MacRumors

Apple today announced the Apple Watch Series 5, and confirmed that it would continue to sell the Apple Watch Series 3 starting at the lower price of $199.

apple watch series 3 trio
The Apple Watch Series 3 is available in both GPS and cellular models, both of which support the new watchOS 6. It's not entirely clear right now if that means Apple is discontinuing the Series 4 model, but it's likely.

Apple's special event is underway at Steve Jobs Theater. Refresh for updates and follow our September 2019 event hub for coverage of all of Apple's announcements today.

Related Roundup: Apple Watch 11
Buyer's Guide: Apple Watch (Buy Now)

Apple today shared the first trailer for "See," the post-apocalyptic drama series debuting on Apple TV+ on November 1.


"See" is an epic post apocalyptic drama where the world has been wiped out by a virus. There are survivors, but all of them have been rendered blind.

From the YouTube description:

In the far future, a virus has decimated humankind. Those who survived emerged blind.

Jason Momoa stars as Baba Voss, the father of twins born centuries later with the mythic ability to see—who must protect his tribe against a powerful yet desperate queen who believes it's witchcraft and wants them destroyed. Alfre Woodard also stars as Paris, Baba Voss’ spiritual leader.

The series stars Jason Momoa and Alfre Woodard.

‌Apple TV‌+ is Apple's upcoming subscription-based streaming video service, launching November 1 in over 100 countries and regions. The platform will eventually offer dozens of original TV shows and movies, such as "The Morning Show," "Dickinson," "See," "For All Mankind" and "The Elephant Queen."

‌Apple TV‌+ will be available on the ‌Apple TV‌ app on iPhone, iPad, ‌Apple TV‌, iPod touch, Mac and other platforms, including online at tv.apple.com, for $4.99 per month with a seven-day free trial. Starting today, customers who purchase any ‌iPhone‌, ‌iPad‌, ‌Apple TV‌, iPod touch or Mac can enjoy one year of ‌Apple TV‌+ for free.

Related: All of Apple's Original TV Shows and Movies

Related Roundup: Apple TV
Buyer's Guide: Apple TV (Don't Buy)

Apple today announced the Apple Watch Series 5, alongside watchOS 6. Series 5 watches feature an always-on display, meaning you won't have to rely on wrist raises to read the Apple Watch screen. There's also a built-in compass and international emergency calling as the new standout features.

apple watch series 5
The always-on display allows the time and other important information to be visible at all times. Every watch face was optimized for the new display and to preserve battery life, featuring the ability to dim the screen when your wrist is down and return to full brightness with a raise or tap.

Despite the always-on display, Apple said that the Apple Watch Series 5 still features an all-day 18-hour battery life.

“We’ve seen Apple Watch have a meaningful impact on our customers’ lives and we’re excited to deliver even more capabilities with Apple Watch Series 5 and watchOS 6,” said Jeff Williams, Apple’s chief operating officer. “The seamless integration of new hardware and software delivers an enhanced experience that makes it even easier to stay active and connected to the people and information users care about.”

There are also updated location features that provide greater navigation tools, like the built-in compass and updated Maps app. The compass app provides heading, incline, latitude, longitude, and current elevation, and it can be added as a complication to the watch face.

series 5 image
Series 5 cellular models include international calls to emergency services, regardless of where the device was originally purchased or if the cellular plan was activated.

The new lineup also comes with a titanium case, and returning styles include stainless steel, aluminum, and ceramic. There are also the expected Apple Watch Nike and Apple Watch Hermès models.

series 5 models
With a new Apple Watch comes the latest updated to watchOS, which is watchOS6, including new health and fitness features like a Cycle Tracking app for women. There's a Noise app to understand the ambient sound levels in environments such as concerts, and Activity Trends to provide a long-term view of your activity patterns.


watchOS 6 also has dynamic new watch faces like Meridian, Modular Compact, and Solar Dial. Apple is also finally letting you customize exactly which Apple Watch case and watch band you buy from the get-go with Apple Watch Studio. With this, you can pick your preferred case and band combination when you initially purchase the Apple Watch Series 5.

Apple Watch Series 5 with GPS starts at $399 while the GPS and cellular models start at $499. You can order your Series 5 device today on Apple.com, and the watches will then begin to ship on Friday, September 20. Apple has discontinued the Apple Watch Series 4 and is keeping the Series 3 around at the entry-level price of $199 for GPS and $299 for GPS and cellular.

Related Roundup: Apple Watch 11
Buyer's Guide: Apple Watch (Buy Now)

Apple today announced that customers will be able to subscribe to and watch Apple TV+ at tv.apple.com on the web in Safari, Chrome, and Firefox.

apple tv plus promo image
‌Apple TV‌+ is Apple's upcoming subscription-based streaming video service, launching November 1 in over 100 countries and regions. The platform will eventually offer dozens of original TV shows and movies, such as "The Morning Show," "Dickinson," "See," "For All Mankind" and "The Elephant Queen."

‌Apple TV‌+ will be available on the ‌Apple TV‌ app on iPhone, iPad, ‌Apple TV‌, Mac and other platforms, including online at tv.apple.com, for $4.99 per month with a seven-day free trial. Starting today, customers who purchase any ‌iPhone‌, ‌iPad‌, ‌Apple TV‌, iPod touch, or Mac can get one year of ‌Apple TV‌+ for free.

Apple today announced a new seventh-generation low-cost iPad with a bigger 10.2-inch Retina display than the previous generation.

ipad 10
The new ‌iPad‌ includes an A10 Fusion chip, support for the first-gen Apple Pencil, and a Smart Connector for attaching Apple's Smart Keyboard.

"The new iPad packs even more value into our most popular and affordable iPad model featuring a bigger 10.2-inch Retina display, support for Apple Pencil and for the first time, the full-size Smart Keyboard," said Greg Joswiak, Apple’s vice president of Product Marketing. “The new iPad was built to run iPadOS, which introduces powerful new ways to multitask, manage and mark up documents, use Apple Pencil and view more information at a glance on a redesigned Home screen. This new iPad with iPadOS takes everything people love about our most popular iPad and makes it even better for creating, learning, working and playing."

The new seventh-generation ‌iPad‌ comes in silver, space gray and gold finishes in 32GB and 128GB configurations. ‌iPad‌ starts at $329 for the Wi-Fi model and $459 for the Wi-Fi + Cellular model.

Apple's most affordable ‌iPad‌, which is made from 100 percent recycled aluminum for the first time, starts shipping September 30, and orders start today.

Related Roundup: iPad
Buyer's Guide: iPad (Neutral)
Related Forum: iPad

Apple today announced that its streaming TV service, Apple TV+, will launch on November 1 for the price of $4.99 per month. The service will be available in over 100 countries and regions.

apple tv plus promo image
Launch shows include The Morning Show, Dickinson, See, For All Mankind, and The Elephant Queen. You'll be able to watch each show on ‌Apple TV‌, iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Mac, and more.

“With Apple TV+, we are presenting all-original stories from the best, brightest and most creative minds, and we know viewers will find their new favorite show or movie on our service,” said Zack Van Amburg, Apple’s head of Worldwide Video. “Each Apple TV+ original offers its own unique story, fresh perspective and powerful message — all meant to entertain, connect and inspire cultural conversations.”

There will be a seven day free trial, and from today if you purchase any ‌iPhone‌, ‌iPad‌, ‌Apple TV‌, iPod touch, or Mac you'll get one year of ‌Apple TV‌+ for free. Family sharing will allow up to six family members to share one subscription to the streaming TV service.

Other launch day series include Helpsters, Snoopy in Space, Ghostwriter, Servant, Truth Be Told, Little America, The Banker, and Hala. Subscribers will be able to watch these shows online and offline, ad-free, and on demand.

Starting today, users can add ‌Apple TV‌+ series to their Up Next list on the ‌Apple TV‌ app, in order to be notified when the first episodes are available. Some shows will premiere with three episodes, and then one episode will roll out each week afterwards. Additionally, other shows will debut with full seasons at once.

Apple opened its "By Innovation Only" event at Steve Jobs Theater today with a creative video highlighting its various products and services.


Apple shared several other videos during its keynote. We've embedded them below for those who missed seeing the event live.





We have also put together a convenient video recapping everything Apple announced in just seven minutes.

Apple today announced that its subscription-based Apple Arcade gaming service will launch September 19 in over 150 countries for $4.99 per month, with a one-month free trial available. This price will apply to individuals or a family of up to six members and will likely vary outside the United States.

apple arcade devices
‌Apple Arcade‌ will provide iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple TV users with access to a library of over 100 games, with no ads or additional in-app purchases. Read our Apple Arcade guide for more details and a preview of the games coming at launch.

Apple's "By innovation only" event at the Steve Jobs Theater at Apple Park begins at 10:00 a.m. Pacific Time, with Apple expected to show off new iPhone and Apple Watch models.

sept 2019 event theater


We should also be hearing about final details and release dates for Apple's upcoming software updates, including iOS and iPadOS 13, macOS Catalina, watchOS 6, and tvOS 13. Apple's services such as Apple Arcade and Apple TV+ are another likely topic for discussion, and we could see additional hardware announcements such as a 10.2-inch iPad, Apple's rumored Tile-like item tracker and an updated ‌Apple TV‌.

Apple is providing a live video stream on its website, via the Apple Events app on ‌Apple TV‌, on Twitter, and for the first time, on YouTube.

In addition to Apple's video stream, we will be updating this article with live blog coverage—no need to refresh—and issuing Twitter updates through our @MacRumorsLive account as the keynote unfolds.

Highlights from the event and separate news stories regarding today's announcements will go out through our @MacRumors account.

Live blog transcript ahead...

➜ Click here to read rest of article...

Apple's suppliers are gearing up to assemble next-generation AirPods as early as October, according to industry sources cited by DigiTimes, suggesting an updated version of the earphones could arrive in time for the holiday shopping season.

airpods
An excerpt from the report:

Apple's supply chain makers reportedly have kicked off volume production of related components for next-generation AirPods that will enable ODM production partners to begin mass assembly of the gadgets as early as October to meet year-end shopping season demand, according to supply chain sources.

Given the supply of current AirPods model still remains tight, it will remain an issue whether Apple could maintain sufficient supply of the next-generation AirPods, whose structural changes might affect yield rates at production lines, according to market watchers.

In April, noted Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said two new AirPods models would likely go into mass production between the fourth quarter of 2019 and the first quarter of 2020, with Luxshare, Goertek, and Amkor serving as primary suppliers.

Kuo believes one of the new AirPods models will feature an "all-new form factor design" and a "higher price" than the second-generation AirPods, which cost $159 with a standard charging case and $199 with a wireless charging case. The other model is expected to be a more iterative update with the same pricing.

If new AirPods do launch later this year, they will likely be the more iterative pair that Kuo referred to, as Bloomberg's Mark Gurman expects the higher-priced AirPods with water resistance and noise cancelation to launch as early as 2020. It's unclear what features would be part of the iterative update.

In March, Apple released second-generation AirPods powered by an Apple-designed H1 chip, enabling hands-free "Hey Siri" functionality and up to 50 percent more talk time compared to the original AirPods. The second-generation AirPods feature the same outward design as the original.

Related Roundup: AirPods Pro 3
Buyer's Guide: AirPods Pro (Buy Now)
Related Forum: AirPods

Apple's "By innovation only" media event will be kicking off at 10:00 am Pacific Time today, and as is tradition, some MacRumors readers who can't follow the event live are interested in avoiding all of the announcements and waiting until Apple posts the recorded video of the event so as to experience it without already knowing the outcome.

iphone event invite 2019 featured
For those individuals, we've posted this news story, which will be updated with a direct link to the presentation once it becomes available from Apple. No other news stories or announcements will be displayed alongside this story.

Notably, Apple is streaming today's event live on YouTube for the first time, which means a replay should be available almost immediately after the event ends, and in fact, users should be able to watch the video from the beginning even while the event is still going on, at the risk of getting a brief glimpse of the in-progress feed upon first loading the video.

Apple has also generally become quicker about making event videos available for replay on its own site over the past several years, and Apple-hosted videos are now frequently available within an hour of an event's conclusion.

Users waiting for the video to be posted are welcome to gather in the thread associated with this news story, and we ask that those who follow the events refrain from making any posts about Apple's announcements in this thread.

Update: The full keynote video is available on Apple's website as a direct link to the video file with no spoilers.

Just hours ahead of today's Apple Event at Steve Jobs Theater, where the company is slated to unveil new iPhone and Apple Watch models, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman has shared several last-minute expectations.

tim cook wwdc19
First, Gurman has revised his prediction for the names of the 2019 iPhones. He now expects the next iPhone XR, iPhone XS, and iPhone XS Max to be called the iPhone 11, iPhone Pro, and iPhone Pro Max respectively. He previously expected the lineup to include the iPhone 11 and iPhone 11 Pro in two sizes.


Second, he expects Apple to unveil a new 10.2-inch iPad today, with previous rumors suggesting it will be a replacement for the $329 lower-end 9.7-inch iPad. Pricing and other details remain to be seen.


Third, Gurman has backed analyst Ming-Chi Kuo's report that the widely rumored device-to-device charging feature on 2019 iPhones has been canceled. In a research note seen by MacRumors, Kuo said the feature has possibly been abandoned because "the charging efficiency may not meet Apple's requirements."

2019 iPhones were rumored to feature a Qi-based device-to-device charging feature allowing for an Apple Watch, AirPods, and other accessories to charge on the back of the iPhones, similar to Wireless PowerShare on the Galaxy S10.

samsung wireless powershare

Wireless PowerShare on Samsung's Galaxy S10

Apple's keynote begins at 10 a.m. Pacific Time. Apple will provide a live stream on its website, through its Apple Events app for the Apple TV, and even on YouTube for the first time. MacRumors will have up-to-the-minute coverage of all of Apple's announcements on our website and via @MacRumorsLive on Twitter.

Related Roundup: iPad
Buyer's Guide: iPad (Neutral)
Related Forums: iPad, iPhone

PayPal's Digital Gifts eBay storefront is back with a 15 percent discount on Apple's App Store and iTunes gift cards today, offering the $100 iTunes gift card at a price of $85 for a limited time. This matches the 15 percent discount we've been tracking for most iTunes gift card sales and is the best currently available online this week.

2019 itunes card imageNote: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with eBay. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

Like previous discounts, you'll need to have a PayPal account to see the savings and the gift card will be valid only on purchases made in the United States. The card is electronic, so once you place your order you'll get an email within a few hours with a code that you can use to fill up your Apple ID with the credit.

iTunes gift cards are good for buying movies, TV shows, and books on Apple's digital storefronts, as well as paying for subscriptions like Apple Music, Netflix, and Hulu. These discounts on iTunes gift cards come around once every few weeks (and sometimes take longer to reemerge), so if you've been waiting for a sale you should head to eBay soon before the bargain ends.

Our full Deals Roundup has all of the latest and greatest Apple-related discounts in one place.

Related Roundup: Apple Deals

Could Apple be about to announce that it's making Disney movies available in 4K format on Apple TV? Earlier this morning, MacRumors forum member Eminemdrdre00 spotted a 4K badge on the Aladdin banner in the carousel of the iTunes Movies app on his Apple set-top box. But when he selected it, the reference disappeared.

aladdin 4k disney
However, a Reddit user has since uploaded several images of Disney movie selection screens on iTunes – including several Marvel titles – all of which bear the 4K and Dolby Atmos badges. However, these references appear to have since been pulled.

When Apple said in 2017 that it had inked deals with all the major Hollywood studios to sell 4K movies on ‌Apple TV‌ 4K, Disney was the one notable holdout.

disney 4k apple tv 2
Perhaps an agreement has now been reached, although this would be all the more surprising given that both Apple and Disney are about to go head to head with their own rival streaming services.

Disney+ is set to launch on November 12 and will be available to watch on ‌Apple TV‌ (tvOS-supported models), iPad, and iPhone, with offline downloads supported on mobile. Rumors suggest Apple is also aiming to launch ‌Apple TV‌+ this November.

disney apple tv 4k movies 1
Disney+ will cost $6.99 a month and give subscribers the ability stream up to four devices at the same time, with high-definition 4K content included at no extra cost.

‌Apple TV‌+ will offer all of Apple's original TV shows and movies that are in development, and Apple is reportedly spending upwards of $6 billion for content. Little is known about ‌Apple TV‌+, but it will be available on all devices where the TV app is available when it launches.

Apple is widely expected to announce new ‌iPhone‌ and Apple Watch models at its event later today, and last-minute rumors suggest there could be a new Apple TV with an A12 chip as well, although the timing is unclear.

The event kicks off at 10:00 a.m Pacific Time. MacRumors will be providing live coverage of the event both here on MacRumors.com and on the MacRumorsLive Twitter account.

Related Roundup: Apple TV
Buyer's Guide: Apple TV (Don't Buy)

Apple has taken its online store down ahead of its "By Innovation Only" event today at Steve Jobs Theater, where the company is widely expected to unveil new iPhone and Apple Watch models.

applestoredown
Beyond that, wild cards include a 10.2-inch iPad, a new Apple TV, an iPad Pro refresh, a 16-inch MacBook Pro, and Apple's rumored Tile-like item tracking tags, but some of these products may be reserved for an October event, which Apple has held in two out of the last three years.

Alongside hardware announcements, Apple should provide release dates for iOS 13, macOS Catalina, watchOS 6, and tvOS 13 by the end of tomorrow, either during its keynote or on its website. Apple may also detail pricing and availability for its upcoming ‌Apple TV‌+ and Apple Arcade services.

What to Expect at Apple's September 2019 Event: New iPhones, Apple Watch Models, Services Updates, and More

Apple often takes its online store down ahead of its media events as a way of generating hype ahead of new products and accessories. It should come back online moments after Apple's keynote ends.

Apple will provide a live stream of its keynote on its website, through its Apple Events app for the Apple TV, and even on YouTube for the first time. MacRumors will have up-to-the-minute coverage of all of Apple's announcements on our website and via @MacRumorsLive on Twitter.


Mac users can get MacRumors headlines delivered to their desktops instantly by enabling Safari push notifications.

MacRumors readers can follow along in our forums, which are a great place to discuss the announcements before, during, and after the event. Be sure to keep tabs on the ‌iPhone‌ and Apple Watch sections in particular.

Apple's keynote begins at 10 a.m. Pacific Time.

Facebook has attempted to pre-empt awkward questions about privacy ahead of the launch of iOS 13, with a blog post explaining what Apple's new location data alerts mean for users of its mobile app.

facebook logo
As we've covered elsewhere, Apple has doubled down on its privacy features in iOS 13, giving iPhone and iPad users a more granular view of how third-party apps access their location information – something that's obviously of concern to Facebook.

In a blog post titled "Understanding Updates to Your Device's Location Settings," the social network company highlights the fact that pop-up notifications now let users know when an app is using their location in the background, and even show a map of the location data that the app has tracked. The alerts also make users aware of how often apps are tracking them and their motivation for doing so.

Facebook points out that while iOS 12 gives users the option to allow apps access to precise location information "Always," "While Using the App" or "Never," iOS 13 adds an additional "Allow Once" option for permitting restricted one-time access. The social media giant clearly wants users to know that regardless of these changes, "Facebook is better with location..."

It powers features like check-ins and makes planning events easier. It helps improve ads and keep you and the Facebook community safe. Features like Find Wi-Fi and Nearby Friends use precise location even when you're not using the app to make sure that alerts and tools are accurate and personalized for you.

It's no secret that Facebook harvests huge amounts of data on all of its users, but the company is clearly trying to allay concerns when the alerts start rolling in on Facebook users' devices once they've updated to iOS 13.

Apple usually releases new versions of iOS one or two weeks after it unveils new iPhones. Apple's ‌iPhone‌ event takes place today at 10:00 a.m Pacific Time, so we should see iOS 13 drop relatively soon. MacRumors will be providing live coverage of today's event both here on MacRumors.com and on the MacRumorsLive Twitter account. Stay tuned.

Related Forum: iOS 13

Microsoft has unveiled its new-look To Do app. First launched in 2017, the productivity app came along two years after the company acquired Wunderlist, but only now does it resemble a like-for-like replacement offering feature parity with the long-running cloud-based task management service. Announcing To Do v2.0, Microsoft had this to say:

to do

When Wunderlist became part of the Microsoft family, our mission was to bring the delightful, simple, and elegant daily task experience and build it into Microsoft's intelligent, interconnected, and security-centric ecosystem to create a new app—Microsoft To Do. Today, we're unveiling the new version of To Do, which includes a fresh new design, access from wherever you are, and more integration with Microsoft apps and services.

The most obvious visual similarity is that To Do now supports background images – and even includes the Berlin TV tower image that longtime Wunderlist users will be familiar with. Every list can be given its own background image, and Microsoft says it has reduced the list header size and added new color theme customization options, with a dark mode for iOS and Mac coming soon.

Otherwise, it looks like business as usual for Wunderlist fans. The app features subtasks, recurring tasks, prioritized tasks, reminders and due dates, file attachments, and notes. Lists can also be grouped, shared with other people, and assigned.

There's a personalized daily planner feature called My Day that refreshes daily and features smart suggestions for tasks. And of course, all lists sync across devices, allowing users to stay organized at work, home, or on the go. Finally, there's deeper integration with Microsoft 365 apps and services like Microsoft Planner, linking to Microsoft-hosted email accounts like Outlook, Hotmail, and Live, and Cortana and Amazon Echo support.


Users without a Microsoft account can register with their existing email address. Once they sign in, the option to import tasks from Wunderlist is displayed, and it can also be found in Settings. Microsoft To Do is a free download for iPhone and iPad available from the App Store. [Direct Link]

Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo this afternoon sent out a note to investors recapping his expectations for Apple's 2019 iPhone lineup, which is set to be unveiled during tomorrow's September 10 event.

Much of what's included in the note, which was seen by MacRumors, covers predictions that we've previously heard many times, though Kuo offers up details on some rumors that were previously not confirmed, along with some new information on the potential bilateral wireless charging feature and the USB-C chargers we've heard about.

2019iphonesingle
Here's a roundup of the information shared in the report:

  • New iPhones won't support Apple Pencil.
  • New iPhones will feature a Lightning connector, not a USB-C port.
  • 5.8 and 6.5-inch OLED models will ship with an 18W adapter with a USB-C connector.
  • The 6.1-inch LCD ‌iPhone‌ will continue to ship with a 5W power adapter with a USB-A connector.
  • The new iPhones may not support two-way wireless charging after all "because the charging efficiency may not meet Apple’s requirements."
  • Design and notch of new iPhones to be unchanged. New colors expected (likely referring to the new colors for the XR).
  • Triple-lens cameras for the 5.8 and 6.5-inch iPhones.
  • All three iPhones will offer ultra-wideband support for improved indoor navigation and object tracking purposes.

Ultra-wideband support is perhaps one of the most interesting changes that's gotten limited coverage. It's a short-range, low-power radio technology that offers more precise indoor positioning than Bluetooth LE and WiFi, which suggests that Apple's rumored Tile-like Apple Tags for keeping track of lost objects will be more accurate than products from competitors.

On the other details included in the note, we've heard reports of Apple's plans to introduce 18W chargers for fast charging out of the box, but previous rumors didn't indicate that the chargers would be limited to the ‌iPhone‌ XS and XS Max successors.

Bilateral wireless charging, which would allow the ‌iPhone‌ to charge devices like the AirPods and the Apple Watch, has long been rumored. In fact, a recent report from Bloomberg suggested Apple is moving the Apple logo on the new iPhones from the top to the middle of the devices specifically for this feature, so it may have been a late stage decision to nix it.

Kuo says that he expects shipments of the new ‌iPhone‌ models will decline by 5 to 10 percent year over year to 65 to 70 million units because of a "lack of innovative selling points." ‌iPhone‌ shipments in 2019 still might reach 180 million units, though, thanks to "demand boosted by price-cut legacy ‌iPhone‌ models."

We don't have long to wait to see what's in store for the 2019 ‌iPhone‌ lineup. Apple's ‌iPhone‌ event will kick off at 10:00 a.m Pacific Time. MacRumors will be providing live coverage of the event both here on MacRumors.com and on the MacRumorsLive Twitter account.

Update: Bloomberg's Mark Gurman has backed Kuo's claim that the widely rumored two-way charging feature for 2019 iPhones has been canceled.

Related Forum: iPhone