bSmart™ is BestMacs’ answer for anyone who wants to be a little smarter about working with and supporting Apple devices. Here you’ll find training videos on Mac support basics, detailed how-tos on Apple and other IT topics, and our favorite quick tips.
If you need some advice beyond this, drop Brian a note at brian@bestmacs.com or schedule a free consultation.
bSmart™ members can also get threat and failure monitoring from their Macs and PCs using our Early Warning System – the same one we use to warn us about problems on our BNO™ and Best Practices™ client computers. You can install it on unlimited devices for $60/month. Contact us to get set up.
Apple Releases Apple Watch Series 6, Apple Watch SE, new iPad Air, and Subscription Services
Looking for a new Apple Watch or iPad? The new Apple Watch Series 6 tracks blood oxygen saturation, and the Apple Watch SE cuts the price by 30%. The new iPad Air has great performance without the iPad Pro price, and the new iPad remains cheap at $329.
Are You Making the Most of the Touch Bar on Your MacBook Pro?
Do you love, hate, or just ignore the Touch Bar on your MacBook Pro? Regardless, take a look at these ways of customizing it, and perhaps you’ll end up liking it more.
What’s the Deal with All the Privacy Requests in Catalina?
Apple has been ramping up privacy protections in macOS in Mojave and Catalina by making apps ask for permission to use the camera, microphone, and quite a bit more. Here’s how this works and what you should do when prompted.
Need to Schedule a Group Meeting or Sign Up Volunteers? Try Doodle!
Have you ever set up a group meeting, whether in person or via videoconferencing, but found it cumbersome to find a time that works for everyone? Or maybe you want to solicit volunteers for an event? There’s a neat online tool that makes such logistics easy: Doodle....
Three Connectivity Problems Remote Workers Are Having During the Pandemic
The pandemic has forced large numbers of those who are still employed—nearly half the American workforce, by some estimates—to work from home. And while that has actually improved productivity for many people, partly due to eliminating time-consuming commutes, remote...
What We Can Expect from macOS 11.0 Big Sur, iOS 14, iPadOS 14, and watchOS 7
Every year at its Worldwide Developer Conference, Apple lays out its roadmap for the next releases of each of its operating systems. The COVID-19 pandemic forced Apple to record its keynote presentation ahead of time rather than having it live, but the company doesn’t...
Macs Switching from Intel Chips to Apple Silicon—Answers to Your Questions
At Apple’s Worldwide Developer Conference keynote, the company dropped a bombshell: in the future, Macs will no longer be powered by Intel chips but will instead rely on custom-designed Apple chips. As surprising as this is, the company has made such massive...
How to Ask for Tech Support So You Get Good Answers Quickly
Need help with something? On occasion, we all need tech support. Speaking as a Kansas City Apple support company who are sometimes on the other end of those requests for help, we have some suggestions on how to get the support you need as quickly as possible. For...
How to Back Up an iPhone or iPad with Your Mac Running Catalina
One of the most significant changes in macOS 10.15 Catalina was the breakup of the long-standing iTunes app into separate Music, Podcasts, and TV apps. But what about backing up iOS devices, which you also used to do in iTunes? In Catalina, Apple moved this function...
Got a Mac Laptop? Here’s What You Need to Know about Battery Health Management in Catalina
We all want Mac laptops that can run for days on a single charge and never need their batteries serviced. Sadly, we’re always going to be disappointed. Battery and power management technologies continually improve, but those improvements are matched by more powerful...