Author: Sam Kohl

  • Apple developing ‘Apple Pay Later’ service to pay for products over time…without Apple Card

    Apple developing ‘Apple Pay Later’ service to pay for products over time…without Apple Card

    The rumor: Apple is working on a new service called “Apple Pay Later” that allows you to pay for nay Apple Pay purchase over time, according to Mark Gurman (89.1% accurate, via Bloomberg).

    • “The service is currently planned to work as follows: When a user makes a purchase via Apple Pay on their Apple device, they will have the option to pay for it either across four interest-free payments made every two weeks, or across several months with interest, one of the people said. The plan with four payments is called ‘Apple Pay in 4’ internally, while the longer-term payment plans are dubbed ‘Apple Pay Monthly Installments.’”
    • The interest rates for payments across several months aren’t currently known
    • No release date has been set for the upcoming feature just yet

    Our take: This is a pretty big move…the ability to pay later for any purchase made with Apple Pay. Even more surprising is that this is separate from Apple Card, and will be more broadly available to Apple Pay users. With no interest for two months on most purchases, there’s almost no reason not to pay for your stuff over time.

  • Apple releases new colors for leather AirTag accessories

    Apple releases new colors for leather AirTag accessories

    The news: Just months after the launch of AirTag, Apple has introduced a slew of new colors for their Leather Loop and Key Ring accessories.

    • The Leather Loop adds Baltic Blue, California Poppy and Forest Green to the existing Saddle Brown and (PRODUCT)RED colors
    • Leather Key Ring gets California Poppy and Forest Green on top of the already released Baltic Blue, Saddle Brown and (PRODUCT)RED options
    • The products are available for $39 and $35 respectively at apple.com

    Our take: Is California Poppy the best-looking color ever? Very possibly. Some nice color upgrades for the best AirTag accessories today, but the rumored magnetic key ring accessory is still MIA…

  • Apple releases all-new MagSafe Battery Pack for $99

    Apple releases all-new MagSafe Battery Pack for $99

    The news: Apple just released a new MagSafe-enabled battery pack that attaches directly to the backs of iPhone 12 models.

    • Apple’s MagSafe Battery Pack features a total of 2920mAh of juice inside and requires iOS 14.7, which should be launching soon, to work properly
    • The product is available in white only for $99 on apple.com

    Our take: This is a wonderful idea and is an instant-cop for me. These are the type of wildly cool MagSafe accessories that I want to see!

    Update: As noted by Andru Edwards, there are actually two 1460mAh batteries inside the pack, not just one as we previously reported.

  • Another report says LiDAR remaining exclusive to iPhone 13 Pro models

    Another report says LiDAR remaining exclusive to iPhone 13 Pro models

    The rumor: Only Pro iPhones in 2021 will feature the LiDAR sensor, according to dylandkt (81.3% accurate).

    • Only iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max will include the LiDAR sensor, which makes augmented reality tasks significantly more accurate and assists with focus in low-light
    • A previous report from January suggested LiDAR would make its way to all 2021 iPhones

    Our take: Frankly, I don’t think non-Pro users are missing out on much of anything here. The LiDAR sensor is nice, but it is by no means a significant feature in its current state.

    https://twitter.com/dylandkt/status/1414338686314074116?s=20
  • Gurman: Larger, redesigned iMac will likely feature M1X or M2X chip

    Gurman: Larger, redesigned iMac will likely feature M1X or M2X chip

    The rumor: Apple is planning a more powerful chip for the iMac to replace the current 27-inch model, according to Mark Gurman (89.1% accurate, via Power On).

    • The new, larger iMac is still coming…but Gurman is not sure exactly when this product will be dropping
    • As for the processor inside, “it likely will be an M1X, the beefier version of the current M1, or an M2X”

    Our take: While I was really hopeful for a 2021 release on the larger iMac, I think it’ll probably come sometime in the first half of next year. Don’t worry though, as the M1X MacBook Pro is still on track to release in Fall.

  • Gurman: Apple has no imminent plans for Touch ID on Apple Watch

    Gurman: Apple has no imminent plans for Touch ID on Apple Watch

    The rumor: Apple is not planning to add Touch ID to Apple Watch anytime soon, according to Mark Gurman (89.1% accurate, via Power On).

    • Gurman says that while there is some merit for Touch ID to make its debut on Apple Watch, he doesn’t “see that happening any time soon, if ever”
    • A previous rumor from The Verifier (54.7% accurate) said that Touch ID would be shipping on the Apple Watch Series 7

    Our take: Genuinely, what will the upgrades for Apple Watch Series 7 be? A new design, a faster processor…and what else? Each year the Apple Watch upgrades seem to be shrinking.

  • Redesigned iPad mini likely coming this fall with iPad Air-like design

    Redesigned iPad mini likely coming this fall with iPad Air-like design

    The rumor: The first-ever major redesign for the iPad mini is happening later this year, according to Mark Gurman (89.1% accurate, via Power On).

    • The new look is described as “more similar to the iPad Air, complete with the latest processor and a larger screen with slimmer bezels” which matches the first look shared by Jon Prosser (74.2% accurate) from earlier this year
    • Gurman says that he expects this new iPad mini to come sometime this Fall

    Sam Kohl’s take: Honestly, I’m kind of surprised this is happening at all. Apple has largely ignored the iPad mini for the past few years and I’m fascinated that they’re bringing it back with this huge upgraded later this year. The Fall is looking more exciting by the day.

  • Latest iOS 14.7 beta fixes strange WiFi disable bug

    Latest iOS 14.7 beta fixes strange WiFi disable bug

    The news: Apple has fixed a somewhat serious bug that would completely disable networking capabilities on your iOS device, as spotted first by YouTuber Aaron Zollo.

    • A recently discovered bug showed that connecting to a WiFi network with the name “%p%s%s%s%s%n” could permanently disable network connectivity…until you went into settings and reset all network settings
    • The latest beta version of iOS 14.7, iOS 14.7 beta 5, appears to fix this bug (video below)

    Our take: Surprised it took Apple this long to correct the issue, which was relatively serious, but glad to see this ship alongside iOS 14.7. No idea when that update is coming, though, as it has been in beta testing for some time now…

  • 2022 MacBook Air will be redesigned, have new Mini-LED display

    2022 MacBook Air will be redesigned, have new Mini-LED display

    The rumor: The next MacBook Pro will be the most significant upgrade since the original model was unveiled, according to Ming-Chi Kuo (76.6% accurate).

    • The next MacBook Air will be redesigned, and it’s possible we may have already seen what it will look like
    • It is also said to don a Mini-LED display like the one found on the latest 12.9-inch iPad Pro
    • More recent rumors have suggested the new MacBook Air will have an M2 chip inside and ship in the first half of next year

    Our take: The next MacBook Air…kind of sounds like a pro device? I’m sure the performance won’t be as wild as the MacBook Pro, but I’m surprised to hear Mini-LED is coming to the Air so soon.

  • 11-inch iPad Pro to get Mini-LED next year

    11-inch iPad Pro to get Mini-LED next year

    The rumor: Apple is planning to expand Mini-LED on iPad Pro to the smaller model in 2022, according to Ming-Chi Kuo (76.6% accurate).

    • Next year, Apple will significantly step up their Mini-LED game, expanding it from the 12.9-inch model to the 11-inch iPad Pro as well
    • Apple is planning a gradual transition of many of their products to this new display tech

    Our take: I think everybody saw this coming, and I fully believe that the supply bottleneck is the only reason it didn’t happen on the 2021 refresh. But this is even more confusing considering that OLED is supposed to be coming to iPads in 2022…

  • Leaked iPhone 12s cases visualize significantly larger camera modules

    Leaked iPhone 12s cases visualize significantly larger camera modules

    The leak: New photos of iPhone 12s cases showing sizing changes have surfaced, as spotted first by DuanRui on Twitter.

    Our take: I didn’t realize how much bigger than camera modules were getting until I saw these photos…wow. Definitely seems like the cameras will be a larger focus than normal this year.