Apple today extended its service program for iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro models experiencing earpiece-related sound issues.
The program now covers affected iPhone 12 or iPhone 12 Pro devices for up to three years after the first retail sale of the device, compared to up to two years previously, according to Apple. The one-year extension applies worldwide.
Apple launched the service program in August 2021 after the company determined that a "very small percentage" of iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro devices may experience sound issues due to a component that might fail on the earpiece module, also known as the receiver. The issue can result in the earpiece failing to emit sound during phone calls.
Apple or an Apple Authorized Service Provider will service eligible iPhones, free of charge, with steps to initiate the process outlined on Apple's website. Affected devices were manufactured between October 2020 and April 2021, and the program does not apply to the iPhone 12 mini or iPhone 12 Pro Max, according to Apple.
Apple's chief financial officer Luca Maestri sold 96,735 shares of Apple stock valued at around $16.9 million in two transactions completed on Wednesday, according to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) released today.
The transactions were made pursuant to a predetermined trading plan adopted by Maestri in November 2021 and modified in February 2022, in accordance with insider trading laws. Maestri still holds around 110,000 shares of Apple stock following the sale, according to the SEC filing.
Maestri joined Apple in 2013 and is part of the company's senior executive team, reporting directly to CEO Tim Cook. As chief financial officer, he oversees Apple's accounting, financial planning and analysis, treasury, investor relations, internal auditing, real estate, business support, and tax functions, according to Apple.
Apple's stock closed at $171.52 today and is up nearly 32% since mid-June. Last month, Apple reported a new June quarter record with $83 billion revenue, driven by sales of iPhones and the company's growing portfolio of services.
This story has been updated to reflect an amendment made to the SEC filing. The original form indicated that Maestri's predetermined trading plan was adopted in November 2020, but the amended form indicates the plan was adopted in November 2021.
Almost all of Apple's main built-in iPhone apps were updated with new features in iOS 16, including both the Photos and Camera apps. Photos has quite a few new features including an option to get rid of duplicates and some locked folders for sensitive photos, plus the Camera app can translate text and there are functionality improvements for iPhone 13 users.
This guide aggregates everything that's new in iOS 16 in both the Camera and Photos apps. Many of these features will also be available in iPadOS 16 and macOS Ventura when they launch to the public in October.
Photos
Locked Hidden and Recently Deleted Albums
In the iOS 16 Photos app, both the "Hidden" and "Recently Deleted" albums under Utilities are locked with Face ID or Touch ID and cannot be opened without biometric authentication or a passcode.
This protects the photos that you've deleted or those that you've marked as hidden. Someone who has access to your unlocked phone will not be able to open these albums without further authentication.
There is no option not to lock these two albums as it is a system-level lock that cannot be overwritten. There continues to be an option to hide the Hidden album, however.
In iOS 16, your iPhone will automatically detect any duplicate images that you have in your Photos app. Duplicate photos will show up in a "Duplicates" album under Utilities in Photos, giving you the opportunity to merge them to save space and reduce clutter.
The Duplicates album only shows up if you have photo duplicates in your library, and the merging feature is intelligent. It will keep the highest detail and the most metadata, creating the best possible image.
If, for example, you have one copy of a photo that's high-resolution and a second copy that has more metadata, the Photos app will combine the best qualities of both photos into a single image.
After updating to iOS 16, your iPhone will continually scan for duplicates, so duplicate images may show up over time and may not be available right when the update is installed.
If you have multiple photos that you want to edit in the same way, or if you've made changes to one photo that you want to replicate in another photo, you can use the new copy and paste edits tools in iOS 16.
To use the option, make edits to an image and then tap on the three-dots icon in the upper right corner. From there, tap on Copy Edits to copy everything that was done to the image. Open up another photo, tap on the three dot icon again, and then choose the Paste Edits feature to get the exact same adjustments.
To streamline photo editing, iOS 16 adds simple undo and redo buttons, a feature missing in prior versions of iOS. With the undo and redo buttons, you can remove edits that you've made to photos one by one rather than having to cancel all of the edits by reverting an image entirely.
The undo and redo buttons are located in the upper left corner of the image editing interface and will show up once you've made an edit to a photo using the built-in editing tools in the Photos app. You can undo and/or redo every change individually, making it quicker to go back and correct a mistake.
In prior versions of iOS, you would need to manually change one of the edited parameters back to where you started, or revert changes entirely.
In a small but meaningful change, Apple added an option to sort the dedicated People album by name in iOS 16. You can open up the People album and tap on the two arrow keys to change the sorting from "Custom Order" to "Name." Opting for Name rearranges the people in the album into alphabetical order.
iCloud Shared Photo Library
iOS 16 adds an iCloud Shared Photo Library that's basically identical to the standard iCloud Photo Library, but shareable with up to five other people.
There are a lot of ins and outs to know about with iCloud Shared Photo Library, so we've created a dedicated guide on iCloud Shared Photo Library that tells you everything you need to know about setting up the feature and using it with family and friends.
Lift Subject From Background
Though not strictly a Photos app feature, lift subject from background is one of the most fun random additions to iOS 16 as it's a little bit like a mini version of Photoshop. You can use it to pull the subject out of any image or photo.
To use it in the Photos app, open up an image and then long press on the main subject of the photo until it lights up. From there, you can drag it out or choose the "copy" option to copy it to the clipboard. You can paste it into another photo or send it as a sticker in Messages.
Memory Updates
When a video is playing in a memory, tap to restart the video and play it from the beginning while the music continues to play. There are also new memory types for This Day in History and children playing.
Featured Content Toggle
iOS 16 adds a toggle that allows you to prevent Featured Photos and Memories from showing up in For You, Photos Search, and Widgets.
The toggle can be found in the Photos section of the Settings app.
Camera
Foreground Blur in Portrait Photos
When using Portrait mode, you can blur objects in the foreground of an image to get a more realistic-looking depth-of-field effect. This feature is limited to the iPhone 13, 13 mini, 13 Pro, and 13 Pro Max.
Translate Camera
System-wide translation has expanded to the Camera app in iOS 16, allowing the iPhone's camera to be used for real-time translation of signs, menus, packaging, and more.
Just open up the Camera app and point it at the text that you want to translate. Tap on the text selection button to select the detected text, and then tap on the translate option to get an instant translation.
The view can be paused to get translations overlaid on text, letting you zoom in for a closer look. It's similar to the Translate camera feature that the Google Translate app has long offered, and it's convenient for when you just need a quick translation but don't want to snap a photo.
On the iPhone 13 models, the Cinematic mode video recording feature is more accurate in iOS 16. It has a better depth-of-field effect for profile angles and around the edges of hair and glasses.
Guide Feedback
Have questions about the Photos and Camera apps in iOS 16, know of a feature we left out, or want to offer feedback on this guide? Send us an email here.
Jetpack Joyride 2, the sequel to popular iOS game Jetpack Joyride, is available on Apple Arcade as of today. For those unfamiliar with the game, it is part of the side-scrolling runner genre, where players control jet pack-equipped main character Barry Steakfries through multiple levels.
Like the original, Jetpack Joyride 2 features one-touch gameplay, and players can touch anywhere on the iPhone or iPad's screen to fire the jetpack to control Barry. The goal is to get as far as possible through the levels, avoiding all kinds of obstacles and collecting coins for prizes.
The initial Jetpack Joyride game has garnered more than 500 million downloads worldwide in its lifetime, and Apple says that the sequel builds on the original game, providing a new story-driven experience, new gameplay mechanics, and updated HD graphics. There's even a new character, Betty Beefpies.
Barry returns in a frantic adventure!
In this case, he will have new equipment and weapons to fight new enemies and make his way through the laboratory to stop the scientists' experiments before it is too late. The evolved adventure of Jetpack Joyride with new HD graphics, new animations, new mechanics and a new way of playing.
Apple today is also announcing content updates for Simon's Cat - Story Time, Cooking Mama: Cuisine, and Nickelodeon Extreme Tennis.
Apple Arcade is priced at $4.99 per month, and up to six members of a family can play games with a single subscription. Apple Arcade content is available to play on iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple TV.
This week saw a few deals from earlier in the summer remain steady as we enter back to school season, with great prices available on Apple TV 4K, iPad, and MacBook Pro. You'll also find the first notable Amazon price discount on the M2 MacBook Air.
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.
Amazon's solid discount on the Apple TV 4K remains ongoing this week, with the 32GB model priced at just $119.99, down from $179.00. You can also get the 64GB model for $139.99, down from $199.00.
The first discounts on Apple's M2 MacBook Air hit Amazon and B&H Photo this week, starting with the 256GB model priced at $1,099.00, down from $1,199.00. You can also get the 512GB model for $1,399.00, down from $1,499.00 at B&H Photo.
2021 MacBook Pro
What's the deal? Take $300 off the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro
We tracked numerous deals on the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro this week, with a few all-time low prices. The 512GB 14-inch MacBook Pro is available for $1,799.00 ($200 off) and the 1TB model is available for $2,199.00 ($300 off). The 512GB 16-inch MacBook Pro is available for $2,199.00 ($300 off), and the 1TB model is available for $2,399.00 ($300 off).
The 10.2-inch iPad returned to its record low price of $299.00 this week on Amazon, down from $329.00. This is a match of the previous all-time low price, and it's available in both Silver and Space Gray.
Head to our full Deals Roundup to get caught up with all of the latest deals and discounts that we've been tracking over the past week.
Apple today announced that popular music identification service Shazam launched 20 years ago today. To celebrate the milestone, Apple shared a playlist featuring the most Shazamed song of each calendar year for the past 20 years.
"Featuring everything from Train's 'Hey, Soul Sister' to Sia's 'Cheap Thrills,' the playlist is a true reflection of the music fans across the globe actively searched for over the past two decades," said Apple. The playlist is available on Apple Music.
Shazam launched in August 2002 as a text message service in the UK and went on to become one of the first apps in the App Store in July 2008.
Apple acquired Shazam in 2018 for a reported $400 million and has since integrated the music identification service into Control Center on the iPhone. Apple has steadily improved Shazam since acquiring the service by removing ads from the app, adding a concert discovery feature, enabling Shazam support in third-party apps, and more.
Shazam now has more than 225 million global monthly users and has surpassed 70 billion song recognitions, according to Apple. Drake is the most Shazamed artist of all time, with over 350 million Shazams across songs he released or was featured in, while "Dance Monkey" by Tones And I is the most Shazamed song ever with over 41 million Shazams.
In a press release, Apple listed some notable moments and milestones over Shazam's two-decade history, including the first-ever Shazamed song, the fastest tracks to accumulate Shazams, the top Shazamed songs by genre, and more.
Shazam has apps available for the iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, Android and Windows devices, and more. In iOS 14.2 and later, Apple includes a Music Recognition toggle for the Control Center, giving iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch users a quick and easy way to identify what music is playing via Shazam without having to download the app.
A hands-on video of an Apple AirPower prototype from 2017 has today been shared on YouTube, providing a closer look at Apple's short-lived wireless charging device.
The deep dive into the AirPower prototype comes from a collaboration by YouTube channels 91Tech and Apple Demo, who acquired an Apple AirPower prototype. AirPower was an Apple-designed charging mat designed to charge Qi-based iPhones, the Apple Watch, and AirPods that Apple announced in September 2017 alongside the iPhone X.
AirPower was designed so that users could place an iPhone, AirPods, and Apple Watch on any portion of the mat to have the device charge, which meant that multiple overlapping charging coils had to be included. It would have prompted devices to display a unique on-screen iOS animation when they were placed on the charging mat, as seen in Apple's early marketing materials. An iPhone on the AirPower charger would also have shown the charge of all of the devices that were placed on the pad.
Photos allegedly depicting an AirPower prototype surfaced on social networks in August 2020, showing a multi-coil design and the device's internal circuitry, and the first video footage of the device emerged in August 2021. 91Tech and Apple Demo's video provides the best look yet at Apple's ill-fated AirPower charger.
Like other AirPower prototypes that have emerged in the past, the unit does not feature the white exterior shell that Apple marketed the device with, displaying its internal circuitry more clearly.
While the prototype unit is not functional in the conventional sense, it was possible to connect to it through Terminal on a Mac using some Apple developer tools that are not publicly available. Errors upon initially booting the AirPower unit suggest that it was never calibrated and, as such, it was probably never used.
Rebooting after issuing commands to initiate auto-calibration allowed a large amount of information to be read off the prototype, such as the firmware install date of June 7, 2017, commands for selecting specific coils, and more.
The AirPower prototype unit has 22 coils and is similar to others that have leaked in the past. Apple's AirPower-related patent filings show designs with 16 or 22 coils, and the 22 coil design appears to be what Apple planned to move ahead with for the later iterations of the device.
No AirPower prototypes have emerged from 2018 or 2019, suggesting that the short-lived device's hardware was almost entirely developed in 2017 or earlier. Instead, software was the subject of a period of iteration before the AirPower project was shelved due to an inability to resolve overheating issues.
Rumors in subsequent years about Apple's work on a smaller wireless charger seem to have been related to MagSafe or the MagSafe Duo charger, rather than AirPower. Nevertheless, a report from reliable Bloomberg journalist Mark Gurman last year said that Apple is still looking into AirPower-like charging solutions for the future.
This week, Apple released critical software updates for Safari which fix a security flaw that exists in the browser across iPhone, iPad, and Mac platforms. Here's what you need to know.
Specifically, the platform-wide fix is for a vulnerability in Safari's WebKit engine that Apple believes may have been "actively exploited" in the wild by hackers.
The flaw, according to Apple, could allow bad actors to "process maliciously crafted web content" that may lead to "arbitrary code execution."
An additional fix that exists in the latest update for macOS Monterey, 12.5.1, relates to a vulnerability that may allow an application to "execute arbitrary code with kernel privileges."
In other words, it could allow hackers to access the deepest layer of the operating system and take complete control of the affected device. Apple says it is aware of a report that this issue may also have been actively exploited.
If you haven't updated already, it's important to do so at the earliest opportunity. The latest critical updates are as follows:
To update your iPhone or iPad, head to Settings -> General -> Software Update. To update your Mac, open System Preferences and select the Software Update preference pane.
A popular launcher on the Google Play Store that looks to recreate the iOS experience on Android smartphones has surpassed 50 million downloads as it gets updated with design changes and features coming to the iPhone with iOS 16.
The app is not new to the Google Play Store and has been recreating the iOS experience on Android for the last three years. Starting with iOS 13 and for every subsequent major iOS release, the app has been updated to reflect changes made to iOS.
The copycat iOS launcher, named "Launcher iOS 16," recreates the iOS Home Screen, dock, Force Touch menus on apps, "jiggle mode," App Library, iOS-styled widgets, and more. The launcher also replaces app icons with iOS icons, such as Messages, Notes, Camera, and even the Play Store has Apple's App Store icon.
In standard Android nature, the launcher provides users with customization features not even offered to iPhone users, such as being able to customize the categorization of apps in App Library, tweak home screen animations, easily rename apps, and more.
The app, clearly well known in the Android community, was given additional exposure on Twitter earlier this week. The largest change to iOS 16, the redesigned Lock Screen, made headlining news following Apple's WWDC in June. The widespread coverage of the new Lock Screen may have prompted additional downloads for the launcher from users eyeing to try out Apple's latest design. Unfortunately, this launcher does not sport the iOS 16 Lock Screen, at least not yet.
For those unfamiliar with Android launchers, they're programs that run on the device's home screen with their own design, personalization features, and options other than those offered by the device's original maker. As a matter of fact, casually browsing the Google Play Store, dozens of launchers promise to recreate the iOS experience on Android, with the vast majority having over one million downloads each.
Stage Manager in the iPadOS 16 beta is receiving heavy criticism for being "fundamentally misguided" in its approach to bringing a new level of multitasking to the iPad experience, with some even calling on Apple to delay the feature entirely due to its shortcomings.
Federico Viticci, the founder and editor in chief of MacStories and a prominent member of the Apple community, outlined his frustration with Stage Manager in a Twitter thread earlier this week. Viticci says that design decisions built into Stage Manager are "fundamentally misguided," arguing that the feature is unstable, hard to use, and has user interface glitches across the experience.
"If Stage Manager is the future of iPadOS for pro users, I hope Apple understands that it can't be rushed. We waited years for this; might as well get it in Spring 2023," Viticci says, suggesting Apple delay Stage Manager's release entirely and rethink its approach.
Stage Manager, for the first time, lets users overlap windows and use external display support with their iPad. Apple's implementation of the feature, however, is not as clear-cut as some may have hoped.
iPad enthusiasts have yearned for the company to take better advantage of the iPad's power and multitasking potential, and Stage Manager is Apple's answer to those calls. The narrative around iPadOS and its inability to take full advantage of the iPad's hardware took a momentous leap when Apple brought the M1 Apple silicon chip to the iPad Pro in April 2021 and then to the iPad Air last fall.
Stage Manager is designed to only work with iPads powered by the M1 chip, another point of contention surrounding the increasingly controversial feature. Apple argues that only the unified memory architecture of the M1 chip, designed initially for the Mac, can power the heavy workload that Stage Manager requires.
Announcing Stage Manager at WWDC in June, Apple's senior vice president of software engineering, Craig Federighi, said, "With technologies like display scaling and virtual memory swap, we have the foundation for a big leap forward in user experience, one that can change how our Pro users get work done on iPad."
Stage Manager is one of just a few new features of iPadOS 16, but it's also present in macOS Ventura. While they share a name and the same fundamental idea, Stage Manager's implementation on iPadOS 16 and macOS Ventura could not be more different.
For instance, as Viticci noted in his early overview of iPadOS 16, Apple is looking to alleviate the heavy lifting often faced by Mac users of having to perfectly position their overlapping Mac windows to create an ideal workspace. With Stage Manager on iPadOS 16, the system automatically moves apps around to keep the main app in use in the center of the "stage" while other apps open "gracefully move to the side." As Viticci wrote at the time:
The idea behind Stage Manager is that you'll get a system that wants to help you keep the benefits of overlapping windows while offering tools that should alleviate some of the pains behind window management for people like me, who have historically disliked the Mac's overlapping windows.
Stage Manager also takes care of automatically focusing on the 'center app', and you can choose to hide or show the dock and recent apps on the left side. If you keep the dock, you'll have a fast way to drag in new windows into a workspace.
Viticci shared on Twitter two feedback reports he filed back to Apple about Stage Manager, still in testing. First, he suggests an easy way to move windows from the iPad to an external display, as it's currently not possible to do so. The other feedback report outlines how the system "destroys" workspaces for apps when connected to an external display.
For the latter report, Apple responded by saying it "behaves as intended," which Viticci calls "baffling." For the other suggestion to make it easier to move windows and spaces to an external display, Apple said after having "carefully considered" the idea, it won't be moving forward with its implementation.
Stepping away from the precedent in years past, Apple is planning to release iPadOS 16 later in the fall and not alongside iOS 16, expected in September. The delay in iPadOS 16's launch should give Apple ample time to address concerns around Stage Manager before it launches to customers sometime in October.
Apple is unlikely to pull Stage Manager from iPadOS 16 when it's released, although it could always opt to label it as a beta feature until it works through the kinks, as it did for Universal Control in macOS Monterey.
TikTok's custom in-app browser on iOS reportedly injects JavaScript code into external websites that allows TikTok to monitor "all keyboard inputs and taps" while a user is interacting with a given website, according to security researcher Felix Krause, but TikTok has reportedly denied that the code is used for malicious reasons.
Krause said TikTok's in-app browser "subscribes" to all keyboard inputs while a user interacts with an external website, including any sensitive details like passwords and credit card information, along with every tap on the screen.
"From a technical perspective, this is the equivalent of installing a keylogger on third party websites," wrote Krause, in regards to the JavaScript code that TikTok injects. However, the researcher added that "just because an app injects JavaScript into external websites, doesn't mean the app is doing anything malicious."
In a statement shared with Forbes, a TikTok spokesperson acknowledged the JavaScript code in question, but said it is only used for debugging, troubleshooting, and performance monitoring to ensure an "optimal user experience."
"Like other platforms, we use an in-app browser to provide an optimal user experience, but the Javascript code in question is used only for debugging, troubleshooting and performance monitoring of that experience — like checking how quickly a page loads or whether it crashes," the statement said, according to Forbes.
Krause said users who wish to protect themselves from any potential malicious usage of JavaScript code in in-app browsers should switch to viewing a given link in the platform's default browser if possible, such as Safari on the iPhone and iPad.
"Whenever you open a link from any app, see if the app offers a way to open the currently shown website in your default browser," wrote Krause. "During this analysis, every app besides TikTok offered a way to do this."
Facebook and Instagram are two other apps that insert JavaScript code into external websites loaded in their in-app browsers, giving the apps the ability to track user activity, according to Krause. In a tweet, a spokesperson for Facebook and Instagram parent company Meta said that the company "intentionally developed this code to honor people's App Tracking Transparency (ATT) choices on our platforms."
Krause said he created a simple tool that allows anyone to check if an in-app browser is injecting JavaScript code when rendering a website. The researcher said users simply need to open an app they wish to analyze, share the address InAppBrowser.com somewhere inside the app (such as in a direct message to another person), tap on the link inside the app to open it in the in-app browser, and read the details of the report shown.
Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Update: A spokesperson for TikTok issued the following statement to MacRumors.
"The report's conclusions about TikTok are incorrect and misleading. The researcher specifically says the JavaScript code does not mean our app is doing anything malicious, and admits they have no way to know what kind of data our in-app browser collects. Contrary to the report's claims, we do not collect keystroke or text inputs through this code, which is solely used for debugging, troubleshooting, and performance monitoring."
According to the TikTok spokesperson, the JavaScript code is part of a software development kit (SDK) that TikTok is leveraging, and the "keypress" and "keydown" functions mentioned by Krause are common inputs that TikTok does not use for keystroke logging.
Apple today released Safari version 15.6.1 for the older macOS Big Sur and macOS Catalina operating systems. The update includes an important security fix for a WebKit vulnerability that could lead to arbitrary code execution, according to Apple.
Apple said it is aware of a report that the WebKit vulnerability may have been actively exploited, so updating Safari is highly recommended.
Apple released macOS Monterey 12.5.1, iOS 15.6.1, and iPadOS 15.6.1 yesterday with fixes for both WebKit and kernel vulnerabilities. As noted by Mr. Macintosh on Twitter, a fix for the kernel-related vulnerability has yet to be released for macOS Big Sur or macOS Catalina, but it's unclear if that vulnerability affects those operating systems.
Apple today announced that, for the second year in a row, the Apple Card and its issuer Goldman Sachs ranked highest in the Midsize Credit Card Issuer category of J.D. Power's annual U.S. Credit Card Satisfaction Study.
"Enhancing our customers' lives is at the heart of what we do, so we are honored to have Apple Card and issuer Goldman Sachs recognized again this year for customer satisfaction," said Jennifer Bailey, Apple's vice president of Apple Pay and Apple Wallet. "We remain committed to providing a digital-first credit card that helps customers lead healthier financial lives, and we look forward to continuing to deliver innovative financial tools and award-winning customer satisfaction to our Apple Card users."
The announcement comes a week after it was reported that the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is investigating Goldman Sachs over various customer service issues, including complaints over the handling of disputed transactions. The investigation is reportedly focused on Apple Card customer complaints from the past few years.
Apple Card launched three years ago this month and remains available to qualified U.S. residents only. Apple's credit card can be managed completely through the Wallet app on an iPhone or Apple Watch, with key features including color-coded spending summaries, cashback paid out on a daily basis, an interest-free financing option for purchasing new Apple products, and no fees beyond interest charges on overdue balances. There is also a physical Apple Card available for use at stores that do not accept contactless payments.
TSMC will begin production of 3nm chips for Apple by the end of 2022, according to a report this week from Taiwan's Commercial Times. A separate report from the publication claimed that TSMC will begin mass production of 3nm chips in September.
The report, citing industry insiders, claims that the M2 Pro chip may be the first to use TSMC's advanced 3nm process. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman previously claimed that Apple plans to use the M2 Pro chip in the next 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models and a high-end Mac mini, which could be announced later this year or in the first half of next year.
Apple's A17 Bionic chip for next year's iPhone 15 Pro models and the M3 chip, suitable for future MacBook Air and 13-inch MacBook Pro models, will also be manufactured based on TSMC's 3nm process, according to the Commercial Times.
DigiTimes also previously reported that TSMC would begin volume production of 3nm chips for Apple in the second half of 2022, including the M2 Pro chip.
Apple transitioning from TSMC's 5nm process to its 3nm process would naturally result in faster performance and improved power efficiency for future Macs and iPhones, which could contribute to longer battery life. The high-end Mac mini and the Mac Pro tower are the only current Macs that have yet to switch over to Apple silicon chips.
Third-party VPNs made for iPhones and iPads routinely fail to route all network traffic through a secure tunnel after they have been turned on, something Apple has known about for years, a longtime security researcher has claimed (via ArsTechnica).
Writing on a continually updated blog post, Michael Horowitz says that after testing multiple types of virtual private network (VPN) software on iOS devices, most appear to work fine at first, issuing the device a new public IP address and new DNS servers, and sending data to the VPN server. However, over time the VPN tunnel leaks data.
Typically, when a users connects to a VPN, the operating system closes all existing internet connections and then re-establishes them through the VPN tunnel. That is not what Horowitz has observed in his advanced router logging. Instead, sessions and connections established before the VPN is turned on are not terminated as one would expect, and can still send data outside the VPN tunnel while it is active, leaving it potentially unencrypted and exposed to ISPs and other parties.
"Data leaves the iOS device outside of the VPN tunnel," Horowitz writes. "This is not a classic/legacy DNS leak, it is a data leak. I confirmed this using multiple types of VPN and software from multiple VPN providers. The latest version of iOS that I tested with is 15.6."
Horowitz claims that his findings are backed up by a similar report issued in March 2020 by privacy company Proton, which said an iOS VPN bypass vulnerability had been identified in iOS 13.3.1 which persisted through three subsequent updates to iOS 13.
According to Proton, Apple indicated it would add Kill Switch functionality to a future software update that would allow developers to block all existing connections if a VPN tunnel is lost.
However, the added functionality does not appear to have affected the results of Horowitz's tests, which were performed in May 2022 on an iPadOS 15.4.1 using Proton's VPN client, and the researcher says any suggestions that it would prevent the data leaks are "off base."
Horowitz has recently continued his tests with iOS 15.6 installed and OpenVPN running the WireGuard protocol, but his iPad continues to make requests outside of the encrypted tunnel to both Apple services and Amazon Web Services.
As noted by ArsTechnica, Proton suggests a workaround to the problem that involves activating the VPN and then turning Airplane mode on and off to force all network traffic to be re-established through the VPN tunnel.
However, Proton admits that this is not guaranteed to work, while Horowitz claims Airplane mode is not reliable in itself, and should not be relied on as a solution to the problem. We've reached out to Apple for comment on the research and will update this post if we hear back.
The team behind the popular Pixelmator series of image editing apps today announced that the Pixelmator Photo app for the iPhone and iPad is switching to subscription-based pricing with an update rolling out now on the App Store.
For new users, Pixelmator Photo now costs $4.99 per month or $23.99 per year, while existing users of the app will continue to have "unlimited access" without having to pay again. A lifetime purchase option will remain available for $59.99, which is significantly more expensive than Pixelmator Photo's previous one-time price of $7.99.
In a blog post, the Pixelmator team admitted that the subscription-based pricing model is more expensive, but argued that there are "some pretty big problems" with an upfront pricing model, including slower development and a focus on new users over existing users. Among other reasons, Pixelmator also noted that the App Store does not allow paid apps to offer free trials or upgrade discounts for major new versions.
"The hope is that there are enough users who use the app regularly and feel that the annual or monthly fee is worth it," said Pixelmator. "It looks like this is the best way to ensure Pixelmator Photo can continue to be developed long into the future."
Pixelmator also provided a sneak peek at its Pixelmator Photo app for Mac, which will be a "completely native app" that is "designed from the ground up just for Mac." Pixelmator plans to release the app late this year or early next year and says those who subscribe to Pixelmator Photo for the iPhone/iPad now will get Pixelmator Photo for Mac for free when it launches. Existing users will be eligible for a discounted subscription.
Pixelmator informed MacRumors that it doesn't have any immediate plans to switch the standard version of Pixelmator for iOS or Pixelmator Pro for macOS to subscription-based pricing and is working on a major update to Pixelmator Pro that will be free as usual.
Following in the footsteps of the EU, India is now in the early stages of considering imposing regulations on consumer products sold in the country that force a universal standard charger, including USB-C, by as early as 2024, Mintreports.
The EU had reached an agreement earlier this summer that would force Apple to adopt USB-C on the iPhone and AirPods by fall 2024. While the agreement has been reached, the legislation still needs to be formally approved by the European Parliament and European Council later this year before Apple is forced to change its ways.
Officials in India held a meeting earlier this week with industry stakeholders and popular consumer electronic makers to discuss the possible impacts of a common charger. "The meeting will be more of an explorative nature. We will try to learn from the stakeholders how a common charger can be adopted in India. We will also try to understand their concerns," India's secretary of Consumer Affairs told local media outlets.
The EU and India's push towards adopting a "common port" would impact a wide range of devices, including, more specifically, Apple, which has kept the iPhone with the Lightning port since 2012, while other products, such as the Mac and iPad, have largely moved towards USB-C.
The upcoming ad-supported Netflix tier that's in the works will not allow subscribers to download TV shows or movies to watch offline, reports Bloomberg. The restriction was found in code in the Netflix app for iOS devices, which reads "Downloads available on all plans except Netflix with ads."
Standard Netflix plans allow some Netflix content to be downloaded for offline viewing, and restricting that feature to the more expensive Netflix tiers will allow Netflix to differentiate between existing plans and the new ad-supported plan.
Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos confirmed in June that Netflix is planning for a more affordable Netflix tier that is aimed at those who do not mind ads and who do not want to pay for an ad-free Netflix subscription. "We've left a big customer segment off the table, which is people who say: 'Hey, Netflix is too expensive for me and I don't mind advertising,'" Sarandos said. "We are adding an ad tier; we're not adding ads to Netflix as you know it today. We're adding an ad tier for folks who say, 'Hey, I want a lower price and I'll watch ads.'"
Bloomberg says that Netflix also does not plan to allow customers to skip ads or access playback controls while ads are playing, and Netflix previously confirmed that some content would be limited to ad-free streaming. The ad-supported Netflix tier is not set to launch until early 2023, however, so there could be updates as Netflix finalizes its plans.
There is no word yet on what the ad-supported Netflix service will be priced at, but Netflix has raised its prices several times in recent years. The Basic Netflix plan is now priced at $9.99 and it offers 480p streaming, while the Standard plan is priced at $15.49 for 1080p resolution. Netflix's most expensive Premium plan, priced at $19.99 per month, is the sole tier that offers 4K HDR streaming. Netflix continues to be only streaming service that charges extra for improved streaming quality, and the ad-supported tier will likely offer streaming quality similar to the Basic plan.
Netflix is introducing an ad-supported tier because it has been losing customers and revenue. The company lost subscribers for the first time in 10 years in the first quarter of 2022, and blamed both "a large number of households sharing accounts" and "competition."
In addition to adding a cheaper plan, Netflix is also going to crack down on account sharing. Netflix says that approximately 222 million paying households are sharing with another 100 million households that are not being monetized, with the company planning to implement more effective monetization of multi-household sharing" in the future. Fees for multi-household account sharing are already being tested in some countries and could expand to additional countries in the future.
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