MacRumors

WhatsApp has launched a cryptocurrency payment feature for a small number of users in the United States, thanks to Novi integration, a digital wallet owned by Facebook (now Meta).

The pilot program lets users of the encrypted messaging app send and receive money "instantly, securely, and with no fees" using the Paxos Dollar (USPD) stablecoin, whose value is linked to the US dollar.

The way the payments work in WhatsApp is similar to sending regular attachments in a conversation. Users tap the plus (+) icon and then select Payment from the menu that appears. Users who are paid this way receive USDP, which can be withdrawn to a bank account in its equivalent value in US dollars.

There's no cap on the number of times the Novi system can be used to send and receive money through WhatsApp. Regardless of frequency of use, there are no fees associated with keeping a balance in a Novi account or withdrawing it to a bank account. In addition, the inclusion of Novi in the chat platform has no effect on the end-to-end encryption of personal messages.

The small pilot program is available to some users in the US from today. For more information about the WhatsApp integration, check out the Novi website.

The pilot is one outcome of Meta's cryptocurrency plans, which have changed since they were officially announced in 2019. Back then, the plan was to develop a cryptocurrency called Libra that would be linked to a Facebook digital wallet called Calibra.

However, Libra has since become Diem, and Calibra has become Novi, and instead of using Diem, Novi has adopted the Paxos stablecoin in partnership with Coinbase, which is the custody partner that holds the funds for the pilot.

WhatsApp already offers payment systems in India and Brazil, but these used traditional fiat currencies rather than crypto.

(Via WaBetaInfo.)

Chinese consumer electronics maker Oppo says that innovation in the smartphone industry has "hit a wall" and that people are asking, "What's next for smartphones?" In an answer to that question, the maker teased its first-ever foldable smartphone named "Find N."

In a press release, Oppo's chief product officer, Pete Lau, said that following "four years of intense R&D and six generations of prototypes," Oppo is ready to reveal its first foldable smartphone.

Foldable smartphones have grown in popularity over the years, with Samsung being one of the earliest adopters of the new smartphone trend. According to Lau, foldable smartphones have yet to become a mainstream hit due to many factors, including concerns over durability, software utilization, and more, and that Oppo wanted to change that.

Although a handful of other brands have already introduced foldable devices to the market, barriers such as utility, durability and user experience continue to prevent foldable devices from becoming a more feasible daily driver for most people. So when I returned to OPPO last year, I was excited to take over this major project and guide the team to overcome the final hurdles to turn this dream into reality.

With the Find N, we have solved the main pain points in previous foldable smartphones, such as the crease in the display and overall durability of the device, by inventing perhaps the best hinge and display designs available today. We look forward to truly pushing the folding screen experience forward.

Lau added that beyond 5G, faster charging, higher refresh rates, improved cameras, and more, "smartphone development has reached a limit" and that "new ways of thinking and new approaches to continue innovating" are needed.

The name "Find N," according to Lau, represents "new possibilities" and ushers in "the next chapter of smartphones." The press release, which serves as a mere teaser of the device, includes one image, while a tweet by Oppo offers a clearer look at the device. Find N will launch on December 15.

Apple is poised to join the foldable smartphone market in the future. Still, a device of that nature remains several years away as Apple tends to wait until technologies are more mature for mainstream use before unveiling a product.

The watchOS 8.3 release candidate has expanded AssistiveTouch, allowing users to control their Apple Watch using only hand gestures, to older Apple Watch models after the feature was previously exclusive to only newer Apple Watches.

Apple first previewed the feature in May as part of its continued commitment to making its products accessible to as many people as possible. AssistiveTouch uses a combination of data from onboard Apple Watch sensors to notice subtle changes in muscle movements and tendon activity. Using gestures like a clinch or pinch, users can control their Apple Watch without touching the screen.

AssistiveTouch for watchOS enables people with upper-body limb differences to use Apple Watch without ever having to touch the display or controls. Using built-in motion sensors and on-device learning, Apple Watch detects subtle differences in muscle movements and tendon activity, letting you control the display through hand gestures like a pinch or a clench. This feature also works with VoiceOver so you can navigate Apple Watch with one hand while using a cane or leading a service animal. Answer incoming calls, control an onscreen motion pointer, and access Notification Center, Control Center, and more.

The feature was previously exclusive to newer Apple Watch models, such as the Series 6 and the Apple Watch SE. Now, with the last several watchOS 8.3 betas and the release candidate released this week, Apple has expanded the feature to include older Apple Watch models such as the Apple Watch Series 4 and Series 5. The expansion was first noted on Twitter and later picked up on Reddit.

Apple's long rumored AR headset is predicted to include multiple highly sensitive 3D sensing modules in order to offer an innovative hand gesture and object detecting user interface, according to Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo in a new research note obtained by MacRumors.

We predict that the structured light of the AR/MR headset can detect not only the position change of the user or other people’s hand and object in front of the user's eyes but also the dynamic detail change of the hand (just like the iPhone's Face ID/structured light/Animoji can detect user's dynamic expression change). Capturing the details of hand movement can provide a more intuitive and vivid human-machine UI (for example, detecting the user's hand from a clenched fist to open and the balloon [image] in hand flying away).

Kuo describes the ability for the headset to detect both hand gestures and movements to provide the user with an immersive experience where the user could open their hand to let go of a virtual balloon.

In order to accomplish this impressive feat, Apple is expected to incorporate four sets of 3D sensors which are of higher quality and specifications than the current iPhones. Kuo sees the quality of this human-machine user interface as the key to the success of Apple's upcoming AR headset. According to Kuo, these interface abilities include gesture control, object detection, as well as eye tracking, iris recognition, voice control, skin detection, expression detection, and spatial detection.

Earlier this year, Patently Apple pointed out a patent application from Apple titled "Devices, Methods, and Graphical User Interfaces for Interacting with Three-Dimensional Environments," which details this same concept.

Different movements and locations of the micro-gestures and various movement parameters are used to determine the operations that are performed in the three-dimensional environment. Using the cameras to capture the micro-gestures to interact with the three-dimensional environment allow the user to freely move about the physical environment without be encumbered by physical input equipment, which allows the user to explore the three-dimensional environment more naturally and efficiently.

Apple is widely expected to launch its first-generation AR-focused device in 2022.

The high-end iPhone 14 Pro models launching in 2022 are expected to have a hole-punch display, according to Korean website The Elec. The 6.1-inch ‌iPhone‌ 14 Pro and a 6.7-inch ‌iPhone‌ 14 Pro Max are expected to feature the upgraded display, which will do away with the notch used in the current ‌iPhone‌ models.

The hole-punch cutout will allow Apple to provide a larger display area while still leaving room for the front-facing camera, and it is a design that Android devices have used for a few years now. If Apple does transition to this design, the Face ID hardware will need to be moved under the display.

Two additional non-Pro iPhones, which will measure in at 6.1 and 6.7 inches, will continue to have a notch, with Apple limiting the hole-punch design to the more expensive iPhones. Apple is doing away with the 5.4-inch "‌iPhone‌ mini" in 2022, and is instead going to offer a four ‌iPhone‌ lineup in 6.1 and 6.7-inch sizes.

The Elec says that Apple will also be sourcing LTPO OLED displays for the ‌iPhone‌ 14 Pro models to allow for 120Hz ProMotion refresh rates, technology already used in the ‌iPhone‌ 13 Pro models this year. Samsung supplied the OLED panels that Apple used for the ‌iPhone‌ 13 Pro models, but Apple could source some displays from LG Display in 2022.

A hole-punch display has been rumored several times before, and notable Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has said repeatedly that some ‌iPhone‌ 14 Pro models are likely to feature the technology.

As Apple gears up to release a fully autonomous vehicle, it is continuing to lose key people who are working on the project, reports Bloomberg. Over the last several weeks, three engineers have departed the company.

Apple's chief engineer for radar systems, Eric Rogers, left for Joby Aviation, a company working on electric aerial ridesharing. Alex Clarabut, an engineering manager for the battery team, and Stephen Spiteri, a hardware engineering manager, both joined Archer Aviation, a company that is developing an air taxi.

Earlier this month, Apple Car engineering director Michael Schwekutsch left Apple for Archer Aviation as well, and back in September, Apple Car project lead Doug Field left Apple for Ford after three years of heading up Apple Car development.

According to Bloomberg, Apple has lost six members of the project's management team in 2021 alone, but it has also brought on important new hires like Ulrich Kranz, former CEO of self-driving startup Canoo, and CJ Moore, who worked at Tesla and has expertise in self-driving software.

Apple's work on an autonomous vehicle has been plagued by managerial shifts, changes in focus, and hiring issues almost since it began. With Field's departure, Apple brought on Apple Watch chief Kevin Lynch to work on the Apple Car, and he is working alongside AI chief John Giannandrea.

Under Lynch's leadership, the Apple Car project is moving forward with the ambitious aim of producing an autonomous electric vehicle that does not require human intervention, which no other car manufacturer has been able to achieve.

Apple is hoping to release a self-driving car by 2025, but the timeline may ultimately prove to be too aggressive.

Instagram is planning to reintroduce a version a chronological feed option in 2022, Instagram head Adam Mosseri said today in a Senate panel on teen safety (via Engadget).

"We're currently working on a version of a chronological feed that we hope to launch next year," Mosseri said, explaining that Instagram believes in giving people more control over how they view content.

Such a feature has apparently been in the works "for months" with Instagram targeting a launch in the first quarter of 2022.

When Instagram first launched, it provided a chronological feed that displayed the newest Instagram posts when you opened up the app, but in June 2016, Instagram swapped over to an algorithmic feed that displays posts based on relevancy.

Instagram has not had an option for a chronological feed for the past five years, so introducing an alternative to the algorithmic feed will be a major change. There have been multiple complaints about the Instagram feed over the years, and in 2018, the company did tweak the algorithm to make newer content show up more often.

Instagram has claimed that its algorithm is designed to surface the moments that people care about the most, highlighting posts based on interaction frequency and timeliness, but many Instagram users will likely be happy to have a chronological option.

Apple today informed developers that it is raising the prices of apps and in-app purchases in Turkey due to changes in foreign exchange rates. The pricing changes will go into effect in the next few days.

When taxes or foreign exchange rates change, we sometimes need to update prices on the App Store in certain regions and/or adjust your proceeds.

In the next few days, prices of apps and in-app purchases (excluding auto-renewable subscriptions) on the App Store will increase in Turkey. Your proceeds will be adjusted accordingly and will be calculated based on the tax-exclusive price.

Once these changes go into effect, the Pricing and Availability section of My Apps will be updated. You can change the price of your apps and in-app purchases (including auto-renewable subscriptions) at any time in App Store Connect. If you offer subscriptions, you can choose to preserve prices for existing subscribers.

Tier 1 apps in the country will now be priced starting at 16.99 lira, up from the 10.99 price that was set in October when Apple first raised its App Store pricing in Turkey. 16.99 is equivalent to approximately $1.24 at the current time.

Apple in late November temporarily halted sales of devices in Turkey with the deepening of the country's economic crisis. Apple's online store in the country stopped allowing customers to make purchases, as did some retail locations.

Apple resumed sales in Turkey a few days after the pause, introducing significant price increases. An iPhone 13, for example, is priced at 14.999 TL, up from the original 11.999 TL price before the hike.

The value of the Turkish lira has seen a significant drop over the course of the last few weeks, continuing a trend that began last year. A Turkish lira is now equivalent to approximately 0.073 U.S. dollars.

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.

Apple today introduced a redesigned website for its Open Source projects, which houses Apple's open source work like Swift, WebKit, ResearchKit, FoundationDB, and more. The updated site can be found at opensource.apple.com.

The site includes two main sections, including Featured Projects to showcase a selection of Apple's open source work, and a second section for Releases.

The Featured Projects section includes Apple Projects that are led by Apple and developed alongside the open source community, and Community Projects that are headed up by organizations outside of Apple but contributed to by Apple engineers.

The Releases section will see Apple making its open source releases available as git repositories on GitHub, which will make them more accessible to software developers. Apple has added improved capabilities for search, seeing differences between different versions, and browsing through the code in macOS, iOS, and developer tools.

Apple has successfully won a stay on an injunction that would have required it to make sweeping App Store changes as soon as December 9, so for the time being, Apple can continue to require developers to use its in-app purchase system without offering alternatives.

The judge in the ongoing Epic v. Apple lawsuit had ordered Apple to allow developers to provide customers with alternatives to in-app purchases within their apps, and she gave the Cupertino company until December 9 to implement the changes. Apple asked for a stay, which she denied, and after that denial, Apple kicked the request up to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.

The appeals court granted the stay, and said that Apple has demonstrated that its appeal raises "serious questions" about the ruling in the original case.

Apple has demonstrated, at minimum, that its appeal raises serious questions on the merits of the district court's determination that Epic Games, Inc. failed to show Apple's conduct violated any antitrust laws but did show that the same conduct violated California's Unfair Competition Law. [...]

Therefore, we grant Apple's motion to stay part (i) of paragraph (1) of the permanent injunction. The stay will remain in effect until the mandate issues in this appeal.

The court has stayed the enforcement of the injunction until it is able to fully hear the case, which could take several months. While the court considers Apple's appeal, Apple will be able to operate the ‌App Store‌ as is.

In the original ruling, Judge Yvonne Gonzalez-Rogers said that Apple would be prohibited from restricting developers from including "in their apps and their metadata buttons, external links, or other calls to action that direct customers to purchasing mechanisms," paving the way for alternate payment options that do not require Apple to use the in-app purchase system.

Apple has argued that the proposed ‌App Store‌ changes could "upset the careful balance between developers and customers provided by the ‌‌‌App Store‌‌‌," resulting in irreparable harm to Apple and consumers, and Apple has also claimed that it needs more time to work through "the complex and rapidly evolving legal, technological, and economic issues" that the required change would cause.

Should the appeals court ultimately rule in Apple's favor after examining the case, the injunction could be vacated permanently. Apple's win today means we will need to wait several more months for the legal process to play out before any ‌App Store‌ changes are implemented.

As for Fortnite, there is no clear path for the app to return to the ‌App Store‌ and it appears it will continue to be unavailable on Apple's platform.

Apple on Tuesday seeded the macOS Monterey 12.1 Release Candidate to developers for testing, and according to the release notes, the update resolves an issue with the notch obscuring "menu bar extras" on the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro.

"Menu bar extras" are the tiny icons that appear on the right side of the menu bar, providing users with convenient access to app-specific controls. These icons could become overlapped by the notch on the new MacBook Pro models, causing the icons to be hidden or only partially visible, but Apple said this bug has been fixed in macOS 12.1.

As for top-level menus like File, Edit, and View on the left side of the menu bar, developers can update their Mac apps to play friendly with the notch. As a last resort for apps that have not yet been updated, users can enable a "scale to fit below built-in camera" setting for the app to adjust the active area of the MacBook Pro's display, ensuring that the app's menus appear below the notch and are always visible.

These changes come after several users complained about the notch interfering with menu bar items on the new MacBook Pro models.

macOS 12.1 also resolves several other bugs, including issues with Tap to Click, HDR video playback on YouTube, and MagSafe charging:

This release also includes bug fixes for your Mac:

- Desktop and Screen Saver may appear blank after selecting photos from the Photos library
- Trackpad could become unresponsive to taps or clicks
- External displays may not charge some MacBook Pro and MacBook Air computers when connected using Thunderbolt or USB-C
- HDR video playback on YouTube.com could cause 2021 MacBook Pro computers to panic
- Menu bar extras may be obscured by the camera housing on 2021 MacBook Pro computers
- MagSafe may stop charging on 2021 16-inch MacBook Pro computers when lid is closed and system is shut down

macOS 12.1 is expected to be released to all users as early as next week. When available, users can install the update by clicking on the Apple logo in the top-left corner of the screen, clicking on About This Mac, and clicking on the Software Update button.

iOS 15 is meant to include several new features for the Wallet app, including support for car keys, hotel keys, HomeKit house keys, and IDs. Many of the features have yet to roll out, but as of today, Apple Wallet will begin supporting hotel keys.

Hyatt, a well-known hotel chain, today announced that it is adopting Apple's Wallet technology and will be introducing Apple Wallet room keys across six U.S. hotels in Hawaii, Key West, Chicago, Dallas, Silicon Valley, and Long Beach.

Customers at participating hotels will be able to add a room key to the Wallet app and then tap their iPhone or Apple Watch to unlock their rooms and common areas like gyms, pools, and elevators. Adding a key to Apple Wallet requires iOS 15, and it also works with an Apple Watch running watchOS 8.

Guests can hold their device near the door's NFC-enabled lock to access key card-protected areas, and with the Express Mode, an ‌iPhone‌ does not need to be unlocked to use the room key. Should their ‌iPhone‌ run out of battery, the Power Reserve feature allows it to continue to be used for unlocking the door for up to five hours.

According to Hyatt, members are able to add their room key to Apple Wallet after placing a reservation, and the wallet entry will let them know when check-in time arrives. When the guest is at the hotel and the room is ready, the Apple Wallet key will activate. The hotel can remotely update the guest's room key in Apple Wallet should a room change be needed, and when checking out, customers can do so through the Hyatt app, which deactivates and archives the key stored in Apple Wallet.

While the Apple Wallet key technology is being tested at just six locations right now, Hyatt expects it to roll out across all global properties in the future.

Apple is now providing customers who have faced a costly out-of-pocket repair for an iPhone or Mac with a second chance to purchase AppleCare+ coverage for the device, although there are some strings attached to the policy.

In an internal memo this week, obtained by MacRumors, Apple said customers who had an iPhone or Mac repaired at an Apple Store or Apple Authorized Service Provider are now eligible to purchase AppleCare+ for the device, so long as the device was purchased less than one year ago and passes a physical inspection and diagnostics after repair.

For customers who are unsure if their iPhone was repaired by an Apple Authorized Service Provider, iOS 15.2 introduces a new "Parts and Service History" in Settings > General > About that indicates if components like the battery and display are genuine Apple parts. The software update is expected to be released as early as next week.

Customers are still required to pay Apple's full out-of-warranty fees for any repairs completed prior to purchasing AppleCare+ coverage for the device.

An example scenario: A customer named John purchases a new iPhone, but he decides not to pay for AppleCare+ coverage for the device. A few months later, John drops the iPhone and the display is cracked. John takes the iPhone to an Apple Store to be repaired and faces costly out-of-warranty service fees since he decided not to purchase AppleCare+. Since the iPhone is less than one year old, John is advised that he can still purchase AppleCare+ for the device so that any subsequent repairs aren't as expensive.

The policy is in effect at Apple Store and Apple Authorized Service Provider locations in all countries and regions where AppleCare+ is available.

This expanded AppleCare+ eligibility for repaired iPhones and Macs should further boost Apple's services revenue, which hit a record $18.27 billion last quarter.

The United Kingdom will phase out and turn off its 2G and 3G networks by 2033, the British government today announced (via TechRadar).

BT already committed to ending its 3G service by 2023, but now all major carriers in the UK are in agreement to retire 2G and 3G over the next decade. The networks are due to be switched off as part of plans to accelerate the roll out of 5G across the country. The UK government added that the move also paves the way for future 6G services.

While the number of people reliant on 2G and 3G networks is relatively low, retiring them will allow operators to reclaim spectrum to be used in 4G and 5G networks, as well as save money being spent on powering and maintaining inefficient legacy equipment. 2G may remain in use for longer than 3G because it offers wide coverage and comparatively low power requirements which make it ideal for some IoT deployments.

In the United States, carriers have begun a similar process, with Verizon planning to shut down its 3G network on December 31, 2022.

While the original iPhone from 2007 supported 2G networks, the ‌iPhone‌ did not support 3G until the device's second generation. Such was the importance of 3G connectivity to the second-generation ‌iPhone‌ that it was called the "‌iPhone‌ 3G." The ‌iPhone‌ did not get 4G until the launch of the ‌iPhone‌ 5 in 2012, and the drive toward 5G across the industry did not gather pace until the launch of the ‌iPhone‌ 12 lineup last year.

eBay this week is offering a 20 percent discount on select brands including Anker, Bose, Jabra, Spigen, TP-Link, and more. This sale runs through December 13 and requires the coupon code SAVEONFAVES to be entered at checkout.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with eBay. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

There are 46 total brands that are eligible for this sale, and you can find the full list on eBay. To redeem the coupon, shop for items at one of the participating brands on eBay, enter the code SAVEONFAVES at checkout, and pay for the items before 11:59 p.m. Pacific Time on December 13.

Shoppers should remember that while some brands sell directly themselves on eBay, like Anker, some products will still be sold by third-party resellers, as is most popular on eBay. Keep an eye on an item's "condition" field to ensure what you're buying is new. We've listed a few of the most popular tech-related brands participating in this sale below:

• Anker
• Spigen
• Jabra
• Bose
• TP-Link
• iRobot

There is a $25 minimum purchase requirement for the coupon code to work, and the coupon discount is capped at a maximum value of $500. The code can be used once per transaction, but each user can redeem the code twice.

Be sure to visit our full Deals Roundup to shop for even more Apple-related products and accessories.

Satechi today announced the launch of several new products, including a Thunderbolt 4 Dock, a USB-C Multiport MX Adapter, and a USB-C Multimedia Adapter M1, all of which have been designed with Apple silicon Macs in mind.

According to Satechi, the $300 Thunderbolt 4 Dock was created for M1 Max MacBook Pro owners, offering up 11 ports that can be used through a single connection. There are three Thunderbolt 4 ports, four USB-A ports, a Gigabit Ethernet port, a pair of UHS-II SD and micro SD card readers, and a 3.5mm audio jack port. The Dock provides dual 4K HDMI video support, up to 40Gb/s data transfer speeds, and up to 96W charging.

Satechi is shipping the dock with a removable AC adapter that can add an extra boost of power for high-powered peripherals. Like all of Satechi's docks, it is made from aluminum that is meant to match the design of Apple's MacBooks.

Priced at $150, The USB-C Multiport MX Adapter offers up six total ports, and Satechi says it's ideal for the ‌M1 Max‌ ‌MacBook Pro‌ and iPad Pro. It features two 4K HDMI ports (one 60Hz and one 30Hz), a USB-C Power Delivery Port that supports up to 100W, a USB-C data port, SD and micro SD card slots, a headphone jack, an Ethernet port, and two USB-A ports.

The $180 USB-C Multimedia Adapter features a total of six ports, including two 4K HDMI ports (one 60Hz and one 30Hz), a USB-C Power Delivery charging port that supports up to 100W, a USB-C data port, and two USB-A ports.

The Thunderbolt 4 Dock is priced at $300 and can be purchased from the Satechi website or from Best Buy, as can the $150 USB-C Multimedia Adapter. The $180 USB-C Multiport MX Adapter can be purchased from the Satechi website or from Amazon.com.

Satechi is offering an exclusive discount for MacRumors readers on the two adapters. Use the promo code MAC25 to get 25 percent off at checkout on the Satechi website.