9to5Mac Reviews

iPhone MagSafe battery packs are fantastic for extending device usage between charging sessions. While most solutions only work with compatible iPhones, the Aulumu M10 Multi-Charging Dual-Mag Power Bank is a high-capacity MagSafe battery pack that does the job of three distinct chargers.

What started life as a humble face monitor geared to watching video and playing games wherever you happen to be has now evolved into something drawing ever closer to a Mac-powered Vision Pro.

The Viture Luma Ultra it isn’t perfect, but it is the closest thing I’ve seen yet to what I’d ideally like from a future Apple Vision Air product …

Last year, I spent some time testing BenQ’s 4K 32-inch Ergo Arm Programming Monitor with MoonHalo and found it especially easy on the eyes, comfort-wise. Now BenQ is back with a new take on the coder’s (or writer’s) ideal display. Two specs make the new BenQ RD280UG shine.

Music lovers with Apple kit have long been forced to choose between the sound quality available from the established audio players and the slickness of the AirPods approach to connectivity – but the Technics EAH-AZ100 in-ear headphones have mostly resolved this dilemma.

They not only deliver the best sound quality I’ve ever experienced with in-ear headphones, but also an Apple-like Just Works experience when switching between devices …

Late last year, Satechi released a new 7-in-1 USB-C hub for iPhone. It takes advantage of MagSafe and feels right at home on Apple devices. I’ve had the joy of testing it out for the past few days, and I have to say, it’s certainly a cool option if you think it suits you.

Philips Hue bulbs are one of the easiest ways to give your existing light fixtures smart home capabilities, including through Apple’s HomeKit platform. The problem with Philips Hue bulbs, however, is that whenever a wall light switch is flipped off, the smart lights become unresponsive.

The Lutron Aurora dimmer is a simple yet ingenious way to solve this problem, and it should be at the top of every smart home fan’s holiday wish list.

The Lowfree Flow84 is the latest episode in my on-again, off-again love affair with mechanical keyboards. I describe it as the mechanical keyboard Apple would make for a mix of good and bad reasons, but we’ll get to that! Update: There is a new version with touch sliders for volume and brightness – see the Pricing & conclusions section at the end.

It’s one of a relatively new breed of low-profile mechanical keyboards, something that would have seemed a contradiction in terms just a few years earlier …

• Reviews

Review: ESR’s 3-in-1 charging stand delivers 25W MagSafe charging at a great price

Last year, Apple opened up its MagSafe standard to the Wireless Power Consortium, allowing third party companies to officially utilize MagSafe – at up to 15W. Earlier this year, the standard expanded with Qi2.2, making 25W MagSafe charging available to third party manufacturers.

Many manufacturers have come to market with fantastic 25W Qi2.2 chargers, and this ESR model is one of them. For Black Friday, you can get this ESR 3-in-1 for just $89.99, making it one of the more affordable Qi2.2 options on the market.

If you’re a Mac user looking for a solid external display that pairs nicely with your MacBook’s crisp retina display, you’ll know that finding one can be a challenge. Apple offers its Studio Display with a 27″ 5K retina display, but that costs $1599 just for the cheapest version with a basic stand. If you want a more versatile stand, the Studio Display will cost you $1999.

Luckily, a number of 27″ 5K monitors have been launching lately, many of which have been at more affordable price points than Apple’s Studio Display, while offering an incredibly comparable experience. One of them is the ViewSonic VP2788-5K, which I’ll be reviewing here today.

The iPhone’s Portrait mode uses computational photography to simulate the shallow depth of field of a digital SLR or mirrorless camera with a larger sensor. It’s evolved from a very crude tool into something which is now pretty convincing, but it’s still no substitute for the real thing.

There are some circumstances in which you can get genuine shallow-ish depth of field with an iPhone shot, but these are very limited as we’ll discuss. The Sandmarc 2x telephoto lens is a much more practical way to get true optical blurring when shooting portraits …

Back in 2021, Apple introduced a new iPhone camera capability in the form of a new macro lens option with the ultrawide camera. It was exclusive to the Pro models until last year when it was extended across the iPhone 16 and 17 range.

As a built-in feature, it’s pretty impressive, but it doesn’t come close to the razor-thin depth of field you get with a dedicated macro lens. But a $150 snap-on iPhone lens gives you something remarkably close to this …

Asus has been on a roll of sorts with new display releases over the past few years, and it’s showing no sign of slowing down progress. One of the latest, and genuinely most exciting new releases is the $1300 Asus ProArt 6K Display, which offers an outstanding value for Mac users looking for something greater than 4K or 5K.

The $1300 Asus ProArt Display 6K PA32QCV features a native resolution of 6016 x 3384 within the confines of a 32-inch panel. For those keeping score at home, that’s the same 218 pixel density as Apple’s Pro Display XDR. Granted, the Pro Display XDR is in an entirely different league when it comes to display quality thanks to its 1600 nits of brightness, and 576 local dimming zones, but its base $4999 price tag (sans stand and matte texture) most definitely reflects this.

Asus has taken a decidedly more economical approach with its 6K display, providing the same amount of screen real estate as Apple’s monitor for less than a fourth the cost. But that doesn’t mean it sacrificed the ability to provide users with a display that performs admirably given its price. Watch our hands-on video review for the details, and be sure to subscribe to 9to5Mac on YouTube for more.

Baseus’ recently announced EnerGeek GX11 power bank is not only a great power bank, but it also doubles as a cellular hotspot.

Last month, Anker debuted a handful of new charging products for the launch of the iPhone 17. Today, I’ll be reviewing two of them: their new 35W Nano charger with a built in retractable cable, as well as the 70W highly compact Nano charger. I’ve been testing them out for a handful of weeks now, and they’ve proven to be quite useful.

Late last month, Logitech unveiled the latest generation of its much loved productivity mouse – the MX Master 4. I’ve been testing it out for well over a month at this point, and it’s certainly a compelling offering for everyone, whether you’re a casual or professional.

Earlier this month, reMarkable – the company behind one of the most iconic paper tablets on the market – announced a new, smaller version of the reMarkable Paper Pro. It’s called reMarkable Paper Pro Move, and despite being a much smaller device, it truly does still feel flagship. It fits in the palm of your hand.

Earlier this summer, Anker announced a trio of new products – one of them being an incredibly thin MagSafe/Qi2 battery for iPhones, and now even Google Pixel 10. I’ve spent my fair share of time with it, and the new Anker Nano Power Bank is honestly everything you’d want out of a MagSafe battery bank.

With Apple no longer making their own MagSafe batteries, and the upcoming iPhone 17 Air having relatively weak battery life – this could be a great purchase to make ahead of Apple’s ‘Awe dropping’ iPhone 17 launch event.

The iPhone is capable of capturing plenty of varying scenes, and has been for many years. Ever since iPhone 11 Pro, we’ve had a triple camera array, allowing for ultrawide, wide, and telephoto shots. Despite this, many companies still offer third party lens solutions for your iPhone, allowing you to capture even more with your iPhone.

ShiftCam is one of those companies, and today I’ll be reviewing their LensUltra Fisheye lens. It’s like an Ultrawide, but with a bit more perspective.

I’ve tested a few BenQ products lately. My favorite has been their Mac monitor with Apple Studio Display specs and a more affordable price. The most fun? A new category for me: projectors. The GP520 4K HDR model BenQ loaned me to test alleviated my concerns about the practicality of a projector instead of a TV.

I’ve been reviewing one of XREAL’s more recent releases of AR glasses: the XREAL One’s. These are certainly the most versatile pair of AR glasses I’ve tried out so far, and they actually really come to life somewhere you wouldn’t expect: the M4 iPad Pro running iPadOS 26. XREAL One come in at just under 3 ounces (84 grams), making them easy to just carry around.

Logitech recently provided me with its Casa Pop Up Desk for review, and it’s a nifty little gadget for those who want more of a fixed desk setup while working on the go. If you’re more of a coffee shop person or always working outdoors – this could be a neat product for you.