Apple began taking pre-orders for the iPhone XR early this morning, and there are still plenty of them left hours later. Contrast this with the iPhone XS launch which saw some configurations sell out in minutes.
While this doesn’t automatically indicate that demand for the iPhone XR is slow, it’s not a very good sign either.
A highlight of iOS 12 is Siri shortcuts, a way to activate frequently-used tasks with voice commands. Software developers can do this too, and today Apple highlighted some popular applications that have embraced Siri.
Increasing numbers of apps have Shortcuts built in, giving users access to special functions with the voice commands of their choice.
Apple worked hard in recent years to make a waterproof iPhone . The latest models can survive being submerged in up to 6.5 feet of water for half an hour. And last year’s handsets are almost as water resistant.
One iPhone X user has cause to be grateful.
Square got its start by letting businesses take credit cards with just an iPhone or Android, and the company now offers multiple payment methods. Today it launched Square Terminal which accepts credit cards and Apple Pay, and can even print receipts.
This could help spread the availability of Apple Pay, as this new point-of-sale card reader is intended to replace older, simpler ones that can’t accept the iPhone’s payment system.
The next big Apple event everyone has been expecting just became official. Looks like new tablets, laptops and desktops could be unveiled October 30.
What makes this unusual is it won’t be at Apple headquarters in Cupertino, but at the Brooklyn Academy of Music.
mophie’s name for the powerstation USB-C 3XL doesn’t roll off the tongue, but there are plenty of MacBook/MacBook Pro users who should check it out anyway. This 26,000mAh battery is designed to quickly recharge an Apple tablet via USB-C, and can send power to an iPhone at the same time.
Just be warned, the price is enough to turn away some potential customers.
If you think $529 is a lot to pay for a new Apple Watch then you aren’t the target market for a Lux Watch 4. These are produced by Brikk, who takes Apple’s wearable and lavishes on gold and precious gems, Prices start at a mere $28,995 and go up to over $1 million.
Narcissism and meglomania sold separately.
A major change to Mac laptops and desktops could be coming in the next few years. A respected analyst is the latest to say that Apple will put its own A-series processors in its Mac computers rather than Intel chips.
The A series was originally created for the iPhone, but has evolved to the point where its performance rivals desktop processors.
If one Mac is good then 1,100 of them is better, right? That used to be the philosophy of Roland Borsky, but the costs of storing a computer collection that dates back decades is forcing the Austrian man to sell it.
Borsky warns that if he can’t find a buyer all the computers are going to be thrown away.
Apple introduced the fourth beta of iOS 12.1 to the general public today. The wait for the full version of this upgrade is almost certainly nearly over.
It will bring some new features and emojis, and is likely required for the new iPhone coming later this month.
Google is being forced to start charging Android device makers a fee to use the software that previously came free with this operating system. It’s possible device makers will pass this cost along to phone buyers.
This only applies in Europe, though, as it’s a result of the EU ruling that Google used anti-competitive business practices. The company was also fined about $5 billion.
The first foldable smartphones launch later this year. These will all run Android, but Apple has been researching a bendable iPhone. It received another patent today for a mobile device with a flexible screen.
This describes various possible hinge mechanisms, likely the trickiest part of a flexible phone.
A leaked product image goes a long way toward confirming that the 2018 iPad Pro is getting a significant redesign. Apple’s next tablet is shown in a folding case, but it’s clear that the bezels have shrunk and the Home button has disappeared, just as previous rumors indicated.
The image also clearly shows the front-facing sensors needed for Face ID.
There are clearly some very strong opinions about bagels. Apple added a bagel emoji to the early betas of iOS 12.1 and some people lost their minds. The proposed image was rather plain, and there was no sign of cream cheese, which was enough to set off a firestorm of protest.
Those who were offended by the emoji can rest easy tonight knowing that Apple has a new version of the bagel that looks more like something a New Yorker would eat.
Investigators into the disappearance of Jamal Khashoggi claim to have recordings made on his Apple Watch of this prominent critic of Saudi Arabia being killed by Saudi agents. However, experts doubt that these actually came from the journalist’s wearable.
Apple has settled into a steady pace of seeding to developers betas of its operating systems. Near the beginning of each week, expect updated pre-release versions of iOS 12.1, watchOS 5.1, and tvOS 12.1. Today is the fourth round.
These include some hotly-anticipated features, but leave Apple Watch Series 4 users up on the air.
Remember the Palm Pilot? This iconic gadget of the 1990s has returned, sort of.
At a time when iPhone and its rivals have become big and powerful, Palm will be a small, simple smartphone that doesn’t demand as much attention.
Face ID brings a special challenge for law enforcement. Police need to be careful to not do anything that an iPhone might use as an attempt at facial recognition. They risk the phone locking itself in a way they can’t easily circumvent.
It all comes down to contradictory laws on passwords and biometric security systems.
For much too long, the best key finder had a significant flaw. A Tile Pro or Tile Mate helps you keep track of your keys, the remote, or other items, but each only lasts a year. Then you have to buy another one because the battery can’t be replaced. That finally changes in the new 2018 version. Plus they have a greater range.
We tested the latest versions of the regular and Pro versions of the Tile tracker to see if they live up to their promises.
Everyone loathes telemarketers, but phone scammers are much worse. Spoofers are people who trick the phone system into mis-identifying the number they are calling from. This causes people to believe they are talking to their bank or credit card company, not a criminal. Apple wants to help prevent phone spoofing.
The company filed a patent application for a system to automatically identify when an incoming call isn’t coming from where it says it is.
Bokeh images look sort of three dimensional, with their subjects in focus and their backgrounds blurry. Facebook took this idea and ran with it. The social networking service created tech to turn bokeh pictures into 3D images.
The tech world has been rocked by allegations that companies, including Apple and Amazon, were sold data servers compromised by Chinese spies. However, a senior cyber security advisor to the National Security Agency says that no one he knows of has found any sign of this.
Foxconn is best known for assembling iPhones, so it’s watched as a sign of demand for Apple’s most important product. The Chinese company just reported its revenue increased 30 percent last month, an indication that there’s plenty of demand for the iPhone XS models that debuted in September.
This is just the latest hint that Apple’s latest are performing well.
The third quarter of this year wasn’t a particularly good one for Apple, with Mac sales dropping a significant amount. That doesn’t say positive things about sales of the 2018 MacBook Pro models that debuted this summer.
Still, the company held onto its place as the world’s fourth-largest PC maker.
There were howls of protest when Apple left the 3.5mm headphone jack out of the iPhone 7, but it was really just another example of the company being ahead of the competition. Arch-rival Samsung is reportedly going to be the next to eliminate this single-use port from its flagship phones next year.