MacRumors

Apple today released iTunes 12.4, bringing some minor design tweaks and important bug fixes to its media software. iTunes 12.4 comes seven months after the launch of iTunes 12.3, which was released to the public in September, and nearly two months after the last minor iTunes update.

iTunes 12.4 includes a redesigned interface that's designed to be simpler, with the reintroduction of a sidebar for easier navigation and a revamped media picker, as was shared by MacRumors earlier this month.

Today's update may also include safeguards to protect users from an issue that could cause music stored in iTunes to be deleted. The deletion problem affected a small number of users and while Apple was not able to recreate the bug, the company promised "additional safeguards."

The iTunes 12.4 update can be downloaded through the Software Update mechanism in the Mac App Store. Full release notes are below.

Now enjoy all of your music, movies, TV shows, podcasts, and more in a simpler design.

Navigation. Now you can use Back and Forward buttons as you navigate between your Library, Apple Music, iTunes Store, and more.

Media Picker. Easily switch between Music, Movies, TV shows and more--and Edit to choose just the items you want.

Library and Playlists. Use Sidebar to view your Library in new ways. Drag and drop songs to easily add them to Playlists. And Edit Sidebar to show only your favorite views.

Menus. Menus in iTuns are now simpler and easier to use. Use the View menu to customize your Library or try context menus to act on specific items.

Apple is working on OS X 10.12, set to be unveiled at the Worldwide Developers Conference in June. iOS 10 is rumored to be gaining Apple Music changes, and it's possible OS X 10.12 will bring additional design tweaks to iTunes for a more streamlined Apple Music interface.

Update: TechCrunch has confirmed that the iTunes 12.4 update addresses the music deletion issue that affected a small number of iTunes users.

Apple today released OS X 10.11.5 to the public, marking the launch of the fifth update to the El Capitan operating system that was first released on September 30, 2015. OS X 10.11.5 comes nearly two months after the release of OS X 10.11.4, an update that introduced Live Photos for Messages and password protected notes in the Notes app.

The OS X 10.11.5 update can be downloaded through the Software Update mechanism in the Mac App Store. It is available to all OS X El Capitan users.

Most of the updates to OS X El Capitan have focused largely on under-the-hood improvements, bug fixes, and security enhancements rather than outward-facing changes, and OS X 10.11.5 is no exception. No obvious feature changes were discovered in the beta, and according to Apple's release notes, OS X 10.11.5 includes bug fixes, performance improvements, and security updates.

Prior to releasing the OS X 10.11.5 update, which has been in testing since April 6, Apple seeded four betas to developers and public beta testers.

Apple today released iOS 9.3.2 to the public, marking the second update to iOS 9 since iOS 9.3 launched in March of 2016. In testing since April 6, Apple seeded a total of four iOS 9.3.2 betas to developers and public beta testers prior to releasing the update to the public.

Today's iOS 9.3.2 release is available as an over-the-air update for all iOS 9 users and it can also be downloaded through iTunes.

iOS 9.3.2, as a minor 9.x.x update, focuses mainly on under-the-hood performance improvements and bug fixes rather than outward-facing changes. One of the biggest bug fixes resolves an ongoing issue that caused Bluetooth accessories to experience audio quality issues when paired with an iPhone SE.

- Fixes an issue where some Bluetooth accessories could experience audio quality issues when paired to the iPhone SE
- Fixes an issue where looking up dictionary definitions could fail
- Addresses an issue that prevented typing email addresses when using the Japanese Kana keyboard in Mail and Messages
- Fixes an issue for VoiceOver users using the Alex voice, where the device switches to a different voice to announce punctuation or spaces
- Fixes an issue that prevented MDM servers from installing Custom B2B apps

In addition to the bug fixes listed above, the update also introduces support for using Night Shift and Low Power Mode simultaneously. During the first few iOS 9.3 betas, the two features were able to be turned on simultaneously, but later betas removed that functionality. With iOS 9.3.2, devices capable of using Night Shift can turn it on with Low Power Mode enabled.

iOS 9.3.2 is the eighth update to the iOS 9 operating system, following iOS 9.0.1, iOS 9.0.2, iOS 9.1, iOS 9.2, iOS 9.2.1, iOS 9.3, and iOS 9.3.1.

The latest data from market research firm IDC reveals that the Apple Watch remained the most popular smartwatch in the first quarter, with an estimated 1.5 million sales and 46 percent market share through the first three months of 2016. Meanwhile, basic wearables unsurprisingly continue to outpace smartwatches.

Samsung was the closest threat to Apple Watch among smartwatches in the quarter, with an estimated 700,000 sales and 20.9 percent market share, followed by Motorola, Huawei, and Garmin with estimated 400,000, 200,000, and 100,000 shipments respectively for a combined 18.6 percent market share.

Apple finished third in the overall wearables market with 7.5 percent market share, behind lower-price fitness tracker vendors Fitbit and Xiaomi. Fitbit commanded a leading 24.5 percent market share off an estimated 4.8 million shipments, while Xiaomi had 3.7 million shipments for 19 percent market share.

Apple does not disclose Watch sales in its quarterly earning results, instead grouping the device under its Other Products category alongside iPods, Apple TVs, Beats Electronics, and accessories. IDC and Strategy Analytics estimates place total Apple Watch sales at nearly 16 million from April 2015 through March 2016.

Fitbit began 2016 the same way it finished 2015: as the undisputed leader in the wearables market. The launch of its new Alta and Blaze devices resulted in million unit shipment volumes for each, pointing to a new chapter of fashion-oriented fitness trackers. It also points to significant declines for its previously successful Surge, Charge, Charge HR, and Flex product lines. Still, with a well-segmented portfolio, pricing strategy, and a strong brand, Fitbit's position is well-established.

IDC's data supports the notion that Apple continues to cede market share to Android Wear smartwatches and other wearables as the market evolves. Strategy Analytics data from April, however, had a higher Apple Watch sales estimate of 2.2 million for 52.4 percent market share in the first quarter.

Many prospective buyers are now holding out for the Apple Watch 2, which is rumored to debut in the second half of 2016 and could feature a FaceTime camera, expanded Wi-Fi abilities, cellular connectivity, and thinner design. New bands, finishes, and models are always possibilities as well.

After an initial announcement late last year, and a small test rollout, Walmart is now beginning a statewide launch of its in-house mobile payments solution Walmart Pay in Texas and Arkansas.

All 480 Walmart retail locations in Texas will support the mobile wallet service beginning today, as well as the 110 stores in Arkansas. Although the company continues to reiterate its plans for a wide-release rollout in the United States soon, it's still yet to give customers a specific launch window for Walmart Pay beyond the two states announced today.

“We can’t wait to hear what our customers and associates in Texas [and Arkansas] think of Walmart Pay. The service was built to make shopping easier and faster, something we know our customers want,” said Daniel Eckert, senior vice president, Services, Walmart U.S. “Walmart Pay is a powerful addition to our app, a tool that we’re using to transform the shopping experience by seamlessly connecting our online assets and our stores for customers. The service opens the door to new and better ways we can serve the 140 million customers who shop our stores each week.”

Unlike Apple Pay's NFC and Touch ID system, there are a few added steps to successfully check out with Walmart Pay: users have to navigate to the Walmart app on their phone, tap through to the Walmart Pay section, and then scan a QR code displayed at the register. Users can set up the app to be protected by a PIN or Touch ID, and the company says that "mostly any card" can be directly linked as a payment method for the service.

Walmart was part of an original collection of retailers who opposed Apple Pay in favor of an alternative mobile payments service, CurrentC, along with companies like Best Buy and Target. Best Buy has since backed support for Apple Pay, while Target is working on its own QR code solution, similar to Walmart Pay.

Although the launch of Walmart Pay suggests that the company isn't interested in integrating with other digital wallets -- like Apple Pay -- down the line, last year Walmart senior vice president of services Daniel Eckert said the QR code service allows "for integration of other mobile wallets in the future." Eckert continued to describe Walmart Pay as "an innovation that will make the ease of mobile payments a reality for millions of Americans.”

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

As planned, Apple CEO Tim Cook arrived in Beijing on Monday for his latest visit to China, where the iPhone maker has experienced a turbulent few months. Earlier today, he caught a ride using Didi Chuxing, the Chinese ride-sharing service that Apple just invested $1 billion in, alongside the Uber rival's president Jean Liu.

While an earlier report said Cook plans to meet with senior Chinese government officials to discuss a range of issues, including iBooks and iTunes Movies store closures and a recent patent dispute, the CEO has thus far met with App Store developers at an Apple Store in Beijing for a seminar hosted by Liu, per CNBC.

At the Apple store, Cook attended a seminar hosted by Didi Chuxing's President Jean Lui, also known as Liu Qing, and attended by the founders and CEOs of some of China's top app providers, including Groupon-like Meituan, picture-editing app MeituPic, news content provider Toutiao.com, culinary app DayDayCook and game developer Tap4Fun.

Cook, who shared photos of his visit on Twitter and Weibo, understands the importance of Apple maintaining a positive image in China.

Greater China, including Taiwan and Hong Kong, is Apple's second largest market by revenue after the U.S. Last month, the iPhone maker reported that sales dropped 26 percent in the region in the second quarter, primarily due to declining iPhone sales as China's smartphone market becomes increasingly saturated.

Cook has made similar visits to Beijing to meet with Chinese officials, carrier partners, and customers in both 2012 and 2014.

Apple today confirmed reports of an issue that causes music from personal collections to be deleted, telling The Loop it only affects a small number of users and that a fix is incoming in an iTunes update next week.

“In an extremely small number of cases users have reported that music files saved on their computer were removed without their permission,” Apple said. “We’re taking these reports seriously as we know how important music is to our customers and our teams are focused on identifying the cause. We have not been able to reproduce this issue, however, we’re releasing an update to iTunes early next week which includes additional safeguards. If a user experiences this issue they should contact AppleCare.”

Last week, debate raged over the supposed glitch after Vellum's Jake Pinkstone wrote a blogpost complaining that Apple Music had deleted 122 GB of his personal music collection without his permission after he joined the service. The deletion occurred after Pinkstone had his music library scanned by Apple to make his collection available across his devices.

Confusion ensued after Pinkstone was told by an Apple Support Representative named Amber that Apple Music's matching system was "functioning as intended." When asked whether Apple Music was supposed to delete his personal music without his permission, Amber responded "yes." Amber's statement, however, was inaccurate according to Apple's own support document.

While the causation of the bug is still unknown, as Apple has failed to reproduce the issue, the company's statement suggests Apple has narrowed down the issue to iTunes rather than the Apple Music service. It's unclear whether the fix will arrive with a minor or major iTunes update. However, one possibility is iTunes 12.4, which will include a minor redesign and arrive in the next couple of weeks, according to a MacRumors source.