I wonder if the people who made those "over-investments" still have jobs?This is the second round of layoffs at Thunderful this year.

Daly's founder discusses how she became 'The Crowdsourceress' and the importance of a "holistic and niche" approach to PR.

The HP Chromebook Plus 15a-nb0004na offers good value as an office laptop, but its creative potential is limited.

Tweak these settings and stop missing out on whats being said.

Your VPN doesn't always have to run on your phone or laptop. You can guard everything in your home from prying eyes.

Mr. Carr, who currently sits on the commission and is a vocal critic of Big Tech, has said the agency should regulate the tech industry.

MacworldAs someone who has reviewed Macs for a long time, Im often asked for shopping advice and whether now is a good time to buy a Mac. Its an excellent question since Apple has been fairly sporadic with its Mac releases. Macs are expensive and people want reassurance that theyre making a timely investment. No one wants to buy something, start using it, and realize they just couldve stuck with what they already had. Nor does anyone want to make a purchase only to have something better come along in a short time.When it comes to Macs, the decision to buy a new one is rarely a quick and easy one, but with the release of the M4 Mac lineup, theres less hedging than ever before. As I reviewed the new iMac and MacBook Pro and got the lowdown about the Mac mini, I was struck by just how compelling these new Macs are. This recent release makes for the most compelling set of Macs that Apple has had in quite some time.And if youre wondering whether its time to buy a Mac in a general sense, the answer is yes.If you are looking for a MacBook deal, nows a good time, see: best Black Friday MacBook deals and best Black Friday 2024 Mac deals. And for anything else read: Best Black Friday 2024 Apple dealsThe maturation of Apple siliconThe M4 is the fourth generation of Apple silicon in the Mac, and after an explosive (figuratively) start with the M1 and some hiccups with the M2 and M3 releases, the M4 feels like the chip is finally hitting its stride.The M4 impresses with its speed and efficiency. It almost doubles the speed of the M1 in multi-core performance, but more impressively, its 32 percent faster than the Intel 2.7GHz Xeon W-3265M 24-core CPU, which was used in the 2019 Mac Pro. Also, the Intel chips Thermal Design Power is 205 watts while the M4s TDP is 22 watts. Thats a lot of bang without using a lot of power.Geekbench 6 benchmarksResults are expressed as Geekbench scores. Higher scores/longer bars are faster.The M4 Max, according to Geekbench 6 results, sets a record for Mac performance. The M4 Pro (the 14-core CPU, 20-core GPU version) is faster than an M2 Ultra. It keeps getting better with Apple silicon and there are no signs of performance plateaus.RAM increase without a price increaseOther than the speed boost, the biggest reason this Mac lineup is more compelling is that Apple did the right thing and doubled the base amount of unified memory to 16GB. That had a domino effect across the Mac lineupApple didnt just boost its most affordable models from 8GB to 16GB, but the more expensive standard configurations went up, too. For example, the M2 Pro Mac mini standard configuration started at 16GB, but the M4 Pro Mac mini now starts at 24GB.The additional RAM will help your Mac run a lot smoother and thats great, but perhaps the best part is that Apple implemented the increase without increasing the prices. For a lot of consumers, that means they no longer must dish out the extra $200/200. Apple even updated all the MacBook Airs, including the $999 M2 model, to 16GB without raising the prices. Nice.The Nano-texture glass option (left) is $150/150 but is worth the extra money.FoundryMore than performanceOne of the reasons why I sometimes advise people to wait for the next release cycle is because while the latest Macs have the fastest chips, they also have old features. For most general consumers, even an M1 provides more than enough speed to get things done, so more speed alone isnt really worth the upgrade.But the M4 Macs brought some overdue new features. First and foremost, youll now get the same 12MP Center Stage camera found in the iPhone and iPad, a huge upgrade from the 1080p FaceTime HD camera in previous generations. Theres also a Nano-texture glass option in both the iMac and MacBook Pro, which is great for cutting down glare, and the M4 Pro and M4 Max Macs get Thunderbolt 5 as well. These are fantastic features that will future-proof your purchase.Then theres the redesign of the Mac mini. The Mac mini was small before, but its tiny now and looks incredible on your desk. The small form factor is also a better fit for more imaginative projects and the front-facing ports are a nice upgrade. The lack of USB-A ports might be an issue for some, but the MacBook and iMac havent had them for years.Have no fear of buyingThe MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, Mac mini, and iMac are all great buys right now. Its not a stretch to say Apples 2024 Mac lineup represents the best value ever and you dont need to ask whether its a good time to buy. It isno matter which model you want. And with Black Friday right around the corner, you can save some money too.The only exception is the Mac Studio and Mac Pro. If you need one of Apples highest-end Macs, youll have to wait a little longer. Theyre still languishing with older M2 Max and Ultra chips, and as you can see in the benchmark chart above, theyve been surpassed by the far-cheaper M4 Pro and M4 Max machines. Based on our experience with the M4 chips as well as the latest rumors, it looks like the upcoming M4 Ultra is going to be a serious beast to round out an already incredible lineup.For more help deciding which Mac to buy or to find the Best MacBook read our guides.Apple 14-inch MacBook Pro (M4)Best Prices Today: 0.01 at idealo1779 at Computeruniverse1799 at notebooksbilliger.deRead our full Apple 14-inch MacBook Pro (M4) review Apple 14-inch MacBook Pro (M4 Pro)Best Prices Today: 0.01 at idealo2145 at notebooksbilliger.de2249 at Computeruniverse2.089,00 at amazon.deApple 14-inch MacBook Pro (M4 Max)Price When Reviewed:3.799 EuroBest Prices Today: 0.01 at idealo3599 at Computeruniverse3799 at Alternate3.379,00 at amazon.deApple 16-inch MacBook Pro (M4 Pro)Price When Reviewed:2.899 EuroBest Prices Today: 2.571,25 at tease-Shop2.602,14 at digitalo.de2.899,00 at AppleRead our full Apple 16-inch MacBook Pro (M4 Pro) review Apple 16-inch MacBook Pro (M4 Max)Price When Reviewed:4.099 EuroBest Prices Today: 4099 at Alternate4099 at Computeruniverse4099 at notebooksbilliger.deMac Mini M4Best Prices Today: 679 at notebooksbilliger.de689 at Alternate699 at Computeruniverse670,96 at amazon.deApple Mac mini (M4 Pro)Best Prices Today: 0.01 at idealo1559 at Alternate1599 at notebooksbilliger.deRead our full Apple Mac mini (M4 Pro) review Apple iMac (M4)Price When Reviewed:1.749 EuroBest Prices Today: 0.01 at idealo1649 at notebooksbilliger.de1748 at Alternate1.749,00 at amazon.deRead our full Apple iMac (M4) review

MacworldIn this article, we answer all of your questions about when you should and shouldnt buy a new iPhone including advice on when Apple is likely to discount the price of older iPhone handsets. There are certain times of the year when buying a new iPhone is a bad idea, and there are certain times of the year when you can get a bargain on a new handset. The trick is knowing when you should buy a new iPhone. Luckily we are here to help.Looking for a Black Friday deal: See Best Black Friday 2024 Apple deals and Best Black Friday 2024 iPhone deals.Should I buy a new iPhone right now?Any time from the September launch of a new iPhone to the following June is a good time to buy a new iPhone. There are certain times of the year when you can get the best deals on a new iPhone.Those in the market for a new handset are probably wondering whether now is a good time to buy a new iPhone. Is there any danger that a new model will be released in the near future? Will prices drop or increase?To answer the first question, new iPhone models tend to arrive every September. The iPhone 16, 16 Plus, Pro and Pro Max were launched at an Apple Event in September 2024. The iPhone 16 series went on sale on Friday September 20, 2024. So you can always get the best price we track the Best iPhone 16 deals in the U.S. and the best iPhone 16 deals in the U.K. these include both carrier deals and discounts on unlocked iPhones. AppleIf you dont want one of the newest iPhones you may think that there isnt a bad time to buy one of the older iPhones. However, when a new iPhone launches Apple reduces prices of the predecessors and discontinues some models. So it can be best to wait until after a new iPhone launches to get the best price for the previous generation. Check out our round up of the Best iPhone deals that includes all iPhones. Apple iPhone 16Read our reviewPrice When Reviewed:949Best Prices Today:834,00 at coolblue | 869,27 at tease-Shop | 909,00 at notebooksbilligerShould I buy an iPhone 16 or iPhone 16 Plus? The iPhone 16 and 16 Plus are Apples new standard iPhones for 2024. They went on sale on September 20, 2024. We have reviewed both handsets and recommend them.Apple iPhone 16 ProRead our reviewPrice When Reviewed:1199Best Prices Today:1.137,30 at tease-Shop | 1.159,00 at digitalo.de | 1.164,00 at notebooksbilligerShould I buy an iPhone 16 Pro or iPhone 16 Pro Max? The iPhone 16 Pro and 16 Pro Max are Apples new pro iPhones for 2024. They also went on sale on September 20, 2024. They are good, but so are the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus, so this year you dont have to opt for Pro to get a great iPhone. Apple iPhone 15Read our reviewPrice When Reviewed:949Best Prices Today:807 at Alternate | 819 at Computeruniverse | 849 at AppleShould I buy a iPhone 15 or iPhone 15 Plus? When Apple introduced the iPhone 16 it dropped the price of the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus, which were introduced in September 2023. If you want to save some money and dont mind not having the latest iPhone it is a good time to get the 2023 model.Apple iPhone 15 ProRead our reviewBest Prices Today:1049 at Computeruniverse | 1.029,00 at coolblue | 1.059,00 at Media Markt Online ShopShould I buy a iPhone 15 Pro or iPhone 15 Pro Max? When Apple introduced the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max it discontinued these models. You may still be able to find the 2023 Pro models on sale though, and if you find them at a good price then they will still be a good purchase. Expect some good deals as resellers sell off old stock during Black Friday.Apple iPhone 14Read our reviewPrice When Reviewed:999Best Prices Today:659 at Alternate | 669 at Computeruniverse | 729 at AppleShould I buy an iPhone 14 or iPhone 14 Plus? You might be considering buying the cheaper iPhone 14 or 14 Plus which also saw a price drop in September 2024. These are two year old iPhones, so whether you consider it a good purchase will depend on how much money you are prepared to spend on a new iPhone. You could get a newer model for just $100/100 more. Apple iPhone SE (2022)Read our reviewBest Prices Today:446 at Alternate | 449 at Computeruniverse | 529 at AppleShould I buy an iPhone SE? We almost forgot to add this one. The iPhone SE is Apples smallest phone and the only iPhone with a Home button. If you want small and a home button you need to buy one now because we dont think Apple will be selling them for much longer. Read about Apples plans for the iPhone SE 4.It is worth noting that it is always worth holding on for the big sales if you can, we often find some good deals on older iPhone handsets, though not usually the newest models. There are two Amazon Prime Day sales one in July and one in October every year at which we may see some savings on iPhones, and at the end of November even more stores cutting the prices of iPhones for Black Friday. Apple doesnt drop the price of iPhones, but over Black Friday it offers vouchers alongside qualifying purchases in an Black Friday offer.We do see good deals all year round though, so take a look at our round-up of the best iPhone deals this month. We have also collected the Best iPhone 16 deals in the U.S. and the best iPhone 16 deals in the U.K.,as well as the best deals for the iPhone 15-series in the U.K. and thebest deals for the iPhone 15-series in the U.S.in separate articles. Also read: iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Pro deals and Best iPhone SE deals. When is the best time to buy an iPhone?Before you buy a new iPhone find out if Apples due to hold an event.FoundryIts easier to say when the worst time to buy a new iPhone is. That is without a doubt in the months leading up to September. So dont buy a new iPhone in August, unless you want to be kicking yourself a month later when the price of that model drops and a new model arrives. The only reason to buy an iPhone in the run-up to an Apple Event is if it is likely to be discontinued. Apple tends to discontinue the Pro and Pro Max models of the previous generation when it introduces the next generation, so if you want to buy one of those models you may want to buy one while you still can. However, wed suggest that it would be wise to wait for the next-gen version which is likely to present you with more for your money. Or take advantage of discounts as vendors sell off old stock after the new models arrive.The best time to buy an iPhone isnt necessarily when a new model launches either unless youre desperate to have the very latest hardware. You might be happy to wait a month or two after the launch and wait for supply to catch up with demand, and for any problems with the new phones to be identified and (hopefully) fixed. The other advantage of buying around the October/November time frame is that is when shopping events, like Black Friday, take place, but as we said above, we dont tend to see the newest iPhone models discounted much, or at all, at these events.Wed say that its fine to buy a new iPhone at any time within nine months of it launching, but if you are hoping to save some money on your purchase wed recommend waiting a few more months.When does Apple update the iPhone?Chris Martin / FoundryKnowing when the latest iPhones came out should help when making a judgment on whether there will be an update soon.Apple usually updates the iPhone range at an Apple Event in September. However, the iPhone SE is on a different schedule, with Apple introducing the iPhone SE models during the spring months (most recently March 2022), so a spring launch is possible. With rumors that a new larger iPhone SE could one day launch perhaps its worth waiting until the spring if that handset might suit you.iPhone 16 is the newest iPhone (it arrived in September 2024). The iPhone 16 will be followed in 2025 by the iPhone 17 and (possibly) an iPhone SE 4. See when is the next Apple event to find out if an Apple event is imminent. Read our iPhone buying guide and comparison of every iPhone available to buy today. When do iPhone prices drop?We know based on past experience that Apple is very unlikely to drop the price of an iPhone in the first year of sales.However, Apple does tend to reduce the price of the previous years iPhone when it introduces the new model so expect Apple to discount its handsets in September (and potentially in the spring if it introduces a new iPhone SE handset at that time). How much do prices drop when a new iPhone comes out?FoundryWhen Apple introduces new iPhones it usually keeps the prices the same, at least in the U.S. Prices for the iPhone 16 range are the same in the U.S. and U.K as the previous generation, but the price in Euros is less. In 2023 Apple dropped prices for the iPhone 15 range compared to the previous year in the U.K.At the same time as Apple introduces a new iPhone, it also reduces the price of existing models.Apple reduced the price of the iPhone 15 and 15 Plus by $100/100 in September 2024 when the iPhone 16 and 16 Plus were introduced. The price of the iPhone 14 and 14 Plus dropped in September 2023 and again in September 2024.Apples not the only place you can buy an iPhone and it certainly isnt the only one to discount the handsets. From time to time you will see deals from other resellers. We track these in our Best iPhone Deals round-up, so check that page regularly.Will there be Black Friday iPhone discounts?The earliest you could expect to get a discount on the newest iPhones is around Black Friday at the end of November, so you might be planning to hold out until then. However, the deals we tend to see, if any, are usually for older handsets so if you are hoping for a discounted iPhone 16 or iPhone 16 Pro following their launch you will probably be disappointed. Nor should you expect to get a discount in an Apple Black Friday 2024 sale. Apples Black Friday sale usually only takes the form of vouchers with select product purchases, rather than a discount, and it is unlikely that the newest iPhone would qualify as in previous years new iPhones havent been included. See our round-up of Best Black Friday 2024 iPhone deals to see what could be in store.Note that while shopping events like Black Friday gets all the attention, thats not the only time you can get discounts on Apple products: we see discounts all the time. Another event where we see good iPhone deals is Prime Day, which happens in July and October every year. So take a look at the iPhone deals for Amazon Prime Day sale to see what you might be able to save.In our experience, we dont tend to see discounts on the newest handset until the springand these are always from third-party resellers, never from Apple. In fact, we dont tend to see the iPhone discounted in the U.S. very often, most of the discounts we see are in the U.K. where unlocked iPhones are often sold off-contract at a good discount.Conclusion: Is now a good time to buy a new iPhone?The worst time to buy would be July or August, mainly because with new iPhones on the horizon the price of the older handsets are likely to drop very soon.If you want the newest iPhones then the best deals dont tend to come before the spring and summer months. If you are happy to buy an older iPhone then you will probably see decent deals around Prime Day and Black Friday but deals happen all year round.We hope this article has proved helpful in reaching an informed buying decision. Remember that good prices can be found all year round, if a retailer is feeling generous and you know where to look: read our guide to the best iPhone deals for more on that.Wondering how long Apple supports iPhones for? Read How long do iPhones last.

Sharing your Wi-Fi with family, friends, and guests just got easier in iOS 18 with a new QR code feature for hassle-free connections.Sharing Wi-Fi passwords in iOS 18With iOS 18, Apple introduced a streamlined way to share Wi-Fi access no more typing in long, complex passwords. Now, you can generate a secure QR code straight from the Passwords app, making it easy to connect friends or family to your network instantly.Here's how to set it up and start sharing with a few quick taps. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

Holiday Apple deals are ramping up on Amazon, and this loaded M3 MacBook Air makes one excellent gift at the lowest price on record.Get the lowest price ever on a loaded MacBook Air - Image credit: AppleWhether you're picking up the M3 MacBook Air 13-inch for yourself or a loved one, this loaded spec is sure to please thanks to an upgrade to 24GB unified memory and 512GB of storage. At $1,299, which is $200 off retail, it also delivers the lowest price on record since Apple increased the base amount of RAM in the M3 Air to 16GB last month.Buy for $1,299 Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums