After almost a month-long gap, Apple rolled out iOS 27 beta 5 to developers on Monday. With September fast approaching, the new beta adds the necessary polish before the OS’s public release this fall.
Below are all the changes spotted in iOS 27 beta 5 so far, including the (possible) name of the first folding iPhone.
Apple planned to make the iPhone upgrade process more seamless by shipping customers new devices with all their data and settings preloaded.
While the idea sounded simple, the company eventually scrapped it due to privacy concerns and the complexities involved.
Apple plans to overhaul the Apple Watch lineup as new types of wearables start gaining traction among consumers. As part of the revamp, it supposedly wants to reintroduce a ceramic casing for the Apple Watch.
Apple could even use a round display on future Apple Watch models, though nothing is confirmed yet.
A new leak suggests Apple could raise iPhone 17 prices as soon as the week beginning August 10. Apple already hiked prices for Macs, iPads and other devices in June due to rising DRAM and NAND chip costs.
An iPhone price hike is inevitable, though many expect the company to hold off until the iPhone 18 event in September.
Apple ships the Mac with several built-in apps that are surprisingly feature-rich and fast. But over time, I found myself replacing a handful of them with third-party alternatives that simply did more.
I didn’t make these switches overnight. Each replacement solved a specific problem or added a feature I couldn’t live without. These are the Mac apps and tools I use instead of Apple’s stock apps.
An AirPods Pro 3 deal drops Apple’s excellent noise-canceling earbuds to just $189.99 at Amazon. That’s a sweet $59 discount. And they are just a low at Best Buy.
AirPods Pro 3 bring new features, including Live Translation, a heart rate monitor, revved-up audio quality and redesigned ear tips for better active noise cancellation. Plus, like the previous model, they can even function as clinical-grade hearing aids.
Make no mistake: These are the best wireless earbuds you can buy for your iPhone, Mac and other Apple gear. Nothing can match how seamlessly AirPods integrate with Apple devices.
OpenAI’s first smart speaker will supposedly look like a “doughnut that’s roughly the size of a hockey puck,” according to a new Bloomberg report. This odd design will help the speaker stand out from the competition.
It will also apparently enable the speaker to work in “different positions.”
Apple plans to bring one of the iPhone and Mac’s most useful ecosystem features — cross-device clipboard sync — to Windows PCs. Don’t expect it anytime soon, though, as the functionality likely won’t arrive until fall 2027 at the earliest.
Apple is not adding cross-device clipboard sync support for Windows PCs to iOS because it wants to, though. The feature stems from an interoperability request Microsoft submitted under the European Union’s Digital Markets Act.
★★★★☆
The Chargeasap Miko solves the biggest problem with tiny iPhone chargers: remembering to carry them in the first place.
Chargeasap calls it the world’s smallest 30W GaN charger, but the device’s dimunitive size isn’t its only strong point. The Miko packs several thoughtful design touches that help it stand out from the competition. Here’s how the tiny charger performs in real life.
Apple can’t keep up with the MacBook Air’s demand due to the ongoing DRAM and NAND shortage. It is supposedly “struggling to keep the laptop in stock.”
Entry-level MacBook Air configurations are only available for shipping in late August, while custom configurations are listed for September delivery.
After using Macs for years, I’ve come across several macOS features that most people overlook or quickly dismiss. But these incredibly useful Mac features have become an integral part of my daily workflow. They help me manage files, navigate my Mac more efficiently, breeze through repetitive text and more.
Even if you have been using macOS for years, chances are you are not using all of its features. And these should become part of your Mac repertoire.
Apple Upgrade makes getting a new iPhone or Mac look surprisingly affordable. You select your preferred device, lease term and then pay for it in monthly installments. At the end of the lease, you can buy the device outright or upgrade to a newer model.
But is Apple Upgrade really worth leasing your next iPhone or Mac? I did the math to find out.
Despite its best efforts, Apple is not immune to the DRAM and NAND shortages and price hikes. This forced the company to substantially hike the prices of Macs and iPads.
To ease the memory crunch, Apple is considering sourcing memory from Chinese suppliers. But even if that happens, don’t expect the company’s products to become cheaper. The move is about securing a supply of critical components, not cutting prices.
The new Apple Upgrade program makes a compelling first impression, enabling you to lease a new iPhone, Mac, Apple Watch or iPad at low monthly rates. You can lease a new iPhone for $17.99 per month or a Mac for as low as $24.99 per month.
However, the enticingly low lease price only tells part of the story. Before signing up for the Apple Upgrade program, you should examine the terms, restrictions and other factors in the fine print to see if leasing makes sense for you.
Google upgraded the Gemini app for macOS to take on Wispr Flow and other AI-powered dictation apps. The update introduces the Intelligent dictation feature, which transcribes your spoken words into text in real time.
It also adds support for screen-aware reasoning, allowing Gemini to understand what’s on your screen.
After years of lagging the competition, Apple is “nearly ready to launch” three new smart devices, according to a new report. An updated Apple TV and HomePod mini will debut as soon as this fall.
There’s also the long-rumored smart home hub, which could arrive anytime between October and early next year.
YouTube Premium is already one of the best value-for-money subscriptions on the market. And it will soon get even better, with eligible YouTube Premium subscribers gaining access to Peacock Premium for free.
The bundle will be limited to YouTube Premium subscribers in the US.
Following a few weeks of beta testing, Apple released iOS 26.6, iPadOS 26.6 and macOS 26.6 to the public on Monday. While the updates do not introduce any major new features or changes, iOS 26.6 is more important than it might initially appear.
According to Apple, iOS 26.6 includes more than 70 security updates. It also starts a process that proves very helpful if you plan to upgrade to iOS 27.
A year after debuting in the US, Apple is expanding AppleCare One to four more countries. This includes the UK, France, Germany and Australia.
With AppleCare One, you can protect multiple Apple devices through a single monthly subscription.
As a Mac user, Apple Mail seems like the obvious email client. It comes installed on every Mac, costs nothing and works with practically every email provider. Yet I prefer using Mimestream’s native macOS app to manage my email.
That’s not because Apple Mail is a bad app. The problem is that Apple Mail treats Gmail like any other email service. Mimestream doesn’t, and that makes all the difference.
Overwhelmingly positive first impressions of Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold8 bode extremely well for Apple, which is prepping to launch a folding iPhone with a similar design.
People who went hands-on with the Z Fold8 after its Wednesday launch praise the device’s wide, compact form factor, which makes it easy to carry and improves the content consumption experience.
That’s great news for the upcoming folding iPhone, possibly called the iPhone Fold or the iPhone Ultra, which reportedly will arrive later this year.
After years of delay, Meta launched a native WhatsApp app for iPad in 2025. A year later, it is adding the ability to sign up for a new WhatsApp account right from the iPad.
WhatsApp will also deliver a superior CarPlay experience, allowing you to hear and respond to messages, see your call history and more.
A new over-the-air update to compatible Volvo cars brings Apple Music integration to the car’s infotainment system. Volvo says more than 2 million cars will benefit from this integration.
As part of the update, new and returning Apple Music subscribers will get up to three months of Apple Music for free.
I have more than a dozen keyboard shortcuts set up on my MacBook. But between Slack, Zoom, Safari, Chrome and countless other apps, there’s no way I can remember them all. That’s the problem Project Mirage’s Dune aims to solve.
At first glance, Dune looks like a programmable macro pad. But it’s much smarter than that, as it adds three context-aware buttons next to your MacBook’s keyboard. It’s an interesting idea, but does it actually work in real life?
Apple reportedly planned to use “Extreme” processors in the Mac Pro to deliver unrivaled performance, beating even its “Pro” and “Ultra” chips. But eventually, pricing and demand concerns led the company to scrap the idea.
Besides M2 Extreme and M3 Extreme chips, Apple also worked on an Intel-powered upgrade for the Mac Pro, according information that leaked out on Sunday.