Portable USB-based monitors are a fantastic way to expand your productivity on the road, but they have a few issues. First of all, finding space to sprawl out your laptop setup isn’t always easy, and second, having a second screen you need to hunch down to look at just amplifies the basic ergonomic problems of the laptop form factor. Nex is hoping to solve both of those problems with the NexPad, a portable monitor that sits above your laptop’s screen instead of beside it.

In technical terms, there’s nothing particularly groundbreaking about the NexPad screen (spotted by Digital Trends). It’s a 12-inch, 1080p touchscreen with an IPS panel, which seems pretty fair for its $249 price tag. It attaches to your laptop via a USB-C cable, but it’ll also work over mini-HDMI or USB 2.0 if you’re okay with less performance. A second USB-C port allows pass-through charging, a handy feature for travelers that we’ve seen on designs like Lenovo’s ThinkVision M14. A shorty USB-C cable can be stored in the kickstand for easy stowage.

Nex

No, what you’re really paying for here is the design work. The massive “chin” beneath the screen is hiding several strong magnets, which attach to the rear of your laptop’s screen. (If your laptop’s hinge isn’t strong enough to hold up the 1.6-pound screen, you can add some stability with the included magnetic kickstand.) Connect the USB-C cable, and you’re ready to expand your workspace, touchscreen included. It’ll run off your laptop’s internal battery.

Nex

The NexPad can also work as a conventional portable monitor with a rather awkward blank space on the bottom, or use that massive magnet to stick an Android phone there and use a desktop-style screen mode, like Samsung Dex. All in all, it seems like a much more practical proposition than the company’s previous design, the NexDock, which makes you carry around a laptop-sized gadget that relies on Android and gives up the advantages of Windows, ChromeOS, or macOS. And it doesn’t hurt that it’s a lot cheaper.

The NexPad is shipping now for $249.

With the release of iOS 16.1, Apple has essentially “finished” its iOS 16 release. Of course, there will be further updates with new features and fixes, but iOS 16.1 brought us the remainder of the features first announced at WWDC. It also coincides with the release of macOS Ventura and iPadOS 16.1 (the first version 16 release for the iPad), which completes the ecosystem.

One of the most interesting new features coming to the iPhone in iOS 16.1 is Live Activities. These are notifications that pop up on your lock screen for a limited time and update themselves continuously. You know how, if you have food delivered, you get a notification that your order was received, another that it’s ready, a third that it’s being delivered with a time estimate, and a final one when the delivery driver shows up? All of that can now be handled with a single notification that simply changes over time.

Other great uses for Live Activities are timers, activity-tracking apps, ride-sharing apps like Uber or Lyft, and of course tracking sports scores. If you have an iPhone 14 Pro, you’ll be especially excited by this release as Live Activities can hook into the Dynamic Island, making it much more useful.

While Live Activities are enabled in iOS 16.1, apps will need to be updated to make use of them. If you just upgraded to iOS 16.1 and want to see what Live Activities are all about, you should start with these apps (in alphabetical order), which have all been updated with Live Activities support.

Notably, even though Apple often used Uber and Uber Eats as examples when showcasing Live Activities, neither app lists the feature in the release notes for the latest update, which arrived on October 24 But they’re sure to get support soon.

Apple unveiled a new version of iPadOS – the separate operating system that the iPad has had since 2019 – at WWDC in June 2022 and it is now available to download (as of Monday 24 October, 2022). 

The new version of the iPad operating system, known as iPadOS 16, will include updated the ability to edit sent Messages, a Weather app (finally), updated apps that are more like their desktop counterparts, and some M1/M2 specific features including Stage Manager, Reference Mode, and Virtual Memory Swap.

Sound appealing? The update is available to install on compatible iPads now. We recommend you wait though as there will probably be a rush as everyone else downloads all the new software from Apple’s servers causing them to slow right down.

In this article we explain everything you need to know about updating your iPad to a new version of iPadOS. That includes the simple process of grabbing a new public version, and the slightly more difficult one of installing the beta.

We cover system requirements and what to do if you encounter problems (such as not having enough space or not being able to connect to Wi-Fi).

We also discuss whether it’s a good idea to install an iPadOS beta and what the difference between public and developer betas are.

Preparation and precautions

You should do a bit of iPad spring-cleaning before installing any software update: it’s very important that you back it up, because you don’t want to lose any important data, but you should also spend some time clearing some space so that you have enough storage for the new update.

We tend to store lots of movies and TV shows on our iPad, so if you need space these could be removed – if you downloaded them from Apple you should be able to download them again later on.

How to update iPadOS

When iPadOS arrives you will probably get an alert on your iPad telling you that the new version is ready to download. If not, you might have to go into Settings to get your iPad to actively seek it out.

1. Plug your iPhone into a power supply – iPadOS 16 won’t install if you don’t plug into the mains.
2. You’ll also need to be connected to Wi-Fi, you won’t be able to download via cellular (although it is now possible to install via a data connection). We advise that you check it’s a safe network – we don’t recommend you do this over hotel Wi-Fi, for instance. We have some tips on how to download iPadOS if you don’t have Wi-Fi below.
3. Go to Settings > General > Software Update and wait for the iPad to find the update. It’s possible that you’ll see the message ‘Your software is up to date.’ Sometimes there’s a bit of a wait until the software becomes available, but it’s also possible that iPadOS won’t run on your iPad.
4. Assuming there is a new version available, tap Download and Install.
5. Enter your passcode when prompted, and agree to the terms & conditions if required.
6. Your device will download the update in the background. You’ll see an indication of how much time it is likely to take – in our experience this is very far from the mark! Double it/triple it even! You can at least carry on with other things while the download happens. Once the download has finished you will receive a notification on your iPad.
7. Now Tap Details on the Notification window. This will take you back to Settings > General > Software Update.
8. Tap Install Now. (Again, expect this step to take a while – especially if it’s on the night the software arrives!)
9. Alternatively, you can select Later. iPadOS will offer to update during the night – you just need to make sure the device is plugged in.

How to download iPadOS without Wi-Fi

If you want to install a new version of iPadOS but don’t have access to Wi-Fi – or if you don’t know if the Wi-Fi you have access to is secure because it’s at a hotel/restaurant – you might be wondering whether you can update iPadOS using cellular or mobile data.

Apple used to have a download cap that stopped downloads of more than 200MB over a data connection. This cap was lifted in iPadOS 13, so you can now download apps of any size. Go to Settings > iTunes & App Store > App Downloads. You can choose from Ask If Over 200MB, Always Allow or Always Ask.

If you are thinking of downloading this way we warn that even ‘unlimited’ contracts aren’t always truly unlimited and the download is likely to be a few GB.

If you want to update to iPadOS 16 using mobile data (or cellular data) follow these steps:

1. Create a Hotspot from your iPhone and connect to that from your iPad.
2. Run through the options to download and install iPadOS.

Your iPad will proceed to download iPadOS using your data connection from your iPhone.

How to download iPadOS via a Mac (or PC)

Alternatively, if your Mac happens to be connected to the internet via Ethernet, or another way, you could download iPadOS using the Finder.

1. Open the Finder on your iMac and plug in your iPad.
2. Click on the icon that represents your iPad.
3. Click on Check for Updates.
4. Run through the options to download and install iPadOS.

Note that in older versions of macOS, or Windows, iTunes manages this process instead.

Why won’t my iPad update?

You may be wondering why your iPad isn’t showing the update as available. There are a few reasons why this might be the case.

• You might just be too eager – is the update you want out yet? Even then it sometimes takes a few hours to roll out to some devices.
• Your iPad might be too old to run the new version of iPadOS. The oldest qualifying device for iPadOS 15, for example, is the 2014 iPad Air 2.
• You might not be connected to Wi-Fi – as we said above, you need Wi-Fi.
• You might not be plugged in – this is required, just in case you run out of battery halfway through.

If those points don’t apply to you, try installing via the Finder or iTunes as we detailed above.

Should I install the iPadOS beta?

Running a beta is the only way to get hold of a version of iPadOS before it’s officially launched, and that’s a nice thing if you like to boast about having the latest features, and an essential thing if you’re a developer and need to test your app with the new platform.

Just bear in mind that betas are not finished software. They are likely to contain bugs (looking for bugs is the main reason Apple allows the public to try the beta) and may not have all the features and interface elements that will appear in the final version.

We therefore advise caution in grabbing the iPadOS beta, and don’t recommend installing it on your main iPad if you depend on it for work.

Developer vs public betas

Apple runs two iPadOS beta programmes, one for developers and one for the general public. (Both are now available.)

At any given time the developer beta will be more advanced: Apple rolls out each version to devs first, and to the public afterwards. If you are a developer, therefore, that’s the version to go for.

If you’re not a developer, you’re only allowed to use the public beta.

How to install the iPadOS beta

To install the iPadOS 15 public beta, follow these instructions.

1. Click Sign Up on the Apple Beta page and register using your Apple ID details.
2. Log in to the Beta Software Program.
3. Click Enrol your iPadOS device. (If you signed up for a beta last year you may need to uninstall that profile and re-enrol.)
4. Go to beta.apple.com/profile on your iPad.
5. Download and install the configuration profile.
6. The beta version will now be available in the Settings app, under General, Software Update.

If you’re a developer (you’ll need to be registered, which costs £79/$99 a year) you can install the developer beta by following these instructions:

1. In Safari on your iPad, go to developer.apple.com and log in.
2. Go to the Downloads section, scroll down to iPadOS 15 beta and tap Install Profile, then Accept.
3. Open Settings. You should see Profile Downloaded at the top of the main screen – tap this. If you can’t see it, go to General > Profile and tap on the iPadOS 15 beta profile there.
4. Tap Install to install the beta profile.
5. Read the developer consent form and give your consent.
6. Restart your iPad.
7. Now go to Settings > General > Software Update, where you should see the iPadOS 14 beta. Tap Download and Install.
8. Wait for your iPad to download the update, then tap Install.

Your iPad will now be running the iPadOS 15 beta.

How to upgrade iPadOS from a beta version

If you previously tried out a beta version of iPadOS ahead of its full release, you should note that in order to get upcoming non-beta iPadOS releases you will need to remove the Apple configuration profile from your device.

You can do this by going to Settings > General > Profile and selecting iPadOS Beta Software Profile, then choosing Delete Profile and entering your passcode to confirm the change. From now on you will receive official updates (rather than beta updates) as normal.

How to get an old version of iOS/iPadOS

Here’s what to do if you change your mind later and want to try to downgrade to an older version of iPadOS. (Note, however, that downgrading is really tricky, so we can’t guarantee you’ll be able to revert.)

1. On your Mac open the Finder.
2. Go to Library then hold down the Option/Alt key in Finder and selecting Go > Library.
3. Select the Software Updates folder for your iPad if it’s there.
4. Alternatively, launch your web browser and go to IPSW.me and find the right one for your device.

And if your iPad doesn’t run the version of iPadOS you’re after, you might want to check our roundup of the Best iPad deals so you can save money while bagging yourself a new iPad.

LEGO has been appealing more and more to adult builders these days — it has to, now that every other set costs north of $300. But you won’t find its latest creation on a Target toy shelf. The company took to Twitter this weekend to show off an enormous custom haunted house design, filled to the brim with spooky touches and monster mini-figs. But the coolest part is hiding just behind the brickwork: a fully-operational gaming PC, complete with a custom cooling loop that would make any mad scientist proud.

The first release of iPadOS 16 for the iPad, iPadOS 16.1, arrived on Monday, October 24, and it’s a big update. Along with iOS 16 features including editing sent Messages and Passkeys, many new iPad-only features are coming as well to help Apple’s tablet progress from being a bigger version of the iPhone to its own device.

That progress comes with some compromises, however, the main one being that some of the new features will work only on iPads that use an M1 or M2 chip instead of an A-series processor. In other words, you’ll need one of the newest iPad Pros or the latest iPad Air to run several new iPadOS 16.1 features—and some have even more stringent requirements. Here’s a look at the features that require an M1 or M2 processor or other hardware requirements.

Read more: Macs that don’t have M1 or M2 series chips will also be missing out. Read If you don’t have an M1 or M2 Mac you won’t get these Ventura features.

Stage Manager

Stage Manager is a new multitasking UI and the premier feature of iPadOS 16.1. Apple originally said it requires an M1 iPad, however, it recently softened those restrictions so that it now can work on iPad Pros that use A12X (2018) and A12Z (2020) chips. However, those A-series iPad Pros will still not be able to run Stage Manager on an external display, and it sounds as if Apple has no plans to make it work in a later update.

External display support

External display support works on iPad Pros with an M1 or M2, and it will work at resolutions up to 6K. Apps will be accessible through the external display, drag and drop will function between the display and the iPad Pro, and Stage Manager is supported. However, Apple recently announced that full external display support will not be available when iPadOS 16.1 is released. Instead, it will be included in an iPadOS 16 update later this year.

Apple

Reference mode

Reference mode, a feature on M-series Macs, is the ability to display reference color, which is needed in high-end production environments. iPadOS 16.1 has a new Reference mode as well, but it requires a Liquid Retina XDR display, which is only available on the 12.9-inch iPad Pro.

Apple

Magnifier Detection Mode and Door Detection

Magnifier in iPadOS 16.1 will have an Accessibility feature called Detection Mode, which provides descriptions of doors, people, and images. Door Detection goes further and can read signs around a door, as well as figure out how to open it. To use these new detection tools, you’ll need a 4th-, 5th- or 6th-generation 12.9-inch iPad Pro or a 2nd-, 3rd-, or 4th-generation 11-inch iPad Pro with an A12Z, M1, or M2 processor.

Virtual memory swap

This feature allows the M1 and M2-based iPads to allocate SSD storage space for use as RAM, up to 16GB. However, to use this feature on an M1 iPad Air, the device needs to have at least 256GB of storage. The iPad Pros don’t have such a restriction.

11-inch iPad Pro (2021)

iPad Air (2022)

As flash storage becomes the latest PC component to succumb to the temptation of flashy LEDs and oversized coolers, PC suppliers are more than willing to indulge the excesses of builders. Those with more money than sense might want to check out the latest all-in-one liquid cooler from TeamGroup. Not only will the T-Force Siren Duo360 ARGB cooler (just rolls off the tongue, don’t it?) cool your CPU with shiny LED goodness, it’ll cool down your fancy M.2 SSD as well.

Tom’s Hardware spotted the new design, scheduled to launch to the usual retail subjects sometime in November. The cooler’s preconfigured loop includes dual translucent water blocks for the CPU and the SSD, compatible with all the latest hardware designs, including Intel LGA 1700 and AMD AM5 sockets. The SSD cooler works with M.2 modules up to 80mm in length, and yes, that includes cutting-edge PCIe Gen-5 models. If you’re feeling creative, the RGB-LED lighting module on top of the SSD water block can be magnetically detached and stuck somewhere else inside your case. The various lights are compatible with LED manager programs from Asus, Asrock, Biostar, Gigabyte, and MSI.

TeamGroup

Doing the thermal work is a 396mm-long water block with three 120mm fans, naturally festooned with their own LEDs. TeamGroup claims that when it’s all set up and ready, it can reduce the operating temperature of a full-load Gen 5 SSD by “more than 50%” from 100°C. Of course in order to actually use the full system, you’ll need a motherboard that exposes its M.2 slots somewhere in reach of the tubing going to and from both the radiator and the CPU — 430mm and 230mm, respectively. Break out the rulers before you buy it.

And how much does it cost, pray tell? The whole kit and kaboodle will set you back $399 when it launches next month. That’s a lot, but honestly, if your system is so powerful and running so hot that you need custom liquid cooling just for your storage, it might just be worth it.

As we wait for new M2 MacBook Pros and Mac minis to arrive, there’s one machine that still looms over the completion of the Apple silicon transition: the Mac Pro. We don’t know much about it, but a new report confirms one important thing about Apple’s upcoming workstation: It will have the most powerful Mac processor ever made.

In his latest Power On newsletter, Mark Gurman spills some details about the Mac Pro’s M2 Ultra processor, which “will include chip options that are at least twice or four times as powerful as the M2 Max.” He claims that configuration options will offer 24- and 48-core CPUs, 76- and 152-core GPUs, and up to 256GB of memory.

He says the machine in “active testing” isn’t quite that powerful but still a monster: 24 CPU cores (16 performance and 8 efficiency cores), 76 graphics cores, and 192GB of memory. Compare that to the high-end Mac Studio—20 CPU cores (16 performance and 4 efficiency cores), 48 graphics cores, 128GB of memory—and you’re looking at a machine that’s going to crush any task you throw at it.

Gurman doesn’t say when the new machine will arrive, but it’s running macOS Ventura 13.3; given that macOS 12.3 Monterey arrived in March right around the time of Apple’s “Peek Performance” event, this suggests a spring release. During that keynote, Apple’s senior vice president of Hardware Engineering, John Ternus, teased the launch of the Mac Pro for “another day.”

Now it looks like that day will fall outside of the promised two-year completion of the Apple silicon transition. Apple has just a few weeks to deliver Apple silicon updates to its remaining Intel Macs—the Mac Pro and high-end Mac mini—and it’s unlikely to deliver both. However, based on the leaked specs here, it will be worth the wait.

Hot, hungry chips. People said that of the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X when it launched several weeks ago—and then again when Intel launched its own new flagship desktop CPU, the ferocious Core i9-13900K, which just hit shelves on Thursday.

There’s reason for it. While top-end processors have always drawn more power than the rest of their siblings, their power ratings have quietly and steadily risen in recent years. Today, you’re looking at 253W as the maximum turbo power (TDP) for the 13900K, up from 241W for the Core i9-12900K. Which, for the record, already had some folks murmuring in the stands.

With warmer weather and rising energy costs looming, power draw has become a more important consideration for many CPU buyers. But even if you don’t worry about melting in your home or the size of your electrical bill, there are still interesting nuances in the interplay between the Core i9-13900K’s energy consumption and performance—and how those outcomes stack up against 7950X’s. We dive deep into those details in our YouTube overview, but for the quicker version, read on.

You’ve got the power

A couple of years ago, most people would simply drop a chip into a motherboard and not give much thought to the power draw. Perhaps you’d look at a few charts outlining total system draw, but then you’d file it in the back of your head and go about your life.

But now Intel and AMD’s flagship desktop CPUs are essentially arriving with gigantic factory overclocks—they’re tuned for maximum performance, not energy efficiency. The pipeline is left wide open for as much fuel possible.

If you’re an enthusiast tinkerer, that leaves room for you to power limit the chips for improved efficiency, be it to maintain a cooler home (less electricity consumed means less heat thrown off), keep monthly utility costs down (less electricity consumed also equals fewer kWh to pay for), coax better system temperatures from your build, or because you simply think it’s fun.

That doesn’t mean that the Core i9-13900K or the rival 7950X are sloppily burning electricity in an effort to ramp up performance. On the contrary, these new processors serve up impressive performance-per-watt efficiency compared to their predecessors.

Gordon Mah Ung / VFAB

Both Intel and AMD extract a heck of a lot from every watt, as demonstrated by the range of performance these chips show when we manually power limit them to specific wattages. In the case of the Core i9-13900K, it still can outperform its predecessor even when its power limit is significantly dropped. Just look at it when constrained to a maximum of 85W—it still performs about the same as the 12900K at its default max turbo power of 241W.

On Team Red’s side, the Ryzen 9 7950X outperforms the Core i9-13900K when constrained by equal power limitations. In fact, not only does the 7950X at 65W handily beat the 13900K at 65W, but it almost bests the 13900K when the latter is set to 105W.

That’s good info for enthusiasts looking to tinker with their system’s power consumption and temperatures. But is the Core i9-13900K a power hog when you’re running it at stock?

Core i9-13900K power usage in different workloads

Gordon Mah Ung / VFAB

Gordon Mah Ung / VFAB

Gordon Mah Ung / VFAB

When you compare the two flagship chips purely on the basis of power consumption (and not how much performance you get while under manually set limitations), calling a winner gets a little more complicated. At stock settings, the Core i9-13900K typically consumes less power in single-threaded tasks, while the Ryzen 9 7950X pulls significantly less electricity during multithreaded tasks. In lightly threaded tasks, like Adobe Lightroom or the two games we tested, it’s more of a tie.

The fun part is how much energy the chips draw when power limited. Notch down the Core i9-13900K to 105W or 65W, and it goes lighter on power consumption than the 7950X with the same limits. It may get outperformed by the 7950X at those TDPs, but you won’t be paying extra in electricity costs.

Gordon Mah Ung / VFAB

Gordon Mah Ung / VFAB

The takeaway from this? A little elbow grease can help you find your sweet spot for maximizing eye-popping performance while minimizing the hit to your monthly bills. We demonstrated the effects of power limiting here, but you should be able to achieve similar results via undervolting or even temperature limiting as well. And you’ll always still have a reserve of extra performance in the tank if you want to let your chip run wild and free.

But no one will be buying the Core i9-13900K (or the 7950X) solely on the basis of power efficiency and power draw. The more appealing chip will depend on your energy concerns relative to your performance needs—and for most folks, the face-melting speed of Intel’s best chip will be well worth the cost of keeping it running at stock.

Apple makes plenty of big moves: releasing new products in new categories, creating whole new chip architectures, and offering slews of major updates for its software platforms in a matter of weeks.

But sometimes it can be interesting to look at the company’s smaller decisions. The ones that might fly beneath the radar but can still point to changes that might ripple throughout the company’s product lines. This week, Apple released several new iPads and a revamped Apple TV, and while they might seem like ho-hum announcements, they all contained details that hint at bigger changes to come.

The USB-C future

Apple’s been putting USB-C ports on its devices for years now; the first Mac to sport one was the 12-inch MacBook back in 2015. Since then the port has slowly replaced the classic USB-A connectors across the Mac line and, more recently, the iPad. Rare now is the Apple device that sports one of those old rectangular ports.

Apple

Recently, the European Union passed a regulation requiring most consumer electronic devices to standardize on the USB-C port by 2024, which reinforced rumors that Apple is planning to shift its most significant product, the iPhone, to the connector next year.

But Apple uses its own proprietary Lightning port in smaller devices that aren’t Macs, iPads, or iPhones. Case in point: last week’s revamp of the Apple TV 4K included a new version of the Siri Remote that drops the Lightning port in favor of USB-C. Of all of Apple’s smaller devices, the Siri Remote is probably the easiest to transition, since its USB-C port seems to be used pretty much exclusively for charging.

That leaves a handful of other devices to make the switch over the next year or two: the Magic Keyboard for Mac, the Magic Trackpad, the Magic Mouse, and various AirPods cases. But if the Siri Remote is any indication, the writing’s on the wall for the Lightning port.

A beautiful landscape

The iPad’s an amazingly versatile device and ever since the release of the first model back in 2010, users have been able to freely rotate it and use it in any orientation. That feature has been one of the best subtle aspects of the device: there’s really no wrong way to pick it up and use it.

Apple

Except when it comes to the front-facing camera. Anybody who’s ever used an iPad for video-chatting (or had, say, a FaceTime call with someone on an iPad) has run into the annoyance of seeing themselves or their conversation partner off-center in the display, thanks to the camera on the device’s shorter edge—or worse, succumbed to the dire “thumb over the camera” problem.

The thing is, though the iPad may generally work well in any orientation, it seems pretty clear 12 years out that most people using FaceTime, Zoom, or other video-chatting apps use the device in landscape mode. Likewise, with the advent of the keyboard cases for the iPad, including Apple’s own suite of Magic Keyboard accessories, iPad use increasingly apes that of a traditional laptop.

But the camera has stuck stubbornly to that shorter edge…up until this week’s release of the tenth-generation iPad which, sensibly, moves it to the longer side. That change has also been presaged by a landscape boot screen for the iPad, which first arrived back in iOS 14.5.

Unfortunately, the new iPad Pro models released this week retain the traditional front-facing camera on the short edge design, which could be in part to avoid conflicting with the device’s speakers and Apple Pencil charging hardware, or just because these were minor updates, not significant redesigns. But it seems likely that the landscape camera will eventually make it to the rest of the iPads. In the end, it confirms what we all know: the iPad really is a predominantly landscape-orientation device, just as the iPhone is a portrait one.

Apple

Colors are here to stay…put

The history of Apple and color is a complicated one. The Apple II helped popularize color displays in the personal computer market; the company’s arguably most famous logo is its classic six-color design (though it’s largely been supplanted by a monochrome option in recent years); and the early iMac line famously came in an assortment of candy colors that were widely copied by PC makers. But in recent years, Apple’s become more known for sleek devices in silver, white, and various shades of “space gray”.

However, color has begun popping up throughout Apple’s lineup once again, returning to the iMac line and even occasionally appearing on iPhone and iPad models. This week’s tenth-generation iPad sports a few bold colors—blue, pink, and yellow—suggesting that Apple isn’t about to swing the pendulum wholly back to silver and space gray.

But, as with elsewhere in the company’s lineup, the colors are reserved for the more “consumer” offerings, with Pro models sticking to the more de-saturated options—even the iPhone 14 Pro’s purple offering looks gray in most lights.

It seems Apple isn’t yet ready to embrace color throughout its lineup, which is a shame, since professionals like bold color options just as much as the average consumer. Apple’s always had a strong streak of individualism and iconoclasm—it’s a shame that it hasn’t reached the upper echelons of the company’s product lines; it’s one place that you pay more to get less.

Apple TV 4K 2022

iPad (2022)

Apple had a change of heart after its introduction of USB-C with the 2015 12-inch MacBook: the company hasn’t put only a single peripheral port on any laptop it’s released since. (And it discontinued the USB 3.1-only MacBook, too.) Some Apple silicon MacBook Pro models even offer dedicated video and charging (MagSafe 3) ports!

But what do you do when you have, for instance, an M1 MacBook Air or 13-inch MacBook Pro that do not have MagSafe? With two Thunderbolt 4/USB4 jacks on each model, you need one for power over USB-C, leaving one free. You can opt for a USB-C dock that’s USB 3.x/4 only or that supports Thunderbolt 3. In either case, a dock typically adds multiple 10 Gbps or faster USB 3.x/4 jacks, HDMI, and passthrough power, freeing up the other USB-C slot on your computer.

Until last year, if you wanted to add multiple Thunderbolt 3 or 4 devices, however, you were stuck. An increasing number of external SSDs and other storage devices rely on Thunderbolt 3 or 4. And you might have Thunderbolt 2 legacy devices that can work via a Thunderbolt 3 adapter—but only when plugged into a Thunderbolt port.

It was impossible to buy a dock or hub with additional USB-C ports with Thunderbolt 3/4 support. That changed with the introduction of Thunderbolt 4 hubs and docks, which rely on an optional feature of Thunderbolt 3 made mandatory in version 4: allowing external Thunderbolt ports. (Any version of macOS 12 Monterey will do. If you’re using Big Sur, you may need at least 11.1 or 11.4, depending on the dock or hub.)

A few companies have released external hubs and docks that fit the bill. The least-expensive option is the OWC Thunderbolt Hub ($159), reviewed in April 2021, which offers four Thunderbolt 3/4 jacks and one 10 Gbps USB 3.2 Type-A port. Because one port connects by cable to your computer, you net three Thunderbolt 3/4 ports on the hub.

At the other end of the spectrum is CalDigit’s mega-dock, the $400 Thunderbolt Station 4 sporting 18 ports of all kinds, including three Thunderbolt 3/4 jacks. We reviewed this unit in April 2022.

While hundreds of other USB-C docks might fit part of the bill, if you need more Thunderbolt ports than you can find on your Mac, make sure the dock you buy spells out that it offers full Thunderbolt 4 external support. Check out VFAB’s Thunderbolt and USB-C guide to docking stations for information on specifications and the best docks you can find.

This Mac 911 article is in response to a question submitted by VFAB reader Jim.

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Apple on Tuesday released new iPads that will give us plenty to talk about for weeks to come. The new 10th-generation iPad is a complete redesign that brings it in line with the Air and mini, and the new iPad Pro is the fastest tablet ever made, with an M2 processor and Wi-Fi 6E. In simple terms, Apple’s new tablets are its strongest ever, bringing more options for consumers at both ends of the spectrum.

But buying an iPad is also more confusing than ever. Apple now has five different iPad lines starting at $329 and going all the way up to $2,000-plus. Here’s how the models break down:

• iPad (9th generation, 64GB): $329
• iPad (9th generation, 256GB): $479
• iPad (10th generation, 64GB): $479
• iPad mini (64GB): $499
• iPad (10th generation, 256GB): $599
• iPad Air (64GB): $599
• iPad mini (256GB): $649
• iPad Air (256GB): $749)
• iPad Pro (11-inch, 128GB): $799
• iPad Pro (11-inch, 256GB): $899
• iPad Pro (11-inch, 512GB): $1,099
• iPad Pro (12.9-inch, 128GB): $1,099
• iPad Pro (12.9-inch, 256GB): $1,199
• iPad Pro (12.9-inch, 512GB): $1,399
• iPad Pro (11-inch, 1TB): $1,499
• iPad Pro (12.9-inch, 1TB): $1,799
• iPad Pro (11-inch, 2TB): $1,899
• iPad Pro (12.9-inch, 2TB): $2,199

And those prices don’t even account for the cellular options, which add $200 to the iPad Pro, $150 to the 10th-gen iPad, iPad Air, and iPad mini, and $130 to the 9th-gen iPad. Nor does it account for the fact that 64GB of storage isn’t really enough for a device that’s supposed to be a “computer.”

So while options are definitely good, they can also be overwhelming. If you have $600 to spend, for example, you can get a new iPad with 256GB of storage or an iPad Air with 64GB of storage, an iPad mini with 64GB of storage, or a 9th-gen iPad with 256GB of storage and cellular connectivity. And all of those models have different screens, different processors, and different color options.

Apple

That’s where it really gets confusing. Consider these facts about Apple’s iPad lineup:

• Three distinct iPads essentially have the same sized 11-inch display.
• The 10th-gen iPad doesn’t have the anti-reflective coating that was introduced in 2014.
• Every iPad Apple sells has a different processor.
• 64GB of storage is too little and 256GB of storage is too much for most users.
• The 10th-gen iPad is the only model to have a selfie camera in landscape orientation.
• The iPad Pro has newer Bluetooth (5.3) than the 10th-gen iPad (5.2) and the iPad Air and mini (5.0).
• The iPad mini is the only model that doesn’t support any of Apple’s keyboard cases.
• The 10th-gen iPad still doesn’t support the 2nd-generation Apple Pencil.

So not only do you need to wade through nearly two dozen options when deciding which tablet to buy, but you also have to consider small differences in the various lineups that might not be obvious to casual consumers. Most buyers probably couldn’t tell the difference between the 10th-gen iPad’s unlaminated display and the iPad Air’s laminated display or feel the speed of an A15 versus an A13. How are consumers supposed to make a smart buying decision when they need to make a spreadsheet and an explainer just to figure out the different features?

And who’s the iPad Air for now? It has an M1 processor and second-gen Apple Pencil support, but if you’re a user who needs those features, you should consider the 11-inch iPad Pro. And if you’re not, you should just get the 10th-gen iPad and save $150. And what about the iPad mini? Is it worth spending $50 more than the 10th-gen iPad for a smaller screen and a slightly better processor? 

And then there’s the issue of updating. The 10th-gen iPad has only just been released, so we don’t know how often it will be updated, but we do know about the other lines:

iPad mini: Last update in September 2021; next expected update March 2023

iPad Air: Last update in March 2022; next expected update September 2023

iPad Pro: Last update in October 2022; next expected update March 2024

So if you buy an iPad next February, you have to consider that the iPad mini might be updated soon. If you want one in the summer, there will probably be an iPad Air update right around the corner.

The new iPad was supposed to simplify buying options but it only muddled the lineup further. And it gives the impression that Apple still doesn’t quite understand what to do with its tablet lineup, so it continues to throw more and more at the wall to see what will stick. And at some point, consumers are just going to stop trying to figure it out.