MacRumors

Apple has updated the terms of its AppleCare+ Protection Plan for iPhone, iPad, iPod and Apple Watch to cover batteries that retain less than 80% of their original capacity within the extended warranty period, whereas it previously covered batteries that retained less than 50% of their original capacity. The change applies to AppleCare+ purchased for iPhone, iPad, iPod and all Apple Watch models on April 10, 2015 or later.

Apple will replace defective batteries that do not live up to the 80% specification free of charge as long as the device is within its AppleCare+ coverage period. Otherwise, the iPhone maker charges $79 for out-of-warranty battery service for all Apple Watch batteries that retain less than 80% of their original capacity per Apple's diagnostic testing, plus a $6.95 shipping charge if required.

The new battery terms of AppleCare+ for iPhone, iPad, iPod and Apple Watch:

"If during the Plan Term, you submit a valid claim by notifying Apple that (i) a defect in materials and workmanship has arisen in the Covered Equipment, or (ii) the capacity of the Covered Equipment’s battery to hold an electrical charge is less than eighty percent (80%) of its original specifications, Apple will either (A) repair the defect at no charge, using new parts or parts that are equivalent to new in performance and reliability, or (B) exchange the Covered Equipment, with a replacement product that is new or equivalent to new in performance and reliability."

AppleCare+ for iPhone, iPad and iPod

AppleCare+ for iPhone extends the smartphone's warranty coverage to two years from the original date of purchase and provides up to two incidents of accidental damage coverage for a $79 service charge each time. Without AppleCare+, iPhone customers are covered by a limited one-year warranty and 90 days of complimentary phone support.

AppleCare+ for iPad and iPod have the same terms and conditions, although the accidental damage service charges are $49 and $29 per incident respectively.

AppleCare+ for Apple Watch

Apple has designed the Apple Watch battery to retain up to 80% of its original capacity at 1000 complete charge cycles, which gives the watch's battery a lifespan of about two-and-a-half to three years based on fully charging the wrist-worn device once per day. Apple Watch has all-day battery life of 18 hours on a single charge based on mixed usage, and lasts up to 72 hours in Power Reserve mode.

AppleCare+ extends an Apple Watch's warranty coverage to two years from the date of purchase for the Sport and Watch, and three years for Edition, and provides accidental damage coverage for up to two incidents. Without AppleCare+, purchases of the Apple Watch Sport and the stainless steel Apple Watch are covered by a limited one-year warranty and 90 days of complimentary phone support.

AppleCare+ costs $49, $59 and $1,500 for the Apple Watch Sport, Apple Watch and Apple Watch Edition models respectively, while accidental damage coverage is subject to an additional service charge of $69 for Sport, $79 for Watch and $1,000 for Edition. Apple also sells AppleCare+ combo plans for Apple Watch and iPhone for $149 (Sport and iPhone), $169 (Watch and iPhone) and $1,600 (Edition and iPhone).

As the Apple Watch goes on sale in Italy, Mexico, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland and Taiwan today, Apple has quietly announced that The Netherlands, Sweden and Thailand will begin selling the wrist-worn device on July 17. As with other countries, the Apple Watch should be available through the Apple Store, Apple Online Store and possibly select Apple Authorized Resellers.

Apple has been slowly catching up on Apple Watch backorders dating back to the April pre-order window, with most models now shipping in 1-2 weeks or less on the Apple Online Store and in-store reservations now available. The 42mm Space Black Apple Watch with Link Bracelet remains one of the more difficult models to obtain, with an estimated 2-3 weeks delivery date on the Apple Online Store.

(Thanks to everyone that tipped this!)

With iOS 9, Apple introduced a Low Power mode, designed to extend battery life when an iPhone's power is running low. According to the feature's description, Low Power mode works by reducing an iPhone's performance and cutting down on background activity.

Geekbench 3 has just been updated to work with iOS 9, letting us get a more detailed look at how Low Power mode works and how much it throttles an iPhone's CPU performance when activated.

Without Low Power mode activated, an iPhone 6 Plus scored 1606 on the single-core processor test and 2891 on the multi-core processor test. When Low Power mode was turned on, the same iPhone 6 Plus scored 1019 on the single-core test and 1751 on the multi-core test, suggesting there's a significant performance reduction when Low Power mode is enabled to save as much battery as possible.

Results were similar on an iPhone 5s, with performance reduced by about 40 percent. We saw single/multi-core scores of 1386/2511 without Low Power mode and scores of 816/1405 with Low Power mode turned on.

Low Power mode activates when an iPhone is at 10 or 20 percent battery level, providing a popup that lets users toggle it on quickly. It can also be turned on via the new Battery section of the Settings app. When it's turned on, in addition to lowering CPU speeds, Low Power mode also disables Mail Fetch, Background App Refresh, motion effects, and animated wallpapers.

Indicated by a yellow battery icon, by limiting performance and disabling battery draining features, Low Power mode can extend an iPhone's battery life by up to three hours. Other performance improvements in iOS 9 extend the iPhone's battery by an hour even when Low Power mode is not enabled.

iOS 9 is currently available to developers and will be released to the general public in the fall.

(Thanks, Brandon!)

Apple's newest OS X El Capitan beta, released on Tuesday, contains code that may hint at some upcoming Apple product updates. Shared by Pierre Dandumont (via 9to5Mac), the code references a Retina display with a 4096 x 2304 resolution, potentially referring to a future 21.5-inch Retina iMac with a 4K resolution.

There's also a mention of Intel Iris Pro Graphics 6200, the graphics chipset that accompanies Intel's newest line of Broadwell processors. Intel Iris Pro Graphics 6200 and a Broadwell/Skylake processor could potentially be destined for a 4K 21.5-inch Retina iMac, but the chipset is also suitable for a number of notebooks. There's a further mention of AMD Radeon M380 - M395X graphics, which could be used in high-end iMac models.

Apple has updated its 27-inch iMac with a 5K Retina resolution, but the 21.5-inch iMac has thus far remained untouched as Apple has had to wait on appropriate chips for the machine. Apple's plans for the 21.5-inch iMac remain unclear, as Intel has only released two desktop-class Broadwell chips and does not plan to release additional desktop chips. For that reason, a 21.5-inch Retina iMac update could still be months off should Apple opt to wait for Broadwell's successor, Skylake.

In addition to pointing towards a potential 21.5-inch iMac upgrade, code in the latest El Capitan beta also hints at a revamped Remote with a multi-touch trackpad that supports scrolling, a dedicated Bluetooth chip, and audio support, potentially for Siri commands. Details on the remote, which will likely accompany the upcoming Apple TV, were first shared in May.

Taylor Swift has decided to stream her most recent best-selling album "1989" on Apple Music when the music service launches on June 30 next week, just days after Apple reversed course and agreed to pay artists and rights holders on a per-stream basis during the free three-month trial period -- specifically, Apple will pay 0.2 cents for each song streamed during a customer's trial.

Swift says that she has not reached an exclusive deal with Apple Music like Pharrell Williams has for his upcoming single "Freedom" previewed at WWDC, noting that her decision was purely because it was "the first time it's felt right" for her to stream her album. "1989" and other Swift albums remain unavailable to stream through rival service and market leader Spotify.

Since changing course, Apple Music has signed over 20,000 indie labels through deals with licensing groups Beggars Group and Merlin earlier this week, and reversed a PR disaster in the process. "We think Apple Music provides artists with a business model that’s good for the long term and we look forward to its launch on June 30," said the music groups after reaching an agreement with Apple.

Apple Music was announced earlier this month as an all-in-one streaming music service, live global radio station and social platform for artists to connect with fans. The subscription-based service will be available for $9.99 per month after a three-month free trial for iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Mac and PC. Apple TV and Android versions of the service will be available in the fall.

News has been swirling around the impending launch of Apple's new streaming music service, Apple Music, for a few weeks now. This morning, it was revealed that rapper Eminem will be the first official guest interviewed by DJ Zane Lowe on the Beats 1 live 24/7 radio show, setting up for a launch next Tuesday, June 30. Today, thanks to an in-depth post from The New York Times, new details regarding the show's programming schedule and celebrity partners have been revealed.

Lowe envisions Beats 1 as a sort of social media platform for music, a place where users worldwide can flock to in search of new song discoveries and celebrity interviews and news, akin to platforms like Twitter and Instagram. To tackle such a task, Beats 1 will be broken down into one- and two-hour slots, sometimes hosted and produced by celebrities and musicians themselves.

“Everyone keeps going to their devices because of fear of missing out,” he said. “I’m constantly going on Instagram, Twitter, wondering what’s going on in my friends’ lives. What am I missing? I want that for radio. What’s on right now, right now, that I didn’t know I wanted to listen to?”

To keep Beats 1 sounding fresh around the world, the station will alternate one- and two-hour programming blocks by established broadcasters with those by musicians and celebrities, who will host and plan the shows themselves. Among the names on board: the teen actor Jaden Smith, the alternative singer St. Vincent, Josh Homme of Queens of the Stone Age and the British electronic duo Disclosure.

Small hints were given to the specificities of some of Beats 1's shows, including a Dr. Dre-hosted hour called "The Pharmacy," and a smash-up between eclectic oldies and modern classics hosted by Elton John, suitably titled "Elton John's Rocket Hour." Other celebrity partners with planned shows include Pharrell and Drake, the former with a planned exclusive single for the service and the latter publicly supporting Apple Music on stage at WWDC this year.

The original idea for Beats 1 came from musician -- and key designer of Apple Music -- Trent Reznor, who hoped to expand the window of each individual user's musical tastes, fearing a lack of discovery and creativity in the current landscape of digital downloads. Listening to Lowe's own BBC-hosted radio show led Reznor to eventually helping Apple form and create the idea of Apple Music, and specifically a worldwide "monoculture" of a radio show in Beats 1. “Part of the last three months has been desperately trying to come up with a new word that’s not radio,” Lowe mentioned to The New York Times. “We couldn’t do it.”

Apple Music has faced a few hurdles in the weeks leading up to its big debut, namely in the public criticism of its three-month free trial by musician Taylor Swift, followed immediately by the company's reversal on its no-royalties policy during that period. Those interested should check out The New York Times' full-length feature on Zane Lowe and his addition to Apple Music, which is just five days away from launch.

Apple has removed seemingly all Civil War games from the App Store for displaying the Confederate Flag in "offensive and mean-spirited ways," our sister website TouchArcade has learned. Apple has sent a removal letter to affected developers to inform them that their app does not comply with Section 19.1 of the App Store Review Guidelines.

"19.1 Apps containing references or commentary about a religious, cultural or ethnic group that are defamatory, offensive, mean-spirited or likely to expose the targeted group to harm or violence will be rejected."

MacRumors did a spot check of the App Store and can confirm that Apple has removed dozens of Civil War games depicting the Confederate Flag, which has been at the center of a racial controversy ignited by a Charleston, South Carolina church shooting last week. Most educational or generic Civil War apps remain available on the App Store.

A sampling of the Civil War games removed from the App Store:

Apple will pay record labels 0.2 cents for each song that customers stream for free during the three-month Apple Music free trial, reports The New York Times. The rate is similar to what Spotify pays out for songs accessed through its free streaming tier and does not include a smaller payment made to music publishers for songwriting rights.

Apple is still working to complete deals with publishers, but a second report from Billboard suggests the company may pay out an additional 0.047 cents per stream for song rights, for a total payment of approximately 0.247 cents for each song an Apple Music user listens to.

Though Apple did not initially plan to pay labels and publishers during the three month free trial it's providing to customers, it reversed course after both a strongly worded letter from Taylor Swift and negotiation difficulties with independent labels who balked at the terms.

The money that Apple is paying per stream during the trial period is significantly less than what rights holders will receive after Apple Music has paying customers, but it appears to have satisfied many indie labels. As of this morning, Apple signed deals with both Beggars Group and Merlin Network, companies that represent more than 20,000 indie labels and distributors.

Apple Music will officially launch next Tuesday in over 100 countries. All customers will receive a free three month trial, after which time a subscription will be required to access the service. Subscription prices vary by country, but in the U.S., an Apple Music subscription costs $9.99 per month for an individual or $14.99 per month for a family of up to 6 users.

A growing number of T-Mobile iPhone users are complaining about seeing frequent restarts and "blue screens of death" on their devices, a problem that seems to have begun very recently. MacRumors has received several complaints from readers, and there are also numerous reports of problems on Twitter, Facebook, and reddit.

Affected users are experiencing a split second blue screen that's followed by their devices restarting, and it appears most people who are seeing issues are T-Mobile customers that began having problems last night or this morning.

Known devices with problems include the iPhone 6 Plus, the iPhone 6, and the iPhone 5s, with restarts happening at 10 to 30 minute intervals. Multiple versions of iOS 8 appear to be affected, including iOS 8.1 and iOS 8.3.

Hey guys. So this morning my iPhone 6 (4 months old) started just randomly restarting itself every 20-30 minutes or so. I wasn't even using it most of the time, it was in my pocket at work (could tell because of lock screen that indicated I needed to enter my pin after a restart as opposed to finger ID). At one point I was texting my SO about it, the screen turned blue for maybe 2 seconds and it restarted.

It is not clear if T-Mobile recently pushed a carrier update that's causing the problem, but a reddit user who spoke with T-Mobile's support staff said that he got the impression that T-Mobile believes a memory problem might be the cause of the restarts. "The sense I got from the technician is that a) they suspect memory problems, and b) they're getting a lot of calls about it," he wrote.

Some users have had success putting a stop to the restarts with a hard reset, and that's the solution that T-Mobile is recommending to customers who call in. If that doesn't work, T-Mobile is instructing customers to clear out their old text messages and do a factory restore via iTunes.

Update: Many users are reporting that disabling Wi-Fi Calling fixes the issue.

When the App Store launched in 2008, it provided an exciting new way for developers to distribute third-party apps and games on the iPhone. With the release of iPhone OS 2.0, developers were no longer constrained to web apps and could take advantage of the possibilities afforded through fully native apps. At the time, it was an exciting and opportunistic new chapter for iPhone users, developers and mobile gaming websites.

As the App Store continues to grow in size, however, the landscape has begun to change. While the App Store was once a relatively even playing field, with a balanced mix of indie developers, mid-size studios and large publishers, the storefront now suffers from increasing disparity, a problem that is suffocating for many developers, enthusiast media publications and the broader ecosystem.

Eli Hodapp, Editor-in-Chief at our sister website TouchArcade:

"iOS gaming has since been pushed to two extremes: The giant, multi-million dollar studios of the world, and supremely tiny indie developers hoping to catch lightning in a bottle with a surprise viral hit they built in their spare time. The mobile gaming megacorps are operating on a financial level that's hard to even fully comprehend, quite literally advertising during the Super Bowl, while the one-man indie studios typically can't even afford an artist to help them with a better app icon."

The main issue is not that multi-million-dollar game studios are spending considerably more money than independent developers, but rather the underlying App Store methodology that creates the artificial race to the top in the first place: chart positioning. Ranking near the top of the charts is still almost a must in order to be discovered within a sea of nearly 1.5 million apps and counting…

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Apple is planning to introduce some important new policy changes that will extend its user privacy protections, reports The Information (via Business Insider). With iOS 9, Apple will no longer allow advertisers to access app download data for ad targeting purposes, meaning companies will not be able to see all of the apps that are downloaded on a user's device.

Currently, companies like Twitter and Facebook are able to see which apps you have downloaded on your iPhone or iPad, sometimes using that information to deliver targeted ads. In The Information's example, Facebook and Twitter might use your app data to see that you have a lot of games downloaded, offering up an ad for a game you don't yet have installed.

Advertisers are misusing a communication API in iOS called "canopenURL" to get the app download data, something that will no longer be possible when iOS 9 is released in the fall.

When introducing iOS 9, Apple was careful to point out the lengths it went to in order to protect user privacy in new iOS 9 features. On stage, Craig Federighi repeated a statement that's often come from Apple executives - we don't want to know your personal information. New Siri and Search features are entirely anonymous, not associated with an Apple ID, use a randomized identifier, are not linked to other Apple services, and are not shared with third parties.

Apple also introduced a new VPN extension API and added Content Blockers for Safari Extensions on iOS, opening up a way for extensions to block cookies, images, ads, pop-ups, and more.

iOS 9 and the new privacy features will be available to the public in the fall.