Catcher Technology will remain the largest chassis supplier for the upcoming line of next-generation iPhones, tentatively referred to as the "iPhone 7," according to the China-based Commercial Times (via DigiTimes). Sources noted that Catcher's non-Apple clients, representing about 40 percent of its overall sales, will keep it going until the majority of its output begins with the manufacturing of the iPhone 7 later in 2016. In total, Catcher Technology's manufacturing supply is estimated to account for 30 to 35 percent of the shipment numbers for the iPhone 7.
The report also mentioned the continuing rumor that the iPhone 7 may be a completely waterproof device, building on the recent momentum that the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus had this year that showed improved water resistance. The Commercial Times also spoke of "new compound materials" that would be put in place to form a discreet housing for the iPhone 7's antenna, suggesting the possible removal of the bands from the back of the current iPhone generation.
As a non S-generation year, the iPhone 7 is expected to be a big step-up from the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus, in terms of design and functionality, when it launches next year. Besides a waterproof design and now the possibility of a hidden antenna band, another rumor suggested Apple could be phasing out the 3.5mm headphone jack for an all-in-one Lightning connector port.
Apple has reintroduced its "Start Something New" campaign ahead of New Year's Day in the U.S., Australia, Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, New Zealand, Philippines, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, U.K., Vietnam and several other countries worldwide.
"Start Something New" features a gallery of nearly a dozen paintings, photos, drawings, short films and other pieces of creative work made by artists using Apple products and apps, ranging from the Apple Pencil, iMac and iPad Air 2 to Adobe After Effects, Darkroom and Procreate.
Apple has also shared individual profiles for each new work and artist on its website:
Apple's newly promoted Senior Vice President of Hardware Technologies Johny Srouji was awarded 90,270 restricted stock units on October 5, 2015, according to a recent filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The RSUs awarded vest 12.5% in semi-annual installments over a four year period ending October 2019.
Srouji now has a total of 217,305 RSUs and 101,881 common stock units, which together amount to just over $34 million at AAPL's current trading price of around $107 per share. The latest batch of 90,270 RSUs are currently valued at approximately $9.6 million.
Apple often rewards high-level executives with RSUs based on their performance. In August, for example, Apple CEO Tim Cook and Senior Vice President of Internet Software and Services Eddy Cue received 560,000 and 350,000 RSUs respectively worth over $97 million combined. Apple retail chief Angela Ahrendts also received 113,334 RSUs as a signing bonus upon joining Apple in May 2014.
Srouji was promoted to Senior Vice President of Hardware Technologies on December 17, as part of a larger executive team makeover that saw Jeff Williams promoted to COO and marketing chief Phil Schiller take over App Store leadership across all Apple platforms. Tor Myhren, chief creative officer at ad agency Grey, will also join Apple in early 2016 as Vice President of Marketing Communications.
Srouji joined Apple in 2008 to lead development of the A4 chip for iPhone 4, and he now oversees silicon and hardware technologies, including batteries, application processors, storage controllers, sensors silicon, display silicon and other chipsets across Apple's entire product line. Prior to Apple, he held senior positions at Intel and IBM in the areas of processor development and design.
January 1 is a popular day to begin New Year's resolutions, but many people fall back to bad habits by February because the goals they set are not realistic. If you are one of those people, consider focusing on making small improvements to your lifestyle this year by taking advantage of iOS apps that can help you succeed.
Drink more water with Lifesum, a free healthy living app for easily tracking each glass or bottle of water you drink. The daily goal is set to 8 glasses, or 68 fl. oz, by default, but can be adjusted based on your personal needs. Water intake data can be exported to Apple's official Health app.
Drinking water can contribute to better alertness and productivity, weight loss, improved digestion and many other benefits. Lifesum can also help you track your breakfast, lunch, dinner and exercise. Some features require upgrading to a Lifesum Gold subscription. [Direct Link]
Save more money with Mint, a free app that links to your U.S. or Canadian bank account and provides an overview of your cash flow, recent transactions, upcoming bills and spending habits based on categories such as restaurants, groceries, fast food, alcohol and bars, clothing and more.
Mint enables you to create budgets to help you save money. Aim to reduce your spending by a realistic amount relative to your net income. If you spend $83.33 less per month on non-essential purchases, for example, the savings quickly add up to $1,000 in one year. [Direct Link]
BUDGT [Direct Link] is a simplistic budget and expense tracking alternative that does not link with your bank account. The app costs $1.99.
Get in shape with CARROT Fit, a top-rated fitness app that delivers an exhaustive 7-minute interval workout based on 12 high intensity 30-second exercises with 10 seconds of rest in between each set. The app also features a step counter, weight tracker, workout calendar and more.
CARROT Fit is $2.99, so it is worth a try before signing up for an annual gym membership or personal training, which can easily cost upwards of $300 or $50 per hour respectively. The app's 7 Minutes in Hell workout can be completed anywhere, and the only equipment needed is a chair. [Direct Link]
Quit smoking with Smoke Free, which tracks how much money you have saved since quitting, how many cigarettes you've avoided smoking, how long you've been smoke free, how many hours of life you've theoretically regained, overall health improvements and more.
Smoke Free provides you with daily missions and tips to help you stop smoking, and rewards you with badges for not smoking or avoiding cravings for various lengths of time. These features can be unlocked via in-app purchase, while most of the app's other features are free to use. [Direct Link]
Wake up rested with Sleep Cycle, a free intelligent alarm clock app that analyzes your sleep and wakes you in the lightest sleep phase, allowing you to feel rested and relaxed. The app has patented technology that monitors your sleep movements using sound or vibration analysis.
Simply open Sleep Cycle and place your iPhone on a nightside table or floor near your bed, and the app will find the optimal time to wake you up during a 30 minute window that ends at your set alarm time. Make sure that your iPhone is connected to a power source to ensure it does not die overnight. [Direct Link]
Sleep Cycle offers an optional annual Premium subscription for $1.99 per year featuring online backup, long term sleeping trends, sleep notes, a heart rate monitor, Philips HUE lightbulb support and more. Sleep Cycle's developer Northcube AB says the app was developed using proven sleep science and years of research and development. The app is also fully integrated with Apple's stock Health app.
Organize your life with Wunderlist, a popular task management and to-do list app acquired by Microsoft in June 2015. The app allows you to create to-do lists with optional subtasks, notes, files and comments, and set due dates and reminders for important deadlines.
Wunderlist is free to use, while upgrading to Wunderlist Pro is optional and provides unlimited access to Files, Assigning and Subtasks for $4.99 a month or $49.99 a year through an auto-renewing subscription. [Direct Link]
Lifesum, Mint, CARROT Fit and Wunderlist have companion Apple Watch apps available.
Apple devices accounted for just under half of new mobile device activations during the holiday season, according to a new report released today by mobile analytics firm Flurry. 49.1 percent of all new devices activated were Apple devices, and while that number is slightly down from last year's 51.3 percent, Apple still dominated all other mobile device companies.
Samsung devices, for example, were responsible for 19.8 percent of all device activations, while Nokia devices made up 2 percent and Xiaomi devices made up 1.5 percent of all device activations.
Larger-screened "phablets" like Apple's 5.5-inch iPhone 6s Plus were especially popular during the 2015 holiday season compared to prior years, representing 27 percent of new device activations. That's up from 4 percent in 2013 and 13 percent in 2014. Full-sized tablets have gone down in popularity, making up only 9 percent of new device activations in 2015.
Medium-sized iPhones like the 4.7-inch iPhone 6 were still the most popular Apple devices over the holiday period at 65 percent, followed by full-sized tablets, phablets, and smaller tablets like the iPad mini. Comparatively, only 35 percent of Android devices activated were medium-sized smartphones, while 50 percent were phablets.
Apple's phablet was introduced in September 2014, and in less than a year and a half has commanded 12% share of all Apple devices activated during Christmas week. This appears to be coming at the expense of medium phones and small tablets as more users opt for the size in between the iPhone and iPad Mini. You'll note we did not break out a "Large Tablet" category for the new iPad Pro. These are grouped into "Full-Size Tablets" and represented less than 1% of device activations.
As for app downloads, Christmas day saw customers downloading 2.2x as many apps as the average day in December across multiple platforms including the Apple App Store and Android's Google Play.
To gather its data, Flurry measured smart device activations and app downloads from the more than 780,000 apps it tracks. Data was collected from December 19 to December 25.
Apple filed trademark applications for the word marks B2, B3, B4, and B5 with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in November, including the matching marks Beats Two, Beats Three, Beats Four, and Beats Five, as spotted by French website Consomac [Google Translate]. The applications are currently pending review.
All four trademark applications are assigned to "Beats Electronics, LLC," have the same logo that Apple uses for its Beats 1 radio station, and are listed under broadcasting- and streaming music-related categories, indicating that Apple could be planning an expansion of its Beats radio network in the future.
Goods and Services: broadcasting and transmission of voice, data, images, music, audio, video, multimedia, television, and radio by means of telecommunications networks; broadcast and transmission of streamed music, audio, video, and multimedia content by means of telecommunications networks; matching users for the transfer of music, audio, video, and multimedia by means of telecommunications networks; providing access to websites, databases, electronic bulletin boards, on-line forums, directories, music, and video and audio programs
Apple's licensing terms with record labels reportedly give the company permission to create up to five additional radio stations like Beats 1 without needing to negotiate new terms. Apple could potentially launch additional Beats stations around the world, adding DJs in other countries or launching stations with a specific focus or genre.
MacRumors previously discovered that Apple has registered domains such as beats2.com.cn, beats2.hk, and beats4.com.ru in various countries around the world. Beats 1 is broadcast worldwide, but in the future, Apple may wish to offer stations that cater to different languages and musical preferences around the world.
Beats 1 is broadcast in over 100 countries and has been on air since Apple Music launched on June 30. Apple's 24/7 live global radio station, anchored by renowned DJs Zane Lowe, Ebro Darden and Julie Adenuga, provides a mix of the latest music, guest interviews and more. Beats 1 can be streamed through Apple Music and iTunes.
Hyundai has confirmed that CarPlay will launch in the 2016 Sonata in the first quarter of next year, per the Detroit Free Press. The carmaker will reportedly sell an SD card with new software to get the system for an undisclosed price.
The report does not specify if CarPlay will be available in 2016 Sonata models sold outside of the United States, or if Apple's in-dash software will be backwards compatible with the 2015 Sonata. The carmaker has not yet outlined plans to bring CarPlay to the rest of its vehicle lineup.
In April 2014, Hyundai announced that CarPlay would be available in the Sonata beginning in the 2015 model year, but it failed to deliver on that promise. CarPlay is only now beginning to experience wider U.S. adoption in 2016 vehicles from General Motors, Volkswagen, Honda and other automakers, as either a standard feature or entertainment package upgrade.
CarPlay provides hands-free or eyes-free access to Maps, Phone, Messages, Music, Podcasts and third-party apps including Spotify, Rdio, iHeartRadio, CBS Radio and MLB At Bat. The platform uses Siri and interfaces with your vehicle's knobs, dials and buttons for safer access to common iPhone features. The software is compatible with iPhone 5 or later running iOS 8 or above.
OpenEmu, an open source retro and arcade game emulator for OS X, has been updated to version 2.0.1 with support for 16 additional gaming systems, including Nintendo 64, Sony PlayStation 1 and PSP, ColecoVision, Intellivision and others listed below.
OpenEmu 2.0.1 also features a redesigned user interface, real-time gameplay rewinding, save states and screenshots organizers, automap support for SteelSeries Nimbus and Stratus XL controllers, performance improvements, bug fixes and other changes.
New Gaming Systems Supported
- Atari 5200 - Atari 7800 - Atari Lynx - ColecoVision - Famicom Disk System - Intellivision - Nintendo 64 - Odyssey²/Videopac+
- PC-FX - SG-1000 - Sega CD - Sony PSP - Sony PlayStation 1 - TurboGrafx-CD/PCE-CD - Vectrex - WonderSwan
OpenEmu was designed specifically for OS X with an iTunes-like design that lists ROMs in a unified card-style menu organized by gaming system. The emulator offers full save state support, allowing multiple ROMs to be played at once, and it also provides OpenGL scaling, multithreaded playback, a homebrew collection of over 80 games, gamepad support and more.
OpenEmu 2.0 for OS X El Capitan features a redesigned user interface
OpenEmu 1.0 launched in December 2013 with support for several 16-bit systems, including the Game Boy, Game Boy Color, Game Boy Advance, Game Gear, NeoGeo Pocket, NES, Sega Genesis and Super Nintendo. The emulator also supports multiple controllers, including Nintendo, PlayStation and Xbox controllers and virtually any generic HID compliant USB or Bluetooth gamepad.
OpenEmu 2.0.1 is a free download and requires a Mac running OS X 10.11 or later.
Launched in November, Binge On is a T-Mobile video service that allows T-Mobile subscribers to watch video from content partners without it counting against customer data plans. The catch is that it uses a proprietary data compression algorithm to stream the video in 480p. While Binge On can be disabled, using the feature requires partner video to be watched in 480p, which T-Mobile calls "DVD quality."
T-Mobile has 24 partners for Binge On, including Netflix, HBO, Sling TV, and more, but YouTube has not signed up to participate. Despite the fact that YouTube is not partnering with T-Mobile, the company says its video streams are still being downgraded to 480p quality, a problem YouTube would like fixed.
YouTube, which is owned by Alphabet Inc., said T-Mobile is effectively throttling, or degrading, its traffic. "Reducing data charges can be good for users, but it doesn't justify throttling all video services, especially without explicit user consent," a YouTube spokesman said.
The Internet Association also backed up YouTube's claim, stating that T-Mobile's Binge On service "appears to involve the throttling of all video traffic, across all data plans, regardless of network congestion."
T-Mobile did not address YouTube's complaints when questioned by The Wall Street Journal, instead giving a blanket statement about Binge On. Customers love "free streaming video that never hits their data bucket" and "the quality of their video experience and the complete control they have."
The United States Federal Communications Commission is looking into Binge On along with free data services from AT&T and Comcast. While there is no formal inquiry at this time, the FCC has asked the three companies to answer some questions about their free data practices. YouTube's accusations could further spark the FCC's interest, especially as some consumer advocates believe that programs like Binge On violate net neutrality rules.
U.S. District Judge Lucy H. Koh has dismissed [PDF] a lawsuit against Apple over a long-standing issue that prevented some former iPhone owners who switched to Android smartphones from receiving text messages from other iOS users, as reported by Business Insider.
Koh originally ruled against granting the lawsuit class-action status, because it was not clear enough that all Android smartphone switchers were actually affected by the issue, but a trio of plaintiffs Adam Backhaut, Bouakhay Joy Backhaut and Kenneth Morris persisted with their case.
The three alleged that they switched from iPhones to Android phones in 2012. After that, texts sent to them from other iPhone users were not delivered. They were probably stuck in Apple's iMessage system, which was notoriously unreliable at delivering texts to Android phones until late 2014, when Apple introduced a fix for the bug. That constitutes a violation of the Federal Wire Tap Act, the three claim. Apple denied the allegations.
Apple launched a web tool in November 2014 for users to deregister their phone number from iMessage in the event they switched to a non-Apple device, and Koh ruled that Apple would face a federal lawsuit over the issue just two days later. As of Koh's ruling on Tuesday, however, all lawsuits against Apple related to the matter have come to a close with no punitive damages against the company.
The full music collection of The Beatles will be available on Apple Music and other music streaming services on Christmas Eve, according to a new report from Re/code. The report comes a week after a similar report from Billboard, which said that The Beatles were coming to a streaming service on Christmas Eve but did not specify which one.
The world’s most famous band will finally be available on streaming music services, starting this Thursday, Christmas Eve. And they’ll be available very, very widely: Industry sources say that the Fab Four’s music will be on all of the obvious music services, including Spotify, Apple Music, Google Play and Tidal, as well as some you might not expect, including Amazon’s Prime Music.
The only music service that won't have full access to The Beatles' catalog is Pandora, which doesn't do direct deals with music owners. However, Pandora does offer some access to select Beatles songs on its web radio service. Additionally, The Beatles' catalog will also be available on music services' free tiers, unlike artists like Taylor Swift.
The Beatles' catalog originally appeared on iTunes back in 2010, giving Apple exclusive rights to the digital distribution of the famous band's music until 2011. More recently, "The Beatles: +1" collection debuted on iTunes, packaged with remastered versions of hit songs and mini-movies made by the famous quartet.
Update: The Beatles have confirmed their music will be available on Apple Music and eight other streaming music services worldwide on December 24 at 12:01 a.m. local time.
In a recent securities filing, Apple announced that it plans to offer "proxy access", which allows longtime shareholders or a group of shareholders to nominate a member for its board of directors, reports the Wall Street Journal.
In a securities filing, Apple said its board of directors had adopted amended bylaws Monday that allow a shareholder, or a group of up to 20 shareholders, holding 3% of its shares continuously for three years to include board nominees in the company’s annual proxy statement.
The new bylaws allow shareholders to nominate up to 20 percent of Apple's board of directors. Since Apple has 8 directors, shareholders would be allowed to nominate one director. Proxy access is a recent push by activist investors that seek to make changes on company boards, giving shareholders greater influence on company strategy and the ability to oust directors. Other prominent companies to adopt proxy access include McDonald's, Goldman Sachs and Coca-Cola.
In March at Apple's most recent annual meeting, a shareholder proposal that asked the Cupertino company to adopt proxy access garnered 39 percent support.
Chinese cellular carrier China Mobile recently held an event discussing its upcoming plans for 2016, in which it hinted at an April 2016 release date for Apple's rumored 4-inch iPhone, reports MyDrivers [Google Translate] (via Gadgetz Arena).
An April 2016 release date for the device is in line with previous rumors that have suggested it will launch during the first months of 2016. Apple is rumored to be holding a March event where it will introduce a second-generation Apple Watch, and it's possible the 4-inch iPhone will also be unveiled at that time.
Today's report from MyDrivers refers to the 4-inch iPhone as the "iPhone 7c," but Apple is unlikely to use that nomenclature for a device that launches ahead of the "iPhone 7," the name most probable for the 2016 flagship iPhone coming in September. All previous rumors have instead referred to the 4-inch iPhone as the "iPhone 6c."
The iPhone 6c is rumored to feature an aluminum casing like the iPhone 5s, with at least two to three color options available and a 2.5D curved edge cover glass like the glass used on the iPhone 6 and later. It may also include the same A9 processor used in the iPhone 6s and the iPhone 6s Plus, along with an 8-megapixel rear-facing camera, a 1.2-megapixel front-facing camera, 802.11ac Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth 4.1.
Apple has updated its vintage and obsolete products list with various older products that have not been manufactured for at least five years, including select Macs manufactured between early 2008 and late 2009, the second-generation Time Capsule and the 32GB original iPod touch.
Apple products on the vintage and obsolete list are no longer eligible for hardware service, with a few exceptions. Apple defines vintage products as those that have not been manufactured for more than five and less than seven years ago, while obsolete products are those that were discontinued more than seven years ago.
Only the new additions are reflected below.
Macintosh products vintage in the U.S. and Turkey and obsolete in Asia-Pacific, Canada, Europe, Japan, and Latin America
iMac (21.5-inch, Late 2009) iMac (27-inch, Late 2009) MacBook Air (Mid 2009) Mac Pro (Early 2009) Time Capsule 802.11n (2nd generation)
Macintosh products obsolete in the U.S., Asia-Pacific, Canada, Europe, Japan, and Latin America
Apple Cinema Display (23-inch, DVI, Early 2007) Apple Cinema Display (30-inch DVI) MacBook (13-inch, Early 2008) MacBook Pro (15-inch, Early 2008) MacBook Pro (17-inch, Early 2008) Time Capsule 802.11n (1st generation)
iPod products obsolete in the U.S., Asia-Pacific, Canada, Europe, Japan, and Latin America
Apple has confirmed to Tech Insider that the notebook pictured behind Apple general counsel Bruce Sewell during the 60 Minutes special Inside Apple is the 12-inch MacBook released in April, debunking some users on Reddit and social media who speculated the notebook could be an ultra-thin MacBook Pro.
12-inch MacBook pictured behind Apple general counsel Bruce Sewell (Image: CBS)
The chances of Apple leaving an unreleased MacBook in plain sight for a national TV program were slim to begin with, especially in a room full of Apple's top executives. In a later segment, Apple even covered desks in its secretive design studio so that cameras could not capture what the company is working on next.
The rumor mill is also abuzz after a fake "iPhone 7" leaked video circulated on social media this week. The sketchy video, spotted by French website Nowhereelse.fr, falsely depicts an alleged Foxconn employee handling a purported next-generation iPhone prototype that seemingly lacks a home button.
The staged video from "ViralVideoLab" shows a metallic device with an Apple logo, but it is noticeably thicker than the iPhone 6s and includes regulatory markings that are questionable for such an early prototype. The prototype more closely resembles an HTC One M9 with thin bezels along the top and bottom of the screen.
Foxconn has been the source of iPhone leaks in the past, including the iPhone 6 rear shell and dimensions, but it is unlikely Apple has provided the supplier with an assembled "iPhone 7" prototype over nine months ahead of its expected release. No other physical components for the next-generation iPhone have leaked to date.
Apple today spoke out against the UK's proposed Investigatory Powers bill, expressing concern that it would "weaken security" for millions of law-abiding customers, reports The Guardian. Apple added that in a "rapidly-evolving cyber-threat environment," technology companies should be allowed to "implement strong encryption to protect customers.
Introduced last month by UK home secretary Theresa May, the Investigatory Powers bill allows for the bulk collection of website records by law enforcement agencies. It requires web and phone companies to store records of websites visited by every UK citizen for 12 months, and it has provisions that would require technology companies to build in backdoors or help bypass encryption on devices to allow access to information.
Apple and other technology companies believe the implementation of such a bill could inspire other countries to adopt similar measures. In a letter written to the parliamentary committee looking over the bill, Apple expressed concern about the scope of the bill and asked for changes to be made before it's passed. In its current incarnation, Apple worries the bill could give the UK government enough power to demand changes to the way iMessage works, ending the encryption that makes it inaccessible even to Apple.
"The creation of backdoors and intercept capabilities would weaken the protections built into Apple products and endanger all our customers. A key left under the doormat would not just be there for the good guys. The bad guys would find it too."
Apple went on to say the legislation could cause businesses to have to deal with a set of "overlapping foreign and domestic laws" that will "inevitably conflict" and lead to the risk of sanctions. UK agencies could, for example, ask for information stored in data centers in other countries, infringing on that country's data protection laws. "That is an unreasonable position to be placed in," Apple wrote.
Other technology companies, including Google, Facebook, Microsoft, Twitter, and Yahoo, also plan to submit evidence to the parliamentary committee in the hope of getting the proposed bill changed.
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.
In time for the holiday season, a number of paid apps and games for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch have been discounted on the App Store this week, including Alto's Adventure, Final Fantasy VII, Lara Croft GO, Launch Center Pro, PDF Expert 5, Scanner Pro, This War of Mine, Thomas Was Alone and more.
Apple's annual iTunes Connect winter shutdown takes place between December 22 and December 29, during which time the following features are unavailable: new app submissions, app updates, in-app purchase submissions and TestFlight submissions for external testing. All other features, and access to iTunes Connect, remain available.
Starting today, some Facebook users will be able to view Live Photos in their Facebook feeds using the Facebook for iOS app, reports TechCrunch. Introduced with the iPhone 6s and the iPhone 6s Plus, Live Photos are motion-enabled images that capture the moments just before and after a photo is taken.
Facebook plans to gradually roll out support for Live Photos, so while some Facebook app users will be able to post and view Live Photos as of this morning, others will not have access to Live Photos support until the beginning of 2016.
According to TechCrunch, uploading a Live Photo is done in the same way as uploading a regular photo, but there will be an option to choose whether to upload an image as a Live Photo or a regular photo during the uploading process. In a Facebook feed, Live Photos are denoted by a set of concentric circles and can be pressed to play.
You’ll have to tap that box manually with each Live Photo, and with good reason: once enabled on your iPhone, Live Photos are created with little to no thought on your part. It’s easy to forget the feature is even on. Add in the fact that Live Photos include 1.5 seconds of video and audio from before/after the instant you hit that shutter button, and it’s easy to imagine a scenario where you unwittingly capture something you… maybe don’t want to make public. By making it opt-in with each photo, there’s less of a chance you’ll accidentally upload stuff you forgot was even there.
While only the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus can take live photos, all iOS devices running iOS 9 can view them in the Facebook app. All iPhones from the iPhone 4s on are capable of supporting iOS 9.
Facebook is the second major social network to implement support for Live Photos. Tumblr added support two weeks ago.