MacRumors

Ahead of its upcoming bench trial against Epic Games, Apple today filed 500 pages of documents covering findings of fact and conclusions of law, which basically summarizes the information exchanged between Apple and Epic, presents the relevant facts to the judge, and argues for the logical conclusions that should be drawn when law is applied to the case.

Apple sticks to many of the talking points that it has argued since the beginning of its dispute with ‌Epic Games‌. The App Store has remained unchanged in terms of general fee structure since it first debuted in 2008, and while policies have been updated, the development principles have remained the same.

Apple sees Epic's challenge as an attack on its fundamental ‌App Store‌ business model of 13 years. Apple maintains that its rigorous review guidelines for apps provide consumers with security, privacy, and reliability, something that its devices are also known for, leading to significant benefits for end users and developers.

The 30 percent fee that Apple charges is in line with the fees charged by other app marketplaces and software providers as demonstrated in a study that Apple had commissioned earlier this year, and Apple recently introduced the Small Business Program to drop fees to 15 percent for developers making under $1 million annually. Apple entered a market where 30 percent commissions were already accepted -- it did not set that rate when the ‌App Store‌ launched.

In response to claims that the ‌App Store‌ is anticompetitive because there are no alternate app stores allowed on the iPhone, Apple points to competition in the device and game transaction markets. There are other platforms that people can choose, along with other gaming options, and web apps are supported on ‌iPhone‌ and iPad as gaming alternatives that Microsoft and Google have already taken advantage of. Apple uses Epic's main title, Fortnite, to illustrate its point.

Epic's flagship game, Fortnite, illustrates the competitive landscape. Apple supports "cross-plat- form" play and cross-platform transactions. The same consumer can make in-app purchases of V-Bucks on her iPhone (through the browser) during a lunch break, and on a console at home in the evening. Apple (unlike some of its competitors) allows "cross-wallet" play, so that in-game purchases--called V-Bucks in Fortnite--can be made on one device and used on another. In other words, an iOS user can purchase V-Bucks on a PC and then (prior to Fortnite's removal) use them in Fortnite on their iPhone or iPad--with Epic owing not even a penny's commission to Apple.

Epic internal documents related to "Project Liberty" suggest that Epic has been plotting against Apple and Google since 2018. Epic began Project Liberty when it saw a decline in its average monthly active users and revenue, devising a strategy to pay less commission while still taking advantage of the benefits of the ‌App Store‌ and the money that Apple has invested into the ecosystem.

‌Epic Games‌ hired lawyers and a PR firm as part of its plan to launch a lawsuit against Apple, ultimately shelling out hundreds of thousands of dollars. Epic outlined its plan to get Fortnite approved with hidden alternate payment options, which was then activated by a hotfix, leading to the current dispute. Epic internal documents described the legal battle against Apple and Google as "fun!" and contemplated how to get Apple and Google to reconsider their fees without ‌Epic Games‌ looking like "the baddies."

This was all part of a pre-planned media strategy called "Project Liberty." Epic retained Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP and a public relations firm in 2019, and this lawsuit is the culmination of that effort. Epic seeks to portray Apple as the bad guy so that it can revive flagging interest in Fortnite. Yet, ironically, when Epic got kicked off the iOS platform, it told players that they could continue playing on consoles, PCs, and other devices--demonstrating the existence of competition and the absence of monopoly.

Tim Sweeney, the CEO of ‌Epic Games‌, has confirmed Project Liberty in prior interviews and has said that Epic spent months preparing the lawsuit against Apple, though Apple's court filings provide new insight into the lengths that Epic went to in order to rope Apple and Google into an antitrust lawsuit.

Apple argues that an expansion of antitrust law is unwarranted and that Epic's product market descriptions are inaccurate because of the other platforms the ‌App Store‌ is competing with. Apple claims that Epic overstates the ‌App Store‌'s profitability, and that arguments that the review process is ineffective are inaccurate. Last year, Apple rejected 150,000 apps, and malware on iOS devices is almost unheard of compared to the high number of malicious apps found on PCs and Android devices.

Apple says that Epic's claim that the market is only iOS apps will fail, and that the relief that Epic seeks would be harmful for consumers and developers as it would weaken the ‌App Store‌. Apple also sees the ‌App Store‌ as an integrated feature of the ‌iPhone‌ and in-app purchase as an integrated feature of the ‌App Store‌ that does not allow for third-party payment options, which is what Epic is aiming for.

At bottom, Epic is asking this Court to force alternative terms on Apple so that Epic can make more money. But Epic's request would harm other developers and consumers, in addition to imposing unprecedented obligations on Apple to open its proprietary systems and engineering to third parties.

The Epic v. Apple bench trial is set to start on May 3, and it will conclude the week of May 24. Both Epic and Apple will call high-profile witnesses, including Apple CEO Tim Cook, Apple Fellow Phil Schiller, Apple engineering chief Craig Federighi, and former iOS software chief Scott Forstall, who will be testifying on behalf of Apple.

T-Mobile today hosted an Un-carrier event where the company announced the launch of a a new 5G home internet plan, which is priced at $60 per month and offers unlimited data.

The service is available to more than 30 million Americans across much of the United States, including 10 million households in rural areas not typically able to access reliable broadband. Connectivity will be either 4G or 5G, depending on what's available in a given area.

T-Mobile is promising average speeds of 100Mb/s for "most" new customers, and the company is providing a 4G/5G modem that can be set up in minutes by plugging it in and downloading an app. The service is priced at $60 per month with AutoPay, and T-Mobile says there are no added taxes or fees, no contracts, and no equipment fees, plus data is unlimited. Potential customers can visit T-Mobile's website to see if they're eligible.

To further its availability in rural areas, T-Mobile is launching the "Hometown" initiative to bring 5G to rural America. This plan will include hiring 7,500 employees in small towns and rural communities and providing $25 million in grants for community development projects.

In areas where T-Mobile is unable to open new stores, the company will have "Hometown Experts" that are the official T-Mobile representative in a community. T-Mobile is hiring 2,500 Hometown Experts for small towns.

T-Mobile today also announced a trade-in program for a free iPhone 12 with the trade-in of an ‌iPhone‌ 11, half off an ‌iPhone‌ 12 with the trade-in of older ‌iPhone‌ models ranging from ‌iPhone‌ 7 to ‌iPhone‌ X, and half off the iPhone 12 mini with the trade-in of any older ‌iPhone‌. Trade-in compensation is provided through 24 monthly bill credits to ensure customers stick with T-Mobile.

For existing customers, T-Mobile is upgrading all T-Mobile and Sprint customers to unlimited plans for free. Customers who have AT&T or Verizon with fixed data plans can also trade-in older smartphones for a free Samsung Galaxy A32 5G.

Apple has a trio of manufacturers lined up with new products that are able to integrate with the Find My app, including Chipolo's item trackers, Belkin's SOUNDFORM earbuds, and e-bikes from VanMoof.

Starting today, new S3 and E3 electric bikes ordered from VanMoof will be compatible with the ‌Find My‌ app, and will be able to be tracked using ‌Find My‌ right alongside Apple devices.

Once connected to the ‌Find My‌ app, a VanMoof S3 or X3 bike will be listed in the "Items" tab on the ‌Find My‌ app, and will be trackable should the bike go missing. Items that integrate with ‌Find My‌ can take advantage of the networking feature that Apple built into the app, so any nearby iPhone, iPad, or Mac will be able to detect a lost item and securely relay its location to the owner.

New VanMoof models with ‌Find My‌ integration can be ordered today, though it takes months for new bikes to be shipped out. VanMoof's bikes are priced starting at $1,998.

Belkin is also working on a Find My-enabled accessory, the SOUNDFORM Freedom True Wireless Earbuds. Belkin actually announced these earbuds in January at CES, and in addition to ‌Find My‌ integration, they'll offer up to eight hours of play time, environmental noise cancellation, and Qi-based wireless charging.

Belkin's SOUNDFORM Freedom True Wireless Earbuds are only available for preorder and are expected to be released in June, which is also the launch timeline for the Chipolo ONE Spot item trackers with ‌Find My‌ integration that we covered in another article.

Given the long wait times for these new devices, it could be a few months before we're able to get a hands-on look at how ‌Find My‌ integration works with third-party accessories. Apple says that additional manufacturers will be releasing devices with ‌Find My‌ integration in the future.

Apple today announced the launch of its Find My network accessory program, allowing compatible third-party accessories to be tracked in the ‌Find My‌ app right alongside Apple devices. The first products that work with the Find My app will include a new Chipolo item tracker, Belkin earbuds, and select VanMoof e-bikes.

While it was initially suspected that Find My's third-party accessory support might require the latest software, this is not the case after all. The updated Find My app with a new Items tab is available starting today on devices running iOS 14.3 and later, iPadOS 14.3 and later, and macOS Big Sur 11.1 or later, following a server-side change.

Approved products will feature a "Works with Apple Find My" badge. When a Find My-enabled product has gone missing but is nearby, users can activate a sound on the item in an effort to pinpoint its location.

Apple is widely rumored to be working on its own item tracker called AirTags, and users would be able to keep track of AirTags-equipped products in the Find My app. However, given that AirTags have been rumored for nearly two years now and Apple is promoting the third-party Chipolo item tracker, it's unclear if and when AirTags will be announced.

Following Apple's official launch of the Find My network accessory program, Chipolo has announced the launch of the new ONE Spot item tracker that is one of the first devices that will be trackable using the ‌Find My‌ app.

The ONE Spot is designed to work exclusively with the ‌Find My‌ app, and it gives us a closer look at how third-party ‌Find My‌ accessories will work and perhaps hints at what we could see from Apple's own AirTags item trackers that are rumored to be in the works.

Chipolo's ONE Spot is a simple, round black item tag with a hole at the top to allow it to be attached to different devices. Design wise, it's not too different from what rumors have suggested the AirTags will look like (small, white, round tags), but it's also kind of a general design that all item tag options use.

The ONE Spot will be able to be added to the ‌Find My‌ app using the "Items" tab, which is also where it will be able to be tracked. You can put the ONE Spot on any device, ranging from keys to wallets to expensive equipment like cameras and luggage.

Chipolo describes the ONE Spot as water resistant and lightweight, features also rumored for the AirTags. The ONE Spot has a replaceable battery that will last for up to twelve months, and that's something we could perhaps see in the AirTags. Rumors have been unclear on whether AirTags will have a rechargeable battery or a standard battery that can be replaced.

In the ‌Find My‌ app, the ONE Spot will be trackable on a map with the last known location listed if it's out of range. You'll be able to play a sound to find a device that's nearby, and it can be put into a Lost Mode, which is also how AirTags are expected to work.

In Lost Mode, the ‌Find My‌ network, comprised of millions of iPhones, iPads, and Macs, can be used for tracking purposes and will let the item's owner know if it happens to be located. If the ONE Spot is found by someone other than the owner, that person can use the ‌Find My‌ app on iPhone to identify it and be taken to a website that will offer a message and a phone number for contact purposes.

According to Chipolo, the ONE Spot uses "advanced encryption" to ensure that no one else is able to view the location of the tag, including Apple and Chipolo. Apple is requiring this security of all ‌Find My‌ accessories.

The ONE Spot item tracking tags connect to an ‌iPhone‌ over Bluetooth, but the AirTags will have the added benefit of Ultra Wideband support that will work with the U1 chip in the ‌iPhone‌ 11 and ‌iPhone‌ 12 models. Ultra Wideband support will allow for more precise tracking than standard Bluetooth, especially when an item is lost nearby. Third-party devices will be able to use the U1 chip too, with Apple rolling out a U1 chip specification today.

The ONE Spot from Chipolo is not yet available, but it will be shipping out in June. There is a waitlist on the Chipolo website to get exclusive access to pre-orders before it sells out.

Apple today announced the launch of its Find My network accessory program, which lets third-party accessories integrate with the ‌Find My‌ app.

Initial ‌Find My‌ accessories from VanMoof, Belkin, and Chipolo will work with ‌Find My‌ using Bluetooth, but Apple is developing a U1 specification for chipset makers that will let third-party devices take advantage of the U1 Ultra Wideband chip built into the iPhone 11 and ‌iPhone‌ 12 models.

According to Apple, third-party accessories that offer Ultra Wideband support for the U1 chip will be able to offer a "more precise, directionally aware experience when nearby," making tracking an item to a specific location easier, especially when that item is close by.

Items that have Ultra Wideband will be able to be tracked more precisely with devices that have a U1 chip, which includes all of the ‌iPhone‌ 11 and ‌iPhone‌ 12 models.

Apple's decision to open up access to the U1 chip in the iPhones for ‌Find My‌ will put third-party accessories that integrate Ultra Wideband on par with the rumored AirTags. AirTags will feature U1 chip support for more accurate tracking, according to rumors, so Apple will have no specific edge over competitors with the way that the ‌Find My‌ program is set up.

There has been some pushback from Tile on rumors of AirTags, so Apple likely wanted to avoid any kind of situation where it looked like its own accessories were getting special treatment not available to third-party accessories.

Apple says that its U1 specification will be available to device makers "later this spring," so it will still be some time before we see Ultra Wideband-compatible accessories that work with the ‌Find My‌ app.

Apple today announced the launch of its Find My network accessory program, which is designed to allow third-party Bluetooth devices to be tracked in the ‌Find My‌ app right alongside your Apple devices.

According to Apple, the first accessory companies to take advantage of the new ‌Find My‌ integration include Belkin, Chipolo, and VanMoof, with devices set to be available beginning next week.

VanMoof's newest S3 and X3 e-bikes will integrate with ‌Find My‌, as will Belkin's Soundform Freedom True Wireless Earbuds and the Chipolo ONE Spot item finder. Apple says that additional third-party manufacturers will offer Find My-enabled products and accessories soon.

"For more than a decade, our customers have relied on Find My to locate their missing or stolen Apple devices, all while protecting their privacy," said Bob Borchers, Apple's vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. "Now we're bringing the powerful finding capabilities of Find My, one of our most popular services, to more people with the Find My network accessory program. We're thrilled to see how Belkin, Chipolo, and VanMoof are utilizing this technology, and can't wait to see what other partners create."

Apple has a strict set of rules for devices that are part of the ‌Find My‌ Network accessory program, and all third-party products must adhere to all of the privacy protections of the ‌Find My‌ Network.

Participating ‌Find My‌ products will be able to be found in the "Items" tab and will have a "Works with Apple ‌Find My‌" badge. You will be able to see ‌Find My‌ accessories in the ‌Find My‌ app under the Items tab, where they can be tracked like Apple products. Third-party accessories can be added to the ‌Find My‌ app on devices running iOS 14.3 and later or macOS Big Sur 11.1 and later.

‌Find My‌ accessories will be able to be tracked on a map and there will be an option to play a sound to locate a lost device. Items can be put into a Lost Mode, which locks them to an Apple ID and prevents another person from pairing to it. Items can be associated with a phone number and message in case someone finds it, and users can get notifications when an item's location becomes available.

Third-party ‌Find My‌ devices will be able to take advantage of the ‌Find My‌ network that uses crowdsourced data from millions of Apple devices to detect missing devices or items and report an approximate location back to the owner.

Apple today also announced a draft specification for chipset manufacturers that will be released later in the spring. It will allow third-party device manufacturers to take advantage of the Ultra Wideband technology in U1-equipped Apple devices, such as the iPhone 11 and ‌iPhone‌ 12 lineups. U1 integration will allow for a more precise, directionally aware item location experience.

Apple today seeded the seventh betas of upcoming iOS 14.5 and iPadOS 14.5 updates to developers for testing purposes, with the new beta updates coming one week after Apple released the sixth iOS and iPadOS 14.5 betas.

iOS and iPadOS 14.5 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 14.5 is the biggest update to iOS 14 to date, introducing several significant new features. First and foremost, Apple is making it easier to unlock an iPhone when you're wearing a face mask with a new "Unlock with Apple Watch" feature.

This opt-in option lets you use an unlocked and authenticated Apple Watch as a secondary authentication method to unlock an ‌iPhone‌ alongside Face ID. With this feature, you no longer have to enter a passcode or remove your mask to unlock your ‌iPhone‌. Both an ‌iPhone‌ running iOS 14.5 and an Apple Watch are required to use this, and the Apple Watch cannot authenticate Apple Pay purchases, App Store purchases, or unlock third-party apps that use ‌Face ID‌.

The update also brings worldwide support for 5G in Dual-SIM mode on ‌iPhone‌ 12 models, so if you use multiple lines, both can now connect at 5G speeds. Prior to now, Dual-SIM mode was limited to LTE networks.

With watchOS 7.4, iOS and iPadOS 14.5 include AirPlay 2 support for Apple Fitness+, so Apple Fitness+ subscribers can start a workout on an ‌iPhone‌ or iPAd and then AirPlay it to a compatible smart TV or set-top box. ‌AirPlay‌ 2 supports audio and video, but it does not display on-screen workout metrics.

PlayStation 5 DualSense and Xbox Series X controllers are supported on the ‌iPhone‌ and the ‌iPad‌ with iOS 14.5, and code suggests that Apple is going to add joint account support for the Apple Card in the near future.

iOS 14.5 includes a Waze-like crowdsourcing feature for reporting accidents, hazards, and speed checks along a route in Maps when getting directions.

There's a new "Report" button available in the Apple Maps app that lets you tap to report an accident, hazard, or speed trap at your location in the ‌Apple Maps‌ app, which is a feature that mapping app Waze offers. This is available directly on the ‌iPhone‌ and in CarPlay.

There are several new emoji characters in the iOS 14.5 beta, with Apple introducing heart on fire, mending heart, exhaling face, face with spiral eyes, face in clouds, along with different gender options for people with beards. There are also new couple emojis that have new skin tone mixes.

Apple removed the blood from the syringe emoji, updated the Headphone emoji to look like the AirPods Max rather than a generic set of headphones, and added a helmet to the rock climbing emoji.

In the Find My app, there's a new "Items" tab that's been added, which will work with non-Apple products like Beats headphones and Belkin's wireless earbuds that have been designed to integrate with the ‌Find My‌ app. Anything item tracking function that uses Apple's ‌Find My‌ API will be shown here right alongside your Apple devices, and the Items tab will also work with AirTags when those are finally released.

The iOS 14.5 beta addresses the green tint issue that some ‌iPhone‌ owners have been experiencing, with Apple confirming that the beta has "optimizations" to help with the issue.

"iOS and iPadOS 14.5 beta 2 includes an optimization to reduce the appearance of a dim glow that might appear at reduced brightness levels with black backgrounds," reads Apple's iOS 14.5 beta notes. For some users, there are improvements thanks to the optimizations, but for others, the issue still appears to exist, so Apple may have some further work to do.

iOS 14.5 also includes a new process for recalibrating the battery health reporting in the ‌iPhone‌ 11, 11 Pro, and Pro Max. Apple says that the update recalibrates the maximum battery capacity and peak performance capacity on the ‌‌iPhone‌ 11‌ models to address inaccurate estimates of battery health reporting that some users have encountered.

iOS and iPadOS 14.5 add a new feature for choosing a preferred streaming music service to use with Siri. So if you prefer Spotify over Apple Music, for example, you can now choose Spotify as the app you want to use with ‌Siri‌ and all ‌Siri‌ song requests will go through Spotify without the need to add "on Spotify" to the end of ‌Siri‌ requests. This is a new ‌Siri‌ intelligence feature that works with music apps, podcast apps, and audiobook apps.

There are two new ‌Siri‌ voices in iOS 14.5, and ‌Siri‌ is no longer female by default in the United States, with users instead able to select their preferred Siri voice at setup.

iOS 14.5 is the update where Apple will begin requiring developers to comply with its App Tracking Transparency rules. Going forward, developers will need to ask for and receive your permission to access your random advertising identifier and track your activity across apps and websites.

Apple has made design tweaks to the Apple News and Podcasts apps, plus there are new print and sort options in Reminders. There are new settings for emergency alerts, a horizontal loading screen on the ‌iPad‌, and tons of other smaller feature tweaks that are outlined in our full iOS 14.5 features guide, which we've been keeping updated throughout the testing process.

Apple today seeded the seventh beta of an upcoming watchOS 7.4 update to developers for testing purposes, with the new beta coming one week release of the sixth beta and over two months after the launch of watchOS 7.3 with "Time to Walk" functionality, expanded ECG availability, and a new Unity watch face.

To install the ‌watchOS 7.4 beta, developers need to download the proper configuration profile from the Apple Developer Center. Once the profile is in place, the watchOS 7.4 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.

Alongside iOS 14.5, watchOS 7.4 introduces a new "Unlock with Apple Watch" feature that lets an ‌iPhone‌ with Face ID use an unlocked and authenticated Apple Watch as a secondary authentication measure when you're wearing a mask, alleviating the need to enter a passcode to unlock the ‌iPhone‌.

‌Face ID‌ does not work when wearing a mask, but this new Apple Watch feature provides an easy but still secure way to access the ‌iPhone‌ without the hassle of a passcode. It's similar to the Apple Watch unlocking on Mac and can be enabled in the Settings app under ‌Face ID‌ & Passcode.

An unlocked Apple Watch paired with ‌Face ID‌ can unlock the ‌iPhone‌ when a mask is worn, but it's only for mask usage. The Apple Watch cannot be used to authenticate Apple Pay or App Store purchases, nor can it be used to unlock apps that require a ‌Face ID‌ scan. In these situations, the mask will need to be removed or a passcode/password will need to be used instead.

When the Apple Watch unlocks the ‌iPhone‌, you'll feel a haptic tap on the wrist and will receive a notification on the watch, similar to how it works when using the watch to unlock a Mac.

For those who use Apple Fitness+, the watchOS 7.4 update combined with iOS 14.5 and iPadOS 14.5 enables AirPlay 2 for Apple Fitness+, so workouts can be streamed to an ‌AirPlay‌ 2-enabled TV or set-top box. Apple Watch metrics do not show up on the screen when AirPlayed, however, and that feature is limited to ‌iPhone‌/iPad/Apple TV.

Intel has been on a relentless marketing drive against Mac computers in recent weeks, positioning them as inferior to Windows laptops powered by Intel processors. In a slight slip-up, however, Intel has accidentally used a MacBook instead of a Windows laptop in one of its newest ads to promote one of its new 11th-generation chips as "the world's best processor."

The ad appeared on Reddit and was shared on Twitter by @juneforceone, and it features a man using what clearly seems to be a MacBook Pro. The ad's tagline says, "The world's best processor on a thin and light laptop," and is meant to promote the Intel Core i7-1185G7 processor.

The image Intel uses in the ad is actually a stock image offered by Getty Images, which clearly shows the laptop is indeed a ‌MacBook Pro‌ with an accompanying Magic Mouse.

Apple continues to sell Mac computers with Intel chips, despite its ongoing transition to its own Apple silicon. But while Apple still sells Intel-based Macs, the chip referenced in the ad is not used in any Mac, and in fact, it was launched around the same time Apple released its M1 Apple silicon chip late last year.

One of Intel's most notable marketing campaigns was launched last month and features former "I'm a Mac" actor Justin Long in a series of videos comparing a ‌MacBook Pro‌ powered with ‌M1‌ to a variety of Windows laptops. Even as the two companies go head to head, newly appointed Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger says he hopes that his company will make Apple silicon chips in the future and have Apple as a normal client.

Apple's iPhone 12 lineup holds its value over 20 percent better than the Samsung Galaxy S21 range, according to data gathered by SellCell.

Despite having been on sale for considerably less time than the ‌iPhone‌ 12 lineup, with orders arriving from late January this year, the Samsung Galaxy S21 series is failing to hold its value as well as its main competitor.

By measuring each handset's suggested retail price against its monthly and total depreciation based on the value of "good" and "used" devices, SellCell was able to precisely calculate the depreciation of each device.

The ‌iPhone‌ 12 range has lost value by 18.1 to 33.7 percent since its launch in October 2020. The Samsung Galaxy S21 series, on the other hand, has seen significant depreciation of between 44.8 and 57.1 percent since its launch in January 2021.

The 64GB ‌iPhone‌ 12 and the 512GB ‌iPhone‌ 12 Pro lost the most value with depreciation of 33.7 percent, while the 128GB iPhone 12 Pro Max was the smallest loser with depreciation of just 18.1 percent. The 512GB ‌iPhone 12 Pro Max‌, as the most expensive ‌iPhone‌ 12 model, still performed much better than the equivalent most expensive Samsung Galaxy S21 device, the 512GB Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra, which lost 53.3 percent of its value.

Similar losses are seen across the S21 lineup, with the 128GB Galaxy S21 losing 50.8 percent of its value, and the 256GB model losing 57.1 percent. Despite only launching in January 2021, all of the Samsung S21 handsets have lost almost 50 percent of their value, which seems like a very substantial loss considering they have only been on the market for three months.

It is also worth noting that, compared to the ‌iPhone‌ 12 lineup, the S21 range costs more in a direct like-for-like comparison. Samsung's most expensive smartphone, for example, costs $1,599, compared to Apple's $1,399. This means that the losses on the Samsung devices are also much larger by the dollar as well as by percentage.

While the ‌iPhone‌ 12 handsets have also depreciated, their losses have occurred at a considerably slower rate, and a significantly lower percentage, not to mention the overall lower initial retail prices. This is also amid the ‌iPhone‌ 12 series having a two-month head start on launch. The markedly better performance of the ‌iPhone‌ 12 series in terms of resale value may be attributed to better existing demand for the same devices after the point of the initial sale.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg's own personal information was among the details of 533 million Facebook users that leaked in a data breach, it has emerged.

Facebook has now confirmed that the leaked data was obtained not by a hack, but by scraping the platform prior to September 2019. The company now says that an exploit was found in its contact importer, but the "specific issue that allowed them to scrape this data in 2019 no longer exists."

Facebook has not clarified exactly what personal information leaked about the 533 million users, and has only said that "the information did not include financial information, health information or passwords." Although the company has not issued an apology over the data breach, it has said that Facebook is "focused on protecting people's data" and recommends that "people do regular privacy checkups to make sure that their settings are in the right place, including who can see certain information on their profile and enabling two-factor authentication."

Wired reported late last week that the personal information of a number of high-profile individuals was among the leaked details, including those of Zuckerberg:

The information from more than 500 million Facebook users in more than 106 countries contains Facebook IDs, phone numbers, and other information about early Facebook users like Mark Zuckerburg and US secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg, as well as the European Union commissioner for data protection, Didier Reynders. Other victims include 61 people who list the "Federal Trade Commission" and 651 people who list "Attorney General" in their details on Facebook.

Pundits investigating the data breach also discovered that Zuckerberg is in fact a user of the encrypted messaging app Signal. Since WhatsApp, which is owned by Facebook, announced a number of changes to its privacy policy that would allow for more data sharing with its parent company, Signal has seen a surge in popularity, so it is interesting to see that the Facebook CEO himself is a user of the privacy-focused rival app.

Facebook and its subsidiary, Instagram, were found to be the most "invasive" apps for collecting data from users under Apple's app privacy labels. The company has also come under fire from security researchers for collecting and using data from link previews in Facebook Messenger and Instagram in a way that would breach European privacy law.

Facebook has suffered from major data breaches in the past. In 2018, a security vulnerability allowed hackers to steal data on 29 million Facebook users, including personal details about usernames, relationship status, religion, birthdate, location, and more.

Apple is on a trajectory to sell a record-breaking 240-250 million iPhones in the 2021 fiscal year, topping a previous record of 231 million iPhones sold in the 2015 fiscal year, according to Wedbush analyst Dan Ives.

"While the Street is forecasting roughly 220 million iPhone units for FY21, we believe based on this current trajectory and in a bull case Cupertino still has potential to sell north of 240 million units (~250 million could be in the cards - an eye popping figure) which would easily eclipse the previous Apple record of 231 million units sold in FY15," said Ives, in a research note shared with MacRumors today.

Ives estimates that 350 million iPhone users worldwide are currently "in the window of an upgrade opportunity," which he believes is "translating into an unprecedented supercycle upgrade cycle" for Apple this year.

If this forecast proves to be accurate, the iPhone 12 lineup could prove to be the most popular since the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, which saw strong demand following their September 2014 launch due to their larger screen sizes. Samsung already offered multiple smartphones with screen sizes at or beyond the 5-inch mark at the time.

Starting with iOS 14.5, iPadOS 14.5, and tvOS 14.5, Apple will be requiring apps to receive a user's permission to track their activity for targeted advertising purposes, as part of a privacy measure known as App Tracking Transparency.

To help advertisers adjust to this change, Apple today shared a new version of its "A Day in the Life of your Data" document with details on two privacy-preserving ad measurement technologies that advertisers can use to measure the impact of their ad campaigns without tracking users, including SKAdNetwork and Private Click Measurement.

Apple says SKAdNetwork lets advertisers know how many times an app was installed after ads for it were seen, without any user or device data being shared. Likewise, Private Click Measurement allows advertisers to measure the impact of ads that lead users to a website while minimizing data collection using on-device processing. Apps can use Private Click Measurement starting with iOS 14.5 and iPadOS 14.5.

"A Day in the Life of your Data" has also been updated with new information that details how advertisers bid in an auction to show their ad on a user's device, and how advertisers use ad attribution to optimize their ad campaigns.

Apple reiterated that iOS 14.5, iPadOS 14.5, and tvOS 14.5 will be released in early spring, but no specific timeframe was outlined. In a recent interview, Apple CEO Tim Cook said the updates will be released in "just a few weeks."

Apple is opposing the trademarking of a bottled water business's logo since it argues that it can be easily mistaken for its own (via Law Street).

Apple filed a notice of opposition with the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board against Georgette LLC's logo, asserting that its brand will be damaged if the applicant's logo is registered because of dilution and the likelihood of consumer confusion, mistake, or deception.

Georgette's logo depicts a whole apple with the words "I am Arcus" over it, and with two leaves. Apple's logo, on the other hand, has a bite out of its right-hand side, and a single leaf. Apple says that the applicant's logo "features a stylized apple design with a right-angled, detached leaf, rendering it visually similar to Apple's famous Apple Marks."

Consumers encountering Applicant's Mark are likely to associate the mark with Apple. Applicant's Mark features a stylized apple design with a right-angled, detached leaf, rendering it visually similar to Apple’s famous Apple Marks. Indeed, the overall shape of Applicant's apple design is nearly identical to the shape of the Apple Logo

An image enclosed in the filing overlays Georgette's logo with Apple's logo, to reveal that they are even dimensionally similar.

Apple argues that since 1977 it has used its logo, which has gone on to become distinctive and gain a high level of consumer recognition and goodwill.

Applicant's Mark readily calls to mind Apple's famous Apple Logo given the visual similarities, and the Apple Marks are so famous and instantly recognizable that the similarities in Applicant's Mark will overshadow any minor differences and cause the ordinary consumer to believe that Applicant is related to, affiliated with or endorsed by Apple.

Beyond the obvious similarities between Apple's logo and that of Georgette, Apple is also arguing that it sells "goods related to beverages" featuring its logo, including mugs, thermal bottles, and water bottles, such as those available to customers exclusively at the Apple Park Visitor Center. Since Georgette wants to trademark its logo for "purified drinking water; bottled water," Apple believes this is even greater grounds to refuse the application.

Last year, Apple initiated trademark litigation with a small company called "Prepear," arguing that its pear-shaped logo was too similar to its own mark. Prepear ultimately changed its logo to bring the dispute to an end, but Apple continues to fiercely guard the trademark of its logo.