Apple and investment bank Goldman Sachs plan to launch a joint credit card later this year, according to The Wall Street Journal.
The report claims the card will be rolled out to Apple employees for internal testing in the next few weeks and officially launch later this year. The card would be accessible through the Wallet app on iPhone, potentially with unique features for setting spending goals, tracking rewards, and managing balances.
Executives have discussed borrowing visual cues from Apple's fitness-tracking app, where "rings" close as users hit daily exercise targets, and sending users notifications about their spending habits. There also could be notifications based on analysis of cardholders' spending patterns, alerting them for example if they paid more than usual for groceries one week.
The card will be issued by Goldman Sachs and use Mastercard's payment network, according to the report. The card is said to offer around two percent cashback on most purchases and potentially more on Apple products and services.
Thursday January 16, 2025 6:45 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple today adjusted estimated trade-in values for select iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch models in the U.S., according to its website.
Some values increased, while others decreased. The changes were not too significant, with most values rising or dropping by $5 to $50.
We have outlined some examples below:
Device
New Value
Old Value
iPhone 15 Pro Max
Up to $630
U ...
Wednesday January 15, 2025 7:16 am PST by Joe Rossignol
While the so-called "iPhone 17 Air" is not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the "ultra-thin" device.
Overall, the "iPhone 17 Air" is shaping up to be a mixed bag. Due to its thinness, the device is expected to have some limited specifications compared to the iPhone 17 Pro models, including only a single rear camera, only a single speaker, no SIM...
Thursday January 16, 2025 12:39 pm PST by Juli Clover
Apple provided the third beta of iOS 18.3 to developers today, and while the betas have so far been light on new features, the third beta makes some major changes to Notification Summaries and also tweaks a few other features.
Notification Summary Changes
Apple made multiple changes to Notification Summaries in response to complaints about inaccurate summaries of news headlines.
For...
Tuesday January 14, 2025 11:30 am PST by Juli Clover
Apple today released new firmware designed for the 25W MagSafe Charger that is compatible with the iPhone 12 and later and the latest AirPods and Apple Watch models. The updated firmware is version 2A143, up from the 2A138 firmware that the accessory shipped with. In the Settings app, you'll see a different version number than the internal firmware number.
The 2024 MagSafe charger was...
Thursday January 9, 2025 5:45 am PST by Joe Rossignol
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices.
iPhone 17 Pro concept based on rumors
Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of January 2025:
More aluminum: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models ...
Wednesday January 15, 2025 8:49 am PST by Joe Rossignol
There is a good chance that Apple's first product announcement of 2025 will be updated 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Air models with the M4 chip.
Last month, Apple released macOS Sequoia 15.2, and in doing so it accidentally confirmed new MacBook Air models are coming this year (unsurprisingly).
Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said the new MacBook Air models will be announced "earlier" than some...
Thursday January 16, 2025 8:18 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple is in talks with Barclays and Synchrony about becoming its new financial partner for the Apple Card, according to Reuters sources.
The report today added that Apple has also been holding discussions with Chase Bank owner JPMorgan since last year, so there are at least three potential companies in the running to take over the Apple Card from current partner Goldman Sachs.
Goldman...
Monday January 13, 2025 5:33 am PST by Joe Rossignol
iOS 18.3 is currently in beta for developers and public beta testers. So far, the upcoming iPhone software update is very minor in scope.
Below, we outline what is new in iOS 18.3 so far.
The only potential new feature coming to iPhones with iOS 18.3 so far is robot vacuum support in the Home app, but this functionality is not yet live. Apple is laying the groundwork for the feature,...
Wednesday January 15, 2025 6:02 am PST by Joe Rossignol
In September, Apple said that it would be launching Powerbeats Pro 2 in 2025, and now further evidence of the wireless earbuds has surfaced.
Powerbeats Pro 2 images found in iOS 18 code
Apple submitted Powerbeats Pro 2 regulatory documents to the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in mid-December. The documents were made available to the public this week, and they were spotted by 91M...
I have to wonder whether by 'spending goals' they mean 'spend at least £X,000 per month in credit' (preferably on Apple products and services) gotta close those rings o_O
All of this makes sense in the big picture if you recall the past to see where Apple is going in the future. Apple has a history of disrupting boring and/or broken markets that deliver services that people need but that they use only reluctantly because there are no alternatives.
Apple made the computer accessible and fun. It’s easy to forget but computers were for crunching numbers, mostly the realm of nerds who knew how to operate the command line. The Mac changed everything.
Apple disrupted music in the same way. The iPod came at a time when piracy was rampant. It was a terrible experience though. You’d download programs like Napster or Limewire and download music, not knowing if you’d get a bad recording and would end up with a junk pile of disorganized mislabelled music in folders. iPod + iTunes made it easy to pay a fair price for music and get a properly organized collection. That’s why it became so popular that nobody ever really caught up.
Apple is now pursuing two other sectors that absolutely need to be disrupted. Health and financial services. Both are full of bureaucracy and not consumer friendly. The only ones who do well in either are insiders or experts in those fields.
Apple is on one hand opening up health records to make our data our data, easily accessible and making it useful by helping us to be proactive and knowledgeable to improve our own health.
Now, on the other hand, most of us hate having to deal with banks, hidden fees and overly complicated services. Apple Pay has already made it easier and safer on the transaction side. Money management and growth is the next obvious step. I’m very interested to see what Apple does here.
Ah yes, you have to close rings by spending more money. Plus they can give you notifications - "Looks like you haven't spent enough money today, tap here to buy an iPad mini to hit your spending goal!"
Goldman Sach's has terrible optics - at least in the U.S. (they were actively playing both sides of the field knowingly helping to drive the U.S. housing market over the cliff and betting to profit off the crash, 5crew the country, that caused the financial crisis back in 2008 or so). When it comes to taking care of the customer or not doing something illegal - history has shown they actively choose the 3rd option which is do what makes the most money if they think they can get away with it (if that includes actively misguiding customers so be it).
Having Apple team with them is very disappointing - its almost like having Apple partner with the mob on a credit card - especially since Goldman is not a normal bank and doesn't normally do credit cards (that I know of). There must be something special in it for Goldman, for them to be doing this....I'd much rather have Apple stick with Barclay.
