Warner Bros. today launches its new "Max" streaming service that merges HBO Max and Discovery+ content, and the new rebranded app is already appearing on Apple devices and can be downloaded from the App Store. Announced last month, Max includes all HBO series and movies, Max Originals, and select series and movies from Warner Bros., the DC Universe, Cartoon Network, the Turner Library, Looney Tunes, Adult Swim, and more. It also rolls in Discovery favorites from TV brands including HGTV, the Food Network, TLC, ID, Magnolia Network, Discovery, and more. The new Max service also claims to feature smarter recommendations, improved app performance, easier sign-in and navigation, new profile PINs for adult profiles, and new Hubs and genres. Warner Bros.…

Mimestream is what happens when you mix Gmail and Apple Mail. | Image: Mimestream The most important thing I can tell you about Mimestream, the email app for Mac that just came out of a yearslong beta, is that it finally made me stop going to Gmail.com. I’ve tried a lot of email apps over the years, and they all have at least one fatal flaw. (Some have several.) Search is the most common culprit: very few apps can search through messages as fast or as well as Gmail, which is why I’ve dumped everything from Spark to Edison to Apple Mail to Newton over the years. But some apps have a hard time finding contacts, others do weird stuff…

Apple today seeded the first beta of an upcoming watchOS 9.6 update to developers for testing purposes, with the software update coming a day after the launch of watchOS 9.5. To install the watchOS 9.6 update, developers will need to download the configuration profile from the Apple Developer Center. Once installed, ‌watchOS 9.6 can be downloaded through the dedicated Apple Watch app on the iPhone by going to General > Software update. To update to new software, an Apple Watch needs to have 50 percent battery life, it has to be placed on the charger, and it will need to be in range of the ‌‌iPhone‌‌ it is paired with. It is not yet clear what might be included in…

U.S. state Montana on Wednesday banned the CCP-controlled TikTok app, with the state’s lawmakers saying they aimed to protect residents from alleged intelligence gathering by the Chinese Communist Party. TikTok is already banned on government-issued devices in some 30 U.S. states and for employees of America’s federal agencies. Reuters: While blocking apps by geography is not unheard of, the Montana law is notable for doing so at the state level, upending a single-market approach Apple and Alphabet’s Google have long been able to use for their U.S. app stores. Tech companies are now well-practiced in blocking apps at the country level, mostly to comply with U.S. sanctions or for business purposes, like Apple’s blocking of messaging and privacy apps in…

U.S. state Montana on Wednesday banned the CCP-controlled TikTok app, with the state’s lawmakers saying they aimed to protect residents from alleged intelligence gathering by the Chinese Communist Party. TikTok is already banned on government-issued devices in some 30 U.S. states and for employees of America’s federal agencies. Reuters: While blocking apps by geography is not unheard of, the Montana law is notable for doing so at the state level, upending a single-market approach Apple and Alphabet’s Google have long been able to use for their U.S. app stores. Tech companies are now well-practiced in blocking apps at the country level, mostly to comply with U.S. sanctions or for business purposes, like Apple’s blocking of messaging and privacy apps in…

On Wednesday, Montana Governor Greg Gianforte signed legislation to ban CCP-controlled TikTok from operating in the state to protect residents from intelligence gathering by the Chinese Communist Party, making it the first U.S. state to ban the popular short video app. David Shepardson for Reuters: Montana will make it unlawful for Google and Apple’s app stores to offer TikTok within the state, but will not impose any penalties on individuals using the app. The ban is to take effect Jan. 1, 2024, and is almost certain to face legal challenges. TikTok, which has over 150 million American users, has faced growing calls from U.S. lawmakers and state officials to ban the app nationwide over concerns about potential Chinese government influence…