MacRumors

With no March media event in the works, Apple this week rolled out a number of product updates including updated iPad Pro models with dual cameras, a LiDAR scanner, and a Magic Keyboard accessory with trackpad.

On the Mac side, we got an updated MacBook Air and storage-bumped Mac mini models, as well as new Powerbeats earphones, so check out the video above and read on for all of our coverage on those topics and more.

New iPad Pro Announced With A12Z Bionic Chip, Magic Keyboard With Trackpad, LiDAR Scanner, Ultra Wide Camera, and More

March is a common month for new Apple products and this year has proven to be no exception. While the COVID-19 pandemic may have prevented it from hosting a media event, Apple this week introduced new iPad Pro models with a slightly faster A12Z Bionic chip, an Ultra Wide camera for 0.5x zoom, a LiDAR sensor for enhanced augmented reality, and more.

Apple also announced that a new Magic Keyboard case with backlit keys and a built-in trackpad will be available in May for 2018 and later iPad Pro models, turning the iPad Pro into a true Microsoft Surface competitor. To accommodate this, iPadOS 13.4 will be gaining trackpad support for all modern iPad models, with the software update set to be released March 24, and we've put together a video showing what that trackpad support will look like.

The new iPad Pro models reportedly also feature a U1 chip for Ultra Wideband support and 6GB of RAM.

New MacBook Air Announced With Magic Keyboard, Up to 2x Faster Performance, and Lower $999 Starting Price

Apple this week updated its MacBook Air lineup with faster 10th-generation Intel Core processors and graphics, a scissor switch Magic Keyboard, a lower starting price of $999, and more.

The new base model MacBook Air has a starting price of $999 with 256GB of storage and 8GB of RAM in the United States, which is $100 less for double the storage compared to the previous generation base model. Early reviews have praised the new keyboard, improved performance, and lower starting price.

Apple also announced that standard configurations of the Mac mini now come with double the storage capacity. The $799 configuration now comes with 256GB, while the $1,099 configuration features 512GB.

Apple Announces Updated Powerbeats Earbuds With H1 Chip, 15-Hour Battery Life and $150 Price Tag

Apple this week introduced new Powerbeats, available for $149.95 in black, white, and red.

The new Powerbeats feature the same Apple-designed H1 chip as the Powerbeats Pro and AirPods Pro, enabling hands-free "Hey Siri" voice commands, faster pairing with iOS devices, and more. The new Powerbeats also have up to 15 hours of battery life and a similar design as the Powerbeats Pro, but with a wire between each earpiece.

Apple released additional accessories this week, including iPhone cases, iPad cases, and Apple Watch bands in new spring colors.

Video: Recap of New iPad Pro, New MacBook Air, and More

On our YouTube channel, we shared a recap of all of Apple's announcements this week, including new iPad Pro and MacBook Air models and more.

We've also put together some tidbits about the devices, including the new iPad Pro supporting Wi-Fi 6 and the new MacBook Air supporting up to a 6K external display, including Apple's Pro Display XDR.

Apple Stores Now Closed Until Further Notice Amid COVID-19

Apple has announced that all of its retail stores outside of the Greater China region are closed "until further notice" due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Apple also said it is making a substantial donation to COVID-19 relief efforts in Italy, with the funds set to help first responders, medical personnel, and volunteers working to combat the spread of the novel coronavirus in the country, which has the most confirmed cases in Europe.

Follow our COVID-19 roundup as Apple continues to respond to the pandemic.

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All of Apple's retail locations outside of Greater China are closed right now, and customers who left their devices for repair are unable to pick them up until the stores reopen, an Apple spokesperson confirmed to Business Insider.

Apple closed all of its stores on Saturday, March 14, but stayed open for a few extra days to allow customers to pick up devices ordered for in-store pickup or that were at the store for repair. There were, however, some people who weren't able to make it into stores to get their devices.

"We made every possible attempt to get people's products back to them," an Apple spokesperson said. "There certainly are people that, for whatever reason, did not pick up their products before we closed and their products are at our stores."

Apple's stores are closed "until further notice" with no specific reopening date, and an Apple spokesperson said there is no protocol in place for people to get their devices until the stores reopen. Apple originally planned to reopen on March 27, but later updated wording on its website with a less specific timeline.

Apple is working with customers who had their devices sent to a repair center to get them sent back to their homes rather than to retail stores for pickup.

The European Union has asked streaming services to temporarily reduce streaming quality to ease the strain on broadband networks caused by people working from home, a request that Netflix, YouTube, and now Apple TV+ have complied with.

Netflix cut streaming data bitrates yesterday, while YouTube reduced streaming quality this morning. According to 9to5Mac, ‌Apple TV‌+ streaming quality was recently lowered as well, resulting in lower resolution streams and heavily compressed content with visibly blocky artifacts.

9to5Mac says that the lowered quality is "very noticeable," especially on larger-sized television sets, and quite a departure from the 4K HDR content that Apple normally offers. Resolutions are said to be as low as 670 pixels tall.

Compared to other services like Netflix that have also lowered quality to save data, Apple's streaming quality is described as "particularly aggressive" and akin to the kind of quality one might expect from "streaming on a phone over a 3G network."

At the current time, streaming content providers have only been asked to lower streaming quality in Europe, so the lower streaming rates do not affect the United States and other countries. The United States has not called on streaming content providers to implement data reduction measures.

It's not clear how long Apple plans to stream with reduced quality and whether tweaks will be made for a better compromise between quality and data usage. Netflix has said that it will continue using the lower quality stream for the next 30 days.

Global smartphone shipments dropped an estimated 38 percent in February 2020, marking the biggest ever fall in the history of the worldwide smartphone market, according to new data shared today by Strategy Analytics.

Smartphone companies shipped an estimated 61.8 million units in February 2020, down from 99.2 million units in February 2019.

Smartphone demand in Asia dropped heavily in February, leading to a significant collapse in sales as lower demand in Asia dragged down shipments across the world. Some Asian factories were unable to manufacture smartphones due to quarantines and travel restrictions and customers were unable or unwilling to leave their homes to visit retail stores and buy new devices.

"February 2020 saw the biggest fall ever in the history of the worldwide smartphone market. Supply and demand of smartphones plunged in China, slumped across Asia, and slowed in the rest of the world. It is a period the smartphone industry will want to forget."

Strategy Analytics Senior Analyst Yiwen Wu said that though there are now signs of recovery in China, global smartphone shipments are expected to remain weak throughout March 2020 as many countries are still struggling with the coronavirus.

Apple Stores in several countries including the United States are closed for the time being, and millions of consumers are in lockdown or unable to shop for new devices.

Yiwen Wu, Senior Analyst at Strategy Analytics, added, "Despite tentative signs of recovery in China, we expect global smartphone shipments overall to remain weak throughout March, 2020. The coronavirus scare has spread to Europe, North America and elsewhere, and hundreds of millions of affluent consumers are in lockdown, unable or unwilling to shop for new devices. The smartphone industry will have to work harder than ever to lift sales in the coming weeks, such as online flash sales or generous discounts on bundling with hot products like smartwatches."

Apple in February said that its March quarter revenue will not meet its revenue goals, though we won't know how far below target Apple lands until its April earnings call.

Apple regularly adds new games to Apple Arcade, and this week's addition is Spyder, an adventure spy game from Sumo Digital that tasks players with taking on the role of a robot spider.

The game's storyline features British Spy Agency EP-8, which creates Agent 8, a super sophisticated miniature robot spider equipped with all kinds of gadgets and gizmos for cutting through panels, overloading terminals, flipping switches, opening valves, and more, all with the goal of sabotaging the plans of evil doers.

There's one objective in the game: saving the world. The game is set in a retro universe and includes the following features:

• See the world from a new perspective.
• Use amazing robot gadgets.
• Explore unique and open environments.
• Uncover secret intel.
• Solve larger-than-life puzzles.

‌Apple Arcade‌ subscribers can download Spyder from the App Store as of today. ‌Apple Arcade‌ is priced at $4.99 per month and provides users with access to more than 100 games with no additional fees or in-app purchases. Most ‌Apple Arcade‌ games are available on iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple TV.

Apple on Wednesday introduced new iPad Pro models equipped with an A12Z Bionic chip and new LiDAR Scanner, which is designed to deliver enhanced augmented reality experiences.

The first iPad Pro orders are expected to start arriving to customers on Wednesday, March 25, and to make sure the tablets reach consumers on time, Apple has begun shipping the new ‌iPad Pro‌ models from China.

Apple is not yet providing shipping details through its own tracking system, but customers in the United States who are receiving their packages through UPS can use the track by reference feature with a phone number or an order number to track their packages.

UPS My Choice, which displays upcoming deliveries in a calendar view for those who sign up for an account, also lists ‌iPad Pro‌ shipments that are in transit at the current time. Signing up for a UPS My Choice account is free.

While the new 11 and 12.9-inch ‌iPad Pro‌ models are expected to arrive next week, the new Magic Keyboard with trackpad that Apple debuted alongside them is not going to be available for purchase until sometime in May.

Orders placed today for the iPad Pro will arrive to customers between April 3 and April 7, with early supplies of the device available for March 25 delivery having been exhausted. Pricing on the new 11-inch ‌iPad Pro‌ starts at $799 for 128GB of storage, while pricing on the 12.9-inch model starts at $999 for 128GB of storage.

A new study conducted by driving academy and UK independent road safety charity IAM RoadSmart suggests that using Apple CarPlay while driving is more dangerous than texting or holding a phone to converse.

Drivers reacted 36 percent more slowly when using the voice function of ‌CarPlay‌, and 57 percent more slowly when using ‌CarPlay‌'s touch functionality. Comparatively, texting caused 35 percent slower response times, and using a hand-held phone caused 46 percent slower response times.

The study found that using ‌CarPlay‌ or Android Auto with touch control caused drivers to struggle with controlling the vehicle's position in the lane and keeping a consistent speed and headway to the vehicle in front. Some of the study's other findings:

• Participants failed to react as often to a stimulus on the road ahead when engaging with either Android Auto or Apple ‌CarPlay‌ - with reaction times being more than 50 per cent slower
• Reaction time to a stimulus on the road ahead was higher when selecting music through Spotify while using Android Auto and Apple ‌CarPlay‌
• The impact on reaction time when using touch control (rather than voice control) was worse than texting while driving
• Use of either system via touch control caused drivers to take their eyes off the road for longer than NHTSA (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration) recommended guidelines
• Participants underestimated by as much as 5 seconds the time they thought they spent looking away from the road when engaging with Android Auto and Apple ‌CarPlay‌ via touch control.

It's worth noting that this ‌CarPlay‌ test involved just 20 participants, with 20 other participants using Android Auto, which is a small test group and may not be representative of the usage experiences of all ‌CarPlay‌ owners.

It's also not clear how familiar the participants were with the ‌CarPlay‌ interface before beginning the test or whether they had used it prior to the testing, but IAM RoadSmart says there was a "comprehensive familiarization process."

The test consisted of asking participants to complete three drives on the same simulated test route: a control drive, a voice-enabled drive (interacting with ‌CarPlay‌ via voice commands) and a touch-enabled drive (using ‌CarPlay‌'s touch controls only).

The route included two music-related tasks accessing music on Spotify and BBC radio while following behind a car (2.4 miles), two navigation tasks to a restaurant or a petrol station in a simulation of erratic motorway traffic (5.6 miles), and a figure eight loop done while reading texts and making a call (two miles).

Each participant was asked to react by flashing their lights when a red bar appeared on the screen, which was done to measure reaction time to an external event. These red light flashes appeared at four times during the drive when the driver was engaged with ‌CarPlay‌.

Driving performance was measured by reaction time to the red bar, behavior measures like speed, lane position, and headway, eye gaze behavior, and self-reported performance.

Given the results of the study, IAM RoadSmart is calling on industry and government to "openly test and approve" ‌CarPlay‌ and Android Auto to develop "consistent standards that genuinely help minimize driver distraction." The full distracted driving study conducted by IAM RoadSmart can be read on the company's website [PDF].

Apple this week refreshed its MacBook Air lineup with a scissor switch Magic Keyboard and faster 10th-generation Intel Core processor options, including a 1.1GHz dual-core Core i3, 1.1GHz quad-core Core i5, and 1.2GHz quad-core Core i7.

Jason Snell of Six Colors was provided with the mid-range MacBook Air with a 1.1GHz quad-core Core i5 processor for testing purposes. In his first impressions article this morning, he shared Geekbench 5 benchmark results for this configuration, including a single-core score of 1,047 and a multi-core score of 2,658.

We averaged Snell's results with ten other Geekbench 5 results to end up with a single-core score of 1,072 and multi-core score of 2,714, suggesting that the 2020 MacBook Air with a 1.1GHz quad-core Core i5 is up to 76 percent faster than the 2018-2019 MacBook Air, which was only available with an 8th-generation 1.6GHz dual-core Core i5 chip.

While the new MacBook Air has a lower starting price of $999, many early reviews of the notebook suggest spending an extra $100 on the Core i5 processor, as the base model is limited to a dual-core Core i3 chip. Geekbench 5 results for that configuration are not very consistent yet, so it is hard to paint an accurate picture of performance, but average single-core and multi-core scores are currently 849 and 1,685 respectively, suggesting that the new $999 model could be up to 10 percent faster than the 2018-2019 MacBook Air.

The media has got its hands on the new MacBook Air and first impressions of the notebook after a day or two of usage are largely positive.

Following in the footsteps of the 16-inch MacBook Pro, the new MacBook Air features a redesigned Magic Keyboard with scissor switches that deliver 1mm of key travel for a comfortable and stable key feel. As with the 16-inch MacBook Pro, reviews find the keyboard on the new MacBook Air to be far better than the problematic butterfly keyboard of recent years.

TechCrunch's Brian Heater:

Unlike other iterative attempts to update the butterfly mechanism, the move back to a scissor switch is a marked improvement. The keys are still relatively soft compared to other systems, but the feel is much improved — not to mention not as loud while typing. The feeling here is pretty similar to what you get with Apple’s Bluetooth Magic Keyboard peripheral. Honestly, that makes it a valuable upgrade in and of itself.

CNBC's Todd Haselton said "I'm pleased to report that the new keyboard is a vast improvement."

Engadget's Dana Wollman went as far as putting "buy it for the keyboard" in the title of her piece.

Apple significantly redesigned the MacBook Air in 2018, but it also increased the base price of the notebook from $999 to $1,199. Fortunately, the 2020 base model not only starts at $999 again, but also comes with a doubled 256GB of storage. Writing for Six Colors, Jason Snell said this price "finally sets the bar at the right place."

One caveat of the new $999 base model is that it is equipped with a 1.1GHz dual-core Core i3 chip, but it is a newer 10th-generation Intel processor. Apple told CNBC's Todd Haselton that the Core i3 chip is a "big upgrade" from the 8th-generation 1.6GHz dual-core Core i5 chip in the base model 2018 MacBook Air.

Still, many reviews recommend spending an extra $100 to upgrade to a 1.1GHz quad-core Core i5 chip — the first quad-core MacBook Air configuration ever.

One criticism that Haselton offered is that the new MacBook Air continues to have a 720p webcam, with many customers wishing that Apple would offer a 1080p front-facing FaceTime camera on its notebooks.

More first impressions were shared by CNET's Dan Ackerman, Business Insider's Lisa Eadicicco, TechRadar's Gareth Beavis and Matt Hanson, PCMag's Tom Brant, Pocket-lint's Stuart Miles, and the Daily Express' David Snelling.

Video Impressions and Unboxings

Disney and Pixar's new animated movie "Onward" is following the recent trend of movies arriving early on digital platforms amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Starting in the United States tonight, March 20 at 5 p.m. PT, "Onward" will be available to purchase on digital retail platforms like iTunes for $19.99 (via Variety).

Following this, the movie will be streaming for Disney+ subscribers beginning Friday, April 3. "Onward" was released in theaters two weeks ago, right as the coronavirus pandemic was beginning to spread across the United States.

Many studios are now releasing films early on digital, due to the fact that going to a movie theater is no longer feasible for most Americans. Beginning today, Universal films like "The Invisible Man," "The Hunt," and "Emma" are available to rent for $19.99 on iTunes and other platforms.

The iPhone 12 is on course for a fall launch despite disruptions to mobile manufacturing in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak, according to Bloomberg, citing people familiar with Apple's supply chain.

Apple’s next flagship iPhones, with 5G wireless capabilities, are still on schedule to launch in the fall, although that's partly because mass production isn't due to begin until May, said the people. They asked not to be identified discussing private supply chain issues.

Apple typically announces its latest flagship smartphones in September, with mass production beginning in May, which usually gives assemblers and component suppliers time to manufacture and amass units for shipping later in the fall.

Earlier this month, a Bloomberg report cited Bank of America analysts claiming that Apple's 5G iPhone could be delayed to due to the coronavirus outbreak. The analysts said Apple's ‌‌5G iPhone‌‌ release could be delayed by a month because of restrictions put in place on Apple employees visiting China earlier in the year to perfect assembly processes with manufacturing partners like Foxconn.

Those delays had the potential to eat into the time Apple needs to finalize orders for chips and other ‌‌iPhone‌‌ components that need to be made well in advance of when full production begins. However, supply chain experts told Reuters in late February that Apple still has time to keep the ‌‌‌iPhone‌‌‌ schedule on track, despite the travel restrictions.

Apple plans to release four so-called iPhone 12 models in the fall, including one 5.4-inch model, two 6.1-inch models, and one 6.7-inch model, according to analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. All of the devices are expected include OLED displays and support 5G, and they may sport a new design that includes more of a flat edged metal frame like the iPad Pro or ‌iPhone‌ 4.

Meanwhile, Apple's new ‌iPad Pro‌ models begin shipping next week. Production of those devices likely started at the top of the year, according to Bloomberg, although DigiTimes today reports that Apple is in the process of ramping up ‌iPad Pro‌ shipments, with volume for the new tablet series from the suppliers to climb about 40 percent sequentially in the second quarter.

Apple this week set worldwide purchase limits on its newly updated ‌iPad Pro‌ and MacBook Air models, its entire range of ‌iPhone‌ models, and the Mac mini on its online stores. Apple often places purchase limits on products in some Asian countries to combat the gray market, but the expanded restrictions are thought to be an effort to balance supply and demand amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Following in the footsteps of Netflix, YouTube is reducing the quality of its videos in Europe to reduce the strain on broadband networks caused by an upsurge in home usage following the coronavirus outbreak, Reuters reports.

"We are making a commitment to temporarily switch all traffic in the EU to standard definition by default," the company said in a statement.

Standard definition videos are more pixellated and not as sharp as high definition videos, but require less data transmission as a result.

The decision follows news on Thursday that Netflix will comply with a request from the European Union to lower its streaming video quality in Europe to ease network strain from the millions of people working from home. Netflix said it would reduce the bitrate of its streams for 30 days.

Internet traffic has increased with more adults switching to remote working to comply with social distancing measures. With schools closing in many countries, working adults also face the prospect of having to compete for bandwidth with children playing games and watching videos or logging in to e-learning sessions. The launch of Disney+ in Europe next Tuesday, which will offer 4K-resolution content, is unlikely to help matters.

U.K. internet service provider BT told BBC News that its broadband infrastructure has plenty of "headroom" to cope with increased demand as more people stay home due to coronavirus. The company said that since Tuesday, daytime traffic on its network had increased by between 35-60 percent, daytime and evening usage was still much lower than the highest levels it had ever recorded. "The additional load... is well within manageable limits and we have plenty of headroom for it to grow still further," said a BT spokesperson.

Vodafone and TalkTalk, which also provide mobile and broadband services to UK households, gave similar assurances to the BBC despite also seeing increases in web traffic. However, on Tuesday, all U.K. mobile networks suffered severe outages after the number of voice calls rose by 30 per cent and overloaded the system, leaving hundreds of thousands of customers unable to connect calls to people on other mobile networks.

Like Netflix, YouTube has not said whether the bitrate reduction will be implemented in other countries like the United States, but it does not appear that U.S. internet providers have called for such measures at this time.

Apple is still on course to launch a 12.9-inch iPad Pro with a mini-LED display later this year, according to Taiwanese industry publication DigiTimes.

Apple reportedly prefers mini LED to OLED for its medium-size devices and will launch an iPad Pro with backlighting in the fourth quarter of 2020.

The claim is made in relation to a separate paywalled article underscoring Apple's eagerness to adopt mini-LED technology, which allows for thinner and lighter product designs, while offering many of the same benefits of OLED displays used on the latest iPhones, including good wide color gamut performance, high contrast and dynamic range, and local dimming for truer blacks.

Mini LED is expected to get a significant boost in applications as Apple is proceeding with R&D of devices adopting mini LED backlighting, and may commercialize more such devices in the next five years, according to industry sources.

Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has previously said that a mini-LED version of 12.9-inch ‌‌iPad Pro‌‌, which is expected to be a high-end option, will launch in the fall of 2020. Rumors continue to suggest that the fall 12.9-inch model is still planned despite the refreshed spring ‌iPad Pro‌‌ models announced earlier this week.

Apple has six mini-LED products in the works that are set to debut in 2020 and 2021, according to Kuo. Apple is said to be debuting the technology in the aforementioned 12.9-inch ‌iPad Pro‌, a 27-inch iMac Pro, a 14.1-inch MacBook Pro, a 16-inch ‌‌MacBook Pro‌‌, a 10.2.-inch iPad, and a 7.9-inch ‌‌iPad‌‌ mini.

Kuo did not give projected launch dates for the other devices with the exception of the ‌‌iMac‌ Pro‌, which Kuo expects to launch in the fourth quarter of 2020, and the 7.9-inch ‌‌iPad‌‌ mini, which he says will launch in 2020.

Netflix has complied with a request from the European Union to lower its streaming video quality in Europe to ease network strain from the millions of people working from home.

According to the BBC, Netflix is reducing video quality in Europe for the next 30 days. Netflix says that the change will reduce data consumption by 25 percent, but that viewers will still be satisfied with picture quality.

To limit data use, Netflix is cutting streaming bitrates, which could cause videos to look a bit more pixelated.

"Following the discussions between Commissioner Thierry Breton and [Netflix chief executive] Reed Hastings, and given the extraordinary challenges raised by the coronavirus, Netflix has decided to begin reducing bitrates across all our streams in Europe for 30 days," the company said.

The European Union asked Netflix, YouTube, and other streaming services to consider temporary reductions in streaming quality due to the abnormally large number of people working from home and taking advantage of streaming services.

The EU wants streaming platforms to limit content to standard definition instead of high-definition, and it also wants individual users to pay attention to their data consumption rates.

Having a large number of people at home has led to worries that broadband connections, which are designed to cope with evening surges in traffic, may not be able to handle long days of adults engaging in video conferencing and children taking online classes or playing games. Italy, one of the countries hardest hit by the pandemic, saw a 75 percent rise in home broadband and mobile network traffic over the weekend.

Netflix has not said whether the bitrate reduction will be implemented in other countries like the United States, but it does not appear that U.S. internet providers have called for such measures at this time. The United States Federal Communications Commission earlier this week permitted Verizon, T-Mobile, and US Cellular to temporarily use additional spectrum to meet increased demand for broadband access.