News - page 124

Following the Supreme Court’s refusal to hear appeals in the Epic Games v. Apple lawsuit, Apple is making significant changes to its U.S. App Store guidelines.

Developers can now link to an external in-app payment method. However, they still will need to pay Apple a commission of 12% to 27% on these transactions. And the mechanism for allowing such external payments might prove so onerous that developers take a pass.

Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney called it a “bad-faith ‘compliance’ plan” Tuesday — and vowed that his company will contest Apple’s plan in District Court.

The Apple Vision Pro headset might be a real pain in the neck, according to new reports after the latest round of demos. Three separate people reported feeling discomfort or even pain after wearing the headset for short periods.

Each of the people also expressed some level of appreciation or even amazement regarding the Vision Pro’s immersive visuals. However, if strapping the headset on for a half-hour proves uncomfortable for a majority of users, that’s going to be a serious problem that no amount of spatial computing wizardry — or even an ugly strap — can overcome.

If you’re ready to put your MacBook in clamshell mode on a vertical stand, Twelve South rolled out a nice one for you Tuesday — BookArc Flex.

The minimalist stand lets you run your closed laptop like a desktop — just plug in your external display and fire up a keyboard and mouse — while saving loads of space on your desk for other gear. And you can get it with chrome, matte-black or matte-white finishes.

The U.S. Supreme Court effectively upheld a lower court’s ruling that Apple must allow third-party iPhone app developers to point customers to their websites when making purchases. This means the company is forced to drop its “anti-steering” rule for such applications — a major change.

It’s the primary result of Apple’s long-running legal battle with Epic Games.

New entertainment experiences launching with Apple Vision Pro on February 2 should be dazzling, as users can turn any space into a personal theater, enjoy more than 150 3D movies and experience “the future of entertainment” with Immersive Video, Apple said Tuesday.

“Apple Vision Pro is the ultimate entertainment device,” said Greg Joswiak, Apple’s senior vice president of worldwide marketing. “Users can turn any place into the best seat in the house, enjoy personal concerts and adventures with Apple Immersive Video, interact with lifelike prehistoric creatures in Encounter Dinosaurs, and even land on the surface of the moon using Environments. It’s unlike anything users have ever seen before and we can’t wait for them to experience it for themselves.”

No company sold more smartphones than Apple in 2023, according to a market-research firm. iPhone shipments grew last year and outnumbered Samsung’s Androids.

It’s a milestone Apple never reached before.

Since its launch in late October 2023, retailers have frequently discounted Apple’s M3 MacBooks. Continuing that trend, Amazon is offering hefty discounts of up to $250 on the M3 Max-powered MacBook Pros.

Thanks to the deal, you can get the 14-inch MacBook Pro with M3 Max chip and 1TB storage for as low as $2,999, saving $200 from its $3,199 MSRP.

The first iPad Pro with a OLED display is reportedly on track to launch in April. While that’s generally good news, previous leaks predicted a release in March.

The next generation of iPad Pro is also expected to have other enhancements, like an Apple M3 processor.

For a would-be blockbuster packed with A-list Hollywood talent, the Apple TV+ spy thriller Argylle coming to theaters next month sure flew under the radar until recently. And not only is the high-concept global romp starring Henry Cavill, Dua Lipa and everyone else in Hollywood seeming to come out of nowhere. So is the developing Argylle movie franchise, which could dominate screens for years.

Turns out Argylle is based on book four of a novel series that has only just released book one. Does that mean a whopping four Argylle movies will come to Apple TV+? Or maybe even more?

Apple’s solution to evading a sales and import ban on the Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2 is apparently a simple one: It is reportedly prepared to delete the application at the heart of the patent dispute that caused the ban.

But this will only be necessary if Apple loses its next legal appeal, which will be made soon.

Sure, you can buy a computer monitor and set it up on the stand that came in the box. But what if you want to easily move the external display around? And what if you want to have multiple screens and move them around?

Keeping monitors up off the desk and mobile can really improve your setup. And the best way to do that is to mount your screens on arms. It takes some effort, but as today’s user points out below, it’s worth it.

As always on the third Monday in January, Apple’s homepage honors the memory of slain Civil Rights Movement leader Martin Luther King Jr.

It’s his national holiday. And this year on Martin Luther King Jr. Day you can download a free book that collects the man’s greatest writings.

The top-of-the line iPhone 15 Pro Max makes up close to half of shipments of the iPhone 15 series, according to a trusted market analyst.

This continues a trend from last year in which Apple’s most expensive model was also its most popular.

Apple will run a promotion in China offering up to RMB 800 ($70 off) on iPhones. The sale will run from January 18-21 and is available through Apple’s online and retail stores in the country.

The Cupertino company is providing discounts on the most popular products in its portfolio, including iPhone 15 Pro, MacBook Air, and AirPods.

Apple could equip its entire 2024 iPhone lineup with 8GB of RAM and Wi-Fi 6E support. Currently, only the iPhone 15 Pro models enjoy these features.

Additionally, the company might exclusively use Qualcomm’s newest Snapdragon X75 5G modem on the iPhone 16 Pro. The non-Pro variants would stick to the X70 modem used by current-gen iPhones.

Apple is shutting down its Data Operations Annotations office in San Diego and merging employees who are willing to relocate with their teammates in Texas.

The move reportedly comes as a big surprise to the California workers. Until very recently, Apple told them they would simply be moving to another location in San Diego.

This week on Cult of Mac’s podcast: Will Apple Vision Pro win the world over to “spatial computing” when it launches on February 2? With the $3,499 mixed-reality headset coming so close to reality, it’s time for a serious talk.

We’re all super-curious about Vision Pro. But the hefty price tag and lack of a clear purpose leave us wondering if it’s a solution in need of a problem. (If nothing else, we like the new Vision Pro ad.)

Also on The CultCast:

• Apple apparently plans to keep the first Vision Pro reviewers on a short leash.
• The buzziest gadget at this year’s CES certainly looks cool. But what can it do?
• We’ll believe that an AI-boosted Siri is smarter when we see it.
• Are expensive cables worth the extra cash? Torture tests by Consumer Reports raise some eyebrows.

Listen to this week’s episode of The CultCast in the Podcasts app or your favorite podcast app. (Be sure to subscribe and leave us a review if you like it!) Or watch the video live stream, embedded below.

Margrethe Vestager, the European Union’s commissioner for competition, met with Apple CEO Tim Cook on Thursday to discuss the upcoming EU requirement that iPhone users be able to install applications from outside the App Store, aka sideloading.

Vestager also says the two discussed the EU’s investigation into whether Apple Music is anticompetitive.

Sennheiser unveiled three new earphones at CES 2024 that will compete with various AirPods, including Momentum Sport wireless earbuds that track heart rate and body temperature. Those kinds of sensors were expected in AirPods Pro (2nd generation), launched in September 2022, but didn’t show up.

In addition, Momentum True Wireless 4 earbuds become the venerable brand’s new flagship buds for sound quality and Accentum Plus bring top-shelf features to relatively affordable over-ear headphones.  

You can ask the new AI-powered Rabbit R1 gadget to do pretty much anything you’d normally do with some combination of apps on your smartphone, according to Rabbit’s fascinating keynote at CES 2024.

You can ask it to explain something, call an Uber, order a meal delivery or even book a fairly complex vacation itinerary, to name a few examples.

And unlike a would-be iPhone replacement like the Humane Ai Pin, Rabbit R1 comes with a screen and costs just $199 with no subscription necessary.

Update: Rabbit noted it sold out its R1 units on day one of sales, moving 10,000 units. See the company’s tweet below.

Shipments of Macs plunged 22.4% in 2023, according to a market research firm. While every PC maker also had a weak year, Apple did a bit worse than its rivals.

The drop in macOS demand probably explains why Apple launched the M3 family of processors in the fall, less than a year after the release of their predecessors.

Mujjo, known for its high-quality leather cases for iPhone and other Apple gear, is having a rare sale — 25% off a wide variety of goods through January 18.

This is the good stuff, so don’t miss it.

Kensington on Monday unveiled one of the first docks using Thunderbolt 5, a new version of the networking standard that’s up to three times the speed of its predecessor. The SD5000T5 will sport an array of ports, and support dual 8K displays.

Also at CES 2024, the accessory-maker took the wraps off a trio of USB-C docks.

When someone asked a marketing director in the United Kingdom how much money he makes, the man laughed and said, “Not enough to justify the contents of this picture” of his computer setup.

Hey, we get it. But then we suffered immediate pangs of envy when he went on to say, “My sister works for Apple so got a sick deal on a refurbed [Mac] Studio and new Studio Display.”

Yeah, good for you, pal. No, really. We mean it!

Need a quick and easy way to give your Apple Watch a high-end look? Check out Juuk’s outstanding Aruna band, made from smooth and shiny stainless steel. It’s available in a variety of color options for all 38/40/41mm Apple Watch models — and every single one of them looks fantastic.

Bag yours today from the Cult of Mac Store.