Apple on Tuesday made its new Beats Powerbeats headphones official after a series of big leaks. The $149 wireless buds pack the same technology as Powerbeats Pro, including the newest H1 chip, and last up to 15 hours in between charges.
You can order yours this Wednesday, March 18.
Apple Card owners who are impacted by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic have the option to skip their March payment without incurring interest.
In an email to customers, Apple said it understands that it may be difficult for some to keep up with their payments during the outbreak. The company is “committed to helping you lead a healthier financial life,” it added.
You must be aware, however, that you need to tell Apple if you don’t intend to pay this month.
France’s competition watchdog announced on Monday it has fined Apple 1.1 billion euros ($1.2 billion) for reportedly violating antitrust laws, the biggest antitrust fine it has ever levied.
The French watchdog accuses Apple of exhibiting anti-competitive behavior through its distribution network, including reported abuse of the economic dependence of its resellers. The company plans to appeal.
Apple’s newest iOS 13.4 update could roll out to everyone on Tuesday, March 17, according to leaked Alipay marketing materials. It should be accompanied by iPadOS 13.4, tvOS 13.4, watchOS 6.2, and macOS 10.15.4.
The iPhone update, which is currently in beta testing, is expected to bring Alipay support to Apple Wallet for the first time. That would make this release a pretty big deal for iPhone owners in China.
Apple’s Powerbeats 4 headphones have landed in Walmart — and, potentially, other retailers — without any word of an official announcement.
An image of the new wireless buds was posted on Twitter on Sunday. Twitter user Eddie Wap shared an image of the new Powerbeats in red, white, and black color options. They are listed at $149, making them $50 cheaper than the $199.95 Powerbeats 3.
Apple’s forthcoming A14 processor for the iPhone 12 series will be the first Arm-based mobile processor to exceed 3GHz, a report published Sunday claims.
According to Research Snipers’ report, the new supercharged chip could hit a GeekBench 4 running score of 3.1GHz. That would be 400MHz higher than the current A13 Bionic chips’s 2.7GHz.
This week we “watch” our to-dos with Things, read the news really, really fast with NetNewsWire, make Keynote-style presentations with Markdown, and more.
There’s won’t be a COVID-19 version of Pac-Man, or any other equally tacky game. Apple today banned all entertainment applications that use this pandemic as a theme.
In addition, Apple reiterated an earlier rule requiring software that provides information about this global health crisis be from official sources.
Many Apple Stores across the United States are closed to consumers, but a select number are being staffed to handle pre-existing orders and already-scheduled repair pickups, according to social media posts, calls to selected stores and physical visits.
Cult of Mac was able to confirm 22 stores across the U.S. were manning their locations Saturday with a skeleton staff to finish fulfilling existing orders and repair jobs. Some stores and online agents said locations will be staffed into Sunday and as far out as March 16.
iOS 14 leaks came fast and furious this week. We rounded ’em all up in one place to give you a look at possible new features coming to iPhones and iPads this year. Yep, basically it’s everything we think we know about iOS 14.
Plus, we’ve got the lowdown on WWDC 2020 going online-only due to COVID-19 (and a related post on how to work remotely without going nuts, among other timely how-tos). And we wrap up with a review of the second episode of Amazing Stories, streaming now on Apple TV+.
You’ll find it all in this week’s free issue of Cult of Mac Magazine. Download it now and read it on your iPad or iPhone. Or get the links below.
Bonus: Enter now for your chance to win an Apple TV (or other streaming hardware), delightfully paired with a free one-year subscription to the streaming service of your choice.
In an unprecedented move, Apple said late Friday it will immediately close all its retail stores outside Greater China in an effort to battle the spread of the COVID-19 virus. The stores will remain closed through March 27.
CEO Tim Cook revealed Apple’s decision to close hundreds of stores late Friday in an open letter-style press release titled “Apple’s COVID-19 response.” He wrote, “This global effort — to protect the most vulnerable, to study this virus, and to care for the sick — requires all of our care, and all of our participation.”
Apple has shuttered its 11 retail stores in Spain in an abundance of caution as the coronavirus continues to spread through Europe.
Cult of Mac has confirmed the closings will take effect Saturday after all the stores were open for business Friday. Social media reports indicate a small number of stores closed early on Friday.
Apple has suspended all filming of Apple TV+ projects currently in production, according to a published report Friday.
The shows include the science fiction series For All Mankind, the Stephen King miniseries Lisey’s Story, the science fiction drama See, the TV drama The Morning Show, the psychological horror television series Servant, and the Isaac Asimov sci-fi series Foundation.
A fully functional and complete Apple-1 computer, hand-built by Apple founders Steve Wozniak and Steve Jobs back in 1976, was auctioned off yesterday for over $458 thousand.
There are only a handful of these left. This particular unit appeared recently on the TV show Pawn Stars.
President Trump’s declaration of a national emergency provided some much-needed relief to Apple’s stock price just before the market closed this afternoon.
Apple shares jumped up over $20 in value during the last 30 minutes of trading today, just after President Trump announced that the U.S. government will free up $50 billion in federal resources to combat the COVID-19 outbreak.
An Apple Store employee, who went on leave earlier this month to care for a relative, has tested positive for COVID-19.
Apple and the employee from the Third Street Promenade store in Santa Monica learned of the positive test late Thursday, according to reports. The employee has not been back to the store since taking leave on March 2.
Out of appeals, Apple cut a check to VirnetX for more than $454 million to end a lengthy patent infringement case.
VirnetX, which sued Apple over patents relating to FaceTime, iMessage and VPN technologies, announced the payment in a one-paragraph press release Friday.
Internet service providers AT&T, Comcast, Cox, Verizon and many more have pledged to not cut off service from customers who can’t pay their bills because of the COVID-19 outbreak.
Internet access is important during the crisis to keep the public informed, but also to let people work from home, attend school remotely, and keep in touch despite social distancing.
Apple will deliver a refreshed MacBook Air next week, according to a Friday report citing an anonymous tipster.
It could be the second notebook to pick up Appe’s new and improved Magic Keyboard, first introduced with the 16-inch MacBook Pro last fall. They are also likely to offer faster Intel chips and other improvements.
Microsoft is keen to go ahead with this year’s Build conference, but the event will now be online-only, the company confirmed on Friday. Build was scheduled to take place in Seattle from May 19 to May 21. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has forced Microsoft to go completely digital instead.
Microsoft’s announcement came just before Apple announced that WWDC 2020 will also go ahead with “an all-new online format.”
Apple on Friday confirmed that its annual Worldwide Developers Conference will go ahead in June with “an all-new online format” and not take place at a conference center as has happened since the first WWDC in 1987.
The high-tech giant said the approach was essential amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, but that it was determined to deliver a full program with an online keynote and developer sessions. Apple has also confirmed it will commit $1 million to local San Jose organizations to offset revenue loss as a result of WWDC going online-only.
Combine a role-playing game with a pinball machine and you have Roundguard, a new game added Friday to Apple Arcade. It’s a bit like Rogue, but with lots more bouncing. And a silly sense of humor, too.
Apple doesn’t just hold a lead over its competitors in the wearables market. It captured a 36.5 percent share of the market in the final quarter of 2019.
Second-place Xiaomi’s slice of the pie was under 11 percent.
YouTube’s latest change on mobile swaps the familiar “Trending” tab with a new “Explore” tab. As of Friday, it’s available to all users on iPhone and iPad (and Android) following a lengthy test. It hopes to make great content from popular categories easier to find.
Two more cases of coronavirus have been detected at Apple’s Ireland HQ in Hollyhill, County Cork, a report published Friday by Irish news outlet The Echo.
This brings the number of COVID-19 cases reported at the Irish Apple offices to three. The first case was confirmed by Apple on Tuesday.