MacRumors

WWDC is a little over a month away, and rumors about iOS 17 are continuing to come into focus with new reports surfacing this week about enhancements to the Lock Screen, Apple Music, and App Library, as well as new health tools and perhaps a brand-new journaling app.

Apple also appears to be gearing up to release some new Macs, while the upcoming Beats Studio Buds+ earphones saw their full details prematurely posted to Amazon, so read on for all the details on these stories and more!

iOS 17 to Include Mood Tracker, Health App Coming to iPad

iOS 17 will include new tools for tracking emotion and managing vision conditions in the Health app, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. He also expects the Health app to expand to the iPad this year.

In addition, Gurman said Apple is working on an artificial intelligence-powered health coaching service that it plans to launch next year. He said the feature is designed to encourage exercise, healthy eating, and quality sleep.

Three Unreleased Mac Models Appear on Apple's Servers

Three new Mac model numbers were recently added to a Find My configuration file on Apple's backend, suggesting that new Macs could be on the horizon.

Apple is widely expected to release a larger 15-inch MacBook Air with the M2 chip in the near future, while other models like the 24-inch iMac and the Mac Pro are due for updates over the coming months, but it's unclear which new Macs are listed in the file.

iOS 17 Rumored to Add New Lock Screen, Apple Music, and App Library Features

iOS 17 will include new features and changes across the Lock Screen, Apple Music, App Library, and Control Center, according to a Weibo post this week from the same account that revealed Apple would launch the iPhone 14 in Yellow earlier this year.

Apple will announce iOS 17 during the WWDC keynote on June 5. Overall, rumors have suggested the update will be focused on performance and stability improvements.

Beats Studio Buds+ Launching in May With Transparent Design Option and More

Apple's rumored Beats Studio Buds+ were briefly listed on Amazon this week, providing a closer look at new features and changes before they are officially announced. The earbuds were listed with a May 18 release date and a $169.95 price in the United States.

The listing revealed that the Studio Buds+ will be available in a new transparent design option, and feature improved noise cancellation, longer battery life, and more.

Apple Reportedly Plans to Release iPhone Journaling App

The Wall Street Journal this week reported that Apple plans to release a journaling app for the iPhone that would compete with the likes of Day One.

If released, the app would "analyze the users' behavior to determine what a typical day is like, including how much time is spent at home compared with elsewhere, and whether a certain day included something outside the norm," according to the report.

MacRumors Newsletter

Each week, we publish an email newsletter like this highlighting the top Apple stories, making it a great way to get a bite-sized recap of the week hitting all of the major topics we've covered and tying together related stories for a big-picture view.

So if you want to have top stories like the above recap delivered to your email inbox each week, subscribe to our newsletter!

The Wallet and Health apps are rumored to be getting updates in iOS 17, and leaker @analyst941 today shared some mockups that allegedly represent the design changes that we can expect to see.

In the Wallet app mockup, there's a navigation bar at the bottom that separates the different functions available in the app. Cards, Cash, Keys, IDs, and Orders are listed categories. Note that this is a mockup, so the "ID's" spelling is likely an oversight. There's also a "Passes & More" tab, and the leaker claims there are other features coming as well.

Users will reportedly be able to swipe down to access a search interface to find a specific card or pass, and there's a "Transactions" button. Compared to the current Wallet app design, this would be a functional improvement because it would make finding certain features like specific passes and order details simpler. It would not be a surprise to see a design like this given the many functions the Wallet app now serves in addition to storing credit and debit cards.

As for the Health app, Analyst941 claims that the "Favorites" section under "Summary" will see a redesign with a card-style interface. Each card will have "visual data" that includes "colored graphs," "tables," and other information. Since the Summary tab in the Health app also includes Trends and Highlights, it is not clear how the card design for Favorites would work with those sections.

Analyst941 leaked accurate information about the iPhone 14 Pro's Dynamic Island ahead of its launch last year, but this leaker does not have a long-term track record as of yet and the information shared should be viewed with some skepticism in light of that.

Analyst941 has shared a number of rumors about features coming in iOS 17 in recent weeks, suggesting that there's a "special" version of iOS 17 in the works for a 14.1-inch iPad and that iPads will get iPhone-style Lock Screen customization, plus they have mentioned vague changes coming to Search, the ‌Dynamic Island‌, Control Center, and more. They have also made claims about a new watchOS 10 Home Screen layout and have said that in the future, the Apple Watch will be able to pair with multiple devices, including the iPad and Mac.

It's worth noting that Bloomberg's Mark Gurman has expressed doubt about Analyst941's claims and believes that some of the information is inaccurate. We'll know more about Analyst941's accuracy in just over a month when Apple unveils iOS 17, watchOS 10, and other updates at the June 5 WWDC keynote.

Regardless of whether these mockups are accurate, there are other reliable rumors suggesting updates for the Health and Wallet apps. On the MacRumors podcast, Gurman confirmed that Apple is working on updates to the Wallet app, and he also recently said that Apple is working on new features for the Health app such as an expansion to the ‌iPad‌ and a mood tracking feature.

Apple was working on a version of the Apple Watch Ultra with a microLED display, but work on the project has been canceled for now. Apple no longer plans to develop microLED display technology in-house, and plans for a microLED Apple Watch have been nixed or indefinitely delayed.

This guide highlights the rumors that we heard about the microLED Apple Watch.

MicroLED Apple Watch Ultra

Introduced in 2022, the current Apple Watch Ultra uses standard OLED technology. MicroLED is, as the name suggests, LED display technology rather than OLED display technology, but it offers many of the benefits of OLED along with some improvements. The microLED Apple Watch was rumored to include a 2.1-inch diagonal display.

MicroLED displays are brighter and have more vibrant colors and rumors suggested the display would a look like content is "painted on top of the glass."

MicroLED Overview

MicroLED is a new technology that's been around for about two decades, but it has not yet been mass produced, because of the costs associated with it and the difficulty of making the displays. Samsung, for example, has made a microLED TV, but it sells for $150,000.

As the name suggests, microLED uses microscopic LEDs for individual pixels. The production process involves creating little tiny LEDs on a wafer and transferring them to a backplane, a process that hasn't been perfected yet because of the time that it takes to test all of those LEDs. Since this is nascent technology, there are new cutting-edge production techniques in the works, and multiple companies are focused on figuring out microLED.

Compared to LED displays, microLED is much more energy efficient and it would likely notably increase battery life on the Apple Watch Ultra and other devices that adopt the technology in the future. Unlike OLED, there's much less risk of screen burn-in, and microLEDs have a longer potential lifetime.

MicroLED displays also provide contrast improvements and faster response times because of the pixel-level individual lights, plus the color is better and brighter. In a nutshell, it's a next-generation technology superior to OLED and miniLED. Like OLED displays, microLED displays can be flexible, so if Apple eventually transitions to foldable devices, those products could use microLED. The technology would also work for curved displays.

Apple's In-House Display Development

MicroLED is not like Apple's other display technologies because it was the first display type that Apple was planning to design in-house. Rather than using a third-party display supplier like Samsung or LG Display, Apple aimed to design the displays itself and have them manufactured by partners like TSMC.

Apple spent over six years working on microLED technology, and it invested billions into developing new displays. Way back in 2015, Apple opened a secret laboratory in northern Taiwan to work on thinner, brighter, and more energy-efficient displays for future iOS devices, and rumors suggested the factory was dedicated to microLED. In 2023 Bloomberg called microLED one of the company's most "critical projects," but it was scrapped because it was not too expensive and complicated.

Apple in February ended a relationship with ams OSRAM a company that was going to supply it with microLED panels for the Apple Watch Ultra, and Apple also stopped working with a manufacturing company contracted to develop components for the device in March. News of the full cancelation of the project followed.

Apple reportedly had than 300 employees working on microLED display development. Those employees will be relocated to other departments, able to apply for new jobs within Apple, or laid off and provided with severance.

MicroLED Launch Date

There is no current plan to release a microLED Apple Watch. That could change in the future as Apple is said to be "eyeing" potential uses for other products, and "identifying" new suppliers and manufacturing processes.

Apple this week added a grayed-out "2023" label to its refurbished Macs page (only visible in a desktop browser) in the U.S., suggesting it will soon begin selling refurbished models of the new MacBook Pro and Mac mini machines released in January.

The latest 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models are available with M2 Pro or M2 Max chips, providing up to 20% faster performance and up to 30% faster graphics compared to the previous generation. The laptops can be configured with up to 96GB of RAM, compared to 64GB previously. Other new features and improvements include Wi-Fi 6E, an HDMI 2.1 port with 8K external display support, and an extra hour of battery life.

The new Mac mini can be configured with the M2 chip and two Thunderbolt 4 ports, or the M2 Pro chip and four Thunderbolt 4 ports.

Apple's refurbished Macs are typically discounted by 15% compared to the equivalent brand new models. For brand new models, pricing starts at $1,999 for the 14-inch MacBook Pro, at $2,499 for the 16-inch MacBook Pro, and at $599 for the Mac mini, but prices increase significantly depending on the specifications chosen.

Apple tests, inspects, cleans, and repackages all refurbished Macs to ensure they are fully functional and in good condition, and Apple's refurbished products are covered by a one-year limited warranty and eligible for AppleCare+ coverage.

While Apple's Macs are less targeted by malware than Windows PCs, concerning Mac malware does pop up regularly. This week, there's new Mac malware out in the wild that Mac users should be aware of.

Called Atomic macOS Stealer (AMOS), the malware was found on Telegram by Cyble Research. A Telegram user was selling access to the malware, which is designed to steal sensitive information like usernames and passwords.

Whoever designed the Atomic macOS Stealer is working behind the scenes to improve it and add new functionality to make it more effective. In its current incarnation, AMOS is able to access keychain passwords, system information, files from the desktop and documents folder, and the password of the Mac.

It is able to infiltrate browser apps like Chrome and Firefox, extracting autofill information, passwords, cookies, wallets, and credit card information. Cryptowallets like Electrum, Binance, and Atomic are specific targets.

AMOS can be purchased with a web panel that makes it easy to manage malware targets, along with tools for brute-forcing private keys. The malware and accompanying services to make it easier to use against victims can be purchased on Telegram for $1,000 per month.

A .dmg file is used to get the malware on a victim's machine, and once installed, it immediately begins accessing sensitive information and sending it to a remote server. A fake system prompt is presented to get access to the system password, and it asks for access to files in the documents and desktop folders.

Because this requires a user to click on a .dmg file to install, Mac users can avoid the malware by not installing any kind of untrusted software from an unverified source. Cyble Research recommends installing software from the Mac App Store, using strong passwords and multi-factor authentication, and using biometric authentication where possible.

Users should also avoid opening links in emails, using caution whenever an app asks for permissions, and keeping devices, operating systems, and apps up to date.

Kroger-owned grocery store chain Harris Teeter this week announced it now accepts Apple Pay and other contactless payment methods at all of its over 250 locations in North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, and a few other states.

Apple Pay also started rolling out at some actual Kroger locations in Kentucky and Ohio earlier this month, as the company finally embraces NFC technology. Kroger was one of the largest Apple Pay holdouts in the U.S. since the service launched in 2014, alongside Walmart and The Home Depot, but it now accepts Apple Pay at some or all Kroger, Fred Meyer, Ralphs, QFC, King Soopers, and Harris Teeter locations across the country.

Apple Pay allows customers to tap to pay with an iPhone or Apple Watch at checkout, providing a convenient and secure payment method. Alongside Apple Pay, Kroger continues to offer its own service called Kroger Pay, which requires customers to scan a QR code at checkout to pay with a debit or credit card stored in the Kroger app.

A pre-release version of Apple Pay Later continues to roll out to randomly selected iPhone users, as noted by tech enthusiast Will Sigmon. Built into the Wallet app, the "buy now, pay later" feature lets qualifying customers split a purchase made with Apple Pay into four equal payments over six weeks, with no interest or fees.

iPhone users will see an "Early Access" banner for Apple Pay Later in the Wallet app if they are selected, and a notice will be sent to their Apple ID email. There doesn't appear to be any way to force an invite, but those who wish to try Apple Pay Later must be a U.S. resident, 18 or older, and update their iPhone to iOS 16.4 or later.

Apple Pay Later early access began in late March, and Apple said it plans to offer the feature to all eligible users "in the coming months."

iPhone users can apply for a $50 to $1,000 loan in the Wallet app with no impact to their credit, according to Apple. After entering the amount they would like to borrow and agreeing to the Apple Pay Later terms, a soft credit check will be initiated. Once a user is approved, Apple Pay Later will be available as an option when using Apple Pay.

In the Wallet app, users can view, track, and manage loans, with upcoming payments shown on a calendar and payment reminders sent via the Wallet app and email. Users must set up a debit card as a loan repayment method, with credit cards not accepted.

Apple Pay Later credit assessment and lending is handled by Apple Financing LLC, a subsidiary of Apple. The service is based on the Mastercard Installments program, so merchants that accept Apple Pay do not need to do anything to implement it. Apple published a series of support documents with additional information.

Apple has not said if or when the feature will launch in other countries.

Today marks the 20th anniversary of Apple launching the iTunes Music Store, allowing Mac users to download music for "just 99 cents per song."

At launch, the iTunes Music Store offered over 200,000 songs from music labels such as Sony, Universal, and Warner, with free 30-second previews of any song. The store provided convenient access to songs on an à-la-carte basis at a time when pirating music was rampant via peer-to-peer file sharing programs such as LimeWire and KaZaA.

"The iTunes Music Store offers the revolutionary rights to burn an unlimited number of CDs for personal use and to put music on an unlimited number of iPods for on-the-go listening," said Apple's former CEO Steve Jobs, in an April 28, 2003 press release. "Consumers don't want to be treated like criminals and artists don't want their valuable work stolen. The iTunes Music Store offers a groundbreaking solution for both."

Apple expanded iTunes and the online music store to Windows in October 2003. At the time, Apple said customers had purchased more than 13 million songs from the iTunes Music Store, making it the "number one download music service in the world."

Apple has gradually phased out the iTunes brand over the past few years, and the music store is now located in the Music app on the Mac. iTunes has also been overshadowed by Apple Music and other streaming music services, with many customers now opting to pay a monthly subscription fee for unlimited access to up to 100 million songs.

Apple will report its earnings results for the second quarter of its 2023 fiscal year on Thursday, May 4 at 1:30 p.m. Pacific Time. Apple's CEO Tim Cook and CFO Luca Maestri will discuss the results on a conference call for investors a half hour later.

Keep reading for some key things to know about the quarter, including a recap of new products announced, revenue expectations, and more.

New Products During Quarter

The quarter ran from January 1 through April 1, according to Apple's fiscal calendar, and included the following product launches:

• 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro (M2 Pro and M2 Max chips)
• Mac mini (M2 and M2 Pro chips)
• HomePod (2nd generation)
• iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus (Yellow)
• Black Unity Sport Loop

Year-Over-Year Revenue Decline Expected

Apple has not provided guidance since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, but analysts currently expect the company to report revenue of around $93 billion on average this quarter, according to Yahoo Finance. This would be a revenue decline of around 4.5% compared to the $97.3 billion the company reported in the year-ago quarter.

Maestri provided the following commentary on Apple's earnings call last quarter:

Given the continued uncertainty around the world in the near term, we are not providing revenue guidance, but we are sharing some directional insights based on the assumption that the macroeconomic outlook and COVID-related impacts to our business do not worsen from what we are projecting today for the current quarter. In total, we expect our March quarter year-over-year revenue performance to be similar to the December quarter.

Conference Call

Cook and Maestri will hold a conference call at 2:00 p.m. Pacific Time on May 4 to discuss the company's second quarter earnings results. The call should last around one hour and will include a Q&A segment with analysts.

A live audio stream of the conference call will be available on Apple's Investor Relations page, and a recording will be available later in the day for replay.

Investors will be listening for any potential commentary surrounding the economy as concerns persist about a recession in the U.S. and other countries.

What's Next

Apple's third quarter began April 2 and runs through July 1. Apple has yet to announce any new products during this quarter, but it did open its first retail stores in India and launch an Apple Card savings account in partnership with Goldman Sachs.

AAPL is currently trading at around $168, down around 4.5% from a 52-week high of $176.15.

B&H Photo today has a collection of 2021 MacBook Pro models at record low prices, with up to $1,400 off these custom configurations with higher storage. Only B&H Photo is offering this sale, and you can get the discounts through April 30 at 10:59 p.m. Central Time. At the same time, you'll find multiple all-time low prices on 2023 MacBook Pros below.

2021 MacBook Pro

Savings are centered around two high-end configurations of the 2021 MacBook Pro, including both 14-inch and 16-inch models. You can get the 14-inch MacBook Pro (M1 Max 32-Core GPU, 2TB) for $2,899.00, down from $4,099.00. There are also a few different AppleCare+ bundles being sold on B&H Photo with this computer.

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.

For the 16-inch MacBook Pro (M1 Max 32-Core GPU, 4TB), this notebook has dropped to $3,699.00, from $4,899.00. Similar to the 14-inch model, the 16-inch computer is also being sold with AppleCare+ protection bundles on B&H Photo.

Moving away from B&H Photo's sale, if you're interested in a regular configuration of the previous generation MacBook Pro, Amazon has a solid deal. You can get the 14-inch MacBook Pro (10-Core M1 Pro, 1TB) for $1,999.00, down from $2,499.00. This is a match of the all-time low price on this version of the MacBook Pro, and right now Amazon only has Silver at this price.

2023 MacBook Pro

For the newer devices, we're tracking a few record low prices across Amazon and B&H Photo, with the majority of deals on the 16-inch MacBook Pro. The sole 14-inch MacBook Pro deal can be found at B&H Photo, where you can get the 512GB computer for the best-ever price of $1,749.00, down from $1,999.00.

You'll find more deals on the 16-inch MacBook Pros this week, starting with the 512GB M2 Pro computer for $2,249.00, down from $2,499.00 [matched at B&H Photo]. There's also the 1TB M2 Pro model for $2,449.00, down from $2,699.00 [matched at B&H Photo].

The only M2 Max 16-inch MacBook Pro being discounted this week can be found at B&H Photo, which has the 1TB M2 Max notebook for $3,249.00, down from $3,499.00. Shoppers should note that all MacBook Pro deals at B&H Photo, including savings on the new models, will also end on April 30 at 10:59 p.m. Central Time.

You can find even more discounts on other MacBooks by visiting our Best Deals guide for MacBook Pro and MacBook Air. In this guide we track the steepest discounts for the newest MacBook models every week, so be sure to bookmark it and check back often if you're shopping for a new Apple notebook.

Apple this week shared a Mother's Day gift guide with a variety of product and accessory recommendations. Mother's Day is on Sunday, May 14 in the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and several other countries around the world.

Gift ideas priced under $100 in the U.S. include the AirTag, HomePod mini, Apple Watch bands, iPhone cases, Apple Polishing Cloth, MagSafe Wallet, MagSafe Battery Pack, AirFly Pro, and various other accessories. Apple also sells an all-in-one gift card that can be used to purchase products at the Apple Store or apps on the App Store, pay for an Apple Music subscription or extra iCloud storage, and much more. The physical version of the gift card has a $25 minimum and includes a collectible Apple sticker.

Apple offers free engraving for several devices and accessories, allowing you to include a personalized message or emoji on the Apple Pencil, iPads, AirPods charging cases, and more. Gift wrapping with a customized card, or a special message on the packing slip, are also available for orders placed through Apple's online store.

On this week's episode of The MacRumors Show, we talk through all of the top features and improvements we'd like to see come to tvOS 17, the HomePod, and HomeKit at WWDC later this year.

Apple is expected to unveil tvOS 17 and "audioOS" 17 at WWDC in June, offering a range of enhancements and new features. 2022's tvOS 16 was only a minor update to the Apple TV, so we discuss where we would like the OS to go next with features like widgets, Up Next improvements, and apps like Weather and Home.

We discuss how the ‌HomePod‌ could make better use of its top display, true surround sound, and synced alarms. Last year, Apple's Home app got a significant upgrade with a full redesign and a new ‌HomeKit‌ architecture. We consider how the Home app could take another leap forward with more powerful automations and camera feed improvements.

We also look at some of the latest Apple news, including iOS 17's rumored journalling app, mood tracking functionality, new Lock Screen, Apple Music, and App Library features, iPadOS 17's Health app and Lock Screen customization, Apple's AI-powered health coaching service, 32- and 42-inch OLED displays planned for 2027, and more.

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 all of the latest rumors about the software updates and new hardware expected to be previewed at this year's WWDC with Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.

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 Marcus Kane, Christopher Lawley, Frank McShan, David Lewis, Andru Edwards, Tyler Stalman, Jon Prosser, Sam Kohl, Quinn Nelson, John Gruber, Federico Viticci, Sara Dietschy, Luke Miani, Thomas Frank, Jonathan Morrison, iJustine, Ross Young, Ian Zelbo, Jon Rettinger, 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.

Researchers in the Future Interfaces Group at Carnegie Mellon this week highlighted a breakthrough in display technology that could make future screens more tactile through raised haptics. As noted by TechCrunch, the Future Interfaces Group shared a video and a research paper demonstrating a display that can grow small, physical bumps that can be felt under the fingers.

The technology could be used for tactile notifications, a pop-up keyboard that feels different under the fingers than the standard screen, buttons that remain inflated until pressed, pop-up custom-shaped buttons for controlling system functions, and more. One of the concepts demonstrated includes a pop-up music interface that displays raised music controls for playback, while another features a button on a smartphone that pulses up and down until it's pressed.

Researchers developed a flat panel that's using miniaturized hydraulic pumps to raise the surface through fluid. Each pump is individually controllable and can be activated separately to create dynamic, tactile bumps in a compact form factor.

The hardware is self-contained, lightweight, relatively slim at 5mm, and able to withstand the force of a normal touchscreen interaction.

At the current time, this is emergent technology that's owned by Carnegie Mellon, but it isn't hard to imagine future smartphones that use this kind of functionality. Apple has adopted haptic vibrations for touch-based feedback that's used for notifications and other system feedback, but raised haptics would add another dimension to the display.

Apple could use this kind of technology for a device that folds flat but has a pop-out keyboard when in use, plus there are likely multiple accessibility use cases for those who have sight problems. It's impossible to say whether this is functionality that we will see in Apple devices in the future, but it is an interesting concept.

An estimated 1 in 3 Americans are exposed to harmful levels of noise on a regular basis, based on data gathered as part of the Apple Hearing Study. In recognition of International Noise Awareness Day, University of Michigan researchers working on the hearing study in partnership with Apple shared a blog post noise exposure.

Extrapolating data collected from 130,000 Apple Hearing Study volunteers who contributed readings from their Apple Watch between November 2019 and December 2022, the University of Michigan estimated that 77 million adults across the United States are consistently exposed to high noise levels.

According to the World Health Organization and the United States Environmental Protection Agency, an annual average noise exposure level of 70 decibels (dBA) poses no risk for hearing loss, but exposure over 70 dBA can result in damage to hearing.

The study assumes that people with repeated daily average noise exposures over 70 dBA likely have an annual noise exposure over 70 dBA, which researchers say can result in hearing issues, irritation, heart problems, and sleep disturbances, in addition to impacting mental health. Higher noise levels for longer time periods can increase risk.

The Apple Watch has a built-in feature for detecting environmental sound level, and it collects data to tabulate an average daily environmental sound exposure level. The information collected by the watch can be located in the Hearing section of the Health app.

The Health app will let you know if your noise exposure levels are below 75 dB on average and are "OK," or if you have been repeatedly exposed to higher levels of sound that can impact your health. At 80 dB, 40 hours of exposure over seven days could potentially result in damage, but at 120 dB, 14 seconds over seven days could cause problems. The Apple Watch is able to send an alert when it detects a harmful noise level so you can move to a quieter location.

People in Puerto Rico, Delaware, Rhode Island, Mississippi, and Connecticut experienced the highest noise pollution levels, and adults aged 35 to 44 were more likely to be exposed to high noise levels compared to those in other age groups.

Additional details about the study can be found in the full blog post on the University of Michigan website. To cut down on hearing damage, researchers recommend that those regularly exposed to excessive noise pollution move away from noisy areas and take "quiet breaks," buy quiet appliances, and wear ear muffs and ear plugs when possible.

Former Apple employee Dhidrenda Prasad was this week sentenced to three years in prison and was ordered to pay more than $17 million in restitution to Apple. Back in November, Prasad pled guilty to conspiracy to commit fraud and conspiracy to defraud the United States after stealing millions of dollars from Apple.

Prasad was part of Apple's Global Service Supply Chain department between 2008 and 2018, and his job was to buy parts and services from vendors for servicing older devices. In 2011, Prasad started accepting kickbacks, inflating invoices, and stealing parts, causing Apple to pay for components and services that it did not receive.

Two vendors worked with Prasad to steal money from Apple. His schemes included funneling illicit payments from the vendors to his creditors, tricking Apple into paying for components twice, and stealing components purchased by Apple and reselling them to Apple through his co-conspirators. In total, he was found guilty of stealing $17 million through mail and wire fraud.

He will forfeit nearly $5.5 million in assets that the government has already seized, and will need to pay an additional $8 million in forfeiture money. The $13.5 million forfeiture is on top of the $17 million that he must pay to Apple and the $1.8 million he owes to the IRS for not paying taxes on the money he received from Apple.

After serving three years in prison, he will have another three years of supervised release.

Google today announced that YouTube Music on the web and the YouTube Music app for iOS devices now offer podcasts in the United States. Users who watch podcasts through the main YouTube app can now continue listening to them through YouTube Music.

Podcasts on YouTube Music are free, with no Premium subscription required. Podcasts are available on-demand, offline, and can be listened to in the background and while casting, with options to swap between audio and video versions.

Google says that the podcast listening experience on YouTube Music is designed to complement the video podcast experience that's available on YouTube. Podcasts will be available through the Home tab by tapping on the Podcasts section at the top of the screen.

There is an Explore feature for finding popular podcasts based on categories that include gaming, music, true crime, comedy, health and fitness, business, and society and culture, plus a search tab for locating specific content.

Podcasts in YouTube Music are rolling out to U.S. users starting today, but Google says support is being implemented "gradually" so it may take a few days for the podcasts to show up in the YouTube Music app and on the web. While podcasts are limited to the United States at the current time, Google has plans to bring access to other regions in the future.

Apple is working on an updated version of the Apple Watch Ultra that has an improved microLED display, but the device won't launch until the second half of 2025, according to information shared by display analyst Ross Young.

Young believes that the microLED Apple Watch has now been "pushed out" to 2025 at the earliest, which means rumors of a 2024 launch may now be outdated. Earlier this year, Young gave a more vague 2025 release timeline, but now he has dialed his prediction in to the latter half of the year.

Bloomberg's Mark Gurman has confirmed Apple's work on a ‌microLED Apple Watch‌, and in January, he suggested that the device could come out at the end of 2024, but Apple's timeline has likely since shifted.

Early rumors about devices that are a year or two out can be unreliable in terms of launch timing as Apple often has to push back its release dates due to delays in design, component sourcing, manufacturing, and more.

The Apple Watch Ultra is expected to be the first Apple device to adopt a microLED display, but Apple is planning to bring the technology to the iPhone and other devices in the future.

Some of the year's best deals on AirPods Pro 2, AirPods 3, and AirPods 2 remain at Verizon and Amazon this week, including $50 off the AirPods Pro 2 at $199.99. As with all other Verizon deals, you don't need to be a Verizon customer to get these savings, and all orders receive free two-day shipping.

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

Verizon has the AirPods Pro 2 available for $199.99, down from $249.99. We very briefly saw a discount on this model to $194.99 last month, but this rare deal never emerged again and today's deal remains a solid second-best price.

Verizon also has both models of the AirPods 3 on sale. You can get the AirPods 3 with Lightning Charging Case for $149.99, down from $169.99; and the AirPods 3 with MagSafe Charging Case for $159.00, down from $179.00. Verizon has been one of the only retailers to provide any consistent deals on the AirPods 3 this year.

Lastly, only Amazon has the AirPods 2 for $99.00, down from $129.00. Although this is an overall second-best price, we haven't seen an all-time low price on the AirPods 2 since the holiday season.

We track sales for every model of the AirPods in our Best AirPods Deals guide, so be sure to bookmark that page while you shop around for the wireless headphones. Keep up with all of this week's best discounts on Apple products and related accessories in our dedicated Apple Deals roundup.