Posts with «author_name|saqib shah» label

Apple's MagSafe Duo Charger is 22 percent off at Best Buy

After axing its AirPower project in 2019, Apple chose to offer a range of wireless charging products under the revived MagSafe brand instead. Last year saw the release of fast wireless chargers for Qi-enabled devices, and compatible cases, sleeves and wallets that could snap on the back of the iPhone 12. The priciest, and most versatile, item on the list was the MagSafe Duo: A $129 wireless charger that could simultaneously charge two compatible devices including, for the first time, the Apple Watch. Now, Best Buy is offering the Duo for $29 less (or 22 percent off) as part of a bigger sale on all things MagSafe.

Buy Apple MagSafe Duo at Best Buy - $100Buy Apple iPhone cases at Best Buy

Interested buyers should note that the MagSafe Duo does not come with a wall outlet power adapter out of the box. For that, Apple recommends purchasing a 20W USB-C adaptor (a 29W USB-C power adapter won't work). That shouldn't surprise anyone who has purchased an Apple product recently as both the Apple Watch and the iPhone 12 don't ship with one either. Also worth noting is that the Duo charges the iPhone 12 Mini slower than its larger kin, with a peak 12W of power delivery, compared to 15W for the other iPhone 12 models.

Along with the aforementioned devices, the MagSafe Duo can also charge your AirPods charging case and, as it's compatible with Qi charging, it also works for the iPhone 8 or later. Plus, you can fold it up to carry with you. There's a cheaper $39 MagSafe charger too, but that's no good if you want to charge your Apple Watch. Best Buy's sale on Apple cases also applies to compatible MagSafe versions for the iPhone 12 range, which include clear, leather and silicone cases that start from $20.

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Peloton Sessions let you schedule smaller classes with friends

Peloton has witnessed a massive uplift during the pandemic as homebound fitness enthusiasts jumped on its bikes and treadmills for their daily exercise fix. Along the way, it has had to address delivery delays, pushed out a cheaper tread and kept the software updates coming. Its latest addition is a fully-fledged version of the fleeting Sessions feature it launched in beta late last year to get you working out with a smaller pool of members. Compared to a cluttered leaderboard of thousands, the bijou live cycling or running classes aim to offer a more refined, intimate experience and could push you to be more physical.

While the beta was built around on-demand classes that refreshed every five minutes, you can now also schedule Sessions from within the Peloton iOS app, including rides and runs that last upwards of 20 minutes. Just pick a class, choose a date and time, and invite friends to join by sharing links to your Session via your fave messaging app or email. Five minutes before your class starts, a notification will pop up on your bike or tread allowing you to join alongside your pals. 

Though it was only around for a couple of weeks, the social option must have been a hit as Peloton is bringing it back for good. Notably, if none of your friends have a Peloton bike or tread, you can still attend the smaller, on-demand Sessions and maybe make some buddies for your own future classes. 

When it first landed, a lot of people wrote off Peloton as a fad for a dedicated, and affluent, fitness fanbase. Having shrugged off that image, with help from the pandemic, it's interesting to see it returning to its roots by giving members the ability to create their own smaller groups, or cults.

‘Fortnite’ will kick off its new season with a unique solo mission

Fortnite players are accustomed to being thrust into massive season-ending events that bring together hordes of players to witness an epic set piece. But, this time round, developer Epic Games is switching things up. Instead of a multiplayer spectacle, it's launching into its new season with a solo mission that puts you in control of Agent Jones. 

In a blog post, Epic describes the story mode as a reality-altering "explosive" event that concludes Jonesy's mission in the Zero Crisis Finale. You'll be able to play through it when Chapter 2 Season 6 starts on March 16th or watch it online in cinematic form during a global premiere at a later date. 

Fortnite's previous season kicked off in December after a record-breaking finale event that saw Jonesy and a slew of Marvel superheroes teaming up against planet-ravaging villain, Galactus. Season 5 somehow managed to ramp up the movie and gaming tie-ins, with an exhaustive list of playable characters including The Mandalorian and Baby Yoda, the Terminator, Street Fighter's Ryu and Chun-Li and Ripley and the Xenomorph Queen from the Alien filmseries. To top that, Epic is promising its most "ambitious story cinematic" yet.

Adobe Photoshop is now available natively on M1 Macs

Since ditching Intel's chips for its own, Apple's M1 Macs are getting optimizedapps all the time that tend to perform better than those put through its Rosetta 2 emulator. Today marks another major native release as Photoshop has officially come out of beta packing quicker speeds for many tasks. Adobe says the changes should be immediately noticeable from the time you launch the native app, with the splash screen vanishing in an instant. Overall, the new Mac app can run tasks up to 1.5x faster than previous generation systems. In general, that should apply when opening and saving files, running filters and compute-heavy operations like "content-aware fill" and "select subject."

However, some of Photoshop's latest features have yet to make the jump as Adobe wanted to get the native app out as quickly as possible. So, you'll have to wait for things like "invite to edit cloud documents" and "preset syncing" — or you can switch back to Rosetta 2 emulation if you can make do without them. Adobe has been quick to embrace Apple's latest Macs having previously released its Premiere Pro and Lightroom apps for the new range.

Along with the new M1 app, Adobe is also releasing an update for Photoshop on iPad that packs two new features. They include cloud documents version history, which lets you browse and revert back to older files that were auto-saved in the past 60 days, and the ability to download cloud documents locally so you can work on files offline. The same feature also lets you free up space on your iPad by making a document online only.

In addition, Adobe is adding its "super resolution" feature to the Camera Raw plugin in Photoshop. By tapping into your graphics card, the machine learning-powered software lets you scale up an image without losing out on quality. Super resolution will also be available on Lightroom and Lightroom Classic soon. Adobe has been sprinkling AI-enhanced features throughout Photoshop including a tool that lets you spruce up landscape images, neural filters that mimic art styles and a sky replacement option.

Apple AirPods Pro are back on sale for $190 at Woot

Apple's AirPods Pro are back on sale for $190 on Woot little more than a week after they were discounted by the Amazon-owned online retailer. While sporadic deals on the $249 earbuds are the norm, they tend to sell out fast as they remain must-haves for iOS loyalists craving high-quality audio. 

Buy apple Airpods Pro at Woot - $190

Chances are you're familiar with the AirPods Pro by now, so consider this a recap for the cheap seats. The trademark all-white earbuds boast excellent true wireless sound, courtesy of active noise cancellation (ANC) and silicone tips that come in three sizes to help "seal" in sound. For those locked into Apple's ecosystem, there's the added benefit of quick pairing that lets you connect rapidly and switch easily between your MacBook, iPhone and iPad. Plus, their IPX4 rating means they are sweat and water resistant, making them a good fit for the gym or home workouts.

In terms of the design, Apple shortened the stem on the Pro earbuds to make them more compact compared to the entry-level AirPods. It also widened and shortened the case that gives you about an hour of use with five minutes of charging. Overall, the battery life lasts five hours, but drops to 4.5 hours of listening or 3.5 hours of talk time when you turn on ANC. 

While reports have started to emerge of refreshed AirPods slated for this year, those will inevitably cost more at the outset. So, if you need a replacement pair of earbuds now, or you're ready to upgrade from the original AirPods, the Pros are still your best bet.

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