MacRumors

To appease video content makers and lure new video services to the App Store, Apple plans to cut the fees it charges streaming video apps, reports Bloomberg.

Apple normally takes a 30 percent cut of all App Store app purchases and subscriptions, but for subscription-based streaming video apps like Netflix and Hulu, Apple plans to cut its fee to 15 percent. Apple has already reduced the fees for some of its video partners, and will soon extend the 15 percent rate to all subscription video services that are integrated with the company's upcoming TV app.

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Apple's hefty cut of sales made via its App Store has long angered partners, some of whom have accused the technology giant of anti-competitive behavior. The concessions speak to the growing importance of video to Apple, which next month will introduce a new app devoted to TV shows and movies.

For non-video subscription apps, Apple will continue to charge 30 percent, but will reduce that amount to 15 percent after an Apple customer has been subscribed to the service for a year, a change that was announced earlier this year.

Fee reduction rumors come as Apple is preparing to launch the aforementioned TV app, which will be available on both the fourth-generation Apple TV and iOS devices. Currently in beta testing, the TV app is designed to make it easier for users to find content to watch across multiple apps.

Because TV app is reliant on third-party content providers, it is in Apple's best interest to lure as many content providers to its platform as possible for the best user experience.

Twitter today introduced Snapchat-style QR codes, which are designed to make it easier to find and follow friends on the social network. Each Twitter QR code is unique to an individual Twitter user, so when scanned, it'll bring up the person's account.

To access your Twitter QR code, you'll need the official Twitter app for iOS. In the app, go to your profile, tap on the gear icon, and select the "QR Code" option to generate your own personal QR code or scan someone else's code.

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Scanning a QR code is as simple as using the iPhone's camera to either scan from a secondary screen or an image you've saved to the camera roll. You can follow MacRumors on Twitter by scanning the below code with your iPhone and the Twitter app.

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QR codes were first made popular by Snapchat as a quick way to find your friends without having to search for them, but they may not be as popular on Twitter because the QR code settings are buried so deeply within the app.

Twitter's QR codes are currently rolling out to users and may not be immediately available for everyone.

Twitter for iOS can be downloaded from the App Store for free. [Direct Link]

Tag: Twitter

As of this morning, fourth-generation Apple TV owners running the tvOS 10.1 beta were given access to the new "TV" app, which is designed to be a one-stop destination for finding and watching television and movies across the Apple TV and iOS devices.

The TV app, which works hand-in-hand with features like Live Tune-In and Single Sign On, aims to make it easier for users to locate content that's spread across dozens of television and movie apps. In the video below, you can see that the TV app is now fully functional, with a dedicated store, recommended content, and an Up Next syncing feature.


The TV app is organized into several sections. Watch Now, the main menu, feature a collection of shows and movies available from iTunes and other apps. Up Next, a subsection of Watch Now, keeps track of the TV shows and movies you've watched, remembering which episode of a TV show you're on or where a movie was paused, even across multiple devices.

A library houses all of the content you've purchased from iTunes, while a store section lists recommendations on what you should buy based on other things you've watched. The store not only features content from iTunes, but also several third-party apps like Hulu, HBO Now, and Starz.

The TV app is also available on iOS devices running the iOS 10.2 beta, and it has an interface that's identical to the TV app interface on the Apple TV.

tvOS 10.1 is limited to developers, but is expected to see a public release this December. Apple has promised that tvOS 10.1 features, including Single Sign On and the TV app, will be available before the end of the year.

Apple's new MacBook Pro models feature between two and four Thunderbolt 3 ports that carry power, USB, DisplayPort, HDMI, and VGA over a single cable, creating one standard for connecting most accessories and peripherals. Thunderbolt 3 uses the same connector type as USB-C, also called Type-C, meaning the new MacBook Pros are compatible with a growing lineup of USB-C external displays.

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USB-C displays can display up to 4K video, transfer data, and charge the new MacBook Pro at up to 60W over a single cable connected between the display and notebook. LG's new UltraFine 5K display, meanwhile, uses Thunderbolt 3 to display 5K video and fully charge the new MacBook Pro at up to 85W. The 15-inch MacBook Pro with Touch Bar can drive dual 5K displays, while the 13-inch model can drive one 5K display.

LG launched its UltraFine 4K and 5K displays in partnership with Apple, which exited the standalone display business after discontinuing its Thunderbolt Display earlier this year. The first USB-C displays from other manufacturers were released just this year, so the current selection remains limited. MacRumors has rounded up most of the options available from LG, ASUS, Acer, and Lenovo below.

LG 27UD88

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Display size: 27-inch
Display resolution: Ultra HD (3,840×2,160 pixels)
PPI: 163
Display technology: IPS LED
Aspect ratio: 16:9
Refresh rate: 60Hz
Color gamut: sRGB (over 99%)
Brightness: 350 cd/m2
Ports: 1 input USB-C, 2 USB 3.0, 2 HDMI 2.0, 1 DisplayPort 1.2
Cables included: USB-C to USB-C, USB-C to USB, HDMI, DisplayPort
Power delivery to MacBook Pro: Up to 60W
Price: $699 at B&H Photo Video or $740 on Amazon

LG 38UC99

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Display size: 37.5-inch curved
Display resolution: Wide QHD+ (3,840×1,600 pixels)
PPI: 110
Display technology: IPS LED
Aspect ratio: 21:9 (ultrawide)
Refresh rate: 60Hz
Color gamut: sRGB (over 99%)
Brightness: 300 cd/m2
Ports: 1 input USB-C, 2 USB 3.0, 2 HDMI 2.0, 1 DisplayPort 1.2
Cables included: USB-C to USB-C, USB-C to USB, HDMI, DisplayPort
Power delivery to MacBook Pro: Up to 60W
Price: $1,499 at B&H Photo Video or $1,699 on Amazon

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Related Roundup: MacBook Pro
Buyer's Guide: MacBook Pro (Neutral)
Related Forum: MacBook Pro

safaripreviewiconApple today released a new update for Safari Technology Preview, the experimental browser Apple first introduced 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 18 includes bug fixes and updates for Input Events, Javascript, Shadow DOM, Web Inspector, CSS, Rendering, Printing, Web APIs, HTTP Authentication, and more.

The Safari Technology Preview update is available through the Software Update mechanism in the Mac App Store to anyone who has downloaded the browser. Full release notes for the update are available on the Safari Technology Preview website.

Apple's goal with Safari Technology Preview is to receive 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.

T-Mobile has announced a limited time promotion offering four lines of unlimited talk, text, and 4G LTE data for $120 per month. The deal offers new and existing customers with at least two lines an additional two more lines free, including families or individuals adding a smartphone and/or tablet to their plans.

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T-Mobile ONE regularly costs $70 per month for the first line, $50 per month for the second line, and $20 per month for each additional line, totaling $160 per month for a family of four. However, an existing promotion already offers the third line for free, so the new deal offers an additional $20 per month in savings.

The promotion will be offered between Friday, November 18 and Sunday, November 20. A 24-month finance agreement is required.

Update: A T-Mobile spokesperson informed MacRumors the deal also applies to older Simple Choice voice plans.

Apple has shown a willingness to buy projects that can help promote its services, but its interest in acquiring original content remains tepid, according to The Information. The report claims Apple is not interested in getting into billion-dollar bidding wars over projects with rivals such as Netflix and Amazon.

Apple bought an unscripted TV series based on James Corden's highly popular "Carpool Karaoke" segment to promote Apple Music, for example, while it is also planning an original TV series called Vital Signs, described as a dark semi-autobiographical drama starring Beats co-founder and Apple executive Dr. Dre.

Meanwhile, Apple reportedly met with representatives for comedian Chris Rock earlier this year about a potential video deal, although the discussions did not lead anywhere and Rock ultimately signed a reported $40 million deal with Netflix to deliver two stand-up specials airing in 2017.

Apple's lack of original content is seen as a disadvantage for the company, potentially hurting its efforts to expand the Apple TV's market share.

Not having a slate of originals hurts Apple’s ability to differentiate its video-streaming offerings against rivals like Hulu, Netflix and Amazon, each of which now make their own shows that get them lots of attention, while also licensing reruns from TV networks. That could stymie Apple’s ability to increase market share for its streaming video device, the Apple TV, and lock more people into the Apple ecosystem.

Apple has sent mixed signals to Hollywood about its interest in original programming over the past few years, the report adds.

Apple has reportedly met with TV producers and Hollywood studios about developing original TV shows to offer exclusively on iTunes, but services chief Eddy Cue later said Apple is "not in the business of trying to create TV shows." Instead, he said Apple is willing to offer producers suggestions and guidance where possible.

Independent of its original content efforts, Apple has reportedly been getting more aggressive at landing movies for iTunes. The company was reportedly in discussions with the producers of the Michael Moore documentary "TrumpLand" very early in the process, for example, to secure an iTunes exclusivity window.

Apple got the right to offer “TrumpLand” on iTunes earlier than other online video services, in exchange for prominently promoting it on the iTunes homepage, according to a person involved in the discussions. Having Apple’s promotional commitment is significant enough to help get a movie financed, this person said.

Key players in Apple's content discussions are said to be Jimmy Iovine, along with Apple Music executives Larry Jackson and Robert Kondrk.

An incoming update to Google Translate on the web and mobile app will enhance the service's ability to translate whole sentences at a time, instead of going word by word. With the help of "Neural Machine Translation," Google said that Google Translate will be able to look at the "broader context" of a phrase to parse out a more naturalistic representation in the native language of the app's user.

With the update, Google mentioned that now translated paragraphs and entire articles are going to be "a lot smoother and easier to read," thanks to the new end-to-end learning system introduced within Neural Machine Translation. Like other AI-learning software, Google said this "basically means that the system learns over time to create better, more natural translations."

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Neural Machine Translation has been generating exciting research results for a few years and in September, our researchers announced Google's version of this technique. At a high level, the Neural system translates whole sentences at a time, rather than just piece by piece. It uses this broader context to help it figure out the most relevant translation, which it then rearranges and adjusts to be more like a human speaking with proper grammar.

With this update, Google Translate is improving more in a single leap than we’ve seen in the last ten years combined.

Across Google Translate on the web and in its iOS and Android apps, users will be able to put Neural Machine Translation to the test with eight languages to and from English and French, German, Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese, Japanese, Korean and Turkish. The company plans to eventually roll the update out to all of its 103 supported languages, and any device Google Translate is available on.

Google Translate is available to download for free from the App Store [Direct Link]. Google didn't confirm when Neural Machine Translation would begin rolling out, besides the fact that it'll be coming to Google Search, the Google Translate app, and the official website first.

Amazon today has expanded its Music Unlimited streaming service with a new subscription tier: $14.99 per month for a "Family Plan." The option supports up to six family members (at least 13-years-old) for simultaneous listening and personal recommendations. There's also an alternative payment option to pay $149 upfront for an entire year of the Family Plan, cutting the subscription down to about $12 per month (via TechCrunch).

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The plan works by creating an Amazon account for each family member, but there is no unified family account; as Amazon said, "the only thing that's shared is the payment." On the plan, one family member uses a "shared payment method" to pay for the subscription, which is a debit or credit card that Amazon uses to charge each month for the service. Each member can make purchases on Amazon and Amazon Music Unlimited with the shared payment method, and the subscriber of the plan will get notifications of all the activity going through the group.

Despite the group connectivity, each member will have "the same functionality as the Individual Plan subscription," with personalized music, library, playlists, and recommendations. The Individual Plan launched in October and marked Amazon's entry into the on-demand music streaming category, along with Apple Music and Spotify. Amazon's Family Plan directly sits alongside Apple Music's $14.99 per month Family Membership, which grants the full Apple Music experience for up to six people.

Read up on more information about Amazon Music Unlimited's new Family Plan here.

A number of new CarPlay-enabled vehicles are making their North American debuts ahead of the 2016 Los Angeles Auto Show this week, including models from Audi, Kia, and Hyundai's luxury brand Genesis.

audi-q5-euro

Interior of all-new 2018 Audi Q5 (European model shown)

Audi introduced a trio of CarPlay vehicles, including the all-new 2018 A5 and S5 cars and Q5 SUV. Audi's standard smartphone interface provides CarPlay and Android Auto integration via USB connection. The vehicles will arrive at U.S. dealerships in spring 2017. Pricing has yet to be announced.

Kia's latest CarPlay vehicle is the 2017 Soul Exclaim, its all-new five-door crossover with a 201-horsepower turbocharged engine. CarPlay and Android Auto come standard with the vehicle's UVO3 infotainment system. The non-turbo 2017 Kia Soul also features CarPlay support. Pricing and availability was not disclosed.

Genesis, which Hyundai spun into a standalone luxury car brand in 2015, followed suit with the introduction of its all-new 2018 Genesis G80 3.3T Sport trim with CarPlay and Android Auto integration via USB connection. The luxury sedan, available spring 2017, is equipped with a 9.2-inch touchscreen navigation system.

This article will be updated to reflect other new CarPlay vehicles as they are announced at the auto show over the next few days.

Update: The 2017 Jeep Compass and 2018 Alfa Romeo Stelvio also debuted with CarPlay support.

Related Roundup: CarPlay
Tags: Audi, Kia

Popular task-managing app Todoist today announced a new AI-powered feature called "Smart Schedule," which intelligently takes into account user habits and pre-existing tasks to organize and schedule tasks on its own. The company said that it created the feature because so many of its users -- 70 percent in total -- face unfinished tasks each day.

With Smart Schedule, Todoist hopes that percentage will begin dropping as the new feature begins learning and adapting to the following factors: your habits, task urgency, weekdays versus weekends, upcoming tasks, daily and weekly goals, and more. On a personal level, Smart Schedule will be able to figure out things like what time of day each user checks their email, which day they read most, and suggest tasks accordingly.

todoist-update-1
The feature will also accumulate anonymous data from all Todoist users to figure out how urgent generic tasks are, as well as when more users do tasks during the week ("check email") instead of the weekend. The company said that users will still have full control over their schedule, and can edit and delete Smart Schedule's suggestions as they see fit. Due to its AI-learning, Todoist also mentioned that the feature will only get smarter the more it's used.

Smart Schedule uses predictive modeling to help you easily plan out your tasks for the day and week to come. It learns your personal productive habits, and takes into account patterns across all Todoist users, to predict the best possible due dates for your tasks.

That means those 50+ overdue tasks you have hanging around can be quickly rescheduled en masse, while new and unscheduled tasks can be easily assigned to the best due dates. In this way, Smart Schedule makes it much easier to stay on top of your to-do list and roll with the punches when your day doesn’t go as planned.

Todoist also confirmed that Smart Schedule is "completely private and completely yours," with the feature's accumulating personal data never accessed by a Todoist employee or any outside service.

Todoist is available to download for free from the iOS App Store [Direct Link] and the macOS App Store [Direct Link]. Users can subscribe to Todoist Premium for $28.99/year for access to more features, including location-based notifications, automatic backups, Apple Calendar syncing, and more.

Tag: Todoist

Apple's new "Designed by Apple in California" photo book, chronicling 20 years of Apple design with 450 photos of its products and the processes used to make them, is now available for purchase on Apple's website in a smaller 10.2×12.8 inches size for $199 and a larger 13×16.3 inches size for $299.

apple-photo-book
The 300-page hardback book, reflecting the time period between the original iMac and Apple Pencil, is estimated to ship in 1 business day in the United States. It is also available in the United Kingdom for £169/£249, with estimated delivery by Friday, and in Australia, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan.


The book is dedicated in the memory of late Apple co-founder Steve Jobs. The photos were taken by photographer Andrew Zuckerman.

A visual history spanning iMac to Apple Pencil, complete with descriptions of innovative materials and techniques, it captures every detail with honesty and intention. Printed on specially milled German paper with gilded matte silver edges, using eight color separations and low-ghost inks, this hardcover volume took more than eight years to create and has been crafted with as much care and attention as the products featured within. It is both a testament and a tribute to the meticulous design, engineering, and manufacturing methods that are singularly Apple.

The book is also now available at select Apple retail stores, such as Apple Regent Street in London, Apple Opera in Paris, and Apple Ginza in Tokyo. In the U.S., this includes various locations in New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, Miami, Dallas, San Francisco, and Palo Alto, and at Apple's campus store at its Cupertino headquarters.

Reddit today updated its official iOS app to version 2.0, fixing a few bugs for Reddit Live as well as introducing full support for the iPad. The first-party app, which launched in April of this year, has been available only for the iPhone and iPod touch until today.

reddit-ipad
On the iPad, Reddit keeps essentially all of the same features and tabs that users can expect: timeline, subscriptions, inbox, and profile. Each area of the app allows users to browse their subreddits, search for new ones, comment on posts, reply to messages, and more.

Many users have stuck to popular third-party Reddit apps like Narwhal, iAlien, Baconreader, Eggplant, Antenna, and Alien Blue in place of Reddit's official app. Alien Blue, which was acquired by Reddit in 2014, has since been deleted from the App Store so as to not conflict with the company's new first-party app.

Reddit: The Official App can be downloaded from the App Store for free. [Direct Link]

Tag: Reddit

iFixit has published a teardown of the new 13-inch MacBook Pro with Touch Bar and discovered a few interesting differences compared to Apple's new lower tier MacBook Pro sans Touch Bar. Both 13-inch models have the exact same dimensions, but the Touch Bar machine weighs 20 grams less, which iFixit puts down to the laptop's smaller battery.

As expected, Apple's new MacBook Pro is not designed to be user-serviceable, earning an iFixit repairability rating of 1/10. In the course of disassembly, iFixit found that the internal layout of the components has been redesigned to make space for the new Touch Bar, which broke as it was removed from the chassis and was deemed difficult to replace. The flex cable connecting the Touch Bar to the mainboard also wraps underneath it, making removal even more difficult.

speaker-grilles

Orange boxes show where internal speakers are located.

iFixit also found that the new improved speakers are located in the lower portion of the case, while the external speaker grilles are positioned in the top half of the case and don't even go clear through to the internals, making them extremely unlikely to provide any outlet for audio. Instead, sound is thought to be projected from air vents on the sides of the case – a design feature not seen on the new 13-inch MacBook Pro with function keys.

iFixit also notes that fixing a faulty power switch likely involves replacing the entire logic board, because the button doubles up as a sapphire-topped Touch ID sensor which pairs with the Apple's soldered down T1 chip. Elsewhere, ten accessible screws hold down the new larger trackpad, which is identical to the one found in the 13-inch MacBook Pro with function keys, suggesting a replacement part would be cross-compatible.

Touch ID sensor removal
Unlike the removable storage drive in the lower tier 13-inch MacBook, the SSD is soldered onto the mainboard, along with the RAM modules and the processor, making upgrades after the fact an impossibility. The 5-cell 49.2Wh battery is also attached with adhesive, making it particularly hard to remove when it comes to replacing.

Check out the full teardown on iFixit's website.

Update: iFixit contacted MacRumors to say that it has updated the teardown with an extra image that clarifies the situation regarding the speaker grilles. While the main speakers are not located underneath the grilles, a pair of tweeters that do sit under the grilles have through-holes (80 per tweeter) to pass sound out of the case enclosure. The rest of the "holes" either side of the keyboard (over 1,100 of them) are filled in, non-functional, and apparently cosmetic.

Tag: iFixit
Related Forum: MacBook Pro

Just a day after the first MacBook Pro with Touch Bar orders began arriving to customers, a select number of Apple retail stores have received stock and are offering limited quantities of the new machine.

MacRumors reader Nicholas was able to purchase a new 15-inch MacBook Pro at the Apple Store in La Brea, California, and according to a Reddit thread, several other stores across California have also been selling Touch Bar MacBook Pro models. New MacBook Pros have been spotted in Rancho Cucamonga, Fairview, Emeryville, and Walnut Creek, and one Redditor claims to have purchased a 13-inch MacBook Pro from the Soho Apple Store in New York, while a MacRumors reader says he found a MacBook Pro in New Jersey.

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In other parts of the United States, stores do not yet have Touch Bar MacBook Pro models available for purchase, but multiple customers have been told to expect the machines to be in stock starting tomorrow. At some locations, however, customers have been told no MacBook Pro models will be available before Thanksgiving, so country-wide in-store availability may not happen for a few weeks.

Along with limited stock, Apple retail stores are expected to have display models on hand before the end of the week. In Hong Kong, the Touch Bar MacBook Pro has been on display since yesterday, and several customers have reported being told that display models will be in stores as soon as Wednesday.

In store pickup is not available for the new MacBook Pros, so customers hoping to skip the 4 to 5 week wait for a Touch Bar machine will need to call or visit an Apple retail store in person to check stock levels.

Related Roundup: MacBook Pro
Buyer's Guide: MacBook Pro (Neutral)
Related Forum: MacBook Pro

Google today launched a new app called PhotoScan, which is designed to make it easy to scan printed photographs using your iPhone's camera.

PhotoScan instructs users to take four separate quick images of a printed photo, stitching them together to create a perfect high-resolution digital copy. Google's multi-image capture method eliminates issues that normally plague digital photos of print photographs, including glare and distortion.


Automatic edge detection crops photos to the correct size, and PhotoScan is also able to fix orientation and perspective for a clean-looking scan.

PhotoScan gets you great looking digital copies in seconds - it detects edges, straightens the image, rotates it to the correct orientation, and removes glare. Scanned photos can be saved in one tap to Google Photos to be organized, searchable, shared, and safely backed up at high quality--for free.

Alongside PhotoScan, Google is also updating Google Photos with improved auto enhance, new looks, and more advanced editing tools for improving images.

PhotoScan can be downloaded from the App Store for free. [Direct Link]

Tag: Google

Apple today seeded the third beta of an upcoming watchOS 3.1.1 update to developers for testing purposes, just over a week after seeding the second watchOS 3.1.1 beta and three weeks after releasing watchOS 3.1, the first update to the watchOS 3 operating system.

watchOS 3.1.1 can be downloaded through the dedicated Apple Watch app on the iPhone by going to General -> Software Update. To install the update, the Apple Watch must have 50 percent battery, it must be placed on the charger, and it must be in range of the iPhone. watchOS 3.1.1 requires an iPhone running iOS 10 to install.

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As a minor 3.1.x update, watchOS 3.1.1 seems to focus on under-the-hood bug fixes and performance improvements, with no outward-facing changes discovered in the first two watchOS 3.1.1 betas. We'll update this post should any new features be discovered in the third watchOS 3.1.1 beta.

watchOS 3 completely overhauls the interface on the Apple Watch, introducing a dedicated app dock, instant launch apps, new watch faces, and new complication options. There are new Activity sharing features, a "Breathe" app guides users through deep breathing sessions to cut down on stress, and an SOS feature can automatically call emergency service.

For more details on what's new in watchOS 3, make sure to check out our watchOS 3 roundup.

Related Roundup: Apple Watch 10
Buyer's Guide: Apple Watch (Caution)

iOS 10.2, currently being beta tested, introduces new artwork for many existing emoji. Apple has made an effort to add more detail to emoji, for a more realistic, vivid look that works well with the Messages feature in iOS 10 and macOS Sierra that displays larger emoji.

Almost all of the food emojis were redesigned in iOS 10.2, but one redesign received a lot more attention than others - the peach. The iOS peach emoji, in addition to representing the fruit, has long been used as a symbol for a person's rear end due to its design and angling, which Apple changed in iOS 10.2 beta 1.

The iOS 10.2 beta 1 peach emoji was much rounder and more peach-like, eliminating its resemblance to a butt. The shift was widely noted (and mourned) on the internet, and the attention the redesign received seems to have prompted Apple to change the emoji back to its original look.

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As The Next Web points out, the peach emoji has been overhauled again in iOS 10.2 beta 3, and now it once again resembles a derriere. The colors have shifted a bit and there's more detail included, but it is undeniably -- and perhaps more so -- butt-like.

It's an insignificant change, but the reversion of the peach emoji to its original state suggests Apple listens to and takes into account the feedback of its users, even when it comes to small details.


In addition to changing the look of the peach emoji, iOS 10.2 beta 3 also further refined the new TV app, adding "Up Next" functionality and fully eliminating the Videos app in the United States. iOS 10.2 is still in beta testing, but we expect to see a public release in December, which is when Apple has said many of the iOS 10.2 features will debut.

Related Forum: iOS 10