Category: News

  • iOS 14.2 confirms iPhone 12 won’t ship with included headphones

    iOS 14.2 confirms iPhone 12 won’t ship with included headphones

    The news: A small change to some wording in iOS 14.2 reveals Apple’s plans to remove EarPods from the box this year, as spotted by MacRumors (69% accurate).

    • The wording change can be found when looking at copy for reducing RF exposure while using your iPhone
    • In previous version of iOS, the words “the supplied headphones” were present
      • The updated text now just says “headphones”
    • Ming-Chi Kuo (74.6% accurate) and others previously predicted no headphones in the box this year
    Top is iOS 14.0.1 and prior, bottom is iOS 14.2 (image courtesy of MacRumors)

    Our take: While this is bad news, I still think losing the power brick has far worse implications. You can easily make the argument that most people buying an iPhone already have some pair of headphones at home. But the amount of people with extra power bricks available, on demand…I think it’s shockingly less.

  • What’s new in iOS 14.2 beta 2

    What’s new in iOS 14.2 beta 2

    The news: Apple just released the second beta of iOS 14.2 to developers, alongside other new betas for watchOS and macOS.

    What’s new

    • German translations have been corrected
    • Blood oxygen saturation setup on Apple Watch Series 6 now supported in beta 2
    • New emojis added
  • iPhone 12 Pro lineup to start at 128GB storage

    iPhone 12 Pro lineup to start at 128GB storage

    The leak: The iPhone 12 Pro lineup will ship with the highest base storage ever in an iPhone, according to Jon Prosser (72.7% accurate).

    • 128GB may be the base variant for Pro models of the iPhone 12 this year
    • iPhone 12 and 12 mini could start at 64GB, with the option to go up to 256GB

    Our take: 128GB as the starting capacity in the Pro series is just so great. It’s a small upgrade, but something that many power users will love. 64GB on the lower-end lineup is fine.

  • Unreleased Apple Watch bands for the 2020 Olympics shown in new photos

    Unreleased Apple Watch bands for the 2020 Olympics shown in new photos

    The news: Apple was seemingly preparing to release a slew of new Apple Watch bands in anticipation of the 2020 Olympics, as shared by L0vetodream (88.7% accurate).

    • Both the Denmark and Japan bands leaked…coincidentally featuring inverted color schemes representative of each country’s flag
    • Apple previously created exclusive bands for the 2016 Olympics in Rio

    Our take: With all the hype that the Olympics bring, I’m sure these would’ve been a hit. They look like new colorways for the Sport Loop—which I’ve never tired—but always look real comfortable.

    https://twitter.com/L0vetodream/status/1310267844441985024?s=20
  • First look at Apple’s upcoming black, braided Lightning to USB-C cable

    First look at Apple’s upcoming black, braided Lightning to USB-C cable

    The leak: A new photo has just surfaced that shows an unreleased braided, black Lightning to USB-C cable, as shared by JinStore.

    • The new cable is rumored to ship with the iMac Pro and Mac Pro
    • We’ve previously seen images leak of the same cable in white

    Our take: This looks slick…and should definitely be a lot more resistant than the more fragile cables that currently ship with iPhones. Still, I’m not sure this will do the trick to make up for the lack of headphones and a charger.

  • New iPad Air may start shipping as soon as September 30

    New iPad Air may start shipping as soon as September 30

    The news: Apple’s iPad Air may be shipping at least a day sooner than expected, according to new listings on Adorama.

    • The redesigned iPad Air will apparently begin shipping to customers on September 30
    • Apple previously said the new iPad Air would be available sometime in October

    Our take: I think this is pretty reasonable. Apple pulled a similar strategy with the Magic Keyboard earlier this year where they initially said it would be available in May but actually released in April.

  • iOS 14 YouTube picture-in-picture works only for Premium users

    iOS 14 YouTube picture-in-picture works only for Premium users

    The news: YouTube, for the first time ever, is officially allowing picture-in-picture (PiP) support on iOS 14.

    • The highly-anticipated feature is only available to YouTube Premium subscribers
    • PiP is currently only available through Safari, not the native YouTube app

    Our take: Pretty much everyone assumed this would be the case, but now it’s confirmed: YouTube PiP is for Premium users only. And it got me to resubscribe.

  • Official iPhone 12 cases confirm new ‘mini’ naming

    Official iPhone 12 cases confirm new ‘mini’ naming

    The leak: A leaked photo of official iPhone cases reveals the naming for Apple’s 2020 lineup, courtesy of DuanRui.

    • Stickers on the new cases reveal the following:
      • iPhone 12 mini
      • iPhone 12 / 12 Pro
      • iPhone 12 Pro Max

    Our take: This looks legitimate to me, and it aligns precisely with what L0vetodream (88.7% accurate) shared earlier this month. mini, in all lowercase, will be the name of Apple’s 5.4-inch iPhone 12.

  • iOS 14.0.1 released with bug fixes and improvements

    iOS 14.0.1 released with bug fixes and improvements

    The news: Apple just released the first supplemental update to iOS 14 with a number of bug fixes and improvements.

    The main fixes:

    • Fixes an issue that could cause default browser and mail settings to reset after restarting your iPhone
    • Addresses an issue that could prevent camera previews from displaying on iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus

    And some other tweaks:

    • Fixes an issue that could prevent your iPhone from connecting to Wi-Fi networks
    • Resolves an issue that could prevent sending email with some mail providers
    • Addresses an issue that could prevent images from appearing in the News widget

    Our take: I don’t think we’ll be seeing a lot of these updates this year: iOS 14 is already so stable. But good to see Apple jumping on some initial, minor issues immediately.

  • Apple’s next special event may happen on October 13

    Apple’s next special event may happen on October 13

    The rumor: Apple’s next event may be taking place on October 13, according to AppleInsider (not yet rated).

    • An anonymous tipster told AppleInsider the date for the next special event is Tuesday, October 13
    • Jon Prosser (72.7% accurate) has since corroborated this date, as it aligns with his rumor from weeks ago

    Our take: Privately, AppleTrack heard something was happening around this time, too. And it sounds about right. Apple said the new iPhones would be coming “a few weeks later” than usual. That being said, there’s only been one October iPhone event before: marketing wise, wouldn’t it make more sense to do the iPhone 12 event…on the 12th?

  • 2nd iPad Pro refresh likely happening later this year

    2nd iPad Pro refresh likely happening later this year

    The rumor: Apple is planning to update the iPad Pro for a second time this year, according to Ming-Chi Kuo (74.6% accurate).

    • A Mini-LED display will be the headlining feature, likely alongside support for 5G connectivity
    • Kuo says the refresh is happening in the fourth quarter of this year

    Our take: Although rumors or a second iPad Pro refresh this year died down recently, Kuo generally has a pretty good pulse on whether or not new products are coming. This will be a substantial iPad Pro update as we haven’t seen Mini-LED on an Apple product yet.