MacRumors

If you find yourself regularly swiping to a different watch face on your Apple Watch depending on what you're doing or where you are, this article is for you. Because thanks to the power that Apple has built into its Shortcuts app, it's possible to make the watch face on your Apple Watch automatically change based on the time of day or your location. Keep reading to learn how.

One of the great things about the Apple Watch is the number of watch faces you can customize, which allows you to make certain faces more informative or more functional for different purposes, and then swipe to them when you need them. When you go to the office, for example, you can have a watch face filled with work-focused complications. Or you might swipe to a minimal watch face in the evening when you're winding down before bed.

If you tend to set up different watch faces in such a way, then it's worth considering creating an automation in iOS that can change the watch face on your Apple Watch for you when you need it, without you having to even raise your wrist. With the Shortcuts app, you can.

If you've never created a shortcut before, don't worry – the steps below show you how easy this particular automation is to set up. The only thing to bear in mind is that if you want your Apple Watch to change back to another watch face after a certain time (when your working day is at an end, for example) then you'll need to set up a second, separate automation for this to happen.

Likewise, if you want the watch face to only be active when you're at a particular location and then revert when you leave, then unless you want to dig deeper into the complex world of Shortcuts, a second automation is required.

How to Automatically Change Your Apple Watch Face At a Certain Time

1. Launch the Shortcuts app on your iPhone.
2. Tap the Automation tab at the bottom of the screen.
3. Tap Create Personal Automation.
4. Select Time of Day.
5. Choose Sunrise or Sunset (after which you'll be given the option to define a specific time around these solar events), or specify any time with Time of Day. (Note the Repeat options include Daily, Weekly, and Monthly.) Then tap Next.
   
   

6. Tap Add Action, then use the search field to look up "Watch."
7. Select Set Watch Face from the results list of watch actions.
8. On the Actions screen, immediately below "Set active watch face to," tap the word Face in blue.
9. Choose the watch face you'd like to change to at the specified time. Note the list here uses Apple's official names for its watch faces, so you may see some duplicates. That's because the list corresponds to the current watch faces arranged on your watch, with the top watch face in the list being the one you see when you've swiped to the first (leftmost) face on your Apple Watch.
   
   

10. Tap Next when the Actions screen reappears, then toggle off the switch next to Ask Before Running and confirm by tapping Don't Ask at the prompt.
11. Tap Done to finish.
    

You should now see the automation you just created on the Automation screen. You don't have to do anything else – your watch face should now automatically change at the time you set.

How to Automatically Change Your Apple Watch Face Based on Location

1. Launch the Shortcuts app on your ‌iPhone‌.
2. Tap the Automation tab at the bottom of the screen.
3. Tap Create Personal Automation.
4. Select Arrive or Leave, depending on when you want the watch face to change.
5. Choose the Location, and select it either by searching or entering the address, then tap Next.
   
   

6. Tap Add Action, then use the search field to look up "Watch."
7. Select Set Watch Face from the results list of watch actions.
8. On the Actions screen, immediately below "Set active watch face to," tap the word Face in blue.
9. Choose the watch face you'd like to change to when arriving at or leaving the specified location. Note the list here uses Apple's official names for its watch faces, so you may see some duplicates. That's because the list corresponds to the current watch faces arranged on your watch, with the top watch face in the list being the one you see when you've swiped to the first (leftmost) face on your Apple Watch.
   
   

10. Tap Next when the Actions screen reappears.
11. Tap Done on the last screen to finish.
    

You should now see the automation you just created on the Automation screen. You don't have to do anything else – your watch face should now automatically change either when you leave or arrive at the location you selected.

These two automations barely touch the surface of what is possible with the Shortcuts app. For example, you can create actions using predefined shortcuts in order to build complex automations that take in all manner of conditions and variables for when your watch face should change. Ultimately, the complexity of your automations depends on how much time you want to invest in discovering what's possible, and the only limit is your imagination.

Belkin today announced the launch of the CONNECT Pro Thunderbolt 4 Dock, which is a docking station that offers Thunderbolt 4 connectivity for 40Gb/s total bandwidth and support for fast charging, dual display support, and more.

The CONNECT Pro Thunderbolt 4 Dock is compatible with both Macs and PCs, offering 12 power, data, and video ports. It includes two Thunderbolt 4 ports (one upstream and one downstream), two HDMI 2.0 ports, a USB-C port, two USB 3.1 USB-A ports, two USB 2.0 USB-A ports, an SD card slot, a Gigabit Ethernet port, and a 3.5mm audio jack.

It supports a single 8K display at up to 30Hz, two 4K displays at up to 60Hz, and three displays with select laptop models. The USB-C port offers PD 3.0 and supports up to 90W for charging connected devices.

Alongside the CONNECT Pro Thunderbolt 4 Dock, Belkin today also debuted a Thunderbolt 4 cable that works alongside it. The cable offers 40Gb/s bandwidth and 100W Power Delivery.

Belkin's CONNECT Pro Thunderbolt 4 Dock can be purchased from either Amazon.com or the Belkin website for $400, while the Thunderbolt 4 Cable is available from the Belkin website for $45 to $70.

Chipolo is an item tracking company that has embraced Apple's Find My network, and last May, it came out with one of the first Find My-enabled third party accessories, the Chipolo ONE Spot. Identical to the AirTag in almost every way, the Chipolo ONE Spot didn't have an edge over Apple's own item tracking solution, but Chipolo's $35 CARD Spot accessory beats out the ‌AirTag‌ when it comes to wallet tracking.

Design wise, the CARD Spot isn't much to look at because it's a simple credit card-sized black plastic insert that's meant to fit inside a wallet. It's got a Chipolo logo on one side along with a small button for pairing, along with some regulatory information on the other side.

Aside from that, it's just a plain black card, but what's impressive is its thinness. It measures in at 2.4mm thick, and the internet says that the average credit card is 0.76mm thick, so the CARD Spot is a little thicker than three credit cards. Based on my testing, that's accurate.

Comparing the CARD Spot to the credit cards in my wallet, it's just about the thickness of three of them stacked up on top of each other. So if your wallet fits a stack of three credit cards, it should fit the CARD Spot as well.

I have a relatively small card wallet that I use that holds about 10 cards and that is not sized for cash or other add-ins, and the CARD Spot fits inside perfectly in one of the slots. For those who use super slim wallets (like Apple's MagSafe Wallet), it may still be too thick, but I think many people will find it a better solution than anything ‌AirTag‌ related on the market.

There have been wallet inserts that accommodate an ‌AirTag‌, but the ‌AirTag‌ is much thicker than the CARD Spot, so they're not a great option. I can fit the CARD Spot in my small wallet, but it definitely does not fit an ‌AirTag‌. The CARD Spot offers IPX5 water resistance, so if your wallet accidentally gets wet, the tracker won't die on you. IPX5 is a low-pressure jet spray, so it still can't be dunked.

The major downside to the Chipolo CARD Spot is that there's no replaceable battery. It's designed to last for up to two years, but when the battery dies, the entire thing needs to be replaced. If you register your CARD Spot, Chipolo will send a 50 percent discount code for a new CARD Spot after two years and recycle the old one for free.

Like the AirTags and other ‌Find My‌ accessories, the CARD Spot can be located right alongside other Apple devices in the ‌Find My‌ app under the "Items" tab. You can give it a name and an emoji icon so it's easier to see at a glance.

The CARD Spot is compatible with the ‌Find My‌ network, which means it is able to leverage the Bluetooth connection of nearby Apple devices when lost to transmit its location back to you privately. It also supports "Notify When Left Behind," so if you're out somewhere and walk away from your wallet with the Chipolo CARD Spot inside, you'll be alerted.

Like AirTags, the CARD Spot is able to play a sound that's fairly loud at 105db so you can locate it nearby, and it has a 200 foot range for the sound option. There is no Precision Finding because it does not have U1 chip integration, and it's worth noting that this is an iPhone-only solution because it only works with the ‌Find My‌ app.

All ‌Find My‌ accessories have the same safety protections as the AirTags, so if a Chipolo CARD Spot is separated from its owner, it will send unknown item alerts and begin to play sounds after an 8 to 24 hour period.

Bottom Line

The Chipolo CARD Spot is the best wallet tracking device that I've used to date. It's thin enough to fit inside of most wallets and it offers all of the ‌Find My‌ benefits of an ‌AirTag‌ without the bulk. Compared to in-wallet solutions that use an actual ‌AirTag‌, the CARD Spot is the superior option.

When it comes to price, the CARD Spot is $35, so it's $6 more expensive than the ‌AirTag‌ and $7 more expensive than the ONE Spot, but the convenience of having a slim tracker for the wallet will be worth the premium for some people. The major downside is that it needs to be replaced every two years, but $17.50 per year for peace of mind is a small price to pay, plus Chipolo has a discounted replacement program so the multi-year cost is lower.

How to Buy

The CARD Spot can be preordered from the Chipolo website for $35, and orders will ship out in April. There is a discounted two-pack available for $60, which drops the price to $30 per CARD Spot, and Chipolo also offers a bundle that includes a CARD Spot and a two Chipolo ONE Spots for $77.

Apple is finally catching up to demand for its latest 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro, with wait times for both models in lower-end configurations substantially improving over the last month in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada.

As MacRumors reported last month, across Apple's entire MacBook Pro line, customers were facing at least several weeks before they were estimated to receive either their 14-inch or 16-inch MacBook Pro. Since then, Apple has significantly caught up with demand, as now, customers can get their hands on either model in their baseline configurations in two weeks or less.

Compared to just a few weeks ago when both baseline models of the 14-inch and 16-inch laptops were seeing wait times of six to eight weeks, estimated deliveries for both with the M1 Pro chip are now just five to seven days or up to at least two weeks, at the time of writing. However, the supply improvement stops short with only the ‌M1 Pro‌ chip, as M1 Max configurations of both sizes remain limited, with estimates indicating orders won’t arrive until at least early April.

We've tracked a few deals on the 14-inch MacBook Pro over the past few weeks, but discounts on the 16-inch version of the 2021 MacBook Pro have been less frequent. However, today Amazon has the 16-inch MacBook Pro (M1 Pro, 16-core GPU, 512GB) for $2,299.00, down from $2,499.00.

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.

At $200 off, this is the best price we've ever seen on this model of the 16-inch MacBook Pro. It's only available in Space Gray, and at the time of writing only Amazon is offering this discount.

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.

Update: This deal has expired.

Apple's mixed-reality headset has again been rumored to feature advanced micro OLED displays, Korea's ET News reports.

Micro-OLED displays are built directly on to chip wafers rather than a glass substrate, which results in displays that are thinner, smaller, and more power efficient. They allow for pixel sizes in the range of four to 20 micrometers, compared to 40 to 300 micrometers with standard OLED panels. Micro OLED displays have a much faster microseconds response time, making it more suitable for augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) applications.

A report from The Elec last year claimed that Apple's headset could feature high resolution micro OLED displays with up to 3,000 pixels-per-inch. The insightful Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has also said that micro OLED displays will facilitate the headset's "see-through AR experience," as well as immersive VR.

ET News says that the micro OLED displays will be supplied by TSMC, the supplier behind all of the A-series and M-series chips used in Apple's devices. Nikkei previously claimed that Apple has partnered with TSMC to develop "ultra-advanced" micro OLED displays for "upcoming augmented reality devices" at a secret facility in Taiwan. On the other hand, other reports from Japan and display analyst Ross Young have been consistent in the claim that Apple will use micro OLED displays from Sony, rather than TSMC, so it is not entirely clear what is going on in Apple's supply chain.

Young said that Apple's headset will feature two Sony micro OLED displays and one AMOLED panel. The micro OLED displays will be the main displays for the headset, but it is not yet known exactly what the AMOLED display will be used for. Modern VR headsets do not use AMOLED technology because the pixel density is too low, so it is possible that Apple could use it for low-resolution peripheral vision or on the outside of the device.

ET News also reiterated the recent report that the headset has allegedly completed engineering validation testing and is set to feature the M1 chip or a variant of it.

Meanwhile, ET News claims that Samsung is planning to launch an AR device with "hologram" technology and a Exynos chip. This comes after reports of Samsung significantly falling behind in the rush to bring AR and VR devices to market, partially due to its "obsession" with foldable smartphones. Samsung is now said to be co-developing its AR device with Microsoft and DigiLens. The device has reportedly reached the prototyping stage and the company is rumored to be mulling potential launch dates.

While Apple's headset was widely believed to be scheduled to launch this year, a recent report from Bloomberg's Mark Gurman cast doubt on the chances of the device emerging in 2022 due to development problems, with 2023 now looking more likely.

Apple Stores and Apple Authorized Service Providers will soon be able to repair Face ID on the iPhone XS and newer without having to replace the whole device, according to an internal memo obtained by MacRumors from a reliable source.

Apple said authorized technicians will soon have access to a new TrueDepth Camera service part containing all Face ID and front camera modules, allowing for same-unit repairs. Apple said the move will help to reduce the number of whole-unit repairs completed, as part of the company's commitment to reduce the carbon footprint of its products.

For customers, same-unit Face ID repairs could be more affordable than a whole-unit replacement, but the memo did not include pricing details.

Apple introduced Face ID on the iPhone X in 2017, but that device appears to be excluded from the new same-unit repair process for the TrueDepth system. The new service part will be available for the iPhone XS and newer.

Apple Stores and Apple Authorized Service Providers will be able to use the Apple Service Toolkit diagnostic tool to determine when to perform a same-unit Face ID repair instead of a whole-unit replacement or an "iPhone Rear System" repair. Apple said related documentation and training will be made available at a later date.

After Xiaomi pledged to aggressively challenge Apple earlier this month, Chinese smartphone brand Oppo is also now planning to directly compete with Apple on a global scale with a wave of premium devices, starting with the newly announced Find X5 (via South China Morning Post).

Oppo is currently the world's fourth-biggest smartphone vendor, but following its merger with OnePlus, the company reportedly has renewed zeal to create high-end smartphones that target international markets. The company is planning to use its Find series of devices and custom-designed chips to push into the premium segment that is currently dominated by Apple and Samsung, according to Zhang Zhouchuan, Oppo vice-president of overseas sales and service.

Oppo today announced its latest flagship smartphone, the Find X5, featuring the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 and the company's custom-designed MariSilicon X image processor that it unveiled in December 2021. The chip is specifically designed to boost camera capabilities and improve low-light video performance. Pricing for the Find X5 series has not yet been announced, but it is expected to be among the priciest devices ever sold by the company, pitting it directly against the iPhone 13 and Galaxy S22 lineups.

Beyond the MariSilicon X image processor in the Find X5, Oppo says that it is designing other custom chips to improve specific functions, including one for improving fast charging. While the company has been hit by the global chip shortage, Zhang said that it has allocated its chip inventory to prioritize premium models in key markets and is expecting supply issues to ease in mid-2022.

Oppo anticipates that sales of its high-end models, including the Find and OnePlus series, will double year on year in 2022 thanks to rapid growth in Western Europe and South America. Like Xiaomi, the company is also seeking to fill the void left by Huawei, which was previously China's largest smartphone vendor before being forced to pull out of the U.S. market.

Born on February 24, 1955, if Steve Jobs were alive today, he would celebrate his 67th birthday. Jobs, the co-founder and former CEO of Apple, tragically died in 2011 after his battle with pancreatic cancer. He was just 56.

Apple under Jobs unarguably changed the world, from the launch of the very first Apple computer in 1976 to the launch of the iPod, iPhone, and iPad. Jobs founded and ran the company alongside Steve Wozniak in 1976 but left the company in 1985 to create NeXT. Apple acquired NeXT in 1997, at which point Jobs rejoined the company and would remain CEO until he died in 2011.

After rejoining the company, Jobs oversaw the launch of multiple product launches that propelled Apple to become one of the biggest tech companies in the world. Driven initially by the Mac and iPod, Apple became a truly global hit following the launch of the ‌iPhone‌ in 2007. Jobs led Apple with a culture of innovation, which the company continues to operate under today.

After he died in 2011, Tim Cook, who previously served as Apple's head of operations, became CEO. Cook has said that Jobs' thinking, unwavering perfectionism, dedication to hard work, and lust for innovation are the "foundation of Apple."

Today also happens to be MacRumors' 22nd birthday. The site was founded on February 24, 2000, by Arnold Kim, just three years after Jobs returned to Apple. In its 22 years, MacRumors has grown right alongside Apple from what started as a side project to becoming the number one Apple news site on the internet.

Today and always, we're grateful to all of our dedicated readers, passionate community members, and volunteers, and we look forward to bringing you Apple news and rumors for the next 22 years. 🥂

Apple has previewed Apple Al Maryah Island, a new retail store from the company in Abu Dhabi's financial district that is set to open this Friday.

Elevated above steps of cascading water, Apple Al Maryah Island introduces several new store design elements that are reflective of its surroundings. "Absolute Black" granite stone has been used to pave two ramps that cut through the water and lead inside the store, while a golden carbon fiber roof, vaguely reminiscent of a MacBook lid, can be seen from above.

Visitors who enter from The Galleria Al Maryah Island Mall walk through a mirrored stainless steel portal surrounded by water jets that cascade over the exterior glass walls, while a 72-foot-long mirrored foil ceiling creates a kaleidoscopic effect, with water falling down the walls, and reflections seen above.

"We couldn't be more thrilled to open the stunning Apple Al Maryah Island this Friday," said Deirdre O'Brien, Apple's senior vice president of Retail + People. "Our talented team is ready to welcome and delight customers from this vibrant community to our newest location in the Emirates."

The store opens to first visitors on Friday, February 25, at 5 p.m. local time, and Apple has planned three special Today at Apple sessions that draw inspiration from the surroundings and creative culture of Abu Dhabi, including a Photo, Music, and Art Walk. For those seeking a closer view, YouTuber Emkwan has a first-look video of the store.

A leaked roadmap by Intel suggests that the company is developing a new lineup of CPUs that are targeted at outperforming Apple's 14-inch MacBook Pro with the M1 Pro and M1 Max chips by late 2023, or early 2024, which would be almost two years after the new chips and laptop made their debut.

The roadmap by Intel, initially leaked by AdoredTV and interpreted by Wccftech, explicitly states that Intel wants to compete with Apple's 14-inch MacBook Pro with its Arrow Lake series. According to the roadmap, Intel's 15th generation Arrow Lake processors could be ready to ship by late 2023, or early 2024 with a priority on delivering high-performance while using minimal energy.

With Arrow Lake, it looks like Intel is prioritizing mobile over desktop first and while there will be both Arrow Lake-S and Arrow Lake-P CPUs, the company is aiming to specifically produce its 15th Gen mobility CPUs first to tackle Apple's next-generation MacBook 14" laptops. Based on the leaked roadmap, it looks like we will see the first engineering samples ready by late 2022 and early 2023 with QS chips shipping out in Q3 2023 and final production beginning the same quarter. And lastly, the CPUs will be ready for RTS (Ready To Ship) in Q4 2023. So this means we are looking at a late 2023 or early 2024 launch for the next-generation Arrow Lake mobility CPU lineup.

The roadmap also says that Intel will utilize TSMC's 3nm process. Apple currently utilizes the 5nm process for its latest chips and is expected to adopt the 3nm chip architecture in 2023 with the "M3" Apple silicon chip and A17 chip in the iPhone 15.

Intel has already beaten Apple's ‌M1 Max‌ chip on paper if you ignore high-energy consumption and poor battery life. Benchmarks show that Intel's latest Core i9 processors received a higher score than Apple's ‌M1 Max‌ chip in tests, but that 4% increase in performance is offset by a marked reduction in battery life compared to Apple's chips. Tests show that a laptop with Intel's latest i9 Core chip only lasts six hours for video playback. In comparison, Apple advertises the latest 16-inch MacBook Pro as getting up to 21 hours of battery life for offline video playback.

Ever since Apple announced its transition away from Intel during the summer of 2020, it has been slowly transitioning its Macs to custom-made chips. So far, Apple has released four laptop computers with Apple silicon, alongside two desktop computers. In just a few weeks, Apple is expected to announce at least one new Mac with Apple silicon, with possibilities being a new high-end Mac mini and an update to the low-end 13-inch MacBook Pro.

Amid reports of Apple working on a notebook with a foldable display, how exactly could such a device be implemented?

Earlier this week, Display Supply Chain Consultants (DSCC) analyst Ross Young claimed that Apple is exploring the possibility of offering notebooks with foldable displays. The company is said to be discussing such devices with displays around 20-inches in size with its suppliers. This display size could allow for 4K resolutions or higher, Young added.

Young has revealed a wide range of accurate insights into Apple's plans, such as the iPhone 13 Pro's ProMotion display, the display size and bezels of the sixth-generation iPad mini, the 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pro's mini-LED displays with ProMotion, and more, so his reports are worth taking seriously. He says that the foldable notebook could compose a whole new product category for Apple, but with so little known about the mysterious new form factor at this very early stage, there appear to be three main options for how Apple could conceive of the device.

All-Screen MacBook

Perhaps the most obvious implementation for a foldable Apple notebook is an all-screen MacBook with a display that spans the entire interior of the clamshell design. Young appeared to speculate that this implementation could result in a dual-use product, saying that it may be able to work as a notebook with a full-size on-screen keyboard when folded and as a monitor when unfolded and used with an external keyboard.

There are several drawbacks to the likelihood of this design, including Apple's well-known reticence to offer a touchscreen-based Mac, with company executives often publicly shooting down the possibility of it ever offering such a device. For example, former Apple design chief Sir Jony Ive has said that a touchscreen Mac would "not be a particularly useful or appropriate application of Multi-Touch."

macOS is heavily optimized for indirect trackpad or mouse input, rather than touch. In 2020, Apple engineering chief Craig Federighi said that Apple designed and evolved the look of macOS in a way that felt comfortable and natural across a family of devices, and something like touch is not remotely considered. This is not to mention the potential ergonomic issues of a touchscreen keyboard and trackpad. As a result, an all-touchscreen MacBook seems to be very much out of step with the company's thinking in recent years.

Foldable Display With Physical Keyboard

A more out of left field form factor could be a MacBook with a vertically longer display that folds at the hinge and meets the device's physical keyboard. This solution could offer the benefits of a larger display with room for peripheral on-screen content, while still retaining the benefits of a physical keyboard and trackpad.

The design could also offer a way to revive the Touch Bar without sacrificing physical function keys. In another interview, Federighi explained that the MacBook Pro form factor with the Touch Bar avoids the ergonomic problems caused by other touchscreen laptops:

We really feel that the ergonomics of using a Mac are that your hands are rested on a surface, and that lifting your arm up to poke a screen is a pretty fatiguing thing to do.

Regardless of whether or not the Touch Bar is revived, extending the MacBook's display in this way would abide by Apple's ergonomic demands of not lifting one's arms to touch the screen while offering a new location for touch input.

In this instance, the 20-inch display size could be more plausible, potentially offering an even larger MacBook Pro to sit above the 16-inch model in the lineup, akin to the 17-inch MacBook Pro that the company offered between 2006 and 2011.

Just a Foldable iPad Pro?

While Young described the device as a "foldable notebook," there is a chance that, if it is an all-screen device, it could actually be a foldable iPad Pro. After all, a touch-based all-screen notebook running macOS would likely cannibalize the ‌iPad Pro‌, so the device running iPadOS could make more sense.

This thinking would also seemingly line up to Apple's current outlook. When asked about touchscreen Macs last year, John Ternus, Apple's senior vice president of hardware engineering, pointed to the iPad:

We make the world's best touch computer on an iPad. It's totally optimized for that. And the Mac is totally optimized for indirect input. We haven't really felt a reason to change that.

There have been sketchy rumors of Apple working on a foldable iPad Pro in the past, so the idea would not be totally unheard of.

It is also noteworthy that this implementation could also line up with rumors of a larger iPad Pro. Last summer, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman suggested that Apple was working on even bigger iPad models that could further "blur the lines" between tablet and laptop:

I'm told that Apple has engineers and designers exploring larger iPads that could hit stores a couple of years down the road at the earliest. They're unlikely for next year—with Apple's attention on a redesigned iPad Pro in the current sizes for 2022—and it's possible they never come at all. But a big iPad would be the perfect device for many people, including me, and would continue to blur the lines between tablet and laptop.

Now, at least two Apple suppliers, BOE and LG Display, are preparing to supply Apple with OLED displays in larger sizes for future iPad models.

Larger display sizes may bring the ‌iPad‌ closer the Mac than ever before, but there would likely also need to be software improvements to properly take advantage of the larger display. Apple last updated the ‌iPad Pro‌ in April 2021, but some users have complained that iPadOS does not take full advantage of the hardware the ‌iPad Pro‌ has to offer, making it more challenging to replace a Mac than it could be.

Gurman opined that Apple will ultimately need to allow Mac apps and a Mac-like multitasking experience with more flexible arrangements of app windows on the ‌iPad Pro‌. By the time even larger iPads come to market, it is likely that further iterations of iPadOS may improve the experience to take better advantage of the ‌iPad‌'s hardware.

Release Date

Young said that the launch timeframe for Apple's foldable notebook is "likely later" than 2025, with 2026 or 2027 being floated as reasonable possibilities, but there is still a chance Apple discontinue the project long before then.

Meanwhile, Young said that Apple's long-rumored foldable iPhone has been delayed until 2025, a significant delay compared to previous predictions that the device would launch in 2023 or 2024.

Amazon today expanded its sale on the 24-inch M1 iMac (8-core GPU, 256GB) to include more colors, available for $1,349.99, down from $1,499.00. This sale price won't be seen until you add the iMac to your cart and receive an automatic coupon.

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.

Colors available at this sale price include Blue, Green, Silver, Pink, Orange, Purple, and Yellow. If you don't see the coupon on the listing, be sure the iMac is sold by Amazon on the right side of the screen. If not, you can switch to Amazon's listing by clicking on the "New and Used" button to see every listing.

This sale is a match of the previous all-time low price seen on the 8-core GPU, 256GB M1 iMac, and it's the first time we've seen every color available at a discount.

The entry-level 7-core GPU, 256GB M1 iMac is also on sale for $1,229.00, down from $1,299.00. This is a second-best price, and it's only available in Silver as of writing. You can find the same sale matched at B&H Photo this week as well.

You can keep track of ongoing sales on Apple's iMac line by visiting our Best iMac Deals guide. There, we keep track of the best iMac offers from Amazon, Adorama, B&H Photo, and other retailers, so be sure to check back often if you're shopping for an iMac for the first time, or thinking of upgrading.

Apple would rather pay a maximum of €50 million in fines than address concerns brought forward by the Dutch competition authority regarding developer access to third-party payment methods on the App Store, the EU's head of digital policy, Margrethe Vestager, has said.

During a speech about the digital economy and privacy (via TechCrunch), Vestager said that Apple "essentially prefers paying periodic fines, rather than comply with a decision of the Dutch Competition Authority on the terms and conditions for third parties to access" the ‌App Store‌.

Effective enforcement, which includes the Commission having sufficient resources to do so, will be key to ensure compliance. Some gatekeepers may be tempted to play for time or try to circumvent the rules. Apple's conduct in the Netherlands these days may be an example. As we understand it, Apple essentially prefers paying periodic fines, rather than comply with a decision of the Dutch Competition Authority on the terms and conditions for third parties to access its App Store. And that will also be one of the obligations included in the DMA.

Last month, in compliance with a ruling from the Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM), Apple announced it would allow dating apps on the Dutch ‌App Store‌ to use third-party payment methods for in-app purchases. In order to do so, developers are forced to keep two separate app binaries, one for their Dutch customers and another for customers elsewhere.

Additionally, Apple says it will collect a 27% commission on all purchases made with third-party payment methods, 3% less than the typical 30% cut the company takes when developers use the ‌App Store‌'s in-app purchase system. Apple's 27% commission is in addition to developers paying for a third-party payment processing platform, and any related charges of that process.

Shortly after Apple announced its plan, the authority said it would investigate the changes and determine whether or not Apple was abiding by the ruling.

The agency ultimately ruled that Apple's plans are not sufficient in addressing its concerns around the App Store. Consequently, the authority said it would fine Apple €5 million per week up to a maximum of €50 million until it complies. Apple has so far been fined five times, equating to a total of €25 million.

Apple has "refused to put forward any serious proposals," the ACM has said. The ACM added that Apple’s behavior is "regrettable" and it has "clearly explained to Apple how they can comply with ACM’s requirements." Apple's announced plans create "too many barriers for dating-app providers that wish to use their own payment systems," and it must "set reasonable conditions for the use of its services," the ACM continued.

Following a few deals on the cellular models of the iPad mini 6 earlier this year, Amazon now has the entry-level 64GB Wi-Fi iPad mini 6 for $459.00, down from $499.00. This sale is only available in Space Gray, and it's in stock and ready to ship from Amazon today.

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Compared to previous sales, this is an all-time low price on this model of the iPad mini 6. The Starlight color is also being discounted on Amazon, but its sale isn't as steep and is priced at $474.00.

Anyone looking for more storage can get the 256GB Wi-Fi iPad mini 6 for $599.00, down from $649.00. This is another sale that we started tracking a few weeks ago, and it's the best price we've ever seen on this model as well.

For even more iPad deals, head to our full Best Deals guide for iPad. In that guide we track the best discounts online for iPad, iPad mini, iPad Air, and iPad Pro.

Update: The deal on the 64GB iPad mini has now expired.

Apple has praised Dutch police as well as customers and staff at an Amsterdam store where a hostage situation yesterday came to a close with no injuries to the public and the suspect detained in custody.

In a statement obtained by TechCrunch, Apple said that all employees and customers are safe after the "terrifying experience" at Apple Amsterdam in Leidseplein on Tuesday.

"We want to thank local law enforcement for their exceptional work and ongoing investigation," said the statement, provided by an Apple spokesperson. "Our teams and customers took swift action and showed incredible strength and resolve today, and we are so thankful for the support and care they've shown each other under such challenging circumstances."

The statement came hours after local police resolved the hostage situation at the flagship store, which saw a man in camouflage gear and a balaclava fire a gun at least four times and then hold at least one person hostage for several hours before being apprehended.

A photo shared by local newspaper Het Parool showed the hostage taker sitting opposite the hostage, who appeared handcuffed with his hands behind his back. Several other people were also reported to have been inside when the incident began, but managed to escape unharmed.

The attack, which lasted from around 5:30 p.m. local time until 10:45 p.m., saw the store cordoned off and people in surrounding buildings ordered to stay indoors. According to police, the hostage-taker contacted authorities during the incident and demanded 200 million euros ($227 million) in cryptocurrency and a safe exit from the Apple store.

AT5 Echt Amsterdams Nieuws reported that the standoff came to an end when the hostage-taker requested water which was taken into the store by a robot, at which point the hostage attempted to run to safety. As the suspect chased after the hostage, police on the scene hit the running suspect with an armored BMW X5 and then checked him for explosives using a robot, which confirmed none were present.

According to the police, the suspect is a 27-year-old Amsterdam resident who sent selfies to the local press during the incident that appeared to show him wearing a bomb vest. The suspect was in possession of both an automatic weapon and a handgun. It's still unknown what prompted the incident, but he is believed to have acted alone.

Apple has added Dutch language voice recognition support for Siri in the latest HomePod 15.4 beta, further preparing the HomePod mini for release in the Netherlands in the near future.

The addition of voice recognition, spotted by iCulture, means ‌HomePod‌ or ‌HomePod mini‌ will be able to identify who is talking to it in a Dutch-speaking multi-person household so they can make personal requests based on their own data. The feature builds on the inclusion of Dutch language support for ‌Siri‌ in December.

In addition to the Netherlands, the ‌HomePod mini‌ will likely launch in at least four more countries in 2022, including Belgium, Sweden, Switzerland, and Russia, as the speaker also gained support for languages spoken in those countries in the December update.

The previous ‌HomePod‌ 15.3 software update added ‌Siri‌ voice recognition support for up to six users in a home in English (India) and Italian.

First released in October 2020, the ‌HomePod mini‌ is currently available in the United States, Australia, Austria, Canada, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, Spain, Taiwan, and the United Kingdom.

Apple began offering the ‌HomePod mini‌ in yellow, orange, and blue colors in November 2021.

Apple is in preliminary talks with new suppliers about backend orders for its first in-house 5G modem chips for iPhones, according to a new report from DigiTimes.

Apple is reportedly negotiating with ASE Technology, which owns Advanced Semiconductor Engineering (ASE) and Siliconware Precision Industries (SPIL), to package some of its first self-designed 5G modem chips.

The report notes that ASE and SPIL have both been Qualcomm's partners for packaging 5G modem chips for iPhones, including its latest Snapdragon X65 5G modem-RF system now being manufactured at Samsung Electronics.

Apple is estimated to ship at least 200 million new iPhones in 2023, and will surely rely on multiple partners to handle backend processing of its in-house 5G modem chips and RF transceiver ICs, based on its regular supply chain management policy for its devices, the sources added.

Apple has already lined up its main chip manufacturing partner TSMC to begin producing the majority of its new in-house modem chips, which are expected to appear in the 2023 iPhone.

Apple and TSMC are currently trialing production of Apple's in-house modem designs using TSMC's 5-nanometer process, but that they will shift to the more advanced 4-nanometer technology for mass production.

TSMC is already aiming to use 4-nanometer technology for the main A-series chip in the 2022 ‌‌iPhone‌‌ lineup, with 2022 iPads and 2023 iPhones moving to 3-nanometer technology for their A-series chips.

The move, which has been under development for several years and enhanced by Apple's 2019 acquisition of the majority of Intel's modem business, will allow Apple to shift away from Qualcomm as a supplier for the important chips that support cellular connectivity.