MacRumors

This afternoon, Anker kicked off its latest Amazon sale, discounting a wide variety of its best portable chargers, Bluetooth audio accessories, wireless chargers, and more. Included in the sale are Anker's limited-time holiday bundles that offer its Soundcore audio devices at a discount, along with a few extras like a PowerCore 5,000 mAh portable battery or a travel case for the SoundCore Flare.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

Browse the sale below and head to Anker on Amazon to place your order before these deals expire on Monday, December 17. Also note that you don't need any special promotion codes to get any of these discount prices.

Battery Packs

• PowerCore II 20,000 mAh - $47.89, down from $59.99
• PowerCore 10,400 mAh - $23.99, down from $29.99
• PowerCore 10,000 mAh Redux - $25.99, down from $33.99

Soundcore Audio

• Soundcore Liberty Lite - $44.99, down from $64.99

• Soundcore Life 2 Christmas Set - $89.99, down from $109.99

• Soundcore 2 - $29.99, down from $39.99

• Soundcore Flare Christmas Edition - $59.99, down from $75.99

• Soundcore Flare 2-pack - $87.99, down from $109.99

Wireless Chargers

• PowerWave Pad - $12.99, down from $23.99

• PowerWave 7.5 Pad with with Quick Charge Adapter - $39.99, down from $49.99

Cables

• PowerPort Cube - $19.59, down from $25.99

• Powerline+ USB-C to A 6ft (2-pack) - $9.99, down from $12.99

• PowerLine Lightning Nylon 6ft (2-pack) - $17.99, down from $23.99

Eufy Products

• eufy Smart Scale C1 - $28.79, down from $35.99

• eufy Lumos Smart Bulb White & Color - $24.99, down from $34.99

Additionally, MacRumors and Nodus have partnered up this week for a new exclusive sitewide sale that will last all the way through January 5, 2019. In this sale, MacRumors readers can visit NodusCollection.com, shop for iPhone cases, iPad cases, or wallets, and enter the promo code MACRUM20 during the checkout process to get 20 percent off their order.

Nodus is a British brand that sells a wide variety of leather accessories, with free worldwide shipping on orders over £30. For iPhone, the company sells the Shell Case II and Micro Dock III, which allows you to magnetically attach your iPhone X, XS, XS Max, XR, and more on any surface. Nodus says this case is also Qi compatible. For card storage along with iPhone protection, Nodus also sells the Access Case III.

Nodus also has an Access Case for the iPad mini and numerous Hifold and Lofold style wallets, all of which can be purchased on the company's website at a 20 percent discount through the end of our exclusive sale.

Lastly, Amazon has Apple's 9.7-inch iPad (32GB, Wi-Fi) for $289.00, down from $329.00 in Silver, Gold, and Space Gray. This is the iPad that launched earlier in 2018 with support for the Apple Pencil; it also includes a Retina display, A10 Fusion chip, and Touch ID.

For more information on the latest sales, head to our full Deals Roundup.

In iOS 12, Apple has included a somewhat hidden feature that lets you see the day's weather forecast on your iPhone's Lock Screen when you check it for the first time after waking up.

The feature is part of Apple's Do Not Disturb at Bedtime mode, which prevents notifications from being displayed on your iPhone's Lock Screen when you're supposed to be sleeping.

Many users don't realize you can get the weather forecast to show on the Lock Screen because of the odd way that Apple has implemented the feature. Regardless, here's how to get it working.

1. Launch the Settings app on your iPhone.
   
   

2. Tap Do Not Disturb.
3. Make sure the Scheduled and Bedtime buttons are toggled on so that they're both green.
4. You can also set your sleep and wake schedule here by adjusting the From and To times.
5. Return to the main Settings screen and tap Privacy.
   
   

6. Tap Location Services.
7. Tap Weather in the list of apps.
   
   

8. Under Allow Location Access, tap Always.
9. Exit the Settings app.

With that done, next time it's time to wake up and Bedtime Mode is scheduled to go off, your iPhone will display the usual "Good morning!" message along with the day's weather, including the current temperature, weather conditions, and forecast.

To make the forecast vanish from your Lock Screen, simply tap Dismiss. To switch the temperature scale between Celsius and Fahrenheit, launch the Weather app and scroll to the bottom of the weather locations list, where you'll find the option to do so.

It's worth noting that once you unlock your iPhone, the weather forecast will disappear for the rest of the day, and it won't return until the next day when you wake up and access the device after Bedtime mode has turned itself off.

As it stands, the Lock Screen weather feature offers no other flexibility, and it won't work unless you allow the Weather app to always access your location data. Hopefully Apple will eventually change this to make it a more useful Lock Screen "widget" in a future update to iOS.

Nanoleaf's Canvas, launching today, is the company's second HomeKit-enabled mood lighting product that follows its popular triangle-shaped Light Panels. Rather than using triangle lights this time around, Nanoleaf designed the Canvas to have a square shape with multiple connector ports for more design versatility.

What's more, the Canvas is touch enabled and puts thousands of lighting scenes at your fingertips without the need to use an app. The app and HomeKit availability are still available though, offering up multiple ways to control the lighting panels.

Design

Unlike the iconic triangle design of the Light Panels, Nanoleaf has designed the Canvas with a new square shape. Each Canvas square measures in at just about six inches on all sides.

When conceptualizing the Canvas, Nanoleaf originally planned to offer plain squares with uniform lighting across, but this wasn't possible. Each square instead has a noticeable cross shape in it, dividing it into four. The individual squares still light up in one single color, but you will see the crosshairs within each one.

I don't mind the crosshairs and in some ways they make the Canvas more visually interesting, but it could be a turn off for customers who were hoping for flat, uniform lighting across the entire square.

There are eight Canvas Light Squares and one Control Square, which needs to be centrally situated and accessible to touch because it's the square that features specific touch-based controls for the entire Canvas system, though all squares respond to touch.

The Canvas squares are more versatile than the previous-generation Light Panels, with multiple connection points on each square to allow for a wider range of designs that are offset rather than fully connected at each side.

Small rectangular connectors are used to connect two squares together, allowing for hundreds of designs. You get nine squares with the standard Canvas kit, and you can purchase an additional four with expansion kits that Nanoleaf is offering. Most of the photos in this review feature a total of 13 squares.

As with the Nanoleaf Light Panels, you can add on additional Canvas squares, up to 500 in fact, so you could theoretically cover an entire wall, though it would cost an absolute fortune.

Canvas squares are attached to a wall with 3M adhesive like the previous-generation Light Panels. 3M adhesive is meant to be wall safe, but on certain walls, it definitely has the potential to cause damage, so that's something to be aware of. Because of the adhesive, it's best to decide on a design well ahead of time and a design that you can stick with for a long time because it is not convenient to re-arrange these squares.

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Apple is now beta testing a version of the Apple Music app for Android smartphones that works with larger-screen Android tablets (via Pixel Spot). Found in the 2.7.0 update of Apple Music on Android, when opened on an Android tablet the app now adapts to the increased display area. With the added room, it shows additional playlists, albums, featured artists, songs, and more of what is presented in the selected tab, similar to Apple Music on iPad.

In regards to the tabs, Apple Music on Android also now features a bottom bar navigation menu that's close to the one found on the iOS app, with Library, For You, Browse, and Radio all listed at the bottom of the app. On Android, search is still located in the top right corner. Previously, the Android app used a left-hand collapsable hamburger menu for navigation. The full 2.7.0 beta changelog is below:

- Tablet Support: Enjoy Apple Music with an experience designed for a wider range of Android devices.
- Performance improvements for images and audio playback.
- Various bug fixes.

In August, Apple Music updated on Android with support for Android Auto, letting Android smartphone owners control playback of Apple Music songs directly from the infotainment center in their vehicle. Android Auto support was part of Apple Music's 2.6.0 beta on Android, which also included numerous other features already found on Apple Music on iOS: lyric searches, updated artist pages, and the new weekly playlist called "Friends Mix."

Former Apple intern Christian Selig has released version 1.4 of Apollo, the popular Reddit client developed with Apple's iOS design guidelines in mind. The latest update introduces a raft of highly requested features, including quick switching accounts and new subreddit preferences to add to its existing plethora of options.

For those who like to access multiple Reddit accounts through the Apollo app, the new quick switching feature can be activated by long-pressing the Accounts tab in the bottom tab bar.

Over on the subreddit option front, it's now possible to use specific sorting, where Apollo can remember preferred sorting preferences on a per subreddit basis.

In Selig's example, if users want one subreddit to always be sorted by "New", but another to always be sorted by "Best", now they can. There are also separate options for both subreddit posts and subreddit comments.

In a similar fashion, it's now possible to have Apollo remember post size preferences on a per subreddit basis, so users could have some subreddits in compact mode and others in large mode.

Elsewhere in 1.4, there's support for Reddit Silver, Gold, and Platinum tiered gifting system (Reddit's replacement for the previous Reddit Gold system) for gifting posts and comments.

In addition, support has been added for more browsers including Firefox Focus, Brave, DuckDuckGo, and iCab Mobile, while users can now opt to have all tweets open in Tweetbot, Twitterrific, or the official Twitter app.

Also of note, Apollo now shows if a comment has been edited, there's a new icon designed by David Lanham, and a bug that was preventing some GIFs from playing has been fixed. Lastly, the Ultra $0.99 monthly in-app purchase now includes all the features of the one-time Pro $2.99 IAP automatically, so Ultra subscribers don't ever have to pay out for more features.

Apollo is available for iPhone and iPad on the App Store [Direct Link] as a free download without ads, with optional in-app purchases available to unlock enhanced features such as submitting posts, multiple accounts, a customizable app icon and gestures, Touch ID or Face ID authentication, and GIF scrubbing.

For this week's giveaway, we've teamed up with Pad & Quill to offer MacRumors readers a chance to win one of the company's high-quality carefully crafted iPad cases made from materials like leather, linen, and wood.

Pad & Quill has multiple iPad case options available, including several cases for the new 11 and 12.9-inch iPad Pro models.

The Oxford Leather iPad Pro case, priced starting at $114.95, is made from full grain bridle leather in chestnut, whiskey, or black. Designed specifically for the latest iPad models, the Oxford case is a folio-style case that can protect both sides of the iPad when closed. One side of the case attaches to the iPad using a strong 3M adhesive material.

When open, the Oxford case has a built-in horizontal viewing stand and it is able to work with the Smart Keyboard Folio that comes with the iPad Pro, so you don't need to sacrifice your keyboard to use this case. There's a spot for the Apple Pencil 2, an interior pocket for documents, and an elastic strap to keep everything safe when it's closed.

Pad & Quill also has a second folio case for the new iPad Pro models, the Contega Thin. Priced starting at $89.95, the Contega, which is one of the thinnest iPad Pro cases from Pad & Quill, is made from an archival linen in a charcoal or gray color. The Contega, like the Oxford, features a built-in horizontal viewing stand when open and attaches to the back of the iPad with 3M adhesive.

It too is compatible with the Apple Smart Keyboard Folio, so you can use the keyboard with the iPad Pro while still having the protection and benefit of the Contega case, and it features space for the Apple Pencil 2 along with a magnetic sleep/wake feature.

Along with cases for the new iPads, Pad & Quill also makes Oxford, Contega, Contega Thin, Heritage, and Traveler cases for older iPad models such as the 10.5-inch iPad Pro and the 6th-generation iPad, all of which can be viewed on the Pad & Quill website.

If you're in the market for an iPad case, this weekend is a good time to buy from Pad & Quill. The site is having a special sale and event, with 15 percent off every order available with the promo code "Family15."

Pad & Quill is also giving away a free small journal to every customer who is able to find the Pad & Quill mascot, Philbert the Chow, on the P&Q website when placing an order. Mention where Philbert was found on the site and you'll get a small journal with your order at no cost.

For our giveaway, Pad & Quill is providing five iPad cases that MacRumors readers can win. Each winner will be able to choose their favorite iPad case from the site. To enter to win, use the Rafflecopter widget below and enter an email address. Email addresses will be used solely for contact purposes to reach the winners and send the prizes. You can earn additional entries by subscribing to our weekly newsletter, subscribing to our YouTube channel, following us on Twitter, following us on Instagram, or visiting the MacRumors Facebook page.

Due to the complexities of international laws regarding giveaways, only U.S. residents who are 18 years or older and Canadian residents (excluding Quebec) who have reached the age of majority in their province or territory are eligible to enter. To offer feedback or get more information on the giveaway restrictions, please refer to our Site Feedback section, as that is where discussion of the rules will be redirected.

The contest will run from today (November 30) at 11:00 a.m. Pacific Time through 11:00 a.m. Pacific Time on December 7. The winners will be chosen randomly on December 7 and will be contacted by email. The winners will have 48 hours to respond and provide a shipping address before new winners are chosen.

Although HomePod is available in Apple's Home app, the company's smart home speaker as of yet can't be integrated into HomeKit scenes and automations. With such a feature, users would be able to activate their favorite ‌HomeKit‌ scenes, alongside a specific Apple Music playlist, album, or song from their ‌HomePod‌.

Reddit user Running_In_Space on r/HomeKit explained recently that this is actually possible today, thanks to a helpful (and super simple to create) Siri Shortcut. With the Shortcut, you can tie any Home scene together with any ‌Apple Music‌ playlist. While the Shortcut is limited to playlists, you can choose from your own playlists or those created by ‌Apple Music‌.

In the example below, we created a holiday themed ‌Siri‌ Shortcut that turns on Christmas tree lights (connected to an iDevices Switch) and shuffles a holiday playlist any time we say, "Hey ‌Siri‌, Merry Christmas." Also remember that you'll need an ‌Apple Music‌ subscription, HomeKit-enabled lights or other devices of some kind, and the updated ‌Siri‌ Shortcuts iOS app.

How to Create the Siri Shortcut

1. Open the iOS "Shortcuts" app
2. Tap "Create Shortcut"



3. In the search bar, type "Get Playlist" and add it into your Shortcut
4. Next to Playlist, tap "Choose" and pick your desired playlist
5. Search for "Play Music" and add it (here you can also edit settings for shuffling and/or repeating the playlist)
6. Search for "Run Home Scene" and add it
7. Next to Home, tap "Choose" and select your home
8. Next to Scene, tap "Choose" and select your desired scene
9. Before you tap "Done," select the toggle icon under the Done button at the top right corner of the screen



10. Name the Shortcut, and tap "Add to ‌Siri‌" to record your preferred trigger phrase
11. Tap "Done" until you're back on the Library screen of the app

Now you will be able to say, "Hey ‌Siri‌, [Trigger Phrase]" to your ‌HomePod‌ and have the selected Home scene activate along with the chosen ‌Apple Music‌ playlist, connected via AirPlay on your iPhone. ‌Siri‌ typically responds with, "Okay, running your shortcut," and it can take a bit longer than a normal scene activation in ‌HomeKit‌ due to the multiple actions.

There are numerous versions of this ‌Siri‌ Shortcut that could be created, like having a nighttime scene in ‌HomeKit‌ tied to a mellow ‌Apple Music‌ playlist that's triggered when you say, "Hey ‌Siri‌, goodnight." We tried testing out Home scenes that are activated via geofences, but in the few times we tried we could not get ‌HomePod‌ to turn on and play the specified ‌Apple Music‌ playlist when the arriving home scene in ‌HomeKit‌ was activated.

It's also worth noting that the desired ‌Apple Music‌ playlist will play on whatever device you are talking to ‌Siri‌ with, so in our example if we said, "Hey ‌Siri‌, Merry Christmas" and ‌HomePod‌ picked it up, then the holiday playlist played on ‌HomePod‌. If we said the same phrase to our ‌iPhone‌, the playlist would play there instead. In both scenarios, the Christmas tree lights were still activated regardless of the Apple device used.

Apple introduced ‌Siri‌ Shortcuts as an update to its Workflow iOS app back in September, and although creating Shortcuts can be an arduous task in some cases, there are a few super useful actions that have been shared over the past few months. Do you use ‌Siri‌ Shortcuts and have a favorite one to share? Give us the details in the comments below or Tweet us @MacRumors to let us know your most-used Shortcuts.

Instagram today announced the launch of a new Stories feature called "Close Friends" that allows you to share stories with a select group of people rather than all your followers.

Starting today, you can make a close friends list on Stories and share with just the people you've added. Instagram Stories has become the place to express yourself and share everyday moments, but our community has grown and sometimes what you want to share isn't for everyone. With Close Friends, you have the flexibility to share more personal moments with a smaller group that you choose.

The feature works through follower suggestions based on who you interact with most, or via a contact search, from which you can then build the list for sharing Stories with fewer people.

You can find the list by going to your Instagram profile and tapping Close Friends in the side menu. When you go to share a Story, a new option appears to share it with only the people on your close friends list.

It's worth noting that Close Friends is a private list, so other users can't see it in your profile or request to be added to it, so you can switch up your selection at any time without the risk of retaliatory unfriending.

The only indication that your part of someone's Close Friends list is that you'll see a green badge when viewing stories shared to the list. There's also a green ring around the user's profile in the Stories tray.

As TechCrunch notes, the feature plays on the idea of "Finstagrams," or fake Instagram accounts that teens sometimes create to share posts to select friends without having to worry about about being judged by their wider peer group.

This latest addition to the Facebook-owned photo-based social network comes at a time when more and more people are moving from Facebook, which has come in for sustained criticism for its poor user privacy safeguards as well as a perceived lack of effort to protect user data, combat social media addiction, and prevent the spread of fake news.

Close Friends is rolling out globally today on the latest version of the Instagram app for iOS. [Direct Link]