MacRumors

On this week's episode of The MacRumors Show, we discuss the latest Apple Watch models, who should upgrade, and consider whether it is worth waiting for the rumored "Apple Watch X."

After spending several days with the iPhone 15 Pro and ‌iPhone 15‌ Pro Max, we discuss our initial experiences with the new devices, their design, and some of their standout features such as the Action button and USB-C port. We also return to the matter of Apple's FineWoven accessories, which appear to have been received relatively poorly by customers.

The Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2 feature brighter displays, a Double Tap gesture for touch-free control, the S9 chip, locally processed Siri for faster responses and access to health data, the second-generation Ultra Wideband chip for Precision Finding and deeper HomePod integration, and 64GB of storage. We talk through some of our favorite features of the new devices and weigh up who should consider upgrading.

On a related matter, we take a look at the "Apple Watch X," a complete overhaul of the device expected to launch next year. It is rumored to feature thinner casings, larger displays, microLED technology, larger batteries, blood pressure monitoring, and a new mechanism for connecting bands.

Listen to The MacRumors Show in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Castro, Google Podcasts, or your preferred podcasts app. You can also copy our RSS feed directly into your podcast player. Watch a video version of the show on the MacRumors YouTube channel.

If you haven't already listened to the previous episode of The MacRumors Show, catch up for our discussion about Apple's new FineWoven accessories, some of our favorite ‌iPhone 15‌ features, and who should consider upgrading.

Subscribe to ‌The MacRumors Show‌ for more episodes, where we discuss some of the topical news breaking here on MacRumors, often joined by exciting guests like iJustine, Jon Rettinger, Andru Edwards, Kevin Nether, Arnold Kim, Ben Sullins, Marcus Kane, Christopher Lawley, Frank McShan, David Lewis, Tyler Stalman, Jon Prosser, Sam Kohl, Quinn Nelson, John Gruber, Federico Viticci, Sara Dietschy, Luke Miani, Thomas Frank, Jonathan Morrison, Ross Young, Ian Zelbo, and Rene Ritchie. You can also head over to The MacRumors Show forum thread to engage with us directly. Remember to rate and review the show, and let us know what subjects you would like the podcast to cover in the future.

Apple's 13.6-inch 256GB M2 MacBook Air has dropped to $899.00 today on B&H Photo, down from $1,099.00. B&H Photo offers free two-day shipping in the contiguous United States, and has all four colors of Space Gray, Silver, Midnight, and Starlight at this price.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

This is an all-time low price on the 13.6-inch 256GB M2 MacBook Air, and B&H Photo's deal on it will last through 5:30 p.m. Central Time today. B&H Photo also has the 512GB model at $200 off, which is a solid second-best price on that notebook.

If you're looking for an even steeper discount, and don't mind an older model MacBook Air, Amazon has the M1 MacBook Air for $749.99 this week. Head to our full Deals Roundup to get caught up with all of the latest deals and discounts that we've been tracking over the past week.

Apple wants to hire more staff to work on artificial intelligence in the United Kingdom, CEO Tim Cook today said (via BBC News).

Cook reaffirmed that Apple is actively researching generative AI technology, and said that he expects Apple's investment in the UK and AI to increase. He also highlighted how AI is already behind several features on Apple devices, such as Fall Detection, Crash Detection, and iOS 17's predictive autocorrect.

Apple is believed to now be spending millions of dollars a day on conversational AI research. The company is reportedly working on a chatbot tool that some engineers have dubbed "Apple GPT" to rival OpenAI's ChatGPT.

Cook is currently visiting the UK following trips to several other countries in Europe. Yesterday, he visited St. Mary's Primary School and Apple's new store in Battersea Power Station. Earlier today, he met the Prince and Princess of Wales.

The move to hire more staff appears to come in contrast to widespread redundancies at big tech companies. Yesterday, it emerged that Epic Games is laying off over 800 employees.

Apple has had its software update for iPhone 12 devices in France approved by regulators, after the country threatened to suspend sales of the phones earlier this month due to radiation levels (via Reuters).

In early September, France ordered Apple to halt ‌‌iPhone‌‌ 12 sales and "fix" existing devices to bring them into electromagnetic radiation compliance with European standards. The increase in emitted electromagnetic radiation observed over time by regulators appears to have been the result of successive software updates issued by Apple, and was not present when the ‌‌iPhone‌‌ 12 was launched in 2020.

The ANFR ordered Apple to "remove the ‌‌‌iPhone‌‌ 12‌ from the French market from September 12 due to the model exceeding the limit" for electromagnetic absorption by the body. The agency also told Apple to recall every ‌‌‌iPhone‌‌ 12‌ it has ever sold in the country. Ministers later said that though the radiation level was above the accepted standard, it was not dangerous and people were safe to continue using the phones, local media reported.

Apple later said it would issue a software update for ‌iPhone‌ 12 users in France to address the radiation concerns. The French regulator ANFR responded by saying it would test the software update. If it made a difference to the electromagnetic waves the device emitted, ANFR said it would bring the model into compliance with European standards applied in France, and the marketing withdrawal order would be lifted.

The Apple Watch has received some incremental updates in recent years, with significant upgrades becoming fewer and farther between as the device has progressed. Since the Apple Watch's generation-over-generation enhancements are relatively small, it is all the more important to consider when an upgrade is justified and whether an older model could suffice for your needs.

The Apple Watch Series 9's headline upgrade is the S9 chip, bringing improved performance to the Apple Watch for the first time in four years and facilitating features like Double Tap. It is priced starting at $399. Last year's Series 8 introduced body temperature sensing and Crash Detection, but the last moderately significant update for the device was 2021's Series 7, which introduced larger display sizes and fast-charging capability. All previous Apple Watch models from before the Series 9 have been discontinued, but older models may still be found for even lower prices from third-party retailers or second-hand.

Read on to see the breakdown below for each new feature, change, and improvement that was added with each Apple Watch model compared to its direct predecessor. Viewing each generation's changes in this way helps weigh up the accumulative upgrades one receives by skipping multiple generations when buying a new device, as well as get a sense of which generations offered the biggest overall upgrades.

Apple Watch Series 9 (2023)

• Retina display with up to 2,000 nits of brightness
• Display can get dimmer in dark rooms and at night (down to 1 nit of brightness)
• Double Tap gesture
• S9 chip (based on A15 Bionic)
• 4-core Neural Engine (x2 faster than Series 8)
• Siri‌ processed on-device for requests that do not need information from the internet
• ‌‌Siri‌‌ can access health and fitness data
• 25% more accurate dictation
• Second-generation Ultra Wideband chip
• Precision Finding for iPhone 15 models
• HomePod proximity integration
• 64GB storage
• Pink aluminum casing introduced

Apple Watch Series 8 (2022)

• S8 chip (same CPU as S6)
• More powerful gyroscope and high dynamic range accelerometer
• ‌Crash Detection
• Body temperature sensor
• Wrist temperature sensing during sleep
• Cycle tracking with retrospective ovulation estimates
• Blue and Green aluminum casings discontinued, Silver aluminum reintroduced
• Apple Watch Edition discontinued

Apple Watch Series 7 (2021)

• 41mm and 45mm case sizes
• 1.7mm display borders for almost 20% more screen area than Series 6
• QWERTY keyboard
• Up to 70% brighter display than Series 6 indoors when wrist is down
• S7 chip (Same CPU as S6)
• Crack-resistant front crystal (50% thicker)
• IP6X dust resistance
• Fast charging for up to 80% charge in about 45 minutes (33% faster than Series 6)
• Silver and Space Gray aluminum casings discontinued, Midnight, Starlight, and Green introduced

Apple Watch Series 6 (2020)

• Up to 2.5x brighter always-on display
• Access Notification Center, Control Center, and Complications when display is asleep
• S6 chip (based on A13 Bionic, 20% faster than S5)
• Always-on altimeter
• First-generation Ultra Wideband chip
• 2.4GHz and 5GHz Wi-Fi
• Blood oxygen sensor
• Faster charging for a full charge in under 1.5 hours
• Improved battery life for tracking certain workouts, such as indoor and outdoor runs
• Blue and (PRODUCT)RED aluminum casing options introduced
• Space Black stainless steel casing available with Apple Watch Hermès only, Graphite option introduced
• Ceramic Apple Watch Edition discontinued

Apple Watch Series 5 (2019)

• Always-on Retina display
• Force Touch removed
• S5 chip
• Compass
• 32GB storage
• Apple Watch Edition reintroduced with White Ceramic, Natural Titanium, and Space Black Titanium casing options

Apple Watch Series 4 (2018)

• 40mm and 44mm case sizes
• Over 30% larger display with curved corners
• 3.0mm display borders
• S4 chip (2x faster than S3)
• Gyroscope and accelerometer
• Barometric altimeter
• Fall detection
• 2.4GHz Wi-Fi
• Optical heart sensor and electrical heart sensor for ECG
• 16GB storage
• Digital Crown with haptic feedback
• 50% louder speaker
• Relocated microphone for reduced echo and better sound quality
• Faster charging for a full charge in 1.5 hours
• Gold stainless steel casing introduced
• Apple Watch Edition discontinued

Apple Watch Series 3 (2017)

• S3 chip (70% faster than S2)
• Barometric altimeter
• Bluetooth 4.2
• ‌Siri‌ able to speak through the onboard speaker
• LTE cellular model available with red Digital Crown
• Rose Gold aluminum casing discontinued
• Gray Ceramic Apple Watch Edition model introduced

Apple Watch Series 2 (2016)

• Retina display with up to 1,000 nits of brightness (2x brighter than previous generation)
• S2 chip (dual‑core)
• GPS and GLONASS receiver
• Water resistant up to 50 meters
• Gold and Rose Gold aluminum casing options added
• 18K Gold and Rose Gold Apple Watch Edition discontinued, Ceramic model introduced in White
• Apple Watch Nike+ variant introduced

The Apple Watch Series 9 does not seem to provide a meaningful upgrade for most Series 7 and Series 8 users. If you have an Apple Watch Series 6 or older, upgrading to the Apple Watch Series 9 will generally be worthwhile, with plenty of new features across the board. Discounted Apple Watch Series 7 and Series 8 models are also a good option for those coming from a Series 6 or older if you are looking to save money.

According to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, Apple has considered moving the Apple Watch away from an annual upgrade cycle to offer more substantial updates less frequently. Next year's Apple Watch "Series X" is rumored to be a significant update to mark the tenth anniversary of the device, featuring thinner casings, larger displays, microLED technology, larger batteries, blood pressure monitoring, and a new mechanism for connecting bands.

Apple staff met with Chinese officials in recent months to discuss concerns over new rules that will restrict Apple from offering many foreign apps currently available in its China App Store, according to a new paywalled Wall Street Journal report.

China already blocks the websites of many popular Western social media apps like Instagram, X (formerly Twitter), Facebook, YouTube, and WhatsApp, but iPhone users in China can still download the apps from Apple's ‌App Store‌ if they use an unauthorized VPN that connects them to an internet server outside the country. China banned VPN services from the ‌App Store‌ in 2017.

The five social media apps named above have been downloaded from Apple's ‌App Store‌ more than 170 million times in China over the last decade, according to estimates by Sensor Tower.

According to the report, Chinese officials told Apple staff that it must strictly implement rules banning unregistered foreign apps, thereby closing a loophole allowing Chinese ‌iPhone‌ users to download them.

Under new rules issued in July by China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, Apple will no longer be able to offer such apps in its China ‌App Store‌ from next July unless the app operators are registered with the government. The new rules affect both foreign and domestic app distributors, and aren't specifically targeting Apple.

However, the operators are unlikely to register with the Chinese government, since doing so would force them to comply with data transfer and censorship requirements. Such a scenario would leave Apple with no choice but to remove them or face legal sanctions.

Investors are said to be concerned about how the new rules will affect Apple's services bottom line, which includes ‌App Store‌ transactions. Apple is also said to be concerned about issues the company could face in implementing the rules, such as whether users in China who access foreign apps through its overseas app stores would be able to continue to do so.

According to the report, Apple was told during the recent discussions that the new rules are needed to crack down on online scams, pornography, and the circulation of information that violates China's censorship rules.

China has recently banned government officials from using iPhones and other foreign smartphones for work or from bringing such devices to their government offices, and earlier this month the ban was expanded to multiple state agencies and state companies, highlighting China's renewed attempts to block foreign technology.

China is an important market for Apple, with the region accounting for about a fifth of its sales. Most of Apple's manufacturing base remains in the country, despite the company's efforts in recent years to diversify its supply chain to places like Vietnam and India.

Note: Due to the political or social nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Political News 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.

It is typical for Apple to hold up to four events per year: one in the spring, WWDC in June, the fall iPhone event, and a fourth fall event that's Mac and/or iPad focused. Unfortunately, there are few additional product announcements planned for the final months of 2023, and it's looking like there won't be another fall event this year.

Earlier this month, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman told The MacRumors Show hosts that he does not expect Apple to hold an October event because the company does not have enough new products and features to justify it. Major new ‌iPad‌ and Mac launches are not expected until 2024, suggesting it will be a slow holiday season for Apple outside of the ‌iPhone‌ and Apple Watch.

There is a possibility that we will see at least one iPad unveiled in October, perhaps an iPad mini, an iPad Air, or an 11th-generation low-cost ‌iPad‌, but these will be minor refreshes. iPad Pro models with OLED displays and M3 chips won't be coming until 2024.

We could also see at least one Mac with a new M3 chip, and this could be a MacBook Air, 13-inch MacBook Pro, a Mac mini, or a 24-inch iMac. Gurman said that if these products do come out in 2023, Apple is likely to unveil them via press release rather than with an event.

While Gurman believes M3 Macs could come out in 2023, Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said recently that Apple will not launch new MacBook models with M3 processors before the end of the year, which may narrow down any M3 Mac releases to desktop models.

Apple did not hold an October event last year, but there were October events in 2013, 2014, 2016, 2018, 2020, and 2021.

Following in the footsteps of Netflix, Disney will start cracking down on password sharing on the Disney+ streaming service. Disney+ password sharing will end in Canada starting on November 1, according to emails that Canadian subscribers are receiving.

As reported by Mobile Syrup, Disney is updating its terms of service to restrict account sharing.

"Unless otherwise permitted by your Service Tier, you may not share your subscription outside of your household. "Household" means the collection of devices associated with your primary personal residence that are used by the individuals who reside therein. Additional usage rules may apply for certain Service Tiers.

Disney CEO Bob Iger said back in August that Disney would "roll out tactics" to end password sharing starting in 2024, but it appears the crackdown will come sooner in Canada.

Disney's streaming division experienced a $512 million loss in the third fiscal quarter of 2023, and Iger has been aiming to cut down on the company's streaming costs. Disney's ad-free Disney+ and Hulu plans also recently went up in price, with ad-free Disney+ priced at $13.99 per month in the United States and ad-free Hulu priced at $17.99 per month.

While Disney plans to put a stop to password sharing in Canada first, it is undoubtedly a change that will also roll out to the United States and other countries. Netflix this year eliminated password sharing between households, implementing restrictions through IP address and location. Netflix saw a notable increase in signups when it eliminated password sharing, so it is not a surprise to see other streaming services implementing similar crackdowns.

Back in 2020, Microsoft considered selling its Bing search engine to Apple, reports Bloomberg. Had the acquisition happened, Bing would have replaced Google as the default search engine on Apple devices.

Microsoft executives met up with Apple services chief Eddy Cue to discuss a potential deal, but the talks were just exploratory and did not progress. According to Bloomberg, Apple did not move forward with a deal because of the money that it earns from Google and because it was concerned that Bing could not compete with Google in "quality and capabilities."

Google's search engine has long been the default search engine on the iPhone, iPad, and Mac, and Google pays Apple billions of dollars per year for the privilege. Google and Apple last inked a deal in 2021, facilitated by Cue, and as of 2020, Apple was collecting $4 billion and $7 billion annually from Google. The Apple/Google deal has been under scrutiny this week due to the antitrust trial between Google and the U.S Department of Justice, with the DoJ pointing toward Google's dominance on Apple devices as evidence that Google has a search engine monopoly.

‌Eddy Cue‌ this week had to testify in the trial, and he explained why Google is the ‌iPhone‌'s default search engine. "We make Google be the default search engine because we've always thought it was the best," Cue said. He went on to say that Apple has not gone with another search engine provider because there is no "valid alternative."

While Google is the default search engine on Apple devices, users can choose to swap to Yahoo, Bing, DuckDuckGo, or Ecosia as an alternative. Bing has recently become a more popular search engine option thanks to Microsoft's partnership with OpenAI and the integration of chatbot technology.

Apple added a USB-C port to the iPhone 15 lineup this year, allowing it to work with USB-C cables, USB-C power banks, and more. It turns out that some USB-C battery packs are not working properly with Apple's ‌iPhone 15‌, resulting in charging issues.

As highlighted on Reddit and the MacRumors forums, not all existing USB-C power banks can be used with the ‌iPhone 15‌ models, perhaps due to the iPhone's reverse charging feature. In some cases, the ‌iPhone 15‌ will fail to charge, or the ‌iPhone 15‌ will charge the power bank.

A range of different power banks are affected, and because of the wide number of them on the market, it is impossible to list the models that are non-functional. One version that fails to work is the Anker PowerCore Slim 10K PD, and a customer who contacted Anker was told that the only way to get the power bank to charge the ‌iPhone‌ is to use the USB-A port.

It seems that due to the iPhone 15 series' reverse charging function, the USB C's port charging of Anker PowerCore Slim 10k PD will be influenced, which does not have a solution currently. The only way to get your iPhone charged is to use the USB A port.

Anker will do more tests on all of our power banks to see whether this is the issue with certain power banks and try to get a solution.

The ‌iPhone 15‌ models are able to charge an Apple Watch, AirPods, or another ‌iPhone‌ through the USB-C port, and there is a possibility that this functionality is what's impacting some power banks. Most USB-C power banks with Power Delivery seem to be working as intended, including a number of models tested by MacRumors, but ‌iPhone 15‌ owners should be aware that some could be incompatible.

Reddit this week announced that it will no longer allow Reddit users to opt out of ad personalization, which means that ads on the platform will be targeted based on site usage.

Right now, users can choose to toggle off an option to "personalize ads based on your Reddit activity and account info," but this toggle is being removed going forward. Reddit claims that it requires "very little personal information" and the change will be able to predict ads that are more relevant to each person.

Reddit requires very little personal information, and we like it that way. Our advertisers instead rely on on-platform activity--what communities you join, leave, upvotes, downvotes, and other signals--to get an idea of what you might be interested in.

The vast majority of redditors will see no change to their ads on Reddit. For users who previously opted out of personalization based on Reddit activity, this change will not result in seeing more ads or sharing on-platform activity with advertisers. It does enable our models to better predict which ad may be most relevant to you.

Reddit claims that the "vast majority" of Reddit users will not see changes to their ads, nor will users be seeing more ads. With no option to opt-out of ad personalization, Reddit is adding new toggles to limit ads from specific categories, including Alcohol, Dating, Gambling, Pregnancy & Parenting, and Weight Loss. Machine learning will be used to classify ads, so users will not be able to opt out of these ad categories entirely.

In select countries, the option to turn off ad personalization will remain, allowing Reddit to continue to comply with GDPR restrictions. Reddit users without the option to turn off ad targeting can expect to see ads that are based on subreddits they belong to, content that is upvoted, and more.

Reddit earlier this year made changes to the cost of its API, cutting out almost all third-party apps and forcing the majority of users to view Reddit on the website or on the Reddit app, both of which support ads.

Reddit says that these ad changes started rolling out yesterday.

Epic Games, the company behind popular video game Fortnite, is laying off 830 employees or approximately 16 percent of its workforce. The layoffs come amid Epic's ongoing legal battle with Apple, which started way back in 2020.

Just this week, ‌Epic Games‌ asked the Supreme Court to hear the case, a request that follows two major losses and likely hundreds of thousands or more in legal fees. ‌Epic Games‌ has been trying to paint Apple as a monopolist, and it wants to be able to sell digital skins and other goods to Apple customers without having to pay a cut to Apple.

As a result of the legal dispute, Fortnite has been unavailable from Apple's App Stores for several years now, and those who want to play the game on the iPhone or iPad must seek alternate means to do so, such as web-based platforms.

Epic CEO Tim Sweeney in a memo sent out to employees and shared on the company's website said that it has been "spending way more money" than it earns to grow Fortnite, and other efforts to cut costs have "ended up far short of financial sustainability."

Sweeney says that layoffs are the only way to stabilize the company's finances. Employees will be provided with severance that includes six months of base pay and six months of paid healthcare.

As for the fight against Apple, Sweeney claims that ‌Epic Games‌ is taking steps to cut down on legal expenses, but will continue on with its legal battles so the "metaverse can thrive and bring opportunity to Epic and all other developers."

Alongside the launch of iOS 17, iPadOS 17, and macOS Sonoma, Apple has updated its iCloud website with design changes and some of the new features that came in the software updates.

Apple says that the ‌iCloud‌ homepage is now customizable, with options to select specific folders for Notes, a specific mailbox in the Mail app, favorite Photos, and more. Tiles are now interactive, so you can do things like mark a Reminder as complete or archive an email, plus there are browser notifications that can be set up for ‌iCloud‌ apps.

Apple has also redesigned Calendar, Contacts, Reminders, and iCloud Drive. The full release notes for the new version of the ‌iCloud‌ website are below.

General

Customize What You See in Tiles
Choose a specific folder for Notes, a mailbox for Mail, display just your favorite Photos, and more. You can also configure your homepage to show multiple layouts of the same tile so you can see more content from your favorite apps. Access layout options in the menu in the lower-left corner of a tile.

Quick Actions From Tiles
Mark reminders as complete, flag an email, see a preview of a file in Drive, and more. Perform actions from tiles by hovering on content and selecting to reveal quick actions. If you're on a touch device, swipe to the left.

Browser Notifications
Get notified of new email or event invitations and updates with browser notifications on a PC for Mail and Calendar. You can configure browser notifications in iCloud Settings on the web.

Updated Design
New design and layouts across Calendar, Contacts, Reminders, Drive, and more.

iCloud Mail

Attach from iCloud
Attach photos and files to email messages directly from iCloud.

Undo Send
Easily unsend an email message that you just sent before it reaches the recipient's inbox.

iCloud Calendar

Calendar Identity Control
Control the email address others see in event invitations and even use your Custom Email Domain to unite your Calendar and Mail identities. Manage it all from iCloud Calendar settings.

iCloud Drive

List View
Switch between viewing your files as icons or in as a list with the toggle in the upper left corner.

Preview Your Files
Press the Space bar after selecting a file or photo to get a quick preview before opening or downloading it. You can also access quick view through the options menu.

Access File Options
Easily access actions like renaming a file or downloading a copy through the options menu.

iCloud Photos

Memories
See your Memories and play them in a full-screen view by clicking on the memory.

Slideshow
To view your selection in a slideshow, select Play Slideshow from the menu in the upper right corner.

Notes

Linked Notes
Create links to other notes by typing >> or Command + K as a shortcut to add links while writing in your note.

Shared Folders
Collaborate with others on an entire folder of notes.

Enhanced Search
Use suggested search to refine your search against categories like shared notes, checklists, tags and more.

Reminders

Customize Your Reminders
Add dates, locations, flags, and more using the edit details button.

Apple's ‌iCloud‌ website is available at iCloud.com on any web browser, and it is particularly useful to those who are on a PC and may not otherwise have access to their ‌iCloud‌ content on the machine.

(Thanks, Tim!)

Apple today seeded the first public beta of an upcoming macOS Sonoma 14.1 update, allowing non-developers to test out the software ahead of its release. The public beta comes a day after the first developer beta.

Beta testers can opt-in through the Software Update section of the System Settings app. Under Beta updates, simply toggle on the Sonoma Public Beta. Note that you must sign up to participate on Apple's beta testing website.

‌macOS Sonoma‌ 14.1 includes updates for the Music app, introducing an option to favorite songs, albums, artists, and more. No other major new additions have been found in the beta as of yet, but we could see more features added as the beta progresses.

Apple today seeded the first betas of upcoming iOS 17.1 and iPadOS 17.1 updates to public beta testers, allowing non-developers to try out the software ahead of its release. The public iOS 17.1 and iPadOS 17.1 betas come a day after Apple released the betas for developers.

Public beta testers can get the beta by opening up the Settings app, going to the Software Update section, tapping on the "Beta Updates" option, and toggling on the ‌iOS 17 or iPadOS 17‌ Public Beta. Signing up on Apple's beta testing website is required.

In the iOS 17.1 beta, Apple added an option to favorite songs, albums, playlists, artists, and more, from within Apple Music and through the Now Playing widget.

AirDrop transfers can now be finished over the internet after being initiated, and when you activate the flashlight, there's an indicator in the Dynamic Island even if you don't have an iPhone 15 Pro or Pro Max. For more on what's new in the update, we have an iOS 17.1 beta 1 tidbits article.

Apple has also released a new beta of tvOS 17.1 with the same ‌Apple Music‌ changes, plus there is a public beta of watchOS 10.1 available for public beta testers. watchOS 10.1 enables NameDrop on Apple Watch for sharing contact information with other Apple Watch and iPhone users over AirDrop.

Just a day after Epic Games appealed one portion of its legal dispute with Apple to the U.S. Supreme Court, Apple has now done the same for the portion that was ruled in Epic's favor, reports Bloomberg.

The dispute between Apple and Epic dates back to 2020 with Epic seeking to overturn Apple's App Store rules requiring content purchases within iOS apps to go through Apple, which takes a 15% to 30% cut of the revenue.

In multiple rounds of the dispute, Apple has won on every count with the exception of one regarding Apple's "anti-steering" rule that bars developers of many iOS apps from directing users to methods of purchase available outside of the ‌App Store‌, circumventing Apple's revenue cut.

Apple had said it was considering appealing the ruling over its anti-steering provision to the Supreme Court, and back in July a judge ruled that Apple did not have to make changes to its policies pending the potential appeal, which has now been filed.

The Supreme Court will decide in the coming months whether it will hear either or both of Epic's and Apple's appeals, but if it does not take up either petition, the previous rulings will stand. Apple would be able to continue to disallow third-party payment processing within apps but would have to allow developers to inform users about other purchasing options outside of the ‌App Store‌.

Apple added a new feature to the Apple Music app in the first beta of iOS 17.1 that offers a selection of color-matched playlist artwork options for the first time.

As of beta one, Apple provides eight different artwork styles featuring geometric shapes and gradients, with the title of the playlist in the top left corner. The colors used in the artwork are picked from the album artwork of whatever song is first in the playlist. The default artwork continues to be the tiled album artwork of the first four songs in a playlist and the ability to choose a custom image from Photos or Files remains.

Previously, users had to keep the basic tiled image or upload a custom image. Since not all users have custom graphics or photos they want to use for playlists and the default artwork is relatively simple, playlists can be difficult to identify and look fairly generic. Now, users can quickly and easily set a unique appearance for each playlist that fits in with ‌Apple Music‌'s UI.

Other ‌Apple Music‌ changes and improvements in iOS 17.1 include favoriting songs from the Lock Screen and suggested songs in playlists. The ability for multiple users to collaborate on and add to the same playlist and ‌Apple Music‌ SharePlay for CarPlay are also expected to be added in a future update. iOS 17.1 introduces a host of new features, including NameDrop to Apple Watch, UK bank balances in the Wallet app, and more.

B&H Photo today has all-time low prices on a few models of the 14-inch MacBook Pro, with as much as $300 off these notebooks. All three MacBook Pro devices on sale include free two-day shipping, and B&H Photo notes that these sale prices will end later tonight.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

Starting with the 10-Core M2 Pro/512GB 14-inch MacBook Pro, this model is available for $1,749.00, down from $1,999.00. Both the Silver and Space Gray are on sale at this price, which is a match of the all-time low price on this model of the 14-inch MacBook Pro.

B&H Photo also has the 12-Core M2 Pro/1TB 14-inch MacBook Pro for $2,199.00, down from $2,499.00. This one is only available in Space Gray, and it's another match of a record low price on the 14-inch MacBook Pro.

Lastly, you can get the 12-Core M2 Max/1TB 14-inch MacBook Pro for $2,799.00, down from $3,099.00. This model is again only available in Space Gray, and at $300 off it's an all-time low price. As of writing, all of these discounts can only be found on B&H Photo.

If you're on the hunt for more discounts, be sure to visit our Apple Deals roundup where we recap the best Apple-related bargains of the past week.