MacRumors

Apple is reportedly cutting production for the new third-generation iPhone SE just weeks after launch due to uncertainty caused by current global conflict and alleged low demand, according to a report from Nikkei Asia citing unnamed sources.

According to the report, Apple has informed suppliers to cut back on production of the ‌iPhone SE‌ for this quarter by as much as two to three million units, citing "weaker-than-expected demand."

Unlike the cut in ‌iPhone SE‌ production caused partly by low demand, Apple is also cutting down on the production of the iPhone 13 series, but sources familiar with the matter told Nikkei Asia this cutback is due to seasonal demand change. Per the report, Apple is also cutting the production of AirPods but fails to specify which model or models.

Coinciding with the report, reliable Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said today in a tweet that he is cutting estimates on shipments of the new ‌iPhone SE‌ from 25 to 30 million to around 15 to 20 million units for 2022. Kuo said the lower shipments were a result of low demand.

Apple released the new ‌iPhone SE‌ earlier this month with the same 4.7-inch form factor as the previous model but with the addition of 5G. The new ‌iPhone SE‌ is the only ‌iPhone‌ in the lineup that still features a physical Home Button and Touch ID but now benefits from the faster and more energy-efficient A15 Bionic chip. The ‌iPhone SE‌ starts at $429 with 64GB of storage.

See our roundup to learn everything you need to about Apple's latest ‌iPhone‌.

Update: Two Apple suppliers responsible for AirPods have refuted Nikkei Asia's report that production has been cut, according to posts shared on Twitter by analyst Ming-Chu Kuo.

Apple TV+ film "CODA" has won Best Picture at the 94th Academy Awards, becoming the first film from a streaming service to ever win the award.

Academy Award for Best Picture category:

• "Belfast"
• "CODA" — Winner
• "Don't Look Up"
• "Drive My Car"
• "Dune"
• "King Richard"
• "Licorice Pizza"
• "Nightmare Alley"
• "The Power of the Dog"
• "West Side Story"

"CODA" cast and crew also won multiple Academy Awards. Troy Kotsur became the first deaf male actor to win an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, while "CODA" writer and director Siân Heder won in the Best Adapted Screenplay category.

"On behalf of everyone at Apple, we are so grateful to the Academy for the honors bestowed on 'CODA' this evening," said Zack Van Amburg, Apple's co-head of Worldwide Video. "We join our teams all over the world in celebrating Siân, Troy, the producers, and the entire cast and crew for bringing such a powerful representation of the Deaf community to audiences, and breaking so many barriers in the process."

"CODA" revolves around a young woman named Ruby, the sole hearing member of a deaf family. Using sign language, Ruby acts as an interpreter for her parents while working for her family's struggling fishing boat business. After joining her high school's choir club, Ruby finds herself torn between family obligations and pursuing her dreams.

Ruby is played by Emilia Jones, with other family members played by Marlee Matlin, Troy Kotsur, and Daniel Durant.

Apple acquired the rights to "CODA" for a reported $25 million after the film premiered at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival. The film, produced by Vendome Pictures and Pathé, has been streaming on Apple TV+ since August 2021.

The increased size of the iPhone 14 Pro and ‌iPhone 14‌ Pro Max's rear camera array is due to all-new 48-megapixel Wide camera systems, according to reputable Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.

In a tweet, Kuo responded to leaked schematics recently shared by Max Weinbach. The schematics showed that the rear camera plateau of the ‌iPhone 14‌ Pro models will increase by about five percent in each dimension, increasing from a width of 35.01mm to 36.73mm and a height of 36.24mm to 38.21mm. The bump itself is also set to protrude further from the device, increasing from 3.60mm on the iPhone 13 Pro to 4.17mm on the ‌iPhone 14‌ Pro.

Kuo said that "the main reason for the larger and more prominent camera bump" is due to "upgrading the rear camera to 48MP." He added that the diagonal length of the ‌iPhone‌'s contact image sensor (CIS) is set to increase by to 25 to 35 percent with the jump to 48MP. Likewise, the height of the camera's lens system will increase by five to ten percent.

Along with the replacement of the notch with a new, pill and hole-punch TrueDepth camera array design, the 48MP Wide camera is among the ‌iPhone 14‌ Pro's most widely rumored features, having been repeatedly mentioned by Kuo, Taiwanese research firm TrendForce, and Haitong International Securities analyst Jeff Pu.

The 48MP camera system is expected to be limited to the ‌iPhone 14‌ Pro models and allow for 8K video recording, offering a significant upgrade over the ‌iPhone‌ 13 Pro's 12MP camera and 4K video recording capabilities. High-resolution 8K videos recorded with the ‌iPhone 14‌ Pro are also said to be be suitable for viewing on Apple's long-rumored AR/VR headset.

Kuo has previously said that he believes that the camera quality of the ‌iPhone 14‌ Pro models will "elevate mobile phone camera photography to a new level."

Bloomberg's Mark Gurman expects next-generation iPad Pro models to launch in the fall of this year, according to his latest newsletter.

In his "Power On" newsletter, Gurman speculated that since Apple did not launch new iPad Pros this month at its "Peek Performance" event, it is reasonable to now expect new models to arrive between September and November this year. In a previous report, Gurman said that Apple was planning "the wildest array of new hardware products in its history" for the fall of 2022, and this selection of new releases now looks increasingly likely to include updated ‌iPad Pro‌ models.

As the MacRumors Buyer's Guide shows, new ‌iPad Pro‌ models have launched in March 2016, June 2017, October 2018, March 2020, and April 2021, meaning that Apple seems to take between 13 and 16 months to update the product line. Gurman's expectation seems to suggest a longer timeframe for the ‌iPad Pro‌ this year, postulating that its launch could be up to 19 months after the release of the current model. This also means that the current, 2021 ‌iPad‌ Pros could be among the longest-lasting models to date.

There have been few rumors about the next-generation iPad Pro in recent months, but Gurman affirmed that he expects the new ‌iPad Pro‌ models to feature MagSafe charging, as well as the "M2" chip. The M2 chip is expected to have the same 8-core CPU as the ‌M1‌, but will benefit from speed and efficiency improvements thanks to TSMC's 4-nanometer process. It is also rumored to have additional GPU cores, with 9- and 10-core GPU options, up from the 7- and 8-core GPU options in the ‌‌M1‌‌ chip.

In 2021, Apple sent out digital invitations for its 32nd Worldwide Developers Conference in late March. Given that an all-digital conference is expected to occur again this year rather than an in-person event, we could see Apple send invitations as soon as this week.

Apple last year sent out invitations to developers and the press for WWDC on March 30, with the dates of the conference being June 7 to June 11. During the conference, Apple announced iOS 15 and iPadOS 15, macOS Monterey, watchOS 8, and more.

Apple used to hold its Worldwide Developers Conference in the McEnery Convention Center in San Jose, California, but since 2020, all of Apple's events have been digital with no in-person attendance. It's unclear when the next in-person Apple event might be, but it's likely not to be WWDC this coming June.

During WWDC, Apple will announce iOS and iPadOS 16, macOS 13, watchOS 9, and possibly some new hardware. Apple last announced hardware during WWDC in 2019, when it unveiled the Mac Pro and Pro Display XDR. Apple is working on an updated version of the ‌Mac Pro‌ with Apple silicon which could be announced during WWDC.

Reactions to the new Mac Studio and Studio Display are still coming in now that users have finally gotten the products into their hands, but we're also seeing other news and rumors ramp up as we look toward what's coming later this year and beyond.

One big piece of news this week was the long-awaited debut of digital driver's licenses on the iPhone and Apple Watch. The feature is only available in one U.S. state so far, but more will be coming soon. Otherwise, this week saw a bunch of rumors about future updates to Apple's notebook and iPhone lineups, and a potential new option for how to pay for your Apple products, so read on for all of the details!

Apple Launches iPhone Digital Driver's License Feature in Arizona, More States Coming Soon

Apple this week announced that Arizona residents can now add their driver's license or state ID to the Wallet app on the iPhone and Apple Watch, providing a convenient and contactless way to display proof of identity or age. The feature requires an iPhone 8 or later running iOS 15.4, or an Apple Watch Series 4 or later running watchOS 8.4 or later.

Arizona is the first U.S. state to support IDs in the Wallet app, and 11 other states have committed to offering the feature.

After adding a driver's license or ID to the Wallet app, users can simply tap their iPhone or Apple Watch on an identity reader at select TSA security checkpoints at select airports, including Phoenix Sky Harbor International. The feature is secured by Face ID or Touch ID.

iFixit Tears Down Mac Studio and Studio Display

Repair website iFixit has shared a new video in which it disassembled Apple's new Mac Studio and the companion Studio Display.

iFixit is still working on its traditional, more detailed teardowns, but the video provides a few interesting details about the ‌Mac Studio‌, including that same-capacity storage replacements are possible.

As for the Studio Display, it was discovered this week that the monitor is equipped with 64GB of storage and runs a full version of iOS 15.4.

For even more on the Mac Studio and Studio Display, check out the most recent episode of The MacRumors Show, with special guest Rene Ritchie.

Larger 15-Inch MacBook Expected in 2023

Apple is developing a larger 15-inch MacBook that could be released in 2023, according to research shared by Display Supply Chain Consultants. Follow-up information indicates the display will measure 15.2 inches, but it won't feature mini-LED or 120 Hz ProMotion technology and may not, and sources have differed on whether it will be marketed as a MacBook Air or something else.

In his newsletter last year, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said that Apple considered building a 15-inch MacBook Air, but decided not to move forward with the idea for the "next generation," which suggests that the rumored 2022 MacBook Air with an M2 chip will remain a 13-inch model.

Apple's Studio Display vs. LG's UltraFine 5K Display

When Apple unveiled the Studio Display earlier this month, it immediately drew comparisons to LG's UltraFine 5K Display released in 2016.

Both displays feature a 27-inch screen size with 5K resolution, but the Studio Display has a $300 higher starting price, so we decided to compare the two displays to determine which is a better value.

Watch our Apple Studio Display vs. LG UltraFine 5K Display video to see the winner.

iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max Schematics Leaked

While we are likely still a little under six months away from Apple unveiling its so-called "iPhone 14" lineup, leaked schematics have revealed some potential details about the upcoming Pro models.

Specifically, the schematics show that the "iPhone 14 Pro" and "iPhone 14 Pro Max" could feature a larger rear camera bump and a slightly thicker overall design compared to the iPhone 13 Pro models.

Farther ahead, it was rumored this week that iPhone 15 Pro models could feature an under-display Face ID system developed by Samsung.

Apple Developing Hardware Subscription Service for iPhones and Other Devices

Apple is developing a hardware subscription service that would allow customers to "subscribe" and receive an iPhone or other Apple device as part of their subscription, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.

Apple is said to be aiming to make the process of buying an ‌iPhone‌ or an ‌iPad‌ "on par" with purchasing ‌iCloud‌ storage or paying for an Apple Music subscription, with customers able to subscribe to hardware with their Apple ID and App Store account.

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!

If you've been wondering how the top-end Mac Studio compares to the highest-end MacBook Pro, look no further, because we have a real-world usage comparison that doesn't rely solely on benchmarks. Over on YouTube, MacRumors videographer Dan tested both machines with his real world workflow.

Dan has been using the M1 Max ‌MacBook Pro‌ to edit the MacRumors videos since it came out, and it has met and exceeded his expectations and needs. Obviously, the M1 Ultra does the same, but even for a professional video editor for a tech site, it may be a little bit too much machine for the price.

As a quick example, a standard 4K 10 minute video exported in 4 minutes and 50 seconds on the ‌M1 Max‌ ‌MacBook Pro‌, and three minutes on the ‌M1 Ultra‌ ‌Mac Studio‌. An hour long podcast exported in 26 minutes on the ‌MacBook Pro‌, and just over 14 minutes on the ‌M1 Ultra‌.

The ‌M1 Ultra‌ is definitely a time saver, but the ‌M1 Max‌ is already pretty good compared to prior Intel chips used in machines like the Mac Pro. In situations where money is no object, the ‌M1 Ultra‌ is a no brainer, but if budget is a concern, it's worth carefully considering the benefits you get with the ‌M1 Ultra‌ over the ‌M1 Max‌ in the ‌MacBook Pro‌ or the ‌Mac Studio‌.

As for form factor, the ‌Mac Studio‌ has far more ports with up to six Thunderbolt/USB-C ports and four USB-A ports, but you do get a decent number with the ‌MacBook Pro‌, plus the ‌MacBook Pro‌ is obviously the winner when it comes to portability. Choosing between the ‌MacBook Pro‌ and the ‌Mac Studio‌ really comes down to your form factor needs unless you require the maximum power of the ‌M1 Ultra‌ for your workflow.

Make sure to watch Dan's full comparison to see both machines in action and to get his thoughts on how each form factor works for a videographer's workload.

Apple this week suspended its Apple Pay service for the Mir card payment system in Russia, effectively closing a loophole that had allowed Russians to continue to use the ‌Apple Pay‌ service.

According to Reuters, Mir had remained connected to ‌Apple Pay‌ even after Apple restricted the use of the payments service in Russia on March 1 for Mastercard and Visa cardholders.

Russia's National Card Payment System said on Thursday that Mir access had been removed, and Mir cards will no longer work with ‌Apple Pay‌ in the coming days.

"Apple has informed NSPK it is suspending support for Mir cards in the Apple Pay payment service. Starting from March 24, users cannot add new Mir cards to the service. Apple will stop all operations of previously added cards over the next few days," NSPK said on Friday.

Apple Pay support launched for the Mir payment system in July 2021. Mir is Russia's national payment system, with 150 banks issuing Mir cards.

Apple on March 1 ended ‌Apple Pay‌ access in Russia and also stopped all product sales in the country. iTunes and App Store purchases were reportedly halted on March 10.

Apple is again providing stock bonuses to some engineers in order to encourage them to stay with the company, reports Bloomberg. Select hardware and software engineers are receiving bonuses of up to $200k, a rare offering from Apple.

Back in December, Apple provided up to $180,000 in bonuses to select engineers in silicon design, hardware, and operations, while the new bonuses are going to both hardware and software engineers. The source who told Bloomberg about the new round of bonuses said that fewer engineers are receiving the special grant this time around.

The bonuses, ranging from $100,000 to $200,000, have been provided in the form of restricted stock units that are set to vest over the course of four years provided the employees stay with Apple and do not take jobs at other companies.

Apple has been providing bonuses to encourage employee retention and to prevent other companies like Meta from poaching its top talent.

Apple is facing yet another €5 million ($5.5 million) fine in the Netherlands for failing to sufficiently meet recently mandated alternative payment system requirements for dating apps, reports Reuters.

Apple has been fined €45 million ($49.5 million) by the Dutch Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM) to date, with Apple racking up a new fine each week. The ACM initially said that it planned to fine Apple €5 million per week until it hit a maximum fine of €50 million, but now it looks like the total fines could exceed that.

According to Reuters, subsequent fines after the 50 million euro total could be higher, so we will have to wait to see how this situation ultimately plays out.

Following the ruling that required Apple to allow alternate payment methods for dating apps, Apple said that it would comply. Apple ended up reducing its commission on purchases made using third-party payment systems to 27 percent, down from the standard 30 percent, but the ACM was not satisfied.

To get the reduced fee, Apple is requiring developers to maintain separate app binaries for apps that use third-party payments and it is asking developers to submit monthly records of sales so that applicable commission can be tracked.

The ACM is not pleased with Apple's decision to force dating apps to choose between using the standard in-app purchase system or an alternative payment system, and has said that dating apps must be able to offer both options, leading to the series of fines.

Apple has fought the ACM's order, and submitted another proposal this week in an effort to put a stop to the fees. Apple's newest offer does not fully comply with the order, the ACM said today, so the fines will continue.

Acclaimed Apple content creator Rene Ritchie joins us on The MacRumors Show podcast this week to reflect on the all-new Mac Studio and Studio Display now that users have had a chance to spend some time with the machines.

The eighth episode of The MacRumors Show takes a look at the ‌Mac Studio‌ and Studio Display's real-world performance, ports, and pricing, as we try to get to the bottom of exactly who these devices are meant for. We also take a closer look at the mixed to negative reaction to the Studio Display and discuss whether it is justified, and cast an eye toward what could be next for Apple silicon Macs and Apple external displays.

We were glad to be joined by Rene Ritchie, the prolific YouTuber, podcaster, blogger, writer, and all-round Apple content creator. Rene is the former executive editor of iMore, a founding member of video streaming service Nebula, and has been a prominent voice in the Apple space for over a decade. Business Insider has said that Rene is one of the top 100 most influential tech people on Twitter, one of the top 25 Gadget Gurus, and one of the 15 most important Apple analysts and writers.

Listen to ‌The MacRumors Show‌ via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Castro, Google Podcasts, or subscribe by copying our RSS feed directly into your podcast player. You can also watch a video version of the podcast on our YouTube channel. If you haven't already listened to the last episode of The MacRumors Show, be sure to catch up for an in-depth discussion about everything Apple announced at its spring event.

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, such as Mark Gurman, Jon Prosser, and Andru Edwards. Remember to rate and review the show, and let us know what subjects you would like the podcast to cover going forward.

For this week's giveaway, we've teamed up with Moment to offer MacRumors readers a chance to win a $500 gift card that can be used to purchase anything from the Moment site, including the company's MagSafe accessories, iPhone camera lenses, ‌iPhone‌ cases, camera bags, microphones, and more.

Moment bills itself as the marketplace for photographers and filmmakers, and the site has long been known for its series of dedicated camera lenses designed to fit Apple's iPhones. Moment makes a series of high-quality lenses designed to enhance the camera technology in Apple's own iPhones.

Priced starting at around $100, Moment has a wide array of lens options, including telephoto, wide, fisheye, and macro, which is handy as this is not technology available in all iPhones. Moment also has anamorphic lenses for adding a cinematic look to ‌iPhone‌ videos.

Moment over the last couple of years has expanded its online store, offering an array of accessories beyond camera lenses. The site sells all kinds of useful slings, backpacks, travel bags, and organizers, for photography and for more general tech use, and many of the offerings are ideal for those who have Apple products to tote around. Many of the bags are Moment branded, but the website also offers third-party products from companies like f-stop, Peak Design, WANDRD, and more.

Moment also sells cameras and lenses from companies like Fujifilm, Leica, and Sony, plus it sells drones and accessories from DJI. Photography and videography enthusiasts will find everything from microphones to tripods to gimbals, and the site also offers film, film cameras, and photography courses.

For Apple users, there are a wide range of iPhone case offerings, phone mounts, power banks, and other accessories ranging from cables and screen protectors to AirTag cases and ‌iPhone‌ straps.

We have one $500 Moment gift card for a lucky MacRumors reader. To enter to win, use the Gleam.io widget below and enter an email address. Email addresses will be used solely for contact purposes to reach the winners and send the prizes. You can earn additional entries by subscribing to our weekly newsletter, subscribing to our YouTube channel, following us on Twitter, following us on Instagram, or visiting the MacRumors Facebook page.

Due to the complexities of international laws regarding giveaways, only U.S. residents who are 18 years or older, UK residents who are 18 years or older, and Canadian residents (excluding Quebec) who have reached the age of majority in their province or territory are eligible to enter. All federal, state, provincial, and/or local taxes, fees, and surcharges are the sole responsibility of the prize winner. To offer feedback or get more information on the giveaway restrictions, please refer to our Site Feedback section, as that is where discussion of the rules will be redirected.

The contest will run from today (March 25) at 9:00 a.m. Pacific Time through 9:00 a.m. Pacific Time on April 1. The winner will be chosen randomly on April 1 and will be contacted by email. The winner will have 48 hours to respond and provide a shipping address before a new winner is chosen.

Developer Marco Arment's popular third-party podcast player Overcast received an update today that brings the largest redesign in the app's near eight-year history, with frequently requested features added and many under-the-hood improvements made.

Firing up the updated app, regular users will first notice the overhauled home screen, with new customizable visual identities for playlists (which can now be manually ordered with drag-and-drop).

For quicker access, users can now opt to see recently played and newly published podcast episodes on the home screen, similar to the Overcast widget and CarPlay experience, while podcasts can now be pinned to the top of the home screen list.

Elsewhere, the "Podcasts" and "Played Podcasts" sections now have a toggle at the top that can be used to switch the interface to list podcasts with current episodes, all followed podcasts, and inactive podcasts (those not followed or which haven't published a new episode in a long time).

Top of the much-requested features category is a new Mark as Played checkmark button on episode rows, which is also a left-side swipe action. There is also now a way to view all starred episodes, with special playlist options for Starred, Downloaded, and In Progress.

Amongst other improvements and bug fixes: The light and dark themes now each have a customizable tint color from the modern iOS UI-color palette, notifications and background downloads are much more reliable, episode downloads can now be individually deleted or re-downloaded, links can be opened in Safari, and performance has been enhanced when dealing with very large playlists and collections.

Overcast 2022.2 is available for ‌iPhone‌ and iPad from the App Store in the form of an ad-supported free version or $9.99 per year ad-free. [Direct Link]

Apple CEO Tim Cook will attend the 94th Academy Awards ceremony on Sunday as Apple TV+ is nominated for several Oscar awards, according to the former editor of The Hollywood Reporter and founding partner of Puck, Matthew Belloni.

Cook's attendance at the event is due the fact that Apple is nominated for a total of six Oscar awards. The six nominations include best picture for the film "CODA," best actor for Denzel Washington in "The Tragedy of Macbeth," best supporting actor for Troy Kotsur in "CODA," and others. Cook's attendance on Sunday will mark his first time attending an Oscar award ceremony, although the CEO did attend the Golden Globes in 2020.

Apple received its first-ever Oscar nominations in 2021 for Tom Hanks' "Greyhound" film which Apple reportedly paid $70 million to exclusively stream on the platform. This week Cook visited with the cast of the ‌Apple TV‌+ film "CODA," which tells the story of 17-year-old Ruby, the only hearing member of the family.

Apple's rumored 13- and 15-inch MacBook Air models will feature new display sizes, but will miss out on mini-LED and ProMotion technology, according to Display Supply Chain Consultants (DSCC) analyst Ross Young.

In a thread on Twitter, Young said that the the 2022 ‌MacBook Air‌ will feature a display size of 13.6-inches. This would make it 0.3-inches larger than the current ‌MacBook Air‌, but still 0.6-inches smaller than the current 14.2-inch MacBook Pro. The new display size will presumably be accommodated by a complete redesign that moves away from the current tapered profile in favor of a thinner, MacBook Pro-like chassis.

Earlier this week, Young reported that Apple was working on a larger, 15-inch ‌MacBook Air‌ model set to launch in 2023. This is not the first time that we have heard about a 15-inch ‌MacBook Air‌, as Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said last year that Apple was working on a larger, 15-inch ‌MacBook Air‌. Respected Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has suggested that this device may be called the "MacBook" rather than ‌MacBook Air‌.

Today, Young said that the 15-inch ‌MacBook Air‌ or "MacBook" will feature an exact display size of 15.2-inches. This is 0.2-inches smaller than the 15-inch display size that Apple previously offered on its larger ‌MacBook Pro‌ model until the introduction of the 16-inch ‌MacBook Pro‌ in 2019. Assuming the device would also sport thinner bezels than the now-discontinued 15-inch ‌MacBook Pro‌ and a new design, the 15-inch ‌MacBook Air‌ could have a noticeably smaller overall size compared to that device.

Young told MacRumors that neither of the new ‌MacBook Air‌ models will feature a mini-LED display or ProMotion technology. This seems to run against multiple claims from DigiTimes which said that the ‌MacBook Air‌ will get a mini-LED display in 2022, but Young maintains that the two new ‌MacBook Air‌ models will have LCD displays to maintain a lower price points compared to the high-end MacBook Pros.

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.

Amazon today has the 14-inch MacBook Pro with the M1 Pro/10-core CPU/1TB SSD for $2,249.00, down from $2,499.00. This sale is only available in Silver, and the notebook is shipped and sold directly by Amazon, with stock available today.

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.

To date, this is the best price we've ever tracked on this model of the 14-inch MacBook Pro, beating the previous record low by about $50. Only Amazon is currently offering this discount price, and as of writing only the 1TB 14-inch MacBook Pro is seeing an all-time low price.

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.

European lawmakers have provisionally agreed upon a new law that would force Apple to allow user access to third-party app stores and permit the sideloading of apps on iPhones and iPads, among other sweeping changes designed to make the digital sector fairer and more competitive.

The European Council and European Parliament said on Friday they had reached a political agreement on the Digital Markets Act (DMA), which will target many of the services offered by tech giants and force them to open up to other businesses.

Today's announcement focuses on services like WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, and iMessage, which will have to "open up and interoperate with smaller messaging platforms, if they so request," according to the EU. "Users of small or big platforms would then be able to exchange messages, send files or make video calls across messaging apps, thus giving them more choice."

Under the proposed DMA, Apple would also be forced to open up its App Store to third-party payment options instead of users having to go through Apple's own payment system – something it fought hard against in the Apple vs. Epic Games trial.

In addition, Apple would have to allow users to uninstall its Safari browser and other stock apps so that they can replace them with third-party alternatives if they so wish.

The DMA's broad scope also features several other demands that tech companies will have to abide by and which would surely impact Apple's services and platforms on multiple fronts. According to the proposed law, companies with a value of more than €75 billion ($83 billion), annual sales of €7.5 billion, and at least 45 million monthly users will meet its "gatekeeper" criteria, which comes with the following obligations and commitments.

Gatekeepers Will Have To:

• Ensure that users have the right to unsubscribe from core platform services under similar conditions to subscription.
• For the the most important software (e.g. web browsers), not require this software by default upon installation of the operating system.
• Ensure the interoperability of their instant messaging services' basic functionalities.
• Allow app developers fair access to the supplementary functionalities of smartphones (e.g. NFC chip).
• Give sellers access to their marketing or advertising performance data on the platform.
• Inform the European Commission of their acquisitions and mergers.

But They Can No Longer:

• Rank their own products or services higher than those of others (self-preferencing).
• Reuse private data collected during a service for the purposes of another service.
• Establish unfair conditions for business users.
• Pre-install certain software applications.
• Require app developers to use certain services (e.g. payment systems or identity providers) in order to be listed in app stores.

According to the DMA, if a gatekeeper violates the rules laid down in the legislation, it risks a fine of up to 10% of its total global turnover. For a repeat offense, a fine of up to 20% of its global turnover may be imposed.

If a gatekeeper systematically fails to comply with the DMA (or violates the rules at least three times in eight years), the European Commission can open a market investigation and impose "behavioral or structural remedies."

The European Union has had to impose record fines over the past 10 years for certain harmful business practices by very large digital players," said Cédric O, French Minister of State with responsibility for digital. "The DMA will directly ban these practices and create a fairer and more competitive economic space for new players and European businesses. These rules are key to stimulating and unlocking digital markets, enhancing consumer choice, enabling better value sharing in the digital economy and boosting innovation. The European Union is the first to take such decisive action in this regard and I hope that others will join us soon."

The wording of the legislation has yet to be finalized, but once the language is in place, the European Parliament and the Council will need to approve it. The regulation must be implemented within six months after its entry into force. Digital competition chief Margrethe Vestager said today that she expected the DMA to come into force "sometime in October."

Should the Digital Markets Act go on to become law, Apple will have to make major changes to its ‌iPhone‌ and ‌iPad‌ platform to accommodate the requirement to allow for non-App Store apps. Apple said it was "concerned that some provisions of the DMA will create unnecessary privacy and security vulnerabilities for our users."

Apple is also facing similar legislation in the United States, with U.S. House lawmakers in June introducing antitrust bills that would result in major changes to the tech industry if passed.

Note: Due to the political or social nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Political News forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.