MacRumors

Renderings of some of the more minor buildings planned for Apple Campus 2 have been shared by the Silicon Valley Business Journal, giving us a look at the planned design for two visitor reception locations, a set of outdoor eating areas or food stations, and a maintenance shed.

Apple provided the renderings to the City of Cupertino ahead of a planned administrative hearing set to take place tonight, with Apple seeking architectural review for the buildings.

Two reception buildings, one located on Wolfe Road and one located near Tantau Avenue, feature glass walls and are designed to welcome visitors to the campus. The reception buildings look similar to a planned visitor's center, which will include a cafe and a store.

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A large, modern-looking "utilitarian" maintenance shed that spans 5,776 square feet will house the equipment needed to maintain the exterior of the campus, which will feature 80 percent green space with drought-resistant plants appropriate for California weather and more than 7,000 trees.

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The outdoor eating areas feature a simple design with an indoor kitchen and outward-facing pickup windows, which Apple employees will use to order food that can then be eaten in the outdoor restaurant. The two outdoor eating facilities will be accompanied by a main restaurant inside the ring-shaped building.

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According to the Silicon Valley Business Journal, the Cupertino city council has asked for two minor architectural changes: the relocation of a site fence for a better view of the main building from the Tantau Avenue reception building and a redesign of the fencing to make the landscaping more prominent than the fence.

Work on Apple's second campus is well underway, with construction on the main ring-shaped building nearly complete. The company's current progress can be seen in the April drone update video published earlier this month. Apple plans to complete construction on the campus at the end of 2016, with employees set to move in at the beginning of 2017.

quicktimeThe Department of Homeland Security's U.S. Computer Emergency Readiness Team today issued an alert recommending Windows users with QuickTime installed uninstall the software as new vulnerabilities have been discovered that Apple does not plan to patch.

Computers running QuickTime for Windows will continue to work after support ends. However, using unsupported software may increase the risks from viruses and other security threats. Potential negative consequences include loss of confidentiality, integrity, or availability of data, as well as damage to system resources or business assets. The only mitigation available is to uninstall QuickTime for Windows.

The recommendation comes following a report from Trend Micro outlining Apple's plans to deprecate the software, which means no more security updates will be issued. At the same time, two new critical vulnerabilities have been discovered that affect QuickTime for Windows, and with no security updates forthcoming, the only defense against a potential attack is to remove the software.

For Windows users who want to uninstall QuickTime, Apple has published a support document that outlines all of the necessary steps. QuickTime for Mac is not affected.

Update 4/18: Apple has confirmed to The Wall Street Journal that QuickTime will no longer be updated.

Apple has assembled a secret team dedicated to exploring potential changes that could be made to the App Store, reports Bloomberg. Among the features being considered is an option that would allow developers to pay a fee to have their apps "more prominently displayed," perhaps at the top of a list of search results. Changes to "improve the way" customers browse in the App Store are also under consideration.

Among the ideas being pursued, Apple is considering paid search, a Google-like model in which companies would pay to have their app shown at the top of search results based on what a customer is seeking. For instance, a game developer could pay to have its program shown when somebody looks for "football game," "word puzzle" or "blackjack."

Apple is said to have approximately 100 employees working on its App Store project under vice president and former iAd leader Todd Terisi, including engineers who formerly worked on the iAd team. According to sources who spoke to Bloomberg, the search team is relatively new and it is not yet known if and when changes will be introduced to the App Store.

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News of work on App Store changes comes four months after Apple made a significant change to App Store leadership, bringing it under the umbrella of Apple marketing chief Phil Schiller instead of iTunes chief Eddy Cue.

App discovery has long been an issue in Apple's App Store. With upwards of 1.8 million apps available in the App Store, it is difficult for users to discover content that isn't available via Apple's featured section or through Top Charts, which often favor big name developers able to spend a lot of money on advertising. Paid discovery via search offers another avenue to help customers find new apps, but it is unlikely to be popular with many of the independent developers that struggle to get their apps noticed.

Apple's last major change to the App Store came in November, introducing significant improvements to App Store search algorithms to return more relevant, intelligent results.

With the launch of the Apple Watch and the fourth-generation Apple TV, Apple debuted two new operating systems -- watchOS and tvOS -- both of which share a common naming scheme with iOS, the operating system that runs on iPhones and iPads.

Apple's unified naming system has led to speculation that OS X, the operating system for the Mac, is due for a name change to MacOS, bringing it in line with watchOS, tvOS, and iOS. Apple won't unveil the name of the next-generation Mac operating system until its 2016 Worldwide Developers Conference, but a new update to the company's website suggests MacOS is on the minds of Apple employees and a candidate for the name of the next upgrade.

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On a webpage that was updated this morning to share Apple's most recent environmental report, a Frequently Asked Questions section makes a mention of "MacOS." When discussing power consumption of products, MacOS is listed alongside tvOS, iOS, and watchOS.

To model customer use, we measure the power consumed by a product while it is running in a simulated scenario. Daily usage patterns are specific to each product and are a mixture of actual and modeled customer use data. Years of use, which are based on first owners, are assumed to be four years for MacOS and tvOS devices and three years for iOS and watchOS devices.

A mention of "MacOS" was also found buried Library files in OS X 10.11.4 in late March, but the file, "FUFlightViewController_macOS.nib," has been present in the Mac operating system since August of 2015, a month before the public launch of OS X El Capitan.

If Apple does make the switch from "OS X" to "MacOS," it is not clear if the company will stick with naming each iteration after California landmarks, a tradition that started with OS X Mavericks in 2013. Prior to that date, Mac updates were named after large cats, but since then, we've seen OS X Mavericks, OS X Yosemite, and OS X El Capitan. With tvOS, watchOS, and iOS, operating system upgrades follow a number-based naming scheme, with the current versions being tvOS 9.2, watchOS 2.2, and iOS 9.3.1.

Apple is expected to unveil the next version of its Mac operating system, OS X 10.12, at its 2016 Worldwide Developers Conference, which will likely be held from June 13 to June 17. Little is known about OS X 10.12 at this time, but it may be a more significant update than OS X 10.11, introducing Siri support for the Mac for the first time.

Update: Apple has now removed the reference to "MacOS" in its environmental report and replaced it with "OS X".

Tag: macOS
Related Forum: macOS Sierra

In January, Samsung announced plans to add iOS support to its Gear S2 Smart Watch, and it appears work on an iOS app is well underway. Screenshots of a beta Gear S2 app designed for iOS devices have been shared on the XDA forums, giving us a first look at the design of the app and the features that will be available.

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XDA forum members have also been able to download the test app and have provided details on its functionality. The Gear S2 iOS app will be able to deliver notifications to the smart watch, and it will be able to install and manage apps from the Gear store on the device. According to testers, while the Gear S2 can receive notifications from the iPhone, replies are not currently possible, and the Samsung Gear S2 Lite app has to be running in the background for the connection between the watch and the app to be maintained.

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The app appears to be in the developmental stages and Samsung has given no hints on when it plans to introduce a finished iOS app for the Gear S2. When the news was first announced, Samsung's only timeline was "later in the year."

Currently, the Gear S2, which runs the Samsung Tizen operating system, is only compatible with Samsung smartphones, but when the iOS app is released, the Gear S2 will be able to compete with the Apple Watch on Apple's own platform.

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Introduced in August of 2015, the Gear S2 is Samsung's latest smart watch and the first to ship with a round display. While the first versions of the Gear S2 were originally only available in black or silver with matching rubber bands, Samsung introduced higher-end 18-karat rose gold and platinum plated versions to better compete with the more expensive Apple Watch models.

Instagram today updated its built-in "Explore" feature with a revamped look and new content that includes dedicated video channels.

A personalized channel called "Videos You Might Like" aggregates videos from around the world, and Instagram's Explore grid, designed to let users find content built around hashtags, events, and specific locations, will also include some featured channels focused on video.

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Explore, for those unfamiliar with the feature, is Instagram's content discovery tool. Content displayed in Explore, including photos and videos, is based on a user's interests and accounts already followed. Liking images or choosing "See Fewer Posts Like This" refines the feature to further match each individual's tastes.

The video updates to Explore will be available over-the-air in the newest version of the Instagram app. Instagram is rolling out the video feature to users in the United States today, with plans to bring it to additional countries "soon."

Instagram can be downloaded from the App Store for free. The most recent version, 7.20, was released earlier this week. [Direct Link]

Apple is close to signing 21-year-old Raheem Sterling, a skilled forward for Premier League's Manchester City F.C. and England's national football team, as a global ambassador, according to British newspaper The Sun.

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Manchester City forward Raheem Sterling (Image: PA:Press Association)

Sterling, who has not played since suffering a groin injury in a match against Manchester United on March 20, will join the likes of American professional tennis player Serena Williams, FC Barcelona forward Neymar, and Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry as brand ambassadors for Apple.

Sterling will earn around £250,000 per year from the deal, which is contingent upon him returning from injury in time for the Euro 2016 championship in France. Fortunately, his imminent return appears likely, as local media reports claim the winger could resume play as early as this weekend versus Chelsea.

The report claims that Sterling "has been lined up to be the figure-head of Apple’s promotional work around the European Championship this summer," which could involve Apple or Beats television commercials and product endorsement, predominantly in the United Kingdom. Euro 2016 takes place between June 10 and July 10.

With Earth Day just over a week away, Apple has begun an initiative wherein users can help raise money for the World Wildlife Fund by making purchases within specially designated apps. Running from now until April 24 (two days after Earth Day), all proceeds collected from participating apps will go to the WWF, which is the world's leading conservation organization with aims to protect natural resources -- from forests and oceans to wildlife and food -- through innovative, global solutions.

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Some of the apps joining in on the fundraiser include Angry Birds 2 [Direct Link], Hearthstone [Direct Link], VSCO [Direct Link], Trivia Crack [Direct Link], and several dozen more. In addition to the Apps for Earth promotion, the company has thematically changed the entire front-end of the App Store with multiple environmentally conscious messages and themed categories.

The official WWF Together app [Direct Link] acts as a hub for all of the fundraising material, along with giving users exclusive Earth Day-themed content.

WWF is proud to be part of Apps for Earth, helping protect the planet, one app at a time. Through April 24 only, when you download WWF Together and purchase Earth’s story, 100% of proceeds go to WWF. In addition to 16 free stories of amazing animals, you’ll experience a 360-panoramic image of Earth from space on iPhone, play with digital water, and take and share a photo with the origami planet as part of #AppsforEarth.

Many of the apps have been updated to reflect the partnership with Apple and WWF, but some are also including exclusive content in addition to raising money for the organization. Popular camera app VSCO, for example, is introducing a limited edition WWF preset that "subtly enhances natural settings, and is ideal for landscapes & wildlife." Angry Birds 2 is also introducing a special level and spell into its campaign with an ocean conservation theme.

For more information on the work achieved by the World Wildlife Fund, check out its official website. More details on Apple's own participation in environmental protection is available on its website, as well.

Apple Cynthia HoganApple has hired Cynthia Hogan, a top lobbyist for the National Football League, as vice president for public policy and government affairs for the Americas, reports Politico. She will head the company's Washington D.C. office starting April 29 and report to Apple's environmental, policy, and social initiatives chief Lisa Jackson.

"Cynthia’s intellect and judgment have consistently distinguished her as a uniquely talented professional and we’re lucky to have her join the team at Apple,” Jackson said in a statement.

Hogan, who previously served as Counsel to the Vice President of the United States, Joe Biden, under President Barack Obama, is a key hire for Apple as it battles the U.S. government and law enforcement about the intersection of encryption and national security.

That ongoing debate reached a peak this year when the U.S. Justice Department demanded a court force Apple to assist the FBI with unlocking an iPhone used by San Bernardino shooter Syed Farook in an act of terrorism last year. The Justice Department ultimately dropped the case in late March after the FBI discovered its own method of entry into the password-protected device, but Apple still faces similar lawsuits concerning encryption in other U.S. states, including New York and Massachusetts.

Apple spent a record $4.4 million last year to lobby privacy, cybersecurity, patent reform and other issues, according to the report.

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.

Tag: NFL

Motor Trend has published an in-depth article, roundtable video, and spin-off posts that offer a speculative look at the design and features of the so-called "Apple Car." The renders, which are completely imaginative, were designed by industrial designer Garrett DeBry and rendered by creative studio Mind Over Eye.

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While the article is headlined "Apple Car exclusive," most of the information and images are purely speculative and based on the fanciful vision of a group of automotive enthusiasts. In fact, the design looks largely based on the look and feel of the latest iPhones and iPads, right down to the matching gold color.

The car features a tinted glass windshield and roof with a boxy frame and Apple logos emblazoned on the front, back, and all four wheels. The taillights appear to be one consolidated line of red dotted lights, while the rear wheels have fender skirts that provide further aerodynamic emphasis from the rear bumper forward.

Apple-Car-interior-mockup
The renders highlight thirteen fun but certainly questionable features, such as a 360-degree augmented reality experience, wireless charging, proximity sensing and wearable technologies, Tesla Model X-like "Falcon Wing" doors, indirect and ambient lighting, and a color-coded light strip that can double as a turn signal.

With few concrete details known about the Apple Car, these images are purely conceptual and, unsurprisingly, should not be interpreted as factual. Dozens of similar mockups are just one Google Images search away, and each offer a fun but likely mostly fanatical vision of Apple's much-rumored electric vehicle.


Apple Car rumors have gained momentum since early last year, when The Wall Street Journal reported that Apple has hundreds of employees working to develop an electric vehicle under the codename "Project Titan." The bulk of research and development may be taking place in secretive buildings in Sunnyvale, California, where late night "motor noises" have been heard in recent months.

Multiple sources have indicated that the Apple Car could be finalized by 2019 or 2020, but a more precise timeframe remains unclear due to possible internal setbacks and other unforeseen circumstances. Tesla CEO Elon Musk recently called the Apple Car an "open secret," as his company aims to begin fulfilling more than 325,000 pre-orders for its lower-priced Model 3 by late 2017.

Apple has announced that it will be ending support for iTunes Allowances, a feature of the service that allowed parents to automatically place money into a child's iTunes account on a monthly basis. As of April 13, users can no longer create new iTunes Allowance deposits, with the feature officially getting cut-off for good on May 25, 2016.

After that date, any unused allowance credit will be rolled over into the recipient's basic iTunes account and can be used as normal, but the monthly deposits will cease afterwards. Apple has been informing iTunes Allowance users via email about its cancellation, but gave no specific reason as to why it'll be ending the long-running program.

itunes allowance gone
iTunes Allowances let parents gift kids with a monthly amount of store credit -- from $10 to $50 -- without needing to give them credit card information. The allowance credit could be used like a normal iTunes Store gift card, for purchasing content from the iTunes Store, App Store, iBooks Store, Mac App Store, or even an Apple Music membership.

The company encourages users to use its Family Sharing features, including Ask to Buy for underage members of a shared account group, in lieu of the allowance feature. It also encourages those who have questions to contact Apple Support as May 25 gets nearer.

(Thanks, Sam!)

Although the method of the FBI's entry into the San Bernardino shooter's iPhone has been the source of many rumors, a new report from CBS News states that at this point in the process, "nothing of real significance" has been discovered within the device.

After weeks of back-and-forth between Apple and the FBI, over the possible moral repercussions that a "GovtOS" would have on iPhone users' privacy, the Justice Department officially dropped its lawsuit against Apple in late March.

iphone5c
In the court-filed motion to vacate the order for Apple's help, the FBI stated it had discovered its own process of entry into the password-protected iPhone. Rumors initially suggested the FBI was helped by Israeli mobile forensics firm Cellebrite, but more recent reports pointed to the bureau's hiring of professional hackers to help crack the smartphone.

Much of the discussion surrounding the case has centered around the method the FBI used to unlock the iPhone 5c in question, but a report from yesterday confirmed that the bureau has no legal ground to reveal the exploit to anyone, including Apple. The unidentified group assisting the FBI has sole legal ownership of the method in which it used to enter the device, which could not be divulged without their cooperation with the FBI.

A few sources within the government even stated that the FBI might not know the details of the exploit, only that it has worked. According to the new report from CBS News, those close to the investigation have stressed that the FBI is continuing to analyze the data coming out of the iPhone 5c in the search for information related to the December terrorist attacks.

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-Watch-trioWith the Apple Watch 2 expected to launch in the second half of 2016, supply chain informant DigiTimes reports that Samsung and other overseas manufacturers have secured component orders for the next-generation device.

Taiwan-based Advanced Semiconductor Engineering will fulfill the majority of system-on-a-chip production, while Amkor Technology and STATS ChipPAC will share a portion of remaining orders, according to the report.

Meanwhile, additional Taiwanese supplier Kinsus Interconnect Technology is said to have secured Apple Watch 2 substrate orders, and Samsung Electronics will reportedly fabricate the Apple Watch 2's processor, consisting of mobile DRAM, NAND flash, and other chips. Both Kinsus and Samsung provide components for the original Apple Watch, which is powered by Apple's custom-designed S1 chip.

Previous reports indicated that Quanta Computer will likely remain the key Apple Watch 2 manufacturer. The supplier reportedly began trial production of the second-generation watch in January, in time for a purported late-second-quarter launch around June. Volume shipments were said to begin in the third quarter, which could be any point between early July and late September.

Opportunities for Apple to introduce a second-generation Apple Watch include its annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in June, or its annual iPhone introduction event in September. The original Apple Watch was announced in early September 2014 and released in late April 2015, suggesting an elongated 14 to 19 month release cycle between models that may help avoid consumer exhaustion.

Apple analyst Brian White recently speculated that a 20% to 40% thinner Apple Watch 2 could be unveiled by June, possibly at WWDC, but his track record at reporting on Apple's upcoming plans is far from perfect. More reliable KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo believes that the Apple Watch 2 will enter mass production in the third quarter of 2016, in line with a fall launch alongside the iPhone 7.

Few details are known about the Apple Watch 2 beyond a June 2015 report that said it will feature a FaceTime video camera and expanded Wi-Fi capabilities, while new bands and finishes are always a possibility. Kuo believes the Apple Watch 2 will feature mostly internal improvements, and possibly minor form factor changes, with a more complete redesign of the device not arriving until 2017.

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

The unidentified group that assisted the FBI in unlocking the San Bernardino shooter's iPhone has sole legal ownership of the exploit, making it highly unlikely to be shared with Apple, U.S. administration sources have revealed.

According to a report published by Reuters yesterday, the White House routinely reviews technology security flaws as part of its Vulnerabilities Equities Process to decide which ones should be made public, but it does not reveal flaws discovered or owned by private organizations without their explicit cooperation.

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Initial rumors had suggested the FBI received assistance from Israeli mobile forensics firm Cellebrite to hack the phone, but more recent information suggests the group involved consisted of "professional hackers" who sell flaws to governments, black market groups, or companies that create surveillance tools.

The FBI itself likely does not know the details of the technique, only simply that it worked, according to government sources and Rob Knake, who managed the Vulnerabilities Equities Process before leaving the White House last year.

The news is being seen as a blow to Apple, which has sought information regarding the exploit used by the FBI to unlock suspected terrorist Syed Farook's iPhone in the hope of fixing it before it can be used by criminals. Previously FBI director James Comey had said the government was contemplating the pros and cons of looping Apple in on the situation.

In a separate report published by CBS News yesterday, a law enforcement source revealed that the data successfully extracted from Farook's iPhone has yet to reveal any information relevant to the FBI investigation. However, the source stressed that the bureau continues to analyze the extracted data in the hope that something of significance will yet be discovered.

After a very public legal battle in which the FBI obtained a court order demanding Apple help the government unlock the iPhone used by Farook, the Justice Department dropped the lawsuit after announcing it had found an alternate method to gain access to the phone's data.

Comey has since said the exploit only works on a "narrow slice of phones", which does not include models of the iPhone 5s and after.

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 today added CBS to its universal search lineup for the fourth-generation Apple TV, allowing fans of hit CBS shows like NCIS, Big Bang Theory and Supergirl to easily find their content via the Siri button on the Siri Remote. The move brings the total number of sources in universal search to 16.

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Since launch, Apple has worked to expand the feature and add to the five original sources. In January, Apple added FOX NOW, FX NOW, National Geographic TV, PBS and PBS Kids. In February, the company added Watch ABC, Disney XD, Disney Channel and Disney Jr. Last week, Apple added Starz alongside the launch of the new Starz app.

While Apple has steadily added to the feature in the United States, Netflix and iTunes remain the only search options in Australia, Canada, France, Germany and the United Kingdom. Other regions' universal search options are limited to movies in iTunes.

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

Rumors in January suggested Microsoft was working to bring its Word Flow Windows Phone keyboard to iOS, and now the company's keyboard project has entered a private beta testing phase. Starting this week, a limited number of testers have been given access to the Word Flow iOS keyboard.

MacRumors reader Ruben has shared some images and information with us, giving us our first look at the design and the features Microsoft plans to implement. According to Ruben, the keyboard is "incredibly reliable for a beta," with features like sounds, themes, and the much-anticipated one-handed "Arc" mode, accessed with a drag gesture.


In its default mode, the Word Flow keyboard looks a lot like a standard iOS keyboard, but its one-handed mode sets it apart from other offerings. With one-handed mode turned on, the keyboard morphs into a half-moon shape, arranging the letters to one side of the device for easy thumb access. The Word Flow keyboard supports both standard typing and swipe-based typing, as is one on third-party keyboards like Swipe and SwiftKey.

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Standard keyboard features like auto correction and word prediction are included, with options to enable or disable a word learning feature that improves word predictions by sending keyboard usage information to Microsoft. Multiple Word Flow themes are included, including light and dark options, and there are also tools for creating custom themes based on images taken from the iPhone's Photo Library.

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Additional information shared by iMore yesterday covers other features like quick access to Contacts through autofill and a free built-in image library that Microsoft plans to add to over time.

Microsoft has not yet publicly announced the Word Flow keyboard or shared details on when it might see a release.

goproheroApple's industrial design team is losing one of its core members, with longtime designer Daniel Coster moving on to join GoPro as the company's Vice President of Design. GoPro announced the news in a press release this morning, which outlines Coster's role. He will "influence all aspects of design" at GoPro, ranging from software to surfaces, reporting directly to GoPro founder Nick Woodman.

"Ironically, Danny and I first met in December, 2001, on the beach in Sayulita, Mexico at the very start of the five month surfing trip where I developed and tested the first GoPro prototype," said Woodman. "His design pedigree speaks for itself, but I will say that we feel energized to have him join GoPro."

"I'm honored to join the GoPro team," said Coster. "This extraordinary company is close to the hearts of so many people around the world. Its brand and products inspire us to capture and share our lives' most important moments. I'm excited to shape the future with the incredible team at GoPro."

Coster has long been a member of Apple's secretive industrial design team, working alongside Jony Ive for over 20 years. GoPro's press release suggests Coster has contributed to a range of Apple products, from the iPhone 4 to the iPad wireless keyboard.

Apple's industrial design team is known for being a tight-knit group of 19 that has worked together for several years. In a 2015 interview, Ive told the New Yorker that only two designers had left his team over the past 15 years, one because of ill health.

In an interview with New Zealand magazine Stuff Nation, Coster said that he wants explore his new opportunity at GoPro and spend more time with his family and friends.

Though the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus aren't coming out until the fall of 2016, rumors and alleged part leaks have already divulged many details about the prospective features of the device. In March, a photo of a device said to be the iPhone 7 Plus surfaced on a Chinese website, and a rendering supposedly sourced from Apple manufacturer Catcher Technology featured the design of the iPhone 7.

There's no way to confirm whether these images are legitimate depictions of Apple's upcoming devices, but this morning, Japanese site Mac Otakara shared a report that corroborates many of the rumors we've heard and shares some new details on the features we might see in the iPhone 7 and the iPhone 7 Plus.

Mac Otakara says "the possibility is great" that both the image of the iPhone 7 Plus housing and the design sourced from Catcher are "the real thing." The iPhone 7 Plus model featured a dual camera as has been rumored, along with a Smart Connector that Mac Otakara suggests could be used to accommodate a Smart Keyboard for the iPhone.

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Much of the rest of Mac Otakara's report focuses on speculation about the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus based on the supposition that the photos are actual depictions of the two devices, along with a few new tidbits of information thrown in.

Both the iPhone 7 Plus model and the rendering from Catcher show a design that's similar to the design of the iPhone 6s and the 6s Plus, and while previous rumors (including a rumor from Mac Otakara itself) have said the device could be thinner, even approaching the thinness of the 6.1mm iPod touch, Mac Otakara says the device photos suggest there will be little difference in size between the iPhone 7 and the iPhone 6s.

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Apple is expected to eliminate the headphone jack in the iPhone 7 and the iPhone 7 Plus, and while some rumors have indicated Apple could use the space to introduce dual stereo speakers, Mac Otakara now believes Apple will continue to use a single speaker in the device. The report also includes a mention of Bluetooth-enabled EarPods that connect to the iPhone to charge much like the Apple Pencil.

The larger lens of the rear-facing camera on the iPhone 7 image indicates it will perhaps use a larger sensor, giving it improved camera capabilities despite the fact that it will not include the dual camera layout rumored for the iPhone 7 Plus. Multiple rumors have said dual cameras will be a feature limited to the iPhone 7 Plus.

A final detail in Mac Otakara's report focuses on the potential inclusion of two new sensors at the top of the device, the purpose of which remains unclear. There is a possibility that the two sensors could be related to the display of the device, based on recent speculation from DisplayMate suggesting features included in the 9.7-inch iPad Pro could be a logical inclusion for the iPhone 7.

According to DisplayMate, True Tone display support, which adjusts the display to match the temperature of the ambient lighting in a room, could be added to the iPhone if Apple "upgrades the ambient light sensors so they measure color in addition to brightness."

Many of the details Mac Otakara mentions in its report line up with previous rumors that we've heard. Both the iPhone 7 and the 7 Plus are expected to look a lot like the iPhone 6s, but with redesigned antenna bands that don't span the back of the device. Rumors disagree about the potential thickness of the device, but there could be some improvements made by introducing a thinner display, new chip packing technology, and a slimmed-down Lightning port.

Dual cameras for the iPhone 7 Plus and the elimination of the headphone jack are the most concrete rumors we've heard yet, corroborated multiple times by a variety of sources. As we creep closer to the fall launch date of the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus, we should begin to get a clearer picture of exactly what features and design changes we can expect to see in the two devices.

Related Forum: iPhone