GE Lighting's new smart shades are compatible with Matter & Apple Home
Savant-owned GE Lighting was at CES 2026 with its latest Matter-compatible smart home devices, including new shades that will work with Apple Home.GE's new smart shades work with Apple Home thanks to Matter-over-ThreadGE smart shades are launching with a simple, screw-free installation process and come in different white and gray fabrics in both black out and light filtering options. They connect with Matter-over-Thread to all major ecosystems, such as Apple Home.The built-in battery will last up to six months on a single charge and power a near-silent high-efficiency motor. They're available starting at $299 from Amazon and will fit windows up to 76 inches. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

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Charge your iPhone in style with Twelve South's new Napa leather valet station
Announced at CES, Twelve South's latest premium charging solution combines an elevated MagSafe pad with a leather-clad valet that is sure to add an elegant touch to your home or office.Twelve South Valet has a 15W Qi2 magnetic charger and premium Napa leatherDesigned for a home nightstand or armoire, the Twelve South Valet features a large surface area to place down your keys, glasses, wallet, or other everyday items. Within that, is a Qi2 charger that is raised in the air.The whole thing is covered in soft Napa leather with multiple different finishes. The tray is intended to be modular, with the exterior leather border held in place magnetically so it could be swapped out for a different style. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

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End of an era as last Intel MacBook Air is declared vintage
Macworld As one year ended and another began, Apple blew away the cobwebs by shunting a further batch of products into its “Vintage” category, including the last ever MacBook Air to run an Intel chipset. As of last month, the 13-inch Retina MacBook Air from 2020, the 128GB iPhone 8 Plus, the iPhone 11 Pro, the cellular version of the iPad Air 3, and the Apple Watch Series 5 have all been added to Apple’s list of vintage products (as spotted by Macrumors). That model of MacBook Air launched in March 2020 with a 10th-gen Intel Core i7 processor and a new keyboard design, but was superseded later the same year by the first Air to feature Apple silicon. The M1 Air was a popular and critically acclaimed machine that helped to kick off the Apple silicon revolution. But as much as Apple might have wanted them to, Intel MacBooks didn’t simply disappear from the world overnight. This latest move may help the company to turn the page on a significant chapter in its history. Because the switch to vintage isn’t just about a name or a theoretical categorization, the move has real-world consequences for owners of those devices. Vintage Apple products, defined as those that stopped being sold between five and seven years ago, are no longer guaranteed the full range of servicing, repairs, and replacement parts offered for younger models and are one step closer to being branded obsolete. This may encourage those who still own the final Intel Air to consider an upgrade to something a little newer and easier to maintain. With the Air’s transition to vintage, the remaining pool of viable Intel Macs has shrunk even further. The last three Intel MacBook Pro models–the 16-inch from 2019, and the two 13-inch variants from 2020–can still get repairs and parts, as are the 2019 and 2020 iMacs, which ran Coffee Lake and Comet Lake Intel Core chips respectively. And the Intel-based Mac Pro from 2019 didn’t get discontinued until June 2023, astonishingly, and therefore won’t move to vintage for another two and a half years.

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We’ll never see these colorful AirPods prototype cases—and that’s a good thing
Macworld As long as Apple has been making earbuds, they’ve only been available in white. From the original iPod EarPods to AirPods and AirPods Pro, Apple has distinguished its earbuds with a glossy white plastic design and charging case. However, a prototype unearthed by Kosutami on X over the holiday break shows how things could have been different. A trio of images shows AirPods cases in yellow and pink, and while it’s unclear where the images are from, he claims they show an “iPhone 5c colored AirPods 1st gen prototype.” AirPods were announced in September 2016, so these images are likely from 2015 or earlier.  Kosutami The yellow and pink colors do match two of the iPhone 5c options that were available from September 2013 to September 2015. But as AirPods cases, they just look odd. Maybe it’s because we’re so accustomed to seeing AirPods cases in white, or that the AirPods themselves don’t match the case. But whatever the reason, it’s clear why Apple scrapped these prototypes. Fans have been clamouring for years for Apple to release AirPods in colors other than white, but other than AirPods Max, it’s pretty clear that Apple won’t be straying from its iconic color choice. And based on these images, that’s probably a good thing. 

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Satechi OntheGo 7-in-1 Multiport Adapter review: The most portable USB-C hub we’ve tested
Macworld At a glanceExpert's Rating Pros 7 decent ports Magnetic Highly portable Cons Average port speed Our Verdict The Satechi OntheGo 7-in-1 Multiport Adapter offers a decent set of useful ports in an extremely portable form. This, plus the hidden built-in cable and magnetic attachment, make it an attractive option for the regular tech traveler. Price When Reviewed This value will show the geolocated pricing text for product undefined Best Pricing Today Price When Reviewed$59.99 Best Prices Today: Satechi OntheGo 7-in-1 Multiport Adapter Retailer Price $59.99 View Deal Satechi $59.99 View Deal Price comparison from over 24,000 stores worldwide Product Price Price comparison from Backmarket As useful as the MacBook’s ports are, there often just aren’t enough of them. Attach a USB-C hub to one of your MacBook’s Thunderbolt ports to greatly increase functionality and at a low cost. Design The Satechi OntheGo 7-in-1 Multiport Adapter doesn’t look like the average USB-C hub. It’s a pocket-sized hockey puck shape with a coiled braided USB-C cable and seven varied ports, and handily portable. It has a 2.55-inch (6.5cm) diameter and sits just over an inch tall (2.7cm). It weighs 2.4oz (68g). Another startling break from hub design is its magnetic mount that enables you to mount it on the back of your device, be that a MacBook, iPhone or iPad. The hub comes with an adhesive magnetic ring that you can add to any surface for instant firm attachment.Simon Jary It will clamp to the back of an iPhone via MagSafe, and it comes with a 3M Adhesive Ring to add compatibility for the iPad, laptops, gaming consoles, and non-MagSafe smartphones or cases. You can slap it onto your laptop and there it will stay even as you move around with the MacBook under your arm. It is possible to remove the ring with some gentle prising, but I doubt you could move it more than a couple of times before it loses its stick, so choose wisely. Hubs can add clutter to any computing setup with trailing cables and devices sticking out from the hub that’s hanging off the central computer. The OntheGo 7-in-1 Multiport Adapter is a much neater solution. Attach the adhesive ring to the back of the laptop’s lid to create a place where you won’t even see the hub while you work. Simon Jary Clamped to the back of an iPhone (it must be an iPhone 15 or later to utilize the built-in USB-C cable), the hub gives you access to the SD and microSD card readers to add extra storage for photos and videos or transferring large files easily between your devices. These affordable portable storage cards are also useful for creating physical backups. Unlike other members of the Satechi OnTheGo family it’s available in just one color: a terribly sensible black, so no gentle Sand or pretty Desert Rose. Satechi Specs: plenty of ports The Satechi OntheGo 7-in-1 calls itself a “Multiport Adapter” but it’s really a hub, boasting seven ports, alongside its integrated 10Gbps USB-C cable. None of the ports are pro-level top end but they are capable enough for most users. If the connection was Thunderbolt 5, the card readers UHS-II and the passthrough 140W, the attractive price would sky rocket. Integrated 6.5-inch cable (10Gbps) USB-C PD (80W passthrough power) 2x USB-A (5Gbps) SD Card Reader (UHS-l, 104MBps) microSD Card Reader (UHS-l, 104MBps) – HDMI 2.0 – Up to 4K/60Hz Gigabit Ethernet If you’re not using the MacBook’s MagSafe 3 charging cable, you can supply up to 80W of passthrough power via the USB-C PD port connected to your own USB-C charger. For MacBook Air users, the HDMI port offers an easy connection point for monitors up to 4K and a 60Hz refresh rate. The SD card readers are useful for adding portable and very affordable storage. At the time of writing, you could pick up a 512GB microSD card for $40, and 1TB for around $100. The card readers are of the slower UHS-l variety, allowing data-transfer speeds of up to 104MBps. While you can get faster card readers— Apple includes a 250MBps SD card reader on the MacBook Pro, and premium Mac docking stations boast 312MBps UHS-II readers—the ones on the Satechi OntheGo are fine for non-pro work. The Gigabit Ethernet (1GbE) is also looking a bit past it these days with docks offering 2.5GbE or faster, but the vast majority of our networks are still stuck at 1GbE so it probably matters little, and even 10GbE networks are backwards compatible with Gigabit Ethernet. The dock connects to your device at 10Gbps, so not 40 or 80Gbps Thunderbolt but fast enough for most purposes. The two 5Gbps USB-A ports are handy as no Apple device has sported one of these for years, and yet they persist in memory sticks and some device chargers even in the face of superior USB-C. Simon Jary Price The Satechi OntheGo 7-in-1 Multiport Adapter costs $59.99 / £54.99 / €59,99. If you need a Thunderbolt or USB4 hub or a hub with more or speedier ports, look at our reviews of the best USB-C and Thunderbolt hubs. Satechi’s magnetic hub is lighter and much smaller and neater than standard rectangular USB-C hubs,Simon Jary Should you buy the Satechi OntheGo 7-in-1 Multiport Adapter? The Satechi OntheGo 7-in-1 Multiport Adapter offers a decent set of useful ports in an extremely portable form. The ports aren’t at the very top levels of speed and performance but at this price and this compact shape, with the hidden built-in cable and magnetic attachment, it makes a compelling option for the regular tech traveler. In a world of largely rectangular tech gadgets, there’s something pleasing about a circular accessory. The shape also helps keep the coiled integrated cable tangle-free and the whole package efficiently neat and tidy.

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Shure's MV88 Microphone revival plugs into iPhone USB-C port
Shure's MV88 USB-C Stereo Microphone can now directly plug into the base of an iPhone, making it useful for vloggers on the go.Shure MV88 USB-C - Image Credit: ShureThe Shure MV88 was originally released back in 2015, as a compact microphone that clips into the Lightning port of an iPhone or iPad. A decade later, Shure's brought it back up to date, complete with a connector change.The new MV88 with USB-C uses the replacement of the Lightning port, in practically the same way. The intention is for it to be held in place at the bottom of an iPhone, with the microphone directly pointed at the user. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

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Six reasons you shouldn’t trust five-star reviews for apps or hardware
Consumer reviews used to be one of the most reliable ways of assessing the quality of an app or a physical product. If you didn’t know any friends who’d tried it, the number of reviews and the average rating was a pretty good guide. Sadly, however, that is no longer the case. Companies have become very adept at gaming the system, meaning that reviews are worth way less than they used to be. There are now six reasons you shouldn’t necessarily trust them, including one I only learned about today … more…

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These expert AirPods Pro tips will take your earbuds to eleven
Macworld The AirPods Pro 3 are Apple’s most feature-rich earbuds, offering advanced tools and settings to fine-tune users’ everyday listening experience. From touch and pressure sensitivity to health monitoring and immersive audio output, the latest AirPods are jam-packed with futuristic technology, despite their miniature design. Apple AirPods Pro 3 Read our review Price When Reviewed: $249 Best Prices Today: $219.99 at Amazon | $239.95 at B&H | $249 at Apple The AirPods Pro 3 are highly customizable, letting you control the stem behavior, audio output, charging habits, and much more. While the default preferences work well for most users, there are some settings you may want to adjust to better suit your life. It’s worth noting that some of these options are exclusive to the AirPods Pro 3, while others also work with other select models, such as the AirPods 4 and Pro 2. 1. Pairing process Pairing your AirPods Pro 3 with your iPhone requires a one-time, straightforward setup. Simply place the charging case next to your iPhone and open its lid. A relevant sheet should instantaneously pop up on iOS—hit the Connect button. Once done, your iPhone will prompt you to tap twice on the charging case’s back to confirm the action. Going forward, your AirPods will automatically connect to your iPhone and any of your iCloud devices whenever you take them out of their case. Another Apple ecosystem perk is Automatic Device Switching. The feature works by automatically changing the audio source device depending on your playback activity. So, if they’re connected to your Mac and you start playing music on iOS, for example, your AirPods will shift to your iPhone. If you’re unhappy with this behavior, you can head to the Settings app > [your name]’s AirPods > Connect to This iPhone, then select When Last Connected to This iPhone (rather than Automatically). Foundry 2. Audible announcements Your AirPods Pro 3 can announce incoming notifications, which can be helpful when your iPhone is out of reach. The feature, however, can become too intrusive if you receive lots of messages, as it’ll constantly interrupt your music and lower its volume to read every delivered text. Fortunately, you can turn it off completely or for select apps by going to Settings > Notifications > Announce Notifications. If you’ve opted for notification and call announcements, you can also customize the AirPods Pro 3’s head gestures. The feature lets you interact with alerts by nodding or moving your head side to side. You can try and customize these shortcuts by going to AirPods settings and visiting the Head Gestures menu. 3. Tailored tips To accommodate different ear shapes, the AirPods Pro 3 support five tip sizes. If the default medium ear tip feels off, you can try one of the other variants included in the AirPods’ box. To confirm that the seal is good, you can go to AirPods settings and tap on Test Acoustic Seal. After following the on-screen instructions, iOS will inform you of any needed adjustments. To improve spatial audio’s performance and precision, you can scan your ears using the Personalized Spatial Audio section. This will create a unique sound profile that syncs across all of your compatible Apple devices. Foundry 4. Stem settings The AirPods Pro 3’s stems can react to your presses and swipes. To customize what pressing and holding does to either stem, you can head to Press And Hold AirPods in AirPods settings. This lets you pick between triggering Siri and toggling ANC or other Listening Modes. Similarly, you can choose what single and double stem presses do during a call under the Call Controls menu. This enables you to quickly mute/unmute an ongoing call or end it without interacting with your iPhone. Likewise, you can press once or press and hold when the Camera app is open to shoot by setting up the Camera Remote feature under the Camera Control menu. If you tend to run under the pouring rain, then the water drops will likely trigger the swipe gesture on the AirPods’ stems and lower the volume of your music. To disable the touch-sensitive surface, go to Accessibility in AirPods settings and turn off Volume Swipe. Foundry 5. Hearing help The AirPods Pro 3 can evaluate your hearing and double as hearing aids if needed. To get started, go to AirPods settings and tap on Take a Hearing Test. Once the test concludes, you can enable the Hearing Assistance feature if hearing loss has been detected. This will amplify surrounding sounds based on your personal test results. Foundry 6. Battery boosting If you tend to leave your AirPods’ case charging overnight, it’s best to enable the Optimized Charge Limit option under the Battery menu in AirPods settings. The feature learns from your usage habits and pauses charging as needed to preserve your battery’s health. Speaking of the battery, you may also want to familiarize yourself with the compatible charger types. You can top up the AirPods Pro 3 case using a USB-C cable or opt for one of the several wireless charging options. These include Qi, Qi2, MagSafe, and Apple Watch wireless chargers. Foundry 7. Cardio controls The AirPods Pro 3 offer a heart rate monitor to collect data during workouts. However, the sensor measures your heartbeat even when you’re wearing an Apple Watch, which can consume power unnecessarily. To prolong your AirPods’ battery life and limit the potentially redundant readings, you can disable the Heart Rate toggle in AirPods settings if you’re relying on an Apple Watch. 8. Translation training If you’re living in a foreign country or plan to visit one soon, the AirPods Pro 3 can translate your conversations in real time. For the feature to work, however, you will first need to download the relevant language pair to your iPhone. Go to Languages in AirPods settings, then download the needed packages. Once ready, you can press and hold both stems simultaneously to initiate a live translation session. AirPods Pro can automatically translate foreign languages so you can understand what is being said.Foundry 9. Sleep sensing Your AirPods Pro 3 pack sensors that can detect when you fall asleep. If you tend to snooze while listening to your favorite podcast or playlist, you can toggle Pause Media When Falling Asleep in AirPods settings to automatically stop the playback whenever you doze off. 10. Beta builds This one’s for the adventurous, tech-savvy users. If you’re keen on trying new AirPods features before they launch to the general public, you can enable the toggle under AirPods Beta Updates in AirPods settings. For this to work, however, you’ll first need to be running the iOS beta on your paired iPhone. Keep in mind that beta firmware can break essential features or brick your AirPods altogether. There’s no easy way to downgrade to the latest stable firmware or revive your AirPods if they die or you’re unhappy with the experience. If these are risks you’re willing to take, you can get a sneak peek of upcoming software additions and provide feedback to Apple.

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The Shure MV88 (again) plugs right into your iPhone
The Shure MV88 mic used to be the perfect microphone for any iPhone owner who wanted high quality recordings with maximum convenience. With a Lightning connector, it plugged directly into your iPhone. The company inexplicably failed to update it for many years after Apple switched to USB-C, but has finally corrected this – and may solve a common problem seen on YouTube … more…

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New 8BitDo FlipPad is a minimalist controller for iPhone gamers
Long-standing game hardware company 8BitDo is heading for CES 2026, and has now teased that it will be showing a forthcoming flip-style iPhone controller.8BitDo's forthcoming FlipPad games controller for iPhone — image credit: 8BitDoThe 8BitDo company has been making games controllers for the iPhone for years. Its newest one snaps onto the front of the phone in portrait orientation, and flips up to play.Calling it the 8BitDo FlipPad, the company says that it is officially supported by Apple. There are no further details on price or a specific release date, but 8BitDo says it is coming for Summer 2026. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

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Strap in Apple fans, 2026 is going to be a wild ride
Macworld Just over 12 months ago, I set about the task of evaluating Apple’s 2024, a year in which its hits were misses and its misses were hits. Then, as now, the company’s pet projects were AI and mixed reality, yet Apple Intelligence and Vision Pro flopped badly; whereas a number of far lower-profile products, including the 4th-gen AirPods and the M4 Mac mini, thrived by offering excellent features at an affordable price. It was a topsy-turvy year. Looking back on 2025, one gets a similar sense of what could have been. Vision Pro remains an ultra-niche proof of concept with no commercial footprint to speak of, while Apple Intelligence is palpably behind the AI offerings of other companies. At least one of these needs to deliver in 2026. Most obviously, it’s vital that Apple finally fulfils its promise of an AI-powered, contextually relevant Siri. Fortunately, the latest code leaks indicate that Siri 2.0 will arrive in spring 2026. That’s approximately 18 months late, a delay that has dealt a severe blow to Apple’s reputation, both from the empty promises undermining trust in the company’s vision and from the substandard performance users are experiencing with Siri’s current iteration. Whether your cliché of choice is “too little, too late” or “better late than never,” we can agree that the process of earning back our trust starts this year. On the VR/AR side, there’s little prospect of a redesigned and slimmed-down Vision Pro model in 2026, but the cancellation of that project may result in the arrival, or at least announcement, of something users have been awaiting for even longer: smart glasses. These won’t, of course, compete with the transformative experience you get with Vision Pro, since smart glasses cannot immerse or transport the user in the same way as a high-end mixed-reality headset, but they offer far more accessibility in everyday life. Vision Pro has fundamental limitations in terms of weight, battery life, and cost that mean it simply cannot become a mainstream primary computing device for the time being. The Apple glasses could be a different matter, and we may start to find out if that’s the case in 2026. So much for Apple’s current obsessions. But the company’s real money-maker remains the iPhone, and 2026 looks set to be a sink-or-swim year for that line as well. The two great failures of Apple’s 2025 were the iPhone Air and iPhone 16e, but both have the opportunity for redemption this year. The iPhone 16e stumbled because it reached too high. Apple was determined to bring Apple Intelligence to its most accessible phone, which imposed minimum requirements for its processor and RAM allocation. This meant that what should have been a budget device ended up costing $599 while still missing out on a wide range of standard features, from multiple rear camera lenses to MagSafe. The iPhone 17e should learn from these mistakes, and it needs to, because this could be Apple’s last chance to remain a serious player in the budget phone market. The iPhone Air, by contrast, strikes me as a product without much of a future in its own right. We may get a 2nd-gen model in 2026, but in the absence of a fundamental rethink of its design philosophy, I can’t see why that would sell any better than the first one. However, the technological breakthroughs Apple achieved while creating the Air are necessary for other reasons: namely, the launch of the first folding iPhone. And the iPhone Fold, which is widely expected to drop in the fall, holds the key to Apple’s future in the smartphone space. I’m not convinced the Fold will be an instant success. It’s surely going to be too expensive for more than a handful of diehard Cupertino loyalists to crack open their wallets, but then again, it doesn’t need to dominate the foldables market right away. It just needs to give Apple a foothold, create a little buzz, and mindshare while Apple builds expertise in a space it’s avoided until now. Unlike the Air, an unconvincing 1st-gen iPhone Fold wouldn’t be a total disaster because the product has space to grow and a reason to exist. The compromises are in service to something people actually want. And what of the Mac? That side of Apple’s business had a strong 2025, thanks to the power and efficiency of the M5 chip. The MacBook Pro is in a good place right now; the Mac Studio is in a great place. But the Mac Pro is letting the side down with its wildly outdated M2 Ultra spec, and urgently needs some love or a quiet death in 2026. And that budget MacBook with an iPhone chip? It had better not repeat the same problems as the iPhone 16e. It’s going to be a busy year, then. New Siri, Apple glasses, the iPhone 17e and Fold, and a new MacBook are the headlines, but the company will also have to juggle the customary new iPads and Apple Watches. We could even see the mysterious HomePad and, if we’re really lucky, some operating system updates in the summer that don’t look like Windows Vista on a bad day. It’s a lot to get right. But if anyone can do it, Apple can. Have a great year! Foundry Welcome to our weekly Apple Breakfast column, which includes all the Apple news you missed last week in a handy bite-sized roundup. We call it Apple Breakfast because we think it goes great with a Monday morning cup of coffee or tea, but it’s cool if you want to give it a read during lunch or dinner hours too. 2026 preview iPhone: A year of huge changes Mac: This could be the biggest year since 1984 iPad: Mostly minor updates (with one exception) Apple Watch: Hopes are bigger than expectations Smart home: Apple may be planning a massive push Trending: Top stories Alex Blake explains why his favorite iPhone apps of 2025 belong on your Home Screen too. Carmakers are taking Apple fans for an unbelievable ride, says the Macalope. Will Apple’s 2026 start with a bang or a whimper? Here’s what’s coming in January Expert advice 9 tweaks and shortcuts every new MacBook needs 10 settings to change when you get a new iPhone 10 tips and features you need to know about the AirPods Pro Podcast of the week The Macworld podcast took the week off for the holidays, but they’ll be back next week. You can catch every episode of the Macworld Podcast on YouTube, Spotify, Soundcloud, the Podcasts app, or our own site. Reviews corner Backbone Pro: A premium gamepad at a very premium price. Aukey MagFusion 2X 2-in-1: Wireless charging station. Baseus PicoGo AF21 3-in-1: Qi2.2 wireless charger. And with that, we’re done for this week’s Apple Breakfast. If you’d like to get regular roundups, sign up for our newsletters, including our new email from The Macalope–an irreverent, humorous take on the latest news and rumors from a half-man, half-mythical Mac beast. You can also follow us on Facebook, Threads, Bluesky, or X for discussion of breaking Apple news stories. See you next Monday, and stay Appley.

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How to get Apple’s Back to School deal 2026: Free AirPods & Apple Pencil again?
Macworld Apple holds a Back to School promotion every year (now referred to by Apple as the “College Student Offer” or “Higher Education Offer” to avoid confusion because it’s only open to students once they enter higher education, and the institutions and teachers, not school-age children). As part of the deal, Apple offers an incentive with purchases of qualifying Apple products. Apple’s ‘Back to School’ deal runs in various locations around the world during the summer months. The deal usually ends about a month after the first university semester/term begins in that country. It will start running in Australia around January 8, that being the date the promotion began there in early 2025. For that deal, students could get a pair of AirPods or an Apple Pencil and other eligible accessories including mice and keyboards, with the purchase of a new Mac or iPad. It is likely Apple will offer the same deal. The higher education deal will then run North America from mid June (it began on June 17 in 2025). It will then start in the U.K. and Europe in mid July (in 2025 it began on July 10). Apple’s promotion will run until the end of September (30th in 2025) in the U.S. and mid October (21st in 2025) in the U.K. Read on to find out what you need to know about Apple’s Higher Education giveaway, including when it will start where you live and what the deal will include. We also explain who qualifies and how to take advantage of Apple’s education deal. Apple Back to School Sale Dates 2026 Australia, New Zealand, Brazil and South Korea: Early January – early March 2026. U.S. & Canada: From mid June – end September 2026. U.K. & Europe: From mid July – mid October, 2026. India: From mid June – end September 2026. Apple Back to School Sale Dates 2025 U.S. & Canada: From June 17 – September 30 2025. U.K. & Europe: From July 10 – October 21, 2025 India: From June 17 – September 30 2025. Australia, New Zealand, Brazil and South Korea: January 8 to March 13 2025. The Higher Education deal runs at different times depending on where you are based due to differences in when the school year starts around the globe: Apple runs the promotion in the southern hemisphere in the first few months of the year. In Australia, New Zealand, South Korea and Brazil Apple’s deal ran from January 8 to March 13, 2025. In 2025 the deal runs from June 17 to September 30 in North America and India, and from July 10 to October 21 in Europe and the U.K. What is Apple’s Back To School offer? Foundry In 2025 Apple gave away (or offered money off) AirPods, Apple Pencils and other Apple accessories (keyboards and mice) with purchases of certain Mac and iPads. U.S. deal: Get AirPods, Apple Pencil or Apple accessories from June 17 -September 30 2025 with qualifying purchases. U.K. deal: Get AirPods, Apple Pencil or Apple accessories from July 10 – October 21 2025 with qualifying purchases. European deal: Get AirPods, Apple Pencil or Apple accessories from July 10 – October 21 2025 with qualifying purchases. Southern hemisphere: free AirPods or Apple Pencil with qualifying purchases from January-March 2025. 2026 dates and offer TBC. This is slightly different to recent years. Since 2022, in the U.S. and U.K. and some other locations, Apple has given away gift cards of different denominations depending on the products purchased during the promotional period. Prior to this, and in various other locations including some European countries and India, Apple had given away AirPods and Apple Pencils. So this is a return to the earlier, popular Apple giveaway. This isn’t the only education-related saving Apple offers though. All products sold to students via Apple’s Education Store include a discount all year round, so you can always make a saving on Apple products, as long as you qualify. The summertime education-focused deal is in addition to these year-long discounts Apple offers to students and education institutions. We explain everything you need to know about getting a discount, including how much you can save as a student and how to use Apple’s Education Store, in our Guide to shopping in the Apple Education Store. If you aren’t sure what to buy, we also have advice about the Best Mac for Students and the Best iPad for Students. How to get Apple’s Back to School offer In order to get the free AirPods, Apple Pencil or other Apple Accessory (or to save money on the more expensive AirPods Pro 2) you need to purchase a qualifying Apple product. You need to purchase a qualifying Mac (MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, iMac) or a qualifying iPad (iPad Pro or iPad Air). As a student you can also get a discount on the price of those products – in fact, you can get a student discount on Apple products in the Apple Education Store, with the exception of the iPhone, at any time. You also need to be based in an area where Apple is running the deal at the time of your purchase, and be a student in higher education, or about to start higher education. There are more details about who qualifies for Apple’s Education offer below. To get the deal in the U.S. you need to visit Apple’s U.S. Education Store. Logging on from your university network may make the process easier.  In the U.K. you can visit the U.K. Education Store, but you will also need to verify your student or staff status with UNiDAYS. Go to the Apple Education Store for other regions using the links below: U.S. U.K. Canada Australia New Zealand Brazil South Korea India France Germany When you make your qualifying Mac or iPad purchase you will be able to request the freebee. The products included in the Apple offer You need to buy one of the following qualifying products: MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, iMac, iPad Pro and iPad Air to qualify for the giveaway. You can choose which of the giveaway product you want to get when you make your order. In some cases more the “freebee” comes with an additional cost, as you can see from the table below. It’s not always the above products that qualify for the deal. Recently Apple has allowed the purchase of a Mac mini and an iPad to qualify for the freebee, but not in 2025. Qualifying purchases for Apple’s deal in 2024 included: iMac, MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, Mac mini, iPad Pro and iPad Air. In Australia in early 2024 the iPad 10th generation was included. In summer 2023 qualifying purchases included: iMac 24‑inch, MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, Mac mini, iPad Pro and iPad Air. It’s also interesting to note that in 2025 Apple did not give any discount on the AirPods Max despite having done so in the past. What you can save in Apple’s back to school giveaway Foundry You can save as much as $199 in the Apple Back to School deal. If you buy a MacBook Air or MacBook Pro Apple will give you a free Magic Keyboard worth $199. However, some of the products being offered as an incentive require you to spend a little extra to get them. For example, in the past to get the AirPods Pro 2 (worth $249) with a new Mac you need to spend an additional $70. U.S. back to school giveaway details: 2025 In summer 2025, U.S. students making the following purchases could either get free Mice, TrackPad, Keyboard, Apple Pencil, or AirPods 4, or get a discount on the price of the AirPods Pro 2 and Magic Keyboard cases for iPad. The terms and conditions of the deal are here: U.S. Apple’s education discounts are available all year round. Visit the U.S. Education Store and Canada Education Store for more information. BuyGetSavingAdditional spendMacBook Air or MacBook Pro AirPods 4 with ANC$179AirPods Pro 2 $179$70Magic Mouse $79 or $99Magic TrackPad$129 or $149Magic Keyboard $179 or $199iMacAirPods 4$179AirPods Pro 2 $179$70iPad Air or iPad ProApple Pencil Pro $119AirPods 4$129AirPods 4 with ANC$129$50AirPods Pro 2 $129$120Magic Keyboard for 11-inch iPad Air$119$130Magic Keyboard for 13-inch iPad Air$119$180Magic Keyboard for 11-inch iPad Pro$119$160Magic Keyboard for 13-inch iPad Pro$119$210If you want AirPods Pro you have to pay a little more, but you are still getting $179 off. U.K. back to school giveaway details 2025 U.K. students making the following purchases could either get free Mice, TrackPad, Keyboard, Apple Pencil, or AirPods 4, or get a discount on the price of the AirPods Pro 2 and Magic Keyboard cases for iPad. The terms and conditions of the deal are here: U.K. Apple’s education discounts are available all year round. Apple’s education discounts are available all year round. Students and educators need to log in via UNiDAYS website to see the offers. Educational Store discounts are usually up to £280 for U.K. students. See Apple’s terms and conditions. BuyGetSavingAdditional spendMacBook Air or MacBook Pro AirPods 4 with ANC£179AirPods Pro 2 £179£100Magic Mouse £79 or £99Magic TrackPad£29 or £149Magic Keyboard $179 or $199iMacAirPods 4£179AirPods Pro 2 £179£100iPad Air or iPad ProApple Pencil Pro £119AirPods 4£129AirPods 4 with ANC£129£50AirPods Pro 2 £129£100Magic Keyboard for 11-inch iPad Air£119£130Magic Keyboard for 13-inch iPad Air£119£180Magic Keyboard for 11-inch iPad Pro£119£160Magic Keyboard for 13-inch iPad Pro£119£210If you want AirPods Pro you have to pay a little more, but you are still getting £179 off. Europe back to school giveaway details 2025 European students making the same purchases as those above could either get free Mice, TrackPad, Keyboard, Apple Pencil, or AirPods 4, or get a discount on the price of the AirPods Pro 2 and Magic Keyboard cases for iPad. French details here. German details here. Spanish details here. Italian details here. Netherlands details here. India back to school giveaway details 2025 The 2025 deal in India the Back to University was the same as in the U.S.: AirPods or Apple Pencil discounts. Details here. T&C here. Australia and New Zealand back to school giveaway details The deal started on January 8 and ran to March 13. The offer was as follows: A$299 off AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation with a MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, or iMac A$299 off AirPods Pro 2 with a MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, or iMac A$299 off AirPods Max with a MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, or iMac A$199 off Apple Pencil Pro with iPad Pro or iPad Air A$199 off Apple Pencil (USB-C) with iPad Pro or iPad Air 20% off AppleCare+ is also available The AirPods 4 with ANC cost A$299. AirPods Pro 2 are A$399 and AirPods Max are A$899. So students needed to spend A$100 to get AirPods Pro 2 and A$699 to get the AirPods Max. The Apple Pencil Pro costs A$199 and the Apple Pencil (USB-C) is A$119. Visit Apple Australia’s website for more information. The terms and conditions of the deal in Apple Australia are here. There were similar gift voucher savings in New Zealand. Brazil and South Korea back to school giveaway details In Brazil and South Korea Apple gave away AirPods with Mac purchases and Apple Pencil with iPad purchases from January to March 13, 2024. The deal was the same in 2025. Who can get Apple’s Back to School deal? Apple If you are registered at a higher education facility (that’s post-K12 education: universities and colleges) you will qualify for the free AirPods deal as well as Apple’s usual education discount. Employees of these institutions can also qualify. If you are a parent buying for your student offspring then you can also qualify. Here are Apple’s Ts&Cs for the U.S. Alternatively, if you are an employee of a public or private K-12 institution/school in the U.S. or Canada you are also eligible. Apple’s Education pricing isn’t available to parents with kids at school, but a homeschool teacher can qualify. Even when Apple isn’t running the Back to School Deal students and education institutions can still take advantage of its standard educational pricing on its Educational Pricing page (U.S. here / U.K. here). Students can also take advantage of a reduced subscription to Apple Music with which they get access to Apple TV+ when they buy an Apple product. Read: How to get the student deal for Apple Music and free Apple TV+. How much can you save with Apple’s education pricing? Students can save up to $200/£220 on Macs and up to $100/£100 on iPads at any time of the year. More here: How to get an Apple student discount at Apple’s Education Store. A MacBook Air is a good choice for students. Foundry If you don’t qualify for an education discount have a look at these round-ups of the best deals on a new Mac and iPad: Best MacBook Pro deals Best MacBook Air deals Best Mac mini deals Best iMac deals Best Mac Studio deals Best iPad deals We also have this advice about which Mac is best for students. And for more help read the low down on the Best Mac 2026.

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This magnetic charger saves your Apple Watch in a pinch — 70% off
Macworld TL;DR: A pocket-size magnetic charger with a built-in 2,000mAh power bank keeps your Apple Watch and iPhone powered on the go, now just $17.97 (reg. $59.95). The Apple Watch does a lot, but the battery can sometimes let you down, especially on long days or after a forgotten overnight charge. That’s why this compact magnetic charger makes so much sense, and right now, it’s available for $17.97. This pocket-size accessory combines a 2,000mAh power bank with a built-in magnetic Apple Watch charger, so there’s no extra cable to carry. Just snap your watch into place and power up wherever you are. It has enough capacity to recharge an Apple Watch multiple times, which is especially useful when you’re traveling, running errands, or stuck away from an outlet. The charger can also be used to top up an iPhone, meaning one small device helps keep your most-used Apple gear running. Its compact design clips easily to keys, bags, or backpacks, so it’s always within reach instead of sitting on your nightstand at home. Compatible with all Apple Watch models and rechargeable via USB-C, this charger fits neatly into an Apple-friendly setup without adding bulk. Grab this magnetic Apple Watch and iPhone charger for $17.97 (reg. $59.95) while it’s still available. Apple Watch Charger with Built-In 2000mAh Power BankSee Deal StackSocial prices subject to change.

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Improve your health with Withings new Body Scan 2 'longevity station'
Withings is doing more than ever with its latest smart scale, the Body Scan 2. AT CES, the brand is calling it a "longevity station" with more than 60 biomarkers and Apple Health integration.The new Withings Body Scan 2 debuted at CES 2026French tech company Withings all but invented the smart scale market segment. After its divorce from Nokia in 2018, it is out with its newest connected health product at CES 2026.Body Scan 2 is a tempered glass smart scale with a retractable handle, color display, and 8 embedded electrodes. It can complete a full scan in 90 seconds and will last 15 months on a rechargeable battery. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

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Lutron's new wooden shades work with Apple Home and tilt with the sun
Lutron's smart window covering lineup is expanding at the 2026 CES with the launch of the new Caseta Wood Blinds that can auto-tilt based on the sun, and also work with Apple Home.Lutron's new wood shades work with Apple Home and can automatically tilt with the sunThe new shades build upon Lutron's industry-leading reliability with a new wood option. They're made to order from North American basswood and will fit windows up to 48 inches wide and 80 inches tall.Like other Caseta shades, these can be installed wire-free with little hassle, and can be paired with Lutron's Pico remote. The basswood ships in two finishes, either painted white or stained dark walnut. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

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Save up to $170 on AirPods & Beats, with prices from $99
Fresh AirPods deals are in effect for January 2026, with prices dipping to as low as $99 — and savings of up to $170 off.Grab AirPods and Beats at up to $170 off.Save up to $100 on Apple's AirPods line this week, along with Beats deals of up to $170 off. Highlights from the Amazon sale include AirPods 4 for $99 and Beats Studio Pro over-ear headphones that are $170 off.Buy AirPods from $99 Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

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Matter is front-and-center in Xthing's new lineup of smart locks
At CES 2026, Xthings grew its Ultraloq lineup with multiple new models, rolling out to users over the coming months, with support for Apple Home.The Ultraloq Latch 7 Pro brings Matter to more doorsThe flagship lock is the Xthings Ultraloq Latch 7 Pro. This lock utilizes Matter-over-Thread for reliable connectivity and battery life on latch-style doors.It is also being built with Aliro in mind for automatic unlocking with Ultra Wideband when the spec is finalized. Beyond Thread and UWB, it will also support long-range Z-Wave. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

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SwitchBot's smart home future includes 3D-mapping smart locks, robot assistance
SwitchBot's CES 2026 involves more smart home automation, including an improved 3D facial recognition smart lock and a semi-humanoid household robot.SwitchBot Lock Vision Pro - Image Credit: SwitchBotSwitchBot is known for its smart vacuum cleaners and curtain robots. As it expands its reach in the smart home, it's also pushing into a few new areas too at CES 2026.For people interested in investing in a smart lock, the SwitchBot Lock Vision series is an expansion from the Keypad Vision it launched last year. The new Lock Vision can perform facial recognition of the user, mapping over 2,000 infrared projection points to create a 3D facial map, meaning video clips of the user can't be used to fool it. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

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What Andrew Orr's desk looked like after a year of writing at home in 2025
At the end of 2025, my desk tells a familiar work-from-home story, part writing station, part cat furniture, and somehow still functional.Drawn on paper, touched up with Apple PencilIt's been another year completed here at 0440-industries, which is kind of a brand name I've recently started using. Everyone needs a personal brand right? Mine is a mixture of the Borg and Alice in Wonderland.I started to keep a journal in 2013 in Apple Notes and gradually moved through multiple journaling apps over the years. I like Apple Journal's handling of text, images/videos, audio notes, drawings, mental health checks via Apple Health, music, etc. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

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Reuters Exposes Meta’s Tactics to Avoid Scam Ad Oversight
Meta earns as much as $7 billion annually from high-risk scam ads—according to a Reuters exposé. Rather than spend $2 billion on universal verification to prevent fraud, internal documents reveal the company developed a “playbook” to deflect regulators.Read original article

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