MacRumors

Apple is working on a Nintendo Switch-style handheld games console, according to a sketchy new rumor coming from Asia.

According to a post on a Korean forum, shared by Twitter user @FrontTron, Apple is developing a portable hybrid games console, comparable to the Nintendo Switch. While the sourcing of the rumor is suspect, it has gained some visibility in larger news outlets over the past day or two, so we figured it was at least worth acknowledging.

The device will apparently feature an entirely new Apple-designed application processor, neglecting to use an A-series or M-series chip. This chip appears to be specifically designed for gaming and is said to feature enhanced GPU performance and improved ray tracing.

Apple is purported to currently be in negotiations with a number of well-known video game studios, including Ubisoft, the maker of popular titles such as "Assassin's Creed," "Far Cry," and "Watch Dogs," about developing games for the new device.

It is unknown where this console would be placed between devices such as the iPad and the Apple TV, which both offer integration with Apple Arcade and support for a host of external controllers, including some that take cues from the Nintendo Switch's design.

Late last year, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said that Apple was working on a new ‌Apple TV‌ model with a stronger gaming focus and the leaker known as "Fudge" said that Apple was developing a gaming-focused Apple TV with an A14X chip.

It is unclear where these rumors now stand given the recent launch of the second-generation Apple TV 4K, which seemed to take a step back in terms of gaming with its older A12 Bionic processor and the redesigned Siri Remote, which lacks the accelerometer and gyroscope present in its predecessor.

Apple did launch its own games console in 1996 with the Apple Bandai Pippin, which was largely unsuccessful and discontinued following Steve Jobs' return to the company. Rumors about the company re-engaging with the console gaming market have circulated intermittently ever since but have never come to fruition.

The reliable leaker known as "L0vetodream" said last year that Apple was working on its own gaming controller, and after a spate of rumors about a gaming-focused ‌Apple TV‌ product, it is not completely out of the question that Apple could be working on some sort of games console. Even so, without more concrete information it is important to take this rumor with a heavy pinch of salt.

Apple has added a number of features to its Podcasts app in the third beta of iOS 14.6, seemingly in an attempt to address some of the useability problems introduced in iOS 14.5.

MacRumors contributor Steve Moser spotted the Podcasts app changes in iOS 14.6 beta 3 and its source code, which include new features for marking all episodes as played, removing downloads, and recovering episodes.

iOS 14.5 redesigned the Podcasts library so that all episodes of a show are now displayed by default, which gave the impression to some users that hundreds of episodes stretching back years had been added to their libraries.

It is no longer possible to delete or remove individual episodes from the library in iOS 14.5, leaving users with the only option of selecting "Hide Played Episodes" and then manually marking every unwanted episode as played individually, one by one.

To make matters worse, users reported that many old episodes that had been listened to were not being marked as played correctly, making the new episodes view troublesome even where the "Hide Played Episodes" option in Settings had been enabled.

Apple's new "Mark All As Played" or "Mark All As Unplayed" options for shows in iOS 14.6 will help users deal with the multitude of episodes now seemingly lingering in libraries, and will make it possible to hide old episodes from view when used with the "Hide Played Episodes" option.

In spite of this improvement, users will still have to mark every episode of a podcast that they do not want to listen to as played in order to remove it from view. This is a particular nuisance when listening to podcast episodes in "oldest to newest" order. In addition, there is no longer the option to only retain a certain number of unplayed episodes of a show in the library.

In the iOS 14.6 beta, Apple also added the ability to remove all downloads in a single action, rather than obliging users to do this individually for each desired episode. This may also help some users that said the Podcasts app in iOS 14.5 was hemorrhaging mobile data by downloading all of the episodes that have now been moved directly into libraries.

The other new feature in the Podcasts app relates to recovering episodes in the Library. There are cautions in iOS 14.6 for removing recovered episodes, which suggests, although it was not visible within the code, that there may be an option to recover episodes. It is also unknown whether this feature is macOS-only.

It is not clear what exact function this serves, but it is reasonable to speculate that it relates to recovering episodes of shows, presumably ones that were not subscribed to, that were added to the library prior to iOS 14.5. These episodes are currently inaccessible under the design of the Podcasts app in iOS 14.5 due to the changes to the way the library works.

Given the raft of criticisms about the redesign of Apple's Podcasts app in iOS 14.5, it is difficult to not see these changes as a purposeful attempt to go some way to rectify these problems. Even so, there still seems to be more work to do on the Podcasts app to fully address users' complaints about bugs and sorting episodes in the library.

Amazon's podcast subscription service Wondery+ will be available through the Apple Podcasts Subscriptions platform, which launches in over 170 countries later this month, according to a report today from The Hollywood Reporter.

Wondery+ offers dozens of ad-free podcasts, with early access and exclusive episodes for subscribers, making it a natural fit for Apple Podcasts Subscriptions. The report says Wondery+ pricing will be the same through Apple as it is elsewhere, at $4.99 per month or $34.99 per year. Wondery's free, ad-supported podcasts will remain available.

Apple Podcasts Subscriptions will allow users to subscribe to premium podcasts with a variety of benefits, such as ad-free listening, access to additional content, and early or exclusive access to new series. Launch partners will include NPR, the Los Angeles Times, The Athletic, Sony Music Entertainment, and many more, according to Apple.

In late 2020, it was reported that Apple held acquisition talks with Wondery, but Amazon ultimately purchased the company.

Apple Podcasts Subscriptions will likely launch with iOS 14.6.

Visa has announced that starting today, customers in Japan will be able to use their Visa debit or credit card with Apple Pay.

Customers with Visa cards issued by Aplus, SMBC Finance Service, NTT DoCoMo, Credit Saison, JACCS, Mitsui Sumitomo Bank Card, and Rakuten cards will be able to add their card to their Wallet on iPhone and Apple Watch.

Japan has set an ambitious goal of achieving 40% of all daily transactions via digital, cashless methods by 2025. With expanded support for Visa cards, more customers will have access to the ease and convenience of ‌Apple Pay‌, which should help the country move towards its goal within the next four years.

‌Apple Pay‌ earlier last week launched in Israel, and in Feburary made its long-awaited debut in Mexico.

iPhone 12 production at a Foxconn factory in India has been cut by more than 50% amid a lockdown, and multiple reported cases of COVID-19 infections for workers at the plant, according to a new report from Reuters.

The main factory located in Tamil Nadu, a state under extreme lockdown measures, has been forced to significantly cut back on production. According to sources who spoke to Reuters, employees at the Foxconn facility have only been able to leave, but not reenter.

More than 100 Foxconn employees in the state have tested positive for COVID-19 and the company has enforced a no-entry ban at its factory in the capital of Chennai until late May, one of the sources said.

"Employees are only allowed to leave but not to enter the facility since yesterday," the person said. "Only a small part of output is being kept."

More than 50% of the plant's capacity had been cut, both sources said, declining to be named as they were not authorised to speak to the media.

Foxconn stopped short on providing specific details but said in a statement that is it providing all infected employees with medical assistance.

"Foxconn places the health and safety of our employees as our highest priority and that is why we have been working closely with local government and public health authorities in India to address the challenges that we and all companies are facing in dealing with the COVID-19 crisis," it said in a statement to Reuters.

Earlier this year, Apple began production of the iPhone 12 in India as part of its continued push to remove reliance on suppliers and production in China. The significant slowdown of production for iPhones in India comes amid a wider global chip shortage, which so far has not impacted Apple's ‌iPhone‌ line, but is causing delays for the Mac and iPad.

Apple plans to merge its iCloud Documents and Data service with iCloud Drive starting in May of 2022, according to a support document published late last week (via MacGeneration).

‌iCloud Drive‌ and ‌iCloud‌ Documents and Data share the fundamental ability to backup data from apps. However, ‌iCloud‌ Documents and Data was often a cumbersome, confusing experience. In contrast, ‌iCloud Drive‌ is more unified, with users able to access their files and content through the Files app across all their devices.

As Apple explains, starting in May of next year, users who are using ‌iCloud‌ Documents and Data will have their accounts automatically migrated to ‌iCloud Drive‌. However, users must manually enable ‌iCloud Drive‌ to view their files once the merger occurs.

In May 2022, the iCloud Documents and Data service, our former document synchronization service, will be interrupted and completely replaced by iCloud Drive. Therefore, if you use iCloud Documents and Data, your account will be migrated to iCloud Drive after that date.

If you use the iCloud Documents and Data service, you must activate iCloud Drive by following the steps below to view your files. Upgrading to iCloud Drive does not change the storage space used by your files saved in iCloud.

iCloud Drive launched in 2014 as a unified, seamless way for Apple users to keep all their files, documents, and more synchronized across all their devices. To activate it, users on iOS or iPadOS devices can go to Settings -> ‌iCloud‌ and enable ‌iCloud Drive‌, or through System Preference -> ‌iCloud‌, and select ‌iCloud Drive‌ on macOS.

Spotify has announced the availability of podcast timestamp sharing, a new feature of its mobile app that lets users share podcasts beginning at a particular moment.

Previously, it was only possible to share a podcast link to an entire episode on Spotify. Timestamp sharing means the shared podcast will play for the recipient from the time that the sender chooses, allowing them to highlight specific content.

To share a timestamp, users can tap the Share button while listening to an episode, use the "switch to share" feature at the current playtime, and then select how they want to share the content. Tapping the shared link jumps to the chosen playtime.

In another development, Spotify is unveiling an updated sharing menu in its mobile app, including a way to preview what's being shared, and an improved destination list based on the social apps the user has installed. The changes are linked to Spotify's decision to bring its Canvas feature to Snapchat.

Previously limited to sharing on Instagram Stories, Canvas turns static song pages in Spotify into video-art showcases with the help of eight-second visual loops. By previewing a Canvas being shared on Instagram or Snapchat, users will be able to see ahead of time how it will look on their social channel.

Late last month, Spotify announced a new paid subscription platform for podcasts that allows podcasters to mark episodes as "subscriber only" without taking revenue from their paid-for content. Spotify unveiled the platform just a week after Apple announced its own upcoming podcast subscription service, for which Apple will collect 30% of podcast subscription fees that creators generate in their first year.

A new legal case filed with the U.K.'s Competition Appeal Tribunal has accused Apple of breaching competition law by overcharging nearly 20 million customers for App Store purchases.

The collective action case alleges Apple's 30% commission on app sales and consumers' forced use of its own payment processing system generates "unlawfully excessive levels of profit," and calls for the company to compensate iPhone and iPad users in the U.K. for years of alleged overcharging, with damages of up to £1.5 billion being sought.

The collective action has been brought by Dr Rachael Kent, an expert in the digital economy and a lecturer at King's College, London, who claims that because the ‌App Store‌ is the only way to get apps on to an ‌iPhone‌ or ‌iPad‌, it is acting like a monopoly.

"The App Store was a brilliant gateway for a range of interesting and innovative services that millions of us find useful, myself included," she said. "But 13 years after its launch, it has become the only gateway for millions of consumers.

"Apple guards access to the world of apps jealously, and charges entry and usage fees that are completely unjustified. This is the behavior of a monopolist and is unacceptable."

In opt-out cases such as this, the claim can be brought on behalf of a defined group, and aggregate damages awarded to the group, without the need to identify all the individual claimants and specify their losses. Claimants within a class are automatically included in an action unless they take specific steps to opt-out.

On this basis, anyone in the U.K. who has bought paid apps, paid subscriptions, or other in-app purchases on an ‌iPhone‌ or ‌iPad‌ since October 2015 is included in the claim. The rest of the team behind the case includes law firm Hausfeld and Co and Vannin Capital. However, the collective action needs to be approved by the tribunal before proceeding.

Apple in a statement called the lawsuit "meritless."

"We believe this lawsuit is meritless and welcome the opportunity to discuss with the court our unwavering commitment to consumers and the many benefits the App Store has delivered to the UK's innovation economy," Apple said. "The commission charged by the App Store is very much in the mainstream of those charged by all other digital marketplaces. In fact, 84% of apps on the App Store are free and developers pay Apple nothing. And for the vast majority of developers who do pay Apple a commission because they are selling a digital good or service, they are eligible for a commission rate of 15%."

The case echoes similar allegations made in the ongoing legal battle between Apple and Epic Games, in which Epic alleges that the ‌App Store‌ and associated developer commission rates are anti-competitive and monopolistic.

In April, Apple was also charged by the European Commission with abusing its dominant position in the music streaming market with regard to ‌App Store‌ rules on in-app payments. The charges followed a complaint by rival streaming service Spotify.

Maximizing battery life is something that many iPhone users deal with on a regular basis as we all want our iPhones to last as long as possible. Sometimes there are bugs in iOS that make the battery drain faster, and sometimes we just need to eke out as much as possible on a long day out and about.

We also have a detailed, in-depth guide with tons of additional tips on maximizing your battery life, which is well worth taking a look at if your iPhone (or iPad) battery just isn't lasting long enough throughout the day.

Google today introduced Chrome 90 for iPhones, iPads, and the iPod touch, adding support for new Search and Dino widgets on devices running a version of iOS 14.

There are three separate Chrome widgets available. There's a two tile search interface that lets you conduct a quick search with quick access to voice search and incognito mode, a single tile search widget, and a shortcut to play the Chrome Dino game.

Chrome widgets can be added to the Home Screen on the iPhone by pressing down on the display and tapping the "+" in the upper left corner, or to the Notification Center by swiping over to widgets, selecting the edit option, and then tapping the "+" button. Note that you need to open the Chrome app after updating for the widget options to appear.

According to Google, the Chrome 90 update also introduces an option to edit saved usernames and passwords in Chrome settings. Chrome 90 for Mac was released in April.

With the release of iOS 14.5 and tvOS 14.5, Apple users can now connect their PS5 DualSense and Xbox Series X controllers to an iPhone, iPad, and Apple TV. Keep reading to learn how it works.

Since iOS 13 and tvOS 13, users have been able to connect popular console controllers to an ‌iPhone‌ or ‌Apple TV‌ to play Apple Arcade games and other iOS games, instead of having to spend extra money on MFi-compatible controllers.

The newest updates, iOS 14.5 and tvOS 14.5, introduce additional support for the latest gaming controllers from Sony and Microsoft, allowing the PS5 DualSense controller and the Xbox Series X controller to be used with iPhones and iPads.

The following steps walk you through the process of pairing your DualSense or Series X controller to your Apple device. If you haven't already, you'll need to update your ‌iPhone‌/‌iPad‌ to iOS 14.5 (Settings > General > Software Update) or your ‌Apple TV‌ to tvOS 14.5 (Settings -> System -> Software Updates).

How to Connect the PS5 DualSense controller to iPhone or iPad

1. Open your iOS device's Settings app and navigate to Bluetooth.
2. On your DualSense controller, press and hold the Share button (next to the D-Pad, with three lines radiating out from the top) and the PS button (in between the thumbsticks) at the same time. Hold them for at least three seconds, until you see the light bar flashing blue.
   
   

3. On your ‌iPhone‌/‌iPad‌, under "Other Devices," tap on your PS5 DualSense controller.
4. Tap Pair.

To save battery once you're done using the controller, return to the Bluetooth settings screen and tap the info ("i") icon next to the PS5 controller, then tap Disconnect or Forget this device to remove it from the list.

How to Connect the Xbox Series X controller to iPhone or iPad

1. Open your iOS device's Settings app and navigate to Bluetooth.
2. On your Xbox Series X controller, hold down the pairing button located on the top of the controller for a few seconds.
   
   

3. On your ‌iPhone‌/‌iPad‌, under "Other Devices," tap on your Xbox Series X controller.
4. Tap Pair.

To save battery once you're done using the controller, return to the Bluetooth settings screen and tap the info ("i") icon next to the Xbox Series X controller, then tap Disconnect or Forget this device to remove it from the list.

How to Connect the PS5 DualSense Controller to Apple TV

1. Open the Settings app on ‌Apple TV‌ and select Remotes and Devices -> Bluetooth.
2. On your DualSense controller, press and hold the Share button (next to the D-Pad, with three lines radiating out from the top) and the PS button (in between the thumbsticks) at the same time. Hold them for at least three seconds, until you see the light bar flashing blue.
   
   

3. On your ‌Apple TV‌, select the DualSense Controller to pair it, which will be confirmed with a notification on tvOS.

How to Connect the Xbox Wireless Controller to Apple TV

1. Open the Settings app on ‌Apple TV‌ and select Remotes and Devices -> Bluetooth.
2. On your Xbox Series X controller, hold down the pairing button located on the top of the controller for a few seconds.
   
   

3. On your ‌Apple TV‌, select the Xbox Series X controller to pair it, which will be confirmed with a notification on tvOS.

The above steps should work for most wireless console controllers, including the DualShock 4 Wireless controller and Xbox Wireless controller.

Following the release of iOS 14.5.1 last week, Apple has stopped signing iOS 14.5, the previously available version of iOS 14 that was released in late April. With iOS 14.5 no longer being signed, it is not possible to downgrade to iOS 14.5 if you've already installed iOS 14.5.1.

Apple routinely stops signing older versions of software updates after new releases come out in order to encourage customers to keep their operating systems up to date.

iOS 14.5 was a major update introducing a whole slew of new features from an option to unlock an iPhone with an Apple Watch while wearing a mask to Apple Maps accident crowdsourcing. The software also added dual-SIM 5G support, new emoji, AirTag support, and tons more.

iOS 14.5.1, the update that replaces iOS 14.5, addressed an App Tracking Transparency issue that prevented some users from receiving prompts from apps and it included fixes for two WebKit security vulnerabilities. Apple last week also stopped signing iOS 14.4.2.

Apple's upcoming iPhone 13 models will be slightly thicker than the ‌iPhone‌ 12 models and will also feature larger, thicker camera bumps with lenses that protrude less, according to ‌iPhone‌ 13 schematics seen by MacRumors.

The new ‌iPhone‌ 13 and 13 Pro models are expected to feature a thickness of 7.57mm, up from 7.4mm in the ‌iPhone‌ 12 models. That's an increase of 0.17mm, which won't be hugely noticeable to most people.

Changes coming to the camera bumps of the new iPhones may be more noticeable. The ‌iPhone‌ 13 and 13 Pro will have thicker camera bumps, with the change most noticeable on the ‌iPhone‌ 13 Pro. The ‌iPhone‌ 12 and 12 Pro feature camera bumps in the range of 1.5mm to 1.7mm, while the ‌iPhone‌ 13 will have a thicker 2.51mm camera bump. The ‌iPhone‌ 13 Pro, meanwhile, will feature a 3.65mm thick camera bump.

The camera bumps are getting thicker in part to prevent the lenses from protruding quite as much on the ‌iPhone‌ 13 models. Rather than the individual lenses protruding as we saw on the ‌iPhone‌ 12 models, the camera bump itself on the ‌iPhone‌ 13 family will protrude more while the lenses will sit closer to a flush position, similar to the design of the 2020 iPad Pro.

In addition to a thicker camera bump, Apple is changing the overall size of the camera bump, a shift that will also be most noticeable on the ‌iPhone‌ 13 Pro. The ‌iPhone‌ 12 and 12 Pro have camera bumps that measures in at around 28mm by 30mm, while the ‌iPhone‌ 13 will have a camera bump that's closer to square at around 29mm by 29mm, with the bump also located about a millimeter closer to the top of the ‌iPhone‌.

The ‌iPhone‌ 13 Pro is expected to gain a larger camera bump, measuring in at around 36mm by 37mm, so rather than having a camera bump size similar to the ‌iPhone‌ 13, it will be more similar to the ‌iPhone‌ 13 Pro Max. The ‌iPhone‌ 12 Pro's camera is smaller than the camera of the iPhone 12 Pro Max, so the shift in 2021 suggests the 13 Pro and Pro Max will have similar cameras, with Apple perhaps reintroducing feature parity.

Rumors have suggested we will indeed see camera improvements. Sensor-shift stabilization is expected to expand at least across the ‌iPhone‌ 13 Pro lineup if not the regular ‌iPhone‌ 13 models as well, bringing improvements in low-light performance and stabilization. Right now, sensor-shift stabilization is limited to the ‌iPhone 12 Pro Max‌.

Both the ‌iPhone‌ 13 Pro and 13 Pro Max could get sensor-shift stabilization for both the Wide and Ultra Wide lenses, which would explain why the camera bump will be larger for those two models and why it may need to be thicker.

Rumors have also indicated that the upgraded telephoto lens that was introduced exclusively in the ‌iPhone 12 Pro Max‌ could come to the ‌iPhone‌ 13 Pro, which is another sign that both the ‌iPhone‌ 13 Pro and Pro Max cameras could share the same feature set. We have not heard of any new camera features being limited to the 13 Pro Max, which is good news for those who want a smaller phone that comes with all of the Pro features.

Because the camera bump size is shifting in the ‌iPhone‌ 13 lineup, Apple may also be planning to adjust the positioning of the side button, mute button, and volume buttons. The side button could be moved slightly lower on the ‌iPhone‌ 13 models, with the mute button and volume buttons on the other side also shifting downward accordingly.

Our schematics come from a source that has experience with predicting Apple's design plans, but schematics like this are common ahead of the release of new iPhones because case makers use them to create cases for the upcoming devices to have something ready to go at launch. These kinds of schematics are most often accurate, though there are occasionally discrepancies.

The information here appears to be in line with rumors we've heard previously that suggest some decent camera improvements for the ‌iPhone‌ 13 and ‌iPhone‌ 13 Pro to bring it more in line with the camera offerings of the ‌iPhone‌ 13 Pro Max, which lends believability to the details we've received. These same design dimensions have been seen in a recent dummy model that was shared by Unbox Therapy.

Aside from these changes to the camera design and the location of the buttons, the ‌iPhone‌ 13 models are expected to look similar to the ‌iPhone‌ 12 models with few design changes. If accurate, these details suggest that the ‌iPhone‌ 13 models will not be able to share cases with the ‌iPhone‌ 12 models, nor will the ‌iPhone‌ 13 and ‌iPhone‌ 13 Pro cases be interchangeable.

The ‌iPhone‌ 13 models are also expected to feature upgraded A15 chips, faster 5G connectivity, and more, with full details on everything we know available in our iPhone 13 roundup.

Apple today seeded the third beta of an upcoming macOS Big Sur 11.4 update to developers for testing purposes, with the new beta coming two weeks after the release of the second macOS Big Sur 11.4 beta.

Developers can download the ‌‌‌macOS Big Sur‌‌‌ 11.4 beta using the Software Update mechanism in System Preferences after installing the proper profile from the Apple Developer Center.

According to Apple's developer release notes, the macOS Big Sur 11.4 update adds Intel Mac support for AMD's 6000-Series Navi GPUs. It is not yet clear if there are also other outward-facing features included, but we'll update this post if we find anything new.

Apple today seeded the third betas of new iOS and iPadOS 14.6 updates to developers for testing purposes, one week after seeding the second iOS and iPadOS 14.6 updates.

iOS and iPadOS 14.6 can be downloaded through the Apple Developer Center or over the air after the proper profile has been installed on an iPhone or iPad.

iOS and iPadOS 14.6 appear to be more minor changes focusing on under-the-hood bug performance improvements and bug fixes for issues that weren't able to be addressed in iOS 14.5. For AirTags, the beta adds a new feature that allows an email address to be entered as a contact method for Lost Mode instead of a phone number. In iOS 14.5, there is no option to use an email, with Apple only allowing for a phone number.

The update also lays the groundwork for Apple Card Family, a feature that Apple introduced at its April event. ‌Apple Card‌ Family allows spouses to share a single ‌Apple Card‌ account, with each person serving as a co-owner to build credit.

‌Apple Card‌ Family also lets parents share an ‌Apple Card‌ with their children for making purchases, with optional spending limits and parental controls to help children learn smart financial habits. All spending by the family is tracked with a single monthly bill, and up to five people over 13 can be added to an ‌Apple Card‌ account for sharing purposes.

Apple today seeded the third beta of an upcoming watchOS 7.5 update to developers for testing purposes, with the new beta approximately a week after the release of the second beta.

To install the ‌watchOS 7.5 beta, developers need to download the proper configuration profile from the Apple Developer Center. Once the profile is in place, the watchOS 7.5 beta can be downloaded through the dedicated ‌Apple Watch‌ app on the iPhone by going to General > Software Update.

To update to the new software, the ‌Apple Watch‌ needs to have 50 percent battery life, it must be placed on the charger, and it must be in range of the ‌‌‌‌‌‌‌iPhone‌‌‌‌‌‌‌.

We don't yet know what's included in watchOS 7.5, but it could include bug fixes for issues that aren't included in the watchOS 7.4 update. There were no new features discovered in the second beta, but we'll update this article should we find anything new in the third beta.