MacRumors

Key Apple executives including Tim Cook, Craig Federighi, and Johny Srouji have kept their distance from the company's mixed-reality headset throughout its development process amid a series of setbacks and compromises, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.

Apple apparently began developing its headset in 2015, using Samsung's Gear VR and the HTC Vive in early experiments. The headset has reportedly deviated significantly from CEO ‌Tim Cook‌'s original vision. The product was initially imagined as "a pair of unobtrusive eyeglasses that could be worn all day," but it has now become a full-blown headset that looks like a pair of ski goggles and requires a separate battery pack due to technological limitations, internal disagreements, and a rush to bring an Apple AR/VR product to market.

Despite Cook's unwavering view that the device should focus on unobtrusive augmented reality, he was reportedly not deeply engaged in its design and chose to only participate in demonstrations. Cook's "relative noninvolvement" has sometimes been seen as indecision and caused frustration among staff, leading to delays and concerns about obtaining resources.

Key figures including software chief Craig Federighi have also kept their distance from the headset during its development and have seemed wary of it. Apple's senior vice president for hardware technologies, Johny Srouji, is believed to privately be a skeptic of the device, comparing it to a science project. He has warned that designing the high-performance chips that the headset requires could distract from new iPhone chips that drive more revenue.

By 2017, Apple purportedly believed that the headset could go on sale by 2020, but the project was mired by hardware and software challenges, and disagreements about which applications to develop for the device. Some of the headset's features, including the ability to function as an external monitor for a Mac and multi-person video calls, are currently said to be less advanced than Apple originally intended. The company allegedly hopes that "third-party apps will save it." Apple is already in talks with software and game developers, as well as as entertainment companies, to have apps and content ready for the device by the time it goes on sale.

Apple wishes that users will eventually wear a head-mounted AR device continuously all day, replacing tasks currently accomplished on other devices such as the ‌iPhone‌ and Mac, including web browsing, gaming, email, video calls and collaboration, working out, and meditation, but does not expect this to happen immediately. Internal projections estimate that the product category has the potential to eventually be as big as the Apple Watch or iPad following the addition of new features and a lower price point with new versions of the device.

While Apple initially hoped to sell three million units within the device's first year on sale, it now expects to sell around 900,000 headsets. The company has decided to sell the device at its approximate cost to make, rather than sell it at a loss as it originally considered. The headset is still on schedule to be announced at WWDC in June.

In a blow to Foxconn, Apple is expected to hand key iPhone 16 production responsibilities to Luxshare, significantly boosting the supply chain partner's profit growth over the next two years, according to Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.

In his latest Medium blog post, Kuo said Apple has already given Luxshare new product introduction (NPI) approval for next year's iPhone 16 Pro Max, which is a significant win for the supplier, given that Foxconn has consistently won the highest-end iPhone assembly NPI in previous years.

The approval followed Apple's decision to transfer some iPhone 14 Pro Max orders from Foxconn to Luxshare to diversify supply and mitigate risk, following the protests and riots that broke out in Foxconn's largest iPhone factory in Zhengzhou, China, in November 2022.

Luxshare's production yield improvement schedule for the iPhone 14 Pro Max subsequently proved better than expected, leading Apple to award NPI to the company for the 2024 model. That means Apple believes Luxshare's R&D and production capabilities have reached the level of a first-tier supplier, according to Kuo.

The analyst believes that Apple will now negotiate with the Indian government to help Luxshare set up production lines in India, with the possibility of floating the idea of a joint venture to offset concerns from investors about the geopolitical situation being unfavorable for the assembler.

Luxshare's iPhone business should see significant profit growth, says Kuo, with the company expected to ship 45–50 million iPhones in 2023, up from approximately 20 million in 2022, indicating Apple's increasing faith in and reliance on the assembler.

Apple wants to triple its iPhone production capacity in India within the next two years, as part of a larger plan to diversify its supply chain out of China and into other parts of the world. According to one report, Apple has instructed Foxconn, Pegatron, and Wistron, three of its biggest suppliers, to increase their capacity and manpower in the country.

As things stand, production allocation for next year's iPhone 16 series is allocated to Luxshare (iPhone 16 Pro Max), Foxconn (iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro), and Pegatron (iPhone 16 Plus).

After announcing last week that it would be launching its online store in Vietnam on May 18, the store has now gone live, opening up direct sales for Apple in a largely untapped market with significant growth potential.

As in other countries, Apple's Vietnam online store offers a full range of Apple products and accessories, with shopping assistance from Apple Specialists, free no-contact delivery, a trade-in program for iPhone sales, free one-on-one online training sessions with certain product purchases, build-to-order Mac options, and multiple payment options.

The store is available in both Vietnamese and English, allowing customers to order a wide range of Apple products on the web.

Apple will mass produce its own microLED displays in order to lessen its reliance on Samsung and increase its own control over supply, laying the groundwork to realize its ultimate goal of bringing the technology to iPhones, reports Nikkei Asia.

According to the outlet's sources, Apple has spent at least $1 billion on microLED research and development over past decade, and once production starts, Apple will itself perform the critical "mass transfer" step of the manufacturing process, which involves placing at least tens of thousands of tiny microLED chips onto substrates.

Apple plans to fabricate the tiny microLED chips directly on wafers, and will partner with ams-Osram for the microLED components, LG Display for the substrates, and TSMC for 12-inch wafers. This process will reportedly be carried out at Apple's secretive R&D facilities in the Longtan District in the northern Taiwanese city of Taoyuan.

Apple has R&D teams working on the displays in the U.S., Taiwan and Japan, and is said to have designed not only the driver integrated circuits for the microLED screens, but also some of the production equipment itself to better control the mass transfer process, allowing it to eventually adopt the display technology in products that traditionally use OLED panels supplied by Samsung and other suppliers.

Despite Apple's groundwork, microLED display production remains challenging and manufacturing costs are higher, which is why Apple will start rolling out the technology with the Apple Watch Ultra before ultimately mass producing microLED displays for iPhones.

"Apple's ultimate plan is to introduce the technologies on its iPhone, which is its key revenue source and has much bigger volume, to justify the investments over the years," said one of the sources who has seen samples of the company's microLED screen.

The display technology would allow for higher brightness, decreased power consumption, improved contrast ratio, and other benefits compared to current iPhones with OLED displays.

With the Apple Watch Ultra not expected to use microLED until 2025, the first iPhone to adopt the technology is likely still several years away from launching. All four iPhone 15 models coming later this year are expected to feature OLED displays.

Porsche today announced that Taycan models in the United States are adopting Apple Maps EV routing in CarPlay, a feature that will direct Taycan owners to nearby electric vehicle charging facilities.

The Apple Maps EV Routing option will allow Taycan users to plan travel routes that include stops for charging. Prior to now, Taycan owners had to exit out of ‌CarPlay‌ in order to create a route that included charging stops.

Taycan vehicles include the Porsche Charging Planner, designed to optimize stops based on the anticipated state of charge upon arrival to a destination, traffic conditions, and average speed, but ‌Apple Maps‌ EV Routing is now available as an alternative for those who use ‌CarPlay‌.

‌Apple Maps‌ EV Routing uses real-time vehicle information to help customers get to their destination, with charging stops recommended when necessary. ‌Apple Maps‌ analyzes elevation changes along a route and other factors to determine when to suggest a charging stop, and if the vehicle's battery gets too low, it will provide a route to the nearest compatible charging station.

Porsche says that ‌Apple Maps‌ EV routing is available to U.S.-based Taycan owners who have installed the latest My Porsche app on their iPhones.

PepsiCo is teaming up with Apple to offer Pepsi drinkers free Apple Music access this summer. As noted by AdAge, Pepsi today launched its "Press Play on Summer Campaign."

The ad blitz will see Pepsi offering 400 million 20-ounce bottles of Pepsi, Pepsi Zero Sugar, Pepsi Mango, Pepsi Wild Cherry, Mountain Dew, Mountain Dew Major Melon, Mountain Dew Spark, Mountain Dew Voltage, Starry, and Starry Zero Sugar with ‌Apple Music‌ QR codes. The codes, which are available starting today, will provide free three-month ‌Apple Music‌ memberships to new customers, trips to Apple music live events, and Beats headphones.

Pepsi plans to advertise the promotion throughout the summer months, starting with an ad featuring Puerto Rican rapper and singer Bad Bunny. Bad Bunny was Apple's 2022 Artist of the Year, and the "Un Verano Sin Ti" album was ‌Apple Music‌'s most streamed album in 2022.

Ads for the free ‌Apple Music‌ codes will be on TV, social networks, and other locations such as gas stations and convenience stores.

"We at Pepsi couldn't be more excited to kick off this historic partnership with Apple Music and Bad Bunny. Both Pepsi and Apple Music have such storied histories in the music space delivering first-of-its-kind experiences for our fans over the years, so it is only fitting that we join forces to create 'Press Play On Summer'," said Todd Kaplan, Chief Marketing Officer - Pepsi. "Bad Bunny is one of the biggest artists on the planet and we are thrilled to welcome him into the Pepsi family! We are excited to give fans unprecedented access to a host of music experiences and Bad Bunny's catalogue all summer long."

Pepsi and Apple first teamed up in 2003, with Pepsi offering 100 million song downloads from the iTunes Store.

Apple this week previewed new iPhone, iPad, and Mac accessibility features coming later this year. One feature that has received a lot of attention in particular is Personal Voice, which will allow those at risk of losing their ability to speak to "create a voice that sounds like them" for communicating with family, friends, and others.

Those with an iPhone, iPad, or newer Mac will be able to create a Personal Voice by reading a randomized set of text prompts aloud until 15 minutes of audio has been recorded on the device. Apple said the feature will be available in English only at launch, and uses on-device machine learning to ensure privacy and security.

Personal Voice will be integrated with another new accessibility feature called Live Speech, which will let iPhone, iPad, and Mac users type what they want to say to have it be spoken out loud during phone calls, FaceTime calls, and in-person conversations.

Apple said Personal Voice is designed for users at risk of losing their ability to speak, such as those with a recent diagnosis of ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) or other conditions that can progressively impact speaking ability. Like other accessibility features, however, Personal Voice will be available to all users. The feature will likely be added to the iPhone with iOS 17, which should be unveiled next month and released in September.

"At the end of the day, the most important thing is being able to communicate with friends and family," said Philip Green, who was diagnosed with ALS in 2018 and is a member of the ALS advocacy organization Team Gleason. "If you can tell them you love them, in a voice that sounds like you, it makes all the difference in the world — and being able to create your synthetic voice on your iPhone in just 15 minutes is extraordinary."

All four iPhone 15 models launching later this year are expected to feature a USB-C port instead of Lightning. This change means the iPhone will support a more universal charging standard, benefit from faster data transfer speeds, and more.

Below, we have recapped rumors about the iPhone switching to USB-C, including potential speed differences, other Apple accessories adopting USB-C, and more.

Speed Differences

While all iPhone 15 models are expected to have a USB-C port, only the Pro models will support at least USB 3.2 or Thunderbolt 3 for faster data transfer speeds up to 40 Gbps, according to Apple supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. He expects the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus to remain limited to USB 2.0 speeds of up to 480 Mbps like Lightning.

iPad Pros gained Thunderbolt 3 support in 2021, while the USB-C port on the latest iPad Air is capable of up to 10 Gbps transfer speeds.

Made for iPhone Optimizations

Apple plans to optimize the fast-charging performance of chargers certified under its "Made for iPhone" program on iPhone 15 models, according to Kuo. Uncertified cables will allegedly have limited charging and data transfer speeds. It's worth noting that Apple does not limit uncertified cables for iPads with USB-C ports, so this would be a different approach with the iPhone if this rumor proves to be accurate.

Apple Accessories Moving to USB-C

With the iPhone 15 switching to USB-C, several Apple accessories are expected to follow suit:

• EarPods
• AirPods Charging Cases
• MagSafe Battery Pack
• Magic Mouse
• Magic Trackpad
• Magic Keyboard

The latest Siri Remote for the Apple TV already features a USB-C port.

Apple is expected to announce the iPhone 15 series in September. Many more changes are rumored for the Pro models, including a titanium frame, faster A17 Bionic chip, thinner bezels around the display, Wi-Fi 6E support, and more.

The third-generation Apple TV 4K introduced in October 2022 is now available on Apple's refurbished store for the first time in the U.S., Canada, and select European countries, including Germany, the Netherlands, Switzerland, and others.

In the U.S., the refurbished models are discounted by $20 compared to brand new, with the 64GB model with Wi-Fi priced at $109 and the 128GB model with Wi-Fi and Ethernet priced at $129. The refurbished third-generation Apple TV 4K comes with the Siri Remote with a USB-C port, power cord, and documentation inside a new plain white box.

Apple says all of its refurbished products are functionally tested, inspected, and cleaned, and they are eligible for AppleCare+ coverage.

The third-generation Apple TV 4K features the A15 Bionic chip, HDR10+ support, a thinner and lighter design, increased RAM, and more. Note that this Apple TV model ships without a USB-C charging cable in the box for the Siri Remote, except in Brazil, so you will need to purchase a cable separately if you do not have one.

For those who prefer a new model, monitor our Apple TV deals guide for occasional sales.

Apple's 2023 M2 Mac mini is available at all-time low prices in both storage configurations today on Amazon. As of writing, only Amazon has these deals and you can get the Mac mini delivered as soon as May 19.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Amazon. 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 256GB M2 Mac mini, you can get this model for $499.99, down from $599.00. This is the best price we've ever tracked for this version of the computer, and it's the first time we've tracked this deal since early April.

Additionally, the 512GB M2 Mac mini has dropped to $689.99, down from $799.00 on Amazon. This is another best-ever price for the new Mac mini, and delivery dates are available for as soon as May 19 as of writing.

Lastly, the 512GB M2 Pro Mac mini is also available at a record low price of $1,099.99 on Amazon, down from $1,299.00. This one has a slightly delayed delivery date of May 27, but at $199 off it's a great deal and worth locking in soon if you're interested.

Be sure to visit our full Deals Roundup to shop for even more Apple-related products and accessories.

After nearly two months of leaks, the Beats Studio Buds + earphones are now official, with the audio brand from Apple revealing improved performance and some new color choices compared to the original Beats Studio Buds, including an eye-catching Transparent option.

Priced at $169.99, a $20 increase over the original model, the Beats Studio Buds + deliver improvements to fit, Active Noise Cancellation (ANC), Transparency mode, microphones, battery life, and more.

The most immediately obvious change for the Beats Studio Buds + is the overall look, with the new Transparent color option being the standout alongside a Black option with Gold accents and an Ivory option. The Transparent design is reminiscent of what Nothing has been doing with its phones and earphones, although the specific look is rather different. While Nothing has gone with a completely transparent outer surface for portions of its devices, Beats' transparency isn't quite as clear but includes essentially every part of the exterior of the buds, case, and even the eartips.

Beyond the new colors, the Studio Buds + look essentially identical to the original Studio Buds, but Beats says 95% of the internal parts are brand-new including 3x larger microphones for improved sound capture and a brand-new venting and mic port design. As with the previous model, the Studio Buds + include IPX4 sweat and water resistance to stand up to workouts and weather.

When it comes to fit, Studio Buds + offer improvements there as well with a new extra-small eartip option joining the existing small, medium, and large sizes to fit a wider range of ears with a better seal.

The multi-function "b" button on each earbud has been redesigned to reduce accidental presses and offer a firmer feel. The button continues to offer standard media controls where a single press handles play/pause, a double press skips forward, and a triple press skips backward.

A press-and-hold function allows you to toggle between ANC and Transparency mode, but it can also be configured to activate a voice assistant or adjust volume up and down. Call handling functionality can also be customized to require either one or two presses to end a call.

Aside from ANC and Transparency, Beats Studio Buds + also support Spatial Audio content on Apple Music, although they do not include the immersive head-tracking functionality found on the Beats Fit Pro and several AirPods models.

Rather than using Apple's H1 or H2 chip, the Beats Studio Buds + use a custom second-generation "Beats Proprietary Platform" that offers many of the same features as Apple's chips such as "Hey Siri" and Find My support, automatic device switching via iCloud and more, while also offering similar features on Android such as ‌Find My‌ Device, one-touch pairing, and automatic pairing to all devices linked to the same Google account.

With a revised vent design and ANC processing now housed on the primary chipset, the Studio Buds + have up to 1.6x better ANC than the previous model and up to 2x better Transparency performance. The buds also include playback correction, which attempts to remove residual acoustic artifacts that can be introduced by ANC or Transparency processing. A feedback microphone and secondary filter analyze the audio data at up to 50,000 times per second to ensure playback accuracy.

Additional improvements to voice performance focus on noise suppression and voice targeting to make sure speech is as intelligible as possible, while the larger microphones deliver a higher signal-to-noise ratio with greater sensitivity. Machine learning was used to train the system in a variety of noisy environments for optimal voice capture.

Battery life sees a significant boost in the Studio Buds +, with the earbuds providing up to 9 hours of battery life with ANC and Transparency turned off and the case providing an additional 27 hours for a total of 36 hours of battery life, a 50% increase compared to the original Studio Buds. With ANC or Transparency turned on, you'll get 6 hours out of the buds on a single charge, with an additional 18 hours available from the charging case.

As with the original Studio Buds, the case for the new model charges via USB-C and does not support wireless charging, and a tiny USB-C to USB-C cable is included. A full charge of the case and buds takes two hours, but a 5-minute Fast Fuel feature delivers up to an hour of battery life when you're running low.

All three colors of the Beats Studio Buds + are priced at $169.99 and are available to order starting today at apple.com and Amazon in the United States, Canada, and China, with shipping beginning tomorrow. Releases in other countries will follow over the next few months.

Woot today has a collection of M1 iMacs at solid prices, starting with the 7-core GPU/256GB model for just $919.99 in Green, down from $1,299.00. This is a new all-time low price on this version of the 24-inch iMac, beating the previous low by about $80.

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.

All iMacs in Woot's sale today are in "New Open-Box" condition, meaning that the devices are brand new and come in original Apple retail boxes. However, they do not come with an Apple warranty and instead include a 90-Day Woot warranty.

You can also get the 8-core GPU/256GB M1 iMac for $1,029.99 on Woot, down from $1,499.00. This sale isn't quite as good as the $999.99 price tag we briefly saw on Amazon a few weeks ago, but at just about $30 higher it's a very solid second-best price.

This one is only available in Green and it also comes in "New Open-Box" condition. Be sure to visit our full Deals Roundup to shop for even more Apple-related products and accessories.

Update: We've updated this article to reflect an even steeper markdown on the 7-core GPU/256GB iMac. Additionally, the 8-core GPU/256GB model is now out of stock on Woot.

Apple is set to rearrange the layout of the rear triple-lens camera system on the iPhone 15 Pro Max to accommodate the new periscope camera technology that will be exclusive to the larger handset.

This year, a periscope lens system will be used for the telephoto camera in the iPhone 15 Pro Max for the first time, allowing for 5x or 6x optical zoom. Comparatively, the iPhone 14 Pro Max offers 3x optical zoom, which is expected to be retained for the smaller iPhone 15 Pro.

Apple is likely limiting the periscope technology to the iPhone 15 Pro Max because of the internal space needed for the advanced hardware, but even with the available extra space in the Pro Max model, Apple has had to reorganize the formation of the camera module purely out of necessity.

When the current iPhone 14 Pro Max is held in landscape orientation with the Side button at the top (as per the above image) the Telephoto lens is closest to the top corner of the device, while the Ultra Wide lens sits below between the flash and LiDAR sensor.

In comparison, the Ultra Wide lens on the iPhone 15 Pro Max will move to the corner position in the array, while the Telephoto will take its place between the flash and LiDAR. This will provide Apple with more internal space to fit in the complex folded optics in the periscope system.

A periscope lens system generally uses a primary lens to capture a photo, with an angled mirror or prism reflecting the light 90 degrees toward a second lens that then sends it to the image sensor. The image sensor and secondary lens are positioned sideways inside the smartphone to extend focal length, and that takes up valuable surface area.

Because of the way light is reflected at an angle in this system, the actual telephoto lens will likely need to be square-shaped, a departure from the circular telephoto lens used for the iPhone 14 Pro Max. Granted, the camera cutout will still be circular, but the actual lens inside will be square.

In that sense, compared to the iPhone 14 Pro Max, from the outside the next-generation model will look as though nothing has changed in the lens array, but under hood, the hardware layout will be significantly different.

The notable tidbit was revealed by researcher Unknownz21, who yesterday confirmed that next year, both the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max will get the periscope zoom camera technology, a change that was first revealed by Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.

The displays on the iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max models are expected to be slightly bigger than previous generation models, and the larger internal space afforded by the new sizes is likely one of the reasons why Apple will be able to bring the periscope lens to both premium devices in 2024 for the first time.

Apple has announced the launch of Tap to Pay on iPhone in Australia, allowing independent sellers, small merchants, and large retailers in the country to use ‌iPhones‌ as a payment terminal.

Introduced in February 2022, the feature allows compatible iPhones to accept payments via Apple Pay, contactless credit and debit cards, and other digital wallets, using only an ‌‌‌iPhone‌‌ - no additional hardware or credit card machine is required‌.

Tap to Pay on ‌‌‌iPhone‌‌‌ uses NFC technology to securely authenticate the contactless payments, plus the feature also supports PIN entry, which includes accessibility options.

"Australia is a nation of entrepreneurs and innovators, and small and medium-sized businesses are at the heart of the country's workforce, employing millions of Australians. Now, with Tap to Pay on iPhone it's easier than ever for businesses of any size to seamlessly accept contactless payments using only their iPhone, wherever they do business," said Jennifer Bailey, Apple's vice president of Apple Pay and Apple Wallet. "The convenience of Tap to Pay on iPhone empowers Australian businesses to offer easy, secure, and private contactless payment experiences to their customers, and help them run and grow their business."

Westpac and Tyro Payments are the initial payment platforms in Australia supporting Tap to Pay for their business customers. Apple says that additional payment platforms and apps, including ANZ Worldline Payment Solutions, Stripe, Till Payments, and Zeller, will make this secure and convenient capability available in the coming months.

Tap to Pay on ‌‌‌iPhone‌‌‌ requires ‌‌‌iPhone‌‌‌ XS or newer models, and works for customers as any normal ‌‌‌Apple Pay‌‌‌ transaction would. Sellers just need to open up the app, register the sale, and present their ‌‌‌iPhone‌‌‌ to the buyer, who can then use an appropriate contactless payment method.

Tap to Pay on ‌‌iPhone‌‌ is available to over 700,000 additional businesses across the United States, and Apple Stores in the U.S. have also rolled out the feature. Australia is the third region to support Tap to Pay, following a similar rollout in Taiwan last month.

The 2023 Apple Park event that select developers have been invited to attend will include tours of the campus, special extra long developer sessions, and an evening activity, all of which are new compared to the event that Apple held last year.

Developers will be treated to refreshments in the morning, followed by the 10:00 a.m. Pacific Time keynote viewing. After that, Apple will host the Platforms State of the Union, and there will be two 30-minute ‌Apple Park‌ tours to choose from at 3:00 p.m.

Attendees can select from an "Inside the Ring" tour of ‌Apple Park‌, or an "Inner Meadow" tour. With the Ring tour, developers will visit Caffe Macs, hear about the unique architectural design of ‌Apple Park‌, catch an "incredible view" of the Inner Ring, and see a "fascinating" exhibit at The Gallery at ‌Apple Park‌, which Apple says has not previously been open to visitors.

The Inner Meadow tour will walk attendees through the fruit orchards and the pond, with Apple sharing the history of The Rainbow and highlighting design elements of the Ring Building.

Apple plans to host the Apple Design Awards at 5:30 p.m., and then there will be a "Special Evening Activity." Apple says that the special activity is one attendees "won't want to miss," with food and beverages to be provided.

On Tuesday, June 6, Apple is also inviting developers to 2.5 hour morning, afternoon, or evening sessions at the Apple Developer Center, where "some of the latest announcements" will be discussed. Apple does not provide insight into the topics planned for these sessions, but rumors suggest that both the AR/VR headset and its xrOS operating system will be announced.

If we do indeed see ‌xrOS‌, the extra sessions could help introduce developers to the new technology and walk them through how to develop apps for the devices. Apple did not offer these Tuesday sessions during last year's developer viewing party.

Apple's special event is limited to developers and developers were invited to attend via a lottery system.

Older Wemo smart plugs from Belkin have a vulnerability that allows them to be hacked, according to a blog post from security researchers at Sternum. The Wemo Mini Smart Plug V2 (model F7C063) from 2019 is vulnerable to a buffer overflow attack that can be used execute commands remotely.

Basically, the Wemo Mini Smart Plug V2 has a 30 character name limit that can be overwritten, leading to an exploitable memory buffer error. Full details on how the exploit works are available from Sternum.

Belkin told Sternum that it has no plans to update the Wemo Mini Smart Plug V2 because it is at the end of its life after four years and has been replaced with newer models. That leaves many potential Belkin customers vulnerable, as there are likely many of these smart plugs being used in the wild.

Sternum recommends that people prevent the Wemo Mini Smart Plug V2 from accessing the internet and communicating with other devices like the iPhone because of the vulnerability, but the safest bet would be to remove the plugs and replace them with something more secure.

Google today announced that it is updating its inactive account policy, with Google Accounts that have not been used in at least two years to be deleted. Google says that accounts that have not been used for long periods of time are more likely to be compromised because of the use of older, less secure passwords and a lack of two-factor authentication.

Going forward, if a Google Account has not been used or signed into for at least two years, Google may delete the account and its contents. This includes content from Gmail, Google Docs, Google Drive, Google Meet, Calendar, YouTube, and Google Photos.

The policy is applicable to personal Google Accounts rather than those created for businesses and schools. Users with an inactive account will see those accounts being deleted starting in December 2023, but Google plans to provide plenty of notice before it starts to cull accounts.

Accounts that were created and never used again will be the first to be nixed, with Google sending multiple notifications to both the account email address and the recovery email, if one has been provided.

To keep a Google Account active, Google recommends signing in at least once every two years, and anyone who has signed into an account or a Google service recently has an account that is considered active and will not be deleted.

Activity includes reading or sending an email, using Google Drive, watching a YouTube video, downloading a Google Play app, using Google Search, having an active subscription through a Google Account, or using Sign in with Google.

Back in 2020, Google said that it would wipe content from unused accounts but would keep the accounts intact. That is now changing with the plan to delete inactive accounts.