MacRumors

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.

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.

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.

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."

Photos of Apple's rumored Smart Battery Cases for the iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max have been uncovered in a product merchandising guide for Apple Premium Resellers that was obtained by the blog Appleosophy.

The guidelines instruct Apple Premium Resellers how to organize Apple's various leather and silicone cases for the iPhone 7 through iPhone XS Max in their stores. While the photos are low resolution, two of the cases clearly have a battery pack hump and a cutout for the vertically-aligned rear camera on the latest iPhones.

The new Smart Battery Cases are listed as "leather" products, but this is likely a mistake, as they appear to be silicone in the photos like Apple's previous Smart Battery Cases for the iPhone 6 and iPhone 7.

The guidelines are dated "Fall 2018," suggesting that Apple planned to release the new Smart Battery Cases within the past few months. The season officially ends this Friday, December 21, so there's still some time. Of course, Apple may also delay the cases until 2019 or never end up releasing them.

9to5Mac, which confirmed the merchandising guide is legitimate, earlier discovered assets related to Smart Battery Cases for the iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, and iPhone XR within iOS and watchOS code. The assets suggest the cases might no longer have a "chin" extending past the bottom of the iPhone.

Apple's first Smart Battery Case was for the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6s, and was equipped with a 1,877 mAh battery that protruded out of the back of the case. Apple later released an iPhone 7 version with a similar design but larger 2,365 mAh battery. Both remain available for purchase for $99 in the United States.

At this point, ample evidence of Smart Battery Cases for the latest iPhones has surfaced, so all eyes are on Apple's online store.