Developers can now download the third beta builds of tvOS 9.2 and watchOS 2.2, which bring a number of changes to the Apple Watch and Apple TV platforms.
Apple’s release notes for the software updates don’t contain clues about the new features, but users who have already installed tvOS 9.2 beta 3 report that it adds the ability to use dictation to insert text in search fields as well as the ability to use Siri search in the App Store.
So the Apple Watch wasn’t the first smartwatch. It just became the most popular in a hurry.
Shortly after its debut last year, the Apple Watch set out to take over the market it was late to, accounting for two-thirds of all smartwatch shipments in 2015, according to a report by analysts with Canalys.
By Canalys estimates, that’s about 12 million units with more than 5 million Apple Watches sold during the final quarter of 2015.
More often than I care to admit, I’ll think I feel a tap from my Apple Watch. But then when I check the screen, I’ve received nothing: no texts, no phone calls, no notifications of any kind. It’s really weird and makes me feel like I’m finally losing it.
I usually just assume the watch shifted a little on my wrist, and that I’m not hallucinating at all. But psychologists are suggesting that what’s happening to me and others (you can admit it; this is a safe place) may be the technological arm of some actual psychological issues dealing with attachment, fear of rejection, and a chronic need for validation.
People are calling this symptom “ringxiety” because I’m pretty sure that we’ve really lost our sense of pride in portmanteaus as a culture.
For nearly 20 years, watchmaker Eugene Ho has been making luxury timepieces for the likes of Hugo Boss, Tommy Hilfiger, Timberland, Ecko and Reebok. Now he’s branched out on his own. His startup, Juuk (pronounced “juke”), makes beautiful, high-end bracelets for Apple Watches.
Juuk’s wristbands rival Cupertino’s aesthetics and quality — but cost half the price.
The iPhone might not be the only device getting an incremental upgrade at Apple’s next keynote, which is rumored to take place March 15.
In a note to investors this morning, Apple analyst Gene Munster claims Apple Watch may get a slight hardware upgrade this spring that will include a better processor, improved battery life and other new internal components.
Makers of wearable electronics need to thank the Apple Watch for the rapidly growing wearable market, itself poised to see even more stunning gains in the coming year.
“From 2015 through 2017, smartwatch adoption will have 48 percent growth largely due to Apple popularizing wearables as a lifestyle trend,” said Angela McIntyre, director at research firm, Gartner.
Suing the world’s most powerful company and its army of lawyers over a cracked Apple Watch screen may sound like a great lesson in futility, but one man just walked away a winner after taking Apple to court in Great Britain.
The grand unveiling of Apple’s newest iPad and iPhone is reportedly just over a month away.
Although the iPhone-maker usually waits until fall to reveal its latest and greatest iOS devices, a new report claims Apple has set its sights on March 15 as the date for its first big keynote of 2016.
It appears we won’t have to wait much longer to see what the next-generation iPad Air will look like.
Apple plans to unveil the iPad Air 3 at a special event in March, according to a new report, which claims new Apple Watch hardware will also get some stage time during the keynote.
The Apple Watch has displaced Rolex on a list of luxury global brands, as measured by analytics firm NetBase, measuring social media mentions and consumer sentiment from more than 700 million posts between 2014 and 2015.
The Apple Watch took the no. 1 place in the list’s “watches” category — made all the more impressive by the fact that it was the only smartwatch featured. Other watchmakers it outranked included Tag Heuer, Richemont, Curren and Patek Phillippe.
Although there are ways of messaging people with the Apple Watch — either with Siri dictation, or using pre-written responses and emojis — as far as I know, no-one has yet come up with the perfect method for typing and sending messages from the device itself, without needing to whip out your iPhone to help do so.
That’s exactly the problem Patryk Laurent, cognitive scientist working at the Brain Corporation in San Diego — and an avid Apple Watch fan — has set out out to solve. His solution is a nifty homemade app, which allows users to input their messages using Morse code.
Yes, it’s every bit as geeky and awesome as it sounds.
Apple is set to reveal how much money it made over the 2015 holiday shopping season, and per usual, it’s expected to be a record-breaker.
Tim Cook and Luca Maestri will dive into all the details of Apple’s Q1 2016 earnings report tomorrow at 2 p.m. Pacific but there’s really only one number Wall Street really wants to know: total iPhones sales. Even though Apple may record its highest earnings ever, some analysts are predicting that iPhone sales may have declined for the first time, which could send Apple’s stock price sinking.
Here are six things to watch for during Apple’s Q1 2016 earnings call:
Samsung finally has an answer to the Apple Watch Edition. The South Korean company today added 18-karat rose gold and platinum Gear S2 Classic options to its smartwatch lineup, and they’ll cost you about $9,500 less than a gold Apple Watch.
Will Apple’s wireless EarPods change the way we hear? Why should you upgrade to the latest iOS version? How can you create a musical masterpiece with just a guitar and your iPhone?
You’ll find answers to these and other burning questions in this week’s edition of Cult of Mac Magazine. Grab the latest issue today and get the week’s best Apple news, all wrapped up in a shiny package that’s perfect for your iPad or iPhone.
Here are this week’s top stories.
You don’t have to visit select Apple Stores to get your wrists on Hermès’ special Apple Watch bands anymore.
After debuting this Fall as limited edition pieces only available at Hermès’ and Apple retail stores, the stylish leather straps can now be purchased via the online Apple Store by any unhip nerd with a credit card.
A new app for your fancy Apple Watch delivers a super-cool and stylish education on the inner workings of actual watches.
The free app, called WATCHe, shows you the time. Obviously, your Apple Watch can already do that on its own, but the app ups the class by simulating the gears, cogs, springs and movements of an analog watch. And it might actually teach you something.
The bulk of the country is about to get some very good news for their senses of style — and bad news for their bank accounts: The super-luxe Apple Watch Hermès will be available for purchase online at the end of this week.
Up to now, you’ve had to live in (or travel to) specific Apple and boutique stores in Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San Francisco, or Toronto to pick up the especially fancy editions of the Apple Watch. But starting Friday, you’ll just have to go to either Apple or Hermès’ official sites to score one of your own.
The Apple Watch is designed with the Digital Crown in the same place as where traditional watches have their own crown to set the time. It’s a design choice that helps us think of this new tiny computer on our wrist as something comfortable and familiar.
But there’s no reason the Digital Crown should remain on the right, as it defaults to if you’re wearing your Apple Watch on your left wrist.
In fact, flipping it around can make things on your Apple Watch even better. Check it out.
Cybersecurity and civilian data become a hot topic at the end of last night’s GOP debate with Apple getting caught in the crossfire. Candidates criticized the company for its decision to keep customer data private, but Apple fanboy Jeb Bush revealed he has a radical strategy that will get Tim Cook to change his stance on encryption: ask really nicely.
Looking to pick up an Apple Watch but don’t want to spend extra on watch bands or a charging stand?
Groupon has your dream bundle, then, with a Sport edition of Apple’s famous wearable, along with third-party knockoffs of the Milanese Loop and leather strap and a charging stand all for the price of the actual Apple Watch.
The Apple Watch may have record high levels of user satisfaction, but Microsoft wants you to throw in the towel and trade it for the second-generation Microsoft Band.
To convince customers, it’s even offering a new trade-in program that, depending on the model, could give you up to $250 for your Apple Watch. For those keeping score, that means you can get your hands on Redmond’s newly-launched wearable sequel without having to pay a single (extra) cent for it.
Apple has come out with some gorgeous bands for the Apple Watch, but if a patent application published today is to be believed, future Apple Watch straps may get a whole lot more useful.
Specifically, the patent application describes a magnetic band capable of folding, origami-style, into a standalone mini display, protective case, fridge-mounted magnet, or even an extra screen for your iMac.
Talk about robots in disguise!
Apple Watch usage is dropping off as the novelty factors fades away, according to a new study. While Apple’s wearable has found a place in many owners’ gadget ecosystems, the device is still viewed as distinctly nonessential.
However, the new report includes a list of users’ desired features for Apple Watch 2 — and many of them are things Apple is supposedly working on already.
It seems that Nancy Pelosi had a bit of distraction during the President’s speech Tuesday.
During last night’s State of the Union, President Obama reflected on his time in office and outlined his hopes and visions for the country’s future. It was a conversational, grounded, and relatable address that covered the outgoing leader’s successes and even some regrets.
But at one point, cameras captured the former Speaker of the House tapping away on her wearable.
Jeb Bush is a huge Apple Watch fan even though he knows how to use it about as much as he knows how to beat Donald Trump. The presidential hopeful is always incorrectly referring to the device as an “iWatch” — and apparently didn’t discover until today that it can make calls.
Bush received an untimely call during an interview Wednesday with The Des Moines Register’s editorial board, but had absolutely no idea where the talking voice was coming from. After reassuring reporters that his “watch can’t be talking,” Bush was politely informed that indeed it can.
“I’ve never had my Bat Phone turned on,” exclaims a befuddled Bush in the video. “That’s the coolest thing in the world.”
Watch the goofy incident below: