Apple Pay now supports Citi Flex Pay, allowing U.S. Citi credit card holders to pay for Apple Pay purchases over time with the Flex Pay option.
Citi Flex Pay is available for Apple Pay purchases over $75. The default payback period is three months, but there are longer payback durations available with a monthly fee. Flex Pay can be used when making purchases on websites or in apps.
To use Citi Flex Pay, an eligible Citi credit card needs to be added to Apple Pay. When making a purchase, select the Citi credit card and then tap on "Pay Later." From there, select a Citi Flex Pay option.
Apple previously had its own buy now, pay later service called Apple Pay Later, but it was discontinued last year. Apple now partners with third-party providers for pay over time options. Apple's other U.S. partners include Affirm, Klarna, and Synchrony.
Apple and Major League Soccer today introduced Sunday Night Soccer. Apple TV+ subscribers will be able to watch a featured MLS match every Sunday evening during the upcoming 2025 season, at no additional cost. In the U.S., Apple TV+ is priced at $9.99 per month or $99 per year, and it is also included in all Apple One subscription bundles.
Apple TV+ now offers Friday Night Baseball for MLB and Sunday Night Soccer for MLS, as part of its growing professional sports portfolio.
The 2025 regular season kicks off with the MLS is Back weekend on Saturday, February 22 and Sunday February 23, with all 30 clubs set to take the field.
Sunday Night Soccer will spotlight the most compelling MLS matchups, with enhanced production and studio programming, according to Apple. The inaugural matchup will see the league's newest franchise, San Diego FC, make its debut against the reigning MLS Cup champions LA Galaxy, on Sunday, February 23 at 7 p.m. Eastern Time.
Sunday Night Soccer will also be included with an MLS Season Pass subscription, which is now available for the 2025 season. In the U.S., MLS Season Pass is priced at $14.99 per month, or $99 for the full season, and this subscription also lets you watch select preseason matches, all regular season matches, the MLS Cup playoffs, and more. MLS Season Pass is available in the Apple TV app on Apple devices, most smart TVs, and many other streaming devices and game consoles, as well as on the web at tv.apple.com.
T-Mobile is offering qualified customers complimentary access to MLS Season Pass this season. The offer can be redeemed in the T-Life app, starting Tuesday, February 18. MLS Season Pass is also available through Comcast Xfinity and DIRECTV this season.
2025 marks the third year of a 10-year partnership between Apple and Major League Soccer.
Netflix has introduced a new "Season Download" button for iPhone and iPad users, making it possible to download an entire season of a series with a single tap for offline viewing (via The Hollywood Reporter).
The feature was previously only available to Android users. To date, Netflix subscribers using iOS or iPadOS were required to download each episode individually, which could be time-consuming. Now, full seasons can be downloaded directly from a show's display page, where the option is available next to the Share button. Subscribers can continue to manage their downloaded content through the My Netflix tab.
Netflix first introduced offline viewing in 2016. Over the years, the company expanded the feature with improvements such as Smart Downloads, which automatically replaces watched episodes with the next available installment in a series.
As part of the announcement, Netflix revealed the most-downloaded series on its platform, which include "Squid Game" seasons one and two, "Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story," "One Piece," and "Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story."
The timing of the update coincides with Netflix's latest round of price increases. The company recently increased the cost of its premium ad-free plan to $24.99 per month, while the standard ad-free plan now costs $17.99. The ad-supported tier was raised to $7.99 per month. Subscribers on ad-free plans can store up to 100 active downloads per device, while those on ad-supported plans face stricter limits, allowing only 15 total downloads per month.
Amazon and Best Buy are discounting Apple's 13-inch M2 MacBook Air with 16GB of RAM and 256GB SSD storage down to $799.00 in every color. This is a $200 discount on the M2 MacBook Air, and the sale does not require any coupon code in order to see the final deal price.
Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Amazon and Best Buy. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.
Compared to past sales, this is a match of the all-time low price on this model of the M2 MacBook Air. Although this is a previous generation device, it remains in Apple's current lineup and will work great for anyone who doesn't need the performance gains introduced with the M3 chip, especially at this discounted price.
If you're looking for a deal on the M3 MacBook Air, you can get the 13-inch M3 MacBook Air with 16GB of RAM and 512GB SSD storage for $1,099.99 with an on-page coupon on Amazon, down from $1,299.00. There are three colors available at this record low price on Amazon.
Note: You won't see the deal price until checkout.
If you're on the hunt for more discounts, be sure to visit our Apple Deals roundup where we recap the best Apple-related bargains of the past week.
Deals Newsletter
Interested in hearing more about the best deals you can find in 2025? Sign up for our Deals Newsletter and we'll keep you updated so you don't miss the biggest deals of the season!
OpenAI says it has uncovered evidence that Chinese AI startup DeepSeek used its proprietary models to train a competing open-source model, potentially violating the company's terms of service.
The discovery centers around a technique called "distillation," where developers use outputs from larger AI models to train smaller ones. The practice is common in AI development, but OpenAI claims DeepSeek crossed a line by using it to build a rival model.
"The issue is when you take it out of the platform and are doing it to create your own model for your own purposes," a source close to OpenAI told the Financial Times.
DeepSeek's R1 reasoning model has attracted widespread attention in the tech industry for achieving comparable results to leading US models at a remarkably low cost. The company claims it spent just $5.6 million on development, which is a fraction of what companies like OpenAI and Google typically invest. The app this week reached the number one position on Apple's App Store free charts in multiple countries, including the US.
Asked about OpenAI's allegations in an interview with Fox News, White House AI czar David Sacks didn't mince his words.
"There's substantial evidence that what DeepSeek did here is they distilled knowledge out of OpenAI models, and I don't think OpenAI is very happy about this," he said.
The controversy has already had market implications. Nvidia saw its shares drop 17% on Monday, wiping a one-day record $589 billion off its market value, as investors questioned whether expensive AI hardware investments might be unnecessary if companies can achieve similar results with fewer resources.
According to Bloomberg, OpenAI and Microsoft reportedly investigated and blocked accounts in August for suspected terms of service violations, and they now believe these accounts were associated with DeepSeek. Both companies have declined to provide specific details about their evidence.
WhatsApp has released version 25.2.3 for iOS devices to patch a significant privacy vulnerability that affected its "View Once" feature. The bug allowed users to access photos and videos that were meant to disappear after a single viewing.
The security flaw, which only impacted iPhone users, allowed anyone to view supposedly ephemeral content by navigating to Settings ➝ Storage and Data ➝ Manage Storage and sorting media by "Newest." This completely bypassed the privacy protection that View Once was designed to provide.
Security researcher Ramshath first documented the vulnerability in a Medium post, prompting WhatsApp to acknowledge the issue and develop a fix. This isn't the first time View Once has faced security challenges – a similar bug was discovered and patched on WhatsApp Web last December.
The latest update also introduces several new features, including the ability to make calls without saving phone numbers first and enhanced group calling capabilities.
Given the privacy implications, WhatsApp users on iOS should update their app immediately through the App Store to ensure their View Once media remains ephemeral as intended. [Direct Link]
As of iOS 18.3, T-Mobile subscribers with a compatible iPhone and Starlink beta access are able to connect to Starlink satellites, reports Bloomberg. Apple quietly worked with SpaceX and T-Mobile to add support for Starlink to its iPhone lineup, and T-Mobile's website confirms the new integration.
T-Mobile announced a partnership with Starlink in 2022, and in December 2024, the carrier opened up a beta program allowing subscribers to use Starlink satellites for texting in areas without cell towers. At the time, the T-Mobile Starlink beta program was limited to Samsung smartphones, and iPhones weren't supported.
Following the release of iOS 18.3, T-Mobile has invited a small number of iPhone users to take advantage of the Starlink beta, and those users have a new toggle to enable the satellite connectivity feature. T-Mobile customers who were selected received the following message:
You're in the T-Mobile Starlink beta. You can now stay connected with texting via satellite from virtually anywhere. To start experiencing coverage beyond, please update to iOS 18.3.
With Starlink integration, a T-Mobile iPhone without T-Mobile cellular service available will be able to pair automatically with Starlink satellites for connectivity. Starlink is limited to texting at the current time, but T-Mobile and SpaceX plan to support data and voice in the future.
Apple did not respond to Bloomberg's request for comment on the feature, but T-Mobile said that Starlink connectivity will eventually be available on the "vast majority of modern smartphones."
The iPhone 14 and later already support satellite connectivity for text messages through Apple's partnership with Globalstar, so iPhone users who are able to use Starlink can also opt to text with Apple's built-in satellite service. Both Apple's service and Starlink are only available when there is no nearby cellular network.
Starlink beta access is limited right now, but T-Mobile eventually plans to expand the beta test to additional subscribers. T-Mobile customers can sign up to join the beta on the T-Mobile website. Starlink is only available in the U.S., and it is free during T-Mobile's beta testing period.
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.
The upcoming iPhone SE 4 will feature a notch instead of the Dynamic Island, respected display analyst Ross Young said today. The device will have a "notch like the iPhone 14," according to Young, which contradicts a recent leak that depicted a Dynamic Island.
Earlier this month, leaker Evan Blass shared images said to feature the iPhone SE 4's design, but those images featured an iPhone with a Dynamic Island rather than the notch that had been previously rumored for new low-cost iPhone. A sketchy leak from February 2024 also suggested that the iPhone SE 4 would get the Dynamic Island, but most other information has suggested that Apple will go with the notch design.
Multiple rumors have indicated that the iPhone SE 4 is modeled after the iPhone 14, and will therefore have an iPhone 14-style design. The iPhone 14 had a notch and not a Dynamic Island, so the notch makes more sense if Apple is using an iPhone 14 body for the iPhone SE 4. Alleged screen protectors for the iPhone SE 4 also appear to have a design for a notch rather than the Dynamic Island.
With the launch of the iPhone SE 4, Apple will sunset Touch ID in the iPhone lineup, and all iPhones will have Face ID. The iPhone SE 4 is also expected to feature a 6.1-inch display, a single-lens rear camera, 8GB RAM, and an A17 Pro chip capable of supporting Apple Intelligence.
Current rumors suggest that the iPhone SE 4 will be introduced in the spring, likely in April.
Samsung just recently announced the Galaxy S25 Ultra, its latest flagship smartphone that's designed to compete with the iPhone. We did a hands-on video last week, but this week we're back with an in-depth camera comparison.
In this article and our accompanying video, we've included blind photos from the Galaxy S25 Ultra and the iPhone 16 Pro Max so you can judge for yourself which smartphone camera you prefer, but we'll let you know which is which at the very end of the video.
The iPhone 16 Pro Max has a 50-megapixel Main lens (which is wide angle), a 12-megapixel Ultra Wide lens, and a 12-megapixel Telephoto lens. In sheer specs, Samsung wins because the S25 Ultra has a quad camera setup with a 200-megapixel wide lens, a 50-megapixel ultra wide lens, a 50 megapixel telephoto lens, and an extra 10-megapixel telephoto lens. The extra telephoto lens allows for more versatility with different optical zoom options.
Adding more megapixels lets you crop in more and it can preserve detail when doing so, but smartphone cameras these days are advanced enough that you're going to get fantastic pictures regardless of whether you have an iPhone or a Samsung device.
That said, there are notable differences in under-the-hood processing techniques, plus some areas where Apple has an edge and some areas where Samsung excels.
The iPhone 16 Pro Max simply cannot compete with the Galaxy S25 on optical and software-enhanced digital zoom. The Galaxy S25 has 5x optical zoom like the iPhone, but 10x "optical quality" zoom that uses AI, and it works well.
Further, Samsung has a 100x zoom feature that's been getting better every year. Apple's digital zoom is limited to 25x, and there's so much noise that 25x images are unusable, but Samsung's comparable 30x images look decent.
Comparing zoomed in photos is where you'll see the biggest difference between the S25 Ultra and the 16 Pro Max.
When it comes to everyday photos, there are some areas where the S25 Ultra struggled. Low-light and night photos in particular showed some significant light flare and blur, and the iPhone 16 Pro Max performed better in these scenarios. Apple's image processing tends to be high contrast with vivid color, and that's clear here. Shots from the S25 Ultra tend to be a little more washed out, but which you like better is a matter of preference.
Portraits were similar with both smartphones, and both did a good job separating the subject from the background and applying attractive blur.
To match the iPhone's video recording capabilities, Samsung added a new LOG video recording mode for pros, along with an Expert RAW mode that lets you adjust aperture before capturing a shot. Apple still has an edge when it comes to video, including stabilization.
Make sure to watch the video to see which smartphone is which, and let us know in the comments below whether you prefer the images from the Galaxy S25 Ultra or the iPhone 16 Pro Max.
Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Samsung. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.
There are two new speculative execution attacks that impact recent Apple chips, according to data shared today by Georgia Tech students that discovered the vulnerabilities.
Named SLAP and FLOP, the two security flaws could allow an attacker to use a malicious webpage to spy on the contents of other webpages, giving attackers remote access to browsing history, credit card data, emails, location information, and more. Physical access to a device is not required, and the attack can be executed through a malicious site that bypasses Apple's browser protections.
Several Apple A-series and M-series chips are affected, including the M2 and later and the A15 and later, which are in the following devices:
SLAP and FLOP were disclosed to Apple in May 2024 and September 2024, respectively, and while the attacks have not yet been patched, the researchers who reported the issue were told that Apple plans to address the vulnerabilities in an upcoming security update.
Apple told Bleeping Computer that it has not yet patched the flaws. "We want to thank the researchers for their collaboration as this proof of concept advances our understanding of these types of threats," Apple said. "Based on our analysis, we do not believe this issue poses an immediate risk to our users."
SLAP affects Safari, while FLOP affects Safari and Chrome. Other browsers like Firefox could be affected too, but have not been tested. There is no evidence that SLAP and FLOP have been executed in the wild.
Details on how SLAP and FLOP work can be found on the website dedicated to explaining the vulnerabilities.
CVS is testing a new feature that is designed to allow iPhone and Android users to unlock product cabinets to retrieve an item without the need to summon an employee, reports The Wall Street Journal (via The Verge).
Many stores like CVS use locked cabinets for items that are often shoplifted, cutting down on retail theft. Locking items up, though, inconveniences shoppers because an employee has to be summoned to retrieve items for customers. CVS Health's chief technology officer Tilak Mandadi told The Wall Street Journal that people "really, really dislike locked cabinets," which is why the chain is testing a new procedure.
CVS shoppers who have the CVS app (with CVS account), activate Bluetooth, and connect to in-store Wi-Fi can unlock locked product cabinets with an iPhone.
CVS is testing the smartphone-based product unlocking in three of its retail locations, but it will soon be expanded to 10 to 15 stores. If the trial is successful, CVS plans to roll it out to all retail locations.
Apple is continuing to promote the Beats Pill speaker, today sharing a new Valentine's Day-themed short ad that uses the cute anthropomorphized "Pill People" characters to highlight battery life.
The spot features the red Beats Pill holding up a be mine sign and playing music in a Say Anything-esque scene. The white Beats Pill walks by and asks how long the red Beats Pill has been outside playing music. "17 hours," replies the speaker, before an end tag comes up that points out the device's 24-hour battery life.
"Nobody ❤️s a 24-hour battery life like we do. And did you know 2 Beats Pills can be paired together for increased volume? Sounds like a sign to us," reads the ad's description.
Apple's Beats brand introduced the new version of the Beats Pill in June of last year, after the prior Pill+ version was discontinued in early 2022. The updated Beats Pill is priced at $150 and it offers a redesigned speaker system, a removable lanyard for portability, USB-C charging, IP67 water resistance, and 24 hours of battery life.
Rumors about Apple's upcoming iPhone 17 series have so far sparked a good deal of discussion regarding a potential redesign of the rear camera module. Leaks suggest the cosmetic changes could be big, but whether they would impact the iPhone camera's existing capabilities is a question for which no-one has yet provided an adequate answer.
The Camera Redesign Rumor Problem
Several rumors suggest that for the iPhone 17 Pro models, Apple may transition from its traditional triangular lens arrangement to a horizontal, elongated bar or strip of lenses, similar to the one used on the Google Pixel 9. However, we've had conflicting information, with at least one source claiming that the iPhone 17 Pro models will retain the existing triangular configuration amidst broader material redesigns of the rear casing.
The major point of concern with adopting a horizontal camera layout is its potential impact on the device's ability to capture spatial video for Apple Vision Pro — a feature currently supported by iPhone 15 Pro devices and all iPhone 16 models.
What Is Spatial Video?
Spatial video is an immersive video format that provides a more three-dimensional experience by capturing content from multiple perspectives. The technology allows viewers wearing Apple Vision Pro to feel as if they're present in the environment being filmed, offering a significant enhancement over traditional 2D video formats.
The shooting mode requires two cameras to record footage simultaneously when the iPhone is held in a landscape orientation, where the horizontal separation between lenses is crucial for them to mimic the distance between human eyes and create depth perception. Unlike standard 3D video that presents a static perspective, spatial video in this way creates six degrees of freedom, so that if the viewer shifts their position, the perspective in the video footage also shifts accordingly.
On iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models, spatial video is achieved by using the vertically aligned main Wide/Fusion and Ultra Wide cameras to capture these differing perspectives. Similarly, Apple adopted a vertical alignment design for the dual-lens rear cameras on the standard iPhone 16 models as a strategic move to allow for spatial video capture.
Logic would therefore seem to dictate that if the iPhone 17 Pro models were to adopt the rumored elongated horizontal bar of lenses, they would no longer be capable of shooting spatial video in landscape orientation – in the process losing a core camera functionality that has been present in their predecessors for two generations. Conversely, were the non-Pro models to retain the vertical alignment of the two lenses currently used in the iPhone 16, spatial capture would become incongruously exclusive to Apple's more affordable flagship device.
On the other hand, if the standard iPhone 17 also adopted the elongated horizontal bar design, then no model in the series would be capable of spatial video. (Rumors suggest the same can already be said for the Plus-replacing "iPhone 17 Air," which allegedly features just a single camera lens).
Would Apple really be prepared to nix its spatial video capability from some, if not all, iPhone 17 models – a feature that it has spent so much research and development (not to mention marketing) in order to bring to iPhones? Many would suggest that none of these scenarios are likely.
Overcoming Spatial Technical Challenges
There is another possibility, however. Recent advancements in computational photography may have opened avenues for creating spatial videos without the existing strict hardware constraints. For example, Gaussian splatting, which was invented less than two years ago, can generate photorealistic 3D models using data from multiple camera angles, even when using non-traditional camera arrangements.
Niantic, a company with close ties to Google, has already been leveraging Gaussian splatting in its Scaniverse app to create photorealistic 3D models. Not only that, Niantic's WebXR app "Into the Scaniverse" for the Meta Quest headset allows users to step inside the splats they have captured in Scaniverse and walk around.
Could Apple be developing something akin to Guassian splatting for video – similar to its visionOS 2 feature that uses advanced machine learning to transform a 2D image into a spatial photo which then comes to life when viewed on Vision Pro?
Of course, whether or not Apple is adopting something similar is anyone's guess at this point. Equally, there's no reason to believe one way or the other that Apple has developed its own, alternative solution that accommodates a "runway" style camera module redesign. The only thing we do know is that we'll learn everything when Apple announces the iPhone 17 series around its usual mid-September time frame.
Today we're tracking a few iPad discounts on Amazon, including the new iPad mini 7, M2 iPad Air, and M4 iPad Pro. These deals include multiple all-time low prices on Apple's tablets, matching the prices we tracked over the holiday season in many cases.
Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Amazon. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.
iPad Mini 7
Amazon this week is providing record low prices on multiple models of the iPad mini 7, starting at $399.00 for the 128GB Wi-Fi tablet, down from $499.00. Best Buy is also matching every one of these deals, and in some cases it has better delivery estimates.
Amazon has nearly every model of Apple's M2 iPad Air on sale this week at $100 off, all of which are matching the record low prices for each tablet. You'll also find Best Buy matching these discounts, and you don't need to be a My Best Buy Plus/Total member to get the deals.
Similar to the iPad Air tablets, both Amazon and Best Buy are providing record low prices on Apple's M4 iPad Pro this week. For the 11-inch models, on Amazon you'll need to clip an on-page coupon to see the final sale price, and on Best Buy you'll need to be a My Best Buy Plus/Total member.
The same stipulations don't apply to 13-inch models, which are available without coupons or the need of a membership. Every price listed below is the match of an all-time low price on each iPad Pro model.
If you're on the hunt for more discounts, be sure to visit our Apple Deals roundup where we recap the best Apple-related bargains of the past week.
Deals Newsletter
Interested in hearing more about the best deals you can find in 2025? Sign up for our Deals Newsletter and we'll keep you updated so you don't miss the biggest deals of the season!
Hundreds of unique Apple iPods that belonged to the late designer Karl Lagerfeld are being auctioned by Sotheby's (via MacStories).
Lagerfeld was a renowned German fashion designer who passed away in 2019. The auction features a range of custom iPods, including uniquely decorated models and rare first-generation devices. Each iPod is meticulously loaded with curated music.
According to graphic novelist Warren Ellis, "Lagerfeld famously had an 'iPod nanny' to digitize his collection for the iPods and to add new music to new devices. This is how he ended up with over 300 of them – he treated them like cassette tapes."
Lagerfeld's collection also included other Apple devices, such as iPads, which he reportedly used as digital sketchbooks and diaries. Despite owning several iPhones, Lagerfeld avoided using email and instead maintained a preference for handwritten correspondence.
The auction is part of a broader sale of Lagerfeld's estate featuring over 200 lots, providing a comprehensive look into his personal and professional life. It closes on January 31.
iOS 18.3 is the third major update to the iOS 18 operating system, and while it isn't as feature rich as iOS 18.1 or iOS 18.2, there are some Apple Intelligence changes worth knowing about, as well as as some other tweaks, bug fixes, and security updates.
This guide covers everything new in iOS 18.3.
Apple Intelligence
After updating to iOS 18.3, Apple Intelligence is an opt-out feature, not an opt-in feature. If you didn't have Apple Intelligence turned on, it's now turned on automatically, and you will need to go to the Apple Intelligence section of the Settings app to turn it off.
Apple Intelligence is available on the iPhone 15 Pro models, iPhone 16 Pro models, the iPad mini 7, and all Macs and iPads with an M-series chip. On these devices, Apple Intelligence is now turned on automatically when iOS 18.3, iPadOS 18.3, or macOS Sequoia 15.3 is installed. In prior updates, you had to explicitly turn Apple Intelligence on to be able to use the feature set.
You can now use Visual Intelligence to add an event to the Calendar app, or to identify plants and animals.
Apple Intelligence Notification Summaries
iOS 18.3 makes several changes to Apple Intelligence Notification summaries to address complaints over notifications that have false news headlines.
Notification summaries for the News and Entertainment category have been temporarily disabled, and Apple is working on improvements. The feature will return in a future software update, but for now, these types of notifications will not be aggregated and summarized.
In the Settings app, when a user activates Notification summaries, Apple has added a warning that this is a beta feature, and that errors are a possibility.
For summaries that are still available through Apple Intelligence, the text is italicized as a way to distinguish them from standard notifications.
Apple also added an option to manage whether notifications are summarized for an app right from the Lock Screen. To turn off summaries from the Lock Screen, swipe to the left on a Notification summary and then tap on options to get to the menu to disable it on a per-app basis.
Calculator
Apple made a change to the Calculator app, returning a feature that was removed with iOS 18. You can once again tap the equals sign twice to repeat the last mathematical operation.
Apple removed repeating operations in iOS 18, but it's back. Some iPhone owners who used the Calculator app for things like calculating compound interest will now be able to do so again.
Black Unity Wallpaper
The update adds a new wallpaper to go along with a new watch face and new Apple Watch band that were announced today.
Bug Fixes
There are fixes for a couple of notable bugs.
Siri Keyboard - The update addresses a bug that could cause the keyboard to disappear after you typed in a Siri request with the Type to Siri feature.
Apple Music - iOS 18.3 fixes a bug that could cause audio playback to continue even after the Apple Music app is closed.
Security Updates
iOS 18.3 fixes 25 security vulnerabilities, including one that was actively exploited. A CoreMedia vulnerability could be used to elevate privileges, and Apple is aware of reports that it may have been used on devices running iOS 17.1 or earlier.
A Photos vulnerability could allow an attacker with physical access to an unlocked device to access the Photos app even when the iPhone is locked, and Apple fixed several issues with AirPlay that could allow attackers to execute code or crash apps.
Two kernel vulnerabilities that could let malicious apps gain kernel privileges were addressed, and there are a handful of WebKit fixes for Safari. Given the number of security holes that were patched, it's a good idea to install the software to get the latest fixes.
With today's watchOS 11.3 update, Apple accidentally broke watchOS updates for some older Apple Watch models, according to information circulating on social networks.
For Apple Watch models that are unable to be updated to watchOS 11, such as the Apple Watch Series 4 and Series 5, there is an unintended bug that prevents some of them from installing the latest version of watchOS 10, watchOS 10.6.1.
New Apple Mistake: Apple Watches that ended on watchOS 10.6.1 (Series 4/5, SE1) cannot update to watchOS 10.6.1 if they’re not already on it.
Apple bumped the CV required that ota‘s are associated with from 22 to 24, which would normally be associated with late-11.x watchOS
— Michael (@MasterMike88) January 27, 2025
An Apple Watch that was not running watchOS 10.6.1 prior to the release of watchOS 11.3 and iOS 18.3 is now unable to have the watchOS 10.6.1 update installed. So an Apple Watch SE 1, Series 4, or Series 5 owner running an older version of watchOS cannot install watchOS 10.6.1 at the current time.
Further, some Apple Watch models running earlier versions of watchOS 10 cannot be paired to an iPhone.
This issue only applies to Apple Watch models that are limited to watchOS 10, and it is further only applicable to those not already running watchOS 10.6.1, an update that came out last August. Apple will likely fix this issue in the near future.
Marvel Snap, a popular game that was caught up in the TikTok ban, returned to the App Store today and it is once again available for download.
The game was published by TikTok parent company ByteDance, which led to its removal from the App Store when a law banning ByteDance apps from being distributed in the U.S. went into effect on January 19.
Marvel Snap creators Second Dinner said on January 19 that the removal of the app and a simultaneous gameplay outage came as a surprise. The developers went to work getting the app reinstated, and promised to find a new publisher to prevent any further issues.
The game was back up and running as of January 20, and on January 24, Second Dinner said that Marvel Snap would return to the App Store as soon as this week. Along with re-adding Marvel Snap to the App Store, Apple removed Marvel Snap from its list of ByteDance apps that are not being distributed in the U.S. at the current time. Second Dinner has not yet provided details on the situation with ByteDance, or if it has secured a new publisher.
To make up for the downtime, Marvel Snap players in the United States are being provided with extra experience and in-game rewards.
The January 19 TikTok ban affected several other apps that are affiliated with ByteDance, including TikTok, TikTok Studio, TikTok Shop Seller Center, CapCut, Lemon8, Hypic, Lark - Team Collaboration, Lark - Rooms Display, Lark Rooms Controller, and Gauth: AI Study Companion.
All of these apps are still unavailable in the App Store in the United States, but are accessible for those who already downloaded the titles. U.S. President Donald Trump gave ByteDance a reprieve by ordering the DoJ to hold off on any enforcement of the law for 90 days, but as the law is still in place, Apple is required to comply. If Apple were to continue to distribute TikTok, it would be violating the law and could be punished after the 90-day period.
If you already have these apps installed on your device, they will remain on your device. But they can't be redownloaded if deleted or restored if you move to a new device. In-app purchases and new subscriptions are no longer possible.
Users in the United States won't receive updates for these apps, which could potentially impact performance, security, and compatibility with future versions of iOS and iPadOS, and some app functions might become limited or stop working since the app can't receive updates.
It is not clear what will happen with TikTok and the other ByteDance apps. The law requires ByteDance to divest TikTok, giving control of the app over to an American company. Trump is reportedly discussing the sale of TikTok with "many people," and current rumors suggest that Oracle and a group of investors could take over the app.
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.
Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Amazon and Best Buy. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.
Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Amazon. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.
