MacRumors

Apple today announced that researchers from Duke University, Johns Hopkins and Oregon Health & Science University are launching three new ResearchKit studies on autism, epilepsy and melanoma.

“We’re honored to work with world-class medical institutions and provide them with tools to better understand diseases and ultimately help people lead healthier lives,” said Jeff Williams, Apple’s senior vice president of Operations. “In just six months, ResearchKit apps studying everything from asthma and diabetes to Parkinson’s disease, are already providing insights to scientists around the world and more than 100,000 participants are choosing to contribute their data to advance science and medical research.”

New ResearchKit Studies

- Autism & Beyond: Duke University and Duke Medicine, in partnership with Peking University in China and other international institutions, are researching whether the front-facing iPhone camera can be used to detect signs of developmental issues at a much younger age. The study uses emotion detection algorithms to measure a child’s reaction to videos shown on iPhone.

- EpiWatch: The EpiWatch app developed by Johns Hopkins will test whether the Apple Watch's sensors can be used to detect the onset and duration of seizures. The app will feature a custom Apple Watch complication that provides patients with one-touch access to record accelerometer and heart rate sensor data, and will also keep a log of all seizures and track medication adherence.

- Melanoma: Oregon Health & Science University is studying whether digital images taken on an iPhone can be used to learn about mole growth and melanoma risks. Participants can document mole changes and share them directly with health professionals, and researchers will be able to capture these images to help create detection algorithms for future melanoma screening.

ResearchKit is an open source framework, launched in early 2014, that enables developers to create their own iPhone apps for research purposes, with studies available for asthma, breast cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, Parkinson’s disease and more. More than 50 developers and researchers have already contributed new research modules to the open source framework.

In just six months, more than 50 researchers have contributed active tasks to support new methods of research, including tasks to study tone audiometry for hearing loss; the ability to measure reaction time through delivery of a known stimulus to a known response; a timed walk test; PSAT to assess the speed of information processing and working memory, and the mathematical puzzle Tower of Hanoi often used for cognition studies.

ResearchKit apps can access data from the Health app with permission, and use iPhone sensors such as the accelerometer, gyroscope, microphone and GPS to track a user's activity levels, motor impairments, memory and more. The research apps, available on the App Store in the U.S. and select other countries, are compatible with the iPhone 5 or later and fifth-generation iPod touch or later.

ResearchKit studies generally have higher signup rates than traditional medical studies, with more than 100,000 participants contributing their data to the iPhone-based platform since its wide launch in April 2014.

Apple has raised its prices for the MacBook, MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, Mac mini and Mac Pro this week in Australia, Brazil, New Zealand, Norway, Malaysia, Mexico, Thailand and Turkey as the values of foreign currencies continue to fluctuate against the U.S. dollar.

MacBook Air prices in New Zealand, for example, ranged between NZ$1,399.00 and NZ$1,799.00 for stock configurations prior to the price increase, but the lineup is now priced between NZ$1,599.00 and NZ$2,199.00.

Similarly, the base model Mac mini now starts at NZ$899, up from NZ$749, while the base model Mac Pro rose from NZ$4,499.00 to NZ$5,699.00. The 12-inch MacBook is now priced from NZ$2,399, a $400 increase over the original NZ$1,999 price.

The price increases were consistent on the Apple Online Store in the other affected countries. In Brazil, for instance, the MacBook Air now costs between R$ 8.499,00 and R$ 11.499,00, up from between R$ 5.899,00 and R$ 7.699,00.

Retina MacBook Pro prices now start at kr 14 990,00 in Norway, as another example, an increase over the former kr 12 590,00 price for the entry-level configuration. In Malaysia, the Retina MacBook Pro is also now more expensive, at RM 5,899.00 and up.

Apple reports its quarterly earnings in U.S. dollars, and routinely adjusts its prices in foreign countries due to currency exchange rates that are beyond its control. Australia, Canada and Europe have faced similar price increases this year.

Update: MacRumors has confirmed several tips from readers about similar price increases on Macs and some other products in Australia, Mexico, Thailand and Turkey.

Apple today seeded the fourth beta of the OS X El Capitan 10.11.1 update to developers and public beta testers for testing purposes, just one week after releasing the third OS X 10.11.1 beta and two weeks after the public release of OS X El Capitan on September 30.

The new beta is available through the Software Update mechanism in the Mac App Store and through the Apple Developer Center.

OS X 10.11.1, like iOS 9.1, includes support for a range of new emoji like cheese wedge, taco, burrito, popcorn, middle finger, unicorn head, and more. New emoji were introduced in the first OS X 10.11.1 beta. Subsequent betas have not included any other outward-facing changes.

It is unknown what the first update to OS X El Capitan will bring aside from updated emoji, but as a minor .1 update, it's likely to focus primarly on bug fixes and performance improvements for issues encountered following the operating system's official release. According to Apple's beta release notes, OS X 10.11.1 offers stability, compatibility, and security improvements.

Apple CEO Tim Cook today informed employees of a new stock incentive program, which will see Apple making all of its employees eligible to earn Restricted Stock Units (RSUs).

RSUs are normally only given to top Apple management and people from the product teams to retain talent over several years, but now other employees, including those in retail and on the AppleCare teams, will also be eligible to receive stock grants.

Tim Cook announced the new program in an email (via 9to5Mac) that was sent out to employees this morning.

This year, I'm excited to let you know that the Executive Team has created a new program for stock ownership through RSU grants. It's designed to reach employees who were not previously eligible, including many in our amazing retail and AppleCare teams.

This new program extends eligibility to everyone not covered by other RSU programs, effectively making everyone who works at Apple eligible for an RSU grant. This is an unusual step, and very special -- just like our team.

Please check HRWeb for details on this new program.

At Apple, our most important resource -- our soul -- is our people. Along with our many progressive benefit plans, this is another way for us to say thanks. On behalf of the Executive Team, I'd like to thank you for your many contributions to Apple. Working with all of you is the privilege of a lifetime.

Apple has long had an Employee Stock Purchase Plan (ESPP) that allows employees to acquire Apple stock at a discount, but Restricted Stock Units are given as a form of compensation and do not require employees to purchase the stock. Restricted Stock Units typically vest over a period of many years, providing motivation for employees to stay at the company.

Apple CEO Tim Cook, for example, will receive a total of 1,000,000 shares of Apple stock should he stay with the company until 2021 so long as Apple performs well. Cook will earn 100,000 RSUs in August 2016, 100,000 in August 2021, and an additional 800,000 RSUs divided over 10 years so long as Apple's total shareholder return is in the top third of companies in the S&P 500.

With the ability to earn RSUs for staying on at Apple, employees may be motivated to stick with the company until those Restricted Stock Units vest. According to Apple employees that spoke to 9to5Mac, Apple has already started distributing RSU awards to employees in grants ranging from $1000 to $2000 worth of shares.

CBS CEO Les Moonves says the network is still in negotiations with Apple over its inclusion in Apple's upcoming streaming television service, reports Bloomberg. In an interview with Bloomberg TV this morning, Moonves said CBS has had conversations with Apple and will "probably" ink a deal with the Cupertino company.

"Apple is having conversations with everyone about doing their own streaming services," Moonves said in an interview Wednesday on Bloomberg TV. "We have had those conversations, as have the other networks. Do I think something will happen? Probably, but I do not know when."

Moonves made similar comments five months ago at Re/code’s Code Conference, saying CBS would "probably" sign a deal with Apple for its rumored streaming television service. "We're very excited about it," he said, and at that time, he confirmed he had met with Eddy Cue to discuss the plans as part of an "ongoing conversation."

Given the similarity between the statement given in May and what Moonves had to say today, there is little evidence of any progress in the talks between Apple and content owners, but it's clear there is still interest in reaching a deal.

Apple's web-based television service was initially rumored to be launching in 2015, perhaps alongside the new Apple TV, but a continued failure to secure all of the necessary deals has reportedly delayed its debut until 2016. Apple is said to be having trouble with content negotiations, with pricing being a sticking point.

Apple's plan is to offer a selection of popular television channels at a price of $30 to $40 per month, a price tag that undercuts most cable television services. While Apple's streaming television service is still in the works with a launch date unknown, the company’s new set-top box will be launching at the end of the month.

The new Apple TV is already in developer hands and will be available to the general public in late October. The device includes a full App Store, universal search, deep Siri integration, and a touch-based remote for navigating the interface and playing games.

Apple's new 21.5-inch 4K and 27-inch 5K iMacs released yesterday have been subjected to early Geekbench 3 benchmarking, and the results show the late 2015 models are expectedly faster, with improved single-core and multi-core scores compared to previous-generation models.

The new iMacs are between roughly 7% and 20% faster than previous models in Geekbench testing, but it should be noted the results are based on single data points that will need to be averaged out against other benchmarking results for a more accurate comparison.

Japanese blog Mac Otakara benchmarked the new 21.5-inch 4K iMac, equipped with a 3.1GHz quad-core Intel Core i5 processor, and the desktop computer received 64-bit single-core and multi-core scores of 3,787 and 12,803 respectively. The comparable late 2013 model 2.9GHz iMac had single-core and multi-core scores of 3,543 and 10,685 respectively.

The late 2015 high-end non-Retina 21.5-inch iMac, equipped with a 2.8GHz quad-core Intel Core i5 processor, had a single-core score of 3,532 and multi-core score of 11,865. The comparable late 2013 model iMac, with a 2.7GHz Intel Core i5 processor, had single-core and multi-core scores of 3,175 and 10,199 respectively.

The lineup of new 27-inch 5K iMacs were also benchmarked, with the lower-end model equipped with a 3.2GHz quad-core Intel Core i5 processor receiving single-core and multi-core scores of 3,931 and 12,079 respectively. The higher-end 3.3GHz model earned a single-core score of 4,214 and multi-core score of 13,081.

The comparable late 2014 lower-end 5K iMac had an average single-core score of 3,329 and multi-core score of 10,632. The comparable mid 2015 high-end 5K iMac, configured with a 3.5GHz quad-core Intel Core i5 processor, had single-core and multi-core scores of 3,844 and 12,192 respectively.

Just ahead of the launch of Apple Music in late June, Apple's senior vice president of Internet Software and Services Eddy Cue took to Twitter to reveal that Apple was "working to" increase the limit for iTunes Match libraries and Apple Music's similar scan-and-match feature from the current 25,000 tracks to 100,000 tracks for iOS 9.

The arrival of iOS 9 last month did not come with a corresponding increase for the library matching limits, and users in our forums and elsewhere have been wondering when the increase will be rolled out or if there has been a change in plans.

In an effort to answer that question, MacRumors asked Cue for an update on the limit increase, and he tells us Apple is "definitely working on it" and that he expects it will be released "before the end of the year."

Apple's $25/year iTunes Match service and Apple Music's matching feature allow users to add their own songs that are not available from the iTunes Store catalog to the cloud, making them available on other devices using the same Apple ID. The services scan a user's music library to determine which tracks are already available in the iTunes Store, automatically making those available in the user's library. Only those tracks that are not matched to the iTunes Store catalog are then uploaded to the cloud, saving time and bandwidth.

The scan-and-match functionality has been limited to libraries of 25,000 tracks since iTunes Match debuted in 2011, although tracks purchased from the iTunes Store do not count toward this limit. Users with larger music libraries have had to use workarounds such as splitting their tracks into two iTunes libraries in order to take advantage of the matching services, but with the impending increase to a 100,000-track limit, many of these users will no longer need to resort to these workarounds.