Macworld Uk March 2021

MARCH 2021
MAC BUYING GUIDE

GET THE LOW-DOWN ON EACH MODEL
REVIEW:
AIRPODS MAX
HIGH-END HEADPHONES
THAT SOUND AS GOOD
AS THEY LOOK
CONTENTS
24
NEWS
38
4 Apple to launch education and
innovation hub
6 Apple to launch VR headset
as early as 2022
MAC
8 Next MacBook Air could get
even lighter and thinner
10 Next MacBook Pros might
dump the Touch Bar BUYING GUIDE
12 New rumour dashes hopes of 24 Which Mac should you buy?
a 5G Mac with Face ID
anytime soon AIRPODS MAX
14 iMac redesign in the works, 38 Review: AirPods Max
half-height Apple silicon Mac 47 Apple’s AirPods Max are
Pro coming this year ridiculously overpriced
16 Why Apple should release a
12in MacBook Air
20 It’s time for the Mac
to undergo a product-
design renaissance
2 Macworld • March 2021

80 89
57
iPHONE APPLE FITNESS+

51 iPhone 12 vs Samsung Galaxy 89 Apple Fitness+: Everything
S21: Which should you spend you need to know
your £800 on?
57 Will 2021 be the year Apple’s FEATURES
U1 chip goes wide? 94 Apple’s 2020 report card
61 Best network for iPhone 103 What is a Mini LED display
63 Best iPhone 12 cases and why do you want it?
APPLE WATCH HELP DESK

80 10 must-have apps for your 107 Help Desk
new Apple Watch
March 2021 • Macworld 3

NEWS
Apple to launch education

and innovation hub
Apple outlines numerous initiatives as part of its $100m investment
in the Racial Equity and Justice Initiative. Michael Simon reports
A
pple’s recent $100 million investment in the Racial
announcement might not Equity and Justice Initiative, the tech
have been as exciting giant recently unveiled several ways it
as a new iPhone, but its will be using its sizable investment.
impact could be just as monumental. First and foremost, Apple will be
As part of its previously announced launching a “first-of-its-kind global

innovation and learning hub” called Scholars programme also includes
the Propel Center (pictured left) mentorship and career development
in partnership with the Southern experience at the company.
Company and “a range of community Apple will also open an Apple
stakeholders”. Apple is contributing Developer Academy in Detroit in
$25 million to the Atlanta campus, collaboration the Michigan State
which it says “is designed to support University. Launching later in 2021,
the next generation of diverse the academy is “designed to empower
leaders, providing innovative young Black entrepreneurs, creators,
curricula, technology support, and coders, helping them cultivate
career opportunities, and fellowship the skills necessary for jobs in the
programs”. The centre will offer a rapidly growing iOS app economy”.
wide range of classes, including Courses will be available at all skill
a curriculum focused on music levels and will be divided into 30-day
business developed by Vydia, and and 10- to 12-month programmes
Apple “will help develop curricula regardless of skill level.
and provide ongoing mentorship and Apple is also investing $10 million
learning support, along with offering with Harlem Capital and $25 million in
internship opportunities”. Siebert Williams Shank’s Clear Vision
Additionally, Apple is also Impact Fund to support entrepreneurs
developing two new grants to of colour and support businesses that
support engineering programmes serve underserved markets. Apple
at Historically Black Colleges and is also making a donation to The
Universities as well as scholarships King Center, an establishment that
to 100 new Apple Scholars from honours Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
under-represented communities. The
company says that grants aim to help
students and faculty “develop their
silicon and hardware engineering
curriculum in partnership with Apple’s
experts”, while the scholarships will
be awarded to applicants in under-
represented communities. In addition
to financial support, the Apple

NEWS
Credit: Getty Images/Azat_ajphotos

Apple to launch VR
headset as early as 2022
The VR headset is positioned as a precursor to mainstream
augmented reality glasses. Jason Cross reports
A
new report from says that Apple plans to first sell
Bloomberg gives us some a very high-end VR (virtual reality)
updated information on headset as early as next year before
Apple’s virtual reality moving on to AR (augmented reality)
and augmented reality plans. Mark glasses in a few years.
Gurman, who has a very good record The report claims that Apple “isn’t
with these sorts of insider-info leaks, looking to create an iPhone-like hit

for its first headset”, but rather a of development and not expected to
high-end, expensive, niche product launch for several years.
that would appeal to developers and
well-heeled consumers, preparing
everyone for an eventual mass-market
AR glasses product.
The headset, code-named N301,
is expected to be more expensive
than VR products from Oculus, so
much so that Apple may only sell a
single unit a day per Apple Store. That
works out to less than 200,000 units
for the year, putting it in the same
rarefied air as the Mac Pro.
The headset is said to include
some of Apple’s most powerful
chips (some even faster than the
M1), along with displays that are
higher-resolution than those found
in competing devices. It has external
cameras for “some AR features”
and hand-tracking, with Apple even
testing the ability for users to type in
the air for text input. It has also been
designed with a fan, which may be a
challenge in a VR headset. Gurman
says the headset is in a prototype
stage and plans can change or even
be scrapped entirely before launch,
which could be as soon as next year.
The headset is meant as a
precursor to the company’s AR
glasses, code-named N421, which
are in an earlier ‘architecture’ stage

MAC
Next MacBook Air could

get even lighter and thinner
Apple’s consumer-level laptop could see a redesign later this year
or in early 2022. Roman Loyola reports
T
he MacBook Air is Apple’s plans to release the redesigned
thinnest and lightest laptop, MacBook Air later this year or in 2022.
but it seems the company Apple will shrink the laptop by
wants to make it even making the bezel smaller, though
thinner and lighter. That’s according the screen will still be 13 inches. The
to a recent report by Bloomberg’s current MacBook Air has a width of
Mark Gurman, who says that Apple about 12 inches and a depth of 8.36

inches. When closed, the height of lap, table or desk. But Apple switched
the current model tapers, measuring to USB-C charging with the 2018
0.16 inches at its shortest point, and MacBook Air redesign and dumped
0.63 inches at its tallest. Presumably, MagSafe. To that end, Gurman reports
shrinking the bezel will make the width that the new MacBook Air will still
and depth smaller, though Gurman have two USB 4/Thunderbolt ports in
doesn’t state if the new MacBook Air addition to MagSafe.
will still have the tapered height. Gurman also states that Apple
Earlier this year, DigiTimes posted is considering a 15in MacBook Air,
an unconfirmed report that said that but it will not be ready “for the next
the MacBook Air will have a Mini LED generation”. The report also says
display in 2022. In December 2020, a new 16in MacBook Pro could
analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said that Apple bring back the SD card slot that
could release a new “affordable” was jettisoned in 2016 and Apple
MacBook Air in 2022 that uses a Mini is working on Macs with cellular
LED display. Bloomberg’s report does connectivity and Face ID, “but neither
not address these Mini LED rumours. feature appears to be coming soon”.
The new MacBook Air could
also have MagSafe. MagSafe is a
magnetic power connector that was
originally introduced with the 2006
MacBook Pro, but Apple removed
it from the MacBook Air in 2018 and
stopped implementing it in all its
laptops in 2019. MagSafe was reborn
with the iPhone 12, and rumour has
it that the upcoming Apple silicon-
based MacBook Pro will have a
MagSafe connector.
It was a favourite feature with
long-time Mac laptop users with its
ability to disconnect with a yank of the
cord, helping to prevent the laptop
from accidentally flying off a user’s

MAC
Next MacBook Pros might

dump the Touch Bar
Ming-Chi Kuo and Mark Gurman agree that big changes are on the
way. Michael Simon reports
A
fter launching the first TFT Securities analyst Ming-Chi
M1 MacBook Pro in Kuo reiterates rumours that a new 14in
November, all eyes have MacBook Pro is coming alongside a
turned toward the next refreshed 16in model, both of which
releases. According to two reports will feature the next generation of
from the most accurate analysts Apple silicon featuring “more cores
in the business, they could deliver and enhanced graphics”, according
everything we want. to a similar report from Bloomberg’s

Mark Gurman. They might also A somewhat controversial decision
bring a new design. According to that arrived in 2016, the Touch Bar is
MacRumours, Kuo says the new a small display above the number key
models “cancel the curvy design that brings additional functionality
of existing models’ top and bottom beyond the usual function keys. In his
parts and adopt a flat-edged form report, Kuo claims “the OLED touch
factor design similar to the iPhone bar is removed, and the physical
12”. Presumably, that’s referring to the function buttons are restored”, while
corners of the case, but Kuo doesn’t Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reports
offer any other clues. Gurman says that Apple has “tested versions that
the new MacBooks “will look similar remove the Touch Bar”.
to the current versions, albeit with As far as the displays, Bloomberg
minor design changes”. reports they won’t just be bigger,
Kuo and Gurman also agree that they’ll also be brighter as well with
MagSafe will be returning. Apple killed “higher-contrast panels”. Apple could
off the quick-connecting magnetic turn to mini LED for the new screens
MagSafe in favour of USB-C several as has been previously rumoured.
years ago, but brought back the
name and magnetic concept with the
iPhone 12. Kuo doesn’t supply any
additional detail other than saying the
technology will be “restored”, though
Bloomberg sheds some additional
light on the rumour: “The connector
will be similar to the elongated pill-
shape design of the older MagSafe
port. Despite moving away from
USB-C for charging, Apple will still
include multiple USB-C ports on its
future Macs.” The report also says
the MagSafe report will allow the
MacBooks to charge “at a faster rate”.
Even more surprising are claims
that Apple will be killing the Touch Bar.

MAC
New rumour dashes

hopes of a 5G Mac with
Face ID anytime soon
It looks like we’ll have to wait. Michael Simon reports
T
he new M1 Macs have According to a new Bloomberg report,
opened up a world of Apple isn’t rushing to add 5G or Face
possibility for Apple’s ID to Macs this year.
computers, but two of That will be a disappointment to
the most sought-after features anyone hoping for a speedy transition
might take a little longer to arrive. to a truly next-gen Mac. While a new

iMac, MacBook Pro and MacBook Air Mac, but it appears as though it might
could be on the way this year, they take a little longer.
will likely stick to the same standard
set of features, possibly with new
designs. Bloomberg reports that
while Apple is indeed working on 5G
cellular connectivity and Face ID for
the Mac, it’s not part of the next round
of 2021 releases.
Specifically, the report targets the
iMac as the first model to get Face
ID for unlocking and authentication,
but Bloomberg says the feature,
which “had originally been planned to
arrive in this year’s iMac redesign”, is
now “unlikely” to be included in the
model releasing later this year. The
iMac is one of the few devices Apple
makes that doesn’t use biometrics for
secure authentication.
Face ID has long been on our
Mac wish list, with Microsoft having
already integrated the feature in
Windows 10 with Windows Hello. Face
ID debuted with the iPhone X in 2017
and has since made its way to the
iPad Pro, but Apple has yet to expand
the technology to any other products.
The addition of cellular
connectivity is another long-awaited
feature that Apple has yet to deliver
to the Mac. After 5G arrived on the
iPhone in the autumn, there was hope
that Apple would quickly bring it the

MAC
iMac redesign in the works,

half-height Apple silicon
Mac Pro coming this year
This year could see a new look for the iMac and Mac Pro with Apple
silicon. Roman Loyola reports
I
f recent rumours are any says that new iMacs and Mac Pros are
indication, 2021 is going to be a coming this year, as well.
landmark year for the Mac. We Rumour has it that the iMac will
recently saw reports stating that be redesigned to resemble Apple’s
Apple will ship 14- and 16in MacBook Pro Display XDR. Bloomberg’s Mark
Pros with MagSafe, Apple silicon with Gurman last month reiterated the
more cores and enhanced GPUs, and XDR-like redesign, with 21.5-and
a case redesign. Now, another report 27in models that have a screen with

a much smaller bezel, no ‘chin’, and a display that’s more affordable
a flat back instead of the curved one and consumer friendly than the
the current iMac. Pro Display XDR (which starts at
It’s been a long while since the £4,599). Gurman states that Apple is
iMac saw a change in form. The in “early development” of a cheaper
current design was introduced 2004 display that “wouldn’t have the
with an iMac G5 that used a white brightness and contrast ratio” of the
plastic case around an LCD. In 2007, Pro Display XDR.
Apple kept the design but switched to
a silver aluminium case. In 2012, Apple
switched to the design that is still in
use today, with the edges of the case
that taper to about 5mm.
Gurman also reports that Apple is
working on two Mac Pro models. One
of the Mac Pro models will an Apple-
designed system on a chip (SoC),
but in a case that’s half the size of
the current Mac Pro and “a mostly
aluminium exterior”. He adds that the
new design could remind people of
the Power Mac G4 Cube.
Interestingly, the other Mac Pro
model is an update to the current
design and could still use Intel
processors. Using Intel chips could
address concerns about compatibility
with software and hardware in
production environments.
No information was given on
pricing and ship dates on the new
iMacs and Mac Pros.
Rumours have also floated
around that Apple could be making

MAC
Why Apple should release

a 12in MacBook Air
Go M1 and go smaller. Jason Snell reports
I
’ve been a fan of tiny Mac laptops MacBook Air. Is the Air as small as a
for many years. From the 12in Mac laptop can get? I don’t think so.
PowerBook G4 to the iBook to And that’s why I think Apple should
the 11in MacBook Air, I’ve always bring back the 12in MacBook.
opted for the smallest laptop I could
get my hands on. And yet, with the LET’S GET SMALL
discontinuation of the 12in MacBook, First, I’ve got to admit that the
the smallest Apple goes is the 13in MacBook Air is a small laptop. Back

in the days of the 11-
and 13in MacBook Air
models, I preferred
the 11in model. Casual
observers of the
MacBook Air might
not realize that it
downsized during
the transition to
the Retina display
model, but it did. The
Retina MacBook
Air measures The 2016 MacBook.
304.1x212.4x16.1mm
and weighs 1.29kg. as the old model, either. Fortunately,
In fact, the Retina MacBook Air Apple has already designed a Retina
is only 4.1mm wider than the 11in Air. successor to the 11in MacBook Air.
That’s not nothing, but it’s much
closer to the size of the 11in Air than BRING BACK THE
the 13in model. It’s deeper, to be sure MACBOOK
(10.4mm), so it’s not quite halfway When it first appeared, many of us
between the two models in that thought that the 12in Retina MacBook
dimension. In terms of weight, the was a preview of the Apple silicon
1.29kg Retina MacBook Air is slightly Mac revolution to come, all thin and
heavier than the 1.08kg 11in Air. light and fanless. It wasn’t. Instead, it
What I’m saying is, users of the old was powered by slow, low-power Intel
13in MacBook Air have found that the processors and was discontinued a
Retina model is a little bit lighter and couple of years before Apple finally
more compact, which is great. But made the move to its own chips.
former 11in MacBook Air users like And yet the MacBook’s dimensions
me will find switching to the modern make it clear that there’s still a smaller
MacBook Air a bit disconcerting. It’s Mac laptop to be made. Measuring
better than the old 13in model that 280.5x196.5x13.1mm and weighing
we opted against, but it’s not as good 920g, the MacBook was smaller and

MAC
If Apple brings back a MacBook, it needs to have more than one USB-C port.
lighter than the 11in Air, although it A lot of those changes would
was a tiny bit deeper. just come as a natural part of the
Let’s be clear, a 1.29kg laptop is upgrade to an M1 processor. The
pretty great. But you know what’s old MacBook was hamstrung by the
better? A 920g laptop, which is what poor performance of low-power Intel
the MacBook was. There’s a 12in processors that had to run slow in
MacBook still in use in my house, and order to keep operating in the laptop’s
when I pick it up I do a double-take. fanless enclosure. Of course, we know
It’s just so much less than my M1 from the M1 MacBook Air that Apple
MacBook Air. It really takes me back has managed to create a fanless
to the 11in Air in a way the current laptop that provides performance
model doesn’t. the likes of which we’ve only see
on high-end Macs before. It’s not
SOME IMPROVEMENT unreasonable to imagine that an M1
NEEDED MacBook would be as speedy and
Not convinced yet? Okay, I will admit capable as an M1 MacBook Air.
that despite its delightful size, the The MacBook also had some
12in MacBook was hardly a perfect serious deficiencies when it came to
product. If Apple is to bring it back, it peripherals. As in, it only had a single
needs to make some changes. USB-C port. Any M1 Mac is going to

support Thunderbolt, of course, and of MacBook Air for years, and both
I would hope that Apple would find a models proved popular.
little bit of room in any new MacBook As much as I love my M1 MacBook
for a second port, just as there are Air, I would drop it in a heartbeat
two ports on both M1 laptops. for a 12in model that looked like the
Finally, there’s the keyboard. Retina MacBook. There’s room in the
The butterfly keyboard design Mac laptop line for a smaller, lighter
that debuted on the MacBook and MacBook. I promise it won’t take up
gradually migrated to the entire Mac very much space.
laptop line was a multi-year disaster
for Apple that it’s only recently
addressed. Obviously, that keyboard’s
not going to work. But Apple has
already done the redesign work,
twice – first for the Magic Keyboard
in modern Mac laptops, and second
for the Magic Keyboard for iPad Pro.
Surely one of those designs would
be thin and light enough to be tucked
into a new MacBook.
WHAT’S IN A NAME?
To be honest, the worst part of the
MacBook is its name. Not that the
name MacBook doesn’t have a proud
legacy, but that it’s both the name of
a specific computer model and the
name of an entire product line.
I’d like to add a rider to my
proposal that Apple bring back
the 12in MacBook: why not just
call it the 12in MacBook Air? The
company already has two sizes of
MacBook Pros. There were two sizes

MAC
It’s time for the Mac

to undergo a product-
design renaissance
Now it’s the Mac’s turn to flourish again. Jason Snell reports
J
ust as I wrapped up a I looked and – yep. Despite the
series I worked on most of Intel Mac era lasting 15 years, the
last year about the most only Mac on my list that originated in
notable Macs of all time that era was the second-generation
(see fave.co/3qVbK82), I received a MacBook Air. I considered several
comment on Twitter about a specific others, but they didn’t make the cut.
peculiarity about my list that I’d I was surprised by Jay’s comment,
never considered. but the more I thought about it, the
“It’s super interesting to me that more it made sense to me. During
only one Intel machine made it,” the 2010s, Apple took a remarkably
wrote Jay Parlar. conservative approach to the Mac

– with a few oddball exceptions that MacBook Pros. The iBook was
prove the rule. introduced as a brightly coloured
portable iMac, then moved to a
EYE OFF THE BALL monochrome plastic enclosure. Power
Apple invested a huge amount of Macs were introduced with plastic
effort in renovating the Mac in the handles and bright colours – and then
early days of Steve Jobs’s return to the colours were slowly muted away
Apple. After introducing the original until the plastic was replaced with a
G3 iMac, Apple turned over the entire perforated aluminium shell.
product line multiple times in just a But by the time of the Intel
few years. (There were also some transition, the complete revamp of the
failed forays, now largely forgotten, Mac was largely complete. The iPod
into areas like server hardware.) had become a huge hit and Apple’s
This was the biggest creative most intense design focus turned to
flourishing in the Mac ever. The iMac new products – leading to the arrival
added fashion colours, morphed of the iPhone and iPad.
into a round computer with a What would have happened if
floating display, and then took up Apple had kept intently focusing on
the computer-
within-display
approach that
we still see
today. The
PowerBook
became rubbery
black with a
shiny white
Apple logo, then
transformed
again into a thin
silver metallic
model that’s
not too far off Apple used to regularly offer new designs of its Macs. Then
from today’s Apple turned its focus to the iPhone, iPad, and other products.

MAC
evolving Mac designs? We’ll never 2012 model, it’s been nine years since
know, but given the importance of the the iMac design changed.
iPhone and iPad to Apple’s bottom The Mac mini looks more or less
line, de-emphasizing the Mac was identical to how it looked in 2005
probably the right call during that era. when it was introduced. It got thinner
and flatter and switched from a plastic
FROZEN IN TIME and aluminium case to all aluminium
Now consider the current Mac product in 2010, but since then there’s been
line. It would be instantly recognizable nothing to report.
to a visitor from the early 2010s. The Mac Pro – well, here’s that
Apple introduced the first all- exception that proves the rule. In 2013
screen iMac in 2004, though it was Apple introduced a new, cylindrical
made of white plastic. It’s probably Mac Pro – Apple’s first major Mac
fair to call the 2007 aluminium iMac design change in several years. It
the true progenitor of all current was a flop, and six years later Apple
iMacs, though in 2012 it reached replaced it with a new model equipped
its final form, dropping the internal with handles and a perforated design
optical drive and turning into the very that are very clearly just a new take
iMac models still being sold today. on the ‘cheese grater’ Power Mac G5
Even charitably measuring from the enclosure introduced in 2003.
On the laptop side,
the second-generation
MacBook Air was the
definitive Mac of the
2010s and influenced
the design of modern
laptops immensely. But it
was introduced in 2010.
Even if you don’t consider
the Titanium PowerBook
G4 the originator of
Apple’s laptop designs,
The Mac Pro is the only Mac that has had a major it’s hard not to look at
design change in recent years. the Air and see it as the

source of every single thin, light, be more emblematic of the Mac’s
(mostly) silver laptop that Apple last decade.
makes to this day. With all of this said, it might
Of course, Macs have evolved a lot surprise you to discover that I’m
in the intervening years on the inside. optimistic about the future of
But the exteriors of Apple’s Macs Mac design. The arrival of Apple
look remarkably like they did in 2012, silicon feels to me like an immense
if not 2007. It’s been a decade or opportunity. I think Apple has been
more of quiet iteration without really gearing up for this switch for a long
rethinking the fundamentals of the time, and the move to a hardware
product – except that one time, which platform Apple controls should leave
Apple rapidly came to regret. to another flurry of creative activity
that will shape the Macs we use for
INTO THE 2020S the next decade or more.
Perhaps Apple’s burst of creativity in It’s time for Apple to put it all on
the first decade of this century was the table. What does the definitive
enough. Perhaps it solved computer laptop of the 2020s look like? How
design, and there’s no point in trying can the iMac be reinvented, based
to re-think things. But I don’t think it on how users and technology have
works that way. changed between 2007 and now?
While Apple has seemingly been Can the rise of touch, the unassuming
content to continue selling its thin, cleverness of the Apple Pencil, the
silver laptops, PC-makers have been easy and secure power of Face ID
trying new things, convertibles and and the versatility offered by an
detachables and two-in-ones and all avalanche of smart connectors and
sorts of other approaches. Do they sensor technologies help redefine
work? Maybe, maybe not. what it means to use a Mac?
The Apple silicon transition has These aren’t easy problems to
begun in the most conservative solve, but Apple has some of the best
fashion – just as it did the Intel people in the industry working on their
transition. The first M1 Macs are product design. We’ve seen enormous
comfortable and familiar – nothing innovation in most of Apple’s product
changed on the outside, everything lines over the past decade. Now it’s
different on the inside. They couldn’t the Mac’s turn to flourish again.

BUYING GUIDE
Which Mac should you buy?

When it comes to buyinh a Mac, we’ve got the low-down on each
model to help you make a buying decision. Roman Loyola reports
I
f you’re reading this article, then Who’s it for? The MacBook Air is
the chances are you’re thinking ideal for the budget conscious. It’s
about buying a new Mac computer also for anyone who is always on the
and may be in need of a little go, doesn’t want to be bogged down
guidance. Fortunately, we’re quite by a regular-size laptop and needs
familiar with Apple’s Macs, and a computer that’s more versatile
we’re happy to help you choose the than an iPad.
right Mac for you. This buying guide
provides an overview of all the Mac What are the specifications? The two
models available, and what each MacBook Air models have Apple’s M1
model is best suited for. system on a chip, which features an
8-core CPU, 16-core Neural Engine,
MACBOOK AIR and 8GB of RAM (upgradeable to
Models for sale were originally 16GB). Apple claims 15 hours of
released November 2020. battery life for wireless web and 18
hours Apple TV app movie playback.
What is it? The MacBook Air is Apple’s The main difference between
affordable line of laptops. It currently the models offered is the GPU and
offers two 13in models. storage. The £999 model has a

7-core GPU and
a 256GB SSD,
while the £1,249
model has an
8-core GPU and a
512GB SSD.
How do I connect
stuff? The MacBook
Air has only a pair of
Thunderbolt/USB
4 connectors. If you
want to connect
USB-A devices, you
need either a USB-C
to USB adapter, like
Apple’s £19 one, or a
USB-C hub that has
USB-A ports.
The MacBook The MacBook Air is one of the fastest laptops around.
Air has built-in
Wi-Fi for connecting to a network. for general purpose use. But because
It also provides built-in Bluetooth it doesn’t have a fan to keep the
for wirelessly connecting a mouse computer cool, it may throttle down
or other peripherals. If you want to its speed during long processing
connect to an Ethernet network, sessions, such as video editing or
you’ll need an adapter. compiling code. But even then, it’s
still plenty fast.
How fast is it? The MacBook Air is
one of the fastest laptops around, full Verdict: The MacBook Air is a great
stop. The M1 provides performance affordable laptop for someone who
that is leaps and bounds faster than does general-purpose work and
what was previously found in the moves around a lot, such as a student
MacBook Air. It’s plenty fast enough or a self-employed person. You can’t

BUYING GUIDE
easily upgrade the storage or memory All laptops include the Touch Bar
after purchase, so you should buy interface at the top of the keyboard.
the model with the largest amount of There are four 13in models:
storage you can afford.
£1,299 model: Apple 8-core M1
MACBOOK PRO system on a chip with 8GB of
M1-based 13in models were released memory, an 8-core GPU, and a 16-
November 2020. Intel-based 13in core Neural Engine; 256GB SSD,
models were released May 2020. 16in two Thunderbolt 3 ports
models released November 2019. £1,499 model: Apple 8-core M1
system on a chip with 8GB of
What is it? The MacBook Pro is memory, an 8-core GPU, and a 16-
Apple’s high-performance laptop. core Neural Engine; 512GB SSD, two
Thunderbolt 3 ports
Who’s it for? The MacBook Pro is £1,799 model: 2GHz quad-core Intel
for the demanding user who wants Core i5 (10th generation) processor,
a portable computer that also 16GB of memory, Intel Iris Plus
performs well. Graphics integrated graphics, 512GB
SSD, four Thunderbolt 3 ports
What are the specifications? The £1,999 model: 2GHz quad-core Intel
MacBook Pro is available in screen Core i5 (10th generation) processor,
sizes of 13 inches and 16 inches. 16GB of memory, Intel Iris Plus
The MacBook pro is available to buy with a 16- or 13in screen.

Graphics integrated graphics, 1TB How do I connect stuff? No need to
SSD, four Thunderbolt 3 ports worry about wireless connectivity: it
has Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.
The 13in Retina display has a It’s the wired connectivity you need
native resolution of 2,560x1,600, and to be concerned with. The MacBook
macOS offers a scaled resolution up Pro has only Thunderbolt 3 ports,
to 1,680x1,050. which are compatible with USB-C. The
Apple has two 16in MacBook Pros: £1,299 and £1,499 13in MacBook Pro
models have two ports, while every
£2,399 model: 2.6GHz 6-core Intel other MacBook model has four.
Core i7 (9th generation) processor, If you have a Thunderbolt 3 device,
16GB of memory, 512GB SSD, Intel you can plug it directly into the laptop.
UHD Graphics 630 integrated The same goes for any USB-C device.
graphics, 4GB Radeon Pro 5300M However, if you have wired devices
discrete graphics, four Thunderbolt that aren’t USB-C or Thunderbolt
3 ports 3, you’ll need an adapter. We have a
£2,799 model: 2.3GHz 8-core Intel separate MacBook Pro Thunderbolt
Core i7 (9th generation) processor, 3 adapter guide to help you decide
16GB of memory, 1TB SSD, Intel UHD which ones you’ll need. Unfortunately,
Graphics 630 integrated graphics, be prepared to shell out a good
4GB Radeon Pro 5500M discrete amount of extra cash.
graphics, four Thunderbolt 3 ports
How fast is it? The MacBook Pro
The 16in Retina display has a models are, to no surprise, the fastest
native resolution of 3,072x1,920, and laptops Apple has ever released. If
macOS’s highest scaled resolution on it’s processing power you seek, it’s
those laptops is 2,048x1,280. the MacBook Pro you want. There is a
thing you need to consider regarding
What is the Touch Bar? The Touch the MacBook Pro. In November 2020,
Bar is an input device that sits on Apple updated the £1,299 and £1,499
top of the keyboard. The buttons and models with its own M1 system on a
controls available on the Touch Bar chip, replacing the Intel processors
change depending on the software used previously. The M1 is fast – it
you are using. makes these two laptops faster than

BUYING GUIDE
the £1,799 and £1,999 Intel-based Apple will update the other
models, and in some situations, it’s MacBook Pro models with its system
faster than the 16in MacBook Pro. on a chip, so if you can wait, the wait
will pay off. You’ll get a really fast
What about the 15in MacBook Pro? laptop. If your work mostly involves
Apple replaced the 15in model with Internet access and other productivity
the 16in MacBook Pro in November tasks, however, go for a MacBook Air.
2019. If you really want a 15in model,
try looking in Apple’s Refurbished MAC MINI
and Clearance Store. Models for sale were originally
released November 2020.
Verdict: For the most demanding
mobile Mac user – someone whose What is it? The Mac mini is Apple’s
work requires a lot of processing smallest desktop Mac. It’s a
power – the MacBook Pro is the nice combination of speed and
ticket. However, the MacBook Pro affordability. It’s not only fast enough
is in a transition period because of for general-purpose use, but its multi-
Apple’s switch from Intel processors core speed is quite good – if you use
to its own system on a chip. At the a professional app like a video editor,
time of writing, only two of the six 3D software, or developer tools, the
different models are available with Mac mini can handle it, no problem.
Apple’s M1. And the M1 outperforms
the other MacBook Pro models. Who’s it for? Because of its price and
If speed is you priority over performance, the Mac mini is a great
everything else – port connectivity Mac for just about anybody. It makes
and screen size aren’t serious for an ideal primary Mac for a home
considerations – get a £1,299 or or small office. Professionals on a
£1,499 13in MacBook Pro with budget will be satisfied with the Mac
Apple’s M1 system on a chip. mini. If you’re switching from a PC,
If you want speed, but also want you can use your PC’s keyboard and
more ports, consider the £1,799 13in mouse with the Mac mini. The Mac
MacBook Pro or the 16in MacBook mini is also ideal as a secondary Mac
Pro. They’re still fast and they offer in your home, and it can integrate into
more ports than the M1 models. your home entertainment centre.

What are the specifications? Apple How do I connect stuff? Like Apple’s
sells three Mac mini models: other Macs, the Mac mini has Wi-Fi
and Bluetooth. The £699 and £899
£699 model: Apple 8-core M1 system M1-based Mac minis have two
on a chip with 8GB of memory, an Thunderbolt/USB 4 ports, while the
8-core GPU and a 16-core Neural £1,099 Intel-based Mac mini has
Engine; 256GB SSD four Thunderbolt 3/USB-C ports. All
£899 model: Apple 8-core M1 system Mac minis have two USB-A ports, an
on a chip with 8GB of memory, an HDMI 2.0 port, a headphone jack and
8-core GPU and a 16-core Neural a gigabit Ethernet port.
Engine; 512GB SSD To connect a display, you can use
£1,099 model: 3GHz 6-core Core the HDMI port or a Thunderbolt port.
i5 (eighth generation) CPU, 8GB You might have to buy an adapter
of memory, integrated Intel UHD if your display doesn’t have either
Graphics 630 GPU, 512GB SSD. HDMI or a port that can connect to
Thunderbolt.
The Mac mini does not include a
display, keyboard or mouse, so you’ll How fast is it? The £699 and £899
have to provide your own – or you can M1-based Mac minis are very fast. In
customize your order to include these fact, they are as fast as the 13in M1
devices as extra-cost options. MacBook Pro. As of this writing, the
Since the Mac mini lacks an optical £699 M1 Mac mini gives you the best
drive, you need to buy an external performance for the price of any Mac
USB optical drive if you want to read that Apple offers. It’s impressive.
or burn CDs and DVDs. The £1,099 Intel-based Mac mini
offers good speed,
but it’s not as
fast as the M1
models. The
Intel model
is the only
one that
allows you to
The mini is an excellent machine for most Mac users. install 32GB

BUYING GUIDE
or 64GB of RAM,
so if you do heavy
production work, it
might be a better fit
for you.
Verdict: The Mac

mini is an excellent
machine for most
Mac users – new
or experienced,
professional or
general consumer.
For you’re on a
budget or not, it’s a
great choice.
The iMac is great for both novices and
iMAC more demanding users.
Model for sale originally released in
June 2017. Apple has two versions of ideal for someone who needs to
the iMac. Let’s go over the standard buy a complete computer setup
iMac first, followed by the iMac with (keyboard, mouse or trackpad, and
Retina display. display) and wants to maximize
workspace efficiency.
What is it? The iMac is Apple’s What are the specifications? One
iconic all-in-one computer. Made of standard iMac model is available
aluminium, it has a built-in display and with a 21.5in 1,920x1,080-resolution
looks stately as it sits on a desk. It display. It has a 256GB SSD.
also offers top-notch performance. The entry-level 21.5in £1,099 iMac
has a 2.3GHz dual-core Intel Core i5
Who’s it for? The iMac is great for processor and Intel Iris Plus Graphics
both novices and demanding users. 640 integrated graphics. You can’t
It can handle general-purpose and upgrade the 21.5in iMac yourself after
heavy-duty tasks equally well. It’s you buy it, so consider paying an extra

£200 at the outset for a memory as fast as an SSD. The £1,099 iMac
upgrade to 16GB. If you want to add has an attractive price, but you make
more RAM later, you need to bring sacrifices in performance.
the iMac to an Apple store. The 21.5in
iMac also offers a 1TB Fusion Drive Verdict: For new Mac owners, the
upgrade for no additional cost, but £1,099 iMac is a good alternative
the Fusion Drive is slower than the to the Mac mini. On a 21.5in iMac,
256GB SSD. the 8GB of RAM should be fine, but
The iMac comes with Apple’s buying the RAM upgrade at the point
Magic Keyboard and Magic Mouse of purchase could help you avoid
2. If you order online from the Apple some hassle in the future.
Store, however, you can switch the
keyboard to a version with a numeric iMAC WITH
keypad, and/or switch the mouse to a RETINA DISPLAY
Magic Trackpad 2. You can opt to get 21.5in models for sale were originally
both a Magic Mouse 2 and a Magic released March 2019. 27in models
Trackpad 2 for £129 extra. for sale were originally released
The iMac does not have an optical August 2020.
drive. If you want to read or burn
CDs and DVDs, you need to buy an What is it? The iMac with Retina
external USB optical drive. display is like Apple’s standard iMac,
but with an ultra high-resolution
How do I connect stuff? Wi-Fi and display and faster components.
Bluetooth are built-in. All iMacs have
four USB 3.0 ports, two Thunderbolt Who’s it for? The Retina iMac is
3 ports, a gigabit Ethernet port and designed for professionals who work
an SDXC card slot. with high-resolution videos, photos or
images. Or it’s for the demanding user
How fast is it? iMacs are among who wants the best image quality for
Apple’s fastest computers, however, everyday use.
the £1,099 iMac is Apple’s slowest
iMac. Also, if you upgrade to a Fusion What are the specifications? Apple
Drive, you get a significant amount calls its two 21.5in models the 21.5in
of storage, but a Fusion Drive isn’t iMac with Retina 4K display. These

BUYING GUIDE
iMacs have a 4096x2304 resolution £2,299 27in model: 3.8GHz 8-core

screen. More details: Intel Core i7 processor, 8GB of RAM,
8GB Radeon Pro 5500 XT graphics
£1,299 21.5in model: 3.6GHz and a 512GB SSD
quad-core Intel Core i3 processor,
8GB of RAM, 2GB Radeon Pro 555X Users can upgrade the RAM on
graphics and a 256GB SSD the 27in iMac easily. The machine has
£1,499 21.5in model: 3GHz 6-core four RAM slots, accessible through
Intel Core i5 processor, 8GB of RAM, the back. Apple installs the standard
a 256GB SSD and 4GB Radeon Pro 8GB as a pair of 4GB memory
560X graphics modules, so you can add more RAM
after you buy the system. Or if you
Apple’s 27in iMacs (called the 27in prefer, you can upgrade the RAM at
iMac with Retina 5K display) come the point of purchase.
with a 5,120x2,880-resolution Retina The 27in £1,999 and £2,299 Retina
display. Apple offers three models of iMacs have the option of standard
the 27in Retina iMac. More details: glass or nano-texture glass (£500)
£1,799 27in
model: 3.1GHz
6-core Intel Core
i5 processor, 8GB
of RAM, 4GB
Radeon Pro 5300
graphics and
256GB SSD
£1,999 27in
model: 3.3GHz
6-core Intel Core
i5 processor, 8GB
of RAM, 4GB
Radeon Pro 5300
graphics and a
512GB SSD The 27in Retina iMac’s display looks fantastic.

in front of the display. The standard iMAC PRO
glass is glossy, while the nano-texture Models for sale were originally
glass has a matte-like finish that released December 2017.
produces less glare.
What is it? The iMac Pro is an all-
How do I connect stuff? Wi-Fi and in-one computer like the iMac,
Bluetooth are built-in. All Retina but it contains workstation-class
iMacs have four USB 3.0 ports, components for handling heavy-duty,
two Thunderbolt 3 ports, a gigabit complex computations.
Ethernet port and an SDXC card slot.
Who’s it for? This is the computer
How fast is it? The Retina iMacs are for people who with the most
among Apple’s fastest computers demanding tasks. It’s targeted at
when it comes to single-core creative professionals, scientists and
performance. When it comes to software developers.
multi-core speed, the Mac Pros are
faster machines, but the iMacs with What are the specifications? The iMac
6-core processors have closed the Pro uses workstation-class Intel Xeon
gap. You can improve the multi-core W processors. The processors are
performance by opting for the 3.6GHz available with 8, 10, 14 or 18 cores.
10-core Core i9 upgrade in the 27in The iMac Pro will come standard
£1,999 and £2,299 models, or the with 32GB of 2,666MHz DDR4 ECC
3.2GHz 6-core Core i7 upgrade in memory. You can configure it to
the 21.5in model. You’ll pay more, 64GB or 128GB. The RAM is not user
but it may be worth it to your for the upgradeable, though; if you want to
performance boost. add more RAM later, you need to bring
the iMac Pro to a service provider.
Verdict: The allure of the Retina The storage device is a 1TB
display is strong; you’ll love the way SSD, with options for 2TB or 4TB.
it looks. You may not love the way The graphics card is a Radeon
the price looks, however. If you are Pro Vega 56 graphics processor
hesitant about the price, it won’t take with 8GB of HBM2 memory, with
long to get over it, once you’ve used upgrades available. Pricing starts
the Retina iMac for a couple of weeks. at £4,999 for the 8-core model with

BUYING GUIDE
How fast is it? The machine is a

multi-processing beast, designed to
work with pro-level apps that demand
multiple processing cores. Apple has
issued different configurations of the
iMac Pro to select users, including
mechanical and aerospace
engineer Craig A. Hunter,
director and photographer
Vincent Laforet, and YouTubers
Marques Brownlee and
Jonathan Morrison, and all
of them say the speed is
very impressive.
In our review of the
iMac Pro, we confirmed
that the new Mac is at
its best with software
The iMac Pro is a multi-processing beast. that can take advantage of
processors with multiple cores. And
32GB of RAM, a 1TB SSD and 8GB the iMac Pro’s graphics performance
Radeon Pro Vega 56 graphics. is spectacular, thanks to the Radeon
The iMac Pro comes in an Pro Vega. If you use software that’s
aluminium space grey case. It also geared for single-core performance
has matching space grey Magic (which includes many general
Keyboard with a numeric keypad and consumer apps), you won’t see a
Magic Mouse 2. marked increase. In fact, we found
that the iMac Pro is similar in single-
How do I connect stuff? Wi-Fi and core performance to a 2014 Core i7
Bluetooth are included for wireless 5K iMac. You’re better off with a new
connectivity. The back of the iMac 5K iMac in this case.
Pro has four USB 3 ports, four
Thunderbolt 3 ports, a 10-gigabit Verdict: This is the fastest available
Ethernet jack and an SDXC card slot. Mac in Apple’s line-up, if you use

multi-core software. There doesn’t Memory: The Mac Pro uses DDR4
seem to be a new Mac Pro coming in ECC memory and has 12 DIMM slots.
the near future, despite what Apple However, the memory configurations
said about it. So if you’d rather wait that Apple offers don’t always fill all of
for a new Mac Pro, you might be the slots. The amount of memory you
waiting for a while. can opt for starts at 32GB (four 8GB
DIMMs) and goes all the way up to
MAC PRO 768GB (six 128GB DIMMs or 12 64GB
Model currently for sale originally DIMMs). If you get a 24- or 28-core
released December 2019. processor, you can get up to 1.5TB of
memory, which fills all 12 DIMM slots.
What is it? The Mac Pro is Apple’s
workstation. It’s designed for Graphics: The Mac Pro has room for
professionals who need a powerful two graphics cards. Apple has three
and flexible machine. different AMD cards from which to
choose: an 8GB AMD Radeon Pro
Who’s it for? The Mac Pro is ideal 580X, a 32GB AMD Radeon Pro
for professionals who work with Vega II, or the 64GB AMD Radeon
applications that use as many Pro Vega II Duo. Apple will be
processing cores as possible – video- offering soon a 16GB Radeon Pro
editing applications, image-editing W5700X and a 32GB Radeon Pro
software, 3D programs, audio editing, W5700X Duo.
software developers, and the like.
Storage: The Mac Pro has room for
What are the specifications? Apple two SSD modules. You can get a
doesn’t offer standard configurations single 256GB SSD, or you can get
of the Mac Pro. You start with a base 1TB, 2TB or 4TB of storage that’s
model and custom configure it to your installed as a pair of SSDs. An 8TB
liking. Prices start at £5,499. Here’s a storage option will be available soon.
overview of the major specifications.
Afterburner: Apple offers a special
Processor: The Mac Pro uses Intel optional component with the Mac
Xeon W processors. You can choose Pro called Afterburner. This is
an 8- 12-, 16-, 24- or 28-core CPU. an accelerator card with a Field-

BUYING GUIDE
programmable Gate Array (FPGA) Mac Pro is a “designed in pursuit of

designed for video production. performance”, capable of handling
According to Apple, Afterburner can 8K video editing, 3D applications,
handle up to six streams of 8K ProRes software development, and other
RAW video at 30fps; up to 23 streams production-oriented tasks.
of 4K ProRes RAW video at 30fps; Apple’s Mac Pro website shows
and up to 16 streams of 4K ProRes only benchmarks for the highest-
422 video at 30fps. end 28-core model. They claim the
Mac Pro provides three times the
How do I connect stuff? To connect performance in ProRes transcoding
external devices, the Mac Pro has two over the previous 12-core Mac Pro
USB 3 ports and two Thunderbolt using Final Cut Pro X. Apple also
3 ports on the back of the machine. says you’ll see more than triple the
The top of the Mac Pro has two performance in task performed in
Thunderbolt 3 ports. Adobe Photoshop 2020, Autodesk
Inside the Mac Pro, there are 8 Maya, Logic Pro X, MATLAB and
PCI Express expansion slots. You Wolfram Mathematica.
can install up to two
MPX modules, or up
to four PCI Express
cards. There is also
three full-length
PCI Express gen 3
slots (one x16 slot
and two x8 slots).
Wi-Fi and Bluetooth
come built in on the
new Mac Pro. The
back of the machine
also has two 10Gb
Ethernet jacks.
How fast is it?

Apple says that the The Mac Pro is designed for the most demanding users.

Verdict: The Mac Pro provides
processing power that the most
demanding users need. We’re talking
about production environments,
like TV and audio recording studios,
animation houses and software
developers. If you feel like you can
never have enough power, you’re
probably the professional the Mac
Pro is aimed at.
If you’re more of a ‘prosumer’
than a professional – someone who
is an expert Mac user, but doesn’t
use high-end apps – the Mac Pro is
overkill. You’re probably not going to
be able to take advantage of what the
Mac Pro has to offer. You also should
take a look at an iMac Pro.

AIRPODS MAX
Review: AirPods Max

Price: £549 from fave.co/2KUPqfm
A
pple’s latest expansion In some ways, the AirPod Max
of the AirPods brand is a give you what you pay for. Build
set of large over-the-ear quality is unmatched at any price,
wireless headphones. The and there are some clever design
AirPods Max look great, sound great flourishes. But there are also a few
and are quite comfortable despite compromises worth noting, like a
their heavy weight. They’re also ‘Smart Case’ that is anything but.
£549, a difficult price to justify when For those embedded in the Apple
the competition (primarily the Sony ecosystem, the AirPods Max will
WH-1000XM4 and the Bose 700) are be worth considering when they’re
around £200 to £250 less. on sale for £449 or less, but it’s

otherwise hard to justify the price tag, headphones to shame, even those
and those who regularly dip outside that cost a lot more.
Apple’s product ecosystem should People will notice you’re wearing
probably look at alternatives. AirPods Max, even though they oddly
don’t have an Apple logo anywhere.
DESIGN AND COMFORT All that metal makes them a lot
It comes as no surprise that Apple heavier than similar headphones,
designed a set of headphones that as much as 50 per cent heavier at
looks fantastic and is made from 384g (the Sony XM4s and Bose 700s
premium materials. But Apple both weigh just over 250g). Apple
doesn’t always knock it out of the has done such a good job maximizing
park with ergonomics. (I’m looking at comfort with the soft, deep,
you, Apple TV remote.) Fortunately, breathable ear pads and the mesh
AirPods Max are both great-looking canopy headband that the weight
and a delight to use. doesn’t bother you at all. There’s
Apple’s new headphones just plain a bit more clamping force than I’ve
look better than any other you’ve experienced on most other consumer
used. Credit
the smooth
matte finish on
the aluminium
closed-back
earpieces, the
stainless steel
rods in the band,
the fine mesh
of the ear pads
and ‘canopy’
headband – it all
works together
to create a sleek
and minimalist
look that puts The ultra-minimalist look of the AirPods Max stands out in a
nearly all other crowded market. Everyone will know what they are at a glance.

AIRPODS MAX
wireless headphones, but that too is to play/pause, twice to skip forward,

mitigated by the fantastic ear pads. three times to skip back, press and
Try to run or work out with these hold to invoke Siri. You can even
on, or just turn your head quickly, and reverse the direction of the wheel if
you’ll suddenly feel all that weight. No you find yourself turning the volume
matter, as these are not at all sweat up every time you want to turn it down.
or water resistant, so you shouldn’t The button toggles between noise-
be doing anything more active than a cancelling and transparency mode, or
brisk walk in them anyway. turns noise cancelling off if you enable
The controls are great, too. Apple that option in Bluetooth settings.
avoided touch controls (everyone with The controls are simple, intuitive,
a hoodie rejoice), opting instead for unobtrusive and attractive; everything
a digital crown like that on the Apple you want in a pair of headphones.
Watch along with a single button, Despite the excessive weight,
both on the top of the right earpiece. AirPods Max look great, feel great,
The crown is thankfully much larger and have excellent controls. I wore
than that on the watch and controls them for hours without discomfort,
volume and playback: click it once with and without glasses, which is
more than I can
say for other
consumer wireless
headphones.
If there’s a
downside, it’s the
fact that these
headphones
charge only with a
Lightning connector
and have no 3.5mm
headphone jack
input (as with
many products,
AirPods Max are anything but compact. They don’t fold up Apple does not
at all, only turn flat. include a power

The idea is that, as
they wear down over
time (as happens to
all headphone ear
cushions), you can
simply buy a new
pair for £75 and
snap them right on.
That’s an absurd
overcharge for some
fabric-wrapped
memory foam and
a few magnets,
The controls are simple, intuitive, and unobtrusive. Just but competing
what you want in a good pair of headphones. headphones offer
no recourse for
adapter in the box, only a USB-C to replacing worn-out cushions, and
Lightning cable). If you want to use £75 is a lot cheaper than replacing
these to listen to an in-flight movie, your headphones.
or to lossless audio
from your computer or
a headphone amp, or
you’re editing video and
want to eliminate the
latency of Bluetooth,
you’ll have to buy a
separate and grossly
overpriced £35
Lightning to 3.5mm
cable. For the price, the
AirPods Max should
absolutely include this.
The ear cushions are Apple loves its magnets. Snap-on earpads are easy to
magnetically attached. replace when they wear out.

AIRPODS MAX
THAT NOT-SMART CASE It’s small and light, but that’s

We can’t quite call the AirPods Max about all it has going for it. It doesn’t
a design triumph, though. It ships protect your £550 headphones at all.
with something Apple calls a “Smart The band, with its canopy mesh, is
Case” which is neither smart nor completely exposed to get caught on
a case. It’s awful. Really awful. Ill- detritus in your bag, or crushed. There
conceived and poorly executed, it’s in are huge open slats at the bottom of
the running for the worst accessory the pouches, so they effectively do
Apple’s ever shipped, sharing rarefied nothing to keep random bag items
air with the ‘hockey puck’ mouse and from scraping up your earcups.
Apple TV Siri remote. There’s a little cut-out on the right
Thanks in part to its sleek metal side for the Lightning connector, so
construction, the AirPods Max don’t you can charge in the case, but it’s
really fold up at all. The earpieces kind of absurd when there are huge
merely turn sideways, and that’s it. gaps all over the place.
The Smart Case is a single piece of Putting them in the case and
flimsy plastic material that has been folding over the magnetic flap
folded up to form little pockets that immediately puts the AirPods Max
you slip the earcups into, then fold into a sort of low-power mode to save
the top over. battery, though the Bluetooth radio
will stay active for 18
hours so that Find My
will continue to work. If
you instead just put the
headphones down on a
table or something and
don’t touch them, they’ll
go to a low-power mode
after 5 minutes, with the
Bluetooth radio active
for 72 hours (again, for
Find My support).
The so-called Smart Case will do nothing to protect To sum up, the
your headphones in your bag. Smart Case:

• Doesn’t really protect your bass has kick when it’s called for,
headphones. and it’s clean with no distortion, but
• Doesn’t make a meaningful it doesn’t have the overwhelming
difference in battery drain. thump of Sony’s XM4s or most Beats
• Doesn’t hold any accessories you headphones, for example. These
need when you travel. aren’t going to vibrate your skull, if
that’s what you’re looking for.
Whatever Apple’s product I’m struck by how remarkably
development and approval process is, consistent the sound quality is.
it failed here. This should never have Most headphones change tone
made it to market. Fortunately, it’s depending on exactly how they’re
not a critical component and can be sitting on your ear or how loud you
more or less ignored. have the volume cranked up. AirPods
Max manage to sound exactly the
SOUND QUALITY AND same no matter how they’re shifted
NOISE CANCELLING on your head, and whether you
AirPods Max are extremely well have them set low in a quiet room
designed and crafted (aside from the or cranked loud outdoors. If this is
Smart Case, which is the opposite the ‘adaptive EQ’ thing in Apple’s
of that), but that means nothing if marketing copy, it really works.
they don’t sound great. Fortunately, Overall sound reproduction
they’re a delight for your ears. Audio quality is on a par with other high-
reproduction stands shoulder-to- end premium Bluetooth headphones,
shoulder with the best wireless though with a somewhat different
Bluetooth headphones, and the character. It’s a little more natural and
active noise cancelling is perhaps neutral, and likely to be pleasing to all
the best I’ve ever heard. types of listeners. If you’re a serious
The audio profile of the AirPods audio nerd, know that these are not
Max is not studio-grade. You should going to compete with the £1,500
not expect a flat frequency response open-back wired headphones and
curve. Apple has tuned the AirPods £400 pre-amp you listen to FLAC
Max to boost bass and mid-high files with, nor is it meant to.
frequencies a bit, which most listeners Noise-cancelling quality, however,
will probably find quite pleasing. The is a cut above the rest. The AirPods

AIRPODS MAX
Max are not quite as adroit

at eliminating highly regular
sounds like air conditioners
as the reigning-champ
Sony XM4s, but they’re
far better at clearing
away more irregular
sounds like traffic, general
office disturbances, or
background talking.
Most high-end noise
cancelling headphones The AirPods Max have nine microphones, behind
have some sort of tiny slits all around the edges.
transparency mode that
leaves noise cancelling active but time with noise cancelling enabled,
uses the microphones to pipe in which is good but not better than the
a bit of outside sound, so you can competition. I found the company’s
hold a quick conversation or hear estimate to be pretty accurate.
other important sounds around Charging is fast, too: just 15 minutes
you. Apple’s transparency mode on a basic 5-watt power adapter took
is light years ahead of everyone me from 20- to 44 per cent. Overnight
else’s. It sounds more clear, natural, battery drain, without the awful Smart
and normal than any other noise- Case, was only about 3 per cent. You
cancelling headphones I have ever can listen to the headphones while
used. It’s almost like not wearing charging without any buzzing, hiss,
headphones at all, except you can or distortion, a feat not every pair of
still hear your music. wireless headphones can pull off.
The microphone works just fine for
phone calls or hands-free ‘Hey Siri’,” FOR APPLE USERS ONLY
but there’s nothing special about it While there’s a lot to like about the
– the microphone audio is good, but AirPods Max, you probably shouldn’t
not ‘oh my god’ good. even consider them if you don’t do
Apple says you can expect the nearly all your listening on an Apple
battery to last for 20 hours of listening product of some sort. If you ever want

to use your Bluetooth headphones on VERDICT
an Android phone or a Windows PC, Are the AirPod Max the best wireless
the AirPods Max will work as standard noise-cancelling headphones you can
Bluetooth device, but you’re going to buy? For those who rely on the Apple
miss out on a lot. ecosystem, yes. They offer sound
The simple pairing is a well- quality on par or even slightly better
known AirPods feature by now, but than their competitors, and superior
consider that hands-free assistant noise-cancelling.
support only works with Siri, too. Is that worth paying nearly
There’s no way to adjust features double the price, though? You’re
like reversing the digital crown dial definitely getting something for that
without an Apple device. With iOS price premium. The materials and
14 and macOS Big Sur, AirPods can build quality puts other consumer
automatically switch from one Apple headphones to shame. If you want
device to another when you start to ‘flex’ your financial success with
playing audio somewhere else. It’s a pair of quality headphones that
incredibly convenient. everyone will instantly recognize,
One of the coolest features of and recognize the high price,
the AirPods Max (and AirPods Pro) AirPods Max are for you.
is Spatial Audio, whereby Dolby But there are a host of legitimate
surround is massaged into a sort drawbacks worth considering. The
of faux-3D sound stage. It even heavy weight and lack of sweat/
reorients itself as you turn your head. waterproofing makes them all but
It’s an awesome party trick, but it useless for doing yard work or working
currently only works with iPhone and out. If you want to plug into a 3.5mm
iPad, which is a total waste. How jack, you have to buy a separate £35
often do you watch surround-sound cable. The Smart Case is without
movies on those devices? Apple exaggeration one of the poorest-
desperately needs to bring Spatial designed and badly-made products
Audio support to Apple TV and the Apple has ever graced us with. One
Mac. Until then, it’s an awesome of the coolest features, spatial audio,
feature with such limited practical doesn’t work with Macs or Apple TV.
use that it’s hardly a reason to choose It’s upsetting to think that such
AirPods over other headphones. expensive wireless noise-cancelling

AIRPODS MAX
headphones essentially require • Position sensor (each ear cup)

you to buy a third-party case and • Case-detect sensor (each ear cup)
an overpriced 3.5mm cable, both of • Accelerometer (each ear cup)
which should be included. • Gyroscope (left ear cup)
The AirPods Max occupy a strange • Nine microphones in total: eight for
no-man’s land of both price and Active Noise Cancellation; three
quality. They’re more expensive than, for voice pickup (two shared with
and more premium than, competing Active Noise Cancellation and one
consumer wireless noise-cancelling additional microphone)
headphones like the Sony XM4s or • Apple H1 headphone chip (each ear
Bose 700s. But they don’t offer sound cup)
quality up to the standards of more • Digital Crown
expensive audiophile headphones, • Noise control button
like those from Sennheiser or Focal. • Bluetooth 5.0
It would be easier to recommend • 187.3x168.6x83.4mm
them despite their shortcomings if • 134.5g
Apple included the 3.5mm cable, a
proper case, and charged £100 less.
You’d still be paying a premium over
competing products from the likes of
Bose or Sony, but with materials and
build quality to justify it. This is a good
product, but the intersection of what
you pay and what you get is way off
the mark. Jason Cross
SPECIFICATIONS
• Apple-designed dynamic driver
• Active Noise Cancellation
• Transparency mode
• Adaptive EQ
• Spatial audio with dynamic head
tracking
• Optical sensor (each ear cup)

Apple’s AirPods Max are
ridiculously overpriced
I don’t care how good they sound, they’re priced too high. Michael
Simon reports
A
pple has launched its first know which side is which), and surely
non-Beats-branded pair of sound as good as the best wireless
over-ear headphones and headphones from Sony and Bose.
they certainly look great. But at £549, it’s hard to look at
There’s no denying that the AirPods the AirPods Max as anything other
Max are packed with features, flush than a missed opportunity. We knew
with Apple’s trademark design they wouldn’t come cheap, but
touches (like a stitched ‘L’ so you AirPods Max are hundreds more than

AIRPODS MAX
their closest
competitor and
are arriving pretty
late to the game
bringing features
we’ve seen and
heard before.
They feature the
same Adaptive
EQ, Active Noise
Cancellation,
Transparency
mode and spatial
audio that’s
available on The AirPods Max come in five colours to match the iPad Air.
the AirPods
Pro, along with the H1 chip, the than the Bose Noise Cancelling
Apple Watch’s Digital Crown and the Headphones 700 (261.6g), Sony’s
iPad Air’s colours. WH-1000XM3 (254g) and the Beats
Along with colours comes the Studio 3 (260g). Apple says the
impeccable design, which Apple headband “is made to distribute
says is “a breathable knit mesh weight and reduce on-head pressure”,
canopy”, stainless steel headband, but when you’re putting something on
and “a revolutionary mechanism your head every ounce matters.
that balances and distributes The 20-hour listening time is also
ear cup pressure, and allows it to good, but not as long as the 30 hours
independently pivot and rotate to offered by Sony’s WH-1000XM3 or
fit the unique contours of a user’s even the 22 hours you get with the
head”. The cups themselves are Beats Studio 3, both of which cost
large but surprisingly don’t include significantly less.
an embossed Apple logo so they’re
very clean. SOUNDING OFF
They’re also heavy. While 270g As far as the sound goes, according
might not seem like much, it’s heavier to Apple, the AirPods Max feature

“a 40-mm Apple-designed dynamic high-end high-fidelity headphones,
driver that provides rich, deep bass, but they have demands that everyday
accurate mid-ranges, and crisp, clean listeners don’t. For one, they generally
high-frequency extension so every want wired connections, something
note can be heard”. That sounds nice the AirPods Max don’t offer without
and likely will sound nice, but a 40mm a separate Lightning-to-3.5mm
driver isn’t all that uncommon in hi-fi adapter for £35 that is just 1.2m long.
headphones. For example, Sony’s Add a 20-watt plug, which also isn’t
high-rated WH-1000XM3 Wireless included, and you’re almost £600.
Noise-Cancelling headphones feature You’re also not getting an equalizer
1.57in drivers, which convert to to let you tweak the bass and treble
39.878mm, while the Beats Studio 3 to your liking. The AirPods Max
have a 50mm driver. has the same Adaptive EQ as the
I have no doubt that the AirPods AirPods Pro that, according to Apple,
Max will sound amazing, but at £549, “adjust the sound to the fit and seal
I wonder who they’re for. It’s true of the ear cushions by measuring the
that audiophiles spend thousands on sound signal delivered to a user and
The AirPods Max feature a ‘custom acoustic design’ and feature all of the
technology Apple debuted in the AirPods and AirPods Pro.

AIRPODS MAX
adjusting the low and mid-frequencies amazing. For £549, they just seem
in real time”, but true audiophiles extremely overpriced no matter who
who would spend £549 on a pair of the target audience is. I doubt it’ll
headphones will want to customize matter much – especially if Apple
the sound. launches a lower-priced version next
The AirPods Max are also missing year – but for now the only the maxed
the U1 chip in the Apple Watch and out about the AirPods Max is what
iPhone that brings accurate location they’ll do to your credit card.
tracking and spatial awareness.
But the strangest missing feature
of the AirPods Max is the addition
of the Digital Crown on the right
cup. ( I originally thought it was
there to replace hands-free Siri
support, but I was wrong, it’s there.)
The Digital Crown merely replaces
the touch-sensitive buttons on the
AirPods and Beats headphones, and
it’s strange that Apple seemingly
stepped backward with the addition
of a button.
All of this isn’t to mention the
rumours that Apple was looking
to bring ‘leather-like fabrics’ and
magnetic cups that can be swapped
with different colours to customize
the look. That would add a uniqueness
to the AirPods Max that no other
headphone offers. As it stands, you
can only get the AirPods Max in one
colour, unless you want to spend
another £549 on a second pair.
The AirPods Max are very pretty
and I have no doubt that they’ll sound

iPhone 12 vs Samsung
Galaxy S21: Which should
you spend your £800 on?
The fight is surprisingly closet. Michael Simon reports
T
he year has barely begun year, and it’s clear they have Apple’s
and we already have our first newest phone in its sights. Samsung
heavyweight smartphone hasn’t reinvented the S21 as much as
battle of 2021. Samsung it’s retooled it to take on the iPhone
has released its line-up of Galaxy S21 12, with a lower price point, sharper
phones a little earlier than usual this design, and some new camera

iPHONE
tricks. Here’s how the two £800 camera array is nearly identical to

smartphones stack up. the iPhone 11’s and not nearly as
unique as the S21’s.
DESIGN The two phones are very similar in
Samsung’s Galaxy S is always at size. The S21 is slightly bigger and a
the forefront of Android smartphone bit heavier. However, Samsung has
design and the S21 continues that done a fantastic job with distributing
tradition. Samsung has crafted a truly the weight on the S21, so it doesn’t
unique design where the metal sides feel as heavy as it weighs:
seamlessly blend into the camera
array, as if it were snapped onto the iPhone 12: 146.7 x 71.5 x 7.4mm, 171g
back. The back is made of plastic Galaxy S21: 151.7 x 71.2 x 7.9mm, 164g
rather than glass, but it still has a
premium feel, even if it’s not quite Both phones come in a variety of
as luxurious as the S20. colours that basically boil down to
Of course, the iPhone is no slouch personal preference, but Samsung’s
in the looks department. Apple unique design stands out here as
introduced a new, flatter design well. The camera array is treated as a
with the iPhone 12 that has a retro design element and is made to stand
charm reminiscent of the iPhone 4, out with a bold metal housing. It’s one
and it feels great to hold. The square of the most unique designs Samsung
has ever made, and it
makes the iPhone 12
look a little stale.
My pick: The Galaxy S21
DISPLAY
Now that Apple has
gone OLED and
Samsung has gone Full
HD, the iPhone 12 and
Galaxy S21 have very
The S21 has a gorgeous colour palette this year. similar displays:

iPhone 12: 6.1in
Flat Full HD+
Super Retina XDR
(2,532x1,170),
460ppi, 60Hz
Galaxy S21:
6.2in Flat FHD+
Infinity-O Display
(2,400x1,080),
421ppi, 120Hz
Marketing terms
and tenth-of-an-inch
aside, the only real
difference between
the two displays The iPhone 12 sticks with the notch.
is the refresh rate.
Samsung is once again using a 120Hz with its buttery-smooth scrolling that
screen on the S21, and this year feels effortless.
it’s adaptive, meaning it will switch
dynamically from a high refresh to low, My pick: Galaxy S21
depending on what you’re doing, in
order to save battery life. PROCESSOR, RAM,
You’re also choosing between a STORAGE, AND BATTERY
hole or a notch. The iPhone 12 sticks As usual, both phones feature
with the rather large notch at the the very latest in chip tech. The
top of the screen that houses the iPhone uses Apple’s own A14 Bionic
TrueDepth camera and sensors for processor, while the S21 sticks with
Face ID, while Samsung has a small Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 888. I
hole in the centre for its selfie camera. haven’t tested the S21 yet, but it will
The iPhone 12’s display is likely be extremely fast even if its
excellent, and thanks to the speed benchmarks don’t quite measure up
of system-on-chip, it feels extremely to Apple’s impressive results. When
fast. But the S21 takes it a step further it comes to memory, Samsung has

iPHONE
dialled back the RAM a bit from the bested that of Android phones with
S20’s ridiculous 12GB, but the 8GB nearly twice as much battery capacity
inside the S21 should be plenty. Apple in 2020, so I expect both phones to
has only 4GB in the iPhone 12, but make it though a full day of use with
iOS 14’s optimizations make it seem ease. When it comes to charging,
like there’s much more. Samsung also both phones offer fast charging via
beats Apple with storage, offering the included cable, 20 watts via the
128GB in the S21 compared to the iPhone and 25 watts with the S21.
iPhone 12’s 64GB. They both offer 10 watts wireless
Battery life is a bit more charging as well, and the iPhone also
complicated. On paper, the S21 offers MagSafe magnetic charging
boasts a 4,000mAh battery versus via optional accessories.
the iPhone 12’s 2,815mAh one, but Elsewhere, both phones have
real-world results will be much more sub-6GHz and mmWave 5G, and
important. The iPhone 12’s battery life Wi-Fi 6 for speedy connectivity, as
The Galaxy S21 is plenty powerful even with lesser specs than the S20.

well as IP68 water
resistance. The
iPhone 12 also has a
U1 ultra-wide band
chip for precise
location mapping,
but you’ll need to
upgrade to one of
the other models
(S21+ or S21 Ultra) to
get that on the S21.
Like last year, the
iPhone 12 has Face The iPhone 12’s camera hardware is only slightly improved
ID, while the S21 has over the iPhone 11’s, but it takes far better photos.
an ultrasonic in-
display fingerprint sensor. Mode “more accurately separates the
subject from the background” and
My pick: iPhone 12 Space Zoom “minimizes shaky hands
and captures clearer images at 30x
CAMERA zoom”. Meanwhile, the iPhone 12 is
Somewhat surprisingly, both one of the best smartphone cameras
Samsung and Apple opted to you can buy, with stellar shooting in all
stick with similar camera hardware kinds of light and situations.
compared to their respective However, while we already know
predecessors. In the S21’s case, the the iPhone 12 takes great photos,
triple-camera system is identical to it doesn’t have anywhere near the
the S20’s, while Apple only slightly power of 30X zoom. In fact, it doesn’t
upgraded the wide-angle sensor on have a zoom lens at all, so you’ll need
the iPhone 12 with a wider aperture to get very close to your subject.
(f/1.6 vs f/1.8). On paper, the Galaxy S21 has the
You’ll find more improvements in superior shooter, but we’ll need to
the software that drives the hardware. test it out to see.
Samsung claims the S21 takes
brighter pictures in the dark, Portrait My pick: Galaxy S21

iPHONE
OS AND UPDATES a full review soon. Based on first

As always, you’re getting the latest impressions, though, the iPhone 12
OS with each of these phones – One has a very tough fight on its hands and
UI 3.1 based on Android 11 with the might need to relinquish its crown for
S21, and iOS 14 with the iPhone 12 – the best premium smartphone value.
but the future isn’t as clear. Since the
launch of the Galaxy S20, Samsung
has promised all new phones will
get three generations of Android
updates, so the S21 is guaranteed
to get Android 14 when it arrives in
2023. Apple technically offers no such
guarantee, but iPhones are generally
supported for five years of upgrades.
For example, the iPhone 6s, which
launched with iOS 9 in 2016, got iOS
14 when it landed in September.
You’re also guaranteed to get
iOS updates on the day they arrive,
something that isn’t so certain with
the S21. While monthly security
updates land quickly, new versions
of Android often take months before
they arrive on the latest phones.
My pick: iPhone 12
VERDICT
Samsung and Apple have been
competitors for as long as they’ve
been making phones, but it’s been
a while since they’ve had phones
that were such close competitors.
I’m still testing the S21 and will have

Will 2021 be the year
Apple’s U1 chip goes wide?
Apple has been building its ultra-wideband technology into devices,
but it still doesn’t do much... yet. Dan Moren reports
A
pple’s no stranger the iPhone, but it was the first real
to introducing and commercial product offering it.
popularizing new Sometimes those technologies take
technologies. The original a while to gestate, though. And there
iMac wasn’t the first to use USB, but may be no better example in recent
it drove adoption of the standard. years than Apple’s take on ultra-
Multitouch displays existed before wideband, or UWB.

iPHONE
Like those other technologies, iPhone 12 line have a U1 chip, but both
ultra-wideband isn’t new as a concept, the Apple Watch Series 6 and the
but it’s something that hasn’t really HomePod mini, released last autumn,
found a home in the consumer include it as well.
market. In 2019, Apple released In introducing those devices, Apple
the iPhone 11 series and included a didn’t spend a lot of time talking
custom chip dubbed the U1. During about what it might use those chips
the introduction, Apple talked up the for, aside from one quick example: a
amazing properties of the U1, and replacement for the Handoff feature
how it could be used to not only track that lets you transfer audio from
the location of objects with amazing your iPhone to your HomePod just
precision, but even has the ability by holding it nearby. The current
to point you in the right direction version of this feature uses another
towards them. technology, NFC (the same used
But almost a year and a half later, for Apple Pay), but it’s touchy
U1 remains a technology without and unreliable. The U1 version is
much of an application. Yes, it’s built supposedly superior, but when the
in to AirDrop to show you which other initial iOS 14 release rolled around,
devices are closest, but that only it hadn’t made the cut. Only now
works with other U1-enabled iPhones has the update that does include it
and it’s more of a proof of concept reached beta, so it may still be weeks
than an actual feature to tout. Other or a month away.
than that, there’s really not much But the real proof of Apple’s
there – yet. With a few U1-enabled commitment to ultra-wideband will be
technologies waiting in the wings, if it continues to include the U1 in its
2021 finally be the breakout year for other products. Last autumn’s iPad Air
this technology. update didn’t include the technology,
but it’s expected that an iPad Pro
WITH OR WITHOUT U1 refresh will happen this spring; it will be
Through last year, Apple seemed telling if it includes the U1, given that
to believe strongly enough in the last year’s meagre update didn’t. (Or
future potential of the U1 that it kept likewise telling if it doesn’t.)
building it into its products. Not only By the same token, Apple’s latest
do the iPhone 11’s successors in the M1 Macs, built around Apple’s custom

often relied on other
radio technology,
such as a low-power
Bluetooth variant.
Ultra-wideband
promises to make
finding devices
more precise; it
can also operate at
faster speeds than
Bluetooth, work
through walls and
doesn’t interfere
The HomePod mini has a U1 chip. with Wi-Fi, or vice
versa. Plus, Apple’s
silicon, don’t sport ultra-wideband variants – and possibly compatible
either – it’s unclear whether the third-party versions – will also
company thinks it simply wouldn’t probably be able to take advantage
be useful on those devices, whether of Apple’s expansive Find My
it’s being saved for a future update, network, which uses Apple devices to
or whether it’s decided the ship has anonymously locate any nearby lost
sailed on the technology. objects and report their location.
In short, AirTags are exactly
TAG, YOU’RE IT what U1 was designed for. From all
With ultra-wideband’s focus on indications, the launch is getting
locating and directing you to objects, closer and closer – it would seem
the killer product for the U1 is one that surprising if it didn’t launch in 2021,
Apple still hasn’t released, though its but then again, that’s what we said
existence is well attested. about 2020.
There have been plenty of rumours
and leaks about what’s been dubbed U1’S EDGE
‘AirTags’, Apple’s competitor to Apple has explored one or two other
tracking fobs like the kind sold by Tile. features that could take advantage
Existing models of these fobs have of the proximity sensing capabilities

iPHONE
of the U1; for example, it’s supported

by car key feature that lets newer
iPhones work as a way to open your
vehicle, letting your car automatically
unlock when you get close enough.
But the U1 could, in theory, help
with more mundane issues too,
such as providing more context for
which device to issue notifications to
depending on how close you are to
it. Or deciding which device should
handle a Siri request. It could be used
to help lead you around an indoor
space, or enhance Apple’s ambitions
in augmented reality by helping it
more precisely locate items in space
– perhaps if the company decided,
for example, that it wants to build
wireless controllers to work with its
AR headset.
In short, there’s a lot of possibility
that the U1 chip can unlock. Apple
clearly believes in that potential,
given that it sunk the resources
into designing a chip just for
ultra-wideband and then built that
chip into many of its most popular
devices. Now all it has to do is
convince the masses.

Best network for iPhone
We explore the best carrier options, taking into account coverage,
reliability and pricing. David Price reports
I
f you’re thinking of buying an performance – you should be able to
iPhone on contract, you’ve got a find the right choice for you in no time.
SIM-free iPhone and want to sign We also go into more detail about
up to a contract, or are nearing the research and reports we use
the end of a contract and want to go to determine our verdict for each
with a different provider, you’ll be network further into this article.
wanting to know which network is
best for you. This article is the right THE NETWORKS
place to find out. In the UK we have four big networks:
We go through the various network
providers available in the UK and • EE
discuss their pros, cons and general • O2

iPHONE
• Three iPhone 12, over 24 months and with

• Vodafone a maximum upfront cost of £100 and
a minimum of 1GB data. Check the
There are many further providers, individual sites for up-to-date prices.
but they all ‘piggyback’ on the It’s worth noting that there are often
infrastructure of one of the above. deals from the networks available from
So EE is piggybacked by BT Mobile, third parties like Carphone Warehouse,
Plusnet and Virgin Mobile; O2 is Mobile Phones Direct and more, so
piggybacked by Giffgaff, Tesco shopping around can pay off once
Mobile and Sky Mobile; Three is you’ve chosen your network.
piggybacked by iD Mobile and When looking at pricing it’s
Smarty; and Vodafone is piggybacked important to look at total cost of
by Talk Mobile and VOXI. ownership (TCO) over the course of a
This piggybacking arrangement contract, which includes the upfront
will be relevant when we discuss cost and however many monthly
coverage, speed and reliability payments are required. An apparently
because the smaller providers are unappealing contract may work out
reliant on the physical infrastructure the best for you if it only lasts 12
of their chosen big network, and will months (most are 24 or more).
be susceptible to the same problems. The amount you pay will vary
according to your monthly data
WHAT DO YOU NEED allowance, the value of the phone
FROM YOUR NETWORK? (assuming it’s included) and any
When selecting a network there additional features, such as Apple
are lots of different criteria to Music subscriptions. But beyond this,
consider. You will probably have to some deals are simply better value
compromise in one area to get what than others. You shouldn’t assume
you’re looking for in another. that you’re paying a fair price.
Price Coverage
For a rough comparison of prices, Most of the UK now has decent 4G
in the individual entries we’ve listed coverage, and some has 5G. But there
the lowest monthly fee each network still remain rural pockets with 3G or
offers (at time of writing) for the with nothing at all.

RootMetrics’ coverage map lets you analyse likely performance in your area.
If you live in central London and whole. Second place was Vodafone,
don’t plan to leave any time soon, followed by Three and then O2.
then you don’t need to worry about But this really does vary by your
coverage. But everyone else should exact location, so take a look at
consider it. Your choice of network the RootMetrics’ coverage map
will dictate what infrastructure you’ll (fave.co/38thldT) to analyse likely
be using, and the location of your performance in your local area.
network’s towers (or the towers
belonging to the network your Speed
provider is piggybacking) will dictate Whereas broadband deals trumpet
how good a signal you can get in a their estimated speed from the
given area. Ofcom’s mobile coverage rooftops, mobile networks are less
checker (fave.co/3aAB8L5) is handy public about the speeds you should
for seeing which networks can cover expect. But while the numbers can be
your area – or an area you want. hard to uncover – and, to be fair, lots
According to the research firm of factors influence the speed you
RootMetrics, EE offers the best actually experience – it’s clearly an
4G coverage across the UK as a important factor to consider.

iPHONE
To see how well your provider is Reliability

living up to its claims, you can use the Network outages are frustrating,
free iPhone app Speedtest by Ookla leaving you unable to access any
(free from fave.co/3pmpzv4). online services until you get back to
EE came top in a recent report by Wi-Fi. In Dec 2018, for instance, O2
Opensignal (see fave.co/3nM3WnF), customers were disconnected for a
winning the top spot for overall whole day. This is another case where
download speeds in the UK. It also piggybacking is important. The above
won the best games experience, incident affected O2 piggybackers
video experience and upload speed too – so when considering a network
experience. Vodafone came a close provider, check out reports of its
second in most, but did beat EE in parent network’s reliability.
voice app experience.
Good news for EE, of course, Customer service
but also good for the providers This is where the smaller providers
that piggyback on that company’s can stand apart from their parent
infrastructure: BT Mobile, Plusnet networks. How efficient is the provider
and Virgin Mobile. at dealing with problems, and does
it offer compensation when things
Use the
go wrong? Does it spam you with
Speedtest
by Ookla marketing letters? Does it get your
app to bills wrong on a regular basis? An
see if your Ofcom report from August 2020
provider (fave.co/34Dt3lb) found that Tesco
is living
Mobile tops customer satisfaction
up to its
rankings, while Three fares worst.
claims.
Data limit
You can pay less if you’re willing to
compromise on your data allowance:
contracts can vary from around
250MB to 60GB or more.
We’d advise against going for the
real bargain-basement allowances:

2GB is probably a sensible minimum
to aim for. But it all depends on what
you’re going to be using your phone
for: streaming is a particular drain.
CAN YOU SIGN UP TO MORE

THAN ONE NETWORK?
Yes, if you’ve got a new enough
iPhone. The XR, 11 and later all offer
eSIM support, which means you can
have a conventional hardware SIM Coverage: EE’s network came out
from one network and an eSIM from top for 4G coverage in the UK in the
another – but note that in the UK, only latest RootMetrics report. That said,
EE and O2 support eSIM. Ofcom’s 2020 report did find that
customers were more satisfied with
1. EE the reception or signal strength from
URL: fave.co/2Jlb6Aw O2 and Vodafone. Just remember to
check Ofcom’s coverage tool to see
EE offers excellent coverage, and how EE performs in your location.
some plans offer Apple Music, Apple
TV+, Apple Arcade and BT Sport App Speed: Excellent. It was rated top in
for the duration of the contract. It also Opensignal’s 2020 test for download
offers 5G. It’s a solid choice. and upload speeds.
Network: EE. Customer service: EE scored well

in the Ofcom report for overall
Price: EE offers the iPhone 12 with satisfaction, on par with O2 and
5G for £59 per month with 10GB of Vodafone and higher than Three.
data and £50 upfront. That’s a total
of £1,466. EE no longer partners up 2. TESCO MOBILE
with third-party sites like Carphone URL: fave.co/3pj27Pp
Warehouse or Mobile Phones
Direct, so the best deals are from You could do a lot worse: Tesco Mobile
EE’s own website. offers a variety of deals at decent

iPHONE
3. PLUSNET
URL: fave.co/2KO94Jq
Plusnet doesn’t sell phones, but its

prices on SIM deals are appealing if
you bought an iPhone SIM-free. We
like the ability to set a monthly price
cap to prevent nasty surprises when
prices, with SIM-only a highlight. It is your bill arrives. We haven’t included
5G ready. any other SIM-only networks here,
but Plusnet regularly scores highly in
Network: O2 (piggyback). customer service reports so we chose
to feature it. No 5G available yet.
Price: At time of writing Tesco has the
iPhone 12 for £49.99 per month and Network: EE (piggyback).
£60 upfront, on a 24-month contract
with 6GB of data, 5,000 minutes and Price: The cheapest you can currently
5,000 texts. That’s a total cost of go is £6 per month (which gets you
£1,249.76. 2GB data, unlimited minutes and
unlimited texts).
Coverage: O2’s network was rated
worst for reliability by RootMetrics, but Coverage: EE’s network came
did win the Best Network Coverage top for 4G coverage in the latest
public choice award from Uswitch. RootMetrics report (fave.co/2Jet9rU).
That said, Ofcom’s 2020 report
Speed: Tesco suffers here because of did find that customers were more
its dependence on O2’s infrastructure.
O2 came bottom in OpenSignal’s
report for speeds across the UK.
Customer service: Very good. Tesco

consistently gets high customer
service satisfaction scores in reports
from the likes of Which?.

satisfied with the reception or signal minutes for 24 months. There is a 36
strength from O2 and Vodafone. month option to bring the cost down,
Check Ofcom’s coverage tool to see and 5G is coming soon. The Total
how EE performs in your location. Cost of Ownership (TOC) for this deal
is £1,116 but 1GB data isn’t much so
Speed: Excellent, thanks to the you’d be likely to choose a higher data
performance of EE’s network. It was option at a slightly higher price.
rated top in Opensignal’s 2020 test
for download and upload speeds. Coverage: EE’s network came out
top for 4G coverage in RootMetrics
Customer service: Plusnet’s mobile report, but average in Ofcom’s 2020
service wasn’t rated in Ofcom’s report found that customers were
latest report, but it scored highly more satisfied with signal strength
for broadband service satisfaction from O2 and Vodafone. Check
which gives a good indication that Ofcom’s coverage tool to see how EE
its customer service will be reflected performs in your area.
positively for mobile. Additionally, it
won the Best Network for Customer Speed: Excellent. EE, which provides
Service award in Uswitch’s latest the network infrastructure that Virgin
Telecoms awards. relies on, came top in Opensignal’s
2020 survey.
4. VIRGIN MOBILE
URL: fave.co/2KLYaUy Customer service: Virgin got an
average rating in Ofcom’s survey for
Going with Virgin Mobile makes sense overall service satisfaction.
if the firm already provides your
broadband and TV. Not yet 5G ready
(but ‘coming soon’).
Network: EE (piggyback).
Price: Virgin has the iPhone 12 for

£46.50 per month with no upfront
payment, 1GB of data and unlimited

iPHONE
5. O2 Network Coverage public choice

URL: fave.co/3rmWIsw award from Uswitch.
One of the best-known and oldest
operators in the market. O2 was rated Speed: Not good. O2 came bottom
lowest for network reliability and in OpenSignal’s report for speeds
overall performance by RootMetrics in across the UK.
2020, but USwitch gave it the award
for Best Network Coverage. It has 5G Customer service: O2 scored well
available now. for service satisfaction in Ofcom’s
latest report.
Network: O2.
6. VODAFONE
Price: O2’s best offer for the iPhone URL: fave.co/37I9lXb
12 is £48.88 per month, with 3GB
data and £10 upfront. You’ll get 6 Vodafone has its perks, including
months of Disney+ for free, and 12 varying roam-free destinations
months of Apple TV+. That’s a total depending on your plan, upgrade after
cost of £1,183.12. You won’t find one year if you stick with Vodafone, and
O2 deals at Carphone Warehouse, some options for additional bonuses
but there are still deals available at like Amazon Prime Video or Spotify
Mobile Phones Direct. Premium. It’s not the cheapest,
though. Speed and coverage are fine,
Coverage: As mentioned, O2’s and 5G is available now.
network was rated worst for reliability
by RootMetrics, but did win the Best Network: Vodafone.
Price: Vodafone’s lowest monthly

charge for the iPhone 12 is a
whopping £62 and £19 upfront, with
unlimited texts and data. Speed is
limited with this plan, and the total
cost is £1,507. You can get cheaper
deals on Carphone Warehouse or
Mobile Phones Direct, though.

Coverage: Vodafone’s network payment of £35. The total cost of this
rated second best reliability and contract is £1,166.84.
accessibility in the UK.
Coverage: O2’s network was rated
Speed: Pretty good. Vodafone came worst for reliability by RootMetrics, but
second out of four in OpenSignal’s did win the Best Network Coverage
download and upload speed tests, and public choice award from Uswitch.
won the Voice App Experience award.
Speed: Bad news for Giffgaff users: the
Customer service: Vodafone provider piggybacks on O2’s network,
performed well in Ofcom’s survey for which came bottom in OpenSignal’s
satisfaction with overall service, with report for speeds across the UK.
a score in line with average.
Customer service: Giffgaff scores
7. GIFFGAFF highly in Ofcom’s report for overall
URL: fave.co/2JihUig service satisfaction, and has
long had a reputation for being a
A small but popular operator, Giffgaff customer favourite.
is highly rated by its customers. It’s an
O2 piggybacker, though, which puts a 8. THREE
question mark over speeds. URL: fave.co/34DRpva
Network: O2 (piggyback). Three’s unlimited data bundles are an

appealing prospect. Coverage may be
Price: Giffgaff does the iPhone 12 for a worry, so check your local area. It is
£47.16 per month, which includes the 5G ready.
minimum 6GB of data (which the firm
calls a ‘goody bag’) and an upfront Network: Three.

iPHONE
9. ID MOBILE
URL: fave.co/38uKCF1
iD is Carphone Warehouse’s in-house

network. It offers some excellent
prices but nationwide coverage is
not good (although your area may
be fine – check Ofcom’s tool) and
speeds are middling. 5G is not
currently available with iD.
Network: Three (piggyback).

Price: Three has the iPhone 12 for just
£32 per month for the first six months, Price: iD offers the iPhone 12 for
then £64 for the remainder of the £36.99 per month and £99 upfront,
contract; that’s with unlimited data with 10GB data. That’s £987.75 in
and nothing upfront. That adds up to total, one of the best prices we’ve
£1,344, which isn’t bad for the amount seen for a data all-rounder. There’s no
of data you’re getting. You’ll also get 5G available yet, though.
free Apple TV+.
Coverage: Three’s network was rated
Coverage: Three’s network was rated below EE and Vodafone for reliability
below EE and Vodafone for reliability and bottom of the list for accessibility.
and bottom of the list for accessibility. It’s not mentioned in Opensignal’s
It’s not mentioned in Opensignal’s report and scored poorly in Ofcom’s.
report and scored poorly in Ofcom’s.
Speed: Three’s network came third

out of four in RootMetric’s report.
Customer service: Three scored

lowest in Ofcom’s report, with below
average scores for satisfaction with
overall service.

Speed: As a Three piggybacker, total of £1,203 but 2GB probably
iD doesn’t get great speed won’t be enough for most people.
numbers. It came third out of four in
RootMetric’s report. Coverage: O2’s network was rated
worst for reliability by RootMetrics, but
Customer service: iD is not did win the Best Network Coverage
mentioned in the customer service public choice award from Uswitch.
reports that we’ve seen.
Speed: O2, whose network Sky
10. SKY MOBILE piggybacks, came bottom in
URL: fave.co/2KUwEUI OpenSignal’s report for speeds
across the UK.
As is the case with several of the firms
here, Sky offers preferential mobile Customer service: Sky won Network
rates for those who subscribe to other of the Year from Uswitch in 2020, and
Sky services. It is 5G ready. Its Swap12 Ofcom’s report found it got average
and Swap24 plans mean you can scores for overall service satisfaction.
upgrade early if you stick with Sky.
11. BT MOBILE
Network: O2 (piggyback). URL: fave.co/3hh4OOW
Price: Sky has the iPhone 12 for £46 BT Mobile is a sensible option if
per month, with 2GB of data and you subscribe to BT Broadband.
£99 upfront. Be sure to tick Get 5G However, not all phones are available
Speeds before checkout. That’s a directly from BT itself. Older iPhones
including the iPhone XR is available,
but if you’re looking for newer models
like the iPhone 12 you’ll be directed to
EE’s website to get your hands on it.
Network: EE (piggyback).
Price: As mentioned, the iPhone 12

isn’t available direct from BT, but the

iPHONE
iPhone XR and iPhone SE are. They

start at £36 per month and £30 per
month respectively. If you’re a BT
broadband customer you’ll find you’ll
get a discount.
Coverage: EE’s network came out

top for 4G coverage in RootMetrics
report. Check Ofcom’s coverage
tool to see how EE performs in your
location.
Speed: Excellent. BT uses EE’s

network, and EE came top in
Opensignal’s 2020 survey.
Customer service: Ofcom didn’t rate

BT’s service satisfaction for mobile
in its latest report, but it did find that
BT’s broadband and home phone
customers were very satisfied with the
service they received.

Best iPhone 12 cases
We’re testing all of the iPhone 12 cases we can get our hands on.
Here are our top picks. Michael Simon & Jason Cross report
W
hether you buy the OTTERBOX COMMUTER
mini, Max, Pro or Price: £40 from fave.co/3mE0yKk
iPhone 12, one thing is
for sure: you’re going Colour: Black, green, blue, pink.
to want to slap a case on it. Even with
a new stronger ceramic coating on the MagSafe charging: No.
screen and a thinner, more grippable
design, the iPhone 12 is still dressed Why we love it: Otterbox is one of
all in glass, so you’ll need to protect it the most well-known names in phone
from slips, scratches and fingerprints. cases for good reason: its cases are
Here are our favourite cases so far. stylish, sturdy and will keep your

iPHONE
phone safe
from all
kinds of
falls. The
Commuter
case is a
classic one
that strikes
a balance
between
the bulky
and rugged
Defender
and a less-
than-protective silicone case. It offers case does both. A nifty accordion
two-layer protection that firmly locks drawer on the back hides up to three
into place while leaving cut-outs for credit cards and can also be folded
the speaker, a cover for the Lightning into a mini stand for watching movies.
port, and nice clickable buttons. The extra functionality adds a bit
And it looks good too, with two-tone of bulk to the case, but its tapered
colour accents and a classy black rim design gives it a semi-slim feel. The
around the camera. somewhat recessed buttons look
good and have a good click to them,
VENA VCOMMUTE while the mute switch is easy to
Price: £21 from fave.co/3hc1mVH access. And the metallic accents
make the case look professional
Colour: Blue, grey, rose gold. and sophisticated.
MagSafe charging: No. GRIP2Ü SLIM

Price: £33 from fave.co/3plUA2y
Why we love it: It’s one thing for a
case to protect the phone, but it’s Colour: Black, red, gold, silver, clear.
another to have it double as a stand
or a wallet. The Vena vCommute MagSafe charging: No.

Why we love wood grain is a bit
it: The Grip2ü slick to the touch,
Slim case would but the sides add
be just another a nice grip that’ll
plastic case for keep your iPhone 12
the iPhone if not from slipping out of
for its signature your hands. There’s
feature: a even a hidden
built-in rubber compartment on
handle. And the inside for two
it’s a good extra SIM cards and
thing it’s there, an ejector tool. The
since the thin buttons feel great
TPU material is but it’s a little tricky
quite slippery. The buttons are a little to take off, which kind of defeats the
stiff and the strap seems like it might purpose of the hidden compartments.
stretch out over time, but those are But it looks so good you’re unlikely to
small prices to pay for one of the most take it off too often.
practical cases we’ve ever seen.
CLCKR
MOUS LIMITLESS 3.0 Price: £25 from fave.co/3aCbx4w
Price: £39 from fave.co/3hg6gkg
Colour: Black, green, blue, pink,
Colour: Wood, leather. marble.
MagSafe charging: No. MagSafe charging: No.
Why we love it: Colourful silicone Why we love it: As you can tell by this
cases are a dime a dozen when it list, we’ve big fans of iPhone cases
comes to the iPhone, but the Mous that do double-duty: keeping your
Limitless 3.0 case isn’t one of them. phone safe and adding functionality.
The model we tested is made of The CLCKR case doubles as both
walnut, but it also comes in bamboo, a stand and a strap for your iPhone
carbon fibre and speckled leather. The 12 with its unique pop-out design.

iPHONE
there’s
even a
Pacific
Blue
option so
you won’t
have to
cover
up the
cool new
colour
of the
season.
The back has a fabric-like texture Think of it like an easy-to-apply skin,
and the stand/handle is easy to pop good for scratch protection and
out and put in place. preserving your iPhone’s slim shape,
but not great drop protection.
TOTALLEE
Price: £27 from fave.co/3nK5QoN ESR MACHINA SERIES
Price: £30 from fave.co/3pjQDeF
Colour: Black, blue, green, clear.
Colour: Black, grey, gold.
MagSafe charging: Yes.
MagSafe charging: No.
Why we love it: Totallee’s cases are
as simple as they come, but they’re Why we love it: ESR’s cases are
among our favourites for one reason: among the cheapest you can get, but
thinness. We’ve tested a ton of thin they fit and feel like they should cost
cases over the years, but none rival a whole lot more. The Machine case
Totallee’s fit, adding barely any weight has a firm, rugged exterior that has
or bulk to the iPhone’s body. It’s so a fantastic texture, a nice ergonomic
thin, in fact, it’s one of the only cases design, and a cool pop of colour
to support MagSafe out of the box around the camera. But our favourite
without any special magnets. And feature is the pop-out stand that’s

with good cut-
outs for easy
access. The
button covers
on the sides
are a little on
the stiff side,
but this is a nice
affordable option
for adding good
drop protection
and card-carrying
all in one.
sturdy enough to keep the iPhone MOSHI IGLAZE

12 propped in portrait or landscape Price: £39 from fave.co/3hdFoBs
mode and still use it.
Colour: Pearl white, slate blue.
SMARTISH WALLET
SLAYER VOL 1 MagSafe charging: Sort of.
Price: £18 from fave.co/3heX5AI
Why we love it: Moshi’s hard-shell
Colour: Black, blue, purple. iGlaze case
provides
MagSafe charging: No. really good
protection
Why we love it: You could buy Apple’s and has the
£59 leather MagSafe wallet to hold precise fit
three credit cards, and deal with it the brand is
falling off all the time, or you could known for.
buy a case like this one that has a card It supports
holder built in for a fraction of the price. Moshi’s own
It’s got a nice rubbery, grippy feel and ‘SnapTo’
securely holds three or four cards, magnetic

iPHONE
attachment system, which is good find everywhere’ category. The Ultra

news for those invested in those Hybrid model has a clear back with
accessories (like car mounts) and bad a coloured band around the edge to
news for those looking for MagSafe let the colour of your iPhone through
compatibility. It does support wireless while still providing a bit of an accent
charging, whoever. So MagSafe colour. While it is a thin case, MagSafe
accessories will not magnetically accessories only stick with a rather
attach, but they will charge through weak attachment. We had no problem
the iGlaze case. charging wirelessly through it, though.
It’s a great way to add a bit of drop
SPIGEN ULTRA HYBRID protection without spending much.
Price: £10 from fave.co/3hcf1fe
LIFEPROOF NEXT
Colour: Clear, black, navy blue, red, Price: £42 from fave.co/3mFT75b
sand beige.
Colours: Black, blue, purple.
MagSafe charging: Sort of.
MagSafe charging: No.
Why we love it: Spigen has a lock
on the ‘affordable cases you can Why we love it: You know what you’re
getting with LifeProof’s cases: Good
protection, good
looks, and just
a little bulk.
The Next case
has two pieces
that attach
separately to
lock the phone
in place so it
takes some
effort to take
on and off,
but everything

lines up nicely. There’s a satisfying a pop of colour that adds an accent
click to the buttons and a cover for reminiscent of the Pixel phones.
the Lightning port, but our favourite
feature is the small switch for the ring/ GRIP2Ü BOOST
silent button. Where it can be tough to Price: £35 from /fave.co/3hpZjxv
get at on other cases, Lifeproof adds a
dial that can be easily twisted to mute MagSafe charging: No.
your phone. It’s a little pricey, but you
can get it for a less if you shop around. Colours: Clear, black.
LIFEPROOF WAKE Why we love it: At this point, we

Price: £24 from fave.co/3aEFPn5 know exactly what we’re getting with
Grip2ü’s cases: good protection,
Colours: Black, blue, green, purple. simple looks and a handle to keep
your iPhone from slipping to the
MagSafe charging: No. ground. The Boost case has one extra
surprise: a kickstand that will prop
Why we love it: The Lifeproof Wake up your phone for film-watching. The
case isn’t flashy or rugged, but it’s kickstand’s location means it’s more
still one of our favourite cases. Why? for landscape use, but it’s sturdy
Because it nails the details. The fit enough to get some typing done.
is great, the The buttons are
texture on the flush against the
back feels case and a little
great, and the tricky to press,
buttons might but they seem
be better like they’ll break
than the in over time. But
ones on the if you’re looking
iPhone itself. for a case that
Speaking of adds function and
the buttons, protects against
we love how bumps, this is the
they add one to get.

APPLE WATCH
10 must-have apps for

your new Apple Watch
Take your little wrist computer to the next level. Jason Cross report
T
he Apple Watch is great it can be if you don’t expand your
right out of the box, but horizons a bit. When we think about
you’ll want to add a few the Apple Watch apps we just can’t
apps to really make it sing. live without, these are at the top of the
Apple’s wearable is a true marvel, list. Some are free some are not, but
but you’ll never know just how useful every single one is worth your while.

AutoSleep is our favorite app for adding sleep tracking to the Apple Watch.
1. AUTOSLEEP no subscriptions, no ads. Just four

Price: £3.99 from fave.co/3pnTBi3 pounds to add quality sleep automatic
sleep tracking to your Apple Watch.
Apple finally added sleep tracking to
watchOS 7, but it’s a little lacklustre. It 2. CARROT WEATHER
only works during specific designated Price: £4.99 (in-app purchases) from
Sleep Mode hours, and it doesn’t give fave.co/3hdMO7U
you much insight into the quality of
your sleep. Fortunately, better sleep There are plenty of good weather
tracking is not hard to add with an app apps – many of which support Apple
like AutoSleep, Sleep Watch, Sleep++ Watch – but Carrot Weather may be
or Pillow. There are several good our favourite. It combines excellent
sleep-tracking apps to choose from, weather forecasting (with data from
but most require either a substantial Weather Underground or Dark Sky),
in-app purchase to make proper use lots of customization, and even
of, or a subscription that can add up. achievements. The sarcastic robot
That’s one reason we like voice helps make weather fun.
AutoSleep. Not only does it work well Apple Watch support is especially
and give you lots of great data, it’s just robust, with several different
one upfront (and reasonable) price. complications available and the
No hidden upgrade in-app purchases, ability to customize them in the app.

APPLE WATCH
Carrot Weather isn’t free, but it’s great.
You can even use multiple different features are locked behind even
complications at once with watchOS more expensive subscription tiers.
7, and widgets with iOS 14. Carrot
Weather was one of the first third- 3. 1PASSWORD
party apps to make use of the new Price: Free (in-app purchases) from
corner complications on Apple Watch fave.co/2WID24s
Series 4, and it gives you a card on the
Siri watch face, too. Apple has got a lot better about
The only downside is that the app making Keychain and iCloud work
costs £4.99, and on top of
that you have subscribe to a
Premium Club membership
for 99p a month or £6.99
a year to get notifications
and background updates
on Apple Watch. The cost
is to cover the increased
API usage of its data
sources for features like
real-time precipitation
warnings. And some 1Password makes it easier to use strong security.

together with Safari and apps to There’s a free 30-day trial, but then
manage passwords, but if you ever you’ll have to shell out £3.49 a month
step outside the Apple ecosystem for an individual plan or £6.49 for a
for anything, you really ought to use family plan. It’s well worth it.
a third-party password manager.
This is doubly true if you have family 4. TINY ARMIES
members who should all be using Price: 99p from fave.co/37Lxr3t
password managers but would like to
share passwords for certain services There aren’t a lot of games made for
(like Netflix, for example). Apple Watch. And for good reason,
One of our favourites is 1Password, as not many game designs really lend
which offers top-notch security and themselves to the very limited screen
ease of use along with robust tools space and interactions available in
across multiple platforms. that form factor. Tiny Armies is a good
On your Apple Watch, 1Password exception. It is available for iPhone,
can quickly show you passwords, but the extremely compact and
credit card details, notes, and one-time simple design of this clever strategy
passwords (for 2FA). With Big Sur, you game really shine on the Apple
can even unlock 1Password with your Watch. If you’re looking for a fun little
Apple Watch on any Mac with a Secure distraction next time you’re waiting
Enclave chip (think: Macs with a T2 in line and don’t want to pull out your
chip or the new M1-based Macs). iPhone, give Tiny Armies a try.
Not a lot of games are suited to the small display, but Tiny Armies makes it work.

APPLE WATCH
5. PB: LOST PHONE ALERT you don’t need an answer to that

Price: £4.99 from fave.co/3prHSzn question, you’re already in the app
store throwing your money at it.
Don’t you wish your Apple Watch
could warn you when you leave your 6. THINGS
iPhone behind? It could just kick off Price: £9.99 from fave.co/3rptl91
a notification whenever you leave
Bluetooth range. Things is one of the most well-
That’s essentially what Phone received task managers around, and
Buddy Lost Phone Alert does. It’s it’s easy to see why. It’s attractive,
a little more sophisticated than simple, clear and easy to use. It does
that – you can set a threshold of what any good task manager should:
Bluetooth strength and set various make it easy to jot down a new task,
limits (like the strength of the alarm or accomplish what you have to do
disabling it when on home Wi-Fi). But today, and it stay out of your way the
in essence, this app asks you to pay rest of the time. It’s an Apple Design
£5 for a feature that we think Apple Award winner, and it shows.
should just build into watchOS and Things on the Apple Watch is great.
iOS already. Quickly add a to-do item to organize
Is it worth it? If you’re the kind later on your iPhone. Look at today’s
of person who walks off with your tasks, check off items as you do them,
iPhone more than you’d like to, or postpone them for later with just a
Get alerts on your Apple Watch when you leave your iPhone behind.

It seems mad to pay £10 for a task manager app, but it will change your life.
couple taps. It supports the Siri watch 7. STREAKS

face, which is the perfect place to get Price: £4.99 from fave.co/37JpNXe
daily task reminders.
Things isn’t cheap. At £9.99, it’s Whether you want to lose weight, eat
one of the more expensive iPhone healthier, learn a new skill, or build any
apps of its type. But a really good task new good habit, the key to success
manager will save you time and help is repetition. Going to the gym once
you get more done, without feeling a week isn’t going to change you, no
frustrated and overwhelmed. matter how hard you work out. You’ll
Streaks helps you build good habits trough repetition.

APPLE WATCH
never learn guitar if you practice until favourite podcasts. It has always been
your fingers bleed only once a month. hard to recommend Spotify to Apple
Streaks creates custom reminders Watch enthusiasts, because it couldn’t
to do something each day (it can track stream music or podcasts on its own –
up to 12 daily tasks). It will remind you had to use your phone and merely
you when it’s time to do the task, control playback from your watch.
and even check off tasks related to Now, as long as you’re a Spotify
the Health app data automatically. Premium user (£12.99 per month,
The Apple Watch app gives you rich though bundles and discounts exist),
notifications, plenty of complications, you can stream music and podcasts
and great icons and colours to use in directly from the watch without your
your custom activities. iPhone nearby. Just the thing for
fitness enthusiasts who have a cellular
8. SPOTIFY model Apple Watch and like to go for
Price: Free (in-app purchases) from a run or ride without their iPhone.
fave.co/3hdRtqx
9. CITYMAPPER
An app like Spotify needs no Price: Free (in-app purchases) from
introduction. It is arguably the most fave.co/3mPxJum
popular music streaming service in the
world, and it has increasingly become Citymapper is an absolutely amazing
the place where people listen to their transit app. It gives you bus and
Spotify can stream directly from your watch, no iPhone needed.

Spotify can stream directly from your watch, no iPhone needed.
underground times, alerts you to metropolitan area, but not of much

service outages, helps you plot use to anyone else.
trips, and so much more. It works
by grabbing public data feeds from 10. NIGHT SKY
dozens of city transit agencies. Price: Free (in-app purchases) from
It’s won all kinds of App of the Year fave.co/2KvreQo
awards, and for good reason.
On Apple Watch it’s even better. Night Sky is one of our favourite
With a glance at your wrist you can iPhone and iPad apps. If you’ve ever
see where to go next, which bus looked up and wondered “what star
or train to get on, and when it’s or planet is that?”, then Night Sky
coming. It can be hard to fiddle with is for you. It does so much more,
your phone on crowded transit, but too. There are several slick AR
a glance at your wrist can show you modes, notifications for watching
what stop you’re supposed to get the international space station fly
off at. overhead, Siri Shortcuts… you don’t
The downside to Citymapper have to be an astronomy fan to fall in
is that, since it relies on public love with this app.
transport data, it’s only available in You might not think a sky chart on
a couple dozen cities. It’s perfect if your watch would be useful, but you’d
you live in, or are traveling to, a huge be wrong. Just raise your wrist to the

APPLE WATCH
Your Apple Watch can be a surprisingly useful astronomy tool.
sky and move it around to quickly find

and identify objects in the sky. When
your watch is down, it turns into a sort
of ‘sky compass’ that points you in the
direction of stuff worth looking at. It’s
almost like magic.

Apple Fitness+: Everything
you need to know
Apple’s subscription service for exercise brings trainer-led studio-
style workouts into your home. Roman Loyola reports
O
nline fitness services on your iPhone and tvOS 14.3 on
have become very your Apple TV hardware to sign up
popular, and now Apple and use Apple Fitness+. You’ll also
wants in on the business. need to update your Apple Watch to
The firm has launched Apple Fitness+, watchOS 7.2.
the latest service for Apple users. It Once the updates are installed,
combines your Apple devices, videos, launch the Fitness app on your iPhone
and collected exercise data to allow or iPad (iPad users need to get the
you to have satisfying workouts. Fitness app from the App Store). A
new Fitness+ button appears at the
HOW DO I SIGN UP? bottom of the app. Tap it to sign up. If
Apple Fitness+ launched on 14 you already have Apple One, all you
December. You’ll need to install iOS need to do is go through a couple of
14.3 on your iPhone, iPadOS 14.3 screens about your data.

APPLE FITNESS+
Watch Series
6 includes new
blood oxygen
monitoring and
an ECG app to
go along with
the heart-rate
monitor that’s
been with
the Apple
Watch from
the beginning.
Even before the
Series 6 was
Once you’re signed up, you’ll see the Apple Fitness+ workouts. released, the
Apple Watch’s
Once you’re signed up, you’ll see use in fitness has been on a steady
the Apple Fitness+ workouts. growth path. And you don’t need a
On a Apple TV, you may need to Series 6 watch to use Apple Fitness+.
restart the device for Fitness+ to With so many Apple Watch users
appear. Look for the Fitness app. using it as an exercise tool, Apple
decided to create the Apple Fitness+
WHAT IS APPLE service. Fitness+ features a series of
FITNESS+? workout videos that users can play
Internet-based fitness services and on an iPhone, iPad, or Apple TV. Data
apps that work on your iPhone has is collected by the Apple Watch and
been around for a while from firms like displayed with the workout video, so
Daily Burn and YogaGlo. They saw a you can track stats such as workout
huge growth in popularity thanks to time, heart rate and calories burned.
the Coronavirus pandemic.
With the Apple Watch, Apple HOW DOES IT WORK?
has a device that’s perfectly made To use Apple Fitness+, you’ll need an
to help people get the most out Apple Watch. The Watch is used to
of their workouts. The new Apple track your data as you work out.

When you
finish a workout,
you see a data
summary screen,
and there’s a
‘Burn Bar’ that
allows you to
compare stats
with other
people who have
done the same
Data collected by the Apple Watch is displayed as you work out. workout.
You need another device for the ALL THAT DATA – WILL MY
videos: an iPhone, iPad or Apple TV. PRIVACY BE PROTECTED?
Apple Fitness+ will be in the iPhone’s Apple says that the workout
Fitness app. Apple will be releasing a recommendations are “powered using
Fitness app for the iPad and Apple TV. on-device intelligence”, so it’s not
Apple will have a catalogue of collected online. The calories burned
workout videos for you to use. When and the trainers you choose are not
you are ready to work out and start stored with your Apple ID.
a video, your
Apple Watch is
automatically
triggered to
record your data.
As you do the
video, your fitness
data appears on
the video screen.
You’ll also get
notifications
when you reach
fitness goals. Data summary after a workout.

APPLE FITNESS+
WHAT TYPES OF New workouts will be added

WORKOUTS DOES APPLE weekly, so you don’t get bored doing
FITNESS+ HAVE? the same workouts over and over.
Apple will offer 10 different workout Apple Fitness+ can make workout
types at launch: recommendations based on your past
activity data collected by the Apple
• Core Watch. Filtering tools for workout
• Cycling type, trainers, duration and music
• Dance are provided so you can exercise the
• High-Intensity Interval Training way you want.
(HIIT)
• Rowing DO I NEED EQUIPMENT?
• Treadmill run You can use your own equipment,
• Treadmill walk so for example, if you want to do a
• Strength Cycling workout, you can use your
• Yoga own exercise bike. You don’t need
• Mindful cooldowns to buy special equipment. Apple
says that many of the workouts
don’t require equipment at all.
If you have a gym membership,
you can do Apple Fitness+ there. You
can play the videos on an iPhone or
iPad and use your gym’s equipment
or workout rooms.
I’M NEW TO WORKING OUT,

OR I’M COMING BACK TO
IT AFTER AN ABSENCE.
WOULD APPLE FITNESS+
WORK FOR ME?
Apple Fitness+ has an ‘Absolute
Beginner’ programme for users
Apple says it will offer a new workout who are just getting started or
video on a weekly basis. are returning to regular workouts.

The programme teaches the body
movements often used in the
workouts, so you can feel comfortable
while you find your groove.
CAN I PLAY MUSIC

WHILE I WORK OUT?
The workouts play music, and Apple
Fitness+ works with Apple Music so
you can save the songs played and
use them for future workouts, or listen
to them at your leisure. This requires
an Apple Music subscription.
With an Apple Music subscription, you
WHAT DEVICES DO I NEED can access the music playlists used
FOR APPLE FITNESS+? during workouts.
Apple Fitness+ requires:
or £79.99 a year. A subscription can
• Apple Watch Series 3 or later paired be shared with up to five other people
with an iPhone 6s or later, or an though Family Sharing. An Apple
iPhone SE Music subscription is not required.
• If you want to use an iPad, you Apple Fitness+ is part of the new
must have and iPad Pro, iPad (5th Apple One service bundle, where you
generation or later), iPad mini can sign up for several Apple services,
4 or later, iPad Air 2 or iPad Air such as Apple Music, Apple TV+, and
(3rd generation) iCloud in addition to Apple Fitness+
• Apple Fitness+ can be used on the for a special price.
Apple TV 4K and Apple TV HD
CAN I TRY APPLE
HOW MUCH DOES APPLE FITNESS+ FOR FREE
FITNESS+ COST? BEFORE I SIGN UP?
Apple Fitness+ is a subscription You can. Anyone who buys a new
service that is free for the first month. Apple Watch Series 3 will get a free
After that, you pay £9.99 per month, three-month Apple Fitness+ trial.

FEATURE
Apple’s 2020 report card

How did Apple do last year. Michael Simon, Jason Cross & Roman
Loyola report
W
hat started out with iPHONE
an earnings warning, New products: iPhone SE, iPhone 12
stock drop and store mini, iPhone 12, iPhone 12 Pro, iPhone
closures ended 12 Pro Max
up being a very successful year
for Apple. Nearly every product in Michael Simon: First came the iPhone
Apple’s catalogue saw a refresh, a SE, which somehow made the iPhone
couple of new ones joined the fray, 8 feel fresh again with a speedy chip,
and tens of millions of devices were better camera and lower price tag.
sold to happy customers. Then we got OLED displays and 5G
Here’s our 2020 Apple product support across the board, better
report card, where we give each cameras, a new design and a new
segment of Apple’s business a charging and accessory system in
grade from A to F. the iPhone 12, along with a larger

Max and a new 5.4in
mini. Whether you’re
comparing them to the
iPhone 11 or the best
Android phones of the
year, the iPhone 12
line-up is among the
best ever made and
pushed the boundaries
of what a smartphone
can do. Grade: A
Jason Cross: The

iPhone 12 is a great We were impressed with Apple’s iPhone 12 line-up.
line-up, with good
sizes, performance and features aren’t great – they are, as Michael and
across the line. That 5G is included Jason point out. Grade: A
without ballooning the price is a big
feather in Apple’s cap. MagSafe MAC
has a lot of potential. And let’s not New products: MacBook Air (M1), 13in
forget the iPhone SE, a really great MacBook Pro (M1), Mac mini (M1),
budget alternative introduced early MacBook Air (Intel), 13in MacBook
in the year. Yeah, I want an always-on Pro (Intel), 27in iMac (Intel)
display and ProMotion, but there’s
no denying that these are stellar Michael Simon: Until November, the
products. Grade: A Mac was languishing through another
year of perfectly fine and utterly
Roman Loyola: I usually buy a new forgettable products. But then the M1
phone every year, but this year I landed. Apple shipped new models
didn’t. My main reason for upgrading with the M1 chip and they were faster
is 5G, and it’s just not widespread than nearly every Mac Apple has ever
enough now to make the investment. made while keeping the same prices
That’s not Apple’s fault and that (and even lowering it in the case of the
doesn’t mean that Apple’s offerings mini). There’s plenty more I want to

FEATURE
see – most of all a better webcam in released, but you could also say that
the notebooks – but I’ve never been the M1 was the reason the Mac was
more excited for the Mac. Grade: A failing until November 2020. The
M1 release was monumental, and
Jason Cross: This is a hard one to 2021 for the Mac is going to be even
give a grade to. The M1 is an absolute bigger. Grade: B
triumph, and has injected real
enthusiasm and excitement into the iPAD
Mac for the first time in years. But New products: iPad Air, iPad Pro, iPad
is the only thing preventing the Mac
from completely treading water. Apple Michael Simon: Like the Mac, Apple
is behind the industry on industrial completely redeemed a lacklustre
design, display technology (no HDR year for the iPad with the launch of
or high/variable refresh rates?), and the completely unexpected, fully
Face ID should have come to the Mac, redesigned iPad Air. Among the
along with a much better webcam, a highlights, the new iPad Air has a
long time ago. Grade: B fantastic iPad Pro-style design, has a
Touch ID scanner built into the power
Roman Loyola: The Mac was having button, is as fast as the iPhone 12, and
a failure of a year until the M1 was comes in colours other than space
grey and rose gold. It’s
so good, there’s really
no reason to buy a Pro.
Grade: A
Jason Cross: The

hardware itself isn’t
really stepping forward
a lot, but the new iPad
Air is a lot better than
the old one. iPadOS
13.4 added mouse/
keyboard support in a
Apple’s M1 Macs are an absolute triumph. thoughtful way, and the

Michael Simon:
There’s no denying
that the two watches
Apple launched this
year are the best
smartwatches you
can buy, but they
still left something to
be desired. Apple’s
cheaper SE is missing
several important
features, including
the always-on display,
EKG sensor and
2020 was a lacklustre year for the iPad. blood-oxygen sensor,
and the Series 6
magic keyboard is a great accessory. wasn’t much of an upgrade over
iPadOS is slowly breaking away from the Series 5. Sleep tracking is meh,
iOS, and needs to go faster. The iPad battery life is still an issue, and blood-
Pro update was lacklustre, though, oxygen tracking isn’t integrated as
and the regular iPad is getting pretty well as it is on the Fitbit Sense. And
long in the tooth. Grade: B wouldn’t recommend the £199 Series
3 to my worst enemy. Grade: B
Roman Loyola: It feels like the iPad
line-up is in flux, with non-Pro iPads Jason Cross: The Series 6 is a modest
feeling like Pro models, and the step forward from the Series 5, with
Pro models not getting much with not a lot of real tangible reason to
upgrades. You can do more with the exist. The SE is a great idea but
iPad and iPad Air, which is great in should be less expensive, and Apple
my book. Grade: B should have stopped selling the
Series 3. What Apple Watch needs
APPLE WATCH more than anything is multi-day
New products: Apple Watch SE, battery life, and year after year we
Apple Watch Series 6 get stuff we don’t need like faster

FEATURE
audio spectrum in
2020 and both have
their flaws. While
the HomePod mini is
priced much better
than the original
HomePod), it doesn’t
sound as good as
its older sibling or
some other speakers
in its class, such
as the Nest Audio.
Meanwhile, the
Last year’s Apple Watch Series 6 is a modest step AirPods Max offer
forward from the Series 5. active noise cancelling
and spatial audio to
performance. Sleep tracking could an over-ear design and studio sound
have been a killer feature if Apple but cost £300 more than the AirPods
hadn’t done such a bad job with it. Pro, which aren’t exactly cheap.
Grade: C Both products were on my 2020 wish
list and both were something of a
Roman Loyola: The Apple Watch is disappointment. Grade: C
the best smartwatch on the planet.
That being said, it still needs better Jason Cross: AirPods Max are
battery life. The sleep tracking feature great headphones, but quite a bit
seems basic, and Apple should overpriced for what you get (and don’t
improve it in future updates. Grade: C get me started on that ‘Smart Case’
atrocity). The HomePod mini is fine
AUDIO hardware at a reasonable price, but
New products: HomePod mini, it’s the sort of product that really relies
AirPods Max on Siri to make it great (as opposed
to Apple Music being the star of the
Michael Simon: Apple launched two bigger HomePod), and Siri just isn’t
products at opposite ends of the as good as it needs to be. Apple Music

The AirPods max are great headphones, but very expensive
keeps making modest improvements, SERVICES

but its recommendations are still too New products: Fitness+, Apple One
poor to pull me from Spotify, and I too bundle
often find that it doesn’t have a song
I’m looking for. Grade: C Michael Simon: Not only did Apple
launch a solid new service for the
Roman Loyola: The AirPods Pro Apple Watch in Fitness+, but it
are awesome... oh wait, that was also bolstered TV+ with some
2019. If I ever see a stranger wearing excellent new shows (Ted Lasso),
AirPods Max, I may just stop them movies (Wolfwalkers), and exciting
and ask them, “Why?” Apple needed production deals. It also brought
to release a HomePod mini, but it Apple Music to Google Assistant
also needed to released major Siri devices. But the cherry was the
updates. Grade: D £30-a-month Apple One Premier

FEATURE
the App Store and

listed in Arcade.
The only new
service this year
is Fitness+, and
it’s a fine set of
workout videos,
but that’s all it
really is. It doesn’t
do anything
innovative, it
doesn’t remind
or encourage
Apple One is a good deal, but TV+, Fitness+, News+ still feel you to work
like works in progress. out, it doesn’t
do nutritional
bundle that includes everything tracking like MyFitnessPal… it just
plus 2TB of iCloud storage for up feels too bare-bones.
to 6 people. Granted, Apple News+ Apple’s halo service seems to be
still isn’t great and I’d love to see a Apple TV+, which suffered from an
stronger back-catalogue of shows extreme lack of quality content this
make their way to TV+, but I like the year. Ted Lasso is a delight, but Apple
moves Apple made in 2020. Grade: B needs ten times the amount of new
content per year for people to find
Jason Cross: This was a rough year enough good stuff to watch. Blame
for Apple’s services. Apple One is the COVID for ruining production, but I
bundle we always needed, but it’s very rarely found a reason to fire up
only a deal if you find most of Apple’s Apple TV+ this year. Grade: D
services worth paying for, and I’m
not sure I do. News+ remains a poor Roman Loyola: In all, Apple One
experience. Apple Arcade, once so is a good deal, but TV+, Fitness+,
promising, has languished in large News+ still feel like works in progress
part because of Apple’s steadfast that can be satisfying at times and
refusal to allow apps to be both sold in frustrating at others. Grade: C

SOFTWARE improve privacy and security, whether
New products: iOS 14, iPadOS 14, it’s ‘privacy nutrition labels’ in the
macOS Big Sur, watchOS 7, tvOS 14, App Store or lights that show when
numerous Apple apps your microphone or camera is being
accessed. On the other hand, iPadOS
Michael Simon: Among the notable 14 still doesn’t go far enough to
software changes in 2020: macOS differentiate itself from iPhone, and
was finally bumped to version 11 and Apple still doesn’t have a clean and
got a visual refresh to go along with cohesive multitasking story on iPad.
it; iPad OS continued to feel too While macOS Big Sur seems like
constrained by its iPhone roots; the a mostly cosmetic update, a ton of
overdue Sleep app in watchOS 7 was impressive work went on under the
a bit too basic; and tvOS 14 finally hood to enable the new Apple Silicon
brought 4K YouTube and little else. macs, and the fact that it’s all going
But iOS 14 saved the whole year with so smoothly is an amazing testament
a significant revamp to the Home to those engineers.
Screen layout in iOS 14 that finally let Nothing really wowed me about
people abandon the stale app grid. updates to Apple’s own apps.
Grade: B
Jason Cross:
I’m impressed
by the
improvements
in iOS 14,
especially the
thoughtful
Widgets
and App
Library. And
I’m doubly-
impressed
by Apple’s We love the improvements in iOS 14, especially the thoughtful
moves to Widgets and App Library.

FEATURE
Improvements to the Maps app, Apple Watch is quite good (despite

for example, don’t seem especially some early sizing challenges).
useful. Rather, Apple’s suite of apps Apple’s move to eliminate power
saw minor, predictable, but welcome adapters from most of its products
changes all around. Grade: B is ultimately the right call, but the
adapters it sells should be better
Roman Loyola: There was an update and cheaper.
to Apple Clips, people. Grade: B The company’s heavy-handed
approach to developers started to
OTHER come to a head this year, and while
New products: MagSafe it’s hard to find a clear hero or villain
accessories, virtual events, and other in this fight, it’s probably true that
miscellaneous stuff Apple needs to loosen up the reins
quite a bit. Grade: C
Michael Simon: While the MagSafe
tech inside the iPhone 12 is certainly
interesting, the accessories to go
along with it, particularly the MagSafe
Duo Charger, leave much to be
desired. But I loved learning about
it. Apple’s four events in 2020 were
virtual, but they were better than
ever, with slick production, engaging
content, and no applause breaks.
Here’s to more of those even when we
can gather again. Grade: B
Jason Cross: This is a hard category

to grade because it’s a potpourri of
various things. Apple’s accessories
were hit-and-miss. Apple’s MagSafe
stuff was disappointing and
overpriced, for example. On the other
hand, the Solo Loop band for the

What is a Mini LED display
and why do you want it?
Apple may start using a new backlight technology this year. Here’s
what Mini LED is all about. Jason Cross reports
W
e’ve heard rumours What is a Mini LED display and
for about a year or so what will it do for you? This short
that Apple is on the explanation may help you understand
verge of launching why this technology can be such a big
some products with Mini LED step forward for Apple’s products.
display technology. It could come
to MacBooks, iPads, iMacs – really A BETTER BACKLIT LCD
anything with a display, though it’s To understand Mini LED, you first
unlikely to ever end up in Apple Watch have to know the basics of how
or iPhone (which use OLED displays). a traditional backlit LCD works.

FEATURE
That’s what we have in all our iPads, for example, larger LED backlight
MacBooks and iMacs today. arrays with what is called ‘local
It can get complicated, but in dimming’ are common, and even Mini
short, there’s a backlight (usually LED TVs are already on the market
white), with an LCD layer on top of it. from brands like TCL. Apple’s Pro
The purpose of the LCDs is to block Display XDR is very nearly a Mini LED
a controlled amount of light from display, with 576 backlight LEDs that
the backlight. On top of the LCDs are individually controlled (a typical
are colour filters that turn the light Mini LED display of that size would
red, green, or blue. That’s the basic have perhaps a few thousand).
structure, but modern LCDs have So that’s Mini LED in a nutshell:
other layers like polarizers, anti-glare kind of like the Pro Display XDR,
coatings, and so on. A big white light, but with many more, smaller, LED
covered by a bunch of tiny LCDs backlights.
(three for each pixel) to block or let
through various amounts of light, and PRECISE LOCAL
a colour filter to turn the light red, DIMMING AND HDR
green or blue. What does a backlight array of
What Mini LED technology does is thousands of tiny LEDs do for you,
replace that big backlight with a grid exactly? Well, in a traditional LCD
of lots of tiny little backlights. you may have one backlight lighting
I’m glossing over the finer points. up the entire display in a uniform
There are lots of exceptions. In TVs, fashion. It has to be as bright as the
This image from Vizio illustrates the concept of local dimming LED arrays.

brightest white pixels
on the screen. Then
the LCDs in front of
it would block some
amount of light to
make darker pixels.
With an array of
backlight LEDs, like
those on the Pro
Display XDR, you can
individually control
the brightness of the
backlight on hundreds
of tiny ‘zones’ and
then further refine The Pro Display XDR has hundreds of LED backlights,
the brightness but not enough to be truly called a Mini LED display.
with the LCD layer.
This improves contrast and power It’s likely that Apple products with
efficiency, and allows for darker Mini LED displays will have higher
black levels. peak and sustained brightness,
Mini LED technology takes this though not up to the level of the Pro
even further, with thousands or even Display XDR’s impressive 1,000 nits
tens of thousands of really tiny LEDs sustained and 1,600 nits peak. That
divided into hundreds or thousands sort of thing generates a lot of heat
of lighting zones. The display can and requires significant cooling. This,
control the backlight intensity behind combined with great black levels, will
just a few hundred pixels. mean really high contrast ratios and
This further improves power brilliant HDR quality.
efficiency, and also makes it possible
to have finer control over the brightest NOT THE SAME
and darkest areas of the screen. One AS MICRO-LED
LED backlight can be cranked up There’s another technology coming
really bright without causing light to down the pike with a similar-sounding
bleed into a dark area nearby. name: Micro-LED. Likely to appear

FEATURE
shines brighter or
dimmer to change a
pixel’s colour. Thus
there is no need for
an LCD layer or a
colour filter.
Micro-LED
displays are too
expensive for
widespread adoption
right now, but
prices are coming
down. They should
ultimately offer big
benefits over LCD or
OLED technology,
Micro-LED isn’t like Mini LED. It’s not an LCD at all. with super-fast
response times,
first in the Apple Watch due to cost, incredibly colour reproduction, high
Micro-LED is not at all the same thing brightness, perfect black levels,
as Mini LED. and better energy efficiency all in a
If you read the description of Mini thinner display.
LED and thought, “why don’t they just
make the LEDs so small that there’s
one for every subpixel?”, then you’re
right on target. That’s exactly what
Micro-LED is.
Micro-LED is very much like OLED;
a self-emissive technology (meaning
there’s no backlight). It is an array of
much smaller LEDs, millions of them
on a single display, each the size of
an individual sub-pixel. Each Micro
LED is red, green or blue, and simply

Help Desk
Solutions to all your Mac problems. Glenn Fleishman reports
INCONSISTENT FACIAL your photos, which may include your

RECOGNITION IN dearest loved ones and strangers.
APPLE PHOTOS Apple’s most recent approach,
It is extremely handy to tag people implemented several years ago in
you know in photos you take. You Photos, kept all facial ID local to
can then easily find images of those your computer or mobile device. (As
people across time and at specific opposed to, ahem, Google.) In 2016,
events. This feature appears in Photos it promised a secure way to sync
in iOS, iPadOS and macOS, but may this information via iCloud, which
not work correctly across devices finally went into effect in Photos 3 in
without iCloud Photos enabled – and late 2017 for macOS and the Photos
sometimes even with it turned on. app in iOS 11.
Many companies have tried to The trick Apple employs is creating
make this easier by adding facial a sort of shorthand mathematical
recognition, so that software signature of each photograph
algorithms try to guess who is the associated with the same person. It is
same person across many faces in a system similar to iCloud Keychain

HELP DESK
on my iPhone and Mac

don’t seem to match
for people, either.
Readers have
written in about this
problem lately and a
related one. If you opt to
not use iCloud Photos,
which can rack up
iCloud storage fees if
you have a fair number
of images, but instead
use iTunes (Mojave
No matter how many times I try to identify my dad to and earlier) or the
Photos, it keeps reverting to bad matches. Here, only Finder’s sync interface
three of six matches are correct. (Catalina and later)
for synchronization,
that allows Apple devices logged into faces may be out of joint.
the same iCloud account to exchange Photos does attach a person’s
those signatures via iCloud sync name to an image’s metadata, so
without Apple having the ability to that syncing passes that along in a
decrypt and view it. Apple doesn’t way that Photos on another device
send names or images, just these can read it and assign that person to
shorthand notations. the correct identity in Photos. But it
With iCloud Photos enabled, this doesn’t bring sorting order or other
should allow the same photos to have parameters along. Because the facial
the same people identified in each of recognition isn’t synced via iCloud,
them. In practice, I’ve found facial- using direct iTunes or Finder sync
recognition generally poor. Whenever also seemingly means ID performed
I revisit a person’s entry in the People on one platform may not be the
album, I find a lot of photos containing ‘truth’ (the most accurate associated
unrelated faces. No matter how much information for a piece of data),
I sort and train, it never seems to get leaving Photos to wrestle with which
much better. And the set of images faces to tag.

If you export images from Photos In both iPhoto and Photos (the
for macOS, it does retain people’s steps are shockingly identical):
names that you’ve tagged, however,
allowing use of that information in 1. Select an image you cropped.
other photo-management software. 2. Click the Edit button.
3. Click the Crop button.
APPLE PHOTOS: WHAT 4. You should now see the cropped
CAN YOU DO IF YOU CROP image and the full image around
OUT DETAILS AND LATER it. Drag the handles to change the
WANT THEM BACK? cropping. Or click Reset to remove
A photo often doesn’t contain the crop altogether.
exactly what you want. Cropping 5. Click Done.
a picture can be a solution.
But what do you do if
you crop out a critical
detail and later want it
back? One Macworld
reader cropped herself
out of a picture with her
newborn baby.
If you used an Apple
photo organizing app to
crop the photo, you’re in
luck. Fortunately, both
the long-discontinued
iPhoto (which no longer
works starting with macOS
10.15 Catalina) and the
modern Photos app both
support non-destructive
cropping. You can revert
backwards simply to
recrop an image or reset
it to its full bounds. You can recrop images within Photos.

HELP DESK
There are a few provisos: management of locally stored and

iCloud-stored files depends on
• If you have cropped the image on whether you have an iTunes Match or
your iPhone or iPad with iCloud Apple Music subscription.
Photos enabled, you have to go But for general storage, iCloud
back to the original device to revert Drive and optimized storage can
cropping. And depending on timing be truly useful. As you add material
and syncing, it may be unavailable. to iCloud Drive and you start to run
• If you exported the modified image up against a full drive on your Mac,
from iPhoto or Photos and deleted macOS deletes the local copy of files
the original in your library, the and puts placeholders in their stead,
exported copy only contains the while iCloud retains the files. Double-
cropped data and can’t be restored. click or open a file from an app, and
macOS automatically downloads it.
USE OPTIMIZE MAC As an example, one Macworld
STORAGE WITH iCLOUD reader has nearly 500GB of
DRIVE TO PACK VIDEOS instructional videos on an external
INTO A CROWDED MAC drive connected to her Mac, and
iCloud can give you up to 2TB of about 250GB of storage remaining
additional storage to supplement on her computer, but would like to
your Mac’s drive capacity, particularly consolidate it all. iCloud Drive coupled
useful with 256GB and 512GB Macs. with storage optimization can be ideal
The trick is using the Optimize Mac for this in the right circumstances.
Storage checkbox found in the iCloud First examine requirements and
preference pane when you click capabilities:
Options to the right of iCloud Drive
(Mojave and earlier) or in the Apple ID • Check that you have enough iCloud
preference pane’s iCloud section at storage purchased. You likely have
the main level (Catalina and later). to upgrade to 500GB or 2TB of
iCloud Photos and iCloud storage – 50GB is not usually
Music Library are their own beasts enough to be valuable offloading
– iCloud Photos has its own from your Mac.
optimization controls, while iCloud • Check your broadband plan. Are you
Music Library’s availability and charged for excess data usage or

throttled to a lower speed
each month against some
baseline, and if so, how
close to that limit are you?
(Some ISPs have temporarily
suspended limits due to
the pandemic and the work-
from-home shift.)
• Consider your broadband
speed. Do you have enough
throughput to upload many
gigabytes and download
them on demand?
Next, follow these steps: Optimize Mac Storage lets you cram 50kg of
digital potatoes in a 5 kg bag.
1. Select Optimize Mac
Storage in the appropriate noted above – start deleting the
preference pane for your version of local copies. You should be able
macOS as noted above. (If you have to monitor storage and watch
multiple Macs logged into the same that happen.
iCloud account, you will need to 5. Continue a batch at a time: copy,
enable optimization on each of them wait for upload, repeat.
to avoid filling their start-up volume.)
2. Copy a batch of tens of gigabytes Another option is to upload
of data from your external sources directly via the iCloud.com site, but
to iCloud Drive. Apple provides just a file-selection
3. Wait for the files to upload fully. You tool, and uploading via a browser
can check via iCloud.com to see can be fraught with interruptions
if the files are available there as a and slowdowns.
check on completion. To be extremely clear: don’t
4. Copy another batch of files. delete any files. macOS and iCloud
As pressure increases on your manage the process so you don’t
Mac’s storage, macOS will – as have to.

HELP DESK
THREE WAYS TO PASS state of an app off among Macs,

WEB PAGES ACROSS iPhones, and iPads, including a web
YOUR MAC, iPHONE & iPAD page in Safari while Safari is the
I used to dream that QR Codes would active app.
be the magical glue that would allow AirPlay is also part of that mix,
the easy passage of content among letting you send or receive all sorts
digital and analogue devices. Want of documents and items, including
to read a web page on your phone photos, iWork files and web pages.
that you’re viewing in your desktop And iCloud adds yet another option:
browser? Just snap a picture of a QR making the state of open tabs on
Code on the page and voilà, it appears each device logged into the same
on your mobile device. iCloud account accessible to every
The reason for this hope was other device in that set. (And QR
that it once was hard to move URLs Codes work, too.)
around, unless you used URL Here’s how to send a web page to
shorteners, and even then it often or among your devices.
involved careful retyping. Apple
got on top of this years ago with Handoff
Handoff, a set of features that rely While viewing a page in Safari for
on Apple’s Continuity framework – macOS or mobile Safari and Safari
which pulls together Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, is your foreground app, you can
and proximity – to let you hand the also open the page from your other

devices. (This also works with any If you have Safari frontmost on
other app that supports Handoff, and two or more of your other devices,
for which you have the same app on only the page associated with the
the two devices engaged in Handoff.) device you most recently interacted
with appears.
• In macOS, a Safari icon appears on
the Dock: at left, if the Dock is on the AirPlay
bottom of the screen; at top, if the In Safari on any Apple platform,
Dock is displayed at right. The icon tap the Share button and tap
is overlaid with an icon of the device AirDrop, then tap the device with
on which the page is open, while which you want to share the web
a floating label shows Safari plus page. In iOS 13 and iPadOS 13,
a generic label like ‘From iPhone’ you can also tap on the top raw of
or ‘From Mac’. Click it to open the the share sheet an icon that shows
page in Safari. previous AirDrop destinations
• On an iPhone, swipe up and the (overlaid with the AirDrop icon).
Handoff notice appears as a lozenge When the other device receives the
that features the Safari app icon, page, it opens it automatically if
the label ‘Safari’, and the actual you’re logged into the same iCloud
name of the device handing off. Tap account. If not, that device offers a
it to open it in Safari. prompt to open the page.
• On an iPad,
the icon
appears at
the right side
of the iPad
app dock,
looking quite
similar to how
it appears on
a Mac. Tap it
to open the
page in macOS shows an overlay in the Dock with the app name and
Safari. device type, but not the device name.

HELP DESK
iCloud bookmarking syncing of web pages open in tabs on your

iCloud can sync various elements of other devices. Tap any link to open it.
Safari across your devices if you have
it enabled. In macOS 10.14 Catalina, QR Code
turn on iCloud Safari sync in the Apple The dream of the QR Code never died
ID preference pane in the iCloud for me – nor, apparently, Google in
settings. In macOS 10.13 Mojave and Android and Apple in iOS and iPadOS.
earlier, look in the iCloud preference Both major mobile operating system
pane. In iOS and iPadOS, you can makers added QR Code support in
enable or disable it in Settings > user their camera apps a few years ago,
name > iCloud. letting you point the camera at a code,
iCloud syncs information about have it automatically recognized, and
open tabs on your devices, but be offered the opportunity to open
doesn’t open them. Instead, you have
to look to find them:
• In Safari for macOS, click the Show

Tab Overview button in the upper-
right corner of the screen, which
looks like two overlapping squares.
Safari reveals all current tabs at the
top as window thumbnails. Look or
scroll down, and all other synced
devices’ open tabs appear under
their names. (They are sometimes
slightly out of sync, I’ve found.)
Tap any of those links to open the
web page.
• In Safari for iOS and iPadOS, tap the
Tabs button in the lower-right corner
of the screen (iOS) or in the upper-
right corner (iPadOS). Like on the A QR Code can embed a Web page
Mac, this reveals open tabs on the URL. The QR Code can be in a digital
device, but swipe up to reveal the list medium or splashed on a billboard.

an embedded web page link. (QR keeping an active session in which
Codes also embed Wi-Fi network you’re remembered from page to page
information, contact cards and much – is dropping a cookie to your browser
more.) You may find QR Codes in the that your browser in turn sends back
wild, though they sometimes appear every time it requests a page. Thus is
on web pages in digital media. To scan the web crudely knit together. (With
a QR Code, make sure that in iOS or web apps, even though you’re on what
iPadOS that at Settings > Camera, appears to be a single page, all the
Scan QR Codes is enabled. behind-the-scenes interaction still
sends cookies.)
DOES SAFARI ALWAYS One Macworld reader finds
REQUEST FRESH LOGINS themselves constantly prompted
TO YOUR SITES? in Safari to log in again when they
The whole system of web browsing visit any site, and they’re unclear
and web servers was designed why. I suspect an excess of privacy
to be ‘stateless’: each page load – or maybe just the right amount – is
is disconnected from each other. bedevilling them. One of the following
Cookies were invented in the very scenarios is likely.
early days to serve as a kind of
breadcrumb (or cookie crumb). When Block All Cookies. Safari for iOS,
you log in to a website, the primary iPadOS, and macOS lets a user
method of preserving state – of prevent their browser from accepting
Setting Safari to block all cookies prevents many websites from letting you
maintain a session.

HELP DESK
and sending any cookies at all. In the Location bar’s background is a
macOS, that’s Safari > Preferences dark grey. Safari for macOS provides
> Privacy and the Block All Cookies no additional clues, but in iOS and
checkbox; in iOS and iPadOS, iPadOS, tap the tabs in a browser
it’s a switch at Settings > Safari. window, and in the tabs view the word
However, with all cookies disabled, Private appears in black type on a
it’s unlikely most sites will allow a white lozenge to indicate that’s the
proper log in at all. mode you’re using.
Private Browsing. All modern Clear History. If you use Clear History
browsers let you enable a private, in Safari, it will wipe out all your
incognito, or similar mode in which the browsing history, cookies, and either
tab you’re using picks up no stored site-related data for a period of time
information for your browser, only you select (macOS) or entirely. That
stores cookies and other data while option in Safari for macOS is Safari
it’s open, and then deletes it all when > Clear History; in iOS and iPadOS,
the tab is closed. It’s an effective way it’s found at Settings > Safari labelled
to avoid many kinds of tracking. When Clear History and Website Data.
used for site logins, it also prevents
remembering your login at all, so Third-party browsing history cleaner.
each subsequent visit after closing A number of apps are designed to
a tab requires a fresh login. You can erase tracking and traces of your
tell if you’re using Private Browsing activity. If you have any ‘cleaner’ app
in Safari on any platform, because installed, check its configuration. It
might be
wiping out
cookies on
a regular
basis.
Clearing history removes cookies needed to preserve a login.

REVIEWED: iPHONE 12 MINI • MAGSAFE DUO CHARGER
FEBRUARY 2021
MACBOOK AIR (M1)

STUNNING PERFORMANCE FROM
APPLE’S MOST AFFORDABLE LAPTOP

Macworld Uk March 2021

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MARCH 2021

MAC BUYING GUIDE

2 Macworld • March 2021

iPHONE APPLE FITNESS+

APPLE WATCH HELP DESK

March 2021 • Macworld 3

Apple to launch education

4 Macworld • March 2021

March 2021 • Macworld 5

Credit: Getty Images/Azat_ajphotos

6 Macworld • March 2021

March 2021 • Macworld 7

Next MacBook Air could

8 Macworld • March 2021

March 2021 • Macworld 9

Next MacBook Pros might

10 Macworld • March 2021

March 2021 • Macworld 11

New rumour dashes

12 Macworld • March 2021

March 2021 • Macworld 13

iMac redesign in the works,

14 Macworld • March 2021

March 2021 • Macworld 15

Why Apple should release

16 Macworld • March 2021

March 2021 • Macworld 17

18 Macworld • March 2021

March 2021 • Macworld 19

It’s time for the Mac

20 Macworld • March 2021

March 2021 • Macworld 21

22 Macworld • March 2021

March 2021 • Macworld 23

Which Mac should you buy?

24 Macworld • March 2021

March 2021 • Macworld 25

The MacBook pro is available to buy with a 16- or 13in screen.

26 Macworld • March 2021

March 2021 • Macworld 27

28 Macworld • March 2021

March 2021 • Macworld 29

Verdict: The Mac

30 Macworld • March 2021

March 2021 • Macworld 31

iMacs have a 4096x2304 resolution £2,299 27in model: 3.8GHz 8-core

32 Macworld • March 2021

March 2021 • Macworld 33

How fast is it? The machine is a

34 Macworld • March 2021

March 2021 • Macworld 35

programmable Gate Array (FPGA) Mac Pro is a “designed in pursuit of

How fast is it?

36 Macworld • March 2021

March 2021 • Macworld 37

Review: AirPods Max

38 Macworld • March 2021

March 2021 • Macworld 39

wireless headphones, but that too is to play/pause, twice to skip forward,

40 Macworld • March 2021

March 2021 • Macworld 41

THAT NOT-SMART CASE It’s small and light, but that’s