Technical professionals. Trusted advisors. Certified expertise.

HCS Blog

Problem-solving by Apple Certified Professionals
Nov
01

Mail Gains Welcome Features in iOS 16, iPadOS 16, and macOS 13 Ventura

Mail Gains Welcome Features in iOS 16, iPadOS 16, and macOS 13 Ventura

Email may not be as sexy a way to communicate as modern-day darlings like Messages, Slack, or Microsoft Teams, but it remains the workhorse of business and personal communications. While Apple’s Mail is a mature app that has long provided the necessary basics, there has been room for improvement. In iOS 16, iPadOS 16, and macOS 13 Ventura, Apple has given us some welcome enhancements, many of which have existed in other email systems for some time.

These features are extremely similar across all of Apple’s platforms, but they may differ in small ways. Don’t worry if you haven’t updated all your devices yet—you can still take advantage of these features on your iPhone or iPad even if you’re cautiously (and appropriately, for now) sticking to macOS 12 Monterey on your Mac.

Continue reading
0
  562 Hits
Nov
01

The Best Apple Gifts for 2022

The Best Apple Gifts for 2022

It may seem early to think about holiday shopping, but even as the global supply chain recovers from pandemic-related slowdowns, ship dates remain unpredictable. If you want to make sure you have an Apple something for that special someone, we recommend buying it soon. Here are our recommendations.

AirTag

Do you know someone who’s always misplacing their keys, purse, or backpack, or who’s planning a big trip? They might appreciate Apple’s AirTag tracker this holiday season. Attach one to a keyring (with a separate $29 AirTag Loop, $35 AirTag Leather Key Ring, or $39 AirTag Leather Loop) or drop it in a bag, and from then on, they can use the iPhone’s Find My app to see where they left their stuff. AirTag uses the Find My network, so even if the item is far away, passing Apple devices that detect it can securely share its location with you. That makes it especially helpful for tracking down checked luggage that hasn’t arrived at its proper destination. One AirTag costs $29, or you can get a pack of four for $99. You can even have Apple personalize each AirTag with custom text and emoji.

Continue reading
0
  572 Hits
Oct
03

Bring Back the Battery Percentage Indicator in iOS 16

Bring Back the Battery Percentage Indicator in iOS 16

Back in 2017, when Apple added the notch to the iPhone X for Face ID, the resulting loss of usable screen real estate caused the company to remove the battery percentage indicator from the status area. Since then, you’ve only been able to estimate how much battery life you had left from the icon; you had to open Control Center to see the numeric percentage. In iOS 16, however, Apple has revived the battery percentage indicator for Face ID iPhones, building it into the battery icon itself so it doesn’t occupy more of the status bar. Unfortunately, it’s not available on the iPhone XR, iPhone 11, iPhone 12 mini, or iPhone 13 mini, perhaps due to a lack of sufficient screen resolution. Everyone else can enable it in Settings > Battery.

(Featured image by Adam Engst)

0
  531 Hits
Oct
03

watchOS 9’s New Low Power Mode Could Help Older Apple Watches

watchOS 9’s New Low Power Mode Could Help Older Apple Watches

Until watchOS 9, Low Power Mode on the Apple Watch turned the smartwatch into a dumb watch that only told the time. With watchOS 9 on an Apple Watch Series 4 or later, however, a new Low Power Mode reduces the watch’s capabilities while keeping it largely functional. It turns off the Always-On display, heart rate notifications, background heart rate and blood oxygen measurements, and the automatic start workout reminder. When your iPhone isn’t nearby, it disables Wi-Fi and cellular connections and incoming phone calls and notifications. Other features will be slower: making a phone call, refreshing background apps and complications, Siri requests, and some interface interactions. (You can still use the Workout app in Low Power Mode and record metrics like heart rate and pace. Go to Settings > Workout on the Apple Watch to turn Low Power Mode on automatically whenever you start a workout.) watchOS 9 prompts you to turn on Low Power Mode when your battery drops to 10%, or you can enable it manually by swiping up from the bottom of the screen to open Control Center, tapping the battery percentage button, and enabling the option.

(Featured image by Adam Engst)

0
  529 Hits
Oct
03

New Messages Features in iOS 16: Mark as Unread, Edit Messages, Undo Send, Report Junk, and More

New Messages Features in iOS 16: Mark as Unread, Edit Messages, Undo Send, Report Junk, and More

After years of user requests, Apple has finally beefed up Messages with a few welcome features—options to mark conversations as unread for later reference, edit messages after they’ve been sent, and undo sending entirely. Plus, when you delete junk texts in Messages, you can now report them to Apple and your carrier, and you can find inadvertently deleted conversations in Recently Deleted. Finally, there’s a Tapback improvement for SMS messages to Android users.

Before we begin, beware that editing messages and Undo Send work the way you expect only if your recipient is also using iMessage (blue bubble friends) with iOS 16 (or iPadOS 16 or macOS 13 Ventura, once those come out later in 2022). Instead of an edited message, a device running any other operating system will display a second message with the edited text. An unsent message can’t be called back from a recipient not running iOS 16—it will remain in the conversation with no indication that you tried to unsend it.

Continue reading
0
  612 Hits
Oct
03

Security Questions Your Organization Should Be Asking Itself

Security Questions Your Organization Should Be Asking Itself

We’re increasingly hearing from organizations that need to establish that they have sufficient security policies in place, either to meet the requirements of a larger client or to qualify for cyber insurance that insures against breaches and similar losses. Details vary, and we’re happy to work with you on the specifics, but here are some of the kinds of questions you may be asked. Of course, if you don’t have to prove that you’re doing the right thing to some other company, answering these questions for yourself can only improve your security readiness.

Do you enroll all organizational devices in a device management solution?

With device management, an IT department or managed services provider (MSP) maintains oversight and control over all organizational devices. That’s helpful for automating configuration and deployment, providing secure access to organizational resources, ensuring consistent security policies, managing app and operating system updates, tracking device inventory and status, and much more.

Continue reading
0
  509 Hits

Locations


New York

Connecticut
Florida
Louisiana
Chicago

Corporate Headquarters
New York

80 Orville Drive Suite 100
Bohemia, NY 11716
Tel: (866) 518-9672
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Connecticut

65 High Ridge Road #510
Stamford, CT 06905
Tel: (866) 518-9672
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Florida

3321 SW 194th Terrace
Miramar, FL 33029
Tel: (866) 518-9672
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Louisiana

218 Barksdale Drive
Broussard LA 70518
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Chicago

4 Knollwood Place
Joliet, IL 60433
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

London

10 Grosvenor Court
Rayners Road
London SW15 2AX UK

Stay Connected

© Copyright 2023, HCS Technology Group. All Rights Reserved.