Apple’s iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max pair the faster A20 Pro chip with a variable-aperture Fusion Main camera, a smaller, more capable Dynamic Island, longer battery life, and higher prices, while otherwise changing surprisingly little from last year.

Apple’s new Apple Watch Series 12 and Ultra 4 pair redesigned health sensors with the S11 chip for denser heart-rate data, Readiness scores, and Audio Intelligence, while Ultra 4 gains substantially longer battery life and Series 12 brings back ceramic cases.

Apple’s AirPods 5 bring Active Noise Cancellation to both models, improve water resistance to IP57, and add more AirPods Pro features, while the higher-end version offers longer battery life, wireless charging, and stem-based volume control at a lower price.

Comcast is promoting the WiFi Motion feature of its free Xfinity Shield service, which uses Wi-Fi signals to detect movement in your home. It’s opt-in, but the underlying technology could theoretically do far more than Comcast acknowledges—including identifying individuals.

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Apple has raised Apple TV subscription prices by $2 per month, marking the second significant increase in as many years. The annual plan jumps $20, from $99 to $119.

We’re taking a brief break from building an email issue of TidBITS next week for the Labor Day holiday in the United States, so look for the next issue in your mailbox on 14 September 2026. Check our website for coverage of Apple’s iPhone announcements on 9 September 2026.

Apple has announced its annual iPhone event for 9 September 2026. The “Surprise and Shine” event will be CEO John Ternus’s first product launch, with rumors pointing to a foldable iPhone alongside iPhone 18 Pro updates, new Apple Watch models, and the expected iOS 27 release.

A Vermont road trip in the Hyundai IONIQ 5 revealed the joy of the car’s speed limiter feature, the frustration of short Tesla Supercharger cables on older stations, the importance of downloading offline maps before venturing into rural areas, and the utility of ChatGPT in finding a restaurant on the route.

On 2 September 2026 at 11:30 AM EDT, veteran tech journalist David Pogue discusses his latest book, “Apple: The First 50 Years,” at a free NMUG presentation.

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Apple surprised everyone with a late August announcement of the M6 and M5 Ultra chips, along with updated Mac mini and Mac Studio models. The new Macs deliver substantial performance gains—but at prices that have increased even since June.

USB-C cables look alike but vary wildly in capability. WhatCable, a free utility for Apple silicon Macs, shows you exactly what each cable supports for charging, data transfer, and display. The paid WhatCable Pro adds persistent cable naming and additional diagnostic options.

Have you ever suspected macOS of silently changing your settings during an update? Adam Engst’s free SetShot captures and compares snapshots of your Mac’s configuration so you can catch those changes—and maintain a journal of your own customizations.

The TidBITS search engine now sports AI-generated summaries above the usual results, courtesy of a beta feature from Jetpack Search. The question is whether these AI Answers are worth the screen real estate—what do you think?

Four new Apple security updates bring macOS 26.6.2 Tahoe, iOS/iPadOS 26.6.1, and iOS/iPadOS 18.7.10 into sync with fixes from the OS 27 betas. AI-assisted research contributed a notable share of the discoveries.

Brings an updated crash catcher that's compatible with newer versions of macOS. ($74.99 new, free update, 40.4 MB, macOS 14+)

Need a new Mac? The global chip shortage means some configurations now take months to arrive. We look at Apple’s current delivery estimates and offer strategies for those who can’t afford to wait that long.

Tired of checking Terminal to see if your script finished? TerminalWidget displays command line output, Shortcuts results, and AppleScript data as customizable widgets that sync across your Apple devices, giving power users a visual dashboard for their automations.

Apple has released updates to macOS 26.6.1, 15.7.9, and 14.8.9 to fix a Screen Sharing vulnerability that could let an attacker “on the network” connect without valid credentials. Update soon.

SuperDuper 4 might be the first backup app that tells you in plain English exactly what it’s going to do and what it has done. Developer Dave Nanian’s new “narrative” interface embeds documentation directly into the interaction model.

In Tim Cook’s final earnings call as CEO, Apple posted a record $109.4 billion quarter, but behind Apple’s AI hype and “phenomenal” reviews lie supply constraints driven by poor predictions, skyrocketing memory costs, and a Siri AI that’s still finding its feet.