Apple will reportedly shrink iPhone batteries again in 2021 to make room for new technologies. But that doesn’t necessarily mean we’ll have to get used to charging more frequently.
Reliable TF International Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo expects Apple to adopt new “soft board” battery technology for iPhone 13. It could allow more power to be squeezed into a smaller space.
Apple has now stopped signing iOS 14.1 and iPadOS 14.1 following last week’s release of iOS 14.2. Users who have already updated can no longer downgrade their devices to the earlier firmware.
When Apple unveiled the iPhone 12 Pro series in October, it promised a software update for these handsets with support for the new ProRAW format. That update will be iOS 14.3, as this feature is included in the first beta of this upcoming operating system update seeded to developers on Thursday. There are also mentions of AirTags and Apple Studio headphones.
In addition, Apple begin testing the first betas of iPadOS 14.3, watchOS 7.2 and tvOS 14.3.
Apple’s head of software development threw cold water on speculation that macOS Big Sur was designed with a touchscreen Mac in mind.
Instead, Craig Federighi says the latest Mac operating system is more similar to iOS and iPadOS so it’s easier for users to switch between an Apple laptop, phone or tablet. Designers weren’t thinking about a touch-based Mac.
Anyone who struggled to download the just-released macOS Big Sur might not be surprised to learn that Apple’s backend systems experienced major problems Thursday. By early afternoon, Apple said it fixed the problem. However, glitches lingered, as Apple admitted late in the afternoon.
“At present, you may see this error message appear when attempting to download macOS Big Sur,” Apple Support said on Twitter. “Apple is aware of this behavior and is currently investigating. Try waiting a while and attempting the download again.”
The capabilities of Apple’s new M1 processor surprised even the people who designed it. The new chip was created to get Macs away from Intel, and Apple executives are gushing about it. Craig Federighi, SVP of software engineering, said the M1 is outperforming the company’s own expectations.
Apple released the final version of macOS Big Sur on Thursday. The new operating system offers the biggest design overhaul to the Mac user interface in nearly two decades. Plus, it brings big improvements to Apple’s bundled applications like Messages, Maps and Safari.
The first HomePod mini reviews almost universally praise the tiny smart speaker for outstanding audio quality. A wave of superlatives like “impressively powerful,” and even “startling” make HomePod mini sound like a total champ.
Across the board, the reviewers say Apple’s new $99 smart speaker offers stiff competition to other devices in that price range. And beyond audio, they deliver surprisingly positive assessments of the HomePod mini’s design and features. Even Siri earns accolades!
Apple TV is now available on PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5. The new app gives users the ability to watch Apple TV+, third-party channels like Showtime and Starz, and content purchased from iTunes.
Its launch coincides with the PlayStation 5’s big debut in many key markets, including the United States.
An archer and her eagle are the centers of The Pathless, an open-world adventure that debuted Thursday for iPad, Mac, iPhone and other platforms. Players take on the role of the Hunter, who travels a mystical island with her feathered companion and dispel a curse of darkness. There are monsters to slay and puzzles to solve.
Apple Arcade subscribers can play this new title at a considerable savings over other platforms.
Early benchmark results for the new M1 MacBook Air have begun surfacing online, and boy are they impressive. Not only does Apple’s newest ultraportable blow away its predecessors, but its M1 chip outperforms every other mobile CPU on the market.
That’s even more astounding when you remember the new MacBook Air has a completely fan-less design that stays silent no matter how hard you push it.
Former President Barack Obama will appear next Tuesday on an episode of The Oprah Conversation. The topic will be his new book, A Promised Land, which hits shelves that day.
While the interview by Oprah Winfrey will appear on Apple’s subscription streaming service, it will also be available free for two weeks.
The Intel-based MacBook Air is quickly disappearing. Apple introduced the the first version of this svelte laptop with an M1 processor on Tuesday, and pulled the previous version off the Apple online store.
It isn’t unusual for a new Mac to replace on older one. But the MacBook Air just made a quantum leap to a new type of processor, and some people are likely still interested in one with an Intel processor. The supply is dwindling, though.
The Mac App Store is about to balloon in size. The Apple M1 processor allows the latest Macs to run iOS and iPadOS software as easily as macOS apps. So the entire contents of the iPhone App Store will soon be listed in the Mac software store.
Winter is coming. And based on what we know about 2020 so far, it’s likely to be a nasty one. Get set for the wet and miserable months by bagging a rugged, waterproof Nyloon band for Apple Watch.
Their NATO-style design makes them super-strong and ready for anything, and they’re available in a range of colorful styles. They’re also nicely priced from just $24.99.
The second wave of MacBooks with the just-announced Apple M1 processor will have an “all-new form factor,” according to a trusted analyst. And there’ll supposedly be a new size option.
That’s likely to please anyone who was disappointed that the first M1-based MacBook Air and MacBook Pro are nearly indistinguishable from their predecessors.
Roku has begun rolling out AirPlay 2 and HomeKit support for smart TVs and streaming devices.
The update, Roku OS 9.4, gives users the ability to control their Roku using the Home app on iPhone and iPad, and to send content from Mac and iOS devices to their TV via the Roku platform.
Apple’s two theft claims against Epic Games were on Tuesday dismissed by a federal judge in California.
Epic filed the counterclaims filed in September, just weeks after the game-maker sued Apple for alleged anti-competitive actions. Cupertino removed Fortnite, the hugely popular battle royale game, from the App Store after Epic gave players on iOS devices the ability to purchase in-game currency outside of Apple’s ecosystem.
If you’re planning to buy a HomePod mini and there’s any chance you might break it, you might want to pick up AppleCare+ coverage, too. Getting your speaker repaired without warranty coverage is almost as expensive as buying a brand-new HomePod mini.
iPhone SE fans hoping for an annual refresh could face disappointment in early 2021. One reliable analyst today reports that Apple has no plans to refresh its budget device during the first half of next year.
Ming-Chi Kuo of TF International Securities indicates that plans for an upgraded iPhone SE have been pushed back while Apple suppliers battle it out to secure orders for next fall’s iPhone 13 instead.
Apple improved its processors’ performance by a massive 3x in the past five years, according to analysis carried out by AnandTech. Meanwhile, Intel’s best single-thread performance only improved 28% during that same time frame.
The stats help cement why the risky jump from Intel to Apple Silicon in Macs makes a whole lot of sense.
Apple took a huge step in switching Macs from Intel processors to Apple Silicon on Tuesday. The M1 processor will bring big performance boosts to a trio of new Macs.
Here’s a rundown of not only what Apple CEO Tim Cook and Co. said during the “One More Thing” event, but what the announcements mean for the future of the Mac — and the company.
Apple Silicon was widely expected to be fast, but perhaps the biggest surprise of the new M1 chip is the insane battery life it enables.
During Tuesday’s “One More Thing” keynote, Apple touted some truly eye-popping battery life numbers. While we expected improved battery life from the new MacBooks, the numbers Apple released surpassed expectations.
The Apple M1 processor dramatically increases the capabilities of the just-launched 13-inch MacBook Pro. Apple says the CPU runs up 2.8 times faster. And the laptop’s battery life stretches to 20 hours.
The newly announced Macs running Apple’s M1 processor can run some Intel applications faster than Intel-based Macs can, Apple says. This is the result of technology in macOS Big Sur called Rosetta 2.
That’s good news for anyone considering an upcoming MacBook Air, MacBook Pro or a Mac mini with Apple Silicon who are concerned about the performance of current software.