Amazon has confirmed that Apple Music will eventually be supported on additional Alexa-enabled speakers, according to a tweet from Mashable's Raymond Wong spotted by AppleInsider. Amazon didn't provide a timeframe for the rollout.
A variety of third-party Alexa speakers and devices are available from brands such as Sonos, JBL, Ultimate Ears, and First Alert.
🚨UPDATE!!!🚨Amazon has confirmed to me @AppleMusic will be coming to other Alexa enabled devices in the future. When? Idk... but hopefully soon https://t.co/ZYqyfNKWk1
— Raymond Wong📱💾📼 (@raywongy) December 19, 2018
Apple Music went live on Amazon's line of Echo speakers last Friday in the United States. This allows users to link Apple Music with their Amazon account in the Alexa app for iOS and use Alexa voice commands to control playback of Apple Music songs and playlists and Beats 1 radio on Echo speakers.
To access this feature, simply use a voice command such as "Alexa, play music by Ed Sheeran on Apple Music" or "Alexa, play today's hits on Apple Music." Apple Music can also be set as the default music service in the Alexa app so that "Apple Music" does not need to be specified each time.
Apple and Amazon announced this new partnership in late November, with Amazon saying it is "committed to offering great music providers to our customers," and referring to Apple Music as "one of the most popular music services."
Apple on Monday released iOS 12.1.2 exclusively for iPhones. The software update fixes bugs related to eSIM activation on the iPhone XR, iPhone XS, and iPhone XS Max, and addresses an issue that could affect cellular connectivity in Turkey on those devices, according to Apple's release notes.
In China, as planned, iOS 12.1.2 also implements minor changes to address two Qualcomm patents that led to a Chinese court issuing a preliminary injunction on the iPhone 6s through iPhone X last week, according to Apple's release notes in Chinese. These changes were not mentioned in any other countries.
A translation of the iOS 12.1.2 release notes in China:
iOS 12.1.2 includes iPhone bug fixes. This update:
- Fixes bugs with eSIM activation for iPhone XR, iPhone XS, and iPhone XS Max - Addresses an issue that could affect cellular connectivity in Turkey for iPhone XR, iPhone XS, and iPhone XS Max - Introduces a new animation when force closing apps - Updates share sheet for setting contact and wallpaper images
MacRumors uncovered a video on Weibo of the new animation for force closing apps on an iPhone running iOS 12.1.2 in China. Rather than moving up and off the screen when swiped closed, which looks familiar to Qualcomm's patent in China, apps now appear to shrink into themselves when swiped closed.
Video Credit: 灰原帆 / Weibo
As noted on Twitter by our editor-in-chief Eric Slivka, it appears that Apple may have rushed the release of iOS 12.1.2 to address the Qualcomm patents and possibly other time-sensitive bug fixes. The update that was previously intended to be iOS 12.1.2 will likely be transitioning to become iOS 12.1.3.
iOS 12.1.2 is a 16C build, while the beta was a 16D build. Looks like Apple rushed out the release with emergency fixes/updates and will push back the original 12.1.2 to a 12.1.3 release.
— Eric Slivka (@eslivka) December 17, 2018
In a statement issued on Tuesday, Qualcomm's chief lawyer Don Rosenberg said that Apple continues to "flout the legal system" by violating the preliminary injunction, which should have resulted in affected iPhones being unavailable for purchase in China, and by releasing misleading statements about the ruling.
Apple called Qualcomm's efforts "another desperate move by a company whose illegal practices are under investigation by regulators around the world," and said that "Apple and many other companies, consumers, and government will suffer truly irreparable harm" if an iPhone sales ban were to be upheld in China.
Amazon and B&H Photo today have discounts on a few new Apple products from 2018, including the 9.7-inch iPad and MacBook Air. In many instances, these are the lowest-ever prices on each device, and some retailers like B&H Photo are providing further discounts thanks to clippable coupons on each product page.
At Amazon, you can buy the 2018 9.7-inch iPad for up to $100 off in multiple configurations. The sales start with the 32GB Wi-Fi model down to a new low of $229.00, from $329.00, and also include some cellular options. You can check out the full list of items discounted below:
Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.
For the MacBook Air, you can find discounts of up to $150 off today, including 128GB and 256GB models of the new laptop. Amazon and B&H Photo also have notable discounts on the older 2017 MacBook Air, so check out the full list below for all of these sales:
13-inch MacBook Air (2018)
8GB RAM, 128GB HD (Gold) - $1,049.00, down from $1,199.00 at Amazon and B&H
8GB RAM, 128GB HD (Silver) - $1,049.00, down from $1,199.00 at Amazon and B&H
8GB RAM, 128GB HD (Space Gray) - $1,049.00, down from $1,199.00 at B&H
Lastly, Aspyr has Sid Meier's Civilization VI for Mac down to just $15.00, from $59.00, during its new holiday sale. You can find all of the Mac system requirements for the strategy game right here.
For more ideas on holiday gifts, be sure to visit our full Deals Roundup to check out this week's discounts, including Apple's HomePod for $249.00 at B&H Photo and a new 25 percent sale on select gifts at Pad & Quill.
A few months ago, the 2019 Lexus ES became the first vehicle from Toyota's luxury brand to add support for CarPlay, built on top of the brand's Enform 2.0 infotainment system, and Lexus now has a half dozen 2019 models announced with CarPlay support.
I've had a chance to spend some time with a Lexus ES 300h Ultra Luxury hybrid model that includes a number of technology features, so here's a look at what iPhone users can expect now that Lexus is rolling out CarPlay support.
CarPlay support comes standard on all ES models starting from October production, and the base ES infotainment system comes with an 8-inch color display that can use a tethered smartphone with the Scout GPS Link service to provide navigation. My test vehicle, however, was equipped with a Navigation Package that boosts the center display to a 12.3-inch widescreen palette and provides native onboard navigation capabilities.
Widescreen native navigation
This widescreen display offers a choice of an ultra-wide view of main apps within the Enform system like navigation or a split-screen view to put a traditional size navigation pane alongside an audio pane, for example.
Split screen native navigation with audio
Widescreen CarPlay
The 12.3-inch display on the Lexus ES makes it one of the few vehicles on the market, along with some models from the likes of Mercedes and Alfa Romeo, to support widescreen CarPlay, which takes over the entire display. While most users are familiar with the traditional 4x2 grid of icons for the CarPlay home screen, with a wide enough display as in the Lexus ES with navigation, the CarPlay interface will actually increase this to a 5x2 grid.
CarPlay home screen
Individual apps are of course also optimized for the large screen, which means you'll get an encompassing view of what's ahead of you in Apple Maps and other CarPlay navigation apps.
CarPlay Apple Maps
Music apps and more are also expanded to fill the screen, but the extra real estate really isn't of much benefit as it typically results in more padding and blank space rather than being able to display additional content.
CarPlay "Now Playing" screen
This widescreen CarPlay interface, while offering some benefits with the increased scope of view, does have some drawbacks. The primary one is that with CarPlay taking over the entire display, you don't have a simultaneous view of other apps from the Enform system such as audio. You can configure the digital driver's display to show some audio information such as the radio or SiriusXM stations and song titles, but this view is pretty limited.
Driver's display with audio info showing at left
Unlike the Acura RDX I reviewed that limits CarPlay to taking over the left three-fourths of the display while maintaining a view of key Acura infotainment functions in the right display pane, there's no ability to do this on the Lexus. Ideally, full screen or partial screen would be a user preference, but that's simply not how it works in either the Acura or the Lexus, with the two brands opting for opposite solutions.
Remote Touch and CarPlay Controls
The giant 12.3-inch widescreen (as well as the smaller standard 8-inch screen) is not a touchscreen, which makes reasonable sense considering just how far the driver would have to stretch to reach the right side of it. As a result, Lexus has opted for a Remote Touch trackpad interface and associated hardware buttons down on the center console within easier reach of the driver.
Remote Touch trackpad on center console
The previous joystick-style Remote Touch interface used by Lexus has been the subject of significant criticism, and while the trackpad may improve things a bit, it's still a bit of a chore to use. The system does not use absolute positioning as in the Acura, so navigating around the Enform interface on the Lexus requires dragging your finger around on the trackpad to get the cursor where you want it and then pressing or double tapping on the trackpad to register your selection.
The system offers both haptic and audio feedback as the cursor lands on clickable items, which some may consider helpful but which I found to be a bit much. Fortunately, these can be turned off entirely or the volume/haptic strength adjusted.
The trackpad does support some gestures including pinch-to-zoom on the Enform system's maps (but not CarPlay), double tap (equivalent to press), and flick (to quickly scroll lists or pan Enform maps), but it's still a somewhat limited substitute for the intuitiveness of direct touchscreen manipulation.
Dock-style main menu
Hardware buttons above the trackpad offer quick access to the navigation app, the main menu (which slides up from the bottom like a dock rather than taking you to an entirely different screen) and a "back" function to walk you backward out of your current location within the app and settings hierarchy. Below the trackpad is a single button labeled with an inverted double chevron that provides a supplemental function depending on where you are in the system and is only occasionally active.
Steering wheel controls with talk switch at lower right of left cluster
As is typical, voice access to CarPlay via Siri can be controlled using a talk switch on the steering wheel, with a short press bringing up the Lexus voice assistant and a long press activating Siri.
With most infotainment systems, the volume of the radio/audio and navigation voice prompts can be controlled independently, typically with changes made while the navigation voice is speaking adjusting that volume while changes made at other times affect the main audio volume. That's not the case with the Lexus Enform system, either for the built-in navigation or CarPlay navigation, and it's rather infuriating. The only way to adjust the volume of navigation voice prompts is to dive into a settings menu that isn't even available while the car is in motion.
Ports and Connectivity
The wired CarPlay connection is managed through a pair of USB ports near the front of the center console in a section that can be hidden by a pop-up cover when not in use. Two media devices can be connected to the Enform system simultaneously, but if either of them is an iPhone connecting as CarPlay, the other USB port becomes charge-only.
USB ports in center console
To the right of the USB ports is a cavity with a removable plastic insert that divides it into a cupholder and a narrow upright phone slot. You won't be able to see much of your screen when your phone is in the slot, but otherwise it can be a convenient, space-saving place to put your phone, provided your phone fits.
Upright phone slot in center console
The slot holds my iPhone XS Max in an Apple case in the normal position with essentially no room to spare. If I want to have the phone plugged in for CarPlay or charging and need to place the phone in the slot upside down, it doesn't fit due to the slight protrusions of the volume and power buttons on the upper part of the phone. A smaller phone model in a thin case would fit just fine though.
Rear USB ports
On the rear of the center console is a pair of 2.1A charge-only USB ports with spring-loaded covers, as well as a 12V power port. There is also a 12V power port up front inside the center console compartment.
Qi Wireless Charging
While Lexus's CarPlay implementation is wired, the ES does have an optional Qi wireless charger, although it's tucked away inside the center console compartment. It keeps your phone secure and hidden away, but for those who prefer a charger more out in the open where it's easy to toss the phone onto it as you sit down and grab it as you exit the car, the compartment location makes things a little more inconvenient.
Qi charger in center console compartment
Even more so, the wireless charger is a tray that's partially tucked under the front lip of the center console with only a small amount of vertical clearance, and the charger isn't particularly large. I have an iPhone XS Max with an Apple leather case on it, and my phone just barely fits on the charger. I have to carefully slide it under the lip of the console compartment to get it onto the charger, and then it takes a little bit of maneuvering to get the phone out again.
Phone charging on Qi charger
Smaller phones would have a bit more room side to side, but if you're using a thicker case you can likely forget about using the wireless charger. At least for my phone, the tight fit certainly ensures the phone remains secure on the charger, but overall there's just too much of an effort required to get my phone on and off the charger when quick and convenient is my primary goal in using a wireless charger to begin with.
The wireless charger is a standalone option on all trims, but its $75 price tag is remarkably cheap compared to some other manufacturers that are charging more like $300 or even as much as $500 for the option.
Wrap-up
CarPlay on the new Lexus ES has some novel attributes, but overall the experience leaves a bit to be desired. The widescreen CarPlay experience is definitely something different compared to most other manufacturers, and the expansive view of CarPlay navigation apps is very nice. But other CarPlay apps can't really take advantage of the extra screen real estate, so the benefits are limited. The widescreen CarPlay also comes at a cost when there's no option for a split-screen view that would let you see information from both CarPlay and the Enform system side-by-side.
Trackpad infotainment control systems are hard to get right in an age when we're so accustomed to direct manipulation on our iPhones and iPads, and I feel like the Remote Touch interface in the Lexus ES isn't the best implementation out there. Navigating around the large screen via trackpad is cumbersome, and while the Enform system helps a bit by snapping to available UI actions as you get close, you don't get that assistance when using CarPlay.
Wireless charging is becoming more and more prevalent in vehicles, but it's frequently slow and in the case of the Lexus ES it's not particularly convenient to use with it being a tight fit tucked away in the center console compartment. And of course, it feels like a missed opportunity to not offer wireless CarPlay, although it's hard to put blame uniquely on Lexus considering BMW is the only manufacturer that has managed to roll it out.
The 2019 Lexus ES starts at $39,600, but if you want to max out your trim and options to get all of the goodies like a hybrid engine, premium audio/navigation package, and more, you'll be approaching $55,000.
CarPlay is thankfully included on all trims at no additional charge as of October production, so as long as you don't end up with one of the first ES vehicles to roll off the line, you'll be good to go. If you want the widescreen 12.3-inch center display rather than the more traditional 8-inch screen, you'll need to add several options and packages, including the Navigation Package, that total around $4,500 at a minimum.
This unique stack can be configured to show your most recently opened apps, documents, or servers, but what you can't do is make it show all your recent items, regardless of kind.
One solution is to add a recently opened items folder to your Dock instead. The following steps guide you through the process of creating one using Finder's smart folder feature.
Open a Finder window and select File -> New Smart Folder in the menu bar. Alternatively, right-click (or Ctrl-click) the Finder icon in your Dock and select New Smart Folder.
In the Finder window that opens, make sure the search header is selected as This Mac, then click the plus icon in the upper right of the viewing area.
Select Last opened date in the first search criteria dropdown.
Select within last in the second dropdown.
In the third and final dropdown, select how far back you'd like the folder to show recently opened items for. Your options are days, weeks, months, and years.
In the input field to the left of your timescale selection, specify the number of days/weeks/months/years of recently opened files to show.
To restrict your recent items folder to a certain kind of file – images, for example – click the plus button to add another row, then select a kind from the second dropdown. (Depending on the kind you select, you may be offered an additional dropdown to further limit the criteria.)
Now, hold down the Option key. Note how the plus icon at the end of the row changes to an ellipsis. Click this, and you'll be able to add search parameters that exclude certain items like applications and folders from your recents list.
In the second row dropdown, select None of the following are true.
In the third row, first dropdown, select Kind.
In the third row, second dropdown, select the type of item you wish to exclude.
If you want to add more exclusion criteria, hold the Option key and click the ellipsis icon in the first row. When you're done, click Save in the upper right of the viewing area.
In the save dialog that appears, give your smart folder a name, and select your Desktop as the location for your folder. You can also opt to include the folder in Finder's sidebar by checking the box next to Add to Sidebar.
Click Save.
Switch to your Desktop and drag and drop your new smart folder to the right of the the Dock, which will automatically move any existing icons behind the divider to make space for it. (If you like, you can delete the same folder on your Desktop once it's safely docked.)
Finally, right-click (or Ctrl-click) the docked smart folder and select Folder in the contextual menu.
The last step gives your recently opened items folder a distinctive icon in the Dock.
Note that the same contextual menu also provides view and sort options to further customize the folder's behavior.
Today marks the fifth anniversary of Apple's last update to the Mac Pro, as reflected in the MacRumors Buyer's Guide.
Mac Pro from 2013 to present
Apple released the second-generation Mac Pro on December 19, 2013, starting at $2,999, and it remains that price today after some reshuffling of configurations despite having over five year old hardware, including up to a 12-core Intel Xeon E5 processor, 64GB of ECC RAM, 1TB of SSD storage, and dual AMD FirePro D700 GPUs.
Last year, during a roundtable discussion about the Mac Pro with John Gruber and a few other reporters, Apple's software engineering chief Craig Federighi admitted that the current Mac Pro's so-called "trash can" design has a limited thermal capacity that doesn't always meet the needs of the most demanding workflows:
I think we designed ourselves into a bit of a thermal corner, if you will. We designed a system with the kind of GPUs that at the time we thought we needed, and that we thought we could well serve with a two GPU architecture. That that was the thermal limit we needed, or the thermal capacity we needed. But workloads didn’t materialize to fit that as broadly as we hoped.
Being able to put larger single GPUs required a different system architecture and more thermal capacity than that system was designed to accommodate. So it became fairly difficult to adjust. At the same time, so many of our customers were moving to iMac that we saw a path to address many, many more of those that were finding themselves limited by a Mac Pro through next generation iMac. And really put a lot of our energy behind that.
Fortunately, the long wait of 1,826 days and counting for an all-new Mac Pro should finally be over by the end of next year.
Last year, at the same Mac Pro roundtable discussion, Apple's marketing chief Phil Schiller revealed that the company is "completely rethinking the Mac Pro," with work underway on a new version that will be Apple's "highest-end, high-throughput desktop system" designed for its "demanding pro customers."
Schiller said the new Mac Pro will be a "modular" system and accompanied by a new Thunderbolt Display successor:
As part of doing a new Mac Pro — it is, by definition, a modular system — we will be doing a pro display as well. Now you won't see any of those products this year; we’re in the process of that. We think it's really important to create something great for our pro customers who want a Mac Pro modular system, and that'll take longer than this year to do.
Apple briefly reiterated its plans in a press release about the iMac Pro in December 2017:
In addition to the new iMac Pro, Apple is working on a completely redesigned, next-generation Mac Pro architected for pro customers who need the highest performance, high-throughput system in a modular, upgradeable design, as well as a new high-end pro display.
It isn't often that Apple pre-announces new products in its pipeline, but there were growing concerns the company was no longer focused on professional users, to the point of Schiller apologizing to and reassuring customers:
If we've had a pause in upgrades and updates, we're sorry for that — what happened with the Mac Pro — and we're going to come out with something great to replace it.
We're committed to the Mac, we've got great talent on the Mac, both hardware and software, we've got great products planned for the future, and as far as our horizon line can see, the Mac is a core component of the things Apple delivers, including to our pro customers.
In April, Apple confirmed that the new Mac Pro will be released in 2019, but it didn't say exactly when in the year.
Mac Pro from 2006 to 2012
There is some debate as to how "modular" the new Mac Pro will truly be, but many are hopeful that Apple will return to a truly upgradeable tower design like 2006 to 2012 models of the Mac Pro, which can be opened with a lever on the back. Others will be quick to dismiss that idea as wishful thinking.
Apple has yet to preview the design, features, tech specs, or pricing of the new Mac Pro, details that will very likely be held until WWDC 2019 in June or another Apple event at some point next year, so we'll have to keep waiting for now.
Apple has recently been sending out unsolicited notifications to iOS users, promoting Carpool Karaoke episodes and the availability of Apple Music on Amazon Echo devices.
Multiple unwanted and unapproved notifications direct from Apple have gone out during the month of December, irritating iPhone users who aren't interested in the features that Apple is promoting.
Apple started sending out Carpool Karaoke notifications earlier this month via the TV app, letting users know that a new episode was available. It didn't take long for iPhone and iPad users to take to Twitter to complain about the unsolicited notifications.
The Apple Music Amazon Echo notifications appear to have gone out today, based on multiple reports from Twitter users who received the info from Apple. Apple Music support for Amazon Echo devices rolled out last Friday.
Apple doesn't appear to be sending these push notifications to all users, so it's not clear what criteria the company is using to determine who to send content to. Apple Music and the TV app, the apps that the notifications are coming from, are installed on iOS devices by default and are not apps that users elected to install.
Why did Apple just send me a notification about an all new carpool karaoke, something I've never watched and have absolutely no interest in?
— Mark Fletcher 📎 (@wingedpig) December 14, 2018
If you've been receiving notifications from Apple, you can stop them by turning off notifications for the apps via the Settings app. Go to Notifications > Music or TV, and toggle off "Allow Notifications." Unfortunately there's no way to keep the TV or Music notifications you do want without also getting the unwanted notifications from Apple.
Apple has previously sent out unsolicited notifications on multiple occasions, but the frequency appears to be picking up. Just recently, the company sent out notifications encouraging people to upgrade to the iPhone XR or XS and letting users know about discounted iPhone XR pricing with trade-in.
Apple's App Store rules do not allow for apps to send notifications for advertising, promotions, or marketing purposes, but it appears those rules don't apply to Apple's own notifications.
If you've noticed Facebook continuing to deliver location-based ads even with all location services disabled, you're not alone, and that's because Facebook continues to use data like your IP address to determine your location for ad delivery purposes.
Facebook's lack of an option to disable location tracking for ad targeting was highlighted in a Medium post shared today by Aleksandra Korolova, assistant professor of Computer Science at USC.
Korolova noticed that Facebook was continuing to provide location-based ads even after she disabled Location History, turned off the location services option for Facebook on her iOS devices, and removed her city from her profile. She didn't upload photos, tag herself at certain locations, or check in, nor does she allow WhatsApp, Instagram, and Facebook Messenger to access her location.
Nevertheless, Facebook showed me ads targeted at "people who live near Santa Monica" (which is where I live) or "people who live or were recently near Los Angeles" (which is where I work). Moreover, I have noticed that whenever I travel for work or pleasure, Facebook continues to keep track of my location and use it for advertising: a trip to Glacier National Park resulted in an ad for activities in Whitefish, Montana, a trip to Cambridge, MA -- in an ad for a business there, and a visit to Herzeliya, Israel -- in an ad for a business there.
As it turns out, and as Facebook explains on its ads page, it is collecting location data based on "where you connect to the Internet" and "where you use your phone," aka your IP address, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth data. As Korolova points out, Facebook does not explain that turning off all location services will not stop Facebook from "going to great lengths to obtain and use location data for advertising."
Facebook does not make it a secret that it is using IP addresses and other information for ad targeting, but most people are likely not aware that their locations are still being tracked in this way even after disabling location tracking settings.
Facebook, Korolova argues, should do better, because the locations that a person visits and lives in can reveal a lot about them, and that's info that any Facebook advertiser can take advantage of through ads. Facebook should be providing "meaningful" tools over the location information that it's collecting, rather than options to disable location services that don't actually mean anything because location data is still being collected over IP address.
In statements provided to Gizmodo, Facebook confirmed that it's using IP information for location tracking purposes and that there's no way for users to turn off location tracking entirely.
"There is no way for people to opt out of using location for ads entirely," a Facebook spokesperson told Gizmodo. "We use city and zip level location which we collect from IP addresses and other information such as check-ins and current city from your profile to ensure we are providing people with a good service--from ensuring that they see Facebook in the right language to making sure that they are shown nearby events and ads for businesses that are local to them."
If you use Facebook, there is no way to prevent Facebook from tracking location, except perhaps by enabling a VPN at all times. Quitting Facebook and deleting the app entirely is the only way to make sure the site isn't tracking you, and even then, Facebook has "shadow profiles" with data on people who don't even use the social network.
When tvOS 12 was introduced back in June of 2018, Apple announced a new Zero Sign-on feature, a followup to Single sign-on. Zero Sign-on is designed to let you sign into all TV apps automatically when connected to your TV provider's broadband.
At the same time, Apple said the feature would first work with Charter Spectrum, with support expected to be implemented "later this year," aka some point before December 31, 2018. Charter Spectrum is expected to debut a new Apple TV app that will enable the feature and allow Charter Spectrum subscribers to watch cable content on the Apple TV.
It looks like the rollout of the Charter Spectrum app and the Zero sign-on feature is not going to make that deadline, as Apple today updated its Apple TV 4K page to change some of the wording to reflect the delay.
Rather than stating that Charter Spectrum cable subscribers will be able to watch live channels and on-demand programs with Apple TV "later this year," the page now says that the feature is "coming soon."
Prior to today's wording change: "And later this year, Charter Spectrum cable customers can watch live channels and thousands of on-demand programs with Apple TV."
After the wording change: "And coming soon, Charter Spectrum cable customers can watch live channels and thousands of on-demand programs with Apple TV."
That Apple has swapped "coming soon" for "later this year" suggests the Charter Spectrum app and the Zero Sign-on feature will be coming sometime after 2018, perhaps early in 2019.
The Catalyst Waterproof AirPods Case, designed to protect your AirPods case from liquids, is now available from the Apple online store and Apple retail locations.
Priced at $29.95, the Catalyst Case is made from a soft, durable silicone material that keeps water and dust out and protects the AirPods from drops and bumps.
The silicone material, which comes in black, white, and a special glow in the dark shade, is supple and grippy, making it easier to hold onto your AirPods.
A loop and aluminum carabiner is included at the the bottom of the case, so you can attach your AirPods to a bag or a backpack.
The Catalyst Case is IP67 water resistant, which means it will hold up to water that's 3.3 feet deep for up to an hour. It's also ideal for keeping out other debris and keeping the AirPods safe in snow and rain.
While the Catalyst Waterproof Case is available from Apple for $29.99, you can get it from Amazon.com for $24.99 in a wider selection of colors. Black is exclusive to Apple, however, and the glow in the dark model is also priced at $29.99 on Amazon.
Following the release of iOS 12.1.1 on December 5 and iOS 12.1.2 on December 17, Apple has stopped signing iOS 12.1, the previous version of iOS that was available to consumers.
iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch owners who have upgraded to iOS 12.1.1 or 12.1.2 will no longer be able to downgrade to iOS 12.1.
iOS 12.1.1, available for all iOS devices, introduced expanded eSIM support, a redesigned FaceTime interface, and Haptic Touch for notifications on the iPhone XR, among other features. iOS 12.1.2, available only for the iPhone, introduces eSIM bug fixes and may include software tweaks in China to remove patented Qualcomm functionality.
Apple routinely stops signing older versions of software updates after new releases come out in order to encourage customers to keep their operating systems up to date.
iOS 12.1.1 and iOS 12.1.2 are now the only versions of iOS that can be installed on iPhones and iPads.
Christmas is now one week away, and shipping estimates will only become more of an issue for shoppers the closer the holiday gets. That's when e-mail delivery App Store and iTunes Gift Cards come in, perfect to email directly to your friends and family members, or to print out and place inside of a holiday card. There aren't any 15 percent off $100 cards around right now, but there are a few notable discounts offering savings on iTunes credit.
Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.
To start, Amazon is offering $7.50 off of iTunes gift cards worth $50 or more, making the $50 tier the best option for this deal since this is a straight cash discount amount and not a percentage offer. The $50 card will be priced at $42.50 when you enter the code APP750 during checkout.
These cards are sold by trusted Amazon company ACI Gift Cards, LLC, and will be delivered via email within a few minutes after your purchase. Each shopper can only use this coupon code once, so be sure you have the amount you want correctly picked before you place your order.
At Target, you can gain access to the retailer's usual buy one, get one 20 percent off discount this week. This sale is closer to the regular discounts on iTunes gift cards, offering shoppers the chance to get a $100 iTunes gift card for $90. Full savings on this sale can be found below:
2x $15 iTunes gift cards = $27, down from $30
2x $25 iTunes gift cards = $45, down from $50
2x $50 iTunes gift cards = $90, down from $100
2x $100 iTunes gift cards = $180, down from $200
Lastly, anyone looking to get extra funds added to their Apple ID could also take advantage of Apple's new promotion that offers customers a 10 percent bonus when adding funds directly to their Apple ID account in the United States. This promo lasts until Thursday, December 20, and the funds you add can be used when shopping on the iTunes Movies and TV store, and pretty much in every other instance that iTunes gift cards are used.
Those interested can add funds to an Apple ID by going to Settings > Your Name > iTunes & App Store and tap your Apple ID > View Apple ID. Sign in if necessary, tap "Add Funds to Apple ID," tap the amount that you want to add, and confirm your selection. There's also a shortcut available at the bottom of the App Store.
As you refill your iTunes account with credit, definitely keep a look out on the Movies and TV storefronts today as Apple has refreshed both with huge holiday sales across genres. These include 2-movie and 3-movie bundles, Disney films, new releases, holiday classics, and more. Below we've listed a few holiday and 4K films on sale, but be sure to head to iTunes on Apple TV, iPhone, iPad, or Mac to browse the full sale. Blu-ray.com also has a useful list of everything on sale, with banners that note if anything is a new low price.
Launch Center Pro, an app that offers quick access shortcuts for everyday tasks, today released a major update that adds quite a bit of new functionality.
Version 3.0 of the app introduces NFC triggers, letting the iPhone XR, XS, and XS Max trigger actions using custom NFC stickers. In-app NFC scanning is available for the iPhone 7 and later.
NFC stickers can be purchased within the Launch Center Pro app and through Contrast's website. NFC stickers can be associated with different trigger actions, and will cause an action to launch via a notification when used.
So, for example, you can put a sticker on your nightstand that triggers a shortcut showing your list of alarms, which will then pop up automatically when you place an iPhone XS, XS Max, or XR near it, or you can put a sticker in the car that triggers a message to someone letting them know your ETA.
There are endless options for these NFC stickers for tasks like triggering HomeKit scenes, getting directions to a specific place, starting music or podcasts, and more.
A new advanced scheduling feature in Launch Center Pro 3.0 is designed to let you assign more than one schedule to a single action, and Launch Center Pro actions can now be turned into Siri Shortcuts with Siri support.
New themes have been added to the app, including a "True Black" theme designed for Apple's OLED devices. Alternate app icons have been added so you can choose from various color variations and all past Launch Center Pro icons, and there's an option to import icons from the Shortcuts app.
Also new is support for the iPhone XR, XS, and XS Max, and this version of the app is also universal, which means the dedicated Launch Center Pro for iPad app has been retired.
With the update, Launch Center Pro is free to download, with an in-app subscription and in-app purchases available to unlock full functionality.
Anyone who has paid for Launch Center Pro in the past will be able to continue using the existing paid features sans subscription, but access to the new features in the 3.0 version will require a subscription purchase or one of several other payment options. Launch Center Pro also offers a one-time payment of $29.99 to unlock the 3.0 content ($24.99 for existing users) and individual 3.0 update features can be unlocked for one-time purchase prices starting at $1.99.
Launch Center Pro can be downloaded from the App Store for free. [Direct Link]
AT&T today announced that it has launched its first mobile 5G service in parts of 12 cities across the United States, but 5G connectivity won't be available until Friday, when its 5G device launches.
5G connectivity has rolled out in Atlanta, Georgia; Charlotte, North Carolina; Houston, Texas; Dallas, Texas; Indianapolis, Indiana; Jacksonville, Florida; Louisville, Kentucky; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; New Orleans, Louisiana; Raleigh, North Carolina; San Antonio, Texas; and Waco, Texas.
In these areas, customers who sign up as early adopters will be able to use the 5G service with a Netgear Nighthawk 5G Mobile Hotspot. AT&T's 5G offering provides 5G connectivity speeds using mmWave spectrum, which is faster than LTE.
AT&T plans to start out with a small, limited launch in dense urban areas where mmWave works best, but promises that customers will see enhancements in "coverage, speeds and devices" over time. AT&T president Andre Fuetsch says that the company is "ready to learn fast and continually iterate" in the coming months.
During the first half of 2019, AT&T plans to expand its mobile 5G coverage to parts of additional cities that include Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Nashville, Orlando, San Diego, San Francisco, and San Jose.
AT&T's Nighthawk Mobile 5G Hotspot plus 5GB of data will be available to "select businesses and consumers" at no cost for at least 90 days. Starting in the spring, customers will be able to get the device for $499 upfront and 15GB of data for $70 per month on a compatible plan.
The first Android smartphones able to take advantage of 5G networks are expected to come out in 2019, but rumors suggest Apple will not adopt support for 5G networks until at least 2020, giving the new technology time to mature.
Along with AT&T, other carriers are embracing 5G technology. Verizon, for example, launched its 5G home broadband service in October, with mobile 5G service to follow.
As of today, Twitter is introducing a new option that will allow iOS users to easily view their tweets in a chronological order, a feature Twitter users have wanted for quite some time.
The chronological feed option can be accessed by tapping on a sparkle-shaped icon at the top right of the Twitter app, which changes the view between latest tweets and the current top tweets option.
Twitter originally used a reverse chronological feed, showing the newest tweets at the top of the app before switching to a timeline that places a selection of top tweets first.
It's been years since Twitter switched to the top tweets timeline style, and many Twitter users have missed being able to view content chronologically.
New on iOS! Starting today, you can tap ✨ to switch between the latest and top Tweets in your timeline. Coming soon to Android. pic.twitter.com/6B9OQG391S
— Twitter (@Twitter) December 18, 2018
Twitter in September introduced an option to turn off the "Show the best Tweets first" feature, but today's new toggle goes further and makes it easier to get a chronological timeline view.
Twitter says the chronological feed toggle is available on iOS today and will roll out to the web and Android devices soon.
The Wall Street Journal has published an in-depth look at Apple's efforts to grow its sales in India, the "world's biggest untapped tech market." With smartphone sales flattening in saturated markets like the United States, Apple is said to have turned to India for new growth, but with "little success so far."
The report claims that just one in four Indians own a smartphone, providing Apple with an opportunity to sell iPhones to millions of new customers in the country. The issue is that India is a very price-sensitive market, with more than 75 percent of the smartphones sold in the country costing "less than $250."
Apple-authorized reseller Flipkart continues to sell the iPhone SE in India for around $250, but other iPhone models are priced between the equivalent of $325 and $1,950 in the country, well above the budgets of many Indian customers.
The Wall Street Journal explains:
At the heart of the issue is Apple's reluctance to change its traditional business model for selling the iPhone. Rather than make a range of handsets, it has prioritized a limited number of coveted products, sold at high prices—a strategy that revived the company after near bankruptcy in 1997 and helped make it the first U.S. public company to reach a $1 trillion valuation.
The report claims the number of iPhones shipped in India has fallen 40 percent so far this year compared with 2017, and Apple's market share in the country has dropped to about one percent from about two percent, citing research firm Canalys.
Apple created a five-year plan to increase Apple's sales in India to $5 billion by 2020, but the iPhone maker posted revenues of $1.8 billion in the country in its most recent fiscal year, according to the report, suggesting that the company is unlikely to meet its target without explosive growth within the next fiscal year.
Government policies haven't helped the situation. Apple has faced difficulties in openings its first retail store in India, for example, as the country requires single-brand, majority-foreign-owned retailers to source at least 30 percent of their manufacturing materials from India-based suppliers.
As one would expect, though, Apple CEO Tim Cook remains optimistic about Apple's future in India based on his recent comments.
"We've had really great productive discussions with the Indian government and I fully expect that at some point they will agree to allow us to bring our stores into the country," Cook said on Apple's earnings call last month. "We've been in discussions with them and the discussions are going quite well."
"I am a big believer in India," he added. "I am very bullish on the country, and the people, and our ability to do well there."
Satechi today announced a new stand for the iMac, called the Type-C Aluminum Monitor Stand Hub. The accessory features seven built-in ports and an ergonomic design that the company says is aimed at maximizing desk space and providing easy access to USB ports.
In total, the hub has one USB-C data port and three USB 3.0 ports (each running at 5 Gbps), slots for microSD and SD cards, and one audio jack port. The stand is made with a brushed aluminum finish to match Apple's iMac and iMac Pro line. It also raises the iMac monitor a few inches off of the desk to provide a more comfortable viewing level when working on an iMac.
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Popular iPhone photo editing app Darkroom is today expanding to the iPad, marking the app's biggest update since its 2015 launch.
Darkroom has been rebuilt from the ground up to add support for the iPad, which means there are app-wide refinements, improvements, and optimizations. The new interface works with all iOS devices in every orientation.
The app now supports Portrait, Portrait-Wide, and Landscape orientations on iOS devices, and it has been optimized to choose the best layout for each device and each size for a consistent editing experience.
On devices where Darkroom is used in landscape orientation, Albums are available at the top level of the library next to photos for quicker album access.
Also new to the landscape layout is a photo strip, making it easier to navigate through the photo library when editing. A long press on the photo strip will also bring up photo actions like copying edits, resetting edits, deleting photos, and more.
Darkroom for iPad is designed to take advantage of all of the iPad's features, ranging from split-screen multitasking to keyboard shortcuts to the larger display.
Along with iPad support, the update also adds a color histogram for visualizing the colors present in an image and how the sliders are interacting with those colors, and there's integration with the Moment Pro camera.
Other improvements include value labels on sliders, tweaks to filter strength adjustments, right to left language support, and undo and redo gestures.
Darkroom for iPad and iPhone can be downloaded from the App Store for free, but in-app purchases are required to unlock the full functionality. [Direct Link]
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In a previous how-to, we explained how to add a special stack to your Mac's Dock that enables 
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