macOS Mojave introduces a new method of installing software updates, so after the initial beta has been installed using the appropriate profile from the Developer Center, additional betas can be downloaded through opening up System Preferences and choosing the "Software Update" option.
The 10.14.1 update includes support for Group FaceTime, a feature that was removed during the beta testing period. Group FaceTime, which lets you chat with up to 32 people at once, is also present in the iOS 12.1 beta.
macOS Mojave 10.14.1 introduces more than 70 new emoji characters that are also available in iOS 12.1 and watchOS 5.1. There are new options for red hair, curly hair, no hair, and gray hair, along with characters to represent superheroes, cold face, party face, pleading face, and face with hearts.
There are a number of new animals and food items like kangaroo, parrot, lobster, mango, lettuce, and cupcake. Tweaks have been made to some existing emoji as well. The iPhone emoji, for example, has been updated to look like the iPhone X with no bezels or Home button.
We didn't find any other significant new features in the first two developer betas of macOS Mojave, so it's not clear if there are any additional changes. The update likely includes performance improvements and bug fixes for issues that have been discovered since the release of the Mojave update.
Should new features be found in the third beta, we'll update this post.
macOS Mojave is a major update that brings features like a systemwide Dark Mode, stacks for organizing messy desktops, new Finder capabilities, new tools for taking screenshots, a Continuity Camera option for easily transferring photo scans and documents from iPhone to Mac, and more. For more on macOS Mojave, make sure to check out our roundup.
Apple is today releasing iOS 12.0.1, the first official update to the iOS 12 operating system. iOS 12.0.1 comes three weeks after Apple released iOS 12.
The update will be available on all eligible devices over-the-air in the Settings app. To access the update, go to Settings --> General --> Software Update. iOS 12 users should be able to download iOS 12.0.1 when it is released at 10:00 a.m. Pacific Time.
Today's update fixes several high profile bugs that have been plaguing iOS 12 users. It resolves an issue that could cause some iPhone XS devices not to charge when connected to a Lightning cable, an issue that was discovered shortly after iOS 12 was released.
Reports suggested multiple iOS 12 devices were affected rather than just the iPhone XS, and it's likely that if other devices are impacted, the new update solves the problem.
iOS 12.0.1 also fixes a major Wi-Fi bug that could cause some iPhone XS devices to prefer to join a 2.4GHz Wi-Fi network rather than a 5GHz Wi-Fi network, resulting in perceived slower Wi-Fi connection speeds. After this update, many users who were stuck with their phones connecting to a 2.4GHz network should see much faster Wi-Fi connection speeds as the devices once again prefer a 5GHz network.
Other bug fixes in this update include a reorientation of the "123" number key on the iPad, which was moved in the iOS 12 update and swapped with the emoji/language key, a fix for a problem that could cause subtitles not to appear in some video apps, and an issue where Bluetooth could become unavailable.
Many of these bugs have also been addressed in the upcoming iOS 12.1 update that is currently being beta tested by developers and public beta testers.
Apple's full release notes for the update are below:
iOS 12.0.1 includes bug fixes and improvements for your iPhone or iPad. This update: - Fixes an issue where some iPhone XS devices did not immediately charge when connected to a Lightning cable - Resolves an issue that could cause iPhone XS devices to rejoin a Wi-Fi network at 2.4GHz instead of 5GHz - Restores the original position of the ".?123" key on the iPad keyboard - Fixes an issue where subtitles may not appear in some video apps - Addresses an issue where Bluetooth could become unavailable - For information on the security content of Apple software updates, please visit this website: https://support.apple.com/kb/HT201222
The new iOS 12 update introduces a slew of new features like Siri Shortcuts for creating voice-controlled automations, Screen Time for monitoring your iOS device usage, Memoji on devices with a TrueDepth camera, improvements to Do Not Disturb and notifications, ARKit 2.0, privacy enhancements, and more.
Following the launch of the iPhone XS and XS Max, owners began pointing out that the selfies captured on the new devices appear to apply a sort of smooth effect on the user's skin in certain lighting scenarios. This was quickly dubbed "BeautyGate," with some users accusing Apple of building the new iPhone models with an internal "beauty filter" for better-looking selfies that aren't 100% honest.
In an effort to combat the BeautyGate claims, YouTuber Jonathan Morrison posted a series of selfies on Instagram and Twitter over the weekend. In captions, Morrison said these were captured on the Google Pixel 2's Portrait Mode, and asked his fans their thoughts on how the images came out, particularly if they were better than the iPhone XS.
Commenters said that the images rivaled DSLR shots and that the Pixel 2 was still among the best smartphone cameras, based on the pictures. Some even commended Google for producing high-quality selfies without the need for having a so-called make-up effect, and argued that the Pixel 2 had the best Portrait Mode of any smartphone.
After all of this, Morrison on Sunday revealed that both images were not taken on a Pixel 2, but instead captured on an iPhone XS Max.
BeautyGate talk starts at around 3:00
So I just wanted it to be a little bit of a lesson out there: don't let a preconceived notion or headline skew your judgement. Because clearly, everyone who thought that it was a Pixel automatically assumed it was much better than the iPhone, when in fact that was the same iPhone XS Max that apparently had all of the BeautyGate problems.
Still, Morrison explains that there is something happening on the front-facing cameras of the iPhone XS and XS Max, but it's not a beauty filter. Apple's latest smartphones take multiple pictures at varying exposure levels, requiring noise reduction that creates a smoothing effect over the entire image, not just on skin tones.
Halide went into detail on the issue in a blog post last week:
The iPhone XS merges exposures and reduces the brightness of the bright areas and reduces the darkness of the shadows. The detail remains, but we can perceive it as less sharp because it lost local contrast. In the photo above, the skin looks smoother simply because the light isn’t as harsh.
Observant people noticed it isn’t just skin that’s affected. Coarse textures and particularly anything in the dark— from cats to wood grain— get a smoother look. This is noise reduction at work. iPhone XS has more aggressive noise reduction than previous iPhones.
It's unclear if Apple will choose to decrease the amount of noise reduction on the front-facing cameras of the iPhone XS and XS Max as a result of the user complaints.
Apple is reportedly holding discussions with United Kingdom-based British Telecom (BT) over a partnership that would make BT's mobile brand EE a "major distributor" of Apple TV devices. Specifically, the telecommunications brand would offer Apple TVs to EE customers, coming pre-loaded with apps that deliver pay-TV content like BT Sport and channels from other broadcasters (via The Telegraph).
For Apple, the deal would get Apple TVs into the hands of more customers and increase the potential viewership for its upcoming slate of original TV programming, expected in 2019. While BT has invested in building its own set-top boxes to compete with Apple, Amazon, and Sky, BT consumer chief Marc Allera kicked off a new strategy earlier in May to begin "forging deeper partnerships with technology giants."
Apple's partnership with BT is said to be similar to the company's existing deal in Switzerland with telecoms operator and pay-TV provider Salt. Apple has also partnered with Verizon, which will offer customers an Apple TV 4K as part of its residential broadband package coming to four cities this year.
In regards to Apple's original programming, the first of Apple's television shows could debut as soon as March of 2019, potentially through a new video streaming service subscription. The company is also reportedly considering a single subscription bundle offering customers access to TV, Apple Music, and digital magazines (through its Texture acquisition).
Facebook today announced "Portal," a new communications device for the home aimed at connecting friends and family members through video chat.
There are two models of Portal: the 10-inch base model and a 15-inch "Portal+" model with a display that pivots between portrait and landscape modes. Each device includes AI technology, a Smart Camera, and Smart Sound. The Smart Camera follows where you move around a room and automatically pans and zooms to keep everyone in view, while Smart Sound minimizes background noise and enhances the voice of who is talking.
Portal connects to your friends list on Facebook Messenger, and you can call them even if they don't have a Portal. Calls made via Portal will also be sent to Messenger apps on iOS and Android smartphones, and Portal supports group calls of up to seven people at the same time.
The video calling device supports hands-free voice control, so you can start a video call by saying "Hey Portal" and following up with who you want to call. Alexa is built into the device, so you can also ask about the weather, news, traffic, control smart home products, and more on Portal.
With Portal, you can listen to music together with a friend or even watch a television show with another Portal user, through connected partnerships with Spotify Premium, Pandora, iHeartRadio, Facebook Watch, Food Network, and Newsy. Portal video calls also support AR effects, filters, and stickers.
In terms of audio, Facebook says Portal has two full-range drivers, while Portal+ has two tweeters with high-range frequency and a single 4" bass speaker.
Facebook is launching Portal in the middle of a turbulent year, following months of news coverage over its ties to data mining firm Cambridge Analytica. A Facebook-branded smart speaker with video capabilities was previously rumored, and then delayed following the scandal.
For the new device, Facebook says Portal is designed with privacy and security in mind:
- You can completely disable the camera and microphone with a single tap. - Portal and Portal+ also come with a camera cover, so you can easily block your camera’s lens at any time and still receive incoming calls and notifications, plus use voice commands. - To manage Portal access within your home, you can set a four- to 12-digit passcode to keep the screen locked. Changing the passcode requires your Facebook password. - Facebook doesn’t listen to, view, or keep the contents of your Portal video calls. Your Portal conversations stay between you and the people you’re calling. In addition, video calls on Portal are encrypted, so your calls are always secure. - For added security, Smart Camera and Smart Sound use AI technology that runs locally on Portal, not on Facebook servers. Portal’s camera doesn’t use facial recognition and doesn’t identify who you are. - Like other voice-enabled devices, Portal only sends voice commands to Facebook servers after you say, “Hey Portal.” You can delete your Portal’s voice history in your Facebook Activity Log at any time.
Portal and Portal+ are available to pre-order in the United States on Facebook.com, Amazon, and Best Buy. Portal is $199 and Portal+ is $349, while a bundle of two regular Portal devices is $298.
London's High Court on Monday blocked attempts to bring a collective lawsuit against Google over alleged historical snooping of millions of iPhone users in the United Kingdom (via Reuters).
The lawsuit's claimants alleged that Google illegally gathered the personal data of over 4 million iPhone users in the U.K. between 2011 and 2012 by bypassing the default privacy settings on Apple's smartphones which allowed it to track the online behavior of users browsing in Safari.
Original explanation of the "Safari Workaround" in 2012 WSJ article
Veteran consumer rights campaigner Richard Lloyd, who led the collective 20,000-strong lawsuit, had claimed that Google's "Safari Workaround" breached the U.K. Data Protection Act by taking personal information without permission, and wanted the tech giant to pay out several hundred dollars in damages to each person affected. As a ballpark figure, a claim by 5.4 million people for £500 each would result in a £2.7 billion ($3.63 billion) payout for Google.
When the case was first brought in November 2017, it was the first time a collective action has been brought in the U.K. against a leading tech company over alleged misuse of data. "Collective action" is where one person represents a group with a shared grievance, similar to a class action lawsuit in the U.S.
However, Google said it was "not new" and vowed to defend itself, having defended similar cases before. "We don't believe it has any merit and we will contest it," said the tech giant at the time. On Monday, the court ruled in Google's favor.
"Today's judgment is extremely disappointing and effectively leaves millions of people without any practical way to seek redress and compensation when their personal data has been misused," Lloyd said in a statement.
"Google's business model is based on using personal data to target adverts to consumers and they must ask permission before using this data. The court accepted that people did not give permission in this case yet slammed the door shut on holding Google to account."
A similar case occurred in the U.S. in 2012, when Google and several other advertising agencies were discovered to be circumventing privacy protections in Safari for iOS in order to track users through ads on numerous popular websites.
At the time, Safari blocked several types of tracking, but made an exception for websites where a person interacted in some way — by filling out a form, for example. Google added coding to some of its ads that made Safari think that a person was submitting an invisible form to Google, and thus Safari let Google install a cookie on the user's phone.
Google halted the practice once it was reported by the Wall Street Journal, but argued that the tracking was unintentional and did not harm consumers. However, that didn't wash with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, and the company was forced to pay a record $22.5 million fine over its use of the tactic.
Note: Due to the political nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Politics, Religion, Social Issues forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.
Eternal Storms Software today released Yoink 2.0 for iOS and Yoink 3.5 for Mac, two major upgrades to the popular drag and drop-improving "shelf" app.
For those unfamiliar, Yoink acts like a convenient shelf for users to drag in files and other content, do something else (switch apps, tabs, and so on) and then easily access those items again by dragging them out of Yoink.
Version 2.0 of Yoink for iOS brings iCloud sync support, so items stored in Yoink are available across iOS devices logged into the same Apple account. Each device has its own "shelf" in iCloud, so all items are grouped for easy discoverability.
The different shelves are accessible through both the Yoink app and also in its extensions, users can access all items via the Today Widget, the keyboard, the file provider, and Spotlight search.
Yoink 2.0 for iOS also brings support for Handoff across iPhones, iPads and Macs, so items selected on one device can be handed off to another and those files are transferred right away.
Elsewhere, Yoink now also includes support for Siri Shortcuts. Using Siri, users can store clipboard contents or download the link to the clipboard in Yoink, without having to switch to or activate Yoink itself.
Items can also be copied from Yoink using Siri (the most recently added image, PDF, text or link, for example), while Yoink can be opened using the virtual assistant to show a specified, synced device's items.
In addition, Yoink for iOS has expanded support for keyboard commands, an optional Dark Mode interface, and optional smaller icons for showing more items stored in the Yoink "shelf" at once.
Meanwhile over on Yoink for Mac, the new version 3.5 update adds Handoff support between Macs and iOS devices, a clipboard history Today Widget that keeps track of your clipboard's contents, and full compatibility with macOS Mojave (including Dark Mode) as well as a Finder Quick Action.
Yoink for iPad and iPhone is available on the App Store for the introductory price of $3.99. After the introductory week has passed, the price will change to $5.99.
Yoink for Mac is available on the Mac App Store for the introductory price of $4.99. After the introductory week has passed, the price will change to $7.99. A free, 15-day trial is also available on the website – the app requires at least OS X Lion 10.7.3, although macOS High Sierra 10.13 or later is recommended.
Starting with iOS 11, Apple introduced a Do Not Disturb While Driving Feature that's designed to mute incoming calls, texts, and notifications while you're driving to cut down on accident-causing distractions.
Do Not Disturb While Driving is not a feature that's enabled automatically, but you will see a popup prompting you to turn it on when Apple detects the motion of a car after installing iOS 11 or later for the first time. Despite the notification, you'll still need to choose how you want to use the feature if you miss the initial setup process.
Do Not Disturb can be set to turn on manually, automatically when the iPhone detects a car's acceleration, or when an iPhone connects to a car's Bluetooth.
Enabling Do Not Disturb While Driving
Open the Settings app.
Tap Do Not Disturb.
Scroll down to "Do Not Disturb While Driving."
Tap on "Activate" to choose how you want Do Not Disturb While Driving to be turned on. If you don't want to use Do Not Disturb While Driving, set it to manual.
Whenever Do Not Disturb While Driving is activated, you'll see a bar at the top of the screen letting you know incoming notifications are being muted.
Do Not Disturb While Driving Control Center Toggle
If you don't want to have Do Not Disturb While Driving turn on automatically but still want to use it, there's a Control Center setting for activating it.
Open the Settings app.
Choose Control Center.
Select Customize Controls.
Add Do Not Disturb While Driving, which has an image of a car.
This adds the Do Not Disturb While Driving toggle to your Control Center. To turn it on or off, you just need to swipe to open the Control Center and tap it.
If You're a Passenger
When the automatic setting is enabled, Do Not Disturb While Driving will turn on whenever your iPhone detects the acceleration of a vehicle. This can be inconvenient if you're a passenger, so you'll need to turn it off through the Control Center or by tapping the persistent Do Not Disturb While Driving popup at the top of the display to let Apple know you're a passenger.
Choosing Your Auto Reply Options
When you're driving, all of your incoming text messages are muted. You can choose an automatic text message that lets people know you're in the car and will text later, and you can customize who sees the message.
Open the Settings app.
Choose Do Not Disturb.
Scroll down to "Auto-Reply To" and tap it.
You can choose for automatic texts to be sent to Recents, Favorites, All Contacts, or No one, if you would rather not have your phone send automatic replies.
Customizing Your Auto Reply
Open the Settings app.
Choose Do Not Disturb.
Scroll down to "Auto-Reply" and tap it.
Apple sets a default message in this section, but you can change it to say whatever you want. This is the message people will receive when texting you when Do Not Disturb While Driving is enabled.
If there's an urgent issue and someone needs to get in contact with you immediately, they can break through Do Not Disturb While Driving by texting you "urgent." This will override your Do Not Disturb settings and will notify you of the text immediately.
An ideal setup is to set auto replies to your favorites, which likely translates to close friends and family. This will let them text you in an emergency situation, but will prevent other less urgent messages from being a distraction.
Phone Calls
If your iPhone is connected to your car's Bluetooth system, iOS is smart enough to know you have a hands-free calling method available. In this situation, calls will continue to come through even when Do Not Disturb While Driving is enabled. Texts and notifications from apps will continue to be muted, though.
If you're not connected to Bluetooth and have no hands-free accessory, calls will be blocked like text messages and notifications.
Parental Restrictions
For parents of teenagers, there's an option to enable a restriction that will prevent Do Not Disturb While Driving settings from being changed or toggled off, guaranteeing children are using the feature whenever they're in the car. Here's how to turn it on (iOS 12 or later):
Open the Settings app.
Choose Screen Time.
Tap on Content & Privacy Restrictions.
Tap on the Content & Privacy Restrictions toggle to turn on restrictions.
Scroll down to Do Not Disturb While Driving and tap it.
Choose Don't Allow.
On devices running an earlier version of iOS, there are different steps to follow to access device restrictions. Open the Settings app, choose General, scroll down to Restrictions and then tap it. Enter your passcode and then find the "Do Not Disturb While Driving" option and choose "Don't Allow Changes."
Some Apple Watch Series 4 owners in Australia experienced crashes and reboots on Saturday due to a bug that surfaced because of the daylight saving time change (via 9to5Mac).
According to Reddit users hit by the Apple Watch bug, the root of the problem appears to be the Infograph Modular face's Activity complication, which displays a timeline graph with hourly data for the user's Move calories, Exercise minutes, and Stand hours.
When daylight saving time (DST) lops an hour off the typical 24-hour day, the Activity complication is apparently unable to compute the change and draw the timeline graph with only 23 hours, which throws the Apple Watch into an endless reboot loop until the battery runs out.
According to reports, the bug corrected itself when the date rolled over the next day and the normal 24-hour day was reinstated, but some users were able to restore normal function to their watch before then by removing the Infograph Modular watch face via the iOS Watch app.
This isn't the first time Apple has been caught out by daylight saving time changes, but the company has a few weeks yet to fix this latest DST bug before it happens again when Europe and the U.S. change their clocks on October 28 and November 4, respectively.
In the iOS operating system, there's a handy feature that's designed to let you quickly share your Wi-Fi password with a friend, and, if you're at a friend's house, to get the Wi-Fi password with just a tap.
There are two prerequisites to use this feature: you must be running iOS 11 or later and you and your friend need to have each other listed as contacts in the Contacts app. Here's how it works:
When a friend is at your house, have them open up the Settings app.
Tap on Wi-Fi, and let the iPhone look for available networks.
Have your friend tap on the name of your Wi-fi network.
From there, you'll get a popup on your own iPhone that asks you if you want to share your password. Tap "Share Password" and your Wi-Fi password is automatically sent to your friend's iPhone and they're able to join your Wi-Fi network.
Apple's top security chief told the U.S. Congress on Sunday that it had found no indication of suspicious transmissions or other evidence that its China supply chain was ever compromised (via Reuters).
In a letter to the Senate and House commerce committees, Apple Vice President for Information Security George Stathakopoulos wrote that the company had repeatedly investigated and found no evidence to support Bloomberg Businessweek's bombshell report that alleged tiny chips were discovered inside Apple servers which allowed for backdoor transmissions to Chinese spies.
"Apple's proprietary security tools are continuously scanning for precisely this kind of outbound traffic, as it indicates the existence of malware or other malicious activity. Nothing was ever found," he wrote in the letter provided to Reuters.
Stathakopoulos repeated Apple's statements to the press that it had never found any such planted chips or been contacted by the FBI over the alleged matter. The letter follows a statement issued on Saturday by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security saying it had no reason to doubt the companies who denied that they had ever discovered the tiny chips.
Apple, Amazon, and Supermicro all strongly rebutted the report, which alleged that Chinese intelligence planted microchips in Supermicro servers, which Apple and Amazon previously used in their data centers.
Note: Due to the political nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Politics, Religion, Social Issues forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.
Popular photo taking app Halide Camera was today updated to version 1.10, introducing a number of new features including Smart RAW for iPhone XS and iPhone XR, and a tweaked watch app for Apple Watch Series 4 models.
The Smart RAW feature works using a new automatic logic built for getting the best RAW shots out of the iPhone XS and XR, enabling photographers to get even more detail out of their iPhone camera.
According to developer Sebastiaan de With, the Halide auto-exposure on iPhone X already optimizes for the lowest possible ISO and the highest amount of detail, making Smart RAW unnecessary on the iPhone 8 and X. However the iPhone XS and XR benefit from Smart RAW because of the new sensors in the phones.
The Smart RAW feature is on by default and promises to bring noticeably lower noise and better highlight recovery in RAW shots taken with auto-exposure. Interested users are encouraged to search Instagram using the #SmartRAW hashtag for some early examples of the enhanced shooting mode.
This update also adds an option to compare JPEG images with RAW equivalents, while the Halide watch component has been optimized to make better use of the larger screen on Apple Watch Series 4. Lastly, the developer has done some cleaning up and managed to cut down the app size to half of what it was in the previous version.
Earlier in the week, Sebastiaan de With published an in-depth look at the front and rear-facing cameras in the iPhone XS and XS Max, providing some insight into complaints about a possible skin smoothing "beauty mode" that results in less realistic selfies than prior iPhone models.
Halide costs $5.99 and is available on the App Store for iPhone and iPad. [Direct Link]
Apple in 2017 changed the method to force restart or hard reset an iPhone 8 or iPhone 8 Plus.
While rebooting an iPhone 7 or iPhone 7 Plus requires pressing and holding both the Sleep/Wake and Volume Down buttons for at least 10 seconds until the Apple logo appears, restarting an iPhone 8 or iPhone 8 Plus is a three step process that involves the Volume Up button, the Volume Down button, and the Side button on the device.
How to Force Restart (Hard Reset) iPhone 8
First, you need to press and quickly release the Volume Up button. Then, press and quickly release the Volume Down button. Finally, press and hold the Side button (aka power) until you see the Apple logo.
Powering off regularly still requires holding down the Side button for a few seconds until the "slide to power off" prompt appears. In iOS 11 and iOS 12, there's also a "Shut Down" option in the Settings app at the bottom of the General menu.
Apple made this change because on iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus, pressing and holding the Side aka Sleep/Wake button and one of the Volume buttons now activates the Emergency SOS feature.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security today said it has "no reason to doubt" the companies who denied a bombshell Bloomberg Businessweek report this week about Chinese spies using a tiny chip to infiltrate U.S. companies.
The Department of Homeland Security is aware of the media reports of a technology supply chain compromise. Like our partners in the UK, the National Cyber Security Centre, at this time we have no reason to doubt the statements from the companies named in the story. Information and communications technology supply chain security is core to DHS's cybersecurity mission and we are committed to the security and integrity of the technology on which Americans and others around the world increasingly rely. Just this month – National Cybersecurity Awareness Month – we launched several government-industry initiatives to develop near- and long-term solutions to manage risk posed by the complex challenges of increasingly global supply chains. These initiatives will build on existing partnerships with a wide range of technology companies to strengthen our nation's collective cybersecurity and risk management efforts.
Apple, Amazon, and Supermicro have all strongly refuted the report, which alleged that Chinese intelligence planted microchips in Supermicro servers, which Apple and Amazon previously used in their data centers.
Apple and Bloomberg Businessweek are in a stalemate, with the former strongly refuting the report, and the latter standing by its reporting.
Note: Due to the political nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Politics, Religion, Social Issues forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.
Earlier this week, MacRumors obtained an internal document from Apple stating that Macs with the Apple T2 chip, including the iMac Pro and 2018 MacBook Pro, must pass Apple diagnostics for certain repairs to be completed.
The document states:
For Macs with the Apple T2 chip, the repair process is not complete for certain parts replacements until the AST 2 System Configuration suite has been run. Failure to perform this step will result in an inoperative system and an incomplete repair.
• For notebooks: Display assembly, logic board, top case, and Touch ID board • For desktops: Logic board and flash storage
Apple's diagnostic software is limited to internal use by Genius Bars at Apple Stores, Apple Authorized Service Providers, and qualifying institutions, suggesting that independent repair shops without Apple certification would be unable to repair certain parts on the iMac Pro and 2018 MacBook Pro going forward.
Moreover, the document reignited a debate about planned obsolescence, as there were concerns that when Apple stops servicing the iMac Pro and 2018 MacBook Pro, repairs through alternative channels might not be possible.
The news was quickly opposed by "Right to Repair" activists who believe that Apple and other device manufacturers should be legally required to make replacement parts, repair guides, and tools available to the public. Apple has and continues to actively oppose "Right to Repair" legislation in the United States.
Those activists will be delighted to hear that, for whatever reason, what Apple said in its document isn't actually the case right now.
iFixit is not an Apple Authorized Service Provider, so at this time, it appears that independent repair shops should remain able to repair the iMac Pro and 2018 MacBook Pro without issue. It's unclear why Apple's document suggests otherwise, but it's possible the requirement could kick in at a later date.
iFixit:
So why is Apple doing this? It could simply be a mechanism for tracking parts used by their authorized network, to check quality or replacement rates. It's possible that units with swapped parts may operate normally, but still report a failure in Apple diagnostic tests for having 'unauthorized' components installed—much like earlier units did on earlier versions of AST for third party HDD/SSD, RAM and batteries.
When you receive a PDF document by email that you must sign, the process of printing out the file, signing on the dotted line with a pen, scanning the signed document and sending it back can be a rather tedious task. Fortunately, Apple has added the ability to electronically sign a PDF document using Preview, a program that comes preinstalled on every Mac running OS X Lion or later.
The steps involved to electronically sign a PDF using Preview on Mac are quite simple and will save you valuable time, especially if you have multiple documents, contracts, forms or other paperwork to sign. If you are worried that your virtual signature will look bad, rest assured that you can create your signature by using the trackpad or holding up your signature on paper to a Mac's built-in iSight camera.
Today is the official launch date of the new Nike+ Apple Watch Series 4 models, which were available for pre-order on September 14 alongside other Apple Watch Series 4 models, but had a later release timeline.
We got our hands on one of the new Nike+ Apple Watches this morning to show off the custom watch faces and the new reflective bands that Apple has designed.
Design wise, the Nike+ Apple Watches are identical to Apple's standard aluminum Apple Watch Series 4 models, with aluminum casings and Ion-X glass covering the display.
Nike+ Apple Watches are also priced the same and come in 40 and 44mm size options, but colors are limited to silver and space gray aluminum.
There are two perforated Sport Bands and two new Sport Loops made with a reflective fabric, which is a new option this year. The Nike+ model in our video is the 44mm Space Gray version with a Black Nike Sport Loop.
According to Apple, the new Nike Sport Loops are woven with a reflective thread that's meant to shimmer when the light strikes it for more peace of mind when running at night, but in our testing, it was pretty muted.
These reflective bands are exclusive to the Nike+ Apple Watch right now and can't be purchased separately.
In addition to the unique bands, Apple Watch Nike+ models also feature exclusive Nike+ watch faces that are not available on other Apple Watch models. There's a digital watch face and an analog watch face, both of which can be customized with different colors.
The new Nike+ Apple Watch models can be purchased from Apple at prices starting at $399 for the 40mm GPS version and $429 for the 44mm GPS version. LTE models cost $100 more.
Orders placed today from the Apple online store in the U.S. will not ship out until early November, but some retail locations do have stock for immediate pickup.
Nike+ Apple Watches are available in Australia, Austria, Bahrain, Belgium, Canada, China, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Guam, Hong Kong, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Kuwait, Luxembourg, Macau, Monaco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Oman, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the UAE, the U.K., and the U.S.
AnandTech, known for in-depth reviews of new Apple products, today published a lengthy review of the iPhone XS and XS Max, Apple's newest flagship iPhones.
AnandTech's review takes a deep dive into the A12 chip in the two smartphones, which is the first commercially available 7nm silicon.
Image of A12 SoC via TechInsights with labeling by AnandTech
According to AnandTech, the A12 chip features a major revamp of the neural accelerator, a redesigned system cache that features the "biggest change since its introduction in the A7," significant changes to the CPU core, and memory compression for the GPU, all of which has led to impressive performance improvements.
Based on SPECint2006 benchmarking, the A12 performed an average of 24 percent better than the A11 in the previous-generation devices. When it comes to power efficiency, the A12 improved by 12 percent, but with memory heavy workloads, power consumption was up, for an average power usage of ~3.36W on the A11 to 3.64W on the A12.
SPECfp benchmarking saw average performance gains of 28 percent, and again, workloads with major improvements also resulted in increased power consumption.
AnandTech's benchmarking tests suggest that the A12's Vortex cores and architectural improvements offer a "much higher performance advantage than Apple's marketing materials promote." Apple's A12 beat the best Android SoCs both in performance and power efficiency.
The contrast to the best Android SoCs have to offer is extremely stark - both in terms of performance as well as in power efficiency. Apple's SoCs have better energy efficiency than all recent Android SoCs while having a nearly 2x performance advantage. I wouldn't be surprised that if we were to normalise for energy used, Apple would have a 3x performance efficiency lead.
AnandTech says that it's "quite astonishing" how close the A12 and the previous-generation A11 are to desktop CPUs, with "very small margins until Apple’s mobile SoCs outperform the fastest desktop CPUs in terms of ST performance."
As part of the review, AnandTech also offered a look at how Apple has improved performance in older devices by tweaking scaling performance. The A9 in the iPhone 6s, for example, took 435ms for the CPU to reach maximum frequency, but that time was cut to 80ms in iOS 12 for a "great boost to performance in shorter interactive workloads."
Similar improvements were made to the A10 (going from a 400ms ramp up time to 210ms), but there was little change to the A11.
All in all, AnandTech said the iPhone XS and XS Max are a "big shift" for Apple's lineup with a "beast of an SoC" that's offering performance improvements of up to 40 percent.
Apple's marketing department was really underselling the improvements here by just quoting 15% - a lot of workloads will be seeing performance improvements I estimate to be around 40%, with even greater improvements in some corner-cases. Apple's CPU have gotten so performant now, that we're just margins off the best desktop CPUs; it will be interesting to see how the coming years evolve, and what this means for Apple's non-mobile products.
The full iPhone XS and XS Max review from AnandTech is well worth checking out for those who would like to get a deeper technical look at the components inside the two new devices. It goes into much greater detail on the CPU and GPU in the iPhone XS and XS Max, while also taking a look at the camera, battery, display, and other components.
