Notice: Apple ID Balances in Singapore Cannot Be Spent Starting July 1
Starting July 1, it will no longer be possible to spend an Apple ID balance in Singapore, according to an Apple support document spotted by MacRumors contributor Aaron Perris. Apple did not provide an explanation for this decision, but it appears to relate to new regulations introduced by the Monetary Authority of Singapore.
Apple says that any App Store & iTunes gift cards added to an Apple ID balance before July 1 can still be used toward digital purchases until that deadline.
Apple will issue refunds to customers with a remaining Apple ID balance after the deadline:
After spending your balance is no longer possible, Apple will begin to automatically issue refunds for any remaining Apple ID balance to users in Singapore. If you have a balance, your money will be refunded to the default credit or debit card on file as a payment method for your Apple ID. You'll receive a confirmation email when Apple has processed your refund. Afterwards, it might take up to 30 days for your financial institution to show the refund in your account.
Apple already stopped selling gift cards in Singapore last year, and discontinuing Apple ID balances appears to be a related decision.
Apple Store gift cards are unaffected by this change, and they can continue to be used at the three Apple Store locations in Singapore.
support document.
Tag: Apple ID
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Two More New iPads Spotted in Regulatory Database
Yesterday, two unreleased Apple devices were discovered in Indian regulatory filings. A further two models have now been spotted ahead of the expected announcement of new iPad models next month.
The second wave of listings, spotted by MySmartPrice, appears in the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) database with the model numbers A2898 and A2899. This joins the two models seen yesterday with the model numbers A2836 and A2837. All four model numbers not correlate with any existing Apple devices, but four new iPad models are expected to launch next month: A 10.9-inch iPad Air, a 12.9-inch iPad Air, an 11.1-inch iPad Pro, and a 13-inch iPad Pro.
expected to be refreshed in May following repeated delays. The appearance of new Apple devices in regulatory filings typically indicates that their release is fairly imminent.
Tag: MySmartPrice
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Apple Lays Off 600+ Employees After Canceling Car Project
Apple this week filed a required notice with the state of California, confirming plans to permanently lay off more than 600 employees. Under California law, employers must give employees and state representatives a 60-day notice before a mass layoff event.
The employees listed are located in several Apple-occupied buildings around Santa Clara, California, which is close to Apple's Cupertino headquarters. Several of these locations were rumored to be associated with Apple Car development in the past, so it is likely that these layoffs are related to Apple's decision to stop work on the car project.
Apple officially ended development on the Apple Car in March. Approximately 2,000 employees working on the Apple Car were told that the project was winding down at that time, and Apple began the process of moving some of them to work on artificial intelligence under John Giannandrea and in other relevant departments.
Other employees were given 90 days to apply for open positions within the company, but Apple hired hardware engineers and car designers while working on the Apple Car, and these employees may not have had skills applicable to other projects.
recently ended development on in-house microLED displays, so some of the layoffs might also be related to the decision to discontinue that work.
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Apple Arcade Gains Puyo Puyo Puzzle Pop, Super Monsters Ate My Condo and More
Apple today updated its Apple Arcade gaming service to add a selection of new games to play. The main new addition is Puyo Puyo Puzzle Pop, a game in Sega's popular Puyo Puyo series.
In Puyo Puyo Puzzle Pop, players match up Puyos of the same color to clear the board and cause damage to opponents. As with Tetris, Puyo pieces fall from the top of the screen and can be rotated and moved to make matches.
The game has a storyline to uncover by progressing through the levels, and there are 24 playable characters to unlock, with many from prior Puyo Puyo games. Different rule sets can be used, including options from Puyo Puyo 2 and Puyo Puyo Fever, and there is also an endless mode.
There is a single player mode to play, but there are also multiplayer battles. Up to four players can join through Game Center.
Super Monsters Ate My Condo, also new today, is a classic iOS game that's making a reappearance on Apple Arcade. The idea is swipe to feed condos to monsters, while also making color matches for high scoring combos.
Sago Mini Trips+, which is designed for children.
Later this month, Apple plans to release Crossy Road Castle and Solitaire Stories, games that will be available on the Vision Pro headset.
Tag: Apple Arcade
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Apple to Report Earnings on May 2 Following Vision Pro Launch
Apple today announced that its next quarterly earnings conference call will be held on Thursday, May 2 at 2 p.m. Pacific Time.
On the call, which will be streamed live on Apple's investor website, Apple's CEO Tim Cook and CFO Luca Maestri will discuss the company's earnings results for the second quarter of the 2024 fiscal year. During the quarter, which ran from December 31, 2023 through March 30, 2024, Apple launched the Vision Pro headset in the U.S., and it updated the 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Air models with its latest M3 chip.
Yahoo Finance. Apple reported $94.8B revenue in the year-ago quarter.
Tags: Earnings, AAPL
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Apple Sending Emails to Developers Invited to WWDC 2024 Apple Park Special Event
On Monday, June 10, Apple plans to hold a keynote viewing party for select students and developers, allowing them to watch the pre-recorded unveiling of new software updates. Apple accepted applications for the event until yesterday, and now emails are going out to developers who have been selected by the lottery process.
The event will include "exciting new programming," an opportunity to meet with Apple experts, and other WWDC-related "special activities."
last year's WWDC event, developers and students were provided with refreshments in the morning, followed by the keynote event. The Platforms State of the Union followed, and there were two Apple Park tours to choose from. The day ended with the Apple Design Awards and an evening dinner.
Boom! I got a golden ticket for the #WWDC24 special event at Apple Park! 🤩 Check your inboxes, folks – see you there? 💫 pic.twitter.com/A3F0JLe9rq
— Paul Hudson (@twostraws) April 4, 2024
Prior to 2020, the Worldwide Developers Conference was an in-person event that was hosted in San Jose, California. Developers were required to pay $1,599 to purchase a ticket to attend, and space was limited. Starting in 2020, Apple turned WWDC into an online event open to all developers, but there have been small in-person events at Apple Park since 2022.
There will be a reception event at Apple's Infinite Loop campus on Sunday, June 9, where attendees can pick up their badges early.
Apple extended invitations to Current Apple Developer Program members, Apple Developer Enterprise Program members, Apple Entrepreneur Camp alumni, and Swift Student Challenge winners from 2022 to 2024. Attendees were chosen by random selection.
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Review: Satechi's USB-C Dual Dock Stand Adds an Array of Ports and Even Room for Extra Storage to Your MacBook
Popular accessory company Satechi offers a wide variety of docks and hubs compatible with Apple's Mac lineup, and I've recently spent some time testing out the company's $150 USB-C Dual Dock Stand that adds a significant amount of connectivity to your Mac while remaining tucked out of sight and even giving your laptop a bit of extra breathing room.
Perhaps the most noteworthy design aspect of the USB-C Dual Dock Stand is right in the name, and that's the fact that it serves as a stand to elevate your Mac laptop on a desk, allowing for extra airflow to help keep things cool and giving a couple extra inches of height to the display to bring it a little closer to eye level and perhaps make for a bit more comfortable typing position if you're using your MacBook's keyboard.
The dock measures right around 12 inches (30 cm) wide, and its wedge-shaped form factor sits nicely under the rear portion of a Mac laptop. Rubber feet on the dock help with stability, and there's a raised rubber ridge on the top surface of the dock for your Mac to sit on without scratching either the Mac or the dock. Openings on the front and back bottom edges of the dock provide some ventilation for the dock itself, but I didn't notice anything getting significantly warm.
The dock is largely constructed of space gray aluminum with a black top, and there's some clean Satechi branding in white on the top, though all of this will be essentially invisible if you've got your Mac sitting on top of it. A 7.5-inch integrated dual cable sticks out one end of the dock, terminating in USB-C connectors for hooking the dock up to your computer. There's a space gray collar around the two connectors that spaces them perfectly to connect to adjacent USB-C ports on recent Macs with a single motion, or if you've got a compatible machine with different port spacing, the collar can slide back to give you more wiggle room with the individual connectors.
Most of the dock's other features are along the rear side, allowing you to route cables out of sight off the back of your desk. In addition to a color-coded sliding power switch and a white LED that confirms whether the dock has power, the USB-C Dual Dock Stand includes nine ports along the back side. There are two USB-C ports (one supporting up to 10 Gbps and one up to 5 Gbps), two USB-A ports (similarly with one at up to 10 Gbps and one at up to 5 Gbps), and a Gigabit Ethernet port if you need a wired data connection. For display compatibility, there are two HDMI 2.0 ports each supporting up to a 4K display at 60Hz, plus a DisplayPort 1.4 port also supporting up to 4K60Hz.
Depending on your Mac, the USB-C Dual Dock Stand can support up to two external displays, with either both connected via HDMI or one via HDMI and one via DisplayPort. The USB-C ports on the dock do not support video, so you can't connect external displays via that method. If you're running an Apple silicon Mac, you'll need one of the higher-level Pro or Max chips to support dual external displays, and if you have a base M1, M2, or M3 chip you'll be limited to one external display.
MacBook Air models are also supported, as are a handful of Windows machines such as the Microsoft Surface Pro 9 and Surface Laptop Studio, Lenovo Yoga 6 and 7i, Samsung Galaxy Book 3 Ultra, and Dell XPS 15.
There's one final port on the rear of the dock, and that's a USB-C port for accepting incoming power. The dock can be bus-powered from the connected Mac, but performance under heavy load will be hampered. Using an external power adapter, which isn't provided in the box but should be readily available to most users, the dock can draw up to around 15 watts while providing up to 75 watts of passthrough power to the connected Mac, ensuring you only need one connection to your Mac for everything. I used the 140-watt Apple power adapter that came with my MacBook Pro, and it provided all the power the dock needed while I also saw 69 watts of power going to my Mac, which was plenty to refuel it quickly and keep it charged up during use.
Beyond all of the rear ports. the USB-C Dual Dock Stand has one more trick up its sleeve, and that's a built-in SSD bay, letting you add some external storage (sold separately) to your Mac for backups or extra storage space without taking up any additional physical space. The enclosure accepts M.2 SATA and NVMe SSDs at up to 6 Gbps for SATA drives and 10 Gbps for NVMe drives. SSD sizes of 2242, 2260, and 2280 are all supported, and I used a fast 2 TB WD_BLACK NVMe drive in a 2280 size for my testing.
Installation was fairly simple, requiring easy removal of a cover on the bottom of the dock to access the drive bay and installation of an adhesive thermal pad to prepare for adding the SSD. From there, it was just a matter of sliding the SSD into the socket in the bay, pressing it flat, and securing it with the provided screw and screwdriver. Getting the tiny screw in the proper position down in the drive bay was a little bit of a finicky process, but it only took a couple of minutes to get everything assembled.
With the SSD installed in the dock, the drive mounts when the dock is connected to the Mac giving you easy to access to however much additional storage you've added. My testing showed write speeds of 975 MB/s and read speeds of 880 MB/s, and while there are certainly external enclosures out there that can support faster speeds with this drive, the performance was quite solid.
iPhone.
Apple Studio Display with this dock. But the popularity of 4K options means many users will already be using displays that do work.
I did notice that physically plugging and unplugging some of the beefier connectors like HDMI and DisplayPort from the dock could be a bit tricky as the dock tucked under my MacBook Pro tended to slide around a bit, but I got the hang of stabilizing the dock on its two ends while manipulating the connectors. Fortunately, one of the main points of a dock is to allow all of your peripherals to remain connected, so you shouldn't need to be plugging and unplugging both things very frequently.
Overall, Satechi's USB-C Dual Dock Stand offers a nice set of features for those looking to beef up their MacBook desk setup. It offers enough ports to provide some extra connectivity, plus the onboard SSD bay is a nice inclusion. The dock's form factor means it can be tucked cleanly out of the way while also offering some minor ergonomic benefits. And while it's around a foot long, the fact that it can include an onboard SSD and runs off of either bus power or the USB-C power adapter you probably have in your bag already, it's fairly portable.
The dock is missing a few features like support for USB-C display connections and an SD card reader, but if its feature set meets your needs, it's worthy of consideration. While you can find some USB-C hubs with dual 4K display support for less, $150 really isn't a bad price considering the extra features this dock brings. Just remember you'll need to spend a bit more for the SSD to go inside it if you want to take advantage of that feature.
directly from Satechi for $149.99, but B&H Photo has it for $129.99 at the time of this review.
Note: Satechi provided MacRumors with the USB-C Dual Dock Stand for the purposes of this review. No other compensation was received. MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Satechi and B&H Photo. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.
Tag: Satechi
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Google to Launch Android Find My Network After Apple Adds Third-Party Tracker Alerts to iPhone
Google today began letting Android customers know that it will soon launch a promised Android-based Find My Device network, reports 9to5Google. Google announced the upcoming Find My feature last year, but it has not yet debuted because Apple and Google were working to develop a cross-platform solution for unwanted tracking alerts.
Code in iOS 17.5 suggests that Apple is adding support for discovering nearby third-party item trackers and alerting iPhone owners when one has been located. "You can disable this item and stop it from sharing its location with the owner. To do this, follow the instructions provided on a website by the manufacturer of this item," reads some of the code.
With Apple likely planning to add alerts for third-party trackers in iOS 17.5, Google is clear to launch its new Find My Device network, which will allow Android smartphones to be used to locate lost phones, Bluetooth trackers, headphones, and other accessories.
Apple and Google first announced plans for an industry tracker specification in May 2023, with the aim of putting an end to the misuse of Bluetooth item trackers for tracking individuals. Both companies have been working to implement AirTag-style tracking alerts so people will know when a tracker of any kind is nearby.
Tracker Detect app for Android, but the partnership with Google will allow for a more permanent and reliable solution that will work regardless of device.
Tags: Google, Android, Find My
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Apple Seeds First Public Beta of macOS 14.5
Apple today seeded the first beta of an upcoming macOS Sonoma 14.5 update to public beta testers, allowing non-developers to test the software ahead of its launch. The public beta comes a day after Apple released the developer beta.
Beta testers can opt-in through the Software Update section of the System Settings app. Under Beta updates, simply toggle on the Sonoma Public Beta. Note that you must sign up to participate on Apple's beta testing website.
Related Roundup: macOS Sonoma
Related Forum: macOS Sonoma
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Apple Releases First Public Beta of iOS 17.5
Apple today seeded the first betas of upcoming iOS 17.5 and iPadOS 17.5 updates to public beta testers, allowing non-developers to test the software ahead of its release. The public iOS 17.5 and iPadOS 17.5 betas come two days after Apple released the betas for developers.
Public beta testers can get the beta by opening up the Settings app, going to the Software Update section, tapping on the "Beta Updates" option, and toggling on the iOS 17 or iPadOS 17 Public Beta. Signing up on Apple's beta testing website is required.
iPhone apps to their website, so that users can download them directly without having to use the App Store.
To offer an app for download from a website in the European Union, developers need to meet specific criteria. Developers need to be a member of the Apple Developer Program for two continuous years or more and must have an app with more than one million first installs on iOS in the European Union in the prior year. Other requirements include submitting to Apple's notarization process and publishing transparent data collection policies.
Related Roundups: iOS 17, iPadOS 17
Related Forums: iOS 17, iPadOS 17
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Apple Suppliers Say New iPads Have Been 'Repeatedly Postponed'
It has been nearly 18 months since Apple last updated its iPad lineup, and customers are anxiously waiting for new models to be announced. For months, there have been rumors about new iPad Pro and iPad Air models, but the estimated timeframe for their release has been repeatedly pushed back from March to April to May.
In defense of these rumors, it does sound like Apple has experienced delays with the new iPads. DigiTimes this week cited sources at Taiwanese suppliers who said mass production of camera lenses for the upcoming iPads has been "repeatedly postponed," and the report vaguely mentions that a "production launch" will likely take place in May.
Bloomberg's Mark Gurman last week reported that Apple is currently aiming to launch the new iPad Pro and iPad Air models in "early May," and he said production of the devices has already been ramping up in Asia. He said Apple was still finishing iPadOS software development for the new iPads, and added that advanced OLED display manufacturing techniques have also contributed to the delayed launch.
Two new iPad Pro models with the M3 chip, OLED displays, a thinner enclosure, thinner bezels, a matte screen option, a landscape-oriented front camera, other design changes, and possibly MagSafe wireless charging.
Two new iPad Air models with the M2 chip and a landscape-oriented front camera, including a first-ever 12.9-inch iPad Air.
A new Magic Keyboard for the iPad Pro with an aluminum enclosure, larger trackpad, and other design tweaks.
A new Apple Pencil, which may have a new "squeeze" gesture for certain actions and support visionOS eventually.
Apple last updated the iPad Pro and iPad Air in October 2022 and March 2022, respectively, so new versions of the devices are much anticipated.
Related Roundups: iPad Air , iPad Pro
Tag: DigiTimes
Buyer's Guide: iPad Air (Don't Buy), 11" iPad Pro (Don't Buy), 12.9" iPad Pro (Don't Buy)
Related Forum: iPad
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Best Buy Offers Record Low Prices on 15-Inch M2 MacBook Air at $300 Off
Best Buy this week continues to offer all-time low prices on the 15-inch M2 MacBook Air, which is available for $300 off right now at the retailer. Anyone can get these deals and you don't need a My Best Buy Plus or Total membership to see the discounts.
Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Best Buy. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.
$999.00, down from $1,299.00. The 512GB model has hit $1,199.00, down from $1,499.00. Both of these are record low prices on the 15-inch M2 MacBook Air.
$300 OFF
15-inch M2 MacBook Air (256GB) for $999.00
$300 OFF
15-inch M2 MacBook Air (512GB) for $1,199.00
first discounts on this computer at Amazon. However, anyone looking to save money should focus on Best Buy's discounts on the M2 MacBook Air, which is still a solid option for most workflows and everyday tasks.
Deals Roundup to shop for even more Apple-related products and accessories.
Related Roundup: Apple Deals
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iPhone 16 Rumored to Feature Even Thinner Bezels
Some iPhone 16 models will feature thinner bezels thanks to Border Reduction Structure (BRS) technology, The Elec reports.
BRS technology allows for a more compact and efficient layout of the screen's underlying circuitry, enabling slimmer bezels without compromising on the display's performance or the device's overall form factor. This requires precise and advanced manufacturing techniques, given the complexity of tighter circuit placement and the need for bending some wiring downwards beneath the bezel.
Display Driver ICs (DDIs), the components at the center of this manufacturing challenge, control the activation and illumination of pixels on the OLED panel. To meet Apple's requirements, LG Display is apparently diversifying its DDI supply chain, bringing on board Novatech from Taiwan alongside its existing supplier, LX Semicon. This move is designed to increase quality control while reducing costs.
iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max, or both. It may be more likely to appear singularly in the iPhone 16 Pro models since these devices are expected to see display size increases from 6.1- to 6.3-inches and 6.7- to 6.9-inches, without a substantial increase in overall size. It is also worth noting that Apple reduced the bezels of the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max last year significantly more than the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus. Last month, a report coming out of Korea suggested that BIS technology will come to the entire iPhone 16 lineup.
Related Roundups: iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Pro
Tag: The Elec
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New iPad Models Spotted in Regulatory Database Ahead of Launch
Two new iPad models have appeared in Indian regulatory filings ahead of their expected announcement next month.
The listings, spotted by 91Mobiles, appeared in the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) with the model numbers A2386 and A2387. It is not clear whether these devices are new iPad Air or iPad Pro models.
More to follow...
Tag: 91Mobiles
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iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro Design Showcased By Dummy Models
One of the best looks yet at the design of Apple's iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro models today emerged online.
posted on X by Sonny Dickson, show four dummy models representing the iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Pro, iPhone 16 Plus, and iPhone 16 Pro Max. These casts, usually milled from a solid piece of aluminum, are designed to help accessory makers ensure that their products will precisely fit the final devices.
The dummy models provide a clear look at the all-new "Capture" button across all four models. The slightly larger size of the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max is also evident, due to the display size increase from 6.1- to 6.3-inches and 6.7- to 6.9-inches.
They also show the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus's vertical rear camera and Action button. While the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max gained the Action button last year, the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus still have the traditional mute switch.
Related Roundups: iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Pro
Tag: Sonny Dickson
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App Store and More Down as Apple Services Suffer Widespread Outage
A long list of Apple services are currently fully or partially down, including the App Store, Apple Music, Apple TV+, and more.
The full list of services experiencing outages for many customers, according to Apple's system status page:
App Store
Mac App Store
Apple Arcade
Apple Books
Apple Fitness+
Apple Music
Apple Podcasts
Apple Sports
Apple TV Channels
Apple TV+
App Store Connect
Apple Podcasts Connect
TestFlight
Apple Business Manager and Apple School Manager have also experienced issues today.
Tag: System Status
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Here's Everything New in iOS 17.5 Beta 1 So Far
Apple this week made the first betas of iOS 17.5 and iPadOS 17.5 available to developers for testing. The upcoming software updates include only a few new user-facing features so far, but hidden code changes reveal some additional possibilities.
Below, we have recapped everything new in the first iOS 17.5 and iPadOS 17.5 betas so far.
Web Distribution
Starting with iOS 17.5, iPhone users in the EU will be able to download iOS apps directly from the websites of select developers.
previously announced that "Web Distribution" would be available starting "later this spring" with an upcoming software update for the iPhone, and the first beta of iOS 17.5 includes newly-added code to support the feature.
"Web Distribution" will be limited to larger developers based in the EU. To qualify for this distribution method, Apple says the developer must be a member of the Apple Developer Program for two continuous years or more, and have an app that had more than one million annual installs on iOS in the EU in the prior calendar year.
alternative app marketplaces that Apple already allows on the iPhone in the EU starting with iOS 17.4. Apple has made these app-related changes to comply with the EU's Digital Markets Act.
Color-Changing Apple Podcasts Widget
While listening to a podcast on the iOS 17.5 beta, the background color of the Apple Podcasts widget changes to match the podcast's cover art. This feature was first added in the iOS 17.4 beta, but it was removed before that update was released.
Color-changing Apple Podcasts widget is back in iOS 17.5! pic.twitter.com/2PonD5FMi6
— Stephen Robles (@stephenrobles) April 2, 2024
Code Changes
Battery Health Menu for Future iPads
several new references to a Battery Health menu on the iPad, but the feature is not actually visible yet. The menu is expected to show an iPad battery's maximum remaining capacity and cycle count.
A sample of the code strings added in the iPadOS 17.5 beta:
"iPad must be regularly used while not connected to power to show maximum capacity."
"This is the number of times iPad has used your battery's capacity."
"The iPad battery is performing as expected."
"iPad batteries, like all rechargeable batteries, have a limited lifespan and may eventually need to be serviced or replaced."
"The original battery was designed to retain X capacity at X cycles under ideal conditions. Actual battery performance depends on a number of variables, including how iPad is used and charged regularly. The one-year warranty includes service for defective batteries in addition to rights provided under local consumer laws."
new iPad Pro and iPad Air models that are rumored to launch in May, and likely other new iPads released in the future. Apple has shown battery capacity information on iPhones for many years, but cycle count information is currently limited to the latest iPhone 15 series.
New Apple Pencil
The first beta of iOS 17.5 potentially references a new fourth-generation Apple Pencil, amid rumors that the accessory will be updated soon.
NumberOfApplePencilV1ConnectionsCount
NumberOfApplePencilV2ConnectionsCount
NumberOfApplePencilV3ConnectionsCount
A new Apple Pencil is rumored to launch alongside updated iPad Pro and iPad Air models in May. Apple refers to the USB-C version of the Apple Pencil released last year as the third-generation Apple Pencil in iOS code, so the fourth-generation model would be a new version that would likely succeed the second-generation Apple Pencil.
Additional code in the iOS 17.5 beta suggests that the Apple Pencil could gain a "squeeze" gesture for certain actions, but details are slim.
Third-Party Item Tracker Alerts
jointly announced a proposed industry specification to help combat the misuse of Bluetooth item trackers for unwanted tracking of individuals. As part of this initiative, Apple promised to expand AirTag-like "Found Moving With You" alerts to third-party item trackers in a future software update, which may be iOS 17.5.
references to alerts for third-party item trackers. For example: "You can disable this item and stop it from sharing its location with the owner. To do this, follow the instructions provided on a website by the manufacturer of this item."
Apple's announcement last year.
Block All Participants in Group FaceTime Calls
iOS 17.5 beta code indicates that there may be a new "Block All Participants" option for group FaceTime calls, which could help users to fight spam. We have not confirmed if the feature is functional yet in the first beta.
Wrap Up
iOS 17.5 and iPadOS 17.5 will likely be released to the public in May.
Related Roundups: iOS 17, iPadOS 17
Related Forums: iOS 17, iPadOS 17
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https://www.macrumors.com/2024/04/03/everything-new-in-ios-17-5-beta-1/
Apple Exploring 'Mobile Robot' That 'Follows Users Around Their Homes'
Apple is investigating various "personal robotics" projects in an effort to create its "next big thing," according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.
One project is said to be a personal robot that would "follow users around their homes," while another is an "advanced table-top home device that uses robotics to move a display around":
Engineers at Apple have been exploring a mobile robot that can follow users around their homes, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the skunk-works project is private. The iPhone maker also has developed an advanced table-top home device that uses robotics to move a display around, they said.
The projects are said to be in the very early stages of research and development, and it is unclear if any will ever be released.
Tag: Mark Gurman
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iPadOS 17.5 Beta Hints at Battery Capacity and Cycle Count Menu on Upcoming iPads
Apple may be planning to expand the iPhone's Battery Health menu to upcoming iPad models, based on evidence uncovered in the iPadOS 17.5 beta.
As discovered by MacRumors contributors Steve Moser and Aaron Perris, there are several new references to a Battery Health menu on the iPad within the code for the first iPadOS 17.5 beta, which was released to developers earlier this week. The menu is expected to show an iPad battery's maximum remaining capacity and cycle count.
A sample of the code strings added in the iPadOS 17.5 beta:
"iPad must be regularly used while not connected to power to show maximum capacity."
"This is the number of times iPad has used your battery's capacity."
"The iPad battery is performing as expected."
"iPad batteries, like all rechargeable batteries, have a limited lifespan and may eventually need to be serviced or replaced."
"The original battery was designed to retain X capacity at X cycles under ideal conditions. Actual battery performance depends on a number of variables, including how iPad is used and charged regularly. The one-year warranty includes service for defective batteries in addition to rights provided under local consumer laws."
new iPad Pro and iPad Air models that are rumored to launch in May, and likely other new iPads released in the future. Apple has shown battery capacity information on iPhones for many years, but cycle count information is currently limited to the latest iPhone 15 series.
Related Roundups: iPad Air , iPad Pro
Buyer's Guide: iPad Air (Don't Buy), 11" iPad Pro (Don't Buy), 12.9" iPad Pro (Don't Buy)
Related Forum: iPad
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Testing the New Apple Vision Pro Spatial Persona
As of this week, Apple Vision Pro users can set up a spatial Persona, which is a new version of a Persona that's designed to make it feel like you're interfacing with other people right in the same room. We thought we'd test out the spatial Persona feature to see how it works and whether it's an improvement over the regular Persona option.
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Spatial Personas have a translucent background and include the head, hands, and top part of the torso to provide a more natural feel so that it seems like the people in the conversation are in the same physical room with one another. With spatial Personas, people can move about in their real world space, and that's reflected in the virtual setting. Persona location is the same for all people on a call, so if there are five participants, each one has a different location just as they would sitting together in a room.
If you look at or point to someone on the call, the other participants can see where you are looking or pointing. Voices are also directional relative to where each person is at.
Standard Personas show only a person's face and are limited to a small tile, but spatial Personas have a much more immersive feel. Apple has been improving Personas since the Vision Pro headset launched, and while there's still an uncanny valley feel to them, the visuals are much improved and overall less creepy.
FaceTime and other video calls, using apps like Freeform, playing games, and more.
visionOS in a beta capacity, with the visionOS 1.1 update required. Spatial Personas work with up to five participants.
Related Roundup: visionOS
Related Forum: Apple Vision Pro
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https://www.macrumors.com/2024/04/03/testing-vision-pro-spatial-persona/