16 February 2026 Show full articles

#1791: March 4 Apple event, OS 26.3 tweaks Liquid Glass and fixes vulnerabilities, HiWater hydration app, old Home architecture ended

Apple has announced an unusual multi-city “Apple Experience” event for 4 March 2026 in New York, London, and Shanghai—speculation centers on a colorful low-cost MacBook, the iPhone 17e, and MacBook Pros with the M5 Pro and M5 Max. In other news, Apple’s grace period for the old Home architecture officially ended on 10 February 2026, so Adam Engst explains what you need to know if you haven’t yet upgraded, including the requirement for an Apple TV or HomePod as a home hub instead of an iPad. We also cover the OS 26.3 updates, which patch dozens of security vulnerabilities, including a zero-day exploit, and macOS 26.3 Tahoe also brings a few welcome refinements to Liquid Glass, particularly with Reduce Transparency enabled, but leaves some visual quirks unfixed. In AppBITS, Adam reviews HiWater, an elegantly designed hydration-tracking app that has helped him work toward a cardiologist-recommended 100-ounce daily fluid intake. Notable Mac app releases this week include Bookends 15.3, Fantastical 4.1.8 and Cardhop 2.4.5, Microsoft Office for Mac 16.106, SoundSource 6.0.4, and Zoom Workplace 6.7.6.

Apple has invited select media outlets to a “special Apple Experience” on March 4 in New York, London, and Shanghai—an unusual approach that has sparked speculation about rumored new MacBooks, the iPhone 17e, and more. We’ll know soon enough.

If you’ve been putting off the Home architecture upgrade introduced several years ago, it’s time to act. Support for the previous version ends on 10 February 2026, and you may be automatically upgraded.

Don’t expect new features in Apple’s OS 26.3 updates, but be sure to install them soon. They patch dozens of security vulnerabilities and address an actively exploited flaw Apple says was used in sophisticated spyware attacks.

After a fainting spell left Adam Engst with a doctor’s order to drink 100 ounces daily, he turned to HiWater. This elegant iPhone and Apple Watch app tracks hydration and nags you to drink—sometimes too well.

Watchlist

Updates the reference management tool to use Liquid Glass when running on macOS 26 Tahoe. ($74.99 new, free update, 127 MB, macOS 11+)

Now prefers Microsoft Graph over Exchange Web Services for newly-added Microsoft 365 accounts. ($56.99 annual subscription, free update, various sizes, macOS 12+)

Brings updates to Excel and Outlook. ($179.99 new for one-time purchase, $99.99/$129.99 annual subscription options, free update, macOS 13+)

Updates the audio control utility to be more responsive during launch and changes to the system output device. ($49 new, free update, 52.3 MB, macOS 15+)