Because the 10.5-inch iPad Pro is wider…

The second-generation Eero Home WiFi System is even easier to set up than the first, thanks to wireless access points called Beacons that plug straight into AC outlets. It’s also more powerful, thanks to a new Qualcomm mesh Wi-Fi router chipset and a tri-band Wi-Fi radio. Eero says the $399 kit reviewed here is suitable for a three- to four-bedroom home, and I agree. The router delivered triple-digit throughput in every room of my 2800-square-foot home—more than enough bandwidth to support several HD video streams simultaneously. A MID-RANGE PERFORMER But when you look at the benchmark charts below, you’ll see that while the new Eero (I’ll call it Eero 2 from here) is much faster than the first-generation product, it was the fastest mesh router in the field of eight…

go.macworld.com/hopo This week, we learned that Apple’s much-rumored smart speaker is real, and it’s called HomePod ( go.macworld.com/ hopo ). Now the wait begins—six months until it ships in December. But while we’re waiting, Apple’s still tweaking the product and getting it ready to launch. Sure, a few of us lucky souls were able to listen to a HomePod at Apple’s developer conference ( go.macworld.com/ lis ), but nobody outside of Apple has talked to one or picked one up. At the risk of stating the obvious, that’s because this is a product that’s not finished yet. Apple doesn’t want to publicly commit to a feature and then realize it can’t ship it; the product as the company conceives it today may not be the product that ends up in…

Photos for iOS and macOS: The limits of liked photos Q: I don’t own an Apple device currently, and I am operating my Apple account and mail from a Windows computer. Now how can I enable two-factor authentication from my Windows 10 computer and generate an appspecific password? — Rajeevan A: This question likely popped up because of Apple’s decision to end third-party access to calendars, contacts, and email without using two-factor authentication (2FA) for your Apple ID/ iCloud account and generating an appspecific password. You can read a column from May ( go.macworld.com/may ) for more details. Rajeevan has a real problem. Apple only allows 2FA to be turned on from a Mac or an iOS device. Once enabled, you can use SMS text messaging or computer-synthesized voice calls…

Fellow Macworld contributor Kirk McElhearn recently built a mini Hackintosh; that is, a generic PC styled like a Mac mini on which he installed and ran macOS. This is a road I’ve gone down myself, way back in 2008, when I built my Frankenmac ( go.macworld.com/fr ). As Kirk was building a relatively low-end Mac clone, and as Apple has ignored the high-end Mac Pro ( go.macworld.com/hemp ) for so many years, I thought it’d be interesting to build a new high-end Frankenmac. WHY BUILD A HACKINTOSH My current machine is a late 2014 5K iMac, and while it works well for most tasks, it really suffers when I pursue my avocation: Flying the X-Plane flight simulator ( go.macworld.com/xpl ). Frame rates can vary from decent to slow, and the…

It’s been nearly two years since Apple updated the iMac, which may not seem like such a big deal, especially for a desktop computer. So, understandably, if you bought an iMac in the past three or four years, maybe you aren’t looking for a new computer right now. But if your Mac is older than that, you’re probably looking to upgrade, and it’s hard to convince yourself to invest in a computer that was released so long ago. Apple has finally updated the iMac, so if you’re in the market for a new computer, now’s the time to do some shopping. In this review, I take a close look at the high-end 21.5-inch iMac with a 3.4GHz Core i5 Kaby Lake processor, which sells for $1,499. KABY LAKE UPGRADES, NEW…

diskAshur Pro2 ( go.macworld.com/dap2 , pronounced “disk assure”) is the second generation of what manufacturer iStorage calls “the most secure hard drive ever made.” This is accomplished in a few different ways, most notably with the black, epoxy-coated keypad built into the top of the enclosure that makes the drive look like high-tech gear you’d see in a James Bond movie. The keypad is used to enter a PIN code between seven and 15 digits long that enables the user to access the disk’s contents. When the hub-powered device is plugged in, three LED lights above the keypad show the current status: Red when locked, green when unlocked, and blue for admin mode. Enter the code, press the Unlock key, and the lights blink as the drive mounts. Weighing under…

You probably already know how to search the web from Safari’s address bar on your iPhone, or which button enables the handy Reader mode. But for every Safari feature you think you’ve mastered, another is hiding in plain sight. For example, there’s an easy way to search the current page in Safari, as well as customize how Reader mode looks and feels. You can also nix that listing of frequently visited sites, perform Spotlight searches without leaving Safari, save a page as a PDF, and even close an open Safari tab on another of your iOS devices. Read on for more of our favorite Safari tips. HIDE FREQUENTLY VISITED WEBSITES As you’re browsing, Safari for iOS keeps track of the websites you visit the most and puts them in a…

Apple talked about many things at its Worldwide Developers Conference ( go.macworld.com/ wdc ) in June, but one that got relatively short shrift was the Apple Watch. Now more than two years in, the Watch has undergone a major transition from the product that was first announced, focusing in on specific uses like notifications, health, and fitness. But some, myself included, had expected to see a bigger push on the health front in watchOS 4. A new marquee feature like sleep tracking, perhaps. Or a glucose monitor. (Apple mentioned that watchOS 4 will now work with external glucose monitors, but if it’s working on such tech itself, it’s not ready for prime time yet.) While these types of health tracking features are all well and good, it would be far…

Cars: Lightning League Cars: Lightning League ( go.macworld.com/cll , freemium, iPhone and iPad) brings the Pixar movie to life, letting you play as Lightning McQueen as he trains in iconic film locations for his big comeback race. You can also collect and upgrade legendary cars like Cruz Ramirez, Jackson Storm, and more. Lockheal There’s nothing fancy about this app, but when you need it, you’ll need it: Lockheal ( go. macworld.com/lh , free, iPhone and iPad) lets you find and connect licensed locksmiths in your area. Locked out? As long as you have your phone with you, you’ll be fine. Microsoft Pix Camera Microsoft Pix ( go.macworld.com/mpc , free, iPhone and iPad) is one of our favorite camera apps, and the makers are always coming up with new tricks to…

Ten years ago, the public first got its hands on the iPhone ( go.macworld.com/hoi ) and began a revolution that has forever changed the way we use technology. We’ve gone from a society where a computer was something you had to sit down at a desk to use to one where it’s in your pocket all the time. We’ve ushered in an era of apps, selfies, emoji, and the answer to every question at our fingertips. So, with all that under its belt, where the heck does the iPhone go next? THE UNCHANGING iPHONE As others have remarked, looking at today’s iPhone reminds you that it’s not that different from the original iPhone of 2007 ( go.macworld. com/oi7 ), in the same way that you can trace a direct line…

TripMode 2 ($8, go.macworld.com/tktk ) solves the macOS user’s dilemma when tethered to a mobile data connection or using a limited-data VPN or a conference center, hotel, or coffeeshop data-restricted pass: how to keep Internet bandwidth-hungry apps from eating your data allotment, leading you to run out of high-speed data for the month or having to purchase additional units. It also helps keep those apps at bay when you’re on a slow connection. With TripMode installed, no app or background process can communicate with the Internet unless you flip a switch next to the app’s name. In this new version, you can create profiles, either automatically when you switch among Wi-Fi, Ethernet, and tethered connections, or manually, for particular purposes, like “at a coffeeshop” or “on cellular.” There’s also a…

BAMTech chief technology officer Joe Inzerillo doesn’t mince words on how broadband data caps might threaten the online video explosion. “I don’t think it’s healthy for the industry,” Inzerillo said during the Streaming Media East conference in New York in May. “I think an open, free internet—not free in terms of cost, but free of encumbrance from data caps—is the right thing to do.” Inzerillo is in a position to be concerned. BAMTech, a spinoff of MLB Advanced Media, provides the streaming technology for many popular online video services, including HBO Now, Sony’s PlayStation Vue, WWE Network, and MLB TV. Those services are becoming increasingly attractive to consumers who want to cut cable TV ( go.macworld.com/ ctv ), or at least shave the size of their pay TV packages (…

All the cool kids are doing it these days: they’re building Hackintoshes. Since Apple isn’t updating their desktop Macs as often as people want, some Mac users have gone the home-build route, making their own Macs using off-the-shelf parts and hobbyist software. I have an old Mac mini that could do with a refresh, so I decided to try this out and build a Hackintosh mini. Here’s how it went. WHY BUILD A HACKINTOSH? I own a late 2011 Mac mini that I use as a media server to host and stream my Plex video library, and for Time Machine backups. It runs macOS Server, and uses its caching server feature to cache app updates. It’s not connected to a display, and I control it using Screen Sharing. It’s not…

It’s now year three of the MacBook ( go.macworld.com/mbo ) as we know it, and it seems that after initially being a laptop without an ecosystem ( go.macworld.com/eco1 ), and then a laptop that we’re still getting used to ( go.macworld.com/gut ), the MacBook has settled into its groove. It’s established its place in Apple’s laptop line, and it’s finally gaining acceptance by the consumer. But maybe you’re still a holdout. You’re out there, I know, still not convinced that the MacBook is a good buy. Well, I have some good news: The newest MacBook is a better buy than it has been, thanks to performance improvements by its processor and graphics upgrade. What Apple has in the MacBook is a small and light laptop that packs a nice speed…

LIGHTSEEKERS SMART FIGURES lightseekers.com Lightseekers is a brand-new entry to the toys-to-life genre, combining a mobile game for the iPad that pairs with physical action figures that unlock special gameplay elements. The $70 starter packs come with a large, Bluetooth-connected action figure, a connectable melee weapon, a charging cable for the battery pack, and a few cards that can be scanned into the game for extra perks. And then, separately, the cards exist as their own full-fledged collectible card game, which is sold in pre-made decks and booster packs, all of which can also be scanned into the game with your device’s camera. All of these add-ons can get to be a little pricey, but the action figures are well made and the game is a lot of fun—ANDREW HAYWARD…

When Apple released the first 12.9-inch iPad Pro ( go.macworld.com/129 ), I wondered if it was finally an iPad that photographers could embrace without also getting an armful of trade-offs. The answer was: almost (see: go.macworld.com/pps ). Although that initial model and the subsequent 9.7-inch iPad Pro improved upon earlier iPad generations in significant ways, several items still came up short. Now, the iPad Pro has finally reached a tipping point for photographers. The improved hardware in the just-released iPad Pro models, plus software improvements in iOS 10 and the upcoming iOS 11, make the iPad Pro (mostly) fulfill the potential of the iPad as a true photographer’s companion. HARDWARE BOOSTS In general, earlier iPad models were powerful enough for most things, but that didn’t translate necessarily to photography tasks.…

For the past year, I’ve had a really big dilemma: Having to choose between the 12-inch MacBook ( go.macworld.com/12mb ) or the 9.7-inch iPad Pro ( go.macworld.com/97pp ). Now, the new 10.5-inch iPad Pro ( go.macworld.com/105p ) has solved all of those issues for me, making it the best iPad to have ever come out of Cupertino and the one most likely to replace the MacBook. The iPad Pro has a lot of benefits ( go.macworld.com/lob ) because of its portability and versatility, but before the new model came out, I’d still err on the side of choosing my MacBook. When it comes to productivity and multitasking, the MacBook was a safer bet, whereas the iPad Pro still had to prove itself in this department. The 10.5-inch iPad Pro is…

HTTP over Transport Layer Security, also know as https, can go a long way to improving the security and privacy on a website. When you see a site’s URL with https://, that site exercises good care on its internal security to protect user data and against break-ins Here are several approaches you can take to improve web security in the way you browse, share links, and configure your own sites, using https. Install HTTPS Everywhere in Firefox and Chrome. HTTPS Everywhere ( go.macworld.com/hte ) from the Electronic Frontier Foundation (in conjunction with the Tor Project) automatically redirects from an insecure to a secure site wherever possible. The browser plug-in is available for Chrome, Firefox, and Opera, and Firefox for Android. Safari (and Internet Explorer) aren’t supported because of design choices…

I’m glad to see a positive security trend: more companies have software available for hosted backups and cloud-based storage access that incorporates user-owned encryption. With these products and services, you are the only person or entity that controls the encryption key or passphrase that unlocks the key. The company that makes the software or runs the service not only never sees it, they have no way to access it. Apple engages in this only with iCloud Keychain and iMessage. While Apple doesn’t know your Apple ID password, you do have to enter it for the company to transform it into a cryptographically securely formed version that it can compare against what it has stored for you. I prefer that people have the option for a one-step remove for everything, not…

If you looked at Como Audio’s Duetto ( go.macworld.com/cad ) tabletop radio and couldn’t swallow its $399 price tag, Tivoli Audio’s Model One Digital sounds about as good and costs $100 less. The Tivoli lacks a number of features compared to its competitor, but you might not miss them. Like the Duetto, the Model One Digital is equipped with an FM radio, but it’s primarily designed for streaming digital music. There’s Bluetooth support, of course (although aptX support is conspicuous in its absence), or you can connect it to your Wi-Fi network and play the music you own via a DLNA server. There’s also support for most of the major streaming services, including Spotify Connect, Tidal, Deezer, and the lesserknown (in the U.S., at least) QQ Music. There’s TuneIn support…