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Ben Lovejoy

benlovejoy

Ben Lovejoy is a British technology writer who started his career on PC World and has written for dozens of computer and technology magazines, as well as numerous national newspapers, business and in-flight magazines. He has also written several books, and creates occasional videos.

He is old enough to have owned the original Macintosh. He currently owns an M1 Max 16-inch MacBook Pro, an M1 13-inch MacBook Air, an iPad mini, an iPhone 16 Pro Max, and multiple HomePods. He suspects it might be cheaper to have a cocaine habit than his addiction to all things anodised aluminum.

He’s known for his op-ed and diary pieces, exploring his experience of Apple products over time, for a more rounded review:

He speaks fluent English but only broken American, so please forgive any Anglicised spelling in his posts.

He gets a lot of emails and can’t possibly reply to them all. If you would like to comment on one of his pieces, please do so in the comments – he does read them all.

Connect with Ben Lovejoy

SLAP and FLOP security flaws affect all current Apple devices, and many older ones

SLAP and FLOP security flaws affect all current Apple devices | M-series chip shown

Security researchers have discovered two flaws present in all current iPhones, iPads, and Macs – as well as many earlier ones. The vulnerabilities, known as SLAP and FLOP, could potentially allow an attacker to see the current contents of your open web tabs.

The flaws were introduced in the A15 and M2 chips, and are also found in subsequent ones, up to and including the latest version of each device …

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Tested: Moom is my new Mac window management app

The Moom Mac app window management software

I’m a self-confessed neat freak in both physical and virtual worlds, so I like to keep my Mac app windows organised. I previously did so using Stay, but when the developer seemingly abandoned it I switched to Moom.

The app lets me instantly restore all my app windows to my preferred sizes and positions, whether I’m using my MacBook Pro in standalone mode or hooked up to my external monitor …

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MKBHD hands-on with Project Moohan, a prototype of Samsung’s Vision Pro competitor

MKBHD hands-on with Project Moohan, a prototype of Samsung's Vision Pro competitor

Tech reviewer Marques Brownlee has shared a hands-on experience of Project Moohan, a prototype of Samsung’s Vision Pro competitor.

Samsung has previously allowed other tech writers to try it, including 9to5Google’s Abner Li, but this is the first time the company has allowed video footage to be shared …

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AAPL climbed 3% on DeepSeek news, as other tech stocks fell

AAPL climbed 3% on DeepSeek news, as other tech stocks fell | App seen on a smartphone

While shock at yesterday’s DeepSeek news saw the stock prices of many tech giants fall, AAPL climbed 3.25% across the course of the day.

Experts yesterday expressed amazement at the Chinese company’s AI model being on a par with US chatbots like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Llama despite being developed for a fraction of the cost and running on far lower-spec hardware …

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Beyond the iPhone 17 Air, would you accept a portless phone to go thinner? [Poll]

Beyond the iPhone 17 Air, would you accept a portless phone to go thinner | Oppo phone shown next to iPhone 16

We’re expecting the iPhone 17 Air to be Apple’s thinnest ever phone, but with the depth of phones now constrained by the USB-C port, would you go portless to get a thinner iPhone?

Chinese Android smartphone maker Oppo has been teasing an ultra-thin model, and saying that the height of the USB-C port is preventing phones from getting any slimmer …

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Judge limits FBI powers to trawl data from Apple and others; Cloudflare privacy flaw

Judge limits FBI powers to use data from Apple and others | FBI command post shown

A judge has limited FBI powers to trawl through data obtained from tech giants like Apple, Google, and ISPs under FISA (the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act).

Separately, a Cloudflare privacy flaw has been identified in one of Apple’s IT service providers, which could have exposed the rough location of millions of web and app users before it was fixed …

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China’s DeepSeek hits #1 on App Store, shocks AI researchers, sends US tech shares tumbling

China’s DeepSeek – an AI chatbot intended to rival ChatGPT – is currently the number one download in the App Store, after its performance took US companies by surprise.

The Chinese startup appears to be rivalling the performance of OpenAI’s ChatGPT despite having cost far less to develop, and that’s hitting the market valuations of major US AI players …

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Leakers clash on whether iPhone SE 4 will have notch or Dynamic Island [U]

Leakers clash on whether iPhone SE 4 will have notch or Dynamic Island | iPhone 14 shown

One of the big questions about the upcoming iPhone SE 4 is whether the display will have a notch or Dynamic Island. Two leakers have presented clashing views on this, with the latest dummy models appearing to support the notch. Update: See Ross Young’s input at the end.

The dummy models also give us our clearest view yet of what the new entry-level iPhone may look like, with high-quality photos, and a video …

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Apple Watch bands safe to wear, says company, after toxic chemicals report and lawsuit

Apple Watch bands safe to wear, says company, after toxic chemicals report and lawsuit | Sports Bands shown

Apple Watch bands are safe to wear, says the company, after concerns were expressed about the presence of PFAS (polyfluoroalkyl substances) in a number of smartwatch bands.

PFAS has been linked to a number of health concerns, and is known as a “forever chemical” as it doesn’t break down in the body or the environment …

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Samsung Galaxy S25 copied more than a dozen iPhone features, says Macworld

Samsung Galaxy S25 copied more than a dozen iPhone features, says Macworld | Ultra model shown

The newly-launched Samsung Galaxy S25 copied more than a dozen iPhone features, argues Macworld, pointing to everything from the slab-sided design to Siri’s glowing border.

The piece acknowledges that both companies copy from each other, but suggests that Samsung is a little less subtle in its approach …

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Siri failed super-easy Super Bowl test, getting 38 out of 58 wrong

Siri hilariously failed Super Bowl test, getting 38 out of 58 wrong | Giant US flag on the field

Apple commentator John Gruber yesterday described Siri’s current performance as “an unfunny joke,” giving its inability to correctly name the winner of Super Bowl 13 an example, noting that this is a basic query that any US chatbot ought to be able to answer.

It turns out that wasn’t an entirely random example: it was prompted by his friend Paul Kafasis, who decided to test Siri on Super Bowl 1 to 60 inclusive – and the results were not good …

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eBay sellers asking $2k to $50k for iPhones with TikTok installed

eBay sellers asking $2k to $50k for iPhones with TikTok installed | Screengrab of $50k listing

Used iPhones with TikTok installed on them are being listed for sale on eBay for thousands of dollars, as people try to cash in on the ban. One listing even asks $50,000 for an unlocked iPhone 12 Pro Max “with TikTok app.”

Although Trump has issued an executive order claiming to shield companies from liability for breaking the law, Apple, Google and others continue to comply by keeping TikTok out of their US app stores …

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Judge says ‘reasonable possibility’ that Apple illegally paid women less than men

Judge says 'reasonable possibility' that Apple illegally paid women less than men | A job interview

A judge has ruled that there is a “reasonable possibility” that Apple illegally paid women less than men, meaning that a class action lawsuit filed on behalf of 12,000 current and former female employees will proceed.

Apple admits that the pay disparities exist, but claim that these can be justified by the individual circumstances …

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A free upgrade could let Philips Hue and other Zigbee bulbs act as motion sensors

An upgrade could let Philips Hue and other Zigbee bulbs act as motion sensors | Diagram of detection zones

Philips Hue and other smart bulbs based on the Zigbee standard could soon act as motion sensors without the need for any additional hardware. This would mean they could automatically switch on when someone enters a room without using a separate motion sensor.

Even better, the new functionality looks set to be added to existing Hue bulbs through an update to the Hue Bridge …

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