MacRumors

KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has released a new research report outlining why he's upbeat about MacBook growth in 2017. Kuo expects price cuts for both new and existing MacBooks in 2017 coupled with a refresh that adds support for 32GB RAM and more, bolstering his belief in the MacBook line next year.

Kuo cites Apple's tendency to price "major-upgraded models," like the original MacBook Air and MacBook Pro, higher near the initial launch "before undergoing in price cuts in the following year" as precedent for price cuts in the second half of 2017. He also believes that the ecosystem for USB-C devices and software that takes advantage of the Touch Bar will become more mature, making it more enticing for users.

Finally, Kuo expects refreshed MacBooks Pros to be launched in the second half of 2017 with support for 32GB of RAM. However, Kuo says this is dependent on whether Intel launches Cannonlake processors on time.

(3) the new MacBook to be launched in 2H17 may support 32GB DRAM, eventually attracting more core users; this depends on whether or not Intel ships Cannonlake CPU on time in 2017, which features 15-25% less power consumption of LPDDR 4, versus the existing LPDDR 3. If Cannonlake doesn’t enter mass production as expected, the new models launched in 2H17 will adopt Coffee Lake, which continues to adopt LPDDR 3, and maximum DRAM support will also remain unchanged at 16GB.

Many customers have been upset that the new MacBooks, which run more energy efficient Skylake processors, continue to max out at 16GB of RAM and cost more than previous-generation models. For instance, the entry-level 13-inch MacBook Pro with a Touch Bar starts at $1,799, $500 more than previous-generation models.

Apple marketing chief Phil Schiller, in an email to MacRumors reader David, explained that for Apple to make a notebook with support for more than 16GB of RAM, it would have to use a memory system that consumes too much power. Regarding price, Schiller said in an interview that affordability is "absolutely something we care about" but that the company designs for experience rather than price.

While Kuo expects price cuts for new and existing MacBooks, like both the 12-inch MacBook and the new MacBook Pros, it's unclear whether he expects Apple to offer support for up to 32GB of RAM for the 12-inch MacBook in addition to the MacBook Pros.

Update: As pointed out by Ars Technica's Andrew Cunningham and others, Kuo's outline of chip possibilities does not match up with what is known from leaked Intel roadmaps. Intel is not planning MacBook Pro-class chips in the Cannonlake family at all, and Coffee Lake chips aren't arriving until 2018.

Apple is seriously considering a price drop for Apple Music, according to two sources that spoke to Digital Music News. The sources are not within Apple, but have worked close with the service since it launched. The price drop would see Apple Music go from $9.99 to $7.99, while family plans would drop from $14.99 to $12.99.

The new prices would begin rolling out by Christmas, and Digital Music News claims the rollout could start with a "holiday promotional discount." While regular and family plans would see a price drop, student rates, which are $4.99 a month, would remain the same price.

The new prices would help Apple Music match Amazon's new Music Unlimited service, which is $7.99 per month for Prime subscribers. However, Amazon's streaming service also offers a $3.99 per month plan for customers that own an Amazon Echo device.

In May, Digital Music News reported that Apple planned on ending iTunes Music downloads within two years, eliciting a specific "not true" response from Apple. A month later, Digital Music News reported that new sources had come forward claiming that Apple would end music downloads in the future, and that the company would debut a new version of iTunes at WWDC that would make it easy for the company to do so.

Apple manufacturing partner Foxconn is testing wireless charging modules intended for use in the 2017 10th anniversary iPhone, according to Nikkei. However, Nikkei's source says the feature's inclusion into the iPhone 8 is dependent on yield rates.

"But whether the feature can eventually make it into Apple's updated devices will depend on whether Foxconn can boost the yield rate to a satisfactory level later on," the source said.

The modules are intended for the 2017 iPhone, but it's unclear whether all 2017 iPhone models will include wireless charging or whether it'll be reserved for higher-end Plus models.

In January, it was reported that Apple was exploring extended range wireless charging for the 2017 iPhone. Extended wireless charging is seen as superior to existing wireless charging solutions because it does not require the device to be as close to a charging mat or source. In February, there was speculation that Apple was working with Energous, the company behind WattUp, a wireless charging technology that uses radio waves to charge devices up to 15 feet away, on wireless charging technology.

Apple has also been hiring engineers experienced in wireless charging in recent months. In May, the company hired two engineers from uBeam, a startup focused on a wireless charging technique that uses ultrasonic waves to charge electronic devices by converting those waves into electricity.

The Cupertino company has also filed many patents for wireless charging technology, though it has publicly downplayed the usefulness of wireless charging, largely due to the need of a charging mat plugged into a wall.

The 2017 iPhone, which is expected to feature a major redesign with a glass body and edge-to-edge OLED display that integrates a Touch ID sensor and front-facing camera, will arrive in September 2017.

Apple seeded the first beta of iOS 10.2 to developers this afternoon, marking the second major update to the iOS 10 operating system. While iOS 10.2 doesn't include a single main feature like the Portrait mode that was introduced in iOS 10.1, it does include several smaller features.

There are a bunch of new emoji that were first introduced in Unicode 9, plus there's a new video widget and handy new settings for preserving your camera preferences when taking a photo. For a full overview of the new features, make sure to check out our video.

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Emoji - Unicode 9 emoji are included in iOS 10.2. Some of the new emoji include clown face, drooling face, selfie, fox face, owl, shark, butterfly, avocado, pancakes, croissant, and more. There are more than a hundred new emoji, including several profession emoji available in both male and female genders, such as firefighter, mechanic, lawyer, doctor, scientist, and more. Many existing emoji have also seen significant redesigns.

Wallpapers - There are new wallpapers in iOS 10.2, which use the same graphics that were shown off in iPhone 7 marketing materials.

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Apple today seeded the first beta of an upcoming macOS Sierra update 10.12.2 to developers, just one week after releasing macOS Sierra 10.12.1 and more than a month after launching the new macOS Sierra operating system.

macOS Sierra 10.12.2 beta 1 is available for download through the Apple Developer Center and through the software update mechanism in the Mac App Store. A public beta will likely be available for public beta testers later this week.

It is not yet clear what improvements the second update to macOS Sierra will bring, but it will focus on bug fixes and performance enhancements to address issues that have popped up since the release of macOS Sierra 10.12.1.

macOS Sierra includes new emoji introducing Unicode 9 characters like clown face, drooling face, selfie, face palm, fox face, owl, shark, butterfly, avocado, pancakes, croissant, and more, plus many profession emoji available in both male and female genders.

Apple has also updated the artwork on many existing emoji, adding detail and making them look less cartoonish and more realistic.

Apple today seeded the first beta of an upcoming iOS 10 update to developers, one week after releasing the iOS 10.1 update and more than a month after launching the iOS 10 operating system. As a major 10.x update, iOS 10.2 will likely bring bug fixes, performance improvements, and perhaps a few new features to iOS 10.

Registered developers can download the new iOS 10.2 beta from the Apple Developer Center or over-the-air with the proper configuration profile installed.

We don't yet know what features are included in iOS 10.2, but the prior update, iOS 10.1, introduced a new Portrait photography mode for the iPhone 7 Plus' dual-lens camera system. Should new features be discovered in today's update, we'll update this post.

Apple has called iOS 10 its "biggest release ever" for iOS users, with a revamped lock screen, a Siri SDK for developers, an overhauled Messages app, a dedicated "Home" app for HomeKit users, new facial and object recognition capabilities in Photos, and redesigned Maps and Apple Music apps.

What's new in iOS 10.2:

Emoji - Unicode 9 emoji are included in iOS 10.2. Some of the new emoji include clown face, drooling face, selfie, fox face, owl, shark, butterfly, avocado, pancakes, croissant, and more.

Wallpapers - There are new wallpapers in iOS 10.2, which use the same graphics that were shown off in iPhone 7 marketing materials.

Camera settings - There's a new option for saving your last known camera settings. This will let you preserve the last Camera Mode, Photo Filter, or Live Photo setting. "Preserve Settings" is available in the Settings App under "Photos & Camera."

Videos widget - There's a new widget available for the Videos app, accessible on the widgets panel by swiping to the right on the Home screen of an iPhone or iPad. The Videos widget displays movies and TV shows in the Videos app, and a tap will cause content to play automatically.

Emergency contacts - There's a new feature that will automatically notify your emergency contacts when you use the Emergency SOS feature on iPhone or Apple Watch. A popup notification shows up when you open the Health app after installing iOS 10.2.

Apple Music - There's a new option to sort playlists in Apple Music by type, title, and recently added.

While the iPad Pro lineup has increased Apple's tablet revenue based on higher price points, helping offset a lengthy slide in units sold, the latest data from market research firm IDC claims the iPad Air and iPad mini lines accounted for more than two-thirds of Apple's tablet shipments in the fourth fiscal quarter.

Apple officially reported 9.26 million iPads sold in the quarter, representing late June to late September, but it does not break down its tablet sales by individual model. IDC did not share its methodology behind calculating iPad Pro sales specifically, but vaguely notes that it uses proprietary tools and research processes.

Despite selling some 600,000 fewer iPads compared to the year-ago quarter, Apple's tablet revenue remained flat at just over $4.2 billion in the quarter. The reason: iPad Pros cost more. The higher ASP is important for Apple as the worldwide tablet market continued its slump last quarter.

IDC estimates tablet shipments dropped to an estimated 43 million units in the quarter, marking a 14.7% year-over-year decline. Apple led all vendors with 21.5% market share, up slightly from 19.6% in the year-ago quarter, while Samsung trailed in second with an estimated 6.5 million shipments and 15.1% market share.

Amazon and Chinese competitors Lenovo and Huawei rounded off the top five with an estimated 3.1 million, 2.7 million, and 2.4 million tablet shipments respectively in the quarter. Amazon saw explosive 319.9% growth due to its Amazon Prime Day sale in early July that led to a huge surge in shipments of its Fire tablets.

During its recent earnings call, Apple financial chief Luca Maestri said the company is "highly successful" in the tablet market, with 82% market share of premium tablets priced above $200. Meanwhile, IDC said other vendors are "racing to the bottom" with low-cost, sub-$200 traditional and detachable 2-in-1 tablets.

"The race to the bottom is something we have already experienced with slates and it may prove detrimental to the market in the long run as detachables could easily be seen as disposable devices rather than potential PC replacements," said Jitesh Ubrani, senior research analyst with IDC.

Apple today released iOS 10.1.1, the third official update to the iOS 10 operating system, one week after releasing iOS 10.1 with Portrait Mode and just over six weeks after providing the new iOS 10 operating system to the public.

Today's update fixes bugs including an issue where Health data could not be viewed for some users. iOS 10.1.1 can be downloaded as a free over-the-air update on all iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch models compatible with iOS 10.

iOS 10 is a major update that includes features like a redesigned Lock screen experience, a revamped Messages app with a full App Store, a Siri SDK for developers, new looks and features for Maps and Apple Music, and tons more. Make sure to check out our iOS 10 roundup for details.

Update: Apple has subsequently stopped signing iOS 10.0.2 and iOS 10.0.3, meaning that users can no longer downgrade to those software versions.

Benchmarks for Apple's new 13-inch MacBook Pro without the Touch Bar are beginning to collect on Geekbench, providing a closer look at the notebook's performance improvements and energy efficiency.

The entry-level model, powered by a Skylake-based 2.0GHz dual-core Intel Core i5 processor, currently has an average multi-core score of 6,970, indicating the notebook is only up to 7% faster than the early 2015 base model 13-inch MacBook Pro. Last year's comparable model, equipped with a Broadwell-based 2.7GHz dual-core Intel Core i5 processor, currently has an average multi-core score of 6,497.

The late 2016 model is also slightly faster than last year's mid-range 13-inch MacBook Pro, while slightly outperformed by the higher-end model.

The notebooks are each calibrated against a baseline score of 4,000, which is the score of Intel's high-end Core i7-6600U processor.

While the performance improvements are negligible, the new 13-inch MacBook Pro sans Touch Bar's 15-watt chip is more energy efficient than the 28-watt chip in last year's entry-level model. The lower power consumption gives the 2016 base model comparable battery life to last year's model despite having a smaller 54.5-watt-hour battery versus the 74.9-watt-hour battery in last year's comparable.

Given that the non-Touch Bar model's 6360U chip would typically be appropriate for the MacBook Air, the new 13-inch MacBook Pro with Touch Bar should be a more accurate comparable to last year's base 13-inch model. However, it is also $500 more expensive. Benchmarks for that model should be available next month when Apple begins shipping the Touch Bar notebooks to customers.

CNET has published an extended interview with Jony Ive in which the Apple design chief discusses some of the design decisions that went into developing the Touch Bar in the company's new MacBook Pro lineup.

The contextual OLED Touch Bar replacing the function keys on the new Macs was developed for at least two years, during which time Ive's team explored the idea of larger, haptic-rich trackpads. According to Ive, "a number of designs" were explored that "conceptually make sense", but were later rejected.

When we lived on them for a while, sort of pragmatically and day to day, [they] are sometimes less compelling. This is something [we] lived on for quite a while before we did any of the prototypes. You really notice or become aware [of] something’s value when you switch back to a more traditional keyboard.

Ive explained that his team's point of departure was to see if there was a way of designing a new input that could be contextually specific and adaptable, yet also something that was mechanical and fixed. This required the development of a "difficult prototype" with a mature software environment, in order to work out if the idea had any real-world traction.

One of the things that remains quite a big challenge for us is that you have to prototype to a sufficiently sophisticated level to really figure out whether you’re considering the idea, or whether what you’re really doing is evaluating how effective a prototype is.

Ive said that after testing the designs, his team were unanimously "very compelled" by the Touch Bar as a viable input device, but that the real challenge was to integrate it into a specific product without compromising its existing design.

You sort of change your hat, because you have to figure out how do you then productize it, and develop the idea, and resolve and refine to make it applicable to a specific product. To do that in the context of the MacBook Pro — while at the same time you’re trying to make it thinner, lighter and more powerful — the last thing you want to do is burden it with an input direction that now has a whole bunch of challenges specific to something like touch.

Asked if the Mac community's expectations and emotional ties to their devices affects his design considerations, Ive emphasized that his team "don't limit ourselves in how we will push – if it's to a better place", although "what we won't do is just do something different that's no better".

Apple has published detailed design guidelines on how developers should use the Touch Bar, steering them away from use cases that would suggest it functions as a second display. When pushed, Ive refused to elaborate on why Apple "doesn't think a touchscreen is a particularly useful or appropriate application of multitouch", because it would lead him to have to talk about things his team are currently working on.

However, reiterating comments made in an earlier interview with Apple executives Phil Schiller and Craig Federighi, Ive said that incorporating the Touch Bar "is the beginning of a very interesting direction" for the Mac. Rumors have circulated recently that Apple is considering introducing a customizable e-ink keyboard in future Macs, possibly next year, although the veracity of these claims remains unclear.

You can read CNET's full interview with Jony Ive here.