MacRumors

"American Idol" is one of many shows to be on hiatus amid the ongoing health crisis, and last month we learned that filming is being done remotely using iPhones to finish out the current season.

According to a new TechCrunch article, the home studio rigs provided by ABC to "American Idol" hosts and contestants comprise a three-camera setup, including three iPhone 11 Pros, a tripod and a ring light, with production teams helping with camera setup and editing at a safe distance from home.

Apple also provided a statement for the article, saying its iPhones offer a novel portable solution for professionals to deliver "broadcast quality" video, despite the stay-at-home restrictions.

We know that people are relying on their favorite shows while staying at home, and we are happy to be a part of that process with the team at American Idol. iPhone offers a unique solution to deliver broadcast quality video, in the palm of your hand, while keeping production staff and on-air talent safe and in their homes.

Apple's consumer equipment has been used before to produce TV shows and other broadcasts from home. For example, well-known talk show host Conan O'Brien shoots his show from home using an ‌iPhone‌, while all of his guests use Skype and the rest of his crew is working from home.

Apple itself is planning to use iPhones for streaming broadcasts at WWDC 2020, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, although the extent of this reliance on iPhones is likely to be limited to developer sessions. Expect Apple's keynote presentation and other prominent broadcasts to involve more professional studio rigs and tracking equipment.

Apple's virtual WWDC event kicks off next month and will be hosted in the Apple Developer app and the Apple Developer website. The event will be free for all developers, and Apple's keynote is likely to fall on on June 22, when WWDC begins.

Apple's upcoming high-end over-ear headphones (tentatively called AirPods Studio) could have a head and neck detection feature that's similar to the ear detection feature in the AirPods and AirPods Pro, according to a new report from 9to5Mac that cites people familiar with Apple's plans.

In the AirPods and ‌AirPods Pro‌, ear detection is designed to stop a song when the AirPods or removed, pause a song when a single AirPod is removed, or play a song when the removed AirPod is put back in the ear.

AirPods Studio will have similar sensors that will detect whether the headphones are on the head or the neck, presumably playing or pausing content when the headphones are worn on the head. When on the neck, the sensor could keep the music paused.

Another sensor will detect left and right ears for routing the audio channels, which means there will be no right or wrong side for wearing the AirPods Studio. Pairing the AirPods Studio with a Mac or iOS device will unlock custom equalizer settings with low, medium, and high frequency adjustments available.

Prior rumors have suggested Apple's high-end over-ear headphones will feature Active Noise Cancellation and Transparency Mode much like the current ‌AirPods Pro‌, and an April report from Bloomberg indicated the headphones will have interchangeable ear pads and headband padding allowing for customization.

Apple may also sell the headphones in multiple materials, including a premium version with leather-like fabrics and a fitness-focused model with liter, more breathable materials.

A rumor from this weekend said that Apple could price the high-end over-ear headphones at $349, and that the name could be "AirPods Studio."

iFixit last week shared x-rays of the new Magic Keyboard for iPad Pro, giving us a little look at what's inside Apple's newest keyboard design, and today, iFixit is back with a mini trackpad teardown.

In an update to the original x-ray article, iFixit disassembled the trackpad to take a closer look at what's inside.

There's a single button inside the trackpad that operates on a lever system. When you press near the center, regardless of whether you're pressing the top, middle, or bottom center, you're pressing on the button.

Pressing near the top, bottom, or one of the corners activates the lever system, causing the contact plate in the center to be forced upward to make a click happen.

iFixit says that the trackpad is the only part of the Magic Keyboard that's able to be taken apart without major destruction to the accessory, so a further look inside will have to wait until the site is ready to publish repair guides.

Apple's new Magic Keyboard with trackpad works with the 2018 and 2020 ‌iPad Pro‌ models. It's priced at $299 for the 11-inch version and $349 for the 12.9-inch version, and can be purchased from Apple's website.

Multiple sources have indicated that Apple is considering expanding its ProMotion technology to the iPhone, allowing for a variable refresh rate of up to 120Hz for smoother motion content and greater responsiveness. The feature debuted on the iPad Pro in 2017.

The rumors began in July 2019 when a reputable Samsung leaker known as "Ice Universe" on Twitter said Apple was considering a switchable 60Hz/120Hz refresh rate on at least one iPhone in 2020. This was followed by a DigiTimes Taiwan report in October that claimed Apple would release an iPhone with a 120Hz display this year.

More recently, both Max Weinbach and Jon Prosser have claimed that this year's higher-end iPhone 12 Pro models will in fact support ProMotion, although Prosser said there is a possibility that Apple could disable ProMotion at the software level prior to the devices launching if it decides the feature consumes too much battery life.

On that note, display analyst Ross Young today tweeted that the rumored Samsung Galaxy Note20+ will be the only flagship smartphone in 2020 to feature low-power LTPO display technology, adding that the iPhone will follow in 2021.

Young believes LTPO is essential if Apple plans to support ProMotion on the iPhone, as it would allow for a variable refresh as low as 1Hz when the device is inactive to optimize battery life. As with the Apple Watch Series 5, the technology could also pave the way for iPhones to have an always-on display option next year.

Here is how Apple describes LTPO for the Watch:

The low temperature poly-silicon and oxide display features a reinvented pixel architecture that lets the screen refresh rate dip from 60Hz to a power-sipping 1Hz when the watch is inactive. A new low-power driver, ultra-efficient power management, and a new ambient light sensor work together so the display can stay always on with up to 18 hours of battery life.

It is worth noting that the iPad Pro supports ProMotion without LTPO, so perhaps the feature really will launch on the iPhone this year, but it sounds like there is a possibility that Apple will simply wait until 2021.

Apple has hired multiple well-known software engineers with cloud computing expertise in recent months, according to a report from tech site Protocol.

The range of employees Apple has hired has created "a stir" in the "tight-knit cloud community," and is a sign that Apple is perhaps planning to build serious cloud infrastructure to compete with Amazon, Microsoft, and Google.

Employees have expertise in containers and Kubernetes. Michael Crosby, for example, known as one of the engineers of containers as they exist today, joined Apple in 2020. Arun Gupta, who worked at Amazon Web Services, joined Apple in February and is leading Apple's open source efforts. Another former AWS employee who worked on managed container services, Maksym Pavlenko, has also transitioned to Apple. Francesc Campoy, an ex-Google employee, is now at Apple working on Kubernetes, an open source container orchestration platform that allows for managing containerized applications across hosts.

Apple has also listed multiple job postings that suggest it is working on new tools for its internal software development teams.

Apple already has a huge cloud-based platform that encompasses iCloud, the App Store, Apple TV+, Apple Music, and more, but it is not up to par with the cloud technology used by companies like Amazon, Microsoft, Google, Facebook, and Netflix.

Apple in 2018 announced plans to invest $10 billion in data center construction, and in 2019, joined the Cloud Native Computing Foundation that hosts Kubernetes and containers.

iHeartMedia today announced that Apple CEO Tim Cook will be participating in its special podcast "Commencement: Speeches for the Class of 2020."

With most college graduates unable to attend commencement this year, the podcast will help fill the void with a series of speeches from Cook and a long list of other notable figures, such as Bill and Melinda Gates, Becky G, Rita Wilson, Khalid, Mary J. Blige, Hillary Clinton, John Legend, and Tim McGraw.

iHeartRadio knows how important the graduation ceremony is. After four long years of hard work, commencement offers one last moment to reflect before you toss your hat into the air and take on the world. We know that during these difficult times, most graduates won't get to attend their ceremony in person. So, we've partnered with some of the biggest names across industries, to write a commencement speech just for you. From 4-star generals to all-star comedians, legendary coaches to John Legend himself, these are the words we hope will inspire you.

The podcast episodes will be released on May 15, ahead of "National Graduation Day" on May 17 in the United States, as noted by Variety.

Ever since Apple discontinued the 15-inch MacBook Pro in favor of a new 16-inch model with slimmer bezels last year, the natural assumption has been that a 14-inch MacBook Pro will eventually replace the 13-inch model.

Apple ended up sticking with the same size display when it refreshed the 13-inch MacBook Pro with a Magic Keyboard and faster processor options earlier this month, but a 14-inch model might still be on the table, with the anonymously-run Twitter account "L0vetodream" today hinting at a 2021 release. No further details were provided.

The same Twitter account accurately revealed several details about the new iPhone SE before anyone else, including that the device would launch in the second week of April and come in three storage capacities. Likewise, the account accurately claimed that new iPad Pro models would launch in the third week of March.

Given that the 13-inch MacBook Pro is typically only updated once per year, a 2021 release would hardly be a surprise at this point, but it is noteworthy that Apple apparently still has a 14-inch model on its roadmap.

Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has previously said that Apple plans to release at least six Mini-LED products by the end of 2021, including both 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models. All together, these rumors could suggest that a 14-inch MacBook Pro with Mini-LED backlighting will be released at some point next year.

Apple's rumored iPhone 12 lineup will start with 128GB of storage, according to Jon Prosser of the YouTube channel Front Page Tech. This would be twice as much base storage as the 64GB that Apple has offered for the last three years.

Prosser revealed this info in his latest video, claiming that 5.4-inch and 6.1-inch iPhone 12 models will be available with 128GB or 256GB of storage and that 6.1-inch and 6.7-inch iPhone 12 Pro models will have 128GB, 256GB, and 512GB storage options. All four models are expected to feature OLED displays, 5G support, and a faster A14 chip.

Prosser also corroborated rumors that iPhone 12 Pro models will support ProMotion, unless Apple disables the feature in software due to battery life concerns.

Apple has gradually increased the base storage capacity of its newest iPhones over the years, going from 16GB to 32GB with the iPhone 7 lineup and from 32GB to 64GB with the iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, and iPhone X.

Apple is expected to unveil its iPhone 12 lineup in September, although at least one model might not be available to order until October or November.

Update: An anonymous Twitter account with a thus-far proven track record has suggested that the two iPhone 12 models will start with 64GB of storage, with 128GB of base storage reserved for the higher-end iPhone 12 Pro models.

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Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Amazon. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

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Apple plans to invest around NT$10 billion (US$334 million) towards the opening of a new factory at the Hsinchu Science Park in Taiwan, according to a Chinese report in the Economic Daily News. English coverage is available at Focus Taiwan.

The report claims that Apple will use the factory to produce Mini-LED and Micro-LED displays for future devices, in partnership with Taiwan-based suppliers Epistar and AU Optronics. In March, analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said Apple is planning at least six Mini-LED products for release by the end of 2021, including 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models, an iMac Pro, a 12.9-inch iPad Pro, a 10.2-inch iPad, and a 7.9-inch ‌iPad‌ mini.

Kuo has previously said that Mini-LED backlit displays will allow for thinner and lighter product designs, while offering many of the same benefits of OLED displays used on the latest iPhones, including high contrast and dynamic range.

Apple already has a Mini-LED and Micro-LED research and development facility at the same research park, built in 2014.