MacRumors

Apple has shelved plans to build a new flagship Apple Store at the Federation Square shopping center in Melbourne, Australia after heritage authorities refused an application to demolish the Yarra Building that's already on the site.

According to The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age Heritage Victoria today said that the Yarra Building could not be torn down as it would result in an "unacceptable and irreversible detrimental impact on the cultural heritage significance of Federation Square." Apple in response said that it would not proceed with plans to build the store.

An Apple spokesperson told The Age that Apple was disappointed it would no longer be able to build a retail store at Federation Square. "We remain committed to serving our customers in Melbourne and across Australia," said the spokesperson.

Apple first announced plans to build an Apple retail location at Federation Square in December 2017, with the company planning to make it an "Apple Global Flagship Store" that would have been Apple's most significant store in the Southern Hemisphere, offering workshops, classes, and live music events.

Apple's plans for the store called for the demolition of the Yarra Building, a move that ultimately received backlash from the Melbourne City Council and Melbourne locals unhappy with the plan to give public space to a corporation.

The original Federation Square design featured a pagoda-style building that locals also disliked, referring to it as a "Pizza Hut Pagoda." Apple in July 2018 submitted revised blueprints for the store with an updated design created after workshops with Federation Square management, the Victorian Government, and the Melbourne City Council, but permission was still required to remove the Yarra Building.

Federation Square management in December applied to Heritage Victoria for a permit that would allow the Yarra Building to be torn down so Apple could proceed with the building of the store, but that application was denied after heritage authorities received thousands of objections from Melbourne locals.

Vizio yesterday launched a beta version of its updated Smartcast software, which allows iPhone owners who have a Smartcast-enabled TV to use AirPlay 2 and HomeKit integrations for the first time on a third-party television set.

We picked up a compatible Vizio television set (which includes the recent P and M series models at the current time) and were able to take a look at how ‌AirPlay‌ 2 and ‌HomeKit‌ work on a non-Apple device.

‌AirPlay‌ 2 support on the Vizio TV lets allows TV shows and movies to be streamed from an iOS device directly to the television, with no Apple TV set-top box required. A movie can be started on the ‌iPhone‌ and AirPlayed right to the TV, with support for 4K HDR and Dolby Vision included.

Mirroring a Mac or iOS device screen to the TV is also possible, letting photos, spreadsheets, webpages, documents, games, and more be displayed on the larger display of the television set. We couldn't get this feature working in the beta, but it should be available in the launch version of the software.

‌AirPlay‌ 2 support allows multiple audio sources to play the same content, which means a song can be played on a single television set, multiple television sets, or a Vizio TV and other ‌AirPlay‌ 2-enabled devices like HomePods for whole home audio.

‌AirPlay‌ 2 functionality is linked with ‌HomeKit‌, so Vizio television sets that support Apple's new protocols will show up right in the Home app on ‌iPhone‌, iPad, and Mac.

From the Home app, you can do things like switch inputs, turn the television on and off, and adjust the volume. Siri can also be used for these commands, so a simple Hey ‌Siri‌ voice request on one of your devices can adjust volume or turn the TV on or off, just like with other ‌HomeKit‌ products.

‌Siri‌ can ‌AirPlay‌ content from an iOS device or Mac to the TV too, which means a command like "Hey ‌Siri‌, play Game of Thrones on the living room TV" is a quick way to play a TV show or movie without having to search for it.

Vizio's ‌AirPlay‌ 2 and ‌HomeKit‌ beta is open to all Vizio owners with a Smartcast-compatible television set, and if you're interested in signing up, you can do so on Vizio's website. At the current time, the beta works with P and M series TV sets from 2016 and beyond, but it will be rolling out to other Vizio TV owners in the future.

When the feature launches, ‌AirPlay‌ 2 and ‌HomeKit‌ will work on the following Vizio TVs, based on Apple's ‌HomeKit‌ TV list:

• VIZIO P-Series Quantum X (2019)
• VIZIO P-Series Quantum (2019 and 2018)
• VIZIO P-Series (2018, 2017 and 2016)
• VIZIO M-Series Quantum (2019)
• VIZIO M-Series (2018, 2017 and 2016)
• VIZIO E-Series (2018, 2017 and 2016 UHD models)
• VIZIO V-Series (2019)
• VIZIO D-Series (2018)

TVs from many other brands will also be getting ‌AirPlay‌ 2 and ‌HomeKit‌ support, including LG, Sony, and Samsung (no ‌HomeKit‌). Apple also plans to bring its new TV app to third-party television sets in the future as well.

Apple's TV partners are planning to officially launch ‌AirPlay‌ 2 and ‌HomeKit‌ features at some point in the summer.

Apple in March hired Ian Goodfellow as its director of machine learning in the Special Projects Group, according to Goodfellow's LinkedIn profile that was shared by CNBC.

Prior to joining Apple, Goodfellow worked at Google as a senior staff research scientist, and before that, he was an Open AI research scientist.

As outlined by CNBC, Goodfellow is known for creating GANs, or Generative Adversarial Networks, a concept where two deep neural net architectures (one generative and one discriminative) are pitted against each other to generate creative content.

GANs have been used to create fake art and deepfakes, aka fake digital images that are indistinguishable from real images.

While at Google, Goodfellow worked on GANs technology and security. It's not clear what he's doing at Apple, but the company's machine learning techniques are used for many elements of its software.

Apple has been working on bolstering its AI and machine learning efforts in recent years, with another former Google employee, John Giannandrea, heading up those divisions.

Giannandrea, who likely oversees Goodfellow's work, was named Apple's senior vice president of machine learning and AI strategy back in December, just months after his original April hiring.

Amazon is developing a set of Alexa-enabled wireless earbuds that will compete with Apple's AirPods, reports Bloomberg.

The earbuds will "look and act" similar to Apple's AirPods, but will offer built-in Alexa voice support. Alexa is Amazon's Siri rival, built into the Amazon Echo line of products and many other third-party devices.

Amazon is aiming to offer better audio quality than the AirPods, and its earbuds have been designed to sit inside the ears without clips to hold them in place. The Alexa wake word will allow Amazon earbuds users to access music, order goods, make search queries, and more, though physical gesture controls will also be available.

Built-in cellular connectivity will not be included, and the earbuds will need to connect to a user's smartphone. A storage case that also serves as a charging device will be included, and it will charge using a standard USB cable. Amazon is testing earbuds in black and gray.

There's no word on pricing for the earbuds, but Amazon often prices its products lower than Apple's, so Amazon earbuds could be available for $159 or less, the base price of the AirPods.

Bloomberg says that the new earbuds are considered one of the most important projects at Amazon's Lab126 hardware division, and while there have been delays, Amazon is now seeking suppliers and manufacturing partners.

Multiple companies have already come out with wire-free earbuds in an effort to compete with the AirPods. Google, for example, has the Pixel Buds while Samsung has the Galaxy Buds. There are also many other less impressive third-party wireless earbud options on the market, but so far, none have been able to match the popularity of Apple's AirPods.

Apple recently debuted second-generation AirPods with an H1 chip for faster connectivity to devices, Hey ‌Siri‌ support, and wireless charging.

The company's Beats brand also just yesterday announced Powerbeats Pro, a fitness-oriented AirPods alternative with more standard ear tips, an ear hook for keeping them in place, physical buttons and a longer battery life. The Powerbeats Pro also have many AirPods features including a charging case, H1 chip, and all of the same sensors and capabilities.

Apple Pay is launching or gaining expanded functionality at transit systems in additional cities throughout 2019, starting with Singapore today followed by Chicago, Portland, and New York City later this year.

‌Apple Pay‌ is now accepted on all forms of public transit that accept Mastercard credit and debit cards in Singapore, including buses and trains, enabling convenient tap-to-pay functionality with an iPhone or Apple Watch. Singapore's transit agency expects to add support for Visa cards in the second half of 2019.

New York City will pilot ‌Apple Pay‌ on a couple of lines this spring and then roll out the functionality to additional lines throughout the rest of the year, according to TechCrunch's Matthew Panzarino. The MTA appears to already be in the process of installing contactless card readers at turnstiles, with a test phase "coming soon."

Chicago's and Portland's transit systems already accept ‌Apple Pay‌, but CTA and TriMet riders will be able to add their preloaded Ventra and Hop fare cards to the Wallet app later this year and take advantage of pre-tax commuter benefits, according to the Chicago Tribune and the Willamette Week.

The payment process is similar to using ‌Apple Pay‌ in stores. Depending on the ‌iPhone‌, that means double-pressing the home button or side button, authenticating with Touch ID or Face ID, and holding the ‌iPhone‌ near the card reader. Apple Watch payments are also activated by double-pressing the side button.

The blog Ata Distance suggests that Ventra and Hop cards will support Express Transit, meaning that riders won't need to authenticate with ‌Face ID‌, ‌Touch ID‌, or a passcode, and won't need to wake or unlock their device, to pay. Express Transit is currently limited to transit systems in China and Japan.

Singapore and New York City would join a handful of cities with transit systems that already support ‌Apple Pay‌, including Chicago and Portland as mentioned, Beijing, Shanghai, London, Tokyo, Moscow, and Vancouver, Canada.

(Thanks, Chris!)

Apple today cut the price of HomePod on its online store by $50, with the smart speaker now listed for $299, down from $349. The price drop follows recent promotional discounts at several third-party retailers across the U.S.

Similar price reductions have also appeared in other regions and territories on Thursday, with the price of a ‌HomePod‌ in the United Kingdom falling from £319 to £279, for instance.

Apple's expensive ‌HomePod‌ speaker accounted for just six percent of the U.S. smart speaker installed base through the fourth quarter of 2018, according to a February report.

Research firm Consumer Intelligence Research Partners estimates that the U.S. installed base of smart speakers reached 66 million units last quarter of 2018, suggesting ‌HomePod‌ sales in the country totaled around 3.96 million units since the speaker became available to order in January 2018. Apple does not disclose exact ‌HomePod‌ sales figures.

By comparison, the Amazon Echo and Google Home reportedly accounted for 70 percent and 24 percent of the installed base respectively, with both products proving to be popular holiday gifts.

In April 2018, well-connected analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said Apple was "mulling" a "low-cost version" of the ‌HomePod‌, potentially due to shipments of the current version being "far below market expectations." A report out of China said the lower-cost ‌HomePod‌ could be priced between $150 and $200 in the United States.

An alleged chassis piece belonging to the 2019 iPhone appeared on Chinese social media this morning with markings on the rear of the device that resemble a housing for three camera lenses.

The above image and mockup (below), shared via Weibo and later tweeted by Ben Geskin, tally with rumors that the next-generation ‌iPhone‌ will feature a rear triple-lens camera system in a triangular configuration.

Last week, an image of a similar chassis piece appeared on Slashleaks, although rumors about triple lenses in an ‌iPhone‌ began way back in May 2018. Well-known Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said in October that he expected the next iPhones to feature triple-lens cameras.

In January, serial mobile leaker Steve Hemmerstoffer (@OnLeaks) released renderings of the supposed ‌iPhone‌ 2019 model, with a similar unusual-looking patch on the rear for three lenses, a flash, and a mic in the triangular arrangement.

The Wall Street Journal has since reported that Apple plans to introduce a triple-lens camera system in at least one of the iPhones coming in 2019. Shortly after that report, Bloomberg seemingly confirmed the rumor, but neither publication mentioned how the lenses would be configured.

A triple-lens rear camera on the next ‌iPhone‌ would allow for a larger field of view, a wider zoom range, improved low light performance, and it would capture more pixels, but the appearance of the lenses and the size of the housing on the leaked images has divided Apple watchers.

Intel is having trouble meeting deadlines for the XMM 8160 5G modem that Apple is counting on to add 5G connectivity to its 2020 iPhone lineup, reports Fast Company.

Citing a source with knowledge of Intel and Apple's relationship, Fast Company says that Intel has been missing developmental deadlines on the 5G chip, leading Apple to lose confidence in Intel.

For a September 2020 launch, sample chips need to be provided to Apple this summer, and a finished modem design needs to be available by the beginning of 2020. Intel has said its chips will be in mobile devices by 2020, and has plans to ship the 8160 5G chip in the second half of 2019, but it's not clear if it will make those target dates.

Apple began using Intel chips alongside Qualcomm chips with the launch of the ‌iPhone‌ 7 and ‌iPhone‌ 7 Plus, and in 2018, Intel was Apple's exclusive LTE chip supplier for the ‌iPhone‌ XR, XS, and XS Max following Apple's legal woes with Qualcomm.

Rumors have suggested that Apple is planning to introduce 5G connectivity in the ‌iPhone‌ in 2020 and is relying on Intel's chips to do so.

Intel and Apple's relationship is said to be tense, and on the Intel side, there have already been three project managers overseeing the development of the modem. Apple has been holding talks with Samsung and Mediatek about supplying modem chips in the near term, but neither company may have chips ready for 2020.

Fast Company's source says that it would make the most business sense for Apple to go back to Qualcomm, but given the ever-increasing legal tensions between the two companies, that seems unlikely.

Apple is preparing to develop its own modem chips in house so that it doesn't need to rely on either Intel or Qualcomm, but those chips are not going to be ready in time for a 2020 5G iPhone launch.