iHome today launched the iSP100, a smart plug for controlling outdoor lights, decorations, and small appliances with up to 1,800 watts of power. The three-pin Type B smart plug works with a GFI-enabled outdoor 120V power supply and has a rugged design that is able to withstand the elements of weather.
Like iHome's indoor smart plugs, the iSP100 is compatible with Apple's HomeKit platform, allowing iPhone and iPad users to set schedules and scenes to automate outdoor lighting or whatever is plugged into it. The smart plug can be controlled with Apple's Home app or the iHome Control app from the App Store.
iHome also unveiled a trio of Wi-Fi-enabled, battery-powered smart home sensors, each priced at $29.99, but none of them support HomeKit.
The new sensors can be configured to automatically turn iHome smart plugs on or off should a door or window open, motion be detected, or a leak occur. For example, if a motion detector senses motion in a room, it can trigger the smart plugs in that room to turn on, switching on lights, fans, and other appliances.
iHome's smart home products can be purchased at select retailers, including Amazon, Apple, Bed Bath & Beyond, Best Buy, and Home Depot. The iSP100 is available now, while the trio of sensors are listed as "coming soon."
Beats By Dre today unveiled an all-new black-and-yellow version of the Beats Solo3 Wireless Headphones, which will be exclusive to Third Man Records. The Third Man Records Limited Edition headphones will cost $329.50 -- which is $30 more expensive than other Solo3 headphones sold by Apple -- and officially go on sale Friday, November 24.
For the $30 premium on other Solo3 Headphones, customers who purchase the Third Man Records edition will get a custom carrying case, black-and-yellow 3.5mm braided cable that matches the headphones, and an exclusive flexi-disc featuring The Raconteurs' song "Level." The headphones also feature a few details related to Third Man Records, including the company's logo and stripes on the inside and outside of the headphones, respectively.
Visit the Third Man Store to pre-order the new Beats Solo3 Wireless Headphones today.
Apple has been designated the "clear leader" in its methods of supporting a conflict-free minerals trade throughout its supply chain. The title was awarded to the company in a report published by the Enough Project, called the 2017 Conflict Minerals Company Rankings, in which Apple sits at the #1 spot. Rounding out the top 5 spots are Alphabet/Google at #2, HP at #3, Microsoft at #4, and Intel at #5.
The new Conflict Minerals Company Rankings look at 20 of the world's largest companies in two of the industries that the Enough Project says "consume the most" tin, tungsten, tantalum, and gold: consumer electronics and jewelry retail. These minerals are referred to as conflict minerals because they're most often related to being sourced within war-torn countries that mine the minerals with little to no respect for workers' rights.
The Enough Project gathered these top 20 companies and awarded points to each based on the policies and practices that they enact regarding responsible mineral sourcing, with the lowest on the list designated as companies most in need of "considerable and urgent need for more action." In total, the companies were ranked based on four core categories:
- Conducting Conflict Minerals Sourcing Due Diligence and Reporting - Developing a Conflict-Free Minerals Trade and Sourcing Conflict-Free Minerals from Congo, Particularly Gold - Supporting and Improving Livelihoods for Artisanal Mining Communities in Eastern Congo - Conflict-Free Minerals Advocacy
In its full report, Apple is placed in the "Outstanding Company Efforts" section, which represents the companies "going above and beyond to get more directly at the heart of maintaining robust due diligence practices and sourcing conflict-free minerals from Congo." Specifically, Apple is the only company to receive full credits for identifying and following up with supply chain incidents reported to it by suppliers and other sources. Apple has "clearly demonstrated its commitment" to scouring for red flags related to these reports and taking action by dropping suppliers and others in its supply chain that turn out to be noncompliant with its standards.
After developing its Risk Readiness Assessment program in order to help identify conflict minerals sourcing in its supply chain, among other risk-related sourcing factors, Apple partnered with the Responsible Business Alliance in order to make this program widely accessible to other companies. According to the Enough Project, this put Apple above and beyond all other companies ranked on the list.
Apple not only has found better ways of addressing incidents within its own supply chain, but it has also helped develop shared centralized platforms for risk assessment that other companies can use. This extra effort contributes to the overall strengthening of conflict minerals supply chain due diligence.
The Enough Project's report follow a separate study published by Amnesty International earlier this week, which described Apple as the industry leader in responsible cobalt sourcing. That report said Apple has taken "adequate" action in terms of sourcing conflict-free minerals, earning a top ranking alongside Samsung in the same category.
Apple annually discusses this part of the supply chain in its Supplier Responsibility Reports, which typically come out around February and March. This year's report highlighted cobalt supplier audits in the Congo, its "highest ever" work hour compliance, and discussed the success of Apple's Supplier Education Program. These reports are intended to show the strides that Apple takes to improve the work lives of its device manufacturing employees, who work to create products including the iPhone, iPad, Mac, and more.
To see more of the Enough Project's 2017 Conflict Minerals Company Rankings, visit the project's website here.
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.
Apple's incoming chief lawyer Katherine Adams has received a generous bonus package in the form of restricted stock units, or RSUs, according to a mandatory disclosure filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission this week.
Katherine Adams
The first part of the award consists of 57,482 RSUs that vest in quarterly instalments on the 13th day of May 2018, November 2018, November 2019, and November 2020, so long as Adams remains employed by Apple on those dates.
The second part of the award consists of up to 57,482 RSUs, a percentage of which will vest on October 1, 2020 based on Apple's relative total shareholder return between November 13, 2017 and September 26, 2020.
Based on Apple's performance compared to companies in the S&P 500 over the next three years, Adams can see the second part of her award increased by as much as 100 percent, or decreased to zero if Apple were to underperform.
Based on Apple's closing price of $169.08 on Wednesday, each portion of 57,482 RSUs is worth slightly over $9.7 million for a potential total value of $19.4 million. The amount could be higher or lower based on Apple's performance.
Apple frequently awards its senior executives with restricted stock units as an incentive for them to stay with the company.
Adams will succeed the retiring Bruce Sewell as Apple's General Counsel and Senior Vice President of Legal and Global Security at the end of the year. She was previously general counsel at Honeywell.
Apple's general counsel oversees all legal matters, including corporate governance, intellectual property, litigation and securities compliance, global security, and privacy.
Music streaming service Deezer released a desktop macOS app on Wednesday that offers high-definition lossless audio playback in the popular FLAC format.
The app not only eliminates the hassle and additional step of opening up a new browser but desktop users with Premium+ account, who download the new app before January 2018, will be able to hear all their music in high-definition audio by selecting this option under sound settings.
Support for 16-bit FLAC is available to Premium+ subscribers, who currently pay $9.99 for the luxury. However, users who want to stream in the lossless format after January 2018 will have to subscribe to Deezer HiFi, which costs twice that at $19.99. (Deezer's new pricing matches Tidal's HiFi lossless subscription tier.)
The desktop Deezer app is currently still a beta, but it does include access to 43 million tracks as well as a working version of the Flow feature, which is similar to Apple Music's personalized playlists. Flow recommends songs based on previously played tracks, as well as video interviews and performances.
Deezer subscribers can download the desktop app using this link.
Feral Interactive released DiRT Rally for macOS today, bringing the acclaimed rally simulation game to Mac for the first time. Developed and published by Codemasters for Windows and consoles, DiRT Rally has been praised for its realistic handling and pure focus on rally driving.
DiRT Rally is the most authentic rally game ever made, with a highly sophisticated handling model that perfectly captures the exhilaration of driving cars at the edge of control while tearing along treacherous, undulating tracks at breakneck speed. Its high-risk, high-reward gameplay challenges players to learn and master three different disciplines: the point-to-point races of Rally, the tight circuits of Rallycross, and the legendary slopes of Hillclimb.
Feral says the game is "driven by detail", with players able to tweak the brake bias and gear ratios of their cars to adapt to every combination of road surface and weather condition. The title is also said to have been "meticulously crafted" for macOS using the full power of Metal 2, Apple's latest graphics API.
The minimum system requirements are: Mac OS X 10.13, Intel Core i3 1.80GHz processor, 8GB of RAM, 48GB of disk space, a 1GB Nvidia 650, 2GB AMD Radeon R9 290M, or 1GB Intel HD4000 graphics card, and a keyboard (a driving wheel or gamepad is recommended).
DiRT Rally for macOS is available from the Feral Store and Steam for $59.99/£39.99/€54.99, with its debut on the Mac App Store to follow soon.
An announced update to Google Maps on Thursday brought a partial redesign that aims to make it quicker and easier for users to find places depending on their usage.
As part of the change, Google Maps will now only highlight points of interest that might be relevant depending on what kind of map is selected (driving, navigation, transit, and so on). For example, gas stations will now show up on the navigation map, while train stations will be prominently displayed when viewing the transit map.
Google has also updated the color scheme and added new icons to help users quickly identify exactly what kind of point of interest they're looking at. Places like a cafe, church, museum or hospital now have a designated color and icon, making it easier to find that type of destination on the map.
Google says it will rolling out the changes to all of its products that incorporate Google Maps, including Assistant, Search, and Earth. The new style will also eventually appear in the apps, websites and experiences offered by companies that use Google Maps APIs, in order to provide a consistent experience.
Lifx today introduced a new HomeKit-enabled Lifx Z Starter Kit that includes two 3.3-foot light strips and a power pack for $89.99.
The new Lifx Z setup is similar to the previous version, but it adds HomeKit support. The light strips offer 1400 lumens per two meters and can be set to 16 million colors. Multiple shades of white are also available, as is dimming functionality.
Lifx light strips offer eight zones that can be separately controlled per strip, which is different from Hue light strips that offer a single color at a time. Lifx products are also able to connect directly to Wi-Fi and do not require a hub.
Lifx Z light strips can be controlled through the Lifx app, through the Home app on iOS devices, or using Siri, and they can be incorporated into HomeKit scenes with other HomeKit products.
While the new Lifx Z setup is HomeKit compatible right out of the box, Lifx is also introducing a new controller that allows existing Lifx Z light strips to work with HomeKit.
The New Lifx Z is available from the Lifx website for $89.99, while the separate controller for existing setups can be purchased for $39.99.
AT&T appears to be experiencing some kind of outage, and many AT&T customers across the United States are unable to make and answer phone calls.
There are numerous reports of issues on Twitter, and MacRumors has also been unable to place calls on an iPhone associated with AT&T. The problem appears to have begun at least 30 minutes ago.
Customers affected by the problem who attempt to make a phone call are seeing the calls they place immediately disconnected. Incoming phone calls go directly to voicemail, and customers are not able to answer them.
@ATT None of my family with AT&T can make or receive calls. We live on the west coast and have different bills but all have iPhones. Is there an outage?
— Dizzy (@DizzyGirlSusie) November 15, 2017
Many users have been able to fix the phone call problem by restarting their iPhones, so affected customers should try that right away to attempt to resolve it.
If a restart doesn't work, customers who need to place calls to friends and family members can still use FaceTime or FaceTime Audio. iMessages and text messages are also working at the current time.
Update: AT&T has confirmed that a restart fixes the issue, and is asking customers who are experiencing call problems to restart their iPhones. The company says multiple restarts may be required.
Marco Arment, a developer best known for co-founding Tumblr and creating apps Instapaper and Overcast, believes the 2012 to 2015 era 15-inch MacBook Pro is "the best laptop that has ever existed."
2015 15-inch MacBook Pro
"Introduced in 2012, less than a year after Steve Jobs died, I see it as the peak of Jobs' vision for the Mac," said Arment in a blog post this week.
The 2012 model was the first MacBook Pro with a Retina display, and had a much slimmer design compared to previous models after Apple removed the built-in Ethernet port and optical disc drive for CDs/DVDs.
Apple refreshed the 2012 model in each of the following three years, but kept the external design largely the same.
Arment sees value in the 2012 to 2015 model's array of connectivity options, including a pair of Thunderbolt and USB-A ports, an HDMI port, a SD card slot, and a MagSafe power adapter that breaks away safely if it's tripped over.
2015 15-inch MacBook Pro
By comparison, the 2016 and later MacBook Pro has two or four Thunderbolt 3 ports that handle power, USB, DisplayPort, HDMI, and VGA, resulting in Apple removing dedicated USB-A, HDMI, SD card, and MagSafe connectivity from the notebook.
He added that the 2012-2015 keyboard has a "crowd-pleasing design" and that the trackpad strikes a "great balance between size and usability."
2016 and later MacBook Pro models have a slimmer keyboard with a second-generation butterfly mechanism that has less key travel than 2012-2015 models, and a larger trackpad that is closer to the keyboard.
Apple packed a smaller 76 watt-hour battery pack into the latest MacBook Pro models, and while the notebooks are rated for up to 10 hours of battery life between charges, there were several early complaints in real-world usage.
All of these changes generated some controversy within the Apple community, particularly among professionals, so Arment's opinion is sure to resonate with some users, including among customers who refuse to upgrade.
Despite some early complaints, however, the MacBook Pro appears to be selling very well for Apple. In fact, Apple CEO Tim Cook said the Mac set a new all-time revenue record of $25.8 billion in the 2017 fiscal year, with sales fueled primarily by "great demand" for the MacBook Pro in particular.
We sold 5.4 million Macs during the September quarter, up 10 percent over last year, and gained significant market share as the global market contracted by one percent, according to IDC's latest estimate. This performance was fueled primarily by great demand for MacBook Pro, and Mac revenue grew 25 percent to a new September quarter record.
For now, Apple continues to sell the 2015 15-inch MacBook Pro with a 2.2GHz quad-core Intel Core i7 processor, 16GB of RAM, 256GB of SSD storage, and integrated Intel Iris Pro graphics for $1,999 in the United States.
Shipping estimates for the iPhone X have improved to 2 to 3 weeks in the United States and Canada, up from the previous 3 to 4 week shipping estimates that have been available since early November.
The new 2 to 3 week shipping estimates for North America follow improved shipping estimates in countries across Europe and Asia Pacific.
iPhone X models ordered today in the United States and Canada will now arrive well ahead of the holidays, in early December, making them available for holiday gifts.
Along with improving shipping estimates for devices purchased now from the online Apple Store, Apple has also been sending out iPhone X pre-orders more quickly than expected. Many MacRumors readers who had late November or December shipping estimates after ordering have already received their devices or are expecting them soon.
Apple retail stores are also receiving regular shipments and customers who check stock on Apple.com early in the morning and use stock-tracking tools like iStockNow have been able to make purchases with no wait time.
The iPhone X was in short supply at launch and pre-orders for the device sold out within just a few minutes, but Apple has been working hard to ramp up supply to get orders out to all customers over the holidays.
Apple today released a new update for Safari Technology Preview, the experimental browser Apple first introduced more than a year ago in March of 2016. Apple designed the Safari Technology Preview to test features that may be introduced into future release versions of Safari.
Safari Technology Preview release 44 includes bug fixes and feature improvements for Image Bitmap, Web API, CSS, Rendering, web Inspector, Web Driver, Media, CSS Grid, Security, and Extensions. Today's update also adds Conic Gradients and enables the Payment Request feature by default.
With Safari 11 now available in macOS High Sierra, Apple is providing two versions of Safari Technology Preview, one for macOS Sierra users and one for those using macOS High Sierra.
Apple's aim with Safari Technology Preview is to gather feedback from developers and users on its browser development process. Safari Technology Preview can run side-by-side with the existing Safari browser and while designed for developers, it does not require a developer account to download.
Belkin today announced the launch of a new 36W USB-C car charger, which is able to provide fast charging capabilities for the iPhone X, the iPhone 8, and the iPhone 8 Plus. All three of those devices support a fast charging feature that allows them to be charged to 50 percent battery life in 30 minutes.
Priced at $29.99, Belkin's new car charger accessory does not include a USB-C to Lightning cable, which is required to make it work. Apple sells USB-C to Lightning cables at prices starting at $25. If you don't already own a USB-C to Lightning cable, it brings the total price of the Belkin Charger to $55.
In addition to being able to fast charge the iPhone, the 36W Car Charger can also be used to provide power to iPads and 12-inch MacBook models. It also works with MacBook Pro models, but those machines typically charge using 61W or 87W Power Adapters.
The USB-C Car Charger is available exclusively from Belkin.com and Apple.com, though it isn't yet showing up on Apple's site just yet as it's newly released.
Apple today updated its website to add a holiday gift guide, recommending Apple products for people to purchase for friends and family this holiday season. This year's gift guide is bedecked with tiny people and Apple devices displaying holiday scenes.
The flagship iPhone X, priced at starting $999, is front and center the gift guide, with Apple also highlighting the Apple Watch Series 3 models, the iPad Pro, the MacBook Pro, and the 4K Apple TV.
Accessories for each product are listed below each item, with Apple recommending things like AirPods, iPhone X phone cases, Apple Watch bands, the Apple Pencil, Beats Studio3 headphones, and more.
Even more accessories are highlighted in a separate "More Gifts" section, with Apple sharing suggestions on accessories at a range of price points and for several different ages.
Every year, Apple offers an extended return period during the holidays, and as of today, the new return period is in effect. Most products and accessories purchased between November 15 and December 25, 2017, will be eligible for return until January 8, 2018 in countries that include the United States, Australia, the UK, Canada, Germany, France, Sweden, the Netherlands, Hong Kong, and Japan. Apple also offers free two-day shipping on all purchases.
Apple will likely be offering a Black Friday sale on Friday, November 24, so if you're planning to buy an Apple product from Apple, it could be worthwhile to wait. Last year, Apple offered customers free Apple Store gift cards worth up to $150 with the purchase of select products.
Sprint and Hulu today announced a partnership that will bundle the Limited Commercials tier of the streaming TV service into Sprint's Unlimited Freedom cellular plan. This means that new and existing Sprint customers who sign up for Unlimited Freedom beginning Friday, November 17 will be able to watch Hulu with Limited Commercials at no extra cost.
In addition, the companies said that sometime "soon" Sprint Unlimited customers will also get to upgrade to Hulu's sports and news-centric live TV plan. Because Hulu with Live TV costs far more than the Limited Commercials plan ($40/month versus $8/month), an added cost for the bundled-in service is likely.
“How people watch their favorite shows, listen to the latest music, and play the most popular games is changing all the time,” said Roger Solé, chief marketing officer. “We’re excited to provide Sprint customers the best in entertainment through our unique partnership with Hulu.”
Tim Connolly, senior vice president and head of distribution and partnerships at Hulu, added, “We know people love watching TV on their mobile devices, so we’re making it easier than ever for Sprint customers to enjoy their favorite shows and movies on Hulu. This exciting partnership with Sprint gives TV fans nationwide a powerful, seamless entertainment experience that they can take with them, whenever and wherever they want.”
Sprint Unlimited Freedom offers unlimited talk, text, and data for $25/month per line and the addition of a fifth line is free on every plan, amounting to $100/month for a family of five people. This discounted offer lasts until January 31, 2019 and at that time will increase to $60/month for line 1, $40/month for line 2, and $30/month/line for lines 3-5. There's also HD streaming video and an included 10GB mobile hotspot feature.
For more information on the collaboration between Sprint and Hulu, visit the carrier's website right here. Those interested will be able to gain access to the offer starting November 17, and it'll only be available online through December 8.
The Sprint/Hulu partnership is similar to an announcement made by T-Mobile and Netflix in September, when the companies announced that T-Mobile ONE family plans would start coming with free Netflix subscriptions later that month. "Netflix on Us" requires customers to have two or more paid voice lines on a T-Mobile ONE family plan, and if they already pay for a Netflix subscription, the un-carrier covers the cost of the standard $10/month price: "meaning you’ll save nearly $120 every year."
DJI today announced that its popular Mavic Pro drone is now available in a limited edition "Alpine White" combo exclusively through Apple.
The combo includes the drone, a remote controller, two extra batteries, two additional pairs of propellers, and an aircraft sleeve—all in a matching "Alpine White" color—for $1,049.95 in the United States.
DJI's Mavic Pro, which launched last year in a gray color, is a portable quadcopter with a foldable design that can fit in a backpack or purse. DJI said the drone is "practically the size of a water bottle" when folded.
Mavic Pro is equipped with a 12-megapixel camera able to shoot true 4K video and 1080p slow motion video. DJI's so-called OcuSync technology with Sport Mode lets you fly the drone as far as 4.3 miles away at speeds up to 40 miles per hour.
DJI's visual navigation system FlightAutonomy, new in the Mavic Pro, consists of five cameras, GPS and GLONASS navigation systems, ultrasonic range finders, and 24 computing cores to navigate and plan routes for the drone.
Mavic Pro's remote controller on left and folded size on right
Despite being smaller than every DJI drone except the miniature Spark, the Mavic Pro can still fly for up to 27 minutes between charges. The drone can be controlled via the remote controller or with an iPhone or iPad using the DJI GO app.
The limited edition "Alpine White" combo is available now on Apple.com and at Apple retail stores. Also included in the box is a 16GB MicroSD card, micro USB cable, gimbal clamp and protector, and a quick start guide.
Steven Soderbergh, the director currently experimenting with smartphone technology in the television show "Mosaic," has now unveiled his next feature film "Unsane," which was shot entirely on an iPhone. Soderbergh kept the project secret during filming so it's unclear which iPhone he used, but the film began making waves over the summer as news of its existence surfaced, suggesting it was filmed sometime in the first half or middle of 2017 and potentially shot with an iPhone 7 or iPhone 7 Plus.
Now, it's been confirmed the movie will have a wide theatrical release on March 23, 2018, and star Claire Foy, Juno Temple, Joshua Leonard, Jay Pharaoh, Aimee Mullins, and Amy Irving (via Deadline and Apple Insider). Unsane is said to be a "reality-type horror — almost Get Out-ish, but different," and was filmed entirely over the course of about a week, according to an Entertainment Weekly interview with Jay Pharaoh from August.
But in an interview with EW, Pharoah did divulge some information about the movie, which he describes as "reality-type horror — almost Get Out-ish, but different."
"...you wouldn’t be able to tell anything [about how it was made]. It looks that great."
There have been a few movies shot on Apple's iPhone that have gotten attention over the past few years, most notably "Tangerine" from 2015. That film was captured using a collection of three iPhone 5s devices, an $8 app called Filmic Pro, a set of anamorphic adapter lenses, and a steadicam rig for stabilization. Tangerine was released in a limited theatrical capacity following a few festival runs in 2015, and considering that other shot-on-iPhone movies have mostly been independent or foreign films, Unsane could be biggest release yet for a movie captured with an iPhone.
Over the summer, Apple itself funded an eleven minute short film made with an iPhone that was directed by Michel Gondry, along with sharing a series of behind-the-scenes videos about the making of the short. The film, called "Détour," was eventually filmed at the Marché Saint-Germain Apple Store in Paris, where Gondry also discussed the making of his movie and talked about the future of cinema and where the iPhone fits into filmmaking.
Apple's next-generation iPad Pro models released in 2018 will feature octa-core processors, based on Taiwanese supplier TSMC's improved 7nm manufacturing process, according to Chinese website MyDrivers.
iPad Pro with slim bezels and no Home button rendered by Benjamin Geskin
The report, citing sources within Apple's supply chain, claims the eight cores in the tentatively named A11X Bionic chip will include three high-performance "Monsoon" cores and five energy-efficient "Mistral" cores.
Like the A11 Bionic chip in the latest iPhone models, which is built on a 10nm process, the A11X chip will reportedly feature TSMC's integrated fan-out wafer level packaging, or InFO WLP for short.
The chip will also presumably include a next-generation M11 coprocessor and neural engine for artificial intelligence tasks, such as processing facial recognition given rumors about Face ID on 2018 iPad Pro models.
The eight-core processor should unsurprisingly result in CPU performance improvements on next-generation iPad Pro models.
Apple's current 10.5-inch and 12.9-inch iPad Pro models have an A10X Fusion chip based on TSMC's 10nm fabrication process.
In addition to gaining Face ID, next-generation iPad Pro models are expected to have an iPhone X form factor with slimmer bezels and no Home button. However, the tablets will reportedly continue to have LCD displays due to yield rates.
AT&T appears to be experiencing some kind of outage, and many AT&T customers across the United States are unable to make and answer phone calls.
Apple today 
