MacRumors

Google last week introduced the Pixel 9 smartphone lineup, with a selection of new devices that are focused on AI. All of the Pixel 9 phones support Gemini AI, and Google has also added AI-based image generation and editing tools. Reviewers have been testing the new smartphone features, and the AI image generation is probably going to turn into a PR nightmare for Google based on what's come out so far.

Google introduced an AI image generation app for the Pixel phones, called Pixel Studio. It's designed to create stickers and images using text-based prompts, and it looks and sounds a lot like Apple's planned Image Playground. So far, reviewers have been able to create all manner of questionable images with Pixel Studio, ranging from a Nazi version of Spongebob to Elmo with an AK47.

Digital Trends had no trouble getting Pixel Studio to make images of beloved cartoon characters doing questionable activities. Guns, drugs, and alcohol were not off-limits, nor were offensive situations like school shootings. Pixel Studio did not generate these kinds of images unless asked, but that's most likely what people will immediately do with the feature rather than generating images of cute cats and bunnies.

Google said that there were "safety checks" in place to keep Pixel Studio from being "used nefariously," and there are some. Pixel Studio will not create images of humans, and Google is tweaking the AI in response to reviews. After speaking with Google, Digital Trends was no longer able to get Pixel Studio to create cartoon characters using cocaine or dressed as German soldiers.

Even more concerning than Pixel Studio is Google's "Reimagine" tool, which can add objects to photos that you've already taken. The Verge used it to add corpses, bombs, drugs, and disasters to images, and objects included in photos look so realistic that it's difficult to tell when an image has been edited. Google is able to do a pretty good job matching lighting and perspective to the original photo, and there are no watermarks or flags on social media. Google does add a metadata tag, but that's easy enough to eliminate with a screenshot.

You can, of course, use Reimagine for adding sunsets and rainbows to your image, just like you can use Pixel Studio for creating fun pictures, and both AI features work great, so these tools aren't all bad. Android Authority shared a post with Oreo pizza, a giraffe surfing, and kittens playing basketball, for example. As The Verge points out, you could always add a body to an image or create a picture of Elmo with a gun, but it would take some Photoshop skill and time to do so. With the Pixel phones, it takes just a thought and a few seconds to create that kind of image, and it's right there on the smartphone for anyone to use.

In statements to The Verge and Digital Trends, Google said that it designed its generative AI tools to "respect the intent of user prompts" which can lead to the creation of content "that may offend" when the user asks for it. But Google claims that there are "Terms of Service" on what content is not allowed, and that safeguards will be continually refined.

Apple hasn't yet introduced its image generation tools, ‌Image Playground‌ or Genmoji, and the media surrounding the Pixel 9 launch gives us some insight into what the response might be like if Apple doesn't get it just right. With AI, it's likely that people are going to be able to find workarounds even if Apple puts numerous safeguards in place. Apple so far has shied away from photorealistic AI images, but Google is going all in, and it's going to be much harder to trust photos on social media and the internet going forward.

App Store vice president Matt Fischer is set to leave the company as Apple prepares for an ‌App Store‌ reorganization to deal with regulatory changes, reports Bloomberg.

Apple plans to split its ‌App Store‌ group into two teams, one that handles the ‌App Store‌ and a second team that oversees alternative app distribution. As of earlier this year, Apple has supported iOS app downloads from alternative app stores and from websites in the European Union, a change that the company had to make to comply with the Digital Markets Act.

To handle ongoing compliance with EU regulations for app distribution and alternative payment methods, ‌App Store‌ chief Phil Schiller is changing the ‌App Store‌'s hierarchy.

Fischer joined Apple in 2003 to oversee iTunes marketing, but he has served as the vice president of the ‌App Store‌ since 2010. In an email to Apple employees today, Fischer said that he had been thinking about leaving Apple for some time, and the reorganization provided the right opportunity.

With Fischer leaving, ‌App Store‌ senior director Carson Oliver will oversee the ‌App Store‌, and Ann Thai, a director who oversees ‌App Store‌ features, will head up the team that handles alternative app distribution.

There is a new character bug that can result in a respring on the iPhone or iPad, reports TechCrunch. Typing "":: in the search field after swiping over to the App Library will cause the Springboard to reset, dropping you back at the ‌iPhone‌'s Lock Screen. A respring is not a full reset, and it only takes a few seconds for the ‌iPhone‌ to be functional again.

Typing the same characters into the Settings app search interface will cause the Settings app to crash, but putting it in a Spotlight search doesn't seem to impact anything. The respring seemed to only happen on devices running iOS 17 when we tested, but putting those characters into a search interface on a device running iOS 18 does result in some odd behavior, such as the characters disappearing and the Settings app crashing.

You can actually type in just "": and any other character to cause the respring to happen, so it's something related to the first three symbols in a four character sequence.

Character bugs have in the past spread though Messages and have allowed users to crash the iPhones of others, but this is a much more insignificant issue because the ‌iPhone‌ owner needs to manually type (or paste) the characters into a search interface. There does not appear to be a way to affect an ‌iPhone‌ through Messages or another texting platform.

It's likely Apple will address the issue with an iOS update in the near future.

It's been almost a year since the iPhone 15 models were released, so MacRumors videographer Dan Barbera decided to do a one-year check-in review on the ‌iPhone‌ 15 Pro Max to see how it's performed over the last 12 months.

Unsurprisingly, Dan has seen some ‌iPhone‌ battery degradation, and it's dropped to 89 percent. That's with regular CarPlay usage, running betas, and standard day-to-day use. Even at 89 percent, the battery can still last for a full day without needing a charge.

As for the titanium chassis, it's held up well. There are a few nicks due to minor drops, but the display has seen a lot more damage with several scratches, some of which are deep.

The transition to USB-C has been a little tough just because there are still people with Lightning iPhones. If someone wants to borrow your charger, you may not have the right cable if you've switched to USB-C and they're still on Lightning.

Dan uses the Action Button for opening up the Camera app, but there's so much more that the Action Button can do in iOS 18, and it's going to get a lot more useful in the future. You can set Control Center controls to the Action Button, and developers can make new controls for apps that you can use.

There's not too much to say about the triple-lens camera setup, which is great. The 5x zoom lens is excellent for taking portrait pictures of people, and it's been a solid improvement. Otherwise, the cameras are fantastic with a lot of focal length versatility thanks to the new zoom option.

Overall, the ‌iPhone‌ 15 Pro Max has held up well, and if you have one (or a Pro), there's no real need to upgrade to the iPhone 16 models. The A17 Pro in the ‌iPhone‌ 15 Pro is incredibly fast and there's no way most people are even reaching the limits of its capabilities at this time, and Apple isn't adding too much more than an extra Capture Button and a slightly larger display in 2024. You can already use Apple Intelligence if you have an ‌iPhone‌ 15 Pro model, so there's not a lot to get out of a year-over-year upgrade.

If you have an older ‌iPhone‌, it's worth looking at the ‌iPhone 16‌ models, or even an ‌iPhone‌ 15 Pro when prices drop and they're discontinued. All of the ‌iPhone 16‌ models will have a chip compatible with ‌Apple Intelligence‌, a Capture Button, and an Action Button, so there's a lot to gain coming from an ‌iPhone‌ 14 or earlier.

How has your ‌iPhone‌ 15 held up if you have one? Let us know in the comments below.

Apple today released the fourth beta of watchOS 11 to public beta testers, allowing non-developers to give the new features a try ahead of when the software launches this fall. The fifth beta comes a week after the fourth beta.

watchOS 11 can be downloaded after signing up on Apple's beta software website and upgrading your iPhone to the public beta version of iOS 18. You'll need to open up the Watch app on ‌iPhone‌, go to General, select Software Update, and choose the watchOS 11 Public Beta option under Beta Updates.

With watchOS 11, Apple added a new Vitals app that can be used to give you a daily overview of your health metrics, letting you know if anything is out of the ordinary. It compares information collected at night like heart rate, sleep, respiratory rate, and oxygen level to your levels over the previous weeks.

Smart Stack has new widgets like Translate and Shazam, plus it's smarter because it is able to suggest widgets based on time, date, location, and daily routine. Interactive widgets let you access app features from the Smart Stack, and it also supports Live Activities.

Training Load is a new way of measuring how the intensity and duration of workouts impact the body over time, with Apple providing an effort level for cardio-based workouts to help you know when to rest and when to push harder.

You can now customize your Activity Ring requirements for different days of the week, and Apple added support for rest days. Taking a break from activity will no longer ruin a streak because you can pause for a day, a week, a month, or more.

Other new features include more workout types, Check In for Messages, a revamped Photos watch face, improvements to Double Tap, and more, with additional information available in our watchOS 11 roundup.

Nomad today introduced its latest multi-device charger, debuting a new version of the Stand One Max with Qi2 support. Rather than continuing to use MagSafe, Nomad is transitioning to Qi2, the latest Qi charging standard that is able to charge iPhones at ‌MagSafe‌ speeds.

The Stand One Max can charge an iPhone at up to 15W, and we were able to test the charger out ahead of launch. An ‌iPhone‌ 15 Pro Max charged from 0 to 39 percent in an hour, which is essentially identical to ‌MagSafe‌ charging speeds.

The Stand One Max features an upright charging base for the ‌iPhone‌ with a small charging arm for the Apple Watch and a Qi-based platform for charging the AirPods. It's a compact design that takes up little room on a desk, and as with all Nomad products, it is well-made. Nomad had a prior version of the Stand One Max, but the new version moves the Apple Watch charger lower to allow for compatibility with the ‌iPhone‌'s StandBy mode.

The Stand One Max is crafted from solid metal and it has a shiny glass cover panel. It can be purchased in silver or carbide colors, and the close to 2 pound weight adds stability, as does the rubber bottom. An ‌iPhone‌ can be positioned on the magnetic base in portrait or landscape mode, so StandBy is supported. The angle of the charging base cannot be adjusted, but it is tilted back slightly for a comfortable viewing position on a desktop or nightstand.

In addition to charging a MagSafe-compatible ‌iPhone‌ at up to 15W, the Stand One Max has an Apple Watch fast charger so that it can charge the Series 7 or later at the fastest possible speed. The position of the Apple Watch charger allows for Night Stand mode to be used, which also wasn't possible with the prior iteration. The AirPods charger charges at 5W, and there is a small indentation to guide positioning.

The relocated position of the Apple Watch charger is convenient because it no longer prevents the ‌iPhone‌ from charging in landscape mode, and there is no loss of functionality. The AirPods charger is pushed back behind the Apple Watch charger, and the overall footprint is about the same. It is a better design than the prior Stand One Max, and it is less expensive with the transition to Qi2.

The new Stand One Max is priced at $150, which is $30 lower than the price of the prior ‌MagSafe‌ version. You will need to supply your own 30W power adapter, but a USB-C power cable is included. The Stand One Max can be purchased from the Nomad website as of today.

Nomad is also offering a flash sale on its Base One Max chargers this week, discounting them by 30 percent with the promo code BM130. The Base One Max has a flat charging base so it can charge non-MagSafe smartphones.

Today we're tracking a big collection of discounts on Bluetooth trackers and portable power stations, including Apple's own AirTag, Anker's more affordable brand of Eufy SmartTrack accessories, and power stations from Jackery. All of these deals can be found on Amazon.

AirTag

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 AirTag, you can get the 1 Pack for $24.99 and the 4 Pack of trackers for $79.99 on Amazon, down from $99.00. These are both solid second-best prices on the AirTag.

Eufy

Anyone who needs a Bluetooth tracker but wants to save a bit of money should look at Anker's Eufy brand of trackers, which are on sale on Amazon right now and compatible with Find My on Apple devices. These start at just $15.99 for one tracker and raise to $48.99 for a 4 Pack.

If you want a tracker that you can fit in a wallet, Eufy's SmartTrack Card is a great solution at $19.99, down from $29.99. Most of Eufy's trackers can be delivered between August 22 and August 27, and none of these deals require a coupon code in order to see the final sale prices.

Jackery

Finally, Jackery has a large collection of discounts on its best portable power stations on Amazon this week, starting at $199.99 for the Explorer 100 Plus Power Station, down from $229.00. Most of these deals require you to clip an on-page coupon in order to see the final deal price at checkout.

• Explorer 100 Plus Power Station with Solar Panel - $199.99 with on-page coupon, down from $229.00
• Solar Generator 240 with Mini Solar Panel - $269.00 with on-page coupon, down from $349.00
• Explorer 1000 Power Station (version 2) - $629.00 with on-page coupon, down from $799.00
• Explorer 2000 Pro Power Station - $1,499.00 with on-page coupon, down from $1,899.00
• Explorer 3000 Pro Power Station - $2,499.00, down from $2,799.00

Keep up with all of this week's best discounts on Apple products and related accessories in our dedicated Apple Deals roundup.

Paid iCloud storage overwhelmingly remains the most popular Apple service in the United States, according to a new report from Consumer Intelligence Research Partners (CIRP).

Nearly two-thirds of Apple customers in the United States opt for paid ‌iCloud‌ storage, surpassing other services like Apple Music, Apple TV+, and AppleCare in terms of user adoption. In comparison, ‌Apple Music‌ and ‌Apple TV‌+ have achieved moderate penetration rates among Apple customers, with 42% and 32% adoption, respectively. ‌AppleCare‌, the company's extended warranty service, sees even lower adoption, with only 17% of iPhone buyers opting for the additional coverage.

These other services, while significant contributors to Apple's Services revenue, operate in highly competitive markets, unlike the cloud storage market where no service is able to offer such a deeply integrated experience with Apple devices as ‌iCloud‌. Many users opt for just one music service and multiple video subscriptions, which limits the growth potential for Apple's subscription offerings. As Apple's hardware sales growth slows, the company has increasingly turned to its services segment as a source of revenue.

Paid ‌iCloud‌ subscriptions start at $0.99 per month for 50GB of storage, $2.99 per month for 200GB, and $9.99 per month for 2TB. These standalone ‌iCloud‌ storage plans can also be bundled with other Apple services through Apple One, which offers three tiers: the Individual plan at $16.95 per month includes 50GB of ‌iCloud‌ storage, ‌Apple Music‌, ‌Apple TV‌+, and Apple Arcade; the Family plan at $22.95 per month includes 200GB of ‌iCloud‌ storage and extends those services to up to six family members; and the Premier plan at $32.95 per month includes 2TB of ‌iCloud‌ storage and adds Apple News+ and Apple Fitness+.

The UK's Competition and Market Authority (CMA) today announced it had closed an investigation into Apple's App Store policies, as it expects to consider the concerns under a new digital markets competition regime which is expected to come into force later this year.

Originally initiated in March 2021, the CMA's investigation set out to determine whether or not Apple has a dominant position in connection with the distribution of apps on Apple devices in the UK – and, if so, whether Apple imposes unfair or anti-competitive terms on developers using the ‌‌App Store‌‌, such as by charging a 30% commission on transactions.

The watchdog opened a similar probe into Google, which it believed breached UK competition law by making app developers use its own billing system for in-app purchases. The CMA now says it has closed the Competition Act cases into Google's Play Store and Apple's ‌App Store‌ on the grounds of administrative priorities and has not taken any decisions as to whether the Competition Act 1998 has been infringed.

Despite both investigations being closed, the competition regulator says it may use new powers given to it via the UK's new Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act to address its concerns "more holistically" with a view to boosting competition in the app market. From the CMA's press release:

In light of recent developments, in particular the passing in May of the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act (DMCCA), the CMA has assessed its existing Competition Act investigation into Google's Play Store and its parallel case into Apple's App Store rules against its administrative priorities and decided to close these cases at this point. Should Apple or Google each or both be designated as having 'strategic market status' in connection with any digital activities in the mobile sector, the CMA will be able to use its new powers to consider the range of issues raised by parties more holistically than it otherwise could under these specific Competition Act investigations. This will also enable the CMA to consider what, if any, interventions may be needed following any designation.

Published in January 2024, the new digital markets competition regime paper gives the CMA the ability to impose requirements on the conduct of firms in digital markets where those firms have been designated as having Strategic Market Status (SMS) – and to impose significant fines against firms if those requirements are breached.

In that paper, the CMA also confirmed it expects to launch around three to four SMS investigations within the first year of the new digital markets competition regime coming into force, which is expected later this year.

Sonos won't be able to re-release its old app to appease customers that have been dissatisfied with the new version of the app, Sonos CEO Patrick Spence today said on Reddit (via The Verge).

Spence said that he was "hopeful" the old app would be able to be re-released up until "very recently" as an alternative for people having issues, but Sonos found that doing so would ultimately make the issues worse because of backend updates to cloud servers and the software that runs on speakers.

Everything has been on the table in terms of finding the fastest path to fixing your systems. In fact, until very recently I'd been hopeful that we could re-release the old app (S2) as an alternative for those of you that are having issues that we've not yet resolved.

The trick of course is that Sonos is not just the mobile app, but software that runs on your speakers and in the cloud too. In the months since the new mobile app launched we've been updating the software that runs on our speakers and in the cloud to the point where today S2 is less reliable & less stable then what you remember. After doing extensive testing we've reluctantly concluded that re-releasing S2 would make the problems worse, not better. I'm sure this is disappointing. It was disappointing to me.

Earlier this month, The Verge reported that Sonos was considering bringing back the original version of its app, and Sonos was reportedly hopeful that allowing customers to revert to the old app would provide an interim solution as the company works to improve the new app. It sounds like that plan has been scrapped, which is unfortunate for customers who are having problems with the redesign.

Sonos released a redesigned version of its app back in May, and it has turned out to be a disaster for the company. Sonos customers quickly found that the new app lacked several key features and was riddled with bugs, and there have been ongoing complaints for months.

Sonos issued an apology in July and shared an outline of future update plans that will see missing features returned in September and October. In August, Sonos said that it would delay two upcoming product launches planned for 2024 to focus on improving the app.

In today's Reddit post, Spence said that the "original architect of the Sonos platform" has been put back in charge, and that the company has also "pulled together the very best and most experienced engineers" that it has to work on the app until it is fixed.

Every year, the iPhone Photography Awards (IPPA) selects the best photographs captured with an ‌iPhone‌, and the 2024 award winners were announced today. Many of this year's winning images were taken with Apple's most recent ‌iPhone‌ 15 models.

The grand prize image features a boy at an aquarium, with the photo shot in black and white using an ‌iPhone‌ 15 Pro Max.

The first place image includes a group of swimmers at a lifeguard camp from an ‌iPhone‌ 11 Pro Pro Max, while the second place image features children in Cambodia shot on an ‌iPhone‌ 15 Pro.

There are also winners across a number of categories, including abstract, animals, architecture, children, cityscape, landscape, lifestyle, nature, people, portrait, series, still life, travel, and other. All of the winning images can be viewed on the IPPA website.

IPPA has been running the ‌iPhone‌ Photography Awards since 2007, and 2024 marks the 17th annual competition. The contests are open to ‌iPhone‌ and iPad users worldwide, and images can be edited with iOS apps. It is worth noting that it costs money to send in a photo, but Apple devices are provided as prizes.

Apple today released new firmware for the Beats Studio Pro over-ear headphones. The Beats Studio Pro can be updated to firmware version 2C301, up from the prior 2B68 firmware that was installed on the headphones at launch.

Today's firmware update introduces support for audio sharing, a feature that was not available at launch. Audio sharing is designed to allow two people to listen to music from an iPhone or iPad.

Apple introduced the Beats Studio Pro headphones just over a year ago, marking an update to the original Studio headphones that made the Beats brand popular. The $350 Beats Studio Pro headphones feature Active Noise Cancellation support, Personalized Spatial Audio with dynamic head tracking, multiple audio profiles, and improved audio quality with better bass performance compared to prior models.

Apple did not include an Apple audio chip in the Beats Studio Pro, instead opting for a custom Beats chip that provides better feature parity between iOS and Android devices. The Beats chip supports one-touch pairing and setup, Find My integration, and Siri support, but automatic switching between devices is not available.

As with all of Apple's headphone and earbud products, firmware updates for the Beats Studio Pro are delivered over-the-air. Firmware will be installed while the Beats headphones are charging and are in Bluetooth range of an ‌iPhone‌, ‌iPad‌, or Mac that's connected to Wi-Fi.

On Android devices, users will need to download the Beats app for Android and connect the Android device to a power outlet to initiate a firmware update. There is no word on what's new in the firmware.

Earlier this month, data broker National Public Data (NPD) announced that there had been a major data breach that saw hackers obtain millions of names, email addresses, phone numbers, social security numbers, and mailing addresses stored in its database. NPD is a company that does employee background checks, aggregating public data from numerous sources and selling it.

NPD's security was clearly lacking to allow for the breach in the first place, but a new report from KrebsOnSecurity suggests that an NPD sister site made an even more grievous error, hosting an easily accessible plaintext archive with usernames and passwords.

RecordsCheck.net, a site affiliated with NPD that hosts much of the same information, had a "members.zip" file that was downloadable until yesterday. It had source code and plain text usernames and passwords for RecordsCheck users, including logins belonging to NPD's founder, Salvatore Verini. The logins that were made available through RecordsCheck allowed access to the same data that was available via NPD.

After being alerted by KrebsOnSecurity, RecordsCheck removed the file, and NPD is shutting down the site, according to Verini. He told the KrebsOnSecurity that the file had an "old version of the site with non-working code and passwords."

There are websites that are available to see if your information was leaked in the NPD breach, and it is advisable to lock down your credit.

The NPD leak included decades of information, including data from people who are now deceased. 137 million email addresses were leaked, as were 272 million social security numbers. A lawsuit has since been filed against NPD.

Apple in August increased the period in which customers can extend their AppleCare+ coverage after it expires. Apple used to allow coverage to be extended for 30 days after the end of the original ‌AppleCare‌+ plan, but that has now changed to 45 days.

The AppleCare+ extension support document says that customers have 45 days to sign up for a new ‌AppleCare‌+ plan after existing coverage expires, with options for extending plans by 24 months, 36 months, monthly, or on an annual basis until canceled.

‌AppleCare‌+ plans can be extended for 45 days after expiration in Australia, Austria Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States. In China, there is still a 30-day limit.

An upfront ‌AppleCare‌+ plan for iPhone, iPad, or Apple Watch is eligible for updated coverage that renews monthly or annually, while upfront ‌AppleCare‌+ plans for Mac can be enrolled in a new coverage plan that renews on an annual basis.

Customers who want to renew their expired ‌AppleCare‌+ plans can go to Apple's support website to see if their devices are eligible. Apple does not guarantee that ‌AppleCare‌+ can be renewed, and it does not alert customers when ‌AppleCare‌+ is expiring unless required by law.

‌AppleCare‌+ expiration dates can be checked in the Settings app on ‌iPhone‌ or ‌iPad‌, in the System Settings app on a Mac, or on Apple's website.

Chinese company OnePlus is debuting new earbuds today, with a feature set that pits them against the AirPods Pro. The OnePlus Buds Pro 3 look and sound a lot like Apple's AirPods, and while they lack some of the Apple-esque magic integration, they're more affordable at $179.

Design wise, the OnePlus earbuds resemble the AirPods Pro, featuring an in-ear silicone design and a stem. The stem is silver, though, and unlike Samsung's recent Galaxy Buds3 Pro, you won't mistake these for the AirPods Pro due to the unique case design of the OnePlus Buds Pro 3. Fit is close to the AirPods Pro because of the silicone tips, and they're comfortable to wear. Squeeze gestures can be used on the stem to play/pause music, skip tracks, replay a track, and adjust volume.

The case has an oval shape that's wider and more rounded than the AirPods Pro case, plus it's covered in a faux leather material that gives it a more distinct look.

Apple may have added a USB-C case to the AirPods Pro 2 in 2023, but the initial launch was in 2022, so it's no surprise that other companies are starting to surpass the AirPods Pro in terms of sound quality. The OnePlus Buds Pro 3 have better out-of-the-box sound than the AirPods Pro, even though there's no option for adjusting EQ.

There's a solid balance between bass and higher frequencies with full sound and good separation of tracks. Sound is crisp, and the high-end notes are clear. there are two DACs per earbud, one that's focused on the tweeter and the other on the woofer, which is what gives that balanced sound.

The Active Noise Cancellation works well, and it's on par with ANC from other high-end earbuds. The ANC is adaptive and can adjust based on your surroundings, so ambient sounds can come through when you need them to. The ANC isn't as standout as the sound quality, but it's more than adequate.

Battery lasts for up to 43 hours, which is 13 hours longer than the AirPods Pro, and there is ear detection when using the earbuds with an iPhone. As for the microphones, call quality is solid.

OnePlus sells Android-based devices, so these earbuds are designed for Android smartphones rather than the ‌iPhone‌. You're not going to get the useful AirPods features like quick connect and automatic device swapping, and that's a major downside. You also won't get spatial audio unless these are paired with a Google Pixel phone that supports the feature.

For Apple device users, the OnePlus Buds Pro 3 are just standard Bluetooth earbuds, but if that's all you need, you might like what OnePlus has to offer.

Apple today seeded the seventh beta of an upcoming macOS 15 Sequoia update to developers for testing purposes, with the software coming a week after the release of the sixth beta.

Registered developers can opt-in to the macOS Sequoia beta through the Software Update section of the System Settings app. An Apple ID associated with an Apple Developer account is required to get the beta.

macOS Sequoia includes iPhone Mirroring, which allows you to control your locked ‌iPhone‌ from your Mac. You can open and use ‌iPhone‌ apps, interact with notifications, and drag and drop files between your ‌iPhone‌ and Mac and vice versa.

There are new options for window tiling, and dragging a window to the edge of the display will suggest a tiled location to make it easier to use multiple apps at once. Apple is adding a Passwords app for managing passwords, Safari can summarize websites, surface key information, and Notes has support for live audio transcription and math equations.

All of the Apple Intelligence features coming to iOS 18 will also be available in macOS Sequoia, but Apple does not plan to add these until later in the beta testing process. ‌Apple Intelligence‌ includes Writing Tools for editing, proofreading, and summarizing text in apps, and an Image Playground allows for AI images to be created from prompts.

Custom emoji or "Genmoji" can be created for any situation and used just like emoji, and Siri is getting much smarter. ‌Siri‌ will be able to do more in apps and will better understand requests, especially those made in regard to on-screen content.

Apple today seeded the seventh betas of upcoming iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 updates to developers for testing purposes, with the software coming a week after the release of the sixth betas.

Registered developers are able to opt into the betas by opening up the Settings app, going to the Software Update section, tapping on the "Beta Updates" option, and toggling on the ‌iOS 18/iPadOS 18‌ Developer Beta setting. Note that an Apple ID associated with a developer account is required to download and install the beta. The iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 beta track is now separate from the iOS 18.1 and iPadOS 18.1 beta track, with the .1 betas adding support for Apple Intelligence on devices that are able to run the features.

iOS 18 introduces ‌Apple Intelligence‌, a set of AI features that are built deeply into the operating system. ‌Apple Intelligence‌ won't be coming until later in the beta testing process, but it includes features for refining and editing writing, generating images and emoji, and most notably, improving Siri and search. ‌Siri‌ is gaining a better understanding of natural language, improved contextual awareness, and the personal assistant will integrate with ChatGPT to answer more complex queries.

‌Apple Intelligence‌ features are limited to the iPhone 15 Pro models and iPads with an M-series chip, but there are a number of other features that are coming. Apple is allowing users to rearrange Home screen apps to have open spaces, plus there's a dark mode for app icons and tinting options.

The Control Center is customizable and third-party developers can add controls for their apps, with the Lock Screen Flashlight and Camera icons able to be replaced or removed. Messages is gaining Rich Communication Services support to improve conversations with Android users, the option to schedule texts to be sent later, new text effects, messages over satellite when there's no cellular, and the option to use any emoji for Tapback responses.

There's a dedicated Passwords app for logins, passkeys, Wi-Fi passwords, and verification codes, and there's now an option to lock and hide apps, which means they can't be opened without secondary Face ID or Touch ID authentication even when your phone is unlocked.

Safari has a highlights feature that summarizes articles and surfaces key information on websites, the Photos app interface has been overhauled, and there's a new Tap to Cash feature for privately and securely transferring money using Apple Cash. Other features include equation solving and voice memo transcription in Notes, a game mode for improving game performance, and an option to respond to ‌Siri‌ on AirPods with head gestures.

Apple will release iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 to the public this fall.

Apple today released the seventh beta of an upcoming visionOS 2 update to developers, with the beta coming a week after the sixth beta.

Registered developers are able to opt into the betas by opening up the Settings app on their device, going to the Software Update Section, tapping on the "Beta Updates" option, and toggling on the Developer Beta. Note that an Apple ID associated with a developer account is required to download and install the beta.

‌visionOS 2‌ is able to take the depth information from 2D photos and turn them into 3D photos using advanced machine learning. Apple says that the feature is meant to add depth to photos to make memories more immersive.

There are new hand gestures for activating the Home View and Control Center, and the Home View is also now customizable with apps able to be rearranged. Travel Mode now includes support for trains, and Guest User profiles are now saved for 30 days so guests don't have to do the setup process every time they try out the headset.

Later in the year, Mac Virtual Display will support higher resolution and larger sized virtual displays, which Apple says will be equivalent to two 4K monitors side by side. With an AirPlay update, the Vision Pro can serve as an ‌AirPlay‌ receiver, so content from the iPhone, iPad, or Mac can be shared to the headset.

The Mindfulness app can track and respond to breathing patterns using the camera for an improved meditation experience, and the Vision Pro supports Bluetooth mice with ‌visionOS 2‌.