AirPods 3 may not start production until fall

According to a new report by analyst Ming-Chi Kuo (reliability: 80.95%), mass production of Apple’s AirPods 3 will start in the fall of 2021, later than expected. Kuo had previously predicted a launch in early 2021, however the venerated leaker now suggests manufacturing of the next-gen AirPods has been delayed until the fall, with production ramping up in the third and fourth quarter. Kuo has not provided any insight into why production may have been postponed, instead focusing on greater predicted trends for AirPods sales in the report. Kuo anticipates a drop in overall AirPods sales this year of roughly 25% compared to last year up until the launch of AirPods 3. Interestingly, Kuo is unsure whether or not AirPods 2 will be discontinued after the launch of AirPods 3.

We think it is still difficult to determine whether AirPods 2 will end production after AirPods 3 goes into mass production," he continues. "Apple's dilemma is that if AirPods 2 is sold at a lower price, it may affect AirPods 3 demand, but if there is no lower-priced AirPods model, it will not be conducive to AirPods shipment.

Previously, the first generation AirPods were discontinued after the release of AirPods 2, so if Apple were to continue to sell AirPods 2 after the launch of AirPods 3 it would be unusual to say the least, considering Apple would be selling three wireless earbuds. Regardless, the plethora of leaked images and substantiated reports of AirPods 3 including Kuo’s claims of shipping 23 million units in Q4 have given us a good scene of what to expect this fall. As time goes on, we can expect to get an even clearer picture of Apple’s vision for the future of the AirPods lineup.

Watch: Apple publishes a new iPhone 12 ad about durability

Apple published a new ad that promotes the durability and water/dust resistance of the iPhone 12 earlier today. It also promotes the company's newly launched ‘Ceramic Shield’ display technology. ‘Ceramic Shield’ is a new type of technology which introduces “nano-ceramic crystals” by adding a new “high temperature crystallization” step in the glass. The ad named "Cook," displays a reckless chef trying to learn a recipe while reading the steps on his iPhone 12. During this 40 seconds video, he puts his iPhone 12 in multiple rigorous situations such as dropping it on its screen multiple times, splashing it with liquids, flour and sauce and even hitting the display with the pepper grinder a few times.

Apple claims this new glass on the iPhone 12 lineup results in four times better drop performance, thereby making it the toughest glass in any smartphone. iPhone 12 models are also certified with an IP68 rating, allowing them to withstand up to 6 meters of water submersion for 30 minutes — as well better protection from dust.

This is not the first time that Apple has promoted the durability of its iPhone 12. Back in the October 2020 event, the company showcased the ‘Ceramic Shield’ toughness and water/dust resistance of the iPhone 12 through an ad, where the phone was toppled multiple times and drenched with different liquids such as hot coffee, beer, wine, water, and soda.

The history of the Apple Watch

The Apple Watch is nearing its 6th anniversary this year, and we’ve decided to take a look back at the history of the Apple Watch.

It was back in September of 2014 when Apple CEO Tim Cook announced the Apple Watch during a press conference that is normally solely dedicated to the new iPhone unveilings. The iPhone 6 was also announced at the very same conference and audiences were in awe at two extreme announcements. In 2020, Apple sold more Apple Watches than the entire Swiss watch industry with Apple coming in at an astounding 31 million units — whilst all the Swiss brands combined sold only 21 million. This is something former Apple Chief Design Officer, Jonathan Ive, said would happen back in 2014 but people laughed at this statement at the time.

Rumors first began back in April 2014 by The Wall Street Journal, when they revealed Apple’s plans to release a completely new product line. As you can imagine, this caused an unthinkable amount of speculation from both Apple fans and haters alike.

The first discussion took place in early 2012, a few months after Steve’s passing. It caused us to take time, pausing to think about where we wanted to go, what trajectory we were on as a company, and what motivated us,” said Ive.

The Apple Watch was the first new product line that Tim Cook announced since becoming CEO — so there were a lot of eyes on Apple at this crucial time in its history. The first Apple Watch came in three different models. We had the Apple Watch Sport, Apple Watch and Apple Watch Edition. The Sport version of the watch was the most affordable model starting from $350, with an aluminium casing. It came in four different colours: space grey, gold, rose gold and silver.

The next step up was simply named Apple Watch coming in at a starting price of $550. It came with a stainless steel casing available in only two colours, space grey or silver. This middle-tier Apple Watch also had a ceramic back and a sapphire glass display — making it more scratch resistant than the cheaper sport models.

Finally, we have the Apple Watch Edition, made from 18 karat rose or yellow gold. What was the price of this, though? Well…it started at $10,000. It was only available at select Apple Store locations and came with its own unique buying experience… and you’d hope so too. The 2 cheaper models were sold by the typical Apple 10-15 minute tutorials around a table throughout the store whilst the lavish watch came with a one-on-one demonstration that could last up to an hour. It was asked at the time why Apple would make such an expensive version, especially when there were rumors that Tim Cook first disagreed with making such an expensive Apple Watch. It was believed that this $10,000 watch helped the entire Apple Watch product line come across a lot more luxurious due to celebrities such as Beyoncé, Katy Perry and Kanye West being photographed wearing these models. If true, it was a great marketing move from Apple.

These first watches were super impressive and packed with tech we’d never seen before; like the Digital Crown and the still impressive heart rate monitor, for example.

Whilst other companies were struggling to keep up with Apple, who quickly took the title for number one smartwatch manufacture in the world, Apple were already working on releasing their next-generation of Apple Watch in 2016. Apple Watch Series 2, which started at $369, had several new features built in such as GPS, higher display brightness, 50 meter water resistance and a new workout tracker for swimming. In this generation, Apple also released the watch in a new white ceramic. The Nike Apple Watch came with exclusive sport bands and watch faces for those sport-fanatics among us. Unfortunately, Apple Watch sales began to dip…well more than dip — sales were down by 55% versus 2015. Was the hype dying or did customers simply want a more significant upgrade? You guessed it, Apple Watch Series 3. The series 3 was announced in 2017 and got everybody talking about the Apple Watch again. It included a new version of the S chip, S3, which was 70% faster making it a much nicer experience when navigating through apps. Siri could finally respond verbally to our questions, rather than just displaying it on the screen. Bluetooth connectivity was upgraded from 4.0 to 4.2 — allowing a stronger and faster connection. In the series 3, we could finally utilize Apple Pay with an all-new NFC chip. This was also the first time we saw a cellular version of the Apple Watch. Apple also learnt from their previous mistake of pricing the Watch too high, and made the Series 3 start at $329 for the GPS version and $399 for the cellular model. It seemed that the 2017 Apple Watch was a success, making Apple the number one watch manufacturer in the world. Not just the number one smartwatch manufacturer… but the number one in the entire watch manufacturing business.

The Series 3 was rapidly followed up in 2018 with the Series 4. How much can change in a year? Well, the Series 4 featured a larger display, smaller bezels, rounded corners like the iPhone X, a new electrical heart sensor that allowed ECG readings, fall detection, an improved Digital Crown and 50% louder speakers. Cleverly, Apple also released new watch faces that took advantage of the all-new improved screen. However, the price now started at $399. A slightly upgraded Watch was released the following year, the Series 5. With Series 5, we saw the introduction of an always-on-display (which had never been done in an Apple Watch before), an improved S5 chip and a compass. Shockingly, Apple still sold over 30 million units in 2019 even with this minor incremental upgrade.

And now we come to the most recent Apple Watch line up, the Series 6 and the SE. The Series 6, starting at $399, has a new S6 chip, an even brighter always-on-display, a blood oxygen monitor and a U1 chip that will allow the watch to become a car key. The SE, starting at $279, is exactly what you’d expect, it is a Series 4 with an updated chipset but no ECG feature. However, Apple has thus far kept the Series 3, starting at $199. Sales of the Series 6 and SE seem to be going well for Apple in 2021 so far. What can we expect for the next Apple Watch? Maybe a complete new redesign?

New AirPods are ‘ready to ship’

Apple's next-generation AirPods are "ready to ship," and the second-generation AirPods will be discontinued this month as a result, according to reliable Apple leaker Kang (95.45% reliable). Kang uses the Chinese social media website Weibo to publish his information.

Quote from Kang:

Everyone is ready to ship the new AirPods shells. Just wait for the real machine to test it. No one knows that it was designed last year until the official announcement. — Statement from Kang

Alongside Kang, Jon Prosser (88.46% accurate) has also reported that AirPods are ready to go. Allegedly, these new AirPods may feature a shorter stem, no replaceable ear-tips, and a smaller charging case — a design which is said to be inspired by the current AirPods Pro. However, they are not expected to include Active Noise Cancellation. Leakers and analysts have described them as a ‘blend’ of the two current AirPods designs. Apple’s first event of 2021 is rumored to take place as soon as March 23. Kang himself recently suggested that Apple plans to host the event on the day, where the new AirPods and new iPad Pro models could be announced. Kang hinted at rumors of new upcoming iPad Pro models in two sizes.

Other products rumored to be in Apple's pipeline include the long-awaited AirTags item trackers, a new Apple TV with a stronger gaming focus, and possibly a redesigned iMac powered by Apple Silicon. However, it's still unclear if any of those products will be unveiled this month.

Apple discontinues the original HomePod, only available while supplies last

Apple has discontinued their first ever smart speaker, the HomePod, which debuted on June 5, 2017. With the deliverance of punchy, powerful and room filling sound in a compact size, this much-anticipated device was a wonder of engineering. To top it off, Siri brought a whole new deck of smart features to the table, such as HomeKit automations, smart Apple Music recommendations, the ability to set reminders, calendar events and alarms with just the user’s voice. You can even make phone calls even while the paired iPhone was in another room.

Why?

Apple’s recent announcement shows that the product wasn’t able to reach their high expectations. This may be due to many reasons, but here are some known ones.

• The price: The $349 HomePod competed in a market mainly dominated by Google and Amazon. The products offered by these companies don’t cost more than $99 — and are often bundled with other products or services, sometimes even for free. This became the go-to option for most customers, despite the lack of top-tier audio quality which the HomePod touted as its main selling point.


• Siri: Apple’s virtual assistant offered many features people wouldn’t expect from a normal speaker — but it was severely lacking in features compared to its main competitors: Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa. This is mainly due to Apple’s privacy centric features, which hindered the development of more advanced, personalized featureset for Siri.


• Connectivity: The HomePod was one of the best sounding smart speakers ever, way more than what most people expected from a smart speaker. However, it lacked a 3.5mm jack or USB-C connector. This means that the only way to stream content to it was through AirPlay. This was very convenient for many, but it completely hindered the ability for Pros to use it as a dedicated speaker, due to the latency that its WiFi had.

These main factors made it a niche product, overkill for most people, and not good enough for pros.

It's not the first time this has happened...

This is not the first time the company has made such a move. Back in February 28 2006, Apple released the ‘iPod HiFi,’ a high fidelity speaker manufactured exclusively for the iPod.

While it had award-winning sound quality for its size, it suffered from the same $349 price tag — making it way too expensive for average buyers. Additionally, its iPod-accessory like nature made it unsuitable for pro customers in a similar way to the HomePod. All this sadly led to its short lifespan and eventual discontinuation on September 5, 2007.

Nevertheless, the HomePod lineup lives on, as Apple announced they’ll now switch their attention to the HomePod mini, which has proven to be a smash hit for Apple. This has been mainly due to its eye catching design and highly competitive $99 price tag. The smart speaker contains all the smart features and more than what the $299 HomePod had to offer, but in a more compact size.

HomePod mini has been a hit since its debut last fall, offering customers amazing sound, an intelligent assistant, and smart home control all for just $99. We are focusing our efforts on HomePod mini. We are discontinuing the original HomePod, however, it will continue to be available while supplies last through the Apple Online Store, Apple Retail Stores, and Apple Authorised Resellers. Apple will provide HomePod customers with software updates and service and support through Apple Care. — Statement from Apple

Apple launches new privacy ‘nutrition labels’ for their own apps

Apple has launched a new website section that lists all of the specific data collection practices for the company's first-party apps in one place; like Messages, Maps, Camera and more. Although this information was already available on the App Store, this new tab makes it easier to see exactly how Apple apps collect or use personal data. The new privacy tab debuted on Thursday, and includes every single Apple app available; from Xcode to iWork apps such as Keynote and Pages. On their new webpage, Apple notes that across all of its apps, it doesn't track users. The company says that's because it holds itself to a higher standard than third-party developers on the App Store.

Apple launched its App Store privacy "nutrition labels" in December 2020. The feature is just one part of a push by Apple to protect the privacy of its users, which also includes App Tracking Transprancy — a feature which will require users to opt-in to being tracked across other apps and websites. App Tracking Transparency is slated to launch in early spring.

iMac refresh is ‘ready’ to launch

It has been widely rumored that Apple may hold an event on March 23 2021, where analysts expect the company to unveil a slew of products. However, Apple leaker Jon Prosser (reliability: 88.46%) has now stated that the Apple Silicon iMac may not launch during that event. Interestingly, Prosser also stated that the new iMac models are ‘ready’ and could launch at any time. In his latest video on his FrontPageTech YouTube channel, Prosser revealed that several Apple products are now ‘ready,’ including many that customers have been asking about for some time:

• AirTags
• iPad Pro
• Apple TV 6
• AirPods 3
• Apple Silicon iMac

It’s important to note that Apple has historically spread their launches over the course of the year, helping to maintain interest in the company’s activities and to take advantage of the mass media coverage it generates. Prosser’s remarks are at odds with previous rumors from earlier in 2021 and late 2020. It has been widely expected that Apple would launch their new iMac range toward the end of 2021, with some analysts and tipsters pointing to an event in October. Apple’s new iMac range is finally expected to see a change in the design this year, as the new machines are said to offer an iPhone 12-like aesthetic, with slimmer bezels and flatter edges. Second, the performance has been rumored to receive a significant upgrade due to the inclusion of Apple Silicon.

AirPods 3 rumored to release on March 23

It seems like a new and improved design for the original AirPods may be on the way, according to reports published earlier today. The refreshed AirPods are expected to be released as soon as March 23, a date which has been rumored to be planned for Apple’s first Apple Event of 2021. According to leaks that came out in the past month, the new version of the original AirPods are just around the corner — with a new design that looks like that of the current AirPods Pro. Allegedly, these new AirPods may feature a shorter stem, no replaceable ear-tips, and a smaller charging case — a design which is said to be inspired by the current AirPods Pro. Although there could be a lot of technology brought over from the current AirPods Pro, it has been said that Active Noise Cancellation isn't one of them — and that this feature will likely remain a feature exclusive to Apple’s higher-end AirPods. However, it has been said that Spatial Audio may indeed make its way to the refreshed original AirPods.

Although the renders published by GizmoChina show non-interchangeable silicone ear-tips for the AirPods 3, some other rumors claim the opposite. They state that Apple aims to remove the stem entirely from the product, but these rumors still haven’t been corroborated by reliable sources. It’s important to mention that these renders allegedly ‘came from a supplier,’ but publication did not cite or name any sources. On the flip side, a recent poll published by 9to5Mac shows that more than 40% of Apple users like the classic AirPods design more than the design of Apple’s current higher-end AirPods Pro.

The first generation of AirPods launched back in 2016 — with a second generation released in March of 2019. Since then, AirPods have become one of the most popular products for the company — with the second generation featuring an H1 chip, longer talk time, ‘Hey Siri’ integration and more. One of the most anticipated features of this second-generation product was the optional ‘wireless charging case,’ which was announced alongside the now canceled AirPower charging mat. AirPods 3 are expected to be released this month with other products like AirTags, a refreshed iMac, a new version of iPad Pro, Apple TV and more, according to rumors.

AirTags and the future of Find My items tracking

AirTags rumors have been a staple of the Apple grapevine for about two years now. It seems like they may finally come to fruition, according to new reports and rumors. Item trackers have dramatically increased in popularity with the introduction of hit products from Tile, Chipolo and Samsung. Additionally, the advancement in technologies such as GPS, NFC (Near-Field Communication), UWB (Ultra-Wideband) and BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy) has vastly improved the performance and ease of use of item trackers.

It makes sense that Apple would want a piece of this lucrative market that is growing fast in size and value. Apple’s ‘Find My’ system seems like the perfect platform for such an item tracker. The Find My app is already wildly popular among Apple users as it is the quickest, most optimised and accurate way to locate and retrieve Apple devices. With the introduction of Apple’s rumored ‘AirTags,’ Find My will provide new functionalities and an entirely new experience for item tracking integration with iPhone.

What we know:

Apple has already included support for items tracking in the Find My app. In the latest iOS 14 Beta update, an ‘Items’ tab has been added to the bottom tab bar in the Find My app, which when tapped, displays a new UI to users, stating “Keep Track of Your Everyday Items”. Apple has now released support for manufacturers to develop and ship products that can be traceable securely in the Find My app. This may appeal to developers and users alike as it will provide one place to track all their devices rather than in separate apps. This framework for items tracker is indicative of Apple’s interest in pursuing the product and supports claims of Apple’s upcoming AirTags. But, what do we know about the AirTags themselves?

Design:

According to Jon Prosser (reliability: 88.46), AirTags will sport a circular puck shaped design featuring a matte white casing and a brushed stainless steel plate along with a grey Apple logo in the center and the prints encircling the entire tag. The AirTags will reportedly be “a tad larger than a bottle cap”. This has been corroborated by Apple patents which describe and show a similar device.

Operation and use:

AirTags will reportedly use various wireless standards to remain traceable by Apple devices at the highest possible accuracy level and range. In order to achieve range and accuracy that meets or exceeds that of the competition, Apple may utilise UWB (Ultra-Wideband) technology previously included in the iPhone 11 and 12 series. The technology was also included with the Apple Watch Series 6 and HomePod mini. UWB is a wireless standard used for precise location and data transfer similar to bluetooth. However, UWB has the ability to locate devices with much higher accuracy than bluetooth with precision up to mere centimeters.

Apple Park: A look inside Apple’s $5 billion dollar headquarters

We first heard about Apple Park back in 2006 from Steve Jobs. Construction on Apple’s new headquarters began back in 2014, taking about four years to build and costing the company over five billion dollars ($5,000,000,000)…billion…with a ‘B’ — making it one of the most expensive buildings in the world.

The campus was originally estimated to cost around half a billion dollars ($500,000,000.00), however just the land cost one hundred and sixty million dollars ($160,000,000.00). In 2011, the price was then revised at a little below three billion dollars ($3,000,000,000.00). In total, the campus would cost Apple a whopping $5,000,000,000.00 — not unthinkable for a company valued at over 2 trillion dollars ($2,000,000,000,000.00).

Steve’s vision is reflected all around us at Apple Park. He would have loved it here, in this place he dreamed up the home and inspiration for Apple’s future innovations.” — Tim Cook

The Ring

Let’s begin with the main building on the campus called ‘The Ring’ — the futuristic spaceship-like building. The Ring is big enough for over twelve-thousand (12,000) of Apple’s employees and is part of over 176 acres of land and is situated in Cupertino, California. Yes, it’s literally made by Apple in California. It would take about fifteen minutes to do an entire lap of The Ring. Perhaps you wouldn’t mind the walk, though, with the spectacular views of the outside thanks to the 36-47 foot-long curved glass panels. Having these panels allows for seamless and panoramic view of the outdoor landscape. In fact the building was designed to be as free flowing as possible to allow for collaboration between employees. However, according to Apple Explained, many employees wrote to tech journalist John Gruber explaining their dissatisfaction with the open working environment. They were allegedly unhappy about the lack of privacy, and that the glass doors were easy to walk into when distracted.

The Ring also houses ‘Caffe Macs’ a singular 58,000 square-foot restaurant allowing for employees to be together and collaborate even on break times. Caffe Macs has four story tall sliding glass doors, taking the title for the largest sliding glass doors in the world. These glass doors slide open into the open green courtyard. The restaurant even has its own Apple Patented pizza box that prevents pizza crust from getting soggy. It has been known that the restaurant's staff have said they have enough food to feed up to 15,000 people every lunch time.

Eco-Friendly Meets Lifestyle

Apple likes to encourage their 12,000 employees at Apple Park to live a healthy lifestyle. The grounds of Apple Park have 3.2 kilometres of walking and running trails as well as 1,000 grey bikes that can be used. Facilities also include a gym, wellness centre and a handful of basketball and tennis courts.

Apple’s 100,000 square foot fitness and wellness centre is complete with changing rooms, showers, laundry services, team workout rooms and a two-story yoga studio. The yoga studio is covered in specific stone from a quarry that Steve Jobs handpicked in Kansas and carefully distressed to make it like his favourite hotel in Yosemite.

Apple’s designers put major effort into making the buildings fit seamlessly into the local nature landscaping. They did this by planting more than 9,000 trees (overseen by David Myffly who is responsible for Stanford’s campus) and allowing the buildings to only take up around 20% of the 176 acres.

It’s important to note that all of the buildings within Apple Park are very eco-friendly. The Ring is home to one of the largest rooftop solar farms, generating up to 17 megawatts of power — enough to meet up to 75% of the campus's energy demand in peak times. The rest of the campuses needs are met by the on-site fuel cells that are powered by biofuel or natural gas. The main building doesn’t use traditional heating or cooling for 9 months of the year, it uses a natural ventilation system instead. As well as all of that, they also use low energy LEDs.

Underground

Underneath of The Ring makes use of base isolation, one of the few buildings in the world to do so. Base isolation protects The Ring against the worst of earthquakes, with 692 stainless steel plates to allow the building to shift up to four feet in any direction without causing any structural damage.

Going even deeper, you’ll find an expansive 2 story parking, finished with reflective white tiles and domed ceilings. Not to mention the integrated traffic lights that can be found within the street signs working seamlessly together. There’s also a road network that is purposely hidden from sight to allow for the green space to remain an open bliss. By doing this, Apple has been able to not disturb the landscape too much and keep as much greenery as possible — their main goal with this extensive build.

Also below ground you’ll find the impressive Steve Jobs Theatre. To get to the almost 1,000 seat auditorium you can use the 42 foot, chemically tempered glass elevator. The elevator is considered to be the largest free standing glass elevator on Earth and rotates as it moves up or down, allowing it to only need a singular door.

The Rest of the Campus

Moving away from The Ring now, we can find ourselves two of the research and development facilities, a care clinic and the Visitors Centre — the only building on the campus visitors can enter without a pass.

The Visitors Centre is under one roof but comprises 4 separate sections — a 10,000 square foot Apple Store, a 2,000 square foot cafe, an observation deck and a designated AR experience area.

Apple also added an artificial pond, perfectly circular just like The Ring. You’ll also see a rainbow structure at the head of the rectangular field designed by former Chief Design Officer at Apple, Jonathan Ive. The structure is often used as a stage for speakers and performers. The most unlikely building in Apple Park is called ‘Glendenning Barn.’ This barn was not part of Apple’s original plans, but because the barn was built in 1916, it was already classified as historical in 2004 so Apple could not demolish it as they first planned. Apple agreed to use the barn as a maintenance building — housing tools and other landscaping materials. Between the stunning Ring, plentiful recreation centres and iconic Steve Jobs Theatre, Apple Park may be the most spectacular headquarters ever seen and surely attracts both potential employees and the media alike.

iMac Pro to be discontinued

Apple’s 2017 iMac Pro model will be discontinued this year, according to Apple’s online store. There is no additional information about why Apple is removing some of the iMacs Pro models from the site, but it could be due to an upcoming iMac launch later this year. Apple’s 2021 iMac has been rumored to arrive with a new square design, thinner bezels, updated Apple Silicon CPUs, GPUs and more. It’s important to note that Apple has never revealed any information about how well the iMac Pro is selling. However, rumors claim that users have tended to prefer the 2019 Mac Pro tower model instead, possibly hinting that the demand for Apple’s ultra-high-end iMac was lower than originally expected.

As of yet, there is no official release date for an updated iMac Pro. However, according to reliable analyst Ming-Chi Kuo (reliability: 80.95%), it is likely that we will see an updated iMac Pro this year. However, this recent change to Apple's website may indicate that a release is imminent. If Apple were to replace the iMac Pro with an Apple Silicon iMac, the performance of an M1X or M2 would have to meet or exceed that of Intel’s Xeon offerings. Based on proposed CPU and GPU performance estimates, this is quite possible.

The unusual announcement of the limited iMac Pro configuration went live this Friday on Apple's website giving customers just a single option to buy the product, displaying the text "While supplies last" below the product name. This limits customers to buy just the base model of the product that offers 3.0GHz 10-core Intel Xeon W processor with 32GB of 2,666MHz ECC memory, 1TB of SSD storage, a Radeon Pro Vega 56 8GB, and 10Gb Ethernet. When the iMac Pro launched in 2017, Apple gave customers the option of configuring the product with different options; such as 14-core and 18-core processors, Vega 64 graphics, up to 4TB of storage, and up to 256GB of memory. There are still plenty of third-party resellers offering these configurations for the iMac Pro.

The iMac Pro was first introduced back in June of 2017 in the WWDC event and released in December of the same year as the "Most Powerful Mac Ever Made." This was the first-ever iMac model to be equipped with the Apple's T2 co-processor.

Apple granted patent for a new MagSafe design on iPhone

Granted by The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office this Tuesday, Apple describes a new iteration of its MagSafe charging technology for the iPhone. This new patent has been filed by the company following numerous rumors of future iPhone models without a Lightning port.

In the patent, Apple describes a three-pinned ‌MagSafe‌ charger, similar to the ones found in older MacBook computers. This new method uses multiple different pin designs to connect the charger to the device. The patent shows a pin that is rounded in one image, while another shows a more flat-surface design. However, it’s important to note that the patent doesn't mention the ‌iPhone‌ by name. The image in the filing depicts what seems to be the bottom of an ‌iPhone‌, with a ‌MagSafe‌ charger concept connecting to it. Based on a set of magnets, ‌MagSafe‌ allows the device to easily detach from the charger if it gets tripped on or pulled.

With the iPhone 12 lineup, Apple reintroduced ‌MagSafe‌ in the form of a large circular magnet on the back of the device. Currently, Apple is marketing ‌MagSafe‌ on the ‌iPhone‌ as a place to charge and attach various accessories. This week, reliable Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo (reliability: 80.95%) poured cold water on hopes that Apple would switch the ‌iPhone‌ to a USB-C connector anytime soon. Kuo states that USB-C has lower specifications compared to Apple’s current Lightning and ‌MagSafe‌ chargers. He also specifically said that if an ‌iPhone‌ in the future abandons Lightning, it would immediately adopt a portless design with ‌MagSafe‌. While it seems unlikely that Apple will create another connector for its devices, this reveals that the company has indeed been studying the possibility of replacing or removing the Lightning port from the iPhone.

Apple has been pushing the idea of a world with only wireless solutions since the introduction of AirPods, so it wouldn’t be a huge surprise if they removed the only remaining port on the iPhone.

Apple rumored to adopt OLED displays on iPad, MacBook

Apple is rumored to release new iPad and MacBook models with OLED displays in 2022, according to Taiwanese news publication DigiTimes. Starting with Apple Watch in 2015, and then with the iPhone X in 2017, Apple has slowly expanded the use of OLED to include all models of iPhone with the introduction of iPhone 12.

OLED panels are lighter and thinner due to the absence of backlight. They emit visible light, which is ideal for low light conditions. This results in a significantly higher contrast ratio when compared with LCD. Each OLED pixel has its own light (RGB), which can be individually controlled, providing richer colors and sharper images. This means the blacks are deeper and the colors are more vibrant. This results in lower power consumption overall making it more efficient. As of right now, Apple Watch, iPhones, and other products already use OLED screens. However, Apple has never launched a MacBook or iPad with an OLED display. From DigiTimes:

The sources pointed out that the first device to come with an OLED panel is likely to be a 10.9-inch ‌iPad‌, set to begin volume production in the fourth quarter of 2021 for an official release in 2022.

The US brand reportedly is also considering adopting OLED panels for its 12.9-inch ‌iPad Pro‌ and 16- to 17-inch MacBook Pro scheduled for release in 2022, but have not made a final decision, the sources noted.

Macs and iPads still use LCD displays, perhaps due to the fact that large OLED displays are infamously expensive and difficult to manufacture. High-end OLED TVs often cost thousands of dollars, for example, with their LCD counterparts priced significantly cheaper. Many consumers will opt for LCD displays when given the chance due to its more affordable price, but studies have shown that customers prefer the overall look and quality of OLED displays.

With the inclusion of OLED panels on the iPhone 12, analysts are now saying that Apple will be the world’s largest buyer of OLED panels in 2021. According to DSCC (Display Supply Chain Consultants), Apple’s expenses this year on OLED panels will hit USD $9.8 billion. This means that the company is expected to account for about 30% of global OLED panel sales. Further, these claims have been corroborated by reports from Barclays analysts and Ming-Chi Kuo (reliability: 80.95%). Barclays analysts outline that Apple will first transition iPad Pro models to mini-LED in 2021, and then shift to OLED panels in 2022.

Apple introduces a new way to transfer your cloud storage

Earlier this week, Apple introduced a new service which is designed to help transfer all the photos and videos stored in iCloud Photos to Google Photos. Similar features have been introduced by multiple tech companies to offer greater data management options to customers. Apple is proactively showing their cooperation with the introduction of this new feature following the introduction of Apple’s Data & Privacy website in 2018.

The How....

The user has to sign in to Apple's privacy website with their Apple ID, and select the ‘Transfer a copy of your data’ option. As of now, Google Photos is the only participating service for this new feature, however more cloud storage services are expected to be joining soon. In order to perform the transfer, two-factor authentication must be enabled for the respective Apple ID. In addition to that, the user should also have a legitimate Google account along with enough Google Drive Storage available for the data to be transferred. The process is not expected to take more than a week. Using this service does not delete any of the media in iCloud Photos, rather it just creates a copy of all of them in Google Photos. However, Smart Albums, Live Photos, Your Photo Stream, some metadata and RAW photos are not transferred, since their formats are unknown to Google Photos.

Google Photos supports the following formats: BMP, GIF, HEIC, ICO, JPG, PNG, TIFF, WEBP, some RAW files: for Photos

3GP, 3G2, ASF, AVI, DIVX, M2T, M2TS, M4V, MKV, MMV, MOD, MOV, MP4, MPG, MTS, TOD, WMV: for Videos

Yet, Live photos will be converted to a still image and then transferred with the original ones staying in iCloud Photos. It will also unify duplicate photos into a single one and only transfer the latest edit of a photo keeping the original version in iCloud.

This new service is currently available to all iCloud users in Canada, the European Union, Australia, Liechtenstein, New Zealand, Norway, Iceland, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States, with support for new countries coming soon.

Apple’s iPhone 13 mini will still go ahead, new rumors say

After seemingly poor sales of the iPhone 12 mini since its unveiling in 2020, reliable analyst Ming-Chi Kuo (reliability: 80.95%) has reiterated that Apple will continue with a similar strategy for their iPhone 13 or iPhone 12s lineup in 2021.

That is, he revealed that Apple will keep the same four device lineup — with two more affordable models in two sizes, and two premium devices with cutting-edge features.

The new 2H21 iPhones will be the same as iPhone 12 series, with four models and the same screen sizes. All new 2H21 iPhones support the Lightning connector and no portless design. — Ming-Chi Kuo

Here’s what he expects to see later this year:

• iPhone 13 mini — 5.4” display
• iPhone 13 — 6.1” display
• iPhone 13 Pro — 6.1” display
• iPhone 13 Pro Max — 6.7” display

Interestingly, it was recently revealed that the iPhone 12 mini didn’t perform as badly as analysts had previously stated. According to analytics data, the iPhone mini sold the fewest units of the iPhone 12 lineup last year. However, the sales numbers for iPhone 12 mini were still impressive — with a recent report from Omdia Group claiming the device shipped as many as 14.5 million units in 2020. This would make it the 10th most popular smartphone in the world last year, according to the publication. Of course, Apple no longer reports unit sales for any of its products — so we’ll likely never actually know how many iPhone 12 mini units Apple has sold in comparison to the rest of the iPhone 12 lineup.

Regardless, the performance of the device has been no small feat — and it’s one that makes the decision to ship a iPhone 13 mini fairly self-explanatory. However, analysts and customers agree that Apple will need to work on the battery performance of their cheapest flagship iPhone in order for it to truly succeed in the marketplace. Customers often point to the poor battery life as the main drawback of the device.

New iPad mini rumored to feature a major revamp

According to Kang 康总 (reliability: 95.45%), a new 6th generation iPad mini is currently in the early stages of development. Kang, a reliable and mysterious Apple leaker, has a strong track record predicting Apple’s movements. As stated by Kang, there's a possibility of a new 6th-gen iPad mini with an edge-to-edge display. This will result in slimmer bezels and a hardware design similar to the current iPad Air — which means that the 6th-gen iPad mini will also gain USB-C support. Apple began the design transition for its iPads back in 2018. The first iPad to feature a major design change was the 2018 iPad Pro. It featured an edge-to-edge Pro-Motion Liquid Retina Display along with slimmer bezels. The product got rid of the home button with the implementation of a Face ID, which could unlock the device in any orientation. It also featured a flat, squared-edge design — with USB-C support for the first time on any iPad. This design trend was carried on with the 2020 iPad Pro. Back in late 2020, the 4th-generation iPad Air was also introduced with a similar transition. However, this model traded Face ID in favor of the Touch ID which was integrated in the Sleep/Wake Button. It also missed out the ProMotion display technology along with the Pro camera setup. Regardless, since the iPad mini is supposed to be an affordable model — it is likely that the product will not enjoy all of the higher-end features seen on the iPad Pro. The iPad Pro features a ProMotion Display, Face ID, LiDAR, multiple cameras and so on. Yet, it is highly anticipated that this new iPad mini will retain Touch ID in the same fashion as the 4th-gen iPad Air.

All these changes will bring new technologies to the iPad mini lineup, making it the first major revamp since its introduction back in 2012.

New Arizona legislation to allow in-app purchases outside the App Store

After consideration of the legislation by the Arizona State, the Arizona Senate has been handed a bill which, if officially passed, will allow developers to accept in-app purchases for their respective apps outside the App Store — thereby preventing them from being forced to use Apple's in-app purchase options. According to Protocol, Apple has been lobbying tirelessly against the bill for a month in Arizona. The company has been hiring auxiliary lobbyists and sending lawyers to Arizona in order to fight the case, alongside Rob Didiron (Apple's senior manager of state and local government affairs).

"We went through a very difficult weekend where Apple and Google hired probably almost every lobbyist in town," said Arizona State Representative Regina Cobb, the creator of HB2005. HB2005, is an amendment to a 2005 Arizona bill, that is created to let app developers use third-party payment options to avoid the 15 to 30 percent cut that Apple takes from app purchases and in-app payments. In a hearing last week, Apple's chief compliance officer Kyle Andeer called HB2005 a "government mandate that [may force] Apple to give away the App Store" and added that the bill "tells Apple it cannot use its own checkout lane and collect a commission in the store we built."

HB2005 could pass the House this week and potentially even make it through the Republican-majority Arizona Senate, making Arizona the first state to push through legislation to loosen Apple and Google’s grip over their app ecosystems in the country. There’s similar legislation being considered in Minnesota, Georgia, Hawaii and other states.

Lobbyist Ryan O'Daniel, a representative of the ‘Coalition for App Fairness,’ approached Representative Cobb with the proposal for a bill — which is what started the development of HB2005. The Coalition for App Fairness is a group of large developers, including Epic Games, Spotify, Tile, Basecamp, Blix, and others. The group was established last September and all the developers share in their disagreements with Apple — including in-app purchases and other issues. Rod Didiron has been assisting in the fight against this legislature and lending his experience from recent successes, including lobbying the state of California to prevent the passing of a right to repair bill in 2019. Additionally, Apple joined the Arizona Chamber of Commerce and hired former Arizona chief of staff (to Governor Doug Ducey) Kirk Adams and speaker of the Arizona House of Representatives, all in an effort to persuade Cobb and the state of Arizona not to pass the bill or even vote on it.

This would allow billion-dollar developers to take all of the app store's value for free, even if they're selling digital goods, even if they're making millions or billions of dollars doing it. The bill is a government mandate that Apple give away the app store.

Apple lowered its ‌App Store cut for developers making under $1 million to 15 percent in November, rather than the 30% formerly imposed on all developers. Andeer said that 83 percent of developers pay no fees at all, as they offer their apps for free. It’s still uncertain if HB2005 will pass in Arizona, as it is facing opposition from Arizona Democrats who do not believe that the state legislature should interfere with ongoing litigation, referencing the legal battle between Apple and ‌Epic Games‌. Furthermore, as cited by the report, Regina Cobb plans to have a discussion about the bill with Apple Executives at a meeting arranged by Adams.

Last month, Apple successfully fought back against a similar bill in North Dakota, which would have loosened the company’s control over its App Store. The bill, which was also backed by the Coalition for App Fairness, was shot down by the North Dakota Senate. However, in this case, with its bill focusing totally on payments, Arizona's attempt might have a chance at passing a full House vote. If adopted, a large number of developers looking to avoid App Store taxes would likely congregate to the state.

Besides this, Apple is also under investigation for several accusations of monopolistic practices, as the company controls which apps are allowed on its devices and requires developers to pay a commission for each sale they make through the App Store. Moreover, the company is even under antitrust probe for its “Sign-in with Apple feature” and is being scrutinized by the U.S. DOJ, following various complaints filed by the developers.

2022 iPhones will allegedly adopt a punch-hole display

TF International Securities’ analyst Ming Chi Kuo (reliability: 80.95%) recently posted a new report for Apple’s supply chain investors predicting a bold change possibly coming to the 2022 iPhone Pro lineup. The same report also mentions the next generation iPhone SE and how it might adopt 5G technology as soon as next year.

iPhone 14 Pro:

2022 is set to be a big year for the iPhone Pro lineup, with many major changes coming. According to Kuo, Apple is expected to replace the current notch for a new hole-punch design, similar to the one seen on the Galaxy S10 released in March 2019. This punch-hole design is rumored to be for the front facing camera, increasing the screen-to-body ratio. The TrueDepth camera system will also be improved Kuo said, helping with the front facing camera’s autofocus capabilities. This new display design is mainly meant for the iPhone 14 Pro lineup, however there’s a possibility that it may be brought to the rest of the lineup if yields allow. Apple is expected to rely on the iPhone Pro models to continue with the iPhone’s growth in 2022.

iPhone SE with 5G:

Kuo reported that Apple is looking forward to releasing a next generation iPhone SE with 5G in the first half of 2022. This model would be the first entry-level iPhone with 5G. Currently, this technology is exclusively found on the iPhone 12 lineup, starting at $699.

The design is expected to stay the same, keeping the same size 4.7” LCD panel found in the current iPhone SE. However, Kuo suggests it will have a new processor and modem combo, both designed to allow 5G connectivity. The price is also rumored to stay the same, at $399 for the 64GB variant. The iPhone SE 3 is widely expected to bring 5G to the mass market, given that the current model sold 24.2 million units.