Despite Apple’s reputation for innovation, the company does not always adopt the latest cutting-edge smartphone technology. This year, I hope the company adds these six features in iPhone 16 — all of which you can find in Android phones.
Here’s my iPhone 16 wish list.
In an interesting turn of events, sources familiar with Apple’s plans reportedly confirmed the iPhone 16 event date as September 10, according to a new report. That date happens to match a recent hoax report that circulated online, adding an unexpected twist to Apple’s biggest product launch of the year, with the iPhone 16 lineup, Apple Watch 10 and more expected.
Update: On August 26, Apple confirmed that the event will take place on Monday, September 9. The official invite bears the catchprase, “It’s Glowtime.”
In a significant shift in the podcasting landscape, YouTube has emerged as the leading platform for podcast consumption in the United States, surpassing long-time market leader Apple Podcasts and streaming giant Spotify, which is now in second place, according to recent studies. Meanwhile, former leader Apple Podcast loses market share, falling to third place. And that marks a turning point in how Americans access and consume podcast content.
Apple reportedly added support for JPEG XL to the iPhone Camera app in iOS 18. That’s left many iPhone users wondering, what the heck is JPEG XL?
It’s intended to be the replacement for the classic JPEG image format with new features for use on the web. And apparently, iPhone users soon can take pictures in this format, not simply view them.
The macOS Sequoia release date could arrive alongside iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 next month. Apple typically releases a major new iOS and iPadOS update in September alongside new iPhones. And while the next version of the Mac operating system usually follows in October or November, that could change this year.
European iPhone and iPad users will be able to kick Apple’s Phone and Messages apps to the curb if they wish. The same goes for an array of other applications that iOS currently makes the default options.
These join a long list of other changes being forced on Apple by the EU’s Digital Markets Act.
The new Bowers & Wilkins Pi6 and Pi8 wireless, active noise canceling (ANC) earbuds aim to redefine the premium earbud market with upgraded features, impeccable design and stellar sound quality, the venerable brand said Wednesday. The new buds come from the same team behind the company’s acclaimed Px7 S2e and Px8 headphones.
“I’m thrilled that the Bowers & Wilkins team has once again been able to raise the bar for premium design, performance and quality in the headphone category,” said Giles Pocock, vice president of Brand Marketing at Bowers & Wilkins, founded way back in 1966. “Our new Pi6 and Pi8 earbuds are truly special — I’m certain they will be just as successful as our Px7 S2e and Px8 headphones have been.”
A multifunction button specifically to control the Camera app will be included in all four iPhone 16 version, not only the Pro models, according to an unconfirmed report published Thursday.
The same source details a range of improvements to the cameras built into these iOS handsets expected to launch in September.
SwitchEasy is offering a great deal in the Cult of Mac Store through Thursday, August 22 — buy any SwitchEasy Apple Watch band at 20% off.
You can pick from an array of cool Apple Watch bands in different styles and made of various materials, from stretchy nylon to stainless steel mesh. See below.
Two brilliant detectives will clash again as acclaimed London-based thriller Criminal Record returns for a second season, Apple TV+ said Thursday. The engrossing series stars Peter Capaldi of Doctor Who and Cush Jumbo of The Good Wife.
So the streamer confirmed what Jumbo said on a talk show back in February. The renewal is great news for fans of the show. If you haven’t tried it, you should stream the first season.
Apple has supposedly hit a major setback and significantly delayed the mass production of its MacBook with a super-size, folding screen. The company has run into technical issues with the display and other mechanicals.
Apparently, these problems will force Apple to delay mass production until as late as the end of 2027 or 2028.
Matt Fischer, the vice president in charge of the App Store since 2010, will leave Apple in October of this year. His departure will follow a major reorganization that splits the App Store team in two as Apple seeks to avoid further regulatory scrutiny.
One part of the team will oversee Apple’s App Store, while the other will manage third-party app marketplaces.
Want to make your iPhone crash? It’s easy. Type four simple characters into the App Library’s search field and the iOS SpringBoard will go down like a house of cards.
The good news is that a fix already seems to be on the way from Apple for this extremely minor bug.
A talented Mexico City medical student studies hard by day and saves lives by night, hurtling around the sprawling metropolis in her family’s private ambulance. But it looks like something’s got to give under the strain of it all in the trailer Apple TV+ dropped Tuesday for the upcoming Spanish-language drama series Midnight Family.
Sure, you might need subtitles, but it looks like a rewarding ride. The 10-episode series, based on a documentary, debuts on Apple TV+ September 25.
iCloud+ is Apple’s most successful service by a wide margin, according to an analysts’ report released Monday. Seems plenty of iPhone and Mac users are willing to pay for more than the 5GB of free storage available.
Adoption rates for the Mac-maker’s other services might surprise some people: A third of all Apple users subscribe to Apple TV+, for example.
Keeping up with the latest charging standards, Nomad released the third generation of its premium Stand One Max multi-device charger Wednesday. It features support for the new Qi2 wireless charging protocol, which enables up to 15-watt wireless charging speeds for compatible iPhones and Androids. And the luxe 3-in-1 stand keeps your iPhone, Apple Watch and AirPods going in style.
Apple introduced audio sharing to Beats Studio Pro over-ear headphones in a firmware update Tuesday, a feature already known to AirPods Max and AirPods users. So once your Beats Studio Pro update over the air to firmware version 2C301, up from version 2B68 installed at launch, you can easily share what you listen to with family and friends via a connected iPhone or iPad.
In the battle of 5K resolution displays, it’s Studio Display against a small-but-growing army of foes (at least for Mac fans). Today’s M1 MacBook Pro user looks to replace a 1440K gaming display with either a Samsung ViewFinity S9 curved 5K monitor or with Apple’s well-liked but somewhat-pricey Studio Display. The advice she got leaned heavily toward Apple.
The CEO of Sonos threw cold water on hopes that the speaker-maker would replace its much-maligned new application with the previous version. Turns out that would make the problem worse.
Sonos users will instead have to wait for the new app to be improved — a process the company promises it’s working on as quickly as it can.
Apple is now giving customers an additional 15 days to renew AppleCare+ coverage for their Apple devices after the plan initially expires. The company silently increased the timeframe from 30 days to 45 days.
However, the change only applies to selected EU countries, the US, the UK, and select other markets.
Beware, Apple leakers: The hoaxer who created a fake Apple invite for the iPhone 16 event says he’ll probably try to pull off a similar prank in the future. Lorenzo, a 14-year-old video editor from Italy, says he created the bogus invite in about 10 minutes out of boredom when he was sick. Then he sent the image to a known leaker — and watched as the fake document whipped up a frenzy in the Apple rumor mill.
“I feel like leaks can be boring sometimes so I want to spice it up,” he told Cult of Mac in a direct message. “Maybe by putting more effort into making a good concept next time.”
A supposedly leaked Apple invite for the iPhone 16 event looks like a well-executed hoax. The date, the event title and even the fake invite’s color palette seemed to confirm previous leaks about Apple’s upcoming iPhone lineup. However, a video editor who goes by Lore claims he created the invite as a prank.
“Fun fact: i made the ‘leaked’ Apple Event invite in less than 10 minutes using figma and an Ai generated texture and i sent it to the leaker just because i was bored,” Lore wrote Tuesday on X.
In a message to Cult of Mac, Lore confirmed that he created the bogus invite mainly because he was “sick and had nothing to do.” Read Cult of Mac’s interview with the 14-year-old Italian video editor who fooled the internet with his fake iPhone 16 invite.
xMEMS Labs, creators of all-silicon micro speakers for earbuds and headphones, plan to roll out the xMEMS XMC-2400 µCooling chip, the company said Tuesday. It noted the 1mm xMEMS fan on a chip is the first all-silicon, active micro-cooling fan for smartphones, tablets and other mobile devices.
“Our revolutionary µCooling ‘fan-on-a-chip’ design comes at a critical time in mobile computing,” said Joseph Jiang, xMEMS CEO and co-founder. “Thermal management in ultra-mobile devices, which are beginning to run even more processor-intensive AI applications, is a massive challenge for manufacturers and consumers. Until XMC-2400, there’s been no active-cooling solution because the devices are so small and thin.”
The company declined to comment on whether it’s in talks with Apple as a client or partner with the new innovation. See our Q&A with xMEMS Labs below.
Apple will reportedly manufacture the iPhone 16 Pro within weeks of its global launch at its manufacturing facilities in India. This will give the company’s manufacturing efforts a major push in the country.
So far, the Cupertino giant has only manufactured non-Pro iPhones in India.
Apple released watchOS 10.6.1 and tvOS 17.6.1 on Monday, a pair of “bug fix” patches for Apple Watch and Apple TV that offer no new features.
New versions of iOS 17.6.1 and iPadOS 17.6.1 from two weeks ago went out at the same time, but don’t appear to be available for most models.